Manchester City 6-0 Tottenham

The result means City maintain their unbeaten home record this season, also launching them into the top four.

The hosts opened the scoring after only 13 seconds through Jesus Navas, with a Sandro own goal and Sergio Aguero’s close-range strike leaving them comfortably ahead at the break.

A second from Aguero was followed by Alvaro Negredo's fifth in the league this season, before another Navas goal in injury-time heaped further humiliation on Tottenham.

The win moves City into fourth place in the table - ahead of Southampton on goal difference - while Tottenham drop two places to ninth.Andre Villas-Boas' side were barely able to test Costel Pantilimon in the City goal as a lacklustre performance added to the disappointment of their thumping defeat.

City made five changes to the side beaten by Sunderland before the international break, with Navas starting in the league for the first time since the Manchester derby in September.

Erik Lamela - one of six changes for Tottenham - was handed his first Premier League start for the visitors, with Hugo Lloris also returning to the starting line-up.

But the France international did not enjoy a good start to the game as City posted the joint-quickest goal of the Premier League campaign.

A poor clearance from Lloris went straight to Aguero 20 yards from goal and, although his shot was saved, the loose ball was met by Navas, who lofted the ball over the goalkeeper and into the far corner.

Lamela then nearly levelled as Spurs slowly began to settle into the game - but they were unable to turn their possession into goals and were caught out again in the 34th minute.

Fernandinho capitalised on another clearance from Lloris to release Samir Nasri on the left, before he in turn lifted the ball to Aguero.

The Argentinian’s effort was pushed away by Lloris but the ball dropped to Negredo, whose acrobatic follow-up found the net via deflections off Younes Kaboul and Sandro.

City extended their lead four minutes before the break as Navas fired a low cross into the six-yard box and Aguero slotted home from six yards.

And five minutes into the second half, Aguero doubled his tally with his 14th goal in 11 matches. Yaya Toure was the creator, powerfully brushing his way past Kyle Walker before rolling the ball square and leaving the Argentine the simple task of converting.

Negredo then made it five after an outrageous piece of skill saw him beat Michael Dawson on the edge of the penalty area.

The Spaniard flicked the ball through the defender's legs following a pass from Fernandinho and emphatically fired past Lloris.

Tottenham were unable to muster a reply and conceded a sixth in stoppage time when a raking long ball from substitute James Milner provided Navas with a one-on-one he coolly converted.

West Ham 0-3 Chelsea

A strikerless West Ham side threatened to pierce the Chelsea defence with as much ease as such a description would suggest on Saturday evening, as the visitors came away from Upton Park as 3-0 victors following the day's closing Premier League encounter.Frank Lampard thundered in a 21st-minute penalty to open the scoring for Jose Mourinho's side, with his second goal, eight minutes before full-time, marking his fifth in as many appearances against his old club.

Those two strikes sandwiched Oscar's 34th-minute effort as Chelsea claimed their first Premier League win in three matches.

Lampard's penalty came after Guy Demel's underhit backpass let in Oscar, who was brought down by goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen, before Oscar himself made it two with a low effort from the edge of the box.

Lampard doubled his tally late on, converting from the edge of the box after Jaaskelainen parried Eden Hazard's shot, leaving West Ham without a win in five league matches.

Both sides made one change from their previous outings a fortnight ago, Joey O'Brien replacing the injured Razvan Rat for the hosts, while John Obi Mikel came in for Willian in the Chelsea midfield.

After a scrappy start to the game, the visitors were gifted the lead midway through the half.

Under no pressure, Demel's weak backpass towards Jaaskelainen was seized upon by Oscar, who went to ground under the goalkeeper's sliding challenge, referee Chris Foy showing no hesitation in pointing to the spot.

Lampard stepped up and smashed the kick high into the roof of the net to end his longest run without a league goal for Chelsea.

Thirteen minutes later Oscar tormented the hosts again, the Brazilian picking up Eden Hazard's clever flick before driving forward and rolling the ball into the bottom left-hand corner from 20 yards.

Jaaskelainen produced a fine save to deny Samuel Eto'o three minutes before the break, flying high to his left to parry the Cameroon international's curling shot behind.

