Just watched the first 25 minutes of Villa vs Sheffield United (on Sky Sports) It has all the atmosphere of a training match - zero. Even a 1st Round Checkatrade Trophy match with 500 fans in the ground has 500 times as much life in it. If I was one of those Global sponsors who had paid £billions for this tosh, I would want my money back right now. All you fans out there who will have to wait until Saturday for a free-to-air match? You're missing nothing. I tuned in to Sky Sports Main Event and watched the kick-off. After a few minutes I noticed an odd background noise... something like a distant rumble, like lots of lorry diesel engines. Gradually this got a bit louder. Then I heard a few faint 'Villa' chants, and realised that this rumbling noise was the fake crowd sounds that Sky were dubbing over the action. I'm no expert on fake crowd noises, but when I've been to real football matches, I have never seen one kick off in total silence, then very gradually over the next few minutes the fans begin to mumble and growl a bit, then very slowly begin to chant something in a very vague kind of way. Fortunately I had the option of switching channels to Sky Sports PL, where the fake 'crowd' white noise was not present. That was a relief. The match is about as intense as a ginger biscuit with a nice hot cup of tea. Except without the biscuit or the tea. There was a 1 minute drinks break half way through the 1st half. During that break, the only highlight that Sky felt was worth repeating was the players and officials all taking the knee just before the kick-off. I don't know what they're showing, but it isn't a premium quality football experience. Football without fans is nothing. And they've just proved it. It's a bit embarrassing really. I'm going to turn over and watch something else now. Maybe one of the decorating channels has some exciting drying paint to watch.
Additional thoughts; 1) The match officials must think they've died and gone to heaven. No abuse, no pressure. It's a Sunday morning kickabout for them. 2) After this match and the other one this evening, we are going to find out which pundits are on the Payroll. Any commentator who claims there was anything exciting or entertaining or "worth waiting 100 days for" is taking backhanders. 3) If the Premier League wants to save itself it had better figure out a way to get some fans back into the stadiums by the time the new season kicks off. Even every third seat take in any given direction (about 12% of ground capacity) is going to produce a hugely better event than what we saw at Villa. As a 'neutral' customer of all PL games, I'm not very interested in watching them anyway. But without the vibrancy and sheer passion of supporters filling the stands, the match lacks anything at all to stir the blood of football fans. I don't know of a fair way of working out who gets in and who misses out. Or how to avoid disappointed, envious fans gathering outside grounds if hey know a select few are being allowed in. But for the sake of their survival the PL and EFL had better work out a way.
First full weekend of Frankenstein Football... Sympathy for dedicated fans up and down the land who are proud of always attending home games. If you've got your cardboard cut-out in the ground then fair play to you. I hope there are at least a dozen cardboard Rolands at the Valley next weekend, as well as some other unusual effigies. Is 'Soccer Saturday' back on Sky? If so, that's going to be the strangest episode ever I should think. Maybe they will have cardboard cut-outs of Tiss, Mers, Tommo and Champagne Charlie in the studio They'll probably keep Merson's on for next season.
Sad to hear Burnley got ripped apart this evening. Clubs like Burnley and Sheffield United have been shafted by the Premier League. Allowing a 9 man subs' bench and 5 subs to come on during a game blatantly tips the balance in favour of bigger, richer Clubs with squads stuffed full of superstars. As well as fans being excluded (which makes a mockery of the whole thing) the football matches themselves are no longer fair. You can't change the format of the game 3/4 of the way through a season and expect the result to have any credibility.
It's an important safety message, but there is some irony to it as well. After years of bungling and insincerity that turned many fans away, only lip service was ever paid to wanting them back. (target 20,000) Now Lee Bowyer wins many fans back with success on the pitch last season, only to be starved of funds and then thrown to a couple of crooks. The way things are, many won't have too much trouble staying away. Who are we playing anyway?
Another quick question; Have any PL or Championship results gone to smaller Clubs defeating larger ones since the restart? In other words, have we had anything even approaching a moderate 'giant killing'? Bigger, richer Clubs seem to be having everything their own way now. Smaller Clubs need their fans - that has never been more evident. And is grass-roots football just going to be allowed to die? It seems so.
Well done Liverpool PREMIER LEAGUE CHAMPIONS 2019-20 Some magnificent performances, quite a bit of help from VAR, but they have been the best team this season by a big margin. Well done Jurgen Klopp. Even though I'm still not inspired at all by this revival of the 2019-20 season and I think it was the wrong thing to do, I'm still happy for the Liverpool fans. I know a lot of 'neutral' fans don't like them for various reasons, I've never had anything against them. A strong Liverpool FC has always been good news for the whole of English football in my view.
I originally posted this in the Cardiff V Charlton match day thread. But as it is a general observation on the 'Project Re-start' football as a whole, it is better posted in this thread. We came to Cardiff to get a point and we got a point. Lee Bowyer is doing his job. But in my opinion this is not football as I recognise the term. No supporters - just invited guests in the directors' enclosure. Typical elitism. Five substitutions - twice this evening in other games managers made 4 changes at the same time. Kick-off times all over the place. Drinks breaks - these will be kept and eventually expanded, even when football gets "back to normal". For years TV advertisers have been pushing for football to be played in 4 quarters rather than 2 halves. If this is the way the 2019-20 season in the top 2 tiers is decided, then so be it. But I still don't think it's right. By the time Charlton play again, roughly 3,000 more people will have contracted Coronavirus in the UK, and about 400 more people will have died from it.
GOOD NEWS (in my view) The Premier League Clubs have voted AGAINST having 5 substitutes per game for the 2020-21 season (returning to 3 subs per game) FOR returning to a bench of just 7 substitutes Sanity prevails, even in the Prem sometimes.
Two non-league Clubs have to withdraw from the FA Cup because players tested positive for Coronavirus... https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/54108288 8th tier Lincoln United had 8 players test positive.
I hear the Premier League Clubs are not going to give any help to struggling lower league or non-league teams. What a surprise. They're alright Jack. Snouts in the trough, don't give a toss.
It seems that Manchester United and Liverpool have got tired of waiting for the Premier League to do something to help the whole English football pyramid, and they've come up with a scheme of their own... https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/54499998 Needless to say the PL porkers don't like it. But the notion of 25% of future PL television money going to the other leagues sounds great to me. However, I have to wonder what strings may be attached...
I'm not surprised about the 'power grab' angle. I guess United and Liverpool weren't doing it out of the goodness of their hearts. But frankly, if they want a European Super League then let them get on with it. Coronavirus has proved to them (they think) that they don't need fans. Jetting all over Europe every fortnight, only a few hundred super-rich supporters will be able to follow them. But they don't give a damn. Back here in England we can re-form a new top tier (Division 1) without them, and get on with our domestic football.
Surprise surprise - managers of the biggest, richest Clubs are moaning because they can't use 5 substitutes in a game. "Our players are on the edge" they wail. Ah, diddums. If your players are knackered, rest them. Rotate your squad. You guys don't want 5 substitutions in order to bring off tired players. You want it to give your deeper squads a clear tactical advantage when playing teams with fewer resources. Well tough.
According the the Currant Bun this morning, "Football Chiefs" have asked the Government to put players at the top of the list of people to receive the new vaccine when its available. By "Football Chiefs" I assume they mean the Premier League and the EFL. I don't know if it's just an emotional reflex reaction on my part, but the thought of footballers being considered equally worthy of first-in-the-queue vaccine treatment alongside NHS front line workers & care home staff sticks in my craw. If they want the vaccine for footballers possibly months before it's available to the rest of us, those "Football Chiefs" can PAY for it. How does £100,000 a pop sound? Proceeds to go to help grass roots & non-league football. Of maybe £1 million a pop. Their precious players are worth it, aren't they?
Rumours that Joe Gomez has broken his leg today while training with England. Ive said it before and I’ll say it again, International football is boring, sterile, counter productive and largely meaningless- even more so right now. Top level players should be resting , not playing a totally pointless tournament this week that I know no fan gives a monkeys about.
