The Last Dance

Unfortunately for Emery the guilty party was Raul. Emery started well even though he had no say in the players taken on – they were Rauls choice – look who there agents were.
Aitcho – you think Emery was dross yet 7 out of 10 pundits for a national daily thought otherwise. You do not like Emery it is obvious – I am not that keen on Arteta as a manager and even less so when he was a player.

We all have our dislikes and are free to criticise. Quite simple really.

Tony is an interesting guy – we both share the same music tastes and I expect we probably know the same people from way back. Outside of football he is also prepared to help me progress in business in his part of the world – it is amazing what friendly chat can lead to.

Marc-I get your back 3 trepidation, but we’ve employed a couple different rotating zonal coverage schemes that all involved the same kind of movement that are required in most modern day versions of a 3-4-3, so it wouldn’t be a very difficult transition…if it weren’t for MA’s personnel missteps and more conservative tactical inklings, which left us with no recourse but to deploy a more rudimentary version of Pep’s system, with a light tweaking each summer, we might have already left City in our wake…sorry but what’s on offer now won’t get it done here, so long as Pep remains at City, or in Europe, where better managers will generally make those who can’t make in-game adjustments pay for their overtly static scripts

phase 1

Xhaka sliding left to cover the advancing LB…I get the thought-process, as this would allow Tierney to bomb up the left, then Xhaka, who was already occupying the deeper-lying pivot role, could simply drop on a 45 degree angle to the left whenever possession was lost on his side of the pitch…the problem with this tweak was that it often involved Tierney charging recklessly to the endline and sending a seemingly endless amount of crosses into a largely unoccupied box, as we had no true target man…as such, we tended to give up possession too cheaply, which required Xhaka to be called into action as a LB far too often…unfortunately he had neither the foot speed nor the defensive capabilities to properly deal with a pacey counter attack…this is what ultimately led to MA’s pursuit of Zinchenko, who was a LB by trade and supposedly had the requisite amount of ball skills to play as a pseudo-DM in that inverted role

phase 2

when Partey sat deeper, just in front of our wider sitting CBs, so White could provide the always double-teamed Saka with some much-needed help…this was simply an attempt to correct the the deficiencies of the previous model…with Partey as the pacier pivot, Xhaka was now being relied on as more of an offensive cog, which added considerably more on the left and added more men into the box when we were attacking from the right…White’s presence allowed Saka to get some more 1 v. 1 looks, which enabled him to get into the kind of spaces where he could either shoot with his preferred foot or provide service into a now more player-committed box, at least from the backside…the problem with this approach was that it was difficult to rely on Partey, due to his health concerns and it left us too stretched at the back with little hope of getting the required amount of defensive help from the sloth-like Xhaka when our opponents countered with pace

phase 3

when Gabs was required to provide cover on the left when Zinchenko was deployed in the inverted role, which was meant to give more front side help to our now fully-engaged high press and to likewise provide more sideways passing options in our far more possession-dependent tactical approach…this was fairly successful as Gabs was a left-footed player, so this sort of movement fit him nicely, and it likewise left us in better stead to deal with the counter, as we had more players available to provide defensive coverage due to our more static positioning in the middle third of the pitch…problem with this tweak is that it left us facing a lot of bus sitting sides, who would simply double team our biggest goalscoring threats, Marts and Saka, and not allow Ode, our only real creative force, any time on the ball

so what the fuck is my point, esepcially as it pertains to us making a tactical shift into 3-4-3…I believe that with a few savvy transfer decisions, now that we’ve added one of the premier DMs in world football, we could become one of the most exciting and dominant teams on the planet…we must act fast though before our manager makes more settling big money moves, like with Havertz, or sells off one of our high ceiling players, like Marts, who could light things up if we simply revamped our tactical script

on most nights, towards the end of the season, we deployed a system that looked much more like a 2-3-2-3 with Saliba and Gabs sitting deepest, White, Jorginho/Partey and Tomi on the next level, and Rice and Ode splitting left and right, just behind Tross, Havertz and Saka…so the notion of deploying a 3-4-3 isn’t radically different, at least from a defensive movement standpoint…the big difference is that a 3-4-3 would vastly improve our offensive zone pursuits, if we acquired a high end wingback on the left, another box-to-box midfielder and a clinical Striker up top

Gabs, Saliba and White make for a near perfect back 3, as they’re all well-versed in the movement it would require; not to mention, White came to our attentions when he was deployed as a true RCB in a back 3…Rice would sit at the base of the diamond within the midfield 4, with Timber out right and someone new opposite of him, then Ode would be at the top of the diamond, more centrally-placed so he could provide service to all areas of the pitch…on the outside you would have a combination of 4 pacey players making over and underlapping runs, thus eliminating the opposition’s ability to double-team every threat in wider spaces…this would likewise provide Ode with more time on the ball, thus making him our DeBruyne-like figure, with Rice, our Rodri, tucked in behind…the cherry on the top would be a clincial Striker with the kind of pace and positional intelligence that would undoubtedly force opposing defences into losing their shape on a regular basis, thereby helping those making wider lane runs, as this would greatly lessen the chance of offsides occurring too often…just a few thoughts on the matter

Spot on TRVL – expect a phone call from El B soon.

TRVL

You know my opinion of Arteta’s stumbling round in the dark and tripping over something that works for a handful of matches before repeating the process.

We’re being linked with CM’s and Strikers which if Partey is leaving would usually make sense – the question is what happens to the golden boy Havertz? Arteta got serious form for dropping players whenever he gets the whim but I think he’d struggle to explain the outlay of fee and wages for a player to be backup after only one season.

Such a shame we can’t out Arteta now and give a new manager a season to settle before Pep makes a move and City face the fallout of the charges against them.

The Poooooooch has left Chelsea by mutual consent so Liverpool, ManU and Chelsea will have new people in charge.

I can’t see Chelsea getting out of the rut their in until they A) give a manager some time and B) get the squad down to something sensible numbers wise and stop buying players for the sake of it.

at least with havent got Boeley as our owner. Who next for Chelsea – an Italian I guess.

the whole Pooch exodus is an interesting gig, as I would have expected him to get a minimum of 2 years to try and turn that shit show around…they still have a bloated roster, which isn’t of his own doing, and he suffered a plethora of injuries (most missed games(309) by quite some margin), most notably to Nkunku and James, so I very much doubt anyone would have delivered more…the only criticism I had about his brief tenure was that he waited too long before he took the handbrakes off, but I kind of get his thinking as they don’t have a single rostered CB who I would trust, regardless of the opponent…tbh I think he would have waited even longer if it weren’t for Palmer’s massive uptick in form…personally, I would suspect that he pushed for total control over personnel matters and when they balked, he said see you later bitches…let’s hope that DeZerbi doesn’t get the call, as that lineup is rife with talent/pace…so once it’s been suitably trimmed down and some real CBs are brought into the fold, they could beat us to the whole 3-4-3 punch and fast become a force to be reckoned with…of course, unless that American owner fuck turns into a meddling bitch again

Marc-I wish MA were a stumbling in the dark tactician, as it would suggest that he might have a toolbox chock full of differing tactical ideas, but we both know he’s a one-trick pony, with the occasional tweak, kind of coach…I do agree with your Havertz sentiments/concerns…what are the chances that MA views our scrawny stretch armstrong as a potentially savvy depth piece, as there’s all sorts of opponents where he might provide something off the bench, after all even a broken clock is right twice a day…now if MA goes into this window with a written in stone belief that we’re going to run it back with a front 2 of Havertz and Rice, so to speak, I wouldn’t be surprised if our transfers are far less inspiring than one might expect…if this were the case, I could see us getting another DM, another CB, a LB and only one final third wide side player…fuck I hope not though

TRVL

I wonder how much of it was the Pooch wanting out – there’s clearly serious issues at the club and god knows what else is going on behind the scenes.

TRVL

We won’t buy a first choice LB and only a backup if Zinchenko goes (Tierney’s gone), Arteta won’t go with 2 up front and Ode won’t be dropped, another CB would be a waste of money when we need a quality striker, I do think backup for Saka could be an option.

My guess is our business will be a striker, a CM replacement for Partey if he leaves, backup for Saka and a backup keeper when Ramsdale goes. Of course we’ve also got to cough up for Raya so unless we raise a lot of money through sales or have far more to spend than you’d guess I think that will be the limit.

Marc-I was only speaking of a LB recruit if Zinchenko is sold on, as I think MA will start next season with the same back 4 as he did this season, which was White, Saliba, Gabs and Timber on his wrong side…as for the front 2 gig, I was joking in a way, as I was speaking of those matches where Havertz was deployed as the Striker and Rice spent more time in the opposition’s box than in our end of the pitch

as you know by now, I’m not a fan of wasting 100+M on a DM only to play him as a CAM…much in the same vein as I’m not a proponent of our attempts to redress our longstanding Striker issues by paying above the number for a tweener with a poachers chance of scoring, then gifting him the job simply because MA gave assurances to Rice and/or due to the fact that Havertz fared so poorly at his first positional assignment

as for our midfield, I said a DM over a CM because if my beliefs about Rice’s up-field aspirations are baked into our future plans, we need another defensive cover piece, especially after our re-upping of Jorginho, who undoubtedly got some assurances before putting pen to paper…actually I wouldn’t be that surprised if Partey stayed then left on a free next year, as his monetary return might not be worth the effort, unless he wants to ply his trade in sunny SA

“Arteta insisted that the “only way” to improve was for the Arsenal faithful to keep demanding more of their team…there’s only one way to do it: you have to be more determined, you have to be more ambitious, we need to have a lot of courage and push every limit and everything that we have, because that’s the next step”

look like even Arteta agrees with many of our collective sentiments…now all he has to do is put some of those latter qualities into practice in his everyday managerial life

looks like

regardless of all the nonsense surrounding the supposed Havertz turnaround once he moved farther up the pitch. “Arsenal’s need for a Striker is an open secret”…”If you’re looking on how they can improve they need to get a striker who can score all type of goals, even when Erling Haaland has not played at his best he has scored goals.”

I dare anyone to look at a montage of Havertz’s goals this season and say, with a straight face, that he’s the answer…he’s had a couple things going for him during his recent purplish patch:

(1) he has no legitimate competition for the spot, which speaks volumes about how poor Jesus has been since his injury some 18 months ago…let’s hope we can get the tidy sum we’re gifting him off the books over the next couple of months, although I very much doubt there will be a lot of suitors without us providing some sort of significant financial sweetener

(2) opposing teams simply haven’t adjusted their respective coverage to account for him like they would with a Striker of consequence…in many ways, his time up top has reminded me of Xhaka’s experiences as a more advanced midfielder, as he’s found himself unmarked on numerous occasions inside the box and rarely, if ever, has the opposition sent more than one defender in his general direction…furthermore, he’s played most of his minutes with Saka on his right, which stretches defences, and the little fox in the box Tross to his immediate left, so he’s the least threatening member of our front 3 at all times…to be fair to him he has done a better job at taking his chances in more recently, but that doesn’t change the fact that he has showed no real sign of his old self minus a few glimpses in two matches within a 7 day span

(3) he has become some sort of line in the managerial sand rorschach inkblot and as such every Artetite and his brother are constantly scouring the stat packs for any positive nugget they can use to prop-up this gangly man who’s standing on the hill their willing to die on…so when he started to actually look like someone you might pay a quarter of the wages to, everyone with “skin” in the game rushed to their keyboard to heap plaudits on him…I get it though, as this sitaution was bound to occur considering what transpired during the Willian experiment

in the end, I just hope when it comes time to spend there will be an adult in the room with considerable influence who can bring some common sense to the Striker conversation…as several posters on LIR have so logically suggested, if MA is left to his own devices Havertz will invariably be shoehorned into the lineup match-in and match-out and if that’s up top I just can’t see us winning anything of consequence for another year running…now this doesn’t mean I would rather stick with Jesus and/or Eddie than acquire a more youthful “project”, like a Sesko or a Zirkzee, as they might actually challenge Havertz for minutes, should they even be given a chance to prove their respective worth, but I would much rather we showed some real intent by identifying the best available starting option then do everything in our power to secure his services

Norg
Thanks for your kind words.

