Everton and Manchester City matches fall victim to storms
STORMS sweeping through Britain last night caused the postponement of Premier League matches at Manchester City and Everton.
Title-chasing City were due to host struggling Sunderland at the Etihad Stadium, but the fixture was called off shortly before 7pm following advice from Great Manchester Police and the club’s own safety officer due to “exceptional and escalating weather”.
Meanwhile, Crystal Palace’s trip to Goodison Park also fell victim to the weather and was postponed less than half an hour before kick-off “due to building damage, which has led to safety concerns”.
Kick-off in the match between Stoke and Swansea was delayed by 15 minutes, but went ahead following two pitch inspections, with the game finishing 1-1.
On 17 minutes Peter Crouch opened the scoring with a deflected effort, after Peter Odemwingie’s strike came back off the post.
But on 52 minutes Chico Flores levelled for Swansea, turning in Pablo Hernandez’s cross for his third goal of the season.
Manager Garry Monk said: “Chico Flores was a warrior. He was man of the match by a million miles.”
Stoke boss Mark Hughes, meanwhile, was content with the draw that moved his team three points clear of the relegation zone.
He said: “It wasn’t a good performance, but we got something out of the game. Maybe a couple of weeks ago we wouldn’t have.”