Sebastian Vettel led from start to finish to become to the first driver to win back-to-back races this year. The win means he closes the gap on Fernando Alonso to just four points after the Ferrari crashed out on the first corner, with only five races remaining. It wasn't all bad news for the Prancing Horses though, Felipe Massa managed to get his first podium finish in 33 races with a well earned second place. Kamui Kobayashi staved off a late charge from Jenson Button to become the first Japanese driver to finish on a podium in Suzuka since 1990.
Before the race, Nico Hulkenberg and Button had received five place penalties for gearbox changes and ultimately managed to witness a very eventful first corner. It began with Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen, the Ferrari looked to stay ahead of the Renault before having a rear wheel clipped, Alonso then went off the track before spinning back onto the track facing the wrong way. That caused others to look on cautiously, that included Romain Grosjean who was too busy looking at that incident to notice he was about to crash into Mark Webber, fortunately both cars managed to continue before the Frenchman was given a ten second stop-go penalty on lap seven for causing the collision. Nico Rosberg would also end up in the wars during that first corner when he was contacted by Bruno Senna and was forced to retire, Senna belatedly received a drive through penalty on lap-21 for also causing a collision.
With all that carnage, the Safety Car had to be deployed and the field already looked interesting; Kobayashi had made it to second, Button third, Massa fourth and Timo Glock had got his Marussia up to 11th. The Safety Car went in on lap two and Sergio Perez immediately battled with Raikkonen which nearly ended up in tears. The Lotus forced the Sauber off of the track when otherwise there would have been contact and possibly two further retirements.
Following that, Perez continued to have an eventful race by overtaking his, what will be, McLaren predecessor, Lewis Hamilton, on lap six with a great move diving inside the Englishman. After the first set of pit stops, Massa had come out into second on lap-18 and that's where he would remain until the chequered flag. Perez's race was then over a lap later when he tried to re-overtake Hamilton, but this time he was too eager and was again forced off where he span and beached the car in the gravel.
Narain Karthikeyan would retire on lap-34 from the back of the pack before Charles Pic suffered an engine failure and joined the HRT six laps later. Vitaly Petrov was also a naughty boy, and received a drive through penalty for ignoring blue flags on lap-48. The final retirement was Romain Grosjean who boxed the car on the final lap. Race result:
1.Vettel (Red Bull), 2.Massa (Ferrari), 3.Kobayashi (Sauber), 4.Button (McLaren), 5.Hamilton (McLaren), 6.Raikkonen (Lotus), 7.Hulkenberg (Force India), 8.Maldonado (Williams), 9.Webber (Red Bull), 10.Ricciardo (Toro Rosso), 11.Schumacher (Mercedes), 12.Di Resta (Force India), 13.Vergne (Toro Rosso), 14.Senna (Williams), 15.Kovalainen (Caterham), 16.Glock (Marussia), 17.Petrov (Caterham), 18.De La Rosa (HRT) DNF: Alonso (Ferrari), Rosberg (Mercedes), Perez (Sauber), Karthikeyan (HRT), Pic (Marussia), Grosjean (Lotus).
Sunday, 7 October 2012
Saturday, 6 October 2012
Chelsea and Arsenal Come From Behind, Three and Easy For City, QPR and Reading Remain Winless
Chelsea 4-1 Norwich: Chelsea remain unbeaten despite the off-field disciplinary actions against Ashley Cole and John Terry. Norwich now make it 37 Premier League away games without a clean sheet. It started a lot better for Norwich when Grant Holt half-volleyed them the lead after 11-minutes. Chelsea were level within four minutes when Fernando Torres headed his sixth goal of the season past John Ruddy. A great passing move was the source on Chelsea's second on 22-minutes, after two shots had been initially blocked, the ball came back out to Frank Lampard to hammered the ball home. In contrast, Chelsea's third goal was a clinical swift counter attack. Juan Mata ended up feeding the ball through to Eden Hazard and the Belgian placed it into the bottom corner just after the half hour mark. The rout was completed 14-minutes from the end when Branislav Ivanovic fired a volley home after a fortunate flick from Mata.
Wigan 2-2 Everton: Everton move up to an early third place after Wigan prevent themselves from losing a fourth successive game. Wigan took the lead when Arouna Kone diverted a Shaun Maloney cross/shot home, but the Ivorian looked very much offside on ten minutes. Everton were level straight from kick-off when an off target Steven Pienaar effort was headed through Ali Al-Habsi's legs by Nikica Jelavic. Franco Di Santo made it 2-1 with a thumping effort into the roof of the net after a Kone pull back on 23-minutes. Marouane Fellaini was perhaps lucky to still be on the field for the second half after he slapped an arm across Maynor Figueroa, the contact was only made by his flat hand and without any malice so a yellow card was probably the right decision. Everton managed to seal a point with only three points remaining; after a couple of good previous penalty claims turned down, they were finally awarded a penalty when Kevin Mirallas was fouled. Former Latic, Leighton Baines, stepped up and smashed the spot kick into the top corner.
