Soccer Thread 2014-15

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by Neuqua

So this wasn't done to bring in Jermaine Jones?

I hope so, and sure seems like a lot of smoke there. The international spot probably just covers Sene for the rest of his contract, and we save over 100k vs the salary cap with the trade. If Jones comes, he'll obviously make more, but we still have to fit the 375k DP's count against the cap. Unless that can also be bought down with allocation $$... Which we just got more of. Fingers crossed for this being a classic DT overreaction!

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Neuqua

So this wasn't done to bring in Jermaine Jones?

I'll believe it when he's signed, sealed, and delivered.

And even then I have a feeling he won't stick around/they won't stick with him longer than 1/2 season.

[MrBug708]

Martin Kelly transfers to Crystal Palace for just 1.5 million. Provided he can ever be healthy, this is a steal

[kingfc22]

Winning the FA Cup reinvigorate Wenger to finally spend money? I'd love to see the rumor of a Cavani transfer come to fruition but certainly not holding my breath.

[rowech]

Originally Posted by kingfc22

Winning the FA Cup reinvigorate Wenger to finally spend money? I'd love to see the rumor of a Cavani transfer come to fruition but certainly not holding my breath.

I'd much rather see a defensive midfielder.

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by rowech

I'd much rather see a defensive midfielder.

Hey, you have Jack Wilshere! The #10 who's never likely to actually be a #10.

Dude has Joe Cole written all over him.

[kingfc22]

Originally Posted by rowech

I'd much rather see a defensive midfielder.

But if they win each game 6-4 does it matter.

[kingfc22]

Also, Yedlin to Spurs is confirmed.

Hopefully, he doesn't just sit on the bench.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by kingfc22

Also, Yedlin to Spurs is confirmed.

Hopefully, he doesn't just sit on the bench.

Indeed. Especially because it'd be a massive chilling effect on future Americans who are successful in World Cups who are courted by European teams.

[rowech]

Originally Posted by flere-imsaho

Hey, you have Jack Wilshere! The #10 who's never likely to actually be a #10.

Dude has Joe Cole written all over him.

I'm not a fan of his at all. His head is never actually in the game. Always worried about revenge, fouling guys, etc.

[ISiddiqui]

Interesting article by Ives Galarcep in the midst of the Yedlin transfer of who will be able to replace Landon Donovan in MLS:

The MLS Wrap: Who will replace Landon Donovan? - Goal.com

In the long term, MLS will need some young talents to really blossom, and here is where things get a bit tricky. The league needs young talent to emerge and shine, but holding on to those players is getting tougher and tougher as foreign clubs show increased interest in the league's top prospects.

The league does have some very encouraging youngsters, such as the Galaxy's Gyasi Zardes, Chicago's Harrison Shipp, Real Salt Lake's Luis Gil, Columbus' Wil Trapp and Seattle's DeAndre Yedlin, but it is difficult to imagine any of them staying in MLS for long if their career trajectories continue to move upward.

Ives points out that you do have a bunch of older stars coming into the league, but you aren't going to have that good young player who spends his prime playing years in MLS while also leading the USMNT in World Cups. That player (like Yedlin) is going to be snapped up.

[The Jackal]

Originally Posted by kingfc22

Winning the FA Cup reinvigorate Wenger to finally spend money? I'd love to see the rumor of a Cavani transfer come to fruition but certainly not holding my breath.

Winning the FA Cup might have helped keep him around, but the spending is just a result of not paying off Emirates Stadium debt and the new PUMA sponsorship. Started with the buy of Ozil last year, it's just refreshing to see business done earlier than deadline day.

[Barkeep49]

So I've finally selected an EPL team: Southampton. They were a team I played in FM, recently brought Fraser Forster who was a favorite from a different FM career, and their wholesale sell of the roster feels like they will pain me in all the ways I've come to expect as a Cubs fan.

So great. I have a team. Advice on good blogs/websites to read either for them specifically or the Premier more generally?

[Neuqua]

The process of finding a team to align yourself to can be a fun journey itself. My ending up as a Newcastle fan, well, I wish now I did things differently.

The main websites I browse through:

ProSoccerTalk
OTF Soccer | ANALYSIS. INSIGHT. FLUFF.
Football news, match reports and fixtures | Football | The Guardian

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by rowech

I'm not a fan of his at all. His head is never actually in the game. Always worried about revenge, fouling guys, etc.

Yeah, that's where I was going. If he's the future of the English National Team, the English National Team is in a lot of trouble.

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by Barkeep49

So great. I have a team. Advice on good blogs/websites to read either for them specifically or the Premier more generally?

IMO, The Guardian's coverage is always excellent. Many of the top short and long-form football writers call it home (Jonathan Wilson of Inverting the Pyramid and Michael Cox of zonalmarking.net to name two).

Also, anything Brian Phillips writes on Grantland is usually good (though not always about the EPL).

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Indeed. Especially because it'd be a massive chilling effect on future Americans who are successful in World Cups who are courted by European teams.

Americans should follow the example of many Africans, who tend to go wherever they're going to get actual playing time, instead of following the money all the time. Look at Yaya Toure's career, for example.

[Barkeep49]

Originally Posted by flere-imsaho

IMO, The Guardian's coverage is always excellent. Many of the top short and long-form football writers call it home (Jonathan Wilson of Inverting the Pyramid and Michael Cox of zonalmarking.net to name two).

Also, anything Brian Phillips writes on Grantland is usually good (though not always about the EPL).

Thanks. I have really liked Phillips ever since reading his FM Dynasty and have enjoyed all his pieces on Grantland (and have found their soccer coverage since the world cup strong). The Guardian combination of short and long is exactly what I'm looking for. I appreciate it.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by Barkeep49

So I've finally selected an EPL team: Southampton. They were a team I played in FM, recently brought Fraser Forster who was a favorite from a different FM career, and their wholesale sell of the roster feels like they will pain me in all the ways I've come to expect as a Cubs fan.

So great. I have a team. Advice on good blogs/websites to read either for them specifically or the Premier more generally?

Well, thankfully you didn't start following them closer to when the World Cup happened... you would have been ridiculously frustrated with them selling their good young players. But, you know, they'll definitely be mid table .

[flere-imsaho]

Mid table in the Championship.

I KEED! I KEED!

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by Neuqua

The process of finding a team to align yourself to can be a fun journey itself. My ending up as a Newcastle fan, well, I wish now I did things differently.

Shut your mouth! Rooting for Newcastle builds character... or something .

We are rooting for, basically, the pre-2004 Red Sox! One day our ship will come in... maybe. When Ashley and Pardew go (why the fuck did you idiots sell Cabaye?!)

[Grover]

Welcome to the club of rooting for teams in mid-table!

[AlexB]

Wow. Pulis has left Palace by all accounts. Nice start to the season, and what must Martin Kelly be thinking - he signs for the manager in the afternoon, and that same evening the manager quits!

[Neuqua]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Shut your mouth! Rooting for Newcastle builds character... or something .

We are rooting for, basically, the pre-2004 Red Sox! One day our ship will come in... maybe. When Ashley and Pardew go (why the fuck did you idiots sell Cabaye?!)

I'm oddly optimistic about this year. I have no idea what convinced Ashley to spend this summer but I think we did well with it. I can see them finishing 8-10 with an outside shot at Europe if things really fall into place.

[ISiddiqui]

Remember when Ashley bought the team and the Toon Army was all like "We got our Abramovich now"?

[ISiddiqui]

I do agree that Newcastle has reasons to be hopeful though. De Jong, Cabella, Riviere, Perez, etc. Janmaat replacing Debuchy. Maybe we can even sign Remy long term. And apparently Newcastle are in the lead for Zaha. Though I would have liked a bit more singings shoring up the defense.

[Grover]

Originally Posted by AlexB

Wow. Pulis has left Palace by all accounts. Nice start to the season, and what must Martin Kelly be thinking - he signs for the manager in the afternoon, and that same evening the manager quits!

Wow. This must have to do with the transfer policy or something along these lines.

I'm shocked.

[Neuqua]

Here are my random predictions for the upcoming season:

1. Chelsea
2. Arsenal
3. Manchester City
4. Manchester United
5. Liverpool
6. Everton
7. Tottenham
8. Newcastle
9. Swansea
10. Stoke
11. Southampton
12. West Ham
13. Aston Villa
14. Leicester City
15. Sunderland
16. Crystal Palace (with Pulis leaving)
17. QPR
18. Hull
19. West Brom
20. Burnley

[Coffee Warlord]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Remember when Ashley bought the team and the Toon Army was all like "We got our Abramovich now"?

And now we're in the running for the most hideous shirt sponsor design in the Premier League. God they're ugly.

I do find it amusing how many of us on FOFC adopted Newcastle as their club.

[Neuqua]

Originally Posted by Coffee Warlord

And now we're in the running for the most hideous shirt sponsor design in the Premier League. God they're ugly.

I do find it amusing how many of us on FOFC adopted Newcastle as their club.

Even more annoying for me because the GF is an Arsenal fan and they have what I consider the best looking shirts in the world. I actually bought her a NUFC kit from last season and she kind of just looked at me with a "...really?" face.

[Grover]

Originally Posted by Coffee Warlord

And now we're in the running for the most hideous shirt sponsor design in the Premier League. God they're ugly.

I do find it amusing how many of us on FOFC adopted Newcastle as their club.

They'd be fine if it weren't for that hugely over-sized WONGA logo.

[ISiddiqui]

Oh, for the days of the Newcastle Brown logo.

[bhlloy]

As if the logo wasn't bad enough, there's also the fact that wonga is a predatory loan company with a long track record of ripping people off in the extreme.

The Newcastle Brown logo with the blue star was absolutely iconic. Would love to see them go back to that. Some great memories seeing that kit

[MrBug708]

Originally Posted by AlexB

Wow. Pulis has left Palace by all accounts. Nice start to the season, and what must Martin Kelly be thinking - he signs for the manager in the afternoon, and that same evening the manager quits!

[whomario]

german cup produced one of the most amzingly weird games i´ve ever seen. 3rd division team Chemnitz battled Mainz all game, after 118 minutes it was 4:4. The Chemnitz scores the 5:4 (119) and then Mainz ties it with a goal from their own half And then Chemnitz manages to take that hit and win the penalty shootout

stay tuned for youtube video

edit: the 5:5

[kingfc22]

Originally Posted by Grover

They'd be fine if it weren't for that hugely over-sized WONGA logo.

Speaking of kits.

Kit deal is more important than ever for Premier League

[Ryan S]

Originally Posted by kingfc22

Speaking of kits.

Kit deal is more important than ever for Premier League

When you consider the new Adidas deal, the Man Utd kit deal is unbelievable.

$200 million per season.

[Grover]

Starting Carlton Cole and Ricardo Vaz Te is some sort of sick joke being played by Fat Sam.

[Grover]

First time I have EVER seen Mark Noble miss a penalty

[miami_fan]

Of course Crystal Palace has taken the lead.

[miami_fan]

Good because I really did not need to see Arsenal booed off the pitch in the first game again.

[ISiddiqui]

Wow, Manchester United... the Van Gaal era has not started all that well...

[Lathum]

Curious to see what the ratings look like for ghis first week of games.

[bhlloy]

Sanogo isn't good enough for this Arsenal team right now. You can't have your one center forward be a passenger in this kind of scheme

[rowech]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

Sanogo isn't good enough for this Arsenal team right now. You can't have your one center forward be a passenger in this kind of scheme

Is baffling how he ever sees the field. He's awful. I refer to him as the useless giraffe in homage to an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond.

[bhlloy]

Rambo!

[kingfc22]

Thank goodness. Fully agree on the Sanogo comments. Give me Campbell over him if Giroud is not starting.

[rowech]

Originally Posted by kingfc22

Thank goodness. Fully agree on the Sanogo comments. Give me Campbell over him if Giroud is not starting.

I said it last year, I know he's not a typical striker but I really wonder what kind of havoc Ox could create there.

[Grover]

Furious with the way West Ham played a man up today. Allardyce showed no initiative to attack, despite Downing dominating down the right and Noble and Kouyate dominating in midfield. 34 minutes up a man with two shots on target.

Take a look at the new-look attacking West Ham. Same as the old West Ham.

Allardyce Out.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by rowech

Is baffling how he ever sees the field. He's awful. I refer to him as the useless giraffe in homage to an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond.

I think the kid has potential, but he isn't close yet. It's infuriating to me to see Wenger and his attitude toward Giroud.

1) If he thinks Giroud isn't good enough to start, he should have went after a pure striker. You don't say " this guy isn't good enough to lead the line so I'll throw in a guy who is worse:" I'm sorry, I love Wenger, but what he's doing here is utter nonsense. We cannot afford to blow points at home simply because he wants to try to convince everyone Sanago is a stud. Giroud comes in, draws what should have been a penalty and caused problems instantly for CP. He could have started that at, ya know, the beginning of the game.

2) Chambers is out of this world good. Maybe I'll eat my words in 3 years, but I don't see how Luke Shaw goes for double what Chambers did. This kid has serious game.

3) Hats off to CP. They could have played this game half ass and nobody would have blamed them.They worked their asses off. Fair play to them.

4) The "Arsenal can't win game" always seems to start on opening day. They win by 4 goals and it's "Arsenal can beat anyone on their best day, but what about when they aren't on and have to gut one out?" They gut one out and it is "they should have throttle CP, see, they suck" If they lost, it would have been "Fire Wenger" I'm so happy ManU is joining us in this utter BS now. Good times, good times.