Senegal Knocked out of Africa Cup of Nations by co-hosts Equatorial Guinea

As if being beaten in their opening match by Zambia’s Chipolopolo was not enough, the much fancied Teranga Lions were convincingly beaten by the co-hosts Equaorial Guinea by two goals to one, making their last match in group A, against Libya just a formality.

Cisse scored 35 goals in 95 league games for Metz before joining Freiburg

Despite having a unrivalled striking power in the likes of Newcastle United and English premier league second top scorer Demba Ba and Demba Cisse, whom they bought from Bundesliga club Freiburg on 17^th of this month and who is to join the club in a five-and-a-half-year deal, they could not beat the crafty Zambians in the opening match.

They could not master the killer finish in their match against Guinea who had several motivators for winning the match. The Equatorial Guinea team was awarded $1 million for winning their match against Libya and the striker who scored the goal $ 20,000. There was a promise of a similar amount for every match that they won and $ 20,000 to every player who scored a goal from the son of the President.

But it would be harsh to say that their only motivation is money. They are playing at home as the co-hosts and therefore have great support from the home fans and having qualified for the first time, are determined to make history.

Newcastle fans will be smiling all the way to the stadium including Manager Alan Pardew because the two strikers could be back in time for their game against Blackburn.

There is no telling what the combined force of the two will do for their team. Demba Ba has scored 15 league goals so far and Cisse has a great goal scoring record having netted 9 goals in 15 games this season. He will wear the number nine shirt, formerly won by legendary Newcastle and top scorer, Alan Shearer.

Too sad Senegal didn’t live to the expectations of many who thought that they would go ahead and win the African Nations Cup but it’s quite an opposite feeling if you are a Newcastle United fan.

Balotellis’ stamp mars a great weekend of football in the Barclays Premier League

Does Manchester clubs win against their London rivals make the race for the title a two horse race?

It was yet another busy weekend in the English Premier League, with the super Sunday clash between the Manchester Clubs and London clubs. Man City were at home to Tottenham while Man U traveled to Emirates to face Arsenal.

Manchester City beat Tottenham Hotspur 3 – 2 to maintain their lead at the summit of the Barclays Premier League while Manchester United who were away at Emirates beat their bitter rivals Arsenal 2 – 1 to keep up with pace of the league leaders.  

Mario Balotelli won it for City with an injury-time penalty giving the Premier League leaders a vital victory after Tottenham's stirring comeback looked set to earn them a point at Etihad Stadium.

City set the platform for a win early in the second half with two quick goals from Samir Nasri and Joleon Lescott - but Spurs delivered a devastating response as an opportunist goal from Jermain Defoe and a magnificent strike from Gareth Bale drew them level in a burst of four goals in nine minutes.

The great match however was marred by Balotelli who appeared to stamp on the head of Tottenhams’ Scott Parker after a clash. He is now facing a four-match ban after being charged with violent conduct by the Football Association. In my own opinion it was an intentional stamp and somehow a stupid move from him and he deserves to be banned. I just hope that he will grow up and stop this “Why always me” attitude.

Danny Welbeck's late strike gave Manchester United victory at Arsenal and kept them three points behind Premier League leaders Manchester City.

After a quiet opening Ryan Giggs picked out Antonio Valencia to head United in front at the far post.
Arsenal improved after the break and although Robin van Persie missed a clear chance, he made amends by finding the bottom corner from 15 yards out.

But United won it as Valencia ghosted through and Welbeck lashed home.

It was the third successive defeat for the Gunners who had lost to Swansea and Fulham in their previous league matches.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was very impressive on the wing and gave Manchester United right back Patrice Evra a torrid time. Arsenal were on the verge of adding a second but that tempo was drastically diminished when Wenger brought in Arshavin in place of the Ox, much to the disapproval from the fans and other players including the Captian, Robin Van Persie. Djourou was substituted on the interval after a poor performance in the first half. He had a hard time containing Nani. His replacement, 18-year-old Nicholas Yennaris did a much better job.

