Squad strengthening and other matters

Great win today. Great gameplan, superbly executed. I feel much the same way about the season so far. 20 points at the halfway mark despite next to no strengthening is great.

Some of the comments below worry me a bit though. No, it will not be a "nightmare" (WTF?) if we bring another keeper in. It'll be good, necessary business: whether it's a number 1 or a back-up to Rudd.

Rudd did great today. Well done him. He also did nothing which any Premier League goalkeeper would not be expected to do - apart, maybe, from that tremendous save right at the end. But he also gave the first goal away on Saturday - and as the first goal decides so many games, you could even argue he gave the game away.

Is that harsh? You bet, especially given his good work after that. But listen to AN after almost any away game we lose; listen to how he says "until the first goal, there was nothing between the sides". The first goal changes every game. If we score it, our record from there is superb. If we concede it, not so much. And we share that characteristic with almost the whole league.

Can we be sure that Rudd will grow into a top class keeper? Maybe he will, maybe he won't. It's because we can't be sure that we need another keeper. Erring on the safe side, which we didn't do in 94/5, is what we have to do now.

Then Mbokani. Cult hero, great to watch, easy to identify with. But no, he's not the prolific goalscorer we've been looking for. Not yet, anyway. He scores a goal against the worst side in the league - a goal that any striker should score - and people think he's the answer to our prayers?

He's a hold-up and target man. Hellishly difficult to play against at his best - but he also does daft things at times. There was a moment earlier on when he gave the ball away unbelievably easily, we got ran the length of the pitch, and a decent side would've punished us. Sometimes his close control is brilliant; at others, it's a mess.

Jerome, for all what happened against Everton, is a more reliable finisher - but a different kind of player, to be used in different sorts of situations. AN is shuffling both very very well; everyone in this squad buys into the team ethic in a way I think is quite wonderful, and reflects fantastically on the manager.

But while Mbokani might well develop into something more, do we need another striker? Hell yes. We'd probably be in the top 10 if we had one; we'd certainly be in no danger at all.

You might think I'm being harsh on both players. I'm not; I like them both. But this is the most demanding league in the world. I think we all underestimate just how attritional and tactical it's become; as demanding mentally as it is physically. There's far, far more depth among the clubs we're competing with than 2 years ago, and we can't take anything for granted. The more we strengthen, the more quality we bring in, the more we help the whole squad, and the better our chances become.

To quote a man associated with both today's sides, they lads need a hand - so let's ensure they get one.

Posted By: thebigfeller, Dec 28, 18:25:42