European Cup Final: Internazionale vs Abu Dhabi Oilers (Atatūrk Stadium, Instanbul, June 10, 8pm)

[TheHowieLama]

1 minute ago, Poor Scouser T said:

Couple of posts ago why?

 

Before that. The long game took about a decade, They already have golf level influence, it's why the World Cup happened. In 5 years the majority of teams in the EPL will be owned similarly and the top league trophy being played for will have nothing to do with England.

[Poor Scouser T]

Just now, TheHowieLama said:

 

Before that. The long game took about a decade, They already have golf level influence, it's why the World Cup happened. In 5 years the majority of teams in the EPL will be owned similarly and the top league trophy being played for will have nothing to do with England.

They have influence but not control. Huge influence granted. I fully expect Middle East teams to lobby for access to the Champions League that must be on the cards. Then it is game over,

[Megadrive Man]

14 minutes ago, Poor Scouser T said:

I can't get my head around the Arabs long game here. Paying old stars millions to play in their leagues and then buying English clubs. Makes no sense unless they want golf level influence.

 

I'm not one for conspiracy theories but there's something very worrying about Middle Eastern influence buying up Golf and football. I feel that there's something going beyond just Sports washing.

[col06]

Just now, Poor Scouser T said:

They have influence but not control. Huge influence granted. I fully expect Middle East teams to lobby for access to the Champions League that must be on the cards. Then it is game over,

They will destroy the game well here at least people will get fed up of it eventually wonder if maybe one day we might get another league you never know

[col06]

Just now, Megadrive Man said:

 

I'm not one for conspiracy theories but there's something very worrying about Middle Eastern influence buying up Golf and football. I feel that there's something going beyond just Sports washing.

Its worrying that there not just doing that they have been buying into care homes over here apparently what is that all about

[Megadrive Man]

I'm sure it's nothing to worry about. Incredibly wealthy people have a long history of being loving caring salt of the earth type socialists.

[Strontium]

 

[an tha]

36 minutes ago, Poor Scouser T said:

I can't get my head around the Arabs long game here. Paying old stars millions to play in their leagues and then buying English clubs. Makes no sense unless they want golf level influence.

Can see a day when they have all the top clubs playing over there....their influence and of course money is a real danger

[s(k)aturation]

Well that's my match thread career in tatters.

 

Small consolation - on the Sunday morning of a bank holiday weekend - is a "faux Croque Madame" Ham, Cheese and Tomato flatbread toastie with dried chilli flakes and spicy red capsicum sauce.  Then back to bed.

Not the end of the world after all, perhaps....

 

 

 

 

 

[Mathewbet1]

Its taken the genius pepe 11 years and about 3 billion , genius indeed

[niallers]

Maybe it's because more people are cottoning onto the fact that they're cheating bastards, or that its not us who they are "stopping",or it's both, but there's an awful lot of "sportswashing cunts" comments flying around social media at present. It's heartening in a weird, perverted way. 

Cheating cunts

[Aventus]

Sick to the back arse of these cunts 

[an tha]

3 minutes ago, niallers said:

Maybe it's because more people are cottoning onto the fact that they're cheating bastards, or that its not us who they are "stopping",or it's both, but there's an awful lot of "sportswashing cunts" comments flying around social media at present. It's heartening in a weird, perverted way. 

Cheating cunts

Take our fans out of it and there would be a lot less if it was us they had beat tonight.

[niallers]

16 minutes ago, an tha said:

Take our fans out of it and there would be a lot less if it was us they had beat tonight.

I'd normally agree but it's from a wide variety of fans. Nobody but the paid hacks in the media give a flying fiddlers.

[TD_LFC]

Theirs a high level of hypocrisy in Utd fans responding to these cunts winning the CL by mentioning oil states and buying titles and FFP and 115 whilst simultaneously having Qatari flags in their profiles and begging Qatar to buy them.

[an tha]

3 minutes ago, TD_LFC said:

Theirs a high level of hypocrisy in Utd fans responding to these cunts winning the CL by mentioning oil states and buying titles and FFP and 115 whilst simultaneously having Qatari flags in their profiles and begging Qatar to buy them.

Rats have never been very self aware have they...

[Red Shift]

Players burn out, teams rebuild. One bad injury to Haaland next season and things won’t be so rosy. We can only strive for our own excellence at the end of the day, with the owners we have, but if City are indeed guilty of corruption then there needs to be an appropriate punishment.

 

On reflection, when we won the Prem, weren’t City a bit weak that season, and if so, why, if money buys success, was that the case?

[Red74]

Everything’s probably been said about the cheating so I’m gonna say Peps teams are so boring to watch when the novelty wears off. 

[3 Stacks]

I think where they do deserve credit in comparison with PSG, for example, is that they've generally focused on building the best football teams possible, rather than buying famous players as a marketing exercise. But after that there is nothing else redeemable. Put this achievement with the rest of them in the "who cares" category.

[3 Stacks]

3 hours ago, Judge said:

You don’t give a shit about City winning the CL and making a treble that we never have?

 

I am very fucking far from being ok with this.

We're not on a level playing field with them, really, so what they do in comparison to us is pretty irrelevant.

[razor]

1 hour ago, TD_LFC said:

Theirs a high level of hypocrisy in Utd fans responding to these cunts winning the CL by mentioning oil states and buying titles and FFP and 115 whilst simultaneously having Qatari flags in their profiles and begging Qatar to buy them.

 

True.  But for now, they remain a football club.

 

They won the Treble in 99.  City are trying to make out they have climbed Everest, but the truth is, people only remember who climbed Everest first.

 

There has been no jeopardy in this City cakewalk.

 

At least when Utd climbed Everest there were moments where fine margins made the difference (that spineless ref v us in the third round game at OT who penalised Redknapp in the 89th min, the Bergkamp penalty save, the substitution of Matheus).

 

United had jeopardy and it was touch and go many times as they rode their luck and battled through.

 

City didn’t climb Everest. They flew up in a luxury helicopter, took photos and told everyone they climbed it.

 

As much as that 1999 win made me sick, looking back, it was a heck of an achievement.  This?  Not so much.

[s(k)aturation]

2 hours ago, Mathewbet1 said:

Its taken the genius pepe 11 years and about 3 billion , genius indeed

 

 

"PEP WINS EUROPEAN CUP":

 

 

 

 

[Bobby Hundreds]

4 hours ago, Red Shift said:

Players burn out, teams rebuild. One bad injury to Haaland next season and things won’t be so rosy. We can only strive for our own excellence at the end of the day, with the owners we have, but if City are indeed guilty of corruption then there needs to be an appropriate punishment.

 

On reflection, when we won the Prem, weren’t City a bit weak that season, and if so, why, if money buys success, was that the case?

I think City that season suffered a bit of what we did this season, we won something like 26 games out of the first 27 and they had dropped points, they give up they were beaten. When we dropped points early this season our players knew the title run was over within a month I think they handled it badly and it fell apart then the fear factor about the team was totally gone.

[s(k)aturation]

7 hours ago, col06 said:

They will destroy the game well here at least people will get fed up of it eventually wonder if maybe one day we might get another league you never know

 

We have next year.  The Europa League.

 

Enjoy it.

 

 

[s(k)aturation]

45 minutes ago, Bobby Hundreds said:

I think City that season suffered a bit of what we did this season, we won something like 26 games out of the first 27 and they had dropped points, they give up they were beaten. When we dropped points early this season our players knew the title run was over within a month I think they handled it badly and it fell apart then the fear factor about the team was totally gone.

 

Very good point, Bobby.

 

If only in the pure footballing respect, we and City might well have been kissing cousins in the last 3-4 years....

Respecting each other as teams and players enough to know that:  drop points in three games before Christmas, and you're virtually fucked trying to catch the other.

 

We were neck and neck in two of those seasons of course.

Put aside all the politics and laundering and corruption for a second, and it's been one fucking heck of a modern day rivalry, hasn't it?

 

And quite miraculous, perhaps, from our point of view.

 

And I have to at least respect City, the footballers, for having such respect for us, even if grudging....

 

... and yes, I'll put aside the guard of honour shambles.  

That was just them doing what their egregious owners/paymasters would have wanted them to.