F.A. Premiership 2009/2010

[abadani69]

Spanish side Villarreal's penchant for Manchester United's unwanted strikers continued on Tuesday as they signed Italian Under-21 international Giuseppe Rossi for 6.7million pounds.

The 20-year-old American-born hitman - who will sign subject to a medical - will replace another United misfit Diego Forlan at the 2006 Champions League semi-finalists - the Uruguayan having moved to Atletico Madrid for 14 million pounds.

Rossi, who scored four times in 14 senior appearances for United since he joined them aged 16, starred in a loan spell for Serie A outfit Parma last term and his nine goals in 17 matches played a large part in saving the former Cup Winners Cup and UEFA Cup winners place among the Italian elite.

Parma were keen to sign him on a permanent basis but only came up with a 5.4 million pounds bid which was trumped by Villarreal for a player that was hailed by United manager Sir Alex Ferguson as 'the future of the club' last summer when he signed a new contract which would have kept him with the 'Red Devils' till 2010.

Ironically, Rossi's last start for United was in the final game of the 2005-06 campaign, when he was preferred to Ruud van Nistelrooy, a decision which effectively ended the Dutchman's Old Trafford career and saw him also depart for Spain to Real Madrid.

[abadani69]

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson admitted on Tuesday that the transfer chase for Argentine striker Carlos Tevez is proving "slightly frustrating".

The Red Devils have agreed a deal to sign Tevez, but their efforts to conclude the transfer are being thwarted by the legal wrangle over who owns the player's registration.

The 23-year-old's advisor, Kia Joorabchian, has issued High Court proceedings against Premier League West Ham, who say Tevez is its player.

Three days have been set aside for a hearing, which is due to start on August 22.

The dates mean the saga could be resolved before the August 31 English Premier League transfer deadline.

There has been speculation that a private settlement may be reached before then, which would see Joorabchian pay West Ham a set fee to release Tevez from his contract.

Ferguson remains calm about the prospect of Tevez eventually arriving at Old Trafford, but says the impasse suits no one.

"I am not worried, because I am confident the player will eventually arrive," Ferguson said. "But it has been dragging on and it has become a bit frustrating. At the moment it is going to the High Court. I am sure we will get a final decision on the matter there.

"If something happens before that, it is something we would welcome."

Ferguson said he would have to consider an alternative strategy if Tevez does not sign.

"The deadline is coming up at the end of August, so we do have to think about alternative plans," he said. "I want the matter settled - and the sooner the better.

"I am sure even West Ham think that way. They have their own plans and they have done a lot of buying and selling, so they will want some kind of conclusion."

[abadani69]

Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce has rubbished reports that he is ready to sell Nigeria striker Obafemi Martins.

It had been claimed that Allardyce was considering cashing-in on Martins in an attempt to raise money to strengthen other areas of his threadbare squad.

The Newcastle boss has been frustrated by the lack of funds available since he took charge at St James' Park, but he insists there is no way he would sacrifice Martins.

Arsenal have been linked with the 13 million pounds-rated star, who scored 17 goals after joining from Inter Milan last season.

But Allardyce told Newcastle's website: "This story is complete and utter fabrication. There's nothing in it whatsoever."

[abadani69]

West Ham United will continue to seek an out-of-court settlement with Argentine forward Carlos Tevez's representatives after they started legal proceedings against the London club.

In a statement on their Web site on Tuesday, the Premier League club said that if they failed to achieve an out-of-court agreement with all parties involved, then they would present a robust case to the High Court on August 22.

Tevez's representative Kia Joorabchian, who claims that he and his companies own the economic rights to Tevez, 23, applied to the High Court after serving a writ on West Ham in a bid to ease his proposed transfer to Manchester United.

West Ham claim they are the true 'owners' of Tevez as they hold his registration as a player after recruiting him in a complex deal last year.

"West Ham United will continue to work on achieving an out-of-court settlement on the issues relating to Carlos Tevez," the club said.

"However, if a settlement, to be agreed by all parties, is not possible then the Club will present a very robust legal case to the High Court if the matter comes before the court on August 22nd."

Tevez's move to the Premier League champions has stalled over the question of who should be paid that fee, estimated by the British media to be worth up to 30 million pounds ($61.73 million).

[abadani69]

As Cristiano Ronaldo shielded his eyes from the blinding explosion of flashbulbs it was clear the Manchester United winger's transition from pride of Old Trafford to global phenomenon was complete.

After a magnificent season in which his dazzling array of feints and flicks bewitched defenders and fans in equal measure, Ronaldo has become one of the game's new icons.

The 22-year-old's brilliant form was instrumental in United winning their first Premiership title for four years and he was rightly showered with plaudits and awards.

But now he faces a challenge that will define his career.

Every move he made during United's recent pre-season tour of Asia was followed by legions of fans and photographers desperate to catch a glimpse of him.

So much attention would sit uneasily for many. At best it could be seen as an unwanted but necessary evil, but it would be no surprise if sudden elevation to such a rarified celebrity status had a more corrosive effect.

The road to football's pantheon of greats is littered with tales of stars who fell by the wayside after succumbing to the temptations that can so easily corrupt a young talent.

Ronaldo only has to look back at his predecessors in the United number seven shirt to see how easy it is to be distracted by the bright lights.

George Best lost his passion for the game far too young and Sir Alex Ferguson gave up on David Beckham after becoming convinced he was spending more time working on his image than his free-kicks.

Happily for Ferguson, his latest prodigy shows signs that his feet will remain firmly on the ground despite the hype declaring him the best player on the planet.

"How players manage to handle that celeb-kind of attention we will never know," Ferguson said. "But with Ronaldo he seems to do OK. He seems to be fine and does not seem to be overwhelmed or overly flattered by it.

"The problem comes when players get flattered by it and start to enjoy it, that is when you start worrying.

"It is obvious when a talent like Ronaldo comes along that there will be attention. This club is great at creating heroes no question about that.

"With Cristiano, a lot has happened to him in his time at Manchester United. But he is an intelligent boy and looks after himself. He has matured fantastically well."

That maturity was visible in the admirable way Ronaldo coped with the taunts from opposing fans that followed him around the Premiership in the aftermath of his role in Wayne Rooney's World Cup dismissal last year.

For a while after his 12 million pounds move to United from Sporting Lisbon in 2003, Ronaldo was in danger of becoming a flat-track bully, who could humiliate inferior opponents but struggled against the best.

His heroics last season erased most of those doubts, but he is still not the finished article.

Lacklustre displays in the Champions League semi-final second leg against AC Milan and the FA Cup final against Chelsea were crucial to United's defeats in those matches.

If Ronaldo has suffered occasional stage-fright, Ferguson sees no reason why it will inhibit him for long. He has time, talent and buckets of confidence on his side, as the United boss knows so well.

Ronaldo has offered to shave his hair off if he doesn't hit 20 league goals this season - as long as Ferguson shaves his own thatch off if Ronaldo reaches the mark.

A shrewd operator like Ferguson may just think the gamble is worth taking if it guarantees Ronaldo's star remains in the ascendant.

[abadani69]

Manchester United remain hopeful that Carlos Tevez's signing will be completed before the weekend despite failing to finalize the deal on Tuesday.

The Premier League only began looking at the paperwork surrounding the signing on Tuesday because it had to wait until Tevez's agent Kia Joorabchian had paid West Ham the $4 million settlement agreed last week after a dispute over who owned the player's rights.

That money has arrived in West Ham's bank account and, with Tevez formally released from his contract and his registration made available, United were able to put forward their proposed two-year loan deal for the Argentina striker to the Premier League.

The league's lawyers are now looking through the details of the deal and, given the history surrounding the player, will be sure to go through every clause closely.

Given that Tevez's fellow Argentina international Javier Mascherano was given the go-ahead for a similar signing for Liverpool last season, there should be time for United to receive clearance before they kick off the new season this weekend.