Chelsea started the second half strongly, Gary Cahill seeing his header cleared off the line by Mark Noble in the 52nd minute before Oscar turned Cesar Azpilicueta's cross wide shortly afterwards.

The hosts ought to have reduced the deficit in the 64th minute when substitute Mohamed Diame jinked past three defenders on the byline before his deflected cross ran to fellow replacement Modibo Maiga, but the substitute turned the ball a foot wide of the post from six yards.

As the game entered its final 10 minutes, Hazard tested Jasskelainen from an angle and the rebound fell perfectly to Lampard who made no mistake with a first-time strike.

Demba Ba saw an injury-time goal chalked off for offside but the points were already in the bag for Chelsea, who move up to third in the Premier League, while West Ham are just one place above the relegation zone.

Arsenal 2-0 Southampton

Arsenal got back on track with a 2-0 win against Southampton, with goalkeeper Artur Boruc entering into the spirit of pantomime season at the Emirates Stadium.

Following their dispiriting defeat to Manchester United before the international break, Arsene Wenger's Premier League leaders started brightly against their high-flying opponents, with Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey both hitting the post.They led midway through the first half when Olivier Giroud capitalised on an inexplicable error from Boruc, who tried to dribble past the France international only to get himself in an awful tangle.

An impressive collective response was typical of a Southampton side who remain third in the table - for the time being - but Giroud completed his brace and made it 10 goals for the season from the penalty spot after Jose Fonte pulled back Per Mertesacker at an 85th-minute corner.

Southampton were dealt a blow ahead of kick-off, which was delayed by 15 minutes due to disruption on the Piccadilly line, with news that centre-back Dejan Lovren was ruled out due to illness. Jos Hooiveld came in for his first Premier League appearance of the season.

Theo Walcott returned to the Arsenal bench following two months out with an abdominal injury, while Mertesacker was back at the heart of defence following his midweek goalscoring heroics for Germany at Wembley.

Wilshere replaced the suspended Mathieu Flamini in midfield and almost opened the scoring after 10 minutes when his deft, lofted effort bounced back off the post and into Boruc's grateful arms.

The same upright was tested via Ramsey's audacious backheel from Mesut Ozil's cross - but Boruc's post could not save him after a moment of madness in the 22nd minute.

Upon receiving a routine backpass from Nathaniel Clyne, he loitered terribly before an embarrassing attempt to turn Giroud resulted in the Frenchman stroking the ball into an unguarded net.

Southampton forced Wojciech Szczesny into his first save of the match after 32 minutes when Mikel Arteta miscued a clearance and Adam Lallana's speculative left-footer was pushed over. The Arsenal goalkeeper then reacted superbly to thwart Jay Rodriguez's snap shot.

Luke Shaw struggled through much of the first half with a leg problem and was replaced by Steven Davis, with James Ward-Prowse reverting to right-back and Clyne filling Southampton's vacant left-back slot.

The reshuffle did not interrupt the visitors' momentum as they resumed brightly and Lallana thudded a drive into Szczesny's chest, meaning eyebrows were raised when the same player made way for Dani Osvaldo in the 52nd minute.

Having laboured under Southampton's trademark high press, Arsenal responded impressively and Ozil cleverly engineered space in the area to test Boruc at his near post.

Osvaldo called Szczesny into action at the end of a driving 74th minute run at the other end.

Walcott was afforded a rapturous reception on his introduction and might have given Arsenal breathing space when he fired wide on the break before Giroud ensured a four-point lead at the summit with his composed spot-kick.

Stoke 2-0 Sunderland

Charlie Adam was in the thick of the action in the first half, opening the scoring on the half-hour mark before being involved in the incident that saw Wes Brown sent off nine minutes before half-time.

Brown was adjudged to have recklessly tackled the former Liverpool midfielder and was given his marching orders. 

Steven N'Zonzi, having set up the opener, doubled Stoke's lead nine minutes from the end as Mark Hughes' men made the most of their numerical advantage to record a first Premier League win since the end of August.

The result moves Stoke three points clear of the relegation places and drops Sunderland to bottom.

Hughes made one change to his Stoke starting line-up, with Glenn Whelan coming in for Wilson Palacios, while Sunderland manager Gus Poyet named an unchanged team from the one that garnered a 1-0 win over Manchester City prior to the international break.

