Sportsbet.io's English Premier League Football Pool Discussion Thread

[Igebotz]

Finally I was able to hit a correct score after so many times failing to do so in this pool.I knew Brentford is not a team to trust to win against Nottingham Forest which is in a relatively good form when playing at home.Now there is only the Chelsea game left for this week and I don't know really what to expect in that game although I think a draw will most likely be an acceptable result for both teams with Fulham of course wanting a win in their home field against a failing very weak Chelsea.

Don't raise your expectations as there is nothing more to expect than just am average Chelsea side playing another worse side. Battle of the mids.

Injuries I think play a big role as De Bryne injured in Manchester City left them struggling against Wolves which they got the first lost game of the season.

KDB's injury has nothing to do with City's first loss, as they have been winning games without him since the beginning of the season. They controlled the game yesterday and were unlucky to lose to a team who only had one shot on target + lucky own goal and zero corners.

[1714683400]

1714683400

[swogerino]

Yeah and the funny thing is that with just a correct score for the single game that was today I got from 37 to 22nd place with just one single game,that shows how tight this pool is.

I don't have any expectation for Chelsea,in fact if Chelsea loses again on Monday then most likely they will go to the Championship as I don't see any glimmer of hope for them no matter what the management do,even if they sack Pochettino nothing will change so they are most likely forced to keep him.

[CLS63]

Me, I rarely, almost never complain about a game. But last night, even before the PGMOL apology, I was telling my kid watching I haven't seen an error like that since... well, years. But I loved the way we played.

Klopp's teams don't get red cards... don't think we've ever had more than one in a season since he took over but now we have... 4? One rescinded, one unlucky, but anyway, if we play like that with 10 or 9 men, teams better be very afraid.

Unfair goal chalked off, unlucky red, unlucky own goal. This hopefully purges our bad luck.

What do you think about Jones' red card? I think that slow motion can be deceptive for referees quite much. Besides I think that Diogo Jota's first yellow card was also wrong. If Liverpool manage to make 1-2 additions to the squad they have showed that they can be in the championship race this season.

[slaman29]

Yeah and the funny thing is that with just a correct score for the single game that was today I got from 37 to 22nd place with just one single game,that shows how tight this pool is.

I don't have any expectation for Chelsea,in fact if Chelsea loses again on Monday then most likely they will go to the Championship as I don't see any glimmer of hope for them no matter what the management do,even if they sack Pochettino nothing will change so they are most likely forced to keep him.

I'm right above you and apparently still in the same position but like you said it's very tight, except at the top!! 11 points from 1st to 5th place, and we're all here fighting for less

But I want to point out, Liverpool red card seemed wrong. Nobody thinks so? Ball turns the foot, obvious.

In the actual play, it does not look bad, but when you watch the replay and it is slowed down to a freeze at the point of impact, then it looks nasty.
A yellow could have sufficed, but i can see why the ref changed it to red. It was a very dangerous challenge and with a bit more power can severely injure the tackled player.

What I mean was not about the impact but the player unlucky, as in no intention and no initial risk. It was nasty for sure but the initial foot was not studs up. The ball just turned his foot away and made it stand on the opponent. Anyway

[un_rank]

What I mean was not about the impact but the player unlucky, as in no intention and no initial risk. It was nasty for sure but the initial foot was not studs up. The ball just turned his foot away and made it stand on the opponent. Anyway

It was an unlucky decision which went against Jones, hard luck on the lad.

I however think the Liverpool management should let it go, all these about demanding the recordings of communication between the officials and releasing statements to explore all available options is not the drama the club needs now. Someone will say that the mistakes have been occurring more frequently and something needs to be done, but they are going about it the wrong way in my opinion and giving the impression that they suspect a conspiracy against the club.Chelsea had what was probably their best 45 minutes of the season against a decent side. If they can pull off a win, that will probably be the catalyst they need to turn their season around.

- Jay -

[buwaytress]

Yeah, Liverpool is getting a taste of their own medicine after the same FA single-handedly awarded you the FA Cup trophy two seasons ago after ruling out an ONSIDE goal from Lukaku. I never thought the day would come when both Liverpool and Manchester United would moan over Ref rulings. It's only been seven games, and you've already received four red cards (two of which have been overturned). Dirty tactics!

PGMOL are spreading the virus this season, which is great since it means Chelsea aren't alone in their disaster. And nothing will change as long as these refs and VAR are not punished for incorrect officiating.

Sorry Igehhh fren, these are worlds apart.

Personally, I thought Lukaku's goal should have stood -- but we had many goals that season ruled out across EPL and cups for being marginally offside. Mane's armpit/kneecap, shoelace etc. That was when VAR followed the letter of the law, everyone paid the (technically correct) price.

