Preview: West Ham (H)

05.01.2011 – Wednesday 7:45pm

Now at Barca, Man City & Newcastle. Which one did best...

Barclays Premier League

Location: St James’

Prospects: Pivotal for the season either way.

Pre-match Gut Feeling: Timely and important home win.

The Gaffer: Avram Grant:  A manager of rare ilk in England as one who has never played the game professionally at any level, starting his coaching career at a tender 18.  Something of a powerhouse in his native Israel, winning numerous honours at a variety of clubs before his final ascension to national manager, narrowly missing out on guiding his country to the World Cup in ’06.  He arrived in England as Chelsea and Jose Mourinho’s director of football, his arrival adding to the rift between board and manager which eventually lead to Mourinho leaving and Grant taking his place.  Despite inheriting a squad capable of matching anyone, anywhere, Grant failed to win silverware in his one season there – reaching and losing both the League Cup and Champions League finals, while also finishing second in the league.  He spent some time out of football before re-emerging again as a director of football at Portsmouth, eventually overtaking Paul Hart as manager of an already half sunken ship, but heroically guiding them to an FA cup final only to lose to his former employers Chelsea.  Since then Avram has had the unfortunate look of an embattled club’s manager, leaving Portsmouth for West Ham and enduring a catastrophic start to the season not winning a match until November, and only leaving the relegation zone as a manager for the first time last week, since the day he took over at Portsmouth on 26th November 2009. The debate is still out whether he can cut it in this country with extenuating circumstances at all three clubs he has managed within England.  Perhaps if he didn’t look like a Gordon Brown’s granddad he would be taken a little more seriously…

The Team: The academy of English football, but not in the way West Ham fans would like to think they are.  Over the last 10 years and beyond they have possessed a platter of players that would eventually play at the top levels, some world class, but all for other clubs.  Although it would have been an incredible ask, the current West Ham team could have feasibly included Carlos Tevez, Frank Lampard, Rio Ferdinand, Joe Cole, Javier Mascherano, Michael Carrick and Jermaine Defoe.  Yes, there are many entwined factors like player development and current form but it’s just a thought… The current incarnation however are one that find themselves in a relegation threatened predicament more through imbalance, inconsistency and lack of squad harmony (by way of excessive player turn over) than outright lack of ability.  Danger men: Scott Parker, Victor Obina

Key to success: Get out the traps early and hit them hard.  West Ham have had an upturn in form recently and confidence is slowly being nurtured back, but playing away from home and putting them on the back foot early on the damage could be done before the game has got underway in earnest.  Without a doubt Scott Parker will be the heart beat of West Ham and should be neutralised as he was in the reverse fixture.  Sparing the availability of Carroll, the same starting XI from Wigan should be maintained (although I’m still at a loss at why Williamson has lost his place to Taylor so easily).  Despite their lowly position, they still have enough quality not to be taken lightly, as they showed at Fulham recently – another professional performance is required

Direct your abuse at: David Gold:  The louder half of the Gold and Sullivan partnership is as fond of the sound of his own voice as he probably is the smell of his own farts.  And who could blame him, with the sort of business brilliance that accrues millions of pounds via the genius of selling knickers and porn mags.  Who needs James Dyson…

Match Report: Wigan (A)

02.01.2011 – Sunday 4:00pm

The DW at Full time. Or mid game. The attendance is no different

Barclays Premier League

Wigan – 0

-

Newcastle United – 1

Ameobi

Location: DW Stadium

MOM: Tiote

NUFC Performance: 7/10

Winning Ugly

I’ve always said I would rather see us win ugly than play entertainingly but lose…  Okay, that is a lie, but the current circumstances combined with the x-rated record that Newcastle have at the DW stadium it would be insane to be anything other than delighted with this win – a win near hand carved out of granite.  In the approach to this game, its significance (along with the next game against West Ham) had been markedly understated, standing at 22 points at the exact halfway point of the season and on the verge of playing two teams who will equally be scrapping to stay above the dotted line at the base of the table, the outcome of both games are arguably pivotal in the prosperity of this season, and possibly beyond.  As if the gravity of the situation wasn’t heavy enough, the prospect of losing this game would have seen Wigan leap frog us and continue a slow slide down the table which, since a season high of 5th, has seen us edge closer and closer to the danger zone like being tied to a conveyor belt heading b#llock first toward an industrial circular saw.  And an away game in a ground where we have experienced five straight defeats, every one as embarrassing and forgettable as the Britannia High box-set, the prospects were slightly uninspiring to say the least.

