Topic: Premier League fixtures 13th-17th February

[4pool]

Booooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

[Wabaloolah]

No red card for Rodriguez? Not even looked at it seems

[TALBERT]

Wonder will Tyler and Neville continue spinning a title race involving UTD this weekend?

100% Yernited are still in it...

I mean lost at home to Sheffield United

and drew against Everton and West Brom

[Dim Glas]

Just makes you appreciate what we did last year even more so and the year before.

exactly.

I thought we’d never manage it as long as scum like Abu Dhabi was funding a team.

But then Jürgen Klopp turned up.

Whatever happens form now on, that doesn’t change, we managed to win despite it. And it really did mean so much more, as nothing Abu Dhabi FC wins means a thing, just means they get to sports wash their regime with a bit more gloss.

[AndyMuller]

Was Rodriguez playing from the start or did he come on? He is fucking shite.

[OkieRedman]

Was Rodriguez playing from the start or did he come on? He is fucking shite.

He came on.

[Tesco tearaway]

Jordan 'Rubber Wrists' Pickford.

[stockdam]

Nothing to fear from Everton after that display.

[Dave McCoy]

I am still amazed at how Pep has basically changed the way they play so completely.  I honestly can't think of another example in recent memory.  I think there is an interview where he says that due to Covid the players can't run the same and then adjusted accordingly to where they just hold the ball and defend in numbers and the other teams can do fuck all.  I still expect him to fuck it up in the CL in some bonkers way as he always does but this might be his best managerial job of his career while acknowledging the ridiculous advantages he has already.

[rushyman]

Nothing to fear from Everton after that display.

Apart from season ender tackles

[macmanamanaman]

Apart from season ender tackles

ouch

[Tesco tearaway]

ouch

'That's what he said.'

[deFacto please, you bastards]

I am still amazed at how Pep has basically changed the way they play so completely.  I honestly can't think of another example in recent memory.  I think there is an interview where he says that due to Covid the players can't run the same and then adjusted accordingly to where they just hold the ball and defend in numbers and the other teams can do fuck all.  I still expect him to fuck it up in the CL in some bonkers way as he always does but this might be his best managerial job of his career while acknowledging the ridiculous advantages he has already.

It helps when you have a blank checkbook and you can buy defenders over and over again for record fees up until you eventually find the right player.

He's also had enough time over the last 8 years to learn the weakness of his system by now.

[CS111]

Has pep actually had to manage a team or has every club he has ‘ managed ‘ basically had either a blank cheque book or already inherited the best team , by a mile, in their respective league.
Let him manage say a Newcastle, West Brom etc  type side for a few years and see where they end up

[rushyman]

Wonder will Tyler and Neville continue spinning a title race involving UTD this weekend?

Top 4 race is insane enough to keep them going till the end of the season now I’d say

Chelsea sacking lampard the bastards

[Dim Glas]

Has pep actually had to manage a team or has every club he has ‘ managed ‘ basically had either a blank cheque book or already inherited the best team , by a mile, in their respective league.
Let him manage say a Newcastle, West Brom etc  type side for a few years and see where they end up

I can’t stand Guardiola and have zero respect for him, but that theory/argument/query never holds for me - cos why should he basically. He’s been in a position to do these jobs, so have at it!

He’s admitted the way he coaches means he has to have top quality players, so it is what it is. He’s a perfectionist and a control freak, and what he does means he needs to have damn good players to follow his methods.

[Dave McCoy]

It helps when you have a blank checkbook and you can buy defenders over and over again for record fees up until you eventually find the right player.

He's also had enough time over the last 8 years to learn the weakness of his system by now.

Without going on a long diatribe he's not playing the same system.  I think the point still stands where I've never seen a change like that and it come off to make you champion.  Maybe Conte in moving to a back 3 for Chelsea?  But they played the same way it was just adding another defender made them more stable.  Otherwise I'm out of ideas.

[deFacto please, you bastards]

Without going on a long diatribe he's not playing the same system.  I think the point still stands where I've never seen a change like that and it come off to make you champion.  Maybe Conte in moving to a back 3 for Chelsea?  But they played the same way it was just adding another defender made them more stable.  Otherwise I'm out of ideas.

I know he's not playing the same system. He's tweaked it finally after the last 10 years of being susceptible to the same thing.  They're not going to be champions just because of his change, let's not ignore the fact that we've been ravaged by injuries all season long. It would be a lot different if we were at full strength and were going to to toe with them.

Conte is a good shout, it's not about just adding another defender, they didn't play with wingbacks with Mourinho so it's not that they played the same way. Alonso and Moses [Alonso particularly] were instrumental in their run and what they provided in his system. The system Conte uses and has used at all of his clubs in recent years is vastly different to what Chelsea did under Mourinho.

[Dave McCoy]

I know he's not playing the same system. He's tweaked it finally after the last 10 years of being susceptible to the same thing.  They're not going to be champions just because of his change, let's not ignore the fact that we've been ravaged by injuries all season long. It would be a lot different if we were at full strength and were going to to toe with them.

Conte is a good shout, it's not about just adding another defender, they didn't play with wingbacks with Mourinho so it's not that they played the same way. Alonso and Moses [Alonso particularly] were instrumental in their run and what they provided in his system. The system Conte uses and has used at all of his clubs in recent years is vastly different to what Chelsea did under Mourinho.

But with Conte that was the way he setup his teams before and since.  It was only those first 4-5 games he deviated to try to give some semblance of continuity.  If you watched Inter last week it would look the same as when he was at Chelsea.  The way ManC plays now there isn't any reference to any previous Pep team in my mind.

[Chris~]

But with Conte that was the way he setup his teams before and since.  It was only those first 4-5 games he deviated to try to give some semblance of continuity.  If you watched Inter last week it would look the same as when he was at Chelsea.  The way ManC plays now there isn't any reference to any previous Pep team in my mind.

Rodgers went from.stale possession side at Swansea and trying that with us, to insane pressing/counter attacking in 13/14 and then has gone to a more counter attacking side at Leicester. We look very different as a team from 19/20 to what we did in 16/17-17/18

His side's have previously gone for this stale poessesion at times, pretty sure he did at Bayern and City at times in 18/19 during the title run in. Cancelo tucking in to midfield is a more extreme version of Delph and Alaba/lahm with the wings staying high and wide the same.

Defending with the ball is something he's done since Barca.