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Post by jackgordon on Feb 12, 2015 1:09:48 GMT -6
perhaps the best game ever (in terms of passion and thrill) on club level for me was the Champions League Final 2004/5 on 26 May 2005 in Istanbul between Liverpool and AC Milan. Liverpool were 0:3 down by half-time, recovered in second half, saved themselves into a penalty-shootout and had the lucky end on their side. As the Italian defensive has always been considered the most effective in the world, even a draw against a strong Italian side leading 3:0 was unheard of at the time .... my italian neighbour, a very passionate AC Milan supporter was absolutely devastated after the game ended and subsequent even mentioning the town Istanbul would pretty much annoy him ... can't believe it's soon 10 years ago this happened ... back to present: I wonder who's gonna be first, Liverpool to win the Champions Leage a 6th time or my first LD order arriving .... I remember exactly where I was when I was watching that game drstrange. That was one hell of a Champions League Final and was probably the only time you will find me rooting for Liverpool. You are right, AC Milan was the team to beat at that time and they were at the top of their game. Going 3-0 down to AC in 05 should have been game over, lights out, but Liverpool made a memorable comeback. I was screaming and jumping up and down like I was a Liverpool fan that day and I remember my neighbor came over and knocked on my door and asked if everything was ok because he could hear me shouting next door...lol...gospel truth. Plus the Italian sides were always notorious for giving ManUtd a hell of a time so for that day, and that day only I say, I was Liverpool fan  . I had that game on my DVR for years afterwards but it eventually was deleted. That was the single greatest night of my life, and I'll never forget where I was. I can even remember what I did the day after, on the basis of what happened that night. Hell, I even remember what I wore. What a night.. |
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Post by ickes on Feb 12, 2015 9:43:53 GMT -6
I enjoy the fact that Balotelli exists because I like to be entertained and he is certainly an entertaining figure. But holy shit does that guy get under my skin whenever he's up against Spurs, and to make matters worse he always seems to be pivotal in some of our most memorable losses. Ever since that game a few years ago when he tucked away a spot kick for Man City to win it at the death when he should have previously been sent off for deliberately stamping on Scotty Parker, I have dreaded seeing him in any match against Tottenham. Because it is a foregone conclusion that he will score against them or get away with some sort of ghastly behavior or both. That combination from Lamela and Kane for Spurs' first equalizer was the f!@king sex, though. I really hope Lamela can continue slowly finding his feet because it has been tough to watch someone who's so ridiculously talented be unable to really unleash what he can do. I think there are quite a few Americans who started following the Premier League within the last decade or so and latched onto Spurs because during that period the club's been good enough to be interesting but not so good as to make its new overseas supporters into obnoxious frontrunners. And then of course the team's play was pretty easy on the eye under Jol (when Keane and Berba were an appealing partnership up front) and Redknapp (Modric and Bale Show). Wide open attacking football and plenty of goals (both scored and, unfortunately, conceded) probably appeals to the average nascent American footy fan more than, say, Mourinho's Chelsea grinding out another 1-0 masterclass in defensive, disciplined counter-attacking. Those, er, tactical nuances can be more difficult to appreciate. As much as I dislike Mourinho, I think his Chelsea side get a bad rap for grinding out dull 1-0s. They're the highest-scoring team so far this season, averaging more than 2 goals a game. The best football I've ever seen in my whole life (and I'll admit to being completely biased) was Liverpool's last year. I'm sure that won us a few fans everywhere. Hopefully we can get back to something like that in the not too distant future. I believe Mattbert is referring to the Chelsea of a few years back when Mourihno had his first spell with the team before he left to coach Inter. The first Chelsea team that Mourihno coached was a much more dull, defensive, grind out the 1-0 wins as Matbert stated. Now that Mourihno is back though for a second time with Chelsea you are right, they are much more attacking and exciting to watch than his first Chelsea squad. |
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Feb 12, 2015 9:57:41 GMT -6
Post by jamesr on Feb 12, 2015 9:57:41 GMT -6
That first Mourinho team could attack. Duff and Robben flying down the wings.
I think the thing with Mourinho is he is a "win at all costs" guy. Defence trumps offence. When up against a good opponent, it's full-on lock down.
