Three Things We Learned This Week

The annual crazy christmas football period is upon us.  Added to the usual agony of watching your team play what seems like 10 games in 5 days, this season we've also had to cope with racism cases and refereeing blunders.  In terms of actual football, last week saw some great games and great goals and once again proved why winter breaks will not be coming into the Premier League any time soon.  

Here's the three things that we learnt. 

Three Things We Learned This Weekend

Arsenal May Have Done It Once Before, But It Is Virtually Impossible To Go Unbeaten For the Whole Season


Just a few seconds after 8pm, when Mario Balotelli rounded Cech and slotted the ball into an empty net, even the most die-hard Chelsea fan did not truly believe that the Londoners were going to be ending Man City's status as the only unbeaten side in the country.  Chelsea just did not look up to the job, what with their ludicrously high line and leaky defence.  An hour and a half later, however, and Roberto Mancini was facing his first defeat of the season and questions were being asked of his team for the first time in a while.

Three Things We Learned This Weekend

The Urbanite's weekly football round-up is back by popular demand.  After an eventful weekend of football, here are the three key things we learned:

Man Utd Do Get Dodgy Decisions Given Against Them at Old Trafford


Ask any seasoned football fan, and they will tell you that Man Utd always get favourable decisions at Old Trafford.  Remember Wayne Rooney's dive that ended Arsenal's 49 game unbeaten run?  Or how about the countless times Christiano Ronaldo fell over in the penalty box, unaided by nothing other than the wind, only for the referee to point to the penalty spot.

Well this weekend, Mike Jones (the referee, not the rapper) showed us that like swings and roundabouts, dodgy decisions at Old Trafford do go round full circle.  The blame cannot all fall on referee Jones, who had initially given a corner and only changed his mind after the linesman flagged for a penalty.  Blame should also go to Hatem Ben Arfa, whose claim for the penalty was as ludicrous as it was dishonest.

It is, however, hard for one to feel sympathy for a team that continuously gets dodgy decisions in their favour.  For one of the first times, Sir Alex Ferguson will know what it is like to come away from Old Trafford feeling cheated.  And maybe that may change his stance the next time one of his players goes down like a ton of bricks in the box and 'wins' United a penalty.

Three Things We Learned This Weekend

We All Owe Mancini An Apology

Roberto Mancini has never had an easy ride in the English press.  He's been accused of being "too defensive", of being "happy to not lose games rather than wanting to win".  Some have even said he was tactically naive, firm in the belief that City will never win the league with the Italian at the helm.  

The Urbanite had the same beliefs, and with valid reasons (remember the away games at Arsenal and Liverpool, anyone?), but this season Mancini has unleashed all the shackles on his team and told them to go for it.  And go for it  they have.  They have now scored 14 goals in three games, two of those away from home, and in Mario Ballotelli a player that ceases to surprise as he asks 'Why Always Me?'.  

City can definitely win the league and are rightfully favourites.  If they continue spanking teams home and away they will walk away with it.  Ferguson has some work on his hands.  

It's Time to Take Newcastle Seriously

Who would have thought that Alan Pardew would be sitting comfortably nine games into the season after the summer Newcastle have had.  Failure to sign a striker to replace Andy Carroll, Joey Barton and Kevin Nolan leaving in acrimony and furthering tensions between the owner and the fans left many pundits predicting Pardew being the second manager (after Steve Keane) to lose his job.  

But the Newcastle manager has created a solid team this season that has left the Toon Army asking "who "was that Andy Carroll guy anyway?" and forgetting that they still have 35 million still in the bank.  Players like Ryan Taylor, Jonas Gutierrez and Demba Ba have all contributed stellar performances and Newcastle can comfortably aim for a top ten finish.  

Some papers have got a bit carried away, with talk of a push for fourth place.  But Newcastle can go places if they build on these performances and strengthen in January - if Mike Ashley can put his hand in his pocket for once in his life Newcastle can be a force once again.  

Liverpool May Not Be Clinical Enough For a 4th Place Finish

Liverpool are not in a crisis.  They have produced some good performances this season, playing the kind of football that King Kenny himself would have been proud of.  But despite the free flowing football, the  Reds only sit two points above an Arsenal team that was in turmoil and one point behind Spurs, who have a game in hand.  

All this is because Liverpool have an inability to kill off games.  It was something that creeped into the Benitez era, with the team enjoying a lot of possession but failing to create enough chances to win the game.  Under Dalglish, Suarez and co have been creating multiple chances but have been wasteful in front of goal.  Against Norwich, the Uruguayan broke the record for having the most attempts on goal, yet scored none.  

Now no-one would criticise Suarez for his performances this season, as the striker has bedazzled defenders and spectators alike.  But Liverpool fans will worry that until they begin to convert all this good play, they run the risk of losing ground on their rivals.   

Three Things We Learned This Weekend

Mario Can Be Super....When He Wants To Be


Is there a Premier League footballer that is more annoying and frustrating than Mario Balotelli? Leave aside his tendency to sulk around the football pitch, his disregard for his teammates when he refuses to pass and tries an elaborate flick, even his over inflated ego.

No, he is frustrating because it is so clear that he has a large amount of talent that he is not utilising on a weekly basis.  On Saturday at Ewood Park we saw glimpses of the potential that Man City invested 20 odd million pounds for, albeit against a Blackburn side who may have to sit their defence 101 classes again.

The Italian has now scored in each of his three last appearances and was unlucky to only score once against Blackburn, hitting the post and side netting in a game where he had seven attempts on goal (the most by a player that weekend).

If Balotelli can replicate this form over the course of a season, most City fans will be forget all about the moody Argentinean who refuses to play and will be singing the name of Super Mario.

Gabby Agbonlahor Has Proved To Be A Free Replacement For Ashley Young 


Under Gerard Houllier, Gabriel Agbonlahor was a cut figure.  He only scored 3 goals in 35 league appearances, with his performances matching his poor goalscoring record.  Many Villa fans were glad to see the back of Houllier, but none more so than Gabby himself, who has now found a new lease of life under Alex Mcleish (who the Villa fans again were not happy with).

In seven games, Agbonlahor has already surpassed last season's tally and has been a great provider of goals for Villa.  His assist for Darren Bent on Saturday was inch perfect, and everyone still remembers his goal on the first day of the season which was immense.

There is one clear reason why Agbonlahor has been so successful this season.  Coming in from the flanks, Agbonlahor has been deadly in the same position that Ashley Young revelled in last season.  It suits him well, allowing him to cut in on the inside and turn provider for the deadly predator that is Darren Bent.

If he continues on this form, Young may have some competition for his starting place in the England team.

Never Bet On The Unpredictable QPR 


With characters like Neil Warnock and Joey Barton in the same dressing room, every day must be a different and eventful day at QPR.

The same thing goes for their games.  One week Rangers are irresistible, putting in the kind of performances that merited their Championship winners trophy last year.  Other weeks, however, QPR still look like a Championship team.  On Sunday against a Fulham side going through problems of their own, Rangers were awful, shipping 6 goals against a team that boasts Bobby Zamora as its most prolific striker.

Warnock may be able to keep Rangers up, even get them into the top half of the table, but for now QPR will be kept well away from my accumulators and coupons, as I am unable to predict which QPR turns up.  

Three Things We Learned This Weekend

Modric's Head Has Not Been Turned By Chelsea


The will he won't he move to Chelsea saga had us all bored this summer as nobody truly believed Daniel Levy when he said that Modric was not for sale.  But contrary to reports, Modric really was 'not for sale' as Spurs proved to the Premier League that they were serious 4th place contenders and not a 'selling club'.

Many of us wondered what this meant for Modric's career at Tottenham this season, as his determination to move to Chelsea was clear for all to see.  Harry Redknapp claimed that he had no worries, calling Modric a model professional, and after his performance against Liverpool on Sunday old 'Arry was vindicated.

It wasn't just the way he took his goal that was impressive.  Modric, alongside Parker, tore Liverpool's midfield to shreds as Lucas and Adam chased shadows for most of the afternoon (well until Adam was sent off that is, then it was Jordan Henderson who became the headless chicken).  They played triangles around Liverpool's middle two and dictated the game from the first minute until the end.  His touch, vision and all round game was world class and it is no wonder why Chelsea and Abrahamovic were so keen to recruit him this summer.

Whether Modric moves to Chelsea at the end of the season or not it is clear that, for the meantime at least, his heart is at White Hart Lane.

Three Things We Learned This Weekend

Yes, we know. Slightly late. But here goes!

Swansea Lack The Firepower to Stay Up


0 goals in 3 games makes the headline above seem like the understatement of the season.  But after watching Swansea score goals for fun last season we at The Urbanite had high hopes that Swansea would become the Blackpool of the 2011/2012 season and entertain us with free flowing, high scoring football.  Sadly, that has not been the case.

Three Things We Learned This Weekend

Liverpool Have A Problem. A £35 Million Problem


Despite starting the season on a high, Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish must not be able to sleep well at night. I know I wouldn't when confronted with the problem of having a striker on your books that costs £35 million but that does not fit into your team or style of play.  When selling Fernando Torres to Chelsea and replacing him with Andy Carroll, many Liverpool fans were confident that the free scoring Geordie would continue his exploits for the Reds.  This, however, has not been the case.  


Andy Carroll now has only two premier league goals to his name for Liverpool, both of these coming in the same game, but this is not the main reason why he should fear for his Liverpool future.  The fact is that Liverpool play better, so much better, without Carroll on the pitch.  Two of their best performances under Dalglish, against Fulham last season and Bolton over the weekend, came about when Carroll was not in the line up and the industrious Dirk Kuyt was preferred up front.  The team play a much more fluid, free flowing game that manages to get the best out of the world class talent that is Luis Suarez and enables the team to string five passes together without feeling the urge to hoof the ball in the air to Carroll.  


It has been said that Dalglish had bought Stewart Downing, Jordan Henderson and Charlie Adam to accommodate Carroll's talents. It may well be the case that Liverpool are better off without the big man in the first place.   


Arsenal Don't Just Need New Players, They Need Leaders

Three Things We Learned This Weekend

This is the first in what will be a weekly update from the football action over the weekend.  Whilst this blog is primarily a political and cultural blog, we cannot help but chip in with our football opinions on a weekly basis.  Inspired by the weekly articles in The Guardian with a similar name, these weekly posts will highlight the five major things that we have learnt from this weekend's football action:

With Edin Dzeko, Man City will do just fine without Carlos Tevez


With a lot of the attention focusing on Sergio Aguero's fantastic debut last week, and rightfully so, Edin Dzeko's return to form has slipped under the radar.  Three goals in three games is not the whole story.  His all round game has improved, holding up the ball perfectly against Bolton on Sunday and bringing players like Silva and Aguero into the game perfectly.  We sometimes forget that Dzeko was prolific in Germany, scoring over 22 goals for Wolfsburg in the 2009/2010 season, and this season may well be the time for him to justify his large transfer fee.

Wolves will not struggle to stay up this season


Yes, it has only been two games.  And yes, they only played Blackburn and Fulham.  But Wolves look like the real deal this season.  Well not the real deal, but definitely not relegation strugglers.  Kevin Doyle  has looked strong, and it is not surprising that he has been attracting interest from Arsenal and Liverpool, whilst Matt Jarvis has continued his fine form from last season and should be due another call up from England.  Mick McCarthy has a strong nucleus to his team, and if he can add one or two reinforcements before the transfer window closes Wolves may have a very strong season.

Everton have real, real problems


Everton's financial problems are well documented.  No money to buy players. In need of a new stadium and new owners. Owing money to the bank. And disaffected fans.  To top it all off, they had an awful start to the season in losing to QPR at home and their players look very disaffected.  Cahill has stopped scoring, Saha cannot keep fit and Beckford does not look ready for the premier league.  Everton seriously need players, and it will not surprise us if this is Moyes last season.

The Football Season is Well And Truly Back!

Arsenal struggle to kill off a game away from home, Fernando Torres fails to score for Chelsea, Liverpool start well but die in the second half and Man United score a late goal to win a game. It looks like the Barclays Premier League is well and truly back and nothing has changed at all!

We have spent most of the summer debating what will happen this season and with the transfer merry go-round nearly over we at The Urbanite feel obliged to share our wacky season predictions with the world, along with those of our closest friends.

So here are our predictions.  Feel free to scrutinise, criticise and chip in with your own views as well.  Oh, and the guy with the correct top 6 and bottom 3 predictions will win an unnamed prize.  Well we say it is unnamed, we just haven't thought of it yet.

Enjoy: