FA Barclays Premiership Report (16th - 17th April)

THE FA Cup semi-final action meant that Premiership fixtures were limited.  However, plenty of action took place that affected both ends of the table.  Three from six look likely to drop out of the league now, whilst a helping hand from Dirk might well have handed Manchester United another championship.

LAST: Kuyt's kick might well have finished Arsenal's challenge

    Arsenal’s latest slip up at home was against a well-drilled Liverpool outfit.  The amazing drama at the end of the game at the Emirates overshadowed the general lacklustre quality in this 1-1 draw.  During the match, Jamie Carragher was accidentally knocked out by young defender John Flanagan, which led to eight minutes of injury time.  In the seventh minute of these, Cesc Fabregas went down far too easily under Jay Spearing’s clumsy, but clean challenge.  Robin Van Persie coolly dispatched the penalty and it seemed to have kept the title race alive.  However, moments later, Emmanuel Eboue stupidly pushed Lucas in the back when Luis Suarez’s free-kick rebounded off the wall into the Gunners penalty area.  Eboue was distraught and Arsene Wenger left in complete disbelief.  Dirk Kuyt tucked away the spot kick with the last kick of the match to earn Liverpool a deserved point.  The contentious penalty decision led to some ill-feeling between Wenger and Kenny Dalglish, with the Sky Sports cameras picking up Dalglish telling Wenger to ‘P### off.’  Following Manchester United’s tame 0-0 stalemate at Newcastle last night, Arsenal now lie seven points adrift and almost out of the battle.  No more slip-ups can now be required from Wenger’s men.

     Blackpool slipped into the bottom three for the first time this season, after they were convincingly beaten 3-1 at home by relegation rivals Wigan Athletic.  The result means Wigan move out of the drop zone.  From the moment Craig Cathcart gave away possession sloppily from a free-kick, then slipped in the build-up to Hugo Rodallega’s second minute opener, the writing was on the wall for the Tangerines.  Yet again, Blackpool’s defending was absolutely atrocious as Wigan ran riot.  Charles N’Zogbia made it 2-0 on the stroke of half-time and a deflected effort from Mohammed Diame sealed the dominating result, despite DJ Campbell’s late consolation.

     Wigan moved out of the bottom three, at West Ham’s expense.  In a full-blooded scrap at Upton Park, Aston Villa stole all three points in the dying stages.  Their 2-1 win all but seals their Premiership safety, but leaves Avram Grant’s side staring at the abyss.  Robbie Keane produced a splendid start for the Hammers, driving them infront inside of two minutes.  Having pushed Carlton Cole in the back when the striker was clean through, Richard Dunne could have counted himself lucky to stay on the pitch.  As the game wore on, Villa got stronger and stronger and ultimately, deserved the win.  Darren Bent headed in Luke Young’s cross before half-time, after Mark Noble had been caught in possession.  Noble’s doziness was akin to an amateur painting a garden fence for the first time!  At the death, with the match set to finish honours even, Ashley Young’s teasing cross was headed in by Gabby Agbonlahor.  Amazingly, that it Agbonlahor’s first Premiership goal of what has been a frustrating season for the front man.    

CASH: Sebastian Larsson pounced on horrific defending for Birmingham

     Meantime, the Wearside worry for Sunderland continues.  Steve Bruce had a unhappy return to St. Andrews on Saturday, witnessing his old side Birmingham City beat his Black Cats 2-0.  Goalkeeper Simon Mignolet was at fault for both goals.  The first came following a calamitous mix-up in communication between the Belgian and Phil Bardsley.  Sebastian Larsson sneaked it to open the scoring.  Mignolet then failed to keep out Craig Gardner’s wicked shot, which frankly – a Sunday League goalkeeper could have kept out.  Having lost eight of their last nine games, Sunderland could now well go down and the agony on chairman Niall Quinn’s face in the stands really told its own story.

     If Sunderland have problems, Blackburn’s are just as bad.  Steve Kean has only managed to oversee three wins in fifteen games as manager and the last time he tasted success was a 2-0 win over West Brom on January 23.  Even Richard Keys and Andy Gray were just about with Sky Sports at the time!  The latest dire result for Rovers was a 2-0 loss at Everton, which leaves them just two points above the drop zone.  What will worry Kean more was the horrific performance at Goodison Park.  Everton could have fielded a team of under 10’s and still beaten the senior Blackburn side at the weekend.  Leon Osman produced the breakthrough ten minutes into the second half and Leighton Baines dispatched a penalty after Phil Jones made a rash challenge on Seamus Coleman.

