ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE 2016 - 20XX Onwards...

[evil wasabi]

Already my POTY favorite.

One question though: You knew from the start that Tottenham didn't have the conviction to do what was needed to win, how did you know that?

Because Tottenham isn't a team that sends a brutal hitman out there to harm opponents. They don't have a Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Diego Costa, Flamini, Van Bommel, or Busquets to antagonize players with anti-football; nor does Tottenham have a pitch enforcer like Terry, Vidic, Godin, or Chiellini who will get in the way of a hitman and make everyone else pay for it.

And I think a winning team needs either a hitman or a couple of enforcers to handle and expose the opposing hitman to cards, or incense the opposition to lose their wits. And I don't think in the history of football, two Belgian centerbacks leaves any room for either a hitman or an enforcer. And It's quite possible the only battle tested player on Tottenham's payroll is Erik Lamela, known for getting knocked out by Dani Osvaldo in a locker room scuffle. It's a soft team with the potential to play beautifully. But that softness is a massive weakness.

 

[oliverclaude]

Agreed, all strong arguments. For a little counterbalance I'd add the 2010 WC final, where a serious foul play cost the Oranje team not only sympathies for years to come, but also any chance to win. Neither Juve, nor Simeone-era Atlético, both known for unscrupulous tackling/defense won their recent finals in the CL. Anyway, neither Tottenham, nor Liverpool played it out this way, which is a priceless feature in any game, even one distorted by a flawed referee decision.

In my opinion, Tottenham had one major problem: Kane. He wasn't there when his teammates had their game of their life against Ajax. He wasn't part of that team anymore. It was rather Pochettino, who wasn't hitman or enforcer enough to leave his winning team unchanged and bring Kane, at most, as a joker, like Klopp did with Origi, or just leave him on the bench. A one-goal difference seems not enough to pardon the Spurs from loosing this game, flawed penalty or not.

 

[evil wasabi]

Agreed, all strong arguments. For a little counterbalance I'd add the 2010 WC final, where a serious foul play cost the Oranje team not only sympathies for years to come, but also any chance to win. Neither Juve, nor Simeone-era Atlético, both known for unscrupulous tackling/defense won their recent finals in the CL. Anyway, neither Tottenham, nor Liverpool played it out this way, which is a priceless feature in any game, even one distorted by a flawed referee decision.

In my opinion, Tottenham had one major problem: Kane. He wasn't there when his teammates had their game of their life against Ajax. He wasn't part of that team anymore. It was rather Pochettino, who wasn't hitman or enforcer enough to leave his winning team unchanged and bring Kane, at most, as a joker, like Klopp did with Origi, or just leave him on the bench. A one-goal difference seems not enough to pardon the Spurs from loosing this game, flawed penalty or not.

Are we talking about De Jong's flying drop kick on Xabi Alonso? Or the guy from Cote d'Ivoire triggering Kaka into a complete meltdown? Raymond Domenech losing his team in the opening round? Suarez playing as keeper against Ghana?

That was a hell of a world cup.

 

[Rot]

Controversy is part and parcel of sports....

I agree it was a soft penalty... and kinda spoiled the game...

HOWEVER, I am in the camp of... shit happens... and if Liverpool lost, I'd have accepted that as well...

xROTx

 

[evil wasabi]

Controversy is part and parcel of sports....

I agree it was a soft penalty... and kinda spoiled the game...

HOWEVER, I am in the camp of... shit happens... and if Liverpool lost, I'd have accepted that as well...

xROTx

Glad you are rational about it.

 

[oliverclaude]

Are we talking about De Jong's flying drop kick on Xabi Alonso? Or the guy from Cote d'Ivoire triggering Kaka into a complete meltdown? Raymond Domenech losing his team in the opening round? Suarez playing as keeper against Ghana?

That was a hell of a world cup.

Haha, so many fond memories... well, but I'm already looking forward to Qatar '22 topping them.

 

[Thierry Henry]

Sarri's departure from Chelsea to Juventus is now official.

Good for him. Third place in a year which was a "best of the rest season" and a European trophy.
He has moved to a bigger and better club and Chelsea are eyeing up the manager of Derby County.
Hazard and Sarri gone, Chelsea fans thought they saw "bad" football last season....they might not have seen anything yet.

