Premiership Talk

[Wengerland]

Yeah good stuff from Crespo.

I think you're being harsh on Ranieri though,after all Chelsea are 6 points ahead of United(probably 3 after tomorrow) and i think even if you guys lose at OT then you'll be ahead on goal diffference.If you finish 2nd and maybe get to the champions league final then i think Ranieri should should get that extension to his contract for 2 or 3 years.Considering what he has done this year,unless next season starts very badly for Chelsea,that giving him to Christmas would be unfair.

On the substitions i agree,i would've bought Gudjohnsen on as even though he's said to be lazy he could be dangerous.I reckon we are in the same boat on opinions about our clubs' managers decisions cause i often wonder what Adams is doing(mainly in playing Scowcroft) but the rest of the fans love him,same for Ranieri.

I though i read Zenden wanted to go back to Chelsea a while back though,unless he can get a move back to Spain.

[Wengerland]

Pompey are safe i reckon,have to see how Leeds go without Viduka but Blackburn are looking too poor now anyways so i think Wolves,Leicester and Blackburn after these games.

Tempted to get some hope if we win tomorrow but the home form has been too poor to survive in any division.

[Mr. Monday Morning]

Great result for Pompey

[Mr. Monday Morning]

As a thought, I don't think any of the clubs fixing to come up are going to poise a problem as it stands. West Brom *might* have a chance if they come up due to their experience but I wouldn't count on it. Norwich's main weapon is Darren Huckerby...nuff said. Only team I can imagine having a chance is actually Sunderland, though they'll need beefing up too.

[Wengerland]

Yeah that's what is pretty annoying,we didn't play West Brom or Sunderland last year i don't think any other team has looked better than Wolves and Leicester.I guess considering how many each promoted side bought in in the summer i should give them a chance.West Brom,for me,come across as lucky quite often,i mean they haven't seemed prolific at home and they definetly won't win so many away in the premiership.

I guess we won't have much of a squad left if we go down,most players were bought in until the end of the season with a view to extensions so that we wouldn't have a financial problem if we went down.Morris and Dickov up front could be good.

[Rob]

At the end of the day, Wolves aren't good enough to stay up. But even their biggest haters have to admit they have had practically every decision and piece of luck go against them this season.

Personally, I think Wigan might stand a decent chance of doing something next season if they go up. They have the resouces and the fanbase so you never know.

[Rob Ban Fan]

I dunno about them having the fanbase but they've got the stadium and a decent squad, I think they're a very under rated team.

Today was greatness, Eyal Berkovic had a fight right infront of me the place went mental when Taylor handballed it and the ref was aweful, he was lucky we scored from that freekick and we finally got a penalty, I couldn't believe it

Birmingham brought what looked like the minimum allocation, they didn't sing, you couldn't even hear them when they scored and they started sneaking out with 20 mintues left ! They didn't look anything special to be honest, if they dont keep Forssell or get a replacement I think they're going to be in trouble next season. We'll see eh?

[The Mackem]

I'm pretty sure any team that goes up from the first division will go straight back down. Norwich have excellent loan signings but can they do it two seasons running? West Brom have improved their team but I guess are still not good enough to survive in the Premiership and well we have a squad cut back to his his bones since last season and probably don't have the resources to stay up. Most of the teams in Division 1 are far too inconsistent, they could beat a team in a similar position to them one week and then the next get totally hammered by a bottom side.

[Wengerland]

Yes,2-1 Fulham at half time.

[Dazz]

Originally Posted by WWEngland Yeah good stuff from Crespo. I think you're being harsh on Ranieri though,after all Chelsea are 6 points ahead of United(probably 3 after tomorrow) and i think even if you guys lose at OT then you'll be ahead on goal diffference.If you finish 2nd and maybe get to the champions league final then i think Ranieri should should get that extension to his contract for 2 or 3 years.Considering what he has done this year,unless next season starts very badly for Chelsea,that giving him to Christmas would be unfair. On the substitions i agree,i would've bought Gudjohnsen on as even though he's said to be lazy he could be dangerous.I reckon we are in the same boat on opinions about our clubs' managers decisions cause i often wonder what Adams is doing(mainly in playing Scowcroft) but the rest of the fans love him,same for Ranieri. I though i read Zenden wanted to go back to Chelsea a while back though,unless he can get a move back to Spain.

