EPL 2013/14 Mega Thread - Previews, Reviews and General Discussion/Banter

[PowerBug]

I like that ad. :)

[Nige]

I like that ad. :)

I do too, but Messi's smile is weeiiiiiiirdd.

[T Dog]

I know this isn't the place for it, but has anyone seen Messi's creepy smile/grin/face in the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 ad on TV?  :o  :P

no  :o

[Noz]

[T Dog]

"Hyuk Hyuk Hyuk...gues what I am thinking...Hyuk Hyuk Hyuk"

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- SOUTHAMPTON


League Standing:   9th | 31 points (P22 - W8 - D7 - L7) | GD +4

Star Player:            Adam Lallana

Southampton have started the season extremely well, much better than anybody predicted. They strengthened well in the Transfer Window, signing defender Dejan Lovren, midfielder Victor Wanyama, and flamboyant striker Pablo "Danny" Osvaldo. The side has also been galvanised by the likes of youngsters Luke Shaw, James Ward-Prowse, Jay Rodriguez, Callum Chambers and Nathaniel Clyne really stepping up this season. Players like these are the reason that Southampton have one of the most famed youth academies in England. The form of Adam Lallana has been exceptional - either side of the 10 weeks I had him in my Fantasy Premier League team, when he did crap all - who has been responsible for a lot of Southampton's attacking returns, while the addition of Lovren has created an extremely solid defence made up of Shaw, Lovren, Jose Fonte and Clyne. This is coupled with one of the best keepers in the Premier League, Artur Boruc, in goals. The Polish shot-stopper has suffered with injury a bit this season, and as a result the Saints defence conceded more goals and looked less assured. But now that Boruc is back this will most likely change. His performance against Swansea was a standout, making a number of spectacular saves. Chairman Nicola Cortese recently resigned from the club, leaving doubts over whether Mauricio Pochettino will stay on as manager and creating uncertainty in January, when a number of clubs will come after their players. But Southampton have started incredibly well this season - they now must maintain their run, and not let what is going on in the boardroom affect them on the pitch.

Predicted Finish:   9th

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- STOKE


League Standing:   14th | 22 points (P22 - W5 - D7 - L10) | GD -14

Star Player:            Peter Crouch

Hard to pick a star player for Stoke this season, as it has been a typical season for the Potters - OK performances but bloody boring to watch. Peter Crouch has bobbed up with goals every now and then but Charlie Adam has surprised most by managing to find the back of the net 5 times. The loan signing of Marko Arnautovic has also proven to be a handy acquisition, with him adding attacking quality (albeit only scoring 1 goal). Stephen Ireland, Jonathan Walters and Ousamma Assaidi have all shown glimpses this season but need to be more consistent. Ryan Shawcross aside, the Stoke defence has looked too fragile and has has to rely on goalkeeper Asmir Begovic to get them out of trouble. Begovic has been good this season, arguably the main reason Stoke have managed to get a point or three from some of their games. He even scored a goal against Southampton! Stoke have played well in patches - like the 0-0 draw with Manchester City, and fought admirably in the 5-3 loss to Liverpool and the 3-2 loss at Manchester United - but consistency is the key. They cannot afford to keep losing crunch games, as they have lost 1-0 to Fulham, Norwich and Crystal Palace. Discipline is key as well, as Stoke have a reputation - Adam in particular - of lunging in with dangerous tackles and playing 'dirty'. In reality, only the top 9 teams are safe from the relegation battle, so Stoke will have to fight to survive. But I actually think they'll do it comfortably.

Predicted Finish:   11th

[Vinny]

These all are awesome write ups man, keep it up!

