2021-22 English Premier League Discussion Thread

[Baphomet]

This Newcastle team will be very good with the right investment. Joelinton looks like an absolute force in midfield, who could have predicted that given how poorly he played as a forward?

Really impressed by them today.

[Baphomet]

Arsenal bottling top 4 is a trophy for me.

Spurs losing to Norwich and finishing 5th would be the most spursy thing to do ever. I guess Kane stays (and regrets it later) if spurs finish 4th, leaves if they finish 5th.

Spurs need to avoid lasagna at all costs. I've intentionally avoided any kind of crowing because there's still a match to be played, even if it is Norwich, and it's Spurs and we do it time and time again.

[wco81]

How much rope does Arteta have?

The behind the scenes show on Arsenal's season will be fascinating.

[Baseline81]

How much rope does Arteta have?

The behind the scenes show on Arsenal's season will be fascinating.

Plenty considering he signed a contract extension a couple weeks back.

[HIF]

How much rope does Arteta have?

The behind the scenes show on Arsenal's season will be fascinating.

A whole season without European football and still he can't get them 4th in a two horse race. Happy he's staying, he just isn't elite. That squad have underperformed so much - and he still plays Xhaka.

[HIF]

How much rope does Arteta have?

The behind the scenes show on Arsenal's season will be fascinating.

Plenty considering he signed a contract extension a couple weeks back.

At least he's making Conté look good

[Baseline81]

A whole season without European football and still he can't get them 4th in a two horse race. Happy he's staying, he just isn't elite. That squad have underperformed so much - and he still plays Xhaka.

Plenty of Arsenal fans realize Arteta's not the manager to bring them out of this mess. Of course there are those that will back whomever is in charge, though.

He's spent approximately 250 million, and it's not enough to surpass likely the worst Manchester United (in the PL era) as well as a Tottenham squad that began the year with Nuno Espirito Santo at the helm. Both clubs will bring in summer reinforcements.

[LDNMagic90]

A whole season without European football and still he can't get them 4th in a two horse race. Happy he's staying, he just isn't elite. That squad have underperformed so much - and he still plays Xhaka.

Plenty of Arsenal fans realize Arteta's not the manager to bring them out of this mess. Of course there are those that will back whomever is in charge, though.

He's spent approximately 250 million, and it's not enough to surpass likely the worst Manchester United (in the PL era) as well as a Tottenham squad that began the year with Nuno Espirito Santo at the helm. Both clubs will bring in summer reinforcements.

Ironically I do believe that if Arsenal stuck with Unai Emery they'd benefit massively. They just weren't patient with him but weirdly patient with Arteta, like why give him a new contract?

[danfantastk32]

How many Arsenal fans rue the day they so joyously ran Wenger out of town?

I Suppose it was prob time for a new face. And yes....it had been about 13 years since they had lifted the prem, but let's also realize that in the last 25 years or so, one of the fu%^ing Manchester teams have won 16 times, and Chel$ea 5 times. So there has been few chances for anyone else.


Sheesh...you know, its pretty impressive on one hand, but it's a little sad that in 29 years, you have the Manchester twins 18 times, and Chelsea 5. 3 for Arsenal, and then Blackburn, Leicester (how weird was that....but good for them!) and Liverpool finally broke through. Seems like a little more parity would be nice. For comparison, there have been 15 to 16 different Superbowl champs in that same time. About half the league. And that's with the Patriots, and the run they had. Seems like a "Healthier" league to me....I dunno. I suppose the EPL is fine, but seems like if you were an Aston Villa, a Wolverhampton, Leeds, Sunderland, Sheffield, Burnley, Newcastle, etc etc - you'd like to go into a season at least once a decade feeling like you have a shot. I know the NFL has some eternally crappy teams (hi Detroit), but I feel like even in the last 30 years....a team like Dallas, Arizona, Miami, Bears, Vikings may not win....but they are legit in the discussion, and make it a couple rounds in the postseason. I'd say you have 22-25 teams in a 15 year period that either win, or get fairly close, in the NFL.

In the last 25 or so years...you have Leicester's bizzaro win, but then you got Manc-twins, chelsea, Arse, Tott, and Liverpool. And in that, Tott haven't won, and Liverpool finally got their first. I'm sure I'm forgetting 3 or 4 times that some team came in 3rd, and it was KINDA close....but really?