Diaz's goal was actually given, incorrectly communicated, and no VAR review. Then, after realising their mistake, they opted NOT to interrupt the game. It's been called the biggest error Prem has seen.

But you're right, I'm moaning, and I say game on. un_rank right, let it go. We can overcome these nevertheless =) VAR officials taken off duty may be punishment enough. But I hope people realise VAR was brought in because of ref human error (which most including myself accept as part of free-flowing football).

But the tech has really been painful and caused, perhaps, just as many errors.

What I mean was not about the impact but the player unlucky, as in no intention and no initial risk. It was nasty for sure but the initial foot was not studs up. The ball just turned his foot away and made it stand on the opponent. Anyway

Intent is no longer important in dismissing an offence (intent confirms, but lack of intent doesn't absolve). Here, it is excessive force instead that could cause injury, regardless of intent. Unlucky, sure, but can't argue much against the law.

[Igebotz]

Yeah, Liverpool is getting a taste of their own medicine after the same FA single-handedly awarded you the FA Cup trophy two seasons ago after ruling out an ONSIDE goal from Lukaku. I never thought the day would come when both Liverpool and Manchester United would moan over Ref rulings. It's only been seven games, and you've already received four red cards (two of which have been overturned). Dirty tactics!

PGMOL are spreading the virus this season, which is great since it means Chelsea aren't alone in their disaster. And nothing will change as long as these refs and VAR are not punished for incorrect officiating.

Sorry Igehhh fren, these are worlds apart.

Personally, I thought Lukaku's goal should have stood -- but we had many goals that season ruled out across EPL and cups for being marginally offside. Mane's armpit/kneecap, shoelace etc. That was when VAR followed the letter of the law, everyone paid the (technically correct) price.
//cut//

The Lukaku incident was far from a minor offside; it was clearly onside even without VAR lines, but it was not the first time Anthony Taylor cheated us out of the FA Cup. Anthony Taylor was in charge of the red card against Arsenal and the Leicester City handball goal. We lost four FA Cup finals in five years and all we received in return was an apology from the FA with no disciplinary action. We had the cucurella hair pull and no action was taken against Tottenham Romeo, all we received was an apology from the FA last season. We've been victims of FA deception since Abramovich took control, and it only became worse after he departed.

This season's officiating has been mostly poor. Diaz's goal was an apparent Onside, and I'm not sure how the ref and VAR missed it. Has the recording been delivered to Liverpool yet? I'd like to know what the VAR and the ref were talking about at the moment.

James was charged with obstructing the ref when he ended the HT 3 minutes early in the game against Aston Villa. It's crazy.

[darbitmobilerecovery]

I repost this here only to share with the guys who doesnt go so often to the Sportsbet thread. I receive my jerseys from SB won on the 5 round of the pools + one in the game and round prediction contest.

[un_rank]

This season's officiating has been mostly poor. Diaz's goal was an apparent Onside, and I'm not sure how the ref and VAR missed it. Has the recording been delivered to Liverpool yet? I'd like to know what the VAR and the ref were talking about at the moment.

The released recording which I am sure everyone has seen at this point just pokes more holes into the idea that VAR reduces human error. I find it difficult to fathom that they mis-communicated that the goal was given and then assumed they could no longer interfere in an obvious game changing decision 3 seconds after the mistake was made, but will rather wait till the end of the match to issue an apology, it is quite ridiculous.

No one expected VAR to eliminate errors completely, but the possibility of a replay review and discussions between experienced referees should reduce it to a minimal level at the very least. The opposite has happened and there has been so much inconsistencies and variations in interpretations of the rules. What is more ironic is VAR is not having such issues in other leagues around Europe, so it is obviously an EPL problem with the officiating and not the technology.

I repost this here only to share with the guys who doesnt go so often to the Sportsbet thread. I receive my jerseys from SB...

Congratulations mate.

- Jay -

[Igebotz]

This season's officiating has been mostly poor. Diaz's goal was an apparent Onside, and I'm not sure how the ref and VAR missed it. Has the recording been delivered to Liverpool yet? I'd like to know what the VAR and the ref were talking about at the moment.

The released recording which I am sure everyone has seen at this point just pokes more holes into the idea that VAR reduces human error. I find it difficult to fathom that they mis-communicated that the goal was given and then assumed they could no longer interfere in an obvious game changing decision 3 seconds after the mistake was made, but will rather wait till the end of the match to issue an apology, it is quite ridiculous.

No one expected VAR to eliminate errors completely, but the possibility of a replay review and discussions between experienced referees should reduce it to a minimal level at the very least. The opposite has happened and there has been so much inconsistencies and variations in interpretations of the rules. What is more ironic is VAR is not having such issues in other leagues around Europe, so it is obviously an EPL problem with the officiating and not the technology.

