The pressure is now certainly mounting on the shoulders of Rafa Benitez, who witnessed his side lose their second game in three at home to Aston Villa last night.
In a treble wrecking bet, Lucas put the away side ahead thanks to a headed own goal past Reina 10 minutes before half time. Anfield was then stunned as Curtis Davies headed in from an injury time corner to make it 2-0 in front of the Kop.
Liverpool mounted a kind of fightback in the second half as expected, and Fernando Torres hit the back of the net 18 minutes from time to ensure a nervous finale for Villa fans to endure, but they held firm, and Martin O'Neill's men recorded their first win at Anfield in 8 years.
It's now Liverpool's worst start in the Premier League, trailing the leaders Tottenham & Chelsea by 6 points already.
The topic forms the latest FL poll, should Rafa Benitez be sacked? Cast your vote on the top right of the page, should he go or should he be given more time?
Tuesday 25 August 2009
Monday 24 August 2009
Spurs back to the top after Hammers win
So, Tottenham have climbed back to the top of the table then with their victory over West Ham at Upton Park yesterday afternoon.
Jermaine Defoe & Aaron Lennon were the heroes for the Spurs after turning the game round following Carlton Cole's opener.
They lead on goal difference, after Chelsea moved level on 9 points with an away win at Fulham, where Drogba made me happy scoring first at 4/1 (had a fiver on that!), Nicolas Anelka netted the second to confirm the victory for Carlo Ancelotti's men.
Elsewhere, Everton are rooted to the foot of the table after they went down to Burnley by a single goal, Wade Elliott the hero for the side that beat Man Utd last week by the same scoreline.
Tonight, the final game of the weekend is Liverpool at home to Aston Villa, with the question which Liverpool side will turn up tonight?
Jermaine Defoe & Aaron Lennon were the heroes for the Spurs after turning the game round following Carlton Cole's opener.
They lead on goal difference, after Chelsea moved level on 9 points with an away win at Fulham, where Drogba made me happy scoring first at 4/1 (had a fiver on that!), Nicolas Anelka netted the second to confirm the victory for Carlo Ancelotti's men.
Elsewhere, Everton are rooted to the foot of the table after they went down to Burnley by a single goal, Wade Elliott the hero for the side that beat Man Utd last week by the same scoreline.
Tonight, the final game of the weekend is Liverpool at home to Aston Villa, with the question which Liverpool side will turn up tonight?
Sunday 23 August 2009
United bounce back to smash Wigan
Man Utd certainly made amends for their slip up at Burnley the other night by thrashing Wigan Athletic 5-0 at the DW Stadium.
Wayne Rooney started the ball rolling early into the second half, and that's when the goals started to fly in, as Dimitar Berbatov then quickly added a second, Rooney then put the Reds three up with a shot that deflected off Mario Melchiot.
Michael Owen got off the mark with number four, and then in stoppage time Nani curled in a free kick to complete the rout.
Arsenal also continued their free scoring start to the season, with a 4-1 thrashing of bottom of the table Portsmouth. Abou Diaby scored the opening two goals, before Younes Kaboul pulled one back for Pompey.
William Gallas scored for the third consecutive game to put the Gunners 3-1 up, and Aaron Ramsey completed the scoring to hand Arsenal an emphatic victory to send them top of the Premier League.
Emmanuel Adebayor scored the winner for Man City as they maintained their 100% record to the season by beating Wolves, and Hull City got themselves a win after Kamel Ghilas' goal was enough to see off Bolton.
Kenwyn Jones was the hero for the Black Cats as Sunderland came from behind to defeat Blackburn at the Stadium of Light. Gael Givet had given Rovers the lead, but a double from Jones ensured the points went to the home side.
Finally yesterday, a blank at St Andrews as Birmingham drew 0-0 with Stoke.
Today, Tottenham will aim to climb back to the top of the Premier League as they take on West Ham at Upton Park, whilst Chelsea will be expected to take the points at Fulham, and Everton will look to get their first victory of the season at Burnley.
Wayne Rooney started the ball rolling early into the second half, and that's when the goals started to fly in, as Dimitar Berbatov then quickly added a second, Rooney then put the Reds three up with a shot that deflected off Mario Melchiot.
Michael Owen got off the mark with number four, and then in stoppage time Nani curled in a free kick to complete the rout.
Arsenal also continued their free scoring start to the season, with a 4-1 thrashing of bottom of the table Portsmouth. Abou Diaby scored the opening two goals, before Younes Kaboul pulled one back for Pompey.
William Gallas scored for the third consecutive game to put the Gunners 3-1 up, and Aaron Ramsey completed the scoring to hand Arsenal an emphatic victory to send them top of the Premier League.
Emmanuel Adebayor scored the winner for Man City as they maintained their 100% record to the season by beating Wolves, and Hull City got themselves a win after Kamel Ghilas' goal was enough to see off Bolton.
Kenwyn Jones was the hero for the Black Cats as Sunderland came from behind to defeat Blackburn at the Stadium of Light. Gael Givet had given Rovers the lead, but a double from Jones ensured the points went to the home side.
Finally yesterday, a blank at St Andrews as Birmingham drew 0-0 with Stoke.
Today, Tottenham will aim to climb back to the top of the Premier League as they take on West Ham at Upton Park, whilst Chelsea will be expected to take the points at Fulham, and Everton will look to get their first victory of the season at Burnley.
Thursday 20 August 2009
Man Utd suffer defeat at new boys Burnley
Premier League new boys Burnley bounced back from their opening day defeat to Stoke, by causing a big upset in their first home game, beating Man Utd 1-0 thanks to a stunning volley from Robbie Blake in the first half at Turf Moor.
Michael Carrick also missed a penalty for United in the first half, and following that, Burnley held firm, and gained the points ensuring Burnley's fans (and probably half of England) ended the night on a happy note!
Elsewhere, Tottenham now lead the way at the top of the Premier League, following their 5-1 demolition of Hull City at the KC Stadium. Jermaine Defoe was the hero grabbing a hat trick, whilst there were also goals from Wilson Palacios & Robbie Keane, whilst Stephen Hunt grabbed a consolation for Hull, Hunt scoring in his second successive game since his move from Reading.
Liverpool bounced back from defeat at White Hart Lane, by thumping Stoke City 4-0 at Anfield. Fernando Torres notched the first early on, whilst new signing Glen Johnson then put the Reds further ahead on the stroke of half time. Dirk Kuyt & David Ngog completed the rout.
Portsmouth's problems continue as they slumped to a last minute defeat at Birmingham, with James McFadden slotting home a penalty following a foul by goalkeeper David James on Sebastion Larsson.
So, the accumulator bet didn't come off thanks to that Man Utd defeat & the last minute goal at St Andrews, but I'll have another one for Saturday!
Michael Carrick also missed a penalty for United in the first half, and following that, Burnley held firm, and gained the points ensuring Burnley's fans (and probably half of England) ended the night on a happy note!
Elsewhere, Tottenham now lead the way at the top of the Premier League, following their 5-1 demolition of Hull City at the KC Stadium. Jermaine Defoe was the hero grabbing a hat trick, whilst there were also goals from Wilson Palacios & Robbie Keane, whilst Stephen Hunt grabbed a consolation for Hull, Hunt scoring in his second successive game since his move from Reading.
Liverpool bounced back from defeat at White Hart Lane, by thumping Stoke City 4-0 at Anfield. Fernando Torres notched the first early on, whilst new signing Glen Johnson then put the Reds further ahead on the stroke of half time. Dirk Kuyt & David Ngog completed the rout.
Portsmouth's problems continue as they slumped to a last minute defeat at Birmingham, with James McFadden slotting home a penalty following a foul by goalkeeper David James on Sebastion Larsson.
So, the accumulator bet didn't come off thanks to that Man Utd defeat & the last minute goal at St Andrews, but I'll have another one for Saturday!
Wednesday 19 August 2009
Chelsea & Wolves take the points
No surprises in the first game last night, where Chelsea came from behind to defeat Sunderland at the Stadium of Light - perhaps the only surprise of that game being that the Black Cats took the lead through Darren Bent's second goal of the season.
Ballack, Lampard, and finally Deco made sure that the Londoners would take the points back south with them, to lead the PL by 3 points going into tonight's games.
In the other match, Wolves pulled off a surprising win away to Wigan, as Andy Keogh's solitary strike was enough to hand Mick McCarthy's men their first win of the new campaign, ensuring anyone with Wolves defenders in the FPL teams could be celebrating some clean sheet points!
Tonight, there are a few more games on the card:
Birmingham v Portsmouth
Burnley v Man Utd
Hull v Tottenham
Liverpool v Stoke
Bet Tip of the Day:
Birmingham to draw 23/10
Man Utd to win 2/7
Tottenham to win Evens
Liverpool to win 3/10
Lucky 15 bet (15 bets @ £1 each) : max £66 return from £15 stake
Accumulator : 10/1
Let's see how that one turns out!!
Ballack, Lampard, and finally Deco made sure that the Londoners would take the points back south with them, to lead the PL by 3 points going into tonight's games.
In the other match, Wolves pulled off a surprising win away to Wigan, as Andy Keogh's solitary strike was enough to hand Mick McCarthy's men their first win of the new campaign, ensuring anyone with Wolves defenders in the FPL teams could be celebrating some clean sheet points!
Tonight, there are a few more games on the card:
Birmingham v Portsmouth
Burnley v Man Utd
Hull v Tottenham
Liverpool v Stoke
Bet Tip of the Day:
Birmingham to draw 23/10
Man Utd to win 2/7
Tottenham to win Evens
Liverpool to win 3/10
Lucky 15 bet (15 bets @ £1 each) : max £66 return from £15 stake
Accumulator : 10/1
Let's see how that one turns out!!
Tuesday 18 August 2009
...and we're off!
So, the Premier League has kicked off, and some rather freak results included, like Arsenal winning at Everton 6-1, I must admit I did have that one down as an away win, but 6-1??? No, I had that as a 1-0'er all the way!!
Man Utd & Chelsea got off to their usual starts, although I do disagree with the argument that United always have a home game to start off with, as it always seems to mean that United have an away game to finish off with, whilst the likes of Liverpool finish off with a home game.
Chelsea have often seemed to have a home game to begin with too, so just who is supposed to being favoured here?
They started off with a lucky win in the end following Drogba's cross into the next in injury time, Hull must have been gutted with the fact that 6 minutes of injury time were added on!
Liverpool, well Rafa should of gone to SpecSavers as his continuous rant at officials continued - he claimed that Liverpool should have had 2 penalties, well from what I could see, so should Tottenham, and they didn't get any on the day.
Incidentally, why is it that Liverpool tend to get a penalty on opening days, remember Sheffield Utd away when Steve Gerrard fell over his own feet to earn them a spot kick in that match? Well Karma.
Big mention to Wigan, who are now led by ex Chester captain Roberto Martinez, one of the nicest blokes you could wish to meet in the game, he looks as though he will find his feet very quickly in the PL after his side's 2-0 away to Aston Villa.
It was strange that there were no draws in the PL on it's opening weekend, but I'm sure that we'll get our first one next time round!
Big spenders Man City got off to a good start too, defeating Blackburn at Ewood Park, and Adebayor is off & running, scoring early on in his bid to be the League's top scorer of the season.
Darren Bent had a dream start scoring the winner for Sunderland up at Bolton, not the best of starts for Gary Megson's men, but Steve Bruce will be highly delighted.
Good wins for Fulham, West Ham, and Stoke too. Fulham won away to Portsmouth, who could be a contender for the drop this year following all the goings on in the summer, whilst the Hammers won 2-0 away at PL new boys Wolves, in what Gianfranco Zola will be hoping is a similar year to last year where the Hammers did well in the second half of the season.
Stoke entertained new boys Burnley, and promptly despatched the Turf Moor club 2-0 at the Britannia Stadium, it was City who got off to a great start last year, and it looks as though they are in the same frame of mind this time round!
Next up are tonight's games Sunderland v Chelsea, and Wigan v Wolves, my tips here are a 2-0 win for Chelsea, whilst Wolves will pull a draw out of the bag at Wigan.
Get your bets on the opposite to happen then!!
Friday 14 August 2009
We're all ready to go!
So, we are here on the eve of the new Premier League season, and this is where the torture really begins, as for the next nine months, you'll find yourself going through all the emotions that Fantasy League throws at you. What emotions?
You know the ones, you've just picked what you think will be the star man of the campaign, only for him to get injured on the first game of the season, or the fact that you'll end cheering a Man Utd clean sheet even if you're a Liverpool fan, just because you have Utd defenders in your fantasy league team!
It's time to wrestle that remote control from the other half, telling them to forget Big Brother, you want to tune into highlights of Stoke v Burnley to see if your star midfielder has notched a goal or two!
It's all good fun, and it all starts tomorrow with Chelsea & Hull kicking us off at 12.45pm...
Saturday, 15 August 2009
Aston Villa v Wigan, 15:00
Blackburn v Man City, 15:00
Bolton v Sunderland, 15:00
Chelsea v Hull, 12:45
Everton v Arsenal, 17:30
Portsmouth v Fulham, 15:00
Stoke v Burnley, 15:00
Wolverhampton v West Ham, 15:00
Sunday, 16 August 2009
Who is going to end up setting the Premier League alight with their goals this year? Please make your selection on the poll over to the right!
Good luck to your team!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)