Welcome to my Fulham preview for one of the most anticipated days of the footballing calendar- Deadline Day. We'll have Jim White on 27 Red Bulls and Arry leaning out of his car window signing some triffic players. But after last years deadline day when the only addition was the Montenegrin Messi Elsad Zverotic, I'm expecting a much busier deadline day for Fulham this time around. I'll divide this blog into two parts of ins and outs, and explain what and why I want us to either buy or sell a specific player- or a player of the same mould. (All Information here is correct at the time of writing)
Ins- (These are all of the ones I've seen- feel free to tell me some others)
Mark Hudson (Cardiff)- This is an interesting one given our current Centre-Back situation. Assuming Amorebieta is leaving (more later) We'd currently have 4 Centre-Back options (based on people who've played this season) Burgess, Hutchinson, Burn, Bodurov. However Burgess as I've said in previous blogs isn't ready- leaving Hutchinson, Burn and Bodurov. Hutchinson looked awful against Ipswich and was rightly (in my opinion) dropped the following week- although him and Burn did play well together against an albeit weaker Brentford team. This leaves us with two Championship ready Centre-Backs in Burn and Bodurov both of which impressed immensely against Cardiff and should start going forward.
So I can see the logic behind this transfer, but unless I'm mistaken he was injured for the game just gone- and he'd want to start. This'd mean taking either Burn or Bodurov out of the team, both of whom have played really well so far this season.
Matt Smith (Leeds)- This guy is the type of player our performances against Millwall and Cardiff cried out for. Especially once Woodrow went off in the game against Cardiff we lacked any sort of physical presence in the box. As such he'd be a good buy- especially for 500k in this climate, and assuming Chris Wood is now staying at Leicester he's probably the best option we can look for. Crucially he'll also know how McCormack plays, and vice versa which could hopefully lead a Zamora-Andy Johnson type partnership developing.
Ehsan Hajsafi (Sepahan)- I've seen conflicting reports over the last two days with regard to his ability to get a work permit, however this deal could still very much happen. He's very much a utility player for what I can gather being able to play both LM and LB could be a great asset for us in games. For example in the game on Saturday when we brought on Chihi for McCormack; McCormack stayed wide-left, and bringing on a player like Hajsafi would of allowed McCormack to move centrally.
Lewis McGugan (Watford)- I'm not sure of the validity of these rumours so I'll run with it; He could be exactly what we need. He is a very competent Central Midfielder who would be a major asset in the absence of a certain Tunnicliffe who would fulfill the same role. However I'm very cynical over this transfer, but were it to come off I'd be very happy.
Wish List:
I saw a link today for Matt Ritchie going to Derby; and we could easily match or better Derby's bid should we wish to- and he would be the perfect player to play at the top of the diamond formation we currently use.
As briefly mentioned earlier Chris Wood would be top of my (realistic) striker list if he were available- which I'm not sure about.
This'll probably be the last time I mention him until Middlesborough play us; Albert Adomah. We looked much better down the right hand side with Voser as the right-back but the crossing was attrocious; as such we should still be looking at Adomah, or another similar player to come in
Outs
We got rid of Mitroglou- at least for a year as of today so I won't discuss him further until next summer.
Bryan Ruiz (Besiktas)- Another player who seems to of gone missing since the start of the season, he could be a very useful player for us were he to stay- however his absence in the first team has shown clearly he's going, and in the aftermath of the World Cup he had this is probably the best time to sell him. He's been "going" to Besiktas for the last month basically on and off, however after Ruiz followed Besiktas on Twitter earlier today it looks as if its finally going through.
Fernando Amorebieta (Malaga?)- Amorebieta has gone missing also, and now Dan Burn has been reinstated into the first team I don't personally see a use for him, so once again we should cash in before his contract runs out and squeeze every penny we can get for him
Hugo Rodallega (?)- After Rodallegas tweet which I referred to in my Cardiff Preview, it seems Rodallega is also off. This is a mixed bag in my opinion. Much in the same way as Kenwyne Jones has played in the Championship after being pretty mediocre in the Premier League I could of seen a similar path for Hugo, however it seems as though its not to be, and with the wages he's reported to be on its probably for the best.
Alex Kacaniklic (?)- Aside from a 20 minute cameo when the damage was very much done against Derby he hasn't been seen. As such I think we'll be selling him tomorrow, and he would be a very useful player for quite a few clubs, and given his age he should still command a decent transfer fee which I would hope we'd reinvest.
Marcello Trotta (?)- What to say about him eh? Firstly I never thought he'd still be here at this stage of the transfer window given the fact he handed in a Transfer Request from my memory before the World Cup started, however here we are- and I can see him getting picked up by a Promotion Pushing League 1 team tomorrow, as he would most likely command a nominal fee.
I also think we should send quite a few youngsters out on loan; Chiefly Dembele and Joronen. Dembele for me is a diamond in the rough; and needs at least one season in League 1 or League 2 to adapt fully to a senior game. Joronen I also feel needs more experience before he pulls on a Fulham shirt again, and if we were to send him to League 1 or 2 he could also improve his distribution.
I also think we should loan out;
Sean Kavanagh
Jack Grimmer
Cameron Burgess (if we get Hudson)
Larnell Cole (remember him)
This is everyone who I think could move tomorrow, although there could easily be more.
Thanks again for reading, who do you think will go tomorrow? Feedback is very much appreciated. I'll have a Full Transfer Window review up soon after the Window closes tomorrow, and let me be the first to say; Happy Deadline Day.
Sunday 31 August 2014
Saturday 30 August 2014
Fulham v Cardiff- Much Improved
Welcome to my blog, after what was by far our best performance in the Championship this season. We had our best half of the season in the first half of todays game but the end result raises a lot of questions about our ability to convert pressure into goals.
Firstly I'd like to point out I am still firmly in the Magath Out camp, however when I see positives I will highlight these positives- and there were many today.
Firstly the team selection was bang on in my opinion, its become increasingly clear that Mitroglou and Ruiz are either refusing to play or Magath simply doesn't like them. So in my opinion with the exception (maybe) of Woodrow the team we played today was by far the best we had available to us;
Bettinelli
Voser Burn Bodurov Staflyidis
Parker Hoogland
David Hyndman McCormack
Woodrow
I'll discuss Mitroglou specifically. but also Ruiz amongst other absentees like Amorebieta more tomorrow in my Fulham Preview of Deadline Day which I'll be doing. But briefly I still think we should of taken the attitude of if we're paying their wages we should MAKE them play, and if they're interested in getting the most amount of money should they move on they'd put 100% for us in order to attract teams to them.
Ross McCormack playing Wide-Left isn't inherently wrong, he has enough speed to cope with Full-Backs and he isn't a "Target Man" so he wouldn't be suited to a lone striker role considering the way we've played, however when Chihi came on for Woodrow (a lot more later) I assumed McCormack would go into the striker role vacated by Woodrow, however he stuck to the wide left role until very late in the day which left us with a lack of a cutting edge for large parts of the second half. However I think at this point we need to stick with the same system and once McCormack adapts to it and cuts in a lot more I think we'll see more from him.
I spoke quite a bit about the need for continuity between the two Centre-Backs and the Goalkeeper, and with Burn, Bodurov and Bettinelli I think we have a very strong foundation on which to build a team around. Thank Jeebus we started Dan Burn today, he provided a very assured presence in the back four and dealt with pretty much everything really well. Bettinelli I felt coped really well and (I haven't seen the Cardiff goal from a "TV" angle) I don't think he could of done much for their goal, at least from where I sit it looked like a really composed finish from Jones. Bodurov dealt surprisingly well in my opinion with the aerial threat of Kenwyne Jones who for this level is a great player, and this back three (barring injury and jogging bottoms) should in my opinion be the first three on the team sheet for every game this season.
The Midfield also looked a lot more comfortable on the ball today, the addition of Hyndman provided us with enough work ethic, creativity and determination which provided Parker with a necessary relieving agent- as in prior games without Hyndman it seems Parker has HAD to be the epicentre for everything we've tried to do both defensively and attacking wise. David showed once again why he's a must for us, as he looked dangerous- and in doing so created space for other people as well as himself.
I felt Woodrow worked well in the role he was given, and increasingly in the second half before he was taken off he was required in his role as a Target Man to hold the ball up, however he's still squandering chances- summed up by him blowing a chance Sky High from no more than 10 yards away which would of made it 2-0, and relatively comfortable for us. I don't care who scores as long as they do it in the opposition goal but I was happy for Hoogland (who looked a lot like Xabi Alonso with his new haircut) to carry on his scoring ways and take up his rightful place on top of our goalscoring chart.
However there were still some negatives primarily, we didn't convert a very, very good first half into more than one goal. We went into half-time with a 1-0 lead but it could easily of been 2 or 3 with a better final ball, which is a must- especially against teams like Cardiff who will punish you with their goal scoring prowess. I also REALLY didn't understand the use of Chihi when we had Roberts on the bench and Kacaniklic god knows where. He looked god awful, I don't think he connected with a single cross and he gave the ball away seemingly at every opportunity- he also looked really overweight and for a winger thats criminal. After Woodrow went off as referred to earlier it didn't look like we were playing with a striker until Dembele came on, and when he came on he didn't look like he wanted to run- and provided very little pressure on Hudson and especially Connolly who looked very volatile and prone to mistakes.
Overall this was a very good performance but in typical Fulham fashion we failed to convert our chances and take all three points when on the strength of performance we really should of done.
Thanks again for reading, after Tomorrow and Deadline Day there'll be a lull of Fulham related blogs whilst its the International Break- but I assure you when we're back against Reading (which'll be my first away game this season) I'll be here too. Thanks again feedback is very much appreciated.
Firstly I'd like to point out I am still firmly in the Magath Out camp, however when I see positives I will highlight these positives- and there were many today.
Firstly the team selection was bang on in my opinion, its become increasingly clear that Mitroglou and Ruiz are either refusing to play or Magath simply doesn't like them. So in my opinion with the exception (maybe) of Woodrow the team we played today was by far the best we had available to us;
Bettinelli
Voser Burn Bodurov Staflyidis
Parker Hoogland
David Hyndman McCormack
Woodrow
I'll discuss Mitroglou specifically. but also Ruiz amongst other absentees like Amorebieta more tomorrow in my Fulham Preview of Deadline Day which I'll be doing. But briefly I still think we should of taken the attitude of if we're paying their wages we should MAKE them play, and if they're interested in getting the most amount of money should they move on they'd put 100% for us in order to attract teams to them.
Ross McCormack playing Wide-Left isn't inherently wrong, he has enough speed to cope with Full-Backs and he isn't a "Target Man" so he wouldn't be suited to a lone striker role considering the way we've played, however when Chihi came on for Woodrow (a lot more later) I assumed McCormack would go into the striker role vacated by Woodrow, however he stuck to the wide left role until very late in the day which left us with a lack of a cutting edge for large parts of the second half. However I think at this point we need to stick with the same system and once McCormack adapts to it and cuts in a lot more I think we'll see more from him.
I spoke quite a bit about the need for continuity between the two Centre-Backs and the Goalkeeper, and with Burn, Bodurov and Bettinelli I think we have a very strong foundation on which to build a team around. Thank Jeebus we started Dan Burn today, he provided a very assured presence in the back four and dealt with pretty much everything really well. Bettinelli I felt coped really well and (I haven't seen the Cardiff goal from a "TV" angle) I don't think he could of done much for their goal, at least from where I sit it looked like a really composed finish from Jones. Bodurov dealt surprisingly well in my opinion with the aerial threat of Kenwyne Jones who for this level is a great player, and this back three (barring injury and jogging bottoms) should in my opinion be the first three on the team sheet for every game this season.
The Midfield also looked a lot more comfortable on the ball today, the addition of Hyndman provided us with enough work ethic, creativity and determination which provided Parker with a necessary relieving agent- as in prior games without Hyndman it seems Parker has HAD to be the epicentre for everything we've tried to do both defensively and attacking wise. David showed once again why he's a must for us, as he looked dangerous- and in doing so created space for other people as well as himself.
I felt Woodrow worked well in the role he was given, and increasingly in the second half before he was taken off he was required in his role as a Target Man to hold the ball up, however he's still squandering chances- summed up by him blowing a chance Sky High from no more than 10 yards away which would of made it 2-0, and relatively comfortable for us. I don't care who scores as long as they do it in the opposition goal but I was happy for Hoogland (who looked a lot like Xabi Alonso with his new haircut) to carry on his scoring ways and take up his rightful place on top of our goalscoring chart.
However there were still some negatives primarily, we didn't convert a very, very good first half into more than one goal. We went into half-time with a 1-0 lead but it could easily of been 2 or 3 with a better final ball, which is a must- especially against teams like Cardiff who will punish you with their goal scoring prowess. I also REALLY didn't understand the use of Chihi when we had Roberts on the bench and Kacaniklic god knows where. He looked god awful, I don't think he connected with a single cross and he gave the ball away seemingly at every opportunity- he also looked really overweight and for a winger thats criminal. After Woodrow went off as referred to earlier it didn't look like we were playing with a striker until Dembele came on, and when he came on he didn't look like he wanted to run- and provided very little pressure on Hudson and especially Connolly who looked very volatile and prone to mistakes.
Overall this was a very good performance but in typical Fulham fashion we failed to convert our chances and take all three points when on the strength of performance we really should of done.
Thanks again for reading, after Tomorrow and Deadline Day there'll be a lull of Fulham related blogs whilst its the International Break- but I assure you when we're back against Reading (which'll be my first away game this season) I'll be here too. Thanks again feedback is very much appreciated.
Friday 29 August 2014
TNA Impact Review- 27th August
Welcome to my second Impact review, I'm sorry for it being a day late but my Laptop was "broken" until roughly 10pm when I realised it was out of battery, and I didn't want to watch Impact whilst I was tired, and then write a blog when I might of missed some details. So here it is;
Bobby Lashley, MVP, Kenny King Promo
Firstly, I've decided to divide the opening segment and match into two different things because of the amount of time it took up. MVP cutting his weekly promo is starting to get a bit boring in my opinion- and him ripping on pretty much everything including Miley Cyrus (which did get a chuckle from me) isn't really anything new and in my opinion signals a lack of direction for these three whilst the Roode-EY situation is sorted out.
Lashley v Tommy Dreamer- NY Street Fight
Firstly, I'm not sure why Dreamer is still here. I was alright with him being involved in the Dixie feud after they worked that House of Hardcore-Dixie-Bully angle, and the promo that he cut before Dixie kicked him in the balls. However after Dixie got put through a table in my opinion Dreamer should of never been seen on TNA TV again. They're increasingly trying to become ECW lite, and this is one of the main problems- in that they still aren't really trying to create new stars relying on people like Dreamer to provide opposition to Lashley. I think it was on Jericho's podcast with Heyman where they talked about him coming into ECW and kicking out of Taz's suplex and then getting dumped on his head and stretchered out, and they should do something similar with Lashley and a new guy in my opinion. Where they book a match which looks like it'll be a complete squash and have someone kick out of Lashley's spear, and then Lashley can proceed to absolutely murder them- but there will always be the lasting image of a new guy kicking out of his spear and that can make a guy without him going over a top guy.
Now onto the match itself; It was fine as a "hardcore" match, but given the relative age on the part of Dreamer and with respect to Lashley the ability of both of them, it was never going to be more than a "hardcore" match and turn into a great match. With the exception of the trash can I can't remember any weapon other than a Kendo Stick being used which to me felt like false billing. I did like they had King take a spear though because that could lead to a match down the road if they keep having King take the bumps whilst MVP is injured, and this could lead to the tale as old as time itself of the frustrated guy turning babyface.
The Madison Rayne Promo was fine, if a bit stupid because unless I missed something she hasn't turned (?)
Jessicka Havok coming in is interesting, and if booked right I can see her becoming a better knockout than Kong was
Bro, Bro, Bro. Nope it wasn't the Bromans it was Gunner and Shaw for a bizarre reason.
