MANCHESTER, England: Phil Foden maintained Manchester City’s challenge in the race for the English Premier League (EPL) championship with two second-half goals to snatch a 3-1 win over Manchester United at home last night.

Marcus Rashford’s solid strike in the eighth minute allowed United to take the lead despite going against the flow of the opposition and it looked like the visitors might be able to fulfill City’s dream of recording a fourth successive league title.

However, Pep Guardiola’s men remained patient, controlled the ball and finally produced results with Foden proving how valuable he is now for City.

Foden drove powerfully into the corner of the goal in the 56th minute and the England striker once again produced a clinical finish with 10 minutes remaining.

Erling Haaland, who missed a golden opportunity in the first half, saved the points with a goal following a mistake from United’s defense.

Defending champions City, who have not lost 19 games in all competitions, have 62 points, one point behind leaders Liverpool who visit them this weekend.

United, who suffered their 11th league defeat of the season, remained sixth on 44 points.

Rashford’s solid strike may have sunk the bottom team but Erik ten Hag’s United could do nothing about City turning the game around – winning their EPL neighbors for the first time after coming back from behind.

City controlled the ball 74 percent of the time and produced 27 attempts compared to United’s only three, but despite the appearance of a global talent, local boy Foden found a devastating touch.

The 23-year-old received the crowd’s respect when he came off after being knocked out due to injury – City fans were delighted with their ability to suppress Liverpool and Arsenal.

“That’s my aim, to do well in big games,” said Foden, who has now equaled his personal record of 11 league goals in a season.

“This season I proved it.”

LONDON: Everton’s penalty for breaking English Premier League (EPL) financial rules was reduced to 10 points for six subsequent appeals, giving them hope in their bid to avoid relegation to the lower leagues.

The club was handed the heavy penalty last November after the commission found they had incurred losses justified under the league’s profits and performance regulations by a difference of £19.5 million over the assessment period at the end of the 2021-22 season.

The club can lose a maximum of £105 million within three years or face penalties.

The previous result – the biggest points deduction in EPL history – saw one of England’s historic clubs drop to 19th in the league charts and struggling to avoid relegation.

But free agency reduced the penalty by four points, moving Sean Dyche’s men up to 15th in the league – five points above the knockout zone with 12 games remaining.

“Everton FC requested the punishment imposed against it on nine grounds, each of which relates to the penalty and not the fact of the offence, which the club admitted,” the EPL said in a statement late last night.

“Two of the nine reasons were retained by the seduction board, which replaced the original point deduction of 10 for six.”

The appeals agency concluded the commission had made a “statutory error” for two reasons.

He found the commission cleared of wrongdoing when it found Everton had been “less than forthright” regarding what they had told the EPL about debts linked to their new stadium and found that in doing so the club had breached league rules requiring an obligation to act in good faith.

Nine-time English champions Everton have played in the top flight since 1954 and have never dropped out of the EPL.

LONDON: Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola apologized to Kalvin Phillips for saying the midfielder was fat when he returned from the 2022 World Cup.

Guardiola told reporters Phillips was not in good shape for training after returning from Qatar, where he was used for just 40 minutes in two substitute appearances.

Phillips endured a difficult time at City after moving from Leeds United in 2022, making just six first-team appearances in 18 months and the 28-year-old joined West Ham United on loan last month.

After moving to West Ham, the midfielder said his confidence had been affected following Guardiola’s comments.

“Yes, I apologize,” Guardiola told reporters last night.

“I apologized to him. I spoke to him before (about the comments). I never don’t speak to the team before I say something here or the players in this case.”

City, who are third in the Premier League, could close the gap on leaders Liverpool to one point if they beat Brentford at home early tomorrow.

LONDON: Arsenal heated up the battle for the English Premier League title when they buried the leaders Liverpool 3-1 to close the gap between the two to two points and jump to the second place early this morning.

Arsenal deserved the three points that allowed them to overcome Manchester City even though they did not expect to receive the help of Virgil van Dijk and Alisson who made a mistake and saw Gabriel Martinelli again put them in front in the 67th minute.

Substitute Leandro Trossard then eased any jitters among the Emirates fans when he sealed victory in stoppage time with a goal through Alisson’s crotch.

Bukayo Saka gave Arsenal the lead with a cool finish in the 14th minute but Gabriel’s own goal in first-half injury time halted their early toil.

On the brink of their second league defeat of the season, both in north London, Liverpool’s frustration was further accentuated when Ibrahima Konate was sent off in the dying minutes for a second yellow card following a foul on Kai Havertz.

Arsenal’s title challenge faltered at the start of the year but three straight wins have lifted them to second place with 49 points to Liverpool’s 51 with both teams having played 23 games.

Defending champions Manchester City, who play early tomorrow morning, have collected 46 points from 21 games.

“It was a bit disappointing to concede a goal after a very good first half but we know we played our best 45 minutes of the season,” said Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice.

“We were on top at Christmas and then had some bad results. Now we look to get this team back on track.”

“It was a difficult day,” Van Dijk said. “I take full responsibility for the 2-1 goal, it was the biggest turning point. It disappointed me and the whole team.”

Trossard’s goal, deflected off Van Dijk’s leg and through Alisson’s crotch, sparked a decision that cast doubt on the Merseyside club’s ability.