Friday, 27 September 2013
Monday, 23 September 2013
North Londoners Top The Table
Arsenal sit top of the Premier League after a comfortable 3-1 win at home to Stoke with Ramsey scoring his second goal this week having netting in the Champions League in midweek, Stoke equalised through Cameron but goals from Sagna and Mertesacker sealed a win for the Gunners.
Spurs joined them at the top with a last minute winner via the Paulinho's cheeky back heel which broke Cardiff hearts as they came seconds away from a famous draw to add to their scalp of Man City earlier in the season.
Speaking of Man City, they came out on top in the Manchester derby and in some style as Aguero and Toure put them two up at the break against a Van Persie less United who were 4-0 down within 50 minutes and got a late consolation courtesy of a spectacular Rooney free-kick but the bragging rights went to City.
The other Sunday game saw Swansea who had stunned Valencia at the Mestalla on Thursday quash any thoughts of a hangover with a 2-0 win away to Crystal Palace thanks to goals from Michu and Dyer.
The biggest shock on Saturday came at Anfield as Southampton took all three points after a Lovren header which ended Liverpool's unbeaten run and meant they were likely to drop of the top of the league.
Their stay at the top ended hours later as Chelsea replaced them after winning 2-0 at home to Fulham with Oscar starting what has become a trend this weekend of scoring in Europe and the league but the second goal was a big surprise as Mikel tapped in for his first ever league goal having made his debut back in 2006.
In the early kick off, Aston Villa claimed a 1-0 win over Norwich thanks to a goal from summer signing Kozak but a injury to Benteke will have the Villa camp worried as he has been their talisman this season.
At half time at Newcastle after a brace from on loan Loic Remy sandwiched a Brady equaliser, home fans could be forgiven for thinking a win was on the horizon as Hull came back to win 3-2 with a quick goal from Elmohamady and a 76th minute winner from Aluko on the same day his sister had scored for England, so smiles all around for the Alukos then and jubilation for Hull.
Another comeback took place for an away side as Everton defeated ten man West Ham 3-2, the Hammers took the lead through Ravel Morrison and were pegged back by a superb free-kick from Leighton Baines but a strange last fifteen minutes changed the game and the outcome.
Mark Noble was booked, scored and penalty and then was sent off between the 68th and 81st minute and Everton took advantage as Baines fired in a second superb free-kick before on loan Romelu Lukaku connected with a Mirallas cross to score the winner but knocked himself out and didn't even realise he had scored a famous winner.
A result that has made headline news though was West Brom's 3-0 victory over Sunderland which saw former Black Cat, Sessegnon open the scoring before second half goals from Ridgewell and Amalfitano confirmed that Sunderland stayed rock bottom of the league and still winless.
After the final whistle, manager Paolo Di Canio apologised to the angry fans in the away end something many other managers wouldn't dare to do and at the time of writing he has been dismissed after a verbal lashing out to the players in training today so yet another managerial casualty for a winless side which is seeming to happen every season.
Sunderland's woe is likely to deepen as they face Liverpool and Man United in the next two weeks with both trying to get back to winning ways.
Spurs joined them at the top with a last minute winner via the Paulinho's cheeky back heel which broke Cardiff hearts as they came seconds away from a famous draw to add to their scalp of Man City earlier in the season.
Speaking of Man City, they came out on top in the Manchester derby and in some style as Aguero and Toure put them two up at the break against a Van Persie less United who were 4-0 down within 50 minutes and got a late consolation courtesy of a spectacular Rooney free-kick but the bragging rights went to City.
The other Sunday game saw Swansea who had stunned Valencia at the Mestalla on Thursday quash any thoughts of a hangover with a 2-0 win away to Crystal Palace thanks to goals from Michu and Dyer.
The biggest shock on Saturday came at Anfield as Southampton took all three points after a Lovren header which ended Liverpool's unbeaten run and meant they were likely to drop of the top of the league.
Their stay at the top ended hours later as Chelsea replaced them after winning 2-0 at home to Fulham with Oscar starting what has become a trend this weekend of scoring in Europe and the league but the second goal was a big surprise as Mikel tapped in for his first ever league goal having made his debut back in 2006.
In the early kick off, Aston Villa claimed a 1-0 win over Norwich thanks to a goal from summer signing Kozak but a injury to Benteke will have the Villa camp worried as he has been their talisman this season.
At half time at Newcastle after a brace from on loan Loic Remy sandwiched a Brady equaliser, home fans could be forgiven for thinking a win was on the horizon as Hull came back to win 3-2 with a quick goal from Elmohamady and a 76th minute winner from Aluko on the same day his sister had scored for England, so smiles all around for the Alukos then and jubilation for Hull.
Another comeback took place for an away side as Everton defeated ten man West Ham 3-2, the Hammers took the lead through Ravel Morrison and were pegged back by a superb free-kick from Leighton Baines but a strange last fifteen minutes changed the game and the outcome.
Mark Noble was booked, scored and penalty and then was sent off between the 68th and 81st minute and Everton took advantage as Baines fired in a second superb free-kick before on loan Romelu Lukaku connected with a Mirallas cross to score the winner but knocked himself out and didn't even realise he had scored a famous winner.
A result that has made headline news though was West Brom's 3-0 victory over Sunderland which saw former Black Cat, Sessegnon open the scoring before second half goals from Ridgewell and Amalfitano confirmed that Sunderland stayed rock bottom of the league and still winless.
After the final whistle, manager Paolo Di Canio apologised to the angry fans in the away end something many other managers wouldn't dare to do and at the time of writing he has been dismissed after a verbal lashing out to the players in training today so yet another managerial casualty for a winless side which is seeming to happen every season.
Sunderland's woe is likely to deepen as they face Liverpool and Man United in the next two weeks with both trying to get back to winning ways.
Sat 28 Sep 2013
Tottenham v Chelsea
Aston Villa v Man City
Fulham v Cardiff
Hull v West Ham
Man Utd v West Brom
Southampton v Crystal Palace
Swansea v Arsenal
Sun 29 Sep 2013
Stoke v Norwich
Sunderland v Liverpool
Mon 30 Sep 2013
Everton v Newcastle
Friday, 20 September 2013
Spurs and Swansea Star On Matchday One
Many see the Europa League as a poor second to the Champions League but as was shown last season, it can feature a surprising amount of 'top clubs including holders Chelsea who won after departing the Champions League group stage.
This year it could be the year of the debutant with a number of clubs taking their first step in European competition including Wigan Athletic who qualified after winning the English FA Cup but currently have to juggle their inaugural Europa season with a 46 game Championship campaign.
A
Swansea stunned Valencia at the Mestalla in a 3-0 win after the La Liga side had Rami sent off after 10 minutes with Bony, Michu and De Guzman scoring in a famous win, St Gallen also earned an opening win by defeating Kuban 2-0 with goals from Karanovic and Mathys with Kuban ending the game with ten men after Kabore was sent off in the final minute.
B
PSV suffered a shock loss to Ludogorets with second half strikes from Besjak and Misdjan securing a 2-0 win while Chornomorets also started with a win by defeating Dinamo Zagreb 2-1 with the Croatians leading thanks to a goal from Fernandes before two goals in three minutes from Antonov and Djedje secured the win.
C
Esbjerg won 2-1 away to Liege courtesy of goals from Van Buren and Bakenga sandwiching an equaliser from Bia while Salzburg blew Elfsborg away with a 4-0 thrashing with Alan opening the scoring and a superb hat-trick from Soriano claiming a comfortable win.
D
Rubin Kazan set the standard with a 5-2 away win at Maribor with Karadeniz and Mariano putting them 2-0 up with a Milec strike pegging them back but to no avail as Eremanko and Fajic scored for either side before late scores from Rondon and Ryanzatsev sealed the win, Wigan fought out a 0-0 draw in a rainy Brugge against Zulte Waregem to start their debut campaign unbeaten.
E
Giuseppe Rossi starred in a 3-0 Fiorentina win over Pacos Ferreira scoring the third after strikes from Gonzalo and Ryder and Dnipro claimed a 1-0 win away to Pandurii thanks to a first half goal by Rotan.
F
Eintracht Frankfurt claimed a 3-0 win over Bordeaux with goals from Kadlec, Russ and Djakpa with the French side having Orban sent off in the second half while 3-0 down while a 0-0 draw was played out between Maccabi Tel-Aviv and Apoel Nicosia.
G
Genk secured a suprise win over Ukranian side Dynamo Kiev with a second half strike from Gorius ensuring an opening win and FC Thun handed a 1-0 loss to Rapid Vienna with a first half goal effort from Schneuwly.
H
Freiburg and Liberec drew 2-2 with the Germans taking a 2-0 half-time lead with goals from Schuster and Mehmedi but were pulled back by Kalitvintsev and Rabusic for the Czech side with both sides finishing with ten men with Guede and Rybacka sent off in the 77th and 90th minutes respectively.
Sevilla claimed a 2-1 win away to Estoril with strikes from Vitolo and Gamiero sandwiching an equaliser from Miguel.
I
Guimares thrashed Rijeka 4-0 courtesy of goals from Ba, Plange, a Maazou penalty and Andre completing the rout while Betis and Lyon drew 0-0.
J
Hernandes scored a second half winner as Lazio defeated Legia Warsaw with Trabzonspor claiming a 2-1 away win over Apollon after falling behind to an early Sangoy penalty, Malouda and Erdogan secured the win.
K
Tottenham outclassed Tromso 3-0 with a first half Jermaine Defoe brace and a spectacular strike from Eriksen late on while Sheriff and Anzhi drew 0-0.
L
AZ Alkmaar secured a 1-0 win over Maccabi Haifa courtesy of a 71st minute winner by Gudmundsson and PAOK defeated Shakhter Karagandy 2-1 but fell behind to a Canas penalty with an effort from Athanasidis levelling the game and Vukic sealing the win late on after Poryvaev was sent off.
So just like in the Champions League, plenty of surprises and thrashings with some teams having amazing starts and others having to reflect on a terrible start and hoping to turn their fortunes around in a fortnight.
Messi And Ronaldo Hat-trick Heroes On Matchday One
It has been a long four months since the all German final back in May but the Champions League is back and with a bang after the opening games.
A
Manchester United started their campaign off in style with a 4-2 victory against Bayer Leverkusen with a Rooney brace and goals from Van Persie and Valencia while Rolfes and Toprak replied for Bayer, the other game in the group saw surprise qualifiers Real Sociedad brought down to earth by Shakhtar Donetsk courtesy of a Teixeira double to secure an opening win.
B
Ronaldo excelled for Real Madrid with an amazing hat-trick and was joined in the goals by Isco and a Benzema double as they demolished Galatasaray 6-1 with Bulut scoring late on for the Turkish side, Juventus had to comeback from an early Jorgensen strike to secure a draw away to Copenhagen with Quagliarella levelling in the 54th minute.
C
PSG sit top of the group after a comfortable 4-1 win over Olympiakos who were level after 25 minutes thanks to Weiss cancelling out Cavani's strike but a second half brace by Motta and a late fourth by Marquinhos secured the win, Benfica also sit on three points after Djurcic sent them ahead in the fourth minute and a second from Luisao ensured they started with a win.
D
Manchester City erased their poor 2012 campaign to start with a 3-0 victory away to Plzen with goals from Dzeko, Toure and Aguero while Bayern Munich started the defence of their title with a 3-0 home win against CSKA Moscow with Alaba scoring the first goal of the group stage in the third minute while Mandzukic and a second half strike from Robben secured the three points.
E
Schalke top the group after a comfortable 3-0 win over Steaua Bucharest thanks to a second half treble from Uchida, Boateng and Draxler while at Stamford Bridge, Basel's late show stunned Chelsea who led thanks to a first half Oscar strike but were pegged by by Salah's goal before Streller silenced the home fans with an 82nd minute strike to secure a famous win.
F
2012 finalists Borussia Dortmund suffered a surprise 2-1 defeat away to Napoli after having to play 45 minutes with ten men after 'keeper Weidenfeller was sent off , they had fallen behind in the 29th minute to a Higuain effort while a second came courtesy of Insigne in the 68th minute with Dortmund forcing a tense ending as Zuniga handed them a lifeline with an own goal, Arsenal continued their good away form with a 2-1 win over Marseille thanks to second half scores from Walcott and Ramsey with a late penalty from Ayew giving the French side hope.
