2013 Ends With a Gun on Top

So we come to the final games of what has been an exciting and at times surprising 2013 with possibly the biggest surprise being that Liverpool scored more goals than all others across the year - 84 with the expectant Man City close behind with 82 but the fact that Arsenal sit on top going into 2014 may not be shocking year wise but back in August, may wrote them off full stop.

Saturday began with a meeting of the 'West's' as West Ham hosted West Brom and what a brilliant way to start the weekend as a six goal thriller saw them both take a point away in a 3-3 draw which saw an early opener by Carlton Cole for the Hammers which was cancelled out in style before the break as Anelka hit a quick double to put the Baggies in front into half-time. Three goals in five minutes saw the Hammers level, lead and be pegged back with goals from Maiga and Nolan putting them in control for all of two minutes as Berahino levelled for the visitors to share the points.

Aston Villa looked to be on for a good end to 2013 after Agbonlahor gave them the lead in the 7th minute but a first league goal from Lamah saw Swansea draw level and the sides remained level until the end to share the points and deny Villa a first win in five games.

Hull bounced back from their Boxing Day defeat in spectacular fashion with a 6-0 demolition of Fulham which was even more stunning when the game was scoreless at halftime, Elmohamady put them in front four minutes into the second period with a quick double from Koren and Boyd making it three just after the hour-mark. A famous goal for Huddlestone means he can finally make the trip to the Barbers after he struck from long range to make it 4-0,Fryatt his his first premier league goal for the fifth with Koren completing a brace to complete the rout.

Manchester City rotated their squad which goes some way to explaining why they only won 1-0 against Crystal Palace when many pundits predicted a walkover given their fine home form but a second half strike from Dzeko kept up their 100% record at home this season.

Manchester United continued their ascent up the table with a 1-0 victory away to Norwich thanks to a second half winner from the in-form Welbeck while in the late kick-off, Cardiff and Sunderland shared the points in a 2-2 draw with Mutch and Campbell putting the managerless Bluebirds 2-0 up with Fletcher and a last-gasp leveller from Colback claiming the draw.

Super Sunday saw Arsenal reclaim top spot with a 1-0 win away to in-from Newcastle with Giroud hitting the winner just after the hour to end his goal drought with the second part seeing Chelsea defeat Liverpool 2-1 despite the visitors taking the lead through Skrtel after only three minutes but just like in their last game which saw them lose to Man City, they let the lead slip as Hazard levelled before Eto'o put the Blues in front and they held on to close up on Arsenal.

Everton bounced back from their defeat to Sunderland with a 2-1 win over Southampton with Coleman giving them the lead after nine minutes, a lead that they held until the 71st minute when Ramirez equalised but the Saints were only level for three minutes as Lukaku hit the winner for to continue his successful loan spell from Chelsea.

Tottenham beat Stoke 3-0 for their first win in three games with a Soldado penalty putting them 1-0 up after 37 minutes with a quick double from Dembele and Lennon in the 65th and 69th minutes completing the win.

A little delayed but worth it to sum up a fairly decent final weekend of the year, I say fairly decent as my side Liverpool ended on a negative but the league as a whole shows there is a lot to look forward to in 2014.

Gunners Replace Reds At The Top

Christmas has come and gone as the football resumed on a packed Boxing Day that saw a change at the top and in the bottom three but bad tempered day saw four dismissals including two for one side.

The early kick off saw Hull take a shock 2-0 lead with goals from Chester and Meyler inside 15 minutes but go on to lose 3-2 to Manchester United who completed a superb comeback with began with a goal from Smalling in the 19th minute, Rooney made it 2-2 going into the break and the win was handed to them by Chester who scored an own goal meaning he had scored for and against his former side by scoring in the 66th minute and United even held on with ten men with Valencia sent off in the final minute after a second booking for kicking the ball away.

Crystal Palace left it late to seal a 1-0 win at Aston Villa as Gayle broke away and stunned Villa Park with a stunning last minute winner which took his side out of the bottom three while Chelsea kept up their impressive home record with a 1-0 win over Swansea thanks to a goal from Hazard.

Everton lost at home for the first time this season and in 2013 after calamitous two minutes in the first half that saw Howard sent off and sub 'keeper Robles beaten by the resulting penalty by Ki as Sunderland completed a vital win but one which still saw them occupy bottom spot in the table.

Newcastle hammered Stoke 5-1 but did so after Stoke lost the plot despite taking the lead through Assaidi on the half-hour as both Whelan and Wilson were sent off in the space of the final two minutes of the first half,.

Remy levelled after the second dismissal and in the second half, Newcastle ran riot with the two man advantage as Gouffran made it 2-1 three minutes into the half with Remy hitting his second and Cabaye adding a fourth just after the hour mark. Cisse struck an 80th minute penalty as they moved closer to the top four.

Fulham avoided dropping to bottom spot with a 2-1 win over Norwich despite going behind to an early opener by Hooper as Kasami levelled in the 33rd minute and with the final minutes ticking down it looked like a draw was on the cards until Parker struck an 87th minute winner for the Cottagers.

Tottenham had to settle for a 1-1 draw despite Eriksen giving them the lead with his first league goal in the 36th minute as within minutes, Olsson drew West Brom level to share the points while Arsenal returned to the top with a 3-1 win over West Ham despite Cole giving the home side a lead a minute after half time as Walcott hit a 68th and 71st minute double with Podolski scoring the third on his comeback from a long injury layoff in the 87th minute.

The final game of the day saw Liverpool travel to face Man City knowing a win would see them return to the top while a loss would drop them to fourth, Liverpool took the lead with Coutinho scoring to stun the Etihad after 24 minutes but a Kompany leveller six minutes later coupled with Negredo's chip on half-time which was tipped in by Mignolet kept up City's home record and meant that once again, Liverpool failed against one of their title rivals but one incident that soured the game was the ruling of offside on Sterling after he raced clear to score and replays showed he was a good two yards onside meaning Liverpool should have claimed a point at least.

So an exciting Boxing Day programme with some real surprises leading to unbeaten records tumbling and others being increased but the teams have no real break as the next run of games begins later today.

Liverpool Number One At Christmas

Christmas is on the horizon and this past weekend saw the beginning of a packed schedule for the Premier League, the top four may surprise a few people with Liverpool and Everton both up there while Man City and Arsenal join them as early title challengers.

Saturday's early kick off saw Liverpool return to the top with a 3-1 win at home to Cardiff with star striker Luis Suarez hitting two for 19 goals in the campaign and Sterling hitting his second goal in consecutive games to keep them in form despite Mutch pulling one back on the hour.

Newcastle continued their good form with a 3-0 victory away to Crystal Palace with the visitors 2-0 up at the break thanks to a Cabaye opener and a Gabbidon own goal, Ben Arfa hit a third from the penalty spot late on to complete the win.

Man City improved their away form with a hard fought 4-2 win at Fulham with the visitors taking 2-0 half-time lead after goals from Toure and Kompany but Richardson struck for Fulham and Kompany bizarrely hit into his own net after a looped clearance to level the score at 2-2 but Navas handed City the lead with Milner striking with seven minutes to go to secure the win.

Man United moved up the table with a 3-1 win at home to West Ham with the in-form Welbeck opening the scoring in the 26th minute with Januzaj adding a second ten minutes later for a 2-0 lead at the break, Young hit his second goal this week in the 72nd minute and even though Carlton Cole pulled on back in the 81st minute, United held on for the win.

Stoke moved into the top half with a 2-1 win at home to Aston Villa and despite going into the half-time break at 0-0, Adam put them in front in the 50th minute but Villa came back and levelled in the 66th minute through Kozak but Stoke got themselves back in front with Crouch hitting what became the winning goal in the 70th minute.

Sunderland and Norwich drew 0-0 to keep the hosts at the bottom going into the festive period but had Brown sent off at the end to damage their hopes of moving away with a tough set of games ahead while in West Brom and Hull drew 1-1 with the visitors taking the lead in the 28th minute through Livermore and with five minutes to go they looked to have secured a vital win but Vydra levelled for the Baggies to ensure a share of the points.

Super Sunday saw Tim Sherwood take charge of Tottenham for the first time and after a hard fought 3-2 win over Southampton, he was handed the reins until the end of next season but it didn't start well for his side as Southampton took the lead through Lallana in the 19th minute but Adebayor levelled six minutes later and the sides went in level at the break.

The visitors gained the lead after Hooiveld hit and own goal but his mistake was reprieved by Lambert's equaliser on the hour mark but Adebayor was the hero for Tottenham as he hit his second to put them 3-2 up and give Sherwood a maiden league win in charge.

