Premier League

GRANIT XHAKA issued a defiant rallying call after Arsenal   surrendered more momentum in this nervy title race.The Swiss midfielder insists that his team’s destiny is still in their own hands and that Sunday’s 2-2 draw at West Ham has changed nothing.
Granit Xhaka has promised that Arsenal will respond after drawing to Liverpool and West HamCredit: Getty
And he has warned anxious team-mates to ignore the noise of Manchester City breathing down their necks — despite chucking away a two-goal lead for the second time in eight days.
Even manager Mikel Arteta questioned his players’ strength of character in the immediate aftermath of the dropped points at the London Stadium.
But Xhaka said: “This is not about our mentality and I am certain everyone will see a reaction against Southampton on Friday.
“Everything is still in our own hands if we win our remaining games, so nothing has changed on that front.
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“We go into our next matches with the same objective, we’re not looking at what Manchester City are doing.
“Sunday’s game was similar to the match at Liverpool last week where we started very well, scored two goals but couldn’t get the win. We need to analyse why this happened twice in a row.
“But if anyone thinks that we’d get to this point of this season by smashing all our opponents without dropping points, I think they’re not in the right position.
“We are disappointed and when things are not going well it’s easy to show the finger to someone else.
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“But now is the time for everyone to be together.
“We have taken on a challenge which no one was thinking about before this season started and now we have seven games to go, so let’s carry on.”
It was Xhaka’s bust-up with Trent Alexander-Arnold which rallied the Anfield crowd and then sparked Liverpool’s fightback from 2-0 down to 2-2 last week.
And on Sunday it was Bukayo Saka’s second-half penalty miss which lit the touchpaper for West Ham’s recovery.
That leaves Arsenal four points clear of City having played a game more and with a title decider at the Etihad a week on Wednesday.
England star Saka had not missed from the spot since the Euro 2020 final shootout heartbreak.
He said: “I’ll always accept my responsibility. Apologies, Gunners, I’ll do everything I can to make it right.”
Xhaka denies that the atmosphere in the grounds had anything to do with the back-to-back draws.
He added: “We don’t really care about who is waking up the fans or not.
“This is not our job and if the Liverpool or West Ham fans support their team, it’s not our problem.
“The reason we didn’t win the last two games is because we gave away too many easy goals and nobody is blaming Bukayo for the penalty miss.
“The guy is so strong mentally so we’re not worried about him. It’s not as though we’re saying ‘if he scores the game is finished’ because there were another ten players on the pitch.
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“He needs our support more but he will bounce back and show a reaction in our next game.
“If we get another penalty against Southampton, I will push him to take it.” More

THE first rule is not to draw any conclusions on the Jekyll and Hyde Scousers. Yet carry on like this and there could be light at the end of this horror season after all 
Mohamed Salah inspired Liverpool to a 6-1 thrashing of LeedsCredit: Reuters
As Diogo Jota also ended his goal drought with a braceCredit: Reuters
From the sublime to the ridiculous and back again, Liverpool – hopeless on the road all season – dispatched Leeds to keep their distant Champions League hopes flickering. 
The Reds didn’t have to be and weren’t at their best to claim their first away win in two months and see off the docile Yorkshiremen’s comically generous defending. 
Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah made it 2-0 after capitalising on Junior Firpo and Weston McKennie’s howlers before Ibrahima Konate conspired to hand Leeds a lifeline with his own shocker. 
But Diogo Jota then ended his 32-game goal drought stretching back to last April before Salah bagged his brace – finishing a rapid counter where Liverpool really did purr. 
Nine pints off fourth with nine games to go, it’s a hell of a mountain to climb. 
Yet with rivals Newcastle and Tottenham slipping up you can bet Jurgen Klopp fancies his chances. 
Then again, the Liverpudlians followed their last win – a 7-0 thrashing of Manchester United – with a pitiful defeat at Bournemouth. 
They may have to win every game but with a nice looking run on paper, and signs of the old Liverpool returning, it can’t be ruled out. 
Jota netted for the first time in 32 gamesCredit: PA
Before Darwin Nunez compounded Leeds’ miseryCredit: Reuters
Boos rained down from Leeds fans when Jota lashed home the fifth – with Darwin Nunez’s sixth making it 11 goals shipped in their last two.
Liverpool only needed six shots on target to hit the tanking Whites for six.  
Still just two points above the drop, early hopes are fading fast that Javi Gracia is the man to drag them out of the mire.
Two capitulations on the bounce is sure to cause lasting damage, leaving United praying on the four sides below them – Everton, Nottingham Forest, Leicester and Southampton – doing them a favour. 
Without a victory in five games in all competitions, Klopp was in danger of going six without a win for the first time in the Anfield hotseat.
The German resisted change and stuck with the same XI that came from 2-0 down to draw against Arsenal – giving Curtis Jones the nod over returning Thiago Alcantara in midfield. 
Luis Diaz was back on the bench for a first sighting since October, while Gracia replaced the missing Patrick Bamford with Rodrigo up front. 
Klopp has no idea what to expect from his scatty side these days but they were given the easiest ride here. 
It was far from the usual fire and brimstone awaiting them at Elland Road as passive Leeds sat off. 
Trent Alexander-Arnold, playing centre mid in possession, looked classy on the ball early doors – but there was no penetration. 
The Reds eventually started to make inroads without any real openings… until Firpo delivered the first gift. 

Luis Sinisterra pulled one back for the home side just after the breakCredit: Reuters
But the Reds were in a ruthless moodCredit: PA
The error-prone left-back tried to play around Alexander-Arnold midway in his own half but the Liverpool man blocked and the ball moved to a free Salah. 
The Egyptian played it back to the overlapping Trent, who put it on a plate for the unmarked Gakpo at the back post to tap home. 
It was shocking from Firpo but the Whites were unlucky given the ball cannoned off Trent’s outstretched arm.
The officials didn’t spot it and VAR didn’t intervene, presumably deciding it wasn’t deliberate and wasn’t a clear and obvious mistake. 
Liverpool’s second – just four minutes later – was another Leeds shocker. 
Weston McKennie was the culprit, dawdling on it and having his pocket picked by Jota. 
The Portugal winger steamed forward unopposed and slid Salah into the left, with their main man belting past Meslier at his near post. 
So easy, and just like that it looked as good as done following two shots on target. 

Yet then up stepped Konate with the worst gaffe of all, inside two minutes of the restart, to make a game of it. 
Left hanging his head in shame, the defender was on another planet as he dallied on it on the edge of his box, allowing Sinisterra to nip in. 
The Colombian was in and made no mistake, dinking brilliantly over Alisson. 
But, just as Elland Road believed, Jota struck in the 52nd minute.
Curtis Jones charged through two challenges and played a great ball in behind right-back Rasmus Kristensen for the onrushing Jota to finish from the edge of the box. 
And it really was game, set and match when Salah bagged his second with 27 minutes remaining. 
Jota started it with a crunching tackle on the edge of the box, getting up to start the counter and play in the marauding Andrew Robertson. 
The Scot pulled back to Cody Gakpo, and the Dutchman played right for Salah to open up his body and bend a beauty into the far corner.
And the Elland Road exodus started en masse when Jota grabbed his second nine minutes later, firing a zinger into the bottom corner from the top of the box.  
And sub Nunez completed the humiliation in the 90th minutes – with Meslier now having conceded from each of his last 11 shots on target. 
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