Rodri saves Man City, Nunez completes dramatic win for Liverpool

LONDON: Manchester City narrowly escaped defeat, overcoming Sheffield United 2-1 to clinch the top spot in the Premier League.

Erling Haaland put the reigning champions ahead in the 63rd minute with a robust header, making up for his earlier penalty miss against the post, reports Xinhua.

With Pep Guardiola recuperating from a back surgery in Barcelona, deputy Juanma Lillo took the helm in the City dugout. Still, the team's strategy remained unchanged. By the time Haaland scored, City had launched 16 shots and earned 10 corners, while Sheffield United had none.

At 85 minutes, Sheffield United's Jaydon Bogle leveled the score with a forceful shot from City's right flank, making it 1-1.

However, in the 89th minute, Rodri secured City's win with a decisive left-footed strike.

In other matches, Liverpool, despite being a man down after Virgil Van Dijk's red card, clinched a thrilling 2-1 victory against Newcastle. Anthony Gordon had initially given Newcastle the lead in the 20th minute, capitalizing on a blunder from Trent Alexander Arnold. The situation worsened for Liverpool when Van Dijk received a red card for a harsh tackle on Alexander Isak. Yet, Darwin Nunez changed the narrative, netting a goal nine minutes from the final whistle, and then scoring the winner in stoppage time after a brilliant assist from Mohamed Salah.

Aston Villa's Matty Cash netted twice in the initial 20 minutes, setting a 2-0 lead against Burnley at Turf Moor. Burnley retaliated with a goal from Lyle Foster and had opportunities to tie the score. However, Moussa Diaby sealed Villa's triumph later in the second half.

West Ham United maintained their impressive form with a 3-1 triumph over Brighton. James Ward-Prowse, Jarrod Bowen, and Michail Antonio scored for the Hammers, while Pascal Gross managed to find the net for Brighton.

On Saturday, Tottenham, still undefeated under Ange Postecoglou, secured a 2-0 victory against Bournemouth, with goals from James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski.

Manchester United staged a comeback from a 2-0 deficit against Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford. Taiwo Awoniyi and Wily Boly gave Forest an early lead. However, with assists from Marcos Rashford and Bruno Fernandes, Christian Eriksen and Casemiro netted goals to level the game. Later, a penalty converted by Fernandes sealed United's win.

A dramatic match at the Emirates Stadium saw 10-man Fulham draw against Arsenal. Andreas Pereira scored for Fulham in the opening minute, but Arsenal's Fabio Viera played a pivotal role in turning the game around. However, Bukayo Saka equalized for Arsenal, and Eddie Nketiah then took them ahead. Fulham's Bassey received his marching orders after a second booking, but Joao Palhainha equalized for Fulham later.

Crystal Palace managed to level the score against Brentford, with Joachim Anderson netting the equalizer. Brentford had led thanks to Kevin Schande's early goal.

Everton's poor form continued as they suffered their third straight loss, with Wolves securing a 1-0 victory at Goodison Park, courtesy of Sasa Kalajdzic's late header.

To round up the week, Chelsea comfortably defeated newly promoted Luton Town 3-0, with goals from Raheem Sterling and Nicolas Jackson.