Eduardo Aguirre of Santos Laguna already does, as he's got the squad number 19 and Corona are one of their 23 shirt sponsors
So Palace hold Leicester but Palace are a weak team that we should be beating. Football just doesn't work that simply and especially this season. If A beats B and B beats C does not equal A beating C.
Palace were there for the taking. Spurs decided (like many games this month) to decline that and offer Palace 60 mins of Jose-ball to play with.
Lot's of 'weird' results this season. There are never any easy games in the PL but this season more than most there is a lot of disruption and everyone handled the end of last year, the shortened summer break, and the later restart differently. I'm not surprised to see the results and teams' performances bouncing around a bit. Doesn't make me any less frustrated about our own results but I think the majority of teams are in the same boat.
And if we beat Palace, rather than decide to let them have a kickabout for 45 minutes, we wouldn't be having this conversation
I’d shed no tears if the season was voided tomorrow. Football hasn’t felt right since this all began and I find it weird we can’t go to see our parents but clubs can fly all over Europe for a game of football
Lampard has to be under pressure now, surely? They spent £300m in the Summer, potentially could be 9th by the end of this round of fixtures, and are 4 points worse off than they were last season. And even last season, I didn't think they were particularly great (despite the narrative being oh so different), so that says a lot. Relying on a French geriatric, with Werner, Havertz and Pulisic not playing to the best of their abilities, has to be a big cause for concern. Their midfield combinations never seem to provide the right balance. And their football isn't particularly great to watch. He's got a lot to do if he wants to turn this around.
Does anyone think its any coincidence that the only one of the 'big 6' showing any consistency is Liverpool? The only one with a certified top level manager who has been in station and backed with sensible activity during several transfer windows? Even then they've had one or two dodgy games. Those of us with either less experienced managers (Arsenal, Chelsea, United), top managers who have been in the position less time (us) or top managers who are just a bit weird and seem unable to actually fix any of their problems through the market (City) are struggling. Not a surprise. If Jose is here another year and is allowed to buy top level replacements for Aurier and Sissoko, as say Klopp did when he got VVD and Allison, then its a different story IMO. I think Lampard and Arteta are under huge pressure now. Ole has credit in the bank at United but I think its only the lack of a suitable replacement that will keep him in the job past the summer. Pep is a time bomb - incredible manager but I'd be amazed if he stayed much longer unless some mad signings come in over the summer.
I was surprised that Chelsea hired him to be honest. I get being a club legend and all that but I don't think he done too great at Derby and then seemingly landed himself the top job at a big club. Definitely been surprised at how **** Havertz has been, thought he'd be an instant hit. Werner seems to be being played on the wing a lot and even though he's a pacey guy I don't think he suits the wide role. It's weird to sign a 20+ goal a season striker - beating a domestic rival in Pool to his signature too - only to then plump him on the wing. I doubt they'll sack him just yet but if gets to the latter stages of the season and they look like missing out on the top four then it could be on the cards.
Yeah I'm not surprised to be honest, Klopp's done a great job with Pool, he's a weird prick but an excellent manager. I did predict City to win the league (I think) but I expected Pool to be well up there. I'd say from a first XI point of view they're stronger than anyone in the league and it's down to the work he and Edwards have done in finding the perfect players. Even at times when I laughed at what they spent it's proven to be the absolutely correct decisions. I've often felt that if you have a 50-60% success rate with transfers then your team will improve, at Pool in the last three or so years, they've probably had about an 85% success rate with their signings, it's ****ing mad to be honest. I'd say only Minamongo and Keita have been their genuine flops in recent years but outside of that; Alisson, van Dijk, Robertson, Fabinho, Mane, Salah etc just unreal signings for the club, Jota's looked great too so far.
Werner would worry me, he has now given interviews after two games saying the same thing "the game here is so hard and fast, it's not what i am used to" Well you better get used to it quick son because it's not going to change anytime soon. Maybe Werner and Havertz are a good indication of the standard that most of the BL play at and look great in that league.
Merry Christmas folks. I think you need to consider the impact of COVID - the lack of crowds, players absent, two games every week, the effect on finances etc etc. How teams adapt to these unique circumstances is playing a big part in how they perform and the results we are seeing. No team has been consistent. The net effect though is positive as the league is looking far more competitive this year and who knows what order the the top 8 or so might finish in. That is refreshing - even if it is somewhat strange and artificial.
I hadn’t read those quotes, that’s brilliant . I still think he (and Havertz) will come good, the quality is there, just need to adapt. Be funny as **** if they don’t though. Agree about the Bundesliga, it’s a stat padding haven. Similar to the Eredivisie.