Premier League Round Up 20/1/13

Written by Lewis Winter

Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal
Chelsea overcame their London rivals Arsenal 2-1 at Stamford Bridge this afternoon, despite a spirited second half from the Gunners. The home side took the lead early when Juan Mata fired past Szczesny, and were 2 up when Frank Lampard converted a penalty after Szczesny felled Ramires. Arsenal fought in the second half, and got one back when Walcott curled past Petr Cech, but couldn't find an equaliser as Chelsea held out for the win.

Man of the Match: Juan Mata

Tottenham 1-1 Manchester United
Spurs left it late to earn a deserved point against Premier League leaders Manchester United at White Hart Lane. Former Arsenal forward Robin van Persie gave United a 25 minute lead with his 18th league goal of the season, and were looking odds-on to stretch the lead over second placed Man City to 7 points. However, Spurs dominated the second half, creating numerous chances, before Clint Dempsey finished from close range to end the match level.

Man of the Match: Michael Carrick

Serie A Round Up 20/1/13

Written by Lewis Winter

Fiorentina 1-1 Napoli

5th placed Fiorentina held Napoli to a 1-1 draw this afternoon, with the away side moving up to second in Serie A. The home team took the lead in 33rd minute, when Facundo Rocaglia scored a freak goal, with Napoli 'keeper Morgan de Sanctis misjudging a long pass, which subsequently bounced over his head and into the net. Goal machine Edinson Cavani equalised just before half time, but neither side were able to take the ascendency in the second period, as the game ended all square.

AC Milan 2-1 Bologna
AC Milan have moved up to 6th in the Serie A after beating Bologna 2-0. After a frustrating goalless first half for the home side, Giampaolo Pazzini opened the scoring in the 68th minute. Milan continued to press forward and secured the victory when Pazzini scored a superb second with less than 10 minutes to go. Bologna did pose a little scare for Milan when Mexes turned into his own net in the 87th minute, but the game was already won.

Chievo 1-1 Parma
Chievo and Parma battled out a 1-1 draw this afternoon, with goals either side of half time. Ishak Belfodil opened the scoring just before half time, as the away side looked to move up to 7th with a win. However, Chievo faught back just after the break when Alberto Paloschi found the equaliser. Both sides pushed on but couldn't find a winner, with Chievo dropping to 12th and Parma 9th.

Genoa 0-2 Catania
Catania temporarily moved up to 7th in Serie A with a 2-0 victory over relegation threatened Genoa. Gonzalo Begressio opened the scoring inside 4 minutes, but had to wait until 4 minutes to go until the next goal, when Pablo Barrientos condemned Genoa to their 12th defeat of the season.

Pescara 0-2 Torino
Torino pulled away from the relegation zone with a 2-0 victory over Pescara, sending their opponents deeper into the mire. Mario Santana opened the scoring early on, before Alessio Cerci completed the scoring just before half time. Vladimir Weiss was sent off for two yellow cards inside the last 10 minutes. Torino stay 11th on 26 points, with Pescara dropping to 17th on 20.

Siena 1-0 Sampdoria
Bottom placed Siena secured just their 5th win of the season over Sampdoria this afternoon, but still remain 6 points from safety. A cagey first half lead to no goals for either side, and it wasn't until the 72nd minute for the deadlock to be broken, when Erjon Bogdani got what turned out to be a much needed winner. Sampdoria stay in 15th.

Atalanta 1-1 Cagliari
Atalanta stayed 13th in Serie A, after a 1-1 draw against fellow relegation battlers Cagliari. Michele Canini put through his own net to give the away side a 2 minute lead, but Atalanta fought back when Guglielmo Stendardo equalised in the 57th minute. Neither side could find a winner but Atalanta midfielder Luigi Giorgi was dismissed for a second yellow card late on.

Roma 1-1 Inter
AS Roma and Inter Milan played out a 1-1 draw at the Stadio Olimpico this evening. The home side were awarded a penalty half way through the first half, and the ever dependable Francesco Totti slotted past Samir Handanovic. However, Inter equalised in added on time in the first period, when Rodrigo Palacios finished off Freddy Guarin's low cross. There were no further goals in the second half, which meant Roma overtook Catania in 7th and Inter consolidated 4th place.

Serie A team news 20/1/13

AC MILAN-Abbiati , Abate , Mexes, Zapata ,Constant ,Montolivo , Flamini, Boateng, Niang, Shaarawy , Pazzini.
BOLOGNA- Agliardi; Garics, Portanova, Antonsson, Cherubin; Perez, Pazienza; Riverola, Koné, Diamanti; Gilardino.

ATALANTA- Consigli, Ferri, Stendardo, Canini e Brivio; Giorgi, Cigarini, Biondini e Bonaventura; Maxi; Denis.
CAGLIARI- Agazzi, Pisano, Rossettini, Astori e Avelar; Conti, Dessena, Ekdal e Nainggolan; Sau e Ibarbo.