     Chelsea may have nothing to fight for now this season, but their league form since February has been mightily impressive.  They ended Roy Hodgson’s unbeaten run as West Brom boss, overcoming the Albion 3-1 at the Hawthorns.  However, Fernando Torres had a goal disallowed after coming off the subs bench and it means, the wait continues for his first Chelsea goal.  Peter Odemwingie did put the home side ahead, but Didier Drogba cancelled the advantage out almost immediately, when goalkeeper Scott Carson made a basic mistake.  Another fumble from Carson just five minutes later allowed Salomon Kalou to drill Chelsea ahead and Frank Lampard completed the scoring just before the interval, as he moved into double figures for his injury-ravaged season.  The win is Chelsea seventh in their last eight Premiership games.

     The race for the title might be all but over now, but the fight to stay up continues to take twists and turns and attention will switch to this end of the table now over the last month of the 2010/11 Premiership campaign.

FA Barclays Premiership Report (5th - 6th March)

IT WAS another captivating weekend of Premiership football, which saw more form from the teams battling to beat the drop and the top sides misfiring.  Goals and talking points aplenty on another weekend of pure theatre, as this campaign is becoming one of the best ever to have graced the Premiership’s 19-year history.

HAT-TRICK HERO: Kuyt grabbed three tap-ins in sweet victory

     The most anticipated game of the weekend was at Anfield, where Dirk Kuyt hit his first ever treble for Liverpool in a highly impressive 3-1 success over leaders Manchester United on Sunday.  Kuyt’s hat-trick were all simple tap-ins, and he was helped by the enigmatic Luis Suarez, who produced a magical piece of play to take out three United players in setting up Kuyt’s first goal.  Five minutes later, he header in from close range after a wayward header from Nani.  His third was courtesy of a Suarez free-kick which was spilt by Edwin Van Der Sar.  Even £35million man Andy Carroll made a late cameo, for his Anfield debut after injury.  It was almost the perfect day for Liverpool and surely Kenny Dalglish’s appointment on a full-time basis is now only a formality.  Even Javier Hernandez’s stoppage header consolation couldn’t take the gloss off a marvellous day for Liverpool.  As their revival continued, tempers flared at times in a boiling match.  A horrible tackle from Jamie Carragher saw Nani stretchered off before half-time and seconds later, a poor challenge from Rafael on Lucas got him booked and led to a serious confrontation between the players.  This was a real off-day for United, who refused to speak to Sky Sports, BBC, MUTV or TalkSport afterwards and they have now lost three of their last five games.

     Kuyt’s hat-trick blew the title race wide open, but Arsenal failed to take their opportunity on Saturday, as the Gunners were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw by Sunderland.  Arsene Wenger felt justice wasn’t done on two dodgy decisions, with Andrei Arshavin unfortunate on both occasions.  First, the Russian was pushed to the ground in the penalty area by Titus Bramble, which should have been a penalty.  Later, Arshavin was denied a perfectly good goal, when he was wrongly ruled offside.  Nevertheless, Simon Mignolet produced an outstanding goalkeeping display for the visitors and Steve Bruce’s side thoroughly deserved their draw.

     Chelsea’s latest mini revival continued last night, as they recorded an impressive 3-1 win at Blackpool, to leave Ian Holloway’s men only two points clear of the drop zone.  John Terry powered the Blues infront on 15 minutes and two quickfire goals in the second half from Frank Lampard had Chelsea coasting along to another three points.  Carlo Ancelotti insists that the title is gone, but only nine points behind with a game in hand, it is completely over quite yet.  Jason Puncheon scored a consolation for Blackpool, but with only one win in nine games, the Tangerines are looking nervously above the trapdoor.

