So, tomorrow night at Old Trafford an expensively assembled and overpaid squad will attempt to overturn a narrow deficit and force their way into the Semi-Finals of this years Champions League. It's time to put up or shut up. To be honest, a bit more bluster would do no harm I'm sure. Times were more interesting and encounters more fiery when the Special One was around.
In the 1st leg at Stamford Bridge last week, I had to watch (and listen) as the worse than average Carrick and geriatric Giggs schemed to create the scoring chance for the council estate thug Rooney to give Man Utd what could be a decisive lead. Chelsea huffed, but didn't really puff, and Man Utd looked comfortable throughout, helped I'm sure by the fact that Messrs. Ferdinand and Vidic were re-united at the heart of their defence. I'm being a bit unkind to Rooney-this was as well as I'd seen him play in a while, and he showed remarkable self-restraint when being kicked around by Essien and others earlier in the game.
So, tomorrow night, it's going to take something special. Nothing, and I mean nothing, I have seen this season gives me any faith that Chelsea are capable of getting the win in normal time. Fernando has had the time, if not the chances, to open his Chelsea account, but it didn't really look any more likely last week, even though I was relying on the big occasion and the memory of what he's managed to achieve against Vidic and Co in the past to spur him on. Tomorrow night he should have the bile of the thousands in the stands to egg him on-the fact that he has played for Liverpool and was booked for diving last week is sure to attract plenty of of ire from the Stretford End. Hopefully he will feed off this negative energy, but I'm not holding my breath.
Meanwhile, Arsenal managed a win at the seemingly doomed Blackpool to 'stay in contention' for the Premier League title. Please. Arsenal must go to Old Trafford as well as face Spurs and Liverpool in the remaining 5 weeks of the season. If they win even 1 of those games I would be surprised. I for one am giddy at that the thought of Andy Carroll getting in Jens Lehmann's face at a set piece. This recent story suggests that he's still someone with issues. Prior to their win at Blackpool, Arsene Wenger unwisely had a go at the Arsenal supporters-calls for his head likely to grow louder between now and the end of the season-where they will end up, again, with nothing.
As I write this, Liverpool are dismantling Man City at Anfield, watched by the fawning Ray Wilkins-surely the nicest man ever to provide commentary on a football game (he was equally wide eyed and gushing at the Bernabeu last week). I still like him in the job better than the bald Scottish sexist.
Showing posts with label Fernando Torres. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fernando Torres. Show all posts
Monday, 11 April 2011
Saturday, 29 January 2011
A Bullish Move
Well, just the other day I tweeted that this was the worse transfer window ever. Bent and Dzeko aside, not much has happened. And then, on Friday, we got some action.
To me, something seemed fishy. Chelsea allegedly had bid £52m for Atheltico Madrid pair Aguero and Godin, and nothing had come of it. Then, £22m or so for Benfica's Brzailian defender David Luiz. Off and on, now seemingly dead. Then, most surprising of all, a reported £35m bid for Fernando Torres. This coming just as Liverpool were in the process of sealing the signature of Luis Suarez, who would appear to be the ideal compliment to Torres in Liverpool's attack. My suspicion is that Chelsea were merely flashing money around to make it seem like they were taking action to arrest what has been an alarming decline, but weren't really serious about signing anybody. However, the news that Torres has in fact handed in a transfer request makes me think that there may be some substance to this bid for the Spaniard.
Anyway, let's just assume that Chelsea are serious about signing Torres. What would he add? Well, surely he is the best natural finisher in the Premier League, if not in world football. However, he wouldn't really have changed the shape of the Sunderland or Arsenal games in the past few months. And, he probably wouldn't have prevented Louis Saha's header in this afternoon's FA Cup tie. Still, he would surely provide more of a cutting edge than Anelka, and could have made the difference against the likes of Wolves and Birmingham, games Chelsea have lost 1-0 in recent times. And, Chelsea are a team that don't tend to create an abundance of chances-Torres is just the man to exploit such limited opportunities.
But how would Chelsea line up with the mercurial Spaniard on board? Surely they wouldn't persist with the 4-3-3? The most likely scenario to me is a 4-1-2-1-2, aka the 'Diamond' with Essien deep, Ramires and Malouda right and left respectively, Lampard 'in the hole' and Drogba and Torres up front. Surely they would not ask Torres to play the same type of position as Anelka? That formation doesn't really work for me, as Essien needs to be allowed to surge forward to get the most out of him. The alternative would be to play Essien on the right and Mikel as the anchor, but how can you leave out the ever improving Ramires? (I'm assuming that Lampard is 'untouchable, although I would argue he is the odd man out in a balanced midfield quartet at Chelsea these days).
