Manchester City maintained their one hundred percent Premier League home record this season after a hard-fought 4-2 win over Bolton on Saturday.

 

Their ninth successive league victory at Eastlands saw City overhaul Liverpool into the fourth spot ahead of Sunday's clashes between the "Big Four", with champions Manchester United playing Liverpool at Anfield before leaders Arsenal host third-placed Chelsea.

 

Portsmouth missed the chance to go fourth after losing 1-0 to Tottenham Hotspur at Fratton Park. They are now level on 30 points with Liverpool and Everton, who won 2-0 at West Ham United, but have to stay seventh on goal difference.

 

Marcus Bent scored a hat-trick to help Wigan beat Blackburn 5-3 in an eight-goal thriller at the JJB Stadium.

 

The result ended a run of 13 games without a victory for the struggling Wigan and marked Steve Bruce's first win as manager.

 

Blackburn remain ninth in the league but coach Mark Hughes will be under pressure with only one win out of their last seven games.

 

Strikes from Denny Landzaat and Bent, as well as a bullet header by Paul Scharner, saw the hosts open up a 3-0 lead after 37 minutes.

 

But Roque Santa Cruz produced a hat-trick, with a half-volley, tap-in and header, to draw Blackburn level. Unfortunately, they lost Brett Emerton to a red card before Bent completed the win with a close-range header and easy finish.

 

City, the only club in the top flight to have won all nine of their home league games this season, went ahead just seven minutes into the Bolton clash when a Ricardo Gardner error saw Rolando Bianchi gleefully open the scoring.

 

Goals from El Hadji Diouf and Kevin Nolan left Sven Goran Eriksson's men stunned before half-time.

 

City drew level three minutes after the break when Lubomir Michalik diverted Dietmar Hamann's shot into his own net.

 

Vassell gave City the lead 13 minutes from time with his first goal of the season and Etuhu made the game safe in the dying seconds.

 

Elsewhere, Derby lost their seventh consecutive Premier League match with their 1-0 home defeat to Middlesbrough while Sunderland had to settle for a point in their game against Aston Villa, as a stunning Shaun Maloney free-kick cancelled out Danny Higgnbotham's opener.

 

An injury-time spot-kick from Joey Barton ensured Newcastle came away from Fulham with three points and Reading drew 1-1 at Birmingham City.

 

(Xinhua News Agency December 16, 2007)