After some careful thought and consideration, M & D will be back soon to bring you our opinions on the events that transpire in the footballing world, particularly in the Barclays Premier League. Hang on to your tailcoats, we’ll be back shortly.
-by M
a handsome Irish singer by the name of Ronan Keating once sang, “life is a rollercoaster, just gotta ride it.” and that is the fate of Newcastle fans around the world. Relegated as recently as 2009, the Magpies now suddenly find themselves in the top 4 spots of the Premier League with the season almost half way through. They have been impressive thus far against somewhat lesser opposition and they now face a daunting run of matches against the likes of Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea.
Yet, such is the dramatic ups and downs in the recent history of the Magpies that one can forgive the optimism currently surrounding the Tyneside club. Chris Hughton, the man who led Newcastle to promotion from the Championship was sacked barely a year ago and was replaced by Alan Pardew, a decision many deemed to be foolish. However, under Pardew’s charge, Newcastle has transformed themselves over the year through astute acquisitions and a change in footballing and man management philosophy and are now one of the exciting teams to watch this season.
The bigwigs and players who the manager felt could be “bigger than the team” were shipped off to other clubs who were willing to accommodate their egos for their footballing talents (Barton, Nolan, Enrique) while industrious (& mostly French) players with a point to prove were recruited and drilled to play for the collective, rather than for the individual.
Out of all of Pardew’s recent purchases, the one that stands out has to be Yohan Cabaye. the French international has stood out in the black and white of Newcastle this season and has been the conductor of the flowing symphony that is Newcastle’s new style of possession football. His partnership with hardman, Chieck Tiote is one of the key reasons for Newcastle’s outstanding run of results this season.
Undoubtedly, most of the credit has to be attributed to the man many deemed to be unfit for the job. Afterall, here was a man who had a poor reputation in the Premier League after contributing to West Ham’s worst run of results in their history in 2007. Also, despite his selfish antics, some credit has to be given to owner Mike Ashley. As much as Newcastle fans love to hate him, he has shown his support for the club through good times and bad times and despite his poor taste and shameless advertisement of his company (Sports Direct Arena < St. James Park), Ashley has brought stability to a team that was on the brink of sinking into oblivion after being relegated.
The next few weeks will shape Newcastle’s current season and seasons to come. Many may not give Newcastle a chance against the likes of City, United and Chelsea, but if they continue to play the way they have been playing all season, I would not be surprised if they could steal a win or two against the top 3 teams in England at the moment.
More importantly, it is crucial that Pardew endeavours in the philosophy he has inculcated in the club and keep hold of key personnel such as Tiote and Cabaye. The likes of United and City are already circling around these players but if Pardew can keep these lynchpins in his team, he could be the one to awake one of football’s sleeping giants.
-by M
1. What an absolutely brilliant game to watch if you’re a neutral. Alright, the defending wasn’t great from both sides but who can argue against 90 minutes of end-to-end action with 8 goals? Certainly not me. At the end, its probably the Chelsea fans who feel frustrated with what was undoubtedly the most entertaining 90 minutes of football the Premier League has served up this season.
2. Arsenal are ticking on nicely now aren’t they? A couple of scrappy wins in the bag and now a 3-5 win to remember against the neighbours. The crisis seems to have been averted and obviously they still have a lot of work to do to challenge for the title (such as learning how to defend), Wenger must be breathing a whole lot easier after Saturday’s result
3. Speaking of defending, it was an absolute horror show by both sets of defenders. As mentioned previously, it was entertaining stuff but both Andre Villas-Boas and Arsene Wenger must surely do something about their defenders. Andre Santos and Johan Djourou are clearly not up to standard. Djourou is a poor excuse for a defender and Santos was abysmal in the first half although his goal in the second half did boost his confidence.
4. Per Mertesacker is not and never will be the answer to Arsenal’s defensive problems. Culpable for Chelsea’s first and second goals, he made Koscielny look class. Not that many Arsenal fans will remember though given the scoreline.
