Champions League 24/25

Got a lot of time for Villa, a proper club with a great fanbase. Villa Park sounded amazing last night. 

killerandflash said:

PragueAddick said:

killerandflash said:

Chris_from_Sidcup said:

Callumcafc said:

Tonight’s games

Red Star Belgrade v Benfica
Feyenoord v Leverkusen
Monaco v Barcelona
Atalanta v Arsenal
Atletico Madrid v Leipzig
Brest v Sturm Graz

If you told me this was a Conference league game next Thursday i'd probably believe you.

Brest coming 3rd in Ligue 1 says everything about the quality of French domestic football.

🤣🤣🤣

Just came across this post after discovering that tonight Lille beat Real Madrid 1-0 while last night Brest went to the Junior Plastic club (RB Salzburg) and won 4-0 and are second in the table

There's a nice article about Brest here from back in February, but I read something more recently that said they had had to sell key players in summer because of financial issues affecting all French clubs due to a failure to close a new TV deal.  Can't find that one though. 

As for Lille, that's a 50,000 stadium they play in, and that part of France is much like the England's industrial north. You wouldn't want to go there on a cold Wednesday night in October. Real clearly didn't.

Lille might be the workaday part of France, but hardly Stoke when it comes to the weather 

Brest have had an amazing start to the CL considering how small they are, indeed their own ground isn't good enough to host games.

And this run will ensure that within a season or so they will have a stadium fit for elite games. I don't like how the money is ring-fenced at top level but lower down it really does make a difference because clubs don't and can't spend so much on players. When Viktoria Plzen had the temerity to first get into the UCL group stages some 15 years ago they had to play in Prague. With the money from being pulverised by Barcelona et al they completely rebuilt their stadium which previously only had one stand, and is now covered all round and UEFA compliant. I think it only took 12 months. And they have been a force ever since -I've been there for some cracking Euro nights, the atmo is like the old FA Cup games when an old skool town club hosted the likes of Man U.

North Lower Neil said:

Chris_from_Sidcup said:

AFKABartram said:

Got a lot of time for Villa, a proper club with a great fanbase. Villa Park sounded amazing last night. 

And they've got to where they are by spending wisely as well. Last 5 years their net spend is less than Forest and West Ham, less than half of Spurs and Man U and less than a third of Chelsea.

From those who played last night, Martinez, Konsa, Carlos, Digne, Tielemans, Philogene, Rogers, Ramsey, Barkley, Duran - Villa didn't pay more than 30m for any of them. 

Is that just for transfers?

Suspect Villa have a higher wage bill than West Ham and a much higher one than Forest.

Definitely well run though, and Emery has been superb, was a great appointment when some were doubting him a bit.

They got £100 mill for Grealish which helps.

Callumcafc said:

Not the brightest are those Arsenal fans…

Want to be able to read it themselves, obviously.

Absolute nightmare moment for Tyrone Mings last night - talk about giving away stupid penalties but what is he thinking now?!

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cdxyl4e7wk6o

JustFloydRoad said:

thenewbie said:

Absolute nightmare moment for Tyrone Mings last night - talk about giving away stupid penalties but what is he thinking now?!

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cdxyl4e7wk6o

Konsa said he should of been sent off if the referee gave the penalty.

Why?  he wasn't denying the opposition a clear goal scoring opportunity, there was no attacker anywhere near him.

Konsa was saying if the referee has given it for "deliberate handball" then that's a booking and a second yellow

North Lower Neil said:

Callumcafc said:

Not the brightest are those Arsenal fans…

Want to be able to read it themselves, obviously.

It looked fine from their angle.

Friend Or Defoe said:

sam3110 said:

Konsa was saying if the referee has given it for "deliberate handball" then that's a booking and a second yellow

Wasn't deliberate!

Strange a footballer didn't kick the ball on instinct. 

But that's what Konsa is arguing, it's pretty clear Mings doesn't realise Martinez had taken the kick, as he turns, sees the ball and picks it up to give back to him, thinking the ball has come from the stand/a ball boy, so it's not deliberate, but by the laws it's a penalty. However there's a huge grey area with unintentional handball, and how you can be punished for it

Last month in a French game a player picked the ball up after the keeper had kicked it a couple of yards to him in the box. A penalty was given and I said to my son you won't see that again in a Pro game. I was wrong !

BPragueAddick said:

killerandflash said:

PragueAddick said:

killerandflash said:

Chris_from_Sidcup said:

Callumcafc said:

Tonight’s games

Red Star Belgrade v Benfica
Feyenoord v Leverkusen
Monaco v Barcelona
Atalanta v Arsenal
Atletico Madrid v Leipzig
Brest v Sturm Graz

If you told me this was a Conference league game next Thursday i'd probably believe you.

Brest coming 3rd in Ligue 1 says everything about the quality of French domestic football.

🤣🤣🤣

Just came across this post after discovering that tonight Lille beat Real Madrid 1-0 while last night Brest went to the Junior Plastic club (RB Salzburg) and won 4-0 and are second in the table

There's a nice article about Brest here from back in February, but I read something more recently that said they had had to sell key players in summer because of financial issues affecting all French clubs due to a failure to close a new TV deal.  Can't find that one though. 

As for Lille, that's a 50,000 stadium they play in, and that part of France is much like the England's industrial north. You wouldn't want to go there on a cold Wednesday night in October. Real clearly didn't.

Lille might be the workaday part of France, but hardly Stoke when it comes to the weather 

Brest have had an amazing start to the CL considering how small they are, indeed their own ground isn't good enough to host games.

And this run will ensure that within a season or so they will have a stadium fit for elite games. I don't like how the money is ring-fenced at top level but lower down it really does make a difference because clubs don't and can't spend so much on players. When Viktoria Plzen had the temerity to first get into the UCL group stages some 15 years ago they had to play in Prague. With the money from being pulverised by Barcelona et al they completely rebuilt their stadium which previously only had one stand, and is now covered all round and UEFA compliant. I think it only took 12 months. And they have been a force ever since -I've been there for some cracking Euro nights, the atmo is like the old FA Cup games when an old skool town club hosted the likes of Man U.

Hope everyone has noticed where Brest are in the table. They were in Prague last night and cruised past Sparta. All the French teams doing well except for the plastic Paris club

Meanwhile Arsenal absolutely obliterate Sporting Portugal

JohnBoyUK said:

If you havent seen the final score of the City game, do yourself a favour and check... and struggle not to laugh!

Keep up the good work Pep hahah

City are really fun at the moment!

I hate PSG but their fixtures are mental compared to other teams.