Everything Soccer

[NorthDakota]

Pool ain't looking too sharp today. I would guess it's hard to stay sharp in these Rona times...playing in an empty stadium...when you've already won the league.

 

[dublinirish]

Pool ain't looking too sharp today. I would guess it's hard to stay sharp in these Rona times...playing in an empty stadium...when you've already won the league.

they've been on the piss and haven't slept in 3 days

 

[Old Man Mike]

Actually I think that they were too excited in the first half. They attacked like crazy people and City nailed them (especially on the Alexander-Arnold/Gomez side) when they were (consistently) too offense minded. You can't mess around that way when De Bruyne can get the ball. I've never seen Liverpool all year have deficits (not even same numbers) of defenders racing backwards to try to get to the runners.

 

[Rogue219]

Negotiations for Koulibaly between Napoli and City:

City: what is your fee for the player?

Napoli: Two Kajillion pounds

City: deal

 

[GowerND11]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Arsenal's defence is rubbing off on Liverpool 🙃 <a href="https://t.co/VV07C5SaSx">pic.twitter.com/VV07C5SaSx</a></p>— B/R Football (@brfootball) <a href="https://twitter.com/brfootball/status/1283498606390116353?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 15, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[NorthDakota]

Negotiations for Koulibaly between Napoli and City:

City: what is your fee for the player?

Napoli: Two Kajillion pounds

City: deal

The fact that City isn't banned from Europe shows that FFP is a joke and should be eliminated.

I have no idea how a club can do what they did and NOT get tossed.

 

[notredomer23]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">When I say Pulisic's stats hold up well, I mean they hold up *really, really well*. Dude’s one extra ball recovery away from being Sadio Mané. <a href="https://t.co/13dmaJtiue">pic.twitter.com/13dmaJtiue</a></p>— Bill Connelly (@ESPN_BillC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPN_BillC/status/1283736915888476160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 16, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[CTIDANDREW]

Negotiations for Koulibaly between Napoli and City:

City: what is your fee for the player?

Napoli: Two Kajillion pounds

City: deal

Manchester City is not even in the top 20 of transfer fees ever paid in the history of the sport....and unlike many of the ones above them they have almost always got great value for the money spent. The biggest question mark is Cancelo, and it is too early to tell on him. I admit, it does not look great at the current moment. When Mendy plays he is one the best left backs in the world, just has been unfortunate he has been hurt a lot.

They will pay a fair market value for Kouilably or they will find someone else just like they always do. Liverpool outbid them for Van Dijk and they went out and got Laporte for $20 million less euros.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_expensive_association_football_transfers

 

[CTIDANDREW]

Gordon, Edwards and Klopp have taken Liverpool to a place that no one ever thought they'd get back to again. There is definitely a vision there where they believe they don't need the best players but the best team. Granted, getting Van Dijk and Allison has been a major boost that has led directly to winning #6 and #19. Still, they signed Gini, Shaqiri and Robertson for bargains coming from teams that were relegated.

Klopp also got the best out of Firmino, who Rodgers didn't even want and put out on the wing. Firmino was an Edwards signing and has proven to be a great one.

They have hit on every transfer since Klopp came in as manager. There is no way they can sustain that, but they seem to have a plan for everything. Covid has probably thrown a wrench into that, but they have no doubt adjusted and will move forward. I think they will give this squad another go at it and get the kids more games. Maybe Brewster, Grujic and Wilson come back from loan and get some time with the first squad. We shall see.

Just enjoying every moment now while we have it. Very lucky to have Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool. Back on our Fucking Perch.

Come on now....

48 million plus add ons for Naby Keita who cannot even get into the starting eleven for big games.

Ox for 35 million who is averaging a staggering 2 PL goal & 2 PL assists per season with Liverpool.

32.5 million for CHRISTIAN BENTEKE...the same fee City paid for Kun Aguero.

Liverpool has misses just like everyone else. I am just asking we be a little honest.

Congrats on a great season and deserved title, excited to run it back next season with a great rival. I hope Klopp and Pep stay for the next five seasons. The game of football deserves it.

Cannot be one the best teams ever, until you defend your title. We shall see how next season goes.

