General Premier League Thread 2023-24 Mod Note in op 27/6/23 And 21/05/24

klose

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121359381#Comment_121359381

They'd need a ten point swing to get spurs currently in 4th, and that's before villa/newcastle have anything to say. I think they'll go well from here on out but probably have a bit too much of a deficit to make up. Very competitive league this year.

giveitholly

8 goals for Chelsea in the last two games,couldn't buy a goal before that

TheRona

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121359465#Comment_121359465

TBF, 3 of their goals last week were against 9 men. It should give them a bit of confidence anyway.

Quazzie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121359412#Comment_121359412

😂😂😂😂.

Too obvious

SlickRic

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121359574#Comment_121359574

There's literally nothing obvious.

He's the only one I can think of playing in that 10 role, who is left footed and who plays in the same style as Odegaard. And I think he has more potential with his dribbling and directness, even though Odegaard is better right now.

Also, Martinelli has a higher ceiling than Sterling IMO.

Ceiling does not equal better player - it's a comment on what he could be.

theoneeyedman

I dislike Sterling, but he's been very good in a sh1t show of a Chelsea side this season. Was very good today too, Southgares6and his nonsense with England may actually help him too, 2 nice weeks recovery for him now.

Palmer is a huge talent, seems to have a fair bit of drive about him too, he's going to be huge

Very tight at the top now, if Liverpool can take something odd City next time out it'll make it very interesting.

TitianGerm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121360307#Comment_121360307

Southgate seems to be an odd fella. Picking Henderson who's playing in front of 600 people in awful league and won't even look at Ward Prowse who's flying at West Ham.

Necro

Sterling would be even better if he sat down and actually learned the offside rule in fairness.

Ottoman_1000

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121360307#Comment_121360307

City's next 3 games, Liverpool, Spurs, Villa....if they come away with 9 points from those, then I'm afraid the writing is on the wall for the reminder of the season. In other years I would have backed them to take all 9 points, however there's seems to be a vulnerability about them at the back this season. They're giving up an outrageous amount of chances in every game, those next 3 games you can be guaranteed all those teams will be going for the jugular against them!

Ottoman_1000

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121360346#Comment_121360346

Kalvin Phillips been included is nearly worse, the man has played a total of 19 minutes of premier league football since the last international window, and that was for coming on a sub in a 6-1 win against Bournemouth.... he's a shocking manager considering the talent available to him!

TitianGerm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121360738#Comment_121360738

I didn't even see his name on the list.

It must be very disheartening for players being left out for Southgate favourites.

Ottoman_1000

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121360755#Comment_121360755

It's madness. I'd never say this out loud in public, but England have comfortably the players available to them to win the next Euros in their stride. Italy, Germany, The Dutch, Spain all currently having their own issues in one way or another. It's between themselves and France but with Southgate in-charge it's not going to happen!

rob316

Poch seems to be working out the squad, get them playing, attacking and scoring goals then we can become a bit more solid.

Osmosis Jones

Cole Palmer called up to the England squad now. It's absolutely deserved based on his form but again then why the likes of Phillips over JWP? I'd almost wonder if Palmer would still get the call up if he wasn't at one of the "big" clubs.

bucketybuck

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121360755#Comment_121360755

Southgate is killing the mentality within that squad.

When you make it obvious that something isn't a meritocracy, when it is clear that certain players are favourites that get picked no matter what, then you create an environment where some people think they don't have to work hard and others think there is no point in working hard.

Talent will get them to knockout stages but push come to shove that squad will not reach their full potential.

rob316

Henderson called up again, what a joke. He's playing retirement football at club level.

My favorite Keane comment on Hendo

https://x.com/UpshotTowers/status/1722977683720614298?s=20

The Big Easy

DERMOT SAYS: "You see it sideways on - you can't unsee it. They are both grabbing at each other, Marc Cucurella doesn't let go, pulls him to the ground. You can see why the referee has given it. The assistant has got the best view, he's confirmed that to the referee. It's never, ever going to be overturned by VAR.

"From the outset, they are both grabbing at each other. Cucurella makes the first move and it's almost like Erling Haaland is shrugging him off. Without doubt, when you see the sidewards view, Cucurella never lets go; he just holds and holds and holds.

"What I would say is, whether you think it's a penalty or not, at least we've got a referee on the field making a decision. I would say VAR Jarred Gillett wouldn't have given it and the reason I say that is because I do feel it's got to be an on-field decision. Is it a clear and obvious error if he doesn't give it? I'd say no because he'd probably say they are both hauling each other."

What chance have we got when this is the kind of nonsense that comes out of a referee on the Haaland penalty?