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Post by ickes on Feb 12, 2015 10:23:08 GMT -6
That first Mourinho team could attack. Duff and Robben flying down the wings. I think the thing with Mourinho is he is a "win at all costs" guy. Defence trumps offence. When up against a good opponent, it's full-on lock down. They COULD attack yes, they just chose to put a goal or two in the net and then shut up shop. That was Mourinhos style and it bored me to tears to watch Chelsea games back in those days. It got to the point where I would change the channel when a Chelsea game was on unless it was vs ManU but now I enjoy watching them. As for Robben and Duff, well Robben wasn't the player he is now that he was back then imo and it seemed like he was injured more than he was healthy. Sure he was good at Chelsea but the guy has turned into a phenomenal player at Bayern Munich. Duff, well I don't remember Duff having much more than speed really and speed doesn't automatically translate in to goals. Your right, Mourinho is a ''win at all costs'' guy (much like Sir Alex was) and I do like having him in the EPL again. |
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Feb 12, 2015 22:59:10 GMT -6
Post by Mattbert on Feb 12, 2015 22:59:10 GMT -6
That first Mourinho team could attack. Duff and Robben flying down the wings. I think the thing with Mourinho is he is a "win at all costs" guy. Defence trumps offence. When up against a good opponent, it's full-on lock down. Bingo. When in doubt, park the bus and try to nick a goal or two on the break. Duff was awfully quick back then, it's true, but he was on the team sheet primarily to cover for Ashley Cole's overlaps rather than to contribute more of the attacking thrust himself. The way Jose deployed him was one of the first cases I can recall of the "defensive winger" role. Something later adopted by Fergie when he'd almost always throw Park Ji Sung out there for big games to stifle an opponent who was particularly threatening down the flank. |
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Feb 13, 2015 20:41:28 GMT -6
Post by benjaminpersitz on Feb 13, 2015 20:41:28 GMT -6
Any MLS supporters or do you all just wake up at 5 am on Saturdays and Sundays to watch EPL?
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Feb 13, 2015 20:44:17 GMT -6
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Post by bentin on Feb 13, 2015 20:44:17 GMT -6
Any MLS supporters or do you all just wake up at 5 am on Saturdays and Sundays to watch EPL? A baby, EPL and Formula 1 all get me up early. Hockey is my only local sport of interest. |
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Post by Mattbert on Feb 14, 2015 10:11:56 GMT -6
Any MLS supporters or do you all just wake up at 5 am on Saturdays and Sundays to watch EPL? I would love to support a team domestically, and I will once the general quality of play in MLS rises to at least the level of the bottom-dwelling sides in the top flight of the major European leagues. I got spoiled by living overseas and consuming so much UEFA club soccer, mostly the Premiership and some Bundesliga and Serie A, that it's not much entertainment for me to watch MLS players consistently fail to execute what would be considered pretty basic stuff in Europe. I know the Europhile snobbery totally makes me That Guy, but I'll take my lumps. I'm delighted that MLS is thriving and growing its market, but the inferior quality of play and some of the league's weird structural issues are holding me back from really embracing it at this point. |
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Post by ickes on Feb 14, 2015 14:29:36 GMT -6
Any MLS supporters or do you all just wake up at 5 am on Saturdays and Sundays to watch EPL? I would love to support a team domestically, and I will once the general quality of play in MLS rises to at least the level of the bottom-dwelling sides in the top flight of the major European leagues. I got spoiled by living overseas and consuming so much UEFA club soccer, mostly the Premiership and some Bundesliga and Serie A, that it's not much entertainment for me to watch MLS players consistently fail to execute what would be considered pretty basic stuff in Europe. I know the Europhile snobbery totally makes me That Guy, but I'll take my lumps. I'm delighted that MLS is thriving and growing its market, but the inferior quality of play and some of the league's weird structural issues are holding me back from really embracing it at this point. Couldn't have said it better. I STRONGLY CONCUR Mattbert. |
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Feb 21, 2015 11:54:17 GMT -6
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Post by ickes on Feb 21, 2015 11:54:17 GMT -6
Damn, Man City is tearing New Castle apart. I seriously think Man City will catch Chelsea and win the title this year
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Feb 23, 2015 9:31:11 GMT -6
Post by Mattbert on Feb 23, 2015 9:31:11 GMT -6
Damn, Man City is tearing New Castle apart. I seriously think Man City will catch Chelsea and win the title this year Coughing up a 5-point lead seems like it would be very unlike Jose, but I would've felt more strongly about that before Chelsea, you know, coughed up 2 points to Burnley this weekend. At home. Both title contenders have 4 games remaining against teams that are in or around the CL qualifying spots. Neither of them has gotten a good result against the other top clubs in almost two months, unless you count drawing against one another as a good result. I don't think either City or Chelsea has particularly distinguished themselves in terms of a consistent ability to beat good teams in the league. Overall, their remaining schedules look pretty even as far as difficulty goes. For recent form, City's laid down two straight tonkings in the league, beating Stoke and Newcastle by a combined 9-1 margin, whereas Chelsea barely squeaked past Everton and then had the hiccup against Burnley on Saturday. It would seem that City is on the up and Chelsea is kind of on the ropes. However, if we rewind to a month ago, it was Chelsea on a roll (combined 7-0 margin over Newcastle and Swansea) and City who were stumbling (dropped points to Burnely and Everton, and beaten soundly at home by a classic counterattacking performance from Arsenal). So things can change in a hurry. I think it will be pretty damn close, possibly right down to the final weekend, but I'd still tip Chelsea for the title at this stage. That 5-point cushion is a substantial advantage for a team that doesn't make many mistakes. |
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Feb 23, 2015 10:05:42 GMT -6
Post by Mattbert on Feb 23, 2015 10:05:42 GMT -6
As for my Spurs, I think their aspirations in the league are pretty well done and dusted after the last two weeks. If they were going to make a serious push for CL qualification they really needed at least four, and probably the full six, points from those games against Liverpool and West Ham. Scraping just the one at the death yesterday ain't gonna cut it.
