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EPL: Man Utd beaten by Swansea
8/16/2014 10:38:05 AM
- Manchester United suffer 2-1 defeat to Swansea City on EPL opening day
- Goals from Ki Sung Yueng and Gylfi Sigurdsson ensure victory for Swans
- Wayne Rooney scores overhead kick but United fail to inspire
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(CNN) -- It was billed as a bright new beginning but bore all the hallmarks of the recent troubled past as Swansea upset Louis Van Gaal's Manchester United to win at Old Trafford on the opening day of the EPL season.
Goals from Ki Sung Yueng and Gylfi Sigurdsson either side of a spectacular Wayne Rooney overhead kick ensured the Swans left Manchester with a well deserved 2-1 victory.
Despite a Rooney free-kick that cracked the post midway through the second half, United never looked like a side capable of getting its league campaign off to a winning start.
"It is very disappointing that we have lost our first home match," Van Gaal told BT Sport in his post game interview.
"We didn't reach the level we can play at. That is disappointing because we have done it much better and when you cannot do it in your first home match that is disappointing, especially for the fans."
The feelgood factor had seemed to have returned to United since Van Gaal's appointment earlier in the summer. A busy pre-season witnessed promising victories over Liverpool, Roma, Valencia and Real Madrid.
But Saturday's performance bore many similarities to last season's disastrous campaign which saw the Red Devils finish seventh, their lowest placing in Premier League history.
"We were very nervous in first half, made the wrong choices and that is a pity. In the second half we never played as a team, therefore I'm responsible," Van Gaal continued.
"We had more chances than Swansea but that shall say nothing about the result. It is the goals that count. I thought we would win (when the scores were tied at 1-1 in the second half) but because we are not playing as a team in the second half we made the wrong decisions going forward."
Van Gaal intimated later in an interview with MUTV that there would be further signings arriving at Old Trafford before the transfer window slams shut at the end of August.
Van Gaal confirms he's looking to bring in new players: "I thought that before this match. That is not different... We have to wait & see."
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) August 16, 2014 Judging by this performance, the prospective new arrivals can't arrive soon enough.
United began with a 3-5-2 system similar to that employed by Van Gaal's Dutch side at the World Cup earlier this summer before switching to a 4-4-1-1 as the game progressed.
There were competitive debuts to new $48 million midfield signing Ander Herrera and 20-year-old center half Tyler Blackett.
Newly installed captain Wayne Rooney led the line alongside Javier Hernandez with Robin Van Persie still missing after he was given extended holiday to recover from his World Cup exertions earlier in the summer.
Like many a visitor to Old Trafford, Swansea sat in deep and attempted to play on the break.
It was a tactic that would work to perfection as United pressed and dominated possession but produced few goal-scoring opportunities.
"We have been working hard in pre-season on defensive shape and we can get even better at that but there were pleasing signs in the way we stuck together and the goals we scored against a side of Manchester United's resources," said Swansea manager Gary Monk.
"We have worked on the mentality side of things so that even when things go against us we continue to believe in what we are doing."
Having lost a raft of key players over the summer, including Chico Flores, Michel Worm and Ben Davies, many observers had questioned whether Swansea would be relegation candidates.
With more solid, mature performances like this over the coming season, such predictions will be made to look badly placed.
EPL: Arsenal snatch late win
8/16/2014 4:08:26 PM
- Arsenal claim 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace thanks to stoppage time goal
- Hangeland puts Palace in front but Koscielny equalizes before half time
- Aaron Ramsey scores in injury time to ensure Arsenal win
- Manchester United lose to Swansea on opening day
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(CNN) -- Arsenal left it late but an injury time goal from Aaron Ramsey was enough to get the better of Crystal Palace and secure a closely fought 2-1 victory on the opening day of the 2014/15 EPL season.
Brede Hangeland had given Palace -- who parted company with manager Tony Pulis on Thursday following reported disagreements over transfer policy -- the lead midway through the first half as the Norwegian rose highest to flick a Jason Puncheon corner beyond a static Wojciech Szczesny in the Arsenal goal.
Laurent Koscielny drew the Gunners level on the stroke of halftime, nodding home a Santi Cazorla free kick after being left unmarked in the Palace box.
Despite controlling much of the game and having far greater possession, Arsenal struggled to create much in the way of clear-cut chances.
Puncheon was then sent off after 88 minutes for sliding in late on Nacho Monreal to receive a second yellow card.
It was perhaps a harsh decision but one that had little bearing on what was to follow moments later as Ramsey fired home after Palace keeper Julian Speroni had reacted to keep out Mathieu Debuchy's close range effort.
"It was very difficult. They came out and defended really well and were very tough to break down," Ramsey told Sky Sports after the match.
"They lost their manager earlier in the week but you'd never have known that the way they played. But that's irrelevant. The result is what we were looking for and we got the three points."
