Liverpool 4-1 West Bromwich Albion match report 26th October 2013

A stunning hat-trick by Luis Suarez inspired Liverpool to a commanding victory which sent out a daunting message to their Premiership rivals and ended West Bromwich Albion’s five game unbeaten run.

The Uruguayan striker capped a superb performance and once again showed that on his day, he is one of the best finishers in the world. Daniel Sturridge scored late on with a sublime chip which on any occasion would be the main talking point of any game. But it was overshadowed by Suarez's first hat-trick at Anfield.

Ironically, the first goal on 11 minutes came shortly after Suarez showed the side which angers fans in the Premiership and frustrates some of the Liverpool faithful, when he appeared to go down far too easy under a challenge from West Brom's Gareth McCauley.

No sooner had the boos  from the Baggies' fans died down than the Reds No.7 picked up the ball 35 yards out on the right and dummied Claudio Yacob before nutmegging captain Jonas Olsson and firing a powerful right foot shot past goalkeeper Boaz Myhill.

 

On 17 minutes Suarez started off another move where he fed the ball wide left to Aly Cissokho and the wing back played a scooped ball into the box which Suarez met powerfully with his head  from the edge of the area and powered the ball into the top left-hand corner.

The Baggies just could not cope with wave after wave of Liverpool pressure and failed to test Reds' keeper Simon Mignolet until the dying minutes of the first half when a long ball over the top sent Nicholas Anelka away but the Frenchman could not get any power on the shot and Martin Skrtel cleared the ball away for a corner.

The second half went the same way as the first as Liverpool continued their dominance. On 55 minutes, captain Steven Gerrard floated in a precise free-kick from the left and Suarez rose high to flick the ball past Myhill to complete his hat trick.

West Brom looked dead and buried but on 67 they were awarded a penalty by a linesman after Billy Jones powered into the box and was blocked off by defender Martin Skrtel. Substitute James Morrison fired the ball past Simon Mignolet to hand the Baggies a lifeline.

However any hope of a comeback was crushed by England striker Daniel Sturridge with 13 minutes to go when he ran at the defence on the left before chipping an inch perfect ball into the top right corner of the goal leaving keeper Myhill clutching the air.

The comprehensive defeat was a reality check for the Baggies who’s storming turnaround from the team that started the season poorly, came to a sudden stop. They were simply outclassed in all areas of the pitch by the home team on a sunny autumn afternoon at Anfield. Boss Steve Clarke was quick to acknowledge the Liverpool dominance saying 'we were beaten by the better team'.

Reds boss Brendan Rodgers described Suarez's performance as 'magic' but also praised the hard work of Lucas Lieva, restored to his defensive midfield role. When asked about former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson's criticism of his captain Steven Gerrard in his autobiography,  Rogers laughed and said: "he's a top, top, top player!"

Aston Villa 0-2 Tottenham Hotspur match report 20th October 2013

An Andros Townsend inspired Tottenham Hotspur overcame an Aston Villa team that have stalled after their roller coaster start to the season. The England man netted the first goal and was a constant thorn in Villa's side as his pace and skill was too much for his opponents. Striker Roberto Soldado grabbed the second goal to send Spurs to fifth in the Premiership table.

After a barren half an hour with few chances created, Townsend sparked the game into life when he picked up the ball on the right hand side and cut inside onto his favoured left foot and whipped in a cross that befuddled the Villa defence and nestled in the goal leaving keeper Brad Guzan flat footed in his six yard area.

Villa did finish the first half stronger than their opponents with Fabian Delph working hard in midfield however, the home team lacked a killer edge. In the second half Villa continued to try and break down the resolute Spurs defence without success but then the introduction of striker Christian Benteke on the hour looked to have changed things.  The best chance came from a right wing cross by Leandro Bacuna which the Belgian striker headed inches over the bar.

A minute later and with Villa on top, the ball was swept down to the other end of the pitch and after some good work on the left, the ball was poked through by Paulinho to Soldado who fired home coolly from 12 yards out. The second goal broke the Villa players' hearts and Spurs looked the more likely to snatch a third with Townsend once again going close with a curling left foot shot which cleared the bar. He then turned provider when he fired in a right wing cross from a narrow angle which skimmed off the head of team mate Paulinho from three yards out and flew narrowly wide.

After the match Spurs boss Andre Villas Boas praised the work of the England midfielder but said the rest of his team played very well also.

Villa slip down the table to 13th but despite this manager Paul Lambert suggested they were "unlucky" not to get anything from the match. When asked whether his star striker Benteke should have been on from the start he was quick to defend his decision to leave him on the bench saying the player had only trained four times in the last month but expects him back to full match fitness very soon.

 

Stoke City 0-0 West Bromwich Albion match report 19th October

It was a case of missed chances for Stoke City and West Bromwich Albion as the two physical teams forced a battling 0-0 draw at the Britannia Stadium.

However, the result could have been so much different if World Cup referee Howard Webb and his assistants had spotted a penalty claim in the second half when Stoke’s Charlie Adam clearly impeded Baggie’s midfielder Youssouf Mulumbu – removing the player’s boot in the process.

West Brom boss Steve Clarke said the foul by Adams was a ‘stonewall penalty’ saying: ‘how the referee missed it is beyond belief’. Potters boss Mark Hughes also said’ it looked like a penalty’.

Away from the controversy West Brom had enough chances to grab the three points and were guilty   of not making the most of their opportunities. In the first half man-of-the-match Stoke keeper Asmir Begovic stood strong against Baggies midfielders Morgan Amalfitano and Stephane Sessegnon and in the dying minutes of the game former Sunderland man Sessegnon should have won the game for his new team. He picked the ball up on the left edge of the box and had at least two chances to fire home but instead tried to walk the ball into the net instead of pulling the trigger earlier.

 Stoke, who have only scored four goals all season, came closest when Steven Ireland fired over the bar from the penalty spot when it looked easier to score and Charlie Adam tried a speculative David Beckhamesque effort from the half way line which was easily tipped over by West Brom keeper Boaz Myhill..

It was a physical match and both teams seemed to cancel each other out as they both elected to play five players in midfield. On reflection Stoke will be more happy with a point which ends their run of three defeats while the Baggies stretch their current record to five Premier League matches without defeat.

West Brom 1-1 Arsenal match report October 6th 2013

Arsenal returned to the top of the Premier League table after snatching a point against a West Brom side which continues to improve every week.

A goal by England midfielder Jack Wilshire cancelled out Claudio Yacob’s first ever goal for the Baggies but the result could have been completely different had former Gunners’ striker Nicholas Anelka scored one of his two clear cut second half chances.

Both teams played their part in an exciting contest and in the 42nd minute diminutive midfielder Yacob met a pinpoint cross from the right by Morgan Amalfitano to powerfully head the ball past keeper Wojciech Szczesny’s near post to open the scoring and raise the roof off the Hawthorns.

The home team held out a wave of Arsenal attacks until half time and should have gone further ahead early in the second half when a cross by Stephane Sessegnon hit Anelka on the heel when it looked easier to score. Minutes later the Baggies striker went clear on the left hand side and his right foot curling shot flashed agonisingly across the arsenal goal.

As happens so often in football, a team that misses chances gets punished and In the 62nd minute, Wilshire who had a troubled first half, charged forward and exchanged some intricate passes on the right edge of the box with Mesut Ozil and Olivier Giroud before firing a left foot drive which took a deflection off Baggies captain Jonas Olsson and flew past Albion keeper Boaz Myhill. 

In a grandstand finish both teams really pushed for the winner but the best chance fell to Arsenal striker Giroud who rounded the Albion keeper and was about to tap the ball into the net but was thwarted by the sheer determination of Myhill who scrambled back across goal and blocked his effort. 

Both managers were happy with a draw and after the match Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger was asked if he had had words with Wilshire following midweek newspaper photos of the England player smoking outside a London nightclub. The Frenchman replied that he had spoken to him but when pressed on whether his player had quit smoking he laughed and said "I don't know.". 

Meanwhile Albion boss Steve Clarke was delighted with his side after another superb performance a week on from the excellent 2-1 victory against Manchester United at Old Trafford.