English Premier League Power Rankings: Week 27

This weekend in the Premier League saw yet another managerial saga at Chelsea end, the league's leading scorer power his club to victory and a title dream finally put to rest.

Andre Villas-Boas' time at Chelsea ended after the Blues lost to West Brom in a shocking defeat at The Hawthorns.

Robin van Persie's 90th minute goal gave Arsenal another high in their up and down season with a win over Liverpool on the road at Anfield.

On Sunday, Manchester United took down Tottenham at White Hart Lane and shut the door on any glimmer of hope that Spurs had to win the title.

In the relegation battle, Bolton, Wigan and Wolves were all shut out and now make up the bottom three, as Blackburn jumped to 17th place for the time being.

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

20. Bolton (20)

Another week, another loss for the Bolton Wanderers.

This week's defeat came at the hands of league leaders Manchester City by a 2-0 margin.

The shutout marked the fourth time in five games that the Trotters have failed to score a goal in a league game with the exception coming two weeks ago in a loss to Norwich.

Owen Coyle's club will have to score at least one goal to secure a win on Saturday in their relegation showdown with QPR at the Reebok Stadium.

19. Wolverhampton (16)

Over a week after earning a point in Terry Connor's debut as manager, the Wolves were thrashed by Fulham on Sunday, 5-0.

The loss officially put the club back into the relegation zone in 18th place.

The Wolves' most crucial game of the season so far is ahead on Saturday as they face 17th place Blackburn at home in a game that could go a long way in deciding the club's fate for the rest of the season.

18. Wigan (17)

Wigan fell to Swansea by a 2-0 scoreline at home on Saturday and walked off the pitch to a crowd of boos from their home fans at the DW Stadium.

The loss breaks a streak of three games in which the Latics earned at least one point.

The Latics can still survive relegation, although I am not sure how. To do so, they will need to continue a decent run of form starting with Sunday's game at Norwich.

17. Queens Park Rangers (19)

QPR were able to pick up a point at home on Saturday in their 1-1 draw with Everton.

Bobby Zamora scored his second goal with the club as he put home a 36th minute equalizer.

The 16th placed club heads to the Reebok Stadium on Saturday in a crucial relegation battle with Bolton.

16. Blackburn (18)

Blackburn were able to rescue a point from their home match with Aston Villa on Saturday.

David Dunn's 85th minute goal tied the match at its eventual end result, 1-1.

The draw boosted Rovers out of the relegation zone as they sit in 17th place ahead of the Wolves by a one goal differential. Both clubs have 22 points ahead of their Saturday match at the Molineux Stadium.

15. Aston Villa (15)

Aston Villa recorded their second straight draw on Saturday as they drew 1-1 with Blackburn.

Charles N'Zogbia filled the goal scoring void left by the injured Darren Bent with a 31st minute goal, only his second since joining the club in the summer.

It now looks safe to say that the Villains will not face a late season relegation battle as they sit eight points clear of the relegation contenders, in 15th place with 30 points.

14. Sunderland (14)

Sunderland were unable to hold on to their lead in Sunday's Tyne-Wear derby and settled for a 1-1 draw with Newcastle.

Nicklas Bendtner scored the club's only goal on a 24th minute penalty before their rivals equalized late in the match.

The Black Cats will look to break their three-game winless streak against a tough opponent in Liverpool on Saturday at the Stadium of Light.

13. Stoke City (12)

Stoke reached double digits in the win column on Saturday with a 1-0 victory over Norwich.

Matthew Etherington scored in the 72nd minute to win the match for the Potters.

The Potters now face a rough three weeks as they square off with three of the top five clubs in the league, starting with a trip to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea on Saturday.

12. Swansea City (13)

Swansea were powered by two goals from Gylfi Sigurdsson in their 2-0 win over Wigan.

Since being signed on loan from Hoffenheim in January, the Iceland international has been a revelation through his impactful play in the Swansea midfield.

The 14th place club will play host to league leaders Manchester City on Sunday in a match at the Liberty Stadium.

11. Everton (9)

After having a week off, Everton took to the pitch at Loftus Road at QPR and drew their hosts 1-1.

Royston Drenthe scored his third goal of the season in the 31st minute to open the scoring before the Toffees were equalized five minutes later.

Two big matches are up ahead for David Moyes and company in the next week as they host Tottenham on Saturday before travelling to Anfield to face Liverpool in the Merseyside derby next Tuesday.

10. Norwich City (7)

Norwich lost their second straight match on Saturday as they fell on the road to Stoke, 1-0.

The Canaries now sit in 11th place in the table ahead of their home match with Wigan on Sunday at Carrow Road.

9. Fulham (11)

Fulham crushed Wolves on Sunday with a 5-0 win at Craven Cottage.

The Cottages received a hat trick from Pavel Pogrebynak, who is turning out to be a good signing so far, and two goals from the in form Clint Dempsey.

The late season surge looks like it has begun for the Cottagers as they are on a three-game winning streak and up to eighth place in the table ahead of their trip to Villa Park on Saturday to face Aston Villa.

8. Newcastle United (10)

Shola Ameobi saved Newcastle a point in the 90th minute on Sunday in the Tyne-Wear derby.

Ameobi's seventh Tyne-Wear derby goal made the final score of the match 1-1.

The sixth place Magpies now head into a crucial match with fourth place Arsenal, who are five points ahead of the club, on Monday at the Emirates Stadium.

7. Chelsea (4)

The era of Andre Villas-Boas is finally over at Stamford Bridge.

The final breaking point for owner Roman Abramovich was a 1-0 loss to West Brom on Saturday.

The Blues are in a current string of form that has seen them win only one league match in the past six and has them down two goals to Napoli in the Champions League round of 16.

Roberto di Matteo will take charge of the club starting with Tuesday's FA Cup fifth round replay at Birmingham until the end of the season before Abramovich finds another high-profile manager to bring to the Stamford Bridge.

6. West Brom (8)

After scoring nine goals in their previous two games, all West Brom needed was a single goal to take down Chelsea at home on Saturday.

Gareth McAuley sent a roar through The Hawthorns with an 82nd minute goal to win the match for the Baggies.

A much bigger task stands in the way of Roy Hodgson's club on Sunday as they visit Old Trafford to take on Manchester United.

5. Tottenham (6)

Tottenham's title hopes were finally sent packing on Sunday at White Hart Lane with a 3-1 loss to Manchester United.

Now, Tottenham will look to conserve its lead for third place in the table as they are only four points ahead of fourth place Arsenal.

Before they focus on their Premier League campaign, the Spurs have to get past Stevenage in their FA Cup fifth round replay at home on Wednesday.

4. Liverpool (5)

Liverpool looked strong early but were unable to seal the deal late as they fell to Arsenal, 2-1, at Anfield on Saturday.

Dirk Kuyt's saved penalty in the 19th minute was just one of many missed opportunities for the Reds, as they failed to score but were the beneficiaries of a Laurent Koscielny own goal in the 23rd minute.

A trip to the Stadium of Light to face Sunderland is up next for the Reds on Saturday before their rescheduled Merseyside derby with Everton next Tuesday at Anfield.

3. Arsenal (3)

Where would Arsenal be without Robin van Persie this season?

It is a question Arsenal fans do not want to answer as the Dutchman continued his superb form with goals number 24 and 25 in the league against Liverpool in the Gunners' 2-1 win at Anfield on Saturday.

Van Persie's winner in the 90th minute gave the Gunners the win and it put distance between them and Chelsea for the all important fourth Champions League spot.

The bad news for the Gunners is that they are most likely out of this season's Champions League unless they pull off a miracle on Tuesday against AC Milan at the Emirates Stadium.

2. Manchester United (2)

Manchester United took care of business on the road Sunday by beating Tottenham 3-1 at White Hart Lane.

Wayne Rooney scored the opening goal in the 45th minute and he was followed by a second half double from Ashley Young.

United are still two points behind Manchester City in the league table as they shift their focus back to the Europa League. They host Athletic Bilbao at Old Trafford on Thursday in the first leg of their round of 16 matchup.

1. Manchester City (1)

Manchester City recorded their fourth straight win by beating Bolton at home, 2-0.

Mario Balotelli scored in the 69th minute after Bolton's Gretar Steinsson scored an own goal in the 23rd minute off a Gael Clichy strike.

The Sky Blues will now get to visit two different countries in their next two games as they visit Sporting Lisbon on Thursday in the Europa League and Swansea on Saturday in Premier League action at the Liberty Stadium in Wales.