Pep Guardiola felt Manchester City were "exceptional" as they beat Brighton and Hove Albion 3-0 to return to the top of the Premier League.

Second-half goals from Riyad Mahrez, Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday moved City a point clear of Liverpool with six games to play.

Mahrez and Foden found the back of the net with the help of deflections before Silva put the icing on the cake with a clinical left-foot finish late on.

Liverpool had made a statement by thrashing Manchester United 4-0 on Tuesday, but City responded with a comfortable win of their own 24 hours later.

It was a 250th victory of his City tenure for Guardiola and the Spaniard was full of a praise for his side, knowing they can ill afford any slip-ups in the title race.

He told Match of the Day: "It was a good test and we behaved exceptional. That is why we won the game.

"We didn't let them play. Brighton have this quality. In the second half we found the goals that we could not find in the first half."

He added: "The feeling today is that we are now mathematically going to play in the Champions League. People can say it is normal, but it is not. You only have to look at the incredible teams fighting to get into the Champions League.

"Now for the Premier League, we are not stupid. If we drop just two points, Liverpool will be champions. If we win all games we will be champions. The players know it.

"We know the tough games we have and we must try to perform like today and win all the games. If we do that we will celebrate, if not we will congratulate Liverpool."

Kevin De Bruyne was outstanding on his return to the starting line-up and Guardiola says the midfielder is stepping up when City really need him.

He said: "What a signing. The club sign him before I come here so a big congratulations to the club. A special player and human being.

"When fit and happy mentally like all of us and is fit to show his potential he is unstoppable in that position, in transition especially. He is playing the last part of this season amazingly."

Ruben Diaz made his return from a hamstring injury as a half-time substitute after Nathan Ake sustained a twisted ankle, while John Stones was withdrawn late on. 

Guardiola said: "Nathan Ake has a twisted ankle. It is not perfect but it was good to give minutes to Ruben. John was a little bit tight.

"Hopefully [it is] nothing too bad but we will see tomorrow. Ruben is important. It is difficult seven weeks out to come back and pick up the rhythm. He is mentally so strong and that is why he show so many good things."

Mikel Arteta expressed his delight for Eddie Nketiah after the striker's first Premier League double saw Arsenal respond to a poor run of form with victory at Chelsea on Wednesday.

A frantic first half at Stamford Bridge saw Arsenal twice pegged back by Chelsea, after Timo Werner cancelled out Eddie Nketiah's opener, and Cesar Azpilicueta restored parity following Emile Smith Rowe's goal.

Nketiah delivered again after the interval before Bukayo Saka's penalty sealed a 4-2 victory as Arsenal moved level on points with fourth-placed Tottenham in the battle for Champions League qualification.

In Nketiah, Smith Rowe and Saka, Arsenal also saw three English players score in the same Premier League match versus Chelsea for the first time since September 1996.

Arteta reserved much of his praise for Nketiah, who proved his worth to the Gunners by scoring his first top-flight goals in over a year – since an injury-time equaliser versus Fulham in April 2021.

"What I've been saying all the time about Eddie, when you look at him in training and how humble he is all the time, good things happen," Arteta said of the forward.

"Good things happen to good people. He has proven that all season and he hasn't given any signs of anything different. If I'm happy for anyone it's him, because I know what he's been through. 

"The same with Mohamed Elneny and Rob Holding."

Manager Arteta also hailed the adaptability of his side, who ended a three-game losing streak with the success over Thomas Tuchel's European champions.

"The way they started the game was tactically really demanding, they kept changing their shape and we had to adapt," the Spaniard told Sky Sports.

"We managed to grab a little bit of the game, we looked dangerous on the counter-attack, we scored four goals and conceded twice.

"After two difficult weeks it's a great day. What I love is the spirit of these players. When you lose matches you get punished and criticised but with these players I don't care because they're growing.

"For us to win a London derby away the way we did it I'm really happy as well."

Arteta then added to reporters: “I said to them if you want to play Champions League football you have to come to places like this and win.”

Arsenal will be hoping to carry the impetus from the win over Chelsea when they on Saturday host fellow top-four chasers Manchester United, who have played a game more and are three points behind the Gunners.

Cesar Azpilicueta confronted a fan after Chelsea's 4-2 loss to Arsenal and Thomas Tuchel understood why the supporter was angry. 

Chelsea suffered their third straight home defeat in all competitions on Wednesday and the Chelsea captain approached an individual in the stands after the final whistle. 

Timo Werner and Azpilicueta cancelled out first-half strikes from Eddie Nketiah and Emile Smith Rowe, but the Blues went on to suffer a bitter defeat. 

