The 'R' Word

The ‘R’ Word

Football teams dare mention it during the course of a season, but get rid of it and all hell will break loose…

Football fans hate the thought of it. Players daren’t speak of it. And managers won’t entertain even the slightest possibility of it, lest they wish to lose their job. But what would we do without it? Amid allegations that many a Premier League owner is more than ready to scrap it altogether, where exactly would we be without relegation? For 72 of the 92 league clubs, the answer to that question just isn’t one worth thinking about.

            There are many professional football clubs that have never won a major trophy. By major I mean anything more than a Johnstone’s Paint Trophy – the League Cup is supposed to be the benchmark of major these days, and the majority of football league clubs have never, and may never, win such a tournament. The standard of competition is too high. There are only so many Premier League sides Accrington Stanley can beat on a wet and windy Tuesday night before they buckle to their stature as minnows and are walloped 10-0 by Arsenal in the Quarter Finals after already conquering four sides they weren’t expected to beat in the first place. Promotion is their only hope of success in any given season. Remove relegation from football, and the chance to ascend through the leagues disappears without hope. There is no way round it; no relegation means no promotion.

            Take yourselves out of Stanley’s small shoes though, and replace them with those of say, a Southampton, a Middlesbrough, or a West Ham (or not – we’ll get to that in a minute). Three of the Championship’s biggest clubs, but with no chance of ever escaping it. What do they do, merely play out the rest of eternity in a mediocre division, with no chance of progression? They’ll be no Champions League or Europa League slots up for grabs, no chances of a major trophy (the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy just doesn’t count I’m afraid). The likelihood, however, is grimmer than that. With their clubs having nothing to play for, supporters will desert these second string sides and transfer their support to their local Premier League club. ‘Glory-hunting’ will skyrocket. And those teams abandoned by the elite and, of course, their own fans, will play out their days in empty stadiums with half-hearted TV deals acting as their life support machine until the plug is finally pulled. A decade after this breakaway league is created there won’t be one professional club outside of it still standing. The standard of grass roots football, and therefore the English national side, will disintegrate. With only 20 professional sides to choose from, many talented young players will simply avoid the net.

            And how, exactly, do you select the 20 sides good enough for this ‘Super League’? Don’t think for a moment that they’ll be the 20 current Premier League sides. No, the clubs will be handpicked, for sure. United, City and Liverpool can hop aboard. Chelsea, Arsenal and Spurs have got money, they’re welcome too. Celtic and Rangers may be Scottish, but they can now join the English league. Norwich, Swansea, Bolton and Blackburn may have earned their place in the Premier League, but they’re not fashionable enough for this ‘Super League’ – to the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy they go. Welcome back West Ham and Leeds – they get media attention a-plenty, they’ll help make the league some extra cash.

            This is, after all, what it’s all about – money. The foreign owners spoken about this week don’t care about football, or the common fan, or even the club in their possession. It’s all about money. If you think the game’s been ruined by pound signs already then you may be right, but the worst is still to come. Heaven forbid, however, it ever gets so bad that it may one day come to this.

The State of Scottish Football

The State of Scottish Football

As Celtic, Rangers and Hearts crash out of the Europa League in qualifying, it becomes quite clear that something has gone quite wrong North of the border

It is rumoured that Glasgow Celtic Football Club have 9 million ‘fans’ worldwide, Rangers have less, but, in the numbers being spoken of here, only marginally. Hearts have somewhere in the figure of 10. Not, 10 million, just 10, but they are still one of three Scottish sides that crashed out of the Europa League somewhat hideously at one of its earliest stages last night.

            In fact, if we take Celtic and Ranger’s average attendance figures for last season into account, it is clear that, in terms of ‘true’ fans, the two Glasgow clubs are amongst Britain’s elite. Celtic, with an average crowd of 48,968, and Rangers, with a similar sized audience of 45,304, would have been placed 3^rd and 6^th respectively in the Premier League attendance table for last season, had they of taken part.

