English Premier League 2013/14

Post by **Galee** » December 23, 2013, 3:14 pm

Zidane wrote:Yes,a swap deal Ross Barkley for Nani would be excellent ......

Utd have missed the boat now. If he was for sale he could have gone for a fraction of the price that Fellaine went for. A swap deal with Fellaine would make more sense now.

Post by **Macca** » December 23, 2013, 3:29 pm

Galee wrote:
Zidane wrote:Yes,a swap deal Ross Barkley for Nani would be excellent ......
Utd have missed the boat now. If he was for sale he could have gone for a fraction of the price that Fellaine went for. A swap deal with Fellaine would make more sense now.

How about Fellani and Nani, ok go on throw in Anderson as well.

Some good football last night though had to wait until the 60 minute mark for the Swansea game to wake up.

Early stages didn't look good for Spurs and it seemed the result could only go one way.
Adebayor is definitely a starter in the EPL frustrating XI. When he''s on form he is quality but more often he just seems uninterested.

2 quality goals by Everton. The young Coleman signed from non league for 150,000 2 years back could be one of the best value signings in the EPL.
Barkley had a lull a few games back but is finding form again. I just hope our Woy is watching. Forget Gerrard and Lampard let the youngsters in.

Post by **stattointhailand** » December 23, 2013, 3:34 pm

West Ham defender James Tomkins has been arrested (and bailed) for "resisting arrest" and "assaulting a police officer" whilst being D & D outside the Sugar Hut nightclub in Brentwood on Saturday night ..........

There are those that would say that if he spent more time fighting with, and resisting, the runs of opponents strikers West Ham would be a lot happier

Post by **mathusalah80** » December 23, 2013, 5:28 pm

Arsenal v Chelsea.

Brave Zid having a two way bet

; Bob sitting comfortably on the fence

and, a little surrprisingly to me, 'no comments' from both Macca & Statto

. Come on you two, stick your necks out, you might prove as successfull as are your respective teams,well, currently at least =D>

I am going to bank on the 'Special One (

), still not admitting to himself it could be that HIS team selection and tactics are the possible reason his strikers are not scoring. Consider, he has FOUR very skillful & talented midfielders spending so much playing time in the middle of the field displaying and indulging themselves AMONG THEMSELVES that, by the time they remember there ARE some strikers in the team and decide to pass the ball on, there is usually very little room left between them & the goal for the strikers to function; so also their opponents defenders have been retired to defensive positions so long, they are dropping off to sleep.
I have decided that, once again, I am going to leave myself to be ridiculed by you three insensitive persons, by being the only one to forecast an Arsenal win

. Can it be there is just a small element of 'heart over head' in my choice

Either way we are, all four, neutrals so can sit back to watch a contest which could provide even more enjoyment than the recent Liverpool/Everton game; or perhaps that IS being a little over optimistic

:-"
Macca. Sorry, probably still a little dazed from the battering and bullying from the mindless excrement out there

. Anyway, in case you and Statto want to club together for my Xmas present, my favourite poison is Southern Comfort (45% NOT the cheap rubbish).

Post by **Macca** » December 23, 2013, 6:23 pm

mathusalah80 wrote:Arsenal v Chelsea.
and, a little surrprisingly to me, 'no comments' from both Macca & Statto . Come on you two, stick your necks out, you might prove as successfull as are your respective teams,well, currently at least =D>
.

Arsenal 3 Chelsea 1
Goals from Ozil Ramsey and Giroud, a late consolation for Chelski by Hazard.
Red card for Ibramovic, late kick off due to traffic congestion, east stand to run out of mince pies and highlight of evening Jose's half time karaoke to "last Christmas"

Post by **stattointhailand** » December 23, 2013, 8:13 pm

Too busy cookin' xmash cakesh ........
anyways, I got yesterdays two both wrong, so my prediction of 2 - 2 (made on Thurs at Sports bar) has about zero chance.

Terry & Vermaelen sent off mid way through 2nd half and Szczesny red carded in injury time leading to the Chelsea penalty that ties the match (as agreed by Ashley at the xmas bash

)

Post by **BobHelm** » December 24, 2013, 7:06 am

Arsenal 0-0 Chelsea

Not a very satisfying result for either side. Certainly a weekend for the North West rather than the capital.
Pool stay top, if only on goal difference & Citi engage gear into third spot.

