Found out today that the World Cup is going to be on free to air in Australia, might even watch some of it now.

Still really torn between boycotting it or not.

Pandemona

Charlie Sheens House51493 Posts

November 12 2022 16:59 GMT

#962

World Cup Sub Forum is Open! To see it click Sidebar settings and tick it! (Sidebar Here)

Qatar begins in 8 days!

Liquid`Drone

Norway28736 Posts

November 12 2022 19:38 GMT

#963

With Chelsea getting 2 points from the past 5 games, that is actually their worst 5 game PL streak since 1999. Back then they also played 5 games in a row with 2 draws and 3 losses. This current streak has slightly worse goal difference though - if you factor in goal difference, it's their worst PL streak since 1994.

Pandemona

Charlie Sheens House51493 Posts

November 12 2022 20:07 GMT

#964

Time to move to England hype, ITS COMING HOME!!!!!!

sharkie

Austria18571 Posts

November 12 2022 20:11 GMT

#965

Wow city losing this game before the world cup could be huge. Almost their whole squad will be at the WC right?

Liverpool only have seven

Jockmcplop

United Kingdom9768 Posts

November 12 2022 20:12 GMT

#966

Forest off the bottom!
I hope no-ones stupid enough to write us off.

WombaT

Northern Ireland26225 Posts

November 12 2022 21:04 GMT

#967

Gabriel Jesus, is there a more all-action number 9 (ish) in the league? Kane’s a better pivot/playmaker but Jesus runs non-stop chasing things and really drives at players with the ball.

Predicting he’d be a great signing is a rare win for me in the world of predictions!

Liquid`Drone

Norway28736 Posts

November 12 2022 21:25 GMT

#968

Norway with the top goalscorer for the top two teams! Arsenal with a 5 point lead. Sweet first 40% of the season we've had.

plasmidghost

Belgium16168 Posts

November 12 2022 21:44 GMT

#969

WE ARE TOP OF THE LEAGUE AGAIN

plasmidghost

Belgium16168 Posts

November 12 2022 21:51 GMT

#970

Also, fun times in Belgium, where Charleroi fans, despite being 1-0 up at home, threw so many flares onto the pitch that the match got forfeited

evilfatsh1t

Australia8793 Posts

November 13 2022 02:09 GMT

#971

i hope arsenal wins the league. theyve been my 2nd favourite team since the wenger days and im sick to death of fucking city winning it

RKC

2848 Posts

November 13 2022 03:42 GMT

#972

As a neutral football fan, Arsenal winning the EPL would be awesome.

But this season has been really messed up by WC. Players distracted, burning out, and fearing injuries. Club managers not having a firm control over the squad. Reminds me a lot of Leicester's Cinderella run - yes, they would always go down in the annals of history, but there's an element of luck because the top teams were caught in transition and just suddenly stumbled at once.

This season, wheels have just come off for Chelsea and Liverpool. MU is in transition. MC has too many international players. Spurs is just, well, doing Spurdsy things.

Actually, a real Cinderella story would be Newcastle ending up Champions!

WombaT

Northern Ireland26225 Posts

November 13 2022 04:22 GMT

#973

On November 13 2022 12:42 RKC wrote:
As a neutral football fan, Arsenal winning the EPL would be awesome.

But this season has been really messed up by WC. Players distracted, burning out, and fearing injuries. Club managers not having a firm control over the squad. Reminds me a lot of Leicester's Cinderella run - yes, they would always go down in the annals of history, but there's an element of luck because the top teams were caught in transition and just suddenly stumbled at once.

This season, wheels have just come off for Chelsea and Liverpool. MU is in transition. MC has too many international players. Spurs is just, well, doing Spurdsy things.

Actually, a real Cinderella story would be Newcastle ending up Champions!

Newcastle winning would be like rewriting Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to have the rich kid win the Wonka factory

evilfatsh1t

Australia8793 Posts

November 13 2022 04:36 GMT

#974

yeah newcastle winning would be terrible for football. one thing that still gives me joy is knowing that money cant buy you a champions league (psg, city)

RKC

2848 Posts

November 13 2022 06:42 GMT

#975

Almost every top European club is bankrolled by rich investors from Middle-East, America, and Asia. Choose your poison.

There's a difference how Man City, PSG, and Newcastle are being managed and coached. If you can't separate football from politics, then why bother watching Champions League or EPL kill all of your joy as a fan. Just stick to the lower leagues then.

WombaT

Northern Ireland26225 Posts

November 13 2022 13:25 GMT

#976

I can’t separate football from politics because people considerably more powerful than me have used it as a vehicle for political means.

There arguably isn’t enough politics in football, least from the fan side of the ledger.

I can still appreciate the artistry of the game, or admire those working magic.

This group of players and what Eddie Howe’s got out of them thus far, great. But the flip side is, if they achieve/overachieve I just see that opening the funding floodgates to shut off competition who aren’t so bankrolled.

I think the takeover did open certain doorways in terms of attracting players/staff who wouldn’t have gone. But at least in terms of finances Newcastle could have done this under Ashley’s stewardship, which is the real shame, and why I get why their fans were so desperate for new owners they’d accept Saudi

Liquid`Drone

Norway28736 Posts

November 13 2022 13:54 GMT

#977

Even if 'all are bad', there are still some that are worse. I'm not a fan of American owners who are trying to make a profit, but I prefer those over the Russian owner who just wanted to have some fun (mostly because I think Abramovic' wealth was earned in an even more questionable manner, not that I have much of an idea of just what kind of guy Stan Kroenke is), and I preferred him over the Arab owners who are attempting to use sports as a way to advertise their abhorrent regimes. I've been a Newcastle fan since like, 1991, but I can't feel good about supporting them now. Arsenal strikes me as 'much less bad' than Newcastle/City/Chelsea - and then I also always enjoyed them during Wenger years, so now, they're the ones getting my vote.

RKC

2848 Posts

November 13 2022 16:50 GMT

#978

Any sale or transfer of club ownership would need to pass some regulatory standard. It's biased and discriminatory to simply assume owners from Western democracies are more 'legit' and 'clean' than Asia, Middle-East and rest of the world. I don't want to turn this thread into politics, so that's the last I'll say about it.

I would continue to cheer the likes of Almiron, Haaland, and Nunez for their skill, grit, and passion. Even if the cash that funded their transfer into the EPL is tainted, that won't affect my admiration and support for them and clubs that nurture them.

What irks me more, from a footballing perspective, is when clubs like PSG, Real Madrid, Juventus, and Bayern Munich, at different eras, dominating the transfer market by buying off all the top players from close competitors in the domestic market. Or problems like doping, refereeing bias, gambling and bribery, and fan hooliganism. Those are direct harms that destroy the competitive spirit of football.

That's not to say that 'blood' money in football is not a serious problem. It's just a serious problem that can be divorced from football itself.

evilfatsh1t

Australia8793 Posts

November 13 2022 18:24 GMT

#979

clutch goal by garnacho. he could be a better mason greenwood

zev318

Canada4306 Posts

November 13 2022 18:26 GMT

#980

sucks for fulham, they outplayed manu the entire 2nd half. the manu goal was literally like the only time they had more than 3 passes together without turning the ball over