5. How important is Van Persie to this Arsenal side? The man is sheer class.
6. Also, how good was Ramsey? The Welsh captain has stepped up to the plate in Wilshere’s absence and Fabregas’ and Nasri’s departure and was brilliant in midfield alongside Song and Arteta. His carefully threaded through pass to Gervinho for Arsenal’s first equalizer was an absolute gem. A midfield of Ramsey, Wilshere and Song should serve Arsenal well for years to come.
7. Worryingly for Chelsea fans, who have been so accustomed to see their side being rock solid in defence, it is that particular aspect of their game that requires the most work now. Gone were the days of scrapping 1-0 or 2-0 wins under Mourinho. While it is undoubtedly entertaining from a neutral perspective, Chelsea fans must be hoping that AVB does something about the situation quick. Terry is no longer the man mountain he once was and Cech is a poor shadow of his former self.
8. Speaking of Cech, he was at fault for at least 2 of Arsenal’s goals. For a goalkeeper of his calibre, he should not be beaten at his near post twice (or three times if you consider Van Persie’s 3rd goal). It might seem harsh but AVB might do well to purchase a goalkeeper in the coming January window either as competition for Cech or even to replace the Czech international.
9. In a game with high stakes and bragging rights, Torres has once again failed to deliver. Granted, he has had a spell on the sidelines but nothing he tried pulled off. Abramovich must be wondering if Liverpool delivered Torres’ twin brother in January instead of the real Torres.
10. It may be harsh but from the 10-15 minutes of what I’ve seen so far, Romelu Lukaku is NOT Didier Drogba V2.0.
-by M
it has taken an utter humiliation to Manchester United to revive this dying site. As United fans wake up today hoping it was all just a very bad dream, it is still early days yet for the title to be decided. City have an outstanding goal difference and are now 5 points clear at the top but have yet to play the teams around them apart from United. A clearer picture will emerge after the busy weeks of Christmas and New Year, but yesterday belonged to the blue side of Manchester.
There is no doubt that the better team won on the day. City went to Old Trafford with a game plan and executed it to perfection in the first half. United had the bulk of possession but did nothing productive with it. Nani and Young were toothless on the wings and the workhorse midfield of Anderson and Fletcher were unable to break down a resolute defensive wall of Toure, Barry, Lescott and Kompany.
After Evans was sent off, the result did not look in doubt but for a brief period of five minutes after Fletcher miraculously emerged from the shadows of the game to plant the ball in the back of the net to make it 3-1. After that, it was just a horror movie for United fans directed and starred by David Silva.
United fans may find the scoreline harsh but in reality, 6-1 was probably reflective of the gulf in class and ability on the day. While United have classy wingers in the form of Young and Nani, a midfield of Anderson and Fletcher will never match up to City’s midfield which is run by the little Spaniard, Silva. Unless Tom Cleverley is the Chosen One, United will do well to add one or two central midfielders into their team come January.
Defensively, Ferguson will have to take a good hard look at his long-serving players. But for a moment of idiocy, Evans was the better defender in the first half with Ferdinand looking decidedly nervous with Aguero keeping him occupied. Stand-in captain, Patrice Evra, had an absolute shocker and as most United fans will tell you, he has been abysmal for a while already. 4 out of 6 of City’s goals came down the left flank of United. For Silva’s goal, Welbeck ended up being where Evra should have been.
Yesterday was in all probability a freak result. However, it is a strong statement of intent by Manchester City that should be heeded by all in the footballing community. Contrary to popular belief, it is looking increasingly likely that money can indeed buy success. Manchester will be painted blue for now. But count on the Red Devils to reclaim the bragging rights at the City of Manchester.
-by M
– What a game it was. It was not a technically superior game with Ramires’ and Torres’ miss (more on those later) as well as Rooney’s fluffed up penalty. But this game had everything a neutral could ask for. Controversial goals, Nani’s wonder strike from range, feisty tackles, penalties. The only thing missing was probably a red card but that would have marred the game wouldn’t it?
