A quickfire Wayne Rooney hat-trick rescued Manchester United on Saturday as they stormed seven points clear at the top of the Premier League after coming from two goals down to beat West Ham United 4-2. Their march towards a record 19th top-flight title was helped by second-placed Arsenal failing to break down Blackburn Rovers in a 0-0 draw at The Emirates.
-- Chelsea title hopes all but over after draw at Stoke
-- Arsenal drop points after being held by Blackburn
Chelsea's hopes of retaining their title are all but over after being held 1-1 at Stoke City. The Londoners trail the leaders by 11 points in third spot. Manchester United have 66 points from 31 matches, ahead of Arsenal with 59 from 30 and Chelsea on 55 from 30.
West Ham looked like recording a second victory over United this season, following a 4-0 rout in the League Cup, as sloppy mistakes by Patrice Evra and Nemanja Vidic gave away two penalties in the opening 25 minutes that Mark Noble converted.
Revived by the introduction of Javier Hernandez and Dimitar Berbatov and lucky to still have Vidic on the pitch after the Serb escaped a red card for bringing down Demba Ba when the striker was set to go clear on goal, United fought back.
Rooney curled in a free kick midway through the second half before levelling with a low drive. The England striker completed a 14-minute treble by converting a penalty given for Matthew Upson's unlucky handball. Rooney's joy at scoring his first league hat-trick of a below-par season culminated in him having to apologise for swearing on live television while celebrating. One thing running high at The Emirates was Arsenal midfielder Samir Nasri's huge bump on his head which bulged through his bandage when he opted to play on in the second period following a first-half clash of heads.
Arsenal's best chance came late on when a Nicklas Bendtner shot was blocked on the line and they could not make the most of Steven N'Zonzi's 76th-minute sending off for a two-footed challenge as relegation-threatened Blackburn held firm.
Chelsea were similarly frustrated at Stoke and went behind to a Jonathan Walters goal. Although Didier Drogba pulled one back with a header in the 33rd minute, only the most optimistic fan could agree with manager Carlo Ancelotti's view that the title race was not over. West Bromwich Albion jumped from 16th to 12th after manager Roy Hodgson masterminded a 2-1 win over his former club Liverpool.
While West Ham's defeat plunged them deep into relegation trouble, Birmingham City clambered out of the bottom three and up to 15th with a 2-1 home victory over Bolton Wanderers.
In the battle for Champions League places, Tottenham Hotspur stayed fifth after a 0-0 draw at bottom club Wigan Athletic, leaving them three points behind Manchester City who host Sunderland on Sunday. Spurs and City have both played 30 games. Aston Villa could only draw 2-2 at Everton and are just two points above the relegation zone while Newcastle United thumped second-from-bottom Wolverhampton Wanderers 4-1.