League leaders Liverpool maintained their grip at the top with a 4-1 mauling of Chelsea while champions Manchester City continued their pursuit with a comfortable 3-1 against Burney. Spurs moved into fourth place having come back from a goal down at the break to defeat gutsy Brentford 3-2.
Twenty-year-old Conor Bradley scored his first goal for Liverpool and claimed two assists as Juergen Klopp’s team moved five points clear at the top of the Premier League table with a 4-1 thrashing of Chelsea on Wednesday.
Diogo Jota, Dominik Szoboszlai and Luis Diaz were also on target for Liverpool while Darwin Nunez failed to convert a first-half spot kick in a dominant display, but the hosts were perhaps lucky not to concede a penalty themselves with Chelsea having two strong appeals waved away.
“I don’t think you can have an outstanding team performance when the individuals don’t work together. The start was brilliant, we were really going for them,” Klopp told the BBC. “We were outstanding, it was a top game.”
Liverpool, unbeaten at Anfield this season in all competitions, have 51 points after 22 games. Manchester City, who have a game in hand, are second and level on points with third-placed Arsenal on 46. Chelsea are 10th with 31.
Bradley became the youngest Liverpool player to both score and assist a goal in a Premier League match since Raheem Sterling, who was on the pitch for Chelsea on Wednesday, nearly 10 years ago.
“I just feel like I’m in a dream,” Bradley told TNT Sports.
Liverpool, whose victory was their 200th under Klopp who announced last week that he will leave at the end of the season, played with great intensity from the opening whistle and Chelsea struggled to get out of their own half.
Nunez peppered Chelsea’s goal with seven shots in the first half, but it was Jota who broke the deadlock in the 23rd minute when he took a pass from Bradley, bundled past two Chelsea defenders to score.
Bradley, who has been exceptional since earning a starting berth following an injury to Trent Alexander-Arnold, whipped the Anfield fans into a frenzy in the 39th minute when he hammered an angled shot into the far corner after a surging run.
“What a wonderful kid he is,” Klopp said. “Outstanding finish, the whole game, the contribution, the involvement. It’s a job to play against Sterling, that’s not easy. I’m really happy for him… that was pretty special.”
The youngster from Northern Ireland left a defender in his wake in the 65th minute before launching a pinpoint cross that Szoboszlai leapt to head past Djordje Petrovic.
“We just gave everything that we had, the first 11 and the guys who came in. We showed our quality and 4-1 is a good result,” Szoboszlai told the BBC.
“(Bradley) just put the ball on my head so I didn’t really have to do much. We are really happy to have him because he showed many times that he is ready to play.”
Christopher Nkunku pulled one back in the 71st but Liverpool’s Diaz replied eight minutes later.
Liverpool had 27 shots to Chelsea’s four, with 12 on target, many of them by Nunez who also hit the post with a first-half penalty.
The Uruguayan became the first player since 2003-04 to hit the woodwork four times in a Premier League match.
Chelsea had two penalty appeals turned down, with both checked by VAR, the first when Virgil van Dijk brought down Conor Gallagher and the second when the Dutch defender appeared to kick Nkunku.
“It was bad luck for us,” Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino said. “But that doesn’t change the feeling Liverpool were better than us.”
Man City up to second as Alvarez brace sinks Burnley
Julian Alvarez celebrated his 24th birthday with two goals as Manchester City cruised to a 3-1 win over relegation-threatened Burnley at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday to climb to second in the Premier League table.
It was a stroll for the champions as Rodri added a third goal to ensure a 13th win in a row against Burnley, during which time City have scored 46 goals and conceded two. Ameen Al Dakhil netted a late consolation for the visitors.
Pep Guardiola’s side moved to 46 points from 21 games, two behind leaders Liverpool, who play Chelsea later on Wednesday. Burnley are second bottom and seven points from safety having played a game more than Luton Town in 17th.
City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne made his first start for City since the opening day of the season and striker Erling Haaland came off the bench for the final 20 minutes after missing the previous 10 games due to injury.
“I think we started very good. We didn’t give them options. The third goal in the second half, very early, allowed us to play more at the very end,” Rodri told the BBC.
“I’m so happy for him (Alvarez). What a good way to celebrate his birthday, he’s been brilliant this season and, of course, he’s a goalscorer.”
It was freezing cold in Manchester, but a night to warm the heart of Guardiola following a routine win, players successfully returning from injury and a celebration of his former City captain Vincent Kompany, now Burnley’s manager, before kick-off.
But there would be little sentiment once the game started. City took 16 minutes to have an attempt on target, but they opened the scoring from it.
Matheus Nunes broke down the right flank and his cross from the byline provided a simple headed chance for Alvarez to score and the Argentine doubled his tally six minutes later.
De Bruyne played in the striker with a clever low pass from a free kick to catch the visitors unaware and Alvarez produced a cool finish.
It took City 25 seconds in the second half to increase the lead to 3-0.
De Bruyne picked out Phil Foden on the right wing and his pass to Rodri on the edge of the box resulted in the Spaniard drilling the ball low into the bottom corner.
“I am very happy for Erling to come back, John (Stones) also, Kevin as well. We need all of them. We are stronger when we are all together,” Rodri said.
Burnley scored a scrappy consolation in the 93rd minute when Al Dakhil forced the ball over the line following debutant David Datro Fofana’s low cross into the six-yard box.
Tottenham go fourth with comeback win over Brentford
Tottenham Hotspur climbed to fourth place in the Premier League as a second-half broadside fired them to a 3-2 home victory against struggling Brentford on Wednesday.
Neal Maupay prodded a lively Brentford into an early lead and Tottenham were ragged before halftime but they responded after the break with Destiny Udogie, Brennan Johnson and Richarlison all scoring in a devastating eight-minute spell.
Sensational going forward, Tottenham left back Udogie’s defending was less impressive and his mistake allowed Ivan Toney to halve the deficit with plenty of time left.
Chances were created at both ends in the closing stages of an absorbing contest and Tottenham were indebted to a superb stoppage-time save by Guglielmo Vicario to secure a fourth successive home league win.
Ange Postecoglou’s side moved above Aston Villa on goals scored with both clubs on 43 points from 22 games, three points behind third-placed Arsenal.
Brentford’s sixth defeat in seven league games left them only four points above the relegation zone.
