Last-gasp Skrtel rescues Liverpool

Published December 22, 2014
LIVERPOOL (England): Liverpool’s Martin Skrtel (second L) heads to score against Arsenal during their English Premier League match at Anfield on Sunday.—Reuters
LIVERPOOL (England): Liverpool’s Martin Skrtel (second L) heads to score against Arsenal during their English Premier League match at Anfield on Sunday.—Reuters

LONDON: Martin Skrtel powered home a header deep into stoppage time to earn 10-man Liverpool a 2-2 draw against Arsenal in the Premier League on Sunday, while Adam Johnson’s late winner earned Sunderland a 1-0 victory over Newcastle United in the Tyne-Wear derby.

In the seventh of nine minutes of injury time, Skrtel leaped high to head a right-wing corner from Adam Lallana into the bottom corner.

Despite being mostly outplayed, Arsenal recovered from conceding a 45th-minute goal to Philippe Coutinho by scoring in first-half injury time through Mathieu Debuchy before Olivier Giroud swept home from close range in the 64th.

Substitute Fabio Borini was sent off two minutes into stoppage time for picking up two quick bookings, yet there was still time for Skrtel to rescue a point for Liverpool, who climbed a place to 10th. Arsenal are sixth, four points of the top four.

Newcastle, who have lost three matches in a row in all competitions since beating leaders Chelsea, are ninth on 23.

Johnson slammed a shot past keeper Jak Alnwick with a minute remaining at St James Park to earn Sunderland a third league victory of the season which lifted them to 14th place with 19 points.

“We’ve won three years in a row now, they must hate me here, three wins, three clean sheets,” Johnson, who relishes these occasions after scoring on Sunderland’s two previous visits, told Sky Sports.

“It’s a personal favourite of mine coming to play here, it’s a great atmosphere and the crowd all seem to rise to the occasion. I missed a chance earlier and I would have been devastated if I’d missed that one at the end.”

On Saturday, Manchester United’s six-match winning streak came to a halt with a 1-1 draw at Aston Villa, seven points adrift of leaders Chelsea and rivals Manchester City, while West Ham United, Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur all closed on them.

Villa, without a victory over United at Villa Park in 18 games since 1995, went ahead thanks to a spectacular first-half goal by Christian Benteke who chested down a deep free-kick, stepped inside Jonny Evans and curled a fine left-foot shot inside the left-hand post.

United boss Louis van Gaal, who described the result as “very frustrating”, had handed striker Radamel Falcao a rare start and was rewarded eight minutes into the second half.

The on-loan Colombian headed home an Ashley Young cross, but Villa held the visitors at bay despite having Gabriel Agbonlahor sent off with 25 minutes to play.

“Very frustrating. I think we gave two points away,” United manager Van Gaal told the BBC.

“I’m disappointed because also in the first half we were the better team and when that’s the case, you have to win.”

United remain third with 32 points. West Ham stayed fourth on 31, after a 2-0 win against bottom club Leicester City at Upton Park.

Andy Carroll seized on West Ham old boy Paul Konchesky’s disastrous back-pass to put the hosts ahead in the 24th minute and Stewart Downing made it 2-0 11 minutes after the interval with a stunning 25-yard effort.

The Hammers are two points ahead of fifth-placed Southampton which ended a run of five defeats with a 3-0 victory over Everton.

Southampton played with great purpose and urgency at St Mary’s where a Romelu Lukaku own goal and efforts from Graziano Pelle — his 11th club goal of the season — and Maya Yoshida secured the points.

Tottenham kept up their pursuit of a top-four spot and are level on 27 points with Arsenal after a 2-1 home win against Burnley.

Ashley Barnes cancelled out Harry Kane’s headed opener for Spurs with a blistering shot from 20 yards, but Erik Lamela gave the hosts victory with a swerving long-range effort 10 minutes before half-time.

The most dramatic individual and team performance saw Queens Park Rangers move out of the relegation zone with a 3-2 victory over West Bromwich Albion at Loftus Road.

QPR owed their triumph to the success of striker Charlie Austin, a bricklayer and part-time footballer five years ago, whose first Premier League hat-trick enabled the hosts to recover after falling 2-0 down in the first half.

West Brom raced into a two-goal lead through Joleon Lescott and Silvestre Varela, but the 25-year-old Austin hit back with a penalty before adding the equaliser and then an 86th-minute winner.

“Charlie is a great story,” said QPR manager Harry Redknapp.

“He’s struggled around non-league for years and suddenly gets a break ... He’s been out on a building site in the freezing cold and knows what life’s like. A lot of lads are given everything. He’s worked for it and he’s a great example.”

Austin’s treble took his tally to 11, making him the leading English scorer in the league, and helped QPR rise from 18th to 15th.

Burnley replaced QPR in the bottom three, slipping to 18th, while Hull City stayed 19th after a 1-0 home defeat against Swansea City.

Ki Sung-yeung’s early goal, thanks to an involuntary deflection off his wrist, proved to be decisive as the Tigers’ run without a win was extended to 10 games.

Published in Dawn, December 22th, 2014

Opinion

Editorial

Afghan turbulence
Updated 19 Mar, 2024

Afghan turbulence

RELATIONS between the newly formed government and Afghanistan’s de facto Taliban rulers have begun on an...
In disarray
19 Mar, 2024

In disarray

IT is clear that there is some bad blood within the PTI’s ranks. Ever since the PTI lost a key battle over ...
Festering wound
19 Mar, 2024

Festering wound

PROTESTS unfolded once more in Gwadar, this time against the alleged enforced disappearances of two young men, who...
Defining extremism
Updated 18 Mar, 2024

Defining extremism

Redefining extremism may well be the first step to clamping down on advocacy for Palestine.
Climate in focus
18 Mar, 2024

Climate in focus

IN a welcome order by the Supreme Court, the new government has been tasked with providing a report on actions taken...
Growing rabies concern
18 Mar, 2024

Growing rabies concern

DOG-BITE is an old problem in Pakistan. Amid a surfeit of public health challenges, rabies now seems poised to ...