Thankfully – with merciful relief and superb timing – this was the day to break the curse, to lift the dour and drab feeling of deflation every time eyes lay witness to the strategically polished shed that is the DW stadium.  An end to the feeling of irritable annoyance and helpless frustration at watching what has felt like an endless string of one goal margin losses to the drone of a clandestine ‘create an atmosphere bull sh#t’ drum beat.  On more than one occasion I’ve prayed to the higher powers that we would turn up in Wigan to the sight of a man with a drum rammed over his mid rift and sticks in splinters on the ground so we could use our vocal numbers to support the team without the artificially amplified competition.  Unfortunately this wasn’t to be the day, however the away following’s simple but effective use of said drum to vocally support their own team, whilst simultaneously drowning out the efforts of the sparse (and that’s being generous) home attendance laid way for a feeling like this was more of a Newcastle home game than an away trip (albeit a very poorly attended home game…).

Driven on by the alcohol laden vocals, the away side started brightly with Ameobi heading over the huge white rectangle we all recognise as a goal from point blank range when it looked easier to score.  Nothing less is expected with Shola’s infamous inconsistency but encouragingly the striker looked to have been switched on for game and was attentive from the off.  It only took until the 19th minute to make amends for his ways, pouncing on a scrambled home Lovenkrands poke off the post which had resulted from some excellent opportunistic work from Barton, pouncing on a defensive error and taking a snap shot El-Habsi could only parry.  There was a long way left to go to register an overdue win here, and sure enough chances arrived for the home side – the dangerous Cleverly twice going close with smart curling shots, Caldwell heading off the bar and Rodallega blazing over from the rebound, this either side of a Gutierrez one-on-one weakly hit at the home ‘keeper.  What would have been header of the season almost came just before half time when Coloccini thrust an audacious 19 yard header off the bar from a broad Barton corner.  The second half brought little change, Taylor following  Ameobi  by hitting the bar from point blank range from a Barton free kick.  The game slowed to walking pace – until Nolan and Ameobi were replaced by Routledge and Best and Newcastle’s threat on the counter attack grew significantly.  Desperately pushing up but failing to break through Wigan left acres of space at the back and a quick counter by Routledge and Best led to the latter finding himself one-on-one but losing his balance at the critical moment and blasting wide.  Enrique almost finished the day superbly after cutting inside but fired over after strong work from the storming Tiote.

So, finally a win has been registered at Wigan – finally we had the chance to leave the DW stadium without the sight of over exaggerating locals dancing around like FA cup winners to torment our already frustrated heads.  And this time it was us who ground out the result, in very un-familiar fashion.  But strategically it was a very, very important result and perhaps something we should aim for in the remainder of our away days, as all of our away wins this season have come by a single goal margin.  Hell, repeat this kind of disciplined performance and end result at home and survival would be more than achievable and I for one wouldn’t be bothered.  I’ve always said I’m happy to win ugly…

Wigan (A) in 5 key points

02.01.11 – Sunday 4.00pm
Barclays Premier League

Wigan 0

Newcastle 1
Ameobi 19

After ending 2010 with 2 defeats in the space of 3 days, Newcastle began 2011 with a trip to the DW Stadium to face Wigan in a televised fixture live on Sky. Newcastle were looking to put an end to a dismal record at the DW Stadium having lost in their last 5 visits, including 1 League Cup tie. In a tight game, Newcastle ended the game as deserved 1-0 victors courtesy of a first half Shola Ameobi goal.

Here we take a look at the 5 key points from a Newcastle perspective:

1.    Team selection and tactics

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew made 5 changes to the starting line up that began the previous fixture against Tottenham. Jose Enrique and Kevin Nolan were available for selection after returning from injury and suspension respectively, Enrique took up his usual place at left back at the expense of James Perch, Nolan returned to the centre of midfield with Alan Smith dropping to the bench, while Steve Harper was preferred to Tim Krul in goal.

