Football/Futbol/Soccer thread

[Romo]

Looking forward to being absolutely blathered, crammed in a pub at 2am with my fellow countrymen awaiting kick-off. COME ON BOYZZZZ!!!

Are the pubs allowed to be open at that time?

(As you can see, my pub knowledge is extensive lol)

Most games after that are at 8pm and 5pm kick offs which is good. England need to avoid the negatives and focus on the positives. The reaction is already like - fuck it', we're not making it out lol.

Most pubs will open for them but I think they limit the amount of alcohol that can be served...

[SlightlyJames]

Oh deary me United.

[PorkChop]

Oh deary me United.

Their season is over. They should be aiming for a 7th or 8th place finish now.

[Viazon]

God, I hope United don't finish top four this season. What a fall from grace that would be.

[prophet]

Pretty amazed that United didn't win today - delighted of course but I didn't see them losing two in a row, especially at home. Moyes looks out of his depth at the minute, Cleverley and Jones are both good players with bags of potential but they're not good enough central mid-fielders for a team wanting to challenge for the title. Moyes should try calling Scholes and asking him to come back again United will be relieved if they manage 4th this season.

Liverpool winning 2-0, Chelsea losing 1-2 and City being held at the minute, all looking good for Arsenal isn't it?

(In other news, England vs Italy has been pushed forward to an 11pm kick-off)

[Viazon]

Yes! Yes! Fucking Stoke! Yes!

[Daz]

Great win for Norwich today. Didn't deserve to win by a long shot. We spent most of the second half trying to gift West Brom a goal, but thank fuck for John Ruddy. Made a world class save from a header and was able to settle the defence long enough to hold on. Great goal by Hooper and a better pass by Fer. We need to do that with more consistency. Another goal for Fer too to settle things. Needed a win after Liverpool and hopefully that'll give us the confidence to go and get points from Swansea and Sunderland on the bounce, and we could be sitting top half of the table before the year is over. Wouldn't hurt if we could get a few goals in those matches either. Got quite the goal difference to chip away at.

[AkydefGoldberg]

United should thank Stoke for beating Chelsea, Southampton for holding City to a draw - a very, VERY minor consolation after another miserable day.

What I'd say is that there seems to be a disconnect between Moyes' training methods and the team. Without knowing definitively; it does seem that Moyes' training methods which seem to be focused on intensity etc aren't really correlating with the age group of the players have.

Under SAF/Rene/Phelan - the players were used to SAF observing and the sessions done by the two coaches and there probably was a more technical side to training where I assume with Moyes it's more work-rate based. Rio's comments aren't overtly critical but implicit that Moyes hasn't really adjusted to managing United in terms of dealing with the senior players. Vidic has played three games on the bounce which he's done admirably well but again, his body is not used to that anymore. Rio should have come in today and I assume he'll play against Shakhtar.

Moyes is working with the same squad plus Fellaini and he's not getting results. SAF's desire, experience and aura got the players to work for him e.g. in the last 20 minutes when you're 1-0 down at home. Would these players have played so weakly in that situation if SAF was in the dug-out? I very much doubt it because they know they would get the hairdryer. I don't think necessarily they fear Moyes.

SAF's error was not sorting the midfield out - he left that, inexplicably, for Moyes and David's struggled to get the right players in alongside Woodward's mistakes. January will be impossible to buy so it'll be another case of papering over the cracks with Baines, and possibly Sneijder as one that I've seen on the transfer grapevine.

I still believe in Moyes but I think he really needs to adjust to the player he's working with and realise that when you're at the top level, you have to evolve as a coach and what works at Everton (the last minute team announcements, high-intensity training) doesn't at United and partially I've always said I've felt uncomfortable with his coaching set up, specifically Phil Neville/Lumsden.

On the game - Januzaj was our bright spark in the first half but faded. RVP was good to see on the line up but not match fit, Evra poor again (can understand why Moyes wants Baines), same old about the midfield. Januzaj/Vidic/DDG best performers. Rafael subbed - IDK why.

Only hope is that the players start to perform but again, I really think the training/preparation for games is something they've not adjusted to and/or Moyes is making errors. Only reason I can think of why we are struggling, with the same squad, we had last year.

Can't blame for the rest to take joy out of results, enjoy it while you can (I say that last sentence with a very minor note of optimism)

Big chance for someone to usurp my position at the top of the PL RT - shocking picks today.

[PorkChop]

I just don't think Moyes is the man. I don't think the players want to play for him. Plus, Chris Smalling is a very average defender, same goes for Evans, and Cleverley isn't as good as many people pretend he is.

