Fixtures

Barclays Premier League

18/12- 10.55pm Arsenal vs Stoke city

19/12- 2am Liverpool vs Fulham

19/12- 11pm Chelsea vs Manchester United

 

Manchester United beat Arsenal 1-0

The familiarity of the result was even more significant than the victory that put Manchester United two points clear in the Premier League with a game in hand.  

Arsenal were unable to disentangle themselves from the clichés that are as accurate as they are familiar. 

The visitors achieved a pattern for a spell in the second half but the winners could usually study it without much apprehension.

Indeed the margin would have been greater had Wayne Rooney not been so wild with a questionable penalty. Home advantage helps but there is still a broader range to United. Arsenal, for all their grace and fluency, could not impose themselves enough on opponents who were steely and, 

often enough, 

polished. 

That limitation should have been anticipated.

Arsenal last beat United in November 2008 and six subsequent encounters in all competitions have now comprised five victories for United and a draw. 

Sir Alex Ferguson was complimentary beforehand about the edge that can be seen in the present Arsenal team but their red cards in this campaign do not show that the men sent off are warriors.

In principle there is nothing so terrible in losing a frantic game that would have made observers wonder if these clubs had really come across the sophistication of the Champions League, let alone been steeped in it. The trouble for Arsenal lies in the demoralisation that could overcome them as they dread that everything is more or less as it has been since they last won a trophy five years ago.

Wenger's men can tell themselves that this is probably the most exacting game that the Premier League can offer. 

Nothing has been decided yet and the victors go to Stamford Bridge for their next fixture. 

A great deal can shift yet and this sort of match could not confirm that United are quite as great a force as they have been. 

Even so that thought will not have weighed heavily on the minds of their fans, 

walking away from Old Trafford in contentment.

It was, 

at least, 

Arsenal's wish to smash the stereotypes. 

Wenger put Denilson, 

one of his holding midfielders, 

on the bench, 

so that the more inventive Jack Wilshere could be accommodated.

Nonetheless there was an initial emphasis on security and United shared in the prudence. 

With Rooney to lead the attack single-handed,

Dimitar Berbatov had to content himself with an evening on the bench.

Ferguson made only one substitution and that confirmed his satisfaction. 

If there was a sort of boldness present, it did not involve attackers. 

The forthrightness emanated from Wenger who, 

with Lukasz Fabianski carrying a minor injury, 

chose to grant the 20-year-old goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny his first Premier League appearance.

Towards the close the Pole excelled by reaching a Rooney chip but that confident effort also endorsed the suspicion that the attacker is coming within reach of his old standard.

It was a taxing privilege for Szczesny to be confronted by an eager United, 

who showed more enterprise before the interval.

A half-cleared cross by Darren Fletcher fell to Nani and his shot flew marginally beyond the far post from an angle on the right. 

Arsenal felt the strain caused by United's persistence, 

even if the referee,

Howard Webb, 

disregarded hopeful appeals for penalties.

The goal came in any case, 

with Nani confirming his rising value. 

After 41 minutes,

his deflected cross was directed into the top corner of the net by Park Ji-sung,

who adjusted his body well to produce so clean a header. 

Arsenal, 

for all their good intentions, 

had not been so dangerous.

To the visitors' frustration, the industry of United was enhanced by Ferguson's shrewdness in calling upon Park. Arsenal did achieve some pattern in the 53rd minute, 

when Wilshere worked the ball to Bacary Sagna and the right-back's deep cross caused a disquiet that had not been witnessed before.

The necessity to attack suited Arsenal and, 

with their one vivid opportunity, 

they would have been level in the 56th minute, 

but for a pair of interventions. 

Samir Nasri's effort from the left was parried by Edwin van der Sar and Nemanja Vidic then blocked Marouane Chamakh's attempt. 

Even in that spell, though, 

United had shown the endeavour, 

with Szczelny having to prevent Anderson from establishing a 2-0 lead after the midfielder had been set up by Rooney.

Play did become more stretched and a penalty was awarded, 

although Gaël Clichy, 

who had lost his balance, 

did not intend to touch a ball from Nani that came off his right arm. 

Webb took the decision on the advice of the assistant Dave Bryan but after Clichy and Nasri had been cautioned Rooney sent the ball over the bar in the 72nd minute. 

Despite that waywardness United always knew precisely where they were going.

Real Madrid victory 3-1 against Zaragoza

Highlights

Click the link above to watch the highlights.

Carlos Tevez transfer rejected.

Man City have poo-pooed a written transfer request from homesick striker Carlos Tevez.

A statement from the club read:

“It is with disappointment that we confirm to our supporters that Carlos Tevez has submitted a written transfer request. 

