Ahead of the next round of the FA Cup which sees some sides welcome a week's rest, the Premier League saw its third midweek programme of the season and alike the previous two, it certainly didn't disappoint with all of the top seven securing wins though some left it later than others.
Tuesday night featured three games with Aston Villa and West Brom meeting in the opener in a local derby which saw the hosts take a 22nd minute lead with a rare strike from Gabriel Agbonlahor. Saido Berahino continued his superb scoring form with the equaliser in the 66th minute but Villa secured a last-gasp win with Christian Benteke slotting in a penalty for a 2-1 triumph.
Hull and Sunderland both sit on the fringes of the bottom three after sharing the points in a 1-1 draw which saw Dame N'Doye extend his superb form in front of goal with the opener after 15 minutes but Sunderland dented the hosts' chances of moving towards safety with a leveller from Jack Rodwell in the 77th minute who should have secured a win for the visitors late on but wasted a great chance.
Southampton halted their recent blip with a 1-0 win at home to Crystal Palace with the Saints leaving it late to secure all three points with Sadio Mané striking the vital winner in the 83rd minute to keep them in the hunt for a spot in the top four.
Wednesday night featured seven games starting with bottom side Leicester's trip to champions Manchester City, the Foxes defied their league position with a fine first half which to their dismay ended with an opener from David Silva. City seemed unable to add to their tally in the second half but alike the first period, ended the second with a goal as James Milner confirmed the win in the 88th minute.
In the battle of the United's, Newcastle hosted Manchester with the hosts eager to close the gap to the top half while their opponents looked to close up on the top three but neither seemed able to make a breakthrough in the game. However, a Tim Krul mistake with just a few minutes remaining gave Ashley Young a great chance which he took well to seal the win with a rare strike for a narrow 1-0 victory.
As one of only two sides to play twice this week in the league, QPR looked to start with a win as they hosted Arsenal who themselves hoped to keep in touch with the top two. The Gunners took the lead in the 64th minute through Olivier Giroud before Alexis Sanchez added a second just five minutes later for 2-0. QPR set up a tight finish with a strike from Charlie Austin on 82 minutes but it acted as a consolation as Arsenal held on for the win.
Everton's poor form continued as they slipped to a 2-0 defeat away to Stoke who moved up to eighth as a result. The Potters have quietly rose up the table with a run of good results which continued after strikes from Victor Moses and Mame Diouf in the 32nd and 84th minutes left their visitors just six points above the drop zone.
After losing to rivals Chelsea at Wembley on Sunday, Tottenham hosted Swansea ahead of a weekend trip to QPR and they prepared for Saturday's derby with narrow 3-2 win over a Swansea side who remain in the top half. Nacer Chadli opened the scoring with his tenth strike of the season before Ki Sung-Yeung levelled just 12 minutes later. Ryan Mason restored the hosts' lead on 51 minutes before Andros Townsend's solo effort on the hour made it 3-1. Gylfi Sigurdsson gave the Swans hope in the 89th minute with a strike against his former side but in vain as Spurs secured the points.
Chelsea buoyed by their League Cup triumph travelled to face city rivals West Ham who looked to avoid back-to-back derby defeats but fell to a narrow defeat as Eden Hazard secured all three points with the crucial strike after 22 minutes.
The final game of the night saw second bottom Burnley travel to face in-form Liverpool with the Reds aiming to extend their unbeaten run to 12 games and they did just that with a 2-0 victory. Jordan Henderson fired in the opener in the 29th minute before Daniel Sturridge connected to a superb Gerrard-esque pass from Henderson to secure the win and all three points i the 51st minute to put the Reds just outside the top four.
Hull and Sunderland both sit on the fringes of the bottom three after sharing the points in a 1-1 draw which saw Dame N'Doye extend his superb form in front of goal with the opener after 15 minutes but Sunderland dented the hosts' chances of moving towards safety with a leveller from Jack Rodwell in the 77th minute who should have secured a win for the visitors late on but wasted a great chance.
Wednesday night featured seven games starting with bottom side Leicester's trip to champions Manchester City, the Foxes defied their league position with a fine first half which to their dismay ended with an opener from David Silva. City seemed unable to add to their tally in the second half but alike the first period, ended the second with a goal as James Milner confirmed the win in the 88th minute.
In the battle of the United's, Newcastle hosted Manchester with the hosts eager to close the gap to the top half while their opponents looked to close up on the top three but neither seemed able to make a breakthrough in the game. However, a Tim Krul mistake with just a few minutes remaining gave Ashley Young a great chance which he took well to seal the win with a rare strike for a narrow 1-0 victory.As one of only two sides to play twice this week in the league, QPR looked to start with a win as they hosted Arsenal who themselves hoped to keep in touch with the top two. The Gunners took the lead in the 64th minute through Olivier Giroud before Alexis Sanchez added a second just five minutes later for 2-0. QPR set up a tight finish with a strike from Charlie Austin on 82 minutes but it acted as a consolation as Arsenal held on for the win.
Everton's poor form continued as they slipped to a 2-0 defeat away to Stoke who moved up to eighth as a result. The Potters have quietly rose up the table with a run of good results which continued after strikes from Victor Moses and Mame Diouf in the 32nd and 84th minutes left their visitors just six points above the drop zone.After losing to rivals Chelsea at Wembley on Sunday, Tottenham hosted Swansea ahead of a weekend trip to QPR and they prepared for Saturday's derby with narrow 3-2 win over a Swansea side who remain in the top half. Nacer Chadli opened the scoring with his tenth strike of the season before Ki Sung-Yeung levelled just 12 minutes later. Ryan Mason restored the hosts' lead on 51 minutes before Andros Townsend's solo effort on the hour made it 3-1. Gylfi Sigurdsson gave the Swans hope in the 89th minute with a strike against his former side but in vain as Spurs secured the points.
Chelsea buoyed by their League Cup triumph travelled to face city rivals West Ham who looked to avoid back-to-back derby defeats but fell to a narrow defeat as Eden Hazard secured all three points with the crucial strike after 22 minutes.The final game of the night saw second bottom Burnley travel to face in-form Liverpool with the Reds aiming to extend their unbeaten run to 12 games and they did just that with a 2-0 victory. Jordan Henderson fired in the opener in the 29th minute before Daniel Sturridge connected to a superb Gerrard-esque pass from Henderson to secure the win and all three points i the 51st minute to put the Reds just outside the top four.
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