..::Football II::..

[Wolverine GTR]

Augsburg 0-2 Bayern Munich: Muller and Gomez send FCB further clear

Bayern Munich ran out 2-0 winners against basement side Ausburg in the Bavaria derby.

Goals from Thomas Muller and Mario Gomez wrapped up the win, which sees Jupp Heynckes' side remain top of the Bundesliga pile.

The home side caused early problems and inside the five minute mark, Dante was forced into making a goal-saving intervention, stopping Sascha Molders from tapping home a near post cross. Knowledge Musona then tested Manuel Neuer minutes later, but his well-struck effort was collected impressively by German keeper.

After 24 minutes Bayern sprang into life, and Mario Mandzukic had Augsburg's Mohamed Amsif scrambling to his right, as the Croatian's scuffed strike trickled past the post. Seconds later, Franck Ribery whipped in a front post cross, but despite good movement from Mandzukic, the lone striker directed his effort straight at the opposition keeper.

In spite of their early resilience, Gibril Sankoh undid all of his side's work literally single-handledly on 39 minutes, handling the ball inside the penalty area, giving Bayern the chance to take the lead from the penalty spot. Thomas Muller coolly sent Amsif the wrong way, to convert his ninth goal of the Bundesliga season.

A minute before the break, Molders had a magnificent chance to level the scoreline, but the Ausburg forward headed way over the bar from a Tobias Werner cross, allowing Bayern a halftime lead.

The second half began similarly to the first half, as Augsburg pushed on, but its pressing didn't come to any fruition, as Bayern appeared happy to let the home side retain the ball.

In the 61st minute, the misfiring Mandzukic was replaced by Mario Gomez. The Germany international made an immediate impact, scoring merely two minutes later. After being slipped through on goal by Ribery, Gomez curled a great finish inside Amsif's front post to put Bayern firmly in control.

With 15 minutes left to play, Bastian Schweinsteiger had to be denied brilliantly by Amsif. The Moroccan keeper threw out a strong right boot to divert the Bayern midfielder's goal-bound effort away from his net, which surely would have been the deciding goal.

The Bundesliga's bottom side put in a plucky performance, with the 2-0 scoreline somewhat flattering Bayern, as Markus Weinzierls' side extends its winless run to seven matches.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Borussia Dortmund 2-3 Wolfsburg: Brilliant Diego upsets 10-man BVB

Wolfsburg defeated Borussia Dortmund 2-3 during an engaging Bundesliga encounter at Westfalenstadion.

An early lead for the German champions thanks to a brilliantly executed corner by Reus was soon cancelled out by a controversial Diego penalty, following by the turnaround of the match due to a stunning volley by Brazilian Naldo.

Dortmund was awarded a penalty in the middle of the second half, which Kuba was able to turn into the equalizer. However, it was again Diego who initiated an attack for the away side, delivering a ball through the middle for Dost, who netted in for the final result.

When the match started, the Bundesliga title holders applied their notoriously ferocious pressing game from the first second, and were eager to show die Wolfe who has the upper hand on home soil.

And this approach proved to pay early on in the game for the hosts, when Reus delivered a fine corner towards main target man Lewandowski from the left, however, it was the spin of the former Borussia Monchengladbach man's corner which awkwardly saw the ball moving past a stunned Benaglio.

In the 10th minute, BVB followed up with another great chance, when Kuba sent a powerful strike towards the box from about 20 yards out, but the attempt was blocked by Naldo. A follow-up by Lewandowski was then cleared by Kjaer.

Meanwhile, the visitors were constantly trying to press Dortmund into making passing errors, which, due to the champions' strong midfield, rarely occurred, but their opportunity was just around the corner.

Wolfsburg was finally able to leave its first mark on the match with a slotted-in penalty by Diego in the 36th minute, following a controversial handball decision by referee Wolfgang Start against Schmelzer, who cleared the ball on the line with his knee.

Although the hands were unnecessarily moving towards the ball, they were not touching it, making for an ultimately undeserved sent-off for the 24-year-old.

Just five minutes later, Wolfsburg made use of its momentum and turned the match around, when Diego found his teammate Naldo with an indirect free-kick from the right. The former Werder Bremen man did not play around and brilliantly volleyed the ball into the box from the edge of the penalty area, securing the 2-1 lead on the stroke of halftime.

The game started slow in the second half, until another penalty was given in the 60th minute. Denmark defender Kjaer pushed Lewandowski over, and Kuba did not hesitate, converting it into the equalizer.

However, hopes did not last long. In the 73th minute, it was yet again Diego who drove the away side into taking the lead again. A counter run by the on-form Brazilian ended in an accurate through-ball to Dost, who then shot the ball past Weidenfeller into the right hand corner.

Dortmund is now looking to recover from the loss and prepare for its trip to Hoffenheim on Dec. 16, while Wolfsburg was able to further strengthen its relegation-zone padding.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Hazard: It was sad when Chelsea sacked Di Matteo

Chelsea winger Eden Hazard has stated that he was sad to see Roberto Di Matteo leave the club but says it is a natural thing in football, and he and his team-mates must move on.

The Italian manager won the FA Cup and Champions League double last season, but was sacked following a poor run of form that culminated in a 3-0 loss to Juventus.

Hazard says it is never easy to see a boss go, especially when that manager brought him to the club, but added that they must focus on getting on with their jobs.

"Look, I knew before I came here where I was 'putting my feet' and the sort of club I was coming to," Hazard told the Independent. "I knew that Chelsea was a club that changed its manager reasonably often.

He added, "Obviously I didn't intend it to be that quick because Di Matteo was the person who signed me and I was looking forward to a relationship and working with him for some time. But I don't have any regrets.

"We have a new manager now and again it is about stressing we must try to get as high as we can up the table, go as far as we can in the cups, play well and win as many trophies as we can.

Di Matteo's firing is the first time that Hazard experienced a manager change and he admits at times he wonders if there was anything he could have done differently to save the Italian's job.

"I think it's the first time it has happened to me in my career when a manager has gone. It's never easy. It's something that is part of football life. We have to put our disappointment to one side. Although I was sorry because he was the manager who signed me," Hazard remarked.

"You think 'Oh if that chance had gone in, or if I had not scuffed that shot, he might have still been in a job'. So you do feel that responsibility but you have to check yourself and say 'This is football'. And it is a case of starting from zero and getting on with things."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

QPR boss Harry Redknapp eyes MLS loan deals

QPR boss Harry Redknapp says he could look to the MLS in the January transfer window.

However, the 65-year-old may have a limited budget at his disposal after Tony Fernandes already invested large sums in former manager Mark Hughes' underachieving squad over the summer.

Redknapp will look at loan deals for MLS stars keen to return to England during the American off-season. Former Everton stars Tim Cahill and Landon Donovan are among those mentioned, but former Spurs striker Robbie Keane is top of the QPR manager's list.

"The MLS market is one that we've got to look at," Redknapp told Sky Sports. "Robbie's a good shout. He probably would be an interesting player."

He added, "I haven't spoken to him yet, no, but he would be an interesting player. He's a good pro and he would be the ideal type to have around for sure because he would give us something."

Another former Spurs man who could be available is David Bentley. His loan deal at Russian side FC Rostov ends in January.

"Bentley's a good player," Redknapp added. "It shows that he must have wanted to play football to go to Russia so credit to him.

"He could have stayed and took his money but he's gone out to Russia. Dave's a good footballer - I haven't had problems with him."

The west London outfit is still without a win this season and is rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Robin van Persie has no regrets after choosing United over City

Robin van Persie believes he made the right move in choosing Manchester United over Manchester City last summer.

The 29-year-old has found the back of the net 13 times since his summer switch from Arsenal and says he has no regrets after turning down an approach from Manchester City.

The Dutchman will lead United's attack at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday but doesn't expect a hostile reception from the City supporters after rejecting a move to the champions.

"Not really," he replied to reporters when asked if he expected a hostile reception. "I made my mind up very quickly and I am coming into work with a big smile on my face every day. It is not really work, it is my hobby. I love football but everyone has been so nice to me and I have been having the time of my life here.