I dunno...I started out talking about Wenger, but got off on this tangent. I think the lack of playoffs make it more straightforward, and it is apple to oranges.....but I do think the EPL would be a bit better if there was more parity. How to go about....I have no idea. And for what it's worth......soccer seems to be doing just fine in the world, and there are plenty of leagues without even close to the level of parity that England has. So I should prob shut up.

Food for thought, I suppose.

[Young Stapler]

Arsenal need an owner who will respect the club and the fans. Kroenke OUT

[HIF]

How many Arsenal fans rue the day they so joyously ran Wenger out of town?

I Suppose it was prob time for a new face. And yes....it had been about 13 years since they had lifted the prem, but let's also realize that in the last 25 years or so, one of the fu%^ing Manchester teams have won 16 times, and Chel$ea 5 times. So there has been few chances for anyone else.


Sheesh...you know, its pretty impressive on one hand, but it's a little sad that in 29 years, you have the Manchester twins 18 times, and Chelsea 5. 3 for Arsenal, and then Blackburn, Leicester (how weird was that....but good for them!) and Liverpool finally broke through. Seems like a little more parity would be nice. For comparison, there have been 15 to 16 different Superbowl champs in that same time. About half the league. And that's with the Patriots, and the run they had. Seems like a "Healthier" league to me....I dunno. I suppose the EPL is fine, but seems like if you were an Aston Villa, a Wolverhampton, Leeds, Sunderland, Sheffield, Burnley, Newcastle, etc etc - you'd like to go into a season at least once a decade feeling like you have a shot. I know the NFL has some eternally crappy teams (hi Detroit), but I feel like even in the last 30 years....a team like Dallas, Arizona, Miami, Bears, Vikings may not win....but they are legit in the discussion, and make it a couple rounds in the postseason. I'd say you have 22-25 teams in a 15 year period that either win, or get fairly close, in the NFL.

In the last 25 or so years...you have Leicester's bizzaro win, but then you got Manc-twins, chelsea, Arse, Tott, and Liverpool. And in that, Tott haven't won, and Liverpool finally got their first. I'm sure I'm forgetting 3 or 4 times that some team came in 3rd, and it was KINDA close....but really?

I dunno...I started out talking about Wenger, but got off on this tangent. I think the lack of playoffs make it more straightforward, and it is apple to oranges.....but I do think the EPL would be a bit better if there was more parity. How to go about....I have no idea. And for what it's worth......soccer seems to be doing just fine in the world, and there are plenty of leagues without even close to the level of parity that England has. So I should prob shut up.

Food for thought, I suppose.

Football is so much bigger than the NFL and fans have happiness from far different standards. Most teams fans don't expect to win the league and find happiness from a good cup run or not being relegated or winning the championship etc... There is no comparison between a small closed shop like the NFL and the multi -league system of English football. However the bias towards the few top teams and the blind eye turned towards financial discrepancy is wrong and needs addressing

[danfantastk32]

How much rope does Arteta have?

The behind the scenes show on Arsenal's season will be fascinating.

A whole season without European football and still he can't get them 4th in a two horse race. Happy he's staying, he just isn't elite. That squad have underperformed so much - and he still plays Xhaka.

I feel like both Arsenal, and Tott are in the same boat: They are both good, and can give you fits....."any given Sunday" and all that. But man, are they inconsistent. One minute Arsenal have won 5 in a row, and they look like they have it figured out. And then they run 3 straight draws....followed by an embarrassing loss. Tott are the same.

Look at their stats: 21 wins each. 11 loses for Tott....13 for Arsenal. But 5 draws for Tott, to 3 for arse. Double-digit loses. Feels like they have both been at this point for several years. You write them off......and the rattle 6 wins in a row, and are suddenly in the thick of it. But then.....bam! draw....loss....loss....draw.....loss, and suddenly they are gons

[HIF]

How much rope does Arteta have?

The behind the scenes show on Arsenal's season will be fascinating.

A whole season without European football and still he can't get them 4th in a two horse race. Happy he's staying, he just isn't elite. That squad have underperformed so much - and he still plays Xhaka.

I feel like both Arsenal, and Tott are in the same boat: They are both good, and can give you fits....."any given Sunday" and all that. But man, are they inconsistent. One minute Arsenal have won 5 in a row, and they look like they have it figured out. And then they run 3 straight draws....followed by an embarrassing loss. Tott are the same.

Look at their stats: 21 wins each. 11 loses for Tott....13 for Arsenal. But 5 draws for Tott, to 3 for arse. Double-digit loses. Feels like they have both been at this point for several years. You write them off......and the rattle 6 wins in a row, and are suddenly in the thick of it. But then.....bam! draw....loss....loss....draw.....loss, and suddenly they are gons

I agree. It is also due to the quality throughout the EPL. On any given day, anyone can beat anyone. Tottenham and Arsenal are simply lucky that we have CL spots this year because as you say they are not really consistent enough to truly merit playing against Europe's elite, but then again the CL has expanded so much that they'll be upset if they don't reach the knockouts.

[Baphomet]

A whole season without European football and still he can't get them 4th in a two horse race. Happy he's staying, he just isn't elite. That squad have underperformed so much - and he still plays Xhaka.

I feel like both Arsenal, and Tott are in the same boat: They are both good, and can give you fits....."any given Sunday" and all that. But man, are they inconsistent. One minute Arsenal have won 5 in a row, and they look like they have it figured out. And then they run 3 straight draws....followed by an embarrassing loss. Tott are the same.

Look at their stats: 21 wins each. 11 loses for Tott....13 for Arsenal. But 5 draws for Tott, to 3 for arse. Double-digit loses. Feels like they have both been at this point for several years. You write them off......and the rattle 6 wins in a row, and are suddenly in the thick of it. But then.....bam! draw....loss....loss....draw.....loss, and suddenly they are gons

I agree. It is also due to the quality throughout the EPL. On any given day, anyone can beat anyone. Tottenham and Arsenal are simply lucky that we have CL spots this year because as you say they are not really consistent enough to truly merit playing against Europe's elite, but then again the CL has expanded so much that they'll be upset if they don't reach the knockouts.

I'm not sure I follow, why are Spurs and Arsenal fortunate that we have CL spots? England's coefficient will always ensure we have four slots and it's been that way for a long time. When these Super League-lite CL changes take place in a few years, I would agree 100% that the teams benefitting from the new nonsense rules who fall outside the top four would be lucky.

However, Spurs' current points tally would have been enough to finish third the last two seasons, with a game still to be played. Spurs have also performed very well against City and Liverpool four times this season, who along with Real are clearly the best teams in the world at the moment. When you consider those factors, I think Spurs do merit their place, should they be able to clinch a CL spot.

[danfantastk32]

I feel like both Arsenal, and Tott are in the same boat: They are both good, and can give you fits....."any given Sunday" and all that. But man, are they inconsistent. One minute Arsenal have won 5 in a row, and they look like they have it figured out. And then they run 3 straight draws....followed by an embarrassing loss. Tott are the same.

Look at their stats: 21 wins each. 11 loses for Tott....13 for Arsenal. But 5 draws for Tott, to 3 for arse. Double-digit loses. Feels like they have both been at this point for several years. You write them off......and the rattle 6 wins in a row, and are suddenly in the thick of it. But then.....bam! draw....loss....loss....draw.....loss, and suddenly they are gons

I agree. It is also due to the quality throughout the EPL. On any given day, anyone can beat anyone. Tottenham and Arsenal are simply lucky that we have CL spots this year because as you say they are not really consistent enough to truly merit playing against Europe's elite, but then again the CL has expanded so much that they'll be upset if they don't reach the knockouts.

I'm not sure I follow, why are Spurs and Arsenal fortunate that we have CL spots? England's coefficient will always ensure we have four slots and it's been that way for a long time. When these Super League-lite CL changes take place in a few years, I would agree 100% that the teams benefitting from the new nonsense rules who fall outside the top four would be lucky.

However, Spurs' current points tally would have been enough to finish third the last two seasons, with a game still to be played. Spurs have also performed very well against City and Liverpool four times this season, who along with Real are clearly the best teams in the world at the moment. When you consider those factors, I think Spurs do merit their place, should they be able to clinch a CL spot.

Yeah, I got no beef with either of those teams making it. Them's the rules. They're 4th.

I think HIF is arguing that neither team would make it playing like this in seasons past.....but your point is valid. They have the points that would qualify in the past 2 years...so it's not like they are taking advantage of some crazy fluke year.

Like I said....no beef there. I'd just like to see the two teams get a little more consistent. If they could get their loses down into the 5-6 range....things would be alot more interesting.

[wco81]

One criticism about Wenger was that he wouldn't spend big to acquire big name players for big transfer fees.

He was trying to money ball it to an extent.

But big time European soccer has become mostly about haves vs. have nots. Well not so much that, if a team like Leicester breaks through, they will sell a good young player to one of the top clubs in the same league.

