It seems that normality has returned to the team this weekend following a narrow 1-0 defeat for the Imps. A great chance was there for the team to take all three points before the game, Kettering's off field problems are well documented and they were only able to name three substitutes, instead of the permitted five, for this game.
Just over three hundred travelling Imps fans witnessed the side have more possession of the ball, but as we have come accustomed to see, very little done with it. Lincoln began the game with Sheridan playing alongside the inform Pacquette in attack. I was disappointed to see that Lloyd, who made a brilliant second half performance against Southport, was not given the chance to impress from the start especially as he is a more natural attack minded player.
It was Pacquette who gave away the penalty that led to the only goal of the game, he was adjudged to have handled the ball inside the area following on from a Kettering free kick. Aman Verma scored the penalty that would eventually give the home side all three points.
Pacquette could have levelled the scores late on, but his headed attempted at goal was well held by keeper Laurie Walker. This was the best chance that Lincoln had to get on the score sheet. We also have Joe Anyon to thank for keeping the scores down, as he made two brilliant saves at the end of the game to give the Imps a fighting chance of salvaging something from the game.
Following the last two games, that saw the side pick up four points, confidence was growing amongst the fans that the team would be able to go to Kettering, a side that is below Lincoln in the league table, and keep the run going. It was deemed not to be, and once more questions will be asked of manager David Holdsworth, this should have been a game that we really shouldn't have lost. Unfortunately, like so many times this season, we have.
Rumours are abound that yet more players will sign this week before the next game, against Braintree on Saturday at Sincil Bank. A striker must be the number one priority, although a resolution of the situation with McCallum would also be welcomed by many fans, as it is not fully clear as to why he is not a part of the first team squad when numbers in this position are so depleted.
We have a good chance to put this result behind us next week, lets hope that this result was a blip and not a return to type that we have endured for so long.
Sunday, 29 January 2012
Friday, 27 January 2012
Can the Imps make it two wins in a row?
Confidence must be high in the Lincoln dressing room at the moment, after a string of poor performances, the team answered their critics with a brilliant 2-0 win over Southport in mid week. All Imps fans will be hoping that the team can carry on the momentum as they travel to cash strapped Kettering this weekend.
Kettering are currently one of the few sides below Lincoln in the league, occupying 21st, the final relegation place. Kettering got a brilliant 2-1 win over Gateshead in their previous game, but before that result they had gone thirteen, yes thirteen, games without a win picking up just four points in that time. But the Kettering fans may well be thinking that, following a win, their team can start a run of results starting tomorrow against Lincoln. So this could be a battle of two struggling sides who are desperate to build on their last result, something will have to give.
Lincoln will be without the suspended Power, in his second game of his suspension for his sending off against Gateshead. Jamie Taylor, Francis Laurent, Tony Sinclair and Sam Smith will also be injured for this game. This will limit Holdsworth's options in attack, but three goal man Richard Pacquette will surely start and look to keep his goalscoring run going.
Danny Lloyd must be in contention to start his first Imps game after a superb second half outing against Southport. would his inclusion see a change of formation to a 433, I surely hope not after seeing how effective the 442 has been for the imps in the last two games.
The chance is there this weekend for the Imps to get to three games unbeaten, and hopefully get a second consecutive win over a Kettering side that is in off the field turmoil. I expect the imps to win this game, and am going to stick my neck out and say it will be another 2-0!
Kettering are currently one of the few sides below Lincoln in the league, occupying 21st, the final relegation place. Kettering got a brilliant 2-1 win over Gateshead in their previous game, but before that result they had gone thirteen, yes thirteen, games without a win picking up just four points in that time. But the Kettering fans may well be thinking that, following a win, their team can start a run of results starting tomorrow against Lincoln. So this could be a battle of two struggling sides who are desperate to build on their last result, something will have to give.
Lincoln will be without the suspended Power, in his second game of his suspension for his sending off against Gateshead. Jamie Taylor, Francis Laurent, Tony Sinclair and Sam Smith will also be injured for this game. This will limit Holdsworth's options in attack, but three goal man Richard Pacquette will surely start and look to keep his goalscoring run going.
Danny Lloyd must be in contention to start his first Imps game after a superb second half outing against Southport. would his inclusion see a change of formation to a 433, I surely hope not after seeing how effective the 442 has been for the imps in the last two games.
The chance is there this weekend for the Imps to get to three games unbeaten, and hopefully get a second consecutive win over a Kettering side that is in off the field turmoil. I expect the imps to win this game, and am going to stick my neck out and say it will be another 2-0!
Wednesday, 25 January 2012
A rare and well deserved home win for the Imps!
Through the mist of a January evening Lincoln City finally imposed themselves in a home game from the off. There was little to fault from an extremely hard working performance, we rode our luck a few times with some superb saves from Joe Anyon, but overall it was hard to disagree that the Imps were the more superior side in this 2-0 victory.
It took only seven minutes for a superb deep cross from captain Nutter to fall perfectly onto the head of Christophe, who started in place of the suspended Power, his bullet of a header gave no chance for Southport 'keeper McMillan. The rest of the first half then seemed to pass by without too much incident or football played on the grass, Smith could have made it two but put his close header just over the bar.
Fresh from scoring two goals against Southport, Pacquette looked like a man with confidence, he made a string of good runs which always looked to trouble the opposing defenders. the one negative of the first half was an injury to top scorer Sam Smith, who was caught late. Whilst it hasn't been confirmed there are fears that he may miss the rest of the season with a fracture.
The second half started with Lloyd replacing the injured Smith, and what a half it was from the young forward, he displayed something that us fans have been crying out for, work rate, effort, determination and eagerness to make something happen. If he can translate his 45 minute outing into a full 90 minute show, then we may have found our diamond in the rough.
The second, winning, goal came in a spell of excellent attacking play from Lincoln. Pacquette picked up the ball on the edge of the area with only one thing in his mind, to turn and unleash a rocket on the goal, and he did exactly that, a fantastic strike, making it three goals in two games for the new recruit.
Anyon made a few excellent saves later on in the half, but Southport never really looked like getting behind the imps defence, most of their efforts coming from range. And this leads to a reason why we never looked troubled, former Captain Josh Gowling, who put in a performance to rival any we have seen from a defender at Sincil Bank in recent years. He read the game superbly, always first to meet the ball and won virtually everything in the air.
Gowling was rightly named the man of the match, lets hope, like the team, that this is the start of a run of good performances. After a tricky patch in his reign at the Imps, last night showed that maybe Holdsworth does has a plan to get the team climbing up the table. we can't get ahead of ourselves though, this time last year we were embarking on a five game winning streak.......we all know how that turned out!
Slowly but surely the signs of improvement are there, next up is an away trip to financially crippled Kettering, come on Lincoln, lets add another three points to the league table.
Monday, 23 January 2012
So what is the new business model at Lincoln City?
After watching the press conference the answer for me is.....we still don't know.
Nothing has been stated to what will actually change. How will the company earn more money, how will we cut down on wastage, decrease our overheads and will we continue to actively seek external investment, and if so are we going to spend money in doing this? There were no probing questions as to what has actually changed in the day to day running of the club to warrant it being labelled as a new business model.
Just as important to me, why were there no questions along these lines asked?
Nothing has been stated to what will actually change. How will the company earn more money, how will we cut down on wastage, decrease our overheads and will we continue to actively seek external investment, and if so are we going to spend money in doing this? There were no probing questions as to what has actually changed in the day to day running of the club to warrant it being labelled as a new business model.
Just as important to me, why were there no questions along these lines asked?
It has transpired, as many predicted, that the actual cash amount of the 'investment' wasn't quite the £500k plus that the headlines had us fans believe. The actual cash amount that has been used to buy up shares in the club is £410k, this is still a huge amount of money though.
But whilst it is a lot, worryingly Chairman Bob Dorrian then stated that without further investment into the club we will be in the same predicament this time next year!
the phrase good money after bad springs to mind.
So, this much talked up new business model doesn't appear to be much different then the previous model. If it has been designed to bring stability and stop the club spending more then it will earn, then it has failed before it has been fully implemented. As a business that doesn't spend more money then it earns does not need further investment just to keep its self afloat......
We have been reassured that this new holding company Lincoln City Holdings Ltd, will bring short to medium term security to the club, from what I have just heard it is only a short term stop gap.......the worries are over for now, but unfortunately not for long I fear.
Lincoln City look to build against Southport
Lincoln City will be hosts to over achieving Southport tomorrow night at Sincil Bank. The imps will be looking to build on a dramatic come back that occurred on Saturday, which saw the imps score two goals in the final ten minutes against Gateshead.
The fans will be hoping that the side can put on a much overdue home performance against a Southport side whose recent form has tailed off with two draws and two defeats in their last four games, whilst also conceding fourteen goals in the process.
These are the sort of stats that we Imps fans have come accustomed to see for our lacklustre side, but following the superb comeback against Gateshead anything now seems possible. You can only imagine how we all would react if we saw the most rare of things on tuesday night....a win!
That is if we can remember what it feels like to see a team play well and pick up three points at home, after all the last time this was achieved was back in November...and a lot of Alcohol has been consumed since then to blot out the constant stream of dross the team has served up.
In this time new manager David Holdsworth has a faced a growing number of disillusioned fans. Fans who are worried, both about the poor performances and the high player turnover that has occurred since he was appointed to take charge of the sinking ship. After a promising start his tenure seems to have stalled, with rumours of bust ups with players and negative tactics in the previous home games against York City, and far more worrying against Carsharlton Athletic. The replay of that FA trophy tie I won't even mention here.
In this time new manager David Holdsworth has a faced a growing number of disillusioned fans. Fans who are worried, both about the poor performances and the high player turnover that has occurred since he was appointed to take charge of the sinking ship. After a promising start his tenure seems to have stalled, with rumours of bust ups with players and negative tactics in the previous home games against York City, and far more worrying against Carsharlton Athletic. The replay of that FA trophy tie I won't even mention here.
With this in mind the chance is there for the Lincoln players and the manager to grasp hold of the rarest of things, a Lincoln City home win. And after the last game against high flying Gateshead the fans are expecting more of the same, let's hope that the players can transform a brilliant ten minute spell into an even better 90 minute demonstration of how to win a football match.
I predict a win, 2-1 to the Imps. I honestly can't remember the last time I went to a game at Sincil Bank thinking the team can realistically win....please, please, please don't let me down again Lincoln, there's only so much a fan can take!
Man City 3 Tottenham Hotspur 2
This was the first of the much billed Super Sunday double header from Sky. League pace setters Manchester City were at home to the unlikely title challengers Tottenham Hotspur. The last time these two sides met back in August City ran out comfortable 5-1 winners.
The team news for the home side was that Micah Richards was back in the side for City and also took the Captains armband. Balotelli was named on the bench with Dzeko proffered to partner Aguero in attack.
Spurs started with Defoe in attack, Adebayor was in eligible to play against his parent club. Captain Ledley King was also brought back into the starting line up at the expense of Dawson.
The game had a rather cagey opening ten minutes with both sides exchanging possession but little else, Man City full back Clichy was the first player to pick up a booking, with a needless and stupid handball blocking a quick throw from Kyle Walker.
The first real attempt towards goal came from Aguero, the nimble Argentine skipping past a challenge by Parker on the edge of the box, only to have his shot deflected off of King for a corner, the first of the match. The resulting corner was terribly taken by Nasri, dribbling to the feet of the first Spurs defender.
The next opening again fell to City with a superb cut back from Silva had both Aguero and Dzeko trying to take a shot, with the confusion the ball went harmlessly wide for a goal kick. City appeared to be growing into the game with more of the ball.
Spurs struggled to then gain much concerted pressure against the City defence. Bale, with a rare chance to run a the defence, winning a free kick after being blocked by Lescott, the resulting free kick was blazed over the bar by Kaboul.
As the first half drew to a close Man City enjoyed a lot more of the ball, but once more were unable to break Spurs down. The half time whistle was blown with Spurs the happier side with the scores as they began at 0-0.
If the first half was cagey then the second half was the polar opposite, the first goal of the game came from Samir Nasri after fifty five minutes, a superb through ball from non other then Silva found Nasri, whose run was left in checked by Walker, who then blasted the ball in to the back of the net.
