by Colin the King » Mon Aug 31, 2009 2:12 am
Given 6- Not troubled greatly but as per usual, oragnised his defenders well on set pieces and distributed neatly most of the time. He'll have tougher days out.
Richards 7- Vastly improved on last season and a shame for the lad that he got injured. He's still quite poor in possession (although he's playing alongside some of the best ball-playing defenders in the league, so it might make him look worse in that respect) but he seems quicker and more determined now. Fantastic movement for the goal that should never have been disallowed and despite being a little naive in offering up space at times, he closed it down again and overall was solid.
Touré 7- He'll have better games, by his standards it was a reasonable performance. His composure has been a great addition overall but I think he was a little too cool for his own good this afternoon, venturing into midfield and leaving open spaces which Piquionne (who I was impressed with) exploited a couple of times. Nonetheless he has quality in abundance and when he and Lescott are settled and have built an understanding, we'll be tighter.
Lescott 7- Very impressive in some respects- aerially the guy is flawless, wins the ball every time and he was a real threat when we had set-pieces, a real thorn in the side for their defenders with his physique- but disappointing in others. Like Touré, he was maybe a bit lackadaisical and made one or two hospital passes. But with time obviously he'll eradicate the mistakes and become stronger.
Bridge 8- Potentially this season's Ireland. His turnaround in form and fitness is great, I was a little concerned as were others after watching him last season but he's obviously worked really hard over the summer, he looks to be in peak condition and gets up and down the line quickly. He's not standing off his man now and putting a tackle in and is developing a great understanding with Barry on the left hand side. Would give him a 9 only for one slip up early on that could have resulted in a goal- other than that, he was brilliant again.
Barry 8- This is Gareth Barry, isn't it? Hardworking, calm, composed and intelligent. He's everything I expected. He switched the play from right to left beautifully at times and chased every ball, didn't give their guys a second to think. And most significantly- the set pieces. How many years have we been waiting for this kind of quality? Inch perfect delivery for the goal.
Ireland 6- Stevie seems to be having teething problems with the deeper role he's in, which is understandable. He's not really been at the races over the last three games but when you factor in the positional change, the fact that we have a multitude of creative players now and that filthy tackle by Brown, it's certainly not time to worry. Personally, I think he'll emerge a better and stronger player from adapting to a new role, excelling as an attacking midfielder/behind the striker(s) is well and good but he has the raw materials to become a world class box-to-box midfielder. We've seen how strong he is in the tackle, the determination he shows and his exceptional engine so hopefully he'll learn and progress and in 2 years time, we'll have our very own Gerrard.
SWP 6- Not one of Shaun's better games in fairness. Where the ball so often sticks to his foot or bounces kindly for him, today he had no luck whatsoever. They nullified his threat until very late on when he should have had a penalty but for 80 minutes, certainly as an attacking threat, he was nonexistent. There were a couple of occasions when Ade was clearly looking for him to either give or receive the ball and it didn't happen. It's been a good start to the season for him though so let's hope he's back on form for Arsenal.
Tevez 7- Plenty of effort as you'd expect, a certain degree of quality but perhaps not quite enough. The link-up play with Ade that was so encouraging against Wolves and Palace wasn't really there and he often tried to overcomplicate things I think when an easier option was available. Much like with Touré and Lescott though, they will develop an understanding over time and prove lethal when it clicks, I'm sure of it.
Adebayor 9- My man-of-the-match today. He played exceptionally well again. His speed and trickery must have been a nightmare for Mokoena to deal with. He's so unpredictable. A great header to win us the game and his efforts in pressurising off the ball and winning it back on numerous occasions was really encouraging. We need determined characters away from home and he's certainly that on the evidence of our first four games.
Bellamy 7- Worked exceptionally hard, worked his line well and showed some quality delivery cutting in from the left as well. My only criticism is that, much like Tevez, he needed to release the ball quicker on occasions. They won the ball from him cheaply when he might have moved it on and managed to launch counter-attacks as a result. Also, is it my imagination or do he and Tevez seem very reluctant to pass to and link up with one another?
De Jong 6- Nothing of note, can't think of anything key on or off the ball which apparently is a good sign for a defensive midfielder. Well played Nige! Joking aside, I'd like him in for Arsenal to offer a little more protection. We are still quite susceptible to counter-attacks and Arsenal thrive on those situations so let's tighten it up a notch and look to play them at their own game.
Zabaleta 7- Better distribution than Micah certainly, defensively I'm undecided. He wasn't tested much when he came on in that regard so it wouldn't be fair to pass comment- obviously last season he was better defensively than Micah but I'd like to think everyone starts with a clean slate this season. It's great that Micah is playing well early doors though because knowing Zabba's character, he'll be fired up and desperate to go out and prove himself worthy of a starting spot.
Hughes 7- Faultless so far, really. We all love Robbie but it was a clever move to use Bellamy today. He's less inclined to drift inside from the left so we held a better shape. That might be a feature away from home this season-let Robbie work his magic at Eastlands and at places like the Emirates because coming up against messieurs Brown and Hughes just isn't conducive to good football- to Robinho's kind of football. Also I'm glad that he's more or less settled on a formation and a set of players because tinkering makes 'gelling' a side together almost impossible. I think that was a problem last season when the side sometimes changed dramatically from week to week.
