Pressure…pushing down on Mick (and Steve and Roberto)
Steve Bruce
Steve Bruce has often received unfair criticism during his spell at Sunderland. After all, he guided the club to their highest finish for a decade last season, and has attracted players of an ilk that the club could only dream five years ago.
But one cannot ignore the facts. Sunderland have won just four of their last 22 games under Bruce. They travel to the Reebok Stadium on Saturday, but since Bruce took over, his side have won just seven of 42 Premier League away games. If that record continues, the catcalls from the terraces may force serious consideration at the Stadium of Light.
PS – If he does go, Martin O’Neill is a certainty to get the gig
Arsenal’s back line
Say it quietly, and it is still a crisis, but Arsenal have won five out of their last six games in all competitions. The win against Sunderland was deserved, but in Robert Van Persie they surely have the best player in the Premier League in terms of importance to their club. RVP is truly MVP.
Sunday’s game will be a stern test of Arsenal’s progress, particularly a defence that is largely inexperienced against Stoke’s force. None of Mertesacker, Santos or Jenkinson have sat this particular examination before, and the results will be interesting.
That said, Arsenal have won their last nine home games against the Potters, a run stretching back to 1981. A good chance to continue the revival, or a slip back into old habits?
Manchester
Evidently Sunday’s game is colossal for both halves of Manchester, but Manchester United need to win it more, if you understand my reasoning. After the draw at Anfield, Sir Alex’s men slipped a couple of points behind their neighbours, and the Ferguson’s team selection indicated that this weekend’s derby was firmly in his mind.
Have both sides ever been so strong going into a derby game? Combined, both sides have a goal difference of +40. Adding up the total of all other sides in the division with a positive goal difference only reaches a total of 21. Between them they have scored three or more goals in a Premier League on ten out of sixteen occasions this season. A potential Manchester dynasty is being formed.
A clash of titans it has always been. Is this now English football’s showpiece event?
Wolves
The under pressure manager is clearly in vogue, partly due to the unusual situation where we have reached mid-October without a sacking.
Whilst Mick McCarthy is probably the least likely to get sacked currently, his side are on a miserable run, losing five on the spin and not registering a league win since August.
One of Wolves’ problems is that they do not draw enough games. Whilst that might sound wholly uninspiring, for teams at the bottom of the Premier League, drawn games can prove pivotal in the fight for survival. Last season, for example, Blackpool won more games than Wigan, and yet finished three places below and were relegated. Wolves have drawn just six of their last 43 games.
Teams at the bottom need to be harder to beat than Wolves are currently showing.
Roberto Martinez
In many ways, Roberto Martinez is a breath of fresh air in the Premier League. He sends out a Wigan team on reasonably limited resources and attempts to get them playing football ‘the right way’. After interviews he is refreshingly honest, and seems to genuinely enjoy managing in the goldfish goal of Premier League football.
Unfortunately, these positives demonstrate a soft underbelly that is undermining Wigan Athletic’s tenure in the top flight. You only have to view the job done by Tony Pulis to note that there is nothing wrong with showing a degree of steel (I would argue for a middle ground but that is a different story). Wigan have now lost six games on the bounce this season, but there is a more worrying statistic. Whilst fellow relegation candidates Blackburn have at least taken three points off Arsenal and one off Fulham, Wigan’s only points this season have been taken from promoted clubs.
Martinez is a likeable character, but that doesn’t count for all that much when your team is facing the drop.
