The phrase ‘Baines and Fellaini’ has been published, discussed and bandied around so much this summer already that I’m beginning to think the two should start their own cop show based on their dynamic partnership. Located in Merseyside, the Everton pair could solve low-level crimes, Baines doing the talking and Fellaini doing the fighting.

Joking aside, there is just cause for the futures of both Leighton Baines and Marouane Fellaini being so widely debated and documented – the duo have both come to the end of sensational seasons at Goodison, the former recording five goals and five assists from defence, and the latter finishing up with 11 goals and five assists, with some top-class individual performances along the way. The two are the summer’s most hotly anticipated transfers expected to stay within the realms of the Premier League.

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With this summer break constituting massive change on the blue half of Merseyside, following the departure of David Moyes and the appointment of Roberto Martinez as his replacement,  it seems the time is right for Baines and Fellaini to finally to take the step up, with both seemingly destined for a higher calling, whilst the Spaniard has the opportunity to forge a new philosophy and bring his own players into Goodison.

It begs the question whether or not Martinez should let his two talismanic stars leave over the course of the summer. Should he cash in on Baines and Fellaini, with the two coming at a shared price-tag of around £40million, in order to achieve his own ambitions at the Everton, or would he be better off keeping as much star quality as possible, considering it will be the Spaniard’s first season at Goodison Park and the potential for disaster.

One of the arguments supporting the case to move on the pair is that it would allow Martinez to work with a clean slate. Despite the protests already made against it, based around notions of Everton’s typically English identity, Martinez will undoubtedly take his new club down a different path in terms of philosophy next season. The Spaniard will be keen to continue playing to the Toffees’ strengths, yet the focus will undoubtedly switch from aerial threat and power to controlling the game through ability on the ball.

But I do not buy into the argument that the current Everton squad, and Fellaini in particular is at odds with the style we’ve seen from Martinez during his tenure with Wigan. The first team’s creative hub lies firmly in Darron Gibson, Steven Pienaar, Leighton Baines and Leon Osman, who all possess great technique and guile, but lack in any particularly athletic physique. Kevin Mirallas finished off the Premier League’s team goal of the season against West Ham, with the Toffees passing progressively and positively up the pitch in a stellar move, allowing the Belgian to find himself in a few years of space on the edge of the box.

Therefore, despite Fellaini and Baines being two integral parts of Eveton’s old style, known for its emphasis on direct football and aerial threat, I see no reason to sell them on the grounds that they won’t fit into Martinez’s possession-based approach. Footballers are capable of modifying their game, and many of the afro-bearer’s goals this season have come from outside of the box utilising his feet, rather than in the air.

Yet, £40million, although rumoured in the red tops and by no means a concrete figure, is a difficult sum to turn down. The Toffees are desperate to land a new striker, with Victor Anichebe and Nikica Jelavic scoring just 13 goals between them this season. Whilst Arouna Kone has been linked, due to him having a strong campaign under Martinez at Wigan last season, should the Everton boss really wish to achieve his self-imposed ambitions of pushing his new club into the Champions League, they will need a more prolific, better quality and younger acquisition than the 29 year old. In January, a bid was made and rejected for Alvaro Negredo, and although the Spaniard represents the calibre of player Everton need, it will cost them at least £17million to get Sevilla around the negotiating table.

Similarly, plenty other areas of the Everton squad could do with strengthening,  at centre-back for example. Phil Jagielka’s future appears secured after being offered the captain’s armband, but there are doubts over the longevity of Johnny Heitinga, with the Dutchman clearly falling out of favour with Moyes last season and making just 17 Premier League starts. Furthermore, whilst Sylvain Distin is still yet to show signs of ageing after another strong and consistent campaign, there is no getting away from the fact the defender is now 35 years of age, and will not be able to maintain his current level of performance much longer.

