English Premier League EPL Thread

[thecorsair]

It's going to be weird when Ferguson retires. He's been managing Man U for as long as I can remember I can't imagine anyone else doing it.
Personally, I think theres only one man for the job & that's Mourinho. I have sneaky feeling he'll eventually be heading to City though

I just about remember the days of Big Ron.

Mourinho won't replace Fergie because,

A) He never stays anywhere for a long time. The club want stability, not someone who'll last 2-3 years at the most.

B) There's not enough money for him to spend.

I think David Moyes will be the next United manager.

It's been an intresting day,

Ronaldo returned to Manchester and helped put City out of the Champions League

City's penalty was a blatant dive....does this mean they're now bribing officials as well as United?

There were 5 minutes of "Mancini time" added on at the end but they forgot to get the winner

After the preposterous sacking of Roberto Di Matteo Chelski outdid themselves by announcing the fat spanish waiter as his temporary replacement

 

[greygoose]

The day Fergie retires from Utd will be the end of Utd's time at the top.

 

[a-dev]

What will Abramavich do when he gets Guardiola (sp?) and Chelsea still don't instantly win the Champions League?

 

[meth head]

The day Fergie retires from Utd will be the end of Utd's time at the top.

I partially agree with that. I think like suggested above, Moyes is destined for it. If he gets it I think Man Utd will stand a real chance of being every bit as successful under Moyes.

 

[thecorsair]

The decline will be a gradual thing, it's already started but the way some ABU's go on it's like they expect Old Trafford to instantly explode and all the players to go up with it as soon as Fergie ceases to be the manager.

Then again these are the same kind of fools that believe in the conspiracy theories about Fergie & referees or Fergie owning the FA so I suppose it's no suprise to continually read such nonsense.

 

[axecutioner18]

What will Abramavich do when he gets Guardiola (sp?) and Chelsea still don't instantly win the Champions League?

I hope Guardiola NEVER joins Chelsea... Ive seen Guardiola from Barca captain to coach and he is pure Barca, every inch of him. Plus he believes in something more than just coaching which is a certain philosophy. He was successful in Barca as by the time he was coach he knew exactly how to mould all the youth players and knew whose strength was what. One of the reasons he had no problem selling off Deco, Ronaldinho and others was because of his confidence. Iniesta and Xavi wouldnt have flourished without him and neither would Messi be who he is if he was stuck playing on the right wing...

Guardiola will go to a club where he can be assured of a LOOOONG term contract and a patient group of fans and players and administrators... because you cant change the philosophy of a team overnight tactically. And Chelsea's administration lacks that quality of patience. Guardiola's Barca was a result of Rijkaard's Barca... the seeds were sown 4 years before Guardiola became head coach.

 

[dino76m]

I hope Guardiola NEVER joins Chelsea... Ive seen Guardiola from Barca captain to coach and he is pure Barca, every inch of him. Plus he believes in something more than just coaching which is a certain philosophy. He was successful in Barca as by the time he was coach he knew exactly how to mould all the youth players and knew whose strength was what. One of the reasons he had no problem selling off Deco, Ronaldinho and others was because of his confidence. Iniesta and Xavi wouldnt have flourished without him and neither would Messi be who he is if he was stuck playing on the right wing...

Guardiola will go to a club where he can be assured of a LOOOONG term contract and a patient group of fans and players and administrators... because you cant change the philosophy of a team overnight tactically. And Chelsea's administration lacks that quality of patience. Guardiola's Barca was a result of Rijkaard's Barca... the seeds were sown 4 years before Guardiola became head coach.

pep wont be able to achive instant results,ur right,unless roman is willing to give him but i rate rafa over him anyday, most of the core group of liverpool is still Rafa, our last 2 years ruined us , none of the new signing bar suares make any sense, its his players plus the players he signed like suso,sterling, shelver, kelly, and the like who form the core of our team now..

 

[axecutioner18]

pep wont be able to achive instant results,ur right,unless roman is willing to give him but i rate rafa over him anyday, most of the core group of liverpool is still Rafa, our last 2 years ruined us , none of the new signing bar suares make any sense, its his players plus the players he signed like suso,sterling, shelver, kelly, and the like who form the core of our team now..

Rafa's best time was ironically with Valencia, not Liverpool. With Liverpool the only trophy that was major was the CL which was pretty much a Chelsea'sque win. Maybe he has plied his trade with more clubs but rating him over Pep makes no sense.

Sure Pep has only coached one club... but the changes he brought to the game is the reason he is so sought after. Besides winning the phenomenal amount of Sliverware, he made the whole world go abuzz with what you refer to 'the Barca Style'... which ironically is being tried to be incorporated in many major clubs including Liverpool
So I really wouldnt take Pep's influence and quality as lightly if I were you... and if you followed Pep he also said that the next team he coaches will not be another Barcelona... the Barcelona Style worked because it was the Barca Style... with whichever club he coaches next he will work in incorporating and cementing their own style and philosophy which will take time...

