By Andrew Discenza

The scintillating contest of Newcastle vs West Brom gave Premiership fans an early Christmas gift of fascinating football. The visitors opened the scoring with a wonderfully worked goal, as Chris Brunt bent an inch-perfect ball for Peter Odemwingie to run through on goal and plant a confident finish into the bottom corner. Newcastle were quick to respond as Demba Ba’s freekick into the top corner proved too hot for Ben Foster to handle. Brunt again gave his side the advantage, as his freekick was headed back across by Paul Scharner for Gareth McAuley to nod in from close range. The prolific Ba made it 13 goals in 16 matches with another quality equalizer for Newcastle, smashing the ball into the roof after a slick one-two with Hatem Ben Arfa. West Brom would steal all three points just five minutes from time, as Shane Long’s cross and Odemwingie’s deft knockdown gave Scharner the opening for an instinctive volley into the corner for a dramatic winner.

Nani put in an electrifying showing against Fulham with two assists and a goal as Manchester United steamrolled to a 5-0 victory. He created the first goal on five minutes, racing down the line past two defenders before picking out a completely unmarked Danny Welbeck to side-foot in. Ryan Giggs then found Nani with a chipped cross and the Portuguese showed his rarely applauded aerial skills to flick his header down, across David Stockdale and into the corner. Nani then returned the favor for the Welshman, crossing on a breakaway for Giggs to score via a hefty deflection. The 25-year-old capped off a fine day by starting the move that lead to Dimitar Berbatov’s nonchalant backheel.

John Terry’s massive defensive performance, including two crucial interventions, helped earn Chelsea a 1-1 draw at Tottenham. The 31-year-old stepped up to lead the back with Petr Cech continuing to show surprising signs of rustiness, and bailed the keeper out at the death to maintain the draw. Early on Gareth Bale went on a marauding run and hit a goalbound shot, but Terry spread himself to block the effort. After marshalling the defense for 91 minutes, Bale opened up Chelsea again on the break, playing in Emmanuel Adebayor whose low shot squirmed under Cech. But Terry was always alert to the danger, sliding in behind his goalkeeper to send the ball magnificently wide of goal.

Adam Johnson produced a stunning strike to help Manchester City on their way to victory. Stoke were withstanding a period of sustained pressure from the visitors when Johnson collected a loose clearance. He took one touch to open up a shot, then unleashed a bullet that sang into the bottom corner with Thomas Sorensen helpless to keep it out.

Sergio Aguero’s simple brace epitomized Manchester City’s leisurely stroll to a 3-0 win over Stoke. He netted the opener after a sloppy move, Yaya Toure’s shot was taken away from the goalkeeper by Vincent Kompany’s touch, and Aguero was there to sweep home at the doorstep. It was good positioning again from the Argentine as Samir Nasri’s low cross somehow evaded three Stoke defenders, and the 23-year-old tapped into the open net.

Wayne Rooney scored a beautiful goal despite not putting in his most influential of showings for Manchester United. He received the ball 25 yards from goal and as Fulham defenders were slow to close down the Englishman took aim and let rip a fierce drive that swerved away from David Stockdale to nestle in the corner of the net.

Ramires missed two glorious chances that could have earned Chelsea a win at Tottenham. First Didier Drogba sent the Brazilian in behind but he shot straight at Brad Friedel from close range. Then came a truly gilt-edged chance late on, as Juan Mata’s freekick found Ramires in acres of space just six yards from goal, but he somehow guided his header wide of the post with the net gaping in front of him.

Ali Al Habsi preserved a point for Wigan with a valiant goalkeeping performance to hold Liverpool to a 0-0 draw. The Omani was a dominant presence between the posts and frustrated the visitors with saves from Jordan Henderson, Luis Suarez, Dirk Kuyt, and most notably Glen Johnson who had a marvelous opening to score. His biggest test came when Gary Caldwell’s handball sent Charlie Adam to the penalty spot, but Al Habsi guessed right to palm the ball to safety.

Danny Gabbidon’s unfortunate error made the difference as Sunderland edged out QPR in another five-goal thriller. The Welshman unwittingly headed the ball between his own defenders and in behind for Stephane Sessegnon to beat the keeper with a sleek finish.

Robin van Persie has now scored 16 goals in 17 matches after his penalty helped Arsenal to a 2-1 win at Aston Villa. Credit to Theo Walcott for earning the spot-kick, as he spun away from Claran Clark in a flash, forcing the defender to tug back on the winger just inside the area. The Dutch sharpshooter made no mistake from the spot, lashing the ball into the roof to equal Thierry Henry’s record of 34 league goals in the calendar year.