2024-25 Season - Discussion Thread

[YayNJ]

It's that time again (already)

Bordeaux today have announced that they are relinquishing their status as a Professional football club.

6 time league champions of France, and 4 times cup winners.

[tupacgr13]

Originally Posted by YayNJ

It's that time again (already)

Bordeaux today have announced that they are relinquishing their status as a Professional football club.

6 time league champions of France, and 4 times cup winners.

New clubs are coming to life and the old ones become memories. Was watching Bundesliga setup for this year. Almost all the big rivalries can happen only in the cup matches since there are so many great clubs in the second division while you see the likes of Rebull, Hoffenheim, Augsburg etc. being in the first division. Devastating.

[Tones]

Here are my predictions from the upcoming EPL season...

1. Manchester City (unfortunately)
2. Arsenal
3. Manchester United
4. Newcastle
5. Chelsea
6. Liverpool
7. Tottenham
8. Aston Villa
9. Crystal Palace
10. West Ham
11. Fullham
12. Bournemouth
13. Brighton
14. Brentford
15. Wolverhampton
16. Everton
17. Southhampton
18. Nottingham Forrest
19. Leicester City
20. Ipswich Town

[mfw13]

I think Man City are living VERY dangerously after selling Alvarez (especially if KDB also leaves), unless they've already got some incomings lined up. They generally operate with a fairly small squad, and would be dead in the water if they were to suffer the same level of injuries that teams like Newcastle suffered last season.

I'm thinking Arsenal wins the title this year....

[mikee1186]

Aaronson off the bench for Leeds to tie it in the last minute!! Very happy for him!

Weak penalty call before that with both guys jostling for it. Would’ve liked a no call there.

[mikee1186]

Then he missed a sitter it win it lol roller coaster

[YayNJ]

Aaronsons last season at Leeds perfectly summed up in 20 minutes today.

Donkey.

Originally Posted by mikee1186

Weak penalty call before that with both guys jostling for it. Would’ve liked a no call there.

It was a foul, to be fair. The foul started outside the box though, so shouldn't have even been a penalty.

[Tones]

Originally Posted by mfw13

I think Man City are living VERY dangerously after selling Alvarez (especially if KDB also leaves), unless they've already got some incomings lined up. They generally operate with a fairly small squad, and would be dead in the water if they were to suffer the same level of injuries that teams like Newcastle suffered last season.

I'm thinking Arsenal wins the title this year....

I think Alvarez is more of a miss than KDB because he really gave a good alternative to Halaand. KDB was out for more than half the season last year?

As much as I want to think with my heart and of course I want the Gunners to win, it's gota be huge on the mental to come that close two seasons in a row and not win it. Post Christmas this past season, we were on the best form I have ever seen in 20 years, and it was still not enough to win the league. Man City have just created this juggernaut,

I think with this being Pep's last season and the looming "115" I think it will be just fuel to them and they will steamroll to the title, 10 point gap come the end of the season between them and Arsenal.

[Ianhatcher]

Mbappe!!!!!!

Started out slow but they are getting going now.

[kellmuff]

City will be fine. World class all over the pitch.

[Gin&Juice]

Top Four: Liverpool, Arsenal, Man City, Newcastle (West Ham as a potential party crasher)

Bottom Three: Leicester, Southampton, Ipswich

[YayNJ]

1. Man City
2. Arsenal
3. Man Utd
4. Liverpool
--
Everton
Forest
Ipswich

[YayNJ]

**ALERT**

Sidney Raebiger has played 45mins of football for Braunschweig.

**ALERT**

[fadster]

1 Arsenal
2 Liverpool
3 Newcastle
4 Man Utd

Man City get a decent points deduction (and fine), enough to lose them top spot and take them out of UCL spots. A line is finally drawn under the matter.

18 Ipswich
19 Southampton
20 Leicester - thanks to a points deduction

[YayNJ]

From Twitter..

The list of Chelsea players not in their match day squad.

1. Axel Disasi
2. Tosin Adarabioyo
3. Raheem Sterling
4. Trevoh Chalobah
5. Carney Chukwuemeka
6. Ben Chilwell
7. Conor Gallagher
8. Reece James
9. Đorđe Petrović
10. Cesare Casadei
11. Tyrique George
12. Josh Acheampong
13. Deivid Washington
14. Omari Kellyman
15. Ângelo Gabriel
16. Marcus Bettinelli
17. Lucas Bergström
18. Kepa Arrizabalaga
19. Bashir Humphreys
20. Tino Anjorin
21. Armando Broja
22. David Datro Fofana
23. Romelu Lukaku

[mfw13]

Originally Posted by YayNJ

From Twitter..

