League Cup - round up

Some League cup matches took place last night. Man City needed extra time to beat Newcastle by two goals to nil. 

Man City are definitely working harder than last year to get wins. But most importantly the hard work is paying off and they are getting good wins. 

Tottenham needed extra time and penalties to beat Hull City. From Tottenham prespective they better hope that this long match does not impact on their ability to win their next game at the weekend. 

 

But I am sure Spurs are just grateful that they won the match and have now progressed to the next stage of the League Cup competition. 

For their hardwork Man City face Leicester and Spurs face West Ham. For place in the semi- finals and these ties will be played a week before Christmas and should be good matches. 

WTA Championships - Review

The WTA Championships did not really live up to its high profile billing. This because players like Victoria Azarenka and Aga Radwanska did not play as well as they where expected to.

This meant that players like Petra Kivitova, Jelena Jankovic and Ni La who have had relatively quiet year where then able to shine.

After reading the comments that both Jelena Jankovic and Ni La made about Serena William's gamesmanship I was a little surprised. 

Both Jelena and Li Na have had average year and Serena has won eleven tournaments. As a fan I can understand why she would have been tired. 

I suspect some players might be already fed up with playing on tour with someone who some fans have given legend status. 

However Serena Williams has worked incredibly hard to achieve this and things have not always gone so well for Serena. 

But the fact she is still playing at such high level and at the age that most of her  

contemporaries have retired or thinking of retirement is amazing in itself. 

Serena's perseverance to win this tournament even though she was not feeling 100%. To me can only be admired so it is little disappointing to read comments made by fellow professionals. 

Serena to me was a worthy winner and whilst her contemporaries where falling apart. 

Serena weathered her own storm and retained her title and it was amazing to watch and to think that I was witnessing history.

League Cup - round up 29/10/13

Yesterday's league cup matches where interesting to say the least. Arsenal lost two nil to Chelsea. 

Arsene Wenger practically put out a first team squad but he chose the wrong striker in Nicholas Bendtner. 

Nicholas looked overweight and could barely run for the ball. It looks like his Arsenal first team days are long gone. 

Nicholas could prove me wrong and end up scoring some amazing goals. Somehow I doubt it, Arsene Wenger needs to get rid of him quick before he drags the team down with him. 

Other than a poor Nicholas Bendtner, there was no width or creavity in the Arsenal team. 

Arsenal has three crucial matches coming up and the first one is against Liverpool and nothing less than a win will do. 

By contrast the much maligned Man United beat Norwich City by four nil to progress to the quarter finals. This win would have eased a little bit of the pressure from David Moyes's shoulders. 

But the reality is, is that for the big clubs winning the league cup is not enough. Success is measured by winning either the Premiership, FA Cup or the Champions league. 

So Arsenal losing wasn't great but what will help is if they can win the previously mentioned trophies.

Premiership - a Roundup

Another good weekend of premiership football and Arsenal managed to beat Crystal Palace by two goals to nil. 

It's been while since Arsenal have managed to stay at the top of league for consecutive weeks. 

But like I said in my previous blog it is all about the November test for Arsenal. Which historically is the month we tend to struggle with the change of weather.

Man United came from behind twice to beat relegation bound Stoke City by three goals to two. 

David Moyes is still under massive pressure and close wins like this would not have helped his cause.

 I think that if by the start of the new year Man United are not top four then it will be hard for David Moyes to hold on to his job. 

Liverpool continued there impressive start to the season by beating West Bromwich Albion by four goals to one. 

I think Liverpool are the team to watch and this is there best start to the season for quite sometime. 

Arsenal will nervously looking over its shoulder as Liverpool have got the team and the desire to win the premiership.

Chelsea and Tottenham Spurs also recorded wins and they are only a couple of  points dividing teams in the top of the league positions. 

So it is still very early in the season with most of the top teams all doing well at the weekend.  

