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20,000 league goals bring everyone glee

Marc Albrighton scored a landmark goal in the long and illustrious history of the Premier League © PA Photos

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It'll be Albright-on the night
Just 11 goals were needed on Wednesday to see the landmark of 20,000 Premier League goals reached, so the only real question was which player from the 14 teams in action was going to get it.

In the end it wasn't any of the favourites that got it - not the sentimentalists', Ryan Giggs, or even the troublemakers', Luis Suarez - but the distinctly underwhelming Marc Albrighton.

The Villa man profited from Thomas Vermaelen's defensive mistake to grab a second-half equaliser, claiming a £20,000 cheque for a charity of his choice in the process. Rumours that he will give that money to Arsenal's defence have, alas, proven unfounded.

A distant runner-up
Sergio Aguero, incidentally, grabbed the 20,001st goal in the illustrious 20-year history of the 'Greatest League in the World (TM)'. But there are no prizes for that...

Support for Suarez
Liverpool feel Luis Suarez has been well and truly stitched up by the FA, after being given an eight-game ban and fine for comments he made towards Patrice Evra. If you didn't know that already - if Tuesday's ridiculous club statement, the players' public words of support or Kenny Dalglish's press conference anger didn't help you twig - then the sight of all Liverpool's players warming up in Suarez t-shirts ahead of their entertaining draw with Wigan probably did the trick.

Said Dalglish minutes before kick-off: "For anybody that doubted the support there is for Luis Suarez from the club, they are under no illusions now." However, Charlie Adam refused to allow the Uruguayan to take the penalty he had won (which the Scot subsequently missed), so quite clearly at least one member of the squad isn't 100 per cent behind him...

Wayne's World
Albrighton's goal was not the only landmark on Wednesday, as Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney became the youngest player - at just 26 - to play in 300 Premier League games.

Not only did United go on to win, beating Fulham 5-0 in front of the Cottagers' own fans, but Rooney also got on the scoresheet, firing in United's from all of 30-yards to add a nice flourish to proceedings.

It was the England man's fourth goal in three games after going through something of a dry spell. Call it intuition, call it what you want - but something tells us Rooney's got another few Premier League appearances in him yet...

Leading the way in tough times
With a comfortable - ludicrously so - victory against Stoke, Manchester City ensured they will be top at Christmas for the first time in 82 years. That year was 1929, when the world was just getting into what historians accurately call 'The Great Depression'.

Wind on 82 years, and the global economy is once again on the verge of ruin. It's a horrible kind of irony that Manchester City's owners are among the few people (the one per cent?) who have the wealth to weather the coming storm, although the club's fans shouldn't celebrate too soon - just eight of the 19 teams that have been top over the festive period have gone on to lift the title in May.

It's a wonderful life
Wes Brown scoring the winner for his side ... at the right end of the pitch?

There's no other explanation, it must be a Christmas miracle.

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