HAUNTED: Duff came back to continue Rovers slide down the league

     So too are Blackburn Rovers, after another loss; 3-2 at Fulham.  Steve Kean has now seen his team lose five of their six matches as Rovers perilous slide down the table.  Damien Duff haunted his old side with two goals, but it was Mark Clattenburg who made the headlines once again, for the wrong reasons.   With the scoreline at 2-2 in the 88^th minute, Clattenburg denied Andy Johnson a blatant penalty after Grant Hanley tripped him.  Seconds later and probably feeling guilty, he awarded Fulham a spot kick for a gentle tug by Hanley on Aaron Hughes.  If these were given every game, we’d be looking at rugby scores every weekend.  Bobby Zamora converted the penalty in his first Premiership match since September and the drama didn’t end there at Craven Cottage.  Gael Givet ran onto the pitch at full-time, angrily remonstrated with Clattenburg and got sent off.  Clattenburg had a stinker and after the Wayne Rooney elbow scandal last Saturday, his abilities as a top flight referee must be questioned.  He can do the job, he’s proven that before, but a few lower profile matches in the Football League wouldn’t go amiss to take him out of the firing line.

     Birmingham City got brought back to reality after their sensational Carling Cup success on Saturday lunchtime.  In a crunch relegation clash, Birmingham looked second best throughout their Midlands derby with West Brom and ultimately lost 3-1 at St. Andrews.  Goals in the second half from Yusuf Mulumbu, James Morrison with a great strike and a Paul Scharner headed moved Albion clear of the drop zone.  Although Jean Beausejour brought the home side level soon after Mulumbu’s opener, Birmingham got what they deserved and slip into the bottom three.

     They replace West Ham United, as they continue their impressive run of form.  Avram Grant’s side comfortably overcame Stoke City 3-0 at Upton Park in a dress rehearsal for their FA Cup quarter-final this weekend.  A nightmare piece of goalkeeping from Asmir Begovic allowed Demba Ba in for a tap-in and a Manuel Da Costa header shortly afterwards doubled the lead.  Thomas Hitzlsperger’s 82^nd minute bullet shot wrapped the match up and nearly burst the net as a result.  Stoke shouldn’t be in any relegation danger, but need to stop the rot on the road, as they recorded their sixth successive away defeat.

HORROR: Al-Habsi, after his gaffe cost Wigan a result

     Begovic didn’t make the worst goalkeeping cock-up of the weekend.  That went to Ali Al-Habsi, who produced a goalkeeping calamity that is bound to appear on every Christmas blooper DVD for years to come.  The Wigan goalkeeper allowed David Silva’s tame strike through his grasp at his near post and it consigned Wigan to a 1-0 loss at Manchester City.  Roberto Martinez will be pleased with the performance, but once again, no points, which leaves Wigan closer to slipping out of the Premier League.

     The game of the weekend came at Molineux as Wolves and Tottenham played out a wonderful match, drawing 3-3 at Molineux.  It was a moving and fitting tribute to the late Dean Richards, who represented both clubs.  A minute’s applause was held at the start of the match, in honour of the charismatic defender, who died last week after a long illness.  Wolves led on seven minutes, when Kevin Doyle got infront of Hereulho Gomes to head home Nenad Mijias cross.  Jermain Defoe single-handily turned the game on its head with two superb strikes in quick succession, taking his Premiership all-time total to 99 on his 300^th Premier League appearance.  Doyle doubled up from the penalty spot after Mijias was pulled back by Alan Hutton.  Despite being the last defender, Hutton was only booked, which was a staggering decision by anyone’s standards.  Spurs grabbed the lead back, courtesy of a Roman Pavyluchenko pile driver two minutes into the second half, but Wolves deserved their point and earnt it in the 87^th minute.  Steven Fletcher met Matt Jarvis cross and the Scottish international powered a header out of Gomes’s reach.  Richard Stearman was also denied a legitimate goal, whilst Defoe hit the post for the visitors.  The game was breathtaking to watch.

     To conclude the weekend, Bolton Wanderers strengthened their quest for European football, with a 3-2 win over Aston Villa.  Gary Cahill scored twice against his former club and Ivan Klasnic won the match in the 87^th minute for the home side, despite being dominated by Villa for large periods.  Everton virtually secured their Premier League status for another campaign, as they beat Newcastle 2-1 at St. James Park.  Mikel Arteta was the star of the show, setting up the goals for Leon Osman and Phil Jagielka (his first in three years) to see the Toffees bounce back from their dreadful FA Cup exit at the hands of Reading in midweek.

