Man United and Chelsea in top four, Watford, Bournemouth relegated

Man United and Chelsea in top four, Watford, Bournemouth relegated

by Joseph Anthony
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Man United beat Leicester 1-0 to seal third place in the table and qualify for the Champions League

Manchester United won 2-0 at Leicester City on Sunday to finish third in the Premier League and clinch a place in next seasonโ€™s Champions League.

United booked their spot in Europeโ€™s elite club competition on the final day of the season at the expense of Leicester who finished fifth behind fourth-placed Chelsea and will have to settle for a Europa League berth.

Manchester United finished on 66 points, ahead of Chelsea on goal difference and four points clear of Leicester, who missed several chances before they were undone late on by sloppy errors.

Bruno Fernandes fired United ahead with a 71st-minute penalty and substitute Jesse Lingard sealed the win deep into stoppage time after a bad mistake by Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel.

Leicester dominated the opening half as Youri Tielemans went close with a clever first-time shot which trickled inches wide before Schmeichel kept out a Marcus Rashford volley on the stroke of halftime.

Jamie Vardy hit the top of the woodwork for Leicester on the hour from an audacious header with his back facing goal before the home side collapsed in the last 20 minutes, with defender Jonny Evans receiving a late red card for a rash tackle on Scott McTominay.

CHELSEA 2-0 WOLVES

Chelsea secured a Champions League place on Sunday as first-half goals from Mason Mount and Olivier Giroud secured a 2-0 home win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in their final Premier League game of the season and with it a top-four finish.

Four minutes had been added to a nervy opening period when Marcos Alonso went down outside the Wolves area and Mount curled an exquisite free kick over the wall into the top left corner.

Barely two minutes later Chelseaโ€™s France striker Giroud showed all his experience and poise when he latched on to Mountโ€™s pass, rounded goalkeeper Rui Patricio and held off Wolves captain Conor Coady to poke the ball home.

Frank Lampardโ€™s Chelsea side needed a point to guarantee a Champions League spot in a three-way battle involving Manchester United and Leicester City and would have felt aggrieved had they missed out after being a top-four fixture since last October.

Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo brought on early substitutes, including tricky winger Adama Traore at halftime, to put the pressure on as his side chased a Europa League place for the second straight season but a much calmer Chelsea, with their two-goal cushion, rarely looked liked losing control.

ARSENAL 3-2 WATFORD

Watford were relegated from the Premier League on Sunday but went down fighting in a 3-2 loss at Arsenal, almost clawing their way back from a three-goal deficit largely thanks to former Arsenal striker Danny Welbeck.

The visitors got off to a nightmare start when defender Craig Dawson brought down Alexandre Lacazette in the area in the third minute to concede a penalty, which Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang converted.

Arsenal doubled their lead in the 24th minute when Kieran Tierneyโ€™s shot brushed the arm of Watford midfielder Will Hughes for an own-goal, and Aubameyang poured on the misery 10 minutes later with an unchallenged overhead kick from close range to make it 3-0.

Watford were given hope of a way back into the game shortly before the break when Welbeck, who left Arsenal to join Watford last summer, won a penalty for the visitors after being scythed down by David Luiz.

Hornets captain Troy Deeney drilled his spotkick past Arsenal keeper Emiliano Martinez to reduce the deficit.

Welbeck then narrowed the gap further in the 65th minute, tapping home from close range after a cross from Ismaila Sarr. But the visitors were unable to find another goal.

EVERTON 1-3 BOURNEMOUTH

Junior Stanislas scored a fine solo goal as Bournemouth fought gallantly but end their five-year stay in the Premier League with an entertaining 3-1 victory over Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday.

The visitors needed three points to have a chance of survival and played their part in an excellent display. However, Aston Villaโ€™s draw at West Ham United sealed the fate of the south coast side, who finished the season with 34 points, one shy of safety.

Josh King gave the visitors the lead from the penalty spot after 13 minutes, but Everton drew level before halftime through Moise Kean as the home team enjoyed the majority of possession.

But after Dominic Solanke restored Bournemouthโ€™s lead, Stanislas gave Bournemouth a two-goal cushion late in the second half as he coasted past two defenders in the box and beat Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.

It was just a second win in 13 matches for Bournemouth, and a first away since victory at Chelsea in December. However, their nine losses on the road since then went a long way to sealing their return to the Championship.

Everton end their disappointing campaign in 12th position, with much work for manager Carlo Ancelotti to do on the training ground, and perhaps the transfer market, in the short pre-season period before the start of the new campaign on Sept. 12.

REUTERS

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