EPL Results, Reviews, Tables for 2008/9

[johntheclaret]

I know we have a topic already, but I thought I would start this one, where I'll post results etc so it's a bit easier to find and then we can keep general discussions going in the other topic.

27th September

Everton 0 Liverpool 2
Aston Villa 2 Sunderland 1
Fulham 1 West Ham 2
Man Utd 2 Bolton 0
Middlesbrough 0 West Brom 1
Newcastle 1 Blackburn 2
Stoke 0 Chelsea 2
Arsenal 1 Hull 2

Round Up
On a day when Liverpool made light work of ten-man Everton at Goodison Park, Hull recorded a famous victory against Arsenal, Manchester United got back to winning ways against Bolton and Chelsea were also comfortable on their travels to Stoke.

Fernando Torres was electric as Liverpool claimed a deserved win over their neighbours Everton, while Jose Bosingwa scored one and created another as Chelsea beat Stoke 2-0.

Wayne Rooney scored a stunning second goal in United's 2-0 win at Old Trafford but all the headlines will belong to Rob Styles, after he gifted the home side their opener in awarding a penalty, despite Jlloyd Samuel clearly taking ball not man in challenging Cristiano Ronaldo.

Newcastle's woes show no sign of improvement as Blackburn left St James' Park with a three-point haul, as new interim boss Joe Kinnear watched from the stands.

West Brom were also victorious in the North East as they earned a hard-fought 1-0 win at Middlesbrough, Aston Villa came from behind to take the spoils at home to Sunderland, while West Ham enjoyed their short trip across the capital as ten-man Fulham were seen off 2-1.

It was a Hull of a day
But the story of the day came at Emirates Stadium where Hull pulled off one of the greatest upsets in the history of the Premier League. It was clear from the outset that Arsenal would have to work harder than expected for victory as Hull defended heroically in a goalless first half.
The breakthrough finally came in the 51st minute when Paul McShane scored an own goal after an excellent run by Theo Walcottt.However, the drama was still to come as Geovanni equalised with a powerful strike from distance which flew past Manuel Almunia and into the top corner.
Daniel Cousin then headed Hull in front from a corner on 66 minutes and Arsenal could not respond despite laying siege to the visitors' penalty area.

Derby day
The 208th Merseyside derby was a typically robust affair that saw Everton slip to their third home league defeat in as many games and Liverpool continue to flourish in a campaign that matches their previous best ever start to a Premier League season.
Torres had endured a personal goal drought prior to the Goodison Park clash but the short trip across Stanley Park saw him in white hot form as his clinically taken brace ended a barren six-game run. The first demonstrated the much feted Torres-Robbie Keane partnership is in full working order, as the Spaniard fired home a precision volley from the Irishman's pinpoint delivery.
Torres' second punished some hesitant Everton defending as he lashed the ball high past Tim Howard from close range.
A miserable afternoon for David Moyes was exacerbated by the sight of Mike Riley brandishing a red card in the direction of Tim Cahill, ten minutes from time, following the midfielder's late but hardly vindictive lunge on Xabi Alonso.

Jose impresses
Stoke contained Chelsea for 36 minutes at the Britannia Stadium but could do nothing about Bosingwa's finely constructed opener before the break.
A neat Chelsea move concluded with Frank Lampard's looped ball over the top of Stoke's backline and after taking the ball on his chest, a buccaneering Bosingwa rifled his finish past Thomas Sorensen and the despairing efforts of Andy Griffin on the line.
Chelsea's win was secured after the break when substitute Nicolas Anelka converted the impressive Bosingwa's low cross.

Back to Winning Ways
Sir Alex Ferguson decided to start with Rooney on the bench as Dimitar Berbatov was paired with Carlos Tevez and while United created chances, they were never quite at their fluid best in the first half against Bolton.
Jussi Jaaskelainen impressed with a series of excellent stops to deny Ronaldo, Berbatov and Tevez, but it was Bolton that conjured the best chance of the first half when Fabrice Muamba somehow contrived to screw the ball wide, when presented with a glorious opportunity no more than six yards from goal.
Bolton's goalkeeper could do little about Ronaldo's 60th minute penalty though as Gary Megson struggled to contain his rage, as the Portuguese expertly converted from 12 yards.
If Rooney had a point to prove he did just that in coming off the bench to net a glorious second for United. After exchanging passes with Ronaldo the England man dummied, before bending a lovely shot beyond Jaaskelainen.

Hammered
Gianfranco Zola's bright start to life as West Ham manager continued at Fulham as the Hammers took bragging rights at Craven Cottage.
Mark Schwarzer will enjoy better afternoons as his careless handling saw Matthew Etherington's cross spilled into the path of Carlton Cole, who put a tough week behind him with a tap in from close range. Etherington then went from provider to goalscorer as he punished a piece of kamikaze goalkeeping, in finding the perfect finish from Mark Noble's lofted pass, to beat an on-rushing Schwarzer.
Andy Johnson's afternoon was curtailed in first half stoppage time when his late lunge at Lucas Neill saw referee Andre Marriner brandish a second yellow card.
West Ham appeared to be sailing but Neill made for an interesting second period when his handball in the area saw Danny Murphy reduce the deficit from the spot.