Part two saw Swansea host Everton and despite an exciting first half, the sides were level at the break but Coleman put the visitors in front in the 66th minute only to have his joy dampened when fellow Blues defender Oviedo struck an own goal to put Swansea level. Everton took the lead again with a superb free-kick from Barkley which was worthy of a match winner as they held on to go into the top four.

Monday Night Football saw the battle of the Londoners as Arsenal hosted Chelsea but a 0-0 draw saw the Gunners miss the chance to regain top spot and mean Liverpool topped the table at Christmas for the first time since the failed title challenge of 2008/2009.

Manchester Duo Survive while London Stars Exit

Capital One Cup Quarter Final time and both nights saw a surprise win and an easily predictable win so we will begin with Tuesday which saw Man City through to the semi finals with a 3-1 away win over Championship side Leicester, Kolarov handed the Blues the lead in the eighth minute with a second half double from Dzeko putting them in control at 3-0 but Leicester pulled one back through Dyer with thirteen minutes left to give them a chance of a comeback but the Blues held on.

Sunderland sat 17 places behind opponents Chelsea in the league table but that meant nothing when it comes to the cup as they hoped to add a positive to their season but they were cursing their luck after 46 minutes as Cattermole scored an own goal but they were saved by Borini in the 88th minute and went into extra time confident.

Both teams pushed for the win as a shootout would add to what has been a packed month already for the two sides but with two minutes remaining that worry disappeared as Ki stunned Chelsea with the winning goal to propel his side to the semi finals and two games from a famous Wembley appearance.

Wednesday saw a fairly routine victory for Man United with a 2-0 win away to Stoke with goals from Young and Evra but it was the London derby at White Hart Lane that saw a surprise, Tim Sherwood took charge after AVB's sacking at the weekend and the recall of Adebayor looked to have paid off as they took the lead with a goal from the returning attacker in the 67th minute but a two goals in five minutes from the Hammers secured a smash and grab win, Jarvis levelled in the 80th minute with Maiga sealing the win and a semi final place in the 85th minute.

The draw for the two-legged semi finals was made after last nights games and it was no surprise that the Manchester rivals were drawn apart meaning the prospect of a meeting in the final is very likely but many said that about Spurs and Chelsea and were very long so you never know it could be a West Ham v Sunderland final.

Sunderland v Man United
Man City v West Ham.

Liverpool And Man City Humilate Londoners

A packed weekend saw thirty goals scored which is even more shocking when seven teams failed to score as the Premier League edges towards a packed Christmas programme.

Saturday's early kick-off saw a nine goal thriller between Man City and Arsenal with the league leaders stunned by a 6-3 defeat, City took the lead through the in-form Aguero after 14 minutes but Arsenal levelled via Walcott on the half-hour with the lead soon regained for the home side by Negredo five minutes before the break. Fernandinho made it 3-1 in the 50th minute with Walcott hitting his second for 3-2, before Silva made it four for City in the 66th minute. Arsenal pushed to reduce the deficit but Fernandinho's second made it an unreachable 5-2 and despite Mertesacker pulling one back, Toure scored from the penalty spot for a 6-3 win.

Cardiff defeated West Brom 1-0 thanks to a Whittingham strike after 65 minutes which saw the West Brom manager sacked on Sunday following a bad run of results while Chelsea won a hard fought game against fellow Londoners, Crystal Palace with Torres giving them a 16th minute lead with Chamakh levelling for the visitors with his second goal in a week but Ramires' strike after 35 minutes was enough for Chelsea to hold on for the win and close in on Arsenal at the top with the two meeting next Monday night.

Everton moved into the top four with a resounding 4-1 home win against Fulham with Osman's opener after 18 minutes the only goal in a tight first hour until Berbatov equalised with a penalty in the 67th minute and started an exciting last twenty minutes that saw Coleman regain the lead for the Toffees with Barry and Mirallas sealing the win late on.

Newcastle and Southampton drew 1-1 with Gouffran giving the Magpies a half- time lead with a 27th minute opener which was cancelled out by Rodriguez continuing his scoring run with a 65th minute equaliser in a game that will be remembered for Moussa Sissoko accidentally flooring referee Mike Jones after being pushed by Hooiveld.

West Ham and Sunderland drew 0-0 as both looked to move away from the bottom of the table but neither could take an advantage and the story was the same in the late kick-off where Hull and Stoke drew 0-0.

Sunday's non-televised game saw Norwich and Swansea draw 1-1 with Dyer giving the Swans the lead before going off with a nasty injury and Hooper continuing his good form with an equaliser for the Canaries on half-time.

Super Sunday lived up to expectation as Man United defeated Aston Villa 3-0 in an exciting game which saw a quick double from Welbeck put the visitors in control with Cleverley sealing the win in the 52nd minute. However, that served as an appetiser for what was to come in the final game of the weekend as Liverpool put down a massive marker of their label of title contenders with a 5-0 crushing of Tottenham who failed to register a single shot on target as they suffered their worst defeat for 16 years. 

Outstanding performances from Henderson and Sterling saw them hit Liverpool's second and fifth sandwiching a Suarez double as he moved to 17 league goals with the pick of the goals coming from Jon Flanagan with a superb volley for his first goal in Liverpool red and the team's third on the day in a result that saw them go second in the table only two points off Arsenal and in contrast, see Tottenham sack Andre Villas Boas for a poor run of results despite him winning 54% of his games in charge of the London club in the league.

Swans And Spurs Advance As Latics Bow Out

Matchday six of the Europa League saw the final qualification places taken up as some big teams missed out on a place in the last 32.

A
Swansea fell to a 1-0 loss at St Gallen with a winning goal from Mathys but qualified after Kuban drew 1-1 away to already qualified Valencia despite going behind in the 67th minute to a Garcia strike and levelled through Melgarejo with six minutes remaining but even though Ruiz was sent off for the Spaniards late on, Kuban bowed out of the competition.

B
Ludogorets finished the group top and unbeaten after a 2-1 win over Dinamo with the visitors taking the lead through Paulos with the Croatian side levelling via a Cop strike on half-time but Bezjak hit the winner in the 72nd minute to ensure they finished unbeaten and six points clear of runners-up Chornomorets. The Ukrainians secured a safe passage to the last 32 by defeating PSV 1-0 with a winning goal from Djedje on the hour with the sending off of Riera late on the only negative for the visitors.

C
Red Bull Salzburg completed a clean sweep with a maximum 18 points after a 3-0 win over already qualified Esbjerg with a double from Mane sandwiching a Kampl strike completing an amazing group campaign that saw them conceded only three goals.Elfsborg won the battle to finish third with a 3-1 win over Liege despite going behind to an Mbombo goal on the half hour as Nilsson hit  double either side of half time with the win sealed by a Beckmann strike in the 52nd minute ensuring the Swedes avoided bottom spot.

D
Wigan needed to win and hope Rubin did them a favour by beating Zulte but sadly only the latter came true as for the second time in this group they led against Maribor and lost, this time by a 2-1 scoreline as Gomez handed them the lead from the spot with McCann sent off a minute after resulting in an equaliser from Mezga just before half-time. Filipovic put the home side ahead on the hour and even though they had Mertelj dismissed with 15 minutes to go, they held on for a win which saw them qualify. Rubin finished unbeaten with a late show away to Zulte that saw them win 2-0 with a Natcho penalty in the 78th minute added to by an 85th minute strike from Rondon.

E
In the battle for top spot, Fiorentina came out as winners with a 2-1 victory over Dnipro despite going behind early on to a 13th minute opener from Konoplyanka as Joaquin levelled just before half-time with Cuadrado sealing the win in the 77th minute to end the group stage unbeaten. Pacos sealed third place in the group after a 0-0 draw with basement side Pandurii despite having Leao sent off late on.

F
Frankfurt confirmed top spot in the group with a 2-0 win over Apoel with second half strikes from Schrock and Djakpa while Bordeaux ended a miserable campaign in bottom spot after a 1-0 defeat to Maccabi Tel Aviv who took advantage of Chalme's sending off to score a winner from the spot through Zahavi.

G
 Dynamo Kyiv qualified with a 3-1 win over Rapid Vienna despite going behind to a Boyd strike after six minutes but an equaliser from Lens was added to by a Gusev goal on the half hour with the win completed by Veloso in the 70th minute. Genk finished the group stage unbeaten and topped the group with a 1-0 win over FC Thun thanks to a 31st minute winner from Vossen.

H
Sevilla finished the group stage unbeaten with a 2-0 win over Freiburg with an 39th minute opener from Iborra added to by a last minute clincher by Rusescu to top the group while Liberec join them in the next stage after a 2-1 win over Estoril with goals from Sural and Rabusic putting them 2-0 up with Junior pulling one back for the home side with eight minutes to go but the Czechs held on for the win.

