I said Chelsea were static, which they were.

I also thought it was a good game on a very high level.
After all this is two of the absolute best teams in the world.
If the comparison is Arsenal (who is the team I like the most in the EPL btw) playing more or less circles around some, with all due respect lesser team, then I don't think that's very fair.

Anyway I thought a few things influenced the way the match played out like it did.
First of all Deco's injury which I didn't think Chelsea adjusted all that well to, but then again it was right before kick off so probably a lot easier said than done.
Point is I thought they in many ways played like Deco was on the field but of course he wasn't.
Ballack and Lampard didn't make enough runs but instead waited or tried taking part in a fluent passing game that wasn't really there and with the way Chelsea's fullbacks are more or less dominating it's not even funny how much more effective Drogba would be than Anelka.

Then there was the Carvalho injury and Alex entering the game.
He is a very strong player who is great in the air as well as with his feet but for some reason he really likes to push up at times and play man to man tackling whoever he is marking very high up the field completely abandoning his zone.
That at least two times lead to great chances for United and the goal as well as I saw it.

With that early a goal. A gift almost against such a good team and playing away United went back, defended pretty good, there are some weak spots no doubt, and played a really good direct transition game. Like they always do.
I think Berbatov and the reason for him not looking impressive, apart from maybe not being match fit, is that he is just not that good of a counter attacking player.
He doesn't really commit to the right runs like say a Tevez does and of course is not as fast either.
To his defence, apart from one bad pass, I thought when he had the ball that he did show his playmaking skills and signs of being a potential Cantona like figure in games, most games really, where United will have the overwhelming possession and dictate play.
It will be interesting to see if his arrival and role will mean Rooney (finally?) again playing as a striker.
I'm not even sure that is given though, since his many other qualities compliment the main qualities of players such as Ronaldo so incredible well.

Also saw some posts about Bendtner. Yes he is decieving.
I remember the first few times I saw him for our U21 team were opponents were marking him as he was a big not very mobile striker and he just toyed with them. Blowing past them with the ball. Easily creating his own shot time and time again.
I also heard that some div 1 defenders when he was at loan at Birmingham commented he was the best player they had faced.
Obviously premiership opposition is harder but I hope Wenger trusts him more this season and gives him more playing time.
That could also prevent an Ade burnout which I don't think is unlikely what was happening last season.

I guess you didn't get the joke. It was a quote from Football Manager.

.

Anybody know any good sites to watch some games live? I have no tv and most likely wont for a while so I've been stuck watching MOTD which isn't the same.

I think this is spot on, and is why I'm somewhat surprised he's started both games so far. They are pretty much the exceptions, games where Ferguson's preferred set-up is usually based on graft and counterattacks with more emphasis on staying tight and denying oppurtunities. In these games he's certainly less effective and arguably even a liability, at least compared to someone like Tevez. I expect with more games he'll start to shine.

p.s. what happened to your blog? Was a good read while it lasted.

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/220920...-takeover.html

Wenger says he is "baffled" by Man City takeover. In sum, he questions the motives behind the purchase and wonders if EPL will now have 20 - billionaire owners. He muses that at some point, they will pull out of the league and perhaps leave lasting damage.

I am baffled as to why Wenger feels it necessary to make these comments. He has already concluded that having big-money owners is going to be bad for the league. I think time will tell.

In any event, this is from a guy who had a big part in changing the course of the EPL ... he came in and now he fields a team that features only one English player on a regular basis. Of course, Wenger presumes that the change to a more international league is a plus for the EPL. He is probably correct. However, he did orchestrate a major, irreversable turn in the English game, and I doubt he stopped to wonder if it was going to be good in the long run.

So, I am not sure why he's so hung up on why Man City was purchased and what the owner's plans are. Furthermore, even if the game changes because of this new dynamic, I don't know how anyone will know it will be for the worse. In any event, Wenger should have kept these comments to himself.

I was going to post this too but the above echoes my thoughts. I respect Wenger's work but I don't see why he felt the need to make further comment as I think he's already spoken about this.

From a City perspective it's unlikely there will be many more press comments about signing 'star' players for huge fees. The guy that was doing the bragging was Al-Fahim who was only brought in to broker the takeover deal, he won't be involved in the day to day running of the club.

Oski, dont forget that often these "quotes" are just Wenger (or any other manager) answering questions posed to them at press conferences / interviews. I dont think he's the type to go offering his opinion to anyone who'll listen, and its very hard for him to say "no comment" to questions such as this.

