Sports

Liverpool grab home win, Man United slump to another defeat

Liverpool's Ronald Araujo in action with Brighton and Hove Albion's Charalampos Kostoulas. — Reuters
 
Liverpool's Ronald Araujo in action with Brighton and Hove Albion's Charalampos Kostoulas. — Reuters

LIVERPOOL, England: Liverpool beat Brighton & Hove ⁠Albion 2-0 on Sunday to grab their first home win of the Premier ​League season while Manchester United ​slumped to an embarrassing 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth that will heap further pressure on under-fire manager Michael Carrick, who benched captain Bruno Fernandes.
The Portuguese playmaker was left out of the starting team after criticising Carrick's tactics in a 4-1 Champions League defeat to Italian side Como in midweek.
Any hope ⁠that the move might inspire the rest of the side evaporated when ⁠Rayan scored for the Cherries in the 38th minute, with Marcus Tavernier adding a second goal before the break.
Evanlison's superb third saw a trickle of fans head for the exits, and that ‌trickle became a flood as the final ​whistle approached with Fernandes ⁠still on the bench and very little sign that United ​would be capable of mounting any ‌sort of a comeback.


With the final whistle greeted by a loud chorus of boos, the defeat left Carrick's side ​in 16th place on seven points, one above the relegation zone, and they are without a win in the league since beating Ipswich Town 5-2 on August 30.
Liverpool enjoyed a much more positive afternoon as they welcomed high-flying Brighton to Anfield, netting twice in a ‌high-energy first half to bring an excellent run of four league wins on ​the trot for the Seagulls to a shuddering halt.
Brighton defender Pascal Gross steered a ​Florian ‌Wirtz ⁠shot into his own net in the 17th minute, and Alexander Isak scored the second with a deftly taken first-time finish from Bradley Barcola's pass four minutes ​later to secure the win.
The win lifts Liverpool to fourth ⁠in the table ​on 15 points, one behind Brighton. Manchester City remain top of the standings on 21 points despite dropping their first points of the season on Saturday in a 2-1 reverse against Aston Villa, with Arsenal in second place on goal ​difference.
Newcastle United got back to winning ways with a 2-0 win away ​to Crystal Palace, while Hull City were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Brentford. — Reuters