Chelsea beat West Ham 4-1 on Wednesday to move within three points
of Premier League leader Manchester United.
Shaun Wright-Phillips scored two goals, and Salomon Kalou and
Didier Drogba added the others for the two-time defending
champions. Carlos Tevez scored for West Ham.
Kalou chested the ball to Wright-Phillips, who scored his first
goal of the season in the 31st. The Chelsea midfielder avoided
several defenders before changing direction with a dip of the
shoulder and shooting past West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green.
Tevez briefly tied the score in the 35th with a long shot that
Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech appeared to misplay. The goal ended a
string of eight straight shutouts for both Chelsea and Cech.
Chelsea reclaimed the lead less than a minute later, when
defender Wayne Bridge ran down the left side and crossed to
Wright-Phillips, who volleyed past Green.
Kalou made it 3-1 in the 51st by tapping in a rebound after
Drogba had nearly scored off Frank Lampard's cross.
Lampard was able to set up Drogba for the fourth goal, sending a
looping pass that the Ivory Coast striker controlled with one touch
and then shot through the legs of Green. The goal was Drogba's 19th
in the league this season.
Man United beat Sheffield United 2-0 on Tuesday and has 81
points. United is trying to win three major trophies this season,
while Chelsea is aiming for four.
Besides fighting for the Premier League title, both teams have
reached the English FA Cup final and the Champions League
semifinals. Chelsea already has won the English League Cup.
Liverpool got two goals from Steven Gerrard to move back into
third place with a 2-0 win over Middlesbrough, and Blackburn beat
last-place Watford 3-1.
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ROME (AP) AS Roma beat Inter Milan 3-1 to temporarily prevent
the Italian leader from winning the league title.
Roma captain Francesco Totti scored from a 25-yard free kick in
the 88th minute and Marco Cassetti added another goal for Roma
during injury time, handing Inter its first league loss of the
season.
"We were hoping to finish the season unbeaten, but delaying the
party isn't a problem," Inter coach Roberto Mancini said.
Inter had not lost in any competition since getting beat by
Bayern Munich 2-0 in the group stage of the Champions League in
September.
Roma midfielder Simone Perrotta redirected a cross from
Christian Chivu from one yard in the 44th and Marco Materazzi tied
the score for Inter in the 52nd with a disputed penalty kick. Roma
goalkeeper Alexander Doni was called for tripping Adriano but
replays indicated otherwise.
Inter holds a 13-point lead over Roma at the top of the
standings and can win the title Sunday at Siena, where it needs to
win and hope Roma loses at Atalanta.
"We've only delayed them for a couple games. They're a great
squad and deserve to win this title," Roma defender Matteo Ferrari
said.
AC Milan beat last-place Ascoli 5-2. Alberto Gilardino and Kaka
each scored two goals in the first half and Clarence Seedorf added
another for Milan in the 75th.
Inter leads with 81 points, followed by Roma with 68, Lazio with
57 and Milan with 53.
Lazio was held to a 0-0 tie by visiting Chievo Verona. Lazio's
Valon Behrami and Chievo's Paolo Sammarco were each ejected for
bumping each other in the 45th, and Lazio's Luciano Zauri was sent
off in the second half.
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BARCELONA, Spain (AP) Barcelona easily beat Getafe 5-2 in the
Copa del Rey semifinals, getting two goals from Lionel Messi.
Messi scored his first goal in the 29th minute, beating four
opponents in a run from his own half before shooting past Getafe
goalkeeper Luis Garcia. The Argentinean forward added another in
the 45th when he evaded defender Alexis Ruano and sent a rising
shot into the net.
Xavi Hernandez, Eidur Gudjohnsen and Samuel Eto'o also scored
for Barcelona, while Daniel Guiza and Nacho Perez scored for
Getafe.
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FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) Stuttgart advanced to the German Cup
final against Nuremberg by beating Wolfsburg 1-0 on a goal by
Antonio da Silva.
Da Silva scored in the 16th minute, curling a free kick from
nearly 30 yards over the Wolfsburg wall.
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PARIS (AP) Lyon missed a chance to claim its sixth straight
French league title after being held to a 0-0 tie by Rennes.
Lyon, which leads the league by 18 points, can win the title
Sunday with a tie at Auxerre or a loss by Toulouse at Rennes on
Saturday.
Bordeaux beat Nancy 3-0. Marouane Chamakh scored two goals and
Fernando Cavenaghi added the other.
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ATHENS, Greece (AP) Aris Thessaloniki stayed on course for the
berth in next season's UEFA Cup by defeating Ergotelis 2-0 in the
Greek league on goals by Sergio Koke and Javier Javito.
The game originally was scheduled for Sunday but was postponed
because Aris defied a government ban and distributed tickets to fan
clubs.
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AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) Defending champion Ajax beat RKC
Waalwijk 3-1 in the Ducth Cup semifinals on goals from Welsely
Sneijder, Gabri and Nicolae Mitea.
Ajax will play either AZ Alkmaar or NAC Breda in the final on
May 6.
(China Daily via AP, April 19, 2007)
