Re: The Football Chat (cont) : Mon May 14, 2012 11:36 am  

According to one if his representatives at the weekend, Neymar is off to the Camp Nou in 2014.

German journalist - "Was it hard to leave Real Madrid, arguably the biggest club in the world?"
van Nistelrooy - "It was harder to leave Manchester United. That was my club."

Re: The Football Chat (cont) : Mon May 14, 2012 11:48 am  

Saint77777 wrote:

The only other "Elite" player outside of messi and Ronaldo is Neymar and he is nailed on to be joining real madrid.

Give me Hazard or Gotze over Neymar. Neymar has a lot of skill but he's nowhere near 'elite' yet. His decision-making is average, his work rate is average whilst he's still not left his comfort zone, so who knows what his temperament is like.

Re: The Football Chat (cont) : Mon May 14, 2012 12:03 pm  

Vila-Real down. Be very interesting to see how the chairman and fans react. Vila-Real B will be relegated from the second division despite being 13th with 5 games still left to play. The only player worth taking a look at is the goalkeeper, Diego López and even he's only average to good.

Re: The Football Chat (cont) : Mon May 14, 2012 12:15 pm  

Roddy B wrote:

Give me Hazard or Gotze over Neymar. Neymar has a lot of skill but he's nowhere near 'elite' yet. His decision-making is average, his work rate is average whilst he's still not left his comfort zone, so who knows what his temperament is like.

Yeah, he could end up like Suarez yet No one knows how he'd adopt to the culture and pressures of a big European League.

He has very nice hair though and would be a marketing man's dream signing.

[John_D]

Re: The Football Chat (cont) : Mon May 14, 2012 12:43 pm  

Catalancs wrote:

Vila-Real B will be relegated from the second division despite being 13th with 5 games still left to play.

Was wondering about that.

And they were safe even when Falcao scored. Raul Tamudo in stoppage time sent them down.
Sorry to see Sporting Gijón go as well, as I really like saying Sporting Gijón. Chapeau to Zaragoza though. That was a hell of a run to save themselves. They totally Wiganed it.

Re: The Football Chat (cont) : Mon May 14, 2012 12:45 pm  

What an amazing end to the greatest season ever. Absolutely brilliant. It was dead and buried to the point that it felt as bad, maybe even worse, than The Ultimate Comeback in '96. The text messages started coming in with half an hour left so when they scored the second it looked lost and I could feel my heart pumping with the drama/tension. Even when five minutes flashed up it would be a reach to describe it as a hopeful emotion. I can hardly even remember the third, it was like a blur when it happened and even though I saw it go in I couldn't believe it. Immense euphoria and such a poetic way for us to clinch a first title in my lifetime.

Re: The Football Chat (cont) : Mon May 14, 2012 3:24 pm  

Catalancs wrote:

Vila-Real down. Be very interesting to see how the chairman and fans react. Vila-Real B will be relegated from the second division despite being 13th with 5 games still left to play. The only player worth taking a look at is the goalkeeper, Diego López and even he's only average to good.

How has it gone so wrong for them? What's happened with Rossi? Nilmar? Borja Valero? Zapata? Surely they can't go from a CL-quality side to relegation fodder. Who's gone crap?

Re: The Football Chat (cont) : Mon May 14, 2012 3:40 pm  

Alex McLeish has been sacked by Aston Villa.

Re: The Football Chat (cont) : Mon May 14, 2012 3:42 pm  

flipper wrote:

RVN hangs up his boots, he was a machine in his prime.


Expect United to lure him out of retirement in February

He was that and when he wound the Germans up about bicycles was fun.

[John_D]

Re: The Football Chat (cont) : Mon May 14, 2012 3:57 pm  

Roddy B wrote:

How has it gone so wrong for them? What's happened with Rossi? Nilmar? Borja Valero? Zapata? Surely they can't go from a CL-quality side to relegation fodder. Who's gone crap?

Rossi suffered two bad knee injuries and is currently up on ramps. Nilmar has been missing a lot too. But the likes of Borja, Zapata and Jonathan de Guzman just haven't fired.
Their problems stem from the financial, of course, but after selling Cazorla and seeing the players those funds brought in fail to click, it's been panic stations all round. They sacked a manager in panic, brought in a cheap replacement who wasn't very good, sacked him and leave the remaining chap with an impossible task. And yet... they were not in the relegation places until the 93rd minute of the final day.
From Champions League last term to relegation - it's been quite a fall from grace and don't back them to make an immediate return.