Liverpool squandered a chance to exert some pressure on Premier League leaders Chelsea as Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe converted two penalties to earn the Premier League strugglers a 2-2 draw at the Stadium of Light on Monday; Manchester City won 2-1 thanks to a Sergio Aguero goal and Manchester United continued their winning streak, riding on another Zlatan Ibrahimovic strike.
Sadio Mane’s goal looked to have earned Liverpool a win that would have moved them within three points of Chelsea but the forward later handled the ball in the area to give in-form striker Defoe the chance to salvage a draw for his side.
In Manchester, 10-man City moved up to third place, two points behind Liverpool, as they beat Burnley with Gael Clichy and substitute Aguero scoring second-half goals after Fernandinho was shown a red card before the interval.
Ibrahimovic struck his 13th league goal of the season as United won 2-0 at West Ham to stretch their winning league run to six games, although they were helped by a 15th-minute red card for the home side’s Sofiane Feghouli.
Juan Mata’s superb finish from Marcus Rashford’s cross had given sixth-placed United the lead as Jose Mourinho’s side moved level on 39 points with fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur and 10 behind leaders Chelsea who visit rivals Spurs on Wednesday.
Hull City’s relegation worries intensified when they lost 3-1 at West Bromwich Albion despite taking the lead, while Middlesbrough eeked out a point against champions Leicester City in a drab 0-0 draw at the Riverside Stadium.
Everton manager Ronald Koeman enjoyed a 3-0 victory over his former club Southampton, although the goals scored by Enner Valencia, Leighton Baines and Romelu Lukaku all came late on.
Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp was left to rue two dropped points as his side’s four-match winning run came to a halt.
“I must be honest, it doesn’t feel good. It’s not because of the point. It’s because of two penalties in the game. That was harsh and really hard to accept,” Klopp said.
At West Ham, the game was overshadowed by referee Mike Dean’s harsh decision to send off Feghouli for a challenge on Phil Jones, while Ibrahimovic’s goal, coming after Mata’s 63rd minute opener, looked offside.
“It was never a red card,” said West Ham coach Slaven Bilic. “It was a challenge from both of them. The foul is (by) Phil Jones. He got the ball but went with the scissors (challenge). It was the key decision and it killed us.
“It put the game in a different perspective and was totally unfair for us. It was a big offside for the second goal. When the players are sprinting it is hard for the referees. But the players were walking. They should spot this.”
United boss Jose Mourinho was unapologetic for the advantage Dean’s decisions gave his side but said his players had not performed well in their second game in three days.
“I don’t feel sorry for West Ham – I didn’t watch the decisions. I think if you talk about decisions, we are the champions of bad decisions,” said the Portuguese coach.