Sport
Ticketmaster football round-up #5
After a crazy round of fixtures last week, last weekend’s action failed to disappoint. Sports Blogmaster, Ben Carter, checks in with the news, results and his thoughts on, well, the whole lot…
Manchester United travelled to Crystal Palace in our first game, and the visitors got off to a great start when Juan Mata converted a penalty less than 20 minutes in. Jason Puncheon pulled a goal back for the home side, but a late Marouane Fellaini header secured all three points for the Red Devils in their last trip to London this season.
Tottenham travelled to Stoke in our next game, hoping to keep their faint Champions League hopes alive. Mark Hughes’ men had a different idea though, and first-half goals from Charlie Adam and Steven N’zonzi put Stoke into a comfortable lead at the break. Things got even worse for Spurs when Chiriches received his marching orders at 51 minutes. Mame Biram Diouf put the icing on the cake for Stoke with a late goal after great work from Marko Arnautovic down the wing.
Newcastle are down to 17th despite ending their eight game losing streak at home to West Brom. Victor Anichebe put the visitors in front with a powerful header, before Ayoze Perez leveled the game just minutes before the break. The game ended up finished 1-1, with neither side able to convert their second-half chances.
Riyad Mahrez has been an exciting player to watch this season, and when Leicester hosted Southampton, Mahrez was the star of the show. The Algerian bagged both Leicester goals as Ronald Koeman’s Saints struggle for consistency. That win means just four points are required from Leicester’s final two games to stay in the Premier League.
Burnley travelled to Hull in a bid to try and survive, however, despite a fantastic Danny Ings goal, Burnley were relegated from the Premier League. They put on a great performance at the KC Stadium, but it wasn’t enough to save Sean Dyche’s men.
Tim Sherwood’s in-form Aston Villa grabbed all three points at home to West Ham. Tom Cleverley, on loan from Manchester United, got the only goal of the game that put Villa 4 points clear of the drop. Big Sam’s Hammers are in 10th place as a result of the defeat.
Sunderland provided the shock of the weekend when they travelled to Goodison Park. Danny Graham had the ball deflect off him for the opener, before an equally poor Defoe goal gave struggling Sunderland a Premier League lifeline. Currently in 16th, the Black Cats have run out of lives, and need three wins out of three to be sure of survival.
On Sunday, Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with Liverpool was a game dominated by club legends. John Terry and Steven Gerrard both scored for their respective clubs, but neither side were able to grab a late winner.
Manchester City sent QPR crashing back down the divisions after Sergio Aguero scored half of City’s goals in an emphatic 6-0 win. QPR were very poor, and expected to be without Charlie Austin next season, bouncing straight back into the Premier League looks highly unlikely.
Monday’s game saw Garry Monk’s Swans end Arsenal’s incredible form, as they slipped to a 1-0 defeat to a Befetimbi Gomis header. A combination of lethargic goal keeping and goal line technology meant the trip back to wales was a happy one for Swansea City.
Let Ben know what you made of last week’s games on Twitter, @BenCarterTMB, and catch up with his latest podcasts at Ben Carter Radio.