TRVL
Pleasure my friend.

BOB
Last words, no BS it’s all out there on LG.

I kept your profession quiet and anything I felt wasn’t pertinent. I’ve told Ambarish I have no problem if he want’s to delete my post; my reasoning is I won’t be addressing you further or Aitcho who I think is you as well.

I think you like a tipple and enjoy posting when you do. You’re in a stressful and emotionally challenging profession, so it’s normal to wind down with something to relax with. I did notice you were belligerent in your rants in the evenings, but wrote more sober posts when you first got up and read LG.

I share my mistakes as much as successes. I hope both will educate others to what’s possible in life and how easy it is to make mistakes.

I’m very much into helping improve the mental health here in the north, and am looking to set up some clinics with medical wellness and retirement homes for the wealthy to support the clinics. I’m sure your wife would be in full support of this. A dr friend near graduation wants to use the clinics to do outreach medicine to the villages deep in the north. The retirement homes will be supported medically by the mental health and medical wellness clinics that will be 24 hour.

Norg has invented a “pellet” that can clean 20 liters of heavy metals and arsenic to make water drinkable. When discussing this with Norg I did some research and found that where I live the water is contaminated from old mining.

My oversharing is to help others especially with mental health issues. Talking to junior’s friends here, and in BKK I am amazed at how easily they talk about their in-spectrum issues. It was so taboo in my early years.

Now there aren’t enough doctors here for 70 million people. In schools around 10% have ADHD at varying levels. The potential reality is 7 million people here are affected by ADHD and what ever that ties to, which can often be autism in my friend’s son’s case.

Out or in or do the hokey cokey, Bob, I don’t mind as long as you don’t bother me. The guys here understand why, so you shouldn’t not enjoy posting here. I won’t bother you or your alter ego Aitcho.

There will be no more posts about you from me.

Bob, instead of throwing a hissy fit and embarrassing yourself drawing more attention to the post by demanding its removal, you might have thought for a moment, and then thought what you had said had been uncalled for at the very least, and apologized. I would have.

The difference here is if we get something wrong we let each other know either with a bit of banter or just being better informed by others. It works nicely where Ambarish tells us LIR, at the last count, had 70K readers and growing.

Don’t stop posting on my account the blog is big enough for both of us and many more.

LIR is for everyone who has a valid input with POVs where you see the club improving.

For me, as it’s been since El B’s day 1, I’ve vehemently stated El B is not the right manager to win big trophies for us.

Same for the rest here; we want to win the Pl and CL and be challenging when we don’t win. If a manager came in and had these results 13124 over 5 years I’d be happy, especially if we added a CL to those 5 years.

The way I see it is we just lost 2 titles we should have won, and were in pole position to do so. 88511 and I’d be happy with my club, I just wouldn’t like the manager, but I’d see the sense in keeping him and would back the squad 100% as I do now except the ones we should move on now:

Zinchenko
Jesus
Vieira
Eddie
Reis
Tavares
Lakonga.

Havertz, Kiwior have done enough to warrant a 2nd season providing Havertz is is back up to the new 9 we bring in and Kiwior can fight Branthwaite if we brought hin in as LB and back up LCB. With Timber and White at RB/RCB we are covered.

We need to replace Partey but keep for next season if we can’t get a decent fee.

We need a creative 8 and a 20 PL goal a season plus striker.

We also need a winning manager who doesn’t bottle run ins.

