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Sports - Football - Premier League - Picks of the Weekend
This weekend saw ten matches, three derbies, 30 goals, three own goals, 152 shots on target, 118 attempts off the mark, 106 corners, 36 bookings, three red cards and a penalty. Chelsea had the most chances on target with 16, followed by Manchester City with 14. City and Newcastle were the dirtiest with four yellow cards and one red each. Arsenal enjoyed most possession and corners of all sides with 62% and ten respectively. But these are just the stats! The action and reactions tell and count so much more and there was plenty to talk about! Here are my picks of the weekend:
OMG!
It was a Super Sunday indeed with the Tyneside derby and QPR entertaining Everton, both encounters highly entertaining. Both games saw just two goals, but plenty of bookings and controversy including an own goal and sending off each! Newcastle took the lead after three minutes thanks to Yohan Cabaye but were down to ten men after 25 thanks to Cheik Tiote's reckless challenge on Steven Fletcher. The ten-man Toons fought on hard and it looked like they would hold onto to the three points until Demba Ba's own goal spared Sunderland from defeat and rescued them a point.
At Loftus Road, the home side took the lead after three minutes thanks to David Hoilett's fine run and deflected shot in past Tim Howard. Half an hour later, Sylvain Distin's header came off the back of goalkeeper Julio Cesar and into the net to make it 1-1. Steven Pienaar then saw his second yellow in the second half, much to David Moyes' grievance, giving QPR another boost to push and finally get their first home win of the season. But it was not ment to be and Mark Hughes' men were forced to settle for the point.
WOW!
The London derby between Chelsea and Tottenham was a cracker of a game! Eventhough Andre Villas-Boas' return to his former side did not turn out victorious, the young Portuguese manager can draw strength and confidence from his side's performance. Spurs were on top for long periods of the match, not bad at all to say they were missing five key players! The Blues will obviously be the happier after getting the winning result, especially in their first game without their skipper John Terry who served his first game of suspension after the racism row.
TOP!
Comebacks are what champions are made of and what both United and City are renowned for. And they did produce just that against Stoke and West Brom respectively. It looked like they were both going to slip up, but then Wayne Rooney, RVP and Edin Dzeko's finally turned up the heat and the game on its head!
Emmerson Boyce's back-foot flicker to pull one back for Wigan against Swansea to make it 2-1 was sublime and a little bit cheeky! Wigan were then denied a late equaliser after Arouna Kone was denied a goal harshly disallowed as offside. It was the first win in five for the Swans, the two goals in a couple minutes from Pablo Hernandez and Miguel Michu were enough to grab the win in the end. It just showed how quick a game can change within a couple of minutes!
FLOP!
Arsenal were dreadful!!! Norwich thoroughly deserved their first win of the season and the scoreline could have been so much more embarrassing for the Gunners! Grant Holt tapped in the winner off a rebound after Vito Mannone failed to deal with Canaries number 27 Alexander Tettey's shot from far but wasted a good opportunity after breaking clear following Thomas Vermaelen's slip and clipping the ball straight into the goalkeeper's gloves. Arsenal dominated possession and shots but that was it, they did not form much of a challenge to the home side and the closest they got to a goal was when John Ruddy nearly did the same as Mannone, but the giveaway was cleared this time. This game showes how far off the Gunners are shooting from a top four finish this season!
HERO!
If he likes it or not, Dzeko was the super-sub for City, his header and counter-attack finish turning the game around for the defending champions. It was a great comeback after everything looked against them. West Brom put up a fight-and-a-half, but in the end City were too fast and clinical for them.
Chelsea midfielder Juan Mata deserved a hat-trick for his display, he was just awesome! The Spaniard's double made it six goals in five games for him and he was also provider for Daniel Sturridge. The former Valencia man's speed, awareness and lethal touch beat Tottenham.
ZERO!
Southampton's Jose Fonte punched West Ham's Andy Carroll into the back of the head and handled the ball whilst he was at it. What the hell was he thinking? That was a penalty-and-a-half! And the Portuguese defender was very lucky to stay on! With his act of foolishness the full-back saw all the pressure the Saints had built up to make a comeback undone and West Ham back in a comfortable lead! Idiot!
My Predictions => Actual Results
Tottenham 1-1 Chelsea => 2-4
Fulham 0-0 Aston Villa => 1-0
Liverpool 3-1 Reading => 1-0
Man United 3-0 Stoke => 4-2
Swansea 0-0 Wigan => 2-1
West Brom 0-3 Man City => 1-2
West Ham 2-1 Southampton => 4-1
Norwich 2-3 Arsenal => 1-0
Sunderland 1-1 Newcastle => 1-1
QPR 0-2 Everton => 1-1
Sports - Football - Premier League - Picks of the Weekend
OMG!
