The Tribune

MANCHESTER, England (AP) -- Carlos Tevez played in his first game since September 27 and set up Samir Nasri's late go-ahead goal, giving Manchester City a 2-1 comeback win against Chelsea on Wednesday night that kept pressure on Premier League leader Manchester United. Tevez entered in the 66th minute to a mixture of boos and cheers, his first appearance since he was suspended for refusing to warm up for a Champions League match at Bayern Munich. Tevez assisted on the tiebreaking goal in the 85th with a brilliant deft pass on a turn, allowing Nasri to lift a shot over goalkeeper Petr Cech. "When he plays he knows where to put the ball," City manager Roberto Mancini said. "Carlos did an important pass for Samir, all the fans are happy for this." With its club record 20th straight home league win, City (22-4-3) pulled one point behind defending champion United (22-3-4) with nine games left. Mancini said Tevez needed time to regain full fitness. "He has showed great spirit and today showed he can be really important until the end of the season," Nasri said. Gary Cahill put fifth-place Chelsea (14-8-7) ahead with a goal on a deflection in the 60th minute, and Sergio Aguero tied it with a penalty kick in the 78th after a hand ball by Michael Essien on Pablo Zabaleta's shot. "We are disappointed because we think we did well (enough) to get something out of this game," Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo said. Arsenal (17-8-4) moved up to a season-high third place with a 1-0 win at Everton on Thomas Vermaelen's eighth-minute goal. Tottenham (16-7-6) slipped to fourth, two points behind the Gunners and five ahead of Chelsea. Rafael Vander Vaart's goal on a header in the third minute of stoppage time gave Spurs a 1-1 tie against visiting Stoke, which had gone ahead on Cameron Jermone's goal in the 75th. Queens Park Rangers (6-16-7) moved two points above the relegation zone, overcoming a two-goal deficit for a 3-2 win over visiting Liverpool (11-9-9). Sebastian Coates in the 54th and Dirk Kuyt in the 72nd built a 2-0 lead, but QPR rallied on goals by Shaun Derry in the 77th, Djibril Cisse in the 86th and Jamie Mackie in the first minute of stoppage time. Real Madrid in 1-1 tie at Villarreal BARCELONA, Spain (AP) -- Spanish leader Real Madrid wasted a lead for the second time in four days when it again conceded a goal on a late free kick in a 1-1 tie at Villarreal. Real Madrid (23-2-3) saw its lead over three-time defending champion Barcelona (20-2-6) cut from 10 points to six with the two draws. Cristiano Ronaldo put Madrid ahead in the 62nd minute with his 43rd goal of the season and 33rd in the league, one behind Barcelona's Lionel Messi. But Marcos Senna bent his free kick around the defensive wall in the 83rd, just as Malaga's Santi Cazorla did in injury time Sunday. Madrid ended with nine men after Sergio Ramos and Mesut Oezil received their second yellow cards following Senna's goal. Madrid coach Jose Mourinho was also banished from the sideline by referee Jose Luis Paradas Romero -- who ejected him from a Copa del Rey match against Murcia in November 2010.