The week in review February 11 2008
John Carew's hat-trick heroics and Man City's rare derby double serve up some of the points that characterised the week that was...
The biggest news in England this past week was well of course... England!
Praises rushed in for Fabio Capello's introductory team selection against Switzerland following the Three Lions' 2-1 win. It was a welcome breath of fresh air following the Beckham banter that dominated the announcement of the Italian's initial squad and the Golden Balls chants that resonated through Wembley.
The former Real Madrid boss has won the adoration of the press, for the moment anyway, by insisting: "Players are all at the same level for me and all equal."
Meanwhile, Rio Ferdinand was evidently enthusiastic about the new reign, cooing: "It was like going to a new school. We were like school kids waiting to suck up all the information he's got."
Clearly buoyed by his achievement at being chosen as Capello's first number one, David James pulled out all the stops against Gary Megson's Bolton.
The Trotters boss was not overtly dismayed by his side's loss, largely due to the 37-year-old's performance between the sticks.
Megson said: "The only reason we did not win the game is purely and simply down to one of the best goalkeeping performances I've seen."
The Portsmouth stopper, who bore the brunt of being titled 'Calamity James' for much of his career, proved that there was no reason he shouldn't be Capello's number one and only...
Paul Robinson may disagree, but he might be a bit tied up conjuring up conspiracy theories as to why hasn't been reinstated as Spurs first-choice stopper.
Harry Redknapp will be feeling all smug after Pompey's victory, but may well be wondering if he did the right thing by shrewdly shipping off Benjani to Man City.
The forward netted in his derby debut for the Blues on a day Manchester will never forget.
Manchester United put a lot of thought, effort and reverence in their Munich Disaster memorial that was to be capped off with a stirring win against their arch nemesis.
Sven-Goran Eriksson's charges clearly forgot to go over the script though and made swift work of sweeping the Red Devils off the park. First-half goals by Darius Vassell and Benjani were enough to steer City through, despite a late consolation goal by Michael Carrick.
It was the first double the Eastlands outfit managed over their neighbours since 1970 and the unmistakable pride was echoed through Eriksson's words:
"I understand the history, and the last time City won here or did the double over United. It was far too long and we have now corrected that.
"It was time to put that right, and we have done it and given our fans something special."
Central to his side's victory were the back pairing of Richard Dunne and Micah Richards. Cristiano Ronaldo's usual post-match "I deserve the Player of the Year award" was literally Dunne and dusted.
Another defender who really impressed through a largely dour encounter was Liverpool's new-boy Martin Skrtel. The Slovak was thrust into the deep end by Rafa Benitez and handled his task as well as his centre-back partner, Barclay's Man of the Match Jamie Carragher.
It was the only light at the end of the Bridge as neither side displayed a generous amount of attacking flair.
In fact the only real buzz of the game was Frank Lampard's return to action. And even he couldn't whisk the home crowd into wondrous raptures.
One man who managed to stir up his home supporters was John Carew. The Norwegian international gave Aston Villa the lead after Wilfred Bouma's effort from 20 yards cancelled out Michael Owen's opener for Newcastle.
And then the floodgates opened for Villa who witnessed Carew convert another two, completing his hat-trick and taking his tally to nine for the season.
Dimitar Berbatov may not have scored a hat-trick but his second-half introduction in the clash against Derby was the catalyst for yet another resurgent Spurs performance.
Robbie Keane got the opener a mere 10 minutes after the Bulgarian's 58th minute arrival. Berbatov then followed fellow sub Younes Kaboul's second with a well-taken penalty - making it a 3-0 rout.
Juande Ramos lauded the striker's contribution: "He played his part in the team's magnificent effort in winning the game."
Another instrumental Bulgarian was Martin Petrov. Definitely one of the finest summer signings, the 29-year-old blazed through the United defence and had a hand in both City goals.
It takes a performance and a half to overshadow Ronaldo's presence on the pitch and Petrov delivered such a display.
Daryl Murphy's strike against Wigan deserves such superlatives. The winger released an unstoppable left-footed 25-yard shot past Chris Kirkland. Steve Bruce had a few musings after the game, least of all on the slickness of Murphy's strike.
Bruce has not had an easy time of it with the Latics battling relegation, but one wonders when fellow under-fire boss Kevin Keegan will feel the heat.
Former Tyneside boss Sam Allardyce has revealed the club was not big or ambitious enough for him after receiving a paltry eight months at the helm.
He said: "Newcastle probably wasn't big enough for me - it didn't live up to my ambitions in the short time that I was there."
Keegan may have to get his post-axing speech in order after yet another botched display against Aston Villa. Newcastle showed glimmers of hope during the first half, but it took just six minutes in the second period to dismantle the Magpies.
The Toon have been pretty forgiving of their Messiah thus far, but a 0% win record can only be tolerated for so long. Even if you are King Kev...
By: Melissa Reddy