Manchester United had English Premier League leaders Liverpool looking anxiously over their shoulders after a 3-0 drubbing of Chelsea on Sunday put the champions just five points off the pace with two games in hand. Barcelona left it late to win at Osasuna and go 12 points clear in Spain while David Beckham played almost all the match on his debut for AC Milan, a 2-2 draw at AS Roma.
A Kamil Zayatte own goal two minutes from time gave Aston Villa a 1-0 win at Hull City on Tuesday and lifted them to fourth place in the Premier League.
IMAGES from the EPL matches played on Wednesday.
Liverpool's hopes of winning their first title in 24 years suffered a huge setback when they lost 2-0 at home to Chelsea and Manchester City took advantage with a 2-0 victory at Crystal Palace.
Arsenal claimed their first Premier League win at Everton for six years as Leandro Trossard's second-half strike proved enough to secure the points at Goodison Park on Sunday.
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Saudi clubs have spent more than 400 million euros ($439 million) in the close season to sign players from Europe's elite teams.
Liverpool have enough quality and strength in depth in the squad to win games and pick up important points during a demanding festive schedule, striker Christian Benteke has said.
Guardiola said City had plenty of options, with Gabriel Jesus the only main striker fit and ready but Ilkay Gundogan and Raheem Sterling are able to slot into the role.
'It was a bad day, sometimes it happens,' said Guardiola
Third-placed Leicester go to Hodgson's sixth-placed Crystal Palace on Sunday
Pep Guardiola called on the home supporters to give his players their full support
Preview and timings of the Premier League matches this weekend
Champions Manchester United's hopes of retaining their English Premier League title suffered another major setback on Saturday when they were beaten 1-0 at Old Trafford by a composed Newcastle United.
A summary of Wednesday's action in the Premier League.
Chelsea won their first competitive match under coach Mauricio Pochettino with a 3-0 home victory over Premier League new boys Luton Town.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has said his job at the English Premier League club may be on the line if they fail to win the Champions League title this season. City have won five major domestic trophies since Guardiola took over in 2016 -- including two Premier League titles and an historic domestic treble last year -- but have never progressed past the quarter-final stage of the Champions League since the Spaniard's arrival.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
"The best team won, we struggled from the beginning and we couldn't deal with their long balls. Usually, you press the ball to win it, but this was different. They defended so deep and so well," City coach Pep Guardiola told the BBC.
Defender Luke Shaw, who made a series of defensive errors alongside captain Harry Maguire on Sunday, echoed Ronaldo's comments.
However, one goal proved enough for City who picked up their sixth successive league win to move four points clear of Liverpool, who host Aston Villa later on Saturday, at the top of the standings.
Photos from the English Premier League matches played across England on Wednesday
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Manchester City shook off the impact of a COVID outbreak in their ranks to outclass Chelsea 3-1 at Stamford Bridge
English Premier League leaders Liverpool will need to maintain their excellent recent record against Everton in Sunday's Merseyside derby if they are to hold their advantage over second-placed Manchester City.
Such is the level of consistency of Manchester City (nine straight wins) and Liverpool (five straight victories), that it can be easy to lose sight of just how good this title race is.
Eight wins and a draw in their last nine games had seen Leicester emerge as the closest pursuers of runaway leaders Liverpool but they went down 3-1 at the Etihad despite taking an early lead through Jamie Vardy. Images from the English Premier League matches played on Saturday.
Real Madrid were the big winners in Spain as their success at Almeria was followed by a Barcelona draw and a surprise Atletico Madrid defeat.
Pep Guardiola said Manchester United's home ground Old Trafford is no longer the fortress it used to be as City look to win all three points and take the lead in the Premier League title race.
Jose Mourinho's wretched week ended on a high note as Manchester United's big guns Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba finally began firing, both finding the target in a 3-1 win at dismal Swansea City on Sunday. Mourinho watched from the stands at the Liberty Stadium following his touchline ban imposed by the Football Association on Wednesday and was buoyed to see Ibrahimovic score twice -- his first league goals in eight weeks -- and Pogba net a superb volley. United, vastly improved after their midweek Europa League defeat at Fenerbahce, went ahead with a 15th minute strike from Pogba worthy of his 89 million pounds price tag before Ibrahimovic ended his goal drought with a sharp first-half double in the space of 12 minutes.
Goals from Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne secured a comfortable win at the Etihad
Title-chasing Tottenham Hotspur made hay in the sunshine as Son Heung-min scored twice in a 4-0 thrashing of Watford that closed the gap on Premier League leaders Chelsea to four points in Saturday's early kickoff.
IMAGES from the English Premier League matches played on Saturday.
Merseyside Police is reportedly investigating racist abuse received by Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli on Twitter after he tweeted 'Man Utd...LOL' after the crushing 5-3 defeat met by Manchester United at the hands of Leicester on Sunday.
Images from Saturday's English Premier League matches.
A round-up of Wednesday's action in the UEFA Champions League.
IMAGES from the EPL matches played on Saturday
The 22-year-old has signed on an eight-and-a-half-year contract in deal worth 100 million euros ($108 million).
Manager Carlo Ancelotti said striker Kylian Mbappe's decision to snub Real Madrid and stay at Paris St Germain was not a distraction ahead of Saturday's Champions League final
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