2019/20 Soccer Thread

Oh Lord, this again?

Pep Guardiola has dismissed Jürgen Klopp’s claim that Manchester City live in a “fantasia land” where they can spend £200m every year as he insisted the treble winners enjoyed success on a £17m budget last season.

City face Liverpool, the only Premier League club yet to make a senior signing this summer, in Sunday’s Community Shield after Klopp argued only City, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid could afford to invest colossal sums every year.

But while Guardiola has broken City’s transfer record for a second successive summer, with Rodri replacing Riyad Mahrez as the biggest buy in their history, he is adamant he has not invested heavily while highlighting Liverpool’s outlay in 2018, when they were England’s largest spenders.

He said: “It bothers me because it’s not true that we spent £200m every window. So it’s Liverpool; you’ll never walk alone; it’s not a small team, it’s Liverpool. So of course I don’t like it.”

Guardiola’s overall outlay at City is around £600m after the £63m acquisition of Rodri from Atlético Madrid, but it was concentrated in his first two years at the Etihad Stadium and has since been offset by sales of fringe players.

“Last season we spent [a net] £17m on just one player,” he said. “Two seasons ago when we spent a lot it’s because I took over a team with 10 or 11 players aged 30 or over so I had to do it. But we cannot spend £200m every season. For example, Liverpool spent more than £200m last season and can’t do it again this season, so it’s the same.

“We bought one player [Rodri] this summer and paid the [£5.3m] buyback clause for Angeliño [to re-sign the reserve left-back from PSV Eindhoven] and that is the reality. So today clubs cannot spend every single season spending a lot of money.”

Like, I know we can't be honest with this, but can we just admit that yes, City/PSG are backed effectively by petro-states and can spend as much as they want while largely defecating on FFP? Like, Liverpool absolutely isn't broke, but City absolutely can have the means to spend £200m each season.

Romelu Lukaku tweeting Manchester United training data to show he doesn't lack pace.

https://twitter.com/RomeluLukaku9/st...

I guess Luke Shaw is toast.

Roke wrote:

I guess Luke Shaw is toast.

IMAGE(https://i.redd.it/v5owwhpsczd31.png)

You are on a roll recently.

Interesting NY Times article on Monchi, Sevilla's Sporting Director, and the success they've had in the transfer market.

Mr Bismarck wrote:
Roke wrote:

I guess Luke Shaw is toast.

IMAGE(https://i.redd.it/v5owwhpsczd31.png)

Laughed out loud. Poor Luke Shaw.

Glad I wasn't listening to the Totally Football Show while on transit. Laughed out loud at PSG's €300m valuation of Neymar.

They made Everton's signing of Moise Kean sound like it's a very good one. But then I got home and saw on Twitter that they bid £32m for Doucaré and I wonder if they just got lucky with Kean.

Season starts:

- Fulham loses 1-0 away to just-promoted Barnsley, and didn't look like the superior team in the slightest.

Welp. 45 more to go.

We started with a win.

It wasn't exactly convincing, especially considering we had an extra man for almost a half hour, but with one game played we're fifteen points clear of the bottom two.

Well Leeds started like a train again, smashing Bristol City 3-1 away. Although our team is even more threadbare than last year. But might as well over react now, WE ARE GOING UP, SAY WE ARE GOING UP

Well the Community Shield match game was surprisingly good to be honest - Man City had the first half honours and Liverpool the second half. Once again a remarkable goal-line clearance saved City from defeat and in the end there was just the one missed penalty between the two teams. Both looked a little rusty (Salah especially for some reason) but still stronger than most other teams.

Nobody else is going to get close to these two next season.

I'll attempt prediction this year, the first game of the new EPL season is this Friday (Liverpool v Norwich) so it's nearly upon us.

1. Man City
2. Liverpool - My heart says Liverpool, my head City. Liverpool will play all 6 other "top" sides first this season, while city will only have Spurs before the Christmas period. I think that'll give City a psychological boosting Lead before Liverpool's fixture congestion really starts to bite with the Club World cup on top of the 6 premiership fixtures in December. Something will have to give and with Firmino, Salah and Mane effectively having no break at all we'll need Origi and Brewster to really step up to the plate this year to sustain any challenge. I can't see it personally.

City just look too strong. Some great strengthening acquisitions over the summer. I think the league will depend on how much Guardiola (and his bosses) wants another Champions League title over a 3rd successive EPL title.

Still expect there to be the best part of a 20 point gap between these two and everyone else though at the end of the season.