Shola Ameobi also made a return after a 4 game injury lay off, replacing top scorer Andy Carroll who was absent due to a thigh injury. Peter Lovenkrands replaced Wayne Routledge to partner Ameobi up front, with Joey Barton moving to right midfield in a 4-4-2 formation. The changes made by Pardew were sensible and necessary and Newcastle were rewarded for adopting a direct and attacking formation and style of play.

2.    Newcastle increase ambition with 2 up front

After showing a concerning lack of ambition against Tottenham in the previous game, with Carroll isolated as a lone striker, Pardew opted to name 2 orthodox strikers in his starting line up for the first time since being appointed Newcastle manager – Pardew did use a 4-4-2 formation in the home fixture against Man City but it was midfielder Nolan who partnered Carroll up front rather than 2 out-and-out strikers.

Having 2 forwards in the starting line up in Ameobi and Lovenkrands gave Newcastle more options going forward and both players played a part in Newcastle’s goal; Lovenkrands taking the shot which rebounded off the post for Ameobi to score from. Both Ameobi and Lovenkrands played their part in covering for the absent Carroll with Ameobi particularly impressive in his hold up play as well as in the air, winning 5 aerial battles, while Lovenkrands was involved in Newcastle’s link up play with his accurate passing, completing 15 passes in the final third.

3.    Newcastle win the midfield battle

Although Newcastle’s 2 central midfielders, Nolan and Cheick Tiote were up against the 3 man Wigan central midfield of Hendry Thomas, Ben Watson and Tom Cleverley, they didn’t find themselves outnumbered and succeeded in winning the crucial midfield battle thanks to the performances of Barton and Tiote.

Barton has shown superb positional awareness and discipline when playing out of position on the right hand side of midfield this season and did so again against Wigan, knowing when to come inside and act as an auxiliary central midfielder, narrowing the play and supporting the 2 central midfielders as well as when to stay wide and support Danny Simpson down the right hand side. He was instrumental in everything Newcastle did, including playing a major part in creating the goal as well as breaking up play making 8 tackles and 4 interceptions. Tiote displayed a committed determination to prevent Wigan attacks – making 3 tackles and 5 clearances as well as demonstrating  an impressive level of passing accuracy: 91% in a crowded midfield area.

4. Bizarre Genius Newcastle substitutions?

In a game where there seemed to be little danger from the home team as the game neared to a conclusion, it was initially worrying that Pardew opted to ditch the comfortable 4-4-2 formation for a more defensive 4-5-1 formation after 70 minutes when bringing on Routledge for Lovenkrands. The benefit of shoring up the midfield when defending a lead is obvious, but when Newcastle looked comfortable it seemed a strange decision to invite pressure from the home side for the final 20 minutes.

What was perhaps more peculiar however was the introduction of Leon Best for Ameobi after 77 minutes to play as a lone striker. Firstly because it was in preference to Nile Ranger, who now looks to have dropped to fifth choice striker, and secondly because playing an unproven forward on his own up front was never likely to result in increased possession in the attacking third for Newcastle where they needed the ball to be. The substitutions could have backfired if Wigan had taken advantage of their invitation to attack, but with a 1-0 victory in the bag Pardew may argue that his bizarre looking substitutions were in fact genius.   

5. Near misses prevent a higher scoring game

With Newcastle’s last 4 games averaging 3.5 goals per game, it was perhaps surprising to see such a low scoring end result at the DW Stadium. However, although there was only 1 goal scored in the game, on another day and with better finishing the game could have ended 4-5.

Newcastle had 15 shots on goal with only 4 on target, Ameobi, Best, Lovenkrands and Gutierrez guilty of wasting good chances, while Wigan had 9 shots on goal with only 2 shots on target, Cleverley and Rodallega guilty of wasting good chances for the home side. Both sides also hit the crossbar, with Taylor and Coloccini heading on to the bar for Newcastle and Caldwell heading against the bar for Wigan. It wasn’t quite the Super Sunday it was billed as by Sky, however there were plenty of goal scoring chances for either side for the neutral to enjoy and Newcastle were deservedly rewarded with all 3 points for creating more chances and being more clinical in front of goal.