Azpilicueta's stray pass preceded Nketiah scoring a second, while he gave away a penalty that Bukayo Saka converted in stoppage time to leave Chelsea just five points clear of the fifth-placed Gunners. 

The Blues have now lost three straight home games in all competitions for the first time since November 1993, while December 1989 was when they previously conceded at least four goals in successive home league matches.

Still, Azpilicueta was seemingly angered by the response of the fans and approached a group of spectators, with one appearing to hold their hands up in apology. 

Asked about the incident, Tuchel said: "I saw it. Honestly, I can understand the fan. 

"It was a totally wild and open game in the first half – already a 2-2 after we came back twice. We had a good start but again gave the first goal away which is impossible to do these things in consecutive matches. But we're doing it. 

"We came back twice and we scored another two in the second half, unfortunately for the wrong side. 

"It's the level of mistakes, the number of mistakes in consecutive games here at home, it's impossible at this kind of level. You don't see this. It's simply impossible. But we're doing this at the moment and you cannot win football games like this. 

"To say the pitch is difficult to play here, it maybe sounds like an excuse, but it is a very, very difficult pitch that we have here. It’s not in our favour. 

"The ball bounces very awkwardly in front of Andreas [Christensen] when he wants to play this ball. But still, we had the same mistake against Real Madrid that cost us the next round of the Champions League and this one cost us the next match. I can't remember when we got two goals like this 

"Look at the penalty, it is an unbelievable goal from our ball possession. There are no tactics behind that. We have three ball losses in 10 seconds. Then we do a foul where there's not even the slightest danger. We foul a person, it is a penalty and we rob ourselves six minutes for an equaliser.   

"It must be something, but it is also possible to not do it because we proved it in the last three matches and we thought we learned our lesson from Brentford and Real Madrid, but obviously not." 

Real Madrid moved one step closer to the LaLiga title with a 3-1 victory at Osasuna despite Karim Benzema twice failing from the penalty spot on Wednesday.

Madrid needed a stunning comeback to win 3-2 at Sevilla after a slow start on Sunday, but were quick out the blocks at El Sadar as David Alaba struck after 12 minutes before Ante Budimir immediately equalised.

Marco Asensio restored Madrid's lead in the 45th minute and, after Benzema saw two penalties saved by Sergio Herrera in the second half, Lucas Vazquez sealed victory in stoppage-time.

Victory moved Madrid 17 points clear of Atletico Madrid, with distant chasers Sevilla and Barcelona also in action against Levante and Real Sociedad respectively on Thursday.

Rodrygo forced a smart Herrera stop with a long-range effort in the opening exchanges, but Madrid were soon ahead.

A quick free-kick from Asensio and Dani Ceballos found space for Benzema, before the striker squared for Alaba, who fortuitously bundled home on the rebound from a Herrera reflex save.

Osasuna responded a minute later when Chimy Avila whipped across from the right for Budimir to tap-in.

Asensio pounced on Ceballos' saved close-range effort to poke Madrid ahead again on the stroke of half-time, before Thibaut Courtois excellently denied a looping Budimir header after the interval.

Avila then handled when trying to stop Rodrygo to offer Madrid a penalty, which Herrera saved against Benzema.

Benzema went for the same bottom-left corner after Rodrygo was felled by Nacho Vidal, with Herrera again guessing the right way.

Vinicius Junior then rolled wide on the counter before teeing up Vazquez, who finished into the bottom-left corner to confirm the win.

What does it mean? Title procession continues for Madrid

Madrid's title charge has been characterised by their fighting spirit to come through adversity to secure victory, and their performance at El Sadar was no different.

Los Blancos weathered an early storm from the hosts to take the half-time lead and, although Benzema twice failed from 12 yards, battled to victory over Osasuna, who have not defeated Madrid in 14 top-flight meetings.

Now, Ancelotti's team will tick off another fixture as they edge closer towards lifting the LaLiga trophy.

Rampant Rodrygo spares Benzema blushes

Winger Rodrygo was the star of the show as his half-time introduction sparked a comeback against Sevilla, and he was on form again against Osasuna as he won two penalties and laid on a game-high four chances.

The Brazil international's creative excellence did not prove fruitful for Benzema, who became the first player to miss two penalties in a LaLiga game since Raul Tamudo against Betis in April 2006.

Budimir efforts in vain

Budimir has scored in each of his last five LaLiga games (five goals in total) as he became only the second Osasuna player to score in five successive top-flight games in the 21st century after Richard Morales in 2004. However, the striker's efforts ultimately proved in vain against the league leaders.

What's next?

