Moneyball won't win the Premiership 2012-13

Should I turn over in time for utd's winner, or stay here for wigan's equaliser?

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/67073000/jpg/_67073696_017767976-1.jpg

both poses and portent in this photo remind me of

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/e2/Fleetwood_Mac_-_Mirage.jpg/220px-Fleetwood_Mac_-_Mirage.jpg

2 Can't Go Back (Lindsey Buckingham)

oh diame

lol, that's much better

Calling Caek (or anyone else who feels qualified to answer):

How does the offside law work with respect to Van Persie's equaliser last night (which is being described everywhere as an offside the officials failed to spot). If you haven't seen it, here is a basic (and possibly mis-remembered) description: the ball comes to Kagawa who is broadly near the left hand side of the goal, he turns and shoots, the ball deflects slightly off a defender and hits the inside of the left hand post, rolls along the line, hits the right hand post and comes out to Van Persie who shoots in. At the time that Kagawa took the shot, Van Persie was ahead of the last defender. If the ball had gone in off either post, it would have been a goal, yes? But when Van Persie touches it he becomes active and so it should have been offside? Does it make any difference that the ball actually touched the West Ham defender between Kagawa and Van Persie?

Obv I'll defer to caek, but iirc a defender's touch makes all the difference? You conceded one earlier in the season (against us?) where a panicked Jonny Evans put in under pressure from an offside striker. iirc, despite my and pundits' bemusement, it was a good decision - the striker's only active when he touches it, which from your description sounds like it might've been from a west ham touch, hence onside

I don't know where the rule change has come from, but if that's right, it's a terrible rule - how's a defender to know whether to lunge or not?

van Persie gains advantage from being offside when the ball is played forward by Kagawa, i.e. before it touches the opposition defender iirc. he only "becomes" offside once he touches it but i think that's how it works.

agree that the existing interpretation is ridiculous in many ways tho

(xp to ik) I remember the incident you're talking about, but I don't know if that helps us in this situation. In that game: Evans knocked it in, it was an own goal, because the 'offside' striker never became active. If Evans had left it and the striker had knocked it in, it would have been ruled out for offside. But to answer my question, I need to know what would have happened if Evans had touched it and then the striker had knocked it in.

(nv) I think I see what you mean. Probably.

http://i.minus.com/iga3jjPhnyiS0.gif

Marvellous. I don't think I've seen a tilt-shift movie before. Is that from last night? Because it doesn't match up with the FURY that's all over today's news.

PFA Player of the Year shortlist: Robin van Persie, Luis Suarez, Gareth Bale, Michael Carrick, Juan Mata, Eden Hazard

PFA Young Player of the Year shortlist: Gareth Bale, Christian Benteke, Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku, Danny Welbeck, Jack Wilshere

good defence

Rafael, Nastasic, de Gea should all be up for YPOTY. Bale (shouldn't be eligble if you've already won the big award), Wilshere, Welbeck shouldn't

no michu...

strange fellaini not there given the time of voting

he's probably elbowed too many of the voters in the back of the head

fair

but then, suarez

Yeah, Wilshere being there is silly. Good player, but it's a bit dismal for young players who y'know, actually play and stuff.

Wait, am I right in thinking the players vote for the nominees? Maybe no surprise they're just picking big club guys; they probably pay as much attention as your average back page reader.

Whoa, ok so the supposed real Boston Bomber's twitter is : https://twitter.com/Dzhokhar_

And he's a PL follower, and not a fan of Suarez:

#WorstThingsInFootball Suarez

1:49 PM - 27 Dec 12

Ah well, a terrorist who hates Suarez as well, it was too good to be true tbh

don't suppose fsg were in town at the time

Utd have 659 million fans xp, there's a fair chance

ffsqpr

Arrys new icelandic discovery

couldn't be happy with just wrecking their own season, had to wreck everyone else's too

Baines fails to score from free-kick in the box :(

GET INVOLVED

Jon C: "Wigan are in serious trouble."

I have been blithely assuming that Wigan would climb clear of the relegation zone in the nick of time like they usually do but other results have been going against them for some time and they're not really picking up points.

Villa - Wigan final day starting to look a little too significant for my liking

carroll is such an exceptional player

not there obv

so

if it's a foul for a gk to intentionally catch a goalbound backpass, how's it not a red

rotten dive from jelavic, no style at all

it's barely a yellow let alone a red xp

that's a red tho

xp yes, i'm in agreement with you, but logically it can't be yellow surely?

not a red for giroud tho

i'd say no card for catching backpass - hardly 'not in spirit' coz it was going in the bloody goal, like

both reds otm in ful-arse

jol vs wenger on the red cards is a resounding victory for wenger

joek call on wba fk there

Not sure i've been in a 'fuck these assholes' place all season, but man fuck these ASSHOLES

Ekotto and walker, you're as well to field nine men

ref a cunt, everyone saw that

Nasri is the worst.

Jesus, parker

I am basically resigned to the fact that our season is over but a Liverpool win would be nice.

^ my mindset since October

Keep lloris, vertonghen, dembele, lennon, bale, and im not sure about vertonghen

dawson, for a wonder, happened to be in a decent position for the goal, but jesus what a clown.

avb lost important attacking players, but our defenders were all performing far better under redknapp.

walker has become so waste