Newcastle put aside their recent troubles to beat QPR at Loftus Road and confirm Premier League survival, despite having their goalkeeper sent off.

The Magpies have endured difficult times of late but improved to score only their second away win of the season against Harry Redknapp’s already relegated side to finally move clear of the bottom three.

It all started so well for the R’s as referee Lee Probert penalised Mathieu Debuchy for a tugging on Junior Hoilett’s shirt in the penalty area allowing former Newcastle transfer target to beat Rob Elliot from the penalty spot after 11 minutes.

However, that rare streak of jubilation didn’t last long as Jose Boswinga tried to strip Hatem Ben Arfa in the box and Probert pointed to the spot again and the French winger blasted in off the bar from 12-yards to equalise.

Probert was involved again in the 22nd minutes as he whistled for offside after Papiss Cisse headed Debuchy’s right wing cross past Rob Green, before Hoilett was thwarted by a fine stop by Elliot at the other end.

Fortunately for the visitors Boswinga was in a more generous mood as his inextricable back-pass forced a hurried clearance from an under pressure Green that fell to Yoan Gouffran, who calmly rolled the ball into an empty net from 25-yards. An end of season lethargy tempered the start of the second half before QPR spurred into life as Hoilett dragged a shot wide.

Newcastle almost profited again from more slack work from QPR at the back as Hoilett had to be on his toes to block Ben Arfa’s effort after Arman Traore steered the ball needlessly back towards Green, while Gouffran almost saw a cross-cum-shot find the net before Alan Pardew saw his team reduced to 10-men when Elliot recieved his second yellow and was sent off for handling outside the penalty area.

But even with their man advantage QPR barely threatened to nick a point and Pardew cut a greatly relieved figure at the end as Newcastle finally dragged themselves to safety.

Harry Redknapp post-match…”The decision for their penalty was very poor, you’d be giving 20 penalties per game if you give those and it brought them back into it. Then the heads seemed to drop and we gave away a terrible second goal.”

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Alan Pardew post-match…”We got the win we needed. It is a big relief because this is a massive club. The injuries we have suffered this year have been horrendous. This type of year usually ends up in relegation.”

Man of the Match…Hatem Ben Arfa: Newcastle always look a more threatening proposition when Ben Arfa is on the field. Won and scored the equalising penalty and was always a danger to QPR with his quick feet and desire to run at defenders.

Flop of the Match…Jose Boswinga: Booed by his own supporters every time he touched the ball. It’ll be a miracle if Boswinga ever plays for QPR again after this nightmare display, in which he gifted Newcastle two goals before half time. Rightfully hauled off at the break and difficult to comprehend that he was starring Chelsea’s Champions League final victory just under a year ago.

We often hear of cases when certain footballers are not recognised as much as they should be.  Whether it be for footballing feats or not being praised for their impressive season, nothing will beat the impressive story of Walter Tull.

Walter Tull was born on 28th April 1888 in Folkestone, Kent.  Tull was the son of Barbadian carpenter Daniel Tull and Kent-born Alice Elizabeth Palmer.  His father was the son of a slave (Grandmother Tull) in Barbados and moved over in 1876.  Unfortunately when Tull was only seven his mother passed away, two years later his father fell to the same fate. With his step-mother unable to cope with six children, Tull and his brother Edward were sent to a Methodist based orphanage in Bethnal Green, London.  Brother Edward was quickly adopted, leaving Tull on his own.  Every morning before lessons he would have to wash in freezing cold water, clean at least 15 pairs of boots and scrub the floors on his knees.  Growing up in Victorian London wasn’t easy but luckily Tull had a gift on his side – football.

[cat_link cat=”tottenham” type=”list”]

Tull played for the orphanage side and quickly showed off his impressive skills.  Despite starting an apprenticeship as a printer, football always came first for Tull, it was the one constant in his life.  In 1908, following a successful trial, Tull signed for Clapton FC, a local amateur side, he played as an inside-forward.  In less than a year Clapton FC won every cup available to them, the FA Amateur Cup, the London Amateur County Cup and the London Senior Cup.  Following a hugely successful season, Tull was signed by Tottenham Hotspur for £10.  Tull became Britain’s first black professional outfield player and earned £4 a week, a top wage at the time.  Due to the sparse amount of black players, Tull was subject to severe racial abuse from the terraces.  In one famous match against Bristol City, Tull was subjected to so much racial abuse, a journalist from the Football Star newspaper who attended the game struck out:

“Let me tell those Bristol hooligans that Tull is so clean in mind and method as to be a model for all white men who play football… In point of ability, if not actual achievement, Tull was the best forward on the field.”

Tull played a total of 10 games and scored twice for Spurs before he was dropped.  In 1911, Tull moved to Northampton for what was reported at the time as a ‘heavy fee’.  Tull’s position had changed to half-back where he made 110 appearances, scoring nine goals.  All seemed well in Tull’s life until in 1914, when the First World War broke out.  Tull was the first of his team to volunteer and joined the Football Battalion 17th Middlesex Regiment.

Tull was promoted three times during his training period and was sent to France as Lance Sergeant near the front line in November 1914. In May 1915 Tull was sent back to England with post traumatic stress disorder.  Recovering strongly he returned to France and despite having been returned home, Tull fought bravely in the battle of Somme between October and November, 1916.  His courage and abilities impressed his superior officers so much that they recommended him for promotion.  Despite at the time there were military laws forbidding ‘any negro or person of colour’ being commissioned as an officer, Tull went back to England to train for the role.  In 1917, Tull was promoted to Lieutenant.  He was the first ever black officer in the British Army and the first black officer to lead white men into battle.  In the harsh winter of 1917-18 Tull twice lead his company behind enemy lines, across the river Piave on the Alpine Italian Front on a raid, and both times bringing his company back safe.  Tull was put forward for a Military Cross by his commanding officer, for his ‘gallantry and coolness’ under fire.  Unfortunately in March 1918 Tull was killed by machine gun fire while trying to help his men retreat.  His men tried several attempts to bring his body back to the trench, but it was never recovered.  Tull died selflessly still trying to help the men he led – he died a hero.

By making Tull an officer his superiors had thrown away the rulebook and went with their heart.  However when the war ended because Tull was not of a ‘pure european descent’ he was not rewarded the Military Cross.  A brutal and an unacceptable decision.

Tull was a hugely popular figure amongst all that knew him, it says it all when men were risking their lives to bring back his dead body.  Tull is just one of the thousands of victims from World War One who has no known grave.  He was honoured though in a different way, a statue of him was erected in 1999 in Northampton Town.  Thanks to a £49,000 lottery grant and future plans are now in place to celebrate his achievements.  Tull has also had a book published for him called ‘Walter Tull’s Scrapbook’ by author Michaela Morgan, to widely publicise the heroic figure.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Currently an ongoing campaign to reverse the decision about Tull’s Military Cross is gathering steam.  Northampton MP Brian Binley is supporting an online Number 10 petition calling for Tull to be awarded the medal, even after death.

If all modern footballers could learn a lesson from the hero Walter Tull, it would be a big wake up call for the modern game.  Maybe less diving and theatrics, less abuse and more respect towards referees and show that they have a cause to fight for, not just to earn £200,000 a week and act selfishly.  Walter Tull deserves to have his Military Cross, and his story deserves to be spread.

[ad_pod id=’ford’ align=’center’ width=’468′]

Tottenham’s new striker Roberto Soldado has suggested he doesn’t expect Gareth Bale to stay at White Hart Lane this summer, according to the Metro.

The Spaniard has officially joined Spurs after the Premier League side triggered the £26million release clause in his Valencia contract. But speaking ahead of his flight to London, Soldado didn’t seem confident that he would get his wish to play with the Welsh attacker.

“I think everybody knows about Gareth Bale. He’s a great player. It will be hard to keep him but I hope he stays with Tottenham,” he said.

Bale has been heavily linked with a move to Soldado’s old side Real Madrid, with Los Blancos hoping an £85million bid will secure his services and a move for Bale is looking ever closer, despite Andre Villas-Boas’s attempts to persuade the 23-year-old to stay at White Hart Lane.

The Portuguese manager has brought in Nacer Chadli and Paulinho, along with Soldado, to try and convince Bale that Spurs will have a squad capable of qualifying for the Champions League this season. But as speculation grows over Bale’s future, it seems Spurs’ new signings won’t be playing alongside the Welshman this season.