Manchester City's Sergio Aguero believes referees are treating foreign players differently to their home-grown counterparts and is aggrieved at their treatment. I understand where he is coming from after his side were denied two spot kicks during their 2-1 win at Fulham, referee Mark Halsey refusing shouts from Aguero's countrymen Carlos Tevez and Pablo Zabaleta. Liverpool's Luis Suarez is regularly in the spotlight as the referee's villain, this week again being denied a penalty against Norwich after Leon Barnett's challenge on the Uruguayan. But guess why they are treated differently? Because they are different! It is the overseas players who introduced this kind of drama into the well-known-to-be-more-physical English game. All this diving and whining has increased notably in the last 15-20 years, with the rise of foreign players on the transfer and team lists. So, what can they do to receive more credit from the officials? Quit the drama and play the game! Ok, the referee's should not be prejudice and be able to assess each situtation individually and seperately. But they are only human too! When they see those drama queens week in, week out, you cannot blame them for not believing every act they see! Again, just quit the drama and play the game and the officials will follow the rules!
WOW!
Andre Villas-Boas will have a big smile on his face after outsmarting the great Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford. It was a game of two halves though, Tottenham outplaying Manchester United and preying on their frailties in the first half, but then falling to bits in the second. The visitors went two goals ahead early on through Jan Vertonghen and Gareth Bale and were in total control until the restart when Wayne Rooney was introduced. Then came 139 seconds of madness, United pulling two back through Nani and Shinji Kagawa but Clint Dempsey netting one inbetween for the London side and holding onto the lead. The Red Devils laid siege onto the Tottenham goal, but Spurs held on for the win, making their future under the young Portuguese manager look so much brighter by the week. Both sides showed their strength and weaknesses, fight and leaks, making it an interesting encounter and result.
TOP!
Manchester City once again showed what champions are made of, turning a scoreline around and game on its head. Eventhough it was not their best performance, they got the three points from it, which is the main thing!
Liverpool finally got the goals they needed! Eventhough their back line was frail as ever, they finally were able to convert their chances, which they usually have in abundance, but just were not able to get onto the scoreboard. No problem this time.
And last but not least, Chelsea outplayed Arsenal, the Gunners gunned down by Roberto Di Matteo's new stylish Blues. After Roman Abramovich saw his side finally win the Champions League after watching them battle and scrap their way up, the Russian billionaire wants his side to win trophies in style and has given Di Matteo the freedom and tools to do so. So far so good, I have to say.
FLOP!
Arsenal were shambles! City did not look much better to be honest, but were able to turn things around. The biggest difference between the two is the strength and depth, the latter have double the number of players to fall back on whilst Arsenal try to hold on to the same old philosophy that has not won them much over the last years. I am not saying they should become big spenders, but there is an inbetween! They can at least try to fill the gaps and strengthen the weak spots, otherwise their youngsters will not have much of a platform to play on for much longer!
HERO!
Suarez' hat-trick showed his doubters that he can be a top striker. The Uruguayan striker also set up another goal, missed a sitter and was denied a penalty, as mentioned above. The scoreline could have been 2-10 at Carrow Road, but the main thing for Brendan Rodgers will be the win, the first three-pointer for the Reds. The sweeter it was though with five goals.
It took Edin Dzeko 40 seconds to put his name on the scoreboard and score the winner for Manchester City at Fulham. City were all over the place when Fulham took the lead early on thanks to Mladen Petric's penalty after Zabaleta was adjudged to have fouled John Arne Riise with the slightest of touches. Then something clicked and City pulled one back thanks to Aguero's tap in off David Silva's rebound. Then the Bosnian came on, robbed Brede Hangeland of the ball and rifled his effort past Mark Schwarzer, the best ingredients for a super-sub.
And Chelsea's Juan Mata was a pain in the neck and feet for Arsenal. The 24-year-old taunted the Gunners from start to finish, creating the first goal for Fernando Torres and scoring the second with the help of Laurent Koscielny's deflection. A match-winner-and-a-half. Or two.
ZERO!
Demba Ba's double levelled the score for Newcastle at Reading, so you would expect his name in the previous category. His first goal was heroic, firing home Cheik Tiote's pass. But his second goal, which earned the Toons a point, went in off his right arm! It was a Diego-Maradona/Thierry-Henry-style goal, all officials missed and everyone (from Tyneside in this case) tries to excuse as "you would not have done it differently". That does not make it better or a valid goal! See what the rule book says! FOOTball not HANDball!!! I cannot wait for video-referees to be introduced... Same old discussion... How many more decades and unjust incidents and goals have to pass and happen until we can use the technology we have to eradicate them?!
My Predictions => Actual Results
Arsenal 2-2 Chelsea => 1-2
Everton 2-0 Southampton => 3-1
Fulham 1-1 Man City => 1-2
Norwich 0-3 Liverpool => 2-5
Reading 1-2 Newcastle => 2-2
Stoke 1-1 Swansea => 2-0
Sunderland 1-1 Wigan => 1-0
Man United 4-1 Tottenham => 2-3
Aston Villa 1-2 West Brom => 1-1
QPR 0-1 West Ham => 1-2
Sports - Football - Premier League - Picks of the Week
And the second week of the 2012-13 Premier League season did not disappoint either! We saw 24 goals, 183 attempts, 78 on target, 105 off target, 197 fouls, 17 yellow cards, one sending off, two penalties, countless rain and one game postponed due to the beautiful English weather. Here are my best and worst picks of the weekend:
OUCH!
