English Premier League

Dimitar Berbatov is expected to leave Tottenham in January and go to a football club that will win major trophies. Tottenham have told of their ambition to keep the Bulgarian.

Chelsea are rumored to be lining up a £10 million move for Bolton striker Nicholas Anelka.

Emmanuel Adebayor wants to finish his career at English Premier League side Arsenal, even though he has years before retirement.

Blackburn midfielder Robbie Savage is a transfer target for Sunderland who are looking to strengthen their squad for their push to stay in the English Premier League.

Real Sociedad will sign highly rated Arsenal teenager Fran Merida on a loan deal in January until the end of the season.

When Harry Redknapp loses some of his players to the African Cup of Nations in January he will have a squad of only 14. He is looking to bring in some cover and is ready to sign a number of players. One player who could be leaving the South Coast side for good is David Nugent who is rumored to be going to Reading in a swap deal for Leroy Lita.

Three English Premier League clubs, Middlesbrough, Derby and Birmingham are all interested in signing Blackburn Rovers striker Jason Roberts.

Allardyce Future Unclear

Sam Allardyce’s future at Newcastle has been in the spotlight again but Newcastle chairman Chris Mort has denied any rumours of Allardyce leaving.

Rumours suggested that the English Premier League club were looking for a new manager behind Allardyce’s’ back but Mort rejected this claim. After Allardyce and his team have being poor over the Christmas period in the English Premier League the talk of sacking Allardyce have started again. Allardyce and his team picked up a point out of a total of nine possible over Christmas.

Newcastle cult hero Alan Shearer and ex Tottenham manager Martin Jol have both being linked with the job and possible replacements for Allardyce should he be booted out of Newcastle.

Other English Premier League News

Sunderland have been reported as making a £2.5 million bid for Reading midfielder Stephen Hunt.

Reading recently told the media that they would try to hold onto the Ireland international for as long as they could, and are sticking by that statement. It is understood that Reading have rejected Sunderland’s bid for the player.
English Premier League new boys Sunderland are looking to strengthen their squad so they can make a push at staying in the Premier League come the end of the season. Manager Roy Keane will want players at his club that can fight for the cause if needed and Hunt would be a good player that fits into that category. Hunt has scored three goals in five games for Reading.

Porto defender Jose Bosingwa is a transfer target for English Premier League champions Manchester United.

Sir Alex Ferguson is on the look out for a possible replacement for Gary Neville who is out injured and there are worries about how many games he will play for Man Utd should he make his return. Wes Brown is also set to move away from the club after rejecting the offer of a new contract at Old Trafford for first team football elsewhere in the English Premier League. This will leave Ferguson short of defensive players in defence and he is keen to address the situation as soon as possible. Man Utd have a habit of buying Portuguese players as they already have Cristiano Ronaldo, Nani and Anderson playing at the club. Could Bosingwa be the next Portuguese recruit?

Alan Smith was hospitalized on Saturday night after Newcastle’s game with Chelsea after being hit in the face accidentally by Abdoulaye Faye during the game in the English Premier League.

Smith was hit in the face by Faye after he clashed into the player and was treated on the pitch by Newcastle medics. After being treated he tried to play on but the striker was substituted with 20 minutes of the game to play.
The ex Manchester United and Leeds midfielder told the medical team at Newcastle that he wasn’t feeling 100% while the team made their way back to Newcastle on the plane. When they got back to the airport at Newcastle he was told to go and see doctors at the hospital where he stayed the night and had some tests done. He was discharged on Sunday morning.

Birmingham 1-1 Fulham

Fulham and Birmingham played out a 1-1 draw at St Andrews which keeps Fulham in the bottom three of the English Premier League.

Carlos Bocanegra opened the scoring for Fulham in the first ten minutes. His header from a Simon Davis corner gave the visitors the lead. Ten minutes after the second half had started Birmingham equalized. A wicked deflection from Sebastian Larsson’s edge of the area shot went unfortunately past Anti Niemi and into the net. Fulham had Hameur Bouazza sent off for his second yellow card, but managed to hold on to a vital Premier League point.

