Why Chelsea's attacking quartet means they don't need a striker

With the transfer window firmly shut, there aren't many sets of supporters that are happier with their club's squad than those of Chelsea. One point, however, that people keep pointing to is their strikers. With Romelu Lukaku being loaned out to Everton on deadline day and a perhaps over-the-hill Samuel Eto'o coming in, many people feel that Chelsea could struggle due to not having the likes of a Robin Van Persie up top.

I want to throw out the question, do Chelsea need one particular player to score so many goals?

Despite scoring over 20 goals in all competitions last season, many people feel that Fernando Torres' goal scoring stats are not high enough for a team aiming to challenge for trophies on all fronts.

20 goals in all competitions might not be the best return for a traditional lone striker but the role of Fernando Torres in the Chelsea team is vastly different to the traditional role of a lone striker.

When you think of world-class lone strikers you think of the likes of Didier Drogba, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Radamel Falcao. All strong, physical players who can hold off defenders with ease and wait for support from the midfield or else shrug the defenders off before smashing the ball into the net. Torres is certainly not this, but in the Chelsea system he doesn’t need to be.

With the likes of Eden Hazard, Juan Mata and Oscar in behind him, it is not solely down to Torres to score. It is more a collective effort from the four attacking players. Last season in the Premier League, the above three players contributed 25 goals and 28 assists. With it being Oscar and Hazard’s first season in England, it is safe to assume that this figure will dramatically increase this coming season. This is a logical assumption to make when you look at the other member of the trio – Juan Mata. The Spaniard scored just six league goals in his first season at The Bridge, a figure which he doubled in his second season.

The style Chelsea are looking to implement is very similar to that of the Spanish national team, at least on the attacking front anyway. It is a style based on fluidity and having a lot of tricky, fast and agile players who are constantly on the move. Vicente Del Bosque famously deployed a strikerless system on more than one occasion in the 2012 European Championships – a tournament which Spain were crowned champions. Having no recognised striker might look anti-attacking but it is in fact the opposite. The constant movement of the front four players causes mass confusion for opposing defences and the absence of a Drogba style striker leaves central defenders with no reference point, often confused as to where exactly they should be and who they should be watching at any particular time.

In one of Chelsea’s opening fixtures against either Aston Villa or Hull City, Fernando Torres only had one touch in the opposition box. In a normal one striker system this would be a major problem. I don’t see it as an issue for Chelsea though. Torres can often be found playing deep, with the likes of Mata, Hazard and Oscar finding themselves in more advanced positions at times. He often drifts out to either flank, dragging defenders with him and, as a result opening space for the above three players to exploit.

A ‘striker’ in this system is not a striker, rather a member of an attacking quartet.

Chelsea have added depth to this position with the arrival of Willian and Andre Schürrle to the squad. The latter contributed 11 goals and seven assists to Bayer Leverkusen’s Bundesliga campaign last season. Perhaps trying to reduce the reliance on Juan Mata who was responsible for saving Chelsea time and time again last season. The arrival of these two also allows for Chelsea to put together a serious challenge in every tournament. Rotation will be possible without weakening the starting eleven too much.

Many people, myself included were initially surprised and somewhat annoyed by the decision to loan out Romelu Lukaku again this season but when you look at it, it’s a move that makes sense. With this new style that Chelsea will be deploying, is there really room for a striker in the mould of Lukaku? Players like Torres and Eto’o seem to fit the system a lot better. It is a system that relies a lot on clever movement, intricate passing and through balls. This is a system which involves minimal crossing and little or no long, high balls up to the front man. A system based on possession. Torres is used to this kind of play from the Spain squad and Eto’o has experienced it before with Barcelona. Lukaku is still learning and another year on loan will do him the world of good. Under the guidance of Roberto Martinez, he will surely be used in a system which also encourages short, quick passing and constant movement meaning he will be ready to come back and become Chelsea’s first choice striker next season.

So, to round off this piece and to answer my initial question, do Chelsea really need a striker? I don’t think so, they have a plethora of attacking options who are more than capable of providing for one another as well as scoring goals themselves, so why limit themselves to putting all their eggs in one basket? 

Airtricity League Premier Division: Bottom Four Fight Heating Up

With the third series of fixtures underway in the Airtricity League of Ireland, the battle at the bottom is shaping up to end in thrilling fashion with all still very much to play for. The four teams in the most immediate danger of the drop are separated by just four points; Bohemians, Bray Wanderers, Shelbourne, and UCD. Bohs currently sit bottom with 18 points, next in line are Bray with 20, then Shels, also with 20 but a goal difference which betters that of Bray by 4, fourth from bottom sit UCD with 22 points. Even outside of these four, Drogheda United sit in eight place with 26 points, leaving the Louth side not too far from the danger zone themselves.

First things first, I’ll start at bottom club Bohs and their survival chances. It was predicted by many that this season would be a struggle for the Dublin side, but just how much of a struggle was always in question.

Their season started relatively well with a 2-1 victory over UCD. They went on to pick up seven points from their first five games in which they defeated two relegation rivals UCD and Shelbourne, and shared a point with fierce rivals Shamrock Rovers in Dalymount Park. Then things took a turn, losing three on the trot to Derry, Limerick and Dundalk. Bohs began to realise they were involved in this relegation scrap.

One major contributing factor to where Bohs find themselves is that they, unlike the teams around them, have not really had a good run of games this season. Had they have put a run together like those around them did, they would be well clear of this fight but instead they find themselves at the foot of the table.

One factor that could play into their hands is the very stature of the club. Bohemian Football Club is a huge club in Irish football terms. It is a club which has never been relegated. Travelling to Dalymount to play Bohemians still has a certain feel to it. Travelling to an intimidating ground to come up against a big club who, if you ask anyone associated with the club, belong nowhere near the bottom of the table. I’m certain it will be drilled into the players that this club is almost too big to go down and I expect Bohs to put up more of a fight in the final series of fixtures.

Next, I’ll take a look at Bray. The Seagulls find themselves second from bottom in the league. They also have the second worst defence in the league, with only UCD leaking more goals than them to date this season. At a first glance, things look pretty bleak for the league’s only Wicklow based team. But Bray do have a few factors which could prove to work in their favour. Pat Devlin’s men are one of, if not the most experienced League of Ireland side when it comes to fighting for their lives, and more often than not they come out on top. They will not be panicking about the fact that they find themselves near the foot of the table as it’s very much where they expect to be season after season.

Another thing which gives Bray hope is their record goal-scorer Jason Byrne. Since returning to the club in 2012 the veteran striker has netted 26 times in just 40 games. Byrne is a man who is always capable of scoring with just one chance and having him in the team means Bray will always be likely to score goals. Young gun Ismahil Akinade has also been finding his goal scoring touch since the halfway point of the season and should he continue this form Bray could well pull off a surprise or two before the season ends.

Tolka Park next, and Shelbourne the team to be looked at. Another big club that find themselves battling for their lives. For a long time Shels looked dead and buried, written off by most who follow the league and the teams above them possibly even began to relax. Following the departure of manager Alan Matthews in May and the arrival of Johnny McDonnell they began to show some fight and claw their way back into the battle.

Perhaps being written off by almost everybody helped, it certainly would have eased the pressure as nobody expected anything from them. Their best run of form came as they burst into life with a draw away to Drogheda was followed by successive victories over Cork City, Limerick and UCD, then came a draw away to fellow strugglers Bray before finally succumbing to defeat at the hands of Dundalk. Shels have come into form at a good time and this could be a decisive factor in regards to their survival hopes.

Now to the team who currently sit four points clear of bottom, UCD. Like Bray, UCD are well used to finding themselves at the bottom of the table as the season reaches its end.

Like Bray and Shelbourne, UCD showed signs that they are capable of winning games. UCD’s hot streak coincided with Bray’s. The Students have a massively inexperienced squad. The coaching staff at UCD will be experienced at fighting the drop, the players, on the other hand will not. With the right guidance UCD will be able to remain calm and keep their heads above water. Knees will no doubt be trembling in the dressing room at Belfield, it will be interesting to see how The Students handle the pressure of another relegation dog-fight.

It could well come down to the remaining fixtures between each clubs, I have put together a small table of games in which the bottom four have faced each other. 

St Patrick's Athletic vs Bray Wanderers match preview. Friday, June 28th 2013.

The midsummer break is now over and league leaders St Patrick's Athletic welcome Bray Wanderers to Richmond Park for their first game back.

Top of the table Pat's will be looking to claim all three points as they continue to push on in an effort to claim the title come the end of the season. Having been defeated 2-1 by Dundalk in their last game before the break, it will be interesting to see how the Saints bounce back to this with the pressure surely being higher than normal due to this defeat. Previous to this defeat, Pat's had not lost since April, once again at the hands of The Lillywhites.

Saints manager Liam Buckley has stated his side have welcomed the break with open arms, continuing to say it was a good opportunity to give his players a rest and that they will not be taking the opposition lightly.

"The break was good to give some of our lads time off and the squad is all back in training now and look rested and ready to go again. We’ll need to be at it on Friday as Bray will be tough opponents." Said Buckley as he spoke to stpatsfc.com.

“We’d a tight game in their place earlier in the season and since then they’ve been going well lately. Jason Byrne has been banging the goals in and they had good wins recently against UCD, Drogheda and Cork. We know they’ll test us and pose us problems, so we just have to apply ourselves as best we can and hopefully we’ll get a result.”

