TOM COLLOMOSSE: The battle to avoid the drop in the Premier League is the BEST show in town…
It may not get the pulse of Big Six supporters, but the fight for survival in the Premier League is by far the best show in town.
Across the land, players, coaches and fans are being distracted by one of the closest races in living memory, each adopting their own methods of trying to stay above the line.
Just six points separate Crystal Palace in 12th place from bottom club Bournemouth. And with matches against Manchester City, Brighton and Arsenal before the international break, it’s no surprise that Palace manager Patrick Vieira is feeling the heat.
“If I am sitting in front of you and tell you that I am not worried, it would be a lie,” he said. Of course we are worried. Of course we are aware of our position.
The problem for Vieira and his fellow bosses is that there is no security blanket, nor Norwich City, to tip the odds in their favor. In previous seasons, the Canaries and others have been so bad that they have been down by far. No such luck this season.
The problem for Patrick Vieira and his fellow bosses is that there is no security blanket, nor Norwich City, to tip the odds in their favor.
In this high-stakes game, Wolves manager Julen Lopetegui looks like the best player at the table.
In this high-stakes game, Wolves manager Julen Lopetegui looks like the best player at the table. He greeted the media on Friday by handing out pizza boxes left over from players, who had been rewarded for keeping a clean sheet against Tottenham, and made wacky analogies comparing Premier League games to melons. “You don’t know what it’s going to be like until you open it up,” he said before adding, with a twinkle in his eye: “The game at Newcastle is going to be a hard melon.”
Lopetegui is a cat on a hot stone in his technical area but seeks to spread a concentrated air of calm on the training ground. At Leicester, perhaps things have been too relaxed. Brendan Rodgers’ team is only two points from the line and sports mail understands that the mood has changed drastically since last weekend’s defeat at Southampton. “I think before that game, everyone just assumed they would be okay,” a source said. ‘That has changed now.’
Defender Timothy Castagne backed him up. ‘It would be stupid to say that we are not [in a relegation fight],’ he said. We know that we are.
“Many times we talk about more fights, more aggressiveness, the dirty part of football. In these games it’s what you need.’ At least Leicester have James Maddison, perhaps the best individual player involved in the scrap.
Look closely and you can see the pressure takes its toll. In other circumstances, would Rodgers have asked Jannik Vestergaard, an already disgraced player, to coach just because of comments he made in an interview, as revealed sports mail Thursday?
Would Nottingham Forest’s Steve Cooper, another sensible character, have attacked man-in-the-middle John Brooks after the 2-2 draw with Everton, even suggesting his performance should be scrutinized by referee chiefs?
Forest had a tough deal in that game, but perhaps the big decision went in their favour: a whoop penalty for Everton as Seamus Coleman went down under a challenge from Jack Colback. In fact, a selection of the theories recently aired by some of these clubs make UFO conspiracies seem rational.
Of those in the fray, only Wolves can say they definitely made the right decision with their coaching change. He was bottom when Lopetegui took control and is now level on points with Palace.
West Ham have stuck with David Moyes but the season remains routine with little sign of a breakthrough. Leeds look no better than when they sacked Jesse Marsch on February 6 and Javi Gracia was required to defend Georginio Rutter, bought from Hoffenheim for a club record £35.5m but whose performances so far have been desperately average. No wonder he is yet to score. “Every day he is working hard, trying to improve and trying to help the team,” said the Spaniard.
Brendan Rodgers’ side are just two points over the line and Sportsmail understand that the mood has changed dramatically since last weekend’s loss at Southampton.
Nottingham Forest’s Steve Cooper, another no-nonsense character, ripped through man-in-the-half John Brooks after the 2-2 draw with Everton
West Ham have stuck with David Moyes but the season remains routine with little sign of a breakthrough.
At Southampton, rookie manager Ruben Selles has benefited from the post-Nathan Jones rebound
Leeds look no better than when they sacked Jesse Marsch on February 6 and Javi Gracia had to defend Georginio Rutter.
On the south coast, Bournemouth have to show they can bounce back from their 3-2 stoppage-time loss to Arsenal, where the Cherries led 2-0. At Southampton, rookie manager Ruben Selles has benefited from the post-Nathan Jones rebound to claim six points from a possible nine and lift the Saints into contention.
However, in a battle as tense as this, you’d probably rather have Sean Dyche in your corner than your opposite one, after pulling off this trick so many times in his previous job.
The former Burnley boss can sometimes hit verbal dead ends when speaking in public, speaking of his players’ ‘delivery’ in their performances, yet he is crystal clear about the task at hand.
“The mindset, the underbelly, that says we’ll stop at nothing to be relentless and win games,” Dyche said as his team prepared to meet. ‘That’s a good mentality to have. It’s run by me and the staff, but we want the players to buy into it. Each of his rivals would settle for the same.
Additional reporting: Dominic King and Kieran Gill