            Therefore, even though low crowd numbers may be a problem for the rest of the division, there is no doubt that, at home at least, neither club are lacking that much-spoken-about ‘12^th man’. There is a deeper problem here, and it may not even be financial.  FC Sion, Celtic’s Europa League conquerors* are members of the Swiss Super League, which as little as a month ago signed a new television deal earning the league a reported 26 million euros a year. That’s just over £23 million, or, if divided equally between all 10 sides, £2.3 million per club. Conversely, the SPL signed a deal in 2009 earning each one of its 12 teams £13 million each, every year. Financially, during these early stages of European competition at least, there is no excuse for SPL sides to be crashing out. Rangers, who missed out on the group stages of the Europa League to NK Maribor, can feel more ashamed than their neighbours. While there were no easily accessible figures on the Internet, the top Slovenian league, the Prva Liga, where Maribor ply their trade, is only broadcast in one country – Slovenia. And a company that was only established in 2006 – therefore rendering it, most likely, incapable of big money deals, broadcasts it.

            Certainly, more money would help, but with the suggestion that Rangers and Celtic join the English Premier League falling through some time ago now, the two clubs must look to other solutions to their problems, another way to bridge the gap between England and Scotland. For sure, the gap is by now ever increasing. Hearts’ humiliating 5-0 aggregate loss to Spurs proves it takes a lot more quality to finish amongst the top 5 places in the English top flight as compared to Scotland’s take on top tier football. But Stoke’s demolition of FC Thun yesterday night – a 4-1 victory over two legs - shows just how much the two Glasgow clubs may have struggled had they been permitted to show their worth in Britain’s finest division. Thun finished just one place and 5 points below Sion in last season’s Swiss Super League, and yet, while they were dispatched with ease by last year’s F.A Cup runners-up (who finished just 13^th last season), Celtic failed to cope with a side barely any stronger.  

            One way to begin repairing the rift may be to crank up the quality of home-grown talent emerging from Scotland’s academies. It is no secret that, while England have qualified for each and every one of the last 4 World Cups, Scotland haven’t qualified for any of the last 3. When they were last competing in a World Cup finals match, in 1998, Scotland’s squad comprised of, amongst others, Colin Calderwood and Paul Lambert. Both are now in management. Goalkeeper Jim Leighton is now 53. Not one member of that squad is still playing.

            Even if getting to a World Cup looks like an impossibility in the present climate, the SPL could at least look at producing players that can crack the English game. In the 2008/09 season, Kris Boyd and Scott McDonald came first and second in the SPL top scorer’s chart with 27 and 16 goals respectively. In the last Championship campaign, Kris Boyd finished joint 19^th with 12 goals, Scott McDonald joint 24^th with 11.

            So certainly there is a starting place. Begin producing players that are capable of playing in England and use them to improve the standard of Scottish football, whether that be domestically or internationally. There are, without doubt, many problems with the Scottish game, but these are problems that are duplicated across Europe. Maybe the issues sprout simply because of Scotland’s geographical positioning. The fact the country is placed right next to England, which, domestically at least, is flourishing, is actually a hindrance. As compared to the English Premier League, the SPL will of course appear as a minnow. The gulf between the two leagues, is, for now, incomprehensible. But there are only a handful of European leagues that are as good, if not better, than the Premier League. It’s time to treat the SPL as it is – a small league whose clubs struggle to succeed internationally. Only once the Scottish public begin to realise that it’s football will never again be as successful as it’s southern equivalent, will it finally be accepted for what it is, the 17^th best league in Europe, and nothing more.

           

*Despite being denied the chance to compete in the Europa League group stages by FC Sion on Thursday night, UEFA are still likely to disqualify Sion, who are charged with fielding 5 ineligible players. In this event, Celtic would replace Sion in the competition.

The No. 9 Resurgence

My final article from last season, although this one isn't quite so outdated:

The No. 9 Resurgence

While Andy Carroll shows the Premier League that the No. 9 is by no means dead, lower down the pyramid a target man revolution is afoot.