I never said I wanted Ranieri out though, I am not your average fickle fan, I think he has done a good job this season, but it is clear that we will never win the league unless he gets rid of some shit players, and starts playing our best players more, to really hit form you need to have a good run in the team.

The match at Old Trafford isn't my only worry, Leeds at home will be tough as shit, seriously, look what they did last year against the Arse on the second to last game, 3-2, kept them up, I can see that again, as again, its right near the end of the season. Also, playing Newcastle at their gaff is going to be tough. I really think second spot is Uniteds.

Zenden has said he wants to play Champions League football, but he also wants to play regulary, he is not garunteed that at Chelsea, I would be shocked if he stays, I think he will just stay at Boro and play in the UEFA Cup.

[Mr. Monday Morning]

Blackburn winning 4-3

[Dazz]

Yeah, good game to watch. Well, I only saw the last hour, so I only saw 1 goal.

[Wengerland]

Fulham's defending was worse tonight than Leicester's most of the time.

Thanks for condeming us to relegation.

[Cactus Sid]

Bollocks

[Wengerland]

I dunno how they can be so good defensively away and then poor at home.

I mean they kept Arsenal to 0,won at Man United and tbh we battered them without scoring on saturday.

[Rob Ban Fan]

both sides were shocking Little disapointed Fulham picked this match to have a defensive nightmare though. Oh well

[Wengerland]

Seeing as i reckon that may have blown our chances of survival it seems that Wolves are definetly in der bions.

[Rob Ban Fan]

Personally I think all it takes to stay up is a good goalkeeper and defence. When we played Southampton we were in the relegation places and Southampton were comfortable midtable. Both teams had scored the exact same number of goals for the season, the only difference was the number conceded and talking to Adam and looking back if we hadn't had defencive lapses against Charlton, Man City, Arsenal, Blackburn etc at the beginning of the season when we were on top during games we wouldn't be where we are now.

And looking at the number of goals Leicester have let in in the last few minutes aswell, just shows all you need is a good defence.

[Mr. Monday Morning]

Well just look at what Birmingham were doing for the first 15 or so games of the season with not much more than a solid defence.

[Wengerland]

Yeah,i thought Dabizas would have done better for us.I'd prefer to seen the old defense more of a chance because for a lot of last season it was the best in the country.

We've improved a fair bit,clean sheets against Liverpool,Birmingham and Wolves within the last 8 games or so,the Leeds game was quite a blip and looking back to the Fulham game i felt we were unlucky seeing as the lads thought the offside flag was going up on the first and the second was just a breakaway goal,can't be faulted for that.

If we had 5 points from the Middlesbrough and Wolves away games which we should have won then things would be better.

[Rob]

Birmingham have just made a £6 million offer for Kezman from PSV.

[Cactus Sid]

Originally Posted by Rob Birmingham have just made a £6 million offer for Kezman from PSV.

No fucking way, if Kezman goes to Birmingham I will be unbelievably shocked.

Mexes will sign for Liverpool if we get in the Champions League

[Cactus Sid]

Where did you hear that?

[Wengerland]

That would be good for them,if they can keep Forssell for another year at least then those two up front should be great.

Roy Keane has come out of international 'retirement' or exile if you will,and RvN has been linked with Barcelona.

[Rob]

The Kezman thing came up on my Sky Sports PC update pop up thingy when I was on the boards. The story is now posted on Planet Football.

[Wengerland]

0-0 at half time,last i heard Leeds were losing so its going well.

We have more or less matched them,and had more clear cut chances(less said about Izzet's shot the better though,and Stewarts near half time.)

[toxic rooster]

Leeds 1-1 Everton

Apart from soccernet.com's Gamecast, are there any other decent live commentaries on the net?

[Team Sheep]

live score centre on skysports.com is pretty good.

