© EuroFootball.com
On Sunday, three more matches from the 30th round of the English Premier League were played. The leaders, Liverpool and Arsenal clubs, both could not secure victories in Birmingham and Liverpool.
Undoubtedly, the most intriguing match took place at Goodison Park stadium, where the hosts Everton fought against the clear favorite to win, London's Arsenal.
The guests had the initiative from the start of the match, controlled the ball longer and approached the opponents' goal with precise passes. However, when they reached their goal, they were met with a strong Everton defense and could not find the back of the net.
The first real opportunity to score came from Liverpool's striker Andrew Johnson, who was left one-on-one with Arsenal's goalkeeper Jens Lehmann after a ball was blocked by Leon Osman. However, the German goalkeeper was faster and deflected the ball right at the striker's feet, avoiding further trouble.
Shortly after, the home fans were left wondering when Lee Carsley's shot rattled the goalpost and bounced back into play.
At the end of the first half, the guests came alive - first, Julio Baptista's header went over the goal, and then Tim Howard saved a low shot from Jeremie Aliadiere just before the break.
In the second half, the teams' efforts became more apparent - Everton relinquished the initiative and tried to capitalize on counter-attacks, while Arsenal tried to break through the home team's defense and secure a victory. This was evident in Arsene Wenger's substitutions, bringing attacking players like Theo Walcott and Alexandre Hleb onto the field. However, neither of them made a significant impact in attack.
It is worth noting that the hosts continued to be more dangerous in attack. In the middle of the half, Leon Osman's shot hit the crossbar, and earlier the same defender, avoiding the defender's mark, headed the ball over the goal.
However, Everton eventually achieved their goal - in added time, after a corner kick, the ball bounced right to A. Johnson's feet, and he smashed it between the goalkeeper and defender, securing a dramatic victory and valuable three points for his team, elevating them to sixth place in the league table.
Meanwhile, Arsenal players could not take advantage of the slip-up by Liverpool in Birmingham. Rafael Benitez's players could not overcome Aston Villa and the match ended in a 0-0 draw.
The start of the match did not promise anything negative for Liverpool, continuing their fight in the Champions League. Early on, John Arne Riise crossed the ball into the penalty area, but Dirk Kuyt's header missed the target.
Later, Craig Bellamy had a chance, but after a pass from Daniel Agger, he failed to connect with the ball before the goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen rushed to it.
From that moment on, Aston Villa solidified their defense and did not allow the visitors from Liverpool to create any dangerous opportunities. However, the hosts also couldn't boast success in attack - a couple of shots from them didn't trouble goalkeeper Pepe Reina.
Stilian Petrov caused a surge of emotions in the tense match by falling in the penalty area and demanding a penalty kick. However, the referee allowed play to continue without escalating the situation.
In the second half, the picture remained the same, and perhaps the only hundred percent chance to steal a possibly undeserved victory came just before the final whistle for Robbie Fowler, but the veteran's shot from a sharp angle was saved by T. Sorensen.
In another match, London's Charlton secured important points in the fight for survival against Newcastle, winning 2-0.
The first goal of his career in the English league was scored by China's national team captain Zheng Zhi, and Jerome Thomas doubled the lead with a penalty kick as Newcastle ended a disappointing week.
Sunday's results:
Everton 1 - 0 Arsenal
90' [1 - 0] Andrew Johnson
Aston Villa 0 - 0 Liverpool
Charlton 2 - 0 Newcastle
53' [1 - 0] Zheng Zhi
88' [2 - 0] Jerome Thomas (from penalty kick)
League table [table=7]
