AFC Bournemouth Sinks Arsenal, boost Europe hopes
By Tanko Bauka
Arsenal’s hope of finishing the English Barclays Premier League as runners-up is now hanging in the balance as the gunners lost for the fourth time this season.
Arsenal eyeing a very difficult second-leg semi-final match against Paris Saint-German, PSG seeking to overturn the goal deficit suffered when the French giant came to England for the first leg, named a strong team to face AFC Bournemouth at the Emirate stadium in London and Arsenal were deservedly beaten by their visitors which showed more hunger and character for the three points.
Arsenal led through a good workout display which was converted by Declan Rice but AFC Bournemouth cancelled Gunner’s lead with two successive goals in the second half to condemn Arsenal to their fourth loss of the season and also doing double on their host this season as well as winning for the first time against Arsenal at the Emirate stadium in London.
With this result, Arsenal’s fate in finishing second is very dicey now as they have PSG, Newcastle United and the league leader Liverpool to navigate before rounding off the league with a match against relegated Southampton.
Aston Villa boosted their chances of a Champions League place with a 1-0 win against Fulham, while draw specialist Everton were held to a two-all draw by Ipswich Town, who came from behind to snatch a point at Goodison Park.
Southampton, on 11 points and battling to avoid the worst record of 13 points set by Derby County when they were relegated from the Premier League, suffered a setback as they were squarely beaten 2-0 by Ruud Van Nistelrooy relegated Leicester City at the King Power stadium.
Manchester United crashed at Brentford as their woeful season continued without any remedy in sight.
Mason Mount put the Red Devils in front, but Brentford roared back like a wounded lion to stun the Ruben Amorim side in a 4-3 thriller to boast Europe hopes and confirm Manchester United to its worst finish in the league with three matches to go.
Chelsea FC also stunned the Champion Liverpool FC 3-1 at Stamford Bridge Stadium to bolster their Champions League hopes.
Still, in the battle for Champions League place, Manchester City had earlier beaten Wolves to climb up to the third position as Nottingham Forest missed the opportunity to return to the third position as they lost 2-1 to Brentford.
Brighton Albion, Newcastle United, West Ham, and Tottenham Hotspur all play out a one-all draw in their encounters.
In the Spanish LA Liga, FC Barcelona continue to set the pace as the league leader has to come from a goal down to run away 2-1 against Real Valladolid to open up a seven-point gap.
Real Madrid held off a spirited Celta Vigo fightback to move back within four points of FC Barcelona.
Real Madrid took the lead through Arde Guler before Kylian Mbappe doubled to take the score to 3-0, but Celta Vigo mounted a comeback to end the match 3-2.
Atletico Madrid suffered another setback as they were held to a goalless draw by Deportivo Alaves while Villarreal pip Osasuna 4-2 as Las Palmas lost 2-3 to Valencia.
In the Italian Serie A, Inter Milan cut the six-point gap of the league leader Napoli to three with a hard-fought 1-0 win against Hellas Verona after Napoli had earlier pipped Lecce 1-0 to go six points clear.
AS Roma beat Fiorentina 1-0 to boast their chances for European football as Juventus faltered as they were held to a one-all draw by Bologna.
Ademola Lookman Atalanta hammered relegated AC Monza 4-0 while Cesc Fabregas and his Como side continue their impressive run with an away 1-0 win against Parma.
In the German Bundesliga, Bayern Munich have been crowned Champion of the league despite a 3-3 draw against RB Leipzig.
Bayern Munich’s feat was made possible because their closet rival and the defending Champion Bayer Leverkusen were held to a two-all draw SC Freiburg.
With this victory, Harry Kane, one of the prolific goal scorers of the game, has now silenced his many critics for winning his first trophy.
Borussia Dortmund demolished Wolfsburg 4-0, while Borussia Monchengladbach played out a pulsating 4-4 draw with Hoffenheim, and FC Augsburg lost 1-3 to Holstein Kiel, with Union Berlin managing a two-all draw against Werder Bremen.
Meanwhile, Crystal Palace will take on Nottingham Forest at Selhurst Park in London this evening in the Premier League, while in the Spanish LA Liga, Girona will host Mallorca as Genoa welcome AC Milan in the Italian Serie A.
After the Monday encounters, attention will shift to the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final, where FC Barcelona travels to San Siro stadium in Italy to battle Inter Milan after a three-all draw in the first leg encounter in Spain.
In the second match, Arsenal have a tough battle in their hands as they seek to navigate a 1-0 defeat in the first leg played at the Emirate stadium in London.