 

[evil wasabi]

Sarri's departure from Chelsea to Juventus is now official.

Good for him. Third place in a year which was a "best of the rest season" and a European trophy.
He has moved to a bigger and better club and Chelsea are eyeing up the manager of Derby County.
Hazard and Sarri gone, Chelsea fans thought they saw "bad" football last season....they might not have seen anything yet.

Lampard is not just the manager of Derby. He’s a club legend and he won’t need an interpreter to communicate to his players.

It’s like if someone were to refer to Thierry Henry as Monaco manager reject.

 

[Rot]

I've been watching the transfer market... and it's really hotting up...

Real Madrid are buying players like sweeties... and some of the prices for so called "ordinary" players are somewhat eye watering...

I do feel for the clubs without the financial clout as it seems they need to do Flea Market type dealing...

Gonna be an interesting next season

xROTx

 

[evil wasabi]

I've been watching the transfer market... and it's really hotting up...

Real Madrid are buying players like sweeties... and some of the prices for so called "ordinary" players are somewhat eye watering...

I do feel for the clubs without the financial clout as it seems they need to do Flea Market type dealing...

Gonna be an interesting next season

xROTx

Don’t be surprised if salary and transfer caps become a thing in the next 5 years. Real Madrid spending €300m in a week is bad for morale.

 

[Rot]

Don’t be surprised if salary and transfer caps become a thing in the next 5 years. Real Madrid spending €300m in a week is bad for morale.

The sooner the better imo... the playing field is messed up....

I read Real Madrid made an offer of £150 million for Salah... WTF... where the hell are they getting this cash from? What happened to the Fair Play Financial shit...

xROTx

 

[oliverclaude]

It mustn't necessarily be so bad: While loaded clubs participate in their arms race, another Leicester still may happen.

 

[evil wasabi]

It mustn't necessarily be so bad: While loaded clubs participate in their arms race, another Leicester still may happen.

sounds like a defense for rich clubs to keep abusing the system.

Leicester was a fluke, at best, and at worst, a fix. But overall, the PL is more balanced than other leagues.

On a scale of Balanced to Fraud
EPL
Bundesliga
La Liga
Ligue 1
Serie A

not going to rank in eredivise or jupiler, etc. Just the big leagues.

 

[oliverclaude]

sounds like a defense for rich clubs to keep abusing the system.

Well, I can't blame anyone for reading my post this way. If someone tries to balance out a system that's shit, making it less fetid is hardly an accomplishment. One can still try, though.

On a scale of Balanced to Fraud
EPL
Bundesliga
La Liga
Ligue 1
Serie A

I'd rate the trio in the middle on one plane. The BL is soaked with Bayern, das einzig Wahre, it shouldn't rank so high for that reason alone. Traditionally, it's more fun to follow the 2nd BL.

 

[evil wasabi]

Well, I can't blame anyone for reading my post this way. If someone tries to balance out a system that's shit, making it less fetid is hardly an accomplishment. One can still try, though.



I'd rate the trio in the middle on one plane. The BL is soaked with Bayern, das einzig Wahre, it shouldn't rank so high for that reason alone. Traditionally, it's more fun to follow the 2nd BL.

Bayern has the most pull in Germany, but that doesn't mean financial abuse. Many of their signings are on bosmans. That's simply clout. Yet still BVB can give a run for their money. And a decade ago, you had teams like Wolfsburg and Schalke pushing the top of the table. At the moment, Bundesliga's most facinating team is RB Leipzig; a very new team that is out-scouting every top team in the world.

For that reason they pip La Liga, where yes, Real, Barca, and Atleti are in top contention, but Valencia is a sad shadow of its former self, thanks to financial rigidity and a good case of discount pilfering from financial giants, and Sevilla isn't that great, but managing above its payroll. Ligue 1 is a complete joke, and was so before PSG was bought by slavery money, as for 6 years straight Lyon bought the best players from the league and watered down the competition.

FFP will never work, because it has been reformed by the very teams it sought to rein in.

