Category: Football

Arsenal lost at home for the first time since May on Thursday as Mikel Arteta’s squad was defeated 2-0 by West Ham, denying them the opportunity to take back the top spot in the Premier League.

Together with a strong defensive effort, goals from former Arsenal player Konstantinos Mavropanos in the 55th and 13th minutes of play, respectively, earned West Ham the victory at Emirates Stadium and ended the Gunners’ midseason slump.

Arsenal, which was leading the league at Christmas, has only won once in its last four league games. To maintain that lead going into 2024, Arsenal must defeat Fulham on the road this Sunday. Arsenal is currently two points behind Liverpool, who isn’t scheduled to play again until New Year’s Day, in second place.

In the sixth minute of stoppage time, Said Benrahma’s penalty was saved by Arsenal custodian David Raya, which might have meant an even larger victory for West Ham.

The first goal caused some discussion because it was unclear from the footage whether Jarrod Bowen’s pass back into the box allowed Soucek to score or not. The best view of whether any ball was in play was obscured by Bowen’s leg, thus the referee stuck with the on-field determination to award the goal.

A similar incident happened when Arsenal played Newcastle at St. James’ Park on November 4. Anthony Gordon’s goal came from a cross that was in play, although there was controversy around whether or not the ball was in play at the time.

Just after the half, Lucas Paqueta of West Ham, who had been doubtful before the game, appeared to have injured his left hamstring. Despite this setback, the visitors continued to play well.

Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka struck the post, but the home team lacked its customary intensity in attack and lost again when Mavropanos, whose celebration was subdued due to his past connections to Arsenal, flicked James Ward-Prowse’s corner home off the underside of the crossbar.

When Arsenal last lost at home to Brighton in mid-May, it seemed all but certain that Manchester City, not the Gunners, would win the title the previous year.

West Ham overtook Manchester United and moved up to sixth place.

In order to overcome Everton 3-1 on Wednesday and go back into the top four of the Premier League, Manchester City had to come from behind.

After winning its first Club World Cup championship in Saudi Arabia, City trailed 1-0 at halftime to a goal from Jack Harrison. However, they rallied in the second half with goals from Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez.

In the 86th minute, Bernardo Silva scored the third goal when Jordan Pickford miscued his clearing and curled the ball into an empty net.

Even though it was just City’s second victory in seven league games, it moved them up to fourth position, five points behind leaders Liverpool with one game remaining. The defending champions defeated Tottenham. If Arsenal defeats West Ham on Thursday, they can go six points ahead of City in second place.

Due to a foot injury, Erling Haaland was sidelined for City once more. Pep Guardiola’s team got off to a slow start, allowing Everton to take the lead in the 29th minute. On the outside of his own area, City midfielder Rodri was forced into an unusual loss of control, and Dwight McNeil set Harrison up for a close-range sidefoot goal. The former City winger nearly scored a fantastic second goal, but Ederson was there to tip over his errant attempt from outside the left foot.

John Stones, a defender for City, had to be substituted in the 43rd minute due to an injury, but it took the visitors just 19 minutes to recover. In the 53rd, Alvarez gave his team the lead from the penalty spot after Nathan Ake’s effort struck Amadou Onana’s arm as he slid in to block. Foden was afforded too much room on the outskirts of the box from a corner to beat Pickford with a low drive inside his left-hand post.

After first awarding a corner, referee John Brooks changed his mind and pointed to the spot. Alvarez’s shot down the middle proved to be too strong as it sailed under Pickford’s diving knees.

The victory was sealed by Silva’s 20-yard strike into an open net following Alvarez’s block of the custodian.

After giving up two goals in less than 26 minutes at Old Trafford, Manchester United mounted an incredible comeback in the second half to defeat Aston Villa 3-2 in the Premier League on Tuesday.

Erik ten Hag’s club had a terrible start and was jeered by its own supporters in the first half of the first game following the announcement that British millionaire Jim Ratcliffe would purchase up to 25% of the 20-time league champions.

But Rasmus Hojlund’s victory and two goals from Alejandro Garnacho transformed the mood entirely.

“Our fans, in my opinion, earned it. They never leave us, even when we’ve had numerous failures. Therefore, I’m incredibly happy with this team’s performance,” United boss Ten Hag stated. “What kind of team is capable of managing and overcoming the volume of obstacles we have faced?

“They have demonstrated their character and personality to turn things around, and they are resilient.”

United advanced to the sixth position.

Villa took the lead in the 21st and 26th minutes through John McGinn and Leander Dendoncker, in front of Dave Brailsford, who will join United as a director and is anticipated to be heavily involved in the management of the team’s football division.

As Dendoncker doubled Villa’s lead, the away fans sang “Old Trafford is falling down” and agitated Ten Hag with chants of “You’re getting sacked (fired) in the morning.” Brailsford, the sporting director of Ratcliffe’s INEOS Sport, was seated in the directors’ seats at the stadium and would have heard loud jeers after that.

United had lost three of its previous four games across all competitions and entered this one without a win or a goal. With a 2-0 deficit at the break, the atmosphere was poisonous and United’s defense was dismal.

McGinn’s goal was directly caused by a right-wing free kick; the midfielder’s cross was allowed to bounce in the area and find its way into the net without being touched.

After more sloppy United defence, five minutes later Dendoncker put out a foot to deflect Clement Lenglet’s header over the line from a corner, giving Villa a two-goal lead.

Although it appeared that third-place Villa would tie leader Liverpool for second place and gain a point, the game took a dramatic turn after the half.

Just after the break, Garnacho thought he had tied the score, but VAR called his effort offside, ending his celebration.

But as United applied more pressure, he didn’t have to wait long to put the ball in the net once more.

In the 59th minute, Bruno Fernandes found Marcus Rashford on the left, and Rashford crossed to the streaking Garnacho to score at the far post.

Old Trafford roared when Garnacho scored his second goal in the 71st minute. Once more, Fernandes was involved as a deflected cross found Garnacho in the box. Then, the forward’s attempt received another deflection and went past Emiliano Martinez, the custodian for Villa.

With a left-footed volley from a corner in the 82nd minute, Hojlund completed the comeback and scored his first league goal since joining from Atalanta in the offseason for $82 million.

The home crowd sent up a wild cheer, and Ten Hag joined in on the sidelines.

Ten Hag exclaimed, “I am so happy that the strikers scored today because that is what we needed.” “I am confident that Rasmus, Rashford, and Garnacho are capable of that. We have more than that, and they are all excellent finishers. Every game, they have to display it.

Aston Villa defeated Sheffield United 1–1, thanks to a goal from Nicolo Zaniolo in the 97th minute, but Unai Emery’s team was unable to take the lead in the Premier League standings.

In the 87th minute, Chris Wilder’s team appeared to have won it thanks to a goal from Cameron Archer, but substitute Zaniolo scored to keep Villa’s home record unbeaten, even though they lost at Villa Park for the first time this season.

At the end of an intense match, neither team achieved the two spots they had hoped for, leaving them both disappointed. Villa moves up to second place, ahead of Liverpool. The Blades are still five points from safety, but they are at least off the bottom.

Villa may argue that Leon Bailey’s goal was disallowed after Jacob Ramsey was found to have fouled the custodian after a VAR check, and they may also point to an early penalty shout for a push on Ollie Watkins. However, they were up against resolute opposition and could not produce enough.

Emery made some optional changes in addition to the forced ones, starting Bailey in a more aggressive lineup. Maybe the Villa manager thought Sheffield United would play it safe. That’s exactly what he understood from the beginning.

In the first half, Wilder’s team had just 21% of the ball and no shots. Villa scored six goals without really posing a threat to Wes Foderingham’s net. In order to find the breakthrough, the Villa Park crowd had to be patient and persistent in their probing.

When Bailey swept home Watkins’ centre in the second half, he thought he had found it, but VAR stepped in. Inspections revealed that Ramsey was holding Foderingham close to the queue. The atmosphere intensified, but Emery started to seem a little ragged.

There were soon cries of frustration as Gustavo Hamer, who had come on as a substitute, took advantage of a clumsy pass back to Emiliano Martinez by Moussa Diaby to launch a counterattack. Villa supporters sensed that their opportunity to win was slipping away.

The away fans chanted, “We’ve had a shot,” as Martinez was forced to make his first save of the match late on. Ezri Konsa also came dangerously close to turning Max Lowe’s left-wing cross into his own net. Oliver Norwood shot past. But in the 87th minute, the big thing happened.

On the byline, Hamer skinned John McGinn. His low pass into the box found Archer, who slotted in calmly from close range. When the Villa academy graduate was replaced shortly after, some members of the home crowd jeered at him, but he had already made his point.

Villa had their chances to make their own. Alex Moreno’s header was expertly saved by Foderingham, and just as the 98th minute was about to expire, Zaniolo made a break from outside the area to receive an angled ball from Douglas Luiz and nod into the goal.

At Villa Park, fifteen Premier League games had passed, but only one team had earned any of the 45 available points. Sheffield United believed they had each of the three. They could only agree on one. Thus, Villa did, for the first time since February. Overall frustration.

“I enjoyed seeing that game. Not very dramatic, but we drew, two teams trying to play with their idea,” Emery said to Sky Sports.