EPL 2022 / 2023

Bournemouth Leicester and Forest all lose.

Leeds with the win against Forest to jump out of the relegation spots

Chelsea are better than a much changed Liverpool but still can't score so it finishes in a dire scoreless draw. Liverpool now looking like a ECL place at best

Meanwhile Mitrovic gets an 8 week ban from the independent tribunal which seems about right but FA are going to appeal.

Some of the media frenzy around Fulham's FA Cup sending's off has been ridiculous. Comparing it to Cantona. Chris Sutton saying 12 matches minimum.

@dogmeat I wasnt expecting a win against Brighton who are in the race for Europe and on the road havent lost since October (or something like that), was hoping for a point at best, but not one I was targeting. I suspect even Leicester may have felt similar playing Villa. Both teams will be eyeing each other this weekend as a crucial match for points

Big loss for Forest though given the head to head with a team in a similar scenario

What will also make the end of season interesting as some years teams clock off because they are safe and cant get into Europe, so not much to play for. It currently appears that all teams above Palace still have a chance of making Europe, while everyone below needs as many points as they can get. For me this means most teams wont mentally clock off until very late in the season.

@bayimports Forest have arguably the hardest run in which is why I suggested a minor miracle is required.

Fulham may have gone to the beach already although they should still be targeting a European place.

Rather than lack of will, I think it's lack of legs that is our issue. Our teensie weensie squadie waddy is being exposed.

Drop more points and I expect we will see some youngsters being blooded.

Bournemouth seemed unlucky against Brighton - reports suggested they had plenty of chances but couldn't convert. Fantastic finish by Ferguson who looks fantastic for 18 years old. Same story for Chelsea again, who did remarkably well not to score given how many times they seemed to be one on one with Allison. Liverpool v Arsenal at the weekend will be interesting - surely Liverpool will be full throttle as they were against United or they could actually be humiliated the way Arsenal are playing.

Lots of rumours that Cooper will be sacked by Forest but not sure that will do them much good with such a haphazardly built squad.

I've watched Chelseas last 180 minutes for no goals. And ironically, I think they are playing the best I've seen them play in a very long time.

They hold the ball well, they create chances, they have some bad defensive lapses, but on the whole aren't too bad.

But they literally cannot (legally) score.

Mudryk is the real deal, reminds me of Arjen Robben (who I will still argue is the best player I've seen live) but is currently low on confidence and will take a bit of time to get going. Not all young players are Haaland.

The comedy show that isChelsea FC keeps on getting ever more bizarre.

Reports that Lampard is taking over as interim Manager until the end of the season.

So
Sack Lampard to bring in Tuchel
Sack Tuchel to bring in Potter
Sack Potter to bring in Lampard

Unbelievable

Tuchel, Potter, Lampard

Who is the weakest link?

@MajorRage said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

I've watched Chelseas last 180 minutes for no goals. And ironically, I think they are playing the best I've seen them play in a very long time.

They hold the ball well, they create chances, they have some bad defensive lapses, but on the whole aren't too bad.

But they literally cannot (legally) score.

Mudryk is the real deal, reminds me of Arjen Robben (who I will still argue is the best player I've seen live) but is currently low on confidence and will take a bit of time to get going. Not all young players are Haaland.

Not really sure about Mudryk. He really hasn't played much top-level football and his attempted finish v Villa (straight at the keeper) showed it and I can see him disappearing at Chelsea.

Meanwhile West Ham are thrashed at home v Newcastle which must mean Moyes is close to being dismissed. United beat Brentford to stay level on points with Newcastle. Liverpool need to win every game from here to reach 73 points and even that not be enough to finish in the top 4. Realistically the top 4 is between NUFC, MUFC, THFC and BAHFC.

@KiwiPie said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

Meanwhile West Ham are thrashed at home v Newcastle which must mean Moyes is close to being dismissed. United beat Brentford to stay level on points with Newcastle. Liverpool need to win every game from here to reach 73 points and even that not be enough to finish in the top 4. Realistically the top 4 is between NUFC, MUFC, THFC and BAHAFC.

