Suarez, Coutinho make up for missing Messi

MADRID, March 11

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Barcelona overcame the absence of Lionel Messi to win 2-0 at basement club Malaga on Saturday as goals from Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho sent the Catalans 11 points clear at the top of La Liga. 

Messi missed a league game for the first time this season to attend the birth of his third son Ciro, but Barca barely needed their talisman against free-falling Malaga, who had striker Samu Garcia sent off after half-an-hour for a studs-up challenge on Jordi Alba. Suarez headed home a looping cross from Alba to give Barca the lead in the 15th minute and his former Liverpool teammate Coutinho struck the second in the 28th with a backheel from close range after an impressive dribble from Ousmane Dembele.

Malaga were the last team to beat Barca in the league, derailing their title bid with a 2-0 win last April.

Arsenal keep it clean

London: Arsenal eased their way past Watford 3-0 in the Premier League on Sunday, marking their first clean sheet in 12 league matches and settling nerves at the Emirates after a string of losses in 2018. A first-half header from Shkodran Mustafi and second-half strikes from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan sealed the win.

Watford won a penalty but Petr Cech got his fingertips to Troy Deeney’s spot kick, nudging the ball onto the post and back out. The win leaves Arsenal 10 points off Champions League qualification in sixth place. 

Chelsea survived a late scare to secure a 2-1 win over struggling Crystal Palace on Saturday, with a Willian strike and an own goal earning them three points after successive defeats in Manchester. Chelsea are fifth in the standings. — Reuters