West Brom 3-2 QPR: QPR remain without a win and rooted to the bottom of the table as their new look side still struggles to gel together and Mark Hughes continues to have never won at the Hawthornes. West Brom took the lead after just five minutes when a Shane Long cross was headed home by James Morrison. It was 2-0 on 22-minutes when Zoltan Gera finished from a loose ball that was poorly cleared by Anton Ferdinand who slipped. Abel Taarabt made it two goals in two games with a crisp chest and volley effort ten minutes before half-time. The hosts were 3-1 up with minutes to go when a crisp passing move was finished off by Youssouf Mulumbu from a Gonzalo Jara pull back. Esteban Granero made it 3-2 in injury time with sublime turn and floated finish into the top corner.
West Ham 1-3 Arsenal: Arsenal also had to come from behind to see of London rivals West Ham. the lead was taken after 21-minutes when Mohamed Diame made a great run before curling a fantastic shot around Vito Mannone from a tight angle, his first goal for West Ham. Arsenal did level four minutes before half-time when Olivier Giroud scored his first Premiership goal following a stab from a Lukas Podolski cross. It took Arsenal a while but they finally took the lead on 77-minutes when Theo Walcott slipped the ball past Jussi Jaaskelainen after being played through by Giroud. The win was sealed seven minutes from the end when Santi Cazorla fired a fantastic long range effort into the the corner.
Manchester City 3-0 Sunderland: In a battle of unbeaten sides, Sunderland were the team to lose with City remaining without defeat. It also became the first game where Steven Fletcher had a shot on target this season without scoring. City were ahead after five minutes when Aleksandar Kolarov fired in another free-kick past Simon Mignolet. City doubled their lead on the hour mark when Kolarov's low cross was directed in by the returning Sergio Aguero. The three points were wrapped up in the final minute when James Milner wrapped a free-kick into the goal.
Swansea 2-2 Reading: Swansea end a three game drought to come from behind and prevent Reading from winning their first game of the season. Reading took the lead just after the half hour mark when Pavel Pogrebnyak scored, although his shot somehow went through Michel Vorm after he parried the ball through his legs and into the net. It was 2-0 just before half-time when Noel Hunt volleyed home a deflected effort, Reading's second shot and second goal. Michu pulled a goal back with his fifth of the season when he headed a deflected cross home on 71-minutes. The hosts were then level seven minutes later when Wayne Routledge finished off a neat one-two with Luke Moore.
Wigan 2-2 Everton: Everton move up to an early third place after Wigan prevent themselves from losing a fourth successive game. Wigan took the lead when Arouna Kone diverted a Shaun Maloney cross/shot home, but the Ivorian looked very much offside on ten minutes. Everton were level straight from kick-off when an off target Steven Pienaar effort was headed through Ali Al-Habsi's legs by Nikica Jelavic. Franco Di Santo made it 2-1 with a thumping effort into the roof of the net after a Kone pull back on 23-minutes. Marouane Fellaini was perhaps lucky to still be on the field for the second half after he slapped an arm across Maynor Figueroa, the contact was only made by his flat hand and without any malice so a yellow card was probably the right decision. Everton managed to seal a point with only three points remaining; after a couple of good previous penalty claims turned down, they were finally awarded a penalty when Kevin Mirallas was fouled. Former Latic, Leighton Baines, stepped up and smashed the spot kick into the top corner.
West Brom 3-2 QPR: QPR remain without a win and rooted to the bottom of the table as their new look side still struggles to gel together and Mark Hughes continues to have never won at the Hawthornes. West Brom took the lead after just five minutes when a Shane Long cross was headed home by James Morrison. It was 2-0 on 22-minutes when Zoltan Gera finished from a loose ball that was poorly cleared by Anton Ferdinand who slipped. Abel Taarabt made it two goals in two games with a crisp chest and volley effort ten minutes before half-time. The hosts were 3-1 up with minutes to go when a crisp passing move was finished off by Youssouf Mulumbu from a Gonzalo Jara pull back. Esteban Granero made it 3-2 in injury time with sublime turn and floated finish into the top corner.
West Ham 1-3 Arsenal: Arsenal also had to come from behind to see of London rivals West Ham. the lead was taken after 21-minutes when Mohamed Diame made a great run before curling a fantastic shot around Vito Mannone from a tight angle, his first goal for West Ham. Arsenal did level four minutes before half-time when Olivier Giroud scored his first Premiership goal following a stab from a Lukas Podolski cross. It took Arsenal a while but they finally took the lead on 77-minutes when Theo Walcott slipped the ball past Jussi Jaaskelainen after being played through by Giroud. The win was sealed seven minutes from the end when Santi Cazorla fired a fantastic long range effort into the the corner.
Manchester City 3-0 Sunderland: In a battle of unbeaten sides, Sunderland were the team to lose with City remaining without defeat. It also became the first game where Steven Fletcher had a shot on target this season without scoring. City were ahead after five minutes when Aleksandar Kolarov fired in another free-kick past Simon Mignolet. City doubled their lead on the hour mark when Kolarov's low cross was directed in by the returning Sergio Aguero. The three points were wrapped up in the final minute when James Milner wrapped a free-kick into the goal.