[toxic rooster]

Does it give commentary or just scores

[Wengerland]

If you go to skysports.com on a saturday then they have the audio of the guys who watch matches and summarise.They go to reports a lot too.

Anyway,1-0 defeat but not as bad as i thought,if show that much passion against sides like Blackburn on saturday and maybe Charlton then we could still have a chance of staying up.Overall i think the lads did well,got into a slight argument with my dad about it too cause he was just constantly criticising the team.

Shame about the one defensive lapse from Dabizas because United,apart from a few Ronaldo efforts didn't look like getting another.Also,3rd time in 3 games that stupid offside decisions have cost us goals and probably points.

[Cactus Sid]

They played well for what they had. Obviously they don't create a whole hell of a lot, but they battle hard, and at set pieces they look really dangerous.

Didn't rate United at all tonight, just like they've played for most of the season, they just seem to lack the cutting-edge that Arsenal have, but to be fair they do grind out results.

Still at a loss about why the United goal stood, 3 players offside? Or is it this new "rule" thing? I dunno.

[Wengerland]

Exactly,Saha was way offside and the ball was played in his direction(fair enough it went past him to Ronaldo) but he's still the one the players have pushed up to catch offside.

This new rule is completely crap,its like they thought ' hmm,these linesmen are making a few bad calls....i know why don't we make it even harder for them.'

Seriously they should just go back to flagging anyone who is offside,not bother whether they are interfering or not seeing as if they aren't interfering then why are they on the pitch,stood in that sort of position?

[toxic rooster]

Different subject - do you think this odd point will eventually help Leeds to survive, or will they drop anyway?

[Dazz]

Originally Posted by Wee Gooner Different subject - do you think this odd point will eventually help Leeds to survive, or will they drop anyway?

I think they will stay up, not because of that point, I cans ee them being at least 3 points clear of the drop zone. Leicester and Wolves are goners, just a question of who goes with them, Pompey have to face Arsenal and United still, I don't like their chances of survival.

[Wengerland]

Nah,i think Leeds are gone without Viduka.I think Portsmouth are less likely to go down than Blackburn becuase Pompey can win a few home games and probably win at Leicester aswell,and get something from Leeds.

[toxic rooster]

Gee, it's gonna be a real shame if the three teams that were just promoted all go down straight away.

But apart from Leeds, most of the teams in the relegation battle (Wolves, Pompey, Leicester, Blackburn, Man City) have all been promoted in the last few years anyway.

Here's the remaining fixtures for the 6 clubs in real relegation trouble (Totts and Everton are mathematical chances, but I don't think they'll sink that far in 6 games)

Wolves
v Boro
@ Birmingham
v Everton
@ Newcastle
v Tottenham

As it stands, Wolves are 9 points from safety. So they'd have to win every game at home, and get at least an away point against Newcastle or Birmingham. That is, provided every other team loses as well. In short, Wolves are doomed - Sorry MMM

Leicester
@ Blackburn
v Man City
@ Charlton
v Pompey
@ Arsenal

I'm not sure that Leicester are as doomed as they appear. 3 of their remaining games are against sides at the wrong end of the table, 2 of which are home games. Not to mention the away game at Ewood Park, where Blackburn haven't managed a win in ages. Charlton with renewed hope of Champions League football may be a bit of a tough one, though. On the last day of the season, they travel to Highbury, where Arsenal has likely already sealed the title. They could field an understrength side for this one, but just remember last year after they lost the title against Leeds, they fielded a side which thumped Southampton 6-1. I wouldn't be writing Leicester off yet, though. The upcoming Leicester games will probably shape this relegation battle.

Leeds
@ Arsenal
v Portsmouth
@ Bolton
v Charlton
@ Chelsea

Leeds have had some shocking losses this season, (4-0 Leicester, 4-0 Everton, 6-1 Pompey, 4-1 Arsenal, 4-1 Birmingham etc.) and have a very poor goal difference of -29. Simply put, they have to beat the other teams on points, because if they're level, Leeds will drop due to goal difference. They have a very important game against Pompey, who have a game in hand on their rivals. They have three very tricky games to come, away to Arsenal and Chelsea, and home to Charlton. Leeds can pull a result out of their arses when it counts though, as they did last season at Highbury. Chelsea may become a different proposition if second spot is sealed for either them or Manyoo. They also have to play Bolton at Reebok, where Bolton has only managed 2 wins since the turn of the year, both 1-0. For a side that was playing a Champions League semi only 3 years ago, this is a very important period for the club. Time for the Smiths and Vidukas to shine. I tip Leeds to survive, if only just.

Portsmouth
v Arsenal (Postponed)
v Manyoo
@ Leeds
v Fulham
@ Leicester
v Boro

Portsmouth probably have the hardest set of fixtures to come, having to host both Manyoo and Arsenal before the end of the season. That being said, they do have a game in hand, and any points taken from these 2 matches is a bonus. They are capable of taking points from top sides too, as they have at Highbury earlier in the season. They also have to travel to Elland Road and the Walkers, two games which will again shape this battle. Both Leeds and Leicester will really aim up in these games, which promise to be very entertaining. They also host Fulham, where the faint hope that Fulham can qualify for Europe will make this a tough game. Lastly, they host Boro who have a poor away record. I'd love to see Portsmouth stay up because of their fans (and this is from a Gooner), and I'd say they're about 50-50.

Blackburn
v Leicester
@ Everton
v Manyoo
@ Tottenham
v Birmingham

Blackburn are less than a game above the drop zone. Their form against other sides from the bottom of the table has been atrocious (1-1 Man City, 2-1 losses to Portsmouth and Leeds). If this form continues, it makes the games against Leicester, Everton and Tottenham very interesting. They also have to play against Manyoo, who will be holding onto hope of 2nd place, and Birmingham who are dreaming of Europe. You can never trust Blackburn, they bounce around the table like a yo-yo. Last season was a good one for them, they even did the double over Arsenal. This is very much like the year when they went from champions to division 1. I will make a bold prediction, Blackburn will go down because you just can't trust them to get a win, can ya?.

Manchester City
v Southampton
@ Leicester
v Newcastle
@ Boro
v Everton

7 wins. This whole season, Manchester City have had 7 wins. The only teams worse than that are Wolves and Leicester (5 wins), and as it stands, they are in deep, deep shit. 13 draws, 13 losses. Basically, Man City win once every 5 games. Which means they probably will only win one of their remaining fixtures, and tie or lose the rest. I know a draw is better than a loss, but just..barely. At least what games they have lost, haven't been by much. If Man City can stay level with their rivals, they will survive, because they have the best goal difference of -1. Their last win was against Manyoo, and that seems a long time ago, doesn't it? I really can't trust Man City to take enough points from these games to survive, though they probably will take some points from Boro and Leicester. My pick is, Man City are 50-50 to go down.

[Wengerland]

Well we also haven't won a home game this year so that need to change,Popmey were able to get something from Charlton so if they go complacent we may have a chance there.I was thinking the same thing about Arsenal myself a few days ago but then i remembered that they're unbeaten all season,if they haven't lost going into the last game i can't see them fielding a poor side,especially after being knocked out of Europe.

I'm afraid we have drawn too many aswell.

[toxic rooster]

Leeds v Arsenal - I'm not sure who to go for

On one hand, I've got 10 bucks riding on Leeds to beat the drop and this is an important game

On the other hand, I'm a Gooner

Dilemma, dilemma

[Wengerland]

No-one's games against the top teams(out of the bottom clubs) will matter really,they'll be expected to lose so anything positive is a bonus.

E.g tonight,i was pleased to see more passion for the cause and,although they were below average,we matched a Man Utd team for a while.

[toxic rooster]

Yeah I was watching that this morning

The commentator goes "And for those of you just tuning in, Manchester United's solitary goal was scored by Gary Neville. Honest, please believe me"

Being 6 in the morning, it was fooking hilarious

But out of the games remaining, Leeds definitely need to take some points from a top club. Even if they beat Bolton and Pompey, I'm not sure it will be enough to ensure they survive.