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On Saturday in England, the 31st round of Premier League matches took place. Leader Manchester United, despite losing, managed to secure a convincing victory against Blackburn, while Chelsea defeated the underdog Watford in the final moments of the match. In a duel between teams fighting for third place, Liverpool crushed Arsenal.
Earlier in the day, Liverpool, in third place, hosted London's Arsenal at Anfield Stadium. A goal was scored in the 4th minute of the match when Jermaine Pennant passed to Alvaro Arbeloa, who then assisted Peter Crouch, who shot past Jens Lehmann from a few meters out to put Liverpool in the lead.
After a slightly longer break, the visitors created a dangerous attack. After a corner kick, Arsenal's Togolese striker Emmanuel Adebayor headed the ball into the net. In the 21st minute, Liverpool forward P. Crouch's weak shot did not trouble German goalkeeper J. Lehmann.
Five minutes later, another shot by P. Crouch towards the far corner of the goal narrowly missed. However, in the 35th minute, the Englishman achieved his goal - after a pass from Fabio Aurelio from the left side, the tall forward headed the ball accurately into the corner of the visitors' goal.
In the second half, after 8 minutes of play, Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard attacked the goal after a pass from Marko Gonzalez, but J. Lehmann managed to neutralize the threat. Shortly after, E. Adebayor's shot hit the post. In the 59th minute, defender Daniel Agger accurately headed the ball into the net after F. Aurelio's well-taken free kick.
Three minutes later, E. Adebayor's header was blocked by goalkeeper Pepe Reina. In the 73rd minute, Arsenal managed to reduce the deficit as defender William Gallas scored. However, nine minutes later, P. Crouch achieved his first hat-trick in his club career after a pass from J. Pennant, securing victory for his team.
After this win, coached by Rafa Benitez, Liverpool moved up to third place, while Arsenal dropped down a spot.
At Old Trafford, the home team Manchester United hosted Blackburn. At the start of the first half, opportunities were missed by Blackburn players David Dunn and Matt Derbyshire. Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo had a good chance, but was denied by Brad Friedel.
Later, Wayne Rooney also had a great chance, but again, the American Friedel played well. Manchester United players later claimed a penalty against Wes Brown, but the referee remained silent.
Defender Nemanja Vidic suffered an injury, and the home team conceded a goal in the 29th minute. After Morten Gamst Pedersen's pass, a defensive error by Michael Carrick saw him score an own goal. Despite goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar's best efforts to save the ball, M. Derbyshire was quick to send it into the net.
In the second half, the home team started strongly and in the 61st minute, they leveled the score when Paul Scholes found the back of the net. Later, Ryan Giggs had an opportunity to put the Red Devils ahead, but his shot hit the crossbar.
However, in the 73rd minute, the home team scored again through M. Carrick. Ten minutes later, after C. Ronaldo's shot, South Korean Ji-Sung Park scored the third goal for the team, and Norwegian Ole Gunnar Solskjaer sealed the deal with the fourth goal.
After this victory, the team coached by Sir Alex Ferguson remained at the top, while Blackburn stayed in 10th place.
In a challenging situation at the bottom of the league table, London's West Ham faced Middlesbrough. The home team managed to score in the 2nd minute when Bobby Zamora sent the ball into the net after a pass from Carlos Tevez. At the end of the first half, the Argentine player doubled his team's lead, securing a much-needed second consecutive victory for the Hammers.
In other matches, Bolton defeated Sheffield United with a lone goal from Kevin Davies, while Manchester City won away against Newcastle with a decisive goal from Emile Mpenza. Charlton also returned to the path of victory with a win against Wigan. In the final minutes of the match, Charlton's attacking leader Darren Bent scored the winning goal from the penalty spot.
The match between Fulham and Portsmouth ended in a 1-1 draw. Nico Kranjcar gave Portsmouth the lead in the 4th minute, but Ian Pearce managed to equalize for Fulham at the end of the match.
Evening matches between Watford and Chelsea ended in favor of the favorites. After Andriy Shevchenko's pass, Ivory Coast international Salomon Kalou scored the winning goal against the league's underdog in the final minutes of the match.
Top scorers: 1. Didier Drogba (Chelsea) - 18 goals 2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Man Utd) - 16 3-5. Benni McCarthy (Blackburn) Wayne Rooney (Man Utd) Yakubu Aiyegbeni (Middlesbrough) - 12 goals each 6-8. Frank Lampard (Chelsea) Andrew Johnson (Everton) Robin van Persie (Arsenal) - 11 goals each
