LONDON: Sadio Mane rescued Liverpool as the Reds’ late show at Aston Villa maintained their title charge.

The forward’s stoppage-time header earned a thrilling 2-1 win just as Jurgen Klopp’s side looked like losing their unbeaten Premier League record.

Andrew Robertson had equalised with just three minutes left to cancel out Trezeguet’s first-half opener for the hosts.

Klopp saw his unbeaten side maintain their six-point lead at the top after Manchester City’s 2-1 comeback win over Southampton.

The top two face off at Anfield next Sunday after they both narrowly avoided upsets on Saturday.

VAR had earlier created more controversy when Roberto Firmino’s first-half strike was ruled offside, forcing the Premier League to clarify the decision at half-time.

Liverpool’s last visit to Villa Park saw them thump Villa 6-0 with the hosts waving the white flag en route to an embarrassing relegation three years ago.

But they faced a different, resurgent Villa this time, underlined by the way Anwar El Ghazi bundled his way through to fire at Alisson Becker after 31 seconds.

Mane brought down John McGinn and the midfielder’s delicious free-kick caught Liverpool cold to allow Trezeguet to volley in at the far post.

Trent Alexander-Arnold’s shot deflected over in response before Liverpool looked to have levelled just before the half hour.

Mane’s cross was tapped in by Firmino but he was flagged offside – and although VAR replays suggested the Brazilian was onside the decision stood.

At the break the Premier League stated on Twitter Firmino’s armpit was ahead of Tyrone Mings.

Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino was flagged offside before putting the ball in the net against Aston Villa and the decision was confirmed by VAR

Salah ballooned over two minutes before half-time as Liverpool tried to raise their game after the interval.

Georginio Wijnaldum and Mane shot at Heaton but the Reds’ attack struggled to find the same wavelength.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s introduction had added extra impetus and his cross found the onrushing Lallana, only for the unmarked midfielder to mishit his shot wide from eight yards.

Battling Villa refused to buckle, putting their bodies on the line to keep Liverpool at bay – until the 87th minute.

Mane’s deep cross found the unmarked Robertson and the Scot headed in at the far post from close range.

Then, in the fourth minute of injury time, Mane glanced in Alexander-Arnold’s corner to win it.

City hit back

Kyle Walker struck a late winner as champions Manchester City came from behind to snatch a hard-fought 2-1 win over Southampton in the Premier League.

City were stunned when Saints, thrashed 9-0 by Leicester in their last league outing, grabbed an early lead through James Ward-Prowse.

Despite near relentless pressure, the visitors repelled City time after time until Sergio Aguero finally equalised 20 minutes from time.

City kept up the tempo and Walker secured victory in the 86th minutes after Saints goalkeeper Alex McCarthy, brought in for Angus Gunn following the Leicester humbling, failed to claim an Angelino cross.

City had to dig deep for their victory against opponents with a point to prove, but it was one they ultimately deserved.

The hosts threw much at the visitors but could not find a way through with Jack Stephens’ early block on a Kevin De Bruyne shot a sign of things to come.

City were stunned as Southampton broke forward in the 13th minute and Stuart Armstrong tried his luck from distance.

Ederson seemed to be taken by surprise and spilled the low shot, offering a close-range opportunity for Ward-Prowse to snaffle up.

City rallied and pushed and probed at the Saints box with regularity, yet their every attempt to create an opening was pushed back.

Yet still more crosses were cleared and Gundogan had another attempt deflected wide and Sergio Aguero put a free header over from eight yards.

Pressure eventually had to to tell and Aguero made no mistake when presented with another chance in the 70th minute, firing Walker’s cut-back through McCarthy’s legs.

Aguero had another chance when he turned in side the area but his effort was deflected wide and Gundogan was similarly frustrated.

Yet City were not to be denied and Walker popped up in the right place as McCarthy failed to push away a cross from the left.

