Bruno Fernandes nears assists record as Man United beats Aston Villa 3-1, Liverpool held by Spurs

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Bruno Fernandes closed in on the Premier League 's assists record as Manchester United tightened its grip on a return to the Champions League with a 3-1 win against Aston Villa on Sunday.

Tottenham avoided extending an unwanted club low by halting its losing run with a late equalizer to draw 1-1 with Liverpool.

Fernandes provided assists for two of United's goals against Villa to take his tally for the season to 16. The record for a single Premier League campaign is 20 — jointly held by Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne.

Fernandes, who now has 100 assists as a United player, has up to eight more games to set a new record in English soccer's top division.

Of more importance to United was a seventh win in nine games under head coach Michael Carrick. United is third -- three points clear of Villa in fourth.

Liverpool is two points further back in fifth after squandering victory against Spurs when Richarlison struck in the 90th minute to stun the Anfield crowd. Tottenham had looked set to extend its all-time worst losing run to seven games in all competitions when trailing Dominik Szoboszlai's first-half free kick.

The draw left Tottenham one point clear of the relegation zone.

Nottingham Forest climbed out of the bottom three on goal difference with a 0-0 draw against Fulham.

Crystal Palace and Leeds also drew 0-0.

Fernandes' double assist saw him set a new club record for United in a single Premier League season - overtaking David Beckham's 15 in 1999-2000.

"It is a huge achievement for me, but the main achievement will be finishing in the top spots at the end of the season,” he said.

United is on course for a return to the Champions League after two seasons outside of European club soccer's top competition.

The top four are guaranteed to qualify, with English teams likely to earn a fifth spot because of their performances in Europe this season.

The victory saw United close the gap on second-place Manchester City to seven points.

“At the end of the day, we’ll see where we finish, and if we can finish second, even better,” Fernandes said. “Even though it wouldn’t change much what we are getting next season, we want to finish as high as possible, that’s obvious.”

Casemiro headed United in front from Fernandes' corner in the 53rd minute. Villa leveled through Ross Barkley, but Fernandes was the provider again when Matheus Cunha sidefooted past Emiliano Martinez.

Benjamin Sesko came off the bench to score his eighth goal in 10 games and effectively seal the win.

Igor Tudor picked up his first point as Tottenham interim coach at the end of a week that has seen speculation around his position intensify.

On the back of four straight losses since his appointment last month, Tudor went into the game at Anfield with pressure mounting. And inside 18 minutes, Spurs trailed to Szoboszlai's goal.

But a reprieve came in the form of Richarlison's late strike, which may place more scrutiny on Liverpool coach Arne Slot.

After delivering the league title in his first season at the club, he is now fighting to secure a top five finish.

Liverpool is fifth - one point ahead of Chelsea.

“It is a home game and we were ahead for so many minutes. Of course, it is two points dropped,” Slot said.

Liverpool hosts Galatasaray in the Champions League round of 16 on Wednesday, trailing 1-0 after the first leg.

West Ham's draw with Man City on Saturday meant Forest dropped into the bottom three.

But Forest quickly climbed back out of the relegation zone on goal difference with a point at home against Fulham.

Tottenham is one place and one point above Forest.

Spurs defender Radu Dragusin described the draw with Liverpool as “massive for our season.”

Leeds is 15th on 32 points - three points clear of the bottom three.

It could have been an even better day for Daniel Farke's team had Dominic Calvert-Lewin scored with a first-half penalty. But Leeds held on for a point even after going down to 10 men when Gabriel Gudmundsson was sent off before halftime.

James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

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

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah reacts during the Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Tottenham in Liverpool, England, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Tottenham's Richarlison celebrates after scoring during the Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Tottenham in Liverpool, England, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Manchester United's coach Michael Carrick and Casemiro walk off the pitch after during the Premiier League soccer match between Manchester United and Aston Villa in Manchester, England, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

Manchester United's Benjamin Sesko and Matheus Cunha celebrate after a goal during the Premiier League soccer match between Manchester United and Aston Villa in Manchester, England, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes reacts during the Premiier League soccer match between Manchester United and Aston Villa in Manchester, England, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

SEATTLE (AP) — All Vinnie Pasquantino needed was a few days of rest, a morning walk around Seattle and a warm, sunny day at T-Mobile Park to get back on track for the Kansas City Royals.

Pasquantino had two hits — including a solo homer — two RBIs and two runs in his return to Kansas City’s lineup against the Seattle Mariners after sitting out the previous two games because of lower back tightness. He batted third and played first base in the Royals' 7-6 win.

“I told them yesterday, I want in,” Pasquantino said. “And I’ll let them know if anything changes.”

His single to right field drove in Kansas City’s opening run in the first inning. He then belted his fourth home run of the season in the sixth off Bryan Woo on a 2-0 count, a Statcast-projected 404-foot blast into the second deck in right. It gave the Royals a 5-3 lead before Jac Caglianone followed with a solo home run to right.

Pasquantino said it has been an issue he has dealt with for a while after he was removed in the sixth inning of Tuesday’s game. He also appeared in the ninth inning and hit a game-ending flyout in Thursday’s 6-3 loss to the Athletics.

“We hope that he’s not going to have to deal with it the whole season,” manager Matt Quatraro said before Friday’s game. “But he’ll probably feel it for a handful of days before it resolves.”

But it felt good in Friday’s win.

“We’ll see how it feels in about an hour when all the adrenaline comes down,” Pasquantino said.

Pasquantino, 28, is off to a slow start this season for Kansas City, batting .176 with three doubles, 16 RBIs and 25 strikeouts in 30 games.

Kansas City Royals' Vinnie Pasquantino hits an RBI single to score Maikel Garcia against the Seattle Mariners during the first inning of a baseball game, Friday, May 1, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)