3. Spurs - Making Third successful since Poch took over. However this will be dependent on how long Man U put up with OGS as manager, and pay the cash to prize Poch from Levy's cold dead hands. Still stop 6 though.

In no particular order
4. Arsenal
5.Chelsea
6. Man U. Still "the top 6". Positions will be dependent on Managerial success (or how long it takes them to get sacked) Honestly I couldn't predict the order of these if I wanted to. More than one of them could have enough of a stinker to fall into the chasing pack though. It well be a season where it becomes the top 2 and then the chasing pack.

7. Leicester. Rodgers is a good manager who'll get Leicester playing nice, attractive football with a suspect defense. Perez looks a good signing. They won't miss Maguire nearly as much as Peirera, if he goes.

8. Wolves. Consolidating an impressive first season. Not sure they've made the signings to improve over the summer though. I think the most impressive thing they've done is not really lose anyone.

9. Everton. Looking good on paper. Can Silva translate that into league performance? I'm bias so I doubt it.

10. West Ham. Some solid development under Pellegrini. Haller might solve the Arnautovic shaped hole in their attack. Never underestimate them doing "A West Ham" though.

The "They'll survive but do nothing else squad" in no particular order:

11. Burnley
12. Bournemouth
13. Southampton
14. Watford
15. Crystal Palace (by dint of their being at least 3 teams worse than them. Just)

Relegation Fodder. Positions interchangeable but I'd be surprised to see Brighton or Sheffield back in the league next season.

16. Newcastle. I think they'll survive - just. It'll be a challenge but I think there is just enough there to stay up. with some of the new signings. I sure as hell wouldn't bet on it though.
17. Norwich. Give them credit for getting promoted as Championship champions. Going to be a long, hard season though.
18. Aston Villa. I'm not really sure what so many people see in this team. It looks no better (or worse) than the other teams around them. I'd like them to get relegated just to see the look on Terry's face though.
19. Brighton. A club in something of a crisis. Potter has his hands full, but if anyone can keep them up, it looks like he can.
20. Sheffield United - I honestl can't think of much to say here. A difficult season without much light at the end of the tunnel. Harsh, but staying up would be Huddersfield levels of unexpected/impressive.

Final week of the transfer window

Shifted
* Williams - ✅ out of contract
* Jagielka - ✅ out of contract, hope he gets to play somewhere though
* Jonjoe Kenny - ✅ (Schalke 04) Loan
* Vlašić - ✅ (CSKA Moscow) Undisclosed
* Sandro Ramírez - ✅ (Real Valladolid) Loan
* Brendan Galloway - ✅ (Luton Town) Free transfer
* João Virginia - ✅ (Reading) Loan
* Keiran Dowell - ✅ (Derby County) Loan
* Luke Garbutt - ✅ (Ipswich Town) Loan
* Shani Tarashaj - ✅ (Grasshoppers) Loan
* Antonee Robinson - ✅ (Wigan) Undisclosed
* Idrissa Gana Gueye - ✅ (PSG) £29 million
* Joe Williams - ✅ (Wigan) Undisclosed

Inbounds
* Jonas Lössl - ✅ (Huddersfield) free transfer
* André Gomes - ✅ (Barcelona) £22 million
* Fabian Delph - ✅ (Manchester City) £8.5 million
* Gbamin - ✅ (Manchester City) £25 million
* Moise Kean - ✅ (Juventus) £29 million

Signing Kean is a big plus - we never really adequately replaced Lukaku, and though I like DCL, his finishing is still a concern (and an injury to him would mean that we were starting Tosun or Niasse).

Would still like to see a winger (linked to Rainier Jesus, though he wouldn't be able to sign until January) - and would love to see us out from under the contracts of Tosun / Niasse / Schniederlin / Bolasie (among others, but those are on the higher end of the earning scale I think).

So Zenit bought Malcolm.
The fans are complaining that the club should follow a rigorous set of values or some crap.
But hey! It's not racism. Just traditional values.

(Didn't Witsel play for them? Hulk? I'm confused...)

I miss Hulk. Well, Football Manager Hulk.

Anyway, seat of my pants predictions. I know nothing, I haven't even consumed preview content yet:

Manchester City
Liverpool
Tottenham
Arsenal
------------------------------
Chelsea
Leicester
Wolves
-----
Manchester United
Everton
Southampton
Burnley
Bournemouth
West Ham
Crystal Palace
Brighton
Newcastle United
Norwich City
--------------------------
Watford
Aston Villa
Sheffield United

-Again this season, if Manchester City had any other manager in football I'd be picking Liverpool to win the league.
-Think coaching quality compared to the other contenders will help Arsenal cruise into 4th and actually kind of xcited for Chelsea playing some of their kids even if I'm unconvinced by Lampard
-Ready to laugh at Solskjær, thin he has a more difficult job than Lampard even though Chelsea have that transfer ban.
-No clue, none whatsoever, about the relegation candidates this year. Feels like no weak team survived last season which makes things more difficult.

