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The 2020-2021 Football Thread

Apple fanboy said:
20 games in to a new season and still no draws. Been lots of high scoring games. Its like the defenders have forgotten how to play.

Good win for City against Wolves who did very well against the top teams last season. Villa also picked up a 1-0 win against Sheffield Utd who had to play for 80 minutes with 10 men. Hardly an emphatic win.
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If you recall, very often, during the first month of a new season, partly because players are fresh, partly because the weather tends to be good, partly because new players possibly haven't yet fully adapted to their teams and players and teams are getting used to one another, you will frequently find a sequence of high scoring games.
 
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tee_cup said:
What would be interesting to know, is if Matteo Guendouzi apologized to his teammates and even to Neal Maupay, of Brighton.

To me, if Matteo did so, openly, then maybe the relationships could be repaired, and he could continue to manage our midfield...
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Candidly, I wouldn't have thought so.

It is clear that his attitude - and the throat grab at the end of that game wasn't the first such incident, apparently he kept up a barrage of income based insults to the Brighton team throughout that game - there were also earlier incidents which caused Arteta to question his attitude - does not impress Arteta, and that he has done little to address this.
 
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Scepticalscribe said:
He behaved like a........an outrageously entitled individual in an exceptionally arrogant and offensive and insulting manner to the Brighton team - and grabbed Neal Maupay (of Brighton) by the throat at the end of the game, earlier this summer during a game (which Arsenal lost).

As far as I know, Arteta - who has deplored his attitude and lack of professionalism in his conduct - hasn't played him since.
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Guendouzi had a good relationship with Unai Emery and is a tenacious player with a high work rate. However, he has never clicked with Arteta and has had several issues with indiscipline. He is still young, and perhaps a more experienced manager would be able to channel his energy in productive directions. As it stands though, Arteta appears to be done with him.

He should be a very saleable asset - a young, energetic French midfielder who has been caped by his country at the U-21 level and may become a senior international.
 
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Thanks to dual-screens getting ready to watch Man City/Bournemouth and Liverpool/Lincoln City matches. I have to stay up on Liverpool because one of my friends is an outright Liverpool nut and he does not suffer people who don't know the Liverpool stats, which is amazing because he is blind and deaf. His friends and caregivers sign-on the palm of his hands during the match.
 
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As outsiders, we will never know the full story with Matteo Guendouzi.

I remember when we were trying to sign Aubameyang, there were quite a few reports that we'd have to deal with him being late for training, getting fines for this and that, and all sorts. Well, look at him now.

Clearly one can 'change', and here's hoping Matteo gets it together...
 
tee_cup said:
As outsiders, we will never know the full story with Matteo Guendouzi.

I remember when we were trying to sign Aubameyang, there were quite a few reports that we'd have to deal with him being late for training, getting fines for this and that, and all sorts. Well, look at him now.

Clearly one can 'change', and here's hoping Matteo gets it together...
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Suarez is one that comes to mind that took a few moves to really change.
But when he did change, with an attitude to match his skills - what a player!
 
The Football League have awarded Spurs a bye into the next round of the Carabao (ugh) Cup after the majority of the Leyton Orient squad tested positive for COVID.

What concerns me about this affair is that testing is voluntary and Leyton Orient, who accepted Spurs' offer to pay for tests before the match, will lose 150,000 GBP in TV revenue as a result of forfeiting the match.

Now EFL clubs will think "get tested = lose money" when it comes to cup matches. In other words, EFL clubs will be awash with COVID cases for the foreseeable future and refuse to be tested as long as it is optional...but games will go on, which will spread the virus further.

Additionally, Premier League Clubs may see fixtures against lower league clubs as very hazardous, and assume their players and staff are infected, and probably not want to play the matches?
 
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Lord Blackadder said:
The Football League have awarded Spurs a bye into the next round of the Carabao (ugh) Cup after the majority of the Leyton Orient squad tested positive for COVID.

What concerns me about this affair is that testing is voluntary and Leyton Orient, who accepted Spurs' offer to pay for tests before the match, will lose 150,000 GBP in TV revenue as a result of forfeiting the match.

Now EFL clubs will think "get tested = lose money" when it comes to cup matches. In other words, EFL clubs will be awash with COVID cases for the foreseeable future and refuse to be tested as long as it is optional...but games will go on, which will spread the virus further.

Additionally, Premier League Clubs may see fixtures against lower league clubs as very hazardous, and assume their players and staff are infected, and probably not want to play the matches?
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Excellent post.

One solution would be to ensure that lower league clubs are not financially disadvantaged by making public the results of such tests, which would mean that financial arrangements or compensation should be put in place.

