Quick Hits 30th April 2008

Wednesday, 30 April 2008

Bits 'n' bobs.

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Not all it's cracked up to be...

Tuesday, 29 April 2008

Without putting too fine a point on it, one could be forgiven for suggesting that things are going tits-up at the City of Manchester Stadium.

The signals were there from the very start. As Manchester City boss Sven-Goran Eriksson wheeled out signing after signing last summer, new owner and "gentleman of questionable human rights policy" Thaksin Shinawatra forced his way into every publicity shot going. Bad news.

Let's remind ourselves of City's position this time (roughly) last season. Remember the team which couldn't score at home, even when awarded penalties? Manchester City. The big club plummeting towards the drop? Manchester City. Players beating the living daylights out of one another? Manchester City.

With a manager of Sven's calibre brought in and given a fair amount of cash, expectations were inevitably raised at the club - even more so when the new players seemed to gel instantly, the likes of Elano and Martin Petrov firing them to the right end of the table. But in all seriousness, surely a top-half finish is a massive improvement over a relegation battle in just twelve months?

Striking, then, that Shinawatra and Sven are to part ways at the end of the season. The owner is disappointed with how City have ended the season, so he's axing the man responsible for how they started it. It's ludicrous, and it just confirms that Shinawatra knows (and cares) bugger all about football or Manchester City, and is not a "fit and proper person". There should be some kind of test for that sort of thing...oh.

Anyway, looks like the shit's going to hit the fan. Manchester City fans, by and large, are realistic. They appreciate Sven's achievements this season, and they understand that taking a relegation-embattled side into a Champions League qualifier would take a pretty comprehensive miracle. Shinawatra's actions have been met with understandable fury, and hopefully one or two City fans are starting to realise that this evil caricature is not the kind of man you'd want running your club.

Let's be honest, it's not all about cash. Even if you can un-freeze it. There's ways of running a club, and sacking a successful manager - for failing to meet a challenge which, from day one, was beyond impossible - is not one of them.

I'm sure Sven is looking forward to giving City a hiding someday with his new club. I just hope Man City's fans don't end up ruing his dismissal.

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From the Trinity: Villa goalfest against relegation candidates

Tuesday, 22 April 2008

How does one remedy a month of disappointment and an ailing season?

Martin O'Neill knows. With Aston Villa having seemingly checked out of the season prematurely, abandoning what was still a very credible possibility of Europe, O'Neill's change of system, coupled with a tidy quirk of fixture list fate, has brought Villa right back into the race for the UEFA Cup.

O'Neill's side comfortably dispatched Bolton 4-0 at Villa Park a few weeks ago, with a new midfield diamond operating beautifully well together. The fun, however, had only just begun.

Petrov humiliates Derby

One of the greatest benefits of Villa's new system is the sparkling form of Bulgarian midfielder Stiliyan Petrov at the foot of the diamond. Petrov has been stunning against Bolton, Derby and Birmingham, and it seems down to his comfort in his new position as much as the poor quality of the opposition. Petrov's goal at Pride Park will live long in the memory.

In reality, Derby collapsed after a promising start. Goalkeeper Roy Carroll bottled a catch under pressure from Olof Mellberg, allowing Ashley Young's free-kick to float through his hands for 1-0. Goals followed from John Carew, Petrov, Gareth Barry, Gabriel Agbonlahor and Marlon Harewood on an historical day for Villa. Petrov's was the pick of the bunch, and could well be goal of the season.

Hapless Carroll failed to clear properly, finding the Bulgarian just in front of the half-way line. A controlling touch took Petrov into the centre-circle, from where he launched a left-footed half-volley over the retreating 'keeper into the top corner. It was, in a word, brilliant. And not in a Fast Show way. In a Picasso way. In a Maradona way. In a Hawking way.

6-0 away from home against anyone in the Premier League is an achievement, and has inevitably been ignored given the opposition. But Villa fans appreciated it, and it put us in a superb position as Birmingham City's annual cup final approached.

Normal service resumed

Sunday 20th April 2008 will go down in Villa folklore. Analysed in the cold light of day, Villa did nothing more than put a very poor side to the sword. In the world of football, we put paid to any idea that there is a second club in Birmingham that means a damn.

Derby days are usually nervy affairs. I hate it when we play Blues. In recent seasons, the gulf in class has been obvious but Blues had more fight. Fight wins derbies when only one team possesses it and neither play football. That's why the first few derbies since our unwashed cousins were promoted after a 16-year absence from the top flight went their way.

