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Tuesday February 4, 2009

Liverpool Stay Second After A Two-Goal Win Over Chelsea

Stoke City 1 Manchester City 0

Manchester City slumped to a 1-0 defeat at the Britannia stadium as they were unable to beat 10-man Stoke City.
Stoke had Rory Delap sent off in the first half for a foul on Shaun Wright-Phillips, and it should have been relatively easy for the visitors after that.
But James Beattie's headed goal in first-half injury time gave Stoke the lead, and they withstood everything City could throw at them after that.
This was Stoke's first win at home since November and ended a four-game winless run.

Arsenal 0 West Ham United 0

Arsenal's League frustrations continued as a determined West Ham held out for a goalless draw at the Emirates.
Abou Diaby saw an early header deflected onto the crossbar, and Emmanuel Adebayor missed two good chances in the second half, while even the introduction of leading scorer Robin van Persie from the bench could not conjure up a winner.
The Hammers, who continued their unbeaten run, defended well as a unit throughout and were worth a share of the points.
The Gunners, meanwhile, may have not lost in the League since beating Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in November, but remain well adrift in the title race and, crucially, outside the top four.

Aston Villa 0 Wigan Athletic 0

Villa missed out on the chance to climb into second spot after being held at home by Steve Bruce's battlers.
Wigan had showed their mettle in holding Liverpool in midweek, and the Latics again proved their worth by claiming a point at Villa Park on a frustrating afternoon for the home fans.

Bolton Wanderers 3 Tottenham Hotspur 2

Kevin Davies saved Bolton Wanderers' blushes with a dramatic late header to sink shell-shocked Spurs after the home side looked set to throw away a two-goal lead for the second time in four days.
Davies and Sebastien Puygrenier had seemingly set the home side soaring towards all three points before two goals in as many second-half minutes were scored by Tottenham substitute Darren Bent.
But, just when history looked set to repeat itself after the midweek draw at Blackburn Rovers, Davies pounced to nod home Matt Taylor's 87th-minute corner in a dramatic Reebok Stadium finale.

Fulham 3 Portsmouth 1

Fulham secured a comfortable victory at Craven Cottage and Portsmouth have now gone eight league matches without a victory after a first-half strike by Andrew Johnson plus two goals from substitute Erik Nevland.
Portsmouth substitute David Nugent scored an 84th-minute consolation but Pompey never looked capable of saving the match.
Fulham's win lifts them to ninth in the table but Portsmouth are set to spend the rest of the season fighting for their Premier League future.

Hull City 2 West Bromwich Albion 2

West Bromwich Albion twice came back from behind to avoid defeat in a crucial match at Hull City.
Out-of-form Hull City were the better side at the KC Stadium and were rewarded for their dominance with fine goals from the excellent Bernard Mendy and Craig Fagan.
But the Baggies twice responded and claimed what could prove an important point with a Jay Simpson strike and Chris Brunt's penalty.
The draw maintained the six-point gap between the clubs and for the Tigers, who have only won once in 15 matches, a run of six successive defeats was at least ended.

Middlesbrough 0 Blackburn Rovers 0

Sam Allardyce's unbeaten run at Blackburn Rovers remains intact after another battling display in this stalemate at Middlesbrough.
Allardyce extended his promising sequence of results to eight without defeat, six in the League, to take a 10th point from a possible 18.
It might have been even better for the visitors, who created the better chances in a tight match and saw Boro goalkeeper Brad Jones deny Roque Santa Cruz and substitutes Tugay, Jason Roberts and David Dunn - while midfielder Vince Grella volleyed just wide before the break.
It was the visitors who would be most satisfied with their afternoon's work, in front of 24,303 - the Riverside's lowest league crowd of the season.

Manchester United 1 Everton 0

Manchester United moved five points clear at the top of the League after Cristiano Ronaldo's first-half penalty gave them victory over Everton at Old Trafford.
The Portuguese winger fired home in the 44th minute after Michael Carrick had been tripped by Mikel Arteta.
With nearest rivals Liverpool and Chelsea playing each other at Anfield on Sunday, United sent out a clear message that their grip on the title is as strong as ever.
Ferguson's side have amassed 32 points from a possible 36, which is much better than the chasing pack and most definitely championship form.

Newcastle United 1 Sunderland 1

Geordie boy Shola Ameobi denied Sunderland a first league double over their arch-rivals in 42 years as Newcastle United hit back to snatch a point in front of owner Mike Ashley.
Ameobi drilled home a 68th-minute penalty to cancel out Djibril Cisse's first-half strike as both sides emerged from a rip-roaring derby with something to show for their efforts.
However, the visitors were aggrieved at Howard Webb's decision to award the spot-kick for Steed Malbranque's challenge on Steven Taylor.
Cisse had put them in front 12 minutes before the break as they enjoyed the better of the first half, although the Magpies responded well after half-time and were well worth a point which did little to ease their relegation fears, but at least kept them out of the bottom three.

Liverpool 2 Chelsea 0

Fernando Torres scored his first goals since October to keep Liverpool's title dreams alive.
Benitez's side still trail United by two points having played a match more, but remain in the hunt after eventually overcoming Chelsea.
Chelsea had Frank Lampard sent off in the second half and from then on Liverpool pounded away in search of the winner.
And Torres struck with a near-post header and a simple tap-in in the final minutes.