Premier League Table: Updated 2015 EPL Standings Following Matchday 27 Results

With Premier League leaders Chelsea on Capital One Cup final duty as Matchday 27 rolled around, the chance was there for the Blues’ title rivals to close the gap at the top of the table.

Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City all set about seizing that opportunity across the weekend, with the latter duo squaring up at Anfield on Sunday.

Here’s a look at a full fixture list across Matchday 27 and in-depth analysis on the week’s biggest storylines.

Date	Match
Saturday, Feburary 28	West Ham United 1-3 Crystal Palace
Saturday, Feburary 28	Burnley 0-1 Swansea City
Saturday, Feburary 28	Manchester United 2-0 Sunderland
Saturday, Feburary 28	Newcastle United 1-0 Aston Villa
Saturday, Feburary 28	Stoke City 1-0 Hull City
Saturday, Feburary 28	West Brom 1-0 Southampton
Sunday, March 1	Liverpool vs. Manchester City
Sunday, March 1	Arsenal vs. Everton

Position	Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Goal Difference	Points
1	Chelsea	26	18	6	2	56	22	+34	60
2	Manchester City	27	16	7	4	57	27	+30	55
3	Arsenal	27	15	6	6	51	29	+22	51
4	Manchester United	27	14	8	5	46	26	+20	50
5	Liverpool	27	14	6	7	40	30	+10	45
6	Southampton	27	14	4	9	38	20	+18	46
7	Tottenham Hotspur	26	13	5	8	41	36	+5	44
8	Swansea City	27	11	7	9	31	34	-3	40
9	West Ham United	27	10	9	8	39	33	+6	39
10	Stoke City	27	11	6	10	31	34	-3	39
11	Newcastle United	27	9	8	10	32	42	-10	35
12	Crystal Palace	27	7	9	11	31	38	-7	30
13	West Bromwich Albion	27	7	9	11	25	34	-9	30
14	Everton	27	6	10	11	33	39	-6	28
15	Hull City	27	6	8	13	25	36	-11	26
16	Sunderland	27	4	13	10	22	38	-16	25
17	Queens Park Rangers	26	6	4	16	27	45	-18	22
18	Burnley	27	4	10	13	25	45	-20	22
19	Aston Villa	27	5	7	15	13	37	-24	22
20	Leicester City	26	4	6	16	24	42	-18	18

Sunday Recap

Jon Super/Associated Press

While there were only three matches on the docket, Sunday's Premier League action helped continue separating the men from the boys atop the table.

Philippe Coutinho's goal in the 75th minute gave Liverpool a critical 2-1 victory over Manchester City. Coutinho was able to get his shot past Joe Hart on a day when not too many attempts even made it to goal for either side.

Manchester City's lone shot on goal was Edin Dzeko's snipe that hit the back of the net in the 25th minute. Otherwise, it was a pretty relaxing day for Simon Mignolet, who watched City's seven other attempts fall by the wayside. City were able to hold possession for 52 percent of the match but were regularly thwarted by a strong defensive effort from Liverpool's back line.

The same can be said for Arsenal, which earned a dominant 2-0 victory over Everton. Arsenal were aggressive throughout, attempting 17 shots (four on goal) and never seeming like they were out of control. Olivier Giroud knocked one back in the 39th minute, while Tomas Rosicky was able to clinch the victory in the 89th. 

Everton were only able to attempt eight shots, two of which went on goal. It was a bit of a rough go for goaltender Tim Howard, who stopped only two shots. Everton have not won a Premier League match now in more than a month. Arsenal, meanwhile, continue to have a shot at clinching a Champions League berth if they continue to hold form.

Saturday Recap

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Manchester United’s unconvincing 2-0 victory against Sunderland at Old Trafford earned them third in the Premier League table.

Wayne Rooney bagged a brace to break his 2015 duck, but the match was overshadowed by a bizarre refereeing decision.

Rooney netted the game’s opener from the spot after Radamel Falcao was brought down by John O’Shea, but man-in-the-middle Roger East gave Wes Brown his marching orders in a rather confusing case of mistaken identity.

O’Shea himself told East that he was the offender, but he wasn’t changing his mind, as Gary Lineker reported:

"

Falcao wins a penalty. Red card for Wes Brown, but it was John O'Shea who made the foul. Oops! Rooney scores from the spot.

— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) February 28, 2015"

"

Brown and O'Shea both clearly in conversation with ref, East, telling him it was O'Shea's foul. He ignored them.

— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) February 28, 2015"

Rooney then found the net from close range after Costel Pantilimon parried an Adnan Januzaj effort onto his head, and in doing so made a big statement of where he should be playing in the United setup. ESPN’s Mark Payne believes as much, too, saying that Rooney should be an out-and-out striker:

"

The captain had a wearisome first half but ultimately came up with two goals which ended an eight-game league drought, in a match-winning effort. His headed second was the first goal in open play from a United striker in almost a month and he can send no clearer message to the manager than that regarding his preferred position.

"

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

With upcoming matches against Newcastle United, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool, sending Rooney up top could well be the ticket to success.

Arsenal and Spurs are both battling for that all-important fourth Champions League place and will fancy their chances of taking points from Old Trafford if United keep up this form.

Elsewhere, the other side looking to break into the top four, Southampton, slipped up away at West Bromwich Albion, as a Saido Berahino goal inside two minutes was enough to hand the Baggies all three points.

With Saints now fifth in the table, Liverpool and Tottenham have a chance to go above them with wins in their respective matches.

Matthew Lewis/Getty Images

West Ham United also lost ground on the European football-chasing pack, as they fell to a 3-1 defeat at home to Crystal Palace.

A Glenn Murray brace either side of a Scott Dann goal handed Alan Pardew the points against his former club, with Enner Valencia’s consolation goal not enough to lift the gloom at Upton Park.

Table Within a Table

Nigel Roddis/Getty Images

The bottom of the table sees several sides scrapping it out for Premier League survival, with Aston Villa the biggest name looking to avoid the drop in a mini-table at the bottom.

However, new manager Tim Sherwood saw his Aston Villa side slip to another defeat on Saturday, this time at the hands of Newcastle United.

Papiss Cisse scored the only goal of the game in a 1-0 win for the Magpies, although that strike came against the run of play, as Stan Collymore reflected on:

The performance was a lot better from Villa, but they still have a mountain to climb if they’re to avoid the drop this season.

Level on points with Burnley and QPR and three adrift on 17th-place Sunderland, Villa need a big lift in the coming weeks, starting with their clash against Midlands rivals West Brom on March 7.

They were helped by fellow strugglers Burnley losing 1-0 at home to Swansea City, though. A Kieran Trippier own goal was enough to send the Welsh fans home happy.

Jan Kruger/Getty Images

Meanwhile, Stoke City played out an uninspiring 1-0 win against Hull City at the Britannia to keep the Tigers in trouble, with Peter Crouch coming on as a substitute to head the winner in the 71st minute.

In doing so, the Englishman equalled Alan Shearer’s record of scoring 46 headed goals in the Premier League, as OptaJoe revealed:

The three points kept Stoke in the hunt for a Europa League place in 10th, just six points adrift of sixth-place Liverpool, who are in action in the early kick-off on Sunday.

The Reds welcome Manchester City to Anfield, looking to continue their impressive form and replicate their dramatic 3-2 victory against the champions last season.

Arsenal are also in action, taking on Everton, and seeking redemption for their drab performance in the Champions League in midweek against Monaco.

While Saturday’s matches weren’t exactly a demonstration of the Premier League at its scintillating best, results have left the table wonderfully poised for the weeks of drama ahead.