Premier League Sunday: Manchester City, Fulham Earn Emphatic Wins

Bobby Zamora announced his return to action with a brace as Fulham dispatched relegation-threatened Blackpool by a score of 3-0 at Craven Cottage. Blackpool's spectacularly inept defence wilted under the threat provided by Fulham's front line, which was much improved thanks to Zamora receiving his first start since he suffered a broken leg against Wolverhampton in September.

Ian Holloway will be displeased with the manner in which his team conceded their first goal - Zamora was sent clean through in the 23rd minute after a misplaced pass from Blackpool striker James Beattie, and the sometimes England man made no mistake as he powered a right footed shot past Richard Kingson. Five minutes later, and Zamora had his brace, heading home a fine delivery from Damien Duff after the Irish winger had been fouled by Stephen Crainey.

Aside from one dangerous moment following a dreadful error by goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, Fulham never looked likely to give up their two-goal cushion and instead added to it in the second half thanks to a Dickinson Etuhu tap-in following excellent work from Brede Hangeland. American Clint Dempsey also hit the post for the Cottagers as they threatened to turn their emphatic victory into a rout, but instead the hosts settled for three goals, three points, and a spot in the top half of the table. Meanwhile, Blackpool remain in 17th place.

We'd been waiting all season for Roberto Mancini's side to just go out and crush somebody, and generally we'd been thoroughly disappointed. Manchester City have all the attacking talent they need to be regularly winning games by three or four goals, but something about them (mostly the tactics, I suppose) has never been quite right. Two weeks ago City were subject to a demeaning loss at Stamford Bridge, where they managed half a shot at goal while giving Chelsea the freedom of the pitch. Was today going to be any different?

Erm, yes. City ditched their holding midfield pairing and went with a 4-4-2, pairing Carlos Tevez and Mario Balotelli up top with David Silva and Adam Johnson on the wings. Yaya Toure supported the frontmen while Nigel De Jong was left to clean up in case any Sunderland play looked to threatening. Whether this was a response to the constant criticism of style or simply a recognition that the Black Cats are a team in freefall and City's goal differential would one day be important nobody's really sure, but one thing is clear - it worked.

Adam Johnson gave the hosts the lead in the 10th minute before it was doubled by a Carlos Tevez penalty shortly thereafter. Sunderland came back into the match towards the end of the first half, but that momentum didn't carry through to the second and they were annihilated towards the end of the match, conceding three goals in quick succession to turn a 2-0 loss into a 5-0 stomping.

The final kick of the match perhaps best sums up the game. Up by five, with no time left, Mario Balotelli drew a fine save from poor Simon Mignolet on a 20 yard free-kick that by all rights should have made it six. When Manchester City are still attacking you with the game well and truly won, it really isn't your day.

Incidentally, this should all but wrap up the chase for the Champions League spots. with Tottenham Hotspur dropping points against Wigan, City are now five points clear of Spurs in 4th place with seven games to play. Sunderland, for their part, haven't scored in something like seven hours of league football, and their European challenge is long, long, long gone.

So much for Patrick Vieira for Adam Johnson being a defensive switch. Within seconds of come on, the ex-Arsenal man makes it 4-0 after sliding home a neat delivery from Aleksandar Kolarov. Simon Mignolet scrambled to clear the ball, hurling it back out of the goal, but it had crossed the line by at least a foot and was correctly awarded by the linesman. This game isn't really turning into a rout - it's been one since minute fifteen, at least, but now the scoreline's starting to reflect that.

Oh, and Yaya Toure's just made it five. Perfect. The Sunderland defence should probably just go home right now (they may have done so already, in fact). Lee Cattermole's passing has been somewhat poor so far today, and it's gotten worse - for some reason he attempted a backwards diagonal pass under pressure near his own penalty area. The ball went straight to Toure, who trundled into the box and finished cheekily over Mignolet.

David Silva has compounded Sunderland's misery by adding yet another tally to Manchester City's scoresheet. Phil Bardsley had been tormented by Adam Johnson throughout the first half, so he was pulled off the pitch in favour of Ahmed Elmohamedy, with Anton Ferdinand shuffling over to left back to cover. Turns out that didn't go so well either.

Carlos Tevez rather easily got the better of Ferdinand on City's right flank before sending in a low pass to Mario Balotelli, who attempted some sort of backheel flick thingy that was well blocked by Michael Turner. Unfortunately for Sunderland's toiling defence, the first player to react to the loose ball was wearing sky blue. David Silva nipped in between the defenders and dinked the ball over a helpless Simon Mignolet to make the score 3-0.

Adam Johnson's work for the evening is done, incidentally, the winger replaced by Patrick Viera in what's assumedly a defensive move. It's a party for Manchester City now.

Those early goals are the difference between Sunderland and Manchester City at the Eastlands, with the visitors trailing by two goals to nil as we go into half time. Sunderland are in a slump, having not scored since early February, and they don't look likely to emerge from it here - their defence is terrible, their attack flashy rather than substantial, and referee Howard Webb is handing out bookings like he's Willie Wonka distributing chocolate (and only slightly less flamboyantly dressed.

Adam Johnson got the party started early for Roberto Mancini's men, exchanging passes with Yaya Toure before zipping in a shot past Simon Mignolet for a ninth minute goal, and less than five minutes later Phil Bardsley clattered Carlos Tevez to hand City a penalty, which Tevez duly converted. Three Sunderland players are in the book already - Lee Cattermole might as well come pre-booked, Bardsley was cautioned for the foul that saw the penalty conceded, and John Mensah was shown yellow for making a great challenge on Tevez by the touchline. Yeah, I don't really get that one either.

Steve Bruce is either going to give the mother of all half time speeches or go off to have a smoke somewhere. i know which one I'd be doing in his shoes right now. This game is toast.

Well that's not the start Steve Bruce was looking for. Not ten minutes have gone by and Sunderland find themselves down at the hands of Manchester City thanks to the left foot (does he had a right foot) of England winger Adam Johnson and then the trusty penalty taking of captain Carlos Tevez. Johnson was the beneficiary of a neat cutback to the edge of the area after good work from Yaya Toure and planted a nifty finish past Simon Mignolet to make it 1-0, and although Sunderland mounted a spirited response they found themselves further down on the next City attack five minutes later.

David Silva laid down a delicious cross-field pass that split the visiting defence and allowed Tevez to burst into the area. His attempted chip was off-target, but no matter - haf a second later left back Phil Bardsley had come in and flattened the Argentine for a stonewall penalty. Referee Howard Webb had little choice but to point to the spot, and Tevez juuuust about converted off Mignolet and the post to make it 2-0 and break his seven game scoreless streak.

So, not the best start for the Black Cats.

Injury hit Tottenham Hotspur were dealt a blow of the more metaphorical kind after a dire display at last-placed Wigan Athletic. Roberto Martinez's side were not overawed by their Champions League opponents, having beaten them once already this season at White Hart Lane, and were happy to soak up the rather weak attacks their guests threw at them before returning them with interest.

Although Jermaine Jenas and Peter Crouch both had chances on Ali Al-Habsi's goal, it was Huerelhio Gomes who was in more danger of conceding, having to save from both Charles N'Zogbia and Connor Sammon to prevent Spurs from sinking to another embarrassing loss to the worst team in the league. It was a dreadfully poor performance, and Harry Redknapp won't be thrilled with his side's chances going into their Champions League match against Real Madrid in midweek.

As for Wigan, it's yet another game whether they could have got more points than they did. Although it must be encouraging to be the better side against a team that's currently fifth in the table, Roberto Martinez's men have had a chronic inability to turn performances into points. They probably dropped two here.

Two penalties converted by Chris Brunt were enough to given West Bromwich Albion the victory over visiting Liverpool, with Roy Hodgson finally getting some sweet revenge over his former employers. Liverpool were denied a vital three points in the race for 5th place and a Europa League slot despite going ahead thanks to a 50th minute goal from Martin Skrtel. Less than twelve minutes had passed before that slender advantage was erased.

Sortirios Kyrgiakos, who had a bit of a nightmare, tangled with Baggies forward Peter Odemwingie in the penalty area before felling him, and although it looked as though the Greek defender had managed to get a slight touch on the ball Martin Atkinson pointed to the spot anyway. Brunt didn't hesitate with the penalty kick, smashing past Pepe Reina to level the scores.

Worse was to come for Liverpool. With just two minutes to go, Odemwingie got the better of his man again and raced into the area only to be felled by Reina. Again Brunt stepped forward, and again the midfielder netted - but this time it was enough to secure an important victory for Albion - and a crushing blow for Liverpool's hopes this season.