Even with three wins in the last three derbies, I'd never predict a Villa win in a derby and mean it. Even with Villa eyeing Europe and Blues on their way down, I'd never take that gamble.

Yesterday changed all that, because we now approach the games as we would any other, and we play football. Villa were just wonderful on Sunday as they hammered Birmingham 5-1. Indeed, I was angry as all hell when that albino lad scored for them. Aside from that, Blues did little to threaten us, and we destroyed them.

Olof Mellberg scuffed an assist for Ashley Young to lash in the first early on, and everything just settled down nicely. I was informed by Match of the Day 2 that there was controversy in the run-up to the goal, but what I saw was the surprisingly excellent Mark Clattenberg stopping an altercation and allowing play to continue. The fact that Mehdi Nafti allowed this to knock his concentration is entirely down to his own retarded lack of focus. Still, a TV show which employs that camera-whore tw*t Gavin Peacock isn't worth watching.

John Carew - NOT offside, Peacock - glanced in the second, and Villa went in 2-0 up at half time. One more, and we would be home and dry, and Big John duly obliged. Nerves settled, game over.

To score another two goals was the stuff of dreams. Ashley Young's second of the match was massively entertaining, and Gabby Agbonlahor's was very pleasing on the eye too, especially for eminently-smackable goalkeeper Maik Taylor (who's applauding sarcistically now, Maik?), who watched it crawl into the middle of his goal after wrong-footing himself.

The celebrations for the goals and afterwards were magnificent, and Villa fans now know that we have a team which cares as much as we do. And it's been a long time since we could say that.

A perfect week...almost

I can't let this post go by without thanking Randy Lerner for another amazing gesture. Thanks for the mosaics, Mr Lerner. On top of the derby win and the first match with the mosaics adorning the Holte End, this evening our reserves won their league.

Sadly, this week has been soured by the apparent murder of Villa fan Christopher Priest on Aston Hall Road after the game. You saw Villa beat Small Heath 5-1, and thoughts of that perfect match will be forever linked with your memory. Rest in peace.

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An apology...

...but not an exciting controversial journalisty one, I'm afraid.

Any regular readers of this here humble blog will doubtless have noticed a waning level of content over the last couple of weeks. I'd like to apologise for this, and explain that far from being a loss of interest on my part, or the beginning of the end for TFT, it is simply a matter of workload.

Simply put, for reasons which will remain private I have been working my plums off for the last couple of weeks, and will be for another fortnight or so. But fear not, I shall return to wax lyrical to an audience of one (me), because I love doing it.

To rub salt into the wound, I'd just devised this blog's first editorial calendar, proposing regular (in terms of frequency and timing) features, as any good blogger should be doing. No doubt that's cursed my ability to post regularly...for the time being.

In other news, I've decided to get cracking on another blog. Details to follow, but it should position me as one of the first bloggers of a 'sport' which could well have a big future, or at least a huge influence on the development of young footballers. Watch this space.

Take it easy.

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Quick Hits 17th April 2008

Thursday, 17 April 2008

A few interesting morsels.

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Quick Hits 14th April 2008

Monday, 14 April 2008

Today's linky-clicky things.

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Juventus 3 - 2 AC Milan: Inzaghi double isn't enough

Saturday, 12 April 2008

Juventus and AC Milan served up a stunning advert for Serie A this evening, with Juventus picking up a riveting 3-2 win.

The teams went into the match in Turin six points apart in the table, but in unusually lowly positions - arguably the enduring result of the calciopoli scandal.

Juve, in third at the start of play, are seemingly embroiled in a two-way battle with Fiorentina, while Milan are back in fifth, suffering from terrible home form this season.

A pulsating first half saw the two teams level at 2-2 at the break. Juventus took the lead early on, but Milan quickly turned the game on its head with a double from a man very familiar to the Bianconeri, Pippo Inzaghi.

Just before half time, Juve equalised in controversial circumstances, but one could argue they deserved parity. Mauro Camoranesi was in imperious form, and the legendary Alex del Piero proved once again that he is the master of winning free-kicks as well as taking them.

Paolo Maldini was his usual calm-yet-breathtaking self, and Kaka shone in places for Milan, who lost Daniele Bonera to a red card with 25 minutes left, while Massimo Ambrosini did a noticeable amount of hard work very well in the middle.

The Old Lady had much the better of the opening exchanges, but created little of note until the tenth minute.

