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

[T Dog]

Swansea beat Manchester United in the FA Cup     :D  8)

And West Ham lost 5-0 to Nottingham Forest    ;D ;D

How?  :o

[CrowsFan]

Posted back in October, but still extremely relevant since United lost to Sunderland this morning...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCYcH0gJjcE

If anyone remembers the show I'm on Setanta Sports, which then became Special 1 TV, I'm pretty sure this is done by the same person. That show was brilliant! If you haven't seen it I'm fairly sure they have the eps on youtube :)

[Tominator]

apologies for the lack of reviews, I've been away of late and wrote these BEFORE Gameweek 21





Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- FULHAM


League Standing:   16th | 19 points (P20 - W6 - D1 - L13) | GD -21

Star Player:            Steve Sidwell

It's been a very disappointing season so far for Fulham to say the least. A run of five straight losses saw the end of manager Martin Jol, replaced by Rene Meulensteen. As is generally the case with new managers - generally, but not always - the team begins to have a spike of better results. Fulham have not looked quite as bad as they did under Jol, except for that absolutely dreadful match against Hull, when they were 0-0 at half time but went on to lose 6-0. Fulham have quality players - Scott Parker, Dimitar Berbatov and Darren Bent all have long and successful Premier League careers - but also have had many underperforming and inconsistent players, such as loan signing Adel Taarabt. This has been a reflection of Fulham's season so far - good at times, but horrendous at others. Steve Sidwell has generally been very good in midfield, arguably their best performer of the season. But their defence has been calamitous at times, conceding 42 goals in 20 games - 9 more than any other team. Maarten Stekelenberg is a fine goalkeeper but his defence has been shambolic. The Cottagers will, once again, be in the thick of the relegation race, and as the season progresses, each game becomes more and more critical. Games against Cardiff, West Ham, Crystal Palace, Norwich (who they have already defeated), and Sunderland will be crucial six-pointers. They must take as many points as possible from those games, which also present a big opportunity for Meulensteen to prove himself as a manager. West Ham are doing more and more to persuade me otherwise, but I sense heartbreak awaits for Fulham and the Craven Cottage fans.

Predicted Finish:   18th

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- HULL


League Standing:   10th | 23 points (P20 - W6 - D5 - L9) | GD -3

Star Player:            Allan McGregor

A much better than expected start to the season for Steve Bruce's charges. Amidst the controversies of the debate amongst fans and club hierarchy over whether Hull should be Hull City or Hull Tigers, the players have quietly gone about their business to find themselves in the Top 10 after 20 games. They may only be six points safe from the drop zone, but have performed admirably so far. Highlights of their season include the 3-1 win over Liverpool (where they kept Luis Suarez scoreless) and the 6-0 thrashing of Fulham (when all 6 goals came in the second half). Many pundits tipped Hull to finish in the bottom three, but that now looks unlikely. Full credit must go to the likes of Curtis Davies in the heart of defence, and particularly goalkeeper Allan McGregor, who has consistently made a number of vital saves to keep opposition strikers at bay. These two have had a major influence on why Hull have one of the best home defensive records in the league at the KC Stadium. Former Tottenham boys Jake Livermore and Tom Huddlestone have been formed a solid partnership in midfield, whilst attacking threats Robert Koren. Robbie Brady and Yannick Sagbo have shown glimpses of their potential, but struggled with form and (particularly Brady) injury woes. The likes of those three need to find more consistency in the second half of the season. And that is the key for Hull to maintain their solid start - consistency. A couple more signings in January may be required just to shore things up and secure survival, but Hull may not need that anyway.

