Soccer Soccer Talk Thread

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26 minutes ago, Cash or Czech said:

Plus United is working on Frenkie De Jong from Barca, but FDJ doesn't want to leave and is owed something like 17mil euro in deferred wages that Barca want him to forego.

There's rumors about Chelsea trying to steal FDJ from United. Our new owner Boehly was spotted in Barcelona before and after meeting with the Barca board.

 

It's weird, Roman was the most lowkey owner ever, I can't remember ever seeing him in connection with transfers or even heard him speak about transfers. Boehly looks to be the complete opposite. I've seen more of Boehly in 2 weeks than I have seen Roman in 20 years.

[Keirik]

6 hours ago, Zuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuc said:

Neh, this is not US sports where you get benefits from sucking. Even if they think they can win next season or are 3 years away, they NEED to upgrade that roster. It was bad before and now they've lost Pogba, Lingard and a couple others + it looks like Ronaldo is not returning.

 

They need to start building a new culture and mindset in that club, it's been rotten since Fergie left. If they want to do that they need to give Ten Haag something to work with, they can't go another season with players like Maguire, Wan Bisakka, Shaw, McTominay, Rashford being regulars.

I never said it was anything like US sports. Weird comment.  

 

They 100% need to upgrade the roster. We all know that. However. They aren't 1 or 2 players away. They are 8 or 9. They can't just keep throwing darts and hoping they hit a target eventually. They need to rebuild a culture, not sign mercenaries.  Thr best thing that's happening is losing guys line Pogba,Ronaldo. Etc. 

[Cash or Czech]

2 hours ago, Zuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuc said:

There's rumors about Chelsea trying to steal FDJ from United. Our new owner Boehly was spotted in Barcelona before and after meeting with the Barca board.

 

It's weird, Roman was the most lowkey owner ever, I can't remember ever seeing him in connection with transfers or even heard him speak about transfers. Boehly looks to be the complete opposite. I've seen more of Boehly in 2 weeks than I have seen Roman in 20 years.

 

I think Boehly is sick of Barca taking your players for free. Christensen now, Azpi and Alonso next year potentially. It's certainly interesting, and definitely entertaining. If the Kroenke's were involved, I think the collective Arsenal supporters would riot. 

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7 minutes ago, Keirik said:

I never said it was anything like US sports. Weird comment.  

 

They 100% need to upgrade the roster. We all know that. However. They aren't 1 or 2 players away. They are 8 or 9. They can't just keep throwing darts and hoping they hit a target eventually. They need to rebuild a culture, not sign mercenaries.  Thr best thing that's happening is losing guys line Pogba,Ronaldo. Etc. 

Well it sounded like it lol. You say they don't need to make a splash because they are "3-4 years away" and that sounds like US sports thinking lol. Leicester won the PL from nowhere, Chelsea went from 10th to 1st in 16-17. United still have a strong team with world class players like De Gea, Varane, Bruno. I don't think they are "8 or 9 players away" and even if they are 8-9 players away from winning the league, they still need to upgrade to fight for top 4 and cups. It's not "you either go for it or not" like it usually is with US sports because of playoffs and drafts. They definitely do need to "make a splash". De Jong would be perfect for them, he's exactly the type of player they've been desperate to get for many years now.

 

I agree that losing Pogba is probably good for the club, but they still need to replace his place in the team. Pogba was horrible this past season, but he still ended up 1 goal and 9 assists in 20 games. Don't agree with Ronaldo. People loved to say that he was the problem or was part of the problem, I don't buy that at all. Ronaldo is like the MJ of football. If things go wrong with him on your team, it's someone elses fault lol. He was their top scorer, won most MOTM awards, won player of the year and you can't question his drive and competitiveness. He did that as a 37 y/old.

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19 minutes ago, Cash or Czech said:

 

I think Boehly is sick of Barca taking your players for free. Christensen now, Azpi and Alonso next year potentially. It's certainly interesting, and definitely entertaining. If the Kroenke's were involved, I think the collective Arsenal supporters would riot. 

LOL yeah, might be. Although I couldn't care less about Christensen leaving, it's a bit annoying watching them take them all for free. I love Azpi and he's been a loyal servant for many years, but he'll be 33 when the season start so I have no problem watching him leave either, I've wanted Alonso gone for a couple years now, so that's fine too.

