Coventry City - What needs to be done (on the pitch that is)

Tony Mowbray and Mark Venus

With the transfer window now officially open and after witnessing the drivel being spewed from the mouth’s of many an irate City fan as to why messieurs Mowbray and Venus have yet to make a signing, I’ve decided to unveil my ‘sky-blueprints’ for the season ahead. Mowbray has dispensed with the deadwood from last season, some of whom may have flourished had they not spent the majority of their time here under Steven Pressley’s watch - but that is a debate for another day. 

Adam Barton, Simeon Jackson, Frank Nouble, Shaun Miller, Blair Turgott, Danny Pugh, Andrew Webster and Al Bangura have all departed the club this summer, leaving the squad with a fair few spaces to fill. Undoubtedly we possess the basis of a competitive team, but admittedly we do need to strengthen. Rather than identify candidates for the vacant roles, I’ll address the areas that need to be bolstered. 

Specific parallels can be drawn between the form of current first choice keeper Lee Burge and the results of the club last season, namely the inconsistent nature of both. Inconsistency is a formality for keeper’s during the infancy of their careers and with this in mind, I’m not that worried about Burge’s place in the squad. However both Burge and Reice Charles-Cook - a talented player by all accounts - would benefit from an experienced professional between the sticks, as would the club.  

There are a multitude of reasons why we underperformed last season - which I am sure the Coventry Telegraph have had an online poll on, so I won’t go into them. However one of the main reasons was frustratingly down to individual defensive errors, despite this there are two individuals that should be permanent fixtures in the first team going into next season. 

Aaron Phillips endeared himself to the Sky Blues faithful after lashing in the equaliser against Wolves at Molineux back in 2013 and has since gone on to make a number of impressive appearances at right back. Whilst ‘Haynes Mania’ was slowly but surely unravelling, young Aaron was unassumingly going about his business. 

He was replaced towards the end of the season by the more defensively minded Jordan Willis, but Phillips is definitely the way forward. He confidently overcomes his lack of aerial presence through his tenacity, and his level of technical ability allows him to maintain composure when in possession unlike Willis - who in all fairness is more suited to centre half. 

At the age of 27 Reda Johnson is one of three players the team should be built around. There are issues surrounding both his fitness and disciplinary record, but pound for pound he was one of our most impressive performers last year and as he enters what should be the peak years of his career, we need to make the most of his influence. Johnson exudes leadership and confidence, characteristics needed when a high percentage of your squad is young. He is currently out of contract, hopefully this won’t be the case for much longer. 

What he requires is a defensive partner that can match his ability and physicality. In terms of effort, the performances of Aaron Martin cannot be faulted, however he was responsible on more than one occasion for the individual defensive errors that caused us such distress. His resilient performance against Crawley in the final game of the season, highlights the ‘on his day’ manner of the former Southampton man’s game, deeming him sufficient enough for a place on the bench. The same indictment can be levelled at Jordan Willis, with his technical ability leaving a lot to be desired. 

Cast your mind back to the glorious night of the ‘Ricoh Return’, when 27,306 people collectively gasped in amazement at wonder-boy Ryan Haynes running down the wing and floating a ball into the box. For whatever reason, be it loss of confidence, failing to adapt to the physical requirements of first team football or just simply being another overrated academy graduate, Haynes lost his way over the season. 

That’s not to say his Coventry City career has completely flatlined, but yesterday’s signing of Chris Stokes means that Haynes should be on the periphery of the squad this season. I’m not overly enamoured by the Bolton youth academy graduate and ideally another left back should be signed, but realistically this won’t happen. That being said a full professional pre-season will only help Stokes, who performed commendably during last season.

Traditionally Tony Mowbray has been a 4-2-3-1, 4-3-3 or a flexible 4-4-2 man with the basic principle of playing effective passing football. Since his arrival we haven’t seen much evidence of this, with a fixed 4-4-2 system being deployed. I would be very surprised if Mowbray had abandoned his footballing principles in favour of the out-of-date, rigid 4-4-2, moreover it seems that rather than overcomplicate things for the squad he inherited, he saw 4-4-2 as a temporary solution for staving off relegation. 

Basing the midfield selection on the 4-2-3-1 system it is clear that some work needs to be done. The second of the three players the team should be built around is John Fleck, with 139 appearances to his name - the highest of the current squad - he continues to get criticised for his lack of goals, when frankly, goalscoring isn’t his game. 

Fleck is comfortable in possession, he has an astute eye for a pass both long and short and he’s hard in the tackle, meaning he is the dictionary definition of a ‘holding-midfield’ player. He needs to be allowed to sit in front of the defence and dictate the play, rather than being used in a flat midfield two, out wide or behind the striker where he is ineffective due to his lack of pace. 

To accompany Fleck in this defensive role it is imperative that we sign a midfield destroyer, tall, physical, agile, quick, the kind of player that will take a booking for a cynical foul. Simply put,  everything that Conor Thomas and Jack Finch are not. Much has been said about 18-year-old Ivor Lawton, but without ever watching him play - apart from at Primary School - I’ll reserve judgement on him and the rest of the new academy graduates. 

The advanced midfield three will be made up of two wingers and a central attacking midfielder - that’s a number 10 for those of us who aren’t privy to the language of the FIFA generation of football fans. After an impressive debut season, Jim O’Brien is probably the first name on Mowbray’s team sheet for the new season. 

O’Brien’s industrious performances - which combined effective wing-play and the odd long range goal - saw him collect the Player of the Season award. It’s hard to critique Jim, but it is necessary to question both his creativeness and delivery from out wide, which can be a bit haphazard. The need for pace and cleverness is an obvious, yet required request - I’ll just stop all those who are currently screaming: “CARL BAKER” at their computer/tablet/phone screens, get over it, wipe away the tears, he wasn’t that good and he’s long gone. 

James Maddison completes the triumvirate of players the team should be built around. There is no need to overcomplicate the analysis of Maddison, he’s a bloody good player and could well go on to be a bloody great player. For now at least he is ours and we should utilise him effectively. He could be used out wide or as the lone striker, but his ability on the ball means that he is made for the number 10 role. Rather than be in and out of the game on the wing, or overpowered physically as the lone striker, allow him the time and space that a player with his potential requires. Do so and he will surely thrive and subsequently move to the Premier League in the near future.  

The return of Danny Swanson has been met with mixed reactions by City fans, but whatever your personal view it is clear to see that there is a player there, even if we have yet to see it. Intermittently and incorrectly used by Pressley, Swanson will have the number 10 role in his sights and competition for places can only be a positive. O’Brien and Swanson are fantastic options to have, but the need for pace and creativity cannot be stressed enough, the talent is out there and it is for Mowbray and Venus to find it. 

Marcus Tudgay should always be appreciated by City fans for that goal against Crawley which prevented us from sinking to new, horrifying lows. He has duly been granted a new one year deal and will work as an effective impact player off the bench. More forwards are quite evidently needed and rather than taking on the likes of Nouble, Jackson and a array of failed loan forwards - not including Dominic Samuel - we should look at League 2 and Non-League, where ‘gems’ continue to be found. I’m not even talking about the likes of Charlie Austin et al, a player of his quality isn’t needed in a league that is in a continuous decline in terms of quality. 

The basis of the team:

GK: New Player (Replacement: Lee Burge/Reice Charles-Cook)

RB: Aaron Phillips (Replacement: Jordan Willis/Dion Kelly-Evans)

CB: New Player (Replacement: Aaron Martin)

CB: Reda Johnson (Replacement: Jordan Willis/Cian Harries)

LB: Chris Stokes (Replacement: Ryan Haynes)

CDM: New Player (Replacement: Conor Thomas/Jack Finch/Ivor Lawton)

CDM: John Fleck (Replacement: Conor Thomas/Jack Finch/Ivor Lawton)

RW: Jim O’Brien (Replacement: New Player)

CAM: James Maddison (Replacement: Danny Swanson/George Thomas)

LW: New Player (Replacement: Danny Swanson/Kyle Spence/Devon Kelly-Evans)

ST: New Player(s) (Replacement: Marcus Tudgay)

Acquire what is needed and a successful season beckons. Instead of returning to the negative ways that are a depressing theme of our club, be patient and allow Tony Mowbray and his backroom staff to do their jobs. The time to panic about signings or a lack of, is not now. We finally have a man in charge who, if anything, is over qualified for the job. What he and the squad need is your unwavering support as we enter a new season. 

In Mogga we trust

Return of the Mic: A New Trip

One played 179 times for Manchester City, the other failed to make a first team appearance, but both Micah Richards and Kieran Trippier have this week made moves to further their careers. Richards, once deemed a future England starter, had fallen completely off the radar of English football having spent a underwhelming season on loan at Fiorentina. The motive behind the move to Italy was clear - play games in a somewhat rejuvenated Serie A and reignite a career that had sadly stalled. However following an intermittent season, not dissimilar to that of another English fullback, Richards finds himself as one of the first summer recruits by the man many have dubbed Tim 'Shrewdwood'. 

Trippier in a familiar pose.

Having progressed through Manchester City’s academy - captaining the side that won the FA Youth Cup - and appearing for the England youth sides from under 18 to 21 level, Kieran Trippier was not afforded the same chances at first team level as Richards. Rather than sit in the reserves and await a chance that may never arrive, Trippier undertook successful loan moves to both Barnsley and Burnley. It was during these spells that his penchant for crossing and dead ball delivery  became apparent. Having signed permanently for Burnley in 2012 he has accumulated just over 200 first team appearances in what is still a fledgling career. His performances over this period have seen him collect an array of personal awards, including being named in successive PFA Championship Team’s of the Year. With all this in mind, his subsequent move to Spurs has been a long time coming. 

