How the Miners can overcome the Messiahs

By: Martyn | September 11th, 2009

Two of the Championship’s more fancied sides square up to one another on Sunday at the Cardiff City Stadium as the Bluebirds do battle with the Magpies. The occasion will be marked by a new-ish City shirt too as capitalism has finally bequeathed us a sponsor. Like every other club in existence, it’s a betting site that nobody has heard of.

Having watched the everton mints keenly this season, I’ve noted what I believe to be their strengths and weaknesses. Nevertheless, their squad seems to metamorphosize by the week with injuries and transfer outgoings depleting it. The club may have done more window shopping than the less committed Muslim is doing outside the Riyadh branch of McDonald’s at present, but only Danny Simpson has arrived (on loan). Bolstering the squad therefore in terms of quantity has been the cast of Byker Grove. Seriously, the bench they sent out against Leicester City was so young that I imagine Geoff was lurking nearby in order to keep a watchful eye over the rowdy young pups. Or poops, as the accent would have it. Such change means that I’m unsure as to how Chris Hughton will set his team up, so I may have to shy away from a full focus on countering a certain system. It’ll be one of two mind, a straight 4-4-2 or a 4-4-1-1. But anyway, from herein I present you with my findings: how we can exploit the Magpies or them us, what to look out for on set-pieces, and the threats the personnel likely to figure (hopefully not too prominently) offer. Whatever the result, it promises to be an absorbing encounter played in a pulsating atmosphere.

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CENTRAL DEFENCE
One thing was abundantly plain for the duration of last season and the start of this – Newcastle United just could not defend set-pieces. Paradoxically and ironically, they pose as big a threat as nits on a ZZ Top tour in the opposition’s penalty area when they’ve won the foul in dangerous territory; but when it comes to clearing their own lines markers lose their sparring partners, second balls are second to and panic permeates. Chris Hughton has sought to remedy this, dropping the absolutely hopeless Coloccini for the Mag’s last home against Leicester City and playing on-loan Manchester United full-back in the centre with Steven Taylor instead. This has injected a bit of pace and tactical discipline to the heart of Ant, Tony & Dec’s team: Coloccini with his fiery South American stubbornness had a tendency to either try and play the ball out of defence in dangerous situations or shield it against a far stronger foe before flopping in the vain hope of the type of free-kick that are never forthcoming from English officials. Chris Hughton, a coach of some repute, will have more control over what Danny does to alleviate pressure, so expect more balls sensibly hoofed into touch.

As for the hasty, rash and beleaguered Argentine, he even seems to have dropped behind Tamas Kadar in the pecking order so unfortunately this is one less option for City’s on-fire attacking triumvirate to expose. The Hungarian may be more inexperienced than Simpson, but he is 5 inches taller so would make life a shade more difficult for Jay Bothroyd.

WHAT CITY CAN DO
Whittingham simply must start. The likes of Chris Brunt have had a field day this season teasing Newcastle’s backline with telling crosses, so our most technically gifted player must be able to play some of his sumptuous balls into the area. Correspondingly, the CB-pairing of S Taylor and Simpson simply could not cope with the physical threat Leicester City’s Steve Howard posed so here’s hoping Jay Bothroyd is fit to throw that proverbial spanner in the works. If we can set the agenda from the off and monopolise possession, this will force the Geordie defence deeper until there’s more room between them and Steve Harper in the Cairo rush-hour traffic. This multiplies the likelihood of Bothroyd bossing the enemy’s territory and causing uncertainty in the black and white ranks. With Danny Simpson a rookie in the position, some persistent Chopra or Chris Burke pressing as high up the pitch as possible could contrive to make the former Blackburn Rovers man nervous and sloppy.

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FULL-BACKS
Wing-backs is the more fashionable/appropriate term these days, and that term certainly applies to Jose Enrique. The Spaniard loves nothing more than a foray forward with his usual left-flank lung-bursting partner, Jonas. With the Argentine thankfully absent through injury, the trudging and docile Geremi will instead likely feature. This will therefore require Enrique to offer a bit more dynamism than he already does down that left side and as a result, he may commit less of his most common faux pas – useless long punts and skew-whiff passes. Another weakness of the former-Villareal man is his ability to let tricky wingers come inside on their stronger foot. On the other width of the touchline will be set-piece maestro Ryan Taylor. Taylor adheres more to the term full-back than wing-back, though that’s not to say that he doesn’t pop up on the wing in opposition territory every now and again. Newcastle United seem to use their right side more cautiously than the left. Even when Damien Duff was still at the club, it was all very conservative with lots of tracking and next-to-no flair but this proved to be highly effective against West Bromwich Albion on opening day as the potent Robert Koren was rendered anonymous.

WHAT CITY CAN DO
If Whittingham is stationed to tackle Enrique, then coming infield as he always does so well will prove relatively stress-free. Should Chopra’s movement be as dizzying and cunning as it normally is, Whittingham pulling the Spaniard out of position could free up space for Chopra to exploit and Whitts to display his magical array of threading in that trequartista role. If Chopra then chooses to shoot or square, the likes of Whittingham and Ledley will hopefully have done their expert ghosting into the box trick in order to sweep in a goal. All this is possible simply as a result of one LB’s incompetence at thwarting a winger’s preferred destination. As for Ryan Taylor, there’s a paucity of pace that Chris Burke and Tony Capaldi can maybe capitalise on. The same applies to the sprightly Adam Matthews too – when Enrique launches, Matthews can surge upfield in order to launch a City counter-attack in the space deserted. If Newcastle play a 4-4-2 with their preferred strike partnership of Ameobi and Carroll, then expect lots of long balls from the full-backs. Although this is unlikely to be the starting front pairing seeing as injuries are hampering the duo, if both were to make recoveries and feature then we must shut these long-balls down because working off these is what Newcastle’s strike force do best.

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MIDFIELD
With Jonas unavailable (Good Thing:- he doesn’t stop working or running at you. Bad Thing:- His delivery is atrocious), Damien Duff now at Fulham, and their two centre-forwards suffering with injuries, Newcastle are unlikely to use wingers as such so expect a compact midfield with the focus on ~~either working the ball or~~ lumping the evolved pig’s bladder at passing seagulls. Alan Smith now acts as the midfield general: tactically astute and ferocious in the role, Smith is Gennaro Gattuso reincarnated (age has rendered the Rino of old moribund sadly) and his presence is about as welcome as excess nostril hair. The problem however is not with the piano-carrier, but the pianist. Or to use a more coherent analogy, Smith recovers the wand for the wizard, but the wizard is conspicuous only by his absence.

Newcastle, if playing a 4-4-1-1 are likely to field a CM of Smith and Guthrie, with distribution-expert Geremi at LM and Barton at RM. Kevin Nolan would then be the midfielder in the Steve Gerrard-esque support-striker role. If they play 4-5-1 Nolan would be dragged back into a CM trio with Smith flanking he and Guthrie. Nolan seems to be a mere shadow of the player that was on the verge of an England call-up whilst at Bolton. His productivity in terms of goals, assists and creativity has reduced in volume rather alarmingly. However, the Liverpudlian clearly has talent and if he is left free to respond to a knock-down on the edge of the box then expect him to rattle away a ferocious shot or cleverly weave his way inside our occasionally dopey central defence. Likewise, he can also provide the killer lay-offs to team-mates: admire the way he feeds Danny Guthrie for this screamer.

Perhaps the most impressive of Newcastle United’s midfielders in terms of ability however is Joey Barton. Although destined to be the pantomime villain of the piece as ever, Barton is a true all-round midfielder who can dictate the pace and rhythm of a game, retrieve the ball, link and build play, and provide urgency when needs be. If Guthrie were instead to function on the right side of midfield and Barton in the centre, then Gavin Rae and Joe Ledley will have their hands full. I’m drooling at the prospect of an ensuing Barton/Ledley battle.

WHAT CITY CAN DO
As crude, simple and idealistic as it may be, both crowd and boys in blue can play their part by winding the likes of Smith and Barton up. The screw-loose Scouser’s reputation precedes him, while the last time Alan Smith played against Cardiff City he got a red card! Michael Chopra is adept at being a verbal jouster, and not only can he get under their skin mentally but physically too by imposing himself in Smith’s zone and freeing some space for the likes of Gavin Rae to work with.

Joe Ledley must be careful not to over-exert himself. While the likes of Nolan, Smith, Butt and live-ashtray user Barton sat on their asses Wednesday night and spoke of what might have been as they watched England demolish Croatia, the wrist-injured Ledley spent a draining 90 minutes chasing shadows as Wales were undone by an expansive, fluid and vibrant Russian side. The centre of midfield is particularly crucial to both City and United, and we must be careful to strike the correct balance between attack and defence. Nolan will drift between the set banks and must be watched intently without us getting too sucked in and leaving too huge a gap between the bread banks of our 4-4-2 sandwich.

