Wednesday 31 October 2012

Arsenal pull off amazing comeback in League Cup

Arsenal came back from 4-0 down after 40 minutes against Reading to win 7-5 in extra-time.

After they Royals looked to have won the game on 40 minutes with a Noel Hunt goal, Theo Walcott soon grabbed a goal just before half-time.

Walcott then led the comeback, grabbing an equaliser in the dying seconds after Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny (who had scored a own goal earlier) scored.

It went to extra-time, and, despite Pavel Pogrebnyak making it 5-5 with just minutes to go, a Walcott third and Maroune Chamakh second won the historic victory for the Gunners.

That wasn't the only surprise of the night, with League Two Bradford knocking Wigan out on penalties, Swindon almost beating Aston Villa, Leeds knocking out Southampton and Sunderland losing to Middlesborough.

The full results:
Reading 5-7 Arsenal (after extra-time)
Leeds United 3-0 Southampton
Swindon 2-3 Aston Villa
Sunderland 0-1 Middlesborough
Wigan 0-0 Bradford (Bradford win on penalties)

Sunday 28 October 2012

United get big win and exciting Merseyside derby

Manchester United got a 3-2 win against Chelsea to close the gap on the league leaders.

Two quick goals gave United an early lead, but by 60 minutes Chelsea had fought back to 2-2. Referee Mark Clattenburg then dismissed Branislav Ivanovic and Fernando Torres almost simultaneously, putting the Red Devils as firm favourites for a winner.

Which they provided. A seemingly offside Javier Hernandez scored a winner, to help close the gap in the title race.

Before that, however, a 219th Merseyside derby took place. Liverpool took a two goal lead, but Everton had pulled it back to 2-2 by half-time. And that was how it stayed for the rest of the match. But, in the dying seconds, Luis Suarez was denied a goal. He wasn't offside.

The full results are:
Chelsea 2-3 Manchester United
Newcastle 2-1 West Brom
Southampton 1-2 Tottenham
Everton 2-2 Liverpool

Premier League Saturday: City keep up with Chelsea

Manchester City stuttered to an unconvincing 1-0 win against Swansea yesterday in the Premier League.

Reading - Fulham was the highest scoring match, ending 3-3 with quite a few stunning goals.

A late Mikel Arteta goal saved Arsenal a embarrassing draw against bottom-club QPR at the Emirates.

The full results are:
Wigan 2-1 West Ham
Man. City 1-0 Swansea
Arsenal 1-0 QPR
Reading 3-3 Fulham
Aston Villa 1-1 Norwich
Stoke 0-0 Sunderland

Friday 26 October 2012

Reds and Toon Army win but Spurs stutter to a draw

Liverpool and Newcastle both grabbed important Europa League wins last night, but Tottenham could only settle for a draw.

Spurs had the early kick-off against Slovenian side NK Maribor, and fell behind, before Glyfi Siggurdsson grabbed Tottenham a point.

Newcastle were up against Belgians Club Bruges, and Gabriel Obertan scored the only goal of the game to help the Magpies win 1-0.

Liverpool had Anzhi Makhachkala, the 'Russian Manchester City' in terms of spending. They have famous figures such as Samuel Eto'o in their ranks.

However the Cameroon striker and co. failed to impress, and a rare Stewart Downing strike won it 1-0 for the Reds.

Thursday 25 October 2012

Europe: Has the time come for British teams to step down?

After an almost fully catastrophic start to the group stages in both the Champions League and Europa League - the question has to be raised: Is the golden era of British success in Europe drawing to a close?
Here is my team-to-team guide on who could still do well, and for which teams the dream may already be over.

Manchester City:
City have encountered a very tough group, all the teams in their category have won their country's league title in recent years.

Despite giving Real Madrid a run for their money in their first game, they lost, and maybe that has hurt them. Without Joe Hart against Dortmund, they would be on 0 points, not the 1 that they are on.

Getting through is definitely going to be difficult, as an away trip to Germany beckons. They'll need to capitalise on the home game against Ajax. However, needing at least 6 more points to qualify from only 3 games, it seems that the Premier League champions may yet again be in the Europa League soon.

Verdict: 4th. Qualification unlikely. Check the Europa League schedule if you're a City fan!

Arsenal: With a loss against Schalke, the Gunners are unlikely to finish top of their group. However, it does seem like they might qualify. They have to be careful, though, as away trips to Germany and Greece beckon. But, if they do not lose any of the remaining games (a tall order, but do-able), they should feature in the knockout stages.

Verdict: 2nd. Should get through. Have to fight though, a loss and they might be in trouble.

Chelsea: The Blues are lucky that the other teams in their group have also faltered. However, Juventus are slowly creeping up on Chelsea, and it looks like neither of them will catch Shaktar Donetsk. The away trip to Juve may be the separator.

Verdict:2nd/3rd. Qualification a possibility, though they have to not lose any of the remaining games - that may prove tricky. Away against Juventus is what I think will separate 3rd and 2nd.

Celtic: The Scottish champions face a bumpy ride if they are to get through.

Like for Chelsea, they have a team just a point behind, Spartak Moscow. The difference is that the first placed team, Barcelona, is far ahead of everyone else.

Verdict. 3rd. Again, qualification is a possibility. They'll have to keep their heads (not literally!) if they are to survive.

Manchester United: the Red Devils are doing the best out of all the Brits, winning 3 out of 3. However, they have fallen behind in two of those games. They need to fix this.

Verdict: 1st. Qualification almost certain. However, they may struggle against better opposition if they do not fix this problem of early goals.

Tottenham: Spurs are looking increasingly likely to go out of the Europa League. The away game to Lazio may be difficult, so Tottenham have to beat Maribor and Panathinaikos at home. Succeeding this, they will do well.

Verdict: 2nd. Qualification likely but it's going to be hard. Have to capitalise on the home games.

Newcastle: the Magpies are topping their group, though Bordeaux and Club Bruges may catch them up. Carry on like this, however, and they will quite easily qualify.

Verdict: 1st. Qualification likely, though any big slip-ups and it will turn into a hard struggle.

Liverpool: With the win over Anzhi, the Reds have limbed to the top of their group. As the Young Boys have beaten Udinese, though, this group is getting very tight, with even last place a contender.

Verdict: 1st. They'll have to play their cards right though, and any losses and they will be going out.


So, the British teams face a tough job getting through. Keep checking here for updates!

City and Arsenal suffer defeats in Champions League

Both Manchester City and Arsenal suffered bad losses against European opposition in the Champions League last night.

Despite going ahead through Samir Nasri against the run of play, Man. City may be facing another early exit as they lost 3-1 to Ajax.

Arsenal also suffered a 2 goal defeat, losing 2-0 at home to German side Schalke 04.

Wednesday 24 October 2012

United survive scare but Chelsea & Celtic lose in Champions League

Manchester United came back from a bad 2-0 down in 20 minutes at home against Portuguese side SC Braga to win 3-2, with Javier Hernandez leading the show.

After Braga striker Alan scored 2 inside 20 mins, Hernandez fought back to grab a brace, with Johnny Evans strike sandwiched in between the Mexican's efforts.

Chelsea's great Premier League form couldn't be reproduced in Europe, as the Blues lost 2-1 to Shaktar Donetsk. Oscar grabbed a late consolation goal, but Shaktar are now in firm control of group E.

Celtic gave Barcelona a scare, grabbing a 1-0 lead at the Nou Camp before Barca scored a late winner. 2-1 the final score.





Sunday 21 October 2012

Goals at first and last whistle in a busy North-East derby

A Demba Ba own goal on 86 minutes saved Sunderland from an embarrassing defeat against 10-man region rivals Newcastle.

Yohan Cabaye put the Magpies ahead after just three minutes, but Toon Army midfielder Cheick Tiote was sent off soon after.

They then held off the Black Cats for nearly 90 minutes, but Ba's og saved a point for Sunderland, the game finishing 1-1.

Everton also had to come from behind to an early goal, Junior Hoilett scoring after just 2 minutes, but a Julio Cesar own goal saved the Toffee's, who also had Steven Pienaar sent off.

Full results:
Sunderland 1-1 Newcastle
QPR 1-1 Everton

Big day in Premier League as Chelsea stay top

Chelsea beat London rivals Tottenham 4-2 to keep their great start to the season up.

Despite falling 2-1 behind at White Hart Lane, a Juan Mata style comeback saved Chelsea.

Manchester United also won 4-2, this time against Stoke. A Wayne Rooney own goal was soon turned back as the England striker equalised, and he scored another to help the Red Devil's chase of first-placed Chelsea.

Manchester City also won, but not as easily as their Mancunian rivals, with James Milner being sent off and Edin Dzeko having to save them in a 2-1 victory over West Brom.

The full results are:
West Ham 4-1 Southampton
Tottenham 2-4 Chelsea
Manchester United 4-2 Stoke
West Brom 1-2 Manchester City
Swansea 2-1 Wigan
Liverpool 1-0 Reading
Norwich 1-0 Arsenal
Fulham 1-0 Aston Villa

Saturday 20 October 2012

England draw against Poland

Poland grabbed a late equaliser against England, to draw 1-1 in the re-scheduled World Cup qualifier.

Wayne Rooney's header was cancelled out by Gilk's goal.

The Three Lions lead their group.

Wednesday 17 October 2012

England match postponed in WC14 qualifiers

England versus Poland was postponed to 4pm British time on Wednesday, as heavy rain drowned the pitch.

Both Wales and Scotland lost 2-0 to European sides, Croatia and Belgium.

Saturday 13 October 2012

England and Wales win in WC14 qualifiers

Both England and Wales collected good wins in the World Cup qualifiers.

England played the joint-worst team in football, San Marino. San Marino is so small it's entire population would fit into Wembley, with more than 50,000 seats still empty!

Wayne Rooney, captain for the night, scored to in a 5-0 victory. 5-0 is 5-0, but against Marino, that's not amazing. Germany have beaten them 13-0.

Germany beat Republic of Ireland 1-6, as ROI had a terrible night.

Wales, mainly Gareth Bale, scored two late goals to see off Scotland 2-1, and get their qualifying off to a start.

Sunday 7 October 2012

United beat Newcastle to go second

Man. United beat Newcastle 3-0 to keep up the race for top spot against Chelsea and Man. City.

Full results:
Man. United 3-0 Newcastle
Tottenham 2-0 Aston Villa
Southampton 2-2 Fulham
Liverpool 0-0 Stoke

Chelsea stay top in Premier League

Chelsea beat Norwich 4-1 to stay top of the league, going 4 points ahead of their nearest opponents.

Manchester City won 3-0 against Sunderland, and Arsenal came back from behind to win 1-3.

Swansea came back from 2-0 down, to grab a point in a 2-2 draw against Reading. Everton almost slipped up in their brilliant start to the season, coming from behind to save a point in a 2-2 draw away to Wigan. West Brom beat QPR 3-2, to inflict even more damage on the bottom club.

The full results are:
Chelsea 4-1 Norwich
Manchester City 3-0 Sunderland
West Ham 1-3 Arsenal
West Brom 3-2 QPR
Swansea 2-2 Reading
Wigan 2-2 Everton

Friday 5 October 2012

Liverpool slip to loss in Europa League

A 'lazy' Liverpool side slipped to a 3-2 home defeat against Italians Udinese on a Europa League night featuring three British teams.

In an earlier kick-off, Tottenham conceded a late equaliser to draw 1-1 with Greek team Panathinaikos.

Liverpool lost a 1-0 lead to lose 3-2 at home to Udinese.

Newcastle were the only English team to win - they eased to a 3-0 win against French team Bordeaux.

Thursday 4 October 2012

City grab a draw in Champions League

Manchester City grabbed a 1-1 draw against Borussia Dortmund and Arsenal beat Greeks Olympiakos 3-1 on Wednesday night in the Champions League.

Mario Balotelli scored a last minute penalty to salvage a draw against Germans Dortmund.

Arsenal recovered from an unconvincing first half to win 3-1 at home against Olympiakos.

Wednesday 3 October 2012

Wins for British teams in Champo League

All three British teams triumphed away from home.

In an earlier kick-off, Celtic beat Spartak Moscow 3-2.

Man. United and Chelsea both faced almost unknown opposition, Nordsjaelland of Denmark and Cluj of Romania.

While Chelsea won quite easily in Scandinavia 4-0, United had to come from behind to beat Cluj 2-1, Robin Van Persie scoring both.