Harry Redknapp was left brimming after yesterday’s ‘fantastic’ win over Everton, in which our new 5-3-2 formation was used – with Glen Johnson and Armand Traore operating as wing backs for the most part. He told sky sports: ‘it was a terrific performance.
‘I changed the system today and played a system we’ve never really played before. I played it the first year I came here and we won the Championship and I decided we had the players to play that way.
‘It’s something I’ve been looking to do for weeks and it’s always been in my mind and we worked hard on it all week and today getting that result should give them some belief.
‘You hope it works and I always thought it would. We’ve got pace at the back in Kaboul and Distin, we have got two attacking full-backs in Johnson and Traore, who love to get forward, and it worked well for us.’
Whilst I would never wish injury on anyone, especially if they are a key player for us as Niko Kranjcar is, his injury could be a slight blessing in disguise as we got to try out a formation that we would not have had he been fit.
If it carries on working then when he is fit then, as he will get back into the team, we ‘might’ even see him back in, but in a more central position – a position that I think he would excel in!
David James without a doubt made several crucial saves, one where he knocked Mikel Arteta’s effort on to the post in the 1st half was a key moment, but the real pivotal turning point was when he saved a Yakubu penalty at the start of the 2nd half: ‘if they get the penalty with 43 minutes left on the clock it would have been game on for sure because they would have piled everything at us.
‘But Jamo pulled off another great save and the Yak usually scores penalties but David was up to that one and it was a great save.’
As I keep saying, the opening two fixtures against Chelski and Manyoo were incredibly tough, and as much as we could have got something from these games the fact that we did not was not exactly a bolt from the blue at all was it. So, to have 3pts from our opening 3 games is not a bad return is it and most would have settled for this wouldn’t they?
Now, again as said a few time, in the next 4 games or so we ‘should’ get a better idea of what we really are in store for this season – but my thinking remains the same, I believe we will have another good season…
Now lets just hope that our players come through the poxy international break unharmed!
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