Whale.io 🐳 | ⚽ English Premier League Season: 2025/2026

[JollyGood]

There's another interesting market I'm looking up to at the moment; Brighton to finish in TOP6 is 11/1 odd, they're only a point behind Newcastle and would be an interesting battle to see who secures the Europa league spot at the end of the season.

Looking at the Premier League table, Brighton and Newcastle United have 47 points. They are just one point behind Manchester City in 5th place and only two points behind Chelsea in 4th therefore those teams can easily switch places according to results. Fulham and Aston Villa have 45 points. Bournemouth have 44 points.

There is still a lot to play for.

Chelsea is still continuing to sign new players. Even while they aren't in a transfer window they still don't stop. Chelsea is signing 2 players from Sporting seemingly.

This is surprising. Both are highly rated young players. One is going to Chelsea at the end of the season whereas the other will stay at Sporting Lisbon on loan until the end of next season.

Define decline...  With how sorted things are, yeah there could be some decline but it wouldn't be as bad as Man United and Liverpool's decline which lasted more than 10 years.  City could be 'in decline' for a couple of seasons then they'll be back in order.

For a factual assessment of decline (or success) we will have to look back 10 years after Guardiola leaves Manchester City.

[igebotz]

Chelsea is still continuing to sign new players. Even while they aren't in a transfer window they still don't stop. Chelsea is signing 2 players from Sporting seemingly.
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These are players I don't even know of to be honest. Chelsea has been doing this for a long time. They are signing not much known players by paying a really good sum for each one of them. I don't even know how many players they will have in their squad with these transfers. Do you think this is a good transfer policy? I don't find it very good. I think this team was managed better in the Abramovich era.

Two great potentials for the club business-wise but not a good for the team football -wise.. Now these players may not or be good for the first team yet and we're signing them for the first team for next season. When a club keep signing players and forcing them on the manager it never ends well.

Enzo Mascara may not be aware of these transfers, he may just be getting the News same way we're getting it - if the team wants to grow, they must sign players based on the manager's philosophy and the players suitable for his system.

I want to see some more experienced players added to the club for next season; these kids don't excite me.

[JollyGood]

If Maresca did not want the players or if they were signed without his knowledge, then that is unacceptable. If he had an input and desire to work with the two players, it shows the club are backing the manager. How did they get signed?

As for the players themselves, Quenda is 17 years old winger that is highly rated but it seems excessive in a deal that will cost Chelsea up to £44 million. Essugo is a 20 years old defensive midfielder that has been sent off twice during his current loan. He will join Chelsea this summer but Quenda will remain at Sporting Lisbon until the end of the 2026 season.

Two great potentials for the club business-wise but not a good for the team football -wise.. Now these players may not or be good for the first team yet and we're signing them for the first team for next season. When a club keep signing players and forcing them on the manager it never ends well.

Enzo Mascara may not be aware of these transfers, he may just be getting the News same way we're getting it - if the team wants to grow, they must sign players based on the manager's philosophy and the players suitable for his system.

I want to see some more experienced players added to the club for next season; these kids don't excite me.

[igebotz]

If Maresca did not want the players or if they were signed without his knowledge, then that is unacceptable. If he had an input and desire to work with the two players, it shows the club are backing the manager. How did they get signed?

It's not yet summer- those are the blueco project and will continue irrespective of who the manager is and whether the manager supports it or not. They plan to buy more clubs in the future to expand their project and spread the players across Europe

They needed a " Yes sir" manager and Enzo Mascara is one of them;  he accepts everything thrown at him..

As for the players themselves, Quenda is 17 years old winger that is highly rated but it seems excessive in a deal that will cost Chelsea up to £44 million. Essugo is a 20 years old defensive midfielder that has been sent off twice during his current loan. He will join Chelsea this summer but Quenda will remain at Sporting Lisbon until the end of the 2026 season.

I haven't watched those kids and can't tell if it's worth it or not , but our fans seems to be happy with the additions.

[JollyGood]

The way Maresca handled his press conferences (when he justified removing Sterling from the squad) was impressive. If he was doing what the owners wanted, he would have played Sterling considering the amount of money they paid to buy him and the salary they were paying him. He does not seem to be someone they can control.

They needed a " Yes sir" manager and Enzo Mascara is one of them;  he accepts everything thrown at him..

[tokeweed]

Define decline...  With how sorted things are, yeah there could be some decline but it wouldn't be as bad as Man United and Liverpool's decline which lasted more than 10 years.  City could be 'in decline' for a couple of seasons then they'll be back in order.

