Summary

  • Aston Villa sack boss Paul Lambert

  • Willian deflected strike enough for Chelsea

  • FT: Man Utd 3-1 Burnley, Stoke 1-4 Man City

  • FT: Southampton 0-0 West Ham

  • FT: Palace 1-1 Newcastle, WBA 2-0 Swansea

  1. CLOSE!published at 19:50 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Leave it to Sergio! Sheer persistence sees David Silva break into the box and both Fernandinho and Sergio Aguero go for the same ball and the Argentine is put off and ends up scuffing tamely from 12 yards.

  2. PENALTY APPEALpublished at 19:49 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Juan Cuadrado's first shot in a Chelsea shirt is blocked, and as the ball ping-pongs around Steven Naismith seems to use the very top of his arm to shovel it clear.

    Chelsea should have had a penalty there. Seconds later Mo Besic is booked for a crude challenge on Eden Hazard.

    Juan CuadradoImage source, Getty Images
  3. Postpublished at 19:48 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Phil Jones is limping, meaning Manchester United might need to make an early substitution.

  4. CLOSE!published at 19:48 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Burnley take the attack to Manchester United from the start and Phil Jones has to be alert to put the ball out for a corner, whcih is then swung into the box and Michael Keane heads wide from close range. What a chance.

  5. Postpublished at 19:47 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Lovely feet from Nemanja Matic in the Chelsea midfield as he gets away from two men and then fires over the bar. Is there an argument that he has been Chelsea's best signing?I'm willing to make one...

  6. Copa del Rey latestpublished at 19:46 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Lionel MessiImage source, Getty Images

    Lionel Messi gives Barcelona the lead in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final against Villarreal - goal number 34 of the season for the Argentine.

    Luis Suarez intercepted the ball 25 yards from goal, ran into the box and squared it to Messi, who steered home from 16 yards out.

    Moments later, Messi plays Suarez in but the Uruguayan drags his shot wide.

  7. KICK-OFFpublished at 19:45 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    We are under way at Chelsea, at Old Trafford, at Southampton and at Stoke...

  8. Postpublished at 19:44 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Burnley are wearing some weird silver number tonight. Remember the colour of the bottle tops on full fat milk? Like that.

    milkImage source, Science Photo Library
  9. LvG signingspublished at 19:44 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Bolton boss Neil Lennon
    5 live Sport

    "We are seven months into the season and Louis van Gaal has spent £150m. I'm not convinced he's bought well enough. Marcos Rojo, Luke Shaw, Daley Blind are all much of a muchness for me. Angel Di Maria is the pick of his buys, probably. Radamel Falcao needs balls played into him but he's not getting then. Why bring a player like him in if you want to play a certain way?

    "Van Gaal really needs a striker with pace who can get in behind. I'd have thought they'd have spent their money on a real dominant centre-half and a centre-forward who can score those goals."

  10. Postpublished at 19:42 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Here's another area of recent improvement - Chelsea turn off all of the lights before the teams come out.

    They did this in the Six Nations last week. But in the last game I went to when the lights went out, it took an hour for them to warm up and come back on!

    Not a problem now. One switch and boom. Let there be light.

  11. Postpublished at 19:39 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Chelsea captain John Terry shakes hands with every member of the Everton team in the tunnel, a mere minute or so before he has to do so again out on the pitch. It's deathly quiet in there, not much chat between the sides.

  12. Postpublished at 19:39 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Eminem blares out over the Brit PA system. Lose yourself in the moment. Incidentally, Manchester City are in their purple away kit tonight.

  13. Postpublished at 19:38 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    The new TV deal may be pumping in a frightening amount of dosh into the Premier League but the dividends are there to be seen. The pitch at Stamford Bridge is a lush carpet. Groundsmen these days do a remarkable job.

    Twenty years ago the pitches at this time of year were a disgrace.

  14. Postpublished at 19:35 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Here's a sophisticated stat for you... West Ham have 37 points from 24 matches, their best tally at this stage of a top-flight season since 1985-86 (48pts), when they finished third. Well, kind of sophisticated.

  15. Postpublished at 19:35 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Marouane Chamakh is starting up front for Crystal Palace tonight - complete with 'phantom of the opera' style mask. Think Gazza in the early 90s.

    He and Yaya Sanogo were excellent together in the FA Cup tie at Southampton a few weeks back. More of the same for the Eagles?

  16. 'Big Sam is a genius'published at 19:32 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Southend manager Phil Brown
    at Britannia Stadium for 5 live Sport

    "Sam Allardye gets almighty stick from all comers. The throwaway comment that got up Big Sam's nose was what Graeme Souness said, probably 15 years ago, that Liverpool in a game found it hard to play against "this long-ball rubbish". These days Sam is enjoying himself.

    "And remember, Sam was the first manager in England to embrace ProZone - he is well into his stats. He may have dyslexia but he's not thick. I think he's a statistical genius. I think he's as good as Arsene Wenger, if not better."

  17. Postpublished at 19:31 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Quarter of an hour to go until kick-off in our four 1945 matches. Juan Cuadrado has just been officially presented to the Chelsea crowd - will he have more of an impact than Andre Schurrle?He was pretty good I thought.

    Oscar being injured may be more of an issue for the Blues. He's been flying of late.

  18. Text us on 81111published at 19:30 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Football in the cornerImage source, Getty Images

    Pam: Short corners are the biggest waste of a scoring opportunity.

    Gian in Stafford: I'd ban managers claiming that they 'didn't see' the incident that showed one of their players in a bad light.

    Ben in Northumberland: I would ban everyone from players to spectators to pundits from criticising referees - especially at grassroots - unless the individual expressing said disagreement is prepared to step in and referee the game themselves. Basically, if you're not prepared to do the job yourself, shut up.

  19. Lower league love-inpublished at 19:26 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    BBC Radio 5 live sports extra

    If it's Football League action you crave, then 5 live sports extra is the place for you this evening. It features the one Championship clash, Nottingham Forest v Wigan, and coverage begins at 19:30 with kick-off at the City Ground at 19:45.

  20. Postpublished at 19:25 Greenwich Mean Time 11 February 2015

    Bolton boss Neil Lennon
    5 live Sport

    "I still think Manchester United have got problems defensively and goalkeeper David De Gea has been outstanding this season.

    "I love Louis van Gaal's interviews - he's prickly, he likes to confront the press, but he does it with authority. But I don't like how he keeps trying to educate us about football, because his United is not the free-flowing side of old."