Aston Villa 6-1 Sunderland: Villa have spiced things up down at the bottom after this thrashing over a very poor Sunderland. After half an hour of entertaining, end to end, football, the deadlock was broken when a blocked shot came out to Ron Vlaar about 40-yards out. The Dutchman took a touch before then firing a shot in to the bottom corner that Simon Mignolet saw too late to react, a great strike to get your first goal for the club. But Villa's cheers lasted no more than 90-seconds as Sunderland went up the other end with Danny Rose playing a couple of great one-twos before finding himself scoring past Brad Guzan for his first goal for Sunderland. Six minutes after that, seven minutes before half-time, Villa were back in front when a great counter attack saw the ball get squared over the top to Andreas Weimann for the Austrian to calmly lift the ball over Mignolet.
The fourth goal was always going to be the most crucial and it arrived ten minutes in to the second half when Christian Benteke rose above everyone else to head home from a corner, scoring his 20th in all competitions this season. Benteke then made it two in four minutes when Gabriel Agbonlahor's deflected effort forced Mignolet to track back and he could only get an arm to the ball. It bounced back to Benteke who easily headed home from six yards. Sunderland's day got worse on 70-minutes when Stephane Sessegnon got sent off for a studs in 'stamping' tackle. It wasn't malicious by any means but you can definitely see why Lee Probert sent him off. If Sunderland's appeal is unsuccessful, Sessegnon will miss the remaining games and will be a huge blow.
Villa performed possibly better than at any point this season and they made it 5-1 just two minutes after Sessegnon had been sent off. Benteke was played through and the Belgian completed his hat-trick by beating Mignolet at his near post from an acute. It was just three more reasons why Benteke should have been given the Young PFA Player award. The rout was completed two minutes before the end when substitute David Vaughan, who had just been on the field for a matter of moments, played a poor pass back and allowed Agbonlahor through on goal, the striker rounded Mignolet before becoming Villa's top scorer in the Premier League era. Not only is the result huge in terms of levelling on points with Sunderland and Newcastle. But because of the two vast scorelines, Newcastle are now the team teetering above the relegation zone on goal difference. If Wigan win their game in hand then they will be just two points behind those three teams.
Reading 0-0 QPR: Both teams have now officially been relegated from the Premiership after an absolutely diabolical draw. The writing may have already been on the wall for both clubs but they showed zero Premiership class or desire in this goalless encounter. What must surely upset the fans most was that both Harry Redknapp and Nigel Adkins were able to smile about this achievement. Fans need to see emotion in their clubs and that wasn't on show in this game, the most despicable of all was Jose Bosingwa who actually walked down the tunnel laughing at the final whistle. Two sides deservedly vacating the top league in English football.
Arsenal 1-1 Manchester United: The newly crowned champions took the pitch with a guard of honour from the Arsenal side, but for the first half United looked like they were still partying. Arsenal took the lead after just two minutes when Theo Walcott was played through, although offside, and managed to score over David De Gea. Arsenal would rue only scoring the one goal despite their dominance and Bacary Sagna was too eager to ratify a mistake and would ultimately bring down Robin Van Persie, on his return to The Emirates, to concede a penalty. The Dutchman stepped and scored against his old club for a second time this season and again refused to celebrate. The point for Arsenal leaves them a point behind Chelsea but more importantly two above Tottenham.
Chelsea 2-0 Swansea: It was the first time these two sides met since the ball boy incident in the Carling Cup. It was Mark Clattenburg's first game officiating in a Chelsea match since that one against Manchester United where he was wrongly accused of being racist. Fortunately, there were no similar talking points as Chelsea reclaimed third and are now a point ahead of Arsenal, but more importantly three ahead of Tottenham. Substitute Frank Lampard played the ball for Oscar to give Chelsea the lead two minutes before half-time. Chelsea were then awarded a penalty in first half injury time to ensure the points; Juan Mata was fouled by Leon Britton before Lampard stepped up and converted, moving to one goal behind the all time Chelsea goalscoring record.
Newcastle 0-6 Liverpool: Liverpool's first match without Luis Suarez for ten games begins with a thrashing over Newcastle, moving the Toon to five points above the relegation zone. Daniel Agger headed Liverpool ahead after just three minutes. Jordan Henderson made it 2-0 on 17-minutes when Philippe Coutinho's brilliant through ball saw Daniel Sturridge lay it off to the former Sunderland man to stroke in to the empty net. The third came nine minutes in to the second half when Coutinho again slid the ball to Sturridge to fire home. Sturridge scored his second on the hour mark when Henderson beat the offside trap and rolled the ball across Rob Elliot for the striker to tap home. Fabio Borini scored his first Premiership goal on 74-minutes just a minute after coming on. It somehow got worse a minute later when Mathieu Debuchy was given a second yellow card for a poor challenge on Coutinho. Henderson took the following free-kick on the side of the box and it somehow curled in to the net to make it six.
Wigan 2-2 Tottenham: Wigan remain two points from safety after a late draw against Tottenham. The result sees Spurs two points behind Arsenal and three behind Chelsea. The PFA Player and Young Player of the Season, Gareth Bale, put Spurs ahead on nine minutes when Joel Robles' clearance was blocked by the Welshman and rebounded in to the net. The lead lasted all of two minutes when Emerson Boyce headed home from a corner. Wigan were temporarily out of the relegation zone four minutes in to the second half when Callum McManaman scored his first Premiership goal with an absolute battering ram. The the win was denied ten minutes from the end when Boyce accidentally shinned the ball from Tom Huddlestone's free-kick in to the net.
Southampton 0-3 West Brom: An eventful St.Mary's sees West Brom emerge with all three points. The visitors took the lead when Marc-Antoine Fortune scrambled the ball over the line with his knee at the third time of asking. Romelu Lukaku made it 2-0 on 67-minutes after being played through by Fortune and the Belgian rounded Artur Boruc to roll home. Gaston Ramirez was sent off on 70-minutes for elbowing Shane Long. Fortune was also given a red card for then putting his hand in Ramirez's face in the aftermath of the foul. Long got revenge on 77-minutes by making it 3-0 by putting the ball through Boruc's legs. The action wasn't finished as Daniel Fox also received his marching orders seven minutes before half-time; a straight red was shown for a two footed challenge on Steven Reid.
Manchester City 2-1 West Ham: Manchester City respond to surrendering their title with a close victory over West Ham. Sergio Aguero put them in front on 28-minutes when a great team goal saw him play the ball through Jussi Jaaskelainen's legs from four yards. The points were assured seven minutes from the end when Yaya Toure smashed a rocket in to the top corner from the edge of the box. West Ham did deserve a goal and it came in injury time when Andy Carroll's blast somehow broke through Joe Hart as it trickled through his legs.
Stoke 1-0 Norwich: Stoke move six points clear and reach the magic-40 mark with a crucial victory over Norwich who are two points behind them. The only goal of the game came a minute in to the second half when a lofted ball was brought down by Cameron Jerome before being fired home by Charlie Adam.
Everton 1-0 Fulham: Everton move three points behind Chelsea with a close victory over Fulham. The only goal of the game came on 16-minutes when Seamus Coleman's pull back was fired home by Steven Pienaar.
Monday 29 April 2013
Thursday 25 April 2013
Lewis Out, Taylor Up To Second, Thornton & Whitlock Stay Alive
The NIA, Birmingham, saw Adrian Lewis officially exit the competition after losing both of his games. Two wins for Phil Taylor, one of which Lewis, has The Power move in to second place with Raymond Van Barneveld level on points and a game in hand, James Wade is a point behind with a game in hand after losing to Barney. Defeat for Hamilton against Robert Thornton means he is now six points from the play-offs and now all but out of the competition as well. A win and a defeat for Simon Whitlock means he's three points off and still just about alive in the competition but two wins for Thornton means he's now just a point behind Wade in fifth.
Taylor kicked the night off against Lewis and just like in week two, Taylor served up a thrashing against his protege. A 129-checkout followed by a 109-finish saw The Power classily move in to a 5-0 lead. Taylor then missed two darts at the double in the sixth leg and Lewis cleared-20 with only his second dart at the double in the match. A further three missed darts allowed Lewis to gain another leg and Jackpot should have made it 5-3, but he missed four darts and Taylor guaranteed himself a point. Taylor completed the victory, a leg better than he managed in Aberdeen, with a 105.24 average, all but sealing Lewis' fate.
A win for Van Gerwen over Whitlock and he was mathematically through to the play-offs with two weeks to go. But Whitlock needed the win to still have a slim chance of qualifying. A 106-checkout from Van Gerwen saw the Dutchman instantly break the throw, only to miss two darts in the second leg to allow Whitlock to equalise. The third leg also went against throw before Van Gerwen managed to hold this time to go 3-1 in front. That became 4-2 before a ton checkout via two double tops put Van Gerwen a leg away from a point. Van Gerwen would miss four darts to get the point in the tenth leg and Whitlock managed to equalise. The Australian then took the lead for the first time in the match by getting to the point first before taking the 12th leg to see off the birthday boy.
Thornton's first match of the night came against Hamilton in which Hamilton is now all but out of the competition. After Thornton missed three darts to win the opening leg, the Scot took a 4-1 lead. That became 5-2 before Hamilton took two legs on the bounce to reduce the deficit to a single leg. Thornton then managed to secure the point before an 83-checkout on the bull gave the Scot the victory.
The performance of the night goes to Van Barneveld whose demolishing of Wade sees the Dutchman move one point ahead of him. Wade missed a dart to take the opening leg and Barney quickly stole the advantage to take a 4-0 lead. The Dutchman missed a dart to make it five straight legs but he made amends by taking out-101 after Wade missed two darts to make it 4-2. A brilliant 145-checkout from Wade made it 6-2 only for Barney to win the match with a stylish 116-checkout.
A win for Whitlock over Taylor would have definitely closed the bunch together but it was not to be. Whitlock missed a dart to hold the third leg but the Australian retaliated with a ton checkout after Taylor missed two darts to go 3-1 in front. But Taylor broke again in the fifth leg and this time held his own throw to go 4-2 ahead. The Wizard crucially then missed five darts to level the match and The Power guaranteed the point a leg later. Whitlock did extend the match for another leg before Taylor took the match 7-4 to make it a very good day at the office for the 16-time world champion.
With Lewis now officially out of the league, all that is left to play for is pride. But when Thornton went 2-0 ahead, it wasn't looking promising. That became 3-1 before Thornton then missed two darts to allow Lewis to level the match. Thornton had to produce a fantastic Shanghai 120-checkout to level the match at 4-4 before Lewis missed four darts to give the Scot the lead. A 152-checkout from Thornton assured himself of a point but he then missed a dart to win the match in the next leg. Lewis looked like he was going to earn a draw but Thornton produced another brilliant 145-checkout to steal the victory. Table after week 12:
1. Michael Van Gerwen PL 14 20 +25
2. Phil Taylor PL 14 17 +17
3. Raymond Van Barneveld PL 13 17 +15
4. James Wade PL 13 16 +14
5. Robert Thornton PL 13 15 +7
6. Simon Whitlock PL 13 13 +5
7. Andy Hamilton PL 13 10 -12
8. Adrian Lewis PL 13 7 -26
Taylor kicked the night off against Lewis and just like in week two, Taylor served up a thrashing against his protege. A 129-checkout followed by a 109-finish saw The Power classily move in to a 5-0 lead. Taylor then missed two darts at the double in the sixth leg and Lewis cleared-20 with only his second dart at the double in the match. A further three missed darts allowed Lewis to gain another leg and Jackpot should have made it 5-3, but he missed four darts and Taylor guaranteed himself a point. Taylor completed the victory, a leg better than he managed in Aberdeen, with a 105.24 average, all but sealing Lewis' fate.
A win for Van Gerwen over Whitlock and he was mathematically through to the play-offs with two weeks to go. But Whitlock needed the win to still have a slim chance of qualifying. A 106-checkout from Van Gerwen saw the Dutchman instantly break the throw, only to miss two darts in the second leg to allow Whitlock to equalise. The third leg also went against throw before Van Gerwen managed to hold this time to go 3-1 in front. That became 4-2 before a ton checkout via two double tops put Van Gerwen a leg away from a point. Van Gerwen would miss four darts to get the point in the tenth leg and Whitlock managed to equalise. The Australian then took the lead for the first time in the match by getting to the point first before taking the 12th leg to see off the birthday boy.
Thornton's first match of the night came against Hamilton in which Hamilton is now all but out of the competition. After Thornton missed three darts to win the opening leg, the Scot took a 4-1 lead. That became 5-2 before Hamilton took two legs on the bounce to reduce the deficit to a single leg. Thornton then managed to secure the point before an 83-checkout on the bull gave the Scot the victory.
The performance of the night goes to Van Barneveld whose demolishing of Wade sees the Dutchman move one point ahead of him. Wade missed a dart to take the opening leg and Barney quickly stole the advantage to take a 4-0 lead. The Dutchman missed a dart to make it five straight legs but he made amends by taking out-101 after Wade missed two darts to make it 4-2. A brilliant 145-checkout from Wade made it 6-2 only for Barney to win the match with a stylish 116-checkout.
A win for Whitlock over Taylor would have definitely closed the bunch together but it was not to be. Whitlock missed a dart to hold the third leg but the Australian retaliated with a ton checkout after Taylor missed two darts to go 3-1 in front. But Taylor broke again in the fifth leg and this time held his own throw to go 4-2 ahead. The Wizard crucially then missed five darts to level the match and The Power guaranteed the point a leg later. Whitlock did extend the match for another leg before Taylor took the match 7-4 to make it a very good day at the office for the 16-time world champion.
With Lewis now officially out of the league, all that is left to play for is pride. But when Thornton went 2-0 ahead, it wasn't looking promising. That became 3-1 before Thornton then missed two darts to allow Lewis to level the match. Thornton had to produce a fantastic Shanghai 120-checkout to level the match at 4-4 before Lewis missed four darts to give the Scot the lead. A 152-checkout from Thornton assured himself of a point but he then missed a dart to win the match in the next leg. Lewis looked like he was going to earn a draw but Thornton produced another brilliant 145-checkout to steal the victory. Table after week 12:
1. Michael Van Gerwen PL 14 20 +25
2. Phil Taylor PL 14 17 +17
3. Raymond Van Barneveld PL 13 17 +15
4. James Wade PL 13 16 +14
5. Robert Thornton PL 13 15 +7
6. Simon Whitlock PL 13 13 +5
7. Andy Hamilton PL 13 10 -12
8. Adrian Lewis PL 13 7 -26
Wednesday 24 April 2013
Germany 8-1 Spain
When the semi-final draw was made, there was mare too much hype over a potential El Clasico final at Wembley. Well it's now going to take something special to happen in Spain for either Barcelona or Real Madrid to progress. Both Spanish giants travelled to Germany and they were both given a hiding that neither has had for a very long time.
Real Madrid travelled to Dortmund and walked in to a battering ram that was Robert Lewandowski. The Pole's first strike came after just eight minutes when he slid home Mario Gotze's cross, whose announcement of a move to Bayern Munich in the Summer will hurt Dortmund.
The thing that now differs between Madrid and Barcelona is that Real do have an away goal to shout about. It came two minutes before half-time when Mats Hummel's poor back pass was intercepted by Gonzalo Higuain. Higuain then laid the ball across for Cristiano Ronaldo, who else, to score his 12th goal of the competition. It was slightly controversial though as moments before the goal, Dortmund thought they should have had a penalty when Marco Reus under a Raphael Varane challenge.
Dortmund were back in front just five minutes in to the second half when Marco Reus' blocked shot came to Lewandowski, who Madrid claimed was in an offside position, and the striker had no problem converting his second of the night. The hat-trick came just five minutes later when Lewandowski received the ball from a Marcel Schmelzer cross, he produced some great skill to beat Pepe before firing a powerful shot in to the net.
The rout was completed on 67-minutes when Marco Reus was finally given the penalty he felt he deserved. This time, Reus was barged over in the box by Xabi Alonso and the referee had no other choice to point to the spot. Lewandowski stepped up to complete an unbelievable night and the Pole easily took his tally to ten for the competition.
In both legs of the quarter final and even their match, with a weakened team, against Levante, Barcelona have looked nothing more than ordinary and have been extremely lucky to be in this tie against Bayern Munich. The Spanish giants hadn't improved inside the Allianz with Lionel Messi having the fewest touches in any of his Champions League matches this season.
From the very start, only one team looked up for a battle and Bayern Munich took full advantage of the average performing Barcelona side, who did still see more of the ball. The deadlock was broken on 25-minutes when Arjen Robben's cross saw Dante head the ball, but instead of it going towards the goal, it ended up going back across goal where Thomas Muller reacted quickest to fire home.
The point of the extra officials was in question throughout the match as there a few penalty decisions that Bayern Munich arguably should have won. But none of the appeals were given even though the extra officials were in a fantastic place to tell the referee whether a foul of handball had been committed.
It was 2-0 four minutes in to the second half when Robben's corner was headed down by Muller for Mario Gomez to tap in from four yards, albeit from a seemingly offside position. Robben then scored a deserved third despite it being shrouded in more controversy and asking more questions over the pointless extra officials. It came on 73-minutes with Robben running at Jordi Alba, the Dutchman got a yard over the Spaniard and as he checked back inside, Muller shoulder barged Alba to the floor. It was a definite free-kick but nothing was given and Robben took a couple more paces towards the goal before unleashing his effort past Victor Valdes at his front post.
In the other goal, Manuel Neuer must have been surprised at how clean his gloves were come the final whistle. The German keeper was somehow tested very rarely and the game was completed eight minutes from the end when David Alaba's cross, after he, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Franck Ribery combined, was turned in by Muller for his second goal.
Neither of the semi-finals are definitely over, but it is looking more likely that Wembley will be invaded by the two German powerhouses rather than the El Clasico counterparts.
Real Madrid travelled to Dortmund and walked in to a battering ram that was Robert Lewandowski. The Pole's first strike came after just eight minutes when he slid home Mario Gotze's cross, whose announcement of a move to Bayern Munich in the Summer will hurt Dortmund.
The thing that now differs between Madrid and Barcelona is that Real do have an away goal to shout about. It came two minutes before half-time when Mats Hummel's poor back pass was intercepted by Gonzalo Higuain. Higuain then laid the ball across for Cristiano Ronaldo, who else, to score his 12th goal of the competition. It was slightly controversial though as moments before the goal, Dortmund thought they should have had a penalty when Marco Reus under a Raphael Varane challenge.
