Here is a list of the top 10 players to have won the most tackles in the Premier League so far this season.

10. Joe Allen (Swansea City) – 60 tackles won
The young Welsh central midfielder has shown his combative nature in his debut Premier League season, winning 60 of his 81 attempted tackles, standing at 5’6”. Joe Allen was sent off in a 4-2 defeat at Blackburn earlier this season, but otherwise remains a clean player, conceding just 21 free kicks so far this season.

Swansea have been praised for their attractive passing style this season, and Joe Allen managed to escape criticism during their recent 3-1 defeat at Spurs, where the midfielder completed 57 of 59 pass attempts during the game, but failed to make a single forward pass attempt. No surprise he didn’t make it on the recent top creators list then.

9. Maynor Figueroa (Wigan Athletic) – 61 tackles won
As part of a Wigan Athletic side who do a lot of defending, left full back Maynor Figueroa leads the club in both tackle attempts and tackles won so far this season. The Honduran has already won more tackles this season that he did throughout last season in which he played every match for the Latics.

Maynor Figueroa’s busiest game this season came in a 5-0 loss at Old Trafford on boxing day. The full back won all 8 of his tackle attempts that day and 86% of his ground duels in a failed attempt to help out the rest of his under performing team mates.

8. Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur) – 61 tackles won
Tottenham’s right full back who fought off competition from both Vedran Corluka and Alan Hutton to become a starter this season at White Hart Lane to recently being capped by England. Now hoping for a place on the flight to Poland/Ukraine in the summer, Kyle Walker has impressed since breaking into the first team, continuing on from his impressive performances for both Queens Park Rangers and Aston Villa last season.

Kyle Walker has won 84% of his tackle attempts in the Premier League this season – the highest percentage amongst the top 10. Walker also has a 100% conversion rate with his shots on target this season. Or should I say, shot. His winner versus Arsenal earlier in the season is the only shot the young Englishman has got on target to date.

7. Kyle Naughton (Norwich City) – 62 tackles won
This list consists of full backs and central midfielders, and Norwich City’s Kyle Naughton has won the most tackles in the Premier League as a full back so far this season. Leading the way with 62, Naughton has done his best to protect what has been a leaky Norwich defence since joining on loan from Tottenham at the start of the season.

Kyle Naughton has a busy game up against Junior Hoilett during a 3-3 draw with Blackburn Rovers at the end of 2011, winning 6 of 8 tackles – both personal bests this season. Hoilett however did open the scoring in that game on the stroke of half time with a 20-yard strike.

6. Youssuf Mulumbu (West Bromwich Albion) – 63 tackles won
West Brom’s holding midfielder Youssuf Mulumbu is a bit of a cult hero down at the Hawthorns. A battling midfielder, only 5 players have made more tackles and only 4 players have made more interceptions than Congolese player.

One of the cheapest signings of modern time, Youssuf Mulumbu cost then-West Brom manager Tony Mowbray less than £200,000 to sign from Paris Saint-Germain in the 2009 winter transfer window. Last season he scored a late winner of rivals Aston Villa.

5. Yohan Cabaye (Newcastle United) – 68 tackles won
Despite winning Ligue 1 with Lille last season, Yohan Cabaye turned up at Newcastle as a relatively unknown midfielder amongst the British media when he moved in the summer. Since then, Cabaye has become popular with both Newcastle fans and several Premier League viewers alike.

Only Scott Parker has attempted more tackles than Yohan Cabaye’s 98 to date. The midfielder also has an eye for goal, as shown with his long range free kick during Newcastle’s 3-0 thrashing of Manchester United back in January. Along with several other French speaking debutants at Newcastle, Cabaye is a big part of the overachieving Magpies this season.

4. Alejandro Faurlin (Queens Park Rangers) – 68 tackles won
A big part of Queens Park Rangers promotion campaign last season, Alejandro Faurlin was the player involved in a lot of controversy at the end of last season regarding his transfer to the London side. What turned out to be nothing certainly put the Argentine’s name amongst Premier League fans. This season, with excellent and consistent performances, Faurlin has only enhanced his reputation in English football.

Having torn his anterior cruciate ligament in a FA Cup third round tie with Milton Keynes Dons in early January, Alejandro Faurlin has been ruled out for the rest of the season. Yet, he still remains at number 4 in our tackling list at the start of July. This somewhat shows his effort and willingness to tackle during games alone.

3. Marouane Fellaini (Everton) – 70 tackles won
Only two players have won more tackles than Everton’s fuzzy-haired central midfielder, Marouane Fellaini this season. And only a handful have gone into more ground duels than the Belgian midfielder this season too. Although only Grant Holt has committed more fouls.

