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.

Men behaving badly in the beautiful game

LAST week was a bad week for the game of football.  The beautiful game was dragged through the mud by a series of unprofessional events which soured its image spectacularly.  Touchline brawls, tunnel punch-ups, unpunished elbows and gun incidents; the game made the headlines for completely the wrong reasons.

Saturday

INNOCENCE: Rooney protests the incident, and gets away scot-free

Nine minutes into the match between Wigan Athletic and Manchester United and Wayne Rooney throws an elbow into the back of James McCarthy’s head.  It is an act of thuggish behaviour from Rooney, who still has to justify many for earning £250,000 a week.  Remarkably, referee Mark Clattenburg seemed to share a joke with Rooney about the incident and only gave Wigan a free-kick for the incident.  In his match report, Clattenburg believed that he had dealt with the incident in a calm and professional manner, meaning that the FA couldn’t punish Rooney further until strict FIFA guidelines.  Once again, Wayne Rooney sets a poor example for those who idolise him.

Sunday

Twenty-four hours after the Rooney saga and it is another England team-mate who faces the wrath and condemnation for his actions.  The News of the World break the story that Chelsea left-back Ashley Cole carried an air rifle into the club’s training ground and ‘accidentally’ shot a 21-year old work placement student.  Carlo Ancelotti insists he is still in control with events at the club, but how can this be deemed acceptable.  The club are believed to have fined Cole the maximum two weeks wages for this bizarre and frankly, unforgiveable behaviour.  If Chelsea had been serious, a suspension invoked by the club would have got the message across.

Monday

Stoke City and West Brom have played out a drab 1-1 draw in the Barclays Premiership and Jonas Olsson is angry when he attempts to shake the hand of a Stoke player.  The player, reportedly Dean Whitehead refuses to accept Olsson’s reconciliation attempt, which suggests of some previous bad blood.  In his rage, Olsson punches a picture in the Britannia Stadium tunnel afterwards.  Tony Pulis is furious and insists that disciplinary action should be taken.  Roy Hodgson apologises on Olsson’s behalf, but once again, a stance has not been set out by the club in question.

Tuesday

A pivotal clash in the Premiership title race sees Chelsea beat Manchester United 2-1 at Stamford Bridge.  However, it is Sir Alex Ferguson’s behaviour that is called into question.  Ferguson is incensed at the appointment of Martin Atkinson as referee for this match.  He questions Atkinson’s ability as a referee and insists the game was bound to be unfair.  In the match itself, Chelsea’s winner came from a dubious penalty decision, whilst Nemanja Vidic was sent off and David Luiz avoided a red card for two blatant trips on Rooney.  The FA charge Ferguson with improper conduct and rather than most accepting the charge, Sir Alex has decided to contest the decision, which could lead to an extended ban from the touchline.  Although I personally thought Atkinson had a poor game and made some incorrect calls, there was no need for Ferguson’s outburst and I hope the FA throw the book at him.

Wednesday

UGLY: Neil Lennon and Ally McCoist have to be pulled apart

North of the Border and Celtic entertain Rangers in a fifth round Scottish Cup replay.  It is already the fifth time that these giants of the Scottish game have met this season and the fireworks explode on a bruising and shameful night for the history of the Old Firm Derby.  Three Rangers players; Steven Whittaker, Majid Bougherra and El-Hadji Diouf are all sent off.  Whittaker and Bougherra for fouls that are more expected in a wrestling ring, not a soccer pitch.  Diouf was dismissed after the full-time whistle for an outburst at the referee.  He then evaded police to throw his shirt into the Rangers crowd.  The Senegalese also had an ugly clash with Celtic boss Neil Lennon on the touchline during the match and was goaded all night by the Celtic fans.  This leads back to a spitting incident whilst playing for Liverpool in a 2003 UEFA Cup tie at Parkhead.  At full-time, Lennon and Rangers assistant manager Ally McCoist attempt to stage their own version of ‘Big Fight Live!’  They have to be pulled apart by both benches.  With over 30 fans arrested too, it’s a grim night and leads to calls for significant disciplinary action from the SFA, even from the Scottish Parliament.  The whole incident is a complete fracas and distasteful for many.  Oh and there was a football match, which Celtic won 1-0.

