Arsenal beats Brighton to move 7 points ahead in title race after Man City draws with Forest

LONDON (AP) — Arsenal moved seven points ahead of Manchester City at the top of the Premier League after scraping a 1-0 win at Brighton while its title rival drew 2-2 at home to struggling Nottingham Forest on Wednesday.

City almost won it eight minutes into stoppage time when substitute Savinho had a shot cleared near the line.

Right winger Bukayo Saka's ninth-minute goal was enough for Arsenal, which has played one game more than City. Saka broke down the right and his scuffed strike from the edge of the penalty area went through the legs of goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen.

Manchester United’s unbeaten run under new coach Michael Carrick ended at seven games following a 2-1 defeat at Newcastle, which had midfielder Jacob Ramsey sent off in first-half stoppage time and scored in the 90th minute through substitute William Osula.

Erling Haaland returned for City after having sat out the 1-0 win at Leeds on Saturday with a minor injury but was ineffective.

City struggled to break Forest down until Rayan Cherki made a fine run down the right and floated over a cross which Antoine Semenyo expertly volleyed in at waist height with his left foot.

But Forest hit the home side in the 52nd with a classic counterattack which went almost the length of the field. It culminated in a brilliant back-heeled finish from midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White after Brazil forward Igor Jesus had nodded down a right-wing cross.

Forest's joy was short-lived when former Ballon d'Or winner Rodri rose to head home from a corner six minutes later.

Forest stunned City again, however, when midfielder Elliot Anderson curled in a superb shot from just outside the penalty area into the bottom right corner with 13 minutes left.

Newcastle fans had to endure 10 minutes of stoppage time before erupting with joy at St. James’ Park.

Osula scored a brilliant breakaway goal, starting the move deep inside his own half and galloping down the right before curling a fine shot past goalkeeper Senne Lammens.

Ramsey was sent off after collecting a second yellow card for diving in the area. Newcastle took the lead moments later when Anthony Gordon was fouled by Bruno Fernandes and converted the resulting spot kick.

But nine minutes into first-half stoppage time, Fernandes set up Casemiro's equalizing header from a free kick.

Carrick, who grew up a few miles from Newcastle, watched glum-faced as Newcastle goalie Aaron Ramsdale made two excellent saves before Osula's stunning winner.

Harry Maguire was in the United defense on the day he was given a 15-month suspended sentence over a nightclub scuffle involving police officers on the Greek island of Mykonos in August 2020.

Striker João Pedro grabbed a hat trick as Chelsea moved above Liverpool into fifth place with a 4-1 win at Aston Villa. Chelsea is only three points behind fourth-place Villa in the race for Champions League places next season.

Villa scored after two minutes when Ollie Watkins let Leon Bailey's cross from right go through his legs and midfielder Douglas Luiz deftly flicked the ball in from close range.

Chelsea equalized in the 35th when Pedro turned in Malo Gusto's right-wing cross. After Watkins had a goal ruled out for a narrow offside, Pedro clipped the ball in from close range during first-half stoppage time from Enzo Fernández's pass.

Midfielder Cole Palmer drove in the third goal in the 55th and Pedro tapped in Alejandro Garnacho's cross to complete his hat trick in the 64th.

Forward Crysencio Summerville's strike was enough to give West Ham a vital 1-0 win at Fulham in its relegation fight.

After Fulham had a penalty decision overturned by VAR early in the second half, West Ham scored midway through the second half when Summerville curled in from just inside the area.

United States left back Antonee Robinson made his first Premier League start for Fulham since Feb. 1.

Forest is 17th and West Ham is 18th with only goal difference separating the sides.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Chelsea's Joao Pedro and head coach Liam Rosenior shake hands during the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Chelsea in Birmingham, England, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Dave Shopland)

Nottingham Forest's Morgan Gibbs-White and Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola shake hands at the end of the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Nottingham Forest in Manchester, England, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

Manchester City supporters react during the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Nottingham Forest in Manchester, England, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

Brighton's Joel Veltman tackles Arsenal's Bukayo Saka during the Premier League soccer match between Brighton and Arsenal in Brighton, England, Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump's administration is expanding its crackdown on state Medicaid programs to New York, launching a fraud probe in the state a week after it said it was freezing nearly $260 million in Medicaid funding in Minnesota over similar accusations.

