Sergio Aguero struck as Manchester City ended a four-match run without a Premier League win by beating Hull City 3-1 at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.
Ahmed Elhmohamady’s own-goal, just after the half-hour mark, gave Pep Guardiola’s team a lead at the interval before they pressed home their advantage.
Aguero squeezed in a second goal three minutes after halftime, set up by Raheem Sterling, who also created the third with a short pass that Fabian Delph thumped in for his first league goal of the season.
Hull pulled one back late on through Italian defender Andrea Ranocchia, with a shot that recalled goalkeeper Claudio Bravo should have saved.
Victory strengthened City’s grip on the fourth and final Champions League qualification spot, with Guardiola’s men now seven points ahead of fifth-placed Arsenal.
Meanwhile, Hull remained just above the relegation zone.
It was important to win again, keep adding points in this late stage and keep growing as a team. C'mon, City!
— Sergio Kun Aguero (@aguerosergiokun) April 8, 2017
* West Ham ended a run of five successive defeats with a 1-0 win against Swansea City to ease their growing relegation fears.
The hosts tested Lukasz Fabianski numerous times in a bright opening before Cheikhou Kouyate struck with a thumping low drive just before the break.
Swansea, who are now without a win in five games, improved marginally after halftime, but were only able to create a few half-chances as West Ham held on to register a much-needed victory.
West Ham’s first win since early February saw them climb to 14th with 36 points. Swansea are still in the relegation zone in 18th place on 28 points.
* Southampton consolidated their position in the top half of the Premier League after a goal from Jordy Clasie helped the visitors pick up three points at West Bromwich Albion for the first time since 2013.
Dutch midfielder Clasie, who replaced suspended Oriol Romeu in the starting line-up at The Hawthorns, scored his first league goal for Southampton with a spectacular strike from the edge of the penalty area in the 25th minute.
The hosts had a chance to equalise in the closing moments of the first half, but Salomon Rondon’s headed effort was clawed out by Southampton goalkeeper Fraser Forster.
Southampton, now ninth in the league, maintained their slender advantage with some resolute defending in the second half, despite substitutes James McClean and Hal Robson-Kanu dong their best to inspire an Albion comeback.
* Middlesbrough squandered a gilt-edged opportunity to boost their Premier League survival hopes after being held to a 0-0 draw by travel-sick Burnley on Saturday.
Boro’s failure to take their chances extended their run of games without victory to 14 and kept them second from bottom in the table, six points from safety.
Steve Agnew’s men retain a game in hand on the teams immediately above them, but with matches against Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool still to come, time is quickly running out.
Boro have now gone 12 league games without victory at the start of a calendar year for the first time in their history.
The draw gave Sean Dyche’s Burnley only their fourth point away from home this season and left them eight points above the relegation zone.