EPL Matchweek 5

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Sat Sep 27, 2014 1:45 pm

Spurs win 1-1.

I am now of the opinion that Pochetino is a bit of a moron.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Sat Sep 27, 2014 3:29 pm

I'll take the win. But the defense is not Inspiri much confidence. And wtf was rooney thinking. Such a bad foul.

Post by **Shirley** » Sat Sep 27, 2014 4:37 pm

I only saw the second half, but Chelsea looked really good today. Their midfield is so good.

joeyclams · Post by **joeyclams** » Sat Sep 27, 2014 9:15 pm

Shirley wrote:I only saw the second half, but Chelsea looked really good today. Their midfield is so good.

At the level they are playing, they are going to walk the league. If they can keep it up. Last year, they dropped so many points against mid- to lower level teams so it's possible they could be caught. However, at this moment, they are just heads and shoulders above every team right now. Hate to say it but with Costa, they have plugged their one glaring hole. I imagine that this is how last season would have gone had they managed to sign Rooney.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 10:39 am

Pruitt wrote:Spurs win 1-1.

I am now of the opinion that Pochetino is a bit of a moron.

Yeah, Spurs were very lucky to hold off Arsenal's onslaught the final 10 minutes. I really felt Arsenal were going to score there. Great game though.

But of course, Arsenal picked up 3 more injuries. Wilshire out due to another injury to his Granny ankle. Ramsey out with a hammy pull for at least a month, and Arteta hurt yet again. The sheer number of muscle and ligament injuries Arsenal suffer can't be bad luck. FFS, could they please hire a trainer with an understanding of how to properly work out players so they don't get these injuries? The squad is thin to begin with, especially at defensive and box to box midfielders. That essentially leaves us with Flammini and who, Diaby? Fuck, I give Diaby 3 games before he suffers a season ending injury. That seems to be about what he is good for throughout his career. Arsenal don't have a single defensive substitute ready to play until Monreal gets fit. They have a couple of youth players they would have to rely on if any member of their back 4 goes down. And now I just read Chambers is sick. I was looking into whether Arsenal could call Jenkinson back from his loan spell at West Ham, but guess what? He is still out with a pulled hammy he suffered in his first preseason match with the Hammers.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 10:57 am

The Sybian wrote:
Pruitt wrote:Spurs win 1-1.

I am now of the opinion that Pochetino is a bit of a moron.
Yeah, Spurs were very lucky to hold off Arsenal's onslaught the final 10 minutes. I really felt Arsenal were going to score there. Great game though.

And the first half hour was ridiculous. Spurs fans aren't used to watching Stoke tactics. Guess it worked, and if it keeps Tottenham from being run out of the stadium by top 4 teams, than it's better than 5-0 losses.

Weird thing about that game, my daughter (very knowledgable soccer fan) and I spent most of the game (and especially the first half) yelling at Ryan Mason and we figured that he'd be subbed off at the half. THAT's how bad he looked to us.

Turns out, he's being touted as a revelation among writers and Spurs fans. Really think I'm missing something here... What'd you think?

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 10:59 am

Pruitt wrote:
The Sybian wrote:
Pruitt wrote:Spurs win 1-1.

I am now of the opinion that Pochetino is a bit of a moron.
Yeah, Spurs were very lucky to hold off Arsenal's onslaught the final 10 minutes. I really felt Arsenal were going to score there. Great game though.
And the first half hour was ridiculous. Spurs fans aren't used to watching Stoke tactics. Guess it worked, and if it keeps Tottenham from being run out of the stadium by top 4 teams, than it's better than 5-0 losses.

Weird thing about that game, my daughter (very knowledgable soccer fan) and I spent most of the game (and especially the first half) yelling at Ryan Mason and we figured that he'd be subbed off at the half. THAT's how bad he looked to us.

Turns out, he's being touted as a revelation among writers and Spurs fans. Really think I'm missing something here... What'd you think?

He was very effective in the second half, I think he could be a very good player.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Mon Sep 29, 2014 11:17 am

The Sybian wrote:
Pruitt wrote:
The Sybian wrote:
Pruitt wrote:Spurs win 1-1.

I am now of the opinion that Pochetino is a bit of a moron.
Yeah, Spurs were very lucky to hold off Arsenal's onslaught the final 10 minutes. I really felt Arsenal were going to score there. Great game though.
And the first half hour was ridiculous. Spurs fans aren't used to watching Stoke tactics. Guess it worked, and if it keeps Tottenham from being run out of the stadium by top 4 teams, than it's better than 5-0 losses.

