Week 29: Premier League Tops & Flops

Sports - Football - Premier League - Picks of the Weekend

WOW!

QPR's impressive home win against Sunderland did not take them off the bottom of the table but Harry Redknapp's men moved level on points with Reading in 19th, making what seemed impossible a couple of weeks/months ago possible: the fight and chance of survival. After two wins on the trot, the next game will still be crucial! Rangers will travel to Aston Villa who sit in 17th, only three points from safety and four points ahead of their opponents. It will be a juicy crunch at the bottom of the Premier League!

OMG!

Both the Swans and Saints had good reason to head back home aggrieved after being let down by the officials in their games at West Brom and Norwich respectively. The prior had a Roland Lamah goal disallowed which looked nowhere near offside and ended up losing 2-1, whilst the latter conceded a very soft penalty which Artur Boruc saved brilliantly, denying Grant Holt and earning his side a crucial point in the relegation battle. If only the referees would be rewarded with or deducted points depending on their performance! A lot of them would not last long!

TOP!

Liverpool's performance against Tottenham impressed, showing a side that clicked and pounced on their opponents' cracks and leaks. Playing against a side at its peak, Brendan Rodgers' men set up well and strong from the start, giving Tottenham little space to move and manoeuvre in and leading on well for the win which took the Reds up to 6th, only two points behind Arsenal (who have a game in hand though). Andre Villas-Boas' men saw their unbeaten run of twelve games come to an end and their gap to Chelsea in fourth closed to only two points with the Blues having a game in hand too due to their FA Cup tie against Manchester United.

FLOP!

Sunderland's dire run continues after their defeat at QPR with just two points out of the last six games, taking them down to 14th on 30 points, six points from safety. Reading fell to their fifth defeat on the trot against Aston Villa which will not help their battle against relegation either sitting deep in trouble down in 19th, only one point from safety, but with Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool on their fixture list over the next few weeks, they will rue these points dropped!

HERO!

Papiss Cisse starred with his late dramatic winner for Newcastle against Stoke leaving both sides in 13th and 11th respectively, level on 33 points with Fulham, West Ham and Norwich(!). It was the third Premier League game in a row the Magpies won coming from behind, only keeping one clean sheet in the last 11 games, whilst The Potters have suffered their seventh defeat in nine games. Gabriel Agbonlahor deserves a mention too with his fine left-foot winner for Aston Villa against Reading at the Madejski Stadium taking his side out of the relegation zone.

ZERO!

Norwich's Holt should be ashamed of himself! The English striker is top of the offence list in the Premier League and then tops his shameful act with a dive. Thank goodness the spot kick was saved by Saints keeper Boruc but I wish actions like this could be followed and sanctioned by the FA to stop these drama queens and liars!

My Predictions => Actual Results:
Norwich 2-2 Southampton => 0-0
QPR 1-0 Sunderland => 3-1
Reading 2-0 Aston Villa => 1-2
West Brom 1-2 Swansea => 2-1
Newcastle 3-1 Stoke => 2-1
Liverpool 1-3 Tottenham => 3-2

In case you are wondering, the other four matches were postponed due to the remaining clubs' FA Cup obligations and fixtures. Read up and catch up with all the FA Cup action here including Chelsea's comeback draw against Manchester United at Old Trafford forcing a replay.

Week 28: Premier League Tops & Flops

Sports - Football - Premier League - Picks of the Weekend

WOW!

QPR's crucial win over Southampton made up for their alleged few too many drinks during a recent tour. It was only their third win all season and their first in seven, since beating Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on the 2nd January. Harry Redknapp kept his men together and Rangers recorded a much-needed win in the relegation battle reducing the gap to safety down to four points with ten games remaining.

OMG!

What was Rafael Benitez thinking with his rant? That neither helped his cause, his side (eventhough they ended up winning against West Brom, just, 1-0 thanks Demba Ba) nor did it win over any fans! The Spaniard is an experienced manager and should know better than to have a tantrum with the press or fans! If it was some kind of genius tactic to distract the media and fans attention, focus and critics away from his side and players, then fool me! Actions speak louder than words, games, goals, points rather than rants, chants and moans.

TOP & FLOP!

Tottenham outplayed Arsenal with Gareth Bale unable to do anything wrong at the moment. Whilst one side of London is up and rising on a high, the other side is in free fall. A lot of fans are calling for Arsene Wenger's head. However, rather than shaking up and changing the management, how about the Gunners finally make use of the funds they have collected over the years to strengthen their squad? Ok, it's too late to make changes to the squad this season. They can only hope to make it into the top for to qualify for the Champions League. If they fail to do so, it will just show it is time for change, to make use of their resources rather than seeing heads rolling and more question marks raising.

HERO!

