Premier League 24/25 Thread

[lejackal]

Fantasy football - https://fantasy.premierleague.com/leagues/auto-join/ezigs5
Click, join, watch me come last

 

[weasel]

Well that was ****.

Poor game, maybe not unexpected at this stage of the season. I know it wasn't their first choice starting line up but Utd still look a very strange side. They didn't deserve to win that, a draw was probably a fair result.

I did laugh at Martinez sprinting over at one point to stand right in front of Pererereia (who had a shocker and massively ****** up Fulham's best chance) and he (Pererereria) just booted the ball straight into him as if to say "get the **** out of the way I want to take a quick free." As he is entitled to. The ref blows his whistle and books,…….perereria.
I mean, why? What for? The crime of highlighting that the other team are stopping him from taking a quick free?
I know every club tries to stop quick frees, and Utd are no better or worse at it than anyone else, but in no way was Perereria at fault. Martinez should have been booked, if anyone.

On that note it's ******* annoying that EVERY TIME someone wins a free the nearest player on the other team stands right in front of it, or like Martinez, runs over to stand in front of it. Everyone does it, I'm not picking on Utd, but it annoys me. Hockey has a rule where you instantly have to retreat 5 yards if a free is given against you or a it's a yellow card. Albeit hockey has the traffic light system and a yellow is 5mins in the sin bin so more of a punishment than a football yellow. And you can get more than 1 yellow before it becomes a red but that's another story.
If you brought that rule into football the first few games would finish as 5-a-side games. And Jose and Atletico would never complete a game, they'd run out of players. It would make football a better spectacle though.

 

[theforceuk]

Well that was ****.

Poor game, maybe not unexpected at this stage of the season. I know it wasn't their first choice starting line up but Utd still look a very strange side. They didn't deserve to win that, a draw was probably a fair result.

I did laugh at Martinez sprinting over at one point to stand right in front of Pererereia (who had a shocker and massively ****** up Fulham's best chance) and he (Pererereria) just booted the ball straight into him as if to say "get the **** out of the way I want to take a quick free." As he is entitled to. The ref blows his whistle and books,…….perereria.
I mean, why? What for? The crime of highlighting that the other team are stopping him from taking a quick free?
I know every club tries to stop quick frees, and Utd are no better or worse at it than anyone else, but in no way was Perereria at fault. Martinez should have been booked, if anyone.

On that note it's ******* annoying that EVERY TIME someone wins a free the nearest player on the other team stands right in front of it, or like Martinez, runs over to stand in front of it. Everyone does it, I'm not picking on Utd, but it annoys me. Hockey has a rule where you instantly have to retreat 5 yards if a free is given against you or a it's a yellow card. Albeit hockey has the traffic light system and a yellow is 5mins in the sin bin so more of a punishment than a football yellow. And you can get more than 1 yellow before it becomes a red but that's another story.
If you brought that rule into football the first few games would finish as 5-a-side games. And Jose and Atletico would never complete a game, they'd run out of players. It would make football a better spectacle though.

 

[weasel]

Anyone else having problems posting? The only way I can manage it is if I quote a message and then write under it. (In this case I deleted the quoted message.)

 

[Michael Sith]

Anyone else having problems posting? The only way I can manage it is if I quote a message and then write under it. (In this case I deleted the quoted message.)

Yeah same here, Lars has posted a thread on it, hopefully get sorted

 

[Cazza]

Interesting start. Disappointed, but not overly so. It's going to take us a while to gel, and Lop will have learned a lot from that. Been saying for weeks, that if we don't get Duran, he will inevitably score the winner against us... so West Ham! Centre halves were great, Kudus outstanding, Rodriguez impressive, Summerville lively. The rest, especially Antonio and Coufal were poor. Villa are a very good team and have pace and athleticism all over the pitch, which was the difference. Thought we should've got the draw though...

 

[lejackal]

Arsenal were very much the same as last season, which isn't really a bad thing whilst we bed Timber and Cauliflower in. Nice to have a squad good enough not to need to throw the new boys in immediately.
I still think we need a bit more in midfield and have a few more to show the door.

 

[weasel]

The rest, especially Antonio and Coufal were poor.

Woeful non effort by Antonio for the goal. Just jogs half way with his man then lets him run free into the six yard box. Unforgivable from a kid, but from an experienced player like him…..

 

[Cazza]

Exactly. He was shocking!

