Match Preview

This game was originally scheduled for Monday night, but was moved forward because Everton and Liverpool will go at it for the third Merseyside Derby in 10 days this Wednesday. This time it’s the FA Cup fourth round replay.

It looks like Wayne Rooney, Nani, and Patrice Evra are still out injured for United, but Fabio could be back as United are attempting to extend their streak without conceding goal in league play to 12 games. Edwin Van Der Sar hasn’t let a goal in for the last 17 hours and 12 minutes of league action. United have won their last five league games and are unbeaten in the last 11.

Everton will be with top scorer Tim Cahill (6) and Maroune Fellaini after initial doubts. Everton go into the game in sixth spot, 12 points behind Liverpool and Chelsea who are tied for third with 48. Yakubu is out for the season and surprise, surprise, Saha is also injured. Everton have won three and drew two in their last five games and are unbeaten in the last seven.

Mark Halsey will be the referee.

Line Ups

Manchester United: Van Der Sar, Neville, Ferdinand, Vidic, O’Shea, Ronaldo, Carrick, Fletcher, Park, Berbatov, Tevez

Subs: Kuszczak, Brown Giggs, Welbeck, Fabio da Silva, Gibson, Eckersley

Everton: Howard, Hibbert, Jagielka, Lescott, Baines, Osman, Arteta, Neville, Pienaar, Fellaini, Cahill

Subs: Nash, Yobo, Castillo, Jacobsen, Rodwell, Anichebe, Gosling

Goals

Manchester United: Ronaldo (44′)

Everton:

Live Blog

90+3′ The whistle goes and this game goes into the history books as United’s 12th consecutive league game without letting in a goal. Full Time it’s Manchester United 1-0 Everton.

90+3′ Carrick takes a low, hard shot from the edge of the box that goes wide of the post.

90+2 Anichebe makes a bad tackle on Brown now and again there’s no card shown.

90+1′ Everton’s unbeaten streak is going to end unless they come up with something dramatic in the last minute.

90′ Last minute of normal time now and the ball’s in Everton’s end again. There’s going to be two minutes of added time.

89′ Wes Brown dives in for a tackle, but no yellow card.

87′ Park works his way into the box from the left side and drills a right footed shot that’s low and hard, however Howard comes out well to make the big save.

86′ The game’s still in doubt, but never the less some fans are starting to leave now.

84′ A free kick now for Giggs from the right hand corner flag. It’s whipped in and howard does well to punch it clear.

82′ Free kick for Everton from 35 yards out and it ends up as a scramble in the box. Vidic brings Lescott down for what could easily have been a penalty and Van Der Sar gathers the ball.

81′ Lescott heads it into the box, but the play is called dead for a foul on Everton.

80′ Corner kick from the left side for United. Giggs crosses and Ronaldo rises to meet it and heads it way over the bar.

79′ Berbatov to Tevez in the box and the Arentinean tries to lob it over Howard to no avail as it’s easily caught by the keeper.

78′ Everton just can’t seem to get anything going, but it still doesn’t look like a safe lead for United at the moment.

76′ It’s rumoured that Giggs will extend his contract soon for at least another season with the Red Devils.

75′ Yes, 35-year-old Giggs comes on for Darren Fletcher.

74′ Giggs in now starting to warm up for United and could see some action before this one’s over.

73′ Pienaar takes a long range shot that flies over the goal.

71′ The free kick is taken by Tevez and it bounces off the wall forcing Howard to knock it out for a corner. The corner gives Howard trouble and it’s eventually cleared.

70′ Tevez wins the ball and drives to the box only to have his shot blocked. It’s now a free kick for United right at the edge of the box.

68′ Substitution for Everton as 20-year-old Nigerian striker Victor Anichebe comes on for Fellaini.

67′ It looks like United have taken their foot off of the gas for the last 10 minutes or so, but are now starting to put some passes together.

65′ Tevez slides it in the box smartly for Berbatov, who loses a boot trying to reach it.

64′ Brown smacks the ball off of Pienaar for a corner. Carrick takes it and Everton clear it up the pitch.

63′ Ronaldo sets up Fletcher who proceeds to give the ball away to Baines.

62′ Everton are slowly turning the tide here, at least possession wise. United might need another goal to see this game through.

60′ A free kick by Arteta from about 35-40 yards out. It’s a nice low shot that beats the wall and forces Van Der Sar into a good save. It’s 18 hours and 12 minutes now since the Dutch keeper has let a league goal in.

59′ Hibbert crosses from the right wing only to have it cleared away.

58′ Everton have a bit of possession now and try a patient buildup. They get the ball as far as the edge of the box and that’s it.

56′ United’s skipper Gary Neville is off and Wes Brown makes his way onto the pitch.

55′ Wes Brown is getting ready to come on, perhaps for Neville. Tevez carries the ball into the box and his low right footed shot is covered well by Howard.

54′ Ronaldo makes a nice run to the box, but Osman is in great position to halt the run.

52′ Park crosses low from the right wing to Tevez, who blasts the ball over the bar.

51′ Cahill takes a long distance left footer and it sails wide of the net.

49′  Pienaar takes a long, hard low shot and Van Der Sar covers it well.

48′ Carrick breaks into the box again and is fouled, but no penalty this time.

