Wozniacki caddying for Rory, kids putting… it can only be The Masters' Par-3 Contest! (But don't go and win it… you'll be cursed)
Padraig Harrington, Jonathan , carries his son Ciaran down the first fairway last year
Can you guess what his name is Davis Love III putts watched by his son Davis Love IV in 1999
Open wide: Australian Aaron Baddeley with his daughter Jolee last year
Happy family: Louis Oosthuizen and his wife Nel-Mare and daughter Jana pose for a photo two years ago
Aston Villa 0 Tottenham 4: Bale's triple salvo crushes Villans' resistance
|
UPDATED:
21:29 GMT, 26 December 2012
Gareth Bale bagged a second-half hat-trick as Tottenham returned to
the Barclays Premier League top four with a comfortable victory at Aston
Villa.
After dominating the first half without managing to make a breakthrough,
Spurs went ahead in the 57th minute when Jermain Defoe nutmegged Brad
Guzan to register his 14th goal of the season.
Handy: Gareth Bale celebrates his goal against Villa
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Bale – who had already gone close twice – then stole the show, netting in the 61st, 73rd and 84th minutes to take his own tally for the campaign to 10.
The result ensures Tottenham keep up their push for Champions League football, moving them up to fourth in the table, level on points with fifth-placed Everton and sixth-placed West Brom, who had both won earlier in the day.
The picture is somewhat different for Villa, who had been looking to bounce back from the 8-0 mauling they suffered at Chelsea three days ago but instead were beaten comprehensively once again and remain only three points above the relegation zone in 16th place.
After being run completely ragged at Stamford Bridge, Villa were under heavy pressure from the off against Spurs, who went close in the 11th minute when Bale saw a curling effort from outside the box kept out by a fine diving save from Guzan.
The hosts almost paid for giving the ball away in the 23rd minute as Tottenham broke forward and Aaron Lennon flashed a cross into the danger zone, which Chris Herd hacked behind for a corner.
Jermain Defoe makes the breakthrough
Happy days: Defoe celebrates his strike
Defoe headed the resulting delivery into Guzan's arms and the
American goalkeeper then came out to deny the same player, with Ciaran
Clark scrambling the ball behind once again.
Spurs were winning a seemingly endless succession of corners and it
appeared to be only a matter of time before they broke the deadlock, but
on the half-hour mark an error by William Gallas earned Villa a
throw-in that nearly cost the Londoners dear.
It allowed the home side to launch an attack and Joe Bennett fired the
ball across goal, with Matthew Lowton just failing to get on the end of
it.
Normal service was swiftly resumed as Emmanuel Adebayor nodded a Bale
corner goalwards, with Guzan just managing to hold on to the ball.
Cool finish: Gareth Bale rounds goalkeeper Brad Guzan to score his team's second goal
Adebayor then met Bale's cut-back with a strike that was blocked by
Nathan Baker, but moments later Villa threatened again as Lowton
delivered a ball that the sliding Brett Holman could not finish at the
far post.
Tottenham were soon back on the front foot and Bale fizzed in a shot four minutes before the interval that Guzan batted away.
Villa were forced to replace Baker with Stephen Ireland right at the end
of the first half and they began the second with Marc Albrighton on for
Ashley Westwood.
There were some encouraging signs for the hosts in the opening minutes
after the restart, albeit with Lowton ballooning a shot off-target and
Christian Benteke being flagged offside as he brought a save out of Hugo
Lloris.
Villa fans' moods soon darkened, though, as Defoe put Tottenham in
front, stabbing in through Guzan's legs having latched on to Kyle
Naughton's through-ball.
Triple treat: Bale completes his hat-trick
Clinical: Bale scores his second goal
Hat-trick hero: Bale holds the match ball
Four minutes later Spurs doubled their lead, taking advantage of some sloppy play by their opponents.
Benteke's cross was cut out to launch a Tottenham counter-attack which
Villa could not halt, with a Bennett tackle sending the ball to Bale,
who advanced forward, rounded Guzan and prodded home.
It took a further 12 minutes for Bale to grab another goal and
effectively end the game as a contest, the Welshman collecting Lennon's
pass in the box and slotting it into the corner.
He then completed his treble with six minutes of normal time remaining,
sending the ball into the roof of the net from substitute Gylfi
Sigurdsson's tee-up.
Villa damage was self inflicted, says Rodgers after Liverpool stunned at home
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UPDATED:
19:05 GMT, 15 December 2012
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers criticised his side's defending for a self-inflicted 3-1 defeat at home to Aston Villa.
Striker Christian Benteke scored twice either side of Andreas Weimann's well-worked goal before Steven Gerrard struck a late consolation as the hosts' three-match winning run was ended.
Rodgers felt his side should have been awarded a penalty for Ciaran Clark's pull on Daniel Agger's shirt early in the second half with the score at 2-0 but had no excuses for their defensive display.
Disappointed: Brendan Rodgers said Liverpool's mistakes and careless play let Aston Villa take the game
'We are very disappointed and to be honest I didn't see that coming as our momentum and confidence coming into the game was probably as high as it's been,' said the Reds boss, whose side dominated before Benteke's 29th-minute opener.
'We probably got punished for our decision-making in that first 20 minutes, we were a bit careless.
'We could easily have been 3-0 up in the game and if we do that we can control it much better but we didn't have that final pass and bit of quality at the top end of the field.
'Then we went on to concede some poor goals. We weren't quite at it today with our intensity and pressure in the game and they were a threat on the counter-attack and got the goals.
'I thought we were flat. It was important for us to get the first goal – with them playing 3-5-2 – to open up the game but we had those chances early on and didn't take them.
'Once that happens, combined with sloppy play and giving the ball away in poor areas, we contrived to concede bad goals.
'Benteke was outstanding today but he got his shot in too easy for the first.
'The second goal we never tracked the runners into the box and then the third goal we've given it away in our half and he's broken through and nearly runs to the edge of the six-yard box before finishing.
'It was so unlike us because we're usually strong defensively. It was very much self-inflicted today.
'It was surprising because we haven't shown that in the last few months.'
On the penalty incident early in the second half Rodgers added: 'I thought when it was 2-0 we should have had a penalty so I'm not sure what we are going to have to do to get one.
'The referees are asked to look at the shirt pulling. I thought Agger was outstanding today but he gets pulled to the floor, it goes to 2-1 and you have most of the second half to apply the pressure.
'But as soon as the third goal went in we looked deflated and then Villa have no need to come out and go after the game and they just sat.
On fire: Christian Benteke (centre) pounced twice as the Reds lost at home
'For us it was a bad day at the office.'
It was the first time Villa had scored more than once in any half of league football this season and extended their unbeaten run to five matches with only a second away win in 17 away league games.
Only a fifth Anfield victory in 34 visits also almost doubled their league away goals tally, which now stands at seven.
'I think the whole performance was fabulous, the goals were excellent as was the way we defended,' said manager Paul Lambert.
'I thought we were excellent. The goals were brilliant: the second goal, with the movement and the backheel, especially.
Made to pay: Andreas Weimann struck the other as Villa ran out 3-1 winners
'Benteke has been unbelievable while Andy Weimann knows where the goal is, he's a natural finisher and his enthusiasm and work ethic are second to none.
'The back three were terrific and put their bodies on the line when they had to.
'I am pretty sure Liverpool will give anyone a game here.
'It is just about trying to hold your nerve and trying to see it through, which is what we have done.'
Lambert claims Clark is a 'great catch for Ireland' as Villa boss says England missed out
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UPDATED:
22:30 GMT, 7 December 2012
Giovanni Trapattoni will watch Ciaran Clark on Saturday with Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert suggesting that England have made a mistake in not fighting harder to secure the defender's services.
Trappatoni, the veteran coach of the Ireland team, will be at Villa Park to see the centre-half continue his encouraging start to the season against Stoke City.
The 23-year-old defender, now capped three times for the 'Mighty Greens,' was a part of England's set up at junior level, appearing for four different age groups before being persuaded to switch allegiance.
