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CHARLTON v MIDDLESBROUGH TACTICS TALK 12-1-07
Stuart Ward
Middlesbrough travel to the Valley to face one of the worst sides I have seen in the Premiership since Sunderland. Three points surely?
Key Players
Ben Thatcher - For some reason Alan Pardew has seen fit to sign Ben Thatcher.
Thatcher is a player who should no longer be playing football. He has a history of horrendous tackles and thuggery on the football pitch.
He should have been banned for life after the assault on Pedro Mendez early on in the season. I hate to think what he is capable of doing to Stewy Downing...
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink - With Darren Bent injured, Jimmy may well be called upon to lead the line.
The big Dutchman hasn't enjoyed his time at The Valley, and certainly isn't in the same form that he showed whilst playing for Boro.
If he is on form he could cause some problems for Boro, if not then we all know he will do his best to unsettle players anyway.
Matt Holland - The Addicks skipper is exactly the kind of player you need in the crisis Charlton find themselves in.
He is a tough, 100% player who will not give up. This won't sit well with George Boateng, who now has slower legs than this writer.
He can score goals as well, usually fairly spectacular ones too, so hopefully our midfield will close him down.
The Manager
Alan Pardew - The former Hammers manager has quickly found out that he is left with a rather poor squad with little to no confidence.
He is a decent manager by all accounts, very well spoken and fair with his players. Unfortunately Charlton ARE going to be relegated and he will be the man in charge when they are.
Possible Lineup
Carson
Sankofa Hreidersson El Karkouri Diawara
Rommedahl Holland Faye Fortune
M Bent Hasselbaink
As I mentioned earlier, this is one of the worst teams to play in the Premier League. Ever.
They have decent players, upfront looks particularly strong on paper. Marcus Bent is a big, strong, athletic player who seems to have been around forever.
He is a good solid player, not one of the best around, but by no means the worst.
Hasselbaink is someone we know all about. He still has a lethal shot if given a chance. His main problem is his loss of pace. He is a clever player, and the class act of this Charlton lineup.
In midfield they have a couple of players in Rommedahl and Fortune who have perfomed at the highest level.
Rommedahl is apparently the quickest player in the Premier League, but like many lightning fast players he has little to no control over the ball when it is at his feet. It is very much a case of knock and run with him.
Fortune is a player who can play in a few positions and has a decent left foot, but will never be anything much more than a solid pro now.
Holland and Faye are going to bring a lot of battle and fight to the middle of the park, and if Boro are to get joy, they will have to match that passion and determintation.
The defence is where things start to look decidedly dodgy for Charlton. Alan Pardew's answer to this was to go and sell his first choice centre half, Traore.
This will mean yet more upheaval for the much maligned defence, and should provide Yakubu and Viduka with plenty of chances.
Now onto the Boro.
Key Players
Jonathan Woodgate - The England international returns from injury to bolster Boro's defence.
The team looks really strong with him on the sheet - he just brings some added class and assuredness to the defence. Everyone plays better when he is there.
Julio Arca - The Argentinean star has looked the business in the middle for Boro, and it will be up to him to get the ball down and feed the strikers with some decent service.
If he can get his passing going, he will have options in Downing out wide, Yakubu behind the defence or playing it in to the great hold-up skills of Viduka.
This really could be key for Boro.
Mark Viduka - It is fast becoming the case of when Viduka plays well, Boro play well. He is more of a creative force than a goalscorer, but he is vital to the side.
If he can continue to hold the ball up and play in other players then Boro will get the chances to go on and win matches.
The manager
Gareth Southgate - This week young Gareth tried to prove he knows lots about management by talking non-committal pap in the press about transfers.
He knows damned well we need lots of players coming in, and a fair few getting rid of. He appears to be stalking Zoltan Gera. Let's just hope he crawls out of the Hungarian's bushes long enough to manage at Charlton.
Possible Lineup
Schwarzer
Xavier Woodgate Pogatetz Taylor
Cattermole Boateng Arca Downing
Viduka Yakubu
This is near as damnit Boro's strongest lineup.
The defence is beginning to pick itself really and even when Huth returns to fitness he is likely to find himself on the bench due to the form of Woodgate and Mad Dog.
Woodgate will marshall the defence, and all the other players love to play with him, he is that good.
In midfield, Cattermole will continue on the right. He comes inside to help out the poor Boateng with the tackling side of things, and he does enough on the right to keep his man busy.
The left of the midfield is where all the creative activity will take place.
Downing is playing well, and will look to continue to whip balls in for the forwards to feed on. Arca is going to be our main creative force though.
He will look to get on the ball and find Viduka, Yakubu and Downing at every opportunity. If he gets going then Boro will have every chance of winning.
How it will go
On paper and in theory, Boro should dominate this match. However I have a nagging feeling about this one, and I don't know why.
If we can manage to get Arca and Viduka on the ball, and the Yak hits form again then there is no reason why we can't win. But I still don't know.
2-0 Boro, I think.
Until next week, I am Stuart Ward.
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