– Chris Smalling was definitely offside. But Chelsea should have done so much better defensively. Young’s ball was superb and even if Smalling was not there to head it in, he had Jonny Evans behind him to tap it home for United’s opening goal.
– How good was Fletcher on his first Premier League in months? His facial hair and dynamism in midfield had D squealing like a little girl (Fletcher is his favourite United player) and it is always nice to see a player come back and perform well after a couple of months out. He was tidy in midfield, keeping the United engine ticking. And thankfully, he did. Anderson had a mediocre game by his recent performances and would be happy that it was Fletcher and not Carrick partnering him in midfield.
– How did Ramires not equalize for Chelsea only he would know. While some questioned Torres’ confidence in not taking the shot when he could, I felt he did the right thing by squaring the ball to Ramires who really should have buried it. No ifs or buts. De Gea did well to scramble across but really, Chelsea should have been on level terms.
– Take a bow, Nani. That was a goal worthy of winning any game. A player not short on confidence, he was almost untouchable after that wonder goal. As D said, “That is how you hit a ball.”
– I feel a little sorry for Torres. After his goal, you could tell his confidence was growing. He was an absolute nuisance to the United backline and his finish was sublime, dinking the ball over De Gea. But all that will be forgotten with THAT miss. He did everything right but I’m sorry, he should have finished it. I could have put it in the back of the net. Its cruel for him especially after scoring a good goal and you could tell he was regaining his confidence. That miss will crush anybody, let alone a player desperately short on confidence and luck.
– 12 months ago, Rooney would have been absolutely livid with himself if he scuffed that penalty ala Terry in Moscow. Yet, the man managed a wry smile and got on with his game thereafter. If Torres is a man short of confidence, Rooney is clearly full of it at the moment. Its almost as if he goes into every game knowing he will score. That is a scary thought for any non-United fan.
– Did anyone else see Evans’ rage Carrick in the second half? Evans passed the ball to Carrick, who had no opponent within 10 yards of him, but proceeds to make a back pass to De Gea. Evans couldn’t believe it. Neither could I. Its almost as if Carrick doesn’t want the ball at times and that is why he should not be anywhere near the United first XI.
– Despite the result, Chelsea performed well. The only difference was the quality/confidence of the strikers in both teams. Had Chelsea had an in-form Torres or Sturridge, United might not have been victorious. The numbers state it all. Chelsea had 22 shots on goal against United’s 14. De Gea made 7 saves to Cech’s 3.
– Juan Mata is the key to Chelsea’s success this season. The little Spaniard has a similar style to David Silva and clearly, he was pulling the strings for Chelsea last night. Lampard was taken off at half time. Is it the beginning of the end for Fat Frank?
– Phil Jones is an absolute beast. While he was caught ball watching for Torres’ goal, he was once again, outstanding. Imperious in defence and equally brilliant going forward, United’s 3rd goal was a result of his willingness to step forward from defence with the ball. Young and De Gea have been pretty solid so far for United but for me, Jones has surpassed expectations with his performances in a United shirt. I would not be surprised if he won Young Player of the Year if he keeps this up for the remainder of the season.
-by D
Football is a curious game isn’t it. In the result-orientated world of football and to a lesser extent, life, it’s not about the number of chances that one creates or the manner in which the opportunity is born, it is about whether we make those chances count. United, Spurs and Blackburn did whilst Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and Fernando Torres did not.
-by M
Deadline days are always hectic and full of drama. Its the day where months of speculation are finally put to an end. Its the day where fans become realistically optimistic about their team’s prospects for the next 9 months, when new players are snapped up at either bargains or hugely-inflated prices. Last season we saw Redknapp make arguably the buy of the season in the form of Rafael Van der Vaart for 8 million pounds. What drama unfolded this season? While this season was considerably mellow considering the madness that took place the last few seasons, we have compiled a list of what we feel are the top 10 transfer-deadline deals of 2011/12.
