The international break presented the opportunity for the respective hierarchies at Manchester United and Liverpool to present themselves as saviours of the domestic game. Project Big Picture was announced, with top 6 Premier League clubs justifiably, given the supportive response, sensing that the EFL are so desperate for financial help they are willing to back what amounts to little more than a power grab.

 

The 18-page document, worked on by EFL Chairman Rick Parry and senior figures at top Premier League clubs, offers an immediate £250 million bail out to EFL clubs who have been hit by the empty stadium consequence of Covid-19, in exchange for a stronger grip on power at the top of the game. The detail suggests it is the first step to decentralisation of television rights and cautiously-worded insurance against any potential threat to the elite. It would take an absurd level of ignorance to believe the idea that an 18-team top flight partnered with a salary cap in the Championship and the eradication of parachute payments would help to ease the level of financial gambling in the second tier that has recently led to eye-watering losses within clubs desperately trying to reach the Premier League.

1) Beset by the lack of fans entering the turnstiles, and already operating under the often unfair pressures of the EPPP, how many clubs in League One and below will take up the Big Picture’s suggestion of closing down their youth academy? Rather than invest the money and hours required to produce the talent that has helped Crewe, Exeter, Colchester, MK Dons and others, how many clubs will utilise the 15 loan players available from each Premier League club? Chelsea loanees Tariq Uwakwe and Jon Russell, who smartly turned in the winner, both featured in Accrington’s 2-1 win over Rochdale whilst another, Nathan Baxter, watched from the bench. Stanley have also taken Mo Sangare and Tom Allan on temporary deals from Newcastle and while Jon Coleman will speak of the invaluable assistance it has given his side, the system may only become more normalised and prolific, presenting a covert method of turning the EFL into a talent farm for Premier League clubs with saturated squads.

 

2) One club where this is unlikely to happen is Crewe Alexandra who, consistently wedded to their famed academy system, had 7 graduates in the starting eleven as they brushed Wigan Athletic aside at Gresty Road. 20 year old Luke Offord, who looks like a defender far more experienced than one with just 13 league appearances to his name, scored his first senior goal before Charlie Kirk, Harry Pickering and Callum Ainley, also off the Alex production line, showed their quality in goals 2 and 3. Ryan Wintle and Omar Beckles, subject of positive Covid tests that resulted in the game at Oxford being postponed the week before, were cleared to play but two more players were missing. On Tuesday, the rearranged meeting with Oxford was once again called off, with reasons so far unclear but symptomatic of the EFL’s failure to fund mandatory testing or produce clear, coherent guidelines.

 

3) One match that did take place on Tuesday night was at the Johnny Rocks Stadium where Cheltenham had made it 3 wins without conceding on Saturday with a 2-0 win over Crawley Town. It appeared that the 3-man defence favoured by manager Michael Duff were beginning to replicate the solidity that earned them a play-off spot last season whilst summer additions Matty Blair and Andy Williams were starting to form an exciting partnership in attack. That was until Grimsby Town, who had seen their own campaign hampered by a positive Covid test in September, rolled into town on Tuesday night. Defensive errors resulted in the spectacular play off capitulation to Northampton back in July and a similar theme marred Duff’s 100^th game in charge. Mariners boss Ian Holloway, who spoke of his disgust at the Project Big Picture in idiosyncratic fashion, told of his delight to get back to the field after their imposed 2-week absence and would have been especially pleased to see loanees Oruwa Edwards and Owen Windsor capitalise on mistakes to hand the Robins their second home defeat of the season, as many as they managed in the whole of last term.

 

4) One of the more astute deals in League Two over the summer occurred with the deal that took Jamille Matt from Newport to Forest Green Rovers on a free transfer. The 30 year old hit a hat-trick at Scunthorpe on Saturday in a 1-4 victory and the striker suggested he could be the long-awaited replacement for the goals vacated by the departure of Christian Doidge last year. Shooting is one way of increasing the goal tally and Aaron Collins, yet to register this season, leads the way in the league’s shooting charts with 25, with Matt, who showed his poaching instincts with his 3 strikes at Glanford Park, is fifth on 17. With that hunger for goals mixed with the creativity of Nicky Cadden, averaging nearly 4 chances created per game so far this term, and Scott Wagstaff on the flanks, Mark Cooper’s men should have no trouble finding the net. Not that the 51 year old will be pleased easily, “it was probably our worst performance of the season” was his assessment of the thrashing handed out to the Iron.

 

5) Back to the ‘Big Picture’ for a moment and the inevitable news that the self-appointed ‘Big 6’ threatened to break-away from the league if their proposals aren’t voted through, the message should be clear; let them go, the fabric of our national game would not be lost without them. But, at the same time it is easy to sympathise with the EFL clubs in favour of the plans. The domestic game requires an urgent bailout and at least the Premier League, amid the dithering of the FA and PFA, have “stepped up to the plate” as the government urged them to in September.