English Football's War On The Trequartista

In Argentina they call him the "enganche", in Italy the "fantatista" and in England simply the advanced playmaker. Footballs "number 10's" have always had an aura about them. The best description for such a player I could find was one put forward by Guardian writer Marcela Mora y Araujo, who when writing an article on Argentine star Juan Roman Riquelme described it as,

"the thinker, the one who marks the pause, the hook if you like. This is the best word for it, hooking the midfield with the strikers, and naturally the Spanish "enganche" is the most commonly used (though Fifa's dictionary of football terms doesn't include the word). Inside-forward, the suggested English term for the position, doesn't even begin to describe it."

Examples of such players include Juan Roman Riquelme, Diego Maradona, Alessandro Del Piero and Francesco Totti are all examples of sublimely skillful creative players. But currently in England there is a shortage of such players, the only examples I can think of is Arsenal man Cesc Fabregas and even then, his club have him wearing the number 4 shirt (although he is number 10 for Spain) and possibly at a stretch Ashley Young for Aston Villa. This lack of an attacking central playmaker in teams I feel was clearly shown in this weeks match at Stamford Bridge between Manchester United and Chelsea.

With both sides playing with a 4-4-2 shape there was no room in the formations for a player to operate "between the lines". Personally I'm a romantic when it comes to the beautiful game and particularly enjoy watching a maverick number 10 pick apart an opponents defence. So this seasons Premier League hasn't been my favourite when it comes to aesthetic pleasure.  

I don't understand English footballs aversion to a central creative figure in a team. Last seasons Champions League winners Inter Milan had Wesley Sneijder as their creative fulcrum which clearly shows that their is room for players of his ilk at the highest level. Players who have played the this role and moved to England have more than often had to change their role within a team to gain first team football. Two players who are a prime example of this are Jon Obi Mikel of Chelsea and Manchester United man Anderson.

Both players mentioned were originally attacking creative midfielders, lynch pins for both their previous clubs respectively. Now I know that this would be a shock for most Premier League followers, as Mikel is now accepted as a holding player occupying the "Makelele role" and Anderson is a "water carrier" for Manchester United, helping with the transition of the ball from the defensive third of the pitch to the attacking third, without taking up particularly threatening positions himself.

Andersons stats show a downward trend in his goalscoring record. Prior to his move to England he scored 8 goals in 37 league appearances for Porto and Gremio respectively, he has now played 66 league games for Manchester United scoring 1 goal. With Mikel his national team manager Samson Siasia has spoken out against how Chelsea have transformed him into a defensive player saying,

"Chelsea destroyed the player Mikel once was," Siasia says, groaning. "They did a lot of damage to Nigerian football. Here was a young, enterprising midfielder who was going to be like Jay-Jay Okocha. He was about opening up defences, not protecting them."

One explanation for this lack of advanced play-makers playing in the British game could be the importance put on the quick tempo of the game. Watching most games in the Premier League the midfield is packed with hard working midfielders or two wingers with possibly one deep lying play-maker like Mikel Arteta, Charlie Adam or Luka Modric (who was recognised as a number 10 for his former club Dinamo Zagreb). With this kind of line up there is an culture in teams to get the ball forward as quickly as possibly. There are two problems sides would experience in the Premier League playing with a trequartista. Firstly a traditional number 10 would slow down the progression of the ball into the penalty area and secondly the direct style of play produced by teams in England leaves the enganche bypassed and a mere spectator in most games.

Unfortunately the footballing climate in England doesn't encourage creative attacking players, this has been well documented every time England are knocked out of a major tournament. The problem is that things don't seem to be changing, the only team bar Arsenal I can think of who play with a creative maverick at the heart of their team is Queens Park Rangers who have Adel Taarabt as their trequartista. More and more teams have shifted towards a very functional way of operating which I feel is part of a legacy which Mourinho left in England with his after his spell at Chelsea and also the influence of Sam Allardyce after his successes at Bolton with a very limited budget. Lets just hope more progressive managers like Arsene Wenger are introduced to the Premier League so that we can start enjoy more expressive forms of football more suitable for creative players to flourish in.

Examples of established trequartistas moving to the Premier League and experiencing a difficultly performing to the standards expected from them, include Juan Sebastian Veron, Deco, Alberto Aquilani and Gaizka Mendieta. All these players were highly rated playmakers plying their trade in Serie A and La Liga respectively but all of them I can safely say their moves to England weren't as successful as their spells elsewhere. Players of this type have often been described by pundits as lacking a work ethic, not being "team players" and have been moved on or used sparingly.

Joe Cole an example of creative talent in English football wasted

I hope that this outlook changes as I feel that this part of the game is something English football is missing out on. Hearing the stories of both Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United rejecting the chance to sign Zinedine Zidane, the former doing it in favour of Garry Flitcroft, players like Tuncay Sanli and Joe Cole having their careers and development frozen by distrustful management, both make you realize what is lost from our game.

Manchester United sign Anderson on New Deal

Manchester United midfielder Anderson has signed a new contract which will keep him at Old Trafford until 2015.

The Brazilian had been quite a disappointment since his £17 million move to United in 2007 from FC Porto, as he struggled to find form or fitness - which cost him a regular first team place. However, after playing a couple of games in the first team, filling in for Paul Scholes and proving his qualities with some fine performances and a rare goal to his name, not to mention his obvious potential he has earned himself the new deal.

The 22 year-old, who had been linked to moves away from United said he is delighted with the contract renewal, as he told the clubs official website:

"This is the best club to be at and I would like to thank everyone for the great support I have received over the years"

"I am looking forward to winning many more trophies with this club and I am so pleased to have signed a new contract."

His manager was equally as happy, saying that Anderson "has fantastic potential" and is "going to be a really top player" for the club.

The player scored his first goal at Old Trafford against Valencia last week - doubling his overall goal tally for United, and the signs of improvement are clear to see. He is much more comfortable with his position -playing further forward seems to be a strong point, but his physicality and passion are still as strong as when he first joined as a teenager.

Things seem to be going United's way at the moment - top of the League with a game in hand after toppling title challengers Arsenal and they stand in the proud position of being the only unbeaten side in England. A shaky Chelsea team in next up for the Red Devils, and Anderson will be hoping to earn his money and play a big part in pushing the Blues of the edge in what looks like will be a thrilling game.

Watch Goals: Manchester United 1 - 1 Valencia

(Watch Goals Below)

It was a quiet night at Old Trafford, in which the United team didn't hit their top gear, but bombarded the Valencia goalkeeper with shot after shot - with only one hitting the back of the net. It was a game of sloppy individual errors, wasted chances, and doing just enough to please everyone.

United conceded first, which dashed their chances of setting a new clean sheet record in the group stages of the Champions League. Michael Carrick gave the ball away inside his own half, to which the Valencia attackers pounced on the rare chance to score. Dominguez ran with the ball, and slid it to Pablo Hernandez on the right, with the 25 year-old midfielder subsequently hitting the ball through Ben Amos' legs in the United goal.

United deserved to have at least one goal if you were looking at the amount of chances that they had - Anderson and Berbatov had excellent chances, running through the defence, but not testing the goalkeeper well enough. Rooney tried a fantastic shot from the corner of the box which dipped onto the crossbar as the helpless keeper could only watch. Rooney wasn't yet back to his best of course, but showed his fantastic ability with glimpses of brilliance.

Anderson was probably the man of the match. He hasn't convinced all of the United fans since his £17 million move with Nani to United, but if he keeps playing like this; bursting into the box, dominating the midfield, winning the ball, creating chances - he will win over the doubters soon enough. He scored the equaliser too, as he broke into the box to pounce on a rebound from Ji Sung Park's vicious shot, and the ball finally rippled the net with his finish. His celebration of dancing with himself was briefly interrupted with Rooney running in and slapping him over the head in joy, but it didn't stop the Brazilian boy.

From then on it was all about not conceding. United didn't push themselves to grab a winner while Valencia looked the more likely in the closing minutes. It was a good warm up game; not too hard, not much to play for - all in build up to the big match on Monday in which United will lock horns with title rivals Arsenal.