 

[NorthDakota]

Jesus, you have to be kidding me.

48 million plus add ons for Naby Keita who cannot even get into the starting eleven for big games.

Ox for 35 million who is averaging a staggering 1 PL goal per season with Liverpool.

32.5 million for CHRISTIAN BENTEKE...the same fee City paid for Kun Aguero.

Liverpool has misses just like everyone else. I am just asking we be a little honest.

Congrats on a great season and deserved title, excited to run it back next season with a great rival. I hope Klopp and Pep stay for the next five seasons. The game of football deserves it.

Cannot be one the best teams ever, until you defend you title. We shall see how next season goes.

Jurgen Klopp didnt buy Benteke so wtf are you talking about?

The Ox has been exceptional for Liverpool. I have no idea if you are an idiot or if you just look at goals. Probably still butthurt about the screamer he put past your shit club in the Champions League lol.

Naby Keita has been a mystery but he will have another year or two to make his mark.

Liverpool has not missed on any big transfers since Klopp arrived. Some have been better than others but there hasnt been a John Stones or any of the Man United-esque flops.

 

[CTIDANDREW]

Jurgen Klopp didnt buy Benteke so wtf are you talking about?

The Ox has been exceptional for Liverpool. I have no idea if you are an idiot or if you just look at goals. Probably still butthurt about the screamer he put past your shit club in the Champions League lol.

Naby Keita has been a mystery but he will have another year or two to make his mark.

Liverpool has not missed on any big transfers since Klopp arrived. Some have been better than others but there hasnt been a John Stones or any of the Man United-esque flops.

This whole post just screams typical Liverpool fan.

Name calling whenever anyone calls them out for not being truthful.

John Stones played a big part in not one but two PL title winning sides. Time will tell if Liverpool has bought any player that can do that.

That shit club that beat your "best PL team ever" two weeks ago 4-0 and could have been 7 or 8.

Enjoy your day, and maybe try to be a better person.

 

[fightingirish26]

Jurgen Klopp didnt buy Benteke so wtf are you talking about?

The Ox has been exceptional for Liverpool. I have no idea if you are an idiot or if you just look at goals. Probably still butthurt about the screamer he put past your shit club in the Champions League lol.

Naby Keita has been a mystery but he will have another year or two to make his mark.

Liverpool has not missed on any big transfers since Klopp arrived. Some have been better than others but there hasnt been a John Stones or any of the Man United-esque flops.

Ox has not been exceptional this year. Injuries are catching up to him. Never seen a player who is so fast without the ball be so slow with it.

Similar path to John Stones who you consider a failure. Was in a rich vein of form in past seasons but injuries have ruined any chance for them to get in a good rhythm.

 

[CTIDANDREW]

Ox has not been exceptional this year. Injuries are catching up to him. Never seen a player who is so fast without the ball be so slow with it.

Similar path to John Stones who you consider a failure. Was in a rich vein of form in past seasons but injuries have ruined any chance for them to get in a good rhythm.

Look out man! He is going to call you an idiot for having the audacity to call a 35 million player not great value for being an attacking midfielder/winger who does not have ONE PL assist this season when he has Sane, Salah, and Firmino in the front three for him to pass to.

 

[Old Man Mike]

New-minted (due to liking Klopp so much) Liverpool fan here (for the past circa six years maybe.) My amateur opinions:

Just at this moment: Man City is better than Liverpool (they weren't during the pre-stop season, but they certainly are now.) Post-stop (and just pre-stop) Liverpool had/have a very particular pair of problems:

They are a wildman crazy but defined effort team who have lost (try as they do not to) their edge because they are already champs too soon. Last season the two giants battled down to the last games and everyone was wired. Secondly, in both the slump pre- and post-lockdown, the one irreplaceable part was injured almost every game: Jordan Henderson. The Crazed Wolves offensive theory cannot function (as well) without him. And the defense doesn't either. He alone is probably worth +2 a game. (one more goal, one less goal against.)