Madison Rayne v Taryn Terrell- #1 Contender Match
I liked the win at all cost nature in which Rayne approached the match, and in my opinion she's always worked better as a heel anyway (someone tell me when she turned please). However the match itself was only what I'd describe as passable, as when Taryn when she's limited to "just" a normal match her lack of experience is shown up. I also don't understand why Taryn has opted for a Diamond Cutter/RKO as her finisher when she doesn't seemingly have the necessary agility to pull it "outta nowhere"
Samuel Shaw trying on Gunners army uniform was just strange, and given Melendez coming in later in the day it was also in bad taste in my opinion.
Manik, Homicide, DJ Z v Tigre Uno, Crazzy Steve and Low Ki
This match trod a fine line between being fast paced, and being a complete cluster. I'm fine with working a high octane pace, and given the limited time they were given they clearly wanted to involve everyone in the match and get all of their spots in. The match was fine, if a bit confusing because I thought Homicide and Manik were babyfaces- and Ki getting the win was necessary as in my opinion they should be building to a another match with Joe with a stipulation.
Bobby Roode and EY Promo
This, much like the Tag Team promo last week was pretty disappointing in that nothing really happened. They teed up the match for "next week" but once again they missed an opportunity to get some serious momentum behind the match by not having them touch, and focusing on as Tenay put it "competitive spirit".
If Tinder gets another mention on TNA TV I'll go to America to kill the Bro-Mans.
EC3 v Rhino
I liked the venom in this match on the part of both men, and this *at this stage* was my favourite match from the passed two weeks. When I was watching NXT and Derrick Bateman was feuding over Maxine with Johnny Curtis I never thought in a million years he had this in him. The teasing of the Gore on the part of Rhino should be built for a few more weeks in my opinion, so when it does happen it's a big deal. I don't however understand Spud helping EC3 this week after the way he acted last week, and I thought that was building to something- which they still could do, but I thought last week was the catalyst for that.
"The Great" Sanada v Austin Aries
I don't know if it was bad timing or intentional but them cutting to Storm when Sanada took his hood off took a small bit away from it in my opinion. Onto the match, I understand why they're building Storms new character up- and in turn "The Great" Sanada. However much in the way Cena went through the Wyatts on Monday- did they really need Sanada to go through Aries? I liked Sanada biting Aries in order to break a hold, and in order to put this new gimmick over he should continue with the "win at all costs" mentality.
Chris Melendez Introduction
I'm going to get some heat from people for saying this, I don't really care that he's an army veteran. I respect the hell out of soldiers don't get me wrong- but when it comes to wrestling "feel good" characters almost always fall flat. Unless he can work to at least an acceptable level, I wish he'd stay off TV until he can.
Team 3D v The Hardys v The Wolves
Wow. This match is the best match we've had from any wrestling company for quite a few months. The one thing that amazes me is that they gave this level of match for free AND WE'RE GOING TO GET MORE OF THESE ALSO FOR FREE! The match had everything you expected and more, and I'm assuming they're going to have a Tables Match (confirmed) and a Ladder match, and then build to a TLC somewhere down the road (I know Bullys contract situation which is why I haven't said BFG- despite this being the perfect time for them win the belts given the Hall of Fame).
This was a very good Impact in my opinion, and if they carry on this level of competition they should easily find a new network even without them renewing with Spike.
Thanks again for reading. this is my second blog today feel free to check out the other one http://soccerballandwrasslin.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/fulham-v-cardiff-preview.html and I appreciate any and all feedback on any of the blogs which I've done.
Bobby Lashley, MVP, Kenny King Promo
Firstly, I've decided to divide the opening segment and match into two different things because of the amount of time it took up. MVP cutting his weekly promo is starting to get a bit boring in my opinion- and him ripping on pretty much everything including Miley Cyrus (which did get a chuckle from me) isn't really anything new and in my opinion signals a lack of direction for these three whilst the Roode-EY situation is sorted out.
Lashley v Tommy Dreamer- NY Street Fight
Firstly, I'm not sure why Dreamer is still here. I was alright with him being involved in the Dixie feud after they worked that House of Hardcore-Dixie-Bully angle, and the promo that he cut before Dixie kicked him in the balls. However after Dixie got put through a table in my opinion Dreamer should of never been seen on TNA TV again. They're increasingly trying to become ECW lite, and this is one of the main problems- in that they still aren't really trying to create new stars relying on people like Dreamer to provide opposition to Lashley. I think it was on Jericho's podcast with Heyman where they talked about him coming into ECW and kicking out of Taz's suplex and then getting dumped on his head and stretchered out, and they should do something similar with Lashley and a new guy in my opinion. Where they book a match which looks like it'll be a complete squash and have someone kick out of Lashley's spear, and then Lashley can proceed to absolutely murder them- but there will always be the lasting image of a new guy kicking out of his spear and that can make a guy without him going over a top guy.
Now onto the match itself; It was fine as a "hardcore" match, but given the relative age on the part of Dreamer and with respect to Lashley the ability of both of them, it was never going to be more than a "hardcore" match and turn into a great match. With the exception of the trash can I can't remember any weapon other than a Kendo Stick being used which to me felt like false billing. I did like they had King take a spear though because that could lead to a match down the road if they keep having King take the bumps whilst MVP is injured, and this could lead to the tale as old as time itself of the frustrated guy turning babyface.
The Madison Rayne Promo was fine, if a bit stupid because unless I missed something she hasn't turned (?)
Jessicka Havok coming in is interesting, and if booked right I can see her becoming a better knockout than Kong was
Bro, Bro, Bro. Nope it wasn't the Bromans it was Gunner and Shaw for a bizarre reason.
Madison Rayne v Taryn Terrell- #1 Contender Match
I liked the win at all cost nature in which Rayne approached the match, and in my opinion she's always worked better as a heel anyway (someone tell me when she turned please). However the match itself was only what I'd describe as passable, as when Taryn when she's limited to "just" a normal match her lack of experience is shown up. I also don't understand why Taryn has opted for a Diamond Cutter/RKO as her finisher when she doesn't seemingly have the necessary agility to pull it "outta nowhere"
Samuel Shaw trying on Gunners army uniform was just strange, and given Melendez coming in later in the day it was also in bad taste in my opinion.
Manik, Homicide, DJ Z v Tigre Uno, Crazzy Steve and Low Ki
This match trod a fine line between being fast paced, and being a complete cluster. I'm fine with working a high octane pace, and given the limited time they were given they clearly wanted to involve everyone in the match and get all of their spots in. The match was fine, if a bit confusing because I thought Homicide and Manik were babyfaces- and Ki getting the win was necessary as in my opinion they should be building to a another match with Joe with a stipulation.
Bobby Roode and EY Promo
This, much like the Tag Team promo last week was pretty disappointing in that nothing really happened. They teed up the match for "next week" but once again they missed an opportunity to get some serious momentum behind the match by not having them touch, and focusing on as Tenay put it "competitive spirit".
If Tinder gets another mention on TNA TV I'll go to America to kill the Bro-Mans.
EC3 v Rhino
I liked the venom in this match on the part of both men, and this *at this stage* was my favourite match from the passed two weeks. When I was watching NXT and Derrick Bateman was feuding over Maxine with Johnny Curtis I never thought in a million years he had this in him. The teasing of the Gore on the part of Rhino should be built for a few more weeks in my opinion, so when it does happen it's a big deal. I don't however understand Spud helping EC3 this week after the way he acted last week, and I thought that was building to something- which they still could do, but I thought last week was the catalyst for that.
"The Great" Sanada v Austin Aries
I don't know if it was bad timing or intentional but them cutting to Storm when Sanada took his hood off took a small bit away from it in my opinion. Onto the match, I understand why they're building Storms new character up- and in turn "The Great" Sanada. However much in the way Cena went through the Wyatts on Monday- did they really need Sanada to go through Aries? I liked Sanada biting Aries in order to break a hold, and in order to put this new gimmick over he should continue with the "win at all costs" mentality.
Chris Melendez Introduction
I'm going to get some heat from people for saying this, I don't really care that he's an army veteran. I respect the hell out of soldiers don't get me wrong- but when it comes to wrestling "feel good" characters almost always fall flat. Unless he can work to at least an acceptable level, I wish he'd stay off TV until he can.
Team 3D v The Hardys v The Wolves
Wow. This match is the best match we've had from any wrestling company for quite a few months. The one thing that amazes me is that they gave this level of match for free AND WE'RE GOING TO GET MORE OF THESE ALSO FOR FREE! The match had everything you expected and more, and I'm assuming they're going to have a Tables Match (confirmed) and a Ladder match, and then build to a TLC somewhere down the road (I know Bullys contract situation which is why I haven't said BFG- despite this being the perfect time for them win the belts given the Hall of Fame).
This was a very good Impact in my opinion, and if they carry on this level of competition they should easily find a new network even without them renewing with Spike.
Thanks again for reading. this is my second blog today feel free to check out the other one http://soccerballandwrasslin.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/fulham-v-cardiff-preview.html and I appreciate any and all feedback on any of the blogs which I've done.
Fulham v Cardiff Preview
I'm writing this immediately after Magath's press conference which was frankly bizarre. So I'll quickly go over the main points from the press-conference before I go on to talk about the game itself. Firstly something that has absolutely infuriated me, "I always knew the young players weren't ready from the first day". SO WHY BUILD YOUR TEAM ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY ON THEM? It seems Magath was using players like Cameron Burgess out of spite toward Kit Symons and Huw Jennings, and trying his best to destroy their confidence. The stupid team selections have gone from bizarre to absolutely insane now, using players like George Williams, Sean Kavanagh, Ryan Williams and Cameron Burgess appear to be Magath trying to prove a point with regard to youth, and deliberately setting these players up to fail. Magath also said something with regard to Mitroglou- which I think is being blown out of proportion. "Mitroglou is fit to play", not once has Magath insinuated that Mitroglou will indeed play and in my opinion that was more of a come and get me plea coming from a manager who must be desperate by this point to get players who aren't "his" off the books, and I highly doubt we'll ever see Kostas Mitroglou in a Fulham shirt ever again.
Now onto the game this weekend; I honestly have no idea how this game will play out. Cardiff have started very strongly, however their away form has been very sketchy in the league. They've at this moment lost to Wolves and drawn with Blackburn in their away games, so we're not on a hiding to nothing like we were in my opinion against Derby. The team we play this week will either make or break us in this game, and also Magath in my opinion.
We NEED to start Dan Burn. His assured performance against Brentford has re-affirmed what almost every Fulham fan has already known, he is at present our best centre-back alongside Bodurov. His lack of game time throughout the whole of Pre-Season, and prior to the Brentford game in competitive matches has confirmed that at this level he is quality, and Magath would be a fool not to use him. As per Magath's press conference Mr. Trackies is yet to get International Clearance, and in his letter he referred to him as helping the young goalkeepers develop so we once again turn to the debate of Joronen or Bettinelli? I know this may sound weird but the Centre-Backs we use should be the deciding factor in what Goalkeeper we use. If Magath opts to use Dan Burn and/or Shaun Hutchinson I would use Bettinelli, but if Magath decides to stick with Cameron Burgess and Bodurov we should stick with Joronen also- as I've always seen the Centre-Backs link with a Goalkeeper as crucial for any team to succeed, which is why Hughes, Hangeland and Schwarzer played every game together, and when we played Stockdale in Cup games etc. we changed all three.
The Midfield is going to be very interesting for the game this weekend, Cardiff have a very strong midfield for this level with players like Pilkington and Mats Moller Daehli as their creative spark combined with Gunnarsson and Whittingham they have a constant threat from the midfield, and they will also be able to service Jones no problem. With this in mind we need to fight fire with fire in my opinion and use our creative options also. Chris David (although he is frustrating at times) should be the first midfielder on the team sheet (yes, above Parker) as he provides the most assured creative threat in our midfield- as shown by the way in which he weighted the pass to McCormack on Tuesday. I made a point of this in my Brentford review, but I think I should reiterate it here now I'm discussing team selection for tomorrow; I think we should have Parker in the deep lying role exclusively, and look for creativity elsewhere- specifically David, Hyndman and Eisfeld as the three other Midfielders in the diamond.
Ross McCormack should definitely start tomorrow, not only because he's the first of our strikers to score this season- but also it seems as though he is finding his feet after a few tricky games and especially against Brentford provided a constant goal threat. Who partners him is another matter, Woodrow seems to of lost his way a bit and squandered quite a few chances against Brentford- as such it leaves the door open for other options. However Rodallega would appear to of fallen out with Magath judging by his tweet on Tuesday "Esto ya lo veo como algo personal" Which roughly translates as "This I can see it personally" (Google Translate) however I think its meant to say "I can see its personal". Which would leave the only other options as Dembele (which I would strongly oppose after his performance against Ipswich), or dare I say Mitroglou.
The Team I would pick for Cardiff-
Bettinelli
Hoogland Burn Bodurov Stafylidis
Parker
David Hyndman
Eisfeld
McCormack Mitroglou (wishful thinking, we will probably persist with Woodrow
This team would give us the best chance of winning in my opinion, and at the end of the day- for both Magaths sake and Fulham, we need to start getting points on the board after a positive display in the Cup.
Thanks again for reading Feedback is very much appreciated.
Now onto the game this weekend; I honestly have no idea how this game will play out. Cardiff have started very strongly, however their away form has been very sketchy in the league. They've at this moment lost to Wolves and drawn with Blackburn in their away games, so we're not on a hiding to nothing like we were in my opinion against Derby. The team we play this week will either make or break us in this game, and also Magath in my opinion.
We NEED to start Dan Burn. His assured performance against Brentford has re-affirmed what almost every Fulham fan has already known, he is at present our best centre-back alongside Bodurov. His lack of game time throughout the whole of Pre-Season, and prior to the Brentford game in competitive matches has confirmed that at this level he is quality, and Magath would be a fool not to use him. As per Magath's press conference Mr. Trackies is yet to get International Clearance, and in his letter he referred to him as helping the young goalkeepers develop so we once again turn to the debate of Joronen or Bettinelli? I know this may sound weird but the Centre-Backs we use should be the deciding factor in what Goalkeeper we use. If Magath opts to use Dan Burn and/or Shaun Hutchinson I would use Bettinelli, but if Magath decides to stick with Cameron Burgess and Bodurov we should stick with Joronen also- as I've always seen the Centre-Backs link with a Goalkeeper as crucial for any team to succeed, which is why Hughes, Hangeland and Schwarzer played every game together, and when we played Stockdale in Cup games etc. we changed all three.
The Midfield is going to be very interesting for the game this weekend, Cardiff have a very strong midfield for this level with players like Pilkington and Mats Moller Daehli as their creative spark combined with Gunnarsson and Whittingham they have a constant threat from the midfield, and they will also be able to service Jones no problem. With this in mind we need to fight fire with fire in my opinion and use our creative options also. Chris David (although he is frustrating at times) should be the first midfielder on the team sheet (yes, above Parker) as he provides the most assured creative threat in our midfield- as shown by the way in which he weighted the pass to McCormack on Tuesday. I made a point of this in my Brentford review, but I think I should reiterate it here now I'm discussing team selection for tomorrow; I think we should have Parker in the deep lying role exclusively, and look for creativity elsewhere- specifically David, Hyndman and Eisfeld as the three other Midfielders in the diamond.
Ross McCormack should definitely start tomorrow, not only because he's the first of our strikers to score this season- but also it seems as though he is finding his feet after a few tricky games and especially against Brentford provided a constant goal threat. Who partners him is another matter, Woodrow seems to of lost his way a bit and squandered quite a few chances against Brentford- as such it leaves the door open for other options. However Rodallega would appear to of fallen out with Magath judging by his tweet on Tuesday "Esto ya lo veo como algo personal" Which roughly translates as "This I can see it personally" (Google Translate) however I think its meant to say "I can see its personal". Which would leave the only other options as Dembele (which I would strongly oppose after his performance against Ipswich), or dare I say Mitroglou.
The Team I would pick for Cardiff-
Bettinelli
Hoogland Burn Bodurov Stafylidis
Parker
David Hyndman
Eisfeld
McCormack Mitroglou (wishful thinking, we will probably persist with Woodrow
This team would give us the best chance of winning in my opinion, and at the end of the day- for both Magaths sake and Fulham, we need to start getting points on the board after a positive display in the Cup.