Weird thing about that game, my daughter (very knowledgable soccer fan) and I spent most of the game (and especially the first half) yelling at Ryan Mason and we figured that he'd be subbed off at the half. THAT's how bad he looked to us.

Turns out, he's being touted as a revelation among writers and Spurs fans. Really think I'm missing something here... What'd you think?
He was very effective in the second half, I think he could be a very good player.

Fair enough. Hope you're right - and he was solid in the late stages.

You guys want Paulinho?

boxcar · Post by **boxcar** » Tue Sep 30, 2014 9:02 am

So is it possible Yohan Cabeye was the greatest soccer player who ever lived? That's the only logical conclusion to Newcastle post Cabs.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Sun Oct 05, 2014 10:33 am

Hugo Lloris is quite simply an outstanding keeper. Spurs played really well today, but made the usual 3-4 egregious defending errors in the second half. The fact that they kept a clean sheet is a tribute to Lloris.

And to Sadio mane - Southampton's new signing who had what has to be one of the favorites in the "Miss of the Year" competition. So Spurs are now ahead of Arsenal.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 8:59 am

Pruitt wrote:Hugo Lloris is quite simply an outstanding keeper. Spurs played really well today, but made the usual 3-4 egregious defending errors in the second half. The fact that they kept a clean sheet is a tribute to Lloris.

And to Sadio mane - Southampton's new signing who had what has to be one of the favorites in the "Miss of the Year" competition. So Spurs are now ahead of Arsenal.

Everybody is ahead of Arsenal. Such a frustrating game. Arsenal really dominated a large amount of the game, but just completely lack the final pass yo set up a shot. They build up beautiful, intricate passing at the end of the box, but can't free anyone for a shot. This isn't much different than the past 10 years, but they used to set up open shots and just not take them. They finally have some post-Henry players willing to shoot, but just can't get them free.

I am glad Arsenal didn't play Chelsea earlier in the season, playing against Fabregas didn't hurt nearly as much as I expected. It probably helped that he was pretty silent until the insanely sick bomb he hit put over the top directly onto Costa's chest. Sublime. It really looked like Drew Brees hitting a perfect bomb over the corner's outstretched fingers, perfectly placed for his WR to run onto. Great finish by Costa, too. That ball, and countless balls Cesc puts through are exactly what Arsenal are missing. Passing on Cesc because the bought Ozil for almost double the transfer fee makes me even more upset about Ozil's play. Would have had Cesc back, if not for Ozil.

Chelsea have long been my most hated team. Ambramovich, a criminal oligarch buying with reckless abandon and happily eating huge deficits, often employing a negative, boring style with great success, The Special One being epically douchey, and frequently beating Arsenal. I have to say, Chelsea is really enjoyable to watch this year. They are actually playing a more Wengerish style, with Cesc playing well and great play from their strikers, which they haven't had in years. They are looking unstoppable so far, but they are bound to hit a rough patch at some point.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 10:48 am

The Sybian wrote: Chelsea have long been my most hated team. Ambramovich, a criminal oligarch buying with reckless abandon and happily eating huge deficits, often employing a negative, boring style with great success, The Special One being epically douchey, and frequently beating Arsenal.

I know that as a Spurs fan, Arsenal is supposed to be a team that gets my blood boiling, but while I do not like the Gunners, it is Chelsea that I loathe for reasons laid out above. Abramovich created the template for much of what is sickening in modern soccer, and while it is true that Chelsea is playing soccer that SHOULD be fun to watch, the fact that they were built with dirty money makes the thought of their success absolutely nauseating.

They, City and West Ham are the teams that get my bile rising.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 11:02 am

Pruitt wrote:
The Sybian wrote: Chelsea have long been my most hated team. Ambramovich, a criminal oligarch buying with reckless abandon and happily eating huge deficits, often employing a negative, boring style with great success, The Special One being epically douchey, and frequently beating Arsenal.
I know that as a Spurs fan, Arsenal is supposed to be a team that gets my blood boiling, but while I do not like the Gunners, it is Chelsea that I loathe for reasons laid out above. Abramovich created the template for much of what is sickening in modern soccer, and while it is true that Chelsea is playing soccer that SHOULD be fun to watch, the fact that they were built with dirty money makes the thought of their success absolutely nauseating.

They, City and West Ham are the teams that get my bile rising.

I was going to write the same about Tottenham. While I never liked them at all, I never hated them until the AVB era. AVB was a douchebag and egomaniac (what manager makes his goalscorers run over to him to celebrate?), and they have recently been challenging Arsenal for the fourth place trophy. Plus I like celebrating St. Totteringham's Day, the day Arsenal clinches finishing above Tottenham. I think it's been 18 years since Arsenal finished behind Tottenham, and Arsenal have taken a number of beloved Spurs players, so Spurs fans hating Arsenal makes more sense to me. I hated Chelsea more 10 years ago, as I took a Howard style vision of the oligarch ruining top flight soccer. While it has made transfer fees astronomical, I don't think it has affected the middle or bottom of the table much. Teams with low funds weren't able to buy top players in the past, but I'd love to see a study of how much the age of oligarchs has affected the EPL. There are more teams run without as much thought of balancing the books, and Man City is probably worse with their immediately purchasing an all-star team. I kind of liked City in their days of midtable mediocrity. Especially when they brought in Claudio "Captain America" Reyna, and later brought in DeMarcus Beasley (I think on a loan). I still have a Reyna City jersey, which was my favorite non-Arsenal jersey, but I can't wear it now, as I get stopped on the streets and accused of being a City fan. Then I have to explain. Reyna grew up a few towns down the road from me, so he is more recognized in these parts.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 11:12 am

The Sybian wrote:
Pruitt wrote:
The Sybian wrote: Chelsea have long been my most hated team. Ambramovich, a criminal oligarch buying with reckless abandon and happily eating huge deficits, often employing a negative, boring style with great success, The Special One being epically douchey, and frequently beating Arsenal.
I know that as a Spurs fan, Arsenal is supposed to be a team that gets my blood boiling, but while I do not like the Gunners, it is Chelsea that I loathe for reasons laid out above. Abramovich created the template for much of what is sickening in modern soccer, and while it is true that Chelsea is playing soccer that SHOULD be fun to watch, the fact that they were built with dirty money makes the thought of their success absolutely nauseating.

They, City and West Ham are the teams that get my bile rising.
I was going to write the same about Tottenham. While I never liked them at all, I never hated them until the AVB era. AVB was a douchebag and egomaniac (what manager makes his goalscorers run over to him to celebrate?), and they have recently been challenging Arsenal for the fourth place trophy. Plus I like celebrating St. Totteringham's Day, the day Arsenal clinches finishing above Tottenham. I think it's been 18 years since Arsenal finished behind Tottenham, and Arsenal have taken a number of beloved Spurs players, so Spurs fans hating Arsenal makes more sense to me. I hated Chelsea more 10 years ago, as I took a Howard style vision of the oligarch ruining top flight soccer. While it has made transfer fees astronomical, I don't think it has affected the middle or bottom of the table much. Teams with low funds weren't able to buy top players in the past, but I'd love to see a study of how much the age of oligarchs has affected the EPL. There are more teams run without as much thought of balancing the books, and Man City is probably worse with their immediately purchasing an all-star team. I kind of liked City in their days of midtable mediocrity. Especially when they brought in Claudio "Captain America" Reyna, and later brought in DeMarcus Beasley (I think on a loan). I still have a Reyna City jersey, which was my favorite non-Arsenal jersey, but I can't wear it now, as I get stopped on the streets and accused of being a City fan. Then I have to explain. Reyna grew up a few towns down the road from me, so he is more recognized in these parts.

The Spurs-Arsenal rivalry reminds me of the Browns-Steelers one.

One team hating the other, with the other side kind of shaking its head dismissively as they swat the weaker team down.

govmentchedda · Post by **govmentchedda** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 1:20 pm

The Sybian wrote:Chelsea have long been my most hated team. Ambramovich, a criminal oligarch buying with reckless abandon and happily eating huge deficits, often employing a negative, boring style with great success, The Special One being epically douchey, and frequently beating Arsenal. I have to say, Chelsea is really enjoyable to watch this year. They are actually playing a more Wengerish style, with Cesc playing well and great play from their strikers, which they haven't had in years. They are looking unstoppable so far, but they are bound to hit a rough patch at some point.

Right? What the fuck is wrong with the world? I liked being able to rely on hating Chelsea, but I just can't this year. Fucking Fabregas being there is part of it. Jose not being at fault for the Wenger dust up is just odd, and no Dodgy Flapper have made them damn near likeable.

joeyclams · Post by **joeyclams** » Mon Oct 06, 2014 3:40 pm

The Sybian wrote:
Pruitt wrote:Hugo Lloris is quite simply an outstanding keeper. Spurs played really well today, but made the usual 3-4 egregious defending errors in the second half. The fact that they kept a clean sheet is a tribute to Lloris.

