Aberdeen recorded their first cinch Premiership victory since January with a 1-0 win over Motherwell at Fir Park.
Leighton Clarkson slammed home the decisive goal after 25 minutes to end a run of 11 games without a league win for the Dons and keep them three points clear of second-bottom Ross County.
Motherwell thought they had drawn themselves level when Lennon Miller found the net five minutes before half-time but they were denied following a lengthy VAR check.
Aberdeen leapfrogged St Johnstone into ninth, while Motherwell’s chances of a top-six spot are fading fast after losing ground on sixth-placed Hibernian.
There was a controversial moment inside the opening 40 seconds when Junior Hoilett was shown a yellow card for a dive inside the box.
Dons striker Bojan Miovski came close to ending his run of seven games without a goal with a deft chip that sailed just past the post.
Motherwell almost opened the scoring with their first opportunity. Blair Spittal’s free-kick was only partially cleared and it required a vital block by Jack MacKenzie to divert Dan Casey’s close-range effort behind for a corner.
Dons caretaker Peter Leven was forced into an early change as Nicky Devlin hobbled off and was replaced by Jack Milne in the 22nd minute.
Aberdeen made the breakthrough thanks to a controlled finish from Clarkson after Miovski’s shot had cannoned off the post.
Motherwell responded in a positive fashion. Sam Nicholson passed up a good opportunity to level after superbly controlling Stephen O’Donnell’s pass from deep inside his own half before firing against the legs of Kelle Roos.
It looked like Miller had found an equaliser when he angled a low drive that deflected beyond Roos. However, his goal was ruled out after a lengthy VAR check deemed Theo Bair to have handled in the build-up.
An eventful first half ended with further chances. Connor Barron should have doubled Aberdeen’s lead after he rose unmarked to meet Hoilett’s corner and Liam Kelly was then forced into a good stop to turn Miovski’s goal-bound shot over the bar.
Stuart Kettlewell made a double change at half-time as he introduced Georgie Gent and Andy Halliday in place of Bevis Mugabi and Nicholson.
The hosts were struggling to break through the stubborn Dons defence and they almost found themselves two goals behind when Miovski brought out a fantastic one-handed save from Kelly.
Spittal had a tame effort gathered, before Casey took the brunt of a fizzing Jamie McGrath shot in the face.
Two fine saves from Roos in quick succession kept out Bair and the Canadian striker then glanced wide from his third chance in the space of a minute.
Halliday was next to force a crucial save from Roos with a curling effort from the edge of the box.
The away side were still offering a threat on the counter-attack, and Kelly produced some heroics of his own to deny Dante Polvara.
'It's football hunger' – Moyes intent on West Ham stay as Lopetegui speculation swirls
David Moyes insisted there remains a "football hunger" to carry West Ham forward as speculation persists over the Hammers moving for Julen Lopetegui.
Widespread reports suggest West Ham have been in contact with Lopetegui, who left Wolves ahead of the 2023-24 campaign after just eight months in charge.
Yet Moyes reiterated his commitment to West Ham as the Scotsman aims for another top-10 Premier League finish, with the Hammers ninth in the table heading into the weekend's action.
"Absolutely, it's football hunger," Moyes responded when questioned on his drive to take West Ham to the next level.
"I'm nearly a bit embarrassed to be asked that question because I'm a football nut. I love my football, I go to games, I love it, really do. I have got great hunger."
"I said to everybody that we will make a decision at the end of the season."
West Ham and Moyes will hope to end a three-game winless run in the league when they head to London rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
Courtois to make first start this season as Madrid close in on title
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois will make his first start of the season against Cadiz on Saturday after making a full recovery from two knee injuries, Carlo Ancelotti has revealed.
Ancelotti, however, will remain cautious with Courtois, who has not played since suffering torn ligaments 13 months ago, with Andriy Lunin set to return for Wednesday's Champions League semi-final second leg against Bayern Munich.
"The decisive game we have in mind, a final, is Wednesday's match against Bayern, where Lunin will play. After that, we'll see what happens," Ancelotti said on Friday.
"Courtois is fine, he will play tomorrow after a long, long time. It's good news that he's coming back, just like [Eder] Militao.
"Courtois can contribute, he's feeling good, he's very excited. We are delighted to have him back."
Lunin has established himself as Ancelotti's preferred deputy in Courtois' absence, seeing off competition from Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Lunin was Madrid's hero as they beat Manchester City in the Champions League quarter-finals, making two saves in their 4-3 penalty shoot-out victory after an inspired performance in a 1-1 second-leg draw.
Courtois, however, is widely considered to be one of the world's best goalkeepers and the Belgian is likely to regain his starting spot soon, with a LaLiga and Champions League double in Madrid's sights.
He was named man-of-the-match in the 2022 Champions League final after making nine saves to deny Liverpool as Madrid clinched a record-extending 14th European title with a 1-0 win in Paris.
Brazil centre-back Militao returned in late March after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in August, making his first start in last week's win at Real Sociedad in LaLiga.
"We were too passive against Bayern. We have to be more active. So Militao will play tomorrow to get into a rhythm," Ancelotti said.
"We are only thinking about the 'final' on Wednesday. We don't think about what might happen in a month's time. Hopefully, soon we can start looking further ahead, it will mean we'll make the final in London."
With five games left, Ancelotti's side top the LaLiga standings on 84 points, 11 ahead of Barca and 13 clear of third-placed Girona. They can clinch a record-extending 36th Spanish title if they beat Cadiz and Barcelona fail to win at Girona later on Saturday.
Pochettino laments 'stupid rumours' over future as Chelsea speculation persists
Mauricio Pochettino blasted "stupid rumours" as speculation continues over his future at Chelsea.
Pochettino oversaw a 2-0 win over former employers Tottenham on Thursday, becoming the first manager to complete a Premier League double after previously managing them in the competition.
Yet a longer-term view on the plans under Pochettino remain unclear, with reports linking Julian Nagelsmann, Hansi Flick and Roberto De Zerbi to Stamford Bridge should the Chelsea manager be moved on.
That comes after another heavy-spending season under the Todd Boehly-led ownership at Chelsea, who splashed once more on the likes of Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia and Christopher Nkunku.
Cole Palmer, Axel Disasi and Nicolas Jackson were among the other arrivals amid another chaotic transfer window in west London, with Pochettino battling injury issues and managing a large squad.
Whether Chelsea pull the trigger for another manager may depend on how the Blues finish the season, with Pochettino's side eighth but just three points behind sixth-placed Manchester United.
A place in Europe could be the decisive factor, though Pochettino vented his frustration at the situation in an honest assessment of the media reports questioning his job safety.
"I wanted to say that it is enough with this type of rumours, that if I have one year more [under] contract here and no one says nothing [to me], [I] suppose I'm going to be here," Pochettino said.
"Only if then, the season finishes and someone says to me 'ciao'... Because we don't know at the moment.
"I suppose that I have one more year contract and that I am going to be here. Enough about the stupid rumours.
"You need to ask the club if they want me to keep going or not, not to write things that have no sense."
Pochettino has not been distracted by those rumours, though, with Chelsea winning eight of their last 10 home Premier League games (D1 L1), after managing just one win from the 14 before that (D7 L6).
The Blues will hope to continue that imperious run of form when they host London rivals West Ham on Sunday at Stamford Bridge.
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