Football: Fox hunt failed - Leicester are Champions!

[Philokles]

Decent performance and result. Almost spat my tea out when Rose was given MOTM.

[Mexal]

Vardy has really perfected the art of getting a PK. It's really impressive actually.

[Iskaral Pust]

I didn't realize I was missing an England game just now.  I have to get mentally focused on internationals now. 

Of those managers listed up thread, I doubt any could lose their jobs next season.  Most are arriving after a low point and will get more leeway, and there are very, very few better options anywhere in the world.  The PL has just become the managerial powerhouse. 

Liverpool have been linked with Drinkwater and Shane Long.  I like both players but they look like replicas of Henderson and Ings, plus Ings is much younger. 

[Raja]

Just me, or does anyone else think Shane Long is a bit shit? 

[polishgenius]

I'd be pretty surprised if United academy graduate Danny Drinkwater went to Liverpool if I'm honest.


Also, the bid being reported is £14mil, which is an insulting amount from a team who just finished 8th for one of the key players of the team who just won it.

[Mark Antony]

58 minutes ago, Iskaral Pust said:

Liverpool have been linked with Drinkwater and Shane Long.  I like both players but they look like replicas of Henderson and Ings, plus Ings is much younger. 

Sounds like players Rodgers would have been after not Klopp.

[Rorshach]

Long is a decent option, but he's more hard work that goals.

He'll probably press with the best of them, but he most certainly is no Lewandovsky.

'

[MercenaryChef]

2 hours ago, Soylent Brown said:

Ah, thanks.

But seriously though, De Jong?

yeah.  that was talk when he was signed.

 

further mls talk.

sorry Phillip. but how about that 7 -0 rout that red bulls handed nycfc? 7 goals. nycfc have 3 players each making 4 million or more. red bulls top salary is 700000. 

insane. 

Apparently you cannot just buy legitimacy. 

[Iskaral Pust]

29 minutes ago, Mark Antony said:

Sounds like players Rodgers would have been after not Klopp.

I hope so.  Our English player count has declined since Gerrard, Johnson and Sterling left but we still have 5 players in the English squad plus some kids like Ibe, Ojo, Brannagan, etc so I don't think we need to focus too much on English/homegrown transfers to meet quotas.  I'd be much happier to see Klopp recruit from Germany and points east of there where there may be more underpriced talent. 

[Iskaral Pust]

19 minutes ago, Soylent Brown said:

Drinkwater has had a good season, but he's not as good as Henderson. We've so many central midfielders that fan favourite Joe Allen is probably going to be leaving, so I'd be surprised if we were after any more on top of Grujic.

I think we need a lot more than that in CM.  Both Lucas and Allen could/should depart and we badly need a playmaker similar to Alonso or Modric to complement players like Grujic and Can.  Maybe we could try playing Coutinho deeper.  CM is a major weak spot and having a plethora of inadequate options like Hendo, Allen, Lucas, Milner, Stewart, Rossiter (departed) and the other kids just masks our lack of quality there. 

[Arch-MaesterPhilip]

28 minutes ago, MercifulChief said:

yeah.  that was talk when he was signed.

 

further mls talk.

sorry Phillip. but how about that 7 -0 rout that red bulls handed nycfc? 7 goals. nycfc have 3 players each making 4 million or more. red bulls top salary is 700000. 

insane. 

Apparently you cannot just buy legitimacy. 

Those sons of bitches played with absolutely no heart and New York was painted red with our blood.  The worst part about it was that they couldn't have even give up eight goals.  At least if they had done that they would have set the record for worst loss in league history.  But no, they can't even do that.  

[A Horse Named Stranger]

Gündogan's move to City is about to be completed.

Cost around 25 mil. € plus bonuses. They currently working on the last details of that transfer.

[baxus]

1 hour ago, Soylent Brown said:

Long is shite. We will not improve in the slightest if we busy ourselves signing bang average numpties so I hope that's just a recycled older rumour.

Drinkwater has had a good season, but he's not as good as Henderson. We've so many central midfielders that fan favourite Joe Allen is probably going to be leaving, so I'd be surprised if we were after any more on top of Grujic.

I've seen little of Serbian league last season (or last 10 seasons, to be more precise), but from what I did see (and read) Grujic is more Gerrard type of a player than any other Liverpool has at the moment. Of course, he's far from Gerrard's level, and that comparison could put on extra pressure on the kid thus damaging his progress and his career.

Either way, I'm not sure Grujic is the player to make an impact and improve the squad and the style of play right away. I would LOVE to be proven wrong on that one but I won't be holding my breath.

[MercenaryChef]

copa del rey has been sloppy, physical and full of drama and a red card per side.

let's see if one team can find a winner in extra time. 

[polishgenius]

1 hour ago, Notone said:

Gündogan's move to City is about to be completed.

Cost around 25 mil. € plus bonuses. They currently working on the last details of that transfer.

Such a strange one. Even accounting for the fact that 25mil was peanuts by City's standards even before the new TV deal, why would you make your apparent key midfield signing, into a midfield that desperately needs fixing, someone who has just now yet again proved that the chances of him going a whole season uninjured are a whole lot less than even and that when he does get crocked there's a good chance it's serious?

[Daecon Dayne]

On 5/21/2016 at 9:24 PM, Consigliere said:

 No sense trashing the new manager until I see how he gets on and hope that Mourinho's third season implosion syndrome doesn't strike again - if he gets that far.

Mourinho inevitably implodes. He'll come in, give it a good run, and probably retain the FA Cup and finish top four. Sooner or later, though, he'll get bored and start dicking around. When that happens, he'll haul house and leave United in disarray.

I hope I'm wrong and he brings years of glory to Old Trafford, but I'm not holding my breath. I wish LVG could've seen his contract through.  

[Jeor]

Re: Wenger I'm sure he'll wait until the end of next season before he signs an extension.

Two years ago he just about admitted that he would have left the club had Arsenal not won the FA Cup. I imagine that unless Arsenal put in a legitimate title run this time (not the perennial half-season title challenge) he'll walk.

I don't pretend to know exactly what the environment is like (I assume at board level and in-house he's fine, he still has the dressing room and it seems it's only a certain number of fans where he's finding criticism) but if I were in his position, reserving the right to walk away is a valuable thing. If things go badly, he leaves on his own terms without the embarrassment of being sacked, if things go well, he's strengthened his hand for a lucrative new contract.

[Iskaral Pust]

Grujic sounds like a back-up for Can.  We need a specialist DM and a playmaker (ideally one player who does both well).  

A lot depends on our formation.  Klopp likes 4-2-3-1 but Henderson, Lallana, Milner and perhaps Can and Coutinho are better suited to a diamond (Coutinho at the tip, the others on the side) if we can add an anchor DM.  None of those midfielders score enough to allow us to play with a single striker.  Reus and Gotze under Klopp enabled a 4-2-3-1 by scoring more, creating more and being so dangerous that it kept their opposing player penned back. 

 

I was going to joke that Delph will emerge next season to render Gundogan irrelevant, but it seems mean.  Perhaps once city drop Toure they'll actually have some shape and organization for their midfield.  

[mormont]

On 21/05/2016 at 4:57 PM, polishgenius said:

Check the Sky team's outrageous overreaction to what seems to be for the most part a pretty good-natured pitch invasion. Sure there must have been some fights but '1980 all over again' is a pathetic description.

So, further details have emerged about this and it all looks pretty crappy.

It seems that a number of Rangers players and coaching staff hadn't had the chance to leave the field when the invasion happened and that some Hibs fans assaulted them.

http://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/sport/football/rangers-claim-staff-and-players-assaulted-in-cup-crowd-trouble-1-4134528

There was also some fighting between the fans. Wrecking a set of goalposts and tearing up some turf is one thing, assaulting the players is quite another. To lose a cup final is one thing: to get assaulted or spat on afterwards and to be prevented from getting your runners-up medal presented is another. Totally unacceptable.

But, again, Rangers have managed to take a situation where they should be getting sympathy and turn it into one where they come off as dicks.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-36355559

Their statement is a joke. They complain about the SFA not condemning the violence: the SFA did condemn the violence. They complain about the 'inadequate' security arrangements, after years of complaining about 'heavy-handed' policing of Rangers matches. And worst of all:
 

Quote

 

The Glasgow club acknowledged that a "tiny minority" of their supporters encroached on to the pitch but said this was after "prolonged and severe provocation and in order to protect our players and officials who were being visibly attacked in front of them".

Rangers added: "It is to be hoped that all of Scottish football will share Rangers' disgust and any attempts to attach blame to our supporters for the disgraceful and violent behaviour, which led to our players and fans fearing for their safety, will not be accepted or tolerated by this club."

The statement said the Rangers fans were "goaded and threatened" by Hibs fans who had rushed to their end of the ground. It said it was "preposterous to suggest Rangers fans were somehow to blame as some commentators appear anxious to do".

 

That 'tiny minority' consisted of many hundreds of supporters, and they were on that pitch right away, the moment they saw there was a pitch invasion going on. The suggestion that they were public-spirited heroes trying to rescue the victims of an assault is bollocks, and even if it were true, is not an excuse. Rangers fans weren't equally to blame but they were to blame: they entered the pitch and fought with Hibs fans: 'disgraceful and violent behaviour' was not limited to Hibs fans. Trying to dress it up and playing the outraged victim card won't wash. Blame should be attached because blame exists.

I should say that I understand the Rangers statement goes on to name a couple of those 'some commentators', which in itself is disgraceful. They know full well that naming those individuals and blaming them in this way puts them at risk of reprisals.

The Rangers reaction is an utter embarrassment to the club.

[Calibandar]

On 5/21/2016 at 11:10 PM, Mexal said:

Honestly, United can't play less attractive football under Mourinho than they currently are so it shouldn't make much of a difference.

There is a good deal of truth to this.

I'm very much unexcited for Mou as the new manager but I don't see how it can be worse than it is.

Cup Final another snoozefest. You can set your clock to it really.

On top of that the German Cup final was also incredibly dull, and to cap that off, Barca vs Sevilla once again required enormous stamina to sit through ( which I did not). Maybe it's just me that but it feels like the game of football is being overtaken left and right by other sports that are just a good deal better to watch.