Klopp has desperately hoped that someone (besides James Milner) could step in and play like Henderson. Keita doesn't have the instincts. He just doesn't fit. Chamberlain has the physique but thoroughly bad instincts and lousy touch and teammate positioning awareness. Klopp seems to want him to learn badly, as he is the one mid who could rough it up in there where Liverpool wants to be the ones who come away with the midfield challenges. But he is NOT that good yet. (Klopp should try for Traore and see if he could play attacking mid, leaning towards Salah's side. It would be a very busy place over there since Arnold wants to overlap too.)

When Henderson was healthy, the physicality of Liverpool could negate the other world slickness of City in the midfield. Then the superior Liverpool wide attackers could connect with the forward three and win the games against basically anyone. But it all required that superior instinctive rough-housing kamikaze attack in midfield. ANYTIME you see Liverpool without Henderson and Wynaldum both out there, fear a bit. Anytime Fabinho and Milner team up with One of those two, Liverpool has a good chance. If you see Keita or Chamberlain out there, fear the worst.

The other Liverpool flaw is the greatest passing wingback playing today: Alexander-Arnold. He's so good that you have to play him, but he is NOT good defensively either straight on ball, or (worse) far off ball on the back of the play. I'd attack Liverpool down the AA/Gomez side all game long. City has major defensive flaws too. If they didn't it wouldn't be much of a game between them and any other team. But they do stink it up quite a bit. Thankfully, De Bruyne always has the ball so the center backs can take vacations.

 

[CTIDANDREW]

New-minted (due to liking Klopp so much) Liverpool fan here (for the past circa six years maybe.) My amateur opinions:

Just at this moment: Man City is better than Liverpool (they weren't during the pre-stop season, but they certainly are now.) Post-stop (and just pre-stop) Liverpool had/have a very particular pair of problems:

They are a wildman crazy but defined effort team who have lost (try as they do not to) their edge because they are already champs too soon. Last season the two giants battled down to the last games and everyone was wired. Secondly, in both the slump pre- and post-lockdown, the one irreplaceable part was injured almost every game: Jordan Henderson. The Crazed Wolves offensive theory cannot function (as well) without him. And the defense doesn't either. He alone is probably worth +2 a game. (one more goal, one less goal against.)

Klopp has desperately hoped that someone (besides James Milner) could step in and play like Henderson. Keita doesn't have the instincts. He just doesn't fit. Chamberlain has the physique but thoroughly bad instincts and lousy touch and teammate positioning awareness. Klopp seems to want him to learn badly, as he is the one mid who could rough it up in there where Liverpool wants to be the ones who come away with the midfield challenges. But he is NOT that good yet. (Klopp should try for Traore and see if he could play attacking mid, leaning towards Salah's side. It would be a very busy place over there since Arnold wants to overlap too.)

When Henderson was healthy, the physicality of Liverpool could negate the other world slickness of City in the midfield. Then the superior Liverpool wide attackers could connect with the forward three and win the games against basically anyone. But it all required that superior instinctive rough-housing kamikaze attack in midfield. ANYTIME you see Liverpool without Henderson and Wynaldum both out there, fear a bit. Anytime Fabinho and Milner team up with One of those two, Liverpool has a good chance. If you see Keita or Chamberlain out there, fear the worst.

The other Liverpool flaw is the greatest passing wingback playing today: Alexander-Arnold. He's so good that you have to play him, but he is NOT good defensively either straight on ball, or (worse) far off ball on the back of the play. I'd attack Liverpool down the AA/Gomez side all game long. City has major defensive flaws too. If they didn't it wouldn't be much of a game between them and any other team. But they do stink it up quite a bit. Thankfully, De Bruyne always has the ball so the center backs can take vacations.

Great post sir.

One of the forgotten story lines of the 2013-2014 title race...is when Henderson picked up a late straight red vs City at Anfield. He was greatly missed in the next three games where Liverpool dropped five points and gave the title back to City.

Good chance he wins player of the year this year, although I think it should be KDB. Either one of them would be deserved winners.

 

[NorthDakota]

This whole post just screams typical Liverpool fan.

Name calling whenever anyone calls them out for not being truthful.

John Stones played a big part in not one but two PL title winning sides. Time will tell if Liverpool has bought any player that can do that.