Chelsea 2-1 Newcastle

Chelsea beat Newcastle 2-1 at Stamford Bridge thanks to an offside goal from Salomon Kalou. Chelsea took the lead midway through the first half, a scrappy goal from Michael Essien. Nicky Butt, who nearly scored an own goal minutes earlier with a fizzing shot that Shay Given tipped over the equalized for the visitors. Charles N’Zogbia put a low cross into the Chelsea penalty area and icky Butt scrambled the ball home. Chelsea won the game with only minutes of the match remaining. A shot came in and rebounded off Claudio Pizzaro into the path of Kalou who was yards offside, he tapped the ball home and the referee and linesman gave the goal. Newcastle will feel hard done by for not getting at least a point and their misery in the English Premier League continues.

Everton 1-4 Arsenal

Arsenal and Everton were involved in a 5 goal thriller at Goodison Park in the English Premier League late kick off.

Tim Cahill converted Mikel Arteta’s corner on 19 minutes to put his side 1-0 up. It remained 1-0 to Everton until the second half and a Eduardo double turned the game into Arsenal’s favor. However, Arsenal lost their way and Nicklas Bendtner was sent off for a second yellow card after a horrific challenge on Andy Johnson that could have ended his career. A mix up between Tim Howard and Joseph Yobo allowed Emmanuel Adebayor to sneak in and make it 3-1 to Arsenal and game over.
Mikel Arteta then clashed with Cesc Fabregas. Arteta’s arm caught Fabregas who fell to the ground and Arteta was shown a straight red card. The challenge wasn’t as bad as Fabregas made out and Everton will feel angry at the decision of a straight red card. Thomas Rosicky then rubbed slat into Everton’s wounds with a fourth goal late on.

Portsmouth 0-1 Middlesbrough

Portsmouth lost yet another English Premier League game at home this time 1-0 to Middlesbrough. Tuncay Sanli scored the only goal of the game when he reacted quickest to David James’ parry from Gary O’Neil’s 20 yard drive.

Sunderland 3-1 Bolton

Sunderland moved out of the English Premier League relegation zone with a fine 3-1 win at home to Bolton. Kieran Richardson smashed the ball home after 13 minutes to put the home side 1-0 up. Kenwyne Jones then added a second after Richardson’s corner was met by Jones to head home. Bolton pulled one back just before the half time whistle. El Hadji Diouf’s free kick was missed by everyone and crept into the corner of the net. Daryl Murphy then made sure of the three points when he finished with a sweet left footed shot in the dying stages to make it 3-1.

Tottenham 6-4 Reading

In the English Premier League game of the day Tottenham beat Reading 6-4 in an enthralling affair at White Hart Lane, once again Reading score four in a match and still lose.

Tottenham scored after just seven minutes, a Dimitar Berbatov goal from a Robbie Keane low cross. It took Reading just 8 or so minutes to pull level, Kalifa Cisse’s low driving shot went through a whole bunch of players and into the net. Reading went ahead in the second half, a Nicky Shorey corner was headed home by defender Ivar Ingimarsson.
Dimitar Berbatov then equalized after Graeme Murty failed to clear the ball. Dave Kitson then scored another for Reading from a Shorey corner as he headed home at the near post. Minutes later Berbatov had pulled one back to bring the scores level at 3-3. Kitson then added his second of the game as he chipped the ball over the onrushing Paul Robinson to make it 4-3. Steed Malbranque then equalized as his curling effort went in and made it 4-4. Robbie Keane then had a penalty saved but Jermain Defoe followed up the save to head the ball into an empty net. Berbatov made sure the points stayed at White Hart Lane as he smashed home a volley in the last 5 minutes to make it 6-4.

West Ham United 2-1 Manchester United

Manchester United couldn’t go top of the English Premier League after they failed to beat West Ham United at Upton Park.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored on 14 minutes, a brilliant move ended by a Ronaldo header. Ronaldo then missed a penalty which cost Man Utd the game. With 13 minutes left Anton Ferdinand grabbed an equalizer from a Mark Noble corner and then the same thing happened minutes later, this time from a Mark Noble free kick Matthew Upson headed home to nick the three points.

Wigan 1-2 Aston Villa

Wigan lost this match 2-1 to Aston Villa which ended their mini revival in the English Premier League.

Titus Bramble gave Wigan the lead as he headed in a Ryan Taylor corner on 28 minutes. Curtis Davis, playing his first English Premier League match for Aston Villa scored the equalizer on 55 minutes, as he nodded home Gareth Barry’s corner.
Gabriel Agbonlahor headed the ball home from an Ashley Young cross come shot to round off the game at win it 2-1 for the away side.

