Liverpool stays ahead of Man City by beating Chelsea 2-1 in Premier League

Liverpool is looking more and more like Manchester City’s main title rival after beating resurgent Chelsea 2-1 on Sunday to stay top of the Premier League table.

After City needed an injury-time header from John Stones to beat last-place Wolves 2-1 in the early kickoff, Liverpool answered with a composed performance at Anfield to hand Chelsea its first league loss since the opening round.

Having seen third-place Arsenal lose at Bournemouth on Saturday to raise questions about the Gunners’ title hopes, Liverpool and City took full advantage to build a small gap atop the standings. Arne Slot’s team leads on 21 points from eight games, one ahead of City and four above Arsenal.

Curtis Jones orchestrated the win for Liverpool, earning a penalty for Mohamed Salah’s first-half opener and then scoring himself to restore the host’s lead in the 51st minute, shortly after Nicolas Jackson had equalized for Chelsea.

Jones also thought he had earned a second penalty in first-half injury time, but it was overturned after a VAR review judged that Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez got the ball before bundling over the Liverpool player.

But he capped a stellar performance by beating the offside trap to get on the end of a ball into the box from Salah and slot in the winner.

“As soon as Mo had the ball I made the run, but it bounced so I had to have a touch, and then thankfully it went in,” Jones said.

Liverpool was the last team other than City to win the title, in 2019-20, and pushed Pep Guardiola’s team to the very end several times under Jurgen Klopp before finishing just fifth two years ago and a distant third last season.

In Slot’s first season in charge, though, the Reds are looking like credible challengers again and have now won 10 of 11 games in all competitions.

And City is looking far from unbeatable, needing another last-gasp goal from Stones to avoid a third league draw in four games against a Wolves team that only has one point so far.

It also needed a VAR intervention for the goal to stand, as referee Chris Kavanagh was called to the sideline monitor to review whether Bernardo Silva was interfering with goalkeeper Jose Sa from an offside position.

“We are not used to winning games at the end,” said Guardiola, whose team has won four straight league titles by regularly overwhelming most opponents. “It is a good flavor for us.”

It also extended City’s unbeaten streak to a club-record 31 league games, beating a mark Guardiola’s team had set in 2018.

With prolific striker Erling Haaland held scoreless for a third straight league game, City’s defenders provided the goals instead after Jorgen Strand Larsen had given the hosts a surprising early lead in the seventh minute.

Josko Gvardiol curled in a superb right-foot shot from outside the area to equalize in the 33rd minute but Wolves then repelled wave after wave of City attacks before the late intervention from Stones, who also netted a last-gasp equalizer against Arsenal in the eighth minute of injury time last month.

“These moments don’t come often for us,” Stones said. “We’ve come up with a few over the years and today was one of them.”

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Liverpool's manager Arne Slot waits for the start of the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Chelsea at Anfield Stadium, Liverpool, England, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah, centre, celebrates after scoring his side's opening goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Chelsea at Anfield Stadium, Liverpool, England, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Liverpool's Curtis Jones, right, scores his side's second goal past Chelsea's goalkeeper Robert Sanchez during the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Chelsea at Anfield Stadium, Liverpool, England, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Liverpool's Curtis Jones celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Chelsea at Anfield Stadium, Liverpool, England, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Manchester City's John Stones celebrates after the VAR confirmed his side's second goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester City at the Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

Manchester City's Josko Gvardio is congratulated by Mateo Kovacic after scoring his side's first goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester City at the Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

Manchester City's Rico Lewis gestures during the English Premier League soccer match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester City at the Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

Wolverhampton Wanderers' Jorgen Strand Larsen, right, celebrates scoring with teammates during the English Premier League soccer match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester City at Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton, England, Sunday Oct. 20, 2024. (David Davies/PA via AP)

Manchester City's Josko Gvardiol, left, celebrates scoring his side's first goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester City at the Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

Manchester City's John Stones, top left, scores his side's 2nd goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester City at the Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Chris Godwin is back, even if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver who’s a model of consistency never actually went away.

