by johntheclaret » Sun Nov 25, 2007 9:42 am
Arsenal 2 - 0 Wigan
Everton 7 - 1 Sunderland
Man. City 2 - 1 Reading
Newcastle 0 - 3 Liverpool
Bolton 1 - 0 Man. Utd.
Derby 0 - 2 Chelsea
Middlesbrough 0 - 3 Aston Villa
Table
Pos Team Pld W D L F A Diff Pts
1 Arsenal 13 10 3 0 29 10 19 33
2 Man. Utd. 14 9 3 2 23 7 16 30
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3 Man. City 14 9 2 3 18 14 4 29
4 Chelsea 14 8 4 2 21 9 12 28
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5 Liverpool 13 7 6 0 22 6 16 27
6 Portsmouth 14 7 5 2 25 13 12 26
7 Aston Villa 13 7 3 3 21 14 7 24
8 Everton 14 7 2 5 26 16 10 23
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9 Blackburn 12 6 4 2 15 11 4 22
10 West Ham 12 5 3 4 18 10 8 18
11 Newcastle 13 5 3 5 19 21 -2 18
12 Reading 14 4 1 9 17 31 -14 13
13 Fulham 13 2 6 5 16 20 -4 12
14 Tottenham 13 2 5 6 23 24 -1 11
15 Bolton 14 2 5 7 12 18 -6 11
16 Birmingham 14 3 2 9 13 22 -9 11
17 Middlesbrough 14 2 4 8 12 26 -14 10
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18 Sunderland 14 2 4 8 14 29 -15 10
19 Wigan 14 2 2 10 10 25 -15 8
20 Derby 14 1 3 10 5 33 -28 6
Review.
Derby 0 Chelsea 2
Avram Grant's brief of turning Chelsea into the entertainers of England will have to be put on hold until those days when players are not wearied or deflated by international double-headers, nor harried and chased by relegation candidates with bile and bite as their main weapons.
The only blot on a smooth win yesterday came in added time when substitute Michael Essien was sent off for swinging an arm at Kenny Miller. Otherwise, Chelsea were efficient and adequate, with goals by Salomon Kalou and Shaun Wright-Phillips enough to keep them in the top-four hunt.
Grant: No problem with my coaching badges and I'll remain in charge at Chelsea
Bolton striker Nicolas is untroubled by talk of Chelsea bid
England's failure boosts Chelsea, United and Tottenham but it's no change for Arsenal
Oh Ballacks! Chelsea midfielder has the blues after his Porsche is clamped
As for Derby, they lamented two moments that went against them. First Miller was denied a potential equaliser by an offside flag, then Giles Barnes was floored in the build-up to Chelsea's second.
Even well below full-strength and their best, Chelsea were value enough for their 12th game unbeaten in all competitions under new manager Grant.
In keeping with the theme of the day, the England players on view were roundly jeered. Derby fans' venom was particularly spiteful.
"You're not fit to wear the shirt," they sang at Wright- Phillips and Frank Lampard, who may not have had his best game for England but at least had the courage to convert the penalty. John Terry and Ashley Cole, absent against Croatia but fit to return for Chelsea, presented a bit of a problem. The crowd settled for: "Where were you on Wednesday night?"
It may have contributed to a subdued Chelsea start, though the absence of Didier Drogba, who had injured a knee on duty for Ivory Coast, was probably a more significant factor as they adjusted to playing with Andriy Shevchenko as central striker.
Even with Ricardo Carvalho injured and Essien and Joe Cole on the bench, Chelsea had far too many weapons for Derby.
Lampard did not seem especially concerned by the ridicule he received after sending a shot over the bar. Within a minute he instigated the move that ended with Steve Sidwell slipping a ball into Kalou, darting through the gaping Derby central defence, Chelsea's other Ivorian tucking the ball neatly past Stephen Bywater.
Kalou should have doubled the lead before half-time. Wright- Phillips, revelling in more accommodating opposition than the Croatians, floated in a cross from the left and Claude Davis horrendously headed the ball straight down on the edge of the Derby six-yard box. Kalou, unaccountably, fired over.
It would have been fair reflection of the balance of play, with Derby exhibiting the English disease, not good enough to retain possession for long enough to carve out clear-cut chances or sustain pressure.
Talented teenager Barnes did offer hope but he was too often isolated. When David Jones found Barnes, he in turn supplied Craig Fagan in space on the right but the drilled shot was wide.