Jake Kelly, who moved to the Inchicore side from the Seagulls further enforced how his side will not be underestimating their opponents on Friday night.

“Bray came to Richmond last year and beat us 1-0 and also got a 3-3 draw against us in Bray so we don’t need any reminding of what they’re capable of. They can get goals from nothing as lads like Jason Byrne and Kieran Marty Waters are so dangerous. But we’re still confident in ourselves and we’ll be looking to win on Friday.” Kelly said as he spoke to stpatsfc.com.

The home side go into the game without Killian Brennan, who is beginning a two match suspension following his sending off in the Dundalk game.

Bray will also be looking to continue their good form as they come into Friday's clash. The Seagulls have been performing above all expectations of late having won four of their last six games. 

The visitors also have the pleasure of having a full squad of players to choose from for the first time in seemingly forever. Danny and Kevin O'Connor are both available for selection following a prolonged absence before the break. Shane O'Neil and Eoin Hyland are also back in contention for a place in the squad having missed a few games prior to the summer break.

Bray's Director of Football Pat Devlin stated his happiness with how his side have recently lifted their levels of performance following an underwhelming start to the campaign. 

"I am happy with our performances especially in the final weeks before the break." Commented Devlin while speaking to braywanderers.ie.

"We now need to move forward from here, we have a tough programme ahead of us and we hope to get more points on the board from the first phase. We need to push forward and we hope to strengthen the squad in the window. We are looking forward to the remainder of the season."

Bray will no doubt need to be at the top of their game in order to stand a chance on Friday. Two of the leagues form teams coming together does, however, mean the crowd at Richmond Park should be in for a treat.

Follow Conor Clancy on Twitter: @conorclancy9

Bray Wanderers vs Derry City Review. Friday, June 14th 2013

On a night of torrential rain and strong winds this clash at the seaside never looked like being an appealing game of football to watch. On a saturated pitch which allowed for little football to be played, form side Bray Wanderers hosted title hopefuls Derry City in the Carlisle Grounds.

Derry started the game and immediately set out to all watching that they would not be attempting to play the ball around too much as they shot straight from kick off. Derry dominated the early parts of the game squeezing a penalty appeal and the opening goal of the game into the first fifteen minutes of action. The opening goal came as Rory Patterson flicked the ball across the box for  Patrick McEleney to divert the ball home past Darren Quigley in the Bray goal. The game was providing no real entertainment and the highlight thus far proved to be three brave Derry fans leaving the enclosed stand to support their team from beneath the lashings of rain and gusts of wind on the opposite side of the pitch. This was a move which brought a smile to the faces of most and was met by applause from the vast majority of the Carlisle.

Bray then began to get the ball under control for the first real time in the game with twenty-five minutes on the clock. Kieran 'Marty' Waters attempted to feed Jason Byrne through but the conditions meant the ball skidded through kindly to the hands of Ger Doherty in the Candystripes' goal. Moments later a long ball was nicely touched on by Bray youngster Ismahil Akinade and Gary Dempsey drove forward past two City players before releasing the ball to Jason Byrne whose effort was tame and straight at Doherty.

As Bray found their stride Derry broke down and looked certain to make it 2-0 but for a superb last ditch tackle from Conor Earley to set up a Bray attack. Waters ran at the Derry defence before being brought down on the edge of the box. Dave Webster powerfully drove the ball at goal and were it not for a wonderful save from Doherty the score would have been level once more. The save was so good it even prompted Jason Byrne to go and shake the hand of the Derry keeper. The scores were level from the resulting corner, however. The man affectionately known as 'Izzy' by Seagulls' supporters found himself free in the box and looped his header inside the far post to draw Bray level on thirty-five minutes before making full use of the conditions in his celebration.

Bray went on to dominate the next ten minutes of play. Time and time again the ball was lofted into the Derry box where each time it was rather easily headed away.

Just as the fourth official indicated how long would be added on to the end of the half Quigley brilliantly parried away a speculative drive from Kevin Deery. It wasn't long before Quigley was beaten for the second time. On forty-seven minutes Rory Patterson glanced a Barry McNamee cross past the Bray shot stopper to restore his sides lead right on half time.

As the second half began, Bray had the wind behind them and it didn't take long for them to cause Derry a problem or two. Gary Dempsey found himself bearing down on Doherty's goal only to go down under a challenge but Bray's rather tame penalty shouts were turned down by referee Paul Tuite. Tuite was once again the centre of attention moments later when Marty Waters crossed was caught by the wind and dipped down, bouncing out off the crossbar before Ger Doherty picked up what appeared to be a back-pass from one of his defenders but the referee stood firm and turned down the appeals.

Bray soon found themselves with a mountain to climb as Paddy Kavanagh lost his man from a throw in and was allowed the space to easily roll the ball into the six-yard-box where Rory Patterson tapped home to double his tally and City's lead.

Bray did not give up, however and a long ball to Byrne cause confusion in the Derry defence and led to a corner which came to nothing. The warning signs were there. Shortly after Waters found himself to the left of the box, cutting in onto his weaker right foot his shot was blocked wide for another Seagulls corner. This time the end result was a goal. Dean Zambra's initial cross was blocked, but rebounded to him providing him with a second opportunity which he took full advantage of. His cross was met by the head of Patterson who put the ball into his own goal to give Bray a lifeline.

Shane O'Connor found himself lucky to remain on the pitch for the second time in the game following an off the ball incident with Patterson in which he appeared to kick out at the Candystripes' forward. Luckily this incident was not spotted by the referee. Earlier on in the game O'Connor appeared to have swung an arm at a Derry player. The second of these incidents resulted in O'Connor escaping any cards while Patterson picked up a booking for descent.

From here on in Bray will rightly feel they should have earned at least a point from the game. Firstly, Gary Dempsey broke the offside trap before trying to lift the ball over the onrushing Doherty only for his effort to go wide. Then came the best chance, and most surprising miss of the game. A long hopeful ball into the Derry box found Jason Byrne six yards out, completely unmarked. The veteran striker somehow managed the fluff his connection and the ball went wide. Byrne's reaction said it all as he stood with his head in his hands. Jason Byrne was once again involved as he beautifully beat two Derry players at once on the right wing before firing an extremely optimistic shot from range which never came close to troubling Doherty.

After this the game kind of just fizzled out with the only real chance falling to the head of Barry McNamee who should have killed the game but headed wide from right in front of Quigley's goal.

Derry held on to claim all three points and the celebrations of City boss Declan Devine showed that they had escaped with a lucky three points on the night. An important win for Derry, but an unfortunate and undeserved defeat for Bray.

AC Milan - Transition complete; Ready for Take Off.

It's fair to say that after an excruciating summer for the Rossoneri faithful last year, this season was always going to be an interesting one. It started off poorly, to say the least. Dreams of the Scudetto rapidly raced from the minds of Milan players and fans alike as they plummeted into a time of crisis. It was beginning to look unlikely that the seven time European Champions would even be representing their country in a European competition next season. Of their first ten games, Milan had won just three, drawing two and losing five in the process. This was not the form of a Europa League contender, never mind the form of a title contender.

On October 30th, Milan found themselves 2-0 behind away to Palermo thanks to two goals either side of half time. Milan looked spineless. Nobody was willing to fight for the cause. Nobody was willing to rally the troops and push the Rossoneri through. Milan were a wounded animal. An under-performing Bojan Krkic was brought on to replace an equally underwhelming Alexandre Pato. He made a difference. On 69 minutes Milan were presented with a glimmer of hope. A goal from Riccardo Montolivo, a rare consistent performer for Milan gave them new life. Milan pushed on and equalised on 80 minutes through Stephan El Shaarawy. They even could and perhaps should have won the game were it not for a few fluffed chances in the dying moments of the game. This was a turning point. From this point on, Milan were a different animal. The beast had been woken up. 

Results began to change and from November onwards, Milan were the form team in the league. January saw the exit of Pato and the arrival of one Mario Balotelli. Heads were being held high in the red half of Milan, even more so given that their run of good form coincided with a dramatic dip in form for their city rivals - Internazionale. From the 18th of November no team would pick up more points than Milan in Italy's top flight until the end of the season. 

The coming season will be different, very different. Milan have reasons to be positive. 

This summer will not see any major exits like last summer, primarily because they haven't got as many big name players this year. Last year they lost the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva, Clarence Seedorf, Pippo Inzaghi, Alessandro Nesta, Gennaro Gattuso, Antonio Cassano, Gianluca Zambrotta and Marc Van Bommel. On top of this Maxi Lopez and Alberto Aquilani both left following the expiry of their respective loan contracts as well as a plethora of rumours surrounding the futures of Pato and Robinho. This time round their main superstar is also their latest arrival and he's not going anywhere - Super Mario. Their young gun Stephan El Shaarawy has been attracting rumours which Adriano Galliani has firmly denied. The only real transfer talk coming out of the club is to do with the potential arrival of Carlos Tevez from Manchester City - a signing which would further strengthen Allegri's squad. The side have adapted from being focused on the above players to being focused on the likes of El Shaarawy, Montolivo, Balotelli, Pazzini. A new spine has been formed and it has been formed a lot quicker than many anticipated.

One huge plus that Milan will have for next season is simply having Mario Balotelli for a full campaign. His form since setting foot on Italian soil has been nothing short of remarkable. Scoring twelve goals in thirteen games he is beginning to make headlines for all the right reasons again and this will put a smile on the faces of Milan fans worldwide. It's clear that Balotelli feels loved at Milan, he feels like he's an important player to that team, something which was evidently lacking during his time in England. He is the main man now at Milan. All eyes are firmly on his footballing ability and it would appear that he is loving every minute of it. If he can take this form into next season then there is no reason why he can't be scoring title deciding goals come May 2014. 

Another factor which could very well play into Milan's hands is that Juventus will be giving more attention than ever to the Champions League. Having found themselves to be very unlucky to come up against a wonderful Bayern Munich side this season, Juve will want to show the world that they are well and truly back after years of suffering following the Calciopoli scandal. This might well see The Old Lady resting players in Serie A matches allowing teams to take points off them more so than they did this season and thus providing Milan with a golden opportunity. 

On top of these factors, Milan will have a new-found hunger, a hunger stronger than ever before to reclaim what they feel is their post at the summit of Italian football. Having seen Juventus win the previous two Scudetto's, Milan will do everything in their power to stop it from becoming a hat-trick of league titles for their enemies from Turin. Furthermore, winning a third consecutive title is by no means an easy thing to do and Juventus will face enormous pressures which could see them crumble and the Rossoneri will be waiting to pounce at any sign of weakness.

For the above reasons as well as others, I would not be the slightest bit surprised to see AC Milan emphatically bounce back this year. The transition is now complete, the Rossoneri are ready for take off.

The Republic of Ireland: Evolution takes time, small steps are being taken.

After the shameful performance from the Irish football team at the 2012 European Championships in the Ukraine and Poland, the ‘Boys in Green’ took a bit of a verbal battering from myself and many of the country’s other football fans and writers alike. This criticism, in my eyes, was perfectly justified. The team simply did not perform in the manner which was expected from them. Expectations were not unrealistic, the team were never expected to beat sides like Spain, Italy and Croatia. The way in which they played these games, however, was nothing short of deplorable.

A lot of the blame was placed on the head of Giovanni Trapattoni, his tactical approach and team selection was thrown into question countless times. The Italian was criticised from almost every football fan in the country. It was evident to everybody that some sort of change was needed if the Italian was to remain in his post as Irish manager. Fortunately, that change has begun to occur.

Trapattoni seems to be, for the first time during his role as Irish manager, listening to the nation. For over a year now, there has been a demand for the likes of Séamus Coleman and James McClean to become regular starters for Ireland. They are now finally being given a chance on a regular basis and proving that they are more than deserving. Coleman has been brilliant at right back. Taking the step to being an international footballer in his stride, something that is not always easy for a young footballer to do with such comfort. McClean’s performances have shown that he is not making the transition to international football as convincingly as Coleman, but he is by no means doing a bad job. He has handed in some very respectable performances in an Irish shirt and has provided a good foundation on which he can look to build and improve. He has already become a very important part of this Irish side and his ability to be a match winner is clearly seen by his teammates. During the game against Austria it was visible that whenever James McCarthy had the ball in the middle of the park, the first place he looked was out to the left to see where McClean was and whether or not he was available. Nearly every time McCarthy received the ball into feet with the time and space to look up and pick out a pass, that pass was out to James McClean was more often than not met by more than one Austrian player, which in itself is a complement – it’s a sign that they were worried about him.

James McCarthy is stepping into the role of Ireland’s primary creative, passing midfielder. With Glenn Whelan or Paul Green alongside him to do the majority of the ‘dirty work’ McCarthy is allowed to find space and time when on the ball to allow for him to play important and potentially match winning passes. With the ever threatening James McClean to the left, the powerful Jonathan Walters to his right, and the clinical Shane Long in front of him, McCarthy is never found short of options and the movement of these three players will often open up space and an opportunity for the Wigan midfielder to play a killer ball into. McCarthy is going to play an even more integral part for this Ireland team in the coming years. As the side develops further and inevitably moves away from this ‘defend, defend, defend’ style, his role will become even more prominent. It appears to be unanimously accepted that Trapattoni’s contract will not be renewed again after this campaign, leaving the job vacant for a new manager with a perhaps more open mind to come in and allow the squad to play in a system most suited to the best players within it.

A man mentioned above whose reputation is growing is Paul Green. Green was torn apart in certain areas of the media during and after the European Championships. Since then, improvements have been made and Ireland are benefitting from this. For the first time in an Irish shirt, everybody who watched the game against Sweden had nothing but good things to say about his performance. In the following game against Austria as he prepared to come on, the usual groans and shouts of frustration were noticeably absent. The only criticism of this change was that he was brought on for the wrong player and then played out of position - neither of these are criticisms of Green. Trapattoni insisted on playing Green out on the right and pushing Jon Walters up front when it was felt that Green should have been brought on as an extra body to crowd out the Austrian midfield and attempt to reduce the threat posed by David Alaba who was pulling the strings for them. Paul Green is growing as a footballer, if his performances continue at this level he will almost certainly develop into an important player for his country.

Another key contributor to the Republic of Ireland side at the moment is Shane Long. Long is becoming, and already has become in my mind, Ireland’s best striker. The time has come for the team to be built around him and not Robbie Keane. I am extremely thankful and respectful towards everything that Keane has done for this nation during his career but his time has come and gone. He is no longer the striker he was, his goals are beginning to dry up for his country and at a time when the Tipperary man is playing better than ever and constantly improving, it makes sense for this transition to occur now.

So what lies ahead for Ireland, then? What more needs to be done and how can they continue to grow?

Ireland need time to blend and time to familiarise themselves with their fellow players. With only two of the eleven that started the opening game of the European Championships starting the game against Austria, it’s clear to see that the team is changing.

In the coming years we will more than likely see the introduction of Greg Cunningham at left back, who could well be the left hand side’s answer to Séamus Coleman on the right. This would give the team great balance to have a good, solid defensive full back who can also threaten when the team go forward. He could potentially provide support for James McClean and take advantage of any space occupied by the opposition doubling up on McClean.

The probable departure of Trapattoni after the World Cup Campaign will also open up the door for the reintroduction of Darron Gibson into the Irish set up. The Everton man would be a welcome addition to the side and would provide competition for Paul Green should he hold onto his place in the starting eleven.

I said before the campaign began that I would happily take not qualifying for Brazil 2014 if it meant the team was beginning to evolve and new players were introduced with the nation’s future in mind. This has absolutely been the case so although not qualifying might be painful for the immediate future, in the long term, this early stage of evolution could prove key to Ireland’s hopes for the next European Championships in France three years down the road.

To briefly summarise the message I’m trying to get across here: it’s not all doom and gloom for Ireland. Small steps are being taken, improvements in performances and results are imminent. 

Why Mario Should be Cherished, not Chastised.

Mario Balotelli is without doubt a footballer who, to coin a clichéd phrase, is a lot like marmite – you either hate him or love him. There is very rarely any middle ground when it comes to this particular young man.

As I sit here, sipping on a fresh cup of tea and typing away I can’t help but think back to an argument I had today, an argument I often have with people, an argument discussing the ability of Mario Balotelli.  As I think back to the argument, I can’t help but laugh. Only a matter of hours after the discussion of Balotelli’s ability, during a friendly between Brazil and Italy, he beautifully placed the ball into the top corner of Julio Cesar’s goal from 25 yards, leaving the Brazilian goalkeeper with no chance of getting anywhere near the shot. It’s almost as if he did that just to reassure me that I was right, and that he is in fact brilliant.

I happen to be a keen admirer of Balotelli. It is a far too regular occurrence for me to be involved in a discussion in which I will find myself endlessly defending the ability of the controversial Italian front man and telling those who disagree with me to “look at the stats from when he plays.” There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Mario Balotelli is an astonishing footballer. I do not understand the view shared by so many that his ability is nothing worth getting excited about and I personally feel we should be screaming from the rooftops about just how brilliant this boy is.

Firstly, let’s take a quick look at his recent form. Since moving back home to Italy to play for Milan, Balotelli has scored seven goals in six league games, of which he started five. Seven goals in six matches, which works out as being an average of a goal every 73 minutes. He has notched up a total of eight goals in eight games this calendar year. This is pretty black and white for me. This form is outstanding. However, to refer to the well-known saying that form is temporary and class is permanent, I’ll show you that the boy has class too.

In his time at Manchester City, Balotelli came under a lot of criticism from fans of the English game. People are quick to remind you how he carelessly got sent off in a vital game against Arsenal which almost ended City’s title hopes, but are a little more forgetful when you respond by pointing out that he returned to the side to provide a brilliant assist for that Sergio Aguero goal that clinched the Premier League title. That wasn’t even his only contribution in that match. Coming off the bench when his side were a goal behind, he played brilliantly, he changed the game. Critics are either extremely forgetful or choosing to ignore the fact that he scored twenty goals in forty games that season also. A record of a goal every two games which in a world without Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, is a brilliant return. His overall record at Manchester City is nothing to turn your nose up to either. In a total of eighty games for the club, he found the net thirty times. Not bad for a player who is still developing and maturing as a footballer, as well as a person.

