PHOTO CREDIT: Hart (Daily Mail)
PK’s Premiership/PATRICK KINMARTIN
Conceivably, in terms of names and their current status value (”street credit” is what some prefer to call it), Joe Hart on Saturday may have been among the bottom-rated in rankings one through 22 for the starters in the fancy Manchester City-Chelsea affair.
That’s worth pointing out because another poll weighing more the future prospects of each talent would probably place City’s dynamo goalkeeper somewhere near the top. His potential boom has become that immense.
And it’s worth mentioning now because that surge in promise has so much to do with the Abu Dhabi United Group’s uber-purchase of the club that frankly has made this Cit-tember in the Premiership. Robinho got the hero’s welcome, as expected, in the 3-1 loss to the Blues. Well before he even got the chance to slip a jersey on, the Brazilian striker was the face of the new era.
Some pressure has been lifted off Hart’s shoulders as a result, but there really isn’t much room for connotation adverse to gain when the subject of the 21-year-old net-minder’s place in these developments comes up. Like the franchise he is watching emerge from a cocoon, Hart really can only embrace the gold mine rolled right up to the doorstep at this stage in the grand scheme.
For a while there, it looked thinkable that the deceptively long 6-foot-3 shot-block could outgrow his organization. Getting anointed the heir to the starting spot in the England mix will do that to any keeper on a sub-Big Four side. Plus, sometime relatively soon the chord is going to be cut between Edwin Van der Sar and Manchester United. The poaching of Hart down the line in light of that has seemed logical on occasion, though questions about the specific extent of his quality usually surface.
Hence, the roadblock standing between Hart and the chance to take his appeal to stratospheric heights. He was in no position to significantly advance his grade on the dizzying managerial train ride City has rode to a below-average 26-31-19 record (.467 winning percentage) the past two years. Throughout, he was a dead-ringer for saves of the week — a good way to announce yourself as a starlet, but not the currency that will buy you a cup of coffee in the Champions League.
Interest in Hart has basically been centered around the anticipation of his next major step forward. In that regard, he couldn’t even qualify as a poor man’s Iker Casillas. No senior international experience to speak of, no European competitions to shine in, no single-handedly thrusting a ratty roster’s fortunes higher (a la Brad Friedel and Blackburn’s ability to always contend.)
With the arrival of change — while they’re coddling that notion in a presidential election, it is a drink washing down lunch at City — has come Hart’s opportunity. He sits straight in pattern with the apparent nucleus forming around Robinho (24 years old), Jo (21), Micah Richards (20), not to mention the fringe players that include Stephen Ireland (20), Michael Johnson (20) and Gelson Fernandez (22).
Hart’s spot at No. 1 in net should stay stable, even while some more brand flavors are added through Abu Dhabi’s impending dominance in the transfer market. Good, proven goalkeepers are locked in with their teams to the point where the contracts can only be broken with excessive outside bids. Having one in place themselves with Hart, City can focus on increasing their depth with more attacking fervor and sturdier defense on the back line.
The ownership’s sharp commitment to challenge for any and every accolade also puts Hart in position to add the big games to his arsenal. Not that he’s woefully short in that department. It’s almost not possible to find a starting goalie under 27 (Casillas’ age) guiding a worthy Champions League or UEFA Cup contender.
It just goes to serve notice what Hart could be on the cusp of. His rise from Shrewsbury Town to Manchester City was a nice jump, but the real thought he is poised to be a top young gun in the mold of Peter Cech, who also broke right through the young keeper/power club barrier to get where he is at with Chelsea, has brought a catapult into the picture.
In the climate of the collapsing goalkeeper that has engulfed the English national team, maybe Hart will qualify as a savior as well, if it all pans out the way it could. As the wait to see the episode at City unfold begins, what’s clear is that the owners of Hart’s specific destiny literally have arrived.
Wrapping up the rest of the Prem weekend…
OWED DRINKS: The uniform designer for West Ham’s “faceless” jersey worn during Saturday’s match with West Brom in the wake of shirt sponsor XL’s collapse. Though the look had a refreshing working-man feel, the front kept blatantly blank illustrated (no pun intended) how significant these emblems are, which will help give clubs more leverage in this profit-bearing.
OWES DRINKS: All those pundits who jumped right back on the Tottenham bandwagon this preseason. Ignoring the theme that has defined the club’s failure in this disgruntling era — groovy offense masking in no way shape or form goal-mongering defense — they are the ones who continue to mislead and pump hype into the dangerous notion that the back line is an obsolete sect of the winning requirement.
GOAL FULFILLED: George Olofinjana’s heat-sinker right through traffic in the penalty box for Stoke City in their 3-2 loss to Everton. Off the bounce, this would have been a score to embrace, but the fact that Olofinjana took it from a straight volley is where the marvel comes in. It was Wayne Rooney-type, in other words something exquisite we can’t expect from a player of Olofinjana’s offensive caliber.
LET IT BE: Liverpool managed to slay the bear with the takedown of Manchester United. On the great scale, it’s a meek victory for a team that to this day is still hard-pressed to prove they can make run all the way through the long haul.
SAY IT IS SO: That Stoke’s utilization of Rory Delap as a throw-in weapon that once again proved wildly effective Sunday has introduced a whole new aspect offensively to the mainstream football equation. It seems like only a matter of time before services like Delap’s are pursued by bigger clubs looking for that nibble of competitive advantage to push them over the top in prestigious competitions like Champions League.
3-POINT FINISH: Watch for Newcastle to play at an entirely different speed this weekend at West Ham. Teams playing under the guise of intense inter-franchise turmoil usually tend to go one extreme or the other — rally hard or rot amid the pressure. The Magpies looked visibly drained by the bizarre events taking place around St. James’ Park in Saturday’s loss to Hull, where the sense of home field advantage was nonexistent. … Winless Tottenham’s next five games before the North London showdown with Arsenal on Oct. 29 are home to Wigan, at Portsmouth, home to Hull, at Stoke, home to Bolton. Matchup-wise, that’s as generous a game budget as Juande Ramos can ask for. … The Hart-Cech matchup was one of three among the 10 matches featuring two keepers under 29 facing off against each other.