Old boy sinks United

Manchester United’s mini revival came to a shuddering halt after a superb solo goal from Joshua King earned Bournemouth a 1-0 victory at the Vitality Stadium.

United had been seeking a fourth successive away win in the space of just 10 days to further ease growing pressure on manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

But Cherries forward King, who began his senior career with United, condemned them to a fourth Premier League defeat of the campaign by neatly swivelling past Aaron Wan-Bissaka to volley home moments before the break.

The spotlight will once again fall on Solskjaer after he watched his team fail to build on quick-fire wins at Partizan Belgrade, Norwich and Chelsea in three different competitions.

United desperately pushed for a leveller during a dominant end to the game, with substitute Mason Greenwood striking the base of the right post before Bournemouth held on for a first win in five top-flight fixtures.

Arsenal struggle

Raul Jimenez was on hand to head home a late leveller for Wolves as Arsenal let a lead slip for the third time in a week to increase pressure on head coach Unai Emery.

The Gunners appeared to have put the issues surrounding Granit Xhaka to one side, the midfielder watching from home after swearing at supporters last week, when Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang struck, but a 1-1 draw here means Emery has overseen a run of two wins from the last nine Premier League games.

The Gabon striker – captain with Xhaka absent – took on the mantle and turned in his 50th Arsenal goal but the hosts were timid in attack and once again failed to keep a clean sheet as Jimenez rose to header in an equaliser with 14 minutes remaining to earn Wolves a deserved share of the spoils.

Emery recalled Mesut Ozil for only his second league appearance of the season but it was not enough to inspire his side to a much-needed victory.

Wolves started like a side full of confidence but despite plenty of possession they struggled to test Bernd Leno, a tame Joao Moutinho free-kick the closest they came before Arsenal began to assert themselves.

Aubameyang shot straight at Rui Patricio from a tight angle before Lucas Torreira saw his low drive deflected behind for a corner.

Wolves failed to clear their lines and David Luiz broke down the right with his low cross collected by Lacazette and turned on for Aubameyang to side-foot home from 12 yards and put the hosts ahead.

But Arsenal had Leno to thank for going in ahead at the interval as the Germany international did brilliantly to palm away Matt Doherty’s strike after being picked out free inside the penalty area.

Leno was back in action soon after the restart, diving to keep out Neves’ curling shot while Emery turned to his bench and called on in-form 18-year-old Gabriel Martinelli to replace Lacazette.

It was a tactical call from Emery which appeared to turn the game in favour of the opposition as he opted to replace defensive midfielder Torreira with teenage winger Bukayo Saka.

The change of shape and system seemed to catch Arsenal out and Nuno Espirito Santo’s side took full advantage as Moutinho crossed for Jimenez to get above Chambers and head low past Leno, the atmosphere inside the stadium immediately changing as a result.

Jeers and groans met every wayward pass and supporters headed to the exit en masse before the end of a game which Wolves were more likely to win in the closing stages.

Happy Seagulls

Brighton made it three wins from four matches with a 2-0 victory over relegation rivals Norwich.

Brighton had spent the afternoon failing to make their pressure tell and failing to execute their chances cleanly. That was until substitute Trossard showed them how to do it.

Montoya whipped in a wonderful ball from the right, and Trossard gambled to get the slightest of touches to direct the ball into the back of the net via a deflection.

Duffy then wrapped up the points, getting on the end of a whipped Trossard free-kick at the back post.

Lundstram on target

Sheffield United moved up to sixth in the Premier League table after a 3-0 victory against Burnley.

Blades boss Chris Wilder said this week that his side are still finding their feet in the top flight and they will improve, which bodes well for the remainder of the season based on their performance on Saturday.

John Lundstram’s double and another strike from John Fleck had United firmly in control at half-time. It was the first time the Blades had scored three goals in the first half of a Premier League game since May 1993, when they defeated Chelsea 4-2.

