West Ham after Earnie too!
Wed Jun 22, 2011 9:49 am
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/footballna ... -28919076/
THEY say never go back – but perhaps now is the time for Cardiff City and Robert Earnshaw to disprove that theory.
While the rumours of a return to City colours for cult hero Earnie have been doing the rounds for a while, the pint-sized striker finally broke his silence on the matter in yesterday’s Echo.
And while he admitted there have been no conversations to follow up the murmurings, given Malky Mackay’s limited time in the Bluebirds hot-seat, the 30-year-old certainly didn’t rule out a homecoming.
It’s something that’s generated quite a buzz among City supporters.
And who could blame them?
After all, this is a player that averaged 25 goals in Cardiff blue between 2000 and 2004, and scored 105 for the club in total with a ratio of almost a goal every other game. Of course, there is the danger of letting romance and nostalgia get in the way of hard facts.
This would not be the same Earnshaw whose efforts in front of goal helped the club from the basement division to the second tier and who caught the eye of Premier League sides.
As much as you can want a throwback to the good old days, it doesn’t always work out like that.
Robbie Fowler’s second stint at Liverpool is an easy example of that.
While on a Bosman free as contract talks with Nottingham Forest stall, the 30-year-old would not be exactly cheap.
And yet it has been eight seasons – and his last with Cardiff – since Earnie last hit the 20-goal target in a campaign.
Though he’s been unable to reach those same heights since he left Ninian Park for West Brom in a £3m deal, he’s still tantalisingly moved to within a couple of 200 career goals.
And there are signs suggesting that the popular and prolific goalscorer is ready to truly shine again.
Although it ended in defeat, Earnie’s performances in Forest’s play-off ties with Swansea hinted at a player back to his instinctive best.
And the expertly finished strike at the Liberty was proven to be no fluke when it was followed up by back-to-back goals for Wales in the Carling Nations Cup ties with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
It was a prosperous end to a campaign where he only managed nine goals.
But to view that statistic in isolation is to ignore the way Earnshaw was managed at the City Ground by the now departed Billy Davies.
With an abundance of attackers at his disposal, Davies chopped and changed his strikers on a regular basis – including during games.
Yet given he is the type of player who needs the arm of confidence around his shoulders, it was a policy that never suited the smiling assassin.
Earnshaw is a player that needs to be loved, and it’s difficult to think of a place where that would happen more obviously than at Cardiff City Stadium.
Fans would also be seeing a different Earnshaw, a more mature player who has now been around long enough to understand what’s needed at this level.
Much more of a team player, his knowledge of the game is something that is often lost when simply observing the somersaults and the permanent grins.
What’s more, there is a real hunger about Earnshaw that really showed itself in Forest’s late run for the play-offs – and surely his appetite would be whetted wonderfully by pulling on a City shirt once more.
It all depends on Mackay’s plans for his frontline, of course, and where his budget needs to be concentrated.
More than anything, it depends whether the Scot actually thinks Earnshaw is the type of player who can prove the difference for his side.
Time will tell, but others certainly have done.
West Ham – City’s opponents on opening Championship weekend – are believed to be monitoring Earnshaw’s situation. And he was all set for talks with Birmingham before Alex McLeish shocked all and sundry with his sensational departure across town for Aston Villa.
It illustrates that his Championship track record is seen good enough to boost two teams attempting to shoot back up to the Premier League.
If Earnie could help his beloved Bluebirds do it instead, it really would disprove a theory.
Read More http://www.walesonline.co.uk/footballna ... z1PzrfxEM6
THEY say never go back – but perhaps now is the time for Cardiff City and Robert Earnshaw to disprove that theory.
While the rumours of a return to City colours for cult hero Earnie have been doing the rounds for a while, the pint-sized striker finally broke his silence on the matter in yesterday’s Echo.
And while he admitted there have been no conversations to follow up the murmurings, given Malky Mackay’s limited time in the Bluebirds hot-seat, the 30-year-old certainly didn’t rule out a homecoming.
It’s something that’s generated quite a buzz among City supporters.
And who could blame them?
After all, this is a player that averaged 25 goals in Cardiff blue between 2000 and 2004, and scored 105 for the club in total with a ratio of almost a goal every other game. Of course, there is the danger of letting romance and nostalgia get in the way of hard facts.
