2013/2014 Season

[kirsten]

Haha - that is ace.

 

This is my favourite thing about football fans.  Who decides out of all the songs in the world to turn an old Human League song into a Peter Pawlett chant?  Fucking brilliant.

 

I saw a video of Espionage on Sunday night with the whole place bouncing to the tune.  It's probably the only time in the past 10 years that I wished I was in Espionage.

I love that it was all 80s hits. Go West, Don't You Want Me? and Give It Up. Timeless classics!

I've spent most of this evening watching dumb videos of Sunday's hilarity. Some people are just great.

 

I was gutted to not be able to be in Aberdeen on Sunday night. Sounds like there was an ace atmosphere everywhere.

Edited March 18, 2014 by kirsten

[Captain America]

First time in a while I'd watched a whole Madrid game last night.  Bale and Ronaldo are brilliant to watch.  Feels at times like you could stick any striker up there with the pair of them and he'd get goals.

 

The fast breaks are like a basketball team at times.  Break, one pass, passes it back, goal.

[Gladstone]

First time in a while I'd watched a whole Madrid game last night.  Bale and Ronaldo are brilliant to watch.  Feels at times like you could stick any striker up there with the pair of them and he'd get goals.

 

The fast breaks are like a basketball team at times.  Break, one pass, passes it back, goal.

It's great watching the likes of Barca knocking the ball around and creating space from nothing, working their way up the pitch etc. and keeping the ball for 5000 passes in a row, but sometimes it's so much more exciting to watch a team who just break at the speed of light and rip defences apart in a split second.

[Soda Jerk]

Sod tiki-taki-tikka-tick-tock- tickertape. Passing is boring. Direct football is mint.

[ca_gere]

Is it just me or does it seem that Brendan Rogers hasn't gotten enough praise this season? Sounds odd to say, i know he can be a bit of a plum and Lpool are still fairly dislikable but I've been so impressed with how he's gone about things this season. He's managed to work with two potentially difficult strikers, one a loose cannon who bites people and the other a very prissy prima donna. He's bled in some younger talent (flanagan), brought the best out of Henderson and hasn't been scared to leave out Gerrard when needed. He's also played Coutinho very well during the difficult first season in England. Given the state of them a couple seasons back, Liverpool now look like an impressively steady ship and a lot of that has to come down to the manager.

[Soda Jerk]

I agree. Unfortunately, Brendan Rodgers has been excellent. I love how he lines up with a different shape nearly every game. He's catching teams by surprise every week, just with tweaks of the positioning of his players and the runs they make. He's belting at exploiting weaknesses. You can't really plan to play against his sides. He's got his players employed in lots of different roles, game by game. Tactically a great manager. Something about him annoys me though, from before he took over Liverpool.

[Mr Owl PhD]

Rodgers impressed me last season but he's impressed me more this season.  He seems to manage his players very well and his improved a lot of them hugely.  He also seems tactically astute.  What's impressed me most is that he seems to be very pragmatic and focuses on how to win each game with the players he has.  When he arrived there was a lot of talk, not least from him, of his 'philosophy', which seemed to be a Barcelona-style tiki-taka that he tried to use at Swansea.  He's actually ditched a lot of that though and Liverpool have been much more versatile this season.  They get goals in a lot of ways.  They're good on the break and have individual brilliance but they've also become a lot better at scoring from set pieces (I think more than any other team in the PL this season).  That means that even if they're not playing well, they always reckon they can get a goal.  In some ways this is how the better Ferguson teams were.  He's developed a lot as a manager and the team is developing with him.

[ca_gere]

Cool, so we're in agreement... I begrudgingly <3 BR. It just seems like he hasn't been grabbing the headlines at all for his tactical nous, when he really should be - which is no doubt because Moyes is bearing the brunt. What he's done so far this year is pretty phenomenal. Their goal tally has been as impressive as their ability to dig in and grind teams down.

 

in other news... Turning point for Man Utd's season happening now?

[Paranoid Android]

I think Rodgers has been getting plenty of credit. At least in what I read and listen to he's had a lot of praise. I've actually found it a bit odd the way the media is so positive about their title chances when they have been so negative about Arsenal's. Even when they were leading. You'd have no idea they were on the same points by reading most of the press over the last few weeks.

 

Can't believe United have fucked this up. They should have accepted going out, now they will have the embarrassing fate of playing a good team in the next round. Hope they get Real.

[Gladstone]

Incredible.

[ca_gere]

I think Rodgers has been getting plenty of credit. At least in what I read and listen to he's had a lot of praise. I've actually found it a bit odd the way the media is so positive about their title chances when they have been so negative about Arsenal's. Even when they were leading. You'd have no idea they were on the same points by reading most of the press over the last few weeks.

 

Can't believe United have fucked this up. They should have accepted going out, now they will have the embarrassing fate of playing a good team in the next round. Hope they get Real.

 

Really? Admittedly my Football journalism exposure is limited these days to the odd podcast, a guardian article here and there, the bbc website and a bunch of folk on twitter, but out of the main storylines of the season (Mourinho's return, Moyes's maiden season, Wenger's Arsenal faltering after xmas, Man City's firepower, Tottenham's new squad not gelling and Lpool's resurgence) I'd say it gets the least column inches/airtime/tweets.

[Paranoid Android]

I'd like to see these quarter finals

 

Man U - Real

Chelsea - Dortmund

Bayern - Atletico

Barca - PSG

[ca_gere]

I hope PSG pump Barca right in the arse. I really don't know why either.