Craig Bellamy (Manchester City —-> Liverpool)
Bellamy, much like Barton, is one who polarizes opinions. Its either you love him, or you hate him. And Liverpool fans do love him. While he’s not the guy with the best temperament or PR skills, his pace and ability is apparent to all and Liverpool fans will not forget the night he scored against Barcelona and celebrated with a golf club swing in mockery of his bust up with ex-colleague John Arne Riise. Frozen out at City, there were rumours that he wanted to go back to his native Wales to play for Cardiff. However, when Liverpool came knocking, there was no way Bellamy would have settled for any other club. The question now is, with such a mobile attack in the form of Suarez, Kuyt and Bellamy, where will Carroll fit in amongst all of this?
Mikel Arteta (Everton —-> Arsenal)
It wasn’t a good day for Everton fans as they lost Jermaine Beckford to Leicester (see below) and talismanic midfielder Arteta to Arsenal, leaving them with a substantially thin squad. For Arsenal, who were the most active team yesterday, this will go some way to soften the blow of Fabregas’ departure. While Arteta is not quite as good as Cesc Fabregas, he brings the same kind of awareness and vision to the team. We’ve already seen Nasri and Young move up a higher level after moving to a stronger team, could Arteta prove to be the next revelation this season? Or will he be the 12million pound failure that Wenger bought out of desperation? Arsenal fans will certainly hope he will be the former.
Owen Hargreaves (Free Agent —-> Manchester City)
You’ve absolutely no idea how much man love I have for Hargreaves and his curly hair. As a United fan, it sickens me to see one of England’s best midfielders (on his day and injury-free) leave our club and join City. Yet, this is an important transfer for both club and player. By signing Hargreaves, they now have substantial cover in the defensive-midfield role occupied by Barry and De Jong. With De Jong’s propensity to get cautioned in almost every game and Barry, being Barry, to be able to call upon Hargreaves as backup is a huge boost. As for Hargreaves, a player of his calibre should be playing for a team playing European football. City is undoubtedly a team who will be challenging on all fronts this season and he will be able to get several games under his belt to aid his fitness. For all you know, he may be pushing for a first-team place this time next season. Of course, the key is his fitness. If he is as fit as he claims to be, he will be an absolute monster in midfield for them. If not, he might just fade away like a certain Michael Johnson (remember him?).
Raul Meireles (Liverpool —-> Chelsea)
This was one I that struck me out of the blue despite the fact that he was no longer first choice in midfield for Liverpool after the summer arrivals of Downing, Henderson and Adam. Meireles had a fantastic second half of the season for Liverpool last year and scored against Chelsea. In Meireles, Chelsea have bought a proven midfielder who can play alongside Lampard in midfield, with Ramires as the holding midfielder. While he might not be as good as Ballack or Deco, he brings much-needed creativity to a Chelsea side that is evidently in need of some.
Joe Cole (Liverpool —-> Lille)
We all expected Joe Cole to leave Liverpool in this transfer window but it is his destination that has surprised many. Most expected the Englishman to leave Liverpool for a mid-table BPL team like West Bromwich or Aston Villa, however he has signed for French champions, Lille on a season-long loan. The absolute kicker: He’s the only Liverpool player who will be playing in the Champions League this season.
Diego Forlan (Atletico Madrid —-> Inter Milan)
With Samuel Eto’o leaving the club to play football where money grows on trees (thats the only reason he’s being paid 300,000 pounds per week), Inter have swooped for Uruguayan striker Diego Forlan, who has consistently been within the top few goalscorers in La Liga. With no disrespect to Atletico, Forlan can now move on to greater things and rightfully challenge for European honours, considering his ability. It will also be interesting to see how Forlan adapts to Serie A, having not played there before.
Scott Parker (West Ham —->Tottenham Hotspur)
Scotty Parker must have a penchant for London clubs, having spent a large portion of his career with Charlton, Chelsea, West Ham and now, Tottenham. For Spurs, the arrival of Parker brings much needed steel into a fragile midfield spine. With Palacios shipped off to Stoke and Sandro the only defensive midfielder in the team, Parker brings quality into the squad and will probably walk straight into the starting XI, such is the man’s quality and Spurs’ lack of in the centre of the park. A midfield trio of Parker, Modric and Van der Vaart is good enough to mix with the best of English football.
