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Liverpool 0 – 2 Chelsea
Chelsea and Jose Mourinho delivered a huge twist in the Premier League title race by beating Liverpool 2-0 at Anfield.
The Reds had won their last 11 games but fell short at Anfield, giving Chelsea and Manchester City a route back into the title picture
A Steven Gerrard slip just before half-time gifted Demba Ba with a free run on goal, which the Senegalese duly capitalised on.

And as the Reds poured forward late on, Chelsea took full advantage as Fernando Torres presented Willian the simple task of making it two.

Brendan Rodgers’ side still top the table by two points but Manchester City are six behind – with two games in hand – ahead of their trip to Crystal Palace later today.

Visiting boss Jose Mourinho hinted at a “weakened” team and although his XI included debutant Tomas Kalas; Frank Lampard, Branislav Ivanovic and John Obi Mikel all started.

The Reds dominated possession for large periods of the first-half, without really threatening Chelsea goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer.
Arguably their best chance fell to defender Mamadou Sakho who fired over from a Luis Suarez pull-back, before Philippe Coutinho volleyed into the side-netting.

But disaster struck for the home side when skipper Gerrard slipped after taking a heavy touch that put the ball into Ba’s path, leaving the Chelsea striker with a free run on goal.

And he made no mistake, slotting past Simon Mignolet in the Liverpool goal in first-half stoppage time.
Ironically, the Blues had been pulled up by referee Martin Atkinson for wasting time throughout the opening period but they remarkably went in in front at the break.

The hosts continued to control the game in the second-half period but struggled to break down the Chelsea back-line.
Schwarzer comfortably dealt with Gerrard’s long-range effort before the Reds’ captain headed straight at the veteran Australian.
Daniel Sturridge – who has been out with injury – was thrown on alongside fellow striker Iago Aspas, as Liverpool went for broke.

But their desperate attempts were to no avail, as Chelsea delivered a late knockout blow through substitute Willian.
Crystal Palace 0 – 2 Man City

Having seen Liverpool slip up against Chelsea, Manuel Pellegrini’s side saw off an under-par Eagles side to move within three points of the summit

Yaya Toure put on a masterclass as Manchester City catapulted themselves back into the title race.
A goal and an assist from the Ivorian had the game more-or-less settled by half-time, before City saw out a dull second half with little difficulty.

Pre-match, the 3,000-or-so Mancunian fans that had travelled down from Cottonopolis were either packed into the dank concourses of the Arthur Wait stand or stood by their seats, eagerly watching the unfolding events at Anfield on the Selhurst Park big screen.

With Willian’s late goal, the sky blue corner of SE25 erupted and an afternoon took on a whole new significance. With City suddenly been thrust back into the title picture, the match promised to be an intriguing battle between the skill and craft of Samir Nasri and Sergio Aguero’s ilk, and the battling and boshing of Tony Pulis’ Crystal Palace.

As it turns out, the man who would be decisive is a player who unites the rippling muscles and brawn of Pulisological thinking with sublime technical qualities, and Toure’s fourth-minute assist virtually killed the game on the spot.

Receiving the ball 35 yards from goal, Toure’s deliciously swirling cross bisected the channel between Dann and full-back Adrian Mariappa to allow Edin Dzeko to head in the opener. It was a typically un-Pulis goal to concede, but the beautifully-stroked assist was as much a matchwinning touch as any strike that nestles in the back of the net.

Fortunately for City, the Ivory Coast midfielder also had that in his locker, and before the first half was out he would produce a goal that brought applause even from the Crystal Palace support.

Striding forward from his own half, Toure exchanged passes with Nasri and Dzeko to propel himself towards the Palace goal. Luck favoured him when the ball fell nicely at his feet after an attempted tackle, but there was nothing fortunate about his sumptuous left-footed finish that curled it’s way into the top corner from some 25 yards.

In truth, City were comfortable therein. The hosts’ gameplan was always going to be reliant on keeping things tight, and while they gamely attempted to force the issue, Cameron Jerome’s lack of quality up front contributed to a lack of any clear chances being created.

While Palace tried to alter the result with three attacking substitutions, it was perhaps more instructive that on 65 minutes Manuel Pellegrini felt comfortable enough to remove Toure from action and replace him with Fernandinho.

After Yaya’s departure Palace gathered momentum but found their own sloppy passing as much of an obstruction to scoring as an in-form City defence.

Unusually flat, the Eagles’ issues were more a realisation of their own limitations and the quality of the opposition than any early thoughts of being on the beach, but with Liverpool the next visitors to Selhurst Park there is no holiday yet. — Mirror