At Anfield on Wednesday evening a team that cost somewhere in the region of £50 million more than their opponents looked - despite their vast richness of playing resources - very ordinary indeed.
They were beaten by a team minus what are said to be its few players of star quality. One led by a locally produced player who cost nothing and fists pumping ensured his team prevailed through little more than their spirit and no small measure of tenacity.
Their resolve mirrored the fervour of support shown outside the ground by fans greeting the team bus as it pulled towards the Shankly Gates. Then inside well before kick-off.
Tottenham have been the cause célèbre of those hoping that the Premier League's current order is broken up and despite leanings towards others such as Martin O'Neill perhaps their coverage after Wednesday evening continues to prove that. As a remaining focus remains largely on rights and wrongs of Jermain Defoe's disallowed goal.
It should without doubt have been the best chance Spurs have had to land a blow on one of the 'Big Four.'
As Redknapp himself confessed despite Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres, Glen Johnson, Daniel Agger and Yossi Benayoun being absent from a team which has been down on its luck there was no better opportunity.
However, as they have so often - most notably at Old Trafford last term when the referee was ironically Howard Webb - Spurs failed to produce.
The charges relating to the match at Anfield are not isolated ones. This is the same manager who in the first transfer window he had available as Tottenham boss brought a clutch of players his club had previously dispensed with back then allowed a number to leave just six months later.
One of those, Robbie Keane, was re-signed despite never appearing to be a natural fit with someone already had on the books Luka Modric. Not looking to bring Keane back would have saved money which would have proved useful right now at White Hart Lane where an extra body is needed in attack.
Keane and Modric are as he is now forced to confess by omission or playing one or the other out of position far too similar in styles.
Each are probably at their best when asked to link play - in other words operating between the lines of midfield and attack. They simply cannot be accommodated in the same XI and when they are the whole balance of a side is affected.
Turfing Keane out of the central position at least one member of the Redknapp family is on record as stating he should always occupy is the type of managerial decision Rafael Benitez received criticism for during Keane's time with Liverpool.
Though little is made of the issue now.
A simple reason for brick-bats being in short supply should be simply that the Irishman is not playing well. But that mere act may not have saved a previous manager a bashing.
Defoe and Peter Crouch were not particularly effective at Anfield but as the only front pairing that have anything like an understanding were obvious forward options against the Reds who fielded a team selected and primed to contain the little and large show.
If Keane had been given a start, and indeed as happened when he was introduced as a substitute, the restrictions he places on his own side would have made the job easier. His throwing on during the second half made no difference to Spurs at all.
The pace of attack Tottenham have shown when the Defoe/Crouch partnership has been used has helped them reach the place currently occupied but as proved by the match with Liverpool it is taken away by Keane who by his very role in the side slows things down.
A touch - although usually two or more - is taken before he looks to take a defender on or use the guile he has to beat them. Despite working to great effect with Dimitar Berbatov when paired with the Bulgarian it has failed to come off for him this season.
Keane's treatment by Liverpool is immaterial so any attempt to use it in mitigation fails.
There is it appears from Harry Redknapp an inability to get tactical issues and selections right in games where his teams needs to do more than just find a way through a defence by Aaron Lennon's pace.
Spurs have gone through players with the speed a teenage boy finishes a box of Kleenex.
Rotations when made due to the sheer number of professionals in the squad means that a team playing well is often changed merely to ensure certain individuals are given starts.
For example immediately after beating a decent Everton side late last year the starting XI is tinkered with and Spurs lost to Wolves.
Huge sums of money have been spent on youngsters such as Kyle Walker and John Bostock - all with huge promise - but who have simply been swallowed by the system at White Hart Lane. Some though not all of those in a similar situation to those names are currently out on loan to weaker clubs than the ones they joined from.
That could from another manager be considered as damaging to their fledging careers. Harry escapes censure.
Aside from this players have been publicly humiliated while journalists taking down the quotes laugh along though never question the man-management involved.
Others were purchased despite patchy injury records and have struggled to make regular appearances since.
Yet none of this seems to gain a mention in the newspapers while TV and radio broadcasters fawn over the job Redknapp has done since taking charge in North London.
There is of course never a shortage of pundits keen to remind anyone that he took over a side bottom of the table to the fringes of European football within little more than half a year and that now they stand on the cusp of that much coveted top four space.
No matter how much money has been spent Spurs through poor tactics and player selection are the side most likely to drop out of the battle to go fourth. There will most likely be no Champions League football down Bill Nicholson Way - not with this squad and possibly not with Redknapp in charge.
He is a good manager - little question about that - but has enjoyed the sort of luck the papers would certainly make a point of if it was experienced by one of their whipping boys.