Smith and Barton will likely dominate and mop up everything that comes through the centre so City must stick to what they do best and line their cannons out wide and in between the midfield and defence zone. With conservative choices likely to be opted for by Hughton on the wide sides of midfield, Whittingham must look to come inside and play as often as possible. The hard-working Chris Burke may have to neglect some of his attacking duties in order to help bolt the gate when Newcastle retain possession. Swansea-born Adam Matthews will come up against his most daunting and accomplished counterpart yet in the shape of ex-Real Madrid and Chelsea man Geremi. An opponent of this calibre could overwhelm the talented youngster so he must not let the occasion (and blood) rush to his head. Matthews will have the beating of Geremi for pace, and the added bonus that although the Cameroonian stalwart is versatile, left-wing is not his position. Therefore, Matthews must be prepared to deal with the overlapping Jose Enrique whilst staying as near to the centre-backs as is sensibly doable.

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FORWARDS
Watching the barcodes play at the Hawthorns on match-day uno, it was apparent that their strike partnership of Andy Carroll and Shola Ameobi had about as much movement as a monk’s penis. Okay, maybe that isn’t fully fair. Carroll does move a lot – just not where you want him to! Too often he would be out of position, hounding centre-forwards in front of Steve Harper or drifting out to the wing when with his superb aerial ability you need him in the box. Although you can’t fault the commitment, such unnecessary tracking is more detrimental to the side as when the ball is carried up towards the opposition’s goal Carroll isn’t there to receive. That particular front duo may not be pacy, but the physical threat and incisiveness they provide is more than most Championship defenders can handle.

However, MOTM against Leicester City was another striker, one Nile Ranger. 6 foot 2 and equally lethal in the air, Ranger’s ability to hold the ball up so comfortably at such a young age is spookier than the nightwatchman’s rounds at the Egyptian pyramids. City fans (and many Newcastle ones too) could be entirely thrown by Newcastle’s front pairing were Hughton to opt for nestling in the youngster generating the biggest buzz around the club alongside Ranger. The inclusion of Haris Vuckic would complement a 4-4-1-1 perfectly and provide the spark and penetration Newcastle will need to unleash the bolt from City’s gate. Goals for league opposition at the new stadium have been rarer than a Clint Eastwood smile, and the equally towering but technically marvellous Vuckic would aid Newcastle’s cause and add a healthy impetus to the side. Indeed, if Hughton is willing to be bold and tactically astute, he could adopt a continental formation favoured and used by many lower-ranked Serie A sides (and Milan under Ancelotti) to great effect: the 4-3-2-1, the Christmas tree.

Harper
R Taylor S Taylor Simpson Enrique
Smith Barton Geremi
Nolan Vuckic
Ranger

Although this choice would be straight out of left-wing for the rookie caretaker manager, it could be potentially devastating to Cardiff City if instilled with the right application and discipline.

WHAT CITY CAN DO
The striking personnel employed by Newcastle United will affect those who wear the colour of a once exiled Smarty (seeing as Smarties is the plural?) just as much as it does the side from the North-East. If the cumbersome Carroll and Ameobi feature, then the defence can push on as United’s extreme lack of pace and workmanlike midfield shouldn’t pose much of a counter-attacking threat. Yet were Hughton to throw in the unknown and faster quantities that are Vuckic and Ranger (or even Lua-Lua) then the anti-Usain Bolt CBs at our disposal will need to adjust their positions accordingly. Either way, every forward at Newcastle United is not vertically challenged, so restricting the long balls from full-back and the crosses of Geremi and Ryan Taylor will help nullify the threat the marksmen offer.
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SET-PIECES
Geremi and Ryan Taylor are blessed with tremendous ability from set-pieces. Therefore, silly fouls in and around the area must be kept to a minimum as the FKs of both are accurate more often than not. As for CKs, the Magpies also carry a definite threat with Kevin Nolan, Alan Smith, Steven Taylor and the strikers all very good in the air. Right-footed Ryan Taylor tends to send in inswingers to the near post and this may actually benefit us so long as every City player summoned back to defend marks their man or zone. Against Bristol Rovers in the last round of the Carling Cup, Cardiff were hopeless at dealing with the deep corners that the Pirates threw in. We seem to mark and set-up camp wholly at the near post and as a result Rovers could use their man ghosting in at the far end to send the ball back across and into the *mixer*.

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For all my detailed research and painstaking analysis, football is ultimately a game of fluke and chance and this is what prevents it from ever getting boring. Structures, systems and game-plans could all be abandoned after mere seconds if a shot ricochets in off part-time dying Bond-villain henchman portrayer Steven Taylor’s lardy buttocks.