Van Persie shatters Spurs to send Arsenal second

Tottenham Hotspur's hopes of gatecrashing the English Premier League's established elite were put back into perspective on Saturday as they slumped to a chastening 3-0 defeat at Arsenal.Arsene Wenger's side maintained their vice-like grip on north London supremacy thanks to two goals in the space of 60 frantic seconds in the first-half from Robin van Persie and Cesc Fabregas as Spurs missed the chance to leapfrog Arsenal, who started the weekend third in the table.

Arsene Wenger wants Arsenal to deliver a hammer blow to Chelsea's title challenge when the champions visit the Emirates Stadium in a crucial London derby on Monday.Wenger's side have endured a miserable run against Chelsea recently, but they have a golden opportunity to end that barren streak of five successive defeats in their final home match of 2010.While Chelsea have slipped to fourth in the Premier League after failing to win any of their last five matches, the Gunners have moved one point above their rivals into second place thanks to some impressive performances.

Arsenal got their challenge for the Premier League title back on track with a 3-1 win against Blackpool at Bloomfield Road on Sunday.Arsene Wenger's side closed within seven points of leaders Manchester United as first half goals from Abou Diaby and Emmanuel Eboue and a late strike from Robin van Persie clinched their first win in four league games.The Gunners will still believe they can catch United as they have a game in hand on Sir Alex Ferguson's side, who also have to travel to the Emirates Stadium for a potentially decisive clash on May 1.

Arsenal got their challenge for the Premier League title back on track with a 3-1 win against Blackpool at Bloomfield Road on Sunday.Arsene Wenger's side closed within seven points of leaders Manchester United as first half goals from Abou Diaby and Emmanuel Eboue and a late strike from Robin van Persie clinched their first win in four league games.The Gunners will still believe they can catch United as they have a game in hand on Sir Alex Ferguson's side, who also have to travel to the Emirates Stadium for a potentially decisive clash on May 1.

Arsenal got their challenge for the Premier League title back on track with a 3-1 win against Blackpool at Bloomfield Road on Sunday.Arsene Wenger's side closed within seven points of leaders Manchester United as first half goals from Abou Diaby and Emmanuel Eboue and a late strike from Robin van Persie clinched their first win in four league games.The Gunners will still believe they can catch United as they have a game in hand on Sir Alex Ferguson's side, who also have to travel to the Emirates Stadium for a potentially decisive clash on May 1.

Arsene Wenger wants Arsenal to use this weekend's Emirates Cup clashes against AC Milan and Celtic to send a warning to their Premier League rivals.Wenger's side have gone five years without a trophy and finished well behind champions Chelsea last season, but the Gunners boss is convinced the north Londoners are ready to end that barren spell.Arsenal have an early opportunity to underline their progress in a prestigious pre-season tournament, at their own Emirates Stadium, which includes seven-time European champions Milan, Scottish giants Celtic and top French club Lyon.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is convinced his side are contenders for the most open Premier League title race since he came to England more than a decade ago.The Gunners moved to within two points of second-place Manchester United, who lost at Fulham, thanks to a 3-0 win over Hull City at the Emirates Stadium here on Saturday.Arsenal, who also have a game in hand, beat Liverpool last weekend but dropped points by drawing at Burnley a few days later.

Park Ji-Sung scored the only goal of the game as Manchester United moved to the top of the Premier League table with a 1-0 win over former leaders Arsenal at Old Trafford here on Monday.South Korea midfielder Park was on target four minutes before half-time when, after Nani's cross deflected off Gael Clichy, he scored with an improvised header.Victory left United two points in front of Arsenal with a game in hand over the Gunners and fellow title rivals Manchester City, champions Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.