Tag Archives: emile heskey
by At The Rails | February 6, 2011 · 2:54 am
Carroll: Bad Bargain, Good Buy
The Geordie and the General
Alright, now that the dust has settled — and the incredulity has been reduced to simple head-shaking — let's get this out of the way: Andy Carroll is not worth £35 million right now. He's 22 years old, he has only ever scored 34 goals at the senior level, and is carrying a thigh injury. He has one England cap. One. And he has already been in the papers several times for the wrong reasons.
That doesn't make him a bad buy.
The long-and-short of it was that Liverpool's situation was dire. Last year's mediocre campaign became the millstone for this year's disaster. The Reds are down 10 points from this time last year, a season that saw Liverpool plummet 23 points from their almost-title winning finish in 2009. (This is the point where you can hear the collective snorts from the crimson side of Manchester). It's because they couldn't score. For all intents and purposes, Liverpool had no strikers.
Over the last 10 seasons, Liverpool averaged about 62 goals a season in the Prem. In the early part of the decade, a peaking Michael Owen shouldered much of the load. When he started to get hurt, Liverpool's goal totals slumped and so did their form. After he left for sunny Spain, other players managed to fill in the gaps, and Rafael Benitez' stingy formations meant Liverpool were always contenders.
Then Fernando Torres arrived and the goals started to come again. In the 2008-09 EPL season, Liverpool scored 77 goals… their highest total since they were winning the League. (In fact, they came two goals away from doing it that season. If Liverpool had scored a goal in two of their drawn games, they would have tied United on points, but pipped them to the title on superior goal difference).
Torres brought the goals — and so did mighty midfielder Steven Gerrard. But the team began to rely too much on the pair. An infuriating tinkerman early on, Benitez eventually built his formation around Torres and Gerrard, neglecting the development of other forwards.
Both players wanted to play all the time: Premier League, Champions League, cup ties. The result was that Torres and Gerrard got hurt… a lot. Combine that with the departure of defensive keystones Xavi Alonso and Javier Mascherano, and the team fell into shambles.
Fast forward to this month. The team is trending to top out at 50 goals this season. Top that with an atrocious goals-against and they are looking at a paltry +3 goal difference. That would almost certainly rule them out of the lucrative Champions League again… and maybe even the Europa League.
Unhappy Torres
So when the transfer window was closing, an unhappy Torres handed in his transfer request. He wanted to play in Europe. He wants to win titles (which he never did on Merseyside. Not one piece of silverware.). The team's shiny new owners realized they had both an opportunity and a dilemma. Free-wheeling Chelski was willing to pay top dollar for the Spaniard… but that would have left the Reds without a paddle, in the popular parlance. If Torres goes, there is no one. The cupboard is bare.
Enter Newcastle United. The perfidious Mike Ashley had to have known what Liverpool were doing with Torres. He is simply desperate for cash so he pounced, jacking up Carroll's price. The overlords of Anfield paid and made the young Geordie the most expensive British player ever.
He ain't pretty, he just looks that way...
The reality is it would have been foolish not to take him. Liverpool are replacing Torres with England's best striker this season. Who has more goals? Not Wayne Rooney, the man who was considered to be among the best in the world. Not Peter Crouch or Jermaine Defoe or Emile Heskey. In fact, no England player has found the back of the net this season as much as Carroll — and he hasn't played since Christmas.
Carroll is not a pretty goal scorer. He doesn't have Rooney's skill on the ball. But he's tall like Crouch, big and strong like Heskey and heads the ball like Tim Cahill… only he doesn't have to jump.
Instead of Joey Barton or Kevin Nolan to feed him the ball, he now has Steven Gerrard, Dirk Kuyt, Maxi Rodriguez (don't laugh, he's come along this season!) and Luis Suarez. That last one could be telling. There are big hopes that Suarez and Carroll could be the new Owen and Heskey (except a Heskey that actually scores).
Finally — and this is important — he is only 22-years-old. He will learn the game — and learn discipline — from Dalglish, one of the finest strikers to ever play the English game.
The club paid far, far too much for him. I admit that, even with my red-tinted glasses on. But Andy Carroll could end up being the finest money that Liverpool ever threw away.
Tagged as andy carroll, anfield, dirk kuyt, emile heskey, fernando torres, javier mascherano, jermain defoe, joey barton, kenny dalglish, kevin nolan, liverpool, luis suarez, magpies, manchester united, maxi rodriguez, michael owen, mike ashley, newcastle united, peter crouch, rafa, rafael benitez, reds, tim cahill, wayne rooney, xavi alonso
by At The Rails | July 15, 2010 · 2:21 pm
News in the football world is dominated today by the international retirement of two, er, giants.
Just a day after the New York Red Bulls signed him (on Bastille Day no less), all-time French scoring leader Thierry Henry announced he would no longer play for Les Bleus. After France's World Cup performance, saying you're quitting is like crashing your car, and then saying you don't want to drive it anymore. Henry will likely make his debut for New York against Tottenham Hotspur on July 22nd. Look for our own Yid Army member — Ian Harrison — to file as he heads to the Big Apple for the second half of the Red Bulls challenge…NY vs. Man. City and Spurs vs. Sporting Lisbon.
As well, the much-maligned Emile Heskey has announced he's retiring from the English team. The debate rages over Heskey's value to the Three Lions. The hulking forward didn't score a lot of goals. But teammates like Michael Owen said they wouldn't want to play off anyone else.
German prosecutors have expanded their probe into match-fixing. The thing now covers more than 270 games in nine countries. It's reminds me of my oh-so-clever scheme to try and fix the International Rock-Paper-Scissors Tournament. Good ol' rock. Nothing beats rock.
If you're Michael Ballack's agent, you're probably blaming gay people for the crime.
The Premier League kicks off in a month… and with Roy Hodgson up on Merseyside trying to convince his big players to stay, Fulham is looking for his replacement. There are rumours that U.S. coach Bob Bradley will take over. I hope not. He scares me…
The English FA is thinking about eliminating FA Cup replays in order to make room for a winter break. It seems the poor poppets in England are tired. Rich and tired. So very, very tired…
Apparently, Manchester United's gaffer — Sir Alex Ferguson — is sitting pretty after the World Cup. The Red Devils are in Toronto tonight and we'll bring you details from the presser with SAF and Man U midfielder Darren Fletcher later.
Finally one more reason to love Steve Gerrard-Gerrard. Wow.
Filed under Bundesliga, MLS, Premier League, World Cup
Tagged as alex curran, bikini, bob bradley, darren fletcher, emile heskey, england, fa cup, france, fulham, les blues, liverpool fc, manchester united, michael ballack, michael owen, new york red bulls, roy hodgson, sir alex ferguson, steven gerrard, thierry henry, three lions, tottenham hotspur
by At The Rails | June 28, 2010 · 6:40 pm
Whither withering Albion…
As if on cue, the English handwringing has begun. Once more, The Three Lions have failed to reach the final of a major tournament… and once more, the finger-pointing and navel-gazing has started in earnest. Football analysts will speculate for the rest of the summer on why this "golden generation" failed to make it past the second round, after failing to qualify for Euro 2008 altogether.
Was it fatigue? Don Fabio claims his players were tired from an overlong Premier League season. Most of his players were selected from teams playing in cup runs or in European leagues. Some pundits argue the team which qualified so easily by the autumn of 2009 was a shadow of itself, come summer of 2010.
Was it the ball? John Terry was caught out on the first goal yesterday when the ball sailed over his head, allowing Miroslav Klose to score the first tally. Terry may have been out of position, but the Jabulani seems to have taken some players by surprise. Some observers say it is more favourable for the quick short-pass game of the South Americans… who have seen great success in this tournament so far.
Was it the manager? Little Englanders say an Italian manager can never understand an English player. Of course, Schteve McClaren was English… and he was pants. Also it's a little suspect that some of those calling for an English manager are looking for the job themselves.
Was it the selection? When Capello was hired, he said he would pick players based on form. But it soon became clear that the usual cast of characters would be appearing. A brittle Ferdinand was selected, along with players like Carrick, Upson, Heskey, James, Green, Walcott, SWP and Joe Cole… players who didn't have the best seasons but seemed to have been chosen simply because they had all been capped before. In-form players like Birmingham's Roger Johnson, Stoke City's Etherington and even Wolves' Jody Craddock weren't even given a glance. They may not have international experience… but after this dismal World Cup, would it have mattered?
Was it age? England's oldest-ever World Cup squad looked slow and random against a positively juvenile German team who looked more organized and experienced yesterday. Was too much faith put into a group of players who — despite all their club success — have never achieved at the international level?
Is it English football itself? The Premier League has become a sporting Tower of Babel, a marketplace for the world's players to make their fortunes on the global stage. But with big clubs buying — rather than developing — their players, England's national team seems to have suffered. Witness the thin pool of talent available to Capello in goal and across the back four.
Many of the current players will likely call time on their international career, come Brazil in 2014. Gerrard, Lampard, Terry, Ferdinand; they will join the ranks of Lineker, Gascoigne, Shearer, Owen and Beckham before them. All of them were great players who will never know what it feels like to win the greatest tournament on the planet.
For England fans, there is still 2012… and 2014… and so on. The faithful will wring their hands, hold their breath, and whisper, "Please don't let us down again."
Filed under World Cup
Tagged as alan shearer, beckham, david james, emile heskey, england, fabio capello, ferdinand, gascoigne, germany, gerrard, jabulani, jody craddock, joe cole, john terry, lampard, lineker, matthew etherington, matthew upson, michael carrick, michael owen, miroslav klose, robert green, roger johnson, shaun wright-phillips, steve mcclaren, theo walcott, three lions, world cup