47′ Free kick to Everton from about 35 yards out, but dead centre. Arteta takes it and beats the wall, but its way wide of the net.

46′ United kick off the second half and we’ll see if David Moyes brings on Anichebe at some point for some attacking power.

Half Time. United have defintely been the better of the two sides. Everton’s keeper Tim Howard has probably been his side’s best player and if he has to keep it up in the second half then United will win this one. Van Der Sar hasn’t had to make a hard save yet as Everton’s attack has been very weak. United had 56% possession in the half. There have been numerous offsides with United being caught three times and Everton four.

45+2′ The whistle goes to end the half with Man Utd up 1-0 on Ronaldo’s penalty.

45+1′ Carrick takes a long range rocket with his left foot that Howard saves, but has trouble holding on to. He covers the ball just before Berbatov pounces on it.

44′ GOAL- Man Utd 1-0 Everton -Howard makes his move and Ronaldo slams it into the middle of the net for his 14th goal in all competitions this season.

43′ Penalty Michael Carrick is tripped by Arteta in the box.

42′ Park is fouled by Baines just outside of the right side of the box for a free kick. Ronaldo takes it and it’s headed away superbly for a throw in.

41′ Some good football by Everton leads to yet another cross by Baines that’s cleared to safety.

39′ Baines crosses again from the left, but it’s cleared for a throw in.

38′ Everton are slowly getting into the game, but will need to do a lot more if they want to get out of town with any points.

35′ O’Shea’s cross is saved by Howard.

35′ Baines crosses from the left wing straight into the arms of Van Der Sar.

34′ Ronaldo works it into the box and an effort by Carrick just goes wide of the post.

33′ The ball is played into the United box, but goes straight through the legs of Fellaini.

31′ Pienaar and Baines work it into the United end well, but Everton are forced back into their own half.

29′ Park works his way into the box and earns a corner that’s taken short and eventually cleared with no harm done.

28′ Howard looks sharp and has only conceded three goals in his last nine games.

27′ Ronaldo takes a long range shot that Howard has to parry over the bar for a corner from the left side. Howard is then fouled on the corner.

27′ A long shot by Cahill is covered easily by Van Der Sar.

26′ Ronaldo takes a right footed grass cutter that bounces off of the post. As soon as Tevez touches the rebound he’s called offside.

24′ Tevez bursts into the box and crosses, but Hibbert heads it away.

23′ Carrick crosses into the box only to have it esily headed away.

21′ Park fouls Baines and it’s a free kick for Everton from the left corner. Arteta delivers, Osman flicks it on, but Van Der Sar comes out to take the ball.

20′ Baines crosses and it’s knocked out for an Everton corner. Arteta delivers it and United clear soon after.

19′ Ronaldo breaks into the clear and he’s called offside in a very close call.

17′ Tevez is looking dangerous as he sends Fletcher down the right wing, but his cross is caught by Howard.

16′ A corner for Everton from the right side is easily caught by Van Der Sar.

15′ United have the majority of possession and could be ahead already if Howard hadn’t been on his game.

14′ The corner’s taken and cleared out of harm’s way.

13′ A great ball by Ronaldo into the box falls for Tevez and it’s another great save by Howard.

12′ Hibbert makes a great tackle on Ronaldo who was breaking into space with the ball.

10′ Tevez tries to work his way into the box, but Lescott clears it

9′ Everton try another attack, but it’s offside again.

8′ Tevez shoots but it’s blocked by Jagielka.

7′ Park shoots from the right wing and keeper tim Howard does well to palm it away.

6′ Cahill shoots from long range at the edge of the box, but he’s offside. Cahill scored his 100th goal in English football last Wednesday against Arsenal.

5′ Cahill makes a nice run to the edge of the box and a cross is headed away wide for a goalkick.

3′ A free kick to United from about 30 yards out, dead centre. Ronaldo takes it and drills it straight into the wall.

2′ Ronaldo starts on the left today and the pitch looks to be in rough shape.

1′ Everton kick off and we’re on the way. The two teams drew each other in September.

Reaction

Manchester United did enough to win and win they did, even though it was by the slimmest of margins 1-0. This gives them 53 points on the season and a four point lead over second place Aston Villa and five point leads over both Chelsea and Liverpool, who play each other tomorrow. It wasn’t vintage Man United, but they had 55% possession and kept Everton at bay throughout the 90 minutes. Everton could have had a penalty, well should have had a penalty as Vidic pulled Lescott down in the box. United could also have been awarded another spot kick at the start of the second half as Carrick was brought down again. I’d actually like to see a referee have the courage to call every single penalty infraction in a game as it’s going to be the only way to stop all of this grabbing and pulling in the box. If there’s six penalties called in a game then so be it. Put the message out that this garbage won’t be tolerated anymore as it’s ruining the sport.

Everton lose for the first time in eight league games, but they seem to be a mediocre team at best with no power up front. David Moyes isn’t going to have much time to rectify this as the January transfer window is going to close very soon. They end the day still in sixth place with 37 points.

Man of the Match

Carlos Tevez showed a lot of energy as usual for United. However, if it wasn’t for ex-United goalie Tim Howard making some crucial saves for Everton this game could have been about 3-0 at least. United weren’t at their best, but they still kept Howard busy enough and the only shot to beat him was Ronaldo’s penalty.

