EPL 2025/26
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@African-Monkey The speculation is that Manchester United are already in conversation with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer about a return to the club.
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Desperation appointment. Trying to make a Mourinho 2 out of him.
Can't see it working.
Garnacho aside, I actually really like our squad. The problem with it, is that only Reece James is playing even close to his potential. Fernandes is at about 65%, the rest are sub 50%. I didn't agree with selling Madueke and he is thriving at Arsenal.
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The thing I really don't get about the Rosenior appointment is them giving him a six and half year contract.
The last Chelsea manager to last four years was John Neal who left in 1985. The last Chelsea manager to survive six seasons was Dave Sexton in 1974.
All of Chelsea's coaches since 2019 have lasted less than 18 months.
Why set up an expensive payout?
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@sparky said in EPL 2025/26:
The thing I really don't get about the Rosenior appointment is them giving him a six and half year contract.
The last Chelsea manager to last four years was John Neal who left in 1985. The last Chelsea manager to survive six seasons was Dave Sexton in 1974.
All of Chelsea's coaches since 2019 have lasted less than 18 months.
Why set up an expensive payout?
100%.
Iirc they brought Maresca in on a 5 year deal too which was also. idiotic
I think Poch came in on a 2 year deal and that type of contract makes all the sense in the world given that that is normally how long managers stay in the job anyway.
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The dumb thing about these long term appointment, "project coaches" is that football doesn't run on 4-5 year cycles. It is a month by month sport.
Your stock and the entire operation can go from good to toxic and untenable in less than a month. If you look at how this sport plays out a manager can come into November in some good form with everything going in a positive direction and be out of a job by the new year, as has happened here. I mean think of it, winner of that tournament in the summer beating PSG 3-0 in the final no less, then you don't even make it to the end of the next season.
If rosenior struggles he might not make it to the end of the season. That is the reality of how football actually works.
The other problem Chelsea have is that if I am not mistaken three of the firings of the new owners have all boiled down to personality clashes between the owners and the coach. Tuchel, Poch and Maresca all seem to have fallen out with the owners or been at loggerheads with them in terms of what their vision is for the club. Whereas Abramovich got rid of coaches in a ruthless fashion it was almost solely down to results. These owners cannot find a coach that they are able to work with and that they see eye to eye with. There are ego battles going on here
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Awful penalty kick. Mendy didn't so much save it as be the grateful recipient of it.
I think there have been a very few occasions where a team has disagreed with a penalty and passed it to the keeper rather than trying to score it. If it wasn't for Diaz looking so distraught after I'd have thought that was the case here too.
Pretty poor from the ref to not just call the game in Morocco's favour when the Senegalese abandoned the pitch. Whether its a good decision or not, leave the temper tantrums elsewhere.
Incidentally, Senegal now leading 1-0 in extra time.
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@Cyclops said in EPL 2025/26:
Awful penalty kick. Mendy didn't so much save it as be the grateful recipient of it.
I think there have been a very few occasions where a team has disagreed with a penalty and passed it to the keeper rather than trying to score it. If it wasn't for Diaz looking so distraught after I'd have thought that was the case here too.
Pretty poor from the ref to not just call the game in Morocco's favour when the Senegalese abandoned the pitch. Whether its a good decision or not, leave the temper tantrums elsewhere.
Incidentally, Senegal now leading 1-0 in extra time.
I was tracking the game on live scoring and did wonder why the game reached over +20 in added time! Craziness.
EPL games are getting increasingly dull, hardly a goal to find across 9 games this weekend. And so many draws that the table appears frozen.
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A few big results today including me thinking Bournemouth was going blow another lead, which we did but found a way in the end. Needed that result. Up the cherries
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@KiwiPie said in EPL 2025/26:
@Cyclops said in EPL 2025/26:
Awful penalty kick. Mendy didn't so much save it as be the grateful recipient of it.
I think there have been a very few occasions where a team has disagreed with a penalty and passed it to the keeper rather than trying to score it. If it wasn't for Diaz looking so distraught after I'd have thought that was the case here too.
Pretty poor from the ref to not just call the game in Morocco's favour when the Senegalese abandoned the pitch. Whether its a good decision or not, leave the temper tantrums elsewhere.
Incidentally, Senegal now leading 1-0 in extra time.
I was tracking the game on live scoring and did wonder why the game reached over +20 in added time! Craziness.
EPL games are getting increasingly dull, hardly a goal to find across 9 games this weekend. And so many draws that the table appears frozen.
I think the teams posted this on the walls of the changing rooms this weekend ….
Chelsea winning, Liverpool and Arsenal losing. All fantastic matches. I should visit NZ more often!
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Aston Villa record our first away win against Newcastle in the League since 2005. Some effort after an eight hour round trip to Turkey to play there on Thursday. Back-to-back away wins and clean sheets.
And Arsenal lose too.
A fantastic weekend for Villains!
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@sparky said in EPL 2025/26:
Aston Villa record our first away win against Newcastle in the League since 2005. Some effort after an eight hour round trip to Turkey to play there on Thursday. Back-to-back away wins and clean sheets.
And Arsenal lose too.
A fantastic weekend for Villains!
Here we go brother!
We really need to add to our midfield though. Loftus Cheek would be a good grab.
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@African-Monkey Good sources suggesting that Villa are bidding for Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
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@sparky said in EPL 2025/26:
@African-Monkey Good sources suggesting that Villa are bidding for Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
Shows how tough we have it in the market when 12.5 mil could tip us over the edge.
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@African-Monkey Great to see Tammy Abrahams and Douglas Luiz return to Bodymoor Heath and Villa Park.
Less good to hear that SJM and Youri Tiellemans are out until March.
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@sparky said in EPL 2025/26:
@African-Monkey Great to see Tammy Abrahams and Douglas Luiz return to Bodymoor Heath and Villa Park.
Less good to hear that SJM and Youri Tiellemans are out until March.
We certainly need the extra bodies now especially in the midfield. Hoping for one more central midfielder.
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This new champions league format does make for a fun final match day with 18 games and permutations up and down the table.
My two favourites:
Benfica throwing caution to the wind and sending the keeper up despite leading Real Madrid 3-2 because an extra goal gets them into playoffs (added bonus: Real miss direct entry to round of 16 and have to go into o playoff too)
PSG and Newcastle drawing, knocking each other into the playoffs (a win for either would have had them finish 5th)
