Premier League leaders Liverpool stumbled at home again yesterday and needed two Steven Gerrard goals to salvage a 2-2 draw with Hull City.
Liverpool fluffed the opportunity to open a four-point gap on second-placed Chelsea and it could have been even worse after they trailed 2-0 in the 22nd minute, the second Hull effort an own goal by Jamie Carragher.
Luckily for the leaders two of their rivals also dropped points.
Champions Manchester United drew 0-0 at Tottenham Hotspur while Arsenal were held 1-1 by Middlesbrough. Chelsea can move a point clear at the top if they beat West Ham United at Stamford Bridge today.
Aston Villa moved above Arsenal into fourth spot thanks to a 4-2 home win over Bolton Wanderers, Gabriel Agbonlahor scoring twice for Martin O'Neill's men.
Liverpool have 38 points from 17 games, Chelsea have 36 from 16 with United on 32 from 16. Villa have 31 points.
Sunderland moved out of the bottom three with a 4-0 romp at home to bottom club West Bromwich Albion, who appear to be plunging towards a quick return to the Championship.
Sunderland have 18 points, the same as big-spending Manchester City who were beaten 1-0 at home by Everton to leave manager Mark Hughes under pressure.
Blackburn Rovers were thumped 3-0 at Wigan Athletic while Stoke City and Fulham ended goalless.
Liverpool have drawn at home to Stoke City, Fulham, West Ham and Hull this season, a trend threatening to derail hopes of their first top-flight title since 1989-90.
There was stunned silence at Anfield when Paul McShane headed in Marlon King's cross and then Carragher turned Bernard Mendy's centre into his own net.
Gerrard, so often Liverpool's saviour, single-handedly brought his team level with two rasping shots in the space of eight minutes before half-time.
It seemed likely Liverpool would go on to claim victory but they appeared to run out of ideas after the break in the absence of the injured Fernando Torres. Home defender Sami Hyypia came close to winning it when his header came back off the post.
Former Arsenal striker Jeremie Aliadiere denied his old club a Premier League victory at a rain-sodden Riverside Stadium.
Arsenal took the lead after 17 minutes when Emmanuel Adebayor was left unmarked to head in a Cesc Fabregas corner.
Their lead only lasted 12 minutes as Aliadiere reacted brilliantly to swoop and head Tuncay's driven cross past a helpless Manuel Almunia.
Arsenal had an escape before half-time when Boro winger Adam Johnson appeared to be brought down in the area by Gael Clichy but no penalty was awarded.
The Gunners dominated for much of the second half but were left frustrated as they dropped more points on the road.