Enlarge imageBy Mike Collett
LONDON (Reuters) - Liverpool beat Blackburn Rovers 3-1 at Ewood Park on Saturday to stay top of the Premier League and increase the pressure on Rovers manager Paul Ince whose team have now gone 10 league matches without a win.
Xabi Alonso got the breakthrough goal after 69 minutes before Yossi Benayoun added a second and Steven Gerrard scored a late third to take Liverpool on to 37 points from 16 matches.
Chelsea, one point behind, won 2-0 at Bolton Wanderers with goals from former Bolton striker Nicolas Anelka and a spectacular bicycle kick from Deco.
The victory was Chelsea's 11th successive away win, eclipsing the record of 10 straight wins on the road set by Tottenham Hotspur in 1960.
Arsenal moved up to third on 29 points after beating visitors Wigan Athletic 1-0 with a first-half goal from Emmanuel Adebayor but could slip back to fourth after Manchester United face Sunderland in an evening kickoff (1730 GMT).
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Arsenal hit the woodwork twice but had to endure a tense finale at the Emirates after Wigan stormed forward looking for the equaliser.
BREAKTHROUGH GOAL
Roque Santa Cruz had given Blackburn a glimmer of hope four minutes from time against Liverpool when he headed home to make the score 2-1 but it was not enough to stop them slumping to a fifth straight league defeat.
Rovers manager Ince, whose future has come under intense media speculation, told Sky Sports News he was delighted with his team's performance.
"The spirit has always been there, it has never been in question. The players and the fans see everything that has been in the papers, but it was good today the way everyone came together as one. We gave a fantastic performance and if we carry on like that we will be OK."
However, Blackburn, who are 19th, will find themselves bottom if West Bromwich Albion beat Portsmouth on Sunday.
Elsewhere, Fulham drew 1-1 with Manchester City in the early game, Newcastle United were held 2-2 by Stoke City after leading 2-0 with two first-half Michael Owen goals and Hull City beat Middlesbrough 2-1 with all three goals in the last 11 minutes.
KINNEAR BANISHED
Newcastle seemed to be coasting to victory against Stoke, but the visitors grabbed a point after Mamady Sidibe pulled one back on the hour and former Newcastle defender Abdoulaye Faye equalised in the last minute.
Newcastle coach Joe Kinnear was banished from the dugout by the referee just before the end of the match.
Most of the drama at the KC Stadium came late in the game after Middlesbrough took the lead through Tuncay Sanli who scored with a clever backheel.
Hull, whose bright start to the season had faltered after six matches without a win, equalised when Bernard Mendy's shot came back off a post, hit Boro keeper Ross Turnbull and went in.
The third goal came three minutes later when David Wheater was sent off for fouling Geovanni in the box and Marlon King scored with the ensuing penalty.
(Editing by Ken Ferris and Clare Fallon)