On an evening in which he received recognition for his record-breaking appearance for Juve last weekend, Alessandro del Piero burst into the 18-yard-box to grab a neat pass from Mauro Camoranesi and, from the right side of the goal, eight yards out, wrong-footed Milan goalkeeper Zeljko Kalac with a sublime finish across him into the far bottom corner.

Juventus’ lead lasted just three minutes. Pippo Inzaghi missed one superb chance shortly after the restart, but made no mistake with his second bite. Kaka, pressing in from the left wing, played a cute ball across the box for Inzaghi to draw the Rossoneri level with a simple finish.

Having been behind early on, Milan took the lead in the 30th minute. Massimo Ambrosini lobbed the ball into the otherwise empty area towards an onside Daniele Bonera after a Milan corner - resulting from a sliced Seedorf cross which caught Buffon out, causing him to touch over - and Bonera calmly beat the goalkeeper with a pass to Inzaghi. The former Juventus man rolled it home for his second of the evening.

A brilliant game got even better when the feisty del Piero nicked the ball from Paolo Maldini, who had been majestic at times during the first half, on Juve’s right, setting up Camoranesi to send a teasing cross into an unusually quiet David Trezeguet. Kalac saved the header, but Hasan Salihamidzic tucked in the equaliser from a seemingly offside position. Replays were inconclusive. Regardless, the goal stood and the teams went in level at the break.

In the 65th minute, Bonera saw red for a sickening challenge on Sissoko, seemingly in retribution for a couple of refereeing decisions which went the Bianconeri’s way. The sending off was fully justified. Bonera’s tackle was high, late and vicious, and studs were raised. Sissoko was extremely lucky to have not been badly injured by what was a deliberate and very nasty foul. Inzaghi, on a hat-trick, made way as Cafu came on to replace the full-back.

With ten to go, Salihimidzic headed in his second and Juve’s third from a wonderfully delivered Camoranesi free-kick, conceded to the right of the box by Maldini.

Until then, Milan had played the 10 v 11 game well, holding the ball up and attacking whenever possible. Chances were few and far between though, and with the Old Lady now in the lead, it looked as if it might be asking too much of the Rossoneri to equalise for a second time.

Alex del Piero should have sealed it right on the stroke of the 90th minute, but Kalac merely had to stand strong to block his close-range volley. The Bianconeri did well to see out the final five minutes plus five minutes’ tense stoppage time, and a 3-2 win over the team with the best away record on the league is not too shabby.

Italian football is often derided in England for being boring and defensive, and it certainly earned that reputation once upon a time. But it’s nothing if not exciting and stylish these days, and with players like Palermo’s Amauri, Adrian Mutu of Fiorentina and Ezequiel Lavezzi at Napoli, Serie A is as entertaining as I’ve known it. Tonight’s match was just one example, but it was simply mouth-watering.

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Pundit Watch: Clive Tyldesley

Friday, 11 April 2008

I've been thinking about introducing this feature for a while now, so how appropriate that while watching Liverpool's win over Arsenal in Tuesday's Champions League game, one man from the guild of pundits/commentators/experts - the target area of this new feature - got right on my wick.

Clive Tyldesley, ITV

Clive Tyldesley has a mixed reputation. Some fans view him as an eloquent, articulate football thinker. He's been plugging away for years, and having played second fiddle to countless commentators at the BBC and at ITV, he's finally established himself in the last decade or so as ITV's top man.

Me...I'm not a fan. He irritates me greatly.

Tyldesley's commentary style is that of a man who knows he's not as good as people think he is. He is desperately preparing his "they think it's all over" moment, and that gives him an aura of a man scrambling to prove himself - and not in a good way. His constant attempts to become a legendary soundbite leads to wooden, scripted and convoluted commentary, and I really don't like it at all.

It's like listening to Nigel Winterburn running a cat's nails down a blackboard: bloody annoying.

But the facet of big Clive's performances which make him so very, very vomit-inspiring, is his bias. And believe me, that's not too strong a word. Listening to him on Tuesday, you'd be forgiven for thinking that Arsenal were not even present at Anfield. It was the Liverpool show, and we were treated to cliche after cliche which confirmed - at least to the commentator - that scousers are all wonderful, passionate people, and everyone else is crap. Deeply ironic, I'm sure you'll agree.

So while Tyldesley next eulogises about the wonders of YNWA, just think...isn't this guy supposed to cover both teams?

Pundit Watch verdict: D-

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Quick Hits 11th April 2008

News and views.

