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The 2023-2024 Football Thread

daneoni said:
I'm sure he is.

But Utd are paying him 375k/week to deliver more than he is currently giving.
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Alas, I cannot argue with that.

However, there are others who - to put it kindly - also fail to deliver (either through lack of interest, or effort, or motivation) for United, and yet others, who, perhaps, are not quite good enough, though their commitment and effort are hardly in doubt.
 
Re Rashford who outside of football seems like a good bloke. Clearly he flourishes when his headspace is in a certain fram of mind. He seems to be either having a great season or a terrible one. There is no average season.
I think when his head is down, it’s down. I don’t think he will bounce back this season.
Maybe I’m wrong, but that’s what I see.
 
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WE WON!



3 - 1

8655_small.png
 
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Columbus won the Eastern conference final last night in a 3-2 thriller against Cincinnati.

What a game. Columbus were away from home against their local rivals, and went down 2-0. Cincy had the best record in the league, coach of the year, and the player who won league MVP.

Yet the crew fought back, leveled the score after 90, and scored a winner in the 115th minute. We are going to - and hosting - the final!!!
 
...and then a wild 4-3 at Anfield. Liverpool dominated play at times and scored two worldies in the first half, but also leaked two rather cheap goals to a Fulham side who worked hard the whole match and never let up on the home side. The second half was even more chaotic. Despite 4 goals for Liverpool Mo Salah wasn't on the scoresheet and must wait another match for his 200th goal.

I didn't really see any especially bad defending, but the way Liverpool play requires everyone to be switched on and moving at all times. Small mistakes in positioning or committing to a tackle can have bigger consequences and Liverpool allowed a few overloads that cost them. Fulham had the right plan and it almost paid off handsomely.

I feel relief rather than elation...but it was probably a great watch for the neutral.
 
Lord Blackadder said:
...and then a wild 4-3 at Anfield. Liverpool dominated play at times and scored two worldies in the first half, but also leaked two rather cheap goals to a Fulham side who worked hard the whole match and never let up on the home side. The second half was even more chaotic. Despite 4 goals for Liverpool Mo Salah wasn't on the scoresheet and must wait another match for his 200th goal.

I didn't really see any especially bad defending, but the way Liverpool play requires everyone to be switched on and moving at all times. Small mistakes in positioning or committing to a tackle can have bigger consequences and Liverpool allowed a few overloads that cost them. Fulham had the right plan and it almost paid off handsomely.

I feel relief rather than elation...but it was probably a great watch for the neutral.
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I’ll watch the highlights later. We drew against Palace which feels more like two points dropped than one gained.

Mind you I’m resigned to finishing mid table this season. No chance of qualifying in Europe in the league. So hopefully through a cup or the EL itself.
 
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Lord Blackadder said:
...and then a wild 4-3 at Anfield. Liverpool dominated play at times and scored two worldies in the first half, but also leaked two rather cheap goals to a Fulham side who worked hard the whole match and never let up on the home side. The second half was even more chaotic. Despite 4 goals for Liverpool Mo Salah wasn't on the scoresheet and must wait another match for his 200th goal.

I didn't really see any especially bad defending, but the way Liverpool play requires everyone to be switched on and moving at all times. Small mistakes in positioning or committing to a tackle can have bigger consequences and Liverpool allowed a few overloads that cost them. Fulham had the right plan and it almost paid off handsomely.

I feel relief rather than elation...but it was probably a great watch for the neutral.
Click to expand...
Wow.

A wild 4-3 at Anfield, with Liverpool defeating a spirited Fulham.

Elsewhere, Chelsea defeat Brighton by three goals to two, while Bournemouth and Villa draw at two goals apiece, and West Ham and Crystal Palace claim a point each, with a one all draw.
 
Liverpool draw Arsenal away in the FA Cup. Meanwhile Man City have their work cut out for the them against…oh, Huddersfield Town….

I’m sure Pep is going to do his usual thing of showering the opposition with compliments despite flattening them with ease.
 
Lord Blackadder said:
Liverpool draw Arsenal away in the FA Cup.
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Hm.

That should be an interesting fixture.
Lord Blackadder said:
Meanwhile Man City have their work cut out for the them against…oh, Huddersfield Town….
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Yes, but they currently have their work cut out for them playing against an exhilarating Spurs where they lead by three goals to two in a hard fought game.
Lord Blackadder said:
I’m sure Pep is going to do his usual thing of showering the opposition with compliments despite flattening them with ease.
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Yes, this seems to his specialty, this particular form of buttering up; nevertheless, it is better than trading insults and deliberately giving offence and showing contempt.
 
Ref robbed City but they didn't deserve to win. Got to 2-1 and thought the match was over.

City have now conceded 9 goals in 4 games.

#Complacent
 
Apple fanboy said:
I spent a bit longer than that. Definitely the most intense rivalry I’ve ever witnessed.
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I spent a year teaching there - and enjoyed it, I liked the people I worked with and whom I met a lot - but that intense rivalry (from two equally depressed areas, where people had far more in common than what they thought divided them) left me utterly baffled.
 
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Scepticalscribe said:
I spent a year teaching there - and enjoyed it, I liked the people I worked with and met a lot - but that intense rivalry (from two equally depressed areas, where people had far more in common than what they thought divided them) left me utterly baffled.
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Indeed. I think it was because both areas were deprived. When contracts were awarded to one town it was at the expense of the other (or at least that is how it was explained to me).
 
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Apple fanboy said:
Indeed. I think it was because both areas were deprived. When contracts were awarded to one town it was at the expense of the other (or at least that is how it was explained to me).
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I could never understand why they didn't combine, unite, and focus their (mutual) resentments on (richly merited) targets elsewhere, and said so to some of my less intemperate colleagues (some of whom, but only privately, agreed with me).
 
Lord Blackadder said:
...and then a wild 4-3 at Anfield. Liverpool dominated play at times and scored two worldies in the first half, but also leaked two rather cheap goals to a Fulham side who worked hard the whole match and never let up on the home side. The second half was even more chaotic. Despite 4 goals for Liverpool Mo Salah wasn't on the scoresheet and must wait another match for his 200th goal.

I didn't really see any especially bad defending, but the way Liverpool play requires everyone to be switched on and moving at all times. Small mistakes in positioning or committing to a tackle can have bigger consequences and Liverpool allowed a few overloads that cost them. Fulham had the right plan and it almost paid off handsomely.

I feel relief rather than elation...but it was probably a great watch for the neutral.
Click to expand...
Kelleher was at fault for at least two of the goals; I can see Alison saving both of those. Then it's at least 4-1 which would have been more expected. The goalie had a day to forget, but three points so no real damage. Keeps up the pressure on Arsenal, who will surely crack at some point. Arsenal have had a fair bit of luck so far (as they did last season until March), but now have some tough away games to play. They have Villa and Liverpool away coming up. They're going to need that luck for those games, for certain. Qualifying for the last 16 of the CL could be a double edged sword in terms of injuries etc.
 
With every passing week, I am more and more convinced that ETH has to go. I know he's working with a squad that's gotten a few other managers sacked before him, but he's brought in an awful lot of his own players at great expense and alienated some guys who have a reputation for being total pros. The football is dire and the players are totally tuned out.

United need a clean break, with a new manager and a significant chunk of the squad shipped out. Will have to wait for SJR and his team to come in and do a thorough assessment. Hopefully somebody kept Ralf Rangnick's notes, as his post mortem about the problems at United was spot on.

Rashford has had a lot of personal issues off the pitch (broken engagement, drama with his brother), and I also think he was pretty tight with Jadon Sancho, so there is fallout from how ETH handled that situation.
 
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