In many ways Richards and Trippier represent many footballers of their generation and the choices faced by players of this and future generations. When confronted with the dilemma of being on the periphery, on the outside looking in, many will choose to stay in the reserves, on the sidelines, collect their wages and be done with it. Clearly it isn’t always as simple as that and in Richards case, injuries and the form of Pablo Zabaleta have significantly hindered his control of the situation. The sentiment still holds though, and the obvious parallels that can be drawn between Richards and Trippier go as far as their strength of character. 

England's defensive saviour?

Both men have had to navigate and overcome periods in which the outlook of their career’s has seemed unclear, but they have proven their commitment to the game they both evidently adore, admittedly through different methods. Trippier by dropping down to the fiercely competitive Championship, in which many a Premier League reject has failed to reinvigorate his career. Richards by joining Aston Villa and thus lowering his short term ambitions in favour of long term gain. One has dropped down to come back up, the other has no doubt been inundated with glamorous offers of plying his trade on the other side of the world, both, refreshingly, remain in the Premier League. Will both be surprise inclusions in Roy Hodgson’s squad for Euro 2016? Watch this space. 

Between a Hock and a hard place

Having awoken from a mid-morning nap, I had to double check that I wasn’t still dreaming whilst checking my Twitter feed, which was awash with the news of Pressley’s departure. The sensation was somewhat reminiscent of the joys of Christmas morning, I’d asked for Pressley to be removed from the club and my present was delivered in the form of a club statement issued at 11:18 yesterday morning. 

Hockaday and Aidy

Rather than regurgitate my previous piece on Pressley’s tenure, I’ve decided to look forward as all City fans must do (Even though the future at this club is a murky and uncertain place). Having spent the majority of yesterday discussing potential replacements, many have already come to the conclusion that the former Forest Green and Leeds United head coach Dave Hockaday will be appointed manager for the foreseeable future (One lunatic did put forward Mr Blobby for the gig, the men in white coats quickly dealt with him).

Hockaday and Neil MacFarlane are currently in temporary control and the former is odds on with the bookies to be appointed on a full time basis. However, whether you call it Mr Blobby esque lunacy or just wishful thinking, I am going to review the potential alternatives. 

John Still 

My favourites have always been Luton’s John Still and Rochdale’s Keith Hill, so I best get them out of the way first. Both have a definite style of play (A fluid passing game), which is a vital component required from any prospective manager at this level of the game (Unfortunately Mr Pressley didn’t have a clear vision). More importantly they have a history of managing previously underachieving  clubs to promotion. 

In two separate spells Hill won promotion to League 1 with Rochdale on a shoestring budget and they are currently engaged in a play-off push. Still is a Non-League legend, leading Dagenham and Redbridge to the Football League for the first time in their history. This feat was arguably matched last season as Still achieved what many had failed to do by winning the Conference Premier title with Luton Town. For me they are ideal candidates for the job, perhaps not realistic. 

Even more unrealistic targets are the various names that were being banded about by some yesterday. The likes of Nigel Adkins, Paulo Di Canio, Uwe Rosler and Darren Ferguson are all of a better standard than our club can currently command. Add to this the fact that they all like to spend a bit of cash on a transfer fee every now and again, which we all know is about as likely to happen here as Mark Robins returning to the club. 

Bring Black back?

There are those managers that seem to be discussed every time we are on the hunt for a new man. I speak of Eric Black, Richard Money and Paul Tisdale, all of whom have their obvious credentials, but I fear that if they didn’t want to move to the club previously then they almost certainly wouldn’t want to do so now. 

I’ve managed to cobble together a few wildcard picks which may intrigue some readers. Firstly a man who is synonymous with South-West football, Gary Johnson. Akin to the successes of Still and Hill, Johnson amazed everyone by taking little old Yeovil to the second tier of English football and his time at Bristol City was just as impressive. Arguably he might not fancy such a tumultuous club as ourselves, after the last two draining seasons at Yeovil which ended earlier this season in his sacking. 

Alan Stubbs

Two that I haven’t seen mentioned as yet are former Cheltenham boss Mark Yates and Hibernian’s Alan Stubbs. Yates was sacked by Cheltenham in November of last year after five years at Whaddon Road. Having led them to the League Two play-offs in 2012 and 2013, they stagnated during the 2013/2014 season. He reminds me of Birmingham City manager Gary Rowett and his credentials are similar, one for consideration. 

Former Everton favourite Stubbs was appointed manager of Hibernian last summer following their humiliating relegation to the Scottish Championship. He has revived a club that was on its knees, playing superb football which sees them sit ahead of Rangers in second place. He was well thought off during his coaching spell with Everton, in which he was interviewed for the first team job following David Moyes’ departure. 

