Football/Soccer 24-Hour Briefing
×Premier League Drama
Arsenal espn.com answered the title race pressure with a resounding 4-1 victory over Tottenham in the North London derby. Viktor Gyokeres bbc.com scored a brace while Eberechi Eze bbc.com also netted twice, with Igor Tudor espn.com admitting his new Tottenham side "need to work harder than before" despite the heavy defeat. Gary Neville skysports.com believes Arsenal have answered their critics and withstood the pressure from Manchester City.
Liverpool espn.com survived one of their worst performances of the season to snatch a last-gasp 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest. Alexis Mac Allister bbc.com scored in the 97th minute to boost Liverpool's Champions League qualification hopes. Arne Slot espn.com acknowledged his side's performance was "the worst we've played" but admitted they were the "lucky ones" in a game of fine margins.
Fulham bbc.com leapfrogged Sunderland into the top half of the table after Raul Jimenez scored twice in a 3-1 win. Crystal Palace bbc.com secured their first home win since early November when Evann Guessand scored a late winner against 10-man Wolves.
Wolves espn.com reported "abhorrent and unlawful" racist abuse against striker Tolu Arokodare, who has become the latest Premier League player to be subjected to discriminatory social media attacks. Ruben Loftus-Cheek espn.com was hospitalized after a collision with the Parma goalkeeper during AC Milan's 1-0 loss.
European Football
Barcelona espn.com returned to the top of La Liga with a 3-0 win over Levante, with Frenkie De Jong scoring his first goal in over a year. Real Madrid bbc.com and Barcelona are both reportedly interested in Manchester City's Rodri this summer.
Sheffield United skysports.com condemned rivals Sheffield Wednesday to relegation in the Steel City derby, with Kalvin Phillips skysports.com seeing red after a horror tackle. Wednesday became the first EFL club to go down in February.
Scottish Premiership
The Scottish Premiership title race took another dramatic twist as Celtic bbc.com lost to Hibs while Rangers skysports.com drew 2-2 at Livingston despite mounting a comeback. Martin O'Neill skysports.com tasted domestic defeat for the first time since returning to Celtic.
FA Cup
Chelsea espn.com knocked Manchester United out of the FA Cup in a replay of last year's final, though they will miss Sam Kerr when she leaves for the Asian Cup. Chelsea bbc.com, Arsenal and Manchester City all reached the Women's FA Cup quarter-finals.
International & Other
Four high-level soccer matches in Mexico were postponed after the army killed a drug cartel boss near Guadalajara espn.com. Raheem Sterling espn.com said he was pleased with his start at Feyenoord, while Cristiano Ronaldo espn.com declared he "belongs to Saudi Arabia" after his recent dispute with Al-Nassr. MLS espn.com is investigating allegations that Lionel Messi gained unauthorized access to officials' locker room after an Inter Miami match.