@dogmeat Actually it is BHAFC!

Surely not Lampard to Chelsea. To bridge the gap until they appoint a proper manager in June?

@KiwiPie When I used to go to the Goldstone Ground the signs definitely said Welcome to Brighton & Hove Albion.

I had to check the date on the by-line as it makes more sense if the story is 6 days old.

Big weekend of games coming up..but congratulations Burnley who have already secured promotion back to the Prem. Could still break 100 points and still go undefeated at home

WIth Wrexham getting tonked 3 - 1 away at lower midtable Halifax it now sees @kiwipie and Notts County sneak into the lead on goal difference after they pummelled Weadstone 3 - 0 at home. It is noted, however, that Wrexham still have a game in hand and they host County on Monday in a match that is likely to decide who wins the Vanarama National League!

@Higgins said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

WIth Wrexham getting tonked 3 - 1 away at lower midtable Halifax it now sees @kiwipie and Notts County sneak into the lead on goal difference after they pummelled Weadstone 3 - 0 at home. It is noted, however, that Wrexham still have a game in hand and they host County on Monday in a match that is likely to decide who wins the Vanarama National League!

Yeah forget Arsenal v Liverpool, Wrexham v Notts County is the big game of the holiday weekend. Goal difference is so close and with both teams scoring bags of goals, it could still be decisive. Suddenly a draw isn't the disaster it would have been for us against Wrexham and a win puts in charge again.

Macaulay Langstaff has 41 for the season after 41 games without a penalty taken and it will be interesting to see if he gets snapped up by a League 1 or Championship team.

@bayimports said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

Big weekend of games coming up..but congratulations Burnley who have already secured promotion back to the Prem. Could still break 100 points and still go undefeated at home

Astounding season for Kompany, everyone thought it would be hard for him to take Burnley after all those Dyche years but they have romped it. Sheff U looking likely to return as well with what looks like many of their squad from when they went down. Would be a great achievement for Luton to make it up but they are tiny and I don't see how they could compete in the Prem.

Great win for the cherries, not expecting a win next week and could be back in drop zone due to goal difference, but taking wins against fellow strugglers is important. Will celebrate the week anyway

Missed the game but Arsenal will have to win out to win the league. Man City is just better.

@broughie said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

Missed the game but Arsenal will have to win out to win the league. Man City is just better.

I've just watched the replay. Arsenal will be disappointed to let a 2-0 lead slip but a draw was probably a fair result. A frantic 6 mins of added time, and Ramsdale made some fantastic saves. Arsenal had some chances too.

Man City certainly has the softer remaining fixtures but I expect some more twists yet.

@Bovidae Arsenal might luck out. I can't see them beating city so that's going to be a three point swing. Then they have to win everything else because at the moment city looks unbeatable.

Really disappointed that the sticking with Zinchenko to. Too many sloppy passes, and he's not the best defender. Tierney does not have his skills but would be more reliable in the back. It would take pressure off Gabriel etc who have to cover for him.

I still think they need more depth and starch in general.

@bayimports said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

Great win for the cherries, not expecting a win next week and could be back in drop zone due to goal difference, but taking wins against fellow strugglers is important. Will celebrate the week anyway

That's a big win and given that Southampton, Leicester and Forest don't look like winning a game soon, 2 wins out of the last 8 games might be enough to stay up.

@KiwiPie yeah should have been at least 3 till but struggling to convert chances. We are away to Spurs next week and not expecting points, but home to West Ham the following weekend, which if we pick up a win there, we must be close to safety.

Shame for Notts County though..that penalty miss in extra time will be replayed over and over

@KiwiPie said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

@Higgins said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

WIth Wrexham getting tonked 3 - 1 away at lower midtable Halifax it now sees @kiwipie and Notts County sneak into the lead on goal difference after they pummelled Weadstone 3 - 0 at home. It is noted, however, that Wrexham still have a game in hand and they host County on Monday in a match that is likely to decide who wins the Vanarama National League!

Yeah forget Arsenal v Liverpool, Wrexham v Notts County is the big game of the holiday weekend. Goal difference is so close and with both teams scoring bags of goals, it could still be decisive. Suddenly a draw isn't the disaster it would have been for us against Wrexham and a win puts in charge again.

Macaulay Langstaff has 41 for the season after 41 games without a penalty taken and it will be interesting to see if he gets snapped up by a League 1 or Championship team.

Maybe he should have taken that very late penalty? I can imagine the language forthcoming after that miss. A draw would have been priceless to you guys.

It’s not EPL but watching MC vs BM. De bruyne and haaling it’s like Jordan and pippen. Constantly look dangerous.

@Higgins said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

@KiwiPie said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

@Higgins said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

WIth Wrexham getting tonked 3 - 1 away at lower midtable Halifax it now sees @kiwipie and Notts County sneak into the lead on goal difference after they pummelled Weadstone 3 - 0 at home. It is noted, however, that Wrexham still have a game in hand and they host County on Monday in a match that is likely to decide who wins the Vanarama National League!

Yeah forget Arsenal v Liverpool, Wrexham v Notts County is the big game of the holiday weekend. Goal difference is so close and with both teams scoring bags of goals, it could still be decisive. Suddenly a draw isn't the disaster it would have been for us against Wrexham and a win puts in charge again.

Macaulay Langstaff has 41 for the season after 41 games without a penalty taken and it will be interesting to see if he gets snapped up by a League 1 or Championship team.

Maybe he should have taken that very late penalty? I can imagine the language forthcoming after that miss. A draw would have been priceless to you guys.

Yep a draw and it could go to the last game, us losing that game means we are relying on Wrexham to cock it up and I can't see that happening. Everyone will expect us to romp through the play-offs but it won't be that simple.

Wrexham able to bring in Ben Foster, a top level keeper (and apparently pay him 4.5K per week) when they had a goalkeeping crisis.

Haaling is so good. Not goal greedy happy to pass when needed.

Erling Haaland is a goal-scoring monster.

@sparky said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

Erling Haaland is a goal-scoring monster.

View embedded content

Next one to beat is Clive Allen at 49 for the season in all comps (I think) and then the English record of Dixie Dean (63). Then Messi for 73(?)

A huge day at the bottom of the table and a massive late win for Bournemouth over Spurs should mean they stay up. Fulham do them a favour by beating Everton, Palace beat Southampton and Man City roll over Leicester and suddenly Bournemouth, Wolves and Palace are looking well clear.

@KiwiPie said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

A huge day at the bottom of the table and a massive late win for Bournemouth over Spurs should mean they stay up. Fulham do them a favour by beating Everton, Palace beat Southampton and Man City roll over Leicester and suddenly Bournemouth, Wolves and Palace are looking well clear.

Well, I didn't predict that, but all results went my way. That was only the second win against Spurs in about 12 attempts. We deserved the win and I thought the better side on the day.

We have next three games in a short time period against fellow strugglers. If we can get 1-2 wins and points out of all as a minimum I will say safe. Currently looks like safe, but with our goal difference and how frequently the bottom of the table changes each week, I don't think we are there yet.

Part of why I love a good relegation battle so much is because it's so dynamic. A couple of decent upsets is normally decisive in a close race so every match could be a key part of the story. Whereas at the top of the table it tends to be a drag race all about one or two key ties.

Aston Villa have come a long way since Emery has taken over. Guys like Mings, Luiz, McGinn, Konsa and especially Ollie Watkins look like world beaters currently, and what a signing Alex Moreno has been at left back! And only for 13 mil. The beauty of signing guys from overseas as they are far cheaper than local english players and better half the time as well.

We really made Newcastle look poor and probably deserved 5-6.

Champions League is probably out of reach, but any European position is considered a success for us, especially after the disastrous start under Steven Gerrard.

@posters

What makes you support a certain team? Like are you from Bournemouth bay imports or did you just randomly choose them?

Me I’m supporting arsenal to a certain extent bc

Anyone but MC
My cousin lives in arsenal territory
My fellow Swiss Xhaka is in the team

MC are playing damn good football though and are easy on the eye. Arsenal HAVE to win the away match at city (or at the very least draw) otherwise it’s curtains.

@Billy-Tell After college but before University, I worked for a year in England as a sub teacher and sports coach. Just happened that the nearest city was Bournemouth and went to a few games (in Div 2) with a few locals. Growing up as a young kid supported Liverpool, but changed after a year of indoctrination spending a year in the area

Another draw for arsenal after a 2-0 lead. And a missed penalty. That is called choking.

Arsenal fold under pressure from West Ham. Saka misses a penalty. But I can't stand the incessant search for them and surely if someone goes down in the box there has to be evidence that they would actually be able to play the ball. But the rules are what they are. Watching this game I was reminded why I stopped watching soccer, I game I played all my life. Players clutching their faces, especially Arsenal, to try to gain a free kick is distasteful. Jesus and Viera I could do without. There is no intention to stamp this rubbish out either. Man City is by far the better team.

Sat through most of the Forest v Man U game this morning. Forest looked devoid of any ideas, United strolled to a 2-0 win and now the bottom 4 all look doomed with the teams above getting results and none of them getting any wins recently.

Notts keep hope alive with a home win while Wrexham draw away

Wrexham with home games v Yeovil (22nd) & Boreham Wood (6th) and 2 wins clinch the title. Final game is away at Torquay (21st). Notts away to Maidstone (24th) & home to York (18th). Not a lot of hope unless Yeovil can stop Wrexham winning this week.

@Billy-Tell said in EPL 2022 / 2023:

@posters

What makes you support a certain team? Like are you from Bournemouth bay imports or did you just randomly choose them?

I lived beside Stamford Bridge for a while in 2002. Loved match day and I also had a few kiwi pals that supported Chelsea

Feel quite distant from the club now TBH, too much turnover snd not enough players there long enough to build a feeling. Kante and Azpil kind of it now. Thought Mount a chance for next Lamps but who knows.

Looking forward reading all the bullshit Liverpool replies ….

@Billy-Tell Grew up in Shropshire, UK with Shrewsbury and Wrexham equal distance away but "supported" Leeds instead as I liked the name (and they were good). Only team I went to watch was Oswestry Town (made the 1st round of the FA Cup in the early 1970s.

Went to Loughborough University in 1982 (Seb Coe lived around the corner at one point) and had both Nottingham clubs and Leicester in the top flight. Went to games at all 3 grounds, Forest were in their dull phase, Leicester were nothing much and I fell in love with Notts. Remember beating Spurs 3-0, leading Leicester 2-1 at half-time and losing 2-5 with Lineker scoring 4 and then leading Watford 2-0 after 10 minutes and being 4-2 down by half-time. It was never dull. Was going to every home game while I was at Uni and I was doomed. Would travel to see them in the late 80s and 90s before moving out here. Went to Wembley 5 times in less than 10 years - good times.

Had a Subbuteo game as a kid in NZ. Chose the red team. Looked up a football mag and supported ManU as a result (when they were quite shit)

The first team I followed in the UK was Brighton as I lived there and it was their first ever season in First Div.

Couple of years later I was living in Ealing and working in Holland Park. Guy at work was a mad keen lifelong Fulham supporter and he dragged me along to the Cottage the year they should have been promoted under MacDonald.

Got back into supporting them from afar when Fayed took control the glory years culminating in Europa League Final. Discovering a few podcasts has made following them much more real.

Last two seasons have been a blast - especially after dreary Parker-ball.