NEWCASTLE: Aston Villa moved to within four points of the Premier League summit with an impressive 2-0 win over Newcastle United, while Chelsea moved into the top four on Sunday.
Villa bounced back from a shock 1-0 home defeat to Everton last weekend to stay on the fringes of the title race.
Emi Buendia put Unai Emery’s men on course for their first win at St. James’ Park since 2005 with a brilliant strike from outside the box in the 19th minute.
Newcastle were left short of inspiration without injured captain Bruno Guimaraes in a defeat that damaged their Champions League qualification chances.
Ollie Watkins sealed Villa’s victory when the England international headed home Lucas Digne’s cross two minutes from time.
Newcastle slip to ninth but still just three points outside the top five, which will likely be enough for a Champions League place.
Even if Villa fail to win their first league title since 1981, they are on course to return to Europe’s elite competition 11 points clear of sixth-placed Manchester United.
Meanwhile, Chelsea hurt Crystal Palace further with a 3-1 win at Selhurst Park.
Oliver Glasner has vowed to do his best to turn the Eagles’ fortunes around, despite announcing he will leave the club when his contract expires at the end of the season.
The Austrian was furious at the way club captain Marc Guehi was allowed to leave for Manchester City earlier this week and could also lose star striker Jean-Philippe Mateta before the transfer window closes.
Mateta wasted Palace’s best chance of a brilliant opener by shooting straight at Robert Sanchez.
But the home side never recovered after a wayward back pass from Jaydee Canvot freed Estevao to sprint and shoot in Chelsea’s opener in the 34th minute.
The Brazilian then allowed his compatriot Joao Pedro to gallop behind the Palace defense and double the Blues’ advantage just after half-time.
Enzo Fernandez’s penalty capped a fourth win in five games for Liam Rosenior since taking charge at Stamford Bridge.
Palace’s misery was compounded when England international Adam Wharton was sent off for two bookable offences.
After 11 games without a win, the Eagles are now looking over their shoulder, just eight points above the relegation zone.
Elsewhere, Nottingham Forest gave their chances of survival a huge boost by inflicting only a second home defeat of the season on Brentford.
West Ham’s victory over Sunderland on Saturday put pressure on Sean Dyche’s men.
But they responded by moving five points clear of the drop zone with a 2-0 win in west London thanks to goals from Igor Jesus and Taiwo Awoniyi.
THE LIVERPOOL CRISIS GROWS
Bournemouth midfielder Amine Adli struck deep in second-half stoppage time on Saturday to condemn Liverpool to their seventh Premier League defeat of the season, leaving the reigning champions still searching for their first league win of 2026.
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk said he thought he had been fouled in the build-up to Bournemouth’s winner after a chaotic scrum following a long throw, but in the end his side capitulated again despite dominating much of the second half.
“Losing never feels good, especially as a Liverpool player, and this season we are trying to find consistency,” the Dutch defender told Sky Sports.
Goals from Evanilson and Alejandro Jimenez put Bournemouth 2-0 up in the 33rd minute, but Van Dijk pulled one back before the break and Dominik Szoboszlai equalized with a brilliant free-kick in the 80th minute.
The Reds looked set for a fifth straight league draw, but Adli struck in the 95th minute to break their visitors and send them back to Merseyside empty-handed.
A 3-0 win over Olympique Marseille in the Champions League in midweek suggested Arne Slot’s side could return to form, but Saturday’s late winner sparked questions about Liverpool’s morale and ability to close out matches.
“I don’t think that unity is in question, but the consistency that we are looking for, that is something that still needs to be found and that is the reality,” Van Dijk said.
“I think there’s been a lot of praise for our performances and a lot of individual praise and we know how that works, and three days later you lose a game like we did today and then the other side of the world comes out, so it’s something we have to deal with.
“But you know, we want to perform, we want to win games, and unfortunately today that didn’t happen.”
The defeat leaves Liverpool languishing in fourth place on 36 points, while Bournemouth move up to 13th.
Published in Dawn, January 26, 2026
