Manchester City hit 20 Undefeated Games

Manchester City has played 20 premier league matches and have not seen a negative result!

The decisions implemented by Italian manager Roberto Mancini gave Manchester City a victory over Wigan Athletic.  Super Mario scored the first goal  during the 69' minute and J. Milner closed the game at the 72' minute.

The City Boys handled the possession of the game very well (54% vs. 46%); however, the blues did not play well.  Mancini's decision to play Milner over Carlos Tevez resulted in a positive impact as Milner became the man of the match.  Milner's shot on target gave Mario the opportunity to break the score and three minutes later, Milner himself secured the three valuable points for the blues.

Gunners Fail to Meltdown Toffees

This week’s midweek fixture offered several good games, but this battle for 5^th place between Everton and Arsenal topped the list. It was a must win for an Arsenal team that needs to retain their Champions League presence. On-the-other -hand, the Toffees were looking to add to their 1-point lead on the Gunners. Today’s match was played at Goodison Park, where Everton haven’t lost a game since March, to Arsenal. 

Manchester United victory over Stoke City at Old Trafford

Manchester United received Stoke City at Old Trafford on Saturday for what seemed to be a one-sided 4-2 victory.

The victory places the Red Devils just three points behind Chelsea in overall standings.

Manchester’s starting lineup consisted of De Gea in goal; Rafael, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra; Scholes, Carrick; Valencia, Rooney, Welbeck and Van Persie.

As for Stoke City, the Starting XI consisted of Begovic; Cameron, Shawcross, Huth, Wilson; Walters, Whitehead, Nzonzi, Adam, Kightly, and Crouch.

Canary Yellow Brighter Than Gunner Red

Another gloomy Saturday evening for Gunner fans. With the much dreaded international break just over, everyone was looking forward to Premier League action this weekend. It was not too enjoyable for an Arsenal fan. The Arsenal players looked fatigued and battered. Norwich on the other hand, looked exactly opposite. They were energized and ready to fight from the first whistle. The difference maybe because Arsenal had 15 players on International duty compared to the minuscule 2 by the Canaries, Morison and Snodgrass, who both started the game on the bench. They both made very late appearances in the game in the 90^th and 79^th minutes respectively. Putting that aside, Arsenal didn't play well and Norwich had a brilliant game. Arsenal's injury list resembles that of a kid's list for Santa Clause. Wolcott, Gibbs, Koscielny, Fabianski, Szczesny, Diaby, and to top it off The Ox sustaining a knock this game. Not including Wilshere and Sagna who are just starting to get back to full practice. It's not looking good unless these players make swift recoveries. 

Ibrahimovic Links Ballotelli to FC Barcelona

Former Barcelona striker Ibrahimovic has encouraged Ballotelli to join Barcelona because he assumes there is a fit between the club and the Manchester City striker.

"Real Madrid? In fact Barcelona is the team which fix better with Balotelli. A medium player for a medium team," Ibrahimovic noted to Honduran newspaper Diez

Manchester City Struggles on September

Photo by MCFC

September for Manchester City is not looking as bright as everyone expected.   This month, ManCity has only won one game, tied two, and lost two (1-2-2).  In a positive side, Sergio Aguero is back and played against Arsenal (final 1-1).  The striker had five clear opportunities but lacked the final touch to the net.   Perhaps his one-month absence impacted his precision. City is currently in 7^th place with nine points. 

Confident Arsenal, Ready for A New Challange

Can Arsenal continue their success in the league with their visit to the City of Manchester Stadium to face the EPL’s reigning champions? City’s last loss was against Arsenal at the Emirates 1-nil (April 8, 2012).

GettyImages

Another mid-September match against Southampton, which has been linked to being the catalyst to Arsenal’s season in the past. Can history repeat itself this season? I reckon they have a chance to compete for the title against the likes of Man City, Man United, and Chelsea. Too bad Giroud couldn’t join other Arsenal legends making their mark against Southampton in mid-September (Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry in 1995 & 1999 respectively) after being called ‘flop’ signings. Arsenal looks like a new re-energized side from last season. New players, a new face on the coaching bench, and their ambitious mentality is palpable.

Manchester's Red Devils win 3-2 over Southampton's Saints

Manchester United faced Southampton this past Sunday at St. Mary's Stadium and took the win with a 3-2 score.  This was Southampton's second time in three matches having a 2-1 lead over United and failing to hold it till the end.  This was quite a challenge match for United as they were down by one in both halves.  United came in with a formation of 4-3-2-1.  Defense was comprised of De Gea, Evra, Vidic, Evans, and Da Silva, Cleverley and Carrick made up the defensive midfield.  Nani, Kagawa, and Valencia made up the attacking midfield, and Van Persie took lead as striker.