No disrespect to the current Everton roster, but it’s no secret that David Moyes has been getting the utmost out of his cast for some time. If Martinez cannot gaurantee the same standard of motivation, he will need to bring in added quality in all departments to not neccessarily greatly improve the Toffees but simply to maintain their current level. Similarly, the lack of depth at Goodison is arguably one of the most pressing issues – during Moyes’ tenure, cup runs have been few and far between, and the club’s second string fringe players are much lesser in terms of quality compared to Everton’s divisional rivals.

On the other hand, if the true ambition is Champions League football at Goodison, and it’s not simply a case of ‘reach the stars and you’ll hit the moon’ rhetoric on Martinez’s part, it seems rather illogical to sell two of the club’s three Champions League quality players – the other being Phil Jagielka – in his inaugural transfer window. Sometimes you have to take a step back to go forwards, but Baines and Fellaini are amongst the top performers in the Premier League, and any team of any style Martinez wishes to forge has a stronger justification to be built around the pair, rather than made out of the profits their departures could provide.

Considering their integral roles on Merseyside, would the Everton boss be able to find a full-back as creative and gifted on the ball as Baines at less cost? The Englishman provided the most chances to score out of any Premier League player last season according to OPTA. Similarly, is there another footballer on the planet who can provide the unique skills set of Fellaini, encompassing height, power, an imposing frame, ability on the ball, an eye for goal and defensive awareness?

£40million is a lot of money – especially for a club like Everton. But, at least in the short term, the potential deal cannot be of benefit to the Toffees. There are no direct replacements for either Baines or Fellaini on the horizon, and even if the money was on the most part spent on a new striker, it will be hard to find one that will be attracted to a club of the Toffees’ stature and also have as big an impact on results as the Everton duo.

Yet, it seems that the fee alone may be too good an offer for Bill Kenwright to turn down – finance and resources are always limited at Goodison, and the Everton chairman may have to simply accept his club will have to take a step backwards next season, as a result of the departures of two key personnel.

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But it does give Martinez the opportunity to forge a legacy – should the money be spent wisely, in addition to the Spaniard adopting the philosophical approach we’ve seen him employ at Swansea and Wigan, providing relative success for both clubs and at times outweighing the importance of any particular individuals, the Toffees could begin to reap the benefits over the next few years.

Should the pair be sold for profit, it will undoubtedly create a difficult start to Martinez’s tenure, and overall, the Toffees will have to endure a step backwards next season. But the £40million can be reinvested in young players, in mirrors of the models seen at Borussia Dortmund on a large scale and Aston Villa on a much lesser scale this season, which could allow Everton to reach the desired goal of Champions League football in the years to come. However, the potential plan would certainly be in the long-term, and there’s every chance that the Spaniard’s spell with the Toffees could well have ended before he is privy to its rewards.

Should Roberto Martinez sell Baines and Fellaini?

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Experienced striker Kevin Phillips will be staying with Premier League new boys Crystal Palace for another season, as reported by Sky Sports.

The vastly experienced front man will turn 40 years old next week but is still going strong and is enjoying yet another gruelling pre-season after being released by Blackpool at the end of last season which he spent the second half of on loan at Selhurst Park.

Phillips scored the goal from the penalty spot to send Palace back to Premier League back in May at Wembley and is set to play a strong role in the Eagles side with main man Glenn Murray set to be sidelined until the new year.

Phillips knows this may be his final year as a professional and going out at the top was always an aim of the former Sunderland, Birmingham and West Brom striker.

“I am absolutely delighted, I loved my time here at the end of last season and was always hoping to have another chance to play in the top flight,” Phillips said.

“It’s unbelievable for me but I am really looking forward to it and hoping I can play a great part in the season ahead.

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“Everyone I spoke to said to keep going as long as the fitness and hunger is there and that is certainly the case with me.”

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This week Barcelona announced the signing of Denis Suarez from Manchester City, picking up the hugely talented youngster for €1 million plus incentives and offering a clear path in his career that wasn’t on offer at the Etihad Stadium. Suarez will go into the Barcelona B team for this season, where the plan is to prepare him for life as either Xavi or Andres Iniesta’s long-term replacement, possibly the latter.

