2018/19 Premier League & General Football Discussion

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Does football need video referees?

  • Yes - VAR is a success

  • Yes - The principle is needed but VAR has been badly handled

  • No - VAR was horrible and should not be continued

  • No - Mistakes are part of football

  • Undecided

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On this day before the season starts is it time for us to give our relegation predictions? Which 3 go down and at the same time which 3 come up from the Championship?
 
Everton have signed Yerry Mina for €30m from Barcelona (who signed for Barcelona in January for a third of that) and one of Brazil's old men in the pub, Bernard, on a free from Shakhtar Donetsk.
 
Swansea have let three players go today, Fernandez to Newcastle, J Ayew to Palace on loan and Clucas to Stoke, I hope Potter knows what he's doing! :grumpy:

Fulham have agreed a deal to sign Marseille midfielder Andre-Frank Anguissa for £30 million.

United were interested in signing Godin but Godin wasn't interested in United.
 
Leicester also sign CB Caglar Soyuncu from Freiburg for €21.1 million.

AC Milan finally sell Nikola Kalinic to Altetico Madrid for €14.5 million.
 
Tottenham didn't make a single signing for the first team, which means...

There are the only club in the top five leagues not to make a signing.

There are the only club who are confirmed Champions League participants not to make a signing.

And perhaps most astonishingly of all, since the Summer transfer window started in English Football in 2003, only one club haven't made a signing, guess who that is?!
 
OK then now the transfer stuff is done we can draw our attention to this.

Friday night
Man United v Leicester (8pm Sky)

Saturday
Bournemouth v Cardiff
Fulham v Crystal Palace
Huddersfield v Chelsea
Newcastle v Tottenham (12.30 Sky)
Watford v Brighton
Wolves v Everton (5.30 BT)

Sunday
Arsenal v Man City (4pm Sky)
Liverpool v West Ham (1.30 Sky)
Southampton v Burnley (1.30)

No change in the TV scheduling so its as you were from last season.

Burnley playing on Sunday because they were in Istanbul tonight in their EL qualifier, they drew 0-0.
 
MUSC4EVER
Tottenham didn't make a single signing for the first team, which means...

There are the only club in the top five leagues not to make a signing.
Click to expand...

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MUSC4EVER
There are the only club in the top five leagues not to make a signing.
Click to expand...
We're under a transfer embargo and haven't signed anyone since January (Joey Pelupessy)... so no they aren't.
MUSC4EVER
And perhaps most astonishingly of all, since the Summer transfer window started in English Football in 2003, only one club haven't made a signing, guess who that is?!
Click to expand...
Well... Spurs. Just now.

Last club to come close (at least for Premier League clubs) was Leeds, who signed one player on loan in... actually 2003 I think.

Pochettino has reportedly blamed Brexit, incidentally.
 
Good win tonight, quite happy, that goal will do wonders for Luke Shaw (yes, he actually scored!)

Fred played well on his debut too, no complaints from me.
 
Jezza819
On this day before the season starts is it time for us to give our relegation predictions? Which 3 go down and at the same time which 3 come up from the Championship?
Click to expand...
Watford, Southampton, Cardiff City and Newcastle in the bottom four. Two of which I genuinely hope to be in there. I hope for Palace too, but probably won't happen.

Top of the Championship is a fool's errand. Everyone (except Rotherham)? Boro were a strong pre-season favourite but were hopeless against Millwall in the first half - escaped going 3-0 down by a fluke and somehow got it back to 2-2 in the second half... then tonked Sheffield United (although United's defence has been woeful so far this season; if you can catch the Championship on Quest, the five goals they've conceded have been terrible). Maybe that Millwall half was the scare that wakes them up? Villa have spent big, and might be up there. Leeds might finally have what it takes, or they might be Leeds. Wednesday haven't recruited anyone but our injuries are all nearly back so we almost have a new team - don't think we'll hit playoffs, but might. West Brom and Stoke haven't suffered that badly with relegation, so put them up there. Blackburn and Wigan have momentum (and experience). Brentford, Millwall and Bristol have all strengthened from pretty decent and tight-knit squads. Forest and Derby have made good recruitments...

I mean, toss a coin. I only don't see QPR, Hull, Reading, Rotherham, Sheffield United (not out of desire; they've just lost such a crucial player in David Brooks, and Wilder doesn't look like he's got the ideas since January), Birmingham, Norwich (Maddison was a huge loss) and Ipswich up in the mix. Everybody else could finish anywhere else. I might call it as a Villa/Boro promotion and Leeds, Stoke, Wigan and [pick one] in the playoffs.
 
Full times.

Man United 2-1 Leicester
Newcastle 1-2 Tottenham
Huddersfield 0-3 Chelsea
Watford 2-0 Brighton
Bournemouth 2-0 Cardiff
Fulham 0-2 Crystal Palace

Wolves v Everton to come...
 
Famine
Watford, Southampton, Cardiff City and Newcastle in the bottom four. Two of which I genuinely hope to be in there. I hope for Palace too, but probably won't happen.

Top of the Championship is a fool's errand. Everyone (except Rotherham)? Boro were a strong pre-season favourite but were hopeless against Millwall in the first half - escaped going 3-0 down by a fluke and somehow got it back to 2-2 in the second half... then tonked Sheffield United (although United's defence has been woeful so far this season; if you can catch the Championship on Quest, the five goals they've conceded have been terrible). Maybe that Millwall half was the scare that wakes them up? Villa have spent big, and might be up there. Leeds might finally have what it takes, or they might be Leeds. Wednesday haven't recruited anyone but our injuries are all nearly back so we almost have a new team - don't think we'll hit playoffs, but might. West Brom and Stoke haven't suffered that badly with relegation, so put them up there. Blackburn and Wigan have momentum (and experience). Brentford, Millwall and Bristol have all strengthened from pretty decent and tight-knit squads. Forest and Derby have made good recruitments...