Dortmund were back in front just five minutes in to the second half when Marco Reus' blocked shot came to Lewandowski, who Madrid claimed was in an offside position, and the striker had no problem converting his second of the night. The hat-trick came just five minutes later when Lewandowski received the ball from a Marcel Schmelzer cross, he produced some great skill to beat Pepe before firing a powerful shot in to the net.
The rout was completed on 67-minutes when Marco Reus was finally given the penalty he felt he deserved. This time, Reus was barged over in the box by Xabi Alonso and the referee had no other choice to point to the spot. Lewandowski stepped up to complete an unbelievable night and the Pole easily took his tally to ten for the competition.
In both legs of the quarter final and even their match, with a weakened team, against Levante, Barcelona have looked nothing more than ordinary and have been extremely lucky to be in this tie against Bayern Munich. The Spanish giants hadn't improved inside the Allianz with Lionel Messi having the fewest touches in any of his Champions League matches this season.
From the very start, only one team looked up for a battle and Bayern Munich took full advantage of the average performing Barcelona side, who did still see more of the ball. The deadlock was broken on 25-minutes when Arjen Robben's cross saw Dante head the ball, but instead of it going towards the goal, it ended up going back across goal where Thomas Muller reacted quickest to fire home.
The point of the extra officials was in question throughout the match as there a few penalty decisions that Bayern Munich arguably should have won. But none of the appeals were given even though the extra officials were in a fantastic place to tell the referee whether a foul of handball had been committed.
It was 2-0 four minutes in to the second half when Robben's corner was headed down by Muller for Mario Gomez to tap in from four yards, albeit from a seemingly offside position. Robben then scored a deserved third despite it being shrouded in more controversy and asking more questions over the pointless extra officials. It came on 73-minutes with Robben running at Jordi Alba, the Dutchman got a yard over the Spaniard and as he checked back inside, Muller shoulder barged Alba to the floor. It was a definite free-kick but nothing was given and Robben took a couple more paces towards the goal before unleashing his effort past Victor Valdes at his front post.
In the other goal, Manuel Neuer must have been surprised at how clean his gloves were come the final whistle. The German keeper was somehow tested very rarely and the game was completed eight minutes from the end when David Alaba's cross, after he, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Franck Ribery combined, was turned in by Muller for his second goal.
Neither of the semi-finals are definitely over, but it is looking more likely that Wembley will be invaded by the two German powerhouses rather than the El Clasico counterparts.
Monday 22 April 2013
RVP Hat-trick Seals 20th Title
Manchester United 3-0 Aston Villa: Manchester United are officially the 2012/2013 Barclay's Premier League champions, their 20th title, after a comfortable victory over Aston Villa. The party began on 90-seconds when Ryan Giggs was picked out by Rafael before the Welshman laid the ball across the goalmouth for Robin Van Persie to tap home. The Dutchman made it 2-0 on 13-minutes with, what is becoming a trademark goal, a sublime volley from over the shoulder after Wayne Rooney played the aerial ball. The hat-trick and title win was complete on 33-minutes after Giggs performed a great run before unselfishly played the ball to Van Persie to again tap home. With the title now sealed, all focus returns to the relegation battle as Villa remain just three points above Wigan who have a game in hand.
Tottenham 3-1 Manchester City: Manchester City surrender the title after Tottenham's comeback. The result sees Spurs remain a point behind Chelsea, but two behind Arsenal with a game in hand. Carlos Tevez worked well to give City the lead after five minutes when his effort led to James Milner pulling the ball back for Samir Nasri to slot home. Spurs equalised on 75-minutes when the returning Gareth Bale played a low cross for Clint Dempsey to tap home at the back post. That turned the games on its head as Tottenham went 2-1 ahead on 79-minutes when substitute Jermain Defoe curled a great effort past Joe Hart after being played through by Lewis Holtby. The win was then assured just three minutes later when Bale made it 3-1, scoring over Hart after Tom Huddlestone played the ball in to him.
Liverpool 2-2 Chelsea: It was a return to Anfield for Rafa Benitez but the headlines will all go Luis Suarez after another controversial, yet bizarre, incident. Chelsea took the lead on 26-minutes when poor defending saw Oscar head a Juan Mata corner in to the bottom corner. Brendan Rodgers' half-time substitute paid off just seven minutes after the restart when Suarez brilliantly found his new strike partner, Daniel Sturridge, to score against his old club. Five minutes later and Suarez became the villain when he handled from the corner to give Chelsea a penalty. Eden Hazard stepped up and easily sent Pepe Reina the wrong way to reinstall the lead. Suarez should then have the pitch in the disgrace, and now must face a lengthy retrospective ban, when a battle between himself and Branislav Ivanovic ended with the Uruguayan grabbing the Serbian's arm and sink his teeth in to it. But Suarez has previous as he was once banned for biting in Holland for seven games and a similar punishment must be handed out this time around. If there was going to be an equaliser in this game, it was always going to happen in the depths of stoppage time and scored by Suarez. That's exactly what happened as Sturridge's 97th minute cross was headed home by Suarez to controversially seal a point for Liverpool. The point for Chelsea means that sit a point behind a Arsenal, but have a game in hand, and now a point ahead of Tottenham.
Norwich 2-1 Reading: Reading are one game from relegation, but they hold on to their Premier League status for one more game at least with victory over QPR this weekend, a result which would relegated Harry Redknapp's men. This comes after losing to Norwich in a game that sees the Canaries move seven points clear of the drop with only four to play. Norwich took the lead five minutes in to the second half when Ryan Bennett scored the rebound after Grant Holt's header from Robert Snodgrass' free-kick was parried, Bennett's first ever goal for Norwich. It was 2-0 two minutes later when Alex McCarthy tried to come out and catch a Snodgrass cross that he was never to claim and Eliot Bennett coolly slotted between his legs. Garath McCleary finished off a great run with a good long range goal with 18-minutes to play, but Norwich held on to virtually condemn Reading to Championship football next season.
QPR 0-2 Stoke: Like Reading, QPR are now only a game away from relegation. If they beat Reading at the weekend then they relegate the Royals while remaining a Premiership team for one more game at least. Peter Crouch put Stoke ahead three minutes before half-time, finishing from a Cameron Jerome low cross. The points were secured 13-minutes from time when Crouch was pulled down in the box by Clint Hill whilst trying to reach Robert Huth's header which had just come back off the post. The penalty was given and Jonathan Walter stepped up, after being made to take it again, to convert in to the bottom corner. The win is crucial for Stoke as they now move six points clear of the bottom three.
West Ham 2-0 Wigan: Wigan remain three points from safety in what is now looking like a straight fight between themselves and Villa to be the last to fall from the Premiership. Matt Jarvis gave West Ham the lead when his 21st minute cross managed to miss those in the box before beating Joel Robles and ending up in the net. Kevin Nolan then scored his 100th career goal with a volley from Andy Carroll's header to put the game beyond all doubt with ten minutes remaining. The win for The Hammers means that a top ten place is still very much in their grasp this season.
Sunderland 1-0 Everton: Everton's hopes of Champions League football may now be all but over after defeat at the Stadium of Light. The Toffees fall six points behind Chelsea in fourth but Chelsea, and Tottenham in fifth, have a game in hand. The second win in a row for Paolo Di Canio is extremely crucial as it now sees Sunderland move six points clear of the relegation zone. The only goal of the game came in first half injury time when Tim Howard rolled the ball out to Leighton Baines. Baines then gave the ball away to Stephane Sessegnon and the Frenchman gleefully took his chance to toe-poke past the American keeper.
Fulham 0-1 Arsenal: Arsenal's hopes of Champions League football next season have been boosted by this victory at Craven Cottage. The three points mean they now sit a point ahead of Chelsea and still two ahead of Tottenham, with both having a game in hand over The Gunners. Fulham's match was hampered after just 12-minutes when Steve Sidwell was sent off for a studs in challenge on Mikel Arteta. Per Mertesacker scored the only goal two minutes before half-time, heading from a yard out after Theo Walcott's free-kick had found Laurent Koscielny at the back post. The man count was levelled in second half injury time when Olivier Giroud was also shown a straight red for an over the ball, studs in, challenge on Stanislav Manolev. But the damage had already been done and Arsenal held on to the win.
West Brom 1-1 Newcastle: Newcastle move six points clear of the relegation zone after a point at The Hawthornes. The visitors took the lead on eight minutes when Yoann Gouffran finished off a move that saw Papiss Cisse pick out a cross to Yohan Cabaye before the ball was played to Gouffran. But the three points were taken away from Newcastle on 64-minutes when Billy Jones finished after a pass from Romelu Lukaku.
Swansea 0-0 Southampton: This was probably one of the first 0-0 draws between two teams who have nothing left to play for towards the end of the season. There wasn't a lot of class between the sides and the point sees Southampton move eight points clear of the drop which should be enough with just four games remaining.
Tottenham 3-1 Manchester City: Manchester City surrender the title after Tottenham's comeback. The result sees Spurs remain a point behind Chelsea, but two behind Arsenal with a game in hand. Carlos Tevez worked well to give City the lead after five minutes when his effort led to James Milner pulling the ball back for Samir Nasri to slot home. Spurs equalised on 75-minutes when the returning Gareth Bale played a low cross for Clint Dempsey to tap home at the back post. That turned the games on its head as Tottenham went 2-1 ahead on 79-minutes when substitute Jermain Defoe curled a great effort past Joe Hart after being played through by Lewis Holtby. The win was then assured just three minutes later when Bale made it 3-1, scoring over Hart after Tom Huddlestone played the ball in to him.
Liverpool 2-2 Chelsea: It was a return to Anfield for Rafa Benitez but the headlines will all go Luis Suarez after another controversial, yet bizarre, incident. Chelsea took the lead on 26-minutes when poor defending saw Oscar head a Juan Mata corner in to the bottom corner. Brendan Rodgers' half-time substitute paid off just seven minutes after the restart when Suarez brilliantly found his new strike partner, Daniel Sturridge, to score against his old club. Five minutes later and Suarez became the villain when he handled from the corner to give Chelsea a penalty. Eden Hazard stepped up and easily sent Pepe Reina the wrong way to reinstall the lead. Suarez should then have the pitch in the disgrace, and now must face a lengthy retrospective ban, when a battle between himself and Branislav Ivanovic ended with the Uruguayan grabbing the Serbian's arm and sink his teeth in to it. But Suarez has previous as he was once banned for biting in Holland for seven games and a similar punishment must be handed out this time around. If there was going to be an equaliser in this game, it was always going to happen in the depths of stoppage time and scored by Suarez. That's exactly what happened as Sturridge's 97th minute cross was headed home by Suarez to controversially seal a point for Liverpool. The point for Chelsea means that sit a point behind a Arsenal, but have a game in hand, and now a point ahead of Tottenham.
Norwich 2-1 Reading: Reading are one game from relegation, but they hold on to their Premier League status for one more game at least with victory over QPR this weekend, a result which would relegated Harry Redknapp's men. This comes after losing to Norwich in a game that sees the Canaries move seven points clear of the drop with only four to play. Norwich took the lead five minutes in to the second half when Ryan Bennett scored the rebound after Grant Holt's header from Robert Snodgrass' free-kick was parried, Bennett's first ever goal for Norwich. It was 2-0 two minutes later when Alex McCarthy tried to come out and catch a Snodgrass cross that he was never to claim and Eliot Bennett coolly slotted between his legs. Garath McCleary finished off a great run with a good long range goal with 18-minutes to play, but Norwich held on to virtually condemn Reading to Championship football next season.
QPR 0-2 Stoke: Like Reading, QPR are now only a game away from relegation. If they beat Reading at the weekend then they relegate the Royals while remaining a Premiership team for one more game at least. Peter Crouch put Stoke ahead three minutes before half-time, finishing from a Cameron Jerome low cross. The points were secured 13-minutes from time when Crouch was pulled down in the box by Clint Hill whilst trying to reach Robert Huth's header which had just come back off the post. The penalty was given and Jonathan Walter stepped up, after being made to take it again, to convert in to the bottom corner. The win is crucial for Stoke as they now move six points clear of the bottom three.
West Ham 2-0 Wigan: Wigan remain three points from safety in what is now looking like a straight fight between themselves and Villa to be the last to fall from the Premiership. Matt Jarvis gave West Ham the lead when his 21st minute cross managed to miss those in the box before beating Joel Robles and ending up in the net. Kevin Nolan then scored his 100th career goal with a volley from Andy Carroll's header to put the game beyond all doubt with ten minutes remaining. The win for The Hammers means that a top ten place is still very much in their grasp this season.
Sunderland 1-0 Everton: Everton's hopes of Champions League football may now be all but over after defeat at the Stadium of Light. The Toffees fall six points behind Chelsea in fourth but Chelsea, and Tottenham in fifth, have a game in hand. The second win in a row for Paolo Di Canio is extremely crucial as it now sees Sunderland move six points clear of the relegation zone. The only goal of the game came in first half injury time when Tim Howard rolled the ball out to Leighton Baines. Baines then gave the ball away to Stephane Sessegnon and the Frenchman gleefully took his chance to toe-poke past the American keeper.
Fulham 0-1 Arsenal: Arsenal's hopes of Champions League football next season have been boosted by this victory at Craven Cottage. The three points mean they now sit a point ahead of Chelsea and still two ahead of Tottenham, with both having a game in hand over The Gunners. Fulham's match was hampered after just 12-minutes when Steve Sidwell was sent off for a studs in challenge on Mikel Arteta. Per Mertesacker scored the only goal two minutes before half-time, heading from a yard out after Theo Walcott's free-kick had found Laurent Koscielny at the back post. The man count was levelled in second half injury time when Olivier Giroud was also shown a straight red for an over the ball, studs in, challenge on Stanislav Manolev. But the damage had already been done and Arsenal held on to the win.
West Brom 1-1 Newcastle: Newcastle move six points clear of the relegation zone after a point at The Hawthornes. The visitors took the lead on eight minutes when Yoann Gouffran finished off a move that saw Papiss Cisse pick out a cross to Yohan Cabaye before the ball was played to Gouffran. But the three points were taken away from Newcastle on 64-minutes when Billy Jones finished after a pass from Romelu Lukaku.
Swansea 0-0 Southampton: This was probably one of the first 0-0 draws between two teams who have nothing left to play for towards the end of the season. There wasn't a lot of class between the sides and the point sees Southampton move eight points clear of the drop which should be enough with just four games remaining.
Sunday 21 April 2013
Vettel Untouchable In Bahrain
Sebastian Vettel takes his second victory of the season to extend his lead in the early stages of the season. The Red Bull took the lead in the third and virtually never looked back as he finished nine seconds ahead of Kimi Raikkonen who still breathes down his neck in the race for the title. Paul Di Resta was six laps away from claiming his first ever podium in Formula One, but Romain Grosjean took advantage of the Force India's failing tyres to put both Lotus' on the podium.
Fernando Alonso's race was virtually ended before it began after suffering a problem with his DRS flap. Numerous pit stops to try and find a solution meant the Ferrari was well out of contention, but he did well to finish eighth. Mark Webber started and finished seventh after a three grid place penalty for his collision with Jean-Eric Vergne in Shanghai, Vergne ended up being the only retirement of the Bahrain GP. A quiet race saw Lewis Hamilton finish fifth with Nico Rosberg ninth after struggling from Pole. It ended up being a good race for McLaren as Sergio Perez finished sixth and Jenson Button tenth.
The race was an extremely eventful one and another great start from Alonso saw him pass Vettel to claim second, but that only lasted for a few corners. Di Resta got himself up to fourth from the lights. The incidents came at the back of the grid as Esteban Gutierrez and Giedo Van Der Garde suffered substantial front wing damage. Van Der Garde's damage came via a collision in to Vergne and the Toro Rosso sustained fatal damage underneath it and he was finally retired on around lap-18. Felipe Massa also suffered slight front wing damage after a coming together with Adrian Sutil, this harmed the Force India greatly as he was forced down the back of the pack.
Vettel's hunt for Rosberg was almost completed on the second lap, but the Red Bull had to wait another lap before finally getting his prey and taking the lead. By the third lap Raikkonen had lost ground behind the McLarens in ninth while Hamilton was struggling down in 11th.
Alonso had the same experience with Rosberg; almost catching him on lap four before finally getting the overtake done on lap five to take second. Di Resta was the next to overtake Rosberg on lap six before he gained second after Alonso's DRS flap problems began. The first time around, Alonso came out 15th but the flap still wouldn't shut when opened and he again had to come in. There was nothing that could really be done so Alonso had to drive the stricken Ferrari without the use of the DRS.
Webber was the first to pit solely for tyres on lap nine and Massa had managed to overtake Rosberg to gain third in the same lap. Button and Rosberg both pitted on lap ten but ended up coming out behind Webber, which was a huge gain for the Red Bull. Lap-11 saw Vettel, Massa and Perez all pit which meant Di Resta was now leading the race. Button was the next to fancy a move on Rosberg in lap-12 but the Mercedes regained the place a lap later, the battle also Massa to close the gap on the pair.
Di Resta pitted on lap-15 and Vettel's fresher tyres allowed him to easily overtake Raikkonen, who was still yet to pit until lap-17, to regain the lead in the race. Massa suffered a puncture on lap-18 but was able to get back to the pits before coming out in 15th and at this point there was a Red Bull one-two.
Button managed to re-overtake Rosberg on lap-20 to take third and Grosjean took fourth a few corners later as Rosberg was again in free fall. Lap-21 saw Rosberg and Perez pit for their second stops and Perez had overtaken the Mercedes by the next lap just as Webber and Button came in. To his credit, Rosberg never stopped fighting and he managed to regain the place on Perez on lap-23, only to see both McLarens force their way past the Mercedes on the following lap.
Vettel pitted on lap-25 but his lead was substantial enough to remain in front and Button managed to overtake Perez on lap-27 in what was the beginning of a great inter-team battle. Di Resta had gained second over Raikkonen on the same lap before the McLarens came together on lap-30, fortunately there was only bit of damage to Perez's front wing and perhaps Button was lucky not to suffer a puncture.
Grosjean then picked off the squabbling McLarens on lap-33 to move in to fifth and Raikkonen reclaimed second from Di Resta at the end of the lap before pitting for the second time in the race. Hamilton managed to overtake Perez on lap-36 to take fifth as Di Resta pitted on the next lap. Massa ended up suffering a second puncture but once again made it to the pits in order to carry on.
Raikkonen claimed third off Hamilton on lap-39 before Vettel pitted for his final time on lap-42, Grosjean did likewise and came out in fifth. The Frenchman was soon third on lap-44 after overtaking Webber and Rosberg with Button sitting sixth. Although that only lasted for another lap before Button was passed by his former team mate, Hamilton. Perez and Alonso also managed to pass Button on lap-46 to push the Brit down to eighth.
Hamilton took fifth off Webber on lap-51 with Grosjean breaking Di Resta's heart a lap later to steal the final podium place. Webber took that place back on lap-54, only for both Hamilton and Perez to overtake the Red Bull on the final lap to force the Red Bull down to seventh. Result:
1. Vettel (Red Bull), 2. Raikkonen (Lotus), 3. Grosjean (Lotus), 4. Di Resta (Force India), 5. Hamilton (Mercedes), 6. Perez (McLaren), 7. Webber (Red Bull), 8. Alonso (Ferrari), 9. Rosberg (Mercedes), 10. Button (McLaren), 11.Maldonado (Williams), 12. Hulkenberg (Sauber), 13. Sutil (Force India), 14. Bottas (Williams), 15. Massa (Ferrari), 16. Ricciardo (Toro Rosso), 17. Pic (Caterham), 18. Gutierrez (Sauber), 19. Bianchi (Marussia), 20. Chilton (Marussia), 21. Van Der Garde (Caterham) DNF: Vergne (Toro Ross)
Saturday 20 April 2013
Bydgoszcz Record Holder Emil Takes GP
Emil Sayfutdinov won the second 2013 Speedway GP meeting in his residential home of Bydgoszcz, Poland, where he also holds the track record. It was the turn of the European GP and it was the first time in three years that Bydgoszcz has hosted an event in the series. After today, everyone will be wondering why it got taken away as the event was a fantastic one to watch, with ten different winners in the opening ten heats.
In the final, all eyes were on Poland's hero, Tomasz Gollob, who was going off from the inside gate after winning five of his six earlier races. But he was slow to start and it allowed the surprising Matej Zagar to take the lead from the start. Sayfutdinov then hit the gas to go around the outside of Zagar and ultimately win the event with Gollob third and Britain's Tai Woffinden finishing fourth after another fantastic meeting.
Just like in the final, Gollob and Zagar lined up in gates one and two in the first semi-final and that's how they finished, beating Chris Holder and Niels-Kristian Iversen, who both scraped through in to the last eight. Sayfutdinov and Woffinden lined up in gates four and three like they did in the final and it was the Russian who beat the Brit in the second semi-final. Darcy Ward and Nicki Pedersen completed the line-up but after a good start from the inside, Pedersen found himself watching a fantastic battle between the other three. Ward was the unfortunate one to miss out as all three provided a great race.
The night began with Greg Hancock, fourth in New Zealand, winning the first heat ahead of Freddie Lindgren, Holder and Martin Vaculik. Krzysztof Buczkowski was the wildcard in the event and he began with a second place behind Gollob in heat two. Pedersen led that heat for the first three laps, only to be mugged by the Poles but he did managed to finish ahead of Krzysztof Kasprzak. After winning in New Zealand, Jaroslaw Hampel began his night with a win in heat three over Sayfutdinov, Ward and Andreas Jonsson, who shown his 2012 form in this event contrary to his semi-final place in New Zealand. Heat four was taken by Zagar with Woffinden beginning his night with a second place, Iversen finished third with Lindback continuing from his disappointing ride in New Zealand in fourth.
Hampel's night drastically changed after packing up in heat five. He had to watch on the grass to see Iversen take the chequered flag ahead of the impressive Buczkowski and Lindgren. Sayfutdinov's first win on the night came in heat six with Lindback getting second. After his great start, Gollob got caught napping on the line at the start of heat seven which saw him finish fourth with Ward picking up the win ahead of Hancock and Zagar. After finishing third in New Zealand, Pedersen won his first heat of the night in the seventh with Woffinden earning a second second place with Holder third and Jonsson again finishing fourth.
Woffinden managed to go that step further in heat nine with a win over Ward, Lindgren and Kasprzak, the Pole finishing fourth for the third time in three heats. Vaculik also put his name on the winners' board in heat ten with Zagar second, Buczkowski third and Jonsson fourth also for the third time. Pedersen became the first rider to win two heats, back to back at that, with Hampel and Hancock beating Lindback. Gollob followed that up with his second victory, from gate four, with Holder second, Sayfutdinov third and Iversen fourth.
Lindgren suffered an unfortunate bike failure at the start of heat-13 so he got to watch Gollob make it two in two and three wins on the night with Lindback third and Jonsson finally picking up his first point of the night. There had been a problem with the tapes in a couple of the heats but it didn't halt a heat until the 14th when the referee decided there was an unsatisfactory start. The tapes were seemingly getting stuck by the stadium side, meaning that gates one and two would be starting quicker than gates three and four.
After almost half an hour of trying to fix the problem, heat-14 could start again, only for Darcy Ward to become the victim of the domino effect and the young Australian hit the deck. Fortunately the fears of Ward aggravating a previous injury sustained earlier in the season were quashed when he managed to get back up and four riders were allowed to restart for a third time. But even that got delayed as Pedersen managed to break the tapes whilst trying to sort his wheel mark. Once the officials managed to sew the tapes together, heat-14 started for a third time and this time Ward made a great move to sweep to inside and overtake the other three to win his second heat of the night, Iversen finished second with Pedersen third and Vaculik third.
Woffinden managed to also make it two wins a row in heat-15 with Sayfutdinov beating Hancock and Buczkowski scoring his first last place of the night. Heat-16 was taken by the event's 11th different heat winner, Holder, who beat Hampel, Zagar and Kasprzak who was still yet to pick up a point.
Heat-17 was fortunate not to have been restarted when Lindgren took too much grass in the first corner and ended up flying in to the air. But the Swede somehow managed to stay on the bike, despite ultimately finishing fourth. The heat was taken by Zagar for his second victory with Pedersen second and Sayfutdinov third. Woffinden had to settle for a third second place of the night in heat-18 as Gollob made it four wins from five. Iversen managed to take his second heat in the 19th which was enough to see him make it in to the semi-finals. Jonsson finished his night with second with Hancock third and also failing to progress but Kasprzak finished fourth again to leave Bydgoszcz, in his home country, without a single point. Ward took the final heat to claim his third victory with Holder claiming second, which was just enough for him to squeeze through, Buczkowski ended with a third and Lindback fourth.
For the second meeting in this year's series, Gollob has failed to win it but leaves with the most points. This sees the Pole top the standings at this early stage, a sixth of the way in to the season, on 31-points. Ward continues to have a great start to his debut season, sitting in second with 25. Hampel and Woffinden sit on 23 with Pedersen fifth on 22. Sayfutdinov has 21-points with reigning champion Holder on 19 along with 2011 Champion, Hancock, and Zagar.
In the final, all eyes were on Poland's hero, Tomasz Gollob, who was going off from the inside gate after winning five of his six earlier races. But he was slow to start and it allowed the surprising Matej Zagar to take the lead from the start. Sayfutdinov then hit the gas to go around the outside of Zagar and ultimately win the event with Gollob third and Britain's Tai Woffinden finishing fourth after another fantastic meeting.
Just like in the final, Gollob and Zagar lined up in gates one and two in the first semi-final and that's how they finished, beating Chris Holder and Niels-Kristian Iversen, who both scraped through in to the last eight. Sayfutdinov and Woffinden lined up in gates four and three like they did in the final and it was the Russian who beat the Brit in the second semi-final. Darcy Ward and Nicki Pedersen completed the line-up but after a good start from the inside, Pedersen found himself watching a fantastic battle between the other three. Ward was the unfortunate one to miss out as all three provided a great race.
The night began with Greg Hancock, fourth in New Zealand, winning the first heat ahead of Freddie Lindgren, Holder and Martin Vaculik. Krzysztof Buczkowski was the wildcard in the event and he began with a second place behind Gollob in heat two. Pedersen led that heat for the first three laps, only to be mugged by the Poles but he did managed to finish ahead of Krzysztof Kasprzak. After winning in New Zealand, Jaroslaw Hampel began his night with a win in heat three over Sayfutdinov, Ward and Andreas Jonsson, who shown his 2012 form in this event contrary to his semi-final place in New Zealand. Heat four was taken by Zagar with Woffinden beginning his night with a second place, Iversen finished third with Lindback continuing from his disappointing ride in New Zealand in fourth.
Hampel's night drastically changed after packing up in heat five. He had to watch on the grass to see Iversen take the chequered flag ahead of the impressive Buczkowski and Lindgren. Sayfutdinov's first win on the night came in heat six with Lindback getting second. After his great start, Gollob got caught napping on the line at the start of heat seven which saw him finish fourth with Ward picking up the win ahead of Hancock and Zagar. After finishing third in New Zealand, Pedersen won his first heat of the night in the seventh with Woffinden earning a second second place with Holder third and Jonsson again finishing fourth.
Woffinden managed to go that step further in heat nine with a win over Ward, Lindgren and Kasprzak, the Pole finishing fourth for the third time in three heats. Vaculik also put his name on the winners' board in heat ten with Zagar second, Buczkowski third and Jonsson fourth also for the third time. Pedersen became the first rider to win two heats, back to back at that, with Hampel and Hancock beating Lindback. Gollob followed that up with his second victory, from gate four, with Holder second, Sayfutdinov third and Iversen fourth.
Lindgren suffered an unfortunate bike failure at the start of heat-13 so he got to watch Gollob make it two in two and three wins on the night with Lindback third and Jonsson finally picking up his first point of the night. There had been a problem with the tapes in a couple of the heats but it didn't halt a heat until the 14th when the referee decided there was an unsatisfactory start. The tapes were seemingly getting stuck by the stadium side, meaning that gates one and two would be starting quicker than gates three and four.
After almost half an hour of trying to fix the problem, heat-14 could start again, only for Darcy Ward to become the victim of the domino effect and the young Australian hit the deck. Fortunately the fears of Ward aggravating a previous injury sustained earlier in the season were quashed when he managed to get back up and four riders were allowed to restart for a third time. But even that got delayed as Pedersen managed to break the tapes whilst trying to sort his wheel mark. Once the officials managed to sew the tapes together, heat-14 started for a third time and this time Ward made a great move to sweep to inside and overtake the other three to win his second heat of the night, Iversen finished second with Pedersen third and Vaculik third.
Woffinden managed to also make it two wins a row in heat-15 with Sayfutdinov beating Hancock and Buczkowski scoring his first last place of the night. Heat-16 was taken by the event's 11th different heat winner, Holder, who beat Hampel, Zagar and Kasprzak who was still yet to pick up a point.
Heat-17 was fortunate not to have been restarted when Lindgren took too much grass in the first corner and ended up flying in to the air. But the Swede somehow managed to stay on the bike, despite ultimately finishing fourth. The heat was taken by Zagar for his second victory with Pedersen second and Sayfutdinov third. Woffinden had to settle for a third second place of the night in heat-18 as Gollob made it four wins from five. Iversen managed to take his second heat in the 19th which was enough to see him make it in to the semi-finals. Jonsson finished his night with second with Hancock third and also failing to progress but Kasprzak finished fourth again to leave Bydgoszcz, in his home country, without a single point. Ward took the final heat to claim his third victory with Holder claiming second, which was just enough for him to squeeze through, Buczkowski ended with a third and Lindback fourth.
For the second meeting in this year's series, Gollob has failed to win it but leaves with the most points. This sees the Pole top the standings at this early stage, a sixth of the way in to the season, on 31-points. Ward continues to have a great start to his debut season, sitting in second with 25. Hampel and Woffinden sit on 23 with Pedersen fifth on 22. Sayfutdinov has 21-points with reigning champion Holder on 19 along with 2011 Champion, Hancock, and Zagar.
F1 Bahrain GP Qualifying Result
1. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes)
2. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull)
3. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
4. Mark Webber (Red Bull)
5. Felipe Massa (Ferrari)
6. Paul Di Resta (Force India)
7. Adrian Sutil (Force India)
8. Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus)
9. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) - Given Five Place Grid Penalty For Gear-Box Change
10. Jenson Button (McLaren)
11. Romain Grosjean (Lotus)
12. Sergio Perez (McLaren)
13. Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso)
14. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)
15. Valtteri Bottas (Williams)
16. Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso)
17. Pastor Maldonado (Williams)
18. Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber)
19. Charles Pic (Caterham)
20. Jules Bianchi (Marussia)
21. Giedo Van Der Garde (Caterham)
22. Max Chilton (Marussia)
2. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull)
3. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
4. Mark Webber (Red Bull)
5. Felipe Massa (Ferrari)
6. Paul Di Resta (Force India)
7. Adrian Sutil (Force India)
8. Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus)
9. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) - Given Five Place Grid Penalty For Gear-Box Change
10. Jenson Button (McLaren)
11. Romain Grosjean (Lotus)
12. Sergio Perez (McLaren)
13. Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso)
14. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)
15. Valtteri Bottas (Williams)
16. Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso)
17. Pastor Maldonado (Williams)
18. Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber)
19. Charles Pic (Caterham)
20. Jules Bianchi (Marussia)
21. Giedo Van Der Garde (Caterham)
22. Max Chilton (Marussia)
Thursday 18 April 2013
MVG All But Through, Lewis All But Out, Barney Misses Five To Finally Beat Taylor
Darts doubled up in Dublin as six momentous matches took place inside the frightening O2 arena. Two wins on the night for Michael Van Gerwen should all but seal his place in the semi-finals. One of those victories was over Adrian Lewis which should all but end his play-off hopes. There was almost history made as Raymond Van Barneveld missed five darts to beat Phil Taylor for the first time in the Premier League in the second of their matches. Taylor also denied Andy Hamilton from making history by condemning The Power to three consecutive defeats in a night where Hamilton failed to get anything from his two matches.
It was Hamilton and Taylor who stood in front of the raucous Irish crowd first and the 16-time World Champion kicked off in style with a 107-checkout. Taylor then cruised to a 4-0 lead with only missing one dart at the double. It should have been five but Taylor missed two darts, allowing Hamilton on to the board. Taylor posted six perfect in leg seven but he didn't even get a dart at the double as Hamilton posted a great 106-checkout to make it 5-2. That became 5-3 a leg later before The Hammer missed four darts in leg ten, giving Taylor the 7-3 victory and revenge for Hamilton's 7-3 win over The Power in week six.
It was the battle of the Dutchman up next and Michael Van Gerwen fired in a colossal 152-checkout to go 2-0 ahead. But Van Barneveld wasn't going to be outdone and he smashed in a 156-checkout to break the 0. The next seven legs all went with throw, proving how crucial Van Gerwen's break in the opening leg was, making it 6-4. Van Gerwen managed to break again in the 11th leg to to make it two wins over his darting idol in the Premier League.
James Wade made it two wins over Robert Thornton as he maintains his second place in the league. Thornton posted a 118-checkout to ensure the opening four legs were shared and all against throw. In contrast, the next four legs all went with throw to make it 4-4. But Wade found a crucial break in the ninth leg and he soon made it 6-4 before Thornton missed a dart to force a deciding leg.
Hamilton returned to the oche to face Simon Whitlock in the fourth match and found himself 2-1 ahead after losing the opening leg. Hamilton then missed a dart to go 3-1 in front as Whitlock then reeled off four legs on the spin to turn the game on its head. Hamilton was able to stop the rot at 5-3 but the Australian then took the following two legs to win 7-3.
The penultimate match of the night was the most anticipated as Taylor and Van Barneveld once again locked horns. The first three legs went with throw before both players missed a dart at the double in the fourth leg, Van Barneveld would then miss a further two darts before crucially hitting double five with his final throw to go 3-1 ahead. All the effort to break the throw ended up being wasted as Taylor immediately broke back. But it wasn't vintage Taylor and he ended up missing four darts to make it 3-3, allowing Van Barneveld to break again. A 123-checkout from Taylor made sure he broke back for a second time only for Barney to slam a Shanghai 120-checkout to make it 5-3. Taylor missed more darts in the ninth leg but Barney squandered the opportunity to guarantee a point by missing the big three and hitting 19, ultimately busting-11. Taylor stepped in to hit double two. The Power again missed a dart at the double and this time Barney managed to take advantage to go 6-4 in front and a leg away from finally beating his nemesis in the Premier League. But The Dutchman missed four darts in the next leg which forced a nail biting final leg. Barney then missed his fifth chance to win the game and Taylor was unforgiving, taking out 111 to force a draw that he arguably didn't deserve.
The final match of the night wasn't as fast paced or thrilling as many hoped between Van Gerwen and Lewis, but it has gone some way to seal Van Gerwen's progression and Lewis' eviction. After both players missed a handful of darts to win the opening leg, Lewis found himself 2-0 in front. Van Gerwen got on to the board in style, with a 148-checkout. Wins in legs five and six saw the Dutchman level the game before another two legs saw Van Gerwen go in front for the first time at 5-3. Van Gerwen then missed a dart to gain a point before doing so in leg ten. Lewis managed to force a deciding leg but Van Gerwen broke the throw by taking out 108 to fall over the line. Table after week-11:
1. Michael Van Gerwen PL13 20 +27
2. James Wade PL12 16 +19
3. Raymond Van Barneveld PL12 15 +10
4. Phil Taylor PL12 13 +9
5. Robert Thornton PL11 11 +2
6. Simon Whitlock PL11 11 -8
7. Andy Hamilton PL12 10 -8
8. Adrian Lewis PL11 7 -19
It was Hamilton and Taylor who stood in front of the raucous Irish crowd first and the 16-time World Champion kicked off in style with a 107-checkout. Taylor then cruised to a 4-0 lead with only missing one dart at the double. It should have been five but Taylor missed two darts, allowing Hamilton on to the board. Taylor posted six perfect in leg seven but he didn't even get a dart at the double as Hamilton posted a great 106-checkout to make it 5-2. That became 5-3 a leg later before The Hammer missed four darts in leg ten, giving Taylor the 7-3 victory and revenge for Hamilton's 7-3 win over The Power in week six.
