Premier League Sunday: Arsenal Defeat Manchester United To Shake Up Title Race

Manchester City extended their lead over Tottenham Hotspur in the race for fourth place by beating West Ham United 2-1 at home, although the victory was far, far closer than it needed to be. The hosts raced out to an early lead thanks to a long-range effort from Nigel de Jong, and doubled their leader five minutes lated when Lars Jacobsen smashed a cross from Pablo Zabeleta into his own net. When Matthew Upson hobbled off shortly thereafter, it looked like game over for the Hammers.

Demba Ba's excellent finish after the ball bounced off Joleon Lescott in the penalty area gave them hope, however, and it seemed to rattle City, who spent much of the remainder of the game on the back foot. It was their own play, more than the visitors, which caused stress, however - they were simply unable to put the ball in the back of the net in the second half. Mario Balotelli floated in a shot which had the beating of Robert Green but not the crossbar before David Silva somehow failed to convert a one on one with Green moments later. There was a fear that a freak West Ham equaliser would steal the points, but it never materialised and City fans could go home relieved, if not happy about the performance.

The result sees West Ham glued to the bottom of the Premier League table at 32 points, but Manchester City are looking good value for fourth - they're seven points up of fifth placed Liverpool and with a game in hand to boot.

It's Manchester City 2-1 against visiting West Ham United at half time, and what looked like it could have been an absolute rout early on has been turned around by the Hammers, although they've been unable to equalise as of yet. Manchester City started off fired up (perhaps by Tottenham Hotspur's Saturday loss at Stamfrod Bridge), and they could have been up by multiple goals in the first minute alone.

Nigel de Jong eventually broke the deadlock in the tenth minute, rifling a half-cleared corner through a crowd of players and into the back of Robert Green's net, and Lars Jacobsen made things worse by smashing a Pablo Zabeleta cross into the roof of his own net (Mario Balotelli would have converted had Jocobsen not intervened anyway). Then, adding injury to insult, captain Matthew Upson was forced off the pitch pimping to be replaced by Manuel da Costa.

It was all shaping up to be a rather bad day for the Hammers when Robbie Keane raced clean through of the home defence and had his shot saved by Joe Hart. Not a goal, but a start, and suddenly Avram Grant's men were all over the place, eventually halving the deficit thanks to a nice finish from Demba Ba, with an assist from Joleon Lescott's hand.

One has to imagine that Roberto Mancini will be having a stern team talk at half time, because with the way they're playing right now City could easily throw away this lead. The second half should be good.

Welsh midfielder Aaron Ramsey is the toast of London after putting a major dent in Manchester United's title hopes at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, scoring the only goal in a well-deserved 1-0 victory for Arsenal. The hosts were dominant in the first half, although they failed to test Edwin van der Sar in the goal, often opting to go for the extra pass or a low-percentage crossing option rather than shooting.

It was one of those crosses, however, which should have led to the opening goal. Theo Walcott scampered out to the right wing and sent in a delivery that sailed over Nemanja Vidic's head and seemed perfectly placed to drop onto Robin van Persie for an easy goal, only for the Serbian centre half to raise an arm and deflect it out of play. A corner was given, which means that referee Chris Foy saw contact but assumed it was not with an arm, which makes Vidic seven and a half foot tall in Foy's terrifying world.

That was the major story at halftime (Samir Nasri was pulled for a hamstring injury at the interval as well), but Ramsey soon made sure justice was done after a substitution seemed to confuse the Manchester United defence. Park Ji-Sung failed to track the midfielder's late run into the box, and a square pass from van Persie was hammered expertly home to give Arsenal their deserved lead.

As expected, there was major pressure from United for the equaliser, but they wasted their best chance from open play when a mistake by Laurent Koscielny allowed the visitors to conduct a four on two break, which Nani ended up blasting straight at Wojciech Szczesny. Foy then denied United a penalty after Gael Clichy stamped on Michael Owen's calf in the 89th minute - one can't imagine that Sir Alex Ferguson and company will be particularly mollified by the 'it all evens out argument'. Four minutes of injury time came and went without any major chances coming United's way, and Foy's final whistle was greeted by an eruption of noise in the Emirates.