United need reinforcements desperately, or they'll be finishing 7th or 8th. An amazing fall from grace.

[Viazon]

I'm just curious to see if any players are actually gonna wanna play for United at a time when they are struggling. I'm pretty sure that if this was two years ago, RVP wouldn't have left us for them.

[PorkChop]

I'm just curious to see if any players are actually gonna wanna play for United at a time when they are struggling. I'm pretty sure that if this was two years ago, RVP wouldn't have left us for them.

Probably not. I bet he's regretting that right now

[Viazon]

I'm just curious to see if any players are actually gonna wanna play for United at a time when they are struggling. I'm pretty sure that if this was two years ago, RVP wouldn't have left us for them.

Probably not. I bet he's regretting that right now

Oh, if we won the title this year and United don't even make it into the Champions League, that would just be the sweetest.

[prophet]

Arsenal should break the bank on Rooney in January. He'd leave United in a heart-beat if the right opportunity arose...

[Viazon]

Arsenal should break the bank on Rooney in January. He'd leave United in a heart-beat if the right opportunity arose...

I hate Rooney and I have a soft spot for Giroud, so want him to keep on getting better and better as Arsenals main front man. But I have to admit, Rooney in a team with all of those midfielders we have playing for us. He would score a lot.

[prophet]

Rooney is the most under-rated player in the league. People tend to think it's the exact opposite but the majority don't realise just what he brings to a team. He's the most hard-working forward in football today, running himself into the ground not only from an attacking standpoint but a defensive one also. He's got a bit of fire about him and he's capable of magical moments. If he turns up next summer in Brazil England win the group I rate him that highly. Easily worth 50 mill in today's game.

[AkydefGoldberg]

I just don't think Moyes is the man. I don't think the players want to play for him. Plus, Chris Smalling is a very average defender, same goes for Evans, and Cleverley isn't as good as many people pretend he is.

United need reinforcements desperately, or they'll be finishing 7th or 8th. An amazing fall from grace.

Moyes doesn't have a trophy pedigree so doubts will surface from the players as to his suitability. Fergie had won trophies in Scotland before joining us in 1986 and Moyes' methods aren't really getting into the squad.

Smalling is a defender with potential and like Jones, has been shunted everywhere barring the midfield and striking positions so their versatility has cost them in nailing a fixed position. Evans is reliable but not outstanding. Cleverley was excellent at the start of the 10/11 season but got injured and he's not great in the midfield role as it is now - he's drowning in the focus of United. We're going to have a tough battle but if Moyes can bring in a few new faces which will be extremely tough to find ready-made players then fourth is achieveable.

I'm just curious to see if any players are actually gonna wanna play for United at a time when they are struggling. I'm pretty sure that if this was two years ago, RVP wouldn't have left us for them.

If we don't make fourth this season then it'll be incredibly hard and the only way we'd beat other clubs to highly wanted players is money and we've got a fairly rigid wage structure. RVP is the highest paid I believe. I feel for RVP in a way because he joined us with the impression that SAF would stay, same with Kagawa, and he's now gone so can understand why he might feel unsettled but I hope the club as a whole is enough for him to perservere.

On Rooney - he's been fantastic. People say we missed him today and to a point we did but he played on Wednesday and we still lost. He overcame the unsettling summer period and has shone so far - really has produced for Moyes. On his future, contract talks begin in January time and he'll want a wage increase no doubt but whether he'll get one I'm not sure. Maybe a small minimal increase but I fear he'll use the SAF issues to try and push for a move out again. And if he does that then sell him abroad - no chance to Chelsea/Arsenal.

[SlightlyJames]

Arsenal vs Everton should be an interesting one today, an Everton win isn't out of the realm of possibility with the form they're in and it'd put them 4th and 4 points off the top.

[Romo]

An Arsenal win would all but put an end to any chance of United winning the league they'd be 15 points behind Arsenal if they win, I can't see Arsenal dropping 15 points at the minute, let alone United not dropping any.

[SlightlyJames]

An Arsenal win would all but put an end to any chance of United winning the league they'd be 15 points behind Arsenal if they win, I can't see Arsenal dropping 15 points at the minute, let alone United not dropping any.

I'd say United are already too far gone. Their team just isn't working right now, they don't have the ability to turn the current deficit around.

[Viazon]

Come on Arsenal. We've got the chance to be 7 points clear today. Then, if we beat Man City next week, we would be 8 points clear of them. Then if we beat Chelsea after that, we could ten points clear of them. Then people really would have to start taking us seriously.