Premier League — Matchweek 3

Delap looking pretty lively for the Chavs in that No 9 shirt...

Quality player Delap. Perhaps if we were further along in our 'Project', we may have snared him.
A sign of confidence that he chose the now World Champions Chelsea over us, though they were not World Champions at the time of his signing of course.
Chelsea are above us in the food chain of course. We would have to reverse time 40 years to be able to reverse the pulling power of us and Chelsea sadly.
Onwards and upwards now though for us! COYB.

His hamstring's gone.

Looks like Delap's day is over, possible hamstring?

Oh dear, that's tough.

Who the heck is George?

Moyesiah breathes a sigh of relief. He could have been here and done that.

Fulham have bought 1 player - a goalie for £400,000 - No wonder Silva is doing his nut.

A cracker that.

Good work in the midfield to release that attack. My Chelsea and Arse friends are getting on my nerves.

Marco doing it again at Chelsea.

What crap, Chalobah couldn't get to the ball and stood too close.

Really good goal by the 18-year-old Josh King.

A travesty if this gets ruled off. VAR acting for the Big Clubs again.

Accidental, surely.

What an absolute disgrace.

How was that a ‘clear and obvious error' for VAR to get involved.

It is a shame that goal is disallowed. Terrible decision!

Corrupt - an excuse to give a SLY SIX team a leg up Really wondering why we bother. VAR needs to go.

What is it, a contact or no-contact sport? It seems that the game is just getting decided by someone in a studio.

Disgraceful call, about time referees stood by their decisions.

What the fuck is a careless tackle?

That's why the ref ruled it out.

How close was the ref, when it happened. Chalobah cocked up and knew it.

It’s becoming next to impossible to score against the sly six. Every goal is examined in minute detail, and in SLO-MO to boot, so they’ll always find an excuse to rule out a goal.

I love the game but hate everything else about it, from commentary, pundits, corruption, shite refs, var etc… they’ve killed the game.

Colin you forgot to mention the RS, when it comes to things you hate!

That’s a given, Jack.

I hate VAR

And this one will be given as a penalty.

What a fucking Sly Six homer — and after Jaoa Pedro controls the ball with his hand!

Utterly contemptible.

Now a pen for CFC. Though Iwobi may have been fouled beforehand.

Pundirs saying we don't know what's going on. They do but no one's got the gonads to call it out - CORRUPTION. The SLY SIX must qualify for Europe or they'll be off.

I remember when I played football.

Coaches were always saying 'make your silhouette bigger' 🙄

Absolute nonsense. You raise your leg, your arm will naturally raise, unless you act like a penguin.

It's getting boring now. Fathoming intent from slow mo and stills

Was obviously a penalty if ours against Leeds was

That wasn't a penalty either Eric

They may as well give the sly 6 a two goal advantage before the games even start. PSR and VAR were created to protect the cartel from intruders.

I still remember the John Terry goal against us after about three minutes beyond the time added on. The ref literally played on until Chelsea scored. Sickening

Interestingly, this is the third time in three matches VAR have ruled out a goal in Chelsea's favour but it is the first one which has done so in such controversial fashion. From BBC.

This Chelsea game is a joke. The Fulham goal should have been given, there's no way that was a foul in the build up.

9 minutes extra time and then the penalty was ridiculous. Joao Pedro fucking handballed it first!!

I hate to say it but it does feel rigged. Even Joe Cole is saying how awful the decisions have been.

Football is completely ruined by VAR

Ive said it before. But var is just a way to raise the bar to make it harder to beat the sly 6.

You're playing against 15 men with the officials never going against the favoured teams.

We can get rid of VAR tomorrow. Everybody send their SKY contract back and stop watching until VAR goes.

Colin @ 25 I remember that also. I still remember the John Terry goal against us after about three minutes beyond the time added on. The ref literally played on until Chelsea scored. Sickening

3 pens awarded against Fulham in 3 games. That stat will never be repeated by a SLY SIX club.

VAR was brought in to protect the brand, nothing else.

As someone earlier pointed out, could you imagine the 6 twats getting 3 pens awarded against them in 3 successive games? Wouldn't happen. Cue us conceding our 3rd in a row today.

As Colin said, love the game but hate the shite that surrounds it.

Corrupt.