His good press is down to a personable character and willingness to always provide quotes which sits well with the media. He may be genial but isn’t a genius.
Showing posts with label Jamie Carragher. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jamie Carragher. Show all posts
Saturday, 23 January 2010
Thursday, 29 October 2009
Carragher's star return
All manner of theories abound when a player loses form. Particularly when he descends from the lofty height Jamie Carragher occupies.
Though he has possessed an edge which has made him imperious at the back Liverpool's vice-captain has so rarely been lauded outside the confines of L4. He was overlooked by a succession of international managers while a media which gnashed its teeth when centre halves fell victim to inconsistent form or injury never called for his name to top the list of alternatives let alone become a first pick.
However, England's loss has most certainly been Liverpool's gain.
Pundits only now taking note of his name would not usually concern the unassuming Bootle born defender. That would be unless their column inches and hot air were not concerning a lack of form which has bedevilled his season so far.
The term started average at best for Carragher who though a Blue while in short trousers has typified a spirit any boyhood Red would have brought to the team. His performances in arenas across the globe exemplify the character and standards of being a Liverpudlian. Some fans have identified with him more than the club captain.
Not all of Jamie's near 600 appearances have been as high profile as a magical night in Istanbul back in May 2005 but as a precis of the player and man it points to an absolute quality - sheer defiance, pure courage and heart.
These assets have seen him outlast and eventually see off a host of challengers to his place in the side.
Many thought he could have given so much that a 13 season career had stretched just a few months too far - at least at the highest level.
Typically honest and frank about his contribution as well as that of others Carragher has pointed a finger squarely in his own direction for part of Liverpool's travails. He has confessed to neither relaxing or sleeping after a game as he needed to pour over videos and stats.
Causes or reasons for the blip - as that what it now seems to be rather than any form of downward slide - experienced have not been easy to ascertain and even less clear to explain.
A desire for full-backs to thrust forward at every opportunity has been identified as unbalancing the usually rigid Liverpool defence. Though what seems certain is that Daniel Agger's return may just have arrested any further slide.
Liverpool lost at home to Lyon and errors were made by the rearguard but with the Dane amongst their number Carragher looked far more assured than he has done so far alongside Martin Skrtel.
Emiliano Insua was in no small way culpable for the French champion's winner which may have hinted at a continued lack of organisation amongst the four on duty. However, move the clock forward a few days and though the young Argentine made a couple of early errors he along with the overtly disciplined Glen Johnson were otherwise faultless.
Johnson certainly nailed the that lie he has no ability as a defensive full-back even if he does lack a few of the basics. His display against Manchester United was, though largely restrained, little short of consummate. Though not exactly unique.
On Sunday each defender and the unit remained compact and were superbly marshalled by the man with the armband which in turn set a template for the entire XI - front to back and from one flank to another.
It allowed the ball to be won in the engine room where Michael Carrick and Paul Scholes - though particularly the latter - had their usual rhythm disrupted. With play fired up towards the front two - something of a surprise to Alex Ferguson - Fernando Torres and Dirk Kuyt exploited the doubts and fallibilities evident in Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic.
Up top the visitors were starved of the same type of service with Wayne Rooney isolated and Agger in no small measure responsible for Dimitar Berbatov's 74 minutes of toil.
There was no more creditable choice for Man of the Match especially with Steve Bruce not making the selection.
A man who has made Liverpool tick since Rafael Benitez asked him to turn out as a specialist centre back rather than something of a utility man was blocking and whether on the floor or in the air hunting down trouble with the same verve and force of nature in the challenge he displayed in Istanbul most notably - but many other less illustrious venues and occasions.
Though he has possessed an edge which has made him imperious at the back Liverpool's vice-captain has so rarely been lauded outside the confines of L4. He was overlooked by a succession of international managers while a media which gnashed its teeth when centre halves fell victim to inconsistent form or injury never called for his name to top the list of alternatives let alone become a first pick.
However, England's loss has most certainly been Liverpool's gain.
Pundits only now taking note of his name would not usually concern the unassuming Bootle born defender. That would be unless their column inches and hot air were not concerning a lack of form which has bedevilled his season so far.
The term started average at best for Carragher who though a Blue while in short trousers has typified a spirit any boyhood Red would have brought to the team. His performances in arenas across the globe exemplify the character and standards of being a Liverpudlian. Some fans have identified with him more than the club captain.
Not all of Jamie's near 600 appearances have been as high profile as a magical night in Istanbul back in May 2005 but as a precis of the player and man it points to an absolute quality - sheer defiance, pure courage and heart.
These assets have seen him outlast and eventually see off a host of challengers to his place in the side.
