Toffees too tough for Wigan

On-loan striker Jo netted a brace as Everton claimed a comfortable 4-0 Premier League victory over Wigan Athletic at Goodison Park on Sunday.

The Brazilian striker, who joined the Toffees from Manchester City in January, took his Everton goalscoring tally to five in seven appearances as the Merseyside club closed on fifth-placed Aston Villa.

Jo broke the deadlock with a sweet first touch and finish, before towering midfielder Marouane Fellaini nestled home with a smart strike on the turn two minutes into the second half.

The Latics rarely threatened, despite Steve Bruce's side pushing for a European berth, and Jo grabbed his second of the game via an easy tap-in, before Leon Osman, who impressed throughout, compounded Wigan's misery.

Everton had full-back Tony Hibbert back in the side after missing four matches with a thigh injury, which left Lars Jacobsen relegated to the substitutes' bench, along with Louis Saha who was replaced by Tim Cahill from the side that lost at Portsmouth last time out.

Cahill had a calf injury for that match, and had only just returned from playing for Australia in midweek, but boss David Moyes considered the club's top scorer was sufficiently recovered from the travelling to play.

Wigan, chasing seventh spot and probable European qualification, had Antonio Valencia back from injury, replacing Hugo Rodallega, but were comfortably swept aside by the Toffees.

Everton, in sixth and with an FA Cup semi-final later this month, still harbour hopes of UEFA Champions League qualification, or at least catching Aston Villa in fifth.

And they got off to a bright start with Osman scooping one effort wide and then almost setting up Jo after a determined run into the box, before the Brazilian headed straight at Kirkland from a Hibbert cross from the right.

Wigan at least had one Egyptian on show, with the club now having received a fax from Amr Zaki's agent claiming his absence has been caused by a hamstring injury.

It is a situation that has hardly impressed Wigan boss Steve Bruce. However, Zaki's countryman Mido was left up front on his own.

And he forced a good save from Tim Howard from 20 yards after a clever backheel from Paul Scharner, sporting an interesting new red and blue haircut.

It did not prevent the Austrian getting in a good header from a Valencia cross.

But Everton continued their pressure and Kirkland produced a brave piece of goalkeeping to stop a Leighton Baines free-kick from reaching Jo and Osman.

But after 26 minutes Kirkland was well beaten by a Jo cross-shot into the far corner.

Emmerson Boyce looked to be holding Fellaini, but referee Phil Dowd allowed play to continue for Osman to find Jo in the box, with the Brazilian flashing his drive into the far corner.

Wigan picked up two quick bookings, Mario Melchiot for a foul on Steven Pienaar and Michael Brown for catching Cahill from behind in a combustible private war between the pair that had being going on since kick-off.

Wigan sent on an extra striker in Rodallega for midfielder Brown at the break, but any thought of a concerted fightback was shattered by three more Everton goals early in the second half.

The first came after 47 minutes when Hibbert crossed low from the right and Fellaini had too much time and space to hook his shot past Kirkland.

It got worse for Wigan after 51 minutes. Osman threaded a pass into the box, Fellaini's shot was palmed out by Kirkland for Jo to sidefoot home from six yards, his fifth for the club since joining on loan from Manchester City.

And on the hour, Kirkland was at fault again when he pushed out a 20-yarder from Fellaini for Osman to convert the fourth with ease.

Four minutes later Everton were able to give Cahill a rest, sending on teenager Jack Rodwell, fresh from his England Under 21 debut, while the Everton crowd jeered former Liverpool keeper Kirkland every time he touched the ball.

Macheda sends United top

Federico Macheda sent Manchester United back to the top of the table with an injury time winner against Aston Villa at Old Trafford.

The 17-year-old Italian made his United debut when he came off the bench after 60 minutes in place of Nani, and he spectacularly turned and fired home in the third minute of stoppage time to give the home side a 3-2 win.

Villa started the game brightly and seemed determined to put their recent poor form behind them but that did not stop them from going behind when Cristiano Ronaldo profited from an indirect free-kick after Brad Friedel picked up James Milner's back pass on 14 minutes.

Martin O'Neill's side were not perturbed and got a deserved equaliser when John Carew headed home when free in the box on the half hour mark.

Things got better for Villa when Gabriel Agbonlahor ended his goal draught by nodding past Edwin Van der Sar 13 minutes after the break.

Ronaldo then grabbed his second of the game when he drilled a low left footed shot from the edge of the area into the bottom right hand corner with ten minutes remaining.

But United weren't done there and Macheda earned a valuable three points deep into injury time.

Gary Neville's first appearance for two months was expected to come at right-back, so it was something of a surprise to see him line up alongside Jonny Evans in the centre of United's defence.

Carew's eyes certainly lit up, given his vast height advantage, which he duly exploited to the full.

Villa's performance in the first half belied their recent poor form and Darren Fletcher kneed a Carew header onto a post and Agbonlahor sped clear of Neville only to fail in his quest to find a team-mate with a low cross.

It is difficult to understand why a team that swept all before it for virtually three months should suddenly appear to be so poor.

Beyond question is the individual ability they possess, although the brutal nature of Ronaldo's 19th goal of the season still took the breath away.

Normally the kind of opportunity provided when James Milner and Friedel got themselves into a muddle, forcing the Villa keeper to handle a back pass, could be a bit of a negative given its proximity to the opponents' goal. Not on this occasion.

Ryan Giggs brushed the ball to his illustrious young team-mate, who sent it over the wall and into the roof of Friedel's net in a flash.

Showing the form that established them in the Champions League positions at Arsenal's expense by the end of January, Agbonlahor and Ashley Young terrorised the United defence.

Edwin van der Sar was called upon to keep Villa out on three occasions but there was nothing he could do to deny Carew when Gareth Barry wriggled his way into space by the touchline.

The Norwegian crept between Neville and O'Shea to steer a deft header into the bottom corner.

Ferguson responded by putting Neville back to full-back, giving up the unequal struggle of competing with Carew. He also urged the United fans to make more noise, indicating a fear that talent on its own was not going to be enough.

The response was patchy and failed to curb Villa's enthusiasm.

Ronaldo excels at many things. Chasing back is not one of them. And when he gifted possession to Stiliyan Petrov inside the visitors' half just before the hour, he allowed the Bulgarian to sweep upfield unopposed.

Agbonlahor hung around waiting for the cross Petrov presented Carew with the opportunity to supply, then rose majestically to find the bottom corner, just as his strike partner had done earlier.

Ferguson's response was to introduce 17-year-old Macheda, which in itself said something about United's plight.

It did however bring an immediate improvement and when Michael Carrick exchanged first-time passes with Giggs on the edge of the Villa box, he then presented Ronaldo with a lay-off.

The world player of the year did not have a lot to aim at but he found the one small gap Friedel was unable to cover.

Still, when Friedel denied Danny Welbeck two minutes from time, it seemed United would have to settle for a point.

Macheda, however, had other ideas.

Hodgson devastated by defeat

Fulham manager Roy Hodgson was frustrated and disappointed after watching Liverpool defeat his side in stoppage time at Craven Cottage.

The Reds returned to the top of the Premier League as substitute Yossi Benayoun struck in the 92nd minute to secure a 1-0 win in West London.

Fulham had looked set to record a hard-earned point after absorbing intense pressure from their visitors, who rattled the woodwork on four occasions.

But Benayoun's goal changed matters and Hodgson could not hide his devastation at the late nature of the setback.

"It's a bitter blow to lose in injury time after such a battling performance against an in-form team. That is frustrating and disappointing," he said.

"We had dangerous situations. They had more possession but we dealt with things reasonably well. I cannot fault the players for their commitment.

"But when you can bring on players like (Ryan) Babel and Benayoun it is a great advantage. Benayoun's goal was a bit fortunate but he took it very well."

Ferguson - No Rooney row

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has branded claims that he had a row with striker Wayne Rooney as 'absolute nonsense'.

Former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson suggested Ferguson had a bust-up with Rooney following last month's 4-1 home defeat to title rivals Liverpool .

The England international was then handed a second yellow card in United's 2-0 loss at Fulham after he had been left out of the starting XI.

Lawrenson said: "Everybody knows he had a massive row with Fergie after the Liverpool game and was then left out against Fulham.

"It is an ongoing problem, but if anyone can deal with it, it is Sir Alex."

Ferguson, though, has dismissed the suggestions outright, with the Scot keen to focus his side on their vital Premier League clash with Aston Villa - a game that can be seen live on Sky Sports 1 & HD1.

The Red Devils chief said: "I was made aware of it. Absolute nonsense.

"I don't know where that came from, but the revealing part of it is 'everybody knows', but I didn't know and I was in there.

"These people self-promote but who the hell's bothered about it?

"Nobody followed it up which tells you everything because if there was any truth you'd have found out."

Premier League round-up

Chelsea played party-poopers to perfection at St James' Park as Alan Shearer's Newcastle homecoming ended in defeat courtesy of Frank Lampard and Florent Malouda goals in the second half.

Liverpool are back on top of the Premier League - with Manchester United not in action until Sunday - but they left it very late before snatching a narrow success away to Fulham.

Newcastle were not the only side embroiled in the relegation dogfight to lose on home soil, as West Brom were no match for Stoke City in a proverbial 'six-pointer' at The Hawthorns.

Like West Brom, Middlesbrough are now in a desperate position at the division's basement as Bolton were rampant in claiming a 4-1 victory at The Reebok.

Cesc Fabregas showed just why he is so important to Arsenal as his long-awaited return from injury coincided with a pair of assists for Emmanuel Adebayor in a comfortable 2-0 win over Manchester City.

West Ham's young guns impressed at Upton Park as Gianfranco Zola's side were too sharp for Sunderland in claiming a 2-0 win, while Hull City's goalless draw with Portsmouth at the KC Stadium will not live long in the memory.

