The official laws of football define dissent as "protesting (verbally or non-verbally) against a referee's decision". No mention of the language involved - technically just arguing with the ref counts as dissent.
So I think I can remember at least three previous occasions where Javier Mascherano's harassment of the referee at Old Trafford would have constituted a second booking - before he lost the plot and finally got it.
The protests against the decision seem to consist largely of "well, everyone else does it and gets away with it". Quite a few players, not least John Terry, appear to be taking that line with the current fad for straight reds for nasty tackles. Well, chaps, isn't it tough when refs follow the rules? If you look at them, any tackle deemed to put another player at risk of injury is a straight red. Any insulting or offensive comments or gestures towards a ref (it doesn't even have to involve foul language) equal a sending off as well. It's slightly disturbing that the best and most prominent players in the country don't seem to be aware of this...or choose not to be aware of this.
Admittedly, this shows up blatantly the main problem with referees - inconsistency. It boggles the mind when you see players mouthing expletives at the referees who then ignore it. But if this is the start of a clampdown (I don't think it is - if it was he'd have been off twenty minutes sooner) then about flipping time.
L.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Retrospective refereeing
A journalist once said of FIFA president Sepp Blatter, "He has fifty new ideas every day, and fifty-one of them are bad". I do intend to have a great big rant about his irrational decision not to proceed with goal-line technology. Don't worry, it'll happen (the rant, not the goalline technology). I bet you can't wait.
But I'm just been watching the highlights of Spurs-Chelsea. 4-4. Some game, I tell you. Why Sky chose Man U-Bolton is a mystery. But the moment I want to focus on happened just moments before half-time.
A bouncing ball ricochets pretty harmlessly towards Alan Hutton (note I've suddenly become more protective of him as he's no longer a hun) at the halfway line, right in front of the dugouts. Cue the arrival of Ashley Cole who with the Scottish full-back having flicked the ball away, absolutely pole-axes him. I'm talking studs up, straight leg, catching Hutton's shin halfway down. This is with Hutton's leg already off the ground to deal with the bouncing ball, so in reality it's about knee height. God bless shin pads and the man who invented them. As you would expect, the Spurs bench goes apes**t.
The Chelsea response to the situation? Ashley Cole, flanked by the usual mottley crew of Terry, Carvalho, Lampard etc. storms up to the ref, Mike Riley, giving him proper abuse (only the very basic lip reading skills can tell you that) and claims wildly that he got the ball (he wouldn't have got the ball even if it was in the vicinity, replays show that quite clearly) and then, while Riley grins inanely at him, just turns his back, walks away and refuses to come back. For the grand total of Serious Foul Play, Foul And Abusive Language and Dissent, Ashley Cole (and his minions) get a grand total of one yellow card. This is in the same week as the FA launched their "respect" agenda, in an attempt to significantly reduce the mouthing off.
Any person who has ever been with one thousand miles could tell you that the tackle deserved a straight red and abusing the ref probably warrants some punishment too. Okay, to call Mike Riley "weak" is like calling Katie Melua "not unattractive", but that's ok, isn't it,because bad tackles and violent conduct offences get cited and punished all the time, don't they.
Unfortunately, on Mr. Blatter's say-so, if the ref sees what has happened and punishes it competely inappropriately (or fails to punish it at all), the decision doesn't get changed. If the ref sees a foul when two players go up for a high ball, yet fails to send one off for a deliberate elbow in the face, then as long as he's given a free kick then no further action can be taken, even if the victim's nose is disintegrated in the process. Apparently dishing out worse punishment after a match "undermines the referee's authority".
On the other hand, we also know perfectly well that there is no apparent problem with retrospectively rescinding red cards, or changing them to yellows afterwards. Now, can someone please tell me where the logic is in that?
It's all very perplexing.
So, anyway, what it means is that that little thug of a Chelsea full-back ultimately gets off scot-free, in the same week as that twit Blatter talks about trying to extend Martin Taylor's ban.
One of these days, Sepp Blatter will do something, as FIFA president, that will actually benefit the world game. However, you have to say, on previous experience, that there is a distinct possibility that this will consist of either his resignation or death.
L.
But I'm just been watching the highlights of Spurs-Chelsea. 4-4. Some game, I tell you. Why Sky chose Man U-Bolton is a mystery. But the moment I want to focus on happened just moments before half-time.
A bouncing ball ricochets pretty harmlessly towards Alan Hutton (note I've suddenly become more protective of him as he's no longer a hun) at the halfway line, right in front of the dugouts. Cue the arrival of Ashley Cole who with the Scottish full-back having flicked the ball away, absolutely pole-axes him. I'm talking studs up, straight leg, catching Hutton's shin halfway down. This is with Hutton's leg already off the ground to deal with the bouncing ball, so in reality it's about knee height. God bless shin pads and the man who invented them. As you would expect, the Spurs bench goes apes**t.
The Chelsea response to the situation? Ashley Cole, flanked by the usual mottley crew of Terry, Carvalho, Lampard etc. storms up to the ref, Mike Riley, giving him proper abuse (only the very basic lip reading skills can tell you that) and claims wildly that he got the ball (he wouldn't have got the ball even if it was in the vicinity, replays show that quite clearly) and then, while Riley grins inanely at him, just turns his back, walks away and refuses to come back. For the grand total of Serious Foul Play, Foul And Abusive Language and Dissent, Ashley Cole (and his minions) get a grand total of one yellow card. This is in the same week as the FA launched their "respect" agenda, in an attempt to significantly reduce the mouthing off.
Any person who has ever been with one thousand miles could tell you that the tackle deserved a straight red and abusing the ref probably warrants some punishment too. Okay, to call Mike Riley "weak" is like calling Katie Melua "not unattractive", but that's ok, isn't it,because bad tackles and violent conduct offences get cited and punished all the time, don't they.
Unfortunately, on Mr. Blatter's say-so, if the ref sees what has happened and punishes it competely inappropriately (or fails to punish it at all), the decision doesn't get changed. If the ref sees a foul when two players go up for a high ball, yet fails to send one off for a deliberate elbow in the face, then as long as he's given a free kick then no further action can be taken, even if the victim's nose is disintegrated in the process. Apparently dishing out worse punishment after a match "undermines the referee's authority".
On the other hand, we also know perfectly well that there is no apparent problem with retrospectively rescinding red cards, or changing them to yellows afterwards. Now, can someone please tell me where the logic is in that?
It's all very perplexing.
So, anyway, what it means is that that little thug of a Chelsea full-back ultimately gets off scot-free, in the same week as that twit Blatter talks about trying to extend Martin Taylor's ban.
One of these days, Sepp Blatter will do something, as FIFA president, that will actually benefit the world game. However, you have to say, on previous experience, that there is a distinct possibility that this will consist of either his resignation or death.
L.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Caley in crisis
At the moment, Caley Thistle (the club, not the fans) are probably rather relieved that the Gretna fiasco, the problems at Fir Park, and Rangers' European run rumble on with no signs of stopping for a few weeks yet. It means that the press have completely failed to pick up on the fact that ICT are currently in freefall.
It's difficult to know exactly why this is the case. However, it is clear to those of us that sit in the stands that all is not well on the pitch. Since New Year we have won just one out of eleven matches, and that was against Gretna, so it may even be expunged from the records! The last four home games have produced one goal. And the team are currently playing with all the courage of an Italian soldier in the second world war. People are walking off the pitch in a sulk when subbed, slagging off each other during matches, and look so disorganised that you would have thought Berti Vogts was in charge.