For a factual assessment of decline (or success) we will have to look back 10 years after Guardiola leaves Manchester City.

I could see a couple of years of somewhat having a hard time in the league, but still good enough to fight for a spot in the top 4.  It's just I think Ferran Soriano is one of the best football execs around and Txiki is one of the best directors of football around who know what the want and who has an overall vision for the club.  After Guardiola, I think they're gonna go after Arteta as his replacement.  If Xavi have had some success in Barca, it could've been him too. 

But there's another guy who's been holding his own as a manager of a big club in Germany...  Vincent Kompany.  His contract ends at 2027 too. 

[igebotz]

The way Maresca handled his press conferences (when he justified removing Sterling from the squad) was impressive. If he was doing what the owners wanted, he would have played Sterling considering the amount of money they paid to buy him and the salary they were paying him. He does not seem to be someone they can control.

They needed a " Yes sir" manager and Enzo Mascara is one of them;  he accepts everything thrown at him..

Frozen out Sterling and chilwell was exactly what the new sporting directors wanted, to cut costs to maintain the 250k average wage cap at the club and Sterling was literally earning more than 300k/week doing nothing but sitting on the bench.

I should also let you know that during Enzo Mascara preseason games; Sterling was one of his favorite and played more minutes than anyone else. I'm sure Sterling was part of his initial plans before he got an order to flush him out. Now the club is 100k/week less on our weekly wages.

But there's another guy who's been holding his own as a manager of a big club in Germany...  Vincent Kompany.  His contract ends at 2027 too. 

Kompany is doing well for himself, but we all saw how bad he was with an average team in an elite league; Manchester City is on the verge of a full rebuilding, and Kompany does not fit into that puzzle just yet.

[JollyGood]

After Guardiola, I think they're gonna go after Arteta as his replacement.  If Xavi have had some success in Barca, it could've been him too.  

There is no reason for Arteta to leave Arsenal to manage Manchester City if they offered him the job. Manchester City are not going to press the opposition and dominate games, their time is over. Arsenal are on the verge of very big success that he helped create, I cannot see him leaving for a club that is heading in to decline.

But there's another guy who's been holding his own as a manager of a big club in Germany...  Vincent Kompany.  His contract ends at 2027 too.  

I do not see him as Manchester City manager. He was fortunate to get the Bayern Munich job after getting relegated with Burnley.

Frozen out Sterling and chilwell was exactly what the new sporting directors wanted, to cut costs to maintain the 250k average wage cap at the club and Sterling was literally earning more than 300k/week doing nothing but sitting on the bench.

I should also let you know that during Enzo Mascara preseason games; Sterling was one of his favorite and played more minutes than anyone else. I'm sure Sterling was part of his initial plans before he got an order to flush him out. Now the club is 100k/week less on our weekly wages.

Chelsea paid £47.5 million to buy him just three years ago and with his £300,000 peer week salary, he cost Chelsea a fortune. Some report state he earns £350,000 per week. Tuchel made Sterling his number one target in July 2022 when he was manager of Chelsea. Sterling still has two years of his contract remaining even though he is on loan at Arsenal.

Maresca stated he gave Sterling time during pre-season but he failed to impress him therefore was removed from the squad.

These are the next Premier League games taking place on Tuesday 1st April:

Arsenal vs Fulham
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs West Ham United
Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United

[tokeweed]

^  Nottingham Forest vs Man United.  Lmaooo.  I'll prolly play it safe and go for the draw no bet at 1.60 for Nottingham Forest.

But there's another guy who's been holding his own as a manager of a big club in Germany...  Vincent Kompany.  His contract ends at 2027 too.  

Kompany is doing well for himself, but we all saw how bad he was with an average team in an elite league; Manchester City is on the verge of a full rebuilding, and Kompany does not fit into that puzzle just yet.

Yeah true...  That's why it's prolly gonna be Arteta who has proven himself with his Arsenal stint.  It's not really exceptional but given that if he manages a club with the financial fire power, he could do great things.

But then again we'll see tho.  Remember that at Barca, Guardiola was said to be 'not ready' too.    But who gave him a chance to manage the club?  Yup...  Ferran Soriano and Txiki.  Same thing with a player called Messi.  

[Ambatman]

Chelsea paid £47.5 million to buy him just three years ago and with his £300,000 peer week salary, he cost Chelsea a fortune. Some report state he earns £350,000 per week. Tuchel made Sterling his number one target in July 2022 when he was manager of Chelsea. Sterling still has two years of his contract remaining even though he is on loan at Arsenal.