Derby rarely tested Carlo Cudicini, deputising for the injured Petr Cech, aside from a Fagan shot pushed away and the Miller lobbed finish which was controversially ruled out.
Then when Barnes was caught in possession near halfway by Shevchenko, referee Andre Marriner waved play on, Lampard went on to hit a post and a kind rebound allowed Wright-Phillips to tap home.
Middlesbrough 0 Aston Villa 3
If this was Gareth Southgate's attempt at ruling himself out of the England job, it worked a treat. Many more Aston Villa performances like this, however, and Martin O'Neill will be forcibly moved to Soho Square without further ado.
On the day when two of the great hopes of British management locked horns, there was only ever going to be one winner.
Southgate may have the intelligence and tactical nous to manage his country in the future, but without his first-choice team he can do very little.
Just ask Steve McClaren. Goals from John Carew, Olof Mellberg and Gabriel Agbonlahor were simply the gloss on an impressively polished Villa performance. All credit to O'Neill.Why swap the excitement of an evolving Villa side for the desperation of England?
Talking of desperation, if Scott Carson had been hoping for an escape from his Wembley turmoil, there was surely no better place to visit. Yet the England goalkeeper's first error of the afternoon came after only 20 seconds as he clumsily sliced a measured backpass all of 15 yards.
Cue howls of derision from the home fans, of whom there appear to be fewer every week. It was the loudest they sang all afternoon.
O'Neill was right to remain loyal to a player who has excelled in the Premiership this season and a clean sheet was the Irishman's reward. But after seven minutes, his confidence in Carson appeared misplaced.
Stewart Downing burst clear of a hesitant Zat Knight and drilled in a near-post drive. Villa's goalkeeper was well positioned, but the ball slipped out of his hands, bounced underneath his body and rolled narrowly beyond the far post.
Boro went on to dominate before Gareth Barry, also looking for a post-England pick-me-up, crossed from the left in first-half injury-time.
Norwegian international Carew controlled the ball on his left thigh, turned David Wheater and prodded the ball beyond Mark Schwarzer.
Within three minutes of the restart Villa had doubled their advantage through Mellberg and Agbonlahor held off Jonathan Woodgate to complete the victory.
Arsenal 2 Wigan 0On a grey afternoon in North London, the finest manager England will never have was almost frustrated by a team without a leader. But in the closing moments of an unremarkable match, Arsene Wenger's side found the goals to reinforce their run at the title.
The match turned on the arrival of the Danish forward Nicklas Bendtner 12 minutes from time. Theo Walcott had been stretchered away with a worrying ankle injury and Wenger's mounting irritation mirrored the mood of the fans.
But Bendtner's vision transformed Arsenal's prospects. With seven minutes remaining, he accepted a short pass, spread the ball wide and saw Bacary Sagna play the near-post cross which was emphatically converted by the head of William Gallas.
After working so hard and for so long at their task, Wigan sagged with sheer disappointment. But there was more to be faced. Two minutes later, Bendtner was on the move again, galloping from inside his own half, running for some 40 yards, attracting defenders and feeding Tomas Rosicky, who battered his shot inside the far post.
Arsenal's irksome afternoon had suddenly become a serene stroll. Meanwhile, up in the stand, Steve Bruce, Wigan's manager-elect, was reflecting upon the size of the task he has undertaken. His side have now lost eight League matches in a row. If their senior status is to be preserved, Bruce will have earned whatever his new employers have agreed to pay him.
It was the kind of defeat which dogs struggling sides whose hopes have been raised by their own persistence. Until those final few moments, Wigan had seemed in no great danger from an Arsenal side at odds with itself.
Time and again, Wenger had come striding from his bench to scold and reprove and generally castigate the wasteful ways of his talented team. He looked like a schoolmaster exasperated by a gifted yet inattentive class.
With Manchester United involved in an unlikely struggle with Bolton, the chance for Arsenal to open that crucial gap at the top was there for all to see, yet their efforts were both unconvincing and unavailing. And as Wigan's confidence increased, so Wenger's appeals grew more frantic.
At such times, the Arsenal manager has come to rely on the class and influence of Cesc Fabregas. But with the Spanish youngster suspended, he looked instead to young Denilson; neat and tidy and thoughtful in all he does, yet without the extra edge, the eye for a killing pass that Fabregas possesses in such abundance.
And so they struggled, this team with Walcott the only player qualified to play for England, this side whose class has set the tone for the English domestic season. Not that they ever deserted their principles; they passed and they passed, as if passing would deliver a solution. They did their running and filled their spaces and retained the air of elegance which is their birthright.
