English Football Season 2025-2026. Here we go again.
Welcome 2+2 to the English football season of 2025-2026.
This year I am going to make the thread officially for all of E
I'm not one of those people that dismisses xG completely or can't be objective, but no, Arsenal were absolute **** in the second half.
They ceded possession to Wolves. Forget about the scoreline, how can you excuse not being able to hold the ball against Wolves?
They attack half-heartedly and lose the ball, and then can't defend properly either, so they are bad at both. The lockdown defense of the first half of the season is completely gone.
The first goal may have been some variance, but Gabriel completely losing his head and taking the ball away from Raya was not. Gabriel, for all of his talent, can be a knucklehead, and many of the team's worst defensive mistakes have his signature on it.
The team is in their own heads and panicking. Sometimes the simplest explanation is the correct one.
We draw that game and City takes the lead when they win their game in hand. Then we play Chelsea.
But you know what will happen most likely? We will beat Spurs and Chelsea. Then draw the last 3 games against Spammers, Burnley and Crystal Palace
Yes, the second half was really awful and Arsenal were second best. Paralysed by fear even with 11 games to go, and no one wanted to take responsibility.
People who talk about the current league positions of the contenders should look instead at current form, who now has the initiative and what the emotions will be like in both dressing rooms.
I've given up on the league. These performances have been pure ****.
Early in the season I said Liverpool were scamming wins and will come back down to earth. They did. Mid-season I said Villa were scamming wins and they will come back down to earth. They did.
You can say it's bad luck in some of the games, and that's true, but the performances have not been good. This is not bad luck, it's a team that won't get enough points to win the league.
I do feel PRETTY good about the Champions League. The teams in it play a style that suits Arsenal much better, plus you need to win over two legs, which I think favors Arsenal.
At this point, I will be shocked if Arsenal turn it around and win the league. City will have to choke even worse than Arsenal, and I don't see that happening. Possible? Yeah, but I would pile on City at the moment.
People who talk about the current league positions of the contenders should look instead at current form, who now has the initiative and what the emotions will be like in both dressing rooms.
I watched all of the games (only 2nd half yesterday) and the only really terrible one that you didn't deserve anything out of was Brentford, you could easily have won last night and you were the better team vs United too (lost to ridiculous goals from Cunha and Dorgu).
Variance is still a thing.
Whereas City weren't exactly dominant vs Fulham (nor us for a half), nor Wolves lol.
I *am* talking about form. You're not as good as you were earlier in the season but City aren't playing a ton better than you are on the whole. You're sorting by results.
*edit* just remembered you dicked all over Forest too, just happened to come out with a nil all draw.
I would like you to be fully right Grammy. I hope you are.
Maybe its my PTSD, but giving Wolves the ball and panicking in the 93rd minute is just not something that I've seen us do a lot this season. Maybe we got spoiled in the beginning. idk.
I'd be reinvigorated if we beat Spurs and Chelsea tho, but currently I'm in the bust part of the boom-bust cycle.
I hope you're all right and you finish about 5th tbh
We'll limp to the finish line and finish a close 2nd behind City obv.
Villa are frauds themselves. I would love to be proven wrong but the players haven't earned that trust.
Complete headloss. This is the moment it turned lads. At ****ing Wolves.
Knew it was coming when Jesus was 2on1 in the 95th and he ****ing just loses it against Mosquera and we concede from there.
Still had Jesus and Trossard coming off the bench - a far cry from the days when it was only Welbeck and Iwobi
We'll limp to the finish line and finish a close 2nd behind City obv.
Villa are frauds themselves. I would love to be proven wrong but the players haven't earned that trust.
Where is villa in table since unai took over? Where are we at this time?
If being pretty dam consistent means fraud then I guess that's what we are
Just realised you said back down to earth...villa are 3rd hahaha were over the moon. Especially given the start with everyone worried about not even making top 10
And we had our midfield destroyed with dropping a couple of points.
Arsenals probably fine just mildly unlucky. There are some worrying trends, but I think in general it's largely overlooked how tough the PL is top to bottom this year. The relegation teams are much better than recent year relegation teams and the mid table all has solid teams. Aside from probably serie a the relegation teams would all p be contending for Europe in other big 5 leagues to give some context to how much better the EPL is than every other league top to bottom. There's no death star teams like old city/Liverpool because everyone got smarter/better.
The most telling trend of the EPL is that every team except uniteds open play creation is down and uniteds is only better because of how ****ing bad they were to begin with last year.
Unfortunately feels like the bao final will feel like a more impactful inflection point than it really should be. There's some scenarios were arsenal could play city in the league, league cup, fa cup, cl knockouts X2 in a relatively short span.
Ultimately I think how I feel about a lot of the fan sentiment is sack the **** up you wanted the team to be good and now we are. Emotional ups and downs come with the territory of having hope to actually win things. Buckle up it's gonna be a roller coaster boys. Always had the risk of turning into a slog if we couldn't get fully healthy.
Congrats James Milner, all time premier league appearances leader.
Spoiler
Everybody liked that.
Guys a machine, was even great when he had to play left back for a whole season at Liverpool..
Where is villa in table since unai took over? Where are we at this time?
If being pretty dam consistent means fraud then I guess that's what we are
Just realised you said back down to earth...villa are 3rd hahaha were over the moon. Especially given the start with everyone worried about not even making top 10
And we had our midfield destroyed with dropping a couple of points.
You dont think that your results at least for first half of the season were better than your performances?
That is not an unfair analysis and all people are saying. No way were you title contenders etc.
Cov did the business today, so all we need to do tomorrow is not lose to a team that have lost ten straight to start 2026 to relegate them. Which would be nice.
Also what a ****ing shitshow of results to start a new LMS with
Sheffield Weds being relegated with 13 games left is truly epic stuff.
Earliest ever in the football league they said on commentary. Savage. Leicester potentially getting relegated from the Championship 10 years after winning the Premier League is also savage.
I want a close up of a Marinakis reaction after the 3rd Liverpool goal in a 0-3 beatdown today pls.
Textbook example of making things difficult, Phillips making it 3/3 ex dirties we've brought in this season too get sent off for really dumb ****
Liverpool missing Wirtz, looking disjointed without him.
