United in pole position
Chelsea up to second
Celtic beat Gretna
Free tickets for Gers fans
Green called up for England
Northern Ireland hit by withdrawals
Manchester United are in pole position to reclaim the Premier League title after a 3-0 victory over 10-man Liverpool at Old Trafford. Wes Brown gave United the lead on 34 minutes before Javier Mascherano was sent-off for dissent on the stroke of half-time by referee Steve Bennett. After the break, Cristiano Ronaldo (79) and Nani (81) sealed the points.
At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea came from behind to beat Arsenal 2-1 and leapfrog the Gunners into second place. Bacary Sagna gave the visitors the lead on 59 minutes but a double from Didier Drogba (73 & 82) won the day for Chelsea while inflicting only a second league defeat of the season on Arsenal.
All this now means Manchester United are five points clear of Chelsea in the Premier League table and six ahead of Arsenal with a vastly superior goal difference than their rivals.
In the Scottish Premier League, Celtic beat Gretna 0-3 at Almondvale with Scott McDonald (42), Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink (70) and Georgios Samaras (88) were all on the scoresheet. Gordon Strachan’s men are now three points behind league leaders Rangers having played a game more.
Rangers have purchased the club’s entire ticket allocation for the away leg of the UEFA Cup clash with Sporting Lisbon and will give them out free to 2,500 travelling fans based on their previous travel history. Chief executive Martin Bain said: “This gesture is a big thank you to our supporters who have shown extraordinary commitment this season.” The club also announced a freeze in season ticket costs and a reduction for juvenile season tickets.
West Ham United goalkeeper Robert Green has been called into the England squad for Wednesday’s friendly in France as a replacement for Wigan Athletic’s Chris Kirkland who picked up a back injury against Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park yesterday.
Northern Ireland have been hit by four withdrawals from their squad ahead of Wednesday night’s friendly game at Windsor Park against Georgia. West Bromwich Albion winger Chris Brunt has a hamstring injury, Derby County goalkeeper Roy Carroll has suffered a recurrence of a groin strain, Scunthorpe United striker Martin Paterson is in hospital with gastroenteritis and Sammy Clingan is on club duty with Nottingham Forest. Leicester City’s Gareth McAuley and Burnley’s Kyle Lafferty are doubts.
Nathan Davies