Tottenham Hotspur battled back to grab a 3-1 win
over Crystal Palace on Match Day 23 of the 2015-16 Premier League season,
opening up a crucial lead over Manchester United in the race for the
UEFA Champions League spots in the process.
The Red Devils conceded a last-minute goal to lose 1-0 to Southampton
and now trail Spurs by five points in the table. Leicester City lead
the standings after their 3-0 win over Stoke City, with Arsenal meeting
Chelsea on Sunday.In the final match of the day, West Ham United held Manchester City to a 2-2 draw.
| Jan Vertonghen
accidentally brought an end to Crystal Palace's scoreless run during
the first half when he turned Wilfried Zaha's cross into his own net, but Harry Kane
pulled his team back on level terms before Dele Alli and Nacer Chadli
secured the win late. The 3-1 result sees Tottenham increase their lead over Manchester United by five points, as Mauricio Pochettino's men move ever closer to Champions League football. Spurs were far from their best during the first half, but the Champions League hopefuls came out with renewed energy in the second half and deservedly pulled level through Kane, who is starting to put himself in the Player of the Year conversation with his timely goals. The visitors pushed for a late winner and were rewarded through youngster Alli, who scored a cracker of a goal with six minutes left to play. Taking a touch in the air, he flipped the ball over his head and the onrushing defender before launching a perfect volley into the left bottom corner. Chadli scored a stunning goal of his own to secure the win, although his effort will be overshadowed by Alli's superb piece of skill. The 19-year-old seems to have a knack for coming up big when his team needs him the most, and the win over Crystal Palace was just another example.
Once again, Anthony Martial was the lone bright spot for the Red Devils, as the young forward at least showed effort to get forward, even if he struggled with his end product. Southampton's defenders had little trouble keeping the Red Devils out of their box, and goalkeeper Fraser Forster was hardly ever troubled. Saints didn't create many chances either, threatening a few times off set pieces and through Dusan Tadic. But with minutes left to play, the United defenders seemed to switch off for a second, and Austin gladly accepted the gift. Sergio Aguero and Enner Valencia scored twice in Manchester City's 2-2 draw against West Ham, a result both teams were likely looking to avoid with an eye for the title race and the battle for Europe, respectively. Jamie Vardy got back on the scoresheet for Leicester City, guiding the Foxes to a 3-0 win over Stoke City and to the top of the standings in the process. Leicester easily controlled proceedings against an over-matched Stoke team and took the lead through Danny Drinkwater just before half-time, and Leonardo Ulloa completed the scoring. Liverpool beat Norwich City 5-4 in an absolute showpiece, a thrilling contest that saw several lead changes and two goals inside the final minutes. Sebastien Bassong thought he had nicked a point for the Canaries when he tied things up in the 90th minute, but Adam Lallana blasted home from inside the box to cap off a wild rally. Sunderland and Bournemouth shared the points, as did West Bromwich Albion and Aston Villa. Odion Ighalo once again found the target for Watford, who beat Newcastle United 2-1.
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