EPL wrap: Newcastle rise from the dead to draw against 10-man Arsenal

NEWCASTLE // Arsenal threw away a four-goal lead to draw 4-4 with Newcastle in an astonishing Premier League game on Saturday.

The Gunners were 3-0 ahead inside 10 minutes thanks to goals from Theo Walcott, Johan Djourou and Robin van Persie.

The Dutch striker Van Persie headed in the fourth before half time, but Abou Diaby's push on Joey Barton left Arsenal to play out the final 40 minutes with 10 men and Newcastle seized its chance.

Barton scored twice from the spot either side of a goal by Leon Best before Cheik Tiote completed the comeback with three minutes remaining.

OTHER RESULTS:

Everton 5-3 Blackpool

Louis Saha scored four times Saturday to lead Everton to a 5-3 win, taking his tally to eight goals in his past six games.

Blackpool had come from 2-1 down to lead 3-2 at Goodison Park before Saha's third goal leveled the match. He struck again in the 84th minute, four minutes after teammate Jermaine Beckford had given the hosts the lead with a superb volley.

Saha also scored in the 20th and 47th minutes – either side of a goal from Alex Baptiste for Blackpool – but Jason Puncheon and Charlie Adam then found the net for the visitors to take the lead.

Man City 3-0 West Brom

Carlos Tevez scored a 19-minute first-half hat trick on his 27th birthday to help Manchester City record a comfortable 3-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion at the City of Manchester Stadium.

Tevez hit the post after only three minutes but made no mistake from a 16th minute penalty, awarded for a trip by Steven Reid on Aleksandar Kolarov.

His second goal came five minutes later and followed a clever one-two with teammate David Silva which allowed Tevez to advance and comfortably beat Albion goalkeeper Boaz Myhill.

After Kolarov had struck the crossbar, Tevez completed his hat trick 10 minutes before the interval – taking his season tally to 20 goals – with another penalty after Jerome Thomas had handled in the West Brom area.

Aston Villa 2-2 Fulham

Clint Dempsey's 10th goal of the season earned Fulham a 2-2 Premier League draw at Aston Villa on Saturday.

Villa led twice through John Pantsil's own-goal and a first ever league goal for the on-loan Kyle Walker, but Andy Johnson and then Dempsey equalised.

Villa dominated the first half with winger Stewart Downing linking up well with fullback Walker down the right but Dempsey completed the London side's comeback with a smart header from Danny Murphy's 78th-minute corner.

Tottenham 2-1 Bolton

Tottenham substitute Niko Kranjcar scored in injury time Saturday for a 2-1 win over visiting Bolton and three vital points in the chase for a second straight top-four Premier League finish.

The Croatia midfielder's 25-meter (yard) shot sealed victory for a Spurs side that also had a goal disallowed.

Rafael van der Vaart put Tottenham ahead with a sixth-minute penalty and converted another a minute later, only for it to be chalked off because of encroachment by other players. Jussi Jaaskelainen saved the retaken kick.

Tottenham's Jermain Defoe was only denied another penalty because of a late offside decision against Peter Crouch before on-loan Chelsea striker Dean Sturridge equalized in the 55th.

Wigan 4-3 Blackburn

James McCarthy scored twice Saturday to end Wigan's eight-game winless streak with a 4-3 win over Blackburn that lifted the side out of the Premier League relegation zone.

Blackburn deservedly led through Jason Roberts but McCarthy equalized 10 minutes before halftime.

Hugo Rodallega and McCarthy then put the Latics two goals ahead before Christopher Samba pulled one back and Wigan's Ben Watson and Blackburn's David Dunn completed the scoring with a penalty each.

Stoke 3-2 Sunderland

Central defender Robert Huth scored two goals in the last eight minutes Saturday to give Stoke a 3-2 Premier League win over Sunderland, which had led for more than an hour of the match.

Kieran Richardson had put Sunderland ahead in the second minute and, although John Carew equalized 30 minutes later, Asamoah Gyan's ninth goal of the season put the visitors 2-1 up early in the second half.

But Huth equalised from close range in the 83rd seven minutes and then slid in to touch in an injury-time free kick to put Stoke ahead for the first time in the match.