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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 2, 2009 13:31:06 GMT
Typical West Ham, really. Never happy without the threat of relegation... ;D Yeah, I always feel sorry for the teams who have to fight for 4th-last place... At least WHU don't have it as bad as Portsmouth, the morale there must be dragging the gutter...  |
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Post by Elliot Kane on Oct 2, 2009 17:02:15 GMT
Yeah, they're more Sunk-mouth than Portsmouth right now. Simply a dreadful start to the season. They're on course for being the worst Prem team of all time if they can't get their act together.
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Post by Ubereil on Oct 3, 2009 10:37:51 GMT
I saw Pompey against Everton. The only thing separating them was one horrible mistake by a Pompey central defender. They played quite well, they created chances, they didn't concieve a horrible amount of chances themselves. A slight increase in effectiveness in front of goal and they'll start bringing in points too. All they have to do is not to fall too far behind until the January transfer window (and it's six points to safe ground at the moment), because then their new owner will bring in a quality player or two.
Maybe a central defender to replace Jounes Kaboul? That guy is one goal concieved per match in himself. I saw him a few games when he was new in Tottenham and allthough he looks good enough in 14/15 situations, in the 15:th one he just misses completely and gives the opponent a scoring chance. That's what he did against Everton when he missed the ball and gave Louis Saha a free go at goal (which he took). You can't have that from one of your starting central defenders if you struggle to avoid relegation. I personally think they should switch him and Aaron Mokoena so he plays defensive midfielder instead. Those kinds of mistakes don't hurt as much in midfield.
Übereil
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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 6, 2009 9:16:08 GMT
October 3rd, 2009: Manchester United 2-2 Sunderland: Sunderland were in sizzling form, but in the final couple of minutes they muffed the opportunity of a lifetime and scored an own goal! Methinks it was the "Legend" factor: the sheer realization in the last couple of minutes "hey wait a second, this shouldn't be happening! We CAN'T actually be LEADING the defending champions, AT OLD TRAFFORD!" and thus blew away the opportunity... But they still deserve credit for the time they led, and ultimately their draw, at Bobby Charltons' Theatre of Dreams.  Wolverhampton 0-1 Portsmouth:: AT LAST! Portsmouth have managed to hit back! Hats off to the Pompey lads for breaking their duck, one can only imagine the atmosphere in the dressing room before the game! Somebody could make a movie of this. Hull 2-1 Wigan: About time Hull win something... Of course, they were at home so it's to be expected. Burnley 2-1 Birmingham: Birmingham seriously need to pick up their game, at this rate it ain't looking pretty... Bolton 2-2 Tottenham: Amazing, Bolton have held Tottenham to a draw! Impressive feat, let's see if they can capitalize on it. |
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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 6, 2009 9:24:36 GMT
October 4th, 2009:
Chelsea 2-0 Liverpool: Great game by Chelsea! With this win, coupled with MU's draw with Sunderland the day before, "The Blues" shoot back to the top of the PL table! As for Liverpool, they desperately need to pick up their form if they wish to challenge for the Cup!
West Ham 2-2 Fulham: Oh well, at least a draw is better than a lost for the team second-from-the-bottom... Funny, when relegation-threatened teams play at home, you can almost expect that they'll not win, whereas when they play away, they sometimes seem to have a higher chance of winning!
Everton 1-1 Stoke: Pretty good effort by Stoke, they earned this one!
Arsenal 6-2 Blackburn: Typical Arsenal fashion: demolishing of smaller teams! They ain't nicknamed "The Gunners" for nothing! However, they always seem to fail when facing bigger teams, well, at least recently...
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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 6, 2009 9:26:40 GMT
October 5th, 2009:
Aston Villa 1-1 Manchester City: Good showing by Aston Villa! They managed to hold off Manchester City to a draw! This could be signifying a drop in Manchester City's form, but we'll have to wait until their next game to see the result of that one...
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Post by Elliot Kane on Oct 6, 2009 10:31:44 GMT
Villa are also consistently under-rated, it must be said. They may not be challenging for the top four, yet, but they're a solid top ten team and have been for the past few seasons. Very easy to overlook, but their progress has been pretty impressive.
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Post by Ubereil on Oct 6, 2009 14:29:55 GMT
Yeah, Villa's definently a top 10 team. With City's new players and Tottenham acually living up to their squad for once it will be hard to get a top 6 spot though. But I believe they'll make the top 8 at least, it'll be them or Everton getting the 7:th spot. My bet is Everton.