So far we’ve been 100% right where I wished we’d been 100% wrong.

“Rudd shared what she’s been hearing about Arsenal, and it’s very different from the stories that have been doing the rounds in recent months…The noises coming out of Arsenal are not that they feel they need a striker”

even though the majority of “media” sources are suggesting otherwise, there has been a growing sentiment, among those supposedly in the know, that maybe just maybe a top-notch Striker isn’t in the cards for us this summer…now we still could be in the market for a Striker, if we find a way to rid ourselves of Jesus and/or Eddie, albeit neither are likely to garner the kind of interest that would satisfy our oft-times minboggling valuations, but it’s far more likely that we would simply acquire a coin toss proposition on the relative cheap

all that said, I’m not suggesting that we can’t repeat what we did this season without making a substantial move up top, as the PL has become incredibly top heavy and most of the “top” teams are still in transition; not to mention, many of the more traditional CL giants are in a state of flux, minus Real, who appears dead set on restoring themselves as the undisputed Kings of the footballing world…so if we want to settle for being almost PL champions and going for a similarly deep CL run again, we can likely do so with very little effort in this window

we could trim the roster, get a supposedly versatile inverted LB like Ferdi Kadıoğlu for somewhere’s around 30M, sign Raya and replace Ramsdale, then only splash some real cash on a Bruno or Palhinha, depending on the seriousness of our Rice playing in a more adavnced role plans, and simply cross our fingers and run it back…maybe we luck into finally ending up on top, but I would suspect that Pep, who might be leaving after next season, will make a relentless push for another treble by shoring up a roster that was one of his most vulnerable since arriving from Bayern, which could leave us in a brides maid’s dress for the 3rd season running

or instead we could act like City or Real and put our fucking big boy pants on for once and take FULL advantage of the present situation by going all in…these teams I’ve mentioned don’t tweak their way into prominence, they do everything within their power to bring in the kind of players that will best move their collective needles…so don’t mistake my critiques as the ramblings of a not so closeted Arsenal hater, but those of a 4+ decade long fan wanting nothing but the very best for my beloved side…have a good one

TRVL

We have a store cupboard full of strikers (or similar) already. Havertz is a striker (?), Jesus, Eddie. Two of three surely will be sold to make way for an addition because there will be a spare seat or two on the bench.

Will El B go full on Wenger and say at the end of the window – there were no strikers of qwalitee so we remain with our star man Havertz.

Apparently bookies are slashing the odds on City getting relegated next season due to their up coming hearing.

I’m not sure a points deduction is going to be enough for what they’ve done unless its somehow turned into something that will knock them down multiple divisions.

Norg-that’s undoubtedly my concern…for all his attempts to mimic Pep, albeit to a lesser level, he sure does have a lot of the same “feels” as the latter days Wenger…just wish he would follow Pep’s lead when it comes to his more recent Striker pursuits and stick to trying to emulate Wenger’s pre-Emirates coaching traits…have a good one

Marc-the whole thing worries me from a domino effect sense…while on paper it appears like a slam dunk case, from the outside looking in, I feel like what has transpired in Chelsea since the new ownership has arrived seems far more optically egregious, so the whole thing reeks of a legalese wet dream, meant more to slap hands on occasion than gut the fuck out of the top teams, who all could likely find themselves in the crosshairs if the governing body followed the letter of the law…I just like the visual of a room full of actuaries, high on ketamine, trying to figure out the odds of this or any other kangaroo court case

TRVL

City aren’t actually a top team and Chelsea before Abramovich weren’t close either.

Remember this is being driven by the PL (not FA) which is run via a system where all 20 clubs get a vote but ManU, Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham, Everton, Villa are teams that are all historically far bigger than either of those 2 and hold the power.

What will be behind this is if City get off it gives Newcastle carte blanche to go and do whatever they like – if Newcastle can who do it why not some other non club?

