Field #3 by Field Matchday

Gareth Bale

Laudrup & Pochettino

Matthew Stranger

Tim Stannard

From the playground to the Premier League: Bale and his innate ability to glide past defenders

Both arrived with similar managerial reputations but to very different receptions. Tim Stannard explains why

16 Match Previews Field

Manchester United can clinch the title & QPR can all but be relegated. It’s all still to play for ahead of this week’s games

Homegrown Bubble

27 Peace

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Is the influx of foreign players really to blame for England’s failure to make an impression on international tournaments?

Life on tour and growing up an Aston Villa fan. We speak with Peace guitarist Doug Castle

Online: www.fieldmatchday.com @field_matchday Post: Spiel Publishing Ltd 26 Hope Street Liverpool L1 9BX Contact: info@fieldmatchday.com Founders: Dan Byrne & Paul Gleeson

Contributors: Michael Cottage @michaelcottage Sean Rainey @sean_rainey Matthew Stranger @MatthewStanger Tim Stannard @LaLigaLoca Well Made @Wellmadestudio

Gareth Bale At school there was always one kid who excelled, who just made football look easy as he glided past player after player. It’s this mystical quality that Matthew Stranger sees in Gareth Bale; the man who treats the Premier League like his own playground.

shown however many yellow cards for simulation. The number-crunching, calls for PFA recognition, transfer speculation - it’s a relentless, joy-sapping story arc in which one of the Premier League’s most exciting players has been re-wired

into a headline-generating machine. Bale’s robotic consistency has cultivated a consistently robotic reaction where hype has left behind the simple pleasure of enjoying a simply wonderful footballer. I don’t think, either, of a potential move to Real Madrid or why Bale should be crowned Player of the Year ahead of Robin van Persie and Luis Suarez. Instead, my mind wanders back to park pitches and snug, musty changing rooms infused with the smell of Deep Heat and wet mud. The shouts of my classmates’ excitable voices drowns the teacher’s only tactic to “get stuck in” and amongst the din sits the schoolboy superstar. Bright smile, bright eyes and dazzling feet. It is this boy that I think of when I watch Gareth Bale collect a short pass 40 yards from goal and slalom between defenders before rifling the ball into the net. He reminds me of that kid at school who found it all so easy, while I panted, sliced and tried to avoid catching a glimpse of my father’s thinly veiled embarrassment on the touchline. I was green with envy, my father was jealous of his father, but secretly we both enjoyed being spectators on those cold Saturday mornings. Over the years I’ve come to realise that the school

Field — Issue 03

Gareth Bale

When I think of Gareth Bale, I don’t think of awards. I care not for comparisons with Cristiano Ronaldo or that Spurs are still to win a game in 2013 without their talisman. The reel of statistics bores me: he’s scored this many goals in that many games, taken shots from here and there, been

“My all-round play has improved this season: bringing other people into the game, knowing when to pass, when to dribble, when to shoot. But I’m still learning to play in this free role now – this number 10 role. I’m learning the position and the best ways to go about it. I don’t think you can ever stop learning in football.”

boy superstar didn’t always find it so easy. His were the only boots that were scrubbed and polished every week, his legs bore the scars of late tackles

“You are always very quick here, but let’s slow down a little bit,” said Arsene Wenger when asked to compare the 23-year-old with Lionel Messi earlier in the season.

Now is not the time for us to judge Bale, to compare and contrast, to detract and speculate. Now is the time to admire his commitment and appreciate his sublime ability. “You are always very quick here, but let’s slow down a little bit,” said Arsene Wenger when asked to compare the 23-year-old with Lionel Messi earlier in the season. There is no doubt that Bale has all the necessary ingredients to become a truly great player but, if we gaze too far into the future, then just like those school days his brilliance will be no more than a vague memory of the past.

that prompted adolescent fisticuffs in honour of our champion. He was willing to learn and work to develop his ability, but the rest of us didn’t understand the point of warm-ups and ball drills as we waited impatiently for training to end with half-an-hour’s five-a-side. The physical change in Bale this season - the broader shoulders, solid torso and stronger leap reveals the peerless dedication required to carve a niche at the very top of the game. Every effortless

“I was made to play football at school entirely right-footed [to make it fair], that’s true. I tried to sneak a few lefts when nobody was looking. It was a bit annoying. I hated Games after that! It was no fun any more.”

action is founded in his unrelenting desire to better himself. For much of the past year football has been denigrated as Olympians sit decorous upon society’s plinth, but look no further than Bale for a pin-up of professionalism. Between dawn starts and late evenings, he has shown grit and graft to improve his God-given talent. His skill writes the headlines, but the finished article owes itself to much greyer matter.

Written by Matthew Stranger Photography by Gary Prior Front cover in association with Adidas

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Gareth Bale

Laudrup & Pochettino Both arrived with similar managerial reputations but to very different receptions. Tim Stannard explains why.

In terms of managerial careers, Michael Laudrup and Mauricio Pochettino have tremendously similar backgrounds in that the Premier League pair had previously achieved modest success with modest clubs. That was overlooked though in the differing welcomes the coaches received on their respective Premier League arrivals.

When Laudrup took over Swansea last summer, the adoration for the Dane from the football media was akin to a lovestruck teenager, who swooned, gasped and giggled at the manager’s chiseled good looks,

natural elegance and reputation as a wonderful footballer who played for some pretty decent clubs, back in the day. A coaching CV which included the distinctly unglamorous Getafe and Mallorca was neatly put to one side. Poor Mauricio Pochettino - a former Argentine international, no less - turned up at Southampton to a reception that veered between downright hostility and shrugs of ignorance, despite the coach having just completed a four year stint at Espanyol, a remarkable tenure in a league stuffed with trigger-happy presidents. The narrative ran that a coach who cuts a scruffier figure than that of the urbane Laudrup was daring to come to England to replace a popular manager, without a grasp of the language, having left his previous side at the bottom of the table in la Liga. Whilst Laudrup was perceived as a wise footballing sage, the portrayal of Southampton’s new boss was of a baffling figure who would be ignorant to the special ways of the English

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Laudrup & Pochettino

Field â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Issue 03

Laudrup & Pochettino

game, despite neither figure having experienced a second of Premier League football in their respective careers. Whilst Pochettino could never win a battle with the Swansea manager in terms of image and communication, the former defender had an admirable managerial resumé. Despite being seven years younger than Laudrup, the 41-year-old Argentinian

The quality of both coaches is reflected in the success achieved already at Swansea and Southampton, however it now feels that although the backgrounds of both managers are comparable, their futures will be very different indeed.

Whilst Pochettino could never win a battle with the Swansea manager in terms of image and communication, the former defender had an admirable managerial resumé.

had racked up 149 Primera games with Espanyol and earned a reputation as a shrewd, committed coach and a tireless contributor to whatever side he may manage. Espanyol’s league positioning under Pochettino may always have been mid-table but that was as good as Champions League qualification at a club with enormous debts, an underfunded coaching and scouting structure and where any half-decent footballer was immediately sold. Pochettino’s departure in November was more related to exhaustion and a need for a new face in Cornella than any lack of ability as a manager. The suspicion in Spain is that Michael Laudrup’s managerial career will be similar to his path as a player in that the Dane’s own future is the number one priority, as indicated by the very frowned-upon move from Barcelona to Real Madrid. Laudrup left Brondby, stayed just the single season at Getafe, only lasted seven months at Spartak Moscow and fell out with the Mallorca owners before leaving the Balearic club in September 2011. Whilst there is the sensation that Laudrup is looking long term at managing one of the European greats one day, Pochettino is the kind of coach who could stay with a side for a decade, working tirelessly in every aspect of the institution to deliver success.

Words by Tim Stannard Illustration by Michael Cottage

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Laudrup & Pochettino

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Homegrown Bubble THEN & NOW: With each major tournament exit comes the customary assessment of failure, with the finger normally being pointed at the influx of foreign players into the Premier League. If we look back, though, even in the early days of the Premier League we weren’t much better

Last week Sir Bobby Charlton remarked that England’s trip to the 2014 World Cup will be a “fool’s errand” and that due to the influx over a period of years of a large number of foreign players to the Premier League the national team can no longer draw a sufficient bank of talent to compete for international honours.

Statistically, Sir Bobby has a point: of the 496 players in the Premier League only 170, or 34.7%, give their first nationality as English. Compare this to our European rivals; the recently all-conquering Spain has 62.6% of all players in La Liga eligible to play for the national side, Germany has 50.5%, France 57.4% and Italy 46.3%. At first glance the pattern

would seem to be that those nations which retain a low (or lower) percentage of non-native players perform better at major tournaments. But there’s more to this than simple statistics. Firstly, the relationship between nationality and national team eligibility is blurred in the UK; secondly, blaming the declining fortunes of the national team on the influx of foreign stars implies that the period before the surge of imported players was some sort of golden age. In 1992 on the opening weekend of the Premier League only 11 foreign players started, those being Peter Schmeichel and Andrei Kanchelskis (Man Utd), Jan Stejskal (QPR), Roland Nilsson (Sheff Wed), Michael Vonk (Man City), John Jensen and Anders Limpar (Arsenal) Hans Segers (Wimbledon), Tony Dorigo and Eric Cantona (Leeds) and Gunnar Halle (Oldham). If we’re to blame foreign players for diminishing England’s hopes of international success then you would expect the early nineties to have been a Saturnalian era of international glory for the Three

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Homegrown Bubble

Of the 496 players in the Premier League only 170, or 34.7%, give their first nationality as English.

Lions, except it wasn’t. Between 1988 and 1992 England’s record at tournaments was three wins, five draws and five losses; we failed to qualify for the 1994 World Cup and in total competed in 13 games in major competitions, finishing with a goal difference of minus four. More recently we failed to qualify for Euro 2008 but have qualified for every other major tournament, finished with a positive goal difference and look set for safe qualification for the World Cup in 2014. It seems then that laying the blame for the national team’s failure to meet expectations solely on the arrival of foreign players is overly simplistic. That is not to say there is not a connection. The widespread arrival of foreign players into the English game can be traced back to the inception of the Premier League. Before that clubs had neither the money nor resources to attract big-name, foreign signings. Hand in hand with the formation of the Premier League grew the influence of marketing and the lure of celebrity. As clubs looked abroad for marquee signings the feeling was that imported stars were exciting to the sponsors and media; that the ability to attract international names was proof of the new league’s potential. For the fans, previously denied access to European football by the UEFA ban, imported players brought a thrilling surge of excitement along with them. Why watch Bobby Howe when you could watch Bryan Roy? Who would entice you to buy a club shirt, John Hendry or Jurgen Klinsmann? Steve Howey or Phillipe Albert? The arrival of these players certainly helped the league to both capture the football world’s imagination and to attract the sponsorship which makes it the lucrative business it is today. Prices have come to reflect this. Rightly, experience plays a part in dictating transfer fee; staying in the Premier League is make or break for most clubs and any players with proven top flight experience command a premium. Age is a factor as clubs look to build for the future as well, but non-footballing concerns also count

towards player price. Commerce ultimately plays an important part: shirt sales and attractiveness to sponsors are all taken into account.

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Homegrown Bubble

Why watch Bobby Howe when you could watch Bryan Roy? Who would entice you to buy a club shirt, John Hendry or Jurgen Klinsmann? Steve Howey or Phillipe Albert?

Our domestic talent isn’t immune to the inflationary effects of the Premiership, and with increased outlay comes increased expectation. At major tournaments we send a team of £20m+ superstars and we expect to see them return triumphant every time. But our measure of worth is distorted. How many England internationals have commanded top fees from overseas in recent years? None. Celtic’s Fraser Forster aside, our latest squad was made up of entirely domestic based players. If there is a reason for the national team’s failure to live up to expectations it is that our expectations have been inflated by the increase in price for young English players into a homegrown bubble which bursts with every major tournament exit.

