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Know Thine EPL Enemies

The Second Spitter Aug 09 2010 05:34 AM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Aug 09 2010 07:54 AM

Manchester City Man City have more money than God. Almost. Their owners control about 10% of the world’s oil reserves. So the gazillion dollar question is: can they convert all their wealth into silverware? Probably, but not the silverware they crave. They have an astute and experienced manager in Roberto Mancini (3 Serie A titles under his belt) and a massive squad (they can comfortably field two competitive teams) -- it’s hard to see where they can go wrong, right? Well, the specter of complacency will haunt them as it did last year. They have far too many players that are far too inconsistent – Adebayor, Robinho, Wright-Phillips, the list goes on, content to collect their fat paychecks and turn out once a month. Also the fact they’ve chopped and changed their squad so much means they’ll more than likely to be slow out of the blocks. Mr Man City Carlos Tevez – anybody who calls Gary Neville “a boot-licking moron” is all right in my book. Always saves something special for the Manchester derby. Ins and Outs Their most impressive acquisition in my view is Jerome Boetang who impressed in defense for Germany in South Africa and bolsters City’s iffy defense. Inbound (Player, Amount/Type, To/From) Valeri Bojinov, Undisclosed, Parma Yaya Toure, Undisclosed, Barcelona David Silva, Undisclosed, Valencia Jerome Boateng, Undisclosed, Hamburg Aleksandar Kolarov, Undisclosed, Lazio With more to come, I’m sure. Outbound Ryan McGivern, On Loan, Walsall Adam Clayton, On Loan, Leeds United Javier Garrido, Undisclosed, Lazio Benjani, Released, Sylvinho, Released, Gunnar Nielsen, On Loan, Tranmere Rovers David Ball, On Loan, Swindon Town Valeri Bojinov, Undisclosed, Parma Martin Petrov, Free Transfer, Bolton Wanderers Paul Marshall, Free Transfer, Walsall 2010/11 Kit Home: Sky blue always looks good… Away: …and two-tone blue always looks like puke. Predictions EPL: 3rd FA Cup: Semi-Finalists Carling Cup: Winners Europa League: Semi-Finalists

metirish Aug 09 2010 07:14 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

Nice work , City need that winning f*&^k you mentality, until then they are just "noisy neighbors ". It takes more than spending hundreds of millions every transfer session to build a team, they want rid of Stephen Ireland who regressed under Mancini, gotta pay $30 million for that spot, he's a homegrown player and that's what the basis of the team should be. They need to do something with Robinho .

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 09 2010 09:04 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

I think they're looking for more of an "up yours" attitude, although a little "your mother's a whore" should work, too. Boateng's a nice move (if Toure's in form, that backline should be much improved). Silva, though, was a huge reason for David Villa's success at Valencia, should anchor the left side for a while, free up Tevez a bit, and create some opportunities for Adam Johnson to do some real damage.

metirish Aug 11 2010 07:45 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies Edited 2 time(s), most recently on Aug 11 2010 09:27 AM

Manchester United The Bad There is a lot of bad, namely the Glazers and the mounting debt they have leveraged against the club.The BBC's Panorama program(he longest-running current affairs documentary series in the world had the debt at £1.1bn, the club is valued by Forbes at £1.19bn($1.84bn). Excerpt from the documentry Manchester United’s owners are £1.1bn in debt – £400m more than previously known – after borrowing extensively against their shopping mall business. BBC Panorama has found evidence that the Glazer family’s debt levels may threaten their hold on the club. A spokesman for the American family has said it holds more than £2bn in assets. But the extent of the debt owed by the Glazers is likely to fuel a continuing revolt by some supporters, who oppose their ownership of the club. Mortgage documents seen by the BBC show that the Glazers have borrowed £388m ($570m) against shopping malls and £66m ($95m) against their American National Football League team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In addition to their mortgages in the US, a portion of the Glazer family’s £700m Manchester United debt will soon see them charged interest at a rate of 16.25%. Fans fear that, despite the club’s record of success on the pitch, the Glazers’ leveraged buy-out of United has saddled the club with debt and that may mean that there is no spare money in the future to buy a new generation of star players. Disappointed fans have launched the “green and gold” campaign that resurrects the original team colours in protest over the Glazers’ ownership. Their numbers have reached 158,000 and former United star David Beckham has signalled his support. They point to the £80m sale of star striker Cristiano Ronaldo last year and note that he has not been replaced by a player of similar quality. Yet ticket prices have gone up by more than a third. City analyst Andy Green, 37, is the disgruntled Manchester United supporter who first uncovered the extent of the Glazers’ debts. Mr Green said: “They borrowed more money at inflated valuations right at the top of the cycle. “These are people who tell us not to worry about Manchester United debt because they are great businessmen. In their core business in the US they got it absolutely wrong.” Dave Whelan, Chairman of Wigan Athletic, told Panorama: “I don’t think anybody can be satisfied with how Manchester United are being run… they have got somewhere in the order of three-quarters of a billion pounds worth of debt. That has got to be eliminated and eliminated quickly.” The Glazer family’s main assets are the shopping centre business in America, First Allied Corporation, along with Manchester United and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. First Allied is a private business and its accounts are not publicly available. But Mr Green discovered that the Glazers’ shopping mall mortgages had been bundled with other loans as Commercial Mortgage Backed Securities. Those bundles are publicly traded and therefore require the Glazers to provide detailed information on all the mortgages, which are then publicly available in the US. Mr Green found mortgages – confirmed by the BBC – on 63 of 64 First Allied shopping centres, totalling £388m ($570m). Most of those were taken out with Lehman Brothers before the US investment banking giant went bankrupt, triggering the global banking crisis in 2008. When they bought Manchester United in 2005, the Glazer family borrowed £500m and paid the remaining £272 million in cash. Mr Green found that the Glazers had remortgaged 25 of their shopping centres in the six months before the takeover. He believes the family borrowed against their US properties to pay for United: “At the time when they had to present a huge amount of cash over here in the UK they borrowed a huge amount of extra money in the US and publicly they didn’t buy anything else that year.” The situation at Manchester United reflects the wider issue within the Premier League, where clubs like Liverpool and West Ham are struggling with huge debts and FA Cup finalists Portsmouth barely staved off bankruptcy. Both the Premier League and the FA declined requests for interviews on the subject of debt in football. (BBC Sport) David Conn at the Guardian has been doing some great reporting on the business side of football for years http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/david-c ... ter-united The Good On the field the club is still going strong, previous to last season they had won three in a row, the beat Chelsea last weekend in the EPL curtain raiser The Charity Shield, yes it's a glorified exhibition but the game was surprising good. Alex Ferguson has never found a midfield player to replace Roy Keane , in terms of leadership, drive and presence , as such Fergie rode Giggs and Scholes as much as possible last season and I don't see that changing. Last season was supposed to be Berbatov and Rooney , it quickly became apparent that the partnership wasn't gelling and Rooney basically was asked to go it alone up there, Michael Owen helped but got injured and he's not a full time player now anyway , with that in mind the Man U scouts looked to have struck gold with Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez , you'll recall that he scored twice for Mexico in the WC, where his value probably tripled , Ferguson bought him before the WC for an undisclosed fee believed to be around 8 million. He is the first Mexican to play for Manchester United and it will be interesting to see how he adapt, great pedigree as his dad played for Mexico in the 1986 WC and his grandfather played for them in the 1954 WC. One would think that Dimitar Berbatov needs to be what he can be this season, I really believe that Chicharito will be a big help here as a link man up front. Federico Macheda the young Italian should shine this season or else he'll be out I would think . First place for me but as always it will come down to Wayne Rooney , he's the man. Home Shirt A lot better than last seasons horror Away Shirt Not liking it

The Second Spitter Aug 11 2010 08:35 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

I'll be surprised if they haven't sold Berbatov by Christmas. Hernandez is a nice player but he's not world-class. My suggestion for "The Ugly" : Their new home shirt and hideous Nightwing away jersey. Good KTE.

metirish Aug 11 2010 09:28 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

The Second Spitter wrote: I'll be surprised if they haven't sold Berbatov by Christmas. Hernandez is a nice player but he's not world-class. My suggestion for "The Ugly" : Their new home shirt and hideous Nightwing away jersey. Good KTE. Of course he's not world class, he's what 22 and no one heard of him until a few months a go.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 11 2010 09:48 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

"Nightwing." Heh. Unless he just had a great two weeks, Hernandez looked pretty damn impressive playing against some world class competition two months ago. If he can take the bumps-- and that's the big "if" in my estimation-- his boot and speed are potentially game-changing, aren't they?

metirish Aug 11 2010 09:55 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Aug 11 2010 10:55 AM

He's looked very impressive in pre-season too ,and I don't just mean scoring but his movement off the ball and vision are what's getting talked about. The rub on players coming from South America and so on is can they take the rough and tumble of the EPL , most of them can and the EPL is not what is was in terms of roughness, the biggest concern though is usually the lifestyle and weather which in Manchester can be trouble as it rains a lot. Hernandez is apparently bringing his entire family over with him , mid January in a god forbidden place like Stoke with the temps freezing and some langer from Ireland kicking your heels would test any player.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 11 2010 10:35 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

Fair point. EPL may have calmed down a bit with the bump-and-bruise... but he's still a striker, and he's smaller than 90% of the defenders he'll be fighting for 50-50s. The Mancunian Mexican food situation being what it is, I'd imagine the Hernandez house will end up being a popular teammate dinner location.

The Second Spitter Aug 11 2010 08:15 PM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Unless he just had a great two weeks, Hernandez looked pretty damn impressive playing against some world class competition two months ago. Personally, I don't equate the World Cup as world-class competition (as paradoxical as that sounds). Not too long ago Mourinho said outside the FIFA Top 10, international football is at the same level as Serie B. Hyperbole aside, there's plenty of merit to his claim. The Champions League is certainly a tougher test, as is the EPL, La Liga, Serie A and quite possibly the Bundesliga. If he can take the bumps-- and that's the big "if" in my estimation-- his boot and speed are potentially game-changing, aren't they? Bingo. The reason most Latin American players struggle in the EPL is because the level of indiscretions, rough play and hard tackling allowed by referees is without precedent elsewhere. Simply put, it's a thug's league.

A Boy Named Seo Aug 13 2010 11:32 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

Great stuff so far, guys. Running behind like always. Uniwatch did an EPL rundown today. http://www.uniwatchblog.com/2010/08/13/ ... f-the-epl/

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 13 2010 11:54 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

Great stuff so far, guys. Running behind like always. Uniwatch did an EPL rundown today. http://www.uniwatchblog.com/2010/08/13/ ... f-the-epl/ Thanks, Seo. Man City kept the alternate kits (below). Awesome.

Willets Point Aug 13 2010 12:13 PM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

While I haven't done much work on my KTE, I did learn about Everton's questionable hot pink jerseys:

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 13 2010 12:31 PM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

Yoy. So... a Chelsea-Everton match has a 1-in-6 chance of killing my television this year.

metirish Aug 17 2010 07:42 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Aug 17 2010 08:27 AM

Tottenham Hotspur F.C. I have always liked Spurs , partly because they always play entertaining football and absolutely rollover for Manchester United , partly too because my brother is a big Arsenal fan. Daniel Levy is the chairman and spends loads of money that comes from where? , it's a bit mysterious. Spurs play at the wonderfully named White Heart lane , built in 1899, has had several renovations of course, planning permission has been submitted for a new stadium , hasn't gotten of the drawing board as yet. The club mascot is a fighting cock , a bronze one looks down on proceedings from atop the west stand. Spurs were last champions of England in 1961...since then they have been known as a good cup team , meaning they get a good run in the FA and League Cups most years and even win sometimes. 1987 FA Cup Final was one of the best ever, Spurs losing 3-2 to Coventry in extra time. A look at the team sheets from that game tells it's own story on how the game has changed http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1987_FA_Cup_Final This season though they are in the Champions League after pipping Man City for fourth spot in the EPL last season, a great achievement really and 'Arry Redknapp has really breathed new life into the Lane. This season is huge for Spurs, they'll have a hell of a fight to finish in the top four again, a good run in the CL would be huge. Spurs , forever entertaining while winning nothing , that might change. Redknapp has faults but he's a great motivator and players love playing for him..until they don't....which always happens...'Arry likes to make a quick exit too when the going gets tough. The current team has a wealth of talented forwards and midfielders, a bit suspect at the back but Gomes is a great shot stopper , Redknapp's biggest job might be trying to keep all his players happy. http://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/index.h ... sh_enterth Spurs have a racing car..... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tottenham_ ... rmula_team) Anyone else going to add to this thread?

John Cougar Lunchbucket Aug 17 2010 08:13 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

Yes but I have lots of work to do first!

The Second Spitter Aug 17 2010 08:19 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

over)

metirish Aug 17 2010 08:20 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

That should be 1961 of course.

Willets Point Aug 17 2010 08:24 AM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

metirish wrote: Spurs were last champions of England in 1996... Yeah, I don't get it. Manchester United won The Double that year so there's some insider's joke I'm missing here. I shall add my KTE's eventually. The season is long and hard.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 17 2010 01:53 PM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies Edited 2 time(s), most recently on Aug 17 2010 02:00 PM

Bolton Wanderers Manager: Owen Coyle 2009-10 Result: 14th in Premiership, 39 points After flirting with relegation on and off for close to three years, Bolton has survived to make it to a tenth straight season in the Premiership, and, thanks to some savvy, cost-effective tweaks and a likely return to form for keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen, it should be on its way to cementing its customary Allerdyce-ian place in the top half of the Premier table... maybe? Or it could struggle to pile up points early again, struggle to score throughout, and tumble into the Championship... perhaps? Or they can lose their first ten matches, decide collectively to get a sex-change, and play out the string as the Bolton Wandering Lasses, just for gits and shiggles? Let's just say this could go a few different ways. Outside of, say, certain individuals' play-- South Korean MF Chung-Yong Lee and young defensive stud Gary Cahill being chief among them-- last year's "highlights" were mostly of the sigh-inducing variety. Four wins in the first 18 matches (culminating in Gary Megson's harsh midwinter firingfollowing a stultifying home draw with Hull, and Coyle's jump from doomed Burnley), no clean sheets for the first two months, £9 million Swedish meatball Johan Elmander continuing to underwhelm, and making enough dinners of Premier minnows to survive marked the 2009-10 campaign at Reebok Stadium. Coyle's built on the modest progress of last year's second half by making some smart, balling-on-a-budget-type moves, most designed to open up the traditionally-rugged (read: "BOOOOOOORING") Trotters. Promising Oldham ingenue Tom Eaves and young Madrid wingback Marcos Alonso should add an infusion of energy, bringing back loaned Croatian/double-kidney-transplant survivor Ivan Krasnic and a now-healthy attacking MF/former competitive video-gamer Stuart Holden ('Murrican alert!) could provide some punch. Coyle's ex-Burnley chum Robbie Blake could also prove useful. But by far the most impactful move made the Trotters made this summer is wangling one unhappy Bulgarian from Man City on a free transfer. Winger Martin Petrov's blistering speed, brilliant runs, and gifted passing eye could be the key to a renaissance season from captain Kevin Davies and the rest of the Trotter attack. "I AM SO UNDERRATED IT GIVES ME MIGRAINES! " Or, y'know, it could make them slightly more vibrant relegation fodder. Rumored to be in the running for a Craig Bellamy loan or Jack Wilshere transfer, Coyle missed out on both. Similarly, Bolton controlled its first Premier match of the year throughout, but had to settle for a kiss-your-sister home draw with Fulham. More settling during winnable matches-- West Ham and Birmingham City are in the immediate future-- could set up another season-long struggle just to keep the White Men's heads above water. KITS(modeled by your captain, Mr. Davies) HOME: Nothing special, though just by simplifying a bit, they're a good sight better than last year's abdominal barcodes. AWAY: The change of shade... kinda makes one want to sing a round of "Blue is the Colour," doesn't it? LIKELY FINISH I'm feeling optimistic. Let's say... 10th or 11th. Maybe 16th. Or 8th. No, definitely 10th. DID YOU KNOW... Among British clubs, Bolton's spent the highest number of seasons in the English top division (71) without winning the title? (But hey-- they kicked arse back in the '20s!)

metirish Aug 17 2010 01:56 PM Re: Know Thine EPL Enemies

Nice one mate(need to effect the brit twang in here)....believe me if Gary Megson were a baseball manager of say our beloved Mets we'd be having a fit....they no doubt would play a very boring style with lots of pop ups and a mantra of never take a chance on offence.