Football The 2011/2012 Season Thread

[Embattle]

Rangers etc are always shown up one they play outside Scottish league.

 

[Ch3tan]

Massive wake up call for scottish football you'd hope.

 

[eksdee]

What can they realistically do about it though? There is no money in Scottish football due to the TV deals being crap, the reason for that being the football is crap so no one wants to watch it. And let's be honest, without money Scottish clubs can only go so far. A vicious circle really.

Of course you'd also like to see Scottish clubs put more of an emphasis on young Scottish talent to help raise the profile of the game there, but let's be honest - as much as everyone would love to see their club only use homegrown players, you need a mix of that with established stars and players with experience to help those young players grow and learn. Which again boils down to money.

 

[Ch3tan]

They need to take a long hard look at Italy mate. They've been through their risk of failure and come out the other side now, Celtic, Rangers and Hearts for a start need to become financially stable and stop trying to hold on to past glories.

They'll have to get worse before they can get better basically. Youth players who cost less, no reliance on TV money, no foreign players. It can be done, but it would take time and concerted effort.

They have the same problem the spanish league does, and the italian leagues did, albeit on a smaller scale.

 

[eksdee]

Italian teams are still spending a hell of a lot more money on players than Scottish football can, though. I do see your point, but there are many more advantages that Italian football has already in that they get far better TV money, they have clubs with finances far beyond Scottish teams and, most importantly, when it comes to scouting young talent from abroad, the Serie A still has far more pull for a young player than the SPL. This allows teams with good scouting - Udinese being a prime example - to bring in players like Alexis Sanchez, have some success with them in the side and then sell them on for a good profit.

Of course there are things that could/should be done to improve Scottish football, and they can certainly look at Italian football as an example of how to recover in some ways, but I think Scottish football is a lot further behind the curve than Italian football ever has been.

 

[soze]

BBC Sport - Bolton reject Arsenal bid for Gary Cahill

There is talk £15m was turned down and that they want much closer to £20m for him.

I would rather we get the Jag from Everton, but if the story that he rejected a move away because he family is settled up north is true then it's a non starter however you have to respect him for that.

 

[Calaen]

Sky are reporting a bid of 7 million which is a proper piss take

 

[soze]

Sky are reporting a bid of 7 million which is a proper piss take

LOL its the same we took for Clichy who is the same age and more experienced!!!! But with a English Passport Wenger must have been dreaming if he though that would work for Cahill

 

[Turamber]

Cahill would flounder like a beached whale against Champions League level forwards. He'd add much needed strength and aerial ability for the Premier League but you have to consider how much that is worth to you.

 

[JingleBells]

PSV's second goal from last night was pretty good:
67' Doelpunt Jeremain Lens, PSV - SV Ried - YouTube

And the goal that got Shamrock Rovers back in the tie was fantastic:
Partizan vrs Shamrock Rovers. Pat Sullivan Goal - YouTube

 

[Calaen]

LOL its the same we took for Clichy who is the same age and more experienced!!!! But with a English Passport Wenger must have been dreaming if he though that would work for Cahill

That's not the point is it, Cahill is far more important for Arsenal than Clichy was. I get he's in the last year of his contract, but It's not like Arsenal would be the only club intersted in him if he's free next year. I reckon 9 million will get em to agree!!!!

 

[JingleBells]

Europa League draw:
Group A: Spurs, Rubin, PAOK, Shamrock Rovers
Group B: Copenhagen, Standard Liege, Hannover, Vorskla
Group C: PSV, Hapoel Tel Aviv, Rapid Bucharest, Legia Warsaw
Group D: Sporting Lisbon, Lazio, Zurich, Vaslui
Group E: Dynamo Kyiv, Besiktas, Stoke, Maccabi tel Aviv,
Group F: PSG, Athletic Madrid, Salzburg, Slovan Bratislava
Group G: AZ Alkmaar, Matalist, Austria Wien, Malmo
Group H: Braga, Club Brugge, Birmingham, Maribor
Group I: Atletico Bilbao, Udinese, Rennes, Sion (or possibly Celtic?)
Group J: Schalke, Steaua, Maccabi Haifa, AEK Larnaca
Group K: Twente, Fulham, Odense, Wisla Krakow
Group L: Anderlecht, AEK, Lokomotiv Moscow, Sturm Graz

We've got a tough group, at least with Shamrock we have a significantly shorter journey than the other two games.

Celtic may be still in it as Sion may have fielded ineligible players against them

 

[DaGaffer]

Cahill would flounder like a beached whale against Champions League level forwards. He'd add much needed strength and aerial ability for the Premier League but you have to consider how much that is worth to you.