Thanks again for reading Feedback is very much appreciated.
Wednesday 27 August 2014
Brentford v Fulham Review- Turning Point or Stay of Execution?
Welcome to a blog that is the first of its kind, a review of a game that we've actually won. As such I have to analyse stuff now rather than simply explain reasons we're bad. So here goes;
Firstly the team selection last night was uncharacteristic on the part of Magath, as it actually- kind of made sense. The inclusion of Dan Burn, and his subsequent man of the match performance has almost definitely booked his place on the coach for the next U21s game- but seriously after a performance like that he should be the first name on the team sheet for Cardiff on Saturday. The combination of Burn and Hutchinson worked well in my opinion, although they did seem to lack a bit of pace- I felt they dealt with pretty much everything an albeit limited Brentford team threw at them. I also felt Bettinelli played very well, although with the addition Gabor Kiraly (Mr. Sweatpants) I don't foresee him him becoming our Number 1- despite my opinion that he should be after that kind of performance. I think the a back three of Burn, Bodurov and Bettinelli would be a good foundation on which to build, as despite the performances last night I still think Bodurov should be played above Hutchinson (at least for the moment).
However most importantly; We scored a goal and won a game! I've always thought that if we took a lead in any of the 4 games we played prior (with the exception of Wolves) we'd of been able to win. This was because of our undoubted ability to pass the ball sideways, and get the possession statistics up, and indeed this is backed up by statistics in Pre-Season where the only game we lost- was the only game we conceded in, and has been the case going back until 5th April (Villa away), and to extend on this we haven't won a game where we haven't scored first since New Years Day (West Ham home). This was indeed the case yesterday, and Ross McCormack finished a wonderful move with relative ease (he made the finish look a lot easier than it should of been with the angle in my opinion), which SHOULD cement Chris Davids place in the first eleven for Saturday. Also McCormack looked very dangerous yesterday, and I haven't seen the "offside" goals from the side-on angle they use to show offsides or lack thereof, but he could of easily had more than one yesterday and looks very promising for future games.
One interesting point I've seen raised is the correlation between Parker going off, and us going on to score and win a game- and whether this should raise questions over Parkers place in the starting eleven. In a word, No. Although Parker hasn't started well (nobody really has) I believe Parker should still be a permanent fixture in our Starting Eleven- but he should be used in a different role. I can't remember which blog I wrote this in- where I likened Parker to being a Championship version of Makelele. I believe we should use Parker exclusively in a Deep Lying role, and rather than rely on him to be our creative spark have Chris David and Eisfeld/Hyndman playing as the two Central Midfielders, and Parkers role should be to link the midfield and the defence and only pass the ball off to the two more creative midfielders.
This performance had a boat load of positives- including some which I haven't highlighted (I thought R. Williams played well all things considered, and I was also surprised at the way Hoogland played as a Right-Mid), however there were still some negatives. Cauley Woodrow seems to of lost his way in between scoring against Palace on the last day of last season and now. I don't know why, as I thought he looked quite promising against Ipswich when he came on, but he squandered numerous chances yesterday- and against a better opposition e.g. Cardiff these missed chances will be punished by the opposition.
Overall there were quite a few positives from the games yesterday, chief of which was it looked like Fotheringham was injured and as per Magath "he needs a scan". I don't wish ill on anyone, but in the situation we're in at the moment we don't need a leech taking up a place in our 18.
To the question posed in the title- Turning Point or Stay of Execution? I'm more inclined to think its the latter solely because defeating a very weak Brentford team (and not getting any points) isn't exactly a job saving result in my opinion, and with options like Oscar Garcia and Tim Sherwood becoming increasingly viable for us I doubt Magath will be here for much longer.
Thanks again for reading, I'd appreciate feedback on this as its very different to ones I've done previously- and I've tried my best to properly analyse certain issues.
Firstly the team selection last night was uncharacteristic on the part of Magath, as it actually- kind of made sense. The inclusion of Dan Burn, and his subsequent man of the match performance has almost definitely booked his place on the coach for the next U21s game- but seriously after a performance like that he should be the first name on the team sheet for Cardiff on Saturday. The combination of Burn and Hutchinson worked well in my opinion, although they did seem to lack a bit of pace- I felt they dealt with pretty much everything an albeit limited Brentford team threw at them. I also felt Bettinelli played very well, although with the addition Gabor Kiraly (Mr. Sweatpants) I don't foresee him him becoming our Number 1- despite my opinion that he should be after that kind of performance. I think the a back three of Burn, Bodurov and Bettinelli would be a good foundation on which to build, as despite the performances last night I still think Bodurov should be played above Hutchinson (at least for the moment).
However most importantly; We scored a goal and won a game! I've always thought that if we took a lead in any of the 4 games we played prior (with the exception of Wolves) we'd of been able to win. This was because of our undoubted ability to pass the ball sideways, and get the possession statistics up, and indeed this is backed up by statistics in Pre-Season where the only game we lost- was the only game we conceded in, and has been the case going back until 5th April (Villa away), and to extend on this we haven't won a game where we haven't scored first since New Years Day (West Ham home). This was indeed the case yesterday, and Ross McCormack finished a wonderful move with relative ease (he made the finish look a lot easier than it should of been with the angle in my opinion), which SHOULD cement Chris Davids place in the first eleven for Saturday. Also McCormack looked very dangerous yesterday, and I haven't seen the "offside" goals from the side-on angle they use to show offsides or lack thereof, but he could of easily had more than one yesterday and looks very promising for future games.
One interesting point I've seen raised is the correlation between Parker going off, and us going on to score and win a game- and whether this should raise questions over Parkers place in the starting eleven. In a word, No. Although Parker hasn't started well (nobody really has) I believe Parker should still be a permanent fixture in our Starting Eleven- but he should be used in a different role. I can't remember which blog I wrote this in- where I likened Parker to being a Championship version of Makelele. I believe we should use Parker exclusively in a Deep Lying role, and rather than rely on him to be our creative spark have Chris David and Eisfeld/Hyndman playing as the two Central Midfielders, and Parkers role should be to link the midfield and the defence and only pass the ball off to the two more creative midfielders.
This performance had a boat load of positives- including some which I haven't highlighted (I thought R. Williams played well all things considered, and I was also surprised at the way Hoogland played as a Right-Mid), however there were still some negatives. Cauley Woodrow seems to of lost his way in between scoring against Palace on the last day of last season and now. I don't know why, as I thought he looked quite promising against Ipswich when he came on, but he squandered numerous chances yesterday- and against a better opposition e.g. Cardiff these missed chances will be punished by the opposition.
Overall there were quite a few positives from the games yesterday, chief of which was it looked like Fotheringham was injured and as per Magath "he needs a scan". I don't wish ill on anyone, but in the situation we're in at the moment we don't need a leech taking up a place in our 18.
To the question posed in the title- Turning Point or Stay of Execution? I'm more inclined to think its the latter solely because defeating a very weak Brentford team (and not getting any points) isn't exactly a job saving result in my opinion, and with options like Oscar Garcia and Tim Sherwood becoming increasingly viable for us I doubt Magath will be here for much longer.
Thanks again for reading, I'd appreciate feedback on this as its very different to ones I've done previously- and I've tried my best to properly analyse certain issues.
Tuesday 26 August 2014
RAW Review- 25th August
After last weeks very strong RAW I had high hopes for this one, with RAW going up against the Emmy's we had a stacked card which given the right set of circumstances could deliver. But instead we got one of the worst RAWs in recent memory.
"Hall of Fame Forum"
We had three of the best talkers in WWE history sat at one table, which should be a recipe for success. However what they delivered was so clearly written and the forced tension between the panel members came off as a petty argument which did little to sell the fight in my opinion. I know its intentional, but them having Hogan constantly kiss Cenas ass is also very forced in my opinion. Cena's promo also all but guaranteed he wouldn't be winning at Night of Champions with the line "I'm not going to Night of Champions to beat Brock Lesnar. I'm going there to kick his ass." Although I'm starting to get a bad feeling about them having Cena win at Night of Champions because of them having two of the three on the panel say he wasn't going to win, combined with the face I don't think Cena has ever lost a "rubber match".
Rusev v Jack Swagger
After having Rusev go over Jack Swagger twice, they decided this wasn't enough. Although Swagger hasn't technically been pinned- the fact Rusev has had to effetively "no-sell" being in an ankle lock the amount of time he has been and still come through and look strong greatly affects Swagger in my opinion. I don't know where they're going with the Bo Dallas angle- I hope they use it as a vehicle for Swagger to become very aggressive and push him to the Intercontinental Championship when The Miz is done challenging Dolph, as they could play up this aggressiveness by reminding us Swagger gave Dolph a concussion not so long ago.
Cesaro v RVD
This match seemed like they'd got 5 more minutes to go and they got the voice in the referees head saying "finish up". I don't know who thought Cesaro v RVD was a good idea, but they don't have much chemistry together- which is more important than individual talent, which both have in abundance. I think the styles of Cesaro and Sheamus will be a much better match- and could potentially deliver show stealing performances at the Pay-per-Views they fight at (if they are given time)
Paige v Natalya
Natalya becoming more aggressive was a nice touch, however this was centered around the A.J. v Paige angle so this is what I shall also focus on. I don't know where they're going with this. I very much doubt they're going to all in and do a lesbian angle, so why they've done this angle the way they have is very confusion in my opinion. They could easily of done this angle with an extra degree of physicality (no, not in that way) and play up the fact both A.J. and Paige have treated the Divas Title like their child, but instead we're getting a weird "sexual tension" angle which as previously stated isn't likely to go anywhere that would have a suitable payoff. Unless they're doing a similar angle to Dawn Marie and Torrie and Paige ends up screwing Phillip.
"The Eulogy of Dean Ambrose"
I like the addition of Reigns into the picture, as prior to last night it seemed Reigns has simply accepted Rollins' betrayal and moved on- and there is a lot of aggressiveness they can tap into on both parts. However I'm not sure which way they're going on this. Unless Reigns has a stipulation where Kane is banned from ringside, or they have a cage-match I can't see a way Reigns would go over (which he most likely will) without hurting Rollins character immensely after the way he's been booked as the win at all cost heel that he has been. The segment itself was fine aside from Rollins' evil laugh, and it served as a suitable place for these two Shield members to fight it out- without completely forgetting about the third. Also look out for Reigns planting his fist through the "cinder blocks" in a Superman-esque way.
The Usos vs Stardust and Goldust
THIS IS WHAT I WANT TO SEE! I can't remember if I wrote in one of these blogs or tweeted it, but I couldn't see any heel tag-teams (unless they booked Slater Gator in a similar way to the Bro-Mans) that could of challenged The Usos after they went over the Wyatts clean on multiple occasions. But this segment managed to address this issue to perfection. I Like the idea of both of the Rhodes' becoming a team desperate for the opportunity to win the tag belts and The Usos should (in my opinion eventually drop the belts to the Rhodes' after losing by DQ/Count out (by accident/being unable to continue) a few more times. Fantasy booking from my standpoint, I would book the Rhodes' doing a promo next week similar to the one Cody did before he went to get married- and turn the goofy Gold/Stardust into a "shooter" tag team of Cody and Dustin Rhodes.
Brock Lesnar Promo Video
This is the way I can see Brock being booked for the majority of his title reign, and I'm not against this. It gives Brock a constant presence in between appearances and still sells the angle. Now they've gone all in on the WWE Network (long-term) I believe they should cut down on the number of PPVs which would make a title defence feel like a big occasion again, especially in Brocks case where every fight he's in must feel like a big occasion- I wouldn't mind Brock not defending at TLC provided they give us a really good Main Event like Shield v Team Hell No and Ryback a few years ago (yes I know that wasn't the Main Event but it should of been).
Dolph Ziggler v Damien Mizdow
I liked they finally used Sandows schizophrenic gimmick in a way that actually (kind of) made sense. Sandow in the role of a "stunt double" for The Miz actually made sense, however I don't see it as being a long-term role for Sandow. It was pretty entertaining for Sandow to copy Miz' moveset, and he could/should do what Charlie Haas was doing a while ago.
"Family Reconciliation" between The Bellas
This segment deserves awards. The Gooker. They've given two females the stage to succeed and they've nuked it. Whoever told Nikki Bella that being a good heel meant shouting a lot should have to face Nikkis menacing finger brandishing. Nikki wishing Brie died in the womb was in bad taste, and made the segment very uncomfortable without adding much heat to Nikki (who's already resorted to insulting the crowd in a means to garner heat). Combined with the worst "upset, crying" performance I think I've seen in WWE history from Brie made this segment truly awful.
https://twitter.com/Wrestling_Memes/status/504087569144225792 Look at this. She looked like she'd had 30 years worth of plastic surgery, and them doing constant close ups on Brie WHO WASN'T ACTUALLY CRYING took this segment to a new level of awfulness.
Roman Reigns v Kane and Seth Rollins
I hope the cinderblock nearly taking Lawlers head off doesn't stop them using it as a prop, because it adds a real element of danger to Rollins' character. However the fact they had Reigns fight off both of the men with apparent ease this early in the feud didn't sit well with me as we had Ambrose getting annihilated by the same two men less than a week ago. However this is clearly the route they want to go down with Reigns, and I hope they don't regret sacrificing young talent (more later) in order to build up certain guys
Slater Gator v Los Matadores
I could be wrong but I think one of the Matadores worked the whole match. They ended Slaters winning streak on Superstars so I expected this to end with Matadores winning quickly, as did actually happen- however Titus and Heath have a certain chemistry with each other, and given the right set of circumstances they could become players in the Tag Division as the "Team Hell No" oddball team.
Bo Dallas v Kofi Kingston
So they've officially given up on the Big E, Xavier Woods, Kofi stable. I can only assume Big E was watching a monitor backstage in disgust. The match was serviceable for what it was, and Swagger attacking Bo wasn't entirely what I expected for this week. As said earlier I hope they have Swagger become very aggressive either as a result of Bo antagonising him, or under the tutelage of Bo.
Bray Wyatt v John Cena/The Wyatts vs Cena, Henry and Big Show
Why? Why on earth did they decide Bray Wyatt should be the person Cena steamrollered through in order to get his character over again. The majority of the suplexes Cena did were pretty sloppy, and I'm thankful Bray didn't hurt his shoulder/neck on the second German Suplex. The addition of Henry and Big Show I thought would of provided Cena a necessary vehicle to stand tall over Harper/Rowan as the show ended. But Cena had to go Super Saiyan and not only make Harper tap out, but also deliver Attitude Adjustments to all three members of the Wyatts with relative ease, after previously making Bray look like a jobber, which I'm sure Jericho is overjoyed about this being that the last three guys he's put over have all been fed to Cena or another top guy.
Looking back on the episode, I think Orton would of made a much more suitable addition to this main event given his current storyline of "losing his way" and having one of the exciting new guys be Cenas cannon fodder made me hate this Main Event.
Overall this RAW was one of the worst/if not the worst of year.
Thanks again for reading, I'll have my Fulham-Brentford review up later tonight.
Sunday 24 August 2014
The Curious Case of Felix Magath
As of writing this blog Felix Magath has not been sacked. I'm praying to Jeebus that he is sacked ASAP, however one question you have to ask is; How did a Manager who's won multiple Bundesliga Titles manage to lead a long established Premier League team to the Bottom of the Championship?
In February we announced the appointment of Felix Magath as our new manager, which seemed bizarre to pretty much everybody after two positive results against Man Utd and Liverpool- combined with the fact Meulensteen was allowed to break our record transfer fee (if quoted fee is true) just weeks earlier. However after the abomination that was the two games against Sheffield United I was willing to give a new manager a shot. The warning signs should of become apparent much earlier than they actually were; specifically Cardiff away. It was just 3 games into Magaths reign but a very stupid team selection crippled us;
Stekelenburg;
Riether-Heitinga-Hangeland-Richardson
Dejagah-Sidwell-Holtby-Riise
Mitroglou-Woodrow
Cauley Woodrow making his Premier League debut in a vital relegation clash was bad enough, but using Riise as a Left-Midfielder with Richardson as a Left-Back was frankly stupid. Richardson was coming into his own as a Left-Midfielder scoring against Liverpool and playing a vital part in the Man Utd game, but he doesn't have a defensive bone in his body, this combined with Riise (more later) who is possibly the worst left sided player we've had ever doomed us to fail before we kicked off- which is a regular occurence with Magath. However we went on to beat Newcastle the week later, and had a positive display against Everton, although it didn't yield any points. Things were looking up, and two consecutive wins against Aston Villa and Norwich meant we were now in a good position to stay up. We even had a decent number of chances the following week against Spurs despite losing, but this is when it really started going wrong for Magath.