Meanwhile, our esteemed manager stands on the touchline, hands in pockets, occasionally shouting "Come on". Now, my experience of football management stretches about as far as taken Montrose to the first division on FM2007, but even I can see that he looks as helpless as a new born baby. Every week it's the same 4-2-3-1 tactic, where our midfield actually sits in a line of five only 35 yards from goal, allowing the opposition licence to get that close before being pressed. Our lone striker is so isolated he needs a mobile phone to communicate with his teammates. At Inverness, we are used to seeing a side which lacks the quality and technical ability of most other SPL teams, but which makes up for it with a high energy, pressing game and, as Gordon Strachan once pointed out, "five minutes into injury time, they're still running". Now it appears that we don't even start. I'd swear that none of our players had even broken sweat by the final whistle of Saturday's turgid defeat by Falkirk.
And that's just the problems on the pitch. But form comes and goes, I hear you say. Remember you had an amazing run through November and December, I hear you say. That's true. But now it sounds like we're being crippled on and off the pitch.
Quietly, yesterday evening, the club released to the press the news that Dennis Wyness' new contract offer has been withdrawn. Now, it has been known for weeks that Denzil was on the brink of a new deal. A Caley legend, the clu's all time top scorer, Wyness has been a feature at Caley for a decade, apart for a two year spell at Hearts. He blows hot and cold, and he's had problems with injuries over the last year, but he's a darn good striker to have. Wyness would have signed the contract on Friday, but a club official failed to get the paperwork there on time.
Wyness was subbed five minutes into the second half on Saturday. It was his first appearance for a good few weeks and he didn't look all that sharp. However, the service he got was pretty much nil. But, on the outside, this one mediocre performance seems to be the one change in circumstance from last week. On the inside, though, there may be more than meets the eye. Rumour and innuendo is rife at the moment, but everyone knows that his family are settled in the North, his oldest kid is about to start primary school, and he has been happy to tell people how pleased he was to be staying.
The story that is currently doing the rounds is that Wyness, who normally looks about as likely to get angry as a sheep, let rip at other underperforming players in the dressing room, players that are Brewster's favourites. You can guess who they are - Duncan, McGuire and Hastings spring to mind. These are players who have consistently been poor for this whole run, and before it, but who remain in the team every week when everyone else has been dropped for a time (save goalkeeper Fraser and captain Munro). The plot thickens - it has also been suggested that Graham Bayne, our beanpole forward who lacks quality but certainly doesn't lack heart, supported Wyness' comments about the efforts of other players. Bayne is still under contract for next year, but will he survive these events?
This is not the first time this year it has become clear that a player has fallen out with Brewster. Veteran Barry Wilson, in a testimonial year, made a number of useful impacts off the bench and promptly disappeared from the radar around Christmas time; he is now on loan at St. Johnstone. How we have cried out for his skill and flair recently. Brew also attempted to freeze John Rankin out, then, having recalled him and been rewarded with a string of excellent performances, Brew made it quite clear he was keen to sell. Rankin is now a fixture in big Mixu's Hibs midfield. We have not won a game since Rankin left.
And to cap it all, there are one or two goings on that suggest that Niculae (who has worked harder than most, to be fair) might not be a one-off. The company that subsidise his wages are increasingly influential in the club, and there are fears (not entirely unfounded) that Caley could just become a Romanian version of Hearts.
As I said before, a lot of this is rumour. We might never know what is actually happening in the bowels of the club (to extend the metaphor, though, they are quite clearly full of crap!). But one thing is for sure at the moment. The team itself are playing poor, boring football, and they are losing game after game with an attitude that suggests they couldn't fight their way out of a wet paper bag. This is the first time in my life that going to a Caley game has felt like a chore, and if that's still the case at the end of the season then I'm going to have to question just why I should spend 320 quid to do it again.
L.
It's difficult to know exactly why this is the case. However, it is clear to those of us that sit in the stands that all is not well on the pitch. Since New Year we have won just one out of eleven matches, and that was against Gretna, so it may even be expunged from the records! The last four home games have produced one goal. And the team are currently playing with all the courage of an Italian soldier in the second world war. People are walking off the pitch in a sulk when subbed, slagging off each other during matches, and look so disorganised that you would have thought Berti Vogts was in charge.
