With the final day of the season nearing, most teams are taking games seriously while others are a bit indifferent about their current situation.
Chelsea took credit for the most impressive result of the weekend after defeating Queens Park Rangers 6-1 with three goals from Fernando Torres. Daniel Sturridge got the Blues on the scoreboard with a decent curler after just 47 seconds of play whereas John Terry doubled the lead with a terrific header from a corner kick.
Torres then slotted in the third, fourth and fifth goals to give Chelsea a 5-0 advantage before Florent Malouda made six with a precise strike in the 18-yard box. Djibril Cisse finally rolled in a late goal to give QPR a consolatory departure from Stamford Bridge.
While we’re talking about hat tricks, Luis Suarez was able to net all three goals as Liverpool shutout Norwich at Carrow road.
The Uruguayan took advantage of a defensive blunder while sending in the opener after a fine pass from Steven Gerrad. Suarez was quick to capitalize on another defensive error as he fired a terrific shot past John Ruddy.
Norwich found space to test the palms of Pepe Reina but the Spanish goalkeeper saved The Cannaries’ effort comfortably. Suarez exploited the Canaries’ third costly defensive mistake as he chipped a 45-yard shot over Ruddy in the 84th minute.
Meanwhile, Arsenal was not enjoying its visit to Stoke City. The hosts got on the scoreboard first with a well-timed header by Peter Crouch in the 10th minute.
However, Robin Van Persie cancelled the opener with a superb shot in the 15th minute. Despite subsequent attempts to take the lead, the Gunners had to settle for a 1-1 draw.
Fellow Londoners, Tottenham Hotspurs, had a better fixture Sunday as they thrashed Blackburn Rovers 2-0. Rafael Van Der Vaat opened scoring with a close range shot in the 22nd minute while Kyle Walker rounded up the game with a remarkable curling free kick in the 75th minute.
Everton registered a captivating 4-0 victory over Fulham with goals from Nikica Jelavic, Marouane Fellaini and Tim Cahill. Jelavic was awarded a penalty kick in the sixth minute after his free kick was thwarted by a handball. The Croatian sent Mark Schwarzer the wrong way to give the Toffees a 1-0 advantage.
Fellaini instilled satisfaction in the minds of the Goodison fans when he leaped high to head in Everton’s second of the match.
But there was still more to come in the first half as Jelavic’s clever footwork earned him his eighth goal of the season. Eventually, Cahill put the nail in the Cottagers’ coffin after receiving timely lob-pass from Steven Pienaar.
Wigan followed suit with an identical score line humiliating Newcastle at the DW Stadium. Victor Moses netted two outstanding goals within 15 minutes while Shaun Maloney drove through the Magpies defense to give Wigan a 3-0 advantage. Sure enough, the game came to an end before the break when Franco Di Santo lobbed Steve Harper to make it 4-0.
Still, the most interesting game of the weekend was the Manchester Derby, which featured an unfortunate loss by the Red Devils.
Vincent Kompany’s 45th minute header was pretty much game-decisive as Stoke City continued to pull off defensive tactics at the Etihad.
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