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

[un_rank]

Being at the top does not make you a champion or the best team in the league; you did not begin the season at the top; others have been there; it is now your turn. The true champions will emerge when the timing is right.

Being at the top at any point makes you the best in the league at that point, that's exactly what it means. Being at the top at the end of the season makes you the champion. We have been the best team in the league up to this point and by some margin.

And your attackers aren't doing their jobs; your "Thank you Chelsea" Maduake's single league goal this season was a clear own goal given as a goal by some drunk FA, and the majority of your goals are obvious fouls on goalkeepers permitted to happen by the incompetent VAR.

Without those 5 generous own goals, your team would be somewhere between 5th or 6th this season.

Again with the mental gymnastics. It's ridiculous how all opponent teams lose their heads when it comes to Arsenal.
Why did your team pull up with & defenders and 2 defensive midfielders when you needed to win?

I bet you can't watch your team for 90' without sleeping.

More metal gymnastics

- Jay -

[buwaytress]

Grumble, grumble, Newcastle. Grumble, grumble why does City allow only 1 shot from Toons. Grumble, grumble, 4-0 aggregate, they're going to another EFL final.

Good thing I decided to watch futsal instead. Only the first half but just pure minutes of pure attacking football (okay it's futsal) and far less grandstanding and rolling around in theatrical pain. Makes me miss it so much, even if it reminds me I sucked at it as badly as I sucked as football.

[igebotz]

Again with the mental gymnastics. It's ridiculous how all opponent teams lose their heads when it comes to Arsenal.
Why did your team pull up with & defenders and 2 defensive midfielders when you needed to win?

Nobody care about Arsenal, they have no European badge and nothing to brag about except games H2H yet their fans are the loudest online trolls and most hated ones too.

BTW I have no idea what the idiotic schoolhoy manager was up to last night; we needed one goal to level up and instead of going all attack in the first half, he came to play deep. That was very stupid tactics, he's a fraud. Now you have City to deal with.

[cryptofrka]

This criticism, if I can call it that, is so ridiculous that no one mentions City having scores just one less own goals than us, there should be a general outrage for that too, but in that case everyone understands that you put the team under pressure and they can score in their own net.

It doesn't really matter what you want or what I want or anyone's personal bias, only that we are currently the best team in the league and in a very good position.

- Jay -

I disagree. Everybody's making fun of City, and the general conclusion is that they are not good enough.
On the other hand, Arsenal are these undisputed champions, the team to watch this season.

Yeah, you guys might win it, I'd even be ok with that because there were years in which I felt you should have - but this year you're just terrible. I hate the style of football, I hate the tempo, I hate the packing of the 5yard box and inswinging corners on the 2nd post.
It is terrible to watch, you can't create a decent chance that is not a cross in most of the games you play - and your team is fantastic on paper.

Still, if it gets you across the line, you can say it was worth it. I just can't bear to watch it.

[leea-1334]

This criticism, if I can call it that, is so ridiculous that no one mentions City having scores just one less own goals than us, there should be a general outrage for that too, but in that case everyone understands that you put the team under pressure and they can score in their own net.

It doesn't really matter what you want or what I want or anyone's personal bias, only that we are currently the best team in the league and in a very good position.

- Jay -

I disagree. Everybody's making fun of City, and the general conclusion is that they are not good enough.
On the other hand, Arsenal are these undisputed champions, the team to watch this season.

Yeah, you guys might win it, I'd even be ok with that because there were years in which I felt you should have - but this year you're just terrible. I hate the style of football, I hate the tempo, I hate the packing of the 5yard box and inswinging corners on the 2nd post.
It is terrible to watch, you can't create a decent chance that is not a cross in most of the games you play - and your team is fantastic on paper.

Still, if it gets you across the line, you can say it was worth it. I just can't bear to watch it.

It is not ridiculous I think even in the past people criticized Chelsea or even Brentford or even my own team Spurs whenever we could not create chances from open play with variety.

And I really think it is bad football to see talented teams play rugby inside the penalty box so I like Arsenal,,, yes they are my team actual rival,,, but this season they took their setpiece shittery to a bad level that Pep never showed Arteta to do for sure.

Even if they win this season it will not impress a lot of people,,, fans will not care but they must learn to live with this criticism then

[un_rank]

Nobody care about Arsenal, they have no European badge and nothing to brag about except games H2H yet their fans are the loudest online trolls and most hated ones too.

We do not have the loudest fans, everyone just gives us attention and try to delude themselves that we are not one of the best teams in the league at the moment. I find your fans unbearable online, Liverpool fans are a lot too, went as far as printing a disgusting image for Arteta when they won the league, but we are the trolls?

BTW I have no idea what the idiotic schoolhoy manager was up to last night; we needed one goal to level up and instead of going all attack in the first half, he came to play deep. That was very stupid tactics, he's a fraud. Now you have City to deal with.

It worked out for us good, but he should have been more daring as Newcastle were yesterday. They lost heavily but created so many chances the game could have easily gone a different way.

Yeah, you guys might win it, I'd even be ok with that because there were years in which I felt you should have - but this year you're just terrible. I hate the style of football, I hate the tempo, I hate the packing of the 5yard box and inswinging corners on the 2nd post.
It is terrible to watch, you can't create a decent chance that is not a cross in most of the games you play - and your team is fantastic on paper.