Many thought he could have given so much that a 13 season career had stretched just a few months too far - at least at the highest level.
Typically honest and frank about his contribution as well as that of others Carragher has pointed a finger squarely in his own direction for part of Liverpool's travails. He has confessed to neither relaxing or sleeping after a game as he needed to pour over videos and stats.
Causes or reasons for the blip - as that what it now seems to be rather than any form of downward slide - experienced have not been easy to ascertain and even less clear to explain.
A desire for full-backs to thrust forward at every opportunity has been identified as unbalancing the usually rigid Liverpool defence. Though what seems certain is that Daniel Agger's return may just have arrested any further slide.
Liverpool lost at home to Lyon and errors were made by the rearguard but with the Dane amongst their number Carragher looked far more assured than he has done so far alongside Martin Skrtel.
Emiliano Insua was in no small way culpable for the French champion's winner which may have hinted at a continued lack of organisation amongst the four on duty. However, move the clock forward a few days and though the young Argentine made a couple of early errors he along with the overtly disciplined Glen Johnson were otherwise faultless.
Johnson certainly nailed the that lie he has no ability as a defensive full-back even if he does lack a few of the basics. His display against Manchester United was, though largely restrained, little short of consummate. Though not exactly unique.
On Sunday each defender and the unit remained compact and were superbly marshalled by the man with the armband which in turn set a template for the entire XI - front to back and from one flank to another.
It allowed the ball to be won in the engine room where Michael Carrick and Paul Scholes - though particularly the latter - had their usual rhythm disrupted. With play fired up towards the front two - something of a surprise to Alex Ferguson - Fernando Torres and Dirk Kuyt exploited the doubts and fallibilities evident in Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic.
Up top the visitors were starved of the same type of service with Wayne Rooney isolated and Agger in no small measure responsible for Dimitar Berbatov's 74 minutes of toil.
There was no more creditable choice for Man of the Match especially with Steve Bruce not making the selection.
A man who has made Liverpool tick since Rafael Benitez asked him to turn out as a specialist centre back rather than something of a utility man was blocking and whether on the floor or in the air hunting down trouble with the same verve and force of nature in the challenge he displayed in Istanbul most notably - but many other less illustrious venues and occasions.
Thursday, 24 September 2009
A team of Carraghers?
On signing an extension to his contract in 2005 Jamie Carragher effectively stated he did not ultimately have the calibre to leave Liverpool and that bringing trophies to Anfield was the epitome of his ambition.
The club’s vice-captain was effectively claiming he was somehow punching above his weight merely by turning out in a red shirt. Alan Kennedy was just as candid with his self opinion and would often say he considered himself the worst player in the country’s best team.
Carra has never been of the class Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres plus others find so effortless. He works hard at every aspect of his game but while gliding through the gears would never be an option for the defender he has nonetheless made the most of his talents which may not be as modest as he claims.
While he so often appears to typify a rudimentary “all hands to the pump” style Jamie can play a bit and puts in the odd defence splitting ball or an astute pass for the fans to applaud with as much gusto as that reserved for his hearty defending.
More than any other player - Gerrard included - Carragher boyhood blue or not has typified the spirit of a fan on the pitch. It’s no co-incidence the Kop’s refrain is for a team of Carraghers rather than any of his teammates.
His tireless effort, will to play through injury, pain and those Istanbul cramps, countless blocks and dives at a goal bound ball are just what any Liverpool supporter would be prepared to do for the shirt.
There are of course limitations to his game which he constantly strives to improve - lack of pace and speed on the turn are notable. Versatility often identified as an asset can just as easily be a hindrance if it pigeon holes a career. It also can make the “utility man” first to give way when specialists are available.
However, this season he has laboured. Sometimes looking behind the tempo, cumbersome and unable to compensate.
Even organisation usually so vital in a top team and something Carra has had in bucket loads hasn’t made good the shortfall.
The hope is it’s a small blip in the 32 year old’s career rather than the onset of a lingering demise to a great servant’s contribution.
The club’s vice-captain was effectively claiming he was somehow punching above his weight merely by turning out in a red shirt. Alan Kennedy was just as candid with his self opinion and would often say he considered himself the worst player in the country’s best team.
Carra has never been of the class Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres plus others find so effortless. He works hard at every aspect of his game but while gliding through the gears would never be an option for the defender he has nonetheless made the most of his talents which may not be as modest as he claims.
While he so often appears to typify a rudimentary “all hands to the pump” style Jamie can play a bit and puts in the odd defence splitting ball or an astute pass for the fans to applaud with as much gusto as that reserved for his hearty defending.
More than any other player - Gerrard included - Carragher boyhood blue or not has typified the spirit of a fan on the pitch. It’s no co-incidence the Kop’s refrain is for a team of Carraghers rather than any of his teammates.
