EPL, England, Europe, Features, Ian John, Leagues, Regions POSTS

Some observations from the past weekend…

Published by Ian John on March 29, 2010

1. ARSENE WENGER MUST BE RUEING NOT BUYING A KEEPER IN THE JANUARY TRANSFER WINDOW : Poor old Arsenal, winning 1-0 in the final moments of their game with Birmingham and Manuel Almunia produces a monumental gaffe to hand, or palm timidly, a draw to Birmingham City. The result put Arsenal 4 points behind United at the end of United’s 4-0 demolition of Bolton. The thing is, its been coming a while as any Arsenal fan will tell you. Spending some of that money in the bank account on a Igor Akinfeev or even a Joe Hart would have made a good deal of sense.

2. DO CHELSEA NEED DROGBA? : 5-0 at Portsmouth followed by 7-1 at home against Aston Villa, the latter withou the Ivory Coast striker. Hugely impressive by Carlo Ancelotti’s men who not only overturned Man Utd’s goal difference advantage, but rested the big striker ahead of next weeks crucial clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford and let us remember United have a crucial Champions League clash in the week against Bayern Munich. It should be interesting.

3. AM I THE ONLY ONE NOT GETTING CARRIED AWAY WITH LIVERPOOL’S WIN OVER SUNDERLAND? Ok it was a good performance, against an admittedly below par Sunderland, but there was still plenty to address. The wastefulness in front of goal which has beleaguered the team all season was still very much in evidence. You can’t help feeling that a Chelsea or Manchester United would have had six or seven against Sunderland playing like that. Surprisingly, Liverpool looked much better without Lucas Leiva in the team, with two attackers and Gerrard back in his preferred midfield role. Who’d have thought it, eh?

4. J-LLOYD SAMUEL IS A BERK : I mean really,that was an effort as a clearance was it? United have had 11 own goals this season. As much as Rooney has done for them, it may well be that little statistic which gets them the league title. You really don’t need to give a team like United any help whatsoever.

5. ROONEY’S KNEE IS A WORRY : If it is flaring up after games then the last thing we need, as an England fan, is him going to the World Cup less than half fit. The answer of course is for him to rest and that is about as likely to happen in the next few games for United as Sir Alex Ferguson resigning his post in May to take over at Anfield. Bayern Munich, Chelsea and then the return leg against Bayern Munich is going to be a real test of Rooney’s knee in the next week or so.

6. I HAVE SYMPATHY WITH ZOLA AND I LIKE HIM IMMENSELY BUT… It wasn’t the ideal situation he took over at West Ham. He had a General Manager buying him players, a squad that he hadn’t put together, no money (and even less when the Icelandic banks collapsed). He’s had to bring in players on the cheap and the result is somewhat inevitable. Then you get a new chairman, David Sullivan, who does enjoy the sound of his own voice and self-endorsed proclamations of true fandom, who likes to openly criticise the players and teams whenever possible, just to keep his svelt Oompa Lumpah frame in the newspaper. Given time, money and proper support, Zola can turn it around but I don’t think he will get any of them at West Ham, especially with the way his team is performing at the moment.

7. THE MOST IMPROVED PLAYER IN THE PREMIER LEAGUE THIS SEASON? I know Darren Fletcher has his fans but he was excellent last season too. For my money, the player who I think has really gone on to a new level this season is Florent Malouda. A couple of years back, he’d have been the first player I’d have shipped out of the club. Now, I think he is as key to the team as the likes of Lampard and Drogba.

8. ROLL ON SATURDAY… Manchester United v Chelsea. Enough said.

Image Courtesy of ***Bill Boaden *** on Flickr.com

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