He added, "So I don't regret that, but of course in a derby you have lots of people involved – fans and players – everyone is really committed and wants their team to win and we will do all we can to win this game."

Van Persie has experienced big derby matchups in north London and during his time with Feyenoord, but Sunday will be the Dutchman's first experience of the Manchester derby.

"Yeah, it's a big one straight away and I am looking forward to it because it's No.1 versus No.2 at the moment and hopefully we can stretch it [United's advantage]," he stated.
"The Premier League over the last couple of years has been exciting, lots of big scorers, peculiar scores, so we will see what happens this time."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Ancelotti: I want PSG to meet AC Milan in Champions League final

Carlo Ancelotti has revealed that he would enjoy leading Paris Saint-Germain to a Champions League final against AC Milan.

The 53-year-old stated that he is unhappy with PSG's form domestically, but is confident that his position at the club is secure.

"I'd like to play against AC Milan in the Champions League final, not in the next round," Ancelotti is quoted as saying by La Gazzetta dello Sport."This project is ambitious, PSG have history behind them and it would be amazing for me to help them win something."

He added, "However, I'm not happy with the way the season is going [in Ligue 1] and neither are the club owners, although they did reassure me.

"There are so many expectations around PSG and consequently rumors too, but rumors do not always point to the truth.

"I have a strong rapport with Leonardo and never feared I would be sacked. We've lacked group spirit so far, but that's normal considering there are 15 new players," he insisted

The Parisiens showed their spending power in the summer when they captured the signatures of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva, but insisted that there will be no big transfers in January.

"There will be no further arrivals in January other than Lucas Moura," Ancelotti said.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Brendan Rodgers gets hands-on with Sterling's contract negotiations to finalize the deal

Brendan Rodgers has intervened in contract negotiations between the club and Raheem Sterling, as Liverpool looks to finalize the deal as quickly as possible.

The former Swansea manager has revealed that he has taken a more hands-on approach with the negotiations to ensure that Sterling's development rather than money will be at the forefront of the issues discussed.

Rodgers admitted that he has held personal talks with Sterling detailing a plan which will help the winger progress under the watchful eye of the Liverpool team.

“I’ve talked at length to Raheem and gone through what I’d call the core elements of his ­development." Rodgers told The Mirror: “First and foremost, there’s the commitment from us as a club to him, and, likewise, from him to us.

He added,“Then, after that, we’ve talked about the plan and the development, going forwards over this period of time. It’s then his responsibility to deliver. Because he’ll have all the tools here at Liverpool Football Club – one of the top football clubs in the world – in order to progress.

“So there’s a plan in place for him – there’s a commitment there – and he’s a real good kid.

Rodgers stated his belief in pin-pointing the expectations of the player, before criticizing the long-term contracts which younger players are receiving and blaming such deals for extinguishing their "hunger".

“I have taken a more hands-on approach with Raheem, and I always try to with the younger players, but for me a lot of this is about common sense," Rodgers explained.

He added, “I don’t want the club or the kid being affected by over-the-odds demands. I think there’s a value I see in a young player that hasn’t achieved anything. All the figures that get bandied about for kids these days, and it can destroy them."

“It’s gone wrong because you’ve given him a four-year deal – you take away his hunger. So it’s about using common sense rather than going over the top.”

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Friedel: I'm happy at Tottenham

Brad Friedel has rejected reports linking him with a return to Blackburn Rovers, insisting that he is happy at Tottenham, despite losing his Premier League starting position to summer signing Hugo Lloris.


The France international joined Andre Villas-Boas' side on deadline day, and after months of criticism from France manager Didier Deschamps, Lloris finally edged Friedel as the manager's number one choice.

But despite his status as 'second-choice', Friedel has insisted that he is focused on Tottenham, where he enjoys competing for the starting position with Lloris.

"I’m contracted to Tottenham and I’m concentrating on Tottenham. Whatever role they throw at me I’ll do it to the best of my capabilities," Friedel told reporters.

