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James Marshment's Blog

TEAMtalk's Premier League Picks: Feb 11

Saturday 11th February 2012 16:04

Dalglish: Urged to climb down

Dalglish: Urged to climb down

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Kenny Dalglish and Mark Hughes are heavily criticised but Thierry Henry praised in TEAMtalk's review of Saturday's Premier League action.

On evenings throughout the 2011/12 season, TEAMtalk's writers are presenting their Premier League Picks - the special moments, star performers, stunning matches or shocking incidents from the day's action which we expect to dominate the headlines.

We'll be watching all the action unfold on the live TV feeds which are piped into TEAMtalk Towers from grounds up and down the country.

Once you've read through our choices, let us know your opinions by adding a Comment below.

Dalglish must make stand against Suarez

There's going to be no shortage of column inches dedicated to the latest spat between Luis Suarez and Patrice Evra, and the finger of blame has quite rightly been fiercly pointed in the direction of the spiky Uruguayan.

Although strongly worded, there's little to disagree with Sir Alex Ferguson's take on the issue after he branded Suarez a disgrace to Liverpool Football Club and suggested he should not play for them again.

Obviously that's a matter for Kenny Dalglish, and Liverpool FC as a whole to deal with. But the point I'd like to put across is that the Reds - one of the bastions of not just the English game, but football the world over - are fast losing respect as a result of this issue.

They need to act quickly before this issue gets even further out of hand, and maintain a shred of the dignity upon which the traditions and moral fibre of the club have long been built.

To do this, I think Dalglish firstly needs to climb down from his public backing of the striker and issue a public admonishment over his actions.

Secondly, I think Liverpool need to insist that Suarez offers an olive branch to Evra and issue some sort of public apology. If not, this saga will continue to cloud over one of the great rivalries of world football.

Of course, United themselves are not totally blameless in this entire episode and Evra's celebrations at full-time were uncalled for, unnecessary and pathetically immature. He could've and should've just walked off at full-time instead of lording it up in front of Suarez, but then 'dignified' and 'Evra' are two words you rarely see in the same sentence. James Marshment

Henry's hoorah is fitting finale

His second spell at Arsenal started with the FA Cup winner against Leeds, and fittingly, his farewell league appearance for the Gunners ended with a last-gasp winner at Sunderland. The pace and fitness might not be quite what it was, but the eye for goal remains and uncanny knack of being in the right place at the right time will probably never be lost.

The goal won't be remembered as one of his best, but it could prove one of his most vital if the Gunners are to salvage a fourth-placed finish in the Premier League this season.

I'd like to end by offering a word of support for Aaron Ramsey, who has been unfairly barracked by certain supporters in recent weeks. Billed (unfairly) as the natural successor to Cesc Fabregas, Ramsey has found his form dip over recent weeks, taking a large portion of stick for their recent defeat at Swansea.

But Ramsey is still finding his feet in the game and already shows maturity, vision and a range of passing beyond his years and Arsenal are lucky to have him. Hopefully his equaliser on Saturday will be a turning point for the young Welshman. Just don't compare him to a certain former Gunner! JM

AVB and Chelsea get the Blues

Chelsea's 2-0 defeat at Everton ensured Andre Villas-Boas' side have now gone four matches without a win in the Premier League. The pressure is building on AVB with Chelsea now fifth in the table and level on points with Arsenal, who are now fourth. The Blues were off the pace at Goodison Park and Fernando Torres tried but looked isolated up front. I was also surprised to see Gary Cahill on the bench, with David Luiz and Branislav Ivanovic in central defence.

Fourth spot and qualification for the Champions League is the absolute minimum requirement for Chelsea this season and on this evidence, the Blues are not guaranteed a place in Europe's elite club competition.

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich was at the club's training ground earlier this week, which indicates the Russian isn't impressed with the club's current form.

Abramovich is not shy when it comes to sacking managers. Could he be about to pull the trigger again? Sam Nightingale

Mark can't spark Rangers

He may have adopted the nickname 'Sparky' during his successful playing career, but QPR manager Mark Hughes could not instil any sort of spark in his ailing relegation-battling team. Not until 20 minutes from the end anyway, at which point the proverbial six-point clash with Blackburn Rovers - which ended 3-2 - was almost lost.

One has to ask themselves that if a team in QPR's position must wait until 70 minutes have gone and three goals have been conceded in a game to shock themselves into action, whether that is a team that's capable of battling a Premier League relegation fight. Is there an issue with Mark Hughes' management? Can he connect properly with his players? Or do those same players have to shoulder the blame? Are they resting on their laurels and allowing complacency to seep in? Whatever the answer, time could well be running out for Hughes in his mission to captain his soldiers to safety.

There were some positives from the game. Adel Taarabt continued to show glimpses of the performances that earned him the tag of one of the most sought-after prospects in English football, while Jamie Mackie and Shaun Wright-Phillips were typically threatening on either wing.

But credit must be given to Blackburn amidst the fallout. As I said a couple of weeks ago, Blackburn have the makings of a competent Premier League outfit, and they do play exciting football at times - only four of their 25 Premier League games so far this season have resulted in one of the teams not scoring. Their amiable first-half performance brought three goals and impressive performances from the likes of David Hoilett, Steven Nzonzi and a returning Yakubu, who will surely fire Rovers to safety at this rate. However, Steve Kean must come under-fire for the second-half performance, as complacency crept in to the Rovers players and they allowed QPR to build their confidence. Had they had 10 more minutes, we could be talking about another Rovers loss.

Back to Hughes and QPR though, and after today's disappointing performance and result, one really has to question whether the promoted-club have the stomach for the fight? After viewing today's game, I struggle to see them making it out of the mire. Matt Stead

What did you glean from Saturday's games? Let us know in the comments box below.

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