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Patience finally snapped some 20 minutes after the final whistle, prompting the first appeal to be issued over the public address system for the Liverpool supporters to leave the stadium. It went ignored. The visiting players, milling around the tunnel area hoping to venture back out on to the turf to conduct their warm-down, gawped as those crammed on to the Putney end bounced as one to a chorus of: “We’re going to win the league.” And now we might just believe them.

This could have been the afternoon the dream died. Four times the Fulham woodwork had quivered before the interval under relentless Liverpool pressure. At least four times after the break the hosts’ back-line somehow scrambled clear or watched attempts billow the side-netting, amid the visitors’ blanket possession. Ignominy beckoned as this exercise in massed attack against committed defence lurched into stoppage time, only for Yossi Benayoun to batter a winner at the last. Where seconds earlier there had been desperation, now there was conviction to propel those on Merseyside and unsettle the onlookers in Manchester.

The achievement in deflating United at Old Trafford last month was remarkable, though last-minute victories could inflict just as much psychological damage in the title race. Regardless of what the ­champions achieved some 24 hours later against Aston Villa, here was evidence that Liverpool will be breathing down their necks through the run-in.

No other side in the top four had won at Craven Cottage. United had been whipped up into such a frenzy of frustration here in the previous round of fixtures that they ended defeated and depleted with only nine men. This arena had been christened the graveyard of champions. It could yet prove the arena in which Liverpool’s ­credentials were confirmed.

The 2,000 or so fans who were still bellowing their belief half an hour after the end seemed convinced. The Liverpool players eventually gave up on their plans to return to the pitch, some departing with applause for the away support, others merely with smiles of bemusement at the fervour. “The win against United was very important and the way we did it meant we could show everyone United are beatable,” said Benayoun. “What we did that day was knock United’s confidence down. That was a ­factor in them then losing at Fulham.

“We knew it would be difficult ­coming here ourselves, and we missed a lot of chances and were starting to think it was going to be one of those days when the ball wouldn’t go in. But we’ve won a lot of matches this season in the last few minutes and that just shows the strength of our character.” Stings in the tail have secured points in the last minute against Fulham, Middlesbrough, Manchester City and Portsmouth, in the last two minutes against Chelsea, and the last 10 against Wigan, Sunderland and Blackburn. It was a happy knack upon which United once had the monopoly.

Sometimes last-minute winners are described as lucky but, with Liverpool having had seven times as many shots as Fulham, few could claim that on Saturday.

Rafael Benítez will now relish the week ahead and the latest instalment of this club’s Champions League tête-à-tête with Chelsea, even if he must check on Steven Gerrard’s fitness at Melwood today ahead of Wednesday’s quarter-final first leg after the midfielder was subbed in stoppage time. The manager seemed confident enough that his captain’s hamstring had not been tweaked – “he felt something but he was just tired” – and will be buoyed that momentum is with his side in their two-fronted pursuit.

He was asked after the match whether he believed in fate. “In Spain we say that luck is in love with people who work hard,” he replied. “We work hard so, hopefully, we’ll have more luck. We have to keep cool heads from now on. The key is to be consistent. In the past we were a little bit anxious, a little bit nervous, so we’d have a lot of good games and then one or two bad games. But now we are playing with more confidence.”

It was too much for Fulham, even if their own commitment was admirable. Roy Hodgson’s side have flourished quietly and efficiently this season – a year previously they had been beaten athome by Sunderland and appeared condemned to the Championship – and earned the good fortune that saw Fernando Torres, Xabi Alonso and Andrea Dossena, twice, cannon attempts off the woodwork. Mark Schwarzer, wonderfully protected by those in front of him, was outstanding yet again and there was industry and endeavour throughout their display, even if José Reina went virtually untroubled.

Theirs is a platform from which further progress can be built next term and it said much that Roy Hodgson, usually so affable, growled through his post-match duties in his disappointment. “I wouldn’t suggest for one minute that Liverpool didn’t deserve the victory,” he said. “Of the two teams they were the better but our own performance was really strong. We fought well, the shape was good throughout, so to lose in the 92nd minute was frustrating.” Regardless, this has been a resurgent season. For Liverpool it could yet be remarkable.
Man of the match: Xavi Alonso (Liverpool)

The Cottagers were superbly organised and stifled Liverpool until they came up with a late winner

The rewards eventually went to Liverpool at Craven Cottage, but there was admiration to be had in Fulham’s latest stubborn performance against one of the elite clubs. The home side, all selfless worth ethic, showed precisely why they have become such respected Premier League opponents.

Roy Hodgson has worked with a regular line-up and has proved what can be achieved with solid, sensible coaching. The team may appear unambitious at times but they have substance, even if they did finally crack, and they understand each other’s strengths. They have a huge work-rate, and benefit from a good, simple shape (4–4–2) and a clear understanding of their distinct roles, particularly when their opponents have the ball.

Liverpool took over the first half and pounded the Fulham goal, yet they only created two chances where the visiting player was freed beyond the last man: first after Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres’s superb inter-passing put the Spaniard away; then when a wonderful Gerrard cross gave Andrea Dossena a clear invitation. Credit must go to Fulham for the way they organised.

Brede Hangeland and Aaron Hughes know their strengths and refused to get pulled out to the flanks. The full-backs, John Pantsil and Paul Konchesky, are disciplined and restrained. In front of them there is protection by Simon Davies and Clint Dempsey, who graft with amazing energy to position themselves and prevent the opposition finding space in which they could attack down the wing. With Danny Murphy alongside the strong Dickson Etuhu, Fulham effectively fling down an eight-man barrier. It takes a team with good movement and continual overloading of numbers to create chances, and Liverpool were in exciting form.

Perhaps most admirable of all is that Fulham’s early defensive shape stems from the calm movements by their first line of defence, the two strikers. Bobby Zamora and Andy Johnson immediately retreated whenever Liverpool had the ball at the back (see diagram) and never chased lost causes or made irresponsible runs or reckless early challenges. They dropped off centrally between the opposition centre-backs and full-backs, and didn’t race early to close.

Charge in and they would have run the risk of an opposing full-back advancing down the flank, which would have the effect of pulling Fulham players out of position. But, with their forwards dropping back, Dempsey and Davies know they can sit in front of their full-backs rather than having to pressure an opponent who has forced beyond Zamora or Johnson. There were no holes for Liverpool to exploit, and the home side never lost their shape.

Hodgson has coached an average group of Premier League parts into a solid machine. His next trick has to be to coax extra flair whilst maintaining such defensive resolution. It is a conundrum Roy will juggle. Here they finally succumbed to aggressive Liverpool movement, but there was much to admire from his team in defeat.

“All round the fields of Anfield Road / Where once we watched the King Kenny play (and he could play) / Andrea Dossena on the wing / We had dreams and songs to sing / Of the glory round the fields of Anfield Road.” Yep, you read that right; Rafa’s gone off on one again. This time, fourth-goal machine Andrea Dossena will be rampaging up and down the left, a modern-day George Best spliced with the best bits of Johan Cruyff. Benitez has pulled selection surprises like this a couple of times already this season, notably away at Newcastle and Middlesbrough - so how will this one end up?

Exactly the same team that beat Manchester United 2-0 the other week: Schwarzer, Pantsil, Hughes, Hangeland, Konchesky, Dempsey, Murphy, Etuhu, Davies, Zamora, Johnson.
Subs: Zuberbuhler, Nevland, Gera, Kamara, Dacourt, Kallio, Baird.

That title-chasing XI in full: Reina, Arbeloa, Insua, Carragher, Skrtel, Lucas, Alonso, Kuyt, Dossena, Torres, Gerrard.
Subs: Cavalieri, Agger, Ngog, Riera, Benayoun, Babel, Mascherano.

The word in brackets is not a spelling mistake: Steve Bennett (Kent)

Kick off: 5.30pm.

Andrea Dossena: seven million pounds worth of debate. “Don’t see your problem with Dossena being on the left wing,” says Mark Slade. “Liverpool need to win, he’s not the greatest defender but is good going forward, and has the safety net of Insua on the same side. And he’s a better option than Babel, that much I DO know. Now watch Insua have a mare.” Ah, but Insua looked fantastic round about the turn of the year, before he went off to play for the Argentina under-something-or-others, and was decent when he came back against Sunderland too. He’s particularly good going forward - but defensively not quite up there with Fabio Aurelio yet. Anything could happen here.

And we’re off! Fulham set the ball rolling, and within 20 seconds Zamora clips a ball forward to Dempsey, who is free in the box down the inside-left channel! Liverpool escape as the linesman flags for offside - but they’re lucky, because the Fulham man was miles on.

2 min: This is a really open start. Gerrard takes a hopeful swipe at a falling ball just a tad too far ahead of him in the Fulham box - his weak effort is deflected away - then Konchesky swings a decent deep cross into the Liverpool area from the left, forcing top book author Jamie Carragher to head clear with his eyebrows.

4 min: Liverpool calm things down by passing it around the back awhile. Fulham seem quite happy to let them do so.

5 min: Again Fulham spring the Liverpool back line, Murphy pinging it straight down the middle for Johnson. This is close as well; I’m not sure that was offside either, but once again that doesn’t stop the linesman raising his flag.

7 min: Dempsey threads the ball past Arbeloa down the left. For a second it looks like he might get a shot on target but Skrtel and Carragher crowd him out. They’re forced to concede a corner, from which nothing comes. Fulham have their tails up here.

9 min: Cutting inside from the right, Arbeloa goes on a very long run down the centre of the pitch. Fulham allow him to reach the edge of the box without so much as a challenge, but his attempt at a one-two with Torres doesn’t quite come off.

10 min: Torres, his back to goal, slips the ball to the left-hand edge of the area for the goal machine Dossena, who attempts a curler into the top right. Schwarzer tips the ball over. From the resulting corner, the ball drops out on the left to Skrtel, whose rising half-volley clips the top of the bar.

12 min: Liverpool are beginning to enjoy a lot of the ball. Arbeloa cuts inside from the right; he’s blocked. Kuyt swings a low cross in from the same wing; the ball’s hacked clear. Gerrard sets Kuyt off into acres down the right for a second time; his attempt at standing the ball up to the far post is shanked behind for a goal kick.

14 min: Still, Liverpool will want to watch themselves at the back. From nothing, Davies helps the ball down the right and suddenly Johnson is on his own with only Reina to beat! Only problem is, Davies’s pass has just too much weight on it, and the keeper comes out to claim with insouciant ease.

16 min: Skrtel gifts the ball to Zamora with a terrible pass out of defence. The Fulham striker steams forward and tries to slip Johnson free, but his right-to-left diagonal ball is too strong and flies out for a goal kick. “Shouldn’t you be referring to Goal Machine Andrea Dossena™?” wonders Patrick Crumlish. “It’s his given name, after all.”

17 min: Good work by Lucas down the right, and suddenly Torres has a smidgen of space to cut into the box. He’s tight on the byline and fires the ball into the centre - but Schwarzer has it covered all the way and claims before Kuyt can get anywhere near it.

19 min: Liverpool push Fulham back for a bit, Alonso nearly setting Dossena free with a first-time prod forward down the inside-left channel, then Insua cutting inside from the right and only just failing to slip Kuyt in on goal. Fulham are looking confident at the back when push comes to shove, though.

21 min: Liverpool are passing it around a lot but are getting absolutely nowhere. Fulham will be perfectly happy with the way the game has gone so far.

