jannik sinner keeps italy in the davis cup, and the scalp he takes to do so is the biggest of them all. also coming up on sportsday... the champion�*s defence has ended on day one. mark allen is beaten in the first round of the uk snooker championship by the man he defeated in last year's final. and taylor—cameron ii tonight has the cream of women's boxing fighting again for the undisputed light—welterweight crown. hello again. after the international break, the premier league wanted to remind you what it can offer. manchester city and liverpool were the first game back. and, although it didn't quite touch the heights of previous encounters between the two, the match still provided enough to entertain — albeit not enough to guarantee either would finish the day top of the table. a position poached by arsenal this evening. jo currie was watching. the showdown that would dictate who sat top of the table. if liverpool needed reminding of city's dominance in the last 12 months, the four trophy banners on the pitch were a sure prompt. undeterred, the visitors posed the first danger. darwin nunez flicking on his header, but with not enough power. city responded. a poor allison goal kick eventually finding its way to, who else? and erling haaland! finding its way home with a pinpoint finish, his 50th premier league goal — he's the fastest player to ever reach the milestone. city had the ball in the net again, but the celebrations were short—lived. what initially appeared to be a fumble by allison turned out to be a foul on the goalkeeper. for liverpool, a lifeline — which they took. if trent alexander—arnold's first touch was good, his second was even better. fizzing his shot, the congested box. the finish to silence city's spectators. haaland came within inches of winning in the final seconds, but in the end, nothing could separate the top two sides in england. tension spilling over at the full—time whistle. but it city who remained at one point ahead of liverpool —— ahead, with liverpool hot on their heels. jo currie, bbc news. the draw ends a run of 23 straight home wins for manchester city. so liverpool perhaps a little more pleased with a point than their opponents — certainly according to pep guardiola. it was really good, i don't have anything to complain or regret about how proud i am of the team to do what they've done. the way we played could not be better. we missed the second goal, otherwise it would've been over. but yeah, it's like that. we are happy, they are less happy. so i think the champions league and spurs. can we play better? definitely, and we will. but today was a super important experience for the group. it's a tough week, a really tough week for the boys, and then, coming here and playing a game against a team who lets you suffer. and it's not cool, it's difficult to stay in the game but we had our moments, i like that a lot. so it's all good. it took until the 88th minute, but they secured them when they needed at brentford to lead the pack this evening, winning i—i thanks to kai havertz. his mistake almost gave brentford the lead in the first half, then with time running out, kai havertz got on the end to send mikel arteta's side top of the lead. —— talk up desktop of the league. at stjames's park, chelsea's recent good run halted — firstly by aleksander isak, who set newcastle on their way to an impressive 4—1 win. his early goal was cancelled out by raheem sterling — but after that, all newcastle. jamal lascelles, joelinton, and anthony gordon completing the victory after chelsea had captain reece james sent off. mauricio pochettino was watching from the stands as he served a touchline ban. but for eddie howe, a satisfying afternoon after two defeats leading into the internatoinal break. the idea that the game had been in the balance. i thought we were the better team, but we were level. it was a key moment for us, anthony gordon's cross was exceptional. lascelles put it away really well. we scored again, and as you say, that a whammy of goals in quick succession really helped us. —— that double whammy of goals. from that moment, the game was ours. but the lads have worked incredibly hard to get ourselves in that position. i'm so disappointed because i think it's our— i'm so disappointed because i think it's our worst game of the season. that is_ it's our worst game of the season. that is why— it's our worst game of the season. that is why it's tough after manchester city, this type of performance. yes, it's really painful. _ performance. yes, it's really painful, but we need to, again, to build _ painful, but we need to, again, to build our— painful, but we need to, again, to build our momentum again and wait for a solution. much of the talk ahead of luton's first ever premier league season was about their ground, kenilworth road. well today, their fans celebrated a first home win in the top flight for 31 years after beating crystal palace 