Source: Daily_Mail
PREMIER LEAGUE LIVE: Follow all the action from around the grounds as it happens
Follow Sportsmail's live coverage of the Barclays Premier League where there are five 3pm kick-offs to start off today's action. These include Manchester City v Aston Villa, Stoke v Fulham, Sunderland v Blackpool, Tottenham v Newcastle and West Brom v Blackburn. Email me all your thoughts on the action at dan.ripley@dailymail.co.uk[LNB] [LNB]Premier League (3pm)Manchester City 4-0 Aston Villa FT[LNB]Stoke 0-2 Fulham FT[LNB]Sunderland 0-2 Blackpool FT[LNB]Tottenham 2-0 Newcastle FT[LNB]West Brom 1-3 Blackburn FT[LNB]17.00: And just as big changes down at the bottom. Fulham's win sees them climb out the drop zone into 16th, with Birmingham, who play later, dropping into the bottom three.[LNB]Villa's latest defeat sees them sit 15th but now just two points clear of the relegation zone.[LNB]That's it from me here but click here to follow Sportsmail's live coverage of West Ham v Everton, thank your following.[LNB]16.57: Big changes in the Premier league. Manchester City go top of the table sitting a point ahead of Manchester United, albeit having played three more games.[LNB]Chelsea drop to fifth after Spurs' victory sees them go two points clear of the Blues in fourth.[LNB]16.54: Full-time: Sunderland 0-2 BlackpoolFull-time: West Brom 1-3 Blackburn[LNB]16.53: Full-time: Manchester City 4-0 Aston VillaFull-time Tottenham 2-0 Newcastle[LNB]16.52: GOAL! Sunderland 0-2 BLACKPOOL[LNB]I'm speechless...The Seasiders counter and despite doing his best to miss DJ Campbell converts from inside the box. A penny for Steve Bruce's thoughts.[LNB]16.51: Full-time: Stoke 0-2 Fulham[LNB]16.48: And another chance for Sunderland! Bent rifles in a free-kcik but once again Kingson is alert enough to prevent the home side scoring, incredible it really is.[LNB]16.46: RED CARD (Gabriel Tamas, West Brom)[LNB]16.45: How have Sunderland not scored! Darren Bent is the latest culprit as he forces Kingson into yet another reflex save from close range.[LNB]16.42: Stoke have been all over Fulham this half but the away side have been inspired at the back, especially through Brede Hangeland who has thrown his body at everything the Potters have bombarded towards the Cottagers goal.[LNB] Pure delight: Tottenham moved into the top four thanks to their win over Newcastle[LNB]16.40: GOAL! TOTTENHAM 2-0 Newcastle[LNB]That should be that for Spurs, Gareth Bale goes on one of those runs again, storming past Danny Simpson before rifling in past Krul.[LNB]Marching orders: Younes Kaboul was sent off for violent conduct in the second half[LNB]16.39: It may be his first start but Bunn still knows all the tricks as he gets booked for time wasting. West Brom fans are furious with their team as they look no closer to getting a goal back.[LNB]16.37: Spurs could be out of sight, ex-Newcastle man Jenas lays in Lennon but in a similar position to the one he scored from can't hit the target.[LNB]16.34: Brilliant chance for West Brom to pull a goal back, Bunn does well to force a save but from three yards out Simon Cox can only header the rebound down onto the ground and over.[LNB]16.32: Sunderland piling on the pressure and sub Steed Malbranque's shot forces a fantastic reflex save from Kingson.[LNB]16.28: Sebastien Bassong is on for Pavlyuchenko as Spurs attempt to see out a game with 10 men for the second game running.[LNB]At the Stadium of Light, Cathcartmisses a good chance to give the Seasiders a two goal lead when hecrashes his header into the side netting.[LNB]16.26: No complaints from either of those, Kalinic is off for a straight red after a nasty late challenge on Paul Scharner.[LNB]Kaboul clashes with Cheik Tiote and he cops a second booking.[LNB] 16.25: RED CARD (Younes Kaboul, Tottenham)[LNB]16.24: RED CARD (Nikola Kalinic, Blackburn)[LNB] Rover the moon: Mame Diouf celebrates Blackburn's third goal[LNB]16.22: GOAL! West Brom 1-3 BLACKBURN[LNB]Make no mistake, what a win this could be for Rovers and Steve Kean. Mame Diouf converts a well hit cross from his namesake El Hadji from close range to give the visitors some breathing space.