Madrid visit Manchester City in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final clash on Tuesday, before hosting Espanyol on Saturday – the day before Osasuna are away at Elche.

Holders Juventus reached the Coppa Italia final after a 2-0 victory over Fiorentina in their semi-final second leg on Wednesday.

The Bianconeri claimed a 1-0 win in the first leg last month, and they had to work hard to seal their place in next month's final against a Fiorentina side that dominated possession and had almost twice as many shots.

Federico Bernardeschi got them on their way shortly after the half-hour mark, before Danilo added a second deep into stoppage time at the end of the game. 

Massimiliano Allegri's men will face Inter in the final on May 11 at the Stadio Olimpico after the Nerazzurri overcame Milan in their last-four tie.

The best chance of a cagey opening 20 minutes was Dusan Vlahovic's shot from inside the penalty area, which was pawed away by Bartlomiej Dragowski.

The Juve striker should have scored shortly before the half-hour mark, yet Dragowski stood firm to block his attempted chip after he had been played clean through.

Dragowski was at fault for the opener in the 32nd minute, the goalkeeper completely misjudging Alvaro Morata's cross to allow Bernardeschi to volley home from 15 yards after Cristiano Biraghi's header had fallen kindly to him.

Fiorentina finished the first half strongly and they should have gone in at the break level, but Arthur Cabral's powerful drive was straight at Mattia Perin.

Perin kept out Lucas Martinez Quarta's deflected header early in the second half, while at the other end Denis Zakaria cracked an effort against the outside of the post. 

Adrien Rabiot saw a goal ruled out by VAR for offside, although it mattered little in the end as Danilo swept home Juan Cuadrado's cross late on to add gloss to the victory. 

What does it mean? Fiorentina fail to punish Juve

Given they carved out 17 shots to Juve's eight and enjoyed a whopping 68.3 per cent possession, Fiorentina will be bitterly disappointed they did not turn their dominance into goals.

As it is, Juve have now progressed from their last seven Coppa Italia semi-finals, with their last elimination coming in the 2012-13 season against Lazio.

Bernardeschi proves decisive

It was only Bernardeschi's second goal of the season across all competitions, yet that is as many as he had in total across the previous two campaigns for Juve. The forward was also denied a superb assist when Rabiot's late effort from his fine cross was ruled out.

Shot-shy Morata

He did play two key passes before his substitution for Paulo Dybala in the 66th minute, yet Morata left the pitch having failed to take a single shot. The Spain international will need to do more if he is to convince Allegri he should start up front alongside Vlahovic.

What's next?

Juve travel to Sassuolo in Serie A on Monday, a day after Fiorentina visit Salernitana.

Paris Saint-Germain earned a comfortable 3-0 win at Angers but were unable to start their Ligue 1 title party after Marseille defeated Nantes.

With their title rivals losing, and Kylian Mbappe and Sergio Ramos having got on the scoresheet, Mauricio Pochettino's men looked to be heading for a 10th championship at half-time.

But, while they extended their lead in the second period thanks to Marquinhos, they were ultimately denied the title thanks to a Marseille comeback. 

Instead, PSG must wait to celebrate an eighth success in 10 seasons, even if victory on that front still looks inevitable.

The visitors were hit with an early blow when Mauro Icardi pulled up in the warm-up, forcing Pochettino to bring Eric Ebimbe into his starting XI.

Angers looked ready to capitalise when Sofiane Boufal tested Keylor Navas from distance before passing a one-on-one chance wide of the post. 

Unfortunately, the former Southampton man lasted just 14 minutes before succumbing to injury, and PSG underlined their threat when Thilo Kehrer and Marquinhos both went close from Angel Di Maria corners.

That pressure ultimately told, with Mbappe making the breakthrough before the half-hour mark courtesy of a swift exchange of passes with Achraf Hakimi and a left-footed piledriver.

That meant PSG moved onto 11 goals scored from outside the box this season, and that Angers had conceded 10 – Ligue 1's best and worst records respectively. 

But the hosts almost had a long-distance goal of their own to treasure soon after, Mohamed-Ali Cho striking the post with a curler. 

Their failure to take that chance was punished before the break, however, Ramos heading home yet another delicious Di Maria cross from the left.

Unbeaten in their last 23 Ligue 1 games when leading at half-time (W22, D1), PSG showed no signs that an unexpected collapse might be on the cards after the restart.

They instead looked likelier to extend their lead, with Hakimi being denied after sneaking in behind early doors, while Mbappe forced a fine save with another powerful left-footer from inside the box soon after.

Hopes of an Angers fight-back were further extinguished when a penalty was overturned after a VAR review showed Kehrer making a clean challenge on Cho in the box. 

