News » over Baltimore but lost the June 17 game, 3-1 to New Yo

MANCHESTER, England - Frank Lampard made Chelsea pay for releasing him this summer after 13 years, scoring a trademark equalizer against his former club for Manchester City in a 1-1 draw between the two biggest contenders for the Premier League title on Sunday.Chelseas four-match winning run to open the season was ended by its all-time record scorer, with Lampard arriving late in the box a€” as he did so often at Stamford Bridge a€” to sidefoot home in the 85th minute.Applauded on and off the pitch by Chelseas travelling support, Lampard a€” keeping his head down a€” held his arm out in an attempt to hold off the advances of his joyous teammates and didnt celebrate his first goal for City.Its not how I expected to say goodbye to the Chelsea fans, said Lampard, who is on loan at City until January from New York City. He described his reunion with Chelsea, for which he scored 211 goals, as special and weird.Chelsea missed a great opportunity to open up an eight-point cushion on City, relinquishing a lead given to the visitors by substitute Andre Schuerrle in the 71st after his far-post tap-in from Eden Hazards cross.City was down to 10 men by that stage after right back Pablo Zabaleta was given a second yellow card in the 66th for a lunge at Diego Costa, but still finished the stronger and was rewarded by the late intervention from substitute Lampard.City manager Manuel Pellegrini described Chelsea as a small club after the match for what he perceived to be its defensive tactics. He compared them to those adopted by Stoke, which beat City 1-0 in its last home game.Today was (our) best game of the season, with the character to play against a big team with very good players that were just defending, Pellegrini said.Dropping points for the first time this season, Chelsea still ended the weekend with a three-point lead over Southampton and its hardest match out of the way.Chelsea did the double over City last season, with its win at Etihad Stadium in February widely hailed as a tactical clinic from Jose Mourinho. And the Portuguese coach was happy to ditch the flamboyance that had helped his team claim four straight wins.It made for a tense, edgy and physical battle that was dominated by defences, with Eliaquim Mangala enjoying a strong starting debut for City after his big-money summer move from Porto.Neither goalkeeper was seriously tested until Thibaut Courtois saved from City striker Sergio Aguero early in the second half, with Edin Dzeko denied on the rebound by a lunging tackle from Ramires.The game turned on Zabaletas sending-off a€” the Argentina defender apologized on Twitter afterward a€” and Diego Costa led a counterattack that ended with Hazard crossing from the right for Schuerrle to tap in unmarked.Cheered throughout by Chelseas fans, Lampard had the last say by running onto a knockdown from the indefatiguable James Milner and slotting a shot under old friend John Terry and in at the near post.I feel that when a player leaves another club and plays for a direct opponent, he is not going there for a holiday, he is going there to try and beat his club - the one everyone considers the club of his heart, but not anymore, Mourinho said.While at City, he wants to beat Chelsea. That is the nature of football. Cheap Black Friday Shoes . None of them was better than playing with LeBron James again. Black Friday Shoes Deals . Among the teams moves was trading one of the teams two third round picks, no. 83 overall, to the Chicago Blackhawks for Brandon Bollig, a six-foot-two, 223-pound left-winger who had seven goals, seven assists, and 92 penalty minutes in 82 games last season. https://www.shoesblackfriday.com/ . No, really, his head. Late in the game, the St. Louis goalie craned his neck into the air to block a shot, taking a puck square in the mask. Black Friday Shoes Store .Boston beat the Nashville Predators 5-3 on Tuesday night and celebrated consecutive wins for the first time in more than a month. Wholesale Black Friday Shoes . Pominville scored in all three of Minnesotas games last week to help the Wild (8-4-3, 19 points) earn four out of a possible six points. His best performance was in a 4-3 win over Montreal on Friday, where he posted a season-high three points (two goals, one assist), including the game-winning goal.NEW YORK – Colby Rasmus returned from a 33-game absence on Wednesday night and manager John Gibbons was eager to get another big bat in the lineup to provide his club a threat near the bottom of the order. “He gives us another power threat,” said Gibbons. “We havent had a whole lot of power lately.” The slumping Blue Jays, losers of seven of 10 entering Wednesdays play, activated Rasmus from the disabled list and sent his replacement, Anthony Gose, back to Triple-A Buffalo. It was a long road to recovery for Rasmus, whod been on the disabled list since May 13 with tightness in his right hamstring. Rasmus initially thought the injury would heal in a matter of days. “Its always a learning experience,” said Rasmus. “Pushing yourself too quick or too slow. Every injury is different. This is a different injury and I just had to learn what I did and, hopefully, next time Ill be able to correct it faster. But Im here now and ready to play.” Rasmus is one of the games streakier hitters. When hes hot, he hits home runs in bunches. When he slumps, he swings and misses a lot and strikes out often. In 37 games this season, Rasmus is hitting .222/.266/.489 (.755 OPS) with nine home runs. Twice this season, he has hit three home runs in a span of four games (April 10-13 and May 1-4), which account for six of his nine long balls. Still, Rasmus has struck out in 32.8 per cent of his plate appearances this season, compared to 29.5 per cent last year and 24.6 per cent for his career. “Yeah, I mean hes always been that way,” said Gibbons. “You wish it wasnt so often but, you know, I mean he can run into some balls too and make a difference that way.” LIND CONFIDENT HELL AVOID DISABLED LIST On Wednesday, the Blue Jays played a third consecutive game without the services of designated hitter/first baseman Adam Lind. Linds been down since fouling a ball off his right foot in Saturdays loss at Baltimore. He suffered a deep bone bruise and, on Sunday, was using crutches and wearing a walking boot. Hes since come out of the boot and hit off a tee on Wednesday afternoon. “Theres been improvements every day,” said Lind. “Now, were just working on a tape job to try and relieve as much stress or pain on my foot as we can so I can get in the lineup.” Lind wasnt sure whether he could pinch-hit onn Wednesday night.dddddddddddd Manager John Gibbons has a three-man bench, not including Lind, and the Blue Jays may be hesitant to use Lind in case he ultimately requires a trip to the disabled list. A DL stint, if needed, could be made retroactive to Sunday (making Lind eligible to return on June 30) as long as he doesnt appear in a game. Based on the progress hes made, Lind isnt planning on being placed on the disabled list. “Its not constant,” said Lind of the pain in his foot. “When I sit still it doesnt hurt. I have a tape job right now and its helped a lot. I hit with spikes, it wasnt so well. I hit with turfs and it was much better. If I pinch hit, Ill be in my turfs.” POWER OUTAGE The Blue Jays are slumping after winning 15 of 17 games. Theyve dropped seven of their last 10, thanks in part to a significant decrease in the number of home runs theyve been hitting. Toronto leads the major leagues with 93 home runs but has hit only four in the last 10 games. Jose Reyes (June 9, June 17) has two of them. The other two were hit by Edwin Encarnacion (June 9) and Juan Francisco (June 13). The Blue Jays won the June 9 game, 5-4 over Minnesota and the June 13 game, 4-0 over Baltimore but lost the June 17 game, 3-1 to New York. Entering Wednesdays play, Jose Bautista was without a home run in 10 games, his longest drought of the season. PRAY FOR NO RAIN The five-day forecast for New York City suggests the Yankees wont have a rainout during their three-game weekend series with the Baltimore Orioles. Thats important to the Blue Jays because right-hander Masahiro Tanaka, who beat Toronto on Tuesday night to improve his record to 11-1, is scheduled to start on Sunday. Naturally, the Blue Jays would like Tanaka to pitch against another divisional opponent. Add to that the fact the Yankees visit Toronto for three games starting on Monday. If the Yankees have a rainout this weekend, Tanakas start could be pushed back into the series with the Blue Jays. As it stands, Toronto is due to miss Tanaka next week. The Yankees are 12-2 in games Tanaka starts and 24-31 otherwise. TWO MORE DRAFT PICKS SIGN The Blue Jays formally announced the signings of third-round pick, left-handed pitcher Nick Wells (83rd overall) and sixth-round pick, left-handed pitcher Grayson Huffman (174th overall). Wells is 18 years old. Huffman is 19 years old. ' ' '