My vote obviously goes to the hat-trick heroes Shinji Kagawa and Luis Suarez, the prior keeping his side top of the lot by far (= 12 points) thrashing Norwich 4-0 at Old Trafford whilst the latter is stirring and spicing up the will-he-stay-or-will-he-go-now discussions sinking Wigan 4-0 at the DW Stadium. Sir Alex Ferguson can now focus on their bid to remain in the Champions League in their secound-leg home bout against Real Madrid (1-1 at the Bernabeu), whilst Brendan Rodgers can remain hopeful with his side's bid to qualify for Europe next season. 

ZERO!

That's how many league defeats both Spurs and United have suffered so far this year, the last two undefeated Premier League sides in 2013. The prior last saw defeat at Everton beginning of December, whilst the latter last fell at Norwich back in November 2012 and both seem to go from strength to strength. The worst league run goes to Sunderland who haven't won in their last five (DLLLD) and Reading who lost their last three games. The Black Cats climbed up to 14th thought after their draw against Fulham whilst The Royals remain deep in trouble in 19th, but just one point from safety.

My Predictions => Actual Results:
Chelsea 3-0 West Brom => 1-0
Everton 2-0 Reading => 3-1
Man United 4-0 Norwich => 4-0
Southampton 0-0 QPR => 1-2
Stoke 1-1 West Ham => 0-1
Sunderland 1-2 Fulham => 2-2
Swansea 2-2 Newcastle => 1-0
Wigan 1-1 Liverpool => 0-4
Tottenham 2-1 Arsenal => 2-1
Aston Villa 0-1 Man City => 0-1

Week 22: Premier League Tops & Flops

Sports - Football - Premier League - Picks of the Weekend

SUPER SUNDAY!

Manchester United held on to their 2-1 lead against bitter rivals Liverpool in the early match at Old Trafford, the win keeping Sir Alex Ferguson's men ten points clear of City at the top of the Premier League table. Liverpool showed much more spirit in the second half after a disappointing start to the game. Robin van Persie put the home side ahead comfortably after 19 minutes and the game looked all over when Patrice Evra's header off RVP's free kick deflected in off Nemanja Vidic thanks to some sloppy defending to make it 2-0 early on in the second half.
But Brendan Rodgers' changes soon payed off when a couple of minutes later Steven Gerrard saw his shot saved by David De Gea for Daniel Sturridge to net the rebound, scoring his first Premier League goal on his league debut for the Merseysiders to start the fight back for Liverpool at 2-1. Sturridge and Luis Suarez created much more of a threat together with some fine one-twos and close shaves, the prior hitting one chance into the side-netting, the latter heading another into De Gea's gloves, but it stayed 2-1.
This was the seventh defeat of the season for Liverpool and saw them stay in eighth place, two points behind West Brom in seventh and nine points behind Tottenham in fourth, the last Champions League qualification spot. United will be chuffed to bits after doing the double over their rivals and staying way ahead of their local rivals in the process too.

The afternoon kick-off was a blast at the Emirates. With just ten minutes gone, Laurent Koscielny was sent off for wrapping himself around Edin Dzeko, but the penalty was saved by Wojciech Szczesny, the ball coming off the post, rolling along the line and back into the goalkeeper's gloves! Lucky so-and-so! But a nice finish by James Milner eventually opened the score for City, 0-1, Arsenal caught sleeping, still feeling sorry for themselves. A tap-in by Dzeko off the keeper doubled the lead for the visitors. Silly Thomas Vermaelen then got booked for a stupid fowl just before half time, it was just a dreadful half for Arsenal, and they were in danger of going down to nine. It looked like a training game for City at that point.
But the home crowd saw a spirited response from Arsenal at the start of the second half. Most of the second half actually, the Gunners held up and kept on pressing and going strongly. Vincent Kompany then saw red for a two-footed challenge on Jack Wilshere. The dismissal looked harsh as he won the ball, but both teams were reduced to ten. Arsenal kept the pressure up, Joleon Lescott coming to the rescue late on for City clearing Theo Walcott's shot. But all came to nothing in the end for the Gunners. Arsene Wenger should be pleased, even though his side did not get a result in the end. Arsenal stayed stuck at the task, giving City a game-and-a-half in the second half.

WOW!

It was an mazing turnaround at the Madejski stadium! One sensational performance by West Brom's Romelu Lukaku was nullified by a revolutionary comeback from Reading and Pavel Pogrebnyak's late winner! Lukaku netted James Morrison's pass, knowing exactly where he wanted that and what he was doing, lethal, 0-1. The same duo were at it in again in the second half, Lukaku having a goal disallowed for offside. Lukaku then saw more chances coming and going, one off the post and another off the cross bar after pressure by Reading was blocked. He could easily have had a hat-trick! Reading pressure was repelled again before Lukaku got his second goal. It was a great counter, left footer into the near corner of the net, 0-2. Jimmy Kebe then started the comeback with a header in to make it 1-2. After Jonas Olsson's challenge on Kebe was penalised, Adam Le Fondre sent the keeper the wrong way with a cool kick to level the score, 2-2. And then Pogrebnyak made it 3-2 to complete the perfect comeback. The home side looked dead and buried! But three goals/eight minutes later, they had turned the game on its head! Awesome to watch!

