Frank Lampard scored twice and Chelsea won at Tottenham 2-0 to increase the Blues' commanding lead in the Premier League to 10 points over Arsenal on Saturday.
Lampard scored on a disputed first-half penalty, and then clinched the victory with a second-half injury-time goal.
PHOTO: AP
"We said from the start our intention is to win the Premier League, and we're looking forward to the next match," Lampard said.
Defending champion Arsenal slumped to a 1-0 loss at Bolton on a first-half goal by Stelios Giannakopoulos. It was Arsenal's third loss in the league this season -- the Gunners also lost to Manchester United and Liverpool -- but this one could be decisive.
"There's a long way to go and, of course, Chelsea's in a fantastic position," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said. "They can only lose it now."
It was a better day for Manchester United, which closed to within one point of the Gunners with a 1-0 victory over Liverpool at Anfield. United got at fortunate first-half goal from Wayne Rooney, and survived the last 25 minutes a man short for the win.
Manchester United's victory overshadowed the Liverpool debut of striker Fernando Morientes, who started after moving from Real Madrid on Wednesday on a 9 million euros (US$11.8 million) transfer.
Chelsea leads with 58 points, followed by Arsenal with 48 and Manchester United with 47. They are followed by Everton with 43 points and crosstown neighbor Liverpool with 37. Everton has played one fewer game than the other leaders.
At the bottom, West Bromwich was last with only 13 points, topped by Southampton with 15 and Norwich with 16.
Steven Thompson, Marvin Andrews and Alex Rae scored Saturday in Rangers' 3-0 victory over Dunfermline.
Dunfermline has not won at Rangers since the 1972-73 season.
The victory moved Rangers into first place in the Scottish Premier League with 53 points, ahead of Celtic on goal difference.
Paulo Wanchope scored the only goal in the 66th minute Saturday, and Malaga upset fifth-place Sevilla 1-0 in the Spanish league.
It was the first victory for Malaga coach Antonio Tapia, who took over after Gregorio Manzano was fired on Tuesday.
Earlier, Valentin Sergio Pachon scored a second-half goal to help 10-man Getafe hold Atletico Madrid to a 1-1 draw.
Pachon blasted a shot into the net after Getafe had cut through Atletico's midfield and defense with 11 straight passes in the 64th minute.
Ten-man Reggina held Inter Milan to a 0-0 draw Saturday, but the Milan powerhouse still stretched its unbeaten streak to 19 Serie A matches.
Inter, which had won three straight, still trails league leader Juventus by 12 points ahead of today's matches. Juve visits Cagliari while second-place AC Milan hosts third-place Udinese at San Siro.
Christian Vieri and Adriano both squandered early scoring chances for Inter, which drew for the 13th time this season.
Reggina, playing at home at Granillo stadium, played with 10 men for the last 26 minutes after Giuseppe Colucci received a second yellow card from referee Roberto Rosetti.
In the only other match of the day, Brescia and Fiorentina traded second-half goals and settled with a 1-1 draw.
Brescia, with 19 points, is struggling in the relegation zone while Fiorentina, with 23, is at mid-table, below its preseason expectations.
Lyon got late goals from Brazil midfielder Juninho and Bryan Bergougnoux to beat Metz 2-0 on Saturday and maintain its six-point lead at the top of the first division.
Juninho scored the match-winning goal in the 82nd minute to help the three-time defending champions stretch their unbeaten run to 21 matches and move onto 45 points.
Bergougnoux scored for the second straight match moments after entering when he rifled home from 20 meters (yards) in the 86th.
Lille, which beat seventh-placed Bordeaux 3-1, remains in second place with 39 points. Mathieu Debuchy, Philippe Brunel and Johan Audel each scored for Lille, while Marouane Chamakh replied late for Bordeaux.
Apollon Kalamaria got two first-half goal Saturday to beat AEK 2-1, spoiling the Athens club's 14-match unbeaten streak.
Costas Spyropoulos opened the scoring in the 15th minute and Brazilian midfielder Cleyton converted a penalty in the 29th. Vladan Ivic scored AEK's goal in the 82nd.
Halfway through the season, AEK leads the league with 30 points, one more than crosstown Panathinaikos, which plays OFI Crete on today.
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Spain starlets Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams dazzled on Thursday as La Roja beat France 5-4 in a thriller in Stuttgart, Germany, to set up a UEFA Nations League final with Portugal. Yamal bagged a brace, while Williams scored and provided an assist as the two wingers cut France’s makeshift defense to ribbons. Mikel Merino and Pedri were also on the score sheet for the UEFA Euro 2024 champions. Kylian Mbappe netted a second-half penalty, but Spain were 5-1 up and cruising, before Les Bleus suddenly woke up as their opponents took their foot off the pedal. France’s three late goals — a
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