We all know that Newcastle United have had more than their fair share of injury problems this season, but have all of them been damaging to manager Glenn Roeder?
Honestly, I’m not trying to say Newcastle have been lucky with injuries, far from it, I’m just suggesting that, at times, they have actually made Roeder’s job slightly easier.
Before you go banging away on your keyboards to send me an abusive comment or calling up the Thomson House switchboard to demand my removal in a straight jacket, there is some serious thinking behind by argument.
You see, part of football management is the ability to make difficult selection decisions. For example, telling a big name player like Nicky Butt that he is being dropped, keeping a talented youngster like Charles N’Zogbia happy when he’s out the side or appeasing a crowd favourite like Nolberto Solano after he has been dumped on to the substitute’s bench because of another player’s return to fitness.
Roeder, though, while apparently cursed with bad luck this season - Michael Owen’s freak knee injury at the World Cup, Shola Ameobi old women’s hip problem and Shay Given split stomach - has never really had to make these sorts of tough calls because of the length of the injury list.
Solano’s treatment would be the obvious example. The Peruvian has been a revelation at right back, solid in defence and creative going forward, but as soon as Stephen Carr returned to fitness, Solano was dropped.
It was a controversial and unpopular decision to leave him out against Fulham last weekend, but, a week later, Solano will be back in the starting line up because Carr has broken down again.
Given the Irishman’s recent performances and his unpopularity among supporters, I’d even go so far as to suggest that this is actually good news for Roeder, but I might just be spiteful?!
The same is true of Butt. The former Manchester United midfielder has - at least until his blunder at Craven Cottage last weekend - been Newcastle best midfielder but with Emre and captain Scott Parker also vying for a starting place in central midfield, Roeder has had a potential problem on his hand.
Butt has been brilliant, but Parker is club captain and Emre provides some much-needed creativity. Two into three doesn’t go and somebody would have to be upset, but Roeder has rarely had all three to choose from so a potential conflict has been avoided.
Of course, Roeder would argue he would love a selection headache as the team has virtually picked itself all season and the pain killers have sat untouched on his desk.
In which case he might be in need of some paracetamol this evening as, finally, he has a tough shout to make ahead of the Liverpool game. Centre backs Steven Taylor, Titus Bramble and new boy Oguchi Onyewu are all fit so who starts against the work shy Scousers?
All three have a case, the problem is, with Celestine Babayaro (nice of you to show your face son) also back in contention, Roeder can’t push one of them (probably Taylor) to left back as he has done in the past in this sort of situation.
Decisions, decisions, decisions. I’d go for Titus and Taylor in the middle as Onyewu is only here on loan and isn’t used to the Premiership. Then again, as he’s 6ft five inches and beanpole Crouch plays for Liverpool....
Oh dear, I think I can feel a headache coming on....
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