Ian Cathro

How about Ian Cathro? You know, the former Forfar and Brechin City youth player. Now there is no reason why anyone would know who he is, however his reputation is slowly but surely on the rise. He is currently assistant manager of La Liga giants Valencia, having previously worked at Dundee United and Rio Ave. The truly amazing thing about all this is that he is only 28. Of late he has been linked with the Rangers job. Maybe we should take a gamble on him before someone else does.

Perhaps I am deluded, perhaps these are all utterly unrealistic suggestions and we’ll be lucky to get Mr Blobby. I would certainly back the decision to appoint Dave Hockaday as manager until the end of the season, however regardless of whether we stay up or go down I would not like to see him here for longer than that. He has worked under Graham Taylor and Adrian Boothroyd, so it doesn’t exactly take a genius to imagine what the football will be like. He miserably underachieved at Forest Green despite the club having the biggest budget in the Conference (Sound familiar to anyone!). His spell at leeds did nothing positive for his reputation and frankly history suggests that appointing him on a full time basis would be a mistake, which we can ill-afford to make. 

The Managerial Dream Team: Blobby and Edmonds...

Steven Pressley - Return to Sender

Let us for one moment as Coventry City fans, step away from the seemingly endless debates surrounding our infamous owners, instead turning our attentions to matters on the pitch. We are in the midst of our third season in League One since dropping out of the Championship, yet it feels like a lifetime ago. The unadulterated joy and relief that our ‘homecoming’ brought has withered away, being replaced with an undefinable emptiness that only a Coventry City supporter can feel.  Inexcusably relegation is becoming more of a reality as each weekend passes, falling into League   two would be yet another demoralising blow, which frankly, the club wouldn’t bounce back from. 

There is only one man responsible for both the performance and results of the team and that man is Steven Pressley. Some may blame SISU, the Higgs Trust, the Council, Wasps or any number of candidates, and I’m not oblivious to the fact that we as a club are being crippled financially and emotionally by the current ownership. However, the manager cannot hide behind this as an excuse for not producing positive results and performances, he should have known the restraints when he took the job. 

When he arrived at the club in March 2013, he came with a reputation for nurturing youth (Something of a myth) and playing a fluent passing game. A month later I watched in awe as his Falkirk side (under the stewardship of current Norwich Academy manager Gary Holt) systematically took apart SPL side Hibernian with sumptuous passing football, which saw them lead 3-0 at half time in the Scottish Cup semi-final. As I waited for the second half to start, I thought to myself if Pressley could induce these traits into our players, then we had acquired a man with great potential. The game ended 4-3 to Hibernian after extra time, the monumental collapse from Falkirk left me somewhat bemused, but I was never going to prejudge Pressley either way. 

The 2012/2013 season that had promised so much under Mark Robins (Who is currently getting the best out of a poor squad of players at Scunthorpe), petered out to nothing following his departure and Pressley’s inception. With only Mathieu Manset and Andy Webster coming into the first team squad and several players departing, Pressley’s team basically picked itself. Whether intentionally or not, he ditched his supposed philosophy from Falkirk (Passing football played in a 4-2-3-1 system) and went back to basics with a 4-4-2 pressing game. The team was drilled, organised and every player knew their responsibilities on the pitch, with this the 10 point deduction was eaten up and we headed into January with much promise. 

It was at the end of this month that the cracks in Pressley’s managerial armour began to show. Leon Clarke returned home to the ‘delight’ of the Wolves fans, with Nathan Delfouneso signing on loan as a replacement. Clarke was nothing more than a run of the mill League 1 striker who like many over the past few seasons, showed that it doesn’t take much ability to score regularly in this division, replaceable he certainly was. What followed was a pathetic run of 4 wins out of nineteen very winnable games, with Pressley seemingly dumbfounded by how to set up without Clarke. 

His tactical implosion led to many laughable decisions which included Jordan Willis playing at left back, loan signing Anton Robinson being deployed on the wing, constant formation changes from 4-5-1 to 4-1-2-1-2 to 5-3-1-1 and a complete removal of the tactics that had worked so well during the first part of the season. The basis behind those tactics was to implement a pressing game from front to back, not allowing the opposition time to build possession. From an offensive point of view, our aim was to thread balls (Both long and short) into the forwards who would link with the midfield and build attacks from there. What we saw in the last 19 games was a complete lack of direction, organisation and a reluctance to pass the ball. As a fan it was excruciatingly hard to understand what type of football we were trying to play and what on earth was going through Pressley’s head. 

As I left Bramall Lane following a feeble second half capitulation which ended in a 2-1 defeat, it was evident that Pressley had a summer which would define him as a manager. A chance to wipe the slate clean from the previous season, no points deduction, more scope for transfers and a potential Ricoh return on the horizon. Despite losing Murphy, Moussa, Christie and Wilson, all of whom were destined to move up a division regardless of what money the club offered them, a decent selection of signings was made. The likes of Johnson, O’Brien, Pugh, Swanson, Tudgay and Jackson added to the loan signings of Allsop, Coulibaly, McQuoid, Hines and Nouble gave us a squad that at the very least should compete for the play-offs. 

