Liverpool uphold Premier League title hopes

Spurs Suffer Loss, Cardiff Relegated
An 86th minute header from substitute Divock Origi kept Liverpool’s Premier League title bid alive with a 3-2 win at Newcastle United, yesterday.

The result leaves Liverpool with a two-point advantage over Manchester City, but Pep Guardiola’s team have two games remaining, including Monday’s home match against Leicester City, while Liverpool have just one.

Virgil Van Dijk headed Liverpool in front in the 13th minute, but seven minutes later Newcastle drew level through Christian Atsu.

Liverpool restored their lead in the 28th minute when Daniel Sturridge, starting in place of the injured Roberto Firmino back-heeled the ball from the corner to Trent Alexander-Arnold and the full-back’s cross was expertly turned in by Mohamed Salah.

Tottenham had two players sent off as they missed the chance to guarantee Champions League football next season after Nathan Ake scored an injury-time winner for Bournemouth.

It was far from ideal preparation for Mauricio Pochettino’s side, who face Ajax in the Champions League semi-final second leg on Wednesday in Amsterdam, having lost the first leg 1-0.

Son Heung-min was dismissed for pushing Jefferson Lerma at the end of a frantic first half, in which Eric Dier was lucky not to have been sent off and Bournemouth could conceivably have had two penalties.

Cardiff City will make an instant return to the Championship after their Premier League relegation was confirmed with a home defeat against an impressive Crystal Palace.

Needing to win this game to keep intact their faint hopes of staying up, Cardiff hit the post inside the first minute through Josh Murphy, but then fell behind when their former loanee, Wilfried Zaha fired into the bottom corner from the edge of the area.

The Bluebirds equalised less than two minutes later as Martin Kelly turned a Leandro Bacuna cross into his own net, only for Palace to regain the lead as Michy Batshuayi applied an emphatic finish to a fluent passing move.

Cardiff rallied with a handful of second-half chances but Andros Townsend crushed any lingering hopes the hosts had of avoiding relegation when he cut inside from the right wing and struck with a low effort that went in off the post.