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Premier League, Stamford Bridge – Chelsea 4 (Torres 14, Lampard 22, Hazard 31, Ivanovic 76) Norwich 1 (Holt 11).

Chelsea cemented top spot in the Premier League with an attacking masterclass, romping to a 4-1 win over Norwich at Stamford Bridge.

Grant Holt gave struggling Norwich an early lead against the run of play after 11 minutes, but Fernando Torres levelled three minutes later, before Frank Lampard and Eden Hazard scored delightful goals to put the Blues comfortably ahead after half an hour.

In the second half it might easily have been a rout as Oscar, Juan Mata and Hazard took centre-stage, but in the end Chelsea managed only one more, a sumptuous volley from Branislav Ivanovic 76 minutes in.

The Blues will finish the weekend four points clear at the top of the table, while Norwich remain stranded near the foot of the league.

Roberto di Matteo’s decision to include both Ashley Cole and John Terry stole the headlines, but it was his attacking combination which had more of an impact on the match.

With the unbeaten league leaders hosting the winless Canaries, only one result looked likely, but Holt’s early strike gave the Blues an early scare.

It was a well-worked move – Wes Hoolahan running unchecked before picking out Sebastian Bassong in the box, who nodded down for Holt to rifle past Petr Cech.

But the lead was short-lived. Torres, who had spurned an early chance with hesitancy after being played in over the top, got on the end of a cross from Ivanovic and glanced past John Ruddy to level.

Chelsea kept attacking, and the second came after Torres attempted an overhead kick. It was blocked – but straight into the path of Lampard, whose finish was clinical.

The Blues were not watertight at the back and Norwich did have their chances – Alexander Tettey had got into a great position up front only to completely misjudge his header.

But it left them exposed to the counter-attack, and they were undone for the third by a superb break led by Mata. The Spaniard went most of the length of the field laying on a deft through ball for Hazard, who knocked it first-time into the corner.

The chances rained down during the second half – Holt, along with Hoolahan the bright spots in a tame display for Norwich, nodded just wide at the far post for the visitors before Chelsea resumed normal service.

There were at least two clear penalty chances that the Blues were denied – Hazard was bodychecked by Leon Barnett chasing a lost cause of a ball, while Terry’s shirt was clearly pulled by Martin when he tried to head in at the far post late on.

Meanwhile Oscar tested Ruddy out from distance, Mata almost rounded off a flowing team move with a finish past the Norwich keeper, while Torres came close on a number of occasions.

Despite the combination of attacking talent, Chelsea’s only goal of the half came from a defender.

Oscar put in the cross from the left-hand side, Mata flicked it back in towards the middle, and Ivanovic with all the poise of a striker crashed the ball in at the near post.

Ivanovic may be a right-back, but with six Premier League goals in 2012, he has only been outscored by Fernando Torres (eight) and Frank Lampard (seven) for the Blues this year.

Norwich avoided further damage on the scoresheet, but with their next Premier League fixture pitting them against Arsenal, Chris Hughton's task of getting a first Premier League win with the Canaries looks a tricky one.

For Chelsea, who were able to give a late Premier League debut to Cesar Azpilicueta and a first top flight appearance of the season for Oriol Romeu, the team look in great shape, despite the notable off-field distractions, going into the international break.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Juan Mata (Chelsea) – To stand out in an attacking midfield boasting Oscar and Hazard says something about the calibre of Mata’s performance.

Premier League, Emirates Stadium – Arsenal 1 (Gervinho 42) Chelsea 2 (Torres 20, Mata 53).

Chelsea beat Arsenal 2-1 at Emirates Stadium to stay top of the Premier League and maintain their unbeaten start to the domestic season.

John Terry's every touch was booed enthusiastically by the home fans in light of his impending four-match ban for racially abusing Anton Ferdinand, but he ended up on top as Chelsea won a lively London derby.

Goals from Fernando Torres and Juan Mata did the damage, although Arsenal gave them a hand as their inability to defend set pieces was exposed for a second weekend running.

Gervinho was on target for the Gunners, who had lengthy spells of possession but were unable to create enough chances as Petr Cech only made two saves of note all match, although substitute Olivier Giroud hit the woodwork before putting a good opportunity wide in injury time.

It was Arsenal’s first defeat of the campaign, while their Chelsea hoodoo continues: the Blues are the first team to beat Arsene Wenger’s side three times in a row in the Premier League at the Emirates.

A frantic first half finished even as both sides attacked with vigour, Chelsea getting the better of the opening exchanges as Torres netted his 75th career Premier League goal at the expense of Laurent Koscielny and co.

Last weekend the Gunners’ zonal marking was criticised as they conceded to Manchester City at a set-piece, but their failure to attack the ball was at fault then as it was now, although their man-marking was exposed this time.

