Rival watch

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Considering Madrid were going into the game with the away goal deficit, I thought they approached it way too defensively and lacking any genuine intent. So easy for Chelsea in the end who should’ve won by more if truth be told. Tuchel’s doing a very decent job since replacing fat Frank.

You can see why they desperately want the Super League, their squad needs massive investment
 
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You can see why they desperately want the Super League, their squad needs massive investment

And they’re utterly skint. Way too many big wages there. Hell, they’re paying Bale a fortune to NOT play for them. Perez is so determined to have the ESL mainly because his club is seriously in the ****.
 
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And they’re utterly skint. Way too many big wages there. Hell, they’re paying Bale a fortune to NOT play for them. Perez is so determined to have the ESL mainly because his club is seriously in the ****.

What puzzles me is what the PL sides saw in the whole project. It was so obviously a last desperate ploy to restore some financial parity for the other clubs around Europe. 4 finalists 2 years ago, at least 3 possibly 4 this year...the pendulum has firmly swung in the PL's direction and Perez and his cronies are panicking.
 
What puzzles me is what the PL sides saw in the whole project. It was so obviously a last desperate ploy to restore some financial parity for the other clubs around Europe. 4 finalists 2 years ago, at least 3 possibly 4 this year...the pendulum has firmly swung in the PL's direction and Perez and his cronies are panicking.
I suspect we signed up reluctantly (possibly Arsenal too) for fear of missing out on the top table. A premier league without our NLD rivals, Chelsea the North West big teams is a bit of a dull prospect. We just lacked the nous/nerve to realise it would fall apart
 
Putting aside the scenario that Chelsea winning the cup affects our qualification (unlikely), who is the lesser of 2 evils for us in CL final. Come on City?
 
I suspect we signed up reluctantly (possibly Arsenal too) for fear of missing out on the top table. A premier league without our NLD rivals, Chelsea the North West big teams is a bit of a dull prospect. We just lacked the nous/nerve to realise it would fall apart
It is probably in our long term interest to have signed up. I don't see any other outcome but the CL getting bigger and bigger and we would certainly be in a weaker position if we hadn't joined up.
 
He has always been a notoriously laid back guy (aside from when he's kicking ball boys) who hates training and has relied throughout his career on his sheer talent rather than hard work.

He was signed to replace Ronaldo but lacks the latter's work ethic, meticulous diet and ruthless fitness regime. It meant he was only ever a serious injury away from irrelevancy as his body simply lacks the core strength and fitness to ever get him back to 100% sharpness. He is too old to reverse a lifetime of bad habits.

There is a reason the likes of Ronaldo and Ibra can still do the business and it has much more to do with how seriously they take their craft than their unquestionable talent.

Statistically the likes of CR7/Messi/Ibra etc should have injuries etc
that have reduced their potency or longevity. It cannot be mere luck
that this has not been the case, given the on-pitch hatchet jobs etc
they will have endured over the years.
 
I suspect we signed up reluctantly (possibly Arsenal too) for fear of missing out on the top table. A premier league without our NLD rivals, Chelsea the North West big teams is a bit of a dull prospect. We just lacked the nous/nerve to realise it would fall apart

I understand that. My question was more about the collective eagerness of the PL group of 6, the single largest bloc, to jump on Perez' gravy train when every shred of evidence points to a reality where if PL teams just hold tight for 5 more years, Europe's other major leagues will be totally irrelevant. The gulf in quality and money is obvious and is the result of the PL doing a lot of things right while Spain, Germany and Italy did a lot of things wrong.

I'm just amazed the PL execs couldn't see that the ESL was never about "saving football" and always about Real and Barca trying to find way to siphon off chunks of the cash that flows whenever PL teams are involved.

I guess what they say is true. Greed is blinding.
 
Statistically the likes of CR7/Messi/Ibra etc should have injuries etc
that have reduced their potency or longevity. It cannot be mere luck
that this has not been the case, given the on-pitch hatchet jobs etc
they will have endured over the years.

They have had injuries. Their recovery time from them has been much shorter and much better, because of their long-term physical condition.