 

Just please give us De Jong back and it's all good

[Keirik]

5 minutes ago, Zuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuc said:

Well it sounded like it lol. You say they don't need to make a splash because they are "3-4 years away" and that sounds like US sports thinking lol. Leicester won the PL from nowhere, Chelsea went from 10th to 1st in 16-17. United still have a strong team with world class players like De Gea, Varane, Bruno. I don't think they are "8 or 9 players away" and even if they are 8-9 players away from winning the league, they still need to upgrade to fight for top 4 and cups. It's not "you either go for it or not" like it usually is with US sports because of playoffs and drafts. They definitely do need to "make a splash". De Jong would be perfect for them, he's exactly the type of player they've been desperate to get for many years now.

 

I agree that losing Pogba is probably good for the club, but they still need to replace his place in the team. Pogba was horrible this past season, but he still ended up 1 goal and 9 assists in 20 games. Don't agree with Ronaldo. People loved to say that he was the problem or was part of the problem, I don't buy that at all. Ronaldo is like the MJ of football. If things go wrong with him on your team, it's someone elses fault lol. He was their top scorer, won most MOTM awards, won player of the year and you can't question his drive and competitiveness. He did that as a 37 y/old.

Saying they are 3-4 years away doesn’t sound like a “US thing.” No idea where you are getting that. That sounds like some nonsense every American hears when discussing football because person X thinks Americans have no understanding of the sport. 
 

 They are an entire team away from really competing and a lot has happened with this club. We can agree to disagree about Ronaldo. He’s 37.  I’m less concerned with him being Man of the match all year on a team that couldn’t get out of its own way and finished with their lowest point total in god knows how long and more concerned with the guys I know will be here like Sancho, Elonga, and probably Bruno. They aren’t bringing in a full squad of transfers in one year. They most definitely are 8-9 players away. In todays football you almost need one set lineup for league matches, another one for cup matches and midweek europe competitions. 
 

  They aren’t on the same level at all with City or Liverpool. While it would be nice to finish in a top 5 spot for Champions League, it’s less important to qualify right now and more important to do this the right way. They are one of the few clubs that don’t specifically need the revenue from CL to still have the funds in the future for transfers. Europa league can help you qualify as well if you win it but realistically they won’t and the Thursday night games only give them less rest for weekend games in the premier league. 
 

 You’re confusing the make a splash comment. I’m not saying they can’t use anyone. I’m saying they are being smart by not just throwing money all over the place like they have in the last 8 or so seasons. It’s insane with how much money they have previously spent for very little results. I have no problem with them going after De Jong but I have no illusion that one player makes them right back on track with competing year in and year out. It’s going to take a while to sort out who stays and fits with the play style and vision of yet another new coach. 

[Cash or Czech]

 

It's big when Ornstein mentions a rumor. A bit surprised. Koulibaly has been rumored to be on the move every year for the past four years or so. He's definitely good, but Nathan Ake (27) and Joules Kounde (23) fit a much younger, long-term profile. 

[Cash or Czech]

 

With Lisandro Martinez following not too far behind. @Keirik your roster reshape is coming

[Keirik]

20 hours ago, Cash or Czech said:

 

With Lisandro Martinez following not too far behind. @Keirik your roster reshape is coming

De Jong is a great first step to get a real general on the midfield. Very good signing. And, it’s not a guy on the wrong side of his bell curve.perfect.

[Cash or Czech]

2 hours ago, Keirik said:

De Jong is a great first step to get a real general on the midfield. Very good signing. And, it’s not a guy on the wrong side of his bell curve.perfect.

 

So...I have bad news. Reports everywhere saying De Jong and his agent telling Man U to stop pursuing him and that he doesn't want to leave Barca, despite Barca trying to force him out. I believe Barca owe him 14mil euros in deferred wages and are telling him to transfer out and pound sand. De Jong, conversely, is telling Barca he has a contract and isn't leaving.

 

Honestly, good on Frenkie telling Barca to pay him or shut up. They just spent 52mil pounds buying Raphinha and planning another 40mil for Lewandowski. Least they can do is pay their contractual obligations. 

[LindG1000]

Just popping in here - I went to the Arsenal/Chelsea game in Orlando on Saturday, and wow, what a game! Full Premier League Squads (ostensibly) facing each other...was basically a London Derby in Orlando.