That ensured that, despite the loss of substitute Edouard Michu to a late and perhaps unfortunate red card, PSG had little trouble in seeing out a straightforward win that moves them a step closer to the Ligue 1 trophy.

Second-half goals from Riyad Mahrez, Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva put Manchester City back on top of the Premier League as Brighton and Hove Albion were consigned to a 3-0 defeat.

Liverpool had moved to the summit with a 4-0 thrashing of Manchester United on Tuesday, but Pep Guardiola's side responded 24 hours later to keep their fate in their own hands in the title race.

Deflected strikes from Mahrez and Foden put the champions in command at the Etihad Stadium and Silva added a third as they moved a point ahead of the Reds with six games to play after losing to Jurgen Klopp's men in an FA Cup semi-final last Saturday.

City had been without a win in three matches, but normal service was resumed in their quest for a Premier League and Champions League double.

Moises Caicedo spared Robert Sanchez's blushes when he produced a brilliant challenge on Mahrez after the Seagulls goalkeeper gifted the City winger a chance to open the scoring early on with a terrible pass.

The hosts were not at their devastating best in the first half, but Brighton had another let-off when they made a mess of trying to play out from the back again and this time Lewis Dunk came to the rescue by blocking Ilkay Gundogan's strike.

The fit-again Ruben Dias replaced Nathan Ake at the break to make his first appearance since March 1 and the City defender was fortunate to get away with late challenge on Alexis Mac Allister soon after his introduction.

Kevin De Bruyne was the architect for the opening goal eight minutes into the second half, bursting forward from inside his own half before picking out Mahrez, who benefited from a couple of fortunate deflections before his finish struck Dunk and beat Sanchez.

Foden doubled City's lead 12 minutes later, this time Enock Mwepu sticking out a leg in an attempt to keep out the midfielder's drive from outside the box but seeing the ball flash past a helpless Sanchez.

There was concern for City when John Stones was withdrawn late on after sustaining an injury, but Silva put the icing on the cake with a clinical left-foot finish in the 82nd minute as Brighton shot themselves in the foot again trying to play out from the back.

RB Leipzig are into the DFB-Pokal final for the third time in four years after a dramatic stoppage-time header from Emil Forsberg sealed a 2-1 comeback win over Union Berlin.

For a while, Union themselves looked on course for next month's final after taking a 25th-minute lead, but Leipzig fought back in the second half and sealed progress at the death.

During a first half of few chances, Union proved the more clinical as Sheraldo Becker guided home impressively on the break.

But there were warning signs from a Leipzig side that dominated possession and parity was restored by an Andre Silva penalty in the 61st minute, and just when extra time seemed to beckon, Forsberg nodded in to spark bedlam in the Red Bull Arena.

Eddie Nketiah scored his first Premier League double as Arsenal got their top-four hopes back on track with an entertaining 4-2 victory over Chelsea. 

Mikel Arteta's faith in Nketiah was rewarded as the 22-year-old ended a wait for a league goal that stretched back to April 2021 with the opener at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday. 

Timo Werner scored in consecutive Premier League games for just the second time in his Chelsea career to restore parity, before Emile Smith Rowe put Arsenal back in front. 

Cesar Azpilicueta got another equaliser for Chelsea, but he was at fault for Nketiah's second and a stoppage-time penalty from Bukayo Saka as Arsenal ended run of three straight defeats and went level on points with fourth-placed Tottenham. 

Andreas Christensen's bungled back pass was pounced upon by Nketiah and the attacker slotted a cool finish past Edouard Mendy to give Arsenal the lead in the 13th minute. 

Chelsea hit back four minutes later when Ruben Loftus-Cheek won possession high up the pitch and Werner unleashed a shot that deflected in off Granit Xhaka. 

Arsenal narrowly avoided gifting Chelsea a chance to take the lead and transitioned into a rapid counter-attack that finished with Smith Rowe placing a curling shot into the bottom-right corner. 

The Blues drew level before the break, though, with Mason Mount's excellent delivery steered home by Azpilicueta. 

Christensen made way for Thiago Silva at half-time, but Arsenal were back in front 13 minutes after the restart. Azpilicueta gave the ball away and Nketiah made the most of a couple of fortunate ricochets to double his tally. 

Azpilicueta then hauled Saka to ground in the box and the England winger fired the spot-kick home in the 92nd minute as Chelsea succumbed to a defeat that left them in danger of being dragged into an unexpected top-four battle.
 

What does it mean? Shoddy defending costs Chelsea 

Chelsea have lost three straight home games in all competitions for the first time in almost 30 years, and some sloppy errors brought on their latest defeat. 

They gifted Nketiah a pair of goals and were caught short when their high press was beaten ahead of Smith Rowe's strike. 

The Gunners were by no means in good form at the back, but some crucial blocks from Gabriel helped them secure a huge three points. 

Sublime Saka 

Marcos Alonso struggled to cope with Saka's dribbling ability as he proved extremely dangerous when Arsenal counter-attacked. He capped an all-action display with a deserved goal at the death.

Lacklustre Lukaku 

Thomas Tuchel handed Romelu Lukaku his first start in over a month, but the Belgian failed to impress. His 22 touches were the fewest of any Chelsea starter and he missed the target with his only attempt on goal. 

What's next? 

Arsenal entertain Manchester United in a game that could be key to their top-four hopes on Saturday, while Chelsea have another London derby against West Ham the following day. 

Iga Swiatek continued her impressive form as she crushed qualifier Eva Lys at the Stuttgart Open to clinch a 20th successive win and sail into the quarter-finals.

The world number one was far too good for her opponent, as she claimed her 6-1 6-1 victory in slightly over an hour.

Swiatek, 20, last lost a match in February and has not dropped a set since Indian Wells in March, winning each of the last 26 – that is the best such run on the WTA Tour since Serena Williams won 28 successive sets between the 2012 US Open and 2013 Australian Open.

Having won each of the past three events she has entered, Swiatek is the hot favourite to make it four on the bounce in Stuttgart, where she could meet reigning US Open champion Emma Raducanu next in the last eight.

Raducanu, seeded eighth, began her campaign with an emphatic 6-1 6-2 win over Australia's Storm Sanders on Wednesday to set up a second-round clash with Tamara Korpatsch – the winner faces Swiatek.

Sixth seed Karolina Pliskova overcame compatriot Petra Kvitova 6-4 4-6 7-6 (7-5) to progress, while Anett Kontaveit – the fifth favourite – saw off Angelique Kerber 3-6 6-4 6-4.

It was a bad day for some of the higher seeds in the Istanbul Cup, as three of the top five were eliminated.

Favourite Elise Mertens retired from her tournament opener with Rebecca Peterson due to a leg injury, though the Belgian was already 7-5 4-1 down.

Anhelina Kalinina and Jil Teichmann – seeded fourth and fifth, respectively – suffered surprise defeats as well.

Defending champion and second seed Sorana Cirstea appeared in danger of following them out as well, but rallied to defeat Arantxa Rus 3-6 6-1 7-5.

Ajla Tomljanovic also progressed, the Australian enjoying an impressive start against her countrywoman Jaimee Fourlis, winning 6-1 6-3.

Novak Djokovic edged into the quarter-finals of the Serbia Open by defeating Laslo Djere 2-6 7-6 (8-6) 7-6 (7-4) in a tense encounter in Belgrade. 

World number one Djokovic was in danger of losing three straight ATP Tour matches for the first time in over four years when he surrendered the opening set to his fellow Serbian in front of an adoring crowd. 

The 20-time grand slam winner was two points away from defeat in the second-set tie-break but managed to force a decider by converting set point at the sixth attempt.

And Djokovic needed another tie-break to get the job done, with Djere paying the price for a series of errors as he missed out on a chance to claim a famous victory. 

Next up for Djokovic, who bounced back from successive defeats to Jiri Vesely and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in Dubai and Monte Carlo respectively, is Miomir Kecmanovic. 

Seventh seed Kecmanovic faced little resistance from John Millman as he claimed a 6-4 7-6 (7-5) success, while Karen Khachanov was granted a walkover against Roman Safiullin. 

At the Barcelona Open, Carlos Alcaraz advanced to the third round courtesy of a 6-1 2-6 6-2 victory over Kwon Soon-woo. 

He will face Jaume Munar for a place in the quarter-finals following the wildcard's 6-1 6-4 triumph against ninth seed Nikoloz Basilashvili. 

Felix Auger-Aliassime was taken the distance by Carlos Taberner but eventually closed out a 6-1 3-6 6-4 success. His reward is a meeting with Frances Tiafoe, who beat Hugo Dellien 7-6 (7-3) 6-1. 

Lloyd Harris defeated Albert Ramos Vinolas 6-3 6-4, while Alex De Minaur, Emil Ruusuvuori, Pablo Carreno-Busta and Marton Fucsovics also advanced. 

Inclement weather brought a halt to top seed Stefanos Tsitsipas' meeting with Ilya Ivashka after just one game, while Grigor Dimitrov was up a break in the third set of a clash with Federico Coria.