City back on track with 4-0 rout of Rovers
United maintain grip on EPL top spot despite lacklustre display.
LONDON:
Manchester City put a turbulent week behind them with a 4-0 victory at Blackburn as Premier League leaders Manchester United rode their luck in a 2-0 win over Norwich.
City, who suspended Carlos Tevez following his refusal to come off the bench in the Champions League defeat at Bayern Munich, bounced back in style with goals from Adam Johnson, Mario Balotelli, Samir Nasri and Stefan Savic.
The win left City level with United on 19 points after seven games, with the two Manchester rivals four points clear of Newcastle in third place.
United needed late goals from Anderson and Danny Welbeck to secure all three points against the newly promoted Canaries. However it was a far from convincing display by Sir Alex Ferguson’s side, whose defence had been exposed during a 3-3 draw with FC Basel in midweek.
Norwich were left ruing a costly miss by Anthony Pilkington in the second half, the midfielder missing a one-on-one chance with Anders Lindegaard shortly before Anderson’s 68th-minute strike lifted United.
Welbeck added the second on 87 minutes to secure the win and maintain United’s grip on top spot.
Liverpool down Everton
Earlier, Liverpool downed 10-man Everton 2-0 after another stormy edition of the Merseyside derby.
Second-half goals from striker Andy Carroll and Uruguayan international Luis Suarez sealed the points for Kenny Dalglish’s men after Everton midfielder Jack Rodwell was controversially sent off.
Dalglish later admitted the sending off of Rodwell for a challenge on Suarez in the 23rd minute had swung the game in Liverpool’s favour.
“I think until they lost a man it was even,” he said. “I didn’t think there was much between the teams. Obviously sometimes the numerical advantage works in your favour, sometimes it doesn’t.”
Everton manager David Moyes was dismayed at Rodwell’s dismissal after replays showed he had won the ball cleanly.
“I’d have been disappointed if the referee had given a free-kick for that,” he said. “But at the end of the day it wasn’t the referee that lost us the game.”
In other games, Aston Villa downed Wigan 2-0 at Villa Park with the strikeforce of Gabriel Agbonlahor and Darren Bent getting the goals. Sunderland and West Bromwich Albion battled to a 2-2 draw in a topsy-turvy game at the Stadium of Light.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 2nd, 2011.
Manchester City put a turbulent week behind them with a 4-0 victory at Blackburn as Premier League leaders Manchester United rode their luck in a 2-0 win over Norwich.
City, who suspended Carlos Tevez following his refusal to come off the bench in the Champions League defeat at Bayern Munich, bounced back in style with goals from Adam Johnson, Mario Balotelli, Samir Nasri and Stefan Savic.
The win left City level with United on 19 points after seven games, with the two Manchester rivals four points clear of Newcastle in third place.
United needed late goals from Anderson and Danny Welbeck to secure all three points against the newly promoted Canaries. However it was a far from convincing display by Sir Alex Ferguson’s side, whose defence had been exposed during a 3-3 draw with FC Basel in midweek.
Norwich were left ruing a costly miss by Anthony Pilkington in the second half, the midfielder missing a one-on-one chance with Anders Lindegaard shortly before Anderson’s 68th-minute strike lifted United.
Welbeck added the second on 87 minutes to secure the win and maintain United’s grip on top spot.
Liverpool down Everton
Earlier, Liverpool downed 10-man Everton 2-0 after another stormy edition of the Merseyside derby.
Second-half goals from striker Andy Carroll and Uruguayan international Luis Suarez sealed the points for Kenny Dalglish’s men after Everton midfielder Jack Rodwell was controversially sent off.
Dalglish later admitted the sending off of Rodwell for a challenge on Suarez in the 23rd minute had swung the game in Liverpool’s favour.
“I think until they lost a man it was even,” he said. “I didn’t think there was much between the teams. Obviously sometimes the numerical advantage works in your favour, sometimes it doesn’t.”
Everton manager David Moyes was dismayed at Rodwell’s dismissal after replays showed he had won the ball cleanly.
“I’d have been disappointed if the referee had given a free-kick for that,” he said. “But at the end of the day it wasn’t the referee that lost us the game.”
In other games, Aston Villa downed Wigan 2-0 at Villa Park with the strikeforce of Gabriel Agbonlahor and Darren Bent getting the goals. Sunderland and West Bromwich Albion battled to a 2-2 draw in a topsy-turvy game at the Stadium of Light.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 2nd, 2011.