I don't think Shels have quite sussed the difference between eL and European football yet, and their players aren't experienced or intelligent enough to figure it out during the course of a game. For example, Rogers and Harris might get away with dribbling out of defence and playing twenty-yard passes to feet into the centre of midfield at eL level, but against superior opposition in European football, the man receiving possession is simply going to be swamped and robbed, setting up an immediate counter-attack. This happened time and time again last night. I still think Hoolahan is class, but someone needs to take him aside and bang his head against a wall to the accompaniment of the words "DON'T-F*CKING-D*CK-ABOUT-WITH-THE-BALL-IN-YOUR-OWN-HALF-OF-THE-FIELD!" How difficult a concept can this be to grasp? Has no-one told him, or is he just not listening?
Last night proved that, while Shels' first XI are a decent, UEFA Cup-standard side, their bench is woefully shallow. Morgan is not a Premier Division player, let alone a European one. Crawford is a solid midfielder in the domestic game, but hasn't got the extra quality necessary at this level. Cawley looked surprisingly good when he came on, but the absence of Stuart Byrne and Alan Moore was the major factor in Shels' poor performance.
Jason Byrne is, all appearances to the contrary notwithstanding, in woeful form at the moment. He didn't even play that well against us, despite scoring a hat-trick (should have had five or six, scored two tap-ins and scuffed the third.) The frustrating thing is that, as evinced by his superb cross for Fitzpatrick's goal, he IS a technically competent player. If he could up his work-rate a bit, I reckon Fenlon could (sacreligous though this may sound) remould him as an attacking midfielder, withdrawn striker or winger over the coming seaons.
Bookmarks