Premier League 2022/23

[Matt]

9 minutes ago, stokeriño said:

To this day I don't understand why Vialli was sacked five games into the 00-01 season. We'd just had our first Champions League season - making the quarterfinals! - and won the FA Cup. Then after 1 win, 1 loss, and 3 draws he's gone? Baffling. I fully believe he would have done no worse than Ranieri did in the following couple of seasons had he stayed.

I might be completely making this up since I was like 10 at the time but didn't he have a massive bust up with Zola? 

[stokeriño]

5 minutes ago, Matt said:

I might be completely making this up since I was like 10 at the time but didn't he have a massive bust up with Zola? 

A Guardian article I found from the time suggests you may be right.

Although entertainingly I also found this in a Vialli interview (sadly with The S*n, so copying rather than linking):

 

However five games into the following season, he was given his marching orders and speaking in his native country, Vialli thought he was in line for a new contract.

He said: "It was shocking. I was at the training ground at the beginning of the season. My contract was expiring and we were fourth or fifth in the table.

"They told me to go and meet Colin Hutchinson, the President and Managing Director.

"I thought they wanted to extend my contract but we weren't first in the table and I didn't have negotiating power.

"So I drove from the training ground to visit the board and when I arrived they asked to sit down. I was thinking of how much money to ask for, one or two million pounds.

"Instead, Colin Hutchinson said: 'You once told me that after three years you either have to change the manager or all the players. We decided to change the manager'."

"I replied, 'Colin I've told you many things in life and you chose to listen to this!'"

[Colly]

Wrong uns.

[Lineker]

 

[Lineker]

 

[Lineker]

 

[Chris2K]

International I could understand, but all football at the age of 33 is a bit of a surprise. I guess his heart just isn't in it any more.

I bet LAFC are really pleased they splashed out his wages and signing on fee for 12 games.

[Szumi]

Fuck Bale. I will forever hate him for his goal in the MLS Cup Finals 💔

[Gorka]

The World Cup play-offs showed he still had moments of magic in him but I suppose it is time - a little surprised as I thought he could have hung on for another 18 months as a bit-part of the Euro qualifiers. 

Greatest Welsh player in history and surely up there as the greatest British player of all time.

Gonna watch the Champions League bicycle kick on repeat later.

[DavidMarrio]

5 minutes ago, Gorka said:

The World Cup play-offs showed he still had moments of magic in him but I suppose it is time - a little surprised as I thought he could have hung on for another 18 months as a bit-part of the Euro qualifiers. 

Greatest Welsh player in history and surely up there as the greatest British player of all time.

Gonna watch the Champions League bicycle kick on repeat later.

As much as it was painful it happening against your team, it was one of them where you just had to admire what he pulled off. 

It's one of them, I think he just knew he wanted to walk away. He had some crap times at Madrid like and why not go out on your own terms 

[Bobfoc]

For me, his most memorable performance was when he scored that hat-trick against Inter at the San Siro. He was a one-man army that night.

[GoGo Yubari]

55 minutes ago, Chris2K said:

International I could understand, but all football at the age of 33 is a bit of a surprise. I guess his heart just isn't in it any more.

I bet LAFC are really pleased they splashed out his wages and signing on fee for 12 games.

He had a big hand in them winning MLS Cup and would have probably sucked if he stayed on for another year so honestly they probably are good with it.

Love Bale now that he's not playing for them anymore, hope he has a very happy retirement.

 

[Adam]

Bale is and was a wonderful player. Hell of a career, his star turn in the UCL Final against Liverpool has to be the highlight for me.

[gunnar hendershow]

Bale had a very great career, one of those you can describe as a "big game" player. Happy for him that he got to lead Wales in the World Cup before calling it quits. Now he's off to play golf to his heart's content and not deal with the nastiness of club politics.

[Pogue Mahone]

WALES. GOLF. MADRID.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[stokeriño]

I was mostly joking when I talked about this before, but Jesus H. Christ.

[The Lusophone]

On 09/01/2023 at 15:22, Chris2K said:

I bet LAFC are really pleased they splashed out his wages and signing on fee for 12 games.

To be fair, he was on max like £25k a week as he wasn't a designated player.

[Szumi]

2 hours ago, FestiveJack said:

To be fair, he was on max like £25k a week as he wasn't a designated player.

His deal was set up though that he'd become a DP this season, either to start, or at the 1 year mark of his contract. So LAFC are definitely happy that he's gone. He helped them win MLS Cup, but he was awful every other appearance really. He doesn't gel with how they play, and he's not as good of a RW as Carlos Vela, or a ST as Chicho Arango. 

LAFC would have been wasting a precious DP spot on a player who would probably be their 3rd most effective attacking substitution. They're definitely loving that they don't have to pay him this year.

[stokeriño]

Joao Felix starts for Chelsea tonight in what looks like a 3-4-3.

I presume the formation is because Azpi at RWB is theoretically less of a defensive liability than at RB, although fucking hell you look at the defender-heavy line-up and wonder who on earth is capable of scoring goals in this team.

[Colly]

I'm enjoying the commentators semi raving over Felix because "he can be free in this team". He's been busyish but just feels like heaping expectation on him.