Premier League, Week 32: Mikel Arteta Scores Arsenal's Winner

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Final Score, Mikel Arteta Scores The Winner

Manchester City's title chase is all but over, while Arsenal have a leg up on Tottenham Hotspur for third place. Arsenal squandered numerous opportunities throughout the match and had big refereeing decisions go against them in the first half, but Mikel Arteta manufactured a brilliant goal from absolutely nothing for his team in the dying minutes of the game, firing his side to a crucial 1-0 win.

Mario Balotelli somehow avoided getting sent off in the first half for a studs-up challenge to the knee of Alex Song, while Martin Atkinson failed to give a penalty for a blatant shove in the back to Robin van Persie from Vincent Kompany. The first half also featured a brilliant block off the line by Thomas Vermaelen ... on a shot by van Persie. Close to the end of the half, Balotelli would eventually be yellow carded after a half full of antics, which was eventually relevant.

Arsenal had their best chance to score in the 76th minute, but somehow managed to miss a few consecutive chances that were all a lot easier to score than to miss. Theo Walcott had his initial shot saved by Joe Hart, who turned the ball onto the post. The ball fell to Thomas Vermaelen, who found a way to shank a shot from three yards out. Tomas Rosicky had Arsenal's third chance in 10 seconds, but hit the post as well.

At that point, it looked like it was just going to be one of those days where Arsenal are obviously superior to their opponent, but unable to find a goal when they need one. Then, Arteta struck in the 87th minute. After David Pizzaro failed to control a ball that deflected to Arteta, the Arsenal midfielder surged forward with the ball before unleashing a brilliant strike into the back of the net, beating Hart at his near post from 20 yards out.

City pushed for an equalizer, but never got close. Three minutes later, Balotelli picked up his second yellow card and was sent off. It was the perfect ending to an immature and downright dirty performance by Balotelli, who will be lucky to see the pitch again for City this season.

The visitors did not manage a single shot on target in an absolutely dire performance. Manchester United look to be coasting to the title, and the 'big' Manchester Derby in a couple of weeks might mean absolutely nothing.

For our live updates from throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Balotelli Sent Off, Finally

And things go from bad to worse for Mario Balotelli. The striker, who frankly should have been sent off ages ago, has picked up a second booking for clipping Bacary Sagna and will presumably miss the rest of the season with a lengthy suspension. It's a pretty silly way for Balotelli to end his evening after a much-improved performance in the second half, but he had to go after that. Why he was left on by Roberto Mancini I don't know, but that's a pretty poor way to repay a manager's faith

Anyway, there are four minutes of stoppage time to go and Arsenal are winning 1-0 thanks to a lovely goal from Mikel Arteta. We'll see if Mancini's side have any fight left in them after this - I'm guessing that no, they probably don't. That's the title race done, probably.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Mikel Arteta Gives Arsenal Lead

Seven minutes to go and here comes Carlos Tevez. Both teams are tired now and Mario Balotelli's starting to make a positive impact, running hard down the right wing and winning a dangerous free kick and then a corner, but the real story is Sergio Aguero's withdrawal in favour of his compatriot. If Tevez scores here, that would be pretty amusing. And undeserved, too - Arsenal have been the better side for the majority of this game and they certainly don't deserve to lose here.

And it doesn't look like they will! A David Pizarro error leads to Mikel Arteta racing onto the ball 30 yards from goal, and the midfielder takes two touches before hitting a brilliant shot past Joe Hart and into the bottom corner. That's been coming, and it was class. Wow. 1-0 Arsenal with barely any time to go.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Gunners Blow Gilt-Edged Chance

Uh. I don't really know how to explain what just happened. Theo Walcott ended up in space in Manchester City's box, and the Arsenal man forced Joe Hart into an incredible save which saw the ball tipped onto his right-hand post. Unfortunately for City, the rebound fell straight to Thomas Vermaelen, who... fell over the ball with an open goal five yards away. Somehow he scrambled it to Yossi Benayoun, who also had an open goal five yards away. So he miskicked his shot and the ball scooted wide. Somehow. That was incredibly strange.

