2009-09-19 Bolton Wanderers – Stoke City 1-1

Matt Taylor came to Bolton Wanderers' rescue with a minute remaining by scoring from the penalty spot at the Reebok Stadium.

The midfielder showed a cool head after Stoke City's Danny Collins had been hauled back for a challenge on Sam Ricketts.

Stoke were stunned as they were in sight of their first away victory on the road in the league this season.

Dave Kitson had given them the lead in the 52nd minute with his third goal in six matches in all competitions.

Stoke were the brighter of the two teams in the first half and made a break inside the first minute when Ricardo Fuller got clear down the right flank.

He delivered the ball into the area only for Fabrice Muamba to get there ahead of Matthew Etherington and make the clearance.

Stoke then found themselves on the back foot in the 15th minute when goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen launched the ball forward.

Kevin Davies won the aerial battle with former team-mate Abdoulaye Faye, leaving him dazed on the floor.

McCann tried his luck from 25 yards in the 20th minute but Thomas Sorensen was able to make a comfortable save before Gary Cahill sent a header wide for the home side.

Stoke, however, almost took the lead after 32 minutes when Tamir Cohen was punished for a challenge on Fuller.

Glenn Whelan tried to curl the free-kick from 25 yards beyond Jaaskelainen only for the goalkeeper to react swiftly and push his effort to safety.

Stoke kept up the pressure and a long throw from Rory Delap caused Jaaskelainen problems.

He could only parry the ball to Kitson but the striker could not get a decent enough touch and the chance was lost.

Bolton responded and Taylor came close in the 51st minute when he clipped a shot wide of the post after substitute Ricardo Gardner had carved out the opening.

A minute later Stoke made the breakthrough with a fine goal from Kitson. He latched on to a ball from Fuller and showed good skill to get away from Sam Ricketts.

Kitson then steadied himself before rattling a shot into the corner.

It was a clinical finish from a player who did not score for the club last season and was loaned back to Reading.

It was just the boost Stoke were looking for after the home defeat by Chelsea last weekend.

Bolton kept pressing forward in search of the equaliser and substitute Ivan Klasnic saw his close-range effort turned over by Thomas Sorensen in the 68th minute.

Then Zat Knight cleared the bar with a volley when it seemed easier to score.

Stoke were looking to extend their lead and Fuller made space in the penalty area after 72 minutes but his effort failed to trouble Jaaskelainen.

Bolton kept working away but the visitors were looking well organised at the back.

Stoke were also dangerous on the counter attack and substitute Danny Pugh saw his effort turned away by Jaaskelainen in the 88th minute.

A minute later Bolton grabbed the equaliser through Taylor but Jaaskelainen had to made a brave block from substitute Liam Lawrence in stoppage time to prevent him snatching the winner.

However this is a difficult time for the home side, who have managed just one win in five league matches.

2009-09-19 Hull City – Birmingham City 0-1

Substitute Garry O'Connor headed a late winner as Birmingham City finally beat goalkeeper Boaz Myhill to claim a scrappy win at Hull City.

Myhill had been outstanding throughout an eventful Barclays Premier League encounter at the KC Stadium, producing brilliant saves from the lively Christian Benitez and Lee Bowyer.

Joe Hart was also kept busy in the Birmingham goal and Hull's Seyi Olofinjana hit the bar late on but O'Connor's 75th-minute effort proved decisive.

It was only Birmingham's third goal of the season but the reasons why Hull went into the match with the worst defence in the competition were only too evident.

Ecuador striker Benitez, making his first league start, was a threat throughout and was unlucky to come up against Myhill in such good form.

Yet Blues could consider themselves fortunate to come away with the point as Hart was the least convincing of the two keepers and Hull caused some moments of panic in his area.

Hunt swung in the resulting free-kick towards Jozy Altidore and Kamil Zayatte also seemed to get a touch in the ensuing scramble but Birmingham cleared.

Hull had an early chance after Stephen Carr was booked for a foul on Stephen Hunt on the left.

