Aston Villa keeper Brad Friedel stopped this shot by West Ham’s Craig Bellamy.
(Getty Images)
Brad Friedel kept another clean sheet on Saturday, his seventh of the season, and helped lift Aston Villa to third place in the league table. Friedel made several inspired saves on the day, including a great parry of a Craig Bellamy shot and a tremendous stop off a vicious long effort from Valon Behrami.
The visitors were gifted the winning goal in the 78th minute when James Milner’s cross bounced off West Ham’s Lucas Neill and into the net. Friedel preserved the win with one last save, stopping a close-range effort from Calum Davenport in the closing minutes. In total, Friedel stopped eight shots on the day, his second highest total of the season.
Villa now sit two points above Manchester United, although the Red Devils have two games in hand, and three points ahead of fifth-place Arsenal. Although a Premiership championship seems highly unlikely, it’s notable to mention that Martin O’Neill’s boys are only five points behind leaders Liverpool.
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The Boxing Day showdown with Arsenal is fast approaching, and a win could ensure that this top-four battle rages on throughout the campaign.
Premiership
Tim Howard, Evertonvs. Chelsea (Monday)
Up Next: Friday, away to Middlesbrough.
Brad Friedel, Aston Villavs. West Ham (90 minutes, 8 saves, 0 goals conceded)
See above.
Up Next: Friday, home to Arsenal.
Brad Guzan and Eric Lichaj, Aston Villavs. Hamburg SV (90 minutes, 6 saves, 3 goals conceded)
With Villa already through to the knockout stages of the UEFA Cup, Martin O’Neill fielded a less than stellar squad on Wednesday against Hamburg. The Germany outfit got off to a flying start, scoring twice in the opening 30 minutes on the way to a 3-1 win. Guzan played admirably, stopping six shots, but was a victim off some poor defending and got touched up along the way. Both Carlos Cuellar and Zat Knight looked shaky throughout and Hamburg’s finishing was first class on the day.
Clint Dempsey, Fulhamvs. Middlesbrough (90 minutes, 1 goal)
Dempsey grabbed his second goal of the season on Saturday, touching up Middlesbrough in the 59th minute for the third Fulham goal of the day. The 25-year-old midfielder scored after some great buildup play from Andy Johnson and Danny Murphy. Johnson threaded the ball from the left flank to Murphy, whose pass to the right side of the box found Dempsey, setting up a perfect one-on-one with the keeper which Dempsey won with a low shot into the left corner. The Cottagers moved up to eighth place in the league table and are now just 12 points behind their total from all of last season, a huge improvement no doubt.
Up Next: Friday, away to Tottenham.
Jonathan Spector, West Hamvs. Aston Villa (DNP)
Spector is still not active for the struggling Hammers, who have now slipped to 17th in the table. They sit just one point out of the drop zone and look like they’ll be in that dogfight all season.
Up Next: Friday, away to Portsmouth.
Championship Roundup:
Marcus Hahnemann and Bobby Convey, Reading
Hahnemann, still sidelined with an injury, watched on as Reading picked up a huge 3-1 win on Saturday against Birmingham City. The victory catapults the Royals into second place in the Championship. Hahnemann should be back shortly after the New Year, while Convey’s place remains in question.
Eddie Johnson, Cardiff
Johnson got on during the waning moments of Cardiff’s 2-0 victory over Sheffield Wednesday. The striker could barely work up a sweat before the full-time whistle was blown. Although Johnson’s role has decreased recently, he should be happy just to be out there every week as his play has been below average this season.
Jay DeMerit, Watford
DeMerit, still a bit banged up, came on in the second half during Watford’s 1-0 loss to Derby on Saturday. The defender could not help preserve the draw for the visitors, as Rob Hulse headed home the winner in the 83rd minute. Nacer Barazite crossed in a nice ball that Hulse picked out for the only goal of the match.
Frank Simek, Sheffield Wednesday
An injury-ravaged Wednesday only fielded four substitutes for Saturday’s contest with Cardiff. Simek was absent from the side and his presence was sorely missed as the Bluebirds dominated possession and ultimately held the Owls to just one shot on target.
Meanwhile up in Scotland …
DaMarcus Beasley and Maurice Edu, Rangersvs. Hibernian (both DNP)
Beasley was on the substitutes list but did not get on as Rangers earned a slim 1-0 win over Hibernian on Saturday. Edu has been working with the Reserves as of late so was not dressed for the contest. On Thursday, reports surfaced that Beasley’s BMW was thrashed by vandals outside his home in Glasgow. The midfielder had to get a taxi to training. This is not the first Rangers player to meet this fate as Kevin Thomson and Kenny Miller have been victims of vandals as well.
Up Next: Saturday, home to Celtic.
Pub Talk:
MK Dons striker, Jemal Johnson, turned into provider extraordinaire on Saturday, tallying three assists during the 3-1 win over Leeds United. Johnson, who is having a great campaign thus far, provided two fantastic corners within six minutes of each other and an additional cross early in the second half. Aaron Wilbraham benefited from two of Johnson’s passes, while Sean O’Hanlon converted the other. In 13 appearances for the Dons this season, Johnson has scored four times while pitching in five assists.
Go to
Goal.com for the world’s most comprehensive soccer coverage.
Updated Dec 22, 4:13 am EST
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