Fulham 1 – 0 Stoke City

Dimitar Berbatov’s volley in first half injury time is good enough for the win at Craven Cottage.  This match was a bit boring for the most part.  Neither side had a whole lot to play for as both sides are secure in the middle of the BPL table.  The Cottagers did their usual home possession domination but just couldn’t find a good way to trouble Potters’ keeper Asmir Begovic.  Midfielder Bryan Ruiz was able to put the ball into the visitors’ net in the 11^th minute, but the referee caught him clearly using his hand to control Damien Duff’s free kick and booked the Costa Rican international.  The visitors were lucky not to have had Steven Nzonzi sent off when, after taking a blow to the face from a collision with Berbatov, shoved Ruiz in the face.  The midfielder was only cautioned for his unsporting conduct, meanwhile Giorgos Maragounis’ strike of the resulting free kick forced Begovic to tip the ball over the goal.  That was about all there was to the first half until Ashkan Dejagah and Sascha Riether combined to move down the left and Riether’s cross was headed into Berbatov’s path by Stoke’s defender Robert Huth.  The Bulgarian’s volley into the top left corner of the goal was a shot of true quality.  Ten minutes into the second half, the visitors had a chance to equalize when winger Brek Shea, making his debut for his new club, hit his cross and Dejagah blocked it with his arm.  Jonathan Walters stepped up to take the resulting penalty kick, but it was easily saved by Cottagers’ keeper Mark Schwarzer.  That’s as close as the visitors would come to getting any sort of equalizer.  The win sees the Cottagers take 10^th place and the Potters take 11^th place in the BPL table.

Arsenal 2 – 1 Aston Villa

Santi Cazorla’s brace sends the Villains back down to the bottom three.  Gunners’ boss Arsene Wenger scared a lot of fans at his press conference earlier in the week when he went on a very weird rant.  His side had been knocked out of the FA Cup by Blackburn and had also been humiliated by Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions’ League.  Many fans were thinking that it was time for Wenger to move along down the road and retire.  They weren’t too convinced given Arsenal’s performance for much of the match on Saturday.  The boys were sloppy in possession quite a few times and looked far too loose in defense.  There was a bit of relief at Emirates Stadium when Cazorla was able bundle home Jack Wilshere’s centering pass into the Villains’ area for the open goal in the sixth minute.  But alas, Arsenal just couldn’t seem to put together anything more but neither could Villa as they went into the interval still down a goal.  The Gunners did try to pick up the pace a bit as the second half started.  But in the 67^th minute, they were vulnerable to a Villain counter-attack as Andreas Weimann was able to take advantage of Carl Jenkinson’s failure to properly deal with a Brad Guzan down field punt.  The Swedish forward was able to make a 40-yard run before poking a mediocre shot past keeper Wojciech Szczesny to level the score.  That got a lot of the home crowd quite angry and one could hear some of the responses when Christian Benteke nearly got the visitors into the lead a couple of minutes later.  Per Mertesacker was able to get in front of the Belgian and prevent him from getting his header on goal.  Giroud rescued the match in the 86^th minute when he has able to meet Nacho Monreal’s cross and put the ball into the bottom right corner of the goal.  Although they managed to squeak out a win, the consensus seems to be that the Gunners season will be another disappointer.

Norwich City 2 –1 Everton

Grant Holt’s stoppage time winner gets three badly needed points for the Canaries.  They hadn’t won a match since mid-December and for most of time, it looked like they wouldn’t win this one either.  They did create the first chance in the fifth minute when Wes Hoolahan played Robert Snodgrass into the Everton penalty area, but Sylvain Distin was able to block Snodgrass’s shot on goal. But the Toffees had the better of the play in the first half.  Marouane Fellaini should have scored in the 25^th minute but his shot from outside the Canaries penalty area went over the crossbar.  The Belgian was involved in a bit of a scrap in the 32^nd minute when he and Bradley Johnson got in each other’s faces.  Bradley had made a rough challenge on Fellaini that left him with a cut on his knee that the referee did not see.  The referee did see Fellaini retaliate against Bradley, but the end result was just a free kick to the Canaries.  But they went behind when Leon Osman headed home Leighton Baines 38^th minute cross and that goal looked like it would be good enough for the visitors to claim victory.  But as the match wound down, substitute Kei Kamara was able to head in the equalizer from Snodgrass’s corner kick.  That goal inspired the Canaries to attack for all they were worth and it finally paid off when Russell Martin’s cross was nodded on by Sebastien Bassong and the ball landed at the feet of Holt.  The Norwich captain poked home the loose ball right at the end of the match

Reading 0 – 3 Wigan

The Latics haul themselves out of the bottom three by delivering a face-punch to the 10-man Royals at the Madejeski Stadium.  It was just their second win in 14 matches and it was just the sort of momentum starter that boss Roberto Martinez hopes will help the Latics save their season.  Most of the first half was a very boring affair as neither side really tried to create any real chances.  The Royals controlled the possession for most of the match and should have opened the scoring inside of 10 minutes when Hope Akpan headed Jem Karacan’s cross over the bar.  But just when it looked like the half would end goalless, Maynor Figueroa took a shot that would take a lucky deflection off Arouna Kone’s back and into the goal to give the Latics the lead in the 43^rd minute.  Two minutes later, Jean Beausejour nicked the ball from Sean Morrison and made a wonderful pass that hit Kone on the run.  The striker was able to chip over the keeper Adam Federici to put the visitors up by two goals right at half time.  Figueroa scored the third goal right after the start of the second half when he and Franco Di Santo made the Reading defense look foolish and Figueroa was able to poke his shot though Federici’s legs and into the net.  Things went from bad to worse for the home side when Pavel Pogrebnyak was sent off for stamping on Figueroa’s ankle.  That pretty much sealed up the match although Di Santo nearly scored the fourth goal when he narrowly missed a cross from Beausejour.  By the time the match ended, the Madjeski Stadium was nearly empty.  And so the relegation battle begins.

West Bromwich Albion 2 – 1 Sunderland

Romelu Lukaku’s brace lifts WBA to their first home win in two months.  The magic number for survival seems to be 40 points or better this season and WBA hit that magic number on Saturday.  Lukaku, on loan from Chelsea, has scored 12 goals this season and has become a fan favorite over want away striker Peter Odemwingie.  Lukaku’s first goal was scored from the penalty spot when Craig Gardner was penalized for a hand-ball in the area.  That’s how the score stayed for much of the half as Sunderland just couldn’t get a foothold in the match.  Lukaku made it 2-0 when he was able to block a clearance from keeper Simon Mignolet.  Stephane Sessegnon was able to get a goal back for Sunderland in the 78^th minute, but Black Cats’ boss Martin O’Neill will not be happy with his team’s form of late.  They’re not in trouble yet, but they could find themselves dragged into the relegation fight if they’re not careful.