I
Lyon topped the group unbeaten after a 2-1 away win over Guimares despite going behind to a Mendes opener in the 11th minute but when Correia was sent off on the hour mark, Gomis converted the resulting penalty and Ferri struck three minutes later to seal the win. Betis join them in the next round after a 0-0 draw against Rijeka whose failure to win meant they finished bottom of the group.

J
Trabzonspor and Lazio drew 0-0 in the battle to top the group as they both finished unbeaten meaning the Turks won the group by two points while Legia ended their campaign in style as going into the final game they had no points and no goals but a 2-0 win over Apollon changed that for them despite the fact they finished bottom of the group but goals from Jodlowiec and Brzyski set them on the way to their maiden win and a fracas in the 69th minute saw Sangoy and Bereszynski sent off leaving both sides with ten men as the Poles held on.

K
Tottenham topped the group with an 100% record with a 4-1 crushing of fellow qualifiers Anzhi with a Soldado double and a Santos strike making it 2-1 at half-time but a clever third from Holtby and  Soldado completing his hat-trick from the spot saw them finish ten points clear of the Russians. Sheriff sealed third place with a 2-0 victory over Tromso with goals from Mendes after four minutes and Mustafa in the 36th minute.

L
AZ topped the group via head to head over PAOK after the sides drew 2-2 in the battle to win the group with Lam putting the Dutch side ahead only to have it cancelled out minute later by a Martinez penalty but Gorter's 71st minute penalty looked to seal the win for the visitors until Pozoglou's last minute equaliser forced a draw meaning the battle still was won by AZ.

Maccabi Haifa secured third place with a 2-1 win over bottom side Karagandy despite going behind to a 44th minute penalty from Canas but a Gozlan leveller in the 72nd minute was soon followed by a winning strike from Abuhatzira in the 80th minute.

So there you go the group stage is over and 24 teams advance to join the eight teams dropping down from the Champions League when the competition resumes in February 2014 with draw details to be posted soon. 

EPL Foursome Qualify Safely

Matchday Six saw the final places and qualifiers decided with some surprises and mistakes which led to positives and some near disasters on a programme that saw eight dismissals including three in one game as the competition leaves the group stage and moves on to the last 16 with the draw commencing on Monday.

A
Manchester United ensured that they topped the group after a 1-0 win over Shakthar with centre back Phil Jones hitting the winner in the 67th minute and they will be joined in the next stage by Bayer Leverkusen who defeated Real Sociedad 1-0 with a winner from Toprak in the 49th minute.

B
Real Madrid finished unbeaten as group winners with a 2-0 win away to Copenhagen with goals from former Spurs midfielder Luka Modric and a record strike from Ronaldo who hit his ninth of the campaign and even missed a late penalty. Galatasaray and Juventus made history by playing their 90 minutes over two days after the match was abandoned on Tuesday due to heavy snow with the score at 0-0, Wednesday afternoon saw the game resume and the Turks secured qualification to the next round thanks to an 85th minute winner from Sneijder.  

C
PSG had already qualified but a defeat to Benfica saw their unbeaten campaign ended as they went down 2-1 despite taking the lead through Cavani but Limar levelled with a penalty on half-time with Gaitan sealing the win in the 58th minute but they missed out on qualification for the next stage due to an inferior head-to-head record against Olympiakos.

The Greek champions ensured that they reached the next stage with a bad-tempered 3-1 win against Anderlecht., Saviola gave them a 33rd minute lead with Kijestan levelling six minutes later but the sending off of Kouyate four minutes into the second half soon saw Olympiakos lead again with Saviola's second just before the hour mark. Anderlecht seemed to lose their focus in the final minutes as N'Sakala and Proto were both sent off with the latter seeing his error punished by a Dominguez penalty to seal the win.

D
Manchester City came from 2-0 down away to reigning champions Bayern Munich to win 3-2 but fell short of topping the group due to a miscalculation as the required score of 4-2 was not known and as a result they will not face a tougher draw in the next stage.

The Germans saw Muller and Gotze put them in control in the 5th and 12th minutes but it was game on when Silva struck on the half-hour, Kolarov levelled the tie with a penalty on the hour and minutes later Milner completed the comeback to give City the win but the single goal win meant that the Germans would top the group.

Plzen ensured they secured a Europa League place with a 2-1 win over CSKA despite going behind to a Musa strike with Dzagoev sent off minutes later, Plzen took advantage and levelled through Kolar in the 76th minute with Wagner sealing the win in the final minute with Wernbloom sent off for the visitors.

E
Chelsea topped the group after an unconvincing 1-0 win over Schalke with Demba Ba hitting the winner in the tenth minute with Schalke sealing second place in the group with a 2-0 win over Basel who saw Ivanov sent off on the half-hour and two goals in seven second half minutes from Draxler and Matip seal the win for the German side.

F 
Arsenal knew they would qualify as long as they avoided a 3-0 defeat to Napoli but came minutes from a disaster as they lost 2-0 with the Italians scoring through Higuain and Callejon sandwiching the sending off of Arteta which saw them drop to second as Dortmund went from third to first in the final minutes.

Dortmund took the lead though Lewandowski but saw Marseille level through Diawara who then  saw Payet dismissed in the 34th minute but  as the tie entered the final five minutes, Dortmund were on their way out due to Napoli leading 1-0 and got lucky as substitute Großkreutz struck with three minutes to go to ruin the mood over in Italy despite Napoli hitting their second goal as Arsenal survived in second and Napoli had to settle for a Europa League place.

G
Atletico Madrid finished top of the group and finished the group stage unbeaten with a 2-0 win over Porto with goals from Garcia and Costa while Zenit qualified with them despite losing 4-1 away to Austria Vienna who went behind to a Kerzakhov strike before levelling through Hosiner and then taking the lead via Jun, Hosiner hit a third with Kienast completing the rout in the final minute.

H
AC Milan secured qualification with a 0-0 draw against Ajax despite playing nearly 70 minutes with ten men after Montolivo was sent off in the 22nd minute while Barcelona crushed Celtic 6-1 to ensure the Scottish champions finished bottom after Pique gave the Catalans the lead in the ninth minute with Pedro adding a second in the 39th minute. Neymar hit a 14 minute hat-trick either side of half time to make it 5-0 with Tello hitting a sixth on 72 minutes but there was some solace for Celtic as Samaras scored a consolation in the 88th minute.

So there you have it the group stage is over and the qualifiers are as follows...
Winners - Man Utd, R Madrid, PSG, B Munich, Chelsea, Dortmund, A Madrid and Barcelona.
Runners Up -Leverkusen, Galatasaray, Olympiakos, Man City, Schalke, Arsenal, Zenit and Milan.
Europa League - Shakthar, Juventus, Benfica, Plzen, Basel, Napoli, Porto and Ajax.

The draw for the next stage will be posted on Monday afternoon as the competition takes a winter break until February 2014.

Liverpool Capitalise on Rivals Failure to Win

After a brilliant midweek programme it was clear that some teams would be looking for more positive results with Norwich and Manchester United good examples.

Saturday's early kick off saw what many would consider a surprise result as Manchester United slipped to a second home loss in four days with history being made again as Newcastle won at Old Trafford for the first time since 1972 with a Cabaye winner in the 61st minute that meant that the home side could slip out of the top half if other results went against them.

Crystal Palace secured a second consecutive win with a 2-0 victory at home to Cardiff with Jerome setting them on their way in the sixth minute with Chamakh hitting his second goal this week to seal the win in the 57th minute.

Liverpool made it five home wins in a row with a 4-1 win over West Ham meaning they had scored nine in two games this week and they got lucky with the opener as Demel scored an own goal just before the break. Sahko added a second  two minutes into the second half with Skrtel hitting into his won net to give the Hammers hope but the win was sealed for the Reds with Suarez hitting the third but West Ham's night got worse as Nolan received a straight red card for challenge on Henderson and minutes later, O'Brien scored an own goal after a skillful chance from Suarez.

Souhampton's hard run of games continued with the visit of Manchester City and after Aguero put City 1-0 up after ten minutes, the Arsenal/Chelsea losses came to mind but the Saints got themselves level just before half time through Osvaldo and held on for the draw.

Chelsea looked to close up on Arsenal but were stunned by Stoke who secured a 3-2 win despite going behind after nine minutes to a Schurrle strike, Crouch levelled before the break and Ireland put the home side 2-1 up but Schurrle hit a second minutes later to put the score at 2-2. Chelsea pushed for a winner but were blown away by a spectacular winner from Assaidi in the final minute as the Potters celebrated a famous win over the Blues.

