1) Rafa's rotation is not the problem
As Rafael Benítez sat in the Stamford Bridge press room on Wednesday night and found himself having to defend his decision to rest key players ahead of Chelsea's match against Queens Park Rangers, he could have been forgiven for doing a Mario Balotelli and revealing a T-shirt that carried the message: "Why always me?" For perhaps no manager in Premier League history has received so much scrutiny for rotating his squad as Benítez, particularly during his time at Liverpool, yet it is hardly like he is the only one who has and does do it. Indeed, the Spaniard's great rival Sir Alex Ferguson is perhaps the most prolific exponent of the tactic – the Scot changed his Manchester United side 65 times in succession during a 12-month period up to May 2009 – and has continued the trend again this season. The glaring difference, of course, is that Ferguson's selection changes have invariably led to successful result after successful result, but anyone who claims Chelsea's defeat to QPR was down to squad rotation is doing a disservice to Harry Redknapp's side and letting those who were selected for the hosts off the hook – collectively they should have been strong enough to overcome a side that, prior to Wednesday, had won only once in the league all season. Sachin Nakrani
2) Adebayor has a big decision to make
Should Emmanuel Adebayor play for Togo in the Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa, which runs from 19 January to 10 February? The Tottenham striker is concerned about security, understandably so after he was on the Togo team bus that was ambushed during the same tournament in Angola in 2010. Four people died in the gunfire. Adebayor's club partnership with Jermain Defoe is just starting to prosper but, should he decide to go to South Africa, he will potentially miss five Premier League matches. André Villas-Boas, the Tottenham manager, has left the final decision with the player. Russell Kempson
3) Mancini may well be tempted to bring back Balotelli
As Sergio Agüero limped out of Manchester City's plans with a hamstring injury during Tuesday's 3-0 win over Stoke, Mario Balotelli walked back into them. The striker has been missing with a virus since he decided to call-off taking the club to a Premier League tribunal a fortnight ago over being fined two weeks wages for on-field ill-discipline. Balotelli is now back in training and though Edin Dzeko and Carlos Tevez are favourites to start in Saturday's FA Cup third-round tie with Watford, Mancini has form for making left-field selections: he surprisingly gave Balotelli a starting place in the City side that lost in last month's Manchester derby. Jamie Jackson
4) Liverpool's decision to go the long way around is paying off
Liverpool's dismantling of Sunderland at Anfield was notable for a few things – another spellbinding display from Luis Suárez, a peach of a goal from Raheem Sterling, a third clean sheet in four games for the hosts – but perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the 3-0 victory was that Liverpool's display included a notable number of long passes. Watching on, it appears Brendan Rodgers is increasingly allowing for more flexibility in his playing philosophy, which up to now has largely been based on a short-passing approach. That has often seen Liverpool make little headway in the final third and get caught in midfield by incisive, counterattacking opponents. But against Sunderland there was a clear acceptance by those in red that switching the play was a good way to stretch Martin O'Neill's side and keep themselves on the front foot, and no one did it better than Steven Gerrard, who finally appears to have found his best role in Rodgers' side; that of the deep-lying midfielder who dictates the tempo of his side's approach through a broad range of passes, seen best by the sumptuous through ball he played to Suarez for him to score his second goal of the match. Sachin Nakrani
5) Southampton need to buy a new stopper this month
The emphasis in Sky Sports' coverage of their Tuesday evening game at St Mary's was on Arsenal's inability to continue their run of four wins in a row thanks to a spirited performance by the home side. But there will be a niggling fear for the Southampton manager, Nigel Adkins, in his inability to find stability in goal. After Kelvin Davis's latest uncomfortable display, in the 3-3 draw with Stoke at the weekend, Artur Boruc returned to the starting line-up for the first time since October, and immediately fumbled the ball on two occasions early in the match. Adkins has assembled a team with several impressive attacking options but they will be threatened by relegation as long as Boruc, Davis and the talented by error-prone 21-year-old Paulo Gazzaniga bring uncertainty to the defence. A new keeper should be a priority in January, whatever the price. Mike Adamson
6) Mark has made a noble case for being called up by England
When West Ham were charging up the table at the start of the season, it was largely down to the goals of Kevin Nolan and the dynamism of Mohamed Diamé. But now Diamé is injured and, against Norwich, Nolan was suspended. West Ham needed a new leader. Step forward Mark Noble, who was an inspirational captain in Nolan's absence. Noble has always had talent on the ball but for a while the suspicion was that he did not quite have the fitness, strength or speed to fully make the most of it. However, Sam Allardyce has had a stunning effect on the 25-year-old, who scored West Ham's first from the spot and created the second with a tricky run and cross. Noble was everywhere against Norwich, winning tackles and driving the side forward with the kind of surging runs that have not always been his forte. Does an England call-up await? Well, at the very least, it helps that he is arguably the best penalty-taker in the Premier League. Jacob Steinberg
7) Ashley needs to back and not sack his manager
Nine defeats in 11 Premier League games is, as Alan Pardew concedes, "awful", but there are lies, damn lies and statistics and Newcastle are much better than the Premier League table suggests. David Moyes suggested the north-east club are in a "false position" and he is surely right. Let's hope Mike Ashley, Newcastle's maverick owner, accepts that a combination of under-strengthening last summer, unfortunate injuries, Europa League-induced fatigue and sheer bad luck have created what is almost certainly a blip. Ashley should also reflect that sometimes you really do have to invest in new senior players in order to reap rewards. He gambled on fortune smiling and Pardew performing a miracle on a shoestring, but reality has intruded. A team that were nearly very good are consequently in a spot of bother. Louise Taylor
8) Wigan do not look capable of another relegation escape
Are Wigan Athletic going to make their usual escape from relegation this year? Too early to say, though they didn't show the same form or fighting spirit against Manchester United that they did when beating them for the first time last season. With Wigan, timing seems to be everything, and they generally only get going when they really have to, though there were a couple of worrying portents from another heavy defeat. Roberto Martínez sounded uncharacteristically defeatist when complaining of tiredness, even if he had a point when observing Sir Alex Ferguson had been able to rest half his team in the previous fixture. Also, assuming Wigan can stay ahead of Queens Park Rangers and Reading, they still need another team to overtake, and Southampton look at least as capable of scoring goals and digging out a few wins. The result at Villa Park a week ago does not necessarily mean Wigan will be able to end the season above Aston Villa. Paul Wilson
9) Goalscorer Graham is worth a punt
Following the dramatic conclusion to Swansea's 2-2 draw with Aston Villa on New Year's Day, much of the attention fell on how the visitors had been denied a crucial win at the death, yet it was worth pausing for a second to focus on exactly who had delivered the game's late drama. Danny Graham struck in clinical fashion to record only his fifth goal of the season and remind those who may have forgotten that he is a striker with proven top-flight credentials. After all, the 27-year-old scored 12 Premier League goals for the Welsh club last season following their promotion from the Championship and has only really found his chances to shine this season restricted due to Michael Laudrup's desire to play Michu as a lone-striker. The Spaniard has been excellent and, as such, it is hard to see Graham reestablishing himself as Swansea's main man in attack, and so while he insists he is happy to fight for his place it surely is worth a few clubs who are struggling for goals to put in a bid for the former Watford man. He could prove a pivotal January signing for someone. Sachin Nakrani
10) Wright-Phillips was wrong not to celebrate his goal
Shaun Wright-Phillips scored his first goal for Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday night. It was a wonderful finish and his first goal since May 2010, when he was playing for Manchester City. If you missed the game and only saw the pictures in the morning papers, you could be forgiven for thinking Wright-Phillips was sent off against Chelsea. In every image, he is captured standing solemnly on the Stamford Bridge turf while his colleagues try to bring some cheer to his pained expression. Wright-Phillips hadn't scored in 969 days and QPR hadn't beaten Chelsea away in the top division since 1983, but he couldn't muster as much as a smile after his goal. He used to play for Chelsea and he wants to respect his old colleagues and fans. That's reasonable enough, but it was a long time ago and he's at QPR now. As Harry Redknapp pointed out after the match, the victory could be a real turning point in QPR's season – and Wright-Phillips' goal could be the catalyst that keeps them up. Their survival remains unlikely, but QPR fans deserve to see their players celebrate a dramatic and potentially pivotal win over their local rivals. Paul Campbell
No comments:
Post a Comment