23 min: What a save by Schwarzer. Alonso pings a ball out wide left to Dossena. The £7m scoring star cushions the ball with his instep and rolls it to Gerrard, who sweeps into the area and lays off to Torres. The striker opens his body and steers the ball towards the bottom right - but the keeper is down quickly to palm the ball out. For a second it looks as though Kuyt might be able to poke home the rebound, but - surprise, surprise - he can’t get there quickly enough before the loose ball is cleared.

24 min: From a deep Kuyt cross from the right, Torres heads wide and high. That wasn’t a particularly easy chance - he was falling backwards and under pressure from Hangeland - but then it wasn’t that difficult and so not a particularly good effort either.

26 min: This is all Liverpool at the moment. Torres twists and turns on the edge of the area. He loses possession - but immediately slides in to poke the ball out to Alonso 20 yards out. Cutting in from the left, he takes an immediate wallop at the ball - but the effort is dragged well wide right.

30 min: It’s gone a bit scrappy.

31 min: Liverpool fans take advantage of the temporary lull in action to sing “Justice for the 96“. The 20th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster is 11 days away.

32 min: Alonso snaps the focus back to football: from a weak Fulham headed clearance, the Liverpool midfielder cuts across the ball on the edge of the area and sends a spectacular shot crashing off the right-hand side of the crossbar. That’s the second time they’ve hit the woodwork; Liverpool haven’t played brilliantly, but can now probably count themselves unlucky not to have the lead.

34 min: Torres scampers after a long ball down the left. He goes as far out as the touchline, cuts inside, reaches the edge of the area and smashes a low shot towards the bottom left. Schwarzer claims and holds on well with goal machine Dossena lurking.

35 min: If Liverpool weren’t unlucky to be leading before, they certainly are now. Gerrard slips a wonderful ball down the inside-right channel to spring Torres clear. He draws Schwarzer out and dinks the ball over him and towards the unguarded goal - but the ball bounces off the bottom of the left-hand post and out. Nobody’s there to follow in for the visitors, and Fulham survive.

37 min: THIS IS GETTING SILLY NOW. Liverpool hit the woodwork for the fourth time, Gerrard swinging a superlative deep cross in from the right, Dossena meeting it with a Keith Houchenesque diving header. The ball absolutely belabours the crossbar and twangs away from danger. Dossena was only eight yards out, and probably should have scored… but even so, Liverpool are stunningly unlucky at present.

40 min: Skrtel needlessly drags back Zamora, just outside his own box to the left of goal. Dempsey tries to curl the ball into the top-right corner, but Dossena rushes out quickly to close the angle and the Fulham forward lifts the ball miles over the bar under pressure.

42 min: Now it’s Liverpool’s turn to be gifted a daft free kick on the edge of the opposition box. Etuhu drags Torres, who has his back to goal, down just to the left of the box. Gerrard tries to hammer it goalwards, but Murphy is out quickly to block, then clear.

43 min: Liverpool certainly realise how important it is to win tonight, and their New York Or Bust approach is ensuring this game remains open. Gerrard twists and turns in the box but is brilliantly robbed by Murphy, who sets Davies rampaging down the right. His poor ball inside is snaffled by Alonso, and he nearly puts Torres in on goal with a slightly-too-long pass down the left. This is very entertaining.

HALF TIME: Fulham 0-0 Liverpool. Liverpool pass it around a lot. Again. Gerrard can’t quite bust Fulham open down the left. Arbeloa can’t quite bust them open down the right. And that’s it for the half. Liverpool really should be winning here - but they’re not. This is a situation Liverpool fans will be sadly familiar with this season. Can they break through in the second half - or is the chance of the title finally slipping from their grasp?

Andrea Dossena: seven million pounds worth of debate - and serial woodwork botherer. “As a Liverpool fan,” begins Nick Whalen, “I find it mildly unsettling that Andrea Dossena is now one of our better offensive players.” Meanwhile Vikramaditya Singh observes that the £7m Goal Machine is “pinging it off the crossbar like Ronaldinho on speed, like this…

… except you know Dossena’s skillz are real. I’m genuinely frightened by the magnitude of his talent.”

And we’re off again! Roy Hodgson and Rafa Benitez walk across the pitch from the Cottage to the dugouts. Warm applause all round. Everyone’s happy. The visitors set the ball rolling once more.

47 min: Fulham started the first half suffering from a couple of dodgy decisions from the linesman, and now it’s Liverpool’s turn to be denied unfairly by the same man. Alonso scoops the ball forward to send Kuyt totally clear in the box. The whistle blows immediately - but the striker looked onside. He’s having a complete shocker, this official.

49 min: Other than the Kuyt business, it’s a very quiet beginning to the second half.

50 min: Pantsil Rory Delaps it into the area from the right. Johnson is after the bouncing bomb, but can’t quite get there and is hounded out of it by Skrtel and Carragher. Liverpool need to up the tempo a bit, because it’ll not be long before the clock becomes the enemy, and panic sets in.

54 min: What a miss from Torres. Insua waltzes down the left, cuts inside, and floats a perfect ball into the centre for his star striker. All Torres has to do is choose his spot - but he can only nut a weak effort straight into the arms of Schwarzer.

55 min: Liverpool are beginning to boss play, and push Fulham back, but don’t seem able to hit the killer pass. First Alonso hits a cross from the right too strongly, then Dossena matches his feat from the left. Finally it’s Alonso again, but his shot from 20 yards, cutting in from the right, is lame and straight at Schwarzer.

58 min: Pantsil goes in the book for going in late with his studs up on Dossena’s boot.

62 min: A quiet period in the game, now. Fulham look pretty confident in their ability to hold their guests at the moment. Liverpool are beginning to lose faith; all the tempo has gone out of their game.

64 min: Alonso is doing everything he can to pick Liverpool up by the scruff of the neck, spraying passes left and right from a central position, 35 yards out. He can’t quite find the final pass, though. Both Pantsil and Hangeland are immense at the moment.

65 min: The freewheelin’ goalscorin’ machine called Dossena trundles off the pitch, to be replaced by Babel.