Depends whether you thing Arsenal could take him up a level; its not all about natural talent you know, there are lots of examples of good players turned into great ones by going to the right club. Not that Arsenal are going to get him with silly offers like that.

 

[soze]

That's not the point is it, Cahill is far more important for Arsenal than Clichy was. I get he's in the last year of his contract, but It's not like Arsenal would be the only club intersted in him if he's free next year. I reckon 9 million will get em to agree!!!!

That part was meant to be a joke i never though we would get him for £7m, there is the £10m rule you tend to need to add that to get a player with a British Passport. If we sign him i don't see it happening for under £15m unless its a last minute deadline day type deal.

I am sick of people talking about insulting offers though. We did not leak a price to the press, it's called negotiating we try low they go high and we meet in the middle. We copped shit over the offer for Jag too when it was only the first offer.

 

[Corran]

I am sick of people talking about insulting offers though. We did not leak a price to the press, it's called negotiating we try low they go high and we meet in the middle. We copped shit over the offer for Jag too when it was only the first offer.

There are opening offers, and then there are joke opening offers. This probably fits in with that.. and sometimes it can be detrimental to the attempt to get the player as shown with Modric.

I think if Chelsea gave a more realistic opening offer then Spurs would not have been so pissy with them... instead they made a shitty offer and let the media know they wanted him to try force the issue. That put a bee in the bonnet and of course ends up with them refusing to deal with them.

Probably about £12m would be close to the necessary fee, so I would have opened at closer to the £10m mark .. afteral he is important to the club so they wont let him go on the cheap

 

[Raven]

Add to that, Wenger has said the 60 mil they have made recently is available to spend on players. Clubs will be sniffing around that.

 

[Everz]

A fix to Scottish football? A bigger league, the lack of care is because who wants to face the same teams 4 times a year? It gets boring and repetitive and thats a truth.

My suggestion is a 18 team premiership, 18 team 2nd division. 36 team 3rd division split north and south, then merge it further into the Junior and Highland leagues. 3 up 3 down each year.

That way it improves competition and saves facing the same teams each year.

 

[eksdee]

There's only Juan Manuel Mata, Juuuuuuuuuuuuan Manuel Maaaaaaata

 

[DaGaffer]

Problem with Scottish football is that its actually always punched massively above its weight for the size of the population, and expectations are subsequently out of whack with reality. The only other country of similar size to Scotland with any kind of footballing reputation would be Croatia, and that's kind of where Celtic & Rangers should set their expectations; about the same as Hadjuk Split and Dinamo Zagreb, and the SFA should follow their league structure; two 16 team leagues and that's your lot.

 

[Everz]

I'd say Scotland are below that of Croatia still, they still get a big fanbase through most of the former Yugoslav nations. Similar to Partizan (how low have they fallen?) and Red Star. That and in terms of players and development Dinamo and Hadjuk are miles ahead of Celtic and Rangers. Only got to see Croatias stream of talent to notice this against Scotlands lack.

Scotland to me are at the level of Belarus, odd good run here and their but never much. Currently this is.

 

[Everz]

Anyways as it stands it looks like Celtic will go through as Sion fielded illegal players.

 

[soze]

BBC Sport - Arsene Wenger defends Arsenal bid for Gary Cahill

I did not think we had offered that low and it was no where near what i had heard. In my opinion this is a cleaver ploy by Bolton to put him off a move to us. They are making it look like we don't value him at all.

 

[Everz]

BBC - Steve Wilson: McCarthy working his magic at Wolves

Good blog .

 

[caLLous]

Barton to QPR, I'm sure his agent said something about how he had been flooded with offers from all over the Prem...

 

[Keitanz]

Yeah, weird one that.. awesome signing for QPR though.

 

[Shagrat]

man, our squad gets smaller by the minute. Losing Enrique was painful

 

[Corran]

QPR got a great signing there. Hate the guy, would never want him at Utd, would never want him in the england team... but it is a HUGE signing for a team like QPR. Can only do them good and will certainly get them attention.

 

[Turamber]

Luke Young off to QPR now it seems. Was a good servant for Villa but will he be replaced? Have to wonder with the owners track record this season.

 

[megadave]

Barcelona V Porto on ITV4 atm for Super Cup. So far Porto have given them a game

 

[Sydrik]

So in 2 weeks Fabregas has now won more trophies than he did in the last 6 years at Arsenal.

Spanish super cup and The European super cup count I think....