Marouane Fellaini is often unfairly penalised by referees for innocuous challenges and clumsiness, but the energetic Everton record transfer signing is both entertaining and a solid act in the middle of the part for the Merseyside club. Whether he’s taking possession off of the opposition or slowing play down by committing fouls, there aren’t too many players who get past Fellaini easily. 24 times he’s been dribbled past this season to be precise. In comparison, Alex Song has been beaten 41 times, Scott Parker 34 times, and Youssuf Mulumbu 29 times.

2. Scott Parker (Tottenham Hotspur) – 72 tackles won
Leading the Premier League with 102 tackle attempts, Scott Parker is second to only one when it comes to tackles won so far this season. His battling performances have been praised for two seasons now, as he consistently throws himself into tackles on the pitch, often resulting in him lying down in pain or taking a breather towards the end of a game.

Recently captaining the England side, Scott Parker has only lost 4 Premier League matches in a Tottenham shirt. That’s a significant contrast since captaining the West Ham side during last season’s relegation.

1. Moussa Dembele (Fulham) – 73 tackles won
Fulham central midfielder Moussa Dembele currently leads the Premier League with 73 tackles won after 31 games. His 79% tackle success is 8% higher than Scott Parker’s to date. The Belgian international is on his own in the ground duel battles, winning 225; 45 more than the next closest competitor.

Transfer rumours to a bigger club do circulate from time-to-time, and with performances such as Moussa Dembele has this season, including his cheeky back flick to setup Pavel Pogrebnyak’s winner at Queens Park Rangers in February. Dembele scored 10 goals during AZ’s Eredivisie title-winning season of 2008/09, but has just 1 Premier League goal in 2011/12. That came in a 2-0 victory at Wigan in October.

With seven wins from his first nine games, progressing to the semi-finals of the Champions League and FA Cup, everything is running smoothly for Roberto Di Matteo since he replaced Andre Villas-Boas as Chelsea caretaker manager. But the Italian is not the long-term solution at Stamford Bridge.

Yes, the former Milton Keynes Dons and West Bromwich Albion manager has done well to turn Chelsea’s form around following a 1-0 defeat at the Hawthorns in the Premier League; the game that proved to be AVB’s downfall. But the former holder of the quickest FA Cup final goal has yet to do anything special during his time in charge.

Roberto Di Matteo opened his caretaker account with a 2-0 victory in an FA Cup replay at Championship side Birmingham City, before beating 10-man Stoke 1-0 in the Premier League. Didier Drogba fired home midway through the second half to pick up 3 points for the Blues in what was anything but a convincing performance. At the time though, 3 points were all that mattered.

3 points were followed up by overturning a 1-3 deficit at the hands of Napoli in the Champions League. His predecessor hadn’t left Chelsea in the best of positions, but with help of a late penalty followed by Branislav Ivanovic’s extra time winner, Chelsea pulled off a surprise victory to progress to the quarter finals as England’s only remaining side in Europe.

Napoli, who looked sharp in the first leg victory, helped by some poor Chelsea defending weren’t on their game in the second leg and Chelsea deserved to go through on the night. The Italians defending was not the best at time, whilst more importantly they were wasteful in front of goal, particularly when the score was 0-0 at the Bridge.

A 5-2 victory over Championship mid-table team Leicester City in the FA Cup was nothing more than expected. However, this game marked the return of Fernando Torres who was involved in just about everything that went right for Chelsea that day. Including a brace of his own.

The Blues had a chance to hand Manchester United a favour in the title race in a midweek game in March when they travelled to the Etihad. They looked on course to do just that when Gary Cahill’s deflected effort gave the visitors the lead on the hour mark. However, the Roberto in the opposite corner won the tactical battle in the final 15 minutes as Mancini’s side came back to win late on.

A disappointing Mario Balotelli was replaced at half time and for the final 25 minutes, Carlos Tevez made his long-awaited return to spark the comeback. With help of a Sergio Aguero penalty that levelled the score, it was Tevez’s superb assist to setup Samir Nasri’s winner that handed Di Matteo his first defeat as Chelsea manager.

An out-of-form Tottenham side held Chelsea to a goalless draw at Stamford Bridge, before the Blues went to Portugal and recorded a 1-0 victory over Benfica in the first leg of their Champions League quarter final match.

The second leg on Wednesday night produced another uninspiring victory. A Frank Lampard penalty midway through the first half followed by Maxi Pereira’s red card before half time seemingly but the game beyond reach for the Lisbon side. However, Chelsea’s failure to put the game away lead to a nervy ending when Javi Garcia headed in an equaliser with 5 minutes to go from an unchallenged corner.

Yes, Raul Meirelese settled the tie with a great strike on a breakaway in stoppage time, but nerves amongst the home support were uncalled for by Di Matteo’s side. Benfica’s central defence partnership from the beginning of the game consisted of a central midfielder and a left back, due to the absence of four natural centre backs. One could only imagine the damage a Lionel Messi, Wayne Rooney or even Papiss Cisse would have done to this defence, but Chelsea failed to convince.

