Harry Kane should lead the line for England, Alan Pardew should focus on Palace’s slump, and West Ham need to tie down Manuel Lanzini
1) Kane has earned the right to lead line for England
Striker
Harry Kane
- Appearances
- 31
- Goals
- 21
- Shots
- 123
- Shots on target
- 46%
- Offsides
- 26
There was a period, not long ago, when Harry Kane had appeared jaded. Over at Upton Park earlier this month he had looked off the pace, his rhythm slightly disrupted and all that trademark razor-sharp anticipation in front of goal suddenly blunted, as Tottenham Hotspur slipped to a rare defeat. At the time, the worry was weariness to this team’s principal goal threat might scupper an entire title challenge. Those fears have probably now been allayed;Kane’s display against Bournemouth on Sunday saw to that. Some will point to the opponents as still relatively new to life at this level, suggesting Simon Francis and Steve Cook are hardly the most daunting of markers, and arguing this was no real gauge of the condition of either Spurs or their England forward ahead of the final push. Yet Eddie Howe’s impressive team have been one of the form sides of this calendar year, a tight and organised bunch who had not previously succumbed away from home since December, and a back-line and midfield who have made a habit of wrecking reputations.
Spurs and Kane simply did not let them play at White Hart Lane, swarming all over them from the outset and effectively ensuring the last 74 minutes of this match could be played at a stroll rather than a gallop. Kane led the line, linked up the play, stretched his opponents by running in behind, was strong in the air and revelled in his combinations with Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen at his back. He even mustered tackles in his own penalty area, even if it was his brace which drew the focus. A player who had started this term so slowly, with one goal in his first 13 club appearances, is ending it at a gallop. His league tally already matches the 21 from last year, and only four other Englishmen – Andy Cole, Les Ferdinand, Robbie Fowler and Alan Shearer – can cling to successive 20-goal hauls since the top flight was rebranded in the early 1990s. When the 22-year-old performs this capably, it seems unfeasible that he would not be leading the line when England trot out against Russia at the Stade Vélodrome in their opening fixture at Euro 2016, regardless of the state of Wayne Rooney’s fitness or form. Kane should be as pivotal to his country as he is to his club.
2) Pardew needs to focus his energies on arresting slump
It is some time since Alan Pardew verbally abused an opposition manager or physically assaulted an opposition player but that shortest of fuses is undoubtedly still there. It could be seen in the way Pardew reacted in the immediate aftermath of Liverpool’s 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace on 6 March and by the fact he dedicated a large portion of his programme notes for Saturday’s visit of Leicester City to the contentious penalty which earned the Merseysiders all three points. Two weeks have passed and he still cannot let it go, with Jamie Carragher getting criticised for “stating Christian Benteke was right to go down”. “Would Carragher have had the same opinion if Wilf[red] Zaha had gone down in the box in the 94th minute of a massive match at Anfield?” Pardew went on to ask. “I suspect not, but loyalties can blur opinion at times.” Carragher’s reaction on Twitter to those comments summed up the mood of many – “wow!” – and there is no escaping the sense that Palace’s poor form (Saturday’s 1-0 defeatmakes it 13 league games without a win for the London side) is getting to their manager, which could also be seen in his sharp response to an innocuous question from a journalist at the weekend. Asked if the international break offers his players a welcome change from their difficult environment at club level, he snapped back: “There’s nothing wrong with our environment.” Pardew may well have a point regarding Liverpool’s penalty and being tough with journalists is certainly no crime (many would actively encourage it), but the 54-year-old would be better served focusing his energies on halting Palace’s continuing slide towards the bottom three. They looked woefully short of confidence and creativity against Leicester and the manager must rectify that before a daunting set of league fixtures, beginning with a visit to West Ham on 2 April. Pardew has often been criticised for lacking a plan when his teams are struggling. For Palace’s sake he needs to prove the doubters wrong and staying calm and focused will only help in that regard
.
3) Manchester City must urgently pick things up for Guardiola
Pep Guardiola did not sign on to Sheikh Mansour’s Manchester City project to manage in the Europa League. Sunday’s dismal 1-0 loss to Manchester United in the 171st derby allowed their cross-town rivals to close to a point, in sixth place – the margin City also now hold over West Ham United, who are fifth. After the international break City have eight games remaining to ensure they finish in a Champions League berth. These are Bournemouth (away), West Bromwich Albion (home), Chelsea (away), Newcastle United (away), Stoke City (home), Arsenal (home) and Swansea City (away). This appears a tricky run-in, especially given this term’s helter-skelter Premier League so far. The challenge for City and Manuel Pellegrini, who is making way for Guardiola in the close season, is to ensure they are not playing in the continent’s second-tier competition next season. The mission might be codenamed ‘Save Pep’ as it will also prevent this prince of coaches from the ignominy of slumming it in the Europa League.
4) It is surely too late for both Allardyce and Benítez to stay up
Sam Allardyce bought well in January and his purchases might just be enough to save Sunderland from the Championship. While Jan Kirchhoff – the 6ft 5in former Bayern Munich reserve centre-half whom Allardyce has turned into a quasi-sweeper, patrolling the zone between midfield and defence – was man of the match, Wahbi Khazri also impressed in a left-sided wide role, as did Lamine Koné at centre-half. Those three players largely made the difference in a game at Newcastle that the Wearsiders might well have won. The eventual draw leaves Rafael Benítez’s side in broadly the same boat as Allardyce’s – retaining genuine, if touch-and-go, survival hopes. Should they stay up, it is clear not a single player will enter St James’ Park that Benítez does not want. He and Allardyce may have their differences but, on the subject of recruitment, they are united. What a shame they were not both in charge of Newcastle and Sunderland – and enjoying their current autonomy – from the start of the season. If that had happened, what might the Premier League table look like now? As it stands, one north-east team looks near certain to be relegated. Surely expecting Crystal Palace’s remarkable collapse to continue is too much for the region to hope for?
5) Rodriguez adds to Southampton’s attacking options
While Graziano Pellè and Sadio Mané were confirming their returns to form at St Mary’s and Shane Long was his usual pesky self, Jay Rodriguez scored a hat-trick for Southampton’s U21s in a 5-0 victory over their Liverpool counterparts. Rodriguez has not played for the first team since injuring his foot in October but is expected to be available for action after the international break, when Leicester City travel to St Mary’s. Southampton’s forwards seem to be regaining their goal touch in time for a late push for a top four finish, and the league leaders will probably need to produce the best performance yet of their run-in if they are to extend their winning sequence. So far the feats of Claudio Ranieri’s team have distracted attention from the fact that Ronald Koeman continues to work shrewdly at Southampton.
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário