Derby: Questions and Comments

Comments (1)

I was (un)fortunate enough to miss the Derby on Saturday as I was playing cricket. I have not yet seen any footage but obviously heard from various quarters how things went. First I heard was an SMS from my brother in the UK (a neutral) who said that we were robbed of a clear penalty, and this seems to have been confirmed by many on ToffeeWeb and in the English media.

Leaving all the controversy aside, I have some questions and observations (speculation) relating to the game. This hasn?t been expressly dealt with in any of the reports I have read and, as I?ve said, I haven?t seen anything yet.

1. Is Leighton Baines injured? Otherwise, I can?t see any reason why he should be left out. Obviously Lescott is a handy cover, but he should be in the centre of the defence along with Yobo, and Stubbs should be on the bench. I think Alan Stubbs has given us some marvellous service but a side challenging for the top four or five, as we ought to be, needs younger and better than him.

2. I think criticism of Moyes for playing with Neville and Jagielka in the middle of midfield is somewhat harsh given that we have had several injuries (Cahill and Gravesen in particular). Nevertheless, I would have liked to see Arteta in the middle with Carsley and Neville at right back. But having seen us play with six defenders in recent games (shades of Walter Smith) what I want to know is how come we are shopping so many goals? In recent seasons we have had one of the best goals against records in the Premiership, if I remember correctly, and that seems to be going pear-shaped this season.

3. Everyone is talking about Hibbert?s yellow card turning to red, but how come he came to be in a position where he was taking Gerrard out? Was he responsible for an earlier error or did the defence mess up in some other way? There?s been a lot of talk on here recently about Hibbert and I agree with those who think that he is a useful back-up but not a first choice. Limited going forward and rather impetuous at the back at times.

4. What were the circumstances leading up to Neville?s handball? Were the defence or keeper at fault?

One hopes that we can redeem ourselves in the Euro game on Thursday night but I can?t see us doing too well this season with two defenders in the middle of the midfield, although Moyes?s hands are somewhat tied at the moment. Clearly we need a central midfielder or two when the shopping basket comes out again.
Michael Kidd, South Africa     Posted 22/10/2007 at 13:54:23

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