On Saturday, Bolton surprised by beating Liverpool 3 – 1 to move out of relegation for the first time this season. M Davies scored in the fourth minute, Reo-Coker 29^th minute and Steinsson sealed the win in the 50^th minute. Bellamy pulled one back in the 37^th minute but it wasn’t enough.

Everton drew one all with Blackburn, Fulham thrashed Newcastle 5-2 with Clint Dempsey scoring a hart trick. Chelsea had a disappointing barren draw at Norwich, QPR beat Wigan 3 – 1, Stoke were beaten at home by two goals to one by West Brom, Sunderland beat Swansea 2 – 0 at home while Aston Villa beat a stubborn Wolverhampton by 3 – 2 who were at home.

These results leaves both Man City and Man U ahead of the pack with five points between Man U and third placed Tottenham. By the look of things, the two Manchester clubs are really in the battle for the title, while the London clubs: Tottenham, Chelsea and Arsenal seem destined to battle for Champions League spots so far. Whether this will change or not, only time will tell. They had a great opportunity to change all that and make the title race wide open last weekend but they failed.

Below is the Premier League table as it stood on Sunday, 22 January 2012 17:58 UK

	Team	P	GD	PTS
1	Man City	22	42	54
2	Man Utd	22	33	51
3	Tottenham	22	17	46
4	Chelsea	22	15	41
5	Arsenal	22	6	36
6	Newcastle	22	2	36
7	Liverpool	22	4	35
8	Stoke	22	-10	30
9	Norwich	22	-4	29
10	Sunderland	22	5	27
11	Aston Villa	22	-3	27
12	Fulham	22	-3	26
13	Swansea	22	-4	26
14	Everton	22	-4	26
15	West Brom	22	-9	25
16	QPR	22	-15	20
17	Bolton	22	-19	19
18	Blackburn	22	-12	18
19	Wolves	22	-15	18
20	Wigan	22	-26	15

Equatorial Guinea beat Libya as Zambia’s Chipolopolo stun Senegal as the Africa Nations Cup, 2012 kicks off.

The premier continental football competition is here again. Before we go to details and the groups its’ good to start with some history of this magnificent football showdown.

The Africa Cup of Nations, also known as African Nations Cup, officially CAN (French for Coupe d’Afrique des Nations) which is the main international association football competition in Africa was first held in 1957 sanctioned by CAF (Confederations of African Football). It has been held every two years since 1968.

In 1957, there were only three participating nations: Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia.

Africa Nations Cup Trophy

Since then, the tournament has grown greatly, making it necessary to hold a qualifying tournament. The number of participants reached 16 in 1998. Since then, the format has been unchanged with sixteen teams being drawn into four groups of four teams each. The top two teams from each group advance to a knock-out stage.

Egypt is the country that is most successful in the cup’s history, having won the tournament a record seven times. Ghana and Cameroon have won four titles each.Three different trophies have been awarded during the tournament’s history, with Ghana and Cameroon winning the first two versions to keep after each of them won a tournament three times. The current trophy was first awarded in 2002 and with Egypt winning it indefinitely after winning their unprecedented third consecutive title in 2010.

As of 2013, the tournament will switch to being held in odd-numbered years so that it does not clash with the FIFA World Cup.

This year’s tournament is an interesting one since most African Football powerhouses are missing in action. These countries didn’t qualify for the competition and this might be an indication of the development of football and how competitive the sport has become on the continent.



The football giants that are missing include: Egypt, Nigeria, Cameroon, Algeria and South Africa.

The tournament is being co-hosted by two countries: Equatorial Guinea and Gabon 

The four groups are as follows:

Group A
ZAMBIA
GUINEA EQ.
LIBYA
SENEGAL

Group B

COTE D’IVOIRE

SUDAN

BURKINA FASO  

ANGOLA

Group C

GABON

NIGER

MOROCCO

TUNISIA

Group D

GHANA

BOTSWANA

MALI

GUINEA

Group A pits tournament co-hosts - and debutants - Equatorial Guinea against surprise qualifiers Libya, Nations Cup regulars Zambia and Senegal, one of the tournament outsiders.
Until the last round of matches, the group will be played in Bata on the Equatorial Guinea mainland.

 

EQ GUINEA FACTFILE

• Nickname: Nzalang Nacional (National Lightning)
• Coach: Gilson Paulo
• Captain: Rodolfo Bodipo
• Nations Cup record: Tournament debutants
• Fifa ranking: 151

LIBYA FACTFILE

• Nickname: Mediterranean Knights
• Coach: Marcos Paqueta
• Captain: Samir Aboud
• Nations Cup record: Making third appearance
• Best Performance: Runners-Up (1982)
• Fifa ranking: 63

ZAMBIA FACTFILE

• Nickname: The Chipolopolo
• Coach: Herve Renard
• Captain: Chris Katongo
• Nations Cup record: Making 15th appearance
• Best Performance: Runners-Up (1974, 1994)
• Fifa ranking: 71

Two group A matches were played in the opening day of the tournament – 21^st January, 2012. The co-hosts Equatorial Guinea played Libya and beat them 1 – 0. In the other match, Zambia played against the much fancied Teranga Lions of Senegal. Zambia produced an impressive performance and they beat Senegal by 2 – 1. Emmanuel Mayuka opened the scoring for Zambia after 12 minutes, with Rainford Kalaba doubling their lead seven minutes later.

Senegal substitute Dame Ndoye pulled one back for Senegal with a beautifully taken strike.
There are more matches slated for today and we will keep you updated and informed.

*******
Meanwhile, it is super Sunday in the English Premier League, with the city of Manchester facing North London. Tottenham Hotspur visit Etihad stadium to face top of the table Manchester City while Manchester United are at Emirates to face their arch rivals Arsenal who will be looking to revenge their 8 – 2 defeat at Old Trafford early in the season.

Enjoy watching and remember to come back for results and analysis.

Mark Lawrenson column: Vincent Kompany and Glen Johnson incidents show referees need more help and clearer guidelines - Mark Lawrenson - MirrorFootball.co.uk

Mark Lawrenson column: Vincent Kompany and Glen Johnson incidents show referees need more help and clearer guidelines - Mark Lawrenson - MirrorFootball.co.uk

Mark Lawrenson column: Emmanuel Adebayor slump will ensure Tottenham don't win the title - Mark Lawrenson - MirrorFootball.co.uk

Mark Lawrenson column: Emmanuel Adebayor slump will ensure Tottenham don't win the title - Mark Lawrenson - MirrorFootball.co.uk

Man City restore their 3 point lead at the top while Arsenal fall off the pace thanks to the brilliant Swans

It was yet another very busy weekend in the English Premier League.

On Saturday, the 14^th January, 2012, Aston Villa were away to Everton, Blackburn visited Fulham while Chelsea welcomed Sunderland at The Bridge. Liverpool were at home to Stoke while Manchester United entertained Bolton at Old Trafford. Tottenham welcomed Wolves at White Hart lane while West Brom were at home to Norwich City.

The results were as varied and unpredictable as always in the Barclays Premier League.

Manchester United moved level on points with their city rivals Manchester City on 48 points after beating Bolton 3 – 0. There was nothing un expected with this result as Bolton has been in the relegation zone since the season begun. Paul Scholes scored the opener on his return from retirement.

Aston Villa were held to a one all draw by Everton while Blackburn beat Fulham by three goals to one. Chelsea beat Sunderland by a solitary goal to move to forty points. Frank Lampard scored his eleventh goal of the season to guarantee Chelsea all the three points and enable them a firm grip on the fourth place. Tottenham missed the chance to move level on points with Man U and Man City after they were held to a one all draw by Wolves

EPL Results @14 Jan 2012

·  Aston Villa   1-1 Everton

·  Blackburn     3-1 Fulham

·  Chelsea        1-0 Sunderland

·  Liverpool      0-0 Stoke

·  Man Utd      3-0 Bolton

·  Tottenham    1-1 Wolves

·  West Brom   1-2 Norwich

Arsenal were away on Sunday the 15^th to Swansea City while Newcastle were at home to

QPR.

