Carling Cup Round-Up
The second round of the Carling Cup was a formality for the English Premier League sides as Fulham, Everton and Newcastle United all successfully negotiated their way into the third round.
It seems the English top division has taken a liking to sixes. Last weekend, Arsenal, Newcastle United and Chelsea all hit sixes and now Fulham has taken a liking to the number as the Cottagers hit Port Vale out of the ground.
Mark Hughes' men were in dominant form at Craven Cottage as they brushed off the Football League Two club. The first 45 minutes brought in a grand total of four goals as Fulham took the game by the scruff of the neck. Moussa Dembele, the London side's latest striker signing, was in the first team in order get some much needed English experience. And Dembele was in good knick as he figured in amongst the scorers. The scoring started off with Zoltan Gera who continued his renaissance under Hughes by giving Fulham the lead in the 10th minute. Dembele made his first impression for the club by doubling the goal tally by stabbing the Cottagers 2-0 up. Bobby Zamora, not wanting to stay away from the action, also got into his act scoring twice before on the 36th and 66th minute. Gera added his second, sandwiched between Zamora's goals, scoring in the 45th minute.
Clint Dempsey, who came on at half-time to replace Dembele was determined not to be left behind as he added a sixth for Fulham. The tennis score did not flatter the Cottagers who marched into the third round in aggressive fashion.
In another match, Everton came close to hitting a six as well. They thrashed Huddersfield Town 5-1 at Goodison Park with former Leeds United striker Jermaine Beckford on target for the Merseyside club.
Belgian striker Marouane Fellaini got the Premier League team off to a blazing start in the 7th minute. Promising England youngster Jack Rodwell then scored the second seven minutes later. An own goal by John Heitinga in the 40th minute gave the Terriers a glimmer of hope going into the second half. However, that dim hope was snuffed out in the second half as Beckford scored the third on 50th minute via a penalty in the second half. John Heitinga then had a chance to atone for his mistake when he had the chance to stroke in a penalty. However, he missed his chance in an opportunity which was afforded due to the red-card dismissal of Lee Peltier. In retrospect, Heitinga could have helped Everton achieve a sixer but Everton probably would not mind. Louis Saha came on as a substitute to score a fifth while Leon Osman finished the game with a fifth on 85 minutes to complete a comfortable win.
At the Fraser Eagle Stadium, the home of Accrington Stanley, the kids of Newcastle United were able to resist the challenge of the home side to prevail 3-2. A goal from Ryan Taylor in the first half and two by Shola Ameobi and Peter Lovenkrands in the second ensured that the newly promoted Premier League side advanced to the second round. Ray Putterill and Sean Hessey were the scorers for Accrington scoring in the 45th and 90th minutes.
Newcastle United's team was made up of youngster including promising Dutch goal keeper Tim Krul as well as Kazenga LuaLua. Hat-trick hero Andy Carroll was given the day off as a prize for his magnificent performance against Aston Villa. As a result, it was a satisfactory result for the Magpies. Not only did they manage to get a win but they were also able give some playing time to fringe players who will be itching to get into the first team.
All in all, it was a good day for Premier League clubs in the Carling Cup who will be looking upon the competition as a welcome distraction as well as an opportunity to blood in some young guns. After all, the English game has become much more about just the league or the tournaments, it has become a squad game in the upper echelons of the Premier League.
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