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  • January 28, 2008 08:37 PM ET

WE THE PEOPLE Tourney Semis What two teams, besides Derby County will be relegated from the EPL this season? Teams-1st, arguments 2nd and 3rd.

Keeper (17-10-1) vs KansasToonami (4-11-0)
2
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3
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2
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3
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I will say Fulham and Sunderland. Arguments to come next time.


Hmmm... Fulham and Wigan.


Well, since we agree on one, we'll have to argue over the other. Now, I watched Wigan play the other day, and I liked what I saw.

They have a good quality side who really doesn't quit. They proved that when they went down 2-0 to Chelsea in the 82nd minute and quickly came back with a goal and nearly scored an equalizer around the 90th minute mark.

I like the players they have, and I will discuss them in my next argument.


While Wigan is playing hard, I'd argue that they're more likely than Sunderland to go down for two reasons (reason 2 addressed in my next argument):

1. Coaching changes.
Sunderland has had a more stable management (i.e. coaching) arrangement than Wigan, and while that by itself is not enough, it is an important factor in allowing the manager and players to focus solely on the task at hand--getting points from wins or draws (tie games)--and not worrying about other matters (such as whether they keep their jobs) until the end of the season. and is likely to continue with its current setup, at least through the end of the season.

It takes time for a team to "gel"; that is, for the players to have the time to learn and to fully implement the manager's "system" so that it functions well. Sunderland has had one manager--Roy Keane--since September 2006, while Wigan have had *three* during that span: Paul Jewell resigned at the end of 06-07, and Chris Hutchings (Jewell's assistant) only lasted until November. Steve Bruce has stopped the rot somewhat, but he had a mixed record in his previous job at Birmingham City.

Bruce has to do a rush job; "Keano" has his system in place already.


As promised, I'll talk about the players that Wigan have that I see have the potential to keep them in the Premier League next year.

The first player is a man that nearly scored right at the end of the match against Chelsea when he made a marvelous run and banged it off the post. His name is Marcus Bent. I see a lot of upside in this player and think that he will help keep them in the EPL next season.

The second player is of course Emile Heskey. When this man is on, he can't be stopped and he has been known to give good performances for England. This player is always a candidate to score on you, and he can definitely keep a team out of relegation.

The third and final player that I will talk about is Kevin Kilbane. Though he hasn't been all too impressive this season, this guy is still a heck of a midfielder who can provide key services to a team. I believe that he could be the centerpiece of the team going on in the season.

Overall, let's face it, both sides (Sunderland and Wigan) are terrible. But in the grand scheme, I think that Wigan ultimately will stay in the EPL all because they have better players.

Here are my two again: Fulham and Sunderland.


In terms of players, I'd say it's a wash... Wigan has Marcus Bent, Emile Heskey, Kevin Kilbane, and Antoine Sibierski, but they LOST some key players at the end of '05-'06: Jimmy Bullard (who in fairness has been injured while at Fulham), Pascal Chimbonda, Graham Kavanagh, and Arjan de Zeeuw. It's no surprise that Wigan narrowly escaped relegation in '06-'07, and also fighting relegation this year.

Sunderland has also had a mixed record; but have brought in quality young players: Kenwyne Jones, Carlos Edwards, and Anthony Stokes. More importantly, they've had time to develop as a *team*.

Now for my second reason:

2. Attitude.
This comes from the coach/manager, but it doesn't happen by magic. It takes time to impart it to the players, and the coach has to "practice what he preaches." Keane may be newer than Bruce in terms of experience, but Sunderland have a "never-say-die" mentality now that they didn't have before Keane. They hame come close to "taking points at the death" but have seen the points slip from their grasp, due to a refereeing decision, not due to bad aim or poor play.

Keane has that extra bit of "winning" attitude, and he has had time to instill that in his team.

Comments (12) Add A Comment

January 28, 2008  09:35 PM ET
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Derby will win the EPL next year!

January 28, 2008  09:36 PM ET
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....err, next 2 years!

January 28, 2008  09:36 PM ET
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........better make that 3...........

January 28, 2008  09:36 PM ET
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........err, 2 years from now.

January 28, 2008  09:38 PM ET
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You have your sweet dreams, Wallace...

January 28, 2008  09:40 PM ET
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Haha. Nah, if it was my way I'd have Newcastle win it.

January 28, 2008  10:59 PM ET
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Is Shearer still alive?

February 1, 2008  12:51 AM ET
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It's votin' time!

And yes, Shearer is alive.. he's just not likely to be coaching soon :-)

February 1, 2008  05:06 PM ET
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gotta go with the black cats and keano. i think there more talented and should be better then where they are now.

February 1, 2008  09:58 PM ET
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Oh, sorry, didn't get to read all arguments until time expired. I'm sorry, Keeper, it would have been your vote.

February 1, 2008  11:14 PM ET
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*ouch*

well, we would've had to run a tie-breaker in that case...

 
February 2, 2008  01:07 PM ET
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Good argument guys.Congrats Kansas on getting to the finals.

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