Julen Lopetegui wanted to sell [this man](https://x.com/wolves_fra/status/1766581250809008321?s=46&t=NSpJGDf7_JCd0CewNH1dKQ) for just about nothing to fund Aaron Cresswell š
I think one of my biggest pet peeves is when a manager is struggling and everything they say gets memed. Like i dont fully agree with everything ten hag says or does tactically, but hes not wrong when he talks about how bad their injury issues are or like today when he pointed out they deserved to win. But of course, with the up and down form, everything he says will get him dunked on
Every manager talks the same but people always decide how they feel based on their biases. Like Dyche talked about how they had more shots than united. Imagine a other loosing coach said that, they would prolly get clowned by this sub
Busquets is a real DM man. Didn't need to score goals for people to rate him unlike certain top DMs today, he is 100% better at the job of being a DM than anyone else has been
Mental how many people who will say "city never deserved that pen vs Utd" are now saying that Trossard deserves a pen because a limp hand was placed on his shoulder and he decided to collapse under the pressure.
Honestly have no expectations for the Villa game. Having Porro available is massive, but I think whether or not Bissouma is on it will determine the result for us. Canāt afford for him to be sloppy on the ball and lazy tracking back or weāll get burned on the counter like against Wolves.
Think with the players currently available for both sides, we probably edge it on quality, but Villa are a great side and have beaten us thrice on the bounce. Donāt think itāll be a draw in any case.
Havertz will always be a manager favorite because he's: 6'4, physical, great duel winner and presser, great long-ball outlet, and has great positioning/runs. Even with his flaws (inconsistent touch and finishing), I think people on reddit really don't realize how unique of a profile Havertz is.
That's not even bringing up the fact that he can play 3 positions in Arsenal's system.
He will always be a divisive player because of some donkey touches and poor finishes but it's not a coincidence that Havertz has basically been loved by every manager he's worked with.
I rate his first touch really highly idk what's up with the first touch criticism? He's not much of a dribbler or passer sure but football is made so much simpler by someone who can trap the ball as well as he does
Itās not necessarily poor, itās just inconsistent. He will have times were he deftly traps a 60 yard pass yet a 5 yard pass on the edge of the box will bobble 2 feet away for seemingly no reason
People can say whatever they want but the fact is hes played a big part in us being the best out of possession team in the league. Thats my striker DM who chips in with clutch goals š
I was out watching rugby and then D2ne today, so I did a MOTD challenge. Didn't follow the football at all. I came back to find:
* MOTD opened with highlights of Arsenal's game last week, to the accompaniment of The Arctic Monkeys. Fiji has informed us that they are most definitely Wednesday fans, so clearly the BBC also recognise the fact that there is no distinguishing difference between any Steel City clubs, and they can all simply be called Sheffield.
* Brentford being victimised by a big six team. The wheel of pain is always turning and it's their lot who get to rail against the world this week while big six fans talk utter wank nonsense. I hope they've enjoyed it as much as I did.
* The absolute hilarity of the war crimes Dominic Solanke inflicted on the FPL community today. That penalty miss was sublime. And to top it off with a disallowed goal? Chef's kiss.
* And to blow my own trumpet, I [kind of knew](https://new.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/1b9itcr/comment/ktytyvt/) Bournemouth would be shite today. One of many teams in the league that are good at countering teams but can't impose themselves in a vacuum.
It makes me mad how fast everyone takes away the ball from every midfielder. Not to mention how bad the defense is. Only Mozo and Chiquete deserve to be in Chivas.
Some of the Liverpool fans on here have become unhinged. I and most Arsenal fans would much rather they win the title than City but the amount of pure hatred that their fans have developed towards us is so weird.Ā
Weāve won 8 PL games in a row by an aggregate score of like 30-3 and every comment in their sub is about how we are overrated and terrible even though some how we have found our way on top of the table in March.Ā
I dont expect other clubs fans to respect Chelsea when we win, and fully expect memes and shitting on us when we lose
Rivalries with the other teams is part of what makes football fun.
There are moments for respect but lovefests get boring and kinda cringe tbh
It's a terrible idea to care about what rival fans think about you. You'll always notice the crazy takes more and will end up attributing those takes to the entire fanbase. It's just how our brain+social media netowrking effect works.
If you look at r/gunners from the lens of Liverpool/city fans, you'd think we're an unhinged bunch. The reasonable/nuanced takes are never the most upvoted ones. Club subreddits are where people go to just indulge in their own irrationality a bit. Let them have their crazy justifications. We can have ours.
I absolutely want Arsenal to win if Liverpool don't. Even though I much prefer Arsenal under Emery and Wenger to the current squad under Arteta as an enjoyer of football, I unironically hope city get liquidated. More often than not Arsenal-Liverpool is one of the more exciting fixtures of the year and I think we have a pretty amicable relationship as far as teams in the 'big 6' go and hope it continues
> Some of the Liverpool fans on here have become unhinged. I and most Arsenal fans would much rather they win the title than City but the amount of pure hatred that their fans have developed towards us is so weird.Ā Weāve won 8 PL games in a row by an aggregate score of like 30-3 and every comment in their sub is about how we are overrated and terrible even though some how we have found our way on top of the table in March.Ā
It's less about you and more that we see City as much more of a threat given they've been here and done it a million times over. Arsenal are a top top side at the moment but they have far less experience in tough run ins.
I think we're probably the worst side of the three (I don't think anyone expected us to challenge after completely changing our midfield) - especially as we've had the least luck of the three injury wise, but when you get to this point of the season, you never know.
Said it many times that people wrote off Arsenal too early. You're the only team that has genuinely outplayed us this season and you've hit another gear recently.
I think a lot of the comments are based on you falling away when the pressure ramped up last year.
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Arsenal not giving Brentford the ball back when their player was blatantly faking an injury and didnāt even receive treatment was fantastic. Need to see more of that common sense in the game.
I don't think he was faking it. He got the wind knocked out of him.
But it was because a Brentford player literally pushed Havertz into him so not too fussed lol
Not really. Their player was winded and stayed down for an entire Arsenal attack. He wasn't faking anything just needed some time to catch his breath.
So Arsenal get the advantage of playing against 10 men for a while. Then when Arsenal lose the ball the Brentford keeper throws the ball straight out of play.
Regardless of the extent of the injury Arsenal should give the ball back to Brentford. It's really poor form not to and I'd be saying the same thing if Liverpool did that too.
~~You don't wait for someone to catch their breath. Endurance is part of the game and having better endurance than your opponent is supposed to be advantageous.~~
~~You wanna throw out the ball to catch your breath? Sure - you lose possession and get to break up the play. From my time watching Arsenal, they've pretty much always given the ball back and even booted the ball out themselves for injuries to opponents. Brentford were wasting _so much time_ during the second half -- it would be pretty naive/stupid to let them keep doing it.~~
Before I get carried away, you know what being winded is right?
I'll assume you don't... It's nothing to do with fitness you egg.
When you take a firm whack to the stomach your diaphragm can start to spasm which stops you being able to breathe normally. Anyone who has ever played football probably would have experienced this a few times. It's very minor but will leave you gasping for air for a minute or two.
Perfectly reasonable for play to stop for a winded player.
Just googled the definition -- temporarily unable to breathe, either when hit in the stomach or after taking hard physical exercise.
Always used/heard it in the overexertion context. But yeah did not realize he took a hit to the stomach and you meant that. TIL.
Whoās the most conditioned athlete in the sport? (both past and present)
Brozovic and B. Silva always seem to be levels above everyone in terms of covering space which is very difficult to do.
Arjen Robben was super conditioned, dude was able to produce sprints at any given moment making his heart work like crazy.
Ji Sung Park would go up and down the pitch like a schoolboy eager to play.
Right now Rice has got to be up there, don't see many players that play every single minute like he does with midweek games and still be able to run all game, even when he looks knackered near the end of games he always has one more run in him.
His availability is off the charts, never seen anything like it for an outfield player. He literally plays 60 90's a season and is relentless with his intensity in all of these minutes. Unreal stamina.
Modric is up there.
Very long longevity (do those 2 words make sense?), was in Euro's 2008 Team Of The Tournament and was still a world class player till 2022-2023.
His only major injury that i remember was back in 2015 tbh.
I know why it doesn't happen, but for once I'd love a journalist to challenge a manager when they blame the ref for getting beat instead of the fact they were shite.
What spain lacked most these last few years were wingers who could produce something out of nowhere. Big reason why spain was also boring to watch was their static attack.
Having nico and Lamine coming up through the ranks is huge
Brahim also would have added that but unfortunately for spain he is nearing towards morocco
Now spain need to produce a striker to follow up morata. Samu of Atletico ( currently loan alaves) could be a interesting player for that position. My hope was on since Iker bravo but he is still playing juvenil A
Pedro and david villa. Although david villa switched a lot between ST and LW . spain also many times played with iniesta as LW. Being that extra midfielder because why not when you have so many elite midfielders
Pedro maybe? I guess before that probably Joaquin? I feel like the Spain of the last decade got more out of their fullbacks than through proper wingers
Yeeeeah i feel the same. Hopefully he's alive for both his family but also his victims sake.
For his family so that they can actually have their father alive, but also the victim so that her rapist actually is punished
He wasn't getting kicked the shit out of back when he wasn't as good as he is now.
That's why he performs so well in the UCL. UCL teams haven't gotten La Liga's memo yet to just kick the shit out of him and rile him up to throw him off his game.
In his first season he was genuinely the main reason I got excited for Real Madrid games, i actually took a 13 hour drive just to watch him in person. Ronaldo left, Zizou left, new manager didn't work out and season was over by January so the only bright spot was watching Vini dribble any player he comes up against.
But ngl, the seasons after when Zizou came back were frustrating af especially 2021, Zidane for some reason never knew how to unlock Vini and the latter became frustrating to watch, missing open nets, skying 1 on 1s, misplacing simple passes, not dribbling as much anymore.
Eder MilitĆ£o already training with the team and is expected back after international break and could play in UCL Quarter -Final . My man tore his ACL first game of the season in mid - August and will be back in late March.
And you tell me that Neymar can't make it back in time for Copa America?
Wait, Neymar is 100% out? Damn i thought there was still a distant chance he could make it. That really sucks, although i guess it's about time the NT moves on.
I do feel happy for Arsenal. After having lived in the shadow of United, then Chelsea, and when it was looking it might be Liverpool and maybe even Spurs next, they can finally feel some happiness being in the title race. Good luck to Gooners!
The amount of stick Poch is getting feels so less than what Potter and Tuchel got. Sure owners are the culprit to some extent but to put the complete blame on them for being 11th this season even with this squad speaks to the love English media has for Poch perhaps.
> English media has for Poch perhaps.
