London, England (SportsNetwork.com) - Chelsea's title hopes received another major blow on Saturday as the club suffered a shock 2-1 loss to Sunderland at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues have slipped out of the title race after dropping two of their last four Premier League outings, giving Liverpool the impetus to go five points clear at the summit with a win at Norwich City on Sunday.
Saturday's contest started brightly for Chelsea as Samuel Eto'o got the hosts off the mark after just 11 minutes, but Connor Wickham, who bagged a brace on Wednesday to give Sunderland a draw at Manchester City, equalized only seven minutes later.
The two sides were level until the 82nd minute when Cesar Azpilicueta tripped up Jozy Altidore in the box. Fabio Borini, who is on loan with the Black Cats from first-place Liverpool, converted the ensuing penalty to give the visitors a vital win.
Sunderland leaves Stamford Bridge on 29 points, giving the club a realistic chance at avoiding relegation with four matches to play.
Chelsea remains on 75 points, suffering its first Premier League home defeat under Jose Mourinho.
Tottenham 3, Fulham 1
London, England - Tottenham's strong showing in the second half at White Hart Lane on Saturday granted the club a 3-1 win over lowly Fulham.
The two sides were level by the halftime interval after Paulinho and Steve Sidwell exchanged goals in the span of two minutes, but the hosts notched two second-half goals to secure all three points.
Harry Kane produced Tottenham's go-ahead goal just three minutes after the break while Younes Kaboul made sure of the win by adding an insurance goal just after the hour mark.
Tottenham improves to 63 points on the season to keep its hopes of Europa League football alive for next season while Fulham stays in the relegation zone on 30 points, two points back of safety.
Cardiff City 1, Stoke City 1
Cardiff, Wales - Cardiff City aided its Premier league survival efforts with a vital point from a 1-1 draw with Stoke City on Saturday.
Stoke took the lead just before halftime when Marko Arnautovic converted a penalty following a dubious foul in the box, but Cardiff answered six minutes into the second half with a penalty of its own as Peter Wittingham leveled the score from the spot.
Cardiff, which had a second-half goal disallowed for an offside player in the build-up, has managed four points from its last two games, bringing the club to within two points of safety.
Swansea City 2, Newcastle 1
Newcastle, England - Wilfried Bony scored in stoppage time of both halves to help Swansea City overturn a one-goal deficit and get a 2-1 victory over Newcastle at St. James' Park on Saturday.
Shola Ameobi popped up midway through the opening period to give the Magpies the lead, but Bony nodded Swansea level just before the break.
The two sides were even until the dying stages of the match when Bony converted a penalty kick to hand the Welsh club all three points and give Newcastle a fifth consecutive league defeat.
Crystal Palace 1, West Ham 0
London, England - Crystal Palace continued its fine run of form on Saturday by getting a narrow 1-0 win over West Ham United at Upton Park.
The lone goal came just before the hour mark when Mile Jedinak converted a penalty kick. It proved to be all Palace would need as it earned a fifth straight league win, bringing the club to 43 points on the season.
West Ham has lost three straight to fall six points adrift of Palace.
Aston Villa 0, Southampton 0
Birmingham, England - There was little between Aston Villa and Southampton at Villa Park on Saturday as the two sides played to a 0-0 stalemate.
Chances were at a premium for both sides as they were made to settle for a point apiece.
Villa climbs to 35 points to move five points clear of the relegation zone while the Saints climb to 49 points.
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