Marc-I’m well-aware of how this particular situation works, I just meant that above all else the PL is a multi-Billion dollar business that doesn’t want to cut off their nose to spite their face…all of the participating members benefit from the inclusion of teams like City and Chelsea and if they were to punish them so severely that we had another Leeds type scenario, that would definitely negatively impact their respective bottom lines…so whereas they might cast “public” dispersions in the direction of the offending parties to appease their own fanbases, in private, they likely adopt a decidely different tone…that said, I understand the concerns involving Newcastle, especially considering it’s new ownership group, but I think they would rather have the status that comes with City’s inclusion within the top division, even if it meant that others might take some similar financial liberties, than pursue a course that required them to excommunicate their most successful clubs, both here and abroad, and publicly admit that they’re the corrupt fucks we all know them to be, considering the length of this “investigation” Cheers

TRVL

See I disagree with you 100% there. If they completely destroyed City by kicking them out of the PL and forcing them to start again at the bottom tier (it happened to Rangers who were far more important to Scottish football) and bankrupting them in the process the PL would notice for about 35 seconds and then move on.

The only people who’d care are a tiny number (by football standards) who really support City – 25,000 – 35,000 max.

Marc-I get your thought-process, but things have changed rather substantially since the time in which the Rangers were sent packing…the money involved now, especially in the PL, as compared to the miniscule Scottish equivalent, is so astronomical that it behooves all involved to seek other ways in which to punish offending members…no matter the real facts, it would be a massive stain on the League as a whole, especially if they were required to air their dirty laundry in a much more public setting…at least now it’s all seemingly just conjecture and speculative, but if you move forward with some sort of relegation action you risk putting your own necks on the line, as the obvious question becomes why did it take you fucks so long to act, which would likely bury everyone involved…not to mention, one of the underlying reasons why people of great wealth get away with this kind of weaselly shit is the belief that anyone in a similar situation would act accordingly, which is something all the new Billionaire owners won’t take lightly, as they don’t want someone going through their respective books with a fine tooth comb moving forward…just my thoughts…of course, I hope I’m wrong

TRVL

Not at all – the info that damns City was leaked to a German Newspaper, City’s defence is that it was obtained illegally not that its untrue.

There would be no reflection on other PL clubs unless they were caught breaking the rules and its worth £50 million a season to whatever team gets City’s place in the top 4.

Greed won’t protect City it’ll destroy them.

Marc-maybe Wenger has been working behind the scenes as an incognito whistleblower…it will be interesting to see how it all unfolds

Morning all
The zipper king wants to introduce a new offside rule as set out below:

“The Wenger offside law being introduced in 2024-25 is a possibility. IF the attacker’s entire body completely overtakes the last defender; it’s offside. But, if a small part of the attacker’s body is ‘offside’, it WON’T be considered offside anymore.”

It clears up the hairs breadth green and red lines looking for the smallest of infringement. It does offer the forward more advantage than defenders. Why not go the other was that the attacker should keep 100% onside with all his body?

The rule I want changed is to raise the flag as soon as player is deemed offside.

Anyone got any thoughts?

today’s rumour mill is rife with “news” about some wide-side depth…most are familiar names, others not so much so…Olise and Neto have appeared on our radar before, whereas Nico WIlliams is a relatively new player of interest…all are talented and pacey players, who likewise fit the multi-positional profile, but one is a major injury waiting to happen and the other 2 likely won’t come without assurances, especially knowing MA’s rotational shortcomings

I get why some might be intrigued by the possibility of acquiring Neto…on his best days he’s a tidy player with speed to burn and the ability to unlock defences, but those days don’t come near often enough to justify spending 65+M for this oft-injured winger/AM…we should avoid him like the plague, unless we actually believe that his injury history has more to do with the negligence of his former employers than his seemingly fragile nature…sadly, this looks the most likely of the 3, even though it might be the most expensive and riskiest option