Good catch: Ciaran Clark has been capped three times for Ireland
'Ciaran has a massive future,' said Lambert, 'and the more caps he can accumulate, then great.
'It's hard to say if England have missed a trick, or not. It wasn't until recently that I found out Gabby Agbonlahor qualifies for Scotland.
'England do have good centre halves. To have Ciaran is definitely Ireland's gain – there are not many left-footed centre-halves about, so that gives him a great advantage.
'I saw him play against Greece and I thought he did really well. It's there for him to go and do it and have a big career now for Ireland.'
The Scot believes that Villa 'are doing really fine' after a run of results which has seen them lose just two of their last seven matches in the Barclays Premier League.
Villa remain perilously close to the drop zone and are the second lowest scorers in the top-flight.
Positive: Clark has helped Villa on a strong run, but they remain close to the drop
They are just two points ahead of Southampton who lie third from bottom and have found the net just 12 times this season.
Yet they are also within touching distance of a mid-table spot in a division that has become heavily congested outside of the bottom three places.
Former manager Alex McLeish, whose reign was heavily criticised, had amassed five more points at a similar stage last season but there is an air of calm around Lambert.
'I think in the last seven games only the two Manchester clubs have beaten us,' he said, 'I think people tend to overlook that.
'We've been unfairly criticised at times because we are young and people look at us and think 'young team' but if you look at the way things are going at the moment, we are doing really fine.'
Just fine: Lambert is happy with the performances his side have put in
Ferguson defends Young's 'dive' as United extend lead to five points over City
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UPDATED:
18:10 GMT, 15 April 2012
Sir Alex Ferguson admitted Ashley Young went looking for the penalty which gave his side the opening goal against Aston Villa but believes a spot-kick was the correct decision.
Having been accused of making the most of Shaun Derry's challenge against QPR last week, Young was again brought down at Old Trafford, this time by Aston Villa’s Ciaran Clark.
Contact appeared to be minimal and Young seemed to make the most of the challenge to win the spot-kick, which Rooney converted to put United 1-0 inside 10 minutes.
Theatrical: Ashley Young falls under the challenge of Aston Villa's Ciaran Clark to win a penalty
Disbelief: The Aston Villa players react to Mark Halsey awarding a penalty
But Ferguson defended his player saying it was the correct decision, despite admitting that Young it was a theatrical fall by the winger.
'I think he played for the penalty,' Ferguson said. 'If a player decides to put his foot in and he's definitely taken him down then he's fallen in to that.
'I think it was a dramatic fall (by Young) and maybe he overdid the fall but it was a penalty and there's no doubt about that.
Spot on: Ashley Young celebrates with Wayne Rooney after he scores the penalty
Correct: Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson says the decision to award Manchester United a penalty was the right one
'I don't think they can have any complaint as he has taken him.
'Good defending has always been good defending – if they read the game and keep their feet in they should really cope with that.'
Despite moving further ahead of Manchester City, Ferguson denied his side are now favourites for the league title.
'There could be twists and turns yet but the name of the game is to enjoy ourselves and play with expression like we did today,' the Manchester United boss said.
'You can never be too confident. The name is the game is to not drop too many points.
'It was a good result for us. In the first half we played some good stuff and the third goal killed the game and we were able to see it out.'
N'Zogbia facing month on the sidelines as winger heads home to discover extent of knee injury
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UPDATED:
08:37 GMT, 26 March 2012
Aston Villa winger Charles N'Zogbia is facing a month out of action with a knee problem.
N'Zogbia is to see a specialist in his native France to try and assess the extent of the setback suffered in a training ground collision with midfielder Gary Gardner last week.
It adds to an already lengthy injury list with full-back Alan Hutton now on the sidelines with a calf injury.
Crocked: Aston Villa winger Charles N'Zogbia (left) has a knee problem
Manager Alex McLeish said: 'Charles is going to get specialist attention in Paris. We've just got to see if his knee ligament is going to take much longer (to heal).
'But we think it's a medial knee ligament problem, maybe three or four weeks out.