WTA Championships - Final

The WTA championships final took place yesterday and as widely expected Serena Williams beat Li Na in three sets to retain her title. 

It was not easy for Serena who was fighting fatigue and she lost the first set, then had to dig deep to win the remaining two sets. 

Li Na played well but I am not really sure she believes that she can beat Serena. 

 Li Na has not had a great year so reaching the final has hopefully set her up for better year next year. 

By contrast Serena has had a good year and at thirty two she is not getting any younger, but hopefully she will have a good 2014 and make even more history and break more records!

WTA Championships - Semi Finals

The semi-finals of the WTA championships took place yesterday and in the first semi-final Li Na beat Petra Kivitova in three sets. 

This was a really good win for Li Na who hasn't really had a great year. However in the final she faces the formidable Serena Williams.

Serena Williams beat Jelena Jankovic in three sets to make the final. It was a weird match in that Serena appeared to be injured. 

However on the on-court interview she said that it was tiredness that affected her game. 

So the final between Ni La and Serena Williams will be interesting as Serena is battling fatigue so this could be Li Na's best opportunity to beat her. 

WTA Championships - day three

Day three of the WTA Championships and Serena Willams beat Petra Kivitova in straight sets. 

Petra was trying so hard to win every point but Serena is just the better athlete and more comfortable in these pressure situations. 

In both sets Serena played flawless tennis hopefully she can keep this level up for the semi-finals.

Na Li also managed a very good win over Jelena Jankovic. It was a hard fought match in which Na Li eventually on in three sets.

But the shock so far of this tournament was Angelique Kerber beating  Aga Radwanksa in straight sets. 

This means that Aga goes out of this tournament with no wins and three losses. 

It was definitely a surprise for me as I didn't expect Aga lose so early. It also means she can go home get some rest and prepare for 2014.

Champions League - 24/10/13

On Wednesday both Man United and Man City played their Champions League games. 

Man United beat Real Sociedad by a goal to nil and curtesy of an own goal. Although Man United fans will be grateful for the three points, this will not help the fans to get behind David Moyes. As Man United are used to more convincing wins.

Man City beat CSKA Moscow by two goals to one. However the main talking point of this game was the racist chants directed at Man City player Ya Ya Toure. 

Toure would like football governing bodies to take stronger stand against these clubs. Whilst Toure has a valid point getting the governing body to listen and act upon Toure's recommendations will be a challenge in its self. 

But from a footballing point of view both Man United and Man City had a good night and this takes them one step closer to qualifying for the knockout stages. 

WTA Championships - day one

WTA Championships started yesterday and Serena Williams beat Angelique Kerber in straight sets. 

Serena was in fine form and barely gave Angelique an opportunity to get into the match. 

Petra Kivitova beat Aga Radwanska in straight sets. Petra was also in fine form and kept her errors down. 

Aga was apparently in tears after match and took this loss pretty badly. 

Champions League - 22/10/13

The Champions League returned yesterday and Arsenal lost at home to Borussia Dortmund. Arsenal lost the game two goals to one and after dominating for long spells. 

It all went wrong withcentral defence pairing of Mertesacker and Koscielny who both seem to go missing. 

This is because Mertesacker lacks pace and Koscielny often makes tactical errors in the big matches. 

All is definitely not lost and we can still qualify for the knock out stages. Arsenal are away to Borussia Dortmund in the next match and ideally we need to get at least a draw out of that match.

Elsewhere Chelsea beat FC Schalke 04 by three goals to nil. It has put them top of the table and in a good position to qualify for knock out stages. 

WTA end of year tour championships - Podcast

Please click on the link below to listen to my preview of the end of year championship.

VR Online Service: 2013-10-21 15_00_32

Premiership round up

The premiership was back this weekend after the international games and for some teams like Arsenal they picked up where they left off. 

Arsenal beat Norwich City by four goals to one, at home and what made this victory even sweeter was the fact that Mesut Ozil scored his first home premiership goals. 

