Bleacher Report - Articles by Daniel Masters

Bellamy's Personality Disorder: Man City's Jekyll and Hyde

Daniel Masters — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 20:21:05 -0400

Craig Bellamy has had a difficult rapport with fans for many years.

Should he be in your starting eleven he can delighting and distressing in equal measures—with both spectacular goals and recklessness in his repertoire.

However, opposing fans rarely have a good word to say about him, making him fairly unpopular whichever terrace you may be sitting in.

The Manchester derby on Sunday showed both sides to his character within a few minutes.

Having scored two well-taken goals, adding to the one he scored eight days earlier against Arsenal, he chose to lash out at a fan who invaded the pitch.

Mark Hughes has since defended his player, but comparisons with Brian Clough's famous disciplining of fans (after a match between Notts Forest and QPR in 1989) is completely void of reason.

Firstly, Clough was hitting his own fans, during a pitch invasion which he knew would cost Forest dearly while English football was still feeling the sting of hooliganism.

Secondly, Bellamy approached the fan after he had been apprehended by three stewards and then went on to slap him, in what Hughes calls a "defensive" action, while the fan was held back .

Hughes has a long-working relationship with Bellamy dating back to spells with Wales and Blackburn Rovers, so you could maybe expect some sympathy. But when footballers are regularly touted as role models, condoning his player's violence is rather counter-productive.

His opinion on such matters seems to be becoming needlessly arbitrary, coming just a week after his attempts to play down Adebayor's stamp on Robin Van Persie.

The fact remains that Bellamy had no need to get involved, however emotional the game was.

This is not the first instance of Bellamy's aggression getting the better of him. He was sent off during Newcastle's Champions League tie with Inter Milan for lashing out at Marco Matterazzi and was famously fined by Liverpool for brandishing a golf club at teammate John Arne Riise.

This is also without mentioning other dark patches in his career, such as his ignominious collapse of relations with Newcastle boss Graeme Souness.

Bellamy is said to have feigned injury after refusing to play on the right wing. Souness subsequently declared Bellamy would never play for them again and was swiftly loaned to Celtic and then sold to Blackburn.

He has also accumulated a staggering 48 yellow and two red cards since he signed for Magpies in 2001.

Some may argue that without his aggressive spirit he would not be half the player he is.

But passion can exist without aggression, and maybe Bellamy would have been left with a less chequered career if passion was what fueled him.

I'm sure Newcastle fans would certainly agree.

Arsenal's Absent Anchorman

Daniel Masters — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 11:27:01 -0400

The transfer deadline came and went, but that fabled defensive midfielder Arsenal fans were craving didn’t arrive at the gates of the Emirates Stadium like they hoped.

Xabi Alonso and Gareth Barry were the experienced heads touted to fill the sizeable looking gap left by the departures of Mathieu Flamini and Gilberto Silva.

Reportedly, Arsene Wenger made a last ditch bid for the Spanish European champion, which was duly rejected by Liverpool.

Even Portuguese starlet Miguel Veloso was linked with a move from Sporting Lisbon to North London, but nothing materialised on the final day.

This leaves Arsenal with questions to answer if they are going to sustain a similarly credible assault on the title as last season.

There are options in the ranks, but Denilson is the only fit, natural option as Abou Diaby and Tomas Rosicky are both ruled out with injuries.

It has been clear to see after the opening games of the season that Gilberto’s Brazilian compatriot was set in a very different mould to the former Arsenal captain.

Panathanaikos’ new World Cup winner may be eleven years Denilson’s senior, but it’s more than experience that separates the players.

With a goal and an assist already to his name this season, Denilson’s tendency to drift forward immediately sets him apart from his former mentor, who scored just 17 goals in his six years at the club, predominantly from corners.

The youngster is also not the toughest in the tackle, lacking some of the tenacity of Flamini, and Gilberto’s finely honed reading of the game.

This obviously leaves the Arsenal midfield at a loss. Do they compromise the creative prowess of Cesc Fàbregas by reining him in when Denilson goes walkabout? Or do they allow both to do what they do best and pass their way towards the opponent’s 18 yard line, leaving gaping holes in central midfield?

This would similarly be an issue when both Diaby and Rosicky return to action, with Diaby’s gut-busting runs from deep and Rosicky predominantly an attacking midfielder meaning both are less suited to the disciplined defensive role.

However, with the return of Alexandre Song from the Olympics he may be able to fill the boots left by his predecessors, but whether he can mature into the role in time to allow Arsenal to really flourish is still a issue.

With a full complement of defenders on offer, the likes of Johan Djourou and Kolo Touré could be available to fill the anchorman role, which both have filled in the past, but would add little to any offensive play—apart from Touré’s favoured long-shots of course.

The only other natural option is new signing Aaron Ramsey, but the fact that Emmanuel Eboué has spent time in the centre ahead of him would show that Wenger feels it is too early for the Welsh under-21 star to step on to the big stage.

The Arsenal squad has always found ways to cover gaps in the squad during injuries among their paper-thin squad in the short-term, but whether they can successfully fill-in —and create a good partnership with Fàbregas—until January at the earliest is debatable and will be intriguing to see.

Result is Far from the Agenda Against Andorra

Daniel Masters — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 11:13:21 -0400

As Fabio Capello’s first competitive test as England manager looms, the result is far from the issue at hand.

The lacklustre 2-2 draw with the Czech Republic allowed the critics to take their first credible swipe at the Italian and, whether or not they got under his skin, he will be keen to get England out of the blocks towards the 2010 World Cup with at least some of the pressure lifted.

The first tie may not be the biggest challenge by any stretch of the imagination, against Andorra, a team made up predominantly of part-timers, but the manner of the expected victory will be paramount.

England’s last visit to the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona ended in a 3-0 victory over the minnows, but were greeted by a chorus of boos by the travelling faithful as the half-time score remained tied at 0-0.

This first meeting of the new qualifiers will also allow direct comparison with Steve McClaren, whose first tie of the qualification for Euro 2008 came against the same opponents.

After an impressive performance against Everton on Saturday, Jermain Defoe looks set to start in Spain, looking to add to his brace against Andorra in the 5-0 win at Wembley in 2006.

It also seems likely his Portsmouth teammate David James will retain his place in goal, with the potential for an unchanged back four of Rio Ferdinand, John Terry, Ashley Cole, and Wes Brown ahead of him, even though all were doubtful to feature.

The injuries to Steven Gerrard, Michael Carrick and Owen Hargreaves has left potential for changes in midfield, most notably the opportunity for Jimmy Bullard to gain his first England call-up.

However, he would look to be somewhat down the pecking order with veterans of the England squad Joe Cole and Frank Lampard available, as well as Gareth Barry and Jermaine Jenas in the 23-man squad.

Don’t rule out an appearance for the plucky Fulham star though, with Croatia to follow in Zagreb on Wednesday night, you can be sure that Capello will have at least an eye on that tie.

So don’t be too surprised to see a few starters get at least 45 minutes on the bench, should all be going to plan of course.