Blues News Digest
It’s been a few days since the last one, so I thought I’d do one now.
Alex has voiced his enjoyment at being at Blues and apparently the talks regarding a new contract are going well. Birmingham.net
Again another story regarding Alex’s new contract, but also that it is very likely that we will have Joe Hart again next season. IC Birmingham.
According to IMScouting.com, we are after a striker called Itay Shechter. No, I haven’t heard of him either – but it seems like he has a pretty decent scoring record.
Jack Buckland has played for England U17s. Official Site.
The ticket details for our visit to Portsmouth in the 6th Round have been announced. Official Site.
According to the Daily Mail, Roman Pavlyuchenko has issued a “come and get me” plea.
We did a couple of articles today. One about Wayne Rooney and one about the Wolves fine.
The PL Issue Wolves a Suspended Fine
I see the Wolverhampton Wanderers have been hit with a suspended £25,000 fine for fielding a weakened side against Manchester United. Now while at the time I thought Mick McCarthy was mad to do that, Wolves had just had a good result against Spurs, and they just MIGHT have got something against United – the thing is what is going on here? So why would they fine Wolves? What are the rules?
The Premier League rules relating to this subject are:
E 20 In every League Match each participating Club shall field a full strength team.
B 13 In all matters and transactions relating to the League each Club shall behave towards each other Club and the League with the utmost good faith.
It seems cut and dried then, Wolves deserve their fine – let’s move on, however it isn’t that simple.
The top four have played weakened sides in a variety of games to protect themselves for the likes of the Champions League. Any fines dished out? No. Why? Well because of the talent that they have at the clubs. With the greatest respect to Wolves, or in fact virtually any other side in the Premier League outside of the top four or five – it would be obvious that they have fielded a reserve side. It would be less so for the other sides, and therefore they won’t ever get fined for this.
This isn’t a knock at the top four, it should be up to clubs if they want to play their reserves for whatever reason, I think they should be entitled to.
With hindsight, McCarthy should have left three or four of his first team in to make it look less obvious! 
Mind you, Wolves did beat Burnley the following game, and if those three points mean that they stay up – then a £25,000 suspended sentence will be worth it!
Kev
Credit Crunch in Football
Portsmouth. It’s their big day today. The hearing is at 11.30. Apparently talks broke down last night, and Pompey made a cash offer to HMRC this morning. However HMRC have refused that, they want most of the 7 million that’s owed.
The club face liquidation, where they will cease to exist today or more likely administration to give them longer to find a buyer. The problem with that of course is they will get a 9 point deduction which will relegate them making finding a buyer more difficult as Newcastle found.
This is the tip of the iceberg. Other clubs are also in difficulty, including Cardiff and Southend. Other clubs have also been talked about in the press.
It must be a horrible time for the fans of these clubs, I can remember when the Blues nearly went under and not knowing if we would continue. But the thing is, football is it’s own worse enemy.
The cash that has been pumped into the sport has caused clubs to plan and buy around possible income, speculate to accumulate approach. Portsmouth bought big the season they stayed up and we went down, clearly on wages that they couldn’t maintain.
Something has to be done or football will implode. The wages are too high for a start. Players at the top level earn the sort of money that would run hospitals and schools and possibly small countries!
I heard on the radio this morning that Manchester United’s debts are huge, the Glaziers have ensured that the debts are secured against the club rather than themselves. The advantage that United have that virtually all clubs don’t have is their brand.
Chelsea and more recently Manchester City have been heavily invested in by rich overseas people, I’d hate to imagine what the wages are at those two clubs. If either of the owners of those clubs walked away, they would probably go under because they wouldn’t find other rich people to take over.
I really hope our new owners don’t over stretch themselves to buy success, the one thing our previous board did seem to get right – was they knew how to balance the books.
Sorry that this is a ramble, it is really a collection of thoughts around a problem that I believe will only get worse unless someone makes a huge decision such as capping wages.
What are your thoughts on it?