Apoplectic reaction to having that penalty call turned down aside, I think even Ferguson would admit that his team were outplayed today. In terms of the title race, Manchester United are now three points clear of Chelsea, having played the same number of games and have an identical goal differential. They also host them next weekend. Arsenal, meanwhile, consolidate their hold on at least third place, going eight points clear of fourth place Manchester City, albeit having played two matches more.

Very good play by Arsenal, their best spell of the match since Aaron Ramsey's goal. First, Robin van Persie and Rio Ferdinand tangle in the Arsenal half, the striker managing to feed Andrei Arshavin for a break up the left. Eventually the ball is worked back to van Persie, but there's nobody at the far post to convert his cross. Arshavin's movement could have been better then. Then Laurent Koscielny plays in an absolutely brilliant tackle to release Arshavin once again, but his run is blocked off by Fabio da Silva, who has a go at Chris Foy for daring to call that a foul.

Van Persie then blast the shot straight at Edwin van der Sar, which was rather a waste. Excellent play by the Gunners, but it's still 1-0 and it wouldn't be out of the question for United to equalise here. In view of that, Sir Alex Ferguson has introduced striker Michael Owen, whose first contribution is to be stamped on in the penalty box by Gael Clichy. Foy, being a referee of incompetence rather than bias, doesn't give a penalty. Whoops.

Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez has been pretty quiet today for Manchester United, and Sir Alex Ferguson has responded to that by introducing the Premier League's leading goalscorer. Enter Dimitar Berbatov to give Arsenal's suddenly stretched defence new and less-than fun problems, although they don't have to worry about Chicharito being twice as fast as their collective back line anymore.

They do have to worry about Chris Foy calling handballs on the edge of the box, though - Wayne Rooney goes very close with a free kick directed at the near post, and the hosts can only escape when Fabio da Silva brings down Jack Wilshere and earns a yellow card for his troubles. Manchester United come again, however, and somehow contrive to waste a four on two after Wayne Rooney demolished Laurent Koscielny near the halfway line, Nani firing straight at Wojciech Szczesny from a silly angle.

At the other end of the pitch, Robin van Persie managed to sneak in unmarked at the far post following a cross from Theo Walcott, but the angle is far too acute for him to do anything with and he crashes a shot into the side netting. That delivery is Walcott's last contribution, the England winger replaced by the more defensively inclined Emmanuel Eboue.

Manchester United, of course, are pushing up higher after conceding, and their pressure pays off when Alex Song is booked for protesting/not giving the ball back after fouling Wayne Rooney. There's a bit of handbags as each team decides to get involved, but the mess eventually sorts itself out and no further cards are issued. No further cards, that is, until Park Ji-Sung rakes his studs down Bacary Sagna's shin and sends the defender down in agony. Does he not wear shin pads? Chris Foy shows the Korean yellow too, which won't really improve United's collective mood.

And neither will having a penalty appeal turned down, for that matter, Patrice Evra breaking into the box only to go down under a challenge from Theo Walcott. He claims for a foul and then a handball, and gets a corner. Nothing comes of it except an injury to Johan Djourou after the centre back went up for a challenge with Nemanja Vidic, which forces the Swiss international's substitution. On comes Sebastien Squillaci, which will make for a nervous finish for the Gunners.

It's 1-0 Arsenal and that could be absolutely massive for the Premier League title race. Manchester United are now 1-0 down to the Gunners at the Emirates after Aaron Ramsey's first goal for Arsenal since his comeback from horrific injury, and what a huge goal that was. Robin van Persie motored down the Arsenal right, forced Patrice Evra onto his back foot, and rolled the ball to an onrushing Ramsey, who nutmegged Michael Carrick with a neat sidefooted shot that Edwin van der Sar had no chance of stopping. The veteran goalkeeper still hasn't made a save, by my reckoning.

