The Malaysian Insider :: Sports
The Malaysian Insider :: Sports |
| Bayern leave it late to preserve unbeaten record Posted: 29 Jan 2014 02:40 PM PST Thiago Alcantara's winner, which also marked his first goal for Bayern, was a superb volley in the third minute of time added on giving the champions their 16th win in 18 matches. Bayern were 14 minutes from seeing their record run – dating back to October 2012 – come to an end before Claudio Pizarro's equaliser cancelled out Vedad Ibisevic's first-half goal. This was a re-arranged fixture from December when Bayern were in Morocco winning the Club World Cup, but the Bavarians did not have things their own way for a change. Bayern are on a host of league records – this was their 28th away match without defeat. And with 50 points from 18 games, coach Pep Guardiola has made the best start of any coach in Bundesliga history. But Bayern fell behind when 17-year-old left winger Timo Werner drove in a shot, which fell to the feet of Stuttgart's Mohammed Abdellaoue. The Norway international, looked to have been offside and replays showed he was, but the flag stayed down and Ibisevic slotted home his pass on 29 minutes. In response to falling behind, Bayern raised the tempo. Only a fine save from Stuttgart goalkeeper Sven Ulreich five minutes before the break denied Alcantara, who unleashed a ferocious strike from well outside the area. Guardiola trudged off for the half-time break with a face like thunder. The game turned bad tempered after the break with referee Manuel Graefe dishing out three yellow cards in quick succession. Both sides had clear chances with Bayern centre-back Jerome Boateng clearing off the line from Rani Khedira, brother of Real Madrid midfielder Sami, on 54 minutes. At the other end, Thiago got in behind the defence, but Ulreich blocked the shot on 71 minutes for a corner. Bayern poured on the pressure and Stuttgart's resolve began to show signs of cracking. Veteran Pizarro came off the bench and Guardiola's choice paid dividends as he headed past Ulreich. Werner squandered a great chance for the winner on 81 minutes when he fired straight at Manuel Neuer. Tempers frayed as the final whistle loomed with Boateng and Stuttgart's Martin Harnik clashing after the latter clattered into Dante. Both Boateng and Harnik picked up bookings, as the referee ended up showing a total of eight cards – five for Stuttgart, three for Bayern. Alcantara capped a fine display when he volleyed home Rafinha's superb floated cross for a stunning goal to deny valiant Stuttgart even a point. - AFP, January 30, 2014. |
| Slick City sink Spurs to claim top spot Posted: 29 Jan 2014 02:35 PM PST Manuel Pellegrini's side took advantage of Arsenal's draw at Southampton 24 hours earlier to knock the Gunners out of first place and open up a one-point lead in the race for the title. City's victory was tinged with controversy after they were awarded a dubious penalty that produced their second goal and a red card for Tottenham left-back Danny Rose, but there was no questioning the visitors' supremacy at White Hart Lane. Sergio Aguero had opened the scoring before Yaya Toure's penalty and further goals from Edin Dzeko, Stevan Jovetic and Vincent Kompany underlined City's superiority. Etienne Capoue got one back for Spurs, but this was a major statement of intent from City, whose celebrations were slightly dampened by the injury that forced Argentina striker Aguero to limp off just before half-time. City, who are now unbeaten in 20 matches in all competitions and have scored 21 goals in their last five games, routed Tottenham 6-0 at Eastlands on November 24 and this win was equally impressive in its own way. Spurs had won five of their six league games since Tim Sherwood took charge, but they were made to look like raw rookies by a City performance that bore the hallmark of potential champions. City had taken just 14 seconds to get on the scoresheet against Spurs in the Eastlands massacre and Aguero gave the hosts an early scare on a freezing night in north London when he lashed a shot against the far post from a tight angle. Rather than tighten up at the back, Tottenham continued to let City dominate possession and they paid the price in the 15th minute. David Silva was granted too much time on the ball in midfield and he weighed up his options before sliding a clever pass towards Aguero, who had timed his run perfectly to escape Dawson's attentions. Aguero took full advantage as he clipped a sublime finish past Lloris into the far corner for his 26th goal of the season. City were pouring forward in swaggering style and Aguero lashed a fierce volley just over after Rose cleared off the line from the Argentine's initial header. After completely dominating the opening period, City survived a rare anxious moment when Michael Dawson volleyed home from Christen Eriksen's free-kick only to see his effort ruled out for a tight offside. It was a tribute to City's class that even Aguero's departure, the Argentine forward limping off after pulling up abruptly just before half-time, couldn't disrupt their rhythm. Given their first-half dominance, City would probably have won anyway, but they received a helping hand from the officials for their second goal in the 51st minute. When Dzeko raced onto a through-ball into the penalty area, Rose launched himself into a last-ditch challenge and appeared to win the ball before making contact with the Bosnian. However, referee Andre Marriner awarded a penalty after acting on the advice of his assistant and then compounded Tottenham's misery by sending off Rose. Ivory Coast midfielder Toure swept in the spot-kick to put City in total control and Dzeko rubbed salt into Tottenham's wounds two minutes later. Lloris made an excellent save to push Silva's effort onto a post, but the rebound landed perfectly for Dzeko to steer his shot into the roof of the net. Tottenham reduced the deficit in the 59th minute when substitute Capoue bundled home after City failed to deal with Eriksen's corner. But Jovetic made it four in the 78th minute when his shot deflected in off Vlad Chiriches to give the Montenegro striker his first Premier League goal. And City captain Kompany sealed the rout with a tap-in after Dzeko's shot deflected into his path in the 89th minute. - AFP, January 30, 2014. |
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