Lukaku Signs!, but Celtic fall to defeat in Poland

Half way through the pre-season preview for the Scottish season. Hoping to have it up tomorrow or Saturday. Possibly another Football Re-Heated on the horizon as I again try and put a format together that works.

I've been thinking that I might make the blog a bit more like Scott Keith's excellent "Blog Of Doom", whereby rather than doing an article every time, I just throw the odd titbit out now and then. I'm possibly also looking at having "guest articles" as well. Got an idea for one? Leave a comment below or send me an email.

So yeah, the big news on the back of my English Preview is that Everton have only gone and bought Romelu Lukaku for 28 Million! I'm chuffed that he's signed as it shows a real sign of intent from the club. Of course, certain hacks at certain newspapers *Cough* The Mirror *Cough*, have decided to denigrate the club and the signing itself. Methinks some feathers have been ruffled!


Sad news for Celtic as they got hammered 4-1 in Poland by Legia Warsaw

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/celtic-boss-ronny-deila-admits-3940221

That, as you can imagine, has made some changes to the tone of the Season Preview article, which has delayed things slightly and caused a re-write


Finally, big thanks to Groucho at the Grand Old Team forum for some info regarding the Muhammed Besic signing that helped me look a little less like a maudlin fool. Cheers Pal!

That's all for now

Peace Out!

This and That: Looking at the upcoming English Premier League Season

With the new English and Scottish Football Season’s peeking over the horizon, I thought I’d give some quick musings as both a way of making use of my free time while also, hopefully, writing something informative and entertaining. Best laid plans and all that.

English Premier League

I’ve designated both Manchester City and Chelsea as favourites for the title this year, which is ironically what I did last year as well, with a chasing pack of Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool behind them.

Whether Liverpool will be able to mount a title challenge without Luis Suarez in their ranks remains to be seen. It would be easy to write them off as title contenders thanks in part to Suarez leaving and also the increased pressure of European competition. However, never underestimate Liverpool Football Club’s penchant for annoying me. It would be foolish to write them off, especially after how close they came last year.

Arsenal are a team I will happily write off immediately. I can say with pretty much 99% confidence that they will not win the League this year. In fact I will say that they will never win the League again as long as Arsene Wenger is their manager. The FA Cup win, rather than being an impetus that invigorates Wenger to have a genuine crack at the Title, will instead end up being the pacifier in which he uses to soothe The Gooner moaning throughout this season when Arsenal inevitably find themselves out of the Title Hunt by March. Combine this with them collapsing against the first Top Team they face in The Champions League knock outs, before scraping Fourth in the League and you pretty much have Arsenal’s trajectory for this season, and every season thereafter until Wenger finally leaves his position. Oh well, watching The Gooner’s complain will provide ample entertainment at least.

Manchester United is a bit of a different animal this year and I’m finding it hard to predict what will happen with them. Based on the squad they have and in conjunction with their ambitious new manager in Louis Van Gaal, you’d think that they would be nailed on for a top four finish. Whether that happens or not though remains to be seen. It’s not out of the question that they could win the title but I'm thinking more likely they’ll finish just outside of the Top Two after a decent stab of it.

Chelsea are a genuine threat this season in my opinion. Jose Mourinho has bought relatively well and appears to have a team capable of winning the League this year. Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas are “name” players who appear to be what the side is looking for, that being a 15-20 goal a season striker and a midfield anchor. Bringing Didier Drogba back for another go around seems like a reasonable step as well. Despite being another year older, Drogba still has yet to lose the predatory instincts in front of goal that make him such a threat, although one imagines that he’ll be more of a backup option this season.

Having new boy Van Gaal in the house may actually assist Mourinho in some ways as there will be slightly less focus on him. Some may scoff at the idea of Mourinho quietly getting on with things in the background while Van Gaal, Wenger and Brendon Rodgers soak up the press attention. But hey, first time for everything right?

Manchester City, defending Champions and still sickeningly loaded with “name” players, look very capable of defending their title. The fact that Yaya Toure seems to have shut down the rumours that he wants to move on will no doubt boost City’s title hopes. Toure was the driving force for City last season and would have been a very difficult player to replace. I’ll be honest and say that I lost quite a lot of respect for him during the summer saga that unfolded where his agent complained that the club hadn’t wished him Happy Birthday to a satisfactory enough level and that he wanted to leave as a result.

It didn’t help that he then insinuated that the club had refused him the right to visit his mortally ill brother and demanded he partake in the post-season tour. Firstly, I sincerely doubt that Manchester City would, or indeed even could, do that to their star player. Secondly, even if they did do that, to publically air it in an attempt to force a move struck me as being in particular poor taste from the man. I’m hardly a City fan but I’d be shocked if the club had been as unpleasant as Toure and his agent had accused them of being.

Regardless, it seems like Toure is sticking around and no doubt everything will be forgotten if he ends up playing a deciding factor in City picking up another League Title. You’d have to think that City, even with falling afoul of Financial Fair Play rules, will be in the title mix not just this season but for many other seasons in the future. There’s a genuine chance that they might start collecting a considerable League Title haul in the next few years. They’ve already got two and it wouldn’t surprise me if they added a third this season.

And what of the rest, including my beloved Everton? Though disappointing that the Blues were unable to get over the fourth place line last season, there were enough positive signs that I was generally happy come the end of the season. Securing Fifth place and bringing European nights back to Goodison Park was certainly a good achievement for Roberto Martinez in his first season as manager. The signings of Gareth Barry and Muhammed Besic have been a bonus but, as of the writing of this, the club is still yet to officially sign anyone else.

Romelu Lukaku seems like he's far off from joining the club at this point and I’m starting to worry the signings that Everton need to make will be made long after the opening game against Leicester, if they are made at all. Considering that Everton have to play both Arsenal and Chelsea before the close of the transfer window, I’m genuinely worried that things are going to get quite ugly at the start of this season. Obviously, I hope to be proven wrong. To have Lukaku, Henen and possibly another couple of players all under contract before the trip to the King Power Stadium on the 16th August seems like a far off impossible dream. But hey, maybe the club will surprise us?

