Chelsea pushed Spurs at bay in the race for Champions League football, ending a four-game winless streak in the Premier League.
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Chelsea tightened their grip on a top-three finish with a 2-0 victory over Tottenham at Stamford Bridge, thanks to Hakim Ziyech’s stunning goal and Thiago Silva’s towering header. Chelsea pushed Spurs at bay in the race for Champions League football, ending a four-game winless streak in the Premier League to build up an 11-point gap between them and their London rivals.
Spurs arrived in west London in high spirits after Wednesday’s dramatic last-gasp victory at Leicester and were disappointed not to go into the break ahead after Harry Kane’s opener was controversially ruled out for a foul on Silva in the build-up despite spending the majority of the first half on the back foot.
Chelsea were wasteful in the first half but found their shooting boots in the second – and in style, as Ziyech’s incredible curled effort flew past a stationary Hugo Lloris into the top corner, before Silva doubled Chelsea’s lead and handed Conte his first league defeat as Spurs manager with a trademark glancing header.
On Sunday, Liverpool eked out a tense 3-1 win over Crystal Palace, keeping Manchester City at bay at the top of the Premier League table. Jurgen Klopp’s team got off to a flying start, with goals from Virgil van Dijk and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain putting the Reds 2-0 up and looking comfortable.
But Palace came back courageously, and 10 minutes after the interval, Odsonne Edouard tucked home a deserved reply after a number of chances. They were forced to pay for their errors, though, when Liverpool were granted a late penalty after a lengthy VAR review – and it was a contentious call, as Vicente Guaita and Diogo Jota collided inside the penalty area. Referee Kevin Friend swayed in Liverpool’s favour after checking the monitor.
Fabinho slotted home from the spot in the absence of Mohamed Salah, bringing Jurgen Klopp’s side to within nine points of Manchester City.
Burnley held Arsenal to a goalless draw at the Emirates Stadium, which led to the Gunners losing ground in the race for the top four. The Gunners controlled the game, trying 20 shots and controlling 76 percent of possession, but Burnley, who had not played a Premier League match in three weeks due to Covid postponements, firmly defended to earn a vital point.
Arsenal failed to turn their control into clear chances, and when they did, their finishing was poor, with Alexandre Lacazette missing the finest chance of the game when he fired an Emile Smith Rowe cut-back wide with the goal gaping.
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