All the latest action from the English top-flight, including Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea

• Spaniard says European glory is his personal target
• Striker out to improve on his four in four against Chelsea

Fernando Torres has made it clear that the Champions League remains his priority as Liverpool gear up for their annual European encounter with Chelsea.

This is the fifth consecutive season that the clubs will have met in the Champions League, and although Liverpool are finally contesting the Premier League it is Europe that remains the main aim for the Spanish striker.

Torres, who joined Liverpool the summer after their 2007 loss to Milan in the final, said his part in Spain’s victorious Euro 2008 campaign has given him the taste of success. “Domestic titles are very important but to win the Champions League you are saying, ‘We are the best team in Europe’,” he said.

“This club has a great record in the European Cup but now I want to be a part of that history. Winning the European Championship was a great thing for me and I understood what it was to win a major trophy and what I had been missing.

“On the way home from the European Championship I made a promise that I wanted more of this success with Liverpool and it does not come any bigger than the European Cup.”

Torres is also keen to soothe the pain of his “unhappiest memories” against Chelsea. The striker was part of the Liverpool team beaten by the Blues in the semi-final of the competition last season and although he stopped short of saying he is out for revenge, clearly he wants to make amends for that defeat.

“It remains one of my unhappiest memories,” Torres said. “A lot of hard work went into getting to that position in the tournament, only for it all to vanish in a few minutes. It’s strange that we meet in this competition year after year. Last season, they won in the semi-final, so we must ensure it’s a different result this time.”

Torres, who has scored four goals in four games against Chelsea since moving to Anfield, reserved special praise for Steven Gerrard, saying that there is currently no one better in world football. “When I first came to this club, I knew that Steven was a fantastic player – I just didn’t know quite how good,” he said. “Is there a better player in the world? No, I don’t think so. There’s nothing he can’t do.”

The Spanish striker also reiterated his own desire to stay at the club for the long term. “I have said many times the only club I would leave Atletico for was Liverpool, and nothing has changed there. They are the only two clubs that are in my heart,” he said. “I have supported Liverpool since I was a boy and I intend on staying here a very long time.”

Money goes only so far as there is always an intangible element in the creation of an unforgettable team

The intrigue of the Champions League does not lie in exhibitionistic display of all that money can buy. Perfection cannot have been bought from any catalogue. Some absurdly gifted footballers will be on show in the quarter-finals that start tonight, but the tournament may be enthralling for its proof that the risk of embarrassment and failure cannot always be kept at bay.

At the weekend Bayern Munich were beaten 5-1 by Wolfsburg and slithered to fourth place in the Bundesliga. The losers are extremely affluent, but that was no protection.

It is beyond dispute that clubs of means are at an enduring advantage. One day, even Manchester City might demonstrate that money does have its beneficial uses. The international programme, where cash is of scant help, can look like an excursion into mediocrity. England’s win over Ukraine, for instance, saw two indifferent teams baffling themselves and one another. There are still four Premier League clubs contending for the Champions League, but the number of Englishmen starting the first legs of the quarter-finals may not get into double figures.

With luck those games will be enthralling, but the drama will also emerge from frailties. The contest on our domestic scene has revived precisely because United grew stale. The possibility is intact of Sir Alex Ferguson’s line-up delivering the greatest season in the history of the club, but the fallibility is no longer hidden. On Sunday, they had to raid the memory banks to snatch a win they hardly deserved over Aston Villa.

A staidness, which can only be blamed partly on injuries, had stolen over United, as if they had been released from the obligation to be dashing. When goals began to be conceded against Liverpool and Fulham, there was panic. They still look the best of the Premier League representatives in this week’s quarter-final, but their fallibility is no longer in dispute.

Fans of any of these clubs would not be stumped if asked to identify flaws. Chelsea would certainly benefit from a youthful and dashing forward who would save everyone from worrying about what they should expect from Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba. At Liverpool, there continues to be an alarming dependence on Steve Gerrard and Fernnado Torres to ensure there is no lapse into the old stodginess.

Arsenal, against their wishes, have been excused the arduous struggle for the title that has preoccupied them. There had been far too many injuries for Arsène Wenger’s team to do more than hobble through parts of the programme. There is a sheen to the side at the moment, but the Champions League may tell us whether Arsenal have regained enough of the muscle and physical presence that typified them in the days when silverware was expected.

Wenger, at least, has not spent much money. While Rafael Benítez keeps the books in order with some judicious selling, Liverpool and, to a greater extent, Chelsea and United have been ready to pay high prices. It has worked, but there are still mysterious aspects to team building that defy all efforts, and the most advanced technology, to piece together an ideal line-up.

