(Football news) Goals from Mason Mount, Christian Pulisic and Romelu Lukaku ensured that Chelsea managed to get a 3-0 win over Leeds United at Elland Road, sinking the hosts deeper into the relegation zone. Mount scored the opening goal just four minutes into the match and Leeds’ Daniel James was sent off in the 24th minute due to a reckless tackle on Mateo Kovacic who is now doubtful for the FA Cup final. To make matters worse for Leeds, clinical finishes by Christian Pulisic (55th minute) and Romelu Lukaku (83rd minute) ensured a comfortable victory for the visitors who consolidated their third place in the Premier League ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup final against Liverpool.

Speaking after the match, Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel said “We needed a performance like that and it was the foundation for the result. We deserved to win and that's the best message because it's a tough place to play. We were excellent right from the start and kept the focus and intensity high when we were one man up and that's why we deserved to win. We talked and we cleared the air after that late equaliser from Wolverhampton. We knew we had brought ourselves into pressure, results-wise, and we knew what was waiting, but we also had a lot of reason to trust ourselves and we were at our very best level in these circumstances. The players delivered what we demanded of them so full credit to them." 

It was a five star performance for Manchester City at the Molineux Stadium as the visitors defeated Wolves 5-1 to increase their lead at the top of the table to three points. It was a masterclass by Kevin de Bruyne who scored four goals, securing his hat-trick in just 24 minutes before adding a fourth in the second half. Wolves’ Leander Dendoncker did score a goal in the 11th minute but it simply wasn’t enough for the home side who were completely outclassed by the reigning champions. The Belgian managed to score his hat-trick with his weaker left foot, making his achievement even more impressive while Raheem Sterling managed to score City’s fifth goal in the 84th minute. 

Speaking after the match, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said “What can I say? The second part of the league he has been beyond perfect. He is a guy who is always so generous, always has the sense to make the assist. But I think this season he has also had the sense to be prolific and to score goals. He scored against Chelsea, he scored against Madrid, and he has been decisive in scoring goals. In the end this is what makes the greatest. I am very pleased for him because, of course, scoring four goals in the decisive part of the league it is so important." 

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