2020-21 Premier League Thread

[jeffbear]

Brentford are up! First run in the Premiere League, first time in the top flight since the weird post WW2 era. Current Villa manager Dean Smith built the bones of this program, and Thomas Frank has carried it on. They believe in high-incident rate football and play an aggressive game all over the pitch. Not sure they have the roster quality to stick around long, but they won't be boring ... which is great.

 

[andyt]

In League One, Blackpool win the promotion playoff, 2-1 over a Lincoln City. They were last in the Championship in 2014-15, finishing at the bottom of the table and then suffering another relegation the following year.

In League Two, Morecambe beat Newport 1-0 on a penalty in the 107th minute. It will be their first time in League One, they’ve been in League Two since gaining admission to the Football League in 2007.

 

[andyt]

Spurs are closing in on signing Antonio Conte as their next manager. He led Inter to their first Serie A title in 11 years but left after facing cost cuts to the squad.

 

[jeffbear]

Spurs are closing in on signing Antonio Conte as their next manager. He led Inter to their first Serie A title in 11 years but left after facing cost cuts to the squad.

I think Conte would be a strong hire for Spurs. They are still largely built around Pochettino's structure, and Conte's counter-punch thing isn't too far removed from that.

 

[jeffbear]

I saw a report that Conte to Spurs is off

 

[andyt]

I saw a report that Conte to Spurs is off

I saw that too, although an Italian media outlet is reporting that he’s still interested but is looking for guarantees on a “technical aspect”. Meanwhile, speculation has moved on to Ajax boss Erik Ten Hag.

 

[jeffbear]

I saw that too, although an Italian media outlet is reporting that he’s still interested but is looking for guarantees on a “technical aspect”. Meanwhile, speculation has moved on to Ajax boss Erik Ten Hag.

Pretty sure the guarantees he's seeking involve a consistent transfer budget. And knowing Spurs, he's probably not getting the answers he wants.

Ten Hag is a very, very good technical manager. Not sure he's really ready to be an EPL manager since his job at Ajax is so very structured.

 

[andyt]

The 6 clubs that were part of the Super League agreed to a combined £22 million settlement and agreed that any similar transgressions in the future will be met with a £25 million fine and a potential 30 point deduction.

European Super League: 'Big Six' clubs to pay £22m settlement to Premier League over failed breakaway plot

Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Man City, Man Utd and Spurs will pay a combined sum of £22m to the Premier League; Big Six reach settlement over plan to join failed Super League in April; clubs will face heavy fines and points deductions if they sign up to similar plans in future

www.skysports.com

 

[jeffbear]

That seems like an awfully small amount for the level of insult and outrage. Less than 4 mil per team.

 

[andyt]

Scott Parker is leaving Fulham to take over at Bournemouth.

Jamie Vardy has become part owner of the Rochester Rhinos. They haven’t fielded a team since 2017 but are the only non-MLS club to win the US Open Cup. They last competed in the USL. They’re also part owned by David and Wendy Dworkin, who are also part owners of the NBA Sacramento Kings. They started life as the Rochester Royals in the late 40s.

 

[jeffbear]

Scott Parker surprised the crap out of me by doing a really, really good job at Fulham. Not the most thoughtful of players, but he's been a savvy manager.

 

[andyt]

Patrick Vieira will take over for the retired Roy Hodgson at Crystal Palace. He was sacked by Nice in December after an unsuccessful 89 match run.

Edit: Palace have 11 players out of contract and pre-season training starts on Monday. Vieira’s task is daunting, to say the least.

 

[jeffbear]

Patrick Vieira will take over for the retired Roy Hodgson at Crystal Palace. He was sacked by Nice in December after an unsuccessful 89 match run.

Edit: Palace have 11 players out of contract and pre-season training starts on Monday. Vieira’s task is daunting, to say the least.

That Palace job has sort of quietly turned into a dumpster fire, but isn't getting too much attention because it's "just Palace." In case anyone has forgotten, a big chunk of the club is owned by the duo behind the NJ Devils and Philadelphia 76ers ... Josh Harris and David Blitzer. I'm not convinced those guys really know what they're doing, recent results with the 76ers aside. It's a very marketing driven approach.

 

[andyt]

Rafa Benitez has agreed to a 3 year deal at Goodison Park. He still has a house on Merseyside and a threatening banner was placed near it. After leaving Newcastle, he coached in China for about 18 months, leaving in January, 2021 due to concerns about the health of his family due to the Covid epidemic.

 

[jeffbear]

Without context, that's a great hire by Everton. In context ... yeah. Good luck to Rafa.

 

[andyt]

Without context, that's a great hire by Everton. In context ... yeah. Good luck to Rafa.

Supposedly, the board discussed other options too…David Moyes, Roberto Martinez and Graham Potter. Can’t imagine Moyes or Ma going over well with the faithful either.

The Athletic reports that Spurs have finalized a deal to bring in Nino Espírito Santo as their new manager.

 

[andyt]

Derby escaped relegation again. An independent arbitrator fined them £100k rather than impose a points deduction for improper accounting practices. The EFL will not appeal. Derby escaped relegation by 1 point over Wycombe and anything more than a 2 point deduction would,have sent them down and left Wycombe in the Championship. Derby still has to submit revised and restated accounts for the 2016-18 seasons and could be hit with a points deduction for next season.

Derby County escape relegation to League One as EFL decide against appealing fine

The EFL will not appeal Derby County’s £100,000 fine over some of their accounting policies which means the club will be playing in the Championship next season. In a statement published on Friday the EFL said they remained “disappointed” with the decision of the independent disciplinary...

theathletic.com