It was Sunderland who were first to find their rhythm. Adam Johnson and Emanuele Giaccherini combined to set up Jack Colback, whose shot was blocked, before Stoke goalkeeper Asmir Begovic brilliantly denied Steven Fletcher from a one-on-one opportunity.

Despite the clever passing of Adam and some neat touches from Peter Crouch, Stoke struggled to create a meaningful chance until breaking the deadlock after half an hour.

N'Zonzi raced on to Geoff Cameron's long punt forward, held it up and stroked the ball back to the onrushing Adam, who stroked into the bottom corner from just inside the box for his third goal of the season.

Things got considerably worse for Sunderland on 35 minutes when Brown appeared to have made a fair sliding challenge on Adam, but referee Kevin Friend adjudged that the 34-year-old defender had dangerously fouled the Scot in the process and sent him off.

Stoke enjoyed much of the possession at the start of the second half.

However, both Jonathan Walters and Crouch failed to connect with an inviting Cameron cross, before Adam burst through the midfield but failed to keep his shot down.

Johnson found space on the edge of the opposition box on 70 minutes, but the winger, who scored a fine strike for Manchester City against Stoke in the 2011-12 season, dragged his shot wide.

Begovic had to be alert to race from his line and, with an outstretched leg, clear the ball ahead of the advances of Fletcher. The Bosnia-Herzegovina international caught the Scotland striker in the process, but Sunderland’s appeals for a penalty were waved away.

Sunderland were enjoying a good spell of pressure, but were hit on the counter-attack with nine minutes remaining. Adam fed Couch, who slid the ball between two defenders for N'Zonzi to clip it homeand become Stoke's 10th scorer in the Premier League this season.

West Ham vs Chelsea (24hfootball.info)

Jose Mourinho's side needed a controversial last-gasp penalty from Eden Hazard to draw 2-2 against West Brom before the international break.

That came after a 2-0 defeat at Newcastle the previous weekend and they can ill afford to drop more points against Sam Allardyce's strugglers.

Chelsea lost 3-1 at Upton Park in December last year despite Juan Mata giving them an early lead, but that represents the only defeat in their last 15 meetings with West Ham. 

Mourinho will be hoping that striker Fernando Torres is available to return after a leg injury kept him out of the last two games.

If the Spain international is fit, he will vie for a starting berth with Samuel Eto'o. Midfielder Marco van Ginkel is a long-term absentee with a knee injury.

Ashley Cole is also a doubt after aggravating a rib injury during England's defeat to Germany on Tuesday, while Mata and David Luiz will also be hoping for a recall at the end of a week that marks a year since Roberto Di Matteo was sacked.

West Ham, meanwhile, are without a win in their last four Premier League games and sit level on points with third-bottom Fulham.

Allardyce's side have only scored one goal in their last three top-flight matches and have been playing without a recognised striker in recent weeks in the continued absence of club-record signing Andy Carroll.

And the former Blackburn manager knows they will have to be at their best if they are to get the better of Chelsea this time around.

"Anything less than top form for all of our players would make life difficult for us. We will have to produce the end product because chance creation will be harder," he warned. 

Allardyce is hopeful James Collins and Joey O'Brien (both hamstring) will be available for selection, but fellow defender Razvan Rat (hamstring) is a doubt.

England vs Germany-Match Preview

England have the opportunity to beat Germany at Wembley for the first time since 1975 on Tuesday.

Doan Revie's side saw off West Germany 2-1 in north London 38 years ago, but the Three Lions have not tasted victory at home against die Mannschaft in five attempts since.The Germans have inflicted some historic defeats on England in that time; in the semi-finals of Euro 96, the last ever match at the old Wembley in 2000, and England's first loss at the new Wembley seven years later.

Controversy reigned when the sides last faced each other as an effort from Frank Lampard, which clearly landed over the line after bouncing down off the crossbar, was not awarded as a goal.

Germany went on to win 4-1 in Bloemfontein to knock England out of the 2010 World Cup, though three of their key men from that day will be rested by coach Joachim Low on Tuesday.

Mesut Ozil, Philipp Lahm and Manuel Neuer have will all miss out, while Sami Khedira has been ruled out for six months with a knee injury sustained against Italy on Friday.