At the end of the day…

Having lost the previous 2 games against Man City and Tottenham, it was vital that Newcastle picked up something against Wigan to prevent further sliding down the Premier League table and getting sucked closer to the relegation spots. Although Wigan were poor, it was pleasing to see Newcastle take advantage and finally end the bad run against one of the Premier League’s poorer sides. A well earned and vital 3 points just as Newcastle’s season was looking in danger or taking a nosedive.

It was Newcastle’s 4th away win of the season and took them up to 10th position in the table on 25 points, 6 points off a relegation spot and 5 points off a European place. Interestingly this win also meant that with 20 games played, 10 at home and 10 away, that Newcastle have a better away record this season (13 points) than they do at home (12 points).

Special mention should be given to Danny Simpson who consistently puts in solid performances and probably gets overlooked for the same reason. Against Wigan he made 5 interceptions, 2 tackles and 7 clearances while also completing 32 passes including an excellent cross for Ameobi after only 2 minutes who should have scored.

It is a pretty good start for Pardew with 2 wins out of 4 games from a run of difficult fixtures against Liverpool, Man City, Tottenham and Wigan. However a better time to judge will be at the end of January following 2 home games against West Ham and Tottenham, the derby game against sunderland at the Stadium of Light, a FA Cup tie away to Stevenage and of course his performance in the January transfer window. Ultimately however, his judgment will come at the end of the season in Newcastle’s final league position.

Next up for Newcastle is a home Premier League fixture against Pardew’s former club West Ham this Wednesday night (January 5th), 7.45pm kick off. Although West Ham are on a run of form which has seen them climb out of the relegation zone, after picking up 8 points out of the last 12 available, they are another side at the wrong end of the table who don’t travel well (1 win away from home this season) and Newcastle must be looking to take all 3 points. With Carroll again expected to miss out through injury, Pardew may select the same side that started against Wigan, hoping that Newcastle can continue their winning ways and complete their first league double of the season.

Preview: Wigan Athletic (A)

02.01.2011 – Sunday 4:00pm

Once again to the North-West triangle of doom...

Barclays Premier League

Location: The DW Stadium.  Formerly known as the JJB stadium.  Formerly industrial wasteland.  Like the rest of Wigan.  Shared with Wigan Warriors rugby league club, it impressively maintains a decent standard of playing surface despite being ploughed up by a combined total of 45 professional athletes and one French winger a weekly basis.

Prospects: Is another defeat at Wigan worth contemplating…

Pre-match Gut Feeling: …probably another defeat at Wigan.  B#llocks to it – this is the time to break the curse.

The Gaffer: Roberto Martinez:  The likeable Spaniard cut’s something of an underdog character, as he continues to very slowly build a reputation as a manager after a particularly low key playing career. His true potential is still up for debate however, after a very impressive spell at Swansea where he created a silky passing team on a Mike Ashley sized budget, taking them out of the 3rd tier of English football and flirting around the borders of Premiership promotion before leaving the post for his current one at Wigan.   Since then he has struggled to recreate the style shown at Swansea, although every indication from the shy and retiring Wigan chairman Dave Whelan suggests that he will be given all the time he needs to achieve this, although on review of his current player stock it will take some time to do so.

The Team: The really drunken loudmouth at a party – they just linger on annoying the majority by doing just enough to stay around season after season, upsetting as many teams as possible in the process.  However, they deserve credit that they do find ways to ensure their survival is continual despite having the pulling power of Mick Huckall – using Dave Whelan’s sugar daddy resources very astutely.  Indeed, because of the vessel Wigan have formed the Premiership has been graced with talents such as Antonio Valencia, Wilson Palacios and the promising Hugo Rodallega.  However, in the current squad talent is thin on the ground and has gained most of its spoils this season by way of their incessant work rate – latter at least is something of small envy.  Danger men: In N’Zogbia’s absence – Hugo Rodallega and Tom Cleverly.

