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Sorry United and Nervous Liverpool

Title Fever Starts to Build

Liverpool have a lot to thank Fulham for as it was their 2-0 victory over United at Craven Cottage that really ignited the title race.

Sure, Rafa’s Red Army had marched into Old Trafford and absolutely mugged Manchester United 4-1 but there was still a lack of belief that the smaller English Premier League teams could take points off of the Champions.

It was not only the result of Fulham’s triumph that brought renewed hope to the chasing teams but also the manner of Manchester United’s capitulation. The indiscipline shown by so many big name players, including the heavy petulance of Wayne Rooney indicated a side that was perhaps showing the strain and could be dragged back into a title race.

Of course, Fulham may have hauled Liverpool back into the title race but come the end of the weekend, they could have easily dumped them back out of it.

Teams Struggle After Midweek Exertions
There has been a growing awareness that teams returning from Champions League midweek matches are perhaps more likely to drop points. This could be for a number of reasons, tiredness, the players having to adjust to a different tempo of match, a lower level of intensity and their opponents having a free midweek.

A very similar principle applies for weekends after an international break, perhaps even more so because the international players will be away with different squads and nations. Fulham have international players but not as many as Liverpool and they may find it easier to get into their stride on Saturday. Fulham only secured their Premier League status in the final ten minutes of last season but they are having a greater level of success this season, built upon a strong defence.

And it is this strong defence that will probably cause Liverpool concern as they sometimes have difficulties in breaking down stubborn defences who are set up to nullify the Liverpool attacking force.

In recent weeks, Stevie Gerrard and Fernando Torres have been on a tremendous run of form but again, how they return from international football is likely to have a huge impact on the outcome of this match. If the top two players are able to maintain their club form on Saturday, Mark Schwarzer in goals for Fulham can expect a torrid time of it.

United Could Be Second At Kick Off
By the time Manchester United kick off against Aston Villa on the Sunday, they may find themselves second in the league.

This is wholly dependent on Liverpool winning at Fulham but if the Scousers steal all three points in London, United will be knocked off their perch, admittedly with two games in hand. Their opponents Aston Villa have been struggling of late with many dropped points threatening to derail their quest to finish fourth in the English Premier League and hopefully clinch a Champions League qualification place.

Old Trafford is never the place to go to in order to rebuild a faltering campaign but there is no doubt that Martin O’Neill is capable of motivating his players to perform on the big stage.

Brian Clough and The Damned United
There has been a lot of football attention in recent weeks on Brian Clough due to the release of the film, The Damned United, based upon Clough’s time in charge of Leeds United.

Clough may have failed there but his man management skills were second to none and this was shown in his triumphs at Derby County and Nottingham Forest. Of all the players who played under Clough, O’Neill appears to be the most like him in terms of charm, passion and getting the best from his players so the Irishman will be revelling the opportunity to triumph at Old Trafford.

O’Neill knows what it takes to win at Old Trafford after leading Celtic to a 4-3 victory in Ryan Gigg’s testimonial a few years back and whilst this game will be far more competitive, there was nothing that match lacked in fight, passion and competition.

Depending on any injuries that were picked up on international duty, with Emile Heskey being a major doubt, Villa will need to have their squad on top form and hope that Brad Friedel, who had his suspension for the red card at Anfield overturned, can have one of those days where a goalkeeper seems to repel everything that is fired at him.

Will Shearer Be the April Fool?
Even though the news broke late on Tuesday the 31st of March, many fans were sure that the news that Alan Shearer was taking over as manager of Newcastle United had to be an April’s Fool joke.

For what seems like decades, Shearer has been turning down the Newcastle job to further his media work so the fact that he is jumping into the hot seat with United facing relegation in the face and with 8 games to play at first seems strange.

However, with a little more thought it appears to be a wise move as Shearer is in a no lose situation here. If Newcastle United are relegated, the blame will be placed on Mike Ashley and Dennis Wise and then possibly on the management team of Joe Kinnear and Chris Hughton. Even excluding Kevin Keegan, that’s four people who will get the criticism before Shearer but if Newcastle United stay up, Shearer will get all the praise.

It is true that Newcastle are in a precarious position at the moment but so are almost half of the English Premier League so it is not beyond the realms of possibilities that the failings of other clubs rather than the magic touch of Shearer will ensure Newcastle United remain a top flight team.

Toon Army Ready to Roar
Many teams with a new manager get a boost in the level of performance and you can guarantee that the Toon Army will be raising the roof of St James Park on Saturday so Chelsea may find they have a much tougher game than they would have expected.

A defeat at White Hart Lane in their last game has seriously dented Chelsea’s title ambitions but a winning streak may be enough to put them back into the hunt. How easy they find their upcoming match is an altogether different matter but it is hard to predict what sort of team or formation Shearer will put out.

This element of surprise may be another factor that causes concern to Chelsea. With manager Guus Hiddink away with the Russian squad until Thursday morning, there won’t be much time for the Dutch manager to gather his team and inform them of the dangers that they will face against a revitalised Newcastle United and Chelsea may stumble on their travels yet again.

by Andrew Reilly

for The Silver Circle at www.footballtip.co.uk

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