Hot team
Sixth place in the league, eleven points from six games and a 2-1 at the Emirates. They already have as many points as Derby County managed to get in the whole of last season. Hull City fans must think they are dreaming.
It will still be a long hard season for the Tigers, but they have made an absolutely wonderful start. Good luck to them. They are well organised, they try to play some decent football and they have a great team spirit.
Not hot team
I tend to get really cross when I hear fans complaining that the players weren’t trying. “That’s ridiculous†I think, “of course the players are giving it everything.â€Â
After the Portsmouth against Tottenham game yesterday two former pro’s, David Platt and Dion Dublin, both said that they felt that many of the Tottenham players gave less than 100%. If that is true, it is disgraceful. Tottenham fans should be up in arms. Incompetence can be tolerated if the players are giving their all, but incompetence and a lack of effort is simply not acceptable.
Hot keeper
He conceded ten goals in two games and many people (including me) were starting to write him off. David James had next to nothing to do for eighty-nine minutes against Tottenham and then Aaron Lennon fired a low, hard shot into the bottom left hand corner of his goal. James went full length and tipped the ball around the post.
It was a great save by a keeper who had been a spectator up until then. That is the sign of a great keeper.
Not hot keeper
I like him as a goalkeeper but Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer won’t look back on Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to West Ham with any personal pleasure. West Ham’s first goal came about when he spilled the ball into the path of Carlton Cole and the second goal, which turned out to be the winner, was a terrible misjudgement by him. He came charging out of his goal but never looked like getting to the ball before West Ham’s Matthew Etherington.
Hot defender
He is an unsung hero for West Brom and I truly believe that Fabio Capello could do worse than to have a look at Paul Robinson. The hard tackling left back has matured now and is less of a disciplinary risk. He may not have the pace that one expects an international full back to possess but his positional sense, his tackling, his distribution and, above all, his heart and passion, are exceptional.
He is twenty-nine years old now so he is hardly one for the future, but he has never had full international recognition and only represented his country at under 21 level, many years ago.
I’m starting the campaign. Robinson for England!
Not hot defender
I still believe that Newcastle’s Steven Taylor has the ability to be a top player for many years, but he seems to have been affected by the behind the scenes mess at the club more than most.
At his best, Steven Taylor is a dominant defender. At the moment he looks nervous and hesitant. It is not surprising that some of the Newcastle players are being affected by the awful situation at the club and I hope that the likes of Taylor, who is a great prospect, are not too deeply damaged by the current goings on.
Hot midfielder
How long can Fabio Capello ignore the claims of Aston Villa’s left sided player Ashley Young? His delivery from set pieces is probably as good as anyone else in the country. He runs with the ball, at defenders, at pace and with real threat. He is direct, quick and skilful.
Another campaign coming on. Young for England!
Not hot midfielder
In the past I have been critical of Tottenham’s Jermaine Jenas and questioned his right to a place in the England squad. I have quietened down a little recently as he seems to have matured and been one of the few Tottenham players playing with any spark or enthusiasm.
Yesterday at Portsmouth, he didn’t look good and he gave away a penalty with a quite ridiculous handball. Obviously Tottenham’s woes are not Jenas’ fault, but he did play a big part in yesterday’s defeat.
Hot striker
It is hard to ignore the claims of two goal Fernando Torres as he produced two quite brilliant finishes in a high profile game. However, I am not going to give this award to him. I am giving the award to a player who gave one of the best displays of centre-forward play I have seen in a very long time. Wigan striker Amr Zaki was absolutely phenomenal in their 2-1 win over Manchester City.
He played with an energy and a passion that is rare to see. He also displayed a huge amount of ability on and off the ball and gave Micah Richards and particularly Richard Dunne an absolutely torrid afternoon.
Not hot striker
There is no doubt that Arsenal’s Emanuel Adebayor is an exceptional player. He has every attribute it is possible for a striker to have. Having said that, his failure to score in the defeat at home to Hull was absolutely shocking. He was guilty of trying to ‘walk the ball’ into the net, and help to create the perfect goal, rather than just smashing it into the net in the way he is more than capable of doing.
If Arsenal are to make a serious challenge for the title they will need Adebayor to be at his most rampaging and direct best. He was a long way from that on Saturday.
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