Apart from that it seems that most good teams seems to have gotten their act together this season. Tottenham's playing some good football and so is City. There aren't really any teams in the bottom ten who doesn't have a size that belongs in the top ten. With Newcastle in the Championship (and Leeds in League One) all they major players are in the top ten at the moment. No underpreformers, really. The one worst off is Everton in tenth place, but give it a month and they'll be as consistent as ever and puffing on towards a top 6 spot. I don't think they'll reach it in the end, not this year, but they won't be far off. The question when it comes to Everton is if they'll ever lift. David Moyes has managed to create a super solid team, but they're rarely a threat to the big 4. Will they ever get that final piece in the jingsaw that makes them able to threaten the top 4 on their own?
Übereil
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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 7, 2009 5:12:47 GMT
With the way things are going, it is possible that Liverpool just might not finish in the top 4 this season! I'm pretty sure about Chelsea, Man U, and Arsenal being there; but Liverpool? Well, unless they can fully recover from the loss of Alonso, I just don't see them making it in the top 4, maybe 5th or 6th. Something tells me it'll be between Man City and Tottenham for the 4th slot.
As for Aston Villa and Everton, Aston Villa have done fairly well the past 10 seasons! Why, last season there was a few weeks' period of time when they looked to be seriously challenging Arsenal for the 4th spot. But it collapsed just a few games before the end. Everton have also been fairly consistent the past few seasons, and last season it was they who grabbed the 5th spot ahead of Villa, IIRC. It's hard to say how it'll go between them, we'll have to wait for the end of the season...
But ATM, Villa are in a better position than Everton.
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Post by Jackyau on Oct 7, 2009 8:13:37 GMT
I think it's still too early to say liverpool will miss out top 4, but definaltely MC will be strong competitor.
I don't think Aston villa will get good position than Everton or Hot spurs as well. O'neill always use the same player for whole match regularly. (unless some injury problem) how can they keep the form for a whole season? That's the main reason why they dropped from 4 last season an almost drop out top 8!!!
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Post by Ubereil on Oct 7, 2009 13:32:46 GMT
If any of the big four are dropping out of the Champion's League spots it'll be Arsenal. Pool have far more weight than Arsenal, once they get going they'll pick up a consistency Arsenal are far too young to muster. Liverpool has been slow starters for as long as Rafa Benitez has managed them. Liverpool might have started with three defeats, but the first was away versus Tottenham who's played their best football in I don't know how long. In a première, which are always tricky. Another was away versus Chelsea. The last was vs Aston Villa (who also has a good squad) who, when I read about the match, had all the coincidences on their side. Three defeats in 8 games is never good for a team like Pool, but consider the defeats and it's not that bad either. They haven't lost vs Burnley, for instance. They'll rise from this. They've showed before that there's plenty of mental strength in the team. The problem for me as a United supporter is that they probably feel they'll have to start winning now, and in two days they have United at home. They can't lose that game if they want to stay in the PL race and a win would be highly preferrable in order to regain the momentum lost with their losses against Villa and Spurs. O'neill always use the same player for whole match regularly. (unless some injury problem) how can they keep the form for a whole season? That's the main reason why they dropped from 4 last season an almost drop out top 8!!! Losing the same team all the time isn't a minus if you're not in four competitions at the same time. The sole reason Fulham did so exeptionally well last season was because Roy Hodgson matched the same lineup game after game. So playing the same team all the time is more likely to increase consistency than decrease it. So that wasn't the sole reason they dropped last season. The sole reason was that Curtis Davies and Martin Laursen (their two main central defenders) both got injuried at the same time. And suddenly the defensive consistency they'd spent all season building up was gone and they started conceiving plenty of goals. If they don't lose both their central defenders at the same time they'll do better this season. Übereil |
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Post by Elliot Kane on Oct 7, 2009 14:53:55 GMT
Pool do have one major problem, though, and that's their over-reliance on one or two star players. All it'd take is a few bad matches by Gerrard for Pool to finish top 6 or 8, rather than top four.
Villa and Everton both suffer from not having enough good players, but if they can keep their main teams fit, they'll be contesting all the way.
Tottenham have Redknapp, which makes them definite challengers. And City have near-limitless funds, so they can't be counted out, either...
Top two will likely be Chelsea & Man U, as per usual, but after that I'd say it was a bit up in the air. There are around 4-5 teams who could seriously compete for third and fourth place.
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Post by Ubereil on Oct 7, 2009 15:30:09 GMT
If Aquilani gets rid of his injury problems (which I don't believe will happen, which is why I believe he wasn't a very good pick for replacing Xabi Alonso) it'll be highly interesting to see how well he fares in the Premiership. I believe he has the potential to be another major creative power on the Pool central midfield, which will give their team another dimention. Apart from that they could really use a world class left winger who can create chances. As it is now Gerrard is the only really good creative player they've got. In the system they're using that's not quite good enough for a Premiership title. If they manage to get another star player though... Not enough good players is a good analysis of Villa and Everton. Villa does have Ashley Young, who is a top class player when he's having a good day. But he's not a player who can carry a team, so that alone won't get Villa to Champions League. Arsenal aren't good enough for any trophies now but in two or three years they will be. Just like two or three years ago.  They never get to keep their best players (not counting Cesc Fabregas), and when they do they replace them with youth players. That means half the squad is not good enough yet. If any team of the big four will drop out this year it's Arsenal. Right now they lack determination. Tottenham is like Pool without Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres. They have been for the last decade. Now they've finally gotten a coach who can make them play that way though. That might have gotten them to a top four spot last year, but this year the competition is too heavy I think. City's got plenty of money, but I'm not a great believer in Mark Hughes. He can make a team like Blackburn a solid top ten team, but I doubt he can make a top five team champions. The players they buy are good, but not that good. They certanly won't get further than a fourth spot, if that. Too many players lacking that fifth star. Übereil |
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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 9, 2009 5:03:26 GMT
Arsenal are a fairly mercurial team: they go on a sudden spectacular rise, and follow it up with a hard fall. But I'm pretty sure they'll make the top 4, my guess is 3rd place. If Liverpool can learn to play well without utter dependence on Gerrard and Torres, then they can finish in the top 4. If not, I'm almost certain we'll see a slight change in what has constituted the top 4 for the past couple a' years. I'm guessing it'll be between Chelsea and MU for the trophy, but it's not certain yet... But 3rd and 4th place have about 5 serious challengers (e.g. Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham, Man City, Villa), which makes for an interesting season. My guess: Arsenal 3rd place, and for 4th I'm tied between Tottenham and Man City. Of course, however, the season is just beginning: time will tell all.  |
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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 18, 2009 18:29:02 GMT
October 17th, 2009:
Everton 1-1 Wolverhampton: Pretty good effort by Wolverhampton, they've managed to claim a point away at Everton. Everton now lies in 11th place, but they just might rebound as the weeks progress. As for Wolverhampton, they're looking at a potentially lower-table season ending, but they're good enough to just avoid relegation.
Arsenal 3-1 Birmingham: Another good game from Arsenal, gunning off their opponents. If they can keep a good level of consistency, they'll probably remain solidly in the top four, with a pretty possible (almost probable) challenge for the title. And Birmingham... Well, they need to pick up their game, they're getting dangerously close to the relegation spots.
Sunderland 1-0 Liverpool: Alas, Liverpool without Gerrard and Torres are the equivalent of the 2008 France without Zinedine Zidane; still a good team, but not very strong or stable. Sunderland came off the back of an draw (almost a win) at Old Trafford, and were still in sizzling form. As it stands, Sunderland are actually above Liverpool in the league table, with Sunderland 7th place and Liverpool trailing in 8th! Judging by last season's results, if you had to guess which one of the top 4 would be in this state at this stage of the PL, you'd have picked Arsenal. But Liverpool... Unless they can win basically all their remaining matches, Benitez looks to be in trouble...
Stoke 2-1 West Ham: Not a good day for West Ham, they've lost a lot of games this season... Second from the bottom is never a comfortable place to be, they face a very real possibility of being relegated at the end of the season. Stoke are doing pretty good this season, currently in 9th place right behind Liverpool!
Portsmouth 1-2 Tottenham: Yet another loss for Portsmouth. Losing 8 out of the first 9 games of the season is a very sad way to start a season for any team, hopefully for their sakes they can bounce back... But at the end of the season, 3 teams must be relegated, and Portsmouth look to be at the bottom of those 3. As for Tottenham, they have done a tremendous job this season, they have a very real chance of finishing in the top 4.
Manchester United 2-1 Bolton: A very well played game by MU, they put in a lot of shots which were saved by the goalkeeper of Bolton. The guy did a tremendous effort, with only one goal going past him by MU (courtesy of a superb team effort, followed by a stunning kick from Valencia) and an own goal. At least they managed a goal, and if it weren't for that own goal, they might've managed a draw.
