London: Arsenal moved five points clear at the top of the Premier League on Wednesday night after a comfortable 4-0 win at home to relegation-threatened Everton.
Two goals in the last five minutes before halftime swung the game Arsenal’s way, with Bukayo Saka putting them ahead and Gabriel Martinelli adding a second in injury time. Martin Odegaard made the result safe in the 71st minute, and Martinelli’s second of the night made it 4-0 with 10 minutes left to play.
Goals from Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah in the 73rd and 77th minutes saw Liverpool take a 2-0 win at home to Wolves and moved Jurgen Klopp’s side to sixth in the table, a Xinhua report said.
Liverpool are six points behind fourth-place Tottenham and, with a game in hand, suddenly have a chance of qualifying for next season’s Champions League.
Tottenham had a bad night in the FA Cup as they were one of two Premier League sides to crash out of the last-16 of the tournament at the hands of lower-league opposition. Iliman Ndiaye’s brilliant 79th-minute goal after beating two rivals and shooting at the near post was enough to give the Championship promotion hopefuls a huge win.
The biggest shock of the day was caused by Grimsby Town of League Two (fourth division), who won 2-1 away to Southampton.
Two penalties scored by Gavan Holohan in the 45th and 50th minutes put Grimsby 2-0 up, and although Duje Caleta-Car gave the Premier League strugglers hope in the 63rd minute, Grimsby held on for a famous win, despite their rivals having 22 shots in the game.
Manchester United left it late to come back from a goal down and beat West Ham 3-1. Said Benrahma put the visitors ahead in the 54th minute, but Moroccan defender Nayef Aguerd nodded a corner into his own net with 13 minutes left to play.
Winger Alejandro Garnacho curled Manchester United in front in the 90th minute, and Fred rubbed salt into the wound for West Ham with United’s third deep into injury time.
Finally, Championship leaders Burnley beat League One’s Fleetwood Town 1-0, with a 90th-minute goal from Connor Roberts after the visitors had played the second half with 10 men after Cian Hayes was sent off on the stroke of halftime.
On Tuesday, Manchester City, Fulham, Brighton and Blackburn Rovers qualified for the quarter-finals, with Championship (second division) Blackburn producing another surprise with their 2-1 win away to Premier League Leicester City.
–IANS
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