Roberto Di Matteo- Another One Bites the Dust

Games: 42
Wins: 24
Draws: 9
Losses: 9
Win Percentage: 57.14    

This is Roberto Di Matteo's short managerial record at Chelsea following his sacking this morning. He lasted 262 days as Chelsea boss, longer than his predecessor Villas-Boas (256), Grant (247) and Scolari (223). In  his 262 days he managed to lift the FA cup and the much coveted Champions League trophy, so was it right for him to get the sack? or just further evidence of Roman Abramovich's short sightedness?

Well lets first consider this season on its own, being his first year as official Chelsea manager, rather than caretaker manager. After an impressive start to the season winning seven of their first eight games, the Blues have won only two of their last eight games. They sit third in the Premier League, four points behind leaders Manchester City, who they host on Sunday. This season was always going to be tougher than the last, setting high expectations following their Champions League win, as well as losing key players like Didier Drogba and facing the inevitability of having to faze out older personnel such as Frank Lampard. The signings of Eden Hazard and Oscar, who have formed a formidable partnership, along with Juan Mata seemed to be the key to this Chelsea transition, however the lack of striking options has placed even more pressure on the misfiring Fernando Torres. The club have undoubtedly taken a different direction to previous years, seeking not only to win, but win in style. However their dip in form, particularly their struggle to qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League has led to Di Matteo's demise.

Supporters of Di Matteo would point to the fact that there were certain factors beyond his control, ie the lack of John Terry in the team, which has meant that Chelsea have conceded 20 goals in 10 games, although adaptability is an important trait in a top manager. 'Robbie' was always going to struggle to get Mr Abramovich's backing, as I think it's fair to say nobody expected Chelsea to finish the season as strongly as they did, and the plan was only for Di Matteo to stabilise the club until the end of the season. Their success in the Champions League meant that the Chelsea owner was almost forced to hand the Caretaker boss a permanent contract, without him being his first choice. The very fact that the contract was only two years, suggests that he wasn't a long term solution, and I'd go so far as to say the Russian billionaire was almost looking for Di Matteo to slip up in order to implement his master plan.

The timing of the sacking seems somewhat strange with a massive game on Sunday, and some commentators would have thought the club could have waited until January to replace Di Matteo. It seems that Chelsea have a natural replacement lined up in Rafa Benitez, who lives in England and would be ready to begin almost instantly, although this may just be for an interim period, with Pep Guardiola (still on sabbatical) still seemingly Abramovich's first choice.

              

The issue almost inevitably comes back to that of stability being the key to success, however when you have spent billions of Pounds as the Chelsea owner has, impatience can be expected.  Perhaps a more proven young manager (Guardiola) would be afforded more time to mould the club and perhaps Abramovich sought to speed up this process, feeling that although Di Matteo created a togetherness and stability at the club, he wasn't the visionary that Chelsea were looking for. Perhaps this is true, and there may well be question marks surrounding Di Matteo's ability to adapt when in losing positions, but Chelsea fans will not be filled with confidence after the sacking of a ninth manager in eight years, particularly that of a Chelsea legend and someone who brought them two bits of silverware in less than a year,  and if the hierarchy at the club keep reacting like this to dips in form they will soon run out of managerial options.

Harsh? Probably..Strange timing? Yes... Surprising? No..

Let us know your thoughts and opinions in the comment box below!

Manchester City's Enigmatic Champions League Form

                                  

2011/12:

                                                                  Man City 1-1 Napoli
Bayern 2-0 Man City
Man City 2-1 Villarreal
Villarreal 0-3 Man City
Napoli 2-1 Man City
Man City 2-0 Bayern

2012/2013:

Real Madrid 3-2 Man City
Man City 1-1 Dortmund
Ajax 3-1 Man City
Man City 2-2 Ajax

Here are Man City's Champions League results from the last 2 years, results that despite Roberto Mancini winning the title have meant that he is facing more and more pressure. Last season, City finished 3rd in their group, behind Napoli and eventual finalists Bayern Munich, and despite the disappointment many commentators put this down to nerves, with it being the teams first experience of the Champions League. However, even a 3rd place finish seems unlikely this year, with City 2 points behind Ajax and still to play Dortmund away and Real Madrid at home. So how exactly is it that a team that finished with 89 points from 38 games in the league last year has only managed to amass 12 points from their 10 games in the Champions League over the last 2 years?

Zonal Marking: Misunderstood? or Doomed to Fail?