While £150,000 is but the weekly wage of some Premiership players, it would seem to me to be a good idea for the League to try to find some way of compensating lower league clubs for such potential losses, in the event of further, future, Covid outbreaks.
 
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Lord Blackadder said:
The Football League have awarded Spurs a bye into the next round of the Carabao (ugh) Cup after the majority of the Leyton Orient squad tested positive for COVID.

What concerns me about this affair is that testing is voluntary and Leyton Orient, who accepted Spurs' offer to pay for tests before the match, will lose 150,000 GBP in TV revenue as a result of forfeiting the match.

Now EFL clubs will think "get tested = lose money" when it comes to cup matches. In other words, EFL clubs will be awash with COVID cases for the foreseeable future and refuse to be tested as long as it is optional...but games will go on, which will spread the virus further.

Additionally, Premier League Clubs may see fixtures against lower league clubs as very hazardous, and assume their players and staff are infected, and probably not want to play the matches?
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My Dad supports Orient. He would go most weeks before COVID 19.
I think the financial gulf between the top and the bottom of the Football league needs addressing fast. It’s not right with all the money in be game that the government bails out these clubs. But it’s also not right if more clubs go to the wall. No match day revenue, no TV money. Even a good cup run is no guaranteed pay day at the moment.
Sad times.
 
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Apple fanboy said:
My Dad supports Orient. He would go most weeks before COVID 19.
I think the financial gulf between the top and the bottom of the Football league needs addressing fast. It’s not right with all the money in be game that the government bails out these clubs. But it’s also not right if more clubs go to the wall. No match day revenue, no TV money. Even a good cup run is no guaranteed pay day at the moment.
Sad times.
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If I was being optimistic, I would say the silver lining here is that clubs will be forced into frugality and responsible accounting practices to weather the pandemic, and the way football clubs are run will become more generally responsible.

But this is 2020, the year where everything goes to pot, so the reality is they all just hope for a bailout. Many smaller-to medium-sized clubs may go bust in the next year.
 
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Lord Blackadder said:
If I was being optimistic, I would say the silver lining here is that clubs will be forced into frugality and responsible accounting practices to weather the pandemic, and the way football clubs are run will become more generally responsible.

But this is 2020, the year where everything goes to pot, so the reality is they all just hope for a bailout. Many smaller-to medium-sized clubs may go bust in the next year.
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I’m sure some will. Sadly it will by the fans that suffer.
 
Good news for the Spurs fans, Alex Morgan has been with the Spurs for a week, she may not play Saturday, but she will make her presents know in short order.
 
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HandsomeDanNZ said:
In weird football news, Ryan Reynolds is planning a takeover of Wrexham of all things!
www.bbc.co.uk

Ryan Reynolds: Hollywood actor plans Wrexham takeover

The Detective Pikachu star has teamed up with another Hollywood actor as they hope to buy Wrexham.
www.bbc.co.uk www.bbc.co.uk
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I didn't realize Wrexham is owned by a fan trust. I imagine most fans would prefer that arrangement, though they would have to stump up their own money to fund improvements in the club.

Reynolds' recent track record of investment is pretty good, though: he just sold Aviation Gin to Diageo for a ton of money.
 
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Silencio said:
I didn't realize Wrexham is owned by a fan trust. I imagine most fans would prefer that arrangement, though they would have to stump up their own money to fund improvements in the club.

Reynolds' recent track record of investment is pretty good, though: he just sold Aviation Gin to Diageo for a ton of money.
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I love that he replied to a tweet from 2012 that said,”You never know when Ryan Reynolds will turn up in Wrexham”...
 
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Quite a game at Brighton. If the scores were reversed, pundits would be saying it was the biggest smash n' grab of all time. Instead, the headline is "Epic Thriller." Man Utd are saved by yet another penalty, but were bossed for much of the game by Brighton - who hit the woodwork what, 4-5 times????
 
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Lord Blackadder said:
Quite a game at Brighton. If the scores were reversed, pundits would be saying it was the biggest smash n' grab of all time. Instead, the headline is "Epic Thriller." Man Utd are saved by yet another penalty, but were bossed for much of the game by Brighton - who hit the woodwork what, 4-5 times????
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A win for Man Utd. But did they deserve it? Anyway at least Rashford scored for my fantasy team.
 
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Apple fanboy said:
A win for Man Utd. But did they deserve it? Anyway at least Rashford scored for my fantasy team.
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No, as a Utd fan, I’m here to say they didn’t deserve it. I actually turned the game feed off in disgust when I thought they signaled full time and missed the late drama.

Last season you could see a system cohering that was undone at times by individual errors. This season it looks like that progress is out the window. Pogba has no business starting today — something is still clearly wrong with him. Wan-Bissaka got caught out over and over again — surely he was asked to stay further up, or was he really that somnambulant the entire match?
 
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