The 22/23 Football Thread

Speaking of VAR; I'm still mystified why Gakpo's goal was dissallowed against Villa. The argument was that VVD was in an offside position in the build up, but he wasn't 'affecting play' at that moment, and when he passed back, the ball had actually come off a Villa player. Ergo, not offside. I understand the decision, but I don't agree with it (of course!). It's an 'interpretation, but we've seen plenty of examples where such goals have been given. There's nothing wrong with VAR, it's overall positive, but there's often hideous inconsistency in the decision making by the humans officiating. . I think what it is doing, is exposing the rules as too vague. But that wasn't offside.

Oh and then there's the foul on Hendo that should have been a pen. Defender knees him in the back of the leg!
And then there's Ming's foul on Gakpo. Spurs fans will scream about Jota and Skipp (whilst conveniently ignoring Skipp's earlier dangerous tackle on Diaz, which could easily have been a leg-breaker); difference is, Jota went for, and got the ball. Skipp actually headed Jota's foot. Mings came in late with a proper dangerous chest height tackle, studs out, that left physical damage. You can't do that. Red card every single day. Villa got away with that one.
 
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I'm hoping that Brighton can buck the odds, and continue at the level they have set this season, despite the inevitable sales this summer. It will be interesting to see if De Zerbi is the quality coach, or a beneficiary of Potter's and Brighton's years of building coming to fruition. They may have a couple of big midfield players to replace. I think they will hopefully surprise a lot of teams in Europe.
 
redhed17 said:
I'm hoping that Brighton can buck the odds, and continue at the level they have set this season, despite the inevitable sales this summer. It will be interesting to see if De Zerbi is the quality coach, or a beneficiary of Potter's and Brighton's years of building coming to fruition. They may have a couple of big midfield players to replace. I think they will hopefully surprise a lot of teams in Europe.
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I know Arsenal were chasing Moisés Caicedo last summer and in the January window, so I expect them to try again, but Brighton value him at £100m.....
 
Just watched highlights of the Barnsley/Sheff Wed game. That red card "tackle" was a bad one. Still, bet @Cockney is a happy fella. :D
 
Marc said:
Just watched highlights of the Barnsley/Sheff Wed game. That red card "tackle" was a bad one. Still, bet @Cockney is a happy fella. :D
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Would have preferred a trip to Hillsborough next season, but Barnsley is a potentially easier match.
Meant to be after overturning that 0-4 first leg against Peterborough.
 
Jelster said:
To be fair, the first goal was a bit special, and the second came through a bunch of players so he saw it late. He has been pretty average this season though...
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From a neutral point of view, apart from the first twelve seconds I thought it was pretty dire. I cannot stand all that passing via the back three.
 
andya700 said:
From a neutral point of view, apart from the first twelve seconds I thought it was pretty dire. I cannot stand all that passing via the back three.
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Not often you get a decent cup final especially when they are a local derby.
 
City weren't at full pelt on Saturday, they've got one eye on the CL final next weekend, so this is the one they wouldn't have been quite so bothered about winning. They still won though, such is their superiority over Utd. Ominous. I think even with reinforcements, Utd will still be some way off City next season; the difference is Pep. Pep would not have gone to Anfield and lost 7-0. Ten Haag is a decent manager, but not on the same level as Pep or Klopp in terms of building that team spirit. Aside from the 7-0 humiliation, Utd also lost 6-3 at the Etihad earlier in the season. Great teams don't lose games to their rivals in such humiliating fashion. Will be interesting to see how many players leave, and what players come in, for Utd in the summer. They've spent stupid amounts of money over the last 10 years, and achieved very little for it, compared to City, Liverpool and Chelsea. Many will point to the Glazers, because they need a scapegoat, but the reality is that Utd just haven't had anyone come in and galvanise the players like Pep and Klopp can. Moyes was an utter disaster, Van Gaal tried and failed, Mourinho was his usual self in causing chaos, and Ragnick was another disaster. I think Ten Haag will improve things, but Utd's progression depends on what happens at Anfield and Chelsea. I expect both those teams to improve over the summer; Klopp has a Midas touch when it comes to turning good players into great ones, and Chelsea have the resources already, even if several players leave. Poch will surely turn things around there; Spurs must be absolutely gutted he didn't want to return (to the club which sacked him after getting them to the CL final). Spurs are an absolute mess; Daniel Levy has gambled heavily and lost many times, but he loves Spurs, so their fans should feel greatful he's not just after an investment or money laundering vehicle. They have a decent squad, with Kane or without, so a decent manager in and they could turn things around. But there will be a lot of changes in the summer, so I think there could be some surprises. Apart from City winning everything again, of course...
 