The list of Chelsea players not in their match day squad.

1. Axel Disasi
2. Tosin Adarabioyo
3. Raheem Sterling
4. Trevoh Chalobah
5. Carney Chukwuemeka
6. Ben Chilwell
7. Conor Gallagher
8. Reece James
9. Đorđe Petrović
10. Cesare Casadei
11. Tyrique George
12. Josh Acheampong
13. Deivid Washington
14. Omari Kellyman
15. Ângelo Gabriel
16. Marcus Bettinelli
17. Lucas Bergström
18. Kepa Arrizabalaga
19. Bashir Humphreys
20. Tino Anjorin
21. Armando Broja
22. David Datro Fofana
23. Romelu Lukaku

Maybe they can field a "B" team in a lower division

Seriously....why would anybody sign with Chelsea given what a mess they are?

I bet Tosin Adarabioyo is wishing that he had signed with Newcastle instead of Chelsea right now.....

[fadster]

FWIW Tosin was on the bench, so just the 22 excluded players

I've seen people try to run the rules of UEFA squad registration and I think there might be a couple of tough decisions for them to make, even with the expected transfers they probably need to lose at least 1 maybe 2 more senior players - my guess is Chilwell and Sterling. PL is less strict so shouldn't be a worry for them in terms of meeting the rules if not keeping everyone happy.

[YayNJ]

It's just absurd. There's no reason at all to stockpile so many first team players. We've already gathered that Todd Boehly has taken.... a while to understand what he's bought and what soccer is, but he's pretty much putting together an American Football team.

[mfw13]

Originally Posted by YayNJ

It's just absurd. There's no reason at all to stockpile so many first team players. We've already gathered that Todd Boehly has taken.... a while to understand what he's bought and what soccer is, but he's pretty much putting together an American Football team.

I think that comes from his background as a venture capitalist....their business model is to fund tons of companies knowing that 90% will amount to nothing in the hopes of finding the one company that returns 10x. Feels like he's taking the same approach to player recruitment.

The problem of course, is that VC investments get a long longer to try and prove themselves than soccer players do, because there is much less pressure for immediate results. Likewise, soccer players need playing time to develop.

On the other side of the coin, you gotta wonder what kind of advice young players are getting from their agents....at this point, any decent agent should be steering your players AWAY from Chelsea.

[YayNJ]

PSG look great without Mbappe

[YayNJ]

Eddie Howe is a dead man walking if they can't turn this around against Bournemouth.

[mfw13]

Originally Posted by YayNJ

Eddie Howe is a dead man walking if they can't turn this around against Bournemouth.

????

You've got no idea what you're talking about if you think that Eddie Howe would be in danger of getting sacked for losing a single away match.

His problem right now is veteran players acting like idiots....Joelinton was VERY lucky not to get a straight red today for pulling back Neto by the neck in 2nd half stoppage time. And that was after Dan Burn had already gotten a yellow for bumping the keeper to stop a counter, which left him unable to take a yellow to stop a much more dangerous counter a few minutes later, that led to the corner from which Bournemouth had their potential game-winner disallowed for handball.


Rule #1 - never take a card in the opponents half of the pitch......

[YayNJ]

PIF have spent fast approaching £1 billion at Newcastle, with diminishing returns. No European football at all this season. James Bunce had a role created for him that puts him on equal footing with Howe in the club hierarchy, Paul Mitchell coming above Howe has been given extra control over the club than the previous SD.

Charity bet of $50 that Howe is sacked this season.

You up for it?

[mfw13]

Originally Posted by YayNJ

PIF have spent fast approaching £1 billion at Newcastle, with diminishing returns. No European football at all this season. James Bunce had a role created for him that puts him on equal footing with Howe in the club hierarchy, Paul Mitchell coming above Howe has been given extra control over the club than the previous SD.

Charity bet of $50 that Howe is sacked this season.

You up for it?

Sure.

I don't think anybody, let alone the PIF, blames Howe for not being in Europe this year. The team was decimated by injuries last season, plain and simple.

[YayNJ]

Chelsea had a worse injury record than you did, and finished above you - they were also embroiled in dressing room unrest, Villa and Tottenham also had a similar injury record and also finished above you.

Your form over winter is what did you in, defeats to Everton, Luton, Forest.

You took 1 point from Luton last season.