A superbly weighted Mata free-kick saw Koscielny fail in his task as a man-marker, allowing Torres to hook a leg around his torso and flick an improvised finish past Vito Mannone.

It was not all Koscielny’s fault as the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – who had just entered play following another injury to poor Abou Diaby – allowed David Luiz and John Terry the freedom of the box before Torres’s intervention.

While a lapse in organisation was at play, it was a deserved goal in the sense that Chelsea - with three attacking midfielders - had pressed and harried Arsenal from the off, their style of chasing and clever passing echoing that of Barcelona.

Chelsea should have gone 2-0 up when Koscielny fluffed his lines under pressure from Torres, who went clean through but – in electing to round Mannone instead of finish directly – fell over under pressure from the chasing centre-back.

The Spaniard wanted a penalty but the minimal contact was a result of his swinging boot catching Koscielny’s as opposed to any intent on the defender’s part.

The hosts responded well, using overlapping full-backs Keiran Gibbs and the excellent Carl Jenkinson to great effect as they launched waves of attacks.

Gervinho, leading the line as Giroud watched on, should have done better with a far-post header from Lukas Podolski’s driven cross, the Ivorian’s effort across goal well-fielded by Terry.

Chelsea were dangerous on the break, Torres just offside as he finished from a sweet Mata through ball, but Arsenal’s equaliser was always on the cards.

Jenkinson, who has taken to his attacking right-back role with gusto and surprise given his shaky displays last season, was involved in much of Arsenal’s forward play and it was one of his runs that saw Oxlade-Chamberlain released down the right.

His low ball picked out Gervinho, who turned before firing an unstoppable effort into the top right, a finish out of keeping with the Ivorian’s oft-disappointing end product.

There was still time for Torres to find the side netting after a counter attack that marked Chelsea’s increased tendency to sit deeper into half-time.

The second half continued with the pattern of Arsenal possession and Chelsea counters, with the visitors more effective than the hosts, whose afternoon was typified by Cazorla’s wild finish from a good spot, one of many poor shots from the talented Spaniard.

Chelsea were soon back in front as Mata again showed his quality with the dead ball, this time swinging it beyond everyone bar the lunging Koscielny, who got a touch as it flew past Mannone to the bottom left. The ball was on target so Mata was credited with the goal, but ball-watching Arsenal again should have dealt with it.

Arsenal responded with possession-driven attacks but it was worth nothing that Cech made his first proper save just before the hour mark, tipping a Lukas Podolski header over.

Jenkinson and Gibbs were leading the charge at will but, despite some dangerous crosses, Arsenal were second to the ball in the vital areas.

Giroud and Theo Walcott were brought into the fold but the former, for all his undoubted effort, looks short of the quality required to be a main striker at this level.

He inadvertently came close to a leveller when his low shot took a huge deflection off David Luiz, but Cech palmed it wide for a corner, while a flicked header from a corner touched the woodwork, although a flag went up in the melee.

Chelsea had men behind the ball but still countered with intent, sub Victor Moses close to a spectacular half-volleyed goal that dipped just over.

Arsenal were throwing everything at the Blues, who tried to run it into the corner at every opportunity, although the hosts still carved out enough chances to grab a point. Cazorla smacked one high and wide when he should have at least made Cech work, while in stoppage time Giroud showed poor composure when put through by the aforementioned Spain midfielder, taking an extra touch wide before hammering his finish into the side netting.

Chelsea’s win – their first in 33 against Arsenal without Didier Drogba in the team – cements their claim to being the form side in England, while Arsenal must look to bounce back from disappointment, an inability to do so having marked recent seasons.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Juan Mata (Chelsea) – His dead-ball delivery is second-to-none and the Spaniard was on song today, creating the first and scoring the second as he exploited Arsenal’s hesitancy at set pieces.

Premier League, Stamford Bridge – Chelsea 1 (Cole 85), Stoke City 0.

Chelsea left it late before sealing a hard-fought 1-0 against Stoke City at Stamford Bridge that keeps them top of the Premier League table.

A week after their stalemate away to local rivals Queens Park Rangers and their 2-2 Champions League draw at home to Juventus in midweek, the Blues looked destined for a third straight draw before Ashley Cole popped up with the winner with just four minutes remaining.

Left-back Cole scored his first goal for Chelsea since May 2010 by rounding off an aesthetically-pleasing team move.

After beginning the season with four straight draws, Stoke suffered their first defeat of the new campaign. The Potters are now without a win in their last 12 games, since a 2-1 win over Wolves on April 7.

The win puts Chelsea three points clear at the top of the table, ensuring they will finish the weekend as league leaders. Stoke remain in the bottom half with four points from five games.

Following his stunning goal as part of his brace against Juventus, Brazilian midfielder Oscar was given his first Premier League start by manager Roberto Di Matteo.

The club's two most senior players – club captain John Terry and vice-captain Frank Lampard – who named on the bench following their European exertions, with Gary Cahill and Juan Mata coming in.

The tone was set early on as Mata and Eden Hazard orchestrated plenty of possession in the Stoke half, but the visitors stayed resolute and kept the corner count steadily rising but the scoreboard unchanged.

Fernando Torres rose to meet one of those corners seven minutes in but the Spaniard – who has now scored just once in seven Premier League matches against Stoke – sent his header over the bar.

On the one occasion Chelsea played their way through, Torres took Mata's chipped pass nicely on his chest but swung at thin air as he tried to finish past goalkeeper Asmir Begovic.

Branislav Ivanovic was fortunate to escape a booking from referee Michael Oliver for a shameless dive in the area midway through the first half, while Charlie Adam was not so lucky moments later when he clumsily manhandled Ramires.

Robert Huth avoided the same fate when Oscar cheekily turned and nutmegged him with one slick touch and pivot. The German defender did not take kindly to such finesse and hauled the young Brazilian back.

Stoke only had five shots to Chelsea's 12 in the first half, but they had the two best chances to break the deadlock.

Jonathan Walters headed an excellent free-kick delivery from Glenn Whelan against the bar before Marc Wilson's thundering strike across the area was guided on target by Michael Kightly only for Petr Cech to make a good reaction save low to his left.

In the second half Oscar showed a propensity for acting that will have headline writers rubbing their hands with glee when he was booked for a theatrical dive in search of a penalty.

Soon afterwards, however, he gave a reminder of his ability with the ball when he almost recreated his strike against Juve, taking his marker out of the game with a swift turn before arrowing a low strike just wide.

Michael Owen came off the bench for his second Stoke appearance, but he was mainly deployed as an extra body in midfield. Peter Crouch came closest to scoring for Stoke in the second half but he couldn't reach a corner whipped across the six-yard box with an outstretched leg.

Crouch was later replaced by Kenwyne Jones, who teed up fellow substitute Matthew Etherington for a strike but the winger fired wide.

With time running out and club owner Roman Abramovich looking distinctly unimpressed, Di Matteo brought on Lampard and the veteran soon made his presence felt. Lampard played an early part in an attack which became a one-touch move, culminating in Juan Mata casually backheeling into Cole's path and Begovic couldn't keep the England defender's close-range finish out.

Chelsea centre-back David Luiz was perhaps fortunate to avoid a red card in stoppage time for his lunging tackle on Walters as the striker attempted to launch a counter-attack. The melee that ensued helped kill any late momentum Stoke were trying to build as their search for an equaliser ended in vain.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Juan Mata (Chelsea) – With all the fuss over Chelsea's summer signings, Mata gave a reminder of why he was the club's player of the year last season with a performance full of creativity, culminating in his assist for the winner.

Manchester United came from three goals down to draw 3-3 at Chelsea in a pulsating Premier League match at Stamford Bridge.

Second-half strikes from Juan Mata and David Luiz added to a first-half own-goal by Jonny Evans to bring up a 3-0 scoreline that flattered the hosts somewhat.

But United raised their game and, spearheaded by Wayne Rooney – who netted two penalties – they drew level thanks to a late Javier Hernandez header.

David De Gea made an incredible late save to deny Mata’s wonderful free-kick, with the Spaniard tipping over a Gary Cahill effort at the death as the spoils were shared in West London.

The result means United are two points behind leaders Manchester City, while fourth-placed Chelsea edge a point ahead of Newcastle United, who beat Aston Villa earlier on Sunday.

Chelsea will be wondering how they failed to win the game given their position before United’s first penalty went in on 58 minutes.

Questions will again be asked of Andre Villas-Boas’s tactical acuity: Daniel Sturridge had been a livewire all match, forcing Evans’s own-goal and leading the line with confidence, while Torres – for all his hard work – looked lost once more, picking up a fourth booking since last February that means he has seen yellow more often than the back of the net for the Blues, although he did get a fine assist.

But when United pulled it back to 3-2 following a contentious penalty given when Danny Welbeck bought contact from Branislav Ivanovic, the Portuguese coach removed Sturridge and not Torres for Oriol Romeu.

Romeu has good positional sense, but he had a limited impact - possibly startled by the intensity of the occasion - while it is common knowledge that retreating into a defensive shell plays to Manchester United's strengths of relentless attack from all angles.

John Terry was missing for Chelsea with fellow defender Ashley Cole also absent; United, meanwhile, welcomed back Rooney and Ashley Young from injury, although Nani failed to make the squad.

