Pre-match Premier League stats

SATURDAY

ASTON VILLA v SUNDERLAND

These clubs won a combined 11 league titles before the First World War but have added only two since then (one each).

BLACKBURN ROVERS v WIGAN ATHLETIC

Each team has a player with the name of a significant Spanish city. Blackburn have (Roque) Santa Cruz, capital of Tenerife; Wigan have (Luis Antonio) Valencia.

BOLTON v MANCHESTER CITY

Gary Megson, the Manchester-born Bolton manager, twice finished fifth when playing for Manchester City in 1991 and 1992.

EVERTON v WEST HAM UNITED

Freddie Sears, 18, has scored as many goals (1) in his 15 minutes in a West Ham shirt as Carlton Cole, his fellow striker, has managed in his past 17 and a half hours.   

MIDDLESBROUGH v DERBY COUNTY

Derby are on course for the top flight’s worst goals-per-game record since league football began in 1888. Seven from the last eight will equal Sunderland’s 2003 low. 

NEWCASTLE UNITED v FULHAM

Kevin Keegan has no wins in nine at Newcastle but it is far from the worst North East managerial start this decade. Mick McCarthy lost his first ten at Sunderland in 2003.

READING v BIRMINGHAM CITY

For the third successive season, Kevin Doyle, the Reading striker, has scored more goals away than at home in all competitions.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR v PORTSMOUTH

The three 4-4 draws in the Premier League this season have come in a triangle: Tottenham v Chelsea; Tottenham v Aston Villa; Chelsea v Aston Villa.

SUNDAY

MANCHESTER UNITED v LIVERPOOL

Only six top-flight games have been staged previously on Easter Sunday. United have never played on this day; Liverpool have won away to Tottenham and Blackburn.

CHELSEA v ARSENAL

This weekend: Chelsea host Arsenal, the last side to beat them away in the league 78 games ago; Fulham visit Newcastle, site of their last away league win 32 games ago.

In the past six seasons, these teams have finished as the top two in the league (Arsenal 1st, Chelsea 2nd in 2004; Chelsea 1st, Arsenal 2nd in 2005 ), in the FA Cup (Arsenal 2, Chelsea 0 in 2002 final) and in the League Cup (Chelsea 2, Arsenal 1 in 2007 final).

Chelsea have won only two of their past 24 league games against Arsenal.

From August 2004 to January 2006, Chelsea averaged 2.6 points per league game (a rate of 99 points per season). Since then they have averaged 2.1 per league game (81 points per season).

Chelsea are unbeaten in 97 home domestic games (excluding a loss in a penalty shoot-out).

Of the 330 Arsenal starting berths in their 30 Premier League matches this season, only seven have been filled by an Englishman – six by Theo Walcott and one by Justin Hoyte.

John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba have appeared in the same Chelsea starting line-up in only five league games this season.

Six of William Gallas’s past ten goals for Arsenal and Chelsea have been scored against another big-four side, including the only goal when Arsenal beat Chelsea in December.

Frank Lampard has missed ten league matches this season for Chelsea, twice as many as in the past six seasons combined.

Arsenal lead Chelsea by two points having trailed them by 15, 24 and 12 points over the past three full seasons.

Arsenal have drawn four successive league games for the first time since 1998.