Yet Wigan dealt with them, spilling sweat and covering the hard yards, but staving off the thrusts and, despite playing Marcus Bent alone at the front, carrying just enough ammunition to keep Arsenal concerned.
Naturally, given the possession they enjoyed,Wenger's side made more of the chances. But sheer graft brought Wigan the odd chance and had Bent's header from Emmerson Boyce's cross been better directed, then Arsenal would have been seriously embarrassed.
Had Emmanuel Adebayor enjoyed a better day with his finishing, then nerves would have been settled. And with Wigan taking their lead from the uncompromising Boyce, a rare Arsenal stumble seemed the likely outcome.
But as the match entered its concluding stages, the final dramas emerged. First, a robust tackle by Bent on Denilson ignited a mass outbreak of aggressive posturing. Emile Heskey, on for Salomon Olembe, exchanged prods with Gallas, which saw both men booked. Then,in the 78th minute, Heskey went lunging in at Walcott. It was not a malevolent tackle but legs became entwined, and Heskey's legs are stronger than poor Walcott's. There was a feeling of genuine concern as they carried the young man away.
But as the Emirates started to resign itself to the worst, Arsenal struck those decisive blows. Wenger relaxed,his face creasing into a smile for the first time of the afternoon. Wigan cursed their fortune and prepared for months of nervous struggle. Bruce stared down from the stands and tried to pretend he didn't have a worry in the world.
And the Arsenal fans awaited United's result and cheered as if the title itself had been won. Early days yet but they may have had a point.
Everton 7 Sunderland 1
It won't help anyone if the penny drops belatedly in the McClaren household this weekend, but Everton showed yesterday that you really can play attacking football with one striker, if only he is properly supported.
This was the Goodison team's biggest win since 1996, when Joe Royle's side put seven past Southampton. Yesterday, Yakubu and Tim Cahill grabbed two each, with Steven Pienaar, substitute Andrew Johnson and Leon Osman completing the rout.Dwight Yorke struck for the visitors.
With a Carling Cup quarter-final to come next month, progress being made in the UEFA Cup, and now being handily placed in the Premier League, things are indeed looking up for Everton.
Manager David Moyes described it as the best performance of his five and a half years in charge; opposite number Roy Keane said he had never experienced such humiliation. Yakubu led the line for Everton and scored an amusing opener when his shot bounced into the Goodison turf, up and over Sunderland goalkeeper Craig Gordon and back down again in plenty of time.
The Nigerian laughed, Moyes remained straight-faced and Irish defender Paul McShane, who had completely missed his clearance, shook his head guiltily.
But it is what happened around and behind Yakubu that illustrated how a team can thrive,and even run riot,with one front man, as long as flair is underpinned by positional guidance.
You need a versatile, surging performer like Australia's Cahill in close attendance, enterprising midfielders and a holding player — for Owen Hargreaves read Lee Carsley — to keep everything together should possession be lost.
Given a basic structure, all sorts of rampaging fun is there to be had, as Everton showed in the 17th minute with their second goal. The imperious Mikel Arteta came up with a dazzling turn and nonchalant flick to release Phil Neville for a first-time cross. Cahill collected in the penalty area, turned on a one penny piece and left Gordon to pick the ball out of the net. Three Sunderland defenders had watched the action unfold. Hatchet men from Sunday pub sides are less generous.
Two goals ahead, Moyes did not smile but his eyes shone a little. Shortly before half-time, Pienaar combined beautifully with Nuno Valente, opened his instep and slid the slickest of finishes into the far corner.
At last Moyes smiled and clapped. He probably regretted it when Dwight Yorke pulled one back in first half injury time, teed up by Kenwyne Jones after Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard had clawed away an angled effort from Carlos Edwards.
It was virtually the only time that Joleon Lescott, who has looked out of his depth in an England shirt, was troubled. The party continued though and Cahill read Joseph Yobo's long pass perfectly, controlled with surprising ease and slotted home the fourth after 62 minutes.
Poor McShane, who had blundered and slipped through a personal nightmare, knew he was risking his Christmas bonus as Keane took out his frustration on his chewing gum.
Yakubu's second, and Everton's fifth, was the result of more pinball comedy in Sunderland's defence. Much more of this and they are going down.
Substitute Johnson's run-away contribution, Everton's sixth, was no more than this scintillating display deserved and Keane began to look more than capable of homicide.
