Arsenal 3-0 Aston Villa: Third meets fourth at the Emirates with Arsene Wenger aware that victories in their two games in hand would take his side to within a point of league leaders Chelsea
It is a first half of few chances as Aston Villa's defence - the most miserly in the league - keeps close tabs on Andrey Arshavin and his fellow attackers
After leaving his captain on the bench with a sore hamstring, Wenger turns to Cesc Fabregas in a bid to prise open the visitors. Eight minutes later his gamble is rewarded with a precise free-kick from the Spaniard
Fabregas sprints onto Theo Walcott's finely weighted pass to round off a swift counter-attack and all but seal the points. He is then substituted just 27 minutes after coming on
With a tired Aston Villa defence standing off him, Abou Diaby wraps up the win a minute into injury time with his fifth league goal of the season. Arsenal take on struggling Portsmouth and Bolton in their next two games
Hull 1-3 Manchester United: The champions take the trip to the KC Stadium hoping to regain second spot from the Gunners and Wayne Rooney warms Boaz Myhill's palms with a fierce early effort
United are stretched at the other end and Richard Garcia hits the turf after Wes Brown's challenge, but Hull's appeals are turned down by referee Alan Wiley
Two minutes into injury time at the end of the first half and the Tigers' rearguard cracks after a spell of pressure from the visitors. Rooney prods home the opener from Darren Fletcher's low cross
Rooney is at fault however as his stray pass leads to Rafael barging into American striker Jozy Altidore in the box. Craig Fagan steps up to slot home the subsequent spot-kick
But United recover and Rooney is at the centre of the action again as his ball across the six-yard box is diverted into his own net by Hull defender Andy Dawson
There is still time for Dimitar Berbatov to find the net for the first time since the end of October as Rooney threads the ball through for the Bulgarian to apply a simple finish
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