Soldado could feature in a Tottenham shirt in the club’s first match of the new season away to Crystal Palace on August 18th.

Can Spurs compete without Bale? What do Tottenham fans feel about signing Soldado?

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Share your thoughts below!

‪[cat_link cat=”tottenham” type=”grid”]

Aaron Cresswell is without a doubt Ipswich Town’s most valuable player. The former Tranmere man has just signed a new contract which ties him to the club until 2017, but he could well still leave in the summer if Ipswich do not secure promotion.

Of course it is great to see the Tractor Boys actively doing something to ensure that they do not lose their top players for nothing, especially as it is something they have failed to do in the past. It is painful to look back on some of the talent that the club has failed to secure and this news is a step towards Ipswich becoming a much more efficient football club.

Everyone can see that Cresswell is well worth securing too, the left back has scored twice and made eight assists so far this season. Additionally, he has only missed six games since arriving from Tranmere and he played every game last season which displays not only his consistency but also his resistance to injury.

However, without meaning to sound pessimistic I get the feeling that Cresswell’s contract extension is primarily about maintaining the players value for this summer. It seems likely that Ipswich have given Cresswell a wage hike but it is also likely that his new contract will have a clause of some sort to enable the left back to leave if the right offer comes in.

My guess would be that if Ipswich have not gained promotion to the Premier League by the end of this season then the young defender will be able to leave for a Premier League side if a certain value is met. I believe that the Tractor Boys will be able to demand a fee somewhere between £4 million and £5.5 million for their star player, if they are forced to sell.

Like I previously mentioned, despite these factors it is still great to see the club making moves to ensure their long-term success. If Cresswell did not sign a new contract then his value would probably have halved by the time any Premier League side made an offer.

In many ways Ipswich have put themselves in a win-win situation by wrapping up this contract arrangement. If the Suffolk side manage to claw their way back into the top flight they will not be forced to sell their best player. Alternatively, if they fail to win promotion this season then they will receive enough cash to make a major investment in the squad.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Personally I think signing Cresswell for £4 million would be a good deal for a Premier League side but it would not be a bargain by any means.

Mick McCarthy has done an amazing job at Ipswich with an almost non-existent transfer budget, I am sure that he would not waste any money given to him and would certainly find some great bargains. Whilst it is difficult to replace star players like Cresswell, I believe that Ipswich have put themselves in the best position possible going forward if they were forced to sell.

Juventus midfielder Arturo Vidal has expressed his desire to stay with the Turin club for the long term, as reported by Sky Sports News.

Manchester United have been keen on the Chilean international who was injured when his national team came to Wembley last week.

United were expected to make a January bid for the Juventus star man as boss David Moyes continues to be frustrated by his lacklustre midfield, with new boy Marouane Fellaini yet to impress.

Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich have also been linked with interest of the holding midfielder who has become a key man in Turin over the past 18 months alongside former United youngster Paul Pogba.

Despite being linked to some of the biggest clubs in the world, Vidal is more than happy to stay with Juve and go on and win more trophies with the Old Lady.

“I am fine in Turin and my family is very happy in the city,” Vidal told Italian press.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

“In addition to that, I want to keep on winning titles with Juventus.”

[ad_pod id=’tui’ align=’center’]

Tottenham are planning to make an official complaint to the FA about Stoke midfielder Charlie Adam, after a challenge on Paulinho which has ruled the Brazilian out of action for at least a month, according to the Daily Mail.

Adam was late in the tackle on Paulinho during Tottenham’s 3-0 win at White Hart Lane on Sunday, making it the fourth time he has left his mark on a Tottenham player since being promoted to the Premier League with Blackpool in 2010.

Adam had previously been involved in controversial incidents with Scott Parker, and twice with Gareth Bale.

Paulinho has suffered ankle ligament damage, and is likely to be ruled out for at least a month.

Adam was booed following his arrival as a second half substitute at White Hart Lane, whilst Paulinho made his feelings clear by exchanging heated words with Stoke boss Mark Hughes as he left the pitch.

Adam was quick to defend himself however, after receiving plenty of abuse from Tottenham fans for his actions.

Adam said: ‘Just for the record and the people tweeting me abuse saying so, I don’t and never have had anything against Spurs and I would never intend to injury a fellow professional.’

However Tottenham are still set to take the unusual route of writing to the FA to complain about Adam.

Gareth Bale branded the Scot a ‘coward’ after a rash challenge on the Welshman during a pre season friendly whilst Adam was playing for Liverpool.

Adam had previously caused Bale ankle ligament damage during his Blackpool days.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

‘What he did was over the top,’ said Bale at the time. ‘Some people are like that and it’s just wrong. There are pictures on the internet of what he did before when he snapped all my ankle ligaments. I was out for three months that time and one player told me he went out to do it again.’

Click below to watch Man United vs Spurs LIVE!

Manchester United’s season hangs in the balance tonight as they host newly crowned Greece champions Olympiakos at Old Trafford.

Their 3-0 loss at home to Liverpool last week all but ended their chances of a top four finish this season, while a 2-0 defeat in the first leg of this last 16 tie means failure to progress tonight could be the final nail in the coffin for their hopes of Champions League football next season.

David Moyes insists his job is safe, despite growing speculation that the Old Trafford board have already discussed potential replacements. He will need to win tonight, though, to back up any claims that he is still the right man to continue Sir Alex Ferguson’s trophy-filled 25 years as boss before him.

Here are tonight’s confirmed starting line-ups for both sides…

<blockquote lang=”en”><p><a href=”https://twitter.com/search?q=%23mufc&amp;src=hash”>#mufc</a> team vs <a href=”https://twitter.com/olympiacos_org”>@Olympiacos_org</a>: De Gea; Rafael, Jones, Ferdinand, Evra; Valencia, Carrick, Giggs, Welbeck; Rooney, van Persie.</p>&mdash; Manchester United (@ManUtd) <a href=”https://twitter.com/ManUtd/statuses/446353843631050752″>March 19, 2014</a></blockquote>

<script async src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>

<blockquote lang=”en”><p>TEAM NEWS: <a href=”https://twitter.com/olympiacos_org”>@olympiacos_org</a>: Roberto, Maniatis, Holebas, Manolas, Marcano, Leandro Salino, N'Dinga, Peréz, Fuster, Campbell, Domínguez. <a href=”https://twitter.com/search?q=%23UCL&amp;src=hash”>#UCL</a></p>&mdash; Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) <a href=”https://twitter.com/ChampionsLeague/statuses/446358695396388864″>March 19, 2014</a></blockquote>

<script async src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

[ad_pod id=’ricco’ align=’center’]

The opportunity to start afresh under a new manager at Tottenham would appear to be on the table for Roberto Soldado, but if reports are to be believed, the club’s hierarchy have run out of patience with the Spanish striker and will look to offload him at some stage this summer.

The past 12 months has seen a mighty fall for the 29-year-old. Initially tipped to lead Tottenham into the Champions League, as he had done with Valencia on more than one occasion in the past, Soldado has done surprisingly little to repay the £26 million spent on him by the north London club.

The consensus was that Tottenham were not set up to get the best out of him. At Valencia, he was the team’s focal point. Soldado had hard workers flanking him and midfielders looking to release him through on goal. At Tottenham under Andre Villas-Boas, he cut an isolated figure in attack, seeing inverted wide players carve opportunities for themselves and little coming through the centre of the pitch.

What kept him going was the enormous fee spent on him, as well as the sporadic conversions from the penalty spot.

But Soldado’s time in the Premier League looks to be coming to an end. Atletico Madrid are said to be interested in bringing him back to Spain to replace the Chelsea-bound Diego Costa. Soldado had a forgettable, demoralising season in English football, but his recent history in Spain remains extremely good. He’s a twenty-plus goal scorer in La Liga and has experience in the Champions League.

This past season at Tottenham shouldn’t define him as a player. While he and Alvaro Negredo have had hugely contrasting seasons, there was often little to choose between them while both were in Spain. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were battling for La Liga and world supremacy, but on a smaller scale, a similar battle was being fought between two Spanish internationals.

WANT MORE? >> Tottenham transfer news | Latest transfer news

Both Negredo and Soldado have had very similar careers: playing for Real Madrid Castilla, developing into good but unwanted assets and shipped off, landing at smaller Spanish sides – Almeria for Negredo, Getafe for Soldado – before then moving up to Sevilla and Valencia, where their league scoring records were very similar for three years.