Barcelona, for instance, are rightly feted at the moment, but no one can be sure that Lionel Messi, Samuel Eto’o and the others will go on ensuring that a sometimes indifferent central defence is not the club’s downfall in the Champions League. There is a haphazard element to every football project.

Despite the means available to a handful of clubs who can aspire to sign extraordinary performers from around the globe, many people still think of Brazil’s 1970 World Cup-winners as the finest of all teams. It emerged, however, from utter chaos. Joao Saldanha, for instance, was forced out as coach. His past as a journalist cannot have helped and his reservations about Pele’s eyesight were not crowd-pleasers either.Saldanha had even argued that Tostao and Pele could not function together. With him gone, the pair were to be a glorious combination. They were given their freedom by Saldanha’s successor, Mario Zagallo, who knew that there must be a solution that did not entail discarding genius.

A line-up such as Brazil’s in 1970 will never be built to order, irrespective of budget. There is always an intangible element in the creation of an unforgettable line-up. We should be glad of the chance to see Barcelona and the others in the Champions League, but the mysteries of football greatness cannot be cracked even with the means of billionaire owners.

• Chelsea striker regarded as ‘a pain in the ass’
• Ivory Coast forward is fit after ankle injury

José Reina has broken with custom at Liverpool to rank Didier Drogba as one of his favourite players and his most formidable opponent, with the Chelsea striker receiving the back-handed compliment of being labelled a “pain in the ass” by the Spain goalkeeper.

Drogba was instrumental in Liverpool’s demise in the Champions League semi-finals last season, when he responded to Rafael Benítez’s criticism of his theatrical style by scoring twice in Chelsea’s second-leg triumph. Despite the misery of that night at Stamford Bridge for Liverpool, and an injury-plagued season for Drogba since, Reina has revealed a grudging respect for the Ivory Coast international and believes his threat will be as potent as ever when the teams meet again in Wednesday’s Anfield quarter-final.

“To be honest, he’s one of my favourite players and when the people ask me about who was the most dangerous striker or who was really a pain in the ass, I always say Didier Drogba,” the Liverpool goalkeeper said. “I think in a way he’s becoming stronger and stronger. He’s been having some injury problems in the last months but now he’s scoring goals. He’s scored four or five in the last six games or something like that and whoever plays in front, like Nicolas Anelka or even Drogba, it will be difficult to stop them.”

The Chelsea striker missed last Saturday’s 2-0 win at Newcastle United with an ankle problem but is expected to feature for Guus Hiddink’s team against Liverpool, whose own major injury worry has eased. Steven Gerrard was withdrawn in stoppage time against Fulham on Saturday with a tight hamstring, a problem that has restricted him previously this season, but the Liverpool captain has not required a scan and is expected to train with the rest of the squad today.

Liverpool are not lacking in confidence ahead of the quarter-final, having hauled themselves back into contention for the Premier League title and defeated Chelsea home and away this season. Benítez’s team ended Chelsea’s 86-game unbeaten league run at Stamford Bridge in October and then accelerated Luiz Felipe Scolari’s demise as manager with a 2-0 win at Anfield in February. However, Reina believes the Londoners are a more consistent unit with Hiddink at the helm than under the World Cup-winning Brazilian coach, and discounts the argument that Chelsea’s squad is on the wane.

“I think they play more consistently now,” said Reina. “Chelsea had before, and continue to have, one of the greatest squads in the Premier League and in Europe; so no matter who the manager is, the Chelsea squad will be strong anyway. As always, when we play them in any kind of competition, like the league or Champions League, the smaller things can make a big difference and it will be that way once again. We feel that we can win, that we can beat each other at any time because we’ve done it before - they did it last year, in the Champions League semi-final.”

Liverpool will be without Javier Mascherano for the first leg of the quarter-final, the Argentina captain suspended as a result of a harsh booking in the 4–0 rout of Real Madrid, and responsibility is likely to fall on the much-maligned Lucas in his absence. The Brazilian midfielder began in place of Mascherano at Craven Cottage but has not started two consecutive games for Liverpool all season. That is likely to change at Anfield unless Benítez moves Gerrard back alongside Xabi Alonso in central midfield.

“I know that the Chelsea game is a big opportunity for me and I’ll try to make it into the team,” said Lucas. “I know that sometimes I am on the bench but I understand that the manager has to choose and that Javier and Xabi have been playing really well.”

• Former manager is backing his old club
• Losing last season’s final will fire up Chelsea

Chelsea are confident Didier Drogba will be fit to start tomorrow’s Champions League quarter-final at Liverpool after recovering from an ankle injury while the Londoners’ former manager Avram Grant is backing Guus Hiddink to succeed where he himself narrowly failed last May by securing the club’s first European Cup.

Drogba missed Saturday’s win at Newcastle after picking up the injury by kicking the ground during shooting practice in training at Cobham last Thursday. A scan on the joint has come back clear, however, and the Ivorian trained with his team-mates yesterday and will do so again this morning before their journey to Merseyside. He will be joined in the side by Jose Bosingwa, recovered from a hamstring niggle, and Michael Essien is also expected to feature despite suffering a kick to a knee at St James’ Park.

Chelsea travel to Liverpool with Hiddink hoping to emulate Grant’s achievement in eliminating Rafael Benítez’s team from this competition and the Israeli convinced that the painful memories of defeat on penalties in last year’s final in Moscow will spur the Londoners on. “I think Chelsea can be in the Champions League final again this year,” Grant said. “You need luck and many other things for this to become a reality but they have the talent to do it and I know the desire is there.

“I saw the faces of the players in the dressing room after we lost to Manchester United in the final last season. They were hurting badly and I said at the time they would come back and win the trophy. Maybe this can be their year. The top teams in Europe are very close on talent, so it comes down to other things at this stage of the Champions League. You need the right mental attitude and lots of experience. Chelsea have both of these qualities and this is why they have a chance.”

Grant had succeeded Jose Mourinho at Stamford Bridge, the Portuguese having twice endured elimination by Liverpool in the semi-finals of the European Cup, though his own reward for finishing second in the top flight and reaching the Carling Cup and Champions League finals was to have his contract terminated last summer. “So many people ask me if I would still be Chelsea manager now if John Terry had scored that penalty in Moscow and we will never know,” he said. “I wanted to continue at Chelsea but this is gone now and there is no point in worrying about it.

“I had a great time at Chelsea and these memories will live with me but I was very disappointed when they asked me to stop after we achieved so much. My wife pointed out the other day that Guus Hiddink will be a hero if he gets Chelsea to the Champions League final and finishes second in the Premier League but this was not enough for me to stay. She is always right, by the way. Still, I have nothing bad to say about Chelsea. I wish the owner, Roman Abramovich, and everyone at the club well but I do have some regrets from my time at the club and this has nothing to do with the players or the owner.

“We came from sixth place in the league and finished very close to United in the championship. This was a good achievement and maybe people see this now after the trouble Chelsea have had this season. Believe me, I did not enjoy success at Chelsea just because we had good players. Top-class talent is no guarantee of success.”

• Florent Malouda chooses Lampard over Gerrard
• He claims Chelsea can win Champions, Premier and FA trophies

Frank Lampard or Steven Gerrard? Although the two England midfielders operate in different positions for their clubs these days, the debate about whether the Chelsea or the Liverpool man is the better player rages on.

Florent Malouda has no doubts. As his side prepare to renew Champions League rivalries with Liverpool, the Chelsea creator does not hesitate before replying. “For me, it is my mate, Frank Lampard,” Malouda insists.

“I would never say anything different. Frank is so special because he is always focused on the opposition goal. He is always running and full of energy. When we beat Liverpool in the Champions League semi-final last season he was really important for us. Frank is full of confidence and his freedom to play can make the difference.

“Frank runs midfield but he seems to have mentality of a striker. He is never happy if he doesn’t score. He comes from deep positions and that is why teams find it very difficult to keep him quiet. He is always moving and always seems to score. But Frank’s game is not just about scoring.”

Indeed, while Lampard, like Gerrard, registers his fair share of goals and makes plenty of late, ghosted, sprints into the box, he can also put his foot in and serve as an enforcer when necessary.

In contrast Gerrard, for Liverpool at least, has evolved into much more of a withdrawn striker operating behind Fernando Torres but, like the deeper-deployed Lampard, he benefits from considerable licence to roam when the moment is right.

“The fight with Gerrard is going to be one of the keys to our Champions League quarter-final,” said Malouda. “But it won’t be the only battle out there. Against Liverpool every one of our players has to make the difference. We have to put every challenge in and show a lot of discipline. It will be really tight because both sides have world-class players in every position. We have to keep our discipline in both legs. If we do that our discipline will get us through. It’s never easy to play against Liverpool but it’s a great competition and it’s very exciting.”

