Premier League round-up: Man City 0-2 Man Utd; Liverpool 0-1 Fulham; Spurs 4-1 Palace; West Brom 0-0 Newcastle
Manchester United ended City's winning run, Liverpool lost at home again - this time to Fulham - and Spurs thrashed Crystal Palace.
Manchester City 0-2 Manchester Utd: City winning run ends at 21 games
It was a deserved victory for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men, with Pep Guardiola's side surprisingly below par at Etihad Stadium.
City's slow start was summed up by a clumsy Gabriel Jesus challenge on Antony Martial inside the opening 30 seconds which allowed Fernandes to score the resultant penalty, despite Ederson's best efforts.
A superb counter attack shortly after half-time sealed the three points, as Marcus Rashford and Shaw combined for the latter to fire home.
City, who still have an 11-point lead at the top of the Premier League, rarely threatened thereafter.
United kept their rivals at arms length to stretch their away unbeaten run to 22 league matches and move back into second place in the table.
Liverpool 0-1 Fulham: Reds lose sixth straight home match
Liverpool’s inexplicable downward spiral continued unabated as Mario Lemina’s first Fulham goal was enough for a 1-0 Premier League win as the struggling Cottagers gave their own survival hopes a massive boost.
Just when Jurgen Klopp thought things could not get any worse, after Thursday’s defeat to Chelsea brought up an unwanted club record, they did as he experienced his first loss against a promoted side which consigned the Reds to a sixth-successive home defeat.
So too for Mohamed Salah. Plenty had been made of his reaction to being substituted in midweek so what he really needed to do was lead from the front, having been handed the central striker’s role.
What he definitely did not need was to be the reason for Liverpool conceding the first goal for the sixth match in a row at Anfield, his loss of possession on the edge of his own area allowing Lemina to finish brilliantly just before half-time.
The Gabon midfielder became the first Fulham player to score against Liverpool at Anfield since Collins John in March 2006 as they won their first match on the ground since 2012, which on that day came courtesy of a Martin Skrtel own goal.
It meant Fulham’s revival, having lost just once in the last seven, are only in the bottom three by virtue of having a goal difference three worse than Brighton.
Liverpool remain four points off the top four and are likely to be further adrift by the time they run out for their Champions League last-16 second leg against RB Leipzig on Wednesday, a game which has taken on far more significance even though they hold a 2-0 lead.
Klopp’s seven changes – including three of his back four – with that in mind were the most between Premier League matches since the 2015-16 season, with the inexperienced pairing of Nat Phillips and Rhys Williams the 16th different centre-back combination to have started in 28 league matches.
Tottenham 4-1 Crystal Palace: Kane and Bale steal show
Harry Kane followed up two assists for Gareth Bale by bagging a brace himself as Tottenham moved up to sixth with a 4-1 victory over Crystal Palace in Sunday’s late kick-off.
Bale struck either side of Christian Benteke’s leveller before Kane took centre stage, with the England captain hitting a wonder strike before creating a moment of history.
Son Heung-min assisted Kane’s second and it was their 14th goal combination in the Premier League this season to beat the previous record of 13 set by Alan Shearer and Chris Sutton for Blackburn back in the 1994-95 season.
👌 Harry Kane's 23rd goal of the season is one of his very best!#THFC pic.twitter.com/QlQxc3uFLC
— Sporting Life Football (@SportingLifeFC) March 7, 2021
West Brom 0-0 Newcastle: Dour draw at The Hawthorns
West Brom slipped further towards the Premier League trapdoor after a dull draw with relegation rivals Newcastle.
The Baggies are eight points from safety following Sunday’s 0-0 stalemate.
Mbaye Diagne missed Albion’s best chances while Sam Johnstone denied Joe Willock to leave the Magpies four points above the bottom three.
Albion boss Sam Allardyce had labelled the game as must-win but the Baggies did not do enough against their fellow strugglers and, with 10 games left, are surely destined for an instant return to the Sky Bet Championship.
The Newcastle soap opera arrived at The Hawthorns for its latest episode after Matt Ritchie’s mid-week bust up with Steve Bruce.
With the foundations of the squad again tested the Magpies needed to hold their nerve and they at least stopped Albion gaining ground in the race for survival and climbed to 16th, a point above Brighton.
A point is unlikely to take much heat off Bruce and the Magpies, who have won just twice in their last 15 games, continue to lack inspiration without the injured Allan Saint-Maximin, Callum Wilson and Miguel Almiron.
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