Football 2011-2012

[thetime]

im pleased man utd are gettign back to basics after the city drubbing, 4 games and 4 clean sheets.

[Steve P]

Well we're finally starting to gel, just a shame that we've got an interlull now. Still we've got a decent run of fixtures coming up, so fingers crossed we can firmly get ourselves back in the mix for the top 4. Great to have Vermalen back, really makes a difference. Jenkinson is starting to improve too. His crossing is superb. Ramsey is finding form now, great to see.

[pink_triangle]

Well we're finally starting to gel, just a shame that we've got an interlull now. Still we've got a decent run of fixtures coming up, so fingers crossed we can firmly get ourselves back in the mix for the top 4. Great to have Vermalen back, really makes a difference. Jenkinson is starting to improve too. His crossing is superb. Ramsey is finding form now, great to see.

[eFestivals]

Watching the footie league show over the weekend, I was shocked at how empty the riverside was for a team that's 3rd in the league.

The beeb says there were 14,000 there, but if that's the case I reckon that stadium holds 200,000.

[pink_triangle]

Talking about the championship

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/nov/05/ipswich-doncaster-rovers-championship

I find this story very worrying and feel the soul of clubs like doncaster could be ripped off. I hope this isnt a trend with agents getting close to effectively running football league clubs. I always found it odd when doncaster took our manager to replace o driscoll who I think is a better manager. Shock horror Saunders agent is also Mr Mckay. The way I look at a team like doncaster is they have been overachieving when their natural level is probably league 2, if the current chairman cant/wont sustain championship wages they may have to accept the fact they cant sustain championship football and return to their normal level.

[strummer77]

I hate the woodwork. That is all.

[TheGayTent]

Watching the footie league show over the weekend, I was shocked at how empty the riverside was for a team that's 3rd in the league.

The beeb says there were 14,000 there, but if that's the case I reckon that stadium holds 200,000.

[The Nal]

I hate the woodwork. That is all.

[eFestivals]

there's me banging on about how I reckon it'll be Spurs who can't score goals, and really it's Liverpool.

But I still reckon the goals for Spurs will dry up soon enough unless their strikers suddenly start scoring.

[kaosmark2]

there's me banging on about how I reckon it'll be Spurs who can't score goals, and really it's Liverpool.

But I still reckon the goals for Spurs will dry up soon enough unless their strikers suddenly start scoring.

[pink_triangle]

I reckon it'll even out over the season. Gerrard and Adam, and possibly Downing, will start chipping in with a few goals eventually, and VDV and Bale will get injured/stop scoring for a bit. Spurs might end up in a better position if Liverpool's goals come in a flurry though. Obviously, scoring 6 goals in 1 game and nothing in another 5 is much worse than winning 1-0 every time...

[kaosmark2]

Im not as convinced about liverpools scoring ability If my maths is correct (not always a certain thing!) then spurs have 3 players with a premiership scoring record of 1 goals per 3 games or better (Suarez) while spurs have 3 (Defoe, VDV and Adebayor). What impressed me is that liverpools defence who I wasnt at all sure about on paper seem to have been quite mean. Its hard to know what to make of liverpool, either they will continue being wasteful and miss out on top 4 or the ball will start falling the right side of the post and they will score a hatful, I think both options are equally as likely. I thought having a better manager may be to liverpools advantage but now I heard spurs may have a redknapp free month which may be to their advantage!

Another observation but I cant remember a time when the quality of centre backs in the premeiership is as bad as now. I (to my shame) heard some motd summarizing where theyv were laying in to savic defending, but thinking to myself most of the teams top defenders are no better. Kompany is the best centre back in the league by a mile.

[eFestivals]

I've not seen much footie in recent weeks so some stuff might have passed me by, but I wouldn't have thought there's many teams who've hit the post as many times as Liverpool have recently and failed to come away with all three points.

And similarly, there can't be many teams who've picked up as many laid-on-a-plate for them goals as Spurs have (tho from what I've seen that's lessened more recently, but their strikers still aren't scoring).

So from that side of things, I'd go with what kaosmark2 says, that these things will even out.

There's one other factor in the mix tho for where these teams will be in relation to each other at the end of the season and that's the goals they concede. And it's looking like Liverpool will have the lead with that, so they should just pip Spurs I reckon.

One thing which might favour Spurs tho is how not-bothered Dalglish is looking after Liverpool have failed to pick up all three points. If that's how he's doing things with the players then they might not get up enough to win some of the 'smaller' matches (which has been an issue for them already). Then again, it's about this far into a job that 'Arry loses interest because his chat starts having less effect on the players.

Whichever way it goes with Liverpool and Spurs, I'm just about sure that Arsenal are going to go sailing past both of them, so the chance for either to make the top four will come down to what happens at Chelsea. Then again, for around the last five years Chelsea have had a dodgy spell from around mid-Oct until xmas, and that's probably what's happening right now.

[The Nal]

Whichever way it goes with Liverpool and Spurs, I'm just about sure that Arsenal are going to go sailing past both of them, so the chance for either to make the top four will come down to what happens at Chelsea. Then again, for around the last five years Chelsea have had a dodgy spell from around mid-Oct until xmas, and that's probably what's happening right now.

[eFestivals]

Arsenal are defo top 4 and so are Chelski. Liverpool will do well to finish 6th unless they buy another striker. Suarez cant do it on his own.

You're probably right about Chelsea, tho there's a part of me that thinks you're wrong. They're now a team where too many of their better parts are starting to fall away, so while I'm well aware that for years they've been dodgy in the run up to xmas, there's a part of me that thinks they might not turn it around this time.

