Aston Villa equal club-record home winning run by sweeping aside Fulham
Aston Villa registered their 13th Premier League home win on the bounce as Unai Emery’s men beat Fulham 3-1. Villa were two goals up at the break following an Antonee Robinson own-goal and a strike from skipper John McGinn. Fulham came close early in the second half when Emiliano Martinez tipped a Raul Jimenez shot against a post before Ollie Watkins added a third for the hosts with a 64th-minute finish. Jimenez pulled a goal back for the visitors, but Villa were not to be denied as they equalled the post-war club record for successive top-flight home victories, matching the 13 in a row achieved in 1983. Emery’s side have scored at least three times in each of their Villa Park wins this season, with the total being 23 goals for the midlands outfit across the six games. It was also a return to winning ways in the league after last Sunday’s 2-0 loss at Nottingham Forest, since when they had defeated AZ Alkmaar 2-1 at home in the Europa Conference League. While fifth-placed Villa are a point outside the top four, Marco Silva’s Fulham are 16th after their winless run in the league extended to a fourth game. The home side made a lively start to the contest and after Moussa Diaby had a sixth-minute effort saved by Bernd Leno, another Villa attack moments later saw Watkins’ shot come off Timothy Castagne and referee Simon Hooper award a penalty. However, VAR intervened and with Hooper having surveyed footage pitchside, the handball decision was overturned. Martinez was then called into action to keep out an Andreas Pereira strike, although the flag was up for offside, before Emery’s men pushed forward again and took the lead in the 27th minute. Youri Tielemans, making his first league start for Villa, curled a delivery from the left towards Diaby and the ball went off Robinson into the net – the defender’s second own-goal of the season, having also scored one in Fulham’s win against Sheffield United last month. As Villa sought a second, Matty Cash was denied by Leno, and the advantage was doubled in the 42nd minute as McGinn collected the ball from a Robinson header, took a touch to move away from Joao Palhinha and fired in from just outside the box. Fulham started well after the interval and almost reduced the deficit three minutes in when a Martinez touch diverted Jimenez’s strike against a post, with Willian shooting over on the follow-up. There was also a shot just wide of the near post from Willian, but soon after Villa made it 3-0 as Leon Bailey, just off the bench, crossed and Watkins sidefooted in his 11th club goal of the season in all competitions. Jimenez produced a similar finish, teed up by Robinson in the 70th minute, to open his Fulham account – his first Premier League goal since March 2022. Substitute Carlos Vinicius thought he had scored another for Fulham in the 81st minute when he went around Martinez and slotted in, but he was flagged offside, before the ball hit the Fulham bar off Palhinha and Watkins headed the loose ball wide when looking certain to score – a surprising miss that mattered little come the final whistle. Read More Britain remain at elite level of BJK Cup with victory over under-strength Sweden Brighton gift draw to Sheffield United after own goal and red card Tomas Soucek heads winner as West Ham come from behind in five-goal thriller Philippe Clement wants longer recovery after European games as Rangers beat Livi Katie Boulter puts Great Britain a win away from BJK Cup progress England will take it slow with Jofra Archer after latest setback – Rob Key
2023-11-13 00:46
Tomas Soucek heads late winner as West Ham come from behind to beat Forest
Tomas Soucek’s persistence paid off as his late header secured a 3-2 win for West Ham against Nottingham Forest. In the closing stages, the Czech midfielder hit the crossbar and had a header miraculously saved by Forest keeper Odysseas Vlachodimos. But Soucek made it third time lucky when he nodded home James Ward-Prowse’s corner to finally see off the visitors. Goals from Taiwo Awoniyi and Anthony Elanga had put Forest into the lead after Lucas Paqueta fired the Hammers ahead in the third minute. But Jarrod Bowen’s eighth Premier League goal of the season hauled West Ham level before Soucek’s late heroics. Paqueta struck after Nicolas Dominguez’s stray pass across the pitch cannoned off Ibrahim Sangare’s backside. The Brazilian still had plenty to do but his low, accurate finish from the edge of the area comfortably beat the dive of Vlachodimos. Forest were denied an equaliser by a stunning save from Alphonse Areola, who got a powerful hand on a point-blank header from Awoniyi. Moments later Mohammed Kudus led a counter-attack and squared the ball for Paqueta, only this time his control let him down and his tame shot was straight at Vlachodimos. But Forest gradually regained their shape and set about frustrating West Ham, who seemed to rapidly run out of ideas. The crowd began to get restless as sideways pass after sideways pass came to nothing. Even Forest got bored of it eventually, and they hauled themselves level on the stroke of half-time when Sangare won the ball in a congested midfield. Sangare, with probably the first forward pass of the match from either side, played Morgan Gibbs-White through on goal. Gibbs-White’s angled drive was kept out by Areola but Awoniyi was on hand to tap the rebound into and empty net. West Ham came out with more impetus after the break and Kudus had a shot deflected over before Emerson Palmieri fired narrowly wide. Forest should have gone ahead when Awoniyi played a one-two with Elanga only to slice his shot way off target. Instead they got their noses in front just after the hour when Elanga tucked in a low cross from Ola Aina. But West Ham hit back immediately, Bowen meeting Ward-Prowse’s corner with a powerful header past Vlachodimos. Then Soucek took centre stage, first lifting the ball over Vlachodimos only to see it come back off the crossbar before the Greek keeper somehow tipped his downward header over the top. But Soucek struck with two minutes remaining, leaping over team-mate Bowen to meet another Ward-Prowse corner at the far post to seal West Ham’s first Premier League win since September. Read More Philippe Clement wants longer recovery after European games as Rangers beat Livi Katie Boulter puts Great Britain a win away from BJK Cup progress England will take it slow with Jofra Archer after latest setback – Rob Key Rob Key ready to take share of blame for England’s poor World Cup Victor Lindelof: Scoring more goals is next step for Manchester United On this day in 2004: John Toshack becomes Wales boss on five-year deal
2023-11-13 00:26
Cubs rumors: Trade buzz, Bellinger deal with another star, David Ross's plans for next gig, Stroman good as gone
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2023-11-13 00:22
MLB rumors: Nola/Phillies reunion DOA? Surprise catcher hot on free agent market, Mets open for business
In today's MLB rumors, the Phillies and Aaron Nola butt heads, the Astros prepare to lose a vet, and the Mets open up shop.
2023-11-13 00:17
Everything Draymond Green, Donovan Mitchell said about controversial ejection
Draymond Green was ejected from the Golden State Warriors' loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday under unusual circumstances.
2023-11-13 00:16
Philippe Clement wants longer recovery after European games as Rangers beat Livi
Philippe Clement praised Rangers for the way they dealt with a “tricky” trip to Livingston as he called on the Scottish football authorities to consider implementing Sunday evening kick-off times for teams playing in Europe on a Thursday. The Rangers boss watched his team run out comfortable 2-0 winners at the Tony Macaroni Arena less than 72 hours after an energy-sapping 2-1 victory over Sparta Prague in the Europa League. Aberdeen, Hearts, Hibernian and the Ibrox side have all had to contend with playing domestic matches on Sunday afternoons after Thursday night European fixtures this term, and Clement feels Scotland should follow the lead of other leagues by allowing teams more recovery time in such situations. “I think it’s better for Scottish football to do it that way,” said the Belgian. “They do it in Belgium and in other leagues. “People who have never played may think, ‘what is the difference between six hours or eight hours more?’ but it’s a big difference in the recovery of a body, these hours of sleep and recovery because it’s a really short time for players to recover. “We play every three days, we will have a schedule of 12 games in about 38 days (after the international break) so recovery is an important part of it. The food, the drink, the cryo, when to sleep. “It’s important I think in every league that teams that play in Europe on Thursday evening play on the Sunday evening. In a lot of leagues, that’s done so it’s maybe something we can see in the future.” Clement made four changes for the Livingston game and admitted his team selection was influenced by the gruelling impact of the Sparta match. “Yes, because for example, Danilo did 1,300 metres of high-intensity runs on Thursday so if I let him start today I take a risk, for example,” he said. “Of course, I looked at that.” The win at Livingston came courtesy of a first-half goal from Cyriel Dessers and a second-half penalty from James Tavernier, who had missed an earlier spot-kick. Rangers also had first-half goals from Connor Goldson and Ross McCausland – on his first start – ruled out following VAR reviews. “It was a tricky game, with the circumstances with the (plastic) pitch which is not an advantage for us with the football we want to play,” said Clement. “Also kick-off at 12 o’clock after a European night. Also having European success and then playing domestically, it’s sometimes dangerous in the heads of the players. “So the team showed a really good mentality and the right spirit to play a very mature game because we didn’t give away anything and we deserved to win, clearly. “Also when you miss a penalty and a goal is disallowed, sometimes you get in dangerous games for losing points because the circumstances are not on your side. At the end, it’s a very positive afternoon.” Livingston go into the international break after suffering a fifth consecutive defeat. Manager David Martindale – who rued a “disappointing” first-half performance – is unfazed by their current predicament. “This is not an abnormal situation for us,” he said. “Yes, we are bottom of the league on goal difference, but we have gone on spells where we’ve not won a game in five in most seasons. “We just need to get back on track. I am not big on stats or data, it’s about one game at a time and what we can control. Hopefully that will lead to performances, which leads to results.”
2023-11-12 23:59
Chelsea vs Manchester City LIVE: Premier League team news and line-ups as Cole Palmer and Jeremy Doku start
Chelsea host Manchester City in the Premier League this afternoon seeking to earn back-to-back league wins after they triumphed over Tottenham in a bizarre and highly entertaining encounter last time out. Mauricio Pochettino’s men defeated Spurs 4-1 but struggled to break down the north London outfit after they had been reduced to nine-men due to red cards for Cristian Romero and Destiny Udogie. Raheem Sterling set up Nicolas Jackson in the 75th minute which broke Tottenham’s resolve and two further late goals for the 22-year-old striker saw him complete an unlikely hat-trick. That win took the Blues back into the top-10 and they will be hoping to make further inroads up the table with a positive result at Stamford Bridge. In contrast, Man City hammered Bournemouth 6-1 before competently sweeping aside Young Boys 3-0 in the Champions League during the week. Pep Guardiola’s men are in top form and despite Chelsea earning a much needed win on their previous outing Pochettino’s men will be up against it today. Follow all the Premier League action below plus get the latest odds and tips for the game right here: Read More Jeremy Doku’s brilliance shows Man City’s edge and Chelsea’s key problem Chelsea’s downward spiral offers stark warning to Man City Gareth Southgate admits Reece James’s injury record could impact England’s Euro 2024 squad decision
2023-11-12 23:45
How much is Jimbo Fisher's buyout at Texas A&M?
Jimbo Fisher may have coached his last game for the Texas A&M football team. At the least, it would appear his days are numbered. Reports surfaced on Sunday th
2023-11-12 23:18
FTX Adds a Complex Chapter to the Financial-Fraud History Books
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2023-11-12 22:54
Jimbo Fisher's job security the subject of emergency meetings that would cost A&M plenty
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2023-11-12 22:52
NFL rumors: Insider adds to Belichick/Pats split speculation, Justin Jefferson timeline, Giants looking for new QB?
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2023-11-12 22:51
Spanish Protests Against Catalan Amnesty Deal Escalate
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2023-11-12 22:21