From a returning hero to a chunky funster, there have been plenty of rather surprising successes in the Premier League this season. Here are ten overperformers...
10 - Anders Lindegaard
When a club spends £17million on a goalkeeper - particularly a club that has increasingly had to watch the pennies of late - one doesn't expect the reserve keeper to play too much, assuming injuries don't intervene. However, Lindegaard has started eight league games while Sir Alex Ferguson tries to break David de Gea gently into the Premier League, and in that time has arguably looked the more secure keeper. Of course, Lindegaard's games (the early ones at least) have been slightly easier, but it was telling that Lindegaard was selected for both the FA Cup game against Manchester City and the league win at Arsenal. 'Hero' might be a bit strong, and De Gea has certainly looked better in the last couple of games, but the Dane has certainly been more prominent than most - including him, probably - expected in August.
8 - Danny Graham
A couple of years ago, when Graham was playing for Carlisle, I saw him shamble around the pitch looking as much like a footballer as, well, me. This prompted us to simply refer to him as 'Rubbish Danny Graham' in the F365 offices for a while. Ten goals in 20 Premier League starts later, Graham has made us look pretty silly.
7 - Emmanuel Adebayor
A little over a year ago, Adebayor was an unwanted man at Manchester City, cast out with the reserves and other such undesirables. A loan spell at Real Madrid was reasonably successful, but not good enough for Real to take him permanently (which admittedly had plenty to do with the return to fitness of Gonzalo Higuain), and his future didn't exactly look sparkling. Most people expected Adebayor to be a decent signing for Spurs, but to be the man around which a team's system and style was based? Maybe not. Adebayor still has an infuriating 'one game in three' element to his play, and doesn't score enough goals, but he's now second in the assist charts in the division. Quite a signing.
6 - James McClean
One of the key frustrations among Sunderland supporters during the final, turgid days of Steve Bruce was his reluctance to try some of the promising kids that were lurking in the club's reserves. McClean and Ryan Noble, the latter of whom had been scoring goals for sh*ts and giggles in the stiffs, were the two most frequently mentioned, but there is always a danger of placing too much faith in kids because they haven't had the chance to fail yet. In footballing terms, the promise of the unknown is intoxicating, especially if your side is struggling. Noble has only had a couple of substitute appearances since Martin O'Neill's arrival, but McClean has slotted into the side beautifully, providing the sort of pace and direct threat that quite a few sides could benefit from. The kid looks like the real thing already, and it was hardly surprising that there was a minor outcry when Giovanni Trapattoni omitted him from the recent Ireland squad.
5 - Gareth Barry
I'm not a violent man, but there was a moment during the World Cup when, had I been within haymaker distance of Gareth Barry, I might've done something I regretted. You probably know the one I mean - when Germany counter-attacked on their way to slicing through the England defence like a smelly cheese, and Barry's pursuit of Mesut Ozil was so pathetic and slow that I just assumed he had pulled a hamstring. To be fair to Barry, he wasn't fully fit, but I was far from impressed. The feeling continued through last season, when on most occasions Barry looked like a marginally interested observer, watching some lovely football occurring around him, but not participating a great deal. However, this season Barry has kept Nigel de Jong glowering on the bench for the most part. Little more needs to be said.
4 - Leon Britton
We could really have picked any of the mini-Xavis that Brendan Rodgers has in his midfield, but Britton stands out because a little over 12 months ago he was playing for Sheffield United in the lower ends of the Championship, and not doing it particularly well either. Indeed, buying him for £400,000 looked like a curious piece of business for Swansea, given that he'd left the club for the Blades on a free the summer before. However, it offers proof that a player needs the right environment and right style of play to excel - not just talent, or application and so forth. This is something that the likes of Britton and Joe Allen might do well to bear in mind if richer, shinier clubs start sniffing around in the summer.
2 - Grant Holt
He just doesn't look like a professional athlete, does he? Every goal Holt scores in the Premier League is like a punch in the kidneys to most Nottingham Forest fans, given what a lumbering lump he was in League One. With every step up the ladder, from League Two with Shrewsbury, to League One, then the Championship, then the Premier League with Norwich, most have expected him to be found out. But he never has been, scoring goals at every level and sticking nine in already this season, leading to the more excitable Norwich fans to call for him to be in the England squad. He's been good, but steady on chaps.
1 - Yakubu
So, does one praise Steve Kean for spotting a diamond in the rough, or dismiss the deadline-day signing of Yakubu as a desperate last-minute gamble that, through luck, turned out to be good? We may never know, but it does seem churlish to criticise a manager for his mistakes but give him no credit for the things that go well. And it has gone pretty well - 13 goals in 16 league starts is an incredible scoring rate in a decent team, never mind one that has spent the majority of the season in the bottom three. The chunky funster might have an arse the size of a small country, but his goals might - might - just keep Blackburn in the Premier League.
10 - Anders Lindegaard
When a club spends £17million on a goalkeeper - particularly a club that has increasingly had to watch the pennies of late - one doesn't expect the reserve keeper to play too much, assuming injuries don't intervene. However, Lindegaard has started eight league games while Sir Alex Ferguson tries to break David de Gea gently into the Premier League, and in that time has arguably looked the more secure keeper. Of course, Lindegaard's games (the early ones at least) have been slightly easier, but it was telling that Lindegaard was selected for both the FA Cup game against Manchester City and the league win at Arsenal. 'Hero' might be a bit strong, and De Gea has certainly looked better in the last couple of games, but the Dane has certainly been more prominent than most - including him, probably - expected in August.