Manchester City 2 – 0 Chelsea

The Champions return to winning ways as the get two past the Blues.  The wheels were really starting to come off the Citeh band wagon.  They hadn’t been playing very well of late and came into this match 15 points behind their neighbors.  Boss Roberto Mancini was starting to feel the heat a bit and knew a win over the Blues would get their efforts to retain the Premiership back on track.  The first half was a bit dull for both sides.  Sergio Aguero came the closest to breaking the deadlock, but Chelsea keeper Petr Cech was able to keep the net empty throughout the entire first half.  Rafa Benitez, probably the most unpopular manager in England, decided to start Demba Ba ahead of Fernando Torres.   The move looked like it would work when, in the 51^st minute, Ba was brought down in the Citeh area by keeper Joe Hart.  Hart, who has had his starting job threatened by Mancini, was lucky to not have been sent off for the foul.  So as Frank Lampard stepped up to take the spot kick, Hart knew that he had to come up big.  And that’s exactly what he did.  That save inspired the Champions and they began to play with a bit more intensity.  It finally paid off for them in the 62^nd minute when David Silva was able square a pass across the area to Yaya Toure and the Ghanaian midfielder scored the goal.  With the Champions in the drivers’ seat and bossing the match, Benitez tried changing things by taking off Lampard and Eden Hazard and replacing them with Oscar and Victor Moses.  When that didn’t work, he later brought on Torres for Jon Obi Mikel.  But alas, that still didn’t work and they went further behind in the 84^th minute when substitute Carlos Tevez hit a great shot from outside the penalty area into the top left corner of the goal.  So Chelsea were left singing the blues and now look like they might not automatically qualify for UEFA Champions’ League next season.  I wonder who Roman Abromavich is going to find to coach Chelsea now?

Newcastle 4 – 2 Southampton

The Magpies end a great week with an emphatic win over the Saints at St James’ Park.  They had gotten themselves into the last 16 of the Europa League and so were flying really high coming into this match.  Morgan Schneiderlin brought everyone back down to earth when his third minute goal put the Saints into the lead.  But Newcastle shook off the effects of that early goal and nearly leveled in the 15^th minute when Papiss Cisse set-up Moussa Sissoko that Saints’ keeper Artur Boric had to push wide of the goal.  Cisse had another chance three minutes later when Yoan Gouffran’s shot fell nicely to his feet, but his turning shot was sliced well wide of the goal.  Sissoko did get the equalizer in the 33^rd minute when Gouffran found him with a telling cross that the striker poked home.  Newcastle when ahead when keeper Rob Elliot’s long clearance was gathered by Cisse who then hit a fantastic long range goal in the 41^st minute.  The Saints’ started out the second half in the same fashion as they started the first and Rickie Lambert got them the equalizer in the 49^th minute when he put home Adam Lallana’s cross.  They nearly went ahead three minutes later when Lambert headed another Lallana cross, but this time wide of the goal.  The home side get their lead back, albeit in controversial fashion in the 67^th minute when midfielder Mathieu Debuchy’s volley shot hit Saints’ defender Danny Fox on the arm just inside the Saints’ penalty area.  The referee just that to be hand-ball and Yohan Cabaye scored the spot kick.  Newcastle got the fourth in the 79^th minute when Danny Fox whacked Davide Santon’s cross against Saints’ defender Jos Hooiveld and the ball trickled into his own net.  The win sees the Magpies steer themselves away from the relegation fight and helps the Geordie fans feel better about boss Alan Pardew.

West Ham 2 – 3 Tottenham

Gareth Bale’s stoppage time wonder strike caps off a thrilling match at Upton Park.  It was a day to celebrate the life of Hammers Hero Bobby Moore.  What a better way to celebrate than a London derby between bitter rivals?  There were some nice pre-match ceremonies as the players were led out by Moore’s grand kids.  That was followed by a minutes round of applause and the Hammers’ fans singing their famous “Forever Blowing Bubbles” song.  The whole thing was actually respected by the opposing Spurs fans, which was a nice thing to see, given the static that brewed up when the teams first met earlier in the season.  But once the opening whistle blew, all niceness was set aside as the two sides set about getting into each other.  It didn’t take long for the first booking of the match as Mousa Dembele saw yellow for a nasty foul on Hammers’ captain Kevin Nolan.  Bale, of course, got Spurs on the score sheet first in the 13^th minute when he went on a rampaging run through the Hammers’ defense and fired a past keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen.  In the 25^th minute, the home side were granted a penalty kick when striker Andy Carroll was tripped in the area by ex-Hammer Scott Parker.  Carroll was able to get up, dust himself off and put the spot kick past Spurs Keeper Hugo Lloris to level the score.  That goal and the occasion seemed to inspire the home side and their fans and they increased pressure on the Spurs goal.  That pressure nearly paid off in the 38^th minute when Hammers’ midfielder Matthew Jarvis’ goal-bound shot was blocked by Kyle Walker.  Upton Park was truly alive with so much energy at half time and when the second half resumed, the home side were boosted by that energy.  The place went wild in the 57^th minute when West Ham ole boy Joey Cole was able to make a fine run into the area and poke his shot past Lloris to put the home side into the lead.  Jaaskelainen then put on an inspiring goal keeping clinic when he made two wonderful saves from Bale and Steven Caulker.  Taylor could have made the result safe for the Hammers in the 74^th when his shot was saved by a fine effort from Lloris.  That proved to be crucial as Spurs were able to equalize two minutes later when substitute Gylfi Sigurdsson took advantage of West Ham’s failure to clear Bale’s free kick and poked home the loose ball underneath Jaaskelainen.  But the Finland keeper, proved to be West Ham’s Man of the Match when he pulled off two more top-class saves to deny Emmanuel Adebayor and Sigurdsson.  But just when everyone thought a draw was eminent, Bale received the ball from substitute Tom Carroll and unleashed a 25-yard heart crushing shot that beat Jaaskelainen into the top tight corner of the goal.  The win puts Spurs above Chelsea into third by two points in what should prove to be an interesting race for the last automatic qualifying place for the UEFA Champions’ League next season.