As for Tottenham Hotspur, I just don’t know with them anymore. For the past 3-4 seasons they’ve had genuine chances to break into the Top Four club and get “juiced in” as one of the big boys, but they just haven’t been able to get over the hump. Constant instability at the club, be it in regards to managerial appointments or playing staff, has left them far off from where they want to be. The sacking of AVB in particular seemingly made no sense. Once again, Villas-Boas came into a club with a mandate for a fresh start only to have it pulled away by people above him in the pecking order. Will Spurs be top four this season? I have to think that with Liverpool riding the wave of last season and with Man United bringing in Van Gaal that it will be a big ask of the London club.

In regards to Southampton, it’s interesting that the Titanic set off from Southampton docks, as Southampton FC is looking about as watertight as that aforementioned vessel. And that’s after it hit the iceberg! I have no idea what’s going on at that club. It doesn’t make any sense. You have the best season you’ve ever had in the Premiership, so you sell all your best players in one window. Madness. Unbridled, unabashed, unashamed and down right unbelievable MADNESS. I worry for them this season, I really do.

I also worry for Aston Villa. An historic club in a state of flux. The summer signings don’t seem to suggest that the club is looking upward. If anything, it looks like Villa would take a sixteenth place finish at the moment. I’m rooting for The Villains, if only because their situation reminds me a bit too much of Everton pre-2002. The similarities are striking and are hitting a bit too close to home for my liking. Here’s hoping they don’t get relegated. A Premier League without the Claret and Blue would be a lesser one in my opinion.

That’s enough for now I think. I’ll be back looking at Scotland in the next day or so.

Peace Out

Football Re-Heated: Newcastle United Vs Arsenal - 5th February 2011 - Barclays Premier League

Football Re-Heated: Newcastle Vs Arsenal – 5^th February 2011 – Barclays Premier League

We’re back with another Football Re-Heated, as I stick another match in the microwave for a review. Not literally of course. I don’t have a microwave. Not since The Great Plastic Tupperware Chilli Explosion of 2008.

Anyway, enough tired gags, to the review-mobile!

Back-story

This is a somewhat infamous match from 3 seasons back. Newcastle at the time were having a less than glamorous season in the Premiership. Things had only been compounded by the shock sale of Andy Carrol to Liverpool for 35 Million. Carrol had been the team’s main goal getter. Not only was Carrol sold so close to the end of the transfer window that beleaguered manager Alan “Glasgow Kiss” Pardew had no time to replace him, but there was a genuine fear amongst the Geordie fan base that the money wouldn’t be put back into the club at all. This was the first match at St James Park since Carrol had flown the magpies coup (Sorry, too delicious a pun to avoid) and the atmosphere was frosty to Mike Ashley and co to say the least.

Meanwhile, Arsenal were in the midst of a hot streak. They had reached the League Cup Final and were ready to face off with Barcelona in the Champions League. On top of that they were also still firmly in the title hunt. During the summer they’d managed to retain the services of club captain Cesc Fabregas and young players like Theo Walcott and Jack Wilshire were starting to come into their own. Things were looking bright for the Gunners while things couldn’t have been darker for the Toon Army.

This is the official club release I’m watching. I’m not sure who is providing commentary as the commentators names are never shown. Picture quality and sound are fine.

Newcastle Starting Line-Up

01: Steve Harper

12: Danny Simpson

06: Mike Williamson

02: Fabricio Coloccini

03: Jose Enrique

07: Joey Barton

04: Kevin Nolan (Captain)

24: Cheick Tiote

18: Jonas Gutierrez

20: Leon Best

11: Peter Lovenkrands

Arsenal Starting Line-Up

53: Wojech Szczesny

03: Bacary Sagna

06: Laurent Koscielny

20: Johan Djourou

22: Gael Clichy

02: Abou Diaby

19: Jack Wilshire

14: Theo Walcott

04: Cesc Fabregas (Captain)

23: Andrei Arshavin

10: Robin van Persie

This is the third meeting between the teams so far in the season. Newcastle won at the Emirates, a result of a Carrol goal, while Arsenal defeated Newcastle in a League Cup Fixture.

Your referee is Phil Dowd.

First Half

Arsenal waste no time absolutely cleaving Newcastle apart with some incisive passing. A through ball is played to Walcott, who out runs Coloccini and slots the ball calmly past Harper and Arsenal are 1-0 within the first minute! Oh dear, this could be a long 90 minutes for Newcastle.

Arsenal keep up the pressure and a couple of minutes later Fabregas wins a soft free kick down the left hand side of the field, about 15 yards from the edge of the box. Arshavin plays a beauty of a ball into the box and Djourou gets a looping header over a helpless Harper into the goal. Nolan and Williamson were no where to be seen there. 3 minutes gone and it’s 2-0 to The Gunners. Good grief.

Despite going 2 down so quickly, Newcastle are surprisingly calm. Of course, it could be that they’re more in shock than anything else, Arsenal have completely cut them to pieces in a matter of minutes. The Arsenal players pass the ball amongst themselves without too much trouble and look comfortable. Newcastle enjoy the odd short burst of possession but nothing comes of it.

Arsenal then make things even worse for their accommodating hosts by scoring a third. The movement starts in their own half with Szczesny. He passes it to Koscielny who starts moving it down field. After a series of passes it ends up with Walcott on the right wing who crosses it in to RVP in the box who tucks it away with absolute ease. Sublime finishing from the Dutchman there. Milhouse’s uncle might not approve of him, but he scored a cracking goal just then! The destruction of Newcastle here has almost been effortless from Arsenal.

Again though, Newcastle resist the urge to start panicking. They are struggling but you can see that they’re trying to formulate a considered response to this. They’re not backing away to maintain a respectable score and they’re not making mad forays down the pitch either. They’re trying to hold on to some form of composure and play themselves out of danger.

Arsenal continue to make attacks. Despite their relative calmness, Newcastle just don’t seem to have an answer to this. The Newcastle supporters are furious. You can literally hear them fizzing in their seats, like an Alka-Seltzer in a glass of water. Newcastle attempt an attack but it ultimately comes to nothing, Lovenkrand's cross is cleared without much bother. They have another chance from a Joey Barton corner but Nolan isn’t able to put a decent header on it.

There’s still some spirit in this Newcastle side, that’s for sure. They’re still willing to fight but normal service some resumes as Arsenal maintain control with some lovely stuff.  Wilshire in particular performs some very tidy flicks and passes. It seems only a matter of time before Arsenal score again and, indeed, with 26 minutes gone, the 4^th goal is tucked away in Harper’s goal. Sagna crosses the ball from the right and RVP is there to bury the header. He was allowed just oodles of space for that. He can’t believe his luck! The words “fish”, “shooting” and “barrel” come to mind while watching the replay of that.

It’s at this time that some of the Newcastle support decide they’ve seen enough and start making their way to the exits. There’s one lad in a blue top who is pacing by the exit with a facial expression that is best described as a cross between a burning rage and pure abject misery. He shakes his head in absolute disbelief. Feel for him actually, we’ve all been there as a football supporter at one time or another. That being said, despite a few supporters leaving, there is by no means a mass exodus from the ground, which you could probably justify in a situation like this.

The Newcastle players still seem to have not got the memo though and they continue to hold onto what’s left of their composure. They almost nick a goal in fact. Gutierrez plays a nice cross into Best, who managers to get a touch on it but Clichy is able to block it and send it out for a corner, which ultimately leads to nothing.

There’s a litany of crowd shots now as the DVD both highlights The Gunners jauntiness and milks The Magpies misery. We also get a shot of Faustino Asprilla sitting in the crowd as well. He must be wondering what the heck is going on. The commentators have completely written Newcastle off here, and can you blame them?

Newcastle do manage to end the half relatively well. They continue to look for a goal and don’t let their heads drop too muck. They are very much looking for some way back into this and haven’t thrown up the white flag. Arsenal seem content with the 4-0 lead and ease off a little with halftime on the horizon. Walcott’s pace continues to cause Newcastle problems but it doesn’t lead to any more goals and we go into the interval with the score 4-0 to The Arsenal.

Second Half

No changes from Pardew as we start the second half. That’s either a show of faith in his starting XI or an admission that he has no better alternative on the bench. A vocal section of the Newcastle support kindly request Mike Ashley thus remove himself from their club. They say it a little less politely of course.

Newcastle start the second half the same way they finished the first one. Djourou comes off near the beginning of the half for Squillaci.

Newcastle ramp up the physicality at this point. Simpson chops down Wilshire, Fabregas gets roughly fouled by Lovenkrands, hurting his shoulder in the process and then the turning point in the match happens. Barton drills Diaby with a relatively unpleasant challenge and Diaby promptly shoves him down. Phil Dowd quickly gets his cards out and Diaby is sent for an early bath in one of the softer red cards you’ll see. Barton made a meal of that shove but Diaby is a professional and should have kept his cool. Had he not reacted there, he’d still be on the pitch and Barton would have likely got a yellow card. As it is, Arsenal are now a man down. Neither man comes out of that exchange looking too good though, it must be said.

The sending off has fanned the wind very much towards Newcastle’s sails. They begin to mount a number of attacks as Arsenal seem to shrink under the new found intensity of the contest. Tiote starts getting the better of things in the Arsenal midfield. Arsenal’s response is to start sniding. Thus the diving and the play acting begins. I can’t help but smile when Arsene Wenger complains about gamesmanship, I really can’t. his lot dive so much sometimes you’d think Tom Daley was going to be their new signing.

Tiote is running this in the middle of the park now as Arsenal don’t seem to have an answer for him. Well, they don’t seem to have a legal answer for him anyway. Newcastle finally get the crowd back into things as Simpson has a cracking shot that forces a save from Szczesny. The resulting corner comes to nothing, but you can sense that the Newcastle players are starting to believe they can pull one back. Newcastle are playing without fear, where as Arsenal are more pensive.

On the hour mark, Arsenal eventually manage to compose themselves and starting moving the ball around again, in an attempt to take the slowly resurgent crowd out of things. The fizz of anger has now been replaced by a buzz of hope. Despite getting a handle of things again, Arsenal make little use of it and don’t look too bothered about getting a 5^th goal in.

Newcastle continue to play their game, despite the seconds ticking away. They don’t throw everyone up and risk getting exposed. They just never give up and look for an opening of some sort, and with 25 minutes left to play, they get one.

Barton plays a good corner into the box and Best goes to ground after a tangle with Koscielny and Dowd points to the penalty spot. Pretty soft pen in all honesty. At worst they was a light push there. Still, as a defender your job is to try and not give the attacker an excuse to go down, and that didn’t happen here. Still, Arsenal can feel hard done by with that one. Barton slots the penalty away and Newcastle have a goal on the scoreboard with 22 minutes to go. Arsenals lack of composure comes to the fore now as Szczesny refuses to give the ball back to Barton, at which point he is promptly given a stiff lariat by Nolan. Amazingly, it’s Szczesny who gets booked after that! Nolan somehow escapes without a caution. Madness! Even Stan Hansen would have approved of that strike from Nolan, thus was the velocity upon which he hit it.

Buoyed by the crowd, Newcastle continue to attack and it pays dividends. Set pieces are the area where they cause Arsenal the most issues. Williamson gets a good header from a Barton corner which forces a save from Szczesny. Newcastle then have a goal disallowed. The linesman raises his flag but Leon Best was most certainly onside.

Arsenal are on the back foot now as the momentum has swung to the side of Newcastle. Enrique plays a peach of a cross down the left to Best, who manages to control it and slot it past Szczesny to make it 4-2. Wenger is starting to sweat now!

The supporters are starting to believe and it has transferred down to the players. Best has played very well in this second half, as have Barton and Nolan. Nile Ranger comes on as a sub for Newcaste and forces Szczesny into another save. The crowd is very much back in this now, as are Newcastle.

