by bigmick » Wed Jan 09, 2008 11:01 am
In fairness there is a possibility we will have a good second half and finish within the parameters of what people said when they nailed their flags to the mast. I said we were good enough to get within about six points or so, some people said eight, some ten or whatever else. I think that's the barometer for everyone really, the judgement on whether our tactics/selection methods/success of the manager in general really does depend on where you personally think we should finish.
The reason I've kind of given up thinking about it too much is that my feeling was and is that we are good enough to mount a title challenge with our current bunch of players. Now even if we were to run on through beaten horses (the LFC factor kind of in reverse if you see what I mean), or if say Man Utd have it won with half a dozen games to go and coast home allowing us to get closer than we are, I wouldn't be dancing in the aisles about a seven or eight point deficit when we haven't ever mounted a serious challenge.
Probably more important, well certainly more important in my eyes is how we shape ourselves in the second half of the season. It seems to me we have two choices. Either we concentrate on the Champions League a little, resting players a bit while ensuring of course that we finish fourth, or we go for it in the League still and see where we can get. I'd quite like us to keep going for it in the League to be perfectly honest, and if we do of course our results against the other top four teams will be a good barometer of where we are. If we can go to any one of Man Utd, Arsenal or Chelsea and win, while getting at least a draw in one of the other games (four points out of the three games) at least that'll be something. At least then if Rafa is still in charge next season, we can approach it with a little more of a spring in our step.
If we achieved that, were competitive away from home against our main rivals then I would be much more impressed by that than I would be three defeats and a final deficit of eight points behind the top. I've been saying for a bit though that I feel the gap will be around twelve points or so between us and whoever wins it, but unless we can get going again soon I fear it might be bigger. As for the rotation Rafa style, well I think it's pretty hard to argue it's done us a huge amount of favours so far. I suppose at the very best you could argue that it's had no significant effect and that we are in a position which is consistent with our ability.
If of course we were to absolutely rip it up in the second half of the season, the so-called "delayed gazelle" effect then I suppose it might reignite the debate for some, but I doubt it somewhat. The final refuge I guess for the most ardent pro-rotationer is the argument that the reason it hasn't worked is not the system itself, but it is simply because the players we are rotating aren't good enough. If we were to buy a few more top players and THEN rotate etc etc etc. I would have thought that's just about the last place to go with it. That for me would be a calamity, to go with another season of Rafa-style, just one last time to make sure, just to see if we can make it work. No, if rafa stays I really hope he continues with the trend of recnetly where he has gone for more settled teams (obviously I hope he actually increases the tendency truth be told, and perhaps sticks with the same formation as well while he's at it).
"se e in una bottigla ed e bianco, e latte".