Manchester City moved top of the table after maintaining
their 100 per cent home record with a narrow victory over Crystal Palace as
Manchester United scrapped for three points at Norwich City.
Hull City delivered a scintillating second-half display
to thrash Fulham at home, while West Ham United remain in the bottom three
after drawing with West Bromwich Albion.
Aston Villa ended a run of four consecutive defeats in
the Premier League after a home draw with Swansea City.
Edin Dzeko scored a second-half winner as a much-changed
Manchester City were forced to work hard to beat lowly Crystal Palace 1-0 at
the Etihad Stadium.
City pressed for much of the match in search of a goal,
but also had to be vigilant at the back, with Palace starting to ask questions
of Joe Hart in the second half.
However, Manuel Pellegrini's side made the breakthrough
on 66 minutes when Palace could only partially clear a cross into the box and
Jesus Navas teed up Dzeko to side-foot emphatically home.
Palace responded immediately and almost scored an
equaliser when Joel Ward's 25-yard shot produced a flying save from Hart to tip
the ball round the post.
Manchester United made it six wins in a row in all
competitions after half-time substitute Danny Welbeck's goal secured a 1-0
victory at Norwich City.
United grabbed the lead decisively on 57 minutes when
Ryan Bennett's clearance clattered off Danny Welbeck and then ricocheted back
to the England international off team-mate Javier Hernandez. Welbeck was left
clean through and he took the ball round John Ruddy before sliding his shot
into an empty net.
West Ham were held to a 3-3 draw by West Brom in a
topsy-turvy encounter at Upton Park in a game which Sam Allardyce had described
as 'must win' in the build-up.
The home side took the lead on four minutes when Carlton
Cole flicked on a long punt from Jussi Jaaskelainen to Joe Cole, who played a
neat one-two with Kevin Nolan before firing a low right-footed shot past Ben
Foster.
West Brom equalised five minutes before half-time when
Christ Brunt played a sublime through ball to Nicolas Anelka and the Frenchman
dinked his shot over Jaaskelainen.
Albion then took the lead in controversial circumstances
on 45 minutes after winning a dubious corner from a Joe Cole challenge with
James Morrison. Brunt's corner was headed goalbound by Jonas Olsson and, after
Guy Demel blocked tamely on the goalline, Anelka reacted first to poke the ball
into the back of the net.
Allardyce sent on Modibo Maiga for Carlton Cole at the
break and the substitute equalised on 65 minutes when his curling left-footed
effort from outside the box skipped over the diving Foster's right hand.
Hammers fans were in full voice again two minutes later
as Maiga's knock-down from a Mark Noble cross found Nolan, who volleyed home
from close range to make it 3-2.
But it was 3-3 on 69 minutes when Saido Berahino cut onto
his left foot in the 18-yard box and steered an angled drive into the bottom
corner.
Hull City midfielder Tom Huddlestone can finally get his
hair cut after scoring his first goal since April 2011 in a memorable 6-0
hammering of Fulham at the KC Stadium.
After a scoreless first half, Hull went ahead on 49
minutes when Huddlestone's corner dropped to Ahmed Elmohamady and he took a
touch before volleying inside the post.
Hull doubled their lead on the hour mark when Yannick
Sagbo played in a dangerous first-time cross and Robert Koren stretched out a
leg to divert the ball past David Stockdale.
A third goal arrived just three minutes later when Jake
Livermore fed a pass into George Boyd, who turned on the edge of the area and
angled his low shot beyond Stockdale.
Midway through the second half, Huddlestone finally ended
his long goal drought, and wait for a trip to the barbers, as he feinted on the
edge of the box before driving a low shot home.
Huddlestone came close to a second goal on 74 minutes
when his 40-yard free-kick came back off the crossbar, but substitute Matty
Fryatt was on hand to volley home the rebound.
Koren notched his second goal of the game with six
minutes to go when the midfielder swept home the loose ball after Stockdale
could only parry Danny Graham's shot.
Out-of-form duo Aston Villa and Swansea settled for a 1-1
draw at Villa Park after Gabriel Agbonlahor's early goal for the hosts was
cancelled out by Roland Lamah.
Villa went ahead on seven minutes with their maiden
first-half goal at home this season in the Premier League after Andreas Weimann
slipped in Agbonlahor to finish confidently.
However, Swansea equalised on 36 minutes when Pablo
Hernandez crossed from the left of the penalty area and Lamah squeezed his
header between the post and scampering Villa keeper Brad Guzan to leave Michael
Laudrup's side without a win in five league games.
Culled from Skysports
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