by ‘Ifreke Inyang

Baled Out

He looked out of sorts for most of the game, but by the end of the testing clash, it was abundantly clear why Andre Villas-Boas desperately wanted Gareth Bale back. Yes, Manchester City should have been out of sight at White Hart Lane, but they allowed complacency set in and decided to see their one-goal lead out. Big mistake. With one lazy swing of his left boot, Bale set up Clint Dempsey for the equaliser. Four minutes later, Jermaine Defoe twisted and turned in front of Vincent Kompany, before flashing his shot past Joe Hart. Bale himself made the win certain, sprinting past Clichy and expertly lobbing the ball over Hart.

 

Liverpool’s bite in attack

Luis Suarez is one footballer that loves the headlines. At Anfield yesterday, it was all about him. There is no point arguing – Suarez is a marvellous striker. However, his sneaky little tricks, also makes him one of the most hated players in England. His pass for Sturridge’s equaliser was a thing of beauty. Less than five minutes after, he is trying to punch the ball away in his own penalty area. Hazard tucked away the penalty, but there was no way the Belgian would take the newspaper columns from Suarez. He tried to bite off Branislav Ivanovic’s arm, before heading in a 96th leveller.

 

It’s title number 20 for United

I’m sure even Roberto Mancini, cannot give a concrete explanation, as to why his team crumbled against Spurs. That is not important. What the 3-1 defeat implies, is that their fierce rivals, will win the Premiership for a record 20th time, if they defeat Aston Villa at Old Trafford. Let’s not even kid ourselves and expect that relegation-threatened Villa will put up the fight. This one is done and dusted. Congratulations, Manchester United!

 

Step up to the centre stage, Poldi

Once again, Olivier Giroud endured a frustrating afternoon against Fulham on Saturday. His day ended with a late dismissal, after the referee decided his tackle on Phillipe Senderos deserved a red card. I’m sure a lot of Gunners are not even fretting. A quick glance on Twitter timelines proved it and Lukas Podolski is widely expected to step up and play through the middle in the next three Arsenal games. It’s been a long time coming for the German, but here, Poldi, is a chance to make your point to Monsieur Wenger and the rest of us.

 

Paolo’s magic continues

I still feel Paolo Di Canio is a poor imitation of Jose Mourinho, but that is almost blasphemy to Sunderland fans at the moment. In his first three games in charge, the eccentric Italian has delivered two victories and six precious points. He has infused new life into the team and galvanised the players together, giving a hug here and a back pat there. At this stage really, we should expect to see more theatrics and fist-pumping from Di Canio next season. In the Premiership of course.