Anyway, Benayoun is then withdrawn for Aaron Ramsey, who's almost as good at preventing Arsenal from scoring as the Israeli, while Samir Nasri is pulled for Aleksandar Kolarov for reasons I'm not entirely sure of. Since Robin van Persie hit the post, City have done approximately nothing, but it remains 0-0 with ten minutes to play at the Emirates.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Koscielny Booked, Faces 2-Match Ban

And now things are happening again. Laurent Koscielny stops a Manchester City attack by planting a two-footed tackle on Gareth Barry, and the centre back is quite rightly shown a yellow card for his efforts. That's Koscielny's tenth booking of the season, and it means he'll be out for the Wolverhampton and Wigan Athletic matches, although he'll be back for Chelsea.

Meanwhile, Mario Balotelli has come rather comes to scoring in spectacular fashion, finding himself in space in the siz yard box from a cross and attempting a spectacular close-range overhead kick. He misses completely, but that's not really the point.

Robin van Persie gets the ball in the back of the net a few minutes later, sending the Emirates crowd ballistic only for his effort to be ruled out for offside, and then Yossi Benayoun's attempt on Joe Hart's goal ends up with the on-loan midfielder falling down instead of scoring. It's an Arsenal corner now though...

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Robin Van Persie Hits Post

We're still all-square at the Emirates, where Arsenal and Manchester City have so far failed to score. Or even to threaten to score, really - until now. Yossi Benayoun ends up as close as anyone's come since the 15th minute with a jinking run that sees him clear three City defenders and shoot low and right at Joe Hart from 20 yards, but that's just the appetizer.

Robin van Persie finds himself in acres of space from a cross and faced with a stranded goalkeeper, but instead of giving the hosts the lead, the striker nods against the base of the post from ten yards. That's not the sort of opportunity that you'd expect him to miss, and with that chance coming against the run of play you'd have to imagine that Arsenal could come to regret their frontman's profligacy here.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: James Milner Booked

There's another booking, although it's not for Mario Balotelli. James Milner attempts a slide tackle on Tomas Rosicky and gets the faintest of touches on the ball before getting a very non-faint touch on the Czech midfielder, wiping him out. The resulting Arsenal free kick is cleared and Manchester City immediately go back on the attack, forcing substitute left back Andre Santos to clear a threatening ball.

It's not completely over, though, as the ball is swung back in for Pablo Zabeleta, who finds himself in space near Wojciech Szczesny's right post only to be thwarted by a sliding tackle from Yossi Benayoun. The ball goes out for a corner, and eventually Santos earns himself a booking by tugging down Balotelli in a dangerous position. This could be interesting... nope, Arsenal clear easily.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: City Dominating, Gibbs Injured

It's still all Manchester City in the early stages of the second half. David Pizarro has dropped deeper into the midfield as the visitors switch to a 4-3-3, and so far they're looking far more composed than they were at the beginning of the first half. Gael Clichy in particular is playing superbly - the left back has absolutely skinned Arsenal twice in the first five minutes or so, but his most recent effort was not adequately matched by Sergio Aguero and the chance was wasted.

Samir Nasri then gets in on the action, working well with James Milner in the centre before eventually drifting out wide and swinging in a cross that Aguero meets ahead of Pablo Zabaleta. He probably should have left it - the right back was in a better position, and Wojciech Szczesny was never really threatened by the Argentine's loopy effort, although he did have to tip it over for a corner.

It looks like Andre Santos is going to come on for a limping Kieran Gibbs, incidentally. That's not good news for the structure of the home defence, although it might make them a little more potent down the left.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: 2nd Half Underway

After a strange first half in which Mario Balotelli's strange combination of maliciousness and brainlessness was the story, we're back underway at the Emirates. Arsenal and Manchester City are locked in a 0-0 draw at the moment. And, get this - Mario Balotelli will remain on the pitch. Roberto Mancini is apparently confident that the striker can avoid a second yellow card this half, and considering he might have gotten as many as four before the break that seems like a bit of a risky position.

