Nobody saw that coming.
Mick McCarthy got the decision . . . . absolutely right!
What he did last night was pick the team for Burnley at the weekend.
After the Tottenham game we were all carried along with the belief that we might get something from Manchester United. Let’s face it, we were foolish.
United rarely lose at Old Trafford, especially not twice in a row, and hardly ever drop points there against promoted sides.
Mick knows this so tried some radical thinking and there were three factors in his decision.
1) The best 11 worked tirelessly against Spurs and need a break if they are going to be in the best possible shape to play Burnley – a much more winnable game, especially as they will be giving it their all against Arsenal at Turf Moor tonight.
2) Mick put out his best side against Arsenal and Chelsea and they got spanked both times. The dent in confidence was evident in the following game against Birmingham. If Man U inflicted a similar heavy defeat, heads might drop again ahead of a massive game. This way, whatever the result, the 11 that play at the weekend won’t be affected mentally.
3) It was a chance for some of the squad players to impress on a big stage and force their way in to Mick’s thinking for the weekend.
Mick hasn’t covered himself in glory with the fans who spent a fortune on tickets and travel to Manchester. But let’s be honest, the fans are not his priority and the days of football clubs putting supporters ahead of results and money are way behind us. Mick is simply interested in keeping Wolves in the Premier League and I’m happy with that.
As for the Premier League rule of putting out your best possible team – it’s a nonsense. For a start you could argue that Hanneman, Mancienne, Zubar, Castillo, Elokobi and Halford have been regular starters this season. Add to this last year’s player of the season in Foley and million pound plus signings in Surman and The Hof and you can make an argument for it being a strong team. More importantly, the league has no appetite for taking on the big clubs who play weakened sides against lower teams when they have got a big European game a few days later. The rule is simply unworkable and Mick has tried to use that to our advantage.
If we beat Burnley at the weekend, Mick made a brilliant decision.
If we lose then it will have been a failed experiment in trying to maximise use of the squad.
Comments
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Posted by ALEX on 12/16/2009
First time I have ever posted an opinion, I am an ex pro footballer and I cannot believe that a manager has picked a team based on the players opinions on how hard the players played in their last game !!! this has got to be a joke ! I am not a wolves supporter, I am a Celtic fan but a huge follower of the English game, but this guy is a disgrace, I am glad I do not have to look at him when he walks in the dressing room tomorrow , unbelievable !! where has the game gone.
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Posted by Vic on 12/18/2009
Where has the game gone, Alex? It's gone to the money men.
If Wolves had the funds of Man Utd, Chelsea, etc. then Mick McCarthy would be reported as having used 'squad rotation' - a luxury when you have 20 odd top class players.
When you don't then you are accused of fielding a reserve side.
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Posted by Dion on 12/18/2009
I'm an Arsenal fan. Even when Monsieur Wenger got really upset and Sir Alex said "it's fine", i have to pay respect to McCarthy for such a bold move.
This is a simple old school strategy being applied on modern commercial world. Of course big teams won't have any problem fielding the second-stringers because they have strong squads. But for a club with limited resources as Wolves, I find this necessary once awhile.
No need to listen to naysayers, I say!
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Posted by Josh on 12/19/2009
Easy for a Celtic fan to say, you aren't the minnows of the league like Wolves. The job of Wolves is to try and stay in the premiership. They pulled off a massive upset in Tottenham, then 3 days later are in ManU, what would the score been had they played their best lineup. They were 16-1 dogs before the lineups of the match were announced. Then this weekend they have a very winnable match against Burnley who has 1 pt in 8 road matches. Why burn out the starters in a game when hell has to freeze over to steal a draw? Especially when they have such an important game coming up. Its easy of for the fans of the "monsters" of their leagues to look down on the idea, but people need to realize that the season is more important than 1 game, its about figuring out the best way to get enough points to avoid relegation. People who don't get that need to get off their high horse.
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Posted by Rich Morgan on 12/20/2009
Well Now, 2-0 over Burnley. Looks like Mick wasn't so crazy after all. It's about finishing the season outside of the bottom three when things are all said and done. And the move to rest the starters against Man U paid off in spades today.
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