'It happened in a training ground collision with Gary Gardner. They banged knees together and Charles kind of opened his knee up a little bit.'
Hutton is facing at least two weeks out of action and will miss the next two games with Chelsea and Liverpool with the setback sustained in the 3-0 defeat at Arsenal on Saturday.
McLeish said: 'Alan Hutton came off with a calf injury against Arsenal and he could be out for two or three weeks. He'll need a scan.'
Villa are already without long term injury victims Darren Bent, Richard Dunne and Ciaran Clark.
Bent not for sale and Liverpool don't want him, insists Villa boss McLeish
Aston Villa manager Alex McLeish has revealed that Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish has told him he
is not interested in signing Darren Bent.
McLeish was speaking after watching his side reach the fourth round of the FA Cup with a 3-1 victory at Bristol Rovers.
High price: Liverpool has been linked with a 27m for Bent
England striker Bent, 27, who joined Villa from Sunderland a year ago, has been linked with a move away, with Liverpool reportedly among the favourites, and he played in tonight's win at the Memorial Stadium.
McLeish has insisted that the player will not be sold, but rumours have persisted.
However, the former Birmingham manager, who is also hopeful of completing a short-term loan deal for Los Angeles Galaxy striker Robbie Keane within the next 48 hours despite what he described as “red tape” holding up the move, says that no-one he has spoken to, including Dalglish, has expressed an interest in Bent.
Of the continued speculation, McLeish said: 'It's not frustrating, it's just the transfer window.
'People like to speculate and use social networking sites and they are having a field day.
'If there is anybody out there that
wants him they certainly haven't contacted me and Darren has said on the
record he wants to stay at the club.
'Whenever I have asked anyone outside the club I've been told flatly 'No'.
'I have spoken to Kenny and he said there was nothing in it.'
Good return: Bent has scored 15 goals in 31 games for Villa since 18m move
Villa's passage into the fourth round proved reasonably straightforward, although they did have to come through a late wobble before sealing victory.
Marc Albrighton gave the Premier League visitors a first-half lead before Gabriel Agbonlahor and Ciaran Clark struck after the break to put them in control.
Rovers, with caretaker boss Shaun North in charge following the midweek departure of former manager Paul Buckle, battled gamely and briefly threatened to pull off the most unlikely of comebacks.
They pulled one back in added time through Scott McGleish, after Richard Dunne's awful pass had left the 37-year-old with only Brad Guzan to beat.
But the veteran forward then missed the chance to set up a thrilling finale as his penalty for handball by Stephen Warnock was saved by Guzan.
But the win came at a cost for Villa as striker Emile Heskey and defender James Collins were forced off with injuries.
McLeish expects Heskey to be out for three to four weeks after a recurrence of his Achilles problem.
Equals: Aston Villa's Stephen Warnock (right) and Bristol Rovers Chris Zebroski challenge for a high ball
McLeish said: 'Emile has had an ongoing Achilles problem we have tried to manage, but tonight the medical staff have told me he has to rest for three or four weeks, so we will have to see how that goes.
'He has broke down a few times and it means you have to make an early substitution against the plan you had in the first place.'
But McLeish was pleased by the professional job his side had done in making sure they avoided being part of a cup giant-killing.
'We got a wee bit complacent towards the end but the players controlled it from start to finish,' he said.
'Rovers have some dangerous customers, we had watched their games over the last couple of weeks and they are a proud team who keep going right down to the end, and that's what can happened.
'As we know it only takes a second to score a goal in football and they got the one back, I thought they were a little lucky with the penalty but Brad saved it and it was a well controlled performance by the players.
'They had the psychological thing tonight of overcoming nerves that can happen, as we have seen in many giant-killing acts, and they did that.'
North, meanwhile, was also proud of his side's display, but said he is unaware of whether the club are close to appointing a successor to Buckle as they look to move clear of the League Two drop zone.
He said: 'Our opportunities came far too late, although it would have been nice to score the second goal because we never gave up and battled to the very end.
'I have been told nothing more at the moment (about a new manager). I will start preparing for Tuesday's game against Hereford unless I am told otherwise.