The club can also confirm that the request has been rejected.

“The club remains disappointed by this situation and particularly with the actions of Carlos’ representative.

“Roberto Mancini and all at the club have shown, 

and will continue to show, 

sensitivity to Carlos’ personal circumstances including the issue of his family being based overseas.

“Indeed following his suspension as a result of the game against Bolton,

Carlos requested, 

and was given, 

special dispensation by the manager to take leave overseas.

“The written transfer request is in stark contrast to Carlos’ stated position in both public and club contexts.

“Significantly, 

over recent months, the club has also received numerous requests from Carlos’ representative to renegotiate and improve his playing contract as well as more recently a request to extend that contract by another year.

“However, 

in line with the club’s policy of not negotiating playing contracts mid-season this has not been granted.

“Carlos’ current five-year contract has three-and-a-half years to run and he is the highest-paid player at the Manchester City Football Club.

“This is both an unfortunate and unwelcome distraction and the club will remain focused on the games ahead in what is turning out to be a very promising season. 

The door remains open for Carlos to be selected to play.”

Tevez is worth the trouble, 

apparently. 

But what happened to clubs keeping this stuff in the dressing room?

Looks like Fergie’s very public re-raise re:

Rooney has played some part in City’s decision to front up Tevez and his agent. 

Your move, 

Carlos…

I utterly sympathise with Tevez if he pines for home and especially his young family. 

But I also say, 

hang on a tic, 

Tevez is being unprofessional here;

he lives and works in England – and is paid more than handsomely to do do – 

and it’s his decision to do so. 

It’s also Tevez’s choice to live thousands of miles away from his daughters. 

He can change that situation easily, 

though of course I understand if he doesn’t want to disrupt his kids’ lives in such a massive way.

Liverpool trashed again

There have been almost as many fake Messiahs as false dawns at St James' Park but, for the moment at least, Newcastle United fans have reason to believe Alan Pardew might prove an unexpected 'answer' after all

If a gritty, gutsy win will not erase the mystification and misery induced by the club's bizarre decision to sack Chris Hughton last Monday, at least it buys the latest messiah time to implement his blueprint for Geordie salvation. First though, Pardew had to survive a baptism of boos as an underwhelmed 51,000 audience greeted his first appearance in the dug out with a cacophony of disapproval. "It wasn't a very pleasant reception," said Hughton's successor. "But I understand that."

Happily for Pardew, goals do not merely change games but entire moods. With 15 minutes on the clock, as Kevin Nolan celebrated giving Newcastle the lead with a now trademark "funky chicken" dance routine, a relieved home manager relaxed.

Thanks largely to an outstanding performance from Andy Carroll, the rest of the game was not overly traumatic. Even so, Pardew seemed close to losing his voice. "The noise level was something I've only experienced in cup finals," he said. "Getting my message out was difficult, I'll have to learn sign language."

On this evidence, he is communicating just fine. "To get three goals was something special," said a manager who had admitted to reservations about accepting the job. "I was a bit nervous; you need the group to be with you but the players made it easy for me when I met them and I felt a lot better about things."

Sensing the atmosphere, the crowd ultimately switched from pre-match militancy and post kick-off rumblings of discontent to full-on encouragement. "In the end, Newcastle fans gave their team incredible support," said Roy Hodgson, Liverpool's rueful manager. "I'm sure it buoyed them."

Pardew was delighted. "The crowd were understandably disappointed about losing Chris [Hughton] but ultimately they support the shirt and the club," he said. "And the team showed their spirit and unity and individual talent; we have four or five outstanding players."

Nolan is among them and, as he began that silly dance, Pardew knew all the talk of a mutinous dressing room had been rather over-egged. Granted, Newcastle's squad harbour great affection for Hughton but they will surely view this latest upheaval on Tyneside as a case of the king is dead; long live the king.

Fans, though, are a very different matter and earlier hundreds of locals had demonstrated peacefully outside the ground's main reception, chanting "Cockney Mafia out" and, among other much ruder things, "Hughton is a Geordie" and "Get out of our club".

Mike Ashley's only solace was that the protesters looked extremely young. Significantly, their 30-, 40- and 50-something seniors inside the stadium, albeit still disgruntled, proved slightly more polite as they waved home-made "Thank you Chris" banners. Accordingly, once Joey Barton's 15th-minute free-kick was headed on by Carroll before dropping kindly for Nolan to score, the fear of things turning ugly abated.

It might have been different had Tim Krul not saved well from Sotirios Kyrgiakos early on or had Fernando Torres better struck an inviting free-kick won when he fell over in the face of Sol Campbell, but Pardew's luck held.

