SERVICES

Tuesday August 16, 2011

And So It Begins...

Blackburn Rovers 1 Wolves 2

Stephen Ward's winner got Wolves off to a flying start just three months after defeat to the same side almost cost Mick McCarthy's men their top-flight status.
Ward lashed home a left-foot shot in the 48th minute after Paul Robinson saved Kevin Doyle's penalty and the ball was only half-cleared into Ward's path.
Stephen Fletcher had swiftly equalized a debut goal by Mauro Formica in the first half of a match that was a repeat of their survival showdown on the final day of last season.

Fulham 0 Aston Villa 0

Aston Villa and Fulham fans were given an opening-day reality check as Craven Cottage's Premier League season kicked off with a dour goalless draw.
Both sides lacked the quality to make the breakthrough, with the hosts guilty of squandering good chances through John Arne Riise, Bobby Zamora and Andrew Johnson.
That was partly down to an impressive debut for new Villa goalkeeper Shay Given who, along with fellow new boy Charles N'Zogbia, was one of few positives in new manager Alex McLeish's first competitive match in charge.

Liverpool 1 Sunderland 1

Striker Luis Suarez gave Liverpool the perfect start to their season but they wasted the opportunity to press home their advantage as they were pegged back by Sunderland.
With £49m worth of new signings on the pitch there was a feeling of optimism around Anfield and it was therefore fitting Suarez, the January acquisition who ignited the second half of last season, should score the first goal of the new Premier League campaign.
Having missed a fifth-minute penalty the Uruguay striker made amends by heading in a free-kick from Charlie Adam - one of three summer signings in the starting line-up.
Suarez's fellow January arrival Andy Carroll had a goal disallowed and another July new boy Stewart Downing rattled the crossbar with a long-range shot as Sunderland struggled to keep themselves afloat in the opening half-hour.
But Liverpool's flowing, passing football evaporated well before the break and they failed to rediscover it as the Black Cats sensed their chance and seized it, securing a point thanks to Sebastian Larsson's brilliant equalizer 12 minutes into the second half.

QPR 0 Bolton Wanderers 4

Queens Park Rangers' first top-flight match at Loftus Road since 1996 ended with a disappointing defeat by Bolton Wanderers - and what appeared to be a serious injury for Kieron Dyer.
Last season's Championship winners had started brightly, summer signing DJ Campbell seeing an effort ruled out for offside, before Dyer, signed on a free transfer from West Ham, fell awkwardly and had to be carried off with a reported broken metatarsal.
Bolton took the lead on the stroke of half-time with a fine curling effort from centre-back Gary Cahill.
An own goal from Danny Gabbidon, making his debut, and Kevin Davies' deflected strike effectively had settled matters ahead of a fourth for Fabrice Muamba following a swift counter-attack with 11 minutes left.
QPR defender Clint Hill was shown a red card in stoppage time.

Wigan Athletic 1 Norwich City 1

Wes Hoolahan's goal just before half-time ensured newly-promoted Norwich City claimed a point from their opener against Wigan Athletic at the DW Stadium.
The Latics had gone in front in the 21st minute through Ben Watson's spot-kick after Ritchie De Laet had fouled Franco Di Santo.
But the Canaries made it 1-1 at the end of the first half when Ali Al Habsi could not hold on to Steve Morison's delivery and Hoolahan slotted the ball into the net.
Watson almost won it late on with a shot which struck the woodwork and Victor Moses and Hugo Rodallega also went close in the dying moments - but overall Paul Lambert's side deserved to come away with something.

Newcastle United 0 Arsenal 0

Gervinho's Arsenal debut ended in ignominy as he was sent off for slapping Joey Barton in a hard-fought goalless draw at Newcastle United.
The Ivory Coast international was dismissed with 14 minutes remaining of the fixture after lashing out at the midfielder when he confronted him over what he believed was a dive inside the home penalty area.
Gervinho's premature departure capped a disappointing evening on Tyneside for the Gunners as they were unable to break down a Magpies side which rarely looked like taking all three points, but was in no mood to surrender the one with which they started.
Theo Walcott might have won it within three minutes of his introduction as a 61st-minute substitute, but goalkeeper Tim Krul denied him with one of the few genuine saves he was called upon to make.

Stoke City 0 Chelsea 0

New Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas' introduction to the Premier League proved to be a testing and frustrating affair as his side were held to a goalless draw at Stoke City.
The Portuguese may have raced to the league title with Porto and also won the Europa League last season but nothing could have prepared him for the challenge he met at the Britannia Stadium.
Having withstood considerable pressure in the first half Chelsea dominated after the break but the closest they came was when goalkeeper Asmir Begovic tipped Nicolas Anelka's shot onto the crossbar.
If Villas-Boas was under any illusion about how tough English football was then he was given a typical example by Tony Pulis' terrier-like Potters.
It was not necessarily the physicality of the challenge Stoke presented but more the incessant pressure which they put their opponents under.
There was no respite, no time for players to linger on the ball and certainly no way anyone could switch off for a second as the Potters were relentless from the first whistle.

West Brom 1 Manchester United 2

David de Gea endured a difficult debut and Manchester United lost both their centre-halves yet somehow the champions still managed to start their title defence with a win.
Ashley Young's deflected effort 10 minutes from time ensured United did not follow Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea in failing to win their opening match.
Yet on the journey back up the M6, Sir Alex Ferguson's mind will be full of problems to tackle.
Ferguson will now need to find some confidence for De Gea, in addition to a crash course in dealing with crosses, the Spaniard's error gifting Shane Long an equalizer.