Arsenal 1-0 Stoke

Lukas Podolski’s deflected free kick gets the Gunners a much needed win.  Man, did Arsenal need this win.  They’ve only gotten five points in their last 5 matches and look like they’re going to be fighting with Everton and Tottenham for the last of the European places.  Arsene Wenger made five changes to the starting lineup including January transferee Nacho Monreal.  The Spanish international, making his debut, replaced injured Kieran Gibbs.  The Gunners tried to start things out right away and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was disappointed to see his first minute effort go just wide of the upper left-hand corner of the Potters’ goal.  It took the visitors 14 minutes to get into the match.  Jonathan Walters shot was gathered by Gunners’ keeper Wojciech Szczesny.   But this match was about as dull as the score line would suggest.  Tony Pulis did his usual “play not to lose” tactics and they seemed to be working as the match ground on.  But in the 75^th minute, everything changed.  Andy Wilkinson made a bad challenge on Theo Walcott that produced a yellow card for the defender.  Podolski took the free kick which deflected off defender Geoff Cameron’s heel and past keeper Asmir Beovic.  There was some question as to whether the goal should have counted as Theo Walcott appeared to be offside, but after the referee consulted with his assistant, the goal stood.  A little while later, Santi Cazorla nearly made it two for the hosts when his shot was sent behind the goal by Begovic.  That was the extent of the scoring in this match as Stoke couldn’t make any significant headway through the Arsenal defense.

Everton 3-3 Aston Villa

The Villains lose a two goal lead and a chance at a much needed win.  Poor Paul Lambert, since coming to Aston Villas from Norwich, he has had the worst luck with the Villains.  They’re stuck in a relegation fight and could have used three points on Saturday.  They started out so well.  Christian Benteke grabbed the lead for the Villains in the 2^nd minute when he got by defender John Heitinga to put home the pass from Charles N’Zogbia.  Marouane Fellaini nearly equalized in the 4^th minute, but his drive from outside the penalty area went just wide of the goal.  The Toffees did equalize in the 20^th minute when Victor Anichebe was able to hold off and turn defender Ciaran Clark and fire a left-footed bullet past a sprawling Jeff Guzan’s grasp.  But the Villains were able to get straight back into the lead when Gabriel Agbonlahor was able to head home Ashley Westwood’s cross in the 23^rd minute.  Both Steven Pienaar and Darron Gibson had chances to get Everton level toward the end of the first half, but the Villains held firm and were feeling mighty good about their lead going into the locker room.  They were feeling even better when the second half got under way and were ecstatic when Benteke got them a third goal in the 60^th minute by slamming home Matthew Lowton’s cutback pass through the area.   That should have been that for the visitors.  But alas, the one weakness that has been killing them all season has been their defending.  Sure enough, they conceded in the 68^th minute.  Victor Anichebe was able to keep the ball away from the hapless Villain defenders and find Fellaini’s run and the Belgian midfielder put the ball away into the bottom right corner of the goal to make the score 2-3.  He scored the equalizer deep into stoppage time when he out muscled the defense to head home Leighton Baines corner kick.  So, it looks like Aston Villa will be joining their Birmingham City neighbors in the Championship division next season.

Newcastle 3-2 Chelsea

The Magpies win a close one over the hapless Blues.  It was Demba Ba’s first visit back to St James’ park since he moved to Chelsea in the January transfer window.  The Geordie faithful voiced their displeasure at what they felt was his chase for money and his disloyalty to the club that had done so much for him.  His new employers nearly grabbed the lead in the 15^th minute when Frank Lampard blasted Ashley Cole’s pullback over the bar.  Ba nearly scored in the 32^nd minute when his shot was saved by Magpies’ keeper Tim Krul. Ba headed the rebound just wide before colliding with Fabricio Coloccini and getting a bloody nose.  While he was off getting treated, Jonas Gutierrez headed Newcastle into the lead by meeting Davide Santon’s cross into the Blues area.  Shortly thereafter, much to the amusement of the home crowd, Ba was substituted for Fernando Torres.  As the second half progressed, Frank Lampard showed his leadership by scoring the equalizer in the 54^th minute with a fine shot from outside the area.  The Blues took the lead in the 60^th minute when Torres made a perfect lay off for Juan Mata to hit a wonderful curling shot over Krul and into the top corner of the goal.  You would have thought Chelsea would have been good enough to see out the result, but in the 68^th minute, keeper Petr Cech made an uncharacteristic mistake with a Yoan Gouffran shot rebound that Moussa Sissoko poked home to make it 2-2.  Sissoko ensured the win for the home side at the end when he and Santon combined to get through the Blues defense and the Frenchman drilled his shot past Cech.  I wonder who Roman Abromavich is interviewing for the Chelsea manager’s job this time.

Reading 2-1 Sunderland

Jimmy Kebe gets a brace as the Royals continue their wonderful start to 2013.  Kebe started the scoring in the sixth minute as he slammed home Jobi McAnuff’s pass from the edge of the Sunderland penalty area.  That looked like it was going to be the only goal of the half until the 29^th minute when Sundeland captain John O’Shea was fouled in the Royals penalty area by Pavel Pogrebnyak.  Craig Gardner scored the spot kick and the sides went into half time level.  It looked like that would be how the match ended as both keepers managed to keep their respective opposition from scoring.  But it was an Ian Harte free kick in the 84^th minute that did in the Sunderland defense.  The Republic of Ireland international knocked the ball to the back post and Kebe rose the highest to head home for the win.  The victory now sees them out of the bottom three and has Royal fans dreaming of BPL football for next season.

West Ham 1-0 Swansea

Andy Carroll comes back from injury to score for the Hammers.  It was a welcome win for the home side and lifts them up and away from any relegation fight.  Carroll hadn’t started for the Hammers since November and was a greeted with mad cheering from the home side.  His presence fits into boss Sam Allardyce’s tactic of defend first and score second.  The home side managed to hold Michu in check for most of the match, limiting him to one header that he missed over the bar.  Swans keeper managed to keep the visitors in the match by making some fine, important saves from Kevin Nolan and Ricardo Vaz Te.  But in the 77^th minute, Carroll was not to be denied as he out jumped everyone to head home Mark Noble’s corner kick from the left.  The win leaves West Ham in 11^th place in the BPL table and that ain’t a bad place to hang around and blow bubbles for a bit.