Written by Dan Byrne Illustrated by Sean Rainey

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Fulham v Arsenal 20.4.13 - Kick Off 15:00 - Craven Cottage

Earlier in the week, Wenger expressed his concern that he might be rushing Jack Wilshere back from injury and understandably so. After missing the entire of last season, Wenger is well aware he needs to tread carefully with the young midfielder. In any case, Arsenal don’t appear to be missing him too much at present after a fine run of form since February. “Jack has been out for six weeks, so maybe it was a bit too rushed what I did. He practices with me since he was 16, so I know quite well how his body responds to things,” explained Wenger after last weekend’s game with Norwich at The Emirates. Across London at Craven Cottage, Martin Jol’s worry isn’t necessarily about bringing players back too soon but that the injuries seem to be stacking up. With Damien Duff expected to be out for a couple of weeks and Mahamadou Diarra out for the foreseeable future, his midfield is looking particularly light weight at the moment. The good news for Jol is that he can welcome Steve Sidwell back into the fold following the midfielders completion of a three-match ban.

Following Wednesday’s derby against Chelsea, today’s match is the second such fixture in the space of four days. Whereas Wenger can look to rotate his squad following their midweek encounter with Everton, Jol has no such luxury and may field almost the same starting line-up that faced Chelsea on Wednesday night at Craven Cottage. Fulham’s main threat, as is so often the case, will be Berbatov who has racked up double figures for Fulham so far this term and will be looking to add to that this weekend. Arsenal will be hoping to continue their form into the final five games of the season. With Spurs form continuing to stutter and Everton facing a difficult run in, Arsenal once again look primed to sneak that much sought after fourth spot. A win here today would go along way to seeing that dream realised.

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Fulham v Arsenal

Norwich v Reading 20.4.13 - Kick Off 15:00 - Carrow Road

On the face of it this fixture is all about Norwich’s continued fight for survival. Sitting just above the relegation zone, Chris Hughton’s side still have it all to play for as we enter the final games of the season. It is imperative that today’s fixture does not end in a draw, as so many of their previous games have. After last week’s impressive 0-0 against Liverpool and a once-in-a-lifetime performance from the returning Alex McCarthy, Reading will be looking to continue their good form, despite being all but resigned to the drop. In a performance described varyingly as staggering, outstanding and breathtaking McCarthy almost single-handedly kept out Liverpool with save after save keeping Suarez and Sturridge et al off the score sheet. Despite Norwich’s offensive ability being somewhat less potent, McCarthy will need a similarly impressive performance if Reading are to keep two clean sheets on the run. Speaking after last week’s last-minute defeat to Arsenal, Hughton was left unimpressed with the linesman’s performance. “For a linesman to give it from that distance, and the third goal was

offside and it was 10 yards away from him, it’s almost criminal on a day that we deserved so much more.” Despite their Malaga-esqe collapse to Arsenal, in a game they looked comfortable in, Hughton will be expecting his players to bounce back against the club that currently prop up the league table. But with only one win since the 15 December and with Reading now playing with the freedom of a club who all but know their fate next season, Hughton will certainly not be able to chalk this one up as an easy win. If anything, Reading’s position in the table potentially makes this fixture more dangerous for the Canaries as they look to cement their position in the table and ensure Premier League football at Carrow Road for a third season.

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Norwich v Reading

QPR v Stoke City 20.4.13 - Kick Off 15:00 - Loftus Road

After last week’s demoralising defeat to Everton, Harry Redknapp did not mince his words when assessing QPR’s current squad. “You say talented players, but I don’t know. Are they that talented? I don’t know, really,” he said. “I hear all the time that, if they get relegated, they will want to go because they won’t want to play in the Championship, but if they played better they would not be in the Championship, so that’s a load of cobblers.” In a thoroughly mediocre fixture, all it took to deflate QPR’s early enthusiasm was a deflected Darron Gibson shot on 40 minutes. From then on in, QPR barely mustered a cohesive attack on the Everton goal. It’ll be this more than anything that will rankle Redknapp who prides himself on getting the most out of players. After last weekend’s 2-0 defeat against Man Utd, Stoke’s season has gone from bad to worse. In a tepid fixture, Stoke lacked any of the characteristic bite and determination that has defined Pulis’ team in recent seasons. From the off they looked devoid of ideas and devoid of hope, summed up best by an aimless punt forward from Ryan Shawcross when under no pressure. Pulis was at pains to point out after the game that he realises Stoke now find themselves