It was the battle of the Dutchman up next and Michael Van Gerwen fired in a colossal 152-checkout to go 2-0 ahead. But Van Barneveld wasn't going to be outdone and he smashed in a 156-checkout to break the 0. The next seven legs all went with throw, proving how crucial Van Gerwen's break in the opening leg was, making it 6-4. Van Gerwen managed to break again in the 11th leg to to make it two wins over his darting idol in the Premier League.
James Wade made it two wins over Robert Thornton as he maintains his second place in the league. Thornton posted a 118-checkout to ensure the opening four legs were shared and all against throw. In contrast, the next four legs all went with throw to make it 4-4. But Wade found a crucial break in the ninth leg and he soon made it 6-4 before Thornton missed a dart to force a deciding leg.
Hamilton returned to the oche to face Simon Whitlock in the fourth match and found himself 2-1 ahead after losing the opening leg. Hamilton then missed a dart to go 3-1 in front as Whitlock then reeled off four legs on the spin to turn the game on its head. Hamilton was able to stop the rot at 5-3 but the Australian then took the following two legs to win 7-3.
The penultimate match of the night was the most anticipated as Taylor and Van Barneveld once again locked horns. The first three legs went with throw before both players missed a dart at the double in the fourth leg, Van Barneveld would then miss a further two darts before crucially hitting double five with his final throw to go 3-1 ahead. All the effort to break the throw ended up being wasted as Taylor immediately broke back. But it wasn't vintage Taylor and he ended up missing four darts to make it 3-3, allowing Van Barneveld to break again. A 123-checkout from Taylor made sure he broke back for a second time only for Barney to slam a Shanghai 120-checkout to make it 5-3. Taylor missed more darts in the ninth leg but Barney squandered the opportunity to guarantee a point by missing the big three and hitting 19, ultimately busting-11. Taylor stepped in to hit double two. The Power again missed a dart at the double and this time Barney managed to take advantage to go 6-4 in front and a leg away from finally beating his nemesis in the Premier League. But The Dutchman missed four darts in the next leg which forced a nail biting final leg. Barney then missed his fifth chance to win the game and Taylor was unforgiving, taking out 111 to force a draw that he arguably didn't deserve.
The final match of the night wasn't as fast paced or thrilling as many hoped between Van Gerwen and Lewis, but it has gone some way to seal Van Gerwen's progression and Lewis' eviction. After both players missed a handful of darts to win the opening leg, Lewis found himself 2-0 in front. Van Gerwen got on to the board in style, with a 148-checkout. Wins in legs five and six saw the Dutchman level the game before another two legs saw Van Gerwen go in front for the first time at 5-3. Van Gerwen then missed a dart to gain a point before doing so in leg ten. Lewis managed to force a deciding leg but Van Gerwen broke the throw by taking out 108 to fall over the line. Table after week-11:
1. Michael Van Gerwen PL13 20 +27
2. James Wade PL12 16 +19
3. Raymond Van Barneveld PL12 15 +10
4. Phil Taylor PL12 13 +9
5. Robert Thornton PL11 11 +2
6. Simon Whitlock PL11 11 -8
7. Andy Hamilton PL12 10 -8
8. Adrian Lewis PL11 7 -19
Wednesday 17 April 2013
United Need Six, City Gain Two Points, Chelsea Up To Third
Manchester City 1-0 Wigan: A late show sees City close the gap to 13-points, with a game in hand, at the top whilst Wigan remain three points from safety, also with a game in hand. The only goal came seven minutes from the end when Carlos Tevez produced a great run before smashing a great shot home, a result City will be hoping for again against Wigan when they meet at Wembley.
West Ham 2-2 Manchester United: United now require six points to lift the trophy after being somewhat staggered by West Ham. It looked worse on 16-minutes when Andy Carroll's header was then headed home by Ricardo Vaz Te. But United equalised just after the half hour mark when Robin Van Persie played Shinji Kagawa down the side of the box. The Japanese cut inside before rolling the ball across the six yard box for Antonio Valencia to tap in to an empty net. West Ham went back in front ten minutes in to the second half when Mohamed Diame scored a great curling effort from the edge of the box. But United's blushes were spared on 77-minutes when Kagawa's great shot ended up coming off both posts before Van Persie, who was in an offside position, finished off on the rebound.
Fulham 0-3 Chelsea: Chelsea move back in to third place, a point above Arsenal and, more importantly, three above Tottenham. David Luiz broke the deadlock with an absolute screamer in to the top corner on the half hour mark. John Terry made it 2-0 two minutes before half time with a header from a Juan Mata corner. Terry then added the third on 71-minutes when he scrambled Fernando Torres' effort over the line.
Arsenal 0-0 Everton: For the first time at The Emirates, a game between Arsenal and Everton finished goalless. But it wasn't a boring 0-0 as both teams had chances in what was a very feisty affair. The point does leave Arsenal two points ahead of Tottenham, with Spurs having a game in hand, while Everton remain five points behind The Gunners and still with an outside chance of Champions League football.
West Ham 2-2 Manchester United: United now require six points to lift the trophy after being somewhat staggered by West Ham. It looked worse on 16-minutes when Andy Carroll's header was then headed home by Ricardo Vaz Te. But United equalised just after the half hour mark when Robin Van Persie played Shinji Kagawa down the side of the box. The Japanese cut inside before rolling the ball across the six yard box for Antonio Valencia to tap in to an empty net. West Ham went back in front ten minutes in to the second half when Mohamed Diame scored a great curling effort from the edge of the box. But United's blushes were spared on 77-minutes when Kagawa's great shot ended up coming off both posts before Van Persie, who was in an offside position, finished off on the rebound.
Fulham 0-3 Chelsea: Chelsea move back in to third place, a point above Arsenal and, more importantly, three above Tottenham. David Luiz broke the deadlock with an absolute screamer in to the top corner on the half hour mark. John Terry made it 2-0 two minutes before half time with a header from a Juan Mata corner. Terry then added the third on 71-minutes when he scrambled Fernando Torres' effort over the line.
Arsenal 0-0 Everton: For the first time at The Emirates, a game between Arsenal and Everton finished goalless. But it wasn't a boring 0-0 as both teams had chances in what was a very feisty affair. The point does leave Arsenal two points ahead of Tottenham, with Spurs having a game in hand, while Everton remain five points behind The Gunners and still with an outside chance of Champions League football.
Sunday 14 April 2013
Holders Out After Another Aguero Moment, Wigan's Win Marred By Millwall Fans
Manchester City and Wigan will meet on the 11th May to determine who will win the 2012/2013 FA Cup. The 2011 winners made it through by beating the holders, Chelsea, in an end to end, tight fought contest. Wigan booked their place in to their first ever FA Cup final in the previous day after proving to be too much for Championship side Millwall.
The second semi-final was explosive from start to finish with both Petr Cech being called in to action early on. Eyebrows were raised over Roberto Mancini's decision to pick Costel Pantilimon over Joe Hart but the Romanian was tested too much in the first period. The deadlock was finally broken ten minutes before half-time when Samir Nasri somehow bulldozed his way to the six yard box before rolling the ball past the on-coming Cech. Vincent Kompany has a glorious chance to add a second shortly after when a Cech parry fell to him about eight yards out. But the Belgian hit his volley like a true defender and sliced it horribly wide.
City came out the better side in the second half and made it 2-0 just two minutes after the restart when Gareth Barry's header was met by Sergio Aguero, whose header fantastically curled in to the top corner. From the second goal, City were happy to soak up Chelsea pressure with the intention of catching them on the break.
But the introduction of Fernando Torres shortly after the hour mark proved to be an instant hit. A long throw saw both Torres and Demba Ba chase it and it somehow bamboozled the defenders. The ball ended up falling behind Ba but the striker managed to swivel round before smashing his effort past Pantilimon and in to the net, a similar goal to the quarter final one against Manchester United.
But Chelsea couldn't find a second goal although they did seem to have a decent penalty shout late on when Torres went down under a number of defenders pulling and pushing the Spaniard. Chris Foy said there was nothing in it and City held on to progress to the final.
Wigan watched that game in the knowledge that they were already through after beating Millwall. The Championship hadn't got used to width of the Wembley pitch and that proved to be their downfall on 25-minutes. Arouna Kone had found space down the wing and the Millwall defence all moved over the try and prevent the cross. But the Ivorian got a great ball to the far post where Shaun Maloney was waiting all on his own to side foot past David Forde with his first touch.
Millwall struggled to cope with Wigan during the first half but did have a chance to equalise early in the second half. The miss would end up haunting the London side as the victory was guaranteed 12-minutes before the end when Jordi Gomez fed Callum Mcmanaman in. McManaman managed to take the ball around Forde before slotting in to the empty net.
Unfortunately, Wigan's fantastic achievement has been marred by ugly scenes between the Millwall fans and police inside the stadium after the second goal was scored. What started the trouble is largely unknown but the violence ended up with some policemen injured and a few Millwall fans bloodied. What makes the violence even worse is knowing that there were children in the crowd who were crying because they were scared for their safety. These scenes should be witnessed by children who wanted to have big day out at Wembley with their parents to see their favourite football team. It's the first incident Millwall fans have ever been involved in and unfortunately, it probably won't be the last. But the scenes were ugly and the minority of the Millwall fans that did divulge in the violence need to be punished as football doesn't need this.
The second semi-final was explosive from start to finish with both Petr Cech being called in to action early on. Eyebrows were raised over Roberto Mancini's decision to pick Costel Pantilimon over Joe Hart but the Romanian was tested too much in the first period. The deadlock was finally broken ten minutes before half-time when Samir Nasri somehow bulldozed his way to the six yard box before rolling the ball past the on-coming Cech. Vincent Kompany has a glorious chance to add a second shortly after when a Cech parry fell to him about eight yards out. But the Belgian hit his volley like a true defender and sliced it horribly wide.
City came out the better side in the second half and made it 2-0 just two minutes after the restart when Gareth Barry's header was met by Sergio Aguero, whose header fantastically curled in to the top corner. From the second goal, City were happy to soak up Chelsea pressure with the intention of catching them on the break.
But the introduction of Fernando Torres shortly after the hour mark proved to be an instant hit. A long throw saw both Torres and Demba Ba chase it and it somehow bamboozled the defenders. The ball ended up falling behind Ba but the striker managed to swivel round before smashing his effort past Pantilimon and in to the net, a similar goal to the quarter final one against Manchester United.
But Chelsea couldn't find a second goal although they did seem to have a decent penalty shout late on when Torres went down under a number of defenders pulling and pushing the Spaniard. Chris Foy said there was nothing in it and City held on to progress to the final.
Wigan watched that game in the knowledge that they were already through after beating Millwall. The Championship hadn't got used to width of the Wembley pitch and that proved to be their downfall on 25-minutes. Arouna Kone had found space down the wing and the Millwall defence all moved over the try and prevent the cross. But the Ivorian got a great ball to the far post where Shaun Maloney was waiting all on his own to side foot past David Forde with his first touch.
Millwall struggled to cope with Wigan during the first half but did have a chance to equalise early in the second half. The miss would end up haunting the London side as the victory was guaranteed 12-minutes before the end when Jordi Gomez fed Callum Mcmanaman in. McManaman managed to take the ball around Forde before slotting in to the empty net.
Unfortunately, Wigan's fantastic achievement has been marred by ugly scenes between the Millwall fans and police inside the stadium after the second goal was scored. What started the trouble is largely unknown but the violence ended up with some policemen injured and a few Millwall fans bloodied. What makes the violence even worse is knowing that there were children in the crowd who were crying because they were scared for their safety. These scenes should be witnessed by children who wanted to have big day out at Wembley with their parents to see their favourite football team. It's the first incident Millwall fans have ever been involved in and unfortunately, it probably won't be the last. But the scenes were ugly and the minority of the Millwall fans that did divulge in the violence need to be punished as football doesn't need this.
Di Canio Becomes Instant Mackem Legend, Business-Like United Now Seven Away
Newcastle 0-3 Sunderland: Paulo Di Canio has become an instant Mackem legend after getting his first victory in charge against Sunderland's Tyne and Wear rivals. The win sees them move up to 15th and three points clear of relegation, also improving their goal difference threefold. Defeat for Newcastle means that they are only two points further ahead of Sunderland. Stephane Sessegnon gave Sunderland the lead on 27-minutes after turning Jonas Gutierrez before firing past Tim Krul on the edge of the area. Krul was later taken off for a suspected dislocated shoulder which means he's out for the remainder of the season. Adam Johnson made it 2-0 on 74-minutes with a great solo effort that saw him run inside, unchallenged, before beating Rob Elliot. The points were wrapped up eight minutes from time when David Vaughan fired a spectacular shot in to the far corner. The game has been marred though as there have been 27-arrests in Newcastle between fans and three police officers have sadly been injured.
Stoke 0-2 Manchester United: United are now seven points away from clinching their 20th Premiership title. It took four minutes for the visitors to take the lead when an undefended corner saw Michael Carrick poke the ball in off the post. The win was confirmed on 66-minutes when Robin Van Persie went down under a Andrew Wilkinson challenge in the box. The Dutchman stepped up and dispatched the penalty to end his recent drought. United went close to conceding their first penalty of the season when Nemanja Vidic slipped and Kenwyne Jones fell over him just inside the box, but the referee gave nothing and the defeat for Stoke keeps them just three points above the bottom three.
Arsenal 3-1 Norwich: Another late show sees Arsenal move in to third, a point ahead of both Chelsea and Tottenham, Chelsea now have a game in hand. Defeat for Norwich means that they are still only four points above the drop zone. Olivier Giroud hit the cross bar early in the first half but despite this and other missed chances, Norwich actually went on to take the lead; Michael Turner heading home from a Robert Snodgrass free-kick 11-minutes in to the second half, just moments after making a goal-saving block at the other end. Arsenal were given a penalty five minutes before the end when Kei Kamara pulled Giroud's shirt, Mikel Arteta stepped up and just managed to beat Mark Bunn to level the match. Arsenal then took the lead three minutes later when Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's pull back across the six yard box was tapped in by Giroud. The points were then sealed in injury time just after Johnny Howson's shot was saved by the feet of Lukasz Fabianski' Theo Walcott laying the ball back, after looking to be in an offside position when he received the ball, to Lukas Podolski to fire in to the corner of the net on the edge of the box.
Everton 2-0 QPR: QPR's chances of survival have got slimmer again after defeat in Goodison, remaining seven points from safety with most of their rivals having at least one game in hand over them. The win for Everton does keep their Champions League hopes alive and are now three points behind Tottenham and Chelsea. The deadlock was broken five minutes before half-time when Kevin Mirallas' blocked shot fell to Darron Gibson, 25-yards out. The Irishman's shot deflected past Julio Cesar for only his second goal for Everton. The points were sealed 11-minutes in to the second half when Victor Anichebe turned in Sylvain Distin's header from a corner, after the striker had hit the post earlier in the half.
Aston Villa 1-1 Fulham: It's another game where Villa fail to keep a lead and actually shoot themselves in the foot. The point does move them three points above the relegation zone with Fulham now making it to the magic 40-mark, nine points above the bottom three. Villa took the lead ten minutes in to the second half, after Dimitar Berbatov had hit the post, when Andreas Weimann's pull back was cleared only to Charles N'Zogbia who curled it home nicely from 12-yards. The equaliser came on 66-minutes when a corner was headed in to his own net by Fabian Delph by the near post and it proved to cost Villa the three points.
Southampton 1-1 West Ham: Southampton's great recent run of form means that this point sees both teams move seven points clear of relegation. After Rickie Lambert's effort somehow didn't cross the line and then come back off the post in the first half, Southampton took the lead 14-minutes in to the second half when Gaston Ramirez finished neatly at the second attempt. West Ham equalised on 66-minutes when Andy Carroll's low free-kick found its way in to the bottom corner.
Reading 0-0 Liverpool: A point probably isn't enough at this stage for Reading, but they have to thank Alex McCarthy and a goal-line clearance that they got one. Reading still find themselves seven points clear of safety and still all but down.
Stoke 0-2 Manchester United: United are now seven points away from clinching their 20th Premiership title. It took four minutes for the visitors to take the lead when an undefended corner saw Michael Carrick poke the ball in off the post. The win was confirmed on 66-minutes when Robin Van Persie went down under a Andrew Wilkinson challenge in the box. The Dutchman stepped up and dispatched the penalty to end his recent drought. United went close to conceding their first penalty of the season when Nemanja Vidic slipped and Kenwyne Jones fell over him just inside the box, but the referee gave nothing and the defeat for Stoke keeps them just three points above the bottom three.
Arsenal 3-1 Norwich: Another late show sees Arsenal move in to third, a point ahead of both Chelsea and Tottenham, Chelsea now have a game in hand. Defeat for Norwich means that they are still only four points above the drop zone. Olivier Giroud hit the cross bar early in the first half but despite this and other missed chances, Norwich actually went on to take the lead; Michael Turner heading home from a Robert Snodgrass free-kick 11-minutes in to the second half, just moments after making a goal-saving block at the other end. Arsenal were given a penalty five minutes before the end when Kei Kamara pulled Giroud's shirt, Mikel Arteta stepped up and just managed to beat Mark Bunn to level the match. Arsenal then took the lead three minutes later when Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's pull back across the six yard box was tapped in by Giroud. The points were then sealed in injury time just after Johnny Howson's shot was saved by the feet of Lukasz Fabianski' Theo Walcott laying the ball back, after looking to be in an offside position when he received the ball, to Lukas Podolski to fire in to the corner of the net on the edge of the box.
Everton 2-0 QPR: QPR's chances of survival have got slimmer again after defeat in Goodison, remaining seven points from safety with most of their rivals having at least one game in hand over them. The win for Everton does keep their Champions League hopes alive and are now three points behind Tottenham and Chelsea. The deadlock was broken five minutes before half-time when Kevin Mirallas' blocked shot fell to Darron Gibson, 25-yards out. The Irishman's shot deflected past Julio Cesar for only his second goal for Everton. The points were sealed 11-minutes in to the second half when Victor Anichebe turned in Sylvain Distin's header from a corner, after the striker had hit the post earlier in the half.
