blog.great-save.com

By Danny Wright

Liverpool came up trumps in the Merseyside derby with a priceless 1-0 over arch rivals Everton. Fernando Torres’ first half strike was enough to settle the tie, against a poor Everton side that rarely threatened Pepe Reina’s goal. Liverpool now go five points clear of the Toffees, and with five games remaining, it looks likely that the coveted fourth Champions League spot will go to Anfield. Portsmouth are also piling the pressure on Everton for the solitary UEFA Cup place, a 2-0 win over Wigan narrowing the gap to just four points. The Latics had their chances but were foiled by Glen Johnson’s clearance off the line and a penalty save from David James, Ryan Taylor seeing his low effort saved. Jermaine Defoe was somewhat more clinical at the other end, his two goals the difference between the two sides.

Arsenal produced an incredible turn around at Bolton in a win that keeps the Gunners in the title hunt. Bolton had lead 2-0 thanks to Matt Taylor’s brace, and things got worse for Arsenal when Abou Diaby saw red for clattering the goalscorer. Arsene Wenger’s men showed great grit though - a characteristic absent in recent weeks - to produce a stunning fight back; William Gallas volleyed home for 2-1 and Robin Van Persie leveled with a penalty, with Jlloyd Samuel putting through his own net to send the points back to London.

Despite the win, it is Chelsea who look the more likely to topple Manchester United after they defeated Middlesborough at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, 1-0 the score. With United beating Aston Villa 4-0 only a day earlier, it was imperative Avram Grant’s men took maximum points and they did just that thanks to Ricardo Carvalho’s sixth minute header. Boro could count themselves unlucky, though. £12m buy Afonso Alves hit the woodwork twice, as did David Wheater with a close range header.

Derby were relegated to the Championship despite performing admirably in a 2-2 home draw against struggling Fulham, who now look likely to join the Rams in the coming weeks. Tito Villa notched a deflected effort to give Derby an unlikely lead, but Diomansy Kamara headed level. The visitor’s then took the lead when Hameur Bouazza’s effort cruelly floated over Roy Carroll’s head and a rare away win looked to be going Fulham’s way, however Villa popped up for his second to ensure his side went down with a fight.

A ten-man Birmingham side picked up a useful win in their relegation battle, beating Manchester City 3-1 at St Andrews. Mauro Zarate put the Blues 2-0 ahead, but things threatened to go wrong when Franck Queudrue fouled Benjani and saw red. Elano dispatched the subsequent spot kick, only for Gary McSheffrey to score with a controversial penalty of Birmingham’s own to ensure the win. Reading held Blackburn to a 0-0 draw in a dull game that saw Marek Matejovsky sent off for the Royals, meanwhile Sunderland beat West Ham 2-1 at the Stadium of Light to ease the Black Cats relegation fears.

The most entertaining clash of the weekend came at White Hart Lane, where Newcastle came from behind to beat Tottenham 4-1. Darren Bent scored to put Spurs ahead but the joy was short-lived as Kevin Keegan’s men came back in style. First, Nicky Butt scuffed in an effort to equalise and Geremi scored from a free-kick to put the Magpies in the lead. Michael Owen bagged another goal with a curled effort, and hotshot Obafemi Martins completed the rout with a fine individual goal.