Football
Reuters 19y

Soccer-English Premier League reports

By Trevor Huggins

LONDON, Aug 14 - Reports from Premier League
matches on Sunday:

ARSENAL 2 NEWCASTLE UNITED 0

Arsenal squeezed out the points in the last 10 minutes
after being matched by a 10-man Newcastle side who lost England
midfielder Jermaine Jenas to a 32nd minute red card.

Jenas walked for a lunging tackle on Gilberto but his team
mates held out until Fredrik Ljungberg went down in the area
under a challenge from substitute Charles N'Zogbia. Arsenal
captain Thierry Henry converted the penalty in the 81st minute.
Substitute Robin Van Persie steered home the second from a
narrow angle, pouncing on a Ljungberg cross to the near post.

- - -

WIGAN ATHLETIC 0 CHELSEA 1

Wigan deserved at least a draw from their first game in the
top-flight -- only for Argentine striker Hernan Crespo to come
off the bench and score a superb winner in the third minute of
stoppage time for the champions.

Irish midfielder Alan Mahon missed Wigan's best chance in a
highly promising first half, while a Damien Francis header hit
the bar in the closing minutes of the game -- just before Crespo
struck from 20 metres out for the cruellest of victories.
- - -

Played Saturday:

ASTON VILLA 2 BOLTON WANDERERS 2

Four goals in the opening nine minutes provided a
heart-stopping start to a game that promptly went quiet, with
Villa settling for a point after a late let-off.

Villa new boy Kevin Phillips started the goal bonanza, Kevin
Davies levelled, Spaniard Ivan Campo put the visitors in front
before Phillips crossed for Steven Davis to score Villa's
equaliser. There was frustration for Bolton midfielder Kevin
Nolan, who had a potential matchwinner harshly disallowed for
offside towards the end.

- - -

EVERTON 0 MANCHESTER UNITED 2

Booed every time he touched the ball, former Blue Wayne
Rooney returned to Goodison Park to help set up United's first
and then score their second in a free-flowing game.

Rooney fed the ball wide for John O'Shea, whose low cross
was superbly converted by Dutchman Ruud van Nistelrooy just
before halftime.

Rooney killed the game a minute after the re-start when he
pounced on an atrocious pass across his own penalty area by
Everton defender Joseph Yobo area and steered the ball past a
helpless Nigel Martyn. It was his first Goodison goal for United
since last year's 27 million pounds (

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