Established 1961 15 Sports Sunday, December 17, 2017 Chelsea sink Saints, Ozil cracker downs Newcastle Huddersfield Town thrash 10-man Watford 4-1 LONDON: Chelsea kept their faint Premier League the area for his third goal of the season. Newcastle’s title hopes alive with a 1-0 win over Southampton, eighth defeat in their last nine league games leaves while Mesut Ozil’s stunning strike fired Arsenal to a 1-0 Rafael Benitez’s side mired in relegation trouble. victory against Newcastle United yesterday. With runaway leaders Manchester City in action BLAZED OVER against Tottenham Hotspur later, the focus turned to the Brighton and Hove Albion’s Glenn Murray missed a clubs desperately trying to hang onto their coat-tails. penalty in his team’s 0-0 draw against high-flying At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea sealed their second suc- Burnley at the Amex Stadium. Murray won a first-half cessive win to move within 11 points of City and draw penalty when he was fouled by James Tarkowski, but level on points with second-placed Manchester United, the Brighton forward couldn’t take advantage as he who face West blazed the spot-kick high Bromwich Albion today. over the crossbar. After a tame opening Huddersfield Town from the champions, who thrashed 10-man started with star striker Watford 4-1 to record Alvaro Morata on the Alonso their first away win since bench following a back the opening day of the injury, Antonio Conte’s provided the season. Elias Kachunga side finally opened the scored Huddersfield’s scoring in first-half stop- breakthrough first away goal since page-time. Marcos August, poking home Alonso provided the after Watford failed to breakthrough, the clear a sixth-minute cor- Spanish wing-back curl- ner. Congolese striker ing a free-kick past flat-footed Southampton goalkeep- Kachunga was stretchered off soon after, but the er Fraser Forster from 35 yards. Chelsea have won eight Terriers doubled their lead through Aaron Mooy’s of their last 10 league matches, but City remain out of close-range finish in the 23rd minute. A bad afternoon reach for now. At the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal won for for Watford got even worse when Troy Deeney was the first time in four league games to boost their bid to sent off by referee Michael Oliver for a lunge on Collin qualify for the Champions League via a top-four finish. Quaner in the 33rd minute, making it three red cards in Heavily linked with a move to Manchester United when their last three games. his contract expires at the end of the season, Ozil Laurent Depoitre bagged Huddersfield’s third in the showcased his talents for any interested clubs when he 50th minute before the visitors had Jonathan Hogg sent put Arsenal ahead in the 23rd minute. off for a second booking. Watford’s Abdoulaye LONDON: Southampton’s Danish midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (L) falls by Chelsea’s French midfielder N’Golo After an Alexis Sanchez shot deflected into Ozil’s Doucoure got one back with a powerful 68th-minute Kante during the English Premier League football match between Chelsea and Southampton at Stamford Bridge path, the German midfielder smashed a superb volley strike, but Mooy’s 89th-minute penalty wrapped up the in London. —AFP past Newcastle goalkeeper Rob Elliot from the edge of points. — AFP Mueller fires Matches on TV Bayern 11 (Local Timings) ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE points clear West Bromwich Albion v Manchester United 17:15 beIN SPORTS HD 2 BERLIN: Thomas Mueller came off the bench to score Bournemouth v Liverpool 19:30 the only goal and Sven Ulreich saved a stoppage time beIN SPORTS HD 2 penalty for Bayern Munich as they won 1-0 at VfB SPANISH LEAGUE Stuttgart yesterday to go 11 points clear in the Girona v Getafe 14:00 Bundesliga. beIN SPORTS HD 3 Mueller put Bayern ahead with 11 minutes remaining Leganes v Real Madrid 14:00 and keeper Ulreich saved Chadrac Akolo’s 95th-minute beIN SPORTS HD 3 spot kick to break the home fans’ hearts. There was Celta de Vigo v Villarreal 18:15 beIN SPORTS HD 3 plenty more drama around Germany’s top flight as Las Palmas v Espanyol 20:30 Brazil defender Naldo scored in the 95th minute to beIN SPORTS HD 3 snatch a 2-2 draw for second-placed Schalke at Barcelona v Deportivo La Coruna 22:45 Eintracht Frankfurt and maintain their 11-match unbeat- beIN SPORTS HD 3 en run. There was also excitement at mid-table Augsburg as Iceland striker Alfred Finnbogason scored ITALIAN CALCIO LEAGUE twice in added time to claim a hat-trick and grab a 3-3 Hellas Verona v Milan 14:30 beIN SPORTS draw at home to Freiburg after the hosts had been 