And to Sadio mane - Southampton's new signing who had what has to be one of the favorites in the "Miss of the Year" competition. So Spurs are now ahead of Arsenal.

Everybody is ahead of Arsenal. Such a frustrating game. Arsenal really dominated a large amount of the game, but just completely lack the final pass yo set up a shot. They build up beautiful, intricate passing at the end of the box, but can't free anyone for a shot. This isn't much different than the past 10 years, but they used to set up open shots and just not take them. They finally have some post-Henry players willing to shoot, but just can't get them free.

I am glad Arsenal didn't play Chelsea earlier in the season, playing against Fabregas didn't hurt nearly as much as I expected. It probably helped that he was pretty silent until the insanely sick bomb he hit put over the top directly onto Costa's chest. Sublime. It really looked like Drew Brees hitting a perfect bomb over the corner's outstretched fingers, perfectly placed for his WR to run onto. Great finish by Costa, too. That ball, and countless balls Cesc puts through are exactly what Arsenal are missing. Passing on Cesc because the bought Ozil for almost double the transfer fee makes me even more upset about Ozil's play. Would have had Cesc back, if not for Ozil.

Chelsea have long been my most hated team. Ambramovich, a criminal oligarch buying with reckless abandon and happily eating huge deficits, often employing a negative, boring style with great success, The Special One being epically douchey, and frequently beating Arsenal. I have to say, Chelsea is really enjoyable to watch this year. They are actually playing a more Wengerish style, with Cesc playing well and great play from their strikers, which they haven't had in years. They are looking unstoppable so far, but they are bound to hit a rough patch at some point.

One thing that is frustrating playing Jose teams is that he lets opponents have the ball, dominate possession and then unleashes the counter attack at such speed you think it's against the run of play. But it's not. I was most evident when he was at Real but this season it's been so obvious. He did it to Citeh and Everton and the Arse yesterday. Jose is an evil genius.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Wed Oct 08, 2014 12:17 pm

A couple of days ago I read this article comparing the number of injuries Arsenal have had since 2002 compared to other teams. 889 injuries for Arsenal, while Liverpool had 500-something. Then today I see Ozil is out for 10-12 weeks with a knee injury. That means he is out until the January window opens. There is clearly something wrong at Arsenal, I'd guess the training, as a majority of injuries muscles, particularly hamstrings and calves, as well as ankle and knee injuries. arsenal brought in a new fitness trainer, but it hasn't helped so far. I really don't know how many of these injuries can be blamed on training, but it has to be a factor. I'd like to see a study of squad rotation and number of games played. More games means more opportunities for injuries, and more fatigue. Arsenal usually aren't as deep as other big clubs, and they have made the group stage of Champs League I think 18 straight years. With Theo and Gnabry coming back, this might not be such a bad thing. Slot Alexis in the hole, Theo out wide on the right, I think that is a better lineup. Just sucks to shell out $42 Million or so and be better off without the guy.

boxcar · Post by **boxcar** » Wed Oct 08, 2014 1:19 pm

Those tight shirts can't be helping anything.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Wed Oct 08, 2014 1:33 pm

boxcar wrote:Those tight shirts can't be helping anything.

Numerous games missed due to nipple chaffing.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Thu Oct 09, 2014 11:53 am

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Sat Oct 25, 2014 9:21 pm

Anyone know what is wrong with NBCSports? I DVRd the arsenal game, and they showed Liverpool instead. I checked the website, where they are supposed to show every game on replay, and they only have two games up. WTF, NBCSports? And they posted a link with the score on the side, so I saw that. Fuck.

Rex · Post by **Rex** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 10:39 am

Finally we are seeing what's Eto'o can do at a real club

Rams Fanny · Post by **Rams Fanny** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 11:10 am

The Sybian wrote:Anyone know what is wrong with NBCSports? I DVRd the arsenal game, and they showed Liverpool instead. I checked the website, where they are supposed to show every game on replay, and they only have two games up. WTF, NBCSports? And they posted a link with the score on the side, so I saw that. Fuck.

Nothing wrong. On their weekly lineup announcement on Pro Soccer Talk they always include the caveat that they are limited by rights agreements on full replays. The switch this week was a late one because as of friday morning (PT) they were still touting Arsenal as the televised game.

