Jose still has a great eye for a player and thinks big. Dybala and Lukaku should finish the season well at Roma.
He will probably get another go around in Madrid and do really well.
Fergie was a bit like his favourorite son Cantona. Flat track bully who got schooled in Europe more often than not.
4 Likes
What was pep at selling a youth academy graduate like cole palmer for a donkey like Doku?
Palmer is a terrific player.
The premier league probably peaked around 08/09. Fergie finished off Jose at Chelsea. Wenger moved on and Rafa who was treated disgracefully by Liverpool was sacked. Ronaldo left and Messi emerged as a dominant force.
Back then you seemed to have a great mix of great teams and genuine hatred. That’s all gone now despite sky trying to hype it up.
Even comparing Man City and Chelsea both considered new money clubs but Chelsea played that role much better than Man City. Man City’s players aren’t offensive like John Terry was. They’ve no real Man City lads like mr Chelsea Frank Lampard either. They just come across as a collection of random footballers. Chelsea played a horrible brand of football at times too. That Chelsea side were under Jose are probably the best team I’ve seen to not win a champions league. Mugged and robbed a couple of times.
Real Madrid and Barcelona took over after Jose’s stint with inter. Messis and ronaldo not being in the premier league was huge for the brand. I guess now it’s not as clear who’s the best player in the world. Probably Mbappe I guess and again he’s turned down the EPL.
1 Like
Wenger didn’t move on until 2018.
Cech
Ferriera carvalho Terry cole
Makele
Lampard essien
Robben cole
Drogba
It Was a fine Chelsea team.
Powerful, Robben was blaggarded; he was a pain in the hole but what a talent
Well he was a busted flush long before then.
Jose mentally destroyed him. A serial loser wasn’t it.
Those arsenal v man United games in the early 00s were ferocious. It’s mad the way they begin a side that were so easily to bully.
Ya it was a strange one. Damien duff starring in games v a wonderful Barcelona side too in the champions league.
Chelsea kept signing wide forwards. Shaun wright Phillips, salamon kaloua, robben and a few more.
Drogba was some forward. He rinsed centre backs.
1 Like
Ferguson did in his hoop finish off Mourinho at Chelsea. Mourinho finished off Mourinho at Chelsea.
I found the 2000s Premier League fairly turgid in general. The Champions League was where it was at in those days.
The Dalglish at Blackburn/Keegan at Newcastle era was peak Premier League. When Keegan resigned things started getting less interesting. The entry of Suarez at Liverpool finally started to make things interesting again.
The next season after 1998/99 that was actually exciting was probably 2011/12. 2013/14 was the daddy of rollercoaster seasons and along with 1995/96 is probably the definitive Premier League season.
The champions league was a premier league dominated era back then with Barcelona thrown in and a great Milan team. Murderpool v milan, Barcelona v arsenal, milan v Liverpool, United v Chelsea, United v Barcelona and then a break in 10 and it was United v Barcelona again.
There was some incredible all premier league ties back then. Likely to be never matched again.
The Italian teams add so much to the champions league too. That inter side were wonderful pantomime villains under Jose. Same with simeones athletico Madrid side but they never actually won it.
You don’t really have any side like that now. Everyone is trying to play the same way.
Liverpool v Chelsea was THE rivalry in the '05-'09 era. The sickeningly tense shit on a stick European ties which Liverpool won, then the crazy matches at Stamford Bridge which Chelsea ended up getting through, with the 2006 FA Cup semi-final pock marking it.
Arsenal v Manchester United had fizzled out by then. Manchester United v Chelsea was always a bore and Arsenal v Chelsea was usually a bore.
England was the strongest league in Champions League terms in the '05 to '09 era, but that ended with Iniesta’s goal. Manchester United reached the 2011 final pretty much by default and were outclassed.
Mourinho’s Chelsea finally won a Champions League because the spine that had been there since '04 especially Drogba dragged them through by the scruff of the neck against all odds. Mourinho was long gone but it was still his team, it was the proverbial last sting of a dying wasp.
Liverpool v Abu Dhabi in 2018 and Abu Dhabi v Tottenham in 2019 were the best all-Premier League European ties.
Liverpool v Arsenal in 2008 was good as well to be fair.
You keep trying to bring up this non existence rivalry with city.
City are too bland. It’s like getting up set With Costa coffee.
When City had toure, kompany and augero you could sort of really hate them. Now though they are just too bland. Haaland being one of the most bland players ever.
I just remembered augero signed for Barcelona. What a waste.
He’s a baller. Can pick a lock.
FFP incentivises dumping lads like him though.
The 07 semi finals were huge. Liverpool robbed Chelsea on the Tuesday and Milan destroyed man United after the famous first leg when Rooney and kaka scored wonderful goals. Milan were amazing that night and wanted their revenge v Liverpool. It sorted of ended well for man United because Fergie finally relented and signed Hargreaves.
Incredible tension. That Eidur Gudjohnson chance at the death in 2005 when time stood still. The 2007 semi-final was equally as nerve wracking. The threat of an away goal in both Anfield 2nd legs consumed everyone in red. By 2008 you kind of sensed that Chelsea were due a semi-final victory against Liverpool and you wanted to avoid them at all costs. Even the two group games in 2005-06 were compelling stalemates with their own narratives. The 0-0’s at Stamford Bridge in May and December 2005 felt like victories to Liverpool.
The rivalry was at its most compulsive when you had the extra dimension of Chelsea trying to prise Steven Gerrard away. That element of the rivalry subsided after the summer of 2005.
I saw their on sky the nets spends of klopp and pep is fairly similar which is surprising. Maybe city are a little caught but players like palmer don’t come around too often. Southgate will be a huge fan of his as well.
If Sterling could strike through a football he’d be an all-time great