LONDON - Arsenal was dislodged from the Premier League's top four by Chelsea after a late collapse at Fulham on Monday while its London rival beat Wolverhampton Wanderers to end a four-match run without a win.
Fulham's comeback to secure a 2-1 victory over 10-man Arsenal began in the 85th minute with Steve Sidwell's leveller followed by Bobby Zamora's stoppage-time winner.
Arsenal led following Laurent Koscielny's 21st-minute header but was clearly shaken by Johan Djourou's sending off in the 78th.
Earlier in the day, Chelsea appeared set to drop points when Stephen Ward cancelled out Ramires' goal in the 84th minute, but Frank Lampard produced a late goal to secure a 2-1 win.
Chelsea now has a one-point advantage over Arsenal in fourth, but is eight points behind the pace-setters: Manchester rivals City and United.
The focus turns back to the title race on Tuesday night, with City — leaders on goal difference — taking on Liverpool and third-place Tottenham hosting West Bromwich Albion.
For Arsenal just capturing one of the four Champions League places is the priority for a club that used to be a regular Premier League title contender.
Despite an injury crisis in defence, the Gunners had looked like building on its victory over Queens Park Rangers on Saturday when Koscielny headed in his first goal in almost a year at Craven Cottage.
Fulham had squandered several chances to equalize when the game turned in the hosts' favour with Djourou's second yellow card. Having already been booked for catching Sidwell in the 63rd, he went for pulling back Zamora on the edge of the penalty area.
"The first yellow (for Djourou), I felt the referee got all wrong," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said.
Compounding Wenger's misery was two former Arsenal players combining to produce the equalizer.
Wojciech Szczesny pushed a corner out to Philippe Senderos, who nodded the ball forward to Sidwell to head home.
And in the second minute of stoppage time, Zamora buried the ball in the bottom corner of the net after Sebastien Squillaci failed to fully clear Stephen Kelly's cross.
"We've been working hard all season and haven't got the home results we want but this caps all our hard work," said Zamora, whose side was routed 5-0 by United two weeks ago. "My ankle and opposite Achilles have been playing up — I've had to have a jab in it to sort it out."
On a frustrating day for Wenger, the pressure eased on his Chelsea counterpart Andre Villas-Boas — thanks to Lampard's late winner.
But the midfielder was fortunate not to have been sent off for a sliding challenge on Wolves winger Adam Hammill midway through the first half.
"My heart was in my mouth over that challenge. I have to admit that," he said. "There was no malice, and I honestly mean that, but I was late and I might have been a bit lucky to stay on the pitch."
Ramires put Chelsea in front in the 54th minute, holding off Stephen Ward's challenge before firing the ball into the roof of the net.
Chelsea's players made a point of celebrating with Villas-Boas, who has endured a mixed first season in charge.
"It's just part of them showing the unity of the team," said Villas-Boas, whose side lost to Aston Villa on Saturday. "This team is focused on getting the consistency in terms of getting the results. If we go on a winning streak of five or six games, which we are capable of, we can be fighting for this league."
In beating Manchester United on Saturday, Blackburn emulated Villa for shock value, but they were brought down to earth by home defeats on Monday.
Blackburn's goal was breached twice in the first half by Peter Crouch as Stoke won 2-1 at Ewood Park. Substitute David Goodwillie pulled one back in the second half, but couldn't prevent Blackburn's third successive home defeat.
Villa was overtaken by Swansea in 11th place after the Welsh club's 2-1 win in the Midlands ended its search for an away success this season.
Nathan Dyer scored after just four minutes and Wayne Routledge added his first goal for Swansea within two minutes of the restart.
Norwich won a battle of promoted sides, coming from behind to beat 10-man QPR 2-1 at Loftus Road.
Captain Joey Barton put QPR in front but later in the first half lost his cool and his place on the pitch with an apparent headbutt on Norwich midfielder Bradley Johnson.
"Hopefully referee sees it retrospectively and sees he's been conned," Barton said on Twitter.