Low described playmaker Ozil, defender Lahm and goalkeeper Neuer as "the backbone of our team" but underlined the need to "give others a chance against such a strong team as England".

The hosts, beaten 2-0 by Chile on Friday, will be without defender Phil Jones, who suffered a groin problem against the South Americans, but Steven Gerrard (hip) and Kyle Walker (illness) could return.

Roy Hodgson's men will be seeking a response to the Chile defeat, which was only the coach's second in 23 matches at the helm.

Striker Daniel Sturridge has recovered from a foot injury and is "raring to go" against a side who will be considered contenders in Brazil, having dropped just two points in their qualification campaign.

"(It is a) great prospect to play against them, a great occasion for players to enjoy," he said.

"I think we have to worry about the way we play, not the opposition. We have to improve as a team, and not worry about anyone else.

"It's great. Everyone gets along; everyone enjoys playing for the manager, enjoys training. We are happy to be together and it's great to be a part of it."

Pellegrini reminds me of Wenger

Samir Nasri insists he is enjoying his football again at Manchester City and admits new boss Manuel Pellegrini reminds him of Arsene Wenger.

The Frenchman endured a difficult time last season under Roberto Mancini, struggling to impose himself as City limply surrendered their Premier League titles to rivals Manchester United.

But Nasri appears to have a new lease of life in a more attacking system at the Etihad Stadium this season, and - as Goal revealed earlier this month - admits his good relationship with Pellegrini has played a part.“Last year was a bit ­difficult for me personally because of the problem I had in the Euros and other stuff,” he told the Daily Mirror.

“So this summer I cleared my head and came back with the determination to have a great season.

“But, right now, everything is fine. I’m in a better place – and that’s what I want. He [Pellegrini] does remind me of Arsene in respect of the way he works.

“He has the same approach in the way he talks to players and tells them when things are good and when they are bad,

“But it is always constructive and you always know what he wants from you, and what he wants you to bring to the team.

“I feel that he trusts me and that he gives me responsibilities on the pitch. When you have a manager like that, you want to repay that sort of faith – and that’s what I’m trying to do.”

Nasri believes he produces his best on the pitch when he enjoys his football, and admits he still harbours a burning passion for the game.

“I have to smile because we, as footballers, are really lucky to do the job we do. But this is not just a job for me,” he added. 

“It’s my passion. So I have to play with a smile, because that’s when I’m at my best.”

England have a long way to go

Frank Lampard admits England still have plenty of room for improvement ahead of the 2014 World Cup, after an experimental line-up lost 2-0 against Chile at Wembley on Friday night.

Alexis Sanchez opened the scoring early on before wrapping up the win with a cute finish in stoppage time, ending an unbeaten run for the Three Lions that stretched back to November 2012.

Lampard, who made his 103rd appearance and was presented with his golden cap, has rejected notions that England have been dealt a reality check but conceded there is work to do ahead of next summer's tournament in Brazil.

"We are very aware of the job in hand," the 35-year-old midfielder told the Football Association's official website.

"We are not on the moon and we are not terrible – we are somewhere in between. We have got a long way to go.

“We need to concentrate on what we are doing, we have got another game against top class opposition on Tuesday [against Germany] and we need to improve.”

Lampard was keen to praise Chile afterwards and, despite the defeat, was pleased to test himself against a different style of opponent.

“They are a good team first and foremost. We knew that coming in to the game. It is a different style to what we have been playing recently,” the Chelsea ace added.

“It was a great exercise for us. Nobody wants to lose a game. They scored early and late, and we had quite a few chances in the middle. 

"It is one we need to take the positives out of going forward, we created some good stuff at times.”

Cristiano Ronaldo has overtaken Messi

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has hailed Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo and believes the Portuguese has edged ahead of his Barcelona rival Lionel Messi in the last year. 

Ronaldo has started the season in blistering form with 24 goals in all competitions, 10 more than the Argentina, who was recently ruled out for up to two months with a leg muscle injury.

The pair are the leading contenders to be crowned Fifa Ballon d’Or Player of the Year - which Messi has claimed for the past four years - but the Gunners boss has hinted he expects Ronaldo to win for the second time.