Following Maxi Pereira’s red card, central midfielder Axel Witsel played more than a half out of position at right full back. A 2-1 win over this side is hardly going to put any fear into the defending European champions.

In between their Champions League quarter final matches, Chelsea pulled off a 4-2 victory over a disappointing and youthful Aston Villa side. Even then, they threw away a 2-goal lead late on before goals in the final 10 minutes from Ivanovic and Torres spared any blushes.

I cannot deny Roberto Di Matteo is getting the right results, albeit with a side that were second favourites to win the Premier League at the start of the season. At this stage he appears little more than a motivator to me. And although he did take the second strongest squad out of the Championship as runners up with West Brom (which is no mean feat), I do not believe he has what it takes to compete for the Premier League title.

1 point from 2 games against sides in the top 4 goes a small way towards trying to put my point across.

Here is a breakdown of the Premier League’s top creators so far during the 2011/12 season. A created chance is the final pass or pass-come-shot leading to the recipient of the ball having an attempt at goal.

10. Mark Gower (Swansea City) – 2.3 chances created per game

A regular in the first team during Swansea City’s promotion campaign from the Championship last season, Mark Gower has made just 13 starts and 3 substitutes in the Premier League this season despite showing his creative ability during that time. Since the arrival of Gylfi Sigurdsson in January, Gower has had next-to-no time in the first team.

Mark Gower has created 36 chances during his first season in the top flight with the Welsh side; 15 of these coming from set plays. The centre midfielders most notable creative performances from open play came in back-to-back games against Bolton Wanderers and Wolverhampton Wanderers in October. Swansea picked up 4 points from these games, with Gower creating a total of 8 chances in open play, picking up an assist in each.

9. Robin van Persie (Arsenal) – 2.4 chances created per game

The Premier League’s top scorer has been the main focal point up front for Arsenal this season. The Dutch forward has scored 26 goals in 30 league games for the Gunners this season, as well as creating a total of 71 chances for team mates. 24 of these have come from set pieces.

Of the chances created for team mates this season, Robin van Persie has recorded 9 Premier League assists this season. He does however have the lowest pass completion percentage in this top 10 list (78%).  The bookmakers odds-on favourite to win this season’s PFA Player of the Year award, van Persie is set for a summer of speculation linking him to richer, more-successful clubs of recent years should he come out and say he is staying with the Gunners for the foreseeable future.

8. Antonio Valencia (Manchester United) – 2.4 chances created per game

The Manchester United right winger (and at times, full back) has been one of the defending Premier League champions’ most consistent players this season. His pace and strength down the right wing have troubled most full backs this season, most notably against Wolves’ Ronald Zubar, where he recorded 5 of his 11 assists over two games (4-1 and 5-0 victories), scoring 1 goal.

Only 1 of the 45 chances Antonio Valencia has created for his Manchester United team mates this season has come from set pieces as the Ecuadorian gets his work done down the wing in open play. The former Wigan Athletic player fought back from an injury-hit season start ahead of the in-form Nani in last season’s Champions League final to show us Sir Alex Ferguson’s faith in him.

7. Danny Murphy (Fulham) – 2.4 chances created per game

It may come as a surprise to some to see Danny Murphy’s name on this list, but the Fulham central midfielder has created 70 chances in 29 games for his team mates this season. This helped largely by the set pieces the 35-year old takes, which has resulted in 37 chances for Fulham players this season.

Danny Murphy has 2 assists from set pieces so far this season and a further 3 from open play. Two of the latter came in games against Blackburn, whilst Murphy’s latest open-play assist came in a 5-0 victory over Wolves recently. Danny Murphy was on the receiving end of Michael Carrick’s trip inside the penalty area in the 90th minute against Manchester United on Monday night that controversially saw no penalty awarded.

6. Nani (Manchester United) – 2.4 chances created per game

Portugal’s Nani has had a quiet start to 2012 since netting 6 times in the Premier League before Christmas. The winger has only played five of Manchester United’s 11 league games since the turn of the year as injuries have hit last season’s 9-goal star.

Nani has created 58 chances in 22 Premier League games so far this season, resulting in 8 assists. Although he takes his fair share of set pieces, 44 of his created chances have come from open play, as have all of his assists. Whilst 75% of his assists have come on the road, his stand out performance this season was arguably during Manchester United’s 3-1 home win over Chelsea in September. Nani recorded 1 assist that day, scored 1 goal, won the penalty Wayne Rooney missed and succeeded in 8 of his 9 dribble attempts; a season high.

5. Samir Nasri (Manchester City) – 2.5 chances created per game

Following much stick from Arsenal fans following his summer move, and seemingly not having the most productive of debut seasons, Samir Nasri ranks in as high as number 5 on our list for averaging 2.5 chances created per game in the Premier League. The French midfielder has made 23 league appearances for the Citizens and has recorded 7 assists.