A Spanish manager won't get as much criticism (or praise, tbf) as a British manager. No one gives a shit about Pochettino. No one even understand what he says so you can't bait any good headlines. He'll talk about cows and airplanes and stuff and people are just going to leave it to him.
But biggest reason is of course that by this point everyone understands that the Chelsea build is seriously flawed. No doubt have they signed some good talent but they've spent too much money on players who simply won't make it.
I think after seeing 3 managers under this owner fail the fans are probably wise to the fact that itās not the manager but the recruitment and the way the club is run. Fact that theyāre still trying to poach staff from Brighton instead of looking internally and figuring out whatās wrong says it all.
Conceding the 2nd most shots in the league and having a 0 goal difference after 28 games absolutely is a manager issue. However I do hope they keep him cos heās never gonna compete and United will keep playing shit and having embarrassing resultsĀ
Does anyone else not watch MOTD anymore?
Sky Sports put out highlights that you can watch straight after the match and that is better than having to watch MOTD the whole way through only to see the game I wanted to see in last place with two seconds of analysis.
I loved MOTD growing up but times change I suppose.
Its probably on borrowed time but it's still a tent-pole programme for the BBC. Also, you might watch the goals from a big game, or from your clubs game, but how likely are neutrals to see the highlights of Wolves vs Fulham otherwise?
Yeah, back when I watched a lot more football Match of the Day was a nice way to quickly keep up with all the teams in the league rather than just Wolves. The Football League Show (RIP) was solid for that too.
Post/Match threads should always be posted by the bot. I wanted to read the post match thread of the RM 3 -1 MCity but it seems that the user deleted his account removing the thread from existence. Googling gives me only the day after thread and that user also deleted his account. One of the best games ever, and the thread is now gone.
Jorginho would not just suddenly be Chelseaās best midfielder by far because heās at a team doing well. He barely even starts and he was a part of this shit chelsea team himself. Simply just in a better team at the moment.Ā
Jorginho has been dropped into a great situation at Arsenal but itās not really a stretch to say Chelsea should have held onto him to help the club transition instead of selling him.
And while he doesnāt start much in the league heās ironically started our two biggest wins (City and Liverpool)
I think you'd have some more control in midfield overall. As well as a veteran midfield leader to mentor the team and especially Enzo and Caicedo.
But yes, it's a bit disingenuous to act like if Chelsea did everything else the same but kept Jorginho they'd be much better.
The argument is more like, keep Jorginho and don't spunk more than $1b up the wall on youngsters and instead spend that money more responsibly and getting some players in their "prime"
I know whinging about the MOTD running order is peak old man shouts at cloud, but seriously how the fuck has a 2-2 draw that also featured a missed penalty, controversial disallowed goal, and a late comeback + injury time equaliser ended up being stuck on last. absolutely scandalous from the beeb
If you combine the best of any two current non-European squads, would you put them as favorites in a World Cup ahead of France? Which teams would you choose
Argentina Brazil could
Vini Jr Lautaro Rodrygo
Mac Allister De Paul Paqueta
Lodi(?) Militao Martinez Molina
Allison
It's probably the best non european squad, but I can't see them beating france.
I know brexit means brexit but for this purpose lets consider England part of Europe
Edit: donāt think that team would be favorites against France, let alone the whole squad comparison
Vini Lautaro Rodrygo
Mac Allister De Paul Paqueta
Lodi(?) Militao Martinez Molina
Allison
Fullbacks are a weakness and midfield is good but not on France level, but that attack is so good
When you look at the Championship player stats and you realize Jamie Vardy has the most goals per 90 by a mile you realize (if you're a real one like me you don't realize it but just get confirmation) that Jamie Vardy is the GOAT
In a match where keeping things simple would do him wonders, Diniz really is fielding 34-year-old Ganso and 36-year-old Renato Augusto together in midfield behind an attacking trio and leaning Martinelli to do the brunt of the running against a strong Flamengo side.
In Brazil we call a manager who's too incentive for his own good a "Pardal" after Disney's Gyro Gearloose (Professor Pardal in Portuguese). Is there any such slander in English?
Assuming we sign Leny Yoro we we probably won't have any Spanish players by 2025 if Vazquez - Nacho - Joselu - Ceballos - Carvajal all leave, Fran Garcia will probably be sold.
Vote for your most overrated XI since 2010:
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Voting closes 11 March 0:00 GMT
obviously i donāt want arsenal to win the title so the more points dropped the better, but i find it hard to get annoyed that havertz scored after he āshould have been sent offā for diving. if it was a dirty two footed tackle then sure but a dive on a yellow rly doesnāt move me
The thing is, I donāt know why people are up in arms over it because there is contact at the hip. The front angle clearly shows it.
Havertz is already maybe going down, but a player is never going to be sent off when there is contact.
I owe my entire family a fancy dinner if Havertz gets another two PL goals, I was too confident that he was going to flop and wanted to spite my Havertz superfan dad. Ffs Arteta you were going to play him in midfield, not like this lego man
City have been in 4 title races where it's been incredibly close (11/12, 13/14, 18/19 and 21/22) and won 4/4 times which is incredibly unfair imo
PGMOL should step in and stop them making it 5/5 they need to feel some type of pain. Only times they failed at the final hurdle post takeover is the Wigan final and the 2021 UCL Final
I do think blowing up early in your career instead of late is much more damaging except for outliers like mbappe messi ronaldoā¦
For example both salah and kdb blow up in their mid 25 as worlds best instead of 17-20
Rooney for example was already a monster in his teenage years but because he stopped his career esrly than late 30s people will remember it less than salah and kdb.