It's interesting that the goal came immediately after a substitution from United, with Sir Alex Ferguson looking to take advantage of dodgy defending from Arsenal's fullbacks by introducing Antonio Valencia for Anderson and shifting Park Ji-Sung to the midfield. It was Park who ended up most at fault for the goal, too, as he failed to track Ramsey's run into the area. Weakening the central midfield seems, in retrospect, to be a huge mistake on Ferguson's part.

More bad news for Arsenal, who were robbed of a penalty in the first half after a clear-cut handball from Manchester United centre half Nemanja Vidic. This time their problem is less injustice and more plain old bad-luck - Samir Nasri picked up a hamstring injury in the first half and has been forced off to be replaced by Andrei Arshavin. Nasri had been involved in an interesting battle with Fabio da Silva on the left wing, and whie Arshavin can give defenders a torrid time on his day, he's not Samir Nasri.

It could have gotten worse for the hosts early on in the half after a Wayne Rooney free kick had to be well-saved by Wojciech Szczesny, with Patrice Evra smashing the rebound into the side netting. United have started fairly well, pushing hard on the counterattack and taking advantage of an exposed and less than solid Arsenal back line, but the hosts are giving some of that back too - Bacary Sagna has come reasonably close with a low long-range shot that beat Edwin van der Sar, but also his far post. Interesting start.

That's the first half done and dusted then at the Emirates then, and it was a slightly bizarre one. There was all of one shot on target - a long range, rather hopeless attempt from Manchester United's Anderson - but Arsenal were dominant in the early stages and really ought to have scored. Jack Wilshere wasted a clear chance in the first few minutes, latching onto a botched clearance on the edge of the box only to shoot horribly wide, but the most obvious opportunity of the match came later when Nemanja Vidic clearly handled a cross from Theo Walcott.

Nothing was given, much to Robin van Persie's fury. That's going to be an interesting talking point later. Referee Chris Foy has been in the middle of things all afternoon, intercepting several passes from Arsenal for some reason and then making up for it by inexplicably booking Wayne Rooney for a marginal foul late in the half. It's been an odd day so far, but there's plenty of time for one of these sides to score a winner in the second half. For now though, it's still scoreless at halftime.

Manchester United centre half Nemanja Vidic is not having his best day, with a series of poor clearances to give Arsenal a few good chances, and now he's committed a blatant handball in the penalty box after Theo Walcott fizzed in a cross aimed at Robin van Persie. Vidic, who was beaten, lifted up an arm to deflect the ball away from the Dutch striker and to safety, and apparently everyone completely missed the incident because absolutely nothing was given. Bizarre. That really ought to have been a penalty and a yellow card.

So, with Vidic getting away with murder, Manchester United are given new life - much like Chelsea were by the officiating against Tottenham Hotspur earlier in the weekend. The visitors respond but pushing up into the attack, but their play through the centre leaves something to be desired and simply opens up space behind the lines for Arsenal to surge into. It's been a pretty quiet performance from United today, although one gets the feeling that they'd be more than happy to draw their next two matches.

Manchester United are one of the great counter-attacking teams in football and one from right back Fabio da Silva comes rather close to giving them the lead. The Brazilian surges down the right and finds himself inside Wojciech Szczesny's six-yard box, but instead of shooting opts for a square pass to Javier Hernandez, who is surrounded by red jerseys and is crowded off the ball before he can take a meaningful touch. Arsenal can probably consider themselves very much warned, though.

The hosts go back on the attack more or less immediately, but their strategy of sending in crosses when their forwards average something like five inches shorter than the United back line is a slightly silly one, and the guests are able to clear without a problem each time, no matter how much space the Arsenal fullbacks are finding themselves in. As usual, the buildup play from the Gunners is excellent, the final ball less so. Still 0-0 At the Emirates.

Brilliant play by Jack Wilshere, the midfielder almost carving open the Manchester United defence by surging through the left channel and sending a low driven pass through Rio Ferdinand's legs aimed towards Theo Walcott at the far post. Edwin van der Sar doesn't know whether to say or go, so he's totally out of the picture, and it takes a sliding intervention from Patrice Evra to deny Arsenal their opening goal, the French left back just about turning the ball behind for a corner.