He added, "There’s no rivalry with Hugo. At every club, for 21 seasons, there’s competition for places. As I said before when I signed the two-year contract I figured I would play last year, this year was an unknown.

"The club have been on the look-out for a long-term goalkeeper for a couple of years. We also have two other outstanding goalkeepers at the club in Heurelho Gomes and Carlo Cudicini.

Friedel explained that all of the competition that he's faced during his career has pushed him pointing to his longevity.

"Do I thrive on competition? Absolutely. Or else I wouldn’t be playing football, and definitely not at the age of 41," he insisted.Asked if he will leave White Hart Lane in January, Friedel responded: "That’s all hypothetical. I’m at Tottenham and I’m very happy here."

Friedel joined the club on a free transfer in 2011, and continued to build up his impressive statistic of consecutive Premier League games under Harry Redknapp.
However, his run of 310 games came to an end when Lloris started against Aston Villa, meaning the 41-year-old missed his first Premier League game in over eight years.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Lionel Messi makes Barcelona squad for trip to face Betis

Tito Vilanova has stated that Lionel Messi has recovered from his injury and will be travelling with the Barcelona team to Betis.

The Argentina star picked up a knock midweek after coming on as a substitute against Benfica, and initially was a doubt for the game, but his coach has insisted that the forward will be fit to play.

"If there was even the smallest risk then Messi would not travel with the rest of the team," Vilanova told a press conference.

"This means he has recovered and ready to play. However, we will assess his condition tomorrow [Sunday] and then decide whether he can play 90 minutes or not."

The Barca coach then went on to highlight how Betis is always a problem side, and also hinted that Alexis Sanchez could be close to returning.

He added: "Betis and Pepe Mel cause us problems every season.

"As for Alexis [Sanchez], he has recovered faster than we thought and he is doing well physically. He just needs to get some playing time to get him up to full match fitness."

Barcelona travels to the Estadio Benito Villamarin on Sunday for a game scheduled to kick off at 3:00 p.m. ET.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Hulk: I have resolved my differences with Zenit

Hulk has made it clear that his differences with Zenit St Petersburg have been put to bed, and he is now focused on helping the team defend its Russian Premier League title.

The former Porto striker has struggled to justify his 40 million-euro transfer fee, which the Russian champions shelled out to bring him to the club in the summer, and he recently revealed that he was considering his future after a bust-up with coach Luciano Spalletti.

His perceived unhappiness was highlighted when he was substituted in the 1-0 UEFA Champions League victory over AC Milan on Tuesday -- the latest in a series of times being substituted -- but following clear-the-air talks between the manager and the Brazilian, cooler heads seemed to have prevailed.

"Everything is resolved," Hulk told reporters. "I talked with the coach and the board, and we were transparent with each other. I had never been replaced three times in a row before, but now everything is clear. I'm focused on the goal of winning the Russian title with Zenit."

Zenit is currently third in the Premier League, three points behind Anzhi Makhachkala, and the teams will face off on Monday.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

'Scolari is the perfect choice for Brazil' - Juninho

Juninho Paulista backed his former coach Luiz Felipe Scolari to lead the Selecao back to glory at the 2014 World Cup that will be held in Brazil.The 39-year-old Juninho won the prestigious trophy 10 years ago under Scolari and believes that he has all the credentials to be successful again.



"Scolari is the perfect choice to manage Brazil. The national team is not as good as it was before. He and [Carlos Alberto] Parreira are brilliant coaches.

He has already won the World Cup once and I’m sure he would turn the team around,” Juninho told Goal.com."Whenever the national team plays, there is a lot of pressure on the players. Now that the World Cup is at home, there is even more pressure on the players. So it will be difficult for them."

The former Middlesbrough player also stated that Lionel Messi is the front-runner to win the FIFA Ballon d'Or award but reminded the fans not to forget the importance of his teammates at Barcelona.

“Messi is the best player in the world now, and he can easily win a fourth Ballon d’Or; however, you must also remember the immense contribution in his effectiveness by the likes of Xavi, [Andres] Iniesta and his other Barcelona teammates."