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz announced Tuesday that the Trump administration identified concerning trends in New York’s Medicaid program and demanded that state officials provide details about their handling of fraud, waste and abuse within 30 days or risk deferred payments.

“Heart surgeons are trained to look at the numbers,” Oz, a former celebrity heart surgeon, said in a video on Tuesday. “Right now, the numbers coming out of New York’s Medicaid program don’t add up.”

The new investigation is part of an administration-wide initiative to address fraud around the country, which federal officials say is needed to rein in runaway spending and protect taxpayers. With many midterm voters concerned about affordability, Trump has ramped up those efforts, announcing that Vice President JD Vance would help balance the nation’s budget by spearheading a national “war on fraud.”

Targeted Democratic state officials have decried the Republican administration's moves as politically motivated and potentially disastrous for the millions of people who rely on the health care safety net for low-income Americans.

In a letter to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, Oz wrote that the state's spending levels combined with “serious concerns” about its oversight of certain Medicaid services demand “immediate investigation, corrective action and enhanced transparency.”

The letter flagged specific areas of concern, including a high proportion of New York's Medicaid beneficiaries receiving personal care services related to daily living activities like bathing, grooming and meal preparation.

New York’s soaring Medicaid costs have long vexed the state’s governors and were a top priority of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat who grappled for years with the program's spiraling price tag as residents age and receive additional benefits. The state's program, which cost $115.6 billion in the 2025 fiscal year, provides health care for about 1 in 3 New Yorkers and spends more per person for care than Medicaid programs in any other state.

Hochul has also tried to rein in costs through an overhaul of how a home health care program is administered.

Asked Wednesday by reporters about Oz’s letter, Hochul said the Trump administration is targeting a Democrat-led state for political reasons but added, “I will have to stand up and show them the truth and show them the facts, that they’re wrong. When there is fraud I will help them fight it.”

Hochul's office said the fraud investigation was an attempt by the Trump administration to rip health care away from everyday New Yorkers. CMS said in an emailed statement that ensuring states comply with federal rules is “a core part of the agency’s federal oversight role.”

The New York investigation comes less than a week after CMS halted Medicaid payments to Minnesota over fraud concerns. Oz said the money would be delivered only after Minnesota implements “a comprehensive corrective action plan."

The administration had previously cited allegations of fraud involving day care centers run by Minneapolis-area Somali residents as a reason for a massive federal enforcement surge there. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, called the new funding freeze “targeted retribution.”

Minnesota on Monday sued the Trump administration over the deferred payments. The state is also appealing CMS withholding $2 billion in annual Medicaid funds announced in early January.

Earlier this year, Oz announced that CMS had sent letters to Democratic governors in Maine and California demanding more information or corrective action on alleged fraud in government health programs in those states.

In the days after receiving Oz's letter last month, Maine Gov. Janet Mills said she wouldn't be intimidated by the administration and called the request “a political attack." The 30-day timeline he gave her to respond or risk losing Medicaid payments is set to expire this week. A spokesperson for Mills didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Maine is facing a political attack from a president who uses allegations of fraud as a pretense to send ICE and other weaponized federal agents into states led by Democrats with devastating consequences.

The Trump administration has sought to withhold funding from Democratic-led states at least two other times in recent months citing fraud concerns. It happened with child care subsidies and other social services programs in Minnesota, New York and three other states and with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in 22 states that have declined to hand over data that the federal government says is needed to catch fraud.

In both those cases, judges have ruled that the money must continue to flow for now.

Associated Press writer Geoff Mulvihill in Philadelphia contributed to this report.

Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Dr. Mehmet Oz speaks at a news conference on efforts to combat fraud, in the Old Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Tom Brenner)

Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Dr. Mehmet Oz speaks during a news conference in the Old Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Tom Brenner)