9 - Thierry Henry
I confess, I didn't believe. I thought this would be awful. I thought it would sour the memory of his first, glorious spell at Arsenal. Having watched a few New York Red Bulls games, I thought people would be shocked at how far Henry had slipped. However, two late winners and three goals in 96 minutes later, I was really very happy to be proved wrong.
8 - Danny Graham
A couple of years ago, when Graham was playing for Carlisle, I saw him shamble around the pitch looking as much like a footballer as, well, me. This prompted us to simply refer to him as 'Rubbish Danny Graham' in the F365 offices for a while. Ten goals in 20 Premier League starts later, Graham has made us look pretty silly.
7 - Emmanuel Adebayor
A little over a year ago, Adebayor was an unwanted man at Manchester City, cast out with the reserves and other such undesirables. A loan spell at Real Madrid was reasonably successful, but not good enough for Real to take him permanently (which admittedly had plenty to do with the return to fitness of Gonzalo Higuain), and his future didn't exactly look sparkling. Most people expected Adebayor to be a decent signing for Spurs, but to be the man around which a team's system and style was based? Maybe not. Adebayor still has an infuriating 'one game in three' element to his play, and doesn't score enough goals, but he's now second in the assist charts in the division. Quite a signing.
6 - James McClean
One of the key frustrations among Sunderland supporters during the final, turgid days of Steve Bruce was his reluctance to try some of the promising kids that were lurking in the club's reserves. McClean and Ryan Noble, the latter of whom had been scoring goals for sh*ts and giggles in the stiffs, were the two most frequently mentioned, but there is always a danger of placing too much faith in kids because they haven't had the chance to fail yet. In footballing terms, the promise of the unknown is intoxicating, especially if your side is struggling. Noble has only had a couple of substitute appearances since Martin O'Neill's arrival, but McClean has slotted into the side beautifully, providing the sort of pace and direct threat that quite a few sides could benefit from. The kid looks like the real thing already, and it was hardly surprising that there was a minor outcry when Giovanni Trapattoni omitted him from the recent Ireland squad.
I'm not a violent man, but there was a moment during the World Cup when, had I been within haymaker distance of Gareth Barry, I might've done something I regretted. You probably know the one I mean - when Germany counter-attacked on their way to slicing through the England defence like a smelly cheese, and Barry's pursuit of Mesut Ozil was so pathetic and slow that I just assumed he had pulled a hamstring. To be fair to Barry, he wasn't fully fit, but I was far from impressed. The feeling continued through last season, when on most occasions Barry looked like a marginally interested observer, watching some lovely football occurring around him, but not participating a great deal. However, this season Barry has kept Nigel de Jong glowering on the bench for the most part. Little more needs to be said.
4 - Leon Britton
We could really have picked any of the mini-Xavis that Brendan Rodgers has in his midfield, but Britton stands out because a little over 12 months ago he was playing for Sheffield United in the lower ends of the Championship, and not doing it particularly well either. Indeed, buying him for £400,000 looked like a curious piece of business for Swansea, given that he'd left the club for the Blades on a free the summer before. However, it offers proof that a player needs the right environment and right style of play to excel - not just talent, or application and so forth. This is something that the likes of Britton and Joe Allen might do well to bear in mind if richer, shinier clubs start sniffing around in the summer.
3 - Demba Ba
If I was Tony Pulis, I would seek out the medical whizz who decided Ba's knee is a 'ticking time bomb' and give him a wedgie every day. That might be slightly unfair, because you never know when a time bomb is going to go off and might go any day, but Ba has now spent a year banging in goals left, right and indeed centre. His time at West Ham looked promising, but anyone can have a decent half-season before disappearing - see Zaki, Amr and about a billion others. However, his form has continued for over a year now, with no significant spells out with injury, scoring 23 goals in 29 league starts. Ba's game, much like Newcastle's, is hardly complicated - he runs his swingers off, is incredibly strong and has a right foot like a traction engine - but it's incredibly effective. How long will it continue? Hopefully, quite a while.
2 - Grant Holt
He just doesn't look like a professional athlete, does he? Every goal Holt scores in the Premier League is like a punch in the kidneys to most Nottingham Forest fans, given what a lumbering lump he was in League One. With every step up the ladder, from League Two with Shrewsbury, to League One, then the Championship, then the Premier League with Norwich, most have expected him to be found out. But he never has been, scoring goals at every level and sticking nine in already this season, leading to the more excitable Norwich fans to call for him to be in the England squad. He's been good, but steady on chaps.
1 - Yakubu
So, does one praise Steve Kean for spotting a diamond in the rough, or dismiss the deadline-day signing of Yakubu as a desperate last-minute gamble that, through luck, turned out to be good? We may never know, but it does seem churlish to criticise a manager for his mistakes but give him no credit for the things that go well. And it has gone pretty well - 13 goals in 16 league starts is an incredible scoring rate in a decent team, never mind one that has spent the majority of the season in the bottom three. The chunky funster might have an arse the size of a small country, but his goals might - might - just keep Blackburn in the Premier League.
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