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English Premiership Review                                                

Hello and welcome to our brand new English language Premier league review and round up. I am compiling this editorial for those of you interested in ‘the beautiful game’ with an English perspective.

Let’s start off with yesterday’s Merseyside Derby, held at Everton’s Goodison Park. Interestingly both clubs grounds are separated by Stanley Park, a mere walk across in either directions leads you to both Anfield and Goodison, so not too far to travel for these Derby games then..Ironically, Everton are considering re locating to a new modern stadium outside of the city’s limits in Kirby, bringing cries of protest from home supporters and cries of derision form Liverpool fans, some of whom were heard taunting Everton fans that they should leave Liverpool for good, as the city belongs to just one club!

The game itself was a messy affair and apart from an initial period of dominance by Liverpool for the opening quarter of an hour, the game fell into a stalemate with very few chances going to either side, then the referee decided to get things started, the standard of refereeing, as you may have gathered if you watch the English premiership is about as consistent as the weather in Birmingham, in this case, the game was getting a little laborious,…who knows maybe he was bored? As the game dragged on he  decided to give penalty awards to the reds (one for which Phil Neville of Everton, gets top marks for saving on the goal line in dramatic style, for those of you who didn’t know, Neville is a midfielder and hence the penalty award…) and deny the same openings to the Toffees, however to add a little spice, Sami Hyypia, the cumbersome Liverpool central defender did manage to convert a spectacular own goal in the first half to give the home side some hope of following up on last seasons mauling of Liverpool at Goodison, however, this was not to be the case and even without Fernando Torres, Liverpool’s exciting new marksman, they still managed to come away with all the points leaving them within reach of the top of the table, sadly for Everton, who were by no means outplayed, they now drop to tenth.



Once upon a time, long before Sky sports dominance of the airwaves, football matches used to kick off at the traditional hour 3pm, fortunately some still do and the next match up for review is the Gunners or Arsenal versus the manager less Bolton Wanderers, a team that actually used to cause Arsenal a lot of problems, certainly from previous statistics, proving Bolton to be something of ‘bogey’ team to Arsenal. This was mainly due to the clever tactics applied by their former Manger, Big Sam Allardyce, and (now with Newcastle) unfortunately for Bolton, that form has since elapsed and they are currently struggling at the foot of the table. Their pride ensured that they fought for the ball and were stubborn in defence, this lasted up until the 67th minute, when the home side finally made their breakthrough, the usual plush, creative flow that Arsenal are now famous for finally began to show and the Gunners wrapped by up the game with two beautifully taken goals from Kolo Toure and Tomas Rosicky, (pictured below) …. Hopefully he won’t score too many.. (sic).



Finally, yesterday’s most thrilling match saw the newly awakened Manchester United travel to Birmingham to play rapidly improving Aston Villa. United, were in danger of becoming labelled ‘boring’ after grinding out a series of 1-0 ‘s , that was until last week when the lethal combination or ‘Holy trinity’ of  Christiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez  started to click, demolishing Wigan by 4-0, surely this couldn’t be repeated away at Villa ? Well, no Ronaldo, rested after International duty midweek, meant Villa could surely breathe easily…?! Things took shape a little differently at the start, Villa seemed up for the battle and began with thrusting attacks on the flanks, leaving the covering defence of Brown and Evra in some disarray, Young and Agbonlahor were creating chances and threatening to break the deadlock. It duly came as Young in swinging cross dipped beyond United’s central defence and found Agbonlahor , who positioned his header beyond Van der Saar, it could be said his view was blocked by Villa’s Moore, however the goal stood and United were a goal down. Not for long, the visitors started to put their foot down and gained midfield control. Scholes was pinging passes around the park, one of which found winger Nani, whose cross swept behind Villa’s defence for Rooney to pounce on bringing the game level. After this it was a case of how many the Red Devils would score, such was their dominance and creativity. Rooney and Tevez combining consistently and the latter creating Rooney’s second from a delightful through ball, allowing the centre forward to turn and shoot in one easy movement. Two ‘own goals’  by Villa  under pressure wrapped up the points for United, despite Rooney missing a penalty denying him a hat trick, United, it seems  are swiftly changing up the gears and are now nicely positioned behind the Gunners in the league, with both teams  due to meet in the league in a couple of weeks. Things are hotting up!



Sunday 21/10/07
Meanwhile, in East London…. Lady luck shone on West Ham as they  ended a three-match losing streak thanks to a freakish own goal by Sunderland goalkeeper Craig Gordon and an injury time strike from Craig Bellamy.
Alan Curbishley's team were very much on the back foot in the second half after Kenwyne Jones had cancelled out Carlton Cole's early strike but the introduction of Nolberto Solano proved decisive as the diminutive Peruvian played an integral role in West Ham's late revival.
    
The former Newcastle winger had only been on the pitch for a couple of minutes when his side-footed shot bounced back off the post and struck keeper Gordon on the legs before rebounding into the net.
It was a cruel blow for Gordon and Sunderland after they had fought back valiantly with a rousing second-half performance, but their misery wasn't complete yet as Bellamy scored in injury time to secure the points after further good work by Luis Boa Morte, another second-half substitute.
Until West Ham's late strikes it appeared Sunderland might finally register their first away win of the season, but Robert Green pulled off two excellent saves and Jones wasted a couple of half-chances as they failed to make their superiority tell.

The current standings….



Mark Clifton

[Admin]

English Premiership Review 28/10/2007
 
Hello again and welcome to our second issue of the English premiership review. What a fantastic week of football, not just on the field but off it too. Firstly, it seems that Tottenham’s ‘on off’ saga relating to the future of coach Martin Jol, finally came to a head after their loss to Newcastle and then in Europe’s  Uefa Cup tie against Getafe  was the final nail in their erstwhile manager’s coffin. The manner in which the Tottenham board decided his future was a classical ‘Roman style’ thumbs down approach, which infuriated many. Jol knew his time was up and respectfully requested that the announcement would be made in a joint statement and thereby allowing him some dignity in the process, the board decided in their wisdom that they would announce his departure prior to any mutual consent, sending Jol out into the managerial abyss and with him his assistant coach, Chris Hughton, a former player and connected to the club for over twenty years along with goalkeeping coach, Hans Segers. The coaching staff alongside Jol had the support of the fans, so this move by the board managed to upset the paying punters and all fans in the process too!  The new boss, Seville’s Juande Ramos will watch Sunday’s game against Blackburn from the directors' box. Ramos seems certain to be assisted by Gus Poyet, the former Uruguay international who had an excellent rapport with the fans during three seasons as a Spurs player. Hopefully his well known strategic and disciplinarian approach will stand him in good stead for the immediate future and from what we have seen from the internal management of the club he will need all of his skills at the ready if he is to avoid any similar fate of his predecessor… so good luck to him!



London calling: Juande Ramos leaves Sevilla's stadium


So, to matters football on the pitch! Manchester United’s bandwagon seems to be gathering pace, from a decidedly slow and patchy start to the season, the Red Devils have found their fluidity it seems, having won their previous three games (including in Kiev in the champions league) by scoring four goals a game, they decided to continue this healthy trend by doing the same with yesterday’s visitors, Middlesbrough, by winning 4-1.

The game couldn’t have started in any more of a thrilling fashion, literally three minutes into the match, Nani the new starlet from Sporting Lisbon, received the ball on the wing, ran past through three Middlesbrough players and dispatched a thirty yard drive past Schwartzer…Game on ! Middlesbrough, one of the few teams to hold an impressive record at Old Trafford, responded immediately, a short counter attack found Jeremie Aliadiere  a former Arsenal player out jump the sluggish Ferdinand and glance a header past the stranded van der Sar… this had the makings of a thriller. Up to this point United had several opportunities to forge ahead, however, the Middlesbrough defence held firm and then as a by product of this the game seemed to fizzle out of gas for the majority of the half, the visitors being the main beneficiaries. Just as we were getting ready to prepare half time refreshments, Middlesbrough fell victim to their own defensive spell and lost concentration, a defensive error that allowed Rooney to pounce on a poor clearance and with a sublime two touch move, one to block the second to smash the ball into the net had restored the game back into United’s hands just before the break.

The second half saw both teams back at it with renewed vigour, Boro to fight their way back into the game, United to kill it off, the next goal would be vital. Up until this point United, with Hargreaves back after almost two months and Anderson in midfield had been creating the most chances, both short of games had admittedly looking a little cumbersome, however, more determined than their counterparts. The juicy combination of Tevez and Rooney, also up to this point had showed signs of promise but were mostly snuffed out of any clear cut chances…that is until the…minute when a sublime exchange of passes between Anderson, Rooney and Tevez created one of the best goals seen so far this season, a beautiful block interception, pass and back flick, three deft touches produced a goal that the game needed and Tevez had been desperately working for in the past couple of games to put United into pole position in terms of the game’s three points. Tevez, not satisfied with his earlier piece of magic had a deflected shot, which was handled en route into the net, guaranteeing United their three points and a strong goals for tally in the premiership race.
United on this performance deserved their win and as a result going top of the league, ahead of Sunday’s match of the day at Anfield, where Liverpool take on incumbent leaders Arsenal.



‘Getting to know you’ : Tevez celebrates with Rooney


Moving swiftly on, rumours of Chelsea’s gradual demise were soon dismissed with a thumping 6-0 demolition of the new would be championship challengers, Manchester City. The threat had been long overdue, further to the circus that was Jose Mourinhio departure and speculation over who would be taking over his mantle, players vowing to leave and of course Avram Grant sullen features pondering his next obstacle…added to the new arrival of Dutchman  Henk ten Catefrom Ajax as Grant’s new look backroom team shape. Something must be working, as his team seem to be responding positively to these changes…will Mourinho become a quickly forgotten man??  It was also interesting to see the familiar gaunt features of City’s Sven Goren Ericksson  as his team were quite literally torn apart. Eriksson, no stranger to adversity, had bought some valuable time and admiration form the City supporters so far, it might be just a matter of time before those credits run out.

There really is no place like home for City, who have won all six league matches at Eastlands but have now lost three times on their travels, or should that be travails?
All afternoon, City, who have earned praise for their attacking football, found Chelsea players running through huge gaps to run at their young goalkeeper, Joe Hart.
Chelsea had not hit anyone for six in the league since thrashing Coventry in 2000. But supporters sensed something special when Lampard's shot rebounded off Hart's right foot early in the second half and Drogba, the arch predator, sucked up the rebound and thumped it into the net.
Joe Cole was next up as the City defence waved another one through after Drogba had flicked on an overhead clearance from the mighty Alex. Then Essien, a powerful presence in midfield, sent Salomon Kalou galloping through to squeeze a shot through Hart's legs.
There was still one precious moment to come for the Chelsea faithful.

Shevchenko, who almost melted Abramovich's smile by losing the ball a couple of times in promising positions, finally made a telling run to pick up another Essien pass down the right to end another one-on-one with Hart in Chelsea's favour. For Chelsea, who almost came unstuck in the final minutes of that Fulham game, it was normal service restored at the Bridge, where they are now unbeaten in 68 games. Seems as though Arsenal clinch on the top spot is not quite as firm as they may have thought…



Flying: Didier Drogba celebrates his first of two goals



Sunday 28/10/2007


Liverpool (1) 1 Arsenal (0) 1

Cesc Fabregas scored his 10th goal of the season to earn Arsenal a point at Anfield that took them back to the top of the Premier League table at the end of a pulsating match.
Liverpool took the lead in the seventh minute when Steven Gerrard drilled a low drive past the helpless Manuel Almunia from 20-yards after a free-kick was rolled in to the Liverpool captain's path.
Liverpool were forced to hold on in the face of an Arsenal onslaught for the rest of the first half that the visitors dominated but still managed to create chances of their own in an open and entertaining match.
Both sides came in to the match with unbeaten league records but there was never a suggestion that either team was prepared to settle for a draw.
Rafael Benitez started with a three pronged attack with Fernando Torres supported by Dirk Kuyt and Andrei Voronin whilst Arsenal played with a five man midfield and Emmanuel Adebayor as the lone striker.
Torres was forced off at half-time with Peter Crouch his replacement but it was Arsenal's class that told at the end of a frenetic game.
Arsenal had hit the woodwork twice with Fabregas and substitute Nicklas Bendtner guilty of spurning rebounds with open goals at their mercy but when Alexander Hleb placed a perfectly weighted pass into the Spaniard's path he caught Jose Reina in the Liverpool goal off guard with a first time toe poke.
Even after the late equaliser both teams still pressed for a winner but to no avail.




Bolton (1) 1 Aston Villa (0) 1

Luke Moore's second-half equaliser denied former Leicester manager Gary Megson victory in his first match in charge at Bolton.
Second-half substitute Moore managed to chest Gabriel Agbonlahor's centre into the net from close range in the 56th minute following a quick throw in which left Bolton wrongfooted.
Only 18,413 turned out at the Reebok Stadium, Bolton's lowest ever attendance since promotion to the Premier League, to witness Megson's opening match.
His appointment might not have been a popular choice, but it was soon forgotten when Nicolas Anelka put the hosts ahead on 22 minutes.
Anelka struck his sixth goal of the season with a free-kick to give his struggling side a lift and nearly added a second five minutes later when El-Hadji Diouf played the ball into his path.
Instead of shooting first time, Anelka took a touch and tried to curl his effort beyond Stuart Taylor but it went narrowly wide of the post.
Villa were quickest out of the blocks and drew level after the break, but it was Bolton who should have regained the lead in the 84th minute following a scuffed clearance from Gareth Barry.
Ricardo Gardner latched onto it and his effort was spilled by Taylor. However Diouf only succeeded in clearing the bar with his effort.


Get in: Megson's celebrations were cut short by Moore's reply


Tottenham (0) 1 Blackburn (0) 2

New Tottenham coach Juande Ramos could only watch on as his side conceded a last-gasp strike to suffer their fifth Premier League defeat of the season.
With Ramos' appointment only confirmed last night, Clive Allen took over first-team duties following the departure of Martin Jol on Thursday, but he could not guide them to what would have been only their second league win of the season.
Robbie Keane fired the hosts in front with his eighth goal of the season when he struck from the penalty spot four minutes after half-time following Stephen Warnock's foul on Aaron Lennon.
Their lead did not last long, though, as Blackburn drew level when Benni McCarthy struck 10 minutes later.
And Blackburn manager Mark Hughes, who had been linked with the Spurs hotseat, saw his side snatch a winner at the death when defender Christopher Samba scored with a superb curling finish.


Derby (0) 0 Everton (1) 2

Ayegbeni Yakubu scored his second Premier League goal for Everton since his pound;11 million move from Middlesbrough to heap more misery on strugglers Derby.
Billy Davies' side slumped to the foot of the table following their latest home defeat coupled with Bolton's point against Aston Villa.
Yakubu struck a low left-foot finish past Stephen Bywater in the 62nd minute to wrap up victory for the visitors who had taken a 26th-minute lead through Mikel Arteta.
Despite a first league start for teenage prospect Giles Barnes and a rare second-half appearance from record signing Robert Earnshaw, the home side never threatened to claw their way back for a point.
For Everton, meanwhile, it saw David Moyes' men return to winning ways after two straight defeats.


This week’s standings:



Please write to me with your comments (whoever you support    !)

Mark Clifton
mailto: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com

[Admin]

English Premiership Review 04/11/2007

This week’s football programme started with mouth watering affair at the Emirates Stadium, North London, where Arsenal the league leaders took on a fast and furious Manchester United team. This was never going to be dull and as expected had a few twists in the plot. Both sides like to play fast moving attractive football and as both were sitting on the same number of points, Arsenal having a better goal difference and an important one game advantage, it was up to United to take the game to Arsenal. United’s record away at Arsenal is impressive and their recent run of form could only assist them in this top of the league clash.
Arsenal (0) 2 Manchester United (1) 2

The First half was played at frenetic pace, with the home side dominating possession for lengthy periods around the midfield, where United’s pairing of Hargreaves and Anderson looked a little stretched. Arsenal also managed to curtail any impact from the deadly trio of Rooney, Ronaldo and Tevez.

It was Arsenal who looked the most threatening and the game continued to be more about possession rather than creativity and despite a few attempts by either side, most notably a downward header from Ronaldo,  it was looking like 0-0 going towards half time, that was until Wes Brown intercepted a loose ball and aggressively checked Hleb before slipping a tight ball to Ronaldo down the right flank. The winger's low centre was met by Wayne Rooney at the near post and his shot flicked up off the diving Gallas and past Manuel Almunia into the net. This momentary counter attack appeared to have stunned the Gunners and elevated the travelling supporters…the game had begun in earnest as the first half was ending..

Arsenal showing their half time team talk had made some impact, went straight on the attack, Emmanuel Eboue floated the ball over from the right and into the penalty area, where Emmanuel Adebayor timed his run perfectly. Edwin Van der Sar was out quickly to block the Togo striker's volleyed effort but the loose ball broke to Bakari Sagna, who squared it back to Cesc Fabregas. Rio Ferdinand was back on the line but Fabregas picked his spot and found the bottom corner from 12 yards. The game was now back on an even keel, one can only wonder how United gave that equaliser so cheaply.