Aston Villa 1-1 Fulham: It's another game where Villa fail to keep a lead and actually shoot themselves in the foot. The point does move them three points above the relegation zone with Fulham now making it to the magic 40-mark, nine points above the bottom three. Villa took the lead ten minutes in to the second half, after Dimitar Berbatov had hit the post, when Andreas Weimann's pull back was cleared only to Charles N'Zogbia who curled it home nicely from 12-yards. The equaliser came on 66-minutes when a corner was headed in to his own net by Fabian Delph by the near post and it proved to cost Villa the three points.
Southampton 1-1 West Ham: Southampton's great recent run of form means that this point sees both teams move seven points clear of relegation. After Rickie Lambert's effort somehow didn't cross the line and then come back off the post in the first half, Southampton took the lead 14-minutes in to the second half when Gaston Ramirez finished neatly at the second attempt. West Ham equalised on 66-minutes when Andy Carroll's low free-kick found its way in to the bottom corner.
Reading 0-0 Liverpool: A point probably isn't enough at this stage for Reading, but they have to thank Alex McCarthy and a goal-line clearance that they got one. Reading still find themselves seven points clear of safety and still all but down.
Alonso Spot-On In Shanghai
In a race very much about strategy, Fernando Alonso emerged the victor with the fastest car all race. The different strategies were there from the start with places one to seven all having to start on the soft compound with Jenson Button, Sebastian Vettel and Nico Hulkenberg all on the medium.
It almost paid dividends for Vettel, but he left it a lap too late to chase down Lewis Hamilton for third and had to settle for fourth. The Mercedes' pace wasn't there today and it allowed Kimi Raikkonen to take second. Nico Rosberg' season is still yet to get going after a second retirement in three races and Mark Webber's weekend also failed to get any better, resulting in he also not finishing the race. Paul Di Resta enjoyed a good race, managing to finish eighth in the Force India. Daniel Ricciardo managed to stay where he qualified, seventh, to post his best ever result in Formula One.
As per usual, both Ferraris got away the best from the start and quickly found themselves second and third. The biggest piece of drama on the opening lap saw the two Force Indias go wheel to wheel and it ended with Adrian Sutil being forced on to the grass, but there was no damage done and both cars continued. Webber had to start in the pit lane and began the race on the soft tyres, the Red Bull then immediately came in on the opening lap to change to the medium compound.
Romain Grosjean had a rather quiet race in the second Lotus but he had moved to fifth on lap four by overtaking Rosberg. The lead Mercedes soon found himself third on lap five as both of the Ferraris overtook Hamilton, giving Alonso the lead of the race.
Both of the Mercedes cars pitted at the end of that lap, the first to do so, but it hampered Rosberg as he came out behind both Hulkenberg and Vettel. The first two retirements were made on lap six when Esteban Gutierrez was too busy with what was going on around him to realise there was a corner approaching. The Mexican failed to brake and he collided in to the back of Sutil and the Sauber was out. Sutil had managed to get to the pits, but the damage to the rear wing was too catastrophic and a rear brake fire concluded the race for Sutil, his second retirement in two races.
Alonso and Raikkonen came in on lap seven for their first pit stops with Massa coming in a lap later. That proved costly for the Brazilian though as he ended up behind Webber. This left Hulkenberg in front for Sauber with Vettel sitting just behind him. Massa managed to overtake Webber on lap ten and Alonso began to make his back through the field on lap-14 by overtaking Sergio Perez. Hulkenberg and Vettel finally pitted on the same lap and the Red Bull managed to pass the Sauber with a superior stop.
Webber's race began to conclude on lap-15 when a late decision to try and overtake Jean-Eric Vergne ended up seeing the Australian t-bone the Toro Rosso, leaving Vergne facing the wrong way and Webber with front wing damage. Both drivers managed to continue though.
Raikkonen was the next to suffer front wing damage whilst trying to overtake Perez on lap-16. The McLaren somewhat forced the Lotus off the track before the Finn came back and touched the back of the Mexican. This was where Webber's race ended as a bungled pit stop saw the right rear tyre come off the chassis and rolled in to the middle of the track. Fortunately no-one hit the tyre as it ended up rolling back in to a safe area.
Massa and Rosberg were the first to pit again on lap-20. With Vettel again on the medium compound, he was able to overtake Perez to move in to fifth. Rosberg's pit stop didn't go as planned and the German ended up having to pit again on the next lap, really ruining his race. Alonso was once again in front on lap-21 after overtaking Jenson Button, who performed excellently in the below par McLaren.
Hamilton and Raikkonen came in on lap-22 from fourth and fifth before Rosberg retired on lap-23 with suspension problems. Alonso and Button came in on lap-24, Button's first pit stop in the race, and they came out third and fifth. But Button instantly moved to fourth by overtaking Perez before the Mexican also pitted for the first time.
It took just two laps before Alonso had moved past Hulkenberg and in to second and it was lap-29 when Alonso re-took the lead from Vettel. Lap-29 was also the same when Hamilton overtook his former team-mate, Button, to take fourth. After Hulkenberg pitted, Raikkonen was the next to overtake Button to claim fourth on lap-31 as Vettel also pitted. The Red Bull came out in eighth but Vettel immediately overtook both Massa and Di Resta to go sixth. The German moved in to fifth on the next lap by overtaking Hulkenberg.
Raikkonen was the first driver to pit for a third time on lap-35. Vettel ended up being third after lap-36 by overtaking Button, but Vettel still hadn't used the soft tyre and had to pit once more. Hulkenberg and Massa pitted on lap-37 and ended up coming out of the pits side-by-side before the Ferrari ended up overtaking the Sauber.
Hamilton came in on lap-38 but he ended up coming out behind Raikkonen and had therefore lost a place. The Mercedes was quick to overtake Ricciardo though to move fifth and go behind the Lotus. Alonso pitted for the final time on lap-41 which gave Vettel the lead in the race. But that lead only lasted two laps before Alonso was back in front, with Vettel not fighting for the place.
Raikkonen captured third off Button on lap-44 and the McLaren would end being fifth a lap later when Hamilton again overtook him. Button ended up pitting on lap-50 and came out in seventh, but moved in to sixth a lap later by overtaking Massa. Vettel was the final man to pit on lap-52 to eventually come out on the soft tyres in fourth place. He had four laps to chase down Hamilton and by the final lap, the Red Bull was very much up the exhaust of the Mercedes. But Vettel just ran out of the time and Hamilton clung on to a second third place in two races. Result:
1. Alonso (Ferrari), 2. Raikkonen (Lotus), 3. Hamilton (Mercedes), 4. Vettel (Red Bull), 5. Button (McLaren), 6. Massa (Ferrari), 7. Ricciardo (Toro Rosso), 8. Di Resta (Force India), 9. Grosjean (Lotus), 10. Hulkenberg (Sauber), 11. Perez (McLaren), 12. Vergne (Toro Rosso), 13. Bottas (Williams), 14. Maldonado (Williams), 15. Bianchi (Marussia), 16. Pic (Caterham), 17. Chilton (Marussia), 18. Van Der Garde (Caterham) DNF: Gutierrez (Sauber), Sutil (Force India), Webber (Red Bull), Rosberg (Mercedes)
It almost paid dividends for Vettel, but he left it a lap too late to chase down Lewis Hamilton for third and had to settle for fourth. The Mercedes' pace wasn't there today and it allowed Kimi Raikkonen to take second. Nico Rosberg' season is still yet to get going after a second retirement in three races and Mark Webber's weekend also failed to get any better, resulting in he also not finishing the race. Paul Di Resta enjoyed a good race, managing to finish eighth in the Force India. Daniel Ricciardo managed to stay where he qualified, seventh, to post his best ever result in Formula One.
As per usual, both Ferraris got away the best from the start and quickly found themselves second and third. The biggest piece of drama on the opening lap saw the two Force Indias go wheel to wheel and it ended with Adrian Sutil being forced on to the grass, but there was no damage done and both cars continued. Webber had to start in the pit lane and began the race on the soft tyres, the Red Bull then immediately came in on the opening lap to change to the medium compound.
Romain Grosjean had a rather quiet race in the second Lotus but he had moved to fifth on lap four by overtaking Rosberg. The lead Mercedes soon found himself third on lap five as both of the Ferraris overtook Hamilton, giving Alonso the lead of the race.
Both of the Mercedes cars pitted at the end of that lap, the first to do so, but it hampered Rosberg as he came out behind both Hulkenberg and Vettel. The first two retirements were made on lap six when Esteban Gutierrez was too busy with what was going on around him to realise there was a corner approaching. The Mexican failed to brake and he collided in to the back of Sutil and the Sauber was out. Sutil had managed to get to the pits, but the damage to the rear wing was too catastrophic and a rear brake fire concluded the race for Sutil, his second retirement in two races.
Alonso and Raikkonen came in on lap seven for their first pit stops with Massa coming in a lap later. That proved costly for the Brazilian though as he ended up behind Webber. This left Hulkenberg in front for Sauber with Vettel sitting just behind him. Massa managed to overtake Webber on lap ten and Alonso began to make his back through the field on lap-14 by overtaking Sergio Perez. Hulkenberg and Vettel finally pitted on the same lap and the Red Bull managed to pass the Sauber with a superior stop.
Webber's race began to conclude on lap-15 when a late decision to try and overtake Jean-Eric Vergne ended up seeing the Australian t-bone the Toro Rosso, leaving Vergne facing the wrong way and Webber with front wing damage. Both drivers managed to continue though.
Raikkonen was the next to suffer front wing damage whilst trying to overtake Perez on lap-16. The McLaren somewhat forced the Lotus off the track before the Finn came back and touched the back of the Mexican. This was where Webber's race ended as a bungled pit stop saw the right rear tyre come off the chassis and rolled in to the middle of the track. Fortunately no-one hit the tyre as it ended up rolling back in to a safe area.
Massa and Rosberg were the first to pit again on lap-20. With Vettel again on the medium compound, he was able to overtake Perez to move in to fifth. Rosberg's pit stop didn't go as planned and the German ended up having to pit again on the next lap, really ruining his race. Alonso was once again in front on lap-21 after overtaking Jenson Button, who performed excellently in the below par McLaren.
Hamilton and Raikkonen came in on lap-22 from fourth and fifth before Rosberg retired on lap-23 with suspension problems. Alonso and Button came in on lap-24, Button's first pit stop in the race, and they came out third and fifth. But Button instantly moved to fourth by overtaking Perez before the Mexican also pitted for the first time.
It took just two laps before Alonso had moved past Hulkenberg and in to second and it was lap-29 when Alonso re-took the lead from Vettel. Lap-29 was also the same when Hamilton overtook his former team-mate, Button, to take fourth. After Hulkenberg pitted, Raikkonen was the next to overtake Button to claim fourth on lap-31 as Vettel also pitted. The Red Bull came out in eighth but Vettel immediately overtook both Massa and Di Resta to go sixth. The German moved in to fifth on the next lap by overtaking Hulkenberg.
Raikkonen was the first driver to pit for a third time on lap-35. Vettel ended up being third after lap-36 by overtaking Button, but Vettel still hadn't used the soft tyre and had to pit once more. Hulkenberg and Massa pitted on lap-37 and ended up coming out of the pits side-by-side before the Ferrari ended up overtaking the Sauber.
Hamilton came in on lap-38 but he ended up coming out behind Raikkonen and had therefore lost a place. The Mercedes was quick to overtake Ricciardo though to move fifth and go behind the Lotus. Alonso pitted for the final time on lap-41 which gave Vettel the lead in the race. But that lead only lasted two laps before Alonso was back in front, with Vettel not fighting for the place.
Raikkonen captured third off Button on lap-44 and the McLaren would end being fifth a lap later when Hamilton again overtook him. Button ended up pitting on lap-50 and came out in seventh, but moved in to sixth a lap later by overtaking Massa. Vettel was the final man to pit on lap-52 to eventually come out on the soft tyres in fourth place. He had four laps to chase down Hamilton and by the final lap, the Red Bull was very much up the exhaust of the Mercedes. But Vettel just ran out of the time and Hamilton clung on to a second third place in two races. Result:
1. Alonso (Ferrari), 2. Raikkonen (Lotus), 3. Hamilton (Mercedes), 4. Vettel (Red Bull), 5. Button (McLaren), 6. Massa (Ferrari), 7. Ricciardo (Toro Rosso), 8. Di Resta (Force India), 9. Grosjean (Lotus), 10. Hulkenberg (Sauber), 11. Perez (McLaren), 12. Vergne (Toro Rosso), 13. Bottas (Williams), 14. Maldonado (Williams), 15. Bianchi (Marussia), 16. Pic (Caterham), 17. Chilton (Marussia), 18. Van Der Garde (Caterham) DNF: Gutierrez (Sauber), Sutil (Force India), Webber (Red Bull), Rosberg (Mercedes)
Saturday 13 April 2013
Mercedes' Second Pole In Shanghai, Webber Demoted After Fuel Problem
After a slow start to the Chinese GP qualifying session, Lewis Hamilton has become the second British driver to earn a Pole position for Mercedes, Stirling Moss being the first. Hamilton was unbeaten in all three sessions and ended up deservedly Pole, which is Mercedes' second Pole position in two years in China.
But the race result is far from known as strategy came in to play a day before the lights go out tomorrow. A stunning Q3 sees Kimi Raikkonen start second with Fernando Alonso, out-qualifying Felipe Massa for the first time this season, also splitting the Mercedes'. Massa sits behind Nico Rosberg in fifth with Romain Grosjean sixth in the second Lotus. The performance of the day goes to Daniel Ricciardo who did fantastically well to get his Toro Rosso in to Q3 and the Australian will start seventh on the grid.
The final three to make it through to Q3 are the ones to watch at the start tomorrow. Places one to seven all qualified on the soft compound tyres and will have to start on them tomorrow. But many feel that the medium compound will be the best race tyre and a very slow, but timed, lap from Jenson Button means that he will start the race on the harder compound in eighth. Sebastian Vettel decided not to go for Pole and did an out-lap on both compounds. But because he didn't actually set a time, the Red Bull still has the choice of what tyre to start on. Nico Hulkenberg also decided not to set a time in Q3 and will therefore start tenth tomorrow, presumably on the harder compound.
Mark Webber suffered a fatal fuel blow in Q2. He had to pull over in a safe area because of a fuel problem in the middle of the session. At the time, he was sitting seventh and could have potentially squeezed in to Q3, although he wouldn't have been able to set a time. However, at the end of the session, Webber was 14th but as he was unable to provide a fuel sample and the stewards and excluded him from the session. This means that the Red Bull will now start at the back of the grid and faces an extremely tough race tomorrow.
Paul Di Resta looked like he had the speed to make it in to Q3, but both Force Indias ended up missing out with Di Resta 11th and Adrian Sutil 13th. Sergio Perez will sit in between the Force Indias as he continues a very troublesome season from McLaren. After quite a poor Q1, Pastor Maldonado has now been promoted to 14th with Jean-Eric Vergne, the final driver to make it in to Q2, now starting 15th in the other Toro Rosso.
Valtteri Bottas and Esteban Gutierrez continue to struggle in their debut seasons. Both drivers failed to make it out of Q1 but the Williams is now 16th with the Sauber 17th. Another performance of the day goes to Jules Bianchi in the Marussia. There was a stage where the Frenchman was potentially going to make it in to Q2, but he will have to settle for 18th and a place ahead of the Caterhams. Max Chilton also finishes ahead of the Caterhams in 19th with Charles Pic out-qualifying Giedo Van Der Garde for places 20 and 21 since Webber will now be staring at a Caterham exhaust at the start of the race.
But the race result is far from known as strategy came in to play a day before the lights go out tomorrow. A stunning Q3 sees Kimi Raikkonen start second with Fernando Alonso, out-qualifying Felipe Massa for the first time this season, also splitting the Mercedes'. Massa sits behind Nico Rosberg in fifth with Romain Grosjean sixth in the second Lotus. The performance of the day goes to Daniel Ricciardo who did fantastically well to get his Toro Rosso in to Q3 and the Australian will start seventh on the grid.
The final three to make it through to Q3 are the ones to watch at the start tomorrow. Places one to seven all qualified on the soft compound tyres and will have to start on them tomorrow. But many feel that the medium compound will be the best race tyre and a very slow, but timed, lap from Jenson Button means that he will start the race on the harder compound in eighth. Sebastian Vettel decided not to go for Pole and did an out-lap on both compounds. But because he didn't actually set a time, the Red Bull still has the choice of what tyre to start on. Nico Hulkenberg also decided not to set a time in Q3 and will therefore start tenth tomorrow, presumably on the harder compound.
Mark Webber suffered a fatal fuel blow in Q2. He had to pull over in a safe area because of a fuel problem in the middle of the session. At the time, he was sitting seventh and could have potentially squeezed in to Q3, although he wouldn't have been able to set a time. However, at the end of the session, Webber was 14th but as he was unable to provide a fuel sample and the stewards and excluded him from the session. This means that the Red Bull will now start at the back of the grid and faces an extremely tough race tomorrow.
Paul Di Resta looked like he had the speed to make it in to Q3, but both Force Indias ended up missing out with Di Resta 11th and Adrian Sutil 13th. Sergio Perez will sit in between the Force Indias as he continues a very troublesome season from McLaren. After quite a poor Q1, Pastor Maldonado has now been promoted to 14th with Jean-Eric Vergne, the final driver to make it in to Q2, now starting 15th in the other Toro Rosso.
Valtteri Bottas and Esteban Gutierrez continue to struggle in their debut seasons. Both drivers failed to make it out of Q1 but the Williams is now 16th with the Sauber 17th. Another performance of the day goes to Jules Bianchi in the Marussia. There was a stage where the Frenchman was potentially going to make it in to Q2, but he will have to settle for 18th and a place ahead of the Caterhams. Max Chilton also finishes ahead of the Caterhams in 19th with Charles Pic out-qualifying Giedo Van Der Garde for places 20 and 21 since Webber will now be staring at a Caterham exhaust at the start of the race.