Out of Toon
Newcastle's beleaguered supporters were made to sit through a miserable first half against Blackburn, as lackadaisical defending gave Kinnear an indication of just what he has inherited.
Steven Taylor lost Christopher Samba from Carlos Villanueva's set piece to nod home an opener just past the half hour mark, before Roque Santa Cruz rose above Fabricio Coloccini to divert Brett Emerton's cross past Shay Given before the half-time break.
With the mood sinking to new depths inside St James' Park, Michael Owen partially rejuvenated spirits when he thumped a penalty past Jason Brown after being clipped from behind by Ryan Nelsen, at the start of the second period.

Cat Napping
An entertaining affair in the Midlands saw Sunderland catch Aston Villa cold on ten minutes, as Djibril Cisse gave Steed Malbranque's exquisite slide-rule pass the finish it deserved as he clipped a first time effort beyond Brad Friedel.
The Black Cats' lead lasted just eight minutes though as Ashley Young extended an impressive goalscoring run to eight in his last 15 appearances as he bent a clever free-kick past Craig Gordon at his near post.
It was another Young free-kick that led to Villa's second goal as his set-piece rebounded off the Sunderland wall and into the path of Stilian Petrov, whose drilled ball across goal was met by John Carew's clever backheel from close range.

Boro BuriedTony Mowbray enjoyed a dream return to Middlesbrough as his West Brom side came away from The Riverside with a 1-0 win, which owed much to some suspect goalkeeping on Ross Turnbull's part.
A scramble in Middlesbrough's box eventually saw the fall arrive at the feet of Jonas Olsson, whose close range stab for goal lacked any real venom but still had enough to beat a disappointed Turnbull.

Table - September 27 2008

Pos Team P W D L F A GD Pts
1 Chelsea 6 4 2 0 12 3 9 14
2 Liverpool 6 4 2 0 7 2 5 14
-------------------------------------
3 Aston Villa 6 4 1 1 12 8 4 13
4 Arsenal 6 4 0 2 12 4 8 12
--------------------------------------
5 West Ham United 6 4 0 2 13 10 3 12
6 Hull City 6 3 2 1 9 11 -2 11
7 Blackburn Rovers 6 3 1 2 8 12 -4 10
8 Manchester City 5 3 0 2 15 7 8 9
9 Manchester United 5 2 2 1 6 4 2 8
10 West Bromwich Albion 6 2 1 3 6 7 -1 7
11 Sunderland 6 2 1 3 6 8 -2 7
12 Everton 6 2 1 3 9 13 -4 7
13 Fulham 5 2 0 3 5 6 -1 6
14 Middlesbrough 6 2 0 4 6 9 -3 6
15 Portsmouth 5 2 0 3 5 12 -7 6
16 Wigan Athletic 5 1 2 2 7 4 3 5
17 Bolton Wanderers 6 1 1 4 5 9 -4 4
------------------------------------------
18 Stoke City 6 1 1 4 7 12 -5 4
19 Newcastle United 6 1 1 4 5 11 -6 4
20 Tottenham Hotspur 5 0 2 3 4 7 -3 2

[johntheclaret]

28th September

Results
Portsmouth 2- 0 Tottenham
Wigan 2 - 1 Man City

Table
Pos Team P W D L F A GD Pts Last
1 Chelsea 6 4 2 0 12 3 9 14
2 Liverpool 6 4 2 0 7 2 5 14
--------------------------------------
3 Aston Villa 6 4 1 1 12 8 4 13
4 Arsenal 6 4 0 2 12 4 8 12
--------------------------------------
5 West Ham United 6 4 0 2 13 10 3 12
6 Hull City 6 3 2 1 9 11 -2 11
7 Blackburn Rovers 6 3 1 2 8 12 -4 10
8 Manchester City 6 3 0 3 16 9 7 9
9 Portsmouth 6 3 0 3 7 12 -5 9
10 Wigan Athletic 6 2 2 2 9 5 4 8
11 Manchester United 5 2 2 1 6 4 2 8
12 West Bromwich Albion 6 2 1 3 6 7 -1 7
13 Sunderland 6 2 1 3 6 8 -2 7
14 Everton 6 2 1 3 9 13 -4 7
15 Fulham 5 2 0 3 5 6 -1 6
16 Middlesbrough 6 2 0 4 6 9 -3 6
17 Bolton Wanderers 6 1 1 4 5 9 -4 4
----------------------------------------
18 Stoke City 6 1 1 4 7 12 -5 4
19 Newcastle United 6 1 1 4 5 11 -6 4
20 Tottenham Hotspur 6 0 2 4 4 9 -5



Play on Pompey, Pompey play on
Juande Ramos insists he retains the full faith of the Spurs board but on Sunday at Fratton Park he appeared to lose the supporters' vote as chants of 'You don't know what you're doing' reverberated around Fratton Park.
Portsmouth went into the South Coast clash having conceded ten goals in their last two games but despite starting the day on the lowest of ebbs, Harry Redknapp's side were too strong for an insipid Tottenham, who not only looked disjointed but more worryingly, disinterested.
With Spurs looking barren in attack, Jermain Defoe - sold by Ramos - showed what the Spaniard was missing by confidently scoring from the penalty spot after Jermaine Jenas had handled in the box. He elected to keep the salt pot on the shelf though in not celebrating in front of the supporters that used to call him one of their own.
Gloss was taken off what was a polished performance when the otherwise excellent Lassana Diarra was sent-off, after picking up a needless booking in the game's dying embers, but not before Peter Crouch had made it two after profiting from some suspect Heurelho Gomes goalkeeping.

Wigan Warriors
The weekend's action concluded at The JJB as Wigan stole bragging rights from a high-octane North West derby against Manchester City. Pre-match and it was City's band of Brazilians that took centre-stage but thereafter and it was all about Wigan's infectious enthusiasm, which started up front with the pugnacious spirit demonstrated by new cult hero Amr Zaki.
While Robinho was bullied by Wigan's tenacious tackles, Jo often outfought and Elano peripheral, Zaki and Emile Heskey gave the normally robust Richard Dunne and Micah Richards an afternoon they will not want to relive any time soon.
A stunning swerving effort from the right foot of Antonio Valencia gave Wigan a lead that proved short lived, as Vincent Kompany restored parity from close range on the 22nd minute mark.
By half-time Wigan had an advantage they would not relinquish so easily, as Wilson Palacios showed Bafta credentials with a tumble in City's box, which allowed Zaki to cap off a Roy of the Rovers display with his fifth Premier League goal of the season.

[mighty_tiger_79]

does anyone have any idea what the betting in Hull v arsenal game was????

im guessing arsenal would have been $1.10 or shorter

[johntheclaret]

Here ya go MT

HULL SAVE BOOKIES MEGA PAYOUT

William Hill have called Hull's win over Arsenal on Saturday evening their "greatest result in Premiership history".

Hull were available at 20/1 in places before the Premier League clash at the Emirates - and drifted to 599/1 on Betfair after falling 1-0 behind.

But Geovanni struck a spectacular equaliser before Daniel Cousin headed home what proved the winner in the 66th minute.

[mighty_tiger_79]

cheers JTC

im guessing some mad HULL fan may have been on them before the game but im not sure anyone could have taken the 599/1 on betfair after going 1 down.

im guessing most people would have chucked Arsenal in multi-bets which would also help the bookies!

Cousin - he isnt the one from Glasgow Rangers is he???? cos they were going to sell him, but havent followed up on it.

[johntheclaret]

Cousin, yeah he is.

I always back the Clarets to win 4 - 1. Not a kings ransom mind but it has paid a few times for me.

A lot of folk will do multi's on the big four, Liverpool, Chelski, Man U and Arsenal. According to the betting press, Hull saved them and 8 figure sum pay out this week.

[johntheclaret]

Results Sat / Sun 4th & 5th October

Sat 4th
Blackburn Rovers 0-2 Manchester United
Sunderland 1-1 Arsenal
West Bromwich Albion 1-0 Fulham
Wigan Athletic 0-1 Middlesbrough

Sun 5th
Chelsea 2-0 Aston Villa
Everton 2-2 Newcastle United
Manchester City 2-3 Liverpool
Portsmouth 2-1 Stoke City
Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 Hull City
West Ham United 1-3 Bolton Wanderers

Table
Pos Team P W D L F A GD Pts Last 6
1 Chelsea 7 5 2 0 14 3 11 17
2 Liverpool 7 5 2 0 10 4 6 17
3 Hull City 7 4 2 1 10 11 -1 14
4 Arsenal 7 4 1 2 13 5 8 13
----------------------------------
5 Aston Villa 7 4 1 2 12 10 2 13
6 West Ham United 7 4 0 3 14 13 1 12
7 Portsmouth 7 4 0 3 9 13 -4 12
8 Manchester United 6 3 2 1 8 4 4 11
9 West Bromwich Albion 7 3 1 3 7 7 0 10
10 Blackburn Rovers 7 3 1 3 8 14 -6 10
11 Manchester City 7 3 0 4 18 12 6 9
12 Middlesbrough 7 3 0 4 7 9 -2 9
13 Wigan Athletic 7 2 2 3 9 6 3 8
14 Sunderland 7 2 2 3 7 9 -2 8
15 Everton 7 2 2 3 11 15 -4 8
16 Bolton Wanderers 7 2 1 4 8 10 -2 7
17 Fulham 6 2 0 4 5 7 -2 6
-------------------------------------------
18 Newcastle United 7 1 2 4 7 13 -6 5
19 Stoke City 7 1 1 5 8 14 -6 4
20 Tottenham Hotspur 7 0 2 5 4 10 -6 2

Round Up

Liverpool came from two goals down to beat Manchester City 3-2 in a thrilling contest at Eastlands. Dirk Kuyt struck in the final minute to end his Premier League goal drought and maintain Rafa Benitez's men unbeaten record.
City opened the scoring on 19 minutes when the in-form Stephen Ireland blasted a volley high into the net past Pepe Reina after some poor defending by Alvaro Arbeloa. The home side doubled their advantage four minutes before the break when Javier Garrido netted his first goal for the club with a brilliant free-kick. Garrido curled a superb left-footed effort from the edge of the box into the top left-hand corner past Reina to send the home fans into raptures.
Liverpool pulled a goal back on 55 minutes when Steven Gerrard played Arbeloa in down the right and he crossed for Fernando Torres to slot the ball home from close range.
City suffered a blow on 67 minutes when Pablo Zabaleta was shown a straight red card for a late tackle on Xabi Alonso. Liverpool made their numerical advantage count six minutes later when Torres rose highest to head home Gerrard's corner.
The visitors suffered a blow in the closing stages when Martin Skrtel landed awkwardly under a challenge from Ched Evans and the Slovakian had to be stretchered off.
The Reds grabbed the winner in stoppage time when Kuyt grabbed his first goal in 27 Premier League games when he bundled the ball home from close range.