What you don't want is the EPL turning into the German/Spanish/French leagues, where one club dominates, it's not good for the league in general. It was great when Ferguson's Utd were being challenged by various clubs (Chelsea, Arsenal etc) when you were never quite sure who would win it, although you had a good idea who the top 4-6 were going to be.

If you were told this time last year that Arsenal would lead the league for most of the season, and finish 2nd, Chelsea would end up 11th or 12th, and bot them & Spurs wouldn't have European football, and Liverpool fail to make the champions league, you wouldn't have believed it. The only thing everybody really knew was that City would win it, again.
 
Abdichoudxyz said:
They've spent stupid amounts of money over the last 10 years, and achieved very little for it, compared to City, Liverpool and Chelsea. Many will point to the Glazers, because they need a scapegoat, but the reality is that Utd just haven't had anyone come in and galvanise the players like Pep and Klopp can. Moyes was an utter disaster, Van Gaal tried and failed, Mourinho was his usual self in causing chaos, and Ragnick was another disaster. I think Ten Haag will improve things, but Utd's progression depends on what happens at Anfield and Chelsea.
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Isn't there someone missing out of that list of managers! :thinking: :LOL:

Utd fans can have no reason to moan about the amount of money that has been spent. How it has been spent is another thing. ;) Changing managers all the time leads to that, without a strong and stable backroom that have a overall plan in place. That worked for Chelsea for many years, managers came and went, but the success continued. That is a hard trick to keep going, and Chelsea have fallen apart over recent years.

I think Ten Haag does have what it takes to build the team spirit, he just has to get through the transition period of getting the poor signings/poor character players out the door, and some new blood in. That may be easier said than done imho, as few will be willing buy their players, and players leaving would probably get offered a lot less, so what is the incentive to move! I think I saw yesterday they are considering paying off Maguire with £10m! :oops: :$ Selling players at a loss is one thing, but not getting anything for them is another thing. I understand off the wage bill etc, but that can't be done too many times.

Utd will of course have to spend a lot whilst adding to what they have spent, and keep an eye on any financial fair play regulations. They may try the Chelsea 'fiddle' of signing players of ridiculously long contracts, time will tell. :rolleyes:

Chelsea and Spurs both look a mess to me, and have squads lacking character imho. Maybe a new manager can make a big difference, but there may need to be a lot of players in and out of both teams, with a new manager overseeing it for a couple of years.
 
Congratulations to West Ham, European Conference Winners. :clap::clap::clap:

A pretty even game went down to virtually the last minute, and a winning goal by Bowen to win it 2-1. Good that BT streamed it on YT. :)

It has to be said though, a game slightly marred by stuff being thrown from the stands by not only, but mainly West Ham fans. A Fiorentina player was hit and had his head cut by a thrown plastic cup. They were so stupid they even threw cups on to the pitch when West Ham scored. :oops: :$ :rolleyes::headbang:
 
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Dreadful game made even worse by the rabid Robbie Savage.
Just glad someone scored and spared us another half hour of it
 
My Twitter timeline is full of particularly salty Man U fans tonight. Can’t think why :ROFLMAO:
 
Well done City.... Not their greatest game, and Inter were really poor in front of goal, something you just cannot afford to be at this level. Pep was very gracious when he mentioned that he's received a text from Fergie yesterday.

I don't feel that bad coming runners up in the league to a side that is probably on the verge of European greatness, as long as they keep adding to the 1.5 billion they have spent since the new owners came in.
 
It tells the state of PL football when you read that the City owner, Sheikh Mansoor was at only his 2nd game since 2008, he must be a real footie fan.

Congrats to Man.city, doing the treble is something special.They are streets ahead of anyone else and are unlikely to get caught any time soon, although there were reports on Sky sport this morning saying that now Pep has CL in his pocket he might be tempted to move on? I'd bet my last penny that the city faithful will be hoping otherwise.
 
