Arsenal keep alive faint title hopes with 1-0 win over Chelsea
Arsenal defeated London rivals Chelsea 1-0 for their first win in four Premier League games on Sunday as a headed goal by stand-in striker Mikel Merino boosted their faint hopes of catching up with runaway leaders Liverpool.
Merino scored in the 20th minute when he stooped to flick his looping header over Robert Sanchez in the Chelsea goal after a Martin Odegaard corner.
The Spanish midfielder, who has led Arsenal's attack in the absence of injured colleagues in recent weeks, came close to a second goal in the 60th minute but his side-footed volley was kept out by a fine save by Sanchez.
Chelsea were also missing firepower up front with top scorer Cole Palmer absent through injury while centre forward Nicolas Jackson remains sidelined, also due to injury.
Without them, Chelsea struggled to threaten Arsenal's backline. The closest they came to an equaliser was in the 37th minute when defender Marc Cucurella hammered an angled volley at David Raya only for the ball to squeeze through the Arsenal goalkeeper's hands and go just wide.
The win left second-placed Arsenal 12 points behind Liverpool who face Newcastle United in the League Cup final later on Sunday.
Both the top two teams have played 29 games with a further nine rounds of fixtures to go.
Chelsea are fourth, one point ahead of Manchester City and five behind third-placed Nottingham Forest.
Substitutes Muniz and Sessegnon give Fulham 2-0 win over Spurs
Substitutes Rodrigo Muniz and Ryan Sessegnon struck late to give Fulham a 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Sunday as the Cottagers cut the gap on their rivals for European football next season.
Fulham were far superior in the first half but failed to capitalise as Timothy Castagne wasted their clearest opening when he scuffed a tame effort straight at Guglielmo Vicario.
Spurs, with seven changes from Thursday's 3-1 win over AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League, absorbed the pressure and defended well though they offered little going forward.
But Ange Postecoglou's double substitution at halftime, bringing on Son Heung-min and Lucas Bergvall, had the visitors much improved after the break.
Dominic Solanke twice headed wide before he spurned Spurs' best chance, slicing over from close range after substitute James Maddison chested a parried shot into his path.
Those Spurs opportunities seemed to revive Fulham and, shortly after Willian shot just wide, Muniz produced a superb first-time finish 12 minutes from time.
Spurs' Wilson Odobert was dispossessed almost immediately after coming on and Antonee Robinson's cross bounced around the penalty box before Muniz swept home his fifth league goal from the bench this season.
Fulham academy product Sessegnon, who moved to Spurs in 2019 before returning last July, scored the second goal of his second spell at Fulham to secure the victory in the 88th minute, prompting gleeful chants of "he's one of our own".
Fulham's win puts them eighth, with 45 points from 29 games – three points behind Manchester City in fifth, which could be good enough to qualify for next season's Champions League.
Spurs remain 13th, with 34 points from 29 games, and their prospects of European football next term depend entirely on winning the Europa League.
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