Meanwhile, our esteemed manager stands on the touchline, hands in pockets, occasionally shouting "Come on". Now, my experience of football management stretches about as far as taken Montrose to the first division on FM2007, but even I can see that he looks as helpless as a new born baby. Every week it's the same 4-2-3-1 tactic, where our midfield actually sits in a line of five only 35 yards from goal, allowing the opposition licence to get that close before being pressed. Our lone striker is so isolated he needs a mobile phone to communicate with his teammates. At Inverness, we are used to seeing a side which lacks the quality and technical ability of most other SPL teams, but which makes up for it with a high energy, pressing game and, as Gordon Strachan once pointed out, "five minutes into injury time, they're still running". Now it appears that we don't even start. I'd swear that none of our players had even broken sweat by the final whistle of Saturday's turgid defeat by Falkirk.
And that's just the problems on the pitch. But form comes and goes, I hear you say. Remember you had an amazing run through November and December, I hear you say. That's true. But now it sounds like we're being crippled on and off the pitch.
Quietly, yesterday evening, the club released to the press the news that Dennis Wyness' new contract offer has been withdrawn. Now, it has been known for weeks that Denzil was on the brink of a new deal. A Caley legend, the clu's all time top scorer, Wyness has been a feature at Caley for a decade, apart for a two year spell at Hearts. He blows hot and cold, and he's had problems with injuries over the last year, but he's a darn good striker to have. Wyness would have signed the contract on Friday, but a club official failed to get the paperwork there on time.
Wyness was subbed five minutes into the second half on Saturday. It was his first appearance for a good few weeks and he didn't look all that sharp. However, the service he got was pretty much nil. But, on the outside, this one mediocre performance seems to be the one change in circumstance from last week. On the inside, though, there may be more than meets the eye. Rumour and innuendo is rife at the moment, but everyone knows that his family are settled in the North, his oldest kid is about to start primary school, and he has been happy to tell people how pleased he was to be staying.
The story that is currently doing the rounds is that Wyness, who normally looks about as likely to get angry as a sheep, let rip at other underperforming players in the dressing room, players that are Brewster's favourites. You can guess who they are - Duncan, McGuire and Hastings spring to mind. These are players who have consistently been poor for this whole run, and before it, but who remain in the team every week when everyone else has been dropped for a time (save goalkeeper Fraser and captain Munro). The plot thickens - it has also been suggested that Graham Bayne, our beanpole forward who lacks quality but certainly doesn't lack heart, supported Wyness' comments about the efforts of other players. Bayne is still under contract for next year, but will he survive these events?
This is not the first time this year it has become clear that a player has fallen out with Brewster. Veteran Barry Wilson, in a testimonial year, made a number of useful impacts off the bench and promptly disappeared from the radar around Christmas time; he is now on loan at St. Johnstone. How we have cried out for his skill and flair recently. Brew also attempted to freeze John Rankin out, then, having recalled him and been rewarded with a string of excellent performances, Brew made it quite clear he was keen to sell. Rankin is now a fixture in big Mixu's Hibs midfield. We have not won a game since Rankin left.
And to cap it all, there are one or two goings on that suggest that Niculae (who has worked harder than most, to be fair) might not be a one-off. The company that subsidise his wages are increasingly influential in the club, and there are fears (not entirely unfounded) that Caley could just become a Romanian version of Hearts.
As I said before, a lot of this is rumour. We might never know what is actually happening in the bowels of the club (to extend the metaphor, though, they are quite clearly full of crap!). But one thing is for sure at the moment. The team itself are playing poor, boring football, and they are losing game after game with an attitude that suggests they couldn't fight their way out of a wet paper bag. This is the first time in my life that going to a Caley game has felt like a chore, and if that's still the case at the end of the season then I'm going to have to question just why I should spend 320 quid to do it again.