OMG!

Everton had so many misses against Swansea, it was unbelievable. David Moyes' boys have only lost three in 31 games and are only four points behind Chelsea in third. It was all Everton at Goodison Park, Swans keeper Michel Vorm spared his side from defeat more then once, joined by Miguel Michu and Ashley Williams off the line! Michu hit the bar too, thanks to Tim Howard's touch, but that was the first and only real chance for the visitors! Even Phil Neville had a chance Vorms had to save! Leighton Baines produced some great corners but Everton kept on missing! It was more two points lost than one point gained for the Blues, but Moyes can be more than happy with his side's form, display and position. 

TOP!

Eden Hazard's strike was a scorcher, 25-30 yards from goal, a beautiful left-foot hit, to make it 0-4 to Chelsea and game over for Stoke!
Sebastian Larsson's left-footed curl-opener for Sunderland against West Ham was a screamer! The Swede's side went on to make the most of the Hammers' poor defending, taking three goals and points against the Londoners.
Giorgos Karagounis took the lead for Fulham against Wigan with a sweet diagonal strike off the post and into the back of the net, 1-0. Franco Di Santo missed a chance on the stretch, right in front of goal, it was Wigan's best chance in the first half. Shaun Maloney's effort found Mark Schwarzer's finger tips, a great save over the top. Di Santo followed a quickly taken free kick with a piece of magic, cutting across, dropping the shoulder and drilling the ball into the back of the net. It was a fantastic finish, sweet equaliser, just what Wigan needed, 1-1. Di Santo then took on Brede Hangeland and won with a shot but Schwarzer saved it. Maynor Figueroa saved his team late on, off the line, winning the point for Wigan! Two brilliant goals made the game and result, controversial in the build-up, where they came from, but not how! It was a fair result in the end.

FLOP!

QPR's Harry Redknapp faced his former employers Tottenham for the first time after beating Chelsea, where Andre Villas-Boas took over, winning nine of the last 11. It was not nice to watch, but productive play by QPR, Redknapp finally getting something out of his boys. Shaun Wright-Phillips put loads of chances wide, skipping through Spurs. Spurs dominated seeing Gareth Bale and Jermain Defoe denied by Soares Julio Cesar, but QPR kept solid and ground out a good result and point for them in the end.
Norwich went into their game against Newcastle following four successive defeats over the festive period, whilst the visitors were still looking for their first away win. The goalless result reflected both side's form and the game. There was not much to write about, it was a poor game allround.

HERO!

It's 31 out of 31 penalty kicks for Rickie Lambert, what a Saint! It was a controversial penalty for Southampton at Villa Park though, which looked more like a Jay Rodriguez dive as replays showed no contact was made. But Villa's goalkeeper Bradley Guzan to escape a booking when he made his save clashing into another Saint player. Lambert sent Guzan the wrong way, 0-1, controversial. Enda Stevens saw his shot saved, Villa's late onslaught coming to nothing in the end. It was not Villa's but Lambert's day. 


ZERO!

It was not Jonathan Walters' day! The Stoke man should have known what day it was going to be after kicking the ball into his own face and out of play early on in the match against Chelsea! The Ireland striker went on to score two own goals and miss a penalty, seeing the Potters thrashed and sunk 4-0. Asmir Begovic made one great save after another, but saw all his good work undone when Frank Lampard won Chelsea a throw-in and Walters eventually turned the ball into his own once and then again off a Chelsea corner to make it 0-2 and mar his 100th Premier League appearance. Lampard then netted the spot kick conceded by Ryan Shawcross for sliding in on Juan Mata, taking him onto 194 goals and Chelsea 0-3 up. It took the Chelsea number 8 up to number two on the Blues' all-time scorers list. Begovic denied Lampard again, one-on-one, leaving him waiting for his 195th! Without Begovic this game would have been 0-10! Stoke then won a soft penalty for John Terry's challenge on Walters, but Walters went on to hit the cross bar. Stoke's unbeaten home record was long out the window by then and Walters' day with it. 


My Predictions => Actual Results
QPR 0-2 Tottenham => 0-0
Aston Villa 1-2 Southampton => 0-1
Everton 2-1 Swansea => 0-0
Fulham 2-0 Wigan => 1-1
Norwich 3-2 Newcastle => 0-0
Reading 0-1 West Brom => 3-2
Stoke 2-1 Chelsea => 0-4
Sunderland 1-1 West Ham => 3-0
Man United 3-2 Liverpool => 2-1
Arsenal 4-3 Man City => 0-2

Week 19: Premier League Tops & Flops

Sports - Football - Premier League - Picks of the Week

WOW! OMG!

Manchester United's home win against Newcastle was a seven-goal thriller-and-a-half! So much happened, so much to talk and write about, you could not blink! Newcastle took the shock lead four minutes into the game thanks to James Perch, but Jonny Evans levelled things for United. Then came the controversy, Evans saw the ball into his own net but was relieved to see the flag up, Papiss Cisse given offside and the goal disallowed. But referee Mike Dean overruled his assistant and the goal stood as Cisse did not interefere with play before Evans netted the ball. Sir Alex Ferguson did not agree and was fuming on the side line even after the break.
 
But Evra soon equalised for the home side arrowing the ball past Tim Krul after a poor clearance to make it 2-2. Cisse then put the visitors back ahead thanks to a smart finish with his left and the United defence limping behind the Toons. RVP netted the third equaliser before United were denied a penalty for Toon skipper Fabricio Coloccini's handball. But after all frustration and aggravation, Javier Hernandez was once again the last-minute hero guiding the ball past Krul after a fine cross by Michael Carrick to make it 4-3 on the 90th minute mark.

Fergie turned from mad at half time to more than glad at full time. The Scotsman certainly put the pressure on the officials. After this game, he should be worried about United's defence more than anything else. But their outstanding attack spared them from disappointment, even without their main striker Wayne Rooney, who was out injured, and are now seven points clear at the top. Happy Christmas indeed, for one side of Manchester at least...

TOP!

The game at Villa Park could not have been more one-sided. Tottenham were all over Villa who kept giving away the ball. With all the space in the world, Jermain Defoe opened the scoring by nut-megging the Villa goalkeeper. Gareth Bale then calmly took advantage of the Villa mess up with the outside of his left foot and produced a nice chip-in to make it 2-0. With loads of space again, Aaron Lennon found Bale, who staged a left-foot Waltz, once, 0-3, and then a second time, this time off number 22 for the hat-trick to make it 0-4. Tottenham climbed up to fourth postion and Champions League qualification whilst Villa are hovering of the relegation zone just three points clear of the drop.

FLOP!

It was a shakey performance by Liverpool and exactly what they did not need or expect after their confidence-boosting 4-0 win against Fulham just a couple of ago! No discrediting Stoke for their performance and great response and stubbornness, they deserved the win. The only goal for the home side came thanks to a penalty, their first of this season! But Stoke were level seconds later after Robert Huth hooved the ball forward for Jonathan Walters to burry the ball past Pepe Reina. The visitors then took the lead thanks to Kenwyne Jones' header off a corner. Liverpool's defence was nowhere on both occasions, same goes for the final and winning goal. Reina could only help the ball in off Walter's fine left-foot strike and seal the dead deal for the Reds who dropped down to tenth in the table, eight points away from Champions League qualification.

HERO! and ZERO!

Adam Johnson scored the winning goal for Sunderland against Manchester City without realising. City protested, they wanted a free kick for a fowl against Pablo Zabaleta, but the defence was nowhere when Johnson's left-foot shot from the right squeezed past Joe Hart. Ambitious and productive, but Hart should have saved that one! I guess the England goalkeeper expected a cross rather than a shot but it ended up a Boxing Day delight for the home side at the Stadium of Light.

QPR's Rob Green will know the embarrassing feeling after tapping the ball into his own net against West Brom. Harry Redknapp was not happy with that goal as it looked like Marc-Antoine Fortune was backing into the goalkeeper. However, I feel he just stood his ground and the goalkeeper had no reason to backup so far! He was too soft and in the wrong position to start off with. It is all always relative, isn't it? Although Liam Ridgewell was very lucky not to concede a penalty for handling the ball. In the end, either way, this defeat saw QPR back to the bottom of the table.

My Predictions => Actual Results:
Everton 2-1 Wigan => 2-1
Fulham 0-0 Southampton  => 1-1
Man United 2-1 Newcastle => 4-3
Norwich 1-1 Chelsea => 0-1
QPR 0-2 West Brom => 1-2
Reading 0-0 Swansea => 0-0
Sunderland 0-3 Man City => 1-0
Aston Villa 1-2 Tottenham => 0-4
Stoke 1-0 Liverpool => 3-1

Week 32-36: Premier League Tops and Flops

Sports - Football - Premier League - Picks of the Month

Ok, it has been a long time since my last blog again, so here is a summary of all the action, stats and facts of the month of April/last five match weeks in the Premier League: Manchester United started the month at the helm, five points ahead of their City rivals. Wolves were at the bottom, six points behind Wigan, Blackburn and QPR. Bolton had come through a difficult phase strong and on top, outside the relegation zone in 16th but only one point seperating them from the doomed bunch. The month of April panned out to be one of the most twisted, unpredictable, action-packed and decisive months in my Premier League memory, building up to May, the big grand finale in the battle for the title and survival:

Top facts of the month of April:

- 137 goals scored = average of 2.74 goals per game.