And it hasn’t just been Suarez. It’s been reported that Barcelona have a first option on a number of Atletico Madrid players as part of the David Villa transfer. Among the names said to be on the list are Oliver Torres and Saul, another immensely talented midfield duo. It’s clear planning for the future, and sensible planning too, something that isn’t an overriding theme of Sandro Rosell’s tenure as president.

So where do Liverpool stand on their need to replace a veteran and iconic presence in the midfield? Steven Gerrard is 33 and is most certainly counting down the days towards life after football. But isn’t there an argument to say Liverpool’s game isn’t as dependent on Gerrard as Barcelona’s is on Xavi?

The focus at Anfield has been on the newly acquired talents, with Coutinho heading the new wave. The style of football is set to take a shift from what we’ve been accustomed to in previous years, while even Jordan Henderson, a part of that reckless summer of 2011, is looking to shake that stigma.

Gerrard is the face of this Liverpool side and clearly has an important role to play. Without him in the squad you’d have to wonder how successful Brendan Rodgers’ tenure could be, or any manager for that matter. Gerrard is the go-between, the bridge between the manager and the dressing room, the most respected figure at the club and one who anyone would both want and need to have onside.

But such is the shaping of the building project at Liverpool that Gerrard could eventually be more of a symbolic figure rather than one who acts as the catalyst for a successful unit. The importance, however, and much like Barcelona are doing, is for Liverpool to establish who Gerrard will pass the torch to, identifying the midfielder who will define the next generation at the club.

Of course, that player could already be in the squad in Coutinho. Moreover, Rodgers may once again opt to look to Spain – a market which the club have clearly identified as key in their building – and pick up one of the promising midfielders to build a team around. Yet such is the success of the Brazilian thus far at Anfield, and of course Gerrard’s ability to stubbornly stare in the face of his advancing years, that Rodgers isn’t under an enormous amount of pressure to replace the club captain with a like-for-like.

The difference between Barcelona and Liverpool is that the La Liga champions have a style of play that is set in stone, one that runs right through the club and covers all age groups. It revolves around the need for players in the mould of Xavi and even Cesc Fabregas, which is why there was such confusion as to Barcelona’s willingness to place such a low buyout clause in Thiago Alcantara’s contract.

Liverpool, however, have the freedom to work with what they have and adapt their style accordingly. Yes, for now Gerrard is an important figure both on and off the pitch. But how long will it be before the responsibility is shifted elsewhere, and not necessarily to the club’s downfall?

There are plenty of positives to take from Liverpool’s summer of build, and obviously future success will allow for greater spend in strengthening the squad. However, such is the potential for success in the new wave of players at the club – and let’s not forget Luis Alberto – that this team can learn how to win without Gerrard as the torchbearer.

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Will Liverpool suffer once Gerrard decides to retire?

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Leicester City caused arguably the biggest upset in Round 4 of the Capital One Cup with a thrilling 4-3 victory over Premier League strugglers Fulham at the King Power Stadium.

Foxes manager Nigel Pearson insisted his Championship side were not the underdogs heading into the game and he was proved right by his players who dug deep to clinch a quarter-final spot.

The result will be a painful one for Fulham boss Martin Jol whose job becomes more and more in the balance after a uninspiring start to the season.

Hugo Rodallega headed the visitors in front after 18 minutes but Leicester’s resilience meant they went in to the break in front thanks to goals from Wes Morgan and Chris Wood.

Ignasi Miquel headed home eight minutes after the restart to double Leicester’s lead and seemingly put the game to bed before a second goal for Rodallega and a bullet free-kick from Giorgos Karagounis levelled things with just three minutes left on the clock.

But just as the game looked to be heading into extra time, Lloyd Dyer pounced in the 89th minute to hand Leicester the win.

