Fulham 3-0 West Brom
Whilst Fulham did start the Premier League season excellently destroying the hapless Norwich 5-0, they had struggled in their following 2 games losing to both Manchester United and West Ham in successive weeks. They bounced back well however to inflict their first Premier League defeat of the season on to an off colour West Brom.
Before the season many worried about Fulham's goal scoring threat though they added well to their team over the summer and appear to have signed up a number of threatening players, none more well known than Bulgarian Dimitar Berbatov.
It was to be Berbatov who stole the headlines here, netting his first Fulham goal in the 32nd minute to finish off an excellent run by team mate Alex Kacaniklic. West Brom didn't look their usual selves and it showed as the usually mild mannered Peter Odemwingie was sent off for kicking out at Sascha Riether putting West Brom at an even bigger disadvantage. It didn't take long for Fulham to effectively finish off the game as Berbatov netted a second from the spot.
Despite being 2-0 up Fulham kept control of the match well with Berbatov showing just how good he really is as he held up the ball and acted as a focal point for all of the Fulham attacks sadly however he failed to complete his hat-trick. It didn't however stop Fulham from netting a 3rd with Steve Sidwell tapping in from close range late on to seal all 3 points.
Fulham boss Martin Jol will be really pleased by just how good his team looked here following their 2 losses in their past 2 matches. The ability, strength and size of the Berbatov really allows Fulham so many options up front and with the likes of Mladen Petric, Damien Duff and Alex Kacaniklic they are a genuinely threatening team up front with several different options. I'd be genuinely shocked if Fulham weren't a team challenging for a Europa League position by the end of the season.
Whilst the result certainly wasn't great for West Brom, it was perhaps a dose of reality for Steve Clark who had taken a remarkable 7 points from his first 3 Premier League games in charge. Odemwingie's sending off was a moment of sheer madness (and something he has apologised for) though it was the fact that the Baggies simply couldn't handle Kacaniklic and Berbatov that really made the difference. West Brom have a lot of promise and hopefully this match will have awoken their eyes to the fact they need to play well to continue to get results.
Showing posts with label West Brom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label West Brom. Show all posts
Sunday, 16 September 2012
Saturday, 1 September 2012
Premier League Week 3-Write up West Brom v Everton
West Brom 2-0 Everton
Everton had started the Premier League campaign on fire with a huge upset win over Manchester United followed by a 3-1 drubbing over Villa, it was widely expected that they'd make it 3 from 3. Like Everton West Brom had also secured an upset in their first game of the season defeating Liverpool 3-0 before getting a 1-1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur, this was a clash of unbeatens.
Despite both of these teams being early pace setters in the Premier League neither team really started fast though West Brom really should have been ahead before going in at half time level 0-0. The major talking point of the first half however wasn't a chance but instead the early substitution of Darron Gibson who only lasted around 20 minutes before Tony Hibbert replaced him.
Everton had a great chance around 20 minutes into the second half as the ball fell for Marouane Fellaini who hit his chance over the goal. The Baggies soon made the visitors pay for missing the opportunity with Shane Long scoring just minutes later as the home side broke the deadlock. Around 17 minutes later West Brom doubled their lead and sealed the well deserved 3 points thanks to Gareth McAuley's header with less than 10 minutes left.
West Brom manager Steve Clarke will be smiling from ear to ear having had West Brom's best ever start to a Premier League season bagging 7 points in his opening 3 games as manager and already securing wins over both Merseyside clubs. Steve Clarke's team are not only unbeaten but are also scoring relatively easily with 6 goals for and only 1 against, this is a team who are really looking well organised even if they do lack an out and out goal scorer.
David Moyes will not be best pleased at his team's performance as they looked a shadow of the side who won their opening 2 games. Their attack looked much, much poorer than it had looked in previous games and whilst Kevin Mirallas did make an impact he couldn't create a goal. It's fair to assume however that this will just be a blip and Moyes will not be too concerned with the loss against a Baggies side that did much worse to Liverpool.
Everton had started the Premier League campaign on fire with a huge upset win over Manchester United followed by a 3-1 drubbing over Villa, it was widely expected that they'd make it 3 from 3. Like Everton West Brom had also secured an upset in their first game of the season defeating Liverpool 3-0 before getting a 1-1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur, this was a clash of unbeatens.
Despite both of these teams being early pace setters in the Premier League neither team really started fast though West Brom really should have been ahead before going in at half time level 0-0. The major talking point of the first half however wasn't a chance but instead the early substitution of Darron Gibson who only lasted around 20 minutes before Tony Hibbert replaced him.
Everton had a great chance around 20 minutes into the second half as the ball fell for Marouane Fellaini who hit his chance over the goal. The Baggies soon made the visitors pay for missing the opportunity with Shane Long scoring just minutes later as the home side broke the deadlock. Around 17 minutes later West Brom doubled their lead and sealed the well deserved 3 points thanks to Gareth McAuley's header with less than 10 minutes left.
West Brom manager Steve Clarke will be smiling from ear to ear having had West Brom's best ever start to a Premier League season bagging 7 points in his opening 3 games as manager and already securing wins over both Merseyside clubs. Steve Clarke's team are not only unbeaten but are also scoring relatively easily with 6 goals for and only 1 against, this is a team who are really looking well organised even if they do lack an out and out goal scorer.
David Moyes will not be best pleased at his team's performance as they looked a shadow of the side who won their opening 2 games. Their attack looked much, much poorer than it had looked in previous games and whilst Kevin Mirallas did make an impact he couldn't create a goal. It's fair to assume however that this will just be a blip and Moyes will not be too concerned with the loss against a Baggies side that did much worse to Liverpool.
Saturday, 25 August 2012
Premier League Week 2-Write up Tottenham Hotspur v West Brom
Tottenham Hotspur 1-1 West Brom
Tottenham Hotspur started their Premier League season off with a disappointing 2-1 defeat at the hands of Newcastle in a game they were probably the better side in. In their second game they faced Liverpool's conqueror's West Brom who had surprised everybody in securing a 3-0 victory over Liverpool.
The home side, playing their first league game at White Heart Lane under Andre Villas-Boas looked the better team through the opening half as they dominated possession and created numerous chances that fell by the way side. The second half however saw West Brom coming alive and they grew into the game.
It appeared as if Tottenham had taken the lead in the 65th minute through Jermain Defoe, only for the referees assistant to rule the goal out with Defore standing clearly offiside as the ball was played into him. Just 10 minutes later Spurs did take the lead thanks to Benoit Assou-Ekotto's long range effort that took a deflection en-route to beating Ben Foster. It appeared as if the points were Tottenham's though, as we all know, Spurs don't have luck on their side and the visitors pushed hard to try and get an equaliser. As the match entered injury time West Brom managed to bag the necessary goal thanks to James Morrison who earned the Baggies a point.
This match will have been a hard pill for Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas to swallow as he came so close to securing his first win as Tottenham manager following the summer sacking of Harry Redknapp, a decision the fans didn't agree with. Despite the late equaliser Tottenham looked the better team however their play in the attack third was lacking cohesion and this left them perhaps not looking as much of a threat as one would expect. It was a long day for Defoe who rarely looked himself and the attack looked really toothless. At the back however Jan Vertonghen looked like a player who will be a commander in defense and looks to be a really impressive signing.
Steve Clarke will feel proud of his players for the second weekend running. They were incredible last weekend as they defeated Liverpool and they were brilliant again here in a match that they refused to accept they were beaten in. Despite looking poor for the first 45 minutes they really warmed to the occasion and looked like a team determined to get something from the match. If Clarke can keep the desire in his players to get something from every game then they could be a real handful for anyone.
Tottenham Hotspur started their Premier League season off with a disappointing 2-1 defeat at the hands of Newcastle in a game they were probably the better side in. In their second game they faced Liverpool's conqueror's West Brom who had surprised everybody in securing a 3-0 victory over Liverpool.
The home side, playing their first league game at White Heart Lane under Andre Villas-Boas looked the better team through the opening half as they dominated possession and created numerous chances that fell by the way side. The second half however saw West Brom coming alive and they grew into the game.
It appeared as if Tottenham had taken the lead in the 65th minute through Jermain Defoe, only for the referees assistant to rule the goal out with Defore standing clearly offiside as the ball was played into him. Just 10 minutes later Spurs did take the lead thanks to Benoit Assou-Ekotto's long range effort that took a deflection en-route to beating Ben Foster. It appeared as if the points were Tottenham's though, as we all know, Spurs don't have luck on their side and the visitors pushed hard to try and get an equaliser. As the match entered injury time West Brom managed to bag the necessary goal thanks to James Morrison who earned the Baggies a point.
This match will have been a hard pill for Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas to swallow as he came so close to securing his first win as Tottenham manager following the summer sacking of Harry Redknapp, a decision the fans didn't agree with. Despite the late equaliser Tottenham looked the better team however their play in the attack third was lacking cohesion and this left them perhaps not looking as much of a threat as one would expect. It was a long day for Defoe who rarely looked himself and the attack looked really toothless. At the back however Jan Vertonghen looked like a player who will be a commander in defense and looks to be a really impressive signing.
Steve Clarke will feel proud of his players for the second weekend running. They were incredible last weekend as they defeated Liverpool and they were brilliant again here in a match that they refused to accept they were beaten in. Despite looking poor for the first 45 minutes they really warmed to the occasion and looked like a team determined to get something from the match. If Clarke can keep the desire in his players to get something from every game then they could be a real handful for anyone.
Saturday, 18 August 2012
Premier League Week 1-Write up West Brom v Liverpool
West Brom 3-0 Liverpool
Having sacked Kenny Dalglish at the end of last season and brought in Brendon Rodgers expectations were high at Liverpool for this season, though as we all know things are never the way they should be for Liverpool where stunningly upset today in their league opener by West Brom.
Liverpool started well with the controversial Luis Suarez having a number of chances including an excellent headed chance to put Liverpool in the lead, though couldn't finish any of them. Instead of Suarez it was returning Zoltán Gera that opened the scoring with an excellent strike in the 43rd minute that may well be an early contender for goal of the season. The Hungarian let loose with a thunderbolt from outside the penalty area that gave Reina no chance.
In the second half West Brom had a fantastic chance to double their lead as Daniel Agger fouled Shane Long in the penalty area. Whilst Agger was given a straight red Long couldn't convert the penalty. It didn't take long however for West Brom to be given a second penalty after Martin Škrtel lost track of both the ball and Long. This time Peter Odemwinge stepped up to the spot and he didn't make the same mistake as his team smashing the ball into the bottom corner. The match was finally sealed around 15 minutes from time as Romelu Lukaku headed in a 3rd for West Brom.
Brendon Rodgers was expected to have a midas touch though signings Joe Allen and Fabio Borini both looked completely out of place on the pitch with the pair looking like 2 very expensive accessories. The combined £26 million spent on the two men is looking like a seriously bad move for Rodgers who will almost certainly get the fans on his back if he cannot turn things around quickly.
For West Brom's new manager Steve Clarke this must have been a dream start. Not only did he manage to defeat the team that got rid of him last year but he managed to make a real statement about his team, who will likely be expected to match last season's 10th place finish. The return of Gera (who had been out for 8 months) is a major positive for the Baggies and Lukaku is an excellent loan signing who will seriously give West Brom a threat up front. Don't be surprised if West Brom manage a number of upsets this year.
Having sacked Kenny Dalglish at the end of last season and brought in Brendon Rodgers expectations were high at Liverpool for this season, though as we all know things are never the way they should be for Liverpool where stunningly upset today in their league opener by West Brom.
Liverpool started well with the controversial Luis Suarez having a number of chances including an excellent headed chance to put Liverpool in the lead, though couldn't finish any of them. Instead of Suarez it was returning Zoltán Gera that opened the scoring with an excellent strike in the 43rd minute that may well be an early contender for goal of the season. The Hungarian let loose with a thunderbolt from outside the penalty area that gave Reina no chance.
In the second half West Brom had a fantastic chance to double their lead as Daniel Agger fouled Shane Long in the penalty area. Whilst Agger was given a straight red Long couldn't convert the penalty. It didn't take long however for West Brom to be given a second penalty after Martin Škrtel lost track of both the ball and Long. This time Peter Odemwinge stepped up to the spot and he didn't make the same mistake as his team smashing the ball into the bottom corner. The match was finally sealed around 15 minutes from time as Romelu Lukaku headed in a 3rd for West Brom.
Brendon Rodgers was expected to have a midas touch though signings Joe Allen and Fabio Borini both looked completely out of place on the pitch with the pair looking like 2 very expensive accessories. The combined £26 million spent on the two men is looking like a seriously bad move for Rodgers who will almost certainly get the fans on his back if he cannot turn things around quickly.
For West Brom's new manager Steve Clarke this must have been a dream start. Not only did he manage to defeat the team that got rid of him last year but he managed to make a real statement about his team, who will likely be expected to match last season's 10th place finish. The return of Gera (who had been out for 8 months) is a major positive for the Baggies and Lukaku is an excellent loan signing who will seriously give West Brom a threat up front. Don't be surprised if West Brom manage a number of upsets this year.
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