Liverpool, Man City helped by goalkeeper errors in EPL wins

It was a day of goalkeeping blunders in the English Premier League.

Liverpool and Manchester City, seemingly set for another duel for the title, benefited from two of them in hard-fought away wins on Saturday.


Liverpool eked out a 1-0 victory at Sheffield United but only after home goalkeeper Dean Henderson let a volley from the edge of the area by Georginio Wijnaldum slip through his arms and legs in the 70th minute.

That’s seven straight wins to open the campaign for Liverpool, and 16 in a row in the league stretching back to March. Two more and the Reds will equal the top-flight record set by City in 2017.

City, meanwhile, was drawing 1-1 against Everton and dipping below its usual high level when Riyad Mahrez took aim with a free kick in the 72nd minute. Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford should have had it covered but the ball went under his hand and crept inside the far post, before Raheem Sterling wrapped up a 3-1 win with a late goal.

The gap between Liverpool and second-place City stayed at five points. West Ham, in third spot, is a further four points adrift.

Capping a forgettable day for goalkeepers, Tottenham’s Hugo Lloris was dispossessed near his own line to concede a goal against Southampton. His teammates rescued him by winning 2-1 despite playing with 10 men for an hour, lifting the side to fourth.

TOP TWO DIG IN

Neither Liverpool nor City was at their fluent best, but still found ways to win. It is not yet October and they are already pulling clear of the rest.

Liverpool, in particular, was put off its game by the intensity and work rate of Sheffield United before Henderson’s mistake cost the promoted side. Henderson is on loan from Man United, traditionally Liverpool’s fiercest rival.

It was just a second clean sheet in the league for Liverpool, which kept a league-high 21 last season.


“Eight times 1-0 is more important than one time 8-0,” said Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp, referring to City’s massive win by that score against Watford last weekend.

City never reached those heights against Everton, though Kevin De Bruyne excelled once again, collecting his eighth assist in the league with a curling cross headed home by Gabriel Jesus.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin equalized for Everton, which forced City goalkeeper Ederson Moraes into some smart saves.

“They are on an incredible run,” City manager Pep Guardiola said of Liverpool. “They don’t drop points and they win well. We know it, the players know it. It is not easy.”

DEFIANT SPURS

Lloris’ mistake was probably the worst of the day.

The France captain collected the ball near his line, dithered and tried to beat Southampton striker Danny Ings with a deft turn. Ings dispossessed Lloris and the ball rolled into the net, leaving the score 1-1 after Tanguy Ndombele’s early goal.

By that stage, Tottenham was also a man down after the 31st-minute red card to Serge Aurier for two bookings but Mauricio Pochettino’s team still prevailed, Harry Kane finishing a flowing move in the 43rd to make it 2-1.

Spurs have had a difficult start to the season — losing on penalties to fourth-tier Colchester in the League Cup in midweek — but they are still in the Champions League places.

WEST HAM FLYING

Doing even better than Tottenham, somewhat surprisingly, is West Ham.

A 2-2 draw at Bournemouth, earned by left back Aaron Cresswell’s 74th-minute equalizer, lifted West Ham to third. The London team’s only loss came on the opening weekend, a 5-0 hammering by Man City.

It was Cresswell’s second goal in as many games. He also curled in a free kick in a win against Manchester United last weekend.

HOME WIN FOR CHELSEA

Chelsea finally kept a clean sheet this season, and it earned Frank Lampard a first home win in the league since his return as manager.

Jorginho converted a penalty and Willian scored with a deflected shot as Chelsea beat Brighton 2-0 with both goals coming in the second half.

It was the ninth straight league loss for Brighton against Chelsea — an English record run for most games played, and lost, against one opponent.

Lampard had two draws and a loss in his first three league games at home following his return to Chelsea, where he is the all-time top scorer.

STILL BOTTOM

Watford will head into October still without a league win.

Wolverhampton Wanderers consigned Watford to a fifth loss in seven games by winning 2-0 at Molineux thanks to an effort from Matt Doherty and an own-goal by Daryl Janmaat.

Watford has two points and was on the end of an 8-0 thrashing by Man City last weekend.

In the other two games, Burnley equalized twice in a 2-2 draw at Aston Villa, and Crystal Palace won 2-0 at home to Norwich.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Chelsea gets 13th straight win, Liverpool maintains pursuit

LIVERPOOL, England—Chelsea fought off a dogged Stoke for a record-equaling 13th successive Premier League win as Liverpool maintained its pursuit of the leaders with a victory over Manchester City.

Thanks to Saturday’s 4-2 win, Chelsea will enter the second half of the season holding a six-point advantage over Liverpool in Antonio Conte’s first season in charge of the London club.

Juergen Klopp is also satisfied with Liverpool’s progress as he looks to deliver the club’s first title since 1990 by chasing down Chelsea over the next 19 games.