Hunt continued his lively start with a swerving shot from 30 yards moments later but Hart parried to safety.

Birmingham's first chance came as Benitez showed good skill on the edge of the area and turned neatly to shoot but Myhill saved low down and Andy Dawson cleared.

It was the first of three good saves in quick succession from the Wales international as Birmingham enjoyed a good spell.

Myhill first pushed away a Barry Ferguson flick and then quickly regained his feet to tip over a fierce drive from Bowyer.

Gary McSheffrey then flashed wide from outside the edge of the box as Birmingham, despite their poor scoring record, showed some promise.

Hull responded as Olofinjana made a powerful run into the box and squared across goal but Scott Dann slid in and forced Altidore to scuff his shot.

Geovanni tried his luck from 25 yards but his low effort bobbled wide.

The Brazilian then fired in a dangerous cross but Roger Johnson's touch took it away from Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink, who was making his first Hull start.

A long throw by Ibrahima Sonko was unconvincingly punched away by Hart but Birmingham just managed to hack behind as Vennegoor of Hesselink threatened.

Benitez, sporting a bandage after a clash of heads with Zayatte, created another opportunity on the stroke of half-time but Myhill tipped over.

Altidore worked his way into the box early in the second half but Hart saved after the American checked and shot left-footed.

Paul McShane then failed to cut out a Stuart Parnaby pass and allowed Birmingham to break but Hull survived as Keith Fahey headed McSheffrey's cross wide.

Geovanni tested Hart again with another good effort from the edge of the box from a Vennegoor of Hesselink lay-off but the keeper was again alert.

Myhill was soon back in the thick of the action as Parnaby found himself wide open on the right but shot straight at the Hull keeper.

Myhill then produced an even better point-blank save from Bowyer after Johnson had risen high to knock down a corner from McSheffrey.

Hull survived another scare after a Hart goalkick found its way to Benitez but he was unable to get a shot away.

Hull had another turn in the ascendancy with Carr heading away a delicate McShane cross at the far post and substitute Kamel Ghilas having a shot blocked for a corner.

But play quickly switched the other end as Benitez skipped past Dawson and Myhill again saved at the expense of a corner.

Fahey's delivery from the set-piece was perfect and found O'Connor, who came on for McSheffrey just after the hour, unmarked to head home at the near post.

Hull, in their response, appealed for a penalty after Hunt went down under a challenge from Dann but Phil Dowd gave nothing.

The Tigers rallied for one late charge and Geovanni shot wide before Olofinjana headed against the bar from a corner. Another goalmouth scramble ensued but Blues somehow held out.

2009-09-12 Liverpool - Burnley 4-0

Liverpool's season is firmly back on track after a Yossi Benayoun hat-trick left promoted Burnley overwhelmed.

The top-flight new boys had started the season so well with wins over Manchester United and Everton but have now suffered successive defeats at Chelsea and now Liverpool - conceding seven in the process.

They could not live with a vibrant Liverpool, who kept up an impressive high tempo throughout and are slowly wiping away the memory of those two early league defeats to Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa.

Benayoun scored his first from the edge of the box, and saw his shot parried by the overworked Brian Jensen for Dirk Kuyt to add the second before the break.

Steven Gerrard's pass set up Benayoun for his second, a close-range tap-in, before the Israeli was sent clear by substitute Andriy Voronin for his third and Liverpool's fourth.

Rafael Benitez made two changes from the side which won at Bolton Wanderers a fortnight ago, with Martin Skrtel returning to central defence in place of Greece international Sotirios Kyrgiakos.

With Javier Mascherano suffering a muscle injury while on international duty with Argentina and not arriving back until late Friday, Benayoun came into the side.

And what a tremendous impact he made, with a goal and a display of running power that Burnley never came to terms with.

The Clarets, in their first league visit to Anfield for 33 years, retained the side that lost at Chelsea last time out, with new loan signing David Nugent - a former Liverpool trainee - on the bench.