The Red Devil’s seemed a little more purposeful now and were both keeping possession and distributing the ball with more purpose, this may have been due to the introduction of Carrick and Saha for Tevez and Anderson, both south American’s hadn’t really got to grips with the game thus far. Then another twist….United went back in front, substitute Louis Saha fed Patrice Evra, who skipped into the right side of the box, drew Almunia and cut the ball back for Ronaldo, who could not miss. Arsenal 1Man Utd 2.

United now looked to have completed that all important away victory and on their way home with an impressive three points, until stoppage-time….Yet again the defence seemed to invite another Arsenal attack when surely playing for possession would have been the smarter tactic….and it was Gallas, making amends for his previous own goal by striking a shot at the far post. Van der Sar clawed the ball away but it was already beyond the line and Arsenal were level.

So barely with breath back and time to reflect, honours shared and it’s as you were, with Arsenal back on top spot.


A game of two halves; Arsenal's Rosicky challenges Manchester United's Ronaldo



Blackburn (0) 0 Liverpool (0) 0

Liverpool came close to snatching victory at Ewood Park but their recent troubles in front of goal were plainly evident in a goalless draw against Blackburn.
Blackburn had Brad Friedel to thank as he twice saved from Steven Gerrard while Peter Crouch saw his header cleared off the line by David Bentley in the closing moments.
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez left England striker Crouch on the bench again and it was the hosts who dominated in the first half, with Bentley hitting a post and David Dunn crashing a shot against the crossbar.
Liverpool's only real chance fell to Ryan Babel, but Friedel was more than equal to his effort. The result means Liverpool drop to seventh while Blackburn are in fifth.



What might have been : Gerrard holds his head as Liverpool drop more points


Middlesbrough (0) 1 Tottenham Hotspur (1) 1

Former Tottenham defender Luke Young spoilt Juande Ramos' first game as a Premier League manager as Middlesbrough claimed a deserved point at the Riverside Stadium.
Darren Bent put the visitors ahead against the run of play after 35 minutes with a low effort from 15 yards.
However, Young ensured both sides' search for a league victory continued with a long-range shot early in the 52nd minute.



Lucky break: Spurs go ahead against run of play



Newcastle United (1) 1 Portsmouth (3) 4

Portsmouth produced a fine display of finishing to condemn Newcastle to their first home defeat of the season.
The visitors raced into a 3-0 lead within 11 minutes of the kick-off as Noe Pamarot, Benjani Mwaruwari and John Utaka struck in quick succession.
Sol Campbell's 15th-minute own goal gave Newcastle hope, but Niko Kranjcar wrapped up the victory with a 70th-minute free-kick to clinch a fourth successive away victory.


Sam’s not a happy man! Allardyce watches as Newcastle fall behind to Portsmouth


Wigan Athletic (0) 0 Chelsea (2) 2

Two first-half goals from Chelsea, inspired by Shaun Wright-Phillips and finished by Frank Lampard and Juliano Belletti, were enough to see Chelsea past struggling Wigan at the JJB Stadium.
Lampard followed up his midweek Carling Cup hat-trick against Leicester with another trademark goal, meeting Wright-Phillips' pinpoint ball after 10 minutes.
Belletti produced a stunning individual effort after the England winger kept the ball in play with some athletic work, and although the quality flagged in the second period, it was enough to cut the gap on the Premier League leaders.


Fetch it: Belletti scores Chelsea’s second



Aston Villa (0) 2 Derby County (0) 0


Martin Laursen and Ashley Young plunged Derby deeper into relegation trouble with second-half goals for Aston Villa at Villa Park.
Laursen and Young struck twice in the space of four minutes to end the resistance of Derby, who have still to claim an away goal in the Premier League this season.
It was Villa's fifth win in seven home games during this campaign and they were always in control, even though they were seldom firing on all cylinders after surviving a promising start by the visitors.


Who’s the man? Laursen makes the breakthrough against Derby


Fulham (1) 3 Reading (0) 1

American striker Clint Dempsey broke a six-match duck to score the 72nd-minute goal which clinched the second Premier League win of the season for Fulham against Reading at Craven Cottage.
Reading had hit back, after Simon Davies's opener with 17 minutes gone, to level the scores when Kevin Doyle headed in a corner at the far post after 54 minutes.
However, although that strike looked like it could lead to Reading's first away win of the campaign, Dempsey had other ideas and forced the ball home after sub Shefki Kuqi's header had been blocked.
David Healy knocked in a Davies cross in the last minute of normal time for 3-1, before Fulham youngster Elliot Omozusi was sent off.



Fulham's Simon Davies celebrates scoring the opening goal of the game



Everton (1) 3 Birmingham (0) 1

Two goals in 60 seconds of injury time gave Everton victory in a match they looked to have thrown away.
The home side dominated the first half and Aiyegbeni Yakubu gave them a deserved lead at the break.
However, constant sloppy play allowed Birmingham back into the game, with Olivier Kapo grabbing the equaliser with 11 minutes to go, only for Lee Carsley and teenager James Vaughan to strike in injury time



Finally!: Everton take the points



West Ham United (1) 1 Bolton Wanderers (0) 1

Kevin Nolan sealed a last minute draw for Bolton Wanderers at West Ham with a goal deep into stoppage time.
Bolton's team selection harked back to the Sam Allardyce days when Gary Megson handed a start to veteran Gary Speed, having blocked a loan move to Sheffield United earlier in the week.
But it was West Ham who started better and came close early on with an Ivan Campo free-kick whistling past the post before Carlton Cole, given offside, shot just wide.
On 19 minutes, with Bolton struggling to clear a Nolberto Solano corner, McCartney produced an acrobatic volley from inside the box to score his first top-flight goal.
Bolton came back with Kevin Davies the main architect of West Ham's problems.

A long throw from Ivan Camp found Davies who layed the ball to Danny Guthrie who hit a low drive that cannoned off the post.
Bolton pushed forward searching for the equaliser in the second half and had opportunites to level the score, Kevin Davies came closest when his header hit the top of the crossbar and went over.

England hopeful Robert Green was also equal to a Gary Speed volley from the edge of the area but flapped at a corner that Davies was unable to direct on target.
West Ham also had chances, and appeals for a penalty were waved away when Andy O'Brien tussled with Lee Bowyer.
Luis Boa Morte latched onto a hopeful 65th minute ball for West Ham and took it around Jussi Jaaskelainen, the cut-back ball was headed clear by Ricardo Gardner in front of Carlton Cole.
The drama was left until the end when when a deft Kevin Nolan volley rescued a point for Bolton and broke West Ham hearts.



Opener: George McCartney smashes in West Ham's goal



This week’s standings




Please write to me with your comments (whoever you support    !)

Mark Clifton
mailto: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com

[Admin]

English Premiership Review                                                       No.4   10/11/07

This week’s fixture list had some intriguing meetings, including the North East derby Sunderland against Newcastle and the big Midlands game Birmingham playing arch rivals Aston Villa. Would Manchester United be able to take advantage of their home match against the ever improving Blackburn in order to take top spot? (Albeit overnight, as Arsenal don’t play until Monday at Reading). Also, could Chelsea continue their run in playing catch up with the leading pack and would Liverpool be able to follow on from their impressive 8-0 midweek victory and break their drawing streak in the league? Finally would Derby actually start winning???  All of these questions and more can be found in this week’s football review. Enjoy and of course feel free to let me know your thoughts on your teams by writing in on our English Premiership review forum or by writing to me at:  markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com



Liverpool (0) 2 Fulham (0) 0

Late goals by Fernando Torres and Steve Gerrard gave Liverpool victory at home to Fulham.
Despite periods of intense pressure from the home side, Fulham frustrated Liverpool with their obdurate resistance.
Yossi Benayoun and Andriy Voronin had good chances for Liverpool, while Peter Crouch hit the bar in first-half injury time.
Just as it looked as though Fulham would deny Rafael Benitez a win on his 200th Liverpool game, substitute Torres finished clinically to send Anfield into raptures in the 81st minute.
Four minutes later the Kop was celebrating again after Crouch was brought down and Gerrard converted the resulting penalty.






Sunderland (0) 1 Newcastle United (0) 1

James Milner was Newcastle's derby saviour with the equaliser that ensured his side extended Sunderland's wait for a home win over their closest rivals beyond 27 years.
The England U21 midfielder struck after 65 minutes with a shot which crept inside Craig Gordon's far post as the visitors mounted a concerted fightback.
Danny Higginbotham had headed Sunderland in front seven minutes after the break with his first goal for the club, and Sunderland might have snatched victory eight minutes from time when Michael Chopra's header came back off the bar.





Derby County (0) 0 West Ham (1) 5

West Ham racked up their biggest win of the season as Derby's desperate fight for Premier League survival suffered another major blow at Pride Park.
A goal late in the first half from Lee Bowyer was followed by a blitz after the break that saw Matthew Etherington, Jonathan Spector - whose strike looked to have been blocked by Eddie Lewis, only for his fellow American to fall over the ball and send it over the line - Bowyer again and Nolberto Solano brutally expose their opponents' shortcomings.
Without a goal in four games going into the match, Derby were as disappointing up front as they were at the back, Kenny Miller's header off target their only genuine chance.




Manchester United (2) 2 Blackburn (0) 0

Cristiano Ronaldo took over the goalscoring mantle in Wayne Rooney's absence by scoring a first-half double against 10-man Blackburn which ensured Manchester United moved to the top of the table.
Ronaldo struck twice in two minutes to keep Mark Hughes' side at bay at Old Trafford, who ended with 10 men following the dismissal of David Dunn.
United midfielder Ronaldo has remained in the shadows this season as Rooney forges a front partnership with Carlos Tevez.
And while Louis Saha was called in for only his first Premier League start since February with Rooney injured, it was Ronaldo who took his goal tally to 10 for the season with his first-half brace.
He powered home Ryan Giggs' corner in the 34th minute before finishing off Tevez's magnificent square pass a minute later to ensure United's ninth win in 10 matches.
Blackburn's hopes of preserving their unbeaten away record were all but dashed when Dunn was dismissed eight minutes after the restart.
The former England international had already picked up one booking for hauling back Tevez, but his tackle on Saha was adjudged to have been deliberate and he was shown a straight red card.
While victory ensured United of a place at the top of the table, Arsenal can head into the international break at the top of the standings if they beat Reading tomorrow.





Tottenham (3) 4 Wigan (0) 0

Spurs collected their first Premier League win in nearly three months against relegation-threatened and managerless Wigan.
Two goals from Jermaine Jenas and a Aaron Lennon volley put Juande Ramos' side into a commanding 3-0 lead at half-time, while Darren Bent completed the scoring in the 72nd minute.
Wigan, who had lost their previous six matches going in to today's game, never looked like ending that run and fell behind after 13 minutes when Jenas scored the first of his double with a tap-in on the line.
Dimitar Berbatov came in for criticism this week for appearing discontent at White Hart Lane but set up Spurs' next two goals. The first came in the 26th minute when he played in Jenas who rounded Chris Kirkland and planted his finish past Kevin Kilbane on the line.
Berbatov then played a cushioned pass to Lennon, who took one touch before drilling a volley into the far post.
Substitute Bent added the fourth with 18 minutes of the match left following Jenas' through ball. Spurs had a chance to make it 5-0, but Younes Kaboul saw his effort rebound off the bar.




Birmingham (0) 1 Aston Villa (1) 2

Aston Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor made a goalline clearance before scoring a last-gasp winner to deny Birmingham a point in a dramatic finale to the Midlands derby at St Andrew's.
Villa took a ninth-minute lead when former defender Liam Ridgewell could only turn a centre from midfielder Stiliyan Petrov past his own goalkeeper Maik Taylor.
City, who had two penalty appeals turned down before the break, drew level when substitute Mikkel Forsell headed home Daniel De Ridder's cross in the 62nd-minute.
It was Birmingham who were in the ascendancy, and they were inches from taking the lead when Ridgewell saw his header turned round the post by Agbonlahor in the 86th minute.
Yet in a fantastic climax to the match, just 60 seconds later, the England Under-21 international charged down the pitch to turn home Ashley Young's cross to settle the outcome with three minutes remaining.





Chelsea (0) 1 Everton (0) 1

A spectacular overhead kick from Tim Cahill two minutes from time secured Everton a share of the spoils at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea appeared on course for three points after Didier Drogba put the hosts in front with a powerful header in the 71st minute from Salomon Kalou's corner.
But they had to settle for only their second draw at home in the league this season when Cahill's superb strike beat Carlo Cudicini from six yards.
Drogba's goal was his seventh of the season and the point was enough to stretch Chelsea's unbeaten home league run to 69 games.
The hosts also lost centre-half Ricardo Carvalho to injury when he fell awkwardly trying to head clear in the first half and was replaced by Israeli defender Tal Ben Haim






Portsmouth (0) 0 Manchester City (0) 0

Portsmouth hit bar and post through Glen Johnson and substitute David Nugent but Joe Hart's confident goalkeeeping anchored a solid Manchester City display in which Darius Vassell and Martin Petrov missed the visitor's best chances.
It was Portsmouth's third goalless home draw of the season and prevented them overhauling City into third place in the Premier League, but it was also their eighth straight league match without defeat.
City, however, were indebted to Hart, 21, who tipped Johnson's shot against the bar and breathed a sigh of relief when Nugent - a second-half substitute for injured Kanu - crashed an effort against the foot of a post.




Bolton (0) 0 Middlesbrough (0) 0

Bolton's heroics at securing a memorable draw in their Uefa Cup contest with Bayern Munich in midweek were soon forgotten as they had to settle for a point against fellow strugglers Middlesbrough.
With Nicolas Anelka and El-Hadji Diouf sidelined through injury and suspension, Bolton lacked an attacking threat against Middlesbrough.
Kevin Davies played up front on his own and even though he worked tirelessly he failed to test goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer.
Ivan Campo should have marked his return to the Bolton side by finding the target but he squandered two good chances.


This week’s standings…..




Please write to me with your comments (whoever you support!)  

Mark Clifton
mailto: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com

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English Premiership Review                                                       No.5   24/11/07

Welcome to preview number 5… Last week the focus was off the premiership and on the Euro championship qualifiers, what a week it proved to be. England sunk at home by Coatia, having been handed a lifeline through Israel’s hard fought win against Russia. ‘Maclaren’s Men’ had only to draw against the Croatian’s who, having already qualified, let their guard’s down by losing in Macedonia, surely a home tie at Wembley with 80,000 + crowd behind them would be a formality?? Not so, the away team decided that their temporary loss of focus was unprofessional and who better to display this against than England..? As predicted by Bilic, the Croatian coach, the away team were no ‘mugs’ and in his opinion a better team than England. On the night England were torn apart in the early stages and 0-2 by half time, it could have been more. Despite resurgence, England left their comeback too late and were booed off the pitch. In Glasgow, Scotland had to beat Italy to ensure their participation in next year’s competition, there cause was not helped by the fact that they gave away possession in the 2nd minute of play allowing Italy’s towering giant, Toni to score. Despite a hard fought match and the brave equaliser from Fergusson later in the second half, Scotland were struggling, in the end a dubious free kick was presented to the Italians and Pirli ‘s accurate spot lick was headed in by the right back, Panucci ,who effectively finished the game. This result ensured both Italy and France qualified….
So, with all UK/Republic of Ireland teams out of the competition and Steve Maclaren (some might say, deservedly) out of a job..... Let’s focus on this week’s premiership activities…



Newcastle United (0) 0 Liverpool (1) 3


The theme of this week’s review is disenchantment… fans at home grounds were heard booing any English international that touched the ball and disenchantment with managers. Sam Allardyce, only weeks into his term as Manager of beleaguered giants Newcastle was also booed by his own supporters, to the extent where he had to hide under his own ‘dug out’ to avoid fans abuse. The reason for this abuse was his side’s inability to win, having conceded four goals against Portsmouth, they were now being ‘hit’ for three at home by an improving Liverpool side, who have also been slowly to finding their rhythm , this despite spending a small fortune on new players before the start of the season. Liverpool, it has to be said were by far the superior team, without really hitting any form or stride, Newcastle were simply dreadful. The defence were in complete disarray and unprepared for Gerrard’s  free kick, ironically, neither was Gerrard as the ball was passed on a little earlier than he would have liked, however, the England midfielder readjusted his alignment and bent a superb 30 yard strike past the helpless Given. To give a clear indication of the lack of involvement the home side had, they recorded only two attempts on goal in the first half. This trend continued as Liverpool stole the match through a deflected goal from Kuyt and a beautiful pass and move one two between Gerrard and Babel, the latter’s strike sumptuously stroked past Given. Liverpool casually contained the game and took all three points without breaking into much of a sweat.  




