Liverpool Take First Place, Dominate Tottenham

 4-0 

Liverpool came into today's match with a chance to take the first-place position away from Chelsea.  Losing to Crystal Palace, Chelsea failed to get any points which left only a one point margin over Liverpool in second place.  Tottenham came into Anfield hoping to snap a two game losing streak against a surging Liverpool side.  However the Hotspurs had little to offer offensively and really struggled to slow down Liverpool's attack.

Liverpool took no time at all to get on the score sheet, exposing the weak Tottenham defense.  Raheem Sterling played Glen Johnson in behind the Tottenham back line and Johnson made a cross into the box.  Tottenham captain Younes Kaboul had a chance to clear the ball off the line, but he got it wrong and turned the ball into his own net off his heel (2').

The situation only got worse for the Hotspurs as starting centerback Vertongen had to come out with an injury.  Michael Dawson replaced him in defense and immediately put his team in trouble.  Attempting to make a backwards pass to Kaboul, Dawson failed to see Suarez lurking.  Suarez intercepted the pass and fired a left-footed shot to score a second goal for Liverpool (25').

The second-half was not any better for Tottenham who failed to offer any real offensive threat.  Instead Liverpool continued to dominate and added two more goals.  Fullback Jon Flanagan initiate a break and made a strong run forward before passing to Coutinho.  With loads of space, Coutinho was allowed to shoot and he beat the keeper from outside the box (55').

Jordan Henderson then added a final goal from a free-kick.  His shot was a low driven free-kick that skipped in front of Tottenham's goal.  Suarez was in position to get a flick on the ball, but he made a dummy on the ball and Henderson's shot ended up in the net (75').

Liverpool is the only team in the top-four to come away with a win over the weekend and now claim the top spot in the league.  Chelsea's loss to Crystal Palace had disastrous consequences and now they sit two points behind Liverpool in first place.  Liverpool travel to West Ham next week and look to continue this fantastic run in the Premier League.

Chelsea Clobber Tottenham at Stanford Bridge

 4-0 

Premier League leaders Chelsea hosted a much improved Tottenham side today at Stanford Bridge.  Since Tim Sherwood has taken over the reigns as the Hotspurs manager late in December, Tottenham have worked their way back into Champions League contention.

Initially for Chelsea, Fernando Torres was scheduled to make the start at striker, but suffered a groin injury durring his pre-game warm up.  Samuel Eto'o was thrust into the line-up in his place and after avoiding an injury himself early in the match, provided a spark fot the Blues.

The first-half was rather wide open with neither team able to get the upper hand.  Tottenham were able to match the play of Chelsea despite being on the road.  However after the first-half the wheels started to come off.

In the second-half Tottenham defender Vertongen slipped while attempting to make a back-pass to his keeper and Eto'o was quick to pounce on the loose ball.  Eto'o managed to fire the shot between the legs of keeper Lloris to put Chelsea ahead (56').

Shortly after the first goal Tottenham were put deeper into trouble when centerback Younes Kaboul was sent off.  Kaboul committed a foul in the box on Eto'o earning a red card plus giving Chelsea a penalty.  Eden Hazard scored from the spot and Tottenham were in all essence done for (60').

Late in the game Eto'o was replaced by Demba Ba and more sloppy play by the dejected Tottenham defense allowed him to score two goals.  First a cross into the box by Oscar was not cleared by Sandro and Ba was able to split the legs of Lloris to score (88').  Then a moment later Kyle Walker made an ill-advised backwards header that went right to Ba who scored easily for the last goal of the match (90').

The final score does not accurately describe the performance by Tottenham, especially considering the first-half effort.  Sometimes when it rains it pours, and Chelsea managed to capitalize on every mistake by Tottenham.  With the win Chelsea extend their lead in first-place, though they have played more games than anyone other club in the top-four.  Nonetheless they are in good shape to close out the season as Premier League champions.

Arsenal Eliminate Tottenham From FA Cup

 2-0 

The Premier League took a back seat to the FA Cup this weekend and the biggest matchup of round three was easy the Arsenal-Tottenham London Derby.  Arsenal continue to lead the Premier League while Tottenham sit just eight points behind the leaders in sixth place.

Arsenal had to shuffle their starting eleven some with Giroud, Gibbs, and Ramsey unavailable.  Today Walcott got the start at center forward for the Gunners and did well in his preferred position, although he did not score.  Instead it was Santi Cazorla who put Arsenal in front thanks to the setup by Serge Gnabry in the first-half.  Gnabry made a good run into the box with the ball and played Cazorla behind Tottenham's defense with a through-pass.  Cazorla went for power and hit the shot first-touch to beat keeper Lloris at the far-post (31').

Tottenham created a few chances with Soldado and Adebayor in the attack, but overall Arsenal was outplaying the Hotspurs.  Arsenal added another goal in the second-half when defender Danny Rose was caught in possession and lost the ball to Rosicky.  The ball was stolen right at the midfield line and Rosicky had no one except keeper Lloris between him and the goal.  Lloris was forced off his line and Rosicky finished with a chip-shot over the keeper coming out to make a play (62').

Following the second goal, Tottenham had lost all motivation and went out quietly.  The Hotspurs can focus on the league now and host Crystal Palace in the next fixture.  Arsenal advance to the next round of the FA Cup with the win today and will hope for a more favorable matchup, perhaps against a non-Premier League club.  Their next ELP match will be a road test against Aston Villa.

Big Road Win For Liverpool, Crush Tottenham

 0-5 

Liverpool and Tottenham met at White Hart Lane for a Premier League matchup with big potential for the Reds.  First-place Arsenal lost the exciting match to Manchester City 6-3 the day prior, giving Liverpool a chance to gain on the league leaders.  Liverpool seized the opportunity and came away with a stunning win.

Through-balls were extremely effective against Tottenham all match with Luis Suarez, Raheem Streling, and Jordan Henderson getting behind the defense easily and often.  The first goal was scored when Henderson won a loose ball from defender Michael Dawson and played Suarez in-on-goal.  Suarez had to shake two defenders to work the shot, but scored and put Liverpool in front (18').

Henderson then scored later in the first-half following a barrage of shots by Liverpool.  Henderson took the initial shot that keeper Hugo Lloris saved well, but the rebound stayed in front of the Tottenham goal.  Suarez struck the rebound and Lloris made another big save to deny the goal, but again the rebound stayed in front of goal.  Lloris did all he could, however Henderson got a second chance and found the net for his first goal of the season (40').

The second-half did not improve for the Hotspurs and a loss of composure by Brazilian Paulinho left the home side playing with ten men.  Paulinho was caught with a high boot to the chest of Suarez and was send off with a red card.  From then on Liverpool was able to seemingly score at will and added three more goals after it was all over.

The young defender Jon Flanagan was next to score for Liverpool.  Suarez delivered the cross to Flanagan who scored with a well struck half-volley that caught a piece of the cross before finding the net (75').  Liverpool added two more when a pair of through-balls again beat Tottenham's back line.  First the substitute Luis Alberto played Suarez in-on-goal who finished with a chip-shot over Lloris caught off his line (84').  Then Suarez played Sterling in-on-goal who finished with a touch-shot for the last goal of the match (89').

Liverpool are now only two points behind Arsenal in the table with another winnable game against Cardiff City up next.  After that it will be two tough road tests against Manchester City and Chelsea.  The injuries to Steven Gerrard and Daniel Sturridge, among others, has not slowed Liverpool down yet as they remain in top form, but that could be a factor against the bigger clubs going forward.