Arsenal’s Unbeaten Streak Reaches 31

Arsenal shrugged off losses in the English F.A. Cup and the European Champions League in the last week and defeated Liverpool, 4-2, on Friday to extend its unbeaten streak in the English Premier League to a record 31 games.

French striker Thierry Henry scored three of the Gunners’ goals, and Robert Pires scored the other. Sammi Hyypia and Michael Owen scored for Liverpool, which twice held the lead.

“The way the team responded today is absolutely magnificent,” said Arsenal Coach Arsene Wenger.

With seven games left, Arsenal leads the Premier League with 77 points, seven more than Chelsea and 15 ahead of defending champion Manchester United.

U.S. Defeated

The U.S. women’s under-19 national team, preparing for next month’s CONCACAF qualifying tournament for the FIFA Under-19 Women’s World Championship in Thailand, was defeated, 1-0, by Japan at the Home Depot Center on Thursday.

Japan’s captain, Aya Miyama, headed in the lone goal in the 79th minute as the Japanese clinched the four-nation U.S. Under-19 Women’s Invitational tournament. In an earlier match, China, which plays the U.S. at 1 p.m. today, edged the Netherlands, 1-0, on a goal by You Jia.

Quick Passes

Club America of Mexico advanced to the second round of South America’s Copa Libertadores tournament Thursday night with a resounding 4-0 victory over the Strongest of Bolivia in front of 50,000 at Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. Pavel Pardo, Hugo Castillo, Jesus Mendoza and Cuauhtemoc Blanco scored the goals.... Ajax Amsterdam gave Finnish international striker Jari Litmanen, 33, his unconditional release. Litmanen had helped Ajax win four Dutch titles and the European Cup in the early 1990s.... The San Jose Earthquakes reclassified former Stanford All-American forward Roger Levesque as a senior developmental player, moving him off the 18-man senior roster to make way for the just-acquired Chris Brown and bringing the MLS club into compliance with league roster rules.

-- Compiled by Grahame L. Jones