Leicester’s form in the Championship so far this season, compared to Fulham’s in the Premier League, had many touting them for a win. And when Rodallega tapped in a Damien Duff cross mid-way through the first-half it looked as if Fulham might be the ones ready to cause an upset.

But Leicester came to life after going behind and former Fulham defender Paul Konchesky twice went close with long-range efforts for the visitors before Morgan took advantage of Maarten Stekelenburg’s failure to keep hold of a Anthony Kncokaert free-kick to head in the equaliser.

And moments before referee Keith Stroud called time on the first-half, Leicester took the lead through striker Chris Wood with his fourth Capital One Cup goal of the season after Philippe Senderos made a meal of his clearance.

Eight minutes into the second half and Leicester doubled their lead when Ignasi, on loan from Arsenal, got on the end of a Danny Drinkwater cross to nod home his first Foxes goal.

But Fulham got themselves back in straight from the re-start when Elsad Zverotic went unchallenged to cross in for Rodallega’s second goal of the evening.

Leicester looked like they would hold out for a 3-2 victory but Karagounis smashed home an unstoppable free-kick from 25-yards to force a nervy finish and, perhaps, extra-time.

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But the prospect of extra-time and penalties did not interest the hosts as they responded perfectly by sending their fans into raptures with a winner two minutes later.

Substitute David Nugent’s first touch of the game played Dyer in who made no mistake with his finish to end this seven-goal thriller.

The last time Leicester beat Fulham in this competition and reached the last-eight they went on to win it in 2000, and they’ll be hoping that kind of coincidence takes them to Wembley this time around.

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Younes Kaboul has called on Tottenham to give Tim Sherwood a chance to stay on as manager for the long-term.

The current Spurs chief took over from Andre Villas-Boas following his sacking shortly before Christmas and was handed an 18-month contract by chairman Daniel Levy after some impressive initial results.

However, speculation has suggested that he will not see out the full length of his deal, with the North London club already eyeing possible summer alternatives.

Despite Sherwood having guided Tottenham to seven wins and two draws in 10 Premier League games at the helm, Levy is believed to be unsure of his tactical approach and vision for the club.

Louis van Gaal – Holland’s manager – has been linked with the role, but Kaboul feels that his current manager should be kept on:

“I hope so, for him, he deserves it.” He responded when questioned by the London Evening Standard on whether Sherwood should stay.

“He knows the club very well, he’s been here for a long time and he knows exactly what he’s doing.

“He learned a lot in the past and the best fact is that he played football at a high level. He won the title with Blackburn in 1995, so he has plenty of experience. His playing career is important, because he knows what it’s like for us.

“We don’t waste time on other stuff, because he went through everything and he understands. He knows the game perfectly. I remember that when Harry Redknapp was manager (from 2008-2012), Tim and [coaches] Les Ferdinand and Chris Ramsey would come to nearly every game.

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“Wherever we were playing, it didn’t matter; they would be there. They would talk to us about how to deal better with certain situations on the pitch and even then, I could see Tim becoming a manager. He just had to be patient and wait for his chance.”

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Sunderland ran out 3-0 winners in a stunning Tyne-Wear derby. First half goals from Fabio Borini and Adam Johnson were added to by Jack Colback’s strike in the final 45 minutes. Needless to say, one set of fans were much happier than the other! Here is how Twitter reacted to the game!

Cabaye’s presence being missed

Borini opens the scoring from the penalty spot

Adam Johnson at it again! The winger makes it 2-0

Newcastle’s fans less than happy at HT

 Adam Johnson almost makes it three!

Sunderland fans sing Johnson’s praises

The nerves kick in…

But Colback puts the game beyond doubt!

FT – 3-0 to Sunderland! Clearly one set of fans are happier than the other!

After 10 troubled months of failure, David Moyes was finally sacked from his position as Manchester United boss on Tuesday and since, a rigorous post-mortem of when exactly it was that Moyes’ position became untenable has been conducted by journalists far and wide.

