EPL Table: Latest Week 31 Results, Scores and 2015 Premier League Standings

Manchester United and Arsenal knocked Liverpool out of the race for a top-four finish and qualification for next season's UEFA Champions League. The Gunners delivered the more direct blow, hammering the Anfield club 4-1.

That result has moved Arsenal into second. Meanwhile, United went third after seeing off Aston Villa 3-1.

Having been leapfrogged by their neighbours and the Gunners, Manchester City were under pressure ahead of their trip to Crystal Palace. They did not deliver, losing 2-1 and sit in fourth place in the table.

Speaking of pressure, leaders Chelsea have little room left for error, given Arsenal's current winning run.

But that's nothing compared to the pressure at the bottom. Wins for Leicester City and Queens Park Rangers have made life very uncomfortable for Villa and Hull City.

Here are the results from Week 31:

Date	Match	Score
Saturday, April 4	Arsenal vs. Liverpool	4-1
Saturday, April 4	Everton vs. Southampton	1-0
Saturday, April 4	Leicester City vs. West Ham United	2-1
Saturday, April 4	Manchester United vs. Aston Villa	3-1
Saturday, April 4	Swansea City vs. Hull City	3-1
Saturday, April 4	West Bromwich Albion vs. QPR	1-4
Saturday, April 4	Chelsea vs. Stoke City	2-1
Sunday, April 5	Burnley vs. Tottenham Hotspur	0-0
Sunday, April 5	Sunderland vs. Newcastle United	1-0
Monday, April 6	Crystal Palace vs. Manchester City	2-1

Here's what those results mean for the standings:

Position	Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Goal Difference	Points
1	Chelsea	30	21	7	2	37	70
2	Arsenal	31	19	6	6	30	63
3	Manchester United	31	18	8	5	27	62
4	Manchester City	31	18	7	6	33	61
5	Liverpool	31	16	6	9	9	54
6	Tottenham Hotspur	31	16	6	9	5	54
7	Southampton	31	16	5	10	20	53
8	Swansea City	31	13	7	11	-2	46
9	West Ham United	31	11	9	11	2	42
10	Stoke City	30	12	6	12	-3	42
11	Crystal Palace	31	10	9	12	-4	39
12	Everton	31	9	10	12	-4	37
13	Newcastle United	31	9	8	14	-16	35
14	West Bromwich Albion	31	8	9	14	-15	33
15	Sunderland	31	5	14	12	20	29
16	Hull City	31	6	10	15	-14	28
17	Aston Villa	31	7	7	17	-22	26
18	Burnley	31	5	11	15	-23	26
19	Queens Park Rangers	31	7	4	20	-20	25
20	Leicester City	30	5	7	18	-20	22

Manchester City’s Slide Continues Against Crystal Palace

Manchester City lost 2-1 to Crystal Palace, the club's third loss in its last five games, in a contest that featured a dispute over offsides in the buildup to Palace's opening goal. 

Crystal Palace’s Glenn Murray buried the ball in the back of the net, but it appeared as if both he and Scott Dann were offside on the play. Alas, the call was not made, and Manchester City soon found themselves behind by two after Jason Puncheon put home another goal from a free kick in the second half.

Manchester City trimmed the deficit to 2-1 in the second half, but it was too little, too late for the Citizens. 

Murray commented on the victory, per the Premier League:

City now find themselves a mere seven points ahead of Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur for fourth place. Even that doesn’t feel like a safe margin, given the way City has played in recent contests.

Derby Win Moves Sunderland Closer to Safety

Sunderland took a major step toward securing safety by once again besting North East rival Newcastle United in the derby. On a weekend of spectacular goals, ageing poacher Jermain Defoe turned back the clock with a quite brilliant volley to net the winner.

The stunning strike came barely seconds before the half-time whistle. An image of the terrific hit was captured by Sky Sports Football:

Despite some strong pressing after the break, the Magpies couldn't muster any quality in forward areas. It was yet another tame performance from a squad that has talent but rarely produces.