I have no idea why the rights would limit full replays other than to drive traffic to some official pay site that has them but here we are. I can only guess that the Balotelli drama caused them to switch but in the end it was one dog game for another.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 7:46 pm

Fuck Spurs. I have wasted enough time on this misbegotten pile of garbage. For some reason, Spurs fans thought that challenging for 4th with an ugly Englishman in charge wasn't good enough. Instead, they have decided to go all continental. The results speak for themselves, and while Liverpool fans are moaning about teh uselessness of Balotelli, Spurs fans can trump them with two completely useless continental players Soldado and Lamela.

And Pochettino is either a moron or spends most of the game in a coma.

degenerasian · Post by **degenerasian** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 8:08 pm

Pruitt wrote:Fuck Spurs. I have wasted enough time on this misbegotten pile of garbage. For some reason, Spurs fans thought that challenging for 4th with an ugly Englishman in charge wasn't good enough. Instead, they have decided to go all continental. The results speak for themselves, and while Liverpool fans are moaning about teh uselessness of Balotelli, Spurs fans can trump them with two completely useless continental players Soldado and Lamela.

And Pochettino is either a moron or spends most of the game in a coma.

I was thinking it was an interesting day for you today. Spurs lose at home and Bills win on the road.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 9:03 pm

degenerasian wrote:
Pruitt wrote:Fuck Spurs. I have wasted enough time on this misbegotten pile of garbage. For some reason, Spurs fans thought that challenging for 4th with an ugly Englishman in charge wasn't good enough. Instead, they have decided to go all continental. The results speak for themselves, and while Liverpool fans are moaning about teh uselessness of Balotelli, Spurs fans can trump them with two completely useless continental players Soldado and Lamela.

And Pochettino is either a moron or spends most of the game in a coma.
I was thinking it was an interesting day for you today. Spurs lose at home and Bills win on the road.

Ultimately, the Bills mean WAY more to me than Spurs, so it was a good day (and the Browns won too).

But I used to think that Daniel Levy was so smart - the master of driving a hard bargain. After all, look at how much money he got for Modric and Bale... but what was done with that money? Who convinced him that Soldado would thrive in the EPL? Why'd he sign Adebayor to a big extension when he'd seen his pattern in the league before. Was Lamela scouted off of a YouTube highlight package? Paulinho? He couldn't play in Scot;and.

And that's a lot of bad investing right there. This team made it into the EPL with Crouch as striker. At the moment, if they didn't have a world class keeper, they'd be down with Burnley.

degenerasian · Post by **degenerasian** » Sun Oct 26, 2014 10:28 pm

didn't you see the goal Lamela scored against some unpronounceable team in the Europa League?

That's what they signed him on!

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Mon Oct 27, 2014 5:24 am

degenerasian wrote:didn't you see the goal Lamela scored against some unpronounceable team in the Europa League?

That's what they signed him on!

As you can imagine, the Spurs fan groups had a collective orgasm over that goal, and over his one good performance in the league this season. "THAT'S why we signed him," and "in your face haters" that sort of thing...

It is hard for the fans - the majority of whom have pretensions of glory. Imagine Browns fans who see the Steelers as being their team's equal just because they are rivals, and you will understand how Spurs fans look at Arsenal. I am becoming used to the idea that this is a mid-level team more along the lines of Everton or Villa than a contender for European glory.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Mon Oct 27, 2014 9:37 am

Rams Fanny wrote:
The Sybian wrote:Anyone know what is wrong with NBCSports? I DVRd the arsenal game, and they showed Liverpool instead. I checked the website, where they are supposed to show every game on replay, and they only have two games up. WTF, NBCSports? And they posted a link with the score on the side, so I saw that. Fuck.

Nothing wrong. On their weekly lineup announcement on Pro Soccer Talk they always include the caveat that they are limited by rights agreements on full replays. The switch this week was a late one because as of friday morning (PT) they were still touting Arsenal as the televised game.

I have no idea why the rights would limit full replays other than to drive traffic to some official pay site that has them but here we are. I can only guess that the Balotelli drama caused them to switch but in the end it was one dog game for another.

I can't blame them for pulling Sunderland Arsenal, I was just under the impression, because they advertised it, that they replayed every game all season long. Liars!

boxcar · Post by **boxcar** » Mon Oct 27, 2014 9:38 am

Do they promise every game on replay? I've only heard every game live.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Mon Oct 27, 2014 9:43 am

boxcar wrote:Do they promise every game on replay? I've only heard every game live.

