It was a wet weekend in England, but the sun was shining on Samir Nasri and the Gunners in North London. The bad weather kept things close across England, with only two games being decided by more than a goal. Arsenal defeated Manchester United 2-1, in a match that vindicated Arsene Wenger's once again. With Bendtner as the lone striker, Arsenal's five man midfield helped the Gunners control the center of the pitch(field). Man U still had a good number of chances, with Ronaldo, Rooney and Berbatov all unable to finish their chances. Samir Nasri was able to finish, with his first goal took a serious deflection off Gary Neville, and the second an easy finish from a Fabregas through ball. Gary Neville struggled to cope with the pace of Arsenal, and it looks like his best days are behind him. It was Neville's substitute, Rafael, who scored United's only goal on a wonderful strike from the edge of the box. Almunia was injured and had to leave, and Fabianski did not look as sure in goal. Arsenal's defending has been their major weakness, and they will need Almunia to be fit straight away.
Wigan and Stoke tied 0-0, in a game that was even uglier than I had thought it would be. Wigan looked the better side, but with Heskey getting injured and Sorensen playing like a Great Dane, they had to settle for a point. Class doesn't equal results, and Wigan find themselves in the drop zone. Bolton defeated Hull 1-0, in a game the second ugliest game of the weekend. Jussi Jaaskelainen made a number of acrobatic saves, and bailed out his defense on a number of occassions. Matthew Taylor used the outside of his left foot to give Bolton the points, and the win gets them out of the drop zone. Portsmouth defeated Sunderland 2-1, in a game that was more a Sunderland loss than a Portsmouth win. Cisse put Sunderland ahead in the fourth minute, and Richardson again hit the post. A Belhadj wunderstrike tied things, before El-Hadji Diouf committed an idiotic foul in the box in the 90th minute, and Defoe buried the penalty. Why Roy Keane ever signed Diouf, we'll never know.
Liverpool defeated WBA 3-0, as Roy Keane broke his Premiership duck(scoring drought). Keane hit a brace, with Arbeloa putting the nail in the coffin. Torres came off the bench and looked sharp, but West Brom are now propping up the table and look like they might go right back down. Everton defeated West Ham 3-1, as Zola's job looks in trouble. The Hammers took the lead on a Collison goal in the 63rd minute, but Everton scored three in the final ten minutes. Lescott scored his first of the season before Saha fired in a brace. West Ham's attacking style means that they are open to counter attacks and giving up late goals. When they do grab a lead, they aren't able to switch gears and run out the clock. Zola's team may look good going forward, but right now they're going backwards down the table.Sunday saw the Blues top the table, as Chelsea defeated Blackburn 2-0. It looked like this game might get called off for Biblical rain, but around halftime the downpour stopped. Both keepers impressed, but Robinson was unable to stop an Anelka deflection and then a chip from Le Sulk. Middlesbrough defeated Aston Villa 2-1, as Villa continue to squander their chances to break into the Big 4. Tuncay put in a junkyard dog performance(feeding on the scraps), scoring the opener when Nicky Shorey failed to deal with a cross in the Villa box. Steve Sidwell equalized for Villa, but was caught in two minds at the end of the game and Tuncay latched onto a horrible back pass and buried it. Villa probably deserved a point, but they continue to put in subpar performances at crucial moments. Tottenham defeated Man City 2-1, as 'Ansome 'Arry continues to work his magic. City looked to be cruising after an early Robinho goal, but Gelson Fernandes was sent off for his second yellow a couple minutes later. Darren Bent continued his hot streak with a brace of his own, and Richard Dunne received a straight red card for his last man challenge on Bent. Things got a little nervy at the end when Assou-Ekotto was sent off for his second yellow, but City were spent. Mark Hughes has not been able to get a consistent response out of his club, and received the dreaded vote of confidence after the game. Fulham defeated Newcastle 2-1, got themselves out of the drop zone in the process. AJ got the opener, before Shola Ameobi scored a goal that looked to be offsides. Coloccini committed a foul in the box, and captain Danny Murphy stepped up and put away the penalty and the game. Fabio Capello was in the stands to see Michael Owen miss from close range, which won't help his chances of an England recall.
One Liners
- Mascherano accepts Argentina captain position although he says he isn't ready, Maradona says that's ok because he's not ready either
- Fabregas says United scalp was for Wenger, Wenger to fashion a belt out of it
- Lampard says United cannot lose again, United say Lampard needs to lose weight
- FA asks Kinnear what he meant by Mickey Mouse comment, apparently Kinnear watches too much childrens television
