The Premier League Thread - Part II

You have to win the League Cup to qualify for Europe. Sunderland aren't in it so 6th will also get in as well as FA Cup Winner/Runner Up (Arsenal dependant)

 

Obviously they're not mutually exclusive but if Rickie going meant us finishing 1 place lower I would take it.

 

Ummm Russell Brand on MOTD?

 

Just seen Rooney's wonder goal. From the hype I thought he'd re-invented the wheel. It was an extremely good goal not worth wetting one's pants over.

 

Just for the West Ham game, and for Sport Relief, apparently.

 

He was a way off his line, good vision though. Still Suarez and studge grab the headlines, rightly so. Tomorrow's headline? The Rodriguez-Lambert show!

 

So who's goal was better? Rooney's or Beckham's? I voted for Lambert's 40 yarder vs mk dons!

 

Okay, Tettey wins goal of the day.

 

Tettey's goal for Norwich was blistering.

 

Yep.

 

amazing day of football today

 

Of the seven teams who have sacked the managers that began their season, here are their points per game totals before/after (so, not necessarily solely the new managers, as it includes caretakers):

Sunderland, w/di Canio: 1 in 5, .2 points/game.
Sunderland, w/o di Canio: 24 in 23, 1.04 points/game.

Palace, w/Holloway: 3 in 8, .38 points/game.
Palace, w/o Holloway: 25 in 22, 1.17 points/game.

Fulham, w/Jol: 10 in 13, .77 points/game.
Fulham, w/o Jol: 14 in 18, .78 points/game.

WBA, w/Clarke: 15 in 16, .94 points/game.
WBA, w/o Clarke: 13 in 14, .93 points/game.

Spurs, w/AVB: 27 in 16, 1.69 points/game.
Spurs, w/o AVB: 26 in 14, 1.88 points/game.

Cardiff, w/Mackay: 17 in 18, .94 points/game.
Cardiff, w/o Mackay: 8 in 13, .62 points/game.

Swans, w/Laudrup: 24 in 24, 1 point/game.
Swans, w/o Laudrup: 5 in 6, .83 points/game.


So, the two teams that moved early have done better, though Sunderland's improvement to a point/game largely only looks good because PDC had such a poor record in such a small sample. Spurs have been a bit better, but seem to be regressing back to the level they were at previous. Everyone else? Somewhere between pointless and disastrous. Hasn't been a good year for panicked sackings.

 

There is book on football statistics (sorry don't recall the name of it), where they say that the stat's overall show that sides will generally regress back to the points per game they had before there was a managerial change. Rarely do sides improve dramatically and sustain it, which your info seems to support.

 

For those who watched the closing credits of MOTD, and saw the managers telling jokes, but wondered where that came from, it was a programme on BBC2 called, Some People With Jokes, and this edition was Football Managers. There's a half decent one about Saints and Pompey about 3-4 minutes in. Not bad: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episod...s_Series_2_Some_Football_Managers_with_Jokes/

 

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Since when is playing until the final whistle lucky?

 

FT: Aston Villa 1-4 Stoke City

 

Just checking I haven't missed something...BBC and SFC websites both have our game at home to Cardiff starting at 15:07 ???

 

Correct.

 

Commemorating the Hillborough tragedy. That game was stopped after 6 minutes. So they're be 6 minutes then 1 minute's silence.