3-1 Bologna v Juventus 17:00 down on 90 minutes. Finnbogason’s treble overshad- beIN SPORTS HD 4 owed ex-Bayern striker Nils Petersen who scored twice Fiorentina v Genoa 17:00 for Freiburg to hit six goals in his last three games. STUTTGART: Stuttgart’s defender Andreas Beck (L) and Argentinean midfielder Santiago Ascacibar (R) vie for beIN SPORTS HD 1 Not to be outdone, strugglers Mainz also came from the ball during the German first division Bundesliga football match between VfB Stuttgart and Bayern Munich Sampdoria v Sassuolo Calcio 17:00 two down at Werder Bremen to poach a point in a 2-2 beIN SPORTS HD 7 yesterday in Stuttgart. — AFP Crotone v Chievo Verona 17:00 draw thanks to goals by Sweden midfielder Robin beIN SPORTS HD 8 Quaison and then Swiss Fabian Frei, who equalised in Benevento v spal 20:00 the 93rd-minute. Bottom side Cologne finally picked when the Stuttgart made a rare mistake, leaving him last-gasp equaliser when Schalke came from four goals beIN SPORTS HD 4 up their first win of the season 1-0 over Wolfsburg unmarked on the edge of the area to allow him to smash down to sneak a 4-4 draw at arch-rivals Borussia Atalanta v Lazio 22:45 thanks to Christian Clemens’ second-half winner, but his shot home. Dortmund last month, centre-back Naldo again rescued beIN SPORTS HD 4 his side remain 11 points from safety. For only the fifth time in Bayern’s 17 Bundesliga, the Royal Blues unbeaten run in Frankfurt. Eintracht In Stuttgart, defending champions Bayern remain in striker Robert Lewandowski, the league’s top scorer raced out of the blocks when Luka Jovic beat Schalke GERMAN BUNDESLIGA Hannover v Bayer 04 Leverkusen 17:30 pole position to win a sixth straight league title and with 15 goals this season, failed to hit the net when he goalkeeper Ralf Faehrmann with just two minutes gone beIN SPORTS HD 5 maintain their iron-grip on first place when the wasted a late chance. Ulreich, back in goal after a groin and went 2-0 up 24 minutes from time when Sebastian Leipzig v Hertha Berlin 20:00 Bundesliga’s winter break starts after this weekend. strain, was Bayern’s hero by diving to his right to save Haller came on to bang home their second. Breel beIN SPORTS HD 5 Head coach Jupp Heynckes named a star-studded team, Akolo’s penalty after the video assistant referee con- Embolo pulled a goal back for Schalke before Naldo which was frustrated until he threw Mueller on for the firmed Niklas Suele made contact with Santiago banged home a speculative long-ball to the delight of FRENCH LEAGUE final 25 minutes. The Germany star delivered in style Ascacibar’s knee in the area. Having also scored their travelling fans to keep his team second. — AFP Nantes v Angers 17:00 beIN SPORTS HD 6 Nice v Girondins de Bordeaux 19:00 beIN SPORTS HD 6 he came in and held his hand up, he Olympique Lyonnais v Olympique Marseille 23:00 Hodgson praise spoke to the players and myself and beIN SPORTS HD 6 made the point that he would make it up to team, and that is what he has done,” for Benteke as Hodgson said. “We know that he is a quality player Neymar in form Palace striker and the goal he scored is the sort of one he’s going to score, and had it not been for a wonder-save by Kasper as PSG extend makes amends Schmeichel, he would have scored two today because he got in the positions well. “His record at Aston Villa was one Ligue 1 lead LONDON: Belgian striker Christian every two games, and it wouldn’t sur- Benteke made good on his pledge to prise me if he matched that here in the PARIS: Neymar scored two goals and set up two more as make amends to his Crystal Palace team remaining games of the season-that’s Paris St Germain extended their Ligue 1 lead to nine points mates as he ended his long scoring what we’re hoping for.” Palace have 17 with a 4-1 away demolition of Stade Rennais yesterday. Neymar struck both sides of the interval and assisted drought with the first goal in his side’s 3- points from 18 games, which is a remark- 0 victory at Leicester City yesterday. Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani to score, putting PSG able turnaround considering they had on 47 points from 18 games after second-placed Monaco Benteke was the villain of the piece none, and no goals, after seven. hammered St Etienne 4-0 on Friday at Geoffroy Guichard. last week when he ignored team orders Former England boss Hodgson, who Rennes, who finished with 10 men after Benjamin Andre to take, and miss, a stoppage-time lost his opening three league games in was sent off in the 63rd minute, replied through Firmin penalty that would have given Palace charge after replacing Frank de Boer in Mubele and stayed sixth on 25 points.