Irritating “expert” commentators: a reflection on Garry Birtles commentary during Wigan-Arsenal

Posted by JJ (Tony) in News, Other, Reflections and tagged with , , , ,

Do you ever get irritated by the “expert commentator” when you watch a televised football match? A particularly annoying tone of voice or an absurd level of incredulity and disbelief when a striker misses a chance. He will typically try to tell you that those things did not happen in his day. Some favour the top teams, others haven’t done their research or are just plain ignorant towards smaller sides like Wigan Athletic. Others still favour the clubs they used to play for. The theory is that they are good people to provide expert analyses, due to their experiences on the pitch during their playing careers. Their counterparts — the match narrators — are there because of their communication skills, their ability to reach out to mass audiences. They can grate on one too, particularly when glorifying the top teams and their players over all others — but I personally find them less irritating.

A few weeks ago I turned on my cable tv and found a Premier League match without any commentary. There was crowd noise, providing lots of atmosphere, but a technical glitch had done away with the official narration. What a refreshing 45 minutes of televised football. Unfortunately, after half time the commentary kicked back in and once again I found myself frustrated by the soundtrack. Ten minutes in, I turned the sound off and watched the rest of the match sans monotone monologue. While the first half with crowd noise was ideal, the second half on mute was not much fun. But the alternative of listening to the “expert” was definitely the worst of the options.

During last Saturday’s encounter with Arsenal, I found myself listening to Garry Birtles, the designated “expert” for the day. Now, Garry Birtles was a decent centre forward, who won the European cup twice with Nottingham Forest and won three caps for England. A good career to justify his “expert” status. Birtles was brutally frank about Wigan Athletic’s tactics against Arsenal. He criticized the lack of midfield tackling that led to Arsenal’s first goal, but reserved his most scathing comments for the lack of support lone forward Conor Sammon was receiving. At one stage in the first half he pointed out that Sammon was receiving the ball with not one of his own team within twenty yards of him. He continued to be flummoxed by this situation until he really blew in the 59th minute when Sammon was taken off and replaced by Franco Di Santo. “He (Sammon) was chasing his own flick-ons at times. When a system is just not working: change it!!” he remarked. He clearly had a lot of sympathy for Sammon. Later he was to state his disbelief that two substitutions had been made but the tactics remained the same. He advocated the need for a second central striker to be put in place.

I must admit that I almost muted the sound so I wouldn’t have to listen to him rant. You could picture the spit on the microphone. The fact I left him on was recognition, through my frustration, that he was absolutely right. The lone role of the Latics centre forward is something I commented on in my first article for this site. I have also advocated the need for more of steel in midfield. The reality of the Arsenal match is that we had little chance of getting back into the game after the errors that gifted them their first two goals. Martinez acknowledged as much after the match. Our players look desperately short of confidence. No matter what tactical system you adopt you cannot beat teams like Arsenal by giving away goals and lacking the self-belief to fight back. This was another capitulation to a big club — the statistics again making interesting reading. Wigan committed 8 fouls, while Arsenal gave away 12. In the matches against the big boys this year – Arsenal, Manchester City and Tottenham – Wigan have committed an average of 9 fouls per game. In the other 11 Premier League matches played so far Wigan have conceded 162 fouls, which makes for an average of 15 per game!

Let’s get back to the tactical situation. Our new system is a bit hard to fathom. I commend Roberto on playing with three centre halves. If Boyce and Alcaraz were to be two of those three on a regular basis it would surely help to shore up a leaky defence. Playing at wing back has given Ronnie Stam a new lease of life. It is his natural position. David Jones could have a bright future ahead of him as a left wing back. So far so good. But what about the midfield and the isolated centre forward? Prior to the change in the tactics we nominally had a centre forward and two wide players up front. However, one would expect that the addition of wing backs would change this arrangement. Two of the front three should theoretically be able to move narrower in support the centre forward, almost in the role of the old fashioned inside forward. However, last Saturday we continued to see Victor Moses operate primarily as a left winger with Jordi Gomez completely lost on the right. Diame and McCarthy were locked in primarily defensive midfield roles, rarely getting into the penalty box. The system needs to be fine-tuned so that when the ball does get into the opponents’ penalty box there are Wigan bodies there to latch on to it, not only that lone centre forward.

Listening to Garry Birtles on Saturday was painful. He was condescending and scathing in his commentary, occasionally ignorant. The problem is that he wasn’t wrong about most of his criticism. Let’s hope that the next time Birtles commentates on a Wigan match Roberto will have given him cause for praise.

Wigan Athletic 0 Arsenal 4: Deflating afternoon as Latics get a drubbing

Posted by Ned in Match Reports, News, Other and tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

From the moment the lineup for Arsenal’s midweek Carling Cup match against league leaders Manchester City was announced, things looked grim for Wigan in this fixture. Wenger rested just about all of his key players against the billionaire sky blues only to unleash them fresh against second-from-bottom Wigan. It was a statement of intent from Wenger, whose focus is clearly on the Premier League this season. DW Stadium has after all, proven a tricky place for the Gunners. Latics twice came from behind in spectacular fashion to deny Arsenal in the previous two fixtures, drawing 2-2 last year and winning thrillingly 3-2 the year before. Further back, Latics fans will fondly remember Paul Scharner giving the team their first win over a “big four” team in the Carling Cup.

Despite all this, Latics started very, very well, moving the ball quickly, pressuring high, with a spring in their step after a couple of back-to-back non-defeats. It all could have been so different if Jordi Gomez had found the net when, after excellent buildup play, a David Jones cross was tipped into his path. But it wasn’t to be, and moments later a completely unmarked Mikel Arteta swerved a shot past Ali Al-Habsi, only for Thomas Vermaelen to make it two within a minute, heading from a corner. And that was basically it.

Gervinho and Van Persie would pad the score but, save for an excellent effort from outside the box by Mo Diame that might’ve changed things, the game was over when the second goal went in. Latics fell apart in all senses of the word, and despite a couple rare attacks and a decent penalty shout, it was always more likely Arsenal would score a fifth than Latics mounting any sort of comeback.

The Good:

The first 20-25 minutes. Passing the ball crisply and confidently, relatively organized at the back, they weren’t just playing well “for Wigan” they looked a better team than Arsenal.

Ronnie Stam. The new system has allowed Ronnie to play his natural position as a wing-back. It’s like having a new signing. He was again involved with most of Latics good attacking play, and showed energy and desire throughout the match.

The Bad:

This writer had high hopes that the new tactical system with three centre halves would get the best out of Gary Caldwell. He did well against Sunderland. But his lack of pace is cruelly exposed every time we play a team in the top half of the table. He was really poor. You expect him to be beaten for pace by players like Gervinho and Walcott, but he was outjumped by Vermaelen for the crucial second goal as well. If you are going to have a slow centre half you would at least hope for aerial dominance. Steve Gohouri, wobbly all season, was also poor and lucky to stay on the pitch after clearly hauling Gervinho down in the box. Alcaraz’s welcome could not come sooner, ditto Emmerson Boyce.

Less bad, but increasingly worrying is the form of Ali Al-Habsi. His mistake last week against Sunderland was forgiven after he kept Latics in the game with a string of sensational reflex saves. Conditions at the DW were extremely windy on Saturday, but he will have been disappointed with his positioning on Arteta’s opening goal. He only made one mistake that led to a goal last season (Man City, away). He’s already made three this term (QPR, Sunderland, Arsenal).

A Neutral Would Say

Wigan started brightly but were comprehensively beaten by an Arsenal team clicking on all levels.

Player Ratings

Al Al-Habsi: 6 —  Arteta’s goal was the result — in equal measures — of poor marking, windy conditions, and Ali’s positioning.

Steve Gohouri: 5 — Poor. Gave away a clear penalty (clear to all but the referee) and might have been sent off for it. Generally shaky.

Gary Caldwell: 4 — Struggles against the top players. No acceleration. Hasn’t been the same since the hip operation.

Maynor Figueroa: 6 — The best of the defenders.

Ronnie Stam: 7.5 — Involved in the best of the Latics attacking play, showed desire.

David Jones: 6 — Isn’t a natural wing-back but is doing alright there. His cross in the first half should have resulted in a goal. Either Sammon, or Jordi Gomez from the resulting rebound, could have scored.

Mo Diame: 7 — The only midfielder who is consistently comfortable against top quality opposition. He can tackle, dribble and pass the ball. Had a good strike in the second half that went just wide.

James McCarthy: 5.5 — Worked hard as always but didn’t contribute much from an attacking perspective. It was Mikel Arteta’s midfield on Saturday.

Jordi Gomez: 6 — Might have scored when the game was in the balance. Don’t remember much else of his contribution.

Victor Moses: 6 — Bright in Latics opening 20 minutes, but was kept fairly quiet.

Conor Sammon: 6 — Also useful in first 20 minutes, then chased shadows for the rest of the afternoon.

Subs:

Franco Di Santo: 6 — Did Ok.

Albert Crusat: 7 — Lively.

James McArthur: 6 — Game was over by the time he came on.

The reserve team: An anachronism? What is the role of the second team?

Posted by JJ (Tony) in News, Other, Reflections and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , ,

Harry is his team’s outstanding striker. He can hit the ball with either foot with rocket-like precision. He can leap like a salmon and gets great headers. He has scored more goals than anyone has ever done for his club. He is an icon. But he is going through a bad spell. No goals for five games now and he is getting tense. The manager ‘drops’ him and it makes the headlines. Harry has to play for the reserves. A blow to his dignity. He is angry, but being a true professional, he accepts his fate. His first game for them is not a success: no goals and a poor performance. He scores a hat trick in his second game. But he is not recalled to the first team. Harry goes to see the manager. The manager tells him that he needs to do more: only then he will look at bringing him back to the first team. Harry responds and gets back into the first team. He continues on his successful career path.

Those times have gone. Let’s be fair: Harry’s career at the club could well have been waning, but in those days the reserve team was a different beast. They played on the same day as the first team. If you couldn’t make it to your first team’s away game you could go and watch the reserves. You could see the young players playing with some seasoned pros. Both benefited: the first team players could regain confidence, reap havoc against less experienced opposition. The younger players in the reserve team could learn exponentially through playing with the seasoned pros. A bygone era!

These days the reserve leagues serve a different function. The basic concept is that of the ‘development squad’ where young players are seemingly groomed for the Premier League. In reality, the players who play in the Premier Reserve League are from all over the world. Few of them make the jump to the Premier League. Worryingly fewer of them are English. The top clubs find ways to recruit the best teenagers worldwide, although their ethics can leave a sour taste in the mouth.

Take Wigan Athletic as an example. Twenty-one players have represented them — either started or come off the bench — in the 13 Premier League matches played this year. The development squad/reserve team have played 12 matches. 8 of those games were played without any of the aforementioned ‘first teamers’. James McArthur has played two games for the WADs; six others have played one game each. However, four of those were in one match against Everton Reserves. Hendry Thomas is still nominally a member of the first team squad, but he has not appeared on the pitch in the Premier League this year. In that time he has played one game for the WADs. An even more extreme case is that of Mike Pollitt who has not stepped on the pitch for either the first team or the WADs. How can these players possibly be match fit when they are playing no competitive football?

Wigan Athletic are not alone in having players who have been playing for neither their first or second strings up to this point. Reserve teams are regarded primarily as development squads for younger players, rather than as a means of keeping highly paid, underused senior professionals match fit. Wigan are one of the few Premier League clubs to have largely English players in their development squad. The club’s official site lists 17 ‘young professionals’ of whom only the young Spaniards, Roman Golobart and Abian Serrano, come from outside the UK. Looking at Manchester United’s reserve team lineup in the recent match against our WADs, they are largely foreign players. Last year was the best reserve team Wigan Athletic has ever had. They came close to winning the Premier Reserve League North, amid fierce competition, with a team largely composed of players born within a 40 mile radius of Wigan. Two of the outstanding performers – Callum McMananan and Roman Golobart – have since been sent off on loan in an attempt to give them a taste of first team football. However, seasoned development squad veterans such as Daniel Redmond and Jordan Mustoe must wonder whether they will ever make the jump to Premier League football. A make or break season for them.

Hats off to Roberto Martinez, Graham Barrow and the coaching staff for revitalizing our youth system, bringing in so many capable young professionals. Those young pros who are fortunate enough to play in the Premier Reserve League are meeting good quality opposition. Unfortunately this cannot be said of our third string team who play in the Football League Youth Alliance against the likes of Macclesfield and Tranmere. They have won only 2 of their 12 matches this season. Although it can be argued that results are not the key factor with this age range there is clearly a lot of work to be done by the new coach John Doolan. A pity that we cannot compete with the bigger clubs at this level.

My overriding concern is that of first team squad players who simply do not play enough competitive football to be match-fit. Our strikers cannot score goals but Rodallega and Sammon have each played only one game for the reserves and Di Santo has played none. Putting senior players into the reserve team helps them move toward match sharpness while their presence benefits the younger members of the squad. A balance needs to be achieved, between using the reserve team to maintain levels of match fitness among the senior squad, and providing a nurturing environment for the young pros. There is an imbalance in this respect not only at Wigan ,but at most clubs in the Premier League. It needs to be addressed.