City then followed that up with a second goal shortly after. Nasri's corner flicked on at the front post by Dzeko straight into the path of an unmarked Lescott who bundled the ball in, despite the best efforts of Parker on the line.
From here it seemed as though it would be easy for City, but just three minutes later an aimless long ball was completely miss headed by Savic. Defoe chased down the header and took it wide past Hart before slowing the ball home to make the score 2-1.
From here on in it was all Spurs as they desperately looked for the equalising goal, they didn't have to wait long as in the 64th minute Lennon checked inside from the left wing and played a simple pass fro Bale who hit the ball first time, guiding it into the top corner, the best goal of the game mad the scores level!
Following the equalising goal the game seemed to die down, with both teams eager not to give away a losing goal. But in the 91st minute another error from Savic released Bale to sprint forward with the ball and cross to Defoe in the box, but whilst he stretched as far as he could he couldn't quite reach the ball and it sneaked narrowly past the post. At this point it seemed the game would end in a draw, but a long ball forward in the final minute of the game fell to Balotelli to who controlled the ball past King, who had prodded his leg out high and brought down the Italian. Incidentally Balotelli was lucky to still be on the bitch following a collision with Parker after a tackle whilst already on a yellow card.
Balotelli was the man who took the resulting penalty and calmly slotted into the bottom corner of the goal. A fantastic second half of football had ended with Man City taking the three points.
Man City had looked like they had thrown two points away after taking a two goal lead so Mancini will be delighted that his side kept going until the end of the game to get the win. As for Spurs, had Defoe been able to turn in Bales cross in the final minutes it would surely have been them taking the three points........how quickly a game of football can change!
The team news for the home side was that Micah Richards was back in the side for City and also took the Captains armband. Balotelli was named on the bench with Dzeko proffered to partner Aguero in attack.
Spurs started with Defoe in attack, Adebayor was in eligible to play against his parent club. Captain Ledley King was also brought back into the starting line up at the expense of Dawson.
The game had a rather cagey opening ten minutes with both sides exchanging possession but little else, Man City full back Clichy was the first player to pick up a booking, with a needless and stupid handball blocking a quick throw from Kyle Walker.
The first real attempt towards goal came from Aguero, the nimble Argentine skipping past a challenge by Parker on the edge of the box, only to have his shot deflected off of King for a corner, the first of the match. The resulting corner was terribly taken by Nasri, dribbling to the feet of the first Spurs defender.
The next opening again fell to City with a superb cut back from Silva had both Aguero and Dzeko trying to take a shot, with the confusion the ball went harmlessly wide for a goal kick. City appeared to be growing into the game with more of the ball.
Spurs struggled to then gain much concerted pressure against the City defence. Bale, with a rare chance to run a the defence, winning a free kick after being blocked by Lescott, the resulting free kick was blazed over the bar by Kaboul.
As the first half drew to a close Man City enjoyed a lot more of the ball, but once more were unable to break Spurs down. The half time whistle was blown with Spurs the happier side with the scores as they began at 0-0.
If the first half was cagey then the second half was the polar opposite, the first goal of the game came from Samir Nasri after fifty five minutes, a superb through ball from non other then Silva found Nasri, whose run was left in checked by Walker, who then blasted the ball in to the back of the net.
City then followed that up with a second goal shortly after. Nasri's corner flicked on at the front post by Dzeko straight into the path of an unmarked Lescott who bundled the ball in, despite the best efforts of Parker on the line.
From here it seemed as though it would be easy for City, but just three minutes later an aimless long ball was completely miss headed by Savic. Defoe chased down the header and took it wide past Hart before slowing the ball home to make the score 2-1.
From here on in it was all Spurs as they desperately looked for the equalising goal, they didn't have to wait long as in the 64th minute Lennon checked inside from the left wing and played a simple pass fro Bale who hit the ball first time, guiding it into the top corner, the best goal of the game mad the scores level!
Following the equalising goal the game seemed to die down, with both teams eager not to give away a losing goal. But in the 91st minute another error from Savic released Bale to sprint forward with the ball and cross to Defoe in the box, but whilst he stretched as far as he could he couldn't quite reach the ball and it sneaked narrowly past the post. At this point it seemed the game would end in a draw, but a long ball forward in the final minute of the game fell to Balotelli to who controlled the ball past King, who had prodded his leg out high and brought down the Italian. Incidentally Balotelli was lucky to still be on the bitch following a collision with Parker after a tackle whilst already on a yellow card.
Balotelli was the man who took the resulting penalty and calmly slotted into the bottom corner of the goal. A fantastic second half of football had ended with Man City taking the three points.
Man City had looked like they had thrown two points away after taking a two goal lead so Mancini will be delighted that his side kept going until the end of the game to get the win. As for Spurs, had Defoe been able to turn in Bales cross in the final minutes it would surely have been them taking the three points........how quickly a game of football can change!
Sunday, 22 January 2012
United make hard work of an easy win
Did Wenger want to win this game?
Arsenals best player today was Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, making his first league start for Arsenal, before he was replaced by the fairly useless, in recent months, Arshavin. A decision that made the home fans more vocal then at any other point in the game!
That decision looked even worse when Arshavin's poor defending allowed Valencia to run into the box and cross for Welbeck to score United's second, and winning, goal.
Where as on the other side of the pitch the utterly useless Walcott played the whole game , doing the square root of F*** all...once again.
United should have been out of sight by half time but only had a solitary Valencia goal, this single goal always meant that the result wasn't certain, and Van Persie missed, for him, an easy chance before later on grabbing the equaliser.
After this equaliser Wenger made his changes........from there on you felt it was only time until United would get the winning goal......and so it came, following Man City's win earlier in the day it was imperative that United got all three points today. They got the points, but it should have been sealed by half time.
Arsenal were the architects of their own downfall today, playing like the away side in the first half and the taking off their most promising player in the second half just as they had got back in to the game. For Wenger he will have a few questions to answer as to what he was thinking, it certainly wasn't about winning the game!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Arsenals best player today was Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, making his first league start for Arsenal, before he was replaced by the fairly useless, in recent months, Arshavin. A decision that made the home fans more vocal then at any other point in the game!
That decision looked even worse when Arshavin's poor defending allowed Valencia to run into the box and cross for Welbeck to score United's second, and winning, goal.