L.
Monday, March 17, 2008
United they stand, thanks to Eddie Thompson
If the CIS cup final is anything to go by, there's just no justice in football. Surely, the romantics among you (or at least the ones who aren't huns) were longing for Dundee United to win it for Eddie Thompson. He's had his fair share of critics in the past, not least over the way he has gone through managers - mind you, the more I watch Caley, the more I can see why he had not confidence in the increasingly naive and clueless Brewster - but by all accounts the guy has pumped ridiculous amounts of money into the club. Imagine what Aberdeen might have achieved had Stewart Milne been similarly obsessed.
And to cap it all it sounds like Thompson is living on borrowed time, as his prostate cancer worsens. He's put his affairs in order with plenty of time to spare (take note, Brooks Mileson) and so it looks United will be on a stable footing when his association with the club comes to an end. He's even found a good manager, Craig Levein, and has attempted to tie him to the club long term by sticking him on the board.
So when, at 2-1 United in extra time, the TV camera cut to Thompson, and huge cheers came up from the orange end of the ground (which I assume was the United support, though you can never quite be certain when Rangers are playing), there will not have been a neutral on the planet who was not willing them to hold on.
Unfortunately, Kris Boyd is not a romantic. Why couldn't he have just sulked and pouted, like he usually does when he's a late substitute?
But what that final has done is to emphasise the long term benefits that Thompson's association with Dundee United will bring. He made plenty of mistakes along the way - and freely admits that - but they are now a well run club on and off the field, and there does not appear to be any reason why this should not remain the case for years to come.
The story might not make such good reading without a league cup trophy to go with it, but any guy who makes Morning, Noon and Night a success and chairs Dundee United to a cup final is, quite frankly some sort of freaking genius!
L.
And to cap it all it sounds like Thompson is living on borrowed time, as his prostate cancer worsens. He's put his affairs in order with plenty of time to spare (take note, Brooks Mileson) and so it looks United will be on a stable footing when his association with the club comes to an end. He's even found a good manager, Craig Levein, and has attempted to tie him to the club long term by sticking him on the board.
So when, at 2-1 United in extra time, the TV camera cut to Thompson, and huge cheers came up from the orange end of the ground (which I assume was the United support, though you can never quite be certain when Rangers are playing), there will not have been a neutral on the planet who was not willing them to hold on.
Unfortunately, Kris Boyd is not a romantic. Why couldn't he have just sulked and pouted, like he usually does when he's a late substitute?
But what that final has done is to emphasise the long term benefits that Thompson's association with Dundee United will bring. He made plenty of mistakes along the way - and freely admits that - but they are now a well run club on and off the field, and there does not appear to be any reason why this should not remain the case for years to come.
The story might not make such good reading without a league cup trophy to go with it, but any guy who makes Morning, Noon and Night a success and chairs Dundee United to a cup final is, quite frankly some sort of freaking genius!
L.
Monday, March 10, 2008
Why bother?
I think you'll all be pleased to hear that I just can't muster the energy to rant about this again. It's all been said by me before, and now echoed all over the country.
Gretna Football Club have achieved two things this season:
1. To embarass Scottish football.
2. To ruin Motherwell's pitch and put the SPL miles behind in terms of postponements.
Congratulations, chaps. Give yourselves a pat on the back for me, eh?
L.
Gretna Football Club have achieved two things this season:
1. To embarass Scottish football.
2. To ruin Motherwell's pitch and put the SPL miles behind in terms of postponements.
Congratulations, chaps. Give yourselves a pat on the back for me, eh?
L.
Friday, March 7, 2008
It doesn't get weirder than Werder
Blimey, who'd have thunk it? Werder Bremen, second in the Bundesliga, well known now throughout European football for playing outstanding, open attacking stuff, turn up at Ibrox and look about as dangerous as the MMR vaccine. (For all you non-medical folk out there, trust me, the MMR vaccine is NOT dangerous)
One shot on target in 90 minutes for the visitors, then. Rangers were hardly all-action and free-flowing, but they deserved the luck they got. Note to Tim Wiese - spreading Lurpak on your gloves before a game is not a very good idea. If McCulloch had scored at the end, I'd have said the tie was over already. As it is, Watty's boys go over there next week with a good head start and a single away goal probably kills it. Freaking sweet.
So, in honour of this excellent result, I'm going to eat some humble pie. I unreservedly support all Scottish teams playing in Europe, as because of UEFA co-efficients it's to everybody's benefit that they do well, but being highly complimentary of an Old Firm team does comes about as easily to me as good pop songs come to Scouting For Girls. I feel so dirty about this. Okay, deep breath, here goes.
Firstly, the tactics were outstanding. That was the narrowest five man midfield I have ever seen, but the whole point to it was to complete remove Diego's influence from the game. The guy was crowded faster than the Beatles at an airport. It meant that Cousin was pretty isolated, but he put in a shift and worked hard, and more importantly had support from the excellent Charlie Adam on one side and, incredibly, Kirk Broadfoot on the other.
And seamlessly we move onto our second point. The phrases "Kirk Broadfoot" and "Man of the match" will not be heard often in European circles, but last night the boy was outstanding. He is as graceful as a lemming and has the subtlety of a brick, but he put in an absolutely herculean effort to get up and down the right flank that should be enough to keep Whittaker on the bench for a wee bit longer. Good for him. Alan who?
Thanks to Rangers' efforts last night, currently Scotland's clubs are joint sixth on co-efficients this season, ahead of the likes of France, Ukraine, Holland and Portugal. Not freaking bad. For the UEFA Cup expands in two years and as it stands Scotland gets one more extra team, but if Rangers push on it could be two!
So if Rangers do well, you could see Caley Thistle in Europe! That's right, I'll just keep thinking that, and singing the praises of the Great Unwashed causes slightly less nausea for me...
By the way, how long do you think I'll last before ranting about Gretna-gate? Yeah, I give it till about Sunday...
L.
One shot on target in 90 minutes for the visitors, then. Rangers were hardly all-action and free-flowing, but they deserved the luck they got. Note to Tim Wiese - spreading Lurpak on your gloves before a game is not a very good idea. If McCulloch had scored at the end, I'd have said the tie was over already. As it is, Watty's boys go over there next week with a good head start and a single away goal probably kills it. Freaking sweet.
So, in honour of this excellent result, I'm going to eat some humble pie. I unreservedly support all Scottish teams playing in Europe, as because of UEFA co-efficients it's to everybody's benefit that they do well, but being highly complimentary of an Old Firm team does comes about as easily to me as good pop songs come to Scouting For Girls. I feel so dirty about this. Okay, deep breath, here goes.
Firstly, the tactics were outstanding. That was the narrowest five man midfield I have ever seen, but the whole point to it was to complete remove Diego's influence from the game. The guy was crowded faster than the Beatles at an airport. It meant that Cousin was pretty isolated, but he put in a shift and worked hard, and more importantly had support from the excellent Charlie Adam on one side and, incredibly, Kirk Broadfoot on the other.
And seamlessly we move onto our second point. The phrases "Kirk Broadfoot" and "Man of the match" will not be heard often in European circles, but last night the boy was outstanding. He is as graceful as a lemming and has the subtlety of a brick, but he put in an absolutely herculean effort to get up and down the right flank that should be enough to keep Whittaker on the bench for a wee bit longer. Good for him. Alan who?
Thanks to Rangers' efforts last night, currently Scotland's clubs are joint sixth on co-efficients this season, ahead of the likes of France, Ukraine, Holland and Portugal. Not freaking bad. For the UEFA Cup expands in two years and as it stands Scotland gets one more extra team, but if Rangers push on it could be two!
