English Premier League Weekly Review

Weekly report : 28.2.2010

After Manchester City's 4-2 victory over 9-man Chelsea on Saturday, both Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool needed to pick up all three points to keep up the pressure. Tottenham survived a strong Everton fightback to secure a 2-1 home win while Spanish striker Fernando Torres scored on his first start in six weeks as Liverpool beat Blackburn Rovers 2-1 in the Premier League on Sunday.

Chelsea still lead the way with 61 points, one ahead of Manchester United. Arsenal, 3-1 winners at Stoke City, are third on 58 points. Tottenham reclaimed fourth on 49 points, above City on goal difference. Liverpool remain sixth on 48. Wayne Rooney scored his 28th goal of the club season as United retained the League Cup with a 2-1 win over Aston Villa, who are seventh in the Premiership.

Team of the week

Statistics

Weekly report : 22.2.2010

Chelsea took advantage of Manchester United's slip-up at Everton when they won 2-0 at Wolverhampton to go four points clear of the champions at the top of the Premier League. Third-placed Arsenal closed the gap on United, who lost 3-1 at Everton, to two points with a 2-0 home win over Sunderland. Tottenham and Aston Villa gained ground in the league's increasingly tight battle for fourth place.

Tottenham were deserved 3-0 winners at Wigan while Villa scored four goals in 12 second-half minutes for a 5-2 home win over Burnley. Manchester City and Liverpool drew 0-0 to leave four teams chasing the final UEFA Champions League slot divided by one point. Portsmouth's bid to sell players outside of the transfer window was rejected by the Premier League. The debt-ravaged club are bottom of the table.

Weekly report : 8.2.2010

First-half goals from Didier Drogba earned Chelsea a 2-0 win over Arsenal at Stamford Bridge and secured a return to the top of the Premier League two points ahead of Manchester United. The result leaves Arsenal nine points adrift of Chelsea and seven behind Manchester United, who beat bottom-place Portsmouth 5-0. Liverpool climbed to fourth place with a 1-0 victory over Everton.

Tottenham Hotspur slipped to fifth in the table after a goalless draw at home with Aston Villa. Tottenham have 43 points from 25 games, leaving them a point behind Liverpool and six adrift of Arsenal. Villa stay seventh with 41 points from 24 games but are now level with Manchester City, who suffered a surprise 2-1 defeat at Hull. Manchester City, however, have two games in hand.