"Keeper's. Fucking keeper's" muttered Joe Hart to himself.
"Keeper. Fucking keeper" responded the Manchester City fans.
Following the latest in the continuum of errors in high-profile games by Joe Hart at Stamford Bridge yesterday, Manuel Pellegrini is refusing to publicly back his problematical goalkeeper.
Others are less polite.
An analyst at Ligue1 Analytics suggested that Hart has "the heart of a fixer" after the almost identical error in Moscow earlier in the week.
If Hart were a horse, he would be labelled a potential non-trier and have a Timeform squiggle after his name.
We outlined the issues with Hart back in February http://footballisfixed.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/what-is-joe-hart-up-to.html but in this post we are going further by detailing the 5 modes of underperformance that afflict Hart's performances and the murky holistics behind Joe Hart that are poisoning the English game at both club and international level.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Joe Hart's Methods
1) Waiting for a long through ball that will fall short of his penalty area, racing out but mis-timing run allowing attacker to lob him or slot the ball past him (eg Chelsea yesterday, Aston Villa and CSKA Moscow).
2) Letting saveable shots through weak hands, particularly on his near post (eg Scotland and FC Bayern).
3) Screaming wildly at his defensive wall on dangerous free kicks prior to misplacing the wall and, for that matter, himself (eg Aston Villa and Manchester United in 2-3 defeat last season).
4) Transferring weight onto the wrong foot so appears flat-footed and stationary as the ball enters the net (eg Southampton away last year).
5) Failing to stay on his line or to come for a cross before flailing his wrong arm at the resulting headers as they pass him (Wigan in the FA Cup Final and Eire).
Generally, these "errors" result in restorative performances in the next match.
And this is the rub with dodgy goalkeepers.
If their underperformances and mistakes are occasional and random then we are looking at one issue...
... if such errors and lack of professionalism are in very very key events then we are looking at an entirely different issue.
And then there is the issue of betting patterns.
Manchester City fans are on to Hart.
He is mockingly applauded for dealing with routine shots and back-passes and it is recognised that the man has gone from being head and shoulders above the competition to the most problematical keeper in the league in just over one year - he has made more points-losing mistakes than any other EPL goalie since beginning of 2012/13 season.
And having cost his team two Premier League title chances, an FA Cup Final and Champions League 2nd Phase qualification (last season) in that period, his days are numbered.
___________________________________________________________________________________
The Impact of Agents
Since the beginning of last season, Charlie (Joe) Hart has shown inadequacies in matches against Real Madrid, Manchester United, Bayern Munchen, Chelsea, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Norwich, Southampton (twice), CSKA Moscow, Wigan (in the FA Cup Final) and several England games (including the games versus Eire and Scotland).
In any other profession other than central banking, he would have been demoted. But he hasn't been. Why?
Joe Hart is represented by Stellar.
Stellar represent 43 EPL players.
Stellar are very influential and, like all agents, entirely non-regulated.
The two bizarre choices in Roy Hodgson's Euro 2012 squad (Jack Butland and Martin Kelly) were both represented by Stellar.
Stellar also have a propensity for goalkeepers with 9 keepers being on their books in the EPL and the Championship.
Agents operate competitively but some also form a fragmented cartel to ensure mutual benefits.
So 13 members of the Euro 2012 squad came from Stellar, Base, Key Sports and Ungeklart (Hodgson is himself represented by Base).
And for the recent round of England internationals and Under-21 games, over 50% of the squads came from these four agencies.
This also explains Hodgson's illogical support of Joe Hart.
In total, 95 EPL players and 17 goalkeepers (in EPL and Championship) are represented by this cartel.
The over-representation of keepers is a giveaway - the goalie is the jockey, he can destabilise a whole defence and his errors are result changing.
There are agencies in Italy that thrive on representing goalkeepers, say, Pastorello or Assist ( the former represent 4 of the most problematical Italian goalies while the latter promote six keepers out of just 15 players on their books)
In a non-regulated area, this is an infrastructure primed for corruption.
___________________________________________________________________________________
The Corrupted Holistic
So why do agents and dodgy players underperform?
Surely the advancement of career and winning prizes is the career aim?
Well, no, it isn't actually.
The global underground betting markets have volumes of £650 billion per year.
Manuel Neuer, the very excellent FC Bayern keeper, is worth approximately £30 million.
Joe Hart should be worth the same amount but the recent underperformances have seen his value depreciate to £20 million.
Of course, the "real" value for a problematical keeper is less than zero - the keeper/agents should pay the club to allow the squiggler to play!
When Manchester City eventually sell Hart, both Stellar and Hart will receive £1.25 million less than they would without the "mistakes".
It is an isolated fact, but in a sector where money dominates, it is feasible to place £10 million bets on any EPL match in the Asian underground without the broker even blinking.
Do the maths!
And the people behind Stellar are known for pushing legalities in football while one of the co-owners of Key Sports is a professional gambler!
This degree of power in the hands of football agents is a succession of criminalities waiting to happen - 95 players in the EPL, 17 goalies at 44 teams in EPL and Championship.
Think about the options!!
___________________________________________________________________________________
What Does This All Mean For Manchester City (And England)?
Having lost out on an EPL title, a FA Cup triumph, Champions League latter stages last year, being markedly off the pace in the EPL this season and having lost £10 million player value, you would think that City would learn.
Manchester City Analytics are the analysts behind the club and, by focusing on minutiae and micro-analysis, this body repeatedly fails the club by missing the really key inputs.
City had a net spend of £93 million in the summer, the second highest in Europe.
This spending will fall foul of the UEFA Financial Fair Play regulations undermining City's future opportunities and, probably, preventing any chance of the club being invited to the European Super League.
Hart should have been sold last January - the club would have received the full £30 million fee, the FA Cup would have been won and City would be up there with Arsenal and Liverpool this season.
Furthermore the near one hundred million net spend could then be perceived as valid due to short-term rewards.
So now Pellegrini has to choose between the largely untried Costel Pantilimon or call up Richard Wright...
... who is represented by Stellar agents!
And meanwhile, Roy Hodgson will stay loyal.
After all, considering everything from his own perspective, why wouldn't he stick with Charlie Hart?
For many more itemised angles on corruption follow us on Twitter @FootballIsFixed
© Football is Fixed 2006-2013