[LNB]16.19: Campbell finally got his goal but Gyan continues to spurn chances. The latest is from six yards out where he fires over the bar, I still fancy more goals in that one.[LNB]16.16: GOAL! TOTTENHAM 1-0 Newcastle[LNB]Younes Kaboul plays a ball out to Aaron Lennon who dances past James Perch before firing into the corner. That game had 0-0 written all over it before.[LNB] Super Mario: Manchester City's Mario Balotelli celebrates his hat-trick after converting his second penalty[LNB]16.14: GOAL! MANCHESTER CITY 4-0 Aston Villa[LNB]Marc Albrighton tangles with Johnson in the box and Mario Balotelli steps up to convert another penalty and grab his hat-trick. The fourth Italian in the Premier League to do so.[LNB]16.14: PENALTY (Manchester City)[LNB]16.13: GOAL! West Brom 1-2 BLACKBURN[LNB]Good response from Blackburn, Ryan Nelsen heads across goal and Nikola Kalinic fires Rovers back in front.[LNB] Eat my goal: DJ Campbell (centre) celebrates putting Blackpool ahead at Sunderland[LNB]16.11: GOAL! Sunderland 0-1 BLACKPOOL[LNB]He has had enough chances to score this afternoon but to his credit DJ Campbell finally makes his mark, Blackpool continue to surprise everyone.[LNB]16.09: Call of duty immediately for Bunn, who has to pounce low to his near post to push away a Peter Odemwingie effort.[LNB]16.08: Already a chance for Stoke, Jermaine Pennant's free-kick takes a deflection off Murphy but manages to flash just wide of a beaten Mark Schwarzer's post.[LNB]16.07: Also at the Hawthorns, Paul Robinson has had to go off and Mark Bunn is on in his place making his first Premier League appearance. He is in for a busy afternoon. [LNB]16.05: Change for Spurs at the start of the second-half, Jermaine Jenas is on for Palacios who unsurprisingly was booked in the first half.[LNB]16.03: Back underway in the Premier League, Aston Villa comeback anyone? Okay that is unrealistic but every other game is up for grabs![LNB]16.00: I thought that was too good to be true, InfoStradaLive have quickly informed us that the last stat counts away matches only. Boooo![LNB]15.59: Fulham fans you are in uncharted territory here, as our friends at InfoStradaLive will explain:[LNB]This is the first time in #EPL history that Fulham lead by a 2-goal margin at half time. @fulhamfc #premierleague #football[LNB]15.56: No signs of Balotelli's unhappiness effecting his performance. He may not put in the Tevez effort but his class is undeniable.[LNB]As for Villa, Gerard Houllier has a big half-time team talk to give. It just gets worse for them.[LNB] Same old story: El-Hadji Diouf shows little Christmas cheer towards ref Phil Dowd[LNB]15.53: How there has not been a goal at the Stadium of Light I don't know, DJ Campbell and Gyan have spurned a number of chances for either side and I cannot see that finishing goalless.[LNB]15.50: Half-time: Sunderland 0-0 Fulham[LNB]15.49: Half-time: Tottenham 0-0 NewcastleHalf-time: Stoke 0-2 FulhamHalf-time: West Brom 1-1 Blackburn[LNB]15.48: Chance for Spurs, Alan Hutton sends a great cross into the box and Pavlyuchenko's header is well stopped by a sprawling Krul.[LNB]15.47: Half-time: Manchester City 3-0 Aston Villa[LNB]15.45: Fulham still two goals ahead but they have Danny Murphy to thank for it. Ryan Shawcross' effort on goal from a Matthew Etherington corner is goal bound until the ex-Liverpool midfielder clears off the line.[LNB] No way through: Sunderland's Gyan (centre) spurned a number of first-half opportunities[LNB]15.42: Blackpool should be ahead, DJ Campbell does well to run into the box but his right foot shot across Gordon's goal flashes just wide.[LNB]15.39: Rafael van der Vaart strikes a 25 yard free-kick that produces a smart save from Tim Krul in the Newcastle goal who tips the effort over the bar. He has not had too much to do this match to be fair.[LNB]15.36: Villa are heading for a hiding. Adam Johnson dances in from the right flank and squares the ball for David Silva. The Spaniard goes for goal but it takes a heavy deflection and just falls just wide of Friedel's left post.