Goalies lloris, De Gea produce stellar performances as Spurs, United settles for draw
Manchester United was repeatedly thwarted by Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo lloris in a scrappy 0-0 draw on Sunday but will go into the second half of the Premier league season re-established as a top-four team. On the slide a year ago in sixth at the midway point, United is now third after extending its unbeaten run to nine matches and primed to return to the Champions league under louis van Gaal.
Had it not been for lloris, United might have closed in further on Chelsea and Manchester City at the summit. But Radamel Falcao, Robin van Persie and Ashley Young were all denied by the France goalkeeper's saves. Although Phil Jones headed the ball into the net in the first half, the United defender was adjudged to be offside.
“It was the best performance of Manchester United this season in the first half,” Van Gaal said. “We could have scored four or five goals and we didn't reward ourselves.” The blame was not put on United's misfiring strikers but on the football authorities for scheduling the game less than 43 hours after the teams finished their Friday fixture in England's traditionally congested post-Christmas program.
“It is scientifically proven the body cannot recover in 48 hours,” Van Gaal said. “When you, as a Football Association, allow, you have seen what's it's like ... in the second half it wasn't football anymore it was a struggle for life.” But both teams had the same recovery period, Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino pointed out.
“I never complain when the opponent is in the same condition as you,” Pochettino said. And Tottenham went a fifth game unbeaten to provisionally move above Arsenal into sixth, just a point from fourth-place Southampton. It required lloris to be alert throughout, with the goalkeeper first denying Falcao's 18th-minute shot after the Colombia forward was fed by the lively Juan Mata.
lloris was beaten when Mata whipped in a free kick but spared by the post. When the rebound came off Tottenham defender Ben Davies, lloris prevented an own goal before Vlad Chiriches cleared Falcao's attempt from the goal-line. The ball did cross the line from Jones' header, but he was offside.
The finishing then let down United as a counterattack ended with a shot from Falcao that failed to trouble lloris, who came also came off his line to prevent a dithering Van Persie from shooting. lloris had to be at full stretch to turn Young's shot wide before the end of a half when Tottenham's goal attempts were restricted to Harry Kane's ineffective close-range effort and Andros Townsend from distance.
Townsend again tried and failed to beat David de Gea with a stinging shot from the outside of the area in a second half when neither side looked capable of scoring. “I said in the dressing room when you cannot win such type of matches when you are the better team ... it's very difficult to be the champion at the end of the season,” Van Gaal said.
Chelsea held to 1-1
Southampton: Premier league leader Chelsea was held to a 1-1 draw by Southampton in the Premier league on Saturday after failing to take advantage of a one-man advantage in the closing minutes. Sadio Mane put Southampton ahead in the 17th minute with his second goal in as many games, racing onto a pass from Dusan Tadic and lifting the ball over Thibaut Courtois.
Southampton produced an assured first-half display, but switched off defensively moments before halftime and was punished by Chelsea. Eden Hazard collected a pass from Cesc Fabregas and shot across goal and into the far corner, beyond outstretched goalkeeper Fraser Forster. Chelsea took control in the second half but could not break Southampton down, despite midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin being sent off in the 89th for a second booking.
Arsenal beats West Ham 2-1
london: Arsenal scored two goals late in the first half and then hung on for a 2-1 win at West Ham in an entertaining london derby to climb above its opponent into fifth place in the Premier league. West Ham had the better of the opening 40 minutes at Upton Park but Arsenal midfielder Santi Cazorla was then tripped in the area and converted the penalty in the 41st to put the visitors ahead. Danny Welbeck doubled the lead three minutes later after a pass from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
West Ham kept pressing after the break and Cheikhou Kouyate pulled one back when he rose above Mathieu Debuchy to head into the net in the 54th. Arsenal had several chances for a third on counterattacks, and then withstood a series of late attacks for its second 2-1 win in three days.
City collapse to 2-2 draw
Manchester: Manchester City threw away a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 at home to struggling Burnley on Sunday, squandering the chance to close the gap on leader Chelsea to one point. David Silva and Fernandinho scored for City in the first half, but George Boyd began Burnley's comeback two minutes after the break and Ashley Barnes grabbed the equalizer in the 81st minute.
It leaves the defending champions, who played without a recognized striker, still three points behind Premier league leaders Chelsea, which was held 1-1 at Southampton. Chelsea have 46 points at half way stage while City have 43 points.