SUNDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2013 SPORTS Southampton frustrate City Southampton 1 Man City 1 WEST BROMWICH: Norwich City’s Leroy Fer celebrates scoring the second goal against West Bromwich Albion during their English Premier League SOUTHAMPTON: Southampton striker Dani soccer match at The Hawthorns yesterday. —AP Osvaldo’s stunning equaliser ensured Manchester City’s stuttering away form continued in a 1-1 draw at St Mary’s yesterday. Manuel Pellegrini’s Norwich down Baggies side were seeking only their third away win of the Premier League season following a victory at West Bromwich Albion in midweek. But City missed out to ease relegation fears on the chance to move to within three points of leaders Arsenal when injury-hit Southampton pass was taking Hooper away from goal recovered after falling behind to Sergio Aguero’s but he fizzed a superb strike beyond Boaz ninth minute opener. West Brom 0 Myhill. Albion sought a quick response with Osvaldo’s superb individual effort three min- Youssouf Mulumbu firing straight at John utes before the break secured a share of the spoils Ruddy after nice link play with Morgan for the home side who recovered well after suffer- Amalfitano. ing three successive defeats. And City, now five Norwich 2 The Frenchman’s teasing cross from the points behind Arsenal who have a game in hand, right then saw Victor Anichebe get in a can consider themselves fortunate to have header which Ruddy gratefully grasped. escaped with a point after impressive Saints pres- The hosts remained on the offensive, with sure almost brought a second half winner. Lifted WEST BROMWICH: Norwich boosted their Ruddy tipping a fierce Anichebe shot wide by the news Manchester United had suffered a chances of avoiding relegation from the of goal. Clarke made two changes at the second successive home defeat, Pellegrini’s men Premier League with a 2-0 victory against break, bringing on Shane Long and Saido started the game clearly intent on taking full West Bromwich Albion yesterday. Chris Berahino for Liam Ridgewell and advantage of their rivals’ slip. Hughton’s team were thrashed by Amalfitano. The switches initially helped Southampton manager Mauricio Pochettino Liverpool in midweek and speculation was Albion and they should have been level in had been forced to make changes to the side that mounting that the Canaries boss would be the 52nd minute when Sessegnon surged unexpectedly lost at home to Aston Villa with sacked if they failed to get a positive result past two Norwich defenders into the box, Nathaniel Clyne and Victor Wanyama joining a at the Hawthorns. Hughton’s players rose to but the Frenchman rolled his shot wide of growing injury list. And, initially at least, the home the challenge and Gary Hooper opened the the post. side’s lack of cohesion was exposed by City. scoring early in the first half before Leroy Sessegnon then spurned another Alvaro Negredo should have put the visitors Fer’s late strike sealed the points. Norwich’s chance after Martin Olsson had gifted the ahead after just five minutes when he broke free second away win of the season lifted them ball to him six yards out, with Ruddy mak- into the Southampton area after being released into 14th place and they remain four points ing the save. Long became the latest man by an Aguero flick. above the relegation zone. to miss for West Brom a few moments later. The opportunity was missed when the It is now one win in nine games for the Mulumbu’s deflected shot fell to him in the Spaniard’s first touch allowed Paulo Gazzaniga- Baggies and Steve Clarke’s side were booed area, but his shot was too tame to beat standing in for regular Saints keeper Artur Boruc off at full-time. Norwich were quickly into Ruddy. Mulumbu then fizzed an effort wide who broke his hand at Chelsea six days previous- their stride and they took the lead with a but all the home side’s pressure came to ly-to smother. But Pellegrini’s side didn’t have to SOUTHAMPTON: Southampton’s Jose Fonte (right) jumps as Manchester City’s Sergio fine strike from Hooper in the 13th minute. nothing and they were punished in the wait long before they got another clear sight of Nathan Redmond fed Fer, who picked out 89th minute as Redmond found Fer for the goal and this time Aguero finished with ease after Aguero heads a ball towards goal during the English Premier League soccer match the striker’s run with the aid of a deflection midfielder to cut inside and fire low past Aleksandar Kolarov’s low cross had been allowed between Southampton and Manchester City yesterday. —AP off Diego Lugano’s heel. The angle of the Myhill. —AFP to drift across the six