Harewood hoping to save Blackpool
New Blackpool striker Marlon Harewood says he is hoping to help save the club from Premier League relegation this season.
Harewood has just signed a two-year contract for Blackpool and becomes the latest in a flurry of signings that have been confirmed over the last two days. The striker makes the move from Aston Villa where he was never fully given a first team opportunity.
He seems genuinely happy to have another chance to play in the Premier League and seems intent on making sure that he proves everyone wrong who ever doubted him.
Harewood has a number of qualities that will make him a very key player at Blackpool. However, statistics do not lie and it will take some dramatic performances for Harewood to have a big effect this season.
Harewood's qualities
Harewood is a very big striker who can play a variety of different roles in attack. He is best when he is used to hold the ball off and lay it out wide to other players.
He can also drop off from the front line and dip into the midfield if Blackpool need an extra player in this area. This proves his versatility and his physical strength will allow him to compete in busy areas of the pitch.
Harewood is deceptively quick on the pitch. It does take him a little bit of time to get going but he could beat most players over a short race. This will make him useful if Blackpool try and play the ball in behind opposition defences.
The striker said: "I am happy with the move to Blackpool and looking forward to playing in the Premier League again this season. I was impressed with Ian Holloway and all the lads when I was training with them last week and I like the ideas Ian has for the team."
Premier League history
Harewood scored just five times in 29 appearances during his Aston Villa career and this does not exactly make him a very prolific and effective striker. He has also joined the club quite late into pre-season, which suggests he may not have been fully fit.
Teams will know all about him and they would have experienced playing against strikers in a similar mold. This means the better teams will crowd him out and push him off the ball before he can even control it.
He added: "We are underdogs this season as everyone is tipping us to go down, but I am hoping I can score the goals to help Blackpool stay up. I had other offers to move somewhere else, but I feel Blackpool is the right move at this stage of my career and I am ready for the Premier League season."
Betting advice
Blackpool have suddenly made the flurry of signings that Ian Holloway had promised during the pre-season. They have come very late in the day, which means all of the new arrivals at the club will be thrown straight in at the deep end.
Blackpool are still going to struggle hugely this season. They look odds on to go down and the standard of players they have brought in to the club is not going to make much difference to this increasing possibility.
Harewood will no doubt score a few goals at some point over the season. However, he is not going to score enough to make him a contender for top scorer in the league. The best approach to backing any Blackpool player is to go one match at a time, which will give you the best results over a long season.
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