Sir Alex Ferguson, The "it" manager, 1000th game with Manchester United

If it was not enough that Manchester United defeated Southampton 3-2 after a poor game on Sundays match, Sir Alex Ferguson also had the honor of celebrating his 1000th game in charge of the Red Devils with a win.

Alex Ferguson started his career as Manchester United Manager on November 7 1986. One would think that as frequent as managers come and go that Ferguson would have not lasted till this day but Ferguson took a club that was unable to win a league title for 26 years to always finishing as one of the top teams every season. "He has established himself as the most successful British manager of all-time."

Disappointment at Anfield: Liverpool Falls to Fulham

Liverpool 0:1 Fulham

Skrtel (OG 5’)

Fulham visited Anfield on Wednesday in the last match before the Reds’ FA Cup Final against Chelsea. Fulham hadn’t seen a victory at Anfield in any of the clubs’ match-ups. If Liverpool were hoping to get a boost in confidence from the clash, they were somewhat mistaken.

Martin Skrtel received the captain’s armband while Stevie G. was rested ahead of the Cup Final and led a somewhat stripped down version of a Liverpool side, with Doni replacing Reina in goal. King Kenny made a whopping nine changes to his starting lineup versus Norwich City.

Alas, it was at the captain’s own hand (or chest) that Fulham found themselves ahead. Danny Murphy’s cross, intended for Alex Kacaniklic, managed to rebound off of Skrtel’s chest, leaving us (and Skrtel) unable to do anything but watch in horror as the ball found its way past Doni and into the corner of the netting.

Skrtel nearly made amends moments later, though his header from Aurelio’s cross went just wide of the net. Doni made an impressive save in the 15,’ preventing Fulham from furthering their lead. Maxi, Carroll, and Shelvey all looked increasingly dangerous as half time approached. 

Woe for the Reds: Liverpool Fall to West Brom at Home

Liverpool 0:1 West Brom

Odemwingie (75')

It was the same old song and dance for Liverpool on Sunday as Roy Hodgson made his return to Anfield with West Brom. Maxi returned to the starting XI, while Steven Gerrard was left off the roster entirely, watching from the stands next to Charlie Adam, as a precaution.

Liverpool dominated early on, their first good chance coming in the 10th minute as Luis Suarez found Dirk Kuyt inside the box, though Kuyt sent the ball soaring past West Brom's goal. Opportunity knocked again for the Reds, Suarez finding an opening and sending an excellent ball across the front of the goal, though none of his teammates were able to capitalize and provide a finish. Moments later, Maxi was brought down inside the box by West Brom's Billy Jones, but to no effect as calls for a penalty went unheeded.

Despite Liverpool's domination of possession, West Brom's Shane Long was able to beat Daniel Agger to the ball in mid-air, sending a header to Chris Brunt, whose low shot was brilliantly saved by Pepe Reina, el capitán for the match. Agger, meanwhile, nearly made up for missing out on a clearance just before the break, though his low shot was blocked by Foster.

How Sweet It Is: Liverpool Finds Relief at Blackburn

Liverpool 3:2 Blackburn
Rodriguez (13’, 16’), Carroll (90’); Aiyegbeni (36’, pen 61’) 

The Reds found relief at long last on Tuesday night, facing Blackburn with an upended side from Saturday’s draw against Aston Villa, Kenny making a whopping 6 changes to his line-up.

The first 13 minutes saw little action until de facto skipper Martin Skrtel flawlessly picked out Craig Bellamy who sent a precise cross in Maxi Rodriguez’s direction, making the Argentine’s finish an easy one. A mere 3 minutes later saw Maxi in nearly the same spot as he pounced on the ball after Andy Carroll and Jonjo Shelvey had both been denied, putting Liverpool ahead by 2 and sending yours truly into fits of sheer joy.

The 25’ saw things go wrong. So wrong, as Doni received a straight red for bringing down Hoilett in the box after an off pass from Flanagan.  Doni had been set to fill in for the suspended Pepe Reina in the FA Cup match against Everton at Wembley and was, understandably, inconsolable. 

Arsenal Throws A Massive Roadblock On Manchester City’s Title Dreams

It was a massive game at the Emirates as both teams played for three vital points. A loss or a draw was dangerous for both teams as Manchester City will slip farther behind United and Arsenal will be in a tighter competition for Champions League places.

If anyone can claim that this game wasn’t heart-stopping, then that person must have a really zen center. It was a tense match from the start. Arsenal dominated early on and it was a dominance that continued throughout the game, except for about 10 minutes in the start of the second half.

An Improvement. Of Sorts: Liverpool Draws at Anfield

Liverpool 1:1 Aston Villa

Herd (10'), Suarez (82')

Liverpool faced another relegation-threatened club on Saturday as they took on Aston Villa at Anfield. The Reds were undoubtedly on edge, having lost to both Wigan and QPR.

If Liverpool's confidence was low before, the loss of Pepe Reina in goal certainly didn't help matters, Doni, whose last appearance in an October friendly lasted only 57 minutes, taking his place. Doni's anxiety-ridden debut was only made worse in the 10' when he cleared Warnock's cross awkwardly and allowing Bannan to pass the ball to a wide open Chris Herd who put Aston Villa on the score-sheet.

Chelsea Victorious on the Road

With 34,740 strong at Villa Park, the visiting team came ready to spoil the home crowd’s hopes of a victory, as Chelsea came away with a 4-2 victory – their first win in the last 13 attempts at Villa Park – and giving the blue crew their first road win in the league since their meeting in January against the Wolves in which they came out victorious 2-1.

The match began with the home team being short handed as Aston Villa manager Alex McLeish was forced to name a relatively inexperienced side, as Aston Villa captain Stiliyan Petrov was absent after having been diagnosed with acute leukemia. The game got off to an exciting start as the boys in blue began attacking and fast.

Tottenham Draw at Stamford Bridge

Tottenham faced Chelsea at Stamford Bridge this Saturday and the results were anything but riveting.  Even though the game lacked some spectacular quarrel, it still counted as a victory for the Spurs as it marked a top-four finish at the Barclays Premier League. 

A victory for Tottenham brought woe to Chelsea as they struggle to make it to the Champion’s League for next season.

Needless to say, both teams had many chances to score; Spurs' very own Rafael van der Vaart and Emmanuel Adebayor both missed virtual opening goals.

Pepe Reina's Words of Wisdom: Liverpool's Keeper Calls Gerrard "An Inspiration."

Steven Gerrard was on fire in his 400th league appearance on Tuesday. The Liverpool skipper was not only responsible for all the goals that won the Merseyside derby for the Reds, but also became the first Liverpool player to score a hat trick against Everton since the great Ian Rush in 1982.

Stevie G's stellar performance prompted Pepe Reina to call him an "inspiration." The 'keeper spoke to Liverpoolfc.tv about the midfielder and the Merseyside derby, saying "Stevie is always a key player for us. He is an inspiration, on and off the pitch. He showed in the game he is fully fit now and he is coming back strong.

"We all love playing against Everton because they are special games. For local lads like Stevie, Spearo or Carra, those games mean a lot - and the rest of us know how important they are for the club."

No Luck for Liverpool: Sunderland defeat Liverpool in an Uninspiring Match

Sunderland 1-0 Liverpool

(56' Bendtner) 

After a disappointing loss against an overall out-played Arsenal last week, Liverpool were looking to gain some ground in the clamor for 4th place, despite being 10 points behind. All we've heard out of Melwood this week was that no one had given up the race for Champions League football next season. Today's match at Sunderland did little to calm any nerves.

Steven Gerrard made his return, to the bench at least, after returning to training on Thursday. Kenny made only two changes to the line-up against Arsenal, with Sebastian Coates and Craig Bellamy in for Jamie Carragher and Stewart Downing.

ManUtd Knocks Spurs out of the Race for the Premier League Title

After Sunday’s victory over Tottenham at White Hart Lane in London, Manchester United continue their Premier League title push under great pressure.

The victory put the defending champion’s two points behind leader Manchester City and 11 points ahead of third-place Tottenham.

The Hotspurs were down several players due to injury, but they knew that with or without those keys players such as Scott Parker, Rafael van der Vaart, and Gareth Bale it would still be a difficult task to beat second-place Manchester United.

United Steal Victory at White Hart Lane

The Red Devils took on Tottenham Hotspur this past Sunday at Whitehart Lane, earning an important three points toward their Premiere League endeavor. The injury plagued Hotspurs, who have surprised the football world and held down third place in the EPL, controlled much of the ball and kept steady pressure on United defense.