Having started pre-season in the the familiar 4-4-2 which appeared to fit in with the signings that were being made, Pressley (Who revealed in an interview with the Daily Mail that he ‘meticulously studies’ the methods of Louis Van Gaal and Jose Mourinho) decided to change to the flavour of the month system 5-3-2. Many had praised the system following Louis Van Gaal’s inspired use of it throughout the Netherlands successful World Cup campaign (I looked at the pros and cons of the system following our away game with MK Dons in August).

                                                         

http://thefootballwriterblog.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/5-3-2-is-it-all-that-my-post-game.html

The obvious problems that came with the switch were that we didn’t possess the players to effectively play the system, it is not a system you can just change to overnight, each individual player needs to be aware of the intricacies of their individual role. Pressley’s thought process behind the switch was to sure up our defensive problems, which had plagued us since the start of the 2013/2014 season. Unfortunately rather than playing the system fluently as the likes of Hull, Watford and the two teams at the top of our division Bristol City and Swindon have, we produced performances that tied together a horrifically unbalanced mix of dangerously deep defensive displays and limp, sterile offensive efforts. Even in our first game back at the Ricoh, following Nouble’s opener we were second best for the rest of the game against a distinctly average Gillingham side. It took Pressley 14 league games (Which consisted of three wins, four draws and seven defeats) to realise that the system wasn’t the way forward and in returning to 4-4-2, we defeated play-off hopefuls Peterborough 3-2. 

Despite the change (and additional changes to 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1) and slight upturn in form (Four wins, four draws and four defeats from the last 12 league games), we just aren't producing the type of performances expected from this squad of players in a league of such low quality. Turgid displays that lack creativity and direction, as if there is no specific way in which Pressley instructs the team to play in. We don’t consistently try to pass, press or even hoof the ball, we are lacking in a definite structure which leaves us consistently exposed (As was shown on Sky against Swindon). There is no obvious philosophy that Pressley has, which is evident in the countless formation changes throughout his tenure.  

So he isn’t a tactically aware manager, but perhaps his man-management skills are on point? Unfortunately this isn’t the case, on more than one occasion this season he has told players they aren’t part of his plans only to name them on the bench the following week. His hilarious outburst in the aftermath of the Worcester game was ill-judged and mistimed by several months. We’ve had to endure months of the same post-match drivel spew out of his mouth: “The group were magnificent” and “The attitude and effort of the players today was superb”, the same lifeless sentiments win, lose or draw. In addition to this if you’re one for believing rumours, he has been involved in a couple of misdemeanours with Reda Johnson and Jordan Clarke. 

He doesn’t possess a positive managerial attribute and despite being a nice wee chap, the club have to act soon in removing him from the club. People will argue that he hasn’t been given money to spend or that the best players have been sold, but every manager up and down the land has to deal with these problems, of varying degrees obviously. 

What makes his complete mis-management and current underachievement even more unforgivable is when you take a look at the League One table. Ignoring Bristol City and Swindon who are playing some extremely impressive football at the moment, which highlights what can be achieved on a budget and without one, especially when you have the right man in charge. The likes of Chesterfield, Rochdale, Fleetwood, Bradford, Notts County, Doncaster, Port Vale, Oldham and Walsall all have either a similar or lesser playing budget than ours and yet, they are all competing for the play-offs.

Looking deeper into that group you find teams like Notts County and Port Vale, who had to pick at the scraps left by all the other clubs in terms of signings. Even Walsall, who season in season out sell their best players, are playing attractive passing football under Dean smith, which has seen them make it to a Wembley final for the first time in their history. These team’s squads are no better than ours, some are much worse. The managers of these teams aren’t footballing revolutionaries, but they understand the basic principles of the game. 

Whichever way you look at it Pressley is severely under performing in his role as manager. There are counter arguments that I would expect to be thrown at me, for example: 

“No one in their right mind would come and manage this club”

Yes, yes they would. There will always be managers out there chomping at the bit to get back in, you only have to look at Lee Clark joining Blackpool to realise there is always another man out there. 

“We can’t continue sacking managers, he needs more time”

He’s been with us for almost two years now and its fair to say that as a club we are in a much weaker position on the field than we were prior to his arrival.

“Its not Pressley, its the players” 

As I alluded to earlier this squad is good enough to compete for a play-off place. Look at the squad Mark Robins inherited, with a couple of shrewd loans he transformed a team bereft of confidence into a play-off chaser. 

As a replacement I would love to see either today’s opposition manager Keith Hill or Luton’s John Still come in, having both achieved previously unheard of success with the respective clubs they could do the same here (And play nice football whilst doing so). 

To conclude, I’ll reiterate what I said at the start of this article, that I’m fully aware of the constraints this club is operating under. However having considered everything, you just cannot defend the man, whether you think he’s a naive young manager who has a got a few things wrong or a completely clueless imbecile of a man bereft of managerial nous, the bottom line is he isn’t fit to manage this football club.  