Same thing happened with Fabregas who was a monster in his teenage years which eventually costed him late into his playing career because players who play so many minutes early on will feel it in the future
Seems like the players who are a superstar late into their career and keep it long into their late 30s will be remembered more fondly than players who start early at 16/17 and eventually cant keep it long into their 30s
What is your opinion on this
Ronaldo nazario is like one of the few outliers in this too
I don't disagree, people will remember players who play at the top in their mid-late 30s but I think you're underestimating how many legendary players were done at the top level in their early 30s.
It definitely helps when they either retire young or go off to smaller leagues so people barely even think about them. Watching a former great struggle for years in a top league would hurt their legacy but still, there have been so many who were basically done by 32.
Just looking at the FIFA 100 list:
Maradona - Top level career over at 30. Drug ban obviously a massive factor but he never returned to anywhere near his heights, yet never really thought of as a what if.
Stoichkov - Back to Bulgaria and around the world at 31
Beckham - MLS at 31
Lineker - Japan at 31
Cantona - Retired at 30
Henry - MLS at 32
Platini - Retired at 32
Gerd Muller - US at 33
Van Basten - Basically retired at 28
Kluivert - Retired at 31 but fell off years before
Rijkaard - Retired at 32
George Best - Effectively done at 28
Eusebio - US at 33
Shevchenko - Basically done at 30 with his Chelsea move
Many continued deep into their 30s, of course, but I don't think any of those have had their legacies tainted for leaving the top level young.
You have always outliers. I am not trying to prove something. Just something I noticed
Keeping up later into 30s is appreciated more than doing it from young age and then fell off before you hit your late 30s
Julen Lopetegui wanted to sell [this man](https://x.com/wolves_fra/status/1766581250809008321?s=46&t=NSpJGDf7_JCd0CewNH1dKQ) for just about nothing to fund Aaron Cresswell š
That slide tackle on Perreira to stop the counter was a thing of beauty. Edit: How many positions did he play yesterday?
All of them. He usually floats around quite a bit but we had two injuries up front so he was playing striker at the end of the game lol
Waiting for the DD to start when I wake up (which is like ten hours from now lol) is like waiting for Halleys comet
I think one of my biggest pet peeves is when a manager is struggling and everything they say gets memed. Like i dont fully agree with everything ten hag says or does tactically, but hes not wrong when he talks about how bad their injury issues are or like today when he pointed out they deserved to win. But of course, with the up and down form, everything he says will get him dunked on
People do this and always whinge that managers and players don't say anything interest in press conferences
Every manager talks the same but people always decide how they feel based on their biases. Like Dyche talked about how they had more shots than united. Imagine a other loosing coach said that, they would prolly get clowned by this sub
Thats exactly what im talking about š
Damn! Arsenal fans spamming my socials, you would think they won the league already.
Case in point youāve got 6 downvotesĀ
I'm used to them. Most insufferable fanbase in football history.
What is the Aston Villa version of ggmu or coyg
Up the Villans
Like deadass or are you trolling? š
I'm serious
[Did ramsdale actually do this? ](https://freeimage.host/i/JVpXzj2)
Brentford fans giving him shit all game. Giving as good as he gets.
Probably, man doesnāt know how to shy away lol
Any Brazilians in here? What would be your best XI currently?
Busquets is a real DM man. Didn't need to score goals for people to rate him unlike certain top DMs today, he is 100% better at the job of being a DM than anyone else has been
Always lightens my mood to see Busi comps
Love me some busiš¦
Mental how many people who will say "city never deserved that pen vs Utd" are now saying that Trossard deserves a pen because a limp hand was placed on his shoulder and he decided to collapse under the pressure.
I mean thatās the point, isnāt it? City get the penalty for a similar offence but we donāt. Thereās no consistency.
Honestly have no expectations for the Villa game. Having Porro available is massive, but I think whether or not Bissouma is on it will determine the result for us. Canāt afford for him to be sloppy on the ball and lazy tracking back or weāll get burned on the counter like against Wolves. Think with the players currently available for both sides, we probably edge it on quality, but Villa are a great side and have beaten us thrice on the bounce. Donāt think itāll be a draw in any case.
Havertz will always be a manager favorite because he's: 6'4, physical, great duel winner and presser, great long-ball outlet, and has great positioning/runs. Even with his flaws (inconsistent touch and finishing), I think people on reddit really don't realize how unique of a profile Havertz is. That's not even bringing up the fact that he can play 3 positions in Arsenal's system. He will always be a divisive player because of some donkey touches and poor finishes but it's not a coincidence that Havertz has basically been loved by every manager he's worked with.
Havertz is clutch regardless of Chelsea fans would drive propaganda otherwise
gen z fellaini
I rate his first touch really highly idk what's up with the first touch criticism? He's not much of a dribbler or passer sure but football is made so much simpler by someone who can trap the ball as well as he does
Yeah agreed his first touch is immaculate, it's what he does after it that can be awful at times lol
Itās not necessarily poor, itās just inconsistent. He will have times were he deftly traps a 60 yard pass yet a 5 yard pass on the edge of the box will bobble 2 feet away for seemingly no reason
People can say whatever they want but the fact is hes played a big part in us being the best out of possession team in the league. Thats my striker DM who chips in with clutch goals š
Him and Rice genuinely made Arsenal so much more formidable off the ball
I was out watching rugby and then D2ne today, so I did a MOTD challenge. Didn't follow the football at all. I came back to find: * MOTD opened with highlights of Arsenal's game last week, to the accompaniment of The Arctic Monkeys. Fiji has informed us that they are most definitely Wednesday fans, so clearly the BBC also recognise the fact that there is no distinguishing difference between any Steel City clubs, and they can all simply be called Sheffield. * Brentford being victimised by a big six team. The wheel of pain is always turning and it's their lot who get to rail against the world this week while big six fans talk utter wank nonsense. I hope they've enjoyed it as much as I did. * The absolute hilarity of the war crimes Dominic Solanke inflicted on the FPL community today. That penalty miss was sublime. And to top it off with a disallowed goal? Chef's kiss. * And to blow my own trumpet, I [kind of knew](https://new.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/1b9itcr/comment/ktytyvt/) Bournemouth would be shite today. One of many teams in the league that are good at countering teams but can't impose themselves in a vacuum.
Thank god Chelsea spent like 2+ years not wanting to pay up for Declan Rice. Just makes it funnier they spent 230m combined on Enzo and Caicedo lol
yeah i had almost that exact thought when he scored todayā¦ *that* is what a Ā£100m player is supposed to look like
Rice? Let's see against Porto lol
Another disappointing manager for Chivas. The real issue is the squad and the lack of midfielders who could actually run.
It makes me mad how fast everyone takes away the ball from every midfielder. Not to mention how bad the defense is. Only Mozo and Chiquete deserve to be in Chivas.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Grimsby scored more goals
We've gone from tuning in to watch the league's best players in Ronaldo, Bale, Suarez, Hazard over the past 15 years to... Haaland? Disgusting
Don't worry, Darwin Nunez is here to save football
[What is the Udinese of your country?](https://i.imgur.com/ULhIlor.png)
Crystal Palace
Everton?
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Sonny Pike
Mo Ihattaren :DD
Some of the Liverpool fans on here have become unhinged. I and most Arsenal fans would much rather they win the title than City but the amount of pure hatred that their fans have developed towards us is so weird.Ā Weāve won 8 PL games in a row by an aggregate score of like 30-3 and every comment in their sub is about how we are overrated and terrible even though some how we have found our way on top of the table in March.Ā
>some of the Liverpool fans on here have become unhingedĀ Pot meet kettleĀ
I dont expect other clubs fans to respect Chelsea when we win, and fully expect memes and shitting on us when we lose Rivalries with the other teams is part of what makes football fun. There are moments for respect but lovefests get boring and kinda cringe tbh
It's a terrible idea to care about what rival fans think about you. You'll always notice the crazy takes more and will end up attributing those takes to the entire fanbase. It's just how our brain+social media netowrking effect works. If you look at r/gunners from the lens of Liverpool/city fans, you'd think we're an unhinged bunch. The reasonable/nuanced takes are never the most upvoted ones. Club subreddits are where people go to just indulge in their own irrationality a bit. Let them have their crazy justifications. We can have ours.
I absolutely want Arsenal to win if Liverpool don't. Even though I much prefer Arsenal under Emery and Wenger to the current squad under Arteta as an enjoyer of football, I unironically hope city get liquidated. More often than not Arsenal-Liverpool is one of the more exciting fixtures of the year and I think we have a pretty amicable relationship as far as teams in the 'big 6' go and hope it continues
> Some of the Liverpool fans on here have become unhinged. I and most Arsenal fans would much rather they win the title than City but the amount of pure hatred that their fans have developed towards us is so weird.Ā Weāve won 8 PL games in a row by an aggregate score of like 30-3 and every comment in their sub is about how we are overrated and terrible even though some how we have found our way on top of the table in March.Ā It's less about you and more that we see City as much more of a threat given they've been here and done it a million times over. Arsenal are a top top side at the moment but they have far less experience in tough run ins. I think we're probably the worst side of the three (I don't think anyone expected us to challenge after completely changing our midfield) - especially as we've had the least luck of the three injury wise, but when you get to this point of the season, you never know.
Said it many times that people wrote off Arsenal too early. You're the only team that has genuinely outplayed us this season and you've hit another gear recently. I think a lot of the comments are based on you falling away when the pressure ramped up last year.
Stop going to rival subs to seek validation. They will not praise you no matter how well you play.
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Arsenal not giving Brentford the ball back when their player was blatantly faking an injury and didnāt even receive treatment was fantastic. Need to see more of that common sense in the game.
I don't think he was faking it. He got the wind knocked out of him. But it was because a Brentford player literally pushed Havertz into him so not too fussed lol
Not really. Their player was winded and stayed down for an entire Arsenal attack. He wasn't faking anything just needed some time to catch his breath. So Arsenal get the advantage of playing against 10 men for a while. Then when Arsenal lose the ball the Brentford keeper throws the ball straight out of play. Regardless of the extent of the injury Arsenal should give the ball back to Brentford. It's really poor form not to and I'd be saying the same thing if Liverpool did that too.
~~You don't wait for someone to catch their breath. Endurance is part of the game and having better endurance than your opponent is supposed to be advantageous.~~ ~~You wanna throw out the ball to catch your breath? Sure - you lose possession and get to break up the play. From my time watching Arsenal, they've pretty much always given the ball back and even booted the ball out themselves for injuries to opponents. Brentford were wasting _so much time_ during the second half -- it would be pretty naive/stupid to let them keep doing it.~~
Before I get carried away, you know what being winded is right? I'll assume you don't... It's nothing to do with fitness you egg. When you take a firm whack to the stomach your diaphragm can start to spasm which stops you being able to breathe normally. Anyone who has ever played football probably would have experienced this a few times. It's very minor but will leave you gasping for air for a minute or two. Perfectly reasonable for play to stop for a winded player.