Wigan 2-2 Southampton

The Latics and the Saints battle each other to a draw at the DW Stadium.  The Latics will not be happy about dropping three vital points in their fight to stay in the BPL.  They took the lead in the 25^th minute from a Gary Caldwell header and were happy to take their one goal lead into the locker room at the interval.  But the Saints have proven a hard side to beat with a single goal this season.  They equalized in the 62^nd minute when Rickie Lambert finished Jay Rodriquez’s pass.  The energized visitors began pouring on the pressure and the Latics defense cracked in the 84^th minute when the Saints broke through on a counter-attack and Mogan Schneiderlin scored from inside the six-yard box.  A late goal like that should have ensured the win for Southampton, but Shaun Maloney managed to poke home a loose ball from a corner kick right at the end of the match to grab Wigan a point.

Queens Park Rangers 0-0 Norwich

Yet another draw for Redknapp as QPR’s fight against relegation continues.  Harry Redknapp spent a lot of money in the transfer window as he works to save QPR’s future in the BPL.  One story during the window was the saga of Peter Odemwingie and the mix-up as he thought he had been transferred from West Bromwich Albion, but transfer actually had not gone through.  But the current priority for Rangers was getting wins.  Midfielder Adel Taarabt clearly the key for any QPR survival, nearly scored in the 10^th minute when he drill a hard, low shot just wide of the goal.  A bit later, the Moroccan created an opportunity for Jamie Mackie, but he also shot wide.  Norwich were content to defend and left Grant Holt on his own at the top of their formation.  So it went for much of the match as one side or the other would mount an attack, but couldn’t keep the goal attempt on target.  QPR should have taken the lead in the 61^st minute when they were awarded a penalty kick.  Mackie took advantage of some poor Norwich defending and as he got into the penalty area, was tripped by keeper Mark Bunn.  Taarabt took the spot kick that Bunn was able to beat away with a fine save to preserve the draw.  As the match drew to a close, both sides pressed hard for a goal that would never come.  Redknapp has got to know that these draws have got to start turning into wins if QPR has any hope of survival.

West Bromwich Albion 0-1 Tottenham

Spurs secure their place in the top four and threaten Chelsea for third place.  This match turned on a bit of boneheadedness on the part of defender Goran Popov.  The match was an evenly fought affair as WBA were equal to everything Spurs threw at them.  When the two teams went into the half time interval, it looked like the Baggie would be good enough to hold out for the draw.  Then Popov had a major brain cramp.  In the 48^th minute, he and Spurs defender Kyle Walker bowed up to each other after fighting hard for possession of the ball.  Then Popov spat in the general direction of Walker and the referee instantly sent off the WBA left back.  After that it was all downhill for the home side as they were put under constant pressure.  WBA keeper Ben Foster was able to keep the visitors at bay as he saved first from Holtby and later a close range effort from Gareth Bale.  But in the 68^th minute, the Welsh wingman got a great pass from Walker and unloaded a 20 yard missile that flew past a diving foster for the match’s only goal.

Manchester City 2-2 Liverpool

The Champions drop points to the Reds at the Etihad Stadium.  Well, Mario Balotelli is gone now.  Roberto Mancini’s desire to end off field drama and focus on defending the BPL trophy should have been fulfilled.  After Edin Dzeko had been more than filling the role of second striker with Sergio Aquero.  Joe Hart was still England’s number one keeper.  David Silva was the engine that drove Citeh forward.  All the elements that were needed to string a similar run to the run that won them the Premiership were all in place.  Surely they would be able to run over Liverpool. Dzeko made that prediction seem to come true in the 22^nd minute when he scored from close range past keeper Pepe Reina.  But the one great improvement Liverpool has made has been the acquisition of striker Daniel Sturridge.  He got the equalizer for the Reds in the 28^th minute, although not without a bit of controversy attached.  Liverpool defender Daniel Agger seemed to have fouled Dzeko to gain possession, but the referee did not award the free kick.  Instead Liverpool made their way forward and captain Steve Gerrard put Sturridge through on goal and the former Citeh man hit a left-footed bomb past Hart.  The visitors were the far better side by the time the half time interval came.  It only got worse for the champions in the second half when, in the 73^rd minute Gael Clichy made a poor clearance that went right to Gerrard.  The England captain controlled the ball on his chest and smashed a low, dipping volley that Hart had no chance of getting to.  The Champions did get the equalizer in the 77^th minute when Aguero was able to take advantage of a defensive mix-up in the Reds’ defense and hit a fine curling shot from a tough angle to make the scores level again.  But that’s as close as Citeh would come and when the final whistle blew, they found themselves nine points behind their neighbors.

Liverpool 5-0 Norwich

The Reds make mincemeat of the Canaries at Anfield.  I’ll bet that Canaries boss Chris Hughton is running his boys ragged at practice this week.  They were made to look completely stupid from the opening kick-off.  There was a question or two for Brendan Rodgers and Liverpool coming off their defeat at Old Trafford in the last round.  Pepe Reina was rested and there was also some doubt that Daniel Sturridge and Luis Suarez would be able to play together and you would have thought that the visitors would want to avenge previous maulings at the hands of the Reds.  But, it was never a contest as Jordan Henderson put them in front in the 25^th minute when Suarez was able to put the midfielder through on goal.  The Uruguayan, who had been condemned for admitting earlier in the week to diving, stayed on his feet despite to hard tackles and set up Henderson’s first time shot that went into the top right-hand corner over keeper Mark Bunn.  The second goal came in the 37^th minute from Sturridge’s clever leave of Lucas Leiva’s through pass which allowed the ball to end up on Suarez’s foot and he tucked it into the bottom right-hand corner of the goal.  The second-half saw more the same domination and Sturridge got on the goal sheet himself in the 58^th minute when he put home Stewart Downing’s superb cross from the right of midfield.   Not wanting to be left out of the party, Steven Gerrard made it 4-0 in the 65^th minute when Glen Johnson made a great run down the left and set up the Liverpool captain to hit from 25 yards out.  Goal number five came when substitute Raheem Sterling made another run through the Canaries’ defense and hit his shot off defender Ryan Bennett.  So the warning to the BPL opposition has been issued, Liverpool have a strike force that has to be reckoned with.  Can we finally say that Luis Suarez ain’t a racist now?