It is not only with his club that he has been performing to a very respectable standard. For Italy he has played a total of eighteen games, scoring six times. The peak of his international career to date was without doubt his performances at Euro 2012, where he had a return of three goals in his six games and had the whole of Europe talking about him. He helped Italy to reach the final where they eventually fell short against Spain.

Another attribute of Balotelli’s which makes him stand out as a world class player is that he scores in big, important matches. As stated above he scored three times in the European Championships for Italy. Two of these goals coming in the Semi-Finals against the highly tipped Germany. As well as this he has scored against many top teams in England. He put Manchester City 1-0 up at Stamford Bridge in a game against Chelsea in Manchester City’s title winning season. In the same season he scored a crucial last minute penalty at home to Tottenham which kept his side top of the league. The tension within The City of Manchester Stadium was felt by all who were watching and Balotelli seemed to be the most composed person in the ground as he strolled up to the ball and nonchalantly stroked it into the bottom corner. As well as these big games, he also scored against tough opposition such as Everton, Newcastle, Napoli and Manchester United in this season. I will come to his goal in the derby soon.

Controversy is a shadow that appeared to follow Balotelli during his time in England. Every week there would be a new outrageous story about how he rescued a child from bullying or how he drove around with his winnings from a casino on the passenger seat of his car. Most of this stories were later discovered as being untrue. As Balotelli said himself on the issue: “Certain people really don’t know how to make money in life and therefore try to take advantage of others. Gossip is one thing, but what these people do is close to criminal. Many stories are invented about me, I’d say about 0.01% of them are true. Who uses me? Almost everyone”.

One story, however which caught the eye of everybody was the infamous firework incident. In the aftermath of this, came one of Balotelli’s most explosive days in English football. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist.) The game following this incident was none other than the Manchester derby, arguably the biggest game in English football since the blue half of Manchester became realistic title challengers. It wasn’t long before Mario was making headlines for all the right reasons. He opened the scoring with a typically calm finish from just inside his opponent’s box where most would have put their heads down and laces through the ball, he kept his head up, opened up his body and trickled the ball into the far corner past the despairing David De Gea. Scoring two goals in the home of his side’s most fierce rivals and helping his team to an historic 6-1 drubbing of their Manchester counterparts it was nice to hear that the whole country was talking about Balotelli and his t-shirt for all the right reasons.

Another thing which is interesting about Balotelli is that he’s not your typical striker. He does not have any one defined position. He is versatile. He can play as a target man, on the shoulder of the last defender, as a second striker, out wide, you name it. This is a wonderful characteristic for a striker to have. It allows him to be utilised in many different formations and playing styles and to cause opposing teams a number of different problems. It must not be forgotten that while at Internazionale, Balotelli was one of Europe’s hottest young prospects. He has shown that he is capable of performing to the heights expected of him, he now just needs to show that he can do it on a more consistent basis. If he can do this, he will inevitably begin to win over his critics sooner rather than later.

Balotelli is a phenomenal talent. This can simply not be debated in my view. He has won everything available to him in club football by the premature age of 23 and has a European Championships runner’s up medal to go along with those honours. I cannot think of another player who, if they had achieved what he has achieved would face such unjustified criticism. Mario Balotelli should be judged by what he does as a footballer, not by what he does or is reported to do in his private life. If this is the case, it cannot be denied that he is a wonderful talent who is only going to get better as he matures.

Rafa at Chelsea; Time for the facts.

With Rafael Benítez having managed as many Premier League games in charge of Chelsea FC as Roberto Di Matteo this season, I was curious to investigate how the two match up. When you look at the stats, it is fair to say that the Spaniard is lucky to still be in the job at The Bridge, although it is debatable whether or not anybody is lucky to be the manager at this particular club. At the time of the initial statistical research, Benítez had managed twelve Premier League games as Chelsea boss - the same as Di Matteo this season, at the time of writing, he has managed one more so I had to recalculate some of the figures to make them up-to-date.

To begin with, lets take a look at the most basic figures possible. How many games has Benítez won, lost and drawn? Well, in his thirteen games at the helm, he has won only six, drawn four times, and lost three times. Compare this to Roberto Di Matteo's twelve games in charge out of which he won seven, drew three and lost only two. With his win ratio being worse than Di Matteo's - a man who was sacked, it makes you realise just how lucky Benítez is to be still employed.

Now lets move on to some more, perhaps unseen statistics about Chelsea under Benítez. Under him, Chelsea have scored twenty seven league goals, not too bad. If we take away the 8-0 drubbing over Aston Villa, this figure falls dramatically to nineteen. Now this stat doesn't look so good. Nineteen goals in twelve games is simply not good enough. This averages out as being just over 1.5 goals per game. For a side who were title challengers under Di Matteo, this is not acceptable. This figure also looks even worse when compared to the goal to game ratio under the Italian, which worked out at being exactly two goals per game.

One of the things that Chelsea fans were promised when Benítez arrived was that he would tighten up the defence. That the defence would become almost airtight. This has not come to pass. Although he has helped Chelsea to keep one more clean sheet than Di Matteo - five to Di Matteo's four, he has not made any dramatic improvements to the defensive aspect of the European Champions' game. He has seen his side concede an average of 1.07 goals per game. This is all but identical to the record of Di Matteo's Chelsea, who conceded an average of 1.08 goals per game.

Time to take a look at some very important figures now, lets look at the points accumulated by Benítez at Chelsea. This figure does not reflect well on Benítez, even less so when compared to the figure that got Di Matteo sacked. Since taking control in November, Benítez has averaged 1.69 points per game. To further understand how poor this is for a club of Chelsea's stature I'll explain it another way. If Chelsea went the whole season maintaining an average of 1.69 points per game, they would accumulate 64 points by the end of the season. This is the figure they reached last season, leaving them languishing in sixth place in what was unanimously seen as a catastrophic domestic league season for the Blues. For a side who want to be fighting for silverware on all fronts, this is not good enough. Lets compare this to that of Di Matteo. During his twelve games this season, he achieved an average points per game tally of 2.00. This, maintained over the course of a season would accumulate 76 points, a much more respectable total. This total would have seen Chelsea finish third based on last seasons final standings, and second based on the season previous to last.

One thing that has stood out for many, myself included about Chelsea of late is that they seem unable to see out a game. Having recently thrown away a two goal lead to Reading and Southampton I wondered just how many points Chelsea have dropped from winning positions under Benítez. Well, the answer is shocking. Chelsea have dropped a total of ten points from advantageous positions. Now, answer me this, can you ever imagine Chelsea under Mourinho, Hiddink or Ancelotti doing this? No. I thought not. Even compared to Di Matteo this record is poor at best.

On top of these telling statistics, the style has also changed since the arrival of Benítez. Under Di Matteo's guidance, Chelsea were beginning to evolve. They were moving on from the more rugged, 'British style of play' towards a more continental style based on passing, movement and fluidity. This is no more. They now appear very rigid in games, players more reluctant to roam from their positions and to find and create space which they would have done under the previous regime. The average passes per game has decreased since the Spaniard's arrival, albeit only by a very small fraction - from 429 to 416.

It must also be remembered that the statistics outlined in this piece only take Premier League games into consideration. They do not include the embarrassing 2-2 draw to Brentford, or the 2-0 defeat over two legs to Swansea in the FA Cup and Capital One Cup respectively.

With a league game win percentage of just 46.15%, Benítez has a worse win ratio as Chelsea boss than Claudio Ranieri (52.1%), José Mourinho (70.8%), Avram Grant (68.8%), Guus Hiddink (84.6%), Luiz Filipe Scolari (56%), Carlo Ancelloti (63.2%), André Villas-Boas (48.2%), and Roberto Di Matteo (52.2%), yet he still finds himself employed by Chelsea Football Club and trigger happy owner Roman Abramovic. Looking at the above statistics really makes me wonder just how much longer will it be before that side banner on Sky Sports News and the back of every tabloid newspaper is displaying the odds for the next Chelsea manager.

Before I wrap up I want to thank the Twitter account '@ChelseaStats' for allowing me to email them requesting many of the statistics used throughout this piece. A must follow account for all Chelsea fans, and for those of you who just enjoy your random football stats and facts.

The power shift within European football.

Throughout recent years, European football has been primarily dominated by the clubs of two respective countries; Spain and England. Germany and Italy have meanwhile been left to fight it out for the honour of having the third strongest league in the continent. Over the last few years, this has begun to change a bit. The German Bundesliga is now beginning to maintain a serious challenge to be seen as Europe's second strongest league, ahead of England's Premier League.

I think it's safe to say that Spain's La Liga is now the dominant league in Europe, boasting of being the home of what are probably the two best teams in the world in Barcelona and Real Madrid. However, if the German game continues to grow in the same way it has over the last few years, it will not be too long before it knocks La Liga off the top. With the arrival of Pep Guardiola in Germany, there is now a serious chance that this could happen. 

Pep will take the reigns at FC Bayern Munich in July. He could be the key ingredient in making the Bavarians the kings of Europe in the coming years. It's not as if they are a million miles away as it is.

FC Bayern have reached two of the last three Champions League finals, 2010 and 2012 respectively. They were unfortunate in losing out on both occasions. In 2010, they faced an extremely well organised Internazionale team. Under the wizardry of José Mourinho, Inter had managed to knock out Barcelona and Chelsea en route to the final. This Inter team also had an on-form Diego Milito leading the line - a man who was seemingly unstoppable in the final. So there was no shame in being defeated on this occasion. In 2012, they faced an equally stubborn Chelsea side who managed to defend their way past Barcelona after beating Benfica and a heroic victory over Napoli at Stamford Bridge when they seemed as good as out of the tournament. Bayern knocked on the door for 120 minutes in the final. Mario Gomez uncharacteristically missed several chances, Arjen Robben missed a couple including an extra-time penalty, as did Franck Ribéry. Bayern scored late on and had the game as good as won until Chelsea got their first corner of the game deep into extra-time and scored through a powerful bullet like attempt, courtesy of the head of Didier Drogba. The match went on to penalties, where Chelsea were came through victorious, so once again, there was no shame in losing this particular match despite being overwhelming favourites.

Thanks to the efforts of Bayern and others, the Budesliga has been given an extra place for the Champions League. Germany will now have 4 places, this itself shows that German football is already becoming stronger and more of a force when it comes to European club competitions. Take this years group stages for example and you can see proof that German sides are a force to be reckoned with in Europe. Bayern, Borussia Dortmund and Schalke all topped their groups. Dortmund and Schalke both finished above English sides in the process. 

Compare this to the success of English clubs in the Champions League this season. Only Manchester United went through as group leaders, Arsenal finished runners up to Schalke, Manchester City were knocked out of a group which was topped by Dortmund, and Chelsea also found themselves exiting the tournament at this premature stage. This is the second consecutive season that two English teams have crashed out before the knockout rounds. Last season Manchester City were joined by their city neighbours United.

Under the management of Guardiola, a man who won everything he possibly could with Barcelona while maintaining a win percentage of 72%, it would be no surprise to see Bayern win the Champions League in the next year or two. Guardiola, or the professor, as he is known, is a phenomenal coach. Winning 178 of his 248 matches in charge of Barecelona supports this. He also won a total of 14 titles in his time with Barcelona, this averages out as being a title every 17.7 matches. Yes, you read that right, one title every 17.7 matches . His personal accolades also suggest that he is a manager who will bring success to Bayern. In 2011 he was named as FIFA's manager of the year. He was announced as the LFP manager of the year in 2009 and 2011 respectively. He was also voted as the world's best manager in two respective years by World Soccer, once again in 2009 and 2011.

The combination of a man with these honours and a team who look set to win the Bundesliga as well as mount another serious challenge for European success will undoubtedly spell danger for other European clubs. 

Bayern are only going to improve under him. They may well even go on to be the dominant force in Europe. Bayern, however, are not the only team that English and Spanish teams will need to worry a little bit more about. The likes of Dortmund and Schalke have to try to compete with Bayern every single week. In order to do this they are going to have to strengthen further. This is frightening if you are a fan of an English side. Dortmund have come on leaps and bounds in the last three years and for them to go on and become even better could see English clubs becoming less and less influential and dominant when it comes to the latter stages of the Champions League. Dortmund have already brushed aside the English champions as have Schalke with Arsenal, what could happen should these sides become stronger? 

English football will need to respond. For years it has had a certain arrogance about it and is often referred to within the country as being the best league in the world. Will Pep's arrival in Germany make the English supporters and press reevaluate their league? Only time will tell. In order to compete in the coming years they will definitely have to. Real Madrid and Barcelona are going nowhere anytime soon and with the growth of Bayern and Dortmund England needs to react. 

One thing that Dortmund, Barcelona and Bayern all have in common is that they all encourage an attractive, easy on the eye playing style. This seems to be the way forward for football. The Spanish national side that have won three successive trophies made it the popular thing to do. Barcelona have proved that it can work in European club football. Bayern and Dortmund don't strictly play the same way as the Spanish national team or the Catalan club side, but their respective styles are without doubt streets ahead of that of their English counterparts. Arsenal are the only side who really attempt to play in a similar fashion. Chelsea are also taking steps towards that particular way of playing. This may well be the only way of progression for English sides. Chelsea won the Champions League last year by playing a completely polar opposite style, but on another day they would have been put to the sword by Barca and Bayern who passed up countless golden opportunities in their respective matches. 

So what exactly does Pep Guardiola's move to FC Bayern mean for European football? Pep could prove to be a catalyst in the potential power shift that is to come in the next few years. Watch this space - European football is changing.

AC Milan - A Club in Transition.

Before a ball was kicked in Italy this season, there was one thing on almost everybody's mind - "What will happen with AC Milan?"

It would be an understatement to say that The Rossoneri underwent a bit of a clear out in the summer. However, this was not the kind of clear out that is quite commonplace in modern football. This particular clear out caught the eye of almost every football fan in Europe. It is not unusual to see a club attempt to remove any and all deadwood from it's books to allow for new signings to come in or to present an opportunity to young, up and coming players to make the step up to first team football while still having the big names around to act as mentors during their transitional phase. This is not what happened at AC Milan.

In a desperate attempt to cut costs, president Silvio Berlusconi and vice-president Adriano Galliani decided to sell the clubs most valuable assets and star players. Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic were both sold to French giants PSG seemingly against the interests of the players themselves. Clarence Seedorf moved onto a new adventure in Brazil with Botafogo (this was his own decision, not the decision of Galliani.) Antonio Cassano was sold to bitter rivals Internazionale in a swap deal for Giampaolo Pazzini. As well as the above, key players such as Gennaro Gattuso, Alessandro Nesta and Filippo Inzaghi all moved on. Though some of the latter names may not have been key players last season, they were still massive characters and names among the Milan squad and fantastic mentors to have around the younger players at the club. 

It was evident from the start that this was going to be a long, hard season for the red half of Milan. Results early on indicated that it might be a lot tougher than even the most pessimistic Milan supporter would have imagined. Early defeats to Sampdoria, Atalanta and Udinese meant that the seven times European champions were in a time of crisis. It was difficult to see where the club's next win was going to come from. The fixture list threw up fixtures against Internazionale, Lazio, Napoli, Juventus and Fiorentina all in the space of two months. People were starting to say that Milan could feasibly be involved in a relegation battle. Back to back defeats to Inter and Lazio respectively proved to be a bit of an overdue wake-up call for The Rossoneri. On the back of the Lazio defeat they beat Genoa 1-0. They then traveled to Palermo where they found themselves 2-0 down. It looked like another defeat was on the cards. For the first time all season they showed real fight and managed to claw the game back to earn a 2-2 draw and could well have snatched it late on. This was the first real sign of a will to fight for the cause within the squad. This result appeared to give birth to a new feeling of belief among players and fans alike. 

A few days after the Palermo game Chievo Verona made the journey to the San Siro. Milan smashed them 5-1. Not only did they score five, they also had five different goalscorers. Milan appeared to have got their swagger back. Then they welcomed high-flying Fiorentina to the San Siro. They lost 3-1 and the players looked helpless, lost and confused once again. Had the slump restarted?. Just as things looked to be improving they hit a brick wall and crashed again. With Napoli and Juventus being the next two games Milan had no time to lick their wounds. They needed to find that fight that they showed in the second half away to Palermo, and they needed to find it fast. 

The fans arrived at the Stadio San Paolo to face Napoli full of fear. The general consensus was that Milan were about to be beaten, and it wasn't going to be pretty. Surprisingly, this was not the case. They held Napoli to a 2-2 draw and attention swiftly turned to the following week. All eyes would turn to the San Siro as champions Juventus were coming to town. Juventus had recently had their remarkable forty-nine game unbeaten run ended by Internazionale. Could AC Milan do what their neighbours had done a few weeks previously? Could they overturn the stubborn Old Lady? Against all odds, Milan not only avoided defeat, but beat the defending champions 1-0 through a Robinho penalty. 

Since the win against Juventus, Milan have won two consecutive games against Catania and Torino respectively. Two months ago it would have been hard to see any glimpse of a positive sign for Milan, now with a few wins under their belt things are starting to look a little bit better. It is now possible to look at Milan and see that it is not all doom and gloom for the club.

In Stephan El Shaarawy, Antonio Nocerino and Riccardo Montolivo Milan have found a new core and spine to the starting eleven. They appear to be finding their feet in their new roles in the squad and the recent upturn in results reflects that.

The squad as a whole appear to have gotten over the shock of losing the big characters and names in the summer and are now beginning to look united for the first time. After some of the earlier defeats the players looked lost on the pitch. They looked like eleven individuals without the slightest sense of camaraderie. The players are now showing a real passion and will to fight for the cause. During the victory over Torino, Antonio Nocerino gifted Torino the opening goal. He then went on the score the goal that put Milan 2-1 ahead and his celebration oozed passion and showed a real desire to redeem himself for his earlier mistake. This type of attitude is infectious in a football club. The team looked united after the match as they celebrated the win passionately. 

They now look like a club who have a reliable core. They have a passionate battler in the shape of Nocerino. A cool, calm and collected ball playing midfielder in the Montolivo. Attacking flair with Robinho, and a new superstar in El Shaarawy. Even in the dark times of September and October there was always one, tiny flicker of light. Stephan El Shaarawy has been phenomenal for Milan thus far this season. Could he be the next big thing for The Rossoneri? Only time can tell but at the moment, this boy looks like he has a big, big future ahead of him. And seeing as he has an unusual friendship with Berlusconi, I can't see him being sold anytime soon so Milan may well have found themselves a new hero.

I have always had a love for AC Milan. It is a love that I cannot explain. So it's fair to say that it was hard for me to watch them lose game after game early on this year. I, along with many of you I'm sure, hope that this recent upturn in form will continue and The Rossoneri can go back to competing for the scudetto sooner rather than later. 

The Barclays Premier League Stand Out Stars So Far

With the Premier League at the tender age of nine gameweeks old, I have decided to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) with a brief piece of my thoughts on who has stood out for me at this early stage. I am not, however, going to discuss the blatantly obvious and predictable brilliance of the likes of Juan Mata, Robin Van Persie and Santi Cazorla, my reason being that anybody with an ounce of football knowledge will have expected nothing less from the likes of those players.

I am going to get the ball rolling by talking about Jermain Defoe. A man who seems to blow hot and cold as if he's living out Katy Perry's first hit single. I have never been able to understand how Defoe's ability can fluctuate so dramatically between seasons. One season he could be lethal, simply unstoppable. The next, the opposing defense would be happy to see his name on the team sheet. This season has started off well for Defoe. I think credit has to go to André Villas-Boas for this. He has clearly instilled confidence in the striker. He must have sat with Defoe and assured him that he is his number one striker, ahead of Emmanuel Adebayor. Being put ahead of Adebayor is bound to fill the Englishman with an abundance of self-confidence. Confidence for a striker is absolutely pivotal to his success. At times, confidence is more important than actual ability - just ask Fernando Torres. Defoe is visibly full of confidence and his form thus far is nothing short of fantastic. Having scored five goals in nine league games it looks as if he could play a major part in deciding whether or not Tottenham can table a serious Champions League bid this year. I think his form will directly correlate between Spurs' position come May.

Next I want to move onto a man not many people will have heard of before this season - Christian Benteke. A lot of people were surprised to see Aston Villa splash around £7 million on the young Belgian international, myself included. I did not know what to expect, and to a certain degree I still don't. He has scored four goals in eight appearances for Villa so far and is doing his best to keep Darren Bent off the scoresheet. On top of this, he has also played and scored for Belgium this season and certainly looks a talent. At the age of only twenty-one, he is definitely one to watch for this season and possibly for many seasons to come.

The next name I'm going to mention might surprise you a bit. This man has come under a lot of criticism since his arrival in England but I have found myself defending him over and over again. This man is Olivier Giroud. The new Arsenal striker was always going to be under the spotlight after the departure of one Robin Van Persie. Despite only having one league goal and assist to his name in nine appearances, I feel the Frenchman has started well. He is missing a lot of chances, yes, but at least he is getting those chances. Once he takes a couple of these chances the goals will begin to come thick and fast for Giroud, in my opinion. He is suffering from a major lack of confidence. When he goes through, I think that he is more worried about missing than he is confident about scoring. This problem will eradicate itself after he hits the net a few times. The form of a striker can change in the blink of an eye as we saw earlier with Jermain Defoe and I have full confidence that Giroud will bag double figures for Arsenal this year and will push on next season. He scored an impressive twenty-one goals in thirty-six league games for Montpellier last season, this is proof enough that he knows how to stick the ball in the back of the net.

Raheem Sterling's name feels like it has been spoken about for a long, long time. So often with young players you hear a lot of hype about them when they are in their mid-teens and with most of them, they never live up to the expectations. Things look different for the Liverpool youngster. Since Rafael Benítez snapped him up from Queens Park Rangers in 2010 I have been eagerly waiting to see whether or not the Jamaican born youngster was the real deal or not. I was skeptical, and with good reason to be. It is rare for a player to actually meet the expectations set by fans and media. It would appear that Sterling has answered my questions with a solid start to his career. He has been a bright spark in this below-par Liverpool team. He became the clubs second youngest ever goalscorer, only behind Michael Owen. His youthful exuberance has been a breath of fresh air to the Premier League. With the ball at his feet, he brings fans to the edges of their seats, he worries defenses and excites his teammates. I have thoroughly enjoyed watching this young man play this season, and long may it continue!

Finally, my fifth and final player. This man has been around for quite a while. He has been criticised time and time again, and justifiably so in some cases. This year he is silencing his critics. Theo Walcott is a strange type of player. For years he has said he wants to be played through the middle of Arsenal's attack, but has never shown that he has the required attributes to do so. This year is different, this year he is backing up his requests with outstanding performances. The days of waiting for years for an Emirates goal are over for Walcott. Expect to see his name on the scoresheet more often. In all competitions this season, Walcott has played eleven times. In these eleven appearances, he has contributed with seven goals and four assists - not bad. It used to be the case that when he broke clear, you expected him to drag his shot wide or to panic and hit it straight at the 'keeper. Those days are a thing of the past. Walcott has grown, he has finally come of age and this is a worry for Premier League defenses. There is no doubt that Roy Hodgson will be keeping a keen eye on his development over the coming season and he may well have a big part to play come Brazil 2014.

Finances or Football? The FAI's big problem.

With a good proportion of the country calling for his head, it is safe to say that Giovanni Trapattoni is a man under an enormous amount of pressure. Who would've thought it when the snowy haired Italian touched down in Dublin to sign a lucrative deal that not even the FAI could afford to pay in full. How things have changed since the days when Irish people celebrated and cheered the name of their Italian messiah. They used to sing "He used to be Italian but he's Irish now", oh how things have changed. In this piece I will debate why Trapattoni should perhaps be moved on and who would be best suited to filling the position left vacant.

I want to set out from the offset that I am no reactionary football fan. I have the utmost respect for what Trapattoni has achieved in his career and acknowledge the fact that he is (or was) one of the greatest managers the game has seen.

In my opinion, however, he is a manager more suited to club football than international. He is stubborn, there's no doubt about it. A club manager can afford to be. He doesn't have the players required for his system? No problem. Sell a few, buy a few - problem solved. International managers do not have this luxury. In international management you must select a system based on the best players you have available to you. Unfortunately for the Republic of Ireland, and the likes of James McClean in particular, Trap has not been doing this for a few years now. He insists on playing with a negative, unattractive, and joyless style despite simply not having the players to suit it. He opts for a basic 4-4-2 or 4-4-1-1 with two holding midfielders who rarely do anything other than smash the ball 50 yards upfield and then watch Robbie Keane throw his arms around in protest.

Ireland  have a range of decent quality players who are good with the ball at their feet: James McClean, James McCarthy, Seamus Coleman, Keith Fahey, Jon Walters, Shane Long and so on. As I said; these players are good with the ball at their feet, on the ground. They are utterly useless when they are looking at balls flying thirty feet above their heads. I don't have a problem with playing defensively, being a Chelsea fan I couldn't possibly count the number of times I said "play to your strengths" during the European campaign last year. But Ireland's strengths, unlike two years ago, no longer lie in their defense.

On top of his blatant inability to adapt or evolve as a manager in the Winter of his managerial career, he claims the record of managing the joint worst team at any European Championships. He also led Ireland to their worst ever home defeat, albeit to a brilliant German side. Regardless of the quality of this German outfit, six goals is too much. Six goals is simply humiliating.

So the question I want to put forward is: if it didn't require so much money to sack him, would Trap still be employed? I highly doubt it. There have been some strange comments coming out of the FAI this week which don't exactly look encouraging for the Italian. Whispers coming out of the Association suggest that Trap could be gone come the end of the week. The FAI face a massive problem of what needs to be put first; finances or football?

To get rid of Trapattoni would burn a big hole in the pockets of the FAI, and those of you who know John Delaney will know that spending money is not something he is fond of, even if not spending will be detremental to the Irish game. It is rumoured that it would cost roughly 1.7 million euro. This is before you even take into consideration the cost of searching for and hiring a new man.

This high cost immediately rules out one candidate whose name has been passed around - Harry Redknapp. As much as I dislike him I must admit I do think he would do a brilliant job. But, his wages would be astronomical. And can you just imagine how distraught he would be when he found out he couldn't sign Jermaine Defoe and Peter Crouch? Now come on, why would you want to upset poor 'Arry like that.

The next man I'm going to talk about is, in my opinion, the best man for the job. You may disagree but at least give me a chance to explain myself. The man in question is Owen Coyle. Why? For a variety of reasons, some of which I will elaborate on:

Coyle is currently unnatached following his departure from Bolton Wanderers. This means the FAI would not have to fork out to pay off a potential release clause. At the age of forty-six, he is still relatively young for a manager. This gives him a distinct advantage over Trapattoni as, due to his age, he is more likely to be open to new ideas, formations and styles. This is something that I'm sure would please the majority of Irish fans. Throughout his brief management career thus far, Coyle has encouraged good football. His style is well suited to the players that would be at his disposal should he become the next manager of the Republic of Ireland. This new, exciting style would certainly help him to win over the fans immediately and with the qualification group Ireland have, it would be a relatively low risk environment in which he could begin to experiment with the squad and to implement his style. The only real stern tests facing the Irish are Germany and Sweden, only having to face the former one more time.

Another box ticked by Coyle is that he is capable of identifying and utilising young, up and coming talent. He displayed this trait when he brought Daniel Sturridge to Bolton on loan, a deal which worked out better than I'm sure even he had expected. He also displayed this attribute when he loaned little-known Arsenal youngster Rio Miyaichi, again to Bolton. Miyaichi also had a big impact on the team and Coyle deserves a lot of credit for not only being able to identify talent, but also being able to use it in such a way which is beneficial to the team and beneficial to the progression of the player himself.

It should also be noted that Coyle is brilliant when it comes to handling the more experienced, ageing members of his squads. With Burnley he used Graham Alexander to devastating effect despite him being in his late thirties at the time. He also brought in and gave new life to Nigel Reo-Coker whilst at Bolton. Reo-Coker, it's fair to say was not very good during his time at Aston Villa. When he moved to Bolton, where he captained the team in the absence of Kevin Davies and although he wasn't brilliant, he did a good job considering he came in on a free. The Ireland squad is packed with ageing, underwhelming players. If Coyle could manage them in a similar fashion to Reo-Coker, it would only lead to good things for the Irish.

Owen Coyle is also good at knowing when it is time for a player to move on. He showed this with the likes of Johan Elmander and Joey O'Brien. This would go down well in the Irish camp. Several players are past their sell by date now and really need to step aside to allow for the next generation to prosper. Robbie Keane is a prime example. Keane no longer offers anything unique to the national side and is only preventing Shane Long, Simon Cox, Jon Walters, Kevin Doyle and others from being presented with a real opportunity to lead the line for their nation.

I understand that Owen Coyle is by no means a better manager than Giovanni Trapattoni, I just feel he would certainly be more suited to this job than the Italian. You mustn't forget that since being named Ireland manager, Trap has never made any effort to attend matches in England or elsewhere in which Irish players would be playing. He openly admitted to not knowing Marc Wislon was even eligible for Ireland. He has repeatedly said his players are not good enough and he has not made any attempt to promote the game domestically here in Ireland (which to be fair is probably more down to the FAI.) Why not give Coyle an opportunity?

If this was an issue more prominent 6 months ago, I would have suggested Chris Hughton as a possible successor to Trapattoni, should he be sacked. However, he has recently signed for Norwich City and cannot see him leaving after such a short period of time at the helm at Carrow Road.

Another name who has predictably been thrown around in the press is Mick McCarthy. I would absolutely take McCarthy back should other options like Coyle and even Chris Hughton be unavailable for any reason. Don't laugh off this claim too hastily. McCarthy isn't actually a bad candidate.

In his previous stint as Ireland boss he narrowly missed out on qualification for the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 before leading Ireland to the World Cup in 2002. He then led Ireland to progress from the group stages ahead of Cameroon and less impressively Saudi Arabia, not losing a single game and holding the German's to a draw (who went on to be runners up.) Not exactly an easy task. Not only did he avoid defeat in the groups, but even in the knockout rounds. It took a penalty shootout for Spain to overcome the boys in green and if it weren't for an Ian Harte missed penalty and an open goal missed by Kevin Kilbane things might have been very different.

McCarthy has always fared reasonably well with below average teams. He took over at Sunderland at a time when they were destined for relegation and had to months to try to save a sinking ship. It was a near impossible task. He almost took them straight back up, missing out only down to a penalty shoot out. He didn't waste any more time, the following year Sunderland regained their Premier League status as Champions. Achieving an impressive 94 points from their 46 games.

His time and Wolverhampton Wanderers will be remembered for perhaps the wrong reasons. It is worth remembering that it was seen by most educated football fans to be an abysmal decision by the Wolves board to sack McCarthy. Wolves ended up going down and I'm not saying he would have guaranteed them safety, but, he knows how to do it. It should also be noted that he became the first Wolves manager in thirty years to maintain the club's top flight status for two successive seasons.

I completely understand that at the time of writing, Giovanni Trapattoni is still the manager of the Republic of Ireland national team and he may well see out the remainder of his two year deal. Lets just hope that whether it be under Trap, Coyle, McCarthy or whoever else, that this Ireland squad can start to improve and improve fast.

The Barclays Premier League: Over-Hyped or Justifiably Praised?

I can guarantee that every single one of you will have heard at least once that the Barclays Premier League is 'The best league in the world.' Whether or not you agree with this statement is entirely up to yourself. I, personally, do not subscribe to this belief whatsoever. I do not feel it is possible to label one league as definitively being the standalone best. This view, that the Premier League is the best is, in my opinion, one of extreme arrogance. Throughout this piece, I will make comparisons between the Premier League and the other major top divisions of European football. Depending on how it goes, I may even touch on South America.

The Premier League is an undeniably fantastic league. Before I get into this I want to clarify that I do love the league for what it is and obviously agree that it is one of the finest divisions our sport has to offer. Don't get me wrong, it certainly is up there as one of the best, but to say it's the best is a step too far. In what category is it superior to other leagues? Entertainment? Unpredictability? Value for money? Quality of football? Quality of teams or players? You can perhaps place a tick after entertainment but there is still a case to be argued against that. Unfortunately for the Premier League, all the other boxes have to be filled with a big red 'X'.

Firstly, surely the 'best league in the world' must have the best team in the world, right? The Premier League cannot boast of this. I don't think it's too outrageous for me to say that not only the best team, but the two best teams in the world are both feathers in the hypothetical cap of Spain's La Liga: Real Madrid and Barcelona. Everybody has their own opinion as to which of the two is superior, but I feel it is widely accepted that these two are head and shoulders above the rest.  The Spanish top tier can also boast that it is home to unquestionably the two greatest players currently playing the game - Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. You can also throw in Andrés Iniesta and Xavi for good measure. As well as a prosperous present, La Liga can also claim to house the most successful club in the history of the European Cup - Real Madrid, who have won the trophy a phenomenal nine times.

The Premier League is also an extremely predictable league. For years the so called 'Big Four' were seemingly untouchable at the summit of English football with the exception of Liverpool who dropped out briefly to be temporarily replaced by Everton for a season. There have only ever been five winners of the league: Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Blackburn and Manchester City. Compare this to France's Ligue 1. This is a league which admittedly is inferior in quality to the English, and I am not suggesting that it is a better league, but it has had as many winners in the last five years as the Premier League has since it commenced. It is likely to become six winners in six years this season as PSG look to take the reigns and dominate French football. Since 2007, Lyon, Bordeaux, Marseille, Lille and Montpellier have all had there hands on the domestic league trophy. Since the Premier League began, Paris Saint-Germain, Nantes, Auxerre, Monaco and Lens have also claimed to be the French champions. What I'm trying to get across here is, in the amount of time that five teams have won the Premier League, twice as many teams have won Ligue 1. Making it a much more open, unpredictable, and therefore exciting league, it could be argued.

One major problem that I have with the Premier League is that there is a lot of utter rubbish in it. If you exclude a few teams: the Manchester clubs, Chelsea, Spurs, Arsenal, Liverpool, Everton, Newcastle and Swansea, the remainder consists of mainly atrocious footballing sides who are in no way enjoyable to watch. If each club in the Premier League were to play the teams in their respective positions in the other major leagues, I know who my money would be on for the majority - and it would not be the English representatives. Just look at one example that springs to mind - Villareal. The Yellow Submarine finished 18th in La Liga last year. Imagine a hypothetical situation in which Villareal at any stage of last season were to play against Bolton Wanderers. Who would you expect to win that game? No further comment.

As far as the quality of football is concerned, take away Arsenal, Tottenham and Swansea (and obviously a few others) the Premier League really hasn't got much else to offer. There is a clutter of teams with little or no technical ability such as Stoke City (apologies Matthew Etherington.) The likes of Serie A and La Liga have an abundance of technically gifted players within every club. It is a completely different game to that in England. A game based primarily on the ability of the teams and players with the ball at their feet, unlike the Premier League where the clichéd 'Sam Allardyce type team' can prosper. The game in these countries where it is based on technical attributes is a much better game in my opinion, and I, personally, find it much more appealing to watch.

Serie A receives a lot of undue criticism. I am not trying to claim that it is hands down superior to our beloved league, but I have to be honest and say I definitely enjoy it more. Perhaps this is because it doesn't break my heart on a regular basis, as I do not 'support' a team in it the way I do in England. This allows me to enjoy the league from a completely neutral perspective and perhaps if I could view the Premier League in a similar light I may not be as critical as I am. I realise that the Italian style of football is not everybody's figurative cup of tea, but it absolutely engrosses me on a weekly basis. That is, most likely because I am, in the words of Marcus Speller, a "tactical pervert." I love witnessing vigorous tactical battles between two of football's heavyweights. It fascinates me. It is, at times, like watching a game of chess with a ball thrown in just to add to the fun. Again, I completely see why this may not appeal to you, but I'm sure I'm not in isolation when I say that Serie A is the league that I most enjoy watching that I do not have any real emotional attachment to.

I didn't even mention South America thus far in this piece but the Argentinian and Brazilian leagues respectively are also brilliantly unpredictable. Many of you may think that Santos and Corinthians are the two best teams in Brazil. This is not true. Santos, including Neymar and Ganso currently lie 11th in Brazil's Serie A while South American Champions Corinthians are sitting in 9th. All that needs to be said about Argentina is that River Plate have been relegated in recent years. Yes, River Plate, the club that many football fans think fight head-to-head with Boca on a yearly basis to become Argentina's top club.

All I wanted to really get across in this piece was that you cannot simply define one league as being the greatest. The recent Sky Sports driven hype is without doubt the major force behind this widespread belief that the Premier League is without doubt the 'greatest league of any sport ever seen in the history of the universe', but just look into it a little more before you hop on their overwhelmingly large bandwagon. Don't be afraid to explore various leagues and to open your eyes and mind to what football has to offer beyond your preferred team's domestic league.

I beg you all, spread your knowledge. Sample leagues you have never experienced before. I did last year with South America and have since stayed up past 3 in the morning just to watch Boca or the Copa Libertadores online. Be adventurous, if you do and still think the Premier League is the league for you, fair enough, at least you tried. But please don't be another one of those lazy stereotypical 'Sky Sports football fans' who watch the Premier League with rose tinted spectacles and refuse to venture out of their comfort zone.

Explore the world of football, you will not regret it.

From Irish Journeyman to Asian Superstar: Éamon Zayed - Mr Hat-trick.

"Iran? You're not serious are you?!" This is how Irish-born Libyan international Éamon Zayed admits to have impulsively reacting when he first heard of the offer for him to join Iranian giants Persepolis. The striker had been without a club following the collapse of his club Sporting Fingal and was widely wanted by clubs not only in Ireland. In this piece I will look at how Éamon Zayed went from being a League Of Ireland journeyman to becoming a hero in the eyes of one of the supporters of Iran's biggest clubs.

It all started for the young Irishman at the age of 16 in the youth team of English and then Premier League side Leicester City. Unfortunately for Zayed, it never really worked out for him in England. After just less than two years with The Foxes he returned to Ireland because in his words he "had a few problems over there."

It's fair to say that Bray Wanderers were happy it didn't work for him across the water. He soon signed for the team just South of Dublin and his time there will not be forgotten quickly by the fans. Zayed went on to play over 100 league games for The Seagulls, bagging 54 goals in the process. His time at Bray was not uninterrupted, unfortunately for the supporters of The Wanderers. Whilst playing for Bray, he was loaned out on two occasions. The first time was in the middle of the 2004 season when English side Crewe Alexandra made the approach for the young striker. He never really impressed at Crewe, largely because he was never given any real opportunity to. During his time there he didn't manage to play a single league game. One season later, another loan move came along. This time it was Norwegian side, Aalesunds FK. His time here was not too different from his time at Crewe. However, he did manage to make one league appearance and unsurprisingly, didn't manage to find the net once.

It was not long before Bray lost him on a permanent basis. Mid-table mediocrity was all that was ever achievable with the seaside club so Zayed made the move North to Drogheda United. He really hit the ground running with the Boynesiders, scoring a goal on his debut for the club as they beat Dublin side St. Patrick's Athletic 2-1. His decision to join Drogheda was justified when they became Champions in 2007. Éamon Zayed finished the title winning season as the clubs top goalscorer. Other clubs were beginning to take note of the twenty-four-year-old. He only spent a total of three seasons with the Louth club. Making a total of 71 league appearances and scoring only 20 league goals in his time there.

Things began to fall apart for Drogheda only one year after getting their hands on the Premier Division trophy. At the end of the 2008 season, Drogs entered examinership. This came as a result of failing to pay a €500,000 loan to the Revenue Commssioners and a €10,000 rent payment to Bohemians Football Club for the use of their stadium - Dalymount Park, in the Champions League qualifiers. These financial problems inevitably lead to the departure of some of the clubs players, Zayed was one of these players.

He left cash-strapped Drogheda United to join new boys and financial powerhouses Sporting Fingal. This club was created by the Fingal County Council as part of a soccer development scheme.In 2009 Fingal began to build a team, including Zayed, that were worthy of finishing in the top half of the Premier Division while they played in the First Division. Fingal ended the 2009 season with promotion and as FAI Cup Champions, having come from behind to defeat Sligo Rovers 2-1 in the final with two goals in the last five minutes. After a good first season in the Premier Division, Sporting Fingal ceased to exist due to financial irregularities and Zayed was left clubless.

Libyan side Al Ahly (not to be confused with Egyptian giants) looked set to sign the forward. Unfortunately this transfer fell through following the introduction of a peculiar new rule which banned foreign-born Libyan nationals under the age of thirty. (Very strange, I know!)

The collapse of this deal allowed Derry City to swoop and snatch a bargain. Zayed only had one season with  The Candystripes, but it was definitely his best season as far as goalscoring is concerned. He finished the 2011 season with the Northern based club with 24 league goals in 36 league appearances. This total earned him the accolade of finishing as the leagues top goalscorer and being voted as The PFAI's Player of the year. The club also tasted silverwear in the form of the League Cup as well as a third placed finish in their first season back in the Premier Division.

After just one season with Derry, Zayed's career took an unexpected turn. He received an offer from Persepolis, an Iranian Pro League side to go and join them on a six month contract. After being noticed while playing for the Libyan national team, the Tehran based club showed interest in Zayed.

This is when his career exploded into life.

Following signing for Persepolis without a trial, there was a lot of weight on Zayed's shoulders to succeed from the get go. To say he exceeded expectations would be an understatement. For his second match Zayed was named as a substitute as Persepolis faces fierce rivals Esteghlal. To give you an idea of how significant this rivalry is: it is the biggest derby in Asian football. It has also been named as the 22nd biggest derby in world football so I think it's safe to say that it's a pretty big deal. Zayed had only played about 10 minutes as a late substitute previous to this match so he was still very much an unknown quantity to Iranian football fans. That was all about to change.

Picture the scene: Persepolis are down to ten men and are trailing 2-0 with less than ten minutes to go. Fans are flooding out of the stadium in anger, players and coaching staff alike are looking for inspiration from one source or another. New boy Éamon Zayed strips down to his kit and enters the game in search of a consolation goal at best. He later revealed that the last thing his manager said to him before sending him on was to "Go on and make an impact."

In the 82nd minutes, mere moments after coming on, as fans continue to leave the stadium, a long and low through ball is played beyond the Esteghlal backline. Zayed finds himself one-on-one just minutes into his Persepolis career. He remained composed and coolly finished past the Esteghlal and Iranian first choice 'keeper. Celebrations are minimal and Zayed runs straight back towards the halfway line gesturing to the crowd in an attempt to lift the atmosphere.

One minute later the ball finds itself out by the right hand touchline, about 25 yards away from the corner-flag. The ball is hopefully hit into the box where Zayed is lurking. He leaps upwards and heads home the equalizer. The fans go crazy. They are obviously delighted that they have just seen their team come from two behind to clinch a draw against their fiercest rivals. I'm sure at this point both teams would have gladly taken a point each.

Zayed had other ideas.

Esteghlal had a free-kick about 35 yards from goal, in the centre of the Persepolis half. At this stage every Persepolis fan was biting their nails, begging for the referee to blow his whistle for the last time. It came to nothing.

In the 92nd minute of the derby, Persepolis had the ball in the left corner of the Esteghlal half, surely they're just going to run the clock down and celebrate a point after this dramatic comeback? No. A hopeful ball was hit low into the box and it found the run of who other than Éamon Zayed. With his back to goal, he brilliantly turned the Esteghlal defender, leaving him dead on his feet, before coolly slotting home his third goal. The stadium erupted. Fans, coaching staff, and players alike lost their minds. Substitutes and members of staff began to run towards Zayed in jubilation, before realising they were halfway across the pitch and turning back to the dugout again. Fans leaped around the stands in disbelief. They must have thought they were dreaming. Players of Esteghlal and Persepolis too were left in awe on the pitch. One clip shows a Persepolis player walking around as if he has no idea what has just gone on. He could not have possibly wished for a more dramatic outcome to this game. When he walked onto that pitch, nobody knew who he was. When he walked off, he had just inscribed his name in the history books of Persepolis FC.

He later described it as a "Fairytale ending to the match." It certainly was. Éamon Zayed had gone from playing in front of anything between 1,000 - 4,000 at a League Of Ireland game to scoring a hat-trick in the biggest game in Asian football in front of 90,000 fans. It was the kind of things that dreams are made of. I'm sure he expected to wake up at any minute. The following morning he must have thought it was all just a dream. This performance did not go unnoticed on the global stage. Goal.com named him as their World Player of the Week.

Zayed said about that night:
"At the stadium the whole place went mad. I've never seen anything like it. On the bus players were coming up to me kissing me, hugging me, telling me that I didn't realise what I had just done."

When he got back to the hotel in which he was living for the duration of his 6 month contract, he received an unusual invitation:
"When I got back to the hotel there was a wedding on and the people wanted me to join them as a special guest. An old man offered me $100. He told me how grateful he was and that he wanted to give me a gift. And this being Iran, it wasn't the drink talking."

Zayed also mentioned in an interview with The Irish Times that people have come up to him in the streets of Tehran, offering to buy him dinner, as a gesture of their gratitude for that hat-trick.

Since then, the goals have not dried up. He has gone on to score two more hat-tricks for Persepolis. One coming in a 6-1 victory in the Asian Champions League, and one coming in a 4-3 defeat to Rah Ahan. His habit of scoring hat-tricks earned him the nickname - 'Mr Hat-trick' in Iran, one that I'm sure any striker would love to have.

He has since clinched a new contract for the 2012/13 season in Iran, and has gone on to describe his move to Persepolis as "One of the best decisions I have made football-wise."

Who knows what lies ahead for Éamon Zayed, one quarantee is that he will not be forgotten quickly by supporters of Persepolis, and is likely to be the cause of regular nightmares and sleepless nights for players and supporters of Esteghlal.