 

Arsenal crushed. Fans were awesome. Jesus is incredible. Saka is insane. I still don't really have a voice

[Keirik]

1 hour ago, LindG1000 said:

Just popping in here - I went to the Arsenal/Chelsea game in Orlando on Saturday, and wow, what a game! Full Premier League Squads (ostensibly) facing each other...was basically a London Derby in Orlando.

 

Arsenal crushed. Fans were awesome. Jesus is incredible. Saka is insane. I still don't really have a voice

Good for you bro! I haven’t gotten to see United play in nearly 17 years or so, friendly or not. Should be a fun year for your club. 

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On 7/8/2022 at 6:43 PM, Keirik said:

Saying they are 3-4 years away doesn’t sound like a “US thing.” No idea where you are getting that. That sounds like some nonsense every American hears when discussing football because person X thinks Americans have no understanding of the sport. 

Lol got nothing to do with you being American. Maybe I misunderstood what you said, but I read it as "They shouldn't invest too much because they won't win anything anyway" and that's backwards logic. Maybe they won't win the PL, but they can win EL, maybe a cup and top 4 is a win in itself. They definitely need to invest and they need to invest big. Because that roster is horrible. Frenkie De Jong would be the perfect start.

 

8 hours ago, LindG1000 said:

Just popping in here - I went to the Arsenal/Chelsea game in Orlando on Saturday, and wow, what a game! Full Premier League Squads (ostensibly) facing each other...was basically a London Derby in Orlando.

 

Arsenal crushed. Fans were awesome. Jesus is incredible. Saka is insane. I still don't really have a voice

What a clusterfuck of a game that was. Tuchel got a lot of work to do before the new season...

 

I have a bad feeling Spurs gonna have a really good season and that it will be Arsenal, Chelsea, United fighting for the 4th place.

[LindG1000]

1 hour ago, Zuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuc said:

Lol got nothing to do with you being American. Maybe I misunderstood what you said, but I read it as "They shouldn't invest too much because they won't win anything anyway" and that's backwards logic. Maybe they won't win the PL, but they can win EL, maybe a cup and top 4 is a win in itself. They definitely need to invest and they need to invest big. Because that roster is horrible. Frenkie De Jong would be the perfect start.

 

What a clusterfuck of a game that was. Tuchel got a lot of work to do before the new season...

 

I have a bad feeling Spurs gonna have a really good season and that it will be Arsenal, Chelsea, United fighting for the 4th place.

 

I'm not sure you got a feed of the game, but it was worse for Chelsea in person. They absolutely couldn't get past Saliba and Gabriel, their LB in the first half (can't recall since these twats didn't put names on their jerseys but it wasn't Azpi) was getting absolutely abused by Saka, Reece James looked overmatched by Martinelli - it was about the opposite of what you expect from Chelsea. And it wasn't like they played a half squad; both sides played Premier League starting lineups. 

 

Arsenal looked absolutely sublime, and for the first time ever seeing this team after seventeen years of fandom...worth it. 

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3 minutes ago, LindG1000 said:

 

I'm not sure you got a feed of the game, but it was worse for Chelsea in person. They absolutely couldn't get past Saliba and Gabriel, their LB in the first half (can't recall since these twats didn't put names on their jerseys but it wasn't Azpi) was getting absolutely abused by Saka, Reece James looked overmatched by Martinelli - it was about the opposite of what you expect from Chelsea. And it wasn't like they played a half squad; both sides played Premier League starting lineups. 

 

Arsenal looked absolutely sublime, and for the first time ever seeing this team after seventeen years of fandom...worth it. 

The game started 2am, was supposed to watch it, but fell asleep. Thank god lol.

 

LB first half was Emerson, so I'm not surprised to hear that he had a rough game. He's horrible and probably(hopefully) won't play a single minute for Chelsea this season.

 

A lot of weird things happen during pre season so I'm not too worried about this one game, but I don't like the development the last few months for the club. I knew in february/march when Roman left that it would be a rough few months and even years. We don't have the pull we used to (rejected by both Raphinha and Kounde already this summer), Tuchel is frustrated by the lack of new offensive players and most of the players look disinterested.