Jack, can you imagine the moaning about wrong offside decisions and balls out of play if they did away with VAR.

There would be riots every week.

Raymond, we played for about 100 years with no VAR. I don't remember any riots, just discussion. In fact, I remember less discussion before VAR.

All we have now is surgical dissection of every minute detail. It's bullshit.

Jack, there's always a chance that we'll have 3 against us in 3 games today too!

VAR is as bent as a nine Bob note. When Chelsea scored their second against West Ham, there was a blatant foul on a WHU defender in the buildup, but no VAR to help the non-Sly 6 clubs.

VAR was brought in, in theory, to stop poor decisions and reduce subjectivity.

If anything, it's made things worse, like James says. There are also other unplanned consequences – like not being able to fully celebrate when you score as you are unsure for around 50% goals if they will stand.

It's absolute rubbish.

Marco is pissed off!

FIFA have ruined the game with VAR. It's all about sponsors and money, nothing else matters.

It's about making money from the product, and we're all pawns in the game handing over our hard-earned tokens for the system.

Fuck FIFA. Fuck the Premier League.

Time for a manager to pull his team off the pitch to protest these biased officials? It’s so blatant them protecting their “top 6” teams. Take the hit but someone has to lead the rebellion.

Nobody will though, Colin. It's more than their jobs are worth.

FIFA's big hand has always been the devotion of supporters cursed with following a football club and the people who work in the game have their hands tied.

It would be the footballing equivalent of political suicide. Remember, even the clubs voted for VAR.

Raymond 33 really riots. We had no riots before var and won't if it goes. I really don't get why teams voted for it.

Just watched my now local team Tadley on the BBC playing in an FA Cup qualifier. 4-2, no VAR no feigning injury, a proper football game. Sadly that now gone from the top flight games.

I know, James, but something has to change.

James and Bobby, riots was a bit over the top on my part but the media go over every incident minutely instantly now.
Back in the day they didn't have the technology, if you went to a game most of the time you hadn't a clue if the player was on side or not and you probably never knew.

Its the VAR officials who are the problem.

DCL looks great in the Real Madrid kit. It suits him. He won more headers in 20 mins than Beto and Barry have combined all season.

People talking about VAR, doesn’t surprise me one bit. I’ve got the United v Burnley game on the telly for some unknown reason, and watching the referee giving a penalty to the home side, is another of those very subjective (depending on the team) decisions imo.

Definitely a shirt pull, definitely stupid, but because there was no real danger and the shirt pull started outside the area, the decision to award a penalty didn’t make sense, and would have seen a free kick awarded to most teams, but not every team.

I just hope Everton improve, (otherwise I might just stop watching top level football altogether) because we have conceded two penalties in consecutive league games before today, for very similar subjective decisions, that would have surely resulted in us getting a penalty today, if we’d had a different referee?

IT’S BLACK AND WHITE - DON’T TRY TO HIDE IT🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️

Give me mistakes made by humans any day of the week, there's more controversy now about decisions than before VAR was introduced, goals today being disallowed because someone's elbow or kneecap was offside, it's absolutely ridiculous the lengths they go to to disallow goals, everything looks worse in slow motion, that Fulham goal was the lads first in the PL and for it to be chalked off for that is disgraceful, it makes games endless with all the forensic analysis, please bin VAR

Totally agree Mick
As someone who
Is still traumatised by that Welsh twats decision in 77 I’d prefer even that to this corrupt, joy sucking, VAR shite!

The bottom line for me is that VAR has not improved anything, all it does is interrupt the game and kills the joy of the moments we love.
VAR is ruinous, its leaves us all rueing it, get rid!

Sadly the genie is out of the bottle - there's money in VAR now so the likelihood of it ever being removed is pretty much zero.

Did you know that in part, clubs pay for VAR? And some of the gate receipts are even used to cover the costs, so not only do the vast majority of fans appear to hate it, we fucking pay for it!

VAR is a reminder that we the people are irrelevant. It doesn't matter that we're right, that VAR is an abomination, that's part of the lesson we re being taught. It's a humiliation ritual. Let's take the game you adore, and then stop you celebrating goals. How about that. And if you don't like it, there's the door.

VAR was brought in not to referee games but to provide clarity on decisions made and let the referee review if need be.
That's not how its used though. Its clear that VAR cannot use other referees to adjudicate decisions or add their opinion, because that's what it is, another referees opinion. That's the problem, another layer of interpretation based on opinion, not fact.

