Cardiff Local Guide A guide to all Things Cardiff
Harry Redknapp
Harry Redknapp’s new book ‘A Man Walks Onto A Pitch’ is the type of publication a retired actor or star of stage would write after encountering financial difficulty: ‘Look at who I knew. Look at who I worked with. Look at who I used to be. Let that all help me one last time.’
‘Arry’s stories are all from the ‘good ol’ days’, a man bemoaning the effect of money, foreign players and commercialism on a once beautiful game. It sounds less like the current manager of a Premier League club than a man with a blanket on his knees nursing a large glass of sherry and talking to his dog in an oppressively warm lounge. Rosie, I suppose.
How long that managerial capacity continues remains to be seen. However The Sun spin the story, the stories regarding Redknapp being replaced are growing in volume. In surrounding himself with his loyal compadres, Harry has also created a perfect breeding ground for cheese to be mild-ed. Tim Sherwood is odds on to be the next QPR manager.
A match against Liverpool provides an opportunity for QPR to climb off the bottom of the table, but the more likely scenario is that his side will again roll over and present their belly to be tickled. You can get 8/5 on the home side taking anything out of the game.
If QPR do lose again, it could genuinely spell the end of Redknapp’s managerial career. The growing sense is that he is a relic, remaining in the game through a simple inability to know what else to do. Whatever your opinions on the man, that contains a degree of sadness.
Manchester City
Slip up against Spurs on Saturday lunchtime and the defending champions could be eight points behind Chelsea after eight matches. In the pitiful defence of their title in 2012/13, Roberto Mancini’s side were just four points behind the leaders at the same stage. It’s a must-win match.
One of City’s problems has been the sluggish manner in which they have started games. They have scored just two goals in the first 25 minutes of their Premier League fixtures, a third as many as Chelsea. Their three home games have returned just one first-half goal.
It may sound pedantic, but compare this with last season: 29 goals scored in the first half of PL matches at the Etihad. So far this season, City are on to reach a total of six.
A huge part of City’s (and Liverpool’s for that matter) armoury in their title success was an ability to win matches in the early stages, before their opponents had even settled. So far this season, that appears missing – victories over Hull and Villa and draws against Arsenal and Chelsea have all been achieved in the last quarter of the match.
On Saturday City face Spurs, against whom they were 5-0 ahead after 55 minutes in the same fixture last season. With a trip to Moscow in midweek, Manuel Pellegrini would appreciate one of the dominant starts he has enjoyed so often in his City reign. Any opportunity to take foot from pedal is vital when fighting on four fronts.
Liverpool
Adam Bate wrote this week on the reasons for Liverpool’s stuttering start, with the predictably defensive response from the comments section that the Premier League is only seven games old.
That’s true, but after this weekend, Liverpool’s season will be over 20% complete. Lose against QPR on Sunday and Brendan Rodgers’ side could be 12 points from the top and four points behind the top six. It’s a regression, whichever way you paint it.
The return of Sturridge (and therefore a strike partnership rather than one isolated forward) may well give Liverpool the shot in the arm that their season needs. After 2.65 goals per game last season, their current record stands at 1.43. No better opponent than QPR to address such issues, will be Rodgers’ ever-positive outlook.
Yaya Toure
“We’ve had a tough start because we’ve played tough teams,” said Vincent Kompany before the victory over Aston Villa. “You can’t deny that. He [Yaya Toure] has set the standards very high for himself. But to say he is not at his best, then, I don’t agree. It’s so early in the season to call something like this. Things will improve for everyone.”
It was a prescient time for Manchester City’s captain to preach patience with Toure, who suffered great personal loss this summer. The Ivorian scored City’s opener at Villa Park and looked nearer his dominant best from last season.
With that in mind, this was an inopportune time for an international break. Toure played 90 minutes for the Ivory Coast on Wednesday evening, a match that finished just 65 hours before City’s game against Spurs. Having rested Toure after his last international sojourn, Manuel Pellegrini may be forced into a repeat. With Fernandinho also struggling with a hamstring problem, it could be a central midfield of Fernando and Frank Lampard, or James Milner moved centrally and Jesus Navas starting on the right wing.
One hopes that Toure can quickly re-discover his top form, but regular long-haul trips don’t help matters. He will travel to face Sierra Leone and Cameroon next month. Another two steps forward followed by one back.