- 17 different score lines on the board, top 6 of which were 1-1 (6 times), 0:0 (5 times), 1-0 (5 times), 4-0 (5 times), 2-0 (4 times) and 3-0 (4 times).

- There have only been three games without any bookings, Manchester City 4-0 West Brom, Tottenham 2-0 Blackburn and Liverpool 0-1 Fulham.

Top games:

- Wigan 1-0 Manchester United: United deservedly lost at Wigan after the home side were unjustly disallowed a goal, a header by Victor Moses for an apparent push on goalkeeper David De Gea by Gary Caldwell. The Latics were given a controversial corner which their winning goal came from. A wonderful goal, Maloney collecting the set-piece before curling the ball into the back of the net. Jonny Evans should have been given a second yellow for a dangerous tackle on Maloney. On the other hand, United should have had a penalty for an obvious handball by Maynor Figueroa but as Sir Alex Ferguson said himself, these things even themselves out, they certainly did for Wigan on this occasion! Two points dropped meant the gap at the top was reduced from eight to five points with five games to go.

- Arsenal 1-2 Wigan: After beating the league leaders and defending champions the previous week, Wigan were on a high. Arsenal had comfortably beaten Wolves 3-0 in their own back yard, so must have felt comfortable coming back home. The Wolves stunned the Gunners within the first eight minutes with two early goals by Franco Di Santo and Jordi Gomez and pulled off a famous win at the Emirates. Thomas Vermaelen pulled one back with a powerful header but Wigan held through to pull five points clear of the relegation zone.

- Manchester United 4-4 Everton: Old Trafford was stunned to silence after seeing eight goals and plenty more chances pass their eyes. Is this the one where United let the title slip away? Everton started strong and took the lead thanks to Nikica Jelavic's looping header over De Gea. Non-other than Wayne Rooney equalised for United to spare his side from half-time blushes with Ferguson. At 3-1 and even 4-2 it looked all over and three points in the pocket for the home side, but two late goals in the last seven minutes thanks to Jelavic and Steven Pienaar snatched the points and their share of the spoils for the Toffees. City moved within three points of the league leaders, breathing up their necks before the big derby clash the following week.

- Chelsea 6-1 QPR: The result was of no doubt for the Blues after going 4-0 ahead within 25 minutes. QPR were well and truely blown away at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea needed a boost after the last couple of disappointing results with draws at Arsenal and Fulham and a home defeat against Newcastle. What was of most significance, was the name dominating the score board: Fernando Torres. Finally out of his shell, he claimed the match ball with an impressive hat-trick. Will this finally kick-off his Chelsea career or is it too little, too late? With the Champions League finals coming up, the Spaniard still has time and enough chances to impress the big boss and convince him he was worth the wait (and money).

- Manchester City 1-0 Manchester United: With only three points between the two, this derby was explosive even before the buildup with all hopes on the blue side and all nerves and tension on the red side of Manchester. Everyone was waiting for the big bang, the decider. It didn't quite come that way. United were kept under City's spell for most of the match, Vincent Kompany grabbing the crucial winner on the stroke of half-time. Another goal never looked like coming, the last couple of minutes were the most tense as United tried to break late, but failed. City held through and are now level on points but eight goals ahead of United at the top of the table with two games to go. Who would dare and predict the next turn on the way to the Premier League title?

Top teams: After the summaries above, I will let the stats speak for themselves in this category:

- Top form: Manchester City (LWWWW = 12/15 points), Newcastle (WWWLW = 12/15), West Brom (WLWWD = 10/15),  Fulham (WDWLW = 10/15) and Wigan (LWWLW = 9/15); Everton (DWDWD = 9/15) are the only side who are unbeaten in the last 5 games.

- Top scorers: Everton (15 goals scored), Manchester City (13), Manchester United (10), Chelsea/Wigan/Newcastle (9).

- Top defence: Manchester City (2 goals conceded), Arsenal (3), Newcastle/Tottenham/West Brom (4), Chelsea/Wigan/Liverpool (5).

Top players: Stats speak for themselves here again:

- Top scorers: Everton's Jelavic (6 goals), Newcastle's Papiss Cisse (6), his double sank the Swans, the French striker scoring even when he's falling! Man City's Sergio Aguero (5), United's Rooney (4) and Liverpool's Luis Suarez (4).

- Hat-tricks: Suarez for Liverpool at Newcastle, fine comeback away after their defeat at West Brom, and Torres for Chelsea against QPR as mentioned above.

