EPL Table: 2019 Week 24 Standings After Wednesday's Premier League Scores

Liverpool wasted the chance to open up a seven-point gap at the top of the Premier League after being held to a 1-1 draw by Leicester City at Anfield on Wednesday night.

Harry Maguire's equaliser in first-half stoppage time not only gave the Foxes an unlikely point. It also let Manchester City off the hook after Tuesday's 2-1 defeat away to Newcastle United, with the champions now only five points adrift in the title race.

Liverpool couldn't make the most of City losing, but Tottenham Hotspur at least took advantage. The Lilywhites cut the gap on second to just two points after coming from behind to beat Watford 2-1 at Wembley Stadium.

It was also a good night for Tottenham's north London rivals Arsenal, who saw Chelsea hammered 4-0 away to Bournemouth. The shock defeat means the Gunners have replaced the Blues in the top four on total goals.

At the bottom, Crystal Palace and Southampton took a point apiece after a 1-1 draw. The stalemate was good enough to keep both four points above the drop zone.

Wednesday Scores

• Southampton 1-1 Crystal Palace
• Bournemouth 4-0 Chelsea
• Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 Watford
• Liverpool 1-1 Leicester City

Standings

Liverpool's title credentials looked stronger than ever when Sadio Mane put the Reds in front in less than three minutes. The early goal should have been the cue for a typical onslaught from the league leaders.

Instead, Leicester stood firm, with left-back Ben Chilwell and centre-back Maguire both resolute. There were also determined and intelligent performances from destructive duo Wilfred Ndidi and Nampalys Mendy at the heart of midfield.

It was also true some key decisions didn't go Liverpool's way. Maguire was fortunate to only be booked after a cynical challenge on Mane in the first half.

Later, Ricardo Pereira might have given away a penalty when he clumsily brought down Naby Keita in the area just before the hour mark.

Jurgen Klopp was naturally unhappy to drop two points, but the Liverpool boss made it clear the gap between his team and City is not his primary focus:

Chelsea's primary focus will be finding reasons for a rare mauling in England's top flight:

Maurizio Sarri won't have to look far after seeing his team boss possession but lack a cutting edge up top while remaining vulnerable at the back. Bournemouth exploited the latter frailty with a smart plan based on cancelling out the influence of deep-lying playmaker Jorginho and translating turnovers in possession into rapid counters.

David Brooks was vital to the strategy since he man-marked Jorginho and posed a constant threat in the pockets of space between the midfield and forward lines. The 21-year-old assisted the Cherries' first goal when he crossed for Joshua King two minutes after the break.

Brooks made it 2-0 when he pounced on an errant pass from David Luiz before King made it three in the 74th minute. In the process, the latter brought up a personal goalscoring landmark:

There was still time for Charlie Daniels to net the goal that took the Blues out of the UEFA Champions League qualification places for the moment.

Getting back into the top four will demand more than just fixing a dismal defence. Sarri also needs to find ways to get new striker Gonzalo Higuain involved after the Juventus loanee stayed on the fringes during his league debut:

Spurs have also been counting on a different striker recently, and Fernando Llorente had been struggling in the absence of the injured Harry Kane. However, the 33-year-old came good to assist on the equaliser and head the winner to complete a comeback to deny Watford at least a point.

The clutch goal three minutes from time helped Llorente silence more than a few doubters:

It was Llorente's strike partner, Heung-Min Son, who had started the Tottenham revival when his 80th-minute goal cancelled out Craig Cathcart's opener for the Hornets.

An eventful night for Llorente was nothing compared to the peaks and valleys Wilfried Zaha experienced at St Mary's Stadium. The winger put Palace in front four minutes before the break but later found himself sent off after a yellow-card offence quickly escalated into double jeopardy.

Zaha had been booked for bringing down James Ward-Prowse, who had already netted the Saints' equaliser. Irked by the decision, Zaha sarcastically applauded referee Andre Marriner and promptly earned himself a second booking and a red card for his troubles.