Manchester City 2-0 Fulham

David Silva’s double helps the Champions cut into their neighbor’s lead at the top of the BPL table.  With the news that Mario Balotelli may have played his last match in England, Citeh got off to a great start.  Edin Dzeko, who has won the starting striker’s job over the Italian, was in on goal and allowed to shoot from 25 yards out.  Cottagers’ keeper Mark Schwarzer parried the effort away, but Silva was able to slam the rebound home to give the home side the lead in the second minute.  Fulham have been struggling with their form this season and Martin Jol hasn’t been able to figure out what to do.  This was an easy match for the Champions and they are starting to get their groove back as Dzeko, Carlos Tevez, and James Milner all nearly scored.  Just like he was last season when they put together the run that won them the title, Silva was the man for this match.  There simply was no way through for the Cottagers and the Spaniard end the match as a contest in the 68^th minute when Tevez made a brilliant pass for Silva to poke into the bottom right corner of the net.  Some good news for the Champions as Sergio Aguero was able to make an appearance in the 80^th minute for Carlos Tevez and it looks like his leg has healed.  Aguero, practicing for more end of season heroics, nearly scored in stoppage time, but he missed off to the left.  But the race for the title is on now and it looks like Citeh have every intention of keeping the trophy safely locked in the cabinet at the Emirates Stadium.

Newcastle 1-2 Reading

An Adam Le Fondre brace gives the Royals a much needed win and puts Newcastle in deeper trouble.  The fans at St James Park are once again angry with their manager.  They were angry when he replaced Chris Hughton, the man who got them promoted from the Championship two seasons ago, but forgave him when he nearly got them into Europe.  But fortunes have changed this season.  Their best striker Demba Ba is gone and they’re back into a relegation fight.  Alan Pardew knew that the Magpies needed a win badly and managed to get his boys to start well.  They laid siege to the Royals goal and were rewarded in the 35^th minute when Yohan Cabaye scored a beautiful free-kick from 35 yards out.  They should have had more by half time but that was all they could muster.  Reading came from 2-0 behind to beat West Bromwich last round, so they didn’t panic as they started the second half.  They remembered their lessons from the last match.  First secure the defense and they made the home side’s attack look ordinary.  Pavel Pogrebnyak nearly got the equalizer in the 62^nd minute when he hit Jimmy Kebe’s downward header over the goal.  Pardew tried to build up his defense by bringing on James Perch for Sylvain Marveaux.  But, Kebe was able to get down the right of Newcastle’s midfeld in the 70^th minute and hit a cross that was not properly cleared.  Le Fondre, on for Danny Guthre was able to put home the goal and the comeback was on for the Royals.  In the 76^th minute, it was yet another cross that wasn’t dealt with that finished off Newcastle.  Substitute Hope Akpan was the instigator this time and Le Fondre the beneficiary.    Papiss Cisse and, in stoppage time, Gabriel Obertan tried in vain to get an equalizing goal for the home side who now sit two points and two places off the bottom three.

Swansea 3-1 Stoke

Two Jonathan De Guzman goals in the second half help the Swans condemn the Potters to another defeat.  This was a match Stoke were never really in.  Perhaps it was the Welsh winter weather, but the visitors definitely were the lessor team on Saturday.  After a slow first half, Swansea came out of the half-time interval with a bit of purpose.  They took the lead in the 48^th minute when Ben Davis beat defender Ryan Walters to a low pass from Sung-Yeung Ki and out ran the Potters defense before depositing into the bottom right corner of the goal.  De Guzman netted his first in the 57^th minute when he hit a wonderful curling free-kick into the top corner over the outstretched fingers of Asmir Begovic.  Danny Graham, a transfer target of several teams came on as a substitute in the 72^nd minute for Itay Shechter.  As Graham came on, he couldn’t help but be touched by the fans appreciation chants of “We want you to stay” and he repaid their support as he set up De Guzman’s second goal in the 80^th minute.  He got a great ball from Wayne Routledge and placed the ball into the Dutch International’s path for him to lift over Begovic to score the third goal for the Swans.  Stoke got a stoppage time consolation goal when substitute Michael Owen flicked in a header, but that damage had been done.

West Ham 1-1 Queens Park Rangers

Joe Cole rescues a point for the Hammers.  This one’s gonna hurt for QPR fans.  They had gone ahead in the 14^th minute when new signing Loic Remy scored in the 14^th minute from an Adel Taarabt assist.  They then tried to sit back and defend that goal for the win and should have succeeded were it not for old Hammers’ hero Cole.  QPR did dominate the first half and had several chances to double their lead.  The home side pressed really hard for the equalizer when the second half started but keeper Julio Cesar was more than equal to nearly every attempt.  Until the 68^th minute when substitute Carlton Cole’s shot rebounded off Cesar and landed at Coles feet.  The Hammers’ legend put home his first goal for his second spell at the club.  The good news is that QPR didn’t completely collapse like they had done in the past and managed to hold out for a precious point.  But they need to get wins if they mean to stay up.

Wigan 2-3 Sunderland

The Latics lose a close one at home.  They had started so well.  David Vaughan got them the early lead in the fourth minute when he put the ball into his own net.  But luck hasn’t been with the Latics this season and in the 16^th minute James McCarthy was judged to have committed handball in their penalty area when he blocked Sebastian Larsson’s free-kick.  Craig Gardner scored the spot kick and three minutes later the Blackcats had the lead.  Alfred N’Diaye made a wonderful cross for Steven Fletcher to put volley home past keeper Ali Al-Habsi.  Fletcher made it three for the visitors in the 41^st minute when he was there to press home an Adam Johnson knock-back of a Craig Gardner free-kick.  The home crowd boo’ed  off their team at the half and Roberto Martinez needed to find some sort of inspiration for the next half.  He tried replacing Ronnie Stam with Roger Espinoza and it seemed to lift the side a little.  Shaun Maloney nearly scored for the home side in the 49^th minute when his shot was saved by keeper Simon Mignolet.  The Latics thought they had their own penalty claim a bit later when Franco di Santo had a shot blocked in a similar manner to the manner to which James McCarthy had been punished in the first half.  However the referee wouldn’t hear of it.  Substitute Angelo Henriquez did get a goal back for the home side in the 78^th when he headed home Maloney’s cross.  To their credit, the Latics pressed hard for the remainder for that elusive equalizer.  But alas, as the final whistle blew, Wigan found themselves back in the bottom three.

West Bromwich Albion 2-2 Aston Villa

Peter Odemwingie’s late second half goal denies the Villains a much needed win.  Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert has received the dreaded confidence vote from the ownership as it looks like their skid will continue for a while.  They needed a win in the worst way and a visit to The Hawthorns stadium might be a way to start something good.  Things really did start out really well for the visitors as Christian Benteke got them on the board first in the 12^th minute.  It was his 10^th goal of the season and he got it when he was able to take Charles N’Zogbia’s pass and get around defender Claudio Yacob before firing a rising strike past WBA keeper Ben Foster.  It was clear that the Villains had a bit of fight to them coming into this match and in the 20^th minute, tempers flared when Gabriel Agbonlahor and Jonas Olsson came together after the former’s cross and the latters’ challenge.  Both players were booked, but an inspired Agbonlahor made it two for the visitors when he took another N’Zogbia pass through the WBA defense and finished under Foster and into the net.  When the half time whistle blew, WBA boss Steve Clarke was not very happy with his team’s performance and undoubtedly let them know about it during the interval.  Whatever he said to them, it worked as they managed to pull a goal back in the 49^th minute.  Romelu Lukaku took a Jerome Thomas cross and made a wonderful pass into Chris Brunt’s run so that he could curl a 15 yard strike past Villains’ keeper Brad Guzan.  Perhaps it was the fear of dropping more points, or maybe Villa really are headed for the drop.  But whatever it might be, they slowly lost their grip on the match and it was a matter of time before any hope of three much needed points would be gone.  It happened in the 82^nd minute when WBA were awarded a corner kick.  Brunt took the kick and the Villain defense failed to clear, leaving Odemwingie to volley past Guzan’s desperate grasp.

Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal

Two referee decisions help the Blues do the double over their London rivals.  It was not a good week for the Chelsea faithful coming into this match.  They had blown a two goal lead in their make-up match against Southampton on Wednesday.  Their dream manager, Pep Guardiola, had decided to take the Bayern Munich job when it becomes available in the summer.  So, one couldn’t blame the Stamford Bridge faithful for being a little grumpy.  It could have gotten really bad for boss Rafa Benitez had Olivier Giroud not missed his shot in the fifth minute.  Theo Walcott, giddy from his new contract signing, had wiggled through the Blues defense in the fifth minute and set up the French striker who should have scored.  On the counter, Blues midfielder Ramires looked like he had fouled Francis Coquelin and the ball broke to Cesar Azpilicueta.  He hit Juan Mata with a keen cross-field pass that the Spaniard controlled with one touch then smashed it into the top left corner of the goal.  With Gunners boss Arsene Wenger fuming on the touch-line Eden Hazard nearly made it two a short time later as keeper Wojciech Szczesny had to make a diving save.  Wenger was made even angrier in the 16^th minute when Ramieres darted into the Gunners’ area and tangled with Szczesny.  The referee pointed to the spot, but replays showed that the winger fell on his own.  The spot kick was taken by Frank Lampard and as the crowd chanted “Super Frank” and “Sign him up”, he hammered the penalty kick home in his usual manner.  The home side dominated the rest of the match as they usually do at Stamford Bridge.  There was a little apprehension when Walcott got a consolation goal in the 57^th minute, but there was no way back for Arsenal.  I think Rafa can take some solace in the win and the fact that Wenger is having a much harder time that he is at the moment.

Southampton 0 – 0 Everton

A cold, stalemate is all there was for the hard core fan at St Mary’s Stadium.  This had been a really weird time for the Saints.  Nigel Adkins, the man who got them promoted from the First Division to the Championship Division and then on to the BPL, had been surprisingly fired.  Saint’s fans, fearful that the ownership was repeating the same mistake that Blackburn Rovers made last season, had planned on protesting the new boss, Mauricio Pochettino as he took charge of the team for Monday’s match.  Things were almost called off as a snow storm blew through and dumped several inches of snow throughout the city.  When things got started, it was the home side that seemed to have the better of the play.  Gaston Ramirez and Rickie Lambert both got a chance to start and they wreaked a bit of havoc in the Everton goal in the fourth minute.  A couple minutes later, Jason Puncheon had his shot blocked by defender Phil Jagielka.  There was a penalty shout in the 32^nd minute when Saints defender Maya Yoshida went to ground from a Sylain Distin challenge.  But the referee ignored any claims and waved play-on.  Despite the pressure from the home side, that was as close as anyone would come to scoring in the first half.  Everton came out of the half time interval with a little more fire and Saints keeper Artur Boruc and to twice save a sure goal from midfielder Marouane Fellaini.  If the first half had belong to the home side, the second half was owned by the visitors as Nikica Jelavic, Victor Anichibe, and later substitute Kevin Mirallas had their attempts on goal saved by Boruc.  And so neither side could make any breakthrough and the final whistle gave Pochettino his first point as the new Southampton boss.

West Bromwich Albion 1 – 2 Fulham

Alexander Kacaniklic’s second half goal gets a win for the Cottagers.  This was a much needed win for the visitors who had won just one of their previous 12 matches and were looking a relegation fight straight in the face.  They dominated most of the first half and nearly had the opening goal in the 12^th minute as Steve Sidwell’s run into the Baggies’ penalty area was relatively unopposed, but his shot was well wide of the goal.  Dimitar Berbatov later got in on goal with only Baggies’ keeper Ben Foster to beat, but he put his shot over the bar.  But finally in the 39^th minute, the Bulgarian international put his side into the lead.  Ashkan Dejagah got past Baggies’ defender Liam Ridgewell and squared to Berbatov, who finished in his customary calm method.  The home fans were not happy about what they saw when the half-time whistle blew and they booed off their team as they went off to the locker room.  West Brom got the second half started a lot better and they equalized in the 48^th minute when Chelsea loanee Romelu Lukaku scored from a Billy Jones pass.  Lukaku nearly put the home side in the lead when he beat Aaron Hughes to a loose ball in the Fulham area.  But he hit his shot off the outside of the post.  WBA was inspired as both Zoltan Gera and Lukaku had their shots blocked by David Stokdale.  But just as it looked like the home side were going to press hard enough to score, Kacaniklic put Fulham in the lead against the run of play.  Bryan Ruiz played in a lofted ball into Kacaniklic and he made a brilliant move to check back inside and poked his shot past Foster.  That was all the visitors needed as their defense held the home side to gain three precious points.

