Steve Bruce to Tottenham
Good Friday to you. And if you can’t manage good then how about no worse than usual? These are austere times we live in, after all.
A hectic Easter weekend of football ahead, then. First up this very Saturday lunchtime it’s Martin O’Neill’s rejuvenated Athletic Club Mackems. I’ve been harbouring somewhat of a soft spot for the former Villa man in recent times, since he was flown in to sort through the wreckage on Wearside. If nothing else, by hauling them out of the turd-festooned mire they were wading in- and even having the temerity to give the locals something to cheer about- he’s debunked the myth that Steve Bruce was in any way a capable football manager.
Sure enough, if buying ex-United players is a bankable attribute – or, for that matter, being a purveyor of turgid, meat and gravy-brand anti-football- then Master Bruce is up there with the best of ‘em. Here’s the Geordie Chancer, in typically humble mood this week:
“Martin O’Neill is currently getting the pats on the back for what he has achieved. He’s a good manager and he has undoubtedly motivated the players,”
“But what is now being seen is the players I brought in bedding down and proving how good they are.
“James McClean and Stephane Sessegnon are the headline stealers but we signed them, of course.”
Classy, classy stuff.
He’s right in certain respects, of course. Stéphane Sessègnon is rather a menace for the Black Cats these days and, indeed, embezzles a headline or three. In truth he’s just one prong of a triple-threat which counts the very direct James McClean (zero appearances under Bruce) and the dependable right bat of Sebastian Larsson among its number. Nicklas Bendtner is enjoying a purple patch recently, too, by his standards, and may just feel he has something to prove on Saturday. Not least of all for the woeful offerings he dished up in the reverse fixture in December. I was almost hit square in the chops by the hilarious spliced volley he attempted in the second half.
Keeping the Black Cats under house arrest could be quite the task, then. In the last eight games at the Stadium of Light they’ve won six and beaten Man City, Swansea and Liverpool along the way. Yes they’ve beaten Swansea and Man City along the way.
For the mighty Tottenham it’s a case of steady as she goes, captain. A repeat performance of the type we saw against Swansea wouldn’t put us too far wrong. The full return of Lennon will certainly spice things up a notch; though if it’s at the cost of the extra protection and dynamism that Sandro offers, for a tough away fixture such as this, it mightn’t be the worst idea to keep the hot-heeled winger on the bench for emergencies only. Either way, I see us sneaking a win.
How do y’all see it?
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