Which fantasy league did we settle on?

Maybe pin it if possible?

jowner wrote:

Which fantasy league did we settle on?

Maybe pin it if possible?

There are 9 of us in this one. I think this is it, no?

Godzilla Blitz wrote:
jowner wrote:

Which fantasy league did we settle on?

Maybe pin it if possible?

There are 9 of us in this one. I think this is it, no?

2xgyed is the code. The Kings are back!

Yeah I deleted mine in case there was any confusion since at the point I saw the other one it actually had more than one person in it.

I went through today and picked my team.

Trippier is a great back. You should all select him.

The Boring Belgians are back baby! I selected all Belgians in the Premier League, filled the remaining slots with non-Belgians who used to play in our competition. And Trippier, because Godzilla Blitz asked so nicely (and there was still one slot unfilled).

dejanzie wrote:

The Boring Belgians are back baby! I selected all Belgians in the Premier League, filled the remaining slots with non-Belgians who used to play in our competition. And Trippier, because Godzilla Blitz asked so nicely (and there was still one slot unfilled).

Are y'all "taking the piss", or is this not an EPL-specific fantasy league?

Fedaykin98 wrote:
dejanzie wrote:

The Boring Belgians are back baby! I selected all Belgians in the Premier League, filled the remaining slots with non-Belgians who used to play in our competition. And Trippier, because Godzilla Blitz asked so nicely (and there was still one slot unfilled).

Are y'all "taking the piss", or is this not an EPL-specific fantasy league?

I think most participants are in it for real, I didn't realize my theme team would offend anyone. If it does I'll gladly remove myself from the competition, no hard feelings.

I think it's just that Trippier isn't in the EPL any more, not so much the Belgian theme...

I could be wrong though.

Aaaaaaaaah okay, I searched him and found out about his transfer and chose Van Dijck instead - then forgot to edit. Sorry!

Yeah, I was just messing with people. I thought it odd that you could still select Trippier for your team even though he's in Spain now.

omni wrote:

I think it's just that Trippier isn't in the EPL any more, not so much the Belgian theme...

I could be wrong though.

This. I'm still angry with dejanzie, though - but only for apparently thinking that Texans are among those who use "y'all" when referring to one person. That sh*t don't make sense, but some do it...

My company has its headquarters in Houston. According to the many people I have met from there, "y'all" means one person, and "all y'all" means multiple.

So I guess it depends who you ask :p

I love the Boring Belgians and am glad they're back.

omni wrote:

My company has its headquarters in Houston. According to the many people I have met from there, "y'all" means one person, and "all y'all" means multiple.

So I guess it depends who you ask :p

We have a lot of transplants here in the H, bless their hearts. For generations, countless people have moved here for work. As a native, I can confidently say that "y'all" is strictly plural, and one would only employ "all y'all" to make it explicit that you are including every single person in a group. For example, "Are all y'all coming to the bar after work?"

The singular of "y'all" is "you".

Fedaykin98 wrote:
omni wrote:

My company has its headquarters in Houston. According to the many people I have met from there, "y'all" means one person, and "all y'all" means multiple.

So I guess it depends who you ask :p

We have a lot of transplants here in the H, bless their hearts. For generations, countless people have moved here for work. As a native, I can confidently say that "y'all" is strictly plural, and one would only employ "all y'all" to make it explicit that you are including every single person in a group. For example, "Are all y'all coming to the bar after work?"

The singular of "y'all" is "you".

OK now it's ON! I thought you meant "y'all" as in "will you all be taking the piss when creating your Fantasy League Team, or is it just dejanzie?".

Accusing me of mixing singular with plural, how dare y'all.

Spoiler:

sorrynotsorry

edit: back on topic, after the derail I kinda catalyzed... so Simon Mignolet signed for Club Brugge, a strong sign of their newfound status as Belgian front-runners with regards to budget and results. Then Mignolet picked... number 88 for his jersey. And subsequently acted surprised when people pointed out the obvious. His explanation: "I always pick number 22, that wasn't available, this is my fourth club, et voilà. People who know me know that I abhor etc. blablabla."

Oh Big Si, nobody's saying you're a Nazi, just maybe that this wasn't the best of ideas? I'm flabbergasted that nobody in the club thought of pointing this out to him...