Manchester United’s tenacious victory over Chelsea was followed by dramatic wins for Liverpool and Aston Villa on Sunday in the battle for Champions League qualification from the Premier League.
Aston Villa and Liverpool both achieved big wins in the Premier League on Sunday (Image: Getty Images)
Both Liverpool and Aston Villa have made significant progress towards securing a place in next season’s Champions League after signing the eventual winners. Virgil van Dijk scored Liverpool’s goal in the 100th minute in the Merseyside derby against Everton, while Tammy Abraham scored a thrilling seven-goal winner.
There are five games remaining on the 2025-26 calendar, with Villa needing three points and Liverpool needing nine points to guarantee Champions League football next season. However, the latter total may not be needed as Chelsea continue to give up points, with Brentford, Bournemouth, Brighton and Everton able to close the gap despite defeats to their neighbours.
A frenetic early game at Hill Dickinson Stadium turned manic as Iliman Ndiaye’s shot was ruled out for offside and Mohamed Salah broke the deadlock after Kodi Gakpo’s sharp through ball. Beto scored the equaliser, but Van Dijk nodded home until the end of second-half stoppage time, much to Slott’s delight as he completed his double in the win over Everton.
read more: Liverpool’s Giorgi Mamadashvili is carried away on a stretcher with serious injuriesread more: Liverpool beat Everton as Virgil van Dijk scores the winning goal in the 100th minute – 5 talking points
“We’re going to have fun. The staff, the players and myself. There’s no difference between us and the fans. We would have liked to have had a better season than we’ve had.”
“But we didn’t do that for obvious reasons and we saw it today. How many times have two goalkeepers been injured? That was our season and we managed to win. That’s the most important thing.”
At Villa Park, Abraham scored after Ollie Watkins’ goal and Morgan Rodgers put Unai Emery’s side into the lead. Chris Rigg, Trey Hume and Wilson Isidore scored for Sunderland’s stars, but their goals had no impact on the final scoreline.
Liverpool should remain fifth regardless of Saturday’s result, with Fulham, Brentford, Brighton and Chelsea all dropping points. The latter lost to Manchester United at Stamford Bridge, but that unexpectedly worked in Liverpool’s favor.
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Manchester United beat Chelsea, giving Liverpool and Aston Villa a spot in the Champions League
Villa and Liverpool are also scheduled to play each other later this season. However, that clash is still a few weeks away, and all eyes are now on the games before that against Crystal Palace, Manchester United and Chelsea.
A third straight win would ensure a top-five finish and secure a place among Europe’s elite before the Villa showdown.
Arsenal defeated Sporting CP in the quarter-finals, qualifying for the Champions League, fifth in the Premier League table.
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