Norwich erased the horror of their visit to Anfield with a 2-0 win at West Brom with an opener from Hooper in the 13th minute setting them off with an 89th minute strike from Fer sealing the win while the late kick-off saw Tottenham claim a 2-1 win away to Sunderland with Johnson giving the home side the lead in the 37th minute with Paulinho levelling for the visitors just before half-time, The win was sealed by Spurs thanks to an O'Shea own goal five minutes into the second half.

Super Sunday saw Fulham win 2-0 against Aston Villa with Sidwell scoring against his former club and a Berbatov penalty in the first half to move them away from the bottom of the table while the second game saw Arsenal and Everton draw 1-1 in an exciting game that saw both sides level with ten minutes to go despite numerous chances but the first goal came for the home side as Ozil struck from close range but Deulofeu saved the Toffees with an equaliser in the 84th minute to prevent the Ggunners from pulling away at the top.

Monday Night Football saw Swansea take on Hull and the two sides drew 1-1 with former Swan Danny Graham scoring the opener for Hull in the ninth minute but declined to celebrate as it the common trend for former players but this side were pegged back by a fortuitous goal by Chico Flores who on the replay looked to use his hand but the goal was given as the two sides brought the curtain down on an exciting weekend of action.  

Goals Galore In Midweek Madness

For most European leagues, December includes a winter break but in the Premier League not only is there no winter break but there are more games than in any other month of the season and on that note there was a midweek programme this week and if the next one is just as goo well bring it on.

Tuesday had a single game which saw Tony Pulis get a first win as Crystal Palace manager with a 1-0 home win against West Ham with a winning goal from Chamakh in the 42nd minute.

Wednesday saw the other 18 teams face off with Arsenal continuing their run of form with a 2-0 win over Hull with a second minute opener from Bendtner who made his first start in two years in place of Giroud and the second goal came just after half-time through Ozil who completed the win.

For the second time this week, Bryan Oviedo proved to be a hero for Everton as he struck a famous winner in the 86th minute of their trip to Old Trafford to face former manager David Moyes and Manchester United, the defender's strike handed the Toffees a first win at Old Trafford in 21 years and prompted a joke from the visiting fans that 'Moyes had finally seen Everton win at United but ironic that he was the losing manager.'

Everton's victory made for a good night for Merseyside with city rivals Liverpool also breaking a record via Luis Suarez who hit four in a 5-1 win over Norwich with the Uruguayan becoming the first player in Premier League history to score three hat-tricks against the same club with Sterling hitting the fifth after Johnson had pulled on back for the Canaries.

Southampton had conceded only seven all season going into December but have conceded six in two already this month as on the back of the Chelsea defeat, they lost 3-2 at home to Aston Villa despite equalising twice as Agbonlahor gave Villa the lead after 15 minutes with Rodriguez replying after the break. Kozak scored in the 64th minute to regain the lead but within minutes the sides were level again as Osvaldo struck to set up a tight last 20 minutes but Villa eased the tension with an 80th minute winner from Delph who sealed the win spectacularly.

Stoke and Cardiff drew 0-0 while at the Stadium of Light, Chelsea won a seven goal thriller with a 4-3 win against Sunderland who too a surprise lead in the 14th minute through Altidore but Lampard levelled minutes later with Hazard sending Chelsea into the break 2-1 up with a 36th minute strike. O'Shea brought Sunderland level five minutes into the second half but on the hour, Hazard hit his second to give the Blues a 3-2 lead which was increased in the 84th minute by a Bardsley own goal but the defender made amends with a strike at the right end two minutes later to setup a frantic finish but Chelsea held on for the win.

Swansea derailed Newcastle's run of form with a 3-0 victory, Dyer put them 1-0 up just before half-time with Debuchy scoring an own goal in the 66th minute to give the Swans a 2-0 lead with the win sealed by a Shelvey strike nine minutes from the end.

In the late kick-offs, Fulham started life with Rene Meuelensteen at the helm with a 2-1 defeat at home to Tottenham in a game that saw all three goals scored by players hitting their first strikes for their clubs, Dejagah hit the opener for Fulham in the 56th minute with Chiriches hitting a leveller from 35 yards with Holtby scoring the winner for Spurs in the 82nd minute.

 Manchester City secured a 3-2 win away to West Brom despite a late fightback, Aguero put the visitors ahead after nine minutes with Toure adding a second on 24 minutes to give them a 2-0 lead at the break. The Ivorian hit a second from the penalty spot in the 74th minute to surely seal the win but two goals in the 85th and 90th minutes gave the Baggies hope as an own goal from City 'keeper Pantilimon was added to by Anichebe but that was the last action as City earned a hard fought win.

So an exciting midweek programme saw 33 goals which was even more stunning when six teams kept clean sheets meaning the 14 scoring teams hit an average of 2.4 goals each with four players hitting braces with the exceptions being Bardsley scoring at both ends and Suarez hitting four on an amazing but strange night.

Londoners Reclaim Top Two

An exciting weekend at both ends of the table saw an array of goals but also saw seven teams keep a clean sheet while we also saw a sacking and a false offside that will be remembered for years to come.

Aston Villa were graced by a Royal visitor as Prince William watched his Villan's draw 0-0 with Sunderland in a game that saw Sunderland blow a good chance from Giaccherini which was a bright spark in a drab 90 minutes.

Arsenal went seven points clear with a 3-0 win away to Cardiff but should have led early on when Giroud found himself unmarked in the area only to halt believing he was offside and then tackled when it was clear he was clearly onside to the disgust of Arsene Wenger and to the shock of all the viewing public. Ramsey did convert on the half-hour against his former club and Flamini added a second late on with Ramsey hitting his second to the applause of both sets of fans as the Gunners kept up their good run.

Everton cruised to a 4-0 win over an ailing Stoke with Deulofeu celebrating his first start with the opening goal on halfway with Coleman putting them 2-0 up in the 49th minute and Oviedo hitting his first goal on the hour, the match was sewn up by the free-scoring Lukaku with 12 minutes to go as the Toffees rose up to fourth.

Tony Pulis' first game in charge of Crystal Palace was a sour one as Norwich won 1-0 at Carrow Road thanks to a 30th minute strike from Hooper. West Ham rose to 15th after a 3-0 win at home to Fulham with Diame striking the opener in the 47th minute with a late show from Carlton and Joe Cole condemning the Cottagers to a sixth consecutive loss which today has seen manager Martin Jol sacked after two years in charge.

In the late kick-off, Newcastle rose up to fifth with a 2-1 win over West Brom with Gouffran putting them 1-0 up at the break with Brunt equalising in the 53rd minute but the equilibrium lasted a few minutes as Sissoko put Newcastle back in front as they held on for a welcome win.

Recent meetings between Tottenham and Manchester United have been memorable for good and bad reasons and today's game was just as good as Spurs took the lead with a Walker strike only to be pegged back by a Rooney equaliser and they were level into the break. Sandro put Spurs ahead for the second time but yet again it was Rooney that pulled United level this time from the penalty spot as they held on for a point.

Super Sunday began with an amazing game for everyone, well all those who don't follow Liverpool of course as Hull made history with a first ever win over Liverpool who had a horrific day beginning with the news that Daniel Sturridge would not play again until 2014 . The Tigers as they will soon be known secured a famous 3-1 win via some strange luck with the opener coming from Livermore's shot deflecting in off the unfortunate Skrtel, Gerrard converted from a free-kick to bring the visitors level but a stunning strike from Meyler put Hull back in front with 18 minutes to go and the last blow for the visiting Reds saw Huddlestone's aim at goal cannon in off Skrtel and end a woeful day for Liverpool.

Part two of Super Sunday opened with a shock as Rodriguez scored after 13 seconds to stun Stamford Bridge as Southampton looked to get revenge on Chelsea for the 2004 meeting where they led after 14 seconds through Beattie but lost 2-1 and sadly for the Saints, the outcome was worse as Chelsea levelled through Terry and then led through Cahille before completing the comeback through Demba Ba right at the end.

The weekend came to a close with the meeting between Manchester City and Swansea which saw the home side mover up to third place in the table with a 3-0 win with Negredo opening the scoring from a well worked free-kick in the eighth minute with Nasri hitting a second half brace to complete the win.

So Arsenal and Chelsea are back at the top but its as you were at the bottom with Crystal Palace, Sunderland and Fulham occupying the relegation places.

Cup Winners Face Anxious Wait For Future

Matchday five in the Europa League and a lot of very close games which mean that similar to the Champions League, the hopes for many will rest on their final games but for some an easy week awaits after wins this week.

A
Kuban kept up hopes of advancing with a 4-0 win over St Gallen with a Melgarejo brace accompanied by a goal from Ignajev and a late addition from Kabore, Swansea who face the Russian's in the final game know a positive result will see them through but could have advanced earlier had they not fallen to a 1-0 defeat to Valencia with Parejo hitting the winning goal.

B
Chornomorets sealed a 2-1 win over Dinamo despite going behing to a Bequiraj strike on 20 minutes but a leveller from Antonov in the 78th minute and a last-gasp winner from Didenko claimed the three points. Ludogorets confirmed top spot with a 2-0 home win against 10-man PSV thanks to a Bezjak double whose side benefited from Bruma being dismissed for the visitors when 1-0 down.

C
Salzburg who had already qualified beat Elfsborg 1-0 with a winner from Meilinger in the 39th minute and will battle to claim top spot next time out against Esbjerg who like the Austrians had already sealed a safe passage to the next stage and continued their good run with a 2-1 victory over Liege with Van Buren hitting a brace sandwiching an equaliser from De Camargo.

D
Wigan missed the chance to seal a place in the knockout stage by losing 2-1 to Zulte and need to win their last game to go though but after leading through Barnett hopes were high but a Hazard leveller and a late goal from Adje saw the Latics slip to third and looking for a favour from Rubin next time out. The Russian side already qualified, rested players and looked on for a win after Natcho put them 1-0 up at the break but a late leveller from Mezga shared the points.

E
Dnipro already qualified sent the fight for top spot down to the wire with a comfortable 4-1 win over Pandurii with Kalinic and Zozulya putting them two up only for Pereira to pull one back from the spot but the Ukranian's confirmed the win with late strikes from Shakhov and Kravchenko. Fiorentina missed the chance to confirm top spot after drawing 0-0 with Pacos who will challenge Pandruii in the final game to try and avoid finishing bottom.

F
APOEL and Maccabi Tel Aviv drew 0-0 and it was a missed opportunity for the visitors who would have qualified had they won but face a final game against Bordeaux who will be hoping to avoid finishing bottom so both will be full strength surely, Boredaux remain bottom after losing 1-0 to Frankfurt after an 83rd minute winner from Lanig ensured that the Germans will top the group.

G
Genk defeated Dynamo Kyiv 3-1 despite the Ukraninan side leading through Yarmolenko after nine minutes but a Vossen penalty brought them level within ten minutes and Kumordzi and De Ceulear both struck before the break as the Belgians sealed top spot.

H
Sevilla all but qualified barring a goal-difference disaster next time out after they drew 1-1 with Estoril who still have hopes of advancing themselves after a Fernandes strike cancelled out Gameiro's opener. Freiburg claimed a 2-1 win over Liberec with Ginter and Coquelin putting them two up with Rybalka pulling one back late on which only served as a consolation.

I
Lyon qualified with a 1-0 victory over Betis courtesy of a Gomis strike in the 66th minute while Rijeka and Guimares drew 0-0 with both setting up different possibilities for the final game, Guimares need to beat Lyon to have a chance of going through but need Rijeka to surprise Betis and one outcome is that the Portuguese side could even finish bottom.

J
Legia look like setting a new record of being the only side not to score in the group stage as they lost 2-0 to Lazio who take the fight for top spot down to the wire with goals from Perea and Gomes. Trabzonspor currently sit top after a 4-2 win over Apollon who now know they will finish third, Adin and Ayogdyu put the Turks 2-0 up at the break with Adin hitting his second and Trabzon's third before Guie pulled one back and Sangoy hit a penalty to make it 3-2 but Adin completed his hat-trick with seven minutes remainining to confirm the win.

K
Tottenham kept up their 100% record with a 2-0 win against Tromso with the Norweigian side handing them the lead thanks to a Causevic own goal with Dembele adding a second in the 75th minute to keep up the Londoner's hopes of a perfect campaign that has also seen them conceded only once while scoring ten. Anzhi join them in the next stage after drawing 1-1 with Sheriff despite going behind to a Mustafa strike which soon saw them level through Epuraenu and finish with a man advantage as Mendes was dismissed late on for the visitors.

L
Maccabi Haifa lost 2-0 to AZ with an own goal from Dzidic and a late strike from Kitsiov sealing the win for the already qualified Eredivisie side, PAOK matched them with a 2-0 win over Karagandy with goals from Gudelj and Gudmundsson setting up a battle for top spot next time out.

So a mixed night for results with a lot of teams going into the final game still with something to play for be it qualification or avoiding finishing bottom of their group.

 

Manchester Marvels While Madrid Are Magic

The penultimate games of the group stage this week in Matchday five saw some sides rest stars with qualification already sealed while others went full strength and secured safe passage with a game to go.

A
 Manchester United needed a win to secure qualification and did so in style with a 5-0 drubbing over Leverkusen with Valencia and a Spahic own goal putting them 2-0 up at the break while goals from Evans, Smalling and an 88th minute strike from Nani completed the rout.

Shakthar hammered Sociedad 4-0 to keep up their qualification hopes with goals either side of the break from Adriano and Teixeira with Costa adding two more to condemn the Spaniards to the bottom of the group.

B
 Real Madrid continued their unbeaten run with a 4-1 home win over Galatasaray but found themselves down to ten just before the half-hour with Ramos sent off but Bale and Bulut each scored to send them into the break level, Arbeloa put Madrid in front with Di Maria making it three after the hour and Isco struck late on to complete the win.

Juventus kept up hopes of qualifying for the next stage with a 3-1 win over Copenhagen with Arturo Vidal scoring two penalties either side of the break sandwiching an equaliser from former Juve defender Olof Mellberg, Vidal completed his hat-trick minutes after his second penalty to complete the win.

C
 Already safely qualified, PSG rested players but still won  2-1 win with Ibrahimovic opening the scoring in the seventh minute, Verrati was sent off a minute into the second half for the Ligue 1 side but it took until the 80th minute for Olympiakos to take advantage with Manolas levelling but their hopes of a draw were dashed in the final minute by a winning strike from Cavani.

Benfica sent the race for second place in their group down to the final game with a hard fought 3-2 win away to Anderlecht with the Belgians taking the lead through Mangulu with Matic equalising to send them in level at the break. Mangulu scored at the wrong end early in the second half and Bruno equalised in the 76th minute with Rodrigo striking the winning goal in the final minute.

D
 Bayern made it a record 10th consecutive win in the competition with a 3-1 victory away to CSKA, Robben and Gotze put them 2-0 up with Honda pulling one back from the penalty spot only for Muller to hit a penalty for the Germans three minutes later to seal the win.

Manchester City had already qualified for the next stage but wanted to top the group to avoid a tough opponent and as such went with a strong lineup but found it tough at home to Plzen even though they won 4-2. Aguero put City ahead from the spot with Horava levelling just before the break,Nasri put City ahead again but Tecl equalised minutes later, Negredo gave them a third lead before Dzeko comfirmed the win in the final seconds.

E
 Basel completed a double over Chelsea with Salah scoring late on to repeat his heroics in the reverse meeting while Steaua and Schalke drew 0-0.

F
Arsenal all but qualified barring a disaster in week six with a 2-0 win over Marseille with a brace Wilshere in the 1st and 65th minutes sealing the win, Dortmund secured a 3-1 win over Napoli 
with a Reus penalty and Blaszczykowski putting them 2-0 up with Insigne pulling one back before Aubemeyang sealed the win twelve minutes from the end.

G
Porto came from behind to draw 1-1 with Austria Vienna after Kienast gave the away and 11th minute lead with Martinez equalising for the home side early in the second half  while Atletico Madrid scored at both ends to draw 1-1 with Zenit with Adrian giving them the lead in the 53rd minute but an own goal from Alderweireld ensured a share of the points.

H
Ajax shocked Barcelona with a 2-1 win with Serero and Hoesen putting them 2-0 up at the break with Veltman sent off in the 48th minute resulting in Xavi converting from the spot but the Eredivisie side held on for the win while Celtic were humbled 3-0 at home to AC Milan with goals from Kaka, Zapata and Balotelli confirming the SPL side would finish bottom of the group.

So a matchday for high scores but also one that means for a change, the final set of games will include teams fighting for qualification so some full strength lineups will feature as the competition enters a winter break until February.

Mixed Fortunes For City Rivals

The International break has passed one again thankfully meaning a returning focus to the league which had some surprising results including 10 goals across two derby games.

Arsenal retained top spot with a 2-0 win at home to in-form Southampton with a Giroud brace comprising a late penalty and an opener gifted to him by Saints 'keeper Boruc who made a huge error by failing to clear with Giroud pressurising him.

 In the early kick-off, Everton and Liverpool shared the points in the Merseyside derby which started as close as it ended with Coutinho and Mirallas scoring in the opening ten minutes and Suarez putting the visitors in control until a brace from Lukaku in the 72nd and 82nd minutes set the Blues up for victory but continuing tradtion in the derby, a late goal from Sturridge set up a frantic finish and salvaged a point.

Swansea secured a 2-1 win away to Fulham with a Hughes own goal setting them on their way, Parker replied for Fulham with Shelvey hitting the winner ten minutes from the end. Crystal Palace celebrated naming Tony Pulis as their new manager with a 1-0 win away to Hull despite losing Bolasie to a red card in the 78th minute, they hit a winner minutes later through Bannan.

Newcastle piled the pressure on Norwich with a 2-1 win which saw Remy strike in the second minute with Gouffran following up seven minutes from the break, Norwich pulled one back through Fer ten minutes from the end but couldnt hit an equaliser.

Stoke claimed a 2-0 win at home to Sunderland with a goal from Adam on the half hour handing them the lead but six minutes later, Brown saw red for Sunderland leaving the visitors with an uphill task but they held on until nine minutes from time when N'Zonzi sealed the win.

Chelsea defeated West Ham 3-0 in the evening kick-off with former Hammer - Frank Lampard opening the scoring from the penalty spot with Oscar adding a second just after the half-hour, Lampard hit a second with eight minutes to go to wrap up the win.

Super Sunday surpassed all expectation as Manchester City demolished Tottenham 6-0 even more shocking when both sides had a similar amount of chances just that City were far more potent. Navas put them in front after 14 seconds and thoughts of their recent thrashings worried the visiting fans but Spurs contributed to their own downfall as Sandro hit into his own net just after the half-hour, Aguero added a third to put City in control at the break. A quick double from Aguero andNegredo made it 5-0 with Spurs day ended in the final minute by Navas' second goal.


In the second game, Manchester United travelled to face Cardiff and when Rooney handed them a 15th minute lead, worries appeared that Cardiff could face a backlash but they showed spirit and equalised just after the half-hour through Campbell but United went 2-1 up on half way through Evra and held on in the second half only to be pegged back right at the end as Kim scored a last-gasp leveller to send the home fans wild and dent United's hopes of moving into the top four.

The final game of the weekend saw a Birmingham derby between West Brom and Aston Villa with the home side taking a 2-0 lead inside 12 minutes thanks to Long's early double but Villa came back in the second half to secure a draw with goals from El Ahmadi and Westwood.

So it's advantage Arsenal as they pull away at the top thanks to Liverpool and Southampton failing to win and at the bottom, Palace's win takes them off the bottom and allowed them to close up on West Ham and Fulham.
 

Liverpool And Southampton Capitalise On Rivals Demise

As the International break looms this weekend, the teams knew it was paramount to go into the break on a high and for some it was a low when a high would have been a certainty.

Aston Villa went into the home game against Cardiff having not scored in seven hours and struck lucky with two goals in eight minutes on the way to a 2-0 win with the goals coming from a superb free-kick from Bacuna and a header from Kozak.

Chelsea needed a controversial injury time penalty from Hazard to spare their blushes as they went from 1-0 up to 2-1 down in the space of eight minutes, they took the lead through Eto'o on halfway with the Baggies levelling and taking the lead through Long and Sessegnon before the 70th minute but when Ramires looked to go down easy, Chelsea got a penalty and Hazard hit the equaliser.

Crystal Palace and Everton drew 0-0 while Merseyside rivals Liverpool thrashed Fulham 4-0, the first coming thanks to Fulham defender Amorebieta with Skrtel adding a quick second and a double from Suarez completing the rout and putting them only two points behind table toppers Arsenal.

Southampton joined Liverpool in closing the gap to Arsenal with a 4-1 demolition of Hull with the newly England call-ups getting in on the action as Lambert and Lallana added to an early opener from Schneiderlin with Lambert hitting his 33rd penalty to keep up his perfect record, Sagbo pulled one back for Hull but Davis confirmed the win late on.

Norwich faced West Ham in the late kick-off and despite going behind to a 32nd minute opener from Morrison came back to win 3-1 with a equalising penalty from Hooper soon joined by a Snodgrass strike and a last minute sealer from Fer.

Super Sunday saw a hat-trick of games and shockingly three surprise results as Tottenham, Man City and Arsenal all lost to their lower positioned opponents, Tottenham started the afternoon with a 1-0 home defeat to Newcastle who ruined a good week for the home side with a 12th minute winner courtesy of Loic Remy.

Sunderland made it three wins in a week and a fourth consective defeat of Man City with a 21st minute winner from Bardsley for a 1-0 win even more important as they had kept a first clean sheet of the season against a City side who had scored 12 in two games (Norwich/CSKA).

Manchester United got the better of Arsenal to end the Gunners unbeaten run and propelled themselves up the table thanks to a winning goal headed in by Robin Van Persie in the 27th minute.

The game of the day ironically was the only one not televised as Swansea and Stoke shared the points in a six-goal thriller, Stoke took a 2-0 lead with strikes from Walters and Ireland who put them in control going into the break but a Bony brace either side of a Dyer goal put Swansea 3-2 up with four minutes remaining but Stoke salvaged a draw through a last-gasp penalty from Charlie Adam.

So an exciting weekend at both ends of the table with some real shocks going into the international break but the top three could be very different come 5pm on the 23rd as Liverpool meet city rivals Everton in the Merseyside Derby and could top the table while 1st plays 3rd as Arsenal host Southampton.

Man City Advance While Rivals Wait

Matchday four saw a number of top sides advance to the next stage including defending champions Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Manchester City.

A
 Manchester United have to wait to qualify after drawing 0-0 against Real Sociedad while group rivals, Shakthar and Leverkusen also drew blank in a 0-0 draw.

B
Copenhagen won 1-0 against Galatasaray with an early goal from Braaten in the sixth minute sealing the win while Real Madrid and Juventus drew 2-2 with the Italians leading with a Vidal penalty at the break but a quick double from Ronaldo and Bale gave Madrid the lead with Llorente levelling five minutes later to seal a draw.

C
Olympiakos claimed a 1-0 win over Benfica with a winning strike from Manolas in the 13th minute with PSG and Anderlecht drawing 1-0 with the Belgians taking the lead through De Zeeuw with Ibrahimovic levelling two minutes later but they failed to capitalise on the late dismissal of Anderlecht's Kjestan and had to settle for a point.

D
Manchester City and Bayern Munich both secured qualification with wind with the Germans winning 1-0 away to Plzen thanks to a goal from super-sub Mandzukic in the 65th minute while City continued their rich scoring form with a 5-2 victory over CSKA Moscow with an early Aguero brace and Negredo strike setting them on their way with a Doumbia goal on half time giving the Russians hope. Their hope was soon dashed with Negredo's second giving City a 4-1 lead but Doumbia struck from the spot to make it 4-2 with Negredo completing his hat-trick in the final minute.

E
Chelsea sealed a 3-0 win over Schalke with a brace from Eto'o and a late goal from substitute Demba Ba while Basel and Steaua drew 1-1 with Piovaccari giving the Romanian's the lead but a last-gasp leveller from Sio shared the points.

F
Arsenal beat Dortmund 1-0 courtesy of a strike from Ramsey while Napoli and Marseille played out a five-goal thriller with the Italians winning 3-2 despite going behind to Ayew's opener but Inler levelled and Higuain gave them the lead into the break, Marseille equalised through Thauvin but Higuain's second in the 75th minute sealed the win.

G
Zenit and Porto drew 1-1 with Lucho giving the away side the lead but former Porto hero Hulk levelled to ensure a share of the points while Atletico Madrid won 4-0 over Austria Vienna with goals from Miranda, Garcia, Luis and Costa.

H
Barcelona sealed qualification with a 3-1 win over Milan with Messi opening the scoring with a penalty and Busquets adding a second but Milan go one back with Pique scoring an own goal just on half time but Messi's second completed the win. Ajax defeated Celtic 1-0 thanks to a Schone goal to keep up hopes of qualification.

So a few mixed results in the reverse meetings from Matchday four mean some top sides have to wait to qualify with some still with the prospect of going out of European competition completely.

 

Spurs Advance While Swansea/Wigan Wait

Matchday Four saw a lot of clean sheets and low scoring games but for eight teams, it was of little importance as they secured qualification to the next stage including Tottenham, Fiorentina,  Dnipro and surprise packaged Ludogorets.

A
Valencia secured qualification with a 3-2 win over St Gallen after an early double from Platti and Besle saw the sides level at the break and the home side took a lead via Karanovic but Platti's second and a late strike from Canales sealed the win.

Swansea have to wait to qualify after conceding late on against Kuban for the second consecutive meeting but things started well with a ninth minute lead by Bony but despite losing Reame to a dismissal, Kuban levelled in the final minute through Balde for 1-1.

B
Ludogorets sealed qualification with a 1-1 draw against Chornomorets after taking the lead through Quixada they were pegged back by Gai in the 65th minute but held on to top the group while PSV beat Dinamo Zagreb 2-0 with goals from Maher and Toivonen to keep up qualification hopes.

C
Salzburg and Esbjerg both qualified after wins with the Austrians winning 3-1 away to Liege after taking a 2-0 lead at the break after goals from Svento and Kampl and despite M'Poku pulling a goal back, minutes later Alan made it three for Salzburg who held on to top the group.

Esbjerg sealed qualification with a 1-0 win over Elfsborg with a winning goal from Rohden in the 71st minute and meant the Swedes remain on a single point with Liege.

D
Rubin qualifed after beating Wigan at home 1-0 after Kuzmin goal in the 22nd minute but the Latics are still second and with a great chance to qualify after Zulte beat Maribor 1-0 via a Hazard penalty to ensure all three teams have the chance to join Rubin in the next stage. 

E
Dnipro qualified via a 2-0 win over Pacos with goals from Matheus and Konoplyanka while Fiorentina also go through to the next stage after a 2-1 win over Pandurii with a late show after going behind to Pereira's 32nd minute opener but an 86th minute equaliser from Ryder and a late minute winner from Valero sealed the win.

F
APOEL secured a 2-1 win over Bordeaux with goals from Alexandrou and Morais sandwiching a Sane leveller while Maccabi Tel-Aviv shocked Frankfurt with a 4-2 win which saw them 3-0 up at the break through Zahual and an Itzhaki double but a double in the 63rd and 67th minutes from Lakic and Meier gave the Germans and chanace but the win was sealed in the final minute by a Zahual penalty.

G
Dynamo Kyiv sealed a 2-0 win away to Thun with goals from Schneckel and Yarmolenko while Rapid and Genk drew 2-2 with the Belgians taking the lead with a Mbodj penalty but a quick double from Boyd gave the Austrian's a 2-1 lead with Buffel levelling on the hour to secure a point.

H
Estoril and Freiburg drew 0-0 despite the Germans finishing with nine men and Sevilla drew 1-1 with Liberec with Perotti giving the home side the lead with a 71st minute leveller coming from Pavelka.

I
Lyon drew 1-1 with Rijeka with both sides scoring inside 25 minutes with the French side opening the scoring through Plea on 14 minutes with Kramaric levelling in the 21st minute while Betis beat Guimares 1-0 with a last minute winner from Chuli.

J
Lazio won 2-1 against Apollon with an early double from Floccari enough to seal the win despite Paopoulis pulling a goal back for the Cypriot side while Trabzonspor secured a 2-0 win over Legia with an own goal by Junior and a goal from Adin.

K
Tottenham secured qualification with a 2-1 win over Sheriff with Lamela's first Spurs goal handing them the lead and Defoe adding a penalty with Isa's goal for Sheriff being only a consolation. Anzhi kept up hopes of qualifying with a 1-0 win over Tromso with a late goal from Mkrtchyn.

L
AZ claimed a 1-0 win over Karagandy to keep up their qualification hopes with a strike from Ortiz while Maccabi Haifa and PAOK drew 0-0.

So eight sides through and eight more to join them either in the next round of matches or in a tense finish in Matchday six.

F1 India/Abu Dhabi Results

City Hit Seven As Arsenal Go Five Clear

November is barely three days in and what a spectacular start in the Premier League with shock and surprises aplenty.

Saturday's early kick off started the shocks with Newcastle winning 2-0 at home to Chelsea who themselves were in great form, the Magpies sealed the win with Remy scoring in the 89th minute after Gouffran had opened their account in the 68th minute to stun the travelling Blues.

Manchester United propelled up the table with a 3-1 win at Fulham and led 3-0 inside 23 minutes after Valencia's opener was added to by Van Persie and Rooney but Fulham clawed one through Kacaniklic just after the hour mark but it was only a consolation.

Hull won a fiery tempered game at home to Sunderland 1-0 thanks to an own goal from Cuellar in the 25th minute and surprisingly failed to capitalise on the fact that Sunderland had to play half of the game with nine men as Cattermole and Dossena were both dismissed in first half injury time.

Manchester City dropped error-strewn Joe Hart in favour of Castel Pantilmon it seemed not to matter as they smashed seven past Norwich and a 7-0 demolition which began with a Johnson own goal in the 16th minute and was swiftly followed by a quick double from Silva and Nastasic, Negredo made it 4-0 at the break and Toure swept in a superb free-kick on the hour for a fifth, Aguero and Dzeko completed the rout.

Stoke and Southampton have both had good defensive records so far this season but no one predicted the opening goal which came after 13 seconds by Asmir Begovic whose wind assisted clearance from 100 yards out  bounced in front of the Saints centre backs and flew over the Polish stopper for a famous goal to make him only the fifth goalkeeper to score in the Premier League, the joy was soured by a leveller from Rodriguez who headed over Begovic just before the break and ensured a share of the points.

West Brom secured a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace with a goal just before the break from youth star Saido Berahino and completed the win with a late strike from McAuley while West Ham and Aston Villa drew 0-0.

SNF saw Arsenal and Liverpool face-off with the Gunners going five points clear at the top with a 2-0 win with strikes from Cazorla and Ramsey keeping their unbeaten run intact.

Super Sunday saw Everton and Tottenham draw 0-0 in a very tight game which saw a bad coming together between Lukaku and Lloris which saw both badly injured causing nine minutes of added time but neither side could capitalise and in the first ever PL Welsh derby, Cardiff claimed the bragging  rights with a 1-0 win thanks to a Caulker goal with Swansea's mood dampened by the late dismissal of 'keeper Vorm.

So its as you were at the top with Arsenal clear of the chasing pack and Sunderland still at the bottom but with United next for the Gunners their unbeaten run will be put to the test while Liverpool and Chelsea will look to cut the gap.

 

Stoke and Spurs Through Via Shootouts

An exciting Capital One Cup Fourth Round saw two tense penalty shootouts and four sides hitting for goals including two in the same game.

Leicester came out on top in a seven goal thriller at home to Fulham by winning 4-3, Rodallega gave the Cottagers an early lead but a Morgan and Wood double put the Foxes 2-1 up at the break with a goal for either side in the space of two minutes with Miquel for Leicester in the 53rd minute swiftly followed by Rodallega's second in the 54th. Karagounis levelled with three minutes to go to set up extra time but Fulham's hopes were crushed by a winner in the final minute from Dyer.

Chelsea advanced with a 2-0 win against a youthful Arsenal with goals from Azpilicueta and Mata while Man City needed extra time to defeat Newcastle win goals from Negredo in the 99th minute and Dzeko in the 105th to seal the win.

Man United smashed Norwich 4-0 with a brace from Hernandez who opened the scoring from a penalty and hit a second early in the second half but the win was easily secured by a 88th minute strike from Jones and with the last chance of the game, Fabio hit a fourth.

West Ham secured a safe passage with two late penalties from Taylor and Collison the second of which saw Burnley's Treacy dismissed. Stoke and Birmingham both showed the game was important to them as they finished the 90 minutes at 3-3 with Assaidi giving the Potters an early lead and Birmingham had Ellliot sent off at half time to dent their hopes and two more goals from Crouch and Arnautovic put Stoke 3-1 up with 20 minutes remaining but a Lovenkrands brace in the 85th and 90th minute ensured extra time.

Jones gave Stoke a 4-3 lead in the 94th minute and the lead held until two minutes from the end when Lee levelled in the 118th minute to set up a penalty shootout which Stoke won comfortably at 4-2.

Tottenham defeated Hull 1-0 on Sunday but last night was a tougher game despite them taking an early lead through Sigurdsson but a Friedel error gave Hull an equaliser and they held on for extra time, Hull went 2-1 up in the 99th minute thanks to McShane but Kane equalised in the 108th minute to set up a tense shootout which needed sudden death as Tottenham won 8-7.

So an exciting couple of nights were joined by Wednesday's delayed tie between Sunderland and Southampton which saw both sides make changes from the weekend and saw the home side go through with a 2-1 win with Bardsley and Larsson securing a safe passage despite a late goal from Yoshida. 

Late Winners Help Top Six

Another exciting weekend in the Premier League saw four sides score crucial winning goals in the final minutes with two others confirming wins with second goals but the Gunners still remain top after all the action.

Arsenal faced a trip to Crystal Palace in the early kick-off and came away with a 2-0 win after an Arteta pen handed them the lead but the Spaniard was dismissed later on before Giroud confirmed the win three minutes from the end.

