He's taking us down, he's taking us dow-ow-own....or is he? The Tigers took on Stoke in a game billed as "must not lose" for Phil Brown. In fact, some Sunday papers suggested that he'll be sacked next week regardless of the result. The result was a good one, thanks to a much improved performance and, finally, a slice of luck. The absence of the suspended Geovanni was tempered by the long awaited (and desperately needed) home debut of Jimmy Bullard. He finally started a game in a City shirt and completed the full 90 minutes.
The Gaffer
Brown made a host of changes, using Geo's absence to select an orthodox 4-4-2 formation and call upon some of the players he trusts. Mendy replaced McShane at right back, Garcia played right midfield, Bullard started alongside Olofinjana and surprisingly Altidore was paired with Craig Fagan up front. The system was the right one. Though I'd rather have seen Ghilas partner Altidore, Brown's selection was justified as Fagan harassed Stoke all afternoon. Each of his substitutions worked out well too, as Barmby gave us quality on the right hand side, JVoH popped in the winning goal and Boateng helped defend the lead through stoppage time.
The Defence
A fine defensive performance in the first half was ruined by a horrendously sloppy goal. Mendy failed to head a long ball allowing Etherington to run in behind and smash the ball past Duke. We'd been comfortable otherwise. Beattie and Fulller barely had a kick between them and we dealt easily with Delap's long throws. Bullard coming short and picking up the ball solved the problems with aimless distribution and we looked a solid unit. Even through the second half, we were pretty comfortable but had two major scares. The first came through Etherington on their left. Lord knows how he got into the position, it started with our throw near their penalty area and throw poor passing, a lack of anticipation from Mendy and then two poor clearances, Etherington ended up on the edge of our box and crossed dangerously across the 6 yard box. Anthony Gardner could only turn the ball goalwards as he tried to intercept but the ball ricocheted off Duke's rib cage and rolled just wide of the post. It was a major let-off and the game turned on that incident. At one each, Beattie delivered a terrific free-kick that Shawcross headed onto the bar with Duke nowhere.
Duke had a decent game but showed his strengths and weaknesses. Trying to kick a back pass, he could only fire the ball straight at Fuller and was relieved to see it fly over the bar. He saved Stoke's only decent shot in the first half but pushed the ball straight out when he should've kept hold of it. On the flip side, his short distribution was excellent again and he did well coming out to catch or punch Stoke's balls into the box. Mendy is so frustrating. When he's on the ball, he's got great quality, he carried it well, he opened them up when he came inside and supported well down the right. The problem comes when he doesn't have the ball because he just doesn't have a footballing brain. He doesn't track where his man is going, he doesn't make runs into space and he misjudged the ball in the air to disastrous effect. We did look much better as an attacking unit for having him in the side though. Dawson got forward much better than he has for months. It's perhaps due to him having more confidence in Gardner and Zayatte behind him, or due to our new found ability to keep the ball in midfield, or perhaps a bit of both. He still didn't deliver anything but he did get into decent positions. He tackled solidly too. Gardner and Zayatte continued where they left off last week, winning most things in and around our box and carrying the ball confidently.
The Middle
The midfield and the team as a whole were boosted by the first glimpse of Jimmy Bullard at the KC Stadium. He did everything we’ve all known he would since the day he signed. He simply dominated possession of the ball, easily amassing more touches than anyone on either side. He dropped off and picked up the ball off the goalkeeper or defenders and carried it forward, playing passes and getting himself into a position to get it back and then move it on again. It’s the game at it’s simplest and most beautiful but something that no other member of our squad is able to do. Not every pass was perfect and not every decision was the right one but for the most part, he played superbly. Despite looking shattered late on, he still had it in him to force the winning goal with a ferocious effort from distance. His willingness to get shots in was another refreshing addition. He almost had more efforts on his own than we’d managed as a team in the previous 3 games. His first effort was a howler, prompting cries of “What a waste of money” from the comedians in the away end. His next effort was a howitzer that rolled just wide of the post. His last strike was a crucial one.
Bullard was paired with Olofinjana, a combination that grew an understanding as the game went on. Oily struggled to make his mark in the first half. He did a good job of getting into the box but like last week, turned down opportunities to get shots in. In the second half, from nowhere, he picked up a pass in from Hunt, turned two players and curled an absolute beauty into the top corner. To this point, he hasn’t really ever looked like scoring and actually looks scared to have a go. Hopefully this will kick-start his City career. Hunt did OK on the left but doesn’t really look like the player he threatened to be earlier in the season. He’s not carrying the ball with any real threat and his touch lets him down. He did delivery some decent balls; in particular one superb cross that Garcia could only head straight at Sorenson. Garcia did the job he always does. He covered well on the right and got into some promising positions. He could’ve had a hat-trick in the first half. As well as the aforementioned header, he right got in on goal twice. The first time he chose to pass when he should’ve shot and the second, the defender was able to deflect his shot because he was too slow to pull the trigger. He worked hard though and thought he made some mistakes; he always makes up for them with sheer effort and persistence.
Barmby replaced Garcia in the second half and immediately gave us a boost. His desire is infectious and following his introduction, everyone just wanted it a little bit more. He did a good job of putting defenders under pressure, building momentum as we spent more and more time in their half. He also got Faye sent off, causing a ruckus after Faye refused to let him take a throw-in quickly (he was lucky to avoid action as he appeared to throw an arm at the defender) and then earning the Stoke skipper a second yellow after he lunged at him recklessly. When Stoke went down to 10, Barmby exploited the space time after time and kept us pressing forward. Our wide players and full-back’s all appeared more effective through finally having someone in the middle that could hold the ball and find them.
The Front line
Altidore and Ghilas had impressed again last week so I expected to see them paired this week. I was half right. PB chose to go with Fagan as Altidore’s partner and it proved to be a good decision. Altidore grew into the game. His touch let him down early and he showed some great American Football skills, ignoring the ball and grappling with defenders, he obviously thinks he’s an offensive tackle or something. He got into the game though and did a good job of holding the ball up and even got into some decent positions to get efforts on goal. He was unlucky to see a header drop just wide in the first half and didn’t quite catch a couple of strikes. He put in a good shift though. He should’ve won about 40 free-kicks in the first half as Faye grabbed him in a headlock every time the ball went up.
Fagan had a good game. He did a superb job of challenging for the ball in the air, either winning it or stopping Stoke heading it cleanly. Almost everything that went into him stuck and he showed some neat touches too. When he was wide, he caused them problems and delivered the ball well. The only missing was a goal threat, but his hard work created opportunities for others. JVoH made an appearance as late substitute. It was a sensible decision as Altidore had worked hard and you’d fancy Hesselink to threaten should we have a set piece of any kind. As it happened he scored the winner with a poachers finish, following up a Bullard shot to slot past the hapless goalkeeper.
The Future
The winner was no more than we deserved. We’d easily been the better team. You have to give Stoke, and particularly Tony Pulis, a lot of credit. They are crap but manage to pick up points quite easily despite their limitations. They are disciplined and threaten on the break. I think Pulis made a mistake today though, he left his classiest players, Lawrence and Tuncay on the bench, possibly expecting a war but instead, we played good football. I saw him moan about Faye’s red card but instead, he should be kissing the ref’s feet for not sending of Shawcross far earlier when, already booked, he pushed Stephen Hunt aggressively in the chest.
As for Phil Brown’s future, Adam Pearson told Radio 5 live that if we won, he’d definitely be in charge for the West Ham game. It would be a big U-turn if he was sacked now. I’m not disappointed with that. I thought we showed great spirit again today, along with much more quality. If the players have lost faith in Brown, they aren’t showing it. Last week, I couldn’t see how the hell we could stay up. Now, I see a little glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. However, that is going to be massively dependent on keeping Gardner and Bullard involved. The spine of our team is so strong, but yet so weak.
Fortunately for PB, the next two games are at home. Our home form is decent at the moment, 11 points from 18. Far better than the miserable 1 point we’ve got away. He and we must make the most of those two games. Especially as West Ham are lying 1 place below us.
Ratings: Duke 7, Mendy 6, Dawson 7, Gardner 8, Zayatte 8, Garcia 6 (Barmby 7), Hunt 6, Bullard 8, Olofinjana 7, Altidore 7 (JVoH), Fagan 8 (Boateng).