2018-19 Premier League: Week 31 Roundup

As the Premier League prepares to return this weekend, Liverpool currently sit top after a depleted round of fixtures before the international break. 

Sadio Mane handed the Reds a 25th minute lead at Fulham after finishing off a nice one-two with Roberto Firmino.

Ryan Babel then profited from a defensive mixup between Virgil van Dijk and Alisson midway through the second-half to restore parity for the Cottagers.

Milner then secured a 2-1 win for Liverpool to send them two points clear at the top, with a calmly dispatched penalty after Mane was brought down by Sergio Rico, as the Spaniard tried to save Mohamed Salah’s shot.

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Chelsea’s mini revival meanwhile was ended at Everton, who ran out 2-0 winners with second-half goals from Richarlison and Gylfi Sigurdsson. 

West Ham kept their top seven hopes alive after beating rock-bottom Huddersfield in a classic seven goal thriller. 

Mark Noble put the Hammers ahead from the penalty spot after just quarter of a hour following Michael Hefele’s foul on Manuel Lanzini, only to see Huddersfield instantly hit back two minutes later when Juninho Bacuna put away Tommy Smith’s deflected shot.

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Karlan Grant then put the Terriers ahead in the 30th minute when he left footed a pass from Chris Lowe beyond Lukasz Fabianski, leaving the Terriers ahead at half-time.

Huddersfield started the second-half brighter than West Ham and were rewarded with Grant’s second in 63rd minute, when the youngster whipped a powerful shot into the top right after beating his marker, Angelo Ogbonna. 

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Ogbonna soon had the last laugh when he bullet headed in Aaron Creswell’s corner to trigger a dramatic finish, as Javier Hernandez soon restored parity with his header from Sami Nasri’s cross. 

Jason Puncheon then fired over Terence Kongolo’s pass from just yards out in what proved to be a disastrous error for Huddersfield, as Hernandez flicked in his second just moments later from a Felipe Anderson cross to complete West Ham’s comeback 4-3 victory.  

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Elsewhere, Leicester overcame Harry Maguire’s fourth minute sending off to beat Burnley 2-1 with a last gasp header from Wes Morgan, after first-half stunners from James Maddison and Burnley’s Dwight McNeil. 

Newcastle are now seven points clear of the drop after Matt Ritchie’s volley secured a 2-2 draw against his former side, Bournemouth.