'I imagine the board will let me know what is happening as soon as possible because any newcomer who takes over will need time to prepare the side in his own way.'
Bristol Rovers 1 Aston Villa 3: Three and easy for McLeish's men
Aston Villa survived a late rally from Bristol Rovers to advance to the fourth round of the FA Cup at the Memorial Stadium.
Marc Albrighton gave the Premier League visitors a first-half lead before Gabriel Agbonlahor and Ciaran Clark struck after the break to put them in complete control.
Rovers, with caretaker boss Shaun North in charge following the midweek departure of Paul Buckle, battled gamely and pulled one back in added time through Scott McGleish, but the veteran then missed the chance to set up a thrilling finale as his penalty was saved by Brad Guzan.
Easy does it: Gabriel Agbonlahor celebrates the second goal
MATCH FACTS
Bristol Rovers: Poke, Woodards, Downes, Bolger, Sawyer, Anyinsah, Stanley, Dorman, Carayol (McGleish 28), Zebroski, Richards (Brown 79).
Subs Not Used: Cronin, Smith, Anthony, McLaggon, Goddard.
Goal: McGleish 90.
Aston Villa: Guzan, Hutton, Dunne, Collins (Gardner 74), Warnock, Albrighton, Ireland, Petrov (Bannan 82), Clark, Bent, Heskey (Agbonlahor 46).
Subs Not Used: Marshall, N'Zogbia, Delph, Weimann.
Goals: Albrighton 35, Agbonlahor 64, Clark 78.
Referee: Howard Webb (S Yorkshire).
Attendance: 10,883
While his side are in the draw for the
next round, Villa boss Alex McLeish has injury worries over Emile Heskey
and James Collins who were forced off.
McLeish had named a strong side but, with a passionate full house behind
them, the League Two strugglers, who lie 74 places below Villa in the
league pyramid, made an encouraging start in their hunt for an upset.
Chris Zebroski raced past Stephen Warnock down the right and followed
that up with a strike from the edge of the area that was comfortably
saved by Guzan.
Villa did not help themselves by misplacing a number of passes on a
heavy surface, but they soon began to take a stranglehold on the game
without ever looking particularly impressive.
Chances soon followed as Heskey steered Stephen Ireland's inviting cross
over the bar before goalkeeper Michael Poke, making just his second
appearance since joining on loan from Brighton, made an excellent save
from the striker as he tipped his firm header to safety.
Albrighton rocks: The Villa winger (left) scored the opener
Aaron Downes was then forced into a wild sliced clearance after Stiliyan Petrov had headed beyond the goalkeeper moments later.
With the pressure building on Rovers it was no surprise when Villa's
first goal duly arrived in the 35th minute, Petrov's lovely pass
allowing Albrighton in behind the defence on the right side of the area
to fire through Poke's legs.
Warnock should have doubled their advantage three minutes later when
Ireland's cheeky dummy left the full-back in acres of space, but he
could only fire wastefully over.
Captain marvel: Stiliyan Petrov impressed for the visitors
Heskey was withdrawn at the interval after a recurrence of an Achilles problem, with Agbonlahor his replacement.
Rovers finally carved out their first genuine effort on goal early in
the second half as Joe Anyinsah found space on the right, but substitute
McGleish flashed wildly at his pull back.
That proved costly as Agbonlahor, who had looked lively since his arrival, gave Villa a two-goal cushion in the 64th minute.
Icing on the cake: Ciaran Clark scored a brilliant solo goal
The striker took advantage of a defensive slip by Cian Bolger to run in
on goal and calmly guide the ball into the bottom right-hand corner for
his sixth goal of the season.
Anyinsah, who was by far the home side's most threatening attacker, pushed an effort wide as Rovers continued to toil.
Villa suffered another blow when Gary Gardner replaced Collins, with the
Wales international limping off with what appeared to be a calf
problem.
Penalty miss: McGleish was denied a second goal by Brad Guzan
It did little to upset Villa's comfort as Clark seemingly sealed the win
with 12 minutes to go as the Republic of Ireland international cut in
from the right to curl home a low left-footed shot.