66 min: Carragher upends Johnson, 30-odd yards out, just to the right of the Liverpool area. Konchesky tries to hammer the resulting free kick into the top-right corner, but unlike the 2006 FA Cup final, doesn’t beat Reina. Then again, he hasn’t hopelessly mishit this one, so the keeper can easily work out the flight of the ball.

68 min: Under a long ball six yards from goal, Lucas challenges Schwarzer in the air. The keeper fingertips the ball out of play - but no corner is given. Liverpool are beginning to look very frustrated.

70 min: I’ve just been given a glass of champagne! Someone from the Observer is doing one, by all accounts. Isn’t that nice.

71 min: From a Fulham corner, Liverpool break clear five on three! They really should do better than they manage, Gerrard’s attempt to release Babel down the right inaccurate and weak. That’s very sloppy. Babel manages to get a shot in nevertheless - but the effort, heading towards the bottom left, is blocked by Pantsil, who then hacks clear of the lurking Kuyt.

73 min: I don’t think Liverpool are going to score tonight. Gerrard swings a ball into the six-yard box from the left, but with Torres diving in head first, Schwarzer somehow manages to palm away at the death.

75 min: Liverpool have scored 18 goals during the final 15 minutes of their games this season. They’ll have to make it at least 19 if they want to keep their title challenge alive.

76 min: A change apiece: Murphy is replaced by Dacourt, while Benayoun comes on for Kuyt. The atmosphere is electric at Craven Cottage.

79 min: Fulham replace Davies with Gera, the man who put Manchester United finally to sleep a couple of weeks ago. “Hold on a minute,” parps Jon Cummins. “Wayne Rooney can read?” Bah. I’m just glad this particular gag took as long as 79 minutes to arrive.

81 min: Carragher slides a stupendously good ball down the inside-right channel to Gerrard in the area. He pulls the ball into the centre, where it reaches the feet of Babel. Instead of hammering the ball first time, he jinks about before pulling the trigger - and the chance is gone. The ball bounces back out to Gerrard, who hammers an effort low and hard just wide left. Benayoun is inches from turning the ball in.

83 min: It’s just not happening for Liverpool: Gerrard tries to take a deep left-wing cross down at the far post, but his touch is heavy and the ball bounds out of play.

85 min: Fulham are awarded a free kick for absoultely nothing, Insua nipping in front of Gera just to the right of his own area. Why that’s a free kick is beyond me, there was no meaningful contact at all. Babel is booked for protesting. Reina catches the ball into the box, then looks to set Torres free with a long hoof down the right. The striker looks like breaking clear on goal! But Gera has gone in late on the keeper and referee Bennett pulls the play back to book him. Liverpool are incandescent with rage.

88 min: Nevland - once of Manchester United - replaces Johnson.

89 min: Skrtel is booked for a laughably cynical challenge. Dempsey is skidaddling into acres down the left, so the Liverpool striker clips the in-flight Fulham man’s ankles. There was plenty of cover, so that was a no-brainer for the referee.

90 min: There will be four added minutes of this; four minutes for Liverpool to save their title challenge. Benayoun brings down a loose ball just to the left of goal, turns to make himself a bit of space, but drags his low shot wide of goal.

90 min +2: HIGHLY DRAMATIC GOAL!!! Fulham 0-1 Liverpool. Babel cuts inside from the left. He shuttles the ball to Gerrard, who miscontrols. Benayoun picks the ball up, cutting in from the right, and hammers an unstoppable shot into the top left! That really is some finish. The Liverpool bench empties onto the pitch as Benayoun disappears under a mountain of men.

90 min +3: Gerrard is replaced by Agger.

FULL TIME: Fulham 0-1 Liverpool. Nevland loops a ball goalwards from the right, but Reina is always under it. And that’s the final whistle! Liverpool deserved that - and are still in this title race! And back on top of the league, two points clear of Manchester United - but having played two games more, of course. And Andrea Dossena was pretty good. “Do us a favour,” writes Liverpool fan Paul Lovatt. “It’s bad enough waiting so long for a goal without having to stare at Wayne Rooney the whole game.”

• 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

Trizia Fiorellino, Chelsea Supporters’ Group

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

The application of pressure is not an art that Rafa Benítez shies away from. New contracts for himself, Steven Gerrard, Dirk Kuyt and assorted backroom staff? Push, push, push until the powers that be accede. Total control of transfers and the forced exit of a truculent chief executive. Shove, shove and shove again.

Now his Spanish stubbornness can be fully focused on the field – on pressing Manchester United into a spectacular fall from Premier League grace. A late, late victory at Fulham yesterday brought three points from a venue where Liverpool’s great rivals ceded them a fortnight before.

When Sir Alex Ferguson examines the League table this morning he’ll find Benítez two points above, asking pressing questions about what United can make of their two surplus games.

This could, though, have been a quite different story. Utterly dominant for the first half, Liverpool slipped into frustrated raggedness in the second. Specialists in late-game revivals that they are, this did not look like being one of them until Yossi Benayoun walked on to resurrect them. Nursing calf and hamstring injuries, the Israeli substitute twice missed the home net by a foot before a 92nd-minute ball found him in enough space to turn and redirect it past Mark Schwarzer.

“That will be the most important goal of the season if we can win the title,” said Benítez of his team’s eighth added-time finish this league season. In the away end, Liverpool’s supporters were still chanting “we’re going to win the League” – the first time those words have passed their collective lips in over 18 years.

“Hopefully we can keep them happy until the end,” Benítez added. “That will be the most important thing. Today we have to enjoy, we have to be really pleased, but still there are a lot of games to come. As a manager you have to be calm. The winning mentality is not to say things, it is to do things. So we are doing things.”