A memorable debut against Tottenham saw Samri Nasri create 11 chances, resulting in 3 assists during the 5-1 drubbing at White Hart Lane in August. Since then, Nasri has only managed to provide assists versus Wigan Athletic (September) Blackburn Rovers (October) and Stoke City (December). The ex-Arsenal man has managed to create at least 1 chance for a team mate in all-but 5 league games this season, but is someway shy of the 10 goals he scored for the Gunners last season.

4. Gareth Bale (Tottenham Hotspur) – 2.6 chances created per game

Few full backs have been able to prevent Gareth Bale from creating a chance against their side this season. In fact, only Danny Simpson (for Newcastle in both games) and Martin Kelly (in the 0-0 draw at Anfield) have prevented Bale from creating at least 1 chance in a single game so far this season.

Gareth Bale has been better at White Hart Lane than away from it in Premier League games this season. No San Siro hat trick this season. The Welsh winger has created 73 chances in 28 games for team mates this season; 39 of these at home. These have resulted in 8 assists of which 6 came in front of the home supporters. He scored in both games versus Wigan this season but his brace at Carrow Road is well remembered.

3. Luka Modric (Tottenham Hotspur) – 2.7 chances created per game

Luka Modric’s appearance at number 3 means that Tottenham Hotspur have two of four most creative players in the Premier League this season. A good reason to support some pundits’ claims they have the best midfield in the division, although that’s not wholly supported here.

The Croatian midfielder who was subject to a strong transfer campaign by Chelsea in the summer has created no less than 75 chance for his team mates in his 28 league appearances. However, the player who pulls the strings in the Spurs midfield in just about every game only has 4 assists. Generally not one to be involved in the final product (so far has 3 Premier League goals; the same total for each of his three previous seasons with Tottenham), only Yaya Toure and Mikel Arteta have made more pass attempts than Modric’s 1,898 this season. He is second to Ashley Williams amongst outfield players to make long pass attempts.

2. David Silva (Manchester City) – 2.7 chances created per game

Manchester City’s David Silva has created at least 1 chance for a team mate in 27 of his 29 Premier League appearances this season. The two successful defences were Newcastle back in October when the Spaniard played only 21 minutes, and Chelsea a week ago when Roberto Mancini hauled Silva off with quarter of an hour remaining. Other than that, the £24 million 2010 summer signing from Valencia has tortured most defences.

His quick feet, movement and technical ability put him amongst the best in the world, and the 79 chances created this season put him number 2 in the Premier League in that category. 71 of these have come from open play. David Silva leads the Premier League with 12 assists through 30 games, although has not registered since Manchester City’s 3-2 win over Tottenham on 22 January. He has also failed to score since Christmas and not played the full 90 minutes in any of Roberto Mancini’s side’s last 4 Premier League games. Still, he’s been very productive during the 2011/12 season however he finishes it.

1. Juan Mata (Chelsea) – 3.1 chances created per game

Whilst Spain holds both the European Championships, the World Cup and the Champions League with their short passing Tiki-taka style game, we shouldn’t be too surprised to see two Spaniard’s lead the created chances category in the Premier League this season.

Chelsea’s Juan Mata has created at least 1 chance in each of his 28 Premier League games during his debut season in English football. A total of 88 to date averages 3.1 per game, well-ahead the rest of the league. Only Paris Saint-Germain’s Nene has created more chances (101) so far this season in Europe’s top 5 leagues.

Already under his second manager at Stamford Bridge in the 7 months he has been in London, Juan Mata has been Chelsea’s brightest spark during a struggle in the league. The ex-Valencia playmaker has 5 goals and 10 assists in his first season, with his most-notable performance coming in a 3-0 victory over Wolves in November. Mata scored 1 and setup the other 2 during that game. Certainly needs to be a focal point during Chelsea’s resurrection for next season.

Wigan Athletic’s 27 goals is a league low after 30 Premier League games. The Lancashire club have scored just 1 more than Arsenal’s Robin van Persie has on his own. Despite a lot of praise over the 3 season’s manager Roberto Martinez has been in charge, Wigan appear to be taking a backwards step. Here’s an explanation into the Latics’ problems in front of goals this season.

1. Lack of Creativity

The loss of Charles N’Zogbia to Aston Villa in the summer was always going to be a very difficult task for both Dave Whelan and Roberto Martinez to replace. They seemingly had faith in Victor Moses to do the job as the Nigerian international has started out on the wings for most of Wigan’s games this season.

Last season, Charles N’Zogbia scored 9 of Wigan’s 40 Premier League goals as they stayed up on the last game of the season. The French midfielder assisted a further 5. With eight games remaining of this season, Victor Moses has just 3 goals to his name and 1 assist. A comparison of their statistics shows how much more productive last season’s player was compared to this season’s:

30% of Victor Moses’ pass attempts this season have gone backwards, compared to 24% of Charles N’Zogbia’s in the same category last season. The current Wigan number 11 could be excused for the less successful dribble attempts produced by the current Aston Villa winger, as Moses is second only to Junior Hoilett in that category this season.

