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SEEING IS BELIEVING 14-2-06
Apologises to anyone who tuned in last Tuesday hoping to receive their weekly dose of the Rockcliffe Files, and was left disappointed. My trip to New York was fantastic for so many reasons, one of the most prominent being that I didn't have to write (and you didn't have to read) what would have been one of the most depressing editions of this column ever. What I'm trying to say is, me going to The Big Apple has benefited us all.
I'm not going to whinge incessantly about Boro 0-4 Villa, because it's a result that suddenly seems alarmingly outdated. Villa played in yellow shirts that day, but we made them look like Brazil. Not one player came out of that game with any credit. The bloke who ran from the North Stand to hurl his season ticket at McClaren was the only one who actually had the balls to do it, but he certainly wasn't the only one who felt like doing it.
We needed to bounce back against Coventry, and when you're as dejected as we were last week, bouncing is the last thing in your mind. We did it though, and with our fifth round clash with Preston secured, Teesside waited nervously for the visit of all conquering Champions, Chelsea.
How long was I in New York? Weeks? Months? Years? I ask because I simply didn't recognise any of the players wearing the famous red shirt on Saturday. For the first time in a long time, we looked like a side that had a game plan and some idea of who was doing what for the team. It was also the first time certain players started to take some responsibility.
Of course, I'm talking about Fabio Rochemback, for who else is there to talk about? Never before have I witnessed such a dramatic reversal in a player's popularity. To say Fabio has frustrated the Boro faithful with his wasteful displays is an understatement. Few would have shed a tear if he had moved on in January.
He has got the ability, of that there can be little question. To have played for Brazil, Barcelona and Sporting, as well as being voted the Portuguese League player of the year two years in a row by the age of 23 is not something many footballers can claim to have done. To have been on the winning team against Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea in the same season is an achievement even more unique.
Fans were running out of patience with him, as it's all very well describing him as a potential great, but for football fans in particular, seeing is believing. Saturday's result showed that, and with Fabio, we were far from convinced.
Don't get me wrong, one swallow doesn't make a summer and all that, but surely Saturday proves that Fabio needs to be given a chance by boo boys who have targeted him as a scapegoat.
There are several explanations about why he hadn't played well until Saturday. It's never easy for a foreign player entering the Premiership, but examples like Robin Van Persie show that in the end, class will prevail. He has been playing in a struggling side, and often out of position. Within the team itself he has already played every midfield position ever invented.
The 4-5-1 systems seems to suit him better, as it gives him more freedom to roam the field in order collect the ball, play one-two's and just generally keep attacks moving.
Those who don't like talk of tactics and team selections won't care in the slightest, but the three-man midfield suits Fabio, Boateng and Mendieta much better than any other formation, and it also suits Yakubu. It's a formation that is ideal for us if we have fully fit squad, as Morrison and Downing provide the natural width, the balance is right in midfield. It hardly prevents us scoring goals and more importantly still, it makes us hard to beat.
It's a system that gets a lot of stick, especially at home, but wouldn't you rather see us play out scrappy 0-0 or 1-0 win, rather than lose 0-2 (Sunderland), 0-3 (Charlton), or 0-4 (Villa)? I know I would, if it meant we stayed in the league next season. Lets not get carried away, we are three points closer to safety but we could still go down.
The Chelsea result was phenomenal, although whether or not it was the biggest Premiership shock ever, I'm not so sure. But just like beating Arsenal and Man Utd, you only get three points for a win against Chelsea. The hard part is maintaining the run and the confidence through the next three games until we go to the Hawthorns in two weeks. Especially as the personnel from the Chelsea win will probably be rotated .
As fans, it's a win that we can savour and brag about for many years to come, especially as Chelsea probably won't be battered in such emphatic fashion again for a very long time. But the hard work starts now. We the players must capitalise on this result and not sit back and admire themselves. The aim is still survival.
None of us want Middlesbrough to be the answer to the quiz question, "In the 2005/2006 season, which side beat the previous season's top three sides, Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea, and went on to get relegated?"
Same time next week... UP THE BORO!!
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