[LNB]15.33: Big chance for Blackpool but they choke. Matt Phillips who is on for Elliot Grandin cuts inside from the right, and picks out DJ Campbell on the edge of the box.[LNB]He delays his shot too long though and is crowded out by the Black Cats defence. It was a good chance to score that.[LNB] Surprise skipper: Newcastle's Joey Barton (left) challenges for the ball with Tottenhams's Wilson Palacios[LNB]15.30: Sunderland should be in front. Asamoah Gyan takes advantage of a collision between Craig Cathcart and Richard Kingson, but with the angle to goal reducing he can only find the side netting.[LNB]15.28: GOAL! MANCHESTER CITY 3-0 Aston Villa[LNB]He has sure shut me up. Villa are in free-fall and after Brad Friedel fails to properly clear a Yaya Toure effort, Mario Balotelli is on hand to hit his second of the afternoon.[LNB]15.25: It's all long ball from both teams at the Lane. Andy Carroll and Roman Pavlyuchenko are acting like magnets up front and I won't be surprised if the midfield from both sides end this game with sore necks.[LNB]15.22: Our own Ian Ladyman and his opinion on that second goal at Eastlands:[LNB]2-0 city. Tough call for linesman as bannan headed off line. Prob got it just right. #mcfc #avfc[LNB]15.19: Tottenham with more of the play at the Lane but Newcastle will be happy that they are not under too much pressure[LNB]Likewise at Sunderland, Blackpool are so far containing the Black Cats.[LNB] Sliding in: Jerome Thomas equalises for West Brom against Blackburn[LNB]15.17: GOAL! WEST BROM 1-1 Blackburn[LNB]Boing, Boing, Baggies! Somen Tchoyi whips in a cross and it's Jerome Thomas on hand to bundle in the equaliser. Just when things started looking up for Rovers caretaker boss Steve Kean as well.[LNB]15.13: GOAL! MANCHESTER CITY 2-0 Aston Villa[LNB]Slight controversy in this but either way City are cruising. Joleon Lescott close range header is debateable whether it crosses the line but on first looks it looks good to me. Awful defending from Villa though, they are standing like statutes too often.[LNB]15.11: GOAL! Stoke 0-2 FULHAM[LNB]What has Hughes fed his team before this match? Whatever it was, Chris Baird has had seconds as he pounces to score his second this afternoon.[LNB] Enlarge Spot of pressure: Mario Balotelli keeps his cool to fire Manchester City ahead[LNB]15.09: GOAL! MANCHESTER CITY 1-0 Aston Villa[LNB]My predictions are in tatters. This is impressive for a man who is not happy, Mario Balotelli picks himself up from an Eric Lichaj chellenge to convert a very casual but skilled penalty.[LNB]15.08: PENALTY (Manchester City)[LNB]15.07: Hands up, how many of you predicted them two as your first goalscorers?[LNB] Army spirit: Fulham celebrate Chris Baird's (third right) opening strike[LNB]15.05: GOAL! Stoke 0-1 FULHAM[LNB]And there is another. But what a strike this is! Chris Baird takes advantage of a poor Danny Collins clearance to hit a sweet half-volley that clips the post and goes in. Madness early on in the Premier league.[LNB]15.04: GOAL! West Brom 0-1 BLACKBURN[LNB]I wasn't expecting that. Nikola Kalinic takes advantage of some bad Baggies defending to open his body up and fire across Scott Carson.[LNB]15.01: We are underway in the Premier League...[LNB]14.59: Some quick predictions from me: [LNB]Manchester City 2-0 Aston Villa (No Balotelli goals)Stoke 2-0 FulhamSunderland 1-0 BlackpoolTottenham 2-2 NewcastleWest Brom 1-1 Blackburn[LNB]14.58: That is a bold call for Balotelli to be starting for City. If he sulks his way round the pitch again, I certainly would not back him staying after January.[LNB]14.56: By far the game of the day is at Eastlands.[LNB]Manchester City fluffed their lines when top spot was available against Everton but they must back themselves to go top this afternoon.[LNB]Villa are in dire form having lost four of their last five games and are in bad need of points to avoid a relegation scrap.