Europa League 2016-17 (Last 16)

Champions League, Europa League, Conference League
bugylibicska
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Post by bugylibicska »

Maybe read the papers and eat some crumpets
by Simon Burnton Today

‘S’ IS FOR STANDARDS

In remarkable scenes witnessed by astonished onlookers earlier today, José Mourinho was overheard blaming other people for stuff. The Portuguese perfectionist’s hackles were raised by the fact that his expensively assembled Manchester United side are being forced to play managerless opponents from the relegation zone at lunchtime on Sunday, little more than two and a half entire days following the completion of their humdrum 1-0 testimonial win over mediocre cannon-fodder in Big Vase. The greying great believes that if United had only been allowed to kick off later that afternoon, they could have enjoyed a nice lie-in and maybe read the papers and eaten crumpets. “We should be the last team to play in the weekend, it’s as simple as that,” he fumed. “At least let us sleep a little bit on Sunday. It’s just a little bit of common sense.”

As the coach of the only team in the Premier League’s top six still involved in European competition, Mourinho also made clear his concerns about fixture congestion and appealed for, well, The Fiver isn’t sure what he was appealing for. “It’s going to get worse and it’s going to get easier for the other five teams. Now it’s very difficult for us,” he sobbed. “I don’t ask for me, I ask for everyone. I think they don’t give an ‘s’ about the English teams in Europe. They don’t care. There are other interests that are more important.”

The latest fixture added to United’s bulging calendar is a double-headed Big Vase quarter-final match-up against Anderlecht. The Belgian side’s president, Roger Vanden Stock, immediately announced that, although it was “the hardest possible draw for us”, he would approach the tie in a mood of extreme optimism on the basis that “we didn’t think we would beat Zenit St Petersburg either”, a thought process which appears both profoundly contradictory with all previously-identified forms of logic and not entirely without merit.

In Big Cup news, Leicester were handed a tricky trip to Atlético Madrid in one of two quarter-finals which aren’t quite as exciting as the other ones. Craig Shakespeare announced the Ian Marshall memory-stirrer would be “a massive challenge” and “a brilliant occasion for our supporters and for everyone at the club”, which while undoubtedly true will not stop everyone else from watching Bayern Munich v Real Madrid, which will be on at the same time. Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund v Monaco will be overshadowed by Juventus v Barcelona, a saliva-provoking rematch of the 2015 final. “I believe this is the right time to be facing them again,” trilled Juve vice-president Pavel Nedved. “Of course we must show Barcelona the right amount of respect, but not too much because then you begin to feel fear and that’s completely the wrong approach.” In some quarters the belief that showing respect is often completely the wrong approach might be considered controversial. Not, The Fiver suspects, in certain corners of Manchester.
Thunder_PT
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Post by Thunder_PT »

Again, I really don't see what's wrong with any of those Mourinho quotes, I'm fully in agreement with him. The EL team should, indeed, be the last team to play, as they probably are in every other league that has Monday night games as the PL does. That the people in charge don't care about English teams in Europe and have other interests is absolutely true as well. So what's the problem?

These guys seem to hate Mourinho so much they go as far as labeling Rostov cannon-fodder to make their case. I've lived in England, I'm used to this arrogance and lack of knowledge about football outside the Isles, but I'm surprised someone from a forum like this would buy this crap.

As for how Mourinho should stop whining and just manage his club, that's not how the world works. If something is wrong, you have to speak up, otherwise you'll never get change.

Oh, and btw, should I remind you that Ferguson himself was notorious for complaining about referees and fixtures? Did you forget Benítez' famous rant? If anything, Mourinho is pulling a page out of Ferguson's book. The only difference is Ferguson was hardly ever punished.
bugylibicska
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Post by bugylibicska »

Lorric wrote:
bugylibicska wrote:
Thunder_PT wrote:
What an idiot! Typical British/Irish ignorance about football outside the Isles. The reserves could have won that game? How does he think Rostov got that far? Did he miss the win against Bayern? He probably never heard of Rostov before. It's people like him who are always surprised that English teams underperform.

And easy draw in the cups? City was easy? Chelsea was easy?

Mourinho is right, it's not normal that a team that'll play in Europe plays on Monday. TVs rule fixtures in England and more managers should join the fight to change that.
I agree with Mourinho that English football full of arrogant, braindead people. Only thing that matters to them is money. And the results show: only Leicester and MU stand still in Europe. Where are the 5 clubs from so called ``big 6? And it`s getting worse by every year. Roy Keane a legend, he was the motor in the team and the leader on the field and in the dressing room, too. He`s bitter and disappointed, understandably. United 6th or 7th? Even wacko Van Gaal finished 4th and 5th. Mourinho is vulnerable and whines too much. I realize that he inherited a real mess after wacko, but the team play miserably, totally unrecognizable from the Ferguson years.`
Some thoughts on all this.

The messenger would be a lot better not being Mourinho. The man just bitches and bitches and bitches and bitches about anything and everything week after week after week. He's pathetic, and the British people are extremely sick and tired of him. Just read any comments section on any article about Mourinho bitching about something in recent-ish times. I just wish the man would shut up and focus on managing his football club, like pretty much everyone else does. United have a truckload of problems they need to be focusing on, not all this unnecessary bullshit from Mourinho.

The Prem could do much better at protecting the European contingent, they barely do anything at all where other leagues do, but with the CL changes they have no reason to now. The 4th CL place is about as secure as Celtic's domestic dominance now. So there's no incentive at all now to do so, if anything, the opposite, the PL teams drop out of Europe, it improves the quality of the Premier League product as teams focus all their energy on the league. Unlike the other leagues, the PL could actually outstrip the CL as the top product in club football if this growth continues, and then you'd see English clubs treating European competitions like the League Cup. I don't know how to make an argument now for the PL to put Europe before its own interests. Before, the threat of Italy taking a CL place would have done tremendous damage to the PL brand, but that can't happen now. The PL is strong enough for the English teams to still do reasonably well and perhaps really well despite the handicaps of being a PL team. Most will still get out of their group, and some will win KO ties.

It's not Chelsea and Liverpool's fault, they weren't even in Europe this year. Liverpool reached an EL final last year and Chelsea I fully expect to pick back up where they left off after the Mourinho farce as England's standout European club next year. Arsenal can't be expected to stand against Bayern Munich, they won their group and got screwed in the draw, nothing more can be expected of them. Tottenham were a disgrace. City I can't be too mad at, they fucked up badly in that first half, but Monaco were excellent. No shame going out to them. They'll cause anyone trouble if they reproduce those two performances. City were great entertainment this year in the CL.
For me the idea that the PL is more important than the CL just absurd. Brendan Rodgers said - whom I used to call a massive dickhead - something similar when sent out a Liverpool B team against Real Madrid in the Bernabeu. And if Arsenal can`t be expected to stand against Bayern then somebody should put his cowboy boots into Wenger`s mouth, because it is a sad thing when a man has neither the wit to speak well nor the judgment to hold his tongue. City and Guardiola I say nothing, just happy (Schadenfreude) they`re out. You`ll see Chelsea next season, no match for the big boys. And Europe would badly need one or more English teams to compete seriously to chase away the boredom of seeing the same old, same old very few.
bugylibicska
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Post by bugylibicska »

Thunder_PT wrote:Again, I really don't see what's wrong with any of those Mourinho quotes, I'm fully in agreement with him. The EL team should, indeed, be the last team to play, as they probably are in every other league that has Monday night games as the PL does. That the people in charge don't care about English teams in Europe and have other interests is absolutely true as well. So what's the problem?

These guys seem to hate Mourinho so much they go as far as labeling Rostov cannon-fodder to make their case. I've lived in England, I'm used to this arrogance and lack of knowledge about football outside the Isles, but I'm surprised someone from a forum like this would buy this crap.

As for how Mourinho should stop whining and just manage his club, that's not how the world works. If something is wrong, you have to speak up, otherwise you'll never get change.