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- SUNDERLAND


League Standing:   19th | 18 points (P22 - W4 - D6 - L12) | GD -15

Star Player:            Vito Mannone

Not long ago it widely agreed that Sunderland were certain to drop, but the seemingly-impossible has now become possible. Gus Poyet's men have produced some inspired football over the last month or two, providing fans with a glimmer of hope, sitting just one point away from safety. When Paolo di Canio was sacked by club hierachy, the club was in crisis, sitting deep in relegation with no win to date in 9 games, the most crucial being a 3-1 loss at Crystal Palace. Since Poyet arrived, the team has been playing with more solidarity; more desire, and more players are standing up. Phil Bardsley has been a revelation as an attacking defender, whilst Adam Johnson has come alive in 2014, scoring 4 goals in the last 2 games. Steven Fletcher has been out with injury, but Fabio Borini is playing with more freedom as a striker, his highlight coming against Newcastle when his curler sealed an upset win in the Tyneside Derby. Vito Mannone has been a revelation in goals; Emanuele Gierracherini has shown patches of brilliance and Ki Sung-Yeung has been a star, on loan from Swansea. Sunderland need these players to keep producing week-in week-out if they are to survive. All three teams in the relegation zone - West Ham, Sunderland and Cardiff - have a 4-6-12 record and all sit on 18 points, but such is the tight nature of the league, Aston Villa in 10th place are only six points ahead. I had intially predicted Sunderland to drop, but if they keep playing the way they are I don't think they will.

Predicted Finish:   17th





Just hit 4000 views while writing this, cheers lads    8)

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- SWANSEA


League Standing:   15th | 21 points (P22 - W5 - D6 - L11) | GD -6

Star Player:            Wilfried Bony

Onto my team, the Swans. Swansea have been quite disappointing this season, after a very strong transfer window. To put it into context... Manchester United signed two players - Swansea signed about seven! Of those players, Wilfried Bony and Jonjo Shelvey have been the two best. Jose Canas and Alex Pozuelo have been solid, but not spectacular, in midfield, while Jordi Amat has been a reliable third-choice Centre Back. It has been hard to put a finger on why Michael Laudrup's side find themselves just 3 points above the relegation zone. Injuries have hurt the side, no doubt about that, with a lot of key players missing at various parts of the season, including Michu who has been very disappointing in his second season. But he is still a very good player, and the sooner he comes back the better. Michel Vorm was good in goals until he got injured, while Gerhard Tremmel has been OK as back-up. The defence of Chico Flores and Ashley Williams is very good but has lacked consistency this season. Michu and Bony are beginning to find their feet as a pairing, with Shelvey playing behind the trio can be very dangerous. After a slow start, Bony has been on a hot streak of late, scoring the winner against Manchester United at Old Trafford - United losing at OT? That's new!!  ;D - to knock them out of the FA Cup earlier this year, in addition to 7 Premier League goals this season. But in the Premier League, where they haven't won in 8 games, the side has failed to pick up points against big clubs - in their 12 games against the current Top 10, they have only picked up 4 points, a 3-0 win against Newcastle and a 1-1 draw at Aston Villa. Their only other loss was against Cardiff - the Wales Derby which (locally) holds as much value as the Manchester Derby - but they have failed to put away teams like Norwich, Villa and West Ham, which has hurt them points-wise. Swansea are in the relegation battle, but I think their squad is much better than a few teams above them, and once their players return from injury, the rest of the League will see that.

Predicted Finish:   10th

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- TOTTENHAM


League Standing:   5th | 43 points (P22 - W13 - D4 - L5) | GD +3

Star Player:            Andros Townsend

Been a mixed bag for Tottenham this season. As we all know, they sold Gareth Bale to Real Madrid, while gave them the ability to go on a 120m spree in the summer. The likes of Christian Eriksen, Roberto Soldado, Erik Lamela and Nacer Chadli arrived - amongst others - and the squad entered the season full of optimism. Two 1-0 victories of Crystal Palace and Swansea, both courtesy of Soldado penalties, gave them a good start, but after that it slowly began to unravel. Even though Spurs were off to a record start, they weren't well entrenched in the Top Four, as hoped, due to the likes of Liverpool, Everton and (to a lesser extent) Southampton playing so well. Two heavy thrashings at the hands of Manchester City (6-0 at the Etihad) led to pressure on Andre Villas-Boas to keep his job, amidst rumours of a rift with trigger-happy chairman Daniel Levy. After a couple of hard fought victories and a 2-2 draw with Manchester United, Liverpool came to White Hart Lane and thrashed Spurs 5-0. That was the nail in AVB's coffin. Then-assistant coach Tim Sherwood took over, and since then things are going rosy, with the new boss winning 5 of his first 6 games. A chnange in formation to a 4-4-2 has seen Eriksen transform, and the return of Emmanuel Adebayor - frozen out under AVB - has brought about goals, with him and Soldado forming a dangerous duo up front. Lamela was Tottenham's record signing, but was consigned to the bench under AVB, as Andros Townsend was playing too well to get dropped. He cut a lonely figure on the bench, and still does, but it remains to be seen whether under Sherwood he will get more of a run. Jermain Defoe may have signed for Toronto FC but doesn't leave until the end of February, and is still scoring every now and then. Tottenham don't quite have the goods for fourth place yet, and I still believe United will finish 5th, so Tottenham will most likely miss out on Europa qualification. But watch out next season.