So, it's Arsenal on the front foot at the moment, but they still haven't made their good work count by actually giving Edwin van der Sar some work to do. The longer this goes on, the more antsy the crowd at the Emirates will get. They're certainly unhappy right now after Chris Foy has denied Jack Wilshere a free kick on the edge of the box following a clumsy challenge by Nemanja Vidic - it probably wasn't a foul, though, unless being run  into and dived over is getting called now

Arsenal have continued their bright start against Manchester United, although they're get to test goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar. A phenomenal cross by Gael Clichy combined with a slightly less phenomenal but still quite good run from Theo Walcott resulted in the England man shinning the ball over the bar on the stretch. Difficult chance, that, but it probably should have ended up on frame.

The hosts, however, appear unfazed, and continue to weave pretty passing patterns around the edge of the penalty area. United can't get it out of their own half at the moment, leaving Javier Hernandez to cut a rather doleful, frequently offside, figure by himself at the front. Unless Arsenal can make their spell of dominance count, though, it's hard to see the visitors not finding a way to impose themselves on the match - even with the distinctly mediocre Anderson deployed as a starting midfielder.

The game is underway at the Emirates, with Manchester United in black against the white and red of Arsenal. United, of course, are in fairly good form, having comfortably dispatched Schalke 04 in the Champions League semi-finals in midweek, while Arsenal are less so. They're also having to go without captain Cesc Fabregas, which is going to put a major crimp on their usual midfield dominance. Not that that's stopped them in the early going, with the hosts well and truly ascendent so far.

Jack Wilshere started a lovely incisive move and and very nearly finished it too after the ball was worked to Theo Walcott on the right, and even though the winger's cross was cut out by Nemanja Vidic the Serbian's clearance was scuffed to Wilshere on the edge of the box. The Premier League Young Player of the Year took a touch and then contrived to shoot well wide, wasting an immensely promising opportunity.

Perhaps the biggest match of the Premier League season is coming up at the Emirates Stadium in London where Arsenal take on Manchester United with the latter looking to extend their lead at the top of the table to six points. Arsenal, however aren't going to roll over that easily*, and unless United can get three points out of this one they run a very real race of letting defending champions Chelsea back into the race.

*Well, maybe.

Arsene Wenger is going with a first choice starting XI in a 4-3-3 - or he would be, if captain Cesc Fabregas hadn't managed to injury himself in training on Friday. Aaron Ramsey replaces the World Cup winner in the Gunners' midfield. Even without their captain, Arsenal still boast an exceptionally strong club, and United aren't going to be taking them lightly.

Meanwhile, Sir Alex Ferguson goes with the 4-4-1-1 that's served him so well lately, with Michael Carrick and Wayne Rooney central to his strategy. A resurgent Carrick will serve as the team's playmaker, and Rooney's habit of dropping deep to reinforce the midfield will occupy Alex Song. It's difficult to say just how this match will go, but there's no doubt it'll be a good one.

Arsenal (4-3-3): Wojciech Szczesny; Bacary Sagna, Laurent Koscielny, Johan Djourou, Gael Clichy; Alex Song, Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere; Theo Walcott, Samir Nasri, Robin van Persie.

Substitutes: Jens Lehmann, Sebastien Squillaci, Andrei Arshavin, Emmanuel Eboue, Kieran Gibbs, Marouane Chamakh, Nicklas Bendtner.

Manchester United (4-4-1-1): Edwin van der Sar; Fabio da Silva, Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic, Patrice Evra; Park Ji-Sung, Michael Carrick, Anderson, Nani; Wayne Rooney; Javier Hernandez.

Substitutes: Tomasz Kuszczak, Michael Owen, Dimitar Berbatov, Chris Smalling, Rafael Da Silva, John O'Shea, Antonio Valencia.

Chelsea somehow squeaked a come from behind win against Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge despite scoring a total of zero technically legal goals. The win moves them to three points behind Manchester United, tightening up the race for the Premier League crown, but it was a rather controversial and fluky one.

Despite dominating most of the play, Chelsea found themselves behind after a phenomenal strike from Sandro in the 19th minute, the midfielder latching onto a neat flick by Rafael van der Vaart to lash a shot past Petr Cech from all of thirty yards out, nearly decapitating teammate Luka Modric in the process. By halftime the scoreline was level, however. Frank Lampard pinged in a highly speculative long-range shot that went straight through Heurelho Gomes and was adjudged to have crossed the line before the goalkeeper could claw it away.

The only problem, of course, is that it didn't actually cross the line - the officials were in no position to determine where exactly the ball was, and simply gave it anyway, giving Chelsea a huge boost right on the verge of halftime. It was a huge decision and quite clearly the incorrect one, and if the media are predictable (they are) we're going to get a fun new wave of the instant replay argument.

The second half was more or less the same story as the first, except Spurs didn't manage a goal after the break. Chelsea pressured, more or less dominating the match, but couldn't really find space to test Gomes except from long range. That is, at least, until Salomon Kalou latched onto a loose ball in the box to toepoke home. From an offside position. The 89th minute goal stood anyway for some reason, and Chelsea someone came away with a win.

For Spurs, the bad luck was more substantial than simply conceding two goals-that-weren't. They are now in major trouble in their battle with Manchester City for fourth, four points behind having played one game more, and if that wasn't enough lost fullback Vedran Corluka to a hamstring injury in the second half, leaving them with one recognised wide defender on the team. It's not been a good day for Harry Redknapp et. al.

It's been a frenetic second half at Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea have been denied what looked like a clear penalty after Younes Kaboul went through the back of Florent Malouda in the penalty area. It's still 1-1, which will suit neither Tottenham Hotspur nor their hosts, but one suspects that Harry Redknapp will be more aggreived with his side in fifth place.

An apparent hamstring injury for Vedran Corluka, who's filling in at left back, won't improve his move, the Croation clutching the back of his thigh and limping off down the tunnel to be replaced by Steve Pienaar. That leaves midfielder Gareth Bale as the only player even remotely resembling a fullback on the entire Tottenham squad, unless I'm missing someone, and sure enough he drifts back to cover. That's bad news as Spurs look to chase a Champions League berth - and now Bale is limping with an apparent foot problem.

Well it's 1-1 at Stamford Bridge after half time thanks to a pair of long range goals, one of them absolutely superb, and the other... less so. Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Sandro gave the visitors an early lead with a stunner of a shot which flew into Petr Cech's right-hand corner from fully thirty yards. Although the goal came very much against the run of play, it was enough to send fear a-fluttering into Chelsea hearts - the team absolutely needs a win today in order to continue in their rather halfhearted title chase.

The equaliser came in bizarre fashion, with Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard lining up a shot from 30 yards that was aimed straight at Tottenham goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes. Gomes, who had been instrumental in keeping the hosts off the scoresheet with a phenomenal save from Didier Drogba earlier on in the match, seemed like he'd keep the ball out easily, but he allowed it to slip through his legs and onto the goalline, whereupon the goal was given despite the ball never clearly going in. That's going to be a reaaaaally controversial one, but Chelsea are level, and one would have to imagine that Lampard will take it.

A goal very much against the run of play at Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea were dominating, but what a goal it was from Brazilian midfielder Sandro, who picked up a flick from Rafael van der Vaart fully thirty yards from goal and sent in a monstrous shot straight into the top corner of Petr Cech's goal without breaking stride. It's a shock lead for Tottenham Hotspur, and that goal could be absolutely huge in the title race.

Chelsea had started the brighter, with Fernando Torres looking particularly sharp, and Didier Drogba managed to rattle the crossbar with a long-range free kick that Heurelho Gomes did brilliantly to save. The Blues aren't lacking for chances, but suddenly find themselves well on the back foot, needing two goals in order to keep any hope of defending their title alive. Despite going behind, they're still testing Gomes, with the Spurs keeper saving well from Michael Essien before getting a letoff as Torres just missed getting behind a headed pass from Didier Drogba.

Chelsea have opted to switch to a 4-4-2 for their home match against Tottenham Hotspur, starting Didier Drogba and Fernando Torres together against injury-hit Spurs team that's being patched together on the fly by Harry Redknapp. For both sides, this is a vital match - Chelsea need to win in order to keep their faint title hopes alive, while Tottenham Hotspur will be looking to get three points in order to maintain their bid for a Champions League berth next year.

Chelsea (4-4-2): Petr Cech, Ashley Cole, John Terry, David Luiz, Branislav Ivanovic, John Obi Mikel, Florent Malouda, Michael Essien, Frank Lampard; Didier Drogba, Fernando Torres.

Substitutes: Ross Turnbull, Ramires, Yossi Benayoun, Yuri Zhirkov, Salomon Kalou, Alex, Nicolas Anelka.

Tottenham Hotspur (4-4-1-1): Heurelho Gomes; Vedran Corluka, Michael Dawson, William Gallas, Younes Kaboul; Gareth Bale, Sandro, Luka Modric, Aaron Lennon; Rafael van der Vaart; Roman Pavlyuchenko.

Substitutes: Jermaine Jenas, Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe, Carlo Cudicini, Steven Pienaar, Sebastien Bassong, Danny Rose.

Despite conceding an early own goal thanks to an awful piece of defending by Abdoulaye Meite, West Bromwich Albion came back to win against 2-1 Aston Villa at the Hawthorns thanks to second-half goals from Peter Odemwingie and Youssuf Mulumbu, which sandwiched a red card issued to midfielder Paul Scharner which had threatened to derail their comeback.

The visitors looked fairly comfortable until an injury to Richard Dunne forced the to rejuggle their back line early in the second half, and it wasn't long until the Baggies were level, Odemwingie smashing home after a goalmouth scramble. Scharner's red card made a win look like an impossible task for Roy Hodgson's side, but Mulumbu's brilliant turn and finish past Brad Friedel wrapped up the points, leaving Villa stunned. It was a deserved win for West Brom, who played extremely well in the second half, but one does have to question Villa's total inability to kill off a game they had in the palm of their collective hands. Fortunately for the Birmingham side, the result doesn't much matter - they're more than safe from relegation.

Ten-man West Bromwich Albion have been soaking up Aston Villa pressure since Paul Scharner was sent off just after the equalising goal, but now they have a lead at the Hawthorns. Youssuf Mulumbu, who had been booked less than a minute prior for a tackle on Darren Bent, is the man to score what looks almost certain to be the winner, picking up a neat pass, spinning defender Luke Young and dinking over Brad Friedel to give the hosts a surprising lead.

It's not West Brom who are playing like they're a man down anymore, which is at least mildly embarrassing on Villa's part. It's been a pretty poor performance from the visitors, in truth - while they might have had some pretty flank and buildup play their final passes into Scott Carson's box have been terrible and they haven't looked a huge threat to score. Then again, neither did West Brom before that goal.

West Bromwich Albion have been all over Aston Villa since Richard Dunne went off, having been denied two penalty claims (although Phil Dowd made the correct decisions there) and cutting through the visitors lines like butter during the past few minutes. They've now got the goal their play deserves, although there was a real element of good fortune in Peter Odemwingie's equaliser, which came after a rather odd goalmouth scramble following a free kick which was eventually deflected into the air above Odemwingie for the striker to slam into the roof of the net with Brad Friedel helpless.

It's not all bad news for Aston Villa though, as West Brom midfielder Paul Scharner has been shown a second yellow - and therefore a red -  for a silly rugby tackle on Stiliyan Petrov as the midfielder broke into space. It was a pretty clear booking, and Scharner deserved to walk for that one. So, the visitors aren't winning anymore, but they do have a man advantage, and one would have to imagine that the hosts are now simply looking to hold on here.