VAR as it is, cannot work, will not work, as long as its based on another persons interpretation. It will always lead to accusations of corruption, bias or incompetence. All of which are subjective by players, managers and fans.

It cannot be allowed to continue in its present guise, it should be significantly reworked or ditched entirely. Such is the random expertise of a subjective official against another, it will never be successful. There is no case for continuance of VAR in its present guise. It has to be left to officials on the field of play, at least there is one subjective interpretation, not two or three..

We tried it, adapted it, changed it.. it doesn't work. End it.

So lets put decisions solely back into the hands of the wannbe Clive Thomas's, Mark Clattenburg's and Pierluigi Collina's using the Mark 1 eyeball. Or the slow ref assistants who can't keep up with the play. No thanks. How many times have we ended up on the shitty end of some lousy pre VAR decision by those refs and others.

The pundits used to say before VAR that bad refereeing decisions would even themselves out over the course of a season. We all know that's a load of rubbish. Refs can be swayed by the protestations of the players, the noisy crowd and the risk of upsetting high profile managers like Ferguson. They even named "Fergie time" after him. How many of the those strikers who played on the edge of offside got away with offside goals?

As far as I'm concerned modern day refs need all the tech help they can get. Goal line technology, VAR cause me no problem at all. VAR gets the vast majority of decisions correct. But we don't hear about that. The only problem VAR has is that it has a human element in it. Humans make mistakes. But you don't throw the baby out with the bathwater just to solve that. It's pros outweigh its cons and it gives the lesser clubs a better chance of getting fair decisions against the "rich" clubs since we can see the evidence with our own eyes.

Var also kills the spontaneous joy you get when you've scored, refs called to a screen viewing every angle in slow motion, taking several minutes to come to a decision, meanwhile were waiting to see if we can celebrate the goal we've just scored, by the time it's awarded your more relieved than ecstatic it takes the joy out of scoring and it just becomes relief, no thanks not for me

It used to be, video killed the radio star. Now it's, VAR killed the football star.

Yes, massive blunders were committed in the past but they were human errors. Now every goal is studied from every possible angle, and in Slo-Mo to boot. Everything looks worse in slow motion.

If this is the future, let's get rid of match day officials and let AI, or a 15-year-old whizz kid in his bedroom, do the officiating.

Subconscious bias is also involved in a lot of these decisions. They have to protect the product, don't they?

I have been totally opposed against VAR since the first day it was introduced. It has ruined th,e game regardless of whether marginal decisions go for or against teams.

Football is about the “moment”: half the enjoyment is arguing about decisions after the match over a few pints. Some of the decisions in the few weeks this season have been horrendous.
The Fulham decision yesterday was a disgrace.

We have to scrap this shite and get back to the footy we know.

Colin #55 it's not just every goal, it's a lot of challenges as well. They said they would streamline VAR to avoid re-refereeing games, but that is exactly what it's doing.

I'm still convinced if a Sky 6 team score the goal that Fulham had chalked off, it stands. As it was against one of them, it's ruled out. Even Chelsea fans said it was a goal – but easy to say when you've won.

16 added minutes that game, with no significant injuries.

You're right, Matt. Soon they'll be judging free kick, goal kicks, corners, throw-ins etc… not if they are valid but how they could affect a Sly 6 side.

The game is quickly dying.

Brighton looking lively against Man City but not doing the right ball in the end.

Haaland with two uncharacteristically weak shots.

Lots of boring disciplined Giuardola backpassing shite going on, boring the pants off me. Play it forward!!!

But when the time comes, he makes it look so easy, just wait for the ball to come loose then nutmeg Dunk and poke it in.

88 goals in 100 Premier League appearances.

It's like watching paint dry, this City team. Dull, boring and uninspiring.

Is the other game any better?

Watching Soucek ambling about while Forest players run rings around him. Looks like a Sunday league player who won a competition to play in the Premier League.

Hope we get through tomorrow without his name popping up.

Maybe he's trying to force a move, Jake?

Aina summed up the modern, robotic footballer today. With seconds to go he's on the edge of the WHU area, rather then putting the ball into the box he keeps hold of it looking for a square pass until the ref blows time. Absolutely pathetic.

