GWT: EPL Week 32

[Jersey Fresh]

My cautious optimism is the result of also being a New York Mets and New York Jets fan.

The Mets are winning the pennant this year.

 

[Duchene2MacKinnon]

Thanks for the shout out. Shouldn't you be slobbering over some 14-year-old Argentine right now, though? Or was this post cutting into your writing time for some sophomoric thesis paper whining about Panera Bread's hiring practices being as bad Qatari indentured servitude?

Hard to keep track, sorry comrade.

No worries and it's actually Israeli apartheid week which I'm sure you are well versed in. Which reminds me don't you have a land to occupy?

 

[Live in the Now]

The Mets are winning the pennant this year.

That's now how you spell Dodgers. Then the Dodgers will lose the World Series again and I will be mega pissed off.

Anyway, only really Savant is reacting like that to this season. I think it's really a 50-50 from here and that Liverpool will get the help they need. If Liverpool wins their next two games I don't think they'll drop points the whole way.

 

[Evilo]

Of course I'll be disappointed but I think this is the first of many title challenges and as a result is nowhere near as disappointing as 13-14 or last season when it really felt like that would be our only chance to win the CL. Obviously now those thoughts for last season were ill founded. Not going to be the end of the world if it doesn't work out.

I'm not sure Pool challenges City next year. Just a gut feeling their front 3 will struggle and Klopp is messing his MF big time.
So they need to repeat the defense of this year, and I'm not sure that works.

 

[Duchene2MacKinnon]

I'm not sure Pool challenges City next year. Just a gut feeling their front 3 will struggle and Klopp is messing his MF big time.
So they need to repeat the defense of this year, and I'm not sure that works.

They have a summer to shore up any weaknesses. The foundation is there certainly but I'd be shocked if they were one and done.

 

[Live in the Now]

I'm not sure Pool challenges City next year. Just a gut feeling their front 3 will struggle and Klopp is messing his MF big time.
So they need to repeat the defense of this year, and I'm not sure that works.

I think they'll strengthen in the positions they need and still challenge. There's been no talk of transfers at all really as Liverpool has gotten really good at keeping those things secret, but I still think they'll sign Werner.

Milner is also leaving in the summer and Oxlade-Chamberlain will be back, Keita able to recover from injury, etc.

That being said I do think they're still winning this league. The schedules speak for themselves.

 

[phisherman]

Forget all this Liverpool conspiracy theory or global politics I think you all are missing the most important point about this season.

That you will all be wrong about Arsenal not finishing in the top 4!

 

[Evilo]

I think they'll strengthen in the positions they need and still challenge. There's been no talk of transfers at all really as Liverpool has gotten really good at keeping those things secret, but I still think they'll sign Werner.

Milner is also leaving in the summer and Oxlade-Chamberlain will be back, Keita able to recover from injury, etc.

That being said I do think they're still winning this league. The schedules speak for themselves.

I also think Pool wins this year.
I don't think they win next year, except if Pep goes, which changes a everything.

 

[Evilo]

Forget all this Liverpool conspiracy theory or global politics I think you all are missing the most important point about this season.

That you will all be wrong about Arsenal not finishing in the top 4!

Don't count your chicken...

 

[Halladay]

Cut it with the politics.

 

[Chimaera]

Being a Caps fan, a Liverpool supporter, an unfortunate supporter of a lot of other Washington Sports, I'm used to being negative and not expecting the best. I expect the worst, and if it happens, it happens, and I'll be grateful and enjoy it. But I've seen too many failures to think it should or would happen. I mean, my childhood is filled with nightmares of Jeffery Maier that I'll never get out. I can remember so many disasters to the Penguins in the playoffs. Ugh.

I have no idea what it would be like to be a Boston sports fan. I mean, in my childhood, the Redskins were great for a good period, and I did enjoy it, but they've been so awful and such a failure. Then you have the Bullets/Wizards. Ugh. I mean, all of my Caps fandom until this past season (and even really until Kuznetsov slid one past Murray, though I'll admit I couldn't believe it was happening till that save by Holtby in the finals) has been abject disaster.

Heck, the only team I support that has had some modicums of success, Maryland Terps basketball have been a mediocre run for a while now.

I mean, there's some optimist in me, now that I've seen the Caps do something I've never thought they could do. But I don't know that I fully believe it. City is just too good.



As for next year, I don't know that they'll have the title run in them, but they're going to be stronger in my opinion. They certainly won't go the entire season with one loss. But they should strengthen. I think Liverpool's bench has been abjectly poor since at least December, and I think that's going to be massively fixed. They have boatloads of cash.

 

[bluesfan94]

Okay, and? Has that rung true or false?

False. Regardless of the results, it was still Liverpool's to lose. They just happened to lose it.

 

[YNWA14]

Forget all this Liverpool conspiracy theory or global politics I think you all are missing the most important point about this season.

That you will all be wrong about Arsenal not finishing in the top 4!

You need to check who's been arguing that Arsenal was going to finish in the top 4 this season.

False. Regardless of the results, it was still Liverpool's to lose. They just happened to lose it.

Sure. Whatever narrative supports your end goal.

 

[The Abusement Park]

Sure. Whatever narrative supports your end goal.

You guys were 4 points up at Christmas. You guys controlled your own destiny and it was your title to lose at that point. That’s not a narrative that’s a fact.

 

[hatterson]

You guys were 4 points up at Christmas. You guys controlled your own destiny and it was your title to lose at that point. That’s not a narrative that’s a fact.

Not even Christmas, on Jan 30th they were 4 points up on City. That day they had a home game against Leicester who was in terrible form to go up 7 points with 14 games to play.

 

[Evilo]

I can remember so many disasters to the Penguins in the playoffs. Ugh.

Which is clearly the best part of the playoffs.

 

[The Abusement Park]

Not even Christmas, on Jan 30th they were 4 points up on City. That day they had a home game against Leicester who was in terrible form to go up 7 points with 14 games to play.

Leicester would’ve let City win. Very unfair of them.

 

[YNWA14]

You guys were 4 points up at Christmas. You guys controlled your own destiny and it was your title to lose at that point. That’s not a narrative that’s a fact.

You realize how silly that is though? That's like saying it's whoever has a point lead 10 games in's title to lose. Even if they had gone up 7 points with 14 games to play that's a potential 42 more points. Declaring favourites for the title on flavour of the week or whoever is leading on any given day is just shortsighted, and only used to fit narratives.

Whatever makes you guys happy though at the end of the day it won't change the way I viewed the season so carry on.

 

[The Abusement Park]

You realize how silly that is though? That's like saying it's whoever has a point lead 10 games in's title to lose. Even if they had gone up 7 points with 14 games to play that's a potential 42 more points. Declaring favourites for the title on flavour of the week or whoever is leading on any given day is just shortsighted, and only used to fit narratives.

Whatever makes you guys happy though at the end of the day it won't change the way I viewed the season so carry on.

You were a game and a half up basically with less than 1/3 of the season left. That puts you in the driver seat for winning the title and that’s a fact.

 

[bluesfan94]

That's like saying it's whoever has a point lead 10 games in's title to lose. Even if they had gone up 7 points with 14 games to play that's a potential 42 more points.

Except the sample sizes are drastically different. Regardless, Liverpool was unquestionably in the better position

 

[YNWA14]

You were a game and a half up basically with less than 1/3 of the season left. That puts you in the driver seat for winning the title and that’s a fact.

Except the sample sizes are drastically different. Regardless, Liverpool was unquestionably in the better position

Ok, you guys are the experts. Thanks for enlightening me.

 

[Stray Wasp]

Or Rafa resting Rondon vs. Liverpool earlier this season.

I think that instead of suggesting Benitez was trying to help Liverpool, you're pointing out that the Reds aren't being conspired against at every turn, that circumstances can sometimes do them favours.

But just in case anyone starts becoming paranoid (which admittedly is unknown in this vicinity) regarding Benitez's intentions that day, it's worth remembering that Rondon was frozen out of preseason training at West Brom, which resulted in him having conditioning issues during the first half of the season. Having missed a total of six games in his previous three full EPL campaigns, he'd already been absent from five contests by the time NUFC visited Anfield on Boxing Day. Newcastle aren't prolific at the best of times, but in Rondon's absence they were nigh on utterly impotent. Preserving his health seemed imperative to the club's chances of survival.

That match was one of four NUFC had to play over 12 days. The Liverpool fixture was sandwiched between a home game against Fulham and a trip to Watford. Manchester United at SJP rounded out the run. By resting Rondon against Liverpool, Benitez was able to grant him a full week between games at a time when squad rotation is desirable. (Incidentally, I attended NUFC-Fulham. It was one of the worst football matches I've ever seen - two teams too petrified of losing to even try to play football, let alone succeed. Rondon appeared sluggish, Mitrovic ten times worse).

Given the relative league positions of Fulham, Liverpool, Watford and Newcastle at this time, I'd be surprised if anyone was surprised at Rafa's decision. Not to mention that Newcastle's only EPL victory at Anfield occurred in April 1994 - with a far, far better team than they possess now.

Lest we forget, Rondon scored at Watford in a 1-1 draw.

 

[bluesfan94]

Ok, you guys are the experts. Thanks for enlightening me.

I mean, it's just a laughable take to say that you can't pick a favorite when there are 14 games left in a season. Let's play this differently. Who do you consider the favorite now?

 

[phisherman]

You need to check who's been arguing that Arsenal was going to finish in the top 4 this season.

Don't worry I know your position on this.

 

[bluesfan94]

Given the relative league positions of Fulham, Liverpool, Watford and Newcastle at this time, I'd be surprised if anyone was surprised at Rafa's decision. Not to mention that Newcastle's only EPL victory at Anfield occurred in April 1994 - with a far, far better team than they possess now.

Right, but it doesn't matter if you rest someone because you have an upcoming game on short rest against a fellow relegation contender.

At least it doesn't matter when you're playing City.