Chelsea maintained their unbeaten record with a 2-0 success over Aston Villa.
Luiz Felipe Scolari's side dominated from the first whistle and it was no surprise when they broke the deadlock on 21 minutes when Frank Lampard teed up Joe Cole to blast the ball past Brad Friedel.
Chelsea added a second a minute before the break when Friedel produced two superb saves to deny Michael Ballack and Nicolas Anelka only for Anelka to score at the second attempt.
Villa improved in the second half, but Chelsea never looked in any real danger as they maintained their lead at the top of the table.

Hull completed a North London double as they followed up their win at Arsenal with a 1-0 victory at Tottenham. to climb up to third in the table. Geovanni was the hero for the second week running with the winner at White Hart Lane.
Hull got off to a dream start with the opener after just nine minutes as Geovanni followed up his winner against Arsenal with another contender for goal of the season.
The Brazilian curled a sublime free-kick from fully 30 yards into the top right-hand corner past a helpless Heurelho Gomes.
Spurs threw everything at Hull in a bid to get back in the game, but Hull held on to maintain therir superb start to life in the Premier League.

Newcastle showed great fighting spirit in interim manager Joe Kinnear's first game in charge as they came from two goals down to earn a 2-2 draw with Everton.
Everton made the breakthrough on 17 minutes when Mikel Arteta converted from the penalty spot after Leighton Baines had been chopped down in the box by Nicky Butt.
New boy Marouane Fellaini doubled the lead on 35 minutes when he scored his first goal for the club from Baines' cross.
Newcastle gave themselves hope on the stroke of half-time when Steven Taylor popped up to head home Geremi's cross.
The visitors completed the comeback two minutes after the break when Damien Duff slotted home Taylor's cross for his first goal of the season.
Both sides had chances to win the game, but they had to settle for a point leaving Everton still looking for their first home win of the campaign.

Goals from Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe helped Portsmouth to a 2-1 win over Stoke at Fratton Park.
Portsmouth made the breakthrough on 25 minutes with a spectacular effort from Crouch.
Defoe sent over a cross from the right and Crouch, who scored two bicycle kicks during his time at Liverpool, produced a superb overhead kick past Steve Simonsen.
Stoke drew level three minutes after the break when Dave Kitson flicked Rory Delap's long throw-in into the path of Ricardo Fuller who nodded home past David James.
Parity proved short-lived as Stoke afforded Defoe too much space on the edge of the box and he sneaked a low shot past Simonsen.

Bolton picked up their first away win of the campaign with an impressive showing at West Ham.
Bolton were gifted the opener on the half hour mark when Robert Green fumbled a high ball into the box to the feet of Kevin Davies who gleefully poked the ball into the empty net.
Things got worse for the home side four minutes later when Gary Cahill netted his first goal for Bolton when he reacted quickest to score from close range after Green had parried Gretar Steinsson's fierce shot.
West Ham pulled a goal back on 69 minutes when Carlton Cole nodded the ball home off the underside of the crossbar from six yards after Matthew Upson had headed the ball across goal.
Bolton put the game beyond West Ham four minutes from time when substitute Matt Taylor thumped a superb free-kick from fully 30 yards past a despairing Green.

[Bully]

so i take it now that the certain people 'person' that said it was a fluke that hull beat arsenal are now thinking that they might be a decent side seen as they also knocked off spurs

[RoosterMarty]

so i take it now that the certain people 'person' that said it was a fluke that hull beat arsenal are now thinking that they might be a decent side seen as they also knocked off spurs

Nope? To begin with L'Arsenal should have beaten Hull at home if they think they are a title challenger, secondly they only beat the bottom team on the weekend.

[JK]

so i take it now that the certain people 'person' that said it was a fluke that hull beat arsenal are now thinking that they might be a decent side seen as they also knocked off spurs

Nope? To begin with L'Arsenal should have beaten Hull at home if they think they are a title challenger, secondly they only beat the bottom team on the weekend.

I would normally laugh at that but Im too frightened as my boys haven't faced any of Spurs, Arsenal or Hull yet so

[devilsadvocate]

so i take it now that the certain people 'person' that said it was a fluke that hull beat arsenal are now thinking that they might be a decent side seen as they also knocked off spurs

Everyone's beating spurs at the moment, so that can't really be used to class Hull as decent.
Pompey beat Spurs and they've been rubbish.
Sunderland beat Spurs and they've been rubbish.

And do you have an automatic key on your keyboard? You put one in every bloody post.

[Bully]

so i take it now that the certain people 'person' that said it was a fluke that hull beat arsenal are now thinking that they might be a decent side seen as they also knocked off spurs

Everyone's beating spurs at the moment, so that can't really be used to class Hull as decent.
Pompey beat Spurs and they've been rubbish.
Sunderland beat Spurs and they've been rubbish.

And do you have an automatic key on your keyboard? You put one in every bloody post.

yes i do have a auto on my keyboard

[Bully]

so i take it now that the certain people 'person' that said it was a fluke that hull beat arsenal are now thinking that they might be a decent side seen as they also knocked off spurs

Nope? To begin with L'Arsenal should have beaten Hull at home if they think they are a title challenger, secondly they only beat the bottom team on the weekend.

so i take it you wont talk about your draw ( at home ) to newcastle this season. and you say we should have beaten or done this or done that. hmmmmm

[Bully]

and yes im annoyed at arsenal this season seen as we can win games easy like 4-0 over porto in champ league but struggle against sides like hull and sunderland. strange but thats life i guess.