Predicted Finish:   13th

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- LIVERPOOL


League Standing:   4th | 39 points (P20 - W12 - D3 - L5) | GD +23

Star Player:            Luis Suarez

Brendan Rodgers's men have started 2013/14 in blazing fashion. Who would have seen this coming? Sitting in fourth place, the boys from Anfield are looking like a strong chance to return to European football next season, perhaps even the Champions League. While Rodgers has been a big part of Liverpool's revival - which has finally seen fans begin to look to the future instead of reliving glory days in the past - their rise up the table would not have been possible if not for one man... Luis Suarez. The Uruguayan is an absolute freak. Now that Gareth Bale has gone, I think that Suarez is arguably the best player in the Premier League. Despite missing the first five games of the season due to the suspension from "that" bite, Suarez is atop of the tallies for both goals and assists. He scored four against Norwich - whom he has an additional two hattricks against - whilst also registering hattricks against. Quite simply, he is a class above, and a nightmare for opposition defenders. But though Suarez has (rightfully) taken most of the credit this season, Daniel Sturridge started the season in superb fashion, especially when Suarez was not playing. The "SAS" partnership is blossoming, and although Sturridge has had injury issues of late, they shape as a formidable pairing for the latter half of this season and beyond. Raheem Sterling has overtaken Chelsea loanee Victor Moses in the pecking order, playing some dazzling football and showing much more maturity than last season. However, he may still be loaned to Swansea if (as expected) Mohammed Salah arrives from FC Basel. Simon Mignolet has been a handy acquisition in goals, while Martin Skrtel - despite conceding a few own goals - has been a big improver in defence. But Liverpool are beginning to build a very handy side, which may just be back in the CL next season. I am predicting that they will do exactly that. Rodgers' vision is coming together - watch this space.

Predicted Finish:   4th

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- MANCHESTER CITY


League Standing:   2nd | 44 points (P20 - W14 - D2 - L4) | GD +34

Star Player:            Yaya Toure

It has been a mostly-wonderful start for Manchester City so far. Away from home they have been a bit shaky, dropping points they probably shouldn't - 3-2 losses to Cardiff and Aston Villa early in the season are lost points they may come to regret later on. But at the Etihad Stadium, their fortress, they have been nothing short of awesome. In the opening round of the season, they whacked Newcastle 4-0. From there, it has been clinical every time they play there. 4 against Manchester United, 6 against Tottenham, 6 against Arsenal, and 7 against Norwich. Clubs like Swansea did well to keep them to 3; Crystal Palace even better to only go down 1-0.  But it isn't hard to see why City have dominated as they have. Summer signings such as Jesus Navas, Fernandinho and in particular Alvaro Negredo have become vital cogs in the oil-money-made Manchester City machine. Negredo's partnership with the ever-consistent Sergio Aguero has been nothing short of devastating. Opposition defences torn apart by City's wealth of attacking options. Samir Nasri has ditched his bench stereotype, starting a majority of games. David Silva has been interrupted by injury but has scored and/or assisted in 8 of his 11 games, while Yaya Toure has become an even more complete player with his stellar free kicks. I am sure there have been some, but of any City game I have watched, I haven't seen Yaya miss a free kick. It started on the opening day, and he has scored 5 or 6 FKs from memory in the EPL so far. Quite staggering. Joe Hart has returned a better player since being dropped mid-season, while City are being to find rhythm defensively as well. City's tie with Real Madrid in the last 16 of the Champions League is looking absolutely mouth-watering. If they cannot get silverware there, they should find silverware in the Premier League (as well as the Capital One Cup). But it seems that a strong CL run is the only thing that could dent City's title tilt - but even then they have such a strong squad that they can easily rotate without losing momentum.

Predicted Finish:   1st

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- MANCHESTER UNITED


League Standing:   7th | 34 points (P20 - W10 - D4 - L6) | GD +9

Star Player:            Wayne Rooney

It's been an unexpected 6 months down at Old Trafford. The "Theatre of Dreams" has become the "Threatre of 3 Points to Away Teams" of late - Tottenham, Everton, Newcastle, West Brom and Swansea have won at Old Trafford since August (FA Cup included). United have lost their aura that they had under Sir Alex Ferguson, as the chosen one David Moyes continues to flounder. Admittedly he has inherited a pretty crap team, that is way below the standards of Manchester City or Chelsea. The likes of Anderson, Ashley Young, Nani, Chris Smalling and Tom Cleverley (I could go on) need to be sold if United want to make the Champions League. Ryan Giggs, Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra are past their best, while Wilfried Zaha, Shinji Kagawa and Javier Hernandez have been benched when they should be on the pitch, and incorrectly used when they are. Moyes' biggest problem IMO has been his selections, and his media comments. Too often he'd get his words tangled up and almost accept mediocrity after bad losses - I can't see Jose Mourinho or Arsene Wenger saying some of the things Moyes does. Robin van Persie has struggled on form and injury, while Wayne Rooney has been a standout player yet again. The emergence of Adnan Januzaj is very promising, but too often he has looked like United's most threatening player. With no disrespect intended, you'd hope there would be more potent players in United's first team than an 18 year old. United's transfer window was disastrous, with the club forking out way too much for Marouane Fellaini - and he has barely made an impact at all. Towards the end of December, I thought United were starting to come good, and a spot in the top four was beginning to look possible. But three consecutive 2-1 losses (unheard of at United) to Tottenham in the EPL, Swansea in the FA Cup, and then Sunderland in the League Cup, are beginning to strongly cast doubt over whether United would make Europa. They need quality players - now. Not OK players, world-class players. Players who want out of their clubs, like Juan Mata - he'd be a perfect fit at United. If they wait til after the World Cup, those quality players might not want to come to Old Trafford. I hope Moyes succeeds as a manager, but at the moment he looks very out of his depth. That's why I don't think they will make the Top Four this season.

