City 1 Middlesbrough 0

In the preview for the game I concluded with:

It's rare that encounters between the two sides live
long in the memory and I don't expect this one to be any different. One goal
should probably settle matters.

And so the story was told.

It wasn't the most exciting of games but we did enough overall I thought to warrant taking all three points and extending our winning and clean sheet runs in the process - although Nicky Weaver's right post had a significant part to play towards the end of the match.

What was surprising was the fact that the goal came as a result of a set piece, and for once a corner didn't present an opportunity for the opposing side to launch a counter attack and Richard Dunne rose well to atone somewhat for the horrific own goal the week before.

The side did look to have more purpose about them - but how much of that was down to playing at home is probably a fair point. Defensively we weren't troubled and I thought Thatcher had a reasonable game on his return to the side, with Richards again impressing on the right hand side.

Samaras proved that the decision to play him out on the left is a misguided one as I thought he looked lively through the middle, but it is becoming obvious he is a 'home' player, whilst Reyna was solid enough alongside Barton who got forward well throughout the game.

Beasley - despite misgivings from commentators that he is too lightweight did well I thought. He isn't a 'speedster' and not particularly tricky, but I like the fact that he looks to be direct when he attacks and enjoys running at defenders - something that Rieira and Musampa never truly convinced of.

The crowd of mid-30,ooo was disappointing, although not surprising given recent results, the opposition and the scheduling of the game for Sky but as the home form has been impressive so far (even if the performances less so), I would expect the crowds to pick over the next few games back to the early-40,000 range.

Another three points once again eases the pressure on the team and Pearce and hoists us back to the middle of the table. A look at the forthcoming fixtures does give hope of putting a run together to get into the top half - but only if we can shake the habit of taking a step backwards every time we take one forwards.

Soccer Shout podcast

SS2006-10-30 - Pardew for England
Phil and Tony react in shock...SHOCK!...about West Ham's victory. Phil bows down before Manchester United.

Middlesbrough preview

Here's the preview of the Middlesbrough game which I did for The Observer today:

It's been a long week since the lunchtime debacle at Wigan, where no-one emerged with any credit. Stuart Pearce has declared himself happy with the response in training this week and we're back on home turf - where we yet to even concede this season.

Boro's form has been up and down too, and they are winless away, but we don't fare well against them.

It's rare that encounters between the two sides live long in the memory and I don't expect this one to be any different. One goal should probably settle matters.

Psycho on The Clash

Stuart Pearce appeared in The Observer today as one of number of people nominating thier favourite Clash song of all time.

Bucking the trend of most of the choices, Pearce opted for 'Complete Control':

When I was 14, I was living with my mum and dad in
Kingsbury, north west London. After school, I'd be straight up to the bedroom to
get the records on. The walls had posters of all the bands I liked: the Clash,
Stranglers, Stiff Little Fingers, Bowie. I had a Lurkers set list and a massive
'Holidays in the Sun' Pistols poster. I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do
back then - I still don't now - I was just into music.

Back then, I didn't want to hear any slow songs or
ballads; I just wanted something fast and loud that I could sing along to and
jump up and down on the bed with a baseball bat like an idiot. 'Complete
Control' was the rawest song I had; everything I wanted was on it. I can still
remember my old girl coming in and telling me to turn it down.

I'd play 'White Riot' before I went out to play, mainly
at Forest; that was my musical peak, because I was captain. Brian Clough sort of
turned a blind eye to it, really.

Window of opportunity

Perhaps irked by the continued speculation over his future, Stuart Pearce has called for a 'window' to be introduced into the game which would limit the time when a manager could be sacked by a club:

"Over the last five or six weeks I've seen X, Y and Z
manager being touted for the sack.
Maybe somewhere in the future they are
going to have to say that if you're going to move managers on, then you're going
to have to do it in the transfer window and then people can concentrate on their
jobs a little more fully.
At the moment we have a situation where one result
can dictate whether you're doing well, average or badly".

Celtic manager Gordon Strachan has voiced his support for such a proposal, and believes it would result in managers being able to work with more confidence if they were freer from the threat of the sack.