Swansea 2-2 Reading: Swansea end a three game drought to come from behind and prevent Reading from winning their first game of the season. Reading took the lead just after the half hour mark when Pavel Pogrebnyak scored, although his shot somehow went through Michel Vorm after he parried the ball through his legs and into the net. It was 2-0 just before half-time when Noel Hunt volleyed home a deflected effort, Reading's second shot and second goal. Michu pulled a goal back with his fifth of the season when he headed a deflected cross home on 71-minutes. The hosts were then level seven minutes later when Wayne Routledge finished off a neat one-two with Luke Moore.
Chris Holder Is The World Champion
Australia's Chris Holder has emerged victorious to be crowned Speedway's 2012 World Champion. Holder began the night two points ahead of Nicky Pedersen and, after an altercation in a controversial semi-final, finished eight points ahead of the Dane. The former World Champion, Greg Hancock, finished 2012 in third place. But the night wasn't all about the happiness of crowning a new World Champion, the Grand Prix world had to say an emotional farewell to three time World Champion, Jason Crump, who has announced his retirement just before permanently passing the mantle to his protege.
With all the hype of Holder claiming the Championship in the semi-final, the final in Torun was almost forgotten about. The Australian had made it into the final and would have taken the chequered flag if it wasn't for his bike packing up. This allowed seventh placed Antonio Lindback to win his second Grand Prix this season. He managed to beat fourth placed Tomasz Gollob, who scored the most points on the night, and Hancock.
At the semi-final stage, Holder had a six point lead over Pedersen and they were due to meet in the second event. The preamble saw a false start before Gollob beat Hancock to claim the first two final places. Martin Vaculik continued his fantastic deputising year by finishing third with World U-21 Champion, Maciej Janowski, taking his wildcard entry by finishing fourth in the semi-final.
Then it was the showdown, Holder versus Pedersen (as well as Lindback and fifth placed Emil Sayfutdinov). To make it more dramatic, Holder lined up in gate one with Pedersen in gate two. The both roared from the tapes and the Dane looked to try and push Holder off of the track as they hit the first corner. Holder had to push back and hit a wet patch which jet propelled him around and straight into Pedersen. Pedersen then collected Lindback on his way down. The referee had a huge decision on his hands and decided, somewhat controversially, to have all four riders back for the restart. Unsurprisingly, Pedersen was less than thrilled with the result and decided to walk over to Holder to give his two pennies worth. It can't have been the nicest of words and it caused some members of Holder's entourage to start pushing Pedersen.
After the pair had been pulled apart, Crump pulled Holder to one side to give him words of encouragement. It looked to have done the job as he roared out to win the semi-final. Pedersen was pushed out by Lindback to only finish third and concede the Championship.
Before any of that, the rain in Poland caused a delay into the proceedings which just added to the tension. Once the meeting had finally got under way, Vaculik won the opening heat before Gollob began his night with a victory, Hancock came second and Pedersen could only manage third. Sayfutdinov took the third heat before Holder took full advantage by winning the fourth and extending his lead to four points, Crump began his final Grand Prix night with a second place.
Lindgren took heat five with Gollob finishing second. Holder continued doing what he had to do by making it two heats from two with Hancock kissing his chances of stealing the Championship away by only finishing fourth. Lindback took heat seven whilst Pedersen finished third, opening the gap to six points, with Crump fourth. Janowski showed more of what the next generation has to offer by becoming the latest Wildcard to win a heat.
Lindback then beat Hancock in heat nine to claim his second heat in a row. Jaroslaw Hampel continued his miserable year by packing up in heat ten with Gollob also taking his second heat of the night, Crump came third. Vaculik became the next to win two heats with Holder only managing third. This allowed Pedersen a sniff and he took by winning heat-12 to close the gap back to four points.
Heat-13 was the first showdown between Holder and Pedersen and the Australian beat the Dane to the chequered flag, to make the gap five points with Holder making it three heats out of four. Lindback followed suite with his third victory in heat-14. Emil Sayfutdinov false started in the next heat but all four were allowed to continue, Gollob would win the restart to also claim his third victory of the night. Hancock won the 16th heat with Crump claiming second.
Then it was the poignant moment of the night, heat-17 was Crump's final Grand Prix heat ever and unfortunately Sayfutdinov and Hans Andersen stood in his way to winning it, it was the Russian's second victory of the night. Chris Harris will be unlikely to receive a place in next season's series and if that is the case then he tuned out with a heat victory. Pedersen finished third and it was just enough to squeeze into the semi-finals. The final heat of the night was won by Gollob, claiming his fourth win in five.
So, after another dramatic and fantastic Grand Prix. Congratulations go out Chris Holder and our wishes go to Jason Crump for a happy retirement from the GP series. Here's the final Championship standings:
1.Chris Holder (Aus) 160
2.Nicky Pedersen (Den) 152
3.Greg Hancock (USA) 148
4.Tomasz Gollob (Pol) 142
5.Emil Sayfutdinov (Rus) 133
6.Jason Crump (Aus) 126
7.Antonio Lindback (Swe) 122
8.Freddie Lindgren (Swe) 119
9. Andreas Jonsson (Swe) 88 (Guaranteed place in next series due to Crump's retirement)
10.Hans Andersen (Den) 69
11.Martin Vaculik (Svk) 69
12.Chris Harris (Gbr) 67
13.Bjarne Pedersen (Den) 59
14.Jaroslaw Hampel (Pol) 58
15.Peter Ljung (Swe) 57
16.Kenneth Bjerre (Den) 41
With all the hype of Holder claiming the Championship in the semi-final, the final in Torun was almost forgotten about. The Australian had made it into the final and would have taken the chequered flag if it wasn't for his bike packing up. This allowed seventh placed Antonio Lindback to win his second Grand Prix this season. He managed to beat fourth placed Tomasz Gollob, who scored the most points on the night, and Hancock.
At the semi-final stage, Holder had a six point lead over Pedersen and they were due to meet in the second event. The preamble saw a false start before Gollob beat Hancock to claim the first two final places. Martin Vaculik continued his fantastic deputising year by finishing third with World U-21 Champion, Maciej Janowski, taking his wildcard entry by finishing fourth in the semi-final.
Then it was the showdown, Holder versus Pedersen (as well as Lindback and fifth placed Emil Sayfutdinov). To make it more dramatic, Holder lined up in gate one with Pedersen in gate two. The both roared from the tapes and the Dane looked to try and push Holder off of the track as they hit the first corner. Holder had to push back and hit a wet patch which jet propelled him around and straight into Pedersen. Pedersen then collected Lindback on his way down. The referee had a huge decision on his hands and decided, somewhat controversially, to have all four riders back for the restart. Unsurprisingly, Pedersen was less than thrilled with the result and decided to walk over to Holder to give his two pennies worth. It can't have been the nicest of words and it caused some members of Holder's entourage to start pushing Pedersen.
After the pair had been pulled apart, Crump pulled Holder to one side to give him words of encouragement. It looked to have done the job as he roared out to win the semi-final. Pedersen was pushed out by Lindback to only finish third and concede the Championship.
Before any of that, the rain in Poland caused a delay into the proceedings which just added to the tension. Once the meeting had finally got under way, Vaculik won the opening heat before Gollob began his night with a victory, Hancock came second and Pedersen could only manage third. Sayfutdinov took the third heat before Holder took full advantage by winning the fourth and extending his lead to four points, Crump began his final Grand Prix night with a second place.
Lindgren took heat five with Gollob finishing second. Holder continued doing what he had to do by making it two heats from two with Hancock kissing his chances of stealing the Championship away by only finishing fourth. Lindback took heat seven whilst Pedersen finished third, opening the gap to six points, with Crump fourth. Janowski showed more of what the next generation has to offer by becoming the latest Wildcard to win a heat.
Lindback then beat Hancock in heat nine to claim his second heat in a row. Jaroslaw Hampel continued his miserable year by packing up in heat ten with Gollob also taking his second heat of the night, Crump came third. Vaculik became the next to win two heats with Holder only managing third. This allowed Pedersen a sniff and he took by winning heat-12 to close the gap back to four points.
Heat-13 was the first showdown between Holder and Pedersen and the Australian beat the Dane to the chequered flag, to make the gap five points with Holder making it three heats out of four. Lindback followed suite with his third victory in heat-14. Emil Sayfutdinov false started in the next heat but all four were allowed to continue, Gollob would win the restart to also claim his third victory of the night. Hancock won the 16th heat with Crump claiming second.
Then it was the poignant moment of the night, heat-17 was Crump's final Grand Prix heat ever and unfortunately Sayfutdinov and Hans Andersen stood in his way to winning it, it was the Russian's second victory of the night. Chris Harris will be unlikely to receive a place in next season's series and if that is the case then he tuned out with a heat victory. Pedersen finished third and it was just enough to squeeze into the semi-finals. The final heat of the night was won by Gollob, claiming his fourth win in five.
So, after another dramatic and fantastic Grand Prix. Congratulations go out Chris Holder and our wishes go to Jason Crump for a happy retirement from the GP series. Here's the final Championship standings:
1.Chris Holder (Aus) 160
2.Nicky Pedersen (Den) 152
3.Greg Hancock (USA) 148
4.Tomasz Gollob (Pol) 142
5.Emil Sayfutdinov (Rus) 133
6.Jason Crump (Aus) 126
7.Antonio Lindback (Swe) 122
8.Freddie Lindgren (Swe) 119
9. Andreas Jonsson (Swe) 88 (Guaranteed place in next series due to Crump's retirement)
10.Hans Andersen (Den) 69
11.Martin Vaculik (Svk) 69
12.Chris Harris (Gbr) 67
13.Bjarne Pedersen (Den) 59
14.Jaroslaw Hampel (Pol) 58
15.Peter Ljung (Swe) 57
16.Kenneth Bjerre (Den) 41
Red Bull Roar Back With Vettel's Fourth Successive Pole
Sebastian Vettel will be on Pole in Suzuka for the fourth time in a row. After recent disappointing performances, Red Bull stormed back into form by locking out the front row, with Mark Webber behind his German team-mate. The stable McLaren, Jenson Button, was clearly undeterred by Lewis Hamilton's decision to move to Mercedes next season as he made his way to third on the grid.
Kamui Kobayashi wowed his home fans and will hope to build from his fourth place start in tomorrow's race. Romain Grosjean sits fifth in the middle of a Sauber sandwich, Sergio Perez continues to prove why McLaren have chosen him for next season in replace of Hamilton by getting sixth.
Fernando Alonso had another quiet qualifying session but will no doubt get another notorious good start to push further than seventh. Kimi Raikkonen made it to eighth with Hamilton, maybe a little buoyed by his news statement, having to start in ninth. Nico Hulkenberg was the final driver to make it into Q3 but decided not to set a time and therefore begins tenth.
Felipe Massa just missed out on Q3 in 11th with Paul Di Resta, a little disappointed a not getting a look in at McLaren, starts 12th. Michael Schumacher struggled to get into Q2 in his first session since re-announcing his retirement but he did get to 13th, however his ten place grid penalty following his crash in Singapore means he starts on the back row.
This means that Pastor Maldonado gets pushed up into 13th with the other Mercedes driver, Nico Rosberg, 14th. Daniel Ricciardo also gets pushed up to 15th. The drama in Q1 saw Bruno Senna miss out but this was due to him being blocked by Jean-Eric Vergne. The Toro Rosso took his place in Q2 but received a three place grid penalty, meaning he starts 19th. Senna will now start in 16th with Heikki Kovalainen taking the other 'Q2' place.
Timo Glock becomes the best of the rest in 18th ahead of Vergne. Pedro De La Rosa made a good qualifying time to finish ahead of most of his nearest rivals and will start 20th. Pic is in 21st with Vitaly Petrov, who initially qualified in 23rd place, will now start 22nd. Unsurprisingly, Narain Karthikeyan partners Schumacher on the back row.
Kamui Kobayashi wowed his home fans and will hope to build from his fourth place start in tomorrow's race. Romain Grosjean sits fifth in the middle of a Sauber sandwich, Sergio Perez continues to prove why McLaren have chosen him for next season in replace of Hamilton by getting sixth.
Fernando Alonso had another quiet qualifying session but will no doubt get another notorious good start to push further than seventh. Kimi Raikkonen made it to eighth with Hamilton, maybe a little buoyed by his news statement, having to start in ninth. Nico Hulkenberg was the final driver to make it into Q3 but decided not to set a time and therefore begins tenth.
Felipe Massa just missed out on Q3 in 11th with Paul Di Resta, a little disappointed a not getting a look in at McLaren, starts 12th. Michael Schumacher struggled to get into Q2 in his first session since re-announcing his retirement but he did get to 13th, however his ten place grid penalty following his crash in Singapore means he starts on the back row.
This means that Pastor Maldonado gets pushed up into 13th with the other Mercedes driver, Nico Rosberg, 14th. Daniel Ricciardo also gets pushed up to 15th. The drama in Q1 saw Bruno Senna miss out but this was due to him being blocked by Jean-Eric Vergne. The Toro Rosso took his place in Q2 but received a three place grid penalty, meaning he starts 19th. Senna will now start in 16th with Heikki Kovalainen taking the other 'Q2' place.
Timo Glock becomes the best of the rest in 18th ahead of Vergne. Pedro De La Rosa made a good qualifying time to finish ahead of most of his nearest rivals and will start 20th. Pic is in 21st with Vitaly Petrov, who initially qualified in 23rd place, will now start 22nd. Unsurprisingly, Narain Karthikeyan partners Schumacher on the back row.
Wednesday, 3 October 2012
Arsenal Make It Two Out Of Two, City Come Away With Penalty Point
Group A: Kyiv win the battle of Dynamos to get their first points of the campaign. They were at home to Dinamo Zagreb and broke the deadlock after just three minutes courtesy of Oleh Gusev. The points were wrapped up 11-minutes before half-time when Josip Pivaric inadvertently put the ball in his home net, leaving Zagreb searching for their first points this season.
FC Porto are the ones to make it two wins from two in this group after beating PSG in Portugal. James Rodriguez scored the only goal of the game seven minutes from time to take the three points.
Group B: Arsenal had a relatively comfortable win over Olympiacos in the Emirates. Gervinho's fine goalscoring form continued when he opened the scoring three minutes before half-time, his second in the competition. Arsenal were given a fight and the Greek side did manage to equalise in first half injury time through Konstantinos Mitroglu. Lukas Podolski also managed to score his second goal of the competition to give Arsenal the lead again 11-minutes after the restart. The result was finalised when Aaron Ramsey scored their third in injury time. Olympiacos are still without a point from their opening two games.
10-Man Montpellier recovered from their defeat to Arsenal to earn a point away to Schalke in injury time. Karim Ait-Fana managed to give the French side the lead after 13-minutes. Julian Draxler then became the youngest German to score in European competition by equalising on 26-minutes. Montpellier went down to 10-men when Garry Bocaly was sent off, Klaas Jan Huntelaar converted the following penalty to make it 2-1 after 53-minutes, the Dutchman's second goal of the tournament. But the depleted side dug deep and managed to find an equaliser in stoppage time through Souleymane Camara. Schalke move to four points with Montpellier on one.
Group C: Milan came back from their shock draw against Anderlecht to just see of Zenit in Russia. Urby Emanuelson put the visitors ahead after 13-minutes before Stephan El Shaarawy made it 2-0 three minutes later, becoming the youngest player to score for Milan in European competition. Zenit fought back with Hulk scoring his first goal for the Russians in first half injury time and Roman Shirokov levelled the match four minutes into the second half. The winner came on 76-minutes when Tomas Hubocan put the ball in his own net, keeping Zenit without a point from their two games.
Malaga keep up their impressive debut tournament by making it two wins from two. Eliseu gave Malaga the lead against Anderlecht in first half injury time. Joaquin made it 2-0 with a penalty 12-minutes into the second half before Eliseu wrapped it up with his second on 64-minutes. Anderlecht remain on the point the got from the San Siro.
Group D: In a game with so many chances, it was quite hard to see Manchester City and Borussia Dortmund only scoring a goal apiece. It was due to two fantastic goalkeeping performances from Joe Hart and Roman Weidenfeller. It took until 62-minutes before the deadlock was finally broken when Jack Rodwell played a poor pass that was easily intercepted by Marco Reus before he ran on to score. City managed to steal a point in injury time when a penalty was given for handball, the hand was out but the ball was struck from a short distance. Substitute Mario Balotelli stepped up and converted to give City their first point of the competition. Dortmund move to four.
Cristiano Ronaldo moves onto 158 goals in 154 games for Real Madrid following a hat-trick over Ajax in the Amsterdam Arena. Ronaldo opened the scoring three minutes before half-time with Karim Benzema then making it 2-0 three minutes after the restart. Niklas Moisander pulled one back on 56-minutes before the Portuguese made it 3-1 11-minutes from time. Ronaldo then got his third, his fourth in the tournament already, two minutes later to make it two wins in two for the Spaniards. Ajax are still without a point.
FC Porto are the ones to make it two wins from two in this group after beating PSG in Portugal. James Rodriguez scored the only goal of the game seven minutes from time to take the three points.
Group B: Arsenal had a relatively comfortable win over Olympiacos in the Emirates. Gervinho's fine goalscoring form continued when he opened the scoring three minutes before half-time, his second in the competition. Arsenal were given a fight and the Greek side did manage to equalise in first half injury time through Konstantinos Mitroglu. Lukas Podolski also managed to score his second goal of the competition to give Arsenal the lead again 11-minutes after the restart. The result was finalised when Aaron Ramsey scored their third in injury time. Olympiacos are still without a point from their opening two games.
10-Man Montpellier recovered from their defeat to Arsenal to earn a point away to Schalke in injury time. Karim Ait-Fana managed to give the French side the lead after 13-minutes. Julian Draxler then became the youngest German to score in European competition by equalising on 26-minutes. Montpellier went down to 10-men when Garry Bocaly was sent off, Klaas Jan Huntelaar converted the following penalty to make it 2-1 after 53-minutes, the Dutchman's second goal of the tournament. But the depleted side dug deep and managed to find an equaliser in stoppage time through Souleymane Camara. Schalke move to four points with Montpellier on one.
Group C: Milan came back from their shock draw against Anderlecht to just see of Zenit in Russia. Urby Emanuelson put the visitors ahead after 13-minutes before Stephan El Shaarawy made it 2-0 three minutes later, becoming the youngest player to score for Milan in European competition. Zenit fought back with Hulk scoring his first goal for the Russians in first half injury time and Roman Shirokov levelled the match four minutes into the second half. The winner came on 76-minutes when Tomas Hubocan put the ball in his own net, keeping Zenit without a point from their two games.
Malaga keep up their impressive debut tournament by making it two wins from two. Eliseu gave Malaga the lead against Anderlecht in first half injury time. Joaquin made it 2-0 with a penalty 12-minutes into the second half before Eliseu wrapped it up with his second on 64-minutes. Anderlecht remain on the point the got from the San Siro.
Group D: In a game with so many chances, it was quite hard to see Manchester City and Borussia Dortmund only scoring a goal apiece. It was due to two fantastic goalkeeping performances from Joe Hart and Roman Weidenfeller. It took until 62-minutes before the deadlock was finally broken when Jack Rodwell played a poor pass that was easily intercepted by Marco Reus before he ran on to score. City managed to steal a point in injury time when a penalty was given for handball, the hand was out but the ball was struck from a short distance. Substitute Mario Balotelli stepped up and converted to give City their first point of the competition. Dortmund move to four.
Cristiano Ronaldo moves onto 158 goals in 154 games for Real Madrid following a hat-trick over Ajax in the Amsterdam Arena. Ronaldo opened the scoring three minutes before half-time with Karim Benzema then making it 2-0 three minutes after the restart. Niklas Moisander pulled one back on 56-minutes before the Portuguese made it 3-1 11-minutes from time. Ronaldo then got his third, his fourth in the tournament already, two minutes later to make it two wins in two for the Spaniards. Ajax are still without a point.
Tuesday, 2 October 2012
Chelsea Coast, Van's The Man and Celtic Win
Group E: Chelsea make it two out of two away to minnows Nordsjaelland. Juan Mata broke the deadlock on 33-minutes to give the visitors a half-time lead. David Luiz doubled their lead 11-minutes before the end with Mata scoring his second three minutes later. Ramires then ended the rout in the final minute to keep Nordsjaelland looking, for what could be a while, for a Champions League point.
A slight surprise of the night was possibly Juventus drawing at home to Shakhtar Donetsk. Alex Teixeira put the Ukrainians ahead on 23-minutes. But their lead lasted for two minutes before Leonardo Bonucci equalised to earn Juventus' second point in two games, Shakhtar have four.
Group F: The shock of the night came from Bulgaria where BATE Borisov made it two wins from two with victory over Bayern Munich. Aleksandr Pavlov opened the scoring with Vitali Radionov scoring his second goal of the competition on 78-minutes. Franck Ribery did pull one back in the first minutes of injury time before Renan Bressan made it 3-1 four minutes later, meaning that the hosts have scored three goals in both games. Bayern remain on three points.
Valencia recovered from their defeat to BATE with victory over Lille in the Mestalla. Jonas was on target twice, firstly seven minutes before half-time and then on 74-minutes. It got worse for Lille when Mathieu Debuchy was sent off four minutes from time. Lille remain without a point after their first two games and now face Bayern twice.
Group G: Celtic make it four points out of six before their two games against Barcelona. Gary Hooper put the Scots ahead against Spartak Moscow in Russia after 12-minutes. Emmanuel Emenike equalised for the hosts four minutes before half-time before then giving them the lead three minutes after the restart. Juan Manuel Insaurralde was then sent off on 63-minutes and Celtic took full advantage. The visitors equalised eight minutes later when Dmitri Kombarov scored an own goal. Georgios Samaras then won the game in injury time to put them in good stead for Barcelona, Spartak somehow remain pointless after leading in both games before losing 3-2.
Barcelona make it two wins from two with a rather comfortable win over Benfica in Portugal. Alexis Sanchez put the visitors ahead after just six minutes. Cesc Fabregas made it 2-0 ten minutes into the second half before Sergio Busquets was sent off in the final minute. Benfica remain with a single point.
Group H: Manchester United also have six points from a possible six with a win in Romania over Cluj. The Romanians did actually take the lead when Pantelis Kapetanos broke the deadlock after 14-minutes. Their lead lasted for only 15-minutes before Robin Van Persie levelled the game with his shoulder just before the half hour mark. The Dutchman then won the game four minutes into the second half with a deft flick from a fantastic Wayne Rooney chipped through ball. Cluj remain on three points.
Galatasaray remain without a point after losing at home to Braga. Loan signing Ruben Micael gave the visitors the lead on 27-minutes. The win was then sealed in second half injury time through Alan, giving Braga their first points of the competition before their two games against United.
A slight surprise of the night was possibly Juventus drawing at home to Shakhtar Donetsk. Alex Teixeira put the Ukrainians ahead on 23-minutes. But their lead lasted for two minutes before Leonardo Bonucci equalised to earn Juventus' second point in two games, Shakhtar have four.
Group F: The shock of the night came from Bulgaria where BATE Borisov made it two wins from two with victory over Bayern Munich. Aleksandr Pavlov opened the scoring with Vitali Radionov scoring his second goal of the competition on 78-minutes. Franck Ribery did pull one back in the first minutes of injury time before Renan Bressan made it 3-1 four minutes later, meaning that the hosts have scored three goals in both games. Bayern remain on three points.
Valencia recovered from their defeat to BATE with victory over Lille in the Mestalla. Jonas was on target twice, firstly seven minutes before half-time and then on 74-minutes. It got worse for Lille when Mathieu Debuchy was sent off four minutes from time. Lille remain without a point after their first two games and now face Bayern twice.
Group G: Celtic make it four points out of six before their two games against Barcelona. Gary Hooper put the Scots ahead against Spartak Moscow in Russia after 12-minutes. Emmanuel Emenike equalised for the hosts four minutes before half-time before then giving them the lead three minutes after the restart. Juan Manuel Insaurralde was then sent off on 63-minutes and Celtic took full advantage. The visitors equalised eight minutes later when Dmitri Kombarov scored an own goal. Georgios Samaras then won the game in injury time to put them in good stead for Barcelona, Spartak somehow remain pointless after leading in both games before losing 3-2.
Barcelona make it two wins from two with a rather comfortable win over Benfica in Portugal. Alexis Sanchez put the visitors ahead after just six minutes. Cesc Fabregas made it 2-0 ten minutes into the second half before Sergio Busquets was sent off in the final minute. Benfica remain with a single point.
Group H: Manchester United also have six points from a possible six with a win in Romania over Cluj. The Romanians did actually take the lead when Pantelis Kapetanos broke the deadlock after 14-minutes. Their lead lasted for only 15-minutes before Robin Van Persie levelled the game with his shoulder just before the half hour mark. The Dutchman then won the game four minutes into the second half with a deft flick from a fantastic Wayne Rooney chipped through ball. Cluj remain on three points.
Galatasaray remain without a point after losing at home to Braga. Loan signing Ruben Micael gave the visitors the lead on 27-minutes. The win was then sealed in second half injury time through Alan, giving Braga their first points of the competition before their two games against United.
Monday, 1 October 2012
Midlands Derby Draw, Hammers Win London Derby
Two derbies were the last offerings of this week's Barclay's Premier League. Super Sunday was reduced to just the one game as Aston Villa entertained West Brom with Monday Night Football coming from Loftus Road where QPR faced West Ham.
Those at Villa Park had to endure a goalless first half. The Villa fans may have took some solace from the fact they were the better side throughout the half. Brett Holman was arguably the player of the first half and he pulled out a shot that had to be saved by Ben Foster.
West Brom out with more fight in them in the second half and the contest began to look more even. Perhaps it was a slight surprise when the visitors took the lead just six minutes after the restart. James Morrison powered his way down the line before firing a low cross into the box. Ron Vlaar tried to clear it but the attempt was hit straight at Shane Long and the ball went into the net.
The game began to get more open as both teams began looking for a goal for different reasons. Villa didn't deserve to lose the game by any means and got their equaliser ten minutes from the end; a scrambled corner saw the ball fall to Darren Bent who shot home. Either team could have then gone on to score a winner with substitute Romelu Lukaku being dangerous for West Brom and Bent likewise for Villa, but the sides saw each other out to claim a hard fought point.
It would end up being a mixed game for West Ham who managed to see off ten man QPR. The visitors would obviously be happy with the three points but maybe disappointed that they will be facing a hefty fine for receiving eight yellow cards.
West Ham got off the best possible start when Kevin Nolan crossed a ball in for Matthew Jarvis to head home after just three minutes. From there, both sides looked dangerous but it would be the Hammers who extended their lead ten minutes before half-time. QPR tried clearing a corner that ended up falling to Ricardo Vaz Te, his shot was fortunately let in by Julio Cesar who won't be pleased with his effort.
A double substitution ten minutes into the second half saw Adel Taarabt and Samba Diakite come on and have varied matches. It took just two minutes before Taarabt received the ball on the wing and began to make inroads, he then unleashed a shot that found the top corner to pull a goal back. But any chances of QPR completing the fight back were hampered when Diakite managed to receive a second yellow card on 75-minutes, 20-minutes after coming. The result leaves QPR rooted to the bottom of the league and still without a win while West Ham climb above Arsenal into ninth.
Those at Villa Park had to endure a goalless first half. The Villa fans may have took some solace from the fact they were the better side throughout the half. Brett Holman was arguably the player of the first half and he pulled out a shot that had to be saved by Ben Foster.
West Brom out with more fight in them in the second half and the contest began to look more even. Perhaps it was a slight surprise when the visitors took the lead just six minutes after the restart. James Morrison powered his way down the line before firing a low cross into the box. Ron Vlaar tried to clear it but the attempt was hit straight at Shane Long and the ball went into the net.
The game began to get more open as both teams began looking for a goal for different reasons. Villa didn't deserve to lose the game by any means and got their equaliser ten minutes from the end; a scrambled corner saw the ball fall to Darren Bent who shot home. Either team could have then gone on to score a winner with substitute Romelu Lukaku being dangerous for West Brom and Bent likewise for Villa, but the sides saw each other out to claim a hard fought point.
It would end up being a mixed game for West Ham who managed to see off ten man QPR. The visitors would obviously be happy with the three points but maybe disappointed that they will be facing a hefty fine for receiving eight yellow cards.
West Ham got off the best possible start when Kevin Nolan crossed a ball in for Matthew Jarvis to head home after just three minutes. From there, both sides looked dangerous but it would be the Hammers who extended their lead ten minutes before half-time. QPR tried clearing a corner that ended up falling to Ricardo Vaz Te, his shot was fortunately let in by Julio Cesar who won't be pleased with his effort.
A double substitution ten minutes into the second half saw Adel Taarabt and Samba Diakite come on and have varied matches. It took just two minutes before Taarabt received the ball on the wing and began to make inroads, he then unleashed a shot that found the top corner to pull a goal back. But any chances of QPR completing the fight back were hampered when Diakite managed to receive a second yellow card on 75-minutes, 20-minutes after coming. The result leaves QPR rooted to the bottom of the league and still without a win while West Ham climb above Arsenal into ninth.
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