So now Spurs have the two most important games of the season coming up on Thursday and Sunday. That kinda sucks from a squad fatigue perspective, but hey if you wanna be a big club in Europe you've got to be able to handle some tough fixture congestion from time to time.
This time next week, we could be riding high with one trophy in the cabinet and a spot in the Sweet 16 for another potentially winnable tournament. Or, as always seems more likely when you're a Spurs fan, crawling into work with a crushed spirit, the season in shambles, and staring up at a mountain to climb to make something happen with what remains of the league fixtures.
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Post by ickes on Feb 23, 2015 10:34:37 GMT -6
All good points Mattbert regarding Chelsea holding on to the title. I still think Man City can pull it off but I could still be suffering from the PTSD I have from 2012 when Man City stole the title from Man U in LITERALLY THE LAST f!@king SECONDS OF THE SEASON!! Yeah, I think we all remember this; |
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Feb 23, 2015 16:16:33 GMT -6
Post by jamesr on Feb 23, 2015 16:16:33 GMT -6
As a passionate supporter of AB United, Aguero became an instant legend with that goal. The best part of the video is getting to see Fergie's face. Brilliant.
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Mar 1, 2015 10:37:56 GMT -6
Post by ickes on Mar 1, 2015 10:37:56 GMT -6
Damn, Liverpool seems to be on fire at the moment do they not? Good game today as they took down Man City and Coutinho's goal...wow..beautiful strike. He did the same thing last year against Man City.
I have to say that even though I am a Man United fan I believe the Premiership has been more entertaining overall since Sir Alex left Man U, especially for neutral fans. Now that you don't have one side dominating the Premier League it makes for a much more entertaining league all around.
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Mar 1, 2015 11:26:57 GMT -6
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Post by bentin on Mar 1, 2015 11:26:57 GMT -6
Ugh, let's just pretend like that wasn't an own goal.
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Mar 7, 2015 16:03:45 GMT -6
Post by Mattbert on Mar 7, 2015 16:03:45 GMT -6
HERE I AM!
ROCK YOU LIKE A HARRYKANE!!!
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Mar 12, 2015 11:27:06 GMT -6
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ickes likes this
Post by benjaminpersitz on Mar 12, 2015 11:27:06 GMT -6
Season opening tifo celebeating 40 years of our club. I'm excited about this campaign. Our newest addition at center half appears to have solidified our back line.  May we face and endure every winter with spring |
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Mar 15, 2015 11:51:26 GMT -6
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Post by ickes on Mar 15, 2015 11:51:26 GMT -6
HERE I AM! ROCK YOU LIKE A HARRYKANE!!! Harry who ? |
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Soccer
Mar 15, 2015 11:54:43 GMT -6
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bentin likes this
Post by ickes on Mar 15, 2015 11:54:43 GMT -6
was this Harry fellow playing today? hmmm...I'll have to watch closer next time |
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Apr 12, 2015 9:16:11 GMT -6
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Post by ickes on Apr 12, 2015 9:16:11 GMT -6
Manchester derby fellas
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Apr 12, 2015 9:17:04 GMT -6
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Post by ickes on Apr 12, 2015 9:17:04 GMT -6
off to a great start
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Apr 12, 2015 9:29:23 GMT -6
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Post by ickes on Apr 12, 2015 9:29:23 GMT -6
Ha ha !!!!!! 2-1...suck it City! !
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Apr 12, 2015 10:28:22 GMT -6
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Post by ickes on Apr 12, 2015 10:28:22 GMT -6
Aahhhhhhhaaaaahaaaaa !!!!!...three/one !!!! bye bye City !!
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Apr 12, 2015 10:34:10 GMT -6
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Post by ickes on Apr 12, 2015 10:34:10 GMT -6
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh !!!!!!!!!.....ha ha !!!!!
four/ one mother f!@kers! !!....
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. I had that game on my DVR for years afterwards but it eventually was deleted. 