Barton Denied Bail

Troubled footballer Joey Barton has been denied bail and held in jail until January 3^rd according to a Newcastle United statement.

The Newcastle midfielder was arrested in Liverpool on Thursday morning for assault and affray after getting involved in a fight in the city centre of Liverpool.

Joey Barton will be held in custody until the 3^rd of January and this means he will miss two Newcastle games in the English Premier League, the trip to Chelsea on Saturday and the New Year’s Day clash with Manchester City, his old club.

Barton was told this morning that he wouldn’t be allowed out until the 3^rd January. Barton has been involved with the police before. When he was at Manchester City he got in a fight with team-mate Oliver Dabo and was arrested, the trial is still going on now and Barton could face a jail sentence for the incident.

Other English Premier League News

Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas has revealed to his agent that he doesn’t want to leave Arsenal and join Real Madrid.

Spaniard Fabregas has been in remarkable form in the English Premier League for Arsenal this season and has helped them retain a top four position in the Premier League table. Real Madrid have been trailing the youngster ever since he moved to Arsenal and they have always been linked to him during the transfer windows.
Ramon Calderon, the Real Madrid president has spoke of his respect for Fabregas and thinks that should the opportunity arise Fabregas would be keen to leave the English Premier League and join up with Real Madrid in the La Liga.

Reading midfielder Stephen Hunt has rejected claims that he will leave Reading to join a new club during the January transfer window.

Hunt has been linked with a move to Everton in January but has said that he isn’t leaving Reading, but also said he wants to play his football in the English Premier League for a long time to come.
Stephen Hunt signed a new three year deal at Reading during the summer and has been touted as a possible transfer target for Everton, who might make a £3 million bid for the tough tackling midfield man.

Park Ji-Sung will return to the Manchester United squad for their New Year push to win the English Premier League.

Ji-Sung has been out for all this season and some of last season with an injury to his knee. He made his first start in nine months when he came off the substitute’s bench on Boxing Day to play the latter stages of the 4-0 thumping of Sunderland.
Ferguson thinks that Ji-Sung will add a bit of freshness to the squad and help his team retain the English Premier League title come the end of the season.

Birmingham 3-0 Middlesbrough

In the bottom of the table clash between two English Premier League strugglers it was Birmingham who came out on top in a convincing 3-0 win over Middlesbrough at St Andrews. Middlesbrough’s Stewart Downing scored an own goal as Birmingham took the lead when Gary McSheffrey saw his free kick sliced into the net by Stewart Downing. Mikael Forssell then added a second for The Blues just before half time as he found himself unmarked and able to tap the ball home from close range. In injury time at the end of the game, Robert Huth brought down Gary McSheffrey who stepped up to convert the penalty and give his side a much needed Premier League win.

Chelsea 4-4 Aston Villa

The day’s most entertaining game in the English Premier League came at Stamford Bridge as Aston Villa and Chelsea played out a match that ended 4-4 and had two penalties and three red cards.
Aston Villa took the lead after only 14 minutes, a John Carew cushioned touch was smashed home by Shaun Maloney. Maloney then doubled his sides lead when his shot was not saved by Petr Cech and went in just before the half time whistle. Just after half time Zat Knight brought down Michael Ballack in the penalty box and was rightly sent off, as he was the last defender. Andrei Shevchenko tucked away the penalty to make it 2-1. Shevchenko then equalized with a ferocious shot on 50 minutes that was deserving of a goal. Chelsea then pulled off a real achievement as on 66 minutes Alex riffled home a shot that made it 3-2 to Chelsea and this saw them come from 2-0 down to leading 3-2.
Aston Villa then equalized when Martin Laursen’s headed effort creped in and Chelsea had a man sent off. Ricardo Carvalho was sent off for a disgraceful two footed tackle on Gabriel Agbonlahor. Michael Ballack looked to have stolen the points for his side as his free kick two minutes from full time made it 4-3 to Chelsea. However, late drama saw Ashley Cole sent off for handballing a shot on his own goal line and Villa were awarded a penalty. Gareth Barry put the spot kick away to make the scores 4-4.

