YEEEAAHHHSSS!!!!!!!!
YEEAAHHSSSSS!!!!!!!! We finally got off the mark. Tuesday morning’s victory against Villa was as welcome as it was dramatic. In addition to the result, there were many positives to take from the game. Despite fading, Wilson’s defence unlocking through ball for Jonesy suggests he could provide the creativity we’ve been craving. It was just frustrating that the chance was wasted. After starting so strongly we paid a heavy price for failing to impose our dominance by way of a goal. Downing’s header was classy BUT, the point has to be made the marking was slack. To lose Huth all he had to do was take a step back. From that point we had to scramble to get to half time only one goal behind. We had an outrageous piece of luck when Young somehow missed the free header and we spent the last ten minutes of the half being dismantled. When we got the ball forward our forwards were too isolated to sustain possession and we were just put under pressure again. We regrouped at half time and our play was more structured at the start of the second half. After an hour it seemed Villa were content to sit on their lead and play the game out. Our inability to create many chances qualified their approach BUT we are made of stern stuff these days and Matty produced that peach of a cross and Jonesy produced an even better header and we drew level. That header was fantastic and more than makes up for the chance he’d wasted earlier in the match! As the ball came across he had to jump backwards, it showed great agility to get the power in an accurate header like that. At that stage we’d have been relatively satisfied with the draw but that grandstand finish was the stuff of football heaven! And even more exciting than Evertons’s comeback two days before. A great way to dig out a win and credit to our players for their tenacity. When we win it’s well worth getting out of bed at 4.30 am! You spend the day riddled with fatigue but blissfully so! West Ham on Saturday night. The early 9.45pm kick off. I’ll be watching in the pub surrounded by Hammers. It’d be marvellous to start the football weekend with another three points. Come on Stoke!!
Shortly before half time in the Real Madrid v Osasuna match, Osasuna forward Aranda was caught offside. He kicked the ball away and was rightly yellow carded for his petulance. As he walked back up the field Real Madrid’s Marcelo needlessly pushed Aranda in the back to provoke him, Marcello received no such card from the ref. One can only conclude that England isn’t the only country where refs are frightened of the big clubs. It’s amusing that Real Madrid have taken on the Mourinho mantra so quickly. Playing out an uninspiring but comfortable 1-0 win is the Jose style! Frog eyed Ozil’s pace proved decisive, his pace and ability to get behind the opposition line being the clinching factor. The self proclaimed ‘Special one’ will be quietly satisfied. Especially as Barcelona’s astonishing defeat gives them an early advantage.
I’ve been going through some of my old football tapes and got to the 92/93 season and beyond and the way Eric Cantona transformed Man Yoo is seriously impressive. There’s one goal in late 93 at Bramhall Lane where he sprints the length of the pitch and executes a ruthless finish. Colossus. it’s an example of Fergusons brilliant motivation / man management skills. He blatantly allowed Cantona more freedom than the others. He knew that to prevent any aspect of him would be to suppress part of his football. It was all part of the same thing. Ryan Giggs says that they would plan a night out and right in front of the boss Existential Eric would ask him what pub they were meeting in. Cantona could do that knowing that unlike the others he’d never get a bollocking! It was the purchase of Cantona that was the pivot for their era of domination and, like so many others, I wish with all my heart it had never happened but he really was a magnificent footballer.
The exclusion of Rooney from Man Utd’s starting line up on Saturday was a big surprise. Alex Ferguson’s statement that he was protecting his striker from Evertonian abuse is hard to believe. It’s six years since Rooney left Goodison Park and every time he’s returned he has been the target for vicious abuse. The recent revelations give the bitterness new frisson but did Rooney need to be excluded? Surely he’s old and ugly enough to handle the stick. Would the level of abuse be any greater than Cantona used to receive at Elland Road? Or what Gary Neville gets at Anfield? Rooney would have expected it. Not that his omission detracted from a brilliant game of football. How did Everton dig a draw out? With only two minutes remaining and the game seemingly drifting towards three points for Man utd the only question seemed to be whether the lead could be extended. Now they will be opainfully aware that they are four points behind Chelsea with little sign of the West London sugar daddy’s plaything looking remotely like slipping up. Man Utd now face their deadly rivals Liverpool although if Liverpool are as toothless as they were on Sunday at Birmingham they have little to worry about… with or without Rooney. Why was there a mention of Bobby Zamora’s leg being broken deliberately? That’s a ludicrous suggestion. Karl Henry made a fair tackle. An injury like that is horrible f0r any player but malicious accusations like those do nobody any good.
It’s only mid September but it’s hard to imagine anyone but Chelsea winning the league…. or even mounting a substantial challenge for that matter. The top two in the Bundesliga are Hoffenheim and Mainze. Fourth are Hannover and Kaiserslautern are in fifth. Assuming the traditional powerhouses finish in the top four spots, it’s refreshing that some less renowned clubs can get a moment at the top table. It would be great of one of the lesser known clubs could emulate Wolfsburg and last the pace at the top. As it would be great if the Man utd Chelsea dopoly in England could be broken. Fat chance.
Finally, a word of appreciation for Tony Pulis. Given the terrible circumstances I’m sure none of us would have blamed him for staying in the background against Aston Villa. That he wanted to get on the touchline for the second half is an indication of his passion for football and Stoke City in particular. It was touching to hear his name sung long and loud when he appeared. Hopefully our win brought a bright moment in a traumatic day for him.