When asked for his opinion on the pair during a Twitter Q&A session, Wenger said: "It’s difficult, Messi was on top until now but in the last year, maybe Ronaldo is in front, he is very athletic."

Wenger recently revealed he came came close to signing Ronaldo before he joined Manchester United in 2003 and even allocated the former Sporting Lisbon youngster a squad number.

The winner of the Ballon d’Or will be announced on 13 January, 2014, in a ceremony held in Zurich, Switzerland.

Steven Gerrard dreams of making England proud at World Cup 2014

England captain Steven Gerrard says he dreams of making his country proud at next summer’s World Cup finals.

The Three Lions qualified for the tournament by finishing top of their group and the Liverpool legend feels that the challenge now is for Roy Hodgson's men to get past the quarter-finals.

"The dream would be to come away from a tournament and everyone back home is proud of the team," Gerrard told the Daily Mail.

"To be clapped home would be amazing. But it will only happen if we go past the quarter-final. 

"For me the ambition is this: can I help get the team past a quarter-final? I haven’t really thought about what I will do after the World Cup. It is all about going to enjoy this World Cup. 

“What an experience it will be in Brazil. I am absolutely delighted to help the team get there, it was a great achievement. But now the attention has to switch to: what can we do there?”

The Three Lions are currently preparing for friendlies against Chile, on Friday, and Germany, on Tuesday, with Gerrard aiming to add to his collection of caps.

"One hundred and seven caps isn’t bad for someone who isn’t ‘a top, top player’, is it?" he added, referring to remarks made by Sir Alex Ferguson in his recent autobiography. 

"I never expected to get that amount of caps. When I made my debut, I set myself the personal target of trying to get 50 caps and score 10 goals if I could. 

"So to have 107 is something I am really proud of, particularly being among those names. 

"I’m not looking at [Peter] Shilton or [David] Beckham. Passing Bobby Moore would be the next one. To go past him, after everything he did, would be unbelievable.”

Gerrard as vital to Liverpool as ever

Liverpool defender Jose Enrique says that captain Steven Gerrard is as important to the team as he has ever been.

The midfielder has been an ever-present in the Premier League this season, forging a partnership with Lucas Leiva and helping the Reds to second in the table.The 33-year-old provided assists for Martin Skrtel and Luis Suarez in Saturday's 4-0 win over Fulham and Enrique feels that he remains a key figure despite moving to a deeper role.

"He has been playing fantastic like always. He's our captain and he's been really, really important for us," the left-back told reporters.

"When you get older, you lose something physically and, when he was playing with [Fernando] Torres, he was more behind the striker, making runs.

"Now he plays deeper, keeps more of the ball and works differently. He is playing with Lucas now in that sitting role, which he didn't play when he was younger.

"But the quality of the passes and the crosses he produces, and the free kicks ... at 50 years of age, he will still be doing the same thing! He will always have that and his quality is amazing."

Van Persie hails perfect Manchester United performance

Robin van Persie says that it took the perfect team performance to overcome Arsenal and fire Manchester United back into Premier League title contention.

The Dutchman scored the only goal of an absorbing encounter that saw the Gunners' lead at the top of the table reduced to two points, while United now trail Arsene Wenger's side by just five despite their own indifferent form at the start of the new season.

It was Van Persie's third goal in as many games against his former club but the forward is adamant that victory was a result of magnificent collective effort, rather than his own individual striking prowess."It was a massive win," he told MUTV. "I always like to think positively but, if you think negatively for one second, we could have been 11 points behind, which would have been dramatic.

"I don't think you can beat a team like that with just a couple of individuals playing well. You need to be strong as a team. That is what we did.

"Everyone closed everyone down. If you look at Patrice Evra, every header or 50-50 challenge, he went for it. The back four did it. Even the front players did it. That makes a difference."

On the goal itself, Van Persie added: "It was a good corner from Wazza [Wayne Rooney]. I headed it but then it took a touch off my shoulder, then it went in.

"It didn't really matter whether it went in off my head or my shoulder. I am very happy with that head-shoulder goal."

Guardiola demands even more Bayern success

Franck Ribery has lauded the impact of Pep Guardiola on Bayern Munich and his own individual performances since the Spanish coach arrived in the summer.

The Bavarian side set a new Bundesliga milestone having gone 37 games unbeaten, beating Hamburg's 30-year record, after brushing aside Augsburg 3-0 at the Allianz Arena on Saturday.

And the attacker intimated that a large part of their recent form has been down to Guardiola.

“He brings his technical touch, the same one he showed at Barcelona where he had done a great job,” he told beIN Sport programme ‘Le Club’.

“He came with his ideas and he wants to experience more success with us, more than he did with Barcelona. He wants to win with Bayern."

The Frenchman scored the second against Augsburg with a brilliant free kick and was quick to emphasise the importance the former Barcelona coach has had on his own displays this season – displays that have led to him being tagged as one of the frontrunners for the Ballon d’Or.

“Everyday he is on the training ground speaking to lots of players. I am someone that needs to feel confident and close to the coach and I feel at ease with Pep Guardiola," he continued.

“It wasn’t going to be easy for him coming in after Jupp Heynckes, who won everything, but he is happy to be with us."

Ribery also talked briefly about Paris Saint-Germain and admitted that they are fast becoming a force to be reckoned with on the European stage.

“I think PSG are getting stronger each year and are getting in more and more great players,” the former Marseille star accepted. 

“Many have experience at the top level, this is a team that can go all the way but it will come down to the small details.

“It’s good to see Paris playing as they are but we don’t talk about that in the changing rooms at Bayern, we focus on ourselves but we respect all other teams."

There was a quick mention for his former club Marseille, and Ribery stated that despite having left the club they still hold an important place in his heart. 

“I have a lot of good memories from Marseille. Being part of a club like that helped me after arriving at Bayern. I had a lot of fun with the players and the fans," he said.

“At Marseille, you learn what football means and to fight for the shirt you’re wearing.”

Rooney rejuvenation proving to be Moyes' ultimate master stroke

Robin van Persie may have done the damage against Arsenal again, plunging another dagger into the hearts of those who once adored him by darting to the near post and heading Manchester United in front on 27 minutes, but few at Old Trafford would argue with the fact that the Dutchman was outshone as the home side's outstanding performer on this most rejuvenating of days for David Moyes.

Before and after his devilishly whipped corner gave Van Persie the chance to settle matters, Wayne Rooney's surname rang out at regular intervals around Old Trafford, as thousands who felt betrayed by their hero for the second time last summer paid raucous tribute to his continued presence and enduring brilliance.

Rooney never seriously troubled Wojciech Szczesny but he was a constant menace, dribbling and passing with purpose in possession and doing more than his bit to disrupt Arsenal's midfield machinations out of it.

Not for the first time this season he led from the front, ensuring the half-time loss of Nemanja Vidic, pale and dazed after a nasty collision with David De Gea, did not deal a knockout blow to United's hopes of claiming what is the first truly significant victory of the troubled Moyes era. His forty-yard dash to close down and then win a throw off Bacary Sagna in injury time was a fitting conclusion to a performance bristling with energy and industry.

Nor was it the first. While many of Sir Alex Ferguson's aging stalwarts struggle to combat the ravages of time and Moyes endures criticism for essentially not being his peerless predecessor, it is Rooney who has surprisingly shaken off the shackles of disillusionment and taken the burden of excellence - at times almost entirely - on his broad shoulders.

In Moyes' darkest hour at the Etihad Stadium back in September Rooney alone shone brightly, refusing to be cowed, and defiantly curling a superb free-kick beyond Joe Hart to deny his countryman a clean sheet. Against Chelsea, a week before the close of the transfer window, he delivered a performance of such startling single-mindedness and commitment that a visibly annoyed Jose Mourinho afterwards challenged him to publicly declare where his future lay.

That question has still not been answered. Despite his insistence that he is happy working for Moyes and enjoying his football again, Rooney remains unwilling to open talks with United officials over an extension to his current contract, which expires in just over 18 months' time. And with every week that ticks by, the balance of power over his future shifts further away from United and towards his agent Paul Stretford.

In the meantime though, Moyes must be credited for reviving a player with whom he parted bitterly at Everton and who had appeared to have exhausted the patience of United fans. For all the world-class names the Scot and Ed Woodward failed to secure in a chastening summer transfer window, they have regained a genuine top-drawer talent at the expense of nothing more than astute management.