Bryan Ruiz (FC Twente —-> Fulham)
We here at FP will be the first to put our hands up and acknowledge that we have no idea who this fella is. But looking at Fulham’s situation, a striker is exactly what Martin Jol needs. 1 goal in 3 games in which they have won the square root of bugger all is not good enough for Fulham’s standards. Bryan Ruiz’s 6 goals in the 2011 Gold Cup suggests he is capable of delivering the goods and he was part of McClaren’s title-winning FC Twente side, starting 20 times and scoring 7 goals. Fulham fans will be hoping he will improve on that record.
Jermaine Beckford (Everton —-> Leicester City)
A man fast-tracked into the Premier League, moving from Leeds United to Everton last season. He has now moved back down to the Championship level to join Leicester City to aid them in their bid for promotion. Quite why Everton were willing to let Beckford go is something only Moyes knows. A squad already ravaged by injuries and plagued with injury-prone strikers, Beckford would have played a big part in the current campaign. He has already shown he has quality to cut it at the very top, with the strike against Bolton and his solitary effort against Chelsea last season stand out goals for him(see here and here). If he is capable of reproducing such quality on a regular basis, Leicester City may be playing with the big boys come August 2012.
-by M with help from D
As Howard Webb blew his whistle to signal the end of the game, there were no wild scenes of celebration by Manchester United players. Despite beating arch-rivals Arsenal by a record scoreline of 8-2.
It was almost as if the dire situation Arsenal F.C are currently in dampened the celebratory mood amongst the players. Somber handshakes were interchanged and consolatory pats on the back of Arsenal players were dished out by the United players. One wonders what kind words Wayne Rooney offered to Wojciech Szczensy then.
The bigger question however, still persists- how does Arsene Wenger lift his team up from such a terrible, morale-sucking defeat? It was not as if Arsenal were expected to come away with a result against a United side who were so rampant against Tottenham last weekend.
Devastated by injuries and suspensions to key players, coming away from Old Trafford with a point would still have been realistic after a confidence-boosting mid-week win over Udinese that secured the North London’s side entry to the Champions League group stages.
However, even the most pessimistic Arsenal fans would not have been able to imagine the kind of punishment United were about to dish out on their side. Rihanna’s “S&M” comes to mind for Arsenal fans looking for a song to accompany the repeat telecast.
The gulf in class was encapsulated by the polarizing benches both teams set out. United’s bench oozed of quality and experience. Being able to call upon a substitutes such as Dimitar Berbatov, Rio Ferdinand, Park Ji Sung, Fabio, Javier Hernandez and Anders Lindegaard was simply frightening.
On the opposite end, Arsenal’s bench of Lukasz Fabianski, Marouane Chamakh, Henri Lansbry, Gilles Sunu, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ignasi Miquel and Oguzhan Ozyajup was frightening as well; for the Arsenal fan that is.
And as the match began, the gulf in class became a chasm.
The tone of the match was set in the first 10-15 minutes as United were clearly the dominant force in the game. Despite being outnumbered in the engine room, the energetic duo of Cleverley and Anderson completely outran the patched-up midfield trio of Aaron Ramsey, Tomas Rosicky and Francis Coquelin.
After Welbeck nodded in the opening goal after Arsenal’s backline failed to clear their lines quick enough, Arsenal fans knew that they were in for a long night.
Having said that, Arsenal had their chances. After Walcott was felled in the box by Jonny Evans, Van Persie had the chance to level the scoreline only for his dreadful penalty to be saved by David De Gea. Had the Dutchman levelled the proceedings then, the game may not have slipped away as drastically as it did.
And if you don’t take your chances at Old Trafford, the Red Devils will punish you. The irrepressible Ashley Young trotted up the pitch soon after and unleashed a screamer from 20 yards out that bent past Szczesny and into the top left hand corner.