Meanwhile, Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore has insisted he never contemplated resigning over the criticism of his handling of the Tevez affair.

Wigan chairman Dave Whelan has called for both Scudamore and league chairman Sir Dave Richards to both quit, but Scudamore is adamant the board just followed the rule book.

West Ham were fined $11 million by an independent commission for contravening rules on third-party agreements when they signed Tevez and Mascherano, and the league has come in for criticism for allowing the striker to play a crucial role in the last three matches of the season.

Asked if he had considered his position, Scudamore told BBC Radio 5 Live he had no concerns.

"I don't think so," he said. "All the board have done since last August is look at our rule book and apply the rule book. The independent commission made various decisions about West Ham's conduct and we have then gone on making decisions based on our rules.

"They may not have been popular decisions but that goes with the territory."

Scudamore did admit that the Tevez saga appeared "like a road crash".

"What made this an unbelievable story was an unbelievable series of events," he said.

"West Ham were all-but relegated at Christmas and then Tevez scored a few goals right at the end of the season and they were able to escape. It's unscripted drama and one of the things that makes football so interesting but it other ways it looks like a road crash in how some of the events appear."

Scudamore added that the whole affair was caused by West Ham's previous owners acting in bad faith and concealing the agreements from the Premier League.

"The Premier League only works if you have good faith between the members," he said.

[abadani69]

English Premier League weekend fixtures
(all times GMT)

Playing on Saturday
Sunderland v Tottenham Hotspur (1145)
Bolton Wanderers v Newcastle United (1400)
Derby County v Portsmouth (1400)
Everton v Wigan Athletic (1400)
Middlesbrough v Blackburn Rovers (1400)
West Ham United v Manchester City (1400)
Aston Villa v Liverpool (1615)

Playing on Sunday
Arsenal v Fulham (1100)
Chelsea v Birmingham City (1230)
Manchester United v Reading (1500)

[Rasputin]

نتایج غیر منتظره در روز نخست لیگ برتر انگلستان


چوپرا در دقیقه نود دروازه تاتنهام را باز کرد تا تیم ساندرلند اولین مسابقه خود در لیگ برتر را با برد تمام کند
فصل تازه رقابت های لیگ برتر فوتبال انگلستان روز شنبه یازدهم اوت با چند نتیجه غیر منتظره آغاز شد.
در روزی که سه تیم قدرتمند منچستر یونایتد، چلسی و آرسنال بازی نداشتند، تیم ساندرلند که امسال به لیگ برتر راه یافته توانست اولین شگفتی فصل را رقم زده و در زمین خود با تک گل دقیقه نود چوپرا تیم قدرتمند تاتنهام را مغلوب کند.

تیم بولتون که فصل گذشته را در مقام پنجم به پایان برده بود، در اولین مسابقه خانگی فصل 2007-2008 سه بر یک به نیوکاسل یونایتد و سم الردایس، مربی فصل پیش خود، باخت.

در این بازی آندرانیک تیموریان، بازیکن ایرانی تیم بولتون، که به تازگی از کشورش به دیگر بازیکنان پیوسته، حاضر نبود.

به غیر از بولتون، دو تیم دیگر نیز فصل تازه لیگ برتر انگلستان را با شکست خانگی آغاز کردند. تیم لندنی وستهم یونایتد با نتیجه دو بر صفر به منچستر سیتی باخت و میدلزبرو دو بر یک مغلوب بلکبرن روورز شد.

دیگر نتیجه درخور توجه هفته اول توقف تیم پورتس موث مقابل تیم نه چندان مطرح داربی کاونتی بود.

بازیکنان داربی که این فصل به لیگ برتر راه یافته اند، در دقایق پایانی مسابقه بازی را به تساوی دو بر دو کشاندند تا حضورشان در جمع برترین تیم های فوتبال انگلستان با شکست همراه نباشد.

