LONDON — Arsenal is back in the hunt to qualify for the Champions League after Arsene Wenger finally got the better of Jose Mourinho in a 2-0 win over Manchester United, while Liverpool was held to a 0-0 draw by Southampton Sunday.
Wenger had failed to win any of his previous 14 competitive clashes against Mourinho dating back to 2004, with his only victory over his old rival coming in the 2015 Community Shield when the Portuguese coach was in charge of Chelsea.
The Gunners boss brought an end to that frustrating streak at just the right time as goals from Granit Xhaka and Danny Welbeck improved Arsenal's chances of salvaging a troubled season by finishing in the top four.
Sixth placed Arsenal is now six points behind fourth placed Manchester City with four games to play, while Pep Guardiola's side has only three matches remaining.
Fifth placed United remains four points behind City with three games left.
With Mourinho prioritising the Europa League semifinal second leg against Celta Vigo in midweek, United, which holds a 1-0 first leg lead, fielded a much-changed side in north London.
United can qualify for the Champions League by winning the Europa League and it may well need to do exactly that after surrendering its 25-match unbeaten run in the Premier League.
The Gunners needed a stroke of luck to open the scoring in the 54th minute.
Xhaka blasted a long-range strike that slammed into the back of United midfielder Ander Herrera, looping high in the air before dropping into the net just out of the reach of goalkeeper David de Gea.
If that was a fortuitous way to take the lead, Arsenal had no need to apologise for their superb second goal three minutes later.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain whipped over a teasing cross and when United defender Chris Smalling misjudged the flight of the ball, former United forward Welbeck was perfectly placed to bury his header past De Gea for just his second league goal this season.
At Anfield, Liverpool's James Milner saw his penalty saved by Fraser Forster as his side wasted a chance to bolster its Champions League bid.
It was Milner's first missed penalty since November 2009, when he was playing for Aston Villa against Bolton, and it summed up the feeling that this would not be Liverpool's day.
Liverpool is up to third, five points ahead of United, which has a game in hand.
Lazio piles pressure on Roma
Ciro Immobile hit a brace as Lazio thrashed Sampdoria 7-3 to cut the gap on third-placed Roma to five points in Serie A Sunday.
A week after a 3-1 romp secured the bragging rights in the Rome derby, Lazio extended its impressive end-of-season run of form to lead 5-1 by half-time.
Lazio's 21st win of the campaign left the capital side in fourth but Roma, and a possible Champions League qualifying place, remains in sight with three games left to play.
Now 11 points ahead of sixth-placed AC Milan, Lazio is guaranteed at least Europa League football next season.
Milan trails fifth-placed Atalanta by six points but was buoyed after the men from Bergamo were held 1-1 by Udinese.
Vincenzo Montella's side was probably even happier by seeing city rival Inter stretch its winless run to seven games after succumbing 1-0 at Genoa after a 70th-minute strike by Goran Pandev.
It was Inter's third defeat on the trot, its fifth in their past seven games and left them in seventh place, nine points behind Atalanta and with virtually no chance of qualifying for Europe.
Freiburg eyes Europe
Freiburg is on course for the Europa League next season after striker Florian Niederlechner netted twice in Sunday's 2-0 home win against Schalke to go fifth in the Bundesliga.
Christian Streich's Freiburg, last season's second division champion, is having a stellar first season back in Germany's top flight.
They are in pole position for a Europa League place but rival Hertha Berlin, Cologne and Werder Bremen is all within two points with two games remaining.
Niederlechner scored twice in the first-half at the Schwarzwald Stadion, where Freiburg has won 10 of its 16 home games this season.
Earlier, relegation-threatened Hamburg and Mainz both boosted their Bundesliga survival chances by earning a point apiece in a goalless draw. — Agencies
