Kompany scores as Manchester City climb to third with Southampton victory
Vincent Kompany was among the scorers as Manchester City beat Southampton 3-0 to climb above Liverpool into third in the Premier League on Saturday.
After an entertaining yet goalless first half, City's captain Kompany headed home his first league goal since August 2015 following two injury-ravaged seasons in the 55th minute.
City's array of attacking talents had been well-marshalled by Southampton until Leroy Sane, unlucky to have a first-half penalty appeal waved away, converted Kevin de Bruyne's pass to finish a superb counter attack in the 77th minute.
Sergio Aguero headed home a third three minutes later to seal an impressive away win for Pep Guardiola's side.
With six games remaining City have 64 points, one more than fourth-placed Liverpool, who visit West Bromwich Albion on Sunday.
Southampton, meanwhile, sit safely in mid-table with 40 points from 31 games.
Tottenham rout Bournemouth 4-0
Tottenham Hotspur's tenacious chase of leaders Chelsea continued as they claimed a 12th consecutive Premier League home win with a 4-0 rout of Bournemouth on Saturday to cut the gap to four points.
Two goals in three minutes from Mousa Dembele and Son Heung-min put the hosts in complete control inside 20 minutes and Harry Kane grabbed his 20th league goal of the season shortly after halftime as high-flying Spurs maintained their momentum.
Substitute Vincent Janssen received the biggest roar of the day in stoppage time as he claimed his first Premier Leasgue goal from open play since joining last year.
Mauricio Pochettino's side will now hope fifth-placed Manchester United can do them a favour by stopping Chelsea's seemingly unstoppable title charge at Old Trafford on Sunday.
"It was another great performance," Pochettino, whose side won 4-0 for the second Saturday running and now have six-goal better goal difference than Chelsea, told Sky Sports.
"Our job is done now, we have the three points and now we'll see what happens tomorrow. If (Chelsea) fail we are waiting."
Dembele struck his first Premier League goal for 15 months after 16 minutes, slamming in a shot from six metres after Christian Eriksen's corner arrived through a crowd of players.
In-form Son fired through the legs of keeper Artur Boruc from a narrow angle after racing on to Kane's deft flick.
Kane, starting for the first time since injuring his ankle last month, wrapped up Tottenham's seventh successive league win after 48 minutes, turning Simon Francis all too easily and firing low past Boruc with his left foot.
It is the third season in a row England forward Kane has reached the 20-goal mark - a feat previously only achieved by Alan Shearer, Ruud van Nistlerooy and Thierry Henry.
Boruc made sure the score did not get too embarrassing for Bournemouth with several saves as Tottenham went through their routines but he was beaten again in stoppage time.
Janssen, who has struggled to make an impact at White Hart Lane, scuffed his first attempt on goal but got another chance as the ball came back to him and the Dutchman fired past Boruc to put the icing on the cake of a 15th home league win.
Bournemouth are seven points above the relegation zone before the later kickoffs and probably need one more victory to guarantee a third season of top-flight football.
Barkley inspires Everton to eighth straight home win
Everton midfielder Ross Barkley ended a troubled week off the field by inspiring his team to an eighth straight home win with a 3-1 victory over Burnley in the Premier League.
Barkley's shot, deflected off Burnley defender Ben Mee, put Everton 2-1 up in the 71st minute and the league's top scorer Romelu Lukaku made sure of the win three minutes later with his 24th strike of the season.
England international Barkley had been the victim of an assault in a bar on Sunday and was then at the centre of a controversial column in The Sun newspaper. He was given a standing ovation when he was substituted in the final moments.
Barkley, who also cleared off the line twice, was booked for over-celebrating with fans when he put the team ahead.
"Of course, I can understand. Because I think what happened last week had a really big impact on him. I think he was focused on the football side this week and also this afternoon," Everton manager Ronald Koeman told reporters, adding that he did not consider leaving Barkley out of the team.
"I think it is the best way to play football and forget what happened last week," the Dutchman said.
A 52nd-minute Sam Vokes penalty had brought Burnley level after Phil Jagielka had scrambled Everton ahead three minutes earlier.
Barkley offered reminders of his quality throughout as Koeman's team ensured Burnley remain without an away win this season.
Burnley started confidently, however, and went close to an opener in the 19th minute when Barkley was forced to clear a powerful Michael Keane header off the line.
Everton moved up to fifth in the table, above Arsenal and Manchester United who both have three games in hand on the Merseyside club.
Stoke win to increase relegation pressure on Hull
Xherdan Shaqiri scored a stunning goal as Stoke City beat Hull City 3-1 in the Premier League on Saturday to end a run of four successive defeats and increase the pressure on their relegation-threatened visitors.
Stoke had fallen four places in the table since late March, but started brightly as Marko Arnautovic beat two defenders and held off a third before blazing a powerful shot in off the underside of the crossbar in the sixth minute.
Hull, vastly improved since the arrival of manager Marco Silva in January, registered a deserved equaliser when Harry Maguire finished via a deflection in the 51st minute.
Peter Crouch's accurate low header restored Stoke's lead in the 66th minute before Shaqiri settled the result, cutting in from the right before unleashing an unstoppable, dipping shot into the top corner
"It was a big three points. An important three points. We've come through a period that was arguably our most testing of the season in terms of fixtures," Stoke manager Mark Hughes told the BBC.
"For the most part this season, we've picked up points against the teams below us and that's what we've done today. As a consequence of winning today, I think we can probably express ourselves a bit more in the remaining games."
Stoke, in 11th, have 39 points from 33 games. Hull are two points above the relegation zone with 30 points.
A vastly improved Hull, though, should be confident of picking up points from their next four games against Watford, Southampton, Sunderland and Crystal Palace.
Palace fight back to force 2-2 draw with Leicester
Crystal Palace fought back from two goals down to snatch a 2-2 home draw with Leicester City after Yohan Cabaye and Christian Benteke denied the Premier League champions in a pulsating clash.
The result left Palace above the relegation zone on 35 points from 32 games, two behind Leicester who had taken a 2-0 lead through Robert Huth and in-form striker Jamie Vardy.
German defender Huth stood out in the first half as he headed the visitors into a sixth-minute lead and blocked a ferocious Wilfried Zaha volley.
Leicester seemed to be heading for a sixth league win in seven games under manager Craig Shakespeare when Vardy doubled the advantage with a brilliant goal in the 52nd minute.
Released by a delightful pass from Riyad Mahrez, Vardy spun his marker before unleashing a thumping left-footed shot into the far corner for his sixth league goal in seven games.
However, sloppy defending by the champions let Palace back into the match two minutes later as Cabaye took advantage of static marking and steered in a neat shot from 10 metres.
A wild effort by Zaha from a good position kept Leicester ahead but Palace got their reward in the 70th minute as Benteke rose above his markers and headed in an Andros Townsend cross from the left.
"Today's point feels like a win, it's a tremendous fight back from the players and that wouldn't have happened when I first arrived - it just shows the change of mood of the players," Palace manager Sam Allardyce told the BBC.
"We've got 35 points now and it's been a fantastic run of results," he added.
Vardy said Leicester were disappointed ahead of their home Champions League quarter-final second leg against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday when they will bid to overturn a 1-0 deficit.
"We're a bit gutted with the result in the end - if we'd held on to the two-goal lead for a bit longer, we'd have been fine," he said.
