England scorers leave their mark in Switzerland

In England’s Euro 2012 qualifier against Switzerland, in Basle last month, Wayne Rooney scored the opening goal in a 3-1 triumph for the visitors.

It was the Manchester United striker’s first competitive goal in a year for England. His last netting before Switzerland came in the 5-1 trimming of Croatia at Wembley, a World Cup qualifier that was played on September 10, 2009.

In the same Basle qualifier, Sunderland’s Darren Bent netted his first for his country after seven appearances and Adam Johnson, of Manchester City, went on to score in successive matches following his goal against Bulgaria (4-0 at Wembley).

The last England player to net in consecutive internationals was Frank Lampard, of Chelsea.

He was on the mark on on September 5, 2009 at Wembley in a friendly against Slovenia (2-1) and again on September 10, 2009 at Wembley against Croatia 5-1.

Other football news of interest for September read:

• Ghana World Cup forward Asamoah Gyan signs for Sunderland for a club record fee of £13.1m from Stade Rennes.

• In a Euro 2012 qualifier, England hammer Bulgaria 4-0 (Defoe 3, A. Johnson) at Wembley.

• Tottenham’s Jermain Defoe becomes the first England player to score a treble at Wembley since Alan Shearer in 1999.

• Ireland topple Armenia 1-0 (Fahey) away in the Euro 2012 qualifiers. Other outcomes: Slovenia-Northern Ireland 0-1 (C. Evans), Montenegro-Wales 1-0, Lithuania-Scotland 0-0.

• In Bercelos, England beat Portugal 1-0 (Sturridge) in a UEFA Championship U-21 match.

• In Basle, England record back-to-back wins in the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign with a 3-1 (Rooney, A. Johnson, Bent) triumph. Other results: Ireland-Andorra 3-1 (Kilbane, Doyle, Keane), Scotland-Liechtenstein 2-1 (Miller, McManus).

• England U-21 qualify for the UEFA play-offs with a 3-0 (Welbeck 2, Albrighton) win over Lithuania. Scotland also reach the deciders thanks to their 2-1 victory over Austria in Aberdeen.

• Aston Villa confirm Gerard Houllier as their new manager.

• John Toshack stands down as Wales manager after a six-year reign.

Top boss Carlo

• Chelsea’s Carlo Ancelotti is named manager of the month, while Paul Scholes, of Manchester United, wins the award for players.

• England are drawn to play Romania in the U-21 Championship play-off while Scotland take on Iceland.

• Brian Flynn appointed Wales caretaker manager for the next two Euro 2012 qualifiers.

• In the opening match of the Champions League group phase, Arsenal thrash Braga 6-0 at the Emirates. Other outcomes: MSK Zilina-Chelsea 1-4, Werder Bremen-Tottenham 2-2, Manchester United-Rangers 0-0.

• England move up one place to sixth in the latest FIFA world rankings.

• In the Europa League first group matches, Manchester City win 2-0 in Salzburg while Liverpool beat Steaua Bucharest 4-1 at Anfield.

• Tottenham Hotspur legend Bobby Smith dies aged 77.

• League Cup shocks in round three: Brentford-Everton 4-3 penalties, Burnley-Bolton 1-0, Liverpool-Northampton 2-4 pen-alties. In the same round of the Scottish League Cup, Falkirk eliminate Hearts 4-3 at home.

• The 2011 League One and Two play-off finals have been switched to Old Trafford from Wembley Stadium because the London venue will be hosting the Champions League final.

• In Champions League group matches, Manchester United obtain a historic 1-0 win in Valencia. Other outcomes: Chelsea-Marseille 2-0, Partizan Belgrade-Arsenal 1-3, Tottenham Hotspur- FC Twente 4-1, Rangers-Bursaspor 1-0.

• In the Europa League, the two English representatives are held to a draw: Manchester City-Juventus 1-1, and Utrecht-Liverpool 0-0.

Leading marksmen

Premier League
6 goals − Berbatov (Man. United), Malouda, Drogba (Chelsea)
5 goals − Bent (Sunderland), Tevez (Man. City)
4 goals − Kalou (Chelsea), Carroll (Newcastle), Walcott (Arsenal), Elmander (Bolton)

The Championship
8 goals − Mackie (QPR)
7 goals − Iwelumo (Burnley)
6 goals − Graham (Watford)

Scottish Premier
10 goals − Miller (Rangers)
4 goals − Rooney (Inverness), Elliott (Hearts), Maloney (Celtic)

Average Attendances
1. Man. United - 75,165
2. Arsenal - 59,954
3. Newcastle - 46,572
4. Man. City - 45,557
5. Liverpool - 42,958
6. Chelsea - 41,427
7. Sunderland - 38,650
8. Everton - 37,447
9. Tottenham - 35,656
10. Aston Villa - 35,328
11. West Ham - 32,774
12. Wolves - 27,798
13. Stoke City - 26,305
14. Fulham - 25,462
15. Blackburn - 24,896
16. Birmingham - 24,364
17. West Brom - 23,443
18. Bolton - 19,246
19. Blackpool - 15,529
20. Wigan Athletic - 15,499