Manchester City 3 – 0 Stoke

The Champions make it look easy against the Potters.  Things may not be calm at the Etihad and there may be a player or two who might be moving on during the transfer window, but Roberto Mancini’s boys are still doing what they need to do to stay within striking distance of their neighbors at the top of the BPL table.  And they’re doing it without the services of one Mario Balotelli.  There really wasn’t too much to talk about in this match.  Citeh dominated as they usually do on their home ground and Zabaleta got the first goal in the 42^nd minute when he put home James Milner’s cross.  In the second half, Potters’ boss Tony Pulis relaced Kenwyne Jones with Matthew Etherington, but there really wasn’t much of an effect the change made on the match.  Edin Dzeko poked home Sergio Aguero’s offering to make it two for the home side.  His goal celebration was clearly a poke at the Italian striker in whose place he was playing.  He lifted his shirt to show the message “Happy New Year” and posed in “Super” Mario’s “Look at Me” stance.  And he got booked for it like Mario would also.  But it was clear that the Citeh players are prepared to play without the controversial striker and got the third goal in the 72^nd when Steven Nzonzi was penalized and booked for fouling David Silva in the penalty area.  Aguero scored the spot kick and the champs kept the gap at the top to seven points.

Swansea 2 – 2 Aston Villa

Danny Graham’s stoppage time goal earns the Swans a draw.  The Villains and boss Paul Lambert are in deep trouble.  They’ve conceded 15 goals and scored zero in their last three matches and Wayne Routledge added to the deficit in the ninth minute when he knocked home Pablo Hernandez’s pass into the area.  It wasn’t the fact that Swans had scored first that was so troubling.  It was how they did it.  They were simply walked through by the home side as if they were not even on the field and keeper Brad Guzan was beaten way to easily.  A minute later Graham went through unmolested on goal, only to hit the post.  Shortly thereafter he again had the Villa goal at his mercy and hit wide from eight yards out.  In the 26^th minute, Guzan was again in action as he had to save Miguel Michu’s close shot off the post.  It really looked like Villa were going to get beat down again, but in the 43^rd minute, Swans defender Ashley Williams failed to properly clear Christian Benteke’s flick and Andreas Weimann leveled the score.  It was the first goal for the visitors in more than 300 minutes of very futile football on their part.  But it was a much welcome, much needed boost and they started the second half with a fire that had been missing for a long time.  They should have taken the lead early when Benteke nearly got a toe to a great ball across the Swans six yard area by Matthew Lowton.  They even got a bit of luck in the 60^th minute when Joe Bennett blocked Angel Rangel’s shot with his hand inside his penalty area, but the referee awarded the free-kick on edge of the box instead of giving the penalty kick.  Their luck got even better when they were awarded a penalty kick of their own in the 84^th minute.  From their corner kick, Swansea midfielder Nathan Dyer was able to block Benteke’s shot, but he fouled Weimann in trying to clear the rebound.  Benteke took the spot kick and it looked like Villa were on their way to a much needed victory.  But alas their Achilles Heel, defending, showed itself again as they couldn’t clear Chico’s shot on goal and Graham pounced on the rebound to seal the draw.

Tottenham 3 – 1 Reading

Spurs grab third place as they beat the Royals at White Hart Lane.  I wonder if Spurs fans are starting to warm up to their manager Andreas Villas Boas yet.  I don’t blame them for the cussing and yelling that they were doing in the third minute when Pavel Pogrebnyak pounced on a loose ball from an Ian Harte free kick that had bounced off the cross-bar to put the visitors up 1-0.  But Aaron Lennon got Spurs moving in the right direction when he made one of his trademark attacks and crossed for Emmanuel Adebayor that the Togo striker headed wide.  Spurs were not to be denied and in the eighth minute, they got the equalizer.  From Gylifi Sigurdsson’s corner-kick, Michael Dawson out jumped everyone and headed home from close range.  Sigurdsson, starting for the suspended Gareth Bale, nearly scored a short time later when his deflected shot went wide of the goal.  Royals goal keeper Adam Federici was constantly under fire as Mousa Dembele, Jermain Defoe, and Sandro all threatened to score.  Defoe should have right before half time when he sped past his marker, but his dipping shot was just wide of the goal.  The start of the second half was more Spurs domination and their pressure finally paid off when they went ahead in the 50^th minute.  Lennon got past Harte like he wasn’t even there and crossed for the back post.  Adebayor beat defender Alex Pearce in the air and headed past Federici’s grasp as the Spurs fans rejoiced.  Lennon, easily the Man of the Match continued to wreak havoc on the Royals defense and nearly got a goal in the 55^th minute when his effort was blocked by Pearce.  Clint Dempsey, on for Sigurdsson, killed the match off in the 78^th minute when his long range shot caught Federici off his line and looped into the goal.  So Villas-Boas, content with his side’s seventh win in nine matches, can thumb his nose at his old employers as he sits above them on the table.

West Ham 2 – 1 Norwich

The Hammers beat the Canaires at Upton Park.  This was a much welcome win for the home side as they hadn’t had a victory since December 1.  Boss Sam Allardyce was wanting a bit of momentum ahead of Saturday’s FA-Cup clash with Manchester United and got the start he was looking for in the second minute of the match.  Ryan Bennett was penalized for a shirt pull on Winston Reid in the box and Mark Noble scored the spot kick to put the home side into the lead.  It’s been a rough couple of weeks for Chris Hughton’s side as they had lost three straight matches coming into this one.  They almost went down another goal when Carlton Cole effort from 20 yards was saved by keeper Mark Bunn.  The Canaries had their own chance a short time later when they were awarded a free-kick 25 yards out from goal.  Robert Snodgrass hit a great curler that went over the wall, but rebounded off the post.  Norwich had their own penalty shout when Reid appeared to handle the ball in the area as he challenged Sebastian Bassong, but the referee was not interested.  The Hammers made it 2-0 in the 25^th minute.  Norwich midfielder appeared to have been knocked down by Cole and Noble ran into the right side of the visitors’ penalty area.  Although his cutback was intercepted by Bassong, Joey O’Brien hit the loose ball past a sprawling Bunn.  The Canaries, still furious that no foul had been given nearly went further behind when Matt Taylor hit a 25 yard drive that Bunn was barely able to tip over the bar.  The second half saw more injustice for the Canaries as they were denied another penalty shout when Harry Kane was knocked down by James Tomkins.  The replay did confirm that the referee got that decision right.  The day truly belonged to the home side, although they had some hand wringing at the end of the match when Russell Jackson grabbed a consolation goal from close range as he volleyed Simeon Jackson’s cross into the net.  But that was all the Canaries could muster as West Ham went back to winning ways.