Predicted Finish:   5th  .... but don't get your hopes up United fans; they are doing everything to prove me wrong

[tbagrocks]

Turns out the Refs have money on City here :-X and from one of the would be goals of the year ::)

[Vinny]

Turns out the Refs have money on City here :-X and from one of the would be goals of the year ::)

Bullshower

[timmyparso]

Turns out the Refs have money on City here :-X and from one of the would be goals of the year ::)

Was a cracker of a shot but I think the refs were correct in disallowing it.

Hart had 2 Newcastle players in front of him in offside position and although they were moving to avoid the ball Hart looked to hesitate to dive left to save expecting a deflection from the player at the front. So technically the Newcastle players did influence the play. 

[T Dog]

Great work here again Big Tom. I may have to seriously look at Sturridge. Lallana in this week...then work on the Suarez / Sturridge double act... ;D

[My Chumps]

Exciting game at Britannia!

Sturridge and Suarez partnership back up and running  8)

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- NEWCASTLE


League Standing:   8th | 33 points (P21 - W10 - D3 - L8) | GD +2

Star Player:            Yohan Cabaye

Newcastle started the season disastrously with a 4-0 thrashing at the Etihad Stadium to Manchester City. But after the Sky Blues smashed Norwich, Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham, conceding 4 doesn't look so bad. Since then, Newcastle have really lifted to be in a good position mid-season. Without the burden of a Europa League campaign, the Toon Army have been able to fully focus on the Premier League, and Alan Pardew's brigade of mostly-Frenchmen have come to the party. Yohan Cabaye is one of those Frenchmen, and he has been instrumental this season. He very nearly left the club in August - and he may yet leave in January - but it was a good move to stay, for all parties concerned. Prolific striker Papiss Cisse has virtually gone missing this season, due to bad form, injury and the rise in the strike-pairing of Loic Remy and Yoan Gouffran. Newcastle won a patch of 7 out of 9 Premier League games, beating United, Chelsea and Tottenham on the way. In the Tottenham game in particular, Tim Krul was a brick wall, making fourteen saves, some of which defied belief. Some January signings will be needed to freshen up the squad and keep it competitive against bigger clubs, but the current squad have been able to hold their own. Newcastle have lost their last three however, so will need to lift a bit, but with a passionate fan base behind them, I cannot see the Toon dropping out of the top half for the rest of the season - there certainly won't be any relegation scares like 2012/13.

Predicted Finish:   8th

[Tominator]

Tominator's Mid-Season Review -- NORWICH


League Standing:   15th | 20 points (P21 - W5 - D5 - L11) | GD -18

Star Player:            Leroy Fer

The summer transfer window for Norwich saw them bring in a lot of players, such as Ricky van Wolfswinkel, Leroy Fer, Gary Hooper, Nathan Redmond and Johan Elmander. However, the Canaries have been a bit of a letdown this season, not having the breakout I predicted them to. They are not playing bad enough to look like being relegated, but there is no doubt they are in the relegation dogfight, only 2 points above the drop zone. The main problem for Norwich is not having enough contributors consistently. Van Wolfswinkel scored a goal on debut against Everton but has done hardly anything since; Hooper has been hampered by injury but did score a wonderful lob against Swansea, and has five to his name now; while Scottish midfielder Robert Snodgrass has not reached the heights he did last season. Sebastien Bassong has struggled with injury as well, and Norwich have missed his presence when he has been out. John Ruddy has dipped a bit from 2012/13 but is still a very good keeper.  Norwich just need more from their star players to get more points and avoid any potential relegation shock. The main thing for them is to win the crucial six-pointers against sides below them, and if they do that enough then I think they should survive by about 3-5 points.

Predicted Finish:   15th

[Vinny]

Rooney and RVP both out for the Chelsea game for those who don't know .