Premier League

LONDON — Goals from striker Ollie Watkins and captain John McGinn earned Aston Villa all three points in a pulsating 2-0 Premier League mid-table win at Chelsea on Saturday.

The result sent Villa into ninth in the table, leapfrogging Chelsea, who dropped into the bottom half.

Watkins took his chance in the 18th minute after a mistake from retreating defender Marc Cucurella, who headed a long ball into his path and he calmly lobbed his shot over advancing Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga.

Brighton and Brentford shared the points on Saturday in an exhilarating 3-3 draw that saw the Gulls equalize three separate times. The back-and-forth affair also saw a rare set piece you don’t see too often: an indirect free kick in the penalty area.

In the 11th minute Brentford were awarded the indirect free kick after Brighton’s Pervis Estupiñán poked the ball back to Jason Steele who picked up the ball.

MANCHESTER — Manchester City showed they can win without goal machine Erling Haaland as they put four past Liverpool at the Etihad on Saturday to keep their chase of Premier League leaders Arsenal very much alive.

Julian Alvarez, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan and Jack Grealish were all on target for Pep Guardiola's side in a goal-packed return to Premier League action after the international break.

The victory puts City five points behind the Gunners, who play Leeds United later on Saturday.

With club soccer returning this weekend American fans might be asking questions like: Why is Pulisic not playing? Where’s Gio Reyna? 

Christian Pulisic will likely miss Chelsea’s Premier League game vs. Aston Villa on Saturday while Gio Reyna is set to sit out Borussia Dortmund’s massive Der Klassiker clash with Bayern Munich. Both American players are dealing with “severe colds.”

Christian Pulisic 'has a heavy cold' per Graham Potter and is likely to miss Chelsea's match against Aston Villa tomorrow.

MANCHESTER — Manchester City forward Erling Haaland is a doubt for Saturday's home game against Liverpool in the Premier League but may be risked, manager Pep Guardiola said, as his side maintain their chase of leaders Arsenal.

Haaland, who joined City this season from Borussia Dortmund, has scored 42 goals in 37 matches in all competitions, but suffered a groin injury against Burnley on March 18, and pulled out of Norway's squad for their Euro 2024 qualifiers.

Leeds United and USMNT defensive midfielder Tyler Adams will miss the rest of the 2022-23 season after undergoing surgery for a hamstring injury.

Adams missed Leeds’ final game before the March international window, a 4-2 victory vs. Wolves, with a hamstring issue. The problem is more severe than originally anticipated and the American will be out for an extended period.

The injury occurred during training with Leeds.

Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani has submitted a new bid to buy Manchester United which is believed to be worth around $6.12 billion, Sky Sports News reported on Saturday.

Sheikh Jassim, a son of Qatar’s former prime minister, launched the bid in February. A spokesperson representing Sheikh Jassim said at the time that the bid was completely debt free, via Sheikh Jassim's Nine Two Foundation.

Manchester United did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.