Weekend Premiership - a look at the new odds

Arsenal and Chelsea went into their London derbies against West and Spurs respectively both expecting to claim the three points required to maintain their pursuit of Premiership leaders Man Utd. However, neither West Ham nor Spurs had read the scripts. Arsenal's visit to the Boleyn Ground should have been a relatively straightforward task given the plight of the home side. But, despite enjoying the lion's share of possession, the Gunners lacked any real penetration and had run out of ideas long before Marlon Harewood delivered a late knockout punch when rifling home the Hammers' winner in the 89th-minute. What followed was pretty ugly, though. Alan Pardew, in his state of animated elation, thought that Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger may share his joy. However, somewhat predictably to most, the Frenchman was none too impressed by Pardew's attempt to involve him in the celebrations, and the two managers clashed on the touchline. But for the intervention of the coaching staff from both sides, it would surely have come to blows. Pardew, to his credit, accepted that his actions were inflammatory. The Hammers boss, now a top-priced 9/2 to with Blue Square to be the next Premiership manager to leave having been odds-on a couple of weeks ago, said: "I apologise if I offended Arsene. If I was over-zealous in my celebrations, which I'm sure I was, I apologise fully to Arsene and Arsenal." Both West Ham and Arsenal were denied penalty claims, the Gunners' case being the most compelling - as clear-cut a penalty as you're ever likely to see in fact - when midfielder Aleksandr Hleb was brought down by Jonathan Spector. But, ultimately, Arsenal didn't deserve to win on the day. The hitherto frustrated Thierry Henry has now gone three consecutive matches in which he started without scoring - an eternity by his own exacting standards. The France striker only had one real meaningful attempt on goal in the second half, but his 20-yard strike was saved by Robert Green. However, Henry is still a top-priced 7/4 favourite to be the Premiership's top goalscorer this season. West Ham have clawed their way out of the drop zone and Betfred and Coral now go 6/1 about them being relegated. Meanwhile, the Gunners' odds for the Premiership have swelled significantly - they are now available at 12/1 with VC Bet for the title, having been as short as 4/1 in recent weeks. Spurs hadn't beaten Chelsea at White Hart Lane since 1987 and had gone 32 consecutive league matches without mastering the Blues prior to their Premiership fixture on Sunday when Martin Jol's charges exceeded and excelled, beating the reigning champions 2-1. The home side went into this match with a full head of steam following their midweek victory over FC Bruges in the Uefa Cup, momentum which saw them produce a super-charged performance, which clearly rocked Chelsea. Jose Mourinho's men never saw this one coming. As they did against Bruges, Spurs found themselves on the back foot pretty early in the game. Claude Makelele fired the visitors into the lead after 15 minutes and in the two minutes that followed Paul Robinson kept the home side in the match by proving equal to long-range strikes from both Michael Ballack and Frank Lampard. On 25 minutes, however, Michael Dawson climbed highest to meet Jermaine Jenas' sweet cross and head home the equaliser for Spurs. The tempo of the game intensified significantly and Berbatov and Drogba both went close at either end within the next ten minutes. The irrepressible Aaron Lennon, who had terrorised Paulo Ferreira down the left-hand side for much of the game, provided the match-winner in the 52nd minute when controlling Robbie Keane's cross with a deft first touch which took him past Ashley Cole before leaving Chelsea keeper Hilario all at sea with a sublime strike into the corner of the net. It's hard to believe that Leeds-born Lennon is still just 19 years of age. Judged on this performance, he looks sure to take high rank in an England shirt for years to come. John Terry saw red after the temperature of the match reached boiling point in the 74th minute. An off-the-ball incident with Ledley King sparked the ensuing eruption. Chelsea staged a late rally and substitute Salomon Kalou was denied by Robinson while Arjen Robben saw his curling left foot shot bounce off the woodwork. But this was to be Spurs' night and the celebrations that followed were indicative of how much this meant to the north London side and their fans - they had waited 16 years to see their team beat Chelsea. Spurs' odds in the winner without the 'Big 4' betting have contracted - they are now a standout 5/2 with bet365, but as short as 15/8 with Paddy Power. In the same market, Everton are available at 4/1, Bolton 5s and the resurgent Aston Villa are 6/1 with Skybet, but almost half those odds with Coral (7/2). Chelsea remain odds-on to land their third successive title but are now generally available at 8/11. Sir Alex Ferguson's rampant Man Utd, 3-0 winners of their match with Portsmouth on Saturday, are as short as 6/5 in a place but can be backed at 6/4 with most firms.