The original, & best, Ian.Originally Posted by NogbadTheBad
When did they play Newcastle?
St James Park - rather than the wannabe, St James' Park - no need for apostrophes for the original
The original, & best, Ian.When did they play Newcastle?
St James Park - rather than the wannabe, St James' Park - no need for apostrophes for the original
Messi goes to Inter Miami FC. People are losing their minds down here.
Nobody posting about PL football this year...?
Beginning to think Leeds may actually be back at the first time of asking. The Championship is ridiculous this year, and pretty riveting (at least if you support one of four teams...).
Being West Ham fan I am pretty through with the Premier League... until they replace David Moyes. Our football has been absolutely dire and I struggle to watch it. We have the players to be so much more creative and attacking, but he insists on this safety first approach which stifles the game.
Now The Championship is pretty amazing. My second team would be Ipswich Town, as I live just 15 minutes from their stadium, and I have been very invested in their performances all season. I've been to see them more than I have The Hammers in the past two years. Ipswich do not have anything like the squad or budget of the three ex-Prem teams surrounding them, so it is a real surprise that they have held onto their form all season. They do have a really passionate support though, and I think that helps a lot. Saturday was a slip up, and they really should have taken the 3 points, having been leading at 90 minutes. However it is a crazy difficult division, with games coming thick and fast, and you can't win them all. I cannot make a prediction yet, it's too intense!
I've been watching a lot, Newcastle are having an indifferent season, looking to post season for more signings. Got a brutal away draw at City in the FA Cup
Ian
Host of the Post-Avant Jazzcore Happy Hour on progrock.com
https://podcasts.progrock.com/post-a...re-happy-hour/
Gordon Haskell - "You've got to keep the groove in your head and play a load of bollocks instead"
I blame Wynton, what was the question?
There are only 10 types of people in the World, those who understand binary and those that don't.
What do you think of Ethan Ampadu? - was a pleasure, to say the least, watching him (& Ollie Watkins) close up as teenagers at Exeter City.
I think he's superb, and very reliable - possibly our most important single player this season. I read a quote from Clinton Morrison a few days ago about how his quality was apparent even when he first came to Exeter to train as a schoolboy. I can well believe it.
Aye, he looked a class above, even when he was playing as a holding midfield player at age 16.
A real indictment of Chelski, that they essentially couldn't develop him (nor were they willing to pay us a fair amount - they threw all their expensive lawyers at the tribunal to ensure they paid us the barest minimum even as they were throwing away tens of millions on overseas players who made no impact on their first team).
Typically unpleasant behaviour from Chelsea, but then I'm hardly unbiased on that topic.
It's a sad story that seems to be replicated again and again in the PL. One can hardly blame a young player for having his head turned by interest from billionaire clubs that are winning trophies, with all the attendant money and prestige - particularly when he is advised by people who stand to benefit financially from any deal. Then he finds himself warehoused in case the club has four injuries in the same position and lucky to get a run out in the reserves. One can't help but feel that in many cases knowing lies must be told to these lads about where they will stand in the pecking order and their real chances of getting PL game time.
We saw similar with Kalvin Phillips going to City - good enough for England, but not for them. I hope he is able to recover form at West Ham and ultimately sign there or at another club where he will actually play football. Situations like his at City are detrimental to the national side as well as the player concerned.
Last edited by Mascodagama; 03-12-2024 at 05:34 AM.
^^^ sadly Kalvin Phillips looks well of the pace and his confidence seems in tatters after his City debacle. Unfortunately he is also a signing (albeit on loan) that we didn't ever need. We have more defensive midfielders than we actually require (Alvarez, Ward-Prowse, Soucek) so to shoe-horn him into the team means we end up playing people out of their natural position (Paqueta, Kudus, Bowen). This seems a typical Moyesian trait, and results in a perfect imbalance. I doubt Phillips will be renewed in the summer, so his torment will continue.
I think defence and midfield are both viable options for him, as with our home-grown starlet Archie Gray.
It's nice seeing what a good partnership Ampadu has with his fellow Welshman Joe Rodon. Of course the Welsh connection at Leeds goes back at least as far as John Charles, another versatile player, and maybe the greatest footballer to have played for Leeds.
Sorry to hear this. I haven't paid much attention to the PL this season, so although I knew he wasn't doing well at West Ham so far, I didn't appreciate the situation fully.
It does feel like one of those situations where a manager has just reached the end of their rope at a club and nothing is really going to improve until the connection is severed. Football management is a hard profession psychologically. Though it is not easy to sympathise when that is taking its toll on your club. Beyond that, Moyes certainly does have his limitations as a manager.
I also have a soft spot for Ipswich as one of my oldest friends is a Tractor Boy and I've had some good days out at Portman Road. Which has made things particularly interesting this season! If we finish above them it will be down to respective defences - Leeds has the tightest in the division with 28 conceded, Ipswich have been much more porous having let in 49. They've scored enough, and at the right times, to make up for this but it's a risky way to live.
Oh it is so risky, and if they were to achieve promotion I really would fear for them. You can get away with it to an extent in the Championship, but in the Premier you'll never outscore enough to retain your place for long. I think we saw that in the Bielsa years at Leeds. Fantastically entertaining, but ultimately not sustainable. However, I would much sooner see attacking intent than closing-up-shop defence.
It'll be an incredible achievement if they achieve back-to-back promotions, but I agree that without really serious investment to set up the team on a pretty different basis they would be straight back down. It seems as though the new owners have the money, so the questions are whether they will realise the scale of what needs to be done, and whether they will buy wisely.
Being managed by a football genius certainly had its downside, and there was a horrible sense of inevitability about what happened in his last two seasons. Farke is different, and together with the new ownership and the management structure they have put in place, has brought a very reassuring sense of solidity and stability that honestly I don't recall ever previously feeling was there at Leeds.
Given Farke's record it obviously remains to be seen whether he can cut it in the PL. In his defence, he didn't have the investment needed to do the job before. So again, IF we get promotion, much will depend on the ownership and their willingness to spend money to retain and acquire good players. Based on just this season's evidence, it does appear that whatever money they do put in will be spent effectively.
Just hearing Archie Gray's name always takes me back to Eddie Gray & Frankie Gray & the great Leeds teams of the early 70s, which seemed so chock-full of Scots (Harvey, McQueen, Bremner, Lorimer, Jordan, alongside the Grays)...
[talking of Harvey, I just came across this wee feature article, from The Scotsman, a couple of years back: https://www.scotsman.com/sport/footb...deaway-2923924...can you imagine - a postie on Orkney?!]
Last edited by per anporth; 03-12-2024 at 10:22 AM.
Ipswich were the best team I've seen at St James Park in years - they played us off the park, in a way that no other team has managed in a long time. But you would fear for them if they do get promoted, as Simon says. And it does feel that the effort to stay up can often backfire on Clubs, with quite serious longterm consequences. I suspect Leeds would be likely to fare rather better were they to gain promotiuon this time around (especially if it were automatic, giving them just that bit longer to recuperate & prepare...).
Indeed Robin, for anyone who has been in "the wilderness" in recent yers it might take a few seasons of up and down to get the foundations built. I think most supporters at this level understand it will be a struggle, but it is still fun to see success on the pitch, although it may prove to be a poisoned chalice. One thing Ipswich currently have is an excellent young coach, so even though he is untested in the Premier League, with judicious financial support, I would trust him to find the right players. Finding them and accommodating them instantly, are two different matters.
I think Leeds will win the division, they have good momentum. Leicester have been so clear since Christmas, but their recent run of form must be concerning to them. It is any one of three for second spot. Southampton have faded, but I expect they'll be back in the mix over the next half a dozen games.
Chris - I think Burnley offer an interesting comparison - do you think they'll stick by Kompany? - they won the Championship at such a canter last year, yet they've looked seriously underprepared for the Prem this year...My fear with Ipswich is that nsomething simuilar would happen with them, & the Board would be tempted to jettison their young manager, rather than sticking with the plan...
I would like to think you're right about this. But anyone who has followed Leeds over the years acquires a deeply ingrained sense of caution, such is our history of taking promising situations and throwing them away with a kind of self-destructive mania.
I actually don't think that will happen with this group of players and this management, but top two would do fine, and I'm certainly not counting any chickens about that either. God help us if it's the playoffs.
Really good article - thanks Robin. Harvey's an interesting man.Just hearing Archie Gray's name always takes me back to Eddie Gray & Frankie Gray & the great Leeds teams of the early 70s, which seemed so chock-full of Scots (Harvey, McQueen, Bremner, Lorimer, Jordan, alongside the Grays)...
[talking of Harvey, I just came across this wee feature article, from The Scotsman, a couple of years back: https://www.scotsman.com/sport/footb...deaway-2923924...can you imagine - a postie on Orkney?!
Sad to think how many of those names you mention are no longer with us.
I hope Burnley stick with Kompany, I do think their ownership seems quite enlightened as to the reality of the situation. My wife has been speaking to them for a while about some potential business, and thinks they are a little more grounded.
My fear for Kieran McKenna is that he is enticed away, I think the owners are similar to Burnley’s and understand they have unearthed a diamond. For now he is committed and loved by the support, and I do think they would be loyal even if finding the Prem a struggle.
Chuckling here at the thought of Mrs Caller advising Vincent Kompany & his coaching staff on the ways in which he needs to shore up the Burnley defence...I'm definitely seeing whiteboard, magnetic markers in blue & red, plus a pack of multi-coloured dry wipe whiteboard markers...
(you'll need to start calling her "Gaffer")
(oh, wait...)
^^^ She clearly tightened up the back four after the last whiteboard session
Good weekend for Leeds and Ipswich. I love it when we beat Milwall, and feel very happy to be going into the break at the top of the table. Now just have to hope none of our lads get crocked on international duty.
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