"VAR official Michael Salisbury has been dropped from the Liverpool and Arsenal game after the PGMOL said it was a mistake for the video assistant referee to disallow Fulham's opening goal at Chelsea on Saturday."

Posted on MotD socials. Genuine question: do these guys now have the power to over-rule the on-field referee? I know they are referees also, but this looks wrong?

At least Liverpool won't suffer from further errors due to this VAR chap, so some good has come from this.

Not a penalty for Brighton IMO.

The ball was going to hit smack in the side of the face!

Another stupid pen.

How many more?

Something gone wrong there. VAR couldn't figure out how to cancel the ref's foolish award of a penalty to lowly Brighton.

Good kick from some old bloke called Milner... er, Game On?

Or "Watch and Wait for the deliberate ref/VAR decision that will give the game to Shitty City".

That would have been wonderful from Minteh if it had gone in.

Not many players I like but he is good.

Nuno is a dead man walking now.

Let's see if PGMOL take that away from Brighton!!!

Who goes first, Pep or Nuno?😂🤣😂😂

Great goal for Illy's lads 🥳
Harvey Spector ( in his prison uniform on day release I guess ) to get one over Pep the Petulant 🤞🏼

Pep is a dead man walking now.

I've already ruled City out of the title, Pep and his playing style is finished.

Good potential results for Blues.

Good lord. What's gone wrong at Wham? 🕺🏼🕺🏼

Nuno, beware of Greeks bringing gifts

Yay.
Now for a clear 2 goal victory for Micki's Arse at the RNS 👍🏻

I had a bet today on Brighton at 9/4 after their perfomance against us, they are a very decent side.

The title is between the two teams who play next. 3rd and 4th is up for grabs.

Pep is a terrible man-manager. It seems like any time a player does really well, he suddenly gets frozen out to stop him getting too big for his boots. Cancelo, Grealish, Foden, latter day De Bruyne. He'd rather try and polish turds like O'Reilly.

Amorim has the same issue. Whatever Rashford's, Garnacho's and Sancho's limitations, freezing them out, publicly questioning their attitude – thus making them unsellable – is insane.

Pep out

Forest off to a flier.

I was really hoping that after spending hundreds of millions, they'd be really good, but sadly, they're shit.

Given the very dubious way penalties are being handed out at the moment most managers will be encouraging their players to just fire their shots at any defender's upper body in the box.

50% of them will result in a VAR penalty.

C’mon Arsenal. Shut his lot up

Ron, you missed out the one exception to that: except Everton!

Instead of demoting these useless officials from either refereeing a game, or on VAR duties for one game only, demote them altogether.

It's no consolation to Fulham that the PGMOL recognise the error in ruling that goal out.

I've found City very dull to watch for years, passing for passings sake and bore the opposition to death before your superstar players make something happen.

Glad that Pep seems to have been found out (but still wouldn't rule them out), bit more excitement please.

Rob 88

True. City are as Dull as dishwater. Pep has become what the highly successful tend to become, believing he is a demi god where he can do no wrong and it's all about him. He used to inspire, now he intimidates negatively.

Rob 87

Take VAR out of the refereeing gambit entirely. Anyone can learn the few uses it's needed for and the PGMOL have fucked it up beyond believability. When led by the World Cup Final Howler and all time shit referee Webb, the quality beneath is bound to reflect and suffer.

Yesterday's game should be voided and replayed.

Looks like the rs have imported Dear Leader's clapping band next to the corner flag.

Was Slop insinuating that the Arsenal player dived?

Bit rich coming from him!

This should be called Super Shite Sunday.

All these games are overhyped.

That should be an Arsenal penalty. The ball clearly hit the RS defender on the arm.

Not even a VAR check.

How dull was that?

This 'passing backwards' has to stop! Just before half time, Mandueke broke forward and it looked a potentially dangerous situation.

But, instead of driving into the box and shooting or crossing, he stopped about 30 yards out and passed sideways. In seconds the ball was with the centre-back and Liverpool were back in shape.

And the only time Liverpool looked like scoring was when Arsenal were fannying around at the back.

Ridiculous.

Very dull and played at a snails pace, Edward.

I predicted 0-0 in my Super 6 – going against the ‘big game hype'.

The worst possible advertisement for the “best league in the world”.