Maybe you just listen better than I do. When I have watched replays in the past, it seemed like all of the games were there, but I never counted. Arsenal has always been there, so i didn't care.

degenerasian · Post by **degenerasian** » Sun Nov 02, 2014 11:16 am

Aston Villa hadn't scored in 6 full matches.

And then they played Spurs.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Mon Nov 03, 2014 9:24 am

degenerasian wrote:Aston Villa hadn't scored in 6 full matches.

And then they played Spurs.

Spurs haven't had a cheap win in years. And then they played Villa. Not a great advertisement for the game - and Spurs' expensive strike force of Emmanuel Adebayor, Roberto Soldado and Eric Lamela - 24 appearances, 2 goals - were absolutely woeful.
Although Lamela's corner did set up the tying goal nicely.

When Spurs got Adebayor on a loan from Man City, the fans were pissed off because in their mind, he was still tainted by having been on Arsenal for a few years. Eventually, Adebayor seemed to emerge from a coma and played well (in a contract year) and despite 80% of Spurs fans predicting that once he signed, he'd return to sucking, the team did it anyway.

And man, were they ever right about this guy. He sucks.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Mon Nov 03, 2014 10:18 am

Pruitt wrote:
degenerasian wrote:Aston Villa hadn't scored in 6 full matches.

And then they played Spurs.
Spurs haven't had a cheap win in years. And then they played Villa. Not a great advertisement for the game - and Spurs' expensive strike force of Emmanuel Adebayor, Roberto Soldado and Eric Lamela - 24 appearances, 2 goals - were absolutely woeful.
Although Lamela's corner did set up the tying goal nicely.

When Spurs got Adebayor on a loan from Man City, the fans were pissed off because in their mind, he was still tainted by having been on Arsenal for a few years. Eventually, Adebayor seemed to emerge from a coma and played well (in a contract year) and despite 80% of Spurs fans predicting that once he signed, he'd return to sucking, the team did it anyway.

And man, were they ever right about this guy. He sucks.

Adebayor has so much talent, but he can be lazy. When he is into it, he is a goal scoring machine, and his speed and strength cause massive problems for opposing defenses. He scores when he wants, but that isn't very often. I was very worried when Spurs splurged last year. They brought in a ton of talent, but massively overpaid, and most of the signing haven't panned out. Once they get Yedlin, they will turn into a force.

degenerasian · Post by **degenerasian** » Mon Nov 03, 2014 11:20 am

Spurs were very fortunate yesterday that the ref only gave one red card for that scuffle.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Mon Nov 03, 2014 11:56 am

degenerasian wrote:Spurs were very fortunate yesterday that the ref only gave one red card for that scuffle.

I was really impressed with the announcer - again, I think it's Danny Mills - who took the Ref to task for giving a yellow for Vertonghen's challenge (I'm no homer, but it was clean). He said that it would put the Ref in a bad situation as it set a precedent for the game in terms of being strict, and it got the crowd riled up which in term got the players really pissed. And he even mentioned that certain refs fall back on the excuse of "the letter of the law" when they are in doubt. And sure enough, it all came into play when Benteke got tossed.

A shoddy piece of officiating as he clearly didn't see what happened. If he did, than yellow for Mason, yellow for Benteke.

degenerasian · Post by **degenerasian** » Mon Nov 03, 2014 12:14 pm

yeah the new crop of analysts on the Premier League that we get in Canada are excellent. I think it's a combination of SkySports and ITV. Perhaps it is because they are players we used to watch and we get their jokes instead of having the old guys like Trevor Francis and David Pleat commentating telling people to get off their lawn.

Danny Mills
Gary Neville
Niall Quinn
Jaime Rednapp
Dion Dublin

to name a few...

edit: and NBC gets Lee Dixon? He's really good too.

govmentchedda · Post by **govmentchedda** » Mon Nov 03, 2014 4:40 pm

Jozy on for Sunderland!

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Mon Nov 03, 2014 5:11 pm

govmentchedda wrote:Jozy on for Sunderland!

Damn, I missed the word "on," and I thought he scored. Sunderland did score one minute after he came on, so I am sure that is no coincidence. And he finished with a +2 rating on his shift.

The Sybian · Post by **The Sybian** » Wed Nov 19, 2014 9:21 pm

Came across this on a Chinese jersey site. I have to buy it, right?