With many thanks to Brian Judson, without whom this feature would not be possible.
Saturday 8 September 2001
Chelsea v Arsenal 1-1
Thierry Henry put the Gunners ahead after 17 minutes when De Goey could
only parry a shot from Pires. The ball ran loose to the unmarked Henry,
who had plenty of time to score. Hasselbaink equalised from the penalty
spot fourteen minutes later when Keown upended Zola. But it was not the
normal blood and thunder game one associates with a London derby and the
only real controversial point came with twenty minutes left. Hasselbaink
and Keown collided. The Chelsea player was dismissed for headbutting but
later claimed the contact had been accidental. Chelsea should have won the
match when Lampard somehow managed to miss contact from an inviting centre
from Gallas near the end in front of an open goal.
Derby County v West Ham United 0-0
Neither side were able to score in a match notable for Hutchison's second
debut for West Ham after transferring from Sunderland. The Hammers
dominated the play but could not create an opening for their marksmen. If
anything, they should be grateful that Hislop was able to deny Ravenelli
the chance to score on two occasions. Hislop also had to move smartly when
Winterburn nearly conceded an own goal in the second half.
Leeds United v Bolton Wanderers 0-0
Unsurprisingly, Sam Allardyce has been named the August Manager of The
Month after leading the Trotters to the top of the table. I cannot ever
remember seeing Bolton topping the table before in a lifetime of watching
football. Their best days in my time as a football supporter were as long
ago as the 1950s. Bolton closed the game down, preventing Leeds from
playing their normal tactics. As soon as they lost possession, Bolton fell
back on their own goal. There were few chances for either attack to shine.
Ricketts was a lonely player up front for Bolton. The second half saw
Jaaskelainen and Martyn in greater danger of being sunburned than from
conceding goals. But Keane very nearly scored for Leeds in the dying
seconds when Jaaskelainen did not clear the ball properly.
Leicester City v Ipswich Town 1-1
Ian Walker made his debut for Leicester in this match. The Filbert Street
side gave 100 per cent and were unfortunate not to obtain more from the
game. Stewart put Ipswich ahead in the 13th minute when Jermaine Wright
chipped the ball forward. Elliott headed the ball out but Holland turned
the ball back for Stewart to drill past Walker. The controversial point of
the match when Sereni, the Ipswich goalkeeper, and Savage clashed and
Savage collapsed on the floor as if pole-axed. The incident was not seen
by the referee but was spotted by a linesman. Izzet missed the resulting
penalty. However, Leicester's pressure eventually paid off when Sturridge
scored the equaliser in the dying seconds of the match.
Liverpool v Aston Villa 1-3
What a difference a week makes! The heroes for England became the
Liverpool chumps as they allowed Villa to waltz around them with ease.
Anfield is no longer the fortress it was once. Dublin scored the only goal
of the first half when Barmby conceded a free-kick, and was booked, for a
foul on Delaney. Dublin got on the end of Merson's free0kick to head the
ball home. Gerrard equalised for Liverpool immediately after the break
when McAlister took a corner from which Gerrard headed downwards. Villa
hooked the ball away but the linesman flagged the ball had crossed the
line. Villa went ahead again after 55 minutes. Dublin got his head to a
cross but miskicked as he tried to bring the ball under control. Hendrie
pounced on the loose ball to force it home. Owen came on as a substitute
shortly after but could do nothing to restore Liverpool's fortunes.
Gerrard was sent off for catching Boateng on the knee with a boot in the
73rd minute. Then, with four minutes to go, Vassall made sure of the
points for Villa when he slipped past Carragher and Hyypia and sent a
dipping shot over Dudek, who was making his debut for Liverpool.
Manchester United v Everton 4-1
The Reds may have won 4-1 but their defence still gives cause for concern.
