Tevez and Bellamy scored two each for the visitors while Frank Lampard scored both goals for Chelsea, the last from the penalty spot in injury time with Chelsea reduced to nine men. Chelsea’s lead at the top of the table is now just one point from Manchester United with Arsenal just a further two points behind. Tottenham sit in fourth position after a fortunate 2-1 home win over Everton who pushed hard in the second half and were unfortunate not to get at least a point as they dominated the second half, scoring once and coming close to equalizing on a number of occasions.

Liverpool kept up the pressure in the four-way race for the last Champion’s League spot with a deserved 2-1 win over Blackburn Rovers in a hard-fought match with Rovers seemingly more interested in fulfilling their Manager, Sam Allardyce’s bullying tactics as they fouled their way to five yellow cards and were lucky not to have a couple of players sent off. Fernando Torres marked his return to the starting line-up with a goal, while Liverpool’s captain and talisman, Steven Gerrard, scored the other. Arsenal comfortably beat Stoke City 3-0 with Stoke’s Ryan Shawcross seeing red for a tackle that broke Aaron Ramsey’s leg in two places. Shawcross trudged of the field wiping tears of remorse from his face with his soccer uniform, clearly distraught at badly injuring a fellow professional in a mistimed challenge.

Ramsey has since undergone surgery and it has been suggested that it will be at least six months before he will return to action. In other matches Birmingham and Bolton ground out 1-0 home wins over Wigan and Wolves respectively, while Portsmouth upset Burnley 2-1 away. On Sunday Fulham and Sunderland drew 0-0 at the Stadium of Light.

Carling Cup Final

Sir Alex Ferguson won his 34th trophy as manager of Manchester United with a come from behind 2-1 win over Aston Villa in the Carling Cup final at Wembley on Sunday. Gareth Barry scored from the penalty spot in the fifth minute but the lead lasted only seven minutes as Michael Owen swept the ball into the net from the edge of the penalty area. Owen made way for Wayne Rooney before the half, succumbing to a hamstring injury, allowing Rooney to head home the winner with sixteen minutes to play.

Switching Soccer Uniforms – Transfer Gossip

Chelsea are lining up a $30mil offer for Liverpool and Spain goalkeeper, Pepe Reina. Reina has been in outstanding form this season and many believe he is now the number one keeper in the league. A move seems unlikely as Reina has repeatedly expressed his desire to stay at Liverpool for years to come. Arsenal have tied up their free transfer for Bordeaux’s Morrocan star, Marouane Chamakh, who is ready to sign a four-year deal to play for the Gunners. Michael Owen, Nani, Gabriel Obertan and Owen Hargreaves are set to be sold over the summer by Manchester United in a clean-out designed to raise money for the debt-ridden club.