Juninho further mentioned that the Brazilians would give a warm welcome to the Argentine at the World Cup except when he comes up against the Selecao.

"Brazilian people like ball players and goal scorers," Juninho said. "If he [Lionel Messi] plays well, which he should, he will obviously be liked. However he will be less liked when he comes up against our national team!"

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Van Persie promises Manchester United fans the best is yet to come

Despite a seamless integration into the Manchester United first team after his move from Arsenal, Robin van Persie has promised fans that the best is still to come from him as he targets more goals and assists.


The Netherlands international has bagged 13 goals in his first 19 appearances for Sir Alex Ferguson's side so far this season and is the joint top-scorer in the Premier League with 10, but he admits he is not satisfied yet. The 29-year-old van Persie insists he is enjoying his time at Old Trafford, admitting that it helps to feel wanted and he plans to show the fans just what he is capable of over the coming months.

"When you are wanted by everyone it gives you wings. I am happy here and everyone looks very happy to have me here," van Persie told MUTV. "But I am not satisfied. If you look at the stats, 13 goals in 19 games, it is OK. But I want better and more. I want more goals, more assists. I want to go for everything that it is possible this year."

On the whole, United have had a good start to the campaign as the Red Devils sit at the top of the Premier League and eased through their group in the Champions League, and although Sir Alex has often highlighted defensive deficiencies, van Persie is just pleased to be winning.

"I just come back to the winning part. We have been winning. We are first in the league, first in the Champions League," van Persie said. "Everyone would have signed for that a couple of months ago. Up to now we can accept it. It is good. Now we have to improve. If you just take away a couple of the goals we gave away in away games, we would have made life easier for ourselves."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Ronaldinho: Neymar will be the best in the world

Atletico Mineiro forward Ronaldinho is of the opinion that while Barcelona star Lionel Messi is better than Real Madrid attacker Cristiano Ronaldo, neither of them will be able to match Neymar once he realizes his full potential.

The 32-year-old Brazilian, who made a move from Flamengo to his current team at the start of the Brasileiro campaign, says Messi is the best footballer in the world now, but believes that this will not last long.

"Cristiano has been making history for many years now, but Messi is the best in the world, and one day Neymar will be the best," Ronaldinho told ESPN.

"For me Messi is the best in the world. For the last few years he has played at a level of football we have never seen before. "

Ronaldinho was a superstar at Barcelona while Messi was developing into his talent and the Brazilian remembers his vast improvement. Incidentally, Ronaldinho assisted on Messi's first-ever professional goal.

"I'm very proud to speak of him, because I was there when he started off and now he is the best in the world, it makes me so happy," Ronaldinho recalled.

He added, "The game I remember the most is when he scored his first goal, because it came from my pass and I remember this game most vividly because he was just getting started."I had the chance to be there and live that moment. I'm very happy that his first professional goal came from a pass from me."

Messi has praised Ronaldinho for being a great mentor during their time together at Barcelona and the Aletico player admitted that the pair's relationship is special.
"Messi knows that there will always be a place in my heart for him," he concluded.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Celtic eager to keep in-demand duo Wanyama and Hooper after Champions League progression

Neil Lennon is desperate to keep star duo Victor Wanyama and Gary Hooper at Celtic and hopes his club’s progression to the UEFA Champions League knockout stages convinces them to stay.

The SPL champions have been locked in negotiations with the pair for several months now but as yet there has been no breakthrough despite a number of other key players committing their future to the Glasgow giants.

Powerful midfielder Wanyama has been heavily linked with Manchester United and Arsenal and is in the second season of a four-year deal he signed after joining the club in 2011. Hooper, who scored in the famous midweek win over Spartak Moscow, is reportedly interesting Liverpool, Sunderland and Southampton and has 18 months left to run on his contract.

Lennon says the fact his club have made it into the final 16 left in the Champions League is a selling point that cannot be offered by many other clubs and hopes that will play a part when talks with the two players continue.

"Why would they want to leave now when they have got something special to look forward to?" Lennon said at a press conference. "Not many clubs can offer that. Gary Hooper's representatives are coming up over the weekend. We are hoping we can finally get something done on a positive note. Hopefully - but there is no guarantee.