2—1. it took until the second half for the game to spark into life, with luton opening the scoring through defender teden mengi. palace were level two minutes later thanks to a fine strike by michael olise. but scotland striker jacob brown had the final say, scoring the winner in the 83rd minute to move luton four points clear of the relegation zone. we are a team that don't die, we don't quit. we keep fighting till the end. another late goal again for us today. we've got some attributes and weapons. we know it'll be tough and a real challenge, but we believe in our group in there, we've an unbelievable spirit, and it's nice that we are getting the points, or got the points today that we feel our performance is deserved. burnley were on the brink of matching luton, but their first home win of the season still aludes them after they conceded two late goals in the space of five minutes to lose 2—1 to west ham. jay rodriguez scored from the spot — a lead burnley held until the 86th minute, when west ham's summer signing mohammed kudus forced an own goalfrom dara o'shea, and then laid on the winner for tomas soucek late. vincent kompany�*s side have now lost their first seven home games of the season. here's a check on all today's premier league scores. in the other games, sheffield united slumped to their tenth league defeat of the season, losing 3—1 at home to bournemouth. and, despite taking the lead after three minutes, nottingham forest lost 3—2 at home to brighton. two goals forjoao pedro there — although brighton had lewis dunk sent off after 73 minutes. so here's the top of the table. arsenal's lead is a point over manchester siddique, the same gap to liverool. manchester siddique, the same gap to liverpool- -- — manchester siddique, the same gap to liverpool. -- manchester— manchester siddique, the same gap to liverpool. -- manchester city - manchester siddique, the same gap to liverpool. -- manchester city fc. - spurs are at home to aston villa tomorrow. newcastle are up to sixth. burnley are still bottom after another defeat. in fact, there's a bit of a gap developing between the relegation zone and the rest. chelsea stay in the bottom half after their defeat at st james's park. everton remain right in the middle of that relegation fight after their ten point deduction for breaking financial rules — a punishment that led to this protest at the manchester city liverpool game today, organised by an everton fans�* group. ahead of their game against manchester united tomorrow, manager sean dyche says the club feels shocked and aggrieved. joe lynskey reports. in the international break, the top flight stood still — all except for one team. a ten—point deduction took everton from 14th to the drop zone. they start this weekend two points from safety. it's everton who win in a terrific game of football. since their last match, the moods changed. the punishment came from an independent commission for a breach of premier league spending rules. everton say they'll appeal, but a club that had been optimistic has now turned defiant. i think, like everyone — well certainly in these parts — was shocked, "disproportionate" is the word being used by the club. so obviously, we will feel a bit aggrieved by that. for sure, it changes the viewpoint, but it doesn't change what we're doing. in fact it enhances what we're doing, wejust have to go harder for longer and stronger. this will give us the push backwards to come forward again. last night, everton's fans were at premier league headquarters, and protests will go on into sunday, when they host manchester united. nobody's saying we're not guilty as a club of anything, but the points taken off us is far too harsh a penalty. ijust think standing in solidarity for my football club shows - that we're backing the club, backing the players. - being an everton fan, we won't back down _ being an everton fan, we won't back down from _ being an everton fan, we won't back down from something _ being an everton fan, we won't back down from something like _ being an everton fan, we won't back down from something like this. - they do feel it's unjust, they feel like it's time to stand even stronger, if you like, then ever. how they do that is their choice, but all we can ask for is their backing and support when we get in the stadium. everton have said will closely monitor the outcome of other cases, including those of other premier league champions. manchester city face more than 100 charges of breaking financial rules — they deny them all, and the case is still ongoing. their coach is clear that this is no time for comparisons. it's two completely different cases. but completely, i know people will think, "ok, city, why don't they go to the conference?" wait, you know, wait. and afterwards, whatever happens happens. their punishment sets a precedent that could change the landscape of this league. joe lynskey, bbc news. there was