Week 12

Cellar-Door

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Aug 1, 2006
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Leeds and West Ham start it off

6th minute penalty saved, but VAR says that Fabianski was about 5 inches off the line and Leeds score on the re-take.
 

Cellar-Door

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Aug 1, 2006
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West Ham miss a handful of good chances, and Leeds has a great save, but a corner goal and a FK goal have them in the lead.

The trio of Haller/Ogbonna/Soucek is very tough to defend on set pieces.
 

Morgan's Magic Snowplow

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Jul 2, 2006
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West Ham moves into fifth in the table with another impressive performance. They have had a difficult fixture list too, very front loaded with the bigger clubs. I'm happy for Moyes, who has always seemed to me like a good guy and basically a competent if not top level manager. He was in over his head at United and unfairly became the butt of every joke afterward, then taking odd jobs like Sociedad just exacerbated the problem. He seems to be back in the kind of sweet spot he got into with Everton earlier in his career, taking a team with just enough talent and drilling them into a highly organized unit that is a bit greater than the sum of its parts.
 

coremiller

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Jul 14, 2005
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West Ham moves into fifth in the table with another impressive performance. They have had a difficult fixture list too, very front loaded with the bigger clubs. I'm happy for Moyes, who has always seemed to me like a good guy and basically a competent if not top level manager. He was in over his head at United and unfairly became the butt of every joke afterward, then taking odd jobs like Sociedad just exacerbated the problem. He seems to be back in the kind of sweet spot he got into with Everton earlier in his career, taking a team with just enough talent and drilling them into a highly organized unit that is a bit greater than the sum of its parts.
Moyes' tenure at United looks a little better in retrospect since all his successors have struggled too. The 2013-14 side finished on 64 points; only once since have United broken 70.
 

Cellar-Door

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West Ham moves into fifth in the table with another impressive performance. They have had a difficult fixture list too, very front loaded with the bigger clubs. I'm happy for Moyes, who has always seemed to me like a good guy and basically a competent if not top level manager. He was in over his head at United and unfairly became the butt of every joke afterward, then taking odd jobs like Sociedad just exacerbated the problem. He seems to be back in the kind of sweet spot he got into with Everton earlier in his career, taking a team with just enough talent and drilling them into a highly organized unit that is a bit greater than the sum of its parts.
This West Ham team is just weird. Basically all the most talented players aren't playing that well, but it's in part because Moyes decided the best strategy was to sacrifice them to protected the worst players in the side (Cresswell particularly). Part of that is because the owners keep doing half-jobs, Pellegrini gets to bring in a keeper, some pace at FB and some flair players, but then they sell his veteran striker and all his CM players at the last minute breaking a promise... then they sack him for having an ubalanced side. Moyes brings in the CM an speedy attacker they needed in the winter and gets survival. Then all summer they flirt with every LB in the world a handful of CBs, CMs and STs....nothing but a swap of creative midfielder/wingers. Moyes adjust by playing a fast LB with mental lapses and his slow LB with better positioning together. Cuts the support out of the attack, but he leans on Antonio's pace. Now Antonio is out, Masuaku is out, so it's back to 4, which may help the attack but leaves the defense weak.

Desperate need for a LB with pace and a CM who isn't Mark Noble to back up Rice and Soucek in the winter.... but word is the owner is broke, so likely we'll Frankenstein limp along and slowly drop to mid-table as injuries accrue.
 

67YAZ

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I was impressed by Soucek today. Leeds exposes guys who aren’t comfortable under heavy pressure and/or can’t anticipate play quickly. Soucek look pretty unbothered by the press and was finding plenty of room to operate. He looks to be a real one.
 

PedroSpecialK

Comes at you like a tornado of hair and the NHL sa
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IMO the Soucek and Coufal signings have been masterstrokes for West Ham, and have made Moyes look really good - they're more than adept in their CDM / RB roles respectively, but are really tough to mark on set pieces, and aren't really error-prone (aside from the occasional Soucek OG).

I also can't reiterate enough how much I rate Benrahma. He's a massive get for West Ham, and I expect his influence to grow throughout the year
 

Dummy Hoy

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Jul 22, 2006
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Soucek is one of those guys that has a great game but you don’t really notice.

