Relegation Battle Intensifies

Picture from Eurosport.com

Good morning!

A relegation match between Sunderland and Stoke City failed to titillate my senses last night, I will admit, but the result which it produced, a 1-1 scoreline, makes for a sensational last few matches to the season. On the proviso that Wigan Athletic win their game in hand tonight against Swansea City at the DW Stadium, there will be a five-point gap from what would be Newcastle United in 18th, to Swansea City in 9th. It’s remarkable that more than half of the Premier League is in contention for relegation.

The saving grace for Newcastle, is that they have to play already-relegated QPR at Loftus Road in their next match. That’s not to say playing QPR is an easy task; they gave a very good account of themselves against Arsenal at the weekend, but if Newcastle can’t scrape a victory there, then it’s difficult to argue that they don’t deserve to go down. Newcastle’s last match of the season is against Arsenal and although a trip to St James’ Park is never easy for the Gunners, they’ve picked up the second-most points in the Premier League so far this season, just behind Manchester United. Arsenal are not a team you want to face on the last day of the season when you need three points yourself.

All of this is rhetoric however, as Wigan have to beat Swansea City this evening to make everybody in the Premier League sweat their socks off. Roberto Martinez’s side is the most experienced team in the history of the Premier League when it comes to surviving relegation battles. That experience will prove vital in their next three fixtures in the league, against Swansea tonight, Arsenal next Tuesday and Aston Villa on the final day of the season. For me, Wigan absolutely must win tonight, as, I don’t fancy them getting much, if anything at all, from their last two fixtures.

That FA Cup Final, as great an achievement as it is for Wigan, may prove to be more trouble than it’s worth. A leg-sapping match at Wembley against a top team such as Manchester City, followed by a trip to the Emirates three days later to play another team which likes to make the opposing team run about will be brutal on Wigan. Win or lose on Saturday, Wigan will lose the match that really matters to them three days later at the Emirates Stadium. Then, it’s how they recover for the match against Aston Villa just four days after that. It’s a very tough schedule for Wigan to deal with and how they fare this evening against Swansea will decide their season, in my opinion. Lose, and I think it could be all over.

Let’s see what tonight brings…

Follow @j4goalpostsblog

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Craig in England, Newcastle United, Premiership, Wigan Athletic Leave a comment

Liverpool 2-2 Chelsea / Nothing Eventful Happened Here…

You’ve gotta love football. It’s the only sport in the world where one week you’re saying, “WOAH!! Dude!! That guy punched a horse!!!” One week later you’re saying this: “WOAH!! Dude!! That guy bit that other guy on the arm!!”

Before we inevitably come back to the biting incident, I’ll have to pay homage to a game of football which was largely forgettable. The first half was scrappy, neither team dominated in the truest meaning of the term. Oscar popped Chelsea ahead from a corner, losing Jamie Carragher at the near post and heading past Pepe Reina. For their 1-0 lead however, Chelsea had hardly ripped up any trees in open play and Liverpool themselves were poor going forward. My own desperation to get this paragraph finished so I never have to mention the first half ever again, pays testament to how average a standard the first half was played at.

After the break, Liverpool emerged a different beast, spurred on by the substitution of Daniel Sturridge for Phillipe Coutinho. Within two minutes, Sturridge had slipped Steven Gerrard through one on one with Petr Cech, only for Gerrard to be denied by the outstretched leg of Cech. Moments later, Sturridge hammered the post with a shot from all of 25 yards. That period of play seriously galvanised Anfield and there was a buzz growing that Liverpool were about to score.

Liverpool supporters didn’t have to wait long before they got what they expected. Stewart Downing flicked a pass to Luis Suarez, who sent the ball on first time to Sturridge in the penalty area and the ex-Chelsea forward side-footed home with his left foot. It was a wonderful goal and the pass from Suarez to set up Sturridge was world class. To release a first time pass with that kind of precision is excellent and showcases one of the many reasons that Suarez is up for nomination in the PFA Player of the Year awards.