But Everton had saved the best goal of all for last. Osman's surging, jinking solo run was reminiscent of Paul Gascoigne in his prime and the magnificent seven will live in the memory for a good while. Perhaps Moyes can send Steve McClaren a video of this perfection. It's never too late to learn, after all.
Moyes for England manager? It sounds crazy, and he probably wouldn't do it, but the thought was tempting after we had all been sent to footballing heaven.
Moyes said: "You get criticised if you don't play too up top but we scored seven goals because we have found a way that suits the players we have.
"That is the best performance since I've been here. You hope you can bottle it and keep producing it. But I sensed it was going to happen over the last couple of days in training and this was as much about the players in the stand as those on the pitch."
When asked whether his ability to run riot with a lone striker might make him a suitable candidate for the England job, Moyes said simply: "No. I'm ruling myself out."
His chairman Bill Kenwright enthused: "I'm ecstatic and it is the kind of day you dream about. I won't need a car to get me back down the motorway, I will be able to fly all the way home on my own."
Sunderland manager Keane had allowed his rage to pass by the time he faced the media after this abject humiliation.
He admitted: "It was very hard to take and I won't dress it up. This is a major setback,a major disappointment.
"I have never conceded seven goals as a player or manager. This was the first time and I hope it will be the last time. It is not nice and everyone is hurting. I am not going to blame individuals because everyone must take responsibility, me more than anyone else."
Manchester City 2 Reading 1
Stephen Ireland's injury time volley secured Manchester City a dramatic eighth successive home victory to maintain their best start on their own turf in 100 years.
With time running out the Republic of Ireland international found space in the penalty area to meet substitute Geovanni's header and thrash the ball past Marcus Hahnemann to break Reading hearts.
Up to that moment it appeared that Steve Coppell's side were going to take an unlikely point and end the only 100 per cent home record in the Premier League. Having gone into the match on the back of five successive defeats on their travels Reading looked to have little chance against Sven Goran Eriksson's expensively assembled top-three team.
But, just as Steve McClaren found earlier in the week when his side failed to win a match they were expected to, so his predecessor appeared to be destined for the same fate.
Maybe it was because of players returning from international duty that City were not at their best, being transformed from a side comfortably in command for most of the first half into one desperately seeking a winner.
It had all started so well as Reading's lack of confidence on the road was apparent in the early stages and, particularly, in the 11th minute goal they conceded.
When Ireland broke clear on the right his cross set up Brazilian Elano for what should have been a simple goal. But he sidefooted his shot against a post only for the Reading defence to get into such a muddle that, after two more shots were blocked, the ball ran for Martin Petrov to drive home from six yards.
Against the odds, Reading snatched an equaliser two minutes before the interval.
Coppell's men had barely mounted a worthwhile attack before Kevin Doyle forced his way down the left, crossed to Bobby Convey and the American set up James Harper to fire past Andreas Isaksson.
But Ireland ensured Reading came away with nothing.
Birmingham 0 Portsmouth 2
Alex McLeish cannot arrive soon enough. The Scotland manager is expected to swap country for club this week, with acting manager Eric Black staying on at St Andrew's as his assistant.
Though McLeish initially distanced himself from the chance of replacing Steve Bruce, City owner David Sullivan has convinced him to reconsider with the offer of a big financial deal.
McLeish and Black are former longtime team-mates at Aberdeen and the prospect of working together appeals to both men.
They will take over a club who are down in the dumps after goalkeeper Richard Kingson gifted Sulley Muntari a first-half goal and was arguably at fault again when Niko Kranjcar fired in his second devastating shot of the week.
Amid talk of the detrimental effect of foreign players and foreign owners on English football, the apparently collapsed bid by Hong Kong businessman Carson Yeung to complete a buyout deprived the club not only of new investment but also their most successful manager of recent times.
Then to cap the week, Kingson, on his Premier League debut, ensured that Aston Villa and England counterpart Scott Carson would not have the monopoly on either embarrassing gaffes or falling prey to Croatia star Kranjcar.
While McLeish prepares to make the opposite transition, Harry Redknapp's claims to be considered as a serious candidate to succeed Steve McClaren were only enhanced by a victory which keeps Portsmouth on the shoulders of the big four.
Redknapp's ability to harness the diverse talents of individuals like Muntari and Kranjcar into a cohesive team suggests he could do a job with his country's underachieving "golden generation".
Portsmouth were not at their best, but Kingson ensured they did not need to be. They had been much the better side, but until the Ghanaian keeper's howler, a lack of penetration in the final third had meant they never looked like scoring.