In Saturday's early kick-off, Blackburn's bid to beat the drop received a real shot in the arm with a hard-fought and contentious 2-1 victory over Tottenham

Newcastle fans will be pleased enough with the spirit shown by Shearer's side but it is points rather than passion that will ultimately decide their fate.

An evenly contested opening period saw Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka squander the game's best chance when he fired into the side netting when through on goal.

Chelsea were neat and easy on the eye throughout but Frank Lampard will never score an uglier goal than his 56th minute opener. Fabio Coloccini was guilty of criminal casualness in possession when he was robbed by Nicolas Anelka on the edge of his own box. The Frenchman struck the bar with a deflected effort, after a scramble, and from the resulting rebound Lampard was able to stoop and head home from close range.

Guus Hiddink's side made sure of the spoils ten minutes later when Anelka flicked on to Lampard, whose pass on to Malouda was expertly finished by the winger. Michael Owen was denied a goal late on when his deflected shot was adjudged not to have crossed the line, when it clearly had, and that just about summed up Newcastle's day.

Yossi Benayoun fired Liverpool back to the summit of the Premier League with an injury-time winner against stubborn Fulham.

The Israel international stepped off the bench to lash a powerful effort across Mark Schwarzer and into the back of the net with the seconds ticking down at Craven Cottage.

Rafa Benitez's men looked as though they would be forced to settle for a point which would have handed the title initiative back to Manchester United until Benayoun's crucial intervention.

The Reds hit the woodwork four times in the first period with Andrea Dossena (twice), Xabi Alonso and Fernando Torres all frustrated by the Fulham framework.

Manchester City's defenders were all at sea as they allowed Arsenal's Adebayor to nod home one of the easiest goals of his career at the Emirates in just the eighth minute.

Fabregas dinked in a free-kick from the left and Adebayor was left unattended to steer his header past Shay Given.

It was the same two that combined for Arsenal's second as Fabregas' sumptuous clipped pass bamboozled Richard Dunne, before Abebayor nipped in to round Given and roll the ball home.

At The Hawthorns it was a familiar tale of defensive woe for West Brom as Stoke took a second minute lead courtesy of two pieces of calamitous defending.

Shelton Martis allowed the ball to bounce over his head just inside his own half, allowing Ricardo Fuller to make inroads on goal. His shot from the edge of the box should have been meat and drink for Scott Carson, but the England goalkeeper allowed the ball to sneak past him.

James Beattie then showed why he is one of the division's most in-form strikers when he smashed home a killer second from around 12 yards.

Bolton striker Kevin Davies brushed off his England snub to remind Fabio Capello just why he is the top scoring Englishman in the Premier League this season, as his 11th goal of the campaign opened the scoring at home to Middlesbrough.

Ricardo Gardner's tantalising cross caused panic in Middlesbrough's box, allowing Davies to squeeze the ball past Brad Jones at the far post.

Boro refused to lie down and were level on 38 minutes courtesy of Gary O'Neil's composed finish from Tuncay's sublime slide-rule pass. Gareth Southgate's side failed to maintain parity until the break though, as Gary Cahill was given far too much time to smash home as Boro were unable to deal with a routine Bolton set piece.

Bolton consolidated their advantage after the break when Matthew Taylor's left-footed free-kick from wide on the right evaded everyone in Boro's box and caught Jones flat footed.

Boro's misery was compounded when Bolton broke to perfection from left to right for a fourth goal. Taylor's crossfield pass was to perfection for Gardner, who brought the ball down with a neat first touch before firing home another nail in Middlesbrough's top flight coffin.

At Upton Park it was a day to remember for West Ham's 19-year-old debutant Junior Stanislas as he scored the game's opening goal at home to Sunderland. Luis Boa Morte was the architect down the left flank when he intelligently waited for his team-mate to catch up with the counter-attack, before laying into his path for the easiest of finishes.

It was another Hammers youngster that made the game safe as James Tomkins thumped a header beyond Craig Gordon, despite the Scottish goalkeeper getting a hand to the ball.

Spurs looked to be cruising when Robbie Keane converted from the penalty spot on the half-hour mark after Blackburn's Gael Givet was harshly judged to have handled an Aaron Lennon cross.

It was, though, Harry Redknapp rather than Sam Allardyce smarting at referee Peter Walton on the full-time whistle, as the game hinged on Wilson Palacios' dismissal ten minutes from time.

The combative midfielder was booked twice in as many minutes for fouls on David Dunn, before Blackburn took full advantage of their numerical advantage.

First Benni McCarthy benefitted from makeshift striker Christopher Samba's neat ball into his path to convert from close range, before Andre Ooijer exposed some woeful defending at a corner to prod home from no more than a yard.

There was more questionable officiating in Hull City's 0-0 draw with Portsmouth.

Glen Johnson must still be wondering what he had done to deserve a second yellow card 11 minutes from time, while Hermann Hreidarsson will feel unfortunate too after striking the post in the final minute.