Wipeout: Chelsea 1 - Manchester United 0

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Manchester United lost to Chelsea, 1-0 on Monday, in an FA Cup replay necessitated by Chelsea's remarkable comeback at Old Trafford a couple of weeks back. Denied the industry of Wayne Rooney due to an injury, United's attack sputtered throughout the contest, which was ultimately settled by the classy touch of Chelsea forward Demba Ba. Robin Van Persie missed two golden chances to equalize in the game's closing minutes, the Dutchman's misses mirroring his teammate's wipeout in their shot at  a domestic double.

Ba's goal, which brought a cagey contest to life in early second half, necessitated the dominant theme of the game's final forty five minutes: United attacking and Chelsea looking for opportunities on the counter.  Ultimately, it was the home side who narrowly made their way through to the waiting Manchester City, and United was left to rue the real cause of their removal from the competition: letting a two goal lead at home slip to a second half Blue wave. 

Monday's game began evenly, as both teams felt their way into the match, played at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge grounds. Strangely, it was the home side looking to spread the ball wide in the early going and United attacking to decent effect through the middle of the pitch. It was 12 minutes gone before either side slowed the ball down even a bit, with the game's first quarter of an hour passing by in a relative blur.

The game;s first half had the feel of a European tie, both sides interested in attacking, but not at the expense of leaving their defenders exposed to the full capabilities of the other side's playmakers. Ryan Bertrand was introduced for an injured Ashley Cole on 20 minutes, the regular Chelsea left back the victim of a pulled groin courtesy of Danny Welbeck's pace.

The teams traded attacking spells as the half ground on, although only one true chance was created, Demba Ba requiring David De Gea to show up as the game clock hit thirty minutes. The action began to heat up just a bit over the next fifteen minutes, goalkeepers' attention at a premium, with Nani and Chicharito testing Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech and Eden Hazard and Oscar requiring the United 'keeper's attention at the other.   Although the paucity of real opportunities stood in notable contrast to the last time these two teams met, by the time the players left the pitch at the interval one had the very real sense the second half would be different.

Popping Off: Round 25 in the BPL

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o We thoroughly enjoyed it, but we wonder how Chelsea and Newcastle felt when they saw referee Howard Webb wearing his red and black home kit to officiate their game on Saturday.

o And what a game it turned out to be. The match had it all: big goals, a dramatic finish, newcomers bursting onto the scene -- Bonjour, Player of the Week Moussa Sissoko -- and a very nasty edge to a contest played in front of a raucous Geordie crowd.

o After foolishly admitting to Magpie officials that he wanted to quit and to return home to Italy to continue his career, Newcastle Captain Fabricio Coloccini attempted to repair the damage on Saturday -- this time by inserting his foot in someone else's mouth. Namely Demba Ba's. With former teammates like that, the ex-Toon striker turned new Blue menace is probably wondering who needs enemies.

o Over at Anfield, the early uproar was all about a goal scored by Daniel Sturridge while Eden Dzeko lay flopped on the ground. Dzeko was obviously milking the situation  -- he was "absolutely motionless" in the words of the commentator, but popped right up after Liverpool scored.  Apparently, the Big Bosnian was upset by Referee Anthony Taylor's decision to let play continue while he lay prostrate on the pitch.  We, on the other hand, had no problem with Taylor's decision -- as no part of Dzeko's injury involved his head.  It was only the striker's pride that ended up being hurt.

o Meanwhile, the player who looked like he sustained a head injury -- and a traumatic one at that -- was Liverpool's Pepe Reina. The Scouse 'keeper lost his head, as well as his team's hard-earned lead at Eastlands on Sunday, when he chased down a ball which was clearly better suited for the team's left back. Only Sergio Aguero's cheeky finish saved Reina from bearing the brunt of media criticism he surely deserved. Anyone want to guess at the tabloid reaction if Reina was spelled "De Gea"...?

Pulse Pounding: Six Thoughts on Manchester United 4 - Newcastle United 3

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o Gloomy: The day's weather matched yet another dismal opening by the home side. Cloudy, gray skies and a torrential downpour made for a slick pitch, but neither of these meteorological excesses were responsible for the day's first giveaway -- Michael Carrick's overly generous bit of charity, gifting the ball to Demba Ba in a very dangerous position. Carrick's error led to a further mistake by the defense, as United's Spanish 'keeper, David De Gea, parried the resulting shot directly into the path of an onrushing James Perch.  And so it was that we found ourselves in a familiar position: less than ten minutes in and United trailing at home.

o Missing: Missed passes in the final third continued to bedevil the home side. No one was guiltier of this than United veteran midfielder Ryan Giggs, but numerous Reds fell victim to attempting to thread the needle one too many times, hitting passes that lacked the required inch-perfect accuracy. The result was a paucity of opportunities for the home side, even as they attacked the famed Stretford End -- until the home side equalized near the half hour mark after a goal mouth scramble that came off Robin Van Persie's deflected free kick, with defender Jonny Evans conjuring something from little more than nothing.

o Cheat: Once again, Referee Mike Dean played a key role in the day's outcome. Ignoring the blatantly obvious fact that Papiss Cisse was two yards offside, as well as the fact that the Senegalese striker's very presence interfered with Evans' ability to play the ball, Dean placed himself at the center of yet another offside controversy at Old Trafford by allowing the Magpies second goal of the afternoon to stand as an Own Goal by Evans (his second strike of the afternoon). It was clearly familiar ground for the apparent Liverpool supporter in charge of the game, as Dean overruled his assistant to make the call -- something he notably neglected to do when Chelsea won the League at Old Trafford three seasons ago.

The Observatory: Week 6 in the BPL

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o Chelsea 2 - Arsenal 1: Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger took a big risk by benching Per Mertesacker and starting Laurent Koscielny in central defense against Chelsea this past weekend, but was handsomely rewarded for his bold decision. Koscielny returned a goal and an assist during his terror-inducing minutes on the pitch. Now all Le Professor has to do is point out that it's the other net Koscielny should be aiming at....

o Manchester City 2- Fulham 1 : Has Vincent Kompany let success go to his (extra large) head? The Belgian looks a completely different player than last season -- and not for the better. Giving away cheap fouls and letting his temper get the best of him, Kompany also looks a step shy of the player who was the best defender in the English League last season and a major contributor to City's title run.

o Liverpool 5 - Norwich City 2: Congratulations to Chris Hughton for accomplishing something no other Manager has been able to this season: turning Luis Suarez into an accurate shooter and shaking Liverpool out of their torpid state. In a related development, don't be surprised when Hughton's Norwich City squad become the first team to be relegated this season.

Inside Newcastle United

Sometimes in life you get lucky....  While on vacation in the Bahamas recently, I ran into an 11 year old footballing genius on a deserted island.  Herewith, the first column from a boy who will be a legend someday -- Columnist Connor on Newcastle United:

Inside Newcastle United

Established…………………….. 1892

Manager……………………….. Alan Pardew

Nickname…..…………………..  The Magpies

Stadium…….…………………..   Sports Direct Arena

English Premier League Titles… 0

Position………………………… 6^th

Coming into Saturday’s game against Wolves, the Magpies were sixth in the EPL. The last time the Magpies met Wolves, it went our way with a 2-1 victory back on October 1^st.

50, 671 people attended that game, and, well, they saw a pretty spectacular contest. First half goals from Demba Ba (17^th minute) and Jonas Gutierrez (38^th minute) started the game off with triumph. Though, in the 88^th minute the stellar Magpie defense got a little lazy and let Steven Fletcher score a goal.

Newcastle, who had a fourth round exit at this year’s Carling Cup (which Liverpool just won), is in a position to make a late run. If they make that late run they would be gunning for the Europa League bid the EPL has to offer. Saturday’s game against Wolverhampton, though, did not help the cause, as it ended in a  2-2 draw. 

It started in the 6^th minute when Papiss Cisse (who had his Newcastle debut on February 5^th against Aston Villa) sent home a rocket. And only 12 minutes later Jonas Gutierrez scored, putting the Wolves upset chance down.

As the teams went to the break Magpie fans began to celebrate victory, but Matt Jarvis and Kevin Doyle from Wolves had other plans. They both sent in goals in the opening minutes of the second half. With the equalizer given, Newcastle Manager Alan Pardew made some substitutions. Striker Shola Ameobi came on in the 80^th minute for Chiek Tiote, after Danny Guthrie came in for Ryan Taylor.

The Wrong Way Forward: Newcastle 3 - Manchester United 0

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Manchester United traveled to the North East of England and the stadium formerly known as St. James Park on Wednesday, to meet Newcastle in a game that many called a "must-win" in order for the Reds to keep pace with City at the top of the League table.  With Tottenham nipping at their heels from the other side, several United players spoke openly pre-game about how important it would be to get a result in the mid-week contest.  Instead, the Reds left Newcastle with their tail between their legs, well beaten and cursing their fate.  What follows are thoughts and observations on the critical 3-0 Tyneside loss :

o Newcastle is a club that will be badly hurt by the African Cup of Nations.  Not only is leading scorer Demba Ba heading off at the weekend, so too is Cheik Tiote, a key driver of the Magpies' defensive midfield. Some clubs -- the Reds included -- could withstand the loss of two starters without missing much, but for a club like Newcastle to lose arguably their two most valuable players at the same time could be a real problem. Ba looked absolutely lethal last night, and his first half tally was a striker's goal of the highest order; on the flip side of the ball, Tiote hassled and harried United into too many turnovers to recount.  It's unfortunate that United had to play Newcastle this week and not next, but that's how the schedule works.

o Fergie has no sentimentality -- none. Witness the current United striker situation: at the beginning of the season, Danny Welbeck was paired with Wayne Rooney to lead the line, in part because of Welbeck's form, and in part because of the injury Chicharito picked up during the US pre-season tour. Later, when Welbeck went down with an injury, it was the young Mexican who was preferred as Rooney's strike partner, while Dimitar Berbatov continued to languish on the bench.  But due to the Bulgarian's form over the past month -- with 6 goals in his last 4 games -- it was Berba who was handed the start again last night, while Chicharito now seems slotted in as fourth choice.  Never one to rely on history as his guide, Sir Alex is all about "What have you done for me lately...?"

o And despite all that, my guess is Sir Alex left the game last night wondering exactly who his best two strikers are at the current moment. Berbatov was largely ineffective -- to be fair, he didn't get much in the way of quality service -- necessitating the introduction of Welbeck. And when that wasn't deemed sufficient, Sir Alex also threw Chicharito into the mix. But with none of the four strikers finding the net, just who has the hot hand going into the City game?

o The penalty call on Rio in the home fixture may have been evened out by referee Howard Webb's non-call in the first half last night.  At the very least, Ferdinand's challenge which sent Demba Ba sprawling in the box was significantly clumsier than the challenge for which he was penalized at Old Trafford.  Alan Pardew was so incensed by the decision (and another non-call by Webb which followed) that he resembled someone Howard Webb would lock up in his day job more than he did the coach of Newcastle.

Fool's Gold

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Herewith, some nuggets of gold after panning through the weeks' activites in the EPL:

• Newboy Luis Suarez' playing style seems straight out of the Carlos Tevez playbook. Although Liverpool skipper Stevie G. believes the Toothsome-one will improve when he adjusts to the speed of the English game, I suggest that it might be more critical for Suarez to do the opposite: slow down and think about what he's doing rather than run around the pitch like a chicken with his head cut off.

• Anyone else think it's strange to be bringing an air-powered rifle to the office?  Apparently not Ashley Cole. Although he reportedly seemed surprised when it discharged into an intern from only a few feet away, perhaps it was due to his shock at hitting the intended target -- a relative rarity for the Chelsea left back this season.