Bolton Wanderers (1) 1 Manchester United (0) 0

Moving on from St James’ Park, to the Reebok stadium, home of Bolton Wanderer’s another team who have taken a new manager as a reaction to a poor start to the season, Gary Megson, it seems has managed to halt the tide of losses and replace them with draw’s, Megson, not initially a popular choice, has also taken his bunch of under performers to the awe inspiring Allianz Stadium to play the might Bayern Munich in this seasons UEFA cup tournament, a legacy from the once idolised ‘Big’ Sam, who as reported above, is undergoing his own form of damage limitation at Newcastle…Anyway, I digress, Mr Megson’s own brand of player motivation obviously has justified the decision the Bolton chairman made in capturing his services, as Bolton drew with Bayern Munich and were interestingly twice in the lead…so, with this upward trend behind them, confidence  growing Bolton were up against last season s champions Manchester United, a team that hadn’t lost to Bolton since 1978, could they possibly upset their local rivals…? I wrote earlier, that disenchantment was very much the key theme to this week’s review and to emphasise this point further, if Bolton as previously mentioned were certainly feeling this way up until Mr Megson’s arrival and the team’s turn of form, Sir Alex was certainly feeling this as he had to watch his troops from the stands having being sent away from his team’s dug out by the highly indecisive refereeing of Clattenburg. United, it has to be said who have performed joyously thus far this season had obviously decided to play  ‘a la England’ in sympathy and, as with the national team , got what they deserved. United, despite being without key players, one assumes due to international involvement midweek, including Christiano  Ronaldo and other’s currently sidelined through injury such as ; Vidic, Scholes, Rooney and Neville had to watch their subdued team’s performance from the stands. Down within 11 minutes to a sublime turn and spin strike from Annelka, a striker much admired by United. The game pretty much went into automatic pilot for the remainder of the half, Bolton tireless in their protection of the lead and United’s casual arrogance in their belief that the game would be theirs without too much work, combined to make for a pretty dull first half encounter. Sir Alex, it seemed put more energy on the sidelines than his entire team, mostly remonstrating with the Referee at his inconsistent gestures and more specifically at his lack of protection of left back Evra who seemed to be regularly in battle with the Bolton striker Davies. Come the break, one can only imagine what the united players had to endure from the manager, furious at his side’s lack of ambition. In fact it wasn’t until the 63rd minute that United started to play as only they can, it was instigated by the arrival of young Brazilian midfielder, Anderson who has quickly adapted to the Premiership’s style of play. The midfield started to flow again and United actually started to threaten the Bolton defence. Despite a shot on target from Hargreaves via a free kick, a nice pass and move between Evra and Tevez and some other close shaves, it has to be said that United had left it a little too late and will be pleased to learn that the return of their deadly duo of Rooney and Ronaldo next week should trigger a return back to form. As for Bolton, another three points away from the danger zone and increased belief that their new manager could take them back to where they belong.





Derby County (0) 0 Chelsea (1) 2

The theme of disenchantment continues….Obviously Derby and their supporters based at the foot of the table don’t have too much to sing about at present, however, booing the other sad English internationals who turned up for the opposition seemed to cheer them up prior to kick off and with special attention reserved for two of the Chelsea team,Lampard and Wright-Phillips. This vocal displeasure continued throughout the game, especially as the aforementioned players decided to show their true colours and thus giving the home support further reason to show their disenchantment, this time for their own team.

Salomon Kalou fired home the 17th-minute opener at Pride Park; Wright-Phillips sealed the points in the 73rd minute to send Chelsea up to fourth in the Barclays Premier League.





Arsenal (0) 2 Wigan Athletic (0) 0


So by what means, now they have gone 28 matches without defeat in any competition, can football confound this bright young Arsenal? All I can suggest is that the rules be changed to limit the duration of matches to, say, 80 minutes, for such is the extraordinary persistence of Arsene Wenger's latest collection that the two goals they contrived in the space of three minutes, after 83 spent putting dozens of passes into the creation of precious few chances, were almost
Without the points they have secured late - 13 of their 33 have come in the final 10 minutes - Arsenal would hardly be in the race for the Premier League title, let alone its leaders, their position strengthened by Manchester United's loss at Bolton. They are three points clear with a match in hand and a third of the season gone. With qualification for the Champions League's knockout stages assured, they can enjoy themselves in Seville before returning to face a trio of away matches, at Aston Villa, Newcastle and Middlesbrough, and a visit from Chelsea.
Wigan, meanwhile, still await victory over a top-four Premier League club after 20 attempts. Although there was never much chance of its happening here, they did stand up to Wenger's team well enough to suggest for most of the afternoon that Frank Barlow, their caretaker pending tomorrow's takeover by the watching Steve Bruce, might succeed where every other manager this season has failed by organising a clean sheet against Arsenal.
As it transpired, a marvellous goal by the Arsenal captain William Gallas and a routine clincher from Tomas Rosicky meant Wigan succumbed to an eighth consecutive League defeat.






Everton (3) 7 Sunderland (1) 1

It took a brave man to suggest at the start of the season that promoted Sunderland would struggle in the top flight with Roy Keane at the helm. Not any more. If the rugged Irishman does not find a solution quickly to this horrible standard of defending he and his players will sink beyond trace in the relegation battle zone.
Sunderland made Everton look terrific, to the delight of the Goodison faithful, but that should not detract from the exhilarating standard that David Moyes' team rose to on a memorable afternoon.
Shortly after their arch rivals Liverpool had humbled Newcastle by what should have been double the three-goal margin, they took apart their own North East opponents by that emphatic six-goal difference.
It could have been an even more crushing defeat for the Wearsiders who have now failed to win on their last 18 Premier League away days. Paul McShane, Sunderland's hapless central defender, made two outstanding goal-line clearances while the points were in the balance and another to deny Mikel Arteta late on after Everton had carved out a dozen clear-cut scoring opportunities.
Craig Gordon, Scotland's accomplished goalkeeper, curiously made only one save of any degree of difficulty - an instinctive stop with his boot to deny Leon Osman - and it is difficult to apportion any blame in his direction for the debacle. He was beaten by a deflection off Danny Higginbotham when Yakubu opened the scoring after 12 minutes and he was let down badly by those in front of him when Tim Cahill turned in the penalty area to add the second five minutes later.
Few goalkeepers would have reached Steven Pienaar's tremendous angled drive which brought Everton's third - the winger played two return passes with the overlapping Nuno Valente to create the opportunity - and there was a gaping hole down the middle which Cahill darted through before flicking in the fourth to celebrate his 100th start for Everton in style.
Similar openings presented themselves for Andy Johnson - returning after injury as a substitute - and Osman, to conclude the scoring after Yakubu had helped himself to his own second and his sixth of the season, courtesy of more sloppy marking.
The solitary moment of celebration for Sunderland's traditionally large and enthusiastic following came in first-half stoppage time when Dwight Yorke, playing out his twilight days in central midfield, rammed the ball home after Carlos Edwards had struck an upright.
Rarely did they look like taking more reward from their thrashing, although Michael Chopra was right to hang his head in shame after failing to poke in the ball from five yards after Kenwyne Jones' near-post challenge had resulted in a favourable rebound.






Manchester City (1) 2 Reading (1) 1

Two minutes of stoppage time at the end of a match Manchester City scarcely deserved to win had almost elapsed when the impish Irishman volleyed high into the top right-hand corner to plunder all three points.
Ireland, who revealed a pair of Superman trunks after scoring the winner against Sunderland earlier this month, had no time even to think about disrobing on this occasion. He was swamped under the bodies of his colleagues.
The late, late twist to the tale was harsh on Reading, who had recovered from the potentially devastating early setback of Martin Petrov's goal to draw level just before the break and stifle City's efforts virtually to the last.
Reading might have been in the unusual position of leading before City were out of the blocks. Bobby Convey squandered two early chances and Kevin Doyle was outmuscled by fellow Republic of Ireland international Richard Dunne.
City's first sight of goal came in the 11th minute and, albeit at the fourth attempt, they made the most of it. Vedran Corluka played a clever ball for Ireland to collect on the right. Ireland picked out Elano, who hit a post and his tentative follow-up was repelled by Marcus Hahnemann. The American goalkeeper saved also from Emile Mpenza but Petrov then scored with a drive that smacked the back of the net.
A little more urgency would surely have yielded further success for City and two minutes before half-time they were punished for that complacency. They were in the process of trying to substitute the injured Corluka and Reading exploited their vulnerability in the right-back area. Doyle and Convey combined smartly and James Harper placed his shot high into the left-hand corner.
Suddenly City confronted greater resistance and it seemed they would have to settle for a point when Geovanni blazed over. But he atoned by winning the ball in the air and setting up Ireland's dramatic final act.





West Ham (1) 1 Tottenham Hotspur (0) 1

West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green saved a last-minute penalty from Jermain Defoe to earn a share of the spoils in an exciting derby at Upton Park.
A Michael Dawson header had looked to have saved Tottenham with at least a point when he hauled Spurs level on 67 minutes, after a first-half mistake by Younes Kaboul had allowed Carlton Cole to open the scoring for West Ham.
However, three points then looked a distinct possibility when former West Ham striker Defoe was awarded a controversial penalty after he was brought down by Lucas Neill in the 91st minute. The Spurs striker's spot-kick was then kept out by Green.
Earlier, West Ham were prevented from going two goals clear in the first half when Paul Robinson produced a stunning 26th minute save from Luis Boa Morte.





Fulham (0) 2 Blackburn Rovers (0) 2


An entertaining second half at Craven Cottage saw Blackburn Rovers twice come from behind to salvage a point against Fulham.
After a goal-drought first half, Danny Murphy opened Fulham's account when he calmly slotted the hosts ahead from the penalty spot after Diomansy Kamara was brought down by Ryan Nelson in the box.
However, Australian Brett Emerton levelled from close range six minutes later before Kamara was again involved in Fulham's second on 63 minutes - sliding the ball home from close range.
Blackburn suffered an early blow to their chances early on when striker Benni McCarthy had to be taken off following a desperate challenge by Dejan Stefanovic. But Blackburn's spirit wasn't to be denied as Stephen Warnock tapped in on 78 minutes to earn Mark Hughes' side a draw.





********** News Flash *****************


England has just been drawn against…..Croatia for the World Cup qualifying group in South Africa!!!  If ever there was an irony this is it… any thoughts on this strange occurrence, or indeed any feedback on my review or any other Premiership issues feel free to write to me: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com

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English Premiership Review                                No. 6    01/12/07

Welcome to preview number 6… This week’s theme is the wonderful and slightly weird world of the football manager. A job that is about as secure as walking on a tightrope without a safety net. A job that encourages loyalty and support from the owners of the club, the fans and the respect of the players whilst,  at the same time, paying  huge  sums of  money, especially if unsuccessful in the role, a job where loyalty counts for everything, that is until a better offer arrives on the table….
The interesting element of this analysis is that it took one set of circumstances to start the whole chain of events in this week’s series of management appointments.
Let’s start with the fact that Birmingham City who’s private ownership has been trying to sell it’s stakeholding in the club has been kept waiting by a particular Asian Businessman who has been close to buying majority stakes in the club, this meanwhile has been on and off for over a month. The Owners are naturally sceptical that the deal will actually happen. However, whilst this has been dragging on, the City Manager (of over 6 years) Steve Bruce has been approached by his former club Wigan Athletic to take on their recently vacated manager’s role with the offer of a bigger salary and a transfer kitty available in January. Bruce being a loyal servant of City, decided with the takeover looming, a new owner would be looking for a new management team and decided Wigan’s offer was too good to resist. The Birmingham board were stunned and indicated that they would have offered Bruce a new improved contract…anyway, after a week of wrangling and dispute between both clubs, Birmingham were paid their compensation package and with that nice little sum decided to tempt the current Scotland Manager, Alex Mcleish, out of his National post to take on the recently vacated Manager’s role. He of course denied that Birmingham had approached him and that he was happy to guide Scotland on towards their next big campaign, the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. Having ensured he was with the Scottish party that went to South Africa for the glitzy world cup qualifier ceremony and thereby benefiting from a few days R&R , he then relented on his return to take up the new challenge of domestic premiership football, an offer too good to refuse.. Which,  brings us to the last twist and the catalyst for this ‘round robin’ scenario. Having initially let Wigan over 6 months ago, Paul Jewell decided he was ready to get back to work and would listen to any offers, the offers came amongst others, in the shape of Birmingham, Republic of Ireland and more recently, the club he decided to opt for Derby County, who had just sacked Billy Davies, who is the prime candidate to take over the Scotland Job…. !
So to the games themselves…Bruce’s first challenge was a home tie against local rivals Manchester City at home, McLeish’s Birmingham face a new improved Tottenham under new management at White Hart Lane and Jewell takes his new boys Derby County to Sunderland.


Aston Villa (1) 1 Arsenal (2) 2

Arsenal opened up a gap of five points at the top of the Premier League with a fine victory over Aston Villa at Villa Park.
Villa had stunned Arsene Wenger's side when defender Craig Gardner found time and space in the area to slot the ball past Manuel Almunia after 14 minutes. However, Arsenal responded in typically fluent style, with the impressive Mathieu Flamini equalising nine minutes later.
Emanuel Adebayor then put the visitors ahead with a towering header on 36 minutes. Villa pushed forward in the second half and went close when John Carew's header hit the bar. But Arsenal resisted well to maintain their unbeaten league record and put more pressure on the chasing pack.




Chelsea (0) 1 West Ham (0)

Joe Cole's late winner allowed Chelsea to climb into second place in the Premier League with a 1-0 win over West Ham. Cole, who began his career with West Ham, finished a 75th-minute move to deny Alan Curbishley's stubborn side a point. The goal was created when Didier Drogba nodded on a long ball and Salomon Kalou's header allowed Cole, who was just onside, to go round West Ham keeper Robert Green and fire high into the net. It was the decisive moment in an ill-tempered game at Stamford Bridge, that saw referee Howard Webb book eight players.




Blackburn (0) 3 Newcastle (0) 1

The pressure increased on Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce after his side slumped to another defeat away to Blackburn. Blackburn came from behind after Obafemi Martins put the visitors ahead just after half-time.
Newcastle's lead did not last long. David Bentley equalised for Mark Hughes' team in the 54th minute before he put them ahead 13 minutes later. Tugay sealed the win in the last minute.




Wigan (1) 1 Manchester City (1) 1

Paul Scharner's equaliser rescued Wigan at home to Manchester City in Steve Bruce's first game in charge at the JJB Stadium.
Bruce's reign got off to a disastrous start when the Brazilian Geovanni put the visitors ahead after only 28 seconds. However, Scharner levelled for Wigan 25 minutes later to thwart City's hopes of leapfrogging Manchester United into second place.




Portsmouth (0) 0 Everton (0)

After a dramatic week in which he was arrested by City of London Police, Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp returned to Premier League life with a goalless draw at Fratton Park. A scrappy game threw up few goalscoring opportunities between two of the league's high scorers.
Portsmouth had the majority of the possession, with Sulley Muntari twice going close.




Reading (0) 1 Middlesbrough (0) 1

Tuncay Sanli saved Gareth Southgate's side with a late header at Reading.
Dave Kitson had put the home side ahead with a delicate chip. However, with seven minutes remaining, the Turkish international eased the pressure on Southgate with a header from Luke Young's cross.




Sunderland (0) 1 Derby (0) 0

A late goal by Anthony Stokes earned Sunderland a crucial victory over Paul Jewell's Derby at the Stadium of Light. Derby had managed to frustrate Roy Keane's team and were set for a vital point in their battle against relegation when the substitute Stokes struck. Kenwyne Jones' stoppage-time header was parried by Derby goalkeeper Darren Bywater only for Stokes to bundle the loose ball into the net, much to Derby's despair.




This week standings...…



If you want to share your views about your club, please write to us on the forum page, alternatively, send me your views, questions or suggestions:    markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com
Back next week…

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English Premiership Review                           No. 7    08/12/07

Football management takes centre stage again this week….The vacant England Manager post seems to be attracting a host of different candidates, ironically, not one of them an Englishman!  The post that no one seems to want appears an attractive proposition for some of the game’s leading managerial lights, with the likes of Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klinsmann, Marcelllo Lippi and Fabio Cappello all keen to offer their services…they must all either be very bored or have blown their vast fortunes already to be enticed into this ‘poisoned chalice’ of a job. In fact the only English candidate to show any real interest, Harry Redknapp was arrested in connection with transfer irregularities right in the middle of this issue which has probably put an end to his application for the job! Right now the odds seem to favour our friend Jose, who is the people’s favourite, but comes at a huge price…like I said he must be bored sitting at home or in need of a huge cash injection…even more cynically, most believe he is using the FA as a carrot to see whether a ‘real job’ with either Barcelona or AC Milan is there for the taking…
Talking about football managers…’Big Sam’ Allardyce managed to get his beleaguered Newcastle to put up a fight and draw with Arsenal in the midweek fixture at St. James’ Park, which has taken a little pressure off surrounding his status at the club, Alex McLeish’s Birmingham pulled off a remarkable win at White hart Lane and new boy Paul Jewell will be looking to see whether his Derby side has what it takes to cause an upset at Old Trafford in saturday’s 3.00 fixture.



Sunday 09/12/2007.