Watch the Goals Here

West Ham 4 - 0 Man United - United Humiliated in Cup Quarters

West Ham cruised to a 4 - 0 win against a petty excuse of a Manchester United team. That is something you don't hear very often, but the Carling Cup quarter final showed that Sir Alex Ferguson had massively underestimated the London club.

It was a clash between the top and bottom teams in the Premier League, but by this performance, you wouldn't think that United were the team unbeaten this season and sitting proudly at the top. Their defense was an absolute shambles, their midfield created nothing, and the attack had nothing to work with. It was atrocious. West Ham completely outplayed United in the snow, as the visiting players seemed to take a break in their job as footballers, wondering aimlessly around the pitch, watching Avram Grants side control the game around them.

Jonathon Spector of all people - the former Manchester United defender scored two of the goals for the Hammers, both in the first half, and Carlton Cole scored the other two in the second half.

Victor Obinna of West Ham had a great game - a big threat to United throughout; being the source of most of the chances created. It was a player like this that Ferguson's side were missing. Johnny Evans had a bad game, and he knows it. He was turned too easily for Cole's goal, while the defence in general fell asleep for numerous West Ham attacks.

In truth, after the second goal went in, there wasn't really any way back for United. Sir Alex had no one on his bench who could come on and make an impact. No Rooney, no Berbatov, no Nani. the Scot had no options that he knew could change the game.

We all make mistakes, and Sir Alex made one today. Of course, no one could have expected that his team would perform so poorly, but he should have had one or two top players on the bench that he could rely on to create something if it came it. In the end, it did come to it, and Ferguson wasn't prepared.

West Ham have breezed passed the holders of the competition with ease, and humiliated the young United team in the process. Before the game United were unbeaten in all competitions this season. That record is shattered in pieces as the Red Devils travel to Blackpool on the weekend, but it is a huge confidence boost for the struggling Hammers who travel to Sunderland on Sunday on the back of a brilliant 4 - 0 win.

Hernandez Lifts United

It was a tricky game for Manchester United last night. A game away to the La Liga leaders with both Rooney and Scholes not travelling is a tough job to complete. But they did it.

United had to resist a lot of pressure from Valencia, but they knew this would happen away from home. Valencia wanted to put on a show for their fans, who, so far this season have been very pleased with what they have seen. However, Valencia could not penetrate the United defence with their play, although they tried other tactics, such as an aggressive stamp on Vidic's chest by one of the Valencia attackers, and then Soldados ridiculously desperate attempt to remove Nani's boots as the winger had the ball, when Soldado was on the floor. Astonishingly, in both occasions, the offender got away with it, but ultimately payed the price by conceding a late goal, and losing the game.

Valencia were a compact force. It was hard for United to create anything through the midfield, although this was probably thanks to the absence of Scholes, and the poor performances from Nani, Park, and Anderson. Nani, once again was giving the ball away with silly decisions, when a simple pass was on, and often, when he did choose the right pass, hit it too short, leaving the receiver with more work to do. It adds to the frustration, when it seems Nani doesn't realise the mistakes he makes, when they are schoolboy errors, which a man of his ability doesn't need to make. The sooner he realises that the small things like accurate, simple passing make him a better player as well as the big things like scoring a few goals, the better, because otherwise, he won't improve.

Berbatov had a tough game. His excellent season so far has relied on space and time on the ball, with options around him, as well as a good supplier from the wings. Last night, he had very little of any of those things, and therefore struggled to make an impact due to insufficient support. "Chicharito" saved United's day with a great little finish in the 85th minute to win the game. His first touch was to hit the post, while his second and third were controlling the ball and scoring. The young Mexican has brilliant pace, a great finish, and now a boost in confidence after his first Champions League goal for Manchester United. Is he the improved, young version of Michael Owen? Of course, he has a while to go before he eclipes the English legend, but the attributes are there.

United are now level on points with Rangers in their Champions League group, and their next game is against the Turkish club, Bursaspor, who have lost their first two games against Rangers last night, and Valencia. It should prove an easy qualification through to the knock-out rounds this year for United, but with their current form, you don't know what will happen.