It is typical of Benítez that he arrived at Craven Cottage with half an eye on the Champions League. Though Gerrard and Fernando Torres went unrotated, it was hard to imagine Andrea Dossena, Lucas and Emiliano Insúa starting were Chelsea not due at Anfield on Wednesday evening. Employed on the left wing, Dossena almost extended his unlikely run of chipped finishes early on. From the ensuing corner the Italy defender redirected a netbound Martin Skrtel strike on to the crossbar.

With four attackers pushed uncharacteristically high up the pitch, the visitors regularly invaded Fulham’s area. Gerrard marched down the left side then cut the ball back to an isolated Torres; Schwarzer needed two goes at saving the Spaniard’s low shot. A free header over was followed by Torres spinning around the box to tee up Xabi Alonso, and the midfielder was unfortunate to see his fine volley cannon off the woodwork.

As pensive Liverpool supporters recalled the dominance that preceded early-season defeat at Tottenham, Torres concluded an immaculate Gerrard one-two with a pass beyond the keeper but off the inside of the post. A minute later the captain crossed for Dossena to find yet more timber – this time from six yards.

While Fulham were making sparse impact in attack, Liverpool’s fluidity departed them after half-time, with midfield passing being eschewed for long balls forward, few of which created anything of note. An increasingly jumpy Benítez attempted to reinvigorate proceedings by adding Ryan Babel, who came close to converting on the counter. Torres and Kuyt then just failed to connect with Gerrard’s near-post cross.

Fulham kept faith in their methods, their shape steadfastly retained as they sought to exploit Liverpool’s anxiety. Danny Murphy threatened from a free-kick and visiting defenders dived into fouls as Fulham closed in on an eighth home point against the Champions League elite. But Benayoun changed all that – and just maybe a great deal more.

• Drogba and Bosingwa to miss Newcastle trip
• Fábregas and Walcott back for Arsenal

Arsenal v Manchester City (Saturday, 3pm)

Arsenal welcome back Cesc Fábregas after three months out with medial knee ligament injury, but the Gunners will have to make do without leading scorer Robin van Persie, who injured his groin while playing for Holland against Scotland last Saturday, and Eduardo who suffered a similar problem while playing for Croatia.

Midfielder Abou Diaby (thigh) is out while Samir Nasri (virus) and Carlos Vela, who has had to make a long journey back from Mexico duty, are also doubtful.

However, Theo Walcott and Emmanuel Adebayor return as does Nicklas Bendtner (knee).

Arsenal (from): Almunia, Sagna, Toure, Gallas, Clichy, Walcott, Denilson, Fábregas, Arshavin, Bendtner, Adebayor, Fabianski, Djourou, Gibbs, Vela, Eboue, Silvestre, Song, Nasri.

Manchester City manager Mark Hughes could be without striker Craig Bellamy but expects top-scorer Robinho to be fit for selection against Arsenal.

Bellamy is a major doubt with the knee injury that flared up again on international duty with Wales and forced him to miss his country’s midweek defeat to Germany.

Robinho also limped off during Brazil’s 3-0 win over Peru on Wednesday, but Hughes is hopeful the 24-year-old will be available as City try and claim a first away league win since August.

Wayne Bridge could return from a hamstring strain, while Michael Johnson, Martin Petrov, Daniel Sturridge, Benjani and Didi Hamann are all nearing return from injury.

Manchester City (from): Given, Richards, Onuoha, Dunne, Zabaleta, Wright-Phillips, Elano, De Jong, Kompany, Robinho, Bojinov, Bridge, Garrido, Fernandes, Evans, Etuhu, Berti, Vassell, McGivern, Hart.

Blackburn v Tottenham (Saturday, 12.45pm)

Blackburn striker Roque Santa Cruz is to see a specialist next week if he fails to show signs of a recovery from a knee tendon injury.

The Paraguay international has been out for a month and misses a fifth successive game tomorrow when Tottenham visit Ewood Park for an early afternoon clash in the Premier League.

It is the same situation with midfielder David Dunn, who has been out of action for three weeks with an achilles problem.

Midfielder Vince Grella has returned to training following a groin injury and, although in the squad, tomorrow’s game probably comes too soon for him to figure.

Allardyce’s injury list stretches to four key players, with Brett Emerton and Steven Reid on the long-term casualty list.

Blackburn (from): Robinson, Bunn, Ooijer, Khizanishvili, Nelsen, Samba, Simpson, Warnock, Givet, Olsson, Villanueva, Tugay, Andrews, Diouf, Treacy, Mokoena, McCarthy, Roberts, Pedersen, Grella.

Tottenham club captain Ledley King should be fit for the trip to Ewood Park after resting his suspect knee during the international break.

Alan Hutton returned for Scotland from his foot injury last week but Jermain Defoe is still out, also with a foot complaint, although he is running again.

Spurs boss Harry Redknapp will make late checks on players who have been on international duty such as Wilson Palacios, Luka Modric and Darren Bent – who hobbled out of England training this week.

Tottenham (from): Gomes, Cudicini, Corluka, Hutton, Chimbonda, Bale, Assou-Ekotto, King, Woodgate, Dawson, Modric, Jenas, Zokora, Lennon, Huddlestone, Palacios, O’Hara, Bentley, Pavlyuchenko, Campbell, Keane, Bent.

Everton v Wigan (Sunday, 3pm)

Everton manager David Moyes will make a late decision on the fitness of Tim Cahill for Sunday’s visit of Wigan as the midfielder has not yet returned from international duty.

The Australian has spent the last week in Sydney recovering from a calf injury but did not play any part in the Socceroos’ 2-0 win over Uzbekistan on Wednesday.

Moyes is also waiting for the return of American goalkeeper Tim Howard, the only other player yet to make it back after the internationals.

Right-back Tony Hibbert has resumed training after a thigh problem but may not be ready to play against the Latics.

Everton (from): Howard, Neville, Jagielka, Lescott, Baines, Pienaar, Osman, Cahill, Fellaini, Saha, Jo, Rodwell, Baxter, Nash, Castillo, Jacobsen, Gosling, Wallace, Van der Meyde.