Middlesbrough (1) 2 Arsenal (0) 1

Arsenal's unbeaten start to the Premier League season ended as Middlesbrough as Boro ended an 11-match winless run in all competitions thanks to an early Stewart Downing penalty and a second goal in as many games for Tuncay Sanli. It was no more than the home side deserved, and Tomas Rosicky's stoppage-time consolation for the visitors made little difference.





Tottenham Hotspur (1) 2 Manchester City (0) 1

Tottenham's Jermain Defoe showed Sven-Goran Eriksson what he was missing at last year's World Cup by coming off the bench and denying Manchester City a place in the top four.  
Eriksson famously chose to take Theo Walcott rather than Defoe to Germany - and Defoe gained some sort of revenge at White Hart Lane.
Rolando Bianchi cancelled out Pascal Chimbonda's controversial opener before Defoe grabbed the winner with seven minutes left, just after Stephen Ireland was given a straight red card for a lunge at Young-Pyo Lee.


Bolton Wanderers (2) 4 Wigan Athletic (1) 1

Wigan slumped to defeat in their north-west derby with Bolton to leave themselves deep in the relegation mire. Paul Scharner's third-minute own goal set the tone for an unhappy afternoon at the Reebok Stadium.
Denny Landzaat did equalise for Wigan, but Kevin Nolan put Bolton back in front before the break, with Kevin Davies and Nicolas Anelka, who also missed a penalty, finishing off an easy win.


Blackburn Rovers (0) 0 West Ham (0) 1

Dean Ashton ensured Alan Curbishley celebrated a year in charge of West Ham with another victory over Blackburn.
Interval substitute Ashton struck seven minutes into the second half as West Ham made it four successive wins over Rovers to lift themselves into the top half of the Premier League.
Mark Hughes' side had the chances to at least clinch a draw, but after a run of seven successive league and cup victories, Rovers have now taken just five points from their last six games.




Saturday 08/12/2007

Manchester United (2) 4 Derby Country (0) 1


Ryan Giggs's 100th league goal saw Manchester United on the way to a 4-1 win against bottom-of-the-table Derby County to keep up the pressure on Premier League leaders Arsenal. Victory at Old Trafford, where Carlos Tevez scored either side of half-time, left second-placed United a point behind Arsenal, who travel to struggling Middlesbrough on Sunday.
Giggs, 34, in front of the Old Trafford faithful who've cheered him on for the last 16 years, put United in front five minutes before half-time when he followed up a Cristiano Ronaldo shot parried by Derby keeper Stephen Bywater. It was the Welsh winger's 100th goal in 519 league appearances.
And minutes later, on the stroke of half-time, United went 2-0 up with Portugal winger Ronaldo again involved.
Ronaldo's free kick, after Darren Moore fouled Wayne Rooney, wasn't cleared and Argentina striker Tevez struck from inside the box. Tevez then put the result beyond doubt after turning in a right-wing cross from unsettled defender Wes Brown, who has yet to agree a new contract, on the hour mark. Steve Howard scored a consolation goal for Derby, their first away in the league this season, 14 minutes from time before Ronaldo made it 4-1 from the penalty spot.


Chelsea (1) 2 Sunderland (0) 0

Andriy Shevchenko helped Chelsea make light of Didier Drogba's absence, after his fellow striker was ruled out following an operation on his knee earlier in the day, by giving the home side a 23rd-minute lead at Stamford Bridge when he headed in a cross from Salomon Kalou.
Frank Lampard put the result beyond doubt with a 75th-minute penalty after Danny Higginbotham's foul on Alex. Sunderland's day was made worse when Liam Miller was sent off late on for retaliation.





Reading (1) 3 Liverpool (1) 1

Reading rode their luck to inflict a 3-1 Premier League defeat on Liverpool and the Merseysiders' title challenge hopes.Stephen Hunt's penalty was cancelled out by Steven Gerrard's 10th goal of the season, but the home side were not to be denied and responded with second-half goals from Kevin Doyle and James Harper. Liverpool were aggrieved at the penalty award - and appeared also to have had two stronger spot-kick claims of their own ignored by referee Andre Marriner. Gerrard was replaced by Ryan Babel for the final 20 minutes, and Hyypia came on for Carragher with nine minutes remaining. Liverpool knew by then, however, that it was not to be their day - and when Reading sent Leroy Lita on for Bobby Convey the points were already in the bag, with Peter Crouch then seeing a stoppage-time drive beat Marcus Hahnemann but bounce back off a post.


Everton (0) 3 Fulham (0) 0

Fulham kept Everton at bay during a goalless first half before the hosts opened the scoring through striker Yakubu who scored from a 51st-minute rebound after Australia midfielder Tim Cahill's volley was blocked by the feet of Fulham Keeper Antti Niemi.The Nigeria forward then scored his eighth of the season, and fourth in three games, when he headed in from a flick-on by Phil Jagielka after a corner by Mikel Arteta. Yakubu then completed his hat-trick in the 79th minute after being played in by South African midfielder Steven Pienaar.


Newcastle United (1) 2 Birmingham City (1) 1

Hopes were high at St James' Park that Newcastle had got their season back on track after a creditable 1-1 midweek draw at home to Arsenal.
But just as they had done against Arsenal, Newcastle conceded an early goal when Cameron Jerome exploited defensive weakness before rounding keeper Shay Given to give Birmingham a 1-0 lead in the ninth minute. Obafemi Martins, fouled by Mathew Sadler in the box, then got Newcastle back into the game with a 37th-minute penalty which was pushed on to the post by Birmingham keeper Maik Taylor before crossing the line. And Senegal defender Beye completed the comeback in the 90th minute when he headed in an Emre free kick.




Aston Villa (0) 1 Portsmouth (2) 3

Sulley Muntari's superb double strike helped secure a sixth successive away win for Harry Redknapp's side and earned them their first success at Villa Park for 37 years. The 7 million pound signing from Udinese gave Villa goalkeeper Scott Carson no chance with two stunning left-footed drives to double his goal tally for the campaign. A Craig Gardner own goal had set Portsmouth on their way to victory and all the home side could muster in reply in this Premier League match was a late Gareth Barry penalty. Barry reduced the arrears for Villa from the penalty spot after Sylvain Distin was adjudged to have fouled Ashley Young.
David James was booked for time-wasting and both Noel Pamarot and Niko Kranjcar for bringing down Gabriel Agbonlahor as Villa pressed forward with renewed hope. Papa Bouba Diop should have added a fourth for Portsmouth but shot wide with the goal at his mercy.
Agbonlahor hit the bar in injury time with a header from a Young cross.






As always, if you have any comments to share or wish to communicate with other Premier League fans; why not contact us at the Eurosport English premier league forum. Back again next week!


Mark Clifton
markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com

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English Premiership Review                                 No. 9   22/12/07

Welcome to the first review of our Christmas programme. Things are getting interesting, with Liverpool and Arsenal having both dropped their ‘no loss’ record and looking to re capture their winning ways, Manchester United and Chelsea must continue to win and Portsmouth and Everton waiting in the wings for any mistakes. So with Liverpool facing a new look and improved Portsmouth at home, United taking on Everton and of the all London derby, Arsenal playing rivals Tottenham, this weekend looks very interesting indeed. The games continue throughout the coming week and weekend, so stay tuned..
In the meantime, we have just received the knockout phase draw of the Champions league…this also makes for compelling viewing: Liverpool facing Inter Milan, Arsenal playing AC Milan and Celtic hosting Barcelona. Manchester United travel to Lyon and Chelsea travel to Greece to play Olympiakos….and if you are interested in the Carling Cup, there is another derby semi final where Arsenal face local rivals Tottenham and Chelsea take on Everton.
On with the games…


Liverpool (0) 4 Portsmouth (0) 1

A Fernando Torres brace got Liverpool back to winning ways following their midweek exit in the Carling Cup as they beat Portsmouth 4-1 at Anfield.
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez brought back skipper Steven Gerrard after illness and along with Torres engineered his side's thumping win over hapless Portsmouth.
Yossi Benayoun volleyed home Liverpool's opener after a good run from Torres before the Spanish striker played a hand in the second minutes later when a rebounding ball off Sylvain Distin found its way into the net.
Benjani gave Portsmouth hope after the break when he scored from close range, but it was the Torres show thereafter.
The on-form striker scored his 12th and 13th goals of the season with first a sidefoot and then a volley respectively.


Arsenal (0) 2 Tottenham (0) 1

Arsenal opened up a four point gap at the top of the Premiership as they fought off rivals Tottenham 2-1 in a typically frenetic clash at the Emirates Stadium.
Substitute Nicklas Bendtner scored the winner when he headed home a Cesc Fabregas corner, but Tottenham could have won the points if Robbie Keane had converted a second-half penalty.
Arsenal took the lead after the break when Emmanuel Adebayor slotted home past Paul Robinson following a sublime backheel from the Spaniard Fabregas.
The visitors - well-organised under Juande Ramos - then deservedly equalised when Dimitar Berbatov scored from close range after another backheel from striker partner Keane.
Five minutes later, Tottenham were awarded a penalty when Berbatov went over in the box. Keane stepped up but his weak penalty was saved by Manuel Alumunia.


Aston Villa (1) 1 Manchester City (1) 1

Sven-Goran Eriksson's side held on for a rare away point to go with their untouchable home form to reinforce their push for a European spot despite being under the cosh at Villa Park.
City went ahead after 10 minutes through Rolando Bianchi's third goal in three league games. The goal sparked Aston Villa into life and they dominated after the impressive John Carew had levelled four minutes later.
Aston Villa became increasingly threatening after the break but in the end had to hold on for a point. It even got to manager Martin O'Neill who was incensed when referee Lee Mason did not award a free-kick after a challenge by Fernandes on Carew. The energtic O'Neill threw his water bottle to the ground in disgust after Barry was booked for dissent.


Bolton (0) 3 Birmingham City (0) 0

Visitors Birmingham were lacklustre in defence as Bolton won the crucial relegation clash at the Reebok Stadium.
After Kevin Nolan's earlier 'goal' was ruled offside, El-Hadji Diouf fired the hosts ahead in the 72nd minute following Stephen Kelly's air kick.
Six minutes later Johan Djourou's throw-in back to his goalkeeper Maik Taylor was short, allowing Nicolas Anelka to steal in and score from a tight angle.
City gave the ball away poorly in midfield in injury-time, allowing Kevin Nolan to play in Anelka for his second of the game.


Fulham (0) 1 Wigan (0) 1

Clint Dempsey rescued Fulham, who sacked Lawrie Sanchez on the eve of the game, with a late equaliser after Wigan had threatened to push them deeper into trouble at the foot of the Premiership.
Marcus Bent looked to have decided the outcome in Wigan's favour with a 69th-minute volley but Dempsey earned managerless Fulham a vital point with a low drive
The draw ensured that Wigan remained second from bottom but enabled Fulham to climb out of the bottom three.


Middlesbrough (1) 1 West Ham (1) 2
West Ham celebrated a narrow win over Middlesbrough at the Riverside.
David Wheater put the hosts ahead with just before half-time after a fine lay-off from Jeremie Aliadiere but his goal was soon cancelled out by a powerful Dean Ashton strike.
Scott Parker then won it in the finest of fashions, collecting the ball on his chest before curling the ball into the far corner in the last minute.


Reading (0) 2 Sunderland (0) 1

Reading recorded a win over Sunderland with a controversial late goal
Ivar Ingimarsson opened the scoring for Reading before Michael Chopra equalised from the penalty-spot.
Chopra's penalty looked like it would be enough to save a point for the visitors before Stephen Hunt struck in injury-time, though Craig Gordon appeared to have pulled off a fine save to prevent the ball from crossing the line.
After last week's disallowed goal at Villa, that decision left Roy Keane incandescent with rage.


Manchester United (1) 2 Everton (1) 1

Cristiano Ronaldo scored an 88th minute penalty to ensure United closed the gap on leaders Arsenal to one point and ended Everton's 12-match unbeaten run in the process.
It seemed United would have to settle for a point as Everton managed to thwart their attack, but their defensive good work was undone when Stephen Pienaar brought Ryan Giggs down in the area.
Ronaldo was not going to waste such a gift-wrapped opportunity and drilled home his 16th goal of the season.
The Portuguese winger had earlier broken the deadlock when he curled home an opener from 20 yards in the 22nd minute.
It was harsh luck on Everton who had started brightly coming into the game with five successive wins.
However, David Moyes' side were back in the game five minutes later when Cahill muscled past Patrice Evra to head home Pienaar's centre.
Everton had failed to win at Old Trafford since 1992, and while during the second half they rarely threatened to end that run, they had appeared set to deny United maximum points.
Wayne Rooney's long range effort almost stole the three points late on, but it was left to Ronaldo to steal the show again and cap off another fine week in his United career which saw him named third in Fifa's world player of the year awards.


Newcastle (1) 2 Derby (1) 2

Mark Viduka denied Derby of registering their first away win of the season with his second goal of the game four minutes from time.
The Australian's 15-yard strike also denied their bottom-placed visitors the chance of a Premier League double having beaten Newcastle 1-0 earlier in the season.
Derby twice led through Giles Barnes' sixth-minute opener and, after Viduka had levelled after 27 minutes, Kenny Miller's 52nd-minute strike, but ultimately had to make do with a point.
While it was the first point Paul Jewell's side had picked up in their last eight games, it leaves them six points adrift of Jewell's former club Wigan at the foot of the table.


Blackburn (0) 0 Chelsea (1) 1

Joe Cole kept Chelsea in touch with leaders Arsenal and Manchester United as Blackburn crashed to a fourth successive defeat.
Midfielder Cole struck a 22nd-minute winner with a searing 16-yard first-time drive that gave goalkeeper Brad Friedel no chance as Chelsea secured their seventh league win on their last nine visits to Ewood Park
In returning to winning ways in the Premier League following last weekend's defeat to Arsenal, Avram Grant's side are now back within six points of Arsenal and five of United.
The result did come at a cost for the visitors with goalkeeper Petr Cech adding to the club's growing injury crisis.
Cech limped out of the match during the second half with a suspected hip injury following a collision with Roque Santa Cruz.
Grant looks set to be without his No 1 keeper for the busy Christmas period at a time when the team are already without influential players John Terry and Didier Drogba.

That rounds up the games before the Christmas break. I will be back to report on the following week’s activities and fixtures, news and transfers that take place. In the meantime I wish you all a pleasant holiday and look forward to hearing from you either on the forum or directly at markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com .
Back after the holiday…

Mark Clifton


********************************************************

English Premiership Review                          No. 8   15/12/07

Fab’s our man…England this week has announced its new management team and they are all Italian. . in fact, so clever are the FA in finding a strong man and team to take on this difficult position, that they have succeeded in losing all control and possibly communication with the man and his backroom staff, none apparently speak a word of English. If this works out and England qualify for the 2010 World Cup, then the best that they can hope for is a smooth transition to the next management team, where one assumes, an English coach will take the reigns, that man already being identified as Stuart Pearce, currently in charge of the under 21 national team. A 2 ½  year deal worth nearly 18 million dollars to secure England’s dominance in the world is the prize…and having read up about Mr Capello’s tactics, it will more than likely happen, he is after all a 9 times league winner in Italy and twice in Spain, he does what he sets out to do taking no prisoners along the way. All that remains to be said on the matter, is that both the FA and the English media will both end up bating each other as the new appointee won’t understand or really care too much what they may have to say and as long as England achieve their objective, no one should have any complaints.

In the premiership on Sunday we have two huge games, starting with Manchester United’s visit to local rival’s Liverpool, who managed to bail themselves out of jail in Europe by thumping Marseilles 0-4 and therefore re establishing themselves as frontrunners in the Champions league once again, unlike United who topped their league from the outset and were so comfortably positioned that they could afford to send out their reserve team in Rome, Liverpool had to reverse a losing trend and battle back from what most had considered their own funeral having lost to Marseilles at home only a few ago. So this match looks set to be quite an interesting encounter, especially as dropping any points at this stage would only give the current leader Arsenal full advantage once again. However, Arsenal has to face the increasingly confident Chelsea who are starting to carry their old ‘swagger’ again and will be looking to push Arsenal all the way. The Gunners look to have the services of their playmaker, Fabregas, again as he looks to have recovered from a recent injury.




Manchester United and Arsenal both recorded hugely significant 1-0 victories yesterday as they threatened to turn the race for the Premier League title into a two-horse affair
United fired the day’s opening salvo with victory at Liverpool courtesy of Carlos Tevez's close-range effort just before half-time.
 

Arsenal responded with victory over Chelsea in a bad-tempered game at the Emirates Stadium thanks to a goal from captain William Gallas, following a rare mistake by goalkeeper Petr Cech.
There is now a five-point gap between second-placed United and third-placed Chelsea with Liverpool a further point adrift.
Chelsea's defeat was compounded by an injury to Captain John Terry, who has suffered ankle ligament damage, and also by fears that left-back Ashley Cole will face FA disciplinary action after he flashed a V-sign at Arsenal supporters at the end of yesterday's defeat.
It was Cole's first match at his former club since his move to Chelsea last year and, after being booed and jeered, he was involved in an ugly clash on the final whistle with Cesc Fabregas. The Arsenal midfielder had caught Cole with a late challenge and he reacted by grabbing at the Spaniard's neck.
Cole avoided punishment from referee Alan Wiley, but the FA are certain to carefully study pictures of his reaction towards the home fans.
There were nine bookings in yesterday's match and Eboue was carried off with medial knee ligament damage following a tackle by Joe Cole.





