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BuzzJack Music Forum _ Sports and Fitness _ 2018/2019 Premier League
Posted by: Rooney 21st May 2018, 11:01 PM
Looks like Umi Emery is set to be confirmed as the new Arsenal boss.. long way to go before the season starts but plenty to talk about!
Posted by: Evil Houdini 21st May 2018, 11:41 PM
I suspect the Arsenal fans would be happy with him as their manager rather than Arteta. Their squad needs an overhaul though and getting a new manager alone wont be enough.
The fixtures for the new season are released at 9 AM on June 14th. Hopefully the 2018/19 season will be a lot more entertaining than the previous one.
Posted by: Mack. 22nd May 2018, 09:42 AM
I think it could be mixed views from Arsenal fans on the appointment of Emery.
West Ham have appointed Manuel Pellegrini as their new manager. I wonder what Soy Adrian and MLHammer95 make of this.
Posted by: Iz 22nd May 2018, 04:19 PM
not really relevant but Emery was also the successor to Wenger in my most recent FM save. Ended up leading them to a glorious 17th (I was slightly disappointed it wasn't just a bit more shit, I'd never seen a big team get relegated before) before de Boer came in, salvaged operations and won them the league the season after.
As amusing as that would be, I feel like in reality it's a potentially good appointment for Arsenal, he's won titles and if he can adapt the team to his liking, maybe in a couple of seasons?
Posted by: Rooney 22nd May 2018, 06:03 PM
Emery is more of a yes man, I suspect it's all to do with the structure they have set up. He's a great cup manager as shown by Sevilla, but he did go a full season without winning an away game.. will fit in at Arsenal! Interesting appointment though, same for Pellegrini at West Ham.
Posted by: Evil Houdini 23rd May 2018, 01:05 PM
Unai Emery has been confirmed as Arsenal's new manager. It's a shame from a rival fan point of view that it wasn't Mikel Arteta instead, the Arsenal fan base are more likely to be united now instead of half of them wanting a manager in and the other half wanting that same manager out.
Posted by: Dobbo 23rd May 2018, 01:32 PM
It'll only take one defeat for a proportion to be calling for his head immediately knowing arsenal fans!
Posted by: Dobbo 31st May 2018, 03:58 PM
Silva confirmed for Everton. He won't last the season.
Posted by: Rooney 31st May 2018, 06:08 PM
Everton are in a bit of a mess, I think he will last the season so long as he sells his time there as a project.
Posted by: Flatcap 7th June 2018, 04:28 PM
Scudamore to stand down as executive chairman of the Premier League by the end of 2018.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/44405190
Posted by: Evil Houdini 13th June 2018, 07:38 PM
New fixtures out tomorrow! Predicting Man United's first match to be an away trip to Craven Cottage to play Fulham. Arsenal and Liverpool will probably play each other during the month of August again as well.
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 13th June 2018, 07:44 PM
I am hoping for as few home matches as possible before December 1st and for us to finally be away on f***ing boxing day. Purely for selfish reasons of course as I'm missing the first half of the seasons home games because i'm in Germany and having missed half the season i'd rather not have to miss another match at christmas (3rd year in a row it would be) because I can't make the trek back from Scotland for a match on the 26th, not without f***ing up christmas.
Posted by: Rooney 13th June 2018, 09:22 PM
We will play one of the Top 6 as our 2nd or 3rd game guaranteed. Tbh as long as you avoid the promoted teams in the first couple of games then it's fine. The best time to play the smaller teams is around Christmas.
I think Liverpool's first game will be Southampton at home.
Posted by: Dobbo 13th June 2018, 10:02 PM
I'm feeling Palace at home for some reason.
Posted by: Mack. 14th June 2018, 08:02 AM
Opening Weekend:
Bournemouth v Cardiff City
Arsenal v Manchester City
Fulham v Crystal Palace
Huddersfield Town v Chelsea
Liverpool v West Ham United
Manchester United v Leicester City
Newcastle United v Tottenham Hotspur
Southampton v Burnley
Watford v Brighton
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Everton
Posted by: Evil Houdini 14th June 2018, 08:11 AM
What a brutal start for Arsenal that is! playing Manchester City & Chelsea in their first two matches. I'd expect Manchester City to win their first six matches of the season looking at their opening fixtures. Starting at home to Leicester could be tricky for United and we're also playing Tottenham soon after that as well. Cardiff have a tough set of fixtures in September that you wouldn't expect them to get any points from.
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 14th June 2018, 08:22 AM
Only miss 6 home games and the away derby so that’s pretty decent. My first game back will be Arsenal which is decent.
Really pissed off we’re home on Boxing Day for the third year in a row. It’s only Huddersfield so that will be skipped. Bournemouth on the 29th night be skipped too for a decent holiday at Christmas
Posted by: Steve201 5th July 2018, 11:55 PM
It was only Burnley last Boxing Day and that turned into a cracker!!
Posted by: Evil Houdini 6th July 2018, 12:12 AM
We played at home on Boxing Day the year before that as well. It was when Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored the scorpion kick goal against Sunderland that Oliver Giroud copied later on.
Posted by: Mack. 11th July 2018, 01:21 PM
Apparently Napoli's head coach Maurizio Sarri is on the verge of becoming Chelsea manager.
Posted by: Dobbo 11th July 2018, 03:27 PM
They just love an Italian manager don't they.
Posted by: Evil Houdini 12th July 2018, 04:44 PM
Apparently Antonio Conte has now been sacked!
Posted by: Rooney 12th July 2018, 06:36 PM
Chelsea are in a complete mess at the moment. The whole situation is very strange.. looking like Jorghino is joining though along with the Napoli boss.
Posted by: bigwiglaf 13th July 2018, 02:28 AM
Sacked he was....I've not heard much as to why on my side of the pond here in the US....managed to see it in a sports crawl on ESPN...
Posted by: Mack. 13th July 2018, 09:30 AM
Confirmed now that Antonio Conte has been sacked as Chelsea manager.
"During Antonio’s time at the club, we won our sixth league title and eighth FA Cup. In the title winning season, the club set a then-record 30 wins in a 38-game Premier League season, as well as a club-record 13 consecutive league victories.
"We wish Antonio every success in his future career."
Almost certain that Sarri will become the new Chelsea manager.
Posted by: Mack. 14th July 2018, 08:29 AM
Confirmed that Sarri has been appointed as the new Chelsea manager.
Posted by: Suedehead2 14th July 2018, 05:04 PM
He didn't hit his targets. In other words, in two years he failed to win the Premier League at least six times and the Champions League at least three times. No doubt Sarri will be set slightly different targets, but he will find winning at least 55 Premier League games in his first season to be beyond him.
Posted by: Rooney 15th July 2018, 12:06 AM
Wasn't Conte basically sacked because he fell out with the chairman and half of the players though?
Posted by: Evil Houdini 15th July 2018, 12:18 AM
Chelsea are a sacking club and they always have been since Roman Ambramovich took over. Maurizio Sarri will be lucky if he gets up to two seasons as manager of Chelsea!
Posted by: Dobbo 15th July 2018, 10:16 AM
It's ALL because of the whole Costa situation. As soon as that text was leaked Conte's fate was sealed.
Posted by: Suedehead2 15th July 2018, 11:17 PM
WHich basically echoes my point, although in a rather more direct way
Posted by: Mack. 24th July 2018, 07:40 PM
League Winner Odds: (Coral)
Man City 8-13f
Liverpool 5-1
Man United 6-1
Tottenham Hotspur 11-1
Chelsea 11-1
Arsenal 25-1
Wolves 100-1
Everton 200-1
Leicester City 250-1
Southampton 500-1
Crystal Palace 500-1
Newcastle United 500-1
West Ham United 500-1
Bournemouth 750-1
Burnley 750-1
Brighton & Hove Albion 1000-1
Watford 1000-1
Fulham 1000-1
Huddersfield Town 1000-1
Cardiff City 1000-1
Posted by: Dobbo 25th July 2018, 04:04 PM
Why on earth would Wolves be 7th favourite? Unless it's a misstype on 1000 of course!
I mean it's not like anyone outside the top 6 has a prayer but still...
Posted by: Evil Houdini 25th July 2018, 04:14 PM
7th Place is wide open to be honest. At the moment I think Crystal Palace will finish there but there are at least 7 or 8 teams that could finish as high as that. If Burnley could do it last season then it could be possible for Wolves, I think Wolves will have a good season regardless of finishing as high as 7th.
Posted by: Dobbo 25th July 2018, 04:18 PM
I think Palace will be in for another struggle myself, it literally all depends on Zaha - one big injury to him and they are toast. Benteke is absolutely finished.
Think West Ham have a good shot at doing well, making some very impressive signings.
Posted by: Mack. 25th July 2018, 06:54 PM
I mean it's not like anyone outside the top 6 has a prayer but still...
That's the odds that were available in Coral.
Posted by: Steve201 25th July 2018, 07:16 PM
With the money wolves have spent I can kind of understand their rationale, would still be a great season for them if they do!
Posted by: Dobbo 25th July 2018, 09:47 PM
Well fair, time will tell if it's money well spent or they're just "doing a QPR"
Posted by: Steve201 26th July 2018, 07:20 AM
Neves in midfield is a world star in the making and Moutinho is the old hand in Portuguese football!
Posted by: Evil Houdini 4th August 2018, 10:54 AM
Manchester United Vs Leicester will be shown live on Sky One next Friday. So if like myself you don't have the regular Sky Sports channels then you can watch it on Sky One instead.
Posted by: Evil Houdini 5th August 2018, 04:39 PM
It looks like it's going to be a long and hard season for Chelsea. This is probably the weakest squad they've had in years.
Posted by: Mack. 7th August 2018, 10:53 AM
Arsenal's majority shareholder Stan Kroenke has made a £600m offer to buy the whole of the club in a deal that would value the Gunners at £1.8bn.
Posted by: Mack. 7th August 2018, 12:41 PM
Interesting piece on the BBC website regarding last season.
'Liverpool were the 'unluckiest' team in the Premier League last season while Manchester United were the 'luckiest', new research claims.
The Reds dropped 12 points in matches affected by wrongly disallowed goals or incorrect decisions on penalties and red cards, says a study conducted by ESPN, Intel and the University of Bath.'
https://bbc.co.uk/sport/football/45087444
Posted by: Mack. 10th August 2018, 11:14 AM
Roy Hodgson has signed an contract extension with Crystal Palace until 2020. I wonder how long that will last.... Not long if they have a similar start to last season.
Posted by: Rooney 10th August 2018, 12:31 PM
'Liverpool were the 'unluckiest' team in the Premier League last season while Manchester United were the 'luckiest', new research claims.
The Reds dropped 12 points in matches affected by wrongly disallowed goals or incorrect decisions on penalties and red cards, says a study conducted by ESPN, Intel and the University of Bath.'
https://bbc.co.uk/sport/football/45087444
Didn't need a full statistical analysis to show that, I could have told you just by watching! Still nice to be proven right now facts, even if a lot of the logic for accounting points is a little farfetched.
Posted by: Suedehead2 10th August 2018, 02:21 PM
They seem at least to have made some effort to avoid just saying "XXX should have had a penalty in the 13th minute. Let's just assume they scored, add that goal to the actual result and make that the new result". A simple adjustment like that can only really be made if a goal (or penalty) was incorrectly given at the very end of a match.
Their inclusion of deflections is a little odd. While you can choose to describe a goal conceded off a deflection as "unlucky", it is rather different from goals resulting (or not resulting) from refereeing errors.
Of course, every supporter thinks that their club lost more points than they gained from refereeing errors. By definition, they can't all be right!
Posted by: Evil Houdini 10th August 2018, 06:13 PM
I'm surprised that Pogba is playing today, I would have thought that Jose would have rested him for the first match. Hopefully Pogba will carry his form in the World Cup over to United this season.
Posted by: Steve201 10th August 2018, 06:22 PM
He's also the captain which is a big moment!
2-0 united for me, Evans and vardy out for Leicester!
Posted by: Rooney 10th August 2018, 08:55 PM
I thought Man Utd were pretty decent tonight. They controlled the game 2nd half without needing the ball, Leicester had no idea what to do.
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 10th August 2018, 09:30 PM
I am pure f***ing buzzing for Shaw. First goal for United and such a wonderful moment for him. I’m so so so so so pleased
Posted by: Evil Houdini 10th August 2018, 11:00 PM
I thought Leicester played well for a lot of the match and were quite unlucky to lose, they just weren't clinical enough but it's a good result for us. I'm glad to see Luke Shaw score his first goal for us and hopefully we'll improve in future matches and build some consistency.
Posted by: Steve201 10th August 2018, 11:32 PM
Was a good game overall - ominous the way United controlled the game without the ball and with Leicester seemingly the better side. They have a much stronger centre midfield than Liverpool imo.
Posted by: Rooney 11th August 2018, 09:06 AM
We utilise the midfield in different ways, as we don't play with a defensive midfielder as such like most teams do. I think Keita and Fabinho take our midfield to a whole new level, as our weakness in midfield was only Lallana was able to turn with the ball when pressed. In theory we should be much better this year in midfield which was our biggest problem area.
Posted by: Steve201 11th August 2018, 07:23 PM
I hope they all fit in well!
Posted by: Evil Houdini 12th August 2018, 01:25 PM
I hope Arsenal beat Manchester City today, I don't think they will though. A draw would also be a good result for them and for the league as a whole.
Posted by: Steve201 12th August 2018, 02:17 PM
Haha thought you hated Arsenal??
Posted by: Evil Houdini 12th August 2018, 02:22 PM
I dislike Man City more at the moment
I just want the league to be a lot more open than it was last season, unless if Man United are at the top
Posted by: Rooney 12th August 2018, 02:27 PM
I just want the league to be a lot more open than it was last season, unless if Man United are at the top
I can see a draw, but I'd be shocked if City ran away with the league again this year even if they win today.
Posted by: Rooney 12th August 2018, 07:13 PM
Arsenal were terrible today, can totally see the first 3 months being a bit of a slog for them.
Man City were nowhere near their best.
Posted by: Evil Houdini 12th August 2018, 07:40 PM
You can never rely on Arsenal to give you a good result. Now that Wenger has gone their fans have moved their attention towards moaning about Stan Kronke and how he's not spending enough money. Chelsea will probably beat them next week as well, same old Arsenal. I wonder how Arsene Wenger must have felt watching that match?
On the subject of yesterday's matches Rueben Neves looks like he's going to be one of the best emerging players of the season for Wolves. Cardiff will find themselves in the relegation zone very quickly I think.
Posted by: Rooney 12th August 2018, 07:55 PM
On the subject of yesterday's matches Rueben Neves looks like he's going to be one of the best emerging players of the season for Wolves. Cardiff will find themselves in the relegation zone very quickly I think.
The thing is Arsenal are going to be in transition for a good 6-12 months. As a Liverpool fan I've seen it countless times, you've just got to be patient and accept there will be good days (and some bloody awful ones). It's a project, but they were bad today. Don't think they have the players for a 4-3-3, think they would be much better with a diamond 4-4-2. Fancied Arsenal to just nulify Man City but they don't seem solid defensively at all. Need to get rid of Cech pronto if they are wanting to play with a sweeper keeper.
Posted by: ML Hammer95 12th August 2018, 09:39 PM
Deserved defeat today... 4-0 was an accurate reflection of the game, although I do think that's down to Liverpool's quality as much as our own performance. Funnily enough, I didn't think we were dreadful but played a suicidal high line while the Noble/Rice midfield shield didn't work on any level. On the other hand, the keeper looked decent and Anderson showed his quality in flashes. Our season properly starts next Saturday at home to Bournemouth (which I am going to).
On another note, Sky's pre-match coverage of the game was nauseating. Three ex-Liverpool pundits on and in an hour's build-up West Ham were mentioned a handful of times. Carragher had plainly done no research into us and if you didn't know who was playing Sky would have you believe Liverpool were playing Man City or Arsenal. It makes the 'Top 6' very unlikeable in general but I believe Liverpool are the worst for this.
Posted by: Rooney 12th August 2018, 09:48 PM
On another note, Sky's pre-match coverage of the game was nauseating. Three ex-Liverpool pundits on and in an hour's build-up West Ham were mentioned a handful of times. Carragher had plainly done no research into us and if you didn't know who was playing Sky would have you believe Liverpool were playing Man City or Arsenal. It makes the 'Top 6' very unlikeable in general but I believe Liverpool are the worst for this.
You'll get better as the season goes on, I think playing you the first game of the season is good as you were integrating new players. There were some positive signs imo, but Pelligirini has an awful record against Klopp. To be fair I thought while we were good we were only in 2nd gear, lots of rustiness (but I guess the same can be for West Ham too).
Posted by: ML Hammer95 12th August 2018, 09:53 PM
If that was a rusty Liverpool performance then we may have a proper title race this year! While I'm not in the habit of agreeing with Jamie Redknapp, Keita looks a proper player while the bench looks seriously strong. Not sure if they'll be as consistent as Man City and they won't play many teams as obiliging as we were today.
Our team definetly looked like we had never played together before,hopefully once we work out our best team we will be able to compete in games like these because the talent is there (Masuaku cannot play left back in a back four).
Posted by: Dobbo 12th August 2018, 10:13 PM
Can't read a lot into that match or indeed scoreline, I'm sure many a team will be getting turned over at Anfield this season, certainly has the feel of a fortress again. I'll be happy with our annual 0-0 affair.
I really thought Arsenal would put up a much better fight against City.
Posted by: Rooney 12th August 2018, 10:30 PM
Our team definetly looked like we had never played together before,hopefully once we work out our best team we will be able to compete in games like these because the talent is there (Masuaku cannot play left back in a back four).
