Football: Fox hunt failed - Leicester are Champions!

[A Horse Named Stranger]

On 24.5.2016 at 6:41 PM, Iskaral Pust said:

Gotze looking less likely after he said he's focused on staying at Bayern.  He only has one year left on his contract -- I wonder if he's planning to do a Bosman next summer.

I don't think this is over just yet. 

The response to Götze's announcement came in an interview with Rummenigge.

"The player had been informed in all clarity and seriousness about everything that's going on. He knows how the club feels, he knows how the future coach[manager] of the club feels [about Götze]. Maybe he simply wants to be left alone and focus on solely on the Euros for the moment. He has to ask himself, whether he wants to play constantly."

I am not sure how much clearer Rummenigge can be. I guess the next step would be telling Götze, that the only green he will be seeing next season lies on a golf course. So I really don't see Götze returning to Bayern next season.

[Iskaral Pust]

1 hour ago, Notone said:

I don't think this is over just yet. 

The response to Götze's announcement came in an interview with Rummenigge.

"The player had been informed in all clarity and seriousness about everything that's going on. He knows how the club feels, he knows how the future coach[manager] of the club feels [about Götze]. Maybe he simply wants to be left alone and focus on solely on the Euros for the moment. He has to ask himself, whether he wants to play constantly."

I am not sure how much clearer Rummenigge can be. I guess the next step would be telling Götze, that the only green he will be seeing next season lies on a golf course. So I really don't see Götze returning to Bayern next season.

I think Bayern and Ancelotti have been very clear that they want him to go now for a good fee.  The player seems to be resistant.  He just fired his agent and then his father said he contacted both Dortmund and Liverpool directly to say he would not be leaving Bayern this summer, although that could all be a mix of exaggeration by newspapers and posturing by the player.

I was really disappointed to see a bunch of Liverpool fans go into meltdown when Gotze made his announcement.  Klopp's value is not about attracting Reus or Gotze, it's about discovering and developing the next Reus and Gotze.  That's was his huge contribution to Dortmund but everyone seems to want an immediate fix.

[MercenaryChef]

toon with rafa will utterly thrash the championship.  and dare I dream that he will bring them hungry and powerful into the premiership.  they will return to being a proper bunch of competitors and fight for trophies and europe.

[ants]

Keeping Rafa would also surely help in retaining players.

[Jeor]

17 hours ago, Raja said:

Nope! I quite like Ramsey ( We're not letting Jeor or Mexal send him away) 

I'll keep Ramsey but if we get a ridiculous offer for him, I'd take it.

Our midfield is looking strong - assuming Ozil plays at No. 10, that gives us Cazorla, Xhaka, Elneny, Coquelin and Ramsey as options in the centre of the park. And that's not even counting Wilshere (who I totally expect to be injured most of next season) and Oxlade-Chamberlain. It'd be hard to turn down a big offer for Ramsey if it came through. His unique strength in that group is that he does get goals from midfield, which none of the others (besides maybe Cazorla) can lay claim to.

Two more big signings are needed. Obviously a top striker. We have good second-tier attacking talent in Iwobi, Giroud, Walcott, even Campbell. And we do have a world class attacker in Sanchez, but he's not a typical striker. Just one big signing would transform the whole thing. And then at the signing presentation, he'll probably trip over a photographer and tear his ACL and be out for the season, knowing Arsenal.

And then another centreback would be nice. Koscielny probably only has one or two more good seasons in him. Mertesacker is almost done. Gabriel, though good, looks like he needs a bit more experience and Chambers is further back. One decent CB would help out.

[Raja]

I think Chambers is adequate back up, to be honest. Every time he's come in at CB he's done fairly well. Per is far from finished, I know he made a couple of mistakes but Per and Kos are still our first choice CBs at the club. I'll be okay with those 4 if we pick up a striker or a creative winger - those positions are more important, in my opinion. 

[Calibandar]

Lot of discussion in Australia apparently because the national women's football team ( nicknamed the Matilda's) just lost 0-7 to a boy's under-15 team from a club called Newcastle Jets. The Australian women's team is ranked fifth in the world and three time consecutive world cup quarter finalist..

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3609949/Matildas-lose-7-0-Newcastle-Jets-15s-Rio-Olympics-warm-up.html

 

 

[Jeor]

1 hour ago, Raja said:

I think Chambers is adequate back up, to be honest. Every time he's come in at CB he's done fairly well. Per is far from finished, I know he made a couple of mistakes but Per and Kos are still our first choice CBs at the club. I'll be okay with those 4 if we pick up a striker or a creative winger - those positions are more important, in my opinion. 

It seemed that Gabriel was starting to displace Mertesacker in the lineup toward the end of the season. Mertesacker is still useful, but with both him and Kos 30+ they won't be able to go on forever.

Agreed though that striker is a priority. And yes...I suppose we don't really have a 'true' winger. Sanchez is more often the inverted one and we don't have anyone who wants to play on the right, although Ramsey and Walcott might get put out there.

[Iskaral Pust]

Arsenal is like a Sunday league team where everyone thinks they are a CM or a #10*.  No-one but Welbeck is willing to play a less glamorous role with a lot of thankless running off the ball and few touches.  Perhaps there is a downside to stacking a team with ball-players.  

 

* I have vivid memories of my brother and his friend describing at length their precise preference for roles as "box-to-box in transition but finding space in the hole in possession" and then bringing them to play a game for one of my teams and finding that neither of them could keep up with play, hold possession for two seconds, make a tackle or interception, step up to the player with the ball, cover a run (or even notice a run), show for a pass in any useful way (they just rumbled toward goal and yelled for "over the top!") or any of the fundamentals of the game.  Some talk better than they play.  

[Iskaral Pust]

Good decision by Benitez.  For a manager criticized as cold and robotic toward his players, he really seems to need the affection of the fans and the club to feel good in a role.  His discipline,organization and high expectations will improve the magpies a lot. 

[Mexal]

Ramsey is the new #8 for Arsenal. I guess we're not selling him 

[A Horse Named Stranger]

17 hours ago, Iskaral Pust said:

I think Bayern and Ancelotti have been very clear that they want him to go now for a good fee.  The player seems to be resistant.  He just fired his agent and then his father said he contacted both Dortmund and Liverpool directly to say he would not be leaving Bayern this summer, although that could all be a mix of exaggeration by newspapers and posturing by the player.

I was really disappointed to see a bunch of Liverpool fans go into meltdown when Gotze made his announcement.  Klopp's value is not about attracting Reus or Gotze, it's about discovering and developing the next Reus and Gotze.  That's was his huge contribution to Dortmund but everyone seems to want an immediate fix.

Don't underestimate the dickishness of Bayern. He would not be the first star to get hit by the banhammer, making 0 appearences and watching games from the stands. If he really has any illusion that Bayern would calmly play ball, when he just wants let his contract run out, he might be in for a rude awakening. So my money is still on a move.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

3 hours ago, Calibandar said:

Lot of discussion in Australia apparently because the national women's football team ( nicknamed the Matilda's) just lost 0-7 to a boy's under-15 team from a club called Newcastle Jets. The Australian women's team is ranked fifth in the world and three time consecutive world cup quarter finalist..

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3609949/Matildas-lose-7-0-Newcastle-Jets-15s-Rio-Olympics-warm-up.html

 

 

I would not make too much of it. Part of the Germany Womens team warm up routine before big tournmanets used to be to get spanked by a few junior teams. I think Dortmund was the usual sparring partner of choice.

In 2003 the year the German ladies won the World Cup they got spanked by Stuttgart under 17 team 3:0 (the game was 3 times 15 minutes).

The same year the under 16 of Frankfurt beat the ladies 2:0. Both goals scored by a 13 year old. And the ladies did field their stars. It was somewhat annoying for the ladies, because they were on technical level at least equal, but simply not as strong physically. 

 

[A Horse Named Stranger]

On a semi-troll note. I am somewhat tempted to make the English football fans on this board cry a bit. 

How would I do that? I would point out that my club has raised the ticket prices for my season ticket. So a season ticket for the next season will cost me 160 €. 

Yes, it's that time of the year, again.

[Grand Moff Mithrandir]

fuck mourinho!

[Mexal]

7 minutes ago, Grand Moff Mithrandir said:

fuck mourinho!

Have fun polish!

[Grand Moff Mithrandir]

2 minutes ago, Mexal said:

Have fun polish!

Oh god! Polish. He must be devastated 

[Philokles]

3 hours ago, Notone said:

On a semi-troll note. I am somewhat tempted to make the English football fans on this board cry a bit. 

How would I do that? I would point out that my club has raised the ticket prices for my season ticket. So a season ticket for the next season will cost me 160 €. 

Yes, it's that time of the year, again.

I pay over three times that amount for third division football. 

Presumably that is standing? How easy is it to get a ticket at that price, as I have heard that at most places getting the cheapest season ticket option is almost impossible and the rest are quite a bit more expensive?

[Raja]

This subsequent season is going to be a lot of Polish & Consigliere banging their heads against the wall whilst trying to console each other 

[polishgenius]

Fuck football.