Posted February 26, 2013 I'm sorry, but I've watched every single minute of every spurs match this season and we are incredibly impressive as a team, the tactics, our style of play. AVB is working wonders with a weaker team and squad than last year. I can understand people who don't watch as much not neccessarily seeing it, but a spurs fan?! In all honesty how much of a fan is he?! He's been a fan since birth, and he's not blinkered and is always willing to admit when things are not great. You don't have to sing a team's praises all the time to be a great fun. I'm always willing to admit when United do things wrong, which we have done on various occasions. AVB has a weaker squad, yes. But, he's also the same AVB who had a hand in bringing players like Clint and Gylfi to the club. I can't agree with you at all when I say the tactics have been great...there is almost no threat at all from Spurs through the middle and almost zero threat from Ade. At times, the midfielders have been slow getting the ball to the wider players. Scott Parker is out of his depth with his current performances. I watched the Europe League match the other night and you were extremely lucky to get a goal at the end...it was pretty dross. Lloris is doing okay and our defence isn't doing that great? Weird considering how many clean sheets we've had, and generally a strong defence. I agree Parker is limited but Sandro was amaizng first half of the season. You've conceded around the same amount of goals as the other teams in the top four. None of the defences of the top 4 teams have been particularly good this season. I can't say it's a strong defence because I don't think anyone has been particularly strong in that top four this season. And all this it's all Bale is utter utter bullshit. Walcott has scored a higher percentage of Arsenals goals than Bale has for us. He's had a good couple of months. Well outstanding. But to say he's the reason we're doing so well? Ridiculous. Van Persie has won more points for Man U than Bale for us. Are you a one man army?! I think you just need to admit that Bale has been the reason why you are doing so well and are challenging for the top 4. Without Defoe's league goals and excluding Bale, Dempsey has 5 goals (not a striker) and Ade has 2. Where else would the goals have come from without Bale? It was inevitable that there would be a stage in the season where either one of the strikers goes off the boil or is injured (both happened) and either somebody had to be brought in or somebody had to step up to the plate. Bale has been immense and there's no shame in admitting that. But, if Spurs had invested in a striker who was helping out with the goals, you wouldn't have any of this one-man-team talk. As for Van Persie making us a one man team, there answer is hell fucking no. Reason being that for a long period of time, United have always been up there competing for the league, or for trophies. We were already competing before Van Persie came along. He has further improved us. We don't rely on him because without him, we still have the likes of Rooney and Hernandez to score goals. Plus, it would free up a team place to allow somebody like Nani and Kagawa to come in and play. Without Bale right now, who would score the goals? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 26, 2013 I'm sorry, but I've watched every single minute of every spurs match this season and we are incredibly impressive as a team, the tactics, our style of play. AVB is working wonders with a weaker team and squad than last year. I can understand people who don't watch as much not neccessarily seeing it, but a spurs fan?! In all honesty how much of a fan is he?! Lloris is doing okay and our defence isn't doing that great? Weird considering how many clean sheets we've had, and generally a strong defence. I agree Parker is limited but Sandro was amaizng first half of the season. And all this it's all Bale is utter utter bullshit. Walcott has scored a higher percentage of Arsenals goals than Bale has for us. He's had a good couple of months. Well outstanding. But to say he's the reason we're doing so well? Ridiculous. Van Persie has won more points for Man U than Bale for us. Are you a one man army?! Utter fucking bullshit. Idiot spurs fans wanted him out at the beginning because they don't know what they're talking about, have no patience and don't wait and see. Most spurs fans I know were happy with him. It annoyed me too how anti AVB some spurs fans were. But to say it was the spurs faithful or whatever. And don't you support arsenal? Literally the most fickle fans going at the minute - wenger in, wenger out, wenger shake it all about!! I'd hardly call Arsenal fans fickle. Considering the length the club has gone without success, and the fans continuing to be shafted with ticket prices, the pressure Wenger is under is next to nothing. Obviously they're are fans not happy but it's the media creating most of the pressure not the fans. You've always got idiots like Piers Morgan running their mouth but i'd bet Wenger has far more supporters than haters at the moment. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 26, 2013 The majority of football fans are impatient now. I honestly knew people who wanted Rodgers gone after 5 games. There's just an obsession with blaming the manager for every single thing and the players take 1% of the blame for bad results and form. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 26, 2013 The majority of football fans are impatient now. I honestly knew people who wanted Rodgers gone after 5 games. There's just an obsession with blaming the manager for every single thing and the players take 1% of the blame for bad results and form. Yes, I agree with you there, a lot of fans are impatient these days and want instant success. Players need to take responsibility when they play badly. Either by visibly putting more effort in or coming out and admitting it. But, there are times when the manager does get things wrong and they need to hold their hands up, too. Benitez made some really poor substitutions and generally played with the wrong tactics against City. He has to take a lot of the flack for that. Mark Hughes made a number of questionable buys in the transfer market when he was manager of QPR. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 26, 2013 FOOTBALL Stuff Tbf you're perceptions of Spurs are skewed by having only watched them lately against teams that have parked the bus (which has been a lot of teams). We looked poor against Lyon because they had 9, 10 men behind the ball for the majority of the match after they scored. I think it's kind of hard to tell how good Tottenham actually are at the moment because so many games have had to be ground out, and because everything goes through Bale so it seems like we're a one man team. Good one by Jonathan Wilson on Bale today http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2013/feb/26/gareth-bale-tottenham. The Derby should be more of an indication of where we're at right now. Re signings - Gylfie was (I think) in the works before AVB arrived - plus at 22 I think he's got a pretty bright future, unfortunate to be picked behind Dempsey (who really hasn't performed) and Holtby (who isn't as good as I thought he'd be). Don't think AVB has really been allowed much of a say in the transfer market - Dempsey is a good example of a Levy bargin-buy that probably wouldnt have been AVBs first choice. -Disagree that Loris is 'okay', he's easily in the top three keepers in the league, with a good shout at being the best. Probably our second best player behind Bale. - Agree with dazzy hardly any Spurs fans ever actually wanted AVB out. People were probs unsure of how he'd turn out after the first few games but noone was calling for his head. - Disagree that Defoe 'doesnt fit the system'. Fitting the system doesn't just mean being a big lad who can get a head on a cross (which Adebayor can't anyway). He was banging them in for fun before he was injured because he had the pace to captialise on runs by Bale and Lennon. It worked. Need someone in for Ade in the summer though for sure. Agree with Flink about our lack of a striker being a really huge issue. - Actually thought we looked a lot better last night than for the last few games. - We miss Sandro big time. - Roll on Sunday COYS Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 26, 2013 FOOTBALL Tbf you're perceptions of Spurs are skewed by having only watched them lately against teams that have parked the bus (which has been a lot of teams). We looked poor against Lyon because they had 9, 10 men behind the ball for the majority of the match after they scored. I think it's kind of hard to tell how good Tottenham actually are at the moment because so many games have had to be ground out, and because everything goes through Bale so it seems like we're a one man team. Good one by Jonathan Wilson on Bale today http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2013/feb/26/gareth-bale-tottenham. The Derby should be more of an indication of where we're at right now. Unfortunately, if you're going to be a top 4 team, you have to deal with teams that will park the bus or won't attack you as often, therefore meaning you can't counter-attack/play counter-attacking football. Teams park the bus against the likes of United, City, Chelsea and Arsenal, so it's only fair that Spurs be judged in the same way, imo. (also, in fairness to Lyon, they were winning the tie, so they had every right to play that way). Also, I've seen Spurs play numerous times throughout the season and yes they do play good football in patches, but they looked more dangerous with Modric in the team than without him. They just don't look as dangerous to me. (although they were excellent in the two games against United) Re signings - Gylfie was (I think) in the works before AVB arrived - plus at 22 I think he's got a pretty bright future, unfortunate to be picked behind Dempsey (who really hasn't performed) and Holtby (who isn't as good as I thought he'd be). Don't think AVB has really been allowed much of a say in the transfer market - Dempsey is a good example of a Levy bargin-buy that probably wouldnt have been AVBs first choice. Ok, perhaps this is more to do with Levy than AVB. But, if AVB is the manager and doesn't want these type of players, what's stopping him from saying no. I think Gylfie would make a good sub or squad player, but I'm not sure if he is at the right team. Personally, I think he made an error going to Spurs, some players suit other clubs. Look at Pienaar, for example. Bentley, possibly. -Disagree that Loris is 'okay', he's easily in the top three keepers in the league, with a good shout at being the best. Probably our second best player behind Bale. I never said Lloris was bad. I said he was quietly getting on with it, which is actually a compliment. I like him and think he was a great buy. The type of signing Arsenal should have made. Just to make it clear that I'm not shitting on Spurs or Bale, because it's not easy to get into that Top 4. But, I question whether they have played that much better under AVB than Redknapp. There are still glaring flaws in the team that haven't been addressed, gaps to fill. I still think they'll finish above Arsenal, and they'll finish above Chelsea because Rafa will make a mess of the resources at his disposal. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 26, 2013 Spurs have a tough run in, though. Arsenal home Liverpool away Fulham home Swansea away Everton home Chelsea away City home Wigan away S'Hampton home Stoke away Sunderland home Those bolded games could be won by either side really. If they finish 3rd with those games to come I'll be mega impressed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 26, 2013 Wigan away could be a tough one, too. Provided that they are in "survival" mode, as they usually are at that time of year. :p Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 26, 2013 Walcott: 11 League GoalsPercentage of Arsenal League Goals: 21% Gareth Bale: 15 League Goals Percentage of Tottenham League Goals: 31% I'm on about all competitions. You say it's bale that's put us in the top 4. But we were 4th last season and most definitely got because of bale. I n fact it was ade who dated and scored the majority of our goals. And modric was easily the most influential player in our team, then VDV. 2 have left and ade has been injured a lot and simply hasn't been performing. Yes bale has been in amazing form, but no more amazing then van persie for you, but hang on, that doesn't fit your opinion so you would have done it without him anyway! Fact is, most teams have one outstanding player. It doesn't make that team a one man team, far from it, lloris was as important as bale in getting that win yesterday for example. It's just the way it is. But it's so easy to look at spurs and how bale is playing and pick him out. AVB hasn't been backed b the board in the transfer windows, most if those players most definitely weren't his desires. Hopefully he will in January now he's proven himself. I think he's done brilliantly with this squad, imagine when he can mold it to his liking more. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 26, 2013 I'm on about all competitions. Arsenal Goals Scored in All Competitions (PL, CL, FA Cup, COC Cup): 83 Theo Walcott Goals: 18 Percentage: 22% Tottenham Goals Scored in All Competitions (PL,EL, FA Cup, COC Cup): 66 Gareth Bale Goals: 19 Percentage: 29% Provided I've tallied those up right. You were saying? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 27, 2013 Arsenal Goals Scored in All Competitions (PL, CL, FA Cup, COC Cup): 83Theo Walcott Goals: 18 Percentage: 22% Tottenham Goals Scored in All Competitions (PL,EL, FA Cup, COC Cup): 66 Gareth Bale Goals: 19 Percentage: 29% Provided I've tallied those up right. You were saying? Erm... I meant goals AND assists... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 27, 2013 Erm... I meant goals AND assists... I actually just worked out the same thing for the top ten clubs in the league (can't be arsed to do the rest!). The only other team that has a single player scoring a higher percentage of their goals is... you guessed it! Liverpool. The percentage thing, from what I can tell, goes something like Suarez 35.7% Bale 30.6% Van Persie ~25% Michu and Walcott are close to 20%, which I think is next closest. I did this only for my own interest, because I do think it's quite an interesting statistic (I haven't really seen it mentioned widely before), but thought I'd share my findings. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 28, 2013 Chelsea fans - why do you hate Rafa so much? And him being an ex-Liverpool manager can't be a reason because there's no way that affects his job performance. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 28, 2013 Maybe it's because he looks like he should drive a truck around Bradford, and then he comes out with this weird Spanish accent that doesn't fit his face. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 28, 2013 Which PSG Player is Joey Barton referring to do we reckon Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 28, 2013 Even in France Barton can't get out of the media. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 28, 2013 Which PSG Player is Joey Barton referring to do we reckon Watched that on youtube last night. Ibra had Barton rattled. It was quite amusing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 28, 2013 Anyone know anything about buying tickets for foreign club games? Want to go and watch PSG, see Becks play, but I can't quite decipher their website. I think I maybe have to sign up to the site to buy tickets, but just thought I'd ask here first if anyone had any experience of such. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 28, 2013 Maybe try an external site? Try here? http://www.ticketnet.fr/thematique/genre/SP/billet/Sport Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted February 28, 2013 I don't get the 'It's not our fault' option. When do Liverpool fans say that? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 1, 2013 I don't get the 'It's not our fault' option. When do Liverpool fans say that? I'm guessing it's to do with the predominantly United chant; "Always the victim, it's never your fault". Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 1, 2013 Sorry bit late to the party but how anyone can argue Spurs aren't pretty much a one man tram at the moment is beyond me. Liverpool are a two man team and Chelsea just aren't a team at the moment :p And Charlie i I don't personally dislike Rafa for anything Liverpool related and just don't think he's done a great job with Chelsea. I think AVB and Do Matteo were better and should have stayed! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 1, 2013 According to the BBC sports feed yesterday, Benitez is ninth on the list of 14 managers that Chelsea have had since the beginning of the Premier League in terms of win/loss ratio. I think he was around 52% or something. That would probably be enough to dislike him i suppose, but most of these 'haters' started before he'd even managed one game... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted March 1, 2013 Anybody know what channels are showing Real Madrid vs Barcelona tomorrow? The game has been changed to 3.00pm kick off and I don't see Sky Sports showing it live. Their showing delayed coverage in the evening. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