Hopes are high for the Gunners this season thanks to May's FA Cup win and a convincing victory over reigning EPL champions Manchester City in last weekend's Charity Shield.
Arsene Wenger has also invested considerably, spending over $100 million on players like Debuchy, Alexis Sanchez, David Ospina and Callum Chambers.
However, they will need to improve on Saturday's performance to have any chance of winning the league crown for the first time since 2005.
Wenger's men will at least be lifted by the imminent return of German World Cup winning trio Mesut Ozil, Per Mertesacker and Lukas Podolski who were given extended summer leave to recover from their heroics in Brazil.
"Credit to Palace, they fought hard. They were physically strong and well organized," Wenger said of his opponents later.
"We still lack a little bit a change of pace, but they gave us big problems in defense. (But) we keep going, that's one of our strengths, and it paid off today."
Arsenal will now prepare for Tuesday's Champions League playoff first leg match against Turkish side Besiktas in Istanbul.
EPL Roundup
In Saturday's other games, Louis Van Gaal suffered defeat in his first EPL match as Manchester United went down 2-1 to Swansea City at Old Trafford.
Goals from Ki Sung Yueng and Gylfi Sigurdsson either side of a spectacular Wayne Rooney overhead kick ensured the Swans left Manchester with a well deserved 2-1 victory.
There was late drama at Upton Park as 20-year-old defender Eric Dier scored in the 90th minute to hand Tottenham Hotspur a narrow 1-0 win over London rivals West Ham.
Both sides had men sent off earlier in the game which marked former Southampton boss Mauricio Pochettino's first game in charge of Spurs. West Ham's Mark Noble also missed a penalty.
Hull City won away from home at newly promoted Queens Park Rangers thanks to a solitary goal from James Chester. Rangers blew a golden opportunity to salvage a point, however, when Charlie Austin's penalty was saved by Hull keeper Allan McGregor.
A single Andreas Weimann goal was enough to give Aston Villa victory over Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium while Sunderland and West Brom drew 2-2 as did newly promoted Leicester City and Everton.
Sunday will see Liverpool take on Southampton at Anfield while defending champions Manchester City will begin their campaign away to Newcastle United.
Burnley will welcome Chelsea on Monday.
Serena Williams into Cincinnati final
8/16/2014 7:00:27 PM
- Serena Williams defeats Caroline Wozniacki at Cincinnati Masters
- World No 1. wins 2-6 6-2 6-4 to reach Ohio final for second straight year
- David Ferrer comfortably beats Julian Benetteua to reach men's final
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(CNN) -- Serena Williams defeated Caroline Wozniacki for the second time in just over a week to move into the final of the Cincinnati Masters Saturday.
The world No. 1 has dominated the Dane in recent times, losing only once in nine meetings, but didn't have it all her own way in Ohio.
Like in last week's Rogers Cup quarterfinal matchup between the pair in Montreal, Williams had to bounce back from a set down before recovering to win 2-6 6-2 6-4.
Both players struggled on their serves leading to an unusually high 15 service breaks throughout the match.
The final set witnessed breaks of serve in each of the first five games before Williams pulled away to close out.
"I got off to a little bit of a slow start, but I was definitely in it," Williams said in quotes carried by the WTA website after the match. "I was just physically grinding and trying to get in there and really just trying to grind out everything.
"(Wozniacki's) a really good returner and she was getting everything back, and making some good shots. It wasn't just on the return, she was able to play some really good points after the return too.
"She's playing great tennis, even better than what she's been playing in the last couple years, taking that defense and adding a lot of offense to it and going for her shots. She does both really well."
For her part, Wozniacki was frustrated to lose but encouraged by how far she pushed Williams given her less than stellar record in matchups between the pair.
"I didn't get many first serves in," Wozniacki said. "When I did, they weren't placed very well.
"It's frustrating, because you lose a match 6-4 in the third and you only hold serve once. I actually broke Serena three times in the set, too. I don't think that really happens very often to her, either.
"I felt like my game was there. I was fighting. I was running. I was trying to take the ball early. I was returning well. Then my serve comes around and I can't seem to hold serve. It's frustrating."
Despite winning 17 grand slams and 61 singles titles in all during a glittering career, Williams has never been able to win the prestigious Cincinnati tournament.
She came close last year but lost out after a nail-biting third set tie-breaker to Victoria Azarenka.
Williams will now meet the winner of Saturday's second semifinal between fifth-seed Maria Sharapova and ninth-seed Ana Ivanovic.
Ferrer marches on
In the first men's semifinal Saturday, David Ferrer comfortably overcame Julian Benetteua in straight sets 6-3 6-2.
Ferrer fired down 20 winners throughout the course of the quickfire match that lasted little more than an hour and 10 minutes.
The Spaniard will now face the winner of Saturday's second semifinal between Roger Federer and Milos Raonic.
Read: Courting couple at match point
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