Thursday

Manchester City suspend Kolo Toure after the FA confirm that the Ivorian defender failed a routine drugs test following the Manchester derby last month.  Toure is an integral part of the City team and was club captain at Eastlands last season.  It is thought that the club received the news before Wednesday’s 3-0 FA Cup fifth round romp of Aston Villa, hence why Toure didn’t play.  Toure, who played for Arsenal between 2002-2009 is believed to have taken a weight loss tablet, which his wife is on.  Arsene Wenger, who still has regular contact with Toure confirmed at his pre-weekend conference on Friday that Toure takes it, as he is concerned about his weight on a regular basis.  When playing for Sheffield United, Paddy Kenny did something similar and got a nine-month ban for his actions.  If a B sample comes back positive, Toure could face upto two years out of the game, effectively ending his career in England and tarnishing all of his great memories in this country.  Once again, strong action has to be taken, so the message gets across that cheats simply don’t prosper.

For football, it has been a forgettable week.  For many lovers of the game, we all hope this was an unfortunate week and just a nasty sequence of events, but it is understandable why those who don’t follow the game question the worth of today’s footballers and their excessive wage demands.

It is now time for the politics to end, and for the worldwide and national governing bodies to get together and stamp out this kind of childish behaviour which ruins a sport most of us love for the majority.

FA Barclays Premiership Report (26th - 28th February)

LAST weekend saw frosty handshakes between managers, star-studded footballers getting away with blatant elbows and crucial results at both end of the Premiership table.  Consequently, it felt like a typical weekend then.

BOILING: DJ Campbell lost the plot and saw red at Molineux

     The performance of last weekend came from Mick McCarthy’s Wolves, as they thrashed sorry Blackpool 4-0 at Molineux.  The result was to be overshadowed by the news of Dean Richards’s tragic death.  Richards, a huge favourite at Wolves will be sorely missed by everyone in the game.  His old club put in a performance that would have made him proud.  DJ Campbell certainly didn’t make Ian Holloway very proud, losing his rag completely in an unnecessary spat with Richard Stearman.  He raised his hands into Stearman’s face, and deservedly saw red for his actions.  Matt Jarvis already had the home side infront after just three minutes and from that moment on, there only ever looked like one winner.  Only the heroics of Tangerines goalkeeper Richard Kingston kept the scoreline past a cricket battering.  Jamie O’Hara’s second goal of an impressive week sealed the final outcome, before Sylvain Ebanks-Blake added some gloss onto the final scoreline, with two late strikes.  Quite frankly, Blackpool played rubbish from start to finish, and need to stop the alarming slide.  Thank goodness they had beaten Tottenham in midweek before this Molineux mauling.

     Fellow relegation rivals West Ham United put in an excellent performance too, outplaying Liverpool at Upton Park to win 3-1 on Sunday afternoon.  The heartbeat of the Hammers side, Scott Parker led by example again, scoring the first on 22 minutes with a beautifully placed shot tantalisingly out of Pepe Reina’s reach.  West Ham deserved a 2-0 lead for their first half dominance and they got it just before half-time, as Demba Ba headed home Gary O’Neil’s cross.  Despite being on a run of seven unbeaten matches, Liverpool got outmuscled all day on the East End, which shows that Kenny Dalglish still has work to do.  They got back into the game with five minutes to go, through Luis Suarez clever skill, which bamboozled Parker and squaring the ball for West Ham old boy Glen Johnson to tap-in from close range.  Any hopes of a late revival were ended by Carlton Cole.  Only on the pitch for a minute, he robbed Martin Skrtel and powered a shot inside Reina’s near post to lift the Hammers off the bottom of the table.  They are only now behind Wolves on goal difference.

     However, it is West Brom who still is just outside the bottom three, after they rescued a late 1-1 draw at Stoke City on Monday night.  Poor marking at a corner allowed Rory Delap to power the Potters infront early in the second half.  It was a dismal match, completely bereft of quality, but the Albion didn’t give up and got their rewards with three minutes to go.  Carlos Vela was the forgotten man at Arsenal, but his second goal in successive games earnt the Baggies a very valuable point.

