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Match
Preview |
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| Result |
Fulham |
6 - 1 |
West Bromwich Albion |
| Scorers |
Heidar Helguson (4)
Heidar Helguson (40)
Tomasz Radzinski (48)
Curtis Davies (og 58)
Collins John (83)
Collins John (90) |
Kevin Campbell (85) |
| Attendance |
21,508 |
| Teams |
4-4-2
29 - Antti Niemi (GK)
3 - Carlos Bocanegra
31 - Wayne Bridge
6 - Zat Knight
2 - Moritz Volz
27 - Simon Elliott
4 - Steed Malbranque
11 - Luis Boa Morte
10 - Heidar Helguson
20 - Brian McBride
13 - Tomasz Radzinski |
4-4-2
(GK) Tomasz Kuszczak - 29
Martin Albrechtsen - 14
Neil Clement - 6
Curtis Davies - 19
Thomas Gaardsoe - 4
Ronnie Wallwork - 24
Jonathan Greening - 8
Junichi Inamoto - 33
Nigel Quashie - 7
Kevin Campbell - 21
Geoff Horsfield - 9 |
| Substitutes |
30 - Tony Warner (GK)
24 - Alain Goma
33 - Niclas Jensen
5 - Sylvain Legwinski
15 - Collins John |
(GK) Russell Hoult -
1
Williams Martinez - 5
Darren Carter - 17
Jan Kozak - 13
Nathan Ellington - 22 |
| Substitutions |
C John for H Helguson
(64) |
W Martinez for
T Gaardsoe (45)
N Ellington for G Horsfield (45)
R Hoult for T Kuszczak (61) |
| Yellow Cards |
Heidar Helguson (46)
Tomasz Radzinski (49)
Luis Boa Morte (86) |
Ronnie Wallwork (29)
Williams Martinez (61) |
| Red Cards |
None |
None |
| Referee |
G Poll (Hertfordshire) |
This was one of those
games that is best forgotten, and consigned to the annals of history
and left well alone. The blame for such a poor defensive display
should be collectively shared, and even Paul Robinson should bear
some of it, as it was his ill-discipline in the tackle that forced
the manager to change what had looked like a solid defensive unit
in the previous four games.
But Robinson's absence cannot explain it all, and neither can Gaardsoe's
unfortunate return to the side. The man we once called the Great
Dane was certainly culpable for the first two goals, but Curtis
Davies weak tackle on Helgusson contributed to the first, and Albrechtsen's
unnecessary challenge on Boa Morte resulted in the free kick which
produced the second. It was an all round dreadful defensive display
that must never be repeated.
What makes it more annoying is that Fulham couldn't be said to have
battered the Albion goal. The statistics state that both sides had
eleven attempts, with Fulham shading the "on target" number
by seven to six. Unfortunately, six of that seven ended up in the
back of the net. During the first half, Albion could be said to
have been marginally the better side. They started brightly and
kept Fulham in their own half for the first four minutes. Then one
long ball, not dealt with by Gaardsoe and Davies, and Helguson makes
it one-nil. Albion then had most of the possession for the remainder
of the half with a couple of efforts by Quashie kept out by Niemi,
and then five minutes before the break, Alby gives away a silly
free kick, Gaardsoe loses Helguson, two-nil.
The second half was a surreal experience. It seemed as if Albion
spent most of the time probing away at the Fulham defence, before
losing the ball allowing Fulham to break up field and score. And
that happened four times. Greening, Wallwork and Quashie were trying
hard to open up the Fulham defence, but the home side remained strong
and once they broke, they seemed able to score at will. Inamoto,
who was supposed to be playing right win, found himself as the defensive
midfielder on numerous occasions and, for three of the goals, he
simply failed to track a runner that ended up scoring. Albrechtsen
was guilty of not making much of an effort to prevent Helgusson
from getting the ball for the third goal, which unfortunately deflected
of Davies to wrong foot Kuszczak, and he always looked vulnerable
against Boa Morte.
Kuszczak took a knock in the first half when Helguson followed through
which eventually forced him off in the second half. With Kirkland
suffering from illness, Russell Hoult made his first Premiership
appearance of the season. Kuszczak has a suspected broken rib, so
Kirkland might get his chance again.
So Albion's goal difference advantage over Birmingham has been wiped
out, and Boro's unexpected 3-0 win over Chelsea means they drop
back into 17th place. Hopefully, Albion can put this display behind
them as a one off, take their trip to the sunshine, recharge their
batteries, and return to action in a fortnight's time ready for
a huge, huge game against Middlesbrough at the Hawthorns.
As a final point, I must say something about Albion's fans. They
were fantastic. There were some grumblings about Robson with respect
to Gaardsoe's performance, but with Martinez hardly speaking any
English, you can understand why he didn't want to start him in the
middle; hindsight is a wonderful thing! But the fans remained supportive
throughout and sung to the final whistle - that level of support
will be needed home and away to help Albion get over that finishing
line to Premiership safety.
Marks
Tomasz Kuszczak - 6 - Didn't have much of a chance with the four
he conceded; did OK otherwise.
Martin Albrechtsen - 4 - Really poor game defensively; Boa Morte
gave him a torrid time and he was all over the place at set pieces.
Up front, his distribution was awful.
Neil Clement - 5 - Offered nothing in an attacking sense, and didn't
impose himself at the back.
Curtis Davies - 5 - At fault for the first goal, and maybe his inexperience
counted against him as he was unable to rescue the defence from
a bad day at the office.
Thomas Gaardsoe - 3 - Woeful. Two elementary mistakes that cost
the first two goals; looked very uncomfortable.
Ronnie Wallwork - 7 - Worked well with Quashie but found it difficult
with the level of ineptitude from most of his team mates.
Jonathan Greening - 6 - One of the few who offered something in
attack, but failed to really impose himself.
Junichi Inamoto - 4 - Other than the pass which set KC up for the
goal, his distribution was poor and he must take part of the blame
for at least three of the goals as he failed to track his man.
Nigel Quashie - 7 - MOM. Albion's only real hope; had a couple of
good shots and was at the centre of everything good for Albion.
Kevin Campbell - 6 - Worked hard, did OK.
Geoff Horsfield - 5 - Didn't impose himself at all; not sure if
his injury was bothering him.
Russell Hoult - 6 - Did nothing wrong.
Williams Martinez - 6 - Did OK, although he's obviously not a left
back; got caught upfield a couple of times, but we were chasing
the game, I guess.
Nathan Ellington - 6 - Didn't have much of a chance to shine.
Bryan Robson - 6 - In hindsight, Gaardsoe's recall was a mistake,
but he wasn't helped by poor performances from the other defenders.
Robson was left with few options to change the game through substitutions
and was thoroughly let down by his players.
Jon Want, 12th February 2006.
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