Aston Villa 2-1 Chelsea: Excellent game by Villa, they have managed to beat Chelsea! By doing so, they have earned the 6th spot in the table (just above Sunderland, just below Manchester City), and have shown that they can still contend for a top 4 finish. As for Chelsea, this loss places them at second in the table behind MU.
This season is getting more and more interesting, we'll see how it progresses!
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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 18, 2009 18:33:00 GMT
October 18th, 2009:
Wigan 1-1 Manchester City: Amazing effort by Wigan! With this draw, they are a pretty safe distance from relegation. As for Man City, they have missed out on a chance to leapfrog Tottenham for 3rd place in the table, so ATM they are 5th (just behind Arsenal).
Blackburn 3-2 Burnley: Good game, well done by both teams. With this victory, Blackburn are catching up with Burnley.
We'll see what happens tomorrow, when Fulham host Hull!
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Post by Ubereil on Oct 18, 2009 20:28:10 GMT
Manchester United 2-1 Bolton: A very well played game by MU, they put in a lot of shots which were saved by the goalkeeper of Bolton. The guy did a tremendous effort, with only one goal going past him by MU (courtesy of a superb team effort, followed by a stunning kick from Valencia) and an own goal. At least they managed a goal, and if it weren't for that own goal, they might've managed a draw. If that own goal hadn't been concieved then United would most likely had made sure to make yet another goal. For 80 minutes there was no discussion, Manchester United were the better team. Giggs were brilliant and so was Berbatov by the way. Übereil |
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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 19, 2009 8:10:26 GMT
Manchester United 2-1 Bolton: A very well played game by MU, they put in a lot of shots which were saved by the goalkeeper of Bolton. The guy did a tremendous effort, with only one goal going past him by MU (courtesy of a superb team effort, followed by a stunning kick from Valencia) and an own goal. At least they managed a goal, and if it weren't for that own goal, they might've managed a draw. If that own goal hadn't been concieved then United would most likely had made sure to make yet another goal. For 80 minutes there was no discussion, Manchester United were the better team. Giggs were brilliant and so was Berbatov by the way. Übereil Very good point there Ube, that's why I said they might've managed a draw... But yes, MU were the far better team that day. And yes, Giggs and Berbatov played very well, IMO Berbatov played the best for MU. Although if I had to pick out who played the best, I'd pick the Bolton goalkeeper. |
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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 20, 2009 14:46:40 GMT
October 19th, 2009:
Fulham 2-0 Hull: Another dismal performance by Hull, who failed their chance to leave the relegation zone. As it stands, Hull are only a slight step-up from West Ham this season.
We'll see how things go on the 24th, and the 25th!
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Post by twoheadedragon on Oct 25, 2009 18:49:12 GMT
October 24th, 2009:
Chelsea 5-0 Blackburn: Amazing! Fantastic attack by Chelsea, with such a barrage of goals! With this game, they take the top spot of the table, although MU can get it back with a win against Liverpool at Anfield.
Tottenham 0-1 Stoke: What a blunder by Tottenham! How did this happen to them? They blew it! I guess it's partly due to the amazing effort put in by Stoke, they are determined to get through this season somewhere up in the top ten! Tottenham can still finish in the big four, who knows?
Hull 0-0 Portsmouth: At least a draw is better than a loss for Portsmouth, time will tell whether or not they can pick up this season. Hull aren't doing well at all either, still in the relegation zone...
Burnley 1-3 Wigan: Great game by Wigan! They have leapfrogged Burnley in the standings with this victory! Both teams have some good potential to finish mid-table.
Birmingham 2-1 Sunderland: Good game by Birmingham, managing to defeat a Sunderland side who just beat Liverpool last week! With this win, they are floating above the relegation zone. As for Sunderland, they are doing well this season: let's see how far they get, a top ten finish looks like what they'll end up with...
Wolverhampton 1-1 Aston Villa: Good game by Wolverhampton, managing to hold Aston Villa to a draw! With this draw, they have managed to hover just above the relegation zone. As for Villa, they need to find their form if they wish to finish in the same position as last year.
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They never get to keep their best players (not counting Cesc Fabregas), and when they do they replace them with youth players. That means half the squad is not good enough yet. If any team of the big four will drop out this year it's Arsenal. Right now they lack determination.