“Can you imagine how annoying it is when you have won 13 games in a row and another team is only six points behind,” Klopp said after Liverpool’s 1-0 win over City. “It is unbelievably difficult this league.”

It was Pep Guardiola with little to celebrate on New Year’s Eve as City slipped 10 points behind leader Chelsea.

Chelsea has emulated Arsenal’s 2002 side by reeling off 13 wins in a row in the same season and it’s thanks to Willian’s double.

Goals from Gary Cahill and Willian were canceled out by Stoke duo Bruno Martins Indi and Peter Crouch. When Willian put Chelsea in front for a third time in the 65th minute, Stoke could find no way back this time and Diego Costa added a fourth.

“When you win a lot there is a great danger to be satisfied, to be relaxed, to think, ‘OK, but we won a lot in the past, now if arrive the draw, if we don’t lose, if we don’t win it’s not important,'” Conte said. “No. My players showed me great will, great will to fight, great will to win, great will to take this great achievement for us. I’m pleased for them and they deserved this. I’m their coach, but they deserved this.”

Georginio Wijnaldum’s eighth-minute header secured Liverpool’s fourth successive league win. Wijnaldum will take the plaudits for providing his second goal of the season, but Adam Lallana’s contribution underscored how the midfielder is an essential ingredient in the title bid.

It was Lallana’s seventh assist of the season—he has also scored seven—that set up Wijnaldum. The Dutch midfielder climbed above City defender Aleksandar Kolarov to meet Lallana’s well-placed cross from the left flank before planting a header beyond goalkeeper Claudio Bravo.

“It was kind of a wild game,” Klopp said. “It was intense. It’s not about having a philosophy, it’s about adapting to the quality of the opponent and in this case we needed to defend from a compact formation.”

Anthony Martial and Paul Pogba scored late goals in the 85th and 86th minutes to rescue a fifth successive win for Jose Mourinho’s United.

Grant Leadbitter had given Middlesbrough the lead but United gave the watching former manager Alex Ferguson the perfect 75th birthday gift.

“If the fans remember this not just for Sir Alex’s birthday but for the kind of performance we had, I think it’s a great tribute,” Mourinho said.

United’s in-house television channel received a shock after the game when nine-time Olympic Usain Bolt called in with his analysis.

Leicester moved six points clear of the relegation zone on Saturday after the struggling champions ended a three-game winless streak courtesy of Islam Slimani’s header. Leicester moved up one spot to 15th.

Swansea’s miserable form continued in the first game following Bob Bradley’s firing. Benik Afobe and Ryan Fraser scored first-half goals and substitute Josh King completed a comfortable win for Bournemouth in the 88th minute.

In the final five minutes of the first half, Shane Long put Southampton ahead and Matt Phillips equalized. But Hal Robson-Kanu struck a second-half winner for West Bromwich Albion before Southampton defender Virgil van Dijk was sent off in the 88th for bringing down striker Salomon Rondon.

Burnley moved closer to mid-table safety powered by Andre Gray’s hat trick against relegation-threatened Sunderland.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard set to leave club at season's end

Steven Gerrard is set to make the shock announcement that he will leave Liverpool at the end of the season, ending a rollercoaster 25-year association with the English giants.

Reds captain Gerrard’s Anfield future has been the subject of speculation for several months and he is believed to have decided to continue his career overseas when his contract expires in the close season.

The 34-year-old midfielder, who scored two penalties in Thursday’s 2-2 draw against Leicester at Anfield, has already been linked with a move to MLS franchise LA Galaxy and a Daily Express report says he is poised to go public on his plans later Friday to avoid speculation over his future becoming a distraction during the rest of the season.

Clubs from the Middle East will also express interest in Gerrard according to the report, with the former England skipper free to speak to foreign sides since the first minute of the new year.

Former Liverpool teammate Jamie Carragher described Gerrard’s decision as a “sad day”.

“Sad day for Lfc & English football with the Gerrard news, I think it’s the right decision all things considered,” tweeted Carragher, who himself made 737 appearances for Liverpool.

He added: “Leaving or retiring is a great confidence booster, this morning my timeline was full of “whys Gerrard starting” now it’s “Gerrard best ever”.

Gerrard’s announcement that he plans to leave his boyhood team, the only club he has played for in his professional career, will come as a huge blow to many Liverpool supporters who anticipated he would extend his contract by at least another year.

Liverpool offered Gerrard a new deal in November, but it is said he has decided the time is right to move on at the end of the campaign.

Gerrard joined Liverpool as an eight-year-old and has made 695 first-team appearances, scoring 180 goals.

His greatest moment came when he scored in the Champions League final in 2005 and inspired Liverpool to come from 3-0 down at half-time against AC Milan and win the trophy on penalties.

But his hopes of winning the Premier League are likely to remain unfulfilled after Liverpool came up agonisingly short last season and lost out to Manchester City.

Gerrard returned to the starting line up for Thursday’s draw with Leicester after being rested for Monday’s win over Swansea.

But, with his performances below his previous high standards for much of this season, the prospect of being a substitute in more matches next season as manager Brendan Rodgers manages his fitness has helped shape his decision to quit Anfield.

‘What a player’

The Express report said Gerrard, who famously turned down two moves to Chelsea, will not play for another club in England out of respect for Liverpool.

Gerrard made his debut in 1998, coming on as a substitute in a game against Blackburn Rovers.

His club trophy haul includes the Champions League, UEFA Cup, two FA Cups, three League Cups, one Community Shield and two UEFA Super Cups.

Gerrard was capped 114 times by England, having made his international debut in 2000, but he retired from international football after last year’s World Cup where England exited in the first round.

Former England star Gary Lineker tweeted that the Anfield giants owed Gerrard a huge debt for his loyalty and his performances.

“So that’s it then, Gerrard is going. What a player he has been for Liverpool. Dragged teams to levels they’d never have reached without him,” said Lineker.

Gerrard’s impending announcement came after Rodgers rued the defensive mistakes which he said were hampering his side’s attempts to build momentum in the Premier League following the draw with Leicester.

The Reds had a 2-0 lead at half-time thanks to two penalties from Gerrard.

“They were two great penalties by Stevie, who showed great composure,” said Rodgers.

However, goals from David Nugent and Jeffrey Schlupp ensured the Foxes collected a share of the points as they hit back in the second half.

It left Liverpool seven points adrift of fourth place and Rodgers lamenting the need for his side to tighten up at the back.

“We are disappointed at being 2-0 up and conceding the goals that we did, poor goals and giving away the ball so cheaply,” Rodgers said.

“We have seven out of nine points, we should have more, at 2-0 even playing as poorly as we did. We should have closed that out and it cost us.

“I think we have to do better on the edge of the box. The shots come in too easy, and we have to be stronger and aggressive.

“We talked about it. We had a plan in place in terms of after the opponent scores or after we score, the five minute spell, the idea of what to do and how to work that but we didn’t do it.” — Agence France-Presse

source: gmanetwork.com

Moyes concedes Liverpool are favorites in 'biggest game'

LONDON - Manchester United manager David Moyes conceded that Liverpool probably start as favorites to win what he described as "the biggest club game in England" when they meet at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Liverpool is second in the Premier League, seven points behind leaders Chelsea with a game in hand, but 11 points clear of United, who are sixth with no realistic chance of retaining their title.

Former Liverpool striker Ian Rush said earlier on Friday that Liverpool go into the match as the clear favorites and Moyes did not disagree.

"Their league position suggests they are ahead of us and they possibly do come here as favorites. Liverpool are having a very good season and we will have to do everything we possibly can to beat them."

Liverpool, which has won its last four league matches, has not finished above United since 2002 and although the team looks like doing so this season, Moyes told reporters at his pre-match news conference that United still had plenty to play for.

"It would be a big boost for us to win on Sunday," he said. "I think everyone knows the importance of Manchester United v Liverpool games.

"I think it is the biggest game in the country. There is great history between the two clubs going back years and I think this is the biggest club game in the Premier League."

Liverpool (18) and United (20) have won 38 league titles between them.

United, who finished champions five times and runners-up three times in Alex Ferguson's last eight seasons in charge at Old Trafford, have not finished outside the top three since 1991, but they will almost certainly do so this season.

Moyes, who has had a difficult introduction since succeeding Ferguson at the start of the season, said there was plenty of positives to take from their recent form, having kept clean sheets in their last three league matches.

"We are not in as strong a position as we'd like, but we are normally very good coming into the final furlong and we have big games coming up this month. Our motivation is to make sure we keep progressing," he said

Only defeat

Their only defeat in the last six weeks was a 2-0 reverse at Olympiakos in a Champions League last 16 first leg last month.

Moyes added: "With the exception of Olympiakos we have been progressing and improving. I see signs of it in training, the players are looking well and sharp and I am looking forward to it."

Striker Robin van Persie appeared on Thursday to allay fears that he was looking to move away from Manchester United by saying he wanted to stay beyond the end of his current contract and that he had learnt a lot from Moyes' training sessions.

"It's nice of Robin. Robin is happy here and we are very pleased about that," a naturally delighted Moyes said.

"He has a couple of years left on his contract and I am sure that's something the board will look at. I have always said we have two outstanding forwards in Wayne Rooney and Robin.

"Both of them are capable of winning games on their own and both are pivotal international players for Holland and England and are the sort of players any side in Europe or the world would want in their team.

"I am delighted to have them here and that both of them want to be Manchester United players is even better."

Winger Nani has returned to the United squad ahead of Sunday's match at Old Trafford, while Rafael, Javier Hernandez and Jonny Evans all have a chance of being involved, Moyes said. - Reuters

source: gmanetwork.com