Association Football 2020/21

[GenerationTerrorist]

More important than any of these European matches, is the fact that Level 6 (Conference North/South) in England voted to end the season and declare it null and void.

Pretty obvious decision, really. I mean, my club (Hereford) had only managed to play 13 games all season and, somehow, had to fit in the remaining 29 matches before the end of April. Other teams, like Darlington, had played even less!

Clubs were calling off matches left, right and centre with little notice and it was a bit of a shambles that they were even trying to complete the season at this level in England. Especially when we went back into national lockdown in early January.

Fingers crossed that all the clubs manage to survive, though I sadly fear quite a few will end up going bust.

[NewYorkExpress]

More important than any of these European matches, is the fact that Level 6 (Conference North/South) in England voted to end the season and declare it null and void.

Pretty obvious decision, really. I mean, my club (Hereford) had only managed to play 13 games all season and, somehow, had to fit in the remaining 29 matches before the end of April. Other teams, like Darlington, had played even less!

Clubs were calling off matches left, right and centre with little notice and it was a bit of a shambles that they were even trying to complete the season at this level in England. Especially when we went back into national lockdown in early January.

Fingers crossed that all the clubs manage to survive, though I sadly fear quite a few will end up going bust.

I'd be mildly surprised if some countries didn't lose top-flight clubs that previously had been successful (some of the La Liga/Serie A clubs seem like obvious examples to me)

[Santander]

Duncan Ferguson crying as Everton beat Liverpool.

Odds pre-match on Everton win were 8.9!!! I bet big and won. Gonna go out and buy some champagne to celebrate.

[NewYorkExpress]

Duncan Ferguson crying as Everton beat Liverpool.

Odds pre-match on Everton win were 8.9!!! I bet big and won. Gonna go out and buy some champagne to celebrate.

Liverpool's been playing horribly lately. I wouldn't be surprised if Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotsupr (and possibly one of Arsenal/Wolverhampton) passed them to leave them out of the European places altogether.

[Santander]

Duncan Ferguson crying as Everton beat Liverpool.

Odds pre-match on Everton win were 8.9!!! I bet big and won. Gonna go out and buy some champagne to celebrate.

Liverpool's been playing horribly lately. I wouldn't be surprised if Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotsupr (and possibly one of Arsenal/Wolverhampton) passed them to leave them out of the European places altogether.

They won't finish below 7th, which is still a pretty sh**t place to end up for a defending champion. As I've said before, Klopp had a system that was ahead of its time, but the rest of the league has caught up to them, and they've been pretty pedestrian after the restart, even before Van Dijk and others got injured.

[Lechasseur]

More important than any of these European matches, is the fact that Level 6 (Conference North/South) in England voted to end the season and declare it null and void.

Pretty obvious decision, really. I mean, my club (Hereford) had only managed to play 13 games all season and, somehow, had to fit in the remaining 29 matches before the end of April. Other teams, like Darlington, had played even less!

Clubs were calling off matches left, right and centre with little notice and it was a bit of a shambles that they were even trying to complete the season at this level in England. Especially when we went back into national lockdown in early January.

Fingers crossed that all the clubs manage to survive, though I sadly fear quite a few will end up going bust.

I'd be mildly surprised if some countries didn't lose top-flight clubs that previously had been successful (some of the La Liga/Serie A clubs seem like obvious examples to me)

Anyone in particular in mind?

[NewYorkExpress]

More important than any of these European matches, is the fact that Level 6 (Conference North/South) in England voted to end the season and declare it null and void.

Pretty obvious decision, really. I mean, my club (Hereford) had only managed to play 13 games all season and, somehow, had to fit in the remaining 29 matches before the end of April. Other teams, like Darlington, had played even less!

Clubs were calling off matches left, right and centre with little notice and it was a bit of a shambles that they were even trying to complete the season at this level in England. Especially when we went back into national lockdown in early January.

Fingers crossed that all the clubs manage to survive, though I sadly fear quite a few will end up going bust.

I'd be mildly surprised if some countries didn't lose top-flight clubs that previously had been successful (some of the La Liga/Serie A clubs seem like obvious examples to me)

Anyone in particular in mind?

Some of the non-Barcelona/Real Madrid/Atletico De Madrid clubs in La Liga, and some of the non- AC Milan/Inter Milan/Juventus/Roma/Lazio sides in Serie A seem like possibilities.

[Lechasseur]

More important than any of these European matches, is the fact that Level 6 (Conference North/South) in England voted to end the season and declare it null and void.

Pretty obvious decision, really. I mean, my club (Hereford) had only managed to play 13 games all season and, somehow, had to fit in the remaining 29 matches before the end of April. Other teams, like Darlington, had played even less!

Clubs were calling off matches left, right and centre with little notice and it was a bit of a shambles that they were even trying to complete the season at this level in England. Especially when we went back into national lockdown in early January.

Fingers crossed that all the clubs manage to survive, though I sadly fear quite a few will end up going bust.

I'd be mildly surprised if some countries didn't lose top-flight clubs that previously had been successful (some of the La Liga/Serie A clubs seem like obvious examples to me)

Anyone in particular in mind?

Some of the non-Barcelona/Real Madrid/Atletico De Madrid clubs in La Liga, and some of the non- AC Milan/Inter Milan/Juventus/Roma/Lazio sides in Serie A seem like possibilities.

I get the impression that outside of the 5 clubs you mentioned and maybe Napoli, the Serie A clubs would all be pretty vunerable financially, correct?

Then in Spain, do you think some big clubs like Sevilla or Valencia could be in danger?

[NewYorkExpress]

More important than any of these European matches, is the fact that Level 6 (Conference North/South) in England voted to end the season and declare it null and void.

Pretty obvious decision, really. I mean, my club (Hereford) had only managed to play 13 games all season and, somehow, had to fit in the remaining 29 matches before the end of April. Other teams, like Darlington, had played even less!

Clubs were calling off matches left, right and centre with little notice and it was a bit of a shambles that they were even trying to complete the season at this level in England. Especially when we went back into national lockdown in early January.

Fingers crossed that all the clubs manage to survive, though I sadly fear quite a few will end up going bust.

I'd be mildly surprised if some countries didn't lose top-flight clubs that previously had been successful (some of the La Liga/Serie A clubs seem like obvious examples to me)

Anyone in particular in mind?

Some of the non-Barcelona/Real Madrid/Atletico De Madrid clubs in La Liga, and some of the non- AC Milan/Inter Milan/Juventus/Roma/Lazio sides in Serie A seem like possibilities.

I get the impression that outside of the 5 clubs you mentioned and maybe Napoli, the Serie A clubs would all be pretty vunerable financially, correct?

Then in Spain, do you think some big clubs like Sevilla or Valencia could be in danger?

Correct.

Possibly. Spanish Football really revolves around the Madrid sides/Barcelona, so a side like Sevilla/Valenica going bankrupt because of the pandemic is very possible if they can't get fans in the stands.

TV deals can only take teams so far, especially if you just aren't big enough to regularly qualify for the Champions League.

[Santander]

When Lukaku was at Chelsea, I thought he was going to be the most complete striker in Europe one day, and I don't think there's any question now that he is. Literally nothing he can't do. Also, that second Inter goal was such a beautiful team goal - Lukaku -> Hakimi -> Eriksen -> Perisic -> Lautaro -> Goal. Crazy how they crashed out of the Champions League with a team like that, although they have one hand on the Scudetto now, which is worth it.

[NewYorkExpress]

I admit to being pleasantly surprised that a relatively shorthanded Real Madrid side was able to beat Atlalanta 1-0 in today's Champions League match.

On the other hand, I should probably be disappointed that Manchester City couldn't beat Borussia Monchengladbach by more than a 2-0 scoreline.