But nearly three years removed from a serious knee injury he feels is finally behind him, the longtime sidekick of Mike Evans is flourishing like never before.

Entering play Sunday, Godwin led the NFL in receptions (43), ranked third in receiving yards (511) and was tied for the league lead in touchdown receptions (five) with Evans, Ja’Marr Chase, George Kittle and Allen Lazard.

The Bucs (4-2), coming off a 51-point outburst against New Orleans in which Godwin had 11 catches for 125 yards and two TDs, host the Baltimore Ravens (4-2) on Monday night.

Godwin’s strong start has followed an offseason in which he grieved the death of his father while also preparing for a move to slot receiver on the field, a role he filled earlier in his career.

The position change has also helped the Bucs’ rejuvenated running game, which is benefitting from Godwin being an excellent blocker.

“I think what I learned over the last four or five years, I’m really comfortable there. … It allows me to be involved in other ways instead of just catching the ball,” Godwin said.

A third-round draft pick of the Bucs in 2017, Godwin is a four-time 1,000-yard receiver whose accomplishments are sometimes overshadowed by the remarkable consistency of Evans, the only receiver in NFL history to begin a career with 10 consecutive 1,000-yard seasons.

Godwin was closing in on 100 receptions in December 2021, when a severe knee injury ended his season with 98 catches for 1,103 yards.

And although he recovered well enough to catch 104 passes in 2022 and top 1,000 yards each of the past two seasons, it took Godwin until this year to begin feeling like he’s truly back.

“I mean, he’s helping as much in the run game as he is in the pass game. … His (performance) speaks for itself,” Bucs coach Todd Bowles said, reflecting on Tampa Bay rushing for 277 of the franchise-record 594 yards the Bucs gained at New Orleans.

On one of his two touchdowns against the Saints, Godwin took a short reception from Baker Mayfield, broke two tackles and turned it into a 55-yard scoring play.

Entering Sunday, Godwin led the NFL in yards after catch with 335, including 105 of the 125 yards receiving he had at New Orleans.

“He’s healthy, he’s competitive, he’s out there having fun. He’s running, he’s catching, he’s blocking,” Bowles said. “You’ve seen the best of what Chris Godwin has right now.”

Baltimore, which has won four straight following an 0-2 start, has the NFL’s top-ranked run defense. The Ravens are 31st against the pass and will be tested by Evans and Godwin, who coach John Harbaugh said pose “tremendous matchup problems.”

“You single (Evans) up, he’s a problem. And then you have (Godwin) in the slot — if you single him up, he’s a problem,” Harbaugh said. “They’re both catch-and-run players; they’re both contested-catch players.”

With Mayfield also off to a strong start in first-year offensive coordinator’s Liam Coen’s system, the Bucs have a top 10 offense and are averaging 29.7 points per game.

One of the keys has been getting playmakers other than Godwin and Evans involved. Rookie Bucky Irving is the team’s leading rusher, and second-year pro Sean Tucker figures to get more playing time against the Ravens after scoring twice and accumulating 192 yards from scrimmage last week.

“It’s one thing when a guy is going off because you feed the hot hand, right? But, if we’re able to spread the ball around, everybody gets involved,” Godwin said.

“And then as the game progresses, you have so much more at your disposal than just the handful of plays that were working early on,” the receiver added. “So, when a team makes adjustments, now you have answers for it.”

Just don’t ever expect the Bucs to forget Godwin is one of the answers.

“Chris is a reliable guy,” said Mayfield, who marvels at the consistency of both Godwin and Evans, Tampa Bay’s career receiving and scoring leader.

“It’s how smart he is, understanding the defense and the coverages, understanding what we’re trying to get done within our own concepts, and (he’s) a guy that is all about winning,” Mayfield said. “He’s playing really well, feels good (and) we have to keep him going.”

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin (14) celebrates as he leaves the field following an NFL football game against New Orleans Saints in New Orleans, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin (14) runs against the New Orleans Saints during the second half of an NFL football game in New Orleans, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin runs toward the end zone to score against the New Orleans Saints during the second half of an NFL football game in New Orleans, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)