The Football Thread 2023/24: Real Madrid win 15th Champions League title

[Albert]

It's got to be said, Arsenal have done so well this season, and to push it to the very last game is quite some achievement.

Can't help admit I am relieved they didn't manage to turn it around, as I have too many Gooner mates to put up with that nonsense, and Obviousely I hope it all crumbles down around them ASAP, but there is no denying that after Man City they are currently playing the best football in the League, if not the best, just slightly less consistant.

Can't stand their manager, but he's obviously doing something right, and just shows what can happen if people show a little paitence and give a manager some time to embed their vision.

[Denster]

Very proud of the season. We made City need every single point and proved that last year wasn't a flash in the pan.

I love these players. I love this manager. I love this club

Should be very proud mate.

Can't say I am. 8th place with a negative GD. strawberry floating shameful. Even with a win today and a cup final next week - this is the most despondent I've felt at the end of the season.

Horrible season.

[Tomous]

Arsenal have been run brilliantly the past few years. They've shown great faith in Arteta and ever since the Pepe fiasco they've gone from strength to strength in the transfer market. Not always perfect but certainly moving in the right direction each window.

Arteta has them playing very good football, I'd be surprised if we don't see success coming their way

[Ploiper]

i do think within the next few years we will have won the league title, i can feel it coming. We are not really missing that much, just a natural goal scoring striker. Get that and things will look good.

[Sprouty]

Congratulations to City. The best team in the history of English football, now beyond any doubt!

[speedboatchase]

Congratulations to City. The best team in the history of English football, now beyond any doubt!

There will always be doubt until - however it ends up - the FA concludes its investigation.

[Moggy]

Congratulations to City. The best team in the history of English football, now beyond any doubt!

The Lance Armstrong of football

[Cuttooth]

You do have to give credit to Man City. A lot of other teams would have crumbled from being under investigation for an entire season.

[jawa_]

Disappointed but proud of how the team has performed this season. Unfortunately, Man City are an absolute machine and you have to give them credit for that.

I was unsure about Arteta back in 2020; we were playing some lousy football and getting poor results. But, over the past years, he has transformed the team. Fair play.

[Mommy Christmas]

Congratulations to City. The best team in the history of English football, now beyond any doubt!

They have given me more than I could ever have hoped.
Nerve wracking again today but

[Oblomov Boblomov]

If City hadn't ruined it for everyone else, it would have gone down as quite an interesting/unusual season:

Manchester United with a negative goal difference
Chelsea in a permanent state of catastrophe – let's check where they finished... huh?!
Villa take fourth spot
Palace are definitely getting relegated... oh hang on, top half, above Brighton?!
You need 40, err, 27 points to survive
Newcastle are going to slot in just behind City... hahaha, strawberry float off you sportswashing twats

Feels like City taking the title puts a huge dampener on everything else (for the neutral, at least). Could really do with this case coming in and strawberry floating them off out of both the EPL and EFL.

[Imrahil]

I did think early in the season this could be collectively the worst performing 3 relegation teams in PL history and it turned out to be true. 27 points to stay up is a bit alarming.

Poch looks like he's finally solved the conundrum with that Chelsea squad, could bode well for next season. What's the betting he now gets fired by Boehly?

[Cuttooth]

Palace are my pick to do a Villa next season.

[Tomous]

Palace are my pick to do a Villa next season.

They're gonna get raided though. Olise, Eze, Mateta....maybe Glasner.

[Benzin]

Gonna be a long summer, but I don't think we'd lose more than 2 of the main rumoured targets.

Especially if the release clauses are still complicated for Olise (as Chelsea found out come last summer) and Eze presumably.

Glasner had that bid from Bayern which Parish told them where to go. Unless the owners piss him off I'd imagine would at least get next season out of him. Might be able to convince the players to do the same given the performances post Liverpool.

[RetroCora]

I did think early in the season this could be collectively the worst performing 3 relegation teams in PL history and it turned out to be true. 27 points to stay up is a bit alarming.

Poch looks like he's finally solved the conundrum with that Chelsea squad, could bode well for next season. What's the betting he now gets fired by Boehly?

It’s crazy that the gap was realistically ten points, given Forest’s deduction. Worrying gap between the championship and EPL forming.

[Tomous]

I did think early in the season this could be collectively the worst performing 3 relegation teams in PL history and it turned out to be true. 27 points to stay up is a bit alarming.

Poch looks like he's finally solved the conundrum with that Chelsea squad, could bode well for next season. What's the betting he now gets fired by Boehly?

It’s crazy that the gap was realistically ten points, given Forest’s deduction. Worrying gap between the championship and EPL forming.

An unintended benefit of FFP is that points deductions are going to keep relegation battles going longer.

[more heat than light]

I did think early in the season this could be collectively the worst performing 3 relegation teams in PL history and it turned out to be true. 27 points to stay up is a bit alarming.

Poch looks like he's finally solved the conundrum with that Chelsea squad, could bode well for next season. What's the betting he now gets fired by Boehly?

It’s crazy that the gap was realistically ten points, given Forest’s deduction. Worrying gap between the championship and EPL forming.

I think this is just a case of three poor teams being promoted, sadly. Burnley had the best chance of staying up but wholeheartedly refused to adapt their playing style to fit the Premier League. Luton were a surprise to go up and clearly aren't at the required standard yet, but gave it a decent go. Sheff Utd were dreadful.

Next season should be much more competitive.

[Benzin]

Sheff Utd did lose their 2 best players last summer and were in the midst of ownership nonsense (maybe an embargo too?).

Was a shock they even got promoted, but the Championship is one of those leagues were good form gets you somewhere.

[Moggy]

I did think early in the season this could be collectively the worst performing 3 relegation teams in PL history and it turned out to be true. 27 points to stay up is a bit alarming.

Poch looks like he's finally solved the conundrum with that Chelsea squad, could bode well for next season. What's the betting he now gets fired by Boehly?

It’s crazy that the gap was realistically ten points, given Forest’s deduction. Worrying gap between the championship and EPL forming.

I think this is just a case of three poor teams being promoted, sadly. Burnley had the best chance of staying up but wholeheartedly refused to adapt their playing style to fit the Premier League. Luton were a surprise to go up and clearly aren't at the required standard yet, but gave it a decent go. Sheff Utd were dreadful.

Next season should be much more competitive.

Yeah, we can't judge if there is a worrying gap forming based on one season. In fact, the previous season all of the newly promoted teams stayed up and a (relatively) recent Premier League winner was relegated.

Over the last few years we continue to see teams that have never been in the Premier League get promoted (Bournemouth, Huddersfield, Brentford, Luton for example) and those that have been out of the Premier League for a long time (Forest, Leeds, Ipswich).

As well as that, plenty of ex-Premier League clubs plummet into League One (Derby, Ipswich, Sunderland, Birmingham, Huddersfield).

The PL money is ridiculous and there is obviously a gulf in quality on the pitch. But clubs are so badly run behind the scenes, that there's plenty of opportunity for clubs like Luton to make a go of it. It didn't work for them this season, but if they invest wisely, there's no reason to think they can't get back up there pretty quickly and survive.