Whether you call him the target man, the ‘big guy upfront’, or ‘that bumbling idiot that just gave the ball away’, the traditional No.  9 is part of English football culture. Back in the days of the 2-3-5, when numbering a team simply meant giving each player a digit from back to front, left to right (e.g. left-back 2, right-back 3, left-half 4 etc.), 9 is what got plastered on the back of the centre-forward, and it stuck. It stuck to the point where being a well-built centre-forward emitted negative connotations, rather than positive, and it labelled such players with descriptions such as ‘clumsy’, ‘crude’, and ‘just a bit stupid’. But changes are on their way. Just as it appeared the quick footed, sleek, elegant winger had finally shoved the No. 9 tumbling into football’s dimly lit past, a new generation of target men have emerged from the shadows. Stepping on to a Premier League pitch near you are soon to be some of the most skilful, hard working and clever players you will ever meet. This time, after all, they may be here to stay.

            Of course, there have been some truly great No. 9s in the past that go further to question why the finger can be waggled so vigorously at suggestions that a target man cannot be a great footballer. Names such as Eusebio, Romario and Ronaldo displayed the trickery that such a player can be gifted with, while true goal scorers such as Shearer, Lineker and Gerd Muller, with 365 Bundesliga goals and a goals-per-game ratio of 0.85, prove that those emblazoned with a 9 across their shoulders have a rich history of success.

            However, between now and then, reactions towards the style of play the target man promotes, and certainly, reactions toward the player himself, have been mixed to say the very least. Opinions of the pre-Owen Coyle Bolton Wanderers and the current Stoke City set-ups confirm what needn’t be said, while many lower league players in the ilk of a bustling centre forward receive much criticism from both their fans and others. However, taking Stoke City as an example, it is undeniable that their style of play is effective, and moreover to suggest that players such as Ricardo Fuller and Kenwyne Jones are not good footballers. Both supporters, journalists and managers alike, meanwhile, have been subtly chirping the praises of Bolton’s Kevin Davies for many a year, while not so subtly screeching the praises of Liverpool’s Andy Carroll – a factor, perhaps, that contributed to his overinflated £35million transfer fee in January.

            Barely visible on the horizon of the blinding bright lights of the Premier League, obscured by fresh reports on the latest gold lined ‘star’ to join the countries top division, though, are the new order of No. 9s. Alright, so admittedly Danny Graham may be set a little further back from those bright lights than the horizon of which was metaphorically discussed a sentence back. He also plays for Watford, which is a problem due to the nature of their 14^th place Championship finish last season. And he’s a No. 10. Nevertheless, Malky Mackay, Watford manager, described the striker as so after the team’s recent win at Ipswich: 'Danny is more than a quality finisher or a poacher. He is a proper centre- forward, an all-round team player capable of working the opposition back four all on his own.‘ In other words, a No. 9 in a No.10’s T-shirt. And if the words used to describe the former Carlisle striker’s style of play as selected by Mackay can be applied to anything further reaching than the player himself, it is that this is how the target man plays now. He is no longer ‘that bumbling idiot that just gave the ball away’, he is an all encompassing forward, able to paralyse his opposing defenders with one searching run, teasing shot or powerfully accurate header. Graham’s 24 Championship goals this season are proof of that. And he will be joining some of the world’s elite in the Premier League next season, preferably wearing the No. 9 shirt.

            Heidar Helguson, unlike Graham, is in the twilight of his career (he also has the right number on his top), but his 13 goals have been crucial in securing QPR promotion this season. He has shown vital goal scoring experience in achieving promotion with the Hoops this season, and will be keen to have a second, much larger crack of the whip in the top tier next year. A flop in his previous encounters there – although 11 goals in 31 starts at Fulham suggest differently - Helguson’s couple of years in the Championship have done him a lot of good, and a return to the Premier League for the QPR front man may see him return similar figures to those he recorded at Craven Cottage half a decade ago.

            Like Helguson at 30 years of age, it could be argued that Grant Holt has left it too late to make a sizeable dent on a league that so many before him have failed to even force a scratch upon.  But the last stop on your guide to what may be the Second tier’s greatest offerings to its bigger brother next year is so much more than so many before him – 53 goals in 91 games for Norwich, including 23 in the Championship last season do promise goals from the Canaries captain. On top of his goal tally, Holt has also collected two consecutive club Player of the Season awards at Carrow Road, and his passion, never-say-die attitude and hardworking ethic have not only stood out to players from other sides (Holt is in the PFA Championship Team of the Season), but has also rubbed off on the players around him, and contributes to Norwich’s 12 goals in stoppage time in the 2010/11 campaign. Norwich manager Paul Lambert summed up Grant Holt’s performance against Coventry last December as such: ‘That's what I pay Grant Holt to do - score goals - and he has been brilliant for me since day one. He's an old-fashioned centre-forward which is a rare commodity in the modern game and we are very pleased to have one.’ Lambert may in fact have a point there – given the way ‘old-fashioned centre-forwards’ have conquered the Championship this season, don’t be surprised if many more teams in the Premier League next year are ‘very pleased’ with the way their new strikers are settling in – after all, the revolution is on – welcome back No. 9s – you have been sorely missed.

"This is an official Norwich City football club announcement"

The third of my four blogs from last season:

“This is an official Norwich City Football Club announcement”

At this time of the season at least, the teams that stand the best chance of promotion are the ones who make the biggest statements

Saturday 2^nd April 2011, and the score emerging from Carrow Road is Norwich City 6, Scunthorpe United 0. A team that had won by more than two goals just once so far this season had just sent shockwaves 200 miles west, where, in the Wales capital, Cardiff had also thumped Derby. OK, so it was only by three goals, but in comparison Swansea had imploded, going down 2-1 to Preston North End, a team that, at 3 ‘o’ clock, were bottom of the league. Welcome to the Championship promotion chase, in all its unpredictable glory.

            Two weeks previously, prior to the international break, and it was Swansea who were in the driving seat. An impressive attacking performance had meant Forest left the South Wales City with nothing to show for their fairly poor performance, having been spun into shock by the Swan’s contrastingly exceptional one. Both Norwich and Cardiff dropped points where perhaps they shouldn’t, Hull and Millwall both keeping firm in their dressing down of the 2 sides at the top end of the table.

            It was, of course, Swansea who made the statement on that day. Nottingham Forest, 6^th at the time, have a potentially pulsating starting XI, but one that still managed to lose at the Liberty Stadium. As mentioned above though, it took just a fortnight for Norwich and Cardiff to remedy that, and the tables have now turned. In fact, to say the tables have been flipped 360 degrees and then spun again for extra measure may be a more appropriate statement, as the statements that both the Canaries and Bluebirds have made have left the Swans in relative turmoil. With so few games remaining (seven, in case you were wondering), this battle of the birds may have seen Swansea dip into a frantic nosedive, as the other two swerve off into the horizon, in the slipstream of QPR.

            From the perspective of Swansea, they now have to pick themselves up and face a side who smashed six past someone, and that, for Norwich, will be a massive psychological boost. All matches begin the week before, and no matter how much Brendan Rogers may persist with the fact that Swansea are ‘ready for this game’, that ‘the lads believe in themselves’, Round 1 goes to the Norfolk club.

            Norwich, on the other hand, are world-beaters. They are indestructible, and they can beat anybody. This, of course represents the views of the players and supporters, not the author. To go into a game with such a lot riding on it with confidence high is vital. Visualisation is everything, and if you step onto the grass with defeat on your mind, then you’ll leave the grass with defeat stained on you - from head to toe. Norwich have shown their capabilities, now its Swansea’s turn to show what they can do.

            And so, good luck to both teams come Saturday, as there is no bigger statement than overcoming, and defeating, your biggest barricade on the path to promotion. A resounding win over one of the most overpowering forces in any division is one huge battle cry, and if Cardiff plus the other 21 don’t sit up and take notice, then heaven help them. Or, of course, the match could end up 0-0. And the score emerging from the Keepmoat Stadium could be Doncaster 0, Cardiff 6. And the tables are flipped, and spun, and turned, and Cardiff, despite being 2 points behind Norwich, are suddenly odds on for second place, and everything changes again. So beware Norwich and Cardiff, and their high scoring results at the weekend. But, be warned, 6 goals still equates to 3 points - keep watching, as this league is still as tight as ever – there are still plenty of statements to be made yet.

Adel Tarrabt

The second of four posts from last season:

Adel Taarabt

Is the ‘Championship Player of the Season’ an ordinary footballer that’s had an extraordinary season?

Adel Taarabt is no secret anymore.  Once an unknown talent in a generally anonymous QPR side, his is now one of the best known names in Championship football.  And, credit where credit’s due, he has performed consistently well throughout the season. He has played his part in some outstanding team performances from QPR this campaign, while in other matches his contribution has been entirely forgettable. To be frank, some could argue that Adel Taarabt has, over the past 9 months, had a great season, for a pretty good footballer, in an average league.

For a midfield player, whether he be attacking or otherwise, 15 goals in one year is a lot. Take into account though, that only 3 of these 15 have come away from Loftus Road, and a different picture is painted, especially when these 3 goals came against Middlesbrough, Crystal Palace and Sheffield United, teams in 18^th, 21^st and 22^nd place respectively. Who knows why this may be? Perhaps, it has something to do with an overwhelming atmosphere created, one that Taarabt struggles to cope with. Fans of Championship sides across the country recognise the Moroccan as QPR’s key threat – supply him with intimidation, as opposed to encouragement, and he may crumble under the hostility.

A closer look at Taarabt’s goals this season reveals he has failed to score against Norwich, Leeds and Nottingham Forest at all in this campaign. A suggestion that he struggles against the division’s better sides creeps darkly into play here. Forest may be renowned for their defending, but both Leeds and Norwich are most definitely not. Does QPR’s talisman hide away in the bigger games? He spent his afternoon at Norwich in the figurative pockets of all 4 City defenders, ending up frustrated, booked, and desperately struggling for ideas. I mustn’t end this paragraph before mentioning his goals, at home, against Swansea, Cardiff, Burnley and Reading, something for the pro – Taarabt mob to launch right back at me. I’ll add only that 27 of Swansea’s 36 goals against have been conceded away from home, and that Cardiff’s 46 goals conceded in the league is hardly prolific.

There is, however, no arguing with Taarabt’s 15 assists this season, and to be involved in 30 goals in 38 league games is truly special. The player’s age is on his side too. At just 21, Taarabt has a long way to go, and his breakthrough season has been a good one. And these are just stats I’m playing with here – his performances, on the whole, have been very promising, but there are exceptions. As pointed out above, he of course has his faults. Reading through Internet blogs on the subject, claims that the Moroccan is world class are absurd, despite what the player himself may believe. For every astonishing piece of magic Taarabt has conjured up this season, there is a misplaced pass to match, and the player is far from the finished article.  Attitude has spoiled many a promising footballer, and Taarabt’s is poor. Hitting out at former club Tottenham after winning the aforementioned award on Sunday smacks of arrogance, and the decision to let the Moroccan go by Spurs may not have cost the club as many millions as people would like to believe.

So, congratulations are in order to the Championship’s newest star. As Taarabt is waved off into the sunset by England’s Second tier, let us hope he has more success than, say Sylvain Ebanks-Blake, who, out to prove his old club, Manchester United, wrong (sound familiar), after winning the 2009 ‘Championship Player of the Year Award’ has scored enough goals to just about keep my second hand busy while I count them on my fingers.  Or Michael Chopra, so prolific in the Championship, yet whom never quite made it in the Premier League. Or Rob Earnshaw. Or Darren Huckerby.  The list goes on. And on. And on.

So keep an eye out for Adel Taarabt in the Premier League next season, and notice just how well he does against the likes of Michael Dawson, Phil Jagielka, Rio Ferdinand and co. But, if they’re there, keep an eye out for the 2 unlucky runners-up to Taarabt, that were forgotten after his aforementioned award win. Scott Sinclair and Grant Holt do not sulk. They do not whinge, and they do not moan. Sinclair, with his blaring pace, brilliant intelligence and awareness, will, if not next year, be tearing up the Premier League at some point, even if Adel Taarabt never does. And Grant Holt, who may be running out of time, will get his chance, and will use the head on his shoulders to show his leadership, incredible presence in the box and finishing (check out his goal against Burnley at Turf Moor). And yes, like Beckford and Dorrans and Victor Moses, they may, or they may not, flop. But they represent the hard working ethic of the Championship. And, no matter what bench Adel Taarabt may be warming in five years time, be it Bolton’s or Blackburn’s or Birmingham’s, I hope he remembers the day he won this award. He did deserve it, after all, but it would not surprise me if it were to be the only one he ever receiv

Silent Swans

This is the first of 4 blogs I wrote last year about the football league Championship. Although they are outdated, i still thought they'd be worth posting, so here is the first:

Silent Swans

While some media darlings take all the limelight, Swansea glide by un-noticed in the Championship title race

33 games into the new Championship season, and it so appears that this campaign has, almost predictably, become just as unpredictable as any other. As the pre-season favourites, with the exception of Nottingham Forest, fell by the wayside in the months of August and September, usually enough, just 9 teams remain in the battle to win one of Europe’s tightest leagues.

