Ibrahimovic levels United against Liverpool; Chelsea manage well without Diego Costa: Premier League round-up

Harry Kane scored a brilliant hat-trick as Tottenham opened the 21st round of Premier League matches with an easy win over West Brom.

Manchester United's Zlatan Ibrahimovic celebrates scoring against Liverpool. Phil Noble / Reuters

Here find summaries and fixtures for this round of Premier League matches. Stick with The National for more on the action

Sunday’s results

Everton 4-0 Manchester City

Everton: Lukaku (34'') Mirallas (47') Davies (79') Lookman (90'+4')

• Manchester City endured more misery on Merseyside by losing 4-0 at Everton in the Premier League on Sunday, leaving Pep Guardiola’s team out of the Champions League positions after the heaviest league defeat of the Spaniard’s coaching career.

Two weeks after a 1-0 loss at Liverpool, City was beaten across Stanley Park following goals by Romelu Lukaku, Kevin Mirallas, 18-year-old midfielder Tom Davies and 19-year-old debutant Ademola Lookman.

City has now lost three of its last four matches away, with the latest setback for Guardiola coming at the hands of a team managed by his former Barcelona teammate, Ronald Koeman. The team had dropped out of the top four — into fifth place — following wins for Tottenham and Arsenal on Saturday, and is now 10 points behind first-placed Chelsea.

Lukaku side-footed home a square ball from Mirallas to put Everton ahead in the 34th, with the move sparked by Davies intercepting Gael Clichy’s ball forward from left back.

* Associated Press

Manchester United 1-1 Liverpool

United: Ibrahimovic (84')

Liverpool: Milner (27' PEN)

• Richard Jolly: Depleted Liverpool must be encouraged

• Zlatan Ibrahimovic came to Manchester United’s rescue as his late header salvaged a 1-1 draw against bitter rivals Liverpool on Sunday.

Jurgen Klopp’s side silenced Old Trafford when James Milner converted a 27th minute penalty awarded for Paul Pogba’s needless handball.

But, not for the first time, Ibrahimovic was United’s saviour as the Swedish forward struck from close-range in the 84th minute for his 19th goal this season.

* Agence France-Presse

Saturday’s results

Leicester City 0-3 Chelsea

Chelsea: Alonso (6', 51'), Pedro (71')

• Marcos Alonso proved an unexpected replacement for the absent Diego Costa as Chelsea won 3-0 at Leicester City on Saturday to consolidate their position atop the Premier League table.

Costa, Chelsea’s top scorer, was missing after reportedly rowing with coaching staff about his fitness, but Spanish wingback Alonso’s double helped Antonio Conte’s side go seven points clear.

Tottenham Hotspur climbed into second place after Harry Kane claimed a hat-trick in a 4-0 stroll against West Bromwich Albion, with Arsenal moving up to third after winning by the same scoreline at Swansea City.

Chelsea’s 13-game winning run had been halted by a 2-0 defeat at Spurs on their previous league outing and preparations for the trip to Leicester were rocked by the Costa controversy.

Speaking before the game, Conte would only say that Costa, who is reportedly the subject of an eye-watering offer from China, had been unable to train due to “pain in his back”.

But the Brazil-born Spain international’s absence was quickly forgotten as Eden Hazard teed up Alonso to sweep Chelsea ahead in the sixth minute at the King Power Stadium.

Alonso struck six minutes into the second half as well, with a deflected shot, before Pedro Rodriguez headed in after Willian had been denied by Kasper Schmeichel.

It was Leicester’s 10th defeat of the campaign and kept the champions in 15th place, five points above the relegation zone.

* Agence France-Presse

Tottenham 4-0 West Brom

Tottenham: Harry Kane (12', 77', 82') McAuley 26' (OG)

More: Greg Lea on the overwhelming Harry Kane performance

• Tottenham Hotspur strengthened their push for the Premier League title with a 4-0 stroll over West Bromwich Albion on a special Saturday for their hat-trick hero Kane.

Kane, who became a father for the first time last Sunday, celebrated with a treble — and it could have been more — as Spurs coasted to a surprisingly easy win, their seventh straight victory in all competitions, to move into second in the table.

Kane’s crisply-finished goal after 12 minutes was the prelude to total Spurs domination and he came close to adding to his tally several times in the first half, with the excellent Ben Foster tipping one shot against the post.

Gareth McAuley, on an ill-fated 200th West Brom appearance, inadvertently deflected Christian Eriksen’s 26th minute shot past Foster and Kane struck with two sharp volleys in the last 15 minutes, the hat-trick goal coming from a lovely Dele Alli assist, to take his season’s tally to 15 in all competitions.

* Reuters

Swansea City 0-4 Arsenal

Arsenal: Giroud (37') Cork (54') Naughton (67' OG) Sanchez (73')

• Summary to come

West Ham 3-0 Crystal Palace

West Ham: Feghouli (68') Carroll (79') Lanzini (86')

• Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sanchez were both on target as Arsenal ran out 4-0 winners over beleaguered Swansea City in the Premier League on Saturday, sending their hosts to the bottom of the table.

Giroud, making a rare league start, put Arsenal ahead in the 37th minute when he stabbed home from close range after Mesut Ozil’s header deflected into his path.

Second-half own goals from Jack Cork and Kyle Naughton, both coming via deflections from shots by Alex Iwobi, put the game out of Swansea’s reach before Alexis Sanchez volleyed home in the 73rd minute to wrap up the win.

The victory lifted Arsenal provisionally into third place on goal difference above Liverpool, who play Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday.

* Reuters

Watford 0-0 Middlesbrough

• Watford fans paid an emotional tribute to Graham Taylor after the death of their former manager, but their team couldn’t match that fitting send-off in a dour 0-0 draw with Middlesbrough on Saturday.

Taylor passed away on Thursday at the age of 72 after suffering a suspected heart attack and the club where he made his name did him proud with moving tributes before the Premier League clash at Vicarage Road.

Fans gathered outside the stadium to lay flowers, many in the club’s yellow and red colours, alongside shirts, scarfs and other mementos in memory of the man who gave them so many unforgettable moments during his 15 years in charge.

A previously unglamorous club languishing in the fourth tier when Taylor arrived from Lincoln in 1977, Watford were utterly transformed as he led them to the top-flight in just five years.

It was a remarkable ride that produced Watford’s only FA Cup final appearance in 1984, the club’s first foray onto the European stage and an unlikely alliance with flamboyant pop star and Hornets owner Elton John.

* Agence France-Presse

Sunderland 1-3 Stoke City

Sunderland: Defoe (40')

Stoke: Arnautovic (15', 22') Crouch (34')

• Stoke City stunned Sunderland with a brilliant three-goal burst in 20 first-half minutes to win 3-1 at the Stadium of Light, despite a brave second-half fightback from the struggling Wearsiders.

Marko Arnautovic opened the scoring for Stoke in the 15th minute, rifling the ball home at the second attempt from a tight angle, and he added a second seven minutes later before Peter Crouch scored a towering header 11 minutes before halftime.

Jermaine Defoe slotted home Donald Love’s long ball five minutes before the break to reduce the deficit but, despite a spirited second-half display by David Moyes’ side, Sunderland could not conjure any more goals.

Sunderland, who travel to West Bromwich Albion next Saturday, slip to second from bottom of the table on 15 points while Stoke, who host Manchester United, climb to ninth on 27.

* Reuters

Burnley 1-0 Southampton

Burnley: Barton (78')

More: Richard Jolly on Joey Barton and Burnley

• Joey Barton marked his return to Burnley by scoring a 78th-minute winner from a free kick as the Clarets maintained their tremendous home form at Turf Moor with a 1-0 win over Southampton on Saturday.

The midfielder, who had left Burnley after helping them win promotion to the top-flight and endured a torrid time at Scottish club Rangers, struck his kick low and, after a deflection, keeper Fraser Forster was left no chance.

Dusan Tadic had come closest to putting the visitors ahead in the first half of a dull contest but after Barton’s goal, Southampton roared back in the last 10 minutes with Burnley left indebted to goalkeeper Tom Heaton for three late stops.

After Heaton had kept out both Jay Rodriguez and Josh Sims with a spectacular double save, Burnley managed to eke out their eighth home win of the season to leapfrog Southampton in mid-table.

* Reuters

Hull City 3-1 Bournemouth

Hull: Hernandez (32', 50') Mings (62' OG)

Bournemouth: Stanislas (3' PEN)

• Hull City secured their first Premier League win since November as Abel Hernandez scored twice in a rousing 3-1 home victory over Bournemouth on Saturday that lifted the Tigers off the foot of the table.

Hull moved up to 18th, level on 16 points with Crystal Palace above them, after fighting back from a dismal start when Junior Stanislas thumped Bournemouth ahead from the penalty spot after three minutes.

The lead lasted until the 31st minute when Hernandez, playing his first league game since November, timed his leap perfectly at the far post to head home Andrew Robertson’s cross.

Having been outclassed in the early stages, Hull turned the match on its head in the second half, with Hernandez drilling them ahead left-footed and a Tyrone Mings own goal sealing the victory.

* Reuters

Sunday fixtures (All times UAE)

* Agencies

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