What a pile of crap this is. I'm glad I don't pay to watch this shite.

Another penalty Arsenal should have had.

The ball hits Konate on the arm, but not given.

Was very similar to Tarkowski's at Leeds, Rob.

Of course no pen!!

25 hours to go. Will we get a right-back? A defensive midfielder? A centre-forward?

That's enough excitement as there is feck all at Mordor.

Kerkez – Ndiaye's Pidgeon?

Badge check. No pen.

This Arse Shite match is very tedious.

Imagine if either side had a player of the quality of Grealish.

I'll tell you what...

How shite does Anfield look now we've all been to orseen The Hill Dickinson Stadium on matchday?!

This City Is Ours.

UTFT!!!

11 comments (now 12) in 60 minutes - what a game, eh!

Klopp used to have them playing at a high tempo. They've slowed down a lot.

I wonder what minute they get the penalty?

I'm going for 90+6'.

And that's why Arteta will never win the Premier League.

Like his mentor, Pep, he wants to bore everyone to death with his passing obsession.

Jammy bastards

Can't believe the bookies thought Arsenal where a better side than the RS.

Looking ominous again FFS.

There you go. Man Utd played better against Arsenal and lost. The RS have been crap today and are now winning.

Satan alive and well at Mordor.

Another flukey shite goal.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again:

Sponsored by Tampax.

Jammy c***s.

Arsenal are petrified of them jammy bastards.

Kunal 101 🤣

Rucking fedshite. Their pact with the devil strong as ever.

Crap game, but to be honest, it was some free kick, and all the money Arteta spent, they still haven't got it.

Van Dick is still the biggest whinger, and gets away with it, from every referee.

How again is that not a pen.

I'm amazed how many of you are watching them.

Andrew (117) - Know thine enemy

Yet again another ball striking the arm of a RS player. Not given.

I’m not sure what VAR stands for but I suspect that the ‘R’ stands for redshite.

Scott, I'd rather remove my own kidneys with a rusty penknife. I've already had 2 notifications from Sky Sports on my phone about the goal.

Can Carragher just shut the fuck up, you’ll never get a penalty at Analfield.

Arteta, Pep, Nuno? Who gets the boot first?

Andrew@117
I was watching Arsenal I don’t know what you were doing. 😁

Andrew - Fait enough, I understand.

Here’s the weird thing though: watching us play so well has got me hungry to watch more football. Even that bunch of c****s.

UTFT!!!

VAR checking club badge……..three times the ball strikes the arm of a RS player, and three times no penalty awarded. You’d think at least one would have been awarded?

Apparently handballs are a known side-effect of performance-improving asthma medicines so ignored by VAR.

Arteta spent £1bn, and he still doesn't have a go.

Talking of buying players - what’s the latest on our final summer window business?

Window closes tomorrow I think?

Strongest rumour seems to be Soucek.

Can Harrison Armstrong do a Lewis-Skelly and switch to fullback? He’s got a lot of the right attributes?

The league at the top nowadays is bang average.

Liverpool aren't great but they'll win it again probably quite comfortably because the challengers are pretenders and City are declining year by year.

Give me the days of Manchester United, Arsenal of the Wenger era and Chelsea all going at it hammer and tong or the Blackburn/Newcastle v Man United title races of the mid 90's, at least that was a tussle.

VAR will ensure Liverpool win most games but regardless, they just have better squads than the other two.

Jim, I’m not sore you know, the team in 5th look quite good this year and may put in a challenge for the title😉

Chris, I’d be made up if we were back in Europe next season, even if it’s in the Minnie Mouse Cup.

Villa struggling,think there bubble may have burst, fans getting restless too.

Why was the Brighton manager dressed like Kim Jung Un? Brown pants like a uniform, brown shirt with no collar buttoned to the top with no tie. Is the communist look back in vogue?

Colin (132) - Well said. I’d happily play in the ‘Bourbon Biscuit Challenge Cup’ if it was a recognised European competition and it meant us getting better players and exciting mid-week nights in places I’ve never heard of.

Jeff

Villa blew all their cash on wages for Rashford and Ascencio trying for CL. Came up short, had to sell youngsters to balance the book now they’ve just an ageing team.