It seems like the zonal marking debate springs up every few weeks, when a team that uses the system concedes from a set piece. Most recently, Man City conceded from a corner in their 3-1 Champions League loss to a much smaller Ajax team. This sparked a post match debate with Graeme Souness stating that he saw "no benefits" to the system. I know what you're thinking, Souness thinks its bad, so it must in fact be good, but this piece will look into why zonal marking comes under so much criticism and whether this is justified.

Firstly, lets look at what zonal marking actually is. If you ask the average bloke in the pub, you will probably get the answer "the defenders mark zones instead of players", which might be right, but is a huge oversimplification and shows why some people may be quick to criticise the system without understanding it. The idea of zonal marking is to cover as much area as possible, whilst also being flexible, so that dummy runs by attacking players don't create large spaces in the box. Another key aspect of the system is that defenders are supposed to cover an area a set number of yards in front and to the side of their starting position, NEVER BACKWARDS. This means defenders can and should attack the ball if it enters their 'zone', therefore they have to be responsible for judging whether the ball is there to be won or not. Commonly, there will be a number of players in a line across the 6 yard box, a 'first man' to cut out any low balls, players at the edge of the area to deal with a ball that is cut back, and to help with attacking breaks, and if the goalkeeper so chooses, men on the post. This is a debate for another day, but I will say this; Managers often get the blame if a goal is scored with no men guarding the posts, however this often up to the goalkeeper, something that was evident for anyone that watched the last instalment of Being: Liverpool where Pepe Reina stated he preferred a player on the edge of the area, rather than at the far post, a fact echoed by Rafa Benitez when asked why he switched from having players on the post to not in between his first and second season (the transition between Dudek and Reina)

         

Like any method of defending set pieces there are variations of zonal marking, whether that be semi-zonal- where key danger-men are man marked and the rest are zonally marked, or a difference in the number of men on the 6 yard line, or at the posts, however the principle remains the same.

The key to zonal marking, as argued by Martin Keown (who is a massive advocate of the system) is flexibility. In a recent article, he wrote "If you are facing Andy Carroll and he moves into a zone where you don't have one of your best headers, then you need to switch to make sure you have your best man there. If two opposition players come into your four metre zone, you have to drag another player in to help you. If your standing with nobody to mark in your zone, move to the edge of it to deny someone space who might later try to run in there." This is an aspect that is often overlooked when analysing its flaws, and may go some way to proving that it is the players that are at fault when a goal is conceded rather than the system. Furthermore, by setting up in a zonal marking system, defenders can track the flight of the ball, rather than just focusing on the player they are marking. Finally, with the increased influence of European styles of football, ie where possession football is encouraged, the system (if worked on properly in training) can lead to a fast and effective counter-attack, rather than hoofing the ball clear and having to deal with a second wave of attack.



There are however, several drawbacks, or limitations to using zonal marking. The point that is most commonly cited when criticising zonal marking is that due to the movement of the attacking players, there is a chance of players being unmarked, when in between two potential zone, a problem that was all to evident when the 5ft 10 Niklas Mosiander snuck in behind Joleon Lescott (6ft 1 1/2) and Vincent Kompany (6ft 2 1/2) to give Ajax a 2-1 lead against Man City last week. Another problem is that players can attack the ball with a running jump which may give them an advantage in their leap.

Of course, an issue with zonal marking is that when it goes wrong, it goes REALLY wrong, and can lead to an unmarked header, naturally exposing it to criticism. The question often posed by supporters of the system is why is every goal conceded from man-to-man marking is not scrutinised in the same way as zonal marking. This was a point Rafa Benitez raised in typically candid fashion in this clip when questioned about the system during his time as Liverpool boss.

     

Benitez is one of the main proponents of zonal marking and the effectiveness of the system during his Liverpool reign can be seen in the table below, where Liverpool had the best defensive record from set pieces, two season running, whilst being in the top 4 of the list in 5/6 of his seasons in charge. Even the one year (2007/8) where Liverpool fell short of this high standard, they still conceded the same amount of goals as the 2010/11 season when Hodgson/Dalglish were in charge.

Courtesy of (http://www.rafabenitez.com/web/index.php?act=mostrarContenidos&co=1143)

This debate is unlikely to go away unless no goals are ever conceded from corners, but for some reason I think that isn't going to happen. Regardless of whether you favour zonal marking or the traditional man-to-man marking system, I'm sure you will agree comments like Souness's are a bit harsh. It seems that man-to-man is tried and tested and is the simplest route to go down, however if as a manager you are willing to take the risk of implementing zonal marking, and as long as you drill the method into the players well so that everybody knows their responsibilities, it can be a very effective tool.

Please feel free to leave your thoughts and comments in the box below!

Super Sunday

Ford Super Sundays, a mainstay in houses across the country, when children and pensioners suddenly become experts and the taste of the Sunday roast depends on whether your team wins or not. This Sunday will be no different, but there will be some extra spice with two  matches that really matter. The Merseyside derby- Everton vs Liverpool- is often called the 'friendly derby' but I can assure you, it will be far from that, proof of which lies in the fact that this fixture has seen more red cards than any other fixture since the start of the Premier League. Manchester Utd travel to Stamford Bridge in a 1st vs 3rd clash, facing a Chelsea side that has only dropped 2 points all season, with Man Utd determined to win the title back from their 'noisy neighbours' Man City, but Chelsea stand in their way.

Who Can Solve Liverpool's 'Striking Crisis'?

The first issue that needs to be addressed is whether Liverpool really have a 'striking crisis' or not. Since the end of the transfer window, the club has seen three first team attacking players leave, in the form of Dirk Kuyt, Craig Bellamy and Andy Carroll (who it seems may have played his last game for the Reds). Only Fabio Borini has been bought to fill one of these positions and so far Brendan Rodgers has to rely extensively on the youth team for reinforcements, with tennagers like Suso (18), Raheem Sterling (17), Adam Morgan (18), Samed Yesil (18), and Jerome Sinclair (16) all playing parts in senior fixtures. As talented, as these young players are, Rodgers has stressed the importance not to 'overplay' these players, tempering fan's expectations. The recent injury to Fabio Borini, who will be out for around 3 months after breaking his foot has further limited Rodgers' attacking options, exacerbating the disappointment of the transfer deadline day. Luis Suarez, remains Liverpool's most potent goal threat, having scored 5 goals in 8 appearances (in the Premier League), yet averaging over 6 shots/game, which can hardly be described as clinical. Anyone that has watched Liverpool's performances over the course of the season will be aware of the dominance the team has shown, averaging 57% possession/game with 27 shots on goal , yet they only have a lowly 9 points to show for this. The manager himself as admitted the need to bring in new recruits in January stating "There are still areas we want to reinforce- and we have to reinforce as soon as we can".


So here's a list of Realistic transfer targets for January that could solve Liverpool's attacking problems, and be the possible 'missing link' to Brendan Rodgers' revolution.




Theo Walcott

Liverpool have regularly been linked with the Arsenal speedster, who seems unsettled in North London, with contract talks dragging out longer than a black and white Bollywood film.

The 23 year old seems to be ever improving, having bagged two goals and an assist in just one start and five substitute appearances in the Premier League, having only had seven shots on goal. He also boasts an impressive pass completion rate of 86.5%, which may suggest he could adapt to Liverpool's revamped passing style.

There is also the small fact that he is a boyhood Liverpool fan, which could sway his decision (if there is any passion left in football).

However, there are several snags in this seemingly flawless plan. Walcott's contract talks have been scuppered due to his desire to play in a central strikers role, a chance he may not also be afforded at Anfield due to the need for the central striker to push back deeper, whilst the wide players make runs on the inside under Rodgers' system. Furthermore, there is Arsene Wenger's insistence that Walcott WILL sign a new contract, telling ESPN "My determination has always been to extend his contract and that other clubs are interested or not the determination is the same." For now, this can only be regarded as a slight possibility, with a sprinkling of cautious optimism, though the situation could change in the January 'Jungle' transfer window.


Daniel Sturridge

The second player in the list, is of the same ilk as Walcott, in the form of out of favour Chelsea forward, Daniel Sturridge. Liverpool were rumoured to have been interested in a loan move for the England international with a view to a permenant deal, though nothing materialised (as was the trend for much of Liverpool's summer business).  However, the former Bolton loanee has only featured three times this season, all as a substitute, and with Liverpool in desperate need of numbers, the rumour has re-emerged. Sturridge has shown his pedigree, having scored 11 goals in 30 appearances last season, and would also fit in with Liverpool's transfer policy, being only 23 years of age.


However, similarly to Walcott, the Chelsea man has voiced his desire to play in a more central role, whilst Brendan Rodgers may seem him as more effective cutting in from the right onto his favoured left foot, though he has shown greater consistency than Walcott playing from a central position.

It seems that if Rodgers is offered a deal that suits both parties, this deal could very well happen, although this could prove harder than seems with the Liverpool board seemingly concrete in their desire not to overpay for a player.


Heung-Min Son

Perhaps a less well known name than the previous two targets, the Korean international has begun the season in scintillating form for Hamburg bagging 4 goals in 8 games in the Bundesliga. He is widely regarded as one of the brightest talents in Asian football, and as this compilation video shows, he can play with both feet, header, dribble, finish with composure..oh yeah..and even ping in the odd free kick. Sound too good to be true?..It gets better! Son can play either as central striker, or from either wing, and has supposedly been quoted saying "I don't care where I play. The main thing is I'm in the game. I can play right, left, as a forward or behind it. What the coach says, i'll do. I don't have a favourite position. I'll be anywhere and always on the throttle." Also, did I mention he is only 20 years of age? 

Convincing Hamburg to sell one of their brightest talents may be another issue, however, if they are willing to sell, it is possible that it could be for less than £10million, making him a much cheaper alternative than either of the English lads above. 

I know i'm putting myself up for some criticism by saying this- but I have a background in Economics, so I see the business side of things as well- he may well be a good acquisition in terms of increasing Liverpool's market share in Asia. I am in no way suggesting that this should be the sole determinant in his signing!..but in the current footballing world, it is something that has to be considered..to a degree.

Keep a close eye on this one, because he seems like a very realistic target, even if not the marquee signing everyone expects.

Gary Hooper

The Celtic forward has recently been linked with Liverpool, but then again, who hasn't? Liverpool-Kop has claimed that the Reds are favourites to sign the Bhoys star striker, but I think its safe to say we can take what they say with a pinch of salt- Jaimie Kanwar-someone who defended Hicks and Gillet- I think that sums it up, but that's just my personal opinion. 

The 24 year old is undoubtedly a natural goal-scorer which many commentators would agree is the missing link in Liverpool's season. He has a enviable scoring record, with 47 goals in 71 appearances for Celtic and although he is known for his ability to hold the ball up, he also has an underestimated passing ability and can link up well with the midfield, whilst running through the channels to finish with composure. There is one last thing, he is English, but hasn't pledged his allegiance to any international team which will reduce the likely-hood of injury in those Godforsaken international breaks.

However, he isn't quick to say the least and is most definitely a central striker, a position Rodgers seems adamant to make Luis Suarez's. As well as this, he can be seen as a 'traditional' British striker, which may not be what Liverpool's new style play needs. Furthermore, many of these rumours have sprung up due to the fact that he is yet to sign a new contract with Celtic, however, manager Neil Lennon has stated "We are still in negotiations at the minute and I don't think we are too far away" and in typically eloquent fashion suggested he would "poo-poo that", in reference to a link with Liverpool.
Whether Hooper would be the right player for Liverpool, or just another knee-jerk signing has to wait to be seen, but there rumours won't go away until he signs a new contract. In my personal opinion, Hooper is undoubtedly talented, but there may well be better, cheaper alternatives out there.

Martin Harnik

My final target is the 25 year old Austrian, who has become famous for his 'Thor's hammer celebration'. Harnik, currently plies his trade for Bundesliga outfit Stuttgart, predominantly playing from the right. He began his career in the centre, and still believes, much like Walcott and Sturridge, that this is his natural calling. However, he has undoubtedly been most effective from the right forward position- with 17 goals in 34 appearances in the Bundesliga last season and 3 more in the first 7 games.At 1.85 metres, he is tall and has a good aerial ability, but don't let this detract from his pace and dribbling ability. His early experiences as a central striker, mean he is good at finding space and creating it for others, something which could be vital within the new Liverpool set-up. 

A potential link up with Luis Suarez could be a mouth-watering prospect for Liverpool fans, however, he recently signed a new deal with Stuttgart lasting until 2016, meaning any potential acquisition could prove very costly, so admittedly this may be more hopeful than realistic, but the opportunity to showcase his talents on a bigger stage may be too tempting for the forward.

Conclusion

There have been lots of names banded about in reference to Liverpool's attacking targets, and if they signed everyone they were linked with, the squad would have around 467 forwards. Only once it gets to January will the situation clear up, but I personally feel one of these five players is the most likely/most suitable- but you can decided for yourself. There are other names that are possibilities, such as Adrian Lopez, Stefan Kiessling, Darrent Bent, but Adrian has a poor scoring record, Kiessling has traditional been a target man (which seems to defy the whole reason Andy Carroll went away on loan) and Darren Bent-who has a natural goalscoring ability and seems unsettled at Aston Villa- may not have the ability to link up well enough to play in the Liverpool system.

Feel free to comment and I look forward to hearing your opinions!

Happy birthday Sheffield FC

The world's oldest football club celebrates its birthday today, having been founded on the 24th October 1857. The South Yorkshire club- not to be confused with Sheffield utd or Sheffield Wednesday- currently ply their trade in the Northern Premier League Division One South...(breathe!) and have been  bestowed with the FIFA Order of Merit and commemorated by the English Football Hall of Fame for their place in football history.

Tactical Sunder takes it's hat off to you.

Happy Birthday Sheffield FC.