Top goals: I could reel down the list of Cisse, Aguero, Suarez and Torres again, but here are a couple of picks outside the usual: A brilliant distant winner strike by Mikel Arteta for Arsenal against City, an elegant right-footer from outside the box! Was this the final nail hit into Man City's coffin ending their title challenge? The previous four weeks, there had been a ten point swing, City from two points ahead at the top, found themselves in second, eight points behind United with six games remaining! Stats and red card(s) spoke for themselves! But as mentioned above, more swings were and are still up and coming. Smashing opening strike by Chris Herd, his first goal for Villa, a delicious hit that beat Alexander Doni, who replaced suspended Pepe Reina, who missed his first game since 2007!

Top news: Chelsea have made it into the Champions League final beating Barcelona 3-2 on aggregate and against all odds. And Bayern Munich welcome then Blues to their home ground for the final, after they were surprising winners on penalties against Jose Mourinho's La Liga leaders Real Madrid. The Germans will be the odds-on favourites, but Chelsea have broken big odds before and I don't think anyone would dare to wave them off in this one before the final whistle!

Flop facts:

- 140 bookings made = average of 2.8 yellow cards per game.

- 7 red cards shown = average of 0.14 sendings off per game or one player sent off every 7.13 games or 1.2 players sent off every week.

- Game with most bookings, Blackburn 2-3 Liverpool with 9 bookings and one red card, the visitors recording five of the yellows and their replacement goalkeeper Doni sent off, the most cautions by any team in one game.

Flop games:

- Sunderland 0:0 Tottenham: This was dire to watch. The visitors could have moved up to third place and automatic Champions League qualification, but Redknapp's men failed to press and impress anything or anyone at the Stadium of Light and let Sunderland get away with an easy point. Tottenham dominated possession but failed to break down the stubborn Black Cats who were happy to stand back and play deep, counter-attacking football, not nice to the eye but good for their scoreboard adding one more point to their home record.

- Liverpool 1:1 Aston Villa: It was a breathtaking strike by Herd, as mentioned above, and it deservedly grabbed a point for Villa at Anfield. But it was one of those games, miss after miss after miss again, all too familiar to the Reds. this season. They had a penalty shout denied, but it was Suarez, say no more. Dirk Kuyt cleared the cross bar from two yards out! HOW?!?!?! We will never know... Corner cleared, only as far as Steven Gerrard from the edge of the box, Daniel Agger hit the bar, but then Suarez finally got in with nine minutes left on the clock, it was agonising to watch! I have never seen a goal taking such an ordeal to create and SCORE. Then Andy Carroll headed one straight into Shay Given's gloves. Another late chance was somehow scrambled clear. All in all, the home side had three penalty shouts + 21 chances + 11 corners + ball over the line? = still only one goal, one point at home, two points dropped for Liverpool, AGAIN! ARGH!

- Tottenham 1:2 Norwich: Struggling Spurs faced a fighting Norwich at home and the Canaries didn't give Tottenham a moment's peace and got on with the game. Redknapp's side looked clumsy, confused, lazy: Jermain Defoe broke clear and scored his 16th of the season in 20 appearances, a tidy goal after untidy Ledley King had given Grant Holt a pull on the shirt from behind in the opposite box, but the penalty appeal was conveniently ignored by the referee, which left Norwich furious. Norwich were on the ref's case again after Emmanuel Adebayor brought down Aaron Wilbraham in the box and nothing was given again. But Elliott Bennett scored his first for Norwich and put his side ahead again with a beautiful, precise right-foot hit from 20 yards out on the edge of the box, leaving Spurs nowhere and Norwich rewarded for their fight with two goals and three points.

- QPR 1:0 Tottenham: Adel Taarabt was hero and villain in a match which saw Tottenham struggle to create any form of pressure, dominance or chances yet again. The Moroccan midfielder curled a finely controlled free-kick over the Spurs wall and into the bottom corner to take the lead for Mark Hughes's men against his former side and complete a strong comeback from their defeat at West Brom the previous weekend. With just over ten minutes to go, Taarabt received a second yellow for kicking the ball away, setting up a tense finale with the home side battling to grab at least a goal for one point. But they failed to create and achieve anything once again, an all-too familiar theme and tune lately for Redknapp.

- Liverpool 0-1 West Brom: With over 60% possession, over 20 chances and home advantage, you can guess who won this game: yes, the visitors, giving manager Hodgson a win to enjoy against his former side. With 15 minutes to go, Peter Odemwingie was able to run clear and put the ball past Reina after Glen Johnson lost the ball to Youssouf Mulumbu. It was quite unbelievable, against the run of play, chances and dominance, but then again, looking back at Liverpool's season, it has been nothing unusual, more all-too familiar, at the ground that used to be a fortress. The previous nine draws and two defeats at Anfield made this match seem like a refrain, a chorus to an all-too familiar song which has been set on replay this season.