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From the Trinity: March misery

Thursday, 10 April 2008

Not so bright at Villa Park, March. Aston Villa seemed to switch off for season-end while they still had something to play for - namely Europe, at the time - and the results consequently dipped. And then some.

More of that later. I had a feeling after the drubbing by Manchester United that Villa might just have been beaten into waking up.

All credit to Martin O'Neill and the players, they proved me absolutely right in a game which could so easily have gone wrong.

Villa turn on the style

With Villa in terrible form and Bolton Wanderers visiting in the throes of a relegation battle, many Villa fans expected the worst. O'Neill's side had little to play for, a situation of their own making. And in that position, Villa tend to get rolled over. Sunderland proved this in the previous home game.

But with a kicking from United fresh in the memory, it seemed that the players decided to remember what has made them so exciting to watch for large parts of this season. From the first whistle, the team just clicked. It was thrilling to watch, Villa were in fine attacking, flowing rhythm, and Bolton simply couldn't cope. In all honesty, we could have had ten.

Ashley Young began a brilliant performance in his new floating role by skipping past Bolton's right back with such cheek that Cristiano Ronaldo himself would have been impressed. A perfect cross found skipper Gareth Barry, who thumped a header past Jaaskelainen.

The goal seemed to launch Barry into a superb captain's performance, the likes of which we've not seen from him for months. Combined with the new-look midfield system, netting in such style turned Barry into the quality player we all know he is. He pinged the ball around like nobody's business, got stuck in, and when Barry's on fire, Villa are on fire.

The second goal will be talked about at Villa Park for years, and had it been scored by Arsenal we would be hearing about it in the press constantly at the moment. It was magical, aggressive, lightning counter-attacking, one-touch football at its very, very best. As the ball made its way into the box, Gabriel Agbonlahor was not the favourite to win the ball, but he nabbed his first goal in 2008, showing great pace and killer instinct to beat his man and flick the ball past the goalkeeper with the outside of his right foot.

Cue Villa Park party.

Gareth Barry grabbed a fortuitous third, before substitute and cult hero Marlon Harewood escaped a flimsy offside trap to tuck a composed header into the corner. Villa had scored four yet again, and the season might just end with a bang.

Midfield shake-up

But the result was not the most exciting thing about the Bolton game. The performance was excellent. Stiliyan Petrov and Wilfred Bouma played their best games so far for the Villa, and Gareth Barry and Ashley Young were both hard-working and incisive.

The new-look midfield, though, was the key. Villa's form has been stale, but O'Neill dropped Shaun Maloney and re-jigged the set-up in the middle of the park, and it worked a treat.

Stiliyan Petrov was exceptional in his position at the base of the diamond, putting in a perfect pivot performance behind Gareth Barry and Nigel Reo-Coker. Petrov tackled and passed brilliantly, and played with a bunch of energy. Reo-Coker put in a decent enough shift for once, and Barry was great for the first time in ages.

Ahead of that trio, Ashley Young played a free role, popping up on both flanks and in the middle, to brilliant effect. Of course, he was at his most deadly on the left.

Month of disappointment

After picking up a hard-earned but ultimately heartbreaking point at Arsenal, Villa embarked upon their most disappointing set of performances of the season, with the results to match. The draw with Middlesbrough and defeat to Sunderland were the worst 180 minutes of football I've seen at Villa Park under O'Neill, and signalled the end of our competitive interest this season.

Between them, two shocking errors from Scott Carson confirmed a disappointing loss at Fratton Park. At the end of March, while I was in Barcelona trying desperately to avoid all contact with the football world, Villa slumped to their customary hammering at Old Trafford, this time 4-0. I still know next to nothing about that match. Let's keep it that way.

Acorns

Finally, rumours abound that Villa are set to shun sponsorship money for a year or two, preferring to emblazen their shirts with the logo of the local Acorns Hospice, a definite pet charity of the club.

Everyone knows that Barcelona have done a similar thing with Unicef, but let's face it Unicef are hardly a local hospice. This would be ground-breaking.

Of course it is a commercial decision too. Firstly, the positive publicity would be voluminous and priceless. Secondly, this is a chance to support a local charity while implementing a plan for success. If, in three years' time for example, Villa were in the Champions League, the sponsorship deal possible would be far more useful than the relatively small contribution a commercial sponsor would make currently.

Good PR, plus success on the pitch, equals a better deal in the long run. Simple. Beautiful.

Next up, Derby away. Then some amateur prison side is visiting Villa Park on April 20th. Joy.

Come on you Lions!

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Quick Hits 9th April 2008

Wednesday, 9 April 2008

News from around the footballing globe. Well...England. Mostly.

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Businessman Marc Jackson has Bournemouth bid accepted

Tuesday, 8 April 2008

AFC Bournemouth have been saved, at least for the time being.

As I discussed earlier this week, the Dorset club has been staring extinction in the face even more intently than normal recently, and the urgency of finding a buyer was, thankfully, overwhelmingly apparent to Gerald Krasner, figurehead of the club's administrators.

Today's news that Marc Jackson, a businessman who last week pulled out of a consortium headed by Cherries chair Jeff Mostyn, has been left as the only potential buyer after a bid by Mostyn was deemed unacceptable by the joint administrators, is probably being welcomed in Bournemouth.

While Mostyn has undoubtedly kept the club going in the very short-term, I've noticed a few fans - particularly in the comments section of the news story linked - hinting at his culpability for Bournemouth's current state. That said, he's just one of many people to blame.

For his part, Jackson has moved quickly to reassure Cherries fans that his consortium knows what it's doing, unlike a long list of predecessors. His plans are "visionary, strategic and sustainable", and while this will do little to convince supporters that he is not simply another owner coming in to extend the club's life expectancy by a season or two, it is surely a good sign.

Jackson has until Monday to complete his consortium's purchase of AFC Bournemouth.

I think it's a shame that no mega-rich benefactor saw potential in the club and came in to guarantee their long-term security. But the removal of Jeff Mostyn is a benefit, and I don't mean that in an overly-critical way. I'm just a big believer in clean breaks.

Jackson talks the talk. He's got one hell of a job on his hands to prove to us all that he can walk.

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Quick Hits 8th April 2008

Interesting reads from the football digital media.

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Doug coastbound?

Sunday, 6 April 2008

Strange how football throws up some odd quirks of fate, isn't it?

I suppose you could call AFC Bournemouth my second club, but in reality it's a bit more than that. I've been to something in the region of 200 Bournemouth matches. I grew up there. I almost love the club as if it were my own.

For the uninitiated, the Cherries are in what can only be described as deepest darkest shit.

Having been rescued by the fans at a meeting at the town's Winter Gardens venue in 1997, the club has been struggling for a foothold ever since.

The situation came to a head earlier this year. Bournemouth's battle against relegation on the pitch was nullified as the board became unable to prevent the Cherries slipping into administration - attracting the mandatory 10-point penalty in the process. The knight in shining armour has proven elusive.

The club is saddled with debt - for absolutely-not-Harry-Redknapp-related reasons so heavily discussed that I shan't go into them again - and given that they are certain to drop into the bottom tier of league football, the attraction just isn't there. It probably never was.

I've written elsewhere about this subject. AFC Bournemouth is fast becoming unloved. The true supporters are dedicated, but small in number. For the rest of their income, the club relies on second-hand supporters - like me I suppose. The town is rife with Bournemouth-born supporters of the usual suspects, namely Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea, as well as being home to a huge number of Southampton supporters.

It seems having such a big club so easily accessible nearby has done a lot of damage to AFC Bournemouth, and the second-hand fans are losing interest, because they've 'already saved Bournemouth once' and the club has begun to drop like a stone.

Anyway, long story short: there has been no 'local businessman' willing to save them. There is no consortium led by an ex-legend. There's no philanthropist willing to save what is, in all honesty, a wonderful little club.

Or is there?

Here's the twist of fate. Doug Ellis, who owned my club for my whole lifetime until the middle of 2006, is rumoured to be interested in buying AFC Bournemouth. Apparently he can't stand by and watch a club go to the wall. Everyone who knows me will expect the same reaction. They'll expect seething anger, massive scepticism and a palpable sense of foreboding.

Wrong.

Despite years of moaning and the occasional protest march, I could not think of a better resolution to Bournemouth's situation than to be bought by Doug Ellis. He was absolutely not right for Villa. But in their current situation, he's perfect for Bournemouth.

His failings at Villa are well-documented, from awarding building contracts to 'familiar' firms, to treating the fans with contempt. His biggest crime of all was repeatedly failing to push on after the team, under various managers, provided a springboard time and again. He did, however, get two things very, very right. First, he held out in the face of huge criticism to sell to the right buyer at the right time. And more relevant in this case, he ran an extremely tight ship.

That's why he's the perfect buyer for AFC Bournemouth. They only need one thing right now, and that thing is financial stability. If there's one man who knows how to provide it, it's Doug Ellis. He's also extremely wealthy and, whatever I've said about him in the past, he's got football in his blood. And believe me, I feel dirty saying that.

