Re: The Football Chat Thread : Mon Aug 29, 2011 11:36 am  

Roofs wrote:

Man City? Meh, means nothing IMO.

Your opinion means nothing.

Re: The Football Chat Thread : Mon Aug 29, 2011 11:37 am  

Lord God Jose Mourinho wrote:

Your opinion means nothing.

So why did you respond?

Re: The Football Chat Thread : Mon Aug 29, 2011 11:55 am  

Arsenal are a joke at the mo.

Yesterday was the only time I've enjoyed a Man Utd romp, simply because you just knew Arsenal were going from one catastrophe to another.

Merson rightly ripped into Wenger after the game. He has no plan B. He sent that team out like lambs to the slaughter. Trouble is, the problem at Arsenal has been clear to see for years now. Now the team could be beyond repair.

Re: The Football Chat Thread : Mon Aug 29, 2011 12:00 pm  

Roofs wrote:

Watched the game yesterday, full credit to United, no amount of praise for yesterday's performance is too much.

Man City? Meh, means nothing IMO.

Ok, I'll bite.

Yep, full credit given the "quality" opposition, its weakened state and having had a man sent off too, and a home victory to boot. Did you get a good view of the off the ball quality movement or does the armchair not provide such entertainment?

If you'd have come down to White Hart Lane, played against a first choice XI for a team that reached last years QFs of the Champions League, and, of course, with home advantage, and seen them destroyed by the team from the blue half of Manchester, you may have been able to form an opinion.

This is how it feels to be City, this is how it feels to be small, this is how it feels when our team wins nothing at all, nothing at all, nothing at all ..........

Re: The Football Chat Thread : Mon Aug 29, 2011 12:25 pm  

I don't think Wenger will go and I don't think he should go. All teams have horrible patches and they are having their worst one for years but you don't just ditch a manager like Wenger for one bad run. And who would they bring in who would improve them? I know they've not won anything for 6 years but they've still competed for most things over those 6 years. He has invested money in the areas he needed to, and the media said he had to, ie keeper, centre back and strikers but none of them, with the exception of Szczezny have improved the team at all. That's not entirely his fault. He maybe should have been far more prepared for Fabregas leaving but he managed to keep him last summer so why not this summer too??

I can't believe I'm sticking up for him!!

As for yesterday, how on earth did Arshavin not get sent off?? 2 borderline yellow/red card challenges AND a deliberate handball. Poor from Webb yet again.
Not getting too giddy after just 3 games. Chelsea won their first 5 or 6 easily last season didn't they and look what happened to them.

Re: The Football Chat Thread : Mon Aug 29, 2011 12:35 pm  

Dita's Slot Meter wrote:

Like you, I'm not fussed how we scrape our points, but its more of a stab at the poor quality of reffing on display at Ewood Park yesterday.

Exactly, how many times have we been by far the better side and lost/drawn? 3 points is 3 points and we're comfortably mid-table at the start of a season, which represents a fantastic Everton start...

Re: The Football Chat Thread : Mon Aug 29, 2011 1:09 pm  

Roofs wrote:

Watched the game yesterday, full credit to United, no amount of praise for yesterday's performance is too much.

Man City? Meh, means nothing IMO.

Rubbish.....I've been a big critic of City's transfer policy, but for me, yesterday's win at Tottenham was probably more impressive than United's.

Both were very good wins, but the United one did have the smell of 'freak' about it....A little bit like when Liverpool hammered Man Utd at OT a few years back.

Once the second United goal went in, there was always a sense that it was going to be more about Arsenal collasping than United playing sublime football and steam-rollering them, and that's what happened....A very good United display, but they won't have many teams rolling over in the manner the Gunners did yesterday.

As for City, it was the sort of performance that truly highlighted their title credentials in a positive way....I doubt too many teams will turn Spurs over like that this season at White Hart Lane and the flow of some City's football was certainly of a title-winning standard.

I'll probably never warm to the City/Chelsea style of buying titles, but if they produce football like yesterday's, then it will make it easier to stomach come the time they eventually win the league.

Re: The Football Chat Thread : Mon Aug 29, 2011 1:41 pm  

Davide Santon heading to Newcastle for £5mil. Another cracking signing.

I said it before the season start, but once again, I think they're building a decent side. They are getting rid of overpaid, older players (Nolan + Barton are decent players, but won't ever be more than mid table) and buying young players with lots of potential. I think Cabaye has looked decent, Marveaux has good pedigree but has he played yet?

Santon is a quality player, if he comes to Newcastle he'll be at a top 4 club in 2-3 years. He'll replace Enrique, then they just need another good striker (that French bloke who keeps trying to go on strike?) and they'll have a pretty good side.

Re: The Football Chat Thread : Mon Aug 29, 2011 2:15 pm  

Abe Frohman wrote:

Ok, I'll bite.

Yep, full credit given the "quality" opposition, its weakened state and having had a man sent off too, and a home victory to boot. Did you get a good view of the off the ball quality movement or does the armchair not provide such entertainment?

If you'd have come down to White Hart Lane, played against a first choice XI for a team that reached last years QFs of the Champions League, and, of course, with home advantage, and seen them destroyed by the team from the blue half of Manchester, you may have been able to form an opinion.

This is how it feels to be City, this is how it feels to be small, this is how it feels when our team wins nothing at all, nothing at all, nothing at all ..........

That's fine, but IMO it takes absolutely no skill at all (and is not an achievement) to buy a football team fantasy football-style and buy the Premier League. It could be done with any football club if you threw £300 million at them.

If I was a City fan I would get no joy, pride or pleasure at all from however many trophies they buy this season. To those that do, fair dues.

For me, clubs that can be proud and have a feeling of achievement are those like Liverpool and Man United, not Chelsea or Man City.

Re: The Football Chat Thread : Mon Aug 29, 2011 2:52 pm  

I'd be more than happy to go back to the days when a team like Forest could come from nowhere to win the League and European Cup. But that era died with the advent of the CL and the huge riches it bestowed on the established "Top 4". I'm just grateful that we got the money rather than, say, Everton.

Its interesting to speculate how United's fortunes would have varied if the CL had been introduced a few years earlier, when Liverpool ruled the roost and United were still in their 80's torpor. And did money automatically mean that Chelsea won their titles, didnt the appointment of Mourhino (before he lost his marbles) have a lot to do with it?

The money clearly makes it possible to compete for titles but it doesnt guarantee it. Who knows, United might still win the league for the next 5 years. The facinating thing for me watching City over the past 3 years has been the "2 steps forward, 1 step backwards" nature of it. Nothing has seemed remotely seemed guaranteed. And for most of those 3 years the general consensus seemed to be that City were doing everything wrong.