On Saturday there were only five Premier League games due to FA Cup action... but that certainly didn’t mean there was a shortage of action.
Oh no.
Cardiff prevailed in a ding-dong relegation battle vs. Fulham, Manchester United’s offense finally clicked and hammered West Brom, Chelsea went seven points clear at the top with a huge win over Tottenham and plenty more action occurred in the other PL games.
Below you get a neatly wrapped package including recaps, analysis and video highlights as this roundup provides you with everything you missed from Saturday’s PL action in Week 29.
Here it goes, folks. Enjoy.
Massive. Massive. Massive win for Cardiff City against fellow struggles Fulham. The Bluebirds scored early through Steve Caulker but Lewis Holtby equalized for Fulham to make it 1-1 with 30 minutes to go. Cardiff responded superbly to conceding, as Caulker quickly bagged his and Cardiff’s second, then a scrappy goal that Fraizer Campbell claimed made it 3-1 late on. Cardiff are now only in the relegation zone on goal difference, while Fulham are five points adrift from safety at the bottom but Felix Magath thinks they can still stay up...
For almost an hour Spurs were the better team at Stamford Bridge... then the game turned on its head in three crazy second half minutes. First Samuel Eto’o put the Blues 1-0 up following Jan Vertonghen’s slip up, then Eto’o (who was only starting due to Torres being injured in the warm-up) won a penalty and Kaboul was sent off for taking him down. Eden Hazard scored the PK and two late goals from Demba Ba gave Chelsea the 4-0 win, which was slightly harsh on Spurs. The Blues are now seven points clear at the top of the standings and unbeaten in 14 games.
Crystal Palace 0-1 Southampton
Saints stopped the rot after losing three games in a row across all competitions. Jay Rodriguez’s bizarre first half strike, which saw him score while sitting down after winning a tackle with Palace’s ‘keeper, was enough to snatch all three points as Saints out-battled Palace. The Eagles remain in the thick of the relegation battle after this result, while Saints are steady in ninth and looking to break into the top six.
The Canaries let this one slip as a strike from Bradley Johnson was cancelled out by a penalty kick by Johnathan Walters in the second half. Norwich are now just four points above the drop zone with the teams below them having games in hand. As for Stoke, they aren’t out of trouble yet, but a late red card for goalscorer Walter tested their resolved and the Potters held on for a decent point.
West Bromwich Albion 0-3 Manchester United
After the game David Moyes declared himself delighted with United’s marauding offensive performance away at the Hawthorns. Phil Jones headed United into an early lead and the Red Devils withstood strong pressure from the home team before Wayne Rooney made it 2-0 in the second half. Late on Rooney set up substitute Danny Welbeck to make it 3-0 as United returned to winning ways with a bang. They are now in sixth place, just nine points away from Manchester City in fourth but they have two games in hand of United. Regardless, United’s front four of Mata, Rooney, RVP and Januzaj are starting to click and Marouane Fellaini looked superb in midfield.