All moot points until any transfer is confirmed, which is still far from likely at this point. The situation seems to mirror that which Man Utd faced with Wayne Rooney earlier this year, and we know how that has worked out. If Liverpool do manage to keep Torres, they will be hoping for a great return than 2 goals, which is what Man Utd have got from Rooney since he committed his future to the red half of Manchester.
Why exactly has Torres handed in this request now, just as Liverpool have signed what could prove to be a player of real class and have started making some forward progress under Kenny Dalglish, and, have American owners who appear committed to the club and appreciative of its heritage. At the same time, Chelsea appear to be a team in decline. Their chances of retaining their Premier League title appear remote. While they have a favourable draw in he Champions League, it's hard to see them beating the likes of Barcelona or Inter Milan should they progress past FC Copenhagen. And, their place in next season's Champions League is far from certain at this point. I can only think that(a) he has been offered (unofficially) a ridiculous wage; (B) is not enamoured with Dalglish; (c) is tired of having his house robbed and worried at the thought of his children growing up to sound like John Aldridge.
It's interesting as well that Torres waited until now. If money was the issue, then surely he should have been making noises earlier in January, when Man City were shopping for Edin Dzeko. It's hard to believe that money would be an issue for City now, even with the money spent on Dzeko, and so I wouldn't be surprised if we hear from them before close of business on Monday.
Right now, all that is certain is that Liverpool fans face an anxious wait for the next 48 or so hours. For Chelsea, the signing of Torres could be the spark the team needs this season if they are to complete an unlikely turnaround.
To me, something seemed fishy. Chelsea allegedly had bid £52m for Atheltico Madrid pair Aguero and Godin, and nothing had come of it. Then, £22m or so for Benfica's Brzailian defender David Luiz. Off and on, now seemingly dead. Then, most surprising of all, a reported £35m bid for Fernando Torres. This coming just as Liverpool were in the process of sealing the signature of Luis Suarez, who would appear to be the ideal compliment to Torres in Liverpool's attack. My suspicion is that Chelsea were merely flashing money around to make it seem like they were taking action to arrest what has been an alarming decline, but weren't really serious about signing anybody. However, the news that Torres has in fact handed in a transfer request makes me think that there may be some substance to this bid for the Spaniard.
Anyway, let's just assume that Chelsea are serious about signing Torres. What would he add? Well, surely he is the best natural finisher in the Premier League, if not in world football. However, he wouldn't really have changed the shape of the Sunderland or Arsenal games in the past few months. And, he probably wouldn't have prevented Louis Saha's header in this afternoon's FA Cup tie. Still, he would surely provide more of a cutting edge than Anelka, and could have made the difference against the likes of Wolves and Birmingham, games Chelsea have lost 1-0 in recent times. And, Chelsea are a team that don't tend to create an abundance of chances-Torres is just the man to exploit such limited opportunities.
But how would Chelsea line up with the mercurial Spaniard on board? Surely they wouldn't persist with the 4-3-3? The most likely scenario to me is a 4-1-2-1-2, aka the 'Diamond' with Essien deep, Ramires and Malouda right and left respectively, Lampard 'in the hole' and Drogba and Torres up front. Surely they would not ask Torres to play the same type of position as Anelka? That formation doesn't really work for me, as Essien needs to be allowed to surge forward to get the most out of him. The alternative would be to play Essien on the right and Mikel as the anchor, but how can you leave out the ever improving Ramires? (I'm assuming that Lampard is 'untouchable, although I would argue he is the odd man out in a balanced midfield quartet at Chelsea these days).
All moot points until any transfer is confirmed, which is still far from likely at this point. The situation seems to mirror that which Man Utd faced with Wayne Rooney earlier this year, and we know how that has worked out. If Liverpool do manage to keep Torres, they will be hoping for a great return than 2 goals, which is what Man Utd have got from Rooney since he committed his future to the red half of Manchester.
Why exactly has Torres handed in this request now, just as Liverpool have signed what could prove to be a player of real class and have started making some forward progress under Kenny Dalglish, and, have American owners who appear committed to the club and appreciative of its heritage. At the same time, Chelsea appear to be a team in decline. Their chances of retaining their Premier League title appear remote. While they have a favourable draw in he Champions League, it's hard to see them beating the likes of Barcelona or Inter Milan should they progress past FC Copenhagen. And, their place in next season's Champions League is far from certain at this point. I can only think that(a) he has been offered (unofficially) a ridiculous wage; (B) is not enamoured with Dalglish; (c) is tired of having his house robbed and worried at the thought of his children growing up to sound like John Aldridge.
It's interesting as well that Torres waited until now. If money was the issue, then surely he should have been making noises earlier in January, when Man City were shopping for Edin Dzeko. It's hard to believe that money would be an issue for City now, even with the money spent on Dzeko, and so I wouldn't be surprised if we hear from them before close of business on Monday.
Right now, all that is certain is that Liverpool fans face an anxious wait for the next 48 or so hours. For Chelsea, the signing of Torres could be the spark the team needs this season if they are to complete an unlikely turnaround.
Saturday, 2 January 2010
A Festive Feast of less than Fantastic Football
Watching games over the Xmas period, I am beginning to think that a festive break might be in order for the Premier League. The quality of play in the Hull v Man Utd and Aston Villa v Liverpool games was such that it would have been more entertaining for a supporter to stay home and watch the Great Escape or Wallace and Gromit. For the armchair fan, like myself, it's great having live sport to watch when pubs are closed or it's too icy too venture outside safely, but the quality of much of what was on show in the back end of 2009 was such that I wondered whether some players were guilty of eating and drinking as much as an above average slob as myself-there certainly were a lot of sluggish performances.
As to some of the results themselves:
As to some of the results themselves:
- Birmingham 0-0 Chelsea. Chelsea's less than impressive sequence of results continued, albeit away to in-form Birmingham, for whom on loan Joe Hart was in inspired form. Christian Benitez scored a perfectly good goal but was incorrectly flagged for offside (thanks to Didier Drogba lying prone in his own 6 yard box.....), and Alex hit the bar with a thunderous free kick. Chelsea certainly didn't play well enough to win and a draw was probably a fair result.
- Arsenal 3-0 Aston Villa. The beginning of the end for Aston Villa's Champions League quest? I think so. Villa were ok for the first 15 minutes or so, but really lost their way after that-Stillian Petrov looked a spent force and James Milner looked out of place in the centre of Villa's midfield. For Arsenal-the same old story-some lovely passing and counter-attacking, but a serious lack of execution in the basics of heading and shooting meant that it needed the introduction of not fully fit Cesc Febergas to change the game for Arsenal. Eduardo is really lacking confidence up front and Andrey Arshavin was largely anonymous. Arsenal could really do with adding a striker (not just a forward player), or hope that the return of Nicklas Bendtner can help make up for the loss of Robin van Persie for much of the rest of the season.
- Hull 1-Man Utd 3. What an awful game. After watching Chelsea play just ok and fail to win at Bermingham, I was worried that Man Utd would come out and crush Hull and gain the upper hand in the title race. Not exactly. What an awful game-it was hard to see why Wayne Rooney could be considered one of Europe's best, and why Ryan Giggs was in the running for player of the year less than 6 months ago. Hull look doomed-the loss of Jimmy Bullard until February is a blow for sure, but they look a worse team than West Ham and even Portsmouth based on what I saw on December 26th. Their comeback from 2-0 down away to Bolton did for Gary Megson-and rightly so I would say-but they are not a team I want to see staying in the Premier League.
- Wolves 0-3 Man City. The Roberto Mancini era has started well at Man City, but when the opposition is as toothless as Stoke and then Wolves, it's nothing that should excite the blue half of Manchester too much. Wolves play a nice enough brand of football-but never looked like scoring a goal in this game-Kevin Doyle is good worker and runs the channels tirelessly, but he never looks like regaining the scoring form of his Reading days. Chris Iwelumo? Well, he's not bad as a target man, but this suggests that he won't score many in the Premier League. As for City, they remain indebted to Shay Given for keeping them in may games and to Craig Bellamy for always giving 100%. Robinho looks desperately out of shape and disinterested-it will be interesting to see whether Mancini can succeed in getting him in shape and contributing like a player that cost Man City £25 million. Stories linking him with Bercelona don't hold any water with me-isn't this the same club that cut loose another Brazilian malcontent (Ronaldinho) at the start of the Guardiola era? It's hard to believe they would risk disrupting the best team in Europe with an overweight, out of form ex-Real Madrid player.
- Aston Villa 0-1 Liverpool. 2 of the top 6 sides in the Premier League? Jesus wept. There are very few strikers who have the finishing touch of Fernando Torres-he was the only difference between what looked like 2 very average teams.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