Match Preview

Wigan will be looking to avenge an embarassing 4-0 thrashing at home to Villa earlier this season. However, the Birmingham club is on a roll this season and should even be a stronger side now that Emile Heskey has settled in by scoring on his club debut last week. Ironically, this match will feature the England striker making his home debut with Villa playing the club he just left. Norwegian Striker John Carew will also strenghten Villa as he’s recovered fom three months on the shelf with a back injury. However, Marlon Harewood is out with a foor injury and Ashley young is suspended. Captain Martin Laursen is also injured as is Nigel Reo Coker.

Wigan’s keeper Chris Kirkland could be back after missing the midweek draw with Liverpool with a back injury, but winger Antonio Valencia is still on the sidelines with a hamstring injury and newcomer Ben Watson is doubtful. Titus Bramble returns from suspension though.

Villa has won four and drew one in their last five games and are unbeaten in the last 11 league games. Wigan has won two, lost two and drew one in their last five, but are winless in the last three.

Line Ups

Aston Villa: Friedel, Cuellar, Knight, Davies, Luke young, Gardner, Petrov, Barry, Milner, Heskey, Agbonlahor

Subs: Guzan, Sidwell, Carew, Delfouneso, Salifou, Shorey, Osbourne

Wigan: Kirkland, Melchiot, Bramble, Boyce, Figueroa, De Ridder, Cattermole, Scharner, Brown, Koumas, Mido,

Subs: Pollitt, Edman, Watson, Rodallega, Cywka, Kapo, Camara

Live Blog

90+4′ The whistle blows and brings a hectic second half to an end and the final result is 0-0.

90+3′ Melchiot works it into the box and crosses for Watson, but Zat Knight is there to clear to safety.

90+1′ Three minutes are added and it’s a free kick for Wigan from 30 yards. Rodallega hammers it into the wall and then thumps the rebound wide.

90′ Davies finds Agbonlahor in the box and it results in panic for Wigan until it’s eventually cleared by Brown.

87′ Wigan finally get some possession in Villa’s end and it results in a free kick from just inside the left corner of the pitch. The kick goes over Mido’s head though.

85′ Free kick from 25 yards for Villa as Bramble takes Carew down and Brown is shown a yellow for dissent. Milner thumps the ball off of the wall though on the free kick.

83′ Kirkland comes out bravely from a backheader by Carew, but it’s called offside.

81′ Luke Young finds Agbonlahor inside the box and his left footer is hammered, but deflected over the bar from 12 yards.

78′ Things have calmed down for a few minutes now.

76′ Substitution for Wigan as Ben Watson comes on for Paul Scharner.

75′ It’s a rare free kick from inside the box, from about 10 yards out. It’s pushed wide to Carew who’s shot is saved and another goalmouth scramble ensues and Kirkland makes a brilliant diving by punching the ball out. It was a pinball sequence with the ball being cleared from the line twice.

74′ A corner from Wigan on the right side is headed away easily. Barry breaks down the right wing and his cross is pushed back to Kirkland from Brown and it’s called as a back pass.

73′ Carew takes a left footer from just inside the box that Kirkland goes down to make a fine save on.

72′ A free kick from Milner 10 yards out of the box ends up in front of the net and somehow the ball stays out in a mad scramble.

70′ Luke Young crosses from the left wing into the box for Agbonlahor who chests it down, turns and shoots high from 12 yards out.

69′ Bramble goes on the attack and hammers the ball over the net from 20 yards.

67′ A quarter of the game to go and Villa are starting to press a little more.

66′ Barry feeds Carew in the box, but his bicycle kick is mis timed.

65′ Another free kick, this time from 35 yards and it’s played out to Milner on the wing, but Wigan are able to clear it downfield.

64′ Free kick for Barry from 30 yards out and Heskey heads it harmlessly back to Wigan.

62′ Substitution for Villa as Craig Gardner departs for striker John Carew. Martin O’Neill is looking to keep the attack up now with added firepower up front.

60′ Curtis Davies of Villa gets the first yellow card as he crunches Michael Brown in a tackle.

59′ Gardner gets a free header, but it’s right into the arms of Kirkland. Wigan counter attack and Mido drives a shot that’s easily caught by Friedel.

58′ That was quite a bit of pressure there for a few minutes and Villa should have taken the lead. It may come back to haunt them in the end.

57′ Gardner breaks into the box and his shot deflects out for a corner which is cleared by Wigan for a second corner. This time Wigan finally get it clear to relieve the pressure.

55′ Figueroa takes down Gardner for a free kick about 10 yards outside of the box. Barry picks out Zat Knight in the box and Knight’s header rebounds off the post.

53′ There’s a lot more pace and spirit to this half already and it looks like both teams know all three  points are there for the taking.

51′ Agbonlahor breaks down the left side but his weak shot is aimed straight at Kirkland.

50′ Milner crosses from the left wing and Figueroa makes a mess of it with calls for handball from the fans. Again no penalty though, and rightly so.

48′ Gardner controls the ball in the box and there’s a question if he’s clipped by Jason Koumas, but no penalty is called.