Oh, and btw, should I remind you that Ferguson himself was notorious for complaining about referees and fixtures? Did you forget Benítez' famous rant? If anything, Mourinho is pulling a page out of Ferguson's book. The only difference is Ferguson was hardly ever punished.
I think Mourinho expected an easier ride and so had the fans. Nobody thought he`d struggle just to secure a top 4 finish. And he`s picking fight with everybody, unnecessarily. Lost his aura of invincibility after Chelsea and became from special to not so special. And yes, he`s whining a lot, not the best feature for a man. As for Rostov being a cannon fodder, just amusing, I think they`ve earned the respect of every fair-minded football fan. I`d a huge respect for Roy Keane the player, the heart and soul of United of better times, but he failed as a coach spectacularly and as a pundit he sometimes farts through his mouth. Actually he said B team of United would take care of Rostov, who knows, maybe, but impossible to prove. Too bad I cannot say the same, because Rostov have no B team. :lol:
Lorric
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Post by Lorric »

bugylibicska wrote:
Lorric wrote:
bugylibicska wrote:
I agree with Mourinho that English football full of arrogant, braindead people. Only thing that matters to them is money. And the results show: only Leicester and MU stand still in Europe. Where are the 5 clubs from so called ``big 6? And it`s getting worse by every year. Roy Keane a legend, he was the motor in the team and the leader on the field and in the dressing room, too. He`s bitter and disappointed, understandably. United 6th or 7th? Even wacko Van Gaal finished 4th and 5th. Mourinho is vulnerable and whines too much. I realize that he inherited a real mess after wacko, but the team play miserably, totally unrecognizable from the Ferguson years.`
Some thoughts on all this.

The messenger would be a lot better not being Mourinho. The man just bitches and bitches and bitches and bitches about anything and everything week after week after week. He's pathetic, and the British people are extremely sick and tired of him. Just read any comments section on any article about Mourinho bitching about something in recent-ish times. I just wish the man would shut up and focus on managing his football club, like pretty much everyone else does. United have a truckload of problems they need to be focusing on, not all this unnecessary bullshit from Mourinho.

The Prem could do much better at protecting the European contingent, they barely do anything at all where other leagues do, but with the CL changes they have no reason to now. The 4th CL place is about as secure as Celtic's domestic dominance now. So there's no incentive at all now to do so, if anything, the opposite, the PL teams drop out of Europe, it improves the quality of the Premier League product as teams focus all their energy on the league. Unlike the other leagues, the PL could actually outstrip the CL as the top product in club football if this growth continues, and then you'd see English clubs treating European competitions like the League Cup. I don't know how to make an argument now for the PL to put Europe before its own interests. Before, the threat of Italy taking a CL place would have done tremendous damage to the PL brand, but that can't happen now. The PL is strong enough for the English teams to still do reasonably well and perhaps really well despite the handicaps of being a PL team. Most will still get out of their group, and some will win KO ties.

It's not Chelsea and Liverpool's fault, they weren't even in Europe this year. Liverpool reached an EL final last year and Chelsea I fully expect to pick back up where they left off after the Mourinho farce as England's standout European club next year. Arsenal can't be expected to stand against Bayern Munich, they won their group and got screwed in the draw, nothing more can be expected of them. Tottenham were a disgrace. City I can't be too mad at, they fucked up badly in that first half, but Monaco were excellent. No shame going out to them. They'll cause anyone trouble if they reproduce those two performances. City were great entertainment this year in the CL.
For me the idea that the PL is more important than the CL just absurd. Brendan Rodgers said - whom I used to call a massive dickhead - something similar when sent out a Liverpool B team against Real Madrid in the Bernabeu. And if Arsenal can`t be expected to stand against Bayern then somebody should put his cowboy boots into Wenger`s mouth, because it is a sad thing when a man has neither the wit to speak well nor the judgment to hold his tongue. City and Guardiola I say nothing, just happy (Schadenfreude) they`re out. You`ll see Chelsea next season, no match for the big boys. And Europe would badly need one or more English teams to compete seriously to chase away the boredom of seeing the same old, same old very few.
It isn't currently. But if the money continues to flood into the PL, it will be. If the day comes when there's more money to be made prioritising the PL over the CL, it will be.

They'd already been smoked at Anfield, and the change team did much better than the first team.

I don't expect Chelsea to compete with the Big 3. I just expect them to be the best we have to offer. Even with missing this season completely, they still have the highest coefficient of any English club.
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Aliceag
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Post by Aliceag »

Here it seems, as expected, the road is becoming clearer for Mourinho. Celta is the other team that I would like to see in the final. MU-Celta would be perfect. Let's see if they are able to make it and if the draw doesn't clash them. Ajax could be an excelent dark horse Dnipro style. They would "deserve" that after so many years Holland being frustrated in their attempts since Feyenoord and AZ back then....
Play fair and square!
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Overgame
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Post by Overgame »

I wonder if United will take the EL seriously if they are 3rd when they will play against Anderlecht, just before and after the game against Chelsea. Current situation and next 4 games for City - Liverpool - United - Arsenal - Everton

City 56 (27)
Liverpool 55 (28)
Arsenal 50 (27)
Everton 50 (29)
United 49 (26)

March 19th
Middlesbrough - United
City - Liverpool

April 1st/2nd
United - WBA
Liverpool - Everton
Arsenal - City

April 4th/5th
United - Everton
Arsenal - West Ham
Chelsea - City
Liverpool - Bournemouth

April 8th/9th/10th
City - Hull
Stoke - Liverpool
Everton - Leicester
Sunderland - United
Bournemouth - Arsenal

If United wins the 4 games, the path to the CLGS will be wide open.
bugylibicska
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Post by bugylibicska »

Overgame wrote:I wonder if United will take the EL seriously if they are 3rd when they will play against Anderlecht, just before and after the game against Chelsea. Current situation and next 4 games for City - Liverpool - United - Arsenal - Everton

City 56 (27)
Liverpool 55 (28)
Arsenal 50 (27)
Everton 50 (29)
United 49 (26)

March 19th
Middlesbrough - United
City - Liverpool

April 1st/2nd
United - WBA
Liverpool - Everton
Arsenal - City

April 4th/5th
United - Everton
Arsenal - West Ham
Chelsea - City
Liverpool - Bournemouth

April 8th/9th/10th
City - Hull
Stoke - Liverpool
Everton - Leicester
Sunderland - United
Bournemouth - Arsenal

If United wins the 4 games, the path to the CLGS will be wide open.
United play their next 2 games without Ibrahimovic, he`s banned. Also Pogba injured and Blind.
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AlanK
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Post by AlanK »

Celta has made it to quarterfinals on three previous occasions, always losing at that point. They're stoked at the opportunity to make it to semifinals, but they know that Genk is no pushover. Back about 2000, they made it to quarterfinals with a second-leg 4-0 win over Juventus!--Most of this from marca.com.
"Past performance is no guarantee of future results."
rrey1
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Post by rrey1 »

Mourinho's rant was completely off the mark.

At first, FA doesn't "owe" MU any special "protections" (they already have enough advantage, look at their budget).

Even if we assume that FA has a goal to "protect English teams in Europe", then

- MU was given the earliest slot against Bournemouth (to max the rest time before the away leg in Rostov)
- MU was given the latest QF FA Cup slot against Chelsea (where else could FA put it ???, Sunday would be too early after return from Rostov)
- After the second leg against Rostov, FA does not have any "duty" to "protect" MU "in Europe" as MU is already out of EL stage (either completely out or on to a QF tie which is almost a month away)

So, what he is complaining about ???

Sure, FA could have swapped Middlesbrough - MU game with Tottenham - Southampton game (presumably, they wanted to keep Man City - Liverpool in the latest slot). So, MU would "gain" 2 hours and 15 minutes of time. Is this that big of a deal ??? Middlesbrough was in such a mess MU could have beaten them in any time slot, even at 5 a.m.

Mourinho really doesn't make himself any favors ranting like this about a nonexistent "problem".
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Post by fillow »

bugylibicska wrote:Also Pogba injured and Blind.
Not sure if wordplay was intentional...

Image
bugylibicska
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Post by bugylibicska »

fillow wrote:
bugylibicska wrote:Also Pogba injured and Blind.
Not sure if wordplay was intentional...

Image
No, it wasn`t. :lol:
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