So...Doug takes his many millions down to the coast and saves Bournemouth. There would be enough left over to do magical things, but in reality at best he'll spend enough to get them into the Championship over the course of several years. He gets involvement in football - his lifeblood, let's face it - for the remainder of his retirement. Bournemouth are saved, and progress. Regardless, he'd leave them financially sound, in terms of both investment (which he failed to do at Villa, but we're talking small amounts here) and strategy.

I'm struggling to find a negative. That may surprise a few. I'm hoping there's some substance to these rumours, it's just a top idea all round.

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Attackers v Defenders is nothing new

I often disagree with bloggers. The web is an arena in which, as writers, we have more movement in terms of expressing our personal opinions. We can utilise large slices of bias and we can be hyper-critical of players, authorities and clubs.

Independent bloggers can, by and large, write exactly what we like, when we like. We do not fall into an editorial agenda, and we are responsible for our own words.

On the flipside, I rarely become so infuriated by a piece in a magazine that I simply must post a retort.

On the Villa-bound train yesterday, I was thumbing my way through the April issue of World Soccer, a generally excellent monthly dose of information and opinion on the state of the global game. Contributions from the likes of Tim Vickery give it undoubted credibility, and the standard of journalism is high.

High, that is, until I came across 'Dribbling away', an opinion piece by Paul Gardner. I've never heard of Gardner, but judging by the accompanying photograph (which, presumably, he either provided to WS or at least endorsed), he gives off a sense of faux-pensive self-importance. This was confirmed by the article which, as it turned out, is random, unnecessary, and a load of bollocks.

Gardner's over-arching argument in this piece is that football is allowing the physicality of defenders, and the criticism of attackers who 'disrespect' defenders by humiliating them with skill, to drive out inventiveness and skill in modern football.

By now, you should be seeing the first issue I have with this article. A more cynical blogger than myself might suspect that, in suggesting that physicality and tackling is winning the battle against skill and speed (do we not spend much of our time arguing that football is becoming a non-contact sport?), he is simply seeking to make a name for himself by going against the crowd. In the world of the bulletin-board, he would be accused of posting for effect.

The most sickening thing about Gardner's article is that he hangs the entire argument on Martin Taylor's foul on Eduardo da Silva, which left the Arsenal striker with an horrific leg injury:

"The trend touched inevitable depths with the appalling foul by Martin Taylor that shattered Eduardo's leg. The extent to which defenders have gained the upper ground was apparent in the chorus of expert opinion that sought to excuse the Birmingham player. We were told the foul wasn't that bad, that it was just one of those things. There was even the implication that it was the Arsenal player's fault for being "too quick" for Taylor."

Clearly, Paul Gardner is a master in the art of reading what you want to read and hearing what you want to hear.

Nobody has argued that Taylor's foul was anything other than dangerous and out of order. But the injury which resulted was 'just one of those things'. We have seen countless worse tackles this season: Ashley Cole, Ricardo Carvalho and Peter Crouch are just three culprits. We even saw one in the recent FA Youth Cup semi-final between Aston Villa and Chelsea. All were worse, all fortunately did not result in the kind of injury suffered by Eduardo.

Furthermore, nobody has implied that the foul and/or injury was Eduardo's fault. Experts - and that's what they are, Mr Gardner - merely analysed what actually happened rather than the demonic vision some have invented in the month or so since. Eduardo's skill took the ball away and left him vulnerable to a lunging, lumbering defender's awful tackle. On another day, Eduardo's leg would not have been straight and planted on the ground.

I repeat, Martin Taylor's foul is not the worst we have seen this season.

Attacking is most certainly not being driven out of the game, at least by anyone other than negative coaches. Defenders' increased physicality and attackers' diving (Ronaldo's picture is a coincidence, I promise), which Gardner wrongly trivialises, are part of an ongoing, age-old battle for supremacy between attackers and defenders. Most fans lament the lack of physicality.

Regardless, the use of an incident which left one man fighting for his career and another scarred mentally by his own clumsiness for what appears to be nothing other than journalistic capital is questionable at best. But the extrapolation made by Gardner is simply ludicrous. What we wouldn't give for a game in which defenders were allowed to tackle!

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About

twofootedtackle is a football blog edited by Chris Nee. It covers all areas of football, with a special focus on the Premier League and Major League Soccer.

The podcast, co-presented by Chris Nee and Gary Andrews, is available via iTunes every Wednesday.

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