coachpotato

Easier to turn water into wine.

I was lucky, I went to a few aways in the 70’s & 80’s and never got too involved, although I was too close at hand on a number of occasions when there was a kick off. You still had to cover up your colours, especially if you were on your own, and after the League Cup replay with West Ham at Villa Park, I just dug my hands into my pockets, kept my head down and kept walking while there was all sorts of mayhem happening. Wembley was iffy at times as we would get the train in from Harrow on the Hill and there were occasionally “welcoming committees” knocking about, although the serious number of reds tended to put off all except the real nutcases from opposition teams. I’ve mentioned before that there was a TV program on in the days after the Heysel game where there was an invited audience of some of the more “established” hoolies and one of them actually said, regarding the deaths, “This has been coming for a while now, the scousers were just unlucky it was them”, which in itself is a scary indictment of how violence was almost an expected part of the game all over Europe. Thankfully, it isn’t these days.

I went to Heysel, my missus went to Rome the year before, she still says she’s never been as scared at any match as that night in Rome. Shouldn’t have surprised anyone that there was trouble in Brussels given the way things were then and the club, Council and Merseyside Police warned weeks in advance that the stadium was a shithole with serious security flaws. Totally ignored of course by UEFA. There’s a whole shitload of things that went on in Belgium in the lead up to and at the start of that match that many of our fans have mentioned before. I’ve always believed some things will never get discussed openly because it meets too many agendas to have them aired, not that I’m privy to facts by the way, it’s just a feeling I’ve had. There were deaths and there had to be blame, and like it or not, it was us that were there and had there been no charge from our section, there would likely have been no deaths and so we were to blame.

Well worked that.

England look clueless. Am I allowed to say that?

Nuno has the most chance because Spurs have some half decent players to be fair. Lage will manage whoever Mendez gets Wolves to buy which might constrict him. Rafa will not be given a sporting chance at the Pit, the bile will start well before he loses a match and will be deafening if he loses a couple on the bounce. Short of winning a cup and qualifying for Europe, he’ll be hounded out as a failure and unless he plays “the School of Science” way even that might not be enough.

The Italians showed all that is good and bad about football in that game last night, some brilliant football, but then reverting to type in the closing stages with time wasting, feigning injury and general shithousery. Some might say it’s showing the ultimate in professionalism, win at any cost, but Immobile just comes across as a cunt, not a professional, just like Rivaldo will always be remembered for that idiotic holding of his face in the World Cup against Turkey. I’d like to think Immobile might be punished retrospectively for simulation, but with the head of UEFA being Italian, I doubt that will happen. On another note, fair fucks to Thiago for showing compassion to Vargas and Sommer after the game last night when many of the Spaniards were still celebrating. Class.

If the knuckledraggers are hoping England get to the final, likely against this Italian team, they could be in for a very nasty time.

When we score against City.

The Swiss have some really thick cunts playing for them, all named Widdmer.

That sending off was tough but correct. Poorly timed, over the ball, and onto the shin/ankle. Seems to me that there’s a challenge like that in almost every game, where the tackler is a fraction late and lands their foot onto the opponents foot or ankle. Almost like it’s meant to look accidental but is still guaranteed to cause pain. Happens too often to be coincidental. Thing is, every ref interprets it differently and while consistency has been good so far this tournament, with even VAR almost acceptable, this ref has done something nobody else has so far.

Biting each other like that, the fannies, you don’t get that shit going on in a REAL man’s sport like rugger. Well, maybe the odd ear bitten off here and there.

Mertens with a stamp on one of the Russians. Horrible twat.

Can’t blame him for taking one last big pay day, agent driven perhaps, but he’s no different from any other employee who gets the offer of a better wedge and who’s current employer doesn’t want to match it. Hasn’t got anything to prove here given his age and contribution and he might well be missed, although I doubt Klopp and Edwards wouldn’t have a plan in place for his departure to be covered. Cheers Gini, hope you’re shite if our paths ever cross again while you’re still playing.

There’s never a good time to pick up an injury. If it were me, then I’d be ok in the future probably until I got into my later years and then the inherent weakness would probably affect me in some way, such as walking properly. With professional sports players, a weakness is amplified much sooner by either becoming repetitive or causing a drop off in level. Klopp should have been listened to by the other teams, you’ll get Wilder commentating on how he wants England to do well, while at the same time seeing the squad affected by injury withdrawals that are attributable to those players being played excessively in a compacted league program that the likes of him made more difficult because they saw 5 subs as an unfair advantage to the bigger teams.

Doubt if Trent would be feigning injury, but having played in the England team tonight, I wouldn’t blame him for thinking “fuck this load of shite”!

Fixed.

I agree, but the difference between then and now is that then, it appeared he was giving Trent a kick up the arse, which worked, and since then Trent has been really good. But if he were to be left out now, after regaining his form, it might affect him adversely.

Southgate leaving Trent out could backfire on us, if he is really keen to play for England. Might affect his confidence and therefore his play. On a more positive note though, he might double his efforts with a World Cup in the offing, and with a summers rest, that could also help. Southgate is more likely to play him as a wide midfielder I think, he’s the best crosser of a ball England have had since Beckham, and with Sir Harry likely wanting that kind of service, and Trent not averse to having a shot himself, I could see him being used there. By the way, I’m no England fan, we always seem to end up with our players coming back injured whenever they play.

Said in another thread, Chelsea for me (*spit,spit*) as the only reason Guardiola has been brought in and half a billion spunked on City is for their owners to crow at them winning club football’s top prize. Saw some of their supporters being interviewed on tv earlier tonight and they’re going to be really unbearable if they win it, “will confirm us as the most successful English team evoh!” one wag was spouting. Keep their name off big ears for as long as possible please, just to boil their piss.

Thought then that I’d likely not see that whole occasion bettered, and I still don’t think I have really, we were robbed of a great occasion last season by COVID, and the Spurs final wasn’t all that except for the result. The day travelling, the match, Taksim Square afterwards and the following day coming home via three flights, the third from Frankfurt to Manchester while the team was on the bus tour, on a plane full of Mancs who couldn’t say shit, in my Yellow Goalkeepers shirt ( long story). Top, top time.

Pretty much men against boys. They are very good, comparatively, going forwards and we’ve been hanging on defending against them. We haven’t put them under too much pressure but they look suspect at the back, if we could get one back it might make things interesting. Don’t like the referee much, seems like he’s a real “ homer “.

The Villa players all look head and shoulders bigger than our lads, their arrogance could help us out if we can stop them scoring again. Big ask though. But their keeper and defence do look a bit suspect at times.

Really slow start, sloppy for the first, silly ankle tap for the second that should have been avoidable, bit more settled play since, need to get one back quickly to boost the confidence a bit and put a question in Villa’s minds.

Gini has been a success for us, he’s obviously been carrying out a job that Klopp wanted him to do and he’s done it well. Some great and not so great performances, Barca’s being the most obviously notable, and I think he’s definitely in the “plus” column overall. No great team is made up of 11 superstars and the grafters are key to success and Gini has given his all almost all of the time. We may well miss his contribution and might only find out how much when he’s gone, but I think he’s left the club in no doubt he was leaving, to his credit, and we should therefore have replacement, hopefully better than him, lined up. Best of luck fella, you’ll always be a hero for being part of the squad that ended the wait, and a. Champions League winner to boot.