ARSENAL 3 WEST HAM 0
Olivier Giroud’s thunderbolt helped Arsenal see off the challenge of West Ham and cement their place in the top four of the Premier League with a 3-0 victory.
Arsenalrecorded an eighth home league success to keep the pressure on second-placed Manchester City after finally seeing off what was a spirited second-half effort from the Hammers.
Theo Walcott, recalled to the starting XI following injury to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, had missed a couple of early chances before goalkeeper Adrian was beaten on the stroke of half-time by a fierce angled drive from French striker Giroud, which cannoned in off the far post.
West Ham, who have plummeted down the table following a poor run of results, regrouped for the second half and would have been good value for an equaliser.
However, Arsenal finally broke then down again with nine minutes left when Aaron Ramsey fired in after a neat one-two with Giroud and substitute Mathieu Flamini rolled home a third to send Arsene Wenger’s side into next week’s Uefa Champions League tie away to Monaco with renewed hope of an unlikely comeback.
LEICESTER 0 HULL 0
Bottom club Leicester failed to see off Hull after Tom Huddlestone’s sending-off handed them a huge opportunity at the King Power Stadium.
With both sides struggling at the wrong end of the table, this laborious goalless draw lived down to expectations, but the Foxes had both home advantage and the greater need for points and will be frustrated not to have gathered a desperately-needed win.
They were second best for most of the game, but when Huddlestone was dismissed for a second booking in the 71st minute they had a priceless chance to redefine their faltering campaign.
Manager Nigel Pearson, a less-than-beloved former Hull boss, emptied his bench of attackers in pursuit of three points but the stalemate endured.
SUNDERLAND 0 ASTON VILLA 4
Christian Benteke and Gabriel Agbonlahor combined to leave Gus Poyet’s job hanging by a thread as Aston Villa tore Sunderland apart.
Villa, who had scored only four Barclays Premier League goals on the road all season, doubled their tally inside 44 remarkable minutes, and but for a glaring miss by Scott Sinclair, could have led 5-0 at the break.
However, doubles from Benteke - his first ended a 614-minute wait for an away goal in the league - and Agbonlahor gave them a commanding lead they never looked like surrendering as they ran out 4-0 winners.
That left Poyet, who was confronted by angry supporters close to his dug-out, to walk the gauntlet as the locals among a crowd of 45,746 - the biggest of the season - at the Stadium of Light, voted with their feet with many leaving long before the final whistle.
WEST BROM 1 STOKE 0
Brown Ideye’s first-half winner sealed a narrow 1-0 victory for West Brom as Tony Pulis returned to haunt Stoke again.
The striker’s seventh goal of the season settled the game to move the Baggies 11 points clear of the Premier League relegation zone.
Former manager Pulis - who also beat Stoke 1-0 while at Crystal Palace last season - saw Albion recover from back-to-back defeats against Aston Villa.
They were also denied a penalty after Craig Dawson appeared to be fouled in the box and Ideye had a goal disallowed.
CRYSTAL PALACE 3 QPR 1
Crystal Palace pushed QPR deeper into the relegation mire with a 3-1 victory over their London rivals at Selhurst Park.
Alan Pardew’s side swept into a three-goal lead by half-time thanks to strikes from Wilfried Zaha, James McArthur and Joel Ward.
Matt Phillips produced one of the goals of the season in the closing stages, but the winger’s brilliant drive, from at least 40 yards out, came too late to spark a QPR fightback.
QPR’s fourth successive Premier League loss extended their miserable run to nine defeats in their last 10 games, leaving the west Londoners third bottom and three points from safety.
While QPR have shown no signs of improvement since Chris Ramsey replaced Harry Redknapp as manager in February, Palace have been in the ascendency since Pardew took over from Neil Warnock.
The Eagles look certain to retain their top-flight status for another season after moving 11 points clear of the bottom three.
Shaun Wright-Phillips made his first Premier League start in more than two years, but the 33-year-old’s presence failed to spark an improvement from QPR.
Palace took the lead in the 21st minute when Yannick Bolasie sent a low, driven cross to the far post, where Zaha turned home under pressure.
It was a goal that came at a cost, though, as the winger’s momentum meant he suffered a nasty collision with the post, leading to several minutes of medical attention.
Pardew’s team doubled their lead five minutes before half-time as Bolasie was again allowed to send over a cross and this time McArthur got ahead of Yun Suk-young to tap home from close range.
QPR’s dismal collapse did not stop there. Zaha was running riot and, despite being hassled by three QPR players, was still able to cut back for Ward, whose shot under pressure from Sandro snuck into the far corner.
With the points effectively in the bag, Palace rarely needed to break sweat in the second half before Phillips injected some life into proceedings, hitting a remarkable drive past Speroni from just inside the Eagles’ half.
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