Friday 12 April 2013
2012/13 UEFA Champions League Semi-Final
FC Barcelona v Bayern Munich
Real Madrid v Borussia Dortmund
Real Madrid v Borussia Dortmund
Thursday 11 April 2013
Two Wins For MVG, Taylor Loses For History-Making Fourth Time, Lewis Back To The Bottom
Two Wins For Michael Van Gerwen sees him in full control of claiming the first place in the Premier League play-offs. With the first two players relegated last week, the beginning of two players playing two matches in one night started in Sheffield with Van Gerwen taking on James Wade. The Dutchman went in to the second game after condemning Phil Taylor to his fourth loss of the league, the first time that's ever happened to The Power in Premier League history, while Wade saw off his nemesis Adrian Lewis earlier on in the night.
Raymond Van Barneveld remained level on points with Wade, now with a game in hand over The Machine, after somehow seeing off the tenacious Andy Hamilton. But it's not all rosy for Van Barneveld though as he knows he has to travel to Dublin next week with the unenviable task of playing Van Gerwen and Taylor. The other match of the night saw Simon Whitlock keep his play-off chances alive with a crucial win over Robert Thornton.
The Australian slightly avenged his 7-1 defeat in Glasgow, week eight, against Thornton and it began by taking a 2-1 lead after losing the opening leg. But Thornton looked in the mood in the early going and he took the next three legs to make it 4-2. The Scot should have made it five but he uncharacteristically missed five darts at the double, allowing Whitlock back in to the leg before taking out 40. That changed the match and Whitlock took the lead after Thornton again missed a dart at the double. Both players ended up missing three darts in the tenth leg before Whitlock again took it to guarantee himself a point. The Wizard made it five legs in a row to win the game 7-4 and keep him afloat.
The win for Whitlock means that Lewis once again returns to the bottom of the league. A mixture of a 103.91 average from Wade and another poor display from Jackpot consummated in the defeat for Lewis. Wade was quick out of the blocks and he quickly took a 3-0 lead. Lewis managed to halt the damage for a leg before Wade extended his advantage to 5-1. Lewis won on his throw for the only time in the match in leg seven before Wade took the following two legs to win 7-2, boosting his legs difference whilst further damaging Lewis'.
Van Gerwen trumped that performance with a 104 average over Taylor and properly achieving what he should have achieved in the opening week when they drew. Taylor wasn't really in full flow and three missed darts in the second leg allowed Van Gerwen to take a 2-0 lead. Van Gerwen reciprocated the gift in the third leg by missing four darts of his own to make it 3-0. The gifts continued as Taylor unusually missed double ten and hit a single-15, opening the door for Van Gerwen to regain his three leg advantage. Van Gerwen then managed to make it 4-1 and 5-2 before missing five darts to secure a point in the eighth leg. There was no harm done though as the Dutchman earned the point in the next leg before managing to win 7-3 after Taylor missed a further two darts at the double.
Van Barneveld managed to make it two 7-5 victories over Hamilton after another hard fought match. It began a lot easier for the Dutchman as he took a 3-0 lead, Hamilton missed two darts in the second leg to level the match. It should have been 4-0 to Van Barneveld but he missed three darts to win the leg. But Hamilton couldn't maintain the momentum and missed four darts of his own in the fifth leg, making it 4-1 to Barney. The Hammer managed to respond with a great 124-checkout before a 90-checkout on the bull saw Hamilton turn the match around and lead 5-4. This time it was Van Barneveld's turn to change the match by taking the remaining three legs to squeeze past Hamilton with a huge sigh of relief.
After their impressive performances earlier on in the night, it was perhaps unsurprising to have a less than exciting match between Van Gerwen and Wade. You can tell how well both players played by noting that only three 180s were scored in the whole match. Wade may have played better but someone seemed to upset him the crowd and, after a long stare down followed by security moving in to the fans' area, he continued to practice despite being visibly rattled. That showed in the opening leg when Wade missed five darts to win it. Wade finally got on to the board in the third leg before he took the fifth leg to make it 3-2 to the Dutchman. Van Gerwen looked to find a breakthrough by taking legs six, seven and eight to guarantee himself a point. But Wade managed to respond by taking the following three legs to somehow force a deciding leg. Van Gerwen managed to hold his nerve though to win the final leg and move six points clear of the fifth placed Taylor. Table after ten weeks:
1. Michael Van Gerwen PL11 16 +22
2. James Wade PL11 14 +16
3. Raymond Van Barneveld PL10 14 +13
4. Robert Thornton PL10 11 +5
5. Phil Taylor PL10 10 +5
6. Andy Hamilton PL10 10 0
7. Simon Whitlock PL10 8 -12
8. Adrian Lewis PL10 7 -14
Raymond Van Barneveld remained level on points with Wade, now with a game in hand over The Machine, after somehow seeing off the tenacious Andy Hamilton. But it's not all rosy for Van Barneveld though as he knows he has to travel to Dublin next week with the unenviable task of playing Van Gerwen and Taylor. The other match of the night saw Simon Whitlock keep his play-off chances alive with a crucial win over Robert Thornton.
The Australian slightly avenged his 7-1 defeat in Glasgow, week eight, against Thornton and it began by taking a 2-1 lead after losing the opening leg. But Thornton looked in the mood in the early going and he took the next three legs to make it 4-2. The Scot should have made it five but he uncharacteristically missed five darts at the double, allowing Whitlock back in to the leg before taking out 40. That changed the match and Whitlock took the lead after Thornton again missed a dart at the double. Both players ended up missing three darts in the tenth leg before Whitlock again took it to guarantee himself a point. The Wizard made it five legs in a row to win the game 7-4 and keep him afloat.
The win for Whitlock means that Lewis once again returns to the bottom of the league. A mixture of a 103.91 average from Wade and another poor display from Jackpot consummated in the defeat for Lewis. Wade was quick out of the blocks and he quickly took a 3-0 lead. Lewis managed to halt the damage for a leg before Wade extended his advantage to 5-1. Lewis won on his throw for the only time in the match in leg seven before Wade took the following two legs to win 7-2, boosting his legs difference whilst further damaging Lewis'.
Van Gerwen trumped that performance with a 104 average over Taylor and properly achieving what he should have achieved in the opening week when they drew. Taylor wasn't really in full flow and three missed darts in the second leg allowed Van Gerwen to take a 2-0 lead. Van Gerwen reciprocated the gift in the third leg by missing four darts of his own to make it 3-0. The gifts continued as Taylor unusually missed double ten and hit a single-15, opening the door for Van Gerwen to regain his three leg advantage. Van Gerwen then managed to make it 4-1 and 5-2 before missing five darts to secure a point in the eighth leg. There was no harm done though as the Dutchman earned the point in the next leg before managing to win 7-3 after Taylor missed a further two darts at the double.
Van Barneveld managed to make it two 7-5 victories over Hamilton after another hard fought match. It began a lot easier for the Dutchman as he took a 3-0 lead, Hamilton missed two darts in the second leg to level the match. It should have been 4-0 to Van Barneveld but he missed three darts to win the leg. But Hamilton couldn't maintain the momentum and missed four darts of his own in the fifth leg, making it 4-1 to Barney. The Hammer managed to respond with a great 124-checkout before a 90-checkout on the bull saw Hamilton turn the match around and lead 5-4. This time it was Van Barneveld's turn to change the match by taking the remaining three legs to squeeze past Hamilton with a huge sigh of relief.
After their impressive performances earlier on in the night, it was perhaps unsurprising to have a less than exciting match between Van Gerwen and Wade. You can tell how well both players played by noting that only three 180s were scored in the whole match. Wade may have played better but someone seemed to upset him the crowd and, after a long stare down followed by security moving in to the fans' area, he continued to practice despite being visibly rattled. That showed in the opening leg when Wade missed five darts to win it. Wade finally got on to the board in the third leg before he took the fifth leg to make it 3-2 to the Dutchman. Van Gerwen looked to find a breakthrough by taking legs six, seven and eight to guarantee himself a point. But Wade managed to respond by taking the following three legs to somehow force a deciding leg. Van Gerwen managed to hold his nerve though to win the final leg and move six points clear of the fifth placed Taylor. Table after ten weeks:
1. Michael Van Gerwen PL11 16 +22
2. James Wade PL11 14 +16
3. Raymond Van Barneveld PL10 14 +13
4. Robert Thornton PL10 11 +5
5. Phil Taylor PL10 10 +5
6. Andy Hamilton PL10 10 0
7. Simon Whitlock PL10 8 -12
8. Adrian Lewis PL10 7 -14
Wednesday 10 April 2013
Barca Need Away Goals While Bayern Don't Concede
Lionel Messi was required off the bench for Barcelona to progress through on away goals in Camp Nou after falling behind against PSG. Bayern Munich complete the semi-final line-up after beating Juventus 2-0 on the night and 4-0 on aggregate.
Without Messi, Barcelona didn't as much of a threat up front despite Xavi almost curling a free-kick in to the net in the opening minutes of the contest. Victor Valdes hands were warmed up by a shot from Ezequiel Lavezzi shortly after, but neither keeper was troubled in the early going.
Lucas Moura was the next to sting the hands of Valdes just before the quarter of an hour mark as both sides began creating chances. Pedro went close for Barca after his initial low cross was palmed back to him, but the Spaniard's second effort only found the side netting.
Just before the half hour mark, Moura again forced a good save from Valdes, seeing his header get pushed over the bar. Salvatore Sirigu continued to be the less worked keeper as David Villa and company failed to find the target. Adriano was given a yellow card for fouling Lucas three minutes before half-time which now rules him out of the semi-final first leg. The first half slightly petered out with many fewer goalscoring opportunities than many predicted.
Cesc Fabregas continued to be wasteful from long range at the beginning of the second half but the match was brought in to life just five minutes after the restart; Javier Pastore and Zlatan Ibrahimovic combined together before the Argentine was put through to score past Valdes, giving PSG an away goal but more importantly the lead.
The goal forced the seemingly non-100% Messi off the bench to warm up and stretch the damaged hamstring. PSG should have taken a 2-0 lead when Ibrahimovic and Pastore again linked up, but this time Pastore scuffed his shot and splayed it wide.
Messi was finally brought in to the fray on 63-minutes. But it was Andres Iniesta who tested Sirigu first on 65-minutes after playing a neat one-two with David Villa. The equaliser came on 71-minutes and Messi was at the heart of it; splitting PSG open with a pass to Villa. Villa then laid the ball back to Pedro to fire home. PSG didn't really create another chance which would have put them through. The goal actually lifted Barcelona who were a totally different side with Messi at the helm. Barca stayed in control for the remainder and progress via the away goal rule, which means an El Clasico final at Wembley is still on.
There's also a potential clash between the two top German sides with Borussia Dortmund and now Bayern Munich are also in the semi-finals. Last year's runners-up managed to progress without conceding a goal against Juventus over the 180-minutes. The Italians did start the better in front of their home fans without really forcing Manuel Neuer in to action.
Like Adriano, Bayern quickly learnt that Mario Mandzukic would miss the first leg of the semi-final after clashing with Giorgio Chiellini, although it did look as though no contact was made and the Germans may be right to feel aggrieved. Andrea Pirlo tested Neuer with a stunning free-kick, but the keeper managed to punch the ball over the bar. From there, neither keeper was troubled in any way, shape or form and the first half came to a nonchalant end.
Bayern gained more possession in the second half but both keepers were still enjoying a cup of tea on the pitch, occasionally taking the odd goal kick or picking the up a rolling ball. Gianluigi Buffon's real piece of the action finally came on 64-minutes when he had to pick the ball out of the net as Juventus all but kissed goodbye to a place in the semi-finals; Javi Martinez managed to get a leg to a good cross and Buffon couldn't hold on to it, Mandzukic gleefully rolled the ball home to make up for missing out on the first leg.
Thomas Muller came close to immediately making it 2-0, but his effort Arjen Robben's ball was blazed over the bar. The goal definitely deflated Juventus and the game once again slowly reached its climax. But icing on the cake came in the first minute of injury time after Bastian Schweinsteiger's great turn fed Claudio Pizarro to score past Buffon.
Without Messi, Barcelona didn't as much of a threat up front despite Xavi almost curling a free-kick in to the net in the opening minutes of the contest. Victor Valdes hands were warmed up by a shot from Ezequiel Lavezzi shortly after, but neither keeper was troubled in the early going.
Lucas Moura was the next to sting the hands of Valdes just before the quarter of an hour mark as both sides began creating chances. Pedro went close for Barca after his initial low cross was palmed back to him, but the Spaniard's second effort only found the side netting.
Just before the half hour mark, Moura again forced a good save from Valdes, seeing his header get pushed over the bar. Salvatore Sirigu continued to be the less worked keeper as David Villa and company failed to find the target. Adriano was given a yellow card for fouling Lucas three minutes before half-time which now rules him out of the semi-final first leg. The first half slightly petered out with many fewer goalscoring opportunities than many predicted.
Cesc Fabregas continued to be wasteful from long range at the beginning of the second half but the match was brought in to life just five minutes after the restart; Javier Pastore and Zlatan Ibrahimovic combined together before the Argentine was put through to score past Valdes, giving PSG an away goal but more importantly the lead.
The goal forced the seemingly non-100% Messi off the bench to warm up and stretch the damaged hamstring. PSG should have taken a 2-0 lead when Ibrahimovic and Pastore again linked up, but this time Pastore scuffed his shot and splayed it wide.
Messi was finally brought in to the fray on 63-minutes. But it was Andres Iniesta who tested Sirigu first on 65-minutes after playing a neat one-two with David Villa. The equaliser came on 71-minutes and Messi was at the heart of it; splitting PSG open with a pass to Villa. Villa then laid the ball back to Pedro to fire home. PSG didn't really create another chance which would have put them through. The goal actually lifted Barcelona who were a totally different side with Messi at the helm. Barca stayed in control for the remainder and progress via the away goal rule, which means an El Clasico final at Wembley is still on.
There's also a potential clash between the two top German sides with Borussia Dortmund and now Bayern Munich are also in the semi-finals. Last year's runners-up managed to progress without conceding a goal against Juventus over the 180-minutes. The Italians did start the better in front of their home fans without really forcing Manuel Neuer in to action.
Like Adriano, Bayern quickly learnt that Mario Mandzukic would miss the first leg of the semi-final after clashing with Giorgio Chiellini, although it did look as though no contact was made and the Germans may be right to feel aggrieved. Andrea Pirlo tested Neuer with a stunning free-kick, but the keeper managed to punch the ball over the bar. From there, neither keeper was troubled in any way, shape or form and the first half came to a nonchalant end.
Bayern gained more possession in the second half but both keepers were still enjoying a cup of tea on the pitch, occasionally taking the odd goal kick or picking the up a rolling ball. Gianluigi Buffon's real piece of the action finally came on 64-minutes when he had to pick the ball out of the net as Juventus all but kissed goodbye to a place in the semi-finals; Javi Martinez managed to get a leg to a good cross and Buffon couldn't hold on to it, Mandzukic gleefully rolled the ball home to make up for missing out on the first leg.
Thomas Muller came close to immediately making it 2-0, but his effort Arjen Robben's ball was blazed over the bar. The goal definitely deflated Juventus and the game once again slowly reached its climax. But icing on the cake came in the first minute of injury time after Bastian Schweinsteiger's great turn fed Claudio Pizarro to score past Buffon.
Tuesday 9 April 2013
Ten Goals See Dortmund Through Via A Very Late Show & Madrid Hold On In Turkey
The first two semi-finalists in the Champions League have been confirmed after an amazing ten goals were scored. At 90-mins, Malaga were going to progress with an away win over Borussia Dortmund. But by 93-mins the Germans were celebrating a 3-2 victory that sees them make it in to the last four for the first time in 15-years. Real Madrid needed that three goal lead from the Bernabeu in order to see off a resilient Galatasaray 5-3 on aggregate.
Dortmund were the strong favourites to make it in to the semi-finals after a goalless first leg in Spain. The start was a slow one but Robert Lewandowski managed to get through, only to see his lobbed effort go over the bar just after 15-minutes.
Malaga's first real attack came on 25-minutes when Julio Baptista's header on ended up falling back to him. A quick interchange between Joaquin and Isco saw Joaquin take the ball to the edge the box and fire in to the bottom corner, giving Malaga the lead and, more importantly, the away goal. It was Joaquin's third of the tournament.
But Malaga couldn't hold on to the lead to half-time as Dortmund came back. Marco Reus' clever flick back in to the path of Lewandowski and the Pole take it around Willy Caballero before slotting it home five minutes before half-time, his sixth of the tournament. As it stood Malaga would still go through and they almost re-took the lead right before the whistle when Duda had a free header from a free-kick but it was easily saved by Roman Weidenfeller.
Lewandowski forced another save from Caballero early in the second half but Malaga again went close to taking the lead when Joaquin's header was smartly parried by Weidenfeller. The German keeper was again called in to action from Jeremy Toulalan's long range effort which was again punched away. Reus came closest to Dortmund taking the lead but his short range shot was somehow saved by the leg of Caballero. That same leg was then used to stop Mario Gotze from scoring after the German was exquisitely put through by Ilkay Gundogan.
With eight minutes to play, Malaga would retake the lead when Julio Baptista was played through one-on-one. The Brazilian then laid the ball across for Eliseu, who looked to be offside, to stroke home. But Dortmund fought back and when Felipe Santana's low cross was parried back to Reus to roll home on 91-minutes, the game was flung wide open.
A minute later, Reus was back in the box and this time smashing the ball across the six yard area. Santana's first effort ended up coming back to the keeper before Julian Schieber slid the ball back to Santana to poke in to the net, dramatically sending Malaga out and keeping their unbeaten status alive. However, there is controversy as Santana was ahead of Caballero when Schieber poked the ball back to him. So as there was only one defender between Santana and the goal, Santana was offside which was perhaps karma on Eliseu's part.
Galatasaray had it all to do in their second leg. They needed to somehow overturn a 3-0 deficit and do it against Real Madrid. The task of getting four goals without conceding, three to force extra time, and without Burak Yilmaz was quickly extended to five when Cristiano Ronaldo scored an away goal for Madrid after just seven minutes; the Portuguese tapping in Sami Khedira's low ball across the six yard box.
Real Madrid looked like scoring the second goal and only Fernando Muslera stopped Angel Di Maria curling an effort in to the net with the outside of his foot. Diego Lopez's first save of the net wasn't a particularly difficult one to make from a Wesley Sneijder shot from the edge of the box. But it was the beginning for Galatasaray to get in to the match.