Not to mention an opportunity to avenge recent domestic disappointments. “It is rare that you play a team twice and lose both times but still get an opportunity to correct those results,” Malouda said.

“We haven’t found the solution to beating Liverpool this season but something in our team has changed since we played them twice earlier this season. Now we have to show that. This is a great opportunity. What has changed with us is the confidence and the discipline we are showing. Our top, key players are now more confident than before.”

So much so that it seems Guus Hiddink’s management has reignited Chelsea’s hopes of pulling off an admittedly unlikely Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup treble.

“We want to win all three trophies this season,” Malouda said. “In the League it is going to be difficult. But we have got it in our minds that we can win the Champions League and the FA Cup. That is our ambition. The squad is nearly all fully fit, there is great competition for places and while I wouldn’t say we have a good chance of winning the Premier League this season, we definitely have a chance. We are playing with a lot of confidence right now and there is a lot of quality in the squad.”

Moreover Chelsea appear to be also benefiting from Hiddink’s managerial modus operandi. “The manager gives us a lot of confidence even when we have had bad results,” explained Malouda. “The manager tells us to play to our qualities.”

Malouda’s talents have often seemed more than a little latent since his much trumpeted, high-priced, arrival at Stamford Bridge from Lyon in 2007 but the French left winger has flourished just lately and seems to be thriving under the new regime.

“I’m happy, fit and healthy,” he said. “And I have been working really hard. John Terry told me recently he wants me to be in the starting line-up more often and that has given me a lot of confidence.”

Liverpool’s captain has sparked a late-season Anfield revival and now the midfielder has Wednesday’s visitors running scared

John Terry is not normally scared of anything, with the possible exception of his mother making any more shopping trips, so it is a mark of his respect for Steven Gerrard and Liverpool when he acknowledges that Wednesday’s Champions League visit to Anfield is a daunting prospect.

“Gerrard is definitely one of the best players in the world, that’s for sure, and he’s in great form at the minute,” the Chelsea and England captain said. “To be honest I’m dreading going there to play him because he is different class. Liverpool have got a great backbone with [José] Reina, [Jamie] Carragher, Stevie G and [Fernando] Torres. What a spine that is, but Stevie is the heartbeat of the team, similar to the way Frank Lampard is with Chelsea. It’s going to be a big clash but we’re thoroughly looking forward to it.”

This is a fixture becoming as much of a Champions League tradition as the familiarly naff theme music or Sir Alex Ferguson moaning about the way the following weekend’s games never do Manchester United any favours, yet it is a meeting between fierce rivals that has altered subtly in the past season or two. More people are looking forward to it now, there is less talk of anti-football or malodorous matter on the end of a stick. Chelsea’s renewed confidence under Guus Hiddink has something to do with that but Terry is right to suggest the Liverpool revival, with Gerrard at its heart, has been the one that has made everyone re-evaluate their assumptions about where the season’s prizes will end up.

Liverpool have stopped grinding out results and started being both entertaining and devastatingly effective, scoring four goals to blow away Real Madrid and Manchester United and coming off the field after a 5-0 victory over Aston Villa to find their manager disappointed they had not scored more. Gerrard has emerged from nowhere to take over the running as player of the year and is increasingly being mentioned in high places as the world’s best footballer. Zinedine Zidane is one person who thinks so, even if Rafa Benítez, as he congratulated himself on following his own contract extension with one tying his captain to the club for the foreseeable future, was more circumspect. Just because Liverpool are playing with new abandon does not mean Benítez is about to throw caution to the wind.

“He is one of the best players in the world, that’s all you can say,” the Liverpool manager argued. “There are different teams and different positions and you should never say one man is the best, but Stevie is happy at the moment because the team is balanced and he is playing in a position he enjoys, and I am happy because we wanted to be sure we could keep him as captain for a long time. I think we might have found his most effective position, but that’s not to say he will always play there. Because he’s such a good player we can use him somewhere else if we ever need to.”

Benítez would say that, wouldn’t he? When you find the Chelsea manager singing from almost exactly the same hymn sheet, though, you begin to realise that Gerrard is not just a Liverpool phenomenon but a player of global renown. In his capacity as coach of Russia Hiddink was asked to evaluate players he had encountered in the European Championship and he put Gerrard at the top of the list, despite England’s non-qualification. “I’m not saying Cristiano Ronaldo is not good, he has his efficiency and his style of play which is very attractive, but I had to make a choice at that moment and chose Gerrard,” the part-time Chelsea manager said. “Gerrard is a team player and on top of that he is very determined and decisive. It’s not just him though. Liverpool now have a very balanced team and Gerrard has some skilful players around him. Gerrard is one of a few players – I could name John Terry and Frank Lampard too – who are becoming legends while they are still playing. Most only become legends when they stop but those three are terrific examples for English football.”

