End of Season round-ups

It's getting close to that time with the end of the Premiership season drawing to it's conclusion this weekend, and the Championship nearly wrapped up after the playoff final and the Champions League final clash in bit over a week.

The review shows will be full of the goals at Old Trafford when United destroyed Arsenal, and then again for when City destroyed United. It will show the tears of the Wolves and Blackburn fans relegated and the t-shirts of support for Suarez (before his 8 game ban), it will have a montage of Fabio Capello's tenure as England boss, and some of Roy Hodgson's head banging antics in the WBA dugout.

Bloggers, journo's and twitterers will all have their say on the season so here is mine...

This is a great time to look back on my good, bad and the ugly for the season.

The good - Papisse Demba Cisse, 'The Cockney Mafia' the 'Toon'.

He's been a revelation for a wonderful Newcastle side this year, with his 9 million pound move in January showing that smart and effective deals can be done in the window and guys that score in German can score in England. His second goal at Stamford Bridge a couple of weeks ago during Newcastle's brilliant 2 nil win has my vote for goal of the season, with Peter Crouch's stunning chest and volley against Manchester City a close second, and Luis Suarez's long distance blast against Norwich picking up the bronze. Cisse has scored remarkable goals since his move, bettering Alan Shearer's record for goals in his first 12 games, NOT an easy feat. Newcastle have been terrific for the majority of the season, and although I think Alan Pardew is a complete weapon, it's hard to argue with the job that he, and the Cockney Mafia have done at St. James, oops, I meant the Sports Direct Arena this season. Will it finish with Champions League football a year after being in the Championship? We will see.  Pardew has done a good job and is in the running for manager of the year, he's not my cup of tea however and I'm interested to see how he fares next season now other teams are aware of Newcastle and they will probably sell some players this summer.

Swansea have been sensational too, and I really enjoyed watching Paul Lambert's Norwich City.




The bad - Liverpool (and Arsenal)

Arsenal haven't been good, like Chelsea and Liverpool this season, when a lot was expected from them. A truly terrible start from them including the refund inducing performance that ended in a 8-2 hammering at Old Trafford where a pissed up Tony Adams would have offered more backbone than the players on show looked like it could end Arsene Wenger's time in charge of the Gunners. He survived and so did they, but without the goals of RVP they wouldn't be anywhere near the Champions League places, and it's only really down to his goals and the poor play of the other teams around them that they are in with a shout. Tottenham should have had 3rd spot, or 2nd sown up. Chelsea have had a mad season sacking AVB, bringing in Di Matteo, winning the FA cup final, losing 3rd, 4th, or even 5th in the league, by solely concentrating on the Champions League final, which they won't win. Arsenal, will be there or there abouts, because they do have the PFA player of the year and golden boot winner RVP (for now at least). Liverpool with that man would probably be where Arsenal are now. Instead they have a 35 million quid caveman who didn't score enough, a Urugyuan superstar who missed 9 games of the season through suspension at a crucial time and fires hot and cold, and a squad of piss-poor players. Everton may well finish above their city rivals this year for the first time in recent memory, fans will blame long cup runs, and bad luck in front of goal this season for not getting more points on the board. 30+ times the Reds have hit the woodwork at home this season, and missed more penalties than anyone else, but so what? You have to get the ball in the net and make your own luck. Dalglish's signings (Adam, Henderson, Downing, Carroll) haven't lived up to expectations or been anywhere near good enough all season. It's back to the drawing board for King Kenny as he finds his team as close to the relegation zone as they are to the Champions league spots. Not good enough for a moneyball inspired team of highly paid players. Without the cup runs (and in truth, even with them) this has been a bad, bad, bad season for Liverpool.




The Ugly - Blackburn Rovers, Steve Kean & Venky's.

Steve Kean has held 'dignity' in the face of torrents of abuse throughout the whole season. Venky's the Indian poultry firm stood firm with him even after protests, sit in's and planes flying over head with messages of distaste for the Scotsman. The Venky's group bought the team with promises of Champions League football within 4 years, they achieved relegation and the hate of most of the home support within 2. The rumour mill had them signing players like Ronaldinho, but instead the agent put in charge of the clubs transfer dealings signed his own son (who is yet to play a first team game), and put one of the men he represents, Steve Kean, in the hot seat. Steve Kean should step down, there is nothing heroic in what he's doing, pledging to stay on. It's been an awful season, he's been an awful appointment and sadly for Blackburn, if it'doesn't make changes, will turn into a truly awful club. All this after good old Jack Walker had helped win them the Premiership in 1995 (still one of only 4 teams - soon to be 5, to do so). Steve Kean said "We're absolutely devastated. The players are numb inside the dressing room" after the turgid defeat to Wigan (who have been excellent over the past 8 games in comparison to Blackburn's hideous form). Kean seems to be 'numb' himself to the reality that surrounds him. As long as he is at the helm and Venky's run the club, there will be a poisonous atmosphere around the club. Kean looked like a drowning rat during Monday night's defeat and subsequent relegation, sadly for Blackburn he doesn't look like he's going to jump ship!
Wolves were crap, Bolton too.

The Carling Cup Final

They say it's not important, but 'they' aren't in the final, and regardless of its reputation the Carling Cup is a very useful competition for many reasons.  Yes, the big boys don't play full strength squads and see it as an opportunity to blood some youngsters, and yes there is rarely capacity crowds to watch the games, and yes no one gets too excited about it. But, regardless of all this, and the negativity that surrounds the Carling (previously the Football League, Milk,  Littlewoods Challenge, Rumbelows, Coca-Cola, and Worthington) Cup, this is still the first 'real' (Community Shield excluded) competition of the season to be won and both Liverpool and Cardiff will give it their all this Sunday to walk up the Wembley steps to collect the shiny trophy.

You don't have to go back far to see what makes this competition less fashionable than it's big brother, the FA Cup. Last seasons final can be seen as a bit of a poison chalice.  The winners, Birmingham, were promptly on a downward spiral after picking up the trophy.  A few months after their big day out at Wembley they were relegated from the Premier League, lost their manager to bitter cross-city rivals Aston Villa, set about selling the majority of their cup final squad (I think it's up to 14 now that have jumped ship) and saw their owner, Carson Yeung, facing charges of money laundering in Hong Kong. All-in-all not a great turn of fortunes for the boys in blue.  Giving the Birmingham support the option before the game of losing that day and staying in the Premiership, keeping McCleish and the squad together you may have got a lot of takers, but in hindsight, winning that day and the events that followed probably weren't such a bad thing.


-The Carling Cup was a highlight of the season and a great day out for all the Birmingham supporters, something that many clubs fans never get to experience.  There is still a magic to walking up Wembley way alongside the opposition support on the big day, and the walk out and down the same route after as winners is a special feeling.
-Alex McCleish is perhaps the most negative manager in the Premiership and the brand of football he instilled is not missed.  Chis Hughton, his replacement has done a remarkable job on domestic and European fronts this season with a completely different set of players and no where near the financial backing McCleish enjoyed.  Their recent FA Cup draw at Stamford Bridge shows how far they've come this season under his unassuming guidance.
-Getting rid of the over-payed playing staff who couldn't cut it in the Premiership has meant consolidating their finances and giving a chance to younger players and academy graduates, something most clubs are afraid to do in their charge for bounce back promotions.
-If they lost they might have done an 'Arsenal'


'Arsenal'.
Last seasons Carling Cup runners-up saw the wheels fall off almost immediately after Obfemi Martins' winner a year ago.  The Gooners downfall trajectory and subsequent crisis is frightening, and enough to make teams not want to make it to Wembley in case history repeats itself and flushes their teams prospects down the gary (Glitter).  It's hard to put a positive spin on what has happened to Arsene Wenger and his club since that defeat, and Kenny Dalglish and his men will be keen not to follow suit.


Talking of suits, it will be the first time Liverpool will appear at 'new' Wembley having last rolled up at the old stadium in those famous cream Armani suits in 1996.  The faux pas wasn't just the Spice boys choice of clobber that day as Eric Cantona volleyed home the winner to send the Reds home empty handed.  Dalglish, and the clubs new owners will be eager to get their first piece of silverware, in this - his first full season back in charge.


Liverpool have been a cup team in the past decade. 2001 saw them win a treble of trophies and the Worthington Cup the first of the three, followed by the FA Cup and then the UEFA Cup (and even later and not part of the treble - The European Super Cup).  Gerard Houiller created a winning mentality in that squad that fell well short in pushing for the title, but gave the club some real success in the form of 3 trophies in one season.  In 2003 Houiller led his men to victory in the League cup again, followed by his successor Rafa Benitez winning the Champions League (and European Super Cup again) in 2005 and then the clubs most recent bit of silverware the FA Cup in 2006.  There was a winning culture at the club.  All of those finals took place across the border at the Millennium stadium in the Welsh capital, Cardiff.  A shame for many fans then, that the cup is now back in London.  Liverpool enjoyed great support and a good record at the Millennium and playing against the home town team this year would have made for an electric atmosphere and pulsating game.  The cup sponsors will be hoping for a same kind of verve in London, but the traveling fans from both sides would have probably chosen the Millennium given the option for location more than anything!


This competition is important for Liverpool.  It's important for them to get back amongst the trophies and bring back that culture of success and confidence that can once more breed through the club and go a long way to speeding up the rebuilding process.  If they do win this cup, then it may give them that extra push and bolt of drive they need to push on in the FA Cup and pip their rivals to 4th place, and the final Champions League spot in the Premiership.  On the flip-side defeat here could take the wind out of their sails and see them tumble down the league and crash out the FA cup as confidence and clout is sucked out of them as it was Arsenal.


Cardiff and their Scottish manager (see previous blog 'McCarthy and the rise of the Scots' for more on our northern bredin and their power in the managerial game) Malky Mckay will have something to say about Liverpool's success on the day.  Although heavy underdogs they will look to last seasons final for inspiration.  For where it fills Liverpool with fear of suffering an defeat, the Bluebirds will be hoping to emulate Birmingham's upset even if it does mean some hard times down the road.  The Welshmen have less to lose.


They can't take trophies away from you, or the memories of a victorious Wembley final, even if it is only the Carling Cup.  

'Carlsberg don't do trophies, but if they did, it wouldn't be the League Cup...'
Either way, a win is a win, and all that, and a win is what Liverpool need.