Barclays U21 Premier League 2016: Monday Scores, Updated Standings and Schedule
Liverpool battled to a much-needed win in the Barclays Under-21 Premier League on Monday after a disappointing campaign, defeating Middlesbrough 3-2 on their travels and claiming only their sixth victory of the season after a Sheyi Ojo hat-trick.
Chelsea continued their climb up the under-21 league as they comfortably beat Reading 3-1 away.
Pacesetters Sunderland beat Everton 3-2 in a battle of two of the top four sides in Division 1, as the Black Cats regained the lead at the top from an effervescent Manchester United side who have been in fine fettle.
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Here's a full look at Monday night's results and an update on the latest standings and fixtures:
| Swansea City U21 | 2-1 | Derby County U21 |
| Brighton and Hove Albion U21 | 1-1 | Aston Villa U21 |
| Leicester City U21 | 2-1 | Southampton U21 |
| Middlesbrough U21 | 2-3 | Liverpool U21 |
| West Ham United U21 | 1-1 | Blackburn Rovers U21 |
| Reading U21 | 1-3 | Chelsea U21 |
| Sunderland U21 | 3-2 | Everton U21 |
| 1 | Sunderland U21 | 18 | 12 | 2 | 4 | 33 | 14 | 19 | 38 |
| 2 | Man Utd U21 | 16 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 36 | 13 | 23 | 37 |
| 3 | Man City U21 | 16 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 28 | 20 | 8 | 27 |
| 4 | Everton U21 | 15 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 25 | 21 | 4 | 23 |
| 5 | Reading U21 | 19 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 28 | 33 | -5 | 23 |
| 6 | Chelsea U21 | 14 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 27 | 21 | 6 | 22 |
| 7 | Spurs U21 | 17 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 34 | 35 | -1 | 21 |
| 8 | Liverpool U21 | 17 | 6 | 3 | 8 | 21 | 28 | -7 | 21 |
| 9 | Leicester U21 | 16 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 20 | 37 | -17 | 18 |
| 10 | Southampton U21 | 17 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 24 | 34 | -10 | 17 |
| 11 | Middlesbrough U21 | 15 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 24 | 25 | -1 | 13 |
| 12 | Norwich U21 | 16 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 19 | 38 | -19 | 12 |
| 1 | Derby U21 | 19 | 11 | 3 | 5 | 40 | 24 | 16 | 36 |
| 2 | Aston Villa U21 | 18 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 22 | 22 | 0 | 32 |
| 3 | Arsenal U21 | 15 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 30 | 16 | 14 | 31 |
| 4 | Stoke U21 | 19 | 9 | 2 | 8 | 22 | 21 | 1 | 29 |
| 5 | West Brom U21 | 17 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 20 | 15 | 5 | 26 |
| 6 | West Ham U21 | 19 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 30 | 30 | 0 | 26 |
| 7 | Swansea U21 | 16 | 7 | 2 | 7 | 23 | 18 | 5 | 23 |
| 8 | Fulham U21 | 17 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 21 | 22 | -1 | 23 |
| 9 | Blackburn U21 | 15 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 21 | 22 | -1 | 21 |
| 10 | Newcastle U21 | 17 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 23 | 31 | -8 | 17 |
| 11 | Wolves U21 | 18 | 2 | 5 | 11 | 18 | 29 | -11 | 11 |
| 12 | Brighton U21 | 18 | 1 | 7 | 10 | 12 | 32 | -20 | 10 |
| Mar. 8 | 7 p.m. | West Brom U21 vs. Wolves U21 |
| Mar. 11 | 7 p.m. | Derby U21 vs. West Brom U21 |
| Mar. 11 | 7 p.m. | Newcastle U21 vs. West Ham U21 |
| Mar. 11 | 7 p.m. | Spurs U21 vs. Norwich U21 |
| Mar. 11 | 7.05 p.m. | Chelsea U21 vs. Leicester U21 |
| Mar. 12 | 1 p.m. | Manchester City U21 vs. Sunderland U21 |
| Mar. 13 | 2 p.m. | Liverpool U21 vs. Manchester United U21 |
Monday Recap
Prodigious 18-year-old Ojo was the hero of the hour for Liverpool as his hat-trick bagged the Reds the points in a 3-2 win at Middlesbrough.
Austrian talent Arnel Jakupovic gave Boro the lead after 18 minutes, but Ojo equalised as the game raced to half-time.
The exciting Liverpool attacker then gave his team the lead nine minutes after the restart, but it seemed the hosts had earned a point after Jakupovic converted from the penalty spot.
However, Ojo stepped up three minutes from time to slot away a penalty for the visitors to steal the victory and give himself a memorable treble that will have first-team coach Jurgen Klopp excited.
Chelsea climbed to sixth in the Division 1 table after collecting maximum points against Reading on Monday night.
The Blues have struggled at times this season, much like their full senior side, but they have lost the habit of losing in recent weeks.
The visitors opened the scoring after only four minutes as the prolific Tammy Abraham netted. However, the Royals were back on terms three minutes later as midfielder Tarique Fosu made sure of his finish.
Chelsea once again wrestled the lead midway through the half as Jacob Maddox doubled the Blues' goal count on his debut for the under-21s.
The club's official Twitter account highlighted the player's milestone:
Reece Mitchell wrapped up the points for his side shortly after the hour, claiming Chelsea's third after a flowing move to seal a 3-1 win.
It was a good night for Sunderland as they swept past a dangerous Everton team, winning 3-2 on Monday.
The Black Cats scored twice in two minutes midway through the first half as Ola Toivonen and Thomas Beading gave the hosts control.
A Thomas Robson own goal gave the Toffees hope on the stroke of half-time, but Toivonen seemed to believe his second goal of the match had made sure his side attained the points.
Kieran Dowell made it a nervous last few minutes for Sunderland when he struck back late in the contest, but the Black Cats claimed the win, leapfrogging United at the top of the table.
Leicester City grabbed a vital win against fellow Division 1 relegation candidates Southampton, beating the Saints 2-1 at home. Admiral Muskwe and Joe Dodoo were the goalscoring heroes for the Foxes, who are now five points clear of the bottom two.
In Monday's Division 2 encounters, leaders Derby were defeated 2-1 away to Swansea, but second-placed Aston Villa couldn't fully capitalise as they drew 1-1 at Brighton. A battle of the second tier's mid-table sides also ended in a draw as West Ham and Blackburn played out a 1-1 scoreline.