I’ve only watched Nico a half dozen times or so in the last two years, but even in that relatively small sample size, he’s definitely impressed me…he’s a two footed player, so he can play on either side of the pitch, and he’s top-notch when it comes to ball-carrying, which makes him difficult to defend…I can’t help but think if he came it would be curtains for Marts, as he already fell down the pecking order at the tail end of the season; not to mention, Nico’s unpredictablility in attack might seem like a rather enticing prospect for those propagating the notion that Mart’s has been figured out…personally I feel that this has been overplayed by those who feel beyond obligated to justify any and every move our manager makes, so when Tross started to get the nod, this tall tale gained considerable traction…let’s face it Vinicius Junior would struggle in our sytem that leaves you largely isolated and facing double-teams on a regular basis…I just don’t think he would come without starter assurnaces, which severely complicates matters, and I’m not sure he’s shown that he can score enough goals to warrant the inherent costs, as there would be competition for his services

as for Olise, there’s ample chatter about United’s interest, but that doesn’t mean he couldn’t be poached in the meantime; after all, they have bigger organizational fish to fry before they start making bigger money buys…I do like this player’s up-side, but I do worry about all his soft tissue injuries, especially for someone who plays in wider spaces…the other obvious issue with him is that he’s generally been deployed either centrally or on the right side of the pitch, so unless he’s willing to sit behind Saka and Ode, he likely isn’t worth the level of investment required…that said, it would show some real intent if we could convince him to be a depth piece, as he’s a far superior option to either Nelson or Vieira

any thoughts?

Well, Well – the unexpected. Chiara, my contact in Bergamo has just e-mailed – the mighty Atalanta defeated the unbeaten Leverkusen. Gasperini did it with a reject from UK football scoring a hat trick.

City – it will depend on how their legal mouth piece can deal with the representative of the PL.
Stan is one of the main owners pushing for action against them – the squeaky clean Stan who files his accounts in Wilmington where they look no further than the table top and not whats underneath.

Tony

I’ve seen Wenger proposal before and I like it – it basically shifts the onus to give a bit of advantage to the attacking play. If any part of the attacker than can be used to score is onside then the player is onside.

It keeps the offside rule as black and white but should allow more goals.

Wenger has had some good ideas in the past – one where all leagues were aligned meaning no international breaks during a season I thought was good. International tournaments would be played in close seasons or winter breaks.

NORG

Wenger whatever your opinions about him loved football and was a purist – he wouldn’t want or suggest anything that would hurt the game.

Doesn’t mean he’s right of course but his ideas are at least worth listening to.

Rumours going round that Munich want Vincent Company as their new manager.

Can’t say I saw that one coming.

Marc
Indeed a strange one. BM is more a coaching role than a manager with control. Perhaps that why Pep didnt conquer all when he was there.
It is a real merry go round with manager changes this season – more so than players.

Interesting.
If correct El B has earned his moniker on par with Trump, Erdogan, Modi , Bolsonaro …

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/arsenal-arteta-ramsdale-steve-round-32873005

Hoopah
A year on and Steve Rounds replacement, Carlos Cuesta is also looking to leave. He has had two meetings with Norwich who are keen to take him on.

Tony-I don’t mind Wenger’s suggestion, as it’s more of a spirit of the rule kind of amendment…that said, some will see it as a potential slippery slope type situation, as it might ultimately aid those looking to get rid of VAR altogether…for me it’s never been about VAR itself, it’s been about the piss-poor implementation

VAR – the PGMOL now love what they hated – it has promoted inferior beings to one of importance – just a pity they do not have the intelligence to use it properly.

TRVL
Agreed Rugby TMOs down have many problems other than perhaps repeating the views too anytime. It’s rare they get one wrong even with such tangles of bodies.

I tend to get triggered whenever Wenger get’s involved these days. The PTSD of 2009 to his demise took its toll.

To follow on with something different. Masterchef Australia is outdoing itself once again. These people are amateur cooks who end up plating restaurant quality food. Reyonald was one such cook who now has restaurants.

This link is some of his dishes with some great comments from judges. If you like food, you’ll enjoy this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rknHkImmKz0