And yeah, Benrahma is super fun. I suspected he could play at this level, so it’s cool to see. I’d actually expect more from h8m going forward
 

SocrManiac

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Apr 15, 2006
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This was one of the worst matches I’ve watched in a long time. Scrappy play, unlikeable players, and Mike Dean.
 

SocrManiac

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Apr 15, 2006
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@SocrManiac .. the hot rumour is that ManU want to bring Ronaldo back for a farewell tour .. I’d be all in on that .. typical ManU move and ramping up the dislike factor (cancelling out Rashford)
Along with all the smoke about Pogba going back to Juventus... He played alongside Pirlo when he really hit his peak. Can manager Pirlo bring him back off the heap? Could be an interesting January/summer.

Juventus have looked less awful the last three matches. I’m hesitant to hope they’re turning a corner, but if they are it would make sense that they’d throw a wrench in the works at the window.
 

Zomp

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Aug 28, 2006
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If he wanted to come back, sure. But that’s more of an emotional connection than a footballing one. I’m a romantic at heart.

But it won’t happen. He wouldn’t want to come and we’re going to end up selling Pogba for cheap.
 

Tuff Ghost

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Jul 15, 2005
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Yeah, Reyna with a perfect first touch and beautiful finish on that goal. Dortmund are being outplayed by Stuttgart this half, but that was a great moment of quality there.
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
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Jan 10, 2004
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Like most big apartment buildings, mine has an unofficial leave-it-take-it in the basement, where unwanted furniture, books etc are left for claiming.

among the failed art is this:

A8517A00-8B82-4441-A67B-68144A63010E.jpeg25646E45-4D16-475B-83D1-9A1A66EA2768.jpeg

May the VAR be in your favor.
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
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Jan 10, 2004
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Very pretty goal at 80’ for Newcastle to go up 2-1 on WBA. Joelinton? Inch perfect cross from distance.
 

SocrManiac

Tommy Seebach’s mustache
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I was wondering where Yedlin has been. I assumed injured, but apparently it’s tattoo and hairstyling chairs.
 

PedroSpecialK

Comes at you like a tornado of hair and the NHL sa
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I think it was (shudders) Gayle's header from Josh Murphy, Bruce had just brought Murphy on a couple minutes prior, but yeah that cross was outstanding - finish off the intersection of the post/crossbar wasn't too shabby either
 

candylandriots

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Mar 30, 2004
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I can only watch the first 30 minutes now, but Union Berlin is all over Bayern only 4 minutes in. Already 1-0, and could be 2 or maybe 3 depending on how you think of it (the goal came from a corner after a scoring chance, so...)
 

fletcherpost

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More than anything else i reckon Ole doesn't want to lose this match. I think he'd bite the proverbial hand off for a 0-0 or a 1-1, and move on to the next match.
 

PedroSpecialK

Comes at you like a tornado of hair and the NHL sa
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De Bruyne has every right to be irate at Jesus, a few instances now where De Bruyne's put a brilliant ball in behind United's defenders and Jesus is nowhere to be seen
 

SocrManiac

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Apr 15, 2006
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If Mike Dean had this match and put on a similar performance to his shitshow this morning, my rough estimation is that there would be 174 yellow cards so far.
 

fletcherpost

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This United team look collectively knackered.

I wonder if this Dutch kid on the bench will get some minutes. He's a lively sort, so I've heard.
 

Section30

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Aug 2, 2010
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Portland OR
fletcherpost is right. Both teams are tired. I expect more games like this as fixture congestion takes its toll.

The PL is burning itself at both ends. On a given weekend it used to be that we could watch 4-5 really good matches. Now if we get 1 or 2 it's notable.
 

teddykgb

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Jul 16, 2005
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I have no idea what the plan is at City but it’s pretty wretched to watch. One of the finest goal scoring teams ever under one of the most attacking managers ever and every match is a chore
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
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Jan 10, 2004
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The 718
Mendy flattens DCL in the box, Sigurdsson converts from the spot, 1-0 Toffees. Ev look more solid in a back four even though neither Godfrey or Holgate is a natural FB.
 

PedroSpecialK

Comes at you like a tornado of hair and the NHL sa
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Dec 12, 2004
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Rooting for Everton and United today feels particularly dirty.

Pickford with a great effort to tip Reece James's effort onto the post and keep it 1-0. Zouma just now shoots a point-blank second ball right at Pickford

Pickford gets trucked by Mina, seems he can continue though
 
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