Derby 1-2 Liverpool

Liverpool scored an injury time winner to steal all three points away at Derby, the English Premier League’s worst team.
Fernando Torres put Liverpool in the lead with just 12 minutes of the match played after he rounded Derby defender Darren Moore before placing a nice shot past the Derby keeper. Jay McEveley equalized for Derby mid way through the second half of the game, when a free kick fell to him and he kept his head to finish a tricky shot that could have gone badly wrong.
However all Derby’s hard work was undone in the last minute as Torres had a shot that was saved but the ball was parried into Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard’s path and he blasted the ball home to snatch all three points for his side.

Everton 2-0 Bolton

Two second half goals for Everton saw them keep up their dream of qualifying for Europe next season.
Everton took the lead on 51 minutes when Jussi Jaaskelainen failed to meet a cross and it allowed Everton captain Phil Neville to score his first goal in over a year. Joleon Lescott’s nice pull back then saw Tim Cahill make it 2-0 on 70 minutes and the points were in the bag for the English Premier League’s in form team.

Portsmouth 0-0 Arsenal

Arsenal failed to go back top of the English Premier League as they were held to a goalless draw by Portsmouth at Fratton Park.
There were hardly any notable chances in the first half for either side. However in the second half, Benjani looked to have given Portsmouth the lead as he rounded Manuel Almunia but Gael Clichy caught up with him and cleared the ball before it was knocked home. Arsenal had missed chances through William Gallas and Thomas Rosicky.

Sunderland 0-4 Manchester United

Roy Keane came up against his old team in the clash that saw the in form team play the out of form team in the English Premier League.
Man Utd went ahead after 20 minutes after a through ball from Wes Brown sent Wayne Rooney clear of the Sunderland defence and he slotted the ball past Craig Gordon. Rooney then set up Louis Saha on 30 minutes. He raced clear down the wing, chipped the ball into the box and Louis Saha found space and side footed home. Cristiano Ronaldo made it 3-0 just before half time; an unstoppable free kick from 25 yards out beat Craig Gordon hands down and ended a first half rout for the Premier League champions. Four minutes from time Louis Saha added his second and Man Utd’s fourth from the penalty spot after Nani had being brought down by Danny Collins.

Tottenham 5-1 Fulham

Tottenham looked to be back on track in the English Premier League as they ran riot against London rivals Fulham.
Robbie Keane opened the scoring on 27 minutes as he slotted home a rebounded shot from Steed Malbranque. Just before the half time whistle, Tom Huddlestone made it 2-0 with a drive from outside the area. Fulham pulled one back on 60 minutes when Clint Dempsey scored but Robbie Keane added his second and Tottenham’s third as he scored from close range again. Tom Huddlestone added a fourth and his second with a sweetly struck shot before Jermain Defoe made it 5-1 as he scored a scrappy goal late on. Moritz Volz was shown a red card after he picked up two yellow cards.

West Ham United 1-1 Reading

Reading held out for over 1 hour in this match as they drew 1-1 with West Ham United. Reading had Brynjar Gunnarsson sent off after he made a two footed lunge at Hayden Mullins. West Ham then made their 1 man advantage count as on 42 minutes Norberto Solano scored with a cleverly taken goal. Dave Kitson pulled Reading back into it with a goal on 60 minutes, and Reading were given a late scare as Dean Ashton hit the post. Reading held on for a precious point that keeps them in a suitable position in the English Premier League.

Wigan 1-0 Newcastle

Wigan lifted themselves out of the bottom three in the English Premier League as they beat a poor Newcastle team at the JJB Stadium.
It took Wigan 65 minutes to break the deadlock but the wait was well worth it. A truly magnificent free kick from Ryan Taylor evaded the Newcastle keeper and made it 1-0. That was the only goal of the game and it leaves The Magpies in a mid table position going into the New Year.

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Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham

Arsenal stay top of the English Premier League over Christmas with a 2-1 win over North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur. Spurs went behind in the second half after a neat back heel from Cesc Fabregas sent Emmanuel Adebayor through to slot home past keeper Paul Robinson.

Tottenham drew level when Robbie Keane back heeled the ball to Dimitar Berbatov who smashed the ball past a helpless Almunia in goal. Tottenham were then given a penalty as Kolo Toure fouled Berbatov, but Keane took and had the spot kick saved.