In open play we have not scored from crosses a lot. Off the top of my head, I can remember Zubi scoring 2 and maybe one or two others, but all the others have been through direct attacks. We create chances, have tough games which we have to drive out wins and others where we blow teams away, same with every other team that topped the league at this point before. Even with corners, the entire league is following our tactics, your team have set up to disrupt the keeper on more than one occasion.

I think it's bias that makes the public criticize Arsenal for something everyone else does or have done. And bias never sees itself.

- Jay -

[igebotz]

Yeah, you guys might win it, I'd even be ok with that because there were years in which I felt you should have - but this year you're just terrible. I hate the style of football, I hate the tempo, I hate the packing of the 5yard box and inswinging corners on the 2nd post.
It is terrible to watch, you can't create a decent chance that is not a cross in most of the games you play - and your team is fantastic on paper.

I think it's bias that makes the public criticize Arsenal for something everyone else does or have done. And bias never sees itself.

I don't see our set piece coach make more appearance on the sidelines than our actual manager - at Arsenal, the set piece coach mad more appearance on the sidelines than Arteta does. He played the most important role at the club right now because the entire gameplay depends on him. Fans are not the only ones complaining about the football you play, players are speaking up now too ( Gordons, Amad and the rest)

The most annoying part is the long throw-in and ball boys throwing double ball on the pitch tactics to disrupt attacking play. Did it 2 times against Chelsea to kill our attacking play.

Arsenal were the closest thing to Pep- Bacelona under Arsene Wenger, today we're comparing them to Westbrom and Stock City

Why is Liam still at Chelsea? Losing a semi final games to Arsenal is a sackable offence.

[cryptofrka]

We do not have the loudest fans, everyone just gives us attention and try to delude themselves that we are not one of the best teams in the league at the moment. I find your fans unbearable online, Liverpool fans are a lot too, went as far as printing a disgusting image for Arteta when they won the league, but we are the trolls?

This is not something to discuss in my opinion. I don't read it at all, fans are usually clueless anyway - who they troll and how annoying they are or are not should not be a factor when discussing performances.

____________________

All I ever cared about and discussed is on the pitch performance. And Arsenal do look like a title-winning team, but they lack the 'wow' factor most recent PL champions always had.
They are a reactive, boring team, willing to allow possession even at home, waiting for their chance from dead ball situations or simply settling for not losing the game.

It's all ok - Mourinho's Real was a reactive team. Deschamps's France often is. There are many such examples of teams with great players choosing the 'safe' way.
But from a neutral fan's perspective, you should understand that wow factor creates hype, buzz and fan support.
No neutral fan can support what you are doing - and you should not care at all as long as it brings the results. Just accept the boos that come along the way without being surprised.

[un_rank]

I don't see our set piece coach make more appearance on the sidelines than our actual manager - at Arsenal, the set piece coach mad more appearance on the sidelines than Arteta does. He played the most important role at the club right now because the entire gameplay depends on him. Fans are not the only ones complaining about the football you play, players are speaking up now too ( Gordons, Amad and the rest)

What a clubs set piece coach chooses to do on the sidelines within our technical area should not even be something that is up for conversation. It's your bias that makes it a topic for you. Your team has scored almost the same amount of goals we've scored from set pieces this season.

I think Amad and Gordon have much more to worry about with their team.

Arsenal were the closest thing to Pep- Bacelona under Arsene Wenger, today we're comparing them to Westbrom and Stock City
Why is Liam still at Chelsea? Losing a semi final games to Arsenal is a sackable offence.

We? Isn't that just the fans who are scared Arsenal is one of the best teams in the league now? I'm sure you wish we could go back to the latter years of Arsene.Hardly sackable. We've beaten almost all of your recent coaches.

But from a neutral fan's perspective, you should understand that wow factor creates hype, buzz and fan support.
No neutral fan can support what you are doing - and you should not care at all as long as it brings the results. Just accept the boos that come along the way without being surprised.

I mostly do not care what rival fans think or say, just when misinformation is used to spread a narrative as you did earlier saying most of our goals have come from crosses when we very well create direct open play chances.

- Jay -

[cryptofrka]

I mostly do not care what rival fans think or say, just when misinformation is used to spread a narrative as you did earlier saying most of our goals have come from crosses when we very well create direct open play chances.

- Jay -

I never said crosses, I said dead ball situations - meaning set pieces. That is even worse and more boring.
You scored less than 50% of goals from open play this season - and when I last checked you were rated in the bottom 5 in the league for open play goals.

You scored 46 goals so far. 15 (33%) is from set pieces, 4 (9%) from own goals that mostly came from set pieces and 3 (7%) from penalties. You scored only 2 transition (counterattacking) goals which without checking thoroughly seems like the worst in the league.

A dull, boring team built for positional play and utilising height advantage. Shame, there are some really good players there.

[leea-1334]

A dull, boring team built for positional play and utilising height advantage. Shame, there are some really good players there.

Well to be perfectly honest,,, us Spurs fans have always tried to maintain the same style of attacking and flair play, so we scored some beautiful goals already this season, not just beautiful from the shot but from the buildup play, but also still the goal of the season for me personally, the solo run from defense to attack.

But if you asked us, if we made like Arsenal and changed from attacking flair to what they are now and stay top of both Premier League and Champions League,,, many of us would say yes let us do it