Man City batter Brighton to retain Premier League title
Brighton, May 12: Manchester City held off a titanic challenge from Liverpool to become the first side in a decade to retain the Premier League title by coming from behind to beat Brighton 4-1 on Sunday.
A 14th straight league win ensured Pep Guardiola's men pipped Liverpool by a solitary point as the Reds' long wait to win the league continued despite a 2-0 victory over Wolves at Anfield that saw them post the third highest points tally in Premier League history.
City remain on course to complete the first ever domestic treble in English football in the FA Cup final next weekend as goals from Sergio Aguero, Aymeric Laporte, Riyad Mahrez and Ilkay Gundogan saw the visitors recover from Glenn Murray's shock opener.
For 83 seconds Liverpool fans were able to dream, but City showed why they are champions and have racked up a remarkable 98 points, just two shy of their record century of points last season.
Liverpool applied as much pressure as they could with their own nine-game winning run to end the season and went in front early against Wolves to raise the tension inside the Amex Stadium.
City had not conceded in their previous four games, but Brighton were playing on their nerves as they sought revenge for defeat in their FA Cup semi-final last month.
Ali Jahanbakhsh flashed a shot just wide of Ederson's right-hand post before the moment that was celebrated as wildly 270 miles north at Anfield as it was on the south coast.
Pascal Gross's dangerous in-swinging corner was powered home by veteran striker Murray at the near post on 27 minutes.
This was the first time City had failed to score first in a league game since early December and the first time they had trailed at all in the 14-game winning run that has carried them to the title.
However, Brighton's lead and Liverpool's hope lasted just over a minute.
Aguero leads City recovery
Aguero scored the sensational last-gasp goal that ended City's own 44-year wait for the title in 2011/12 and his goals have been a constant of their now four Premier League triumphs in eight seasons.
David Silva's wonderful flick freed the Argentine in behind the Brighton defence and Aguero made no mistake with a powerful low finish.
The brief shock of going behind sparked City into life as Mathew Ryan was then forced into saves at his near post from Bernardo Silva and Mahrez.
However, Brighton were undone from a simple set-piece when Mahrez's corner found Laporte completely unmarked to head City in front seven minutes before half-time.
The champions still had nervy moments to see through as Ederson only just scrambled Lewis Dunk's dipping free-kick over the bar with the last action of the first half.
And the Brazilian goalkeeper was lucky not to concede a free-kick yards from the City goal line when he collected a back pass from Laporte.
Yet, 27 minutes from time they had the breathing space they desired in a moment of magic and redemption for Mahrez.
The Algerian has failed to make a big impact in his first season since joining for a club record Euro 60 million from Leicester.
Until now his most noteworthy moment was a late missed penalty in a 0-0 draw at Anfield in October that could easily have cost City the title.
Instead, he scored the goal to ensure Liverpool were denied at the end of a remarkable title tussle by cutting inside Dunk before firing into the top corner on his weaker right foot.
Nine minutes later Gundogan added the icing on the champions' cake with a glorious free-kick from 25 yards.
Sergio Aguero goal bs Brighton??@premierleague @ManCity @OfficialBHAFC pic.twitter.com/mxKkOFToYX
— One Spot FoOtBaLL (@OneSpotFoOtBaL1) May 12, 2019
@Laporte THE BEST ? pic.twitter.com/0pPGqigHed
— CHAMPION 2018-2019 ????????? (@FredBlueMoon10) May 12, 2019
Riyad Mahrez goal vs Brighton ?????@premierleague @ManCity @OfficialBHAFC pic.twitter.com/ENF7ubM9Y7
— One Spot FoOtBaLL (@OneSpotFoOtBaL1) May 12, 2019
llkay Gundogan free kick goal vs Brighton???@premierleague @ManCity @OfficialBHAFC pic.twitter.com/Mkg14LqYTm
— One Spot FoOtBaLL (@OneSpotFoOtBaL1) May 12, 2019
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