Kieran the very good team they had the last couple of seasons seems to be breaking up, Martinez going, Duran gone, Bailey gone, Ramsay gone,Luiz gone

and Mings back in the team! It’s all going tits up.

Jeff

It’s a cautionary tale about how hard it is even for a big club to compete post PSR. City and Chelsea spent unfettered for years, now Villa, Newcastle reach a certain level then it’s a glass ceiling. They can’t even rely on a good youth system as City and Chelsea already invested fortunes on that to Hoover up every half decent kid in the country. Obviously I’m not lamenting Villa’s decline as it improves our chances. But it’s also an indicator of what lays ahead for us in the absence of some kind of HK style miracle transformation of us into the best in Europe overnight. just getting 4/5 doesn’t enable you to close the gap.

Agreed Kieran, PSR, VAR, and refereeing bias have made it almost impossible to break into the top 6 and actually stay there, Villa and Forest have had a nibble but it’s impossible to sustain atm, I suppose it’s enjoy it while it lasts and try to win a cup.
UTFT.

I see Kasper Dolberg could be going to Celtic tomorrow, his star has fallen but he’s still only 26/27, 34goals in 76 games for Anderlecht last 2 seasons, 5 in 8 this season,£10 million and he offers an alternative type of player to the Beto/Barry front line.

Worth a punt?

Ollie Watkins might be available tomorrow, but I think our transfer dealings are done for this window.

I wouldn’t be surprised if McNeil joins Chermiti in leaving the club. A few more quid for the January window

It’s quite reassuring to see that this hasn’t gone unnoticed Kieran, because they are exactly my thoughts, mate.

I suppose reassuring is the wrong word, because there’s nothing reassuring about these current PSR RULES, for any club, who want to try and start competing with and possibly trying to overtake the best teams, because these current rules, only seem to be there, to protect the status-quo.

PSG, knocked three English clubs out of Europe last season, and the team who gave them their hardest games was definitely Aston Villa. I expected Villa, to kick on, just as I expected the Newcastle team, that absolutely bullied Liverpool at Wembley, in the carabao cup final, to push on, and this is why I think it’s clear to see, that these current PSR rules, are making it virtually impossible.

Emery might regret not taking the Moyesiah's money for McGinn. By the way what has happened to Onana ? Not on the bench. Digne not playing, should we try for a loan. Him and Jack together, what a combination that would be.

Amorin should have taken the Manu squad to Villa Park and tell them - that's how you play 3 -5 - 2.

Onana injured, not particularly rated even on fantasy football, should see some of the midfielders more valuable than him, Roberts at Sunderland? Ward -Prowse and many more, even Dobbin is the same price!

Jeff, I was talking about Digne on loan. Getting £50m from Villa, for Onana, was a crime of the century !

Sorry Jack, I thought you asked what happened to Onana (tonight).
Agreed, good business to get rid at £50 million I just don’t see him becoming the dominant midfielder some suggested he will become,
top cheerleader though.

3 games in and Villa haven't scored.

Next up a trip to Merseyside. We all know that if it was GP that is 3 points in the bag for Villa. Has our fortunes changed now it is BMD/HDS?

Kieran # 138, the moral of the story in a PSR world is that money rules football. Every penny has to be spent with care - fees and wages. Every penny has to be spent sustainably. Otherwise you are just robbing your future self and even risking the solvency / Premier League status of the club.

Villa - to be fair - had a rare opportunity and took it. They ran an outstanding PSG side immensely close but like everyone else fell short. They will pay for it for a few seasons now as they have to sell and rebuild. I don't call that stupidity (in the same way as us - and probably Man Utd and West Ham) - I call it brave / ambitious. What's the glory in finishing 7th or even 4th for a few seasons when you have a sniff of winning the Champions League. Okay, they might drop down to about 12th this season but they should be okay. Their fans won't like it - and will blame PSR and probably Emery too before too long. But their fans would also have been disgusted if they just threw in the towel in the Champions League last season.

I think you will find palace play 4141 formation

£125m for izak. Obscene

What’s a 4-1-4-1 system? Is that the same as playing 4-5-1, with one of the midfield trio sitting deeper, Bobby?

I think this is a formation that would probably suit our own squad the most right now, which is why I’m hoping that alongside a good attacking fullback, we also sign a disciplined, defensive midfielder.

I know you do your best, Michael, but is there any chance of Matchweek 6 please?