The BBC called the game

a dreadful stalemate

The Gunners, surprisingly, made no substitutions during the torrid affair while Mourinho made all 3 to his front men.
As the last of these was Torres off & David Luiz on it can hardly be claimed that he was looking for the winner either though.
Basically, The No So Special One stifled the life out of a game that he didn't think he could win in order to get a point. However, The Gunners were equally incapable of punishing the negativity of their opponents in the way that any side wanting to be champions must learn to do.

Post by **Svein66** » December 24, 2013, 8:50 am

Tim Sherwood has got the chance to prove himself for the rest of the season, or until they`re having another poor run of results.

Post by **Macca** » December 24, 2013, 9:13 am

An increradible stat that was mentioned by the commentator near the end of this mornings rather boring 0-0 at The Emirates.

In the 17 EPL away matches played by Chelsea in 2013 not 1 goal was scored by any of their strikers.

Post by **Zidane** » December 24, 2013, 9:31 am

Great quote from Jose Mourinho when asked about a hard tackle by Jon Obi Mikel.....

"Mikels tackle was a hard tackle,an aggressive one.Football is for men or women with a fantastic attitude."

Post by **mathusalah80** » December 24, 2013, 11:30 am

Arsenal 0 Chelsea 0
During the game I was thinking it a complete bore, and wishing for something special to happen to justify having left my cosy & warm bed.

However on reflection I decided that both sets of players, (but maybe not the match officials :-" ) had performed tremendously well in absolutely appalling conditions.
I think it would be unfair to assess either side based on this match, although of course the result has yet again had a major effect at the top of the table.
It appears Mourinho closely follows this thread, otherwise how else can his abandonment last night of his four playmakers cluttering up the middle third of the field, be explained. As a result the defence looked more solid, and the ball was being despatched to the strikers far quicker & far more frequently.I still cannot see what Willian has to offer which justifies his price tag.
I think Girouds' performance last night confirmed he is just a slightly above average striker, who works very hard for the team, and that Arsenal really need to conjure up a top class striker next month, if their challenge is to be sustained. But from where?
Macca wrote, regarding the match:... east stand to run out of mince pies...
Good call, but no problem. Friendly neighbour Mr. Levy immediately sent over, via his new chauffeur AVB, some of his wifes' homemade PORK PIES! It is also rumoured that Levy purposely bought a car with an automatic gearbox, to ensure AVB wouldn't be confused by any selection problems

A Happy Xmas, and an even happier New Year to our delightful and ever pleasant family of regulars, patronising this thread =D> =D> =D> , ( Yes, even the misguidded MU fans $\:D/$ ).

Post by **Galee** » December 24, 2013, 12:06 pm

mathusalah80 wrote: A Happy Xmas, and an even happier New Year to our delightful and ever pleasant family of regulars, patronising this thread =D> =D> =D> , ( Yes, even the misguidded MU fans $\:D/$ ).

I second that.

Happy Christmas to the regulars on this thread.

Post by **Macca** » December 24, 2013, 12:24 pm

Galee wrote:
mathusalah80 wrote: A Happy Xmas, and an even happier New Year to our delightful and ever pleasant family of regulars, patronising this thread =D> =D> =D> , ( Yes, even the well guided MU fans $\:D/$ ).
I second that. Happy Christmas to the regulars on this thread.

I third it and especially to those mentioned in dispatches.

Just explained to the missus there's footy on tele 26th, 28,29th & 1st.
Oh the face. Lucky I watch on the net or there would be blood fighting over tv remote.
Can't miss those Ch 3 & 7 soaps, so true to lie u know

Post by **stattointhailand** » December 24, 2013, 3:21 pm

And a very merry xmas to all from us at stattsville (dats French for statts & family's house)

By the way did you know Spike Milligan was a Man City Fan?

Money can't buy you happiness .... But it does bring you a more pleasant form of misery.

- Spike Milligan quote

And to all on here (including Man Utd Sunderland, and Scunthorpe fans) ....

May your troubles be less, may your blessings be more, and may nothing but happiness come through your door

Post by **Zidane** » December 25, 2013, 8:39 am

A very Merry Xmas to all the footie fans on the forum,and to native Thai speakers and Scousers "Melly Clitmutt."

: Beyonce Xmas avatar 1.gif (207.71 KiB) Viewed 936 times

Post by **BobHelm** » December 25, 2013, 10:00 am

Yes, seasons' greetings & best wishes to all..
But let us not forget that Christmas lasts but one day while a Premiership season lasts for the best part of 10 months..

