Put The Bite On Catts
BORO will need to put the bite on Catts if they are to beat Wigan. The midfield terrier will be fired up to prove a point and put one over his former team mates in what is sure to be a high-stakes and tense Riverside rumble in which he will be in the spotlight.
Many returning players get routinely booed. Some of them face real vitriol for presumed slights against the club and even those that have not bad-mouthed the town or the team or left a sour taste with a money wrangle can get a rough ride.
But Lee Cattermole should escape that particular fate. So long as he does not score and kiss the badge, crock Stewie or flick the Vs at the North Stand he should get a generous reception as a spirited Teesside lad who never gave less than 100% while wearing a red shirt.
In fact for some he remains an important figure to be applauded. For them he is almost a political exile, a popular local prodigy with a zest and competitive edge that would have made him a sure-fire Holgate hero in the Gary Hamilton mould but who was hastily driven out to suit a short-term agenda, to enforce the dressing room culture or to make the much vaunted Academy start to pay its way.
For many more, whatever his technical failings - and in truth he was never going to live up to his early billing as 'Boro's Steven Gerrard " - his energy, tough-tackling and bottle for the battle and passion shown at times by tears of frustration that struck a chord with the crowd have never been replaced. His exit left soft-centred Boro self-evidently weaker in the engine room, short of legs and lacking snarling in-your-face midfield edge and had he stayed he would surely walk into the team right now.
That he has not been cast in the villain role after his departure by supporters makes him a potentially explosive figure. As a local lad who got stuck in for his local team - and in the UEFA Cup final no less - means he still carries some clout. Should he play well and Wigan win it will pile even more pressure on Gareth Southgate. Catts will become a stick with which to beat the boss with.
The build up to the game has shown that, so far, he remains 'one of our own'. His fellow Boro boys in the changing room have been highly complimentary about Catts, there has been a week long text frenzy of baiting and banter and now the crop topped Stockton battler has returned the favour in his own pre-match comments. He said:
"I want nothing more than to see Boro survive. Nobody would want that more than me, obviously I am at Wigan now and my job is to try everything to win the game, but I was a huge Boro fan as a kid and that never leaves you."A lot of my friends still play for the club and I wish them only well, except of course this Saturday - then it is down to business and my business is to win games for Wigan."
"The situation was I felt I needed to be playing every week. I think any footballer worth his salt would feel the same, in terms of options I don't think I really had one. I want regular first-team football, anyone who works in a job which they love doing would feel the same way - I just wanted to play.
"It was made plain and simple to me that my opportunities would be limited, so when the offer to move and play for Steve Bruce came along I took it. I have not regretted it for a second and I've played in 26 of the 28 games. I think we are genuine challengers for a European place and that shows what progress we have made."
Those quotes cover all the bases I think. Cattermole will be a fierce presence on the pitch that needs to be met head on. "Someone is going to get clattered", warned Stewart Downing earlier this week, no doubt trying on bigger, stronger shinpads.
In the reverse fixture at Wigan he left a trail of bodies behind him and we can expect the same again - so long as he stays on the pitch (I've got 22 minutes in the golden booking sweepstake). We desperately need Boro to get something from this game. We don't want Cattermole being the story.
POST SCRIPT:
Well, as predicted someone did get clattered. Catts rocked Digard rather than Stewie but it was enough to push him into the role of pantomime villain so he was booed roundly at almost every touch and serenaded with a four letter remix of his old terrace ditty. At least he didn't score. That would really have been adding insult to injury.
Older/Newer
36 Comments
Leave a comment
Profile
Anthony Vickers
Latest Football League video
Keep up to date
Follow Untypical Boro on
Cattermole is miles better than Arca, Bates, Shawky and Walker. He would be an automatic choice if he was here now. Selling him and not replacing him with better was blinkered madness.
Catts and Digard in the middle would protect our dodgy defence and maybe add a bit of zip going forward too. It would make the whole plan work.
