© EuroFootball.com
This weekend in the English Premier League, nine matches of the thirteenth round were played. In the championship, London's Chelsea club continues to lead confidently, beating the closest pursuer Wigan by 9 points.
On Saturday, the leaders at home easily defeated the Newcastle team 3-0, despite missing several key players. However, J. Mourinho's team only managed to score goals in the second half - safeties Joe Cole and Damien Duff, as well as forward Hernan Crespo, each scored once.
Meanwhile, unexpectedly successful at the start of the season, Wigan stumbled. The team, newly promoted to the top league this year, lost 3-2 at home to London's Arsenal. Interestingly, all five goals of the match were scored in the first half.
Continuing to secure their position in the championship is last season's strongest European club, Liverpool. This time, Rafael Benitez's team, playing only their 11th league game, crushed Portsmouth 3-0. Despite a solid victory, fans and coaches should be more concerned about the "dry" performance of striker Peter Crouch - the hard-working forward failed to convert even a penalty kick.
The third-placed and successful team of late, Man Utd, also secured a victory. Managed by Sir Alex Ferguson, the team won 3-1 away against Charlton and pushed their opponents to tenth place in the league table.
All weekend results:
Resultative players:
1. Frank Lampard (Chelsea) 10 goals
2. Ruud van Nistelrooy (Man Utd) 10 goals
3. Darren Bent (Charlton) 7 goals
4. Thierry Henry (Arsenal) 7 goals
5. Aiyegbeni Yakubu (Middlesbrough) 7 goals