Rooney has also emerged as a leader off the field, questioning Arsenal's title credentials in the week leading up to this match and invoking the memory of the day United defeated Arsene Wenger's 'Invincibles' in October 2004 in the matchday programme to rally his team-mates and Old Trafford. These do not appear the words or actions of a man whose mind or heart are elsewhere.

Of course, another ascent to the rarefied air of world-class status suits Rooney whether or not he seeks a new contract with United, leaving him assured of one last giant payday wherever he goes. Moyes has no guarantees that he will be the one to enjoy the fruits of his labour in the long term.

But if Rooney continues to produce the kind of performance which has Old Trafford united in song and propels his creaking team to yet another title in this most open of seasons, few in the red half of Manchester will trouble themselves over such distant concerns. 

Premier League-Sunderland 1-0 Manchester City

Manchester City fell to a fourth consecutive 1-0 defeat at the Stadium of Light as Sunderland secured their second win of the season.

Phil Bardsley was Sunderland's match-winner with his first Premier League goal of the season in the 21st minute.

The defender perfectly placed a shot past Costel Pantilimon in the Manchester City goal, but Sunderland had to hang on to claim the victory.Sergio Aguero saw a first-half header fly wide of goal, while substitute Jesus Navas had a chance blocked by Bardsley on the line.

City pushed hard for an equaliser, penning the hosts inside their own half, but Micah Richards and Eden Dzeko were both denied by Vito Mannone.

The three points lift Sunderland to within two points of Stoke City in 18th position, while Manuel Pellegrini’s side lose further ground on the leaders.

Pellegrini made five changes from the Champions League win over CSKA Moscow, with three of the alterations coming in his back four.

Wes Brown started his first Premier League game in 22 months for Sunderland, while Steven Fletcher and Sebastian Larsson both returned.

Despite an equal share of possession it was the hosts who had better of the early chances, but in the 18th minute they were lucky to see Larsson stay on the pitch after a mistimed challenge on Javi Garcia.

The tackle did not bring a card, but the Spaniard was withdrawn at half-time.

Three minutes later Poyet's side broke the deadlock through Bardsley.

The defender shrugged off the attentions of James Milner and Demichelis, who got in each other’s way on City’s right, and placed a composed finish into the far corner.

Just after the half hour City had their first sight of goal through Sergio Aguero, but the Argentina international wasted a fantastic chance.

After being released by Samir Nasri on the left, Aleksandar Kolarov delivered a cross to the back post for the 25-year-old, yet he was unable to get his back-post header on target.

The visitors were denied an equaliser five minutes into the second half as Bardsley blocked a shot from Navas, who replaced Garcia, on the goalline.

Aguero rolled away from John O'Shea on the left and raced into the penalty area before rolling the ball back to Navas, but his shot was blocked by the chest of the defender.

City's dominance intensified in the closing stages but Richards saw a low shot from the edge of the penalty area stopped by Mannone, and substitute Dzeko's first effort was parried away by the Italian prior to a frantic finale that saw Sunderland hold on.

Tottenham 0-1 Newcastle

Tim Krul's heroics denied Tottenham a place back in the Premier League's top four and helped Newcastle to a 1-0 win on Sunday.The Dutchman was on fine form to deny Tottenham at regular intervals as Newcastle recorded their first away win over Spurs in five attempts, with Krul making 14 saves in total. 

Loic Remy continued his fine form to put Newcastle ahead with just 13 minutes on the clock, latching on to Yoan Gouffran’s throughball before rounding Brad Friedel and slotting home his seventh league goal in as many appearances.Roberto Soldado, Christian Eriksen and Paulinho were all frustrated by Krul in the first half before he continued his impressive performance after the break, with a spectacular double save among the highlights. 

Andre Villas-Boas was forced to rest first-choice goalkeeper Hugo Lloris following the Frenchman's collision with Romelu Lukaku against Everton last weekend.

Friedel made his 450th Premier League outing in his place while Mousa Dembele was favoured over Sandro in midfield with Eriksen and Gylfi Sigurdsson retained after impressive Europa League showings against Sheriff on Thursday.