[the joker]

they are reporting in England that with the economy the way it is, Man U are in big Strife Financially, they are in debt over 2 billion dolllars. also Arsenal are in close to the same debt,
Spose it is good that our National sports have got Salary Caps.

[johntheclaret]

Not quite TJ. United are about $1.2bn but they are hugely profitable. Thier problem is that most of it is eaten up in interest repayments. I think they netted about $40m last year.

They are lucky though, in that they have a huge global fanbase and don't reply too much on gate numbers. Unlike teams such as Wigan, Rovers etc. and as long as Sky keeps pumping in the big $$$ they will be ok.

I guess so much relies on Sky. Teams like Liverpool, Man U et all rely on that dosh, with Man U raking in $88m in TV money. Take that away and they would make a net loss, however, they are big enough to have thier own PPV and could generate big amounts that way with the fan base they have.

[johntheclaret]

Sat 18th October

Results

Middlesbrough 0 Chelsea 5
Arsenal 3 Everton 1
Aston Villa 0 Portsmouth 0
Bolton 0 Blackburn 0
Fulham 0 Sunderland 0
Liverpool 3 Wigan 2
Manchester United 4 West Brom 0

Round Up

The Red Devils ruined Tony Mowbray's second anniversary as West Brom boss as the promoted side suffered their heaviest defeat of the season.
West Brom put up stubborn resistance in the first half, although the in-form Wayne Rooney did have a goal disallowed for a foul.
Rooney was the man to break the deadlock on 56 minutes as he cut back inside the box and rifled a low shot beyond Scott Carson.
He turned provider on 69 minutes to send Cristiano Ronaldo through on goal for the second before Dimitar Berbatov notched his first Premier League goal for United two minutes later.
The scoring was rounded off in the final minute by substitute Nani, who tapped in at the far post from Rooney's low cross.

Chelsea maintained their position atop the Premier League with a crushing 5-0 victory over Middlesbrough at the Riverside.
Salomon Kalou's 14th minute goal was all the leaders had to show for their first-half dominance, but it was a different story after the break.
Juliano Belletti, in the team due to a glut of injuries, unleashed an unstoppable drive into the top corner from 30 yards to give Chelsea a 2-0 lead on 51 minutes.
Just two minutes later and Kalou grabbed his second of the game when his shot deflected off David Wheater and beyond the helpless Ross Turnbull.
Frank Lampard got in on the act on 63 minutes when he headed past Turnbull following a sweeping move by an impressive Blues side.
And the rout was complete on 67 minutes when Florent Malouda turned home the loose ball after Turnbull had made a hash of Nicolas Anelka's shot.

Dirk Kuyt proved to be Liverpool's hero yet again as Rafa Benitez's side twice came from a goal down to beat Wigan Athletic 3-2 at Anfield.
Liverpool gifted Wigan the opening goal on 29 minutes when Daniel Agger's loose touch was seized upon by Amr Zaki, who robbed the Dane of possession and slotted his shot past Jose Reina.
Agger made up for his error on 37 minutes when he brought the ball out of defence, played a one-two with Andrea Dossena and set up Kuyt for a low finish at the near post.
Yet Wigan were in front for a second time at the end of the first half when Zaki produced a wonderfully acrobatic finish from Antonio Valencia's cross from the right.
The Latics were down to 10 men on 75 minutes when Valencia was sent off for the second time in a week. The winger, who was dismissed for Ecuador last weekend, picked up a second yellow card for a foul on Xabi Alonso moments after being booked for encroachment at a free-kick.
Liverpool took advantage to equalise 10 minutes from time when Albert Riera fired home low from the edge of the area after Steven Gerrard dummied substitute Nabil El Zhar's pull back.
With five minutes left, Kuyt's good run of form continued when he grabbed the winner in a 3-2 victory for the second match in a row.
Jermaine Pennant crossed from the right and, trying to emulate Zaki's earlier goal, Kuyt scuffed his acrobatic attempt, but it had enough pace to go beyond Chris Kirkland and in via the aid of the bar and post.

Arsenal survived a scare at home to Everton before producing a powerful second-half display to win 3-1 at Emirates Stadium.
Everton took the lead on nine minutes when Leon Osman played the ball out wide to Steven Pienaar and raced into the box to guide the return pass inside the post.
The Gunners were quick out of the blocks in the second half and levelled within three minutes of the restart through Samir Nasri's low shot from 20 yards after Everton failed to adequately clear a corner.
Arsenal's comeback was completed 20 minutes from time when Robin van Persie headed home from close range after Cesc Fabregas' shot had been parried.
Substitute Theo Walcott added a late third goal for the Gunners with a low finish after the winger exchanged passes with Abou Diaby.

Aston Villa were unable to make a late breakthrough against 10-man Portsmouth in a tight 0-0 draw at Villa Park.
Portsmouth were reduced to 10 men in the 81st minute when Sean Davis received his second yellow card following a foul on Stilian Petrov.
There was also late controversy when assistant referee Phil Sharp required treatment on the touchline after appearing to be struck by something thrown from the crowd.