Behaving like any young Teessider should not have been a problem if it was managed properly. Passion, steel and energy. That is exactly what he have been missing.
Plus, the whole spin for the past two year has been about getting young prospects in on the cheap who are hungry, want to play for Boro and whole will get better. So why sell one that ticks all the boxes?
My only disagreement with Holgate Ender is that I believe Josh Walker may have the makings of a really good midfielder - tackling, quick feet, quick brain for an opening and the ability to take advantage, and with an eye for goal. He MIGHT get his chance sooner because of Catts' departure.
Bates might also be able to do a midfield job, (though I am much less sure in his case) but I agree that on the whole Catts would have got quite a lot of games this season if he had been retained. Selling Boat and Catts at the same time.... well, to be fair, I had expected more of Shawky whose performances whe he came on were a little underwhelming, to be neutral about it.
Catts will get a good reception, but we all want his team's success to be delayed by a week because we desperately need the points.
Note to Holgate Ender:
The defence wasn't exactly dodgy when we had Luke Young, Wheater and Woodgate playing with Schwartzer behind them. The sale of Young more than anything has exposed the defence and we've seen what lack of organisation and experience has done to us this season.
Catts was ok, just ok, and would have no doubt replaced Boatang but I remember a headless chicken running around with limited passing ability. We've already got one of those in Pogi so two in the same side might have been pushing it.
But maybe Catts might have have calmed down and started playing more sensibly like he has at Wigan. Personally I would have liked him to stay and develop here but we don't know all the reasons why he was sold although publicans in Yarm seem to know part of the answer.
Still we did spend the money on Emnes and Southgate won't even play him !!
Cattermole was a handful off the field and a headless chicken on it. "Any young teesider" would behave that way, eh Holgate Ender? Well maybe that's why our area has such a terrible reputation. One less thanks to Southgate.
A very good piece, but you neglect to mention the propaganda quotes coming from Southgate in the Gazette earlier this week saying that he left as he needed to get away from the area.
Utter drivel trying to imply he left the club purely because a few of his mates were getting him thrown out of the odd pub. A major felony in the eyes of some on Teesside. Strange how players done for more potentially dangerous crimes like drunk driving and speeding are just tutted at in a "footballers eh?" way.
He left because our manager couldn't handle a young player who was rightly knocking on his door as he should've been in the side ahead of the appalling Arca and Rochemback.
He was no worldbeater, but he would walk into the team today.
Forget Catts, I'm more worried that we're going into the biggest game of the season and they are contemplating playing one up front.
Fair enough Downing playing off Alves worked at West Ham but we were away from home and playing on the counter attack. We need two up front we've needed it all season. Alves is useless as a lone striker it doesn't suit his game at all hence why we are in the position we are in. Tuncay is about as much a striker as Pogatetz, or for that matter Downing.
It needs to be Alves and Aliadiere if he's fit. If not, as much as I think he's rubbish it'll need to be King and Alves. It's the only way the ball will stick up front. If he doesn't Wigan will dominate possession and we will look to hit them on the break or from a set piece. Not good enough for a must win game.
Guess 0-0 is better than a loss. There are winable games coming up but any team that has gone 14 games without a win is hardly likely to start winning often. Boro will need a lot of help from the other dross teams. Looking at run ins the Mugpies have the hardest of any team in poor form. It might be a good bet to put money on Boro still playing them next season, but in which division?
That MUST!!!be the final time we take the field with TEN men. The best player on the books is sitting in the stand whilst Alves is taking up space doing NOWT. Tuncay covered more ground in twenty minutes than the goal machine has in twenty games.
Honestly we should pay someone ã12million to take him off our hands, he will never make it in this division. I'm sick of hearing "he gets into scoring positions".. so could I but what good is that if they don't end up in the net?