It was also nice to see Carzola back and Ramsey on the score sheet. In my opinion Arsenal don't have eleven world beaters. But what they do have is great team spirit and a never give up attitude. 

The test will really come for a Arsenal in November and that is historically for Arsenal a lean period. 

So if we can get a couple of wins and some draws then we will definitely be challenging for the title this season.

That win Against Norwich City put Arsenal top of the league and three points ahead of the chasing pack. 

Liverpool who where joint top with Arsenal drew two all against Newcastle and it was a good point for Liverpool. As they are going to mount a strong challenge for the title this season.

Man City beat a West Ham by three goals to one to keep them in the top four places. 

Tottenham beat Aston Villa by two goals to nil to keep them in fifth position. Chelsea beat Cardiff City by four goals to one and they are now second in the league behind Arsenal.

However the most unexpected result of the weekend was Man United drawing one all with Southampton. 

As I was listening to the match on the radio I didn't really see how Southampton where going to get back into the match. 

But low and behold a minute before the ninetieth minute Lallana scored the equaliser. It's the kind of result that would  have heaped more pressure on David Moyes's shoulders. 

But to be fair to Southampton they are currently top five for a reason. So there hard work in securing the draw should not be ignored. 

If I was a Man United fan I would be a little worried purely because I cannot remember the last time Man United where eighth in league. 

But at the same time the league does not get decided in October. So there is still lots to play for!

 

World Cup - round up

World Cup qualification matches took place on Tuesday and England beat Poland two goals to nil.

I was surprised with the ease in which England beat Poland. However England  have a long way to go to before they can convince me that they are potential champions.

Elsewhere the reigning World and European champions, Spain, qualified after beating Georgia by two goals to nil.

Spain's team is stronger than ever and they even recently gave the Swansea City player Michu his first international call up. To me they are one of the teams to beat.

In the African qualification section, Ghana beat Egypt by six goal to one. This was an outstanding performance by Ghana.

It is not often that Ghana wins game with such an emphatic scoreline. I think that Michael Essien return to the team has boosted the midfield and made them more clinical in front the goal.

 It should hopefully mean that the away leg in Egypt will be a is just a formality and Ghana would hopefully have qualified for their World Cup.

WTA - Luxembourg

WTA Luxembourg started this week and Heather Watson lost in three sets to Yanina Wickmayer. 

Yanina is good former top twenty player. Heather is not playing well and with little  confidence. 

Now that the tennis season is nearly over, it should give her time to regroup and play better. 

 

Sloane Stephens won her first round with relative ease. Sloane now faces Yvonne Meusburger in the second match tomorrow.

Sabine Liscki and Caroline Wozniacki are playing in this tournament. So the semi - finals and the finals should be good one.

World Cup qualifiers round up

The World Cup qualifiers took place over the weekend England beat Montenegro by four goals to one. Now need to beat Poland at Wembly to ensure qualification to Brazil 2014.

The star of the match went to the Tottenham winger Andros Townsend who helped set up Wayne Rooney's goal and then scored his own goal. 

It's good to see Roy Hodgson is prepared to take risks and play players with little or no international experience. It was a good win for England but I expect Poland to be tougher opposition.

Elsewhere Germany secured its place in the final by beating Republic of Ireland three goals to nil. This also end Ireland's chance of qualifying.

In the African qualifiers Nigeria beat Ethiopia by two goals to one which has brought Nigeria little closer to qualification. 

Ivory Coast beat Senegal three goals to one to take them a step closer to qualification. 

Tunisia drew nil nil with Cameron so this match like the others in the African qualifiers have it all play for to secure qualification to Brazil 2014. 

WTA HP Open, Osaka, Japan - Final

The HP Open Osaka, final took place over the weekend, Samantha Stosur beat Eugenie Bouchard in three sets.

It was very much a match which had the experience of Sam Stosur up against the teen Eugenie Bouchard. 

Eventually Sam's experience of big matches helped her to secure the match and the title. 

But Eugenie's performance in this tournament will make her contender for titles in 2014 and will certainly make the tennis elite take notice.

WTA Generali Linz - Final

The Generali Linz final took place over the weekend Angelique Kerber beat Ana Ivanovic in straight sets. 

Angelique had already gained enough points to compete in the WTA end of year tournament. 

But Angelique's win was somewhat controversial as she was a last minute entrant for this tournament. Which meant that another player had their wild card rescinded. 

However should not take way from Angelique's win and hopefully she will start to do better at the Grand Slams in 2014.

WTA Generali Ladies Linz -

The quarter finals of the WTA Linz tournament took place today and Sloane Stephens lost in three sets to Stefanie Vogele. 

This was a bad loss for Sloane who was at one point a game away from winning the match. 

It means that she has also missed out on qualification for the end of year tournament and most importantly has yet to win any WTA titles. 

So Stefanie Vogele alongside Angelique Keber, Ana Ivanovic and Carla Suarez make up the semi - finals. 

It is a pretty open tournament but I would not be surprised if Angelique Kerber won this title.

WTA HP Open, Osaka. Japan

WTA HP Open Osaka quarter finals took place today and Madison Keys the teenage American recorded a good win straight victory over Jie Zheng.

Madison could potentially win this tournament but there was also good quarter finals win are Eugenie Bouchard and Sam Stosur. 

This tournament has got the experience Sam Stosur and the up and coming teenagers like Eugenie Bouchard and Madison Keys and it certainly helps to make this tournament more interesting and watchable.

 

WTA Generali Ladies Linz -Second round

The second round of the Generali Ladies Linz tournament took place yesterday. Sloane Stephens beat Andrea Petkovic in three sets and this was a good win for Sloane.

As Sloane has not been playing her best tennis, so this tournament gives Sloane an opportunity to win her first WTA title. 

I do think Sloane is one of the few teengers on the WTA tour that can win big. But that the moment she lacks that hunger and even come accross as someone who sees tennis a hobby and not a profession.

If Sloane wants to win this tournament she is going have to up her game. As Anglique Kerber, Ana Ivanovic and Kirsten Flipkens all had good second round wins.

There is still one spot left for the end of year tournament and I am hoping that if Sloane wins this tournament she will get the last spot.

                                                   (sportsillustrated.com)

WTA HP Open, Osaka, Japan- podcast

Something a little different for this blog!

My take on Laura Robson and Heather Watson's participation in the Osaka Open.

Click here to listen to my podcast



 

Premiership round up 06/10/13

Well it was definitely an exciting weekend of Premiership matches. 

Manchester United beat Sunderland two goals to one and had to come from behind to secure the win. 

This has taken the pressure of David Moyes as I suspect if they had lost this match. There would have been fans out there who would have demanded that he be sacked. 

Liverpool beat Crystal Palace three goals to one to maintain there impressive start to the season. 

Man City also had a good win as they beat Everton by three goals to one and that win ensured that they stay top five in the league.

Chelsea had a good win against Norwich who they beat by three goals to one and that keeps them third in the league. 

Arsenal drew one all to West Bromwich Albion which was not a bad result as we are still joint top of the league with Liverpool.

But at the same time drawing to teams like West Brom is not good for team that like Arsenal that desperately needs to win a trophy after eight trophy less years.

 I am hoping that this was a blip and we will get back to our winning ways after the international break. 

But the shock result of the weekend was title challenging Tottenham losing three goals to nil at home to West Ham. 

This has now put them sixth in the league like I said in previous blogs. I can't seem them mounting a serious challenge in the league as Spurs are too inconsistent. But who knows they might prove me wrong, somehow I doubt it.

WTA Beijing Open - Final

The final of the Beijing Open took place yesterday and Serena Williams beat Jelena Jankovic in straight sets. 