Chelsea's weak title ambitious went up in flames after a brutal performance at the Britannia which saw the defending champions thoroughly outplayed by Stoke City. After a fairly even first half which featured a very early goal by Jonathan Walters cancelled out by a superb diving header from Didier Drogba, Stoke dominated the match for most of the final forty-five minutes, with only a combination of Petr Cech, the crossbar, and sublimely poor finishing preventing them from claiming all three points and a famous win.

Walters had caught right back Jose Bosingwa out of position for his 8th minute goal, beating David Luiz on the halfway line before charging into the box, easily fending off Michael Essien's weak challenge, and slotting past a helpless Petr Cech. The equaliser took almost half an hour to arrive, but Didier Drogba's stooping header from a long pass from strike partner Nicolas Anelka was well worthy of getting the Blues back into the match. A 1-1 score at halftime was broadly deserved, with Chelsea controlling play but the hosts playing on the counterattack and taking their best chance.

Carlo Ancelotti's side emerged from the second half with all guns blazing, and it looked for a little while as though overwhelming Asmir Begovic's defences would only be a matter of time. Then, something rather odd happened: Ramires and Anelka were withdrawn for Fernando Torres and Salomon Kalou, and the visitors basically lost all of their ability to keep the ball, mainly due to the fact that they had no more midfield.

Stoke went on to hit the bar twice within minutes, severely testing Petr Cech in the Chelsea goal, and really should have earned the winner when Ricardo Fuller finally beat the keeper in stoppage time only to see his header inexplicably miss the goal. 1-1 was flattering for the visitors - Stoke deserved three goals for their display today. But no matter. Chelsea's title challenge is done, and Stoke produced a display that shows their place in the top half isn't some sort of cosmic misprint.

Newcastle United were fresh off a 4-0 thrashing at the hand of Stoke City but they doled out one of their own against sorry Wolverhampton today. Goals by Kevin Nolan, Shola Ameobi, and Peter Lovenkrands had the home site up 3-0 before Sylvain Ebanks-Blake pulled one back for Wolves, but the Magpies would have the last last as Jonas Gutierrez added insult to injury with a stoppage-time fourth.

It was a cruel result for Wolves, who had managed a vital 1-0 win at Villa Park in their last expedition from Molineux and need all the points - and probably all the goal differential - that they can possibly get in order to avoid relegation this season. Alas for Mick McCarthy's side, who've managed to beat both Manchester United and Chelsea at home this season, they were dire against Newcastle and aside from a too-little-too-late second half spell were simply blown off the park.

Wolves drop into 19th after the loss and they're only a point clear of last-place Wigan with seven games left to play. Newcastle, meanwhile, jump into the top half, leapfrogging Stoke and Sunderland to claim ninth.

Aston Villa did themselves few favours despite netting at Goodison Park, eventually emerging from the Merseyside with a solitary point after a late Leighton Baines penalty earned Everton a share of the spoils in a 2-2 draw. The result leaves Gerard Houllier's side precariously placed in 16th place, just two points ahead of West Ham in the relegation zone, while Everton's comeback sees them leapfrog Bolton into seventh.

Jermain Beckford had the first opportunity in a back and forth match, but after his effort was saved there were very few clear-cut chances for either side in a match largely devoid of real quality in the final third of the pitch. Leon Osman did manage to open the scoring after some immensely poor defending from the visiting side, making a fool of James Collins and slotting home after Diniyar Bilyaletdinov had robbed right-back Kyle Walker near the halfway line.

Villa replied with virtually the first action of the second half, with Darren Bent smashing home a cross from Stewart Downing to level the scores. It got worse for the hosts - when a sweetly-struck Beckford shot hit the bottom crossbar and crashed downwards, it was adjudged not to have crossed the line, and while Everton protested Friedel punted the ball down the pitch, where Ashley Young flicked on to Bent, who rounded Tim Howard and slotted how to give a 2-1 lead.

As it turns out, Beckford's shot had indeed crossed the line, so it was perhaps poetic justice when Jean Makoun was penalised for Phil Jagielka falling over in his vicinity in the 82nd minute. Mike Jones pointed to the spot and Baines made no mistake, denying Villa the chance to take home two more crucial point ad they battle to avoid relegation.

Birmingham City eased their relegation fears through goals from Kevin Phillips and Craig Gardner, although a second-half goal from Johan Elmander made the hosts sweat a little bit before the full-time whistle went. Phillips got City off to a perfect start after smashing home a half-volley off Jussi Jaaskelainen in the fourth minute, and although Bolton came close several times in the first half Alex McLeish's side went into the interval nursing a 1-0 lead.

Sebastian Larrson had the ball in the net for Birmingham swiftly after the restart only to see his effort correctly ruled out for offside, but it wasn't long before the home side got their second goal with Craig Gardner doubling the advantage on the hour mark. The midfielder traded passes with striker Cameron Jerome before slamming a shot off Jaaskelainen's post and into the net.

Bolton's response was swift and strong, but ultimately not strong enough. Johan Elmander found his scoring boots with a fine volley to pull one back, but the visitors found Ben Foster in fine form and despite pressing hard for the equaliser simply could not find the second goal. The victory pushes Birmingham out of the relegation zone and although they still lie in 17th, they have a game in hand on most of their immediate competitors and look like they can breathe for now. Bolton, meanwhile, slip from 7th to 8th, and looking like they can lay those faint dreams of finishing 5th to rest.

Arsenal were held to a 0-0 draw at home against Blackburn Rovers today despite the visitors being down to ten men for the last fifteen minutes of the match. The two dropped points may well have handed the title to Manchester United, who now have what appears to be an insurmountable lead at the top of the table after draws by both Arsenal and Chelsea today.

Although the Gunners spent the last ten minutes shelling Paul Robinson's goal, had they emerged from the Emirates with a win it would have been rather massively undeserved. Blackburn were the better side for much of the first half, and although Cesc Fabregas' introduction as a second half substituted shifted the balance somewhat, Steve Kean's team defended brilliantly and looked more than good money for their clean sheet.

Steven Nzonzi's entirely undeserved dismissal changed things up somewhat, the midfielder being shown a straight red after a stumbling challenge on Laurent Koscielny that was more stumbling than malicious. Phil Dowd was having none of the protests, however, reducing Rovers to ten men and allowing the home side their first spell of sustained pressure since the very beginning of the match.

There were several near misses in the last fifteen minutes - none closer than Marouane Chamakh's shot from a perfect Jack Wilshere cutback, which was well blocked by a sliding Martin Olsson, but in the end Arsenal simply could not capitalise on their good fortune and after four minutes of injury time left the pitch knowing that the title race was all but over.

On top of the result, the Gunners sustained several injuries. Samir Nasri played through a huge cut to his temple that forced the Frenchman into wearing a bandage for much of the match, and Alex Song was left limping for the last few minutes by a bad landing that jarred his knee. Theo Walcott was also seen icing an ankle after he was substituted in the second half. All in all, a rough day for Arsene Wenger - but a magnificent performance by Blackburn, who managed to hold off their opposition without resorting to simply parking the bus. A well earned draw for Rovers.

Phil Dowd has lost his mind. Steven Nzonzi is racing around chasing the ball for Blackburn, who are still locked in a 0-0 draw at the Emirates with a quarter of an hour to go. He eventually meets centre half Laurent Koscielny, but stumbles before making the challenge, eventually going into something of a two-footed bunny hop on the Arsenal defender, landing on his foot. Yes, I supposed that you could call that a two-footed studs up challenge, but that would be like calling a martini glass an accessory to espionage just because James Bond drank out of it once. Or something, I'm still working on that metaphor.

Anyway, Dowd brandished red, much to the bafflement of all, and Blackburn are now down to ten men and will have to work hard to hang on for the draw here. Arsenal are already looking more dangerous - Martin Olsson has just put in an absolutely crucial block for the visitors, stopping a Marouane Chamakh strike from finding the net - but losing after that red card would be a huge injustice for Blackburn.

Arsenal certainly aren't acting as though the title is on the line for this match against Blackburn. With Manchester United winning 4-2 at Upton Park, Arsenal absolutely must win today to keep their destiny in their own hands, but aside from a promising opening fifteen minutes Blackburn have been more or less untroubled by the pressure from the home side, and have even come close to scoring once or twice - Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia has been the creator of most of the visitors' best chances with a series of embarrassing gaffes.

The most interesting thing that's happened in the half is a rather nasty cut to the head of Samir Nasri - he had to leave the game for a little while after being clattered into by Chris Samba while contesting for a header. He's back and so heavily bandaged that he looks like a little bald man now which is highly entertaining. Anyway. Blackburn have had a number of really close chances, and Junior Hoillet in particular is playing well, as is Martin Olsson at left back. Both Chris Samba and Michel Salgado have picked up bookings, though, so they'll have to be careful when Arsenal break forward.

After seven rather strange Saturday fixtures we have Arsenal vs. Blackburn Rovers on the cards. Manchester United looked like they'd be dropping points at West Ham, but four unanswered goals saw them leave Upton Park with a 4-2 win and three crucial points. With Chelsea falling out of the picture thanks to a 1-1 draw against Stoke City, Arsenal are now the only team with a chance at stopping the leaders - but with their habit of choking at crucial moments Arsene Wenger's side have to be very careful not to... well, choke.

For the Gunners, Alex Song, Theo Walcott, and Robin van Persie all return from injury, but there's no sign of captain Cesc Fabregas. Arsenal will have to do with Samir Nasri playing centrally in the meantime. Blackburn, meanwhile, while deploy long-term absentee Phil Jones as a screening midfielder behind a band of four and use Roque Santa Cruz as their lone striker.

Arsenal: Almunia; Sagna, Squillaci, Koscielny, Clichy; Song, Wilshere, Nasri; Walcott, Arshavin, van Persie.

Subs (4-3-3): Lehmann, Diaby, Fabregas, Rosicky, Eboue, Chamakh, Bendtner.

Blackburn (4-1-4-1): Robinson; Salgado, Samba, Nelsen, Olsson; Phil Jones; Emerton, Jermaine Jones, Nzonzi, Hoilett; Santa Cruz.

Subs: Bunn, Dunn, Rochina, Mwaruwari, Roberts, Hanley, Diouf.

West Ham United appeared to be well on their way to a big victory for themselves in the relegation race and for a couple of other teams in the title race, thanks to two early penalty kicks, but a Wayne Rooney hat trick has nullified those goals as Manchester United have taken a huge win by the score of 4-2. The fourth goal was added by Javier Hernandez, who scored a tap-in off of a low cross in typical Chicharito fashion. Rooney looks like he's finally heating up, while there may not be a hotter player in the world than Chicharito. He has six goals in seven games for Manchester United, in addition to a hat trick scored for Mexico a week ago.

Referee Lee Mason was given a lot to do in this match, as three of the six goals were scored on penalty kicks. One of those decisions was absolutely correct, and the other two were the kind of close decisions that could be given either way and it would be unfair to fault the referee. Each team got one of those borderline decisions in their favor, so it would be disingenuous to suggest that Mason was poor or that he affected the game significantly.

United were the vastly superior side in the second half, with Alex Ferguson's decisions to introduce Chicharito and move Ryan Giggs to left back paying obvious dividends. Still, the star of the show was Rooney, who was simply stunning in the second half.

The man they call Chicharito, Javier Hernandez, has scored Manchester United's fourth goal of their match with West Ham United, all but sealing a great comeback victory for the Red Devils. They've done well to come back from 2-0 down, and Chicharito's goal was just the cherry on top of what would have already been an impressive comeback, thanks to Wayne Rooney's 15 minute hat trick. 

The Welsh Wizard, who I think should be coined 'Gandalf The Grey' at this point was the man who put in the assist, from his new unorthodox (read: awesome) left back position. The West Ham defense gave him entirely too much space in the box, and he put in a great low cross. If you're been paying attention to the world of football for the last year, you're probably well aware of what comes next when Chicharito is playing in a game and someone sends a good low cross into the box. Chicharito did his Chicharito thing, and his team lead 4-2.

Wayne Rooney has completed his hat trick, though it's harsh on West Ham United. Manchester United have fought back to take a 3-2 lead thanks to some brilliant play by Rooney and, in the case of the third goal, some fortunate refereeing. I say fortunate and not favorable because Lee Mason certainly hasn't done anything that appears crooked or incompetent, just a little harsh. The Red Devils were given the penalty when Fabio forced a handball out of Matthew Upson in the box. The ball did strike Upson's arm, but it was down at his side, making the penalty harsh on the Hammers.

Rooney stepped up and converted well to complete his hat trick, and though the penalty was fortunate, it's hard to argue that Man United don't deserve a lead. West Ham's second penalty kick was equally fortunate, and the Red Devils have been the much better side throughout the match.

It's been a disappointing season all-around for Wayne Rooney, but since the new year, it seems like he is the man who bails Manchester United out of tough situations more than anyone else. Today's 2-0 deficit against West Ham United probably qualifies as a tough situation, and he's done brilliantly to dig his team out of that hole with two brilliant goals. The score is now level at 2-2, and Rooney's most recent goal, which came from open play, was possibly even more brilliant than his fantastic free kick. 

It was just one of those situations where, when the ball came to Rooney's feet, it was obvious that he was about to score. He did well to create space for himself and get himself a clean look from 15 yards out, and when he had that, the finish seems inevitable. He slotted the ball firmly, but calmly past Robert Green at the far post, and United are level.

Wayne Rooney has scored a goal to bring Manchester United back within one goal, as they now trail West Ham United 2-1 in the second half. United have Mark Noble to thank for the goal, as he's the man who committed the silly foul that gave Rooney the opportunity to take the direct free kick that he scored on. Still, Rooney was left with a lot of work to do, and his 65th minute free kick was finished brilliantly. 

The Red Devils have brought Javier Hernandez and Dimitar Berbatov into the game for Patrice Evra and Park Ji-Sung, seriously shifting their attack and formation. The moves were aggressive, but probably necessary. The most interesting part of these substitutions was the moving of Ryan Giggs to left back, where he has played well so far.

For the way the game has gone, a draw would probably be a fair result. Man United have been the much better side, but they don't deserve to completely avoid punishment for their two extremely silly mistakes. Additionally, West Ham have defended fairly well and probably deserve a point.

West Ham United have been solid, but far from spectacular in the first half of their English Premier League match against Manchester United. Despite that, they're leading by a score of 2-0 over the first placed team in the league, thanks to a pair of penalty kicks. Patrice Evra committed a clear handball in the box on the 11th minute for the first penalty, and Nemaja Vidic hauled down Carlton Cole on the edge of the box for a questionable penalty. Vidic probably committed the foul just outside the box, but with how clear-cut the contact was and how unnecessary Vidic's challenge was, he has no one to blame but himself. Mark Noble converted both penalties, and in impressive fashion.

Man United look set to make a change or two at halftime in an effort to find a goal early in the second half. Javier Hernandez, the man called Chicharito, was warming up before halftime, while Nani and Dimitar Berbatov are both available off the bench as well. It would be surprising to see Alex Ferguson opt to not make any halftime changes.

It's been a tough start to the day for Manchester United. Despite being the much better side in their match against West Ham United, they haven't created any kind of clear-cut scoring chances and they're somehow down 2-0 after 25 minutes, thanks to two penalty kicks. This penalty wasn't nearly as clear-cut as the Evra handball on the 11th minute, but it's unlikely that Alex Ferguson and Man United fans will be looking for excuses, as the foul committed by Nemanja Vidic was incredibly ill-advised, penalty or not.

Once again, striker Carlton Cole would be the man who drew the penalty. Cutting into the box from the left hand side, Cole drew contact from Vidic right on the edge of the area. The contact was undeniable and there will have been no argument about there being a foul, but the contact occurred on the very edge of the penalty area. It appeared upon replay that the foul occurred just outside the area, but at full speed, it's very hard to fault Lee Mason for giving it. When Cole was fouled, he was mere centimeters outside of the box. Mark Noble was again the man to step up to the spot, and though Tomasz Kuszczak guessed right, Noble's penalty was hit brilliantly into the upper 90, and the Hammers have a  2-0 lead.

Thanks to a penalty kick following a lapse in judgment by Manchester United left back Patrice Evra, West Ham United have a surprise 1-0 lead after 11 minutes at Upton Park. While the relegation threatened Hammers haven't had a great season, they've actually been very good at home lately, so it's not too stunning that they're giving Man United a serious run for their money. However, this goal came from very little skill on their end, and was much more the product of Manchester United mistakes.

The first mistake that started the move was made by Chris Smalling, who failed to step up with his teammates on a long ball and kept Carlton Cole onside. This made it easy for the Hammers striker to run onto the ball and take it into the box, relatively uncontested. The Red Devils' defense recovered sufficiently, but when Cole attempted to chip the ball up in the air, Evra made a boneheaded decision and stuck his hands straight up in the air. The ball struck his hand, and Lee Mason correctly granted the penalty, which Mark Noble stepped up to convert.