Champions League Thread (the dawn of time - 2014)

[puddleduck]

Yeah Man U and Chelsea will be licking their lips now. How we are going to find another midfielder at the right price with the right abilities is beyond me. Absolutely buggered.

Crazy to think that at home to Chelsea Adebayor scored a goal that was a good metre or two onside and had it ruled out costing us the 2 points that would have seen us finish 3rd... Then Chelsea go and somehow burgle the Champs league and knocks us out of our 4th spot anyway. Also destroyed us in the FA Cup semi.

So essentially, Chelsea... go do one.

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I am not actually blaming that by the way. We beat Villa or win more than one away game since Christmas and none of this matters anyway. Harry had a tactical meltdown and completely bottled the season.

 

[barmyarmy]

Not like you would have played the group stages either way. You still started from the third qualifying round, while we started from the first...

Against the champions of Andorra and Liechtenstein or something.

 

[Haarithan]

England should probably sack Woy after their first group game and appoint RDM as their interim. Surely it's England all the way then?

Also just realized my cockiness, a fortnight back in the English football thread has cost me big time. Lesson learnt then.

 

[barmyarmy]

So who plays the quali rounds next season then? Do Chelski go straight into the groups or is it as if they had come fourth?

 

[Haarithan]

Against the champions of Andorra and Liechtenstein or something.

My point is, you were not "screwed" like you've been saying, just because Liverpool won in 2005. You were destined to start from the third qualifying round, even before the kickoff at Istanbul. While we had to convince the UEFA to grant us a place in the 2005-06 Champions League, which we successfully did.

 

[puddleduck]

And subsequently screwed Tottenham due to the rules then being changed. So cheers for that Liverpool...

@ Barmy - They all go straight into groups.

 

[Auwais]

So who plays the quali rounds next season then? Do Chelski go straight into the groups or is it as if they had come fourth?

Anderlecht drop down into the qualifying round and the four English teams go straight into the group stage.

 

[barmyarmy]

Which they did by putting Valencia into the qualifying round against, wait for it, Everton.
UEFA didn't want 5 English clubs in the group stages and arranged the draw accordingly.

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Anderlecht drop down into the qualifying round and the four English teams go straight into the group stage.

And do you hear the Anderlecht fans complaining?

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Incidentally we should absolutely be in the Europa League rather than the winners of the Micky Mouse cup but that's a different argument...

 

[Haarithan]

Which they did by putting Valencia into the qualifying round against, wait for it, Everton.

Villarreal.

 

[barmyarmy]

Spanish club beginning with "V". Either way they made the semis that year (not that I'm bitter).

 

[MasterBlaster76]

Yeah Man U and Chelsea will be licking their lips now. How we are going to find another midfielder at the right price with the right abilities is beyond me. Absolutely buggered.

Crazy to think that at home to Chelsea Adebayor scored a goal that was a good metre or two onside and had it ruled out costing us the 2 points that would have seen us finish 3rd... Then Chelsea go and somehow burgle the Champs league and knocks us out of our 4th spot anyway. Also destroyed us in the FA Cup semi.

So essentially, Chelsea... go do one.

----------

I am not actually blaming that by the way. We beat Villa or win more than one away game since Christmas and none of this matters anyway. Harry had a tactical meltdown and completely bottled the season.

I'm sure the England nonsense didn't help at all - and in the end, he didn't even get the job!

 

[Auwais]

Spanish club beginning with "V". Either way they made the semis that year (not that I'm bitter).

You were unlucky that year, Collina didn't have his best game, disallowing that late Ferguson header.

 

[sattar]

Now if still roberto di matteo didnt get the job permenant.he will have many offers now..

 

[puddleduck]

I'm sure the England nonsense didn't help at all - and in the end, he didn't even get the job!

The England stuff was oversold. Redknapp completely abandoned everything that had worked. Tried to turn Bale into some kind of roaming free role playmaker. Ended up with Modric, Bale and VDV all in the same place, and with Adebayor generally drifting out wide and two holding midfielders we were a shambles. For a few months pretty much our only width came from Walker bundling himself down the wing. Once he got a bit tired he pretty much just ran into their left back, lost the ball, and then ran back all game.

He didn't use Defoe anywhere near enough in the second half of the season despite the fact he's looked sharper than he has done for a few years. Defensively we were never able to defend balls into the box from setpieces, and if you watch Spurs take a corner or free-kick we don't ever really look like scoring. There never seems any kind of plan.

We played with natural width for the first half a season which in itself creates both space and options for Modric to play, what happened from Christmas I've never really forgiven. It was obvious to anyone who watched a lot of Tottenham. There was also the moment when 10 points clear of Arsenal and apparently in a title race, Redknapp played for a draw at home to what was a poor and out of form Chelsea side. Shortly after he mentioned something about just wanting to finish ahead of Arsenal. It highlighted that he's a limited manager with limited ambitions. Inevitably performance then dropped off with the growing links to the England job, a tactical mess that he didn't seem to want to change, and an away record that saw us win one away game since Christmas. Don't get me wrong he's done a good job, and we almost certainly couldn't get anyone who would definitely do better, but as much as Redknapp can take the plaudits for getting Tottenham to 4th, he can also take the blame for costing us 3rd.

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Oh and which muppet suggested that Cech was past it before being ridiculed by most of the forum haha

 

[thedon5]

The England stuff was oversold. Redknapp completely abandoned everything that had worked. Tried to turn Bale into some kind of roaming free role playmaker. Ended up with Modric, Bale and VDV all in the same place, and with Adebayor generally drifting out wide and two holding midfielders we were a shambles. For a few months pretty much our only width came from Walker bundling himself down the wing. Once he got a bit tired he pretty much just ran into their left back, lost the ball, and then ran back all game.

He didn't use Defoe anywhere near enough in the second half of the season despite the fact he's looked sharper than he has done for a few years. Defensively we were never able to defend balls into the box from setpieces, and if you watch Spurs take a corner or free-kick we don't ever really look like scoring. There never seems any kind of plan.

We played with natural width for the first half a season which in itself creates both space and options for Modric to play, what happened from Christmas I've never really forgiven. It was obvious to anyone who watched a lot of Tottenham. There was also the moment when 10 points clear of Arsenal and apparently in a title race, Redknapp played for a draw at home to what was a poor and out of form Chelsea side. Shortly after he mentioned something about just wanting to finish ahead of Arsenal. It highlighted that he's a limited manager with limited ambitions. Inevitably performance then dropped off with the growing links to the England job, a tactical mess that he didn't seem to want to change, and an away record that saw us win one away game since Christmas. Don't get me wrong he's done a good job, and we almost certainly couldn't get anyone who would definitely do better, but as much as Redknapp can take the plaudits for getting Tottenham to 4th, he can also take the blame for costing us 3rd.

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Oh and which muppet suggested that Cech was past it before being ridiculed by most of the forum haha

Haha I was one of Cech's critics. Amazing performance, but still throughout the season he hasn't been as good as he was a few seasons ago. Probably just a rough patch though.

Oh and Spurs bye bye.

Looks like at least another few years of St. Totteringhams' days, if not more.