MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Liverpool’s lead at the top of the Premier League was cut to seven points after a thrilling 3-3 draw with Newcastle on Wednesday.
Chelsea moved up to second by thrashing last-place Southampton 5-1, while Arsenal is third after a 2-0 win over Manchester United.
Fourth-place Manchester City ended its seven-game winless run with a 3-0 victory over Nottingham Forest.
Liverpool’s result will give hope to its title rivals after Fabian Schar’s 90th-minute equalizer at St James’ Park.
Arne Slot’s team had twice come back from a goal down to take the lead in the 83rd through Mohamed Salah’s second goal of the match. But the Merseyside club was denied an eighth-straight win in all competitions when Newcastle produced a fightback of its own.
“I have mixed feelings, we were outstanding in the second half, but we were not good enough in the first half,” Slot said. “Maybe 3-3 is what the game deserved.”
Chelsea and Arsenal took advantage. Chelsea’s third league win in a row puts it ahead of Arsenal on goal difference.
City also reduced the gap and is nine points behind Liverpool after finally ending the worst run of results of Pep Guardiola’s managerial career.
“We needed it. The club, the players, everyone needed to win,” Guardiola said.
Thrilling clash
After wins over Real Madrid and City last week, Liverpool’s title credentials were given a stern test by Newcastle, which led at halftime through Alexander Isak and again in the second half through Anthony Gordon.
Goals from Curtis Jones and Salah twice leveled the game before Salah looked to have sealed the win late on.
Schar equalized after Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher misjudged a late free kick. It meant Liverpool dropped points for only the third time this season after drawing against Arsenal and losing to Forest.
Chelsea challenge
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca said this week that his team was not in the title race, but the standings tell a different story.
The London club is Liverpool’s closest challenger after its latest win against 10-man Southampton.
Axel Disasi, Christopher Nkunku, Noni Madueke, Cole Palmer and Jadon Sancho were all on target in the rout at St Mary’s Stadium.
Southampton had briefly leveled the game through Joe Aribo, but Chelsea was already 3-1 up and in control when Jack Stephens was sent off before the break.
Arteta vs. Amorim
Arsenal inflicted a first loss on new United head coach Ruben Amorim with a 2-0 win at the Emirates Stadium.
Two goals from second-half corners made the difference, with Jurrien Timber and William Saliba finding the back of the net, but Arsenal still slipped to third, despite edging closer to Liverpool.
Mikel Arteta’s team finished runner-up in each of the last two seasons and looks primed to challenge again after making an unconvincing start to the campaign.
“You get written off but we stuck together as a group,” Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice said. “You stick together and we’re starting to reap the rewards of that.”
De Bruyne is back
Making his first start since September, Kevin De Bruyne showed City exactly what it has been missing by scoring a goal and creating another as the four-time defending champion got back to winning ways.
The Belgium playmaker provided the cross for Bernardo Silva to give City an eighth-minute lead against Forest at the Etihad Stadium. He produced a trademark finish to sweep the ball past goalkeeper Matz Sels in the 31st to put City on course for a first win in eight games.
Jeremy Doku made it 3-0 in the 57th, but it was De Bruyne’s performance that stood out after seeing much of his season disrupted by a groin injury. He left the field in the 74th to an ovation from the home crowd.
“It’s been a tough time but you have to accept the challenge and I think we did well today,” De Bruyne said. “The Premier League is getting harder and harder. We have to improve as a team first and we’ll see in a couple of months where we are. Hopefully, we would have improved a bit and are a lot closer.”
City injuries
But victory could have come at a cost with concerns over the fitness of Manuel Akanji and Nathan Ake, who both went off.
“Nathan doesn’t look good. We (will) see tomorrow,” Guardiola said. “Manu is making the last two months struggle a lot.”
Winning again
A first win in six games for Everton moved Sean Dyche’s team further away from the relegation zone, while back-to-back losses for Wolverhampton left the club second from bottom of the standings.
Ashley Young and Orel Mangala put Everton in control before two second-half own goals from Craig Dawson sealed a 4-0 win for the Merseyside club, which is five points clear of the bottom three.
Aston Villa ended an even longer winless run by beating Brentford 3-1 to secure a first victory in nine games in all competitions. Morgan Rogers, Ollie Watkins from the penalty spot and Matty Cash were on target.
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James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
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