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Title: Big if's.... Post by: TightEnd on March 04, 2018, 09:34:21 AM If there was a Champions League Group Phase style tournament between these 4 teams, who would win the Group?
Arsenal 2003-04 Chelsea 2004-05 Manchester United 2007-08 Manchester City this season Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: TightEnd on March 04, 2018, 09:35:20 AM Poll added
Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: AndrewT on March 04, 2018, 02:27:20 PM Poll added Is he going to be referreeing all the games? Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: Tal on March 04, 2018, 02:40:57 PM I voted united. Surely the one that won the Champions League starts as favourite?
The Portuguese fella on the wing was handy. Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: rinswun on March 04, 2018, 05:40:33 PM Definite recency bias in this result.
Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: hhyftrftdr on March 04, 2018, 11:08:22 PM Definite recency bias in this result. I beg to differ. Obv I'm biased, but I don't think this City team is getting the full credit they deserve for exactly how good they are. They have dismantled the whole league ffs Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: rinswun on March 04, 2018, 11:16:30 PM very weak year in the prem though. weakest in recent memory for sure.
Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: hhyftrftdr on March 04, 2018, 11:18:56 PM I voted united. Surely the one that won the Champions League starts as favourite? The Portuguese fella on the wing was handy. He was pretty good tbf. That same squad also contained Wes Brown, Anderson, Louis Saha, Gabriel Heinze, John O'Shea, Darren Fletcher, Gary Neville. Their average league line up that season was (via Wiki appearances) Van Der Sar Brown? Ferdinand Vidic Evra Ronaldo Carrick Scholes Giggs/Nani Rooney Tevez That XI would be steamrolled by this City best XI. Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: arbboy on March 04, 2018, 11:19:12 PM very weak year in the prem though. weakest in recent memory for sure. Agreed. This year isn't a vintage year in the slightest. Just makes you realise how bad Arsenal actually are! the 2003/4 arsenal side were just so sexy to watch. gtfo chelski under jose! Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: hhyftrftdr on March 04, 2018, 11:19:35 PM very weak year in the prem though. weakest in recent memory for sure. On what basis is it the weakest in memory? Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: TheDazzler on March 04, 2018, 11:26:53 PM very weak year in the prem though. weakest in recent memory for sure. For sure? I think that's recency bias! What about the Leicester year? Chelsea 10th, Pool 8th, Man Utd 5th. Southampton and West Ham finished ahead of Pool and Stoke finished ahead of Chelsea! Oh and Leicester City won the league. Deservedly. That was 2 years ago, which is in my recent memory! Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: rinswun on March 05, 2018, 07:48:27 AM Maybe a touch of recency bias but I thought the majority of the teams in the league that season were genuinely competitive, which is what enabled Leicester to win as they were all capable of taking points off the big teams. This season there is a massive gap between the top 5 and the rest. Burnley remained in 7th despite falling to win a game for two and a half months. The bottom half of the league is essentially just a bunch of Championship sides in all but name.
Yes City are brilliant, and I'm sure in any given season they'd do damage at the top of the league, but on this season's form its like having a grade 1 horse entered in a seller. Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: Chompy on March 05, 2018, 10:33:48 AM Weak season? Not a chance. All the best players and managers are here now, a domination of the CL is about to begin and City are about to do a New England Patriots imo.
This current City team is the best there's ever. If anything there's a rose-tinted 'things used to be so much better' bias. Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: Royal Flush on March 05, 2018, 01:16:07 PM Ha how can anyone possibly think that a team 10-15 years ago is better than a team destroying all its competition today? Do these people think training/tactics/fitness/analytics etc have got worse in the last 10-15 years?
It's City, it's not close. As for the rest of the league being weak, meh. They are as weak as they have been for ages, this notion that the prem is the toughest league in the world for years is just nonsense, the reality is we haven't had a team as good as this city team before, they are as good/better than the dominant Barca/Real/Bayern teams we've seen over the last 10 years. If any of those teams had parachuted into the prem they would have also won in a canter. The prem has always been competitive because the top teams were not as good as the UK media suggested not because the bottom teams are better. Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: Ironside on March 05, 2018, 02:45:38 PM i have to say i have loved watching man city play this year more than any other team in history not named Southampton or Aberdeen
Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: Archer on March 05, 2018, 02:55:59 PM I’m not buying the “it’s a weak league” view either.
The domination by the big boys now is no different to the domination by the Big 4 in the time-frame covered by the poll in the Tighty’s OP. In the 5 seasons 03/04 – 07/08 the Big 4 lost just over 9% of games against non- Big 4 opposition. We now have a Big 6 and since the Leicester season they have lost nearly 12% of games against non-Big 6 opposition. Also, whilst English teams haven’t been as dominant in Europe in recent years, progress so far in this year’s Champions League suggests that is changing. Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: hhyftrftdr on March 05, 2018, 06:11:05 PM Maybe a touch of recency bias but I thought the majority of the teams in the league that season were genuinely competitive, which is what enabled Leicester to win as they were all capable of taking points off the big teams. This season there is a massive gap between the top 5 and the rest. Burnley remained in 7th despite falling to win a game for two and a half months. The bottom half of the league is essentially just a bunch of Championship sides in all but name. Yes City are brilliant, and I'm sure in any given season they'd do damage at the top of the league, but on this season's form its like having a grade 1 horse entered in a seller. That's not because its a weak league, it's because this City team are devastating. Look at the goals scored, the lack of goals conceded, the goal difference, the wins on the bounce, the stats for every game, the various broken records....it is an incred disservice to suggest that all this is in part due to a weak league. Chompy and Flushy say it better than I ever can. Title: Re: Big if's.... Post by: nirvana on March 05, 2018, 06:56:30 PM The only English side that gets close to comparing is the Arse in their pomp. They then and City now make it look like theyre playing a different game to everyone else. Not just better at doing the same stuff.
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