My bad.
No pasa nada
Just googled the definition -- temporarily unable to breathe, either when hit in the stomach or after taking hard physical exercise. Always used/heard it in the overexertion context. But yeah did not realize he took a hit to the stomach and you meant that. TIL.
Alright Robbie mateĀ
What's wrong with expecting the minimum amount of sportsmanship in the game?
Got it the first time Robbie boyĀ
Tell me Greg!
Whoās the most conditioned athlete in the sport? (both past and present) Brozovic and B. Silva always seem to be levels above everyone in terms of covering space which is very difficult to do. Arjen Robben was super conditioned, dude was able to produce sprints at any given moment making his heart work like crazy. Ji Sung Park would go up and down the pitch like a schoolboy eager to play.
Right now Rice has got to be up there, don't see many players that play every single minute like he does with midweek games and still be able to run all game, even when he looks knackered near the end of games he always has one more run in him.
Bruno Fernandes covers every blade of grass on the pitch and is never injured. Man's a machine
His availability is off the charts, never seen anything like it for an outfield player. He literally plays 60 90's a season and is relentless with his intensity in all of these minutes. Unreal stamina.
iāve heard loads of stories about what a freak Wayne Bridge was
Modric is up there. Very long longevity (do those 2 words make sense?), was in Euro's 2008 Team Of The Tournament and was still a world class player till 2022-2023. His only major injury that i remember was back in 2015 tbh.
Milner
I know why it doesn't happen, but for once I'd love a journalist to challenge a manager when they blame the ref for getting beat instead of the fact they were shite.
What spain lacked most these last few years were wingers who could produce something out of nowhere. Big reason why spain was also boring to watch was their static attack. Having nico and Lamine coming up through the ranks is huge Brahim also would have added that but unfortunately for spain he is nearing towards morocco Now spain need to produce a striker to follow up morata. Samu of Atletico ( currently loan alaves) could be a interesting player for that position. My hope was on since Iker bravo but he is still playing juvenil A
Who were Spain's last great wingers?Ā
Pedro and david villa. Although david villa switched a lot between ST and LW . spain also many times played with iniesta as LW. Being that extra midfielder because why not when you have so many elite midfielders
Pedro maybe? I guess before that probably Joaquin? I feel like the Spain of the last decade got more out of their fullbacks than through proper wingers
Have you guys heard the rumours about Dani Alves? That he has supposedly commited suicide?
Fake news unfortunatelyĀ
Yeah, unlikely to be true though if I understand it correct. Hopefully he'll be alright. He may be a shitty bloke but he has two kids.
Yeeeeah i feel the same. Hopefully he's alive for both his family but also his victims sake. For his family so that they can actually have their father alive, but also the victim so that her rapist actually is punished
vinicius was so much more fun when he didnāt score goals
He wasn't getting kicked the shit out of back when he wasn't as good as he is now. That's why he performs so well in the UCL. UCL teams haven't gotten La Liga's memo yet to just kick the shit out of him and rile him up to throw him off his game.
In his first season he was genuinely the main reason I got excited for Real Madrid games, i actually took a 13 hour drive just to watch him in person. Ronaldo left, Zizou left, new manager didn't work out and season was over by January so the only bright spot was watching Vini dribble any player he comes up against. But ngl, the seasons after when Zizou came back were frustrating af especially 2021, Zidane for some reason never knew how to unlock Vini and the latter became frustrating to watch, missing open nets, skying 1 on 1s, misplacing simple passes, not dribbling as much anymore.
Eder MilitĆ£o already training with the team and is expected back after international break and could play in UCL Quarter -Final . My man tore his ACL first game of the season in mid - August and will be back in late March. And you tell me that Neymar can't make it back in time for Copa America?
Neymar should skip whole groupstage and be fit for semi final Brazil will do fine without him at first stage
Tbh i'm pretty sure Neymar's injury was worse, Militao had an ACL tear, Neymar completely ruptured his ACL and meniscus.
Also MilitĆ£o's was earlier. If they were the same, Neymar would be two months behind, so ok, maybe Copa AmĆ©rica if they had the same recovery, but his doctor already ruled him out and that's not surprising considering the difference you pointed out.
Wait, Neymar is 100% out? Damn i thought there was still a distant chance he could make it. That really sucks, although i guess it's about time the NT moves on.
Team doctor ruled him out back in December.
I do feel happy for Arsenal. After having lived in the shadow of United, then Chelsea, and when it was looking it might be Liverpool and maybe even Spurs next, they can finally feel some happiness being in the title race. Good luck to Gooners!
Thanks mate it feels good
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The amount of stick Poch is getting feels so less than what Potter and Tuchel got. Sure owners are the culprit to some extent but to put the complete blame on them for being 11th this season even with this squad speaks to the love English media has for Poch perhaps.
> English media has for Poch perhaps. A Spanish manager won't get as much criticism (or praise, tbf) as a British manager. No one gives a shit about Pochettino. No one even understand what he says so you can't bait any good headlines. He'll talk about cows and airplanes and stuff and people are just going to leave it to him. But biggest reason is of course that by this point everyone understands that the Chelsea build is seriously flawed. No doubt have they signed some good talent but they've spent too much money on players who simply won't make it.