Where as on the other side of the pitch the utterly useless Walcott played the whole game , doing the square root of F*** all...once again.
United should have been out of sight by half time but only had a solitary Valencia goal, this single goal always meant that the result wasn't certain, and Van Persie missed, for him, an easy chance before later on grabbing the equaliser.
After this equaliser Wenger made his changes........from there on you felt it was only time until United would get the winning goal......and so it came, following Man City's win earlier in the day it was imperative that United got all three points today. They got the points, but it should have been sealed by half time.
Arsenal were the architects of their own downfall today, playing like the away side in the first half and the taking off their most promising player in the second half just as they had got back in to the game. For Wenger he will have a few questions to answer as to what he was thinking, it certainly wasn't about winning the game!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Saturday, 21 January 2012
Bolton 3 Liverpool 1
The final game of the days Premiership action involved bottom of the table Bolton Wanderers at home to seventh, and apparently Champions league chasing, placed Liverpool.
Bolton lined up once again without their captain Kevin Davies who was on the bench, with former Liverpool striker David N'Gog starting up front. Following the departure of Cahill to Chelsea the centre back pairing tonight was Zat Knight and David Wheater, with potential new signing Tim Ream watching on from the stands. Liverpool started with Andy Carroll alongside Craig Bellamy up front. Captain Steven Gerrard started along side Adam in the centre of midfield, in what looks like a 4-4-2 formation.
The game had barely started before Bolton had taken the lead through Mark Davies. The goal was a result of some poor defending from Liverpool, which allowed Davies to run straight into the penalty box and dispatch a left footed shot into the bottom corner of the goal, Johnson was especially lax in defending the large gap that Davies ran into. Just a few minutes later more poor play from Liverpool resulted in a good chance for Eagles, who pressured Jose Enrique on the side of the pitch to gain possession. Once he had the ball he ran with it virtually unchallenged into the six yard box and flashed a shot across the face of the goal.
Following a very eventful opening ten minutes the game then died down, with virtually nothing of note coming to pass until in the twenty third minute a long ball from Gerrard found Carroll in the box, his header went straight into the arms of Bolton keeper Bogdan, it was then given as off side. Shortly after this a long ball up to Carroll was then flicked onto the hand of Knight, nothing was given by the ref for this, and Bolton broke up the other end of the pitch. Tis break resulted in their second goal, following some good interplay between The Bolton players Eagles flicked the ball into the run of Reo-Coker who slotted the ball past Reina. This seemed to wake Liverpool up into the game, with yet another long ball, this time from Carroll, finding its way into the run of Bellamy, who from the edge of the box shot straight at Bogdan, the first effort of note form Liverpool in the whole game. In what seemed a carbon copy of that play resulted in a all over the top which Bellamy chased down and despite Bogdan getting a hand to it, it rolled into the back of the net. Just as the game was heading to half time Adam gave away a free kick on the edge of the box, the resulting free kick was taken by Petrov, but his effort was saved well by Reina. The sides went in for half time with Bolton having a 2-1 lead.
The two sides were unchanged following the half time break, but only five minutes in and Bolton had scored their third goal, a Petrov corner was headed down by Wheater to Steinsson who volley the ball into the bottom corner of the goal. Following this goal Liverpool seemed shell shocked, the game went without much incident until the hour mark when N'Gog had a run into the Liverpool box but was crowded with a corner given, the resulting corner was poorly cleared by the defence and resulted in another corner for Bolton. Poor defending was an underlying theme of this Liverpool performance.
The first yellow card of the game was shown to Jose Enrique for a foul on Chris eagles on the right touch line, shortly after this Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish made two changes to his side, with Kuyt and Downing coming on for Maxi and Adam, who was lucky to escape a yellow card shortly before the changes. The changes didn't spark anything from the Liverpool side with yet more sloppy play and aimless long balls played forward towards the hopeless Andy Carroll. With twenty minutes of the game to go Daniel Agger ran from the half way line with the ball and drive apogee full shot that hit the top of the bar before going out, this was the only shot on goal Liverpool had had in the second half of the game. This seemed to breath a bit of life in to Liverpools attack, as just minutes later a long ball played to Downing on the left flank was brilliantly pulled back to Carroll in the area, but he swung his left foot and hit his standing leg, scuffing the ball as it rolled behind him. This moment seemed to sum up Carrolls career at Liverpoll since his £35m move last January.
Bellamy then created himself space and made a great run forward with the ball, but instead of passing the ball to an unmarked player to his left he decided to shoot, a tame shot that was easily saved by Bogdan. The final ten minutes of the game ended with Bolton making two late subs, with Kevin Davies and Tuncay coming on for N'Gog and Eagles. At the final whistle, despite Liverpool having more possession they lost the game to bottom of the table Bolton by three goals to one. A result that was thoroughly deserved by the hard working and clinical Bolton side.
Man of the Match: It was a close decision between Chris Eagles and Mark Davies, who both played very well and showed an array of of high tempo short passes that unsettled the Liverpool defence. But as he scored the opening goal I decided decided to give it to Mark Davies.
Tonight saw a great result that moves Bolton of the bottom of the table today, this should give them good confidence in their next few games to gain more points in third quest to stay up. As for Liverpool it is yet another lacklustre performance against lower opposition.
After spending around £100m in the summer on new players they lie in seventh place, and currently in no danger of challenging for the top four places. A few more results like this and Dalglish will surely be under pressure from the men who have invested so much into the team in the summer, to see a team that looks like finishing the outside of Europe like last season isn't what they spent such large sums of money on.
Bolton lined up once again without their captain Kevin Davies who was on the bench, with former Liverpool striker David N'Gog starting up front. Following the departure of Cahill to Chelsea the centre back pairing tonight was Zat Knight and David Wheater, with potential new signing Tim Ream watching on from the stands. Liverpool started with Andy Carroll alongside Craig Bellamy up front. Captain Steven Gerrard started along side Adam in the centre of midfield, in what looks like a 4-4-2 formation.