Admittedly, there were a few nervous moments. Early in the second half, for instance, a long ball hit Campbell on the head before falling to Dirk Kuyt's right foot. Kuyt switched it on to his left, took a swipe and the ball deflected off Steven Taylor into the back of the net.

No matter; Pardew introduced Nile Ranger from the bench and the impressive youngster swiftly made a difference, ruffling Hodgson's side with a dangerous strike that went fractionally wide.

Ranger also helped Barton restore the lead. When Carroll provoked pandemonium by heading on a long ball, the substitute and a marker tussled, allowing the ball to drop for Barton to toe home. Up in the stand, Ashley literally danced for joy.

Newcastle's best, namely a fabulous long-range, stoppage-time shot into the bottom corner from Carroll after Liverpool's defence inexplicably backed off, was reserved until last.

"It's a major setback," said Hodgson, sensing a crisis blowing out of Tyneside and on to Merseyside. "A major blow."

Fixtures!

Barclays Premier League

12/12- 2am Newcastle vs Liverpool

12/12- 12am Tottenham vs Chelsea

14/12- 3.54am Manchester United vs Arsenal

La Liga

13/12- 3.55am Barcelona vs Sociedad

13/12- 1.55am Zaragoza vs Real Madrid

P/S: Sorry for the lack of updates due to the crappy internet connection.

Nasri the hero

Samir Nasri struck two goals of rare quality as Arsenal went top of the Premier League table with a 2-1 win over Fulham on Saturday.

The Frenchman has been simply brilliant in recent weeks but this afternoon he excelled himself.
 Fourteen minutes from the start, 

he left two defenders on their backsides before thumping home from close range.
 Fifteen minutes from the end, 

he bustled into the area, 

rounded one defender and then the keeper before hooking the ball home.
 To be honest, 

much of the intervening time was filled with frustration. 

Diomansy Kamara equalised after Laurent Koscielny had been left dazed from an accidental collision with team-mate Sebastien Squillaci.

Arsenal chased the game with urgency and intelligence. 

But Fulham had drawn around 60 per cent of their games this season and you could see why.
 Their tactics were to smother Arsenal’s invention and then snatch what they could via a breakaway or set-piece. 

Wenger’s men spent the afternoon prising them open.
 After successive home defeats to Newcastle and Tottenham, the pressure was on. 

But they responded manfully.
 Everton’s late equaliser at Chelsea and the postponement of Manchester United’s game allowed Arsenal to go top.Now they simply have to stay there.

Wenger made nine changes from the midweek win over Wigan in the Carling Cup. 

Only Jack Wilshere and Koscielny kept their places.
 However compared to Villa last weekend, 

the side was unchanged. 

Once again Tomas Rosicky was captain.
 That Wigan win had lifted a little of the pressure on Arsenal at Emirates Stadium. 

But home form was still an issue for Wenger’s men in the title race. 

A defeat this afternoon would be their third straight in the Premier League – something that had not happened for 33 years.But then Fulham hardly had history on their side. They had NEVER won a League game at Arsenal – and they had been trying since before the First World War.
 In the opening stages, 

it seemed that run would carry on.
 After seven minutes, 

Wilshere’s right-wing free-kick headed high towards Andrey Arshavin at the far post. The Russian waited for the ball to drop and let fly from point-blank range. 

Mark Schwarzer spread himself widely to block.
 The Russian then prodded Nasri through the centre but he poked the ball wide of the upright.
 The Frenchman would not have to wait long for his goal. 

In the 14th minute, 

Arshavin cut in from the left and, again, released Nasri on the right of the area.
 He still had plenty to do – but he went and did it. Nasri weaved inside one defender, 

and then another before thumping home his 10th goal of the season. 

The Frenchman ran to the corner flag as the two bamboozled Fulham players picked themselves off the floor.
 Arsenal might have doubled their lead soon afterwards but Wilshere elected to tee-up Marouane Chamakh instead of going for goal. Midway through the half, 

Arshavin thieved the ball, s

hrugged off a lame challenge and forced a scrambling save from distance.
 The home side were looking to put the game to bed and Nasri was acting as the nightcap.
 He muscled past Matthew Briggs on the right and his cutback was turned goalwards by Dickson Etuhu. Schwarzer saved on the line as Arshavin threatened.
 Seconds later, 

Rosicky crossed from the right and Alex Song steered a shot just wide.
 It was more than more than one-way traffic. 

It was a motorway of oncoming chances. A lot of those had been coming down the Arsenal right and shortly afterwards Hughes took off left back Briggs. 

He did not appear to be injured.
 However while home form is a new problem. 