Post Chelsea: where do we go from here?
Nat, one of our forum regulars, has written this article post Wednesday!
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Looking back, I can still barely believe it. Birmingham City going fifteen games unbeaten whilst in the top-flight, a team that less than a year ago huffed and puffed like the Big Bad Wolf in getting out of the Championship. A team at that point that did well to string fifteen passes together, never mind results. It has to be written down to be believed, draws in the league at home to United, Citeh and Chelsea, and then more draws in the league at Anfield and Goodison. Smash and grab raids at Wigan and Stoke, and to top it all, a place in the FA Cup fifth round for the first time in four years, as a result of our first win at Goodison since Ken was born.
But it’s over. We barely even had time to raise the white flag before Malouda bagged the first. Lampard effectively ended the contest and our unbeaten streak before half-time. You can try and point to different reasons for the collapse but I think the reason for our comprehensive defeat is the same reason Chelsea are top of the league. We were playing against a top quality side, who would blow away most teams if they play to anywhere near their best.
It gives us a right bump to earth though. I think even the most optimistic Bluenose realises that, deep down, the European tour we sing about remains nothing more than a pipeline dream in terms of qualifying via the Premier League. Wednesday served as a reminder that we are still a bazillion light-years from regularly being able to go toe-to-toe with the elite of the elite. Finishing in a comfortable mid-table position would still count as a great season for us, anywhere higher than that and Alex McLeish gets the keys to the city.
Of course, I am discounting our Cup run. A juicy (and VERY winnable) tie at Derby leaves us, not within touching distance, but relatively close to Wembley. We’re only two games from the Semi-final and what would be my first visit to our National Stadium. If (and it’s a huge IF) we could even get to the Semi-final, or dare I dream, the Final, it would probably top off what is turning into an incredible season, the pride I’d feel watching Blues at Wembley for the first time would surpass seeing us play twice at the Millenium Stadium, what a great end to a fantastic season it would be. Still, we’ve got to get past Derby first. I once saw us lose a Fifth-round tie against a second-tier Sunderland when we we’re in the top-half of the Premier League under Steve Bruce, so I’m taking nothing for granted.
To get anywhere quickly though, there was a clear need for reinforcements. Our backline is well covered, and the two (in my opinion) shrewd signings of Michel from Sporting Gee-hon and Craig Gardner from the Sty gives us a boost in the middle. But as everyone knows, we need strikers. It’s not as if Chucho and Cameron are particularly bad players, they’ve done relatively well together, but behind them we have Kevin Phillips (I’d be quite surprised to see him start another game for Blues), Gary O’Connor (I’d be very surprised to see him start another game for Blues) and, returning from a glorious loan spell at ‘Boro, Marcus Bent (I would be in two minds as whether to leave a match if I ever saw him play for Blues again).
Quite simply, we need an extra option. At the time of writing, a deal to bring Aruna Dindane to Blues is apparently all but agreed for £4million. I’m not particularly enamoured with the prospect of him coming in, especially at the price. He just seems to be all tricks but no delivery, ala Quincy perhaps. But I suppose we could do worst than him for back up. The more exciting prospect is the on-off deal to bring Roman Pavlyuchenko to Blues. The lad has strength, height, skill and an eye for goal, four things that when rolled into one make him a class act. Colin Tattum says the deal could be on between us and Spurs, and the lad wants to come, which would be great. I genuinely seem him as a cornerstone of turning Blues from also-rans into genuine challengers in the top half of the League.
Still even if we don’t nab him, I won’t be too perturbed. We’re in a League position which means we aren’t desperate for points. We aren’t in a need to sign whoever we can get. We’re comfortable. Our pre-season objective has pretty much been achieved already, we can pick and choose who we sign. If the right player comes along at a reasonable price, then sign him. But if that player is unavailable then not to worry, there will be more available in the Summer and beyond.
Portsmouth and West Ham in the past few months have shown us the consequences of spending money willy-nilly. They are in a total mess right now. We need to maintain that our house remains in order, whilst still having the ambition to progress continually. And then there’s the fact that mad signings could upset the applecart in the dressing room. The players we have, just by looking at our do or die performances recently, have a strong bond and a fluency that comes from playing with each other week-in week-out. Why upset that now? Bring in players who could provide alternatives to the players we have if need be, but only bring in ingredients that would garnish the recipe, not alter it.
Still I’m looking too far ahead, as Big ‘Eck would preach, take things one step at a time. We’ve got two big home games coming up. Spurs at home tomorrow will be tricky, but aren‘t an insurmountable challenge. They play good football under Twitch, and are pretty much impregnable at White Hart Lane, but for me never seem to be the same grizzly monster outside their own cage. Our last home defeat came towards the end of September, and who’s going to whole heartedly bet against us tomorrow?
Then next week the Dingles come to town. A tough game in a different regard. Whereas Spurs offer a multitude of talent, Wolves are probably the most untalented footballing team I’ve seen in the Premier League this season, with the possible exception of Blackburn. But Mick McCarthy seems to have rallied them to the point where they have half a chance of survival. They don’t score many goals, and aren’t totally competent in their own penalty box, but Wolves always give 110% every game. In a local derby where they will be kicking and scrapping for every point they can muster in what for them, in my opinion, will be a desperate battle for survival for the, they present themselves as tough opponents.
Two tough games, but both winnable. Two wins and six points would mean we are sitting thirty-nine points at the start of February. And then we’re laughing, right?
Keep Right On (hopefully to Wembley!)
Home is Where the Hart Is
Here is an article by Dale.
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Charles Joseph John “Joe” Hart has most certainly arrived. After securing his services on a season long loan, Birmingham City has prospered from the money machine in Manchester. Man City have arguably the best goal keeper in the premier league in Shay Given and could afford to let their young second keeper go out and gain some valuable first team experience. Since arriving at the blues, Joe Hart has shown outstanding ability to deny some of the league’s elite. A regular run of games for the young former England U21 goal keeper has given him stability and confidence, something which Man City could not.
At 6 foot 3, Hart is one of the most agile keepers in the league and his shot stopping ability is next to none. Upon joining blues, there was debate over whether Maik Taylor would be left out to pave the way for the fresh faced Hart but very few could predict the way he has exploded on the scene at St Andrews. In the most recent games, Joe Hart has been nothing short of outstanding. Stoke and Chelsea both were frustrated by the inform keeper as Hart’s heroics earned blues another valuable 4 points. Hart has another element to his game that very few young keepers can emulate. He has one hell of a gob. The back four are constantly assured by their keeper with a series of bellows and roars. It is an element to his game that many young players lack the confidence to do which only cements the thoughts that he is a very confident player.
Since making his first professional debut at 15 years young, Joe Hart has been catching the eye of premier league scouts. Everton, Chelsea and Arsenal were said to be keeping tabs on the young keeper but it was only when he joined Man City was the premier league properly introduced to Joe Hart. With 50 Man City caps to his name, he was allowed to join Tranmere Rovers and Blackpool on loan but it has been his short opening spout for Blues that has really captured the pundit’s attention. Such attention that has linked him with a place in the England squad for their quest for World Cup Glory in South Africa. Currently there are very few English keepers who have shown the consistency that Hart has. Week after week he pulls off saves that look certain to nestle in the back of the net and with this kind of form he looks certain to join the three lions this summer.
As for blues, McLeish has tested the water with Man City but was given a resounding “No” as to signing Joe Hart in the January transfer window. No doubt when his loan expires McLeish would love to make Hart a permanent player at St Andrews but the decision lies with his employers in Manchester. That’s not to say Hart has no say in the matter. He has been pretty vocal in expressing his enjoyment at Blues which is encouraging to hear and the more he performs well and enjoys the best spell of form in his career then it bodes well for a summer signing.
Dale Moon
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