Wigan will be without Amr Zaki after the Egyptian striker again failed to return from international duty on time. It is the fourth time this season Zaki has gone walkabout after an Egypt game and looks set to be heavily fined by Steve Bruce as a result.

Jason Koumas has a hip problem which needs to be assessed, otherwise the Latics squad is at full strength.

Wigan (from): Kirkland, Melchiot, Bramble, Boyce, Figueroa, Watson, Brown, Scharner, Kapo, N’Zogbia, De Ridder, Rodallega, Mido, Kingson, Pollitt, Edman, Cho.

Bolton v Middlesbrough (Saturday, 3pm)

Bolton’s players all returned unscathed from international duty leaving midfielders Mark Davies and Joey O’Brien (both knee) the only absentees. Defender Andy O’Brien could feature after being rested in their last game.

Bolton (from): Jaaskelainen, Steinsson, Cahill, Andy O’Brien, Samuel, Riga, Taylor, McCann, Muamba, Gardner, Kevin Davies, Elmander, Al Habsi, Hunt, Puygrenier, Makukula, Shittu.

Middlesbrough winger Adam Johnson faces a fitness test after picking up two knocks playing for England’s Under-21s. Meanwhile, Chris Riggott returns from injury, midfielder Matthew Bates is back from suspension, but Robert Huth is a doubt with a sore knee.

Middlesbrough (from): Jones, Turnbull, Hoyte, McMahon, Taylor, Grounds, Huth, Pogatetz, Wheater, Riggott, Aliadiere, O’Neil, Johnson, Bates, Walker, Shawky, Downing, Emnes, Alves, Tuncay, King.

Fulham v Liverpool (Saturday, 5.15pm)

Mark Schwarzer and Clint Dempsey will play for Fulham in tomorrow’s clash with Liverpool. Australia goalkeeper Schwarzer and USA winger Dempsey only returned from international duty this morning but have already been involved in training.

Fulham (from): Schwarzer, Pantsil, Stoor, Hughes, Hangeland, Konchesky, Baird, Davies, Etuhu, Dacourt, Murphy, Gera, Dempsey, Johnson, Zamora, Zuberbuhler, Kallio, Nevland, Kamara, Gray, Barnes.

Liverpool are likely to be without defender Sami Hyypia and midfielder Yossi Benayoun for the trip to Fulham.

Hyypia returned from international duty with a knee injury, and manager Rafael Benítez doubts that the centre-back will be fit for the evening kick-off at Craven Cottage. He could be fit for Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Chelsea, however.

Benayoun went on World Cup qualifying duty with Israel already with a hamstring injury and now also has a calf problem.

Liverpool (from): Reina, Arbeloa, Agger, Carragher, Skrtel, Aurelio, Dossena, Babel, Mascherano, Gerrard, Alonso, Lucas, Torres, Kuyt, Ngog, Insua, Cavalieri, Riera.

Hull v Portsmouth (Saturday, 3pm)

Striker Daniel Cousin is Hull’s only doubt for tomorrow’s visit of Portsmouth. Cousin has missed the last two games with a back complaint and, having not reported for international duty with Gabon, must still prove his fitness.

The club’s other injury concerns, Michael Turner (thigh), Kamil Zayatte (knee), Andy Dawson (thigh) and captain Ian Ashbee (hamstring), are all fit.

George Boateng (knee) is set to return to full training next week but Anthony Gardner (back) and Jimmy Bullard (knee) are out for the season.

Hull (from): Duke, Ricketts, Turner, Zayatte, Dawson, Mendy, Ashbee, Marney, Kilbane, Geovanni, Manucho, Garcia, Barmby, Fagan, Halmosi, Folan, Doyle, Hughes, France, Cousin, Myhill.

Peter Crouch, David James and Glen Johnson have all returned unscathed from England duty for Portsmouth’s clash at Hull and Niko Kranjcar has reported no ill-effects after his efforts for Croatia.

On-loan Liverpool winger Jermaine Pennant has recovered from a thigh injury and should return to the attack, enabling Johnson to revert to his more familiar full-back role but Armand Traore’s hopes of a first-team recall have been hit by a damaged ankle playing for France Under-21s.

Reserve goalkeeper Jamie Ashdown is back after three months out with an ankle ligament injury and could return as cover for James on the substitutes’ bench but Jerome Thomas and Marc Wilson picked up further knocks in their midweek comeback attempts for the reserves.

Portsmouth (from): James, Johnson, Campbell, Distin, Hreidarsson, Pennant, Mullins, Davis, Nugent, Kranjcar, Crouch, Kanu, Kaboul, Pamarot, Utaka, Hughes, Belhadj, Basinas, Ashdown, Begovic.

Manchester United v Aston Villa (Sunday, 4pm)

Gary Neville is expected to return for the first time since January as Manchester United look to halt a two-game losing sequence against Aston Villa at Old Trafford.

Neville has been struggling to overcome a groin injury but came through a reserve team outing on Monday without a problem and is set to figure for Sir Alex Ferguson’s side.

Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes and Nemanja Vidic are all suspended, Dimitar Berbatov (ankle) is out for a fortnight and Anderson is not likely to play after picking up a knee injury on World Cup duty with Brazil.

Manchester United (from): Van der Sar, Foster, Kuszczak, Neville, O’Shea, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra, Fabio, Ronaldo, Nani, Fletcher, Gibson, Possebon, Carrick, Park, Giggs, Tevez, Welbeck.

Gabriel Agbonlahor could be restored to the Aston Villa line-up as they look to end a run of eight games without a win in all competitions against Manchester United.

Agbonlahor was left out of the starting XI for the 5-0 mauling by Liverpool at Anfield before the international break with John Carew and Emile Heskey preferred in attack. But Heskey is ruled out with a hamstring injury he suffered after scoring the opening goal in England’s 4-0 win over Slovakia at Wembley last weekend.

