Football thread

[Stom]

Sweet jesus, football has found itself again this year. Just incredible match ups in this CL. At least I won't have split loyalties in the final now... But hot damn, what performances and what drama.

[WaspInWales]

...and then England at the Nations League semi-final.

A genuine HYS comment has managed to capture things rather perfectly:

England are the Anthony Joshua of football

[WaspInWales]

RIP Justin Edinburgh at 49.

Former Newport County boss, as well as current Leyton Orient manager. Guided them back to league 2 this season...did the same with the Exiles in 2013 too.

Played for Spurs for 10 years too.

Very sad news.

[Galfon]

Better news - Southgate gets a top 3 placing in a 'major' competition..first time since Alf in '68.
Playing top athletes who can also control the ball and deliver accurate passes/crosses may be the way forward.
Edinburgh - sad news, decent player, did well this year topping money-bags Salford.Appears to have been very
popular.RIP.

[Digby]

Oligarchy, corruption, human suffering and whatnot have been at play buying out the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City so should anything be done around the Newcastle takeover?

[Stom]

Oligarchy, corruption, human suffering and whatnot have been at play buying out the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City so should anything be done around the Newcastle takeover?

Define the difference between should and will?

You would have hoped this crisis might cause people to reevaluate, especially if oil becomes far less important. But money talks...

[Digby]

Oligarchy, corruption, human suffering and whatnot have been at play buying out the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City so should anything be done around the Newcastle takeover?

Define the difference between should and will?

You would have hoped this crisis might cause people to reevaluate, especially if oil becomes far less important. But money talks...

Football should not happen, but it will is my definition. There is it helps keep people who like it away from important things, or at least things I like, but it can still creep in if a Premier club is going to be bought by those who fund terrorism, abuse their domestic populace and murder journalists (and then justify it by saying things would be worse but for them)

[Galfon]

Villa stay up by the skin of their proverbials..
Norwich, Bournemouth and Watford get the drop ( odd thing, Pearson departure )
Bravo Hou-deano, though can't afford losing Grealish and McGinn.Leeds & Baggies up, so looking quite tasty fixture wise next season - not sure when peeps will be allowed in.

[Puja]

Man Utd claim 3rd, Champions League, and unofficial title of Best of the Rest, after a cracking end to the season. Bit of vindication for Solskjaer after a lot of pressure from the fans to sack him when the chips were down. Be interesting to see what their transfer activity is in the off-season (such as it is). You feel they need their equivalent of Liverpool's 2018 Van Dijk signing to stiffen their defence and make them a real threat to the top 2.

Puja

[Galfon]

Bayern brilliance and the culmination of a gradual decline for Barca that will surely bring wholesale changes there.
Having Coutinho and Muller in the same team alone is pretty daunting...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/53745581

They made a reasonable Chelsea team look completely out of their depth (7-1 over 2 legs) last round.
'High energy, pressing game..' appears to be the recurring marker of success in today's game, and Barca were the masters of that for an age.

[Galfon]

Final: Bayern 1 - 0 PSG.
They won all their CL matches this year and bagged the domestic barney-rubble.
Gute arbeit.

[Mikey Brown]

I have no idea whether you need to be a Stewart Lee fan to enjoy this or not.

[Banquo]

In the hand of god now. RIP Diego, more ability than his mind could cope with

[Galfon]

Man. City's winning run now stands at 21 matches, an English record.
In the coming weeks they have the chance of reaching a new world record for top-level clubs:

Match no./ opp./ equalling
22 Man U (h) = R.Madrid 2014-5
23 Southampton (h) = Bayern M 2020
24 Fulham (a) = Coritiba,Bra. 2011
25 Borussia Monch.(h) ECL = Ajax 1995
26 Everton (a) FAC = Ajax, 1971-2
27 Leicester (a) = New Saints (Wal) 2016
28 Leeds (h)   = ** Poss new WR **
(Apr 10)

which would surely confirm Guardiola as GOAT club manager,
deployer of mega-rich club resources, provider of strongest tea in the business, or something else not tangible.
Over to the quiet neighbours to poop on the party tomorrow

[Galfon]

Poop-poop !

[Galfon]

Kane not seen back training at Spurs yet, wheras Grealish is at Villa.can't see Pep getting both.

[Galfon]

Well Grealish secured - snip at £100m.
...Messi leaving Barca on a free, that would have been a cheaper deal - though who knows what greengages he'll be after.

[Galfon]

RIP 'Der Bomber'
G.Muller leaves at 75.
Fantastic record - lethal striker.
(ruined a sunny day in Cornwall though , '70 after an early 2- 0 lead.. )
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/58222495

[Galfon]

RIP Jimmy Greaves, 81.
Scored goals with ease at a time when, like Best, there was little protection from cloggers at the back.
Faced his drink problems head on in later years too.
Rare talent.

[francoisfou]

RIP Jimmy Greaves, 81.
Scored goals with ease at a time when, like Best, there was little protection from cloggers at the back.
Faced his drink problems head on in later years too.
Rare talent.

For someone who has never really been a football fan, for me the likes of Jimmy Greaves and Denis Law (he too, is 81) were a cut above the rest and I always looked for their names in the football results.

[Puja]

First UK gay professional football player for 30 years: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/61467159

Fair play to the lad. He's got minerals, being the one to go first. Hopefully the football crowds won't be wankers, although on recent evidence, I'm not confident...

Puja

[Numbers]

First openly UK gay professional football player for 30 years: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/61467159

Fair play to the lad. He's got minerals, being the one to go first. Hopefully the football crowds won't be wankers, although on recent evidence, I'm not confident...

Puja

Corrected that one for you, are you referring to Justin Fashanu for the 30 years ago statement?

I don't hold out much hope for decency among football supporters unfortunately.

[Puja]

First openly UK gay professional football player for 30 years: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/61467159

Fair play to the lad. He's got minerals, being the one to go first. Hopefully the football crowds won't be wankers, although on recent evidence, I'm not confident...

Puja

Corrected that one for you, are you referring to Justin Fashanu for the 30 years ago statement?

I don't hold out much hope for decency among football supporters unfortunately.

Good correction. Yes, I was thinking about Fashanu for 30 years ago - I think he came out in 1992. Poor sod - the UK was definitely not ready for him back then.

Puja

[Numbers]

First openly UK gay professional football player for 30 years: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/61467159

Fair play to the lad. He's got minerals, being the one to go first. Hopefully the football crowds won't be wankers, although on recent evidence, I'm not confident...

Puja

Corrected that one for you, are you referring to Justin Fashanu for the 30 years ago statement?

I don't hold out much hope for decency among football supporters unfortunately.

Good correction. Yes, I was thinking about Fashanu for 30 years ago - I think he came out in 1992. Poor sod - the UK was definitely not ready for him back then.

Yeah, it was a tragedy, I remember seeing a documentary about him which was very sad.

Puja

[Numbers]

Whoops, I'm not sure what I did there.