Predicted Finish:   6th or 7th

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- WEST BROMWICH ALBION


League Standing:   13th | 22 points (P22 - W4 - D10 - L8) | GD -5

Star Player:            Liam Ridgewell

Like Tottenham, West Bromwich Albion have also had a mixed bag this season. They have performed very well against some very big clubs - they beat Manchester United 2-1 at Old Trafford, they drew 1-1 with Arsenal, they drew 2-2 against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge (and should have won if not for a ludicrous penalty), and held Tottenham to a 1-1 draw away as well - but haven't been able to match that against smaller teams - losing 1-0 to Cardiff and 2-0 to Norwich. West Brom have had a number of strikers pop up every now and then, but none who have yet replicated the efforts of Romelu Lukaku last season. Shane Long (now at Hull), Nicolas Anelka (now under investigation for an obscene goal celebration), [/b]Matej Vydra, Victor Anichebe[/b] and young gun Saido Berahino have all scored, but none have been able to make the striker position their own. Defensively, Jonas Olsson, Gareth McAuley and Liam Ridgewell have been resolute, whilst goalkeeper Boaz Myhill performed admirably in the absence of Ben Foster through injury. Steve Clarke was very very stiff to get sacked, after a run of 4 losses, but West Brom weren't playing that badly. Pepe Mel is the new manager so it will be interesting to see if the club's fortunes change. I think that West Brom will not get relegated, although they won't survive by much, but the Bottom 11 teams will be very close, and West Brom have a good enough squad to survive.

Predicted Finish:   12th

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- WEST HAM UNITED


League Standing:   18th | 18 points (P22 - W4 - D6 - L12) | GD -11

Star Player:            Liam Ridgewell

A very disappointing start for West Ham, which has put pressure on Sam Allardyce to keep his job. I don't think they would have predicted this at the start of the season. Up front, West Ham have struggled very badly, with the record signing of Andy Carroll yet to start a game since joining from Liverpool. They need him fit and firing desperately, because they have looked often-inept in front of goal, as the likes of Modibo Maiga and Ricardo Vaz Te haven't cut the mustard. Carroll returned in the vital 2-0 win against Cardiff and though he was on the pitch for 20 minutes, managed to grab an assist. He is the key to West Ham's survival. Ravel Morrison has provided a lot of flair for the Hammers, but also moments of madness and proving that he is still very immature (which is why Manchester United sold him in the first place). Joe Cole has battled fitness and form, but has proven handy at times, whilst the midfield duo of Kevin Nolan and Mark Noble haven't reached the heights of last season, but have been far from West Ham's worst players. But their star player has been their keeper, Jussi Jaaskelainen. The veteran goalkeeper has made some superb saves to give West Ham points they don't always deserve. West Ham have been part of 5 or 6 scoreless draws, and it has largely been due to Jaaskelainen's influence between the sticks, coupled with their lack of attacking options. If Carroll can get back fit and firing, West Ham might survive. If not, West Ham might drop, and Big Sam will get the sack. They will only just survive in my opinion.

Predicted Finish:   16th

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- PREDICTED TABLE


Made a few tweaks to what I'd posted in previous MSRs but this is my final Predicted Table! But 10th-20th could be absolutely any order at all  ::)

Feel free to post yours.


1st - Manchester City
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2nd - Chelsea
3rd - Arsenal
4th - Liverpool
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5th - Manchester United
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6th - Tottenham
7th - Everton
8th - Newcastle
9th - Southampton
10th - Swansea City

11th - Stoke City
12th - West Bromwich Albion
13th - Hull City
14th - Aston Villa
15th - Norwich City
16th - West Ham United
17th - Sunderland
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18th - Crystal Palace
19th - Cardiff
20th - Fulham

[specky92]

1. Arsenal
2. Manchester City
3. Chelsea
4. Liverpool
5. Everton
6. Manchester United
7. Tottenham
8. Newcastle
9. Southampton
10. Stoke


There's my top 10, bias with Arsenal on top, realistically I think Man City will overtake us eventually, we seem to drop points against the mid to low ranked teams that we should be beating.