نتیجه کامل بازی های روز شنبه به شرح زیر است:


بازیکنان بلکبرن در خانه میدلزبرو به پیروزی دو بر یک رسیدند

ساندرلند 1 - تاتنهام 0
بولتون 1 - نیوکاسل 3
دربی 2 - پورتس موث 2
اورتون 2 - ویگان 1
میدلزبرو 1 - بلکبرن 2
وستهم 0 - منچستر سیتی 2

تنها دیدار باقی مانده روز شنبه میان دو تیم استون ویلا و لیورپول در حال برگزاری است که نتیجه آن تا پایان نیمه اول یک بر صفر به سود لیورپول است.

در سه دیدار روز یکشنبه دوازدهم اوت تیم های آرسنال، چلسی و منچستر یونایتد هر سه در زمین خود مسابقه می دهند و به ترتیب میزبان فولام، بیرمنگام و ردینگ خواهند بود

[abadani69]

Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez savoured the sweet taste of an opening day Premiership success for the first time as Steven Gerrard's late strike clinched a 2-1 win at Aston Villa on Saturday.

Benitez had never won the first game of the season since arriving at Anfield in 2004, but England midfielder Gerrard conjured up a superb, curling, 25-yard free-kick in the 87th minute to steal the points.

Martin Laursen's first-half own goal had put Liverpool ahead and Gareth Barry's 85th minute penalty, awarded after Jamie Carragher handled Gabriel Agbonlahor's cross, was not enough to deny Liverpool their first opening day win for five years.


Benitez's record of starts to a season at Anfield has been less than impressive since moving from Spain and the slow starts have been held responsible for their failure to mount a serious challenge to Manchester United and Chelsea for the title, despite their success in the Champions League.

Which is precisely the reason Benitez has been so active in the transfer market, spending millions on Fernando Torres, Ryan Babel and Andriy Voronin, to enable them to hit the ground running and not have to play catch up against their main rivals over the second half of the season.

Spanish international Torres, at 26 million pounds, is regarded as the final piece to Liverpool's title jigsaw and he certainly provided some sparkling touches on his Premier League debut, following his arrival from Atletico Madrid.

And although Benitez has been at pains to play down expectations on his squad this season, there can be no escaping the fact that they will have to be genuine challengers this time around for multi-millionaire owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks not to consider the season a failure.

There was certainly plenty for the Spanish manager to be content with at Villa Park, apart from his side's inability to convert the huge number of chances they created, which would have avoided the need for such a nervous scramble to victory.

Ironically, after spending so much money on strikers, Liverpool had to rely on a freak own goal to give them the lead after 31 minutes of intense pressure.

Torres played an integral part, forcing Taylor into a full-length save after he had been sent clear into the area by Dirk Kuyt, who then pulled back the loose ball which Danish defender Laursen could only volley into his own net.

Victory would have been far more comprehensive for Benitez, but for the heroics of Taylor, playing because of the absence of injured Danish international Thomas Sorensen and the ineligibility of Scott Carson, the England under-21 international, who has just moved on loan from Anfield.

The former Arsenal goalkeeper denied Gerrard twice, once with an incredible save at point blank range, and also denied Torres a debut goal with some agile work - but it was not enough to prevent Villa extending their poor record against Liverpool to only one win in their last 17 meetings in the league.

His heroics looked like being rewarded when Villa won their late penalty, but just when Barry's strike seemed to have brought about a major injustice, Gerrard found the perfect answer with a brilliant free-kick.

Benitez and the Reds are off to a flying start to a season which everyone on Merseyside hopes will end with title success for the first time in 18 years.

[abadani69]

تيم چلسي عصر يكشنبه در ادامه هفته نخست رقابت*هاي فوتبال باشگاه*هاي برتر انگليس مقابل تيم بيرمنگام به پيروزي رسيد.

به گزارش خبرگزاري فرانسه، در اين بازي كه در ورزشگاه استمفوردبريج شهر لندن برگزار شد، تيم چلسي با نتيجه ۳بر ۲ از سد بيرمنگام گذشت تا با پيروزي فصل جديد اين مسابقه*ها را آغاز كند.

گل*هاي تيم چلسي را "پيزارو" در دقيقه " ، ۱۷مالودا" در دقيقه ۳۰و "اسين" در دقيقه ۵۰به ثمر رساندند و"فورسل" در دقيقه ۱۵و "كاپو" در دقيقه ۳۶براي تيم بيرمنگام در اين ديدار گلزني كردند.

پيش از اين بازي، تيم آرسنال ديگر مدعي كسب عنوان قهرماني اين رقابت*ها با نتيجه ۲بر يك تيم فولهام را شكست داد.

در آخرين ديدار هفته نخست، دو تيم منچستريونايتد و ردينگ هم اكنون در ورزشگاه اولدترافورد منچستر به مصاف هم رفته*اند.

[Rasputin]

منچستر یونایتد، مدافع عنوان قهرمانی لیگ برتر فوتبال انگلستان، در نخستین مسابقه فصل جدید به نتیجه ای بهتر از تساوی بدون گل برابر تیم ردینگ دست نیافت.
آلکس فرگوسن، مربی سرخ پوشان شهر منچستر، در روزی که تاکتیک مربی ردینگ مؤثرتر از وی بود، مهاجم اول خود وین رونی را هم به دلیل آسیب دیدگی از دست داد تا هواداران این تیم لیگ برتر را با نگرانی آغاز کنند.

تیم ردینگ از دقیقه هفتاد و سوم مسابقه ده نفره شد اما توانست دروازه خود را تا پایان مسابقه بسته نگه دارد و در روز اول یک امتیاز از ورزشگاه اولدترافورد با خود ببرد.

روز یکشنبه دو تیم قدرتمند دیگر انگلستان، چلسی و آرسنال، هم اولین بازی خود را برگزار کردند و هر دو با پیروزی از زمین مسابقه خارج شدند.

چلسی که در ورزشگاه استمفورد بریج لندن میزبان بیرمنگام بود، به زحمت و با نتیجه سه بر دو از سد حریف خود، که این فصل به لیگ برتر راه یافته، گذشت. برای چلسی پیزارو (1، مالودا (31) و اسین (50) گلزنی کردند و دو گل بیرمنگام را فورسل (15) و کاپو (36) به ثمر رساندند.


کلودیو پیزارو در اولین حضور خود در لیگ برتر انگلستان برای تیم چلسی گلزنی کرد

آرسنال دیگر تیم شهر لندن نیز در ورزشگاه اختصاصی خود میزبان فولام بود که توانست به لطف گل دقیقه نود آلکساندر خلب، دو بر یک این تیم را شکست دهد.

اولین برد آرسنال در حالی به دست آمد که این تیم تا هفت دقیقه به پایان مسابقه یک بر صفر از حریف خود عقب بود، اما ضربه پنالتی فان پرسی کار را به تساوی کشاند.

با انجام سه بازی روز یکشنبه، هفته اول لیگ برتر انگلستان به پایان رسید. در این هفته نتایج جالب توجهی بدست آمد از جمله پیروزی یک بر صفر تیم تازه وارد ساندرلند برابر تیم قدرتمند تاتنهام و شکست خانگی سه بر یک بولتون مقابل نیوکاسل.

تیم بولتون که فصل گذشته را در مقام پنجم به پایان برده بود، در اولین مسابقه خانگی فصل 2007-2008 سه بر یک به نیوکاسل یونایتد و سم الردایس، مربی فصل پیش خود، باخت.

نتیجه کامل بازی های هفته اول به شرح زیر است:



ساندرلند 1 - تاتنهام 0
بولتون 1 - نیوکاسل 3
دربی 2 - پورتس موث 2
اورتون 2 - ویگان 1
میدلزبرو 1 - بلکبرن 2


وستهم 0 - منچستر سیتی 2
استون ویلا 1 - لیورپول 2
آرسنال 2 - فولام 1
چلسی 3 - بیرمنگام 2
منچستر یونایتد 0 - ردینگ 0

[abadani69]

شاگردان سر " آلكس فرگوسن " در نخستين هفته از مسابقات فوتبال قهرماني باشگاه*هاي برتر انگليس مقابل تيم ردينگ ناكام شدند.

به گزارش خبرگزاري فرانسه از لندن ، تيم منچستريونايتد كه يكشنبه*شب در ورزشگاه اولدترافورد شهر منچستر پذيراي تيم ردينگ بود ، با تمامي ستارگان خود بدون آنكه به گلي دست يابد ، با تساوي زمين را ترك كرد.

در ديگر ديدارهاي ديشب تيم آرسنال مقابل فولهام ۲بر يك به برتري رسيد و چلسي ۳بر ۲بيرمنگام را شكست داد.

[abadani69]

Joleon Lescott, Leon Osman and Alan Stubbs were on target as Everton continued their perfect start to the season with a 3-1 win at Tottenham.

"You can put out words how pleased we are to come to Tottenham and win 3-1, great result, we did it last year and these players are more than capable of doing it, we told them that and they showed it tonight," said a delighted Everton boss David Moyes.

"I thought it was a good game throughout, we came here with two-up top but your always going to have work hard against Tottenham as they pass the ball well in front of you and you have to keep your shape but I thought at the right moments we did the right things.?

The visitors stunned White Hart Lane by taking the lead in the third minute of Tuesday night's Premier League clash, with Mikel Arteta's superb free-kick from the right finding the head of Lescott who powered his effort past Paul Robinson from close range.

Darren Bent almost pulled Spurs level seven minutes later, but his fierce drive was pushed out by Tim Howard, while at the other end Victor Anichebe forced Robinson into a smart stop.

Martin Jol's men deservedly drew level in the 27th minute when a Jermaine Jenas corner found an unmarked Anthony Gardner who thumped a downward header beyond Howard.

Everton restored their advantage eight minutes before half-time when Arteta's searching cross to the back post was superbly cleared by Ricardo Rocha but only to the feet of Osman who smashed home from 10 yards.

Things got worse for the home side when the Toffees grabbed their third just before the break when Stubbs' 25-yard free-kick took a deflection off Didier Zokora and arrowed into the bottom right-hand corner of Robinson's goal.

Jol said: "It was a disaster to concede in the second minute. If you concede three goals like that against Everton it is always going to be difficult to break them down. The only positive thing is that we came out and we really wanted to do better in the second half and not concede another goal. We did that, although we needed some help from Paul Robinson.?

Spurs were desperately unlucky not to pull a goal back within three minutes of the restart when Dimitar Berbatov's superb header from Pascal Chimbonda's cross flew back off the woodwork. Jol turned to Jermain Defoe from the bench on the hour mark, with Bent the man to make way as Spurs looked for a route back into the game.

Defoe was unlucky not to pull a goal back with 12 minutes to go but his volley at the far post from Chimbonda's centre was brilliantly saved at his near post by Howard.

?We do the best we can, money doesn't always buy you success and there are no guarantees, but there is only two games gone so we are not getting carried away,? added Moyes. "I have a great deal of faith in our players and we have seen tonight what they can do."

Robinson produced a stunning stop to deny Andrew Johnson late on as Everton comfortably held out to make it two wins out of two, but for Spurs a home win over Derby is now a must come Saturday.

[abadani69]

Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off for a headbutt as Manchester United slipped four points off the pace at the top of the Premier League standings with a 1-1 draw at Portsmouth on Wednesday.

After being held to a surprise 0-0 draw by 10-man Reading in their opening clash, the Red Devils looked set for a three-point haul after Paul Scholes scored after 15 minutes.

The former England midfielder connected with Carlos Tevez's pass from the edge of the penalty box and his shot gave goalkeeper David James no chance.

Portsmouth equalized in the 53rd minute when Benjani Mwaruwari timed his run from deep to perfection to power a header home from Matthew Taylor's left-wing cross.

Sulley Muntari was sent off late on after collecting a second yellow card but, before United could take advantage, Ronaldo was also dismissed for butting Richard Hughes.

Sven-Goran Eriksson's perfect start to his Manchester City rein continued as his new side scored its first home goal since New Year's Day.

The former England manager watched as Michael Johnson's first professional goal beat promoted Derby 1-0 at the City of Manchester Stadium.

The 19-year-old struck a superb 43rd-minute winner with the outside of his right boot after playing a clever one-two with summer signing Elano.

Sunderland scored a vital last-gasp goal for the second straight game to earn a 2-2 draw at Birmingham.

Stern John came off the substitutes' bench to cancel out fellow substitute Garry O'Connor's late strike and maintain Roy Keane's unbeaten start as a Premier League manager.

The Blues took the lead through an own goal from Paul McShane, who chested the ball past Craig Gordon after Stephen Kelly had headed Sebastian Larsson's flighted free kick back across goal.

Michael Chopra equalized 15 minutes from time with a rising left-foot volley following some sloppy home defending.

Garry O'Connor rifled a shot past Gordon for his first goal for the Blues and when Sunderland lost Carlos Edwards to injury, the game looked up. But John had the final word, heading home after Colin Doyle could only parry Ross Wallace's deflected free - kick.

Fulham condemned Bolton to a second straight defeat after coming from behind to win 2-1 at Craven Cottage.

Heidar Helguson came back to haunt Cottagers manager Lawrie Sanchez with his first goal for the Trotters, although it was gift-wrapped by goalkeeper Tony Warner.

Outstanding in his side's opening weekend defeat at Arsenal, Warner snapped up a long throw and moved forward to release it only for the ball to slip from his grasp. Helguson took advantage to tap home.

Fulham were level in the 23rd minute, David Healy scoring for the second straight game after turning and firing in from six yards after Bolton failed to clear a corner.

The winner arrived a few minutes later, Alexi Smertin letting loose from distance with a drive that deflected off Gerald Cid past Jussi Jaaskelainen.

Chelsea joined Everton and Manchester City on six points at the top of the table after a fine comeback at Reading.

Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba turned the game on its head within five minutes of the restart after Andre Bikey handed the Royals a halftime lead.

Petr Cech, returning to the scene of his fractured skull of last season, was at fault for Bikey's strike. His attempted punch missed Ivar Ingimarsson's header, allowing Bikey to tap into an empty net.

Lampard equalized after a bustling run from midfield saw him latch on to Drogba's flick and slide a shot under American goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann.

Drogba scored the winner with a brilliant curling effort from the edge of the area.

On a night of goalkeeping errors, the most costly came at the JJB Stadium when Mark Schwarzer's spill gifted Wigan a 1-0 win over Middlesbrough.

The Australian could not hold Antonio Valencia's 55th-minute cross-shot and Antoine Sibierski pounced to bundle the ball home for his second goal in as many matches.

[abadani69]

تيم منچستريونايتد مدافع عنوان قهرماني رقابت*هاي فوتبال باشگاه*هاي برتر انگليس عصر يكشنبه مقابل همشهري خود تن به شكست داد.

به گزارش خبرگزاري فرانسه، در اين ديدار كه از هفته سوم اين مسابقه*ها و در ورزشگاه اختصاصي تيم منچسترسيتي برگزار شد، اين تيم با نتيجه يك بر صفر حريف نامدار خود را پشت سر گذاشت تا تيم منچستريونايتد درحسرت نخستين پيروزي در فصل جديد ليگ برتر باقي بماند.

تيم منچسترسيتي نيز با كسب سومين پيروزي متوالي خود در اين رقابت*ها بار ديگر به صدر جدول رده بندي بازگشت.

"جيوواني" هافبك ۲۷ساله تيم منچسترسيتي در دقيقه ۳۱بازي تنها گل اين ديدار را به ثمر رساند.

درادامه هفته سوم اين رقابت*ها،تا دقايقي ديگرتيم*هاي بلكبرن با آرسنال و ليورپول با چلسي به مصاف هم مي*روند.