Tottenham were to rue the missed penalty as a few minutes later on 76 minutes Cesc Fabregas’ corner found youngster Nicklas Bendtner who, with his first touch of the game headed home what proved to be the winner.

Aston Villa 1-1 Man City

Man City stay fourth in the English Premier League despite drawing against Aston Villa 1-1. Rolando Bianchi scored his third goal in as many games to open the scoring for Manchester City. However their lead lasted only three minutes as John Carew held off Richard Dunne with his strength before getting into the penalty area and letting fire with a nicely taken shot.

Bolton 3-0 Birmingham

Bolton beat Birmingham 3-0 at home to make it three consecutive home wins in the English Premier League. El Hadji Diouf put Bolton in the lead after 72 minutes when he scored after Anelka’s attempt had only been half cleared by Stephen Kelly. Bolton should have been 1-0 up a few minutes before that goal but Kevin Nolan had his goal ruled out. Nicholas Anelka then scored two goals to seal the win and three points for Bolton, firstly by rounding Maik Taylor in the City goal and by a neat finish at the death.

Fulham 1-1 Wigan

Manager less Fulham went into the game with Wigan struggling for points in the English Premier League, but showed strength and determination to come from behind to beat get a point at home to Wigan.
Hat-trick hero at Blackburn last week Marcus Bent continued his fine scoring form by putting the visitor into the lead with a sweetly taken volley on 70 minutes. 8 minutes later and Fulham had drawn level. Diomansy Kamara saw his shot fall into the path of Clint Dempsey who tucked the ball into the near post to give Fulham a much needed point.

Liverpool 4-1 Portsmouth

Liverpool thumped Portsmouth 4-1 at Anfield to end Pompey’s run of 6 wins in six away matches in the English Premier League. It took Liverpool just 13 minutes to break the deadlock, a Harry Kewell cross was met by Yossi Benayoun who volleyed the ball into the back of the net.
The second came just three minutes after the first. Sol Campbell hit the ball against his own defender Sylvan Distan and the ball went past David James into the net. Distan could do nothing about the goal and it was harsh on Portsmouth to lose a goal that way. Early in the second half Portsmouth made it 2-1. Benjani scored his ninth goal of the season as he took on Kanu’s pass and finished smoothly past Jose Reina in the Liverpool goal. Torres restored Liverpool’s two goal advantage after he slotted the ball past James, and then Torres got his second and Liverpool’s fourth goal as he beautifully volleyed the ball into the corner of the net after a great cross from Steve Gerrard.

Middlesbrough 1-2 West Ham

West Ham continued their fine form away from home with a 2-1 win over Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium.
David Wheater put Boro 1-0 up just before the break as he scored from close range after a knock back from Jeremie Aliadiere. Dean Ashton equalized as he smashed a great shot from 20 yards out that clipped the inside of the post before going in. In the dying stages of the game Scott Parker won the match for The Hammers, as he took on a few Boro defenders inside the box before slotting the ball past Mark Schwarzer and into the net. West Ham continue their good form in the English Premier League and Boro’s fine form has been jolted by The Hammers.

Reading 2-1 Sunderland

Controversy surrounded the goal that won Reading the match in this English Premier League encounter. A last minute goal from Reading outraged Sunderland who insist the ball never crossed the line. Reading took the lead when Sonko’s header was saved by Craig Gordon who could only parry the ball into Ingimarsson’s path, who duly stuck the ball home.
Sunderland equalized with 8 minutes left. Kenwyne Jones was fouled by Sonko and Michael Chopra scored from the resulting penalty.
With the match heading for a draw a last minute Stephen Hunt shot was saved on the line by Gordon but the linesman gave the goal and the game finished with a 2-1 win for Reading. This incident further enhances the need for goal line technology to be introduced.

Manchester United 2-1 Everton

A late Cristiano Ronaldo penalty sealed all three points for Manchester United but Everton can feel hard done by after nearly snatching a point against the English Premier League champions.
Ronaldo put Man Utd ahead on 22 minutes with a great effort from the edge of the box to make it 1-0 but Everton drew level when Tim Cahill rose the highest to meet Steven Pienaar’s cross five minutes later. But it was Pienaar who gave the last minute penalty away and Cristiano Ronaldo coolly slotted the ball home to end Everton’s run of 13 games without defeat.

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