& so after a bit of turkey & pud it is back to the job full speed ahead tomorrow with a full fixture list..

Then the same again Saturday & Sunday..

& then another full fixture list on New Years' Day - next Wednesday..

So enjoy the respite today, while you can..

Post by **stattointhailand** » December 26, 2013, 4:26 pm

Living in Udon and being retired makes it hard enough to work out what day of what month it is, but when someone says "it's Boxing Day", and someone else says "Newcastle are at HOME to Stoke", it gets downright confusing

I had to look it up, but Newcastle have only played at home on Boxing Day ONCE in the last 12 years :-"

Not suprising then, that I can only ever remember the "Happy Christmas" bubble bursting on Boxing Day .... with defeat in six out of the last seven

Post by **Macca** » December 26, 2013, 4:37 pm

Forget those countries that have their winter breaks, this is what the festive season is all about.
4 match days in the next 7 days

United start the day in their lowest league position, for this time of year, since 1989. The same season Liverpool last won the league.
Surely 3 points in the bag for the reds as they continue the pursuit of that elusive Europa Cup place.

A nice mixture of games, for Fantasy Footy fans, at 10pm. Not sure which one to watch, but who cares it's footy

Late kick off and one of those rare occasions when the big game I'm most looking forward to doesn't include United.
As good as Citeh have been going forward I can't believe how much they have got away with at the back. Their defence is poor and IO reckon Saurez and co might just exploit them. Here's for a high scoring feast. 4-3 I reckon

Post by **BobHelm** » December 27, 2013, 9:05 am

: score.jpg (64.65 KiB) Viewed 825 times

United 2 nil down after ten minutes got me thinking this would be a boxing day to forget. Hull have conceded few multiple goals at home this season & United have not looked their best at regaining the initiative. But they were level before half an hour had gone & just did enough in the second half to win it.

A winner in injury time gave Palace 3 huge points & takes them out of the bottom three - just. Villa just can't score at home, indeed they have not managed a first half goal there all season..

Three goals inside the first half hour ended the Cardiff game as a competition. They are starting to drift worryingly close to the drop zone now just to add to their woes.

The scoreline should have been a great deal more comprehensive than it was. A dominant display by Chelsea but still a worryingly lack of a striker who can put the ball in the net.

Huge result by Sunderland even if it can't release them from bottom spot. Everton are a team in form so this is a serious statement to the other drop contenders that Sunderland are on the move.

Stoke were looking in early charge & the lead. Having two men sent off rather changes things though & Newcastle profited well from the red cards..

Big result for under pressure Fulham as Alan Curbishley joins the coaching staff. Some of those just out of the drop zone must be starting to look very concerned over their shoulders.

Well brand new manager faces no manager but can only get a draw. Tough decisions to be made at Spurs with playing staff you feel, Fewer issues about who plays for The Baggies but not much of an easier job either!!

The Gunners went behind to the sucker punch but that was never going to be the result. The Hammers don't have a player who can score consistently, The Gunners have them in abundance.. In the drop zone, those around them winning. Not a good time to be a Hammers fan.. Will Big Sam survive to the New Year??

This was as close a game as anyone has managed at Citi this season. They still won it though.

Post by **Macca** » December 27, 2013, 11:27 am

A great show of Boxing Day football.

United go 2 down after some quite shocking defensive play and then thanks to Mr Rooney comeback to win it 3-2.
Rooney is by far Uniteds best player this season and it still amazes me how many United fans wanted him to leave in the summer. Won at a cost though with injuries to Rafeal and Wellbeck whilst Valencia made sure he can have a few drinks over New Year by getting sent off for 2 stupid yellow cards.

The 3 teams starting the day in the relegation zone all managed a win. Most surprisingly was Sunderland becoming the 1st team to win at Goodison in the EPL this season.

In the late game there were moans and groans from Rodgers and the Liverpool fans. Couple of very poor decisions denied them a goal and a penalty late on.
May I suggest any Liverpool fans complaining should try opening the other eye. Yet again, continuation from last week, every time a set piece was delivered in to the Liverpool area Skirtel was pulling and holding on to Kompany. He should have been suspended from yesterdays game and should have been awarded a penalty against him on at least 2 occasions.

So that's it a great day in front of the box. No more footy now until ......tomorrow