     As the finishing line approaches closer, the entertainment seems to get even better.  Maybe it is more than a two-horse race in the title battle and as for relegation, more than half the league is engulfed in fighting to beat the drop.  I think everyone will be glad for a week off, as the FA Cup retakes centre stage this weekend.

World Cup Report - Day 4-6

The greatest show on earth is starting to take shape.  Here is a brief round-up from South Africa of the matches from the previous three days – as goals continued to be a problem for many, due to the over-cautious approach from most teams.  However, yesterday brought one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history, as the European Champions were dethroned by hard-working Switzerland.

Monday 14^th June: Holland 2-0 Denmark

A cataclysmic own goal from Simon Poulsen set Holland on their way to an opening victory in Soccer City, Johannesburg.  Following a tight first-half, the own goal gave the Dutch, lacking their usual fluency the lead 52 seconds into the restart.  Liverpool’s Dirk Kuyt settled the outcome, tapping home from close range, after Eljero Ella’s effort rebounded off the post with four minutes left.

 Monday 14^th June: Japan 1-0 Cameroon

Japan caused the first surprise of the finals so far, beating a lazy Cameroon outfit in a dour encounter.  The match was settled by CSKA Moscow’s Keisuke Honda, slamming home on 38 minutes after poor defending from the Africans in Bloemfontein. 

Monday 14^th June: Italy 1-1 Paraguay

World champions Italy made a pathetic and traditional poor start to their defence, struggling to a 1-1 draw in Group F’s opener.  South Americans Paraguay took the lead when Antolin Alcaraz powered a header past the despairing Gianluigi Buffon before half-time.  Marcello Lippi’s men recovered to earn a share of the spoils, when Danielle De Rossi poked home from a scrambled corner, benefiting from a glaring error by Paraguay shot stopper Justo Villar.    

Tuesday 15^th June: New Zealand 1-1 Slovakia

Another tight game, saw the All Blacks earn their first ever World Cup point in dramatic circumstances in Rustenberg.  Winston Reid headed in the leveller in the third minute of injury time, punishing Slovakia for sitting back and holding onto the 1-0 lead, given by Robert Vittek’s coolly placed effort on 50 minutes.

Tuesday 15^th June: Ivory Coast 0-0 Portugal

One of the most hotly anticipated group encounters turned into an absolute dire match, as two evenly-matched teams cancelled each other out in Port Elizabeth.  Cristiano Ronaldo came closest for the Portuguese, whacking the woodwork on five minutes with a rasping thirty-yard drive.

Tuesday 15^th June: Brazil 2-1 North Korea

In a game they were expected to wipe the floor with their opponents, the stylish Brazilians laboured to a 2-1 win at Ellis Park.  They had to wait until Maicon’s 55^th minute beautiful strike from an almost impossible angle.  Elano sealed the result, placing Robinho’s masterful pass into the net.  The North Koreans deserved a goal for their valiant efforts and earned it through a super strike from Ji-Yun-Nam.

 Wednesday 16^th June: Honduras 0-1 Chile

Chile opened their World Cup account with an impressive performance in Nelspruit.  Jean Beausejour’s strike ten minutes before the interval proved to be the difference in one of the most one-sided encounters so far.  Marcelo Bielsa’s side spurned a host of opportunities which suggested that the South Americans are a force to be reckoned with.

Wednesday 16^th June: Spain 0-1 Switzerland

European champions Spain were humbled by a hard-working Swiss outfit in Durban, and now face an almighty struggle to get out of Group H.  Despite crisp passing and neat build-up, the Spanish failed to take advantage of their possession and lost the match to a scrappy effort on the hour mark, put away by ex-Manchester City player Gelson Fernandes.

Wednesday 16^th June: South Africa 0-3 Uruguay

Diego Forlan produced a masterclass, as Uruguay well and truly silenced the South African fans in Pretoria last night.  The in-form Atletico Madrid ace, destroyer of Liverpool and Fulham and in Europa League this season scored twice, and set-up a third for Alvaro Pereira.  South African goalkeeper Itumenleng Khune was red-carded for a professional foul on Luis Suarez, as the hosts now face a huge battle to survive in their own tournament.