The game had barely started before Bolton had taken the lead through Mark Davies. The goal was a result of some poor defending from Liverpool, which allowed Davies to run straight into the penalty box and dispatch a left footed shot into the bottom corner of the goal, Johnson was especially lax in defending the large gap that Davies ran into. Just a few minutes later more poor play from Liverpool resulted in a good chance for Eagles, who pressured Jose Enrique on the side of the pitch to gain possession. Once he had the ball he ran with it virtually unchallenged into the six yard box and flashed a shot across the face of the goal.
Following a very eventful opening ten minutes the game then died down, with virtually nothing of note coming to pass until in the twenty third minute a long ball from Gerrard found Carroll in the box, his header went straight into the arms of Bolton keeper Bogdan, it was then given as off side. Shortly after this a long ball up to Carroll was then flicked onto the hand of Knight, nothing was given by the ref for this, and Bolton broke up the other end of the pitch. Tis break resulted in their second goal, following some good interplay between The Bolton players Eagles flicked the ball into the run of Reo-Coker who slotted the ball past Reina. This seemed to wake Liverpool up into the game, with yet another long ball, this time from Carroll, finding its way into the run of Bellamy, who from the edge of the box shot straight at Bogdan, the first effort of note form Liverpool in the whole game. In what seemed a carbon copy of that play resulted in a all over the top which Bellamy chased down and despite Bogdan getting a hand to it, it rolled into the back of the net. Just as the game was heading to half time Adam gave away a free kick on the edge of the box, the resulting free kick was taken by Petrov, but his effort was saved well by Reina. The sides went in for half time with Bolton having a 2-1 lead.
The two sides were unchanged following the half time break, but only five minutes in and Bolton had scored their third goal, a Petrov corner was headed down by Wheater to Steinsson who volley the ball into the bottom corner of the goal. Following this goal Liverpool seemed shell shocked, the game went without much incident until the hour mark when N'Gog had a run into the Liverpool box but was crowded with a corner given, the resulting corner was poorly cleared by the defence and resulted in another corner for Bolton. Poor defending was an underlying theme of this Liverpool performance.
The first yellow card of the game was shown to Jose Enrique for a foul on Chris eagles on the right touch line, shortly after this Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish made two changes to his side, with Kuyt and Downing coming on for Maxi and Adam, who was lucky to escape a yellow card shortly before the changes. The changes didn't spark anything from the Liverpool side with yet more sloppy play and aimless long balls played forward towards the hopeless Andy Carroll. With twenty minutes of the game to go Daniel Agger ran from the half way line with the ball and drive apogee full shot that hit the top of the bar before going out, this was the only shot on goal Liverpool had had in the second half of the game. This seemed to breath a bit of life in to Liverpools attack, as just minutes later a long ball played to Downing on the left flank was brilliantly pulled back to Carroll in the area, but he swung his left foot and hit his standing leg, scuffing the ball as it rolled behind him. This moment seemed to sum up Carrolls career at Liverpoll since his £35m move last January.
Bellamy then created himself space and made a great run forward with the ball, but instead of passing the ball to an unmarked player to his left he decided to shoot, a tame shot that was easily saved by Bogdan. The final ten minutes of the game ended with Bolton making two late subs, with Kevin Davies and Tuncay coming on for N'Gog and Eagles. At the final whistle, despite Liverpool having more possession they lost the game to bottom of the table Bolton by three goals to one. A result that was thoroughly deserved by the hard working and clinical Bolton side.
Man of the Match: It was a close decision between Chris Eagles and Mark Davies, who both played very well and showed an array of of high tempo short passes that unsettled the Liverpool defence. But as he scored the opening goal I decided decided to give it to Mark Davies.
Tonight saw a great result that moves Bolton of the bottom of the table today, this should give them good confidence in their next few games to gain more points in third quest to stay up. As for Liverpool it is yet another lacklustre performance against lower opposition.
After spending around £100m in the summer on new players they lie in seventh place, and currently in no danger of challenging for the top four places. A few more results like this and Dalglish will surely be under pressure from the men who have invested so much into the team in the summer, to see a team that looks like finishing the outside of Europe like last season isn't what they spent such large sums of money on.
What a comeback from the Imps!
First of all....well done to the whole team for a long overdue fight back, even when they were 3-1 down the effort was there, unlike in the past few games.
A dream start for the Imps today with a first goal for striker Pacquette within the first ten minutes. Starting off with a 4-4-2 seemed to reap the dividends straight away. Unfortunately following the early goal Gateshead grew into the game and pulled one back, before taking the lead just before half time.
At this point, I , like most Imps fans I think, were fearing the worst. It seemed to be confirmed when Gateshead scored another goal to give themselves a two goal advantage. Alan Power was then sent off for a straight red card, bringing a three game ban as well, unless it can be overturned.
But for me the major game chaining moment seemed to be Gateshead's substitutions, bringing off the goal scorer Shaw. After he came off they seemed to relax and tried to see out the game. But for once Lincoln City showed a bit of fight, the fight that some of the players promised in the pre-match press conference. Pacquette bagged his second of the game to make it 3-2, then late on top scorer Smith chased down a ball in the final third and was rewarded for his hard work by rolling the ball into an open net to give the Imps a massive point.
A great result for the team, and I am happy to say my pre-match prediction of a 4-0 loss didn't come to fruition, but lets not get ahead of ourselves....it is a good draw, but a draw is all it is, and we will lose Power for three matches following his sending off.
We take on Southport on Tuesday night at Sincil Bank, a great opportunity to carry on the fight the side showed in the last fifteen or so minutes....all we need to do is stop conceding so many soft goals and we may have a chance of winning a game!
We haven't turned a corner yet, but we have shown something that hasn't been seen in a Lincoln City shirt for quite some time...determination, fight and passion!
A dream start for the Imps today with a first goal for striker Pacquette within the first ten minutes. Starting off with a 4-4-2 seemed to reap the dividends straight away. Unfortunately following the early goal Gateshead grew into the game and pulled one back, before taking the lead just before half time.
At this point, I , like most Imps fans I think, were fearing the worst. It seemed to be confirmed when Gateshead scored another goal to give themselves a two goal advantage. Alan Power was then sent off for a straight red card, bringing a three game ban as well, unless it can be overturned.
But for me the major game chaining moment seemed to be Gateshead's substitutions, bringing off the goal scorer Shaw. After he came off they seemed to relax and tried to see out the game. But for once Lincoln City showed a bit of fight, the fight that some of the players promised in the pre-match press conference. Pacquette bagged his second of the game to make it 3-2, then late on top scorer Smith chased down a ball in the final third and was rewarded for his hard work by rolling the ball into an open net to give the Imps a massive point.
A great result for the team, and I am happy to say my pre-match prediction of a 4-0 loss didn't come to fruition, but lets not get ahead of ourselves....it is a good draw, but a draw is all it is, and we will lose Power for three matches following his sending off.
We take on Southport on Tuesday night at Sincil Bank, a great opportunity to carry on the fight the side showed in the last fifteen or so minutes....all we need to do is stop conceding so many soft goals and we may have a chance of winning a game!
We haven't turned a corner yet, but we have shown something that hasn't been seen in a Lincoln City shirt for quite some time...determination, fight and passion!
Norwich City 0 Chelsea 0
The first game this weekend in the Premier league was between ninth placed Norwich City and Champions league chasing Chelsea, who before the games kicked off today occupied the final qualification spot in the standings.
The team news for Norwich was the return to the starting line up of the captain Grant holt who partners Welshman Steve Morison in a 4-4-2 formation. The main news for Chelsea was that new signing Gary Cahill failed to make the match day squad, but there was a return for the long term injured Ghanain Michael Essien who made the bench. Chelsea lined up in a 4-3-3 formation with the struggling Torres as the focal point in attack.
The first half began as expected with Chelsea enjoying the majority of the possession, but it was Norwich who had the first effort on goal with Pilkingtons parried cross cum shot finding its way to Morison but it was comfortably saved by Cech. Shortly after Norwich again countered Chelsea well with Morison finding Holt in the area, but his left footed shot dragged wide of the post. Following more Chelsea possession Norwich again brok with a long ball to Morison on the right wing, but his shot from the angle only troubled the side netting. It took twenty five minutes before Chelsea mustered their first attempt on the Norwich goal, the chance fell to Torres who's effort with the out side of his right foot well saved by Ruddy, the shot lacked any real power or conviction, similar to Chelsea's attacking play so far.
Just after the half hour Frank Lampard went of the pitch, with what looked like a calf strain, in the thirty fifth minute to be replaced by French international Florent Malouda. Whilst Chelsea were waiting for the substitution to happen Norwich had another effort on goal with Bradley Johnson's effort from outside of the box deflected of a Chelsea defender, but Cech did well to adjust his body and save down to his right. With the half drawing to a close, Chelsea seemed to finally show some intent with a Meireles long rang effort straight at Ruddy. This was followed with, in injury time, a great chance for Mata, but his right footed shot sailed over the bar.
The first half ended as it began with no goals. Chelsea enjoyed a large portion of the ball but it was Norwich who appeared more likely to get the opening goal.
The teams were unchanged for the start of the second half. Norwich seemed to come out of the changing rooms on the front foot and tried to attack Chelsea from the off. But it was Chelsea who looked the more threatening with a dangerous cross from Cole on the left cleared by Whitbread before any Chelsea players could connect.
Just before the hour mark Torres had an effort from the edge of the area that was both high and wide, he followed that up with missing easily the best chance of the game. Bosingwa played a great ball into the box from the right, which landed to the right foot of Torres in the six yard area, who seemed to just poke at it and it went wide of the right post. Just a few minutes later a fantastic through ball from Sturridge found Mata in the left side of the area, his run ended in a low shot that was brilliant tipped wide for a corner from Ruddy.
Up the other end of the pitch Norwich will feel very frustrated that a clear hand ball on the edge of the Chelsea penalty from Raul Meireles went completely unpunished by the referee.
It was Meireles who then had the next meaningful effort on goal, with his second shot from the edge of the area having plenty of power, but just rising over the bar. Another good attack down the Chelsea left ended in a Cole cross that again was cleared by Whitbread, but his clearance was fired straight back at goal by Ramires, but went straight into the arms of Ruddy.
Both sides then decided to make the changes, with Chelsea acting first by replacing the hopeless Torres with the young Lukaku. Meireles was also replaced by the returning Essien to try and break the deadlock for Chelsea. The two Norwich changes were straight swaps with Jackson and Croft coming on for Fox and Morison.
Following the changes it was still Chelsea who looked the most likely to score with a sharp ball played to the feet of Mata deep in the Norwich box, he then turned brilliantly on the spot but dragged his shot just wide of the post. As the game drew to a close Norwich defended superbly, with Chelsea restricted to efforts from outside the box, the first from Malouda which was deflected for a corner, he then had another chance from the resulting corner but it was blocked in the congested penalty box.
There was enough time for a final change from Norwich with Bennett coming on for Surman. The final effort of the game came, again, form Malouda who had a right footed shot from the edge of the area go high and wide.
Man of the Match:
For me it was the Norwich goalkeeper Ruddy, who made a few smart saves to keep a well deserved clean sheet. A close second came from the Norwich City captain Grant Holt, who led his side superbly from the front holding up the ball and giving his defence time to regroup.
Overall Norwich will be very happy with their defensive performance, keeping Chelsea at bay for most of the game. As for Chelsea this is another blow in their quest to claim at least fourth in the table, they had plenty of possession but failed to create many clear chances, the best chance spurned by Fernando Torres. The game was an entertaining nil nil draw, and a good result for a well drilled and prepared Norwich side.
The team news for Norwich was the return to the starting line up of the captain Grant holt who partners Welshman Steve Morison in a 4-4-2 formation. The main news for Chelsea was that new signing Gary Cahill failed to make the match day squad, but there was a return for the long term injured Ghanain Michael Essien who made the bench. Chelsea lined up in a 4-3-3 formation with the struggling Torres as the focal point in attack.
The first half began as expected with Chelsea enjoying the majority of the possession, but it was Norwich who had the first effort on goal with Pilkingtons parried cross cum shot finding its way to Morison but it was comfortably saved by Cech. Shortly after Norwich again countered Chelsea well with Morison finding Holt in the area, but his left footed shot dragged wide of the post. Following more Chelsea possession Norwich again brok with a long ball to Morison on the right wing, but his shot from the angle only troubled the side netting. It took twenty five minutes before Chelsea mustered their first attempt on the Norwich goal, the chance fell to Torres who's effort with the out side of his right foot well saved by Ruddy, the shot lacked any real power or conviction, similar to Chelsea's attacking play so far.