Big names rarely make it in Chelsea when they move there
I feel tuchel Would have utilized sterling well
Despite his poor form he's quite skilled just a lil bit of polishing
We saw that with Ancelotti and Militao.

Yeah true...  That's why it's prolly gonna be Arteta who has proven himself with his Arsenal stint.  It's not really exceptional but given that if he manages a club with the financial fire power, he could do great things.

Arteta has brought difference to the Arsenal team and has an advantage of been assistant coach of
Guardiola around 2016 in Manchester City.
If he does leave Arsenal, where are they going to find a good replacement.

[igebotz]

Chelsea paid £47.5 million to buy him just three years ago and with his £300,000 peer week salary, he cost Chelsea a fortune. Some report state he earns £350,000 per week. Tuchel made Sterling his number one target in July 2022 when he was manager of Chelsea. Sterling still has two years of his contract remaining even though he is on loan at Arsenal.

Maresca stated he gave Sterling time during pre-season but he failed to impress him therefore was removed from the squad.

He was worth the price but not the salary when we got him, and it was a bad business all around.  If the owners had not wanted him to leave, he could have remained a squad depth player, like he is at Arsenal.

I think the whole plan was to get him in a stable project to up his game, so the club can get a good money on him next season but that hasn't gone well so far. And you're right about Enzo Mascara on sterling; he did mentioned something like that.

Yeah true...  That's why it's prolly gonna be Arteta who has proven himself with his Arsenal stint.  It's not really exceptional but given that if he manages a club with the financial fire power, he could do great things.

Mancini and Pellegrini are both still managing at top level; they laid the foundation for Pep to thrive and they could still offer something at their age.

[JollyGood]

^  Nottingham Forest vs Man United.  Lmaooo.  I'll prolly play it safe and go for the draw no bet at 1.60 for Nottingham Forest.

Manchester United have played very well recently. If it were not for their recent form I would have been certain Nottingham Forest would win. Now I think this game could be a draw or a win for Manchester United. If Nottingham Forest lose, this is the best time for Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and the rest of the chasing teams to win their own games to put them under pressure.

Big names rarely make it in Chelsea when they move there
I feel tuchel Would have utilized sterling well
Despite his poor form he's quite skilled just a lil bit of polishing

Chelsea fans never got to see the best of Sterling. He will not return to Chelsea and as it stands it seems Arsenal will not buy when the loan ends. He might end up moving abroad. I wonder if Tuchel will give him a recall to the England squad?

He was worth the price but not the salary when we got him, and it was a bad business all around.  If the owners had not wanted him to leave, he could have remained a squad depth player, like he is at Arsenal.

I think the whole plan was to get him in a stable project to up his game, so the club can get a good money on him next season but that hasn't gone well so far.

The price they paid was good but he never delivered in a Chelsea shirt. The salary was a burden around his neck as he was being paid more than any other player in his team. It has not worked at all.

[igebotz]

Chelsea fans never got to see the best of Sterling. He will not return to Chelsea and as it stands it seems Arsenal will not buy when the loan ends. He might end up moving abroad. I wonder if Tuchel will give him a recall to the England squad?

He didn't play his best game under Tuchel and was going to get frozen out if Tuchel had stayed up to this point. I'm sure.

There's a high competition in the English team; Sterling English career is literally dead except he miraculously starts playing well and found himself in a starting lineup somewhere else before World cup.

The price they paid was good but he never delivered in a Chelsea shirt. The salary was a burden around his neck as he was being paid more than any other player in his team. It has not worked at all.

We had the same thing with Lukaku - we're used to paying huge money for shitty players.

[CLS63]

^  Nottingham Forest vs Man United.  Lmaooo.  I'll prolly play it safe and go for the draw no bet at 1.60 for Nottingham Forest.

Manchester United are really in no position to be trusted now. They didn't lose a match in the Premier League for 4 weeks but they are still inconsistent with draws among those matches. The team got much worse with Amorim. They are no longer in the FA Cup either. Only tournament they can win a trophy left is the Europa League. If Amorim doesn't bring the trophy home from there as well then I think he could get sacked with immediate effect. Do you think the same about his future?

[JollyGood]

We had the same thing with Lukaku - we're used to paying huge money for shitty players.