46′ The second half starts with Wigan bringing on striker Hugo Rodallega for midfielder Daniel De Ridder.

Half Time. It has been a little disappointing so far with not much in the way of goalmouth action. There were some good saves though on the few shots that made it to the net, especially Friedel’s just before half time. You get the feeling that one goal could win this match and at the moment it looks like it’s up for grabs with possession being 50-50 in the first half. James Milner and Gareth Barry had good halves for Villa, while Titus Bramble had a decent showing for Wigan.

45+1′ What a save by Friedel! Figueroa is all alone in the box and Michael Brown picks him out for a free header, but the Villa keeper makes an acrobat save to keep it scoreless as the half time whistle goes.

45′ A corner for Wigan is headed out by Heskey.

42′ Nice ball from Barry to Luke Young just outside the box, but he can’t beat the defender.

39′ Barry crosses from the left wing and it’s a free header for Heskey, but he get’s no power on it and Kirkland has an easy time catching it.

38′ Villa are playing quite a few long balls today with about a 50% success rate so far.

36′ Scharner brings down Agbonlahor about 30 yards out. The free kick’s headed away by Scharner though.

33′ Barry brings down De Ridder just outside of the front right corner of the box. The free kick is headed away right to Cattermole, who proceeds to blast it over the net from 30 yards out.

32′ Milner skips away from Brown down the left wing, but can’t get any further.

31′ Heskey plays a fine ball through to Barry, but Barry isn’t ready for it.

28′ Another shot for Wigan and Friedel’s forced into a fine save this time as Melchiot sends De Ridder through and his right footer is met by a the rushing keeper.

27′ Paul Scharner finally takes a shot on net for Wigan but it’s well wide.

26′ Agbonlahor heads it down toward the post from a corner and it’s almost over the line, but a foul is called on Villa.

24′ Milner crosses from the left and Cattermole clears. Milner gets the ball back and crosses again and Agbonlahor gets his header on target and forces Kirkland into a fine save.

23′ It looks like Capello’s starting to doze off in his seat, can’t really say I blame him.

22′ Well a quarter of the game’s gone and I don’t think Villa keeper Friedel has had to touch the ball yet.

20′ Heskey rises for a header on the end of a long free kick from Villa’s own half, but it’s high in the air and Kirkland has no problem catching it.

19′ Milner whips it into the box only to have Titus Bramble intercept.

17′ Villa are taking their time and passing the ball around nicely, but it’s all in the middle of the park at the moment.

15′ Hand ball by Scharner and the free kick from the halfway line comes to nothing.

13′ Wigan are on the back foot and haven’t really controlled the ball in Villa’s half yet.

11′ Bramble kicks it out for a Villa corner which Barry delivers straight into the arms of keeper Kirkland.

8′ Barry streaks down the left side for Villa and unleashes a shot just outside of the box that is deflected wide, but is wrongly given as a goal kick.

7′ Figueroa takes down Gardner and he’s lucky to escape a yellow card. The free kick is whipped in from the right side, but the ball passes everybody and goes out of play.

5′ Corner for Villa from the left side, but Curtis Davies can’t keep his header down and it’s over the net.

5′ Boyce looks like he’s going to have his handsfull with Agbonlahor today.

4′ Agbonlahor crosses from the left wing past Heskey for  Gardner but he blasts it high and wide

3′ Villa are wearing black armbands in memoery of two former players.

1′ We’re underway with play in the midlle third of the park for the moment.

0′ Ryan Taylor is out for Wigan as it’s rumoured he could be swapped to Newcastle for Charles N’ Zogbia. I hope I pronounced that right.

o’ England manager Fabio Capello is in the stands, but he’s blown off course if he’s looking for Beckham.

0′ I don’t see Zaki in the lineup for Wigan and that’s gotta hurt. I also don’t understand why newcomer Hugo Rodallega isn’t starting up front with Mido. It’s a little bit on the negative side to me from Wigan.

0′ Rob Styles will be the referee today and Villa’s American keeper will be playing in his 176th consecutive premier game.

Reaction

Martin O’Neill’s Aston Villa blew the opportunity to draw level with Man Utd, for a few hours at least. However, it wasn’t for a lack of trying. Well, in the second half anyway. Villa had numerous chances to bury Wigan in the last 45 minutes, but somehow the ball miraculously never found the back of the net. I would credit luck for this and not Wigan’s defending. If Villa are going to seriously make a push for the title they will have to make sure they get all three points in games like these. It’s basically two points lost not one gained for Villa at this juncture of the season.

Man of the Match

James Milner had a good first half for Villa as did Gareth Barry. However, Milner’s performance tailed off in the last 45 minutes while Barry continued to shine. Figueroa ended up playing a solid game for Wigan and made a couple of important clearances from the goal line while helping out goalkeeper Chris Kirkland. Titus Bramble also played well. But for Man of the Match, I’d definitely go with Gareth Barry for his consistent display and his fine passing today. He picked men out in the box numerous times with some excellent balls.

Match Preview

Wigan will have a new face in the lineup tonight as Mido has been signed on loan from Midllesbrough, while Hugo Rodallega could make it to the bench if he has all of his paperwork in place after transfering from Mexican side Necaxa. However, Ben Watson, who came over from Crystal Palace has a calf injury and won’t play. Winger Antonio Valencia and keeper Chris Kirkland are also doubtful.