Just after the half hour Frank Lampard went of the pitch, with what looked like a calf strain, in the thirty fifth minute to be replaced by French international Florent Malouda. Whilst Chelsea were waiting for the substitution to happen Norwich had another effort on goal with Bradley Johnson's effort from outside of the box deflected of a Chelsea defender, but Cech did well to adjust his body and save down to his right. With the half drawing to a close, Chelsea seemed to finally show some intent with a Meireles long rang effort straight at Ruddy. This was followed with, in injury time, a great chance for Mata, but his right footed shot sailed over the bar.
The first half ended as it began with no goals. Chelsea enjoyed a large portion of the ball but it was Norwich who appeared more likely to get the opening goal.
The teams were unchanged for the start of the second half. Norwich seemed to come out of the changing rooms on the front foot and tried to attack Chelsea from the off. But it was Chelsea who looked the more threatening with a dangerous cross from Cole on the left cleared by Whitbread before any Chelsea players could connect.
Just before the hour mark Torres had an effort from the edge of the area that was both high and wide, he followed that up with missing easily the best chance of the game. Bosingwa played a great ball into the box from the right, which landed to the right foot of Torres in the six yard area, who seemed to just poke at it and it went wide of the right post. Just a few minutes later a fantastic through ball from Sturridge found Mata in the left side of the area, his run ended in a low shot that was brilliant tipped wide for a corner from Ruddy.
Up the other end of the pitch Norwich will feel very frustrated that a clear hand ball on the edge of the Chelsea penalty from Raul Meireles went completely unpunished by the referee.
It was Meireles who then had the next meaningful effort on goal, with his second shot from the edge of the area having plenty of power, but just rising over the bar. Another good attack down the Chelsea left ended in a Cole cross that again was cleared by Whitbread, but his clearance was fired straight back at goal by Ramires, but went straight into the arms of Ruddy.
Both sides then decided to make the changes, with Chelsea acting first by replacing the hopeless Torres with the young Lukaku. Meireles was also replaced by the returning Essien to try and break the deadlock for Chelsea. The two Norwich changes were straight swaps with Jackson and Croft coming on for Fox and Morison.
Following the changes it was still Chelsea who looked the most likely to score with a sharp ball played to the feet of Mata deep in the Norwich box, he then turned brilliantly on the spot but dragged his shot just wide of the post. As the game drew to a close Norwich defended superbly, with Chelsea restricted to efforts from outside the box, the first from Malouda which was deflected for a corner, he then had another chance from the resulting corner but it was blocked in the congested penalty box.
There was enough time for a final change from Norwich with Bennett coming on for Surman. The final effort of the game came, again, form Malouda who had a right footed shot from the edge of the area go high and wide.
Man of the Match:
For me it was the Norwich goalkeeper Ruddy, who made a few smart saves to keep a well deserved clean sheet. A close second came from the Norwich City captain Grant Holt, who led his side superbly from the front holding up the ball and giving his defence time to regroup.
Overall Norwich will be very happy with their defensive performance, keeping Chelsea at bay for most of the game. As for Chelsea this is another blow in their quest to claim at least fourth in the table, they had plenty of possession but failed to create many clear chances, the best chance spurned by Fernando Torres. The game was an entertaining nil nil draw, and a good result for a well drilled and prepared Norwich side.
Friday, 20 January 2012
Gateshead are next up for the Imps
Following one of the worst performances and subsequently lowest points of Lincoln's 126 year history the pressure is really on Holdsworth to turn the fortunes of the club around.
Unfortunately for him it is an away trip to fourth in the table Gateshead. I feel like most fans who have seen any of the last five games that anything less then a complete hammering will be a result for us. to me it would appear the Holdsworth will persist with his defensive 4-5-1 tactics,at least this time it is for a good reason, but when you concede three goals to a part time side the Gateshead strikers must be looking forward to this game and the potential goal bonuses they can pick up with a high scoring victory to a de-moralised and currently inept Lincoln side.
As things stand we are still four points above the relegation zone, but every Imps fan knows following last season's terminal decline that we can not be complacent and think that we will just creep over the line come the last day of the season. the side needs to start picking up points and fast, I cant see us picking up anything tomorrow and in all honesty would regard a goal and not too many let in as a good day at the office following a string of terrible performances from the side.
Unfortunately I predict a comfortable 4-0 win for Gateshead.....
Unfortunately for him it is an away trip to fourth in the table Gateshead. I feel like most fans who have seen any of the last five games that anything less then a complete hammering will be a result for us. to me it would appear the Holdsworth will persist with his defensive 4-5-1 tactics,at least this time it is for a good reason, but when you concede three goals to a part time side the Gateshead strikers must be looking forward to this game and the potential goal bonuses they can pick up with a high scoring victory to a de-moralised and currently inept Lincoln side.
As things stand we are still four points above the relegation zone, but every Imps fan knows following last season's terminal decline that we can not be complacent and think that we will just creep over the line come the last day of the season. the side needs to start picking up points and fast, I cant see us picking up anything tomorrow and in all honesty would regard a goal and not too many let in as a good day at the office following a string of terrible performances from the side.
Unfortunately I predict a comfortable 4-0 win for Gateshead.....
Thursday, 19 January 2012
Milan do it the hard way
After a great strike from El Shaarawy to put the hosts one goal up, Milan looked to comfortably go through this Italian cup tie...but a late goal from Novara took it to extra time until substitute Pato scored just before half time in the extended period to make sure that Milan qualified for the next round and didn't suffer an embarrassing exit at home.
In a game where Milan fielded a much weakened side, including veteran striker Inzaghi, making his fourth appearance for the season, and re-signed midfielder Merkel the Rossoneri were still expected to won this game far more comfortably then the 2-1 after extra time result. Especially following the disappointing defeat to Inter in the derby at the weekend.
For me this Milan side still needs an attacking player who can provide some pace or spark to help unlock tight defences After last nights man of the match performance from El Shaarawy coach Allegri could give him more of a chance in some of the up-coming games. there doesn't seem to be much money to bring in a 'star' man, with the Tevez deal collapsing due to the fee, it is likely that following the additions of Merkel and Mesbah , there won't be any more additions to aid Milan in their campaign to retain the Serie A title.
El Classico again...
A lot of people seem to be of the opinion that these games are too often, I don't understand that thought at all, as these games never fail to live up to all heightened expectations and drama. Only these two sides can give such a spectacle so often.
The game had barely started when Ronaldo's eleventh minute straight left footed shot had somehow got past Barcelona reserve 'keeper Pinto. I am not a fan of Pinto, especially his hair, but that should have been a routine save for him. following the early goal Real pressed on and looked good, pressuring Barca at every opportunity with Pepe, the Brazillian Portugese defender pushed into midfield to try and unsettle the passing game of Barca's midfield. the home side went into the break with a one-nil lead.
the scond half was only a few minutes old when captain Puyol, unmarked in the Real six yard box, equalised with a superb diving header. From this point on it was all Barcelona, and it looked ever the more unlikely that Mourinho would add to his solitary victory over Barcelona as Real boss. the more the game went on the more ragged Reals discipline became, with Pepe the chief protagonist in this area, in my opinion he was very lucky to not have been sent off, deliberate feigning of injury, stamping on Messi's hand and constant fouling seemed to be all he added to the game.
As it transpired it was Pepe who was at fault for Barcelona's winning goal in the 77th minute, leaving Abidal free in the real box to slot home only his second goal for Barcelona. but for a few more late, or deliberate, tackles from some Real players the first leg was over with Barcelona winning 2-1 in the Bernabeu, taking a lead to the second leg at home in the Camp Nou.
One piece of joy for Real is that they managed to keep all eleven men on the pitch, despite some of their players best efforts to draw the second yellow card from the referee.
Some will say it is all to play for in the second leg with the scores so close, I don't agree, and barring a miracle I expect another victory for Barcelona. Mourinho will still be left trying to figure out how he can truly beat Barcelona, and not in a fragmented foul-fest like the Copa del Rey final last season, which is increasingly looking like a one off.
Can you have too many El Classico's?
Not if they are half as good as last night.
Wednesday, 18 January 2012
Another low from the bottomless pit of lows for Lincoln City
The game has barely finished, but it is yet another dreadful performance from Lincoln.
Well and truly beaten by a part time team, on a night when several of their players have gone out and had a full days work before this game. Worryingly was the complete lack of fight shown by the Imps, a formation of just one striker is once again baffling against a team we should be looking to beat comfortably. If we had conceded one goal tonight I would have been annoyed, but to concede three is, well, just embarrassing. A late goal was scored by substitute Sheridan, but it is completely irrelevant.
We were out played and out thought by a team that is managed by the owner and two leagues below us. I haven't heard any of the post match interviews, but for me it is again irrelevant, there were no positives from the game, we should be beating sides as poor as Carshalton comfortably at home, not going to a replay and then getting hammered without any clue of how to stop it happening.
Next up is Gateshead.......I would be amazed if we get anything but another hiding from that game. Holdsworth, only a few months into his tenure, could well be on borrowed time already.
Well and truly beaten by a part time team, on a night when several of their players have gone out and had a full days work before this game. Worryingly was the complete lack of fight shown by the Imps, a formation of just one striker is once again baffling against a team we should be looking to beat comfortably. If we had conceded one goal tonight I would have been annoyed, but to concede three is, well, just embarrassing. A late goal was scored by substitute Sheridan, but it is completely irrelevant.
We were out played and out thought by a team that is managed by the owner and two leagues below us. I haven't heard any of the post match interviews, but for me it is again irrelevant, there were no positives from the game, we should be beating sides as poor as Carshalton comfortably at home, not going to a replay and then getting hammered without any clue of how to stop it happening.
Next up is Gateshead.......I would be amazed if we get anything but another hiding from that game. Holdsworth, only a few months into his tenure, could well be on borrowed time already.
18th January mid week games
Ok..so this is my first post...
I will write quickly about a few games that are on later tonight that are of interest to me.
First up is the Copa del Rey El Classico, the ninth times that these two sides have met each other within a year, so far Mourinho has only won once, and that was the in the final of this competition last season. Both coaches have been down playing this competition, but both also know that a defeat over these two legs could well hand the trophy to their opponents even at this early stage, such is the strength of the two sides involved tonight.
I will write quickly about a few games that are on later tonight that are of interest to me.
First up is the Copa del Rey El Classico, the ninth times that these two sides have met each other within a year, so far Mourinho has only won once, and that was the in the final of this competition last season. Both coaches have been down playing this competition, but both also know that a defeat over these two legs could well hand the trophy to their opponents even at this early stage, such is the strength of the two sides involved tonight.
Personally I think that Barcelona will come through victorious again over the two legs, Mourinho has sharpened Real up so much since he has arrived that they lead La Liga, but Barcelona have Messi, who for me is the real difference between the two sides. Ronaldo is in fantastic form once again but Messi never lets his game drop, regardless of opposition or occasion, whilst he is wearing a Barcelona shirt.
The second game of interest to me tonight is the Italian cup game between Milan and Novara, as a fan of Milan I hope that this game is an easy victory but, as in most continental cup ties, the importance is high on the list of priorities, especially with the list of injuries that seems to keep growing for the Rossoneri, which has meant that midfielder Merkel has returned to the club on loan, only six months after joining Genoa in a co-ownership deal. Whilst it is unlikely that he or other new arrival, left back Mesbah, will be involved tonight it seems clear that it will be an understrength side that is put out by Allegri.
The final game that is of importance to me tonight is the FA Trophy replay between my team Lincoln City and complete part-time unknowns Carshalton Athletic. After a very very poor nil-nil draw at home on Saturday a positive result and performance is hugely important for the Imps tonight. Manager Dave Holdsworth has come in for criticism following poor results and what is perceived as negative tactics, despite only three months into the job at Sincil Bank. This is a great chance for him and his side tonight to go out and score a few goals and bring a bit of confidence back to both the team and the suffering fans.
I will be listening to the Imps 'performance' on the radio later as they are away hoping for a positive result. Whilst I will watch the match up between Real Madrid and Barcelona hoping to see a game of brilliant football and passion from the long standing rivals.
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