Archive for October, 2009

Man Utd 2-0 Blackburn

Perhaps it’s the swine flu, but Blackburn continue to make a pig’s ear of defending, and Manchester United were able to win with something to spare and without ever playing as well as they can. Two high-class goals, from Dimitar Berbatov and Wayne Rooney, were gems amid more dross than Old Trafford is prepared to tolerate, and the crowd were voicing their disapproval by the time the stalemate was broken, 10 minutes into the second half.

Berbatov’s stunning goal out of nothing came with a rider. The Bulgarian had spurned straightforward chances before he scored, and the home crowd were starting to get on the back of the £30m man, tempted to join in the visitors’ cries of “What a waste of money”, until his fourth of the season went in.

Earlier results had given United little cause for satisfaction. Despite last week’s defeat at Anfield, they do not view Liverpool as genuine title rivals, so the old enemy’s latest setback, at Fulham, was regarded as of lesser consequence than the emphatic victories by Chelsea, who stay top, and Arsenal, who briefly moved into second place.

Blackburn mustered only one attack of consequence, and that was delayed until the 87th minute, but it left Sam Allardyce with genuine cause for complaint. When Benni McCarthy’s shot came back off an upright, Nikola Kalinic tucked away the rebound, only to be penalised for offside, which he wasn’t. Allardyce said: “I’m not suggesting we’d have gone on to make it 2-2, but it’s wrong that we had that opportunity denied us. It should have been a goal, and with four minutes to go, who knows? People will say it’s Sam moaning again, but I like to moan when I’m right.”

United were without both their regular centre-backs, but it mattered little in the context of the match, and while Nemanja Vidic will always be missed, Rio Ferdinand’s form has been of mounting concern – former England manager Graham Taylor claimed before the match that Ferdinand had “lost his legs” – and the calf injury which put him out was not the blow it would once have been. Wes Brown and Johnny Evans were more than capable deputies.

Blackburn’s problems go far deeper and are easy to identify. They are shipping goals at an alarming rate – 15 in their past four matches – and are not scoring enough. David Dunn leads the way with four. Nobody else has contributed more than one. It is no great surprise that they are missing Stephen Warnock, Roque Santa Cruz and Matt Derbyshire, sold for £25m to keep the bank manager happy.

Michael Carrick, with his metronomic passing, did his considerable best to prompt United into incisive action, but half an hour elapsed before they created a decent chance, Valencia crossing accurately from the right for Berbatov to get in a firm, bouncing header which had Robinson fully extended in tipping over the bar. It was a chance missed.

Berbatov again tested Robinson with a resounding shot from the edge of the D, which the Rovers keeper was happy to turn round his left upright, and when the Bulgarian did manage to get the ball in the net, after 39 minutes, the celebrations were curtailed by an offside flag. A fourth opportunity presented itself just before the interval, but Berbatov was horribly profligate, shooting high and wide.

Relief for United came from the most unexpected source, given what had gone before. The danger appeared to be minimal when Evra’s mis-hit shot flew towards Berbatov who, from near the penalty spot, turned in a blur and volleyed the ball low into Robinson’s right corner. One always seemed likely to be enough, but Rooney added an expertly taken second from Anderson’s pass.

Even Allardyce did not dispute the outcome, but United will need to play a lot better than this to dislodge Chelsea from the top of the table when they meet at Stamford Bridge next Sunday.

The Fans’ Player Ratings And Verdicts

Shaun O’Donnell, Observer reader

You expect a couple of frights on Halloween, but the first half was a real horror show. If you’d brought a kid for the first time, he or she would have wanted to go home at half-time. Blackburn came to defend, but we were very poor in the first half. Second half was better, but we still can’t provide service to the front men. Nani was awful – he could be gone by the end of the season. When you have to grind out a result at home against Blackburn, it’s not good. I don’t think Ferguson knows his best midfield, but Hargreaves will move us up a gear.

The fan’s player ratings Van der Sar 6; O’Shea 6, Brown 6, Evans 6, Evra 7; Valencia 6, Carrick 6, Anderson 6, Nani 5 (Obertan 63 6); Rooney 6, Berbatov 6 (Owen 79 6) Subs not used Scholes, Da Silva, Fletcher, Kuszczak, De Laet

Paul McGarry, Observer reader

If you look in the dictionary for routine victory you’d find a report of this game. We defended OK, but we showed virtually no ambition – not even when we conceded. It’s difficult to draw anything from the game other than there’s a huge gap between the top few teams and everybody else. The bigger picture for Rovers is whether we have got a weak team or is it that we’re not playing with any ambition? We look nowhere near any of the top teams, but I think we’ll be OK because there are a few teams who are worse than us.

The fan’s player ratings Robinson 5; Chimbonda 5, Samba 5, Nelsen 6, Givet 6; Emerton 5, Nzonzi 6, Andrews 5 (Pedersen 57 5); Diouf 5; Dunn 5 (McCarthy 83 n/a); Di Santo 6 (Kalinic 76 6) Subs not used Grella, Hollett, Salgado, Brown

If you want to take part in the Fans’ Verdict, email fans.premier@observer.co.uk

McGeady shows Celtic’s vicious side to sink Kilmarnock

Arguably Celtic’s most comfortable and convincing victory since the opening-day visit to Aberdeen will surely have provided a fillip for players and supporters at the end of a week when the confidence of both seemed in danger of unravelling.

The defeat by Hearts on Wednesday that cost them the Co-operative Insurance Cup they won last season had been, with justification, viewed as the kind of morale weakener that could lead to another setback against Kilmarnock and the loss of their advantage at the top of the league.

But the goal-scoring that was started by Aiden McGeady, continued by Georgios Samaras and completed by the substitute Niall McGinn, ensured the extension of their lead and a little more pressure for Rangers on the latter’s visit to Dundee United tomorrow.

That goal from McGeady – or, more precisely, the manner of its execution – was the more surprising for the general unreliability of the Celtic midfielder in the vicinity of the opposition’s goal. For a player of his natural ball skills, he has a reputation as a notoriously poor finisher.

On this occasion, however, he contrived to look like Marco van Basten reincarnated. Taking the loose ball on the right of the area, he did what was for him the easy part by skipping past Craig Bryson. But he then confounded most people’s expectations by hitting a ferocious, right foot drive from an extremely acute angle, the ball hitting the far wall of the net a few inches inside the post.

Following the criticism directed at the team in general and McGeady in particular in recent times, it was a finish that imparted a sense of viciousness. And the same could be said of the one Samaras provided later to extend the home side’s advantage.

The Greece striker had been even more savagely treated by the supporters and the media for recent failures, but especially for the bad misses he perpetrated in the cup tie three days earlier. When Andreas Hinkel’s impeccably measured cross from the right was met by Samaras almost on the penalty spot, he hit the header with such power that anyone who saw only the ball hurtle past Cameron Bell would have though it must have been the result of a shot. Samaras, too, clearly revelled in this change of fortune.

If the goals were a mild shock because of what had occurred in previous matches, they were entirely merited by Celtic’s swarming superiority in this one. Kilmarnock were under pressure from the start, engaging in only the occasional forward skirmish.

The changes made by Jim Jefferies to Kilmarnock at half-time – David Fernández for Danny Invincibile and Garry Hay for Conor Sammon – reflected their need of more incisiveness in forward areas and they were almost rewarded within a few minutes of the personnel and tactical re-arrangement.

Kevin Kyle sent a low shot narrowly wide before becoming the recipient of a cross from Bryson, who had taken Jamie Hamill’s pass on the right, and heading the ball just over from eight yards.

Tony Mowbray followed his rival later by replacing Scott McDonald and Paddy McCourt with Marc-Antoine Fortuné and McGinn, but it was McGeady who first took the attention when he was cautioned – not for the first time this season – for simulation under a challenge from James Fowler.

McGinn, however, became noticeable for a much more acceptable reason when he scored the third. Taking Hinkel’s pass on the right side of the area, the Irishman drilled the ball low and true beyond Bell – the Kilmarnock goalkeeper having had an outstanding match – and into the far corner of his net.

Arsenal 3-0 Tottenham

Tottenham Hotspur found a way to overshadow Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. Unfortunately for Harry Redknapp’s team, they caught the eye with a penchant for self-harm that left them losing a battle with themselves as much as with Arsenal. The barrier to achieving a top-four finish for clubs such as Tottenham is often inside their heads.

Arsenal are accustomed to bringing these rivals to a halt and have not been beaten by them in the Premier League since 1999. The losers yesterday could lament the absence of Aaron Lennon, because of injury, and the suspended Jermain Defoe. Redknapp could hanker, too, for the ingenuity of Luka Modric, whose comeback is still in the distance.

The manager will appreciate that those factors tend, also, to illustrate that Tottenham continue to be well short of the elite. Arsenal could have matched their opponents woe for woe, but had no cause to dwell on missing footballers. Arsène Wenger had a reasonably placid tone when predicting Nicklas Bendtner, taken off here, will need a month to recover from his groin problem.

The victors have the resources to be insouciant. This match allowed Wenger to restate his conviction that Arsenal can take the title. “I believe we have the quality,” he said. “It will be down to our attitude.” As he suggests, the expertise is beyond dispute and the manager was willing to put Robin van Persie, scorer of two goals, in august company when analysing the Dutchman’s role.

“He is a mixture,” said Wenger. “He is less of a runner with the ball than Thierry Henry and he is not completely Dennis Bergkamp because he plays higher up the pitch. With the type of game we have, he is vital because, when you play the ball to his feet, his first touch is always perfect and it allows [others] to join in. And, in the box, he is intelligent.”

For all the accolades due to Van Persie and Cesc Fábregas, Tottenham made the most eye-catching contribution to Arsenal’s delight. The match initially had a streak of mediocrity that would have been to the liking of visitors hoping to settle down here. It was Tottenham, all the same, whose concentration flagged, three minutes from half-time.

Arsenal did not have the opportunity to look that suave when the opposition were making such rudimentary errors. Bacary Sagna tossed a throw-in to Fábregas, took the return and rolled a low cross towards the near post, where Van Persie got in front of Ledley King for the first of his two goals. Heurelho Gomes was beaten easily by the low finish.

It will have been more unnerving still for Redknapp that his line-up should be in disarray from the kick-off. Arsenal doubled their lead in 11 seconds. Once Wilson Palacios had kicked the ball against Van Persie, Fábregas broke away from Tom Huddlestone and King before shooting low beyond Gomes.

Considering the knee troubles that prevent the centre-back from training properly, there will be misgivings about King. However, on his outstanding afternoons, people are just as ready to announce he ought to be considered for the England squad irrespective of his condition. The infirmity of his showing against Arsenal was a piece with that of team-mates who were completely hale. The vulnerability was predominantly in the mind. Robbie Keane had floated the notion last week that Tottenham might now have a better group of players than Arsenal. He was taken off in the 65th minute and the captain may, thereby, have made an early start to the period of reflection that will be shared by everyone at White Hart Lane.

Tottenham were not uniformly abject, but they had lost the capacity to protect themselves. After 61 minutes, both sides paused as referee Mark Clattenburg played an advantage following a foul on the substitute Eduardo. Arsenal, predictably, were quicker to return to action.

Sagna put a low ball into the middle and Gomes’ touch tipped the cross away from King so that Van Persie could strike once more. Tottenham’s demoralisation was almost tangible.

Redknapp strove to be robust in his response to such a result. In his view, there had been little to concern him before the outbreak of pratfalls. There is a tinge of truth to that, but Arsenal must have suspected events would ultimately be to their liking. Even when the game was goalless, Gomes had made an impressive block from a Fábregas attempt. Redknapp had opted to have Peter Crouch as a lone attacker, but he had few openings.

The victors were to enjoy themselves fully as the day developed. With the side 3-0 ahead, Wenger threw his jacket to the ground in annoyance. “I couldn’t communicate with the players because of the noise of the crowd,” the manager explained, wryly. “I’m not used to that.”

A joke at the expense of the supposedly torpid atmosphere at the Emirates could be afforded. Tottenham should blame themselves for permitting such merriment. Redknapp saw Sébastien Bassong go off before the close with a hamstring problem. With Jonathan Woodgate ready to return shortly, the manager made light of that. He will know, all the same, his side need a mental durability never in evidence here.

THE FANS’ PLAYER RATINGS AND VERDICT

Susan Ferguson, Observer reader It took a bit of time for us to get started, but, once we scored, the players seemed to remember what they should have been doing. I was just thinking it wasn’t much of a derby when – bang, bang – we were 2-0 up. Tottenham looked poor from the outset and didn’t seem to have much of a plan – just hoof it up to Crouch. But Vermaelen out-jumped him for most of the game and Gallas also played well in defence. And it was nice that Almunia kept a clean sheet.

The fan’s player ratings Almunia 7; Sagna 7, Gallas 8, Vermaelen■ 8, Clichy 8; Diaby 8, Fábregas 9, Song 8; Bendtner 7 (Eduardo 37 7), Arshavin 7 (Eboué 78 n/a); Van Persie 9 (Ramsey 86 n/a),

Dave Mason, Observer reader There was a bonehead quality to the football and a tragic inevitability about it all. The second goal said a lot about the character of the team – where’s the leadership? Huddlestone was ludicrously bad in midfield and needed changing at half-time. Only Jenas showed any conviction going forward, but basically we were just lumping it forward to Crouch and there’s no need to, the guy can play. We really miss Modric when it comes to creativity.

The fan’s player ratings Gomes 6; Corluka 6 (Hutton 86 n/a), King 5, Bassong 6, Assou-Ekotto 6; Huddlestone 3  (Bale 56 3), Palacios 7; Bentley 5, Jenas 8, Keane 4 (Pavlyuchenko 65 4); Crouch■ 7

To take part in the Fans’ Verdict, email fans.premier@observer.co.uk

No club should sign King, insists Whelan

• Whelan claims no club should sign disgraced striker
• ‘I do not want convicts at Wigan Athletic’

The Wigan Athletic chairman Dave Whelan has reacted strongly to the claims of Marlon King’s agent that the disgraced footballer has a future in football. Whelan, who insists he will sack the striker after he was convicted for sexual assault and actual bodily harm and sentenced to 18 months in prison, was infuriated by his agent Tony Finnegan’s claims that King will find a new club on his release from jail.

“He will still be a good goalscorer and I’m sure someone will want his signature to play football and do the job he’s best at,” said Finnegan yesterday. “There are lots of players in this country who have fallen short of the law, done the crime, done the time, and I’m sure if you’re sitting in a [cell] you do have time to reflect on the change you make as a person.”

Finnegan’s statement, however, has further enraged Whelan. “I do not want convicts at Wigan Athletic. Some club will sign him when he gets out — they’ll take the risk. But they shouldn’t,” he told Sky Sports. “The FA should stop him playing professional football for 18 months after he has served his sentence. They should ask themselves if we want people with criminal records like this lad, especially with the type of crime he has committed over his career. This is not just a one off.

“They should say: ‘Well we have had enough of that”. I can’t see him coming back. He is absolutely sacked. We will not tolerate this kind of behaviour. It will be very, very difficult for any club to stick their neck out and take Marlon on. I cannot really see him coming back as a professional. A lot of people will say you do something wrong and you get a sentence and when you have completed it you are allowed back in. But I wouldn’t allow him back in.

“I think it was Steve Bruce who signed him for us and I was a little bit surprised. I knew he had some form in the past. Steve sometimes thinks he can settle these lads down and get them to go on the straight and narrow. I was surprised. We laid out £3m on this lad and we’ve lost most of that money now. But we have standards that we want to keep to. It’s a professional game. I am sure every club in the Premier League would have sacked him like I did.”

Moyes refuses to close the curtain on a lost cause

• Meeting with Aston Villa highlights struggles on Merseyside
• ‘I’m like an elephant,’ Moyes warns underperforming stars

Not every storm cloud evaporated over Merseyside last Sunday. While Rafael Benítez bid adieu to another Anfield crisis with victory over Manchester United, David Moyes was digesting an 86th-minute defeat at Bolton that left Everton three points above the relegation zone. A third away defeat in six days followed at Tottenham Hotspur in the Carling Cup. Not for the first time, a season where Moyes had envisaged taking the next step is being dismissed as a wasted opportunity and, unlike his Liverpool rival, he has yet to conjure a contrary response.

Aston Villa are the perfect opponents to heighten Moyes’ worries at Goodison Park today. For the past two seasons Martin O’Neill’s team have strengthened as the Scot would have wished, flirted with Champions League qualification, but ultimately finished one place below Everton. This term began with both clubs harbouring similar expectations and problems, Moyes and O’Neill embarking on a late transfer trolley dash for defenders, but their paths have since veered in opposite directions.

“I can’t see this season as a lost cause,” the Everton manager said. “I get the feeling people will see our season as a lost cause because of the improvement made by Manchester City, Tottenham, Aston Villa and Sunderland, but I can’t. Maybe, without knowing, we are in the process of building a new side. Maybe we are building again and are in the throes of transition just now. It might well be that we finish mid-table but it would be wrong of me to have that as my ambition. My ambition is to finish as high as I possibly can. That hasn’t altered.”

Moyes’ defiance has not been matched by his players in this campaign, one that opened with a 6-1 humiliation at home to Arsenal in the midst of the Joleon Lescott transfer saga, but which has yielded two more points than at the same stage last season. Everton were also out of the Carling Cup and Uefa Cup at this point 12 months ago, before finishing fifth again and reaching the FA Cup final.

Injuries are the principal reason for the stalled progress, with 10 or 11 casualties the recent norm, and why Moyes refused to lambast the inexperienced and disjointed team that slumped to a record 5-0 European defeat at Benfica. It is not the only factor, however. A newly assembled defence, basic individual errors and the poor form of last season’s key contributors, such as the £15m record signing Marouane Fellaini, have added to the malaise.

“I definitely expect more from the players available,” Moyes added. “A lot of them are playing out of position and doing jobs that are unusual for them but I can’t make excuses, they’ve got to play better no matter where they play.

“We did it last year. We probably had our best spell last season when we had no centre-forwards and people playing out of position, so why should it be any different this year? I try not to look for excuses. I try to make people accountable for whatever job they do. We haven’t defended as well as we’ve done in the past. Over the years we’ve been pretty solid and hard to play against, but I also think we’ve missed a lot of chances. It is at both ends at the moment.

“We’re always looking for a good result and if it can turn your fortune, then that is what we would like it to do. This week has not been particularly good and we were disappointed, but probably the bigger disappointment was that we didn’t take full points against Wolves and Stoke at home.”

The Everton manager has a chilling warning for any senior player who feels his position is secure due to the size of the club’s casualty list. Moyes said: “I would hate to think that was the way our boys thought but subconsciously maybe there is an element of that. And if that is the case they are going to be in for a fright when the injury situation changes. I’m like an elephant, I don’t forget. I don’t forget if people don’t perform and they let me down.”

On paper at least, Moyes arguably has the strongest squad of his Everton tenure at his disposal but denies any claim he is under added pressure as a result. “Managers are always under pressure to get a result but, in my role as a football manager at this club, I don’t feel under pressure, no,” he states.

“It’s about that Saturday night feeling. If you’ve won you can enjoy a meal with the wife and a bottle of wine if you fancy it, or there’s the alternative, which is to pull the curtains and get a Chinese in and hope nobody sees you when you’ve lost. There have been a few nights with the curtains drawn this season, that’s for sure.”