     The real losers of the weekend ended up being Wigan Athletic.  A 4-0 home loss to Manchester United not only took United four points clear at the top, but dumped Roberto Martinez’s team to the bottom of the Barclays Premiership for the first time since the second weekend of the campaign.  The talking point of the match was Wayne Rooney throwing an elbow into the back of James McCarthy in the opening exchanges.  The incident was foolish, but referee Mark Clattenburg somehow missed it and seemed to share a joke with Rooney over the incident to add insult to injury.  Rooney has gone unpunished by the FA for his childish actions.  Wigan fans made an early dash home, after witnessing some suicidal defending all day, which allowed Javier Hernandez to continue his scoring spree with two more strike.  The Mexican youngster now has an impressive 13 goals in his debut season at Old Trafford.  Rooney tapped in a third and there was even time for Fabio to score his first ever goal for the Red Devils.  On this evidence, Wigan will find it very difficult to beat the drop this time around.         

FROSTY: Hughes and Mancini won't exchange Christmas cards this year

     Manchester City’s outside hopes of the title were all but ended in a forgettable 1-1 draw with Fulham at Eastlands.  A rather frosty handshake between Mark Hughes and Roberto Mancini, simmering the pot from Hughes’s controversial departure from City in December 2009 was the highlight.  Sparky’s first return since his sacking saw his team fight hard and deserve their point.  Andy Johnson’s swept ball across the box found Damien Duff, who beat Joe Hart three minutes into the second half.  This cancelled out a wonderful first half strike from the temperamental Mario Balotelli for the home side.

     Elsewhere in the Premier League and 37-year old Robert Pires stole the show in Aston Villa’s impressive 4-1 demolition of Blackburn Rovers.  The Frenchman rolled back the years with a vintage display of sheer quality and class.  Ashley Young scored twice and Stewart Downing once, as both looked like they are beginning to return to their best form at a crucial time of the season.  On a difficult week for him with the earthquake in New Zealand, Ryan Nelsen compounded Rovers misery with a late red card.  Ryan Taylor also saw red in Newcastle’s 1-1 draw with Bolton Wanderers at St. James Park.  Daniel Sturridge scored his fourth goal in four games, wiping out the Magpies advantage, given to them by ex-Bolton favourite Kevin Nolan.  At Goodison Park, Jermaine Beckford scored two first half goals to help Everton record a 2-0 win over Sunderland.  The result wiped the smile off Steve Bruce’s face, 24 hours after he’d signed a new contract with the Black Cats.  It leaves Sunderland on a depressing run of four successive Premiership defeats.

     As March is now here, the time for grave mistakes is over.  The 2010/11 Premiership season is approaching its final furlong.  The question is who has the stamina and strength to deliver in the final two months of this gripping campaign. 

FA Barclays Premiership Report (30th October - 1st November)

THE final weekend in October provided plenty of Halloween horrors, as the clocks went back.  Here is a round-up of the great action.

Saturday 30^th October: Manchester United 2-0 Tottenham Hotspur

MARK Clattenburg awarded one of the strangest goals in FA Premier League history to Manchester United, in their routine victory over Tottenham at Old Trafford.  Nemanja Vidic’s perfect header on the half hour had Spurs behind, who have not won away from home at any of the ‘big 4’ (Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool and Man Utd) since August 1993.  However, it was the second goal that caused all the controversy.  Nani went down dramatically from Younes Kaboul’s tug on his shirt.  He handled the ball on the deck and a free-kick was awarded.  Not according to Clattenburg though, who allowed the Portuguese winger to roll the ball away from a startled Hereulho Gomes and into a vacated net.  Confusion and confrontation reigned, but the ‘ghost’ goal was eventually given, much to the staggering of Harry Redknapp.  United can count their blessings, in a game full of entertainment, which saw Gareth Bale, Nani, Roman Pavyluchenko and Ji-Sung Park all hit the woodwork.

Sunday 31^st October: Newcastle United 5-1 Sunderland

IT WAS a Halloween horror show from Sunderland, as Newcastle ripped their great neighbours to pieces at St. James Park, recording the biggest Tyne & Wear derby win since 1956 in the process.  Toon captain Kevin Nolan scored a memorable hat-trick, and there were two goals from Shola Ameobi too.  Former Magpies defender Titus Bramble got a straight red card in the second half for scything down the magnificent Andy Carroll, and then he was waved off sarcastically by the home fans.  Darren Bent scored a meek consolation in stoppage time for the visitors, but this was truly a day that Steve Bruce will want to forget ever existed.