 

We're probably the only team in the top 10 in PL that (on paper) have a worse team than last season. We lost our best player (Rudiger) for free and replaced him with a £60m 31 year old Koulibaly (who I love, but still 3 years older than Rudiger who is just entering his prime). Also lost Christensen and most likely Azpi and Alonso as well. Lost Lukaku and got Sterling, should be an upgrade, but I'm not sure how much. We got a lot of young-ish wingers that's supposed to be good (Pulisic, Ziyech, Werner, Odoi), but really isn't.

 

Must've been an awesome game to watch for an Arsenal fan indeed, and since it was only a friendly I'll be happy for you  I'm looking at the season schedule these days, trying to find a game or two I can go to. Not been in London since 2017, feels like forever.

[LindG1000]

35 minutes ago, Zuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuc said:

The game started 2am, was supposed to watch it, but fell asleep. Thank god lol.

 

LB first half was Emerson, so I'm not surprised to hear that he had a rough game. He's horrible and probably(hopefully) won't play a single minute for Chelsea this season.

 

A lot of weird things happen during pre season so I'm not too worried about this one game, but I don't like the development the last few months for the club. I knew in february/march when Roman left that it would be a rough few months and even years. We don't have the pull we used to (rejected by both Raphinha and Kounde already this summer), Tuchel is frustrated by the lack of new offensive players and most of the players look disinterested.

 

We're probably the only team in the top 10 in PL that (on paper) have a worse team than last season. We lost our best player (Rudiger) for free and replaced him with a £60m 31 year old Koulibaly (who I love, but still 3 years older than Rudiger who is just entering his prime). Also lost Christensen and most likely Azpi and Alonso as well. Lost Lukaku and got Sterling, should be an upgrade, but I'm not sure how much. We got a lot of young-ish wingers that's supposed to be good (Pulisic, Ziyech, Werner, Odoi), but really isn't.

 

Must've been an awesome game to watch for an Arsenal fan indeed, and since it was only a friendly I'll be happy for you  I'm looking at the season schedule these days, trying to find a game or two I can go to. Not been in London since 2017, feels like forever.

 

Ah, well...yeah that'd do it. Saka was making a fool of him, but it wasn't Azpi. Not that Saka didn't get the better of Azpi later on anyway.

 

I'll say this...Sterling and Werner could not figure out Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes. They both looked like they were completely out of ideas about 10 minutes in, and Saliba specifically made Werner irrelevant.

 

I'm really, really hyped for this season. I think Arsenal are primed to secure a CL spot. 

[LindG1000]

9 hours ago, Keirik said:

Good for you bro! I haven’t gotten to see United play in nearly 17 years or so, friendly or not. Should be a fun year for your club. 

 

Thanks! I'm looking forward to it.

 

I feel for you - I've been following Arsenal for almost two decades now (I joined up just in time for that CL final against Barcelona), and I've been to London four times....in four international breaks. 

 

To see them play stateside was awesome, and they're apparently chief sponsors of the Florida Cup, so I expect they'll continue to make Orlando a home away from home in the summers.

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5 minutes ago, LindG1000 said:

 

Ah, well...yeah that'd do it. Saka was making a fool of him, but it wasn't Azpi. Not that Saka didn't get the better of Azpi later on anyway.

 

I'll say this...Sterling and Werner could not figure out Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes. They both looked like they were completely out of ideas about 10 minutes in, and Saliba specifically made Werner irrelevant.

 

I'm really, really hyped for this season. I think Arsenal are primed to secure a CL spot. 

I'll give Sterling a pass since he just arrived and there's a huuuge difference in how Pep and Tuchel likes to play. Werner is just not a good footballer. He can barely make a pass, his ball control is on level with a 13 y old girl and he's so weak. His finishing is somewhat worse than a 13 y old girl so I'm honestly stunned by how he scored so many goals in Germany, it is a mystery.

 

I feel Arsenal are on "the right path". There's obviously no guarantees in football, but they're doing the "rebuild" the right way right now. They have a clear plan for how they like to play and what type of players they're targeting.

 

This is the 2nd season in the last 17 years where I expect Chelsea to not finish in the top 4 (the other one was Lampard's first). I love Tuchel and I think as a manager he's on the level of Pep and Klopp, but the team has way to many holes at the moment. We got zero strikers and besides Sterling we have no one that guarantees 10+ goals in a season.

 

My early prediction for the coming season:

1. City

2. Liverpool

3. Spurs

4. Arsenal

5. Chelsea

6. United

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I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around this one. Chelsea submitted a bid of around €60m + add-ons last week. Sevilla wanted to "hold out for better offers" and didn't accept (nor decline) the offer. Now a week-ish later Sevilla still haven't answered Chelsea, but now the reports are saying that Sevilla have accepted a bid from Barcelona that's WORSE than Chelsea's offer?? So not only are they selling their best player to a rival from the same country, but they do it for less money? It makes absolutely zero sense. And then you factor in the fact that Barcelona was broke last summer, still owe FDJ 15m+ and have already spent over 100m this summer on Raphinha and Lewa. There's some high level corruption going on at Barcelona at the moment...

[LindG1000]

On 7/26/2022 at 12:06 PM, Zuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuc said:

I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around this one. Chelsea submitted a bid of around €60m + add-ons last week. Sevilla wanted to "hold out for better offers" and didn't accept (nor decline) the offer. Now a week-ish later Sevilla still haven't answered Chelsea, but now the reports are saying that Sevilla have accepted a bid from Barcelona that's WORSE than Chelsea's offer?? So not only are they selling their best player to a rival from the same country, but they do it for less money? It makes absolutely zero sense. And then you factor in the fact that Barcelona was broke last summer, still owe FDJ 15m+ and have already spent over 100m this summer on Raphinha and Lewa. There's some high level corruption going on at Barcelona at the moment...

Didn't Barcelona just bring Spotify as a new kit sponsor? That's probably part of the infusion here. I also wonder if the Chelsea bid was more spread out?

 

Either way, Barcelona always finds a way to skirt the system ;/

[Keirik]

On 7/26/2022 at 6:51 AM, Zuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuc said:

Lol got nothing to do with you being American. Maybe I misunderstood what you said, but I read it as "They shouldn't invest too much because they won't win anything anyway" and that's backwards logic. Maybe they won't win the PL, but they can win EL, maybe a cup and top 4 is a win in itself. They definitely need to invest and they need to invest big. Because that roster is horrible. Frenkie De Jong would be the perfect start.

 

What a clusterfuck of a game that was. Tuchel got a lot of work to do before the new season...

 

I have a bad feeling Spurs gonna have a really good season and that it will be Arsenal, Chelsea, United fighting for the 4th place.

I didn’t say don’t invest. I said don’t spend like wild as if they are 1or 2 players away and end up with the wrong fits. They’ve done this over and over in the past. That might work for a year, but it’s not the way you rebuild a culture in football that’s damaged when you spent the last 10 years basically bringing in everyone and everyone.  You want to be in that top spot completing every year if you’re a club the size of United.
De Jong would be a fantastic start because of what he brings and is also 25. It’s not looking great to pan out though. Like I said earlier, they still need a lot more though to compete in the 4 different trophies in an English season and make sure they secure a top 4 spot for CL as soon as possible.

 

 

Pogba being gone is fantastic. Never understood why they had Lindgard return. Cavani leaving also good. Ronaldo is going to be a bit of a problem because he’s making it pretty obvious he doesn’t want to be here. That has to be dealt with.

 

this team needs major progressions from a lot of people and I’d rather it be built right even if it takes 2-3 more transfer windows to see where our needs are under yet another new system. 

[Cash or Czech]

Barca are selling rights to future revenue for cash now. They’re selling sections of their TV deal so they can “rebuild the team”. It’s just kicking the can down the road, and financially are going to crash and burn again. What they should do is sell one or two of the talented youngsters, or just let them play and stop buying expensive players for a few years

[Cash or Czech]

Transfermarkt a big weird for anyone else? Half the time I click a player page it brings me to a spam verizon offering. No viruses or malware on my PC. I know they got hacked not too long ago. 

[Cash or Czech]

Wow. Kasper Schmeichel leaves Leicester and joins OGC Nice (nice). Not sure they got much of a fee or what they're going to do in net. They haven't signed a single player this transfer window yet. 

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16 hours ago, Cash or Czech said:

Transfermarkt a big weird for anyone else? Half the time I click a player page it brings me to a spam verizon offering. No viruses or malware on my PC. I know they got hacked not too long ago. 

It works fine for me.

 

LOL, Brighton had enough of Fabrizio leaking their transfers.