The transfer window is upon us. This is the time of the year
when some of us are excited about who are sides could buy, while there are some
of us who dread this time of the year, as it means some of our heroes and idols
could be prized away from our beloved clubs.
The latter feeling is probably what most of the relegated
sides are feeling like. This season, there are some brilliant players who face
the raw reality of playing in the Championship. And with this, it means clubs
in the higher divisions are sniffing about these relegated sides to find
themselves a bargain on good talent.
So what I’ve done is made my best XI of the relegated
Premier League sides (Wolves, Blackburn and Bolton),
with the help of stats.
Here it goes.
Goalkeeper: Paul Robinson: Picking out of the keepers
Bogdan, Robinson and Hennessey was surprisingly hard. At times all three have
been dour, while at other times they have kept their teams in games.
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| Green =best, Red = worse |
Right Back: Jason Lowe: This was yet another tough choice, simply because
I feel none of the right backs for the trio of clubs have been that great at
all.
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| Stats via EPL Index |
I’ve gone with Blackburn’s Jason
Lowe, for two simple reasons. Reason number 1 is the lad is 20 years old and
point 2 is the kid has shown glimpses of potential during this season. However,
on the same token, I feel Lowe has quite a bit of improving and developing to
do. I feel he could win more ground duals and tackles. But with experience and
confidence in his technical ability this will naturally improve. What excites
me about Lowe is that at 20 he’s near enough at the level of right backs who
are at their supposed peak years. Lowe has also created 15 chances which
demonstrates his willingness to go forward. It also shows the creativity and intelligence
in his play. At 20, Lowe’s stats show he is a competent Premier League right
back. Blackburn may struggle to keep hold of this
talented young lad.
Centre Backs: Rodger Johnson
and Grant Hanley
Rodger Johnson: I think Johnson has been a decent signing
for Wolves. However, he hasn’t covered himself with much glory during certain
parts of the season. However, when focused he is a Premier League standard
defender, although in the past two years, he’s been relegated with two
different clubs. So he’s hardly a great omen to have knocking about. But I feel
Johnson is a well rounded defender who can not only tackle, he challenge
sufficiently in the air and he reads the game relatively well too.
Grant Hanley: I’ve picked another young Blackburn
kid for the defence. At 20 years of age,
Hanley has shown good promise for the future. The Scottish youngster has won a
relatively impressive 76% of his tackles this season. Hanley also reads the
game very well for a young lad too. This season Hanley has averaged 1.9
interceptions per game. But there is room for improvement in the kid. I feel he
could be a bit more aerially dominant especially as he’s 6 ft 2 inches.
Left Back: Martin Olsson:
This was one of the easiest choices. The Swedish international has been a solid
customer for Blackburn this term. Olsson has shown he is
more than competent enough to venture forward and create chances. He has shown solidity
defensively too. Olsson won 74% of his tackles and 60% of his aerial duals too.
Which isn’t bad at all. At 24 and his ability to play as a left midfielder, I
can see quite a few clubs sniffing about him.
Defensive Midfield: Karl
Henry: This was quite hard. None of the relegated sides had many
good holding players. The two who I thought were the best out of the limited
options were Wolves’ Karl Henry and Nigel Reo-Coker (who is a free now).
I’ve gone with Henry as I think he’s a safer bet at
defensive midfield. His tackle record is good and no Wolves player has won more
tackles than him. Being a good passer in defensive midfield is crucial too.
Henry’s passing abilities are very good, he had a 86% pass accuracy, which for
a relegated side isn’t always a common thing.
Centre Midfield: Steven
N’Zonzi: The Blackburn
midfielder hasn’t been outstanding by any means this season. But he certainly is
a Premier League standard player. At 23, he’s become a key part of Blackburn’s
setup and this is demonstrated by the fact he’s made the most passes for the
Rovers this season (1736). But what’s just as impressive is that he had a pass
accuracy percentage of 84% which shows he is a player who is very comfortable
on the ball and distributing it. N’Zonzi’s distribution and creativity has been
fantastic too. The Blackburn man has assisted 5 times
this term. Defensively, N’Zonzi has strengths too. He has won 89 aerial duals
this season, no player for any of the relegated sides have won more aerial
duals than him.
Centre Midfield: Mark Davies:
Bolton really missed this guy when he was out injured at
the start of the season. But when he returned, it’s no surprise Bolton’s
fortunes began to change. Mark Davies is an intelligent footballer, one who can
pass the ball very tidly. In fact, Davies had a pass accuracy of 87% which is
brilliant. Not only this he made 332 final third passes with a pass accuracy of
80%, an impressive feat for a relegated player. I certainly feel Davies will be
a good signing for most Premier League sides, especially those who like to keep
the ball on the ground. He is one of those players who can command the ball and
can his side ticking over. At 24 years old, I hope he stays in the Premier
League.
Right Midfield: Matt Jarvis:
I’ve gone for Matt Jarvis, although he predominantly plays on the left, I still
feel he has to be in this team. At 26, Jarvis is reaching is peak and this
season he has proved he certainly has the ability to stick around in the
Premier League. Jarvis to me is a traditional winger, he can run at defenders
and put in great balls into the box. This term Jarvis managed 8 goals and 4 assists,
which is encouraging. I feel this lad could be the most expensive relegated
player to move this summer. His creativity, work rate and good finishing make
him a very useful player.
Left Midfield: Junior Hoilett:
This boy is special and he’s made that bit extra special by the fact he is a
free agent. Hoilett 21, is interesting all the big boys this summer. The Blackburn
wizard has shown great promise this term, by often by popping up and getting
crucial goals for his side. But what impresses me most about Hoilett is his
dynamism and technical abilities. Hoilett has the ability to change games
within a second, if you look at his successful dribbles he dominates. The young
Canadian has great feet, great dribbling skills and a great touch. He certainly
will be a brilliant free transfer signing for someone this summer. But I’ve got
one issue with Hoilett. Comparing his chances created to the others, I feel he
could create more and during some games he does go missing. If Hoilett wants to
become a real top, top player he must get more involved in every game he plays
in.
Striker: Yakubu:
Like the wingers, picking the striker was hard and it was made even harder by
the fact I went with a 4-3-3
system here. I chose Yakubu for a relatively straight forward reason. His goal
scoring record this term has been outstanding. To score 17 goals for a side that
have been relegated is nothing short of amazing. The Nigerian’s experience,
along with his goal scoring prowess will make him of strong interest to a
number of clubs. However, a stumbling block could be the price Blackburn
put on him. You’d expect Blackburn to want quite a bit
for a guy who has just come off the back of scoring 17 Premier League goals.
But at 29, clubs may baulk at a high valuation of him.
Subs: Wayne
Hennessey, Richard Stearman, Stuart Holden, Morten Gamst-Pedersen, Martin
Petrov, Steven Fletcher, Ivan Klasnic.
So, here's how the team would look:
(Stats from EPL Index)
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