in a relegation battle, pointedly saying: “I am very confident we can get out of trouble, it is just making sure the players and everyone at the club sticks together. The season starts now.” Owing to both teams poor form over the preceding months, this fixture is a particularly difficult one to call. QPR look all but relegated and Stoke’s form seems almost irreversibly poor. Redknapp’s stinging criticism of his squad may be all important heading into this tie as it could have one of two possible effects. Either it will galvanise the players to prove him wrong and ensure they aren’t plying their trade in the Championship next season; conversely it may shatter the squad’s already fragile confidence. One thing’s for certain ahead of this fixture, though: both teams seasons start here, they need to treat it like a cup final and it’s a veritable relegation six pointer.

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QPR v Stoke City

Sunderland v Everton 20.4.13 - Kick Off 15:00 - Stadium of Light

The scene is set for a Di Canio miracle at the Stadium of Light. Whether you love or loathe the gesticulating, madcap Italian he’s proved one thing so far: he knows how to motivate a squad. Last week’s victory over Newcastle may have been somewhat overshadowed by events post-game but that shouldn’t take away from what was a hugely impressive performance. Where Martin O’Neill failed to cajole any consistency from Adam Johnson and Stephane Sessegnon, Di Canio is succeeding; with both players excelling throughout the Tyne-Wear derby and showing the mercurial ability that persuaded O’Neill to sign them. In the opposite dugout to Di Canio today will be David Moyes, perhaps the polar opposite to his Italian opponent when it comes to expressing his emotions on the touchline. Where Moyes appears dour and intense, Di Canio is like a pent-up ball of Italian fervour as he parades around the technical area. At the moment, though, Moyes has every reason to be the happier manager. After a shaky post-Christmas run of results, Everton are seeing out the season with their customary flourish and still hold genuine aspirations of a top four finish.

With last week’s potential banana skin against QPR out of the way, Moyes will expect his players to put in a similarly professional performance against a Sunderland team, who unlike QPR, still have it all to play for. The biggest danger that Sunderland may face this week is their own giddy-excitement. Having vanquished Newcastle so convincingly, Di Canio will have to ensure that victory doesn’t go to their head. Despite the impressive nature of last week’s win, it must be remembered that it was against a Newcastle side who’d only had two days rest following their Europa League exertions; Everton as well have been somewhat of a bogey team for Sunderland in recent years to the extent that you almost always expected to see Tim Cahill shadow boxing the Stadium of Light corner flags. Today’s Sunderland isn’t the same one Moyes would have expected to face three weeks ago, though. This is a team with renewed vigour, renewed hope and a sense that avoiding relegation is achievable whereas just a few weeks ago the drop seem ominously inevitable.

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SUNDERLAND V EVERTON

Swansea v Southampton 20.4.13 - Kick Off 15:00 - Liberty Stadium

Today’s match see’s the coming together of two of the Premier League’s more expansive, forward thinking sides as Swansea welcome Mauricio Pochettino’s Southampton to the Liberty Stadium. With more than a little Spanish influence at both Swansea and Southampton today’s fixture wouldn’t look out of place in La Liga; for a period of time, both Laudrup and Pochettino managed in Spain, whilst Swansea boast an impressive contingent of imports from the country including Michu, Angel Rangel, Chico Flores and Pablo Hernandez. With no fixture last week, it’s difficult to gauge how the break will have affected Swansea. On the one hand it could have been a timely opportunity to rest up before the end of season run-in; on the other it may have halted their momentum after what has been a hugely impressive season for the Welsh club. Speaking after last weekend’s draw against West Ham, Pochettino couldn’t help but hide his disappointment that they weren’t able to take all three points, despite several players still suffering

from a virus earlier in the week. “I do think we deserved the victory. We worked superbly and were better than them,” he explained. Since taking over from Adkins, Pochettino has worked impressively to win over fans and journalists alike. Despite a decidedly lukewarm welcome to the Premier League, Pochettino has proved many of the naysayers wrong who felt his appointment could only end in disaster. Heading into the final six games, Southampton now only find themselves three points behind Swansea, who have slightly dropped off the pace since securing the League Cup and qualification for Europe in such impressive style back in February. A win today for The Saints would see them draw equal on 41 points with Swansea, a hugely impressive total considering where they were just a few months ago. A win for Swansea, though, will almost certainly ensure a top-half finish and may even act as a spur to try and finish higher up the table.