There is no doubt that the terminable fate of David Moyes has been in the running for months now, with failings evident not only domestically, with the club sitting 7th in the league (their worst Premier League campaign in 24 years), but also on the continental stage as well.

And it was United’s dismal 2-0 defeat to Olympiakos in the Champions League last-16 first leg that signalled the beginning of the end for the Scot.

Indeed, the result was poor, being torn apart by a team that rank 33 places below Manchester United in the UEFA Club Rankings (Manchester United – 5th, Olympiakos- 38) is embarrassing enough, but it was the flight home that laid the setting for his gravest error yet: for he was caught by his players reading a management self-help guide “Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’t” by Jim Collins. 

They would surely have wondered why the manager of the Premier League champions, who was chosen to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson by the great man himself no less, needed such tutoring.

Nevertheless, upon reading  the book, it does go a long way in explaining, at least partly, why Moyes has failed to maintain the tradition of success at Manchester United: some of the advice is…strange, to say the least.

Here are some choice excerpts from the apparent bestseller:

‘Keep it simple – be a hedgehog, not a fox’  ‘Achieve BHAGs – big hairy audacious goals.’ ‘Create alignment by results, not hoopla.’ ‘Avoid the Doom Loop.’ ‘Manage for the quarter century.’ ‘In building greatness, there is no miracle moment.’ 

For the manager of the most famous sports club on the planet to be reading a self-help book is bad enough. And for it to be one as comically useless as this, makes it even worse.

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All the same, the lifesaving manual also reads: ‘We hold our leaders accountable for the success of their successors.’

So we may as well just blame Sir Alex…

Joel Campbell stole the show in Costa Rica’s 3-1 upset win over Uruguay, a game that really added to the consensus that this is a bloody good World Cup.

Campbell’s climb has been noteworthy and at stages  impressive, taking steady steps to becoming a player happy with his surroundings at the top. He endured a difficult start to life at Real Betis two seasons ago. Going back and forth to Central America for international duty complicated matters as he attempted to adjust at the Spanish side; his first start in La Liga came at the tail end of October.

But he eventually got into the rhythm of things at the Seville club, tallying 21 starts in the league and finishing the season well enough for the club to enquire after his availability for the following season.

Due to financial issues at Betis, Campbell was instead farmed out to Olympiakos for last season, which is where he really began to shine. While at Betis, he looked promising, good in spells but nothing to really indicate he’d be a valuable member of the squad at Arsenal. While playing for the Greek outfit last season, his standout performance came in the Champions League at home to Manchester United. He was bright, lively, displayed good attacking instincts, and rounded out his performance with a fantastic goal.

The thing is, nothing at club level really convinced in the way his performance against Uruguay on Saturday did. Olympiakos looked like a natural progression from his days at Betis, but again coming up short with something that could convince he’d add genuine quality at Arsenal.

Against Uruguay, he looked a player who had taken a sizeable leap from where he was at this stage last year. He’s still green, but not to an extent where the doubts overshadow optimism. He threatened Fernando Muslera’s goal throughout the match; a long-range effort going narrowly wide in the second half before he finally got his goal, lashed in from close-range. It’s the kind of finishing Arsenal missed at various stages of last season.

But it was his retention and use of the ball that also impressed, with one phase leading to a pass that sent Marco Urena through on goal for Costa Rica’s third. Again, that aspect of Campbell’s game is raw but there’s a lot to work with.

It would be foolish to get overly carried away at this point. Campbell looks an exciting prospect; he’s much further along the road, and I personally didn’t see him as having a future at the Emirates before the game against Uruguay. But Arsene Wenger has hinted that Campbell could be part of the squad next season, saying he’ll return for preseason and that Wenger will make a decision from there.

Campbell has a lot of qualities to like that would be useful at Arsenal, but this isn’t the star striker the club are in need of. If Wenger really doesn’t fancy a return for Carlos Vela, it may be because he has Campbell in mind for that role, a role in the squad that would see him relieve other first-team regulars, and with Wenger rounding out the final phase of his education. He’d be nothing more than a squad player, but one who can clearly offer a lot.

One potential problem that could come into play is that if Arsenal do go ahead with the signing of a big-name centre-forward – and also add a winger – Campbell could see very little game time, with Theo Walcott set to return from injury, Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud already on the books, and Santi Cazorla and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain further options for the flanks. But it isn’t really something that should be worried about too much. Arsenal aren’t a club who have the luxury of seeing all their best players fit at the same time. A bridge that can be crossed when (or if) Wenger gets there.

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If Campbell continues on this upward trajectory and offers up at least one more performance at this World Cup like the one he gave against Uruguay, there will be a clamour for him to be included at Arsenal next season.

He turns 22 later this month and has been around the international scene for a number of years, having made his senior debut in 2011. Bottom line: there’s no harm in Arsenal having a full international of this quality as a backup for any position across the front three.

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This Sunday, Nottingham Forest will meet Derby County in the East Midlands Derby in a game which carries added significance for both sides for a number of reasons.

In a purely footballing context, the two rivals will be determined to maintain their impressive starts to the campaign – Forest especially, who are unbeaten in the league – which promises an exciting game, especially if one team falls behind. The game also sees the sides contesting the fifteenth edition of the Brian Clough Trophy, introduced in 2007 as a kind of ceremonial mini-competition for whenever the sides meet, and it is the man whose name adorns the cup that makes this derby particularly special.

Clough is a legitimate legend, not just of both clubs, but of English football as a whole. The ‘Greatest manager England never had’ oversaw the greatest periods in both club’s histories, his crowning achievement coming when in charge of Nottingham Forest as he led them to back-to-back European Cup triumphs in 1979 and 1980. With the tenth anniversary of Clough’s death falling on the following Sunday, the East Midlands rivals have decided to unite in a rare act of footballing solidarity by rising to their feet after ten minutes of the game to applause, paying tribute to a man whom they both revere in equal measure.

The special occasion allows us to reflect on Clough’s managerial achievements with pride as well as a tinge of regret. For what made Clough such an exceptional manager was the way in which he built up his Forest and Derby sides, seeing the potential in the players he had and firmly believing in their capabilities, enabling both teams to rise from mid-table anonymity in the second-tier to First Division glory under his guidance. By taking a small provincial club such as Forest from the Second Division to European Cup triumph within the space of five years, Clough succeeded in making the fanciful ideal of transforming any team into the ‘best team in the world’ a reality. The ultimate aim of competitive sport is to be the best, and through his achievements, Clough showed that this was not merely an impossible dream, an abstract idea. His successes gave meaning to the very notion of sport.

Sadly, Clough’s legacy puts the modern footballing landscape into perspective. The prospect of seeing a lowly club climb the football ladder until one day its players lift the ultimate prize of the Premier League trophy – the same players who started the journey and helped the club develop and grow – has become an impossible dream. Money – with football being treated as a business first, and a sport second – is to blame for this, leading to a decrease in mobility and a rigid hierarchical structure which sees the same sides occupy the top positions every year. Money has given excessive financial might to the most ‘lucrative’ clubs, and if any other team displays the slightest sign of potential, of disrupting the established order, the chequebook is the ultimate sedative.

Southampton have been the most noteworthy victims of modern football’s hierarchical structure. Boasting exciting talent in the form of Adam Lallana, Luke Shaw, Dejan Lovren and Calum Chambers last season, as well as a young, ambitious manager in Mauricio Pochettino, the team was decimated over the course of a single summer as the financial behemoths of Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham rolled into town, lobotomizing a once youthful, skiful and dangerous side and wrecking any hopes it may once have had of achieving greater things. Although a rapid rise from the lower leagues to the Premier League has been a surprisingly regular occurrence in recent times – Southampton being joined by Swansea and Norwich as the standout examples – the transition from Premier League mid-table club to Premier League top-four finisher or even Premier League champion remains unattainable. The one exception has been Manchester City, and it is money that has been the sole reason for their success.

Southampton’s academy continues to be held in high regard – it is there that the world’s most expensive footballer received his footballing education, and the frequency with which it produces Premier League-level footballers is impressive. What is the point of an academy, however, if its players inevitably end up at other clubs? Is Southampton content with nurturing talent for the purpose of selling it to the highest bidder in the future, rather than to build and develop a legacy with it?

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Brian Clough’s successes – the likes of which will sadly never be witnessed again – will be commemorated this weekend at the City Ground, during the tenth minute of a match between two teams with serious ambitions of reaching the ‘promised land’ of the Premier League. And as the applause rings out around the old stadium, let us remember a man who regarded football as a sport, not a business, a player as a human being, not a commodity, and who achieved wonderful things as a consequence.

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The relegation battle this year looks set to be a very open affair already, Newcastle United looked like they would not be able to win a game but have gone and lifted themselves out of the relegation zone. Leicester City looked to be flying high but have dipped in form already and are being dragged towards the bottom three, sitting only a point clear of Sunderland; whilst Aston Villa started the season with a bang and fizzled out quite quickly with five defeats on the bounce leaving them close to the bottom three as well.

Only four points separate Sunderland in 18th from Everton in 9th and it looks like any of the teams between those two positions could be dragged into a relegation scrap of some sort in the coming few months. There are of course the naturally weaker underdogs that will inevitably find themselves looking over their shoulders for the majority of the campaign and be fighting for Premier League survival over anything else. Burnley are the only clear cut favourites to drop straight down without much of a fight currently, as they prop up the rest of the league table with only four points and still in a frantic search for their first league victory of the season.

It is hard to judge who else out of the bottom half of the table might end up in trouble, such is the variety of performances and results at the moment, had I looked at this a couple of weeks ago, I would be writing a completely different article based around Newcastle and QPR looking like the two teams that are certain to join Burnley in the relegation abyss at the end of the season.

Alan Pardew’s men have bounced back well after a shocking start which saw them without a victory for their first seven games and the fans calling for the manager to be sacked as a matter of urgency to ebb the flow of points that were slipping through their fingers. Even though it was very early on in the campaign to suggest trouble, the mentality is hard to deal with when you’re losing so many games so quickly and are rock bottom so early on. It is hard for the players to have the right mentality when playing a game, at times feeling defeated before a single ball has been kicked in a game, so even though it was early days, there was a danger that they could have ended up going on a lot worse a run than they actually did.

A home victory against Leicester was followed by a crucial – and very impressive victory – away to Tottenham Hotspur, which saw the Magpies come back from a goal down to claim victory, that would have worked wonders to uplift the belief in the camp and instil a different mentality in the group.

Another thing that makes the relegation race this season is just how awful most of the teams that are in the mix have actually been. QPR for example had not shown any sort of desire to win a game until their home game against Liverpool. They were not giving 100% and it was clear to see that most of their players were not putting in the required effort. Luckily they have since turned that around after stern words from their manager no doubt and look to be finally playing in the right way. Whether or not they still have enough quality about them is a different matter altogether. Burnley look terrible and I cannot see where they will get a victory from any time soon.

Sunderland are also very poor so far with only the one victory to shout about – the amount of games they have drawn instead of lost will have helped their points tally and avoided them the ill-fate of sitting rock bottom so far but they need to improve vastly to see any chance of avoiding the drop.

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There are too many ‘poor’ teams in the bottom half this season that just do not look like they are good enough to stay up and it will continue to be a very open affair throughout the whole season without a doubt. There is no safe bet for the final bottom three this year and it will be exciting to witness, for us neutrals, what the final outcome will be come May.

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