• Moderators, please send me a PM if you are unable to access mod permissions. Thanks, Habsy.

2024-25 Premier League Thread

I dunno. His crosses are his party piece, but Digne is also pretty great at soaking up pressure and winning loose balls. He's just a savvy operator all over the pitch. I get that he makes mistakes in space, but so does basically every other fullback in pro football. And honestly, by my memory at least two of those crosses absolutely should have ended up with chances had the other guys been remotely switched on. I'm not sure what sort of brain funk Watkins is going through, but he needs to snap out of it ASAP.

What you don't get from Digne is that little run into space that Maatson made on the goal. He just doesn't have the burst for that stuff, but at least he's smart enough to know it and not run himself into trouble the way Cash routinely does.
 
Multiple reports that Julen Lopetegui will be sacked at West Ham today, to be replaced by Graham Potter. The Hammers are 14th with 23 points in 20 matches and a -15 goal differential, tied with Ipswich for 3rd worst in the league.
 
Interesting that Potter has been out for so long since getting sacked by Chelsea. I know he was still getting paid, but normally you see those guys back on the hamster wheel a lot quicker.
 
jeffbear said:
Interesting that Potter has been out for so long since getting sacked by Chelsea. I know he was still getting paid, but normally you see those guys back on the hamster wheel a lot quicker.
Click to expand...
He turned down Ajax in May and had been a finalist at other places since, including the English National Team and Leicester. But 20 months is a long time.
 
LOL ... like Dyche is their problem. Still, bad fit for the roster so this is probably best for everyone. He'll have another job next week if he wants one that quickly.
 
Well say what you want Lucas Digne, and I've said a lot, but he sure as shit is not a CB and Emery's excuse that Bogarde is a right sided player just doesn't work for me. I hope Mings injury isn't too serious for his and our sake.

In good news, up until the injury, that's the best Villa have looked all year and I feel like we probably win 3-0 if he doesn't get hurt.
 
16-5-1. Six points clear with a match in hand. Seven more goals than any other team in the Prem. Tied with Arsenal for the fewest conceded (21). Plus, 7 wins in 7 to top the Champions League table. And through to the semifinals of the League Cup (though down 1-0, the reverse fixture is at Anfield).
And yet, this all seems like a dream. I'm afraid I'll wake up and the bottom will fall out: not winning the league, bowing out of the Champions League before the finals, not making the League Cup finals. You know, all the things I would have expected before Slot showed up. The tests are coming fast and furious this month: a surging Bournemouth at The Vitality, the "game in hand" which happens to be the last ever Merseyside derby at Goodison, and the month ends with a trip to the Etihad against a "resurgent" (?)" City before Newcastle comes to Anfield a few days later. So many potential pitfalls. Will surely have a better feel for things after the month ends. Can hardly wait, though. :)

Oh, and we're fine, fires and windstorms aside. But so many I know and care for are not.
 
VinatieriDefinesClutch said:
Glad to hear you're okay. It's a good year to be the one consistently competent team in the prem when everyone else is seeming to have significant problems.
Click to expand...
It has been an odd year in the Prem. Arsenal have had their injury problems, but to me they seem more mentally frail. That draw with Villa, for instance, was to me more about two points thrown away than Villa's coming back. City have been so perplexing everywhere. I mean, we all knew how good Rodri is, but they've lost their character since he's been gone. Chelsea has been stronger than I thought, though their defensive frailties and goalkeeping struggles (despite having what, a dozen keepers on their roster?) have proven to be what I thought would be their downfall. And Villa and Newcastle just need to find consistency.
Otherwise, the league has offered up some big surprises, too. Until Saturday, Forest looked pretty terrific defending and getting the vital goals they need from Chris Wood. Bournemouth is unbeaten in eleven and their last two results, vs. Newcastle and Forest, have been amazing. Fulham, Brentford and Crystal Palace can cause any side fits (and conversely, cause their supporters fits as well with their inconsistency).
As a Liverpool fan, though, the biggest surprises (as individuals) have been Ryan Gravenberch at the six and Cody Gakpo playing (largely) wide on the left. Didn't know Ryan had that in him, to be honest. Skill as a player, we saw last year at times. But not playing as the six. And while I admired Gakpo from the moment he joined the club (his was the kit I selected when we visited Anfield in September of 2023), he's been even more proficient than I thought he'd be from that side. I love that he can rotate with Diaz through the middle at times, and he tracks back to help defend and recover possession better than any of our other forwards. And he's so difficult to knock off the ball. Nine goals in his last nine matches in all competitions makes the "wasted" signing of Darwin Nunez easier to take.
 
Last edited:
Despite the Sunday featured match of Arsenal hosting Manchester City, the biggest match of the weekend is Liverpool travelling to the Vitality to play the red hot Cherries. Why, you ask?

Bouremouth v Liverpool.jpeg
 
Liverpool had a relatively easy time with the Cherries. The big news was Nottingham Forest putting up a touchdown on Brighton, 1 week after shipping 5 goals to Bournemouth. The City Ground was rocking.
 
Yesterday was probably the final nail in Man City’s championship defense. Their run of 4 straight titles is over. They’re 15 points behind Liverpool with 14 matches to go. They’re in 4th on the goals scored tiebreaker over Newcastle but a Chelsea win or draw today knocks them down to 5th. Losing to Arsenal the way they did was just uncharacteristically bad. If Havertz was any kind of finisher, they would have been down 2-0 at halftime and it only got worse from there. Haaland got them even but 38 seconds later, Partey put the Gunners back in front for good. Forest won’t go away either, a week after shipping 5 goals to Bournemouth, they scored 7 against Brighton.
 
Good win for Chelsea today in coming back vs West Ham but you can see their vulnerabilites on full display. The kid goalie Jorgensen did OK but that back four is a mess. Fortunately for them, Cole Palmer can have a so-so to below average match, then pop up with the match winner (?) when his club needed him the most.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top