"With Victor Wanyama we will keep plugging away with his representatives as well and see if we can come to a conclusion that pleases everybody."

Celtic has already settled new deals with the likes of James Forrest, Charlie Mulgrew and Adam Matthews this season, but the signatures of Wanyama and Hooper are the ones Lennon desires most.

After the thrilling progression in the Champions League this week, the Celts are in line for a windfall of additional revenue. Lennon, however, does not expect to be splashing the cash come the opening of the January transfer window.

"I'm pretty happy with the squad we have got. We won the game against Spartak Moscow without Wanyama; we have basically been without James Forrest for most of the campaign," Lennon said. “He is not far away now and Anthony Stokes will be fit by mid-January, so we are getting two really good attacking players back in. There are areas we would like to enhance the squad and we have been working on that for quite a while."

Lennon also took the opportunity to deny reports in Italy that suggested his side were eyeing up a January move for Juventus striker Vincenzo Iaquinta.

 

[rcccc]

Borussia Dortmund 2-3 Wolfsburg: Brilliant Diego upsets 10-man BVB

Wolfsburg defeated Borussia Dortmund 2-3 during an engaging Bundesliga encounter at Westfalenstadion.

An early lead for the German champions thanks to a brilliantly executed corner by Reus was soon cancelled out by a controversial Diego penalty, following by the turnaround of the match due to a stunning volley by Brazilian Naldo.

Dortmund was awarded a penalty in the middle of the second half, which Kuba was able to turn into the equalizer. However, it was again Diego who initiated an attack for the away side, delivering a ball through the middle for Dost, who netted in for the final result.

When the match started, the Bundesliga title holders applied their notoriously ferocious pressing game from the first second, and were eager to show die Wolfe who has the upper hand on home soil.

And this approach proved to pay early on in the game for the hosts, when Reus delivered a fine corner towards main target man Lewandowski from the left, however, it was the spin of the former Borussia Monchengladbach man's corner which awkwardly saw the ball moving past a stunned Benaglio.

In the 10th minute, BVB followed up with another great chance, when Kuba sent a powerful strike towards the box from about 20 yards out, but the attempt was blocked by Naldo. A follow-up by Lewandowski was then cleared by Kjaer.

Meanwhile, the visitors were constantly trying to press Dortmund into making passing errors, which, due to the champions' strong midfield, rarely occurred, but their opportunity was just around the corner.

Wolfsburg was finally able to leave its first mark on the match with a slotted-in penalty by Diego in the 36th minute, following a controversial handball decision by referee Wolfgang Start against Schmelzer, who cleared the ball on the line with his knee.

Although the hands were unnecessarily moving towards the ball, they were not touching it, making for an ultimately undeserved sent-off for the 24-year-old.

Just five minutes later, Wolfsburg made use of its momentum and turned the match around, when Diego found his teammate Naldo with an indirect free-kick from the right. The former Werder Bremen man did not play around and brilliantly volleyed the ball into the box from the edge of the penalty area, securing the 2-1 lead on the stroke of halftime.

The game started slow in the second half, until another penalty was given in the 60th minute. Denmark defender Kjaer pushed Lewandowski over, and Kuba did not hesitate, converting it into the equalizer.

However, hopes did not last long. In the 73th minute, it was yet again Diego who drove the away side into taking the lead again. A counter run by the on-form Brazilian ended in an accurate through-ball to Dost, who then shot the ball past Weidenfeller into the right hand corner.

Dortmund is now looking to recover from the loss and prepare for its trip to Hoffenheim on Dec. 16, while Wolfsburg was able to further strengthen its relegation-zone padding.

 

[rcccc]

Arsenal 2-0 West Brom: Arteta double eases the pressure on Wenger



Arsenal secured its first win in five matches by beating West Brom 2-0 at the Emirates, dampening the visitors’ hopes of a top-six finish.