Wilder’s team did not add to their tally after the break but the result had Bramall Lane bouncing in the rain as United recorded back-to-back home wins and extended their unbeaten run to four league matches.

For Burnley it was a third straight league loss which leaves Sean Dyche’s men three places above the bottom three.

All three goals came down the left-hand side, the first after 17 minutes and it was a fantastic team move.

Enda Stevens played a pin-point pass from the left-back position down the line for McGoldrick deep inside the Burnley half. McGoldrick’s low cross into the penalty area was touched at the front post by

Lys Mousset into the path of the unmarked Lundstram, who steered his shot into the bottom corner of the net.

The Blades survived a VAR review after the ball struck Jack O’Connell on the arm, before two goals in 90 seconds just before half-time took the game away from Burnley.

In a move not too dissimilar to the opening goal, a neat one-two between McGoldrick and Stevens saw Mousset missed out at the near post and Lundstram pop up at the back post to slot the ball home.

Mousset was involved again for the third goal. The French forward won the ball off James Tarkowski and slipped a pass in behind the Burnley defence for Fleck to race on to a finish first time with a left-foot shot across goalkeeper Nick Pope.

Lundstram was on a hat-trick and tried his luck from long range, with Pope having to push away his effort.

Newcastle survive late scare

Newcastle roared into a three-goal lead and then held off a late comeback to beat West Ham 3-2 at the London Stadium.

Goals from Ciaran Clark, Federico Fernandez and Jonjo Shelvey fired the Magpies to their second away victory of the season and hauled them away from the drop zone.

They were assisted by a comically inept display from Manuel Pellegrini’s expensively-assembled side, who were booed off at half-time and by those fans who had bothered to stay until the end.

Late goals from Fabian Balbuena and Robert Snodgrass gave the scoreline a flattering look that West Ham did not deserve.

Before this Newcastle had not scored more than one goal in a match this season. Fernandez had never scored a goal for the Magpies. Yet West Ham simply laid out the welcome mat.

The debacle began in the 16th minute from a Newcastle counter-attack, Issa Diop forced to foul Miguel Almiron as the speedy Paraguayan threatened to burst into the area.

Diop earned a booking but worse was to come for the hosts when Shelvey whipped in the free-kick.

Joelinton rose highest at the far post to head the ball back across goal and Clark nipped in front of Aaron Cresswell to nod home.

If that was poor defending, West Ham outdid themselves six minutes later when a short corner found Jetro Willems, who lobbed a hopeful ball into the box.

Fernandez, eight yards out yet faced with neither Roberto or any semblance of a defence, could not believe his luck as he tucked away a simple header.

Newcastle had the ball in the net moments after the restart, but DeAndre Yedlin was offside.

It was only putting off the inevitable, with Shelvey nestling his 51st-minute free-kick into the back of Roberto’s net.

West Ham did muster a comeback of sorts, Balbuena scrambling in from a corner and, as the match entered stoppage time, Snodgrass volleying in a second.

Abraham and Pulisic on target

Chelsea racked up a fifth successive Premier League victory with a 2-1 success at Watford, whose winless start to the season has entered club-record territory.

Frank Lampard’s men are enjoying an impressive campaign and earned the three points at Vicarage Road thanks to goals from Tammy Abraham and Christian Pulisic.

Abraham bagged his 10th of the season in all competitions in just the fifth minute and Pulisic’s fourth in two league games after the break sealed the win that sends Chelsea back into third place.

They are just two points behind second-placed Manchester City and eight behind leaders Liverpool as their young and vibrant team continue to exceed expectations this term.

For Watford, it was the familiar taste of defeat and the 11 games they have gone without a win so far is the worst start to a league campaign in their history.

Gerard Deulofeu’s penalty, awarded by VAR after a lengthy checking process, set up a grandstand finish, but in truth had it not been for Ben Foster’s heroics in goal, the Hornets could have been looking at a defeat similar to the 8-0 mauling they suffered at Manchester City earlier in the campaign.
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