Anyway, City start with the ball and an excellent run by Gael Clichy causes problems, with Thomas Vermaelen having to do very well to stop Sergio Aguero from getting on the end of the left back's cross. City are starting with some real purpose here, which is good to see after a relatively tame opening half. It's early days, but there's almost certainly a goal or two in this for any team that decides to go for it.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Halftime Score, Mario Balotelli's Antics The Story

It's been an eventful first 45 minutes from the Emirates Stadium, even if no one has hit the back of the net. Manchester City and Arsenal are involved in a physical battle, though City's the team dishing out more of the punishment. There have been bookings and injuries, and referee Martin Atkinson isn't having the best game. At halftime, the two teams are tied up at 0-0.

The first booking of the match came less than three minutes in, and it was an indication of the kind of chippy, borderline dirty play that was to come. That booking was given to Yaya Toure, who would eventually have to be substituted out of the game. He picked up a knock about nine minutes in and tried to play through it, but he was replaced by David Pizarro in the 17th minute.

Arsenal's best chance came just before that. They were given a corner kick on the 14th minute, but probably should have had a penalty when Vincent Kompany shoved down Robin van Persie in the box. It wasn't given, but Arsenal created a great chance on the ensuing corner. Van Persie rose up and hit a great header that was on its way into the net, but it was inadvertently cleared off the line by his teammate Thomas Vermaelen.

In the 20th minute, Mario Balotelli got away with a very clear straight red challenge. He flew in high on Alex Song and put his studs directly into Song's knee, which Atkinson did not see. Song, luckily, was able to continue. Balotelli would make a couple more questionable challenges in the half, eventually picking up a yellow card in the 38th minute.

No one has managed a shot on target so far in this game, and the entertainment value has come mostly from the controversial officiating. There certainly hasn't been any intent of bias on the part of Martin Atkinson, but the big calls have all gone City's way. Arsenal really should feel aggrieved to not be up a goal and up a man.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Midfield Battle As Half Winds Down

Well there's Mario Balotelli's card. It's not red, though - the striker sees yellow for a studs-up challenge on Bacary Sagna which comes following some good work and then some very bad work by Sergio Aguero at the edge of the box. That yellow's actually a borderline red, and one can only wonder just how long he'll be suspended for after this match. Possibly forever, considering his history.

Anyway, the game's being played mostly in the midfield at the moment. Attempts to push the ball forward are just resulting in goalkeeper claims or offsides, although Tomas Rosicky is attempting to fix all that with a clever flick to start an attack that's ultimately ended by Theo Walcott being incompetent, so we're back to square one. The half's winding down and it's still 0-0. We'll get three minutes of stoppage time. Ok then.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Balotelli At It Again?

Remember that Mario Balotelli challenge that nearly took Alex Song's leg off? Or at least, remember reading about it? It looks like the Italian striker has the exact same thing to Bacary Sagna - the ball bounces, the striker goes in studs up, and the Arsenal right back yells out and goes down in a heap. Only he was barely touched, so that's probably a dive. Not that I don't endorse trying to get Balotelli sent off at this point, because he deserved to be earlier...

Anyway, Arsenal manage to win a free kick thanks to a Gareth Barry slide tackle on Kieran Gibbs, which forces Joe Hart to scramble clear before some scary moments in the centre of the box for City. They're relieved thanks to some typical Arsenal over-elaboration.

A couple of seconds later and Wojciech Szczesny, who's basically been a bystander today, comes to Arsenal's rescue after a lovely through ball from Vincent Kompany splits the Gunners' centre backs and looks poised to send Balotelli clear through on goal. Szczesny spots the danger and races out of his box juuuust ahead of the striker, and somehow doesn't get spiked in the knee in so doing. Excellent work. Still 0-0.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: City Starting To Come Into Game

It's a genuine spell of Manchester City pressure! That makes things a little more interesting. From a corner, Mario Balotelli has a free shot and sees his effort cleared off the line, and then the visitors manage to hold possession deep in Arsenal territory only to lose it on a Sergio Aguero offside. I guess that was less interesting than previously hoped. A few minutes later, a similar attack is thwarted by a handball in Wojciech Szczesny's box by Pablo Zabaleta, who really let himself down after a lovely run to get behind the defence.

