The Premier League Thread - Part II

Johnson pulls one back, should have been on at the start.

 

UnlucKi

 

2 1 whu ft

 

Sunderland right in the **** now.

 

So you need to win at home and you leave your best player who is also your top scorer on the bench and then bring him on when you are 2 nil down.. Rationale like that deserves relegation,

 

Horrendous result.

 

Like bringing your GK up for a corner and playing it short!

 

... and we couldn`t beat that lot in 4 attempts this season

 

Yup, Poyet's tactics were silly. Right now they need a motivator. Someone passionate, unorthodox and Italian.

 

Who cares.

Pretty overrated player.

 

Yes now Carroll is in double numbers of goals scored all the media will be clamouring for his inclusions as he adds something different.

 

plus he's foreign

 

Pretty ignorant comment. He gets in the Italy team.

 

Yeah but Italy is a foreign land.

 

Incidentally, how many goals has Carroll scored in the PL this season..?

On Saturday's 606 [our namesake radio programme], Robbie Savage continued to suggest that Carroll should be included in the England squad because he offers something different. Indeed he does. A lack of fitness and a tendency to injury. Have I missed anything..?

Savage suggested England take 5 strikers, consisting of Rooney [I suppose we have to], Sturridge [can't argue there], Welbeck [well he does SCORE for England], and finally 2 from 3 strikers [Rodriguez, Lambert and Carroll] and he'd take Lambert and Carroll. He's covering his arse, of course, because days before he'd suggested 4 strikers, and to just pick Carroll with the first 3 in preference to Lambert. He said.., it's my opinion, I may be wrong, I probably am.

Lead presenter, Darren Fletcher asked him by what possible logic could he select Carroll over the other 2, citing the reasons that, 1] Carroll wasn't really fit, 2] gets injured easily and, 3] if you want someone to finish, out of Rodriguez, Lambert or Carroll, anyone would pick Carroll last. He repeated, it's my opinion, I may be wrong, I probably am.

It was quite entertaining: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03z8d85

 

Yes, I heard Savage in a previous interview say something similar as well as journalists from the Times who said they would take Carroll as their 'big lump' while categorising Lambert similarly which made me question how much they had actually watched him play. Mind you they were also clamouring for the inclusion of Ravel Morrison at the time!

To be fair, Carroll does add something different and he is a great aerially - but it is a massive gamble on fitness and referees will not have seen anything like him and he would constantly be penalised. Finally if we want to encourage England to promote ball retention in sweltering Brazil then a target man is not the way forward. I would rather take Crouch who I believe is underrated.

I can kind of see why Rodriguez might not get picked as he would play a similar position in the side to Welbeck with whom he is vying [not Lambert in my opinion] but ones upturn in form and the other downturn may make Hodgson's decision more difficult.

 

Indeed. The Southampton fan who phoned in suggested that Jay and Rickie were going for the same position. Absolutely wrong, in my opinion, but he did say he'd take both. Personally, I think Rodriguez and Welbeck are after the same position, so it's 15 goals in the PL this season, plays 8 goals for England in 21 appearances. So Welbeck is indeed useful, if entirely out of form [he often doesn't even play for ManU], whereas JayRod is on fire.

Lambert is incorrectly being compared to Carroll as a big lump, by some. We know he can do the big lump job, if in a more subtle way than Carroll ever could, as he has more skill in his little toe than Carroll has in his entire body, but Rickie is a far more accomplished and rounded player. Hodgson wouldn't have to see him only as a lump who could bully a defence, but someone who could be a proper addition to the team overall, making killer passes or getting on the end of them, especially if provided by Lallana. He's two or three players in one. Carroll is hardly one player, considering his fitness and scoring prowess. Also bear in mind that Jay dominated the Toon defence aerially on Saturday. He can be the big lump too, and he's very fast. In all honesty, at the moment, I can't see a place for Carroll in the England squad. Not this time round. If there are 4 strikers taken, as I expect, I'd take Sturridge, Lambert, Rodriguez and Rooney. All in form for their clubs and all accomplished finishers [yes, Jay really is now]. If 5 strikers, I'd include Welbeck.

 

Rumours are palace are trying to re sign Zaha. I prophecised it!

 

Sunderland's run in is brutal, but I'm not sure that it matters. Of their last six league matches, four have been against bottom half teams: Hull at home, Palace at home, Norwich away, West Ham at home. Total haul: 1 point, 1 goal scored. If they aren't even competitive in those games it's hard to imagine they'll string together 3-4 wins in their final eight no matter who they play.

 

Then how did they keep beating us