Chelsea 2-0 Hull
Eden Hazard and Diego Costa were both on target for Chelsea, who retained their three-point lead at the summit of the Barclays Premier League on Saturday.
The ‘Blues’ returned to winning ways post-Newcastle setback but a diving incident involving defender Gary Cahill appeared to have dented the leaders’ image, as Tom Huddleston earned for himself a red card for an innocuous challenge on Felipe Luis, both in the second half.
The mere sighting of such blatant indecision on the part of centre referee Chris Foy, who could have sent Cahill off, fueled debates- both in the dugout, among pundits, analysts and football enthusiast, but the hosts topped the contest neverless.
Hazard capped off Chelsea’s early moments of sustained pressure with just his second headed league goal and his 6th of the season; having found enough space in the ‘Tigers’s’ area, he thumped home from Oscar cross.
Costa completed scoring eight minutes after the hour-mark, burying his one-time finish from close range from a weighted in pass from Hazard.
Jose Mourinho is now the first manager to reach 400 points in the English top-flight in the fewest matches, following his side’s victory in his 174th game in charge of the Stamford Bridge side.
West Brom 1-0 Villa
Craig Gardner’s first goal for West Bromwich Albion secured victory in the midland derby against 10-man Aston Villa at the Horthons.
Villa’s Kieran Richardson was sent off in the first half against his former club after a challenge on Stephane Sessegnon.
Burnley 1-0 Southampton
Burnley moved off the bottom three with a morale-boosting win against Southampton. Ashley Barnes grabbed the game’s solitary goal following some horrible defensive show from Southampton, who have now lost their last four matches.
Sunderland 1-1 West Ham
First half goals by Jordi Gomez and Stewart Downing saw Sunderland share the spoils with visiting West Ham.
Leicester 0-1 Man City
Frank Lampard grabbed his 175th career Premier League goal as Manchester City maintained their challenge for successive title.
Lampard moved up joint-fourth with Thierry Henry on the list of leading goalscorers of all-time in the English top-flight behind Alan Shearer, Andy Cole and Wayne Rooney.
The ex-Chelsea midfielder guided home Sami Nasri’s pass to earn maximum points for the Cityzens as Leicester continue to search for their first victory in ten games- their last win being the 5-3 beating of Manchester United at home in September.
Striker Eden Dzeko pulled a calf muscle in the warm-up and captain Vincent Kompany, who was only making a return from injury, could not complete the closing minutes with what appeared a hamstring sprain.
Lampard now has 6 goals for the champions and look set for an extended loan spell at the Etihad Stadium, with Yaya Toure headed for the Africa Cup of Nations nest month.
Palace 1-1 Stoke
Two goals in two minutes by James McArthur and Peter Crouch ensured both Crystal Palace and Stoke City snatch a point from their Week 16 encounter.