For Liverpool, all eyes of course will be focused on Robbie Keane and if he will play or even dress. Liverpool fans didn’t have to travel far as JJB Stadium in Wigan is only 21 miles away from Liverpool.

Wigan have won three of their last five league games, and they have been the last three in a row. Liverpool is unbeaten in the last five with three draws and two wins.

Phil Dowd will be the referee tonight.

Line Ups

Wigan: Pollitt, Melchiot, Boyce, Scharner, Figueroa, De Ridder, Brown, Cattermole, Taylor, Zaki, Mido

Subs: Kingson, Edman, Watson, Koumas, Rodallega, Kapo, Camara

Liverpool: Reina, Arbeloa, Skrtel, Carragher, Aurelio, Benayoun, Lucas, Mascherano, Babel, Gerrard, Torres

Subs: Cavalieri, Dossena, Agger, Keane, Riera, Kuyt, Alonso

Goals

Wigan: Mido (pen 83′)

Liverpool: Benayoun (41′)

Live Blog

90+3′ It’s Wigan’s turn now for a free kick from about 30 yards out, but Jason Koumas can only find the head of a Liverpool player who heads it out of danger. The whistle blows and you can put this one in the books. Full time and it’s Wigan 1-1 Liverpool.

90+2′  A free kick for Liverpool now about 35 yards out and Aurelio wastes it by driving it into a defender.

89′ There’s three minutes of extra time coming and Wigan now have a free kick about 10 yeards outside of the box in the middle. Rodallega sends a screamer in and it smashes against Reina’s crossbar and bounces away.

88′ Kuyt drives a close range shot right at Pollitt, however the Liverpool player handled the ball while taking it down.

86′ Liverpool still have time to blow this game and at the moment it looks like a possibility as Wigan have found new life after their equalizer.

84′ Substitution for Liverpool. Yes, this time it’s Robbie Keane coming on the pitch, but for some strange reason Benitez is taking off the team’s skipper and sparkplug Steven Gerrard.

83′ GOAL Wigan 1-1 Liverpool Lucas pulls down Jason Koumas in the box for a penalty kick and Mido tucks it away for a goal on his debut. 

81′ Kuyt plays a great through ball in the air for Gerrard, but he can’t quite pull it down with Boyce defending well.

79′ Another substitution for Wigan as Ryan Taylor is off and Henri Camara is making his way on the pitch. A positive move by manager Steve Bruce, but why wait so long to make it?

77′ Substitution for Wigan. Amr Zaki comes off and newcomer, Colombian striker Hugo Rodallega comes on.

76′ A long ball is played towards the Liverpool goal and keeper Reina comes out of the box to meet it and dribbles upfield 15 yards with it.

75′ Another substitution for Liverpool as Yossi Benayoun makes way for Dirk Kuyt.

73′ Gerrard finds himself alone in the box, but hammers a right footed shot wide of the far post.

72′ Substitution for Liverpool and it’s not Robbie Keane. Fernando Torres is coming off and Albert Riera is now on. Another odd move for Benitez as a Wigan goal is still possible.

70′ A corner for Wigan, their second, is whipped in by Taylor, but headed out by Zaki for a goal kick.

68′ The game is being played in the middle third of the park at the moment and the fans have quietened down.

65′ Benayoun dribbles brilliantly past two players in the box, but his shot is blocked by Pollitt.

63′ Substitution for Wimbledon. Jason Koumas comes on for Daniel De Ridder.

62′ Melchiot crosses from the right wing only to have Carragher head it out of danger.

60′ Mascherano crosses from the right corner and Pollitt is forced to tip it over the bar for Liverpool’s second corner, which is easily cleared.

58′ The next goal here if there is one, is going to be huge. There’s about 30 minutes left and I wonder if we’re going to see any subs come on soon for either side.

57′ Wigan look a little more energetic, however they still aren’t able to get control in the box.

56′ Benayoun makes a great run and feeds to Torres, who passes back to Benayoun, but he wasn’t expecting it.

56′ Brown puts in a cross for Wigan from the left wing and it sails out of play.

54′ Figueroa makes a nice run down the left flank but loses control.

51′ Figueroa is shown a yellow card for taking down Benayoun. The free kick is about 10 yards out of the box, excellent spot for Gerrard. However, Aurelio takes the shot and it’s right into the arms of Pollitt.

49′ Liverpool are caught offside again, for the sixth time. This time Torres.

48′ Torres breaks into the box on the left side, but is tackled by Boyce.

46′ Liverpool kick off and the second half is underway. Wigan haven’t come from behind in the second half to win a game in five years now and if they don’t pick up the pace that streak is going to continue tonight.

Half Time. A message for Gina. The match is being broadcast live in America, however I don’t think it’s on the telly in the UK.

It’s not vintage Liverpool, but they’re doing enough to be ahead at halftime. I guess fans are getting used to this type of performance this season though. While they definitely aren’t playing like world beaters, they seem to get a result when the final whistle blows. Well, that’s if you call a draw a result. To me, it means you’ve dropped two points. Wigan can’t move up from seventh place even with a win today and they look pretty complacent out there.  They’ve only had 33% of the ball and that’s not enough if you don’t do anything with it. Defensively, they’re not too bad and have caught Liverpool offside five times in the first half. No cards so far and that’s a good thing as cards mean more writing.