A tense first half saw United make most of the running, while Chelsea got the lucky breaks – including one that Reds fans will insist cancels out their questionable penalty.

Referee Howard Webb failed to penalise a clear foul from Cahill, which started outside the area but left Welbeck in a heap when he was through on goal. Had it been given, Chelsea would most likely have gone down to 10 men at an early stage.

The Blues’ second slice of fortune resulted in them taking the lead: Sturridge did well to beat a sluggish Patrice Evra to the by-line, but his low cross flew past De Gea and in off the chest of a helpless Evans.

Chelsea went close to an immediate second when Sturridge forced a smart stop from De Gea, so United cranked up the pressure, creating chances through Young, Welbeck and Rooney – Petr Cech making fine saves to deny all three.

The second half seemed to be set for a United comeback but, practically from the restart, Chelsea doubled their lead with a wonderful goal.

Torres was in acres of space down the right with Evra again missing. The goal-shy striker floated over a delightful cross that landed to his diminutive Spain team-mate Mata: in a flash, and with marvellous technique, the former Valencia playmaker hammered an incredible volley that flew past De Gea into the roof of the net.

It was some goal and within three minutes it was 3-0, although a combination of poor defending and yet more luck saw Luiz meet Mata’s free-kick with a header, allowed to do so by poor marking and helped past De Gea by the shoulder of Rio Ferdinand.

Sir Alex Ferguson responded by introducing Hernandez, but the Mexican super-sub was not involved as Evra went some way to compensating for his defensive frailties by bounding into the box to draw a clumsy challenge from Sturridge.

It was a penalty and Rooney responded with a clean finish into the roof of the net, bringing it back to 3-1.

While that decision was clear, United’s second spot-kick was dubious to say the least: in an almost-identical incident to that which saw Manchester City’s Adam Johnson win a penalty off Fulham’s Chris Baird on Saturday, Welbeck hung a leg out to draw contact off Serb defender Ivanovic.

It was gamesmanship by Welbeck and Webb – perhaps with his earlier mistake in mind – pointed to the spot, Ivanovic’s righteous disbelief mimicking that of Baird’s at Eastlands. Rooney was not put off though, coolly slotting the penalty one way and sending Cech the other, and it was game on.

The England striker was at the heart of everything, taking the game to Chelsea and ably supported by marauding wide-man Antonio Valencia, who had been put to right-back following Paul Scholes’s entrance but was playing more like Cafu than Gary Neville.

As United piled forward, Chelsea were still creating chances – De Gea making a decent stop from Michael Essien’s long-range hammer, and Torres delaying his shot enough for Valencia to block after the misfiring Spaniard played himself past Evans with a clever header.

But the script insisted United should complete the miraculous comeback, and they did so in some style as – after another bounding run and cross from Valencia – Rooney drew a fine stop from Cech: Ryan Giggs picked it up wide left and, as he has done for what seems like an eternity, the old man of the Premier League curled a wonderful cross that Hernandez was destined to meet with a headed goal.

There was still time for some late drama as De Gea went some way to compensating for errors in previous matches with a miracle stop from Mata’s curling free-kick, showing incredibly agility and speed to pluck the ball from the top right.

The former Atletico Madrid man was called into action again when, in the fourth minute of injury time, a trademark Cahill piledriver was tipped over for a corner.

United were not to be undone, holding out for the draw, and – while they remain behind City – they are still very much in the hunt for the title.

Chelsea, meanwhile, continue to look over their shoulders at Newcastle and Arsenal as the threat of finishing outside the top four looms.

Juan Mata's father has confirmed that Arsenal have failed with a bid for the Valencia midfielder, but he expects them to return with an improved offer.

It emerged on Monday that Arsenal had failed to secure a deal to sign the Spain international before a deadline expired that has seen his release clause rise substantially from 25 million euros (£22m).

Tottenham are reported to have offered to match the clause, only to be turned down by Mata, so Arsenal are now left to ponder whether they will pay an increased amount to sign a possible replacement for Cesc Fabregas, should he join Barcelona.

Mata's father and agent, Juan Manuel Mata Rodriguez, believes Arsene Wenger will approach Valencia once again.

"Valencia simply rejected their offer. After some hesitation they answered 'no' to the Gunners' offer," Rodriguez told calciomercato. "So my son remains a Valencia player, for now. But I don't think it's their last offer."

Inter may also be in contention to sign the star, with Valencia likely to sell to ease their oppressive debts.

Mata's father added: "There are several offers for Mata and I think that Arsenal will come forward again. The situation is still evolving.

"Are Inter Milan one of the interested teams? I know my son holds Milan in high esteem. We'll see if Inter will come forward directly."