English Premier League Thread II

Sage · Jun 5, 2013

necromancer said:
@Kalac - EPL is the only declining league among the top 4.

Mion-Moura · Jun 5, 2013

dayum!Fernandinho+Yaya=jizzworthy

hdcantona · Jun 5, 2013

Mion-Moura said:
dayum!Fernandinho+Yaya=jizzworthy

think he's worth £34m @ age 28?

Mion-Moura · Jun 5, 2013

hdcantona said:
think he's worth £34m @ age 28?

not really.apparently dat fee includes his wages or something.

Senatore_M84 · Jun 5, 2013

necromancer said:
@Kalac - EPL is the only declining league among the top 4.

i think it's cyclical to a degree.

all the players who were best for epl teams when they dominated ucl are old.

despite van persie, man utd is largely young/average elsewhere (comparative to europe). A far cry from prime ferdinand/vidic partnership and quality midfield

chelsea invested a lot in youth. I like players they got for most part, but it'll take a little while.

city is just horribly managed. They shouldn't be out of europe. Mancini is a joke.

arsenal- i mean i consider this among wenger's best year. He seriously took a mediocre squad to top 4.

-

i would say, though, it's possible epl is back to being a huge fixture in a year or two

necromancer · Jun 5, 2013

Senatore_M84 said:
i think it's cyclical to a degree.

all the players who were best for epl teams when they dominated ucl are old.

despite van persie, man utd is largely young/average elsewhere (comparative to europe). A far cry from prime ferdinand/vidic partnership and quality midfield

chelsea invested a lot in youth. I like players they got for most part, but it'll take a little while.

city is just horribly managed. They shouldn't be out of europe. Mancini is a joke.

arsenal- i mean i consider this among wenger's best year. He seriously took a mediocre squad to top 4.

-

i would say, though, it's possible epl is back to being a huge fixture in a year or two

Agreed on most points. It is clearly established by now that league quality is nothing but cyclical.

In fact, I was just browsing through CL top-2 finishing nationalities from inception to now. The cyclical nature is so evident. Germany, Italy, Spain, England have all had periods of 6-7 years when they dominate, and then fade.

Anyway, EPL has done enough over the past decade (like being able to attract foreign players etc) to ensure that they dont fall back to the dark days. They'll be a little bit off the top for a few years, and will then come back.

Senatore_M84 · Jun 5, 2013

manutd fan said:
He's now a director along with Bobby Charlton. He'll have zero say in the football side of it though - hence why all of his lieutenants have just been sacked (to put it bluntly). Moyes has 100% control.

Nothing will change at United as far as the structure and traditions/ethos. Moyes could finish 4th every year for the next 5 years but he won't get the sack. Unless the fans call for his blood which probably won't happen.

i never asked you

any clue why fergie abruptly announced his retirement?

part of me thinks might be a health issue that he won't disclose (he's not type to disclose anyway)

hdcantona · Jun 5, 2013

Senatore_M84 said:
i never asked you

any clue why fergie abruptly announced his retirement?

part of me thinks might be a health issue that he won't disclose (he's not type to disclose anyway)

he said he'd made his mind up in january, because after new year his wife's sister passed away and she got very lonely. For years he's said it's "not been fair" on his wife too (him carrying on)

Kalac#16 · Jun 5, 2013

necromancer said:
@Kalac - EPL is the only declining league among the top 4.

Does this top 4 contain France or Italy?

The Italian league has fallen behind at a pretty dramatic rate with signs of improvement before it sells off its best. Relying on Juventus to make the league look respectable at this point.

I'd say the PL is done going backwards now, even with Fergie no longer there.

manutd fan · Jun 6, 2013

Senatore_M84 said:
i never asked you

any clue why fergie abruptly announced his retirement?

part of me thinks might be a health issue that he won't disclose (he's not type to disclose anyway)

Added to what HD said, SAF always said his decision would be abrubt. He made the mistake in 01 of saying it would be his last season (with Sven to take over) and it negatively affected our season.

necromancer · Jun 6, 2013

Kalac#16 said:
Does this top 4 contain France or Italy?

The Italian league has fallen behind at a pretty dramatic rate with signs of improvement before it sells off its best. Relying on Juventus to make the league look respectable at this point.