 

[thecorsair]

It probably won't happen but I'd love to see Pep at Old Trafford.

The chances of winning the Champions League again whilst Fergie is in charge are non existent but with Guardiola in charge they'd become real contenders again.

 

[dino76m]

Rafa's best time was ironically with Valencia, not Liverpool. With Liverpool the only trophy that was major was the CL which was pretty much a Chelsea'sque win. Maybe he has plied his trade with more clubs but rating him over Pep makes no sense.

Sure Pep has only coached one club... but the changes he brought to the game is the reason he is so sought after. Besides winning the phenomenal amount of Sliverware, he made the whole world go abuzz with what you refer to 'the Barca Style'... which ironically is being tried to be incorporated in many major clubs including Liverpool
So I really wouldnt take Pep's influence and quality as lightly if I were you... and if you followed Pep he also said that the next team he coaches will not be another Barcelona... the Barcelona Style worked because it was the Barca Style... with whichever club he coaches next he will work in incorporating and cementing their own style and philosophy which will take time...

Rafa has done enough to justify his 2 years at Valenica winning 3 major trophies and his first 3 years at liverpool before the 2 american dicks came over.
in his first season , he lost the carling cup final narrowly to chelsea to a own goal in the dying minutes of the final, won UCL, super cup and lost in the world cup club final in one of the most one side finals but yet lost, the no of chances wasted in that game cant be counted on 2 hands
next season we beat chelsea in the community shield ,won the fa cup as well all this without a decent striker.
then guess who came over yet we reached the UCL final again after that the problems started yet we finished second in the following year,
rate pep over Rafa at ur own risk,give pep the team rafa had in his 3 years at liverpool and or 2 years at valencia and see what he does,
Rafa is a master at overachieving with what little he has maximising the use of whatever he has,
pep was blessed to have the likes of messi, inesta, and xavi,plus whatever funds he needed to buy players he liked,but it will be hard to repeat what he did there unless he is give a lot of time
before pep it was Rijkaard on evryones lips ,winning every trophy in sight and making him dream manager for everyone, where is he now?

 

[axecutioner18]

before pep it was Rijkaard on evryones lips ,winning every trophy in sight and making him dream manager for everyone, where is he now?

See thats exactly how you prove that you mainy watch the EPL. Rijkaard was never on anyones lips. Before Pep came in Iniesta used to be more of a sub than a starter. Xavi used to operate in Busquets position. Rijkaard's Barca were fun to watch because of the flair of Ronaldinho, Deco and Messi but it was the most inconsistent Barca team Ive ever seen in my whole 13 years of following them... some matches they looked unbeatable and god like.. the next match mediocrity was too good for them.
Rijkaard was never on anyones lips per se... it was Messi who was on everyones lips. Rijkaard's reign rejuvenated Barca and just when it went downhill again for 2 seasons Guardiola was pulled in and then the rest as you know was history
Guardiola is the one to credit making Barca the team of talent and potential to a team of winners.

 

[greygoose]

It probably won't happen but I'd love to see Pep at Old Trafford.

The chances of winning the Champions League again whilst Fergie is in charge are non existent but with Guardiola in charge they'd become real contenders again.

Pep is overrated. Barca's players are a class above most of the players in the world. I agree that Pep and Mourinho are great managers and have had a huge impact on the game but how would they both fair in charge of a Stoke City with a limited budget...

 

[dino76m]

Pep is overrated. Barca's players are a class above most of the players in the world. I agree that Pep and Mourinho are great managers and have had a huge impact on the game but how would they both fair in charge of a Stoke City with a limited budget...

exactly, pep will have to prove himself, hell , even RDM wont a UCL and Fa cup in 6 months, its not like after iniesta, messi and Xavi, they have not produced another household name,
Pep might be a good spotter of talent and man manager. but when it comes to tactics, mourinho, rafa are among the top 2.
well this debate about pep will be answered only if pep takes over another club,but chances are he will go to some club fuelled by arab or oil money , and where money can buy success,

 

[thecorsair]

The fat spanish waiter is in the top 2 managers to be wound up to the point of meltdown by Fergie ( the other being Kevin Keegan ) but that's about all.

I'd like to see him, or any of today's so called top managers do what Brian Clough did in the 70's ie take 2 tiny clubs with no money from the obscurity of the lower divisions to the equivalent of the Premier League title in the space of 2-3 years which he did with Derby County & Nottingham Forest.

He also won CONSECUTIVE European Cups with Forest in 1979 & 1980.....only Fabio Capello's AC Milan have managed that since.

Two of his most famous quotes are,

"Football is a simple game"

"Players win you games, not tactics"

He treated those who tried to make the game too technical with utter contempt so I don't imagine he'd have had much time for the likes of Benitez.

Other managers have won more, but it's usually been with big teams with big transfer budgets.

30 odd years later Clough's achievements are still up there as some of the greatest in the game.

 

[dino76m]

The fat spanish waiter is in the top 2 managers to be wound up to the point of meltdown by Fergie ( the other being Kevin Keegan ) but that's about all.