[LNB]14.53: Any goal fans out there steer away from the Britannia. OptaJoe with the details:[LNB]1 - Five of the last seven league meetings between Stoke and Fulham have ended as 1-0 wins. Binary.[LNB]14.51: Worth noting at White Hart Lane that Joey Barton is skipper for Newcastle this afternoon.[LNB]The Toon Army don't have a bad record at Tottenham, having won two of their last three games there.[LNB]On the subject of strong benches those Spurs substitutes must have cost a few quid themselves.[LNB]14.49: How times change in football, those of you who looked at Chelsea's bench last night must have been shocked by the lack of resources and experience on it, despite the millions Roman Abramovich has pumped into the club.[LNB]But check out the subs at Eastlands, there is over £100Million worth of talent sitting there and it's this fixture congested time of year where that sort of strength in depth is going to pay dividends.[LNB]14.47: Blackburn were again without wantaway defender Christopher Samba for today's Barclays Premier League trip to West Brom.[LNB]The centre-half was stripped of the captaincy by manager Steve Kean before missing the Boxing Day defeat by Stoke with an ankle injury, which had not recovered sufficiently by the time he underwent a midday fitness test today.[LNB]Kean's only change saw Gael Givet drop to the bench and El-Hadji Diouf come in, while West Brom were without the suspended Chris Brunt, with Jerome Thomas replacing him following illness.[LNB]14.45: On the day doubts were raised about his long-term future at the club, Mario Balotelli is handed the chance to prove his worth to Manchester City in this afternoon's clash with Aston Villa.[LNB]With star man Carlos Tevez left on the bench to rest a tight hamstring, Balotelli is handed the sole striking role as City sought a win that would send them top of the table for at least five hours.[LNB]Skipper Stiliyan Petrov is recalled for Villa by under-fire boss Gerard Houllier but former City duo Richard Dunne and Stephen Ireland do not even make the midlanders' travelling squad for a fixture they have lost seven times out of their last eight visits.[LNB]14.43: Last but not least, the team news from Eastlands:[LNB]Man City v Aston VillaMan City: Hart, Richards, Kompany, Lescott, Zabaleta, Toure Yaya, De Jong, Vieira, Adam Johnson, Balotelli, Silva. Subs: Given, Bridge, Milner, Boateng, Barry, Jo, Tevez.Aston Villa: Friedel, Lichaj, Collins, Cuellar, Warnock, Albrighton, Reo-Coker, Petrov, Downing, Bannan, Agbonlahor. Subs: Guzan, Pires, Delfouneso, Delph, Clark, Hogg, Herd.Referee: Michael Oliver (Northumberland)[LNB]14.42: Roman Pavlyuchenko replaces the suspended Jermain Defoe in attack as Tottenham look to move into the Barclays Premier League top four with a win over Newcastle at White Hart Lane.[LNB]The Russian's introduction is the only change for the Londoners, who are once again without William Gallas after he failed to recover from a hamstring injury.[LNB]Alan Smith is brought in for banned Newcastle midfielder Kevin Nolan while a slight hamstring injury to Jose Enrique means James Perch fills in at left-back.[LNB]14.39: Sunderland manager Steve Bruce is able to draft the in-form Lee Cattermole and Danny Welbeck straight back into the starting line-up for this afternoon's Barclays Premier League clash with Blackpool.[LNB]Skipper Cattermole missed the Boxing Day trip to Manchester United through suspension, while Welbeck is ineligible under the terms of his loan agreement with the Old Trafford club.[LNB]They are joined by David Meyler as Cristian Riveros, Steed Malbranque and Bolo Zenden dropped to the bench alongside Titus Bramble, who is included after six weeks out with a knee injury.[LNB]Blackpool manager Ian Holloway replaces the suspended Charlie Adam with Ludovic Sylvestre and is also able to call upon a long-term absentee as Alex Baptiste returns to the bench after knee surgery with the Seasiders tasting action for the first time since December 11.