From then on, the flood gates were well and truly opened. Rooney made it 3-0 with a delightful freekick in to the top corner before Walcott somehow managed to squeeze a shot through De Gea’s legs to make it 3-1 before the break.
The Spanish goalkeeper had a decent game in goal but was once again culpable for conceding Arsenal’s first goal. If there was a chink in United’s armour, De Gea has to be it.
Arsenal threatened United in the first few minutes of the second half, prompting optimistic Arsenal fans to hope for what would have been an amazing comeback. However, Rooney dashed the Gunners’ hopes with another brilliantly executed free kick. Whatever Wenger said in the dressing room at half-time became irrelevant.
In a 6 minute blitz thereafter, Nani produced a cheeky dink over Szczesny to make it 5-1 before Park, who was barely on the pitch for 5 minutes, tucked the ball into the bottom of the net with a left foot finish.
Van Persie’s goal was scant consolation for the Gunners as Carl Jenkinson, who is clearly not ready to play week in week out for Arsenal yet, was sent off for hauling down Hernandez. Rooney sealed his hat-trick from the penalty spot before Young, who must surely be United’s man of the match despite Rooney’s hat-trick, finished the scoring with another sublime curler from the edge of the box.
So where do both teams go from here now?
For Manchester United, the skies, or Barcelona, seem to be the limit. Ruthless, free-flowing and intricate passing football played at a breakneck pace characterizes United’s play while promising youngsters in Welbeck, Cleverly, Jones and Smalling continue to shine.
For Arsenal, the pressure just keeps mounting. Lying 17th in the table with eight senior players out due to injuries and suspensions, a beckoning international week is not what they need as there is as good as a chance as any that key players such as Robin van Persie will return injured.
Furthermore, two wins from the last 14 matches since their Carling Cup meltdown suggest that their slump started way before the season begun.
Having said that, it is still early days and the footballing fratenity’s propensity to celebrate and panic is irrationally high. Time will tell if United’s class of 2011 is the greatest of them all but Wenger may not be able to stay that long to see that.
Arsenal players celebrate after Van Persie's goal.
-by D
Well, because footytube can only tell us so much about a game.
1) Fresh from Samir “i left for the more passionate City fans” Nasri departure and a demoralizing defeat at the hands of Liverpool, Arsenal were in an exceptionally vulnerable state. Surely a testy Champions League qualifier away from home, with 25million pounds worth of TV rights at stake, would be the last game they wanted to play in.
However, they showed a new-found mental resilience in spite of the gloomy times and inexperience within their squad (Frimpong, Ramsey and Jenkinson started the game) . Despite going down to a superb Di Natale header, the Gunners rallied and killed the game off with two well worked goals. Pretty impressive stuff and a fair bit of vindication for Wenger.
2) Wojciech Szczesny( i challenge anyone to get his name right without google) was bloody impressive. The absolutely stunning penalty save aside, the young Poland international was commanding throughout and made critical saves to halt a relentless Udinese side. Perhaps he’s the reason why Wenger did not acquire Shay Given or Mark Schwarzer over the summer.
3) Gervinho, who looks and plays like an odd mix of Adebayor and Drogba( wow imagine if those two hooked up), gave Arsenal some much needed muscle and dynamism up front. Playing primarily as a left winger, the powerful Ivory Coast international was threatening throughout as he made several dangerous forays into the heart of Udinese’s defence. One of those incursions set up a simple tap-in for Robin Van Persie that effectively killed the game off with a precious away goal.
4) It is really all not gloom and doom for Arsenal. Losing two of your star players cannot be good for there seems to be enough quality within their team to halt their dip in form and morale. With less than a week to go to deadline day, Arsenal fans would be having their fingers crossed for a marquee signing in the mould of Eden Hazard or Yann M’Vila to make everything seem brighter.
Having said that, all they need is a better medical team and Scott Parker really.