We were playing Hull where a Three Points would of been priceless given the situations of teams around us, So we started a ridiculously defensive team;
Stockdale
Heitinga-Hangeland-Amorebieta
Riether-Parker-Diarra-Sidwell-Riise
Holtby
Rodallega
This team had at a stretch 3 offensive players, and it took two substitutions at Half-Time to rectify this line-up. We then went two goals up, and were seemingly coasting to a victory- however with the addition of Darren Bent just before we scored the first of two goals, we couldn't make any kind of defensive substitution to try and see the game through, and especially after they got one goal back a defensive substitution was definitely required. However because of the imbalance created by both the starting line-up and substitutions it wasn't meant to be and Shane Long hit what would of appeared to be the final nail into our coffin. What happened the following week was unforgivable
Dan Burn is a very competent young Centre-Back, and should (still) be starting regularly as a Centre-Back. He is not a Right-Back and never will be, so why Magath decided to play him there- especially against a tricky wnger like Assaidi is completely beyond me, and that was the day we went down with a whimper and were relegated. However a promising last day against Crystal Palace where two young players (Woodrow and David) scored in a 2-2 draw I personally was filled with a sense of optimism.
I believed with a year left on his contract Brede Hangeland (with a summer resting his back-as much as you can under Magath) would be captaining the team alongside Burn which had shown so much promise under Meulensteen. This combined with players who had shown promise in Stockdale and Sidwell and (especially in Stockdales case) had shown a willingness to stay and fight our way back to the Premier League. So naturally Magath got rid of all three and in Sidwell and Hangeland's case were allowed to leave on a free transfer. This was what I thought would be the core of our team going into the new season and the team would have a sprinkle of youth players to achieve a balance which we were lacking so badly under Martin Jol and subsequent managers.
However instead Magath went for route of ripping up the team and starting again, which wasn't inherently wrong- however the team we've been left with is incredibly naive (a reflection on the manager) and the only two experienced players we have Parker and especially McCormack aren't being used at all in the way they'd flourish, and we've ended up with players like Cameron Burgess being fast-tracked straight from U18s to Senior Football and being held in higher regard by Magath than Dan Burn and Amorebieta- both of which would offer a more calming influence in defence, which in my opinion is key for a young Goalkeeper like Jesse Joronen who seems very unsure of himself- and the lack of clean sheets (especially the Derby game) will of done little to help him settle.
Magath also seems to have an aversion to playing anybody who he hasn't given a break to in Football. The only player who was playing consistently for us before Magath came in- and is still playing for us is Scott Parker, who is the typical Magath player in that he has plenty of graft and works very hard- but has very little in the way of creativity, which wouldn't necessarily be bad for us if Magath hadn't of given up on the Creative Midfielders we do have in Chris David and Thomas Eisfeld (too a lesser extent) and favoured Mark Fotheringham and Kostas Stafylidis for a place in Central-Midfield. He also has appeared to of fallen out with Kostas Mitroglou, who despite his fee and lack of starts is still very much a goalscorer and as long as he was still at the club and fit should be the first name on the teamsheet alongside Ross McCormack. Bryan Ruiz hasn't been the most pleasing signing Fulham have ever made, however (especially in the Millwall game) he could of used his undoubted ability to pick a pass out and improve the final ball we've been lacking for all 4 games so far.
We've also seemingly gone quiet on the transfers front, despite Shahid Khans insistence that this season wasn't about breaking even (which we have done at this stage) and about promotion (which is looking incredibly like a pipe dream after just four games). Aside from Ross McCormack I don't believe we've spent over a Million pounds on any other player, and have gone down the typical Fulham route of Bargain Basement reserves and free agents in order to pad our squad out. I don't know who has control over transfers and as such don't lay the blame solely on Magath, however in the signings of Mitroglou and McCormack Shahid Khan has shown a willingness to spend big in order to get a player we "need" which makes me believe its simply Magath's stubbornness which is the reason we've not brought in any other high value signings. The appearance of depth- or lack thereof is also of Magaths own doing. For example I've seen multiple people saying we need a Central-Midfielder, yes we do. But we've got a perfectly good, Championship ready Midfielder in Ryan Tunnicliffe being wasted in the reserves as of this moment, who is infinitely better than Fotheringham who has amassed more minutes than him this season.
The Team which I perceive to be our strongest XI with our current squad (Minutes Played this season)
Joronen (360)
Hoogland (337)-Burn (0)-Bodurov (360)- Stafylidis (330)
Parker (360)
Tunnicliffe (0) Kacaniklic (30)
Ruiz (0)
McCormack (282) Mitroglou (0)
This is the team I (and I'm sure quite a few others) would liked to of seen as our starting eleven- at least until Mitroglou was sold when we'd bring in Rodallega or Woodrow, and if Ruiz were to go we could use Chris David. I've left Patrick Roberts out of the starting eleven because I believe he is (currently) best suited to a role as an impact sub.
Brede Hangeland said in an interview with Sky Sports News Magath "mentally and physically battered" the Fulham players last season, and whatever you will say about us, this is not a "Fulham" way of managing and is most definitely not the way to nurture young talent of which we have in abundance- as such he's been the wrong man from the word go. As I conclude this blog at 20:22 PM on the 24th August Magath has still not been sacked, however I hope for the future of this club and its supporters he isn't in charge for another minute.
Thanks again for reading, Magath Out.
In February we announced the appointment of Felix Magath as our new manager, which seemed bizarre to pretty much everybody after two positive results against Man Utd and Liverpool- combined with the fact Meulensteen was allowed to break our record transfer fee (if quoted fee is true) just weeks earlier. However after the abomination that was the two games against Sheffield United I was willing to give a new manager a shot. The warning signs should of become apparent much earlier than they actually were; specifically Cardiff away. It was just 3 games into Magaths reign but a very stupid team selection crippled us;
Stekelenburg;
Riether-Heitinga-Hangeland-Richardson
Dejagah-Sidwell-Holtby-Riise
Mitroglou-Woodrow
Cauley Woodrow making his Premier League debut in a vital relegation clash was bad enough, but using Riise as a Left-Midfielder with Richardson as a Left-Back was frankly stupid. Richardson was coming into his own as a Left-Midfielder scoring against Liverpool and playing a vital part in the Man Utd game, but he doesn't have a defensive bone in his body, this combined with Riise (more later) who is possibly the worst left sided player we've had ever doomed us to fail before we kicked off- which is a regular occurence with Magath. However we went on to beat Newcastle the week later, and had a positive display against Everton, although it didn't yield any points. Things were looking up, and two consecutive wins against Aston Villa and Norwich meant we were now in a good position to stay up. We even had a decent number of chances the following week against Spurs despite losing, but this is when it really started going wrong for Magath.
We were playing Hull where a Three Points would of been priceless given the situations of teams around us, So we started a ridiculously defensive team;
Stockdale
Heitinga-Hangeland-Amorebieta
Riether-Parker-Diarra-Sidwell-Riise
Holtby
Rodallega
This team had at a stretch 3 offensive players, and it took two substitutions at Half-Time to rectify this line-up. We then went two goals up, and were seemingly coasting to a victory- however with the addition of Darren Bent just before we scored the first of two goals, we couldn't make any kind of defensive substitution to try and see the game through, and especially after they got one goal back a defensive substitution was definitely required. However because of the imbalance created by both the starting line-up and substitutions it wasn't meant to be and Shane Long hit what would of appeared to be the final nail into our coffin. What happened the following week was unforgivable
Dan Burn is a very competent young Centre-Back, and should (still) be starting regularly as a Centre-Back. He is not a Right-Back and never will be, so why Magath decided to play him there- especially against a tricky wnger like Assaidi is completely beyond me, and that was the day we went down with a whimper and were relegated. However a promising last day against Crystal Palace where two young players (Woodrow and David) scored in a 2-2 draw I personally was filled with a sense of optimism.
I believed with a year left on his contract Brede Hangeland (with a summer resting his back-as much as you can under Magath) would be captaining the team alongside Burn which had shown so much promise under Meulensteen. This combined with players who had shown promise in Stockdale and Sidwell and (especially in Stockdales case) had shown a willingness to stay and fight our way back to the Premier League. So naturally Magath got rid of all three and in Sidwell and Hangeland's case were allowed to leave on a free transfer. This was what I thought would be the core of our team going into the new season and the team would have a sprinkle of youth players to achieve a balance which we were lacking so badly under Martin Jol and subsequent managers.
However instead Magath went for route of ripping up the team and starting again, which wasn't inherently wrong- however the team we've been left with is incredibly naive (a reflection on the manager) and the only two experienced players we have Parker and especially McCormack aren't being used at all in the way they'd flourish, and we've ended up with players like Cameron Burgess being fast-tracked straight from U18s to Senior Football and being held in higher regard by Magath than Dan Burn and Amorebieta- both of which would offer a more calming influence in defence, which in my opinion is key for a young Goalkeeper like Jesse Joronen who seems very unsure of himself- and the lack of clean sheets (especially the Derby game) will of done little to help him settle.
Magath also seems to have an aversion to playing anybody who he hasn't given a break to in Football. The only player who was playing consistently for us before Magath came in- and is still playing for us is Scott Parker, who is the typical Magath player in that he has plenty of graft and works very hard- but has very little in the way of creativity, which wouldn't necessarily be bad for us if Magath hadn't of given up on the Creative Midfielders we do have in Chris David and Thomas Eisfeld (too a lesser extent) and favoured Mark Fotheringham and Kostas Stafylidis for a place in Central-Midfield. He also has appeared to of fallen out with Kostas Mitroglou, who despite his fee and lack of starts is still very much a goalscorer and as long as he was still at the club and fit should be the first name on the teamsheet alongside Ross McCormack. Bryan Ruiz hasn't been the most pleasing signing Fulham have ever made, however (especially in the Millwall game) he could of used his undoubted ability to pick a pass out and improve the final ball we've been lacking for all 4 games so far.
We've also seemingly gone quiet on the transfers front, despite Shahid Khans insistence that this season wasn't about breaking even (which we have done at this stage) and about promotion (which is looking incredibly like a pipe dream after just four games). Aside from Ross McCormack I don't believe we've spent over a Million pounds on any other player, and have gone down the typical Fulham route of Bargain Basement reserves and free agents in order to pad our squad out. I don't know who has control over transfers and as such don't lay the blame solely on Magath, however in the signings of Mitroglou and McCormack Shahid Khan has shown a willingness to spend big in order to get a player we "need" which makes me believe its simply Magath's stubbornness which is the reason we've not brought in any other high value signings. The appearance of depth- or lack thereof is also of Magaths own doing. For example I've seen multiple people saying we need a Central-Midfielder, yes we do. But we've got a perfectly good, Championship ready Midfielder in Ryan Tunnicliffe being wasted in the reserves as of this moment, who is infinitely better than Fotheringham who has amassed more minutes than him this season.
The Team which I perceive to be our strongest XI with our current squad (Minutes Played this season)
Joronen (360)
Hoogland (337)-Burn (0)-Bodurov (360)- Stafylidis (330)
Parker (360)
Tunnicliffe (0) Kacaniklic (30)
Ruiz (0)
McCormack (282) Mitroglou (0)
This is the team I (and I'm sure quite a few others) would liked to of seen as our starting eleven- at least until Mitroglou was sold when we'd bring in Rodallega or Woodrow, and if Ruiz were to go we could use Chris David. I've left Patrick Roberts out of the starting eleven because I believe he is (currently) best suited to a role as an impact sub.
Brede Hangeland said in an interview with Sky Sports News Magath "mentally and physically battered" the Fulham players last season, and whatever you will say about us, this is not a "Fulham" way of managing and is most definitely not the way to nurture young talent of which we have in abundance- as such he's been the wrong man from the word go. As I conclude this blog at 20:22 PM on the 24th August Magath has still not been sacked, however I hope for the future of this club and its supporters he isn't in charge for another minute.
Thanks again for reading, Magath Out.
Saturday 23 August 2014
Derby v Fulham Review- No Way Back, Magath Out.
What can you say about that? I'm going to try and not tread over old ground covered in my Fulham v Wolves Review, however whilst Magath is still in charge I'm going to be sounding like a broken record.
Firstly, We Scored a Goal! Yay!
Enough of the positives, now onto the negatives. We were woeful. I don't know if Magath is secretly a Brentford fan, but his team selections are getting consistent; Consistently Awful. We've got perfectly good central midfielders on the bench or in the reserves, however Magath had the bright idea to play Kostas Stafylidis- a 5ft 10 Left-Back as a Central Midfielder in one of/the most physical leagues in the world. I don't necessarily think Burgess is bad, however when we have a proven Championship player like Dan Burn back at home. Pat Roberts is not a starter, He's a 30 minute shock tactic- which was a role he flourished in in the first two games, and subsequently had Magath saying he needed to be protected. Yes, I agree Felix- SO WHY START HIM IN THE NEXT TWO GAMES?! We need to either play to Ross McCormacks strengths or simply send him to the exotic island I imagine Mitroglou, Ruiz, Burn, Tunnicliffe, Larnell Cole, Amorebieta, Zverotic are currently on laughing at their bank balances going up every week.
The club needs a "cleansing" in my opinion. There isn't something wrong with Khan, however he is incredibly naive- which is understandable to an extent given this is only his second season in English "Soccer". However Alistair MacIntosh has no such excuses, and has shown a level of naivety which is inexcusable in my book, and as such should be on the first car out of Motspur Park along with Magath, and we should use these next two games as essentially a mini Pre-Season with whomever we decide to get in- and use the International Break as a completely fresh start from top to bottom to create a Settled, stable environment which has completely gone in the last year and a half.
Now the patronising question which really annoys me. Who would we get in to replace him? ANYONE WOULD BE AN IMPROVEMENT ON MAGATH! Steve Clarke, Chris Hughton, Gianfranco Zola or Sarah bloody Brookes would be an improvement. I personally would appoint Steve Clarke or Chris Hughton as they're "coaches" who would command respect from the players- and would hopefully convince players like Mitroglou and Ruiz to play for the team.
Now onto whats annoyed me, and judging from Twitter most other Fulham Fans. He's destroying the confidence of our youth players. I think Neil Mellor said we started with seven Under 21s, compare us with pretty much every other team in the Championship (except Leeds and Blackpool) they all have a core of senior players who know the division well, we've thrown all of our youth players in at the deep-end attached to a brick in the shape of Magath. A stated above, we have better options available than the ones we're using- which in turn ins creating a backlash toward some of our youth players such as R. Williams, Kavanagh, Burgess.
Now onto whats seemingly a regular feature of "if I was the manager I would". First thing tomorrow I'd enquire about getting in Albert Adomah (who also seems to be a regular feature on this blog) I'd pay anything up to 3million for him and use him as our starting Right Midfielder. I'd also look for a Central Midfielder like it was a cure for cancer, and pay anything we needed to get one in. I would also ring up Mitroglou and Ruiz and beg, and plead, and bribe, and cajole, and threaten and do whatever we need to convince them to stay. Its also becoming more apparent we need a Goalkeeper who has a calmer head on his shoulders, Joronen has a frenetic-ness about him which creates an unnecessary panic amongst the defenders.
The Team I would use as our starting XI: 4-2-3-1 (if the transfer window closes this second)
Joronen
Hoogland-Burn-Bodurov/Amorebieta-Stafylidis
Parker-Hyndman
Ruiz-McCormack-Kacaniklic (who would all interchange dependant on positioning)
Mitroglou
This is what I think is our strongest eleven by a country mile, and we could use players like Pat Roberts as impact subs, because he undoubtedly has the ability to change a game.
I've tried sticking with every manager we've had, I only got on Jol's back after "that" West Ham game. But Magath is a cancer to this team- and sometimes cancerous tumours have to be removed from the body before they kill it.