But the home side got a goal back in stoppage time when Richard Dunne's
woeful pass only succeeded in finding the loitering McGleish, who lofted
the ball over Guzan.
Hopes of the most unlikely of comebacks were raised when Warnock capped
his poor night by handling in the area seconds later, but McGleish's
weak spot-kick was simple for Guzan to keep out and the chance was gone.
PREMIER LEAGUE LIVE: All of Wednesday”s action from around the grounds as it happens
Follow Sportsmail”s coverage of the Barclays Premier League where there are seven fixtures including the top two, Manchester City and Manchester United in action. Roberto Mancini”s side host Stoke while the Red Devils travel to Fulham. Elsewhere it”s Aston Villa v Arsenal, Everton v Swansea, Newcastle v West Brom, QPR v Sunderland and Wigan v Liverpool. Email me your thoughts on the action at dan.ripley@dailymail.co.uk or contact me on Twitter @Ripinho.
Live scores
Click here for all the goals as they go in
Aston Villa 0-1 Arsenal (7.45pm)
Everton 0-0 Swansea (8pm)
Fulham 0-0 Manchester United (8pm)
Manchester City 0-0 Stoke (7.45pm)
Newcastle 0-0 West Brom (7.45pm)
QPR 0-0 Sunderland (8pm)
Wigan 0-0 Liverpool (8pm)
Live Premier League table
20.06: Liverpool are certainly fired up anyway, Wigan can hardly get out of their half here.
20.03: GOAL! Aston Villa 0-1 ARSENAL
No complaints as Ciaran Clark pulls back on Theo Walcott, and Robin van Persie steps up to convert from the penalty spot. He has equalled a club record of 34 Premier League goals in a calender year – joining Thierry Henry.
20.02: PENALTY (Arsenal)
20.01: Away we go all around then.
19.58: Teams are out for the 8pm kick-offs. Villa go close again with Agbonlahor firing over – Arsenal on the back-foot here.
19.57: Worth pointing out that the Liverpool players were all wearing Luis Suarez t-shirts in their warm up after the striker was hit with an eight game ban and a 40,000 fine yesterday.
19.55: Decent chance for Aston Villa with Gabriel Agbonlahor forcing a decent save from Wojciech Szczesny.
19.53: Reid indeed has to come of after his ankle effectively buckles trying to control the ball. Billy Jones is on in his place.
19.50: Little action so far but an injury concern for West Brom as Steven Reid lands awkwardly on his ankle after jumping for a header.
(I still back Osman by the way for the 20,000th goal)
19.47: The 7.45pm games are underway.
Squad unity: Liverpool players wear Luis Suarez shirts in support after he was hit with an FA charge
19.46: Hi Dan, I think we”re 11 goals away though, not 18.
Rik Sharma
I have to be honest I didn”t think my maths was THAT bad, though the amount of goals I”m out does equal the seven goals scored last night. Either way, thanks Rik!
19.45: And before we get going, a couple of Christmas crackers from InfostradaLive:
Swansea have failed to beat #Everton in all 13 previous meetings in all competitions #PL #EPL
Wayne Rooney makes his 300th #EPL appearance at the age of 26 years and 58 days – the youngest to reach this milestone in the #PL #MUFC
19.43: Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand is rested for tonight”s Barclays Premier League clash with Fulham at Craven Cottage.
Ryan Giggs comes in for Ferdinand with Phil Jones moving from midfield to defence, while Anders Lindegaard is preferred ahead of David de Gea in goal.
Fulham name an unchanged line-up with Bobby Zamora only winning a place on the bench after recovering from a knee injury.
In the spotlight: Despite his FA charge, Luis Suarez starts for Liverpool at Wigan
19.42: Striker Luis Suarez is named in Liverpool”s starting line-up at Wigan less than 24 hours after learning of his eight-match ban from Football Association.
The Uruguay international remains eligible to play while the club decide whether to appeal against the punishment for misconduct for using insulting words to Patrice Evra which included a reference to the Manchester United defender”s colour.
Maxi Rodriguez and Dirk Kuyt replace Craig Bellamy and Jonjo Shelvey as the only changes from Sunday”s win at Aston Villa.
Wigan manager Roberto Martinez names the same side which drew 1-1 with Chelsea at the DW Stadium on Saturday.
19.38: Team news from the DW Stadium:
Wigan v Liverpool
Wigan: Al Habsi, Caldwell, Alcaraz, Figueroa, Stam, Jones, Diame, McCarthy, Moses, Gomez, Sammon. Subs: Pollitt, Crusat, Watson, Di Santo, McArthur, Rodallega, Lopez.
Liverpool: Reina, Johnson, Skrtel, Agger, Jose Enrique, Henderson, Adam, Downing, Kuyt, Maxi, Suarez. Subs: Doni, Carroll, Coates, Carragher, Shelvey, Kelly, Bellamy.
Referee: Michael Oliver (Northumberland)
19.35: Everton boss David Moyes leaves Tim Cahill on the bench for tonight”s Barclays Premier League clash with Swansea at Goodison Park.
The Australia midfielder has not scored a league goal since netting against Manchester City a year ago and he is replaced in the starting line-up by Seamus Coleman on his return from injury while Royston Drenthe also comes into the starting XI.
Swansea are unchanged from the weekend”s goalless draw against Newcastle, with fit-again Angel Rangel having to settle for a place on the bench.
19.32: But United will also hope to to top the table on December 25 with a win at Fulham helping them on their way:
Fulham v Man Utd
Fulham: Stockdale, Baird, Senderos, Hangeland, John Arne Riise, Ruiz, Murphy, Etuhu, Dempsey, Dembele, Johnson. Subs: Etheridge, Kelly, Gecov, Duff, Hughes, Frei, Zamora.
Man Utd: Lindegaard, Smalling, Jones, Evans, Evra, Valencia, Carrick, Giggs, Nani, Rooney, Welbeck. Subs: De Gea, Berbatov, Park, Hernandez, Young, Rafael Da Silva, Fryers.
Referee: Mark Halsey (Lancashire)
Mexican magician: Javier Hernandez (left) starts in attack for Manchester United
19.29: Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli is left on the bench for the Barclays Premier League leaders” clash with Stoke tonight.
The Italian makes way for winger Adam Johnson in one of three changes at the Etihad Stadium with Joleon Lescott and Gael Clichy also returning in defence.
In-form Stoke are without Peter Crouch through illness and make four changes in all.
Wilson Palacios is handed his first league start for the club while Matthew Upson replaces the suspended Ryan Shawcross and attack duo Cameron Jerome and Kenwyne Jones come in.
19.26: Will the league leaders stay top going into Christmas From the Etihad Stadium:
Man City v Stoke
Man City: Hart, Richards, Kompany, Lescott, Clichy, Barry, Toure Yaya, Johnson, Silva, Nasri, Aguero. Subs: Pantilimon, Zabaleta, Milner, Savic, Toure Kolo, De Jong, Balotelli.
Stoke: Sorensen, Huth, Woodgate, Upson, Wilson, Walters, Palacios, Whitehead, Shotton, Jones, Jerome. Subs: Begovic, Fuller, Diao, Pennant, Delap, Etherington, Arismendi.
Referee: Mike Dean (Wirral)
19.23: Full team news from Loftus Road:
QPR v Sunderland
QPR: Kenny, Young, Gabbidon, Connolly, Traore, Barton, Faurlin, Derry, Wright Phillips, Mackie, Helguson. Subs: Cerny, Hill, Hall, Taarabt, Campbell, Bothroyd, Smith.
Sunderland: Westwood, O”Shea, Bramble, Brown, Bardsley, Larsson, Cattermole, Vaughan, Richardson, Sessegnon, Bendtner. Subs: Carson, Gardner, Kilgallon, Colback, Ji, McClean, Elmohamady.
Referee: Andre Marriner (W Midlands)
19.22: 20,000th goal A Richard Dunne OG!
