Pool fall down

As the two underdogs reached the FA Cup final, the Premier League saw little movement at the top, but much at the bottom.

Wigan Athletic grasped the survival bull by the horns and rode it to temporary safety with a crucial win against fellow relegation candidates Blackpool, who were well and truly gored. The Bloomfield Road faithful were desperate to see Blackpool stop the rot and put some daylight between them and the bottom of the table, but instead it was the Latics who finally lifted themselves from the foot of the table and indeed out of the danger zone, however temporarily. Ian Holloway would surely have instilled the importance of defensive discipline in his players, but you just can’t legislate for the kind of slapstick buffoonery displayed by Ian Cathcart within a couple of minutes of kick-off. With a free-kick just inside Wigan’s half, there was absolutely no danger, until Cathcart played the ball away from all nearby team-mates, and watched in horror as Charles N’Zogbia pounced and bombed into the Blackpool half with half the opposition in his wake. Cathcart then completed his comedy masterclass by slipping on his backside in retreat, allowing Hugo Rodallega to make a diagonal run through the heart of the Blackpool defence, receive a slide-rule pass from N’Zogbia and drill across the advancing Gilks for the opening goal. Wigan got away with a slip up themselves, when a Crainey cross saw Alcaraz take a tumble as Campbell got a touch, but not a potent enough one to send it into the net as it drifted just wide. A tidy Wigan Athletic move saw Diame feed Charles N’Zogbia, who could only find the side netting, and Ian Holloway must have thought he would be making a half-time speech on how to recover from a goal down, before his talk got a lot tougher. It was another comedy of errors when a throw-in that should have been sent up the line found Charlie Adam short, who bizarrely surrendered what should have been a comfortable pass, to Charles N’Zogbia scenting blood. The French winger galloped forward and had both retreating Blackpool centre-backs with twisted blood as he made his way into the box, before brilliantly poking the ball wide of a stunned and flat-footed Gilks for a magnificent individual goal. You could almost hear the Tangerine despondency. Blackpool’s attempts to recover before the half ended were foiled when Al-Habsi dealt with a Grandin header comfortably. The second half saw the usually composed Gilks flap at an N’Zogbia cross-shot, and it was 3-0 when Diame was allowed to find room on the edge of the box to strike a shot that cannoned in off the luckless Neil Eardley. Blackpool continued their enviable home scoring record late on after Charlie Adam’s free-kick fell to Matty Phillips, who sent in a lovely low cross converted ahead of Gary Caldwell by the predatory DJ Campbell. Hot prospect Phillips later had a jinking run culminate in a decent shot, but Al-Habsi covered it, and Blackpool now suffer the inevitable consequence of their appalling run, as they sink down among the dead men. Can their insatiable optimism see them out again?

A ludicrous finale to this match saw Arsenal throw away yet another lead, as their long-suffering fans accepted they cannot win the title. The game began with such Arsenal dominance that it was difficult to foresee such a climax. Abou Diaby had already flicked a Nasri free-kick narrowly wide when Laurent Koscielny beat Jose Reina to a Van Persie corner; seeing his header bounce back off the crossbar. Van Persie himself was denied a superb volleyed goal by the linesman’s flag, while at the other end Luis Suarez bobbed and weaved an opening, but lost control at the point of shooting. When Fabio Aurelio was forced off with injury, Liverpool were forced into having two teenagers; John Flanagan and Jack Robinson; at full-back, a position which the Liverpool academy seems to produce for in abundance. The two seemed to be coping well, but in the second half the veteran Jamie Carragher suffered from heading the top of Flanagan’s head and knocking himself unconscious. This long stoppage led to the injury time which saw both goals. Suarez and Kuyt cut Arsenal’s defence to ribbons, but Suarez’s shot was well saved by Szczesny. An intricate Arsenal move saw Van Persie put in, but his shot was superbly dealt with by Reina. Finally, six minutes into stoppage time, Fabregas performed a drag-back inside the Liverpool box, bought hook line and sinker by the facially-challenged Jay Spearing, who took him down. Van Persie executed the perfect penalty, and the Gunners hoardes were in raptures. Little were they to know that a moment of foolishness from Emmanuel Eboue would surrender their short-lived lead in the eight minute of stoppage time. After Dirk Kuyt had almost caught out Sczczesny from the kick-off, the ball found its way into the Arsenal half . Lucas was fouled, and from the resultant free-kick, the same player chased a loose ball going away from goal, and Eboue stupidly barged into him as the Brazilian cynically stopped and bought the foul. Kuyt bagged the penalty, and Wenger got in a spat with Dalglish, as the game ended in farce. The Gunners fire blanks once again.

The battle of the Clarets ended with West Ham once again spilling into the gutter like a cheap bottle of plonk, while like a fine vintage, Villa get better as the season progresses, picking up vital points which should see them clear of danger. The Hammers were definitely happy after a couple of minutes, when a scramble from a corner culminated in Hitzlsperger nodding the ball back in for Robbie Keane, who spun and fired in from close range, after being played onside by the sluggish man on the post. Carlton Cole then took an awkward ball superbly on his chest, before swivelling and forcing a low save from Friedel. Darren Bent was aggrieved when he was denied a well-taken equaliser for an alleged push on Jakobsen, though it appeared as if the West Ham defender just failed to get off the ground early enough. David Dunne was then fortunate to get away with a typically clumsy last-man foul on Carlton Cole sans red card, and this looked a vital decision when Villa did equalise. Mark Noble fatally dithered in clearing inside his own box and was dispossessed. Ashley Young worked an opening and whipped in a peach of a cross which was dispatched via the head of Darren Bent. Bent then forced Rob Green into an excellent near post save, while Green had to be even more agile to tip a superbly bent free-kick from Ashley Young wide of the mark. Darren Bent then contrived to miss his usual sitter, when he made a pig’s ear out of a Kyle Walker cross. Carlton Cole had a chance when the ball bounced over Richard Dunne, but the England striker couldn’t convert. Villa looked to have earnt a draw, but they got their just rewards for attacking intent when Stewart Downing advanced in the last minute, cut inside his man and drilled at goal. Green saved but could only parry, and the ball was eventually picked up, turned and crossed by Ashley Young for Gabriel Agbonlahor to score a priceless last minute winner which lifts Villa as high as ninth; ending their relegation fears and renewing West Ham’s.

Sunderland continue to plummet, as they lost to a Birmingham side who are edging towards safety. Cameron Jerome was foiled in a one-on-one, before Sunderland almost scored. The tenacity of Lee Cattermole won the ball in the Birmingham box, and a scramble ensued, before the loose ball was hammered towards goal by Sessegnon, only to see Roger Johnson manipulate his body to block on the goal-line. Birmingham’s goal was a sucker-punch few saw coming, as the normally excellent Simon Mignolet boobed big time. Jerome flicked on a Foster hoof, and Mignolet clearly called for the ball as Bardsley attempted to shield. Mignolet did not get to the ball in time, and allowed Larsson to steal in and poke under his body as Bardsley chastised his goalkeeper. Asamoah Gyan curled a shot which was expertly tipped wide by Foster, while Jordan Henderson bent a shot just wide. Lee Cattermole forced a low save, and Barry Ferguson was forced to make another goal-line clearance as Turner attempted to force a corner in. The Sunderland pressure looked intolerable as Danny Wellbeck headed another corner narrowly over, but it was Birmingham who notched a second against the run of play, as Craig Gardner picked up a pass on the edge of the box and unleashed a swerving left-foot drive past Mignolet’s despairing dive. This appeared to knock the stuffing out of the Mackems, and Birmingham could have had a third as substitute Alexander Hleb broke and slipped a lovely through-ball to Matt Derbyshire, who showed the advantage of looking up, as he failed to and scuffed an embarrassing effort well wide.

West Brom finally lost under Roy Hodgson, to a Chelsea side who look most clinical when their season has already faded into obscurity. The Baggies began bravely, after Morrison laid back to Mulumbu, who cleared the crossbar. An intricate set of passes under pressure saw Jerome Thomas fend off three defenders and play through John Terry for Peter Odemwingie, who dinked the ball lovingly over the advancing Cech for a cracking opener. Unfortunately for the home fans, Scott Carson was in one of those moods where an inexplicable clanger is just around the corner. Cashley Cole stabbed the ball wide for Salomon Kalou on the overlap, and his low cross should have been dealt with, though Carson misjudged it spectacularly, missing it even at full stretch, and when a desperate Shorey’s attempted clearance only fell invitingly for Didier Drogba, the writing was on the wall. West brom’s lead had lasted less than five minutes. Less than five minutes after that goal, Chelsea were in front. Perhaps the Baggies were caught feeling sorry for themselves, as Drogba rode a challenge and fired in a shot which was spilled by Carson, who then did not cover himself in glory as Kalou struck the loose ball across him and in. Carson finally did something right when he dealt with a stinging Lampard free-kick, but when a Chelsea break saw Florent Malouda lay back to Frank Lampard, this time the England midfielder took a touch and drilled in before two defenders could challenge. Didier Drogba then proved his worth at the opposite end by clearing off the line, while Salomon Kalou went from the fantastic to farcical, when his attempt at a diving header failed miserably. He almost returned to fantastic with a lovely swivel and shot, but the effort incredibly bounced into the ground off a defender, and back up onto the crossbar. Everyone’s favourite target of mockery came on, and immediately had to deal with the derision that follows when you think you have finally broken your scoring duck, only to look up and see the linesman’s flag taunting you. Chris Brunt could only direct a fantastic headed chance straight at Petr Cech in reply, before it got even more embarrassing for Fernando, as his team-mates were obviously doing everything to get him a goal. A Malouda free-kick was laid to Torres in space as West Brom went to sleep, but the Spaniard completed his afternoon with a horrendous miskick.

The injury-crippled Everton keep on trucking, as they picked up another fantastic victory at home to relegation candidates Blackburn. Beckford and Neville had both seen efforts saved, before French youngster Magaye Gueye cracked an effort just over. The Toffees’ hero of the hour has recently been Leon Osman, and the diminutive midfielder received a short corner, beat a statuesque Emerton and drove a well-placed shot across Robinson, which took a nick off Samba’s toes as it flew in. Everton’s second arrived when young Phil Jones foolishly whipped Seamus Coleman’s leg away inside the box, and Leighton Baines converted the penalty adeptly. Blackburn looked poor throughout, and their best chance was thrown away, when Baines and Jagielka crashed into each other and the ball fell invitingly to Morten Gamst Pedersen, who somehow volleyed wide with the goal at his mercy. Rovers continue to drop, Everton continue to rise.

No change for a change

No change at the top or bottom in one of the more predictable weekends of Premiership action so far.

Manchester United comfortably brushed off a Fulham side who have yet to shake off their reputation as easy touches on the road. Fulham actually began the game the stronger, with Chelsea loanee Gael Kakuta producing a classy backheel turn and snapshot which was well saved by Tomas Kusczak, while Bobby Zamora screwed a chance set up by a rare Scholes error well wide. The Cottagers were made to rue this profligacy, when a superb move saw the home side open the scoring. Dimitar Berbatov backheeled to Nani and got on his bike. Nani dipped and swerved past three men, before playing a one-two in a hugely tight area with Anderson, and in the same movement beautifully slipping the ball through for Berbatov to slot home. Replays showed a marginal offside decision, but the Bulgarian was allowed the benefit of the doubt. Anderson dragged his effort wide after being put in by Berbatov, but it was 2-0 just after the half-hour, with Patrice Evra superbly setting Nani away, who duly rounded the goalkeeper and attempted to lob the goal-line defenders. The first defender saved the goal, but only delayed it a second, as it was nodded over the line by the well-placed Valencia. The rest of the match was remarkably languid, bar an Anderson effort beaten out by Schwarzer, and a cracking rising drive from Eidur Gudjohnsen which was fantastically saved, though not noticed by the officials, by Kusczak. Finally, Zamora found Chris Baird rampaging from full-back, but he could only clear the crossbar with his effort. United looked comfortable without Rooney, suspended of course for swearing into a Sky Sports camera after netting a hat-trick against West Ham. A few ‘experts’ have suggested his behaviour was ‘unprecedented’, though they must have very short memories:

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/european/drogba-rages-as-chelsea-crash-out-in-blaze-of-fury-1680489.html

A tremendous spectacle at the Stadium of Light ended with Roy Hodgson celebrating a crucial victory, at the same time as extending his unbeaten stewardship. The Baggies’ board might have shown grotesque disloyalty to Roberto Di Matteo, but they have partially redeemed this with their choice of successor. Hodgson has instilled a defensive nous into West Brom, apparently without compromising much of their attacking verve, and in doing so has almost guided them to safety with six games remaining. Meanwhile, Sunderland’s appalling run of one point from seven matches became one from eight. In fact, since Darren Bent left, they have amassed just four points from a possible twenty-seven. It all seemed so promising when Elmohamedy pressured Nicky Shorey into heading a Gyan cross into his own net. But West Brom are made of stern stuff these days, and they came roaring back with a close-range equaliser from Peter Odemwingie. Sunderland shrugged this off when Kieran Richardson laid off a free-kick for Phil Bardsley, with the aid of a slight deflection, to unleash into the top corner. Mackems fans were gleeful at the break, but it was all to be turned to despair in the second period, as only the Baggies came out bouncing. Some patient passing and movement around the edge of the Sunderland box saw a series of intricate one-twos let in Youssuf Mulumbu to stab cutely past Mignolet with the outside of his boot. A Brunt free-kick was nodded down by Olsson to force a magnificent point-blank save from Mignolet, before another patient and precise build-up saw substitute Andy Reid slide the ball down the line for Odemwingie, who pulled back for Paul Schnarner to ghost in between defenders and guide the ball into the net for a glorious winner.

Liverpool confirmed their renaissance under Kenny Dalglish by wiping the floor with Champions’ League place contenders Mancitti. Andy Carroll scored a brace, putting his ‘makeweight’ Fernando Torres in the shade, while for City it was the worst possible circumstance before their FA Cup semi-final against city rivals United, as Carlos Tevez limped off with a hamstring injury. Uruguayan schemer Luis Suarez had already seen an effort from him tipped against the post by Joe Hart, but when Raul Meireles’ long-range stinger thudded back off Vincent Kompany, Carroll thundered the loose ball home from the edge of the box; with his weaker foot no less. Kompany’s evening got worse, as once again he deflected a cross right to into the stride of a Liverpool player, this time Dirk Kuyt, who ran onto the gift and slid it precisely into the corner of Hart’s net. City’s misery was compounded when Meireles sent a searching cross into the box, and Aleksandr Kolarov could only head onto the muscular challenge of Carroll, whose head guided it sweetly into the net past a despairing Hart. City were bereft of inspiration, even when hothead Balotelli came on for Tevez and then, humiliatingly, was substituted himself for hatchet man Nigel De Jong. Perhaps Mancini felt he needed to tighten up? Yaya Toure produced perhaps the best effort for the away side with a 30 yard rocket that Reina kept out well, but Kuyt narrowly nodded a cross wide and Carroll narrowly over at the death, to leave the crowd in no doubt as to whom had bossed the game.

Tottenham ensured they have not fallen out of contention for a Champions’ League berth next season, as they beat Stoke City 3-2 in a pulsating match at White Hart Lane. Perhaps the most incredible statistic that Match of the Day pulled out was that Stoke had actually shared 53% of possession, against a home side whose game is based on incisive passing, so the route one-ers seemed to adapt their game adeptly. Even the two Potters goals were superb examples of flowing open play. Gareth Bale had already tested Asmir Begovic, before Roman Pavlyuchenko lifted the ball cutely over the goalkeeper, only to find Wilkinson diligently guarding his goal. Unfortunately for Stoke, the resultant short corner was not pressed, and Pavlyuchenko swung in a delightful cross for Crouch to head in virtually on his knees. Just seven minutes later and it was two. Luka Modric instigated a move and received a clever return from Pavlyuchenko, before cantering through and nutmegging Begovic for a fabulous goal. Last week, Jonathan Walters nicked the ball on the halfway line, before racing clear and scoring an incredible goal. This time, Matty Etherington was determined to prove he could do it just as well. Again nicking possession on halfway, Etherington’s Ferrari steamed clear of Huddlestone’s tractor, before beating Gomes from a seemingly impossible angle. The away fans were in raptures and roared their team on to level, but it was Spurs who maintained their two goal cushion. The ball was raked from right to left to Assou-Ekotto, who sent a searching ball cross-field to his fellow full-back Corluka. The Croatian gave the ball to Huddlestone, whose floated cross found Crouch lurking with intent. The beanpole did the business, and Spurs were once again in control, but before half-time the game was flipped on its head once more. Gareth Bale proved he can do wrong, as his dithering on halfway saw him dispossessed with a classic tackle from Wilkinson. Kenwyne Jones took the slack, and before Spurs could compose themselves, the Trinidadian belted a tremendous 25 yard shot in off the crossbar. The fans could not believe what they were seeing, and unfortunately that was it for goals, though the second half was not lacking in incident. Stoke had a clanger of a chance to take a point, but when Jones’ low cross was touched by Gomes, it hit Walters four yards out with an open net and came off the post. Pavlyuchenko’s diving header from a devious Bale cross went inches wide, while Youned Kaboul was bemoaning the officials, when he scored what he felt was a legitimate goal from a corner; appearing to head the ball out of Begovic’s grasp with no foul. A Pavlyuchenko stonger was beaten out by Begovic, and Jones responded in kind with his own vicious effort, but 3-2 it remained. Crouch redeemed.

West Ham’s revival was killed off mercilessly by Bolton Wanderers, at a ground which has never been particularly kind to the Hammers. They had never won at the Reebok, and they never looked like doing so this time. Daniel Sturridge was a class apart for the Trotters, and his relationship with both Kevin Davies and Johan Elmander created umpteen opportunities. That he didn’t claim the matchball was something of a mystery. After Sturridge had spun and fired an early effort just wide, Johan Elmander helped on a Davies flick, and the youngster controlled in an instant, switched feet and guided it beautifully into the net with no backlift. A brilliant Martin Petrov centre found the smallest man on the field; Chung-Yong Lee, who nevertheless headed in expertly for 2-0. Sturridge brought the house down with his second, as he picked the ball up in a seemingly harmless position, out on the left touchline. He then proceeded to move across the box unchallenged, before cutting niftily outside Scott Parker and drilling low into the net with his left foot. He must have thought his hat-trick was secure when he cantered through later on, but was foiled by a last-ditch challenge from James Tomkins. West Ham still showed signs of life, and Jaaskelainen had to be at his best to save a Demba Ba Header, while at the other end, Sturridge’s next chance of a hat-trick was spurned, when he couldn’t clear Green with his attempted lob. Demba Ba again was West Ham’s most potent threat, and slipped as he sent a shot cannoning off the post. Finally Sturridge once again showed the Hammers defence a clean pair of heels, but could only fire his cross-shot wide of the post.

With West Ham losing, Wolves could have done with a result at home to an unpredictable Everton side again shorn of any experience on the bench, and youngster Maguaye Gueye making an appearance. The Old Golds gave their fans something to cheer first, when Stephen Fletcher had a header cleared off the line by Leon Osman. It was the first action of a man-of-the-match display from the diminutive midfielder. Wolves felt they should have had a penalty when Sylvain Ebanks-Blake wriggled into the box, and went down under a dubious challenge from Phil Jagielka, though they both had firm hold of each other’s shirts. Everton took the lead somewhat against the run of play, when a perfect cross into the ‘corridor of uncertainty’ between goalkeeper and defenders saw Jermaine Beckford gambling and running across his man to nod into the net. Guedioura replied by bending a good effort narrowly wide, and Osman superbly turned Berra before sending in a dangerous cross for Beckford to head powerfully at goal which Hennessey saved brilliantly. A goalmouth scramble at the other end saw Wolves only fail to score because of a magnificent saving block from a combination of Jagielka and Osman, and this proved crucial when they scored the killer second. George Elokobi had almost scored an own-goal, and in the aftermath Jermaine Beckford picked up the pieces; holding the ball up and laying back to Phil Neville, who struck a rising drive that took a nick on its way into the top corner. Youngter Gueye was sent through soon after, but ran out of legs as he approached goal under pressure, and could only poke an effort that was saved by Hennessey’s legs. The third goal was a collective disaster for Wolves before half-time. Stephen Fletcher won a 50-50 on halfway, but Jamie O’Hara left it for a team-mate, only to see the loose ball seized upon by Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, who advanced a few yards before swerving a belting shot into Hennessey’s top corner for a glorious third. The Molineuk faithful let their team know in no uncertain terms that this was not acceptable. The second half saw an improvement of sorts, though efforts from Henry, Guedioura and a near own-goal from Jagielka all fell short of the target Wolves needed, and David Moyes celebrated a fantastic victory, despite his threadbare squad reaching breaking point.

Another storming game at Bloomfield Road, another demoralising defeat for ‘Ollie’s Tangerine army. Blackpool’s vibrant attacking play was countered by the kind of laissez-faire defending that Arsenal wish they could face every week. A raking crossfield ball from a Cesc Fabregas who couldn’t believe his space found Robin Van Persie on the left, and he was given adequate time to comfortably deliver a low cross for a completely un-noticed Abou Diaby to glide into the box and finish. Keeping tight after a goal is an alien concept to Blackpool, and so less than three minutes had elapsed before Emmanuel Eboue of all people had exchanged passes with Wilshere before crashing the ball into the net with his left foot before a challenge could be made. Fabregas’ favourite piece was the chipped dink over the top of an incredibly high Blackpool offside line, and it let in Samir Nasri to swivel and volley brilliantly past Kingson, but his effort bounced off the outside of the post. A carbon copy Fabregas through-ball then let in Robin Van Persie, though this time Kingson had made himself a makeshift sweeper. This delayed the striker enough to have to look for Diaby in support, and the big midfielder dithered and tried to walk the ball in; inevitably losing out. Blackpool’s offside trap finally worked, when a Squillaci flick was volleyed in from close range by Van Persie, only to be correctly flagged. Blackpool’s attempts to reduce the arrears before half-time were thwarted, when somehow a combination of Lehmann’s legs and Nasri’s composure cleared a scrambled effort off the line.

The second half finally saw Blackpool take the game to Arsenal, and they reduced the deficit quickly. Jack Wilshere made a scything foul on halfway, but the referee waved play on as Blackpool launched a lightning counter-attack. The ball was slid superbly into DJ Campbell in the box, who rounded Lehmann and was wiped out. Luckily for the German, the referee once again allowed play to continue, avoiding a red card but allowing Gary Taylor-Fletcher to slot in the loose ball. Blackpool then took charge and had Arsenal under the cosh. The referee, who had up til then handled the game well, then made an absolute howler, when Blackpool worked the ball to Taylor-Fletcher two yards inside the box. As Koscielny approached he nudged the ball across to a team-mate, but was clattered by Koscielny’s ill-judged slide well after the ball had gone. The referee appeared to only have eyes on the ball and did not award the cast-iron spot-kick. Keith Southern met a devious cross at the near post from point-blank range, but could only nod across goal, and Blackpool lamented these moments, as Arsenal sealed the game. Diaby brilliantly held off a challenge in his own half before feeding Fabregas on halfway, who flicked expertly to Theo Walcott, who turned on the afterburners and crossed low for Van Persie to finish. There was one more chance from Campbell saved by Lehmann, but this was a tale of what could have been for Blackpool.

Chelsea somehow ground out an ugly win over a team they beat by eight goals in this fixture last season. Wigan offered little in attack, but held out remarkably, until the referee bizarrely allowed a goal which relied on the £50 million substitute Fernando Torres sticking his arm right into Al-Habsi’s face and not getting anything on the ball. Florent Malouda eventually bundled the ball into the net, but it was a shocking decision. Otherwise, Al-Habsi made excellent stops from Malouda, Drogba, and late on a superb reflex save from the one great effort from Torres. Chelsea loanee Franco Di Santo had the best effort for Wigan, who nevertheless must have expected a defeat here. Their lack of goal threat however will cause much consternation amongst the Latics’ support in their increasingly desperate bid for survival.

Two of the uglier sisters in the Premiership pantomime met at Ewood Park, and it ended in a stale stalemate. Lee Bowyer opened the account with a minging goal; bundling in on the line from Cameron Jerome’s centre. Sebastien Larsson sent a free-kick thudding against the inside of Robinson’s post, while Craig Gardner cleared a Rovers effort off the line. Birmingham must have thought they were heading for a half-time lead, but after a Roger Johnson head injury had meant seven minutes of additional time, Liam Ridgewell’s head was clearly already in the dressing room, as he was caught napping and dispossessed by Junior Hoilett, who proceeded to round Foster and score on the stroke of the whistle. The second period saw Hoilett again work his magic, but his dinked cross could only be headed onto the top of the bar by Roque Santa Cruz. It is a mystery worthy of Sherlock Holmes as to what has happened to Santa Cruz’s ability. Perhaps he has left it in the same place as Fernando Torres.

Gerard Houllier breathed a hefty sigh of relief as his Villa team nicked a vital victory against a Newcastle side who obliterated them 6-0 earlier in the season. Of course that team had Andy Carroll, and Newcastle were also missing their defensive midfield lynchpin Chekh Tiote, their goalscoring midfielder Kevin Nolan, and their next most potent strikers Leon Best and Shola Ameobi, although they did possess ‘England’s best midfielder’ in Joey Barton. Villa’s goal came after Mr Modest had conceded a cheap free-kick to Ashley Young, who picked himself up to deliver a whipped masterpiece of a free-kick which James Collins just had to run across his man to meet and help on its way into the corner of the net. Villa had the chance to extend that lead, but Darren Bent does what he tends to do sometimes; miss a howling sitter, after an inviting floated cross from Downing left the goal at his mercy. Bent then made up for it after Jean Makoun had turned his man brilliantly and sent in a perfect pass for the England man to spin and find the net, though it was wrongly adjudged to be offside. Newcastle’s best chances fell to Peter Lovenkrands, who was denied by the continued excellence of Brad Friedel. Gabriel Agbonlahor tested Steve Harper at the other end, but in the end it was the narrowest of margins for a fragile-looking Villa, who live to fight another day.

Blue air green grass

A stirring second-half comeback and the air turned blue, as Wayne Rooney found his shooting boots to gun down the Hammers and increase Manchester United’s lead at the summit of the Premier League to six points, as Arsenal stumbled to an unlikely goalless home draw to Blackburn.

Upton Park has always proved a troublesome travel spot for Manchester United, having lost the title there twice amongst other results. It looked very much as if history would repeat itself when West Ham raced into a two goal first half lead, chiefly down to another inept display from this unpredictable United side. Within eleven minutes, a long ball from Thomas Hitzlsperger caught Patrice Evra on his heels, and as he raced goalside of Carlton Cole, the England striker flicked the ball up onto the Frenchman’s raised arm for a penalty. Mark Noble coped with the pressure admirably, stroking the penalty expertly low into the corner of the net. West Ham looked confident, and when Carlton Cole deployed a double stepover, Nemanja Vidic’s legs turned to jelly and he reacted by lunging to bring down Cole right on the line of the penalty box. Noble netted one of the finest penalties you will ever see the second time, hitting the ‘postage stamp’ of the opposite corner. United finally came out of their daze, with Rooney firing in a low cross which Park Ji-Sung met fiercely from point-blank range, though Rob Green was in the right place to parry it brilliantly. The Hammers went in for the break two goals to the good, and United were not showing much to suggest a revival was on the cards. The second period saw Javier Hernandez sent on for Patrice Evra, and, incredibly, Ryan Giggs dropping to play at left-back. Being Ryan Giggs, he then proceeded to make the position his own. Nemanja Vidic continued as he left off, this time hauling Demba Ba down as last man. Fortunately for the big Serb, the ball’s bounce favoured Kuszcak rather than Ba, thus saving him from a sending off. He really tested Lee Mason’s resolve minutes later though, when he made another clumsy foul on Ba which a lot of referees would have cautioned. United were displaying more purpose after the introduction of Dimitar Berbatov, and within a minute of his arrival, Michael Carrick was scythed down on the edge of the box by penalty hero Noble. Wayne Rooney stepped up to whip the ball into the corner of Green’s net, though incredibly West Ham’s wall did not jump, which most likely would have prevented the goal. Berbatov was looking full of finesse, and his lithe trickery saw him almost profit, but for Green’s alertness, low at his near post. The waves of attack were mounting, and when Luis Antonio Valencia cut back onto his left foot and coaxed a low cross in, Wanye Rooney took an immaculate first touch to get the ball out of his feet and leave Da Costa and Upson reeling, setting himself for his second; a superb drive into the corner of the net for the equaliser. West Ham visibly sank, and when Matthew Upson stupidly went to ground in reaction to Fabio’s burst into the box, he got up just in time to see the ball strike his arm. A bit harsh, but Wayne Rooney thrashed home the spot-kick before indulging in some naughty language directly into the Sky Sports cameras. Didier Drogba eat your heart out. The final few minutes saw some West Ham resistance, but United ended the contest with five minutes to go. A languid Berbatov held the ball up until Giggs arrived on the scene, and when the makeshift veteran left-back drove into the box and thumped the ball across, Matthew Upson was nutmegged and Hernandez reacted in a split second to slide the loose ball in.

Arsenal dropped yet more crucial points and even failed to score at home against a Blackburn side in freefall. Theo Walcott nearly made a difference early on, being denied by Robinson and almost forcing Ryan Nelsen into an own goal. Samir Nasri then clashed heads with Nelsen and received a lump the size of an ostrich egg. Despite his painful injury, the toothy Frenchman was involved in an excellent move which culminated in a low cross which Jack Wilshere unbelievably put wide from the centre of the box with time and space. While you expect Arsenal to miss a shedload of chances, you are always also expecting Laurent Koscielny or Manuel Almunia to produce a howler at the other end. It was the Manuel show this time, as first he shovelled a routine catch from a nicked Olsson effort a fraction wide, and was then easily beaten to the punch from a Robinson clout by the towering Stephen N’Zonzi, which again dropped just wide of the post. Gunners fans were chewing their fingernails to the knuckle, until N’Zonzi got himself sent off for a stupid stamp tackle on Koscielny. At this point it seemed Rovers had surrendered their chance of a result, but despite Wenger throwing on the aerial threats of Bendtner and Chamakh, Arsenal couldn’t make a breakthrough. A Bendtner header found Salgado dutifully guarding his post, and Robin Van Persie leapt into Chamakh’s path to head a fantastic chance well over. And that was that.

Stoke finally put up a fight against Chelsea at the Britannia Stadium, and could quite feasibly have come away with a win. They took the game to Chelsea and opened the scoring with a magnificent goal completely outside the normal Stoke handbook. Jonathan Walters nicked a loose ball away from a statuesque Luis on halfway, and galloped the length of the half, before showing composure in cutting outside the challenge of Essien and firing low past Terry and Cech inside the near post. It was a special moment, and typically the Potters faithful erupted. Predictably there came a response, and Asmir Begovic had to be at his best to deny a diving header from Ashley Cole, though he was wrongly judged onside. The goalkeeper brilliantly kept out a Lampard volley, while Nicolas Anelka couldn’t readjust in time to convert the rebound. The Frenchman made amends before half-time by coaxing in an inviting cross which Didier Drogba dived to head in at Begovic’s near post. The second half swung one way then the other. First Jermaine Pennant was denied at the near post by the long legs of Cech, before Ramires set Drogba through. The Ivorian coaxed a shot across Begovic, only to see it clip the foot of the post and come away. If fans thought this was the signal for one way traffic they couldn’t have been more wrong. A Stoke free-kick most would have expected to be clipped high into the box was laid off to Mark Wilson, whose blockbusting effort had to be tipped onto the crossbar by a full-length Cech; a world class save which was incredibly bettered from the resultant corner. The dead ball was clipped in and attacked from point-blank range by Robert Huth, but his belting header once again saw a superlative reflex save from Cech; lunging an arm out to once again help a certain goal onto the crossbar and away. After these two incidents, it was inevitable that Chelsea went up the other end and almost won it, with a corner falling for Drogba retrieving and spinning to thunder a shot against the crossbar and away again, though the move eventually led to Essien getting away a shot well dealt with by Begovic. Both teams within a whisker of grabbing the victory, but the best chance was last, when a lovely stood-up Etherington cross saw Cech fail to reach and find Ricardo Fuller with the whole goal to aim at a few yards out, but the big Jamaican somehow nodded back across goal rather than in. This game was seemingly destined to be a stalemate.

Mancitti strengthened their grip on a Champions League berth with a five goal demolition of a hapless Sunderland. Adam Johnson exchanged passes with Yaya Toure and scored an excellent opener, before Carlos Tevez proved too elusive for Phil Bardsley, who fouled him for a penalty which the Argentinian duly converted, despite Simon Mignolet’s best efforts. Sunderland finally mustered a form of resistance when Asamoah Gyan flicked the ball up and volleyed narrowly wide from the edge of the box. Headcase Mario Balotelli skinned John Mensah and tested the reflexes of Mignolet once more, before a lovely Tevez ball to Balotelli was blocked, only for the loose ball to be stabbed past Mignolet by the lurking Silva. City’s fourth was borne of a bit of a scramble, with the ball eventually driven across by Kolarov and slid in with his thigh by Patrick Vieira, despite Mignolet’s astonishing agility almost preventing it crossing the line. Balotelli’s swerving, dipping effort was then beaten out by the Belgian to deny him again, but City were not to be denied. Lee Cattermole was harried into playing a ludicrous backpass across his box, and Yaya Toure strode between centre-backs to finish assuredly. There was still time for Elmohamedy to somehow head a Zenden free-kick wide when it looked easier to score, and for Mignolet to win his ongoing duel with Balotelli by superbly tipping the Italian’s glorious free-kick safely over the crossbar. No goal for Balotelli, but a supreme performance from City to worry Tottenham fans particularly.

Liverpool fans always seem to be quick to scorn Roy Hodgson, but he came back to haunt them at the Hawthorns, where has now presided over a 5-match unbeaten run since his arrival, compensating somewhat for the West Brom board’s appalling lack of loyalty displayed to Roberto Di Matteo. Despite the taunts from the away end, and the fact that the dream duo of Carroll and Suarez were unleashed from the start together for the first time, West Brom did not play like a team about to be potentially relegated. Nor did they play anything like as negatively as Hodgson’s Liverpool were oft-accused of. Liverpool did make the early running, and when Andy Carroll nodded down to Dirk Kuyt just four yards out, former Liverpool goalkeeper Scott Carson earned his corn with a great reflex stop, before Kuyt’s follow-up could only clip the bar on its way over. At the other end, a teasing Jerome Thomas centre was dangerously backheaded by the clumsy Skrtel; bringing a fine diving catch from Jose Reina. Reina then saved well from Cox, but Liverpool were clearly unsettled by losing both Glen Johnson and Daniel Agger early on to injury. Despite this, they took the lead early in the second half from a set-piece, with Skrtel heading into the unguarded corner. West Brom did not let their heads go down, and Reina was forced into action again, after a goalmouth scramble saw Chris Brunt fire straight at the Liverpool goalkeeper. Just after the hour the pressure told, when Sotirios Kyrgiakos made a pig’s ear out of holding off Odemwingie as he chased a long ball, bringing the Nigerian down for a blatant penalty, converted expertly by Chris Brunt. Odemwingie began to run riot, and thumped in a shot parried at Reina’s near post. The next time he went shoulder-to-shoulder with Kyrgiakos, the Greek once again turned it into a tragedy, this time collapsing under an aerial challenge for the bouncing ball as Odemwingie took control before expertly turning back away from Reina’s hopeless lunge and being wiped out. This time Brunt even more emphatically belted the penalty in to send the Hawthorns faithful into delirium. Evil Egg Skrtel missed a sitter of a header before Luis Suarez drew a cracking save from Carson. Minutes later, with the game in the balance, Suarez again found a route to goal and deftly lobbed Carson, only for Jara to heroically head off the line, even with his own player sending him careering into the net.

The most common fixture in the English top flight ended in an entertaining, if unsatisfying, draw. Incredibly, Everton did not possess a minute of Premier League experience on their bench. They could have taken the lead early on when Kyle Walker’s dopey backheader let in Jermaine Beckford, but his shot just forced an excellent save from Brad Friedel. Tony Hibbert’s brilliant lunge blocked a goal-bound shot from Nigel Reo-Coker, before Everton took the lead. Diniyar Bilyaletdinov won the ball in midfield and played in Leon Osman, who zipped past James Collins and nudged the ball past Friedel. Villa equalised when Stewart Downing creeped down the right and was unforgiveably allowed to cut back on his left foot, before sliding the ball across to the lurking Bent, who crashed it into the roof of the net. Kyle Walker continued his bad afternoon when he skied a glorious chance from close-range, and Osman did likewise at the opposite end from a deep Bilyaletdinov cross. The most contentious moment came on 66 minutes, when Jermaine Beckford beat a tight offside trap to thunder the ball against the underside of the crossbar and in. The linesman didn’t have a hope of judging it accurately of course, which is why for the millionth time we point out that goal-line technology is the only way forward. Brad Friedel was of course more than happy to play on, and, while Everton were still feeling sorry for themselves, Ashley Young played a delightful ball through to Bent, who tucked it away as Howard careered out to meet him. If that was a harsh injustice on the Toffees, they salvaged a draw through a harsh injustice themselves, as Phil Jagielka shamelessly threw himself over as Jean Makoun pulled out of an attempted tackle inside the penalty area. Leighton Baines penalty could not have been directed closer to the goalkeeper, but went in for a probably fair draw.

Newcastle finally laid to rest the 3pm home kick-off winless hoodoo with a 4-1 demolition job of a toothless Wolves. Kevin Nolan made a brilliantly anticipatory run off of Shola Ameobi, and got his reward when he received the target man’s knockdown and finished for 1-0. Ameobi proved his physical worth again when Lovenkrands stood a cross up to the back post, and the striker outjumped the hulking Elokobi to head home. The second half continued in much the same vein, with Lovenkrands rounding Hennessey but only able to hit the outside of the post from an acute angle. Fabricio Coloccinni showed a touch of class coming forward and setting up Barton to cross for a close-range Lovenkrands finish, while new England boy Matt Jarvis provided his usual assist, this time for Sylvain Ebanks-Blake to score for a potential grandstand finish. Unfortunately for Mick McCarthy it proved a false dawn. Stephen Fletcher ruined their big chance of a comeback, when he met O’Hara’s peach of a free-kick, only to head it against the foot of the post with the whole goal to aim at. Still Wolves pressed, but James Perch cleared another Ebanks-Blake effort off the line, and Jonas Gutierrez took the pressure off once and for all when he strode forward almost unopposed, and bent a cracking shot inside the post to seal a resounding victory for the Toon.

Every neutral in the country is surely feeling a little tense as every man’s second favourite team Blackpool continue their slide to oblivion. The Premier League has rarely welcomed such an entertaining and goal-laden team as the Tangerines, but despite their rip-roaring first half of the season, they have now won just once in eleven matches, and that is Hull City 2009 all over again. But Hull did just stay up, which could be the best omen they have. ‘Ollie deployed James Beattie up front but probably wished he hadn’t when his braindead backpass let in Bobby Zamora, who strode past defenders as if they weren’t there and launched a rising drive with his weaker foot that nearly took the net out of the ground. Damien Duff had already had an effort pushed against the post, and the Irishman created a simple second, when his deadly free-kick was delivered onto the head of Zamora, who duly dispatched it into the corner. A brief Blackpool retort was thwarted, when Mark Schwarzer was beaten to the punch by Brett Ormerod, only to see line defender extraordinaire Chris Baird once again mop up at the last. A rare Hangeland error was seized upon by James Beattie, but he could only find the outside of the woodwork. Fulham made the game safe in the 72^nd minute, when a Danny Murphy free-kick was headed onto the post by Clint Dempsey, turned back by Hangeland and bundled home by Dickson Etuhu. Blackpool missed even the chance of a consolation, when Gary Taylor-Fletcher seized on a Schwarzer spill, only to slide it wide of the post.

Birmingham eased their relegation fears slightly with a timely win over Bolton, courtesy of the timeless predatory nous of Kevin Phillips. It’s been a mystery to most outside St Andrews as to why McLeish seems reticent to play Phillips, as he clearly still has it, and the one thing Birmingham are shortest of is goals. Cameron Jerome might run a lot, but you don’t stay up by covering the most blind alleys. Phillips chested down an awkward bounce from a corner, and spun to fire home after four minutes. This was added to by an excellent finish from Craig Gardner, arriving on cue as ever. In between these, Daniel Sturridge was denied thrice by Ben Foster’s excellence, though he did concede when Johan Elmander superbly adjusted to volley in a Kevin Davies knockdown. Birmingham then got the jitters, but had Foster to save once more at the death, when he displayed supreme athleticism in throwing his hands up to send Steinsson’s bullet header over the bar.

Tottenham scored nine in one game against Wigan last season, and yet this season they have scored none in either match. The Latics took advantage of Spurs’ minds clearly being on other things, as Victor Moses threatened throughout. One of his crosses found Rodallega, but a combination of Dawson and Bassong blocked the Colombian’s effort. The other bright spot for Wigan was another promising cameo from Connor Sammon, who forced a good save from Gomes, and then sent in a delicious cross fractionally shy of being converted by Franco Di Santo. Wigan will kick themselves once again though for not finishing any chances; a habit which may put paid to their Premiership stay.

Compression

Last gasp wins at the very top and bottom of the table meant once again that nobody can predict results from one week to the next. Wigan’s winner was absolutely imperative for their survival chances, and compresses the league once again, leaving the entire bottom half separated by just six points. The bottom club’s tally of 30 points at this stage also seems to be a high for a 38 game season.

Manchester United breathed a collective sigh of relief after finishing off plucky Bolton only with an 88^th minute winner, after Jussi Jaaskelainen had attempted to gather a Nani shot into his body; allowing it to bounce out to the lurking Berbatov, who scooped it into the net via Jaaskelainen’s desperate hand. United were chronically undermanned in defence once again, this time picking the always shaky Johnny Evans at centre-back with Chris Smalling. The Red Devils started with the flourishing Rooney-Hernandez tandem up front, and Hernandez was furiously protesting for a penalty early on, when his swivel and shot bounced up and away off the hand off Gary Cahill. A superb swivelling volley from Rooney was well dealt with by Jaaskelainen, while a Kevin Davies effort was brilliantly blocked by the lunging Carrick; launching a counter culminating in Rooney almost finding his strike partner but for the intervention of David Wheater. Dimitar Berbatov came on for Hernandez, and was thwarted from a one-on-one by a magnificent last-ditch sliding tackle from Gary Cahill. Wayne Rooney cut inside two challenges and stung Jasskelainen’s hands, while Bolton missed their best chance of the game when a lovely cross found Matt Taylor on his own in the middle of the box. He could only direct his free header tamely at Van der Sar, and the rest, as they say, is history. Johnny Evans later compounded Fergie’s defensive woes by getting himself sent off after opening a gash in Stuart Holden’s knee. To be fair, it was a 50-50 ball, but Evans’ studs faced Holden and went through the ball to catch him badly, so there were few complaints from United.

Arsenal lost ground in the title race but also breathed a collective sigh of relief that Manuel Almunia once again did his Manuel from Fawlty Towers impression and they got away with a point from a game they were two down in. The game started brilliantly for the home side, as Stephen Reid headed in a corner practically unchallenged on three minutes. The Gunners fired a broadside when Robin Van Persie rattled the Baggies’ crossbar, but Aaron Ramsay was smothered out on the rebound. A lovely West Brom move saw Marek Cech send in a low cross that was agonisingly stabbed wide on the stretch by Chris Brunt, but the home fans were in raptures just before the hour mark, when a hopeful punt bounced just beyond the retreating Squillaci, with Odemwingie on his shoulder. There appeared to be little danger, until from out of nowhere Almunia raced into the picture; careering out of his box only to find his path to the ball understandably blocked by his own defender. He made a token shove to get Squillaci out of the way, only to find Odemwingie was the one he should have been shoving. The Nigerian gleefully cashed in on the farce to leave the Arsenal teams collectively cupping their heads in their hands, while Almunia had no place to hide. Fortunately for the gaffe-prone Spaniard, his team got him partially out of jail Twelve minutes later, Andrei Arshavin exchanged passes in a tight area with Chamakh and thrashed his return ball into the net. Eight minutes after this, the Russian again was heavily involved; brilliantly outwitting two men on the touchline before whipping in a cross which Nicklas Bendtner flicked back at the back post. Abdoulaye Meite got his feet in a tangle and Robin Van Persie tackled through him to score the equaliser. Sebastien Squillaci later affected a great block on Marc-Antoine Fortune, while Carson saved well from Clichy. Meite partially made amends for his mistake at the death by blocking a Chamakh swivel to preserve their well-earned draw.

Chelsea got a measure of revenge over Mancitti with a comfortable victory at Stamford Bridge, while Edin Dzeko is no nearer proving he is worth anything like £30 million. Someone who has proven to be worth that fee; Carlos Tevez, was missing, and, as usual, City suffered in front of goal. Someone else with a hefty fee also suffered in front of goal, and we all know who that is. Nigel De Jong affected a superb crunching tackle on Torres as he shaped to shoot, and Vincent Kompany was once again imperious. Chelsea curiously started with both Anelka and Drogba on the bench, and Salomon Kalou proved he is as profligate as they come; spurning chance after chance. Branislav Ivanovic thought he had opened the scoring with a thumping close-range header, only for that man Kompany to prove he is positionally flawless, being in the right place to stop a certain goal. Finally, Ancelotti tired of Kalou and Torres and released his beast. Drogba soon created the opener with a whipped free-kick headed in by David Luiz: half the price of Torres and currently proving twice as effective; as classy in defence as he is potent in attack. The second goal was bizarre, with the City backline parting like the Red Sea as the wiry Ramires wandered through to shoot past Joe Hart. Chelski still seem too far adrift, but this certainly rules out a City team who have spent the Earth but yield a sparse goals harvest.

Maynor Figueroa was the unlikely hero at the DW Stadium, as Wigan Athletic salvaged a crucial win to keep themselves in touch at the bottom, while dragging League Cup winners Birmingham deeper into trouble. Birmingham, who have been nothing short of dire since that cup win, had the linesman to thank for their opener, as a series of poor clearances and lucky ricochets put an offside Liam Ridgewell in to score. Wigan are known for some delicious interplay with no end product, but their equaliser was a lesson in measured football. Ben Watson played a sumptuous reverse pass between three defenders and left Emerson Boyce to canter to the byline and just keep the ball in; crossing low for Ben Foster to palm straight out to the feet of Tom Cleverley, who scored. Birmingham responded with a Seb Larsson free-kick striking the crossbar, before Charles N’Zogbia had the crowd on its feet; his dazzling footwork in the box beating two men, before cutting back for Cleverley, who horribly miscued but in the process set up for the onrushing Figueroa to drill against Foster’s legs. Liam Ridgewell was the Brum hero as he blocked efforts from Sammon and McCarthy in the same scramble, while Hugo Rodallega had a goal disallowed for a blatant push. There then followed an even more blatant foul by Antonin Alcaraz which ninety-nine times out of one hundred would have been viewed as a cast-iron penalty. The ball was looping just beyond Curtis Davies, who lunged at the ball. Alcaraz couldn’t have been more obvious in taking his eyes from the ball to the player; declining to jump but rather sticking his shoulder into Davies and sending him flying. Lee Probert must have been blind, but Wigan took full advantage of his ridiculous decision to win at the death, when Maynor Figueroa advanced and cut onto his ‘weaker’ right foot, before unleashing the fury. The ball seemed to take a nick as Foster dived all wrong as it crashed past him for a last-minute winner.

Liverpool eased silently up to the cusp of fifth place with a surprisingly comfortable away win at Sunderland. No beach balls saved Steve Bruce’s men, as an awful penalty decision made by a linesman who was seventy yards further away than the referee condemned them to a goal’s deficit. John Mensah’s last-ditch lunge brought down Jay Spearing a yard outside the box, but he crashed down inside and the referee somehow allowed his decision to be overruled by a linesman also unsighted by Titus Bramble. The new Liverpool front two were proving a thorn in the Mackems’ sides; with Luis Suarez drilling in a cross shot which was well saved, and Andy Carroll finding Lee Cattermole guarding his post diligently. Mignolet produced another fine save from a long-range Spearing drive, but it was lights-out at the Stadium of Light when Suarez produced another mesmeric moment, slipping past Lee Cattermole and smashing in from an acute angle as Bramble closed in. Mignolet clearly was not expecting the shot and was beaten at his near post diving the wrong wa, and Sunderland’s day of misery was complete when John Mensah received what looked like a harsh straight red card, though he would have been booked anyway, after hauling down Suarez.

Newcastle were humiliated at the Britannia, as Stoke celebrated their biggest ever Premier League win. Strangely, Newcastle always seem to be a shambles when Sol Campbell forms part of their defence, and he was up to his new tricks here. Ryan Shawcross took down an awkward ball and fed Jermaine Pennant on the wing, who dinked a perfect cross for Jonathan Walters to easily beat Campbell in the air and score the opener. The second goal was farcical, with Steve Harper signalling to clear the ball as his bootlaces were untied yet still receiving the ball from the dozy Williamson. The goalkeeper then stupidly responded to being closed down by poking the ball a couple of yards, leaving the ball to eventually find Matthew Etherington, whose low cross was headed by Campbell straight to the lurking Jermaine Pennant, who stabbed in form close-range. Stoke’s dubious tactics of yanking players away from the defensive wall didn’t even have to be deployed, as Newcastle left a yawning gap through which FA Cup hero Danny Higginbotham drilled a shot that found the net. The only bright spot of the afternoon for Toon fans came from young prospect Shane Ferguson, who looked incisive and brave. One mazy dribble opened up a chance, but his finish was far too weak. Asmir Begovic pulled off a fantastic save from a Joey Barton free-kick before Stoke added the finishing touch with a route one hoof being half-volleyed in by substitute Ricardo Fuller.

Tottenham fans may be beginning to chew their fingernails at the prospect of qualifying for next season’s Champions League. With Mancitti and Chelski ahead of them in the table and Liverpool making a stealth move from oblivion, Spurs really needed a victory over West Ham but were left frustrated. Jermain Defoe particularly will feel he should have made the difference, particularly when Aaron Lennon got onto his right foot and slammed a shot against the foot of the post, only for the rebound to hit Defoe on the heel and spin wide from a few yards. Michael Dawson rattled the crossbar from 30 yards early on, while Luka Modric fired fractionally wide. West Ham saw Demba Ba thwarted by a cracking Gomes save, while Carlton Cole shot feebly at the goalkeeper when put through one-on-one by Ba. Roman Pavlyuchenkko came on late and tested Green to the full with a snapshot down low, but the Hammers goalkeeper saved the best save for last, as he launched himself up to the ‘postage stamp’ region to somehow tip Bale’s magnificent free-kick onto the crossbar and away. A brilliant result for the happier Hammers, but ‘Arry may be feeling glum when Spurs finally fall in the Champions League.

The battle of the Blacks saw ‘Pool pegged back by a stirring ‘Burn comeback. The first half was pretty much the Charlie Adam show, as the midfield schemer’s free-kick set up Sheffield Wednesday reject Luke Varney to score, but it was disallowed by a linesman’s flag so late the crowd had gone home. If this was a dubious decision, the Blackpool opener was farcical. Gary Taylor-Fletcher was put in for a shot and fired over the bar. As he followed through, Ryan Nelsen slid in. The ball had already cleared the crossbar by the time Nelsen made minimal contact with the Blackpool player, and bizarrely the penalty was awarded and converted impeccably by Adam. Adam was at it again five minutes later and produced a ‘postage stamp’ free-kick to make it 2-0 at the break. Blackpool were once again denied a Varney strike for  offside before the half ended, and it looked like there was only one winner. The second half saw ‘Burn take over the initiative, and Christopeher Samba rammed the ball home from a scramble to halve the deficit. Stephen N’Zonzi struck the outside of the post, before a Christopher Samba header was cleared off the line, and his second effort hit Jason Roberts in the back of the head and went wide. Blackburn continued to press, and a deep cross hit Hoilett’s heel as he fell over and hit the post. Blackpool defended resolutely right up until the last minute, when they were left devastated. Blackburn resorted to the old ‘up and under’, as a Robinson hoof saw Richard Kingson come for it and fail. Ian Evatt was there to nod the first effort off the line, but Junior Hoilett was on the spot to nod back into the net for a precious equaliser that leaves both teams tied on 33 points.

David Moyes began his Everton career against Fulham nine years ago, and, just as then, he came away with a victory. Carlos Salcido worked overtime for Fulham in brilliantly clearing first Saha then Jagielka efforts off the line, but it was to no avail, as a dinked cross from Leon Osman was nodded home by Seamus Coleman, and then a free-kick laid off was drilled through the wall and in by Luis Saha. Fulham clawed their way back into the game with a clinical Dempsey finish, but the Toffees held on for a win that takes them to the magical forty point total, though most would not have doubted Everton’s survival under their marvel of a manager.

Gerard Houllier’s detractors were in fine voice as Villa slipped to a crushing defeat at home to fellow relegation candidates Wolves. This was despite Wolves having two goals disallowed. The goal came when a deep Wolves cross was only half-cleared for new England boy Matt Jarvis to crack a crisp volley low in off the post. Jean Makoun then made a fool of himself by somehow heading a perfect cross wide unmarked from eight yards. Villa were aggrieved when Darren Bent was clearly fouled a yard inside the box with no penalty forthcoming, but they were their own worst enemies with some particularly profligate finishing. Ashley Young whipped an effort off the underside of the bar and away, while Carlos Cuellar missed a sitter at the death, to leave the Claret fans urging Randy Lerner to ditch the failing Frenchman.

A Tale of Two Cities

Manchester United have fallen apart as cynics suggested they would in their two toughest remaining games, but it remains to be seen whether Arsenal can ever make up the gap with their habit of blowing it just when they have a hand on a trophy.

The biggest game of the weekend was undoubtedly the resumption of hostilities between Kenny Dalglish and Alex Ferguson. After Chelsea’s ruse to have their Stamford Bridge clash rearranged to a time they may have been in better form worked to a tee with a little help from the a lenient Martin Atkinson; the man who won them the same match through a joke free-kick award last season; United were under real pressure for the first time. They lined up for the game at Anfield without Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand, and, strangely, Darren Fletcher. Liverpool had Luis Suarez starting and record signing Andy Carroll finally available from the bench. The game’s first highlight came from Old Trafford hat-trick hero Dimitar Berbatov, who swerved a return nod from Wayne Rooney onto the outside of the post with the outside of his boot. This was as good as it got for United in the first half, as Luis Suarez cut the United defence to ribbons; skipping past the weak challenges of Rafael and Carrick, before nutmegging the inept lunge of Wes Brown and nutmegging Van Der Sar to set up Dirk Kuyt for a finish from less than a yard. From this, Liverpool took charge, and Van Der Sar was forced to rush out and block from a crafty Maxi Rodriguez run. Just six minutes after the first goal it was 2-0, after Suarez again worked a good opening and dinked in a cross which went too far. To the disbelief of most inside the stadium, Nani, under no pressure, ran the wrong way at the ball before nodding it perfectly over Carrick for Kuyt to nod in from five yards. Nani’s day was complete when Jamie Carragher made a knee-high studs-first challenge on his standing leg, though escaped with just a caution. Carragher might have failed to break the Portuguese winger’s leg but clearly convinced Dowd Nani deserved it; a point not completely disproven when Nani bizarrely limped over to the referee to gesticulate at his agony, before collapsing and being stretchered off. As if this appalling challenge wasn’t enough, a few minutes later Maxi Rodriguez and Rafael got in on the act. Rodriguez again made a play for a red card by challenging with Rafael studs-first at knee-height. Fortunately for both players, Rafael shrugged it off, but miscontrolled and launched into a wild last-ditch attempt to redeem himself; upending Dirk Kuyt, who had taken evasive action. The Evil Egg Martin Skrtel then decided to get involved, resulting in a bit of a ruckus. Phil Dowd stood off with his arms folded like the Godfather, before deciding Maxi deserved no punishment, while giving Rafael a yellow that may have been a red if Carragher’s challenge wasn’t dealt with so leniently.

Ryan Giggs was making his 607^th club appearance, breaking Sir Bobby Charlton’s record, and the classy veteran guided a difficult Rooney ball narrowly over in the second half, before Berbatov dive-headed the ball onto Raul Meireles; stationed on the post and saving the day for Liverpool. The game was finished when Edwin Van Der Sar uncharacteristically palmed a Luis Suarez free-kick straight in front of himself for Dirk Kuyt to bag from two yards; making his accumulative hat-trick distance some seven yards. Filippo Inzaghi would have been proud. The roof lifted when Carroll finally made his bow, and his first touch was a header on target; a sign of things to come the Kop hopes. United redeemed a fraction of pride when Ryan Giggs cut back onto his right foot and dinked in a floating cross which Javier Hernandez brilliantly guided into the corner of the net with his head, seconds before the final whistle. A fully-deserved Liverpool victory which hands title initiative to Arsenal once more.

After a fitting pre-match tribute to tragic ex-defender Dean Richards by both clubs, the two sides conjured up a match worthy of the player’s memory, despite the quagmire of a pitch at Molineux. Wolves took the lead after an initial corner had been stupidly headed away by George Elokobi. Fortunately for the brawny full-back, it went out to Nenad Milijas, who delivered a cracking cross that Doyle got to ahead of Heurelho Gomes to score. Jermain Defoe ended his long goal drought after taking the ball off Pavlyuchenko and belting it into the corner of Hennessey’s net for the equaliser. A penetrative run from Defoe then set up his second. After laying it across to Modric on the edge of the box, the Croatian then flicked against a Wolves defender, only for the ball to fall perfectly for Defoe to whip it into the net to give Spurs the lead. Mark Halsey then became the centre of attention, after his penalty decision for Wolves. Kevin Doyle’s shot from the edge of the box was deflected and bounced into the centre of the area between Gomes and defence. Nenad Milijas ran at it to poke in, but was yanked to the ground by a cynical Alan Hutton. Bizarrely, Halsey explained he felt it wasn’t a clear goalscoring chance so only gave a yellow card to Hutton. That said, Halsey earned a lot of respect for at least explaining himself. Kevin Doyle slotted home the penalty for his brace, and the break came with the score tied at 2-2. Spurs retook the lead in the second period, after Assou-Ekotto dinked a lovely ball through to an untended Jenas, who slid the ball to Pavlyuchenko, moving in the opposite direction as he worked it on to his left foot to wallop into the roof of the net. Wolves came so close to equalising again when Gomes was at his best to tip a Milijas daisy-cutter onto the outside of the post. Milijas was again involved when he was free in the centre of the box to meet a cross, but sliced it horribly high, wide and not so handsome. Gareth Bale charged at the Wolves backline, and was actually given the ball back by Karl Henry, only to see Hennessey bail his team-mate out with a vital save. Wolves were seething late on, when Richard Stearman launched his head at the ball and scored, with Gomes far too weak in half-heartedly attempting to catch the ball, though Mark Halsey took the easy road of disallowing for a perceived foul on the Brazilian. Tottenham could have rubbed salt into their wounds, but Defoe’s effort from a Sandro layback cracked the post, and Mick McCarthy was pumping his fists minutes later, when a beautifully stood-up Jarvis cross was missed by Michael Dawson and nodded expertly into the far corner by Stephen Fletcher to finish the game 3-3.

A barnstorming game at the Cottage saw Fulham drop Mark Hughes’ old club Blackburn right into the relegation mix. Rovers nearly took an early lead from Danny Murphy giving a free-kick straight to them. The counter-attack lay waste to Fulham’s backline, but eventually Schwarzer stood up to be counted, denying Mame Biryam Diouf. A spin and shot at the other end from Dickson Etuhu nearly wrong-footed Paul Robinson, but minutes later the same player set up Damien Duff, who worked onto his left foot before drilling through Robinson, for yet another goal against one of his old clubs. Blackburn suffered from a paucity of creation, until they equalised through a real mess. On the stroke of half-time, a goalmouth scramble saw Fulham fail to clear adequately, culminating in youngster Grant Hanley blasting in a wild effort which cannoned in off the body of Brede Hangeland. Chris Baird made a vital headed interception to prevent a second Rovers goal after the break, setting the foundations for Fulham to take the lead, with another low drive from Damien Duff, through Samba’s legs this time. Chris Baird came to the rescue once more with a goal-line clearance after a scrambled free-kick saw Schwarzer stranded, but Rovers did grab a second scruffy equaliser, when the ball was again forced back in, with Roberts muscling to the touchline and flicking back for Junior Hoilet to chest down and half-volley into the net from close-range. Paul Robinson was then forced to turn aside a deflected free-kick from the returning Zamora, while Fulham felt aggrieved not to earn a penalty in the last minute, after Andy Johnson was felled by a poor challenge from Hanley. In the same passage of play, Damien Duff produced a lovely backheel to set up Johnson, who had got to his feet to thump in a shot that was well parried away by Robinson. Fulham remonstrated with the ref, but this died down immediately, as they profited from the resultant corner. Mark Clattenburg, perhaps mindful of being wrong before, spotted one of two infringements at the corner; with Jason Roberts blocking and Grant Hanley all over Aaron Hughes. Bobby Zamora stroked the penalty down the middle to earn Fulham a brilliant win, which substitute Gael Givet reacted to at the final whistle by racing onto the field to postulate aggressively at Clattenburg, earning him an embarrassing red card.

It was after the Lord Mayor’s show in Birmingham, with Brum turning in one of the most lethargic and spiritless displays from a home side in the whole season. Since Scott Dann was ruled out for the season, Birmingham have been throwing everything at the problem, and this time it was Curtis Davies’ turn to partner Roger Johnson. To call his performance gutless would be an understatement; shameful would be more like it. To make errors is one thing, but Davies seemed to go into challenges half-heartedly, as if unsure of his role. After a tedious first period, Ben Foster proved he has taken David James’ mantle of being the worst goalkeeper with the ball at his feet, when he once again scuffed an awful clearance which surrendered possession, and led to Peter Odemwingie, strangely a substitute; running at the Birmingham backline. After a couple of inept stabs at the ball, Curtis Davies et al watched in horror as Odemwingie managed to poke the ball through for the midfield runner Youssuf Mulumbu, who finished bravely as his standing leg was scythed away by a desperate Johnson lunge. This last-ditch lunge actually proved integral to getting Birmingham back in the game. Although it could not prevent the goal, Mulumbu was receiving treatment as the game kicked off again, and in the disruption of being a man short, West Brom allowed an unchecked run from Lee Bowyer to be found, and his cross was guided in by Jean Beausejour for a quickfire equaliser. But West Brom hit back, and when Reid fed James Morrison on the edge of the box, he sidestepped the most feeble of challenges from Curtis Davies, before crashing into the net with his left peg. There was a modicum of response from the home side when David Bentley stung Scott Carson’s hands, but a ferocious 20-yard drive from Chris Brunt thumped the post, and Peter Odemwingie missed a sitter of a rebound, though he had been flagged offside. On 72 minutes the game was sewn up, as West Bromwich Albion took a leisurely short corner, before dinking a cross in, which Liam Ridgewell made a half-hearted attempt to head before allowing it to drop over his head to Paul Scharner, who headed back from an acute angle and saw it helped into the net by Ben Foster’s butter-fingers. The final few minutes defied belief, as the away side kept possession with scarcely a challenge.

Aston Villa remain entrenched in the more dangerous half of the table, after losing to Bolton, despite going a goal up through a player who loves to score against the Trotters: Darren Bent. He had already missed a howling sitter before he nudged in a low cross from Kyle Walker, after the young defender had squeezed between Paul Robinson and Stuart Holden on the right flank. He almost was on the right end of a huge slice of luck minutes later, when a peach of an Albrighton cross took a double ricochet off his head and David Wheater, before crashing against the angle of post and bar. Johan Elmander nearly profited from a knock-down but was smothered out at the last, and a Martin Petrov corner was attacked and scored by former Villa defender Gary Cahill before the half was out. In the second half Albrighton sent in another deadly cross which Downing screwed narrowly wide back where it came from, while another delivery reached the back post and was nodded back to Darren Bent six yards out, who had time to control but somehow hit David Wheater on the goal-line, before the ball reached Baker, who found Ashley Young forcing Jaaskelainen into an excellent save. Albrighton and Downing seemed to switch sides as Villa found a second, with Downing crossing from the right for Albrighton to scuff his volley into the ground, up and in for 2-1 Villa. The Villans were so close to sealing the game, after David Wheater slipped as he was challenging in the box to wipe out Ashley Young. Bolton were incensed because, as replays proved, the ball had actually gone out of play in the build-up but was not spotted. Juss Jaaskelainen earned his corn by psyching out Ashley Young, ushering him to his right and then saving to that side. The Trotters took advantage of this reprieve when Cahill met another corner which was parried out by Friedel straight back to him, and he returned it into the net. Villa seemed to be feeling sorry for themselves after this, because only Bolton really went for the win, and it duly came with five minutes to go, when David Wheater nodded a cross back for Ivan Klasnic to backtrack after, spin and fire into the corner. A crucial victory which takes Bolton to the magical 40-point mark, while Gerard Houllier may now be ruing his myriad changes for their FA Cup defeat.

West Ham United look a different animal all of a sudden, with a combination of new blood and injured players returning. They comfortably saw off Stoke at the Boleyn, beating them almost at their own game. First a goal that Stoke thrive on: an opposition error. A Mark Noble flick was left by the backtracking Wilson for Asmir Begovic, who flew out and missed the ball. Demba Ba raced after it, positioned his body in front of Wilson and poked it over the line. Second goal Stoke normally thrive on: Manuel Da Costa headed in a free-kick practically unmarked. No Hammers game would be complete without the obligatory Frederic Piquionne howler, and he duly missed a sitter. Carlton Cole then displayed all the assets of a great target man; holding the ball up for Thomas Hitzlsperger to rifle in a rocket which was well saved. Rory Delap had a 25-yard effort saved, before Carlton Cole showed some deft footwork before cutting onto his left foot and curling a lovely effort which was tipped wide by Begovic. Ryan Shawcross boobed when he headed on for Cole to fire in another effort, producing another fantastic save. The final goal was far more about good football than beating Stoke at their own game. Scott Parker danced into the box; getting to the byline before laying back to Piquionne, whose shot was blocked by numerous bodies, before falling to that famed left foot of Hitzlsperger, leaving him to nearly tear the net out of the ground for 3-0.

Chelsea followed their slightly fortunate victory over Manchester United with a relatively comfortable one over Blackpool at

Bloomfield Road

. Still no goal for the fifty-million-pound man, but it mattered not as John Terry headed in a 20^th minute corner; added to by a Frank Lampard penalty and a lovely Lampard finish after being put through by Kalou. Blackpool retrieved a goal at the end which continued their homes scoring record. Jason Puncheon, who had earlier had an effort tipped onto the post by Cech, this time drilled wide of the goalkeeper’s grasp. ‘Ollie was far from happy at the penalty award, but he will be more concerned about the Tangerines being just two points clear of relegation, with Birmingham having two games in hand.

Newcastle’s curse of the Saturday 3pm kick-off home game returned to haunt them once more, as Everton rode off with all three points. Mikel Arteta is looking back to somewhere near his imperious best, as he scored the equaliser and generally dictated the Toffees’ attacks. Newcastle actually took the lead, after Tim Howard could only parry Nolan’s cross out to the lurking Leon Best. After Arteta’s equaliser, Leighton Baines swung in a delightful free-kick which was guided in via the underside of the crossbar by the unlikely figure of Phil Jagielka. Jermaine Beckford was well saved by Harper, and some great work by Arteta saw Saha a fraction away from applying the finishing touch. Newcastle felt hard done by when Leon Best had a second goal disallowed, though he had clearly pushed his man.

Mancitti gained a fortuitous win over plucky Wigan, whose Premier League time looks increasingly to be up. Selling their best players season in, season out seems to have finally done for them, as has failing to find a clinical striker to finish off their sterling approach play. Charles N’Zogbia was bizarrely on the bench, but replacement Victor Moses could not make the difference. City were fortunate on many cases. Micah Richards could well have been red-carded for an appalling challenge on Tom Cleverley, before Wigan shot angry glances at James McCarthy for blazing a great chance over after great work from Moses. City’s goal was a calamity for Ali Al-Habsi, who fumbled Silva’s weak effort through his hands. Wigan huffed and puffed, but Connor Salmon fired a glorious chance to equalise at the death a fraction wide. They have given us entertainment aplenty in their time, but it looks as if Wigan Athletic will once more be a Championship club next season.

Arsenal missed the chance to really put the heat on United with a drab home draw to Sunderland. Quite how Titus Bramble got away with his myriad lapses in concentration is a conundrum many Arsenal fans were testing themselves with after this match. Nicklas Bendtner knows why he came off the pitch having not scored: a fabulous display of goalkeeping from Simon Mignolet. Marouane Chamakh battered a header against the crossbar, while Sunderland’s best chance was a superb takedown and spin by Danny Welbeck, who forced a great save from Szczesny. A missed opportunity which doesn’t bode well for the Nou Camp.

Dead men rising

In a weekend which saw Laurent Koscielny make a real dummy out of himself by dummying a last minute clearance to hand Birmingham their first trophy since the same trophy in 1963, Manchester United increased their lead at the top of the Premier League, while it was all change at the bottom between the four ‘W’s.

Wigan tend to lose heavily home or away against Manchester United because they play predominantly ‘laissez-faire’ football. As at Swansea, Roberto Martinez likes to play attractive football along the ground even in tight areas. The problem is he lacks defenders with nous, or strikers with a clinical edge. The main talk unfortunately after the game was an incident where James McCarthy stepped into Wayne Rooney’s path to deliberately block him off, which Wayne Rooney responded to with a well-placed elbow to McCarthy’s temple; a pretty serious assault which clearly should have led to a red card. It didn’t, and United responded by taking the Latics apart. Victor Moses was presented with a glorious chance by Paul Scholes of all people, but was foiled by the timeless class of Edwin Van Der Sar. Javier Hernandez was then smothered out by a combination of Caldwell and Figueroa before a lovely move saw Rooney combining with Nani to send the Portuguese winger wide, with his low cross flying through the lunging Caldwell’s legs and being tucked in at the near post by the predatory Hernandez. Wigan almost equalised through a chance set up by a cute backheel from N’Zogbia, but McCarthy was foiled by Van Der Sar. Nani then crashed the inside of the post with a magnificent effort, while Al-Habsi saved from Nani, then Nani and Fletcher. Hernandez brilliantly controlled a Wayne Rooney return pass and ran clear to finish expertly for 2-0, while Dimitar Berbatov ran onto a long ball past a ridiculous attempt by Wigan to play offside in United’s half, and eventually squared to bad boy Rooney, who tapped in. The game was made complete by substitute Fabio, who received a long cross and coolly converted.

After the tragic news of Dean Richards’ death, one of his former sides; Wolves, brought Blackpool crashing back to earth after their midweek win over Spurs. The Tangerines were as bad as they have been all season in the absence of talisman Charlie Adam, while Wolves were finally as clinical as their approach play deserved. A very nice move led to Adam Hammill taking three players out of play on the edge of the box with a deft pass to Ryan Jarvis, who finished with aplomb. A deadly David Vaughan cross narrowly avoided going in for Blackpool, and was missed by an eyelash at the back post by oncoming attackers. Richard Kingson brilliantly turned aside a neat Edwards half-volley, but the game was essentially finished as a contest when DJ Campbell responded to being pushed with both hands thrice by Richard Stearman by pushing him back. The fact that his hands were six inches higher made all the difference, and Campbell was red-carded. Kingson made another cracking stop before Wolves finally increased their lead. Blackpool tried to be too clever on the edge of their own area and gave the ball away to Jamie O’Hara, who advanced before finding the corner of the net expertly. Sylvain Ebanks-Blake gratefully gobbled up a lovely cross from Kevin Doyle, and later grabbed a brace from the bench, after controlling a Ward long pass superbly and guiding a cute shot into the net.

Gerard Houllier appears to finally by gaining the trust of his long-suffering fans, after guiding his Villa side to a resounding win over Blackburn. Robert Pires was finally given a start, and put in a great show as he tested Paul Robinson twice early on, on one occasion bringing out the best in the erstwhile England goalkeeper as he recovered in a flash to tip the loose ball away from a lurking Darren Bent. Keith Andrews made an absolute prat of himself when he dithered on the ball and gave away a penalty to Ashley Young, who converted with relish, and Rovers youngster Grant Hanley had been horribly unlucky to see a low Albrighton cross miss three players in front of him and cannon into the net off his shins. When Stewart Downing raced away on a counter-attack to curl his shot into the net, the game was well and truly over for hapless Rovers. Nikola Kalinic scored a heavily deflected consolation with ten minutes to play, but within two minutes the deficit was three once again, as some lovely approach play from Ashley Young saw him feed Stewart Downing, before racing unchallenged into the box to rattle the return ball into the net. Villa finally looked potent in attack once more, while Ryan Nelsen had his traumatic week made slightly worse by earning a second yellow card late on.

Jermaine Beckford started to demonstrate his potential worth to the Toffees by scoring a brace as they comfortably saw off Sunderland, who have now lost four consecutive games. The opening goal came after just eight minutes, as Leon Osman produced a deft short ball through to Beckford, who stepped off a typically sleeping Titus Bramble, rounded Mignolet and scored. New Mackems’ signing Stefan Sessegnon almost got his Sunderland career off to the ideal start, but his rocket was tipped onto the underside of the crossbar and away by Tim Howard. Sunderland offered little in resistance before Mikel Arteta won a long ball in the air, and beat John Mensah with some trickery; sending in a low cross which Beckford backtracked to guide into the corner of the net for 2-0. Beckford fired a half-volley chance over for his hat-trick, while Simon Mignolet made an excellent double save from Luis Saha and then Seamus Coleman. A Coleman cross-shot was then parried away at the near post, and Everton thought they had made it three when the industrious Osman rounded Mignolet, but his powerful shot was somehow headed off the line by Ahmed Elmohamedy.

West Ham confounded the experts by pulling off a remarkable win over a resurgent Liverpool, thus lifting themselves briefly out of the relegation zone. The Hammers, who had produced one of the Premier League’s most abysmal displays of all time in this away fixture, opened the scoring on 21 minutes, when talisman Scott Parker played a one-two with the now-fit Thomas Hitzlsperger, before poking into the net from the edge of the box superbly with the outside of his boot. Hitzlsperger had reminded everyone present of his specialities early on, when he sent a 40-yard volley into Reina’s arms. Dirk Kuyt hit the side netting when he should have done better, while Demba Ba was so close to converting a Piquionne low ball across the box. Luis Suarez was struggling to make an impact against James Tomkins of all people. When Demba Ba powered home an unmarked header from a Gary O’Neil cross on the stroke of half-time, West Ham were in dreamland. Although Liverpool were better in the second half, Demba Ba drilled fractions wide and Piquionne failed to get a corner on target. Robert Green was forced to tip a dipping Gerrard volley over, while Scott Parker blocked a goalbound Gerrard effort. Jose Reina almost ended up with egg on his face, but he recovered just in time after almost spilling a Piquionne effort into the net. Liverpool cut the deficit late on when Glen Johnson steamed forward to tap in a Suarez cross, but West Ham finished the game after Carlton Cole came on, fending off Skrtel before rattling inside Reina’s near post. Kenny was more dour than ever, while Avram almost smiled.

Daniel Sturridge proved his worth once more by netting his fourth goal in as many games, whilst Newcastle accrued another point which leaves them looking almost safe from the spectre of relegation. Jussi Jaaskelainen made a cracking near post save from Leon Best, but Chekh Tiote celebrated his lengthy new contract by teeing up Kevin Nolan to head in against his old club. Clumsy thug Paul Robinson was then grateful for a late offside call, as the last man brought Leon Best crashing down in the box. A magnificent Jose Enrique cross was then missed at the near post by Lovenkrands, but bundled out to Leon Best, whose follow-up cannoned back of David Wheater’s backside…or was it his face? Newcastle surrendered their lead when they failed to clear adequately, and Johan Elmander fed Daniel Sturridge, who got the ball out of his feet rapidly and poked a perfect left-foot shot wide of Harper’s grasp. Ryan Taylor marked his comeback to regular action by impersonating Joey Barton; launching at familiar Newcastle scapegoat Johan Elmander with both feet and earning himself an early bath. Both teams made late jousts for a victory, with Petrov’s effort cleared off the line by Nolan, and Nile Ranger’s late effort being ruled out for infringement of the offside laws.

Mancitti finally seem to have relinquished their fragile chance of a dream title by once again failing to hold onto a lead; or perhaps just for not being ambitious enough. He who dares wins, and Mancini dares not. Fulham set the tone, with a Danny Murphy long-ranger whistling over, and some easy-on-the-eye approach play culminating in a Dembele effort into Hart’s body. The opener against the run of play came from the unorthodox genius of Mario Balotelli, who sidestepped Danny Murphy and unleashed a cruise missile into the bottom corner from 20 yards. Fulham’s equaliser was just as glorious, with Brede Hangeland languidly spraying the ball out to the scampering Andy Johnson, who turned on the afterburners and smashed in a low cross which was crashed into the net on the run by the arriving Damien Duff at the back post. Mario Balotelli was the main City threat in the second half, first miskicking a fantastic opportunity following a rare Hangeland howler, then being smothered out of a one-on-one chance by Aaron Hughes. City piles on late pressure when Tevez forced the best out of Schwarzer, and Kolarov threatened the crossbar, but it was to end all square.

The usual blend of well-paid pub league football was witnessed at the Britannia; near-millionaires playing the good old up-and-under let-em-ave-it tin-hat second-ball percentage play tedium. In between West Brom having to defend like Trojans at every set-piece, and John Carew ‘accidentally’ clocking Paul Scharner on the side of the head in two separate incidents, Jermaine Pennant clipped the crossbar with a free-kick, and West Brom finally relented in their dogged resistance; allowing Rory Delap to nip in at the front post form a corner to nod in unchallenged. Tony Pulis was suitably smug, but his hubris was to prove short-lived, as substitute Carlos Vela once again grabbed a crucial equaliser at the death, though he was standing a yard offside when he first received the ball; a point Pulis was very keen to labour post-match, conveniently forgetting Stoke grabbed a hugely lucky win over Sunderland a few weeks back at this stadium through two goals that were offside and laden with other offences. Vela then had two more gilt-edged opportunities in injury time, but the game ended all square, with Roy Hodgson humble and Pulis humbled.