Green Street blues
Posted by Ian Marshall's Double in Everton, West Ham | 3 March 2006
We are at a critical turning point. We can see where we’re at and take off. Or we can sit back and slowly bleed to death. Julia Taylor
So, to West Ham's multi-named ground to play Alan Pardew's multi-monikered team. And a 90 minutes of truth for the blues. The Hammers are of course the only English club side to win the World Cup, using only 3 players, apart from West Auckland, who featured one Terence McCann in the side.
This game looks really pivotal in our season, especially with 2 potentially winnable games against fellow upper bottom half teams in the Cottagers and the Villains coming up. A win and we could push on into the top half and who knows, a defeat and we’re looking consigned to the 11th to 15th bracket.
You’ve got to hand it to the Hammers, for a play-off team to do this well is truly commendable, especially looking at what has happened to last years’ Division 2 champions Sunderland. They looked very good at Goodison too, although David Weir’s own goal and McFadden injury completely transformed that game. Having looked in control, the blues folded completely and were thoroughly outplayed by a pacy and powerful east Landan outfit. They also had one time Everton target Benayoun, who looked head and shoulders above anyone else on the pitch. And they’ve added the useful looking Dean Ashton since then too.
Everton appear to be made of sterner stuff now but will definitely find this a tough game, West Ham are keen as mustard at the moment and on a roll, yep, a kind of ham roll, with mustard. And a lot of their players seem to have stepped up to the higher standard, not least Anton ‘Amazingly I have achieved the virtually impossible and I am as irritating as my brother’ Ferdinand.
Despite all that, they’ve been one of Everton’s favourite opponents in modern times and we’ve had some memorable games against them, including a 6-0, the game to decide runners up in 1986 and big dunc’s first game back after Barlinnie, and we won 4-0 away too, when a certain little scrote got 3.
Team wise, Moyesy has got plenty of choice and it seems likely that both Hibbert and Neville will start. He’s got a tough choice at centre-half with 3 to choose from. And what’s that, Richard Wright is fit. Oh great. Still, there’s the hazardous warm up to get through yet.
Hopefully he’ll give 4-4-2 a go as well and start with Mcfadden, who knows, we may even score more than once.
Elsewhere, we are linked with American Eddie Johnson and Mark Viduka. Vidukla can look unstoppable at times, he’s got twinkle toes for a big lump, but there’s got to be a major question mark over his attitude. Watching him get stupidly sent off for Leeds at Bolton in a vital game (best remembered for that really ugly kid crying at the end), suggests that he isn’t exactly a team player. Hassling full backs to concede corners and throw-ins doesn’t appear to be his style either. We’ll see.
Li Tie has returned after his ‘Holiday from Hell’ trip to Iraq and Palestine on what can only be described as China’s ‘Rogue State and Axis of Evil Tour’. Is he still with us just to sell shirts in China? Makes you wonder. Think they played Iraq in UAE to be honest.
Anyway, Real Life Blues is getting ready to head down Green Street, report to follow soon.