It isn’t a Liverpool match without them making lives difficult for themselves. Suarez handled the ball inside his own area, Kevin Friend pointed to the spot and Eden Hazard stepped up, ignored taunts from Liverpool players and sent Reina the wrong way to give Chelsea the lead, just five minutes after Liverpool had equalised.

I can’t recall Chelsea creating any great chances after that penalty, as Liverpool ramped up the pressure for an equaliser. Jonjo Shelvey was guilty of missing an outstanding chance to equalise and was then bore the brunt of my anger when he fired over the bar from 25 yards with two minutes left.

Shooting from range with just a matter of minutes remaining, when you need to score a goal, is one of my biggest grievances in football. It is far more sensible to keep the ball moving around the penalty area when a goal is needed late on. The odds of scoring from range are obviously slimmer than they are from scoring inside the area. Top players don’t shoot from long range in such a circumstance. Jonjo Shelvey is not a top player and Liverpool need a lot better than the likes of him coming from the bench to salvage points. Expect him to be sold in the summer.

Like it isn’t a Liverpool match without them making their own life difficult, it’s also custom for Liverpool to produce a grandstand finish. It was the final attack of the match and the ball was with Steven Gerrard on the right wing. Gerrard picked his head up, spotted Suarez and threw a last, desperate long ball his way. Suarez managed to get his head on the ball and despite Petr Cech getting something on the Uruguayan’s effort, he couldn’t prevent the ball rippling the back of the net.

Not long after, the final whistle blew, the match ended 2-2 and everybody bar Branislav Ivanovic, who had bite marks on his arm went home happy.

So, now to the main premise of the article and why you’re all here: Luis Suarez’s bite on Branislav Ivanovic.

For me, it’s all very straight forward. Suarez has bit Ivanovic and there can be no excuses for that. You just don’t bite people, regardless of what sport you’re playing. It’s not arm to mouth, (could you imagine Suarez using that as an excuse?) there’s just no excuses for biting another person. Punishment is required. The FA will take retrospective action on the incident and Suarez should receive the same 7-match ban he received in Holland for doing the same thing to Otman Bakkal.

Internally, Liverpool should punish Suarez with a heavy fine for dragging the club through negative press (again) and as I write this, it’s half past eight on Sunday evening and if Liverpool haven’t released a club statement issuing an apology to Branislav Ivanovic by half nine, or at the latest, 1 o’clock Monday afternoon, then I’ll be very surprised. Don’t make any smoke and mirrors out of this, for what needs to happen is quite simple; Liverpool and The FA need to punish Suarez.

As for Liverpool selling Suarez, I don’t think it’s even something that needs discussing. Post-punishment, why would Liverpool need to sell Suarez? Manchester United stood by Eric Cantona after he kung-fu kicked a Crystal Palace supporter, so why should Liverpool sell a world class player for a bite? Giving away Luis Suarez because of something punishable by an internal fine is a drastic over-reaction.

Right, that’s all from me this morning.

See you tomorrow!

Posted on April 22, 2013 by Craig in Chelsea, England, Liverpool, Premiership Leave a comment

West Ham 2-2 Manchester United / Using My WordPress App AGAIN!

Good morning!

Right, before I get into the meat of this post, I’m starting with a rant. Those regular readers amongst you, will know of the horrific problems I’ve had with my laptop over the past month or so. It’s been sent away three times (this being the third) and both times we’ve received the laptop back from being “repaired”, it has broken down, Owen Hargreaves style.

In addition to the money I pay each month for this insurance cover, KnowHow will provide a loan laptop for people who need to do work. The only problem is, the latest laptop they’ve sent me on loan, can’t function the Internet.

So, here I am, back to blogging on my phone till next Wednesday. If anybody is ever tempted to use KnowHow to cover their laptop or whatever, then don’t do it. They’re absolutely useless.

I can’t let it affect me, even though it blatantly has done.