Fulham drew 0-0 at home to Sunderland, but visiting manager Roy Keane was livid with referee Keith Stroud for disallowing a seemingly valid goal.
Sunderland thought they had taken the lead early in the second half when Kieran Richardson curled home a free-kick, but the goal was disallowed for some jostling in the wall.
The visitors again came close to going ahead when Djibril Cisse's volley from just outside the box bounced back off the crossbar.

The North West derby at the Reebok Stadium finished 0-0 as neither Bolton Wanderers nor Blackburn Rovers could find a way through.
In a fiercely-contested encounter, both teams had chances before having to settle for a share of the bragging rights.

[johntheclaret]

Sun 19th Oct

Results

Hull 1 West Ham 0
Stoke 2 Tottenham 1

Round Up

Stoke v Spurs
Tottenham and Juande Ramos continue to toil in the relegation mire after a 2-1 defeat at fellow basement dwellers Stoke City left them propping up the rest of the division.
The beleaguered North Londoners have now taken just two points from eight games, with Rory Delap's winner condemning nine-man Spurs to their sixth league defeat, following a contest that also saw Stoke miss an injury-time penalty.

When with just over a quarter of an hour played a lapse in Gareth Bale's concentration resulted in not only a red card for the Welshman but also a Stoke penalty, the writing was already being etched on the wall for a side short on confidence, shy of fight. In injury-time, Bale would be joined by substitute Michael Dawson in taking an early bath following his lunge on Mamady Sidibe.
Tom Soares had already served a Tottenham warning when he scampered clear early on, only for an insipid finish to let Heurelho Gomes off the hook. The wide man's next forward foray would prove more productive though as he nicked the ball off a dozing Bale, only to be felled in the penalty box in an incident that left Spurs both a man and goal down.

Danny Higginbotham was a model of composure as strong headwinds repeatedly blew the ball off the spot, as the Britannia faithful held a collective breath. They need not have worried; as the big defender's low spot-kick gave Gomes not a prayer.
Ramos looked nervous on the touchline but his charges regrouped and showed considerable resolve to restore parity as Darren Bent - despite being in an offside position from Alan Hutton's deflected shot - demonstrated a striker's nous in front of goal, as he fended off a Stoke challenge to stab the ball between Thomas Sorensen's legs.

The reversal in fortunes invigorated Ramos' side and Aaron Lennon went on a promising run but his shot was tame, then David Bentley curled a long-range effort but too high.
Luka Modric was next to try his luck after cutting in from the right but his drive sailed wide, before Sorensen was forced into a one-handed save to keep out Lennon's fierce 20-yard strike.
Both sides toiled but lacked the necessary guile to further threaten the scoresheet, in a first half full of endeavour but lacking in genuine opportunities.

Potters boss Tony Pulis will have urged his side to return to what they do best in the half-time interval and, with a renewed vigour and fire, they set about an understandably disjointed Tottenham for the second half. Delap has received his fair share of attention for his long throws this season but it was a willingness to gamble in getting forward that was rewarded in the 52nd minute.
A bright Stoke move saw the ball worked out wide right to Sidibe and from the striker's perfectly executed ball across goal, Delap stole past his marker to score a well engineered winner.
Seyi Olofinjana brought a sprawling save out of Gomes from 25 yards before Stoke were forced into a change with Steve Simonsen coming on in goal for Thomas Sorensen after the Dane had been caught by Hutton.

Spurs' woes were exacerbated by the sight of Vedran Corluka leaving the ground in an ambulance following a head injury, but even 11 minutes of stoppage time proved too little, too late for a Spurs side very much embroiled in a battle to retain their top-flight status.
A remarkable conclusion to the most absorbing of contests saw Stoke substitute Ricardo Fuller hit both posts from the penalty spot after Jonathan Woodgate had brought down Soares, with Delap following up only to crash his rebound onto Gomes' bar.
The impressive Fuller hit the frame of the goal for a third time after a typically slalom-like run in the game's dying embers, but not before Dawson was shown a straight red card that leaves Tottenham in dire straights.

Hull v WHU
Hull City's remarkable beginning to the new Premier League season continued as they claimed a 1-0 victory over West Ham United to rise back into third place in the table.
Michael Turner struck the only goal of the game in the second period as the newly-promoted Tigers made it three consecutive league triumphs and four over London opposition in the 2008/09 campaign.

The Hammers enjoyed the better of the first half but lacked killer instinct in the final third, with striker Craig Bellamy - making his first league start of the term - posing the greatest threat.
But Phil Brown's side began to push their opponents back into their own half after the interval and they made their pressure pay on 51 minutes as Turner rose powerfully to head home Andy Dawson's whipped corner and secure the win.

Recent defeats to Bolton, plus fresh financial concerns, had hardly sent the Hammers bounding North in the best of moods, but boss Gianfranco Zola had the bonus of handing Bellamy his first league start of the season. The Welshman had his moments in the opening period but the Hammers laboured early on and the home side started brightly, exuding the confidence which had swept them to such lofty heights.

Daniel Cousin posed a constant danger down the right channel while Marlon King, returning from the back injury which ruled him out of midweek international duty, saw a low shot grasped by Hammers keeper Robert Green. King headed straight at Green from a Paul McShane cross in the 11th minute as the Tigers continued to dominate and Zola's men struggled to find a route out of their own half. But the momentum began to change after a quarter of an hour when Bellamy, in his first contribution, raced across the halfway line and teed up Cole to side-foot the simplest of chances straight at Boaz Myhill.

Then Herita Ilunga found himself in the book of referee Chris Foy after charging down an attempted Myhill goal-kick, and overhead-kicking the loose ball into the net. Dean Marney volleyed just wide from King's cross but the Hammers continued to get into the game and Ilunga came even closer when he headed Scott Parker's corner just the wrong side of the post from point-blank range.

The visitors were starting to enjoy far more possession in dangerous areas with Bellamy's low cross almost catching out a hesitant Hull defence, and Valon Behrami firing wide from long range.
The already-booked Ilunga looked lucky to escape a second yellow card after scything down Marney on the Tigers right as the lively action continued with goals still looking likely.

The opener almost came from Bellamy, who blazed high and wide from a tight angle after Cole's clever knock-down in first-half injury time. But in the end it came for the home side six minutes into the second half, when Turner out-jumped Matthew Upson to head home Dawson's impressive corner from the right.

The Hammers had a golden chance to equalise two minutes later when Valon Behrami got round the back of the Hull defence and set up Cole on the edge of the six-yard box, but the striker scythed his shot against the underside of the bar.

Having survived that scare, the home side grew in confidence and Kamil Zayette came close in the 56th minute when he steamrollered out of defence before lashing a long-range effort just over the bar.

The home side were continuing to knock the ball around with aplomb, although Cole remained a threat and his cross in the 68th minute resulted in Matthew Etherington volleying into the side-netting from a tight angle.

Zola's men were left looking short of ideas and summoned little by way of threat in the closing stages, with the home side hanging on with ease to claim their fifth top-flight victory

Table

Pos Team P Pts
1 Chelsea 8 20
2 Liverpool 8 20
3 Hull City 8 17
4 Arsenal 8 16
------------------------
5 Manchester United 7 14
6 Aston Villa 8 14
------------------------
7 Portsmouth 8 13
8 West Ham United 8 12
9 Blackburn Rovers 8 11
10 West Bromwich Albion 8 10
11 Manchester City 7 9
12 Sunderland 8 9
13 Middlesbrough 8 9
14 Wigan Athletic 8 8
15 Bolton Wanderers 8 8
16 Everton 8 8
17 Fulham 7 7
--------------------------
18 Stoke City 8 7
19 Newcastle United 7 5
20 Tottenham Hotspur 8 2

[johntheclaret]

Sat 24th October

Results

Everton 1 Manchester United 1
Sunderland 2 Newcastle 1
West Brom 0 Hull City 3
Blackburn 1 Middlesbrough 1

Round Up

In the noon kick-off, Manchester United travelled to Goodison Park chasing a seventh successive win in all competitions. In the first period Everton could not have been more accommodating, as Fletcher's composed finish from Ryan Giggs' clever pass gave United a deserved half-time lead.
Had it not been for Tim Howard in the home goal the contest would have been over at the break as Nemanja Vidic, Cristiano Ronaldo and Giggs all threatened to add to Fletcher's opener.
It as, though, a different Everton that emerged after the interval as Fellaini's towering header, which saw him rise above Vidic, gave Phil Neville's looped delivery the finish it deserved.
With the home crowd buoyed after a subdued opening period, Everton went for the jugular and would have grabbed all three points had Edwin van der Sar not pushed Yakubu Aiyegbeni's shot onto the post, after an uncharacteristic Rio Ferdinand error.

The Tyne-Wear derby was the type of high-octane clash of yesteryear, as Sunderland stole bragging rights with their first home victory from this fixture in 28 years.
Roy Keane's Black Cats snarled into their visitors from the off as Djibril Cisse broke the deadlock in the 20th minute, when his outstretched leg diverted Steed Malbranque's screwed shot beyond Shay Given.
Joe Kinnear has if nothing else instilled greater steel to his Newcastle side and a travelling Toon faithful were rewarded for their partisan support, as renaissance man Shola Ameobi restored parity on the half hour mark.
Geremi was the architect as his free-kick was headed in by Ameobi, who has now scored in successive games.
At Craven Cottage last week Richardson was left to rue the width of Fulham's woodwork, as his free-kick hit the frame of the goal a remarkable three times. There was no such reprieve for Newcastle though, as the one-time England midfielder scored a stunning winner in the 75th minute, via an explosive effort from the edge of the box.
The final whistle was marred by ugly scenes involving supporters, while Joey Barton was targeted as he warmed up before making a late second half appearance as a substitute.

Hull completed a remarkable smash-and-grab job on the road as they left an evenly contested clash with West Brom with three points and as many goals.
West Brom played some enterprising football of their own but were again undone by a familiar Achilles heel: profligacy in front of goal.
Boaz Myhill was outstanding in Hull's goal as superb saves denied Robert Koren, Borja Valero and James Morrison, while Jonas Olsson hit the crossbar with a close-range header.
Hull had to wait until the second half to break the deadlock, as Kamil Zayatte was left with a criminal amount of space in the box to smartly prod home a Dean Marney corner from close range.
If Hull's first goal owed much to West Brom's defensive deficiencies, their second was a cleverly constructed effort, which saw Geovanni lob the ball into the path of Marlon King, whose ball back to the Brazilian was just the tonic for a diving header that beat Scott Carson at his far post.
As West Brom threw more and more men forward in a bid to get back into the game, a long ball exposed a porous backline as King's astute first touch presented him with enough time to gleefully slot home past Carson.

An injury time header from Benni McCarthy saved Blackburn as they claimed a 1-1 draw with Middlesbrough at Ewood Park.
Rovers dominated possession for much of the game, but Boro were always in the match.
Both sides struck the woodwork in the opening 45 minutes and the away side saw a goal harshly chalked off for offside as Tuncay Sanli was wrongly flagged after an acrobatic overhead finish.
The Teessiders then looked as if they had snatched victory as Afonso Alves lashed an excellent finish home from the edge of the box.
Then four-minutes into injury time and unmarked McCarthy rose to head home and seal a share of the spoils for Rovers.

[johntheclaret]

Sun 26th October

Results

Chelsea 0 Liverpool 1
Man City 3 Stoke 0
Portsmouth 1 Fulham 1
Tottenham 2 Bolton 0
West Ham 0 Arsenal 2
Wigan 0 Aston Villa 4

Round Up

Liverpool brought an end to Chelsea's 86-game unbeaten run at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League courtesy of a hard-fought 1-0 win.
Xabi Alonso scored the only goal of a tight game on 10 minutes when the Spanish midfielder's shot deflected off Jose Bosingwa and wrong-footed Petr Cech.
Though there may have been an element of luck about the Reds' winner, Rafa Benitez's side were full value for the points after keeping Chelsea at arm's length for much of the match.
Alonso almost grabbed a second when his free-kick struck the base of the post, while Ashley Cole sliced his shot wide from Chelsea's best chance of the game.

Tottenham may have dispensed with their manager Juande Ramos late on Saturday night, but it clearly had no negative effect on morale after a 2-0 success over Bolton at White Hart Lane.
With Ramos' replacement Harry Redknapp spending most of the game in the dug-out, Spurs secured a welcome win as Roman Pavlyuchenko scored his first Premier League goal.
Spurs made the breakthrough on 17 minutes when David Bentley swung in a cross from the right and Pavlyuchenko guided his header inside the upright.
Bolton's prospects of getting back into the game were dealt a blow on 56 minutes when Gavin McCann was sent off for a second booking after the midfielder fouled Tom Huddlestone.
And the Trotters contributed further to their own demise on 76 minutes when Jussi Jaaskelainen's clumsy challenge on Darren Bent allowed the striker to score from the penalty spot.

Emmanuel Adebayor had a decisive impact from the bench as Arsenal won 2-0 at West Ham, who finished the match with 10 men.
Togo striker Adebayor was introduced on 67 minutes and, within eight minutes, had helped the Gunners into the lead as his shot was turned into his own net by Julien Faubert.
In the first minute of stoppage time, a brilliant pass from Nicklas Bendtner sent Adebayor clear and he rounded the onrushing Robert Green before steering the ball into an unguarded net.
There was still time for Carlton Cole to be sent off as the Hammers striker was harshly dismissed by referee Phil Dowd for a foul on Alexandre Song.

Portsmouth started life without Harry Redknapp by being held to a 1-1 draw at Fratton Park by Fulham.
Redknapp's former assistants Tony Adams and Joe Jordan sent out a Pompey team which took a 61st minute lead through Peter Crouch's finish after he was set up by strike partner Jermain Defoe.
However, Fulham snatched a point three minutes from time when Clint Dempsey steered home unmarked from fellow substitute Erik Nevland's cross.

Manchester City moved back into the top half of the table after a Robinho-driven 3-0 win over promoted Stoke.
Record signing Robinho put City ahead on 14 minutes with a low finish inside Thomas Sorensen's near post following a clever pass by Ched Evans.
The young striker was replaced by Daniel Sturridge just before half-time and the substitute played a key role in City's second goal two minutes after the break as his run and cross teed up Robinho for his second of the match.
Robinho completed his hat-trick on 72 minutes when he passed the ball into the net from the edge of the area after being intelligently played in by Sturridge following a quick City break.

Aston Villa followed up victory over Ajax in the Uefa Cup on Thursday with an emphatic 4-0 triumph at struggling Wigan.
Villa were in front midway through the first half when Gareth Barry tucked away a perfect penalty after Titus Bramble had brought down Gabriel Agbonlahor.
There was a spot of fortune about Villa's second on 57 minutes when John Carew's header ricocheted in off Agbonlahor, who knew little about the decisive touch.
Just five minutes later, Villa had made it 3-0 following good work down the left by Agbonlahor and his cross was headed home from close range by the towering Carew.
Substitute Steve Sidwell marked his Premier League debut for Villa with a fourth goal in injury-time as he smashed a fierce shot into the top corner after James Milner's flicked pass inside.

Table

Teams P GD PTS
1 Liverpool 9 8 23
2 Chelsea 9 15 20
-------------------------
3 Hull City 9 3 20
4 Arsenal 9 12 19
-------------------------
5 Aston Villa 9 6 17
6 Man Utd 8 8 15
7 Portsmouth 9 -4 14
8 Man City 9 9 13
9 Sunderland 9 -1 12
10 West Ham 9 -2 12
11 Blackburn 9 -6 12
12 Middlesbrough 9 -7 10
13 West Brom 9 -7 10
14 Everton 9 -6 9
15 Wigan 9 -2 8
16 Fulham 8 -2 8
17 Bolton 9 -4 8
---------------------------
18 Stoke City 9 -8 7
19 Newcastle 9 -7 6
20 Tottenham 9 -5 5