Thanks again for reading, I've tried my best not to swear. If there's any grammatical errors etc. I'm sorry but my hands are shaking I'm so angry.
Firstly, We Scored a Goal! Yay!
Enough of the positives, now onto the negatives. We were woeful. I don't know if Magath is secretly a Brentford fan, but his team selections are getting consistent; Consistently Awful. We've got perfectly good central midfielders on the bench or in the reserves, however Magath had the bright idea to play Kostas Stafylidis- a 5ft 10 Left-Back as a Central Midfielder in one of/the most physical leagues in the world. I don't necessarily think Burgess is bad, however when we have a proven Championship player like Dan Burn back at home. Pat Roberts is not a starter, He's a 30 minute shock tactic- which was a role he flourished in in the first two games, and subsequently had Magath saying he needed to be protected. Yes, I agree Felix- SO WHY START HIM IN THE NEXT TWO GAMES?! We need to either play to Ross McCormacks strengths or simply send him to the exotic island I imagine Mitroglou, Ruiz, Burn, Tunnicliffe, Larnell Cole, Amorebieta, Zverotic are currently on laughing at their bank balances going up every week.
The club needs a "cleansing" in my opinion. There isn't something wrong with Khan, however he is incredibly naive- which is understandable to an extent given this is only his second season in English "Soccer". However Alistair MacIntosh has no such excuses, and has shown a level of naivety which is inexcusable in my book, and as such should be on the first car out of Motspur Park along with Magath, and we should use these next two games as essentially a mini Pre-Season with whomever we decide to get in- and use the International Break as a completely fresh start from top to bottom to create a Settled, stable environment which has completely gone in the last year and a half.
Now the patronising question which really annoys me. Who would we get in to replace him? ANYONE WOULD BE AN IMPROVEMENT ON MAGATH! Steve Clarke, Chris Hughton, Gianfranco Zola or Sarah bloody Brookes would be an improvement. I personally would appoint Steve Clarke or Chris Hughton as they're "coaches" who would command respect from the players- and would hopefully convince players like Mitroglou and Ruiz to play for the team.
Now onto whats annoyed me, and judging from Twitter most other Fulham Fans. He's destroying the confidence of our youth players. I think Neil Mellor said we started with seven Under 21s, compare us with pretty much every other team in the Championship (except Leeds and Blackpool) they all have a core of senior players who know the division well, we've thrown all of our youth players in at the deep-end attached to a brick in the shape of Magath. A stated above, we have better options available than the ones we're using- which in turn ins creating a backlash toward some of our youth players such as R. Williams, Kavanagh, Burgess.
Now onto whats seemingly a regular feature of "if I was the manager I would". First thing tomorrow I'd enquire about getting in Albert Adomah (who also seems to be a regular feature on this blog) I'd pay anything up to 3million for him and use him as our starting Right Midfielder. I'd also look for a Central Midfielder like it was a cure for cancer, and pay anything we needed to get one in. I would also ring up Mitroglou and Ruiz and beg, and plead, and bribe, and cajole, and threaten and do whatever we need to convince them to stay. Its also becoming more apparent we need a Goalkeeper who has a calmer head on his shoulders, Joronen has a frenetic-ness about him which creates an unnecessary panic amongst the defenders.
The Team I would use as our starting XI: 4-2-3-1 (if the transfer window closes this second)
Joronen
Hoogland-Burn-Bodurov/Amorebieta-Stafylidis
Parker-Hyndman
Ruiz-McCormack-Kacaniklic (who would all interchange dependant on positioning)
Mitroglou
This is what I think is our strongest eleven by a country mile, and we could use players like Pat Roberts as impact subs, because he undoubtedly has the ability to change a game.
I've tried sticking with every manager we've had, I only got on Jol's back after "that" West Ham game. But Magath is a cancer to this team- and sometimes cancerous tumours have to be removed from the body before they kill it.
Thanks again for reading, I've tried my best not to swear. If there's any grammatical errors etc. I'm sorry but my hands are shaking I'm so angry.
Friday 22 August 2014
Derby v Fulham- Preview
We will lose tomorrow. I think even if we'd won our first three games comfortably we'd of lost tomorrow, Derby under Steve McClaren have had a very mixed start this season winning 1, drawing 1 and losing 1. However two of those games have been away from home and the only home game they've had; they won.
After Wednesdays fiasco its hard to say the route we take for Derby, although I think us playing a team like Derby could favour us because we can afford to counter-attack and use the pace some members of our squad undoubtedly possess. However with the stupid team selections which I refuse to call "rotation" its hard to say we will indeed play this way. In my opinion (which you'll see in my team selection) we should play with a lot more pace on all fronts, which would hopefully exploit the fullbacks on a Derby defence who conceded three goals to Charlton in midweek. As such we should look at yet more players to come in, and make an impact for us in what will undoubtedly be out toughest game of the season so far.
We also need to look very hard at the "danger" men in the Derby team, and how to neutralise those players. Chris Martin is undoubtedly Derby's biggest goal threat, however if handled correctly he can become anonymous. In my opinion we should have Bodurov stick to Martin like glue for the whole game, he seems to be the Centre-Back who's in favour at the moment- and in my opinion is the only Centre-Back with the necessary concentration levels to play this kind of man-marking game. I would then team Bodurov with Amorebieta as he has the necessary concentration levels also- in comparison with the other options of Burgess and Casasola.
I suggested a team against Wolves which included Kay Voser at Right-Back with Tim Hoogland (goal machine) playing holding midfield. I stand by this team selection- especially now we've come to a tricky away game where we won't be able to control the flow of the game, and will have minimal possession. This would accomplish two things, We'd have more pace on the right hand side- and after Wednesday I'm convinced Hoogland doesn't know how to pass a ball, and as such we should play him in the "mopping up" role as a solid holding midfielder. With a solid base of the diamond we're playing, this would/SHOULD mean Scott Parker has more space to pick a pass.
Would any of us honestly be surprised if we played Mitroglou tomorrow? So far we've played 3 games, 4 strikers and gotten a yield of 0 goals between them, Surely this means we should change something? I would start Mitroglou and Rodallega up front tomorrow, which in my opinion would have the right balance of pure running in Hugo and a finishers instinct which Mitroglou undoubtedly has. I don't know the condition of Ross McCormack, however he seems to be pretty ineffective in Magath's system- which makes me question whether Magath knew who he was before he bought him, or even if Magath wanted him.
In my opinion Emerson Hyndman is a must. The only alternative if we're to go by Magaths team selections are, Lasse Vigen Christensen- who played alright, but looked pretty nervous against Millwall and in a game where we'll have limited possession we shouldn't risk it, Or the Dundee Dunga Mark Fotheringham. Who will be responsible for a mass suicide by the end of the season if he keeps playing.
We seem to have multiple options for the role of attacking midfielder, of which Magath seems determined on picking the worst option for the given game. I would play Chris David for this game as he has that extra yard of pace which Eisfeld doesn't, and showed against Ipswich he isn't afraid of a longshot- which I fear we'll be limited to tomorrow.
My Starting XI
Joronen
Voser Bodurov Amorebieta Stafylidis
Hoogland
Parker Hyndman
David
Mitroglou Rodallega
with Pat Roberts coming on for Hyndman or David after 60 minutes.
However that seem is ridiculouly logical and would make too much sense, so the team we'll probably play tomorrow
Rodak
Zverotic Donnelly Burgess Kavanagh
Fotheringham
Fazlic Christensen
Chihi
Dembele G. Williams
Thanks again for reading, I hope you all enjoyed. Feedback is very much appreciated.
After Wednesdays fiasco its hard to say the route we take for Derby, although I think us playing a team like Derby could favour us because we can afford to counter-attack and use the pace some members of our squad undoubtedly possess. However with the stupid team selections which I refuse to call "rotation" its hard to say we will indeed play this way. In my opinion (which you'll see in my team selection) we should play with a lot more pace on all fronts, which would hopefully exploit the fullbacks on a Derby defence who conceded three goals to Charlton in midweek. As such we should look at yet more players to come in, and make an impact for us in what will undoubtedly be out toughest game of the season so far.
We also need to look very hard at the "danger" men in the Derby team, and how to neutralise those players. Chris Martin is undoubtedly Derby's biggest goal threat, however if handled correctly he can become anonymous. In my opinion we should have Bodurov stick to Martin like glue for the whole game, he seems to be the Centre-Back who's in favour at the moment- and in my opinion is the only Centre-Back with the necessary concentration levels to play this kind of man-marking game. I would then team Bodurov with Amorebieta as he has the necessary concentration levels also- in comparison with the other options of Burgess and Casasola.
I suggested a team against Wolves which included Kay Voser at Right-Back with Tim Hoogland (goal machine) playing holding midfield. I stand by this team selection- especially now we've come to a tricky away game where we won't be able to control the flow of the game, and will have minimal possession. This would accomplish two things, We'd have more pace on the right hand side- and after Wednesday I'm convinced Hoogland doesn't know how to pass a ball, and as such we should play him in the "mopping up" role as a solid holding midfielder. With a solid base of the diamond we're playing, this would/SHOULD mean Scott Parker has more space to pick a pass.
Would any of us honestly be surprised if we played Mitroglou tomorrow? So far we've played 3 games, 4 strikers and gotten a yield of 0 goals between them, Surely this means we should change something? I would start Mitroglou and Rodallega up front tomorrow, which in my opinion would have the right balance of pure running in Hugo and a finishers instinct which Mitroglou undoubtedly has. I don't know the condition of Ross McCormack, however he seems to be pretty ineffective in Magath's system- which makes me question whether Magath knew who he was before he bought him, or even if Magath wanted him.
In my opinion Emerson Hyndman is a must. The only alternative if we're to go by Magaths team selections are, Lasse Vigen Christensen- who played alright, but looked pretty nervous against Millwall and in a game where we'll have limited possession we shouldn't risk it, Or the Dundee Dunga Mark Fotheringham. Who will be responsible for a mass suicide by the end of the season if he keeps playing.
We seem to have multiple options for the role of attacking midfielder, of which Magath seems determined on picking the worst option for the given game. I would play Chris David for this game as he has that extra yard of pace which Eisfeld doesn't, and showed against Ipswich he isn't afraid of a longshot- which I fear we'll be limited to tomorrow.
My Starting XI
Joronen
Voser Bodurov Amorebieta Stafylidis
Hoogland
Parker Hyndman
David
Mitroglou Rodallega
with Pat Roberts coming on for Hyndman or David after 60 minutes.
However that seem is ridiculouly logical and would make too much sense, so the team we'll probably play tomorrow
Rodak
Zverotic Donnelly Burgess Kavanagh
Fotheringham
Fazlic Christensen
Chihi
Dembele G. Williams
Thanks again for reading, I hope you all enjoyed. Feedback is very much appreciated.
Thursday 21 August 2014
TNA Impact Review- 20th August
Hello, Welcome to my first Impact review- which I hope will be a mainstay on my blog come 2015. TNAs product has been my salvation with regard to Wrestling since the NY episodes started airing. I was worried TNA would lose a lot of momentum once Dixie went through a table, which was why I was surprised they did it when they did at the end of the first set of tapings. However I can gladly say the product has continued its upswing into the "post Dixie" era.
Bram v Abyss- Stairway to Janice
I've been a big fan of Bram/Kenneth Cameron for a while now. In my opinion he was a really good member of The Ascension, and in my opinion they were stronger when they had Bram as opposed to now when they have Viktor. As such I'm extremely pleased to see Bram getting a proper push coming into TNA; I was worried he would lose a lot of momentum in favour of building Magnus, contrary to this they've elevated Bram passed Magnus in my opinion which I never thought was legitimately going to happen. Onto the match itself; The match was a very solid match for what it was designed to be and they managed to work in a lot of high impact spots given the time limit they were given, and I also thought the finish was solid if a bit unimaginative. The only major detraction I would have for this match is Bram "getting colour". If they are to build Bram as the "hardcore" guy in my opinion they should make it so Bram bleeds "the hard way" or at least appears to be bleeding because of this. I've never understood the appeal of blading, Whilst it was good back in the early days of wrestling in an age of UFC everyone knows you don't bleed from your forehead, it comes from the temple on the head or wherever a pile of thumbtacks has been aggressively stuck into a persons back.
EC3, Spud, Rhino in ring segment
Firstly with regard to EC3s backstage promo about having a moment of clarity combined with the events which unfolded, I think we're about to see EC3 hit a purple patch in his career- and given the right circumstances I can see EC3 being the TNA World Heavyweight Champion by this time next year. The segment itself was fine, I like the addition of Spud having doubts with regard to EC3s actions and (I'm not sure what the taping results are) if we were to see a mini EC3-Spud feud I hope they have Spud in the "Mikey Whipwreck" role of being destroyed and gradually have him come into his own. Its clear they're building to an EC3-Rhino match with some kind of stipulation where if they're smart they'd make EC3 go over in a big way.
We had that weird Mr. Anderson-Smoking video package which made so little sense to me.
Samoa Joe v Low Ki
This match is where I knew TNA was going up rather than down after last week (which was a bit lacklustre in my opinion). The match delivered in all aspects and it was really smart to put Joe over in the way they did, although I thought they'd of had Joe counter the Ki Krusher into the Musclebuster given the similarity both have with regard to setting up the move- and the potential to counter it into the other persons move. This match could however of been a clear Match of the Year if they'd been given 5 or 10 more minutes and maybe a stipulation. However as a pure wrestling spectacle you'll be hard pressed to find a better one all year.
Samuel Shaw v Mr. Anderson.... Anderson
I liked them starting the match backstage, it was what I suggested they should of done at Payback with Rollins and Ambrose. However I don't understand Shaw's booking. I thought with Gunner as his "manager" we would see Shaw become a bit like Festus with regard to becoming super aggressive sometimes and becoming completely docile under the command of Gunner. However they seem to be painting Anderson as the heel with regard to his over aggressiveness with Shaw and I also didn't understand Gunners lack of involvement in the grand scheme of things in my opinion he should of broken up the armbar yelling at him to stop with Shaw getting the win. They seem to (at least in my opinion) be building to a Gunner heel turn which wouldn't make sense for a number of reasons, primarily the way they're booking him- Shaw is coming off as a sympathetic babyface in my opinion. So if/when Gunner turns on Anderson in favour of Shaw is it really a heel turn?
Hardys, 3D, Wolves segment
It did its job, if a bit uneventful. I assumed given the backstage video packages (which I would do away with in TNA, but thats an article for another day) we would get some kind of physical contact with one of the teams standing tall, but instead we had all three teams nodding at each other which didn't do much to build a match which will undoubtedly be amazing next week.
Dixie Promo
I don't like Dixie as a talker. However this segment was different, and you could tell she meant a lot of what she said and the segment did well in keeping Dixie relevant, without over-featuring her.
I don't like Dixie as a talker. However this segment was different, and you could tell she meant a lot of what she said and the segment did well in keeping Dixie relevant, without over-featuring her.
The weird James Storm vignettes with Sanada are good at getting his new persona over, but I assumed we would of got a different one each week with Storm "conditioning" Sanada into becoming more aggressive and morphing into "The Great Sanada".
Angelina Love v Gail Kim
This match was the standard of which I hoped the A.J. v Paige matches would get to- and believe they still can if they're given time. They told a great story, and also managed to get in a fair few "spots" which are almost expected it seems with regard to Knockouts Matches with a stipulation now. The addition of Velvet Sky was interesting- but her lack of help in certain aspects annoyed me, for example Gail had Angelina in the Figure Four around the ring post for at least 10 seconds before Velvet interfered. Also the finish- which looked brutal- was hurt somewhat by Velvet simply holding Angelina's hand it seemed, when it was made apparent she was there she should of at least attempted to get Angelina up- even if it was a failed attempt.
Six Sides of Steel- Storm v Aries v Roode v Young v Magnus v Gunner
We started this segment with an MVP promo which is what we've come to expect. I'm hoping they keep the belt on Lashley long enough for MVP to challenge him for it- because in my opinion it would make a great story and lead to matches which would surprise a fair few people. I also think the belt would need to be in play to make the feud mean something, instead of getting the usual disintegration after a member of a faction loses the belt.