45+1′ One minute of time is added on and Lucas is brought down by Figueroa. Gerrard hammers the free kick from at least 30 yards out and just misses the top corner by inches. The whistle blows and it’s still Wigan 0-1 Liverpool. 

45′ A free kick from the edge of the box is hammered along the ground by Mido, but the ball hits his own man and ricochets out.

41′ GOAL – Wigan o-Liverpool 1. Mascherano finds Benayoun alone on the right side. He skips around Pollitt and slides it into the net with his right foot from a very tight angle for his second goal of the season.

40′ A free kick from Taylor on the left wing is whipped into the box and cleared among calls for handball by the fans.

39′ A strong right-footed shot by Babel from the left wing just outside of the box is punched away by keeper Pollitt. I think it’s the first save he’s had to make, which is one more than Reina I believe.

37′ Taylor’s free kick is sent into the box and Gerrard flattens Scharner and calls for a penalty are ignored. anywhere else on the pitch though and it would have been a foul. 

36′ Torres is in the box and heads a cross from the left flank and it’s well wide.

33′ Mido works it for a corner kick while Babel is down injured after a tackle from Scarner. The corner finds De Ridder outside of the box and his half volley is sent into the box for three team mates, but it’s called offside.

32′ Lucas tries a right footed grasscutter from just inside the box and he’s still looking for his first goal in a red uniform, in this his 32nd match.

31′ De Ridder and Mido finally get some control in the Liverpool end, but Skrtel breaks it up.

28′ Benayoun puts in a fine cross from the right wing, but Gerrard can’t handle the pass, while Torres was also in perfect position.

27′ Zaki is found alone outside of the box, but he’s called offside immediately.

27′ Zaki handles the ball in Liverpool’s corner, but it’s not called.

26′ Skrtel takes Mido down in midfield and the free kick is lobbed into the box, but Reina takes control of the ball.

24′ A long throw from Melchiot to Zaki in the box is cleared by Gerrard.

21′ Torres sends Gerrard down the right wing the cross is blocked and goes out for a corner, which comes to nothing.

19′ Gerrard and Babel work it down the field, but Gerrard is brought down by Michael Brown. The free kick from about 30 yards out is flicked away by Cattermole and cleared.

17′ Carragher puts a fine ball in the box for Torres who turns and takes it down, but his half volley goes wide.

16′-De Ridder puts a through ball in for Zaki in the box, but keeper Reina is out quick enough to gather the ball.

16′ Zaki and Mido make it as far as the box, but Lucas puts an end to that.

13′ Gerrard whips a cross in from the left wing and Torres meets it perfectly with his head, but the ball bounces back off of the post instead of going in the net.

10′ Some nice passing as usual by Liverpool, but they don’t penetrate anywhere.

8′ Wigan has won five in a row at home and won’t make it six if they don’t try to attack tonight.

7′ Babel puts a ball through, but Benayoun is offside.

6′ De Ridder crosses from the left corner, but it sails over the net for a goal kick

4′ Mascherano and Zaki collide while going for a 50-50 ball, but both players are eventually up and ready to go.

3′ Arbeloa is lucky not to be booked after leading with his arm while going for a high ball.

1′ We’re underway and it’s a free kick for Liverpool outside the left side of the box. Gerrard whips it in but Skrtel loses possession for a throw in.

0′ Well Robbie Keane makes it to the bench tonight and Rodallega has made it from Mexico to sit on Wigan’s bench.

Reaction

Well, another draw for Liverpool. What a surprise. I wonder if anybody bet on that. The Merseysider’s title hopes seem to be slowly but surely fading into the sunset with another two points going down the drain. This is a game that could have been put to bed with a second goal, but Liverpool just don’t seem to have the killer instinct, especially with Benitez managing them. If you’re looking to take a 2-0 lead I don’t understand taking off Torres and Gerrard. And even Benayoun for that matter, who scored the goal and was having himself quite a match.  Nothing personal, but I think this guy’s actually the worst manager in the league, considering the talent in the squad. He just seems to have no clue how to put it to use. As for Wigan, give them credit for their second half play. They never gave up and could sense the tide turning. In fact they might have snatched all three points if Rodallega’s late free kick was just a few inches lower.

Man of the Match

This is always hard for me, especially when reporting on the match. I think Boyce, Zaki and Mido were the best players for Wigan, while Gerrard and Benayoun were the top two players for Liverpool. Even though he only played 75 minutes, I’m going to go with Yossi Benayoun. He showed a lot of skill when scoring and could have easily had a second after turning a couple of Wigan defenders inside out in the box only to have his shot blocked by Pollitt. I think Benayoun is actually an underrated and under used player and he stood out for me today.

Match Preview

It’s first versus worst tonight as leage leaders Man Utd take on cellar dwellers West Brom at the Hawthorns in Birmingham.

West Brom is missing captain and former Utd player Jonathan Greening after he injured his knee during Saturday’s FA Cup tie with Burnley. The club is already missing four centre backs with Abdoulaye Meite, Jonas Olsson, Leon Barnett, and Neil Clement on the shelf with injuries. Ten players in total are out with injury.