Anyway, it's a bit more even now, which presumably means someone will score soon. Or have some sort of chance. Please? It'd be fun! Manchester City try to oblige me when Balotelli wins a corner off the leg of Laurent Koscielny, but Joleon Lescott can only fire a header wide, possibly thanks to Bacary Sagna attempting to divest him of his shirt during the attempted jump. 0-0, 31 minutes in.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Gunners Still Ascendant, Match Still 0-0

Arsenal are still doing all of the attacking at the Emirates, and Robin van Persie is that the heart of most things good. The Gunners' talisman drives at Manchester City's defence and wants a foul on the edge of the box after an unyielding tackle from City captain Vincent Kompany, but no whistle is forthcoming and they'll have to do things the hard way if he wants to score.

It's fairly incredible how easily the hosts are bossing the midfield at this point. Alex Song, who's just had his knee well and truly spiked by Mario Balotelli, has just managed to hold off no less thank three City players at once in the centre circle (although Samir Nasri plus David Pizarro might only count for one player combined). If the visitors want to impost themselves onto this match, they're going to have to do better than that. By a lot. It's still 0-0 though,

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Arsenal Hit Bar, Balotelli Lucky To Avoid Red

Well that was pretty spectacular. While Manchester City were trying to swap out Yaya Toure for David Pizarro, Arsenal came astonishingly close to the opening goal. The ball was flicked to Robin van Persie at the far post, and the Dutch striker put in a nearly perfect header that Joe Hart wasn't going to come anywhere near stopping. Then a defender came flying in, deflecting the effort onto the bar and out. That would have been a commendable feat if not for the fact that the man responsible was Arsenal centre half Thomas Vermaelen. Whoops.

A few minutes later, Mario Balotelli manages so somehow avoid a straight red card for a studs up challenge on Alex Song's knee. Martin Atkinson didn't see it, but Balotelli's certainly in for a ban when the FA reviews the game. That was an absolutely vile challenge, and it's a real shame to see City go unpunished for that. Goodness.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Yaya Toure Injury Forces Substitution

Nothing Manchester City are trying here is coming off. Having broken up a dangerous-looking Arsenal attack, City attempt to release James Milner down the right wing, only for the long, raking pass to go straight to Thomas Vermaelen, who promptly starts a new Arsenal attack. They can't keep going like this, and the visitors have just come pretty close to conceding - Robin van Persie's just had a fairly reasonable penalty shout after a clash with Vincent Kompany in the box. Martin Atkinson points to the corner flag instead.

Meanwhile, Yaya Toure will indeed succumb to that knee injury and will be replaced by David Pizarro, who weighs in at about half of the big Ivorian. We'll see how that ends up turning out - Roberto Mancini may want to drop James Milner back into the pivot and play Pizarro high in order to avoid being overrun.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Bright Start For Arsenal

Arsenal continue their bright start, cutting Manchester City open down the right, with Bacary Sagna's crosses causing some consternation amongst the visiting centre backs. Eventually, one of those crosses leads to a flicked header to Tomas Rosicky, whose instinctive volley is deflected behind for a corner. Said corner is not defended particularly convincingly, and it's probably safe to say that the hosts are having the better of things at the moment.

Eventually pressure is relieved when Yossi Benayoun is dispossessed at the top of the box and Alex Song fouls Yaya Toure, who doesn't seem to happy with it - that or he's staying down in a cynical attempt to even out the bookings score. It was a knee-on-knee collision, though, so I'll give the Ivorian the benefit of the doubt. Instead of trying to retain possession, Joe Hart kicks it long to Mario Balotelli, who promptly loses the ball, so the pressure's back on. Silly.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Match Underway

We're underway at the Emirates, where Manchester City's title hopes hang on a win away to Arsenal. The Gunners kick us off, shutting the ball back to young goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, who promptly boots the ball out of play. City find themselves immediately pressed by the hosts, and Yaya Toure nearly loses the ball in a dangerous position to Robin van Persie - eventually a pair of fouls in the centre gifts possession back to Arsenal, the latter of which, a tug on Tomas Rosicky, earns Toure a yellow card. Bit harsh.

Anyway, Mikel Arteta takes the kick and it's knocked over the bar by Vincent Kompany, so it's an Arsenal corner which eventually ends up leading to another corner which eventually leads to Alex Song banging right into Joe Hart. That looked painful. City eventually get the ball clear, and Mario Balotelli comes within an inch or three of being onside for a lovely through ball only to see the flag go up. Decent start to the match, this.

