General Premier League Thread 2020-21 - Mod Notes in 1st post. [Updated 17/12/20]

The Leeds players just aren't good enough to play this kind of football successfully at the top level. You need the best attackers available to make it work and while they were that in the Championship, they're out-classed in the Premier League. Put Bielsa in charge of a Real Madrid, Barcelona or Man City side and it would be fireworks.

Agent Coulson wrote: »

Leeds spent £95m during the last transfer window that a very nice transfer spend for any team.

That's the max value and its achievement based so may not go near that

What a miss from Leeds

6 -2 however if it ended 9 - 9 I wouldn't have been surprised.

Spurs 1st to 5th in a week. Mad.

Liverpool & United concede 7 & 6 on the same weekend
Then score 7 & 6 on the same weekend weird

Utopia Parkway wrote: »

To use a Bill Simmonsism. Leeds are either the best bad side in the league or the worst good side.

If it gets a 17th place finish then happy days

ERG89 wrote: »

2013's Jake Livermore sent off for a horrible challenge on Grealish. No need to even make the tackle where he was then.

He got the ball, zero contact with Grealish, who made the most of it.

Hause makes contact, but that’s a yellow. Over the top challenge. Comical

super_furry wrote: »

The Leeds players just aren't good enough to play this kind of football successfully at the top level. You need the best attackers available to make it work and while they were that in the Championship, they're out-classed in the Premier League. Put Bielsa in charge of a Real Madrid, Barcelona or Man City side and it would be fireworks.

It depends on what you mean by top level - I mean they'd get decimated in the Champions League or something, but in the Premier League their players are good enough to play this way and get them around mid-table as a result, which would be a fantastic achievement coming up from the championship.

Against sides that are great on the counter they'll always struggle - losing to Leicester, Liverpool, Utd, Wolves and Palace as a result... but as a newly promoted side they'd have been expected to lose most of those games anyway, so why not go balls out every game, have a bit of craic, and see where it gets ya. Their approach has seen them smash Newcastle and Villa, beat Everton, Sheff U, and Fulham, and take points off Man City (and Arsenal, but who hasn't!).

They're way outperforming the other two teams that came up (have as many points as the other 2 put together), which is the benchmark to be watching. And they're having way more fun doing it.


Rather than getting the best players to play in the best way, I think Bielsa's biggest strength is almost the opposite - he gets a collection of average players to play a style way above themselves by getting them to buy into a shared vision, and die for each other to make it happen. Sure, it's not entirely consistent, but the level he elevates them to every second week is way above anything they could otherwise achieve.

(Though you're right that it would be great to see what he could do at a top top club - but I'm not convinced the players at an already top level club would buy into his self-sacrifice work ethic in the same way as clubs like Leeds and Bilbao do. Even Nketiah last season coming from Arsenal on loan seemed to find it beneath him.)

~Rebel~ wrote: »

It depends on what you mean by top level - I mean they'd get decimated in the Champions League or something, but in the Premier League their players are good enough to play this way and get them around mid-table as a result, which would be a fantastic achievement coming up from the championship.

Against sides that are great on the counter they'll always struggle - losing to Leicester, Liverpool, Utd, Wolves and Palace as a result... but as a newly promoted side they'd have been expected to lose most of those games anyway, so why not go balls out every game, have a bit of craic, and see where it gets ya. Their approach has seen them smash Newcastle and Villa, beat Everton, Sheff U, and Fulham, and take points off Man City (and Arsenal, but who hasn't!).

They're way outperforming the other two teams that came up (have as many points as the other 2 put together), which is the benchmark to be watching. And they're having way more fun doing it.


Rather than getting the best players to play in the best way, I think Bielsa's biggest strength is almost the opposite - he gets a collection of average players to play a style way above themselves by getting them to buy into a shared vision, and die for each other to make it happen. Sure, it's not entirely consistent, but the level he elevates them to every second week is way above anything they could otherwise achieve.

(Though you're right that it would be great to see what he could do at a top top club - but I'm not convinced the players at an already top level club would buy into his self-sacrifice work ethic in the same way as clubs like Leeds and Bilbao do. Even Nketiah last season coming from Arsenal on loan seemed to find it beneath him.)

They spend a lot more money than the other promoted teams.

billyhead wrote: »

They spend a lot more money than the other promoted teams.

My last Leeds home game was a 1-1 draw with Sunderland in April 2018 under Paul Heckingbottom and finished mid table to a team that went down! Today 9 of that squad were involved plus two injured!

[Deleted User] wrote: »

This season.

They've spent nothing like teams promoted in previous seasons, like Villa (to survive by a point) and Fulham, who went down.

They've also kept a very tight wage structure, the wages of Mitrovic alone at Fulham dwarf anything Leeds pay.

They've spent about 90m which is a decent amount in fairness.

Fair play to Leeds for playing right into our hands.

Could have been about 12-7 in the end.

eh i dunno wrote: »

They've spent about 90m which is a decent amount in fairness.

But that's coming from a side that got promoted ? Utd had a sub costing 100m, another that cost 40m, A keeper that cost 20m, full backs that had cost a combined 80m. Centre halfs that cost a combined 125m, A 50m Dm a 58m Am a 15m Lw and a 60m Striker! Meanwhile Leeds had 1/3 of that spend sitting at home injured!

MOTD experts surprised at Aurier crashing into Forfana for the penalty today.

They mustn't have watched Wednesday's game, where he battered Mane, along with Sissoko, for the 80 minutes he could keep up with him. The difference today was VAR was awake and called it.

adaminho wrote: »

Robin Koch is a full German international!

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Robin Koch...

Hes the German international. You said 4 (3 for Spain and Germany).....

~Rebel~ wrote: »

Ah, I see where there's a mixup on the interpretation - their full point was;
"Though injuries have meant they haven't actually played all their signings together yet. But I suspect that when all 4 (3 internationals for Spain and Germany) are fit and the team is settled, they will be more solid."

As in - when all 4 signings (3 of whom are internationals for Spain and Germany) are fit and settled, they will be more solid.

Llorente, Koch, and Rodrigo being the 3 international's, and Raphinha being the 4th big signing.


(Costa and Meslier were also reasonably big signings at 20m for the pair, but both were already at the club on loan last season, so aren't part of the point of players settling in)

Ahh bingo got it.

Agent Coulson wrote: »

Did Big Sam just turn his back at the final whistle and walked down the tunnel without acknowledging anyone?

you just can't teach that kind of class

Agent Coulson wrote: »

Did Big Sam just turn his back at the final whistle and walked down the tunnel without acknowledging anyone?

No he acknowledged Villa manager with a fist bump and 4th official.

I see young Trent is joint top this season for successful tackles in one on one's maybe the fake argument he can't defend will end,,
All stems from two mistake he made one at old Trafford and another to Zaha in his first season at 19