Injury problems for Aston Villa's defence, although surprirsingly it isn't James Collins who has to depart despite the Welsh centre back taking several knocks in the first half. Instead, his partner Richard Dunne is the man to depart after picking up a problem with his leg while tussling with West Bromwich Albion striker Peter Odemwingie. He tries to play on and then waves to the bench for a substitution. Young utilityman Ciaran Clark is sent on in his place. Hopefully the injury isn't too bad - it certainly doesn't look terrible, and Dunne was able to hobble off without much help.

West Brom are making a substitution as well, with Gonzalo Jara being yanked with what appears to be a bad case of the being-awfuls. He goes straight down the tunnel, so it could be an injury, but if there was some sort of incident that led to him picking up a problem I completely missed it. Anyway, Gabriel Tamas is the man to replace him at right back.

Aston Villa lead West Bromwich Albion 1-0 at the interval thanks to a highly amusing own goal from Abdoulaye Meite, who in the fourth mintue somehow managed to turn an outside of the boot clearance into a delicate little flick past Scott Carson. Since then, it's been a fairly open match, with both sides having some good chances to score. Carlos Vela's had the best opportunities to get the hosts back on level terms, chipping over Brad Friedel (but, alas, the goal as well) when through one on one and then seeing a 22-yard free kick meet a similar fate on the verge of halftime. Friedel's only had one save to make, but it was a very nice stop from a long-range Youssuf Mulumbu thunderbolt.

Villa have had a few chances of their own and finished the half very nicely indeed, but haven't really tested Carson since the very early stages. Still, they're one course for three points against their local rivals, so there'll be no complaints from Gary McAllister's men. Perhaps the only worry, as far as Villa are concerned, is the fact that James Collins has pulled up limping at least twice during the first 45 minutes, although the defender is insisting he's ok to continue.

It would be difficult to describe what happened just now as anything but a brilliantly incompetent piece of defending. Seriously, if there was a museum of defensive awfulness, they'be buying this one for several million and hanging it in the main gallery for all to marvel at. Abdoulaye Meite has just given Aston Villa a freak early lead by 'cutting out' a fairly woeful Stewart Downing delivery for the right, kicking the ball about 170 degrees from the direction he intended and flicking the ball past a bemused-looking Scott Carson in the West Bromwich Albion goal. Villa look slightly embarrassed to be celebrating that.

Anyway, the visitors keep on pressing and such is the Baggies' defensive inadequacy that they nearly allow Stiliyan Petrov to score a goal, Meite nearly deflecting a weak long range shot past Carson (again!). The goalkeeper falls on the ball before Darren Bent can come in and follow it up. Meanwhile, we have our first booking of the evening, Paul Scharner going in late on Nigel Reo-Coker after being dispossessed in midfield and earning a caution for his troubles.

Both teams are just about assured safety here, so we're covering this match based on the stubborn belief that football shouldn't just be ignored because there's no point to the match or motivation on the part of either side to go for a win. So! Aston Villa travel to the Hawthorns to take on Roy Hodgson's West Bromwich Albion, and the best reason anyone can think of for either of these sides to be trying to win is because the unfortunate ill-health of Aston Villa manager Gerard Houllier will make the visitors want to win the match for him.

West Bromwich Albion (4-4-1-1): Scott Carson; Nicky Shorey, Jonas Olsson, Abdoulaye Meite, Gonzalo Jara; Carlos Vela,Youssuf Mulumbu, Paul Scharner, James Morrison; Simon Cox; Peter Odemwingie.

Substitutes: Boaz Myhill, Somen Tchoyi, Pablo Ibanez, Miller Ishmael, James Hurst, Marc-Antoine Fortune, Gabriel Tamas.

Aston Villa (4-4-2): Brad Friedel; Luke Young, Richard Dunne, James Collins, Kyle Walker; Stewart Downing, Nigel Reo-Coker, Stiliyan Petrov, Ashley Young; Gabriel Agbonlahor, Darren Bent.

Substitutes: Robert Pires, Andy Marshall, Carlos Cuellar, Michael Bradley, Fabian Delph, Ciaran Clark, Marc Albrighton.