At this rate the only thing that will prevent Gerrard scooping all the individual awards, enlarging his medal collection and stopping more traffic than President Obama might be praise going to his head and causing him to overbalance. That might be why the Liverpool captain has already evolved his own coping strategy. He simply diverts most of the credit towards Torres.

A few seasons ago, when Gerrard wondered whether Liverpool were the club to fulfil his ambitions, the midfielder frequently said he wanted to be playing along side other world-class footballers. His wish would appear to have been granted. “The key to our team, and the reason why we have suddenly come back to form again, is the fitness of Fernando Torres,” he said. “He gives a big lift to everyone in the team. He runs in behind and stretches opponents and you can see the confidence rise in other players in the side when he’s fit. If we can keep him right to the end of the season it’s going to be an exciting finish. We’ve got nothing to lose. Manchester United are the favourites in both competitions but we believe we can win something. We’ve got to believe that after our recent results.”

Gerrard is honest enough to confess he was surprised at how quickly Liverpool came back into contention in the title race. “We were surprised at United losing two games on the spin,” he said with a suggestion of false modesty, given that Liverpool were responsible for the first and United were clearly still traumatised when they travelled to Fulham.

“You don’t expect that, with the quality they’ve got and the unbeaten run they were on. But we’ve got a final chance now and we all want to take it. Confidence is very high at the club and it’s important to keep that momentum going, especially as it has come at just the right time for the Champions League. Chelsea know that they are in for two tough games, but so do Liverpool. They are two very strong teams and the games tend to be decided by very small details. It seems for us to win a cup we always have to knock Chelsea out, but we can do that if we perform to our maximum levels.

“I wasn’t exactly disappointed to draw Chelsea again. I’d be a liar if I said I wasn’t hoping to get someone else but you get what you’re given. To win this tournament you have to knock the best teams out, and Chelsea count as one of those. When we won it we had to knock top teams out on the way, that’s the nature of the competition. We feel we have made progress this season, and in the league especially it has been a long time coming. There have been seasons when we have been miles behind Chelsea and United, and that’s not good enough for Liverpool. Now we are here, it is important to keep up the pressure until the end.”

Liverpool were undone in the first leg last season by a late own-goal that made their task at Stamford Bridge more difficult and had the effect of deflating the players. “We were much the better team but conceding so late cost us,” Benítez said. “Clearly we will be trying not to concede this time, but it is just as important to be offensive in the first leg. That is how we have been winning our recent games.” He can say that again. Torres and Gerrard may have taken a while to gel this season, but at their best they are close to unplayable. Terry and the Chelsea defence have been watching: they know exactly what is coming their way.

Your chance to win tickets and be a flag-bearer for the Champions League quarter-finals at Old Trafford and Anfield

• Delight, despair and all points in between
• To take part in the fans’ verdict, email fans@observer.co.uk

Arsenal 2-0 Manchester City

Louise Cowburn, Observer reader

I wrote a piece for the Observer at the beginning of the season suggesting it could be “au revoir” to Wenger if we didn’t win a trophy this year, but that won’t be the case now and that’s as it should be. Everyone was behind Wenger today, which was good. There was lots of creativity and a real sense of “teamship”; we basically took over the show. Having Fábregas back and Walcott there was massive. In fact, everyone was behind the team, and the players looked confident. Even Emmanuel Eboué got plenty of support when he came on.

Player ratings Almunia 9; Sagna 7, Touré 8, Gallas 8, Clichy 6; Denilson 7, Song 6; Walcott 8 (Eboué 70 7), Fábregas 8 (Ramsey 79 6), Arshavin 7; Adebayor 8 (Bendtner 70 5)

Kevin Parker, official supporters’ club We’ve become used to this away from home. It’s depressing. It looked like the players expected to get beat, but the worst thing was that they didn’t put up a fight. I thought Dunne and Onuoha played quite well, but beyond that there were several less than acceptable performances. There was no chanting for Mark Hughes to be out, but the reality is that it depends on the Uefa Cup this week. There were some individuals having a go at Hughes, but he will really be under pressure if we fail this Thursday. Everyone is waiting for that game.

Player ratings Given 7; Richards 6, Onuoha 7, Dunne 6, Bridge 5 (Fernandes 17 5); Wright-Phillips 6, Zabaleta 5, De Jong 5, Kompany 5 (Elano 38 5), Robinho 5 (Sturridge 76 n/a); Bellamy 5

Blackburn Rovers 2-1 Tottenham Hotspur

Bill Boaden, Observer reader

We didn’t deserve the win. Our passing was woeful, but we’ve got spirit and we’ve played better and lost. Tottenham didn’t help. It’s in our hands now and we should stay up. We’re supposed to respect referees, but Peter Walton was unsighted for the handball and still gave a penalty. We’ve had him before and he’s been poor. We’re happy with Allardyce. It’s not always pretty, but he’s got us organised.

Player ratings Gomes 7; Corluka 7, King 7, Woodgate 7, Assou-Ekotto 6; Lennon 7 (Zokora 81 6), Palacios 7, Jenas 6, Modric 7; Keane 6, Bent 6 Subs not used Cudicini, Dawson, Chimbonda, Huddlestone, Bentley, Pavlyuchenko

Dave Mason, Observer reader

We lost because we had no drive to impose our superiority. We were at least a division better than them, but we got into a comfort zone, and players like Keane and Jenas go missing. With Allardyce teams it’s watch your ankle time. How they got one yellow card for dissent alone is beyond me, and Diouf disgraced himself at the end by winding up our fans. Allardyce’s team was epitomised by Diouf’s sneering attitude.

Player ratings Robinson 6; Andrews 5, Nelsen 6, Samba 7, Givet 7; Diouf 6, Mokoena 5 (Tugay 62 6), Warnock 7, Pedersen 6 (Dunn 25 7); McCarthy 6, Roberts 6 (Ooijer h-t 7) Subs not used Brown, Olsson, Villanueva, Treacy

Bolton Wanderers 4-1 Middlesbrough

Aaron Haley, worldwidewanderers.co.uk

4–1’s a flattering result, but you have to win these games in such a tight league. Ricardo Gardner was outstanding and could be our player of the year alongside Kevin Davies. Gary Megson still gets stick. He has done well, but he’s the wrong fit for us. We needed someone with fresh ideas after Allardyce and Lee. But we’re safe now and you can’t argue with that.

Player ratings Jaaskelainen 6; Steinsson 6, Cahill 7, Shittu 7, Samuel 6; McCann 7; Davies 6, Muamba 6, Gardner 9, Taylor 7; Elmander 7 (Basham 83 6) Subs not used Al Habsi, Hunt, Puygrenier, Cohen, O’Brien, Smolarek

Rob Skilbeck, MSS-online.org

We’re down. We were relegated after the Stoke game but this was the final nail in the coffin. We gifted them three goals, and teams will punish you. The lesson for Southgate is that if you sign a £13m striker, make sure he can head. Alves missed an absolute sitter at 2–1. When we went down in 1997, we fought until the final day, but this time everyone’s already given up.

Player ratings Jones 5; Wheater 4, Huth 4, Pogatetz 4 (Taylor 36 5); Hoyte 4, Bates 5, O’Neil 5, Downing 5; Tuncay 8; Aliadière 5 (Emnes 74 5), Alves 3 Subs not used Turnbull, McMahon, Shawky, Walker, King

Fulham 0-1 Liverpool

David Lloyd, There’s Only One F In Fulham

It was a sickener. The stats will show that Liverpool had countless attempts, it was like crossbar challenge. We were in the game. They couldn’t finish and the fact that we lost shouldn’t detract from how well we were in the game. We had courageous defending – compact, solid. Murphy did very well against his old team and there were no real weak links. Unlike United they really came at us. There was full commitment from both teams and a feeling for us of being calm in the situation. I drove away thinking: where did he get the extra four minutes?

Player ratings 8, Konchesky 7; Davies 6 (Gera 79 6), Etuhu 7, Murphy 8 (Dacourt 76 6), Dempsey 6; Johnson 7, Zamora 6 Subs not used Zuberbühler, Nevland, Kamara, Kallio, Baird

Darren Phillips, ShanklyGates.co.uk

To borrow a saying: Football – bloody hell. It was amazing because a player not due to play comes on and has an impact. We didn’t seem affected by the international break. For a while it felt like the woodwork was giving Fulham an extra man. Fulham played much the same as against Man United but I think we had more chances. And we hit the bar four times – just a matter of inches but it never seemed it was going to go in. I’m delighted to be on top of the league again – you fear a draw just wouldn’t have been enough with United looming.