VAR has failed totally since its implementation, and it will continue to fail as long as the corrupt refs continue to operate and make decisions. When VAR was introduced,.I assumed it would be an independent entity from the Refeeres association.

What happened to the goal line technology used in the Qatar World Cup? Why wasn't it used for league matches? It is more advanced and better than what we currently have.

Last week, Christian Pulisic called for the removal of VAR; technology is getting worse, and these players are no longer pleased.

[KTChampions]

VAR has failed totally since its implementation, and it will continue to fail as long as the corrupt refs continue to operate and make decisions. When VAR was introduced,.I assumed it would be an independent entity from the Refeeres association.

What happened to the goal line technology used in the Qatar World Cup? Why wasn't it used for league matches? It is more advanced and better than what we currently have.

Last week, Christian Pulisic called for the removal of VAR; technology is getting worse, and these players are no longer pleased.

You know, I remember very well the times before VAR, so I cannot agree. Previously, we could see two-meter offsides, the ball jumping out of the goal (and therefore not counted), the most blatant simulations in almost every round. Now we probably do this once every six months and therefore we are very indignant - since we have simply become accustomed to the fact that such mistakes have no place in football. But the human factor is still there (as in the case of Liverpool where VAR worked correctly but the referees made a mistake in communication).

[un_rank]

I will not mind seeing the semi-automated VAR technology in use in Europe being included in the EPL. It will help eliminate any doubts in really close calls, like the Gernacho goal against Arsenal.
Then the communication between the officials need to be publicly available and not on request. This will go some way to restore trust in the technology.

- Jay -

[Igebotz]

You know, I remember very well the times before VAR, so I cannot agree. Previously, we could see two-meter offsides, the ball jumping out of the goal (and therefore not counted), the most blatant simulations in almost every round. Now we probably do this once every six months and therefore we are very indignant - since we have simply become accustomed to the fact that such mistakes have no place in football. But the human factor is still there (as in the case of Liverpool where VAR worked correctly but the referees made a mistake in communication).

And VAR was implemented to solve these close margin offside calls and not to make it worse

I will not mind seeing the semi-automated VAR technology in use in Europe being included in the EPL. It will help eliminate any doubts in really close calls, like the Gernacho goal against Arsenal.
Then the communication between the officials need to be publicly available and not on request. This will go some way to restore trust in the technology.

- Jay -

The English Football Association would not implement any technology over which they have no control or know how to manipulate; we witnessed how long it took for VAR technology to be accepted in the EPL.

[hilariousandco]

I repost this here only to share with the guys who doesnt go so often to the Sportsbet thread. I receive my jerseys from SB won on the 5 round of the pools + one in the game and round prediction contest.

Nice. I hope to win a shirt someday.

This season's officiating has been mostly poor. Diaz's goal was an apparent Onside, and I'm not sure how the ref and VAR missed it. Has the recording been delivered to Liverpool yet? I'd like to know what the VAR and the ref were talking about at the moment.

The released recording which I am sure everyone has seen at this point just pokes more holes into the idea that VAR reduces human error. I find it difficult to fathom that they mis-communicated that the goal was given and then assumed they could no longer interfere in an obvious game changing decision 3 seconds after the mistake was made, but will rather wait till the end of the match to issue an apology, it is quite ridiculous.

No one expected VAR to eliminate errors completely, but the possibility of a replay review and discussions between experienced referees should reduce it to a minimal level at the very least. The opposite has happened and there has been so much inconsistencies and variations in interpretations of the rules. What is more ironic is VAR is not having such issues in other leagues around Europe, so it is obviously an EPL problem with the officiating and not the technology.

VAR is a joke. I think football is better without it in its current form. It wastes far too much time and there's no need to check every goal to see if they can find something and the offsides that they needs to draw digital lines to see if someone was offside by a millimetre are pathetic. Who cares? If you don't have an angle that's running straight down the line - which they usually never do - then you can't always be 100% accurate anyway from an obtuse angle. I've seen lots of goals disallowed that from one angle it looks offside and from a photographer's perspective on the touchline it wasn't.

[KTChampions]

You know, I remember very well the times before VAR, so I cannot agree. Previously, we could see two-meter offsides, the ball jumping out of the goal (and therefore not counted), the most blatant simulations in almost every round. Now we probably do this once every six months and therefore we are very indignant - since we have simply become accustomed to the fact that such mistakes have no place in football. But the human factor is still there (as in the case of Liverpool where VAR worked correctly but the referees made a mistake in communication).