Arsenal drifted further away from the top four when they were beaten by three goals to two by Swansea City. It was the first time since 1982 for the Gunner to be beaten by the Swans. Arsenal really missed the services of midfiel maestro Mikel Arteta and Swansea ruled the midfield with possession for long periods. The Gunners took an early lead with a well-taken Robin van Persie goal but Swansea equalized from the spot. Scott Sinclair converted a penalty after Aaron Ramsey's foul before Nathan Dyer clipped the Swans in front.

The Welsh captain was very poor with the ball and lost possession several times and in one of those incidences, Swansea went ahead in the second half when he lost the ball and Dyer slammed home to make it 2 – 1. Theo Walcott dinked over Michel Vorm to level but, less than a minute later, Danny Graham slotted home the winner.

Wenger cried wolf over the penalty decision but blamed the poor defending for Arsenal’s loss. Swansea played great passing football and deserved all the three points.

Newcastle United beat QPR – Queens Park Ranger to move to sixth position and level with on points with fifth placed Arsenal.

EPL Results @ 15 Jan 2012

·  Newcastle    1-0  QPR

·  Swansea       3-2  Arsenal

Man City were away on Monday night to Wigan.

Edin Dzeko heads home for Man City

Wigan played a great game to try and move from the bottom of the table but conceded a solitary goal and remained at the bottom of the league with just fifteen points from twenty one games.

Edin Dzeko's header saw Manchester City beat Wigan to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League to three points over Manchester United. The Bosnian leapt to deftly flick home David Silva's free-kick from the left midway through the first half.

Joe Hart denied James McArthur and James McCarthy who had good chances.

Man City now has fifty one points from twenty one games and anyone who had doubts of them being serious contenders for the premier league title should ....well ...... think again!

Man City opens a three point gap as Man U falls to a resolute Newcastle United

It was an interesting and a very busy week in the English Premier League.

Man City recovered after that shocking defeat of 1 – 0 by Sunderland when they beat Liverpool 3 – 0 at home. Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina's error gifted Sergio Aguero an early goal and Yaya Toure rose to head home David Silva's corner for a second before the break. Milner converted the penalty for the third after a foul on Yaya Toure by Skrtel.

They opened a three point gap at the top of the premier league table after Manchester United lost their second game in a row when they were beaten by Newcastle United 3 – 0. Demba Ba was on target to net in his 15^th goal of the season. Yohan Cabaye doubled Newcastle's lead with a 30-yard free-kick before Phil Jones diverted in a late own goal.

Arsenal were on away duty to Fulham. They dominated for the first 45 minutes and their only reward was a headed goal from defender Laurent Koscielny in the 21^st minute. Gervinho was, however, unlucky not to win a penalty when he was tripped by Senderos after good work from Robin van Persie. Arsenal however were wasteful in attack, with Theo Walcott and Gervinho particularly frustrating in their inability to finish off some free-flowing moves.

Fulham had a great turn around in the second half. Steve Sidwell headed an equaliser in the 85th minute and Zamora volleyed home to seal a dramatic victory. Arsenal’s Manager, Arsene Wenger criticized the referee decisions among them the sending off of Djourou for a foul on Zamora.

Lampard steers in his 89th-minute winner.

Chelsea beat a determined Wolverhampton when Frank Lampard scored a last-gasp winner as Chelsea secured a first win in five matches with a gutsy and much-improved display against Wolves at Molineux. Stephen Ward seemed to have earned the hosts a point when he smashed Steven Fletcher's cross low into the net.

Tottenham kept up the pressure on the title-chasing Manchester clubs with a hard-fought victory over West Brom. The Baggies frustrated Spurs for more than an hour before striker Jermain Defoe broke their resolve. The diminutive striker, spun on the spot before firing in after good work by Rafael van der Vaart and Gareth Bale.

Here is a snapshot of all the results during the week.