Serena was very dominant in the first set and Jelena did not get many chance to break. The second was little more competitive but this was  more to do with the fact that both Serena and Jelena where carrying injuries. 

Other than one services blip in the second set Serena's serve was on fire! and alot of the time the ball was whistling past Jelena's ears.

 However Jelena played well and against in other player she would have got a better result.

 But the reality is Serena at the grand old age of thirty two, is light years ahead of the other women. I would say this is largely due to her athleticism and that amazing serve. 

If the other ladies on the tour want to beat Serena they really need to work on their fitness first and foremost. 

As much as I enjoy watching Serena win, her matches are far more fun when Serena is stretched to the limit. 

I am hoping that Serena's match will be a little more competitive and not just a forgone conclusion. 

WTA Beijing Open - Semi-Finals

The semi- finals took place yesterday and Serena Williams beat Aga Radwanska comfortably and in straight sets.  

Serena did have injury time out for her back but she was still able to close out the set and win the match. 

Serena will play Jelena Jankovic in the final. As Jelena beat Petra Kivitova in three sets. 

The final between Serena and Jelena takes place today. It promises to be a good match as Jelena last beat Serena in in the Charleston final in 2012.

WTA Beijing Open- Quarter finals

Yesterday was quarter finals day and Serena Williams beat Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets. 

To be fair it was always going to be a challenge for Caroline. The second set was more more competitive, but that was because Serena started to relax after racing into a four love lead. 

I would say that in this tournament I have seen Caroline play some good tennis. If she can keep this up then she might start going a little further in the Grand Slams.

Agnieszka Radwanska beat Angelique Kerber in straight sets. However this was a strange match where in the first set Agnieszka raced into a five to one lead. 

Then Angelique worked hard and clawed it back and brought it to a tie break. Angelique then had three set points and could not take any of them. 

She never got over losing the first set and the second set came went quickly too. 

So Agniezka Radwanska will play Serena Williams the semi- finals. Agnieska  likes to get every ball back into play and Serena likes to blast winners from anywhere. Therefore it should be an interesting match. 

In the other quarter finals Jelena Jankovic     

beat Lucie Safarova in three sets. Petra Kivitova beat Ni La in three sets, so Petra and Jelena will play against in each other the semi-finals. 

WTA Beijing Open- 3rd round

The third round matches took place yesterday and Serena Williams beat Maria Kirilenko in straight sets. But it was a much closer encounter than I expected. 

I think because Serena is a little tired now so we are not seeing the type of efficient tennis she would normally play. She will now goes through to play Caroline Wozniacki in the quarter finals.  

Caroline Wozniacki beat a very poor Sloane Stephens in straight sets. Sloane seemed a little off her game and she is challenging for a top ten ranking.

However the way she played today as probably been a ranking set back. But she is young so hopefully she will learn from this loss.

Both Angelique Kerber and Agnieszka Radwanska won their respective matches. They will each other in tomorrow's night match.

Champions League Round Up 03/10/13

Champion league games took place this week. Arsenal beat Napoli two goals to nil. 

It was very good win for Arsenal and Mesut Ozil scored his first goal. The Arsenal defence played well and it has brought us that step closer to qualifying the second round. 

Chelsea had good night and as they beat Steaua Bucharest four goals to nil. This was much a needed result for Chelsea as  they lost there first game and if they had lost this game it would have made qualification for second round difficult. 

Both Manchester City and Manchester United did not have good nights. Manchester City lost lost three goals to one to Bayern Munich. 

But it is not that bad for them they still have every opportunity to qualify for the second round. 

I have to say I was shocked that Manchester United drew one all to Shakhtar  Donetsk. 

It's kind of result that heaps even more pressure on David Moyes's shoulders. It is still early in the group stages but fans can be inpatient. 

So I think a couple more poor results for Man United and Moyes will be fighting to hold on to his job.