Newcastle now get chance after chance, as the fans cheer each attempt at goal. Wenger decides to take off Walcott and bring on Eboue, which looks to be a substitution with defensive intentions.

Arsenal are completely penned in and don’t seem to have a plan for changing that. The home crowd are certainly playing their part now and Dowd is starting to dance to their tune. Indeed, he gives Newcastle another penalty, this one even more questionable than the first one. Barton plays a fine free kick from almost the half way line. Williamson jumps for it and then goes to ground into the general vicinity of substitute Rosicky and Dowd incredibly points to the spot once more. If that penalty was any softer, you could use it to stuff teddy bears! Barton buries his 2^nd penalty of the day and it’s now 4-3. St James is rocking now and the Toon Army smell blood in the water!

Newcastle get another corner but Best’s header is wide of the post. Arsenal try and counter attack, but RVP is so deep at this point he’s close enough to discuss his weekend shopping with Szczesny, so the attack comes to nothing. Newcastle head back up and win he free kick just outside the area. Barton swings it I but it’s cleared out to Tiote, who hits a humongous volley from outside the box that screams past Szczesny into the net. The crowd goes RADIO RENTAL!!! It’s not just them, I’m going crazy in my living room. What an absolute Arse Burger of a shot that was. Simply astonishing. The score is now 4-4, as the Newcastle players dive on top of Tiote. Harpers half hearted elbow drop on top of the pile makes it all the funnier. That’s Tiote’s first goal for the club can you believe? He’s set the bar high for the future, that’s for sure!

Newcastle incredibly almost then go on to win it, but Nolan’s shot goes agonisingly wide and The Magpies have to settle for just a share of the points. I’m sure they would have taken that at half time.

Final Whistle Thoughts

I’m not sure if this is an amazing Newcastle comeback or a sickening Arsenal capitulation. Could it possibly be both? Now, you can argue that the two penalties that Arsenal conceded were soft, but do you chalk that down to Arsenal getting screwed over or do you chalk it down to them being tactically defeated?

The red card, despite being soft as the contents of a Wagon Wheel™, was a red card. He shoved Barton, and then Nolan, in full view of the referee. Dowd had no choice really. That being said, Dowd had a pretty poor game in all honesty. How Nolan avoided even so much a booking for the Szczesny incident is inexplicable and the 2^nd penalty was questionable to say the least.

Dowd does deserve credit for trying to let the match flow as best he could, but it’s understandable why Wenger waits to chew his ear off after the final whistle. So Arsenal do have a relatively solid argument that poor reffing was linked with the result. However, that seems to almost let them off the hook. In the second half, they were truly uninspired and it seemed somewhat poetic justice that Newcastle were able to find their way back into it.

The attitude shown from the Newcastle players should be commended in my opinion. They never accepted the defeat and they didn’t make the mistake that a lot of teams who go down by a large margin do. They had their plan and they stuck to it. They didn’t park the bus to stem the tide of goals and they didn’t send 10 players up the pitch at once for a desperate attempt at clawing the game back.

They sat back, regained their bearings and then set about looking to sneak just the one goal in. Getting that goal got the crowd back onside and once the crowd was behind them it made their job a lot easier. Not only did it seem to gee them up but it also seemed to cow the Arsenal players and influence Dowd in his decisions.

The Newcastle support were just excellent here. They were justifiably furious in the first half and if there was ever a week where St James could empty at half time, it would be this one. However, most of them stayed and they were integral to the Newcastle fight back in the second half.

One thing is for sure, this is an entertaining 90 minutes. Arsenal play some excellent football in the first half and the comeback in the second half is gripping viewing. The atmosphere alone makes this worth watching the once, even if you just watch the last half an hour.

The official NUFC release of the DVD has two post-match interviews. One from Pardew and one from Barton. Neither interview is overly exciting or enlightening but it’s still nice that they’ve been included.

So overall, it’s a recommend tape. I’ll post the Amazon link below. I had a quick peruse of Youtube and couldn’t find any decent highlight packages but I did find the Soccer Saturday updates for the match on the day. That itself does prove some entertaining viewing.

Anyway, thanks for reading. As always, got a match you want reviewed? Leave a comment below and if I have it I’ll add it to my “to review” pile

Until next time,

Peace Out

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XB8Bh0a4tJE

Soccer Saturday Highlights

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Newcastle-United-Arsenal-February-2011/dp/B004N6PUGQ/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1406233870&sr=1-2&keywords=newcastle+united+arsenal

Amazon link to the match

Everton Vs Tranmere: Pre-season jaunt to Birkenhead

Ah, football. I missed witnessing you in person, oh did I ever. Not since May have I made my way to a stadium to watch a live game, but that tedious period ended Tuesday night as I ventured over the river for the first time to Prenton Park, the ground of Tranmere Rovers.

Everton’s first game of the pre-season was pretty much what I expected. Some of the veteran players got a run out to loosen the joints in preparation for the season ahead while some of the younger players were also given a chance to get noticed ahead of the season proper.
Prenton Park itself is a nice stadium that is relatively easy to find. You just head through the tunnel and pretty much follow signs from that point. Of course, I’d gone to the trouble of preparing a route that would allow us to by-pass said tunnel but then the GPS decided to stop working, so it was all for naught. Oh well, the best laid plans as they say.

I’d originally planned to get into Lime Street, get the train to Rock Ferry and walk to the stadium, but the day before the game my mum asked me if I wanted a lift. I told her I only had the one ticket but she said she didn’t mind and said she’d find something to do for a couple of hours while the match was on. Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, I agreed. This was my first mistake.
Off I toddled to work and when it came to finishing time I made my way to the gates to see the car waiting. I then spied my dad in the passenger seat. “Strange, I thought, what’s he doing there?”. As I scanned my eyes to the car further I saw my sister in the back seat giving me a look on her face as if to say “Don’t look at me, this wasn’t my idea!”

So yeah, mum had decided to invite my dad and sister along as well. Not unreasonable of course, it would give her something to do while the match was on. It would have been nice if she’d given me a heads up though. My plans to navigate were now in tatters. I don’t know if you’ve tried to navigate from the back seat before, but it’s nigh on impossible. My dad had not prepared a route or plan, so slap dash had this arrangement seemingly been, and before I could suggest we move seats, my mum was off like a shot, as she is want to do.

My mum’s idea of the opportune time to start a journey is when you sit in the car seat. Things like setting up a GPS, getting out a map and even attaching your seat belt are all things that to her are best done once the car itself is in motion. No sooner had I sat down, the car was moving. I frantically attached my seat belt and hurriedly tried to get the GPS working. It came to my attention at this time that the device wasn’t working, but by now we were on the motorway and bypassing the turning we’d have needed to make to avoid getting the tunnel. Typical.

This is of course led to a 40 minute argument (Yes 40 minutes, I’m a terrible WOOL from out of town) as I desperately tried, and failed, to martial things from the backseat. The fact my mum is hard of hearing but refuses to get it checked, made it only all the more difficult. Fitzgerald’s we travel reasonably well in small groups but don’t shove us all together and send us to a destination where none of us have been to before. Just don’t, you’re asking for trouble. I remember when we went to Germany a couple of years back. Those poor German’s, it was probably the worst thing to happen to their country since Dresden. At one point, all four of us were engaged in a stupendous row at a train station arguing over what train we needed. A bemused German man wandered over, asked us where we wanted to go and promptly pointed the required train out to us. I think he was just desperate for some peace and quiet.

So we did eventually manage to make it to Birkenhead which, from what I saw, seemed like a nice enough place. One benefit of traveling with the folks is that we had time to sit down in a pub and have a proper meal before the match started. We went to a place called “The Acorn”, which is about a 5 minute car journey from Prenton Park and is one of those places that have ridiculous portions for reasonable prices. I paid a tenner and got a 10 ounce steak, chips, onion rings, peas and 6 pieces of scampi. This pub actually had starters on the menu as well, although I can’t imagine someone managing more than one course. I’d be terrified to see the size of the portions for the appetisers. Your soup would probably get served in a bathtub.

So after a pint of bitter and a big steak to quell my nerves following such a “joyous” journey, I got dropped off by the family outside Prenton Park and went in to watch the match while they went off to New Brighton for a few hours. I did a quick lap of Prenton Park. It’s an odd stadium in that it’s sort of enclosed amongst outer buildings, so you can’t do a traditional lap around it as such. I found the facilities to be just fine and found my seat with relative ease. This was a good seat as well. Fourth row from the front, pretty much right behind the goal. Walking up the steps to face the pitch, a ball went flying to the left of me and almost got me square in the mush. I believe Steven Naismith was the culprit. One of the hazards of sitting behind the goal. Maybe my luck was starting to turn?

The match itself never really reached a higher gear. It was only a pre-season game of course, and for some of the players it was their first game since the end of last season, so you could excuse them for being pensive. Everton played a mixture of players in the first half, with usual first teamers Sylvain Distin, Gareth Barry and Stephen Pienaar playing. Young Luke Garbutt got a game at left back position, and did an excellent job. Shane Duffy, the big Irish number 34, got his chance at Centre Back and did a serviceable job. Had Garbutt not played, I’d imagine he would have got more plaudits. He looked confident with the ball at his feet and worked hard throughout. He backed up my opinion that he could be played in a “proper” game for Everton and do just fine. Tynias Browning, another young defender, also played in at Right Back but wasn’t as solid as Duffy or Garbutt. I imagine he’ll get other chances though.

I’m glad that Duffy did okay in this. You get the feeling that this could be a make or break pre-season for him. So many supporters seem antsy to get him out of the club at this time. I can only hope that Martinez is giving him the chance to show what he can do and he’ll get more games before pre-season ends. The biggest criticism is that he isn’t good enough on the ball but he looked fine whenever he was called on to play it to feet. It’s also hard to ignore all the positives to his game. His size and ability in the air make him useful with set pieces at both ends of the pitch. His attitude seems decent as well. It may have only been pre-season, but he was running and working like the game was more important. He wants to win and do his best. Right now I think it would be disastrous if Everton were to Duffy go. Even if there are aspects of his game that Martinez wouldn’t like, he is young and there is ample time for him to correct them. Considering that Distin, Alcaraz and Jagielka are all getting older, to turf a promising young Centre Back at this stage just seems ludicrous.

The Second Half saw Seamus Coleman and Leon Osman get a run out but also gave a chance for Darron Gibson to make his return after a long layoff due to injury. He looked sharp and in good shape. Hopefully he can maintain his fitness throughout the season. When he’s healthy, Gibson can be an integral part of the side. Tony Hibbert also got 45 minutes as well. He was playing at Left Back strangely enough but Coleman ended up getting taken off early for something that looked like an injury, and he ended up back in his usual Right Back position. I’ve not heard yet, but I hope Coleman is okay and not severely injured.

Tony Hibbert. I bloody love that man. He actually got higher up the pitch than normal. At one point I think he was even in the Tranmere box! He still didn’t have a shot though, despite large portions of the away end encouraging him to do so. Hallam Hope played up front in the second half and I was impressed. He’s got decent size, relatively quick on his feet and has the desired tenacity you’d wish from a Centre Forward. Before this game I thought he might end up loan but after watching him play up close, I think he could be a decent option as a backup striker. Time will tell I guess.

In the end, the match ended 2-2 as Everton twice threw away the lead. We still can’t win a chuffing derby can we? I enjoyed it though. It was nice to see some of the younger lads get a chance to earn a place in the side and it was equally nice to be at the match again. A gentleman behind me summed it up brilliantly.

“I missed this” he said “Being at the match, smelling onions and burgers in the air, seeing some footy again. There’s nothing like it”

“Yeah, Summer is hell!” chipped in his mate sitting next to him.

Perfect. You could put that on the spine of a bestseller!

Of course, being that this is a Fitzgerald family journey™, there was a bit more drama before we finally got home. My mum picked me up down a side street from the main road and, to my desolation, started to make her way down a road that I knew was blocked off at the end, because I’d just come from the other end of it, as it was were the away fans were let out. “I wouldn’t go down there mum”, I helplessly called out. Mum either didn’t hear me or chose to ignore me. If you were leaving the match and had a chuckle at the Ford Focus doing a 10 point turn to get out of a blocked road, you can now rest assured that it wasn’t my fault.

So, what does the season ahead promise? With Europa League Football to look forward to, there’s prospect for an exciting year for Everton. Of course, signings still need to be made, especially if Everton are to be fighting on four fronts this year. A striker is a must and another midfielder wouldn’t go amiss either. With no other signings than Barry confirmed, everything is still very much up the air. That being said, we’re only in July. Maybe the club will still be able to surprise us yet?

I look forward to Leon Osman’s testimonial, which is the next time I’ll be at an Everton game in person. Safe journey to any supporters who are going to Rhyl on Saturday or indeed making the long journey to Thailand for the tour there. Here’s to, hopefully, a great season!

Peace Out

Football Re-Heated: 1996 First Division Play Off Final - Crystal Palace Vs Leicester City

Football Re-Heated: 1996 First Division Play Off Final, Crystal Palace Vs Leicester City

 

In yet another attempt to distract me from the misery that is my continued existence in this World, I’ve decided to bring Football Re-Heated back from the mothballs. For those that aren’t aware, Football Re-Heated is when I watch an old football match and then review it. I tend to avoid doing the whole “minute by minute” break down on the matches because there’s already people out there who do that. They even wrote a book about it and everything. I quite liked it. Big whoop, want to fight about it?

 

Anyway, to the reviewmobile!

 

Ah, the Play Offs. They really are quite ridiculous aren’t they? I’ll never forget Danny Baker’s consistent rants about them and how unfair they are. To be fair, the gentleman has a point. It’s bizarre that you can spend all season in the top 3, finish third and then end up not getting promoted because a side who were kicking around mid-table all season managed to have a good run in the last 5 games and ended up finishing sixth. So they get to go up while you get to spend another season in purgatory. It’s both harsh and hilarious in equal measure.

 

As a general rule the First and Second Division Play Off Finals of the mid to late 90’s produced some of the most gripping and down right ludicrous matches and outcomes you can think off. There was Leicester coming from 3-0 down against Swindon to make it 3-3, only to lose it 4-3 in the dying minutes. There was Manchester City putting their supporters through the ringer against Gillingham and there was the unbridled madness of Charlton and Sunderland’s 4-4 Draw in 1998.

 

This match is another Play Off Final that takes the viewer, and the poor supporters of both sides, through every range of emotion that you could possibly imagine. These Play Off Finals just don’t make any sense. They are evil, they are sickening and they are simply top quality entertainment. This is one of the lesser talked about ones, so I thought I’d give it some attention.

 

Match Backstory

 

Martin O’Neill, now there’s a name that will get a different reaction depending on who you ask. To some he’s a keen tactician who can make the most of any side he has and achieve things far beyond what people would think them capable of. To others, he’s a tactical dinosaur who is well past his peak and whose achievements are exaggerated. My opinion? I like him. I like him quite a lot actually.

 

I was very much struck by something that O’Neill said in an interview with Dominik Diamond many moons ago. “I like players who can cross the ball and I like players who know what to do with a crossed ball”. That pretty much sums up my attitude back when I used to play Pro Evo back in the day in all honesty. I’m not going to sit here and say O’Neill is one of the all-time greats, but I will say that he did very well at both Leicester and Celtic and he could very well have continued the good work he was doing at Aston Villa, if he’d enjoyed the level of support from the chairman that he had wanted. However, we all know how that ended up. Good luck to him during his tenure as Ireland boss though. I hope it works out for him.

 

Back in 1996, O’Neill had taken the helm of Leicester half way through the season. He wasn’t a universally popular appointment, and he’d even been booed at a home game only a few weeks before the Play Off Final itself, but he’d got Leicester to Wembley after a Semi-Final win over Stoke.

 

Meanwhile, Palace were looking to end their exile to the First Division on the first time of asking. They were managed by Dave Bassett who had already enjoyed promotion with other sides on 7 previous occasions. Palace had finished third in the table where as Leicester had finished fifth. Going in to the match, Palace were probably the slightest of favourites to win.

 

Palace Starting XI                                                                             Leicester Starting XI

1: Nigel Martyn                                                                                1: Kevin Poole

2: Marc Edworthy                                                                            2: Simon Grayson

3: Kenny Brown                                                                                3: Mike Whitlow

4: Andy Roberts                                                                                4: Julian Watts

5: Robert Quinn                                                                                5: Steve Walsh

6: David Hopkin                                                                                6: Muzzy Izzet

7: Darren Pitcher                                                                              7: Neil Lennon

8: Ray Houghton                                                                               8: Scott Taylor

9: Dougie Freedman                                                                         9: Steve Claridge

10: George Ndah                                                                              10: Garry Parker

11: David Tuttle                                                                                11: Emile Heskey

 

Subs                                                                                                      Subs

12: Bruce Dyer                                                                                   12: Mark Robins

13: Carl Veart                                                                                     13: Zeljko Kalac

14: Simon Rodger                                                                             14: Colin Hill

 

 

First Half

 

This is the club released DVD but commentary duties are taken by Alan Parry and Big Ron Atkinson, so it’s the ITV footage with club graphics over all the ITV stuff. I won’t say which club this release is from until the end, as I don’t want to spoil the result for those that don’t know it. At the start a video shows and they use generic stock music for it. The music chosen did raise a smile to my fact though as it's the same music the WWE used as an entrance theme for Jillian Hall. Kind of sad that I know that, but hey ho.

 

Leicester start the half relatively brightly. Izzet makes a nuisance of himself down the right flank and Heskey also lets the defenders know that he’s in the house. It becomes clear quite quickly that O’Neill has decided to load up the midfield so as to try and stifle Palace’s creativity. Lennon, Taylor (Sporting a horrible bleached blond hair cut) and Parker act to shut down any attempts from Palace in the middle of the park while Izzet continues to work on the wing and antagonise the Palace defence.

 

However, the first goal of the match goes completely against the run of play as Palace take a 1-0 lead after just 14 minutes. Roberts gets control of the ball in the middle of the park for the first real time in the match and plays a ball through to Hopkins, who passes to Houghton who then returns it back to Roberts allowing him to shoot from just outside the box. The ball takes a slight bobble on the turf and rolls past Poole in the Leicester goal to give Palace the lead.

 

It is Roberts first ever goal for Palace, and what a time to score it! Poole is incredibly unlucky in some ways there but what does it say about Leicester? They’d had relative control of the game up to this point but they’ve now found themselves a goal down after Palace’s first proper attack.

 

Palace control things in the immediate aftermath of the goal. Ndah went on a lovely run but it ultimately came to nothing as Leicester were able to clear it. Leicester find it hard to get the momentum back on their side. Meanwhile, Palace play some nice possession football and do a decent job keeping Leicester at bay.

 

Lennon around this time decides to take the game by the scruff of the neck and starts running the show in midfield. He sends a long ball into the box but Taylor isn’t able to do anything with it. Ndah powers his way into the Leicester box once more but can’t get a shot off in time and loses possession. Heskey tries a cross up the other end and that goes about as well as you’d expect.

 

It doesn’t help Leicester that whenever they’ve managed to get the ball to the Palace box, Martyn has been able to deal with it. Whether it be a cross or a shot, Martyn has had an answer for everything thus far. Palace around this time decide to close ranks, which hands the initiative to Leicester. At one point Palace have all 11 men behind the ball. This isn’t even near the end of the half either, there’s still a good chunk of time to go before they do this.

 

With more time to work, Leicester find chances easier to come by. After a corner goes awry, Lennon puts a long ball back into the box but Claridge is unable to get his resulting shot on target and it slips past the post. The half peters out at this point, with Palace happy to take their 1-0 lead into the interval. O’Neill remains bullish when interviewed pitch side saying he feels his side have had 90% of the game. Not sure that’s an entirely fair comment, but they certainly had the lion’s share of possession. Still, it’s about taking your chances at the end of the day and Palace have taken theirs thus far.

 

 

Second Half

 

Palace start the second half the stronger of the two sides and almost increase their lead. Ndah has a wicked shot from just outside the box and Poole is forced into a brilliant save. He pushes it onto the cross bar and Palace win a corner. The corner finds its way to Freedman who produces a vicious volley that once again Poole is equal to. Leicester are lucky at this point not to be 2-0 down and they would have had it not been for their keeper.

 

Palace continue to be the aggressors and they look a lot sharper and more confident than they had been in the first half. Leicester struggle to get to grip with things but they do have one chance as Lennon plays another of his long balls into the box. However, Heskey’s resulting header is well wide and it’s back to drawing board.

 

Leicester turn up the heat and have further chances on goal. Parker performs a decent long throw into the box which finds the head of Walsh. Walsh flicks the ball to Claridge but he isn’t able to steer it goal ward and Palace gratefully clear it. The match has now reverted to form as Leicester are the aggressors while Palace find themselves on the back foot and pinned back to their own half. Parker is especially lively and continues to cause the Palace defence problems.

 

It’s at this time that they announce the attendance. There are 33,000 Palace fans in attendance today. Leicester have brought 38,000, and they are making themselves heard at the moment. Parker plays a delightful through ball to Claridge but his follow up cross to Grayson ends up going nowhere. After an empty Palace counter attack, Taylor gets the ball in his own half and runs all the way to the Palace box, but his cross to Izzet doesn’t work out and Palace are let off the hook.

 

Leicester just attack seemingly non-stop now in search of the equaliser. Taylor plays Heskey through but he can only put his shot wide. In his defence, he was being pressurised by Quinn and unable to take the time he needed with the shot. Palace continue losing the ball in the middle of the park, as O’Neill’s tactics look like they might bear fruit.  Still penned it, it is becoming clear that the Palace defenders are starting to get worn down by the constant pressure from The Foxes.  The possession stats back that up as Leicester have enjoyed 65% of the ball. However, they still haven’t been able to turn that possession into goals.

 

Hopkin takes a rough challenge on the side of the pitch by Walsh, but Walsh wins the ball so it is only a throw in. Walsh may have found himself booked if he did the same challenge today. Palace are really hanging on for dear life at this point. Heskey finally gets a headed shot on target following an excellent cross from Taylor, but Martyn is there to stop it with a mighty save.

 

A trademark O’Neill attack if there ever was one.  Leicester’s resulting corner is cleared and Freedman manages to grab hold of the ball in the Leicester half and makes his way towards the goal with only Lennon left to defend. Lennon calmly dispossesses him cool as you like and clears with ease. Truly majestic defending there from the Northern Irishman. To Freedman’s credit, he doesn’t try and make a meal of it to win a penalty. He knows he was seen off by the superior player in that exchange. It’s been a real eye opener watching Lennon in this contest. I’ve always just thought of him as the dour Celtic manager, but he’s showing here that he was quite the player in his day as well.

 

Palace are struggling and it could be a matter of time. Hopkin gets booked and is subbed soon after. It could be that he’s being subbed because of the card or because he’s carrying a knock after the earlier exchange with Walsh.

 

Lennon continues to control the middle of the park but Leicester just can’t find a way to get the ball past Martyn in the Palace goal. The second half has been much more enjoyable to watch than the first half. It’s very much all action so far. With 15 minutes to go, Walsh plays a sublime ball to Izzet who makes a break for it down the wing. He just makes it into the box when he is scythed down by Edworthy and the referee calls for a penalty. Shame for Edworthy, as he’s played well, but it’s pretty much a nailed on pen. Parker slots it underneath Martyn and Leicester are level with 13 minutes left of normal time.

 

It’s at this point where I noticed on the DVD that the in house graphics were being plastered over the ITV ones. It’s quite jarring and really serves no purpose. Why bother? Is there some sort of copyright issue? I mean, they’re using the ITV footage, with the ITV commentators and Parry even makes reference to the Champions League Final the week before. The club graphics are cumbersome and ugly and it lessens the viewing enjoyment. Rant over

 

Now that the scores are level, the Leicester fans decide to have a pop at their ex-manager by chanting “Are you watching Mark McGee?” with undaunted zeal. While the supporters may be smelling blood in the water, it doesn’t seem to have translated to the pitch and there are no more goals in normal time. Walsh does have a headed chance at the end of the half but Veart clears it off the line. Thus, Extra Time is required.

 

 

First Half of Extra Time

 

Extra time starts with the teams as we were. Big Ron questions why Palace haven’t made a sub, and he probably has a point. Leicester start the half the aggressor in their search to kill the game off once and for all. Heskey is essentially playing as a makeshift winger and he has a shot from a tight angle that Martyn saves with relative ease.

 

Palace again hang back allowing Leicester the freedom to attack them. Lennon has a sharp volley from outside the box which Martyn spills at first but manages to recover before an advancing Claridge can do anything with it.

 

Palace go right down the other end with Veart putting a good cross in to Ndah who puts the resulting header wide. Heskey is tackled in the box and shouts for a penalty, but the referee waves play on and the subsequent replay supports his stance. Both teams then bring on subs. Palace bring on Dyer and Rodger for Freedman and Tuttle while Leicester bring on Robins for Taylor.

 

The subs give the match a bit of a shot in the arm as the tempo steps up a notch, but still neither side can fashion a truly worthwhile chance on goal. Things take a bad turn for Rodger though as he gets the worst of a tackle from Izzet and limps off mere seconds after coming on. With Palace using all their subs, there is no one they can replace him with and they are faced with the daunting task of playing on with 10 men.

 

Despite this, they have a decent spell but they aren’t able to force the issue and get a goal. Thusly the half ends as it started, 1-1.

 

 

Second Half of Extra Time

 

Rodger hauls himself back onto the pitch but he’s limping heavily and isn’t up to doing much other than make up the numbers. This is woefully unlucky for Palace who had just started to suggest a slight upturn in momentum during the first half of extra time. As a result, Palace stick to long balls and appear to be holding on for penalties. On one hand, you can’t really blame them. They were under the cosh when the sides were even and now they’re essentially a man down.

 

Leicester throw everything they have left at Palace in an attempt to win it outright without needing penalties. Any attempt by Palace at advancing up the field is quickly quelled by Lennon or Walsh. Both have been superb in this game. Palace do finally manage to get the ball into the opposition half with Dyer being the first man to get the best of Lennon all afternoon. He puts a cross into the box which is swatted away by Poole for a corner. Palace waste the corner though and hand the initiative back to Leicester, with 5 minutes remaining on the clock.

 

Walsh’s afternoon finally ends as he is subbed off for Hill. Walsh has run himself into the ground here and played with gusto. Parry asks Ron who he thinks is Man of the Match and he says that it’s between Lennon and Parker. He eventually chooses Parker. I would have gone with Lennon myself but Parker has certainly had a good game.

 

O’Neill then does a Louis Van Gaal and brings on Kalac to replace Poole in net. Either this is a strategic move to kill time and cut Palace’s momentum or it’s an admission that he doesn’t think Poole is up to the penalties that now loom. If it is indeed the second option, that’s incredibly harsh on Poole who has had a good game.

 

What happens next though, is pure Play Off Final nuttiness. Leicester prep themselves for one more attack up the field. A long free kick is taken and Watts heads it down to Claridge who is standing outside the D. He hits a speculative volley and the ball goes flying into the Palace goal. Leicester have won it! Martyn can only watch as the ball flies past him. Leicester win with essentially the last kick of the game. PLAY OFF MADNESS STRIKES AGAIN!!!

 

 

Final Whistle Thoughts

 

This match was a joy to watch. It’s rare that 120 minutes flies by so quickly. There are very few parts in this match where nothing is happening. Leicester are always looking to win it, even in the depths of Extra Time, so there’s rarely a dull moment.

 

Parry portrays this as a huge tactical victory for O’Neill, and highlights the sub of the keeper as an example. Was it a tactical masterstroke or merely a coincidence? I would have to say that probably no one in Wembley could have predicted that finish from Claridge, even Claridge himself! He’s courteous enough afterwards to say that he shinned it and got lucky. It’s a wonder strike and the fact it comes as the last kick of a Final only makes it all the more spectacular.

 

In the end, I’d have to say the right team won this match. Leicester were the more aggressive, especially in the Second Half of Extra Time and they bossed the midfield throughout. Taylor, Parker, Walsh, Izzet and Lennon all entered excellent performances. Lennon and Walsh in particular were fantastic throughout. If any tactical praise is to be heaped on O’Neill, I would do it for the way he completely nullified any creativity for Palace in the middle of the park. Lennon was seemingly everywhere and putting countless challenges in. Parker went on run after run and Izzet was constantly causing the full backs problems throughout with his forays down the wing.

 

As you have probably guessed, I was watching this on the official LCFC DVD release. Picture quality is fine and all the major points of the match are well covered. Parry and Atkinson provide insightful commentary and the crowd itself is miked well. The LCFC graphics are annoying though and pretty pointless but they don’t ruin the viewing experience too badly. There's a "stats" section on the DVD and it some neat information such as who Leicester's top scorers were that season and who the top 6 in the table were that's season

 

Overall, this is a recommended match. I’ll post the you tube highlights below but if you want to throw Leicester City some moolah, I’ll post the Amazon link as well.

 

I apologise for the length of this piece. I tried to streamline it but it’s ended up being the longest one I’ve ever done. Please feel free to comment and send any feedback about this. Let me know what you liked and what you felt superfluous and I’ll bear it in mind when I do the next one.

 

Until then, Peace Out!

 

 

You Tube highlights of match

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEg5qIlVhXI

 

Amazon Link for the match itself

http://www.amazon.co.uk/1996-Division-One-Play-Final/dp/B002ZCH4IC/ref=sr_1_11?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1405889719&sr=1-11&keywords=leicester+city