Southampton 1 – 1 Arsenal

Yawn.  Boring, boring Arsenal draws with the Saints.  OK, the Saints should have won this one and they did go ahead in the 34^th minute when Gaston Ramierez  got ahold of an Gunner mis-clear and scored.  But then Gunner-Star-Wannabe Theo Walcott hit a free-kick that Guly do Prado knocked into his own goal.  Yep, that was it.  That was all there was as relegation threatened Southampton couldn’t mount any significant attack from that point forward, even though they dominated the second half.  Arsenal, whose fans are waiting to see what moves Arsene Wenger is going to make in the transfer window, look like they’re going to struggle to make the European sides as they side in sixth place, two points behind Everton.  They need a spark from somewhere.  The draw does take the Saints out of the bottom three, but they face a hard fight if they’re going to remain in the Premiership.

Chelsea 0 – 1 Queens Park Rangers

Chelsea Ex, Shaun Wright-Phillips helps beat his old team.  In the build-up to this match, most folks were predicting a major goal haul for the Blues.  They were flying high, having won their last four matches in fine spectacular fashion.  There was even talk of Frank Lampard possibly being offered a new contract so that he could retire a Blue.  Fernando Torres was rediscovering his goal scoring form and Chelsea were poised to make a real serious run at the Manchester sides for the Premiership.  That all came crashing to a halt on Wednesday.  Boss Rafa Benitez had dropped Ramieres, Juan Mata, and Eden Hazard to the bench and that seemed like a prudent move to make given that QPR had lost their last three matches and were rooted to the bottom of the table.  The match started with a bit of controversy as Chelsea winger Marko Marin, making his first start, was extremely lucky not to have been sent off for a dangerous challenge on Stephane Mbia.  Marin went into the tackle with his studs up and caught Mbia right on the shin.  Mbia later nearly gifted the home side a goal when his horrible pass was intercepted by Oscar.  However the Brazilian’s pass to Torres was way under hit and QPR escaped any damage.  It looked like bad news for QPR when Junior Hoilett pulled up with a ham-string injury in the 16^th minute and had to be replaced by Wright-Phillips.  One of the first things that QPR boss Harry Redknapp typically tried to correct when he takes over a side is the defending and it looks like his corrections were helping as again and again they were equal to anything that the Blues could throw at them.  The closest Chelsea would come in the first 45 minutes would be when Lampard’s shot from outside the area right at the break missed to the left of goal.  The first several minutes of the second half saw Chelsea laying siege to the QPR goal.  After all this was Stamford Bridge and the Blues just do not lose at home.  Luiz, Torres, and Branislav Ivanovic were doing their best to bring that point home to the visitors and when it looked like Lampard had finally poked the ball home, the flag was up for offside.  The Blues just couldn’t seem to get it together and Benitez tried to shake things up by bring on Mata and Hazard for Marin and Victor Moses.  The shock of the day occurred in the 78^th minute when a corner kick for QPR landed on Adel Taarabt’s boot and he squared over to Wright-Phillips.  The former Chelsea winger drove an unbelievable shot straight into the bottom left corner of the goal and the QPR fans went absolutely bonkers with joy.  So it’s a good bet to say that Rafa Benitez is back on many Chelsea fans “Dislike” list.

Liverpool 3 – 0 Sunderland

Luis Suarez gets another brace as the Reds thwart the Black Cats at Anfield.  The Reds may have just bought Daniel Sturridge from Chelsea to give Suarez someone to play with up front.  But on Wednesday the Uruguayan striker was absolutely on fire.  The Reds are usually untouchable at home and Raheem Sterling get them going in the 18^th minute.  He was found via a lob forward from Suarez and as Sunderland keeper Simon Mignolet came out to close down the teenager, he was coolly chipped by the youngster.  The Blackcats did have a chance to equalize from James McClean’s shot, but he missed the target when he had only Reds’ keeper Jose Reina to beat.  That miss proved costly as Suarez got number two for the Reds in the 25^th minute.  Steven Gerrard’s pass released Suarez forward and he out fought defender Carlos Cuellar to get into the Sunderland penalty area and drilled his shot through the Mignolet’s legs with the outside of his right foot.  Sunderland had another chance to score in the 34^th minute when Matthew Kilgallon’s close range shot was blocked by Reina.  Suarez ended the match as a contest in the 52^nd minute when Gerrard, with lots of time and space hit a 60 yard pass directly to his teammate who collected the ball and wrong-footed Mignolet to poke home the third Liverpool goal.  He had a chance to get his hat trick in the 68^th minute but he was denied by a fine save from Mignolet.  So the Reds have earned nine points out of a possible 12 over the holidays and sit in eighth place, only seven points behind fourth place Chelsea.

Newcastle 1 – 2 Everton

The Toffees come back from a goal down to beat the Magpies.  Newcastle really needed to win this match as they’re headed in the wrong direction again.  They sit only three places away from the relegation zone and had just sold their best striker Demba Ba to Chelsea.  Alan Pardew’s boys started out the match in the best way possible when Papiss Cisse headed them ahead in the first minute of the match.  They could have had a second goal if Cisse had been able to meet Shola Ameobi’s cross in front of goal.  The visitors finally woke up at that point and began pressing for an equalizer.  Leighton Baines should have gotten it when he took a dipping free-kick that looked like it was going to make it into the net, but keeper Tim Krul managed to get a hand to the ball and keep it out.  In the 24^th minute Marouane Fellaini, back after serving a three match ban, had his shot blocked from Davide Santon and Steven Pienaar had his attempt saved by Krul.  Everton finally did equalize in the 42^nd minute from Leighton Baines’ wonderfully taken free-kick.  Newcastle had a chance to take the lead in the 48^th minute when they were awarded their own free kick.  Sylvain Marveaux took the kick, but hit it right into the Everton wall.  They had another chance in the 58^th minute when Ameobi had a chance to beat Everton keeper Tim Howard, but hit is shot just wide of the post.  The visitors took the lead in the 60^th minute when Nikica Jelavic eluded the Newcastle defense and found Victor Anichebe whose shot went into the bottom right corner of the goal past Krul.  Gabriel Obertan nearly equalized in the 65^th minute when his shot was saved by Howard.  Fellaini had a chance to mark his return with a goal in the 71^st minute, but his flick was tipped over the bar by Krul.  The home side had one more chance to equalize in the 83^rd minute, but Santon’s shot was saved by Howard.  The win puts Everton in sole possession of the last European place ahead of Arsenal.