Whilst Pearce has received support from within the Premiership - notably from Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger, neither has supported the introduction of a window, more a backing that clubs should in general show more faith in managers as opposed to pulling the trigger as soon as the going gets rough.

Regardless of the merits of the window, I imagine any introduction would need the backing of the Chairman - a group I cannot really see rushing to endorse such a move, can you?

Financial results announced

The club have announced the financial results to the year end 31st May 2006. The full document can be downloaded here, but the main points in summary are:

Turnover up by £0.9 million to £61.8 million.

Operating profit up 46% to £5.1 million.

Salaries down to £34.3 from £37.7.

Profit on disposal of players £19.1 million

Net external debt reduced from £38.5 million to £32.2 million.

The press have picked up on a few of Wardle's comments as well - mainly the emphasis he placed on the West Ham cup defeat which of course resulted in the downturn of results over the remainder of the season (and arguably into this season) and certainly lost the club the potential for increased revenue from a higher league position and further FA Cup gate receipts.

Perhaps focusing on the stadium issue - which has been a hot topic in recent times when debating the clubs finances, the results also focused on the additional increased revenue generated from the commercial activities of the stadium (namely concerts and corporate events).

A point which has been picked up as a possible warning shot for Stuart Pearce, Wardle also stated that due to the wage bill that the club operate with "...Premiership survival remains an objective, (but) it alone does not represent a successful season for Manchester City."

And with a potential new TV deal looming on the horizon, it also strikes as even more vital to the clubs future that the unthinkable doesn't happen this season and we end up falling out of the Premier League.

Independent hints at Curbishley arrival

There was an article today in The Independent which was largely based on the back of John Wardle's comments following the Wigan game which I commented on yesterday.

Picking out the main paragraph:

His words were not so much a vote of confidence in Stuart Pearce as a public declaration of despair, but the warning signs will not have been lost on the beleaguered City manager at a time when Alan Curbishley is preparing to make his Premiership return.

It seems to be an interesting move that Curbishley made by announcing he would come out of his self-imposed exile at the end of October, perhaps knowing that leading upto ten games gone in the season there would be at least one manager who was under pressure.

The article also went onto say:

Curbishley's deal to stay out of football, agreed with Charlton when he ended his 15-year tenure at The Valley last season, expires in eight days time. Under the terms of that arrangement Charlton can claim compensation from any club that appoints Curbishley as manager before 1 November but with the cut-off point fast approaching, the 48-year-old has made his intentions clear. "When I left Charlton I said I needed a break from football and I feel I have had that now," Curbishley announced on television this weekend. "Now I am just waiting to see what happens."

At the time of his departure from The Valley, Curbishley was widely thought to have taken Charlton as far as he could and the fans and players had perhaps grown too familiar with him over the years.

But, looking at the position Charlton are in this season under Dowie it has only served to enhance Curbishley's stock as they are looking a side who will face a serious battle against relegation this season - painting Curbishley in far better a light than when he left.

Looking at the obvious candidates out there for the first Premiership job to become available, then Curbishley must surely be a front-runner?

Soccer Shout podcast

SS2006-10-24 - A Multitude of Voices
Certainly a mixed bag today. Phil and Tony do the usual - results, preview of the Carling Cup, plus a bit of news. Then we have a round-up of Italy and Spain, plus a segment of Inside Soccer from World Talk Radio, which featured the lads from Soccer Shout. Check the website for all the links.

Wardle on the Wigan performance

Chairman John Wardle has spoken out following the Wigan defeat on Saturday, labelling the display 'embarrassing'.

Wardle talked of the 'net £8.5 million' spent on transfers and that they would 'support the manager' in the January transfer window - although without any serious investment to the club any resource available will surely be limited to the bargain basement.

In addition, Wardle also issued a rallying call to fans by saying “Our supporters have always been tremendously loyal and I thank them for that. We must now all pull together and get behind the team in the coming weeks and months.”

It is rare for Wardle to actually publicly comment on matters, and it does strike as more of an attempt to re-assure fans that the board are working towards putting things right.

One thing Wardle didn't touch on was Stuart Pearce - giving neither a vote of confidence or laying out what was expected of him for this season. Personally, I think this was probably a deliberate ploy from Wardle to not add any fuel on the speculation which has again surrounded Pearce following Saturday's heavy defeat.

It wouldn't have helped Pearce whatever Wardle would have commented on as the press would have picked every comment to pieces in an attempt to generate a story.

For all the furore which was raised, and there were a lot of genuine questions raised about Pearce - namely his tactics and motivation abilities, I don't think the board at this stage are seriously considering making a managerial change - for above all alse there aren't any serious 'available' candidates out there (that we know of) who could come in and make a difference.

Wigan 4 City 0

Well, what can you say about that?

Both a result and performance which is making a serious bid as the latest candidate to be filed under several 'Worst ever' categories.

Looking at some of the press headlines this morning, they tell their own story:

'Pearce feels the strain as shambolic City implode'

'Pearce faces fight to avoid sack'

'City players meet with chorus of disapproval after pummeling'

'Revitalised Wigan gorge on City's marshmallow defending'

'Camara clicks for Wigan but poor City are losing the plot'

As a contest it was all but dead and buried after just three minutes with Richard Dunne being culpable for both goals. The first, with Dunne placing a poor pass straight into the path of Boyce who took advantage of poor positioning down the left from ourselves to cross for Heskey to apply what was in truth an excellent finish.

Before the expletives had begun to die down it was 2-0 when from a free-kick Richard Dunne perfectly glanced a header into the bottom corner straight past the on-rushing Weaver.

As a first-half performance it was one of the most inept I have seen in terms, with only a poorly directed header from an unmarked Corradi to speak of in terms of chances.

The second-half at least had a bright spell where we actually appeared to compete and arguably should have had a penalty for handball, and Vassell should have scored when nicely played through by the debutant Johnson.

But it was all to be too shortlived as Wigan added a third, again helped by some generous defending as Richards allowed his man to beat him but Stephen Jordan inexplicably failed to clear the ball, allowing Camara to nip in ahead of him to score. The fourth was not long in coming as poor anticipation again from the defence and the midfield allowing runners unchallenged saw Valencia to smash home and round off a miserable afternoon.

The chants of 'You're not fit to wear the shirt' rang out at the end, but is it solely the fault of the players?

There was a lack of application, movement, leadership, concentration and belief, with even the basics seemingly being beyond the players out there. There was also half a team missing - with several youngsters thrown into the side which seemed to disrupt the defence in particularly, but the side looked they had no direction from the management team.

The 4-5-1 formation clearly didn't work and the players didn't look comfortable with it. Samaras is not a left-sided midfielder and Wigan enjoyed plenty of success down the right, whilst Sinclair was ineffective without the support of Micah Richards behind him. The three central midfielders looked to be playing too close to one another for me which left Corradi increasingly isolated, and Barton should have been playing in a more attacking role.

The substitutions were also puzzling for me and whilst Pearce had to throw extra forwards on there didn't seem to be any defined structure to the formation with players appearing to be out of position and plenty of space for Wigan to exploit.

It is particularly frustrating as this was the first of a run of five games which on paper were 'winnable', and coming off the back of a thre game unbeaten run gave some hope for a bid to climb the table.

However, any 'progress' made over the past three games was well and truly blown away and the questions over Pearce's future at the club are once again being raised.

Wigan preview

Where and when:
Saturday 21st October, JJB Stadium

Current form:
Since the Chesterfield cup exit we have gone three games unbeaten (although two of those have been draws), yet we are still to win away from home this season and have the joint worst defensive away record.
Wigan meanwhile have struggled in their second season in the top flight and hover slightly above the relegation zone, and have only scored more than one goal once this season. Also of concern for Wigan is the fact that they have 'lost' eight points from winning positions this season.

Team news:
Wigan are likely to be unchanged for the lunchtime encounter, and most of their big guns are available. For City, Vassell and Beasley are not quite fit enough to return, whist Sun Jihai has had an injury setback. Nicky Weaver is hoping to be fit to return in goal, but otherwise Joe Hart will fill in again.

Keys to the game:
Usually I would say 'don't go behind' but it appears Wigan are prone to throwing good positions away this season. Seriously though, although the Everton result was impressive our away form remains poor and our goals against record is in stark contrast to our home one. Last season we shipped four at the JJB and we can ill afford a repeat.
It seems at the moment so much is reliant on the performance of Joey Barton. The attack is not blessed with pace or creativity so Barton's foray forward are crucial. Hopefully, Hatem Trabelsi will provide an option out wide - although he comes up agains the impressive Leighton Baines.

Why City will win:
Wigan could be set for a struggle this season after their impressive debut last term and have struggled for goals and points as their many new faces are taking time to settle in. Confidence is on the up in the camp and it could be the day to build on our home record and end our away woes.

Why City will lose:
Because away from home we are woeful, leaking far too many goals which doesn't give you much hope on your travels. Wigan are also looking to end a poor run of form and no team is usually as accomodating as ourselves. Add to this the fact Wigan did the double over us last season and we may struggle to get anything from this fixture.

Prediction:
Wigan 1 City 2

Pearce concerned over ticket pricing

With Saturday's game away to Wigan likely to result in a less than full away allocation, Stuart Pearce has expressed concern over the pricing structures implemented to away fans:

"I have a lot of sympathy for the amount of money being charged, clubs know that historically, Manchester City fans have always travelled in numbers.
They have been passionately loyal over the years and I am sure they will be in years to come."

"Sometimes clubs push up the price of tickets for away fans, which I cannot see the sense in.....in some ways, it is cheating the public. Visiting supporters should be charged exactly the same price as home fans."

As well all know, home clubs can bypass the issue of away fans being charged the 'same' as home fans and in Wigan's case we are being charged the same price (an incredible £35) as their 'non-members', and invariably City fans face the highest pricing structure in the Premiership as history shows that we have taken up our full allocation on our travels.

But, is it any wonder that faced with the prospect of £35 for a game shown on TV - where even if the away allocation was sold out the ground would be nowhere near full, that fans are choosing to bypass away games in significant numbers this season?

How injuries are affecting the season

One of the things that has been apparant this season is the number of players who have been unavailable for selection through injury so far. At times Stuart Pearce has had upto seven players unavailable for selection who could easily be considered for a first team spot (either starting or on the bench).

Looking through the squad, the number of games lost is considerable already, considering the (still) relatively early stage of the season we are at:

Goalkeeper:
Isaksson 8
Weaver 1

Defence:
Onouha 8
Trabelsi 3

Midfield:
Reyna 2
Dabo 1
Ireland 1
Beasley 1

Attack:
Vassell 5

I don't know how precise the figures may be as I've calculated it from when players are ruled out from injury, rather than not considered 'match fit' - and of course doesn't include the suspensions to Corradi, Dabo and Thatcher.

A supposed sign of the strength of your squad is to take a look at the make-up of the bench, and on Saturday the bench included Schmeichel, Johnson, Miller in addition to the more veteran Reyna and Dickov.

It is a clearly a sign that Pearce really doesn't have a great deal of option personnel wise at present to try and shake things up, and one of the worrying aspects of the casualty list is the number of injuries that have been suffered in training rather than in games themselves.

With the thin squad that we currently possess, it is something we can ill-afford to continue happening.

Manchester Blog Awards

UPDATE:

More on the Blog Awards from Manchizzle, Robin, Spinneyhead, Skipper, Why did I go wrong?, 43 and Yer Mam - now with his very nice and shiny 'Arts & Culture' winners logo adorning his blog. And a Red as well...


Well people, I returned home from last nights Blog Awards empty-handed. Pah, who needs the critical acclaim of your peers that's what I say!

In all seriousness though, congratulations to James who took the Arts & Culture category and to all the other winners last night.

There are a hell of a lot of Manchester based and themed blogs out there at the moment and Blog Awards organiser Manchizzle has pretty much the most comprehensive listing of them as well.

Definitely worth checking out.

Stadium naming rights to be sold?

I had the chance to meet up with various members of the proposed Supporters Trust group on Saturday prior to the Sheffield United game, and amongst the various topics of discussion was the news that the naming rights to the City of Manchester Stadium are believed to have been sold to a former sponsor of the club for a fee of £3 million per season.

There wasn't too much detail on the proposed terms of any deal in respect of what percentage of the money will actually be received by the club but as Purelymancity points out, although far less than the sum Arsenal receive on average per season from Emirates it would still be one of the highest sponsorship amounts received for stadium naming rights outside of the big NFL sides.

In football, the issue of stadium naming rights is still a contentious one with many fans against the 'traditional' grounds being re-named after corporations - and it is telling that it is only the recently built stadiums that carry this, the older grounds which carry the weight of history and tradition behind them have been left untouched.

Would re-naming the City of Manchester Stadium cause a furore amongst supporters? I'm not necessarily sure that it would do in quite the same way that it would have done at Maine Road as it is still to get a real identity of it's own as it is still referred to by many names - City of Manchester Stadium/Eastlands/The new ground and so on, so in that respect it may be a little more palatable although the issue I'm sure would not sit all that easily with fans as another sign of football 'selling out'.

At this stage, nothing has been confirmed regarding the deal and it may just be little more than rumour - but even so, I'm sure it is something the board has considered exploring at some stage.

City 0 Sheffield United 0

Yesterday's goalless draw was a result that left both managers frustrated at the outcome, not to mention most of the observers who were there to witness a largely lifeless affair.

There were plusses for both sides as Sheffield United earned their first point away from home and City stretched their unbeaten run to three matches, are yet to concede on home turf and of course are also undefeated, but Stuart Pearce was not overly happy with the performance from the side:

"I don't think we showed enough creativity to win the game, even though we created a few chances we should have buried...If I am being honest United deserved a point because it was not vintage performance from us".

"In the first half too many people were waiting for something to happen rather than grabbing the game by the scruff of the neck and making it happen...in more offensive positions we have to be more aggressive with everything we are trying to achieve".

Whilst opposing manager Neil Warnock felt their first point away from home was deserved, he was frustrated that they didn't manage to go home with all three points:

"I'm slightly disappointed. I thought it was a game we could have won, it's a good feeling to think we're coming away with a nil-nil draw. It was a better performance today".

"I think we created the better opportunities to create better chances. We should have scored".

Match Reports:

The Independent
The Telegraph
MEN
The Observer

Money, money, money

I had a listen to the official MCFC podcast yesterday for the first time and within the other news and propoganda contained within it was the second part of an interview with Alastair Mackintosh, focusing mainly on proposed investment into the club.

The main statement that came from Mackintosh was:

"We are always open to the idea of new, appropriate investment. We continue to look for appropriate parties that might contribute to this football club. Money is money, as long as it is from an appropriate individual who continues to be a custodian of this club, and who keeps in mind our links with the community and in particular our fan base.

If someone was just looking at a football club as a property play, I don’t think they would look at Manchester City as closely as other clubs. I don’t want someone who wants to look at this football club as a property play, I want them looking at this as a football club. This is our home, I want it to be owned by Manchester City Football Club, not an external investor who wants to sell it on."

As Ollie pointed out in his post it sounds that ideal partner profile the club is trying to court is exactly the group that the Supporters Trust are aiming to set up - but as of yet they are still to receive a response of any substance from the club.

One thing that struck me though is would the club be so choosy that any potential investor 'ticked all the right boxes'? To the best of my knowledge the club have been seeking to attract significant investment (rather than an outright takeover) for the best part of three years now and have come up empty handed despite rumours of Norwegians, Russians and god knows who else linked to the club. I can't see that an investor would just look to pump in £10 million or so and be a silent partner or have a minor role on the board. Anyone who was serious would - I imagine, look to gain full control of the club (much like the Glazers or Randy Lerner have done with United and Aston Villa).

If that was the case and a 'sugar daddy' approached the club with a view to a takeover, would they be so strict that the criteria laid out by Mackintosh needed to be met? Could this even be demanded? This is assuming that Wardle et al would be looking to sell outright, but assuming they are surely they would be just keen to ensure their outstanding loan to the club was repaid and they received a tidy profit on their investment?

Maybe a little cynical of me, but I'm pretty sure areas such as 'club custodians' and 'community links' may not be too high on the list for prospective buyers.

International reflections

With a big lull in the domestic calender at the moment and a lack of real City news going on I thought I may as well post up some thought on the England game last night.

As a contest, England were clearly second best in all departments. Croatia looked far more comfortable on the ball, their movement was quicker and more intelligent and their passing more incisive.

There was a lot of talk about the 3-5-2 and ultimately McLaren switched back to 4-4-2 once England went 2-0 down, and despite the quality of players out there the formation didn't work in the slightest. The 4-4-2 gives far better balance to the midfield and the side missed the presence of Gerrard (albeit suspended) and balance of a left sided midfielder. The midfield trio of Parker, Carrick and Lampard were ineffectual whilst in attack Crouch offered little and Rooney's work was done in areas where he wasn't going to threaten Croatia's defence.

Defensively - particularly centrally is a worry as well as for all the high standards Terry plays to at club level, he fails to replicate this often enough at international level and Ferdinand was found wanting on more than one occasion, whilst neither Neville or Cole seemed comfortable in their wing-back role.

Paul Robinson, who ironically kept England in the game for the most part making three or four high quality saves and whilst much of the attention will be focused on the second goal (which I think a lot was made of the effect the divot had) his positioning for the first goal was suspect and allowed what was a tame header to loop over him into the net. I know I've harped on about this before but imagine the reaction if it had been David James who had committed the errors Robinson made.

Typically though, the media today is really putting the boot in today and McLaren must wish for a home fixture against Andorra to get back on track as opposed to a five month break. You do get the feeling that the press masses have been waiting for a result like this (on the back of the Macedonia draw as well) since the new guy took over.

Although there is talk of a 'crisis' England will still have enough to finish in the top two and qualify through but based on last nights showing at least McLaren has yet to provide any real answers to the questions that were also continually asked of Eriksson during his time in charge.

Barton escapes with fine

After his decision to plead guilty to the FA charge handed down following the Everton game, it was unsurprising that Joey Barton walked away without a ban and just a £2,000 fine for his misdemeanour.

I don't think there was any danger (or any real precedent) that he would receive a ban for it and the FA hearing was surely no more than a formality to rubber stamp the punishment and show that the powers that be were acting upon it.

A reflective Barton commented afterwards:

"I have had a fair hearing and would like to thank the FA for that. The backing I have received from the Sporting Chance charity, the PFA and Manchester City Football Club has been exceptional and I would like to thank them for that".

What with the Barton charge, precedeed by the hearings for Ben Thatcher and Ousmane Dabo the club must be hoping the well trodden path to the FA headquarters this season are not repeated again.

More on City transfers

Check out the excellent PurelyManCity site (if you haven't already) as they are running a few features this week on City's recent history of transfer spending - following on nicely from the comments by Alastair Mackintosh which are currently doing the rounds.

Blog listings

Currently I link to a few of the other football blogs that are out there (on the right hand side of the page), but I've an idea to put together a bit more of a comprehensive list of the other football blogs that are out there as I know this one isn't restricted solely to City fans and there are plenty of other club specific blogs that I read on a regular basis.

I'm going to break it down club by club and also include a general section for those blogs which don't focus on just one team, which should make it easier to find links to other blogs.

Any recommendations are welcome and feel free to fill up the comments section or email me at bitterandblue@hotmail.co.uk.

I'll hopefully have it set up over the next couple of days.

Hey Big Spender

Excerpts from an interview with Chief Executive Alistair Mackintosh have appeared in the press over the past few days and as well as trumpeting the fact that we kept hold of Micah Richards and Daniel Sturridge when 'we could have cashed in', but the main thread that has been picked up was the clubs strategy when bringing new players to the club.

"We've also invested heavily in our wage bill. And while the players may have come here on Bosman transfers, they generally have a high wage attached.
But it's important and we want to support Stuart bringing in the players he wants.
Ideally you use the wages in the most efficient way. And everyone always wants better and better players.
So, if we can use them in a more efficient way we should do that. But we are very comfortable at what we've done.
It's a strategic choice to have a high wage bill. But then you want performance that is commensurate to that as possible."