5) And because we love our Italian football as well, just how good is Antonio Di Natale. The Italian international kept Thomas Vermaelen and Johan Djourou occupied the entire night with his clever darting runs and impressive hold-up play. Standing at a mere 5’7, he rose the highest to plant a fantastic looping header into the top corner to put Udinese back in the tie. The Udinese captain was unlucky not to add to his tally as his well struck penalty was brilliantly saved.
A quick Wikipedia search revealed that the 31-year-old has scored a whooping 112 goals in 228 games during his time and Udinese and in the 2010-2011 season, Di Natale had the best strike rate of any player in Italy, scoring 28 goals in 36 games with a strike rate of 0.78 goals per game. Oh and that’s a strike rate bettered only by Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
6) Away from the glitz and glamour of the Champions League, Liverpool ground out a 3-1 victory over Exeter City. Fielding a strong lineup featuring Luis Suarez, Charlie Adam, Pepe Reina, Raul Meireles and Jordan Henderson, Dalgish’s charges ensured that there would not repeat of last year’s debacle, when Liverpool crashed out in the second-round on penalties at the hands of Northampton FC.
The starting line-up suggested that Liverpool will not take any competition lightly this year, especially given the lack of European football. Dalglish knows that any kind of silverware would generate a huge confidence boost to the club and suddenly, even the Carling Cup has taken on added significance.
7) Can Liverpool win a game without Luis Suarez? The Uruguay international was once again the creative hub of Liverpool’s attacks and caused havoc for the Exeter defence with his trickery and pace. After powering a half-volley from 10 yards out to put Liverpool ahead, the new Anfield cult hero set up Maxi Rodriguez and Andy Carroll to put the game out of sight. As delightful as it is to watch him play, it is a tad worrisome that everything seems to come through him.
8) Which is why Andy Carroll should step up to the plate. While Suarez was credited an assist, Carroll’s goal was very much an individual effort. Surrounded by three players at the edge of the box, the man mountain showed good footwork to shift the ball onto his left foot. Subsequently, the thundering shot, which was hit from a stationary position, rifled into the top corner. Hopefully, for Liverpool and my fantasy team, the goal will give him to confidence to open the floodgates in the league.
9) This was the Liverpool bench a year ago against Northampton.
Hansen, Wisdom, Robinson, Shelvey, Eccleston, Ince, Amoo
Take a look at the Liverpool bench now.
Doni, Enrique, Carroll, Kuyt, Downing, Carragher, Shelvey
And trust me, the starting line-ups are a far cry as well. Funny how a year can change things eh.
10) And as a customary light-hearted/lazy conclusion, the Liverpool away jersey looks pretty good. Jersey of the year perhaps?
Yes, that’s how starved Liverpool fans are for any form of glory.
11) Just 3 more days to game week 3 and Manchester United vs Arsenal. Just keep swimming just keep swimming….
Raul Meireles and Luis Suarez Share a Moment Together After Combining for Liverpool's Second. Photograph: John Sibley/Action Images
-by D
1) Liverpool were disciplined as they held their shape well and cut off Arsenal’s supply from the flanks, thus isolating a frustrated Robin Van Persie. Although Samir Nasri made a few dangerous forays through the middle, Reina was not really tested throughout. It was telling that a moment of ill-discipline cost Arsenal the game.
2) Anyway, if anyone would like to know how M plays football, one does not have to look further than Jose Enrique.
Boasting a similarly muscular physique, the former Newcastle left-back put in an solid display- comfortably dealing with the threat of the swift but woeful Theo Walcott and consistently providing an attacking threat down the left flank. Liverpool’s left-back woes appear to be over.
You’re welcome M
3) Shameless displays of guy love and back scratching aside, Liverpool were admittedly lucky to come away with the win.
Up till Frimpong’s unnecessary challenge, a makeshift Arsenal side matched Liverpool in every department. Whatever they lacked in experience certainly was not evident as Liverpool were restricted to futilely lumping the ball towards the direction of Andy Carroll.
If Van Persie had converted from 6 yards out and Balotelli’s twin did not lunge into Lucas (sounds wrong doesn’t it), Arsenal could have very well won the game. Still, discipline counts and pays off.
4) And if they did, Thomas Vermaelen would have been the man-of-the-match. The Belgium international was bloody immense for the Gunners- snuffing out the much bigger Andy Carroll while guiding his makeshift backline that featured two 19-year-olds making their Barclays Premier League debuts.
Perhaps they biggest compliment one could pay him for his remarkable performance is that he suddenly made Arsenal ballsy. Who would have known.
5) Speaking of ballsy-ness, Emmanuel Frimpong, Carl Jenkinson and Ignasi Miquel have lots of it. In Frimpong’s case, perhaps a bit too much.
Nevertheless the three 19-year-olds acquitted themselves well, putting up solid performances in their virgin Barclays Premier League game ( well frimpong played 30 minutes against Newcastle but let’s just take it as it’s his “first” time for a flowing sentence). Yes, Frimpong was brash. And yes Jenkinson played Suarez onside for the first goal. But we tend to forget how young these players are and their respective displays play testament to their undeniable talent.
Most importantly, they make us feel bad about ourselves. What were you doing at 19?
6) And while we are on the topic of youngsters, Martin Kelly did pretty well didn’t he. Replacing the still slightly raw John Flanagan, Kelly carried on where he left off last season, when a hamstring injury curtailed his impressive run.
He kept Andrei Arshavin and Bacary Sagna quiet throughout while giving Liverpool attacking thrust on the right flank with surging runs. More importantly, he appears to be a better defender than Glen Johnson. The England international right-back should be worried for his spot in both the Liverpool and national team.
7) Which is really a testament to Liverpool’s new-found squad depth. Even without Steven Gerrard, Fabio Aurelio and Glen Johnson, Dalglish was still able to put up a strong starting line-up and send on Raul Meireles and Luis Suarez off the bench, who proceeded to set up both goals.
Juxtaposed with last season when Liverpool could only muster Joe Cole and David Ngog to turn the tide, it’s a far, far cry in terms of quality. A pity that Alberto Aquilani was not given a chance though.
8) It’s very presumptuous and premature but Andy Carroll doesn’t seem to fit in with Dalglish’s pass and move philosophy, which calls for Liverpool to play a high-tempo game with plenty of quick passes and swift movement.
Just like how the more mobile Hernandez and Welbeck are preferred over Berbatov over at Manchester United, Carroll may not be the man for Dalglish’s revolution. However, like I said, it’s very early and as such, I’d love to be proven wrong as the season goes by and Carroll gets fitter.
9) My rage at Carroll stems from his pithy returns for my fantasy football league. No goals and assists and a bloody yellow card in two games for 10million pounds is really costing me. So forgive me if I do sound irrational.
10) Back to the rational stuff. Without Luis Suarez, the Merseyside club appear to lack invention and penetration in the final third. An over-reliance on the Uruguay international to win them games may prove to be an issue.
While Steven Gerrard’s return may ease Liverpool’s dependence on Suarez to clinch matches, big money buys such as Andy Carroll, Stewart Downing and Jordan Henderson must alleviate the burden. A two-man team, as we all know, brings you no where.
11)And it is not all gloom and doom for Arsenal. The Gunners were unlucky to leave the Emirates without a single point as a patched up side matched an expensively assembled Liverpool side blow for blow throughout. If not for Frimpong’s brashness and Aaron Ramsey’s terribly unfortunate own-goal, the result may have gone Arsenal’s way.
If Vermalean, Szczesny, Wilshere, Ramsey, Sagna, Song and Van Persie manage to stay fit while starlets such as Frimpong, Jenkinson and Miquel continue to develop Arsenal still could get something out of this season. It is still early days mind you.
12) Which is why Liverpool fans should not start to hail this game as the second coming. Again. Let’s take it one game at a time guys.
13) Does anyone else miss Linda Pizzutti?
A Footballing Perspective 