The Evo-Web Football Thoughts Blog

marqisspes6 said:
is calcio alive once again??? inter and ac milan in the semi finals of UCL, juve and roma at the semifinals of the UEL and fiorentina semifinals of conference league :BY:
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Never died man. Seria A is still competitive in Europe despite having way less money then Premier League. Champions league Milan is “football heritage” (read with Mourinho voice 😂).
 
Sometimes you just have to appreciate greatness....... even if it has unlimited funds
 
First Time i really said to myself : Man, this City FC deserved to reach top of the Crown in Europe. This is a Team in every Aspect. It is not that unstoppable fast Football. But it is not stoppable over 90 Minutes. Personally one of the best 3 Teams in last 10 Years.
 
I've never seen a team like this City team - they've produced some of the best teams I've ever seen, but 22/23's team is the most incredibly balanced, drilled, determined set of players. My only hope (as someone who doesn't particularly like state-funded football) is that next season, after winning the treble, they suffer with a bit of Liverpoolitis - where the determination drops off a little.

It's boring how incredible they are right now. Within half an hour of watching the match last night I wanted to turn off the TV because it was so obvious that they were going to score a lot of goals. But they do it with such flair that you can't look away.
 
Chris Davies said:
I've never seen a team like this City team - they've produced some of the best teams I've ever seen, but 22/23's team is the most incredibly balanced, drilled, determined set of players. My only hope (as someone who doesn't particularly like state-funded football) is that next season, after winning the treble, they suffer with a bit of Liverpoolitis - where the determination drops off a little.

It's boring how incredible they are right now. Within half an hour of watching the match last night I wanted to turn off the TV because it was so obvious that they were going to score a lot of goals. But they do it with such flair that you can't look away.
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I have mixed feelings with EPL honestly, yes, its an amazing spectacle but... What the f happened to arsenal? And im gonna be direct there was money involved behind it? It won't surprise me honestly, being the fact that most bet houses are owners of the teams, which i think is just another issue to football nowadays...
 
marqisspes6 said:
I have mixed feelings with EPL honestly, yes, its an amazing spectacle but... What the f happened to arsenal? And im gonna be direct there was money involved behind it? It won't surprise me honestly, being the fact that most bet houses are owners of the teams, which i think is just another issue to football nowadays...
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I don't think we need to turn to conspiracy theories here (none of those guys would throw a game, particularly not Arteta - just listen to him, he's clearly broken by this - and referees can't rule out every goal).

The fact is, they're a much younger team and a less experienced team when it comes to winning a championship. They started strong but had nothing left in the tank by the end. Comparing City to Arsenal is, in a way, comparing men against boys.
 
City are like a thoroughbred racehorse. They may let you get ahead of them during the campaign, but they will be right in the mix come the finish line. Look at my lads, out of three photo finishes, we've only won one.

Which brings me to....How the hell are we 5th? after such a poor season. It certainly hasn't been great watching us for the most part. The wins apart from united have generally flattered us (Leeds springs to mind). I can't complain though considering.
 
The Bundesliga's title race is heart thumping right now! Going into last weekend, Bayern was leading Dortmund by 1 point, plus the massive goal differential. But they suffered a shock defeat to Leipzig at the Allianz Arena while Dortmund won as visitors against Augsburg. With one game left to go, these are the standings!

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Last Fixture, Saturday, May 27:
Borussia Dortmund (ranked 1st) are hosting Mainz (ranked 10th)
Bayern Munich (ranked 2nd) visits Koln (ranked 9th)

There are two possible scenarios here. Suffice to say:

- If Bayern wins, they need Dortmund to tie or lose to be crowned Champions.

- Every other possible combination results in a Dortmund title.

Bayern has won 10 straight Bundesligas. Think about that for a second. Last time someone other than Bayern (Klopp's Dortmund) won the league, this was the latest edition of the game. :LOL:

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Will this be the year when the streak will be broken, or will a miracle occur on the last day for the Bavarians?