Sunderland won't care, having earned five wins a row over their local enemy. This could be the most significant, though, based on what it's done to the relegation battle:

Now it's Villa and free-falling Hull who are really feeling the heat. Meanwhile, new Sunderland boss Dick Advocaat has already had a positive impact.

Tottenham Hotspur Fail to Capitalise on Liverpool's Slip

Liverpool could have found themselves sitting sixth had Tottenham Hotspur taken full advantage of their slip. However, the north London club were held to a goalless draw at Burnley on Sunday.

Manager Sean Dyche's relegation-threatened Clarets pressed and attacked with verve and gusto right from the start. WhoScored.com highlighting defender Eric Dier as a key figure in the match was a reflection of how far Spurs found themselves on the back foot:

Denied consistent, quality service, star Spurs striker Harry Kane was largely anonymous. Without his influence, Tottenham's attack was reduced mostly to speculative efforts, per Squawka Football:

The result hasn't really helped either team, even though they each moved up a spot in the standings. Spurs went above Southampton, but fifth place was the real target.

Meanwhile, Dyche's men have gone back above QPR but missed the chance to move out of the bottom three. A visit from Arsenal is next on the list.

It will take all of Burnley's determined endeavour to rattle the Gunners and produce another shock.

United Leapfrog City

Manchester United now enjoy a rare advantage over their neighbours, City. The Red Devils are a point ahead of the Citizens after putting three past Villa.

Crafty midfield ace Ander Herrera struck twice. The brace was part of a stylish performance from the Basque playmaker, per WhoScored.com:

But it was often-maligned club-record-buy Angel Di Maria who might have enjoyed the day the most. The Argentinian winger set up a goal for talisman striker Wayne Rooney.

The assist confirmed a flair for creativity that's been overlooked in Di Maria's game this season. Squawka Football detailed just how prolific the former Real Madrid man has been at creating chances in the league:

United fans will enjoy looking down on City. But it's possible supporters of the Old Trafford club will prefer the part their team played in all but ending Liverpool's top-four hopes.

Manager Brendan Rodgers' squad were already barely hanging on after taking a beating from the Gunners. That result left Liverpool trailing Arsenal by nine points.

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

But United's win creates an eight-point gap to third.

Either way, it's going to be a very tall order for Liverpool to earn a top-four finish with only seven games to go. In fact, Rodgers already seems to have given up the race, per Liverpool Echo reporter Ian Doyle: "I doubt we will be in the top four now, there’s too much ground to make up.

"That’s the realistic view. It will be difficult to qualify for the Champions League. Now we must concentrate on the FA Cup."

Missing out on a place in Europe's top club competition next season is a major blow for Liverpool. Rodgers will now struggle to attract the marquee players he needs to make the Anfield club one of the Premier League's best again.

That won't be a problem for United, whose time in the Champions League wilderness is now highly unlikely to last two years.

Chelsea Gifted Invaluable Points

More than a little sluggish, and clearly nervy after Arsenal's big win earlier in the day, leaders Chelsea needed a moment of good fortune. It came via Stoke City goalkeeper Asmir Begovic.

Richard Heathcote/Getty Images

The clumsy stopper rolled the ball into the path of Eden Hazard, who did the same for Loic Remy to score the winning goal. It was a hugely significant moment in the title race.

With a seven-point lead and a game in hand, Chelsea are still well-placed to win this season's trophy. It's a vital fillip after Mourinho's squad again lost increasingly brittle star striker Diego Costa.

He couldn't even last a quarter of an hour before more hamstring woes sent him to the treatment room, per the Sky Sports Football official Twitter account:

Chelsea do struggle for fluency and cutting edge play when the prolific Spain international isn't around. Fortunately for Mourinho's men, maintaining their healthy lead at the top offers some margin for error.

But the Chelsea gaffer won't want to leave anything to chance. Not when Arsenal are in such fine form.