AMSTERDAM – Everton netminder Tim Howard continued his Premier League roll on Saturday afternoon, backstopping a 1-0 victory over Burnley at Goodison Park.
The Toffees star needed just one save, one cross capture to post his third shutout from a five-game unbeaten streak. The clean sheet was Howard's sixth of the EPL season and ninth on the overall campaign. The win lifted Everton 13 points clear of the trap door with five games remaining.
Elsewhere, Geoff Cameron worked right back as Stoke City kept their European hopes alive by fighting back from a halftime deficit to top visiting Southampton 2-1.
It was a decent all-around effort from the US handyman, who finished the contest with just one handling turnover and no fouls committed. Thanks to their first win in six, Cameron & Co. pulled to within 10 points of the sixth-place Saints, who tentatively hold the final Europa League invite.
Turning to the Bundesliga, John Anthony Brooks and Hertha Berlin extended their run of stinginess in a 0-0 home draw against FC Cologne.
The left center back was an ace on the ball against the Goats, completing 71 of 77 passes without making a single ball-handling turnover. Brooks had a big day with the long ball in particular, linking into the attacking half six times and connecting no less than eight long switches to the opposite flank.
The youngster also notched three tackles, three interceptions and a shot block as Hertha posted their fifth shutout from the last seven matches. Though the capital crew did slip a spot to 13th place with the result, they also inched to seven points clear of the danger line with five rounds to go.
In Norway's Tippeligaen, Mjøndalen defender Rhett Bernstein came on as an early injury sub in a 1-1 home share with IK Start.
The center back forced a restart save with a headed bid for an insurance tally 13 minutes from time. The missed chance came back to bite when Start leveled from a set piece with two minutes left on the clock. Still unbeaten through three matches, Mjøndalen conditionally stand fifth.