Player ratings Reina 6; Arbeloa 7, Skrtel 7, Carragher 7, Insúa 7; Alonso 8, Lucas 7; Kuyt 7 (Benayoun 7 76), Gerrard 8 (Agger 90), Dossena 7 (Babel 6 65); Torres 7 Subs not used Cavalieri, Riera, Mascherano, Ngog

Hull City 0-0 Portsmouth

Rick Skelton, HullCityOnline.com

A poor game, all in all. There were only about three or four serious efforts at goal in the entire game. Towards the end David James made a good save from Fagan and Portsmouth hit the post in stoppage time. Both defences were on top – Crouch didn’t win a thing and was well marshalled. It was a scrappy midfield. Glen Johnson should have been sent off for his first yellow card.

Player ratings Duke 7; Dawson 7, Zayatte 8, Turner 8, Ricketts 7 (Folan 85 n/a); Fagan 6 (Kilbane 71 6), Ashbee 8, Geovanni 6, Mendy 5; Barmby 8 (Marney 74 5); Manucho Subs not used Myhill, Garcia, Halmosi, Featherstone

Chris Gibbs, Pompey-Fans.com

The biggest cheer of the day was actually when Southampton’s score went up – as they’d lost! This wasn’t the best of games and you could see why both teams are where they are in the league. The match was crying out for a bit of inventiveness. Neither manager was prepared to commit more players forward. Kaboul was perhaps man of the match, but the keepers had little to do.

Player ratings James 7; Kaboul 7, Campbell 6, Hughes 6, Distin 6; Johnson 5, Mullins 5, Kranjcar 6 (Belhadj 76 7), Hreidarsson 6; Crouch 7, Nugent 5 (Kanu 64 7) Subs not used Begovic, Pennant, Basinas, Pamarot, Utaka

Newcastle United 0-2 Chelsea

Rob Higgins, Observer reader

The Shearer bubble of the past few days was already pricked before kick-off by the result from Blackburn and the atmosphere was surprisingly flat. Chelsea quickly showed they were different class with their slick passing, and our back four – with Coloccini as the new Titus Bramble – was always going to cave in. The second half was a stroll for Chelsea. The effort was there but we didn’t have the quality. It was great to see Shearer on the touchline but we need him in his prime and on the pitch. All the signs are that we’re going down.

Player ratings Harper 7; R Taylor 3, Beye 5, Coloccini 3, José Enrique 5; Lovenkrands 5 (Duff 44 4), Butt 4, Nolan 4 (Guthrie 69 4), Gutiérrez 4; Martins 4 (Carroll 80 n/a), Owen 5 Subs not used Forster, Smith, Geremi, Edgar

We started poorly and for a long while it was looking horribly like the defeat at Spurs until Lampard – as usual – came to the rescue. After the first goal the team relaxed and we could’ve had three or four. It was peculiar that Anelka was playing wide, it was only when he came into the centre that we looked dangerous, I don’t know why Quaresma isn’t used more. I don’t think we’re back in the title race, we had our chance at Spurs and blew it. Newcastle were dire. They call Shearer the messiah and he’ll need higher powers to keep them up!

Player ratings Essien 8 (Ballack 57 7), Mikel 7, Lampard 8; Kalou 6, Anelka 6 (Di Santo 68 8), Malouda 7 Subs not used Hilario, Carvalho, Deco, Belletti, Mancienne

West Bromwich Albion 0-2 Stoke City

Terry Wills, Baggies@yahoogroups.com

Before the game we had already lost the war to stay in the Premier League but, considering our record against Stoke, I just wanted us to win this one battle. But instead of coming out of the trenches fighting, we came over the top waving a white flag. It was a huge letdown; we made the usual defensive errors and the game was effectively settled in the second minute. In midfield, we continued to overplay and pass the ball in every direction but forward. This result confirms we’re back on the road to nowhere in terms of securing a long-term position in the top flight.

Player ratings Carson 4; Zuiverloon 4, Martis 6, Olsson 6, Robinson 5 (Bednar 61 4); Morrison 4, Greening 5 (Koren 61 5), Valero 6, Brunt 5; Fortune 5, Simpson 4 (Teixeira 61 4) Subs not used Kiely, Hoefkens, Moore, Dorrans

Richard Murphy, Author, Stoke City On This Day

We’ve finally claimed our first away win of the season – but we always beat West Brom so we knew that was going to happen! It was a normal Stoke-West Brom game from start to finish: they had all the ball and we scored all the goals. But to start the way we did with Fuller’s strike, they were destined to struggle. We’re really playing to our strengths, we’ve got blokes who can score in Fuller and Beattie and neither goal came from a long throw. To be honest, Stoke fans always knew we’d stay up – and now we’re one step closer to proving that to everyone else.