The absence of Mascherano meant that Steven Gerrard played in a much deeper role, alongside Lucas in the centre of midfield, with Benayoun and Kuyt left to play just behind Fernando Torres.

Burnley started brightly with Martin Paterson firing wide from the edge of the box, while Kuyt produced a low shot at the other end that produced the first of many saves by Jensen.

Liverpool slowly built up possession, moving the ball quickly and Torres saw a curling 20-yard shot clear the far post.

But Burnley had Steven Fletcher and Paterson interchanging positions up front and the visitors were quick and dangerous on the break.

Liverpool's best early chance came when Emiliano Insua's chip was headed a foot wide by Benayoun, the beginning of a purple patch from the 29-year-old.

The lively Israel captain broke the deadlock with a gem of a goal after 27 minutes.

He surged from midfield, turned away from Graham Alexander and moved into the box to fire across Jensen and into the bottom corner.

Benayoun almost added another a minute later when he met Albert Riera's cross with a low header that Jensen blocked, the Burnley goalkeeper also keeping out Kuyt's follow-up.

Jensen had to keep out drives from Benayoun and Lucas before Paterson forced his way past Gerrard to unleash a rising drive that was held by Jose Reina.

But Liverpool went further ahead after 40 minutes with a dynamic five-man break from defence.

Torres and Insua combined to set up Benayoun for a 20-yard shot that Jensen blocked, but only as far as Kuyt who clipped home from five yards.

The increasingly busy Jensen had to produce the save of the half to keep out a Gerrard 20-yard drive before the break.

Liverpool kept up their assault after the interval with Riera seeing two efforts blocked while Jensen saved from a Kuyt flick.

Stephen Jordan was booked for a block on Torres before Burnley sent on Chris Eagles to replace Robbie Blake.

Torres was starting to stretch a tiring Burnley defence by now and only Tyrone Mears' fine saving tackle stopped the Spaniard in full flow.

But after 61 minutes Torres' pass played in a fiercely determined Gerrard, who battered his way past two men in the box to find Benayoun on the far post for a tap-in.

Liverpool sent on Swiss defender Philipp Degen for Glen Johnson and Voronin for the hard-running Kuyt, the match well won by now, and Burnley responded by giving Nugent his debut for Paterson.

Benayoun had an effort ruled out for offside and Gerrard forced his way through again to hit a post, before David Ngog took over from Torres.

There was still time for Benayoun to secure his hat-trick after 81 minutes. Voronin's pass sent him clear in the box - played onside by Jordan - and he side-footed the ball past an exposed Jensen.

Eagles was booked for a foul on Benayoun, Jensen saved again from Gerrard and Voronin missed when clear, with Burnley just wanting it all to end.

Tottenham Hotspur 1 Manchester United 3 .....12th Sep 2009

Manchester United were behind after a minute and reduced to 10 men but still recorded victory in a pulsating match at White Hart Lane that ended Tottenham Hotspur's 100 per cent start to the Barclays Premier League season.

Spurs were ahead less than a minute into the Barclays Premier League match when Jermain Defoe acrobatically found the net to continue his hot streak of goalscoring.

Defoe spent the summer in the gym bulking up his physique and the result has been an explosive start to the campaign - his spectacular opener after 50 seconds was his eighth in as many matches for club and country.

The chance was created following a loose pass by Dimitar Berbatov to Darren Fletcher, allowing Wilson Palacios to slide in. Robbie Keane shifted the ball to Benoit Assou-Ekotto and his cross to the far post saw Crouch challenge Nemanja Vidic.

Vidic appeared to get the last touch as the ball went into the danger zone, leaving Defoe to execute his overhead kick into the bottom corner.

The goal inevitably kick-started United. Scholes drove wide and Fletcher burst into the penalty area and forced Carlo Cudicini to parry at the near post. The Italian also saved from Berbatov's flicked header.

Crouch's height caused United problems, especially when he collected a long ball, flicked over Vidic and volleyed powerfully, with Ben Foster's footwork making the save look easy.