They still do not look as dominating as they usually are. Fortunately for
them the game was already won when the defensive mistakes began to
surface. Veron had given them the lead in the 22nd minute when he played a
one-two with Keane before smashing the ball past Gerrard. Cole added a
second in the 40th minute when Gary Neville took a long throw for Chadwick
to provide the pass from which Cole scored. The second half had barely
started when Fortune added a third for the Champions. But with some 22
minutes left to play, Campbell scored Everton's only goal of the match
when Alexandersson beat the offside trap to provide the pass for Campbell
to score. Beckham and van Nistleroy came on as late substitutes, allowing
Beckham to score with a rasping shot in the dying seconds.
Middlesbrough v Newcastle United 1-4
Despite taking an early lead, Middlesbrough were shattered by their
deadliest rivals on their own ground. Cooper gave them a 4th minute lead
when Cooper momentarily lost his marker to head the ball behind Given. In
the 34th minute Shearer equalised from the penalty spot when Schwarzer was
deemed to have pulled down Robert and was dismissed. Crossley replaced
Schwarzer in goal but could do nothing to prevent Shearer from scoring.
Middlesbrough were incensed when Given was similarly penalised for a foul
on Ince but was only shown a yellow card. Greening's penalty kick was too
weak and Given was able to save easily. Dabizas put Newcastle ahead in the
59th minute when he converted a cross from Robert. Three minutes later,
Robert added a third when Vickers under-hit a back pass to Crossley to
allow the Frenchman to score. Shearer wrapped up the scoring with fourteen
minutes left with a thunderous drive from another Robert pass.
Sunderland v Blackburn Rovers 1-0
The only goal of the game was scored in the 81st minute by Niall Quinn. He
leapt high to head a cross from Schwarz into the net. He later cleared the
ball off the line when a Matt Jansen shot looked certain to level the
scoring. The first half had been drab as Blackburn appeared to have the
sole intention of playing for a point. Phillips was a constant threat in
the second half and was unlucky he was foiled by Friedel on a number of
occasions.
Sunday 9 September 2001
Charlton Athletic v Fulham 1-1
This was an entertaining South London derby in which Fulham dominated much
of the proceedings but found it difficult to find a way through the
Charlton defence. Fulham dominated the first half and should have sewn up
the game long before the end. Charlton had seven players absent through
injury. Charlton took the lead in the 34th minute against the run of play.
Powell's centre was headed back by Bartlett and the ball struck Melville
and trickled into his own goal. But four minutes later Fulham were level
when Legwinski tore upfield. His shot was parried by Kiely but Boa Morte
was on hand to prod the ball home. Thereafter, Fulham went looking for the
win and thought they had achieved that aim in the dying seconds when Davis
fired the ball goalwards only to see Konchesky block the ball on the line.
Tottenham Hotspur v Southampton 2-0
Full match report available here
Pos Pl. W. D. L. For-Ag Pts.
1 Bolton 4 3 1 0 8- 1 10
2 Man Utd 4 2 2 0 10- 6 8
3 Leeds 4 2 2 0 4- 1 8
4 Arsenal 4 2 1 1 10- 3 7
5 S'derland 4 2 1 1 3- 3 7
6 Everton 4 2 1 1 6- 6 7
7 Newcastle 3 1 2 0 6- 3 5
8 A. Villa 3 1 2 0 4- 2 5
9 Chelsea 3 1 2 0 4- 2 5
10 Fulham 4 1 2 1 5- 4 5
11 Spurs 4 1 2 1 4- 3 5
12 Derby 4 1 2 1 3- 4 5
13 Ipswich 4 1 1 2 4- 4 4
14 Charlton 3 1 1 1 3- 3 4
15 Blackburn 4 1 1 2 5- 6 4
16 Liverpool 3 1 0 2 4- 6 3
17 West Ham 3 0 2 1 1- 2 2
18 Leicester 3 0 1 2 1-10 1
19 S'hampton 3 0 0 3 0- 6 0
20 Mid'brough 4 0 0 4 1-11 0
