Arsenal clinched the top spot in the Premier League with a solid 3-0 triumph over Brighton, thanks to goals from Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz, and Leandro Trossard. This victory has hampered Brighton’s aspirations to qualify for the European Championships.
The Gunners, managed by Mikel Arteta, came to Amex Stadium having slid to the third position, following Manchester City’s 4-2 victory against Crystal Palace. The recently recovered top scorer, Saka, initiated Arsenal’s journey back to the pinnacle by successfully converting a controversial first-half penalty. Havertz contributed with a goal and Trossard, a substitute, cemented the victory against his old team.
The visitors from North London proved their mettle on the south coast and are now a point ahead of Liverpool and City. The focus now turns towards their quarter-final face-off against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
Meanwhile, Manchester City is maintaining the heat on their rivals for the title with a 4-2 win against Crystal Palace. Kevin De Bruyne managed to score his 100th goal for the club in this match. There had been uncertainty about whether De Bruyne or Erling Haaland would start the match; however, they both featured in the midday game at Selhurst Park.
The home team took the lead three minutes into the match thanks to Jean-Philippe Mateta, but De Bruyne quickly equalised. Rico Lewis put City in the lead with his second Premier League goal shortly after the second half began. De Bruyne later set up Haaland for City’s third goal and went one better by scoring his own goal, marking his century of goals for City in the 70th minute.
Despite Crystal Palace’s late attempt to close the gap with a goal from substitute Odsonne Edouard, the team managed by Pep Guardiola held their lead till the end.
Even though Crystal Palace’s position in the Premier League is relatively safe, their role in the title race could be significant, which will be closely watched by Arsenal and City.
The match between Aston Villa and Brentford ended in a draw, with a scoreline of 3-3.
Aston Villa’s aspirations of being in the top four were dealt a significant setback after they squandered a 2-0 advantage, ending in a 3-3 draw against Brentford. Brentford capitalised and scored thrice within a span of nine minutes despite conceding to Ollie Watkins and Morgan Rogers from Villa earlier.
The turnaround of Brentford put Villa on the backfoot, who had to scramble back, managing to salvage a draw with a header from Watkins. However, this result offered an advantage to Tottenham Hotspur in their quest for confirmed entry into the Champions League. Tottenham, trailing by three points in the fifth position are yet to face Nottingham Forest, who are battling relegation, and also have an additional match to play.
The stalemate adds to Brentford’s stretch of nine winless games and they would rue this missed opportunity.
In another match, Newcastle United snatched a 1-0 victory at Craven Cottage against Fulham thanks to a late goal by Bruno Guimaraes. Both teams struggled to find form on the day, but it was Newcastle who capitalised on their intermittent opportunity in the 81st minute. This outcome lengthens Fulham’s winless streak to three matches, a stark contrast to their 3-0 victory against Tottenham in March.
Meanwhile, Everton managed to secure their first Premier League triumph since December by frustrating Burnley into a defeat. Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who hadn’t scored in six months, broke the drought creating the pivotal goal, earning Everton the 1-0 victory. This win marked the end of a 14-match barren run for Everton. Calvert-Lewin seemed to gain momentum scoring consecutive goals for the first time since September. Burnley ended the match with 10 players after Dara O’Shea was sent off for a harsh tackle on his former teammate Dwight McNeil.
The much-needed single goal steered clear of equating the 1937 club-record of 14 league matches without a victory, boosting them to the 15th position. Yet they are only four points ahead of Luton who ranks 18th, following a win against Bournemouth. With the decision of a second independent commission concerning profitability and sustainability infractions pending the next week, the timing couldn’t be better. It’s worth noting that they have previously deducted six points owing to these infringements.
In contrast, Burnley, who is second from the bottom with a single victory out of 15 games, experienced their first loss in 5 games, which puts them six points away from safety.
In a match between Wolves and West Ham, the score went 2-1 in favour of West Ham thanks to the on-target corner kick of James Ward-Prowse. This win came right after Jarrod Bowen suffered an injury, casting shadows over their upcoming Europa League matchup against Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen. Despite Lucas Paqueta’s penalty in the 72nd minute neutralising a first-half penalty from Pablo Sarabia, Ward-Prowse used the windy conditions at Molineux to hit a corner in the 84th minute.
Meanwhile, Wolves captain Maximilian Kilman’s ninth-minute stoppage-time header was disqualified due to offside after an intervention by VAR. West Ham is now on par with sixth-placed Manchester United in the quest for Europa League places. However, with Bowen’s awkward tumble at the beginning of the second half and their Bayer Leverkusen match on the horizon, their European goals might be impeded.
David Moyes’s team did make a comeback from losing positions this season, amassing 19 points, nonetheless, this was only the third league win of West Ham in 2024.
In the match between Luton Town and Bournemouth ending 2-1, Luton made strides in ensuring their survival. Carlton Morris’s last-minute score secured the win, marking the end of their 10-match winless run in the league with theatrics. Morris made it to the far post to reroute Cauley Woodrow’s deep cross, leaving Andoni Iraola in the away dugout stunned.
In the initial half, Bournemouth gave a sterling performance, despite facing a home team that seemed to lack innovation; nevertheless, it wasn’t until post-break that they finally managed to score a goal via James Tavernier’s low shot. Luton managed a comeback rally and Jordan Clark achieved an equalizer, which appeared at that point to be an essential score in their struggle to avoid relegation. However, it was Morris’s last-minute strike that took everyone by surprise – he slipped the ball past a shocked Neto in the visitor’s goal, triggering scenes of jubilation.