something of a shock in the scotish premiership, with runaway leaders celtic held to a 1—1 draw at home by struggling motherwell. david turnbull�*s late penalty looked to have sealed all three points for celtic, butjon obika's dramatic 90th—minute equaliser snatched an unlikely draw. celtic still have a nine—point leader over second place rangers who play aberdeen tomorrow. elsewhere, wins for hibernian, hearts, and st mirren. ross county drew with kilmarnock. here's the table, then. confirmation of celtic�*s big lead at the top — they're still unbeaten this season. rangers do have two games in hand, though. livingston are still bottom after their 1—0 defeat a st mirren. max verstappen will start the final formula one race of the most dominant season in history from pole at the abu dhabi grand prix. and, while you might have been expecting that, there were a few surprises behind him on the grid — as nick parrott reports. the big prizes were decided weeks ago, but in abu dhabi, ferrari is still on the hunt or second place in the championship. carlos sainz was unfortunate to be demoted from seventh on the grid last time out in las vegas. his bad luck didn't stay there — although this time, some of it was self—inflicted as he was knocked out in the first session of qualifying. he'll line up 16th. we had a problem at the front wing. for some reason, we were not the last ones when we were clearly under pressure, then we found a lot of cars and traffic in sector one and two. so we needed a clean lap and we didn't get it, so we are out. their rivals, mercedes, who are four points ahead in the standings, are desperate to take advantage. george russell clinched forth on the grid, but once again, lewis hamilton struggled. these last two races have been a disaster for me, particularly in qualifying. i've had two 11th places. you know, it's very rare, but... yeah, it's the last race. this could be the first year since 2005 that a british driver hasn't won a race, after lando norris's mistake blew his place. -- his —— his chance for a place at the front row. after struggling in practice, max verstappen was back to his best when it mattered, taking pole ahead of ferrari. the whole thing has been a struggle, so we definitely improved the car for qualifying. we could definitely push more, so of course we are very happy to be on pole. in 01 and 02, we struggled a whole lot, we put two new sets to get out of 01, which we did buy a fine margin, but 02 — again, it was quite tight, and 03 ijust went all in, and it seems to have worked. so really happy to be starting second at the moment. leclerc would surely love to beat verstappen, but ensuring he finishes ahead of mercedes might be more important for ferrari. nick parrott, bbc news. let's have a quick look at some of the other stories making the headlines today... the motogp world championship will go down to the final day afterjorge martin won the sprint race in valencia — he cut francesco bagnaia's advantage in the standings down to iii points after the italian finished fifth. joe root is skipping next year's premier league. he's sitting out the team 20 —— t20 tournament which will run from march until the end of may. at the australian pga championship, min woo lee has extended his lead to three shots going into the final day. the australian's 17 under par, three ahead ofjapan's rikuya hoshino. defending champion cameron smith missed the cut yesterday. and another australian, kirsten rudgeley, has the upper hand going into the final round of the andalucia 0pen — making four birdies in a four—under—par round of 68. she's two shots ahead of india's aditi ashok, and anne van dam, of the netherlands. unlike in the davis cup quarter finals, when novak djokovic breezed past britain's cameron norrie, today the world number one couldn't do the same in the semis. serbia are battling for a place in the final after his defeat to italy's jannik sinner. ben croucher has more. lights, camera, action. it may only be the davis cup semi finals, but this was the blockbuster encounter. in a repeat of last week's atp tour final, serbia versus italy, novak djokovic versus jannik sinner, who was initially hitting winner after winner. oh my goodness. taking the first set by 6—2 was certainly a big tick. djokovic was forced to go for broke, but could do little to fix his italianjob — you don'tjust have to be the world number one, you have to outlast him, out fight him. —— you don't just —— you don'tjust have to beat the world number one. and djokovic was more than up for the battle. just to hold his serve at the start of the deciding set took sinner nearly iii minutes, pushed to the brink. faced three match points. the houdini act to keep italy alive. eventually, almost inexplicably, the hollywood match—up had a fairy—tale italian ending. one of the most remarkable victories you're likely to see in davis cup. it was a roller coaster, starting off really well, second set he played much better than me, and the third set i tried to serve really well, so i served well in step of the first one. happy to still be in competition. but to get to the final against australia, they have to do it all again on the doubles. 0n the big points, sinner knew what to do now. they formed the perfect partnership against the serbian. just they formed the perfect partnership against the serbian.— against the serbian. just utterly relentless! _ against the serbian. just utterly relentless! it _ against the serbian. just utterly relentless! it takes _ against the serbian. just utterly relentless! it takes italy - against the serbian. just utterly relentless! it takes italy then i against the serbian. just utterly l relentless! it takes italy then into a first davis _ relentless! it takes italy then into a first davis cup _ relentless! it takes italy then into a first davis cup final _ relentless! it takes italy then into a first davis cup final since 1998. | ben croucher, bbc news. saracens are up to second in the premiership despite 0wen farrell missing six kicks at goal. they beat bristol bears 39—31 in a pulsating game that saw 11 tries in total. meanwhile, leicester tigers secured a 38—20 victory over fellow strugglers gloucester. after a first half dominated by the boot, tigers�* 0llie hassell—collins scored two tries. with the clock in the red, it looked like leicester might have to settle for just the four points before solomona kata pounced on a loose ball to secure their first try bonus point of the season. leinster host munster in tonight's big game of the united rugby championship. the game has kicked off in dublin, leinster lead iii — 13. glasgow host ulster later tonight. ding junhui fought back to beat defending champion mark allen in a thrilling final—frame decider in the first round of the uk championship this afternoon. it's some revenge for ding — who was beaten by allen in last year's final. the bbc team in york were treated to quite a match. here's hazel irvine. what a start to the united kingdom championship, it's a major season here with the first of the triple crown events. john and steve thoroughly enjoyed our opening match, which happened to be a repeat of last yea r�*s match, which happened to be a repeat of last year's final. but the reverse revolt stomach result this time? . . , . reverse revolt stomach result this time? . . ., . reverse revolt stomach result this time? . . .. ~ reverse revolt stomach result this time? . . time? fantastic match, mark allen was probably _ time? fantastic match, mark allen was probably the _ time? fantastic match, mark allen was probably the better _ time? fantastic match, mark allen was probably the better player- time? fantastic match, mark allen was probably the better player of l was probably the better player of the two _ was probably the better player of the two for the afternoon. he said so himself— the two for the afternoon. he said so himself in the interview, but ding _ so himself in the interview, but ding kept — so himself in the interview, but ding kept mopping up, and a brilliant _ ding kept mopping up, and a brilliant final to get over the line 6—5, _ brilliant final to get over the line 6-5. a _ brilliant final to get over the line 6—5, a great match to start the tournament off. 6-5, a great match to start the tournament off.— 6-5, a great match to start the tournament off. from 2-4 behind, al-qassam — young that he later admitted he was on the brink this morning of gifting a walk over to mark allen, because he's feeling under the weather right now that made the win even more amazing. you could see in his- chair he was struggling, and if you look tired, i he was really struggling to keep his eyes open, then all of a sudden, l it looked like it would be i an easy day for mark allen. until suddenly ding just went, "0k, i've got nothing to lose here." - he just mopped up few balls and kept himself in the game, _ and the juices started to flow a bit. - then mark allen missed a very easy opportunity in the last frame, - and suddenly ding junhui lived to fight another day. - all the more remarkable when you consider now that the last three defending champions, they've all gone out the first hurdle here in york. so it's catching, isn't it? serves you right for winning. laughter another man who knows what it's like to win the event, mark williams, a two—time winner but not for 20 odd years. he's through to the last 16 against a man 26 years his junior? he's a great player, _ but he was up against a master and the difference — _ mark williams was expected to win the match and when it| came to closing it out, he did so in style. so even though he wasn't . particularly pleased with how he started the match off, - finishing off with a great break was probably a big boost - for the rest of the tournament. how would you rate that afternoon? pretty good. more to come, i hope you'