Everton continued their good form with a 2-0 win at Aston Villa with goals from Lukaku and Osman while Liverpool hit West Brom for four in a 4-1 home win that saw a first Anfield hat-trick from Luis Suarez followed by a Morrison penalty with Sturridge adding a spectacular fourth in the 77th minute.

Stoke are cursing their luck after letting a 2-1 half time lead at Old Trafford slip to lose 3-2 to a second half United comeback, Crouch put the Potters ahead in the 4th minute with Van Persie equalising two minutes from the break but Arnautovic gave Stoke a 2-1 lead right on half time and late goals from Rooney and Hernandez sealed the win.

Norwich and Cardiff drew 0-0 while Southampton beat Fulham 2-0 in the late kick off with goals from Lambert and Rodriguez while Sunday's early game was the Tyne/Wear derby that saw bottom side Sunderland shock neighbours Newcastle with an early opener from Fletcher with Debuchy equalising in the second half and Borini hit a superb winner with six minutes remaining.

A Joe Hart howler saw Torres hit the winning goal in a tense battle between Chelsea and Manchester City with the home side leading through Schurrle on the half-hour with Aguero levelling for City early in the second half with the Torres winner coming in the final minute for a 2-1 win.

Swansea and West Ham drew 0-0 while Tottenham won the first of two games this week against Hull (League Cup -midweek) with a 80th minute penalty from Soldado sealing the win.

English Continue Unbeaten Run

Matchday three in the Europa League saw all three English sides maintain their unbeaten run while Valencia were the round's top scorers after hitting five.

Swansea had to settle for a 1-1 draw despite leading through Michu as they conceded a late penalty which was scored by former Liverpool striker Djibril Cisse who dented the Swans 100% record while St Gallen were demolished 5-1 away to Valencia with Garcia opener followed by a quick brace from Cartabia and a Costa strike gavr them a 4-0 half time lead with Canales adding a fifth before Nater hit a consolation fot the Swiss.

Dinamo Zagreb and PSV drew 0-0 while Ludogrorets top the group after a 1-0 win at Chornomorets with a winning goal from Zlatinski. Esbjerg claimed a 2-1 win over Elfsborg with a Andreason brace sandwiching a Jonsson leveller. 

Salzburg maintained their 100% record with a 2-1 win over Liege in a bad tempered game which saw three players given their marching orders, Mane and Carcela meant both sides had 10 men at half time but Salzburg took a lead in the 53rd minute through Soriano and Liege went down to nine as Dos Santos was sent off in the 66th minute, both sides scored late on as Ramalho made it 2-0 but Bia scored a penalty ensured a tight finish.

Wigan are still unbeaten after coming from behind at home to Rubin after Prudnikov gave the Russians a 15th minute lead but an equaliser from Powell gave the Latics a well deserved point and continued their push for the knockout stages while Maribor won 3-1 away to Zulte despite falling behind to a De Fauw opener as Crnic levelled with Mertelj and Megza sealing the win and they held on at 3-1 despite having Milec sent off in the 57th minute.

Fiorentina maintained their 100% record with a 3-0 victory over Pandurii with goals from Rodriguez, Santos and Cuadrado while Dnipro beat Pacos 2-0 with a late show with Rotan and Konoplyanka scoring in the 83rd and 86th minutes.

Bordeaux won 2-1 against APOEL with Sane giving them a 1-0 lead after 24 minutes only for Silva to equalise for the Greeks but the win was sealed for the Ligue 1 side with a late strike from Henrique, Frankfurt defeated Maccabi Tel-Aviv 2-0 with goals from Kadlec and Meier either side of the dismissal of Chaim for the visitors.

Dynamo Kyiv claimed a 3-0 win over Thun with goals from Yarmolenko, Mbokani and Gusev sealing the points and Genk and Rapid Wien drew 1-1 after a Gorius opener was cancelled out by Sabitzer's late equaliser.

Slovan Liberec drew 1-1 at home to Sevilla despite finishing with ten men after leading with a Rabusic goal and having Kovar sent off in the 78th minute but Sevilla's Perez scored a late leveller to share the points.

Freiburg and Estoril also drew 1-1 after Darida's 11th minute opener was cancelled out by Junior's second half equaliser while in group I, Lyon secured a 1-0 win over Rijeka with a second half winner by Grenier. Betis won 1-0 at home to Guimares with a winner from Vadillo.

Apollon and Lazio drew 0-0 while Trabzonspor secured a 2-0 win over Legia after taking an early lead through Janko and Adin sealed the win with eight minutes remaining.

Anzhi put aside their domestic woes to win 1-0 at home to Tromso courtesy of an 18th minute strike from Burmistrov while Tottenham put themselves on the fringe of qualification with a 2-0 win over Sheriff with an early goal from Vertonghen while Defoe continued his scoring run in the competition with a 75th minute strike.

Karagandy and Alkmaar drew 1-1 after two early goals with Finonchenko giving the hosts the lead after 11 minutes only for Gudmundsson to level in the 26th minute for the Eredivise side to share the points while PAOK capped a excellent comeback from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at home to Maccabi Haifa, the visitors led with goals from Ndlovu and Galasa in the 13th and 21st minutes but the Greeks scored a quick double through Vitor and Ninis to send the sides level at the break and their comeback was complete when Salpingidis struck the winner in the 66th minute.

So a good week for the English sides with Tottenham and Swansea both well placed and Wigan looking good behind Rubin with the sides due to meet again in the reverse fixture in a fortnight.

Ibrahimovic Hits Four While Bayern Strike Five

Matchday three in the Champions League and we saw two teams hit five with one player scoring four goals for his team as Wednesday saw a goal fest in contrast to Tuesdays more closer games.

Chelsea ruined Schalke's good start to the group with a 3-0 away win thanks to a Torres brace and a late Hazard strike while Steaua and Basel drew 1-1 with Diaz giving the Swiss the lead just after half time and Tatu levelling for the Romanians with two minutes remaining to seal a point.

Arsenal suffered a 2-1 defeat at home to Dortmund despite levelling through Giroud just before half time after Mkhitarayan gave the Germans a 19th minute lead but the home fans hopes of a draw were crushed by a 82nd minute winner by Lewandowski. Marseille remain pointless after a 2-1 home loss to Napoli who too a 2-0 lead courtesy of strikes from Callejon and Zapata with Ayew scoring late on to give the French side hope.

Zenit claimed a 1-0 win away to 10 man Porto who had Herrera sent off in the sixth minute but looked to be holding on for a draw until Kerzhakov hit a breakthrough winner in the 85th minute while Atletico Madrid maintained their 100% record with a 3-0 win over Austria Vienna thanks to an early Garcia strike and a brace from the in-form Costa.

Celtic sealed a 2-1 win at home to Ajax with a Forrest penalty on half time followed by Kayal strike but with two minutes to go they had Biton dismissed and Schone pulled a goal back to set up a tense finish but the Bhoys held on for the win. A meeting between two European giants at the San Siro saw AC Milan and Barcelona draw 1-1 with Robinho giving the Italians and early lead and after returning from injury, Messi equalised to share the points.

Groups A-D have shook the competition with a number of one sided games and this week was no different, Leverkusen stunned Shakthar 4-0 with a Kiessling brace and strikes from Rolfes and Sam while in the other game in the group, Manchester United won 1-0 at home to Real Sociedad after a second minute own goal from Martinez sealed the three points.

Galatasaray claimed a 3-1 win at home to Copenhagen after Melo opener set them on their way with Sneijder and Drobga scoring before half time with Claudemir scoring a late consolation for the Danes. Just like the previous night, two European giants faced off this time in the guise of Real Madrid and Juventus and in what is becoming a tradition for the Spaniards, Ronaldo scored both goals either side of a leveller from Llorente and Juve's hopes suffered a blow with the dismissal of Chellini early in the second period.

Benfica and Olympiakos drew 1-1 with the Greeks taking a first half lead through Dominguez but their hopes of a win were dashed by a 83rd minute leveller by Cardozo to ensure a sharing of the points but the story of the night came as PSG trounced Anderlecht 5-0 with Zlatan Ibrahimovic scoring four including a 36 minute first half hat-trick with Cavani striking in the second half before the Swede hit his fourth to condemn the Belgians to a heavy loss.

Manchester City came back from an early Tosic strike to claim a 2-1 win away to CSKA Moscow with a brace from Aguero  ensuring their long trip home would be a happy one but in the other game another five star performance saw defending champions Bayern Munich thrash Plzen 5-0 with a Ribery brace sandwiching a goal from Alaba to put them 3-0up on the hour mark with Schweinsteiger's strike and a late fifth from Gotze confirming the win.

So an exciting week with a couple of surprise defeats for Arsenal and Shakthar but the 5-0's for PSG and Bayern again prove that despite their opponents being champions, they are not necessarily in the same league in terms of skill.