English Premier League Power Rankings: Week 20

The 20 English Premier League clubs got back into league action after playing in the FA Cup last weekend.

The biggest shock of the week came in Wales on Sunday when Swansea took down Arsenal.

In the title race, Tottenham slipped up at home against Wolves while both Manchester clubs won their respective matches.

Blackburn continued their seesaw form with a win over struggling Fulham.

Fulham's former manager Mark Hughes made his debut for QPR this weekend after replacing Neil Warnock. But the result was the same, as QPR fell to Newcastle.

As always, last week's ranking is in parenthesis.

20. Wigan (20)

Wigan extended their winless streak to six on Monday as they fell at home to Manchester City.

The loss, combined with a win from Blackburn, dropped the Latics into last place in the table.

Roberto Martinez and company will finish the month of January with two straight road games, starting with Saturday's relegation battle in London with Queens Park Rangers.

19. Bolton (17)

Bolton were shutout by Manchester United for the second time this season as they lost at Old Trafford on Saturday by a score of 3-0.

The Trotters were without Gary Cahill for the game as he moved to Chelsea over the weekend.

Bolton do get to play their next two games at home, but the downside to those games is that they host Liverpool and Arsenal at Reebok Stadium.

18. Queens Park Rangers (18)

QPR continued their slide down the table as they suffered a 1-0 loss to Newcastle in manager Mark Hughes' debut with the club.

The loss extended the club's winless streak to nine games, with their last win coming November 19th at Stoke.

The Rs are now in the relegation zone as they sit in 18th place ahead of a crucial relegation battle at home with Wigan at Loftus Road.

17. Fulham (12)

Fulham were unable to pull off a comeback on the road at Ewood Park on Saturday in their loss to Blackburn.

Damien Duff scored Fulham's only goal of the game and put the Cottagers within one before they were finished off for good by their opponents in the 79th minute.

The 3-1 loss put Fulham into 14th place in the table ahead of their home clash with Newcastle on Saturday.

16. Wolverhampton (16)

Wolves put on an impressive performance at Tottenham on Saturday and were able to earn a point on their travels to London.

Steven Fletcher continued his good form of late with his ninth goal of the season in the 22nd minute before Wolves were equalized in the second half by Spurs.

Mick McCarthy's club need to put in performances like the one at White Hart Lane if they want to avoid the relegation fight at the end of the season, as they only have 18 points at the moment.

15. Blackburn (19)

Blackburn did something none of their relegation rivals could do this weekend, win a game.

Rovers beat Fulham at home by the score of 3-1 on Saturday with Morten Gamst Pedersen, David Dunn and Mauro Formica all scoring goals.

Blackburn are also doing something their relegation rivals are not doing, they are scoring goals. They have not been shutout since November 5th, after a string of ten games since they were shutout by Chelsea.

14. Everton (14)

Everton were able to snag a point on the road at Aston Villa on Saturday thanks to Victor Anichebe.

Anichebe's 69th minute goal equalized the match at 1-1, which was the eventual final score.

The 11th place Toffees have benefited from loan deals all season, first with Royston Drenthe and now Landon Donovan, who supplied the assist on Anichebe's goal on Saturday.

13. Aston Villa (13)

Aston Villa were only able to come out of their home match with Everton on Saturday with a 1-1 draw.

Darren Bent scored in the 56th minute for the Villains before they were equalized by Everton 13 minutes later.

Alex McLeish and company now face a trip to Wolves on Saturday before their FA Cup fourth-round trip to the Emirates Stadium to face Arsenal next Sunday.

12. West Brom (9)

West Brom continued their slide down the table in the new year after a 2-1 home loss to Norwich on Saturday.

Since their Boxing Day draw at home with Manchester City, the Baggies have lost three games in a row and have fallen to 15th place in the table. But they are still four points ahead of all the relegation contenders.

The Baggies will look to break their streak with a positive result at Stoke on Saturday.

11. Sunderland (10)

Sunderland were downed at Stamford Bridge on Saturday by Chelsea.

The 1-0 loss was the club's ninth of the season and their first since December 18th.

Two home games in a row await the Black Cats as they host Swansea on Saturday before facing Norwich on February 1st.

10. Swansea City (15)

Swansea pulled off an upset over Arsenal at home on Sunday.

Scott Sinclair and Nathan Dyer scored goals before Danny Graham's 70th minute goal won the game for the Swans.

The win put the Welsh club into the top half of the table in 10th place ahead of their Saturday visit to the Stadium of Light to take on Sunderland.

9. Norwich City (11)

Norwich continued their impressive form as they took down West Brom on the road.

Steve Morison's 79th minute goal won the game for the Canaries, who now sit in ninth place in the table after the win.

The Canaries are on a three-game winning streak heading into their home game at Carrow Road with Chelsea on Saturday.

8. Stoke (8)

Stoke played in the only scoreless game of the weekend as they drew 0-0 with Liverpool on the road at Anfield.

The Potters have now only failed to earn points in one of their last nine games and have held their eighth place spot in the table.

Tony Pulis and company will host West Brom on Saturday at the Britannia Stadium.

7. Liverpool (3)

Liverpool struggled at home yet again as they drew Stoke and failed to score a goal as well.

With the draw and a win by Newcastle, the Reds fell to seventh place in the table with 35 points.

Liverpool will now take on two relegation contenders in their next two league games with road trips to Bolton and Wolves coming up.

6. Arsenal (4)

Arsenal did not have a pleasant trip into Wales on Sunday as they lost to Swansea.

The Gunners came close as Theo Walcott equalized the game at two goals a piece in the 69th minute, but one minute later Swansea scored their winner.

The Gunners will look to win their first game of the new year on Sunday as they renew their rivalry with Manchester United and will look to avenge their 8-2 loss from back in August.

5. Newcastle (7)

Newcastle recorded their second-straight win as they beat a lowly QPR squad at home on Sunday.

Leon Best scored in the 37th minute to give the Magpies the 1-0 win at the Sports Direct Arena.

Alan Pardew brought in another forward this week as Newcastle signed Demba Ba's fellow countryman, Papiss Demba Cisse, who will join the club after the African Cup of Nations.

4. Tottenham (2)

Just as critics and fans were giving Tottenham a chance at contending for the title, they slipped up at home and drew with Wolves on Saturday.

Spurs needed a Luka Modric 51st minute equalizer to take just one point away from their home game.

Harry Redknapp's club are only five points behind Manchester City and will have a chance to close the gap even more when they visit City on Sunday.

3. Chelsea (6)

Chelsea took down Sunderland on Saturday thanks to an early goal from Frank Lampard.

The goal gave Lampard a tie for the club lead in league goals this season with nine; he is tied with Daniel Sturridge.

The Blues look to have fourth place secured for now as they sit four points ahead of Arsenal. It looks like Chelsea has broken their poor form that hurt them during the holiday period.

2. Manchester City (5)

Edin Dzeko powered Manchester City to victory at Wigan on Monday as he scored the game's only goal in the 22nd minute.

City look to be back on track after dropping points to West Brom and Sunderland during the holiday period.

Roberto Mancini and company will get a huge challenge at home on Sunday as they take on third place Tottenham at the Etihad Stadium.

1. Manchester United (1)

Manchester United took care of business on Saturday at Old Trafford as they beat Bolton 3-0.

Paul Scholes scored his goal since being resigned by the club to open the scoring, while Danny Welbeck and Michael Carrick scored in the second half to power the Red Devils to victory.

A trip to the Emirates Stadium is up next for United as they renew their rivalry with Arsenal on Sunday.