Liverpool: An article revisited

Following the second weekend of the Premier League season I wrote a rather scathing piece questioning Liverpool’s progression in the transfer market. The response was quite incredible with many Liverpool fans vehemently disagreeing with what I said, some were willing to offer me their counter arguments, whilst others made statements such as: “After the sh*gging we gave spurs on Sunday this article makes you look like the naive tw*t you are”. Another asked me to review this article in eight months time to see if: “your original words are eating them selves” (That’s not my typo by the way), well seeing as we are approaching the halfway stage of the season, I’ve decided to evaluate my embryonic predictions and find out if I really am a ‘naive twat’.

Caption competition (answers on a postcard)

The first point I noted after their away trip to the Etihad was their lack of a cutting edge in the final third, well it certainly hasn’t improved over the last 16 league games with summer signings Mario Balotelli and Rickie Lambert netting a spectacular total of one league goal between them. I will at this stage mention the elephant in the room regarding Liverpool's goalscoring exploits this season, Mr Daniel Sturridge. As many optimistic Scousers will tell you, having a player of his ability missing for the majority of the season would hinder any team. 

However, the reality is that injuries occur and that is why you have a strong squad of players to deal with them. This adage has a depressingly ironic feeling to it, given the idea behind the structure of their transfer business was to boost their strength in depth. Brendan Rodgers said as much in an interview with the Liverpool Echo about injuries in early September: “This is why it was so important to strengthen the squad during the transfer window. We have options now and that’s key for us. We had a great window in terms of the calibre of players we brought in. We signed young players with quality and some with more experience as that’s what we needed. We were very specific about the types we were bringing in and they have all adapted very well. We did some really good business”. 

Fabio Borini

So according to Brendan, Liverpool have strength (in depth), options, a good calibre of player, quality, experience and new signings that have already adapted very well (remember he said all this in September). Well unfortunately Mr Rodgers it appears that the responses levelled at me, could quite as easily have been levelled at you with naive claims like that. Going back to their attacking artillery, frankly it was obvious that Rickie Lambert’s dream move would fall flat. A 32 year old lacking pace and experience at the highest level was always going to struggle when being thrust into Champions League football. The main problem and one that has also been evident with Mario Balotelli, is that both men do not fit naturally into Liverpool’s style of play. Lambert was the focal point of a superb Southampton team, all of whom knew his game inside out, but do Liverpool play to his strengths? not at all, which is why you find yourself staring at the screen saying: “God he really is slow isn’t he”. The failure to effectively replace Suarez could be Brendan’s greatest regret, in many ways he has already admitted his shortcomings here by allowing fringe forward Fabio Borini game time this season. 

Changing tact slightly I’ll move from their fallibility in attack to that of their defence. The signing of Dejan Lovren was seen at £20 million as a decent bit of business, I of course had my own cynical view on it, suggesting that he was no better than the centre halves they already possessed. Well it seems like I got that one right too with the Croatian being something of a symbolic representation of all that’s been wrong with the Anfield club this season. His inconsistent and sloppy performances saw him dropped from the first team in November, and with Skrtel, Sakho and the rejuvenated Kolo Toure all getting game time, Lovren has made the Premier League’s most accident-prone centre half trio a quartet.  

Adam Lallana

The basis of my original article was that Liverpool hadn’t made a distinct progression in terms of their squad, considering they would want to at the very least match what was achieved last season. This theme reverberates throughout the squad with Emre Can, Adam Lallana and Lazar Markovic, not one of them has taken Liverpool to a new level and only Lallana has shown signs of justifying his £25 million fee. It’s still a ludicrous amount of money for a player I would describe as ‘ok’ and no better than Phillippe Coutinho. To be fair to Can he has hardly featured due to injury, as for Markovic, I just don’t see it, apart from a playing style that resembles a headless chicken I cannot fathom why Rodgers would fork out just under £20 million for a player who’s record at Benfica was average at best. 

Something I failed to mention back in August was the state of Liverpool’s goalkeeper Simon Mignolet who has come in for some harsh but deserved criticism this season, culminating in being dropped and replaced by professional bench warmer Brad Jones. For me Liverpool got this one wrong from the off, initially by purchasing Mignolet instead of his number two at Sunderland Kieran Westwood who I believe to be the most underrated keeper in England. Secondly, why allow a keeper of Pepe Reina’s quality to leave, admittedly his performance levels did dip towards the end of his Anfield career, but the fact that both Napoli and Bayern Munich have deemed him suitable for their squads over the last two seasons speaks volumes. 

The harrowing reality for Liverpool fans is that they’ve gone from legitimate title challengers and  potential Champions League regulars to a upper mid-table side in the space of one summer. I was a big admirer of Brendan Rodgers, firstly at Swansea and then in his first two seasons at Liverpool. However his deficiencies are starting to show, both his transfer acumen and his ability to produce farcical statements should worry Liverpool fans, what you have here is a delusional manager who is a million miles away from the philosophical thinker and tactical genius that many thought had been discovered in South Wales. 

Rather than concluding with a massive I TOLD YOU SO, in the knowledge that there are another 19 games to play I will leave you with a recent quote from Rodgers (made after the 2-2 draw with Arsenal) which makes you wonder where his head is right now: "A performance that was better than when we won here (against Arsenal) last year 5-1”. 

Me, delusional. Stevie, past it. Lazar, average sometimes awful, so different descriptions for different... players. 

Stagnation under Hodgson truly is England’s nadir

Do I not like that Roy

Not since Graham Taylor’s ill-fated and much documented reign as manager has the future of the England team looked so bleak. Yesterday Roy Hodgson named yet another underwhelming squad, with such short-sightedness that we’ve come to expect from a man who has once again proven his inability to manage at the highest level.

Following a forgettable World Cup, Hodgson was backed by the F.A, who were perhaps reluctant to part with him halfway through a four year contract. Whether that was the case, or they believed that Hodgson had more to offer the national team, the truth is the decision was horrifically misjudged.

Prior to the Norway friendly in September, Hodgson and his backroom staff, which worryingly includes the much lauded Gary Neville, had possibly the easiest qualifying campaign in history to preside over. This presented Hodgson with an opportunity to recapture the imagination of a long-suffering nation of fans, whilst salvaging his own reputation which had taken a severe knock in Brazil.

Through a process of dropping the tried, tested and failed regulars and introducing in-form consistent Premier League performers and the next generation of England players, Hodgson could have breathed new life into his ageing lions. With Euro 2016 as Hodgson’s expected endgame, any players over the age of 28 should have been dropped in the knowledge that in another two years they would have significantly declined as footballers.

In the current squad this would include Jagielka, Cahill, Baines, Milner, Downing, Carrick, Lambert and Rooney. This selection feels like Hodgson is firmly in his comfort zone, unwilling to take risks, to advance the careers of youngsters coming through the England teams. When in reality, there is minimal risk in introducing the likes of Butland, Dier, Jenkinson, Moore, Hughes, Redmond, Ings, Kane and Bamford.

Additionally there are consistent performers that continue to be overlooked by Hodgson. QPR’s Steven Caulker and Charlie Austin, Hull’s Tom Huddlestone and Jake Livermore, West Ham’s Aaron Cresswell and Mark Noble and Swansea’s Nathan Dyer and Jonjo Shelvey.

Stewart Downing 

I will allow Hodgson a small slice of credit, having selected one youngster and one in-form player in Saido Berahino and Stewart Downing. The selection of Downing, whilst deserved, seems somewhat dubious with his notable performances arguably owing more to the collective performances of his teammates.

So Hodgson can be applauded for his gutsy selection of Berahino, but in the same breath he can be slaughtered for retaining Jagielka, Smalling, Townsend and Lambert all of whom who have no place in an England squad, whether this be due to age, ability or a distinct lack of game time at club level.

Then there is the reintroduction of Michael Carrick and Theo Walcott, who have only recently returned to action following long term injuries. I would imagine Arsene Wenger and Louis Van Gaal will have questioned the necessity of their places in this England squad, when achieving full match fitness with their club sides is surely the priority.  

Earlier I mentioned that incorporating a bigger percentage of the youngsters and in-form players into his squad carried with it minimal risk. In all honesty it carries no risk, we’ve already gone toe to toe with the Swiss in Basel, labouring to a 2-0 win with a team that included the rather comical selection of Fabian Delph. Basically a 2-0 defeat was all that our toughest opponents could muster, which makes me believe that Gareth Southgate’s Under 21’s could top this group.

And it is in this assumption where the problem lies, we have an easy group and yet Hodgson is sticking vehemently to several players that have no right to be there. We will of course sweep all before us in the qualifying matches, draw with the Scots and lose to a remarkably poor Italy side in friendlies. Then board the Eurostar in the summer of 2016, go out at the group stage and be left with the same mind-numbing debate about the state of English football in the aftermath of it all.

We are admittedly at a transitional stage as a national team, moving from the ‘Golden Generation’ to the ‘Generation in which a bloke who used to work in a beetroot factory can hold down a place in the squad’. As a result of this we should be blooding the youth and allowing them tournament experience, rather than giving the likes of Rooney another chance to let us down.

I’ve attributed most of the blame to Hodgson, but it should fall at the door of the F.A. They are the ones who appointed him and kept him on, they have also mismanaged the selection of previous managers, with Messieurs Eriksson and McClaren being two ill-advised appointments, and personally I’ll never forgive Sven for playing Scholes on the left.

It’s not only at senior level where they’ve messed up, the manager of the Under 20’s is a certain Adrian Boothroyd known by fans of Watford, Colchester, Coventry and Northampton as ‘Hoofroyd’ for his pre-historic long ball tactics.