So if Rangers do well, you could see Caley Thistle in Europe! That's right, I'll just keep thinking that, and singing the praises of the Great Unwashed causes slightly less nausea for me...
By the way, how long do you think I'll last before ranting about Gretna-gate? Yeah, I give it till about Sunday...
L.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
The Premiership's fourth dimension
So, after the cup nightmare with Barnsley, Liverpool look like they've turned the corner - an impressive Champions' League win against Inter, followed by a convincing defeat of Bolton in the league at a ground where they traditionally struggle. Tonight's game against West Ham is going to be another test, but it's an opportunity for the Reds to show that they have the quality to take control of that golden fourth place.
This concerns me somewhat, as last Friday, under the influence of a few cans of Guinness, I bet a Koppite friend of mine forty quid that Liverpool wouldn't finish in the top four. In the sober daylight, this maybe wasn't the brightest thing I've ever done.
It wasn't a completely off-the-cuff decision, honest. My murky brain did put some thought into it, mostly based on how much Everton and Aston Villa have impressed me recently. Villa continued their solid form by nicking a point at the Emirates in a game which they maybe should have won. They have been boosted by the emergence this season of Ashley Young and Gabby Agbonlahor as dual attacking threats, the maturity of Curtis Davies (who won an England call-up before his achilles went snap on Saturday - ouch, by the way) and the fact that Martin Laursen, almost certainly the best header of a ball in the EPL, has finally managed to stay fit for longer than Jade Goody can stay slim. Villa, with their 4-3-3 tactics, are in a lot of ways the antithesis of Martin O'Neill's direct style at Celtic (though he does still employ a big target man), and have been a joy to watch this season. I'm pleased to see they are in the race.
Meanwhile, later on Sunday avro, after the Pool won at the Reebok, I was pretty impressed as Everton saw off Portsmouth, even with the likes of Arteta absent. This followed a smashing win at Man City last Monday, and Everton's only two defeats in their last eighteen in the league were against Man Utd and Arsenal. I'm not kidding - that is bleeding good form, I tell you.
But both team's challenges depend on different things. Aston Villa's massive achilles heel (incidentally, Davies probably also has a massive achilles heel right now) is their lack of squad depth. Their worst run of form this season coincided with the absence of John Carew. If he breaks down again, Marlon Harewood is the only alternative, and while he is possibly the world's greatest trier on a football pitch (apart from me, obviously), he is not in that class. You lose Young or Agbonlahor, and you hit similar problems, and at the back, the cupboard is threadbare now Davies is out and the sole reserve, Zat Knight, earns a return to the team. If Villa can play their best eleven in every single game left this season, they have a chance. So, in reality, their hopes are similar to those of Caley making the SPL's top six - not on your nelly.
Everton, though, do have a bit of depth, as shown by their ability to cope with the absence of Arteta and Manuel Fernandes. The development of Phil Jagielka into a top centre-back has helped no end, and with Joleon Lescott now capable of playing left-back for England (albeit not that brilliantly on that occasion), Everton have the likes of Anthony Gardner and Leighton Baines on the bench, joined by another international, Andy Johnson. But Sunday's game emphasised that Everton, for all the options they have in other parts of the pitch, are hugely dependant on two players: Tim Cahill, who when not carrying out moronic celebrations remains one of the best goalscoring midfielders around, and Yakubu. I was fed up of the number of times Andy Gray referred to him as "The Yak" - Shaun Goater is the only player ever allowed to be constantly referred to in that sort of way" but it was because he is at the centre of everything good that Everton have been doing right now. He's a manager's dream right now - a striker who can't stop scoring. But it has to happen sooner or later, and if or when the goals dry up, so might Everton's season.
Anyway, I feel both sides deserve a lot of credit - they have each shown you can be defensively organised and still play attractive, open football. Kudos to both. But my common sense tells me that there's one overpowering reason why neither will reach the promised land next season. It's Fernando Torres.
L.
