Are we good enough?
Sep 13, 2006
Author: Dank

So, after being linked with nearly every player under the sun in the last three months, from Jobi McAnuff (Would have been a good signing) to David Beckham (Thank you SFKs!), the transfer window has closed. We’ve brought in seven new faces, all of whom we’ve seen in some form or another (Welcome back Tommy!) and the squad, until January at least, is complete. However, the opening few weeks of the season have raised a number of questions. Is Lloyd Will we ever win a game?

In goal we’re blessed with an embarrassment of riches. Ben Foster grew visibly in stature over the course of last season and was, along with Malkay and Marlon, our best player from January onwards. It seemed touch and go for a while as to whether he’d be back this year, but fortunately he’s returned and we can look forward to him staking his claim to Paul Robinson’s No.1 shirt in the England squad. In back up we have Richard Lee. Whether or not Betty rates him is questionable, but what cannot be doubted is the man’s professionalism. It must have been difficult for him returning after a year oop north, but he hasn’t complained once and has just got on with it. Always an excellent shot-stopper, his kicking has improved noticeably. In addition to Foster and Lee we’ve got the ageless Alec, who is more likely to be restricted to coaching, and the currently injured Scott Loach who is very much one for the future.

The right-back slot is one where opinion is already divided. No-one questions Lloyd’s commitment, but many feel he’s been caught out of position on occasion this year and that his distribution is poor. Personally I feel that we should persevere with him and that he will come good as he gets used to the level. Failing that, James Chambers is a more than capable replacement. On the other side of the pitch, Jordan Stewart, whilst performing well in the play-offs and against Bolton, is not a Premiership left-back. This was the key area we needed to strengthen after promotion and although many of us would have liked to re-sign Robbo, we look to have got ourselves a gem of a player in Chris Powell, despite his advancing years (Since writing this, Chris has been ruled out for three weeks – JS now has the chance to make me eat my words).

The centre-halves also look good, with Demerit being the pick of them. I think he’ll continue his improvement this season and will be playing top flight football next year whether we are or not. Alongside him, Danny Shittu is….well, he’s HUGE. After a shaky first half at Everton, he was looked increasingly assured until his f*ck-up at the Reebok. The Demerit/Shittu partnership certainly looks to have signs of potential, which is good news for us, but not so good for Malkay and Clarke Carlisle. MacKay has already left two Premiership clubs because he wasn’t getting a game so if it was good to see him get a run-out last weekend. Given our lack of a clean sheet so far this season and the plethora of them at the tail end of last, perhaps it’s time to renew the Demerit/MacKay partnership. Carlisle is another good centre-half but may prove a little error-prone for this level of football and questions are beginning to be asked as to whether his series of injuries is all that it seems. Adrian Mariappa had looked excellent until his disastrous 45 minutes at Goodison Park. One only hopes the experience hasn’t set his development back too much.

So, the keepers look good. The defence looks good. What about the midfield? Skipper Gavin Mahon is another who has (unfairly) received criticism for his performances thus far. For me, he played well enough at Everton and was our best player (along with Bouazza) in the first half against West Ham. He didn’t do so well against the Mancs, but then who did? One must also take into account that he’s been suffering from a virus, the reason for his withdrawal against The Hammers. In my eyes he can become a decent Premiership midfielder and he’ll certainly have to be on his toes as young Al Bangura is improving with every game and could well become a regular in the next year or so. In reserve for the role of defensive midfielder is Dom Blizzard who has overcome his own struggle with a virus. After so long out, he’ll be looking to increase his levels of fitness and, to be honest, he’s quite far from a first team place at the moment. His deadline day loan move to Hereford mysteriously fell through. One hopes that there has been no reoccurrence of last year’s problems.

The defensive part of the midfield is strong and our attacking options in this area have also been strengthened by the signing of Damien Francis. He was excellent in the second half against West Ham and with two goals already, seems to have the knack of being in the right place at the right time in the opposing penalty area, despite missing a sitter on Saturday. This attribute we’ve also come to recognise with Matthew Spring, who can count himself unfortunate to have been out of the side at the start of the season. However, he remains a key part of the squad, a fact which was underlined when he recently appeared in a deeper role alongside Francis. Tiggy Diagouraga offers further options in the middle of the park, but, following his spell at Swindon last season, another loan out again looks likely.

Down the wings we now have numerous options. Ashley Young looked a little out of sorts in the first two games, but improved markedly against Man Utd. However, I still feel that his best performances have been up front alongside Marlon. Tommy Smith is a useful addition to the squad. I always liked Smith as a player and am not disappointed at all by his return. For me, I’d be happy to sign David Connolly if it meant he got the goals to keep us up. Competition for places is provided by Hameur Bouazza who, like both Smith and Young (sounds like a folk group!), can also play up front. New signing Albert Jarrett has looked good in pre-season and awaits his chance. However, he comes with a warning from (the recently departed) Mark McGhee that he is inconsistent. That sounds a bit like little Anthony McNamee who is another we’ve yet to see this season. McNamee is an interesting one. He has all the skill in the world but seems unable to get involved in the game for a full 90 minutes. However, his role as a substitute to unlock a game remains as valid this year as it did last. Perhaps more so as wingers tend not to get booted up in the air so much at this level. Further options for the wings are provided by James Chambers and Jordan Stewart. Chambers, for all his endeavour, is not a Premiership winger, but his versatility make him a more than useful squad member. Stewart may well get his chance more often on the wing this year and, given that it’s his natural position, it will be interesting to see how he does. It’s a big year for him.

Up front we have, in addition to the afore-mentioned players, Marlon, Doris and Tamas Priskin. Marlon was well shackled by the duck-faced one against Man U and strangely out of sorts in the last match, but he remains more than good enough for this level. His goal against West Ham was sensational and it’s a good thing for his confidence that he got off the mark so early. Henderson played well up at Everton on the opening day, but has, in my opinion, failed to convince in the next two games and his miss against Man Utd was shocking. Nevertheless, he’s another who I think is good enough and will continue to improve. I haven’t seen too much of Priskin so far, although he apparently played well in the friendlies. He set up Francis’s goal against Everton too from what admittedly looked like a miss-hit pass.

Despite the lack of points from our opening games, I think we’ve got enough to survive this year (and unlike Mr Boothroyd, I’m not aiming any higher). Although some are feeling more pessimistic about our chances following our last two matches, we have to remember that it was the second-richest club in the country that we were playing against. In general our squad looks solid, albeit lacking a goalscorer and the young players and the squad as a whole should continue to raise the level of their game over the season. And don’t forget that our greatest asset is not one of the players, but the manager. He will ensure that every single player gives his all for the cause and has already shown his tactical nous this season (Spring on for Bouazza after 30 minutes vs Man Utd did change the game if not the result). With Betty in charge we have every chance of doing the unthinkable and retaining our Premiership status.

In the great man’s words, “Come on!”