Ronaldo should have made it 2-0 early in the second half when Angel Di Maria played him through on the six yard box. Ronaldo took a sloppy touch before then somehow scuffing it wide. The comeback then began 12-minutes in to the half when Sneijder's low ball across the box was smashed home by Emmanuel Eboue on the edge of the area with a momentous shot, a real way to score your first goal for Galatasaray.
Sneijder should have given the hosts the lead soon after but the Dutchman rolled his shot from ten yards hopelessly wide. There were calls for a penalty when Didier Drogba went down under a Pepe challenge, but the referee wasn't forthcoming. Sneijder then redeemed himself on 71-minutes, finishing after a great touch to put him through on goal. That became 3-1 just a minute later when Nordin Amrabat's ball was expertly flicked home by Drogba, giving Galatasaray the chance to dream and now just two goals away from a shock place in the semi-finals.
That third goal seemed to wake Madrid back up and Ronaldo went close to ending the tie, but his lobbed effort went just over bar. But time was running out for Galatasaray despite getting an injury time gift in the form of Alvaro Arbeloa getting himself sent off. The Spaniard got booked for a foul before then receiving a second yellow seconds later for dissent. But the last word came from, who else, Ronaldo by tapping in Karim Benzema's pull back for his 11th goal of the tournament, in ten matches.
Dortmund were the strong favourites to make it in to the semi-finals after a goalless first leg in Spain. The start was a slow one but Robert Lewandowski managed to get through, only to see his lobbed effort go over the bar just after 15-minutes.
Malaga's first real attack came on 25-minutes when Julio Baptista's header on ended up falling back to him. A quick interchange between Joaquin and Isco saw Joaquin take the ball to the edge the box and fire in to the bottom corner, giving Malaga the lead and, more importantly, the away goal. It was Joaquin's third of the tournament.
But Malaga couldn't hold on to the lead to half-time as Dortmund came back. Marco Reus' clever flick back in to the path of Lewandowski and the Pole take it around Willy Caballero before slotting it home five minutes before half-time, his sixth of the tournament. As it stood Malaga would still go through and they almost re-took the lead right before the whistle when Duda had a free header from a free-kick but it was easily saved by Roman Weidenfeller.
Lewandowski forced another save from Caballero early in the second half but Malaga again went close to taking the lead when Joaquin's header was smartly parried by Weidenfeller. The German keeper was again called in to action from Jeremy Toulalan's long range effort which was again punched away. Reus came closest to Dortmund taking the lead but his short range shot was somehow saved by the leg of Caballero. That same leg was then used to stop Mario Gotze from scoring after the German was exquisitely put through by Ilkay Gundogan.
With eight minutes to play, Malaga would retake the lead when Julio Baptista was played through one-on-one. The Brazilian then laid the ball across for Eliseu, who looked to be offside, to stroke home. But Dortmund fought back and when Felipe Santana's low cross was parried back to Reus to roll home on 91-minutes, the game was flung wide open.
A minute later, Reus was back in the box and this time smashing the ball across the six yard area. Santana's first effort ended up coming back to the keeper before Julian Schieber slid the ball back to Santana to poke in to the net, dramatically sending Malaga out and keeping their unbeaten status alive. However, there is controversy as Santana was ahead of Caballero when Schieber poked the ball back to him. So as there was only one defender between Santana and the goal, Santana was offside which was perhaps karma on Eliseu's part.
Galatasaray had it all to do in their second leg. They needed to somehow overturn a 3-0 deficit and do it against Real Madrid. The task of getting four goals without conceding, three to force extra time, and without Burak Yilmaz was quickly extended to five when Cristiano Ronaldo scored an away goal for Madrid after just seven minutes; the Portuguese tapping in Sami Khedira's low ball across the six yard box.
Real Madrid looked like scoring the second goal and only Fernando Muslera stopped Angel Di Maria curling an effort in to the net with the outside of his foot. Diego Lopez's first save of the net wasn't a particularly difficult one to make from a Wesley Sneijder shot from the edge of the box. But it was the beginning for Galatasaray to get in to the match.
Ronaldo should have made it 2-0 early in the second half when Angel Di Maria played him through on the six yard box. Ronaldo took a sloppy touch before then somehow scuffing it wide. The comeback then began 12-minutes in to the half when Sneijder's low ball across the box was smashed home by Emmanuel Eboue on the edge of the area with a momentous shot, a real way to score your first goal for Galatasaray.
Sneijder should have given the hosts the lead soon after but the Dutchman rolled his shot from ten yards hopelessly wide. There were calls for a penalty when Didier Drogba went down under a Pepe challenge, but the referee wasn't forthcoming. Sneijder then redeemed himself on 71-minutes, finishing after a great touch to put him through on goal. That became 3-1 just a minute later when Nordin Amrabat's ball was expertly flicked home by Drogba, giving Galatasaray the chance to dream and now just two goals away from a shock place in the semi-finals.
That third goal seemed to wake Madrid back up and Ronaldo went close to ending the tie, but his lobbed effort went just over bar. But time was running out for Galatasaray despite getting an injury time gift in the form of Alvaro Arbeloa getting himself sent off. The Spaniard got booked for a foul before then receiving a second yellow seconds later for dissent. But the last word came from, who else, Ronaldo by tapping in Karim Benzema's pull back for his 11th goal of the tournament, in ten matches.
Monday 8 April 2013
Another Aguero Moment Keeps City Alive
Manchester United 1-2 Manchester City: It may now still be 12-points but the win for City does keep their slim title hopes alive. From possibly to win their 20th Premiership in two games time, United now need ten points from the remaining 21 in order to lift the trophy. Rafael came closest to giving United lead when his effort hit the bar before going behind for a goal kick. The deadlock was finally broken six minutes in to the second half when James Milner's effort took a slight deflection off Phil Jones which was enough to wrong-foot David De Gea. City's lead only lasted eight minutes though when Robin Van Persie's corner was headed towards goal by Jones before going in off Vincent Kompany's back, the second own goal in two games for United, a stark contrast to what the Belgian did the last time these two met on a Monday. City began to put United on the back foot and substitute Sergio Aguero managed to get a yard ahead of the defence before smashing the ball past De Gea at his near post with only 12-minutes left on the clock.
Chelsea 2-1 Sunderland: Paolo Di Canio's first game in charge sees Chelsea regain third place on goal difference with Sunderland now on the edge of relegation. The defeat leaves the visitors out of the bottom three on goal difference alone, but Wigan do have a game in hand. It started better for Sunderland though as they took the lead just before half-time when a corner was flicked on and then sliced in to his net by Cesar Azpilicueta. Chelsea levelled two minutes in to the second half when Oscar's parried shot came off Matthew Kilgallon and somehow rolled in to the corner of the net. The winner came just eight minutes later when David Luiz's shot cruelly deflected off Branislav Ivanovic to bamboozle Simon Mignolet and end up in the net.
QPR 1-1 Wigan: Two great goals leave the two struggling sides no better off than what they were before a ball was kicked today. The point keeps QPR seven points from safety while Wigan's last gasp equaliser keeps them in bottom three on goal difference alone, with a game in hand. QPR's task was made harder on 21-minutes when Bobby Zamora sent off for kicking Jordi Gomez in the head whilst going for the ball, this came after Loic Remy had hit the post. But QPR recovered and played extremely well with ten men before actually taking the lead five minutes before the end; a Maynor Figueroa free-kick was blocked and Rangers set off on the counter attack through Stephane Mbia. Mbia then laid the ball off to Remy and the Frenchman side-footed the ball in to the corner of the net from just outside the box, a truly spectacular goal. Mbia then became the villain with the last kick of the game by conceding a free-kick. Shaun Maloney took the free-kick and sublimely struck it home, although Adel Taarabt did seem to duck under the ball a la Samir Nasri.
Tottenham 2-2 Everton: Spurs remain level with Chelsea in fourth place and two points ahead of Arsenal, although both have a game in hand over Andre Villas-Boas' men. Tottenham took the lead in the first minute when Jan Vertonghen's deep cross beat a couple of defenders before Emmanuel Adebayor slid the ball between Tim Howard's legs. Everton equalised on the quarter of an hour mark when Phil Jagielka headed in a corner at the far post. The visitors then took the lead eight minutes in to the second half when Victor Anichebe's touch sent Kevin Mirallas off on another run, the Belgian zigzagged his was through the defence before scoring another great solo goal. Moussa Dembele did have his deflected effort somehow saved on to the crossbar by Tim Howard before Spurs found an equaliser three minutes from time; Adebayor's effort hitting the post before Gylfi Sigurdsson stroking the rebound home. Everton remain six points behind Chelsea and Spurs.
Newcastle 1-0 Fulham: A very late winner sees Newcastle move five points clear of the relegation zone. Fulham are three points further ahead after this defeat and aren't potentially out of the woods just yet, but they should be safe. A deflected Vurnon Anita shot did hit the cross bar for Newcastle in the second half before the hosts ended up hitting the post twice from a corner. The winner came on the 93rd minute when a blocked shot fell to Papiss Cisse and the Senegalese half-volleyed it home.
Liverpool 0-0 West Ham: Liverpool's Hillsborough tribute couldn't produce a goal let alone a win for the hosts. Liverpool's best chance came in the second half when Steven Gerrard's effort was saved off the line before the Reds ended up hitting the post from a low ball across the box. Liverpool did have the ball in the net through Daniel Sturridge, but he offside and the goal was rightly disallowed. West Ham came close towards the end when a header from a corner was saved off the line. West Ham are six points clear of relegation.
Stoke 1-3 Aston Villa: Villa move three points clear of the relegation zone and to within a point of Stoke after a win at The Britannia. Villa took the lead after nine minutes when Matt Lowton's slight pull back was finished by Gabriel Agbonlahor on the second attempt. Andreas Weimann thought he had made it 2-0 but his first half effort came back off the post. Villa looked to squander yet another winning position when Stoke equalised ten minutes from time; Charlie Adam springing the counter attack before getting it back off Jonathan Walters. Adam then poked the ball across to Michael Kightly who finished in to the bottom corner from the penalty spot. But Villa's blushes were spared when a cleared corner came to Matthew Lowton, the defender chested the ball before hammering the ball home on the volley from 35-yards with just three minutes left to play. The points were then sealed in injury time when Christian Benteke beat the last man just inside the Stoke half with a great touch. The Belgian then roared down in to the Stoke box with three team mates around him but Benteke coolly finished past Asmir Begovic.
West Brom 1-2 Arsenal: Arsenal are now just two points behind Chelsea and Tottenham in the race for Champions League football, The Gunners also have a game in hand over Spurs. Tomas Rosicky prevented Arsenal from going behind with a header off the line. The Czech then put them ahead on 20-minutes when he headed a cross-come-shot from Gervinho past Ben Foster, his first league goal in 65-matches. Rosicky then scored his second five minutes in to the second half after following up his parried powerful effort to beat Foster again. West Brom were awarded a penalty 20-minutes from time when Per Mertesacker brought Shane Long down. The German was last man and had no option but to be sent off. James Morrison stepped up and just squeezed it down the middle to make it 2-1. But the ten men managed to hold on to continue their fight for Champions League football.
Norwich 2-2 Swansea: Perhaps a mid-table battle although Norwich do only sit five points clear of the relegation zone. Swansea took the lead on 35-minutes when Michu fired home from a Jonathan De Guzman pull back after the Spaniard had had a goal ruled out for offside earlier on. Swansea's lead only lasted five minutes though as Robert Snodgrass headed in to the empty net from an Elliot Bennett cross. Norwich then took the lead on the hour mark when Michael Turner ghosted in to the back post to tap home a free-kick. But Luke Moore would equalise on 75-minutes, low volleying a header back across goal in to the net, to ensure both teams earned a point. There was a strong case that substitute Grant Holt should have been sent off just minutes after coming on for stamping on Chico Flores, but Holt even escaped without getting a yellow card.
Reading 0-2 Southampton: Nigel Adkins' side remain rock bottom after his former side came to The Madejski and walked away with the three points, leaving Reading eight points off safety. The win for Southampton sees them move seven points above the bottom three and possibly safe. Southampton took the lead 11-minutes before half-time when Jay Rodriguez beat Adam Federici to the ball and put it through his legs, questions have to be asked about Federici's commitment as he rather chickened out of the challenge with the striker. Rodriguez did hit the cross bar later in the half before the points were wrapped up on 72-minutes when a good team move was brilliantly finished off by Adam Lallana.
Chelsea 2-1 Sunderland: Paolo Di Canio's first game in charge sees Chelsea regain third place on goal difference with Sunderland now on the edge of relegation. The defeat leaves the visitors out of the bottom three on goal difference alone, but Wigan do have a game in hand. It started better for Sunderland though as they took the lead just before half-time when a corner was flicked on and then sliced in to his net by Cesar Azpilicueta. Chelsea levelled two minutes in to the second half when Oscar's parried shot came off Matthew Kilgallon and somehow rolled in to the corner of the net. The winner came just eight minutes later when David Luiz's shot cruelly deflected off Branislav Ivanovic to bamboozle Simon Mignolet and end up in the net.
QPR 1-1 Wigan: Two great goals leave the two struggling sides no better off than what they were before a ball was kicked today. The point keeps QPR seven points from safety while Wigan's last gasp equaliser keeps them in bottom three on goal difference alone, with a game in hand. QPR's task was made harder on 21-minutes when Bobby Zamora sent off for kicking Jordi Gomez in the head whilst going for the ball, this came after Loic Remy had hit the post. But QPR recovered and played extremely well with ten men before actually taking the lead five minutes before the end; a Maynor Figueroa free-kick was blocked and Rangers set off on the counter attack through Stephane Mbia. Mbia then laid the ball off to Remy and the Frenchman side-footed the ball in to the corner of the net from just outside the box, a truly spectacular goal. Mbia then became the villain with the last kick of the game by conceding a free-kick. Shaun Maloney took the free-kick and sublimely struck it home, although Adel Taarabt did seem to duck under the ball a la Samir Nasri.
Tottenham 2-2 Everton: Spurs remain level with Chelsea in fourth place and two points ahead of Arsenal, although both have a game in hand over Andre Villas-Boas' men. Tottenham took the lead in the first minute when Jan Vertonghen's deep cross beat a couple of defenders before Emmanuel Adebayor slid the ball between Tim Howard's legs. Everton equalised on the quarter of an hour mark when Phil Jagielka headed in a corner at the far post. The visitors then took the lead eight minutes in to the second half when Victor Anichebe's touch sent Kevin Mirallas off on another run, the Belgian zigzagged his was through the defence before scoring another great solo goal. Moussa Dembele did have his deflected effort somehow saved on to the crossbar by Tim Howard before Spurs found an equaliser three minutes from time; Adebayor's effort hitting the post before Gylfi Sigurdsson stroking the rebound home. Everton remain six points behind Chelsea and Spurs.
Newcastle 1-0 Fulham: A very late winner sees Newcastle move five points clear of the relegation zone. Fulham are three points further ahead after this defeat and aren't potentially out of the woods just yet, but they should be safe. A deflected Vurnon Anita shot did hit the cross bar for Newcastle in the second half before the hosts ended up hitting the post twice from a corner. The winner came on the 93rd minute when a blocked shot fell to Papiss Cisse and the Senegalese half-volleyed it home.
Liverpool 0-0 West Ham: Liverpool's Hillsborough tribute couldn't produce a goal let alone a win for the hosts. Liverpool's best chance came in the second half when Steven Gerrard's effort was saved off the line before the Reds ended up hitting the post from a low ball across the box. Liverpool did have the ball in the net through Daniel Sturridge, but he offside and the goal was rightly disallowed. West Ham came close towards the end when a header from a corner was saved off the line. West Ham are six points clear of relegation.
Stoke 1-3 Aston Villa: Villa move three points clear of the relegation zone and to within a point of Stoke after a win at The Britannia. Villa took the lead after nine minutes when Matt Lowton's slight pull back was finished by Gabriel Agbonlahor on the second attempt. Andreas Weimann thought he had made it 2-0 but his first half effort came back off the post. Villa looked to squander yet another winning position when Stoke equalised ten minutes from time; Charlie Adam springing the counter attack before getting it back off Jonathan Walters. Adam then poked the ball across to Michael Kightly who finished in to the bottom corner from the penalty spot. But Villa's blushes were spared when a cleared corner came to Matthew Lowton, the defender chested the ball before hammering the ball home on the volley from 35-yards with just three minutes left to play. The points were then sealed in injury time when Christian Benteke beat the last man just inside the Stoke half with a great touch. The Belgian then roared down in to the Stoke box with three team mates around him but Benteke coolly finished past Asmir Begovic.
West Brom 1-2 Arsenal: Arsenal are now just two points behind Chelsea and Tottenham in the race for Champions League football, The Gunners also have a game in hand over Spurs. Tomas Rosicky prevented Arsenal from going behind with a header off the line. The Czech then put them ahead on 20-minutes when he headed a cross-come-shot from Gervinho past Ben Foster, his first league goal in 65-matches. Rosicky then scored his second five minutes in to the second half after following up his parried powerful effort to beat Foster again. West Brom were awarded a penalty 20-minutes from time when Per Mertesacker brought Shane Long down. The German was last man and had no option but to be sent off. James Morrison stepped up and just squeezed it down the middle to make it 2-1. But the ten men managed to hold on to continue their fight for Champions League football.
Norwich 2-2 Swansea: Perhaps a mid-table battle although Norwich do only sit five points clear of the relegation zone. Swansea took the lead on 35-minutes when Michu fired home from a Jonathan De Guzman pull back after the Spaniard had had a goal ruled out for offside earlier on. Swansea's lead only lasted five minutes though as Robert Snodgrass headed in to the empty net from an Elliot Bennett cross. Norwich then took the lead on the hour mark when Michael Turner ghosted in to the back post to tap home a free-kick. But Luke Moore would equalise on 75-minutes, low volleying a header back across goal in to the net, to ensure both teams earned a point. There was a strong case that substitute Grant Holt should have been sent off just minutes after coming on for stamping on Chico Flores, but Holt even escaped without getting a yellow card.
Reading 0-2 Southampton: Nigel Adkins' side remain rock bottom after his former side came to The Madejski and walked away with the three points, leaving Reading eight points off safety. The win for Southampton sees them move seven points above the bottom three and possibly safe. Southampton took the lead 11-minutes before half-time when Jay Rodriguez beat Adam Federici to the ball and put it through his legs, questions have to be asked about Federici's commitment as he rather chickened out of the challenge with the striker. Rodriguez did hit the cross bar later in the half before the points were wrapped up on 72-minutes when a good team move was brilliantly finished off by Adam Lallana.
Friday 5 April 2013
Defeats For Lewis & Whitlock Immaterial As Newton & Anderson Relegated
Judgement Night arrived at Brighton and the first two players to fall from this year's Premier League were revealed. Four of the ten players were in danger of being relegated but defeats for Gary Anderson and Wes Newton meant that Adrian Lewis' earlier defeat to Raymond Van Barneveld didn't matter. It also meant that Simon Whitlock went to the oche knowing that he was already safe before being beaten by Michael Van Gerwen.
Lewis stepped up first knowing that just a point would be enough for him to be guaranteed his safety. After missing a dart to win the opening leg, Lewis quickly found himself 2-0 down before becoming 3-1 behind. Another three missed darts at the double from Lewis allowed Barney to make it 4-1 before a 124-checkout made it 5-2 to the Dutchman after Lewis did miss the bull for a 121-checkout. The story continued in the eighth leg with Lewis missing a further two darts at the double which gave Barney the point. The Dutchman would finish the match in the next leg to romp home 7-2 and left Lewis very uncertain of his Premier League future, even more so with the leg difference taking a bashing.
After beating Phil Taylor twice last year, Robert Thornton again managed to defeat The Power which leaves the World Champion out of the play-off places as it stands. A ton checkout from the Scot meant that all three opening legs went against throw. Taylor had two darts to continue the trend but he missed, allowed Thornton to hold for the first time and take a 3-1 lead. Taylor responded with a ton checkout of his own, this with two double tops, before managing to level the match. Taylor never led during the match but the closest he came was in the seventh leg when he missed a dart to go 4-3 in front, again, uncharacteristically, he missed and Thornton was able to regain his lead. A further two missed darts in the eighth leg allowed Thornton to re-establish a two leg advantage before Taylor managed to make it 5-4. Undeterred, Thornton continued his assault and took the remaining two legs to win the match 7-4 and leave him in a place that is a vast contrast to where many bookmakers believed he would be come judgement night.
Newton's debut season in the Premier League has come to an end after nine weeks following a defeat to Andy Hamilton. Newton had to win to still be in the mix and a 7-2 scoreline would have assured his safety. The first six legs all went with throw, meaning that the 7-2 scoreline was unobtainable. The crucial first break of throw came in the seventh leg as Hamilton managed to take the lead for the first time in the match. The Hammer then managed to hold his throw again to go 5-3 in front. Hamilton then missed a dart to get a point in the ninth leg but he would get it in the next after Newton missed a dart to equalise. A plucky 102-checkout from Newton did force a final leg but a 64-checkout from Hamilton was enough to eject Newton out of the Premier League.
After witnessing that, Anderson stepped up against James Wade knowing that the same outcome would also relegate the Scot. On the other hand, a 7-4 win for Anderson would have been enough to seen him be safe. Anderson managed to take the opening leg at the fifth attempt before his Achilles heel, two missed darts at the double, allowed Wade to turn the tables and go 2-1 ahead. Anderson looked to regain some confidence with a 121-checkout on the bull to level the match but Wade responded with a fantastic 124-checkout to keep the Scot at bay. Anderson was able to make it 4-3 before Wade took the next three legs to win the match 7-3, ending Anderson's Premier League with a classy 120-checkout.
With the pressure now off Whitlock, it was a surprise to see the Australian play like his future was still in doubt. It is never easy playing against Van Gerwen and the Dutchman quickly took a 3-0 lead. Van Gerwen's form dipped a little in the sixth leg but his scoring power allowed him to take the leg at the seventh attempt to lead 5-1. That soon became six before a 130 and 90-checkout from Whitlock made the scoreline look a little better at 6-3. But Van Gerwen quashed any comeback ideas from Whitlock with a 64-checkout which puts him back on top of the league. Table after week nine:
1. Michael Van Gerwen 12 +16
2. James Wade 12 +13
3. Raymond Van Barneveld 12 +11
4. Robert Thornton 11 +8
5. Phil Taylor 10 +9
6. Andy Hamilton 10 +2
7. Adrian Lewis 7 -12
8. Simon Whitlock 6 -15
R Wes Newton 5 -14
R Gary Anderson 5 -18
Lewis stepped up first knowing that just a point would be enough for him to be guaranteed his safety. After missing a dart to win the opening leg, Lewis quickly found himself 2-0 down before becoming 3-1 behind. Another three missed darts at the double from Lewis allowed Barney to make it 4-1 before a 124-checkout made it 5-2 to the Dutchman after Lewis did miss the bull for a 121-checkout. The story continued in the eighth leg with Lewis missing a further two darts at the double which gave Barney the point. The Dutchman would finish the match in the next leg to romp home 7-2 and left Lewis very uncertain of his Premier League future, even more so with the leg difference taking a bashing.
After beating Phil Taylor twice last year, Robert Thornton again managed to defeat The Power which leaves the World Champion out of the play-off places as it stands. A ton checkout from the Scot meant that all three opening legs went against throw. Taylor had two darts to continue the trend but he missed, allowed Thornton to hold for the first time and take a 3-1 lead. Taylor responded with a ton checkout of his own, this with two double tops, before managing to level the match. Taylor never led during the match but the closest he came was in the seventh leg when he missed a dart to go 4-3 in front, again, uncharacteristically, he missed and Thornton was able to regain his lead. A further two missed darts in the eighth leg allowed Thornton to re-establish a two leg advantage before Taylor managed to make it 5-4. Undeterred, Thornton continued his assault and took the remaining two legs to win the match 7-4 and leave him in a place that is a vast contrast to where many bookmakers believed he would be come judgement night.
Newton's debut season in the Premier League has come to an end after nine weeks following a defeat to Andy Hamilton. Newton had to win to still be in the mix and a 7-2 scoreline would have assured his safety. The first six legs all went with throw, meaning that the 7-2 scoreline was unobtainable. The crucial first break of throw came in the seventh leg as Hamilton managed to take the lead for the first time in the match. The Hammer then managed to hold his throw again to go 5-3 in front. Hamilton then missed a dart to get a point in the ninth leg but he would get it in the next after Newton missed a dart to equalise. A plucky 102-checkout from Newton did force a final leg but a 64-checkout from Hamilton was enough to eject Newton out of the Premier League.
After witnessing that, Anderson stepped up against James Wade knowing that the same outcome would also relegate the Scot. On the other hand, a 7-4 win for Anderson would have been enough to seen him be safe. Anderson managed to take the opening leg at the fifth attempt before his Achilles heel, two missed darts at the double, allowed Wade to turn the tables and go 2-1 ahead. Anderson looked to regain some confidence with a 121-checkout on the bull to level the match but Wade responded with a fantastic 124-checkout to keep the Scot at bay. Anderson was able to make it 4-3 before Wade took the next three legs to win the match 7-3, ending Anderson's Premier League with a classy 120-checkout.
With the pressure now off Whitlock, it was a surprise to see the Australian play like his future was still in doubt. It is never easy playing against Van Gerwen and the Dutchman quickly took a 3-0 lead. Van Gerwen's form dipped a little in the sixth leg but his scoring power allowed him to take the leg at the seventh attempt to lead 5-1. That soon became six before a 130 and 90-checkout from Whitlock made the scoreline look a little better at 6-3. But Van Gerwen quashed any comeback ideas from Whitlock with a 64-checkout which puts him back on top of the league. Table after week nine:
1. Michael Van Gerwen 12 +16
2. James Wade 12 +13
3. Raymond Van Barneveld 12 +11
4. Robert Thornton 11 +8
5. Phil Taylor 10 +9
6. Andy Hamilton 10 +2
7. Adrian Lewis 7 -12
8. Simon Whitlock 6 -15
R Wes Newton 5 -14
R Gary Anderson 5 -18
Wednesday 3 April 2013
Dortmund Held In Spain, Three & Easy For Madrid
Real Madrid look likely to be in the semi-finals after beating Galatasaray 3-0 in the Bernabeu. 533km away, Malaga will have it all to do when they travel to Germany after a goalless draw in the La Rosaleda. The only positive Malaga do have is that Dortmund failed to score an away goal which could potentially work in their favour if the get a goal in the Westfalenstadion.
It was perhaps more down to Dortmund missing their chances rather than Malaga holding them off but it won't be until the second leg where we'll find out if Dortmund will rue the misses. Mario Gotze was the first to miss a great chance after Robert Lewandowski put him through and then again after Ilkay Gundogan played the pass in to him.
The ball was in the net on 24-minutes when Kevin Grosskreutz tapped it home, but Lewandowski had been in an offside position during the move. Marco Reus also had a shot saved before Malaga finally had a five minute spell just before half time. Roman Weidenfeller did drop a Joaquin cross before Spaniard played in a corner which was met by Vitorino Antunes. Weidenfeller managed to parry the header away before Jeremy Toulalan's rebound was cleared off the line by Gotze.
Sebastian Kehl had an opportunity to put Dortmund ahead just before the whistle but it was expertly saved by Willy Caballero. Perhaps Dortmund's best chance of the match came just two minutes in to the second half but Lewandowski mis-kicked his effort from a deflected Gotze pull back before the young German missed another chance, pulling his shot just wide.
Malaga's best opportunity in the second half came to Isco but his shot was again parried by Weidenfeller before once again preventing Toulalan from scoring on the rebound. Despite not having an away goal, Dortmund should be the favourite in the second leg.
There's not a lot of doubt about who is going to win the tie in Turkey with Galatasaray needing to score three goals without conceding to force extra time. Jose Mourinho's record of never losing a Champions League quarter final looks set to continue and success began on nine minutes when Mesut Ozil played Cristiano Ronaldo through, the Portuguese exquisitely chipped Fernando Muslera to score his ninth goal of the competition.
Galatasaray weren't completely overturned by the Spanish giants but despite their attacking intent, Wesley Sneijder, Didier Drogba nor Burak Yilmaz really tested Diego Lopez. Drogba did produce a parry from the deputy keeper and Emmanuel Eboue ended smashing his effort straight at him.
Real Madrid made it 2-0 just before the half hour mark when Michael Essien's cross wasn't dealt with as it fell to Karim Benzema. The Frenchman had no difficulty in controlling the ball before putting in to the back of the net before Eboue or Semih Kaya realised what had happened.
Galatasaray went in to damage limitation mode for the second half by taking Sneijder off. The tactic did seem to work defensively, but their attacking nature dropped immensely. The result, for the first leg at least, was sealed on 73-minutes when Xabi Alonso's free-kick was headed home by Gonzalo Higuain.
The Turkish side did have a great shout for a penalty late on when Sergio Ramos looked to have fouled Yilmaz, but the striker was given a yellow card for simulation which was perhaps a little harsh. With the tie all but sewn up, Ramos later looked to get himself purposely booked in injury time for kicking the ball away. This means he'll miss the second leg but now there's no possibility of missing the first leg of the semi-final.
It was perhaps more down to Dortmund missing their chances rather than Malaga holding them off but it won't be until the second leg where we'll find out if Dortmund will rue the misses. Mario Gotze was the first to miss a great chance after Robert Lewandowski put him through and then again after Ilkay Gundogan played the pass in to him.
The ball was in the net on 24-minutes when Kevin Grosskreutz tapped it home, but Lewandowski had been in an offside position during the move. Marco Reus also had a shot saved before Malaga finally had a five minute spell just before half time. Roman Weidenfeller did drop a Joaquin cross before Spaniard played in a corner which was met by Vitorino Antunes. Weidenfeller managed to parry the header away before Jeremy Toulalan's rebound was cleared off the line by Gotze.
Sebastian Kehl had an opportunity to put Dortmund ahead just before the whistle but it was expertly saved by Willy Caballero. Perhaps Dortmund's best chance of the match came just two minutes in to the second half but Lewandowski mis-kicked his effort from a deflected Gotze pull back before the young German missed another chance, pulling his shot just wide.
Malaga's best opportunity in the second half came to Isco but his shot was again parried by Weidenfeller before once again preventing Toulalan from scoring on the rebound. Despite not having an away goal, Dortmund should be the favourite in the second leg.
There's not a lot of doubt about who is going to win the tie in Turkey with Galatasaray needing to score three goals without conceding to force extra time. Jose Mourinho's record of never losing a Champions League quarter final looks set to continue and success began on nine minutes when Mesut Ozil played Cristiano Ronaldo through, the Portuguese exquisitely chipped Fernando Muslera to score his ninth goal of the competition.
Galatasaray weren't completely overturned by the Spanish giants but despite their attacking intent, Wesley Sneijder, Didier Drogba nor Burak Yilmaz really tested Diego Lopez. Drogba did produce a parry from the deputy keeper and Emmanuel Eboue ended smashing his effort straight at him.
Real Madrid made it 2-0 just before the half hour mark when Michael Essien's cross wasn't dealt with as it fell to Karim Benzema. The Frenchman had no difficulty in controlling the ball before putting in to the back of the net before Eboue or Semih Kaya realised what had happened.
Galatasaray went in to damage limitation mode for the second half by taking Sneijder off. The tactic did seem to work defensively, but their attacking nature dropped immensely. The result, for the first leg at least, was sealed on 73-minutes when Xabi Alonso's free-kick was headed home by Gonzalo Higuain.
The Turkish side did have a great shout for a penalty late on when Sergio Ramos looked to have fouled Yilmaz, but the striker was given a yellow card for simulation which was perhaps a little harsh. With the tie all but sewn up, Ramos later looked to get himself purposely booked in injury time for kicking the ball away. This means he'll miss the second leg but now there's no possibility of missing the first leg of the semi-final.
Tuesday 2 April 2013
Last Minute Equaliser Rescues PSG While Quick Firing Bayern Take Two Goal Lead To Italy
Bayern Munich look to be in control of booking a place in the semi-finals after a 2-0 victory over Juventus in the Allianz Arena. It's also advantage Barcelona in the second quarter final as they will bring two away goals back to Camp Nou and would have won the first leg if it wasn't for the last kick of the game.
PSG actually started the better against Barcelona and came mighty close to taking the lead after just five minutes when Ezequiel Lavezzi's lofted effort ended up hitting the post and stayed out. Victor Valdes was also called in to action, saving a low Zlatan Ibrahimovic free-kick when many hoped it was David Beckham who would have took it.
Barcelona grew in confidence throughout the half and began to take control of possession. PSG stood firm though and Salvatore Sirigu was only made to scramble from an Andres Iniesta curler that just went past the post. But a piece of world class football and a lapse of concentration in the PSG's defence allowed the deadlock to be broken seven minutes before half-time. Dani Alves played a great cross in with the outside of his foot and Lionel Messi, who made the run to break the offside trap, ghosted in and converted from an acute angle to score his eighth of the tournament. But Messi's match was cut short as he didn't return for the second half after suffering a hamstring twinge just before the whistle.
The drama from the second half didn't begin until 11-minutes from time when Thiago Silva's effort came off the post before Ibrahimovic smashed the ball home. But the Swede was miles offside when Thiago Silva headed the ball. But Barcelona looked have won the game in the final minute of normal time when Sirigu brought Alexis Sanchez down in the box. Xavi gleefully stepped up to take the penalty and sent Sirigu the wrong way to make it 2-1.
But the action wasn't over and PSG grabbed an equaliser with the final kick of the game. The ball broke loose to Blaise Matuidi and the Frenchman's powerful shot went through two defenders before going straight at Valdes. But the keeper seemed bamboozled, possibly by his lack of vision, and spilt the ball in to his net. The score draw definitely favours Barcelona but Javier Mascherano and Matuidi will be out of the second leg after picking up yellow cards in the Parc Des Princes.
Bayern Munich had the lead in Germany after just 25-seconds when David Alaba's effort took a deflection of Arturo Vidal before beating Gianluigi Buffon. Toni Kroos was forced off just after the quarter of an hour mark but the hosts dominated much of the game.
Munich were rewarded for their continued pressure in the second half when Thomas Muller tapped the ball home after Luiz Gustavo's effort was parried by Buffon. Juventus' best chance fell to Vidal but the Italians will be hoping for a better performance in the second leg.
PSG actually started the better against Barcelona and came mighty close to taking the lead after just five minutes when Ezequiel Lavezzi's lofted effort ended up hitting the post and stayed out. Victor Valdes was also called in to action, saving a low Zlatan Ibrahimovic free-kick when many hoped it was David Beckham who would have took it.
Barcelona grew in confidence throughout the half and began to take control of possession. PSG stood firm though and Salvatore Sirigu was only made to scramble from an Andres Iniesta curler that just went past the post. But a piece of world class football and a lapse of concentration in the PSG's defence allowed the deadlock to be broken seven minutes before half-time. Dani Alves played a great cross in with the outside of his foot and Lionel Messi, who made the run to break the offside trap, ghosted in and converted from an acute angle to score his eighth of the tournament. But Messi's match was cut short as he didn't return for the second half after suffering a hamstring twinge just before the whistle.
The drama from the second half didn't begin until 11-minutes from time when Thiago Silva's effort came off the post before Ibrahimovic smashed the ball home. But the Swede was miles offside when Thiago Silva headed the ball. But Barcelona looked have won the game in the final minute of normal time when Sirigu brought Alexis Sanchez down in the box. Xavi gleefully stepped up to take the penalty and sent Sirigu the wrong way to make it 2-1.
But the action wasn't over and PSG grabbed an equaliser with the final kick of the game. The ball broke loose to Blaise Matuidi and the Frenchman's powerful shot went through two defenders before going straight at Valdes. But the keeper seemed bamboozled, possibly by his lack of vision, and spilt the ball in to his net. The score draw definitely favours Barcelona but Javier Mascherano and Matuidi will be out of the second leg after picking up yellow cards in the Parc Des Princes.
Bayern Munich had the lead in Germany after just 25-seconds when David Alaba's effort took a deflection of Arturo Vidal before beating Gianluigi Buffon. Toni Kroos was forced off just after the quarter of an hour mark but the hosts dominated much of the game.
Munich were rewarded for their continued pressure in the second half when Thomas Muller tapped the ball home after Luiz Gustavo's effort was parried by Buffon. Juventus' best chance fell to Vidal but the Italians will be hoping for a better performance in the second leg.
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