Chelsea up to second
Published:Thursday | April 21, 2011 | 12:00 AM
LONDON (AP):
Chelsea overtook Arsenal as Manchester United's closest rival for the English Premier League title yesterday after the Gunners surrendered a two-goal lead to draw 3-3 at Tottenham.
Arsenal led 3-1 but Tom Huddlestone got a goal back before half-time and Rafael van der Vaart equalised with a 70th-minute penalty to push their fiercest rivals down to third place in the standings.
goal difference
Defending champions Chelsea moved above Arsenal on goal difference after Florent Malouda scored either side of a goal by Salomon Kalou for a straightforward 3-1 win over Birmingham.
United are six points ahead of their rivals with five games remaining, but must still play both sides.
"Chelsea's now back in the race," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said. "It's down to us to keep our faith and keep battling. We'll not always draw when we score three goals."
But Arsenal have now drawn four of their last five Premier League matches, with three straight games at home exactly accounting for the margin now between themselves and United.