Everton
The boy Matthew Stanger wrote this week of Everton’s defensive deficiencies; add an uninspiring start for Romelu Lukaku after his £28m move and things look far from pretty.
There are mitigating factors, however. Ross Barkley, Seamus Coleman, John Stones, Kevin Mirallas, James McCarthy and Steven Pienaar have all been (or are) injured, and four of the club’s seven matches have been against last season’s top three and Manchester United.
Still, it’s time for improvement, because Roberto Martinez won’t last long in 17th place, whatever the injury situation. A victory against Villa at Goodison is needed to appease any hints that Martinez is ‘doing a Wigan’.
“Villa are the last team you probably want to play at home,” Martinez said on Thursday. “They are hard-working and dynamic. They have talent up front.” Sorry Bobby, but that s**t doesn’t fly with us.
Mario Balotelli
Not much of an international ‘break’ for Mario Balotelli, left out by Antonio Conte in a squad that still contained five forwards: Sebastian Giovinco, Ciro Immobile, Mattia Destro, Simone Zaza, Graziano Pellè. Immobile made a pointed reference to the sense of unity within the squad.
Things aren’t much better for Balotelli on the domestic stage either, left out of Liverpool’s last fixture against West Brom in favour of Rickie Lambert. That’s a pretty sticky situation given Lambert’s initial displays since coming home. He has also been forced to deal with former club AC Milan revealing their pressure at getting rid, and Brendan Rodgers demanding an improvement. Why always me?
With Daniel Sturridge now fit again, the hope for Mario is that he can forge a successful partnership alongside the England striker, with the 3-0 victory at Spurs offering promise. It’s about all Balotelli is clinging to right now – this has not started well.
Alexis Sanchez
I’m not about to start a Daily Mail-style Mesut Ozil hate campaign here, but I have a nagging thought that I had expected a little more from Alexis Sanchez. Of course he is playing for a new team in a new league, but one only needs to look at how Angel Di Maria has taken to life in England for (an admittedly knee-jerk) comparison.
Unfortunately, Sanchez is another player forced to deal with jet lag and travel. He travelled 13394 miles to Antofagasta and back in order to play a friendly against Bolivia. Arsene Wenger will be delighted to know that his summer signing played 90 minutes.
It’s not that Sanchez has been poor, it’s that he is yet to really grab a Premier League game by the scruff of its neck. In the absence of Mesut Ozil, Sanchez may get more space in which to operate – we’re looking forward to seeing the rewards of that. We’ve been waiting for him to explode.
Alan Pardew
We’re becoming a broken record, but surely Alan Pardew has to win this one – fail to do so and it will be eight matches without a victory in the league this season. Sacked in the morning?
The biggest worry is that Newcastle start to the season has not even been that daunting. The average finishing position last season of Newcastle’s opponents is 11.6th, and that includes champions Manchester City.
Newcastle’s manager has had more lives than a cat – it’s a wonder we’re not calling him Alan Purrdew. Hello? Is this thing on?
Burnley
“It doesn’t worry me at all,” was Sean Dyche’s answer to questions over whether he feared the sack. “I was sacked at Watford for a change of business plan. Anything can happen in this game. There are no guarantees, whether it is good bad or indifferent you just work hard to push the odds in your favour as regards myself and the team.”
Dyche is right, of course, but managers are far more likely to be sacked if the board feel that there is nothing to lose. It already feels like Burnley are doomed and we’ve only had two months of the season.
The manager deserves very little of the blame. He is in danger of becoming another victim of success following a promotion achieved on the cheap, but that will offer little comfort. Right now, wins are the only recipe for respite.
A draw at Leicester a fortnight ago was Burnley’s most positive result so far, the first time they had scored since the 14th minute of the season. After a fortnight with his squad (only two players on international duty), Dyche must build on that draw. Lose again and his position will be scrutinised further, however unfair that may seem.
Spurs’ resilience
City away this weekend chaps. Maybe try and not concede after 13 seconds this time.
Swansea
They’re still fifth in the league so this isn’t panic stations (far from it), but after three victories to start the season, it’s now two points from four games for Swansea. Defeats against Chelsea (a) and Southampton (h) have been followed by draws against Sunderland (a) and Newcastle (h).
Garry Monk will want to address the mini-slump in their next two matches (Stoke and Leicester). After that it’s Liverpool, Everton, Arsenal and Manchester City consecutively.
Plus, it’s on the telly. Everyone wants to impress on the telly.
Daniel Storey – Follow him on Twitter