yard box. However, after he spurned a routine chance. Osvaldo’s goal was a moment of high quality withstanding heavy early pressure, Southampton Yaya Toure’s searching crossfield ball allowed and created by the Italy international out of noth- began to exert some control and clawed their Pablo Zabaleta to get in behind the Southampton ing after he ran from halfway. The forward first Rebuilding Spurs leave way back into the game. defense and pull the ball back for his Argentina turned Vincent Kompany inside out and then did Adam Lallana, the Saints captain, was key to team-mate, only for Aguero to sky his attempt on the same to Zabaleta before curling an angled their revival with the England forward’s confident goal from just 12 yards out. That provided a shot over and beyond Pantilimon and into the Sunderland marooned forward running repeatedly unsettling the City reminder of City’s threat, but the home were top right hand corner of the net. The tempo of defense. And they finally tested visiting keeper quickly back on the front foot, with left back Luke the game increased after the break with both Steven Fletcher brought into his starting XI. Costel Pantilimon in the 29th minute when Jack Shaw twice producing good crosses from the left teams creating a succession of half chances with- The early skirmishes saw Fletcher drill wide Cork drilled in a low shot that forced the Romania flank, the second of which was headed narrowly out managing to claim a winning goal. Sunderland 1 from a Jozy Altidore flick, before Holtby international into a sharp save. Aguero, though, wide by Calum Chambers. The pressure was Southampton centre back Jose Fonte came clos- worked Sunderland goalkeeper Vito should have snuffed out the growing hope of a building on City but the way in which Saints drew est, heading over from James Ward-Prowse’s late Mannone at the other end with a well-struck Southampton comeback two minutes later when level could not have been anticipated. free-kick. —AFP drive that may have been drifting just wide. Tottenham 2 Sunderland made the breakthrough in the 37th minute, with Spurs goalkeeper Hugo Lloris at fault. In attempting to punch clear a right-wing cross from Celustka, the Matches on TV SUNDERLAND: Tottenham Hotspur pur- France goalkeeper administered only a weak (Local Timings) sued their Premier League revival by coming glancing blow, and Johnson was on hand to from behind to win 2-1 away to bottom club lash the loose ball into the exposed goal. Sunderland at the Stadium of Light yester- Fortunately for Lloris, it took Spurs only six ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE day. A 50th-minute own goal from minutes to equalise, with Paulinho stabbing Fulham v Aston Villa 16:30 Sunderland captain John O’Shea settled the home from close range after a deep free- Aljazeera Sport 1 HD game, after Adam Johnson’s first-half opener kick was nodded down at the back post by Arsenal v Everton 19:00 was swiftly cancelled out by Spurs’ Brazil Chadli. Aljazeera Sport 1 HD midfielder Paulinho. Spurs went four games Celustka then tested Lloris’s alertness without a win last month, including a sober- with a rasping drive, while Chadli saw a ing 6-0 thrashing at Manchester City, but header land on the roof of the net in first- ITALIAN LEAGUE having also come from behind to win 2-1 at half injury time. It had been an evenly con- Roma v Fiorentina 14:30 Fulham in mid-week, they are now moving tested encounter up to that point, but Aljazeera Sport 3 HD in the right direction. O’Shea’s unfortunate own goal five minutes Cagliari v Genoa 17:00 Yesterday’s victory left Andre Villas-Boas’s into the second half tipped the balance of Aljazeera Sport +4 side in sixth place in the table, two points the game in the visitors’ favor. Dembele did Hellas Verona v Atalanta 17:00 below the Champions League places, after brilliantly to burst past Jack Colback on the both Chelsea and Manchester City dropped Spurs left and his low centre took an unpre- Aljazeera Sport 4 HD LONDON: Crystal Palace’s Cameron Jerome (left) tussles with Cardiff City’s Steven Caulker Sampdoria v Catania 17:00 points earlier in the day. Sunderland, mean- dictable deflection off O’Shea and flashed during their English Premier League soccer match at Selhurst Park yesterday. —AP while, remain five points from safety at the past Mannone at his near post. Aljazeera Sport +2 foot of the table, having now gone four Tottenham pushed forward in search of a Sassuolo v Chievo Verona 17:00 games without tasting victory since a 1-0 killer blow, but Defoe twice hit the post and Palace revival continues Aljazeera Sport +2 win at home to City on November 10.