Jeff Mann, anon
Arsenal”s villain Gabriel Agbonlahor (left) returns for Aston Villa
19.20: Aston Villa boss Alex McLeish makes four changes for tonight”s home Barclays Premier League clash with Arsenal.
Striker Gabriel Agbonlahor – back after suspension – midfielders Stephen Ireland and Ciaran Clark and defender Carlos Cuellar replace the injured Emile Heskey plus Nathan Delfouneso, Fabian Delph and James Collins respectively.
Arsenal are without the injured defender Johan Djourou and suspended midfielder Alex Song.
Makeshift right-back Francis Coquelin – a recognised midfielder – and Emmanuel Frimpong come into the side.
19.17: Teenager Haris Vuckic is handed a first Barclays Premier League start for Newcastle against West Brom tonight.
The 19-year-old Slovenian is drafted in as a replacement for the suspended Yohan Cabaye as the Magpies look to end their five-game run without a victory.
Baggies boss Roy Hodgson makes just one change to the side which won 2-1 at Blackburn at the weekend with Jerome Thomas replacing the injured James Morrison.
19.14: Full team news from Goodison Park and Leon Osman is my 20,000 goal pick…for absolutely no reason whatsoever.
Everton v Swansea
Everton: Howard, Hibbert, Jagielka, Heitinga, Baines, Coleman, Fellaini, Neville, Drenthe, Osman, Saha. Subs: Mucha, Stracqualursi, McFadden, Distin, Cahill, Gueye, Barkley.
Swansea: Vorm, Richards, Williams, Caulker, Taylor, Routledge, Gower, Britton, Allen, Sinclair, Graham. Subs: Tremmel, Dobbie, Monk, Lita, Moore, Rangel, Agustien.
Referee: Kevin Friend (Leicestershire)
Late withdrawal: James Morrison (left) is absent for West Brom
19.11: Slight amendment to the team news at St James” Park folks. Graham Dorrans is a sub for the visitors instead of James Morrison.
19.10: Full team news from Villa Park where our friend Jalal and his 20,000 bet at least has a chance of coming in:
Aston Villa v Arsenal
Aston Villa: Guzan, Hutton, Dunne, Cuellar, Warnock, Albrighton, Ireland, Clark, Petrov, N”Zogbia, Agbonlahor. Subs: Marshall, Collins, Delfouneso, Delph, Bannan, Weimann, Williams.
Arsenal: Szczesny, Coquelin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Vermaelen, Walcott, Ramsey, Frimpong, Arteta, Gervinho, van Persie. Subs: Almunia, Rosicky, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Squillaci, Arshavin, Chamakh, Benayoun.
Referee: Jon Moss (W Yorkshire)
19.07: Full line-ups from St James” Park where the hosts hope to end a sequence of five games without a win:
Newcastle v West Brom
Newcastle: Krul, Simpson, Perch, Coloccini, Santon, Obertan, Vuckic, Tiote, Gutierrez, Best, Ba. Subs: Elliot, Williamson, Ben Arfa, Abeid, Ryan Taylor, Shola Ameobi, Sammy Ameobi.
West Brom: Foster, Reid, McAuley, Olsson, Shorey, Thomas, Mulumbu, Scharner, Brunt, Odemwingie, Long. Subs: Fulop, Morrison, Dawson, Jones, Thorne, Cox, Fortune.
Referee: Anthony Taylor (Cheshire)
19.04: Our very own RVP who else
Jalal Janish, anon.
Early shouts for Arsenal”s Robin van Persie…can”t say I”m too surprised at that.
19.03: We are just 18 goals shy of the milestone (if I have got my maths correct) and to see a countdown follow our live goals service on twitter which tweets every strike involving a Premier League side as soon as it goes in.
19.00: Good evening folks, welcome to our live coverage of tonight”s Premier League action. If it”s anything like yesterday”s drama we are in for a treat and maybe, just maybe, tonight we will see the league”s 20,000th goal.
I know things like that are not really relevant but they are good fun to track I think. I predict Everton will score it and I will give you a name as soon as I bring you the team news. But who do you think will net it
Festive cheer: Manchester City hope to maintain top spot going into Christmas