And VAR was implemented to solve these close margin offside calls and not to make it worse

But it seems to me that if we just take the number of errors, it has decreased significantly. In addition, the number of potential violations has decreased - many players do not simulate violations of the rules or refrain from breaking them because they know that VAR can detect this.

I will not mind seeing the semi-automated VAR technology in use in Europe being included in the EPL. It will help eliminate any doubts in really close calls, like the Gernacho goal against Arsenal.
Then the communication between the officials need to be publicly available and not on request. This will go some way to restore trust in the technology.

- Jay -

The English Football Association would not implement any technology over which they have no control or know how to manipulate; we witnessed how long it took for VAR technology to be accepted in the EPL.

The fact that VAR came to football much later than in sports such as tennis and others is truly a shame and evidence of deep corruption. But now the main changes have been made and further improvements are only a matter of time.

[LFC_Bitcoin]

Hoping Liverpool put officiating incompetence behind us this weekend and see a vengeful performance with a win against Brighton. I like what I see so far and an incompetent/corrupt bunch of officials in the Spurs game will not change that. The Red Men are going nowhere, I expect a win on the road at Brighton.

Elsewhere, the Arsenal vs Man City game should be a cracker. Hopefully we’ll see lots of goals, a draw would work out nicely for my team.

[cryptofrka]

Hoping Liverpool put officiating incompetence behind us this weekend and see a vengeful performance with a win against Brighton. I like what I see so far and an incompetent/corrupt bunch of officials in the Spurs game will not change that. The Red Men are going nowhere, I expect a win on the road at Brighton.

Elsewhere, the Arsenal vs Man City game should be a cracker. Hopefully we’ll see lots of goals, a draw would work out nicely for my team.

I have a feeling we'll be looking for vengeance. Brighton has shown they can't play on 2 fronts, their team is not deep enough, and I expect us to win as well - they like to play quite open which will leave a lot of space behind their back line.
I hope Trent plays, he's perfect for these kind of games.

_____________________________

Also looking forward to the Arsenal - City game, City will struggle against Arsenal's press without KDB. I'm probably gonna bet on Arsenal winning this one.

[Harkorede]

Hoping Liverpool put officiating incompetence behind us this weekend and see a vengeful performance with a win against Brighton. I like what I see so far and an incompetent/corrupt bunch of officials in the Spurs game will not change that. The Red Men are going nowhere, I expect a win on the road at Brighton.

Elsewhere, the Arsenal vs Man City game should be a cracker. Hopefully we’ll see lots of goals, a draw would work out nicely for my team.

Arsenal vs Man City should be a game to look forward to, I just don't know if that will a be more interesting game compared to Brighton vs Liverpool, however, both games being played at different time after each other gives a bit more to look forward to in one or the other.

Heard Saka is supposedly in contention to be available, I don't know how true the news is but that'd be good news for Arsenal if fully fit, even though it was Mikel Arteta extreme form of carelessness and Ignorance that put him in this current situation.

Also looking forward to the Arsenal - City game, City will struggle against Arsenal's press without KDB. I'm probably gonna bet on Arsenal winning this one.

No game is currently being easy for City but without KDB they've been excellent still with Foden and Alvarez doing magnificent job with the chances creation, Man City biggest worry here might be Rodrigo, he's been a bigger blow to Man City imo.

[un_rank]

VAR is a joke. I think football is better without it in its current form. It wastes far too much time and there's no need to check every goal to see if they can find something and the offsides that they needs to draw digital lines to see if someone was offside by a millimetre are pathetic. Who cares?...

I do not think the problem is VAR but its implementation in the league. VAR is working every where else with no major talking points or contestable decisions. It wastes a lot of time, true, but we cannot stop technology from creeping into everything to eliminate the margins of human error, the problem is it is not eliminating the error due to poor implementation.Tottenham on top of the league is not something that was expected at this point in the season, with their best start in over 60 years.
The manager has been doing a fantastic job of managing the players. It was just Luton, but they will be fancying a top 4 finish this season at this rate.

- Jay -

[arallmuus]

Tottenham on top of the league is not something that was expected at this point in the season, with their best start in over 60 years.
The manager has been doing a fantastic job of managing the players. It was just Luton, but they will be fancying a top 4 finish this season at this rate.

- Jay -

For now yeah but if either Arsenal or City win tomorrow then Tottenham is going to drop to #2. Considering that they lost Kane, they are doing pretty good and I thought they would be struggling abit without Kane but it seems they are far better now without him

Anyway, McTominay really saved Ten Hag's ass today. Imagine being subbed in on 87' minutes then scored 2 goals to saved his ass, thats literally 10 minutes and he is not even a striker. On the other hand, Onana sucks