Key to success: Work rate.  We have shown (with worrying consistency this season) we struggle against grafting teams, panicking in possession when closed down quickly and struggling to regain the ball when without it.  We simply have to match their work rate in order to get anything out of the game. This is a tall order given the fixture congestion of late, although we do have a day’s advantage since our last fixture in comparison to Wigan.  Tom Cleverly and Ben Watson will both be dangerous breaking from midfield, the Manc loanee Cleverly more so, and one eye should be kept on the pair.  A professional and disciplined performance is imperative against this outfit who will scrap for everything – although this should be standard expectation in any competitive game.  Adopting the 4-1-3-2 formation with Nolan returning to complete a first choice midfield is wise, Carroll’s absence should be dealt with way of Ranger and Lovenkrands, on the basis that Ameobi continues his absence.  On a side note, the last 3 games have shown 3 separate formations / tactical systems – the negative effect this can have on the team as a whole should not be underestimated, and bore in mind while approaching this game, despite the injuries we have picked up.

Direct your abuse at: Dave Whelan: In the absence of Charles N’Zogbia – although ignoring him is wiser than abusing him given his motivation from it.  Whelan is never shy of offering his opinion on anything and everything that hasn’t the slightest thing to do with him and especially when he hasn’t even been asked, using every moment in the media spot light to do so before turning the conversation round to how perfect his club is and how good a chairman he is.  He deserves grief alone for gifting and maintaining Wigan’s minute following a 5 seasons and counting stay in the Premiership.

January Sales

In less than 31 hours, the transfer window swings opens and yet again promises 30 days of unfounded, blue sky rumours before a final day of chaos where various clubs scramble around to capture anything from anywhere like it was the 10 pinter, last chance grab anything situation that is enacted by many swollen bollocked lads at 2am Blu Bambu on a weekly basis.  In our situation it remains to be seen whether Alan Pardew will be handed any funds to exercise his ‘experience’ and add meat to our paper thin squad, but we will assess the situation regardless, position by position and suggest (hopefully sensible) options that could keep us steered in the right direction.

January super-sub, Sib

For the interest of consistency, and when we have been most successful this season, I am basing this on the 4-1-3-2 system, first employed against West Ham (A).  The suggested additions are based on the style of play we currently operate – some are a little ambitious but we have seen already this season we can attract players of quality if the circumstances (i.e. finances) are right.  Also, to limit the amount of times you shout ‘gobsh#te’ while reading, the ratings are based on the general expectations for the team, with their ability to help achieve survival entwined within (i.e. a rating of 5/5 equals more than capable of producing consistence performances to deliver survival or more).

Goalkeeper

Current Occupant:   Tim Krul
Options:  Steve Harper, Ole Soderberg, Frazer Foster (out on loan)
First choice quality:  4/5
Cover quality:  3/5
Improvement needed?:  For the time being certainly not – with two young but raw talents available focus should be on developing these, with Harper playing bit part from here on.
Suggested addition:  A new goalkeeping coach…

Right Back

Current Occupant:  Danny Simpson
Options:   James Perch, Ryan Taylor, James Tavernier
First choice quality:  3/5
Cover quality:   2/5
Improvement needed?:  Simpson isn’t particularly bad but would need to improve to be a long term solution to the position.  Neither Taylor nor Perch are improvements and Tavernier has shown brief promise but not managed to even scrape the first team.
Suggested addition:  Rafael (Manchester Utd) – on loan.  Habib Beye (Aston Villa) – on loan

Left Back

Current Occupant:  Jose Enrique
Options:  James Perch, Tamas Kadar, Shane Ferguson
First choice quality:  5/5
Cover quality:  1/5
Improvement needed?:  Cover is desperately needed for Enrique, who thankfully doesn’t suffer injuries often or badly.  I would suggest looking from within at Ferguson and Kadar if working on a limited budget, both look like they could make it but need experience at the highest level.
Suggested addition:  Patrick Van Aaholt (Chelsea) – on loan, Chris Gunter (Nottingham Forest)

Centre Backs

Current Occupant:  Fabricio Coloccini / Mike Williamson / Steven Taylor
Options:  Sol Campbell, Tamas Kadar
First choice quality:  4/5
Cover quality:  3/5
Improvement needed?:  Low on the list of priorities.  With Taylor signing a new deal, Campbell here until at least the rest of this season and Kadar waiting for a step up there is ample quality cover for all but the most drastic of problems.  Long term changes will need to be made but at present the stock is sufficient.
Suggested addition:  Not required.