            Perhaps, then, big spending Hull City and lowly placed Reading have left things a little too late for a genuine title challenge, given their point totals, and even Leicester City, despite their incredible run of form and their Premier League quality players may struggle to win the league. In fact, many teams at the right end of the table, above the aforementioned 3 are struggling for consistency. Those who believe everything they read will tell you that the ‘Mighty Leeds United’ and ‘Craig Bellamy’s Cardiff City’ are the biggest challengers to QPR’s seat atop the Football League. But delve deeper and you find a tiresome trio fighting for top spot that do not quite get the attention they deserve.

            Nottingham Forest have a decorated history – 2 European Cups under the guidance of Brian Clough speak for themselves, yet they have glided into fourth spot in the Championship this season with little notice. One of the pre-season favourites, they have built up a head of steam over the past couple of months and find themselves in with a shout of the top prize. Norwich City are also a team looking forwards, not behind them, as they attempt a second straight promotion under the watchful eye of Paul Lambert. The Canaries have succeeded impeccably when it comes to escaping the media’s attentions this season, even if their manager hasn’t.

            However, when it comes to staying under the radar, no team could boast more triumphantly at doing so than Swansea City Football Club. They say the table never lies, and if that were the case then no team is more of a threat to QPR than the Swans. Sitting pretty in second place, it is not a position that is unfamiliar to them, considering their last 6 months. Having occupied a play-off position for almost the entire campaign, the Jacks are now making their move, and the best thing for them is, no one seems to know about it. Nobody sees them a threat, nobody speaks particularly highly of their manager, and their players are hardly spoken of, nor, it appears, are the Premier League vultures circling around them. Yet, for all the anonymity that hangs around Swansea, they are doing magnificently well in a league that many would consider to be one step too far for a team that those outside the South Wales city don’t give a second thought to.

            Brendan Rogers has had varying degrees of success outside of Swansea.  Relatively new to the management game, he climbed out of the Chelsea youth setup straight into a managerial role at Watford in the 2008/09 season, where he successfully and effortlessly steered them away from relegation. Clearly not one to stay in the same place for long, he then jumped ship, but despite the saying ‘a captain always goes down with his vessel’, the Reading board decided that wasn’t to be the case, as they got rid of their main man before he swerved them into the shark infested sea that is League One (enough with the ship analogy now, I think).

            The club itself, however, were just a last day of the season win away from 6^th place last May. Marginally behind Blackpool going into game 46, the Swans could only manage a draw under the guidance of Paolo Sousa, meaning it would be the Tangerines entering the play-offs, not Swansea. For Blackpool, the rest, as they say, is history, but for Swansea, there were some problems. Firstly, they couldn’t score – throughout the whole of last season they managed just 40 goals. Secondly, their manager had just sailed off into the sunset (sorry, no more ocean analogies either, I promise), otherwise known as Leicester City.  This is the point where upon the club decided to join forces with Brendan Rogers.

            And so, here they are, 2^nd in the Championship, small and ignored, but don’t they just relish in it? They still find scoring a problem, but their defence is impeccable, having conceded just 6 goals at home all season, and with the pacey attacking prospects of Scott Sinclair, Nathan Dyer and Ashley Williams upfront, helped by January signing Luke Moore, they now have more than enough attacking quality to take the Championship title by the scruff of the neck and give it a good shake. So may the other 8 or so teams at the business end of the table ignore Swansea at their peril, or else ‘the Mighty Leeds United’ or ‘Craig Bellamy’s Cardiff City’ may well find themselves languishing in the lower leagues for yet another season, while li’l ol’ Swansea creep slowly up the Premier League table, proving along with Norwich and Fulham in Europe, Hull and Blackpool in the top tier, and Wimbledon in the F.A Cup, that there just isn’t such a thing as an underdog in football.