2 Jan 2012 23:59 UK

• Aston Villa 0-2 Swansea
• Blackburn 1-2 Stoke
• Fulham 2-1 Arsenal
• QPR 1-2 Norwich
• Wolves 1-2 Chelsea

3 Jan 2012 23:59 UK

·  Man City 3-0 Liverpool

·  Tottenham 1-0 West Brom
·  Wigan 1-4 Sunderland

4 Jan 2012 23:59 UK

• Everton 1-2 Bolton
• Newcastle 3-0 Man Utd

Today there is a cracker of a match in the FA Cup. It will be a derby at Etihad Stadium between Man City and Man U. Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has claimed that rivals Manchester United are still the team to beat but I think he is playing mind games as usual. We wait and see how his team performs without his Talisman Yaya Toure and his Brother Koro Toure who are off to play for Ivory Coast in the Africa Cup of Nations.

United boss Alex Ferguson has played down the significance of "two bad results" ahead of the derby and Mancini also refuted suggestions that City's neighbours are on the slide.

Alex Ferguson handed an awful birthday present as the English Premier League takes an unanticipated turn.

Maybe I spoke too soon about the premier league being a two horse race.

Man U and Man City were both beaten this weekend by some lowly opposition. I would say he Manchester Clubs were united in defeat! Alex Ferguson was handed a not so cool birthday present as he celebrated his seventieth birthday. Manchester United hosted Blackburn Rovers in the early kick off on Saturday new years’ eve matches and Blackburn beat the hosts 3 – 2. No one ever predicted Blackburn would get anything from this match. What the United manager should do is stop whining about the pitch and concentrate on the real issues.

Ji Dong-won rounds Joe Hart to score with the last kick of the game

Manchester City were away to Sunderland and they were beaten by a 93rd minute strike from Sunderland’s Ji Dong-won. Man City were aiming to capitalise on Manchester United's loss to Blackburn, but came up against a determined display by Martin O'Neill's side.

Chelsea played hosts to Aston Villa in the other clash. It was somehow even with Chelsea with much of the possession and Villa playing more of a counter attack game. It ended one all in the first half. Didier Drogba had converted a penalty in the 23^rd minute to put the hosts ahead but Ireland equalized five minutes later. In the second half, ten minutes to time Villas counter attacking play paid off when Petrov scored in the 83^rd minute to put Villa ahead and three minutes later Bent put the game beyond Chelsea with a well slotted shot into an unguarded net after great unselfish play from Ireland who was ultimately the man of the match.

Arsenal hosted Queens Park Rangers at the Emirates stadium. They were intent on getting all the three points after their disappointing draw with Wolves. Robin Van Persie had several chances to score but he missed them. No doubt the pressure on the top scorer in the EPL was very high since everyone expected him to break Alan Shearer’s record of 36 premier league goals in one calendar year. He was just two goals shot on that record. The game wasn’t much to write home about. Theo Walcott missed a clear chance after the break but Van Persie struck with a low finish from Andrey Arshavin's pass and by so doing, he passed Thierry Henry's club scoring record for a year but finished one shy of Alan Shearer's all-time mark. The game ended one – nil and pushed Arsenal from sixth position to fourth, two points ahead of Chelsea and sixth placed Liverpool.

Van Persie finishes the year with 50 goals in all competitions

It was a perfect weekend for Arsenal since they moved to fourth position of the table for the first time this season and now nine points behind league leaders Manchester City. Their London rivals Spurs drew with Swansea City.

Here are the Premier League Results:

31 Dec 2011 23:59 UK

·                                 Arsenal                         1-0       QPR

·                                 Bolton                          1-1       Wolves

·                                 Chelsea                        1-3       Aston Villa

·                                 Man Utd                      2-3       Blackburn

·                                 Norwich                       1-1       Fulham

·                                 Stoke                           2-2       Wigan

·                                 Swansea                       1-1       Tottenham

Sunday, 1 January 2012

·                                  

·                                 Sunderland                 1-0      Man City

·                                 West Brom                 0-1     Everton

Today’s English Premier League Fixtures (Monday, 2^nd January 2012)

·                                 Aston Villa v Swansea   15:00

·                                 Blackburn v Stoke         15:00

·                                 Fulham v Arsenal          17:30

·                                 QPR v Norwich            15:00

·                                 Wolves v Chelsea          15:00

The EPL is turning out to be very intriguing this season and the team that will win it this season ..well your guess is as good as mine.