[Paranoid Android]

Really? Admittedly my Football journalism exposure is limited these days to the odd podcast, a guardian article here and there, the bbc website and a bunch of folk on twitter, but out of the main storylines of the season (Mourinho's return, Moyes's maiden season, Wenger's Arsenal faltering after xmas, Man City's firepower, Tottenham's new squad not gelling and Lpool's resurgence) I'd say it gets the least column inches/airtime/tweets.

 

Maybe, i've not been counting articles. But I've definitely heard a lot of praise for him, especially on the guardian podcast. And I've read articles praising him for changing tactics when required.  Sure there may have been more articles about Mourinho saying hello in a press conference but the mainstream media are never going to talk a whole lot about tactical issues.

[ca_gere]

 Sure there may have been more articles about Mourinho saying hello in a press conference but the mainstream media are never going to talk a whole lot about tactical issues.

 

I think that's my point. When Mourinho plays out a defensive-minded 2-0 win he's a tactical genius but when Rogers switches up his team one week to beat a team 5-0 playing counter-attacking football to a high-pressing side the next he gets a pat on the back but it's not really a big story.

[Soda Jerk]

Danny Welbeck is an adonis. He is just monstrous. If he could score goals, he'd be golden. IT's a shame that's the only think he stinks at, but he makes up for it by being unstoppable everywhere else.

 

I just knew they'd get the 3rd goal and then give the game to Olympiakos. Luckily, Olympiakos didn't really have much firepower to speak of, but they do play some good football in the build up.

 

That double save from De Gea was just beautiful.

[Soda Jerk]

Oh, and Tony Valencia's shiner. Fuuuuuu. It looked like he was growing another head. Played on with one eye. Machine.

 

One eye, and one foot.

Edited March 19, 2014 by Joda Serk

[Paranoid Android]

I think that's my point. When Mourinho plays out a defensive-minded 2-0 win he's a tactical genius but when Rogers switches up his team one week to beat a team 5-0 playing counter-attacking football to a high-pressing side the next he gets a pat on the back but it's not really a big story.

 

Lazy journalists just write a load of crap about Mourinho whatever he does. I generally ignore any article I see with name in it these days.

[Captain America]

I don't really agree Rodgers isn't getting much love.

 

Listen to talksport most days on the drive to and from work and they are loving him almost every day.  I just think the big headlines are made by Mourinho as he almost makes regular news with his nonsense not just the sports news.  So you'll hear more sections about it.

[Gladstone]

I have an irrational hatred of Liverpool FC, but even I have warmed to them a bit this season.  There's been far less of the ridiculousness of a couple of seasons ago and lots of dishing out absolute spankings to good sides.  I can't help but admire what Rodgers has done this season.

 

As for Man United last night.  I had a feeling they were going to do it - I don't know why.  I read an article where Evra was saying France turned around a 2-0 tie against Ukraine last year and the players are ready for the battle etc. and I just thought it was going to be their night.  Switched on the TV just after half time to find them 2-0 up and they looked to be going for it.  Rooney looked like the Rooney of that season when he scored about 500 goals.

 

It should be a turning point for them, but I don't think it will be.  Backs firmly against the wall and no other option than to absolutely go for broke last night.  Away to West Ham at the weekend - a game they should win and they should be brimming with confidence, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if they're brought down to earth with a thud by Andy Fucking Carroll.

[Gladstone]

http://www.celticnation.com

 

I hadn't seen this before.  Apparently there's no connection to Glasgow Celtic but it looks very connected... Green and white hoops, very similar badge, similar name, Willie McStay is manager (apparently on a decent wage for the level they're at).  Looks to me like Celtic buying their way through the lower leagues in England to get a foothold.

[Chris]

http://www.celticnation.com

 

I hadn't seen this before.  Apparently there's no connection to Glasgow Celtic but it looks very connected... Green and white hoops, very similar badge, similar name, Willie McStay is manager (apparently on a decent wage for the level they're at).  Looks to me like Celtic buying their way through the lower leagues in England to get a foothold.

 

Apparently it's Celtic with a hard C. Hmmm.

 

Bankrolled by a weegie who lives in America and claims to have no affinity with any Scottish club.

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/scot-frank-lynch-reveals-hes-2094883

[Gladstone]

Apparently it's Celtic with a hard C. Hmmm.

 

Bankrolled by a weegie who lives in America and claims to have no affinity with any Scottish club.

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/scot-frank-lynch-reveals-hes-2094883

Quite interesting actually.  Perhaps there is no direct connection to Celtic, but the green and white hoops and the "look" and name etc. could just be a ploy (a fairly blatant one) to get Celtic fans to make this their English club.  Or something.

 

They won't get fans of any other Scottish club following them with a name and strip like that, so he's putting all his eggs in one basket really.

Edited March 20, 2014 by Gladstone

[Gladstone]

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/jul/28/gilford-park-celtic-nation-kevin-lynch

 

That article pretty much says that it is being set up as the Celtic FC of English football - it even calls Frank Lynch a "die-hard Celtic fan".

[Chris]

I watched the league cup final again last night. While I had most of the 2nd half and extra time on fast forward, I have to say it was a better game than I remember from Saturday. Aberdeen certainly had the best of the chances and on TV we looked a lot more dangerous than we did from the top of the Jock Stein stand.  Liam McLeod's commentary over the penalties and the trophy ceremony is great. He's never really tried to hide the fact he's a Don's fan though so was to be expected.

 

Mark McGhee didn't even sound all that bitter as was being made out. If anything awarding MOM to Draper just shows how poor his judgement is rather than any agenda he might have against Aberdeen. Anderson was easily MOM. Rock in defence and most likely person to score going forward, bizarrely.