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Swansea v Southampton

West Brom v Newcastle 20.4.13 - Kick Off 15:00 - The Hawthorns

After last weekend’s violence following the 3-0 defeat to Sunderland, today’s fixture is bound to be consumed by talk of Newcastle fans’ behaviour. Pardew rightly slammed his team after an insipid performance at St James’ Park last weekend. Although he can point to the fact that they had an exhausting evening against Benfica just days previously, he knows thats no excuse. Steve Clarke’s men, on the other hand, come into this fixture after a small end-of-season break after not having a fixture last weekend. Although their last outing ended in a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Arsenal, the Baggies come into this still comfortably in the top half of the table and with another season in the Premier League ensured. Speaking after losing to Arsenal the week before last, Clarke expressed his frustration that despite looking comfortable for large periods of the game two soft goals ultimately cost them. “I thought we played well today. They scored in the first half with one of the very few chances they created. We had good control in the first half but didn’t really create enough.

At 2-0 it is difficult to chase the game. We made a couple of changes. Then the penalty and the red card does change the game and gives us the chance to get something from the game.” Pardew will have to conjure up his best man-management skills to lift Newcastle after last weekends Tyne-Wear derby. More importantly, he’ll have to get them to focus on the game rather than events off the pitch. With a long-list of injuries, Pardew will more than likely put out the same side that faced Sunderland last week. But with no Europa League to contend with this time around the squad will be much fresher and with his promise to make last weekend’s defeat ‘hurt’ still ringing in their ears, I would expect a much better all round performance from Newcastle this week.

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West Brom v Newcastle

West Ham v Wigan 20.4.13 - Kick Off 15:00 - Upton Park

Heading into the final few weeks of the season, Sam Allardyce has every reason to be pleased with West Ham’s maiden season back in the Premier League. Not only have West Ham secured themselves a position comfortably in mid-table, they’ve also shown a solidity that in previous campaigns has been missing; and in Andy Carroll, at least for the moment, they have one of the league’s in form strikers. With Liverpool seeming reticent to take Carroll back after his loan spell at West Ham comes to an end, he may well be back at Upton Park next season. Whilst his future hangs in the balance, West Ham fans should enjoy having him in their team as much as he’s enjoying playing for the club: “The lads have been great, the gaffer has been great and the fans are unbelievable.” After the euphoria of last weekend’s FA Cup semi-final victory over Millwall, Wigan have come crashing back down to earth and straight into the middle of another relegation battle. Despite not playing over the weekend, The Latics find themselves back in amongst the relegation scrap.

But with a game in hand over their rivals, another miraculous escape seems on the cards. During the week, Martinez moved to praise his team for how they’ve adapted to playing in both the cup and the league this season, saying: “I think we have shown a natural way of switching from the Cup to the league, and that’s what we must do again.” It will be imperative they do so again with today’s match being all important as they look to climb up the table. Although not holding quite the same importance for West Ham in terms of league position, Allardyce will want to ensure his team finish the season strongly. Heading into this match, their only real injury concern remains Joe Cole with Mark Noble likely to return after a few weeks out with a shoulder injury.

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West Ham v Wigan

Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester City 21.4.13 - Kick Off 13:30 - White Hart Lane