Player ratings Sorensen 7; Wilkinson 7, Shawcross 8, Faye 8 (Pugh 75 6), Higginbotham 7; Lawrence 6, Whelan 8, Delap 7, Etherington 6; Beattie 8 (Cresswell 79 6), Fuller 9 (Olofinjana 89 n/a) Subs not used Simonsen, Kelly, Camara, Sonko

West Ham United 2-0 Sunderland

Pete May, author, Hammers in the Heart

Really good result today, considering the scratch team we had to put out. It was great to see Stanislas and Tomkins score, and players like Lucas Neill did well out of position. Even Boa Morte had one of his better games. If we can get results out of games like today and get a few players back like Parker and Cole we’ve got a chance of Europe, but it’ll be difficult. It’s just nice to see the academy still going strong.

Player ratings Green 7; Spector 6 (J Collins 73 5), Tomkins 8, Upson 7, Ilunga 6; Neill 7; Boa Morte 7, Noble 7, Stanislas 8 (López 90 n/a) Tristán 6, Di Michele 6 (Dyer 81 n/a) Subs not used Lastuvka, Savio, Sears, Payne

Martyn McFadden, A-Love-Supreme.com

We were too negative from the outset, and despite some good possession in the first half had no penetration. Worryingly, we didn’t show any fight. In the past we had players who may not have been as good but gave 110%; now we have better players who don’t give 100%. The matches against Hull and West Brom will decide our fate. Sbragia hasn’t proved himself. We need a high-profile, box-office manager.

Player ratings Gordon 7; Bardsley 7, Ferdinand 6, D Collins 6, Ben Haim 5; Malbranque 6 (Edwards 75 6), Leadbitter 6, Richardson 7, Whitehead 6, Murphy 4 (Jones 54 5); Cissé 6 Subs not used Fulop, Nosworthy, Reid, Healy, McShane

What a surprise this was. Not that Alan Shearer failed to have an instant galvanising effect on the Newcastle players – no one actually believes he is capable of miracles – but that the famous Geordie crowd did not manage much of a response to the return of a favourite son.

There were no party hats à la King Kev, there was no great fanfare from a stadium announcer who announced Shearer as “the” new manager rather than “our” new manager, and most surprising of all there was not so much as a hint of Walking in a Shearer Wonderland from the crowd.

In point of fact there was nothing from the crowd. No bounce, no noise, no emotional welcome. The occasion was flat. Perhaps Newcastle are all messiahed out, and who could blame them?

Taking their lead from the terraces the teams duly served up a tepid, forgettable first half. You would never have guessed Chelsea were supposed to be challenging for the title, it looked a lot more like they were keeping their powder dry for Wednesday night at Anfield, when they will find a crowd capable of creating an atmosphere. In an almost featureless 45 minutes before the interval, only Salomon Kalou bringing a save from Steve Harper and Nicolas Anelka seeing a shot blocked by Habib Beye’s cover tackle were worthy of note. Newcastle produced even less, just a half chance for Obafemi Martins from a José Enrique cross that the striker was not quite sharp enough to accept.

Martins also shot high and wide early in the second half when a misjudgment by John Terry allowed him a run at goal. It was already beginning to look as though a scrappy game would only produce a goal through a defensive mistake and that is how it proved, though the error was Newcastle’s and the beneficiaries Chelsea. Fabricio Coloccini was too ponderous on the edge of his own area, allowing Anelka first to block his clearance then beat him to the loose ball, Anelka’s shot over the advancing Harper bounced up off the crossbar and Frank Lampard followed up for an easy header into an unguarded net.

That might have been enough to see off Newcastle, who had never looked much like scoring, though just to make sure Chelsea scored a second nine minutes later. Anelka was involved again, heading on an upfield clearance that came all the way from Petr Cech for Florent Malouda to easily turn Ryan Taylor and shoot past an exposed Harper.

Newcastle were possibly unlucky when Ashley Cole cleared Michael Owen’s shot from a position the striker spent some time insisting was at least a foot behind the line. Replays suggested Owen might have had a point, though it would have been a difficult decision for the assistant to award, and Rob Styles did check before waving play on. Shearer had a moan about it too when he checked his monitor but, being powerless to do anything about it, had to revert to striking a succession of macho poses in the technical area and occasionally appealing for free kicks. A bit like his final days as a player, in fact. Losing to Chelsea is no disgrace, though it is the powerless feeling Shearer is going to have to come to terms with, and quickly.