Sunderland 1 Wigan Athletic 2: Luck turns

Posted by Ned in Match Reports, News, Other and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

We asked — we begged and pleaded — for a bit of luck, and finally we have received. After weeks upon weeks of dodgy refereeing, ill-timed injuries, missed penalties, Victor Moses’ personal mission to hit the post but not score, we finally caught a break, and won a match we probably did not deserve to win.

Quite how you can play as well as Latics did away at Newcastle and lose, and then beat Sunderland as we did on Sunday, I’m not sure. Roberto tends to praise his team’s performance when results go the wrong way. This was the opposite, a decidedly average if resolute performance, but an excellent result.

Latics started like wounded dogs — after the morale crushing finale against Blackburn a week prior — and it was no surprise when Sebastian Larsson put Sunderland ahead after 8 minutes. Ali Al-Habsi made a rare mistake, spilling from Nicklas Bendtner’s optimistic shot. The Omani keeper’s subsequent block fell to the Swede, a bright light in Sunderland’s poor campaign, and he made no mistake.

Al-Habsi redeemed himself with a string of excellent saves before Ronnie Stam skied Latics’ first half-chance at the other end. It was the Dutchman’s dangerous cross minutes later, however, that led to the equaliser. Conor Sammon was a foot from connecting inside the penalty area, but when he missed Victor Moses was ready at the far post, collecting, spinning into the box and drawing a foul from Sunderland’s goalscorer. Larsson might have been better off letting the winger shoot, but having witnessed Ben Watson’s two most recent penalty efforts perhaps felt it was a gamble worth taking. Referee Kevin Friend pointed to the spot and the Latics faithful breathed a sigh of relief as Jordi Gomez confidently sent the keeper the wrong way to equalize just before the half.

The second half was not one for the neutral, but Latics did look determined. Gary Caldwell in particular made a few key defensive clearances while Al-Habsi continued to make up for his early error. Conor Sammon broke excitingly from midfield before running out of ideas and being muscled off the ball in one of Latics’ more exciting counter attacks. Sunderland did some aerial bombarding, but it was all predictable and Latics three centre-halves coped with what was thrown at them. It all looked set for a bore draw when James McArthur, on for Ronnie Stam, pounced on a poor touch from Wes Brown, squaring for Franco Di Santo to tap in. A costly defensive mistake from the Sunderland perspective, a reward for a determined performance for the Latics.

Roberto spoke after the match about the healthy competition for places in the squad — the goal was a result of the energy and drive of his two substitutes. It does say a lot that Ben Watson and Hugo Rodallega — two of the first names on the teamsheet a month ago, and last season — were unused substitutes. Martinez stuck to his new tactical system, with Ronnie Stam and David Jones operating as wing-backs on the right and left respectively, ahead of the trio of centre-backs Caldwell, Figueroa and Gohouri. It will be interesting to see if he keeps faith in the system that has yielded four points from six (which would have been six from six but for the inexplicable refereeing against Blackburn) once Antolin Alcaraz and Emmerson Boyce return from suspension and injury respectively. A central three of Caldwell, Alcaraz and Boyce, or Caldwell, Alcaraz and Figueroa, is promising. And I wouldn’t mind seeing Patrick Van Aanholt, so dangerous against Everton in an attacking left-back role, at left wing-back.

The midfield was quiet, although James McCarthy did win the battle against Lee Cattermole, who was substituted for David Vaughn after an ineffectual match. The young Irishman/Scot is solid enough in that deep role, but you do feel his true potential lies in a more attacking role. Mohammed Diame was subdued, while Jordi Gomez is much less effective when the team does not control possession (although thank goodness he was there to take the penalty — who else could be trusted with it?). Victor Moses won the penalty and broke with pace on a few occasions, but didn’t have a shot on target that I can remember. Conor Sammon toiled but didn’t have much to work with.

But three points are three points. What happened here is what typically happens the other way around. Steve Bruce was naive to leave one man at the back as Sunderland chased three points, and our substitutes pounced. Wigan has now leapfrogged Blackburn in the table, and despite the terrifying fixture list ahead there is cause for optimism. Five goals in two matches, a new tactical system that seems to be working, and a squad in which every player is replaceable. Arsenal play Manchester City in the Carling Cup tonight, and with Wenger talking up the need to rest Van Persie and Walcott, opportunity knocks.

A Neutral Would Say

Wigan were a bit lucky to emerge with three points, but Sunderland were sloppy.

Player Ratings

Al Al-Habsi: 7.5 —  Made a mistake on the goal but kept Latics in the game with some excellent saves.

Steve Gohouri: 6 — Doesn’t inspire confidence, but wasn’t at fault for the goal and otherwise kept Sunderland out.

Gary Caldwell: 6.5 — The best of the three central defenders, he made some important clearances. We may see his best football with this new system.

Maynor Figueroa: 6 — Out of position in the first half when Phil Bardsley skied what should have been Sunderland’s second goal. But kept them out thereafter.

Ronnie Stam: 6.5 — Didn’t get forward enough, but was involved in Latics’ best attacking forays when he did.

David Jones: 5.5 — A bit quiet in this one.

Mo Diame: 6 — Also quiet. Shouldn’t be taking free-kicks.

James McCarthy: 6 — Lots of tackling and simple passing, won the battle with Cattermole. But gave the ball away once or twice a bit dangerously.

Jordi Gomez: 6 — Will thrive in this system when Latics dominate possession, but doesn’t have the pace to be effective when counter-attacking. Surprising that he wasn’t replaced by Crusat.

Victor Moses: 7 — Won the penalty, and caused problems with his dribbling as always. Probably earned Sunderland a collective 4 yellow cards.

Conor Sammon: 6 — Worked hard and made one barn-storming run from midfield, but lacks the dribbling and culture of Franco Di Santo. Still, his and Moses’ pace made the Sunderland defense work.

Subs:

James McArthur: 7 — Came on for Ronnie Stam, a defensive substitution when the match was crying out for a quicker option like Albert Crusat. But it was his sheer determination to win the loose ball from Wes Brown that led to the winner. Also kept his cool to square to Di Santo when he could have easily gone for glory and missed. Tempting to say that if it had been the other way around, Franco would have shot!

Franco Di Santo: 7 — His work-rate is very good, and he’s excellent with the ball at his feet. It was his harassing of Kieran Westwood that led to Wes Brown’s poor touch. Big questions about his finishing remain, but he got the winner this time. Pleased for him.

STEVE BRUCE’S TEAMS DESERVE RESPECT, EVEN IF NOT PRETTY TO WATCH: Preview of Sunderland-Wigan Athletic

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Other and tagged with , ,

Steve Bruce is a name that most Wiganers will regard with respect. He kept Wigan Athletic afloat during difficult times in the Premier League in his return to the club. In his previous spell he got his team into the playoffs, where they were unluckily defeated. He left Wigan to join a club willing and able to spend so much more cash, hungry  for improvement. Sunderland got major cash windfalls through the sales of Kenwyne Jones and Jordan Henderson, but Bruce  has also spent a lot of money, has  a high wage bill  and has to deal with high expectations from the fans. Poor results are putting him under increasing pressure. Bruce won 32% of his Premier League games at Wigan. At Sunderland he has won only 28% so far, despite major capital outlays. Sunderland stand 15th two points above the drop zone. Bruce’s job is under threat: a bad result this weekend could be the final straw.

Sunderland, like the Wigan team in Bruce’s time, will not be pretty to watch. It will be fight-ball, rather than football, with the ball in the air, looking for knock-ons and deflections. Strong tacking will be the order of the day. It was a successful formula at Wigan and probably will be at Sunderland , if he is given the time to persevere. Latics have gone nine games without a win; Sunderland have won one in their last seven. Sunderland have won only two of their Premier League games against Wigan, whereas Latics have won five. Latics have taken seven points out of fifteen at Sunderland over the past five years.

So the portents suggest Latics have a decent chance of getting of getting a result against Sunderland. However, a certain amount of steel will be needed to do so. That was not evident last year when they capitulated 4-2 to an injury ravaged Sunderland team. If Latics are to be successful this time around they will need to stop Sunderland playing the way they like to play. Moreover they will need to avoid red cards and convert a much higher percentage of their goal scoring attempts into goals. More than anything they are going to have to have the mental steel and concentration required to beat the hosts. Hopefully Martinez will stick with his enlightened new tactical formation. Having three central defenders would help cope with the aerial threat, but the wing backs will need to play an important defensive role on the flanks. Cutting out the crosses is key to containing Sunderland.

Latics’ formation in the Blackburn match was a revelation. The result was disappointing, but a victory would have been well merited. Let those wing backs attack Sunderland and put quality crosses over. Oh, for a couple of central strikers to put the ball in the back of the net! Remember that Steve Bruce’s teams, like him deserve respect. They are never easy to beat. But it can be done!

Go Wigan: we can beat them!