Kingson is the third different goalkeeper to play in the Premier League for Birmingham this season, and the incident which may limit his tenure to just one game came in the 34th minute. John Utaka found Benjani and the Zimbabwe striker picked out Muntari's run from deep with a good pass. But the Ghanaian's shot should have been too weak to trouble his countryman, who let the ball through his body and inside a post.
James, who had earlier kept out a Mikael Forssell shot, had to save from Mehdi Nafti after Forssell's claim for a penalty against Sylvain Distin was waved away by referee Martin Atkinson, but otherwise it looked like being another comfortable afternoon for Portsmouth.
And so it proved. Noe Pamarot stabbed over the bar,Muntari's goalbound effort was blocked and top scorer Benjani had one shot saved and sent another over the bar.
An equaliser looked a remote prospect,given the amount of time Birmingham spent on the back foot and their failure to keep the ball on the rare occasions they regained possession. The only exception was when Liam Ridgewell broke clear and was halted by Pamarot's firm, but probably fair challenge in the penalty area, and a combination of Sol Campbell and Glen Johnson stopped Forssell from picking up the pieces.
Just to rub it in, Ridgewell found the net moments later but had already been rightly flagged offside.
Kranjcar provided a fitting climax to his and Birmingham's week with a fabulous free-kick which sailed past Kingson after he had taken a step in the wrong direction. McLeish to the rescue, then, but what price Redknapp for England on the betting exchanges?
Newcastle 0 Liverpool 3
If Steven Gerrard was looking to purge the memory of his worst night in football, he found just the right victims in a hapless Newcastle side stumbling blindly from one injury crisis to another, lacking initiative, inspiration and, in the end, just plain interest.
Furious United boss Sam Allardyce kept his players locked in their dressing- room for an hour after the match for an inquest into their shoddy performance.
Thrashed 4-1 by Portsmouth in their last home game, here it could have been worse. When substitute Ryan Babel made it 3-0 with 24 minutes left, the home fans were chanting "You don't know what you're doing" and "Big Sam for England".
"I had to point a few things out where I think the problems lie and sometimes right after the game is the best time to do it," said Allardyce. "We've basically gone out and not done the job. We're in a difficult period and that escalated into two very disappointing performances and defeats here at St James", which is the wrong sort of place to get them.
"We have to put that right as soon as possible.We have to make sure we dig ourselves out of this predicament. We've hit rock bottom and only we can get ourselves out of it.
"We'll try to do that by getting as many players fit as we can and showing a lot more grit and determination to acquire a result. That was missing today,particularly after the second goal went in, which was particularly disappointing from my point of view."
But this game was all about Gerrard. On Wednesday night at Wembley, the Liverpool captain may have been so guilty of the same depressing defects that gripped Newcastle here,he almost qualified for a black and white shirt.
When he grabbed his jacket yesterday after being substituted by England team-mate Peter Crouch 10 minutes from the end, Gerrard could look back on a job done so well that it merely added to the frustration at his contribution against Croatia.
This was an action man performance and earned what, by Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez's standards,was rapturous praise.
"He played really well," said the Liverpool boss. "He has a very good mentality, a strong character and passion for this club, which is important in football. Hopefully it will be the same in the next games."
Booed by a Geordie crowd still hurting from England's ignominious European Championship dismissal,Gerrard began what should have been a onesided rout with a blistering 25-yard shot in the 27th minute after Lucas Leiva had rolled a short free-kick into his path.
Significantly, he raced towards the large contingent of Liverpool fans to acknowledge their cheers — for them he can do no wrong.
He took the corner that led to Dirk Kuyt scoring a fortunate second a minute after half-time, and his breathtaking one-two with Ryan Babel paved the way for the Dutch midfielder to make it three in the 66th minute.
If Fernando Torres had cashed in on a small percentage of the opportunities supplied by his skipper, he would have ended his Premier League scoring drought away from home with a hatful of goals. To say he should have a hattrick is a massive understatement.
"It was a sweet strike," was how Gerrard described his own goal. "I'm a bit disappointed we didn't win a lot easier."
And he acknowledged that while the memory of England's disastrous defeat is still fresh in the minds of fans,he and his Wembley team-mates could be in for a hard time.
"I expect we'll get booed," he added. "We let the country down by not qualifying so from now until we get it right, we're going to have to take some stick. We've just got to get on with it and play through it."
Fortunately for Gerrard, it did not take long for the Toon Army to redirect their disfavour. Both at the interval and especially the end of the game, it was their own players who were the targets for their booing. That was understandable. Shay Given, fresh from switching on the City's Christmas lights during the week, must have wished for a floodlight failure to turn off the Liverpool power. As it was, he denied Torres on the occasions the Spain forward managed to hit the target.
It could hardly have been a gesture of mercy when Benitez took Gerrard off. It is not part of the Liverpool manager's make-up to spare opposition further punishment.
Liverpool have a vital Champions League qualifier against Porto at Anfield on Wednesday and he needs the kind of impetus and leadership that Gerrard provided here if they are to reach the knock-out stages against all the odds.
Bolton 1 Manchester United 0
Nicholas Anelka showed touch of class as Bolton pulled off the shock result of the season, but furious Sir Alex Ferguson clearly felt Manchester United's neighbours had used underhand tactics to achieve their glory.
As new Bolton boss Gary Megson celebrated his first Premier League victory by warmly congratulating his heroes, a furious Ferguson was left high in the main stand, where he had been ordered to sit following a half-time row with referee Mark Clattenburg.
There was no denying Anelka's brilliance to turn and score his eighth goal of the season after 11 minutes, but Ferguson was more concerned with Bolton's general demeanour, which could be described as "putting it up 'em".
Not surprisingly, their battering ram, Kevin Davies,was at the centre of the action. His two-footed tackle on Patrice Evra was nasty and The Reebok Stadium breathed a sigh of relief when he was shown only a yellow card.
A few minutes later, Davies went for a header and cracked the back of Evra's skull with his own forehead. Clattenburg gave Davies a final warning, but no more, leaving Ferguson incandescent with rage.
The finger-wagging United boss waited for Clattenburg at the end of the first half, expressed his views clearly to the official in the tunnel as they walked towards the dressing rooms and was promptly sent off.
Ferguson sat with the club's legal expert Maurice Watkins in the second half, although he appeared to communicate with his coach Mike Phelan via mobile phone as United battered the Bolton goal, albeit without reward, in the second half.
The victory, Bolton's first over United at home for 29 years, took them out of the bottom three and meant United missed out on the chance to stay level on points with Arsenal after an incredible run of nine victories in 10 games.
Bolton received their first boost before kick-off, with Wayne Rooney — who had scored five goals against them in two games last season — ruled out with injury,Bolton learned that Cristiano Ronaldo was not in United's 16.
That left Carlos Tevez as the only one of United's famed triumvirate on show — and he had flown halfway across the world after playing for Argentina.
United were also without centre half Nemanja Vidic and their worst fears were realised when his replacement, Gerard Pique, was at fault for what turned out to be the decisive goal.
Ivan Campo's chipped free-kick should have been easy to clear, but Pique missed his header and Anelka — no doubt bolstered by Ferguson's admission of his desire to sign him — spun round before shooting past Edwin van der Sar.
Bolton defended their lead in a way that took fans back to the days of Sam Allardyce. It was no place for the faint-hearted and at times the home side sailed close to the wind.
Davies, deployed wide on the right, launched into a terrible lunge on Evra that could have really hurt the Frenchman. He then caught Evra in a clash of heads, although the Bolton man would claim he was going for the ball.
It took United until the final 20 minutes to seriously threaten an equaliser.
Bolton keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen tipped over a free-kick from Owen Hargreaves, although the fact that a holding midfielder was taking the set-pieces illustrated how depleted the United team was.
The best chance of all fell to Tevez. Evra's cross from the left was a perfect invitation for the striker to net from six yards, but the Argentine sliced his finish horribly and the ball skidded inches past the post.
The final few moments were pure Keystone Kops.Van der Sar,a spectator for much of the first 85 min-utes split his time between going up for corners and racing back whenever Bolton broke on the counterattack. Davies left to a standing ovation, to be replaced by Gary Speed, and the atmosphere in the Reebok resembled a lower league ground at an FA Cup giant-killing.
At the final whistle, Megson — normally very excitable — tried to exude calm as best he could, though he must have been jumping for joy inside.
He calmly shook the hands of his players and the United coaching staff while Davies and the players indulged in jubilant bear hugs. Up in the stand, a 65-year-old Scottish gentleman carried on chewing, his scowl growing more ferocious by the second.
Being a David myself i had to almost be Fighting Cockrel man by birthright......COYS
P.S. have you heard about the Gooners who are suing Arsenal over anti-semitic chanting (That's right, they're suing their own club!)? Their ulterior motive is actually to ensure the term 'Yid' is banished from the premier league, which will prevent spurs fans from calling themselves the 'Yid Army'. 