Saturday 30^th October: Wolves 2-1 Manchester City

ROBERTO Mancini looked on in disgust, as his players Vincent Kompany and Emmanuel Adebayor had a near pitch bust-up at Molineux.  Their argument overshadowed a great Wolves display, as they recorded only their second win of the season.  Nenad Mijias and David Edwards were the scorers, cancelling out Adebayor’s early penalty after David Silva was fouled by Richard Stearman.

Saturday 30^th October: Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Chelsea

CHELSEA struck lucky to leave Ewood Park with three points, after a plucky performance.  The Blues left it late to win in Lancashire, with Branislav Ivanovic heading the winner in from Yuri Zhirkov’s cross with just four minutes to go.  Earlier, Benjani headed Blackburn into a deserved lead, before Nicholas Anelka equalised.  Sam Allardyce will look at this as a missed opportunity, as both Mame Diouf and Jason Roberts missed chances that a clergyman could have scored with their eyes shut!  Rovers slip into the bottom three.

Sunday 31^st October: Bolton Wanderers 0-1 Liverpool

LIVERPOOL’s first away win in the Premiership since the end of April was much-needed and like Chelsea, they snatched it at the Reebok.  In a mundane match against a lacklustre Bolton side, the winner came with four minutes to go.  Fernando Torres, who missed a glaring chance in the opening exchanges, played through Argentine Maxi Rodriguez, who coolly finished underneath Juusi Jaaskelainen.  It was an unlikely winner, but it records an 8^th successive Premiership win over Bolton for Liverpool and lifts Roy Hodgson’s side into the dizzy heights of mid-table.

Monday 1^st November: Blackpool 2-1 West Brom

BLACKPOOL recorded their first home victory in the top flight since 1971, helped by a lack of indiscipline from a West Brom side, which missed the chance to break into the top four.  Pablo Ibanez was dismissed for the visitors on 11 minutes, for a foul on DJ Campbell in the penalty area.  This red card has since been rescinded on appeal.  Charlie Adam scored the spot kick and when Gonzalo Jara lunged in on Luke Varney before half-time, Albion ended up being down to nine men.  Varney doubled Blackpool’s lead and although Youssouf Mulumbu curled in a late consolation, Blackpool fully merited the three points that lift them back into the top half of the table.

Sunday 31^st October: Aston Villa 0-0 Birmingham City

LOCAL pride remained intact in a dull Second City derby at Villa Park.  Villa had the best of the chances, with Ashley Young hitting the post and Ben Foster being tested by Barry Bannan and Nigel Reo-Coker.  A well-organised Birmingham will be far happier with the point, whilst Gerard Houillier must be worried with the lack of goals, Villa drawing a blank for the third successive league match.

Saturday 30^th October: Arsenal 1-0 West Ham United

ARSENAL snatched a crucial victory in the dying stages against struggling West Ham, to keep in touch with leaders Chelsea.  The under-fire Robert Green was in superb form at the Emirates, producing a number of top-class saves as the Gunners struggled to breakdown the bottom side in the Premiership.  Alex Song broke the resistance, heading the winner past Green from Gael Clichy’s cross with just two minutes to go.

Saturday 30^th October: Fulham 2-0 Wigan Athletic

FULHAM were outstanding against Wigan, recording only their second win of the league campaign so far.  American Clint Dempsey scored twice in the first half against a dreadful Wigan side.  Wigan’s unpredictability must concern Roberto Martinez, who have the ability to play like a top six team, or a side that faces relegation to League Two.  Fulham’s excellent day was complete with a late cameo role for Andy Johnson, his first game since January after a fraught spell on the sidelines through injury.

Saturday 30^th October: Everton 1-0 Stoke City

STOKE’s resistance was broken in a game that will never be remembered as a classic, by any stretch of the imagination.  Yakubu scored the winner, reacting quickest to Tim Cahill’s shot hitting the post.  Stoke will feel aggrieved though to have a goal disallowed, when Tuncay was adjudged to have fouled Leighton Baines.  Television replays indicate that Baines was caught in two minds, and lucky to get away with such a dithering error.