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THERE'S GOALS IN THE LIVERPOOL GAME 16-11-06
Karl Watson and Tom Warnock
It's just a single column this week as Tom is on the sick at the moment. So here's Karl and here's hoping Tom gets well very soon...
Watson says...
Just as the impatient crowd were starting beating the traffic home, it was crowd favourite Massimo Maccarone who dealt a crucial nail into the Hammers' coffin to send the Londoners back down the A19 with nothing to show in what was a poor game of football.
However, was anyone really complaining about the performance at the final whistle as we have played much better in previous games this season and came away empty handed. Yes, the performance was poor and we still need to play in a greater fashion, but it was points we were in desperate need of.
Gareth Southgate must have felt that Rick Waller had been lifted off his shoulders when the final whistle was blown as another home defeat would have sparked more cries for the manager's head. Unfortunately the club are now having to seek dispensation to allow the former captain to stay till the end of the current campaign, and I have heard many people arguing they hope Gareth is not given this allowance and the club will begin to look for a new manager.
I desperately hope dispensation is given as I feel Gareth is the right man for the job and he is beginning to make decisions that many managers of the past would have feared. For example, after the home defeat to Blackburn many slandered the manager as they felt the 4-5-1 formation was too negative as fans wished to see a more attacking layout.
Gareth I'm sure would have listened to the fan's comments yet he was not afraid to play this formation even though previously it had failed to deliver a good performance or three points. It was a brave and bold decision and I am very pleased that it paid off. Of course not all Gareth's decisions will end up with three points but then again not all of Jose Mourinho's do either.
The result was what really mattered against Alan Pardew's men. Yes, we all wanted to see the Boro play attacking and entertaining football against last year's FA Cup runners up, however even if we had put five past Robert Green it still would have meant collecting three points, and on the day only the one was required.
I am not going to come out and say that after one home win against a team below us that everything is fine because it most certainly is not. The performance does not reassure anyone, the first half was flat and drab and it highlighted once again that our players were not at the races until the second half. It is very alarming as poor first half displays will result in attempts to come back from an unassailable lead.
As I said earlier the three points were what really mattered. The players looked low on confidence and the passing during the first half was not particularly impressive. Teams that are at the bottom obviously lack confidence and morale, hence the poor football. Hopefully the three points will have instilled some confidence into the players that they will be able to take with them into the next home game against Liverpool.
If we are able to get a few wins on the bounce then hopefully it will spark our players into life and the confidence will follow. We do boast an impressive first team when everyone is fit and when our players play with confidence we do show the rest of the Premiership that we can play football.
I watched Liverpool play against Arsenal on Sunday and they were woeful. So woeful in fact that it would be impossible for them to recreate a similar display against the Boro at the Riverside.
Liverpool's away record mirrors Middlesbrough's. Liverpool have only picked up one point on their travels this season and that was a 1-1 draw against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane on the opening day of the season. The debatable penalty that was scored that day is the only goal that Liverpool have scored away from home. Surely this is a team very low on confidence when they travel away from Anfield and we must be looking to take something away from the game.
As much as we are looking forward to their arrival on Saturday I believe the Scousers will be looking just as forward to the trip to Teesside. They will have studied many videos and will have realised that Boro are lacking just as much in confidence and if they perform well for the first fourty-five minutes they will put that poor away record to bed. Many very critical analysist's may predict a 0-0 bore draw but I can see goals in this game.
As we are all proud to say Boro were never defeated by any of the top four last season at the Riverside so we all know that when the big boys come to town, our players finally themselves arrive and we all see what we expect to see. It's those performances that make us rip out our hair and ask ourselves 'Why can't they play like this every week'. I hope I am ripping my hair out and asking this question to myself on Saturday.
Of course Liverpool will not just sit down and allow us to walk over them, however I feel if we are to take anything away from the game then we need to play an orthodox 4-4-2. I don't think crowding the midfield with five there will benefit us whatsoever.
What I would like to see is two up front as this may allow Yakubu to join a hopefully fully fit Stewart Downing and Andrew Taylor on the left hand side. If we can crowd that left hand side it may hold the key to success against Liverpool.
Steve Finnan does not look comfortable against strong and quick players and Jose Reina appears liable to errors at the present. If we can get many crosses into the box then there may be bits and pieces to pick up.
If we are to play 4-4-2 it will see Massimo Maccarone start two out of the last three after impressing as a substitute once again. I wrote in my article before the Watford game that I don't feel he is great from the start and my beliefs have not changed.
I am a big fan of the Italian, I love his determination, his grit, and the fact that he feels he has a big point to prove not only to the fans but maybe Steve Gibson. I only wish that Massimo had a lot more talent, if so he would give Viduka and Yakubu a big run for their money.
Massimo is the type of player that is suited to being a substitute. As much as Massimo would love to start every game he is just simply not physical enough to play for ninety minutes against big centre halves. Football is such a different game from the opening ten to the last ten and when Massimo comes on during this period his grit and determination eases him past tired defenders.
I feel that when Massimo plays from the start he is muscled out of the ball too easily and as a result he does not get many touches and his confidence begins to drop. As much as he does not like it, I feel Massimo has got the right credentials to be a substitute that causes defenders problems at the end of games but not the start.
However I am sure Gareth will start him alongside Yakubu on Saturday and I hope I am well and truly proved wrong and Massimo turns out a stellar performance that wows everyone in the ground, and all those watching on television. Lets all hope for a terrific Boro display and three points to go with it. However my head tells me this one will be a draw.
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