Arsenal spoil Coyle coronation

Owen Coyle's debut as Bolton Wanderers FC manager ended in disappointment as Arsenal FC won 2-0 in the north west, with an identical scoreline easing Blackburn Rovers FC's concerns against Fulham FC.

Fàbregas drive
Bolton started the day one place off the foot of the Premier League but with games in hand on all their relegation rivals, and a victory would have lifted them out of the bottom three. The home side matched their third-placed opponents in the opening 45 minutes and could have considered themselves unfortunate to reach the break a goal adrift. Arsenal's opener owed itself to fortune and quality in equal measure as a ricochet presented the ball to Cesc Fàbregas, who exchanged passes quickly with Eduardo before sweeping in a low finish.

Mérida second
The Spain midfielder was the difference between the sides throughout and his marauding run helped kill off the contest on 78 minutes, with Fran Mérida finishing at the far post following a deep cross by Eduardo. The victory moved Arsenal back within three points of leaders Chelsea FC while, further back in the standings, Aston Villa FC's hopes of climbing level with fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur FC and Manchester City FC on 38 points were dashed when they were held to a goalless draw at home by West Ham United FC, for whom a point lifted them out of the drop zone.

Defenders strike
Blackburn are now five points clear of trouble after their defenders came up trumps at Ewood Park. Christopher Samba broke the deadlock when he stabbed in on 25 minutes following a Benni McCarthy corner and the South African striker also provided the set piece for goal number two, Ryan Nelsen glancing in to move Sam Allardyce's charges up to 12th.