I'd like to see him, or any of today's so called top managers do what Brian Clough did in the 70's ie take 2 tiny clubs with no money from the obscurity of the lower divisions to the equivalent of the Premier League title in the space of 2-3 years which he did with Derby County & Nottingham Forest.

He also won CONSECUTIVE European Cups with Forest in 1979 & 1980.....only Fabio Capello's AC Milan have managed that since.

Two of his most famous quotes are,

"Football is a simple game"

"Players win you games, not tactics"

He treated those who tried to make the game too technical with utter contempt so I don't imagine he'd have had much time for the likes of Benitez.

Other managers have won more, but it's usually been with big teams with big transfer budgets.

30 odd years later Clough's achievements are still up there as some of the greatest in the game.

mourinho won the UCL with Porto and rafa with one of Liverpools weakest teams..not to mention took them to another final in 2 years times, with Kuyt as our main striker

 

[axecutioner18]

mourinho won the UCL with Porto and rafa with one of Liverpools weakest teams..not to mention took them to another final in 2 years times, with Kuyt as our main striker

The Porto team that Mourinho won had some really talented Portuguese names (Deco, Baia, Costinha, Carvalho, Costa) some of who got sold out immediately after the win like Deco (That was Portugal's Golden Generation which is what Barcelona's current quad is called the Spanish Golden Generation)... plus that season itself was a bad time for most top teams I mean Monaco reached the final? .
Since then Mourinho has been successful with clubs as long as an open chequebook was handed to him. All the main men of his teams were established foreign players of high value.

And Rafa's team was definately not 'weakest' with Alonso, Garcia, Gerrard in form they were one of the top midfields in Europe. And hey they won the way RDM. Luck was pretty much a huge factor, they dont call it 'The Miracle' of Istanbul... something which was dethorned by last season's 'Miracle of Munich' Rafa is no doubt a good coach. But in the modern game I dont think there is any successful club who have no money.

If money is an issue then you will need a golden generation of youth players... something Barca has now. Or else you can be the best manager in the world and still not be able to do anything if the players at your disposal just arent good enough...

 

[thecorsair]

mourinho won the UCL with Porto and rafa with one of Liverpools weakest teams..not to mention took them to another final in 2 years times, with Kuyt as our main striker

Forest were/are MUCH smaller than Porto.

When Clough took over they were 13th in the 2nd Division ( now the Championship ).

He got them promoted the same season then won the 1st Division ( now the Premier League ) and League Cup ( now the Carling Cup ) in the first season in the top flight.

Then came the two European Cups.

Most teams that get promoted to the Premier League struggle to survive their first season, let alone win a trophy....Clough won two trophies in his first season and went on to conquer Europe....twice.

Benitez is a lucky manager, his CL win was a fluke, he won the World Club Cup with an Inter team inherited from Mourinho and might do the same with Di Matteo's Chelski in a couple of weeks.

He still couldn't win the league with Liverpool and seemed to blame his failure on Fergie's mythical relationship with the FA which made him as deluded as most of the clubs supporters.

 

[gypsycatcha]

Forest were/are MUCH smaller than Porto

Benitez is a lucky manager, his CL win was a fluke, he won the World Club Cup with an Inter team inherited from Mourinho and might do the same with Di Matteo's Chelski in a couple of weeks.

He still couldn't win the league with Liverpool and seemed to blame his failure on Fergie's mythical relationship with the FA which made him as deluded as most of the clubs supporters.

A manager that takes his side to 2 champions league finals, winning one, is hardly a fluke and the work he did at Valencia was second to none.
Pep was a great player and had the very best players available in they're prime.
I wouldn't say he is over rated but until he has managed another club or stayed at a club which has seen him re build a side and continue success, he can hardly be judged!
I quite like Refa and rate him highly as a coach. I just feel sorry for him that he is at chelsea!

 

[thecorsair]

A manager that takes his side to 2 champions league finals, winning one, is hardly a fluke and the work he did at Valencia was second to none.
Pep was a great player and had the very best players available in they're prime.
I wouldn't say he is over rated but until he has managed another club or stayed at a club which has seen him re build a side and continue success, he can hardly be judged!
I quite like Refa and rate him highly as a coach. I just feel sorry for him that he is at chelsea!

How much did he spend at Liverpool?

Enough to have built a team that could have dominated for several years, yet it never happened.

Or was that because of Fergie and the FA conspiring to prevent them from doing so?

 

[heon123]

After SAF retires I reckon the best man for the job is Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. He's been successful at Molde or even Cantona who in charge for the chomos ATM. And no I don't think united will fall after sir retires. Mourinho said his next club will be blue, but we can never take his word since we can never take him seriously when the press is asking him question. Ronaldo in my opinion will return to united, he has stated already money isn't the problem and if it was he would have been at city or PSG by now? Anyone see the statue unveiling? Ronaldo praised SAF and owes him a lot. He was never loved in madrid as he was in Manchester United.