The cage match was alright for what it was, but in comparison to some of the other matches on the card it was pretty tame. The 6 men inside the cage also meant the match felt a cramped and there weren't any notable spots given the men involved. The split decision finish is interesting, but in my opinion anyone who's heading into a fight with Lashley after the way he's been going through people. Need to be built weeks in advance something which I feel has been lacking, meaning there wasn't ever a legitimate threat of Lashley losing the belt. I'm unsure when the title match is coming around however I hope they build Roode (who from my memory becomes #1 Contender?) for a few weeks before finally fighting Lashley at Bound for Glory, or one of the "TV PPVs" TNA seem to be doing now.
Thanks for reading, hope you all enjoyed. Feedback is very much appreciated- if you wish to do so tweet me (@wheelerdeeler). Feel free to tell me I'm wrong as long as you give me something to work with and improve this blog over time.
Fulham v Wolves Review "..."
I Did not sing "Felix Out" tonight.
I simply don't understand out team selection tonight, it doesn't feel like rotation it feels as though we're ripping our team up and starting again every game. I (unlike others it seems) didn't come into the Championship expecting us to 46 out 46 storm the league and we'd be playing a Stamford Bridge next season, I wasn't even overly expecting us to be promoted- at least not automatically. However tonight was truly awful.
If we are to mount any kind of promotion push we need to win our home games, and make Craven Cottage the fortress it was under Roy Hodgson, and to an extent Mark Hughes. Especially tonight, Wolves were playing like the home team. They were well organised, everyone knew their roles within the team and had good powerful runners combined with a good core of a team, something which we seem to be lacking immensely.
I don't claim to know the goings on behind the scenes of Fulham, purely from a fans standpoint I saw Stockdale as a guaranteed starter this season and judging from tweets from his wife and interviews Stockdale gave at the time I believed he was going to stay. Sidwell is another one whom I saw as wanting to stay, and I don't know if it was negligence on the part of Magath, MacIntosh or Sarah Brookes but for whatever reason we allowed a Midfielder who had just had the season of his life to go on a free transfer. Hangeland is an interesting one; We've heard two sides of the story and I don't know whom to believe, however one thing I can say for definite is Hangeland will of commanded the most respect from every single player at Fulham, I don't know if Magath didn't like the respect he commanded and wanted rid- or simply Hangeland asked for his release. This is what I thought would be the core of the team we rebuilt in the Championship alongside Scott Parker.
Now onto the players we do have at the club. We've got a multi-million pound striker on our books in Mitroglou who we know is still definitely at the club because I saw him outside the ground tonight. Ruiz is an interesting player, and one who could provide us with the extra dimension we need to be a legitimate threat. If I were Magath, I'd take the attitude of "Well he's on our books, we're paying the wages. Why not play them". Then we move on to players with proven Championship experience who are being shunned like Lepers. Dan Burn given our current defending situation would be a guaranteed starter in "my" Fulham team, he's got experience at this level and is a physical presence- Something which we were incredibly lacking in today, and were shown up by a much stronger, FITTER Wolves team. Ryan Tunnicliffe isn't a world beater, what he is a solid centre midfielder who can also offer a degree of creativity, but instead we were treated to a Mark Fotheringham special. These are four players who wouldn't look out of place in ANY Championship team searching for promotion, but we also need to look at players like Amorebieta and Kacaniklic.
Now onto a certain player who shouldn't be anywhere near a Fulham shirt in the history of mankind. Mark Fotheringham, I didn't understand the reasoning behind the signing to begin with- but I wrote it off as him being a useful squad player who would frequent the Capital One Cup and FA Cup depending on the depth we had. I did not in a million years expect him to be playing in the first team, especially in favour of Emerson Hyndman who (to my best knowledge) was simply dropped out of thin air after being one of the positives of the prior two games. Magath saying he's going to rotate if we lost isn't inherently wrong, but it is when you start dropping the players that played well in said defeat.
I was talking to my brother coming back from the Millwall game and said to him "We should just start David and Eisfeld, especially in home games". So of course we started neither tonight in favour of Sean Kavanagh (who I had to look at the programme to even seen which position he was) and Kostas Stafylidis, who I viewed as not getting forward enough in the Millwall game as a Left Midfielder.
Patrick Roberts is clearly more at home as an Impact Sub in the "Dejagah" Role at this stage in his career. So naturally we started him up against Bakary Sako who bullied him all night. I understand some people expecting seemingly our "best" young player to be starting, however we need to acknowledge that he isn't yet ready for a consistent 90 minute game. We also don't seem to know our best strike partnership, which leads me back to Mitroglou- Magath claiming he isn't the right man for English football doesn't wash with me. I don't understand what basis Magath had for this, as Mitroglou is a proven goalscorer; and a proven goalscorer will score goals whether he's at Fulham, Barnet, Olympiakos or Bayern Munich. With the seeming absence of Mitroglou we need to pick a strike partnership and stick with it. Woodrow, Dembele, Rodallega and McCormack have all played a similar amount of time off the top of my head and- especially in McCormacks case they seem very unsure of themselves. Something which would come if they had a trust level and knew how the other person thought.
Now onto the "If I was manager I would" bit. There is basically 11 days left of the transfer window left. If I was Magath or MacIntosh or whoever seems to make the signings at Fulham I would prioritise a Central Midfielder, a Creative Midfielder with some more experience of the Championship, and a Striker who is in essence a Target Man (a role which Mitroglou could fulfill) which would hopefully develop a partnership similar to Zamora and Johnson, a winger would also be on the shopping list- but wouldn't be a priority given we still technically have multiple wingers at the club.
Shopping List (in an ideal world); Oliver Norwood (although it seems he's going to Reading), Matt Ritchie, Chris Wood, Albert Adomah (maybe)
The team I would pick if the transfer window closed tonight
I simply don't understand out team selection tonight, it doesn't feel like rotation it feels as though we're ripping our team up and starting again every game. I (unlike others it seems) didn't come into the Championship expecting us to 46 out 46 storm the league and we'd be playing a Stamford Bridge next season, I wasn't even overly expecting us to be promoted- at least not automatically. However tonight was truly awful.
If we are to mount any kind of promotion push we need to win our home games, and make Craven Cottage the fortress it was under Roy Hodgson, and to an extent Mark Hughes. Especially tonight, Wolves were playing like the home team. They were well organised, everyone knew their roles within the team and had good powerful runners combined with a good core of a team, something which we seem to be lacking immensely.
I don't claim to know the goings on behind the scenes of Fulham, purely from a fans standpoint I saw Stockdale as a guaranteed starter this season and judging from tweets from his wife and interviews Stockdale gave at the time I believed he was going to stay. Sidwell is another one whom I saw as wanting to stay, and I don't know if it was negligence on the part of Magath, MacIntosh or Sarah Brookes but for whatever reason we allowed a Midfielder who had just had the season of his life to go on a free transfer. Hangeland is an interesting one; We've heard two sides of the story and I don't know whom to believe, however one thing I can say for definite is Hangeland will of commanded the most respect from every single player at Fulham, I don't know if Magath didn't like the respect he commanded and wanted rid- or simply Hangeland asked for his release. This is what I thought would be the core of the team we rebuilt in the Championship alongside Scott Parker.
Now onto the players we do have at the club. We've got a multi-million pound striker on our books in Mitroglou who we know is still definitely at the club because I saw him outside the ground tonight. Ruiz is an interesting player, and one who could provide us with the extra dimension we need to be a legitimate threat. If I were Magath, I'd take the attitude of "Well he's on our books, we're paying the wages. Why not play them". Then we move on to players with proven Championship experience who are being shunned like Lepers. Dan Burn given our current defending situation would be a guaranteed starter in "my" Fulham team, he's got experience at this level and is a physical presence- Something which we were incredibly lacking in today, and were shown up by a much stronger, FITTER Wolves team. Ryan Tunnicliffe isn't a world beater, what he is a solid centre midfielder who can also offer a degree of creativity, but instead we were treated to a Mark Fotheringham special. These are four players who wouldn't look out of place in ANY Championship team searching for promotion, but we also need to look at players like Amorebieta and Kacaniklic.
Now onto a certain player who shouldn't be anywhere near a Fulham shirt in the history of mankind. Mark Fotheringham, I didn't understand the reasoning behind the signing to begin with- but I wrote it off as him being a useful squad player who would frequent the Capital One Cup and FA Cup depending on the depth we had. I did not in a million years expect him to be playing in the first team, especially in favour of Emerson Hyndman who (to my best knowledge) was simply dropped out of thin air after being one of the positives of the prior two games. Magath saying he's going to rotate if we lost isn't inherently wrong, but it is when you start dropping the players that played well in said defeat.
I was talking to my brother coming back from the Millwall game and said to him "We should just start David and Eisfeld, especially in home games". So of course we started neither tonight in favour of Sean Kavanagh (who I had to look at the programme to even seen which position he was) and Kostas Stafylidis, who I viewed as not getting forward enough in the Millwall game as a Left Midfielder.
Patrick Roberts is clearly more at home as an Impact Sub in the "Dejagah" Role at this stage in his career. So naturally we started him up against Bakary Sako who bullied him all night. I understand some people expecting seemingly our "best" young player to be starting, however we need to acknowledge that he isn't yet ready for a consistent 90 minute game. We also don't seem to know our best strike partnership, which leads me back to Mitroglou- Magath claiming he isn't the right man for English football doesn't wash with me. I don't understand what basis Magath had for this, as Mitroglou is a proven goalscorer; and a proven goalscorer will score goals whether he's at Fulham, Barnet, Olympiakos or Bayern Munich. With the seeming absence of Mitroglou we need to pick a strike partnership and stick with it. Woodrow, Dembele, Rodallega and McCormack have all played a similar amount of time off the top of my head and- especially in McCormacks case they seem very unsure of themselves. Something which would come if they had a trust level and knew how the other person thought.
Now onto the "If I was manager I would" bit. There is basically 11 days left of the transfer window left. If I was Magath or MacIntosh or whoever seems to make the signings at Fulham I would prioritise a Central Midfielder, a Creative Midfielder with some more experience of the Championship, and a Striker who is in essence a Target Man (a role which Mitroglou could fulfill) which would hopefully develop a partnership similar to Zamora and Johnson, a winger would also be on the shopping list- but wouldn't be a priority given we still technically have multiple wingers at the club.
Shopping List (in an ideal world); Oliver Norwood (although it seems he's going to Reading), Matt Ritchie, Chris Wood, Albert Adomah (maybe)
The team I would pick if the transfer window closed tonight
Joronen
Hoogland Burn Amorebieta Stafylidis
Parker
Hyndman Kacaniklic
Ruiz
Mitroglou McCormack Used Subs; Tunnicliffe, Roberts, (if leading) Burgess- (if behind) Woodrow
Hyndman Kacaniklic
Ruiz
Mitroglou McCormack Used Subs; Tunnicliffe, Roberts, (if leading) Burgess- (if behind) Woodrow
However that team is far too logical so the team I expect us to be playing by the end of the transfer window (assuming there is no injuries)
Joronen
Hoogland Bodurov Burgess Stafylidis
Parker
Eisfeld Hyndman
Eisfeld Hyndman
David
Woodrow McCormack
Even this team would (in my opinion) be a very good, and competitive Championship team and if played consistent with Roberts coming on for One of the three more attacking midfielders after 60 minutes, we would at the very least win a game.
However "Felix Bingo" doesn't seem to be stopping any time soon, and as such I'm half expecting Liam Donnelly (who I rate but thats another article), Ryan Williams, George Williams and Dino Fazlic to come in for Bodurov, Parker, Roberts and Kavanagh for Derby
Thanks again for reading, If you've made it to the end well done- tweet me to collect your prize. I promise my blogs won't always be this long and negative.
Wednesday 20 August 2014
Fulham v Wolves Preview
After a frustrating opening two games, its hard to gauge how satisfied I am. On the one hand we've lost two games in a row scoring just one goal in the process. However we've also dominated both games, and from Ipswich and Millwall fans own admission we had them on the ropes at one stage or another and probably deserved a point.
On to tonights game, Wolves seem a hard team to predict at the moment. They've beaten Norwich, but also lost to Northampton and Rotherham. As such I'm finding it hard to make a prediction with regard to this game. So instead I'm going to focus on what Fulham can do to force a win, and become unplayable for Wolves. Simply put we need more width. Until Pat Roberts comes on in each game we have lacked a substantial amount of width down the right hand side, which our goal machine and top scorer Tim Hoogland can't substantiate on his own. If we're insistent on keeping Pat Roberts to an impact sub role, we need to find another player to play down the right hand side. Although I haven't seen Kay Voser play week-in week-out, from what I have seen he has a lot more pace than Hoogland- and as shown in my ideal team for Wolves I've taken this into consideration. I also believe we should give Cauley Woodrow a chance to shine. So far, from the 4 strikers we've used we have a combined 0 goals. However Woodrow has had the least time in which to score, and his link up play with Pat Roberts against Ipswich was sublime. I also don't know whats happened to Fernando Amorebieta and Dan Burn, because at this stage I believe they are better options than Cameron Burgess- who looked uncertain against Millwall, and as far as I'm aware they aren't injured.
The Team I would pick for tonight's game;
Joronen
Voser Bodurov Amorebieta Stafylidis
Hoogland
Parker Hyndman
Eisfeld
Woodrow McCormack (if not fully fit Rodallega)
I welcome opinions and feedback, thanks again for reading. I'm hoping while I'm on my way from Putney Bridge tonight I'll be a lot happier than I was on Saturday
On to tonights game, Wolves seem a hard team to predict at the moment. They've beaten Norwich, but also lost to Northampton and Rotherham. As such I'm finding it hard to make a prediction with regard to this game. So instead I'm going to focus on what Fulham can do to force a win, and become unplayable for Wolves. Simply put we need more width. Until Pat Roberts comes on in each game we have lacked a substantial amount of width down the right hand side, which our goal machine and top scorer Tim Hoogland can't substantiate on his own. If we're insistent on keeping Pat Roberts to an impact sub role, we need to find another player to play down the right hand side. Although I haven't seen Kay Voser play week-in week-out, from what I have seen he has a lot more pace than Hoogland- and as shown in my ideal team for Wolves I've taken this into consideration. I also believe we should give Cauley Woodrow a chance to shine. So far, from the 4 strikers we've used we have a combined 0 goals. However Woodrow has had the least time in which to score, and his link up play with Pat Roberts against Ipswich was sublime. I also don't know whats happened to Fernando Amorebieta and Dan Burn, because at this stage I believe they are better options than Cameron Burgess- who looked uncertain against Millwall, and as far as I'm aware they aren't injured.
The Team I would pick for tonight's game;
Joronen
Voser Bodurov Amorebieta Stafylidis
Hoogland
Parker Hyndman
Eisfeld
Woodrow McCormack (if not fully fit Rodallega)
I welcome opinions and feedback, thanks again for reading. I'm hoping while I'm on my way from Putney Bridge tonight I'll be a lot happier than I was on Saturday
Tuesday 19 August 2014
RAW Review- 18th August
This is my first RAW review, and I'm going to try and keep this as concise as possible because of the number of segments there are during a RAW in relation to a PPV. If you think I've started rambling feel free to skip ahead to the next segment and let me know in the comments.
Stephanie, Nikki, Brie segment
I've seen better acting from footballers trying to buy a foul. I don't mind Nikki Bella turning heel, as long as they forget to turn her mic on consistently. It seems they're building to a Bella-Bella blow off match, however I think WWE are underestimating one thing, only teenage girls and horny people care about The Bellas. The reason the angle was hot going into Summerslam was because of Stephanie and her amazing heel work. Nikki on the other hand sees being a heel as shouting loudly and menacingly brandishing her finger.
Worlds Baldest Tag Team v The Wyatt Family
Yes, that is what they should and will be known as. I don't regularly watch Smackdown, primarily because its on at 10/11pm on a Friday and as such I hadn't (and still haven't) seen these teams match on Smackdown last Friday. As such I was in for a pleasant surprise, I was afraid the match would have a ridiculously slow pace and just feel sluggish in all aspects. However The Wyatts played their part to perfection and I honestly hope this is a build to a Triple Threat Tag match at Night of Champions. Would I be selfish if I said I wanted a TLC Tag match of The Usos v The Wyatts v The Worlds Baldest Tag Team?
