A Tale of 2 Transitional Teams

With his team one-nil down to Bolton at half-time and looking well below-par, a series of tactical switches and a few flying tea cups (possibly) saw his blues come flying out of the blocks in the second-half to claim the game 5-1 and continue their 100% domination of the Premiership.

Big Joe’s turnaround against Crewe wasn’t exactly in the same calibre but the gamble of introducing a not match-fit Forster at a time when we were lacking teeth upfront was certainly inspiring.

Since my last column (sorry, only just lifting out of my post-derby depression), we’ve had five games since the Norwich defeat and taken 7 points, with 2 wins and a draw on Tuesday night.

Those last 5 games show mid-table form, which is where all the pundits who have predicted this as a ‘transitional’ year expect us to finish. However, with a third of the season now played, the table makes interesting reading.

The tight nature of The Championship means that while we’re a worryingly potential 2 defeats off hitting the relegation zone, we’re still only 2 points off the play-off spots and if we can string a few results together, there is no reason why we can’t get ourselves in amongst that elite group.

At this stage last season we had scored 26 league goals, whilst this season we have only managed 14. That tells the story in itself. I won’t continue to compare with last season because the fact is Joe is right; we’ve sold that team (and yes, now they’re all storming the Premiership, oh what might have been…) and we’re now working with our third team in as many seasons.

Against Watford tomorrow there’s only a potential 4 players that started in last seasons corresponding fixture, in February, that may play for us. It's much the same case for Watford too, who their manager also describes as being in very much the same ‘transitional’ situation, having a virtually new team themselves.

After a blistering start that defied everyone that wrote Watford off as relegation candidates, the hornets now find themselves 6 games without a win and perhaps it’s a good time for us to face them. Watch out for in-form striker Ashley Young though, he has scored in both of their last 2 and the 20-year old is beginning to turn heads.

I’m a fan of Royle’s management, overall, but the comments after another dismal TV appearance, at Reading, worried me, “a number of our players did not adhere to the game plan properly and do what they should of” he lamented, after the defeat.

I can’t imagine Mouriniho saying the same if his side had continued the second-half against Bolton like they finished the first. In fact I just can’t imagine him saying that per sae.

The feeble-sounding ‘Erikksson-esq’ comment seemed rather defeatist to me. Isn’t it a manager’s job to make the players do what he wants? And if they fail to do this is it his fault or theirs?

Some credit does go to Royle, however, for his deployment of Proudlock on the right-wing. He was the only plus point of another poor advert for our club on Sky TV (why do I keep humiliating myself by making other fans watch us!?).

I’m afraid the 3-5-2 experiment at the Madjeski was at fault for both their goals. The left-hand side was lelt far too exposed for both and Wilnis, in particular, looked distinctly uncomfortable.

The key to a good side is a settled team and then a settled formation and we seem to have neither at the present although injuries and red cards have blighted our early season form but only to an extent.

The loan signing of Proudlock is an interesting one. It’s a gamble by Royle to take on the sacked Sheffield Wednesday man but Joe is using the fact that Ipswich is ‘his last chance saloon’ to bring out the best in him and I hope it works. Certainly big Joe is proving to have a pedigree in reviving fledging careers, especially those from the blue side of Sheffield, look at Kuqi now.

This Saturday Tottenham return to Old Trafford, this time without their 'pal' Roy Carroll to cause controversy. If it wasn’t for Matt Heath on Tuesday night, we would almost certainly have taken maximum points from the game, after Forster’s strike was adjudged to have not crossed the line. It backs up the argument for the introduction of goal-line technology that followed Carrolls adjudged ‘save’ from Mendes’ lob last season. I for one would be greatly in favour of getting the right results out of games.

With the injuries to Westlake, Garvan and Horlock ahead of the Watford clash, we’re finding ourselves short of numbers again and Royle may go with Richards or Jimmy Juan, like on Tuesday. However, people driving forward from the midfield is something we’ve been crying out for this season and I’d give Proudlock the nod from the start. He’s got much to prove (this can be utilised in a positive way) and he’s quick, strong and will get forward to support our often isolated attack. He also showed against Reading that he can put a decent ball into the box.

With the visit of Watford comes the youngest manager in the football league, at 34 the former Leeds coach Adrian Boothroyd has done a great job so far for the club. However, he is far withdrawn from an arrogant Mouriniho type, seeing himself very much as learning the management trade, describing himself as ‘worse than average’ and his style as ‘performance-based with a winning mentality’.

It’ll therefore be a case of the master against the apprentice in the dug-outs at Portman Road this Saturday then (Royle having been in charge of over 1000 league games), with two confessed transitional sides looking to kick-start their seasons. Let’s hope Boothroyd comes away from Portman Road having learnt much from his more experienced opposite number…