O’Neill has to decide whether left-back Wilfred Bouma is ready to play any part after eight months out with a dislocated ankle. He came through a third reserve game in mid-week with no ill effects.

Aston Villa (from): Friedel, Guzan, Reo-Coker, L. Young, Knight, Cuellar, Davies, Shorey, Bouma, Milner, Gardner, Petrov, Barry, Sidwell, Salifou, A. Young, Agbonlahor, Carew, Delfouneso, Heskey.

Newcastle v Chelsea (Saturday, 3pm)

Newcastle manager Alan Shearer hopes to have three key players available for his first game in charge against Chelsea tomorrow.

Steven Taylor (ankle) and Sebastien Bassong (groin) are improving and have not yet been ruled out, while Damien Duff (hamstring) was expected to train today. Danny Guthrie is back in contention after an eight-match lay-off with a torn hamstring and strikers Andy Carroll (ankle) and Xisco (fractured toe) have returned to training.

But Shola Ameobi is out with an ankle problem and Joey Barton (fractured metatarsal), Mark Viduka and Ignacio Gonzalez (both achilles) remain on the sidelines.

Newcastle (from): Kirkland, Melchiot, Bramble, Boyce, Figueroa, Watson, Brown, Scharner, Kapo, N’Zogbia, De Ridder, Rodallega, Mido, Kingson, Pollitt, Edman, Cho.: Harper, Forster, Krul, S Taylor, Beye, Bassong, Coloccini, Enrique, Edgar, Cacapa, Butt, Duff, R Taylor, Gutierrez, Nolan, Guthrie, Lovenkrands, Geremi, Smith, Martins, Owen, Carroll, Xisco.

Chelsea are without striker Didier Drogba and right-back Jose Bosingwa for the trip to Newcastle. Drogba jarred his ankle in a training ground accident while Bosingwa returned from international duty with Portugal suffering from a hamstring strain.

Chelsea are boosted by the return of fit-again Nicolas Anelka. The France international has shaken off his toe problem to be included in the squad.

Chelsea (from): Cech, Hilario, Taylor, Belletti, Alex, Ivanovic, Terry, Mancienne, A Cole, Lampard, Ballack, Deco, Obi, Kalou, Essien, Malouda, Di Santo, Anelka, Quaresma, Stoch.

West Brom v Stoke (Saturday, 3pm)

West Brom defender Abdoulaye Meite returns to the squad for tomorrow’s clash against Stoke.

Meite has recovered from a hamstring problem and illness, although he may have to be content with a place on the bench as manager Tony Mowbray is set to continue with Jonas Olsson and Shelton Martis at the centre of defence. Albion have only conceded one goal in the two games they have played together.

Mowbray looks set to retain the side that started West Brom’s last match – the 1-1 draw against Bolton.

West Brom (from): Carson, Kiely, Zuiverloon, Hoefkens, Olsson, Martis, Donk, Pele, Meite, Robinson, Cech, Koren, Teixeira, Do-Heon, Valero, Brunt, Simpson, Fortune, Bednar, Moore, Menseguez.

Stoke manager Tony Pulis will assess the fitness of his international quartet ahead of tomorrow’s visit to West Brom.

Republic of Ireland duo Glenn Whelan and Stephen Kelly, Senegal star Abdoulaye Faye and Denmark goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen were all due to return to training this morning.

Kelly is likely to be on standby for full-back Andy Wilkinson (back), while Pulis has jet-lag fears over Faye who played in a friendly fixture in Iran.

Amdy Faye will be recalled in central midfield if Salif Diao (groin) fails a fitness test, but striker Mamady Sidibe will play no further part this season after a damaged cruciate ligament was confirmed.

Stoke (from): Sorensen, Wilkinson, Shawcross, Abdoulaye Faye, Higginbotham, Lawrence, Diao, Whelan, Delap, Beattie, Fuller, Simonsen, Etherington, Amdy Faye, Camara, Sonko, Cresswell, Cort, Pugh, Tonge, Griffin, Olofinjana.

West Ham v Sunderland (Saturday, 3pm)

West Ham striker Carlton Cole has a groin injury and may be out for the rest of the season. Scott Parker is carrying a groin problem but may still play, while Radoslav Kovac (thigh) has also picked up a knock.

Central defenders Matthew Upson and James Collins are both fit for selection after missing the last two matches, Savio Nsereko has recovered from a minor knee injury, but Valon Behrami, Jack Collison (both knee) and Danny Gabbidon (back/stomach) are out.

West Ham (from): Green, Neill, Tomkins, Spector, Ilunga, Noble, Parker, Kovac, Boa Morte, López, Tristán, Payne, Di Michele, Dyer, Lastuvka, Sears, N’Gala, Stanislas, Upson, Collins, Savio.

Kieran Richardson returns from suspension for Sunderland’s game against West Ham. But George McCartney is a doubt after sustaining a calf injury in Northern Ireland’s win over Slovenia on Wednesday and Calum Davenport is ineligible because he is on loan from the Hammers.

Ricky Sbragia will give late fitness checks to Kenwyne Jones and Carlos Edwards, who did not get back from international duty in the USA until Friday.

Craig Gordon is pushing for a return after playing for Scotland in midweek and Nyron Nosworthy returns to the squad after coming through a reserve game on Thursday.

Sunderland (from): Fulop, Gordon, Bardsley, Ferdinand, Ben-Haim, Collins, Nosworthy, McCartney, McShane, Edwards, Malbranque, Whitehead, Leadbitter, Richardson, Reid, Murphy, Jones, Healy, Cisse.

• Ireland’s Six Nations victory expensive for Paddy Power
• Manchester United’s defeat by Fulham saves bookmakers

Irish bookmakers were hit hard last weekend when Ireland snatched a dramatic Six Nations win over Wales. Declan Kidney’s team were well backed on home territory, with Paddy Power reporting losses of €1.2m (£1m), a deficit that included a payout of €55,000 to a customer who staked €10,000 at 9-2 that Ireland would win the triple crown.

The Dublin-based layer also claimed that Brian O’Driscoll was supported at 12-1 to score the first try of the game, resulting in a further €290,000 loss. The Dundalk firm Boylesports was facing a €1m payout to patriotic punters.

The defeat for Wales was better news for British bookmakers, as Warren Gatland’s team were popular with punters. Ladbrokes saw a £35,000 bet on “no grand slam winner” while Sky Bet also dodged a big payout after laying Wales heavily to win all of their fixtures, including one of £15,000 at 2-1.

Manchester United’s surprise defeat at Craven Cottage was celebrated across trading-room floors. Paddy Power reckoned Fulham’s win knocked out £250,000 worth of bets, Sky Bet reported many four- and five-figure wagers on United, while extrabet.com took the largest stake on Roy Hodgson’s team – £1,000 at 7-1. Liverpool’s 5-0 thrashing of Aston Villa was cheered on by the Sporting Index client who sold the time of the third goal for Rafael Benítez’s side at 81 for £200 per minute, a trade which netted him £8,400.

Retief Goosen’s first PGA Tour win for nearly four years was predicted by many golf bettors. The South African was the subject of some shrewd bets, including one of £3,000 at 9-1 (Paddy Power), £100 at 40-1 (extrabet.com) and £500 at 4-1 (Ladbrokes), while Sky Bet reported a £20,000 swing against them after Goosen denied Charles Howell the Transitions Championship title.

The best images from Wednesday night’s action in the top flight

When a team of serial winners starts losing as a habit there is clearly something wrong. Manchester United have lost as many leagues games in one week as in the previous 10 months and their supporters would feel a lot more reassured if it were not for the fact that, on both occasions, they have gone down without a great deal of dignity. The damage may still be only superficial but it does, at the very least, inflict upon them the kind of anxieties to which they seemed immune not long ago.

Aston Villa are the next visitors to Old Trafford and, despite their own slump, the fact they have not won there for 26 years might look more of a threat than it was previously a reason for confidence. Fulham, after all, had not beaten United at Craven Cottage since 1964. A week earlier Liverpool’s 4-1 mauling of the champions was their biggest win at Old Trafford since 1936. Almost inexplicably, United have gone from being trumpeted as possibly the best British side of all time to one that is handing out once-in-a-lifetime results as indiscriminately as someone chucking out breadcrumbs for the pigeons.

What we saw on Saturday, when United finished the game with nine men, looked suspiciously like a side that was struggling to cope now the pressure is close to intolerable. OK, Paul Scholes’s red card when he handled Bobby Zamora’s goal-bound header, allowing Danny Murphy to put Fulham ahead from the penalty spot, was an instinctive reaction, something that can easily happen. But Wayne Rooney’s sending-off came from a loss of self-control that, coupled with Cristiano Ronaldo’s tiresome histrionics, epitomised United’s lack of care and judgment.

At least Sir Alex Ferguson did not try to pass them off as the “better team”, as he had done after the humiliation against Liverpool. But wait. Did the most experienced manager in the business really try to argue that Phil Dowd could have let off Scholes? “He could have easily not given it,” Ferguson claimed in a demonstration of how football managers see the game how they want to see it and to heck with the facts. His disclaimer was a classic. “But it’s Phil Dowd, so what do you expect?”

The truth was that Fulham outpassed, outscored and, for long spells, outplayed their opponents. Their performance in the opening 45 minutes was the best, according to Hodgson, they have played under him and, almost unnoticed, the club have reached 40 points with eight games to spare. At this rate Hodgson should be on any shortlist for manager of the season.

They certainly deserved better than for their opponents to resort to the classic cop-out of trying to blame Dowd, now fully confirmed alongside Steve Bennett and Martin Atkinson among the referees Ferguson dislikes most.

United’s manager also complained about Rooney’s second yellow card, when the forward picked up the ball and hurled it roughly in the direction, but actually a fair distance beyond, where United had a free-kick. “Did he throw the ball in anger? Yes, because he wanted the game to be hurried up,” came Ferguson’s defence. “Did he throw the ball at the ref? No, the ball went to where the free-kick was taken.”

Notwithstanding the fact that this was not true (the ball went past everyone and was not even close to a United player), the most important question was this: was Rooney asking for trouble? Dowd had already flashed six yellow cards and one red as well as warning Ronaldo he was one more misplaced word away from being sent off. Rooney’s was a fit of pique, coming only two minutes after Zoltan Gera had hooked in the second goal, and he is fortunate that the FA is unlikely to take any action over the way he left the pitch, punching the corner flag as he went. Rooney is 23 now, not 18. He has been around long enough not to put himself in these situations.

In addition, there could be more problems on the horizon for United after Dimitar Berbatov, who had been replaced by Rooney at half-time, was ruled out of Bulgaria’s World Cup qualifiers against the Republic of Ireland and Cyprus with an ankle injury.

As for Ronaldo, this was one of those wearisome afternoons when he played with the soul of a pickpocket, trying to get opponents sent off, eyeballing the officials, exaggerating injuries – in short, the whole everyone-is-against-me routine. At one point he spent so long portraying himself as the victim, repeatedly pulling up his shorts to show Dowd a scrape on his thigh, the referee demonstrated how little he cared by doing exactly the same with his own leg. Dowd might as well have made a W for Whatever with his fingers.

Ronaldo also committed the worst tackle of the game, a scything lunge on Murphy, and at the final whistle he flounced down the tunnel without shaking the hand of a single Fulham player or bothering to applaud the away fans. At the same time his marker, John Pantsil, was performing a one-man lap of honour.

Wayne Rooney replaces the laid-back Dimitar Berbatov. Need we press home the point?