Playing with 10 men proved to be no problem for liverpool in the English Premier league on Sunday. The same cannot be said of Manchester United.
liverpool responded to James Milner’s sending-off in the 62nd against Crystal Palace to come from 1-0 down and win 2-1, with Christian Benteke’s penalty clinching victory in the sixth minute of injury time.
However, United was made to pay for a 26th-minute red card shown to Juan Mata — also for two bookings — at West Bromwich Albion, which scored through Salomon Rondon for a 1-0 win.
United dropped three points off the top four in the race for Champions league qualification and is now only three ahead of liverpool, which has won three straight league games for the first time in a year.
Christian Benteke won and converted a coolly taken penalty deep into injury time to earn 10-man liverpool a 2-1 win at Crystal Palace on Sunday, boosting his team’s faint hopes of finishing in the Premier league’s European places.
On as a late substitute, Benteke fell to the ground under the slightest of touches from Palace defender Damien Delaney, who pulled out of a tackle in the fourth minute of stoppage time.
The referee awarded a penalty on the advice of his assistant and Benteke took the kick himself, halting midway through his run-up before slotting it home into the corner.
Palace, without a win since Dec. 19, led through Joe ledley in the 48th minute and appeared to be in control after James Milner’s sending-off for a second yellow card in the 62nd.
liverpool looked more dangerous when down to 10 men and equalized when Roberto Firmino pounced on a mis-hit clearance from Palace goalkeeper Alex McCarthy, drove forward and slotted a finish past McCarthy in the 72nd.
liverpool’s best chance of winning the game appeared to have passed when Alberto Moreno struck the post with a fierce, long-range shot but there was still time for the late drama involving Benteke, who was thrown on by liverpool manager Juergen Klopp ahead of fellow striker Daniel Sturridge.
After three straight wins for the first time in 12 months, liverpool is six points off the Champions league qualification positions with 10 games left.
“I can’t believe how it feels, really good,” Klopp said. “A big moment for us.”
On Benteke’s impact, Klopp said: “He made the move and forced the situation. It was a clear penalty and then he was pretty cool with the penalty.”
United pays for Mata’s red
WEST BROMWICH: Manchester United was made to pay for Juan Mata’s early sending-off in a 1-0 loss to West Bromwich Albion on Sunday that damaged its ambitions of Champions league qualification from the Premier league.
Mata collected two yellow cards in three minutes to leave his side with 10 men from the 26th minute and United couldn’t hold on, with Salomon Rondon scoring the winning goal in the 66th at The Hawthorns.
The loss ended United’s run of four straight wins in all competitions and left the team sixth in the standings - three points behind fourth-place Manchester City, which has a game in hand.
United initially coped well with Mata’s first-ever Premier league dismissal but failed to seriously threaten West Brom goalkeeper Ben Foster.
Messi scores twice
MADRID: lionel Messi continued his impressive run by scoring two goals in Barcelona’s 4-0 win over Eibar on Sunday, keeping his team unbeaten and maintaining a comfortable lead entering the final stretch of the Spanish league.
Messi scored with a great run in the 41st and added a penalty in the 76th, giving Barcelona a provisional 11-point advantage over Atletico Madrid, which plays at Valencia later Sunday.
Real Madrid remained 12 points back after trashing sixth-place Celta Vigo 7-1 with four goals by Cristiano Ronaldo on Saturday. There will be 10 rounds left after the 28th round.
Munir El Haddadi opened the scoring in the eighth minute after a cross by luis Suarez, who netted his league-leading 26th goal in the 84th.
Bayern hold Dortmund
BERlIN: Bayern Munich took another small step toward an unprecedented fourth successive Bundesliga title with a hard-fought scoreless draw at closest rival Borussia Dortmund on Saturday.
Bayern, which had a healthy eight-point lead before Wednesday’s shock home defeat to Mainz, preserved the five-point gap with nine games remaining.
Bayern midfielder Arturo Vidal came closest to scoring for either side in the 65th minute when Dortmund ‘keeper Roman Buerki produced a fine reflex save to deflect his shot onto the crossbar.