[Santander]

I admit to being pleasantly surprised that a relatively shorthanded Real Madrid side was able to beat Atlalanta 1-0 in today's Champions League match.

Um... Madrid was shorthanded? Atalanta was literally down a man (one of their better players, too) for the vast majority of the match. Do you even watch sports, or do you just look at a score on ESPN and talk about it as if you know something?

[The Houstonian]

I admit to being pleasantly surprised that a relatively shorthanded Real Madrid side was able to beat Atlalanta 1-0 in today's Champions League match.

Um... Madrid was shorthanded? Atalanta was literally down a man (one of their better players, too) for the vast majority of the match. Do you even watch sports, or do you just look at a score on ESPN and talk about it as if you know something?

Real had only 13 first-team players available for the match due to injuries. They were shorthanded.

[Santander]

I admit to being pleasantly surprised that a relatively shorthanded Real Madrid side was able to beat Atlalanta 1-0 in today's Champions League match.

Um... Madrid was shorthanded? Atalanta was literally down a man (one of their better players, too) for the vast majority of the match. Do you even watch sports, or do you just look at a score on ESPN and talk about it as if you know something?

Real had only 13 first-team players available for the match due to injuries. They were shorthanded.

They played basically a top choice XI against 10 men for 75 minutes.

[The Houstonian]

I admit to being pleasantly surprised that a relatively shorthanded Real Madrid side was able to beat Atlalanta 1-0 in today's Champions League match.

Um... Madrid was shorthanded? Atalanta was literally down a man (one of their better players, too) for the vast majority of the match. Do you even watch sports, or do you just look at a score on ESPN and talk about it as if you know something?

Real had only 13 first-team players available for the match due to injuries. They were shorthanded.

They played basically a top choice XI against 10 men for 75 minutes.

Isco at center forward and Lucas at right back is hardly a "top choice XI," even by the diminished standards of post-Ronaldo Real Madrid.

[Santander]

I admit to being pleasantly surprised that a relatively shorthanded Real Madrid side was able to beat Atlalanta 1-0 in today's Champions League match.

Um... Madrid was shorthanded? Atalanta was literally down a man (one of their better players, too) for the vast majority of the match. Do you even watch sports, or do you just look at a score on ESPN and talk about it as if you know something?

Real had only 13 first-team players available for the match due to injuries. They were shorthanded.

They played basically a top choice XI against 10 men for 75 minutes.

Isco at center forward and Lucas at right back is hardly a "top choice XI," even by the diminished standards of post-Ronaldo Real Madrid.

Isco was a False 9, a position he's played before, not a 9. That team, on paper, was better than the Atalanta team even before Freuler got sent off. The only player that dressed for Atalanta that could've made it into that Madrid team was Zapata, and that's only because there was literally no competition for his place. Madrid still had the heartbeat of their team - Kroos, Casemiro, Modric - plus a solid back four and good wingers.

You cannot describe a side as "shorthanded" when they are playing against a side that is literally shorthanded. No surprise, as anyone who refers to Real Madrid as simply "Real" clearly knows nothing about football. (La) Real refers to Real Sociedad. (El) Madrid refers to Real Madrid. (of course, your other posting history is a dead giveaway of your capacity to understand things in general)

[The Houstonian]

No surprise, as anyone who refers to Real Madrid as simply "Real" clearly knows nothing about football. (La) Real refers to Real Sociedad. (El) Madrid refers to Real Madrid. (of course, your other posting history is a dead giveaway of your capacity to understand things in general)

You are talking out of your ass, unless FIFA itself "knows nothing about football." But to follow your logic, I guess that the use of "United" must also be cancelled to avoid confusion with Leeds, West Ham, and Newcastle, the use of "Athletic" to avoid confusion with Wigan, and the use of "Sporting" to avoid confusion with Braga and the biggest club from Gijón (another team named Real).

[Alcibiades]

I admit to being pleasantly surprised that a relatively shorthanded Real Madrid side was able to beat Atlalanta 1-0 in today's Champions League match.

Um... Madrid was shorthanded? Atalanta was literally down a man (one of their better players, too) for the vast majority of the match. Do you even watch sports, or do you just look at a score on ESPN and talk about it as if you know something?

Real had only 13 first-team players available for the match due to injuries. They were shorthanded.

They played basically a top choice XI against 10 men for 75 minutes.

Isco at center forward and Lucas at right back is hardly a "top choice XI," even by the diminished standards of post-Ronaldo Real Madrid.

Isco was a False 9, a position he's played before, not a 9. That team, on paper, was better than the Atalanta team even before Freuler got sent off. The only player that dressed for Atalanta that could've made it into that Madrid team was Zapata, and that's only because there was literally no competition for his place. Madrid still had the heartbeat of their team - Kroos, Casemiro, Modric - plus a solid back four and good wingers.

You cannot describe a side as "shorthanded" when they are playing against a side that is literally shorthanded. No surprise, as anyone who refers to Real Madrid as simply "Real" clearly knows nothing about football. (La) Real refers to Real Sociedad. (El) Madrid refers to Real Madrid. (of course, your other posting history is a dead giveaway of your capacity to understand things in general)

To be fair, while that is the case in Spain, in England nearly everyone, including those who know a lot about football, refers to Real Madrid as “Real”. But I agree that to pretend that 1-0 was an impressive result for a Real Madrid side which played against the 10 men of Atalanta is ridiculous, and Atalanta put in a very creditable defensive performance.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

If your takeaway from Real Madrid beating Atalanta 1-0 with Atalanta being with 10 men from the 17' on is that Real Madrid did impressively, you literally have no clue about football.

In other news, this is looking like the most competitive Serie A in ages, Inter has taken the lead, and Spezia is hovering pretty safely above the relegation line. What's not to like?

[GenerationTerrorist]

Hopefully a small number of fans back in the stadiums in time for the last game of the Premier League season on 17th May, if the easing of Lockdown goes to plan.

I only hope that Wembley can be a bit more packed out for England-Scotland this summer.

[Santander]

You are talking out of your ass, unless FIFA itself "knows nothing about football." But to follow your logic, I guess that the use of "United" must also be cancelled to avoid confusion with Leeds, West Ham, and Newcastle, the use of "Athletic" to avoid confusion with Wigan, and the use of "Sporting" to avoid confusion with Braga and the biggest club from Gijón (another team named Real).

Yeah, you're clearly a moron if that's the comparison you want to make. "United" is a literal club name used to describe any club named United. (and it's scandalous to refer to any club as simply "United" outside the context of a local paper or discussing a specific match or situation) "Real" is not a recognized nickname of Real Madrid. If it were, Marca and Madrid fans would use it to describe the team. It's simply Madrid.

[JGibson]

What a big comeback win for the Arsenal today in the Europa, as we came back from a 2-1 (3-2 aggregate) hole to win 3-2 (4-3 aggregate) over Benfica.

[NewYorkExpress]

An actual upset today.

Slavia Praha (That would be the Czech League) defeated Leicester City 2-0 in Europa League action.

[Santander]

What a big comeback win for the Arsenal today in the Europa, as we came back from a 2-1 (3-2 aggregate) hole to win 3-2 (4-3 aggregate) over Benfica.

Yeah it was a great win against a tough Benfica team. The main man delivers in a crucial game once again.

Heroic result for Molde, too. Hoffenheim threw the kitchen sink at them but they refused to be beaten.

[Mike88]

Well, 2021 will probably be a historic year in the Portuguese Championship. After yesterday's draw between Porto and Sporting (0-0), it basically certain that Sporting will be the champion 19 years after their last win.

Current point score: (top 5)

1. Sporting 55
2. Porto 45
3. Braga 43
4. Benfica 39
5. Paços 38

Braga will play latter today with Nacional of Madeira and Benfica, tomorrow, with Rio Ave. If Braga wins, they will surpass Porto for 2nd place.