That shit club that beat your "best PL team ever" two weeks ago 4-0 and could have been 7 or 8.

Enjoy your day, and maybe try to be a better person.

Lol a team lost a game to last season's champion a week after winning the league for first time in 30 years. Not exactly the scenario I'd be hyping..a bit like a Brazil fan bragging about scoring at the end of the Germany 7-1 debacle at the 2014 World Cup.

And yes, Manchester City is a shit club. I'm not real big ln clubs who operate the way they do. It's a RB Leipzig operation on steroids.

 

[NorthDakota]

Look out man! He is going to call you an idiot for having the audacity to call a 35 million player not great value for being an attacking midfielder/winger who does not have ONE PL assist this season when he has Sane, Salah, and Firmino in the front three for him to pass to.

Shouldnt you be busy dumping on Jurgen Klopp for a transfer that happened before he got there lol

 

[CTIDANDREW]

Shouldnt you be busy dumping on Jurgen Klopp for a transfer that happened before he got there lol

Damn man, you seem like a fun guy.

Benteke was bought in July 2015. Klopp left Dortmund in June 2015. Liverpool owners at that time were obsessed with getting Klopp (it was well documented as I am sure you're aware), as Liverpool were coming off a bad season and Rodgers was on the hot seat. They fired Rodgers as soon as he began to struggle, and signed Jurgen days afterwards.

If you really believe Benteke was bought without any connection to what Klopp may like in a player then so be it...we will have to just disagree on that one.

 

[NorthDakota]

Damn man, you seem like a fun guy.

Benteke was bought in July 2015. Klopp left Dortmund in June 2015. Liverpool owners at that time were obsessed with getting Klopp (it was well documented as I am sure you're aware), as Liverpool were coming off a bad season and Rodgers was on the hot seat. They fired Rodgers as soon as he began to struggle, and signed Jurgen days afterwards.

If you really believe Benteke was bought without any connection to what Klopp may like in a player then so be it...we will have to just disagree on that one.

If your premise is "Liverpool bought Benteke because they wanted Klopp to come and Benteke seems like a guy Klopp would want" that still wouldn't matter.

The statement you challenged was essentially Liverpool has not had any misses under Klopp. You cited Benteke. Now you want to adjust your Benteke argument to counter a point that nobody made.

If you had some evidence that showed Jurgen Klopp told Liverpool he would not come unless they bought Benteke, then you would have a pretty decent point.

 

[IHateMarkMay]

I'm not here to say what City did was right or wrong. However, if they didn't do anything wrong, then why did they still have to pay a fine? If you are exonerated, there should be zero consequences.

Also, don't forgot your mutual hatred for Manchester United...

 

[CTIDANDREW]

I'm not here to say what City did was right or wrong. However, if they didn't do anything wrong, then why did they still have to pay a fine? If you are exonerated, there should be zero consequences.

Also, don't forgot your mutual hatred for Manchester United...

The Ban was a sham from the beginning. Manchester City were fined for not cooperating with UEFA's legal representatives, and even that fine was reduced from 30 mil to 9 mil. It has been reported that Manchester City's executive board and legal representatives did not cooperate with UEFA, because they were prone to leaks and Manchester City did not trust them.

The main takeaway from the case is the disguise of equity funding as sponsorship contributions' was not proven. They were exonerated of any wrong doing on that regard by a panel of three independent judges at the Court for arbitration of Sport (CAS)...sadly people don't believe anything nowadays and will just continue to believe whatever they want.

Manchester City has not ruined English football contrary to beliefs of other fans of the big six...they have made English football exponentially better in the past decade and will continue to do so in the decades to come.


This is a great article from Martin Samuel on the whole ordeal.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/f...lost-appeal-against-European-ban-CRUSHED.html

 

[IHateMarkMay]

The Ban was a sham from the beginning. Manchester City were fined for not cooperating with UEFA's legal representatives, and even that fine was reduced from 30 mil to 9 mil. It has been reported that Manchester City's executive board and legal representatives did not cooperate with UEFA, because they were prone to leaks and Manchester City did not trust them.

The main takeaway from the case is the disguise of equity funding as sponsorship contributions' was not proven. They were exonerated of any wrong doing on that regard by a panel of three independent judges at the Court for arbitration of Sport (CAS)...sadly people don't believe anything nowadays and will just continue to believe whatever they want.

Manchester City has not ruined English football contrary to beliefs of other fans of the big six...they have made English football exponentially better in the past decade and will continue to do so in the decades to come.


This is a great article from Martin Samuel on the whole ordeal.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/f...lost-appeal-against-European-ban-CRUSHED.html

Got it on the fine, thanks for clarifying. At this point, it doesn't matter who agrees or disagrees, it is what it is and every team has to move forward. The biggest thing (in terms of soccer) is the race for fourth in the Premier League. My ideal scenario would be Chelsea shitting the bed and United and Leicester City going through, but we all know that won't happen.

 

[fightingirish26]

The Ban was a sham from the beginning. Manchester City were fined for not cooperating with UEFA's legal representatives, and even that fine was reduced from 30 mil to 9 mil. It has been reported that Manchester City's executive board and legal representatives did not cooperate with UEFA, because they were prone to leaks and Manchester City did not trust them.

The main takeaway from the case is the disguise of equity funding as sponsorship contributions' was not proven. They were exonerated of any wrong doing on that regard by a panel of three independent judges at the Court for arbitration of Sport (CAS)...sadly people don't believe anything nowadays and will just continue to believe whatever they want.

Manchester City has not ruined English football contrary to beliefs of other fans of the big six...they have made English football exponentially better in the past decade and will continue to do so in the decades to come.


This is a great article from Martin Samuel on the whole ordeal.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/f...lost-appeal-against-European-ban-CRUSHED.html

This is something I wish more people would understand. 3/5 of the biggest leagues in the world have default champions at the point (Juventus, Bayern, PSG). Once Pep brought our level of play up another level or two or three, did we turn it into a one team league? No, Liverpool reacted and upped their game as well. Liverpool and City are arguably the two best teams in the world now, although Bayern deserves consideration as well. Not very long ago was the PL the laughing stock of Europe, all these big teams and none of them could hold their own in the CL. Then you have United and Chelsea who are currently reacting as well and both could realistically challenge next season.

 

[CTIDANDREW]

This is something I wish more people would understand. 3/5 of the biggest leagues in the world have default champions at the point (Juventus, Bayern, PSG). Once Pep brought our level of play up another level or two or three, did we turn it into a one team league? No, Liverpool reacted and upped their game as well. Liverpool and City are arguably the two best teams in the world now, although Bayern deserves consideration as well. Not very long ago was the PL the laughing stock of Europe, all these big teams and none of them could hold their own in the CL. Then you have United and Chelsea who are currently reacting as well and both could realistically challenge next season.

People are always going to feel whatever way they want. Anybody who looks at it objectively would come to the conclusion that City has been a benefit to the sport in the country and in Europe, but the beauty of life is that everyone is allowed to have their own opinion.

Those three teams you mentioned above have also poached the best talent from their domestic rivals over the years. Juventus bought Higuain when Napoli ran them second...PSG bought Mbappe when Monaco beat them to the title, and Bayern got Lewandowski on a free transfer from Dortmund. Manchester City has hardly ever bought a player from a domestic rival...but again they are the ones ruining football.

 

[NorthDakota]

People are always going to feel whatever way they want. Anybody who looks at it objectively would come to the conclusion that City has been a benefit to the sport in the country and in Europe, but the beauty of life is that everyone is allowed to have their own opinion.

Those three teams you mentioned above have also poached the best talent from their domestic rivals over the years. Juventus bought Higuain when Napoli ran them second...PSG bought Mbappe when Monaco beat them to the title, and Bayern got Lewandowski on a free transfer from Dortmund. Manchester City has hardly ever bought a player from a domestic rival...but again they are the ones ruining football.

PSG is particularly bad as well. I dont know much about Italy other than Juventus simply have more resources.

Bayern is a more difficult thing to sort out. Germany has some ownership rules that are designed to prevent clubs from getting a sugar daddy I believe. But yeah, they poach talent and have infinite resources relative to the rest of the Bundesliga. I think the Bundesliga has inked some better TV deals that will hopefully lead to the rest of the league having more resources to compete similar to the EPL.

 

[IHateMarkMay]

PSG is particularly bad as well. I dont know much about Italy other than Juventus simply have more resources.

Bayern is a more difficult thing to sort out. Germany has some ownership rules that are designed to prevent clubs from getting a sugar daddy I believe. But yeah, they poach talent and have infinite resources relative to the rest of the Bundesliga. I think the Bundesliga has inked some better TV deals that will hopefully lead to the rest of the league having more resources to compete similar to the EPL.

I'm not in the know in terms of finances and whatnot, but I have heard that PSG just pays out the ass. I've also heard Italian teams are frugal as shit and they have some interesting taxes.

I've always been a bit intrigued by Bayern. They are always good, it's been quite a long time since they haven't won the Bundesliga. It seems like all great German players want to go there and play.

In terms of English soccer, I think they are slowly becoming the top league and a lot of that is because England has a great generation of talent in the 17-22 range. They won the U19 (I think) World Cup recently and a lot of those players are staying in England to play.

 

[CTIDANDREW]

PSG is particularly bad as well. I dont know much about Italy other than Juventus simply have more resources.

Bayern is a more difficult thing to sort out. Germany has some ownership rules that are designed to prevent clubs from getting a sugar daddy I believe. But yeah, they poach talent and have infinite resources relative to the rest of the Bundesliga. I think the Bundesliga has inked some better TV deals that will hopefully lead to the rest of the league having more resources to compete similar to the EPL.

All good points, I just wanted my main takeaway to be that City has grown their squad, but not at the detriment to the competitiveness of their domestic league. I do not think you can say the same thing about Juventus, Bayern, PSG..and even Real Madrid and Barca to an extent.

Other than Kyle Walker, and Raheem Sterling (Liverpool finished 6th the season prior to when he was sold) nobody else in their top 15-20 players were bought from teams challenging City for Domestic trophies at the time of purchase.

 

[fightingirish26]

Another thing, as was previously mentioned yesterday, is that City have not really come close to breaking records in terms of pure transfer fees. Sure, we've bought a lot of players which cumulatively adds up, but if the argument is that we're ruining football by inflating the market, that's not true anymore, aside from fullbacks I guess. We've gotten good value from the vast majority of our signings.

Also, I'll say it, FFP is bullshit. It's disguised as a way to keep richer clubs from overpowering the less wealthy. Newsflash: outside MLS, that is always going to happen without an actual salary cap. Reality is, the establishment just doesn't want anyone crashing their party. Punishing people for spending their own money seems silly.

 

[CTIDANDREW]

Another thing, as was previously mentioned yesterday, is that City have not really come close to breaking records in terms of pure transfer fees. Sure, we've bought a lot of players which cumulatively adds up, but if the argument is that we're ruining football by inflating the market, that's not true anymore, aside from fullbacks I guess. We've gotten good value from the vast majority of our signings.

Also, I'll say it, FFP is bullshit. It's disguised as a way to keep richer clubs from overpowering the less wealthy. Newsflash: outside MLS, that is always going to happen without an actual salary cap. Reality is, the establishment just doesn't want anyone crashing their party. Punishing people for spending their own money seems silly.

...and to add on to that. If Manchester City were really ruining English football with inflating markets explain to me how they were outbid for four of their last most sought after transfer targets by other ENGLISH clubs.
Alexis Sanchez > Man United
Virgil Van Dijk > Liverpool
Jorginho > Chelsea
Harry Maguire > Man United

It is all nonsense, but people are jealous of success so it is what it is.

 

[IHateMarkMay]

...and to add on to that. If Manchester City were really ruining English football with inflating markets explain to me how they were outbid for four of their last most sought after transfer targets by other ENGLISH clubs.
Alexis Sanchez > Man United
Virgil Van Dijk > Liverpool
Jorginho > Chelsea
Harry Maguire > Man United

It is all nonsense, but people are jealous of success so it is what it is.

Do we really have to bring up Alexis Sanchez? lol. I've heard that Inter is interested in taking him permanently, we'll be happy to get his stupid high wages off the books.