I think his main gripe over the last few weeks has been that clubs are living and operating outside of their means, man city for example will probably have a wage bill equal to their turnover....i think he's basically p*ssed that he put so much effort into pushing the new stadium through, aswell as spending so little to allow the club to put up the requested money, with the intention of putting the club at a financial level with only Madrid/UTD, but now it seems everyone will soon have that sort of money available.

could give an old man a heart attack that

LOL too bad it didn't

It was either Wenger or someone else at Arsenal who commented that while they were planning on building the new stadium, they did not anticipate someone like Roman coming and spending gobs of money. The intention, I believe, was to be able to compete with ManU moneywise. Whats amusing, somewhat, is that the new stadium actually makes the team even more enticinng to buy.

Bjorn, guess I will agree and disagree with your assesment of the game. Upon memory, most "big games" between the top 4 play out like this, with some exception. Still thought it was boring.

As for Bendtner, I agree with you completely, and I thought he was playing well early last year. He is a good link up player, and I think he has a rather high football IQ. He always seems to know where team mates are, and for someone with a ton of self confidence, plays fairly unselfishly. At this point, I'd rarther he played with up top with either Ade, RVP, or Eddie when he comes back. Him and Ade are a pretty sick combo as well.

Sure, I appreciate that. However, this seemed more drawn out than just a question and answer session. In any event, its out there.

On the same vein, I've been thinking about why it would bother Wenger for awhile, and I don't know why it would, really. As far as getting players, Arsenal doesn't really compete for the same pool of players that Man U, Chelsea, Man City (now) and I guess QPR (if they get promoted) do. Arsenal has always mined the player on their way up and sold them off once they get too expensive or 30 (generally). The one team that would get hurt the most is 'pool. If the assumed dynamic of all these rich owners was in place a few years' back, pool probably doesn't get a player like Torres, while Arsenal is still going to get a player like Adebayor.

In a perverse way, it may even help a team like Arsenal. Players in other leagues will see all the money being pumped into the EPL and they will be longing for one of those fat contracts. Well, Arsenal would give such a player good exposure and would be more than willing to sell him off in due course.

QPR is an interesting one, they are spending fairly conservatively right now, in a league that is very easy to get out of if you spend the right money, but they dont have a whole lot of commercial appeal, dont have the capability for large gate receipts, and so to become a top 6ish club they will need to be heavily bankrolled, or build for 6/7/8 seasons - which im not sure is the plan.

Theyre doing well this season so far, and itll be interesting to see how much they will crank it up financially if they are promoted.

One things for sure is that QPR and City may well make even Chelsea look relatively poor in future seasons.

Salt I fixed your post. For static see Liverpool v Stoke and Spurs v anyteam.

Personally, I think it will be exciting. Right now, big-bankrolled teams should be well positioned to make large leaps forward. Man U and pool are not financially healthy enough to get into an arms race, and it should be interesting to see how far they can go to keep up with the new breed. Again, that's not Arsenal's game, so I don't know if such would hurt them so much. Also, it looks like Newcastle might be bought by some Nigerians. Good luck with that.

Bought by Nigerians? So Martins will start every game then!

king, meh, whatever, just my observation.

"Ow"

Sincerely, Jimmy Bullard

Right. Villanueva looked quite impressive, Samba was epic, Nelsen as well, Robinson was... good? Well, he made a nice save or two and didn't screw anything up. Treacy was good as well, some interesting young talent here. All this with three midfield regulars out as well. I'm not sure Reid being injured is a bad thing, anyway, and Dunn is always hurt though he was actually playing well for once.

I should not be this pleased to barely beat Fulham.

I thought Chelsea vs. United was a pretty good match although I watched the 1st half half asleep and the 2nd half hours later.

Also, as always, LOL LIVERPOOL.

Think of the comedic potential involving transfers alone, fantastic.

That SAF gif cracks me up.

Oski, fair play to you. Been meaning to post that for a while, as he said the same thing a couple of weeks ago, but I just expected to be shot down by the usual suspects.

As you say, when he moved the goalposts it was fine. It’s okay for him to scour Europe for teenagers that he can effectively steal off the developing club for peanuts (or often nothing) and then sell on for massive profit, but when other teams are moving the goalposts, it’s a different matter.

Anyway, congrats on a balanced post.

nope, lost me totally

Carling Opta official prem statistics...

Most Fouls: Kevin Davies (Bolton) 19

Kevin Davies is a lumberjack

and most FOULED. Nearly all his fouls are given agaisnt him when jumping for high balls. Usually to the bemusement of all and sundry. Again, hardly 'doing a BArton' or intending to break legs.

What, on that new axemen programme?