At some stage the Chelsea owners will have to make sure they do not go out and buy players as they used to in the past. To be fair to Chelsea and Maresca, they are not that far away from challenging for the Premier League. If they buy 3-4 players without a huge financial layout that fit the play style Maresca brings, they will give themselves a chance.

Manchester United are really in no position to be trusted now. They didn't lose a match in the Premier League for 4 weeks but they are still inconsistent with draws among those matches. The team got much worse with Amorim. They are no longer in the FA Cup either. Only tournament they can win a trophy left is the Europa League. If Amorim doesn't bring the trophy home from there as well then I think he could get sacked with immediate effect. Do you think the same about his future?

I think it is impossible for the owners to Amorim this season. He will probably stay at least until he has a full season at Manchester United. Failing to win the Europa League will not equate to him getting the sack. Whatever he does this season is irrelevant, it is all about the results he produces next season.

[igebotz]

At some stage the Chelsea owners will have to make sure they do not go out and buy players as they used to in the past. To be fair to Chelsea and Maresca, they are not that far away from challenging for the Premier League. If they buy 3-4 players without a huge financial layout that fit the play style Maresca brings, they will give themselves a chance.

We're at that stage now; the current highest earner currently at the club ( excluded prodigy Sterling and Chilwell) is James at the cap wage of 250k/week. We're never going to get a proven word class players for anything below 250k/week and that's another problem with the new wage structure.

Until we break that structure we're never gonna get Isak or Osimhen or compete with other top clubs.

If Amorim doesn't bring the trophy home from there as well then I think he could get sacked with immediate effect. Do you think the same about his future?

I think it is impossible for the owners to Amorim this season. He will probably stay at least until he has a full season at Manchester United. Failing to win the Europa League will not equate to him getting the sack. Whatever he does this season is irrelevant, it is all about the results he produces next season.

The objective was to provide stability to the club and help rebuild for next season; winning the Europa League will be icing on the cake, and if he doesn't, nothing changes in their contract.

[JollyGood]

Would you like to see Chelsea remove their capped earning and have a system in place where the wage difference between players is excessive? If Isak or Osimhen for example were signed for Chelsea and were earning £350,000 but Sanchez or Caicedo were earning £150,000 it would make it an unhappy dressing room.

We're at that stage now; the current highest earner currently at the club ( excluded prodigy Sterling and Chilwell) is James at the cap wage of 250k/week. We're never going to get a proven word class players for anything below 250k/week and that's another problem with the new wage structure.

Until we break that structure we're never gonna get Isak or Osimhen or compete with other top clubs.

[igebotz]

Would you like to see Chelsea remove their capped earning and have a system in place where the wage difference between players is excessive? If Isak or Osimhen for example were signed for Chelsea and were earning £350,000 but Sanchez or Caicedo were earning £150,000 it would make it an unhappy dressing room.

Yes, because it is the only way to compete for players with other teams; this is how we were able to achieve enough success, and this is what Chelsea was all about before to all of this lunacy with capped wages.

Caciedo and co were earning nothing near to what they are now receiving at Chelsea; they are earning what they deserve and will undoubtedly want to have a world-class attacker in the squad without having to go into his pocket.

[tokeweed]

Yeah true...  That's why it's prolly gonna be Arteta who has proven himself with his Arsenal stint.  It's not really exceptional but given that if he manages a club with the financial fire power, he could do great things.

Mancini and Pellegrini are both still managing at top level; they laid the foundation for Pep to thrive and they could still offer something at their age.

Dunno about those guys as they've already managed the club.  But between the two, I'd like to see Pellegrini back if the Man City brass was really considering the both of them.  I like his more direct style in creating chances.  Never a boring  game with Aguero at the helm.

But as the club wants to keep moving forward, there are three candidates that come to mind...  Arteta, Xabi Alonso and Kompany.  I fancy they'd even consider Julian Nagelsmann.

[igebotz]

Dunno about those guys as they've already managed the club.  But between the two, I'd like to see Pellegrini back if the Man City brass was really considering the both of them.  I like his more direct style in creating chances.  Never a boring  game with Aguero at the helm.

But as the club wants to keep moving forward, there are three candidates that come to mind...  Arteta, Xabi Alonso and Kompany.  I fancy they'd even consider Julian Nagelsmann.

We've seen managers return to their former teams, however Pellegrini and Mancini's styles of play may be considered outdated, and the owners may prefer to hire someone fresh and with a current football concept.

Asking Arteta out of his current position isn't going to be easy unless he get sacked before Pep leaves.