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Jelster said:
I don't feel that bad coming runners up in the league to a side that is probably on the verge of European greatness, as long as they keep adding to the 1.5 billion they have spent since the new owners came in.
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mex said:
It tells the state of PL football when you read that the City owner, Sheikh Mansoor was at only his 2nd game since 2008, he must be a real footie fan.
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I think this says all you need to know about the state of football. Dodgy billionaires backed by regimes with appalling human rights records can simply buy football clubs as their playthings, to 'sportswash' their dirty money. And Western sporting bodies and governments are willingly allowing this. This is why City's 'victory' is quite hollow if you look at things from a more human perspective. It's not good for football, and it's not good for society. No club is 100% 'clean', but there's little honour in how City have risen to glory. Which is why any success they have will be forever tainted.

From a purely footballing perspective, City have the best squad on earth right now. They have one of the best managers, and an amazing team spirit. We saw how Arsenal lacked this, which led to their capitulation. When it came down to it, Arsenal finished the season empty handed. Their performance in the cup competitions was dire. City on the other hand, showed how true strength in depth throughout the squad can deliver. Only Liverpool and Man U have ever dominated English football the way City are right now; even Chelsea fell just short in spite of Abrahmovitch's billions. But winning should happen on the pitch, not in the boardroom.

West Ham and Moyes finally have a trophy, but this has to be put into the perspective that they have spent far more money this last season than any other club in the Vauxhaul Conference League or whatever it was they won. Quite frankly, to have not won it would have been somewhat embarrassing. It's a third tier trophy, and the quality is on average nowhere near the CL standard. It's a cup for also-rans, not front runners. Still, let their fans have something to celebrate; it doesn't happen very often. They can crow about it when they play Spurs, along with the hissing noises...
 
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mex said:
It tells the state of PL football when you read that the City owner, Sheikh Mansoor was at only his 2nd game since 2008, he must be a real footie fan.
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Most owners in the Premier League you wouldn't know are there until they are pointed out. Earning the money to be in a position to own one of these clubs means the club may not be the centre of their life/business. I think most would want a Tony Bloom like figure at their club, but you get what you get. That said, you would hope your owners visit more than once every 15 years or so, especially if a team is successful. At least turn up for the finals and the winning of the leagues. God knows they have paid enough for it. :rolleyes:
mex said:
Congrats to Man.city, doing the treble is something special.They are streets ahead of anyone else and are unlikely to get caught any time soon, although there were reports on Sky sport this morning saying that now Pep has CL in his pocket he might be tempted to move on? I'd bet my last penny that the city faithful will be hoping otherwise.
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Congratulations to Manchester City for winning the Champions League. :clap: It is the big cherry on the treble cake. ;) :clap::clap::clap:

Not a classic game, a combination of City not being on top form, and Inter closing down really well, gave a pretty poor game imho, but winning is the most important thing, and City did it. That's all that matters in a final. ;)
 
Well done England U21's for winning the European championship. :clap: :clap: :clap:

I very good dramatic game saw England save a 96th min penalty, to win the game 1-0 from a deflected free kick off the back of Curtis Jones at the end of the first half.

A final win against an undisciplined Spanish team, who had been setting all kinds of records throughout qualifying and the tournament. England went through the whole tournament without conceding. :)

Well done England U21's. :clap:
 
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redhed17 said:
Well done England U21's for winning the European championship. :clap: :clap: :clap:

I very good dramatic game saw England save a 96th min penalty, to win the game 1-0 from a deflected free kick off the back of Curtis Jones at the end of the first half.

A final win against an undisciplined Spanish team, who had been setting all kinds of records throughout qualifying and the tournament. England went through the whole tournament without conceding. :)

Well done England U21's. :clap:
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That last gasp double save has just doubled that lads value. Great to see our junior squad doing so well, and without conceding a goal too, especially as Spain were the top scorers in the tournament . An england win due to a penalty save in the last minute, stuff dreams are made of! :clap:
 
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We beat the City!! Sometimes 1-Nil to the Arsenal is my favourite song :banana:

Ref was a disgrace, but then, isn't there a rule about not sending off Manchester players?
 
Jelster said:
We beat the City!! Sometimes 1-Nil to the Arsenal is my favourite song :banana:

Ref was a disgrace, but then, isn't there a rule about not sending off Manchester players?
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You may want to post this in the current season's thread. ;)
 
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