Flop teams:

- Flop form: Wolves (LLDLD = 2/15 points), Blackburn (LLLWL = 3/15), Sunderland (DLDDD = 4/15), Norwich (DWLLL = 4/15) and Swansea (LLWDD = 5/15). Bolton would be bottom in the form league (LLDLL = 1/15) but won their game in hand against Aston Villa!

- Flop scorers: Aston Villa (2 goals scored excluding their game in hand against Bolton), Sunderland (2), Bolton (4 excluding their game in hand against Aston Villa), Blackburn (4), Norwich/West Brom/Stoke/Wolves/QPR (5).

- Flop defence: Norwich (14 goals conceded), Bolton (12 excluding game in hand), Blackburn (11), Wolves (11), Swansea (10).

Flop players: Sent off: Anthony Modeste (Blackburn), Mario Balotelli (City), Shaun Derry (QPR), Doni (Liverpool heartbreak ahead of FA Cup final), Sebastien Bassong (Wolves), Taarabt (QPR as mentioned above, from hero to zero within minutes), Craig Gardner (Sunderland); City's Yaya Toure has been booked the most (3). Balotelli got away with a dangerous leg-break tackle at the Emirates (after handball, diving, whining, etc.). Brilliant Ben Foster double save for WB who ended up winning 3-0 against 10-men Blackburn after Modeste's stupid, pointless late s.o.!

Flop goals: We have seen four own goals this month, but it is the mis-decisions that hurt most! United beat QPR comfortably thanks to referee's double present (offside + penalty), QPR were robbed! Top saves by Wigan's Ali Al Habsi frustrated Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. He was unlucky then though when Branislav Ivanovic's offside goal was given! Refs have been usless again this month! These decisions cost team points and for some it could end up in relegation! Wigan's equaliser through super-sub Mohamed Diame got their hopes up for points against Chelsea, but then they lost the game on a last-minute counter-attack, Torres seeing his volley come off the post for Juan Mata to net it. It looked offside again?! Unlucky drama for Wigan! Wigan were robbed! It hurts to see these decisions cost teams dearly whilst any technological help and advances are kept being postponed season by season!

Flop news: Roy Hodgson has been confirmed as new England manager, ending all speculation around Harry Redknapp, I am sure the latter will be a relieved man as much as the prior is proud! I still expect the worst come Euro 2012, it's England we're on about! All my life it has been an impossible job for any man and after seeing how he fared at Liverpool, I don't think Hodgson has what it takes. No one has! Good luck Hodgson!

My predictions - Useless as always! - Actual results:

Week 32:

Swansea 1:2 Newcastle - 0:2

Sunderland 1:2 Tottenham - 0:0

Bolton 0:0 Fulham - 0:3

Chelsea 3:1 Wigan - 2:1

Liverpool 2:2 Aston Villa - 1:1

Norwich 1:1 Everton - 2:2

West Brom 1:0 Blackburn - 3:0

Stoke 2:1 Wolves - 2:1

Man United 3:1 QPR - 2:0

Arsenal 1:0 Man City - 1:0

Week 33:

Everton 1:0 Sunderland - 4:0

Newcastle 2:0 Bolton - 2:0

Tottenham 4:0 Norwich - 1:2

Aston Villa 1:1 Stoke - 1:1

Fulham 2:1 Chelsea - 1:1

Blackburn 0:0 Liverpool - 2:3

Man City 3:0 West Brom - 4:0

Wigan 0:4 Man United - 1:0

Wolves 0:3 Arsenal - 0:3

QPR 2:2 Swansea - 3:0

Week 34:

Norwich 0:1 Man City - 1:6

Sunderland 3:0 Wolves - 0:0

Swansea 0:0 Blackburn - 3:0

West Brom 3:0 QPR - 1:0

Man United 2:0 Aston Villa - 4:0

Arsenal 3:0 Wigan - 1:2

Liverpool 2:0 Fulham - 0:1*

Stoke 0:1 Everton - 1:1*

Chelsea 2:1 Newcastle - 0:2"

Bolton 2:1 Tottenham - 1:4"

*postponed to 1st May

"postponed to 2nd May

Week 35:

Arsenal 2:1 Chelsea - 0:0

Aston Villa 2:1 Sunderland - 0:0

Blackburn 2:1 Norwich - 2:0

Bolton 2:1 Swansea - 1:1

Fulham 2:1 Wigan - 2:1

Newcastle 2:1 Stoke - 3:0

QPR 2:1 Tottenham - 1:0

Man United 2:1 Everton - 4:4

Liverpool 2:1 West Brom - 0:1

Wolves 2:1 Man City - 0:2

Wolves are relegated

Week 36:

Everton 2:0 Fulham - 4:0

Stoke 1:2 Arsenal - 1:1

Sunderland 2:0 Bolton - 2:2

Swansea 3:0 Wolves - 4:4

West Brom 2:1 Aston Villa - 0:0

Wigan 1:2 Newcastle - 4:0

Norwich 2:2 Liverpool - 0:3

Chelsea 2:0 QPR - 6:1

Tottenham 3:1 Blackburn - 2:0

Man City 0:0 Man United - 1:0

Week 25: Premier League Tops and Flops

Sports - Football - Premier League- Picks of the Weekend

Top game and team: If you wondered for one second whether Tottenham could cope with all the stress and attention around their manager, with the court case and England speculation, please join the laughing stock! The team got together and smashed their opponents to pieces 5-0! I feel sorry for Newcastle who could never have predicted what was ahead of them, after most probably favouring their chance, thinking they could catch out Spurs, that they were at a weak or crises point. The London side quickly put that to bed with three goals inside 19 minutes. Unbelievable!

Top player: Wayne Rooney made the difference at Old Trafford and got the ground rocking with two goals inside three minutes at the start of the second half. It was a scruffy, intense encounter with Liverpool matching their rivals and staying in the competition with a shout eventhough the home side dominated most of the game. But the former Evertonian stole the show, the first goal summarising his top class, an unstoppable volley off a Ryan Giggs corner.

Top goal: Thierry Henry's last minute winner for Arsenal was another one of those too-good-to-be-true goals! The Frenchman ended his return just as he started it, like a scripted dream. Jamie Mackie's late two goals, especially the second for QPR, was an unstoppable smacker and unbelievable show by the sub striker. Too little, too late though in their 3-2 defeat at Blackburn.

Top news: Harry Redknapp said a part-time role as England manager would be possible... Really?! That would be too good to be true for England. I don't think the Spurs Director quite agrees with his manager, no surprise there... :-P

Flop game: Manchester City's 1-0 win at Villa Park was not much to write home about. City dominated the game from the first second to the last minute, Joleon Lescott grabbing the only goal of the game in the 63rd minute from close range against his boyhood club. It saw Aston Villa drop down to 15th and the fans showing their frustration towards manager Alex McLeish.

Flop team: Wolves' 5-1 thrash defeat against West Brom was sad, no, annoying to watch. As soon as the first goal fell, the home side crumbled to bits. It looked like no one wanted to shoulder the blame, eventhough they were all contributors to their downfall, no one took the responsibility to grab the side and get a grip. In the end, it saw the side drop into the relegation zone and cost Mick McCarthy his job and after six successful years at the club, it is sad to see him leave. Chelsea's Andre Villas-Boas is the most likely candidate next on the sacked list after his side's dire 2-0 defeat at Everton. Pressure is moutning on the Portuguese - his side dropping out of the top four into fifth, level points with Arsenal in fourth, tehn points behind Tottenham in third.

Flop player: Luis Suarez, what were you thinking?! It was your chance to wipe the slate clean with Patrice Evra, but instead you spat on it and poked it into his face! It caused unnecessary trouble adding to the already intense rivalry and atmosphere in the game and ground. It cast an unnecessary and unwanted shadow over the game, teams and the whole competition and sport. I know apologies have now been officially given by both player and manager Kenny Dalglish and accepted by Manchester United, but there is still something crucial missing: Suarez and Evra shaking hands and drawing a line under it! Sir Alex Ferguson's post-match interview was a bit harsh (the striker should never play for the honorable Merseyside club again) but understandable. I hope the Uruguayan has slowly but surely come to his sences now!


Flop goal: The top sides' defenders seemed to be asleep this weekend. The Chelsea back line let Everton's Steven Pienaar and Denis Stracqualursi to the ball too easily, giving away open chances they both netted with thanks. David Luiz and Jose Bosingwa were especially poor, seeming completely unaware of play and where the ball is on more than one occasion. 
Liverpool's Jay Spearing and United's Rio Ferdinand both saw giveaways they will want to forget, the former losing the ball to Antonio Valencia who eventually found Rooney to net it and the latter pushing the ball ón to Saurez right in front of the goal.
Stoke keeper Thomas Sorensen's own goal against Fulham was cruel, he didn't see any of it, Clint Dempsey's shot from 25 yards hitting the cross bar and bouncing off the goalkeepers back and over the line.

Flop news: Aaaaaand Carlos Tevez is back, whining on, blaiming manager Roberto Mancini and painting him as the booman... Zzzzzz...

My predictions-Actual results:

Man United 2:1 Liverpool - 2:1

Blackburn 1:1 QPR - 3:2

Bolton 4:1 Wigan - 1:2

Everton 1:0 Chelsea - 2:0

Fulham 2:0 Stoke - 2:1

Sunderland 1:1 Arsenal - 1:2

Swansea 2:0 Norwich - 2:3

Tottenham 3:1 Newcastle - 5:0

Wolves 1:2 West Brom - 1:5

Aston Villa 0:1 Man City - 0:1