Man Utd actually have about a dozen players out injured after Fabio and Danny Welbeck were hurt in Saturday’s 2-1 Cup win over Spurs. Nani, Rio Ferdinanad, Wes Brown, Rafael, and Patrice Evra are all out with injuries, while Wayne Rooney, Anderson, Jonny Evans, and Ji-sung Park were also missing from Satuday’s lineup.  However, one or two of them may suit up today. In fact, Ferdinand and Park are both starting, while Brown is on the subs bench.

West Brom has won three of their last five matches, while United have won their last five league matches.

Line Ups

West Brom: Carson, Donk, Pele, Robinson, Hoefkens, Koren, Valero, Brunt, Zuiverloon, Simpson, Fortune

Subs: Kiely, Cech, Bednar, Kim, Dorrans, Filipe, Teixeira, Morrison

Manchester United: Van der Sar, Vidic, Ferdinand, O’Shea, Neville, Giggs, Carrick, Ronaldo, Park, Tevez, Berbatov

Subs: Kuszczack, Brown, Tosic, Scholes, Fletcher, Gibson, Eckersley

Goals

Manchester United: Berbatov (22′) Tevez (44′) Vidic (60′) Ronaldo (65′) Ronaldo (73′)

Live Blog

Full Time. Man Utd wins 5-0 and sets a Premier League record by going 11 games without conceding a goal. Edwin Van der Sar also set a league record at the 84 minute mark by beating Peter Cech’s record of going 1025 minutes without letting in a goal.

90+2′ Michael Carrick gives up a free kick at the centre edge of the box and is yellow carded. Koren beats the wall, but his shot sails over the crossbar.

90+1′ James Morrison of WBA is shown a yellow card.

90′ Tosic, Tevez, and Ronaldo pass it around in the Albion box, but it’s one pass two many and it all comes to nought.

88′ The fans have had enough and many of them are making their way out of the stadium, but that’s not bad having stuck around for 88 minutes.

86′ Tevez breaks through with Ronaldo and unleashes a great right footed shot just inside the centre of the box which Carson mekes an excellent one-handed save on.

83‘ West Brom win a corner which is taken short and worked into the box for another corner.  The second corner is met by Pele’s head but just drifts over the United goal.

80′ Ronaldo and Carson slide into each other as they both go after a 50-50 ball in the box.

77′ Substitution. Zoran Tosic replaces Dimitar Berbatov for Man Utd.

76′ Albion’s Ryan Donk is given a yellow card after a bad foul.

73′ Keeper Scott Carson is shown a yellow for arguing.

73′ GOAL-West Brom-0 Man Utd 5. Ronaldo slides the ball through Carson’s legs after some excellent passing between the Portuguese star and Berbatov. West Brom appeal for offside, and it was close but the goal was rightly given.

71′ Substitutions for Man Utd as Rio Ferdinand is replaced by Wes Brown and Gary Neville is replaced by Richard Eckersley. Giggs is given the captain’s armband by Neville.

65′ GOAL – West Brom 0-Man Utd 4-A breaking Ryan Giggs sends an excellent feed to Ronaldo who right foots it into the bottom corner of the net from the centre of the box.

64′ Substitution for West Brom as midfielder James Morrison replaces Gianni Zuiverloon and forward Roman Bednar replaces Jay Simpson.

61′ Park fouls Cech on the left wing for a free kick that’s curled into the box just out of Van der Sar’s reach and out for a goal kick.

60′ GOAL – West Brom 0-Man Utd 3. Park shows some fancy dribbling in the box and wins a corner. Giggs takes it and Vidic scores his sixth goal of the season with a powerful header that Carson gets his hand to.

58′ Donk breaks into the box alone and slams a powerful right footed shot that slams off the goalpost to Van der Sar’s left. Best chance of the game for WBA.

56′ Ryan Donk jumps into the air behind Berbatov and rakes his boot down the United player’s back.

54′ Tevez streaks in from the left side all alone now and passes to Ronaldo, but he’s offside as well.

53′ Carrick places another excellent ball from the right hand side into the box for Berbatov who slides it in behind Carson, but the goal’s called back as Berbatov is offside.

50′ Neville gives up a free kick on the edge of the box right in the middle, after bringing down Brunt. It takes Styles a couple of minutes to sort out the wall and Brunt left foots it with power, but it whistles just over the bar.

49′ Van Der Sar is quickly off his line to scoop up a probing ball in the box.

46′ West Brom made a substitution at half time with Fortune coming off and defender Marek Cech coming on. Fortune was having a fine game coming down the right wing and unless he’s injured I don’t understand this move. Let’s defend a 2-0 defecit? It baffles the mind.

Half Time. West Brom got off to a decent start, but United’s class slowly took over. The half was fast-paced and had its share of incidents. Gary Neville could have been awarded a penalty after being dragged down in the box. Berbatov showed how calm he is in as he slotted home the first goal and Ronaldo and Tevez could have both made it 2-0 soon after. Paul Robinson’s straight red card for his lunge at Park opened the gates for United to add to the lead and they did just that when Scott Carson dropped a free kick and Tevez tapped home the loose ball. United fully deserve their lead and West Brom will be lucky to escape a major beating unless they start to pressure United, but with 10 men it’s going to be hard, especially with United having 67% of possession in the first half.

44′ GOAL – West Brom 0-Man Utd 2. Keeper Scott Carson drops a free kick from close to the right corner flag and Carlos Tevez is in perfect position to bang home the loose ball. 2-0 Man Utd.

44′ Park is back on the pitch now and Koren is shown a yellow card for challenging a decision.

40′ West Brom skipper is issued a red card after a two-footed lunge into Ji-sung Park. It’s Robinson’s ninth red card of his career.

39′ Fortune crosses from the right wing and it falls for a team mate, but he lobs the ball wide of the net in what could have been a decent chance.

37′ Berbatov is caught from behind and goes to the sidelines for treatment, but is back on after a minute.

36′ United are constantly threatening now, but Albion are standing up to the challenge.

33′ Ryan Giggs sends Ronaldo into the clear, Carson rushes out to meet him and Ronaldo chips the ball over the keeper and just wide.

31′ Gary Neville bursts into the box and is tackled from behind. Claims for a penalty are dismissed.

29′ West Brom trying to penetrate, but to no avail.

26′ Ronaldo streaks down the left wing and crosses along the ground for Tevez, who shoots just inches wide of the post. Excellent chance to go up 2-0.

24′ Vidic pulls down Simpson for a free kick, which is crossed into the box from the right wing but causes no trouble.

22′  GOAL -West Brom 0-Man Utd 1. Carrick places an excellent ball through to Dimitar Berbatov in the box who calmly right foots it between Carson’s legs and into the goal. Clinical finishing by the Bulgarian. 1-0 Man Utd

20′ Park causes trouble in the box and it’s kicked out for a corner, which is punched away clearly by Carson.

19′ Koren puts in a great cross from the right side for Fortune to bravely head, but it’s called offside.

18′ Ferdinand straight arms Fortune in midfield, but no free kick is called.

17′ Fortune continues to cause trouble down the right flank, but Ferdinand is matching him inch for inch so far and blocking his crosses.

15′ Ronaldo tries a right footer from about 20 yards out, but scuffs it and it goes wide.

14′ Vidic wraps his arms around Fortune, but it’s a throw in instead of a free kick on the right wing.

12′ West Brom fans call for a penalty after slight contact in the box, but Styles isn’t interested and a weak shot is easily caught by Van der Saar.

11′ Tevez and Berbatov cause havoc in the box with two Baggie defenders colliding, but Carson comes out to collect the ball.

8′ A good pace to the game now, with both teams intent on attacking.

7′ United finally get a little pressure, but Park’s left footer in the box goes straight into the arms of Carson.

5′ Jay Simpson cuts in from the left wing and his low shot is touched away by Van der Sar for another corner, which proves harmless.

4′ A good ball into Fortune and his shot ricochets off Ferdinanad for a corner. Van Der Sar puches it away straight back to West Brom and a weak shot is cleared off the line. The rebound goes back to West Brom and it’s headed over the bar harmlessly

2′ Berbatov streaks down the right hand side, but his low drive is handled easily by Carson.

1′ Okay, here we go finally.  West Brom kick off and we’re underway.

0′ It’s almost time to kick off, so wake up and get your beer poured or your cup of tea or whatever it is you prefer.

0′ West Brom hasn’t had much to celebrate this season, but they’ve been improving lately and are after their fourth straight home win. United has won five on the road this season.

0′ It seems the match has been delayed to 8:15 pm UK time because of problems on the motorway. I wonder if Ronaldo was driving to the ground on his own today.

0′ United beat the Baggies 4-0 earlier this season at Old Trafford.

0′ United will set a top-flight league record if they can keep a clean sheet as they have shutout the opposition in the past 10 games. Meanwhile, Carlos Tevez will be making his 50th league appearance for the club.  Albion hasn’t beaten United at home for 25 years now. Will this be the day?

0′ Rob Styles will be the referee tonight

Reaction

Manchester United showed no mercy tonight as they took advantage of a shaky goaltender in Scott Carson and a red card to West Brom Skipper Paul Robinson at the 40 minute mark. Ronaldo led the way with goals in the 65th and 73rd minutes while Berbatov opened the scoring in the 22nd and Berbatov doubled the score just before half time. Vidic also added one with a fine header from a corner at the hour mark. Berbatov also had the ball in the net a second time, but was ruled offside. The match had quite a few controversial moments with Neville being pulled down in the box with no call, the red card to Robinson, the offside goal by Berbatov and Albion arguing vehemently that Ronaldo’s second goal was offside.

United solidify their grip on first place with 50 points while West Brom remain anchored to the bottom of the table with 21 points. It might not have been 5-0 if Albion had finished the game with 10 men, but the three points wouldn’t have been in doubt as United had 64% ball possession.

Man of the Match

This is actually a hard choice tonight as Ryan Giggs, Michael Carrick, Dimitar Berbatov, Carlos Tevez, and Cristiano Ronaldo all had excellent games and any one of them could be given the award. I think even though five goals were hammered in, I’ll have to give it to a midfielder in this one and Michael Carrick impressed me with his pinpoint passing. He’s often an invisible man on the pitch, but he was very noticeable in tonight’s game.