West Bromwich Albion 1-0 West Ham United match report Saturday 26th April 2014

Pepe Mel recorded his first home victory in charge of West Bromwich Albion to ease his team's relegation worries in front of a sell-out crowd at the Hawthorns.

England under-21 striker Saido Berahino put a huge smile on his manager's face when he tapped in from two yards out. The single goal being enough to defeat a lacklustre West Ham side who's travelling fans  called for boss Sam Allardyce to go.

The win means that Mel's team now has 36 points and sit 15th in the table, five points clear of Fulham in 18th with three games remaining.

The Hammers were the quickest out of the blocks  with the main threat coming on the left from winger Matt Jarvis who whipped in numerous crosses none of which were converted by their main striker Andy Carroll.

The home team finally settled and made the breakthrough on 10 minutes  when Stephane Sessegnon won the ball in the centre of the pitch. The midfielder slipped a fine pass to Morgan Amalfitano on the right hand side and the Frenchman delivered a low, hard cross across the six yard box where Berahino got in front of his marker to score from close range.

The goal stunned The Hammers into life and they created numerous opportunities, the best falling to Andy Carroll. A cross from the edge of the penalty area on the left hand side by Stewart Downing was met by the England striker but his header was well saved  by keeper Ben Foster diving to his right.

In their last two home games West Brom had leads of 2-0 and 3-0 and still finished with draws. So the longer the game went on the more the Baggies fans wondered if their team could hold on  for a vital win. West Brom created numerous chances but Berahino and Sessegnon were guilty of being wasteful.

Berahino had two golden edged opportunities to increase his side's lead. Sessegnon laid in a pass from the penalty spot to Berahino arriving at the left hand side of the six yard box but the young striker got his feet mixed up and was only able to scramble the ball back to Sessegnon who again fed him only for keeper Adrian to save. The Spaniard again thwarted him a few moments later when he saved his third effort.

The only response the away team could muster was a corner taken from the left hand side which was met by Andy Carroll but his free header hit the bar when it looked easier to score. The home team defended strongly for the rest of the game and were raucously cheered off at the end by thousands of relieved home fans.

Despite being relatively safe with 37 points, West Ham didn't at all look the team were before Christmas when they kept a string of clean sheets. Throughout the game away fans displayed a sign that said "Big Sam out, killing WHU" clearly voicing their opinions of the way their team plays football and of manager Sam Allardyce's tactics.

After the game the Hammers' boss said he wasn't concerned about the criticism but admitted it was he as manager who was responsible for getting things right.

"I can understand the fans voicing their opinions. We haven't won in four games and we need to get more clinical in front of goal as we are not converting our chances."

Pepe Mel said he was delighted to finally get his first win as West Brom manager and said one more win should be enough to ensure West Brom play Premier League football next season. When pressed on whether he would be in charge of The Baggies next year, the Spaniard said he would like to stay in the hot seat at The Hawthorns.

 

Interview with Marc Albrighton

Aston Villa 0 - 0 Southampton match report April 19th 2014

Aston Villa earned a vital point against high flying Southampton to help boost their push for Premier League survival.

 

In a week when chief executive Paul Faulkner called for everyone involved at the club to pull together after manager Paul Lambert’s two assistants were replaced, Villa desperately needed a win to lift them away from the relegation zone after four straight defeats.

 

In a game of few chances, it was the Saints who took control of the game early on and almost went ahead when Rickie Lambert looked odds-on to score but saw his side-footed shot blocked by Villa centre-back Nathan Baker.

 

As the half wore on Villa started to impose themselves more on the game with winger Marc Albrighton very influential in all his side’s attacking moves; whipping in crosses from the right but his team-mates failed to connect.

 

The Villans’ best chance fell to Gabby Agbonlahor who picked up the ball on the half way line and used to pace to race away from the Saints defence but unfortunately the striker over-hit his final touch inside the box and the ball was hacked clear before he could get a shot away.

 

After only gaining 29% of the possession in the first half, Villa came out stronger in the second period with man of the match Albrighton once again firing in the crosses but it was clear that Paul Lambert’s team were missing their talisman Christian Benteke out with a season ending injury.

 

England’s young left back Luke Shaw had a torrid time against Albrighton but at the other end of the pitch the 18-year-old fired in a cross from the left which just fell behind Adam Lallana and the midfielder completely fluffed his shot.

 

With Fulham losing earlier in the day, Villa missed a vital opportunity to pull further away from the drop zone but a point was all they could muster against a Saints team who have already assured themselves safety.

 

After the game Villa manager Paul Lambert described the match as a chance to "stop the bleeding" after a run of four straight losses. He described the outcome as ‘a huge point’ against a very good Southampton side.

 

Saints boss Mauricio Pochettino said his team created enough chances and had enough possession to win the game. Despite his team being safe in eighth position and with potential England World Cup players in his team, he said he still had high intentions of winning the match.

 

 

 

 

West Bromwich Albion 3-3 Tottenham Hotspur match report Saturday April 12th 2014

Tottenham Hotspur came back from three goals down to earn a draw against a West Bromwich Albion side that continues to hover dangerously just above the Premiership relegation zone.

Goals from Harry Kane, Christian Eriksen and an own goal from Jonas Olsson grabbed a point for under-fire manager Tim Sherwood’s side which looked highly unlikely when the Baggies went three goals up within 31 minutes.

The Londoners were hit straight from the kick-off with fans still arriving at the ground. Good work on the right hand side by West Brom midfielder Morgan Amalfitano produced a cross which Spurs’ keeper Hugo Lloris could only parry back into the path of Matej Vydra and the striker fired home from 10 yards with only 28 seconds on the clock.

Confidence soared through the home players and in the fourth minute a cross from the right hand side by Steven Reid was headed straight into the path of Chris Brunt at the far post and the Baggies captain smashed the ball home on the volley.

The Spurs players were shell-shocked and struggled to get over the half-way line but on 14 minutes they were offered a lifeline when a mistimed challenge by Amalfitano on full-back Danny Rose saw referee Meil Swarbrick immediately point to the spot. Emmanuel Adebayor stepped up to take the penalty but rolled his weak side-footed shot straight into the arms of West Brom keeper Ben Foster.

To make matters worse, Spurs were punished on 34 minutes when Baggies defender Olsson pumped the ball route one down the left and Tottenham captain Younes Kaboul’s poor header flicked the ball into the path of West Brom midfielder Stephane Sessegnon who sprinted clear to tuck the ball home one on one against Spurs’ keeper Hugo Lloris.

The Londoners finally got their breakthrough in the 36^th minute when striker Harry Kane picked the ball up 25 yards out and threaded a pass through the West Brom defence to the overlapping Aaron Lennon on the right. The winger’s low, hard cross was turned into his own net by the outstretched leg of defender Jonas Olsson.

The visitors started the second half strongly as West Brom fought hard to hold on to their 3 – 1 lead. West Brom boss Pepe Mel responded by taking off midfield dynamo Sessegnon for the more defensive Claudio Yacob on 58 minutes and the decision changed the match and his team’s fortunes.

With 69 minutes gone, the Baggies' defence crumbled under the relentless pressure from their opponents. Aaron Lennon who was a constant threat on the right, fired in a cross and Kane met it with his head to nod the ball into the net.

Spurs continued to batter the West Brom defence and just as it looked as if they were going to hold on for a vital three points, another cross from the right looped up into the path of Christian Eriksen on the left. The Danish midfielder was allowed to cut inside and fire the ball into the corner of the net for West Brom’s second 3 – 3 draw in successive games – both from strong leading positions.

The failure to hold on to a three goal lead and a victory by Fulham leaves West Brom just three points above the drop-zone.

Boss Pepe Mel said his team were angry that they could not hold on to gain all three points while Spurs manager Tim Sherwood said he couldn’t believe how poorly his team started but said he never doubted they would get back into the game. “I felt we should have won,” he added.

Aston Villa 1-2 Fulham FC Match Report Saturday 5th April 2014

Fulham boosted their Premier League survival hopes by beating a lacklustre Aston Villa side who slipped to their 10th home defeat of the season.

Goals from Hugo Rodallega and Kieran Richardson were enough to give Fulham a vital three points that lifts them off the bottom of the table.

Villa fielded a patched up team that was missing key players such as Gabriel Agbonlahor, Christian Benteke and Fabian Delph and lacked any creativity.

The first half offered very little in terms of entertainment value with few chances created by both teams, the best falling to Fulham's Cauley Woodrow who pounced on a mistake by Villa defender Nathan Baker but his shot was saved by keeper Brad Guzan from a tight angle.

 At half time Fulham manager Felix Magath sent on Hugo Rodallega and Ashkan Dejagah and they certainly made a difference. With 61 minutes gone, the Cottagers broke away on the right and Dejagah's cross fell perfectly into the path of advancing Kieran Richardson who made no mistake in blasting the ball past Villa 'keeper Brad Guzan into the top right corner.

On 70 minutes, Villa found a way back into the game. A corner from the right hand side by Marc Albrighton evaded all of the Fulham defence and Grant Holt met the ball at the far post to power it into the net and level the game.

Both teams were not happy to settle for just one point and Fulham thought they had won the game when a slick move down the right ended with a cross from Dejagah which found Holtby with an open goal but his shot was superbly cleared from close range by a lunging Matthew Lowton.

With 85 minutes gone Holtby made amends for his miss with a free kick from the right. His first effort hit a Villa defender and rebounded back to him but his second cross found substitute Rodallega who glanced the ball past Guzan to settle the game. 

At the final whistle, Fulham players and fans celebrated as if they had won a Cup final while Villa fans showed their feelings with a chorus of boos; some suggesting that Villa get rid of their manager Paul Lambert after a run of three defeats on the bounce.

After the game a delighted Felix Magath said this game was his side's "last chance" to stay in the Premier League and said he would reward his players with a "two day break" after all their hard work.