Barclays Premier League Roundup

November 11, 2010: Here is a brief recap at the midweek action from the Barclays Premier League 2010-2011 season, including a fierce draw in the Manchester derby.

Manchester City 0-0 Manchester United

Wednesday was witness to a massive showdown between the Red and the Blue sides of Manchester. Fans flocked to the City of Manchester stadium to see the two title challengers in action. However, they were treated to a stalemate as the match ended in a 0-0 draw. In the first half, City captain Carlos Tevez came closest to open the scoring through a free kick which was saved by United goalkeeper Edwin Van Der Sar. The closest United came to a goal was through a Nani free kick in the second half. Dimitar Berbatov volleyed the ball at one instance but it was mis-timed. The result of the match helped only Chelsea as they now sit at the top of the League with a 4 point lead over second placed Manchester United.

Chelsea 1-0 Fulham

League leaders Chelsea welcomed neighbours Fulham to Stamford Bridge looking to consolidate their lead at the top and looking to continue the same momentum as the second half of the previous match against Liverpool. But the Blues started the match with the same lackadaisical movement for which they have been much criticized this season. A Michael Essien goal in the 30^th minute was enough to secure for the leaders a 1-0 win in a match that was characterized by poor display from both sides. Ivorian Solomon Kalou sent a direct cross to Essien who headed the ball inside the goal past Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer. However, Chelsea’s game was marred by a red card for the goalscorer in the final minute of injury time due to a rough two-footed challenge on Clint Dempsey.

Wigan 1-1 Liverpool

At the DW Stadium, 18^th placed Wigan Athletic hosted Liverpool who beat Chelsea with scintillating display of football during the weekend. And surely enough, the scoring was opened by the Reds by Fernando Torres who is in red hot form with his third goal in only four days, in the 7^th minute. Captain Steven Gerrard masterfully glided through the midfield and gave a sublime thorough pass to Torres who clinically put the ball in the far corner of the goal. The second half saw a deterioration in Liverpool’s game which helped Wigan up their ante. They were rewarded in the 52^nd minute when Hugo Rodallega equalized after snapping up a loose ball in front of the goal.

Wolverhampton 0-2 Arsenal

Arsenal were away at the Molineux on Wednesday, where they beat home side Wolverhampton Rovers by two goals to nil. Both the goals were scored by Marouane Chamakh at the two extremes of the match! He opened the scoring in only the 39^th second with a header from a cross by Alex Song. The match was dominated throughout by the Gunners as they went close to scoring many times. Chamakh sealed the victory with a clinical strike in injury time. His brace took his personal goal tally to 7 goals in this season.

Tags: Arsenal, Barclays Premier League, Chelsea, English Premier League, EPL, Fulham, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Roundup, Wigan, Wolverhampton