It’s also a nightmare for FF. I’m supposed to have Kane (captain) and Son play tonight.
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The 2020-2021 Football Thread
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I believe the transfer window technically opens on Monday due to Friday being a bank holiday and it never opens on holidays/weekends. But needless to say I doubt there will be many big moves this window. A lot of loans likely across the divisions.
The sort of players available in January are generally a bit more of a risk than those at the season break. I’d love to have a better back up for when Antonio isn’t fit, but the sort of money we spent on Haller clearly wasn’t enough.
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Interesting.
I had assumed that it opened on Friday.
In either case, it should be interesting.
Bear in mind, now that the "transition period" (re leaving the EU) has formally come to an end, and that the actual act of formal departure is scheduled to occur tonight at 23.00 (11.p.m. GMT, but midnight Brussels time, CET), different regulations will apply re allowing non-national players to play in the Football League.
In all probability, this will not have much of an effect on the Premiership, but well may have a considerable effect and impact on clubs in lower leagues, making life even more difficult for them, as transfers of players from the continent (from EU countries) will not now be quite so seamless, and a strong case will have to be made for wishing to make an offer for them, or to purchase them.
In other words, the bureaucratic and legal requirements to be met (re employing non-nationals, especially from lower leagues on the continent) will change from having been pretty seamless to quite stringent, which will add another layer of inconvenience, difficulty and challenge for clubs in lower leagues if they are to do well; they used to be able to scout in lower continental leagues fr promising players, but securing employment rights for such players will be a lot less easy in the future now that Britain has left the EU, or will have left the EU by tomorrow.
Another draw for Liverpool. I wouldn't say Liverpool are playing badly at all, but they lack a certain sharpness against the low block. The season has become an attritional slog, which favors the counterattacking sides.
RE: the Post-Brexit transfer market. English players are already grossly overvalued in England. I presume that the post Brexit market will exacerbate this. A "decent" English player will cost as much as a markedly superior (but hard to import) foreign player.
RE: the Post-Brexit transfer market. English players are already grossly overvalued in England. I presume that the post Brexit market will exacerbate this. A "decent" English player will cost as much as a markedly superior (but hard to import) foreign player.
Well after our game at Fleetwood on Saturday was pushed back to Monday to give our players more time to recover from COVID, Fleetwood have now reported cases and it's been postponed. Our next game is now the 9th Jan v Swindon and if that goes ahead it'll mean a 25 day gap between our last game on the 15th December, and we now will have 4 games in hand. League 1 is an absolute mess because of COVID currently but the EFL are undertaking mass testing of all EFL clubs on Monday.
Agreed re how English players are already surprisingly overvalued in England; while that may be exacerbated, it may also be subject to correction if those English players fail to perform in international competitions, such as the Champions League.
Yet, in the immediate future, what you say - namely, a "decent" English player costing as much as a markedly superior (but hard to import) foreign player - may well come to pass.
Only a series of humiliating defeats, exposing a gulf, or chasm, in class and ability, between English teams and their peers on mainland Europe, may serve to test - and possibly change - this.
However, my concern was (is) more for lower league clubs in England, for whom scouting, and spotting, and recruiting, talented players from lower leagues on the continent, has just become more difficult.
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This is exactly what I was talking about earlier...with some teams having so many games in hand, it's hardly a level playing field - because we don't know what the future holds. Those postponed games might be payed under better or worse conditions, we can't say. Though, the more fixtures pile up the worse it gets for the teams with the most games in hand. They'll end up with a murderously tight schedule. If you play three times a week, a player that is out for two weeks for a muscle strain might miss as many as six matches instead of the usual two or three.
It's definitely going to hurt the EFL more than the Premier League. At the top, there is a lot of money and rules will be bent. Further down the red tape will hit harder.
On the other hand, even the top England clubs will lose some ground to European clubs when it comes to scouting and recruitment. Bargains will be harder to come by. It's hard to predict how it all pans out long term, but I can't see any scenario where Brexit improves the competitiveness of English teams.
And as for the England team, I assume that, long term, it just means England players playing in England spend more time playing against other English players who are not good enough to play for England. Which does not sound like a recipe for a better England squad.
Agreed; likewise, I cannot see or envisage any scenario where Brexit encourages the competitiveness (or competence) of English teams, either when playing in international competitions such as the Champions League, or when playing for England.
Regarding the England team, I think playing in largely foreign teams with maybe one or two fellow English internationals at best is what harms them. They aren’t used to playing with each other. That and all the squad rotations.
That's the league's fault. England no longer has a top division league that is "English." It's a global product now, first and foremost. English fans might be the most 'authentic' part of the league, but they are no longer the primary reason for the league's existence, nor it's biggest financial contributor.
I think there will always be a tradeoff there. Having a more "English" league that really supports the national team means it can't be as big as the Premier League is; chasing "Best League in the World" status means clearly subordinating the needs of the national team to business.
Big win for the Hammers today, who climb to tenth, level on points with the next five teams above them.
Yes, I was surprised at that result; I had expected a glum nil all draw.
I'd imagine that you are a very happy Hammer this evening.
Certainly am @JamesMike is probably quite happy at the moment as well.
I'd imagine that he would be happier still, if the score remains as it is by the end of the match.
Well it didn’t but they still got the three points which is my preferred outcome. Keeps it interesting at the top.
Yes, I just checked; a very good victory for Manchester United, for Villa are a more than decent side.
And they are now level on points with Liverpool at the very top of the table.
I didn't think I'd see United at the top of the table (level on points, anyway) this soon, but I'm pleased to be there and I think they certainly deserve it on current form.
Long ways to go and a lot of matches to play. Going to be fun times at Anfield in a couple of weeks.
Long ways to go and a lot of matches to play. Going to be fun times at Anfield in a couple of weeks.
Well, I very much doubt that the "Ole Out" brigade will receive much of a hearing these days.
At the risk of sounding like a curmudgeon, is it perhaps the overall level of the league dropping markedly more than Man Utd catching up to their rivals? However, they are winning matches and there is no arguing with that! In the context of the current league they are perhaps the form team. They work hard and have a dangerous, fast attack.
I don't expect Liverpool to beat them in a couple weeks. Klopp won't shut up shop, that's not his style; he'll press Man Utd for 90 minutes and that plays straight into OGS's hands. Liverpool's forwards are lacking some sharpness, the central defense remains vulnerable. Liverpool will create chances, fail to score enough of them, and drop points as a result. Just like at Fulham and Newcastle.
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While I agree that the quality of the top teams is not historically high this season, I do see a lot of parity in the top half of the table. Lots of pretty strong clubs with various glaring weaknesses, injury or COVID problems, etc. This is just a really weird season all around, but the fact that United has found consistently in the league is very encouraging.
Having a fit Eric Bailly in defense is a big upgrade over Lindelof. He was simply outstanding against Villa. Just got to stay healthy.
I certainly agree that there is a fair amount of parity. The more postponements we see, the more random results may become.