Arsenal exacted sweet revenge on West Ham United with a 6-0 away thrashing to stay right in the thick of the English Premier League title race on Sunday, obliterating their hosts before half-time.
Mikel Arteta’s side had lost twice against their London rivals this season but were 4-0 ahead by half-time with goals by William Saliba, Bukayo Saka, Gabriel and Leandro Trossard.
The punishment continued in the second half with Saka making it 5-0 before former West Ham midfielder Declan Rice, who assisted two goals in the opening period, thumped his team’s sixth on a day of abject humiliation for the hosts.
It was a sublime display by Arsenal who wiped off a goal difference deficit to champions Manchester City who they joined on 52 points, although they stay in third place courtesy of scoring fewer goals. Leaders Liverpool have 54 points.
Arsenal were defeated by West Ham in the League Cup although the bigger blow was a 2-0 home defeat in December when they were guilty of squandering a host of chances.
Crucial three points
Scott McTominay's 86th-minute header gave Manchester United a priceless victory at Aston Villa as they fight for Champions League qualification.
United appeared to be clinging on for a point as Villa created a succession of chances after Douglas Luiz had cancelled out Rasmus Hojlund's first-half strike.
But McTominay settled a thrilling contest when he got in front of Matty Cash and rose to meet Diogo Dalot's right-wing cross.
With inputs from Reuters
Bundesliga: Leverkusen in driving seat
Leverkusen: Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen outplayed champions Bayern Munich for a 3-0 victory on Saturday that sent them five points clear at the top of the league table and put them firmly in charge of the title race.
Goals from Josip Stanisic, Alejandro Grimaldo and Jeremie Frimpong ensured the three points as Leverkusen, never having won a Bundesliga title, stretched their unbeaten run to 31 matches across all competitions this season.
Bayern, chasing a 12th straight league crown, were nowhere to be seen and managed only a single shot on target over the 90 minutes. Xabi Alonso’s team, which also twice hit the woodwork, are now on 55 points, with Bayern in second place on 50.
“It was a very disciplined performance from my team,” said Alonso. “It was not easy, but we waited for our chances. Maybe we did not have the ball too much, but we wanted to be dominant even without the ball.
“It was a very important win, but it’s just three points,” he added. “We have to keep going and remain calm.”
The game started after an eight-minute delay as fans threw candy onto the pitch before kick-off to protest the league’s plan to let a financial investor take a stake in the Bundesliga media rights company. Once proceedings got underway, the hosts proved more aggressive than Bayern, who initially had possession but lacked attacking ideas.
The Bavarians were also shaky at the back, struggling with Leverkusen’s increasing pressure. They were caught napping when Robert Andrich sent a cutback through the box with Stanisic left completely unmarked at the far post to tap in.
Reuters