2. Open Play Assists

To back up Wigan’s lack of creativity, they have only registered 7 open play goal assists so far this season. In comparison to the rest of the Premier League, Bolton Wanderers and Stoke City have the next fewest from open play, both on 13. Only Aston Villa (2) have fewer assists from set plays than Wigan’s 3 this season. Roberto Martinez’s side have failed to turn their 49.7% average possession per game (8th best in the league) into goals.

Not making lives easy for themselves; only Swansea City (5%), Chelsea (4%) and Bolton Wanderers (4%) take a lower percentage of their shots inside the 6 yard box (5%). Whilst only Queens Park Rangers (55%) take a higher percentage of their shots from outside the 18 yard box (51%). Wigan have been partially helped by 19% of their goals coming from the penalty spot.

3. Victor Moses Rushing Shots

Without intentionally using this as an opportunity to openly criticise Victor Moses. The one-time 50 goals in a season teenager for the Crystal Palace under 14s has had an air of desperation about him at times this season.

32 of Moses’ 77 shots this season have come from outside the penalty area. Of which, 12 of these have been blocked, 14 of them have gone off target and 0 of them have found the back of the net. In total, no Premier League player to date has had more shots blocked than the total of 28 accrued by Victor Moses this season.

Of the 3 goals Victor Moses has scored, his first was a well-taken effort in a 2-1 victory at West Brom in December. The second he fired home first time from Hugo Rodallega’s low cross in a 2-2 draw at Stoke on New Year’s Eve. And his third was a well-taken run past John Ruddy in a 1-1 draw at Norwich. So Wigan are unbeaten when Moses scores this season. But the former England youth team player simply does not score enough and does not set himself up well for shooting.

4. Poor Finishers

Victor Moses isn’t the only player who can be criticised for poor finishing at Wigan this season. Franco Di Santo and Jordi Gomez are the club’s top scorers with a measly 4 goals each, which simply isn’t good enough when you’re in a relegation fight.

Wigan’s poor goal return comes despite averaging 13.7 shots per game; the 10th highest in the Premier League. Only Liverpool’s 6.2% conversion rate is worse than Wigan’s 6.3%. Next on the list is Queens Park Rangers who convert 7.2% of their shots. And Liverpool, whilst having a disappointing season by their standards, at least have the fourth highest number of shots (515) in the league itself, compared to Wigan’s 412.

Hugo Rodallega, after heading in the goal against Stoke City on the final game of last season to keep Wigan in the Premier League, is having a disappointing season in his contract year. The Colombian has been guilty of a number of spurned chances in front of goal this season. Perhaps he has a phobia of the 6 yard box with some of his misses this season and that both of his Premier League goals have actually come from outside the 18 yard box. 28 of Rodallega’s 55 shots this season have been from outside the penalty area. One is not afraid to go for the spectacular.

Wigan Athletic host Stoke City this weekend as they look to overcome the 1 point deficit between them and Bolton Wanderers who currently sit above the relegation zone. Roberto Martinez has eight games to avoid the drop.

Stats provided by Opta Sports

Peter Crouch scored a spectacular volley this evening as Stoke City held Manchester City to a 1-1 draw at the Britannia Stadium.

A tetchy first half ended 0-0 with only a couple memorable moments. Firstly, a high challenge from Gareth Barry on Glenn Whelan inside the penalty area that saw the England international escape any punishment. Later, David Silva drew blood and required a bandage following an elbow from Dean Whitehead.  And Pablo Zabaleta cleared Matthew Etherington’s untouched corner off the goal line.

Edin Dzeko wasted the best chance of a forgettable first half and a one-on-one at the start of the second, but Peter Crouch gave the game something to remember in the 59th minute when he controlled Jermaine Pennant’s flick-on, 20 yards out to swivel on the spot before looping a dipping volley into the top far-hand corner to put the Potters in front.  A front runner for the Premier League goal of the season.

Joe Hart had no chance in stopping the effort as the England number 1 was beaten from outside the penalty area for only the third time this season.

The goal unsettled Manchester City for following minutes, which included Kolo Toure’s poor header almost letting Crouch in one-on-one only for the Ivorian’s pace advantage to bail him out.

Last year’s FA Cup final hero over Stoke rescued Manchester City with 15 minutes to go in this game. Yaya Toure’s 35 yard strike, originally heading straight down the middle of the goal took a deflection off Ryan Shawcross as it headed past Asmir Begovic to level the score.

Wilson Palacios fired narrowly over late on before Toure had an undeflected long range effort also go into the crowd.

Manchester City tested Begovic in the Stoke goal 6 times, in a game they maintained over two-thirds of the possession. Mario Balotelli had another disappointing game this month; making fewer touches than any of his team mates that started this game.