[LNB]14.37: Team news from the Hawthorns and the Stadium of Light:[LNB]Sunderland v BlackpoolSunderland: Gordon, Elmohamady, Onuoha, Ferdinand, Bardsley, Henderson, Cattermole, Meyler, Welbeck, Bent, Gyan. Subs: Mignolet, Richardson, Zenden, Malbranque, Angeleri, Riveros, Bramble.Blackpool: Kingson, Eardley, Cathcart, Evatt, Crainey, Taylor-Fletcher, Vaughan, Sylvestre, Varney, Grandin, Campbell.Subs: Halstead, Southern, Ormerod, Baptiste, Phillips, Edwards, Carney.Referee: Andre Marriner (W Midlands)West Brom v BlackburnWest Brom: Carson, Jara, Scharner, Tamas, Shorey, Tchoyi, Mulumbu, Morrison, Dorrans, Thomas, Odemwingie. Subs: Myhill, Cech, Pablo, Barnes, Miller, Reid, Cox.Blackburn: Robinson, Hanley, Nelsen, Olsson, Salgado, Emerton, Dunn, Pedersen, Kalinic, Mame Diouf, El-Hadji Diouf. Subs: Bunn, Givet, Linganzi, Doran, Mwaruwari, Hoilett, Morris.Referee: Phil Dowd (Staffordshire)[LNB]14.36: Stoke boss Tony Pulis names an unchanged line-up for this afternoon's Barclays Premier League clash with Fulham at the Britannia Stadium.[LNB]Both Matthew Etherington and Jon Walters are passed fit to start again despite picking up ankle and shoulder knocks respectively in the Boxing Day victory at Blackburn.[LNB]Pulis' opposite number Mark Hughes makes two adjustments from the defeat against West Ham as the Cottagers look to pull themselves out of the relegation zone.[LNB]Damien Duff and Chris Baird come into the first XI, with Zoltan Gera and Carlos Salcido dropping to the bench.[LNB]14.34: And also from the Britannia Stadium: [LNB]Stoke v FulhamStoke: Begovic, Wilkinson, Shawcross, Huth, Collins, Pennant, Whitehead, Delap, Etherington, Walters, Jones. Subs: Sorensen, Higginbotham, Whelan, Gudjohnsen, Fuller, Wilson, Sanli.Fulham: Schwarzer, Pantsil, Hangeland, Hughes, Baird, Davies, Murphy, Etuhu, Duff, Dempsey, Andrew Johnson. Subs: Stockdale, Salcido, Gera, Kamara, Dikgacoi, Greening, Halliche.Referee: Kevin Friend (Leicestershire)[LNB]14.31: Team news from White Hart Lane:[LNB]Tottenham v NewcastleTottenham: Gomes, Hutton, Dawson, Kaboul, Assou-Ekotto, Lennon, Palacios, Modric, Bale, Pavlyuchenko, Van der Vaart. Subs: Pletikosa, Jenas, Keane, Crouch, Bassong, Kranjcar, Corluka.Newcastle: Krul, Coloccini, Steven Taylor, Perch, Tiote, Barton, Routledge, Simpson, Smith, Gutierrez, Carroll. Subs: Harper, Williamson, Lovenkrands, Xisco, Best, Kadar, Ranger.Referee: Anthony Taylor (Cheshire)[LNB]14.28: If you have not been made aware, Balotelli is already seeking a City exit after failing to settle at Eastlands. You can read Ian Ladyman's full exclusive on that piece by clicking here.[LNB]14.25: Like Christmas leftovers, the Premier League just keep coming back and there is seven fixtures set to take place today with five kicking off at 3pm.[LNB]The big newsso far is Mario Balotelli starts for Manchester City but skipper Carlos Tevez is only on the bench. A sure sign of just how strong Roberto Mancini's squad is that he can afford to rest his skipper.[LNB]Full team news on the way.[LNB] Heading for an early exit?: Despite being homesick Mario Balotelli starts against Aston Villa[LNB] All the latest Premier League team news ahead of the midweek fixturesLet me go home! Homesick City striker Balotelli wants to quit after five monthsWe can win the league! Redknapp believes Tottenham ARE in the title race[LNB] Explore more:People: Carlos Tevez, Steven Taylor, Roberto Mancini, Matthew Etherington, Mark Hughes, Lee Cattermole, Danny Welbeck, Ian Holloway, Steve Bruce, Tony Pulis, Damien Duff, Andrew Johnson, Titus Bramble, Charlie Adam, William Gallas, Christopher Samba, Gerard Houllier, Adam Johnson, Jerome Thomas, Richard Dunne, Alan Smith, Kevin Nolan, Roman Pavlyuchenko, Jermain Defoe, Joey Barton, Danny Collins, Joleon Lescott, Andy Carroll, David Silva, Danny Murphy, Ryan Shawcross, Alan Hutton, Paul Robinson, Jermaine Jenas, Ryan Nelsen, Aaron Lennon, Younes Kaboul, Sebastien Bassong, Simon Cox, Brede Hangeland, Gabriel Tamas, Darren Bent, Gareth Bale, Danny Simpson Places: Newcastle, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Italy, United Kingdom, Old Trafford Club