Alan Pardew's Newcastle were unchanged from their Premier League win over Chelsea last weekend, but welcomed back captain Fabricio Coloccini, who was among the substitutes. 

The home side made the brighter start and threatened after nine minutes when Soldado headed Eriksen's cross over the bar.

Remy then found himself through on goal but was thwarted by a last-ditch tackle from Vlad Chiriches before Yohan Cabaye was denied at close range by Friedel.

The visitors' brief spell of pressure was rewarded when Gouffran dispossessed Dembele and played in Remy, who sped away from Michael Dawson, beat Friedel and calmly finished.

The home side should have levelled five minutes later when Eriksen curled an inviting delivery across the Newcastle goalmouth, but no Spurs player was on hand to apply a finish.

Roberto Soldado's header was then tipped over by Krul just short of the half-hour mark before the Dutchman was again alert to deny Eriksen and Paulinho before the break.

Krul was again on hand to maintain his side's lead four minutes into the second half, denying Eriksen one-on-one with his left leg, with substitute Sandro driving wide soon after.

The Netherlands international continued to deny Tottenham, making a fine double save from Sigurdsson's free-kick and then Younes Kaboul's follow up, as Spurs continued to apply plenty of pressure.

Both Remy and strike partner Shola Ameobi were withdrawn as Pardew looked to shut up shop - a tactic that proved successful as the visitors denied Tottenham the chance of returning to the top four.

Chelsea 2-2 West Brom

Chelsea drew 2-2 at home with West Brom on Saturday after a 96th-minute Eden Hazard penalty saved a Premier League point for Jose Mourinho's men at Stamford Bridge.Referee Andre Marriner awarded the controversial spot-kick in the fourth minute of stoppage time for a challenge by Steven Reid on Ramires.

And Hazard duly converted for his fourth goal of the season on his return to the side after he was dropped for the midweek Champions League win over Schalke for missing a training session earlier in the week.

Stephane Sessegnon thought he had won the game for the visitors with his 68th-minute strike but the three points were snatched away from them by the late equaliser.Sessegnon's strike followed Shane Long's leveller as former Chelsea player and assistant manager Steve Clarke looked set to end Mourinho's unbeaten run at home in the Premier League, which has now been extended to 66 games. 

Samuel Eto'o opened the scoring for Chelsea on the stroke of half-time as he robbed Liam Ridgewell at the back post. Long then hauled the sides level just after the hour mark as the striker netted his first goal of the season from close range.

Sessegnon then put the visitors ahead with his second goal of the campaign after some sloppy defending from the hosts but Hazard rescued a point.

Mourinho – taking charge of his 100th home game in all competitions as Chelsea manager - recalled Hazard. Frank Lampard was the only other change from Wednesday's victory, the England international replacing John Obi Mikel.

The visitors welcomed Reid back for the injured Billy Jones and Claudio Yacob for James Morrison but there was no starting spot for Saido Berahino, despite his goal in the 2-0 win over Crystal Palace last weekend.

Chelsea began the stronger of the two sides and created good openings for Eto'o, though the striker was unable to convert any of the opening four chances he had.

Oscar went closest to breaking the deadlock after half an hour from a long-range free-kick but Boaz Myhill reached up to his left to tip the ball over the crossbar.

Yet, in the last minute of the first half, Eto'o finally found the net. Hazard saw a low shot parried by Myhill and the loose ball fell to Ridgewell - but he dallied in possession and the striker wrapped his leg around the defender to fire into an empty net.

West Brom, however, came out for the second half with renewed vigour and levelled just after the hour. Long grabbed the equaliser from close range minutes after both he and Jonas Olsson had missed chances.

The Republic of Ireland international made no mistake with his second opportunity in as many minutes as he reacted quickest to head home from three yards.

Gareth McAuley then saw his bullet header saved by Petr Cech but Long rose highest at the back post to head home.

And Sessegnon put the visitors ahead seven minutes later after receiving a pass from Ridgewell as he side-stepped the challenge of John Terry and slotted the ball under Cech.

There was late drama, however, as Reid was adjudged to have bundled Ramires to the floor, withHazard making no mistake form 12 yards. Not for the first time, Mourinho's blushes were saved.