Liverpool defo need a striker, and I wish they'd tried harder to get Sturridge as they were losing Torres and then Meirleses to Chelsea. But all the same I can't see them keep on being as unlucky right thru the season at getting the ball into the net as they've been recently. I don't think they'll have any problems finishing 6th or above, unless...

Newc. It might be the case that they stay around the top and split up the finishing positions in a way that no one has predicted here.

[Tugger2k]

1. BOO!!!

[kaosmark2]

You're probably right about Chelsea, tho there's a part of me that thinks you're wrong. They're now a team where too many of their better parts are starting to fall away, so while I'm well aware that for years they've been dodgy in the run up to xmas, there's a part of me that thinks they might not turn it around this time.

Liverpool defo need a striker, and I wish they'd tried harder to get Sturridge as they were losing Torres and then Meirleses to Chelsea. But all the same I can't see them keep on being as unlucky right thru the season at getting the ball into the net as they've been recently. I don't think they'll have any problems finishing 6th or above, unless...

Newc. It might be the case that they stay around the top and split up the finishing positions in a way that no one has predicted here.

[pink_triangle]

II wouldn't be surprised if Liverpool tried to get Cavani. He links brilliantly with Suarez at international level, and I can't see Napoli keeping hold of him for much longer. They won't be worried about him being Euro-tied either.

[kaosmark2]

See Im not sure about liverpool having players to get into double figures. Someone said on the radio if gerrard is fit he is guaranteed to get into double figures, I looked at the stats and they dont back that up with him only managing it 3 times in his career. Bellamy I think has managed it only twice in the premeriship. i think kuyt is the only player who you could argue has a track record of getting into double figures in the premiership on a regular basis.

[pink_triangle]

Gerrard, Bellamy, Adam, Kuyt, Carroll, Maxi all have before. Downing chips in with goals. And with having one of the better defenses, I don't think they need as many goals as teams like Arsenal. I'm not saying all of them will (particularly poor Maxi who seems to have been dropped), but I'd be surprised if at least 2 or 3 of them didn't.

Edited November 8, 2011 by pink_triangle

[eFestivals]

Yes but the likes of gerrard and bellamy have played enough season to notice a trend that both are more likely not to reach 10 goals, than they are to get them. I think its a risk going into a season without many proven premiership goalscorers but time will tell if it comes off.

while I'm not disputing that Liverpool need a dedicated goal-getter, I'd still say it's the case that they've been pretty unlucky with their goal tally to-date this season. Maybe I'm wrong, but I doubt there's many teams scored as many goals as Liverpool have hit the post or bar with the goalie beaten, and there's probably no Prem team that's hit the post or bar as much.

So in theory their luck with that should turn, and their goals per game average should increase a little. And with similar reference to luck, I'm expecting the Spurs average to start to fall.

Then again, sometimes a team has the luck run with them right thru a season, while other teams have the luck run against them. If that post count stays as high, Liverpool could rightly say that luck ran against them.

[Tugger2k]

while I'm not disputing that Liverpool need a dedicated goal-getter, I'd still say it's the case that they've been pretty unlucky with their goal tally to-date this season. Maybe I'm wrong, but I doubt there's many teams scored as many goals as Liverpool have hit the post or bar with the goalie beaten, and there's probably no Prem team that's hit the post or bar as much.

So in theory their luck with that should turn, and their goals per game average should increase a little. And with similar reference to luck, I'm expecting the Spurs average to start to fall.

Then again, sometimes a team has the luck run with them right thru a season, while other teams have the luck run against them. If that post count stays as high, Liverpool could rightly say that luck ran against them.

Edited November 8, 2011 by Tugger2k

[eFestivals]

hitting the woodwork is not 'unlucky' and just because you do it a couple of times doesnt mean it will turn round

Whichever way you look at it - unlucky or only-just-poor accuracy - when the margins are that close for hit or miss then there's a pretty good chance that things will flip around. It's not like the players who've been hitting the post or the bar are best known for always being miles wide.

it means you DO NOT hit the target enough.

it's still closer than your 'strikers' are managing. I'm starting to think they're got confused and they're doing Scargill's bidding and not 'Arry's.

skiverpool will struggle for 6th this season because they spunked 35 million on a kart horse

it's defo not the bargain of the season.

their a very mediocre team, who rather than make marquee signings, bought cloggers and attempted to fool the world into thinking they were marquee by spending 30% (at least) more than they were worth

hey, perhaps they've taken a leaf out of the Spurs book of the last ten years and then worked it in reverse (tho still with the 30% premium).

I agree, they're not the very best sort of players, but they've taken the squad a step up from where it was last season all the same, and the best were out of reach anyway. Taken all together, I can't quite see what they've aimed at with buying so many of the same types of player, especially as it was obvious before the summer that a proper goal-getter was what they needed most.

As for whether the likes of Carroll and Henderson have been stupidly over-priced only time will tell - tho it's defo not looking good for Carroll at that price; Henderson will be clearer a year from now. All the same, I expect Carroll's goals-per-game to increase, cos (perhaps-dodgy accuracy aside) he's still had a bit of luck run against him.

6th, at the VERY best, and that will require a monumental drop off from somebody else, is what they can achieve this year

If Newc fall like everyone's been expecting then 6th at worst is a shoe-in.

And while they might end up bottom of the leading pack I still reckon that's more likely to be Spurs (and it'll probably be a close thing either way). I think it's more likely that the goals will start going in for Liverpool than your strikers will start living up to their name or the rest of the team will keep doing their work for them.

(having said all of that, I'm far from certain that Newc are going to fall that far).

[The Nal]

because suarez has had 51 attempts at goal this term and scored 4 times

[Tugger2k]

t's still closer than your 'strikers' are managing. I'm starting to think they're got confused and they're doing Scargill's bidding and not 'Arry's.