This would not be the same Earnshaw whose efforts in front of goal helped the club from the basement division to the second tier and who caught the eye of Premier League sides.
As much as you can want a throwback to the good old days, it doesn’t always work out like that.
Robbie Fowler’s second stint at Liverpool is an easy example of that.
While on a Bosman free as contract talks with Nottingham Forest stall, the 30-year-old would not be exactly cheap.
And yet it has been eight seasons – and his last with Cardiff – since Earnie last hit the 20-goal target in a campaign.
Though he’s been unable to reach those same heights since he left Ninian Park for West Brom in a £3m deal, he’s still tantalisingly moved to within a couple of 200 career goals.
And there are signs suggesting that the popular and prolific goalscorer is ready to truly shine again.
Although it ended in defeat, Earnie’s performances in Forest’s play-off ties with Swansea hinted at a player back to his instinctive best.
And the expertly finished strike at the Liberty was proven to be no fluke when it was followed up by back-to-back goals for Wales in the Carling Nations Cup ties with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
It was a prosperous end to a campaign where he only managed nine goals.
But to view that statistic in isolation is to ignore the way Earnshaw was managed at the City Ground by the now departed Billy Davies.
With an abundance of attackers at his disposal, Davies chopped and changed his strikers on a regular basis – including during games.
Yet given he is the type of player who needs the arm of confidence around his shoulders, it was a policy that never suited the smiling assassin.
Earnshaw is a player that needs to be loved, and it’s difficult to think of a place where that would happen more obviously than at Cardiff City Stadium.
Fans would also be seeing a different Earnshaw, a more mature player who has now been around long enough to understand what’s needed at this level.
Much more of a team player, his knowledge of the game is something that is often lost when simply observing the somersaults and the permanent grins.
What’s more, there is a real hunger about Earnshaw that really showed itself in Forest’s late run for the play-offs – and surely his appetite would be whetted wonderfully by pulling on a City shirt once more.
It all depends on Mackay’s plans for his frontline, of course, and where his budget needs to be concentrated.
More than anything, it depends whether the Scot actually thinks Earnshaw is the type of player who can prove the difference for his side.
Time will tell, but others certainly have done.
West Ham – City’s opponents on opening Championship weekend – are believed to be monitoring Earnshaw’s situation. And he was all set for talks with Birmingham before Alex McLeish shocked all and sundry with his sensational departure across town for Aston Villa.
It illustrates that his Championship track record is seen good enough to boost two teams attempting to shoot back up to the Premier League.
If Earnie could help his beloved Bluebirds do it instead, it really would disprove a theory.
Read More http://www.walesonline.co.uk/footballna ... z1PzrfxEM6
Re: West Ham after Earnie too!
Wed Jun 22, 2011 10:57 am
hes a proffessional footballer if west ham offer him £100 per week more than us hell go there (no loyalty where footballers are concerned 
Re: West Ham after Earnie too!
Wed Jun 22, 2011 11:07 am
i think if we offered slightly less than other teams such as forest and west ham...he would still choose us.
Re: West Ham after Earnie too!
Wed Jun 22, 2011 1:50 pm
beddau blue wrote:hes a proffessional footballer if west ham offer him £100 per week more than us hell go there (no loyalty where footballers are concerned
I disagree with that entirely!
Re: West Ham after Earnie too!
Wed Jun 22, 2011 2:29 pm
beddau blue wrote:hes a proffessional footballer if west ham offer him £100 per week more than us hell go there (no loyalty where footballers are concerned
Fair enough that's what you believe....
Can I just ask why you stuck a couple of ayatollahs at the end of that though?
Re: West Ham after Earnie too!
Wed Jun 22, 2011 5:23 pm
DaveSheffield wrote:beddau blue wrote:hes a proffessional footballer if west ham offer him £100 per week more than us hell go there (no loyalty where footballers are concerned
Fair enough that's what you believe....
Can I just ask why you stuck a couple of ayatollahs at the end of that though?
to be honest mate i dont really want earnie back personally i think it would be a backward step we should set our sights a little bit higher,i think his best days are gone,a lot of what is being said about his return from both parties us and him seems to much of a sentimental journey (only my personall oppinion of course)but if he did come back he would get nothing but 100% support off me