LONDON: Liverpool stuttered again
by conceding a late equaliser to draw 1-1 at Wigan Athletic while
Salomon Kalou’s second-half double against Middlesbrough moved Chelsea
up to second in the Premier League on Wednesday.
Liverpool
wasted the chance to go level on points with leaders Manchester United
after on-loan Egyptian striker Mido converted an 83rd-minute penalty on
his debut to earn Wigan a point at the JJB Stadium.
Ivory Coast
striker Kalou struck after 58 and 81 minutes to increase
Middlesbrough’s relegation worries at a rain-lashed Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea
have 48 points from 23 matches, two behind United who thrashed bottom
side West Bromwich Albion 5-0 on Tuesday and have played one game fewer
than their pursuers.
Liverpool also have 48 points but Rafael
Benitez’s side have drawn three successive matches and have picked up
11 points from a possible 21 over their last seven matches.
Spain
striker Fernando Torres hit the inside of the post with a glancing
header early on at Wigan but Liverpool were rewarded for their
first-half dominance four minutes before the break when Israeli Yossi
Benayoun latched on to a Javier Mascherano pass to score from a tight
angle.
But one goal was not enough to claim three points as
Mido, who moved from Middlesbrough last week, scored from the spot
after Lucas had brought down Jason Koumas.
The introduction of
striker Didier Drogba, again only handed a place on the bench by
manager Luiz Felipe Scolari, at the start of the second half provided
Chelsea with the attacking impetus to breakdown a resilient
Middlesbrough.
Drogba forced Chris Riggott into a rash challenge
that earned the defender a booking and soon after the London side broke
the deadlock when a corner was only half cleared and Kalou lashed in.
Chelsea’s second also came from a corner with an unmarked Kalou steering in Frank Lampard’s cross.
Fifth-placed
Arsenal’s fading title hopes suffered another blow despite Robin van
Persie rescuing a point with a last-gasp equaliser in a 1-1 draw at
Goodison Park against sixth-placed Everton.
“Our character
allowed us to get a point,” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said after
van Persie’s goal cancelled out Tim Cahill’s fine header.
Britain’s
most expensive footballer Robinho, arrested earlier this week over
allegations of serious sexual assault, played his part in Manchester
City’s 2-1 win over Newcastle United.
Brazil striker Robinho,
who has denied any wrongdoing or criminality, was given a warm
reception by City fans at Eastlands and it was his pass that set up
Shaun Wright-Phillips for a 17th-minute opener.
Wales striker
Craig Bellamy, who joined from West Ham United last week, marked his
debut with a second-half goal before Andy Carroll replied for
struggling Newcastle who remain just two points above the drop zone.
In other games, West Ham United beat Hull City 2-0 and Blackburn Rovers drew 2-2 at home with Bolton Wanderers. — Reuters
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