*Official* English Football Season 2010-11

[Uppercut]

I didn't say anything about Arsenal. Take the 2005 FA Cup final; I don't think anyone who saw it wouldn't say Arsenal were the second best team and yet we went home with the cup. It's the nature of the sport. High premium on scoring and all that.

Taking chances is a huge part of football that United did terribly that day. All of our possession and build-up play was just a means to an end that we didn't achieve. I think it's pretty fair to say Arsenal were the better team that day, and entirely fair to say they deserved the win.

Saying that we deserved to win, as many United fans did, would be a travesty.

But I mentioned Arsenal because their aims seem somewhat more vague. Perhaps not to the point where they'd rather lose playing pretty football than win playing ugly football, but Wenger definitely cares about more than just winning at all costs. As opposed to, say, Chelsea, who are completely results-driven.

 

[GIMH]

They won on pens FFS

 

[roseboy64]

Thought Chelsea had the better of it in the 15-20 mins after Liverpool's first, without really looking threatening.

Although I am watching it in the background at work, so could be talking bollocks. Gorgeous 2nd by Torres as well.

Chelsea only got into it in the second half.

 

[Tom Halsey]

They won on pens FFS

Yeah but his point is dead on. I wouldn't agree that Arsenal deserved to win in normal time but neither did United.

The aim of the game is to put the ball in the opposition's net. If you do that more than your opponents over 90 minutes then you deserve to win regardless of any other, ultimately, irrelevant stat. Obviously exceptions for refereeing blunders and so on but I didn't see any of them today.

 

[Johnners]

Torres!! So good

 

[Scaly piscine]

Heh @ Man City appealing the red card. Absolutely hilarious.

Will the FA bottle it or will they extend the suspension?

 

[Burgey]

Wow, interesting result to wake up to with Chelsea falling over to Liverpool. Only two points back now, which seems ridiculous given how ordinary we've been so far this season.

Still think Chelsea will romp it though.

Have to say, that volley in the Tottenham game was a ****ing cracker. Jesus, was hit at warp speed.

 

[Craig]

You're from the north east of England, Glasgow is Paris, Rome and Prague rolled into one compared to the dump you inhabit.

And why the **** shouldn't the BBC cover Scottish football? We pay a license fee as well.

As for crumbling away from Glasgow, Rangers European away record over the last 4-5 years says no. Get a clue before you spout your ignorant ****e you fat dribbling, pube-headed moron.

 

[Craig]

Daniel Agger, Gary Cahill and Brede Hangeland are all being linked with a January move to Inter as cover for Walter Samuel who is set to miss the rest of the season. Surely there are other options then Notlob ****s, right?

 

[grecian]

Daniel Agger, Gary Cahill and Brede Hangeland are all being linked with a January move to Inter as cover for Walter Samuel who is set to miss the rest of the season. Surely there are other options then Notlob ****s, right?

I quite like Bolton nowadays, it's Blackburn I hate now, can't think why?

 

[sledger]

Yeah but his point is dead on. I wouldn't agree that Arsenal deserved to win in normal time but neither did United.

The aim of the game is to put the ball in the opposition's net. If you do that more than your opponents over 90 minutes then you deserve to win regardless of any other, ultimately, irrelevant stat. Obviously exceptions for refereeing blunders and so on but I didn't see any of them today.

Yeah I'd go along with this as well.

 

[Jono]

Yeah, you must have edited and deleted it

Some reason that made my day

 

[sledger]

Dawned on me today, that none of the teams in the premiership at the moment are really all that much good. Sure, Chelsea are probably the best, and by a reasonable enough stretch, but I wouldn't say there are any real stand out teams who you would say "yes, they are a really fantastic side", as one perhaps would have when referencing one of the Chelsea title winning sides under Mourinho, or the Man Utd Champions League winning side of a few years back, or the Unbeatable Arsenal side or the Arsenal side of 2002. The league is probably closer and more competitive now, but it seems to me that it's come at the cost of a decline in the overall quality of the talent on display on the whole. Was musing to myself a week or two ago that if you take one (or more, obviously) of Cech, Drogba or Essien out of Chelsea's side, and they are just not the same team and are totally different in terms of the threat they possess. It's probably not a million miles away to say that if you give any one of these players to Man Utd or Arsenal (maybe not Cech in Man Utd's case) and they would probably win the league. Obviously it's not particularly profound to state that taking a key player out of a team will make them less effective, as so much is indeed obvious, it just seems to me that at the moment it's more true than it has been in as long as I can remember.

