The Final Countdown

There are only a couple of days to go to the Holland game and I have to say that the old nerves are starting to jangle! It’s not so bad if you’re on the pitch and able to influence things, but having to watch from the stands or on TV is torture. The key, for me, is an on song Roy Keane taking the sting out of things in the middle of the park. I played against him when he was at centre-half, and he was amazing. But whatever about our injury worries at the back, I don’t think that having him in defence is an option against the Dutch.

Upfront, Clinton Morrison was very impressive in the Croatia game, but I’d start with Niall Quinn, even if he’s only 70 to 80% fit. I played against him a number of times and, believe me, his physical presence alone is enough to upset defences. There have been one or two concerns about how Richard Dunne and Steve Staunton will handle Ruud Van Nistelrooy, but I think they’ll do okay. Stan, in particular, is a vastly experienced player who loves to prove the critics wrong. Saying that he’s too old and slow to deal with the Dutch attack will make him even more determined to go out there and do the job. Not that Van Nistelrooy won’t be a handful. He isn’t in the Ronaldo league yet – few players are – but his movement and work-rate for United have been excellent. Rather than relying on the odd flash of brilliance to get his goals, he’s out there chasing and moving defenders for the whole 90 minutes.

His early season form is just one of the reasons why I’m dismissive of Man U’s ‘defensive crisis’. Alex is obviously upset that they’ve conceded so many goals, but with plenty going in at the other end they’ve got time to sort things out.

My feeling is that Jaap Stam’s book has caused problems on the pitch, as well as off it. Saha deserves praise for running him ragged in the Fulham game, but had it been last season, I think Jaap would’ve coped better.

While he’s every right to bring out a book, his criticism of individual players, and revealing of trade secrets, goes beyond what I’d consider to be acceptable. It’s great for sales, sure, but I’d have thought he was earning enough money without having to tell tales. The code of conduct, in my day, was that if something happened in the dressing-room, it stayed there. Dropping him for the Blackburn game was Alex’s way of marking Stam’s card.

On a similar subject, I’m amazed that Robbie Fowler’s bust-up with Phil Thompson was allowed to get so out of hand. That sort of thing happens all the time in training, and is usually forgotten about the next day. Football’s the same as any other job in that there are the occasional rows and falling-outs. You just have to make sure that you deal with them in an adult manner.

I praised Martin O’Neill in the last issue for the way he’s motivated the Celtic players. Well, I think Sam Allardyce is doing a similar job at Bolton. At the start of the season I’d have said, “yeah, they’re definitely relegation candidates”, but now having seen their fighting spirit, I’m not so sure. There’s a touch of the Crazy Gangs about them, which I must say I like. They’ve got a similar thing at Leicester, which is why I think they’ll work through their present problems and beat the drop. I’d be a bit worried if I was a Southampton fan, though, and while they won’t go down, I can’t see Spurs having an overly wonderful season.

Especially if they get another night like the one they had at Everton! It’s easy to cast David Ellery as the villain, but, really, the problem stems from UEFA and FIFA saying to officials, “No, you can’t use your discretion anymore.” Players aren’t allowed to banter with them now, which is completely different to my time when you’d be telling each other to ‘F-off!’ With everything nowadays having to be done by the book, it’s taken the fun and spontaneity out of the game.

Off the pitch, one of the main talking points last week was ITV’s new Saturday night highlights programme. Personally, I thought there was too much talk and not enough action. Having a laugh’s fine, but when every comment finishes in a joke or a one-liner, it gets a bit wearing. On the plus side, it was nice to see Andy Townsend there. He’s always been able to spot things that other people miss, so I think he’ll do very well.

Having done a bit of punditry myself, I have to say it’s not always the easiest of jobs. At first, I found it difficult criticising players I know personally, but now I tell it like it is. I’ve a bit of a way to go, though, before I’m in the Alan Hansen league. His knowledge of the game and ability to explain things is second to none. Commentator-wise, the person who’s closest to my all-time favourite, Brian Moore, is Martin Tyler. His double-act with Andy Gray is one of the best things about Sky.

Finally, congratulations to Celtic for the way they dealt with a much improved Ajax. I’m sure they’d have preferred not to have lost on the night, but the important thing was qualifying. Now that they have, I think they’ll be a handful for even the biggest teams.