VAR is so bad now it's making matches unwatchable for those who want to see football, but probably drives more engagement for those wanting more of a soap opera than a sport.

Ottoman_1000

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121363794#Comment_121363794

Ref watch is a load of nonsense, it's just another piece to the soap opera drama that Sky Sports make of the EPL 7 days of the week.

Mitch Connor

Gallagher is terrible, he ust agrees with the decision for the most part.

look at him say the Romero non-penlaty against United was correct then say a similar one given against Romero a few weeks ago was correct, and then when challanged on the difference he just waffles about 'Well i just think the ball and the hand and the ref has given it and the ball so it is what it is' or some rubbish.

Oh, and as an asisde, based on the penalty City got against United, United should have had two penalties at the weekend. Maguire was absolutely manhandled on two corners. Fed up with Var. Refs are now afraid to give United calls.

The Rooster

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121364054#Comment_121364054

There’s no doubt VAR has made many mistakes, but your last comment is utter nonsense. There’s comments on the Arsenal, United and Liverpool threads (and probably others I haven’t read) about VAR being totally against us, where contributors focus on every single decision that goes against their team (most of them debatable anyway) and totally ignore every decision that goes for them.

To all those people I say - VAR and refs are not biased. You are.

JRant

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121365667#Comment_121365667

He's not wrong though. When is the last time Utd came out on the positive end of a VAR decision?

The clearouts by Onana against wolves was a penalty but because it wasn't given there was weeks of nonsense about it on Sky and everywhere else you looked. Refs are humans at the end of the day and the vitriol they get when awarding Utd anything is unlike anything else.

Anyway, fans are indeed biased, refs and VAR are just incompetent and inconsistent. The worst type of combination you could hope for.

klose

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121365667#Comment_121365667

So long as some of the refs going off doing nixers on the middle east people are going to be questioning decisions, I really think the Premier league need to nip that one at the bud.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121365667#Comment_121365667

I'll accept this when I see some key decisions going against Man City and Newcastle.

bucketybuck

I'd just like to see anybody concede some of the recent type of penalties that were given against United.

No conspiracy, but if you are going to give a penalty for a tangle in the box then give it every time.

Just another reason VAR is bad for the sport.

eagle eye

Any fans saying their club is being treated worse by VAR is wrong. Every team gets screwed a few times during the season, Newcastle and City included.

What annoys me most is the grainy pictures on VAR replays. It's ridiculous, you see a replay clearly on TV and then VAR have this blurry, spotty replay. Why aren't they using the same system as TV channels?

It's not clear enough to be absolutely certain of anything that's close.

The bigger problem is the standard of refereeing which has sunk to an all time low in the Premier league.

ArmaniJeanss

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121366098#Comment_121366098

PGMOL is completely independent as far as I know, so EPL can have no influence on referee appointments. Which is the way it should be imo.

PGMOL would point out that it is little different to being appointed to a midweek UEFA tie in Baku or a UEFA24 qualifying game in Kazakhstan. And that it is a sign of the esteem in which their referees are held internationally.

TitianGerm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121367395#Comment_121367395

I think Wolves have been on the wrong end of decisions the most this season.

Fitz*

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121367555#Comment_121367555

Is really that much of a coincidence that the standard of refereeing has dropped significantly, with big changes to the threshold for penalties / red cards etc, since Howard Webb has taken over a chief refereeing officer for the PGMOL?

McFly85

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121367555#Comment_121367555

It is different though, because there is a conflict of interest between refereeing in a league where the same people who own the main sponsor also own a team in the PL.

Theres no problem with PGMOL referees working outside the PL but the PL should be able to expect that there’s no conflict created from it.

If PGMOL don’t want to change then the PL should be able to bring in other referees.

Bounty Hunter

Been seeing a lot about Man Utd's form recently and I know a wins a win no matter how it comes but you really do have to consider the opponents.

In the league they have played:

Brentford, Palace, Sheff Utd, Fulham, Luton & Man City ... and lost to City and Palace

I'm not really all that impressed with that run and actually think they have been quite lucky with how "easier" fixtures have lined up to when they have had so many injuries. Things could be a lot worse, especially when you consider that during that time they also lost to the likes of Copenhagen, Galatasaray & Newcastle in cups.

Fitz*

How many charges are the PL gonna bring against Chelsea? This is only 1 more in a long list of financial irregularities, secret payments/jobs with no actual work needed and plain cheating under the ownership of Abramovic.

The first transfer I thought of when I saw the headline, was that of Willian, and that is mentioned in the article alright.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/15/chelsea-fc-face-new-questions-over-how-roman-abramovich-funded-success

giveitholly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121370329#Comment_121370329

A bit like the charges against City I wouldn't hold my breath

giveitholly

They have no shame,don't even try to hide it anymore

https://twitter.com/BBCSport/status/1724705367114797170?t=Ag6pWyhsQOsBSuEz8wqZEQ&s=19

El Gato De Negocios

Tbh re City. We all know its a cod but whether the PL have the cojones to follow it through remains to be seen.

POKERKING

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121370635#Comment_121370635

Which part of last years accounts do you believe to be a cod?

IncognitoMan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121370863#Comment_121370863

The part where Manchester City who couldn't sell out a semi final at Wembley last year apparently have the highest turnover out of all clubs in the world.

I don't want to hear the line that City fans couldn't afford another trip to London etc... That proves the point. If Utd or Liverpool had a semi final at Wembley it gets sold out even if thousands of fans can't afford another trip. There more fans to fill in. Especially in a potentially historical treble season. The tickets would be gold dust.

This obvious lack of fans raises serious questions about the legitimately of the accounts because the simple fact is companies pay for sponsorship because their products will be displayed in front of the biggest audience.

More fans. More shirt sales. More eyes see your company. More TV time so on.

Less fans means less money. Always has until City came along and magically found a way around the less fans problem.

Also any club with 115 allegations currently against them would obviously have some questions over their accounts.

I've no doubt the City legal department has done a good job at making it look good though

Fitz*

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121370863#Comment_121370863

Without saying it's a cod, but for a club who is under constant scrutiny on the sources of their commercial revenue, currently under 115 charges against financial regularities and fake shell companies sponsoring the club etc, there is no breakdown of how exactly the commercial income of the club grew by £32m in a year. How much reliance is there on friends/family of the clubs owners in terms of this commercial income?

artanevilla

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121370979#Comment_121370979

The UK is not the only market for Premier League clubs, it's not even the biggest market. A lot of clubs, including Manchester United and Liverpool would have the a significant amount of their revenue generated offshore.

K-9

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121370863#Comment_121370863

Wonder are these boys included in commercial income?

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/sportsnews/article-11421073/Manchester-Citys-partnership-betting-firm-8xBet-anomalies.html

Ottoman_1000

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121370635#Comment_121370635

Even if the PL have the cojones, they unfortunately don't have the monies to press this much more. City's legal team continue to contest and launch appeal after appeal. That's the problem with over a 100 charges, it just give the defendant so much to work with it when trying to create some noise, they will find some man items they can contest or object to. These high stake legal costs can then run into the millions and 10's of millions depending on how long it can be dragged out...

It will eventually just be settled and a fine + a donation on City's behalf. They will shout loudly that they have been persued unfairly and relentlessly for 'x' number of years and they're glad they finally got to declare their innocence in all matters, make such claims greatness, games changers...bla blaa blaaa..etc etc....

Fitz*

Wasn't one section of those 115 charges appealed and challenged by Man City, because the barrister was an Arsenal fan. Just shows that they will challenge everything and try find any sort of an excuse to keep delaying it.

POKERKING

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121370979#Comment_121370979

So you dont want any reasonable debate then because one semi final couldnt sell out? Based on the above I assume you havent looked at the accounts mentioned?

StringerBell

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121369842#Comment_121369842

Nobody is impressed with that or conned by the "form team" stat beyond it being an amusing example of how naked statistics can be deceiving.

POKERKING

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121371020#Comment_121371020

Those charges relate to a completely different period to the ones mentioned above which are last years accounts, so taking aside the that. Is it just the 32m commercial income growth from last year that raises your eyebrows? The rest is ok aside from that?

StringerBell

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121371435#Comment_121371435

While their charlatan of a manager sits in press conferences demanding they have their day in court and pretending they aren't the ones dragging it out to the nth degree

AdamD

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121371497#Comment_121371497

You can act the smartarse all you want, but there is no way Manchester City have legitimately the highest revenue of any Football team in England. I'm an accountant, their commercial deals are utter nonsense. The charges relate to a different period because, shock horror, it takes quite a long time to analyse accounts and charge teams for breaking the rules.

giveitholly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121371479#Comment_121371479

Because of one semifinal? What about every home game that doesn't sell out?

Fitz*

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121371497#Comment_121371497

So just because those charges are related to a certain time frame, Man City suddenly stopped acting any bit suspicious on June 30th 2018 is it?

LOL

Father Hernandez

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121371497#Comment_121371497

When a club has 115 charges relating to financial fair play hanging over their head with none of them easily explainable, I'll question everything that club has to say until the case is resolved.

POKERKING

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121371588#Comment_121371588

You are an accountant and you cant see why for last year they might have the highest revenue in english football for last year. Really? I know the average football fan is an idiot but surely an accountant would have a bit more of an understanding on this. Im actually baffled by this.