King sharpens Manchester United pain as they lose at Bournemouth
King sharpens Manchester United pain as they lose at Bournemouth
Arsenal enjoyed an easy 2-0 victory at Aston Villa on Sunday to soar to the summit of the Premier League and leave their hapless opponents rooted at rock bottom.
A landmark 50th Premier League goal from Olivier Giroud, a penalty converted four days after his Champions League hat-trick against Olympiakos Piraeus, swiftly brought more gloom to Villa Park after eight minutes.
Mesut Ozil then produced his 13th assist of the season to allow Aaron Ramsey to slot home a second goal in the 38th minute and enable Arsenal to move on to 33 points, one point clear of Manchester City and Leicester City.
Leicester have the chance to regain the leadership when they entertain Chelsea on Monday.
Villa improved in the second half as Arsenal took their foot off the gas but manager Remi Garde, who as a player was once signed by Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, could only hear the grumbles of discontent as his side went a club-record 15th league game without a win.
The defeat left Villa stranded at the foot of the table on six points from 16 games, six adrift of 19th-placed Sunderland.
On Saturday, Josh King returned to haunt Manchester United as his goal earned Bournemouth a memorable 2-1 victory that completed a miserable week for Louis van Gaal’s beleaguered team.
United were hoping to turn the page on their mid-week Champions League exit, but Junior Stanislas put Bournemouth in front straight from a corner after 100 seconds and although Marouane Fellaini equalised, former United trainee King punished slack defending at a corner to claim a 54th-minute winner.
United could have gone level with Manchester City, but their third defeat of the campaign left them three points off the pace, generating yet more bad press for the floundering van Gaal.
Asked if he retained confidence that he was the right man to take United forward, van Gaal replied: “I have always confidence.”
It was a second stunning win in a week for Eddie Howe’s promoted Bournemouth following their 1-0 triumph at champions Chelsea last weekend and took them three points clear of the relegation zone.
‘Bitterly disappointed’ Kelechi Iheanacho’s fortuitous stoppage-time goal had earlier given Manchester City a 2-1 win over managerless Swansea City that sent Manuel Pellegrini’s side above former leaders Leicester on goal difference.
Swansea, who sacked Garry Monk on Wednesday, looked to have earned a point when Bafetimbi Gomis scored a 90th-minute equaliser, only for Yaya Toure’s shot to hit team-mate Iheanacho and loop in two minutes later.
“I think the three points were very important, more than the way we played,” said Pellegrini.
Elsewhere, Crystal Palace drew level on points with fifth-place Tottenham Hotspur, who host Newcastle United on Sunday, after Yohan Cabaye’s 38th-minute tap-in earned them a 1-0 home win over Southampton.
Watford moved up to seventh place, four points below the Champions League spots, after Odion Ighalo’s 10th goal of the campaign secured a 1-0 win at Sunderland, while West Ham United drew 0-0 at home to Stoke City.