United's equaliser came from the familiar source of Giggs.

Palacios had received a yellow card for the tackle on Berbatov that led to the free-kick, 25 yards from goal. Giggs' set-play curled over Keane in the wall and into the top corner.

Berbatov had two chances shortly after, the first when he killed Anderson's pass and had his volley tipped over the crossbar. Then one rebound was cleared off the line after Wayne Rooney's effort was saved, and another went over when the ball was worked back to the Bulgaria striker.

The action never stopped - Lennon thought he was caught off the ball, while Crouch headed over from a Tom Huddlestone corner.

Anderson's goal came four minutes before the break. The Brazil midfielder drilled into the bottom corner from the edge of the area after Scholes' long-range effort was blocked by Ledley King.

Spurs brought on Jermaine Jenas for Palacios at the interval, and there was the same pace and intensity when play got under way again.

Scholes was booked for tripping Defoe, then King was cautioned for exacting revenge a minute later.

Jenas, returning from a calf injury for his first appearance of the season, curled an effort that Foster tipped around the post, with Crouch hitting the crossbar from the corner.

Scholes received his marching orders just before the hour mark for his second caution, this time for a clumsy tackle on Huddlestone.

United's response was to bring on Michael Carrick for Berbatov to add numbers in midfield.

Carrick's quick pass to Rooney set the England striker off down the left and he cut inside to force Cudicini into a save that came off the woodwork.

Rooney's goal came 12 minutes from full-time. He raced onto Fletcher's pass and cut inside Alan Hutton before squeezing his finish through Cudicini's legs.

Manchester City 4 Arsenal 2

Emmanuel Adebayor scored the decisive third goal in a pulsating encounter from which Manchester City emerged with their 100 per cent record intact.

Two weeks after dominating at Old Trafford, yet finishing on the losing side against Manchester United, Arsene Wenger experienced similar emotions on the blue half of the city after a staggering contest where for long periods, they appeared the most likely winner.

When Shaun Wright-Phillips sent over a vicious cross, ex-Gunner Adebayor had no intention other than to find the net, which he duly did, sending a capacity crowd into ecstasy.

It meant City have now won four matches, the Togo striker scoring in the lot.

It was the visitors who started better and William Gallas should have put them ahead with a far post header. Instead, the Frenchman sent it fizzing over, providing City with an escape the fickle finger of fate ensured they took full advantage of.

True, without Gareth Barry's curling free-kick after Craig Bellamy had been blocked off by Bacary Sagna, or Richards' towering header, there would have been no goal.

Yet as Almunia pushed the header onto a post, then helplessly turned it home as the ball cannoned straight back towards him, the assist should go down in a column marked 'luck'.

So eager to impress, Adebayor was a notable presence without doing anything significant.

Had Bellamy not wasted a cross, he might have been presented with a tap-in.

Wenger has been criticised for his lack of summer signings. But after 20 months on the sidelines following major knee surgery, having Tomas Rosicky available must feel like a new arrival.

The momentum definitely changed following the Czech star's introduction for Denilson, their passing becoming more threatening, their attacks presenting more obvious danger.

Gallas had already brought one excellent reaction save out of Given with a stooping near-post header when Rosicky collected Sagna's short pass and fed the ball calmly through to Van Persie.

Joleon Lescott lunged in despairingly, but Van Persie simply skipped past the £22m man and drove a precise shot into the bottom corner.

Wenger probably could not believe how Arsenal failed to get their noses in front during the minutes that followed, as his team assumed total control.

But when Richards cut inside Song after receiving Wright-Phillips' pass he found Bellamy, who swept home to City's glee.

That would have brought joy enough to Eastlands. But, having presented Wright-Phillips with a tap-in after beating three men near the by-line, only for the England star to miss, Adebayor decided it was time to do the job himself as he headed home the third.

City survived a breathless finale in which Wright-Phillips stretched their lead before Rosicky pulled one back and van Persie hit a post.