The Keith Fahey conundrum

I posed the question on Twitter after Blues win over Doncaster Rovers about Keith Fahey: could anyone provide a rational explanation why some fans booed his introduction as substitute?

The response was overwhelming - and the huge majority condemned the jeers - which went to show that the Fahey debate is still one of the hottest St Andrew's topics.

Why it should be, I still don't know.

I am no apologist for Fahey, and I would like to see him drive on with the ball, threaten goal more as he can do, and keep seeking those passes that play in wingers and strikers.

But is he really that bad he merits such grumbles and groans?

To all intents and purposes, he has been given the Barry Ferguson role this season: take the ball, keep it moving, don't lose the shape.

Deploying two wingers, the central midfielders cannot be gung ho under the system Chris Hughton generally uses.

And surely it is better to keep possession, even if it means a short sideways or backwards pass, than to waste it and allow the opposition ball needlessly. Ferguson was a master of this.

The very fact that Fahey sees more of the ball means that a higher number of his passes are not going to hit their target compared to other players'.

Fahey isn't as negative as people make out. Certainly, there's probably some more in the locker, which probably results in some of the frustration as he is clearly no mug with the ball at his feet.

But he's not a dynamic, explosive midfielder, he's not the sort who crashes into tackles and earns favour with fist-pumping antics. His contribution has to be viewed in the context of the overall team framework.

The Irish international has had average games this season, as have others, and he has had good games, as have others.

When he recovered full fitness after a double hernia operation and started regularly, Blues promptly went on a six-game winning streak.

Let's not forget, either, that he could easily have won the Carling Cup for Blues, had his shot not struck the post at Wembley against Arsenal. Had he scored, would he now be viewed differently?

And he has filled in various roles for the club since his arrival, without fuss, and played a significant part in the last promotion.

Also, Fahey wants to be at Blues. He has not played his face to get away, he's not thought that the Premier League 'is the only place to be' after relegation and promptly joined a poor or average top-flight team battling against the drop.

Footballers should not be immune to criticism and every supporter who pays their money has a right to air their view.

But surely common sense has to come into it as well. There is a time and a place, and it's a tendency of Blues followers to complain about what a player can't do, rather than what he does bring to the table and accept his limitations.

They tend to like what I call an an 'unofficial scapegoat' down at St Andrew's, and Fahey is it at present, taking on the mantle from the likes of Damien Johnson in recent times.

If anything good is to come out of this little episode, then it's not so much that Fahey got stick, but was dropped in the first place (and Hughton's decision was because he detected tiredness in the legs as Fahey has been a constant since the end of September, not due to consistently poor displays since the season start).

Every player needs a little jolt now and again. When he came on for Guirane N'Daw in the 67th minute, Fahey performed with a determination and verve, and helped provide extra impetus that brought Blues a deserved late winner.

On the subject of players who have come out of the team, it was a bold but also understandable call by Hughton to axe Jean Beausejour for the last two matches.

Anyone who saw his displays at Blackpool, Cardiff City and various sloppy moments in recent weeks should not be that surprised.

Forget the conspiracy theories about the January transfer window and so on. And no, Beausejour hasn't been on the pop down Broad Street either.

Quite simply, one of Blues better quality players, if at times frustrating, went off the boil and has looked jaded. He has played football non-stop in the past few seasons, including summer exertions in the World Cup and Copa America.

Managing the squad and sensing when to bring players in and out over the course of a long, gruelling campaign, is a major factor of Hughton's current job.