CHIEVO- di Corini: Puggioni, Sardo-Dainelli-Andreolli-Jokic, Guana-Rigoni-Cofie, Paloschi-Thereau-Stoian.
PARMA- Mirante; Zaccardo, Paletta, Lucarelli; Rosi, Marchionni, Valdes, Parolo, Gobbi; Sansone, Belfodil

GENOA-Frey; Sampirisi, Granqvist,Manfredini,Moretti; Rossi, Kucka, Matuzalém, Antonelli; Borriello, Immobile
CATANIA- Andujar, Alvarez, Bellusci, Spolli, Capuano, Izco, Paglialunga, Gomez, Castro, Barrientos, Bergessio.

PESCARA- Perin; Balzano, Bianchi Arce, Capuano, Modesto; Nielsen, Togni, Bjarnason; Weiss; Jonathas, Celik
TORINO-Gillet; D'Ambrosio, Glik, Rodriguez, Masiello; Gazzi, Brighi; Cerci, Barreto, Meggiorini, Santana

SIENA- Pegolo, Neto-Contini-Felipe Angelo-Della Rocca-Vergassola-Del Grosso, Reginaldo, Rosina-Paolucci.
SAMPDORIA- Romero, De Silvestri-Palombo-Gastaldello-Costa, Estigarribia-Kristisic-Obiang-Poli, Eder-Icardi.

(20:45 kick off) ROMA-
INTER MILAN-

Transfer Gossip 20/1/13

Written by Lewis Winter

Premier League

• Frank Lampard looks set to finalise a move to LA Galaxy- Sunday Express

• Stoke want £4.5m for striker Kenwyne Jones, with Swansea interested in the Trinidad and Tobago international- Daily Star

• Derby will not let Man City target Will Hughes leave this month- Sunday People

• Newcastle are set to complete the signing of Montpellier defender Mpou Yanga-Mbiwa next week- Press Association

• Carlos Tevez will let his Man City contract run down before moving to Boca Juniors in 18 months time- Sunday Mirror

• QPR are willing to listen to offers for both Julio Cesar and Rob Green, as they look to balance the books after the signing of Loic Remy- Sunday Mirror

• Man United's pursuit of Wilfred Zaha is on the brink of collapse after Crystal Palace rejected a £10m bid- Sunday Mirror

• Sunderland want Lazio forward Mauro Zarate on loan- Sunday People

• Newcastle and Arsenal both want Bastia midfielder Florian Thauvin- Newcastle Chronicle

• West Ham midfielder Mohammed Diame could join Arsenal before the end of the transfer window- Metro

Serie A

• As well as LA Galaxy, AC Milan are also interested in Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard- Sunday People

• AC Milan still want Mario Balotelli, but not for the £31m that Man City want- Mail on Sunday

La Liga

• Barcelona want Liverpool 'keeper Pepe Reina to replace the outgoing Victor Valdes- Mail on Sunday

• However, Barca are also interested in Chelsea 'keeper Thibaut Courtois- Metro

Bundesliga

• Pep Guardiola will make Luis Suarez and Radamel Falcao his top transfer targets when he takes over at Bayern Munich in July-Sunday Mirror

• Stuttgart look likely to sign Man United striker Federico Macheda on loan until the end of the season- Sunday Express

La Liga Round Up 19/1/13

Written by Matthew Winter

Real Sociedad 3-2 Barcelona
In what started out as another routine Barcelona win ended in the side enduring their first league defeat of the season at the 21st time of asking. The ever dependable Lionel Messi got the Catalan side off the the perfect start and Pedro doubled their lead with 25 minutes on the clock. Castro's superb finish across Victor Valdes gave the home side hope just before half time and their was mass belief that a shock could be on the cards when Gerard Pique received his marching orders for a second bookable offence. 6 minutes later Real were level, Castro's shot deflecting off of Javier Mascherano, a sub after Pique's sending off. Sociedad then began to push for the winner and were finally rewarded in the 1st minute of stoppage time when substitute Agirretxe was left free in the box to inflect Barcelona to the first defeat of the season.

Man of the Match: Gonzalo Castro

Granada 2-0 Rayo Vallecano
Granada recorded a much need 3 points that allowed them to move 3 points clear of their relegation rivals and left their visitors, Vallecano on just inside the Europa League places. The home side took the lead in the 25th minute when Jordi Mass turned a low cross into his own net. The game was end to end with neither side being able to strike a firm blow until 10 minutes from time when on loan Recio fired home from outside the box.

Getafe 1-1 Sevilla
With both clubs languishing in mid table their was a great chance for either to make an assault on the European places. In the 39th minute former Arsenal man Jose Antonio Reyes clinically fired Sevilla into the lead curling the ball around the keeper. The lead lasted only two minutes when a freak free kick caught the Sevilla keeper off of his line and sailed in. Both sides tried to get that all important winner throughout the second half but no one could find the goal.

Malaga 1-1 Celta de Vigo
The late evening kick off in Spain provided another score draw with Celta Vigo striking late to earn a point. Argentina centre back Martin Demichelis tapped into an unguared net after Roque Santa Cruz's shot was cleared off the line. But Malaga could not push on from their opener and were punished with 15 minutes to go when the ball fell for Augusto Fernandez to slot in and take a share of the spoils.

Serie A Round Up 19/1/13

Written by Matthew Winter

Juventus 4-0 Udinese
Current Champions Juventus extended their lead at the top of Serie A to 5 points with an impressive 4 goal home victory against Udinese. It took until the 40th minute to find the opening goal, but it was well worth the wait! Former Manchester United youngster Paul Pogba fired an unstoppable half volley from 25 yards leaving the keeper with no chance. And it was Pogba again who doubled Juventus' lead 20 minutes into the second half with another fantastic goal, this time a low drive from distance. It was 3-0 six minutes later when Marko Vucinic volleyed home from close range, the Udinese keeper will be disappointed with his effort. The win was capped off by Matri who beat the offside trap and slotted under the advancing keeper.

Man of the Match: Paul Pogba

Palermo 2-2 Lazio
Lazio will see this as 2 points dropped after having the lead with 20 minutes to play, but also nearly ended up with nothing. Lazio took no time to take the lead when a searching ball with brilliant headed over the keeper from 16 yards by Floccari. Palermo leveled the score in the 71st minute when Lazio were able to clear a teasing cross that was tucked home at the back post by Arevalo. The side in pink where then in front less than 60 seconds later Dybala slotted home after being teed up by Arevalo. But Lazio showed spirit that has seen them take hold of second place and when Floccari won a penalty with 5 minutes to go, Hernanes slotted home from 12 yards to gain a valuable point.

Man of the Match: Sergio Floccari

Bundesliga Round Up 19/1/13

Written by Matthew Winter

Bayern Munich 2-0 Greuther Furth
Bayern kept their 9 point lead at the top of the table after a convincing home win against bottom side Greuther. After pressing their visitors for the opening 20 minutes the home side finally took the lead, in somewhat fortuitous fashion. Mario Mandzukic arrived first at the near post to volley goalwards where his shot was fumbled into the net by Greuther keeper. The lead was doubled in the 61st minute when Mandzukic rose highest in the box to head into the net from a corner.

Man of the Match: Mario Mandzukic

Bayer Leverkusen 3-1 Eintracht Frankfurt
Leverkusen kept up the pressure on the league leaders Bayern with a impressive 3-1 win against fourth placed Frankfurt. After a goalless first half hour the home side struck twice within two minutes. Boenisch smashed home after a scrabble in the box and Kiessling had the easy task of passing into an empty net after going through. Andre Schurrle added a third after break with a curling finish into the top corner on the turn, but Alexander Meier scored the goal of the game curling into the top corner with 10 minutes to play.

Man of the Match:

Wolfsburg 2-0 Stuttgart
Entering into the game dangerously close to the relegation zone Wolfsburg recorded a much need home win against middle table Stuttgart. Brazilian Diego opened the scoring 5 minutes into the second half with a run and shot from outside the area that went in off of the post. 15 minutes later the lead was doubled when Madlung flicked on the ever influential Diego's free kick.

Man of the Match: Diego

Werder Bremen 0-5 Borussia Dortmund
Dortmund put on a performance that proved just why the completed the league and cup double last season. Marco Reus opened the scoring within the first 10 minutes with a magnificent free kick. The lead was doubled ten minutes later when Mario Gotze slammed the ball into the top corner from outside the box after a fluent Dortmund counter attack. In the opening stages of the second half Augusto was allowed to run free at a corner and head home off the far post. Robert Lewandowski got in on the act when he was left free at the far post and slotted home Piszczek's low cross. The scoring was complete with 5 minutes to go when Poland captain Jacob Blaszczykowski fired into an unguarded net after being set up by Piszczeck for his second assist.

Man of the Match: Lukasz Piszczek

Hoffenhiem 0-0 Borussia Monchengladbach
Hoffenhiem ended their 6 game losing streak but were unable to take 3 points as they were held to a goalless draw. Both sides had chance to break the dead lock with the best falling to Monchengladbach's star man Luuk de Jong but he could only fire wide. The point leaves the home side 7 points off of Nurnberg in 15th place and Gladbach in 8th, only 1 point of the Europa League place.

Mainz 05 0-0 SC Freiburg
Two if this season surprise packages played out a goalless draw on their return to Bundesliga action. In a game that lacked creative spark it was clear from the get go that it would have to of been something special to stop the game petering out in a bore draw. Freiburg stay above their hosts, but only on goal difference.