Paige v Natalya
The match showed promise and if given a PPV slot it could easily become a classic pairing. However seeing as this segment was built around A.J. and Paige, This feud is bordering on annoying. There doesn't seem to be a lot of progression with regard to either character, and as such it makes the outcome of the feud unclear, for both the fan and in my opinion the company. On the night of Summerslam I said A.J. would be done with the company by December, and from Night of Champions (Rematch Clause) I expect A.J to be gradually phased out of WWE programming, with a Total Diva challenging Paige, so as such this next month will be interesting with regard to character development and how much they build A.J. before the next PPV.
Championship Presentation Segment
Firstly, I like the new design in comparison with the old one. WWE seem deadset on having a big "W" on their championship, so we all need to deal with it and look at other aspects of the strap. I'm very happy they've got rid of the massive "CHAMPION" part of the belt as that made it look pretty naff. Now onto the segment itself; Heyman is becoming the most important part of every single RAW he is featured in. His promos have such great impact because of the smart way in which they've built his character up prior and since Wrestlemania. The only critique I'd have for this segment would be, I'd like HHH to play up an element of distrust with Lesnar/Heyman. This would accomplish two things, It would make Rollins cashing in on Lesnar a real possibility given his alliance with The Authority and it would also add to Lesnars character immensely if he was a mercenary who went rogue, combined with the biggest scumbag in the business in Heyman.
Dolph Ziggler v The Miz
These two have a chemistry which just seems natural and as such they seem unable to have a bad match. However I discussed this in a lot more detail on my Summerslam review- there is a notable lack of midcard heels which can challenge Dolph for the belt. The count out finish prolongs this feud until Night of Champions where in my opinion Dolph will drop the title back to Miz. Looking back I think they primarily had Dolph win the strap at Summerslam because he was the only babyface who won on the main card, and they wanted to pop the crowd. However at Night of Champions I'm expecting with the exception of Bray Wyatt, Lesnar and Paige the babyfaces to dominate the winners enclosure, which would make Miz winning it back not as bad.
Jack Swagger v Cesaro
Firstly, Can someone tell JBL to shut the hell up! His consistent whinging and moaning succeeded in annoying pretty much every fan watching, and massively hurt Swaggers character, which I believe is done as a legitimate threat as a babyface. The addition of Bo intrigues me, as they could have Swagger destroy him- but they could also have Swagger align with Bo and turn heel again. Also Cesaro won! Yay!
Reigns, RVD, Sheamus v RybAxel & Orton
Reigns was massively back into his comfort zone on this RAW in comparison to the previous night. He flourishes in the "hot tag" role presently and should be used accordingly. Reigns surrounded by two work horses in RVD and Sheamus (who I rate a lot highly than some other people do) meant this match had all the elements for a great six man match, and it delivered. Ryback has really grown with Axel, and is now interacting and feeding (if you pardon the pun) off the crowd much more effectively than he was in late 2012/13 and in my opinion should they decide Ryback deserves another mega push he would be much more successful than he was previously.
The Usos vs The Dust Brusters
We had The Dust Brusters pick up a win a solid tag match, where the crowd really surprised me given the lack of time these two teams have been getting recently. The tag division is experiencing what would appear to be a resurgence for the billionth time since we lost E & C, The Hardys and The Dudleys. However this time we have such a volume of teams now, who all seem to be able to put on good matches with each other we have multiple combinations which can fight on a PPV and not look out of place. If Henry is going to feud with Rusev, The Dust Brusters could easily take the third spot in the Triple Threat TLC which I referenced earlier.
Rusev, Lana, Mark Henry segment
We had a "Real American" get a two PPV feud with Rusev and Lana, Now we're getting Mark Henry who hasn't had a "patriotic pop" gimmick since he came in after the Olympics. I don't see why they couldn't of had Swagger win by GRABBING A FLAG IN A "FLAG MATCH" subsequently making them 1-1 leading to a rubber match at Night of Champions which could of had Rusev go over. However they decided to kill Swaggers gimmick and seemingly take away his mouthpiece too. The promo's were very good but this just feels like a massive rehash of what we've had for the last two months.
Dean Ambrose v Seth Rollins- FCA
This'll be the Match of the Year conender that they don't acknowledge at the Slammys. This match wouldn't of been out of place in a PPV main event, which I expect one day these two to be in. These two have everything that Reigns doesn't have to have a successful singles run in the present, the ending was also perfect as it gives Ambrose a reason to miss a few weeks without Rollins seemingly "winning" the feud. The only things I could say as a negative about this is; Kane coming out for every Rollins match is getting tedious, and in my opinion is also hurting Rollins' character if we're supposed to view him as a threat to Lesnar. Also the "cinder blocks" which Ambrose was put through disintegrated on a curb stomp whilst the announce table didn't after a curb stomp and a chokeslam? Must of got the "cinder blocks" from Spain
Overall this was a really good episode of RAW- They addressed every feud and we didn't have any segments which I viewed as pointless which is a notorious problem of three hour RAWs.
Special Mention to the Bray and Jericho promos, these two both have a natural charisma and combined these two have in my opinion the most INTERESTING feud currently.
Thanks again for reading
Stephanie, Nikki, Brie segment
I've seen better acting from footballers trying to buy a foul. I don't mind Nikki Bella turning heel, as long as they forget to turn her mic on consistently. It seems they're building to a Bella-Bella blow off match, however I think WWE are underestimating one thing, only teenage girls and horny people care about The Bellas. The reason the angle was hot going into Summerslam was because of Stephanie and her amazing heel work. Nikki on the other hand sees being a heel as shouting loudly and menacingly brandishing her finger.
Worlds Baldest Tag Team v The Wyatt Family
Yes, that is what they should and will be known as. I don't regularly watch Smackdown, primarily because its on at 10/11pm on a Friday and as such I hadn't (and still haven't) seen these teams match on Smackdown last Friday. As such I was in for a pleasant surprise, I was afraid the match would have a ridiculously slow pace and just feel sluggish in all aspects. However The Wyatts played their part to perfection and I honestly hope this is a build to a Triple Threat Tag match at Night of Champions. Would I be selfish if I said I wanted a TLC Tag match of The Usos v The Wyatts v The Worlds Baldest Tag Team?
Paige v Natalya
The match showed promise and if given a PPV slot it could easily become a classic pairing. However seeing as this segment was built around A.J. and Paige, This feud is bordering on annoying. There doesn't seem to be a lot of progression with regard to either character, and as such it makes the outcome of the feud unclear, for both the fan and in my opinion the company. On the night of Summerslam I said A.J. would be done with the company by December, and from Night of Champions (Rematch Clause) I expect A.J to be gradually phased out of WWE programming, with a Total Diva challenging Paige, so as such this next month will be interesting with regard to character development and how much they build A.J. before the next PPV.
Championship Presentation Segment
Firstly, I like the new design in comparison with the old one. WWE seem deadset on having a big "W" on their championship, so we all need to deal with it and look at other aspects of the strap. I'm very happy they've got rid of the massive "CHAMPION" part of the belt as that made it look pretty naff. Now onto the segment itself; Heyman is becoming the most important part of every single RAW he is featured in. His promos have such great impact because of the smart way in which they've built his character up prior and since Wrestlemania. The only critique I'd have for this segment would be, I'd like HHH to play up an element of distrust with Lesnar/Heyman. This would accomplish two things, It would make Rollins cashing in on Lesnar a real possibility given his alliance with The Authority and it would also add to Lesnars character immensely if he was a mercenary who went rogue, combined with the biggest scumbag in the business in Heyman.
Dolph Ziggler v The Miz
These two have a chemistry which just seems natural and as such they seem unable to have a bad match. However I discussed this in a lot more detail on my Summerslam review- there is a notable lack of midcard heels which can challenge Dolph for the belt. The count out finish prolongs this feud until Night of Champions where in my opinion Dolph will drop the title back to Miz. Looking back I think they primarily had Dolph win the strap at Summerslam because he was the only babyface who won on the main card, and they wanted to pop the crowd. However at Night of Champions I'm expecting with the exception of Bray Wyatt, Lesnar and Paige the babyfaces to dominate the winners enclosure, which would make Miz winning it back not as bad.
Jack Swagger v Cesaro
Firstly, Can someone tell JBL to shut the hell up! His consistent whinging and moaning succeeded in annoying pretty much every fan watching, and massively hurt Swaggers character, which I believe is done as a legitimate threat as a babyface. The addition of Bo intrigues me, as they could have Swagger destroy him- but they could also have Swagger align with Bo and turn heel again. Also Cesaro won! Yay!
Reigns, RVD, Sheamus v RybAxel & Orton
Reigns was massively back into his comfort zone on this RAW in comparison to the previous night. He flourishes in the "hot tag" role presently and should be used accordingly. Reigns surrounded by two work horses in RVD and Sheamus (who I rate a lot highly than some other people do) meant this match had all the elements for a great six man match, and it delivered. Ryback has really grown with Axel, and is now interacting and feeding (if you pardon the pun) off the crowd much more effectively than he was in late 2012/13 and in my opinion should they decide Ryback deserves another mega push he would be much more successful than he was previously.
The Usos vs The Dust Brusters
We had The Dust Brusters pick up a win a solid tag match, where the crowd really surprised me given the lack of time these two teams have been getting recently. The tag division is experiencing what would appear to be a resurgence for the billionth time since we lost E & C, The Hardys and The Dudleys. However this time we have such a volume of teams now, who all seem to be able to put on good matches with each other we have multiple combinations which can fight on a PPV and not look out of place. If Henry is going to feud with Rusev, The Dust Brusters could easily take the third spot in the Triple Threat TLC which I referenced earlier.
Rusev, Lana, Mark Henry segment
We had a "Real American" get a two PPV feud with Rusev and Lana, Now we're getting Mark Henry who hasn't had a "patriotic pop" gimmick since he came in after the Olympics. I don't see why they couldn't of had Swagger win by GRABBING A FLAG IN A "FLAG MATCH" subsequently making them 1-1 leading to a rubber match at Night of Champions which could of had Rusev go over. However they decided to kill Swaggers gimmick and seemingly take away his mouthpiece too. The promo's were very good but this just feels like a massive rehash of what we've had for the last two months.
Dean Ambrose v Seth Rollins- FCA
This'll be the Match of the Year conender that they don't acknowledge at the Slammys. This match wouldn't of been out of place in a PPV main event, which I expect one day these two to be in. These two have everything that Reigns doesn't have to have a successful singles run in the present, the ending was also perfect as it gives Ambrose a reason to miss a few weeks without Rollins seemingly "winning" the feud. The only things I could say as a negative about this is; Kane coming out for every Rollins match is getting tedious, and in my opinion is also hurting Rollins' character if we're supposed to view him as a threat to Lesnar. Also the "cinder blocks" which Ambrose was put through disintegrated on a curb stomp whilst the announce table didn't after a curb stomp and a chokeslam? Must of got the "cinder blocks" from Spain
Overall this was a really good episode of RAW- They addressed every feud and we didn't have any segments which I viewed as pointless which is a notorious problem of three hour RAWs.
Special Mention to the Bray and Jericho promos, these two both have a natural charisma and combined these two have in my opinion the most INTERESTING feud currently.
Thanks again for reading
Monday 18 August 2014
Summerslam Review- Is that it?
Summerslam is billed as the second biggest PPV behind Wrestlemania, and as such you should expect somewhat of a "big fight" atmosphere- which we had in abundance last year and prior years. However for 2014 Summerslam it seemed like "just another PPV", or a really good episode of RAW.
Here's how I perceived this PPV;
Pre-Show- RVD v Cesaro
I wasn't interested in this match at all, and I honestly don't know why they decided on doing this match, especially considering The Usos and The Wyatts were reduced to lumberjacks in a midcard match after they tore the house down at Payback so as such I don't have an informed opinion on the match itself. However the outcome of the match in my opinion means we're going to see Cesaro relegated to the position he was found in before he aligned with The Real Americans, which considering where many people viewed him in the aftermath and build to Wrestlemania its clear we can say they've dropped the ball... AGAIN!
IC Title- The Miz v Dolph Ziggler
First and foremost I was surprised they decided to open the show with this match, considering it had very little build in comparison to some other matches. But they clearly wanted to open the match with an old school Wrasslin match, and the match was really good- and I'm very happy for Dolph. However The Miz's gimmick required a Title in my opinion for it to really get over, and Miz is an entertaining heel act. The babyface has already won in this feud, this means aside from the rematch clause Dolph has to move onto another feud as a babyface. Although the IC Title won't be featured prominently, it should still have some kind of storyline behind it as it should occupy a PPV spot every month. With the exception of The Miz I Can't name many, if any Heels that would be high up enough to challenge for the strap, whilst also either not being in a feud or simply are "too good" for the belt. As said earlier it looks like Cesaro is going to plummet down the card and BNB is out until January as far as I'm aware. So in short, I'm happy for Dolph but I think they did it as a quick pop from the crowd which they didn't really think through.
Divas Title- A.J. v Paige
Looking back I should of seen this coming. For some reason I assumed A.J. would get another lengthy title reign feud with a few more NXT Women such as Charlotte. However I forgot he bane of the WWEs existence- Total Divas was coming back in roughly a month. Every Diva who's on Total Divas with the exception of Cameron AT THIS POINT is a Babyface so naturally it would make more sense to put the strap on a heel and build them up so when a Total Diva wins the strap it would mean more. I also think A.J. is close to done with the company, I think she sees the writing on the wall with regard to her relationship with a certain Walking Dead Enthusiast, and as such knows she'll be close to buried pretty soon. Especially with Total Divas coming back as soon as it is which'll mean the focus will shift even more of the Wrasslers in the Diva Division.
Flag Match (Not Really)- Rusev v Jack Swagger
First off, IT WASN'T A FLAG MATCH. If I'd known the stipulation attached to this match was what it was I'd of predicted Rusev because they wouldn't of had him pin or submit. However I assumed stupidly, that a FLAG MATCH would involved grabbing a flag and therefore thought it was a means whereby they could get the patriotic pop without making Rusev lose much credibility. But of course WWE had to over complicate things and as a result we had Swagger passing out to the Accolade.
Lumberjack Match- Dean Ambrose v Seth Rollins
This match had the most potential with regard to the unknown element of the Lumberjacks, however I'd of made the Lumberjacks exclusively out of people The Shield killed in order to create some intrigue every time they went outside the ring. However first and foremost, Those were some crap lumberjacks. Suspension of disbelief is one thing another is having Ambrose and Rollins work their way through roughly 15 men on multiple occasions. I also don't know why they picked the finish that they did, I understand them wanting Rollins to go over, however this card was ridiculously heel heavy with regard to match outcomes, the only thing I can rationalise this with is they're going to sell an injury angle so Ambrose can go and do his film.
Chris Jericho v Bray Wyatt
Firstly- Match of the Night. In my opinion the Lumberjack stipulation limited the prior match. As such this was my match of the night. It was far from perfect and there were some notable botches, however this match told the best story in my opinion with regard to Wyatt never staying down epitomized by when Jericho went to do the Lionsault and Bray went into the spider walk spot. Bray cutting a promo in the middle of the match also added to the intrigue surrounding him and will leave him in good stead for the future. The only negative about this match was the manner in which Bray went over. I believed he would go over in some way which would make the rubber match even more obvious. However Bray has already gone over cleanly, so as a result the rubber match at Night of Champions (assuming that is what they're building to) will have exactly the same outcome as before and hurt Jericho to an extent.
Stephanie McMahon v Brie Bella
Ok, Who didn't see that coming? The less said about the match quality the better- but it was never expected to be the greatest technical masterclass ever. However the way they built to the finish detracted so much because they might as well of had Lawler shouting HEY, SHE'S GOING TO SCREW HER SISTER IN A FEW MINUTES, as soon as we saw her come into the picture. However this wasn't by any means the worst match of the night because the crowd care about Stephanie, they wanted to see her get her ass kicked, and if I was booking I'd keep teasing Stephanie getting killed by someone until Wrestlemania when we can get a blowoff where Stephanie is obliterated by someone.