SATURDAY, 15th DECEMBER


Birmingham 1 Reading 1
Derby County 0 Middlesbro' 1
Man City 4 Bolton 2
Portsmouth 0 Tottenham 1
Sunderland 1 Aston Villa 1
West Ham 0 Everton 2
Wigan 5 Blackburn 3
Fulham 0 Newcastle 1



SUNDAY, 16th DECEMBER

Liverpool 0 Man Utd 1
Arsenal 1 Chelsea 0






If you want to share your views about your club, please write to us on the forum page, alternatively, send me your views, questions or suggestions: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com
Back next week…[/b]

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English Premiership review    No. 10     26/12/2007

The Christmas period continues with some key games today…Manchester United needing to continue their run in order to capitalise on Arsenal game later in the evening away at Portsmouth and both Chelsea and Liverpool needing to win to stay in the race…

Sunderland (0) 0 Manchester United (3) 4

Manchester United moved back to the top of the Premier League as they eased to victory at the Stadium of Light. With Arsenal's match at Portsmouth to follow in the evening, United took full advantage of the chance to leapfrog their opponents for a few hours at least as Roy Keane's side felt the full force of their title charge.United's victory was every bit as comfortable as the scoreline suggests as they cut through Sunderland's defence at will to expose goalkeeper Craig Gordon at regular intervals. They were 3-0 up by the break with goals from Wayne Rooney, Louis Saha and Cristiano Ronaldo's 17th of the season.
And Ferguson was even afforded the luxury of taking off his hugely impressive Portugal international with more than half an hour remaining.
Ronaldo departed to warm applause from both sets of supporters with his job done as Park Ji-Sung was handed his first taste of first-team action since undergoing knee surgery in March. Although the champions could have won by more goals, they had to wait until the 86th-minute for their fourth when Saha converted from the penalty spot after Nani had been tripped by Danny Collins.





Chelsea (1) 4 Aston Villa (2) 4

Gareth Barry struck an injury-time penalty to rescue a deserved point for Aston Villa, capping an enthralling game which produced three red cards.
Michael Ballack appeared to have snatched victory for the hosts having struck with a free-kick three minutes from time. But England international Barry converted from the spot after Ashley Cole had been dismissed for handling Gabriel Agbonlahor's shot on the line. A Shaun Maloney double had put Villa on course for their first Premier League double against Chelsea but their hopes suffered a setback when defender Zat Knight was sent-off on the stroke of half-time. Knight had clipped substitute Ballack, who was making his first league appearance of the season, and referee Phil Dowd reached for the red card after pointing to the spot.
Andriy Shevchenko powered home the penalty and drew Chelsea level shortly after the break with a stunning second.
The Ukraine international then set up defender Alex who finished clinically to give Chelsea the lead for the first time.
Some poor defending allowed Villa to draw level through Martin Laursen before the action on the pitch began to heat up with the second sending off of the game when Ricardo Carvalho was given his marching orders.
Carvalho crashed into Ashley Young with a two-footed challenge and will now join Cole by serving a suspension at a time when the club are already without injured John Terry and Didier Drogba.
Although there were injury doubts hanging over Petr Cech heading into the game, the Chelsea goalkeeper was able to return to the side but made a costly error to provide Villa with their second goal.




Derby (0) 1 Liverpool (1) 2

Steven Gerrard rescued three valuable points for Liverpool at bottom-placed Derby.
With Rafa Benitez's side determined to put up a fight for the Premier League title, they appeared destined to drop two points at Pride Park until the Liverpool captain popped up at the death with the all-important winner.
Liverpool were the better side in the first half and were a goal up by the break thanks to Fernando Torres' 15th goal in 18 games.
But following on from their outstanding efforts to force a draw at Newcastle at the weekend, injury-ravaged Derby showed magnificent spirit to force their way back into the game with a second-half equaliser from Jay McEveley.
They battered away at Liverpool for much of the second period, but were made to pay when Gerrard, who instigated an 80-yard move, finished it off by bundling the ball past Lewis Price in the final minutes.

Tottenham (2) 5 Fulham (0) 1

Ledley King made his long-awaited comeback from injury as Tottenham piled more pressure on managerless Fulham.
Spurs were 2-0 up by half-time courtesy of goals from Robbie Keane, who was quickest to react to Steed Malbranque's effort which rebounded off the post, and Tom Huddlestone's strike.
Keane, who missed a penalty in the north London derby at the weekend, added another goal in the second half after Clint Dempsey had pulled one back.
Huddlestone and Jermain Defoe scored to complete the scoring and Moritz Volz was dismissed for Fulham.
For all for the attacking power of Spurs, it was King's return that would have been most welcome by the home supporters.
The captain has been plagued with injuries for the past 18 months but managed to come through the game unscathed.




West Ham (1) 1 Reading (0) 1

Reading held West Ham to a draw at Upton Park after battling for over an hour with 10 men.
Steve Coppell's side have yet to win on the road this season, but a point was the least they deserved for a bold approach to the game after Brynjar Gunnarsson was sent off.
The Icelandic midfielder was shown a straight red card after 28 minutes for a dangerous two-footed lunge on Hayden Mullins.
West Ham took advantage with a strike from Nolberto Solano just before half-time but they could not shake off a Reading side short on numbers but not on work rate.
Dave Kitson scored the equaliser after turning onto a neat through-ball from Nicky Shorey to beat Robert Green.
West Ham threw everything forward in the closing minutes and Dean Ashton saw his header hit the post but they could not break down a resilient Reading defence.

Wigan (0) 1 Newcastle (0) 0

Wigan climbed out of the relegation zone thanks to Ryan Taylor's winner against Sam Allardyce's side at the JJB Stadium.
Taylor grabbed the winner with a free-kick just after the hour to continue Wigan's revival under new manager Steve Bruce who has taken eight points from his five matches in charge.
It proved to be a miserable day for Newcastle who failed to muster a shot on or off target during the opening 45 minutes, and just one overall throughout the 90, and even then that was fortuitous.
That was despite the fact Allardyce opted to ring the changes in the wake of the debacle against Derby. Joey Barton and David Rozehnal were axed, while Nicky Butt, Obafemi Martins and Claudio Cacapa were all relegated to the bench.



Everton (0) 2 Bolton (0) 0

Tim Cahill maintained his superb scoring form as Everton returned to winning ways.  
The Australian midfielder took his tally to seven goals in 13 games in all competitions to defeat Bolton.
With Phil Neville also on target, it was just the result manager David Moyes was looking for after Manchester United ended their 13-match unbeaten run on Sunday.
However it took them a while to get going with Cahill's goal and the opener from Neville coming in the second half.
Bolton were looking to kick on after moving up the table under manager Gary Megson. But they were guilty of gifting Everton both goals and have yet to win away on the road in the league this season.

Birmingham (2) 3 Middlesbrough (0) 0

Stewart Downing scored an own goal which helped Birmingham on the way to a convincing victory which took them above Middlesbrough in the table.
Mikael Forssell added a second and Gary McSheffrey converted a late penalty to give Birmingham the three points at St Andrews.
Undermined by shaky defending, Boro never really found their stride and when they did create chances, Maik Taylor stood firm in the Birmingham goal.
Boro's problems at the back came in spite of the presence of Jonathan Woodgate, who had been passed fit after problems with cramp in recent game.




Portsmouth (0) Arsenal (0) 0

Arsenal failed to score for the first time this season as they followed a patchy display at Tottenham with an equally disjointed performance at Fratton Park to leave Manchester United top of the Premier League.
Arsene Wenger's side were frustrating and inspired in equal measure as they toiled against a Pompey side still smarting from their 4-1 mauling at Liverpool.
The home side may not have scored at their ground for 450 league minutes but that will be of little concern to Harry Redknapp who has openly admitted Wenger has been the inspiration behind much of Pompey's resurgence this season.
It was Portsmouth who had the best chance of the game as Benjani raced clear of the Gunners' defence on 74 minutes only to lose his footing after slipping the ball around Almunia.




If you want to share your views about your club, please write to us on the forum page, alternatively, send me your views, questions or suggestions: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com
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English Premiership review No. 11     29/12/2007

Manchester City (0) 0 Liverpool (0) 0

Manchester City held on to their unbeaten home record in the league but needed some last-gasp defending to deny Liverpool winning their third consecutive game over the festive period.
Despite dominating for long periods, especially during a one-sided second-half, Liverpool could not make their pressure count.
 
City goalkeeper Joe Hart made an excellent late stop to deny Dirk Kuyt with Richard Dunne on hand to clear the loose ball off the line.
Dunne turned in a man-of-the-match performance to thwart Liverpool's front line and prevented the visitors adding to their recent good form following their 4-1 win over Portsmouth and last-gasp 2-1 triumph against Derby on Boxing Day.
Liverpool striker Fernando Torres was barely in the game such was Dunne's dominance, with Harry Kewell, Steven Gerrard and Yossi Benayoun wasting the visitors' best opportunities before Kuyt's late effort.
Rafa Benitez's side's failure to pick up three points leaves them 10 points adrift of leaders Arsenal, while City proved they will not give up their bid to land a Champions League berth come May.
The point leaves City one point off their fourth-placed opponents, while Liverpool are four points adrift of Chelsea but do have a game in hand.




Derby (1) 1 Blackburn (2) 2

Derby were made to rue a missed penalty as they lost their 15th league game of the season to leave them eight points adrift at the foot of the table.
Going in search of what would have been only their second league win of the season, Paul Jewell's men took the lead when Matt Oakley rifled a shot under goalkeeper Brad Friedel after 27 minutes.
 

The bottom-placed strugglers were handed the perfect opportunity to double their advantage when they were awarded a penalty three minutes later after Ryan Nelson was adjudged to have brought down Kenny Miller.
Steve Howard saw his spot-kick blocked by Friedel and the miss proved the turning point of the match as Blackburn took full advantage.
Mark Hughes' side drew level in the 38th minute when Roque Santa Cruz tapped in for his eighth goal in five goals.
And David Bentley put Rovers in the driving seat four minutes later when his low 25-yard shot into the corner beat Lewis Price in the Derby goal.
Blackburn nearly added to their advantage after the interval but Price did well to tip over a header from Santa Cruz in the 74th minute.
Bentley, who impressed throughout, saw another one of his efforts come back off the post while Derby were unable to produce an equaliser which would have aided their bid against the drop heading into 2008.


Everton (1) 1 Arsenal (0) 4

Two goals from Eduardo de Silva assisted Arsenal's comeback win over Everton to ensure their place back at the top of the table in a fiery contest at Goodison Park which saw both teams finish with 10 men.
Arsene Wenger's side capitalised on Manchester United's dropped points at Upton Park earlier in the day to move two points ahead of their rivals in the race for the title.
Everton looked set to continue their good form when they took a 19th-minute lead through Tim Cahill.
It was the Australian midfielder's ninth goal of the season and his third goal in as many games as David Moyes' side took the game to their opponents.
Arsenal were able to get themselves back in the match shortly after the interval when Eduardo latched on to a 60-yard through ball from Gael Clichy and calmly turned to strike the ball past Tim Howard.
Everton's defence had been caught off guard for the goal and they were rocked further when in the 58th minute Eduardo doubled his tally for the evening.
The Brazilian cooly beat Phil Jagielka, who slipped trying to turn and eased his shot just inside the post to put Arsenal ahead.
Arsenal's cause to hold on to their lead was not helped by the 74th minute dismissal of Nicolas Bendtner for a second bookable offence. But despite the setback they were able to add a third when Emmanuel Adebayor nipped past Howard to allow him an easy tap-in.
The action wasn't over, though, as tempers flared over as Mikel Arteta was given his marching orders for an alleged elbow on Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas.
And with time running out, Tomas Rosicky put the seal on a good win away when he fired past the Everton keeper from 12 yards.




West Ham (0) 2 Manchester United (1) 1

Manchester United missed the chance to move four points clear at the table top ahead of Arsenal's late kick-off at Goodison following defeat at Upton Park for the second successive season.
Sir Alex Ferguson's side had been on course for victory when Cristiano Ronaldo had given them a 14th-minute lead.
But last season's player of the year, who has scored 18 goals this term, then missed a penalty to allow the home side to mount a stirring fight-back.
West Ham managed to draw level through substitute Anton Ferdinand and then fellow defender Matthew Upson headed home from a set-piece.
Alan Curbishley's reign as West Ham manager had begun a year ago with a 1-0 win over United at home and they were able to put a dent in the visitors' title ambitions with a comeback victory today.
It had not looked so clear cut when Mark Noble squandered a glorious chance before Ronaldo's opener which came courtesy of Ryan Giggs' whipped in centre on 14 minutes.
Striker Dean Ashton was sacrificed to let Noble back in the side, and the replacement paid dividends as the England Under-21 international set up both of the hosts' goals.
First Anton Ferdinand, younger brother of United defender Rio, rose to head a Noble corner home in the 77th minute.
And Upson repeated Ferdinand's trick by heading a Noble free-kick beyond the United goalkeeper for the winner.

Tottenham (1) 6 Reading (1) 4

Dimitar Berbatov scored four times as Spurs and Reading shared 10 goals in a bizarre contest at White Hart Lane.
The visitors held the lead three times in the second half after goals from Kalifa Cisse, Ivar Ingimarsson and a double from Dave Kitson.
But Berbatov's strikes were the difference, with Steed Malbranque and Jermain Defoe grabbing the others.
Both sides went into the clash with a reputation for thrilling matches and this dramatic topsy-turvy match was up there with Reading's 7-4 against Portsmouth earlier in the season.
Reading's team bus was held up in traffic and their squad had to be phoned through but there was no delay in the action when play got under way.
Spurs goalkeeper Paul Robinson had another afternoon to forget as he handed Reading their first goal although the win saw Juande Ramos' side leapfrog their opponents into 12th place.




Chelsea (1) 2 Newcastle (0) 1

Salomon Kalou grabbed a controversial winner as Chelsea left it late to overcome troubled Newcastle at Stamford Bridge.
The hosts opened the scoring through Michael Essien after 29 minutes from close range and squandered a host of chances before Nicky Butt scrambled a 55th-minute equaliser.
Newcastle looked to have earned a point, but Kalou tucked the ball home three minutes from the end after it had rebounded to him off Claudio Pizarro.
The visitors were incensed the goal was awarded as the Ivory Coast striker looked to be in an offside position but their protests cut little ice with referee Mike Riley.
Chelsea manager Avram Grant was subjected to boos throughout the match as the home faithful turned on the Israeli coach for the first time since he replaced Jose Mourinho three months ago.

Wigan (1) 1 Aston Villa (0) 2

Aston Villa staged a second-half revival to end Wigan's resurgence under new manager Steve Bruce and send the hosts back into the Premier League relegation zone.
Titus Bramble's first goal for Wigan, and his first for 16 months, gave the home side a deserved half-time lead at the JJB Stadium in atrocious conditions.
But centre-back Curtis Davies, starting his first league game for Villa, initially hauled his side level in the 55th minute, prior to Gabriel Agbonlahor netting the winner 15 minutes later.
After a run of two defeats and three successive draws, this was Villa's first win for a month to keep them in the hunt for a Uefa Cup place for next season.
From the off, Martin O'Neill's side appeared drained by their efforts on Boxing Day and in the first period they were a far cry from the team that had drawn 4-4 at Stamford Bridge in one of the games of the season to date.
With this match played on a heavy, boggy pitch, combined with a swirling wind and occasional driving rain, Villa were unable to play their high-tempo brand of football as has been witnessed so often on the road this season.

Portsmouth (0) 0 Middlesbrough (1) 1

Portsmouth's amazing home drought continued as Turkish striker Tuncay Sanli pounced on a David James fumble to hand Middlesbrough three points at Fratton Park.

It was the south coast side's sixth consecutive scoreless home outing in the Premier League and the cheers from Wednesday's goalless draw with Arsenal soon faded away in a shot-shy display.
Papa Bouba Diop was outstanding for the hosts, running the show from midfield and filling the holes left by the injured Sean Davis, flu-victim Pedro Mendes and surprisingly-dropped Sulley Muntari.
But the Senegal international could not convert his dominance into goals and, after Tuncay had struck for his fourth goal in six games in the 20th minute, he fired over a golden chance to equalise just before half-time.
Diop's enormous figure was seemingly everywhere as he tried to rouse Portsmouth but the home fans probably wished it was anyone but him on the end of Benjani's cutback in first-half stoppage time.
Diop has yet to score since his £3 million move from Fulham in August.




Birmingham (0) 1 Fulham (1) 1

New Fulham manager Roy Hodgson saw his side pick up a rare away point after surviving a second-half battering from Birmingham and the sending off of Hameur Bouazza for two bookable offences.
Hodgson, who officially takes charge tomorrow, watched Carlos Bocanegra head his new side in front after seven minutes and dominate the opening half.
City were transformed after the break and fully deserved their equaliser from Sebastian Larsson before Bouazza was given his marching orders with 10 minutes remaining.
But Fulham, beaten 5-1 at Tottenham on Boxing Day, held on to share the spoils despite being forced back for long periods.
Hodgson will be encouraged by the resilience shown by his side with Dejan Stefanovic dominating in the air at the heart of the visitors' defence. But it needed one of the saves of the season from Antti Niemi to deny Franck Queudrue a spectacular winner.


Sunderland (2) 3 Bolton (1) 1

Sunderland gave their Premier League survival hopes a major boost with a precious victory over fellow strugglers Bolton.
Goals from Kieran Richardson, on his return to the starting line-up, and striker Kenwyne Jones, saw Roy Keane's side race into a 2-0 lead with just 32 minutes gone.
However, El-Hadji Diouf revived the visitors' hopes when he pulled a goal back on 41 minutes, and the home side had to hang on for dear life until Daryl Murphy's injury-time strike to claim just their second win in 14 attempts.
While Keane would have been pleased to see his side climb out of the relegation zone with victory, he would equally have been delighted to see Jones end his nine-game goal drought.




If you want to share your views about your club, please write to us on the forum page, alternatively, send me your views, questions or suggestions: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com

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English Premiership review                          No. 12   01/01/2008

Happy New Year!  It would appear that no sooner have the Christmas plates have been put away for another year, we are back to speed again with our favourite pastime…football gossip ! The January transfer window has already opened and speculation is rife about who is leaving, joining and even staying at their respective clubs…Roy Hodgson has joined Fulham as their new coach and it seems unlikely that there will be any new managerial changes for the remainder of the season at least…but what about new players…? January has always been a ‘pit stop’, a chance for clubs to recruit much needed additions to their squads, some manager’s believe that the January transfer window is much like the ‘January sales’, many discounts but questionable quality or maybe spending for the sake of it…
Chelsea as expected are one of the big clubs looking to spend, with injuries and absences due to the forthcoming African Nations Cup, they seem keen to add a number of new names to their already burgeoning squad, Anelka, Bentley and Berbotov already linked…Spurs seem determined to hold on to the their Bulgarian striker, certainly until the end of the season when they will hopefully have found their rightful place in the top section of the league, however, if Berbotov, already highly respected and sought after (added value being his eligibility to play in the Champions league) is determined to play elsewhere, it would appear Chelsea or more likely Manchester United would be keen to sign him up. Other possible transfer targets include;
Steve Sidwell to join Sunderland on loan from Chelsea
Harry Kewell to join Fulham from Liverpool.
Robbie Savage to join Sunderland from Blackburn
Yoon Bitgaram , Blackburn to sign South Korea midfielder
David Bentley being tracked by Chelsea and Atletico Madrid

Blackburn Rovers (0) 1 Sunderland (0) 0

Roy Keane suggested he is losing patience with the failings of his Sunderland players by warning that their increasingly regular mistakes may ultimately propel the club to relegation after a missed penalty and the second-half dismissal of Dwight Yorke contributed to a seventh successive away defeat.
Benni McCarthy's 57th-minute penalty, five minutes after Brad Friedel had saved Dean Whitehead's woeful spot-kick, secured victory for Mark Hughes' team shortly before Yorke was sent off after receiving two yellow cards from referee Rob Styles. A swift return to the Championship appears a distinct possibility for Sunderland and Keane was in no mood to make excuses for his players following their latest self-inflicted defeat.
Keane's team dominated the early stages by using the width provided by Kieran Richardson and Daryl Murphy to stretch the home side. Kenwyne Jones, perhaps the only summer signing that has proved his worth for Sunderland this season, should have done better after 12 minutes when he made space for himself in the penalty area before wastefully pulling a shot wide. The £6 million forward came up short again moments later when he narrowly failed to connect with Murphy's dangerous cross.
Blackburn were bereft of ideas as they attempted to gain a foothold in the game. Manager Mark Hughes once again omitted midfielder Robbie Savage but despite his faults, the combative Welsh midfielder may just have been the perfect player to inject some purpose into the home side as they struggled to break through Keane's five-man midfield.
After a dismal first half, Sunderland were handed a golden chance on 51 minutes when Styles awarded a penalty following Chris Samba's muscular challenge on Murphy. But Rovers goalkeeper Brad Friedel, who saved a Steve Howard penalty in the 2-1 win at Derby on Sunday, produced further heroics when he dived to his left to smother Whitehead's weak penalty
From a possible position of strength, Sunderland quickly found themselves fighting to get back into the game when McCarthy put Rovers ahead from another penalty six minutes later.




Liverpool (0) 1 Wigan Athletic (0) 1

Liverpool might be beginning their year as Europe's capital of culture but they will not be celebrating with a first championship since 1990 (European capital of culture, Glasgow). Their main task domestically appears to be to hold off Manchester City and Everton's attempts to make the Champions League.
With the game almost won in a scruffy, unconvincing way, Liverpool failed to do just that. Former Anfield employee Emile Heskey nodded on a free-kick and Steven Gerrard's attempted clearance was met by Titus Bramble with devastating results.
It may boast more atmosphere than Old Trafford or the Emirates but the championship is being lost at Anfield game by game. Manchester United and Arsenal have each taken 31 points from their 11 home matches. Liverpool's return from 10 fixtures at what is supposedly one of football's great fortresses is a chilling 17.

Aston Villa (1) 2 Tottenham Hotspur (0) 1

Two goals from set-pieces allowed Aston Villa to take the points and inflict early new year misery on Tottenham.
The hosts took the lead just before the break when defender Olof Mellberg found himself free to score from Ashley Young's free-kick.
Tottenham levelled in the 79th minute after Aston Villa failed to clear in the box and Jermain Defoe finished from close range.
However, Martin O'Neill's side kept up the pressure they had exerted throughout the game and were rewarded five minutes from time.
Gareth Barry's corner found Martin Laursen who freed himself from Tottenham's marking to head home Aston Villa's second goal from a defender.
The win puts Aston Villa into sixth place while Tottenham remain in twelfth.




Arsenal (2) 2 West Ham (0) 0

Arsenal remain top of the Premier League table after a comfortable victory over West Ham at Emirates Stadium.
Before the match, there was a period of silence in respect of Phil O'Donnell, who died suddenly during Motherwell's Scottish Premier League match at the weekend.
However, when they kicked-off Arsenal wasted little time in racing into the lead.
Cesc Fabregas was fed the ball on the left and he held up possession before chipping a lofted pass into the penalty area where Eduardo controlled it on his chest and volleyed a low shot into the far corner for his 10th goal of the campaign.
West Ham, the first team to win here last season, were clearly shocked by conceding inside two minutes but slowly the visitors regained their shape. Former Chelsea striker Carlton Cole caused some concern in the Arsenal box before Mark Noble had an effort blocked by Kolo Toure and then stabbed the loose ball wide.
After 11 minutes Cole got clear on the left of the area again but this time his goalbound shot was deflected behind. From the resulting corner, Anton Ferdinand saw his close-range effort cleared off the line by Gael Clichy.
Arsenal keeper Manuel Almunia made a save at the near post to deny Ljungberg but just when it seemed the hosts were on the back foot they made it 2-0 in the 18th minute.
Clichy sent a long ball up field from deep inside the Arsenal half and the bounce took it away from Ferdinand and Upson, with Adebayor running clear.
The Togo striker got a touch ahead of the on-rushing Robert Green and, although the angle was incredibly tight, Adebayor somehow managed to squeeze the ball past Upson and in off the far post.



Fulham (1) 1 Chelsea (0) 2

Roy Hodgson has been appointed Fulham's manager to change the clubs fortunes but it was familiar failings that were on show in the West London derby as they took the lead but ended the match with nothing.
The effect of the new manager, with Hodgson taking charge of his first match, was evident with Fulham on top in a first half in which the harried and chased their more illustrious neighbours and were good value for their lead at the break.
Danny Murphy converted from 12-yards after Moritz Voltz had tumbled in the box under a weak challenge from Joe Cole.
Shaun Wright-Phillips squandered Chelsea's best chance while Salomon Kalou could also have scored but it was Fulham's industry that was winning the day.
Chelsea manager Avram Grant replaced the anonymous Steve Sidwell, wasting a chance to impress in a rare start, with Mikel for the second half, reverting to the line-up that defeated Newcastle and the difference was evident from the restart.
Chelsea tore into Fulham and felt aggrieved not to have won a penalty when Dejan Stefanovic appeared to handle Wright-Phillips' cross.
However, minutes later Juliano Belletti whipped in a precision corner to Alex who directed a header across the face of goal. Kalou still had work to do, but leaping between Carlos Bocanegra and Simon Davies he connected cleanly and Antti Niemi had no chance.
Fit again Michael Ballack was a constant menace to Fulham's defence and he scored what proved to be the winner, again from the penalty spot, picking himself up after a foul.
Fulham remain routed in the relegation places and Hodgson will be under no illusions as to the magnitude of the task ahead of him.




Manchester United (1) 1 Birmingham City (0) 0

Carlos Tevez's first-half strike proved enough to give Manchester United a winning start to 2008.
Sir Alex Ferguson's men were rarely at their best against a determined Birmingham side but the visitors never really looked like finding their way through a defence that has conceded just twice on home soil all season.
The beauty of Tevez's 10th goal of the campaign, a neat finish after Cristiano Ronaldo had returned the Argentine's overhead kick with a sublime back-heel, was at odds with the fractured nature of the contest.
However, as Tevez also hit the post on two occasions, United were worthy of a 10th successive home win, even if the matchwinner's dummy-sucking celebrations raised an eyebrow or two.
And, the sight of the already-substituted Tevez needing to be carried to the dressing room by two members of United's backroom staff after the final whistle was not what Ferguson would have wanted.

Reading (0) 0 Portsmouth (1) 2

Portsmouth recorded their first win in five games thanks to a 2-0 victory at 10-man Reading.
The home side saw Ibrahima Sonko red carded in only the third minute before Sol Campbell put the visitors in front.
Portsmouth wrapped up their seventh away win of the campaign thanks to John Utaka's second-half goal.

Middlesbrough (0) 0 Everton (0) 2

Andrew Johnson and James McFadden took advantage of Middlesbrough's lack of finesse in the final third to earn Everton three points in their clash at the Riverside.
Second-half strikes from the Everton pair were enough to ensure a win for David Moyes' side, but it was Boro's inability to find a final ball, as well as a fine save from Tim Howard, which set up the win.
Stewart Downing had the best of the hosts' chances but Boro manager Gareth Southgate will look on enviously at the well-taken goals which kept the Everton on course for the Uefa Cup.





If you want to share your views about your club, please write to us on the forum page, alternatively, send me your views, questions or suggestions: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com

[petya]

English Premiership review No. 13 12/01/2008

Welcome back again after a break from the premiership programme due to the FA Cup and Carling cup respectively. The premiership hasn’t been sleeping though, oh no…witness the heated developments at Newcastle, after only several months into a 3 year contract, the Newcastle management have given big Sam the’ big kiss’ goodbye, primarily after the dismal run of results followed by a very poor showing in their FA cup performance against Championship side Stoke City, who nearly saw them off…So big Sam’s gone, the big question of course, who will replace him? There has been speculation that former hero and leading club goal scorer, Alan Shearer would take the role, but he wisely has sidestepped this, as he has no coaching qualifications or management experience, the other supposed target, Harry Redknapp, was offered huge sums decided against uprooting himself from the ‘lap of luxury’ on the Dorset coast to catch a private jet up to the North East daily, his main reason for this was family reasons and of course loyalty to the club who have stood by him during his brief sojourn to local neighbours, Southampton. So, who else is in the running? Bearing in mind the new manager is running out of time in which to buy any new recruits in the January transfer window in order to gain a new approach and initiative…some people feel Mark Hughes may have the experience and pedigree to take on such a challenge or possibly Reading’s Steve Coppell, other than that former Italian Coach, Marcello Lippi is worthy of consideration, especially after Capello’s recent acquisition of the England role…we will see.

On the transfer front, the only significant transfers have been at Chelsea, with their £15 million acquisition of Bolton leading scorer and journeyman, Nicholas Annelka and Liverpool have signed Slovakian international defender Martin Skrtel from Zenit St Petersburg, with Wigan signing Honduran international Wilson Palacios for an undisclosed fee from Deportivo Olimpia. The Arsenal goalkeeper, Jens Lehmann has decided against a move back to Germany with Borussia Dortmund, however, people in the know are predicting that with the new recruitment of Jurgen Klinsmann to Bayern Munich that he may well be biding his time for a swift move to Munich in the coming month.

Sunderland (2) 2 Portsmouth (0) 0

Harry Redknapp's decision to stay at Portsmouth did not inspire his side to victory as Sunderland eased to a comfortable win at the Stadium of Light.
After spurning Newcastle's advances yesterday, Redknapp's side fell short with several absentees due to the African Nations Cup.
Sunderland started with plenty of energy and grabbed the lead in the 32nd minute, with Kieran Richardson scoring his second goal for the club.
Kenwyne Jones won the chase with Sol Campbell for a Jonny Evans long ball which the Portsmouth defender temporarily gave up, believing the ball was going out of play.
However, Jones got to the by-line just in time to knock the ball back to Richardson, who swept it across David James and into the bottom left-hand corner of the net to put Sunderland ahead.
And it got even better for Richardson one minute before the break when he beat Hermann Hreidarsson to Daryl Murphy's ball on the edge of the Portsmouth box, before firing confidently past James.
In the 59th minute, Richardson again came agonisingly close to his hat-trick when he let fly with a rising left-foot shot from the edge of the box which clattered the woodwork.
 





Bolton Wanderers (1) 1 Blackburn Rovers (0) 2

Jason Roberts stepped off the bench to give Blackburn victory away to local rivals Bolton.
The striker showed power and pace after being set up by Roque Santa Cruz to rifle a shot into the corner on the stroke of full time.
Early on, Bolton worked hard in an attempt to break the deadlock, with Kevin Davies working tirelessly up front, but Blackburn always looked dangerous on the counter attack.
David Bentley played a prominent role in the first half and there were constant cries of 'Bentley for England' every time he was on the ball.
However, it was Bolton who made the breakthrough after 43 minutes with a spectacular effort from Kevin Nolan.
The captain hooked the ball over his shoulder from an acute angle following a crossfield ball from Joey O'Brien for his fourth goal of the season.
Blackburn started the second half brightly in an attempt to get the equaliser. Andre Ooijer picked out Santa Cruz with a good through ball in the 46th minute but his cross was cut out by Nolan.
Two minutes later Santa Cruz found himself clear in front of goal but Jussi Jaaskelainen parried his well struck effort to safety.
Blackburn drew level in the 53rd minute when Christopher Samba got on the end of Bentley's corner to head home at the back post. Jaaskelainen was left disappointed after changing his mind about coming for Bentley's delivery.
As the match drew to a close it looked as though both teams would have to settle for a point, until Roberts broke clear in the dying minutes to claim the winner.





Manchester United (0) 6 Newcastle United (0) 0

Newcastle's week of woe continued with a humiliating defeat at Old Trafford.
manager Nigel Pearson in charge after Sam Allardyce's dismissal, started well and frustrated United in the first half.
However, they were undone by Ronaldo's low free-kick on 49 minutes.
Then came a moment of defensive madness as Shay Given's clearance hit Claudio Cacapa, with Carlos Tevez there to punish the lapse.
Ronaldo increased the lead on 70 minutes before Rio Ferdinand finished delightfully from Wayne Rooney's weighted pass.
Newcastle were in disarray and Ronaldo inflicted further pain by completing his hat-trick with five minutes left.
United were still not done as Tevez rounded off a crushing defeat in the last minute.
And Newcastle's misery was compounded by Alan Smith's dismissal for dissent.
 
Arsenal (1) 1 Birmingham (0) 1

Premier League leaders Arsenal had to be content with a point as Birmingham battled to a 1-1 draw at the Emirates Stadium.
After 21 minutes, Arsenal were awarded a penalty when Stephen Kelly went through the back of Eduardo, and although the defender may have got a touch on the ball eventually, referee Phil Dowd pointed to the spot.
Emmanuel Adebayor stepped up to slot his 13th goal of the season into the bottom right corner, just out of Maik Taylor's reach.
However, in the 48th minute, Birmingham were level when a corner from Sebastian Larsson on the left was sent into the Arsenal six-yard box.
Garry O'Connor headed the ball down, which took a deflection off Cesc Fabregas and bounced up past the wrong-footed Manuel Almunia.
 
Chelsea (1) 2 Tottenham (0) 0

Juliano Belletti and Shaun Wright-Phillips scored in each half to earn Chelsea three vital points over London rivals Tottenham at Stamford Bridge.
Tottenham were guilty of giving the ball away too much but Chelsea, despite the creativity of Joe Cole and Juliano Belletti on the right flank, failed to make the most of it until the 19th minute when the defender put the home side ahead.
There seemed little danger to Tottenham when Belletti collected the ball just inside the opposition half. But in the absence of a challenge from Tottenham's players, Belletti moved forward before unleashing a 30-yard drive that soared into the roof of the net beyond Radek Cerny's outstretched hands.
One of the biggest cheers of the afternoon was reserved for new signing Nicolas Anelka when he began warming up on the touchline in the 54th minute.
He got an even bigger cheer when he replaced Claudio Pizarro in the 58th minute.
Anelka almost made it a spectacular debut with his third touch of the game when a back-heel from Wright-Phillips found him unmarked eight yards out. Anelka, with his back to goal, turned and struck a half-volley that Cerny saved superbly.
Chelsea were becoming increasingly dominant and Wright-Phillips added a second 10 minutes from time to wrap up the points.
 
Middlesbrough (1) 1 Liverpool (0) 1

Fernando Torres came to Liverpool's rescue as he hit home a superb equaliser to deny Middlesbrough victory.
The hosts started well and took the lead after 26 minutes as they put together their most fluent move of the half.
George Boateng turned cleverly away from Steven Gerrard in the middle of the field and fed the ball out to Stewart Downing, who delivered a dangerous cross to the far post.
Gary O'Neil climbed above Alvaro Arbeloa to head the ball back across goal, and Tuncay did the same again for Boateng, who had carried on his run, and fired into the empty net.
The visitors almost hit back five minutes later after Robert Huth was penalised for a challenge on Torres 35 yards out.
John Arne Riise played the free-kick short to Gerrard, who shaped to shoot but then laid it off for Steve Finnan to send in a deflected effort which had Mark Schwarzer scurrying across his line to save at the foot of the post.
As the clock ticked away, Middlesbrough looked good for the three points until Torres struck a 71st-minute drive past Schwarzer from 25 yards to clinch a fourth successive draw for Liverpool on an afternoon when his side were second best for long periods.
 
West Ham (1) 2 Fulham (1) 1

Fulham's search for their first away win of the season goes on, despite the best efforts of goalkeeper Antti Niemi, after Dean Ashton and Anton Ferdinand helped West Ham come from a goal behind at Upton Park.
Simon Davies had put Fulham ahead when his eighth-minute free-kick evaded everyone in the West Ham box and crept inside the far post.
There was nothing Niemi could do to stop Ferdinand's first-time shot into the roof of the net which sealed a valuable home win for West Ham after Ashton's equaliser.
 
Derby (0) 0 Wigan Athletic (0) 1

Antoine Sibierski broke Derby hearts by firing home a late winner to give Wigan their first away win of the season and keep the club on course for Premier League survival.
Sibierski scored the only goal of this relegation battle at Pride Park in the 82nd minute, ending a personal five-month goal drought, just 43 seconds after his arrival as a substitute.
Under Steve Bruce, Wigan have taken 12 points from a possible 24, in contrast to Derby manager Paul Jewell who has managed just one from his eight games in charge.
 
Aston Villa (1) 3 Reading (0) 1

Aston Villa's potency at set-pieces proved sufficient to earn them a third successive win in the Premier League and keep them on course for a European spot.
John Carew's header from an Ashley Young free-kick broke the deadlock against Reading after 23 minutes and then a corner from the England winger was turned home by Martin Laursen early in the second period.
Carew put the icing on the cake with his sixth goal of the campaign a minute from time before James Harper scored an injury-time consolation.
 
Everton (1) 1 Manchester City (0) 0

Joleon Lescott grabbed a priceless first-half winner to see Everton to victory in a clash of two sides fighting for a place in the top four.
It was a tight, closely-fought collision of two of the Premier League's emerging clubs, but in the end Everton hung on for victory.
City staged a second-half fight back, but they ran into a wall of Everton defiance.






If you want to share your views about your club, please write to us on the forum page, alternatively, send me your views, questions or suggestions: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com

[Admin]

English Premiership review          No. 14     19/01/2008

‘King Kev’ has returned back on Tyneside after an 11 year leave of absence, the most unlikely candidate for the Newcastle job (Based on his history with club and his public exit from the game after resigning from the England post) is now back in the job he walked out on….he also declared it was because of his prior experience that he was the ideal man for the job and the fans are ecstatic…a masterstroke by new owner Mike Ashley has reignited the fans’ imagination and there is a new ‘buzz’ around the city…hard to imagine after all the recent doom and gloom, the poor performances resulting in the sacking of previous incumbent Sam Allardyce, followed by a public thrashing 6-0 by Manchester United…the media have, as you can imagine gone wild and now its down to Keegan to respond by resurrecting the team’s recent performances on the field and getting off the field issues (such as Joey Barton’s recent prison visit) sorted promptly. His objective, to get Newcastle back into a challenging position for a European cup competition and hopefully a trophy all within the next 3 seasons…one other twist to this plot is whether Newcastle idol, Alan Shearer will be teaming up with Keegan to form the ‘dream ticket’ that all fans had been hoping for, remains to be seen, as it  transpires, both had ‘fallen’ out with each other and whilst Keegan is keen to do the right thing and offer Shearer a position, it seems that Shearer might be  a little too proud to accept…we shall see….

As if this news wasn’t enough to digest, it appears Liverpool’s new owners have been secretly sounding out other managers on the basis that they would be parting company with the present manager, Benitez, whilst also sounding out possible new buyers…! It is hard to imagine such intrigue around such an established and reasonably successful club, they did after all,  win the European cup a couple of seasons ago and reached the final again last year…All we can hope is that the action on the pitch matches all the activity off it….on with this weekend matches…


Wigan (0) 1 Everton (2) 2

Everton scored twice inside three minutes towards the end of the first half to give them a barely deserved victory that takes them above Liverpool and up to fourth in the Premier League
Andy Johnson's sixth goal of the season was swiftly followed by a seventh this campaign from Joleon Lescott that proved to be the winner in a keenly contested and entertaining match.
Wigan managed to pull one back early in the second half courtesy of an own goal from Phil Jagielka after the defender was powerless to prevent the ball deflecting in to a goal that had been deserted by a misjudged attempt by Tim Howard to claim a looping Jason Koumas free kick.
The result was hard on Wigan who controlled possession for much of the match and played the better football throughout. The pain of defeat was compounded by seeing Emile Heskey limp of with an injury shortly after the interval.
Before the 39th minute, Bruce was preparing a team talk that would have simply asked his players to add a finishing touch to their excellent approach play.
With home debutant Wilson Palacios patrolling the left wing, and with Antonio Valencia on the right, Wigan were able to offer considerable width that stretched Everton and had the visitors on the back foot.
But three minutes of indecision by Wigan spoiled their good work and gifted Everton victory.
Mikel Arteta sprayed a pass down the right wing for Johnson to chase. Although Titus Bramble managed to get their first, he horrendously sliced his attempted back pass, allowing Johnson to run on and nutmeg the advancing Kirkland.
Three minutes later Everton doubled their lead as Wigan failed to clear their lines from a corner, culminating in Lescott tapping home a Jagielka pass at the far post.
Wigan continued to press in the second half but ultimately fell short with only Jagielka's own goal to show for their efforts.



Manchester City (1) 1 West Ham United (1) 1

Manchester City had started the day hoping to put pressure on the teams around them in the race for the fourth Champions League qualifying position but in the end were lucky to hold on for a point against a severely under strength West Ham.
City had goalkeeper Joe Hart to thank for an injury time save to deny Carlton Cole a winner when he palmed over a powerful header that was destined to fly under the crossbar before Hart's intervention.
Earlier Cole had put West Ham ahead with an overhead kick inside the first ten minutes following a rare mistake by Richard Dunne. But the lead was short lived.
Darius Vassell, who appeared to have been in an offside position when the initial cross came over, pounced on to a loose ball in the box to stab home a shot from close range to restore parity ten minutes after Cole had scored.
West Ham enjoyed the bulk of possession and chances in the second period but a combination of poor final passes, City's rugged organisation and Hart's brilliance kept them at bay.
West Ham had to do without Dean Ashton and Matthew Etherington - ruled out due to back and knee injuries respectively - and their attacking input was sorely missed in a game that never really burst in to life.
With Nolberto Solano, Craig Bellamy, Scott Parker, Bobby Zamora and Kieron Dyer all still missing West Ham can reflect on a point gained though they will be disappointed they did not take all three.


Reading (0) 0 Manchester United (0) 2

Deafening support for the local heroes was rolling down from the steep stands. They were holding the great Manchester United with the clock ticking down. Pride was growing. Then came the emptiness of disappointment.
All the tenacity, comradeship and the sheer sweat of effort by the man in the blue-and-white hoops counted for nothing as the famously productive partnership of Carlos Tevez and Wayne Rooney delivered the ultimate blow.
With 77 minutes gone, Tevez chipped the ball over the Reading central defenders with Rooney running into the space and flicking the ball past Marcus Hahnemann with the outside of his right foot. It was a truly glorious moment,
You felt for Reading. Their heads did not drop and United were hanging on to their goal as Reading poured forward but a second counter punch was on its way. With every man committed to salvaging a point, Ronaldo broke from his own area to slide the ball past Hahnemann. Many Reading fans left their seats before the extra four minutes had ended.





Birmingham City (0) 0 Chelsea (0) 1

All the attention may have been focused on Avram Grant's first multi-million pound signing but it was a Jose Mourinho bargain that eventually broke a spirited Birmingham. Nicolas Anelka, the £15 million arrival from Bolton, made his full debut amid much expectation but it was Claudio Pizarro, a summer free transfer from Bayern Munich, who came off the bench to head the winner, thumping in Juliano Belletti's fine corner. Dropped to accommodate Anelka but when Shaun Wright-Phillips was forced off with a worrying ankle injury, Pizarro came on to play as a deep-lying striker. He hadn't scored in the Premier League since the first day of the season when he found the net against the same opposition, but he came up with the goods and Chelsea have now won six on the spin.


Fulham (0) 0 Arsenal (2) 3

No change at the top of the Premier League but the battle has most certainly been rejoined. Accused by their manager of complacency in the draw against Birmingham a week ago, Arsenal responded with a ruthless execution of a Fulham side whose survival hopes look gloomier by the day.
Arsenal have been hit harder than most by the Africa Cup of Nations, though at least they can still call upon the services of Emmanuel Adebayor, whose two first-half goals put a swift end to any pretensions Fulham might have had of repeating their victory over the north Londoners last season. Wenger confessed he had not exactly shared his striker's disappointment when Togo failed to reach the finals.
But it was the way that Arsenal dictated the play in all areas of the pitch that gave their manager most satisfaction. After some early shadow-boxing, Wenger's men were embarrassingly superior.




Tottenham Hotspur (1) 2 Sunderland (0) 0

Cometh the hour and a half, cometh the goalscorer and a half. This furious game had gone into last minute stoppage time when Robbie Keane pounced to score his 100th goal for Tottenham and confirm a victory that Sunderland, desperate for an away win, had nearly taken from them in the second half.
Spurs ought to have won at a canter. An Aaron Lennon goal up after only two minutes, they should have added another three or four by the end of a first half they dominated. But poor finishing and the heroics of Sunderland goalkeeper Craig Gordon left them vulnerable to Roy Keane's half time team talk.
Whatever it was the formidable manager said to his team turned them into a completely different proposition. Sharper to the ball and more precise in their passing, they terrorised Spurs' suspect defence. Only the bravery and acrobatics of goalkeeper Radek Cerny kept the sheet clean.
Then, as time began to run out, Keane, introduced as a 73rd-minute substitute for captain Jermain Defoe, fastened on to a long kick by Cerny. Running clear, he shot straight at Gordon, only to see the ball squirm under his body and add the striker to the 15 other Spurs players who have scored 100 goals or more.

Portsmouth (2) 3 Derby County (1) 1

Harry Redknapp could have been forgiven for wondering, during much of the first half, whether he had made a monumental blunder in turning down Newcastle despite being given a rapturous ovation from the Portsmouth fans.
Against the club who have been described as the worst ever in the Premier League, Portsmouth trailed to a fourth-minute goal and huffed and puffed as they sought to end an alarming goal drought in front of their own fans that had moved into a seventh league fixture.
Enter Benjani, the £4.1 million Zimbabwe striker in whom Redknapp has kept faith despite two frustratingly profligate seasons before this campaign started. Two goals just before half-time and a third not long afterwards took Benjani's tally to 12 and ended any crumb of hope doomed Derby had of preventing an 18th league defeat.





Blackburn Rovers (0) 1 Middlesbrough (1) 1

This was not the first time that, nostrils flaring, Mark Hughes has been pulled away from Gareth Southgate and Colin Cooper, but the Blackburn manager felt that yesterday's tussle may have had a galvanising effect on his team as they came from behind to earn a point.
Only Derby have conceded the first goal more often than Blackburn and it proved the case once again with David Wheater heading the visitors in front, but following the second-half touchline row, caused by what Hughes perceived as Jeremie Aliadiere time-wasting, Matt Derbyshire came off the bench to seal a draw for the hosts.
After a dour opening, Wheater was already getting the better of Jason Roberts and the 20-year-old defender soon showed his quality at the other end, although Blackburn felt aggrieved at the award of a free-kick for Stephen Warnock's challenge on George Boateng. But from the right flank, Stewart Downing's whipped cross found Wheater, whose movement had lost Ryan Nelson, at the far post and his header had enough power to earn him a third goal in five matches.





If you want to share your views about your club, please write to us on the forum page, alternatively, send me your views, questions or suggestions: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com
Back next week…

[Admin]

English Premiership review                          No. 15 02/02/2008


This week’s football news  is again focused around managers…..Fabio Capello has named is first England squad for their forthcoming ‘friendly’ match against Switzerland at Wembley and the main question was, would David Beckham be awarded his 100th England cap ? The main issue involved being, did he deserve, as a great English footballing Ambassador, selection, (in other words a player, past his prime, however worthy of the cap) or should he be in the team based on his talent and therefore on merit? The answer from his previous manager at Real Madrid was that he wouldn’t be selected as he hadn’t played in any competitive matches as the US season doesn’t commence until March. A diplomatic retort, meaning he probably won’t get back into the squad again, or at least not under Capello. This had mixed feedback from the media and public alike, obviously a talented if not great player has been badly treated as he did assist England against Croatia, their last competitive match in the knockout stages of Euro 2008, although England embarrassingly lost and were therefore eliminated from the competition, Beckham’s contribution was immediate and he got England back into that match. Other’s see awarding him on past performances as a luxury item and feel he should disappear gracefully back to the US, proud with his contribution to the game…The England squad itself saw the introduction of several new faces notably the large Aston Villa quartet of ;  Agbonlahor,  Curtis Davies, Young & Barry. Also, Capello through strategic vision or political pressure recruited Stuart Pearce, the England under 21 Manager.

‘King Kev’ has wittingly or not, been offered the back up services of the now ex-Leeds manager and former player, Dennis Wise. ‘Dirty Den’ has however been offered the ‘clean’ title of ‘Executive Director’ of football at Newcastle and will be based most of the week in offices in London…out of the spotlight and no blame for performance, he will also be paid a handsome 1 million pound per season…nice work if you can get !

Finally, last week saw the transfer window closed firmly shut on any new transfers taking place for the remainder of the season, of those, here is a list of the most significant within the premiership.
                                                                                                                                                                                                   
Nicholas Anelka Bolton to Chelsea                                          15m pound
Branislav Ivanovic  Lokomotiv Moscow to Chelsea                              9 m
Jermain Defoe     Tottenham to Portsmouth                                      9  m
Alan Hutton Glasgow Rangers to Tottenham                                      9  m
*PENDING  Benjani Mwaruwari to Manchester City                           7.6 m
Jonathon Woodgate  Middlesboro to Tottenham                               8   m
James McFadden Everton to Birmingham                                       5.75 m
Lassana Diarra Arsenal to Portsmouth                                            5.5 m
Marlon King  Watford to Wigan                                                       5 m
Gary Cahill    Aston Villa     to Bolton                                             4.5 m
Matt Taylor  Portsmouth   to Bolton                                               4.5 m
Andy Reid    Charlton to Sunderland                                              4 m
Ghris Gunter  Cardiff to Tottenham                                              3m
Gilberto   Hertha Berlin to Tottenham                                          3m
Phil Bardsley  Manchester United to Sunderland                            2m
Robbie Savage Blackburn to Derby                                              2 m



Newcastle United (0) 1 Middlesbrough (0) 1

Newcastle striker Michael Owen issued England head coach Fabio Capello with a timely reminder of his goalscoring prowess last night by admitting he had not been living up to his own expectations after rediscovering his touch at St James' Park.
Owen issued a typically candid assessment of recent travails that provoked rumours his England place was in jeopardy after scoring his first league goal since October. That goal put Newcastle on course for their first victory since Kevin Keegan returned to Tyneside until Robert Huth struck a late equaliser to ensure a just result.
Owen struck a brilliantly executed goal on the hour mark when he stole a yard on his marker and rose to nod in Emre's free-kick beyond Mark Schwarzer. It followed a foul by Luke Young on Charles N'Zogbia that was hotly disputed by the Boro players and seemed harsh on the right-back.
The endeavours of Owen, unfortunate to have another 'goal' disallowed early on because of his alleged foul on Schwarzer, who enjoyed the luckiest of escapes, prompted Keegan to predict his captain will prosper with England against Switzerland on Wednesday.
The Newcastle defence were worn down when Huth, the German centre-half, headed a Julio Arca cross over Shay Given.