Substitute Carlos Tevez completed all 17 of his pass attempts, but was unable to help his side to victory in the way that he did last Wednesday when he assisted Samir Nasri with the winner over Chelsea. The Argentine’s only effort of this game was blocked.

This point takes Manchester City to the top of the league on goal difference. Manchester United’s game in hand at home to Fulham takes place on Monday night.

Statistics provided by Opta Sports

Manchester United increased their lead over local rivals Manchester City to 4 points with a comfortable 5-0 victory over Wolves on Sunday.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s side never looked in doubt after Jonny Evans turned in a corner that was woefully defended in the 21st minute. Ronald Zubar was sent off 5 minutes before half time for the hosts who have now conceded 19 goals in their last 5 games.

Antonio Valencia marked his return with the second goal of the game shortly after Wolves went down to 10 men, before Danny Welbeck completed the first half route in the 45th minute. Javier Hernandez bagged a second half brace that takes Manchester United’s goal difference to +46; 3 behind Manchester City.

Paul Scholes completed 98% of his 98 pass attempts in this game, with the majority (73%) of them going square. But it was Antonio Valencia who put in a standout performance in this game, scoring 1 goal and creating 2 on his return. The Ecuadorian winger created 7 chances for his team mates throughout the 90 minutes that he played.

Wayne Rooney could only force one save out of Wayne Hennessey as the in-form striker failed to find the back of the net for the first time in his last five Premier League appearances. Javier Hernandez increased his tally to 10 on the season with two neat finishes into the roof of the net.

Rio Ferdinand and Jonny Evans combined to make 11 clearances in the centre of the Manchester United defence. Steven Fletcher looked like Wolves’ only threat going forward with a couple of headed attempts on goal. Ultimately though, David de Gea was comfortable in keeping his seventh Premier League clean sheet of the season.

Manchester City host Chelsea to night in the battle of the Roberto’s as Mancini looks to maintain his side’s 100% win record at the Etihad this season and Di Matteo heads into the match aiming to keep his 100% winning start as caretaker manager.

Manchester United host Fulham next Monday, after Manchester City have already played at Stoke on Saturday.

Stastistics provided by Opta Sports

Luke Moore’s 83rd minute winner at the Liberty Stadium along with Wayne Rooney’s brace in a 2-0 victory over West Brom has sent Manchester United to the top of the Premier League with 10 games remaining.

Swansea City had the opportunity to take the lead as early as 7 minutes after Joe Hart fouled Wayne Routledge inside the penalty area. However, the England number 1 redeemed himself saving Scott Sinclair’s weak, low penalty.

Brendan Rodgers’ side controlled the first half in terms of possession, with 71% after 25 minutes, finishing the first half with 64%. However, the Swans failed to test Joe Hart from open play, with Ashley Williams having the only shot on target other than Sinclair’s penalty from either side in the first half.

Manchester City stepped up the pace in the second half with Yaya Toure dictating play from the centre of midfield at times. The visitors had a difficult time creating real opportunities against a stern Swansea defence.

Sergio Aguero, who made an immediate impact in his debut when he scored twice in the reserve fixture to kick off the season in a 4-0 win, was reduced to just 2 shots in this game; neither on target.

Mario Balotelli had a frustrating afternoon. The enigmatic Italian was frustrated for not receiving a penalty in the first half after going down inside the area under the faintest of contact from Joe Allen. Then it was reported he had a half time bust up with Yaya Toure in the tunnel. The number 45 finished the game with 8 attempts on goal, but only forcing Michel Vorm into 2 saves.

The Dutch goalkeeper made 6 saves in total, most in the final few minutes of the game, including a long range effort from centre back Kolo Toure.

Both Swansea City centre backs, Ashley Williams and Steven Caulker had a solid game at the back today, combining for 9 of the home side’s 14 successful clearances. Williams won all 3 of his tackle attempts, and won 78% of his ground duels.

With Danny Graham seemingly tiring in the second half, one ex-Derby County loanee came on for another as he was replaced by Luke Moore in the 79th minute. A couple of minutes later he connected with Wayne Routledge’s deep cross to head home from a couple of yards at the back post.

Micah Richards thought he’d headed home the equaliser for Manchester City in the 89th minute when he nodded in Gael Clichy’s cross. Richards, Roberto Mancni and David Platt were all spotted celebrating before the camera picked up Sian Massey’s flag. A tight, but correct decision.

Arguably the biggest result in Swansea City’s history. This victory has sent the Welsh side up to 12th in the table and only 3 points behind 7th placed Liverpool in their debut season. Manchester City’s decision to stay in Lisbon for longer than required seemingly backfired as they now trail their local rivals by 1 point with 10 games remaining.

For those who have not read, I posted yesterday on why I think Manchester United have the advantage over Manchester City heading into the final stretch of this season.