 

[oliverclaude]

A fine summary, no doubt, but I wouldn't underestimate Bayern's corruption potential. They deliver the most players for the national team, that alone gives them an unhealthy power. Then there're such tips of the iceberg, which occasionally surface to the public, like the imprisonment of Uli Hoeneß for tax evasion, his swiss "gambler" account sponsored with healthy six-figures petty-cash by Adidas chairman Robert Louis-Dreyfus and... his glorious comeback, as if nothing happened. My guess is, he played the part of Mr. Blonde, the brave reservoir dog, who completed his sentence for all other Munich Cabots.

 

[Naika]

So....what are y'all's predictions for this brand new season of Premier League football?

 

[oliverclaude]

From the top of my head:

- Pep Guardiola vs. Jürgen Klopp going into next stage
- looking forward to see if Pellegrini can finally score with the Hammers
- let's see how Emery evolves the Gunners, David Luiz is an interesting choice, for good or bad
- Lampard's back in Chelsea big time... hahahah
- quo vadis ManU?
- Eagles looking good with Kouyaté, Ayew, Townsend, Zaha, Sakho, Cahill unfortunately, there's still Hodgson
- Silva and Everton is a nice pairing that could work

 

[Naika]

From the top of my head:

- Pep Guardiola vs. Jürgen Klopp going into next stage
- looking forward to see if Pellegrini can finally score with the Hammers
- let's see how Emery evolves the Gunners, David Luiz is an interesting choice, for good or bad
- Lampard's back in Chelsea big time... hahahah
- quo vadis ManU?
- Eagles looking good with Kouyaté, Ayew, Townsend, Zaha, Sakho, Cahill unfortunately, there's still Hodgson
- Silva and Everton is a nice pairing that could work

I'm not convinced by David Luiz at all, and Sokratis can be a bonehead sometimes (but better than Mustafi). Crossing my fingers for them.

I have no clue what's going on at ManU. Can someone explain this to me? I'm all for it, but this is becoming comical.

I have a feeling that Klopp will get close to that coveted PL trophy, but don't count Pep out.

 

[oliverclaude]

I have no clue what's going on at ManU. Can someone explain this to me? I'm all for it, but this is becoming comical.

That's a tough question... what if Ferguson wasn't Scottish, would David Moyes had stand a chance to be appointed as his successor then? It's only that this past event probably hides the source of the current humour you mentioned. And as comical as it already is, there's yet another humorous effect: Everton, Moyes' team back then, struggles with a similar identity crisis since he left. Did Fergie killed two teams with one Moyes? It would certainly appear so.

 

[Naika]

That's a tough question... what if Ferguson wasn't Scottish, would David Moyes had stand a chance to be appointed as his successor then? It's only that this past event probably hides the source of the current humour you mentioned. And as comical as it already is, there's yet another humorous effect: Everton, Moyes' team back then, struggles with a similar identity crisis since he left. Did Fergie killed two teams with one Moyes? It would certainly appear so.

Fergie....killing 2 teams with one appointment...

 

[oliverclaude]

Good ManCity game yesterday. Enjoyed that little schadenfreude Otamendi delivered.

Canaries 3 - 2 Goliath

 

[Rot]

Good ManCity game yesterday. Enjoyed that little schadenfreude Otamendi delivered.

Canaries 3 - 2 Goliath

I just read an article recently...

Man City are the first football team to amass a squad that is worth over 1 billion GBP...

Norwich have a team worth 32 Million GBP...

That's some discrepancy...

xROTx

 

[oliverclaude]

I just read an article recently...

Man City are the first football team to amass a squad that is worth over 1 billion GBP...

Norwich have a team worth 32 Million GBP...

That's some discrepancy...

xROTx

Ha, that's the beauty of the PL: every team can win with every team and it won't be just luck. Just look at Leicester. I still remember vividly how Suarez cried after the 3:3 tie against Crystal Palace, which cost Liverpool the championship. Here, games between teams from the bottom can become as exciting as a CL final, too. It really is rare to see something as pricey as the PL being worth its price.

 

[Thierry Henry]

Man City really put Watford to the sword.

BTW, not EPL related but there was an amazing sequence of play before the first goal in the Juventus-Verona game yesterday.

https://streamja.com/W21A