Keita is what we have been crying out for a long time, he'll really help when we face the bus parking. He can turn on the ball and dribble. Like City we were nowhere near our best today, Trent was rusty as first half and I thought the front 3 were all off sync at parts, Salah especially. The issue we had last year was our squad in the run-in and drawing too many games. Our bench looks as good as it has done for a long, long time and I think in Alisson and Keita we have two players who really change the way we play to the next level. Still think City will win the league, but I'm just hoping for a healthy challenge - no excuses this year as we certainly should be challenging.
Posted by: Evil Houdini 13th August 2018, 12:00 AM
This is true. On Friday when Man United played Leicester Sky Sports/Sky One did an hour long build up as well and mentioned Leicester only briefly. I do feel sorry for the teams outside of the big six in these situations but this is how journalism has been for years, the focus is more on looking upwards rather than downwards or in the middle of the league table. It's the reason why for example it's normally only from about April onwards that the battle to avoid relegation takes centre stage on Match Of The Day or Sky Sports News.
Posted by: Mack. 14th August 2018, 10:14 AM
Tottenham have delayed the opening of their new stadium because of "issues with the critical safety systems".
Posted by: Rooney 14th August 2018, 10:50 PM
Big shock that gets announced days after the transfer window shuts... no correlation, whatsoever of course.
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 15th August 2018, 08:06 AM
The safety issues did remind me of the safety issues that stopped Berlin Brandenburg Airport opening in 2012. Aforementioned airport is now scheduled to open in October 2020.
Let’s hope they manage to get things resolved a little quicker than that!
Posted by: Mack. 15th August 2018, 01:55 PM
There was a possibility that Tottenham v Man City could be at Twickenham, it it appears that it's available on Sunday the 28th. Doubt that would happen though.
Posted by: Steve201 15th August 2018, 07:28 PM
Can they not play at Wembley until it's sorted?
Posted by: Mack. 17th August 2018, 11:04 AM
Kevin de Bruyne will be out for three months because of a knee injury.
^
Yes, they'll play at Wembley until it's sorted, it's that 28th October there is a NFL match at Wembley.
Posted by: Mack. 17th August 2018, 11:51 AM
Referee Bobby Madley has quit for personal reasons..
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/45213615
Posted by: Suedehead2 19th August 2018, 05:08 PM
Just thought I'd mention that I'm quite pleased with this afternoon's result 
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 19th August 2018, 05:17 PM
The only good thing about today’s match was that I had pretty much decided to sack off the gym. Instead I spent an hour at the gym!
Posted by: Rooney 19th August 2018, 05:33 PM
I backed the draw.. wish I'd gone with my gut and backed the victory!
That was a terrible performance from Man Utd. I think they might improve a bit once Valencia, Lingard etc. come properly back in to the fold. The defence (including de Gea) was absolutely terrible today, I can see why Mourinho wanted a centre back but I don't think it would have changed much. Fred was bad but I suspect he'll take a few months to get to speed. The problem is entirely with the manager imo, so many players just look shot on confidence.
Posted by: Dobbo 19th August 2018, 10:40 PM
Na, can't blame Jose on this one - players have to take the flak. Half that team couldn't give a f*** today.
Posted by: Rooney 19th August 2018, 10:55 PM
But doesn't that fault ultimately lie at the fault of the manager? Pretty sure the same thing started happening at Chelsea under Mourinho...
I mean long may this fallout continue, social media is absolutely hilarious. Best lines I've heard are the board have not backed the manager!
Posted by: Dobbo 20th August 2018, 08:23 AM
To a degree yes but no manager can legislate for that shocking defensive performance yesterday. Game was over before it started - fair play to Brighton though not many teams will win at the Amex this season methinks!
No need to press the panic button just yet but if the likes of pogba are gonna be half-arsed for the foreseeable future then time to get rid...
Posted by: Sarah 20th August 2018, 03:41 PM
I was at the game yesterday, what a fantastic result, yes Man U were terrible but we were brilliant and deserved the win..Brighton need to take that performance into away games but definitely hope they can continue that at home 
Posted by: Mack. 20th August 2018, 03:49 PM
Brighton deserved the win at the end of the day. Man United were poor.
Posted by: Suedehead2 20th August 2018, 04:42 PM
It was made even better by how poor they were against Watford a week earlier. Now it's on to Anfield.
Posted by: RabbitFurCoat 20th August 2018, 06:12 PM
No need to press the panic button just yet but if the likes of pogba are gonna be half-arsed for the foreseeable future then time to get rid...
The third goal was utterly woeful from every part, but it all started with an abysmal pass from de Gea that no other top keeper makes. If he's properly coached, he'd know what he's supposed to be doing in that situation, and it's definitely not a chest high pass to a midfielder surrounded by only opposition players!
I think I'm going to be entertained by Man Utd this season.
Posted by: Rooney 20th August 2018, 06:20 PM
No need to press the panic button just yet but if the likes of pogba are gonna be half-arsed for the foreseeable future then time to get rid...
Pogba is clearly either angling for a move to Barcelona or for a new bumper contract to rival Sanchez. Guess that's the problem Man Utd are gonna have now though...
I think I'm going to be entertained by Man Utd this season.
The stuff about de Gea is pretty worrying. He's still a top keeper but his form for the past few seasons for club and country has been unbelieveable. Faced 14 shots since the World Cup and let 10 goals in.. something's not quite right there. Be interesting to see if this is just an anomoly or just a blip, but he was very poor yesterday which is unusual for him.
Posted by: Houdini 20th August 2018, 06:21 PM
Yes Man United played poor and Brighton deserved to win but it's only game 2, it's not the end of the world. We just move on to game 3 now to try and get back on track.
Every team will lose at some point this season, even "scintillating" Manchester City. Any defeat for Man United no matter who it's against always gets majorly blown out of proportion everywhere you turn.
Posted by: Dobbo 20th August 2018, 06:23 PM
Yes let's start pointing the finger at our best player for the past 5 seasons. You only have to see neuer and lloris' performances in the world to see that EVERY top keeper makes stupid mistakes. De Gea does it far less often than his peers however.
But I completely agree with you on the last point even as a fan! We all knew when Jose took the helm the infamous third season would soon be upon us.
Posted by: Steve201 20th August 2018, 09:13 PM
Happy with Liverpools performance there, showed some character when only 1-0 up!
Posted by: Rooney 20th August 2018, 09:36 PM
But I completely agree with you on the last point even as a fan! We all knew when Jose took the helm the infamous third season would soon be upon us.
Whilst I agree, it's not like him to be in bad form but he's not saving as many shots. Admittedly could just be a few anomalies, but interesting to see if it continues.
100% agree it's been blown out of proportion. I mean Gary Neville was trying to say by signing Harry Maguire and Toby Alderwiereld Man Utd would not have conceded those goals yesterday. I mean not like the current manager singed Bailly and Lindelof
Pleasing thing is those are the types of games we'd usually lose or draw when faced against a brick wall and a team playing for set pieces. Alisson was magnificent, he's really going to be a massive asset to us playing with a proper sweeper keeper.
Posted by: Steve201 21st August 2018, 07:42 PM
His passing was excellent!
Posted by: Rooney 21st August 2018, 07:50 PM
Made a fantastic save from the free-kick too. He just looks the part.. fully expect teams to get wind and try to press him more, but he was pinging balls like Xabi Alonso last night.
Posted by: Mack. 22nd August 2018, 01:53 PM
Who do you think will be the first manager to be sacked?
Posted by: Dobbo 22nd August 2018, 03:36 PM
Said Hodgson to begin with but that won't happen now, probably put Hughes or Warnock as favourite now or even Pellegrini if west ham can't put a win on the board soon.
Posted by: Steve201 22nd August 2018, 06:39 PM
McLaren in the championship for sure!
Posted by: Houdini 25th August 2018, 01:31 PM
Man City have drawn 1-1 away to newly promoted Wolves. I know if it was Man United that got this result the media and pundits would never stop going on about it but because it's City it will just get swept under the carpet this weekend.
It's a good result for Wolves anyway and from the commentary that I heard on the radio it sounded like Wolves could have even won this match with the good chances that they had.
Posted by: Rooney 25th August 2018, 01:52 PM
It's a good result for Wolves anyway and from the commentary that I heard on the radio it sounded like Wolves could have even won this match with the good chances that they had.
Often the media agenda depends on when the games are played, there's more scrutiny generally over Sunday and Monday fixtures because everyone is watching.
Anyway different context.. Man Utd got bad press because there's obviously a huge problem between Woodward & Mourinho and plus the whole defender issue makes a great consistent narrative. Thought this was a game last year that City would have won, but Wolves were really good to be fair. They sat back at times in a low block but in a different way to other teams so it meant they were not potent in attack. Great for the league anyway.
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 25th August 2018, 02:03 PM
Hated or adored but never ignored.
The media will always make a mountain of a molehill when it comes to United because we sell papers. City have no history and no real fans so they get dismissed because literally no one cares if they win or lose.
Posted by: Steve201 26th August 2018, 12:44 AM
What bollocks coming from united fans, yous say this because guardiola plays such progressive football and won the league so wonderfully last year whereas united did well but played a dire regressive band of football which does t have any place in the history of the football club, even in the 70s/80s when united mainly won cups and not leagues they played exciting stuff.
If this is t just a blip and city continue to drop silly points unlike last season THEN there will be media scrutiny!
Posted by: Mack. 26th August 2018, 09:06 AM
Keep hearing about Claude Puel is in danger of losing his job, that people are not happy with him. Yet it seems to me he is doing really really well with Leicester, he keeps losing players to bigger clubs, plus dealing with disgruntled players who wanted to leave.
Posted by: Steve201 26th August 2018, 11:25 AM
I know he's doing brilliantly, constructed a really good defence too!
Posted by: Rooney 26th August 2018, 07:31 PM
Is it not something to do more with his style of football? Agree that sometimes fans want too much, I mean look at West Brom with Pulis. It's not pretty, but unless you're willing to work with a project then you become part of the endless cycle of just surviving and chopping and changing mangers way too frequently to be able to see excellent football week in week out.
Posted by: ML Hammer95 27th August 2018, 09:36 AM
Went to Arsenal on Saturday with a mate and despite the result, I thought we were much improved. Anderson started to look a real player and if we had taken our chances we would have got a result. The worry is, fail to get a result against Wolves on Saturday and we could enter October with 0 points.
Posted by: Rooney 27th August 2018, 11:19 AM
I thought you were really unlucky against Arsenal, who rode their luck big time. Poor finishing cost you, but you looked a lot better.
I'm excited for the Man Utd vs Spurs match tonight. Every outcome has endless possibilities so early on in the season. I'm going to stick my neck out for a 0-0 draw.
Posted by: Steve201 27th August 2018, 12:17 PM
2-2 would be fun, a good game plus both rivals dropping points.
Posted by: RabbitFurCoat 27th August 2018, 01:54 PM
Yes, I work with a Leicester season ticket holder and he said basically the same as Southampton fans did, that results were ok but they were far more often bored than they were entertained.
I imagine that being a fan of a Premier League team would get boring after 3-4 seasons once the novelty has worn off. Swansea and West Brom fans certainly seem to be loving this season in the league below, not like they're even amongst the best, it just makes such a change from watching about 60% of your games when you're trying not to lose.
Posted by: Houdini 27th August 2018, 05:11 PM
I watched most of West Ham's match against Arsenal and as Rooney said you were unlucky to lose. West Ham dominated the 1st half and could have been out of sight before half time, I'm sure West Ham will be fine and you'll probably beat Wolves as well but it will be a close match.
As for tonight's match between Man United & Tottenham I think it will be a cagey match but I can see United getting a 1-0 win. Hopefully that doesn't come back to bite me at the end of the game but we have a good home record against Tottenham and the players should be extra motivated after what happened last week against Brighton and after loads of people writing us off throughout these past few days.
Posted by: Rooney 27th August 2018, 05:40 PM
As for tonight's match between Man United & Tottenham I think it will be a cagey match but I can see United getting a 1-0 win. Hopefully that doesn't come back to bite me at the end of the game but we have a good home record against Tottenham and the players should be extra motivated after what happened last week against Brighton and after loads of people writing us off throughout these past few days.
Man Utd win - people hail Mourinho as a genius, he gets more time to further self destruct the club and everyone forgets about the cracks for a couple of weeks
Spurs win - Man Utd go in an utter meltdown
Draw - both our rivals drop points
So many endless possibilities at the start of the season, it really is great to see. Spurs have an awful record at Old Trafford and it appears as if Man Utd are going to match their 3-5-2 formation so I suspect it will cancel the game out.
Posted by: Houdini 27th August 2018, 09:13 PM
Not sure what just happened just then, we started well and had good chances in the 1st half but then from the 2nd half onwards we just fell apart. Very disappointing match to watch but the worst thing is that this will just continue all the negativity that is being projected onto Manchester United at the moment. 2 defeats is not terminal but it means that there will be even less margin for error now if trying to win the league is the objective. I didn't think we would win it this season anyway, it will be Manchester City that will win it again.
Posted by: RabbitFurCoat 27th August 2018, 09:13 PM
Marvellous.
Thoroughly enjoyed that, United were better than I expected in the first half but not like they created a particularly great chance. Some of Spurs players were immense, Alderwiereld and Dembele superb.
A shame they've got Burnley at the weekend after they play Olympiakos rather than having to go to somewhere tougher.
Posted by: Houdini 27th August 2018, 09:16 PM
Thoroughly enjoyed that, United were better than I expected in the first half but not like they created a particularly great chance. Some of Spurs players were immense, Alderwiereld and Dembele superb.
A shame they've got Burnley at the weekend after they play Olympiakos rather than having to go to somewhere tougher.
What team do you support?
Posted by: Rooney 27th August 2018, 09:40 PM
It's great, every time Man Utd have a bad result all season it's going to be great entertainment. You are right that two defeats is not that, I mean getting beat to a good Spurs side is hardly that bad (admittedly 0-3 at home is what you don't want to see, but it can easily happen to any of the top teams) but the damage is all self inflicted. Mourinho vs Woodward and Pogba/de Gea wanting bumper contracts to match Sanchez.. all of the bad press stems from the club itself!
Man Utd are a million miles away from winning the league, square pegs in round holes, no strategy and certainly not the right manager. I don't even know what he was thinking playing Herrera in a back 3.
Thoroughly enjoyed that, United were better than I expected in the first half but not like they created a particularly great chance. Some of Spurs players were immense, Alderwiereld and Dembele superb.
A shame they've got Burnley at the weekend after they play Olympiakos rather than having to go to somewhere tougher.
To be fair to Man Utd, if they'd taken a chance or two in the first half it would have given Spurs some major problems cos Spurs were terrible first half. Man Utd were OK but just shows how dire things have been when a 0-0 is being lauded by Gary Neville as the best attacking performance for 6 years...
Posted by: Houdini 27th August 2018, 09:50 PM
Man Utd are a million miles away from winning the league, square pegs in round holes, no strategy and certainly not the right manager. I don't even know what he was thinking playing Herrera in a back 3.
To be fair to Man Utd, if they'd taken a chance or two in the first half it would have given Spurs some major problems cos Spurs were terrible first half. Man Utd were OK but just shows how dire things have been when a 0-0 is being lauded by Gary Neville as the best attacking performance for 6 years...
Liverpool are a million miles away from winning the league as well, Liverpool are just doing what we did at the start of last season. There's only one team that's winning the league this season and that's Manchester City. People just overhype Liverpool because they're in love with the way that they play football and because they've got Mo Salah. With Liverpool you just know that the dip in form will come so it's a matter of time and that in itself will also be very entertaining to witness which could end up being one of the few entertaining things to happen this season.
Posted by: RabbitFurCoat 27th August 2018, 09:53 PM
Nottingham Forest. I'm not particularly bothered one way or the other about the big teams, who I do and don't want to win stuff depends on who plays for and managers them at any given time. But one thing that's been consistent post-Inter era is I that I have a great dislike for Jose Mourinho (especially compared to Poch, Pep, Klopp) and love watching his teams lose.
Posted by: Rooney 27th August 2018, 10:15 PM
I expect Man City will win the league but like City we're only playing in 2nd gear at the moment and likely be Novemeber-December time before we hit full stride. We're a million miles away at all, whether we win it is another thing. The key will be September-October time when we have a tricky run of fixtures inbetween CL games. But we don't have a visible weakness now like we have had previously imo.
All teams drop form, it's just how you adapt to it and how much luck you get inbetween. But certainly this is the best Liverpool squad I've seen since I've followed the club.
Posted by: Mack. 27th August 2018, 10:16 PM
Man United, not good enough again in the second half.
Posted by: Steve201 28th August 2018, 10:48 PM
It will At least it will be more entertaining than the dross you will be watching at OT this season at any rate!
Posted by: Dobbo 30th August 2018, 11:19 AM
Well of course the overreaction would be mega but really it's Mr. Woodward who needs to take a hefty share of the flak - we knew we needed another CB yet nothing happened. People who always draw comparisons to City need to realise Pep just clicks his fingers & boom, the club go & get that player no questions asked. Yes José bought Bailly & Lindelof but we need to resign Lindelof to the failure pile & move on, he's so far out of his depth he needs a submarine, absolutely shocking defender in every way. Smalling & Jones will never be a top PL defensive partnership either. When Rojo is back I do rate him & Bailly together and with Shaw coming on leaps & bounds and the evergreen Valencia things will improve.
BUT that's not to say this isn't a worrying time for the club. It's more than I genuinely cannot see where the next win is gonna come from, Burnley away is one of the worst fixtures to have next - they're still without a win & we're a wounded animal right now even with their midweek EL match, the crowd will be behind them & we'll buckle. Football is cyclical though, we all laughed at Chelsea in 2015/16, then at Arsenal last season so I guess it's our turn now!
Posted by: Rooney 30th August 2018, 10:25 PM
BUT that's not to say this isn't a worrying time for the club. It's more than I genuinely cannot see where the next win is gonna come from, Burnley away is one of the worst fixtures to have next - they're still without a win & we're a wounded animal right now even with their midweek EL match, the crowd will be behind them & we'll buckle. Football is cyclical though, we all laughed at Chelsea in 2015/16, then at Arsenal last season so I guess it's our turn now!
Alderwierld OK, but do you really think Maguire would have improved you that much? I agree you need better CBs, I thought Bailly was really good but he's not kicked on at all (injuries?) and I don't think Mourinho's management of his has been too great. Part of the problem to me right now appears to be an internal power struggle between Woodward & Mourinho. Something massively isn't right, but again I can't understand why they didn't back Mourinho to go all out for a CB after giving him the new contract last year. There's just such a negative feeling at the moment which is all intensified by the club behaving the way it has.
I think you'll be fine against Burnley, infact I think you'll be fine in general. Some good players but lots of gaps, some players massively off form. I've been here many times before as a Liverpool fan..
Posted by: ML Hammer95 1st September 2018, 05:53 PM
West Ham
Posted by: Rooney 1st September 2018, 08:13 PM
Certainly looks like he's going to be the first manager to get sacked.. I mean you've had a pretty tough start and the next few weeks don't get any easier.
Posted by: ML Hammer95 1st September 2018, 08:54 PM
This team are starting to remind me of our team in 2002/03 - relegated despite being 'too good to go down'. Then like now we got off to a shocking start but people kept saying we'd be fine and we have 'too many good players to be relegated'.
Not saying we will go down, but we could easily enter October with zero points.
Posted by: Rooney 1st September 2018, 09:46 PM
Not saying we will go down, but we could easily enter October with zero points.
That's the worry I suppose, but Palace last year showed you can have a bad start and get things back up and running. I thought you were good against Arsenal tbh and this Wolves team will cause other teams lots of problems, but it just adds heaps of pressure on your home games against non Top 6.
Posted by: Steve201 1st September 2018, 09:54 PM
Liverpool were lucky to get the three points today, were awful for the most part. Leicester have been unlucky against us and man united now! Our midfield isn't good enough without Keita! Already!
On the plus side good to Be winning when playing poorly!
Posted by: Rooney 1st September 2018, 11:23 PM
On the plus side good to Be winning when playing poorly!
We stunk the place out, but none of the big teams have blown teams away and we gave them a goal. It's obvious the big teams are nowhere near the fitness levels required yet, so right now it's just good to have the points especially with our fixture run coming up.
Posted by: Steve201 2nd September 2018, 09:26 AM
Yeh sept/Oct is a mental 2 months for Liverpool with Chelsea, Spurs and city plus champions league in between!
Posted by: Rooney 2nd September 2018, 07:07 PM
Bloody hell loads of people tipped Watford to go down this year (not me I might add!!!) but they're flying so far. None of the big teams have really got going yet..
Posted by: Houdini 2nd September 2018, 07:34 PM
It's good to be back to winning ways after the past 2 weeks! Lukaku was the man of the match and I thought he played brilliantly throughout the match. Burnley didn't offer much until Pogba's penalty got saved and Rashford got sent off, the Burnley player that kicked Rashford deserved a red more than Rashford did.
Tottenham have shown in the past few days why they will not win the league anytime soon. They were still celebrating beating us on Monday and they thought they could turn up at Watford and win with their eyes closed, they always bottle it when they have a chance to build on momentum. Watford are certainly the surprise package so far and we've got them next, if they were to beat us they could be top of the table which is something that no one would have predicted.
Posted by: Steve201 2nd September 2018, 08:35 PM
It was Bardsley!
Posted by: Rooney 2nd September 2018, 09:19 PM
Tottenham have shown in the past few days why they will not win the league anytime soon. They were still celebrating beating us on Monday and they thought they could turn up at Watford and win with their eyes closed, they always bottle it when they have a chance to build on momentum. Watford are certainly the surprise package so far and we've got them next, if they were to beat us they could be top of the table which is something that no one would have predicted.
Burnely were awful, I mean there were times when they just defended so deep after 20 minutes with 8 men in the penalty area. Hopefully they're rightly involved in a relegation scrap and sent back to the Championship. Still I always thought you'd win today.
I think the thing right now is none of the Top 6 look anywhere near their best which I suspect is partially down to the World Cup. Spurs were gash in that first half, on Monday but they turned it up for 20 minutes and won the match. Same as Liverpool yesterday, had massive intensity for 20 minutes and then just coasted. I suspect a lot of it is to do with fitness and just in general finding some form.
Posted by: Dobbo 2nd September 2018, 10:22 PM
Can't really stress how important that win was today - had we lost I'm absolutely certain José would have been gone (there's ALWAYS a sacking in the international break, maybe Pelligrini now instead?) Haven't seen any of the game at all but looked a bit crazy from the report & sounds like we could/should have scored 5 or 6 with the penalty & Lukaku's howlers.
Very fortunate playing Burnley in their last Thursday-Sunday no-hope combo, I expect a much sterner test away at Vicarage!
Posted by: Rooney 15th September 2018, 07:24 PM
Arsenal and Man Utd now have the same amount of points as Spurs!
Posted by: Houdini 15th September 2018, 11:11 PM
We'll soon have more points than Spurs. It shows that a fast start isn't everything in the league. Comfortable wins for Liverpool and Arsenal today but a nervy finish for Man United and Watford showed that they will be quite a force this season. Before the season started I thought they would struggle but if they keep up their level of performances so far then they'll be a threat to the big six.
I've noticed that Cardiff manager Neil Warnock always has a smile on his face, even when his team get battered 4-1 the guy just can't stop grinning. If I was a Cardiff fan I would be very annoyed seeing things like that and it doesn't bode well for Cardiff's prospects for the rest of the season.
Posted by: Rooney 15th September 2018, 11:22 PM
I've noticed that Cardiff manager Neil Warnock always has a smile on his face, even when his team get battered 4-1 the guy just can't stop grinning. If I was a Cardiff fan I would be very annoyed seeing things like that and it doesn't bode well for Cardiff's prospects for the rest of the season.
Watford, Everton, Leicester, Crystal Palace - I think they are the tough away games far the big 6. Then the likes of Brighton, Wolves and Bournemouth have equally good home form too.
I think what looks clear this season is the top teams don't seem to be dropping many points against non-Top 6 teams. I mean that will probably change now European football starts, but I can't see City dropping too many points to the lesser teams which is why I think the head to heads will be so crucial this season.
Spurs today controlled the ball very well, but didn't do anything with it. Don't know what's up with Kane, but something clearly isn't right with him at all and has been this way for 4-5 months now.
Posted by: Houdini 15th September 2018, 11:52 PM
I think what looks clear this season is the top teams don't seem to be dropping many points against non-Top 6 teams. I mean that will probably change now European football starts, but I can't see City dropping too many points to the lesser teams which is why I think the head to heads will be so crucial this season.
Spurs today controlled the ball very well, but didn't do anything with it. Don't know what's up with Kane, but something clearly isn't right with him at all and has been this way for 4-5 months now.
Harry Kane is probably worn out as I don't think he got much rest if any at all when the World Cup finished. Tottenham rely so heavily on him as well which would add to the fatigue.
It's still early days though, only 5 matches have been played so far and even if European football wasn't returning this week I think the top sides would still drop points to the teams expected to finish lower in the league. Winter time in particular is when the top sides slip up more as conditions can go against them and there's more likely to be injuries then.
Posted by: Dobbo 16th September 2018, 05:49 AM
3 weeks ago spurs were nailed on title contenders & we'd be lucky to make the top 6. Now we're level on points - funny game football!
I also have to say I knew Chelsea were being written off too soon at the start of the season but didn't expect them to be doing as well as they are. Everyone was looking at city and pool but it reminds me of contes first season where no one had them down as genuine contenders. Still a long way to go of course!
Posted by: Rooney 16th September 2018, 09:53 AM
It's still early days though, only 5 matches have been played so far and even if European football wasn't returning this week I think the top sides would still drop points to the teams expected to finish lower in the league. Winter time in particular is when the top sides slip up more as conditions can go against them and there's more likely to be injuries then.
I think he's carrying an injury and may need an op to fix it. He's just not taking as many shots especially from longer distances and seems to want to be more of a number 10 than a striker right now. He'll always be able to score goals inside the box but he just doesn't look right at all imo.
I also have to say I knew Chelsea were being written off too soon at the start of the season but didn't expect them to be doing as well as they are. Everyone was looking at city and pool but it reminds me of contes first season where no one had them down as genuine contenders. Still a long way to go of course!
I don't think Chelsea will be anywhere near the title, they have had the easiest fixture list out of all the top teams. Unless they bin the Europa League off (which they may do) I think they will struggle. They play Liverpool in two weeks time (at home) so that will be a good test. Hazard does look like he is up for it this year.
Posted by: Houdini 16th September 2018, 11:39 AM
Chelsea are such a strange team, they seem to turn their league winning form on and off like a tap every two years. Eden Hazard as well becomes a PFA player of the year candidate in two year intervals.
Posted by: Dobbo 16th September 2018, 04:34 PM
You make a very good point about Chelsea actually, had slipped my mind they're in the EL - and as has been proven time and time again teams can't do Thursday-sunday!
Posted by: Houdini 16th September 2018, 07:35 PM
West Ham are finally off the mark! So they're not going to do a Crystal Palace after all
Posted by: Mack. 16th September 2018, 09:37 PM
Burnley in a spot of bother, or will they recover?
Posted by: Mack. 16th September 2018, 09:39 PM
Big respect to Morgan Schneiderlin for playing today for Everton following the passing of his Dad that definitely couldn't have been easy.
Posted by: Rooney 16th September 2018, 11:25 PM
Going down - I called it beginning of the season. They've been in average-poor form for a long time now. Their good form (start of last season) if you actually look at the statistics behind it, shows they were really lucky. I think there are a few key players they're missing out which could make a difference though (Brady, Pope).
Posted by: Dobbo 16th September 2018, 11:33 PM
Think there are far worse teams in the division so they'll be alright. Were always in for a tough start with their European excursions.
I'm very surprised at the poor starts for Newcastle & Huddersfield.
Posted by: Rooney 16th September 2018, 11:51 PM
I'm very surprised at the poor starts for Newcastle & Huddersfield.
Newcastle have had the hardest fixtures and Huddersfield barely survived. I think it's between these two + Burnely and Cardiff as to who goes now. Then maybe Southampton, Brighton and possibly Everton to struggle at times but be ok.
Posted by: Houdini 17th September 2018, 08:50 PM
Huddersfield & Cardiff are shoe ins for relegation I think, they both don't score enough goals and concede too much at the same time. Cardiff in particular are in big trouble with Neil Warnock as their manager.
Posted by: PeteFromLeeds 20th September 2018, 12:00 PM
Just watched the West Ham vs. Everton highlights - a great match to get them off the mark, they certainly didn't look like a team who had lost their first 4 matches. A very good league debut for Yarmolenko as well.
Posted by: Suedehead2 22nd September 2018, 02:00 PM
Good to see Alex Ferguson back at Old Trafford today (and looking very healthy) after his health scare earlier this year.
Posted by: Dobbo 22nd September 2018, 04:22 PM
Full credit to Wolves for taking points off both Manchester teams in their first 6 fixtures!
Posted by: Steve201 23rd September 2018, 09:58 AM
They look a proper outfit, Neves is a class act and Doherty doesn't need to do much more to get into MONs plans surely?
Posted by: Steve201 23rd September 2018, 09:59 AM
Tbf to Warnock, he's normally out of his depth at this level but without him they would have been a lower championship team, really makes the most of the players he's got there.
Posted by: Rooney 23rd September 2018, 12:03 PM
Exactly he's a great Championship manager, but he's just not good enough at Premier League level. I mean to be fair Cardiff have by far one of the weakest squads, but they look doomed right now. You can see Warnock maybe lasting until the international break, but then I do wonder if Big Sam might get THAT phone call...
Posted by: Dobbo 23rd September 2018, 12:10 PM
Allardyce, Moyes, Pardew - literally take your pick. One of these will be drafted back in at some point.
Posted by: Rooney 23rd September 2018, 12:13 PM
Bizarre isn't it how so many average managers keep getting jobs. I can't see Mark Hughes lasting too long either unless they pull some results out of the bag against the bigger clubs over the next 5-7 games.
Posted by: Steve201 23rd September 2018, 12:31 PM
I don't think Cardiff will pay Sams wage request, prob happy to reinvest next year after potentially going down like Burnley and go from there. Didn't spend a huge amount this summer.
Posted by: Houdini 23rd September 2018, 12:40 PM
Apparently Neil Warnock said before their match against Man City "at least we only have to play them twice" , as soon as I heard that I knew Cardiff were going to get absolutely destroyed by Man City. It's like he set the team up for failure even before a ball was kicked, statements like that will just instantly shatter the confidence of his players and as always after a heavy defeat he was laughing and smiling in his post match press confidence. No matter who it is that you're playing you cant be happy with a loss, especially when it's such a heavy loss like that to add to a growing list of heavy losses.
Credit to Wolves for getting the draw against us, they already look like such an established Premier League team. I can't actually think of a better team that has just been newly promoted and I think they will cause problems for everyone this season.
Posted by: Rooney 23rd September 2018, 03:13 PM
Credit to Wolves for getting the draw against us, they already look like such an established Premier League team. I can't actually think of a better team that has just been newly promoted and I think they will cause problems for everyone this season.
Wolves look great but they had a Premier League team in the Championship. They've spent a lot of money and can attract a different caliber of players, fair play to them though I agree they will cause lots of teams problems this year especially if the front 3 start firing goals.
Posted by: Houdini 24th September 2018, 06:27 PM
Maurizio Sarri says that Liverpool are a step ahead of Chelsea and that it will take 1 year for Chelsea to get to Liverpool's level. This is either an attempt at mind games or he's setting Chelsea up for defeat against Liverpool on the weekend and possibly midweek as well. I guess we'll find out over the next few days!
Posted by: Dobbo 24th September 2018, 06:32 PM
He's not wrong, but on the other hand Conte won the league in his first season when they finished the previous one even lower so it's not like Sarri shouldn't be aiming for the title.
Posted by: Steve201 24th September 2018, 07:40 PM
Not sure who will want to win on Wednesday lol with both teams in Europe especially Chelsea with the Europa league. Obv would love the win on Sunday!
Posted by: Rooney 24th September 2018, 07:49 PM
Well it's a bit of both isn't it. Chelsea are nowhere near fully invested in Sarri's ideas, I mean his defence is not right at all for how he likes to play. I think he's just setting expectations if they do get beat (as the Liverpool game is their first real test of the season). The midweek game will just be full of fringe players and the odd first teamer, but I am wanting a win. If we get beat its's not the end of the world, but it's a trophy to win. I think the FA Cup comes at a more inconvenient time and is harder to balance.
Posted by: Steve201 24th September 2018, 09:34 PM
Yeh agreed! Are we at home on Sunday?
Posted by: Rooney 24th September 2018, 11:09 PM
Away - hopefully be a great game regardless of the result. 3 points at the Bridge would be a huge statement ready for City for the following week.
Posted by: Mack. 27th September 2018, 11:10 AM
Rafael Benitez has been charged by the Football Association over comments he made about referee Andre Marriner before Saturday's 0-0 draw at Crystal Palace.
Posted by: Rooney 30th September 2018, 08:54 AM
How long does Mourinho get now? Surely another bad result midweek spells curtains. Magnificent result for West Ham though, I wonder if they might kick on now they have go their difficult fixtures out of the way.
Posted by: coi 30th September 2018, 08:59 AM
At the bottom end, it definitely looks like there's more than a few teams that are just going to be relying on there being three teams worse than them to avoid relegation!
Posted by: RabbitFurCoat 30th September 2018, 09:28 AM
They sacked Moyes the day after it was mathematically impossible to qualify for the Champions League. They didn't quite do that with van Gaal as it was the last game of the season they missed out, and they had the FA Cup final the weekend after, let him manage it but given his sacking had came out within about half an hour of them winning it, it's safe to assume that was a decision that had already been made. I imagine they put some kind of clause into contracts that allows them to sack a manager much more cheaply if they fail to qualify.
Can Mourinho last that long? It's hard to see and it's also difficult to see them improving much. If he could take the Chelsea side he won the league with to 15th with 15 points from 16 games then he can keep this Man Utd team scrapping around mid-table, if not worse. He signed a new contract in January, would cost approx £25m to sack him now. Surely they can't let him continue like this for their usual trigger point?
Posted by: Mart!n 30th September 2018, 09:35 AM
And I thought Arsenal were having a bad day until the end of the second half with Watford, mind you Watford gave them a good game, their next 2 games should see them firmly in the top 5 for sure, against Fulham and (Leicester hopefully). When I saw the final result of the West Ham and Man United game, with West Ham been clinging to the bottom of the table for a while, that was pretty much a surprise win. Well I know 1 person at work will be happy with that result tomorrow.
Posted by: Steve201 30th September 2018, 10:01 AM
Keep Jose on is what I say!!
Posted by: Suedehead2 30th September 2018, 12:42 PM
The trouble with Mourinho is that his whinges so much that he still sounds pathetic even when he has a case. West Ham's first goal was offside and there was a strong case for a free kick in the lead-up to the third. The second was a bit of a freakish own goal but people will still just laugh at him because of all he previous lame excuses.
Posted by: Dobbo 30th September 2018, 04:04 PM
I have to say it does look like an increasingly untenable position for Jose now. He definitely has to shoulder some of the blame no doubt but this season at United more than any under him has shown a number of players in unattractive light. It's clear long-term building is not an option anymore so I can see us (unfortunately) adopting a Chelsea-like structure going forward with a high turnover of players & staff still with the aim of constant success. Whether it works or not is anyone's guess.
Mourinho does have to go in the sense that it is becoming a carbon copy of Chelsea 15/16 and we have literally no idea when the next win is coming. The constant team selection/formation changes are getting ridiculous now - you don't see any of the other top teams doing it. But so many of the team genuinely lack quality too & I don't think any active manager in the world would turn them into world-beaters.
Posted by: Rooney 30th September 2018, 04:09 PM
Mourinho does have to go in the sense that it is becoming a carbon copy of Chelsea 15/16 and we have literally no idea when the next win is coming. The constant team selection/formation changes are getting ridiculous now - you don't see any of the other top teams doing it. But so many of the team genuinely lack quality too & I don't think any active manager in the world would turn them into world-beaters.
The irony I find is it is obvious you are sounding out Zidane, but he is a Champions League specialist when you might not even be in the Champions League! Mourinho seems to shouldering a lot of the blame to players as an obvious get-out and it's not my fault clause when he does inevitably go.
I think if Man Utd actually built long term and had a clear strategy it wouldn't take too long for you to be right back up there again. But I genuinely have no idea what the club is even trying to achieve at the moment bar turn a commercial profit.
Posted by: Steve201 30th September 2018, 04:59 PM
The way football is if they find the right fit of manager it won't take long to get them back on top again!
Posted by: Rooney 30th September 2018, 07:10 PM
..but from my perspective long may it continue!
The irony is they are not far from turning in to everything they take the mick out of Liverpool for!
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 30th September 2018, 07:14 PM
As long as we qualify for the Champions league our owners don’t give a flying f***. The only thing that scares them is us not having any profits to divert into their Swiss bank account. The entire management structure of the club needs to be hung out to dry and owners brought in that don’t care about building wealth off the back of our club.
Posted by: Seinfeld 1st October 2018, 04:55 AM
Posted by: Houdini 1st October 2018, 06:55 PM
I wonder if Cardiff will break Derby County's record for lowest amount of points in a Premier League season? they actually have less points after 7 games than Derby did in the 2007/08 season.
Posted by: Rooney 1st October 2018, 07:14 PM
I can't see Warnock lasting much longer, then I suspect a Moyes/Allardyce will come in.
Posted by: Dobbo 1st October 2018, 07:15 PM
It would take a special kind of special to ever "beat" that Derby record. Remember Palace had lost 7 games & scored 0 goals after 7 matches last season but turned it around. Not saying Cardiff will do the same but I'm reasonably confident they'll sneak the odd win, most likely after Warnock is sacked.
Posted by: Steve201 1st October 2018, 07:38 PM
They would do well to keep Warnock for next year imo. Might sound weird but there hasn't been much investment and they've overachieved getting to the premiership. They would go down and still make money to reinvest like Burnley a few years back!
Posted by: Steve201 1st October 2018, 07:39 PM
The irony is they are not far from turning in to everything they take the mick out of Liverpool for!Oh I'm loving footballing life this decade lol
Posted by: LewisGT 1st October 2018, 08:30 PM
I can't see that happening. Cardiff don't actually look as bad as I was expecting to be fair. They look like they have more about them than Huddersfield.
Posted by: Houdini 1st October 2018, 11:26 PM
So you're loving the fact that in this decade Liverpool haven't won anything since 2012? and probably wont win anything this season either
To be fair they did play well against Arsenal and would have won if they weren't so sloppy in defence. They got a match against Fulham soon which could be a winnable one for them.
Posted by: Rooney 1st October 2018, 11:44 PM
It's easy to say this, but it's the first time in 10 years we actually have one of the best teams in Europe again. Of course you get measured on success, but we are not too far away at all and our biggest rival are literally turning in to everything they used to take the piss out of Liverpool for.. so from my perspective it's great after so many years of disappointment!
Posted by: Steve201 3rd October 2018, 09:49 PM
I forgot man united won the league cup the other year - really turning into Liverpool fans indeed!
Posted by: HeadlessJockey 5th October 2018, 03:17 PM
Rafael Benitez has been fined £60,000 after accepting a Football Association charge for commenting about the referee prior to his team's game against Crystal Palace last month.
Posted by: PeteLeftLeeds 5th October 2018, 08:27 PM
Interesting case this one - On the one hand it seems a bit strange to fine someone for praising a referee but if it was in direct response to Zaha's comments about wanting more protection then maybe it was justified.
Posted by: Rooney 6th October 2018, 09:57 AM
Looks like Mourinho is getting sacked during the international break...
Posted by: Dob Geldof 6th October 2018, 10:59 AM
So many conflicting reports not sure what to believe really. Who is even gonna come in? Zidane ruled himself out (never seemed a likely prospect anyway) & I really don't feel all too confident about Carrick taking the reigns. One report said Conte, that would be hilarious...
Posted by: Rooney 6th October 2018, 12:06 PM
I think you could do much worse than Conte tbh. Certainly he has the players for how he likes to play, but long term I don't really think he's an option. Obviously clear the fans want attacking football, you might be a bit more solid with Conte but can easily see the likes of Pogba turning against him pretty quickly.
Posted by: Houdini 6th October 2018, 12:06 PM
I doubt this is going to happen. It's all just part of the media's obsession with Mourinho which I find so boring to listen to.
Posted by: Rooney 6th October 2018, 01:32 PM
David Maddock broke the news and I don't think he would state that unless he was sure. Either way it looks like his days are numbered. This international break is the perfect time to get rid of a manager.
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 6th October 2018, 02:03 PM
Mirrors sibling paper the MEN have been writing themselves in circles with this. They’ve got enough content for the international break regardless of what happens. United don’t even need to play today
Posted by: HannibalLetcher 6th October 2018, 06:27 PM
Might have bought yourself some time there Mourinho.
Posted by: Houdini 6th October 2018, 06:44 PM
We were dreadful for a large part of that match but that was a thrilling comeback and I'm delighted with the win. I might be in the minority here but as long as we win I couldn't really care how bad or good we played in the match. Win at all costs is the mindset that I have and all this talk about it giving Mourinho extra time is pointless to me as long as we continue to win.
Posted by: Suedehead2 6th October 2018, 06:46 PM
Steve Bruce is available
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 6th October 2018, 07:00 PM
And Steve Bruce can stay that way x
Posted by: Rooney 6th October 2018, 11:38 PM
Good win in the end (I mean you would expect them to win that game anyway) and it probably means Mourinho stays in the job a bit longer which is great news. Newcastle were really unlucky to come away with nothing. I know people are saying that the last 20 minutes shows the team is back but I disagree, it was sheer desperation. The attacking plays had no structure.. if that happens against a top team they will score goals for fun on the counter as they were not attacking in blocks. But I mean it's 3 points at the end of day, but the 3 points papers the cracks imo. Not sure what's up with Lukaku right now either.
Posted by: Pinhead 7th October 2018, 12:49 PM
Must watch the highlights tonight 1-5 to Arsenal 
Looking at 3rd in the Premier League
And I heard Ramsey has scored a blinder of a goal
Posted by: HannibalLetcher 7th October 2018, 05:17 PM
Liverpool v Man City, a game that has offered very little.
Posted by: Rooney 7th October 2018, 05:27 PM
It was interesting tactically though, both teams kept to their idelology but made little tweaks so not to be as open. Classic case of both teams not wanting to lose, a draw was a fair result. City looked a bit more dangerous with the fresh legs they had on, but neither team really carved out any chances. Sets the league up well, and we have navigated as difficult fixture list as I can remember in a while without losing any ground on the top.
Posted by: Houdini 7th October 2018, 05:30 PM
What a boring match that was between Liverpool and Man City. I don't see the difference between that and the 0-0 draw between United and Liverpool last season but of course no one will say anything bad about either of those teams today. It's more 2 points dropped for Man City because of Mahrez's missed penalty towards the end but in the long run this will hurt Liverpool more than Man City because of City's ability to consistently beat the mid table/lower teams.
The real winners here are Chelsea who look like they're going to be a real threat in the league this season.
Posted by: HannibalLetcher 7th October 2018, 05:32 PM
Mahrez, what were you.doing?
Arsenal in the title race?
Posted by: coi 7th October 2018, 05:36 PM
Chelsea only had to beat a Southampton team that have only won once at home in the league since November 2017.
Posted by: Rooney 7th October 2018, 06:02 PM
The real winners here are Chelsea who look like they're going to be a real threat in the league this season.
I don't see how you can say that. For one both teams did want to win the match! Liverpool vs Man Utd at Anfield last season was literally defence vs attack all game. I thought both defences in todays match played really well for the majority and denied any of the attacking players any space. It made for a boring affair, but neither team wanted to lose at this stage and neither desperately needed the 3 points. At this moment in time all the top teams look streets ahead of the mid-table teams, so I think the head-to-heads will be crucial but more will slip up after European games.
It's firmly set up for a proper title race. City have played all of the bottom 4 teams, Liverpool have played 0. It's just important to be in and around for now, I thought we more than matched City and we are nowhere near our best right now.
Posted by: Houdini 7th October 2018, 07:32 PM
It's firmly set up for a proper title race. City have played all of the bottom 4 teams, Liverpool have played 0. It's just important to be in and around for now, I thought we more than matched City and we are nowhere near our best right now.
It was clear from early on that the match would finish 0-0, Man City were happy to just pass the ball around midfield and defence in the first half and even at one point during the 2nd half played one-two passes between their defenders and goalkeeper in their penalty area. Liverpool didn't offer much at all in attack during the game either.
Posted by: Rooney 7th October 2018, 08:08 PM
Well yes admittedly this was the first time in a long time I can remember that Guardiola changed his philosophy to contain Liverpool. Their defence was pretty much man for man against our front players and they rarely got space. But no way can I look at that as a bad result. City and Chelsea both have less favourable fixtures coming up, while on paper our schedule becomes more favourable so be interesting to see where things are at when we get to the November international break.
Posted by: HannibalLetcher 16th October 2018, 10:44 PM
The FA have charged Mourinho, for muttering something in Portuguese that was 'caught' on camera, at the end of the Newcastle game.
Posted by: Houdini 20th October 2018, 06:52 PM
I've got a mixture of feelings about our draw with Chelsea today, I think as a whole a draw against Chelsea is a good result as we have a poor record in that stadium over the past few years and Chelsea have started this season really well. I also didn't expect us to win today before the match and thought a draw would be the best result that we'd get but after fighting back from a goal down to lead 2-1 to then concede a goal in the last few seconds of the match is a blow.
I'm really glad Martial is playing regularly again and he definitely should be in the starting line up from now on. Really good man of the match performance from him and he took both of his goals well, especially his first goal where he controlled the ball neatly before volleying past the Chelsea keeper.
Posted by: Suedehead2 20th October 2018, 08:25 PM
And that's before his little contretemps today (which I haven't seen yet).
Posted by: Rooney 21st October 2018, 08:04 PM
I'm really glad Martial is playing regularly again and he definitely should be in the starting line up from now on. Really good man of the match performance from him and he took both of his goals well, especially his first goal where he controlled the ball neatly before volleying past the Chelsea keeper.
I think a point for both sides was about right, always is a stinker to concede right at the end, but I guess that's football. Second half you looked really good and Chelsea had nothing to answer for, I really do think that if you take Hazard out of the game then this Chelsea side will struggle. There are definitely some good signs for Man Utd, but on the outside it really does look like the team struggles until they go a goal down. Big game midweek for you now!
Posted by: HannibalLetcher 22nd October 2018, 10:34 PM
A three -way fight for the title??
Posted by: HannibalLetcher 23rd October 2018, 01:16 PM
Only 2 points separate the top 5, and then just 3 points the next (6-10) 5. It really is a case of seeing who blinks first and tumbles away from that elite bunch at the top.
Posted by: Houdini 26th October 2018, 12:56 PM
Neil Warnock is up to his usual tricks again. He says that it will be virtually impossible for Cardiff to beat Liverpool only 24 hours before they face each other. I guess we should expect Liverpool to thrash Cardiff now.
Posted by: HannibalLetcher 26th October 2018, 01:08 PM
Hardly motivation for the players of Cardiff City there is it?
Posted by: HannibalLetcher 26th October 2018, 01:23 PM
Sam Vokes has signed a new three-year contract keeping him at Burnley until 2021.
Posted by: HannibalLetcher 27th October 2018, 09:23 PM
The Leicester City chairman's helicopter has crashed near the King Power Stadium.
Posted by: Rooney 27th October 2018, 10:52 PM
Sounds awful, King Power are putting out a statement tomorrow morning. I've got my fingers crossed there is some good news to come out of this, but all the rumours and eyewitness statements makes things sound really bad. Puts things in to perspective.
Posted by: Dob Geldof 28th October 2018, 01:46 PM
Terrible tragedy - looks like the owner + 4 others were on board according to some reports. Dark day for football with that & Glenn Hoddle's collapse.
Posted by: Suedehead2 28th October 2018, 04:14 PM
As a Leicester supporter who also played alongside Glenn Hoddle .Gary Lineker was obviously in something of a state of shock last night. In the circumstances, he did a grand job presenting MOTD. He tweeted afterwards to say it was the hardest programme he'd presented.
Posted by: Houdini 29th October 2018, 08:10 PM
The pitch at Wembley tonight for Tottenham Vs Man city is dreadful! It's covered in NFL markings and logos.
Posted by: Steve201 29th October 2018, 10:55 PM
Yeh is a disgrace! Prob prevented Lamela scoring the equaliser in the second half too.
City looking pretty good this year, typical tenacity of a team that regains the league!
Posted by: Rooney 30th October 2018, 12:02 AM
The pitch was a disgrace, I completely agree but the fault of that lies with Tottenham Hotspur. Just awful project management and planning full stop, how they ever thought the stadium would be completed and did not have a stable back-up plan I'll never know.
That was a terrible game of football, both teams missed great chances. Right now all of Liverpool, Chelsea and Man City look very strong, but it is still very early days. All teams will go through ups and downs and hit a rocky patch.
Posted by: HannibalLetcher 30th October 2018, 11:35 PM
Leicester confirm match against Cardiff will go ahead on Saturday.
Posted by: David William 1st November 2018, 08:29 AM
Unai Emery is not a bad choice for Arsenal and i am hopping for all the best.
Posted by: Mack'sXmasSack 1st November 2018, 11:45 AM
He has done a solid job for Arsenal,
Welcome to the sports forum, David William.
Posted by: Mack'sXmasSack 1st November 2018, 03:18 PM
Leicester City said to be ‘numb and in shock’ after helicopter tragedy, says Claude Puel.
Posted by: Mack'sXmasSack 1st November 2018, 03:29 PM
Where do we think Aaron Ramsay will go if he leaves Arsenal?
Posted by: Steve201 1st November 2018, 09:43 PM
Liverpool said they weren't interested but I would be on a free transfer!!
Posted by: Mack'sXmasSack 1st November 2018, 11:55 PM
Jamaal Lascelles has commited his future to Newcastle United signing a new 6 year deal.
I wonder how long that will last.
Posted by: Mack. 2nd November 2018, 01:32 PM
Manchester City midfielder Kevin de Bruyne is out for six weeks with knee ligament damage.
Posted by: Mack. 3rd November 2018, 12:26 AM
I would say Bournemouth are in with a shout of beating anyone home or away right now, bar Chelsea, Liverpool and Man City.
Posted by: Dob Geldof 3rd November 2018, 06:19 PM
Given the trigger-happy nature of football these days it wouldn't surprise me to see Dyche favourite for the sack sometime soon. Seriously, what the hell has happened to their defence? Guess it must be Joe Hart's fault...
Posted by: Rooney 3rd November 2018, 06:21 PM
They've been poor for ages now and they got so lucky in the beginning half of the season last year if you look in to the games. They had so many wins when the opposition team was down to 10 men, or had to make enforced changes. Next for the chopping board has to be Mark Hughes surely.
Posted by: Houdini 3rd November 2018, 08:38 PM
Looking at the table it's surprising that as poor as we've been this season we're not that far behind the teams in the top 5. Arsenal who have been winning games like mad recently are only 3 points ahead of us. Even Liverpool who are top until tomorrow are 7 points ahead and are yet to face us this season. We're not going to win the league but this shows that at least some of the things surrounding Man United this season have been blown out of proportion.
It was great to see Leicester win today and the celebration for their goal was such a touching tribute to their owner. Demarai Gray shouldn't have been booked on this occasion but at least he didn't get sent off because of it.
Posted by: Rooney 3rd November 2018, 08:48 PM
It was great to see Leicester win today and the celebration for their goal was such a touching tribute to their owner. Demarai Gray shouldn't have been booked on this occasion but at least he didn't get sent off because of it.
The thing is it's still early days at the top, I mean we are what 11-12 games in to the season? Man Utd are by far the weakest of the Top 6 right now, if you start like you did against Bournemouth, Man City will slaughter you! That said I hope you win, cos there is zero way Man Utd challenge for the title this year. I still say it is between Man City, Liverpool and Chelsea. But certainly Spurs, Arsenal and Man Utd can influence where the title ends up...
Posted by: Suedehead2 3rd November 2018, 11:14 PM
It was great to see Leicester win today and the celebration for their goal was such a touching tribute to their owner. Demarai Gray shouldn't have been booked on this occasion but at least he didn't get sent off because of it.
Judging by what they said on Final Score, I suspect the referee told Gary that he didn't really have an choice but to book him. Apparently he showed the yellow card in a very discreet, almost apologetic way. Claude Puel has backed the referee, saying that the players played like professionals, so the referee should act the same way. That statement is very much to Puel's credit.
Posted by: Mack. 4th November 2018, 12:13 AM
How do you think the top four will look at the end of the season?
Posted by: Rooney 4th November 2018, 12:17 AM
Man City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Spurs. I don't think Man Utd and Arsenal will be too far away though.
Posted by: Houdini 4th November 2018, 12:42 AM
It is still early days but the way people have been talking this season would make it sound as if we're battling relegation while the likes of Arsenal, Tottenham and even Liverpool are decades in terms of points ahead. The only "big six" teams that we've played so far are Tottenham & Chelsea and we still have to play them again. The ground on them can be made up over the next few months.
1. Manchester City
2. Chelsea
3. Liverpool
4. Manchester United
This is not a confident top 4 prediction though. The only thing I'm confident about here is who the Premier League champions will be as I've seen nothing so far that has changed my mind from my pre season predictions.
Posted by: Rooney 4th November 2018, 10:12 AM
1. Manchester City
2. Chelsea
3. Liverpool
4. Manchester United
This is not a confident top 4 prediction though. The only thing I'm confident about here is who the Premier League champions will be as I've seen nothing so far that has changed my mind from my pre season predictions.
But you have largely been shit and got extremely lucky on several ocassions. This is without factoring in the home defeat to Derby or the Champions League offerings. You are right that is not all doom and gloom and I do agree that the games against the Top 6 will be crucial this year, and probably where Man City will pip Liverpool to the title.
Posted by: Dob Geldof 4th November 2018, 12:38 PM
It was the Wolves game that was the killer. Can't argue about any of the defeats this year as we completely deserved them & we were thoroughly outplayed but that Wolves draw was 100% in our hands and we let it slip. Those are the worst kind of results...
Posted by: Rooney 4th November 2018, 04:50 PM
End of the day it's a long season, the title isn't won in November but it can be lost. The way I look at it, City have dropped 4 points in 11 games and are only 2 points clear of 2 other teams. Hoping Man Utd can fashion one of their famous Mourinho 11 men behind the ball masterclass next weekend!
Posted by: Steve201 4th November 2018, 05:53 PM
I take it it's United vs City next weekend?
Posted by: Rooney 4th November 2018, 06:09 PM
Next Sunday at Man City. I'd be shocked if Man Utd got anything, but fingers crossed..
Posted by: Dob Geldof 4th November 2018, 06:38 PM
Well we had next to zero chance last season and actually won so you never know...
Posted by: Houdini 4th November 2018, 06:40 PM
Yeah we have been largely shit but we can definitely improve as the season goes on, it's not the first time United have started a season badly but we did manage to improve on some of those occasions.
I don't think it's the games against the top 6 that will make the difference for winning the league. I would be surprised if Liverpool don't go through a spell where they lose or draw consecutive matches against mid table teams. Liverpool are just a slightly more consistent version of United from last season and are only 4 points better off than we were after 11 games.
Posted by: Rooney 4th November 2018, 08:39 PM
I don't think it's the games against the top 6 that will make the difference for winning the league. I would be surprised if Liverpool don't go through a spell where they lose or draw consecutive matches against mid table teams. Liverpool are just a slightly more consistent version of United from last season and are only 4 points better off than we were after 11 games.
Liverpool will have a blip at some point, just like Man City and Chelsea, but I can't see us screwing up in consecutive games. We are a different beast this season and are finding another way to match City and are being far more pragmatic.
The games against the Top 6 will make the difference, big time. I mean the other teams in the league on paper have the best squads they have ever had, but are largely managed by dinosaurs who are just out-thought tactically by the big managers. Hopefully Man Utd can improve next weekend.
Posted by: Houdini 5th November 2018, 12:34 AM
The games against the Top 6 will make the difference, big time. I mean the other teams in the league on paper have the best squads they have ever had, but are largely managed by dinosaurs who are just out-thought tactically by the big managers. Hopefully Man Utd can improve next weekend.
I guess we'll see what happens, I to hope Man Utd can improve next weekend. I also hope Fulham can improve next weekend as well!
Posted by: Mack. 5th November 2018, 04:17 PM
I doubt Fulham will improve next week, expecting a goal fest there from Liverpool.
Posted by: Rooney 6th November 2018, 12:15 AM
If Fulham beat us or get anything out of the game next weekend, then bloody hell. Stranger things have happened I suppose.
Surely Jokanovic will be getting sacked soon? Mark Hughes can't be too far behind either.
Posted by: Mack. 6th November 2018, 12:45 AM
It will take something special for Fulham to stay up, £100m spent and bottom of the table. Jokanovic will probably go this week.
Posted by: Mack. 9th November 2018, 10:44 PM
Raheem Sterling has signed a new contract at Man City until 2023. Still was a traitor to Liverpool.
Posted by: Houdini 10th November 2018, 12:57 PM
Neil Warnock thinks that the record for lowest amount of points to survive relegation will be broken this season, the current record is 34 points by West Brom in the 2004/05 season. I would be very surprised if that happens and I actually think that relegation is going to be the most clear cut that it's been in years, possibly the most ever! The teams at the bottom have really been exceptionally poor so far this season.
He even said that Cardiff are favourites to finish bottom of the table. While he might not be wrong there I don't think these are the kind of things that a manager should ever say to his players or to the media. It must be really demotivating to constantly hear the manager belittling them in public.
Posted by: Dob Geldof 10th November 2018, 12:59 PM
Just typical Warnock really but he's probably right re the points record. I agree with you there are so many trash teams this year I'm sure the cut-off at 17th will be very low indeed.
Posted by: Rooney 10th November 2018, 01:20 PM
He even said that Cardiff are favourites to finish bottom of the table. While he might not be wrong there I don't think these are the kind of things that a manager should ever say to his players or to the media. It must be really demotivating to constantly hear the manager belittling them in public.
They way the first third of the season has almost gone, there are about 6-7 teams that are really poor. And a couple of others, over performing at the moment that could be dragged in to any relegation race. I could see a team surviving with 30-32 points this year.
Posted by: Mack. 10th November 2018, 05:14 PM
Charlie Austin certainly not happy during his interview on Final Score.
Posted by: Steve201 10th November 2018, 11:59 PM
So how does everyone think the City United game will end up tomorrow?
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 11th November 2018, 12:11 AM
City will win and continue to show a complete lack of class and dignity in the process. Maybe their sugar daddy should launder some money through their "independent" sponsors to get past fair play rules so they can try and buy some.
Posted by: Houdini 11th November 2018, 12:37 AM
I think we have a chance of beating Man City so I'm going for a win for Man United. If I'm wrong then I'm wrong!
Posted by: Dob Geldof 11th November 2018, 02:56 AM
I'd be thrilled with a draw, anything more is just sheer fantasy but this was the same mindset I had with juve so who knows!
Posted by: Mack. 11th November 2018, 09:58 AM
Probably be City, a high-scoring draw will.be a bonus or anything else would.be like Dobbo said a sheer fantasy.
Posted by: Rooney 11th November 2018, 10:55 AM
City should win comfortably on paper, but for one time only I am hoping for a flukey away win!
Posted by: Houdini 11th November 2018, 06:35 PM
I suppose the inquest will begin now.......
Posted by: Rooney 11th November 2018, 07:29 PM
Not sure there is much of an inquest, City were most likely always going to win. I thought City were nowhere near their best and after the penalty some doubt certainly creeped in, but Man Utd just didn't have enough to capitalise. Biggest inquest is how you are on -1 goal difference!
Posted by: Dob Geldof 11th November 2018, 08:59 PM
They're in a completely different league to us & indeed the rest of the Prem. We weren't terrible by any means they just dealt with everything & killed us off with brutal efficient - only clink in their armour right now appears to be Ederson who 2 weeks on the trot now has given away a needless pen.
Despite all the criticism about our lack of attack, scoring isn't an issue (we're level with Spurs & only scored 3 less than "free-flowing" Pool).
Our defence has just been absolute w*** this season.
Posted by: Rooney 11th November 2018, 09:41 PM
Despite all the criticism about our lack of attack, scoring isn't an issue (we're level with Spurs & only scored 3 less than "free-flowing" Pool).
Our defence has just been absolute w*** this season.
I think if referees start picking up on Fernandinho making at least 3-4 tactical fouls each game then they might start to struggle. If he's on a yellow card then it means he's less likely to make the foul, which he does brilliantly, but he never seems to get pulled up for it.
I'll be interested to see how this City team does if they get to the semi finals of the League Cup as the games are really going to pile up. But long way to go yet, bad news is they have got 4 points from the only 2 games they lost last season!
Posted by: Steve201 11th November 2018, 10:36 PM
Kante does the same for Chelsea innoticed in regard to the cynical fouls!
Liverpool have t been free flowing this year by any means, but getting s better balance which is a good thing overall!!
Posted by: Rooney 11th November 2018, 11:39 PM
Liverpool have t been free flowing this year by any means, but getting s better balance which is a good thing overall!!
But this is what is really frustrating I find and where I think the expectations of our fanbase is going to slip us up. If you compare our form to this time last season, it is so much better. And this is with an exceptionally more difficult fixture list. Our football was only really 'superb' between January-April and I suspect after the international break we will start expanding more, especially in the bigger games.
For example today against Fulham we were average-good. Last year when we had 70-80% of the ball we often drew games, this year we are winning them. The fact is we are incredibly hard to beat and don't give many high percentage chances away. It's crazy to me when people expect us to wallop the terrible teams 5-6 nil every game, we are not City. And the likelihood of the league being won on goal difference is small, I think it's happened about 3 times!
Posted by: Mack. 13th November 2018, 02:18 AM
Apparently Nasri is set to have a medical at West Ham.
Posted by: Steve201 13th November 2018, 10:03 PM
For example today against Fulham we were average-good. Last year when we had 70-80% of the ball we often drew games, this year we are winning them. The fact is we are incredibly hard to beat and don't give many high percentage chances away. It's crazy to me when people expect us to wallop the terrible teams 5-6 nil every game, we are not City. And the likelihood of the league being won on goal difference is small, I think it's happened about 3 times!
Yeh let's hope so, same with a Salah - he only really started his unreal run around October last year!
Posted by: Mack. 13th November 2018, 11:55 PM
And somehow maybe Man City's form will drop off.
Posted by: Rooney 13th November 2018, 11:59 PM
I'd be shocked if they can keep up this pace throughout the season in a World Cup year. If they get through their league cup tie they are going to play every 4 days for a long time, there is hope!
Posted by: Mack. 14th November 2018, 09:28 AM
Blimey,
Fulham have sacked Slavisa Jokanovic well that was inevitable and have replaced him with Leicester City's title winning manager Claudio Ranieri. good luck to Claudio he'll have his work cut out.
Posted by: Mack. 14th November 2018, 11:51 AM
Susanna Dinnage has been named as the new chief executive of the Premier League, replacing Richard Scudamore.
Posted by: Klumpkin 14th November 2018, 11:58 AM
For once I don't think this sacking was too premature! And to announce a replacement straight away is good going by Fulham so they don't have any time periods of uncertainty! Ranieri is a really good pick considering his Premier League experience.
Posted by: Mack. 14th November 2018, 01:26 PM
Fact of the day: Slavisa Jokanovic was Ranieri's first signing at Chelsea back in 2000.
Posted by: Dob Geldof 14th November 2018, 07:04 PM
Wow that is a fab stat^ love that!
SO happy the "tinkerman" is back managing - and I can't wait for them to trounce Leicester in a month's time (cos stuff like that always happens in football right).
Posted by: Rooney 14th November 2018, 07:22 PM
I'm glad Ranieri is back - no shock at all to see the change, the only surprising thing is that it didn't happen earlier in the week!
Posted by: Mack. 14th November 2018, 07:29 PM
I was more shocked about Ranieri coming to Fulham didn't him being appointed.
Posted by: Houdini 14th November 2018, 07:57 PM
I should have seen Slavisa Jokanovic's sacking coming. To be currently worse than Cardiff, Huddersfield & Southampton is some feat and he managed it with Fulham! It will be interesting to see if Ranieri will keep them up, performance levels will improve at least surely.
Posted by: Mack. 14th November 2018, 11:55 PM
Man City's Benjamin Mendy faces another spell on the sidelines after undergoing surgery on an injured left knee.
Posted by: Suedehead2 15th November 2018, 03:36 PM
Premier League clubs have agreed in principle to introduce VAR from next season. Not exactly a surprise, particularly after a number of wrong decisions at the weekend which VAR would have avoided.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/46224473
Posted by: dobbo 15th November 2018, 06:46 PM
Yeah is it a mere coincidence that this has happened the week after a string of quite frankly ridiculous decisions 
Posted by: Rooney 15th November 2018, 06:52 PM
I think it was always going to happen next year regardless, but agree with the PR of the timing mainly for the Southampton game.
Posted by: Mack. 17th November 2018, 08:50 AM
Leicester fan who jumped barrier to hug grieving son of Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha banned from King Power Stadium. Seriously?
Posted by: Mack. 21st November 2018, 01:22 PM
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has been warned after avoiding FA charge for comments about referee Anthony Taylor ahead of Manchester derby.
Posted by: Steve201 24th November 2018, 06:48 PM
Looking forward to watching the reds 3-0 win on motd tonight!
Posted by: Rooney 24th November 2018, 07:24 PM
Good win all round, keep ground with City, Chelsea get beat and Man Utd behind in the battle for 6th
Posted by: Houdini 24th November 2018, 09:18 PM
Liverpool won't win anything this season, everyone knows that the league is going to Man City again and Liverpool won't win the Champions league either. So that at least will be some guaranteed consolation for United fans at the end of the season.
Posted by: Rooney 24th November 2018, 09:31 PM
While I can't not disagree with that, we can take solace that Man Utd have basically turned in to everything they used to say about Liverpool and their neighbours have won the league!
City are the best team, but if you are within touching distance with 6-8 games to go, anything can happen.
Posted by: Mack. 24th November 2018, 11:05 PM
We'll see what happens come May time.
Posted by: Steve201 25th November 2018, 12:48 AM
Lol Houdini has nothing else to say I feel bad for him
Posted by: dobbo 25th November 2018, 12:19 PM
Hey that's a good result for us - we actually got a clean sheet! 
Posted by: Rooney 25th November 2018, 12:45 PM
To be fair as much as it's a bad result in isolation, the odd draw doesn't really matter as long as you have some wins. Next five fixtures are crucial really, definitely 3 games you would expect 3 points from then Arsenal & Liverpool as well who you both have good records against.
Posted by: dobbo 25th November 2018, 11:20 PM
Glad to see Huddersfield up on the move now & especially winning against Wolves. I've enjoyed watching Wolves this season but their fans have been incredibly cocky so far after a string of decent results as if they deserve to be in the Prem on name alone. Nope.
Posted by: Rooney 26th November 2018, 12:03 AM
They play some pretty football but like all of the bottom teams they lack goals. Their front players are really struggling bar Jiminez.
Posted by: Steve201 26th November 2018, 12:17 AM
Aaron Mooy is an underrated footballer, tidy player!
Posted by: Steve201 26th November 2018, 10:23 PM
Hard fought win for Newcastle there, first away win. Great goal for Vokes with the header!
Posted by: Rooney 26th November 2018, 10:37 PM
They're only 9 points off Man Utd now!!!
Going to be so close down the bottom again you would expect, there is a real lack of quality across all the bottom 7-8 teams.
Posted by: dobbo 26th November 2018, 11:03 PM
Newcastle are far too good a team to ever be in any danger. (Yes people have said that before but this year practically half the league are woeful).
Burnely tho... is it too soon to be calling for Dyche's head? Clubs have made far more shocking & undeserved sackings in the past.
Posted by: Houdini 26th November 2018, 11:12 PM
City are the best team, but if you are within touching distance with 6-8 games to go, anything can happen.
It's actually good to see a lot of Liverpool fans getting their hopes up about winning the league. It will make it even funnier at the end of the season when it doesn't happen, just like the Champions League last season before secret agent Karius struck in the final!
Posted by: Rooney 27th November 2018, 12:17 AM
Man City are in all probability going to win the league, but Liverpool are also a fantastic team these days too. It says something when we are on track to reach 96 points and won't even win the league. As far as I am concerned as long as Liverpool are within 5-6 points come the last block of games at the end of the season, anything can happen.
Important thing from my perspective is that we challenge consistently over the next 2-3 years as we have not had that for a long, long time. At least we can lay claim to a title challenge recently
Posted by: Mack. 27th November 2018, 12:30 AM
Burnely tho... is it too soon to be calling for Dyche's head? Clubs have made far more shocking & undeserved sackings in the past.
See how it is regarding Dyche in the next few games. Burnley are in a relegation battle. I would give him time.
Posted by: Steve201 27th November 2018, 01:15 AM
Burnely tho... is it too soon to be calling for Dyche's head? Clubs have made far more shocking & undeserved sackings in the past.
Not sure Burnley are a sacking club although a second relegation from the premiership under dyche may mean they look for something fresh.
Not sure Newcastle have many great players, without Rafa they woulda been down last season imo.
Posted by: Mack. 28th November 2018, 01:23 AM
That miss from Ritchie on Monday that was horrendous.
Posted by: Mack'sXmasSack 2nd December 2018, 12:46 AM
Touch of class which sums up Leicester as a club.
Watford fans unveiled a banner today saying: "Thank you for Vichai for allowing us all to dream. Rest in peace.
Posted by: Steve201 2nd December 2018, 04:05 PM
That North London Derby was exhilarating - got a bad feeling about Liverpool now - Gomes is quality!
Posted by: Houdini 2nd December 2018, 04:11 PM
It sure was exhilarating. Probably the best match of the season so far entertainment wise. Looking at the way Arsenal players were celebrating at the end of that match gives me hope that they will lose focus for Wednesday's match at Old Trafford.
Posted by: Pigs in blankets 2nd December 2018, 04:54 PM
Well pleased for Arsenal and 4th in the table, looking hopeful on Wednesday away at Old Trafford, with their current form. I'm hoping for Chelsea to falter a bit, to take that 3rd spot, its tough though as the current top 3 all have been on form.
Chelsea versus Man City should be a cracker of a match next Saturday, with Man City current form I should imagine they could beat Chelsea or draw.
Posted by: Houdini 2nd December 2018, 06:15 PM
The flukiest goal I've ever seen in my life................
Posted by: Rooney 2nd December 2018, 06:38 PM
Absolutely bizarre, but I'll take it.
I pray that Man Utd sign Pickford when De Gea leaves in the summer. What an absolute howler
Posted by: Steve201 2nd December 2018, 07:43 PM
Was a crazy goal but elated because of the time wasting Everton were doing in the last 10 mins - I was running round the living room like Jurgen Klopp!!
Felt bad for Everton other than that though as they at least deserved a draw if not more - as I said before the game Gomes is a quality midfielder , reminds me of Xavi Alonso!
Liverpool desperately need a more solid midfield, there's no way they should be playing 4 attacking players instead of adding Milner and having the front 3. Mane seems the only one still on form. In saying all that Liverpool are finding ways of winning games and not losing in comparison to last years high press but lack of controlled game.
Posted by: Steve201 2nd December 2018, 07:44 PM
Chelsea versus Man City should be a cracker of a match next Saturday, with Man City current form I should imagine they could beat Chelsea or draw.
Didn't realise it was united vs Arsenal on Wednesday - Jose will be more up for a game like that when they're not expected to win!
Posted by: Rooney 2nd December 2018, 08:23 PM
Felt bad for Everton other than that though as they at least deserved a draw if not more - as I said before the game Gomes is a quality midfielder , reminds me of Xavi Alonso!
Liverpool desperately need a more solid midfield, there's no way they should be playing 4 attacking players instead of adding Milner and having the front 3. Mane seems the only one still on form. In saying all that Liverpool are finding ways of winning games and not losing in comparison to last years high press but lack of controlled game.
Everton were really good in the first half, certainly the best I have seen them for a long time. If you look at goals xG Liverpool were so much better. Mane wad good today, but deary me his finishing was terrible!
We're not going to see gegenpressing until the New Year. I miss the fancy football and Firmino is wasted in midfield, but can't complain at the moment as long we keep pace with City. Still loads of room for improvement. Inevitably we are going to drop points over the next few weeks, just hope City do as well.
Posted by: Steve201 2nd December 2018, 10:42 PM
Yes city Chelsea next Sunday but then we have a tough game the following week vs United which I thought was at OT but it's at a field where Joses united will find it easier the way they play imo!
Posted by: coi 3rd December 2018, 10:59 AM
Southampton have sacked Mark Hughes at last.
Posted by: ZaraRuinMyLife 3rd December 2018, 11:39 AM
Kinda gutted as I really like Mark Hughes as a manager and don't think there's much he could have done with the budget he's been provided in comparison to other teams, I wonder who Southhampton will go for as manager now, it will be interesting to say the least.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 3rd December 2018, 12:12 PM
Maybe someone like Nigel Pearson, David Moyes possibly.
Posted by: coi 3rd December 2018, 12:40 PM
Well we know based on how little he changed the squad that he’s clearly been underachieving with the players he’s got.
Some rumours yesterday that also predicted Hughes getting sacked today suggested Quique Sanchez Flores is being lined up to replace him, we’ll see if that’s the case.
Posted by: dobbo 3rd December 2018, 01:16 PM
He was awful at every club he managed bar Blackburn & to a lesser extent Stoke. I'm sure another team will press the panic button in March though and he'll be back, pocketing another handsome payment.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 3rd December 2018, 04:28 PM
Jurgen Klopp has been charged by the FA following his celebrations in yesterday's derby against Everton.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 3rd December 2018, 04:49 PM
Southampton are set to approach former RB Leipzig boss Ralph Hasenhuttl after sacking Mark Hughes.
Posted by: Rooney 3rd December 2018, 07:29 PM
It's so refreshing seeing loads of dinosaur managers out of the game at the moment, no surprise Hughes got sacked at all, it was stupid enough giving him a 3 year contract. At least West Ham for all their failings, decided to cut their losses with Moyes and embark on a bigger journey.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 3rd December 2018, 07:58 PM
He did well with Wales too!
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 4th December 2018, 12:58 PM
Jurgen Klopp has accepted an FA fine of £8,000 for his celebrations after Liverpool's late winner in the Merseyside Derby
Posted by: Suedehead2 4th December 2018, 03:06 PM
I think he’ll just about be able to scrape the money together.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 5th December 2018, 01:02 PM
Former RB Leipzig boss Ralph Hasenhuttl has been been appointed Southampton manager on a two-and-a-half-year deal.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 5th December 2018, 01:15 PM
Strange appointment with no premier league experience. Clubs like Fulham went this route and it didn't go well!
Posted by: coi 5th December 2018, 01:54 PM
Southampton have done this a lot in recent years, Pochettino, Koeman, Puel, Pellegrino, the list goes on. Sometimes it goes well and sometimes it doesn’t.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 5th December 2018, 02:20 PM
Yeh true - The Potch as the most famous example of its success.
Posted by: dobbo 5th December 2018, 10:05 PM
Our "worst ever season" and arsenal still can't beat us. Love it
Posted by: Houdini 5th December 2018, 10:14 PM
Shocking defending from both sides! We practically gave Arsenal their 2 goals as an early gift Christmas wrapped present and then they bottled the lead twice within minutes of going ahead. That match should be shown to kids as a lesson on how not to defend. I'm a bit disappointed that we didn't win but a comeback 2-2 draw against Arsenal is a lot better than against a team like Southampton. I never for one moment thought that Arsenal would beat us because even when we are shit they still cant win at Old Trafford.
At least Chelsea lost so there is something to laugh about today!
Posted by: Rooney 5th December 2018, 10:21 PM
It's like a mental block sometimes, probably why you seem to do so well against us too! Top 4 looks a massive ask for you now though.
Looking forward to Match of the Day tonight, sounds like Chelsea were well beaten.
Posted by: dobbo 5th December 2018, 10:45 PM
OT should be a free pass for the rest of the big 6 right now. Can tell Jose's binned off the league already - starting XIs are just drawn from a hat. Top 4 was gone weeks ago, looks like all the eggs are in the European basket now which is a terrifying thought.
Also not a single clean sheet this midweek round! Must have earned a few punters a few bob that.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 6th December 2018, 02:02 AM
United always play a lot better against the top sides in Europe and in league. It's not a free pass at all, yous played quite well tonight in terms of attitude according to motd. Mistake by De Gea for the first goal!
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 7th December 2018, 12:30 AM
Who's the worst player in the Premier League in your view?
Posted by: dobbo 7th December 2018, 01:25 PM
At the moment, morata is up there.
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 7th December 2018, 02:47 PM
Two moments of insanity aside, we actually played well up until he pulled Pogba, the knob, and Lukaku onto the pitch. All three subs had a hugely negative impact on our pace and performance. Though I was for ringing Darmian and Matic’s Necks by the end. Praying Shaw is back soon so Darmian can f*** off back to obscurity.
Arsenal’s first goal was a complete farce tho. Allowing arsenal 5 mins to take a corner is the moment the ref lost complete control of that game
Posted by: Rooney 7th December 2018, 05:24 PM
Difficult question as there are some terrible players, some players terrible off form and some good players who look terrible because they haven't (and might not) settle yet...
Posted by: Christmasteve201 7th December 2018, 06:23 PM
Morata is a good shout for me too! Maybe Alberto Moreno too! Hate when he starts for Liverpool!!
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 7th December 2018, 07:06 PM
Javier Manquillo, a contender there.
Posted by: Rooney 8th December 2018, 05:07 PM
Seems all the big teams this year bar some slight inconsistencies from Man Utd are beating the bottom 14 sides regularly.
Only problem for Arsenal right now is it looks like Lacazette and Aubameyang can't play together that well.
Posted by: dobbo 8th December 2018, 05:24 PM
Bin off Laca, Aubameyang is outstanding.
I never thought we'd score 4 in the prem this season. Fulham really are shit.
Posted by: Houdini 8th December 2018, 05:26 PM
It shows how weak the Premier League is now. People talk about Manchester City saying that they're the greatest team of all time and so on but really they are just the stand out team in a weak league. In my opinion the Premier League was at it's strongest between the mid to late 00's. The mid table teams and even the relegation threatened teams used to trouble the top teams quite regularly then and the top sides were dominating the Champions League during that period.
It's looking at the moment like Southampton are heading for the Championship next season unless there's a drastic turn around!
Posted by: Rooney 8th December 2018, 08:18 PM
It's looking at the moment like Southampton are heading for the Championship next season unless there's a drastic turn around!
This Man City team are really good though. I wouldn't necessarily agree, I think there's always been a huge gulf and some poor teams. The problem now is the gulf in class is so big, the lesser teams just set up to stop the other teams playing. This was a good tactic, but the likes of Man City and Liverpool are the moment seem to have found a way to beat low block sides be it through their tactics or the quality of players.
Anyway great result this evening. Man City have practically been to every Top 6 away club now, so was hoping they would drop points here as can't see them slipping up too many times at home.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 9th December 2018, 12:32 AM
Yeh gives us a barrier when we have a hard fixture next weekend compared too and after city play. Then we have Arsenal twice over Xmas as well as wolves and City away on the final Xmas fixture. We will know a huge amount about the titles destination in 1 month from now.
Posted by: dobbo 9th December 2018, 01:15 AM
Brilliant to see that City aren't an unstoppable juggernaut this season.
Posted by: Rooney 9th December 2018, 10:54 AM
I doubt we will know more, but what was really interesting was City blew Chelsea away up until that first goal and could have easily been 2/3 up. But after that they lost their high press and just got very frustrated. That was they first time they have been chasing a game all season bar the Wolves game. I think stuff like this is really telling. It's just important to be i and around with 10 games to go then anything can happen.
Undoubtedly City have a much easier fixture list over the next period. But if they get through the League Cup then they are going to have a mountain of fixtures to contend with. They have a good squad but injuries are starting to pile up as much as the rest of the Big 6 clubs.
Posted by: coi 9th December 2018, 12:48 PM
Maybe the new manager will sort things out soon. I certainly don't see how Fulham are going to save themselves from falling straight back down to the Championship though, their defence is atrocious!
Posted by: Houdini 9th December 2018, 01:02 PM
Now that Liverpool are the leaders it means that City are going to be in a position that they haven't been in since the 2016/17 season as a team chasing the team at the top. A win for Man City against Everton on Saturday will put immense pressure on Liverpool ahead of the game against us at Anfield next Sunday. Liverpool will be the favourites for that match for sure but anything other than a win will almost certainly see you back down to 2nd again. It would be good for us to be the first team to beat Liverpool in the league this season so fingers crossed that it happens.
When it comes to the league if I were a Liverpool fan I wouldn't get too carried away about being top now. I saw many Liverpool fans getting overly excited yesterday on the internet about being top of the league but it's only December and it's City's record against the mid table - bottom of the table teams that gives them the advantage still. Too many teams fear them and it's as if they are already beaten when they line up in the tunnel before going out onto the pitch. If more teams showed courage against Man City then they wouldn't have things going their own way as often as they do and really if you're going to lose a match then you might as well lose it by having a go at them rather than just accepting defeat before the match even starts because no matter how you lose you will end up gaining 0 points anyway so not much changes.
I feel sorry for Claudio Ranieri, it's like he's walked straight into this mess of a situation which probably would have been different if he was the manager at the start of the season. If Fulham get relegated I think he could bring them straight back up if he stays as their manager.
Posted by: Rooney 9th December 2018, 03:18 PM
When it comes to the league if I were a Liverpool fan I wouldn't get too carried away about being top now. I saw many Liverpool fans getting overly excited yesterday on the internet about being top of the league but it's only December and it's City's record against the mid table - bottom of the table teams that gives them the advantage still. Too many teams fear them and it's as if they are already beaten when they line up in the tunnel before going out onto the pitch. If more teams showed courage against Man City then they wouldn't have things going their own way as often as they do and really if you're going to lose a match then you might as well lose it by having a go at them rather than just accepting defeat before the match even starts because no matter how you lose you will end up gaining 0 points anyway so not much changes.
Everybody got a bit giddy last night, I ever saw Arsenal fans thinking they had a shot at the title...
It's a long ass season and there are still plenty of games to go. Certainly most sane Liverpool fans I know aren't getting carried away, we are coming through a very difficult period. It's just nice to think it's going to be a title race this season as I fully expect Liverpool to drop points over Christmas where as Man City have a more favourable fun on paper. Everton will turn over and let their tummies be tickled next weekend for example. Contrast that to us playing against our biggest rivals. On paper you should expect a clear home win but I always hate games against Man Utd.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 9th December 2018, 05:18 PM
Still a long way to go though.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 9th December 2018, 05:31 PM
Fulham- flops of the season?
Posted by: Christmasteve201 9th December 2018, 11:31 PM
When it comes to the league if I were a Liverpool fan I wouldn't get too carried away about being top now. I saw many Liverpool fans getting overly excited yesterday on the internet about being top of the league but it's only December and it's City's record against the mid table - bottom of the table teams that gives them the advantage still. Too many teams fear them and it's as if they are already beaten when they line up in the tunnel before going out onto the pitch. If more teams showed courage against Man City then they wouldn't have things going their own way as often as they do and really if you're going to lose a match then you might as well lose it by having a go at them rather than just accepting defeat before the match even starts because no matter how you lose you will end up gaining 0 points anyway so not much changes.
I feel sorry for Claudio Ranieri, it's like he's walked straight into this mess of a situation which probably would have been different if he was the manager at the start of the season. If Fulham get relegated I think he could bring them straight back up if he stays as their manager.
I've supported Liverpool since I was 6 years old which is around 1991/92 so I certainly don't think we will win the league being a point clear in December
I'm more annoyed that we have such a good balanced team just when Peps city are so dominant. On any normal season we would have been 7/8 points clear by now.I've never seen my team win the league ever(I was too young to remember their 18th in 1990-91. So until we are holding it aloft I won't believe it!
As for next week I feel it could be our first defeat because Jose loves going against another tactician and stopping us playing and people won't expect much from united.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 9th December 2018, 11:34 PM
Undoubtedly City have a much easier fixture list over the next period. But if they get through the League Cup then they are going to have a mountain of fixtures to contend with. They have a good squad but injuries are starting to pile up as much as the rest of the Big 6 clubs.
I was saying just that to a friend today asking if the league cup was next week and how it'll be good to get a 5 day break after the united game!
Posted by: Rooney 10th December 2018, 12:16 AM
I'm more annoyed that we have such a good balanced team just when Peps city are so dominant. On any normal season we would have been 7/8 points clear by now.I've never seen my team win the league ever(I was too young to remember their 18th in 1990-91. So until we are holding it aloft I won't believe it!
As for next week I feel it could be our first defeat because Jose loves going against another tactician and stopping us playing and people won't expect much from united.
Liverpool vs Man Utd games form always goes out of the window. We are the better team, but you would expect them to defender deep and play on the counter attack. Whatever happens if we score they are going to come at us and it's clear (well probably a couple of players aside) they have fight in them. I'm expecting a tough game as always. I think a lot will depend on how emotionally draining the game against Napoli is.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 10th December 2018, 04:41 PM
Hoping at least it isn't another scoreless draw when Liverpool and Man United play. Again it will be ultra defensive for Man United on Saturday.
Posted by: Houdini 10th December 2018, 06:01 PM
Yeah hopefully it's only Liverpool that will be scoreless on Sunday 
Posted by: Christmasteve201 10th December 2018, 10:32 PM
It's strange but if Liverpool score united can be dangerous as they have nothing to lose.
Posted by: TheGrinch 10th December 2018, 11:40 PM
I’m going to Liverpool v Napoli tomorrow and I’m so f***ing excited!
Posted by: Christmasteve201 11th December 2018, 12:06 AM
Lucky you, would love to go to a field on a big European night!
Posted by: Suedehead2 11th December 2018, 03:05 PM
Any particular field?
Posted by: PeteLeftLeeds 11th December 2018, 04:54 PM
Hope you enjoy the match Lee! (and that the right team win 
)
Posted by: Christmasteve201 11th December 2018, 11:36 PM
Ha funny!! Phones predictive text are so annoying!!
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 12th December 2018, 12:03 PM
West Ham have taken up the option to extend captain Mark Noble’s contract which will now run until 2021.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 12th December 2018, 05:09 PM
Liverpool's Joel Matip out for six weeks after suffering broken collarbone vs Napoli.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 12th December 2018, 11:41 PM
No luck aul Matip, I was surprised he started lastnyt!
Posted by: Suedehead2 15th December 2018, 10:55 PM
Noce to see Neil Warnock outdoing himself for stupidity today by complaining about an inexperienced referee. I'm not sure how a referee is supposed to get to, say, 50 PL games without refereeing their first and second games at that level.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 16th December 2018, 12:16 AM
Aul Warnok like he never changes!!
He was right - Deeney should have at least been booked for that challenge on the keeper Etheridge who imo was motm, some great goals in that game!
Also felt Delph coulda seen red!
Posted by: TheGrinch 16th December 2018, 01:16 AM
The Liverpool match was incredible! I paid Above and beyond for a ticket but my pal is a massive fan and knows people! I was in the kop and I’ve never experienced such incredible atmosphere and I’ve been to Chelsea, Man U and Arsenal matches too!
Posted by: coi 16th December 2018, 04:17 PM
Southampton beat Arsenal 3-2 to end Arsenal's 22-match unbeaten run and gain the first league win for the Saints since 1st September!
Posted by: TheGrinch 16th December 2018, 05:03 PM
Oh Alisson 
It truly could have been an absolute hammering but that goal has changed the game and atmosphere.
Posted by: dobbo 16th December 2018, 05:49 PM
Still a hammering, to the surprise of no-one.
Posted by: Rooney 16th December 2018, 06:21 PM
Absolutely loved that. I did think at 1-1, Man Utd were going to get a flukey goal and win.. been bitten a few times!
The gulf in class is absolutely massive. Thought Man Utd defended Salah really well, but they did play with a back 6 and give our midfield the license to rule the ball instead. Onwards and upwards to a busy couple of weeks, where we will drop points at some stage.
Posted by: Rooney 16th December 2018, 09:54 PM
Fellaini the GIF that keeps on giving
Posted by: Christmasteve201 16th December 2018, 11:17 PM
Good win that, mental to allow Robertson the run of the left side in that second half!!
Posted by: Rooney 16th December 2018, 11:21 PM
Was a tactical ploy by Klopp reading between the lines. They switched Mane over to the right because of how Man Utd set up. I think in previous seasons we would have really struggled to beat the 6 in the back, just shows the journey of the current squad.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 16th December 2018, 11:22 PM
Yeh so much better at managing games this season!
Robertsons balls into the box here horrendous today!
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 17th December 2018, 12:00 AM
Fellaini the GIF that keeps on giving
That was woeful and then hitting the steward.
Posted by: Rooney 17th December 2018, 12:14 AM
Robertsons balls into the box here horrendous today!
I didn't even think we played that brilliantly. Robertson overhit a lot of crosses and our corners were bloody awful. But really positive as I think we have another gear or two to go up to yet. Just got to hope none of our defenders get injured as as Arsenal showed today it can massively affect things.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 17th December 2018, 12:23 AM
Three words to describe Manchester United at the moment
Complete utter mess
Posted by: Rooney 17th December 2018, 10:37 AM
Complete utter mess
Absolutely, the problem runs far deeper than the manager (who admittedly doesn't help matters). The management have created a team full of mercenaries and it appears to have upset the dressing room. Throwing hundreds of millions of pounds on players is not going to solve the problem. The players aren't good enough, neither is the manager, but the whole club has lost its soul. They overachieved massively last year in the league and it's showing now. So many parallels with Liverpool it's uncanny.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 17th December 2018, 05:02 PM
Man United have triggered the option of a contract extension for Anthony Martial. That's if he wants to stay, which I doubt he will.
Posted by: Rooney 17th December 2018, 05:05 PM
Don't think he has any choice in the matter, it's a smart way to negotiate contracts and it protects your assets so players don't run their contracts down like it has happened at Arsenal and Liverpool recently. Good move for Utd, as surely if you get a progressive manager in he is one player would you ideally build your team around.
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 17th December 2018, 07:55 PM
Fellaini the GIF that keeps on giving
Useless c**t shouldn’t even be allowed to wear the replica kit never mind be on our payroll
Posted by: Christmasteve201 18th December 2018, 12:21 AM
Yeh he has world class potential with a progressive manager so I hope he's so f***ed off he leaves!
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 18th December 2018, 09:50 AM
Jose Gone!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 18th December 2018, 10:00 AM
Confirmed that Man United have sacked him. Good riddance.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 18th December 2018, 10:04 AM
Michael Carrick confirmed as caretaker manager until the end of the season apparently.
Edit: Not happening
Posted by: TheGrinch 18th December 2018, 10:28 AM
:O:O:O:O
Posted by: TheGrinch 18th December 2018, 10:51 AM
Three years after getting sacked from Chelsea, he's been sacked from Man U!
Not surprised and probably the best decision, I'm just sad because I wish he was there to make Man U more comical for longer.
Posted by: dobbo 18th December 2018, 01:02 PM
Not sure what to think of that, highly doubt any manager can rescue our season now. It's another case of player power winning again, looks like Pog the snake got his Christmas wish.
This literally couldn't be any different to Chelsea 3 seasons ago lol.
Posted by: Rooney 18th December 2018, 01:45 PM
Ah beautiful, it’s Panto season at Manchester United right now. Sacking Mourinho has effectively written their season off. Sounds like it’s gonna be Laurent Blanc. The problems of the club run far deeper than the manager, so I’m sure there are plenty of laughs to be had yet.
To be fair I think getting a Director or Football is a good move. Probably going to have to explain to the fan base if they decide to start from scratch they are not going to be challenging for the title any time soon...
Personally I think Man Utd should just get rid of Pogba full stop. Surely one of the most overrated players to ever grace the Premier League? Nowhere near the likes of Gerrard, Lampard, Scholes, Vieria, Makelele, Ballack etc.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 18th December 2018, 01:54 PM
Almost three years to the exact day he got sacked from Chelsea.
Posted by: Houdini 18th December 2018, 01:56 PM
I don't quite know what to make of this news but I have the feeling that Mourinho is not the only one to blame, the players should take responsibility as well.
And with regards to laughs he who laughs in May laughs best. We'll be laughing at Liverpool again when they bottle the league yet again.
Posted by: Rooney 18th December 2018, 02:33 PM
And with regards to laughs he who laughs in May laughs best. We'll be laughing at Liverpool again when they bottle the league yet again.
Don’t worry win or lose the title, we will still be laughing at Manchester United when they win the battle for 6th place
Suppose it’s funny the title might end up with your noisy Manchester neighbours! you can’t give out years and years of torment and not expect anything back! The so called biggest club in the world who don’t sack managers!
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 18th December 2018, 03:23 PM
Next Man Utd Manager (Paddy Power)
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer 7-4f
Laurent Blanc 5-1
Zinedine Zidane 5-1
Michael Carrick 8-1
Mauricio Pochettino 12-1
Ryan Giggs 14-1
Carlos Querioz 16-1
Arsene Wenger 25-1
Leonardo Jardim 33-1
Didier Deschamps 33-1
Nicky Butt 33-1
Antonio Conte 33-1
Eddie Howe 33-1
Guus Hiddink 33-1
Gareth Southgate 33-1
Eric Cantona 33-1
Patrice Evra 33-1
Roy Keane 33-1
Steve Bruce 33-1
Sir Alex Ferguson 40-1
Roberto Martinez 50-1
Massimiliano Allegri 50-1
Luis Enrique 50-1
Rafa Bentiez 50-1
Posted by: Rooney 18th December 2018, 05:00 PM
Hopefully it will be Solksjaer until the end of the season. He got Cardiff relegated, so here’s hoping!
Suspect in the summer they will go for a load of managers, get turned down and most likely settle for an experienced head as Director of Football and a good up and coming coach.
Posted by: Houdini 18th December 2018, 06:22 PM
Suppose it’s funny the title might end up with your noisy Manchester neighbours! you can’t give out years and years of torment and not expect anything back! The so called biggest club in the world who don’t sack managers!At least we have accepted things are not working/not going to work out how we'd like it to. As the months go by the belief will grow more and more for Liverpool which will ultimately make the disappointment feel worse. Manchester City are the lesser of two evils for me so I would prefer them over Liverpool.
Posted by: dobbo 18th December 2018, 07:12 PM
As I said once before this is just our turn to be the mockery of football. Swings & roundabouts n' all.
Ed Woodward will continue to be the club's biggest problem. 3 managers now, same outcome - can't keep blaming them all the time. Half of the squad aren't good enough for a top 6 team let alone title contenders. Obviously Jose never helped with matters, his demeanor was always nothing but negativity however as soon as a new boss comes in a handful of players now have nothing to hide behind & will rightly be ripped apart from all corners.
Posted by: Rooney 18th December 2018, 08:00 PM
Don't get this argument, only 1 team can win the League or Champions League every year. Part of the fun of football for me is dreaming and getting a little excited. Sure at it hurts when we get beat in finals, but at least we had a good ride to get there with some classic games! Better than watching a double decker bus!
Ed Woodward will continue to be the club's biggest problem. 3 managers now, same outcome - can't keep blaming them all the time. Half of the squad aren't good enough for a top 6 team let alone title contenders. Obviously Jose never helped with matters, his demeanor was always nothing but negativity however as soon as a new boss comes in a handful of players now have nothing to hide behind & will rightly be ripped apart from all corners.
I think Ed Woodward is a massive problem, but also for me it is just your whole strategy. You've attracted a team of mercenaries and I can't think of one big marquee signing you have made post Ferguson that has actually worked!? Lukaku was very good for a while, but that's genuinely it. What it means is like you say you have a squad full of average players picking up £100,000 a week. They are not going to get that wage anywhere else so you can't sell them. Either you pay them off (e.g. Rooney) or let them run their contracts down.
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 18th December 2018, 08:12 PM
Glazers and Woodward are our two remaining problems as a club. Hopefully a director of football can help mitigate that by removing the Glazers and Woodward from the footballing decisions and allowing Ed to go back to commercialising every single blade of grass so the Glazers can siphon even more money out our club
Posted by: Houdini 18th December 2018, 09:05 PM
A lot of United fans have come to the realisation that we're unlikely to finish in the top 4 now so if/when we finish 6th at the end of the season it will not come as a huge bombshell because we would have seen this coming for months. For Liverpool fans missing out on the title could potentially hit you very hard if you take the title race all the way to May.
Steven Gerrard said "we do not let this slip" when Liverpool had the title in their hands and a few weeks later he literally let it slip and it's something rival fans have been laughing at for years ever since. You could possibly even lose the title on goal difference which as we United fans know is hard to take. Breaking the record for most points in a season without winning the league is also a big possibility.
Posted by: Rooney 18th December 2018, 09:38 PM
Steven Gerrard said "we do not let this slip" when Liverpool had the title in their hands and a few weeks later he literally let it slip and it's something rival fans have been laughing at for years ever since. You could possibly even lose the title on goal difference which as we United fans know is hard to take. Breaking the record for most points in a season without winning the league is also a big possibility.
Disappointing if we're in the race and if we don't win, but I would also say we are likely to challenge for the next 2-3 years so I can live with that. Certainly Manchester City have a much bigger gaping hole shortly than we do (Fernandinho). Must also be hard for Manchester United fans to know they are pretty much turning in to everything they took the piss out of for 20 years!
Yep it's absolutely fine people laugh about the slip or Loris Karius in the final, I'm cool with that. I've long got over it as have most other Liverpool fans and the fact that Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea still sing about it just makes Liverpool fans laugh too - everyone is obsessed with us! Not inconceivable about goal difference too, but it's with +8 now I think and I'm pretty sure within the past 60 years it's been decided by goal difference 3 times. I can't see it happening this year.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 18th December 2018, 10:54 PM
Pochettino to take the job next season?
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 18th December 2018, 11:02 PM
Man United fans - who do you want to see as interim boss?
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 18th December 2018, 11:17 PM
Manchester United appear to have confirmed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as interim manager and then it was deleted with also the Norwegian PM wishing him the bes
Posted by: Rooney 18th December 2018, 11:29 PM
Probably the best manager for the job, but suspect he’s going to either use Man Utd to get Spurs to spend money or is Madrid bound..
Think Solskjaer is a strange interim appointment to me, even taking sentiments out of it.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 18th December 2018, 11:36 PM
Does seem strange given his record and what happened at Cardiff.
Not sure if Pochettino would take the job next season maybe Madrid bound.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 18th December 2018, 11:37 PM
Ed Woodward will continue to be the club's biggest problem. 3 managers now, same outcome - can't keep blaming them all the time. Half of the squad aren't good enough for a top 6 team let alone title contenders. Obviously Jose never helped with matters, his demeanor was always nothing but negativity however as soon as a new boss comes in a handful of players now have nothing to hide behind & will rightly be ripped apart from all corners.
That was a hell of a roundabout yous were on then for 25 years lol.
Posted by: Rooney 18th December 2018, 11:44 PM
Not sure if Pochettino would take the job next season maybe Madrid bound.
What’s fantastic is Man Utd can’t even get the announcement right
Hastily deleted! This announcement, Pogba’s tweet, Neville’s reply - absolute panto! Here’s hoping Ole doesn’t do as bad a job as he did at Cardiff (cos by God they were shite under him).
Posted by: Christmasteve201 18th December 2018, 11:49 PM
Hope the mancs don't get Potch he's an awesome manager!
Think Eddie Howe would be a decent fit the way Bournemouth play football. Maybe would t be allowed to settle thoigh with the demands these days!
Posted by: Christmasteve201 18th December 2018, 11:50 PM
Hastily deleted! This announcement, Pogba’s tweet, Neville’s reply - absolute panto! Here’s hoping Ole doesn’t do as bad a job as he did at Cardiff (cos by God they were shite under him).
Molde were beaten by Glenavon during the Europa league in the summer!!
Posted by: Rooney 19th December 2018, 12:22 AM
Think Eddie Howe would be a decent fit the way Bournemouth play football. Maybe would t be allowed to settle though with the demands these days!
Pochettino would be good, but would take a couple of seasons to be challenging again and numerous players would need to be shifted cos they don't fit his style. But like I said, I feel he will probably stay with Spurs or go to Real Madrid in the summer.
I find the whole intermin manager strange. Effectively kills the season off while they look for a new manager (who clearly they have no idea who they want to appoint). I actually still can't believe they are going to appoint Solskjaer. Surely go for someone experienced like of the Hiddink ilk, at least you know they will steady the ship. Has an interim manager ever been sacked before??
Posted by: Christmasteve201 19th December 2018, 12:44 AM
Not sure but an interim manager has won the champions league before!!
Posted by: dobbo 19th December 2018, 12:00 PM
I find the whole intermin manager strange. Effectively kills the season off while they look for a new manager (who clearly they have no idea who they want to appoint). I actually still can't believe they are going to appoint Solskjaer. Surely go for someone experienced like of the Hiddink ilk, at least you know they will steady the ship. Has an interim manager ever been sacked before??
It is a leftfield appointment but in one sense it's no risk at all & is the safe option. It won't matter a jot what happens under Ole, he's a club legend so even if we got relegated this season it wouldn't affect his status. But to be honest, we could put Mr. Bean in charge & I doubt it'll make any difference, the players have decided they're not going to try this season.
As for long-term I have my reservations about Poch (and also seriously doubt we'll pinch him from Spurs anyway). This is fast becoming the impossible job i.e. very much a poisoned chalice!
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 19th December 2018, 02:17 PM
Solskjaer as interim manager until the end of the season, oh boy.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 19th December 2018, 02:34 PM
What Mourinho said regarding about being sacked by.Man United.
I think he said when he joined Chelsea in 2004 that he wanted to destroy Man United, fourteen years later he has certainly done a good job of that.
Posted by: TheGrinch 19th December 2018, 03:07 PM
Mourinho the true goat *.*
Posted by: Christmasteve201 19th December 2018, 09:34 PM
As for long-term I have my reservations about Poch (and also seriously doubt we'll pinch him from Spurs anyway). This is fast becoming the impossible job i.e. very much a poisoned chalice!
Pretty sure he would be remembered for the wrong reasons if united got relegated lol
Posted by: dobbo 19th December 2018, 11:05 PM
Well, yes he'd always have that tag on him (and it was a bit of an exaggeration tbf, it's not actually going to happen) but I meant it in the same light as when Toon were relegated under Alan Shearer.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 20th December 2018, 12:30 AM
Yeh I don't even remember when he got them relegated lol so maybe your right. Prob because Shearer went straight back to the motd studio!
Posted by: Christmasteve201 21st December 2018, 11:37 PM
Another great win for Liverpool tonight, good to see them as Xmas no1. They were even good tonight, some mistakes from Fabinho, Robertson and others. Don't like Lovern in there, always looks like he will make a mistake!
4 points clear though until tomorrow!
Posted by: Rooney 22nd December 2018, 10:12 AM
4 points clear though until tomorrow!
It was a professional performance against a good team who have taken points off all the other Top 6 bar Spurs. Says a lot when every chance they had was from our mistakes really, and i suspect a lot of those were down to the conditions.
Tell you what Van Dijk is absolutely fantastic. He's like a peak Rio Ferdinand and John Terry hybrid - absolute monster.
Posted by: dobbo 22nd December 2018, 04:52 PM
Wow what the hell is happening today? At this rate, Cardiff are gonna lose as well!
Posted by: Rooney 22nd December 2018, 05:08 PM
Some crazy results that go against all form or logic - even Arsenal could easily have dropped points today against Burnley!
Interesting to see how City react now, goal difference is only 5 and we haven't really seen them or their fans under pressure as they normally always take the lead early or walked to the title last season. Long way to go yet and undoubtedly we are going to drop points again. But I think if Fernandinho played today - they don't lose the game today.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 22nd December 2018, 10:46 PM
Wow, where did that come from Townsend that volley.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 22nd December 2018, 11:03 PM
It was Cardiff and some people I have spoken to are getting carried away.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 23rd December 2018, 02:13 AM
It was a good performance from united though and they got a lot more people into the box. Martial, Pogba and Rashford look a lot happier too lol.
Great performance from Palace there, some goal by Townsend!!
Posted by: Houdini 23rd December 2018, 03:01 AM
Look at Pep Guardiola's body language and mannerisms during this post match press conference, you can tell that he's not used to losing and also there is a feeling that he probably turns up to stadiums without imagining the possibility of losing.
It's a shame that Sir Alex Ferguson and Pep Guardiola were not managing teams in the Premier League at the same time because it would have been very interesting to what effect Sir Alex's mind games would have had on Guardiola.
Posted by: Houdini 23rd December 2018, 03:03 AM
5-1 win is a great start for Ole Gunnar's time as caretaker manager, hopefully more results like this will follow even though it was Cardiff that were the opposition!
Posted by: Rooney 23rd December 2018, 03:48 AM
It's a shame that Sir Alex Ferguson and Pep Guardiola were not managing teams in the Premier League at the same time because it would have been very interesting to what effect Sir Alex's mind games would have had on Guardiola.
I’m really interested to see how they react now. They have the better squad but they have not been under any pressure since Guardiola took over. Obviously everyone will point to the game on January 3rd but highly doubtful the title will be won or lost during that game
Posted by: Doctor Blind 23rd December 2018, 01:12 PM
The only two teams in the past 10 years to be top at Christmas and NOT win the League were both Liverpool in 2008 and 2013.
Third time lucky?
Posted by: Christmasteve201 23rd December 2018, 02:27 PM
No Liverpool are never destined to win the league in my lifetime as I support them
Posted by: dobbo 23rd December 2018, 07:19 PM
Remarkable that Spurs are now only 2 points behind City. They'll still bottle the big matches but it's another problem for the top 2 to have to worry about at least.
Posted by: TheGrinch 23rd December 2018, 07:25 PM
If only Spurs never got off to a slow start!
Posted by: Christmasteve201 23rd December 2018, 07:41 PM
Spurs were brillant today! Great game so it was!
Posted by: Houdini 23rd December 2018, 07:53 PM
It would be hilarious if Liverpool continue their streak of being top of the table at Christmas but failing to win the league! Tottenham only 2 points behind Manchester City, it's definitely not a two-horse race for the title and I kind of hope they will be able to do it out of the top 3 but it's not going to happen.
Posted by: Rooney 23rd December 2018, 09:08 PM
Yeah you have to have Spurs in the mix, they smashed Everton. It looks like that Derby defeat really hit them hard.
That said I think they have the weakest squad of the 3 and their injuries are really mounting up now. Can't see them doing it, but stranger things have happened.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 23rd December 2018, 11:34 PM
Pickford's tackle on Alli, a red card?
Posted by: Christmasteve201 24th December 2018, 04:46 PM
Haha your like me on normal seasons but Liverpool are involved this year!!
They will no doubt fall eventually as I've seen it happen so often
Posted by: Christmasteve201 24th December 2018, 04:46 PM
For me it was a yellow!
Posted by: TheGrinch 24th December 2018, 04:52 PM
I honestly think Leicester can pull out a surprising result against Manchester City too, be a difficult game for City!
Posted by: Houdini 26th December 2018, 04:54 PM
Manchester City!!!!
Posted by: Houdini 26th December 2018, 04:59 PM
Fantastic performance from us against Huddersfield, I think the fact that Ole Gunnar Solskjær played as a striker is helping the squad a lot right now as the style of football was a lot more eye catching than what we've seen lately. Hopefully we will keep this up, our defending is still poor though. Marcus Rashford was Man Of The Match for me.
Posted by: Rooney 26th December 2018, 05:11 PM
Not seen the game but everyone is saying how much they miss Fernandino and the full backs (I mean come off it, they have spent a shed load on full backs ffs!!!). The game against Liverpool is now must-win. And when that happens Pep usually tries something ridiculous out, so I'm fully expecting that come next week.
Spurs creeping up too, but I just can't see it. They have to go to the Etihad, Anfield and Stamford Bridge in the 2nd half of the season as well as contesting a two legged league cup tie and moving stadiums. Stranger things have happened and of course Liverpool have two games back to back where they may drop points, but just can't see Spurs challenging yet.
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 26th December 2018, 10:47 PM
You were right, Lee.
Man City look leaky in defence, at least we have a title race.not a procession.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 26th December 2018, 11:08 PM
City not getting away with Delph at left back this year, why does he always tackle like that??
Posted by: Christmasteve201 26th December 2018, 11:09 PM
Liverpool 6 points clear now, means it'll be even more painful when it inevitably falls apart
Posted by: dobbo 26th December 2018, 11:14 PM
Like they say goals win games but defence wins titles. Pool look immaculate at the moment, city look hopeless without fernandinho. If he doesn't play in the big game on Jan 3rd pool will wipe the floor with them.
Posted by: Rooney 27th December 2018, 12:32 AM
Right now the momentum is completely with us though. City look mentally weak and what's even more strange is the fact they are losing the games after going ahead.You could see it in the body language after today, the players were pretty much conceding the title in December - why!? And while full props to Spurs, they are competing in 4 competition, are playing every 3-4 days throughout January and still have to go to Anfield, Etihad and Stamford Bridge. I don't see it myself right now.
Inevitably we are going to have a small blip at some stage and the next two fixtures back to back are going to be difficult, but the fact our defence is playing so well really means we are in with a great shout. The game is going to be must-win for City on January 3rd, going to be a shed load of pressure on both teams.
Posted by: Rosemerry 🤶🎁 27th December 2018, 09:37 AM
Posted by: CaptainMackmas 28th December 2018, 12:51 AM
Felipe Anderson is certainly a fine player for West Ham.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 28th December 2018, 09:47 AM
Inevitably we are going to have a small blip at some stage and the next two fixtures back to back are going to be difficult, but the fact our defence is playing so well really means we are in with a great shout. The game is going to be must-win for City on January 3rd, going to be a shed load of pressure on both teams.
I want to believe!!
Posted by: Christmasteve201 28th December 2018, 09:47 AM
One of the signings of the season, cracking player!
Posted by: dobbo 28th December 2018, 11:34 AM
Blows hot and cold & had an awful start to prem life but he's blossoming into a payet replacement now.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 28th December 2018, 04:05 PM
Think he would do something at a big club to - no disrespect to West Ham, a big club in their own right!
Posted by: Rooney 28th December 2018, 04:19 PM
I'd be shocked if a Top 6 Premier League don't come in for him in the summer. I agree he is a little inconsistent, but what players these days are aside from the super giants? Only problem is he would be way, way over priced.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 28th December 2018, 04:21 PM
Some of the goals he's scored this season have been amazing, would like Liverpool to go for him! Pereyra the Watford player was another one who has looked excellent this season albeit his form has dipped!
Posted by: Rooney 28th December 2018, 04:30 PM
I couldn't see us going for him, we have Shaqiri who is just as good. Plus couped with the price, I just couldn't see it. Suspect he's more likely to end up at Spurs (if they have any money) or Chelsea. Strange really as out of all the big overhyped players the bottom 14 clubs signed from outside of the Premier League, bar Felipe Anderson most of them seem to have been average or have struggled to adapt yet.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 28th December 2018, 04:37 PM
Yeh be nice to see him stay at West Ham though and not make the obvious move across London!
Posted by: dobbo 29th December 2018, 04:51 PM
Only in the Prem can a team (Leicester) defeat the last 2 champions back-to-back then lose at home to a team yet to win away
Looks like another title bid bottled for Spurs.
Posted by: Houdini 29th December 2018, 06:21 PM
New manager but the same old Arsenal!
Posted by: Rooney 29th December 2018, 11:36 PM
Was just utterly naive from them. They caused Liverpool the most problems I've seen any team do this season, but in turn we could easily have scored ten. Crazy game!
Posted by: Christmasteve201 30th December 2018, 03:19 AM
The city game midweek is so huge now!!
Posted by: TheGrinch 30th December 2018, 11:58 AM
Southampton v city will be a draw tbh
Posted by: Christmasteve201 30th December 2018, 01:09 PM
Let's hope you continue to be correct in your predictions Grinchy!!
Posted by: Voltage501 30th December 2018, 06:31 PM
12 goals in 3 matches. When did this happen last for Man United?
Posted by: Christmasteve201 30th December 2018, 06:34 PM
Freedom and happiness are what's different!
Posted by: Rooney 30th December 2018, 06:35 PM
Well City wining at least gives the game on Thursday some major significance now. Liverpool win and I think the title race is all but over, but a City win then it's game back on. I certainly can't see it being as close and cagey as it was at Anfield as City need to win. Like I said, I am expecting Pep to try something ridiculous on Thursday, probably a 1-8-1 or something of that ilk.
Posted by: Voltage501 30th December 2018, 06:38 PM
Pogba has decided to play again for Man United.
Probably be a 1-0 win to Liverpool when they play Man City.
Posted by: Houdini 30th December 2018, 06:44 PM
Another really good performance from us, Ole Gunnar Solskjær is working his magic on the team. I do feel a bit sorry for Mourinho because really the players should always play for the badge no matter who is in charge. I think if results like this are maintained then Solskjær should be given the job permanently, Mike Phelan being the assistant is surely helping as well right now. Tottenham at Wembley in a few weeks time will be a big test but I think we can win if we continue like this.
Posted by: dobbo 30th December 2018, 06:46 PM
December 2011 I've just read!
First off I'm super happy for Ole, amazing start - yes it was against 3 in the bottom half (and for all intents and purposes we may have won them anyway albeit less convincingly) but he needed this build up ahead of the big games coming up against Spurs & PSG.
Say what you want about some of the players but there's no doubt in my mind they'd stopped trying beforehand. Everybody is quick to sing their praises now but it goes to show we are well below our potential. And I'm certain as soon as something doesn't go quite to plan for whatever reason the usual suspects will show their true colours again.
Still can't keep a clean sheet to save our lives tho
Posted by: Rooney 30th December 2018, 07:12 PM
First off I'm super happy for Ole, amazing start - yes it was against 3 in the bottom half (and for all intents and purposes we may have won them anyway albeit less convincingly) but he needed this build up ahead of the big games coming up against Spurs & PSG.
Say what you want about some of the players but there's no doubt in my mind they'd stopped trying beforehand. Everybody is quick to sing their praises now but it goes to show we are well below our potential. And I'm certain as soon as something doesn't go quite to plan for whatever reason the usual suspects will show their true colours again.
Still can't keep a clean sheet to save our lives tho
Some really good attacking play, but I would expect that given Mourinho was about as anti-football as they come! That said I hate Mourinho, but to be fair to him, I think he actually called Pogba right. Clear as day he downed tools.
I still think the first time you play a decent side you'll get found out, which may or may not be against Spurs. Really good attacking play, but quite suspect defensively. Reminds me a little bit of Liverpool under Brendan Rodgers right now to be honest. That said you've played yourself in to form and given yourselves a chance at finishing Top 4.
Posted by: Christmasteve201 30th December 2018, 09:03 PM
Even a Liverpool win on Thursday I wouldn't say it's all over!
Think avoiding defeat is the order of the day. Be interesting to see how we react to a defeat as well as we haven't had to do that this year yet!
United for the champions league?? Wouldn't be the first time an interim manager with little experience has achieved great things Chelsea 2012 says hello!
Posted by: Rooney 30th December 2018, 09:56 PM
Think avoiding defeat is the order of the day. Be interesting to see how we react to a defeat as well as we haven't had to do that this year yet!
United for the champions league?? Wouldn't be the first time an interim manager with little experience has achieved great things Chelsea 2012 says hello!
Absolutely no chance. PSG will toast them in Paris. They are not strong enough defensively.
As for Liverpool, well history tells us we never make it easy.
Posted by: Houdini 30th December 2018, 10:00 PM
If Liverpool win the league this season then they will need to avoid defeat on Thursday as a win for Manchester City would put immense pressure on Liverpool for the rest of the season and it would be a miracle if they didn't let it slip from that point onwards.
Posted by: dobbo 30th December 2018, 10:19 PM
Pool win & the title is in the bag I reckon'. 9 points would be a massive mental hurdle for even City to overcome.
As for United impossible to tell whether we'll put up a genuine top 4 challenge, gotta take on a few of the big boys first to gauge progress.
And yeah, PSG will absolutely destroy our defence - the only slight hope we have is if Dave goes into God mode.
Posted by: Rooney 30th December 2018, 10:29 PM
Need a miracle!? If City beat us they would need to keep winning every game and hope we slip up at least twice. Even if City do get to the top again, we've seen how fragile they can be. City are going to fly at us on Thursday, but as long as we are maximum of 1 goal down at half-time, I could see us picking up a result.
As for United impossible to tell whether we'll put up a genuine top 4 challenge, gotta take on a few of the big boys first to gauge progress.
And yeah, PSG will absolutely destroy our defence - the only slight hope we have is if Dave goes into God mode.
Man Utd-Spurs will be a big test. Think if Liverpool need a miracle to win the league if they get beat on Thursday, then Man Utd need more than a miracle to gain 8 points on Chelsea!
Posted by: Rooney 30th December 2018, 11:47 PM
https://twitter.com/5livesport/status/1079470792252030978?s=12
More fans like this please!
Posted by: dobbo 31st December 2018, 12:11 AM
Think she's living on cloud cuckoo land myself, winning nothing with the current defence!
Posted by: Rooney 31st December 2018, 12:32 AM
Of course she is, but this is what makes it funny. I can only assume this is what Liverpool fans must have been like to listen to! Beat Cardiff away, Huddersfield & Bournemouth at home and the next stop is the treble
Posted by: Christmasteve201 31st December 2018, 01:27 AM
I think if we get beat on Thursday then yes 4 points isnt a big lead and the pressure will be on, but I remember being 2 points clear 4 weeks ago and thinking that was amazing!
Posted by: Houdini 31st December 2018, 02:01 PM
Man Utd-Spurs will be a big test. Think if Liverpool need a miracle to win the league if they get beat on Thursday, then Man Utd need more than a miracle to gain 8 points on Chelsea!
I didn't say Liverpool need a miracle, I said "it would be a miracle" if the lead is reduced to 4 points with half of the season to go and Liverpool don't let it slip. Liverpool will lose more than one game in the league this season and they won't win 16 out of 18 that are left either.
Posted by: Rooney 31st December 2018, 04:19 PM
Oh we will get beat at some point, I am sure of it, if it's not on Thursday then the likelihood is it will happen sooner or later. But on paper where is that gonna happen? All signs probably point to the game at Old Trafford as our record there is largely terrible of late and we have the Champions League game before it. I can't see us dropping too many points at home.
Posted by: Voltage501 31st December 2018, 07:15 PM
Everything Liverpool have done this season, I have to say has been perfect so far.
Posted by: Voltage501 1st January 2019, 04:57 PM
Yet again Fulham very feeble in defence.
Posted by: mdh 2nd January 2019, 09:58 PM
United continue the revival. The top 4 is really opening up.
Posted by: Houdini 2nd January 2019, 10:01 PM
After beating Newcastle 2-0 we're only 6 points off the top 4 now. Who knows what could happen there? it was a brilliant substitution from Ole Gunnar bringing Lukaku on in the 2nd half, he made a big and instant difference to us and had a hand in both goals. Jonjo Shelvey was lucky to escape caution for the foul he did on Paul Pogba.
Posted by: 5 Silas Frøkner 2nd January 2019, 10:08 PM
Shelvey should have had an early bath. Disgusting tackle.
Mariner had an absolute howler tonight got away with murder
Posted by: Rooney 2nd January 2019, 11:12 PM
Yeah but you play Spurs next week and Chelsea play Newcastle at home. I've been here many times before as a Liverpool fan, you give yourself a half a chance but you really can't afford to slip up anywhere. Always thought Man Utd would win, but they looked a bit shot of ideas until they got the breakthrough with the rebound. They gave away some good chances as well. I'd just give Ole the job now
Posted by: dobbo 3rd January 2019, 12:22 AM
Spurs is gonna be an interesting one! IF we manage the win I can already imagine all the Spurs fans thinking Poch done it on purpose cos he's got more than half an eye on becoming United manager
Posted by: Rooney 3rd January 2019, 12:48 AM
Who knows what Spurs team will turn up. I think they will win quite easily though.
Think we can safely safe Huddersfield are down after tonight, can't see a way back for them now.
Posted by: Suedehead2 3rd January 2019, 10:14 AM
A tweet this morning from (Brighton fan) Tony Hawks...
Man Utd’s bosses must be delighted with Solskjaer’s results but his interviews are a disgrace. No doubt he is quickly being trained up in pig-headed arrogance - as a matter of some urgency.
Posted by: TheGrinch 3rd January 2019, 11:17 AM
Think we can safely safe Huddersfield are down after tonight, can't see a way back for them now.
Yeah I think Huddersfield are 100% down, they done incredibly well to survive the first year but stranger things have happened and if they manage to pick up over six points this month then they're right back in the mix. Huge point for Southampton against Chelsea, they seem to have the new manager affect. I still think Cardiff will end up being relegated along with Newcastle. Rafa is a fantastic manager but Newcastle need to spend in order to survive and I can't see them doing that. I still can't see Burnley being relegated and I think Palace and Brighton pick up enough points to survive.
Posted by: dobbo 3rd January 2019, 11:54 AM
The problem with Huddersfield is that they were resigned to relegation from the very outset. You can tell from Wagner he was extremely positive & upbeat all last season but his whole demeanor this entire season has been negative as if he knows they got no hope whatsoever.
Posted by: Houdini 3rd January 2019, 02:25 PM
There was never any doubt about Huddersfield getting relegated this season, how they managed to survive last season still baffles me but I guess their early season form must have saved them. Once they get relegated I think they will be stuck in the Championship for a while as well and might even drop to League One eventually.
Posted by: Seinfeld 3rd January 2019, 05:23 PM
Huddersfield were always going to struggle eventually. They did bloody well to even get promotion and (most likely) get two seasons in the Premiership in all honesty.
Posted by: Rooney 3rd January 2019, 06:07 PM
Man Utd’s bosses must be delighted with Solskjaer’s results but his interviews are a disgrace. No doubt he is quickly being trained up in pig-headed arrogance - as a matter of some urgency.
He's still waving off on the auroa of getting the job and everything is going rosey for him so far. His interviews to me come across as a man who doesn't have much idea and is basically trying to do what Ferguson did. Ferguson the best man manager, of our generations, but tactically he was fairly poor I always thought. Interesting to see what happens against Spurs.
I can't even really see Huddersfield doing anything now, they look OK defensively but their top scorer is a bloody defender, says it all really. They've spent a fair bit of money too but all in the wrong areas. I think Cardiff might be OK, same with Newcastle. Still think Burnley will go down and then it's a toss a coin for the rest really.
Posted by: PeteFromLeeds 3rd January 2019, 06:14 PM
Shame about Huddersfield, it has been great to see them in the Premier League, although maybe we'll get a more local team in there next year...
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