Profligacy is an old one.
 Despite that, the goal that Arsenal conceded on the half-hour would be laced with misfortune. 

Fulham staged a rare foray up front and,

in clearing a ball, Squillaci headed his team-mate Koscielny clean in the face. 

The latter Frenchman was still groggy when Clint Dempsey clipped a ball into the space he should have been occupying. 

Kamara took it in his stride and sidefooted home.
 As the goal went in, 

Koscielny fell to the floor. 

He was stretchered off and Djourou came on.
  Suddenly those home comforts had gone. 

The nerves returned and Fulham tried to winkle Arsenal open at the back.
 In injury time they did.

Etuhu sent Kamara clean through but Fabianski stood up to make a crucial save.
 That chance came seconds after Bacary Sagna had sent over a cross from the right and Chamakh’s bullet header found the hands of Schwarzer when he should have found the net.
 Arsenal went into the break in a position of unnecessary parity.
 Song set up Rosicky to fire wide in the opening minutes of the second half.

Once again it was all Arsenal in the early stages.
 Arshavin tried a ‘Nasri’ by weaving inside two defenders and letting fly. 

However his shot hit the feet of Schwarzer.
 The traffic continued but the chances dried up. 

That prompted Wenger to bring on Robin van Persie for Rosicky in the 63rd minute.
 It was turning out to be a frustrating afternoon. 

The Arsenal team were chasing every ball and closing down every opponent but Fulham were disciplined, 

organised and ate up clock where they could.
 Midway through the half, 

Song muscled off John Pantsil and, 

from an angle, 

fired over the bar.
 However, 

Fulham offered some danger. 

Fabianski missed his punch at a corner and Zoltan Gera’s header was booted off the line by Van Persie. 

Shortly after that Squillaci headed a probing cross from Simon Davies away from goal. 

Gera’s overhead kick then drifted wide. With 17 minutes left, 

Fulham swapped Kamara for Andy Johnson while Theo Walcott came on for Wilshere.
 The end-game was upon us – but before it had really begun Nasri put the visitors in check-mate.
 Van Persie shaped to shoot on the edge of the area but instead fed the Frenchman. 

He dodged past one defender and danced past the keeper. 

His angle was now acute but he recovered sufficiently to hook his shot past Aaron Hughes on the line.
 Fulham were not spent. Etuhu scrambled a shot inches wide almost immediately but Chamakh could have killed it but when, 

after receiving Clichy’s cross, 

he fired over. 
 Fabianski made a crucial late save from Gera and Fulham pushed for the equaliser.
 But Arsenal deserved this.
 They will have to show much more of that spirit to be there in May.
 However, 

title triumphs are built on ground-out victories like the one at Emirates Stadium this afternoon.

Notice!

Yes yes, as you all know,

the Blackpool vs Manchester United match has been postponed due to the weather and a frozen pitch.

But. but, but,

the Arsenal vs Fulham & Liverpool vs Aston Villa match will still go on. 

Do remember, it's Arsenal vs Fulham tonight at the Emirates stadium at 10.55pm.

Fixtures! Fixtures!

Barclays premier league

04/12- 10.55pm Arsenal vs Fulham

05/12- 1am Blackpool vs Manchester United

07/12- 3.40am Liverpool vs Aston Villa

EXCLUSIVE: 19/12- 11pm Chelsea vs Manchester United

Serie A

04/12- 3.40am Lazio vs Inter Milan

La Liga

05/12- 4.55am Real Madrid vs Valencia

UEFA Champions League

08/12- 3.40am Manchester United vs Valencia

Real Madrid trashed by Barca

It was once said of Pep Guardiola's Barcelona that "they are so good they can play in the rain and not get wet". Last night it poured down on Jose Mourinho's first Clasico and "The Special One" got absolutely soaked.

He kept his calm on the touchline as Cristiano Ronaldo barged into Pep Guardiola, causing a 21-man free-for-all and a booking for the Real Madrid number nine. He stayed inside his technical area as Leo Messi took a dramatic tumble and was booked for trying to get Ricardo Carvalho sent off.

But he must have wanted the Nou Camp to swallow him up as 100,000 Barcelona fans celebrated one of their greatest nights – humiliating the "translator" and moving to the top of the league in the process. 

Mourinho said: "It is the worst result of my career but it is not one that is difficult to explain because we had no chance of winning the game. There were no shots of ours against the post and there were no bad refereeing decision that went against us. We played badly and they played very well. It was a deserved defeat."

The Real Madrid coach was taunted by Barcelona fans who sang "Mourinho, sale del banquillo" ("Mourinho, come out of the dugout") as the Real Madrid coach stayed out of his technical area.