The MEN stated that we have the sixth highest wage bill in the Premiership, and it is apparant that since Pearce has become manager (and to be fair it was something Keegan started towards the end of his reign) we are deliberately targeting Bosman players around 30 years old on relatively short-term deals.

As this has been a deliberate transfer strategy, have we missed out on younger players with more upside as a consequence? Ollie draws a nice comparison with signing of Didi Hamman against the potential signing of Reading's Steve Sidwell - who we were linked with in pre-season. Something that Mackintosh didn't comment on was why this is a 'strategic choice'.

Or is it a case that in general the top young talent is simply not available or would be snapped up by the 'bigger' clubs, which has meant the club taking the path of adding experienced veteran players to the squad, albeit it a likely higher cost?

One thing that the club has been blessed with is the players coming through the academy in recent times, and the current crop who have forced their way in or are on the cusp of the first team have meant the club can add older players to the club whilst still maintaining a balance age and experience wise in the squad - something which Keegan was definitely moving away from looking at the make up of the sqaud at the time of his departure.

It does strike though as somewhat of a PR move by Mackintosh in lauding up both the Academy success and the spending on player wages as a sign of the boards commitment to Pearce, coming at a time when there are questions being asked of the board in terms of financial support to the manager.

Whilst I appreciate that the top players are not going to look outside the top four clubs, looking back over the past few years and the club is littered with examples of Bosman's who have frankly not delivered (you don't need me to name them) and seeing us linked recently with a couple of lower league players is it perhaps time to abandon the tactic of bringing in thirty-somethings on two or three year deals on guaranteed money where the performances do not end up matching what they are being paid (again, you don't need me to name them) and focus on younger (hungrier?) players?

One positive at least is that Pearce has not solely restricted his more recent purchases to the older end of the age scale, gambling more on potential upside and experience with the capture of Isaksson and Samaras this past year.

Many of Pearce's early signings were perhaps forced a little by the lack of experience in the squad and the fact that the Academy players were not quite ready, but as the likes of Richards, Jordan, Onouha and Samaras in particular begin to gain more experience he will be less reliant on having to bring in players solely based on experience, and can add players whose upside is that their best years are still ahead of them - resulting in a squad that in five years time could theoretically still be together and at their peak.

Manchester Blog Awards

Is football going all high-brow?

It may well be as yours truly has been shortlisted for the 'Best Arts & Culture' category in the first annual Manchester Blog Awards, along with 'Yer Mam' and 'Ready Steady Book'.

Winners are announced Monday 16th October - will keep you posted..

A bum deal

After the decision from Merseyside Police not to take any further action over Joey Barton's transgression last weekend, the FA - in their wisdom deemed he has a case to answer for and have charged Barton with improper conduct.

Barton originally had until 6pm tonight to respond to the charge but this deadline has been extended to midday on Monday.

The statement by the club in response to the charge was perfectly worded as far as I'm concerned and summed up what the sensible response to the incident was:

"It is deeply disappointing that the Football Association have decided to charge Joey Barton with improper conduct. The player accepts that some elements of his behaviour following the game with Everton were ill-advised and he apologises to anybody who may have felt offended. He has been reminded of his responsibilities as a custodian of this football club, but we do not believe his actions warrant any further investigation. It is our firm opinion that the matter should end there.
We believe the FA should have taken into account the context of the incident and noted he behaved without any malice and in a light-hearted manner. Joey wishes to thank the many Evertonians, City supporters and general football fans who have contacted the club this week with messages of support.”

To me the phrase 'without any malice and in a light-hearted manner' said it perfectly and it seems that his name and reputation have been as much to do with the charge as the actual act itself. I hope that Barton pleads not guilty to the charge and is found not guilty by the committee when his hearing comes up.

Don't hold your breath though.

Case for the defence

Following the weekend draw at Everton, Stuart Pearce has announced to the press that he wants Sylvain Distin and Richard Dunne to show more 'arrogance' and 'swagger' on the pitch:

"Richard and Sylvain always have been vitally important to what we are trying to achieve though I believe that they should go out and play with more arrogance.
It is as if they start off with a blank piece of paper at the start of every game. I would like to see them take some of that strength from the last game into the next game and start further up the scale if you like".

Over the past three seasons Dunne and Distin have been unquestionably the two most consistent and high performing players at the club, and as a partnership have grown and compliment each other with their constrasting styles of play.

Whilst Distin was courted over the summer by both Portsmouth and Middlesbrough, Dunne has not received any attention as a potential transfer target by other sides and as a pair don't really receive much coverage on a national scale - backed up by the fact that only Richard Dunne features in the Actim Top 100 index at number 75.

But as a pairing how good are they amongst their peers? Below is a list of the other Premiership pairings based on appearances this season:

Arsenal: Toure-Djourou
Aston Villa: Laursen-Mellberg
Blackburn: Nelsen-Ooijer
Bolton: Meite-Ben Haim
Charlton: El Karkouri-Hreidarrson
Chelsea: Terry-Carvalho
Everton: Yobo-Lescott
Fulham: Knight-Pearce
Liverpool: Hyypia-Carragher
United: Ferdinand-Brown
Middlesbrough: Riggott-Woodgate
Newcastle: Bramble-Moore
Portsmouth: Campbell-Primus
Reading: Ingmaarson-Sonko
Sheffield United: Unsworth-Morgan
Tottenham: Dawson-King
Watford: Shittu-Mackay
West Ham: Ferdinand-Gabbidon
Wigan: De Zeeuw-Hall

How many of those pairings would you replace Dunne and Distin with? Whilst there are individuals listed who would clearly replace either of them, as a pairing can they be beaten?

Consistency wise you can make a case for the pairings from Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal but anyone else? The goals against column has been in the top tier of the Premiership over the past couple of seasons, and this has been without a strong midfield providing much cover, or a full-back pairing of any note.

What's also impressive is the back-up we now have in Micah Richards and Nedum Onouha who, given time and experience will also surely be amongst the Premiership elite.

European football returns

It was announced earlier today that the club is to host the 2008 UEFA Cup Final - beating off competition from Hamburg, Fenerbahce and Ramat-Gan, with the committee having decided on the City of Manchester Stadium 'after assessing criteria such as stadium capacity, safety and security, access, transport, supporters' facilities and commercial potential.'

Looks like we'll need to sort the away form pretty sharpish then...

Soccer Shout podcast

SS 2006-10-03 - Back, Back, Back
Tony...back...Phil...sentences...complete...speak...can't.

Everton 1 City 1

Finally I get a prediction correct.

Whilst not quite managing to put back to back Premiership victories together, I think that gaining a point at Goodison Park should leave most fans satisfied as we stemmed the flow of away defeats - doing so against a side who have started the season brightly.

One of the most pleasing aspects for Stuart Pearce must have been the fact that the equaliser came so late on, evidence that the team was willing to keep on battling and that they have definitely responded following the Chesterfield game.

There was a change in tactics adopted by Pearce for this game with a 4-5-1 adopted, Corradi dropping to the bench in favour of Stephen Ireland, but Pearce was not overly convinced that the players fully carried out his system instructions. Possession wise Everton were well ahead over the ninety minutes and David Moyes was certainly disappointed that they had not added a second to kill the game off.

The game though was largely overshadowed by the Joey Barton incident following the final whistle - with all the match reports leading with it as their main headline. Whilst revealing his arse to the Everton fans was, in hindsight not the most advisable of moves I wouldn't necessarily describe it as a provocative or inflammatory gesture.

A thing I don't understand is what would make somebody actually go to the trouble of contacting the police to make an formal complaint about - don't people have better things to do? And what has rarely been mentioned in all of this is the level (and nature) of abuse handed out to Barton by the Everton fans. Perhaps Barton should make a complaint of his own?

Still, it must be the last thing Pearce would have wanted to focus on in the post-match interviews and he must be getting quite familiar with police procedures in recent weeks.

Match reports:

The Observer
The Telegraph
Everton Blog