Everton miss the bite of James McCarthy, Louis van Gaal’s side could do with a player like Sadio Mané and Aston Villa look to be on their way out of the league
1) Mahrez, not Vardy, may be the player sought after by other clubs
It is difficult to explain, said Leicester’s manager, Claudio Ranieri, of the significance of Jamie Vardy’s 11 consecutive game scoring record and, though the Italian clearly intended only to praise his striker’s extraordinary feat, one gets the feeling that some of Ranieri’s fellow foreign managers might agree for different reasons. For all the speculation about Vardy being sold in the transfer window, especially if Leicester are already safe, it is not easy to see him scoring as regularly in teams which play in a different way and it would be something of a surprise were he to be the subject of a bid from any of the “big” clubs. A player who might, however, is Riyad Mahrez, who as Stuart James pointed out last week, according to one respected statistic-based website is second only to Barcelona’s Neymar in terms of value to his team across the European leagues. Were it not for Leo Ulloa’s feeble finish, the Algeria international winger, who came into the match with seven goals and six assists to his name, would have won the game for his side again on Saturday, and his trickery and control could make him a sought-after commodity in a month’s time.
2) Aston Villa look like a lost cause
It is now a moot point to consider that David Moyes was reportedly willing to take over from Tim Sherwood at Aston Villa but is Rémi Garde not even more of a risk than giving a manager with a proven Premier League track record control of one’s club? The new guy had to get winning straight away because history is a harsh opponent. Based on the average points gained by the team finishing 18th in the Premier League over the five years, 37 points will be required to finish one place above the relegation zone. Can Garde inspire Villa to gain 32 points from 24 games? That is ‘only’ 1.3 points a game: win, lose, draw for the rest of the season and Premier League salvation could be secure. Extrapolated over a whole campaign, that form brings 51 points; Villa have averaged below 41 since 2011. The last time they did better than that was in Martin O’Neill’s final season when 64 points left them three behind Manchester City. And the quality and effectiveness of Villa’s squad has lessened year on year. Villa now share the worst start to a season in Premier League history, with four other clubs. Lose at Southampton in their 15th league game on Saturday and Villa will have only Sunderland, from 10 years ago, for company. Mick McCarthy’s team took until Boxing Day to win their sixth point of the season. Even if Garde builds on the signs that he has a playing strategy in place, confidence is battered, too many new players have not yet gelled, the owner wants to sell and invests only a net average of £6m each season and Villa are seven points off the ‘safety’ of 17th place having already made their managerial gamble. Whichever way the numbers are cut, Villa are surely down.
3) Van Gaal should do his best to get his hands on Mané
A winter transfer window project for the title push of Manchester United should be Get Sadio Mané. The Southampton forward flies at defences fearlessly as he did against Manchester City’s on Saturday, his footwork a dazzle of trickery that includes the most vital ingredient: end product. It was his cutting cross that found Shane Long perfectly for the visitor’s sole goal in their 3-1 defeat. Last summer United made a bid for the 23-year-old. In January they should call again at the south coast club. Louis van Gaal continually bemoans his lack of a jet-heeled, world-class attacker. Mané might just be one of these if he continues to develop. If acquired, he would shake up Van Gaal’s sluggish United and terrify opposing rearguards. So to enhance United’s hopes of a 21st championship Mané is surely worth trying to buy
4) Everton miss the bite and intensity of McCarthy
The overwhelming majority of praise bestowed on Everton is directed at Ross Barkley, Romelu Lukaku and John Stones but Saturday’s loss of two points twice, as Roberto Martínez put it, offered a timely reminder of how important James McCarthy has become to their game plan. The midfielder came off midway through the second half with Everton in control and leading 2-0 due to injury and Tom Cleverley was brought on in his stead. While the former Manchester United player is neat and tidy, he does not offer the same bite and intensity as the man he replaced. What Everton needed at a time when Bournemouth were beginning to threaten frequently was someone with McCarthy’s insatiable work ethic and ability to break up play. Cleverley is too meek to do that and it was odd to see a player better equipped to complete such a task in Darron Gibson remaining on the bench.
5) Costa falls from favour but Mourinho is still reliant on him
It says much about the nosedive in Diego Costa’s form this season that José Mourinho deemed Eden Hazard, a player now without a Premier League goal in 17 games and 1,555 minutes, worthier of a central striking role than the Spain forward. Costa has been an awkward blend of the sluggish and the aggressive all season, a player apparently at war with the world and clearly frustrated at his own inability to recreate his startling personal form from the beginning of last season when he seemed so suited to this league and its fragile defences. Those days seem long gone. There have been seven club goals since January and revealing public displays of exasperation, from that outburst at half-time in Haifa to the petty flinging of his bib in the vague direction of the management at White Hart Lane, over the last week which have exposed him as a player unsettled. Mourinho again insisted there is no issue in his relationship with Costa but the striker’s body language on bench, touchline and even team bus – he sat there brooding for almost an hour post-match waiting for his team-mates to join him – suggested otherwise.
Bournemouth, who visit Stamford Bridge on Saturday, would normally be appealing opponents on whom to unleash Costa in the hope he can plunder much needed rewards against the division’s joint worst defence. But Mourinho will have Loïc Rémy and possibly even Radamel Falcao available by then. Does Costa deserve a swift return to the fold? Has he behaved in a manner which suggests he had, indeed, “watched the game with some attention” to ensure he now “knows what is needed from him”, as pinpointed by the manager post-match? Most of his “warm-up” near the corner flag appeared to consist of half-hearted stretches and picking grass from the sole of his boots. He was at least watching the match at the time. The problem is, even with Rémy and Falcao in the ranks, the manager is utterly reliant on Costa to lead the line. There is no viable competition. No like-for-like replacement worth his salt. Hazard is no long-term solution at centre-forward and Chelsea are unlikely to be able to lure a stellar performer to the club in January. If anything, they may find themselves competing in a market of stop-gaps and six-month deals – Emmanuel Adebayor, anyone? – which will hardly have the 27-year-old fretting over a lack of involvement. Instead Mourinho has some bridges to build at Cobham this week as he attempts to improve his player’s mood. Long-term, Chelsea may now privately accept Costa’s days are numbered. Short-term, they need him firing again – quick.
Striker
Diego Costa
- Appearances
- 11
- Goals
- 3
- Shots
- 23
- Shots on target
- 39%
- Offsides
- 13
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