To the football…

Manchester United continued their stumble towards the finish line with a 2-2 draw away to West Ham United. For a while now, United haven’t been playing to their peak. Maybe a case of nerves kicking in after what happened last season?

Personally, I can’t see lightning striking twice. Manchester United hold such a lead over Manchester City, at such a late stage of the season, that a collapse is unthinkable. It’s just a matter of time before Sir Alex Ferguson is lifting a league title for the 20th time.

West Ham on the other hand, have plenty to play for themselves. Still needing mathematical assurance that they can’t be relegated, any point is precious and although they look highly unlikely to be relegated, even if it is still mathematically possible, every point is precious for West Ham.

Ricardo Vaz Te gave West Ham the lead in the 16th minute, scoring with a diving header, following a flick from Andy Carroll.

Shinji Kagawa then became architect as he skipped through West Ham’s defence, looking furthermore like the star everybody was fortunate to watch with Borussia Dortmund. The Japanese international’s great work gave Antonio Valence an easy opportunity and the Ecuadorian made no mistake for the equaliser.

Mohammed Diame then rifled in a long range effort past David De Gea, after he skipped away from Wayne Rooney in midfield as if he were made of blancmange.

Robin van Persie equalised for Manchester United in the 77th minute, with a great deal of fortune involved. Kagawa’s shot hit Danny Collins, both posts and fell to van Persie, who turned ball in from a very tight angle.

I haven’t seen it, but reports say the Dutchman was offside for his goal. As I’ve said many times before, the best teams get lucky because they deserve it. Very rarely does a team in no sort of form get a lucky break. Look at QPR against Wigan the other week, conceding a last-gasp penalty to Wigan Athletic’s Shaun Maloney. If QPR were Manchester United, that free-kick would have clipped the wall and been cleared by a defender.

Last night wasn’t a great performance by any stretch of the imagination, but it was vintage Manchester United. They don’t always need to play well, because they know a goal can come at any moment.

In 20 years time, when my kids ask me about Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United, I won’t talk about glittering football (they do do that) or fancy players, (there’s been a lot of them) but their mental fortitude.

Manchester United have the mentality of winners and even though that belief tool a bruising last season, it’s seeing them through the final stages of this season as they close in on a 20th league title under Sir Alex Ferguson.

Right, that’s all from me today. Sorry for the poor quality of this post; it’s incredible difficult to write on the WordPress app, no matter how good it is!

See you tomorrow.

Posted on April 18, 2013 by Craig in England, Manchester United, Premiership, West Ham United Leave a comment

Arsenal 0-0 Everton / Best Goalless Draw Of The Season

Nil-nil scorelines seldom spur on the imagination, but Arsenal’s scoreless draw against Everton was definitely the best we’ve seen this season.

A draw does little for both teams and Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur will be delighted with Arsenal dropping points. Fortunately for Arsenal, Tottenham’s game in hand happens to be against Chelsea, so regardless of the score, Arsenal will benefit in some way. From Everton’s perspective, a point does little for their hopes in finishing inside the top four and qualifying for the Champions Leage. Everton needed a win to bridge the gap between themselves and Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea.

Everton’s pressing of Arsenal forced the game into a rushed, scrappy affair, with both midfields in a big fight for superiority. Arsenal like to gradually impose their game on teams visiting the Emirates Stadium, as shown by the fact that Arsenal have scored the most goals in the Premier League in the second half of matches and concede the least in the second half. They start relatively slowly to other teams, which cost them for a period earlier in the season, and grow stronger. Everton never allowed the Gunners to settle into that rhythm and forced them to rush their play.

Steven Pienaar went close early on for Everton, lifting the ball over the crossbar when meeting a cross with only Wojciech Szczesny to beat. The Arsenal goalkeeper was quick off of his line to thwart Pienaar and did enough to close the gap and prevent the South African scoring. To Szczesny’s credit, it was a confident piece of goalkeeping.

Neither side created much in the second half, but Olivier Giroud popped up with the best chance. Santi Cazorla set Aaron Ramsey free down the right wing, who crossed for the Frenchman. Giroud missed the target from close range when it was really easier to score.

In the second half, Arsenal were much improved and started to impose their game on Everton, dominating possession and creating chances. Again, Giroud was culpable of missing a big chance and was so close to getting on the end of a cross from Chamberlain, who had been released by Cazorla. With a bit more luck, Arsenal may have had taken the lead at some point in the match, but otherwise, Everton were phenomenal in defence. Phil Jagielka and Sylvain Distin were immovable rocks at centre-back.

Maybe both teams restricted themselves offensively out of respect to the quality of each other, but in doing so, played to the detriment of their shared cause. A point does little for either team, but with Tottenham set to meet Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in a few weeks, both teams will be hoping the points are shared.

Personally, my money is on Arsenal and Tottenham to make the top four, ahead of Everton and Chelsea. As a collective group, I feel the North London clubs have “more” than Chelsea, who are unpredictable. Interestingly, Betway have odds which show Arsenal and Chelsea as favourites to finish in the top four, with Liverpool a distant outside bet. For more on that, visit Betway by clicking here.

We have a Champions League qualification battle that is more exciting than the race for the Premier League title. Who’d have thought that?

Follow @J4goalpostsblog

Posted on April 17, 2013 by Craig in Arsenal, England, Everton, Premiership Leave a comment

Andy Carroll Unlikely To Join West Ham Permanently

New financial fair play rules to be implemented next season, could wipe out West Ham United’s hopes of signing loanee, Andy Carroll, on a permanent transfer.

The new financial rules, dictate that each team must not be allowed to make a total loss of more than £105 million over the next three seasons. These rules, it must be pointed out, don’t include club spending on training facilities, stadia development or similar. Wage bills will be limited and thus, Sam Allardyce is sceptical as to whether or not the deal for Carroll will go ahead.

Sam Allardyce had this to say on the BBC sport website:

“Financially you are restricted to be able to do it. So in one fell swoop the financial restrictions mean Andy Carroll can’t sign for us from Liverpool because it’s too expensive, even if he wanted to. I might not be able to afford Andy Carroll, full stop, even if I wanted him, even if the chairmen wanted him, even if we all wanted him – which we do – it will not be allowed to happen.”

“I suppose across the board when you first introduce something new the fair/unfair scenario has to get sorted out somewhere along the line to find out how you have to tweak it to make it better.”

The new financial guidelines are not there to punish clubs, but to help them improve financially. If West Ham, or any team, can’t afford to sign a specific target, then it suggests that they are punching above their weight for Carroll.

Carroll signed for Liverpool from Newcastle United in January of the 2010/11 season for a club record fee of £34 million. On top of that, it’s reported that Carroll earns £80,000 per week and some articles suggest he earns in excess of £100,000, which is far too much for a player of his ability. If Brendan Rodgers really doesn’t want Andy Carroll – which he doesn’t – then the deal would have to be structured largely out of add-ons and installments for West Ham to operate within the structure of the new rules. If Carroll really is keen on a permanent transfer to West Ham, then he would have to take a drastic pay-cut from his Liverpool wages.

As I said, the new financial rules being implemented are not a prison sentence for football clubs, but an assistance against paying over the odds and hurting yourself financially. If a club can’t afford a player, then it would be a good idea to look down other avenues and see what else is on the market.

Technically, West Ham can do the transfer for Andy Carroll on the premise a compromise is agreed between all parties concerned. If that doesn’t happen, then better value for money can be found in the summer.

Follow @J4goalpostsblog

Posted on April 16, 2013 by Craig in England, Liverpool, Premiership, West Ham United Leave a comment

Arsenal Beat Norwich With Three Controversial Goals

Norwich City felt aggrieved with the manner in which they lost 3-1 against Arsenal at the Emirates on Saturday, with controversy surrounding all three of Arsenal’s late goals.

Michael Turner gave relegation-threatened Norwich the lead in the 55th minute, converting a free-kick taken by Robert Snodgrass, running across his marker and glancing a header past Lukasz Fabianski. This goal hadn’t come about with no controversy to partner it, as the “foul” which won the free-kick was actually Kai Kamara tripping himself up. Jonathan Howson’s late effort aside, Norwich created very little in ways of chances, but were defending resolutely and breaking when they could.

Arsenal struggled to break Norwich down, but could have scored at least three in the first half alone if not for the fragile nature of Gervinho’s composure. Twice with Gervinho running at defenders, with other Arsenal forwards in more favourable positions, the Ivorian failed to release the ball or pick the right pass, squandering some great chances. Santi Cazorla picked out Gervinho with an excellent pass for another chance, but Gervinho’s first touch took him too wide of Mark Bunn, but instead of regaining his composure, Gervinho panicked and lashed a soft shot across the face of goal, with Olivier Giroud arriving on the edge of the area. Simply standing up the ball to wait for Giroud would have paid greater dividends than panicking and shooting.

Gervinho is a very talented player, but a very high maintenance one at that. He’s enjoyed a good run in the Arsenal team, playing well for three matches, but a simple bad pass pricked at his confidence on Saturday and from there on, he deteriorated, unable to locate the form which had graced his feet for the last few matches. Can Arsene Wenger rely on a player whose form is so confidence based? I’m not so sure, and a summer transfer may be best for all involved.

Gervinho’s chances aside, Arsenal hit the bar through Olivier Giroud and when Gervinho did fire in a great cross, nobody in a red shirt was there to attack it.

When Norwich took the lead, there was a sense in the stadium that this might be “another one of those days”, where Arsenal dominate possession, but fail to create chances and score goals.

With time ticking away, Arsenal won a corner, which from the opposite end of the ground, in the upper tier, didn’t look like a corner. I’ve not seen a better angle of that all weekend, but the cross which followed lead to Arsenal’s penalty, with Kamara adjudged to have pulled Giroud’s shirt in the area, bringing him down. To pull a shirt, is to claim an unfair advantage on your opponent and no matter what the guys at Goals on Sunday said, or most other pundits this weekend, it’s a penalty. The follow-up to deciding whether it is a penalty or not, is to question the linesman, who gave the penalty despite being 50 yards away, when the referee was only 10 yards away and didn’t give it. If that’s the case, then all linesmen should be rendered useless, for they shouldn’t be able to give most offside decisions.

If you’re giving fouls for shirt pulling however, then there has to be consistency with those decisions and when Arsenal score their second, Giroud is clearly pulling Sebastian Basson’s shirt as he scores the second from close range, just minutes after Mikel Arteta had converted the penalty. Technically, Giroud has fouled Bassong and it’s a Norwich free-kick.

For Arsenal’s third, Theo Walcott is a few yards away from the linesman in an offside position. There’s no debate over that one, Walcott is just a million miles offside. Great finish by Lukas Podolski, but the ball should never have reached him.

Great fortune bestowed Arsenal on Saturday, whilst Norwich City, scrapping for survival, can consider themselves terribly unlucky. On evidence of what I saw of Norwich though, they have far too much quality and organisation to avoid relegation. There are plenty worse teams than them in the division and with the addition of Ricky van Wolfswinkel in the summer, Norwich can look for a finish higher up in the Premier League next season.

Follow @J4goalpostsblog

Posted on April 15, 2013 by Craig in Arsenal, England, Norwich City, Premiership Leave a comment

Manchester United 1-2 Manchester City

Good morning!

It’s surely just delaying the inevitable, but a wonderful solo goal from Sergio Aguero won the Manchester derby, as the blue half won 2-1 in a tightly contested, tight-as-a-violin-string match.

Manchester City took the lead in the 51st minute through James Milner’s deflected effort. Samir Nasri found himself in possession inside Manchester United’s penalty area, was closed down before he could fire a shot away, so had to turn back out and stab a pass to Milner, who struck his effort with enough power, but a deflection just eluded David De Gea and settled in his bottom right-hand corner. TV replays show that Carlos Tevez, stood in an offside position, blocks the view of De Gea, which technically means that the goal should have been disallowed. For it to have been given, as Gary Neville said in his post-match analysis last night, the linesman has to allow the goal as he can’t judge from his position whether or not Tevez is impeding De Gea’s line of sight and so it falls to the referee to judge the situation. From where Mike Dean is placed, it’s nearly impossible for him to tell. It’s frustrating for Manchester United supporters, because the goal shouldn’t have been given. Again, we’re back at the “technology in football matches” debate again.

Manchester United returned that blow eight minutes later, when Robin van Persie’s free-kick met Phil Jones’ forehead and the ball ricocheted off of Vincent Kompany’s back and went in. Robin van Persie may well be in a dip of form, but his quality of delivery was outstanding for the free-kick. He isn’t scoring, but he’s still providing massive moments for United.

Sergio Aguero restored Manchester City’s lead in the 78th minute and that’s how it stayed. Gael Clichy passed inside to Aguero who had dropped deep, dragged defenders towards him, ran across their line and maintained his balance, strength and composure when he could have gone down for a penalty, to crash a shot past De Gea at his near post. It was a wonderful goal from a player who hasn’t been at his absolute peak this season, but is more than capable of changing any game in the world, at any moment.

Victory for Manchester City only narrows the gap between them and Manchester United to twelve points, but a strong finish to this season is crucial in their preparation for next season and with an FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea looming large, there’s a great chance to progress to a final against one of Wigan Athletic or Millwall.

Would a second place finish and an FA Cup constitute a good season for Manchester City? For me, it isn’t. They spent £50 million on a title winning side in the summer, failed to win a match in the Champions League and currently sit behind Manchester United by 12 points. Not even an FA Cup will cover for what has been an underwhelming season. The target for City, will have been to win another title, improve in the Champions League and maybe bag a domestic trophy. Of those three aims, City are only likely to achieve one. No team should have £50 million spent on it and regress.

Defeat for Manchester United is a kick in the shin, but it won’t – or shouldn’t – have a major impact on their season. United should win the title, but for an incomprehensible collapse.

Before I go, here’s something to think about this morning. Manchester City won the title by goal difference last season and they were described as deserved winners. They were very, very good last season, don’t get me wrong, but it was absolutely undisputed how good City were and they only won on goal difference. Manchester United however, are 12 points clear of a side which has barely changed its personnel from last season from winning the league, but are described as a fairly average team. Strange, huh?

In a nutshell…

… Aguero scored an amazing goal. It probably won’t matter in the grand scheme of things.

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Craig in England, Manchester City, Manchester United, Premiership Leave a comment

Champions League Race Hots Up

Good morning!

The shoot-out for the Champions League places appears to have been refined to three teams chasing third and fourth, after Everton lost ground in their bid for Champions League football, falling four points behind fifth placed Arsenal. Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur lead Arsenal by two points, with Chelsea beating Tottenham on go difference. Arsenal have a game in hand on Everton.

Arsenal

Arsenal, with five wins from their last six Premier League matches, travelled to the Hawthorns to play West Bromwich Albion. Being the team in pursuit of Chelsea and Tottenham, Arséne Wenger declared that the Gunners must win all of their remaining matches to qualify for the Champions League. The rest, will take care of itself.

That elusive mistress, “communication”, which has so often been a missing commodity for Arsenal, is apparently much improved according to the players and greater emphasis has been placed on Arsenal’s structure. I remember reading, “Making Of A Modern Superclub” on Arsenal and it says how Wenger doesn’t like too much talking amongst his players, so as to keep an element of unpredictability to his team. That works in theory, but can cause commotion amongst the team when having to defend.

A change in attitude appears to have done Arsenal the world of good. They looked as compact as they did earlier this season, when greater importance was placed on defence. Even when Per Mertesacker was sent off for a last-man offence, Arsenal still managed to hold West Brom out, despite conceding a penalty.

Arsenal’s two goals in the victory over West Brom, came courtesy of Tomas Rosicky’s first brace in the Premier League for Arsenal. The Czech Republic international was very impressive and Arsenal’s most decisive player on the day. With Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere and Lukas Podolski all missing, it was important somebody else could step up for Arsenal and Rosicky proved to be that man.

Rosicky’s form was a factor in Arsenal finishing third last season and they look good for managing it again.

Chelsea

Chelsea are somewhat of a loose cannon this season. They have the better squad when compared to Arsenal and Tottenham, but they have a Rafael Benitez in charge, a tempestuous atmosphere at Stamford Bridge, which often intimidates their own side and they have a horrible knack of self-imploding.

Yesterday looked to be one of those occasions when Chelsea were on the cusp of blowing themselves up. Cesar Azpilicueta netted an own-goal just before the end of the first half and it looked to be “one of those days” for Chelsea. If not for two deflected goals, it would have been a loss, but then again, if my sister were male, she’d be my brother. You can’t focus on what Chelsea could have done, but what happened, and yesterday they got three points. They have the right players, but a degree of consistency has been missing.

Simply put, if Chelsea hit form, they won’t be stopped. To do that however, they need perfect harmony in the dressing room and they don’t think that’s been there all season.

Tottenham Hotspur

Despite being ahead of Arsenal by two points, having played a game more, it’s Tottenham Hotspur who are my outside bet for qualification to the Champions League.

Missing from their starting line-up against Everton, were Jermaine Defoe, Aaron Lennon, Gareth Bale, Sandro and Younes Kaboul. Worryingly, I think you could have added Kaboul, Defoe and Lennon to Tottenham’s starting eleven yesterday and it would have barely mattered. All three players are good, but they won’t put Spurs on another level where they are threatening Arsenal or Chelsea in the run-in to the end of the season. They’ve run them close, but watching them play Everton yesterday, I could only think, “what if they had one-two more experienced, top quality players to rely on when others are out?”

If Tottenham can keep their best players, shift players surplus to requirements and sign two players of a high calibre, then they can certainly expect more, but still not yet.

Posted on April 8, 2013 by Craig in Arsenal, Chelsea, England, Everton, Premiership, Tottenham Hotspur Leave a comment

What Makes A World Class Player?

Good morning.

“He should be put up there with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Gareth Bale is a world class player, he’s definitely amongst them.”

It’s very easy to get carried away with praise in football, almost as easy as it is to hand out criticism. After a few excellent performances, winning matches almost on his own for Tottenham Hotspur, scoring late winning goals against Newcastle United, West Bromwich Albion and West Ham United, Bale is deserving of high praise. But as high as “world class” praise, putting the Welshman in the same bracket as one of the most extraordinary players the game has ever seen? Maybe we’re going too far. Read more

Posted on February 27, 2013 by Craig in England, Premiership, Tottenham Hotspur Leave a comment

Gareth Bale Rescues Tottenham At The Death

I can’t lie. I’m not very good at it and it’s the absolute truth when I say that I’m gutted Tottenham Hotspur beat West Ham United last night, with a last minute wonder-strike from Gareth Bale. As an Arsenal supporter, it was crushing to hear Bale had scored a late winner (I was out planning a holiday with friends).

The face for fourth is nearly as exciting as the “battle” between Manchester United and Manchester City for the title. There’s the certainty that one or the other will win the league and it looks highly likely United will win the league with a good chunk of matches still left to play. Fourth place however, and a spot in the Champions League, is well up for grabs and courtesy of Bale’s brace, Tottenham have moved into third, two points ahead of Chelsea and four clear of Arsenal, with the Gunners set to travel to White Hart Lane on Sunday. Read more

Posted on February 26, 2013 by Craig in Arsenal, Chelsea, England, Premiership, Tottenham Hotspur Leave a comment

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Next »