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A real spot of bother for Liverpool

Liverpool have missed six of 10 penalties in the league this season © Getty Images

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Ger having a laugh
When the team-sheets dropped at Anfield on Saturday and it was revealed that Steven Gerrard would not feature for Liverpool, Arsenal fans around the country would have breathed a sigh of relief. However, the truth is, the Liverpool skipper is the Reds' unlucky charm. Not once this season have Liverpool won a league game in which Gerrard started, something that cannot be said for Jay Spearing.

Spot of bother
Dirk Kuyt's missed penalty for Liverpool in their 2-1 loss to Arsenal was the sixth they've wasted in the league this season, not including the two they spurned in the Carling Cup final. Luis Suarez has also won more penalties than any other player in the Premier League, something Kenny Dalglish might tell him to stop doing with their current statistics. Kuyt's miss was made even worse by the fact he took the ball off Charlie Adam, who had been preparing to take it.

Van driver
Robin van Persie's match-winning volley for Arsenal will take some beating for the Goal of the Day award - a beautiful volley as the ball dropped over his shoulder that flew past Pepe Reina before he could react. Van Persie has now scored 10 winning goals in the Premier League this season, directly earning Arsenal 30 of their 49 points. The next closest match-winner is Frank Lampard with six.

Things go from bad to worse for Chelsea © PA Photos

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Neighbours from hell
Sir Alex Ferguson once made an effort to belittle the title threat of Manchester City by labelling them United's noisy neighbours. However, Saturday's 2-0 victory for City over Bolton sees them equal United's Premier League record of 19 consecutive home wins. Might the title follow?

Miss of the day... maybe even the season?
Bobby Zamora knows a thing or two about missing open goals, Fulham fans will testify to that, but he merely played the role of spectator to Akos Buzsaky's howler against Everton. Adel Taarabt had produced the brilliance by bending one onto a post, and Zamora then played his part by firing the ball across goal. There stood Buzsaky, suddenly looking like a strange version of Nwankwo Kanu as he endeavoured to find the woodwork from four yards. "The worse I've ever seen" declared Paul Merson. Probably not, but it wasn't good.

Beating yourselves
Owen Coyle confessed his Bolton side had a huge task ahead of them at Manchester City, but he wouldn't have anticipated that his own men would be chief perpetrators in the damage inflicted on goal. First Gretar Rafn Steinsson scored an own goal to hand City the lead, and then Darren Pratley - from all of 20 yards - drilled against his own bar when trying to tackle Edin Dzeko.

Facts hurt for Chelsea
Andre Villas-Boas is officially the worst manager Chelsea have had for a decade... according to statistics. Not since the 2001/02 season have the Blues had such a low points total after 27 Premier League games. Chelsea currently have 46 points, and you have to go back 10 years for a lower number when they had 44. The Portuguese keeps mentioning the "project", maybe somebody should ask exactly what the project is...

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