Premier League Round-up: Liverpool challenge over and Stoke earn big-priced draw

Premier League / Maxliu / 28 February 2009 / Leave a Comment

United in commanding position after Benitez's men suffer post-Bernabeu hangover and late Stoke rally rewards draw backers...

Aston Villa's hopes of finishing in the top four were dented by a dramatic Stoke City comeback at Villa Park which earned the away side a [350.00] backed draw .

Martin O'Neill's men were cruising to a 2-0 victory thanks to goals from Stiliyan Petrov and John Carew before Ryan Shawcross headed in for the visitors in the 87th minute. Villa tried to close out the game but Glen Whelan struck with seconds of injury time remaining to give Stoke a draw which had drifted to a massive price after Villa's second goal. Those who backed 2-2 at [150.00] will have emulated Tony Pulis, who danced down the toucline, at the final whistle.

Manchester United moved a step closer to winning a third consecutive Premier League title without kicking a ball as Liverpool went down 2-0 against Middlesborough.

The Reds are now out to [34.0] to land a first title in 18 years after an own goal from Xabi Alonso and a second-half Tuncay Sinali strike condemned Rafael Benitez's side to a defeat which sees them slip to third in the table. The win also lifts Gareth Southgate's side out of the relegation zone.

Chelsea move up into second place, seven points behind United, after Frank Lampard's injury-time header gave them a 2-1 win against Wigan at Stamford Bridge. Captain John Terry had given the Blues the lead in the first half but it looked like Gus Hiddink's winning start might come to an end when Olivier Kappo converted from Maynor Figueroa's pin-point cross. Chelsea drifted to [6.6] as they pressed in search of a winner and, as against Hull City and Stoke City, they got their reward and are now a [16.5] shot for the title.

Arsenal failed to score a fourth successive match as they were held to a 0-0 draw by Fulham at the Emirates Stadium. The Gunners gave a lacklustre performance but Mark Schwarzer was in inspired form to deny them on the rare occasions they did breach the Fulham defence. In the latter stages of the game, Fulham appeared the most likely to take all three points and the final whistle was greeted by a chorus boos from the homes fans. The draw was matched at [5.0] and the stalemate was backed at a high of [13.0]. This is the first time in 16 years that Arsenal have been unable to score in four matches on the trot.

Everton are only two points behind Arsene Wenger's side after their 2-0 home win over West Bromwich Albion. The Baggies started well but made the fatal error of failing to pick up Tim Cahill at a corner. After the Australian had put the Toffees ahead, West Brom's heads dropped and they seemed to accept the inevitability of defeat. Louis Saha confirmed their fears with a classy second-half strike. Everton were matched at [1.81] and Tony Mowbray's side are in to [1.23] for the drop.

Blackburn Rovers chances of Premier League survival were given a boost as they beat Hull 1-2 at the KC Stadium. Two goals in a minute from Stephen Warnock and Keith Andrews were enough to lift the Lancashire club out of the relegation zone. Rovers, who traded at [3.0] to beat Hull, are out to [5.5] to be relegated while Phil Brown's men are now in to [2.64] return to the second tier after just on seaon.

Manchester City suffered more away day blues when they were beaten 1-0 by West Ham United at Upton Park. The home win, which sees Gianfranco Zola's side rise to seventh in the Premier League table, was backed at [4.3].

Gary Megson celebrated signing a new contract at the Reebok Stadium as substitute Ricardo Gardner scored the only goal in a win against Newcastle United which was backed at [2.74].