Liverpool draw at Arsenal as hapless Man Utd lose once more | USAEMALL.com

Liverpool have twice battled back from behind with Mohamed Salah’s 81st-minute goal earning them a 2-2 draw with injury-hit Arsenal in a match between Manchester City’s two biggest rivals for their Premier League title.

City ended Sunday a point clear atop the standings after Liverpool dropped points for just the second time in nine games this campaign.

City’s high-flying position contrasted starkly with the plight of neighbours Manchester United, who lost 2-1 at West Ham in another blow for the Red Devils’ under-pressure coach Erik ten Hag.

At the emirates Stadium, Arsenal took the lead through Bukayo Saka in the ninth minute and then looked to hold on after Spain midfielder Mikel Merino headed the team back in front in the 43rd following Virgil van Dijk’s equaliser.

But Salah denied Arsenal the win by converting a pass into the area from Darwin Nunez, who had been set free by a long ball from Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Salah has now scored against Arsenal in eight straight seasons.

Liverpool dropped into second place behind City, who won 1-0 at home to Southampton on Saturday, while Arsenal are five points off the pace and carrying a worrying list of injuries.

With captain Martin Odegaard and left back Riccardo Calafiori missing because of injury and centre back William Saliba suspended, the last thing Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta needed was two more defenders — Gabriel and Jurrien Timber — coming off with injuries.

It left Arsenal with a completely makeshift back four, including midfielder Thomas Partey at right back and 18-year-old rookie Myles Lewis-Skelly at left back, for the final stages, with Liverpool taking advantage.

At the London Stadium, ten Hag endured more misery as VAR overturned an on-field decision to offer West Ham a stoppage-time penalty that plunged his team to defeat.

Jarrod Bowen then converted the highly disputed penalty in the second minute of added-on time after a foul by Matthijs de Ligt as United counted the cost of a string of wasted chances, notably when Diogo Dalot sidefooted over when faced with an empty net in the first half.

“We have to score, we created so many chances,” said ten Hag, whose United team have lost four of their nine games and are languishing in 14th in the 20-team standings.

Crysencio Summerville had put West Ham ahead against the run of play in the 74th before Casemiro equalised for United.

Cole Palmer shone again for Chelsea in a 2-1 victory over Newcastle.

It was the England playmaker’s curling 50-metre pass behind Newcastle’s defence that sent away Pedro Neto down the left to set up Nicolas Jackson for Chelsea’s 18th-minute opener.

Alexander Isak equalised but Palmer drove home his seventh goal of the season in the 47th minute to secure the victory for Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

With five assists, too, Palmer now has a league-leading 12 goals involvements this campaign.

In the day’s other match, Tottenham’s inconsistency was on show again as Ange Postecoglou’s team lost 1-0 at Crystal Palace through a Jean-Philippe Mateta goal.

Palace’s first win of the season means they’re out the bottom three.

But Postecoglou wasn’t happy about the soft goal Spurs conceded by trying to play out from the back.

“It turned into a game they were thriving on and we should have dealt with it better,” Postecoglou said. “It was a poor goal to concede.”