So can we attribute the downfall of Soldado and the success of Negredo to their environments in England? It’s the most obvious explanation. They’re slightly different players in the way they operate, but as centre-forwards and goal scorers they’re as good as each other.

Manchester City have a manager who knew how to bring the best out of Negredo; Tottenham had a manager who couldn’t, for one reason or another, and a subsequent coach who was instructed to utilise the previously discarded Emmanuel Adebayor.

Soldado is no longer a young player, and at 29 it doesn’t suit either Spurs or the player to continue on down this path into next season. It would be a little careless to say he doesn’t suit English football at all, but he obviously couldn’t work in a Tottenham team that produced so few scoring chances during games.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Cutting their losses and moving on would be the sensible thing for Spurs. It simply hasn’t worked out, which is normal. But Soldado must now look to get his career back on track. Considering the injury doubts surrounding Diego Costa, the lack of goals this past season from David Villa and Fernando Torres, and the decline in production from Negredo towards the end of the season, Soldado would certainly have been in contention for a place in Spain’s World Cup squad had he had another Valencia-like season this past year.

Going back to Spain is best for a striker in need of a significant confidence boost, and there are few managers in Europe at the moment better than Diego Simeone at providing that lift.

[ad_pod id=’ricco’ align=’center’]

Finally Manchester United fans can rejoice and celebrate after picking up their first win of the season this weekend.

The Red Devils won convincingly 4-0 against QPR at Old Trafford, marking to true beginning of the Louis van Gaal Era at United.

The R’s may not be one of the most difficult teams for United to beat, but it will bring confidence to the side to continue this form throughout the rest of the season.

Here are FIVE takeaways from this game…

[ffc-gallery]

Click on Angel Di Maria to reveal

[/ffc-gallery]

Angel Di Maria

The Argentine was simply sublime in this game. Since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid back in 2009, United have been crying out for someone to fill the legendary number seven shirt once worn by the likes of David Beckham and Eric Cantona.

They may have finally found another name to add to the ‘Number Seven Legends’ list after Di Maria’s performance yesterday.

The £59.7m man may have had a bit of a shaky start to his career at United against Burnley, but he certainly picked himself up yesterday to provide one goal from a lucky free kick, and an assist to Juan Mata’s goal.

Ander Herrera

Some people may argue that Ander Herrera played just as good, if not better than Di Maria yesterday. To me, yesterday he resembled one of United’s best box-to-box midfielders ever, Paul Scholes.

The 25-year-old Spaniard also scored his first goal yesterday from a fantastic strike from just outside the box, and provided an assist to Wayne Rooney’s goal later in the game. This performance earned him a whoscored.com rating of 9.9, nearly a perfect score.

Shine bright like a diamond

http://lineupbuilder.com/350×500/?p=11&a=1&t=Man%20United%20starting%20XI%20v%20QPR&c=dc0000&1=GK_1%20De%20Gea_1_388_174&2=DL_5%20Rojo_5_311_50&3=DCL_6%20Evans_6_329_133&4=DC_42%20Blackett_42_327_217&5=DR_2%20Rafael_2_309_300&6=DM_17%20Blind_17_278_174&7=FC_20%20van%20Persie_20_77_126&8=MC_7%20Di%20Maria_7_213_115&9=MC_21%20Ander%20Herrera_21_214_235&10=AC_8%20Mata_8_148_173&11=FC_10%20Rooney%20%28C%29_10_78_224&c2=ffffff&c3=ffffff&output=embed

Whilst many questioned Louis van Gaal’s decision to play three at the back during United’s first three games of the season, nobody questioned why United operated in a 4-1-2-1-2 formation with a diamond in midfield that worked brilliantly.

The tactic brought the best out of United’s midfielders, especially one of their summer arrivals Daley Blind. The Dutchman played really well, sitting just in front of the defence completing 112 passes with four key passes and had 122 touches.

He resembled the midfielder that United have been searching for as he looked calm, composed and organised throughout the game. It will be interesting to see if United use this formation against bigger teams and how successful it turns out to be.

Juan Mata

After the arrivals to Old Trafford throughout the summer, many have questioned if Mata still has a place in the United squad, but yesterday the Spaniard proved his doubters wrong.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

In his preferred number ten role, Mata completed 98% of his passes and scored one goal before being substituted for Radamel Falcao part way through the second half.

I think it’s ridiculous that Mata could possibly leave the club after all he has scored eight goals in his last ten Premier League appearances for United.

Robin van Persie

Whilst United did manage to score four goals yesterday, Dutchman Robin van Persie continued his struggle to find the back of the net. The 31 year old is yet to score this season after four games and could pay the ultimate price because of this goal drought.

Many pointed the finger at Mata saying he would be the one to suffer from the arrival of Falcao at Old Trafford, but I think it could be van Persie seeing the bench sometime soon and replaced by the Colombian if he doesn’t start scoring soon. He must improve in United’s next game away at Leicester.

The formula for success for any football club, from the early amateur days of the game to the multi-billion pound industry that it has become today, is strength in every area of the team. While the attackers may make the headlines and more often than not grab the awards, the old-fashioned centre backs, the anchor men and the sweeper keepers – though less glamorous and show-stopping than those who score the goals – are equally as important. For every Lionel Messi there needs to be a Gerard Pique, for every Andriy Shevchenko a Paolo Maldini, and if an equal degree of emphasis is not placed on defence, midfield and attack, then the chance of glory at the end of the season is slim.

The crazy world of the Premier League likes to do things a bit differently, however. After five successive seasons in which more than 1,050 goals were scored – only the 1999/2000 campaign can match this in the league’s 38-game format – the Premier League’s lust for goals shows no sign of resting. The memo this year seems to be a wilful disregard of all notions of defence and protecting one’s own net in favour of simply scoring more goals than the opposition. With a current average of 2.86 goals per game, this season is on course to being the highest-scoring Premier League campaign ever.

José Mourinho’s league leaders Chelsea – who once prided themselves on their parsimonious defence, especially during the Portuguese’s first spell in charge – have already conceded seven goals in their opening five games, three more than 19th placed Burnley. Liverpool and Manchester United, two clubs with serious top four aspirations, have conceded eight apiece, while Everton – who impressed many last season with their record points total – top the charts, having let 13 goals slip past Tim Howard.

The fact that the teams who usually occupy the top positions of the league have come to mind first when talking about defensive incompetence is significant, as it suggests that the fight for the top four is going to be tighter than ever. Whilst it is usually the teams that possess the greatest firepower or world-class talent that manage to qualify for the Champions League, this season it seems to be a case of the teams who can actually be bothered with defending effectively.

Liverpool’s defensive shortcomings were evident last year despite finishing as runners-up, and the departure of Luis Suarez has exposed this to an even greater extent. Based on their performance in the League Cup victory over Middlesbrough, Kolo Toure and Mamadou Sakho are like the Laurel and Hardy of English football, with the constant potential for cringe-inducing calamity and slapstick blunders just around the corner. Fortunately, this is not Liverpool’s first-choice centre-back pairing, though Martin Skrtel is no stranger to gaffes either.

Meanwhile over at Manchester United, Louis van Gaal has adopted an extreme laissez-faire approach to his defence, pinning all his hopes instead on his star-studded attack to score enough goals to win the game. While this can work at times against toothless opposition such as Queen’s Park Rangers, it is a recipe for disaster against any team who shows the slightest amount of attacking intent. The sight of the hapless United backline – bearing no structure or shape whatsoever – being trounced by a rampant Leicester City attack was compelling and will surely encourage other teams to take the game to the Red Devils.

At Everton, Roberto Martinez seems to be engaging in some well-intentioned yet defensively costly act of philanthropy, giving the old timers of Phil Jagielka, Sylvain Distin and Tim Howard one last season to stretch their ageing legs on the turf of Goodison Park – with not a care in the world about the industrial quantities of goals that are shipped into the net – before they are handed their zimmer frames and nudged gently towards the exit door.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

This unprecedented, almost comic disinterest in one of the most rudimentary and vital aspects of football means that the fight for the Champions League spaces may be more unpredictable than ever this season. If teams vying for the top four simply remember to close one door – the all-important defensive door – then a more lucrative door may very well open in May.

It could be worse Nando, you could be one of these guys…

[ffcvideo file=”TopFiveVideosoftheWeek” type=”mp4″]