F.A. Chairman Greg Dyke

Forgetting what has gone on previously, the F.A. can only dictate what happens in the present and future. Sadly, it seems that they have opted to stagnate, rather than to learn, grow and ultimately enhance the potential of England’s future stars. There is a saving grace in the form of the Under 21 European Championships next summer, with the likes of Wilshere, Sterling and Barkley hoping to be on the plane to the Czech Republic in order to gain that much desired tournament experience. 

Predictable and uninspiring: The England squad

Following yet another World Cup campaign that failed to capture the public’s imagination, Roy Hodgson has selected an England squad that will struggle to inspire a Country of disillusioned supporters. With Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard finally succumbing to age and retiring from England duty, Hodgson had the chance to blood England’s future midfield stars. Not only has he declined this opportunity, but the former Fulham manager’s selection in other areas is rather insipid.

Cahill and Jagielka 

The problems start with the defenders. For me the World Cup highlighted, if anyone was ever in doubt, that Phil Jagielka and Gary Cahill are not world class centre halves. On their day they are both solid and dependable Premier League defenders, who have both formed admirable careers for themselves. My reservation is that when Euro 2016 comes around they will be 33 and 30 respectively.

Having already proven themselves not to be up to the task of marshalling England’s back four against the very best, where is the logic in keeping them on for another two years, when they will have significantly declined as footballers. Come 2016 I will be very surprised if they still hold down first team places at Everton and Chelsea, let alone England. 

Moore was impressive against
Arsenal at the weekend

If Hodgson needs replacement ideas he need look no further than Gareth Southgate’s Under 21 squad. Two centre halves that are more than deserving of a place in the squad are Eric Dier and Liam Moore. Having progressed through Sporting Lisbon’s academy, Dier has burst onto the scene following his summer move to Spurs. Despite being something of an unknown quantity in this country, his fleeting career has constantly been monitored by England, having represented them at Under 18 level through to the Under 21’s.

Liam Moore is a versatile defender who can play at right back and centre half. He was a key part of the Leicester side that won the Championship last season, playing 30 games and earning rave reviews from the Foxes faithful. At 20 and 21 these players are the future of England and alongside Callum Chambers are worthy of a place in the squad.

In midfield the selections of Jack Colback and Fabian Delph are questionable. They both had impressive campaigns last season, much improved on previous years. Colback was a vital cog in Gus Poyet’s Sunderland side that avoided relegation and Delph scored some sublime goals whilst being voted Aston Villa’s player of the year. However are they potential England quality? I’m not convinced. 

Jack Colback 

Prior to last season Colback had been used regularly as a left back, as a result I feel he needs another season playing in midfield to perfect his game and be truly worthy of an England call-up. When first making a name for himself at Leeds, Delph attracted interest from some big clubs including Manchester City and Spurs. Following his move to Aston Villa he suffered a cruciate ligament injury and subsequently an ankle injury, having recovered from these he has been a regular in the Villa side for the past two seasons.

However both these call-ups feel somewhat premature, for players that haven’t exactly set the footballing world alight with their performances. Many West Ham fans are astonished that Mark Noble hasn’t been given a chance, after years of consistent performances at Premier League level. I don’t come from the same school of thought as West Ham fans, nevertheless there are viable alternatives that Hodgson could have pursued.

Will Hughes 

The heartbeat of Derby County’s run to the play-off final last season was 19 year old midfielder Will Hughes. A creative midfielder much alike to Jack Wilshere, he was named the Football League young player of the year last season and has been touted for moves to England’s elite clubs. His potential is there for all to see and far surpasses that of Delph and Colback’s current ability. Others worthy of Hodgson’s consideration are James Ward-Prowse, Nathaniel Chalobah and Nathan Redmond, all exciting young prospects with who have shone in recent seasons.

The most ludicrous selection is that of Rickie Lambert. It is glaringly obvious to everyone that Lambert won’t get anywhere near the squad in 2016, which deems his selection utterly pointless. He has had his moment in the sun, but his brief England career was nothing more than a sentimental nod, to a player who has carved out a respectable career from humble beginnings. The quicker the likes of Saido Berahino, Danny Ings and Charlie Austin are given a chance the better.

Hodgson is very much under pressure

I would also call into question the decision to appoint Wayne Rooney as captain. I’m a huge Rooney fan but would have much preferred Joe Hart taking the captains armband. Rooney is seemingly destined to retire after Euro 2016 at the age of 30, perhaps Roy feared Rooney may turn his back on England had he not been made captain. For longevity alone Hart is a more sensible candidate, both his leadership and talkative nature are consistently evident for Manchester City.

This is certainly the weakest squad selected by an England manager in recent times, a sign that the perceived golden era of English football is well and truly over. Hodgson will have to navigate his team through this testing transitional period, and in a sad reality the restructuring process the FA are planning to embark on, won’t bear its fruits for some time to come.