Wayne Rooney's deep cut over the knee did not look nice! The former Everton striker was dropped from Manchester United's starting lineup by Sir Alex Ferguson but came on as a substitute in the second half replacing Shinji Kagawa. Deep into injury time he suffered the large gash to his right leg after he attempted to charge down Hugo Rodallega's shot and the Fulham forward's studs inadvertently came down onto his leg. Straight away it was clear how serious the injury was and the England striker was stretchered off. Rooney is expected to be out for at least four weeks, missing England's upcoming World Cup qualifiers and United's league clash against rivals Liverpool at Anfield. This gives Robin van Persie more than a golden chance to shine over the next weeks!
WOW!
It has been a terrific start to the season for Roberto Di Matteo's Blues! After three games and three wins, Chelsea are now looking forward to the UEFA Super Cup clash against Atletico Madrid on Friday. With Fernando Torres finally shining and seemingly back to his best and new star man Juan Mata showing pace, tenacity and an eye for a pass, this duo have the potential of making (or breaking) Roman Abramovich's season over the next weeks and months. The Russian tycoon will be hoping the London club will be title contenders once again after finally tasting European success last season.
Everton and Swansea have also impressed with their starts to the season, two wins out of two and twelve goals between them! Obviously it is still too early to tell, but from what we have seen so far, David Moyes and his boys can gain confidence and focus on a top four spot after beating United and Aston Villa. Michael Laudrup will be more than happy with the start to the season by his Swans, but with the wins coming against newly promoted West Ham and relegation battlers of last season QPR, the Dane will know to compose himself and his side for more and harder times to come! But after this weekend, even Cesc Fabregas tweeted his appreciation of and admiration for the Swans!
TOP!
The Belgian playmaker Mata produced a superb flick to set up Torres to make it 2-0 to Chelsea against Newcastle at Stamford Bridge. The Spaniard's powerful strike made this his sixth goals in nine games for club and country.
RvP's left-footer against the angle was a stunner sending Patrice Evra's cross into the back of the net to make it 1-1 and equalise for Manchester United after Damien Duff had shocked Old Trafford and opened the scoring for Fulham converting a well-worked free kick. The Dutchman will be glad to have found his opener for United so early on in the season and hoping he can add plenty more over the coming weeks with Rooney missing out due to injury.
Luis Suarez' free kick for Liverpool was unstoppable! The Argentine forward curled the ball around and past the wall, well out of the City keeper Joe Hart's reach, to make it 2-1 seconds after Yaya Toure tapped in Pepe Reina's giveaway to equalise for City. Breathtaking goal in a brilliant game!
FLOP!
So far, it has not been a good weekend or season for defenders and goalkeepers, with a hand full of nightmare rebounds and back passes!
After Norwich debutant Sebastien Bassong was debatably penalised for pulling down QPR forward Djibril Cisse, keeper John Ruddy did a great job of saving the spot kick, but the rebound found Bobby Zamora who made no mistake of netting it to equalise and make it 1-1. The keeper was not happy with that and replays showed the players were inside the box when the spot kick was taken which means the penalty should have been retaken!
Angel Rangel's shot-cum-pass from the right went under goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen to give the Swans the lead against the Hammers. The Spanish defender claimed it of course eventhough it was more luck than shine. Miguel Michu took advantage of a short backpass by James Collins and punished the defender for his mistake nipping the ball past the goalkeeper to make it 2-0 and complete the WHam nightmare!
Keeper David De Gea's punch deflected in off defender Nemanja Vidic to make it 3-2 and a nervy finish for United against Fulham at Old Trafford.
Red defender Martin Skrtel's back pass to Reina which found Carlos Tevez for the second equaliser will have made Anfield cringe after they played so well against the defending champions. The Slovak's mistake gave the Argentine his 100th goal in English football and City one point.
HERO!
The youngsters were the best this weekend!
Raheem Sterling and Jonjo Shelvey impressed for Liverpool, staying on the ball and frustrating the opposition in a nailbiter of a game against defending champions Manchester City.
Eden Hazard and Mata were scorer and provider in Chelsea's stroll to their third win in a row.
But as mentioned above, the "old boys" impressed too with Torres and RVP shining on the pitch and coreboard once again.
ZZZERO!
Arsenal disappointed again with a goalless draw at Stoke. It was a game with not much to write about as both sides cancelled each other out. Stoke kept a back line of ten players which frustrated and kept Arsenal out and left no form or space for any kind of attack on neither side which voided any form or chance of a competition. I hope and think that things will be very different for the Gunners next weekend, beware, as Arsene Wenger's men will be heading to Anfield, where they have yet to see a goalless game in the Premier League era!
My Predictions => Actual Results
Swansea 2-1 West Ham => 3-0
Aston Villa 0-1 Everton => 1-3
Man United 3-1 Fulham => 3-2
Norwich 0-0 QPR => 1-1
Southampton 2-0 Wigan => 0-2
Sunderland P-P Reading => postponed due to waterlogged pitch
Tottenham 2-0 West Brom => 1-1
Chelsea 3-2 Newcastle => 2-0
Stoke 1-1 Arsenal => 0-0
Liverpool 2-3 Man City => 2-2