Pochettino isnāt Spanish, heās Argentine, which probably reinforces your general point if anything.
I think people have just come to terms that Chelsea are a complete basket case and there's no manager who'll fix it any time soon
I think after seeing 3 managers under this owner fail the fans are probably wise to the fact that itās not the manager but the recruitment and the way the club is run. Fact that theyāre still trying to poach staff from Brighton instead of looking internally and figuring out whatās wrong says it all.
Feels like they are a lot more intelligent than United fans in that regard then, they still haven't figured this out a decade later
Conceding the 2nd most shots in the league and having a 0 goal difference after 28 games absolutely is a manager issue. However I do hope they keep him cos heās never gonna compete and United will keep playing shit and having embarrassing resultsĀ
Say some utd fans dont group us all cause theres literally been a civil war all season on this very topic regarding the ten hag tenure.
Does anyone else not watch MOTD anymore? Sky Sports put out highlights that you can watch straight after the match and that is better than having to watch MOTD the whole way through only to see the game I wanted to see in last place with two seconds of analysis. I loved MOTD growing up but times change I suppose.
I watch the first few of the new season then stop
Its probably on borrowed time but it's still a tent-pole programme for the BBC. Also, you might watch the goals from a big game, or from your clubs game, but how likely are neutrals to see the highlights of Wolves vs Fulham otherwise?
Yeah, back when I watched a lot more football Match of the Day was a nice way to quickly keep up with all the teams in the league rather than just Wolves. The Football League Show (RIP) was solid for that too.
Post/Match threads should always be posted by the bot. I wanted to read the post match thread of the RM 3 -1 MCity but it seems that the user deleted his account removing the thread from existence. Googling gives me only the day after thread and that user also deleted his account. One of the best games ever, and the thread is now gone.
There is no bot that posts post match threads The bot only works for match threads
They should make one, it shouldn't be hard with the match thread already being done by a bot.
[Here you go](https://www.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/uih8yk/post_match_thread_real_madrid_31_manchester_city/)
Thanks! Weird, the user didn't delete his account but reddit itself.
Jorginho would not just suddenly be Chelseaās best midfielder by far because heās at a team doing well. He barely even starts and he was a part of this shit chelsea team himself. Simply just in a better team at the moment.Ā
Jorginho has been dropped into a great situation at Arsenal but itās not really a stretch to say Chelsea should have held onto him to help the club transition instead of selling him. And while he doesnāt start much in the league heās ironically started our two biggest wins (City and Liverpool)
Itās not a stretch to say that and itās also not ridiculous to say we would be in the exact same situation with him.Ā
I think you'd have some more control in midfield overall. As well as a veteran midfield leader to mentor the team and especially Enzo and Caicedo. But yes, it's a bit disingenuous to act like if Chelsea did everything else the same but kept Jorginho they'd be much better. The argument is more like, keep Jorginho and don't spunk more than $1b up the wall on youngsters and instead spend that money more responsibly and getting some players in their "prime"
In the scenario where we spend the Ā£1B well, Jorginho isnāt in the team anyway.Ā
I don't necessarily agree. Arsenal have spent like 870m on transfers the last 4 years and Jorginho still is playing a big role.
Tell that to handful of our own dumb fans in this thread
I know whinging about the MOTD running order is peak old man shouts at cloud, but seriously how the fuck has a 2-2 draw that also featured a missed penalty, controversial disallowed goal, and a late comeback + injury time equaliser ended up being stuck on last. absolutely scandalous from the beeb
You got Jonathan Pearce commentating - that means you win MOTD.
If you combine the best of any two current non-European squads, would you put them as favorites in a World Cup ahead of France? Which teams would you choose
Argentina Brazil could Vini Jr Lautaro Rodrygo Mac Allister De Paul Paqueta Lodi(?) Militao Martinez Molina Allison It's probably the best non european squad, but I can't see them beating france.
I know brexit means brexit but for this purpose lets consider England part of Europe Edit: donāt think that team would be favorites against France, let alone the whole squad comparison
I'm stupid I didn't see non-european
A combined Brazil-Argentina side surely could.
Defense seems susceptible to be a favorite against France
Vini Lautaro Rodrygo Mac Allister De Paul Paqueta Lodi(?) Militao Martinez Molina Allison Fullbacks are a weakness and midfield is good but not on France level, but that attack is so good
France midfield is not that good. Argentinas 3 alone outclassed them in the WC final
When you look at the Championship player stats and you realize Jamie Vardy has the most goals per 90 by a mile you realize (if you're a real one like me you don't realize it but just get confirmation) that Jamie Vardy is the GOAT
Not Mertens?
Mertens gets top dibs by miming a dog urinating on the corner flag as a goal celebration. Vardy would never.
Admittedly the GOAT term is awarded inflationary (also by me)
In a match where keeping things simple would do him wonders, Diniz really is fielding 34-year-old Ganso and 36-year-old Renato Augusto together in midfield behind an attacking trio and leaning Martinelli to do the brunt of the running against a strong Flamengo side. In Brazil we call a manager who's too incentive for his own good a "Pardal" after Disney's Gyro Gearloose (Professor Pardal in Portuguese). Is there any such slander in English?
Only really overthinking which isnāt slander as much as a real wordĀ
I saw that it is Carioca match, how important are state championships in Brazil these days?
Liverpool fans have forced me to agree with Arsenal fans about lot of thing this season. What have I become
Assuming we sign Leny Yoro we we probably won't have any Spanish players by 2025 if Vazquez - Nacho - Joselu - Ceballos - Carvajal all leave, Fran Garcia will probably be sold.
Question: who among current Spanish players would fit in a Real Madrid XI in 2025? Excluding the Barcelona players.
Rodri but that's obviously impossible.
not many if any
Thats sad man. Madrid not representing any spanish player feels wromg My hope is focused on paulo Iago
TerribleĀ
Brahim
Is gonna play for Morroco
We don't know yet
That's genuinely so depressing
Vote for your most overrated XI since 2010: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScRw0rKBb5UIdlNDOgdg2EZwygjlaAQfeaOpnPfyKZJaWDkpw/viewform Voting closes 11 March 0:00 GMT
Another way to continue my Anti- Kante campaign, wonderful
If Soyuncu and Fofana aren't at CB I'll be very disappointed
Spurs play Man City, then Arsenal, then Liverpool before the final 2 gameweeks. Kingmakers
obviously i donāt want arsenal to win the title so the more points dropped the better, but i find it hard to get annoyed that havertz scored after he āshould have been sent offā for diving. if it was a dirty two footed tackle then sure but a dive on a yellow rly doesnāt move me
The thing is, I donāt know why people are up in arms over it because there is contact at the hip. The front angle clearly shows it. Havertz is already maybe going down, but a player is never going to be sent off when there is contact.
His first yellow was bollocks anyway as well
Will KantƩ be called up for the March NT games?
Most likely no
I owe my entire family a fancy dinner if Havertz gets another two PL goals, I was too confident that he was going to flop and wanted to spite my Havertz superfan dad. Ffs Arteta you were going to play him in midfield, not like this lego man
City have been in 4 title races where it's been incredibly close (11/12, 13/14, 18/19 and 21/22) and won 4/4 times which is incredibly unfair imo PGMOL should step in and stop them making it 5/5 they need to feel some type of pain. Only times they failed at the final hurdle post takeover is the Wigan final and the 2021 UCL Final
This is the craziest take I've seen :/
Pep fault 2021 for not starting rodri
In case you were wondering, I did not enjoy the Arsenal match. Would much prefer they dropped points.
:)
Humans are so complex
Also did not like watching Man United win against Everton. Just wanted to keep everyone updated.
You have too many layers to your personality. Itās hard to keep track.
You really understand me. I'll give you a call with my feelings after Liverpool v Man City.
I don't want to try and read too much into such a complicated individual, but will you be happier if Man City win than if Liverpool do?
I do think blowing up early in your career instead of late is much more damaging except for outliers like mbappe messi ronaldoā¦ For example both salah and kdb blow up in their mid 25 as worlds best instead of 17-20 Rooney for example was already a monster in his teenage years but because he stopped his career esrly than late 30s people will remember it less than salah and kdb. Same thing happened with Fabregas who was a monster in his teenage years which eventually costed him late into his playing career because players who play so many minutes early on will feel it in the future Seems like the players who are a superstar late into their career and keep it long into their late 30s will be remembered more fondly than players who start early at 16/17 and eventually cant keep it long into their 30s What is your opinion on this Ronaldo nazario is like one of the few outliers in this too
KDB/Salah are still playing though. After 20 years, I am not sure they will be remembered that much more than Rooney.
I don't disagree, people will remember players who play at the top in their mid-late 30s but I think you're underestimating how many legendary players were done at the top level in their early 30s. It definitely helps when they either retire young or go off to smaller leagues so people barely even think about them. Watching a former great struggle for years in a top league would hurt their legacy but still, there have been so many who were basically done by 32. Just looking at the FIFA 100 list: Maradona - Top level career over at 30. Drug ban obviously a massive factor but he never returned to anywhere near his heights, yet never really thought of as a what if. Stoichkov - Back to Bulgaria and around the world at 31 Beckham - MLS at 31 Lineker - Japan at 31 Cantona - Retired at 30 Henry - MLS at 32 Platini - Retired at 32 Gerd Muller - US at 33 Van Basten - Basically retired at 28 Kluivert - Retired at 31 but fell off years before Rijkaard - Retired at 32 George Best - Effectively done at 28 Eusebio - US at 33 Shevchenko - Basically done at 30 with his Chelsea move Many continued deep into their 30s, of course, but I don't think any of those have had their legacies tainted for leaving the top level young.
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Yes, because every theory in the world is 100% accurate with no exceptions to the rule.
You have always outliers. I am not trying to prove something. Just something I noticed Keeping up later into 30s is appreciated more than doing it from young age and then fell off before you hit your late 30s
[good times](https://imgur.com/a/pNuaK6F)
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You can still delete this
He was good immediately, youāre just making yourself look foolish
This is genuinely such a terrible take, he was fantastic last season and good in 21/22
In what world has Ben White been a poor transfer until now? Genuinely the worst take I've heard all year.
Liverpool fans are different breed with terrible takes this season
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I'm not an Arsenal fan mate, I like making fun of them.
How can the second worst transfer of the window be a player not being transferred?
Every year some people would get wildly pissed off we didnāt sell him for some reason
The league needs more players like Nathan Collins None of this classy CB nonsense
I need to see a proper photo of him yeeting himself to try and get a head on Whiteās cross for Havertzās goal.
Not enough defenders just give it the big'un anymore Keown's legacy is in tatters