Valley of blues as insipid City freeze

Motivating highly-paid players to perform in a league which is hyped to the hilt and where staying up is deemed even more important than surviving Big Brother should not be difficult.

On this evidence, however, Joe Royle still has work to do, while Alan Curbishley should be giving master-classes.

Charlton's four-goal romp on their return to the Premiership, against an insipid Manchester City, was a lesson to their more-fancied rivals that heart and passion still count for much in the frenzied environs of the top flight. Sublime skills were at a premium on Saturday and, while Charlton rose to the occasion, City froze.

Curbishley insisted afterwards that simply being in the Premiership is motivation enough and Charlton will be trying their utmost to prove this result was not a fluke at Everton on Wednesday.

"The Premiership is a whole new world compared to the First Division and that's what the players enjoy. Obviously the money's important as well but if you say to them Wednesday and Everton away, they will go `Goodison, fantastic, packed house, Gazza, Ferguson, great'," says Curbishley.

Surely Walter Smith's side will give Charlton a stiffer test than City - it would be hard not to - and the excited throngs at the Valley will have been sobered by the thought they have been here before. Two seasons ago Charlton were top after two games having beaten Southampton 5-0; eight months later they were relegated. The Saints are the next visitors to the Valley.

However, the true worth of Charlton's performance was not easy to assess given the paucity of the opposition. Each of the home side's goals owed something to inept defending, with the sluggish Steve Howey, a £2 million buy from Newcastle, looking like a startled rabbit whenever Kevin Lisbie, Charlton's seventh-choice striker, ran at him.

Royle's motivational techniques, which have involved speakers and a sports psychologist in the pre-season, clearly failed on Saturday.

Lisbie had hit the bar and the impressive Claus Jensen had a free-kick tipped over before Andy Hunt opened the scoring.

The striker was fed by Jensen and rounded the static Spencer Prior and Richard Edghill before shooting past Nicky Weaver in the City goal.

Lisbie, again, and Richard Rufus both should have done better with clear headers before John Robinson doubled Charlton's lead, Weaver scuffing an attempt to clear his shot.

Dean Kiely in the Charlton goal tipped a Paulo Wanchope header on to the post, but Charlton strolled to victory with Mark Kinsella coolly scoring the third with the outside of his right boot and Graham Stuart converting a penalty after Kinsella had been brought down by Weaver.

CHARLTON: Kiely, Kishishev, Powell, Stuart, Rufus, Tiler, Kinsella, Hunt, Robinson (Konchesky 86), Jensen (Brown 74), Lisbie (Newton 81). Subs Not Used: Ilic, Parker.

MANCHESTER CITY: Weaver, Edghill, Wiekens, Horlock (Wright-Phillips 45), Prior, Haaland, Tiatto, Weah, Wanchope, Howey, Kennedy. Subs Not Used: Dickov, Wright, J Whitley, Jobson.