Stats provided by Opta Sports

Manchester United have come through the toughest period of their season almost unscathed and now head into the final 11 games of the 2011/12 Premier League just 2 points behind league leaders Manchester City.

Having lost back-to-back games against Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United at the turn of the year, Manchester City can be forgiven for expecting to have opened up a bigger lead over their local rivals at this stage.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s side had fixtures at Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham and a home tie with Liverpool between mid-January and the first weekend of March. During the same period, Roberto Mancini’s side were hosting the likes of Tottenham, Blackburn and Bolton Wanderers. Whilst City have only dropped points once since United were thrashed at Newcastle, the pressure put on them by Manchester United must be coming to its forefront.

Manchester United, as they so often do have hung in there, winning 6 of their last 7 in the league. The one time they didn’t was when they battled back from a 3-0 deficit at Stamford Bridge to force a 3-3 draw. A valuable point.

Danny Welbeck scored the winner in the final 10 minutes at the Emirates in January, Wayne Rooney scored a brace to see of Kenny Dalglish’s side and last weekend Manchester United won 3-1 at White Hart Lane during a tough spell for Harry Redknapp’s Tottenham. One result that cannot be forgotten, which came between those two last results mentioned, was Ryan Giggs’ 90th minute winner at Carrow Road. Just one of the many examples of Sir Alex Ferguson’s side fighting ‘til the end, and winning it late on once again.

Manchester United host West Bromwich Albion this weekend following a tough home loss to Athletic Bilbao in the Europa League on Thursday night. Roy Hodgson’s side have the potential to cause a stir given his Baggies are playing well; winning 3 games in a row under their English manager since the resignation of Fabio Capello from the England national team.

Manchester City face the tougher test this weekend, and have a tougher fixture schedule on paper between now and their home game with their neighbours at the end of April. A trip to Swansea City is on the cards for Mancini’s side, whom are staying in Lisbon for a further two days following their Europa League defeat to Sporting, before flying directly to South Wales.

I do have to question their preparation for their game in Swansea, regardless of it begin a relatively short flight on the same time zone from Lisbon.

Following a home game with West Brom and then a trip to the Basque region of Spain, Manchester United face Wolves (away), Fulham (home), Blackburn (away), QPR (home), Wigan (away), Aston Villa (home), Everton (home) before their trip to the Etihad Stadium on Monday 30 April.

After Swansea, Manchester City face Chelsea (home), Stoke City (away), Sunderland (home), Arsenal (away), West Brom (home), Norwich (away) and Wolves (away) before the Manchester derby. Advantage United?

David de Gea has come good between the sticks over the past few games; from his injury time save from Juan Mata’s free kick at Chelsea, a top drawer save to deny Emmanuel Adebayor at 0-0 and then a number of excellent saves versus Athletic Club midweek. The defence in front of him wasn’t particularly impressive, but Jonny Evans has stepped up in his last two games, despite conceding 4 goals in those 180 minutes.

Earlier this week, Sir Alex Ferguson was praising the partnership of Evans and Rio Ferdinand; a solid partnership something crucial as we head into the business end of the season. Chris Smalling picked up a knock midweek, and should he not feature at right back, Ferguson has Phil Jones to look upon should he punish Rafael for ball-watching that cost United their 3rd goal on Thursday.

In midfield, Antonio Valencia still has a couple of weeks on the sidelines. The Ecuadorian made an impressive start to 2012, and should get plenty of match practice before the big game at the end of April. In the meantime, Nani and Ashley Young running the wings haven’t been a bad option for the defending champions. The latter scoring a brace during a 3-1 victory at Tottenham on 4 March.

Wayne Rooney is going through a good scoring spree at the moment; 5 in his last 3 Premier League appearances and his first Europa League goals midweek. Javier Hernandez has scored a couple in his last few league outings, but Danny Welbeck is without a goal since his winner versus Arsenal in the league.

Vincent Kompany is expected to be out for around 10 days, meaning he’ll miss the trip to Swansea, the second leg of their Europa League tie with Sporting Club, and potentially Manchester City’s home game with Chelsea on Monday 19 March. Both Joleon Lescott and Kolo Toure are available to Mancini, meaning they won’t necessarily have to risk playing Stefan Savic. The Italian manager has said Micah Richards will return on Sunday.

With the sun starting to come out across England, perhaps David Silva can get back to the form he found at the start of the season. The Spaniard has not been carving defences open in 2012 like he was at the start of the season. Regardless of that, he’s still getting the job done. Samir Nasri has not performed the goods in his debut season in Manchester, despite game after game under Mancini. He has 3 Premier League goals this season, down on his 10 scored for Arsenal last season and his 6 in his 2008/09 debut season with the Gunners.

Yaya Toure will be fresh following his absence from the trip to Lisbon through suspension. The Ivorian has been one of the best players in the league this season, and on his day is quite a frame to stop.