For the life of me I dont understand why he wont give Emnes a run in the middle, He cant do worse than the Goal Machine. What a laugh. Southgate has made only ONE decision that was correct and that was the one about both keepers. All his others have been dismal failures.
GOD SAVE THE BORO
Cattermoles tackle was hard and agressive but fair. I don't think he went in to hurt Digard. More interestingly Vic,what do you think of the letter the club has sent out regarding the noise and standing in the SE corner?.
** AV writes: No complainst about the tackle other than why don't our lads get stuck in like that. Tell me more about the letter. You rowdies haven't been causing an atmosphere have you?
Paul hits the nail on the head. The formation is incorrect for a home match against a team playing for a 0-0 draw. In the home matches against Wigan, Blackburn and Sunderland we have played one man up. In each winnable game we have posed little threat.
I could not believe it today when he brought Aliadiere on. I thought a good move, we are now going to go 4-4-2 and put somebody up with Alves but no, he plonked him in midfield and carried on with the same system that was not working.
For goodness sake Southgate Alves cannot play alone up front in home matches.It doesnt work - we are not scoring and yet he persists with it.Totally fed up.
The return of the prodigal son. Unfortunatly as I predicted He came, He saw, He conquored. The best player on the pitch, however that was not hard as both sides were very poor. Wigan just edged it because they had Catts and we did not.
Hope Digard is o.k.but lets face it hes twice the size of Catts and it was a fair 50/50 challenge the sort of challenge you see every Sunday in the Teesside Alliance u14 league.
I was surprised at the after match comments of Southgate when he said the whole team gave 100%, may be ten of them did but Alves certainly did not. He fails to pressurize the opposition and just stands and looks on as a spectator.
Alves seems to have no idea what he is supposed to be doing when not possession of the ball. His pathetic attempt to gain a free kick when he received a yellow card for assimilation of a foul was in keeping with his overall play when ever he is in a one on one tussle with the defender , he does not seem willing to put his body on the line to a least make it difficult for the defender to make a clearance. Time after time bramble was given a clear run at any pumped up field.
We have to stop playing with ten men week in week out in the hope that the Goal machine will eventually perform to his Video shots . Who was the football expert that recommended Alves be purchased for a club record fee? How many times did they see him perform in the flesh? Or did they go on those video clips that were so impressive on U-Tube? He fooled me with the video i must admit.
It is now time before it is too late to admit we all made a grave mistake in our judgement of Alves. He does not seem to understand the basics of beating a keeper when he is on a one on one with the keeper, just blasting the ball and hoping for the best is not good enough. A perfect example of how to score in these situations was given by Anelka on Saturday when he coolly slotted the ball over the Aston Villa goal keeper to give Chelsea one nil win.
Our only solution to the problem is by playing King alongside Tuncay with Alliderie supporting, they can not possibly do worse than the inept performances we have come to expect from Alves.
Can someone please have that smug prat Gary Lineker removed from Match of the Day? Apart from being a terrible presenter, he's enjoying Boro's predicament a little too much for my liking and couldn't resist sticking the boot in.
Who'd have predicted we would be last match, AGAIN?
I come back to previous comments I have made about needing to buy a ticket to win the lottery. The line up we played was suitable for an away match. Playing it at home is too defensive.
Away you have the space and time to break because the home side are pressing, at home they tend to sit back and invite you on to them. Playing as we did was perfect for Wigan to settle for a comfortable point with the chance of taking three points.
There is a fundamental rule in football. You have to score more than the opposition to take three points. It is no good relying on long range shots. You need to play around their area and get players into their box.
I supose you cant blame Gate for sticking to what worked at West Ham but a point isnt good enough.
Poor Gate looks at his wits end, it is up to me to post we need points from unexpected sourse. Now he is saying we have win games people dont expect us to. He is certainly right because it is difficult to see where a goal is coming from never mind five wins.
The BBC consigning us to the scrap heap of MOTD just about sums it up.
This was the 2nd time Lineker made the same comment this year, that Shearer had watched the game and had no analysis - said with a sneer.
