Couldnt agree more. I recall Aubameyang chasing right backs the length of the pitch not that long ago. He was clearly pissed off with himself when he missed what should have been the first goal vs Olypiacos. The team attacking model is still changing and his and every role in that team still evolving.

Yep Bellerin is softer, can't cross for *%^@ and definitely more in the mould of Clichy. He also wears his shorts too high.

With no interesting Premier League games today I thought I'd watch Bayern - Stuttgart to see how Mavropanos is doing. Started interestingly enough with Bayern getting a player sent off after ten minutes. Then Bayern proceeded to score three goals in six minutes, adding a fourth before half time. Not Mavropanos fault in particular but not exactly a game where he stands out either...

That Lewandowski is a good player, we should try to sign him.

Good player.

Probably the least offensive of Don Revie’s bunch of noswocs. Christ I hated that team - like most of humankind.

Yep. ‘Good player’ is high praise, considering. It’s about as much as I can manage.

I couldn’t stand them either. I’ve been to two FA Cup finals not involving Arsenal. The 1975 West Ham vs Fulham one, in which I supported Fulham. And the 1970 final at Wembley, Chelsea vs Leeds. It was a 2-2 draw and I didn’t go to the replay.

I actually wanted Chelsea to win, and I have never had any affinity with them whatsoever. By which I mean they were only my second ‘least favourite’ London club because of Tottenham.

Despite that, at the time I actually wanted Chelsea to win the 1970 final, because of who they were playing. How times change!

Actually I’d probably still prefer for Chelsea to beat Leeds in a cup final. Just never got over the club including when O’Leary was with them .

With all that’s been said, and I understand the hatred,the Leeds team is still in my top 3 best ever domestic teams… with our invincibles and the Liverpool team with Souness Rush Dalgleish et al. I’m hard pressed to put them in order. These three are the best I’ve ever seen...even above the great Utd teams (Best Law and Charlton version and the treble winners) or current Man C team who are on course for a four timer

They were so good I still remember their team. Goalkeeper: Sprake, Right Back: Reaney, Left Back: Cooper, Central Defence: Charlton and Hunter, Right Midfield: Lorimer, Left Midfield: Gray, Central Midfield: Bremner and Giles, Forwards: Jones and Clark. Madely was the adaptable fill in for various defensive positions.

The first hard core Leeds fan I met was in the British pub in LA. And I recall him saying "That Revie side could play any type of football you wanted. If you came to put the boot in, we had no problem with it, even relished it, but if you came to play proper football, we excelled at that too."

For the most part, that's been confirmed by most fans. They were hated, loathed but undeniably good. From what I gather from Leeds fan, the club thought the London and other southern sides were a bit soft so perhaps they started a bit more physical admittedly.

...oh, forgot to mention, I recall him remembering that when they played Liverpool it was great football on both sides but when they played Man Utd they were out to hurt each other. Not sure how much of that is his view or how it actually was.

Almost posted a few weeks ago when Shrewsbury game mentioned from GG years. Went to that game and sat next to Nigel Winterburn’s parents. They were so nice and even shared their home made fruit cake with me and mate. They told us that Nige wasn’t that passionate bout football as a kid - funny how that turned out! What a player.

Always wondered which current player’s parents would do the same.

Next post in 2022![/quote]

What makes this forum uniquely special are these types of stories. Can't find them anywhere else really.[/quote]

I’m breaking my once a year pattern but glad you enjoyed the post AG.

I think those GG era away days were the best - always took thousands away and it was ( usually) good natured fun, taking the piss out of the locals. So many great memories. Did a Tuesday night to Anfield for a league cup tie which ended 2-2. We totally outplayed them and it was one of the games when there were big clues about the glory coming round the corner and the decline of Liverpool. For me that was one of the greatest and most important games seen over the many years of following this great club. Have still got the ticket stub, programme and press cuttings.
Also memorable for the pre game fun:someone somehow got a ghetto blaster into the ground and a mini acid house style rave drowned out the house PA with a mass of floppy haired Gooners giving it large in the corner. The faces of the pinch faced scouse old men staring at them from the next stand was memorable.

Interesting that some of you have long memories when it comes to Leeds and their implosion and rise from the ashes like a Phoenix isn't enough. They have been chastened. But then again, I didn't have to put up with them as a gooner n the early 70s.

To be fair, if Man Utd imploded, I'd still hate them. Same with Chelsea, Tottenham. Hmm..who else? Any club fat Sam is managing. I still feel a wee bit anti Bolton, all due to fat Sam being there.

I'm happy for West Ham and their manager, good guy. I hope Palace gets better. I have a soft spot for them. Whenever there are clips of the '90 FA cup I will them to beat Man Utd. Had they won, its rumored Fergie would have been sacked.

I would love to see the alternate universe of no Fergie at Man Utd after '90. They would still be good but how good?

Haha..great stuff!! From what I hear about Liverpool, you guys were brave.

Almost posted a few weeks ago when Shrewsbury game mentioned from GG years. Went to that game and sat next to Nigel Winterburn’s parents. They were so nice and even shared their home made fruit cake with me and mate. They told us that Nige wasn’t that passionate bout football as a kid - funny how that turned out! What a player.

Always wondered which current player’s parents would do the same.

Next post in 2022![/quote]
If you read the forum every day, was that a 0-1 win at Shrewsbury in the League Cup when Michael Thomas scored? I also went to that with a couple of friends and my wife to be (it must have been before I married her). One of the more puzzling away games we decided to attend. The only reason I can think of was us not having been to an away game at Shrewsbury before - or since as it’s turned out.[/quote]

Me again - can’t stop! Waiting for missus to wake up before early morning walk on Hackney Marshes.

Yes it was that game and I share your uncertainty about why I went - probably because I just enjoyed those trips so much that I would go anywhere in those days. Stopped off at a couple of places on way up including some Roman remains ( don’t ask). Remember a fairly dull game, a long drive back & feeling shattered the next day. But desperate to tell the Winterburn story ( as I still am!).

God willing I'd like to spend several weeks going from the south coast to Geordie country (throw in Scotland as well and make it even further north) and just see football matches, all conferences. In fact, I'd prefer the small clubs.

Yeah, getting back to the car was nerve wracking. And remember relief seeing that the wheels were still on it having turned down the ‘kind’ offer to pay £5 before the game for a couple of urchins to look after it. I have no idea what I would have done if we had got stuck in a Liverpool side street at 10.30pm with about a pound left in my pocket.

A fiver!!!! The going rate for ‘protected’ on street parking in Manchester and Liverpool in the early seventies was a quid. Well worth paying.

The greedy so and so’s. Glad I took the risk and didn’t pay. £1 - bargain! But it was 1988 so gotta allow for inflation.
Always thought that the car protection scam was a northern urban myth / stereotype thing until that day. When it happened other times after that, I always said I would pay after the game. No one ever came to collect. Putting on that posh / sincere voice and speaking slowly always worked.
I

This is what we did in Philly. If there was no parking for a club, and we had to park on the street, we'd go to a homeless person nearby and rip a $20 bill in half and say "you get the other half if you watch the car. Any problems you can't handle come get us at the club, tell the bouncer".

I'm assuming 5 quid was a fair amount of money for such work in those days? LOL...you guys are hilarious.

I think this summer's transfer window will be fascinating for a lot of clubs.
This list below shows all the U23 players with only 1 year left on their deal this summer. Of course some may sign new deals with their clubs but if they can't reach an agreement these clubs will surely want to sell and these players will be available at knock down rates.
https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/transfe ... 0&yt0=Show

I've been told the worst area of Liverpool is Toxteth.

Worst place to get stuck outside London?

Leeds

Liverpool

Manchester

other________

In the old days you didn't go to Yankee stadium unless you traveled with the crowd. The south Bronx was no church picnic (still isn't). Philly has possibly the worse reputation in pro sports. At least in the 'old days'. Philly was the first sports arena to have a jail inside it. The bathroom at the baseball and ice hockey games had fights regularly. But even so, I'd take that over what I heard about the hooliganism and traveling to away grounds.

The most scared that I’ve ever been was when Arsenal played away at Hillsborough (not long before the disaster there).

All of the stand emptied into one long corridor that ran the length of the ground with the exit being at the end. It was congested to say the least. Then some Arsenal supporters started a charge along that corridor. Really frightening.

In a different vein getting away from the old Wembley was a congested nightmare. An absolute crush. I did one experiment by lifting both feet off the ground and found, as I expected, that I still kept moving forward in the crush. I quickly put them back down again though because to have dropped down to the floor would have been fatal.

Getting away from the old Wembley could be bad. Don’t know if you noticed that post I did not that long ago about my dad taking me to an England Scotland game when I was a small boy. Drunken jocks galore making it much worse. It was when a Scotsman helped my dad get me away safely, firmly telling his rowdy compatriots around us to behave themselves because of me, or they’d have him to answer to.

It was him who gave me my affinity with Rangers as after we’d got clear, my dad thanked him and asked who he supported. He said ‘Glasgea Rangers’.

Also as well as being congested at Wembley there was nowhere to hide if it kicked off like before the 91 semi with Middlesex outside the ground Literally couldn’t run. Was lucky to escape with my balls intact.

The new Wembley is still bad Due to congestion and if you get a coach there expect to wait 80 minutes after the game before you even get moving

Depends on what you mean specifically but anyone can get their bollocks kicked in at the football. I saw one Arsenal fan battering another at half time in the east stand over some disagreement

For crime generally I wouldn’t look much further than Liverpool or Manchester where drugs and serious crime are more rife. Both cracking cities for a night out but your aware it simmers away in the background

Just transporting some of these criminals up north involves the police putting on such a display of sheer force to deter their cohorts

https://youtu.be/BlaueODQjNw

https://www.transfermarkt.com/aurelien- ... ler/413112
Another young French defensive midfielder earning rave reviews at the moment

Do you mean the Tottenham fans were outside the ground or Arsenal’s, as Highbury used to be in Middlesex too? Or do you call us Kent, the county Woolwich was in until 1889, as the club was formed in 1886?

https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/20306

Must say I agree with you. He is a high class striker, worthy of his salary and allowed to have his off moments. Being late as captain in a NLD was silly, but for those who want to see a long queue, ask Arsenal to put him on the transfer list.

Yes, it was a great team, but always tainted by their gamesmanship and occasional violence. Revie was a pioneering player, and then manager. When he changed Leeds' kit to emulate Real Madrid, he also adopted some of the more cynical practices of the European teams, though to his credit not diving. While there always had been tough teams in English football, Revie's Leeds went beyond that. When they concentrated on football they were superb.

Heresy I know, but Spurs' Double team, later supplemented by Jimmy Greaves and Alan Gilzean, was a phenomenal side.

omoh! Our departed member, Mee, is looking down on you now and I don't have to say what his demeanor is.

One of the most surreal things as an American going to a game was not seeing the opposition fans until I was in my seat. I recall not seeing any (visible) Liverpool fans as I was getting out of the underground, walking to the game, going in, not at the concession stand or the bathrooms. I almost wondered if they had even turned up.

Probably two forumites.

Arsenal: Leno, Chambers, Luiz, Mari, Tierney, Xhaka, Partey, Ødegaard, Saka, Aubameyang, Lacazette

Subs: Ryan, Cédric, Holding, Gabriel, Elneny, Ceballos, Smith Rowe, Pépé, Martinelli

I'd have preferred Cédric over Chambers. The one big area Chambers worries me is 1v1 against pace and trickery. He's up against Bowen or Benrahma today

I make you right LTG

100%

Good decisions there Mikel. Lacazette and Aubameyang the right choice

Chambers was good last game (I really hope we don’t sell him)

I would have preferred Pépé with Aubameyang in the middle. But its a close call.