A win at the Reebok has been long overdue and it came today with minimal fuss which was never the case when Sam Allardyce was in charge at the Reebok.
I must admit to have been slightly worried that following Jussi Jaaskelainen's bizarre own goal in the first half we seemed in danger of slipping back into that season long habit of conceding an equaliser when it looks unlikely but thankfully Ryan Babel's excellent finish and a fine first goal for Fabio Aurelio saw off Gary Megson's men.
Tamir Cohen's consolation (a goal he will surely be proud of with his father Avi formerly a solid full back for us in the 1980s) was indicative of our poor defending from corners all day. In truth, had Bolton scored from some of their first half efforts where our defending was less than assured then it may have been a different game.
That seems to be our weakness at the moment - set pieces. This is not a rant against zonal marking, far from it. I am very much an advocate of it as it works just as effectively if not more so than man marking despite what the media may have us believe but this season its execution has not been as good. Owing in part I guess to how unsettled are back four has been due to injuries.....and rotation - a can of worms that I shall not be opening.
There were plenty of positives from today's game. Ryan Babel gave the Bolton defence the run around and continues to show glimpses of just how good he can potentially be. Javier Mascherano was as awesome as ever but his midfield partner Xabi Alonso put in an assured, unfussy but effective performance which we have missed from him this season.
Steven Gerrard's been on and off this season but even an off Gerrard is better than most in the Premier League but I thought today he had a fine game and anyone who says that he can't play behind the striker is just as wrong as when they said he can't play on the right. Witness his best goalscoring season with the club to date in 2005/06 where he played, for the large part, where? On the right.
Dirk Kuyt's work rate will be appreciated more if the wins keep flowing, it's when they don't that he gets abuse. He was unlucky not to score today just prior to Babel's strike.
I thought Martin Skrtel was extremely assured at centre half and looks to be adapting very well to English football after a rocky start. Another fine defensive discovery from Rafa.
Everton's win was a downer as it looked like Pompey could have taken something at Woodison. It looks like the Derby on March 30 is going to be one important game.
Apologies for the lack of updates recently. Hopefully with a five games in 14 days coming up there will be more to write about.
I would have reported on my trip to see the reserves beat Manchester United in Warrington last week but I'm afraid I almost died of bordem and cold. Still it was good to see Danny Agger back in action and Gary Ablett's men are making a real push for the reserve league title. With such a young and talented squad that all bodes well for the club in future seasons.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment