Game of the Weekend
Saying fixtures between these two clubs always result in goals has
become as obvious as pointing out night follows day but they served up
another cracking fixture on Saturday lunchtime. Steven Gerrard scored
his 100th Premier League goal when converting from the penalty spot
after Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa had been sent off, however, Liverpool were
forced to settle for a point in an engrossing 2-2 draw against 10-man
Newcastle. The hosts had taken the lead at St James' Park through Yohan
Cabaye's excellent long-ranger before Liverpool equalised via Gerrard's
spot-kick. Despite their numerical disadvantage in personnel, Newcastle
again went in front in the second half through local lad Paul Dummett.
Liverpool, though, came back once more as lethal strike partnership Luis
Suarez and Daniel Sturridge combined again for the latter to head an
equaliser.
Player of the Weekend
From Chelsea's Eden Hazard, Arsenal duo Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey,
and heroic Stoke City goalkeeper Asmir Begovic - who was the reason his
team managed to draw with West Bromwich Albion - there are several
contenders for the star man of the weekend. But Manchester City striker
Sergio Aguero deserves the most praise. The Argentine finished City's
3-1 win at West Ham United on Saturday evening with
two goals from five shots on target out of a total of six efforts. Aguero also assisted a goal for David Silva, who was another man who delivered a superb performance.
Goal of the Weekend
As with the Player of the Weekend, there is almost too much to choose
from when picking the best goal. Oscar's strike in Chelsea's win over
Cardiff City, Cabaye's effort from distance against Liverpool, and
Jonathan de Guzman's eye-catcher in Swansea City's thrashing of lowly
Sunderland all deserve a mention. But Jack Wilshere's opener in
Arsenal's 4-1 win over Norwich City was the pick of the bunch. Arsenal's
other goals, two from Ozil and one from the high-on-confidence Ramsey,
were also contenders, however, Wilshere supplied the finish to a
potential Goal of the Season. The Gunners built up from the edge of
their own 18-yard area before one-touch interplay and flicks involving
Wilshere, Santi Cazorla and Olivier Giroud outside the Norwich box saw
the former apply a close-range finish to a stunning move.
Controversy of the Weekend
On any normal weekend, Jose Mourinho being sent to the stands after
blowing his top at the amount of time taken on throw-ins would normally
be a certainty for the biggest argument. But events on the field in
Chelsea's 4-1 defeat of Cardiff created even greater controversy at
Stamford Bridge. With the match officials deeming
Cardiff goalkeeper David Marshall had dropped the ball, rather than bounced it,
Samuel Eto'o was allowed to make a mockery of the rule book and pinch
possession before Hazard eventually scored Chelsea's equaliser at 1-1.
Mourinho did not seem to be complaining about what was and was not fair
play after that particular incident. There should also be mention of
Gareth Barry, who was fortunate to avoid a red card in Everton's 2-1 win
over Hull City after reckless tackles on Danny Graham and Sone Aluko.
From an offside position, Barry also seemed to deflect Kevin Mirallas'
shot for Everton's disputed first goal. Meanwhile, Charlie Adam somehow
avoided giving away a penalty in Stoke's 0-0 draw with West Brom despite
blatantly tripping Youssouf Mulumbu.
Gaffe of the Weekend
Back to Stamford Bridge and David Luiz again did little to convince
his doubters with his role in Cardiff opening the scoring in their
eventual defeat by Chelsea. For reasons unknown, Luiz decided to leave
Ramires' back-pass despite it clearly lacking the pace to roll back to
Petr Cech. Cardiff's Jordon Mutch could not believe his luck and pounced
on the loose ball to slot it past Cech, who was making his 300th
Premier League appearance. Struggling Everton striker Arouna Kone can
also not avoid shame as, with a first goal for his new club on a plate,
he somehow managed to hit the frame of the goal from point-blank range
against Hull.
One To Forget of the Weekend
As far as starts go, it could not have got much worse for Gus Poyet
in his first game in charge of rock-bottom Sunderland. Swansea fans were
chanting about Paolo Di Canio as they strolled to victory at the
Liberty Stadium on Saturday afternoon. To make things all the more
painful for Poyet, Sunderland saw both Steven Fletcher and Phil Bardsley
score own goals.
Familiar Feeling of the Weekend
How David Moyes must wish he could escape to chugging around the
Hebrides by boat with Sir Alex Ferguson. But away from the quirky tales
of his predecessor's retirement activities, the Manchester United
manager is under massive pressure. More dropped home points in
Saturday's draw with Southampton, when Ferguson was in the stands at Old
Trafford, have led to greater intensity in the questions about
Moyes' perceived negativity, questionable substitutions,
use of Wayne Rooney, and decision-making in signing Marouane Fellaini.
Adnan Januzaj is proving the only real positive for Moyes, who must be
desperate for a break. It was never going to be an easy transition but
following Ferguson is proving an even tougher task than expected. To
make matters worse, with almost perverse timing, Ferguson's
much-publicised new book is released next week.
Substitution of the Weekend
Just 10 seconds after coming off the bench in Everton's defeat of
Hull, and with his first touch of the ball, Steven Pienaar scored what
proved to be his team's winner. It was a moment to savour for the home
fans at Goodison Park and further boosted the stock of Roberto Martinez,
whose early success at Everton is being used as an extra stick for the
critics with which to beat Moyes.
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