Randy Orton v Roman Reigns
Remember I said Stephanie v Brie wasn't the worst match of the night? Yeah this was it. The crowd are seemingly getting tired of Reigns before he's even had his mega push which he's seemingly going to get within the next year. I don't understand primarily why they've had Reigns get the massive singles push right off the back of The Shield breaking up. Simply put, he isn't ready yet. He's gone from being the "hot tag" guy in 6 man tags, to wrestling 15minute matches on a PPV, and even an opponent the calibre of Orton seemingly can't drag a good match out of him. I also believe this match was hurt by its placement on the card. The spot they found themselves is usually as a palate cleanser between the two main events, as such the crowd REALLY weren't into the match.
WWE Championship- Brock Lesnar v John Cena
I think we just saw the first 20 minute squash match. Brock Lesnar is a big draw, he brings with himself a Big Fight atmosphere and you expect to see a ridiculously physical match, and in this circumstance you expected Cena to give Lesnar everything and Brock to F5 him 1-2-3. Firstly I believe this match was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too long for the way they booked it as a glorified squash, but in turn they booked themselves into a corner because we couldn't have a 10 minute match close the second biggest PPV of the year. It just felt really underwhelming to me, In my opinion for the match to have a greater impact we should of been made to think Cena was going to overcome the odds. We didn't get that and instead we got a match which wouldn't of been out of place on a RAW midcard if you took the zero off of the time they had.
Match of the Night: Jericho v Wyatt
Worst Match of the Night: Reigns v Orton
Thanks again for reading
Here's how I perceived this PPV;
Pre-Show- RVD v Cesaro
I wasn't interested in this match at all, and I honestly don't know why they decided on doing this match, especially considering The Usos and The Wyatts were reduced to lumberjacks in a midcard match after they tore the house down at Payback so as such I don't have an informed opinion on the match itself. However the outcome of the match in my opinion means we're going to see Cesaro relegated to the position he was found in before he aligned with The Real Americans, which considering where many people viewed him in the aftermath and build to Wrestlemania its clear we can say they've dropped the ball... AGAIN!
IC Title- The Miz v Dolph Ziggler
First and foremost I was surprised they decided to open the show with this match, considering it had very little build in comparison to some other matches. But they clearly wanted to open the match with an old school Wrasslin match, and the match was really good- and I'm very happy for Dolph. However The Miz's gimmick required a Title in my opinion for it to really get over, and Miz is an entertaining heel act. The babyface has already won in this feud, this means aside from the rematch clause Dolph has to move onto another feud as a babyface. Although the IC Title won't be featured prominently, it should still have some kind of storyline behind it as it should occupy a PPV spot every month. With the exception of The Miz I Can't name many, if any Heels that would be high up enough to challenge for the strap, whilst also either not being in a feud or simply are "too good" for the belt. As said earlier it looks like Cesaro is going to plummet down the card and BNB is out until January as far as I'm aware. So in short, I'm happy for Dolph but I think they did it as a quick pop from the crowd which they didn't really think through.
Divas Title- A.J. v Paige
Looking back I should of seen this coming. For some reason I assumed A.J. would get another lengthy title reign feud with a few more NXT Women such as Charlotte. However I forgot he bane of the WWEs existence- Total Divas was coming back in roughly a month. Every Diva who's on Total Divas with the exception of Cameron AT THIS POINT is a Babyface so naturally it would make more sense to put the strap on a heel and build them up so when a Total Diva wins the strap it would mean more. I also think A.J. is close to done with the company, I think she sees the writing on the wall with regard to her relationship with a certain Walking Dead Enthusiast, and as such knows she'll be close to buried pretty soon. Especially with Total Divas coming back as soon as it is which'll mean the focus will shift even more of the Wrasslers in the Diva Division.
Flag Match (Not Really)- Rusev v Jack Swagger
First off, IT WASN'T A FLAG MATCH. If I'd known the stipulation attached to this match was what it was I'd of predicted Rusev because they wouldn't of had him pin or submit. However I assumed stupidly, that a FLAG MATCH would involved grabbing a flag and therefore thought it was a means whereby they could get the patriotic pop without making Rusev lose much credibility. But of course WWE had to over complicate things and as a result we had Swagger passing out to the Accolade.
Lumberjack Match- Dean Ambrose v Seth Rollins
This match had the most potential with regard to the unknown element of the Lumberjacks, however I'd of made the Lumberjacks exclusively out of people The Shield killed in order to create some intrigue every time they went outside the ring. However first and foremost, Those were some crap lumberjacks. Suspension of disbelief is one thing another is having Ambrose and Rollins work their way through roughly 15 men on multiple occasions. I also don't know why they picked the finish that they did, I understand them wanting Rollins to go over, however this card was ridiculously heel heavy with regard to match outcomes, the only thing I can rationalise this with is they're going to sell an injury angle so Ambrose can go and do his film.
Chris Jericho v Bray Wyatt
Firstly- Match of the Night. In my opinion the Lumberjack stipulation limited the prior match. As such this was my match of the night. It was far from perfect and there were some notable botches, however this match told the best story in my opinion with regard to Wyatt never staying down epitomized by when Jericho went to do the Lionsault and Bray went into the spider walk spot. Bray cutting a promo in the middle of the match also added to the intrigue surrounding him and will leave him in good stead for the future. The only negative about this match was the manner in which Bray went over. I believed he would go over in some way which would make the rubber match even more obvious. However Bray has already gone over cleanly, so as a result the rubber match at Night of Champions (assuming that is what they're building to) will have exactly the same outcome as before and hurt Jericho to an extent.
Stephanie McMahon v Brie Bella
Ok, Who didn't see that coming? The less said about the match quality the better- but it was never expected to be the greatest technical masterclass ever. However the way they built to the finish detracted so much because they might as well of had Lawler shouting HEY, SHE'S GOING TO SCREW HER SISTER IN A FEW MINUTES, as soon as we saw her come into the picture. However this wasn't by any means the worst match of the night because the crowd care about Stephanie, they wanted to see her get her ass kicked, and if I was booking I'd keep teasing Stephanie getting killed by someone until Wrestlemania when we can get a blowoff where Stephanie is obliterated by someone.
Randy Orton v Roman Reigns
Remember I said Stephanie v Brie wasn't the worst match of the night? Yeah this was it. The crowd are seemingly getting tired of Reigns before he's even had his mega push which he's seemingly going to get within the next year. I don't understand primarily why they've had Reigns get the massive singles push right off the back of The Shield breaking up. Simply put, he isn't ready yet. He's gone from being the "hot tag" guy in 6 man tags, to wrestling 15minute matches on a PPV, and even an opponent the calibre of Orton seemingly can't drag a good match out of him. I also believe this match was hurt by its placement on the card. The spot they found themselves is usually as a palate cleanser between the two main events, as such the crowd REALLY weren't into the match.
WWE Championship- Brock Lesnar v John Cena
I think we just saw the first 20 minute squash match. Brock Lesnar is a big draw, he brings with himself a Big Fight atmosphere and you expect to see a ridiculously physical match, and in this circumstance you expected Cena to give Lesnar everything and Brock to F5 him 1-2-3. Firstly I believe this match was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too long for the way they booked it as a glorified squash, but in turn they booked themselves into a corner because we couldn't have a 10 minute match close the second biggest PPV of the year. It just felt really underwhelming to me, In my opinion for the match to have a greater impact we should of been made to think Cena was going to overcome the odds. We didn't get that and instead we got a match which wouldn't of been out of place on a RAW midcard if you took the zero off of the time they had.
Match of the Night: Jericho v Wyatt
Worst Match of the Night: Reigns v Orton
Thanks again for reading
Sunday 17 August 2014
Summerslam Predictions
Its the slightly above mediocre show of the Summer! And we've got a kinda alright card and this is how I see it going down.
Preshow- RVD v Cesaro
I've got absolutely no idea where they got this match from especially considering the lack of The Wyatts and The Usos in a scheduled match after they had in my opinion the best match at the last PPV. As such this match is hard to call, and it can go either way due to the lack of a storyline.
Winner: Cesaro
Dean Ambrose v Seth Rollins
Before a few days ago I'd of said Ambrose definitely, because for reasons I shall discuss it made the most sense. However the announcement threw a pretty sizable spanner into the prediction works. When we knew we were first getting a rematch at Summerslam I thought they'd add a stipulation that the MITB case would be on the line especially as they had Ambrose rip Rollins' contract up etc. on RAW. However as soon as they added the Lumberjack stipulation I thought it was a nailed on win for Ambrose. But then WWE Studios had to poke their noses in and as a result, the result isn't as clear cut as I thought it would be, and if Ambrose has to take time off as Cena and Big Show (Yes he's still employed) have done recently then it would make more sense for Rollins to win. After much deliberation and considering all of the factors involved.
Winner: Dean Ambrose
A.J. v Paige
This is an interesting one in my opinion, Once again it could go either way, but for very differing reasons to the Ambrose v Rollins match. However I believe the WWE has very little in the way of confidence in Paige's ability to hold the title. And with the majority of winners in the card being heels in my opinion.
Winner: A.J.
The Miz v Dolph Ziggler
If you follow me on twitter (@wheelerdeeler if by some miracle you haven't come here from Twitter) You'll of noticed I've equated Miz' new gimmick to the "Dashing" Cody Rhodes gimmick *Cuts to a different Camera* "Dashing Cody Rhodes. As such I think this feud has quite a lot of potential, especially with Dolph teasing the Superkick in the build to this feud, and I think this feud is going to go until Night of Champions and because of this.
Winner: The Miz
Jack Swagger v Rusev
In my opinion this is a more clear cut result (Which means I'll be wrong). However I can't see a scenario where Swagger doesn't win given the amount of patriotism they've put in (Putin, See what I did there) to Swaggers gimmick. This combined with the fact Rusev won't have to pinned to lose as far as I'm aware of means.
Winner: Jack Swagger
Randy Orton v Roman Reigns
Again, this result is more clear cut in my opinion. Unless Big E has been giving Vince his white powder there's No Chance in Hell they'd have Reigns- who they're seemingly pushing to the moon, lose to Randy who, although he has been champion recently isn't looking like setting the world alight any time soon.
Winner: Roman Reigns
Chris Jericho v Bray Wyatt
Almost everyone expected Bray to go over at Payback, Myself included until I thought about it during the video package before their match. It was Jerichos first PPV back, The feud was clearly going to go for more than a month given Jericho is back until Night of Champions and the ultimate result for this angle will hopefully be Bray going over Jericho clean. Bray said something interesting on Jerichos podcast that came out this Friday, something along the lines of "What makes you think there isn't more of us". I Remember right when the Wyatt vignettes were airing there was a story on the dirtsheets that they were going to add more members to the "Family" but those stories never came to fruition.
Winner: Bray Wyatt w/ A Dirty Finish (Preferably someone coming up from NXT)
Brie Bella v Stephanie McMahon
This in my opinion isn't as hard to call as some people are making out. In my opinion Stephanie will only become a less prominent character when The Authority angle dies down. This combined with the way Nikki was "victimized" by Stephanie, and by wrestling logic its Bries fault for this not the person who ordered the victimization. I think its pretty clear who'll win
Winner: Stephanie McMahon w/ Nikki turning on Brie (Similar to what happened with The Hardy's minus a steel chair)
John Cena v Brock Lesnar
Contrary the Brie v Stephanie match, I honestly believe this match could go either way. Whilst myself and every other wrestling fan who's voices have broken are praying to the Wrestling gods that Brock wins, I'm not as convinced as some. Brocks limited schedule is one of the main reasons I'm doubting this seemingly obvious outcome, This combined with an obvious lack of babyfaces to challenge Brock in the absence of Daniel Bryan is putting this result into serious doubt in my mind. As such I'm going to go down a different route with my predictions.
Winner: John Cena (but he'll take a helluva beating) W/ Seth Rollins cashing in successfully to end the show
Thanks again for reading.
Preshow- RVD v Cesaro
I've got absolutely no idea where they got this match from especially considering the lack of The Wyatts and The Usos in a scheduled match after they had in my opinion the best match at the last PPV. As such this match is hard to call, and it can go either way due to the lack of a storyline.
Winner: Cesaro
Dean Ambrose v Seth Rollins
Before a few days ago I'd of said Ambrose definitely, because for reasons I shall discuss it made the most sense. However the announcement threw a pretty sizable spanner into the prediction works. When we knew we were first getting a rematch at Summerslam I thought they'd add a stipulation that the MITB case would be on the line especially as they had Ambrose rip Rollins' contract up etc. on RAW. However as soon as they added the Lumberjack stipulation I thought it was a nailed on win for Ambrose. But then WWE Studios had to poke their noses in and as a result, the result isn't as clear cut as I thought it would be, and if Ambrose has to take time off as Cena and Big Show (Yes he's still employed) have done recently then it would make more sense for Rollins to win. After much deliberation and considering all of the factors involved.
Winner: Dean Ambrose
A.J. v Paige
This is an interesting one in my opinion, Once again it could go either way, but for very differing reasons to the Ambrose v Rollins match. However I believe the WWE has very little in the way of confidence in Paige's ability to hold the title. And with the majority of winners in the card being heels in my opinion.
Winner: A.J.
The Miz v Dolph Ziggler
If you follow me on twitter (@wheelerdeeler if by some miracle you haven't come here from Twitter) You'll of noticed I've equated Miz' new gimmick to the "Dashing" Cody Rhodes gimmick *Cuts to a different Camera* "Dashing Cody Rhodes. As such I think this feud has quite a lot of potential, especially with Dolph teasing the Superkick in the build to this feud, and I think this feud is going to go until Night of Champions and because of this.
Winner: The Miz
Jack Swagger v Rusev
In my opinion this is a more clear cut result (Which means I'll be wrong). However I can't see a scenario where Swagger doesn't win given the amount of patriotism they've put in (Putin, See what I did there) to Swaggers gimmick. This combined with the fact Rusev won't have to pinned to lose as far as I'm aware of means.
Winner: Jack Swagger
Randy Orton v Roman Reigns
Again, this result is more clear cut in my opinion. Unless Big E has been giving Vince his white powder there's No Chance in Hell they'd have Reigns- who they're seemingly pushing to the moon, lose to Randy who, although he has been champion recently isn't looking like setting the world alight any time soon.
Winner: Roman Reigns
Chris Jericho v Bray Wyatt
Almost everyone expected Bray to go over at Payback, Myself included until I thought about it during the video package before their match. It was Jerichos first PPV back, The feud was clearly going to go for more than a month given Jericho is back until Night of Champions and the ultimate result for this angle will hopefully be Bray going over Jericho clean. Bray said something interesting on Jerichos podcast that came out this Friday, something along the lines of "What makes you think there isn't more of us". I Remember right when the Wyatt vignettes were airing there was a story on the dirtsheets that they were going to add more members to the "Family" but those stories never came to fruition.
Winner: Bray Wyatt w/ A Dirty Finish (Preferably someone coming up from NXT)
Brie Bella v Stephanie McMahon
This in my opinion isn't as hard to call as some people are making out. In my opinion Stephanie will only become a less prominent character when The Authority angle dies down. This combined with the way Nikki was "victimized" by Stephanie, and by wrestling logic its Bries fault for this not the person who ordered the victimization. I think its pretty clear who'll win
Winner: Stephanie McMahon w/ Nikki turning on Brie (Similar to what happened with The Hardy's minus a steel chair)
John Cena v Brock Lesnar
Contrary the Brie v Stephanie match, I honestly believe this match could go either way. Whilst myself and every other wrestling fan who's voices have broken are praying to the Wrestling gods that Brock wins, I'm not as convinced as some. Brocks limited schedule is one of the main reasons I'm doubting this seemingly obvious outcome, This combined with an obvious lack of babyfaces to challenge Brock in the absence of Daniel Bryan is putting this result into serious doubt in my mind. As such I'm going to go down a different route with my predictions.
Winner: John Cena (but he'll take a helluva beating) W/ Seth Rollins cashing in successfully to end the show
Thanks again for reading.
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