There were not enough games in big leagues again this weekend for another edition of rankings, so they will make their much anticipated comeback next weekend! Also, Blaine happens to be in Japan at the moment (follow his blog here) where apparently the internet is not as reliable and/or available so that makes him sending rankings and keeping up with the football world more difficult. In any case it was still a fun weekend in soccer with FA Cup 3rd round matches and a round of La Liga in Spain.
-Leeds United stunned Manchester United 1-0 at Old Trafford in FA Cup action. As described last Thursday, this is a huge historical rivalry and Leeds United is not your average League One team. Jermaine Beckford scored a neat 19th minute goal and Leeds were able to hold off some late attacks from Manchester United for the great win. Leeds simply out-played a high quality Manchester United squad that included Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov and quality youngsters Danny Welbeck and Gabriel Obertan on the wings. Welbeck and Obertan were removed for Antonio Valencia and Ryan Giggs in the 57th minute, but it was not enough for Manchester United.
-Chelsea defeated Watford 5-0 at home and Arsenal enjoyed a good 2-1 win at West Ham. Liverpool was held to a 1-1 draw at Reading, leading to a money-making replay at Anfield that cash-strapped management will not be upset about.
-Preston North End dismantled Colchester United 7-0 at home with 5 second half goals including a second half hat trick for Jon Parkin. Preston North End is currently without a manager after the sacking of Alan Irvine on December 29th.
-Aston Villa defeated Blackburn Rovers 3-1 at home and Wigan Athletic won 4-1 at home against Hull City in matches of Premier League sides.
-Remaining Premier League team results (home team listed first): Bolton Wanderers 4-0 Lincoln City, Fulham 1-0 Swindon Town, Middlesbrough 0-1 Manchester City, Milton Keynes Dons 1-2 Burnley, Nottingham Forest 0-0 Birmingham, Portsmouth 1-1 Coventry City, Stoke City 3-1 York City, Tottenham Hotspur 4-0 Peterborough United, Tranmere Rovers 0-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers.
-The only Premier League team to bow out to a non-Premier League team was Manchester United, while Liverpool still needs to hold of Reading in a replay.
- The lowest team left on the Football League ladder is League Two Accrington Stanley, who has yet to play their 3rd round tie against League One bottom-dwellers Gillingham. The lowest team that has already advanced to the 4th round is Brighton, who is in 20th in League One. Brighton won 1-0 at League Two Torquay United.
-Barcelona and Real Madrid were both held to draws in La Liga, 1-1 home to Villarreal and 0-0 at Osasuna, respectively, so Barcelona is still on top of La Liga by two points over Madrid.
-Celtic and Rangers played to a 1-1 draw at Celtic Park, so Rangers still lead the Scottish Premier League by 7 points over Celtic, with one more game played.
FA Cup Draw
Draw for the 4th round, home team listed first. Matches to be played the weekend of January 23rd. Replays of 3rd round matches will be played January 12th and 13th.
Accrington Stanley/Gillingham v Fulham
Aston Villa v Brighton
Bolton Wanderers v Sheffield United/Queens Park Rangers
Bristol City/Cardiff City v Leicester City
Everton v Nottingham Forest/Birmingham City
Millwall/Derby County v Brentford/Doncaster
Notts County/Forest Green Rovers v Wigan
Portsmouth/Coventry City v Sunderland
Preston North End v Chelsea
Reading/Liverpool v Burnley
Scunthorpe United v Manchester City
Southampton v Ipswich Town
Stoke City v Arsenal
Tottenham Hotspur v Leeds United
West Bromwich Albion v Plymouth/Newcastle
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Crystal Palace
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