Season Review 4

Peter Odemwingie on Deadline day:

As I sat eating pizza enjoying the ridiculous transfer deadline day, this was the high point. It would have been the highlight of any transfer deadline day. Watching Odemwingie’s interview as he entered QPR’s training ground was the work of either a comedic genius or a raving idiot. I didn’t know whether to sing his praises or break down in tears in reaction to what has become of the beautiful game.

On a more serious note, the antics of Peter Odemwingie are the antics of a greedy and poorly advised man. It would be interesting to know who was the driving force behind him going to London to establish a move. If I were on the FA board I would be investigating this with West Brom and issuing appropriate punishments to both him and his agent.

Agents have too much power in the game and something needs to be done to regulate the money they earn. This is a FIFA issue - it has to come from the very top of football.

Balotelli has finally gone. Will he a) be missed and b) ever fulfill his potential

As a footballer, I don’t think he will be missed. He was the football equivalent of Jekyll and Hyde - we would either be presented with brilliance, such as his display at the European championships, or on the other hand presented with the stupid red and yellow cards with no redemption from any goal scoring. As a side story to football however, he will be missed. As much as I hate to admit it, I loved hearing about his ridiculous behaviour even if some of it wasn’t true.

Overall though, I don’t think he will be missed all that much as his footballing side didn’t overly impress, and ultimately that is why he we are interested in a footballer in the first place.

Southampton sacking Nigel Adkins and replacing him with Mauricio Pochettino:

A large part of me was annoyed and disappointed when Southampton sacked Adkins. He was just finding his feet, and I really believed if he signed a good centre back over January, Southampton could have really improved in the second half of the season. Another part of me can see why they did it however, as he had a very poor start and I think that it was during this period that the decision was made. In addition, Adkins didn’t seem to know his best team, constantly changing tactics and formation, and this was quite worrying for a team who will be fighting against relegation all season. Pochettino deserves a chance and only time will tell how successful he may be. His win against Manchester City helped him to win over most, if not all, of the doubters who were still a bit sore about Adkins’ dismissal.

QPR’s January:

‘Reckless’, ‘ill advised’ and ‘foolish’ are just some of the terms with which you can describe QPR’s January. If they do go down, which is highly likely, they will struggle with a wage bill that would crush even the largest of teams, never mind one in the Championship. I blame Mark Hughes who, as a consequence of his reckless spending, has destroyed his reputation as a manager. Fernandez has to share the blame because I feel he left it too long when making a decision on Hughes - the writing was on the wall in early October but he didn’t act until the end of November. I don’t see much changing under Redknapp either, as he seems to be basically signing his old Tottenham targets – the signing of Remy and Samba for ridiculous money suggests that there is a fundamental mentality within the club that needs to change. I also don’t understand letting Faurlin go out on loan to Palermo, then signing Jenas who is basically Faurlin, except he will be on more money and is more injury prone. I can see QPR being the next Portsmouth and it’s just a shame we have had to suffer another footballing casualty before the new rules come in about reckless spending.

Aston Villa performance over the transfer window:

Aston Villa performed absolutely shockingly to say the least. They are the team to do probably the least business whilst being the most in need of investment. For example, their first signing was a 24-year-old Striker who has never played in the premier league - his only experience comes from 11 games for Leyton Orient and two seasons with San Jose Earthquakes in the MLS. Their second signing was a 22-year-old midfielder who used to play in Ligue 2 for Clermont. These signings were meant as a practical joke, obviously, and in the careful planning and execution of this hilarious jest, Villa forgot to sign anyone worthwhile. The sooner Richard Dunne returns the better - Villa lack any players with real quality and it is shocking the way Randy Lerner is dealing with the finances when they surely must have some money. Why he financed a £24 million deal for Darren Bent nobody will ever know - it was never going to pay off. They have benefited financially on Young, Milner and Downing, but what Lerner is spending the majority of his money on is a mystery.

Aston Villa’s aspirations:

Not getting relegated is basically the top and bottom of Aston Villa’s aspirations. I will say that it looks highly unlikely that they will stay up. They may even finish bottom if QPR start winning. 102 years in the top division will be brought to a crushing end and I think Lerner will sell the club at the end of the season, making Villa’s promotion push even harder with the uncertainty of who the owner is.

~John Robert Lavery