Defensive Midfield

Current Occupant:  Cheik Tiote
Options:        Alan Smith, Joey Barton (at a push)
First choice quality:  5/5
Cover quality:  3/5
Improvement needed?:  A limited position with two potential first choice players vying for one place – no improvement required at present.  However with Smith’s contract expiring at the end of next season additions will eventually need to be made.
Suggested addition:  Deal with this in the summer.

Right Midfield

Current Occupant:  Joey Barton
Options:  Wayne Routledge, Jonas Gutierrez, Dan Gosling, Kazenga Lua-Lua (out on loan)
First choice quality:  5/5
Cover quality:  0/5
Improvement needed?:  Cover for Barton with his awful injury record and debatable disciplinary record is an absolute must, but more for the style of position he plays (deep lying play maker) rather than out and out winger.  Being the focal point of our creativity, when Barton doesn’t play we lack ideas – therefore this position is both critical and difficult to emulate.
Suggested addition:  Michael Johnson (Manchester City), Jamie O’Hara (Tottenham), Lucas Biglia (Anderlecht)

Left Midfield

Current Occupant:  Jonas Gutierrez
Options:  Hatem Ben Arfa (eventually), Peter Lovenkrands (at a push)
First choice quality:  2/5
Cover quality:  0/5
Improvement needed?:  Seriously needed.   Despite possessing frightening dribbling ability Jonas has never used this to his advantage, flattering to deceive on a weekly basis.  There is a player in him somewhere but his natural lack of aggression and bravery suggests this will never appear.  The tragedy is Ben Arfa suits this role very well but his injury makes it a huge ask to limp along for months in his absence. Hopefully he will return soon, otherwise we will have to grin and bare.
Suggested addition:  Adam Johnson (Manchester City) on loan.

Centre / Attacking Midfield

Current Occupant:  Kevin Nolan
Options:  Joey Barton, Danny Guthrie, Dan Gosling, Harris Vuckic, Ryan Donaldson
First choice quality:  4/5
Cover quality:  3/5
Improvement needed?:  Problematic position.  In certain games Nolan is irreplaceable, and probably the best captain Newcastle have possessed since Shearer, possibly better as a captain all round than even he was. But his poor natural fitness leads to him being carried in too many games – even though his commitment remains unquestioned.  Harris Vuckic is highly rated and could form an excellent long term replacement, but again is finding it hard to break the first team in anything other than cup games.  Guthrie is technically proficient but lacks the dynamism required for the role, Dan Gosling is a possibility although returning from a long term injury nothing should be expected too soon from him.
Suggested addition:  Look from within.

Strikers

Current Occupant:  Andy Carroll / Shola Ameobi
Options:  Nile Ranger, Peter Lovenkrands, Leon Best, Xisco, Harris Vuckic
First choice quality:  4/5
Cover quality:  0/5
Improvement needed?:  Imperative, almost critical.  Newcastle have rode their luck this year with strikers, with Carroll’s seamless adaption to the Premier league and merciful lack of injury avoiding a potentially terminal goal scoring situation which could be pivotal between survival and the drop.  If Carroll was to sustain a serious injury there is simply no viable alternative to replace him within the current stock.  Ameobi has enjoyed patches of a renaissance this season but still has nowhere near the drive or determination to command a regular first team place.  Peter Lovenkrands has struggled to adapt to the Premiership at this time of asking and also the new system of play.  Leon Best looked out of his depth and ineffective in the Championship – little should be expected of him.  As for Xisco….anyone seen him since the Villa home game?
Suggested addition:  Roque Santa Cruz or Jo (Manchester City) on loan. John Carew (Aston Villa) – on loan, Daniel Guiza (Fenerbache), Oscar Cardozo (Benfica).