Arsenal Vs Manchester City 2-1
Arsenal came out on top in the battle of Premier League title favourites as goals from Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud beat Manchester City 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium.
Leicester City will top the table at Christmas, but Monday’s clash could be pivotal in the title race as Arsene Wenger’s side moved four points clear of City in second place.
Walcott’s stunning effort – Arsenal’s first shot on target – lit up a cagey first period, and Giroud neatly converted their second on the stroke of half-time to give the hosts a comfortable cushion.
Yaya Toure reduced the arrears with 10 minutes to go with an astonishing strike, but City’s late charge fell flat and they have now failed to win any of their last five away games in the league.
Swansea City Vs West Ham United 0-0
Swansea City ended their three-game losing streak but remain without a win in seven after they were held to a goalless Premier League draw by West Ham.
Andre Ayew, Bafetimbi Gomis and Ki Sung-yueng all had chances to win the match for managerless Swansea but visiting goalkeeper Adrian proved too much of an obstacle.
Watford Vs Liverpool 3-0
Two goals from Odion Ighalo helped to give Watford an impressive 3-0 win over Liverpool at Vicarage Road on Sunday, their fourth consecutive Premier League triumph.
A dreadful mistake from Adam Bogdan, who was replacing the injured Simon Mignolet in Liverpool’s goal, allowed Nathan Ake to score a simple opener.
Chelsea Vs Sunderland 3-1
Chelsea began their second post-Jose Mourinho era by scoring three goals in the Premier League for the first time in nearly four months to beat Sunderland.
The Blues began to win the crowd back when Branislav Ivanovic opened the scoring with five minutes on the clock before Pedro netted his first top-flight goal since August to put Chelsea 2-0 up after 13 minutes.
Oscar added to Chelsea’s lead from the penalty spot early in the second half, and, although Fabio Borini pulled one back against his former club, Sunderland were unable to mount a comeback and remain in the relegation zone following a third-straight defeat.
Everton Vs Leicester City 3-2
Riyad Mahrez scored two penalties as Leicester City won 3-2 at Everton on Saturday to ensure they will be top of the Premier League at Christmas.
The in-form winger scored a spot-kick in each half, either side of Romelu Lukaku netting in his seventh consecutive league game for the hosts.
Shinji Okazaki appeared to have wrapped up the points, before a late strike from substitute Kevin Mirallas set up a dramatic finish as Claudio Ranieri’s men held on.
Manchester United Vs Norwich City 1-2
Cameron Jerome scored one goal and created another to inspire Norwich City to a 2-1 win over Manchester United and pile more pressure on Louis van Gaal.
Wayne Rooney, making his 500th appearance for the club, returned from injury and helped United make a promising start at Old Trafford, but they were stunned by Jerome’s goal shortly before the break as Norwich capitalised on their first chance of the half.
Alex Neil’s side shocked the hosts again soon after the break when Alex Tettey prodded in a second, with United failing to make their control of possession count against a disciplined visiting defence.
Anthony Martial, fresh from claiming the Golden Boy prize for 2015, gave United a lifeline with a calm finish from close range in the 67th minute as United poured forward in the torrential Manchester rain.
Newcastle United Vs Aston Villa 1-1
Jordan Ayew’s equaliser denied Newcastle United a third-straight victory and earned bottom side Aston Villa their seventh point of the season at a sodden St James’s Park.
The Ghana striker curled an unstoppable effort past Rob Elliot to cancel out Fabricio Coloccini’s first-half opener and spark Villa into life after they had struggled through the first hour.
Southampton Vs Tottenham Hotspur 0-2
Tottenham climbed to fourth in the Premier League on Saturday as first-half goals from Harry Kane and Dele Alli helped them down Southampton 2-0 at St Mary’s Stadium.
The visitors saw their 14-game unbeaten league run ended by Newcastle United last weekend, but after enduring a nervy opening 20 minutes, they proved too strong for a Southampton side that has now gone six games without a win in all competitions.
Stoke City Vs Crystal Palace 1-2
Lee Chung-yong came off the bench to earn Crystal Palace a 2-1 Premier League win with a superb strike at Stoke City.
However, Glenn Whelan clumsily brought down Wilfried Zaha with half-time approaching and Connor Wickham blasted home from 12 yards to send the visitors in front with his first goal for the club.
Stoke applied the pressure after the interval as they went in desperate search of an equaliser and were eventually rewarded 14 minutes from time after Damien Delaney was penalised for handball, allowing Bojan Krkic to level.
Lee, though, had the final say, sending Palace level on 29 points with Tottenham and Manchester United, while Stoke remain 11th.
West Bromwich Albion Vs AFC Bournemouth 1-2
Charlie Daniels’ late penalty saw Bournemouth pick up their third consecutive Premier League win as they beat West Brom 2-1 at the Hawthorns. Adam smith opened the scoring after James Mcclean had been red carded.
It looked as though the hosts had salvaged a point with Gareth McAuley’s header 11 minutes from time, but there was to be late drama as Daniels smashed in his spot-kick, before Salomon Rondon was also given his marching orders in stoppage time for clashing with Gosling.