If the game was rubbish and the performances consistently rubbish, doesn't that deserve to be analysed?
Mick,
Agree with you about the smug Lineker and Messrs Shearer and Hansen that can't be bothered to stick around to comment.
But the problem we have is that Boro keep giving them the excuse and, to be honest, who else than the dwindling band of Boro or Wigan fans would have still been around to watch that dross.
I see the points above about playing with 10 men because of Alves. Actually, it's 9 due to Arca. Picking him every week is a statement of ambition to go down in itself.
And the land crab had the temerity to look annoyed when he got subbed after another 50 minutes of non-contribution or worse.
The only surprise yesterday was how little ambition Wigan showed in a game they could surely have won easily with 5 per cent more effort.
Difficult to see where the next goal, let alone win is coming from. Pathetic.
Really fed up with Southgate. We don't even look like scoring a goal if we played 180 minute games and that is unbelievably worrying.
But what really annoyed me was the shocking coverage on MotD. I didn't expect a Boro vs. Wigan game to be on first (even if it had been 5-0!), but the way Gary Lineker sneered and made both teams sound like nobody cares was absolutely disgraceful.
If Man Utd had been playing Wigan and it had been 0-0, then there would still have been about 30 mins of analysis showing how Man Utd failed to score and about 15 different angles of one meaningless incident.
I understand that those top teams have the largest groups of supporters and so try to cater for them, but the way they treat the unfashionable teams displays a downright obvious bias. This has only served to feed my 'boronoia'!
The BS is piled high this morning and it is piled at the door of our Chairman, Benefactor Savior Steve Gibson and Young Lee Cattlemore. Why? Because nice guy Gareth Southgate has dumped all his B. S. at their doors to take the heat off himself. Why? Because that's what losers do.
They don't except the blame. They dont stand by there decisions, they off load on others. Now its time for a reality check here. Lets stop the rot which is down to one man and that man is Southgate Nice guy but a loser, clever guy but lacks common sense, good captain but terrible manager.
Now is the time for him to go. Why? Because if he does not go now and god forbid stays for yet another season the player exodus from the riverside could set the club back 10 years. Downing, O,Neil, Turnbull, Huth, Bates, McMahon, Taylor Johnson Arca Mido all likly to go and who will be left to get us back up?
He has gutted the excellent squad he inherited from McClaren and gave us lame excuses why the players had to go. But worse still he let so many go on the cheap or for nothing which cost the club milions. Lets face it, the current financial problems are as much down to Southgate's bad dealings in the transfer market as past overspending.
Just one point Southgate spent more on his players than Steve Bruce did on his at Wigan. Then look at the team he could have had without spending big money, Turnbull, Young, Wheater, Woodgate, Quuedrue, Morrison, Cattermole, Rochenback, Downing, Tuncay, Yakubu, and with a bench of Jones, Williams, Parnaby, Johnson, Boateng, Maccarone, Job, Taylor instead of the expensive championship players he has brought in to take us down.
The simple fact is Southgate cannot manage full stop, We need some one in right now some one who can lift the whole place Coleman, Curbishley, Jones there is plenty of quality out there. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH
For those complaining about the MotD treatment of the game, here's some post-match analysis:
Hapless.
Pusillanimous.
Shapeless.
Gutless.
Gormless.
Clueless.
In other words: Hopeless.
I wish I could add "and now currently managerless".
Come back Malcolm Allison, all is forgiven! (it really is THAT bad).
After receiving one of those disgraceful "please be quiet and sit down" letters, I have to ask if it is Boro's intention to make the place so quiet and boring that hundreds of people will nod off and then the club will be able to have them all arrested and fined.
After all they have a track record of doing this dont they?
The powers that be are turning Middlesbrough FC into a small time charlie, laughing stock club.
Looks like the party line is broken already and certain players are again saying they want away.....Shawky is now saying.
"I will not complete my contract at Boro," insisted Shawky, who has 18 months left on his current deal. "I will start from now to search for a new club. I haven't received any offers yet, but I have huge hope that they will arrive in the coming period, especially from English clubs, who now know my abilities."
Also regarding Mido he said.....
"Mido underwent a lot of injustice at Middlesbrough. He was the best striker in the squad and its top scorer, but despite this he was not played regularly."
So looks like the dash for the exit has started......No wonder even the players know were this train wreck is going....
The only difference now between WBA and Boro is that the Albion supporters have not given up yet! There is a 'why bother' mentality amongst Boro players. Looking at the acres of empty seats every time at home games, at a ground that is small to start with, no wonder they don't care themselves.
Truth is that most "Boro fans"(?) have spoken by finding better things to do on a Saturday afternoon. The Mugpie fans are on the verge of follow suit. What a contrast to up the A19 where Saint Niall will have the place packed next season.
If Drogba played for Boro then the posts would be saying that "we are playing with ten men with that guy Drogba up front". Similarly Torres, Adebayor or whoever.
The point is it doesn't matter who we play up front, the best striker in the world would struggle to make an impact in the Boro team with GS's frustrating and negative tactics.
If GS wants to keep it tight, then keep it tight in general, but for God's sake take off the leash for a number of attacks and get six or seven men in the box and try to score at least one goal.
Given that we appear to be totally clueless in getting on the end of corners or free kicks (can anyone remember the last time we scored from a dead ball delivery?) just where is the next goal, never mind the next victory going to come from?
I have never joined the call for GS's head but surely he must see that he is not going to achieve the target of winning five games by continuing to set up his team devoid of positive intent.
The evidence is so blatantly obvious for all to see. Four points out of fifteen, and a miserable two goals, from 'one up front' home games against Bolton, Newcastle, Sunderland, Blackburn and Wigan smacks of negativity. If GS cannot see what the whole football world can see (not just fans I might add) that then I have to agree that it is time to get someone who can.
If Shearer will not grace us with any analysis then put someone on the program that will.
Shearer scored a few goals in his time and maybe if he said something about getting players forward to support the striker or playing two up front at home then Gate may listen.
The problem is they are old team mates and Shearer would rather keep quiet as he has already seen Ince and Adams sacked and Gareth is such a nice man and the future for English managers- not at the mo hes not!
The fear of losing has got riga mortis set into the attack. I wonder how long Digard will be out for? Something was bound to happen with Cattermole's return. We could do with him now, played in the right position which he never got under us.
Nobody thinks we will stay up coz we never score! West Ham will be interesting.
The only thing I can say about Liverpool is I hope they score early so we have to change the system to ATTACK more , as I am desperate to see us get stuck in and force a goal in. Mind you when we tried that against Brom at home nobody could put the ball in the net and they sneaked a 1-0 victory- cobblers.
Please read my comments above written before the game stating that if we play with Alves and Downng up front we will fail to score. I knew it, thousands of other fans know it and yet the english Borat who gets paid a fortune to make these decisions does not.
I almost had cardiac arrest when Southgate made an attacking substitution and brought Aliadiere on to play up front, but then the tactical genius knowing April Fools day is only a month and a half away decided in all his wisdom to play him on the right wing. Unbelievable.
I know it's easy to attack Alves but as someone else posted any striker would struggle in the formation Southgate picks. Not once this season have we played with two strikers. We always play with one up top and one in the hole. It doesn't work, our lack of goals is not a coincidence.
We are not one of the worse three teams in the league. I actually think we could have been top half. Damn bad management has got us in this position. Why have we not see Tuncay in the hole with Alves and Aliadiere/Mido up front. We would have wiped the floor with sides like West Brom, Blackburn or Sunderland.
Set up defensively away from home but not at home. I'm afraid it's too late now we are running out of games and the horse does not seemed to have learned anything from our games this season. His substitutions of like for like without ever changing formation is also really winding me up. If the club weren't so skint Southgate would be long gone.
Where oh where is Stevie Gibson? Come out and tell us why you are letting this circus show continue; at least then we will know.
I watched the same MOTD "highlights" as some others, and to be honest it was a waste of 30 seconds. Bruce must be kicking himself that he didn't go for it 2nd half, we were there for the taking.
Catt's was the best player on the park from what I witnessed, and Alves....well he summed up his total contribution by diving to get Catt booked.
Southgate frankly just does not know how to turn this around. He said that "everyone outside of this club thinks we're gone", well I've got news for you Gareth, if you include the fans as part of the club, there are lot of people "inside" who believe we are gone.
The sad things is if we do go down, it will be the manner in which we slip into relative obscurity that will be the most galling aspect. We the fans, would I am sure rather go down fighting to the last, instead of rolling over and almost accepting the inevitable.
Just two things to say:-
Two strikers at home! Yet again we had just two shots on goal - both from outside the box. No other chances created! Everyone else is making this point. Why can't Gate see his sytem doesn't work?
Emnes! The side is desperate for goals. For goodness sake, Gate, give the lad a chance.
Cheer up Benny Brown, you and I seem to hold the same point of view concerning the current mess we are in,ie team selection,subs and tactics. but there is some consolation on the horizon for us out here in OZ. Next year we will be spared the
middle of the night Horror shows we have endured for months.........UNLESS they start showing Championship games.
Despite my post above, citing that any striker in the world would struggle in the Boro team, playing one striker in itself is not particularly the problem with GS tactics. It is the failure of the rest of the team to support the lone striker that is the problem.
Although I would prefer that we played 4-4-2 especially at home, the 4-4-1-1 system is successfully used throughout the Premier League and Europe. However to make it work it requires that the rest of the team play a very big part in joining the attack.
Chelsea set up much like Boro.4-4-1-1, but look how their midfield and their full backs form part of almost every attack, resulting in six/seven players involved.
If we attacked with seven players and left three players deep, it's not as though the opposition would leave six players up front. They would track back and leave only one or two upfront. That is say, eight defenders against our seven attackers. That is a far better ratio of one/two in attack against seven defenders that we see now.
TAKE THE GAME TO THE OPPOSITION!
It's simple isn't it?
When our powderpuff striker - is that a misnomer - can make Titus Bramble look impregnable, the answer must be conclusive.
We will score very few more this season and when in the Championship it will be rebuild time. Downing will be off to Chelsea, Alves, Tunks, Emnes and Huth back to Europe and Aliad probably to another middle order EPL side. Wheater can kiss goodbye to his England ambitions for a while. And the rows of empty seats will make the Riverside rivalling the look of a Wigan home game.
At least we won't witness it on Skysports. My sympathy to the Boro faithfull who pay at the door
John, Aus
Plenty of vitriol on here against MOTD.
Why bother - just a dozen more Premiership games to go and then that programme will probably never get chance to show Boro again as this club wont be returning to the Premier League in the foreseeable future.
So it is 14 games without a win and 1 goal in 9 and southgate is still in a job! Please get rid of him while we have a chance of staying up. This football is the worst i have seen for many years.
They even sent letters out to some fans telling them to keep the noise down and only make noise when we score a goal!!!(see link below)
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj70/xborox/img075.jpg
Nearly forgot the bit about only cheering when we score! Bah, humbug
Alves and King up front never to be seen again wow why is it just the rest of the world that sees our problem.
Full game was on here on Sunday i have not seen so much crap in all my life.
The last paragraph of the letter is unbeleivable. Please only make noise when the team score. Well that wont be very often then....The tone is also patronising and is yet another indicator of a club that has completely lost touch with its supporters.
We are down btw. Hopefully planning is afoot to re-build for a promotion push next season. With a new manager, otherwise we are down again the season after.