 

[sledger]

YouTube - The Cesc Fabregas Show

 

[Burgey]

You're from the north east of England, Glasgow is Paris, Rome and Prague rolled into one compared to the dump you inhabit.

And why the **** shouldn't the BBC cover Scottish football? We pay a license fee as well.

As for crumbling away from Glasgow, Rangers European away record over the last 4-5 years says no. Get a clue before you spout your ignorant ****e you fat dribbling, pube-headed moron.

This is a quality rant. Kudos.

 

[Uppercut]

Dawned on me today, that none of the teams in the premiership at the moment are really all that much good. Sure, Chelsea are probably the best, and by a reasonable enough stretch, but I wouldn't say there are any real stand out teams who you would say "yes, they are a really fantastic side", as one perhaps would have when referencing one of the Chelsea title winning sides under Mourinho, or the Man Utd Champions League winning side of a few years back, or the Unbeatable Arsenal side or the Arsenal side of 2002. The league is probably closer and more competitive now, but it seems to me that it's come at the cost of a decline in the overall quality of the talent on display on the whole. Was musing to myself a week or two ago that if you take one (or more, obviously) of Cech, Drogba or Essien out of Chelsea's side, and they are just not the same team and are totally different in terms of the threat they possess. It's probably not a million miles away to say that if you give any one of these players to Man Utd or Arsenal (maybe not Cech in Man Utd's case) and they would probably win the league. Obviously it's not particularly profound to state that taking a key player out of a team will make them less effective, as so much is indeed obvious, it just seems to me that at the moment it's more true than it has been in as long as I can remember.

I think the effect tends to be overstated a touch. Chelsea went on a winning streak when Drogba was at the African Cup of Nations last year, and their repeated obscene goal-fests at the end of last season happened when Drogba had been rested. Essien missed pretty much the whole season, too. I actually think how well they dealt with Drogba's absence was a big factor in them winning the league.

Likewise, last season all the talk was of how useless United would be without Rooney, and our performances when he got injured kinda justified that, but this season we haven't had him at all and our performance has been almost identical- still behind Chelsea by a definite margin but picking up more points than the rest of the league.

That said, I really don't rate our chances at all for the derby tonight. Looks like Berbatov, Scholes, Nani and Vidic are all out or carrying a virus/injury, and Tevez is fit. Would be piling onto Citeh at 13/8 if it didn't break my rule about not betting on United games...

 

[GIMH]

Scaly and GF both on the waiting list, presumably for their little joust in this thread.

 

[sledger]

I think the effect tends to be overstated a touch. Chelsea went on a winning streak when Drogba was at the African Cup of Nations last year, and their repeated obscene goal-fests at the end of last season happened when Drogba had been rested. Essien missed pretty much the whole season, too. I actually think how well they dealt with Drogba's absence was a big factor in them winning the league.

Likewise, last season all the talk was of how useless United would be without Rooney, and our performances when he got injured kinda justified that, but this season we haven't had him at all and our performance has been almost identical- still behind Chelsea by a definite margin but picking up more points than the rest of the league.

That said, I really don't rate our chances at all for the derby tonight. Looks like Berbatov, Scholes, Nani and Vidic are all out or carrying a virus/injury, and Tevez is fit. Would be piling onto Citeh at 13/8 if it didn't break my rule about not betting on United games...

What you say about Chelsea is true, they still did manage to win the league, but to some extent that was only possible because Arsenal and Man Utd repeatedly fouled up and capitalise on a load of points that Chelsea dropped. In years gone by that sort of thing would not have gone unpunished. It kind of ties in with my point about the quality of the league in its entireity not being as strong as it perhaps once was.

 

[sledger]

Scaly and GF both on the waiting list, presumably for their little joust in this thread.

 

[vcs]

I think the bottom half sides have got really strong and well-organized in England recently. And it's getting to the stage where a draw away to a top-half side is also considered a decent result for title challengers. Doesn't seem to be the case in Spain, for example.