London, May 10: Manchester City kept the Premier League title race alive with a commanding victory over Brentford, while Nottingham Forest took a major step towards safety with a dramatic late equaliser against Newcastle United in an action-packed day of English top-flight football on Saturday.
Elsewhere, Crystal Palace dented Everton’s hopes of qualifying for Europe and Aston Villa’s push for a Champions League spot suffered another setback after they were held by already relegated Burnley.
Doku inspires City to win over Brentford
Manchester City bounced back from their frustrating 3-3 draw against Everton earlier in the week with an emphatic 3-0 victory over Brentford at the Etihad Stadium to move within two points of league leaders Arsenal.
Pep Guardiola’s side knew anything less than victory would severely damage their title hopes, and after a tense first half, the defending champions produced a clinical display after the break to keep the pressure firmly on Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal, who face West Ham on Sunday.
Belgian winger Jeremy Doku was City’s standout performer throughout the contest.
The lively forward nearly opened the scoring inside two minutes when he forced Brentford goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher into a sharp low save before delivering a teasing cross that Erling Haaland headed wide.
Brentford, however, looked dangerous on the counterattack and from set-pieces.
Gianluigi Donnarumma had to react quickly to keep City level, first flapping at Michael Kayode’s long throw before defenders cleared off the line, and later pushing away a curling Mathias Jensen free-kick.
The goal lifted the tension around the Etihad and City soon took complete control. Haaland bundled in the second goal with 15 minutes remaining before substitute Omar Marmoush sealed the win late on with a composed finish.
The victory leaves City two points behind Arsenal with two matches remaining, setting up a tense finish to the title race.
Anderson’s late strike edges Forest closer to safety
At the City Ground, Elliot Anderson came back to haunt his former club Newcastle United with a dramatic late equaliser that pushed Nottingham Forest closer to Premier League survival.
Forest appeared destined for defeat after substitute Harvey Barnes gave Newcastle the lead in the second half, but Anderson struck three minutes from time to rescue a crucial point for Vitor Pereira’s side.
The draw lifts Forest seven points clear of the relegation zone with only two games left, meaning they could secure survival if results elsewhere go their way.
The match itself was evenly contested with both sides creating opportunities.
Newcastle almost went ahead in spectacular fashion when William Osula’s free-kick crashed against the crossbar, while Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels spilled an earlier effort from Bruno Guimaraes.
Newcastle eventually broke the deadlock in the 74th minute when Jacob Ramsey slipped a perfectly weighted pass into the path of Harvey Barnes, who shrugged off Morato before finishing confidently beyond Sels.
The result leaves Newcastle stuck in the bottom half of the table following a disappointing campaign, while Forest moved a significant step closer to safety.
Mateta rescues Palace as Everton lose ground in Europe race
At Selhurst Park, Jean-Philippe Mateta struck late to earn Crystal Palace a 2-2 draw against Everton and deal a major blow to the visitors’ hopes of securing European football next season.
Everton started brightly and took the lead inside six minutes when James Tarkowski converted from close range after Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s corner had been flicked on at the near post.
Palace gradually settled into the game and equalised in the 34th minute through Ismaila Sarr. The Senegal international reacted quickest after Jordan Pickford parried an initial attempt, with Sarr’s rebound taking a slight deflection before finding the net.
The visitors regained their advantage just two minutes into the second half.
Tarkowski launched a long pass forward that found Beto, and the striker showed strength and composure to hold off Maxence Lacroix before slotting the ball through Dean Henderson’s legs.
With Everton eyeing a potentially crucial win in the race for eighth place, Palace pushed hard for another equaliser.
Their pressure finally paid off in the 77th minute when Tyrick Mitchell’s cross caused confusion inside the Everton box and Mateta smashed home emphatically past Pickford.
Burnley frustrate Villa in Champions League race
Aston Villa’s hopes of securing Champions League qualification through the Premier League suffered another blow after relegated Burnley battled to an entertaining 2-2 draw at Turf Moor.
Unai Emery’s side arrived full of confidence following their dominant Europa League semi-final victory over Nottingham Forest, but they produced a flat display and were fortunate to escape with a point.
Burnley took the lead when Jaidon Anthony reacted quickest after Emiliano Martinez parried Lesley Ugochukwu’s long-range strike into his path.
Villa thought they had equalised through Ollie Watkins, only for the striker’s header to be ruled out for offside following a VAR review.
The visitors eventually levelled when Ross Barkley glanced home an excellent header from John McGinn’s corner.
However, Burnley refused to surrender. A mistake from Matty Cash allowed the hosts to launch one final attack, and Zian Flemming capped off a flowing move with a composed finish to rescue a deserved point for the Clarets.
Villa also saw late appeals for a penalty waved away after Kyle Walker appeared to stand on Emiliano Buendia’s foot inside the area, but VAR chose not to intervene. (Agencies)