PS As an aside, I'll be doing my own team-by-team previews for Euro 2008 from late May, which will probably appear, in abbreviated form (minus the huge volume of statistics with which I have an unnatural obsession) on this page. Anyone who wants the full wahoonie of info, so that you too can comment eloquently on Greek tactics or Austrian forwards or whatever, just let me know or leave a comment
This concerns me somewhat, as last Friday, under the influence of a few cans of Guinness, I bet a Koppite friend of mine forty quid that Liverpool wouldn't finish in the top four. In the sober daylight, this maybe wasn't the brightest thing I've ever done.
It wasn't a completely off-the-cuff decision, honest. My murky brain did put some thought into it, mostly based on how much Everton and Aston Villa have impressed me recently. Villa continued their solid form by nicking a point at the Emirates in a game which they maybe should have won. They have been boosted by the emergence this season of Ashley Young and Gabby Agbonlahor as dual attacking threats, the maturity of Curtis Davies (who won an England call-up before his achilles went snap on Saturday - ouch, by the way) and the fact that Martin Laursen, almost certainly the best header of a ball in the EPL, has finally managed to stay fit for longer than Jade Goody can stay slim. Villa, with their 4-3-3 tactics, are in a lot of ways the antithesis of Martin O'Neill's direct style at Celtic (though he does still employ a big target man), and have been a joy to watch this season. I'm pleased to see they are in the race.
Meanwhile, later on Sunday avro, after the Pool won at the Reebok, I was pretty impressed as Everton saw off Portsmouth, even with the likes of Arteta absent. This followed a smashing win at Man City last Monday, and Everton's only two defeats in their last eighteen in the league were against Man Utd and Arsenal. I'm not kidding - that is bleeding good form, I tell you.
But both team's challenges depend on different things. Aston Villa's massive achilles heel (incidentally, Davies probably also has a massive achilles heel right now) is their lack of squad depth. Their worst run of form this season coincided with the absence of John Carew. If he breaks down again, Marlon Harewood is the only alternative, and while he is possibly the world's greatest trier on a football pitch (apart from me, obviously), he is not in that class. You lose Young or Agbonlahor, and you hit similar problems, and at the back, the cupboard is threadbare now Davies is out and the sole reserve, Zat Knight, earns a return to the team. If Villa can play their best eleven in every single game left this season, they have a chance. So, in reality, their hopes are similar to those of Caley making the SPL's top six - not on your nelly.
Everton, though, do have a bit of depth, as shown by their ability to cope with the absence of Arteta and Manuel Fernandes. The development of Phil Jagielka into a top centre-back has helped no end, and with Joleon Lescott now capable of playing left-back for England (albeit not that brilliantly on that occasion), Everton have the likes of Anthony Gardner and Leighton Baines on the bench, joined by another international, Andy Johnson. But Sunday's game emphasised that Everton, for all the options they have in other parts of the pitch, are hugely dependant on two players: Tim Cahill, who when not carrying out moronic celebrations remains one of the best goalscoring midfielders around, and Yakubu. I was fed up of the number of times Andy Gray referred to him as "The Yak" - Shaun Goater is the only player ever allowed to be constantly referred to in that sort of way" but it was because he is at the centre of everything good that Everton have been doing right now. He's a manager's dream right now - a striker who can't stop scoring. But it has to happen sooner or later, and if or when the goals dry up, so might Everton's season.
Anyway, I feel both sides deserve a lot of credit - they have each shown you can be defensively organised and still play attractive, open football. Kudos to both. But my common sense tells me that there's one overpowering reason why neither will reach the promised land next season. It's Fernando Torres.
L.
PS As an aside, I'll be doing my own team-by-team previews for Euro 2008 from late May, which will probably appear, in abbreviated form (minus the huge volume of statistics with which I have an unnatural obsession) on this page. Anyone who wants the full wahoonie of info, so that you too can comment eloquently on Greek tactics or Austrian forwards or whatever, just let me know or leave a comment
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