It was a tale of two controversial penalties in north London, with both dispatched in similar fashion by Mikel Arteta. In the first instance, Mike Jones pointed to the spot after Santi Cazorla cut inside Steven Reid and threw himself to the floor, although replays showed that no contact was made.


The second penalty was correctly awarded for a foul on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain by Chris Brunt, but the Baggies will again feel aggrieved as it appeared that the Gunners’ winger pushed Goran Popov to the ground just moments before the decision.

Arsene Wenger made three changes to the side that lost 2-0 to Swansea last weekend, as Bacary Sagna, Olivier Giroud and Oxlade-Chamberlain replaced Carl Jenkinson, Lukas Podolski and Theo Walcott.

The opening exchanges were hotly contested, with both sides keen to avoid going behind early on. But it was Arsenal who went the closest to taking the lead, as Gervinho spurned an early opportunity 18 yards from goal and Cazorla fired wide from just outside the penalty area.

Cazorla then went close again, as Oxlade-Chamberlain raced down the right before hooking a cross deep into the box. The ball sat up nicely for the Spaniard to volley towards goal, but Steven Reid pressured him into smashing his shot over the bar.

The visitors then had a chance of their own, as Brunt attempted the audacious. The winger attempted to curl a first time shot into Wojciech Szczesny’s top corner, but was unlucky to narrowly miss the target.

The deadlock was eventually broken courtesy of an Arteta penalty. Cazorla cut into the box from the left, before dipping inside Reid and going down theatrically. Replays show that there was no contact from the right back, but Mike Jones pointed to the spot and Arteta rifled the ball past Boaz Myhill.

The Gunners were inches away from doubling their lead, as Gervinho embarked upon a mazy run into the area before drilling the ball across the six-yard box. Jack Wilshere slid in an attempt to make contact, but in spite of an open net gaping in front of him the 20-year-old could only manage to poke the ball wide.

The hosts started the second half the better side, keeping relentless pressure on the Baggies’ goal. Oxlade-Chamberlain was unlucky not to score with a chance from a narrow angle, while Gervinho passed up a glorious opportunity with an air shot from six yards out.

Arsenal then made it two, as the referee awarded a second penalty for a clear foul by Brunt on Oxlade-Chamberlain. However, the decision was not without controversy, as the Gunners’ winger appeared to push Popov to the ground in the play leading up to the foul. Arteta stepped up once again and smashed the ball straight down the middle.

 

[මුගටියා]

Rooney: Derby win will put pressure on Manchester City

Roberto Mancini's side were dumped out of Europe on Tuesday and the striker believes getting three points at the Etihad Stadium will be a "massive" achievement

Roberto Mancini's side was dumped out of Europe altogether following a 1-0 defeat to Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, while speculation has grown over the Italian's future at the Etihad Stadium.

City currently trails United by three points and a win for Sir Alex Ferguson's men will put even further daylight between the two clubs at the top of the Premier League.

"City are out of the Champions League and are having a bit of a tough time - I think everyone can see that behind the scenes. If we win, we can put more pressure on them. If we get three points there, it will be massive for us." Rooney told reporters.

"Obviously, it is a massive game, probably up there with Liverpool. The two of them. There is a big rivalry, the two of us are fighting for that number-one spot. We're trying to go there and get three points. We are all excited for the game."

Rooney believes United's strengths are in the flanks and the striker believes delivery from wide areas could be crucial to his side's success at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

"I think our strength is getting wingers on the pitch, getting the ball out wide, attacking and getting crosses into the box," he said. "That's obviously the way Manchester United have played for years, so I think that's one of our strengths.

"Of course, they have a strong central midfield, but they also leave gaps out wide, so I'm sure Sir Alex [Ferguson] and Roberto Mancini will be looking at different things and ways they can capitalize on each team's weakness."

 

[Banks PLK]

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Original umbro d?
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[Banks PLK]

COME ON CITY !!!!!
3 POINTS @ ETIHAD



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[Wolverine GTR]

Barclays Premier League 2012.12.09 Fixtures

Barclays Premier League 2012.12.09 Fixtures

Manchester City Vs Manchester United

Everton Vs Tottenham

West Ham United Vs Liverpool

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