It would be unimaginable in US team sports, to trade your best players to a long-time rival or a team at the top of the league.

It used to be the case, for instance in the '60s and '70s, dominant players like Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem forced their way to the Lakers because their teams couldn't pay them the high salaries they wanted. Only a big market team like the Lakers could.

But imagine if players like Giannis or Jokic made their way to LA or NY because their teams wouldn't pay them enough. Well within the context of the salary cap, smaller market teams can pay the super max contracts. But smaller market NBA teams are owned by billionaires these days.

OTOH, without the salary cap, maybe billionaires wouldn't buy small market teams.

[HIF]

I feel like both Arsenal, and Tott are in the same boat: They are both good, and can give you fits....."any given Sunday" and all that. But man, are they inconsistent. One minute Arsenal have won 5 in a row, and they look like they have it figured out. And then they run 3 straight draws....followed by an embarrassing loss. Tott are the same.

Look at their stats: 21 wins each. 11 loses for Tott....13 for Arsenal. But 5 draws for Tott, to 3 for arse. Double-digit loses. Feels like they have both been at this point for several years. You write them off......and the rattle 6 wins in a row, and are suddenly in the thick of it. But then.....bam! draw....loss....loss....draw.....loss, and suddenly they are gons

I agree. It is also due to the quality throughout the EPL. On any given day, anyone can beat anyone. Tottenham and Arsenal are simply lucky that we have CL spots this year because as you say they are not really consistent enough to truly merit playing against Europe's elite, but then again the CL has expanded so much that they'll be upset if they don't reach the knockouts.

I'm not sure I follow, why are Spurs and Arsenal fortunate that we have CL spots? England's coefficient will always ensure we have four slots and it's been that way for a long time. When these Super League-lite CL changes take place in a few years, I would agree 100% that the teams benefitting from the new nonsense rules who fall outside the top four would be lucky.

However, Spurs' current points tally would have been enough to finish third the last two seasons, with a game still to be played. Spurs have also performed very well against City and Liverpool four times this season, who along with Real are clearly the best teams in the world at the moment. When you consider those factors, I think Spurs do merit their place, should they be able to clinch a CL spot.

Mate, you've both been more or less pish this season along with Man u.

The whole "Champion's League" setup is stupid anyway. How many times have Spurs been in the Champion's league and how many times have they been Champions of the League? Change the name to European league if you just want to have a lot of games where the rich clubs play against each other. Spurs haven't even won a national Trophy in I don't know how long and yet they're in the Champion's league. Arsenal haven't done a lot more but at least they can show a few Cups. European Cup and Cup winner's cup were so much more genuine, but then FIFA wanted to milk the football money.

[Baphomet]

Mate, you've both been more or less pish this season along with Man u.

The whole "Champion's League" setup is stupid anyway. How many times have Spurs been in the Champion's league and how many times have they been Champions of the League? Change the name to European league if you just want to have a lot of games where the rich clubs play against each other. Spurs haven't even won a national Trophy in I don't know how long and yet they're in the Champion's league. Arsenal haven't done a lot more but at least they can show a few Cups. European Cup and Cup winner's cup were so much more genuine, but then FIFA wanted to milk the football money.

The qualification format for the CL has been like this for 20-25 years. The criteria to make the Champions League, right now, in England, in the year 2022 AD, is to finish in the top four of the Premier League. As to how Spurs and Arsenal are in the frame to qualify, one of them will have accumulated more points than 16 other teams. It has nothing to do with winning domestic cups. Take it up with UEFA, or better yet the laws of causality and relativity that dictate the continuous passage of time, if you don't like the current format and want the old cups back.

[wco81]

UCL is obviously popular.

So they're not going to make drastic changes.


BTW are the Spurs reaping benefits from that new stadium which had the unfortunate timing of opening during the pandemic?

Presumably increased revenues would make the club better able to acquire better players to better contend for the EPL and UCL?

[Baphomet]

UCL is obviously popular.

So they're not going to make drastic changes.


BTW are the Spurs reaping benefits from that new stadium which had the unfortunate timing of opening during the pandemic?

Presumably increased revenues would make the club better able to acquire better players to better contend for the EPL and UCL?

It will help, assuming the club is run well and our scouting and development is up to par. It doesn't matter how much money you spend if you spend it poorly.

Also, consider Arsenal, who have only really declined since they moved from Highbury to the Emirates Stadium in 2006 despite similar promises of upward momentum, though it's worth noting that their decline in league fortunes coincides with the takeover and rise of Man City.