Village Idiot

Rumored to leave at the end of the season, so this might be a bit of a parting gift from his teammates. A bit hilarious it's just the second goal of his entire club career. That said, Tony Hibbert he ain't.

You being in the C'ship has made it way harder to watch your games (actually haven't watched a single one this season, it's all been live commentary), so from my purely egotistical view it has been a "2" and I'm really glad you're back up.

He got interviewed on El Larguero yesterday. - After the relegation he stayed because of the size of the club and the affection displayed by the fans. - It's been a difficult season, but stats show it's a hard division to get out of when you're first relegated. Lots of games in a single week, all very intense. Having to change half the squad upon relegation. Went on detail that typically the most successful teams in the C'ship are teams like Brighton that build up themselves during several seasons before attaining promotion. - "This feels like winning with Valencia, like when we got promoted with Tenerife or Extremadura, or winning the EL with Chelsea, or the Champions with Liverpool" - He's very happy in England, where his work is recognized and he can work the way he likes, unlike "other places" (not-so-subtle dig at Real Madrid) - Fans have been amazing, packing up 52,000 every week, travelling in great numbers for away games. All in a second division. - He's been working on Ayoze's positioning and believes he's improved a lot on this area. Believes he has lots of ability but he still can improve. - There's lots of work to be done on the squad. Said that half of it are remnants of a team that battled relegation two seasons in a row, and the other half are C'ship players. The squad needs to be strengthened going into the future, but it's not going to be easy. - On being labelled defensive: remarked that the team is the second top scorer in the division. "facts are more important than words"

Congratulations lads! I hope Rafa sticks with the team and he's properly backed. You lot deserve some sanity.

You're up!

Get in!

Damn, and I thought I overdid the starch on my shirts.

On the contrary, they love to do sell-with-buyback transfers for this kind of prospects. It's true that they don't usually send the players abroad if they are really interested in them long term, though. They prefer that they get used to play in La Liga. Benítez has a long track record of getting Spanish players to perform in England, so fishing in Spain seems a good choice. Carvajal, Morata & Casemiro went abroad. Both European competition level teams, not newly promoted teams. But Benitez..... Morata was always likely to come back but not the other 2. Perhaps Casemiro too - both featured in the first team a fair bit the season before the loan. Feel like Carvajal earned his. I don't think Morata was expected to come back either. He kinda forced them to do it with his CL exploits. Even now he only gets a handful of starts despite his goal return and Benzema's unspectacular form. But yeah, those examples show that they aren't loathe to sell good rated players abroad either.

We are 4 on the trot, too. Atlético are the team that has lost the most finals without ever clinching the title.

On the contrary, they love to do sell-with-buyback transfers for this kind of prospects. It's true that they don't usually send the players abroad if they are really interested in them long term, though. They prefer that they get used to play in La Liga. Benítez has a long track record of getting Spanish players to perform in England, so fishing in Spain seems a good choice.

Honestly, I thought we'd had a good transfer window, adding a depth that we'd never had in recent times, but all of them except Umtiti have been failures.

He's been dreadful indeed. I'm still willing to give him another chance under another manager though. Lucho never seemed to had a plan for midfield this season.

Yeah, it's been a very good year for them and Ilarra has been their best player without discussion. It's just that I'm really doubtful he can replicate that level in a more taxing environment.

Real is a massive move tbf. Never got a solid run in the team - when he got his chance he wasn't in a good mental place. He should stick it out for another season at Sociedad before considering another move though. Dude had an anxiety crisis during the preseason friendlies when he first signed, missing several games. Yes, Madrid is a huge move, but Ilarra's issues were extreme. Brilliant player otherwise.

I know I shouldn't but I love those f*** you celebrations. Now we finally have a response to Raúl's "shut up" celebration at the Camp Nou.

Ilarramendi seemed a deer caught in the headlights every time he took the field for Real. I think he'll struggle if he leaves his comfort zone again.

He got a suspended ban, and only for Supercopa games. It was quite ridiculous.

How many CL finals have Juve lost consecutively by now? Four? I hope either them or Atlético win it this year.

Not really high-res, but Piqué just posted this one on twitter: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C-IQDvuWAAABTKU.jpg:large

That's absolute rubbish that mind, there was some outstanding contests between those two sides with excellent football on show. And there were a fair few bad tempered cancelling each other out ones (mainly down to Mourinho's tactics tbf). But as you say, obviously that's rubbish. The infamous finger-on-eye game was for example one of the most exciting ones. But people will always only remember the fingering. 3-2 in the super cup wasn't it? Yup.

That's absolute rubbish that mind, there was some outstanding contests between those two sides with excellent football on show. And there were a fair few bad tempered cancelling each other out ones (mainly down to Mourinho's tactics tbf). But as you say, obviously that's rubbish. The infamous finger-on-eye game was for example one of the most exciting ones. But people will always only remember the fingering.

To be honest St George's Day is a fantastic day to get married, so I totally get why my brother acquiesced. But he should have got a place with tellies or wifi, and not a villa in the middle of nowhere. That said, I still fucking love my brother. Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

We ran out of booze. Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

No tvs at the wedding. Kept tabs on the score but it's highlights for me. Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

Of all the days to get married, my brother had to pick today. Missed the game completely, but at least I am already drunk. Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk