© EuroFootball.com
On the last day of 2005, English football fans eagerly awaited the approaching new year, but passionately supported their beloved teams continuing to fight in the country's championship. Today, all ten matches of the twentieth round were played.
The absolute league leader, London's "Chelsea," did not spoil the holidays for their fans and secured their 18th victory of the season. This time, the team led by Jose Mourinho was too much for the "Birmingham City" team, losing the match 2-0. The goals for the winners, who now lead the tournament table by 11 points over their closest pursuers, were scored by Hernan Crespo and Arjen Robben.
Meanwhile, "Liverpool" proved their superiority over "West Bromwich Albion" at their home "Anfield" stadium, defeating their opponents with a narrow margin of 1-0. The only goal of the match was scored by the forward Peter Crouch, who has been increasingly valuable to the team despite a tough start to the season.
Second-placed "Man Utd" also achieved victory. In a high-scoring match, the "Red Devils" defeated the seventh-placed "Bolton" club 4-1.
Despite Manchester's team currently leading third-placed "Liverpool" by four points, this situation could change drastically immediately after the new year, as the UEFA Champions League winners have played two fewer matches.
The London-based team led by Arsene Wenger, "Arsenal," continue to fluctuate in their matches. The sixth-placed team from the capital city failed to overcome the resistance of Birmingham's "Aston Villa" team who are in the second part of the tournament table.
Meanwhile, "Tottenham" seems to be seriously competing to secure a spot in the top four. Martin Jol's pupils defeated "Newcastle" 2-0 at home today and solidified their fourth position. In addition to the defeat, the unquestionable "Magpies" striker Michael Owen suffered an injury in this match. The 26-year-old forward broke a bone in his foot and will be unable to play for several months.
Sunday's results:
1 - 0 52` [1 - 0] Peter Crouch
4 - 1 8` [1 - 0] Bruno N'Gotty (own goal) 33` [1 - 1] Garry Speed 44` [2 - 1] Louis Saha 68` [3 - 1] Cristiano Ronaldo 90` [4 - 1] Cristiano Ronaldo
0 - 0
1 - 0 43` [1 - 0] Gary O'Neil
0 - 1 90` [0 - 1] Tim Cahill
0 - 3 16` [0 - 1] Morten Pedersen 53` [0 - 2] Steven Reid 83` [0 - 3] Craig Bellamy
2 - 0 21` [1 - 0] Shaun Bartllet 63` [2 - 0] Darren Bent
2 - 0 24` [1 - 0] Hernan Crespo 43` [2 - 0] Arjen Robben
2 - 0 43` [1 - 0] Teemu Tainio 66` [2 - 0] Mido
0 - 0