I'd say the PL is done going backwards now, even with Fergie no longer there.

Just compare Serie A 06-09 vs Serie A now in the last seasons. There is clear improvement when you look at the top 8 taken together (to me, a good indicator of a league's strength).

Title race is absent in every single league now. So let's not even talk about that.

ladro · Jun 7, 2013

40mil euros for a average 28 year old? Lucescu probably still doesnt believe it, usually its porto or benfica robbing clubs but this is something else :thumbsup:

. Amazing!

galliani should try to sell traore and co to a clueless random arab in this foreigner league. he can probably get 5mil for him easily

Sage · Jun 7, 2013

average? because he played for shakhtar?

it seems like you're the clueless one :lol:

and yeh, 30million pounds is a lot, but shakhtar are rich.

Senatore_M84 · Jun 7, 2013

manutd fan said:
Added to what HD said, SAF always said his decision would be abrubt. He made the mistake in 01 of saying it would be his last season (with Sven to take over) and it negatively affected our season.

Thanks HD and MUF

I kind of figured it was always more a personal decision (family time, health etc.) and knowing Fergie, I know he values his personal privacy more than anything.

For ex. if he was having health issues, he'd never say it to media. If his wife was, same deal. It's not his style. Nor is it any of our business.

-

what are your thoughts on Moyes? I always thought he was a talented manager. I have no idea how he'll be able to handle big club egos though.

Rooney for one, i'm convinced will be at chelsea next year

ladro · Jun 7, 2013

fernandinho is the andy carrol type deal of the season. average player for a hilarious sum, micheeel must be so proud of his FFP farce

william an actual gem went for less 2 anzhi lol

manutd fan · Jun 7, 2013

Senatore_M84 said:
what are your thoughts on Moyes? I always thought he was a talented manager. I have no idea how he'll be able to handle big club egos though.

Rooney for one, i'm convinced will be at chelsea next year

Jury out on all fronts. No idea about anything to be honest.

I think Rooney will stay.

Goodfella · Jun 7, 2013

ladro said:
fernandinho is the andy carrol type deal of the season. average player for a hilarious sum, micheeel must be so proud of his FFP farce

william an actual gem went for less 2 anzhi lol

No fucking way is he average. A very good player, possibly WC. Very creative, good vision, hardworking, very good defensively. I don't know how he was in the Ukrainian league, but he's been immense in UCL.

Kalac#16 · Jun 7, 2013

necromancer said:
Just compare Serie A 06-09 vs Serie A now in the last seasons. There is clear improvement when you look at the top 8 taken together (to me, a good indicator of a league's strength).

Title race is absent in every single league now. So let's not even talk about that.

Yeah that's true about the title race

But for Italy, right now it's a very average Inter, a just as bad Milan, an interesting but never going to amount to anything, Fiorentina and Roma who are just constantly getting it wrong. I just don't see improvement. I remember about 2-3 years ago when Juve were just coming back into the CL and Milan had Ibra and you and a few otheres were saying how Serie A is on the way up, and then Milan sold everybody and Inter's entire team retired.

I think it's just people trying to romanticise the averageness of Italy and claim it's on its way up.

Christian · Jun 8, 2013

Kalac#16 said:
Yeah that's true about the title race

But for Italy, right now it's a very average Inter, a just as bad Milan, an interesting but never going to amount to anything, Fiorentina and Roma who are just constantly getting it wrong. I just don't see improvement. I remember about 2-3 years ago when Juve were just coming back into the CL and Milan had Ibra and you and a few otheres were saying how Serie A is on the way up, and then Milan sold everybody and Inter's entire team retired.

I think it's just people trying to romanticise the averageness of Italy and claim it's on its way up.

I wouldn't think Serie A is on the way up yet in a sporting sense, but I do think the owners have started to adapt to the situation better. I think Serie A from 2006 to just recently has been characterized by owners and GM's who thought they could still afford to have the biggest stars at their clubs even though they clearly couldn't afford it. For a lot of those guys, Galliani included, it seemed like they wouldn't really admit that Serie A was gonna fall behind the top leagues this.

Today most top clubs in Italy seem to try and adopt to a reasonable wage structure, and try to maintain the quality through youth rather than through the expensive established stars; and teams like Napoli who had started their projects earlier are reaping the benifits.

vB9 · Jun 10, 2013

Manchester United legend Denis Irwin says Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas is the club's No1 summer transfer target.

Irwin told the Sunday World in Ireland that United are determined to sign the former Arsenal captain.

"United are going after Fabregas as keenly as they did Van Persie last year – Cesc will be their big summer buy," he declared in his column.

"And remember I told you here this time last year that United would get Robin van Persie? Well, they are going about getting Fabregas in much the same way."

Thats just tits!

Sonny.Bill.Williams · Jun 13, 2013

Villa signed Okore and Bacuna today ...adds to Tonev and supposedly Helenius

+ Weimann and Baker on new deals ......Just need to give :proud:

Grealish

some exposure :thumbsup:

Villa for 4th

KujaIX · Jun 13, 2013

I don't even know who those players are(apart from Weimann).

Villa for 14th.

Sage · Jun 13, 2013

villa for above liverpool

Sonny.Bill.Williams · Jun 13, 2013

Grealish is the name to remember

On the real, Okore seems highly rated (was in IBWM top 100 ) and for the price they got him seems like a bargain ...yet to see him play

Grealish on the other hand W :eek:

WW

WW

WW

W ....English Thomas Muller

Sage · Jun 13, 2013

boateng >>> thomas muller

Supreme talent.

Christian · Jun 13, 2013

Sonny.Bill.Williams said:
Grealish is the name to remember

On the real, Okore seems highly rated (was in IBWM top 100 ) and for the price they got him seems like a bargain ...yet to see him play

Grealish on the other hand WWWWWWWW ....English Thomas Muller

Okore's a bit hot and cold, can play really well on his best day, but is also capable of having some stinkers.

I wouldn't say 6M euro is a bargain, for him, but he does have potential. He has a lot of experience for a player as young as him as well.

Sonny.Bill.Williams · Jun 13, 2013

Christian said:
Okore's a bit hot and cold, can play really well on his best day, but is also capable of having some stinkers.

I wouldn't say 6M euro is a bargain, for him, but he does have potential. He has a lot of experience for a player as young as him as well.

As I've mentioned haven't seen him play,but on the surface it seems minimal risk. The figures I've seen have been closer to 4M,which to me seems like a great price for a player as young,experienced and full of potential as Okore is.

Mion-Moura · Jun 16, 2013

Suarez is giving lots of interviews recently.moaning alot.so ridiculous

manutd fan · Jun 19, 2013

EPL fixtures for next season out....first 6 games for the top 7:

Manchester United
Swansea (A)
Chelsea (H)
Liverpool (A)
Crystal Palace (H)
Man City (A)
West Brom (H)

Chelsea
Hull (H)
Man Utd (A)
Everton (A)
Fulham (H)
Tottenham (A)
Norwich (A)

Manchester City
Newcastle (H)
Cardiff (A)
Hull (H)
Stoke (A)
Man Utd (H)
Aston Villa (A)

Arsenal
Aston Villa (H)
Fulham (A)
Tottenham (H)
Sunderland (A)
Stoke (H)
Swansea (A)

Tottenham Hotspur
Crystal Palace (A)
Swansea (H)
Arsenal (A)
Norwich (H)
Cardiff (A)
Chelsea (H)

Everton
Norwich (A)
West Brom (H)
Cardiff (A)
Chelsea (H)
West Ham (A)
Newcastle (H)

Liverpool
Stoke (H)
Aston Villa (A)
Man Utd (H)
Swansea (A)
Southampton (H)
Sunderland (A)

------------

Hard start for United. Good run in though apparently.

hdcantona · Jun 19, 2013

Swansea have been dealt a cruel looking first few games! many of the top 7 in that first 6!

Swansea play Liverpool, Spurs, Arsenal & Man Utd in 4 of their first 6 games

English Premier League Thread II

Who will win the EPL title this year?

Manchester City

Chelsea

Arsenal

Manchester United

Liverpool

Other

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Man with a Plan

WUNDERKIND

Mexes & Muntari fanboy

Phase 3

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