Up front, Edin Dzeko has been a real liability since starting the season in fine form. The Bosnian has scored a couple in recent weeks; in 3-0 victories over Fulham and Blackburn, and whilst he does have an impressive 13 goals to his name, he does appear to be holding the team back on occasions. Notably when City aren’t playing well.

More game time for Mario Balotelli could solve any problems Manchester City have up front. But the big news this month is the return of Carlos Tevez, due to be playing with the first team in the coming weeks. Wouldn’t it be a story if he scored the Premier League winning goal?

It’s hard to put your finger on any specific game and say “Manchester City will drop points here”. But with trips to Swansea, Stoke and Arsenal in the next few weeks and a home game with Chelsea in between, Manchester United could well be top of the Premier League ahead of the Manchester derby.

Title number 20 for the Red Devils? I guess we will have to wait and see…

Despite losing the first leg 1-0 in Lisbon, I still expect Manchester City to progress to the quarter finals of this season’s Europa League.

Roberto Mancini’s side failed to perform in the Portuguese capital, partly helped by Sporting’s closing down in their own final third, as well as City’s inability to string passes together in and around the penalty area.

Brazilian defender Xandao scored the only goal of the game at the colourful Jose Alvalade stadium 6 minutes into the second half after Joe Hart parried Matias Fernández’s free kick into the defenders path.

Bad news for Manchester City in this game came as early as the twelfth minute when Vincent Kompany was forced off clutching his calf early in the first half. His replacement, Joleon Lescott partnered Kolo Toure in the centre for the remainder of the game.

Edin Dzeko had another poor performance up front this evening before finally being substituted for Mario Balotelli in the final 20 minutes. The Bosnian striker, who caused a stir in the build-up to the game by insisting he hadn’t heard of any of the Sporting Club players, has failed to live up to his early season start and has fallen back to being the player whom many Manchester City fans were frustrated with last season.

Manchester City eventually sparked up after Balotelli made a brief appearance. The Italian striker set up an opportunity for David Silva who could only poke wide, in a game that Manchester City rarely threatened to trouble the Portuguese number 1, Rui Patricio.

The second leg is playing after a trip to Swansea over the weekend which is anything but a guaranteed 3 points for Manchester City, despite winning 4-0 in their season opener with the Premier League new boys.

Sporting Club currently sit 4th in the Portuguese Primeira Liga; 14 points behind league leaders FC Porto. With the prospect of a place in the quarter finals of the Europa League, don’t be surprised to see Ricardo Sa Pinto’s side rest key players over the weekend.

Manchester City have an abundance of talent at their disposal and should Mancini set his team up correctly, getting the best out of David Silva, Sergio Aguero and co in the second leg would surely see the Premier League leaders overcome their 1-0 deficit.

Manchester City are 1/2 with Sky Bet to qualify for the next round.

Manchester United’s Dimitar Berbatov may be a frustrated figure at Old Trafford this season. Having lead the league with 20 goals last season, the Bulgarian has only seen 486 minutes of playing time in the 2011/12 Premier League.

Dimitar Berbatov has scored 7 Premier League goals this season; 3 of which came against Wigan Athletic on Boxing day, followed by 2 against Blackburn Rovers on New Year’s eve. However, the former Tottenham Hotspur striker is behind Wayne Rooney (1,911 minutes), Danny Welbeck (1,425) and Javier Hernandez (1,059) in the pecking order this season.

The Bulgarian striker scored some important goals during Manchester United’s title-winning season a year ago; including a hat trick in a 3-2 victory over Liverpool, and late winners versus both Blackpool and Bolton Wanderers. He scored a spectacular 5 goals during the 7-1 thrashing of Blackburn last season.

Berbatov turned 31 in January and manager Sir Alex Ferguson recently hinted that Manchester United will be extending the £30 million signing for a further fifth season that will keep him at the club through to the summer of 2013.

Through 27 games of the 2011/12 Premier League season, Berbatov has started just 5 games, compared to the 24 games he started last season. Incredibly, the striker has scored with each of his last 7 shots on target, with only Petr Cech and Asmir Begovic making saves from the Manchester United number 9 in the league.

Sir Alex Ferguson has only given Berbatov 90 minutes on three occasions in the Premier League so far this season, in which his 2008 big summer signing has repaid him with at least 1 goal in each of those games.

Dimitar Berbatov has taken a lot of stick during his time at Old Trafford, partly due to his price tag and partly down to his laid back style of play. Criticised or not, Berbatov hit back at his critics last season with an outstanding goal tally; scoring 48 goals in 106 league games. His record in cup competitions with the Red Devils has not been so impressive.

Whether Berbatov will get another long run out in the Manchester United first team remains to be seen. A transfer away from the club remains unlikely for the ageing Bulgarian given the fee the 19-times English champions forked out to bring him to Old Trafford. For now, his accurate shooting ability and technical skills remain abandoned.

Stats provided by Opta Sports