With TV money set to increase again this summer a fixture like today’s shows that the increase doesn’t necessarily equate to a decrease in competition for league places. Manchester United’s dominance in the league notwithstanding, the gap in points between Spurs and City and Spurs and Everton, for that matter, hints at a more open and competitive league. Manchester City are a team capable of pushing for the title, but this season they have failed to grind out results when needed. It has also taken them the majority of the season to hit top gear, with us only now seeing the City of last year as we head towards the seasons end. Tottenham, on the other hand, have looked to be in top gear for most of the season. At their scintillating best for the majority of the year, they’ve recently started to drop off slightly. It’s no coincidence that their recent dip in form has coincided with them losing several of their best players to injury, most notably Sandro, Lennon and Bale. This was particularly telling in last week’s match against Basel in the Europa League. Without Bale, who was injured after the first leg, they lacked the necessary speed to unduly worry Basel. It was a

similar story against Everton in their last league game; despite looking comfortable on the ball, without Bale and Lennon to push the opposing full backs into their own half, they were susceptible to being caught out on the wings. This problem is exasperated to an extent by the fact they’ve often been forced to play Dempsey and Sigurdsson out wide, neither of whom are natural wingers. Where Tottenham’s lack of width has been a problem, City’s tendency to play through the middle has started to make them look like the side who won last season’s title. With Silva, Nasri and Aguero starting to find their form and Yaya Toure beginning to exert a more consistent influence in the middle, they look odds on to finish the season as runners-up. Mancini will be looking to ensure this is the case as well. Despite their season often flattering to deceive, you get the feeling that a second place finish and a possible trophy in the cabinet would go some way to appeasing the fans. For Tottenham, after such an impressive season, to miss out this late in the day would be galling. A win today though would be a massive step to a second, consecutive top four finish.

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TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR V MANCHESTER CITY

Liverpool v Chelsea 21.4.13 - Kick Off 16:00 - Anfield

A few years ago this was the sort of fixture that could have been a title decider but, since the days of their famous Champions League meetings, both teams have been through periods of remarkable managerial uncertainty. For Chelsea, despite the flux, this period has brought some memorable successes, notably the league title in 2010 and last year’s Champions League win. Arguably their sixth place finish last season showed a loss of title-contender status, but, so long as Champions League qualification is achieved, their long sought-after European triumph and good cup showing this season will have eclipsed the loss of league form. Liverpool have not fared so well and as a Liverpool supporter, I know all too well how distant those Champions League nights seem. At Chelsea managerial changes have produced excitement; mixed results, sure but amongst them have been prodigal seasons of runaway success. This hasn’t been the case for Liverpool; the team seems to have slipped into stagnation. Despite Chelsea coping with their managerial changes better than Liverpool, there has been no real tilt at the title this season and the importance of today’s fixture is certainly diminished.

That said, the game does offer up some intriguing individual battles. Daniel Sturridge will be looking to put in a good performance, having been in and out of the Liverpool side lately and will be looking to prove a point against his former club. This match is an interesting proposition for the two managers as well. Benitez will probably receive a warmer reception from the Anfield crowd than Brendan Rodgers, leaving the current Liverpool manager facing the fact that after his first season in charge he still has a long way to go to convince the fans he has the credentials to match his illustrious predecessors.

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Liverpool v Chelsea

Manchester United v Aston Villa 22.4.13 - Kick Off 20:00 - Old Trafford

With the title tied up, Lambert will be hoping Ferguson’s men take their eye of this potentially decisive fixture for Aston Villa. Although going on recent form, it seems unlikely that the Manchester United manager will be in the mood to dish out any such favours. Speaking after their recent defeat to Manchester City, Ferguson made it pointedly clear that no matter when the title is clinched, they won’t be taking their foot off the gas, with Ferguson no doubt having half an eye on clinching a record points total. Following last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Fulham, Lambert was keen to emphasise that rather than being two points lost it was a point gained, despite dominating for much of the match. “It [the point] keeps the momentum there. I played under a great manager once and he said if you can’t win a game then don’t lose it. I think you can sense in the stadium the fans are behind us.” Despite playing on Wednesday night, Ferguson will be looking for all three points here and is unlikely to rest too many of his players.

With Robin van Persie back amongst the goals and Rooney flourishing in a new midfield role, Lambert’s men will have to perform as well, if not better than they did at Villa Park earlier in the season when they were unlucky to lose a game they were winning until the 63rd minute. That day, two goals from Andreas Weimann - one a scorcher from 16 yards - put Aston Villa 2-0 up. But as is becoming customary for this Manchester United team, they turned the result on its head, eventually going onto win 3-2 with goals from Javier Hernandez and a Ron Vlaar own goal. In many ways, there are a lot of similarities between this young Aston Villa side and Ferguson’s early United team that starred Beckham, Giggs, Scholes, Butt and the Neville brothers. Both were underrated because of their youth and both consist of a core of extremely talented but relatively inexperienced players. If history’s taught us one thing, though, it’s that you can win something with kids. In Villa’s case, they’ll be hoping you can stay up with kids.

Field — Issue 03

Manchester United v Aston Villa

Peace The Birmingham quartet have gone from strength to strength this year but for lead guitarist, Doug Castle, Villa’s end of season run-in is proving just as important.

For Peace’s lead guitarist, Doug Castle, it’s been a mixed year. On the one hand Peace have gone from strength to strength, culminating in a slot on the upcoming NME Awards Tour; but as an Aston Villa fan it’s not gone quite so swimmingly. Having only just arrived back from France, Aston Villa’s future may not have been at the forefront of Doug’s mind. But as with all football fans, no matter what your profession is or how tired you are, your club is never far from your thoughts. Whether you’ve just finished a long day at the office or got home after playing a set to hundreds of sweaty, Parisian teenagers. “Its been a long season but I’m starting to feel a bit more positive about it all and the future now. If we can keep Benteke we’ll do well. The way we are playing, especially going forward, is fantastic and we are scoring enough goals. Maybe we just need a bit more experience at the back. Lowton, Clark and Bennett have been proving themselves as really good players but over 90 minutes it just isn’t happening yet. I saw a statistic that said if the table was based

Field — Issue 03

on the first half of games we would be sitting sixth. Really sixth is where The Villa should be. Under O’Neil we finished 6th three times in a row but since that it’s been... well, I think we have only just got another decent manager. Not that it was O’Neill’s fault; he wanted some money to push on for the Champion’s League and didn’t get it so it’s fair enough that he leaves. All of the appointments after that were bad decisions though.” A key reason why Villa fans have so staunchly backed Lambert this season is that they can see what he’s trying to achieve. A club that appeared rudderless under Mcleish as he bored fans towards relegation now has a clear strategy. As with the majority of Villa fans, Doug is keen to see Lambert is given the time to implement his long-term vision at the club. “Now we have Lambert in for the long term. All the signings he has made have been looking towards youth and he has this long-

PEACE

term plan. The Villa youth team is great and we have a lot of players coming from it. As a fan that is nice to see. Players like Weimann and Bannan have come up from the academy and that makes the future look good, or at least not so bleak!”

“We had some great players. Young, Downing, Milner, that was one of the best midfields around. Some of the guys we had through that team were brilliant but they’ve gone elsewhere and haven’t really delivered.”

equivalent to Peace: young, hardworking and with a quiet confidence in their own ability. After a string of shows over the last few months, you’d think they’d be ready for a rest but with their new album having just launched and a slew of festival appearances already booked, they’ll be on the road for some time to come. Not that Doug’s bothered, though: “We did 55 shows in 75 days, so it’s been pretty never ending but it is fun - better than being at home! We are on a UK tour at the moment and it is great to be able to play and people kind of know the songs and can sing along.”

For Doug, it’s been a long time since he’s been able to watch a successful Villa team. Despite fond memories of John Gregory’s FA Cup finalists - a team that featured the mercurial Benito Carbone and Paul Merson, amongst others - his favourite Villa side remains Martin O’Neill’s that reached the 2010 League Cup final. “We had some great players. Young, Downing, Milner, that was one of the best midfields around. Some of the guys we had through that team were brilliant but they’ve gone elsewhere and haven’t really delivered. Maybe Milner is the only one who has done as well elsewhere - perhaps they suited being at Villa and being the main man.” Despite not being able to get to as many games as he’d like due to a hectic tour schedule, Doug’s seen enough of Lambert’s team to be convinced they’re going in the right direction. In many ways, Aston Villa are the footballing

Field — Issue 03 01

The band’s debut album ‘In Love’ is out now Interview by Dan Byrne arranged by Shoot Music Promotions Words by Paul Gleeson

PEACE