Asked about the second-half no-show, he said: "There was no tension in the second half. There is no feeling in that situation that you can change anything. When they scored the third goal it was game over."

With Mourinho's team knocked off the top of the league, the damage limitation work had began. "The difference is not 5-0, it is two points," he said. "I wish we were playing tomorrow because these players need to get this result out of their system. I expected more of them and they expected more of themselves."

A "we love Barça" crowd mosaic greeted the players as they came out and David Villa greeted Ronaldo with a "welcome to the Clasico" tackle that lifted the crowd. On six minutes Messi hit Iker Casillas's right-hand upright and it was a sign of things to come for the Spain keeper.

He was picking the ball out of his net after just nine minutes when Messi's pass found Iniesta who released Xavi to put the home side in front. Marcelo had slipped on the wet surface and he would be at fault for the second goal as this time Xavi started the move and Pedro finished it from Villa's cross.

Mourinho has made much of how he did not fancy Marcelo as a defender when he took over in the summer but had slowly had his mind changed. This was Marcelo's first big test and he was left wanting, allowing Pedro to ghost in ahead of him to double Barça's lead.

Frustrated at seeing his team being overwhelmed, Ronaldo knocked the ball out of Guardiola's hand on the touchline whilst barging into the Barça coach. "These are just things that happen," said Guardiola, playing down the incident afterwards.

The push kick-started a 21-man scrum of players led by Victor Valdes, who came charging out of his goal to protect his manager. Ronaldo joined the goalkeeper and Carles Puyol in the book and could easily have seen red when he took a tumble in the area just seven minutes before the break claiming a penalty.

Ronaldo was just about keeping his head as Madrid tried desperately to stay in the game and create an opening for themselves. Whenever they threatened, Puyol was the quickest and the strongest inside the Barça penalty area and a Messi shot from distance was the last meaningful chance of the first half as the home side kept up the domination.

Messi went close inside the first five minutes after the break and then had the ball in the net only to be flagged for offside before Xavi also went close, shooting into the side netting. But the near-misses soon became goals number three and four with the David Villa-Messi combination too much for Madrid. Twice the Argentine's slide-rule passes were run onto and dispatched by the Spain centre-forward.

Barcelona were now passing Real Madrid into the ground and Black Monday was complete for Madrid when Jeffren made it five and Sergio Ramos was sent off. Mourinho had long since taken cover from the rain – he must now take cover from the Madrid press who will question the coach after seeing their side lose more heavily than they did under his predecessor Manuel Pellegrini last season.

Pep Guardiola said: "It is not easy to play like that against a team like Real Madrid. The players were extraordinary." Asked if this served as a confirmation of Barça's place as one of the best sides in history, he added: "Only time will tell how good this side is."

Barcelona (4-3-3): Valdes; Alves, Pique, Puyol, Abidal; Xavi (Keita, 87), Busquets, Iniesta; Pedro (Jeffren, 87), Messi, Villa (Bojan, 76). Substitutes not used: Colorado, Maxwell, Adriano, Mascherano, Thiago.

Real Madrid (4-2-3-1): Casillas; Ramos, Pepe, Carvalho, Marcelo (Arbeloa, 60); Khedira, Xabi Alonso; Di Maria, Ozil (Diarra, h-t), Ronaldo; Benzema. Substitutes not used: Dudek, Tortajada, Leon, Molina, Higuain

Referee: I Gonzalez.

Torres fails to score and Tottenham lack of luck but managed to overcome it.

Skrtel gave Liverpool a 42nd minute lead but after Defoe sent his penalty well wide – 

Spurs’ fourth penalty miss of the season – 

Skrtel turned Luka Modric’s ball into his own net.

But deep into added time, 

Peter Crouch sent Lennon through and the winger raced into the area before beating Pepe Reina with some style.

It was a terrific game, 

full of chances, tough tackling and the odd amount of controversy.

And it also meant that every team in the Premier League scored over the weekend, 

for the first time in the competition’s history.

It was a quickly fluctuating game full of chances at both ends, 

and a game played at pace from the start saw Spurs press early on, 

with Aaron Lennon their chief protagonist.

The England winger went on a strong run through the middle, 

only to be dispossessed by Jamie Carragher.

And with the game still in its infancy, 

Alan Hutton fed Lennon along the right and he cut in before crossing from the byline.

The ball came to Luka Modric and the Croatian could have scored, 

but his shot bounced into the grateful arms of Pepe Reina.

Liverpool responded, 

in the ninth minute, 

when Maxi Rodriguez shot wide from inside the Tottenham area, 

when he might have done better.

Sadly for Spurs, 

Dutchman Rafael van der Vaart, 

rated as doubtful prior to this game, 

lasted just 10 minutes when he suffered a recurrence of a hamstring problem in attempting a back heel.

As van der Vaart walked around the perimeter of the pitch he looked dejected, indicating to manager Harry Redknapp that it could be serious.

Liverpool were next to threaten, 

with Maxi responding to Fernando Torres’ pass with a right foot drive that was well saved by Heurelho Gomes.

The Brazilian made another impressive stop soon afterwards, 

from a Dirk Kuyt volley, 

as Liverpool began to offer a greater threat.

Liverpool, 

though, 

escaped two penalty appeals in quick succession. 

Firstly, 

Peter Crouch appeared to be barged by Jamie Carragher. 

And then Alan Hutton fell at the feel of Meireles.

Both Meireles and Paul Konchesky were booked for halting Gareth Bale before Jermain Defoe, 

van der Vaart’s replacement, 

had a shot blocked in the goal area by the lunging Carragher.

In the 36th minute Spurs had to make a second change, 

with defender Younes Kaboul seemingly injuring his hip and replaced by Sébastien Bassong.

And before the interval Gomes saved from Meireles, 

but the manner of it was not convincing, 

the ball almost slipping through the goalkeeper’s hand.

Carragher became Liverpool’s third cautioned player,

for fouling Modric.

However, 

in the 42nd minute, 

Liverpool scored the goal they had been threatening.

Meireles’ free-kick was met by Skrtel and though his initial attempt struck team-mate David Ngog, 

the rebound landed kindly and the defender prodded the ball beyond Gomes.

Minutes later Maxi Rodriguez had the chance to add a second but lost control at the vital moment. 

And then Torres was put through but Bassong timed his interception to perfection.

And within seconds of the restart, 

Ngog fed Torres and his first touch was poor, 

Bassong’s challenge allowed Spurs to survive again.

But Spurs were denied in the 52nd minute when Reina’s poor clearance fell to Bale but his well struck effort was headed off the line by Meireles.

Crouch appealed for another penalty when Konchesky barged into the striker, but they did get a sport-kick in the 59th minute.

Bale’s free-kick was fiercely struck by Bale but struck the arms of Ngog. Liverpool complained that the offence was outside the area, 

but Defoe’s kick was placed woefully wide.

It was Tottenham’s fourth penalty miss of the season, 

following misses by Roman Pavlyuchenko, van der Vaart and Bale.

But Spurs drew level in the 65th minute when Modric drove into the area before his effort was turned into the net by the luckless Skrtel.

Liverpool could have had a 70th minute penalty when Benoît Assou-Ekotto brought down Kirk Kuyt.

In the 81st minute Reina saved well to deny Bale but Meireles almost claimed a late winner with a tremendous shot, 

from 30 yards, 

which just missed the target.

And before the end Liverpool’s Glen Johnson became their fifth player to be booked – and third for a foul on Bale – before Defoe had a 90th minute goal disallowed for offside.

Arsenal climbs back up

Arsenal went top of the table early on Saturday afternoon thanks to a nail-biting 4-2 win at Aston Villa.
 After a tough, tough week, 

Arsène Wenger’s side needed a win of any kind to restore their confidence. 

They made heavy weather of the three points here today but it was still thoroughly deserved.
 Results later on Saturday will probably see them knocked off the summit of the Premier League. 

But the ability to be there suggests Arsenal’s problems are being overplayed right now.
 The visitors bossed the first half but had to wait until 39 minutes until Andrey Arshavin fired home. 

On the whistle a corner from the Russian, 

excellent on the day, 

was volleyed in by Samir Nasri.
 Ciaran Clark fired Villa a lifeline six minutes after the restart but Marouane Chamakh replied almost immediately to restore the visitors' two-goal cushion.
 Clark headed home with 20 minutes to go but, 

despite the odd scare,

Arsenal were untroubled.
 In the final seconds, 

Chamakh set up Jack Wilshere to head home at the far post.
 This win does not answer all the questions posed at Arsenal this week. But it is a blessed relief in current circumstances.
 Wenger’s men have had a hard seven days but they are still capable of having a great season.
 The Frenchman made seven changes from the side beaten 2-0 at Braga in midweek.
 From the back four only Sebastien Squillaci survived. 

Kieran Gibbs and Johan Djourou dropped to the bench.  

Emmanuel Eboue (knee) was injured.  

Bacary Sagna, Laurent Koscielny and Gael Clichy came in.
 Alex Song, Tomas Rosicky and Andrey Arshavin came into midfield. 

DenilsonTheo Walcott started as substitutes while Cesc Fabregas (hamstring) was sidelined. 

Chamakh came in for Nicklas Bendtner up front.
 Villa had John Carew and James Collins back from injury. 
Meanwhile Robert Pires was making his first start in English football since Arsenal’s 4-2 win over Wigan in May 2006 – the ‘final salute’ to Highbury.
It was a bitterly cold November afternoon and both sides needed a victory. 
Arsenal’s travails had been headlines all week but Villa were struggling too. 
They were used to being a top eight side but they went into this game in the bottom eight. 
Their side were laudably young but they had been paying for it with points.
And, as it turned out, this afternoon would be expensive.
The visitors might have been ahead within seconds. 
Arshavin angled a pass to Chamakh eight yards out. 
Brad Friedel half-blocked his shot, Richard Dunne deflected the ball goalwards and Collins booted the ball of the line.
The Moroccan had scored after 38 seconds at Wolves. 
This would have been even quicker.
A couple of minutes later Wilshere fed Rosicky and the midfielder drove a snap shot wide of the far post.
In the 14th minute,
Chamakh’s back-header fell to the feet of the Czech midfielder just inside the area. 
He elected to shoot with the outside of his right foot and his effort rolled weakly in to the hands of Friedel.
It was all Arsenal. 
The visitors had taken the game to Villa and were completely on top. 
They simply needed a goal.
Chamakh, Arshavin and Nasri all had efforts blocked as Arsenal lined up to shoot.
But there was always the nagging of a breakaway chance.
It came in the 25th minute.
Stewart Downing crossed from the right,
Clark flicked it on and Ashley Young popped up at the far post to steer a shot over the bar. 
In the context of this game, 
it was a massive miss.
However, it did nothing to turn the tide.
Just after the half-hour, 
Nasri crossed low into the six-yard area and Dunne sliced the ball over his own bar.
Then Arshavin’s trickery left Pires on his backside. 
The Russian’s cross eventually found Nasri just outside the area. His fierce goal-bound drive hit Chamakh.
To this point, 
Villa had been pretty abject and the goal they conceded in the 39th minute had as much to do with them as Arsenal.
Two defenders attacked, and then left, 
a lofted clearance. Arshavin raced on to the ball, cut in from the left and fired into the far corner. 
The Russian had been afforded too much space and Friedel got a hand on the ball. But it did not matter.
It was Arshavin’s first goal since the trip to Partizan Belgrade on September 28 and utterly deserved.
Seconds later, it should have been 2-0. 
Arshavin fed Nasri who skipped past Friedel but could only flick the ball into the sidenetting.
In injury time, 
Friedel produced a stunning save to deny Chamakh’s bullet header. 
Arshavin thumped the corner to Nasri on the far post and the Frenchman fired home on the volley from the edge of the area.
The goal meant the score finally reflected the game.
Villa mustered a response at the start of the second half. 
Sagna cleared hurriedly from Ashley Young’s cross and Nathan Delfouneso had a shot charged down.
In the 53rd minute, 
Squillaci’s clearing header flew high to Clark just outside the area. 
He was given too much space and thumped a shot into the top left-hand corner of the net. 
Replays suggested that Carew,
who was standing in an offside position, 
had impaired the view of Fabianski.
It was all horribly reminiscent of last Saturday. 
But then, 
three minutes later, Arsenal veered from the script.
Rosicky fed a perceptive pass to the sliding Chamakh, 
who beat Friedel to the ball and poked home.
That should have killed the game but Arsenal kept on going forward. 
Chamakh and Arshavin had half-chances for a fourth but the visitors attacking intent allowed space for Villa to exploit.
In the 70th minute, 
Sagna’s clearance fell to the feet of Clark, 
who thumped his snap-shot into the sidenetting.
Two minutes later the Villa midfielder did find the net once more. 
Squillaci nodded the ball out for a corner,
Ashley Young fired it to the near post and Clark’s header hit the underside of the bar and bounced down over the line.
The game was in the balance once again – and Villa had now got their game together after a poor first half.
Wenger brought on Denilson and Gibbs to shore up the result. 
Their introduction came just after Arshavin sent Chamakh through only for a combination of Collins and Friedel to clear the danger.
Arsenal shut up shop in the final stages and Wilshere’s goal finally killed the game.
Some of the players threw their shirts into the visiting fans at the end.
The supporters deserved that as much as their team deserved three points this afternoon.

 

Rooney and Berbatov make a huge come back.

A cakewalk, 
a canter, 
call it what you will:
United, inspired by a sublime Dimitar Berbatov performance, 
tore Blackburn apart at Old Trafford on Saturday.
The Bulgarian netted an incredible five times as the Reds smashed seven goals past Sam Allardyce’s men to surge to the top of the Barclays Premier League.
It was the sort of one-sided performance fans had expected last weekend when Wigan Athletic were reduced to nine men. 
Instead, it was a full complement of Blackburn players that were on the receiving end of the Reds’ biggest win since AS Roma came to Old Trafford in April 2007.
Sir Alex made six changes, 
including his entire back four, to the side that won in Glasgow on Wednesday night, 
with Rafael, Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra all returning and Anderson and Ji-sung Park handed starts in midfield. 
Wayne Rooney and Berbatov kept their spots up front and the pair took little more than a minute to combine for the Reds’ first goal. 
Rooney outjumped his marker at the near post to meet Nani's cross and his glancing header fell to Berbatov, 
who volleyed home a simple finish from six yards.
It was the perfect start for Sir Alex's men and, 
in particular, Berbatov, 
who'd previously not found the net since scoring a sensational hat-trick against Liverpool in September. 
Four days earlier, 
Sir Alex had predicted the Bulgarian would benefit more than most from Rooney's return; the early evidence at Old Trafford reinforced that belief.
 The pair linked well in the opening stages, 
swapping passes in tight spaces and making unselfish runs off the ball to open up space. 
At one point, 
a series of clever interchanges cut through Rovers' defence with such ease that the action resembled a training ground stroll rather than a Barclays Premier League fixture.
Blackburn struggled to assert themselves on the game. 

Rafael's close attentions frustrated former Liverpool forward El-Hadji Diouf, 

while lone frontman Jason Roberts was starved of service from midfield.

Nani tested visiting goalkeeper Paul Robinson at his near post before Christopher Samba almost put through his own net and Berbatov headed wide from a corner.
United were knocking on the door and a second goal duly arrived on 23 minutes. 

Park carried the ball forward from the inside left channel and fed Rooney on the edge of the area. 

The South Korean continued his run, 

Rooney returned the pass and Park, 

now clean through and with only Robinson to beat, 

dinked the ball over the Rovers goalkeeper. 

It was simple, beautiful and devastatingly effective.

Clearly shell-shocked by United's storming start, 

Blackburn then hit the self-destruct button and gifted United a third goal on 27 minutes. 

Full-back Pascal Chimbonda didn't look before playing the ball back to goalkeeper Robinson and instead passed the ball straight to Berbatov, 

who, loitering in the Rovers penalty area, 

took one touch before blasting the ball into the net.

Vidic then missed a simple chance to add a fourth, 

while Nani blasted over the bar from distance and Berbatov was denied a penalty just before half-time. 

Pity any spectators who returned to their seat late for the second half, 

for within three minutes of the restart the Reds had scored twice more. 

Berbatov wrapped up his hat-trick by sidefooting the ball home from 12 yards to complete a sumptuous move he’d started deep inside his own half. 

Nani, 

also involved heavily in Berbatov’s third, then made it 5-0 on 48 minutes when he twisted and turned inside the area before firing into the far corner. 

Blackburn’s players looked demoralised, 

yet the Reds weren’t done yet. 

Berbatov grabbed his fourth on 62 minutes when a loose ball fell to his feet seven yards from goal and then, incredibly, 

a fifth after his attempted cross came back off Ryan Nelsen to present him with a simple tap-in.

Gabriel Obertan came close to further embarrassing the visitors before Chris Samba reduced the margin to six when he headed home with seven minutes to play. 

It robbed the Reds of a clean sheet but, 

come the final whistle, nothing could wipe the smile off Dimitar Berbatov’s face. 

This was his day.

 

To watch the highlights click on the link below:

Manchester United 7-1 Blackburn Rovers highlights

This week's fixtures

La Liga

30/11- 3.55am Real Madrid vs Barcelona

Barclays Premier League

27/11- 8.40pm Aston Villa vs Arsenal

27/11- 10.55pm Manchester United vs Blackburn

28/11- 11pm Tottenham vs Liverpool

Cesc Fabregas out for three weeks

Cesc Fábregas could be out of action for up to three weeks after injuring his hamstring in Arsenal's Champions League defeat by Braga, 

according to manager Arsène Wenger.

Fabregas was substituted in the 69th minute of the 2-0 loss in Portugal, 

while Emmanuel Eboué was also hurt, 

suffering a knee injury.

"Eboué will be out for a while and we will have to asses Fábregas,

" Wenger told the club's website.

"It could be two to three weeks. It is very disappointing because I had a hesitation to play him before the match started. 

I took the gamble and it backfired on us."

Arsenal face Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday and Wigan in the League Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday.