Football: The Closed Season

[ljkeane]

VAR controversy! This is the game we know and love.

ETA: Not the best of games in the end. Suwon clearly came to play for the nil nil draw, then got a man sent off and conceded a goal from a corner. Jeonbuk were the better side but don't seem to have a great deal of cutting edge. I'm a little surprised they took Murilo off, he looked their best player to me.

[Iskaral Pust]

Coutinho’s options are limited but he does have the option of staying at Barca, just like Bale.  He has a big contract there and they might realize they need him.  He’s hardly the only big purchase who didn’t magically reverse their recent decline.

If he goes to Newcastle he won’t get another move to a top club.  By the time he proves himself there his peak years will be done.  Even David Silva’s move to City, which is the closest to an ideal outcome I can think of for Coutinho at Newcastle, came two years after the Abu Dhabi takeover (so after some of the initial confusion and deadwood was gone) and Silva was only 24 then rather than 28; he had more time to wait for success to arrive. 

[Soylent Brown]

Silva wasn't moving from Barcelona and in a downward spiral too. If he does move, I imagine he'd try to hold out for at least a CL club.

Newcastle might get there with a sugar daddy, but you'd have to expect it will take a good few years.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

4 hours ago, Iskaral Pust said:

Coutinho’s options are limited but he does have the option of staying at Barca, just like Bale.  He has a big contract there and they might realize they need him.  He’s hardly the only big purchase who didn’t magically reverse their recent decline.

I imagine doing a Brazilian Bale would not be helpful with playing for the Selecao.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

Anyway, moving on.

IFAB has voted to allow 5 subs per team for the time being (due to the crammed schedule resulting from corona). Whether the leagues will adopt those changes is up to them. To avoid time wasting, there will just be 3 opportunities (+ half time intermission) to use those changes (as is now with the 3 subs).

Did I mention the advantage deeper squads provide? I mean, this will be a massive boon for Guardiola to be able to switch half his outfield team without a massive drop in quality. Otherwise, I think the leagues trying to play out their seasons, will adopt the rule changes. Like I said, clubs are basically being asked to play for points with pre-season fitness levels, and a packed schedule on top. This way at least it reduces the risk of injuries for the players.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

Apologies for the trebble post. However a small not unimportant update on Bundesliga and Corona. Well 2nd Bundesliga, but nevermind that.

During their second screening this week, there were two positives at Dynamo Dresden. Local Health authority has thus placed players and coaching (and backroom) staff under quarantine for 14 days. So they won't be playing next WE in Hannover.

For La Liga fans, Atletico's Renan Lodi has also been tested positive and has been quarantined at home.

As a more or less amusing side note. The German clubs have been very understanding towards their players and you can now read stuff like: "We understand and respect the decission of every player, who decides he doesn't confident to play" Cynical me is tempted to think, yeah, clubs have sorta started to cover their asses if their players contract the virus during the games and takes things to court (we left the final decission in the player's hands). Ah well, it's coming home, it's coming home, corona's coming home, it's coming home.

[ants]

So I understand the EPL can now restart from 1 June. Is that correct?

[baxus]

From what I understood, EPL can not restart before June 1st. It's not certain it will start on June 1st.

Sure hope your interpretation is the correct one, though.

[Consigliere]

Project Restart planned for a June 12 resumption. We will know more by next week since that is when training was supposed to get underway. A number of players have already expressed concern at resuming training next week however I recall Carragher mentioning that majority of the players he's spoken to are keen to get underway again. 

[A Horse Named Stranger]

FWIW Nagelsmann has predicted CL will resume, in August.

Which happens to be one of the two UEFA scenarios (doing the CL [and EL] after the domestic leagues are done). The other scenario would be doing the CL [and EL], while the leagues are running.

I think neither scenario makes sense.

The restart in August means, Bundesliga will presumably be over for a month. How the players supposed to keep their fitness levels up. And there are still 2 Bundesliga clubs in the CL (Bayern, Leipzig). It would also mean the final would take place at the very end of August (29th I think). I am genuinely curious, when the domestic leagues are supposed to restart then. And again, the player transfers/contract situation pops up.

The other scenario letting it resume parallel to the domestic leagues is also somewhat unfeasible to me. Different leagues, different start dates. Match fitness for the Spanish and Italian clubs, with no clear starting date yet. Where does UEFA think it can squeeze in its games?

 

Edit:

Also small updates for German football.

Third tier: Clubs have voted to resume play by a narrow majority. Now local health authorities kick in. As they are the ones to allow or forbit team training. And yes, you guessed it. Jena is not allowed to do team trainings yet.

It's a bit like the situation in Dresden, with their team being quarantined for to weeks now. Sporting integrity of the competition? Don't get me wrong, I won't shed a single tear if Dresden drops, but te situation with the restart of the league is really farcial.

[polishgenius]

Fitba!

[ljkeane]

It's a bit weird with no crowd, the K League game last week they were playing crowd noise so it was less noticeable. Still, better than nothing.

[ljkeane]

Class outside of the foot finish from Guerreiro for Dortmund's fourth goal. Football is fun.

[BigFatCoward]

Celtic are champions. Average pts per game used and no major shake ups in standings. 

[mormont]

Hearts relegated. But we deserve it. We've been just dire this season.

There's talk of league reconstruction whih might prevent the relegation, but tbqh I don't see it happening. Recent history suggests that a season in the first division can be a sort of boost if you can get back up in one go, but with no prospect of getting crowds into the stadium that probably won't hold true. So this could be a real disaster.

[A Horse Named Stranger]

Are the Huns aka Sevco still throwing a tantrum over being bullied?

[Teng Ai Hui]

Sad football news (for me, at least).  The local team that I support, Tianjin Tianhai, has disbanded.

[mormont]

12 hours ago, A Horse Named Stranger said:

Are the Huns aka Sevco still throwing a tantrum over being bullied?

Perenially. No event can take place in Scottish football without Rangers claiming persecution and declaring that they will not stand for it. The referee can't toss a coin without Jim Traynor leaking to the Daily Record that Rangers are considering legal action.

However, like the proverbial stopped clock, they do have a point this time. There were some shenanigans. Rangers would never have overtaken Celtic even if they were given another twenty games instead of another nine, but nobody can deny this was a shambles.

[john]

In all humility and with a hefty appreciation of irony (), I’d just say that the word Hun in that context is best avoided these days.

[Hereward]

Ninjaed. Though the irony of a German using it has also caused me some amusement.

Edit: If I hadn’t taken the time to look up confirmation that the Celtic message board bans its use and that the Scottish ant-sectarian group Nil By Mouth says it is sectarian hate speech, I’d have won! 

Strangely, I remember Mormont used to warn against its use, so I wonder what’s changed.