The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

[gopher_guy]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

That pass by Fabregas was unreal

higher quality

[ImTellinTim]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

I still can't believe Arsenal looked at Fabregas and was like "Nah, we're good". I don't care how many midfielders you have. You pay him and find room.

[eyeamg0dly]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

I still can't believe Arsenal looked at Fabregas and was like "Nah, we're good". I don't care how many midfielders you have. You pay him and find room.

And I can't believe pool sold Suarez. He might be a head case but you find room right?

[Leon]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

And I can't believe pool sold Suarez. He might be a head case but you find room right?

It's a bit different when Fabregas was being sold for chips and Suarez was going for mega-bucks.

[eyeamg0dly]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

It's a bit different when Fabregas was being sold for chips and Suarez was going for mega-bucks.

Nothing to do with price but quality and what he brought to the team. Liverpool with Suarez could have gone far in CL. Without him we don't know, but we will find out.

I don't think Cesc would have that huge of an impact on Arsenal.

[Leon]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

Nothing to do with price but quality and what he brought to the team. Liverpool with Suarez could have gone far in CL. Without him we don't know, but we will find out.

I don't think Cesc would have that huge of an impact on Arsenal.

It's not that cut-and-dry. Liverpool are still very much servicing a debt, though there's no doubt they'd be better off with him around. And let's not forget one thing - a lot of the South American players dream of playing for Barcelona/Madrid. United would've loved to have kept Ronaldo forever, but after we delayed his transfer by a year, United finally acquiesced to his dream. In hindsight, SAF definitely could've held off on a higher fee.

Cesc would easily replace Wilshere/Santi if Wenger wanted.

[ImTellinTim]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

As has been said, not even close to the same situations. Liverpool actually played the Suarez thing brilliantly, considering he wanted to leave last summer and was on a contract not even close to paying him what he was worth.

[OneDrop]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

Cesc would easily replace Wilshere/Santi if Wenger wanted.

Yes to Santi, no to Wilshere. I wouldn't hinder Wilshere's progress with a 27 year old. Even if you replaced him, we don't have room for Fabregas. We'd have to play him outof position seeing Ozil is our 10. Having him next to Ramsey wouldn't work because we need a holding defensive midfielder. And no way I'd bench Ramsey for Fabregas.

[KG]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

Yes to Santi, no to Wilshere. I wouldn't hinder Wilshere's progress with a 27 year old. Even if you replaced him, we don't have room for Fabregas. We'd have to play him out of position seeing Ozil is our 10. Having him next to Ramsey wouldn't work because we need a holding defensive midfielder. And no way I'd bench Ramsey for Fabregas.

One of the reasons why Arsenal hasn't been a serious title contender in a while or a threat in Europe is because of thinking like this. You can never have too much depth, especially world-class quality depth in Cesc. It's the reason why after winning the CL last year Real went out and splashed cash on James. Did he fill a void? No, they have Isco & Di Maria who could slot there but they wanted to be even stronger, upgrade, and keep him out of a potential rival's jersey. As a Chelsea fan I actually like Wilshire but considering his injury issues there is no way that I wouldn't have wanted Cesc. Good managers like Wenger will find a way for it to work, especially when you're going to play ~60 games this year. Cesc isn't a #10. He can be a deep lying MF, a false #9, etc...

[Brahvocado]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

Yes to Santi, no to Wilshere. I wouldn't hinder Wilshere's progress with a 27 year old. Even if you replaced him, we don't have room for Fabregas. We'd have to play him outof position seeing Ozil is our 10. Having him next to Ramsey wouldn't work because we need a holding defensive midfielder. And no way I'd bench Ramsey for Fabregas.

He's not just some 27 year old though, he's Cesc freaking Fabregas. When people say "I don't want X player because it would hinder the development of player Z" they are assuming that player Z will eventually be better than player X. I'm sorry but Jack Wilshire is not likely going to be better than Cesc Fabregas. Ramsey will definitely be fantastic but even then, he and Cesc are different players. Ramsey is very much a goalscoring midfielder, probably closest to Lampard's skill set we've seen, but he is not the passer of the ball Cesc is, because only a small handful of players on planet earth are as good as Cesc at passing the ball. Why on earth wouldn't you want both of those players on your team? That is insane depth to just pass up on.

As KG already said, it's not top-club mentality to pass on a world class player because "we don't need him and hey this young player could potentially be really good". I mean look how young Wilshere is and already so injury prone. People tend to forget that there are far more young players who fail to reach their potential than ones that reach or exceed it. For every Fabregas there are 10 Bojans.

[eyeamg0dly]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

One of the reasons why Arsenal hasn't been a serious title contender in a while or a threat in Europe is because of thinking like this. You can never have too much depth, especially world-class quality depth in Cesc. It's the reason why after winning the CL last year Real went out and splashed cash on James. Did he fill a void? No, they have Isco & Di Maria who could slot there but they wanted to be even stronger, upgrade, and keep him out of a potential rival's jersey....

It is this kind of mentality that ruins soccer. Just because your club has money doesn't mean its ok to waste it. Have you ever heard the term, never leave money on the bench? How many times has Real Madrid been bailed out by the city of Madrid? Barcelona is in the same situation. Its only a matter of time before FFP effects them.

[rsnomar05]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

He's not just some 27 year old though, he's Cesc freaking Fabregas. When people say "I don't want X player because it would hinder the development of player Z" they are assuming that player Z will eventually be better than player X. I'm sorry but Jack Wilshire is not likely going to be better than Cesc Fabregas. Ramsey will definitely be fantastic but even then, he and Cesc are different players. Ramsey is very much a goalscoring midfielder, probably closest to Lampard's skill set we've seen, but he is not the passer of the ball Cesc is, because only a small handful of players on planet earth are as good as Cesc at passing the ball. Why on earth wouldn't you want both of those players on your team? That is insane depth to just pass up on.

As KG already said, it's not top-club mentality to pass on a world class player because "we don't need him and hey this young player could potentially be really good". I mean look how young Wilshere is and already so injury prone. People tend to forget that there are far more young players who fail to reach their potential than ones that reach or exceed it. For every Fabregas there are 10 Bojans.

It's not that Fabregas wouldn't be great on this Arsenal team. It's that Arsenal needed a winger (We've signed Alexis Sanchez), three defenders (we've signed two in Chambers and Debuchy), a holding midfielder (we have yet to sign one), and a striker. Cesc plays neither of these positions. Our central midfield depth was already great, and if Cesc came at the expense of one of the needed upgrades I just mentioned, most Arsenal fans would have been upset. Yes, the club is finally spending, but they are not operating with unlimited money.

[Brahvocado]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

You guys have the money to make these kinds of signings though, without it effecting other potential signings.

Arsenal are not Southampton or Stoke City, they don't have to sign one player at the expense of another. It's that small club mentality your owners have drilled into everybody's heads because they are cheap as hell, along with being stuck on this illusion that there is a "right way" to do things.

I always hear Arsenal fans happy about constantly retaining CL and being satisfied with a r16 run and I just don't get it. Arsenal is one of the biggest clubs in English football history, giants of the game. I'd be freaking furious if my team went from The Invincibles to a walking punchline.

You guys should have much higher expectations for your team, your club has far more financial muscle than you've been led to believe.

[Brahvocado]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

Not to derail the argument or anything

http://nbcsportsgrouppressbox.com/2014/08/19/u-s-record-3-3-million-tune-in-to-nbc-sports-groups-opening-weekend-of-premier-league-coverage/

But this is freaking awesome. NBC's coverage has been phenomenal and it really seems like soccer is making big strides here in the US right now.

Just wanted to share that, I love you guys, even the Arsenal fans.

This sport is the ****ing BEST.

[dubcity]

Re: The 2014-15 EPL Discussion Thread

Yeah, pretty cool that they got those kind of numbers in spite of one of the worst studio shows in sports. There's an audience for the EPL in America, and there has been one for a long time.

I'm sure if one of the big networks wanted to, they could do similar things with La Liga. I'm not sure how many people have access to Bein Sports.