G
Atlético Madrid and Porto both secured opening wins with the La Liga side victorious against Zenit (3-1) thanks to goals from Miranda, Turan and Baptistao with Hulk scoring for the Russians while Porto secured a 1-0 win over Austria Vienna courtesy of a Gonzalez's 55th minute strike.
H
Lionel Messi matched La Liga rival Cristiano Ronaldo with a hat-trick of his own as the Catalan side trounced Ajax 4-0 with Pique hitting the fourth in a comfortable win and Celtic suffered a 2-0 loss away to AC Milan with two late goals, firstly an own goal by Izaguirre in the 82nd minute with the win secured by Muntari's goal five minutes from the end.
Terrific trebles for Ronaldo and Messi and shock defeats for Chelsea and Dortmund made for a memorable opening gameweek which will hopefully be the start of an exciting campaign which resumes in two weeks.
A
Manchester United started their campaign off in style with a 4-2 victory against Bayer Leverkusen with a Rooney brace and goals from Van Persie and Valencia while Rolfes and Toprak replied for Bayer, the other game in the group saw surprise qualifiers Real Sociedad brought down to earth by Shakhtar Donetsk courtesy of a Teixeira double to secure an opening win.
B
Ronaldo excelled for Real Madrid with an amazing hat-trick and was joined in the goals by Isco and a Benzema double as they demolished Galatasaray 6-1 with Bulut scoring late on for the Turkish side, Juventus had to comeback from an early Jorgensen strike to secure a draw away to Copenhagen with Quagliarella levelling in the 54th minute.
C
PSG sit top of the group after a comfortable 4-1 win over Olympiakos who were level after 25 minutes thanks to Weiss cancelling out Cavani's strike but a second half brace by Motta and a late fourth by Marquinhos secured the win, Benfica also sit on three points after Djurcic sent them ahead in the fourth minute and a second from Luisao ensured they started with a win.
D
Manchester City erased their poor 2012 campaign to start with a 3-0 victory away to Plzen with goals from Dzeko, Toure and Aguero while Bayern Munich started the defence of their title with a 3-0 home win against CSKA Moscow with Alaba scoring the first goal of the group stage in the third minute while Mandzukic and a second half strike from Robben secured the three points.
E
Schalke top the group after a comfortable 3-0 win over Steaua Bucharest thanks to a second half treble from Uchida, Boateng and Draxler while at Stamford Bridge, Basel's late show stunned Chelsea who led thanks to a first half Oscar strike but were pegged by by Salah's goal before Streller silenced the home fans with an 82nd minute strike to secure a famous win.
F
2012 finalists Borussia Dortmund suffered a surprise 2-1 defeat away to Napoli after having to play 45 minutes with ten men after 'keeper Weidenfeller was sent off , they had fallen behind in the 29th minute to a Higuain effort while a second came courtesy of Insigne in the 68th minute with Dortmund forcing a tense ending as Zuniga handed them a lifeline with an own goal, Arsenal continued their good away form with a 2-1 win over Marseille thanks to second half scores from Walcott and Ramsey with a late penalty from Ayew giving the French side hope.
G
Atlético Madrid and Porto both secured opening wins with the La Liga side victorious against Zenit (3-1) thanks to goals from Miranda, Turan and Baptistao with Hulk scoring for the Russians while Porto secured a 1-0 win over Austria Vienna courtesy of a Gonzalez's 55th minute strike.
H
Lionel Messi matched La Liga rival Cristiano Ronaldo with a hat-trick of his own as the Catalan side trounced Ajax 4-0 with Pique hitting the fourth in a comfortable win and Celtic suffered a 2-0 loss away to AC Milan with two late goals, firstly an own goal by Izaguirre in the 82nd minute with the win secured by Muntari's goal five minutes from the end.
Terrific trebles for Ronaldo and Messi and shock defeats for Chelsea and Dortmund made for a memorable opening gameweek which will hopefully be the start of an exciting campaign which resumes in two weeks.
Tuesday, 10 September 2013
Tuesday, 3 September 2013
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