Norwich made its numerical advantage count as Anthony Pilkington equalized with a long-range shot before half time and Steve Morison scored the winner after the break, leaving QPR without a win in eight league matches.
Fulham's comeback to secure a 2-1 victory over 10-man Arsenal began in the 85th minute with Steve Sidwell's leveller followed by Bobby Zamora's stoppage-time winner.
Arsenal led following Laurent Koscielny's 21st-minute header but was clearly shaken by Johan Djourou's sending off in the 78th.
Earlier in the day, Chelsea appeared set to drop points when Stephen Ward cancelled out Ramires' goal in the 84th minute, but Frank Lampard produced a late goal to secure a 2-1 win.
Chelsea now has a one-point advantage over Arsenal in fourth, but is eight points behind the pace-setters: Manchester rivals City and United.
The focus turns back to the title race on Tuesday night, with City — leaders on goal difference — taking on Liverpool and third-place Tottenham hosting West Bromwich Albion.
For Arsenal just capturing one of the four Champions League places is the priority for a club that used to be a regular Premier League title contender.
Despite an injury crisis in defence, the Gunners had looked like building on its victory over Queens Park Rangers on Saturday when Koscielny headed in his first goal in almost a year at Craven Cottage.
Fulham had squandered several chances to equalize when the game turned in the hosts' favour with Djourou's second yellow card. Having already been booked for catching Sidwell in the 63rd, he went for pulling back Zamora on the edge of the penalty area.
"The first yellow (for Djourou), I felt the referee got all wrong," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said.
Compounding Wenger's misery was two former Arsenal players combining to produce the equalizer.
Wojciech Szczesny pushed a corner out to Philippe Senderos, who nodded the ball forward to Sidwell to head home.
And in the second minute of stoppage time, Zamora buried the ball in the bottom corner of the net after Sebastien Squillaci failed to fully clear Stephen Kelly's cross.
"We've been working hard all season and haven't got the home results we want but this caps all our hard work," said Zamora, whose side was routed 5-0 by United two weeks ago. "My ankle and opposite Achilles have been playing up — I've had to have a jab in it to sort it out."
On a frustrating day for Wenger, the pressure eased on his Chelsea counterpart Andre Villas-Boas — thanks to Lampard's late winner.
But the midfielder was fortunate not to have been sent off for a sliding challenge on Wolves winger Adam Hammill midway through the first half.
"My heart was in my mouth over that challenge. I have to admit that," he said. "There was no malice, and I honestly mean that, but I was late and I might have been a bit lucky to stay on the pitch."
Ramires put Chelsea in front in the 54th minute, holding off Stephen Ward's challenge before firing the ball into the roof of the net.
Chelsea's players made a point of celebrating with Villas-Boas, who has endured a mixed first season in charge.
"It's just part of them showing the unity of the team," said Villas-Boas, whose side lost to Aston Villa on Saturday. "This team is focused on getting the consistency in terms of getting the results. If we go on a winning streak of five or six games, which we are capable of, we can be fighting for this league."
In beating Manchester United on Saturday, Blackburn emulated Villa for shock value, but they were brought down to earth by home defeats on Monday.
Blackburn's goal was breached twice in the first half by Peter Crouch as Stoke won 2-1 at Ewood Park. Substitute David Goodwillie pulled one back in the second half, but couldn't prevent Blackburn's third successive home defeat.
Villa was overtaken by Swansea in 11th place after the Welsh club's 2-1 win in the Midlands ended its search for an away success this season.
Nathan Dyer scored after just four minutes and Wayne Routledge added his first goal for Swansea within two minutes of the restart.
Norwich won a battle of promoted sides, coming from behind to beat 10-man QPR 2-1 at Loftus Road.
Captain Joey Barton put QPR in front but later in the first half lost his cool and his place on the pitch with an apparent headbutt on Norwich midfielder Bradley Johnson.
"Hopefully referee sees it retrospectively and sees he's been conned," Barton said on Twitter.
Norwich made its numerical advantage count as Anthony Pilkington equalized with a long-range shot before half time and Steve Morison scored the winner after the break, leaving QPR without a win in eight league matches.