I mean, toss a coin. I only don't see QPR, Hull, Reading, Rotherham, Sheffield United (not out of desire; they've just lost such a crucial player in David Brooks, and Wilder doesn't look like he's got the ideas since January), Birmingham, Norwich (Maddison was a huge loss) and Ipswich up in the mix. Everybody else could finish anywhere else. I might call it as a Villa/Boro promotion and Leeds, Stoke, Wigan and [pick one] in the playoffs.
Click to expand...

I picked Huddersfield, Cardiff, and Brighton and I had to think long and hard about putting Watford in instead of Brighton but eventually settled on Brighton.

Also I think we've had the first red card of the new season with Everton's Jagielka sent off at 40' in the game against Wolves.
 
The new Wolves goalkeeper Rui Patricio is wearing the number 11 shirt...…
 
Right then I've been meaning to do this in pre season but couldn't for various reasons.

So, in 3 2 1....

The Prediction

1. Man City
2. Liverpool
3. Man United
4. Chelsea
5. Tottenham
6. Arsenal
7. Everton
8. West Ham
9. Leicester
10. Wolves
11. Crystal Palace
12. Burnley
13. Newcastle
14. Fulham
15. Southampton
16. Bournemouth
17. Watford
18. Brighton
19. Huddersfield
20. Cardiff

The Explanation
Man City to win it again and be relatively untroubled whilst doing it, I think Liverpool are best placed to challenge them as they bought really well and their squad is looking much stronger, United have fallen behind a bit IMO in the last few months but we'll still comfortably get CL place, Tottenham to lose their CL place simply because everyone else has strengthened and they haven't and I think Chelsea are the one to grab the fourth spot, Arsenal will be work in progress under Emery but there are promising signs for the future there. Everton, West Ham and Leicester have done well in pre season and I feel they will finish in top ten, Wolves have got too much about them to be in a relegation scrap. Palace, Burnley, Newcastle and Fulham will all be fine, Southampton and Bournemouth and Watford to struggle a bit, neither Brighton or Huddersfield have the fire power to stay up, and likewise Cardiff who will struggle with a team of mostly Championship players, Premier League will be too much for them.

And I think that's it. 👍
 
MUSC4EVER
13. Newcastle
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Not seeing it. Newcastle were weak last season and basically finished as the top team that wasn't in, or challenging for, Europe. They were four points ahead of Brighton in 15th.

Everyone around Newcastle has strengthened, some by an incredible amount, and two of the three teams coming up have some huge talents and huge new signings, while Newcastle basically signed no-one - they've signed two players from relegated Swansea, a striker from Mainz, a goalkeeper (their goalkeeper last year was the last of their problems) and Fabian Schar, plus Kenedy back on loan from last year and Rondon from relegated West Brom - a striker who couldn't score in a team that didn't.

About the only teams that rival Newcastle for lack of squad strength are Cardiff, Huddersfield, Brighton and Southampton. Newcastle's transfer record is still Michael Owen - and although money can't buy you success, a lack of it can buy failure...
 
Famine
Not seeing it. Newcastle were weak last season and basically finished as the top team that wasn't in, or challenging for, Europe. They were four points ahead of Brighton in 15th.

Everyone around Newcastle has strengthened, some by an incredible amount, and two of the three teams coming up have some huge talents and huge new signings, while Newcastle basically signed no-one - they've signed two players from relegated Swansea, a striker from Mainz, a goalkeeper (their goalkeeper last year was the last of their problems) and Fabian Schar, plus Kenedy back on loan from last year and Rondon from relegated West Brom - a striker who couldn't score in a team that didn't.

About the only teams that rival Newcastle for lack of squad strength are Cardiff, Huddersfield, Brighton and Southampton. Newcastle's transfer record is still Michael Owen - and although money can't buy you success, a lack of it can buy failure...
Click to expand...
Newcastle did spend a load of money to get Fraser House though :D
 
Famine
Not seeing it. Newcastle were weak last season and basically finished as the top team that wasn't in, or challenging for, Europe. They were four points ahead of Brighton in 15th.

Everyone around Newcastle has strengthened, some by an incredible amount, and two of the three teams coming up have some huge talents and huge new signings, while Newcastle basically signed no-one - they've signed two players from relegated Swansea, a striker from Mainz, a goalkeeper (their goalkeeper last year was the last of their problems) and Fabian Schar, plus Kenedy back on loan from last year and Rondon from relegated West Brom - a striker who couldn't score in a team that didn't.

About the only teams that rival Newcastle for lack of squad strength are Cardiff, Huddersfield, Brighton and Southampton. Newcastle's transfer record is still Michael Owen - and although money can't buy you success, a lack of it can buy failure...
Click to expand...

But what they do have is a brilliant manager, and if he does go because of the lacking of funding then Newcastle will be in real trouble.

Liverpool hammered West Ham 4-0 earlier with goals from Mane (2) Salah and Sturridge. Southampton and Burnley finished 0-0.

Arsenal v Man City is on now.

Edit: And Sterling has just scored.....
 
City now two up with a great strike from Bernardo, awful Arsenal defending though.
 
David Silva has retired from International Football, he won 125 caps for Spain scoring 35 goals.

Football this week, no Monday Night Football tonight, First round of the Carabao Cup is tomorrow with most of the ties taking place, European Super Cup between Real Madrid and Atletico is on Wednesday, plus the likes of Celtic, Burnley, Rangers etc continuing their quest for European qualification.
 

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