Fulham (0) 2 Aston Villa (0) 1

Fabio Capello's chosen ones in the Aston Villa side began the afternoon in triumph but ended it in trauma as Jimmy Bullard's late free-kick, coupled with some caustic words from Martin O'Neill, conspired to corrode any delusions of grandeur. As if this were not chastening enough, the momentum behind Villa's Premier League surge suffered a sudden derailment as Fulham, firmly in the relegation frame, denied them the chance of fourth place by contriving the most unlikely win in 18 manic minutes.
In a moment of grand catharsis, Fulham's beleaguered players swarmed around Bullard as the 29-year-old marked his own release from 15 months of knee-injury agonies with a 25-yard strike of beauty.
The prospect of a Champions League position or of breaking the stranglehold of the 'big four' appeared a little too much for O'Neill's players as they ceded the advantage so fortuitously gained from Aaron Hughes' 68th-minute own goal through Simon    Davies's cutely worked equaliser and Bullard's late bullet.


Portsmouth (0) 1 Chelsea (0)

In an entertaining second half full of blood, guts and thrills, Defoe maintained his record of scoring on every debut to earn Portsmouth a deserved point. Michael Ballack, the Chelsea midfielder's head heavily bandaged after a clash with Noe Pamarot, the guts were damaged as Claude Makelele's boot made serious contact with Milan Baros' midriff, and the thrills came with the goals and the three chances to earn Portsmouth a win which Defoe squandered.
Chances were created and goal-line clearances were made as both teams went for the win. There was controversy too, with Juliano Belletti surviving a penalty-box handball in the first half, and Makelele appearing to handle, too, in the move that led to the opening goal. The ball struck him on the arm, play continued, the Frenchman thumped the ball forward and Anelka eventually finished.
But when Defoe, a goalscorer on his debuts for West Ham, Bournemouth (on loan) and Tottenham, scored again, the home side sensed a win. Defoe had the chances to claim it; his misses rather than hits maybe hinting at why Spurs were prepared to let him leave, albeit for £9 million. But with Benjani Mwaruwari's move to Manchester City expected to be rubber-stamped today, Defoe confirmed, again, that Redknapp has a nose for success.




Liverpool (0) 3 Sunderland (0) 0

Crouch's impact helped steer Liverpool to their first Premier League victory since Boxing Day, yet throughout that winless run, Benitez has been spared criticism from the supporters. Their focus has been fixed firmly on the ownership issue, and another post-match demonstration by 500 fans in a pre-planned sit-in emphasised the growing campaign to drive away the Americans.
Had all been well behind the scenes, would Benitez have been allowed to get off so lightly with Liverpool out of the title race and facing a battle to secure fourth place? After a £40 million summer spending spree, much better had been expected.
Steven Gerrard's late penalty left Keane to voice his fears that Sunderland could pay the ultimate price for this defeat. He said: "Sheffield United got relegated last season by the difference of one goal, so they all add up."


Tottenham Hotspur (1) 1 Manchester United (0) 1

If the title season were starting now, Spurs might even fancy their chances. The face on the Wembley T-shirts that were selling like hot bagels on the Tottenham High Road was not that of Dimitar Berbatov or Robbie Keane, but the manager the fans never hear from. In the first half, Spurs played with a self-assured swagger. In the second half when United wrestled away the initiative, Spurs played with a dynamic defiance. What they have lost on the scales and the waist, the Tottenham players have gained in energy and drive under Ramos. Suddenly, players such as Jermaine Jenas and Tom Huddlestone have an edge about them. Ferguson had to substitute three of his original midfield before United could match the Spurs duo.
And then there is Berbatov. The class act in the gathering Spurs ensemble tapped in their goal following a stirring counter-attack led by Jenas and Aaron Lennon, then early in the second period he drifted nonchalantly past three challenges to tee up Keane for a gaping chance to settle the game. A weak finish, a comfortable save and United were reprieved to continue their comeback. Wayne Rooney laboured but fought tooth and nail, Ronaldo struggled to shake off some heavy-duty marking. Challenge after committed challenge kept them at arm's length until Nani's late corner found its fateful way into the net via Dawson and/or Tevez.




Reading (0) 0 Bolton Wanderers (1) 2

Apart from the first 10 minutes of the second half, Bolton, pulling back 10 men at times, had defenders to spare whichever way Reading might try to go. As for Reading's defence, don't ask. A sixth consecutive defeat leaves manager Steve Coppell looking more than ever downwards rather than upwards.
Among the half-dozen clubs desperate not to share Derby's all-but-certain fate, are there any with a worse defence than Reading's? The situation does not look good. Coppell admitted: ''We need to improve in all departments. We're not firing up front and we're looking a long way off keeping clean sheets. We'll be asking harsh questions of ourselves this week."
Gary Megson's rescue act with Bolton - currently doing fine without Nicolas Anelka, thank you - is unashamedly built on the sandbag principle: get enough bodies in the way and opponents won't be able to see your goalkeeper, let alone test him. This was Bolton's first away victory of the season and Megson said: ''It was a huge win in the context of where we are in the table."


Blackburn Rovers (0) 0 Everton (0) 0

Everton created the better chances, notably just into the second half when Manuel Fernandes carelessly shot straight at Friedel with the game's clearest-cut opportunity.
David Dunn cleared a Phil Jagielka header off the line shortly before the break, Fernandes then struck a post with a clinically driven free-kick and Benni McCarthy, a second-half substitute, erred with the home side's best opening. Roque Santa Cruz, too, was profligate in added time following a cross from David Bentley who earlier forced an excellent save from Tim Howard.
A frustrating afternoon that saw Everton denied of the opportunity of further building up their points difference from their arch rivals and neighbours, Liverpool in terms of grabbing the all important fourth spot.
Wigan Athletic (0) 1 West Ham United (0) 0
Wigan's position demands such fortitude, and they also enjoyed the good fortune that their positive display merited. Kevin Kilbane, up for Ryan Taylor's free-kick, saw his header loop over Robert Green but admitted he was trying to direct the ball across the six-yard box.
West Ham covet a Uefa Cup spot after looking certain to go down this time last year, but failed to assert their passing game on a pock-marked pitch.





Birmingham City (0) 1 Derby County (0) 1

Birmingham have won just once in their last seven home games, and that has a resonance with their last relegation season, two years ago, when they took just three points from their opening seven games at home. "Of course we're in trouble," Sebastian Larsson, their goalscorer, said. "We've been in and around it all season."
Savage put his finger on Derby's comparative success. "In the second half they ran out of ideas. We started playing higher up the pitch and winning the second balls. We stopped them playing: we out-Birmingham-ed Birmingham."
The Blues were caught when the fresh legs of Giles Barnes outpaced Liam Ridgewell in the last minute. He turned the ball back to Dean Leacock who crossed for Villa to head in.
Yet Birmingham had individuals performing decently enough: James McFadden worked hard and inventively, David Murphy was competent at left-back, and Mauro Zarate was mercurial when he came on, if a little headless. It just didn't gel into a satisfactory team performance.





If you want to share your views about your club, please write to us on the forum page, alternatively, send me your views, questions or suggestions: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com

[petya]

English Premiership review No. 16 10/02/2008

This week saw the 50th anniversary of England’s, if not Europe’s (possibly the world’s) greatest team’s demise in the ‘tragedy of Munich’, some of Britain’s most talented payers were returning from winning a European Cup quarter final in Belgrade, the plane was due to refuel in Munich, tragically it crashed en route killing 23 passengers, eight survived including the legendary Matt Busby, Bobby Charlton and keeper Harry Gregg, the greatest player within the team ,Duncan Edwards, survived the crash, however died days later in a hospital in Munich. Fittingly, United’s memorial game on Saturday was against its local arch rivals Manchester City, a team who has mostly lived in United’s shadows for the past fifty years. Interestingly, City are one of the few teams who actually beat United this season and with United dropping points last week against Tottenham and their main title contenders, Arsenal now ahead on points, there really couldn’t be a better platform from which to spring back into shape and into the premiership title race. There was also some media coverage on English fans and their growing lack of tolerance within their ranks in terms of showing respect to clubs, players and officials. The big question of the day would the opposing fans (Manchester City) show the kind of respect and tolerance towards their local rivals by observing the requested ‘minute of silence’ in recognition of the tragedy and death of the talented team of ‘58’? Ironically, one of those who died in the crash was a city player, Frank Swift, their former gifted goalkeeper and journalist and was reporting on the United game in Belgrade…this alone must surely hit a chord with the away fans…United will be playing in a retro style kit with traditional numbering and no sponsorship on their shirts as a mark of respect of the tragedy.


Manchester United (0) 1 Manchester City (2) 2

First-half goals from Darius Vassell and new signing Benjani were enough to earn Manchester City victory over a strangely subdued United, despite a stoppage time consolation from Michael Carrick.
In front of a full house at Old Trafford the day was charged with emotion as tributes were made to those who lost their lives in the Munich air crash 50 years ago this week.
Fears that the minute silence might not be observed by all present proved unfounded as players and fans bowed their heads in reflection, though the sound of fireworks outside the ground could be heard.
Once the match started United dominated the early possession but other than a shout for a penalty when Cristiano Ronaldo tumbled in the box and a Ryan Giggs effort from a tight angle that the impressive Joe Hart turned over the crossbar they were unable to create any meaningful opportunities.
As the first-half progressed City, organised and disciplined at the back and breaking forward from a five man midfield when opportunity allowed, grew in confidence and it was no surprise when Vassell gave them the lead.
Martin Petrov broke down the left and fed Steven Ireland in the box but Edwin van der Sar came out to block his effort.
The rebound fell to Vassell who saw his first shot saved but made no mistake when handed a second strike with United slow to react to the danger.
United struggled all afternoon to defend corners and set pieces and, in the closing minutes of the half, paid the price. Petrov's initial cross was returned to him but he swung over another teasing ball that Benjani got the slightest of touches on to beat van der Sar at his far post.
A second-half response from United, who before today had conceded just three goals at home in the league this season, was expected but did not materialise and City ran out comfortable winners in the end, despite Carrick, a second-half substitute, curling his shot out of Hart's reach to pull one back with 90 seconds left on the clock.
The victory is City's first at Old Trafford since 1974 and gives them a first league double over their neighbours since the 1969-70 season and puts a major dent in United's title challenge whilst lifting City back in to sixth place.




 
Chelsea (0) 0 Liverpool (0) 0

Chelsea failed to fully exploit Manchester United's defeat earlier in the day as they and Liverpool played out another disappointing draw.
The match did not provide much of a spectacle and was dominated by both sides' uncompromising defences with precious little in the way of genuine chances.
Liverpool can perhaps feel that they had the best chances to win the game with Peter Crouch shooting wide from the edge of the box and then straining to make good contact with a Gerrard cross that was a fraction behind him.
All too often Liverpool's final ball let them down, with Chelsea's woeful playing surface contributing to a number of misplaced passes from both teams also.
Chelsea thought they should have been awarded a penalty in the 26th minute when Joe Cole was up-ended in the area but referee Mike Riley waved away their appeals.
Chelsea improved a fraction in the second-half but found it difficult to break down a Liverpool defence that steadfastly refused to buckle and the game needed more than the energetic enthusiasm of Nicolas Anelka, or the eagerness of Dirk Kuyt, to force the breakthrough that never came.

Aston Villa (0) 4 Newcastle United (1) 1

Villa manager Martin O'Neill got his reward for his bold decision to make two changes at half time, seeing his team score twice in the opening six minutes. Wilfred Bouma's speculative shot deflected in off Habib Beye and John Carew rose in a packed penalty area to head in Ashley Young's corner.
There are far too many clowns in Keegan's circus, mainly in defence, and once those goals went in, all confidence evaporated. So much for the passion we had been promised under Keegan, while Villa, who suffered their first defeat in eight league games last week, sensed that they could improve their goal difference as they chase a spot in Europe.




Bolton Wanderers (0) 0 Portsmouth (0) 1

Portsmouth, hardly out of their half for 75 minutes, stole the points thanks to Lassana Diarra's contentious goal and David James's stupendous stoppage-time save.
The contest ought to have been decided before Portsmouth's belated venture into enemy territory and no one will feel greater despair at the unlikely events than their former player Matt Taylor.
His miss from barely four yards, lifting Kevin Davies's square ball over an unattended goal, epitomised Bolton's tormented afternoon.
They totally discredited Portsmouth's Champions League aspirations with controlled, imaginative football that belied their lowly status.
James presented his full, dazzling and erratic repertoire. He followed up an embarrassing mis-kick and fumbled block with a spectacular save from the excellent Gretar Steinsson to keep Portsmouth in the match.

Middlesbrough (1) 1 Fulham (0) 0

Quite what links the rugged landscape of Middlesbrough to the hip-swivelling rhythm of Brazil is anyone's guess, but there can be no denying the galvanising effect when a samba swagger is in town.
Afonso Alves yesterday became the ninth Brazilian player to gladden the hearts of Middlesbrough's supporters.
But Alves' reception was staggering. Nearly 4,000 more people came through the turnstiles than for the previous game with Wigan and there is a growing belief that his arrival will be the fulcrum for a new chapter being patiently written by Gareth Southgate.
The Boro manager has steadfastly maintained support for Jeremie Aliadiere all season and is now getting his rewards. Aliadiere is faster, stronger and more assured in front of goal following the kind of extended run that would never have come his way at Arsenal.
He was the matchwinner yesterday, a timely reminder to his manager at a time when Southgate chooses from a clutch of world class forwards.

Sunderland (1) 2 Wigan (0) 0

They applauded when he warmed up, they cheered when he came on and they roared him to the echo when he created the goal that killed off Wigan. Andy Reid is the new star who dazzled at the Stadium of Light.
It was his debut, a £4 million signing from Charlton Athletic as the January transfer window was closing. He looked a shade tubby in his No 20 shirt but within seconds of being sent on by manager Roy Keane he brought the touch of class that had been missing.
Bundling his way past three challengers wide on the half-way line, he set off on a run and pinged the ball with perfect accuracy to the feet of Daryl Murphy who cut in and struck a 20-yarder no goalkeeper would have saved.
It added to Dickson Etuhu's 42nd-minute goal and Sunderland had the points that ease them further away from the fear of relegation, taking them to 14th in the Premier League.




Derby County (0) 0 Tottenham Hotspur (0) 3

Here was more compelling evidence of Dimitar Berbatov's importance to Tottenham. Rested on the bench until the 58th minute, the languid Bulgarian striker came on as a substitute for the ineffective Darren Bent and transformed an untidy match into a clear and coherent victory for the London side.
Investing the contest with much-needed quality, Berbatov excelled in doing the basic things simply and in his own time. His late penalty was also a reward for Juande Ramos. The Spurs manager's decision to bring him on - and also to replace the wayward Kevin-Prince Boateng with Jamie O'Hara in midfield at the interval - turned the game.
It was an opportunity missed for Derby because Tottenham found themselves playing with a new partnership in central defence as early as the 13th minute when Michael Dawson had to go off injured. He was replaced alongside the impressive Tom Huddlestone by Younes Kaboul, who rounded off a fine display with a goal.

West Ham (1) 1 Birmingham (1) 1

On A ground where Manchester United and Liverpool have fallen since Christmas, a relegation-threatened Birmingham thoroughly deserved their point. Alex McLeish's defence, protected by Damien Johnson and the impressive Patrice Muamba, made West Ham look very ordinary in front of Fabio Capello.
So it was an afternoon on which the England Under-21s, Muamba and Liam Ridgewell, who formed a solid partnership with Martin Taylor at centre-back, could look back with satisfaction. Birmingham go to Fulham next and that match might have a significant bearing on their chances of avoiding the drop. ''We have a very young side," McLeish pointed out afterwards, ''but the spirit they showed here gives us every chance of staying in the Premier League."
It was, though, a dismal match, suitably culminating in the dismissal of Lee Bowyer for a mildly over-the-top challenge on Johnson. However, West Ham did score early, Cole back-heading George McCartney's long throw and Freddie Ljungberg displaying agility in his stretch to hook the ball high into the net, but Birmingham wasted little time in equalising with a penalty. Lucas Neill, back from Australia, got too close to James McFadden, who easily turned him but was tugged back. McFadden then scored his first goal since joining Birmingham from Everton, giving even Robert Green, who has a good record for saving penalties, little chance with a brisk low shot.




If you want to share your views about your club, please write to us on the forum page, alternatively, send me your views, questions or suggestions: markjcliftoninfo@yahoo.com