Moneyball won't win the Premiership 2012-13

the big ac certainly belonged in a stable side amirite

Torres will be amusingly rubbish and this year's Shevchenko. Six goals in La Liga = lol massive flop in the Premiership.

― Matt DC, Saturday, 4 August 2007 00:29 (5 years ago) Bookmark

ouch

Ahead of the game, that's all.

PARIS, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Anthony Le Tallec believes he could have emulated the feats of Fernando Torres or Carlos Tevez had he not wasted the opportunity he had as a young striker at Liverpool, he said on Friday.
Le Tallec, now 28, moved to Liverpool, under French compatriot Gerard Houllier, from Le Havre when he was still a teenager in 2001 after excellent performances for France's Under-17 World Cup winning team.
But he told sports daily L'Equipe that he regretted having asked the then-Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez to leave the club in 2004 when he was still only 20.
He now plays for Valenciennes in France's Ligue 1 but explained why it did not work out in England when he was younger.
"I had an agent who kept telling me St Etienne wanted me. Benitez was recruiting Spanish players. I told myself I would not have my chance.
"It hurts when, after Liverpool, you play in smaller clubs. I did not realise that I was in a great club. I have regrets. When I see Torres, Tevez, who are of the same generation, I say to myself 's***'.
"My agent tells me: 'Torres stole your career!," he added, laughing.
"I'm not jealous but I say to myself that I could have done like him."
While on Liverpool's books he was loaned to St Etienne, Sunderland, Sochaux and Le Mans, signing a permanent deal with Le Mans in 2008 before moving to AJ Auxerre in 2010 and Valenciennes this season.
He has scored five goals from seven Ligue 1 appearances with Valenciennes, who are sixth in the standings ahead of Friday's trip to St Etienne.

Posted in full because nobody's going to click on a link to an Anthony Le Tallec article. His agent sounds like a grand fellow.

He had everything a striker needs apart from being able to ever score any goals ever or not be fucking shit.

"My agent tells me: 'Torres stole your career!," he added, laughing

Oh man, I just got this.

Rumours circulating that Hughes is out this morning.

Tony Fernandes was presumably raising money for the January window by laying against Hughes being the first manager to go on Betfair.

confirmed

bobby in

McNeill? Moore? Gould?

gillespie

Now you're talking

Always knew he was a Rangers fan

Anyone who does a QPR team talk in an imitation Bobby Gillespie voice gets an instant ban from this thread by the way.

I'm sure Mark "Sparky" Hughes will not be out of work long, what with his reliably pleasant demeanour and easy going charm. Wales job will be up soon, I reckon.

he's got a good agent

Seems kinda funny to keep Hughes in his job all week and then sack him the day before a game.

Lofts Road too noisy for Bobby G, I imagine he's more of an Emirates man

Yeah he can catch up on his reading of "Steppenwolf" there

"It hurts when, after Liverpool, you play in smaller clubs. I did not realise that I was in a great club. I have regrets.

fuck I know this feel

I will love it, love it, if Fernandes goes all out and appoints Sven now.

Anyone who does a QPR team talk in an imitation Bobby Gillespie voice gets an instant ban from this thread by the way.

it's okay, marcello doesn't post on football threads.

Yeah, but I doo

Seems kinda funny to keep Hughes in his job all week and then sack him the day before a game.
― pandemic, Friday, 23 November 2012 11:43 (13 minutes ago) Permalink

official reason was the chairman was abroad and so couldn't sanction the £5m payoff over the weekend.

conspiracy theory reason was someone had good odds on di matteo.

ah didn't see the di matteo bit upthread

fuck I know this feel

Who are you, Brad Friedel?

ferguson early reducer on rafa

that's a high compliment tbh, he doesn't usually bother nowadays

shook

He doesn't bother with Wenger any more, in fact he's actually started being actively nice about him, which Wenger must fucking hate as it means he isn't a thread. Fergie's pretty shook about Man City though, and knows how to get Mancini shook in return.

He's always been weirdly matey with Chelsea managers as far as I can recall.

socialists together

don't think this is tactical tho, it's not like benitez minds his own manners re other managers so there's probably a scrap or two in this one yet

Potentially significant news sneaking in under the radar: Arsenal deal with Emirates increased to £30m per year to 2019.

There's no fucking way I want Bobby Gillespie managing QPR. Nor do I want Gerard Love, because he looks like Mark Hughes. But I think Stephen Pastel could do a job for us.

Good to see Ferguson starting his riling of Rafa immediately, saying he's always been lucky with jobs, and has twice won World Club Cups with teams he inherited and had nothing to do with.

and the cl

yeah, how dare he claim the glory of two world club cups?

and the cl

shut up

I thought it was odd he didn't mention the CL in the clip I saw on SSN.

fergie's sour as he's only won one club world cup (is it sponsored by BA?)

It's true that Rafa had nothing to do with signing such Champions League winning titans as Harry Kewell and Djimi Traore.

I thought it was odd he didn't mention the CL in the clip I saw on SSN.

yeah, i mean houllier left rafa with such a strong team there. the likes of traore, kewell, smicer, biscan are probably some of the best cl winners of all time. plus houllier's cl record had left them battle-hardened and at the cusp of victory itself.

The Pastels actually played a gig in the Bush Hall last Saturday night, within sight of Loftus Road - possibly hastily arranged to allow Steven to have a crafty look at his new charges lose to Southampton.

Skilled at getting a performance out of underachievers as I understand it.

dunno if i've bumped my head lately but the possibility of Rafa's Chelsea and Arry's QPR is making the Prem seem all fun again all of a sudden

xpost Write to Fergie, not me.

oh wait they have appointed Arry omg

Deja-Vu for Harry - "This team had 4 points and was bottom of the table...."