Zamora sinks Arsenal as Fulham fightback
- Chelsea's English midfielder Frank Lampard (L) celebrates scoring his winning goal …
Fulham's English striker Bobby Zamora (L) vies with Arsenal's French midfielder Francis …
Bobby Zamora struck an injury-time winner as Fulham stunned 10-man Arsenal 2-1 to derail the Gunners' recent Premier League resurgence on Monday.
Zamora swept home the winning goal in the third minute of stoppage time at Craven Cottage after Steve Sidwell had struck an 85th-minute equaliser to cancel out Laurent Koscielny's 21st minute opener.
Arsenal paid the price for failing to capitalise on a dominant first half when they carved out a series of clear chances only to be denied by some superb keeping from David Stockdale.
Fulham's grandstand finish came after Johan Djourou was sent off for a second bookable offence 12 minutes from time, a red card which encouraged the Cottagers to swarm forward in pursuit of an equaliser.
Furious Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger blamed his team's profligacy and refereeing decisions for the defeat.
"We missed many chances and had some bad decisions from the referee today. The two together made the difference," Wenger said, decrying Djourou's dismissal as a "joke."
"I felt the referee got it all wrong," he said. "It's very difficult to swallow because I don't think we deserved to lose today."
The defeat was only Arsenal's second reverse in 13 games and saw Wenger's men drop down to fifth after Chelsea scored a dramatic late win at Wolves, Frank Lampard striking an 89th-minute winner in a 2-1 win.
A feisty encounter saw Chelsea take the lead through Ramires on 54 minutes, and Chelsea's players celebrated by racing over to embrace under-fire boss Andre Villas-Boas in a show of support for the Portuguese manager.
However Wolves looked to have grabbed a share of the points when Stephen Ward struck six minutes from time only for Lampard to rescue Chelsea at the death.
"It's a massive win. Everyone knows we are having a tough time but the determination shone through and I think we deserved it," Lampard told the BBC. "The character showed as we battled through to the end and that is what the players are all about."
Villas-Boas meanwhile refused to single out Lampard for praise.
"The players were magnificent today, no matter who scores," Villas-Boas said. "It's a good solid team win."
Elsewhere, Blackburn were brought down to earth following their away win over Manchester United at the weekend after suffering a 2-1 defeat to Stoke at Ewood Park, Peter Crouch scoring twice for the visitors.
Blackburn looked to have got off to a dream start only for Christopher Samba's early effort to be ruled offside.
Stoke then went ahead with Crouch netting his 100th league goal from close range after Blackburn failed to deal with Dean Whitehead's chip forward.
Crouch then doubled Stoke's lead with his second of the match on 45 minutes to leave Rovers staring at their eighth home defeat of the season.
David Goodwillie scrambled one back in the 69th minute to give Rovers hope but the home side were unable to find an equaliser.
Aston Villa's feelgood factor from their win at Chelsea was also shattered, with newly promoted Swansea scoring a 2-0 win at Villa Park.
Swansea went ahead after only four minutes, Nathan Dyer punishing some slack defending from Stephen Warnock to dart forward and finish past Brad Guzan.
Former Villa old boy Wayne Routledge then doubled Swansea's lead two minutes after the restart, punishing a poor clearance from Guzan after Danny Graham's shot crashed back off the post.
QPR captain Joey Barton was hero and villain at Loftus Road as Rangers crashed to a 2-1 loss to Norwich, a defeat that edged Neil Warnock's side ever closer to the relegation zone.
Barton shot Rangers ahead on 11 minutes, drilling in a low finish from Clint Hill's cross.
But Barton's joy turned to despair on 36 minutes, when the midfielder was sent off for an apparent head butt in a confontation with Bradley Johnson.
It got worse for Rangers moments later, Anthony Pilkington netting his fifth goal of the season to level it for Norwich.
The knockout blow from Norwich came seven minutes from time, substitute Steve Morison grabbing the winner to end a desperate rearguard action from Rangers.