His tireless effort, will to play through injury, pain and those Istanbul cramps, countless blocks and dives at a goal bound ball are just what any Liverpool supporter would be prepared to do for the shirt.
There are of course limitations to his game which he constantly strives to improve - lack of pace and speed on the turn are notable. Versatility often identified as an asset can just as easily be a hindrance if it pigeon holes a career. It also can make the “utility man” first to give way when specialists are available.
However, this season he has laboured. Sometimes looking behind the tempo, cumbersome and unable to compensate.
Even organisation usually so vital in a top team and something Carra has had in bucket loads hasn’t made good the shortfall.
The hope is it’s a small blip in the 32 year old’s career rather than the onset of a lingering demise to a great servant’s contribution.
Saturday, 22 August 2009
Aware of a Greek bearing gifts
With such a meagre pot at his disposal Rafael Benitez had to turn his attentions away from the capture of Michael Turner or Sylvain Distin. Not to mention Ryan Shawcross, Matthew Upson and others Sotirios Kyrgiakos was plucked from AEK Athens.
The £2 million price almost reflecting perfectly the rumoured sum at his disposal.
Though other areas of the team could have done with fortification or something approaching a world class addition short term a centre back was a priority.
Martin Skrtel may play on Monday against Aston Villa but his participation - extremely tentative as it is in the first place - may only be possible in a ’Phantom of the Opera’ style mask. Jamie Carragher will be patched up and sent out while Daniel Agger requires back surgery before he will play again.
Danny Ayala put in a competent enough display against Stoke in midweek. He didn’t do too badly at White Hart Lane either when Skrtel decided not even he could see out the final quarter but is too raw to expect to become the fourth first team option and at this point his development is best served by reserve team football.
Skrtel is a man who could give Nosferatu nightmares let alone Premiership forwards and it’s clear Kyrgiakos will provide some additional muscle in that position. The 30 year old stands 6’4” so is naturally commanding in the air and has mauled strikers plus countless midfielders in his homeland, Germany and Scotland. Not to mention those from a host of national sides.
Clearly an ability to dish it out was amongst the qualities the manager was looking at when selecting a new player.
Speaking at the press conference to announce the capture Benitez said: "He is a tough defender who is strong and good in the air. He has a strong character and we were looking for these things. He can score goals and will be a threat from corners and free-kicks. He's very strong in defence but he will need time as always to settle into the Premier League.
"We knew the player when he was with Rangers and we've been watching videos of him at Frankfurt and the national team. Our scout department had a lot of information.
He added: "We've talked about the things he's done before and the things he'll have to do for us. He knows what we want and he's ready to work."
Unlike those considered before him Kyrgiakos may have been a picking from the bargain bin which makes his signing low risk but with respect to all his previous employers this is the biggest move of his career albeit at a late stage which means he has every incentive to do well.
The £2 million price almost reflecting perfectly the rumoured sum at his disposal.
Though other areas of the team could have done with fortification or something approaching a world class addition short term a centre back was a priority.
Martin Skrtel may play on Monday against Aston Villa but his participation - extremely tentative as it is in the first place - may only be possible in a ’Phantom of the Opera’ style mask. Jamie Carragher will be patched up and sent out while Daniel Agger requires back surgery before he will play again.
Danny Ayala put in a competent enough display against Stoke in midweek. He didn’t do too badly at White Hart Lane either when Skrtel decided not even he could see out the final quarter but is too raw to expect to become the fourth first team option and at this point his development is best served by reserve team football.
Skrtel is a man who could give Nosferatu nightmares let alone Premiership forwards and it’s clear Kyrgiakos will provide some additional muscle in that position. The 30 year old stands 6’4” so is naturally commanding in the air and has mauled strikers plus countless midfielders in his homeland, Germany and Scotland. Not to mention those from a host of national sides.
Clearly an ability to dish it out was amongst the qualities the manager was looking at when selecting a new player.
Speaking at the press conference to announce the capture Benitez said: "He is a tough defender who is strong and good in the air. He has a strong character and we were looking for these things. He can score goals and will be a threat from corners and free-kicks. He's very strong in defence but he will need time as always to settle into the Premier League.
"We knew the player when he was with Rangers and we've been watching videos of him at Frankfurt and the national team. Our scout department had a lot of information.
He added: "We've talked about the things he's done before and the things he'll have to do for us. He knows what we want and he's ready to work."
Unlike those considered before him Kyrgiakos may have been a picking from the bargain bin which makes his signing low risk but with respect to all his previous employers this is the biggest move of his career albeit at a late stage which means he has every incentive to do well.
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