Leader Liverpool dropped two valuable points Saturday at lowly Stoke, stumbling to a 0-0 draw a day after manager Rafa Benitez angrily dismissed Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson's assertion that the Reds' title bid will falter due to nerves. Captain Steven Gerrard hit the crossbar and the post in the last six minutes as Stoke held the 18-time champion for a second time this season, raising further doubts about its ability to win a first English title since 1990. Both United and Chelsea have won at Stoke this season and last season's top two will be looking to take advantage of the slip-up when they meet Sunday. A victory will take second-place Chelsea within a point of the Premier League leader, while the defending champion would overtake Liverpool by winning the Old Trafford clash and its two games in hand. Late goals enabled fifth-place Arsenal to stay in sight of the Champions League places with a 1-0 victory over Bolton and Sunderland to earn at 1-1 draw at local rival Middlesbrough. Everton swept aside Hull 2-0 by and Newcastle drew 2-2 with West Ham. Frozen pitches forced the postponement of two top flight matches Saturday - Portsmouth-Manchester City and Fulham-Blackburn - while much of the lower-league program was wiped out. Benitez's astonishing attack on Ferguson came after the Scot said Liverpool would “make mistakes ... and get punished” in the second half of the season. Aston Villa leapfrogged United into third place with a 2-1 win over local rival West Bromwich Albion after a costly blunder by goalkeeper Scott Carson. Villa midfielder Steve Sidwell had two headers cleared off the line before the ball eventually fell to Gareth Barry, who whipped in a cross for Curtis Davies to head in his first goal of the season. Arsenal left it late to overcome a stubborn Bolton side with Nicklas Bendtner latching on to Robin van Persie's cross and sliding the ball in at the far post with six minutes remaining. Arsene Wenger's side had looked set for another frustrating day until the visitors tired in the last 25 minutes.