Barton later accused match officials of being "conned" into sending him off.
"Well feel for the officials, they've been conned. Admitted to me at HT they never saw it. I was pulled back 1st, then kicked 2nd!," Barton wrote on Twitter shortly after the final whistle.
Zamora swept home the winning goal in the third minute of stoppage time at Craven Cottage after Steve Sidwell had struck an 85th-minute equaliser to cancel out Laurent Koscielny's 21st minute opener.
Arsenal paid the price for failing to capitalise on a dominant first half when they carved out a series of clear chances only to be denied by some superb keeping from David Stockdale.
Fulham's grandstand finish came after Johan Djourou was sent off for a second bookable offence 12 minutes from time, a red card which encouraged the Cottagers to swarm forward in pursuit of an equaliser.
Furious Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger blamed his team's profligacy and refereeing decisions for the defeat.
"We missed many chances and had some bad decisions from the referee today. The two together made the difference," Wenger said, decrying Djourou's dismissal as a "joke."
"I felt the referee got it all wrong," he said. "It's very difficult to swallow because I don't think we deserved to lose today."
The defeat was only Arsenal's second reverse in 13 games and saw Wenger's men drop down to fifth after Chelsea scored a dramatic late win at Wolves, Frank Lampard striking an 89th-minute winner in a 2-1 win.
A feisty encounter saw Chelsea take the lead through Ramires on 54 minutes, and Chelsea's players celebrated by racing over to embrace under-fire boss Andre Villas-Boas in a show of support for the Portuguese manager.
However Wolves looked to have grabbed a share of the points when Stephen Ward struck six minutes from time only for Lampard to rescue Chelsea at the death.
"It's a massive win. Everyone knows we are having a tough time but the determination shone through and I think we deserved it," Lampard told the BBC. "The character showed as we battled through to the end and that is what the players are all about."
Villas-Boas meanwhile refused to single out Lampard for praise.
"The players were magnificent today, no matter who scores," Villas-Boas said. "It's a good solid team win."
Elsewhere, Blackburn were brought down to earth following their away win over Manchester United at the weekend after suffering a 2-1 defeat to Stoke at Ewood Park, Peter Crouch scoring twice for the visitors.
Blackburn looked to have got off to a dream start only for Christopher Samba's early effort to be ruled offside.
Stoke then went ahead with Crouch netting his 100th league goal from close range after Blackburn failed to deal with Dean Whitehead's chip forward.
Crouch then doubled Stoke's lead with his second of the match on 45 minutes to leave Rovers staring at their eighth home defeat of the season.
David Goodwillie scrambled one back in the 69th minute to give Rovers hope but the home side were unable to find an equaliser.
Aston Villa's feelgood factor from their win at Chelsea was also shattered, with newly promoted Swansea scoring a 2-0 win at Villa Park.
Swansea went ahead after only four minutes, Nathan Dyer punishing some slack defending from Stephen Warnock to dart forward and finish past Brad Guzan.
Former Villa old boy Wayne Routledge then doubled Swansea's lead two minutes after the restart, punishing a poor clearance from Guzan after Danny Graham's shot crashed back off the post.
QPR captain Joey Barton was hero and villain at Loftus Road as Rangers crashed to a 2-1 loss to Norwich, a defeat that edged Neil Warnock's side ever closer to the relegation zone.
Barton shot Rangers ahead on 11 minutes, drilling in a low finish from Clint Hill's cross.
But Barton's joy turned to despair on 36 minutes, when the midfielder was sent off for an apparent head butt in a confontation with Bradley Johnson.
It got worse for Rangers moments later, Anthony Pilkington netting his fifth goal of the season to level it for Norwich.
The knockout blow from Norwich came seven minutes from time, substitute Steve Morison grabbing the winner to end a desperate rearguard action from Rangers.
Barton later accused match officials of being "conned" into sending him off.
"Well feel for the officials, they've been conned. Admitted to me at HT they never saw it. I was pulled back 1st, then kicked 2nd!," Barton wrote on Twitter shortly after the final whistle.
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