For live updates throughout the match, check out our Premier League storystream. For more on the two clubs, visit SB Nation Arsenal blog The Short Fuse and Manchester City blog Bitter And Blue.

Arsenal Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Premier League: Lineups

Arsenal host Manchester City in a key match in two races. City are desperately hoping to hunt down Manchester United - who've just opened an eight point lead - at the top of the table, while an Arsenal win would see them take an important lead in the three-way race for the last two Champions League spots. Failure to do so would see them end the weekend within three points of fith-placed Chelsea.

Arsenal starting lineup (4-3-3): Wojciech Szczesny; Kieran Gibbs, Thomas Vermaelen, Laurent Koscielny, Bacary Sagna; Alex Song, Mikel Arteta, Tomas Rosicky; Yossi Benayoun, Robin van Persie, Theo Walcott.

Substitutes from: Lukasz Fabianski, Johan Djourou, Andre Santos, Carl Jenkinson, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Aaron Ramsey, Marouane Chamakh.

Manchester City starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Joe Hart; Gael Clichy, Vincent Kompany, Joleon Lescott, Pablo Zabaleta; Gareth Barry, James Milner; Samir Nasri, Yaya Toure, Sergio Aguero; Mario Balotelli.

Substitutes from: Costel Pantilimon, Micah Richards, David Pizarro, Edin Dzeko, Aleksandar Kolarov, Carlos Tevez, Nigel de Jong.

Manchester United Vs. QPR, 2012 Premier League: Final Score 2-0 United; Ref's Error Decides Match

Manchester United scraped to a 2-0 home win against Queens Park Rangers at Old Trafford to extend their cushion at the top of the league - at least temporarily - to eight points. Their task was made far easier by an officiating mistake early when Ashley Young received the ball in an offside position, wasn't flagged and then went down in the box under the faintest of touches from Shaun Derry. Who was sent off.

Wayne Rooney converted the spot kick for a 1-0 15th minute lead, but United struggled to extend it against the 10-man relegation fodder. It took them until after the hour mark to double their lead when Adel Taarabt failed to close down Paul Scholes and the veteran midfielder blasted the ball past Paddy Kenny from 30 yards. Michael Carrick nearly made it three with another long-range shot that cannoned off Kenny's right-hand post, and United finished very strongly with QPR's defence well and truly pooped.

It wasn't a vintage performance by anyone concerned, and the game was hurt badly by the officiating error, but the hosts will care not much at all - it's another hurdle navigated in Sir Alex Ferguson's quest to retain the Premier League crown.

Premier League Week 32, Saturday Scores: Clint Dempsey On Fire, Liverpool Not

Liverpool 1-1 Aston Villa

The anguish at Liverpool continues. While it has been some time since the Reds were legitimately good, they were always good at Anfield, at least. It's safe to say that is no longer the case. Wigan took down Liverpool last time the Reds were at Anfield and today, relegation threatened Aston Villa picked up a point as Liverpool continues to sink down the table.

Villa notched the opening goal when Doni, in for the suspended Pepe Reina, did a poot job getting off his line to clear a cross. That allowed Barry Bannan to collect the ball and cross for Chris Herd, whose tidy finish put the visitors up 1-0 after just 10 minutes. Liverpool came back and controlled much of the match from there on, but they weren't creating a ton of chances. They had a couple that forced Shay Given into a good save and scared him another time, but it was hardly a convincing performance. Even so, Luis Suarez found an equalizer when Daniel Agger's shot hit the bar and bounced right to the Uruguayan to finish.

That's all that was in the match, though, as both teams probably got what they deserved in a rather dreadful 90 minutes.

Bolton Wanderers 0-3 Fulham

Clint Dempsey's dream season continues. The American notched two more goals on Saturday to lead Fulham to a 3-0 win over Bolton. The first goal came 30 minutes in on a gorgeous free kick from 30 yards that left Adam Bogdan no chance. Dempsey then doubled the Cottagers' lead 15 minutes later when Damien Duff's fine run unlocked the Bolton defense. Duff then crossed for Dempsey, who had a simple headed finish to put Fulham up two. Mahmadou Diarra then added one more to secure a rare away win for Fulham.

Norwich City 2-2 Everton

A late goal by Grant Holt earned Norwich City a draw and it might have also earned the striker some consideration for an England call in as he became the second-highest scoring Englishman on the season. Tim Howard couldn't control a good shot, leaving it in front for Holt, who battled four Toffees to get to the ball and get to the ball first for the equalizer.

Nikica Jelavic put the Toffees in front early with a cheeky backheel to beat John Ruddy, but Norwich answered when Wes Hoolahan's square ball left Jonathan Howson an easy finish from seven yards. Jelalich put Everton back in front on the other side of the break, but Holt's late goal meant a point apiece at Goodson Park.

With six matches to go, Norwich City are on 40 points, the supposedly safe mark for teams thought to be a relegation, which is a real compliment to the newly-promoted side. Well done, Canaries.

West Bromwich Albion 3-0 Blackburn Rovers

Blackburn's bid to stay up took a major blow on Saturday when West Brom, well, beat the piss out of them. There is no other way to put it after the Baggies picked up an easy 3-0 win at the Hawthorns. Martin Olsson handed West Brom a lead after just seven minutes when he put the ball in his own net before Marc-Antoine Fortune and Liam Ridgewell added goals to give the Baggies an easy win.

The loss has Blackburn in the drop zone on 28 points, level with 17th place QPR. West Brom are now oon 39 points, almost assuredly guaranteeing them a spot in the Premier League next year.

Stoke City 2-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers

Michael Kightly may have scored first for Wolves, but Stoke City stormed back with two of their own to grab three points at the Britannia. David Edwards fed Kightly for the opener in the 26th minute, but Robert Huth equalized 11 minutes later on, what else, a set piece. It took until after the hour mark for Stoke to secure the winner as Peter Crouch nodded him the deciding goal in the most Stoke game to ever Stoke.

Chelsea Vs. Wigan Athletic, 2012 Premier League: Juan Mata Steals It Late

Chelsea looked set to drop points and fall further behind in the race for the top four for most of their match against Wigan Athletic on Saturday, but was able to grab a winner at the death. It took more than an hour for Chelsea to take the lead, and they surprisingly relinquished that lead. A draw looked like a near certainty, but Juan Mata scored in stoppage time of their 2-1 victory.

Branislav Ivanovic netted the opening goal 62 minutes in on a set piece, and he was hilariously offside when he scored. How the linesman missed it, the world will never know. Things "evened out" when Gary Caldwell clearly handled the ball in the box and the referee missed it entirely. This was just a poorly officiated match in general.

In the 82nd minute, Wigan equalized in stunning fashion. Mohamed Diame was the man who hit the back of the net, finding space in between three Chelsea players before unleashing an absolute rocket from 20 yards that Petr Cech had no chance to stop. Based on Chelsea's poor play, that seemed like it would be the game's last goal.

Of course, as we know now, it was not the last goal of the game. Mata popped up in stoppage time, applying the finish after Fernando Torres hit the post with a brilliant shot. Torres had been very poor before that shot, falling on his rear on a couple of occasions, but deserves serious praise for his woodwork assist.

Chelsea is now just two points behind Arsenal and three points behind Tottenham Hotspur in the race for Champions League spots.

Sunderland Vs. Tottenham Hotspur, 2012 Premier League: Final Score 0-0 In Snoozer

Tottenham Hotspur may have beaten Swansea City last weekend, but they reverted back to recent form at the Stadium of Light, doing approximately nothing of note for ninety minutes in a 0-0 draw against Sunderland. Apparently Spurs had 70% of possession, but they didn't do very much with it - most of their football involved giving the ball away to a red and white shirt, a favour the hosts were only too happy to repay.

It's a measure of the sloppiness of the match that only four shots ended up on target between the two sides out of 26 attempts. None of them came particularly close to scoring. At the end of the day, a point isn't the worst thing in the world for Tottenham, since this was the most difficult remaining fixture on the cards, and they're still in good shape to finish above both Chelsea and Arsenal. Sunderland probably didn't mind either.

Premier League 2012, Week 32 Preview And Fixtures: Manchester City's Title Hopes May Rest On Sunday's Results

Elsewhere, Spurs and Arsenal look to hold off Chelsea while Newcastle look to keep their slim Champions League hopes on life support.