Manchester, United Kingdom

Manchester City brushed off a gutsy start from Norwich City and went on to claim a 5-1 triumph at Ethiad Stadium Saturday to remain unbeaten in Premier League play this season.

Sergio Aguero's tally in the 32nd minute broke a scoreless tie but also allowed the Citizens to control the momentum en route to their 12th win in 14 league matches.

Samir Nasri, Yaya Toure, Mario Balotelli and Adam Johnson also found the back of the net for Manchester City, which leads the league with 38 points.

Norwich City remains mid-table (10th place) with 16 points.

In Birmingham, England, Manchester United climbed back above Tottenham in the Premier League with a 1-0 triumph at Aston Villa.

Phil Jones' first career club goal in the 20th minute lifted United back into the second spot. It also helped extend the Red Devils' unbeaten league run at Villa Park to 16 years.

The Spurs briefly seized second place in the Premier League following their 3-0 trouncing of Bolton Saturday afternoon.

Meanwhile, United lost striker Javier Hernandez to an ankle injury during first-half action.

At White Hart Lane, Tottenham notched its sixth-straight win in Premier League play by crushing a 10-man Bolton squad.

The Spurs received goals from Gareth Bale, Aaron Lennon and Jermain Defoe. Tottenham is in third place with 31 points.

Moving up to fourth place on the table is Chelsea, which prevailed over Newcastle United 3-0.

It marked the second straight win for the Blues, who now own 28 points. Newcastle dropped to sixth place with 26 points.

Arsenal also moved up to fifth place following a 4-0 demolition of Wigan. It gave the Gunners 26 points on the year.

The Gunners had a slow start, but are beginning to gain their rhythm as they remain unbeaten in league play in six matches.

The struggling Wigan dropped to the cellar with just nine points after Blackburn topped Swansea City Saturday. Wigan is tied with Bolton for last place.

Blackburn, on the other hand, still remained in relegation but climbed out of last place in the English Premier League with a 4-2 rout of Swansea City at Ewood Park.

In Saturday's other afternoon match, the Queen Park Rangers forced a 1-1 draw with West Bromwich at Loftus Road.

West Brom is at 12th place with 15 points, one point shy of QPR, which sits at 11th spot.

 

 

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