Bayern are a class organization but personally, I'm rooting for Dortmund. :) Will be eagerly awaiting to see what happens.
 
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It's not ony the title race, it's probably the most exciting gameday since a loooooong time. Really every game is still about something. Championship with Bayern or Dortmund, champions league qualification (Union Berlin or Freiburg), Euro League qualification (Union Berlin, Freiburg, Leverkusen, Wolfsburg) and direct relegation or relegation play downs (Schalke, Bochum, Stuttgart and even Augsburg). There are only 2 league positions are clear, Leipzig as 3rd and Hertha BSC as 18th. The rest will permanently change within these (hopefully) crazy 90 minutes on saturday.
 
millossobek said:
The Bundesliga's title race is heart thumping right now! Going into last weekend, Bayern was leading Dortmund by 1 point, plus the massive goal differential. But they suffered a shock defeat to Leipzig at the Allianz Arena while Dortmund won as visitors against Augsburg. With one game left to go, these are the standings!

View attachment 217692

Last Fixture, Saturday, May 27:
Borussia Dortmund (ranked 1st) are hosting Mainz (ranked 10th)
Bayern Munich (ranked 2nd) visits Koln (ranked 9th)

There are two possible scenarios here. Suffice to say:

- If Bayern wins, they need Dortmund to tie or lose to be crowned Champions.

- Every other possible combination results in a Dortmund title.

Bayern has won 10 straight Bundesligas. Think about that for a second. Last time someone other than Bayern (Klopp's Dortmund) won the league, this was the latest edition of the game. :LOL:

View attachment 217693

Will this be the year where the streak will be broken, or will a miracle occur on the last day for the Bavarians?

Bayern are a class organization but personally, I'm rooting for Dortmund. :) Will be eagerly awaiting to see what happens.
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I really hope Dortmund will take this one!
 
I thought this guy would play forever. He was never the same after that horrible injury in united.

Definetly one of my fav footballer. Zlatan is like real life PES create a player. He's pretty much have all the attributes, tall, strong, speed, dribble, shot power, acrobatic goals, everything. I highly doubt we will ever see a player with his attribute ever again.


Eventhough he prefers AC Milan, till now i always feel weird about it. For me he's more 'blue" than "red", but that just me i guess. Football definetly is going to miss him, he has unique personality.
 
One of those guys that could set a whole stadium on fire alone, thabks to his charism, passion and skill. The first derby after his return from MLS was amazing. Unfortunately for most of the time when he was on fire in 2020 the stadiums had to be closed due to COVID and then he was injured most of the last 1.5 years or so. A video of his best goals and skills would go for some hours. Most iconic was of course the one against England. But so many other memories come to my mind, like when he scored against Italy in 2004, how he won championship with Inter 2008, many more great Milan derbies and so on. And then his move to Barca helped us to win CL with Eto'o :)) I will miss him on the pitch and outside, he is always very entertaining
 
ZLATAN!! I just found out by reading it here!! What a player, what a character!! :BSCARF: :RSCARF:

In this cookie-cutter sports world of pre-packaged and generic personalities, rehearsed answers, corporate drudgery, and bling-bling fake social media, Zlatan's OUTSIZED and AUTHENTIC personality was a breath of fresh air!! Loved him and he will always remain one of my favorite players of all time. Immense charisma which transcended the sport. He will be sorely missed!

We definitely need more Zlatans in football, people who aren't afraid to speak their minds, and play with their hearts!!

Enjoy the rest of your journey, LEGEND!! :WORSHIP: :TU:
 
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He made the smart choice. MLS offered him a piece of the television pie because he will single-handedly carry the Apple TV agreement (for those that don't know, MLS started a rather revolutionary but probably not very successful plan to have every single game available with a subscription to the MLS pass on Apple TV) and he will surely have ownership stakes, which is important because MLS clubs are massively overvalued. That, and he probably saw Cristiano Ronaldo getting next to zero international interest in his time in Saudi Arabia, and figured the future money was better than the immediate guarantees.

I always thought it would have been a bit weird for him to go back to Barcelona and not play in the Nou Camp for the next season or two, depending on how long he was there, because they are playing at Montjuic while the Nou Camp is under construction. That and, considering how Barça has handled the last few years/decades of their finances, I am quite fine with them not getting the easy bailout by having Messi again.

And once Phil Neville got canned last week, Miami could put a bag of flour on the sidelines and Messi will be playing for a better manager 😅
 
Ronaldo influence is really big in middle east eventhough the media coverage isn't as big as US media, i think it's really good choice for him to leave spotlight after all he's been through in 2022. Personally i think Both are doing good decision for their "retirement age" eventhough they basically set for life & nothing to prove anymore. Just want to enjoy some good years left before leaving football.

Silverdome94 said:
Messi will be playing for a better manager 😅
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Or he will become Player/Manager, probably better than phil :P Crazy to think both neville brothers are shit as manager, both are still good player tho, lol.
 
Chris Davies said:
...and City have done it. Well...



I hope all the financial doping charges against them bite them on the arse the slightest, slightest bit.
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Wholeheartedly agree with you on that. As great as they've been football-wise, breaking records left, right and centre, it feels very soulless and artificial, reflected in the celebrations tonight, and even more noticeable compared to when Liverpool, Man United (in the past) and even West Ham on Wednesday.
 
Nah i like it tho, i'm tired seeing these old same clubs winning UCL every freakin time. If someone told me 20 years ago that city would win treble i will laugh at their face, now here we are. Congrats.
 
Hayes said:
Nah i like it tho, i'm tired seeing these old same clubs winning UCL every freakin time. If someone told me 20 years ago that city would win treble i will laugh at their face, now here we are. Congrats.
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Yes. But now you will see these SAME clubs still win the Champions League (now that takeovers are increasing)

Anyways,
I came here to ask a question. What Format of the Champions League do you guys think was the best for its era and the best in terms of everything.
Sure, I think the Bossman ruling coinciding with the change in Champions League Format (about 1996?) has shown the decrease in competitiveness, and if anything this new format from 2024-25 onwards is even worse.

For me: In hindsight, the Super League was not a TERRIBLE idea in principle, with Wage Caps and all - what the real flaw was that who decides who are these Established teams?
You had Juventus there, but not AJAX? A Club with more Champion Leagues? That was where it collapsed and it was a greedy thing. Except it in turn made UEFA go berserk and make a Super League Lite change to the format.

My opinion is: Keeping that original format with champions would NOT work today, as the world of Football has far regressed in Competition today - and this is exactly what people miss when they say in Comment Sections: "Who would like to see PSG, Man City, Barcelona, Bayern etc. in the CL every year?"
This is exactly what they miss - that back then the level of Competitiveness in Europe fluctuated a lot more, and this is why it resulted in 3 Peats of Ajax, Bayern, and Real Madrid - yet resulted in teams like Steua and Red Star Belgrade and Sampadoria winning the CL or reaching the finals. We don't have any of this sort anymore. It was a totally different climate of Football. The current climate is set in a way to ensure the path of the "Big 4/6" in Leagues stays as is. Porto and Ajax in 2004 and 2019 happened, and then? Look at that Porto team then and 4 years later. Porto gone in the UCL First Knockout, and Ajax? They couldn't even win their own league this season.

The win of Manchester City shows that Money can not buy you direct success, but it can buy you the players and the staff you need for success. It is not Guardiola that is criticized, because of course - Pellegrini or Tuchel wouldn't have made these players play this football like Guardiola , but surely City wouldn't have won this by any means without the takeover. They were almost relegated in 2006 - 2 years later they were bought and we are here today. Newcastle doesn't seem far off, except Newcastle were actually a decent club in 2006.

I seriously don't think I'm going to be watching the UCL from 2024 onwards except perhaps the Quarters or Semis onwards. And to be fair, usually I stopped bothering with the Finals. They are very boring , especially boring since about 2017 (for me)
 
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