bar the result.
‘Arry may be tactically 3rd division a lot of the time but he ain’t half got the sign over the Woolwich scum, along with the scouse bindippers.
Strange situation coming into the NLD as favourites and the expectations that brings with it. Hoping that the side don’t end up playing the way they do, so often, when expected to win and hoping ‘Arry, new Manager of the Month – usually a kiss of death – would get things right from the off.
As soon as the team sheet came out it looked like ‘Arry hadn’t.
With them going with their usual 4-3-3, ‘Arry chose just two in the middle, it looked like a mistake right away to dispense so quickly with Sandro after the big Brazilian looked back to where he left off last season, after his enforced layoff.
It was a mistake a mistake that everyone could see straight away. Well everyone except the one that could do something about it. That first half, if someone who’d just woken after being in a coma for a few years was watching they’d probably swear it was Bolton under Allardyce out there. It was all aimless humps up the park, balls that weren’t even 50/50 but straight giving possession away. Leaving Modric to scramble around for scraps. Did they still think Crouch was out there? Lost count of the number of times the ball bounced over the head of a leaping Adebayor.
Alongside him lost in the middle was another over-hyped performance from the man with the Ed Balls/Yvette Cooper haircut. Funny seeing the highlights
package a certain show – that shall be named and shamed as Motd2 – broadcast to show how great Parker had been. First it talked about him turning from midfield general to striker when he was clean through in the box and completely butchered a gilt edge chance through his standard dithering. Then they highlighted his calm control
of the game as he did that turning in ever decreasing circles thing, while trying to lose the ball with every turn. They didn’t show the number of Jenas passes, where he’s in plenty of space but quickly offloads the responsibility to a player with a man on, nor indeed his inability to weigh a pass longer than a few yards. They did show his attempt at some Irish dancing near the end though.
No coincidence that when Sandro was introduced things looked a lot better, even though ‘Arry seemed to stick with 4-4-2, moving Modric wide. It was a classic ‘Arry substitution, far too late and seemingly by the numbers, 60 on the clock make sub.
Funny hearing a couple of phone in later with Goon scum claiming it was their best outing of the season, a game that brought pride back to them. This was in reality the worst performance of the season. The second half against Wigan was dire, caused by the usual two relaxation, the games against ManUre and Citeh were poor but against teams that were flying. This was at home and against a side that were there for the taking. Play like they had against Liverpool and it would have been a slaughter. Pick the right side from the off, i.e. with Sandro in there. A walk in the park.
Play like they did and even though they were crap, Freidel had very little to do while their ‘keeper was their best player on the day, and it kept them in it. They had the ball, the play, Spurs had the chances and took more of them. And the winner was a hell of a chance, Kyle Walker and his Danny Rose moment. OK it wasn’t as great a goal as Rose’s but it was pretty damn good way to win his first NLD.
So ‘Arry is tactically inept so much of the time but we now win away, Liverpool are almost 3 guaranteed points, he’s got it over this lot. Lot of talk of the shift in North London, well Spurs played poorly, they apparently had their best outing and we won.
Oh and any coincidence that four straight league wins in four straight league games Ledley has played?
No coincidence that Adebayor didn’t score after I put him in my fantasy team.