 

[weasel]

City start with a win. Looks like we're in for another exciting season zzzzzzzzz

 

[weasel]

Poor Raheem Sterling, dropped for the opening game. What were chelsea thinking? Dropping a guy who has been **** for the two years they have had him. Granted them picking Mudryk and Jackson while dropping him is about as big a kick in the balls as you get, but still. If you've been phoning it in for 2yrs while taking home 300kpw don't be surprised if the club gets ****** off with you. It sounds like he wont be leaving on the cheap either. He'll want his contract paid up. I don't like players who demand a pay off to leave. The reason you are having to leave a take a lower salary is cos you have been ****. You do not deserve to be compensated for being ****. You being **** is YOUR fault. (Hello AWB)
At the same time, I have less than zero sympathy for Chelsea.

**** knows where Sterling goes now. He is 29. None of the "big" PL sides will want him/be willing to pay those wages. Real don't need him, and he isn't good enough. Barca are skint. Bayern aren't dumb. PSG seem to be wising up. No one in Italy has that money. Saudi? At 29?

I see Spuds got 20m +5m for Skipp. Bloody good business that. I thought I misread it and the decimal place was in the wrong spot the first time I saw it.

 

[edd_jedi]

Well you won't see a more Spurs performance than that, 225 shots on target and 99.9% posession, and somehow we ******* draw. Is it too early to give up hope?

 

[weasel]

Well you won't see a more Spurs performance than that, 225 shots on target and 99.9% posession, and somehow we ******* draw. Is it too early to give up hope?

I saw bits of the first half and heard Leicester were woeful.
I saw most of the second half and thought they were the better side. Vardy should have made it 2-1 before Richarlison should have made it 1-2.
The Spuds marking for Vardy's goal was absymal. I could have scored that. He could have taken aa touch, gone and got a beer from the stands and then tucked it away.
Early days though.

 

[weasel]

Bournemouth robbed today. That hit his shirt sleeve, and Dan Burn's too. No way that should have been disallowed. And how Joelinton got away with that grab round the neck I will never know. As someone on Twitter pointed out, that's a straight red in Rugby, but apparently you can do it to Keepers and only get a yellow.

Some ropey defending for both Brighton goals from Utd. Long may that continue.

 

[edd_jedi]

Good performance and more importantly result for Spurs against Everton yesterday, that's how the Leicester game should have ended as well, no doubt those 2 points will cost us dear come the end of the season. I knew I should have benched Watkins in my fantasy team yesterday, missed two open goals against... can you guess.. Arsenal!

 

[lejackal]

Good performance and more importantly result for Spurs against Everton yesterday, that's how the Leicester game should have ended as well, no doubt those 2 points will cost us dear come the end of the season. I knew I should have benched Watkins in my fantasy team yesterday, missed two open goals against... can you guess.. Arsenal!

 

[lejackal]

Fantasy football can get ******

Arsenal were definitely lucky not to lose to villa again, so I'm very please with the 3 points.

 

[weasel]

Aye, Watkins was pish. Not often he'll miss two glorious chances like that.
Is that Arsenal being lucky (again) lol

 

[lejackal]

Aye, Watkins was pish. Not often he'll miss two glorious chances like that.
Is that Arsenal being lucky (again) lol

100% fluke, everything for the last 5 years

 

[weasel]

Should really be favourites for relegation, but that luck means they pinch a CL spot

 

[lejackal]

So if Southampton do sign Rambo, and go down, will he be the first keeper to suffer 3 relegations with 3 different clubs?

 

[weasel]

Who did he go down with before, Bournemouth and Shef Utd?

Nice to see Pool continue their record with draws in domestic cups.

City get a nice cushy home draw against a side from a lower league in Watford.
Arsenal get a nice cushy home draw against a side from a lower league in Bolton.
Utd get a nice cushy home draw against a side from a lower league in Barnsley.
Chelsea get a nice cushy home draw against a team from a lower league in Barrow.
Newcastle get a nice cushy draw away to a side from a lower league in Wimbledon.
Spurs get a nice cushy draw away to a side from a lower league (who should have put Utd out of last year's FAC if not for VAR doing it's thing) in Coventry.
Aston Villa get a nice cushy draw against a lower league side in Wycombe.

Liverpool get Premier League West Ham.

I sound like a broken record, but it's getting ridiculous now. It's PL side after PL side is the domestic cups for Pool.

 

[weasel]

No idea what to make of that CL draw either.
If my rough mental maths is right then 5 wins and a draw should be enough to get a team straight into the knock outs, ie top 8.
Pool have Real (H), Leipzig (A), Leverkusen (H), AC (A), Lille (H), PSV (A), Bologna (H), and Girona (A). Schedule to be released at the weekend

Two Spanish, two Italian and two German sides, so ehhh not exactly easy. Leverkusen and Girona were both on fire last year so that will either continue or they will implode. Bologna, I know FA about. Real are the most hateful shower of ***** who Pool seem to insist on losing to every time so I'll write that off. AC and PSV should be winnable, no idea on Leipzig. That's also all allowing for Pool being an utter unknown quantity with Slot in charge.

Arsenal's draw is similar if ever so slightly easier, PSG (H), Inter (A), Shakhtar (H), Atalanta (A), Dinamo Zagreb (H), Sporting Lisbon (A), Monaco (H) and Girona (A).
Atalanta ripped Pool to bits last season, they play a weird man marking system all over the pitch and they run like bastards for 90mins. That's definitely not an easy one. The Eastern European sides are both home games so they should be winnable, and Monaco and Sporting are the same. Inter….who knows. They are **** on paper, but they keep doing quite well in Europe. I'd fancy Arsenal to beat them. But last time I said that about Arsenal in Europe they bent over, like the Arsenal of Wenger's era used to do as soon as they got to the knock out rounds.

 

[Cazza]

Who did he go down with before, Bournemouth and Shef Utd?

Nice to see Pool continue their record with draws in domestic cups.

City get a nice cushy home draw against a side from a lower league in Watford.
Arsenal get a nice cushy home draw against a side from a lower league in Bolton.
Utd get a nice cushy home draw against a side from a lower league in Barnsley.
Chelsea get a nice cushy home draw against a team from a lower league in Barrow.
Newcastle get a nice cushy draw away to a side from a lower league in Wimbledon.
Spurs get a nice cushy draw away to a side from a lower league (who should have put Utd out of last year's FAC if not for VAR doing it's thing) in Coventry.
Aston Villa get a nice cushy draw against a lower league side in Wycombe.

Liverpool get Premier League West Ham.

I sound like a broken record, but it's getting ridiculous now. It's PL side after PL side is the domestic cups for Pool.

This seems to happen to us regularly. Get Liverpool, Man City or Man U (always away), very early on in the cups. Really annoying! NO WAY we win at Anfield.

The whole competition has become a joke. Allowing the big teams (in Europe) time off and a bye to the next round, then they all get drawn at home and avoid each other...

 

[weasel]

Two teams who will blow hot and cold for a few months as they adapt to what the new manager wants

 

[lejackal]

Who did he go down with before, Bournemouth and Shef Utd?

Nice to see Pool continue their record with draws in domestic cups.

City get a nice cushy home draw against a side from a lower league in Watford.
Arsenal get a nice cushy home draw against a side from a lower league in Bolton.
Utd get a nice cushy home draw against a side from a lower league in Barnsley.
Chelsea get a nice cushy home draw against a team from a lower league in Barrow.
Newcastle get a nice cushy draw away to a side from a lower league in Wimbledon.
Spurs get a nice cushy draw away to a side from a lower league (who should have put Utd out of last year's FAC if not for VAR doing it's thing) in Coventry.
Aston Villa get a nice cushy draw against a lower league side in Wycombe.

Liverpool get Premier League West Ham.

I sound like a broken record, but it's getting ridiculous now. It's PL side after PL side is the domestic cups for Pool.

Pretty sure the Arse cup draws last season weren't exactly pushovers

 

[lejackal]

Who did he go down with before, Bournemouth and Shef Utd?

Yep

 

[weasel]

Pretty sure the Arse cup draws last season weren't exactly pushovers

Aye, this is several seasons long now. From memory Pool's last few FAC 3rd opponents have been Everton, Wolves, Everton, Villa, Shrewsbury, Wolves, and Arsenal.

That might not be in the right order, but still six PL sides in seven years, two of them local derbies and one against your lot. Not sure many sides can match that. A few get the odd stinker here and there but they also get the novelty value of playing someone from a different league. Or if they are City they get the weakest side in the competition at the Etihad.
Pool's record in the Worthless cup is similar.
I just want to see them play someone different, it's not that I perceive lower league sides as weaker (they are more often banana skins) it's just boring to watch games against sides they play twice a year, year in year out. That's half the attraction of European football, playing someone different.

 

[lejackal]

Also (again, no disrespect to lower league opponents), you can blood new/young players. And as you say, the novelty value is fantastic. I'm envious of the Newcastle away match to Wimbledon. It's a great little community stadium, they'll be hugely up for it and it would be a fantastic home match for them. The bar is also relatively cheap for a London stadium as well

 

[lejackal]

On the novelty value front I'm quite looking forward to the CL, well, the group/league stage at least. Lots of teams to play, although the break the best teams get is hardly fair (unless of course it's us getting the break )