The Title Race - 2023/24

How many points will be needed to win the league?

  • Total voters
    446
  • Poll closed .
Germany back ahead on the COEFF slightly (due to the 1/7th v 1/8th for the 2 points tonight), and damage done in terms of setting up knock-outs.

Very much set up for going either way now, and the Italians likely to have 3 in the semis are less likely to be caught after the Liverpool result, England City and Villa, Germany Bayern and Bayer for Germany.

Arsenal and Dortmund will have something to say about that, however if BM beat Arsenal then the additional 5th place would really need City to go through to the final to claim it.

Or I could be completely wrong and the Hammers perform a great comeback etc.
 
Corky said:
Germany back ahead on the COEFF slightly (due to the 1/7th v 1/8th for the 2 points tonight), and damage done in terms of setting up knock-outs.

Very much set up for going either way now, and the Italians likely to have 3 in the semis are less likely to be caught after the Liverpool result, England City and Villa, Germany Bayern and Bayer for Germany.

Arsenal and Dortmund will have something to say about that, however if BM beat Arsenal then the additional 5th place would really need City to go through to the final to claim it.

Or I could be completely wrong and the Hammers perform a great comeback etc.
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Ironic if City’s European success gives an extra slot to an ‘Istree Club who can’t cut it on merit alone.
 
IrishBlueSince92 said:
Tie isn’t done yet
Gonna have to go full strength next Thursday this now means, whereas if they’d won cozily tonight there was the opportunity to rest some players
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Or they can just call it quits on EUROPA and just go all out on the league. Arsenal's run is more tricky than theirs, they might slip up somewhere. If Liverpool do decide to go with a weaker side next Thursday, which I think they might do, it would be solely to try out pace us in the premier league, after all, we in 3 competitions which we aren't willing to forfeit. Perhaps they will bank on the fact that they are a point clear than us, with 7-games to go, they can see the finish line, with no EUROPA distracting them or draining them out on Thursday's, whilst having a premier league game on Sunday.
 
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The more I look at the fixtures remaining, the more I think that Spurs will decide it. If there’s only four champions league spots, they’re going to be right up for all their games remaining. Imagine going to Spurs last week of the season needing a win to go top. But, they also need a result which would keep/get them in the top four.

Looking at Spurs fixtures, they’ve got a tough run this month, I just hope they get enough points to secure top four by time we play them.
 
Manchester_lalala said:
The more I look at the fixtures remaining, the more I think that Spurs will decide it. If there’s only four champions league spots, they’re going to be right up for all their games remaining. Imagine going to Spurs last week of the season needing a win to go top. But, they also need a result which would keep/get them in the top four.

Looking at Spurs fixtures, they’ve got a tough run this month, I just hope they get enough points to secure top four by time we play them.
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Exactly.
 
DenisHasDoneIt said:
Ironic if City’s European success gives an extra slot to an ‘Istree Club who can’t cut it on merit alone.
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I think our tie is genuinely in the balance. Madrid's pace can be the factor and we aren't great at breaking down defenses. I think, sadly, it could be very very tough for us next week. Hanging on to a narrow lead would have meant an entirely different second leg - or even the old away goals rules...as it is - even with a few of our lads back the deep lying defense we will face is our Achilles heel.
 
Dialog said:
Or they can just call it quits on EUROPA and just go all out on the league. Arsenal's run is more tricky than theirs, they might slip up somewhere. If Liverpool do decide to go with a weaker side next Thursday, which I think they might do, it would be solely to try out pace us in the premier league, after all, we in 3 competitions which we aren't willing to forfeit. Perhaps they will bank on the fact that they are a point clear than us, with 7-games to go, they can see the finish line, with no EUROPA distracting them or draining them out on Thursday's, whilst having a premier league game on Sunday.
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Would be a bit shit for Klopp's last season, that.
 
Tolmie scores said:
I think our tie is genuinely in the balance. Madrid's pace can be the factor and we aren't great at breaking down defenses. I think, sadly, it could be very very tough for us next week. Hanging on to a narrow lead would have meant an entirely different second leg - or even the old away goals rules...as it is - even with a few of our lads back the deep lying defense we will face is our Achilles heel.
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Not like you to expect the worst.
 
Tolmie scores said:
I think our tie is genuinely in the balance. Madrid's pace can be the factor and we aren't great at breaking down defenses. I think, sadly, it could be very very tough for us next week. Hanging on to a narrow lead would have meant an entirely different second leg - or even the old away goals rules...as it is - even with a few of our lads back the deep lying defense we will face is our Achilles heel.
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We’ve played nine games in Europe this season and scored three goals in every single one of them.

That doesn’t suggest that breaking down defences is a huge problem.
 
Fordyboy46 said:
I can see Klopp tossing this off next week with a 2nd string side being used
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That is quite likely. Great headlines opportunity - forced to use 16 year olds, bright future for the boys, depleted squad that can't compete financially etc etc.
 
Stephen230 said:
We’ve played nine games in Europe this season and scored three goals in every single one of them.

That doesn’t suggest that breaking down defences is a huge problem.
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Agreed, doesn't mean it's bound to continue, but I hope it does of course. Ancelotti is a bright guy, he knows his team can't match ours but staying compact like defenses do in prem against us then use his talented two up top for a counter seems a likely approach. We don't face that in Europe as much but bound to next week don't you think?
 
Tolmie scores said:
Agreed, doesn't mean it's bound to continue, but I hope it does of course. Ancelotti is a bright guy, he knows his team can't match ours but staying compact like defenses do in prem against us then use his talented two up top for a counter seems a likely approach. We don't face that in Europe as much but bound to next week don't you think?
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i think we've put Madrid in a conundrum. We drew at theirs last season, they came to us to play and got battered. They really went for the win at theirs the other night....we led twice and again came away with a draw. They're scarred from the 4-0 mess (their perspective) of last season but, personally, i doubt they want to invite pressure on themselves by sitting deep, i'm not sure they're solid enough to handle it.

I think Madrid's best option is to play a midfield game, cautious but higher up the pitch than most Prem teams play at ours. One caveat is they will have seen that teams are actively sitting deep at ours to spring a trap (seems to be working a bit more than previous seasons), so that might be very tempting for them. Should be a great tie.
 
shemnel said:
i think we've put Madrid in a conundrum. We drew at theirs last season, they came to us to play and got battered. They really went for the win at theirs the other night....we led twice and again came away with a draw. They're scarred from the 4-0 mess (their perspective) of last season but, personally, i doubt they want to invite pressure on themselves by sitting deep, i'm not sure they're solid enough to handle it.

I think Madrid's best option is to play a midfield game, cautious but higher up the pitch than most Prem teams play at ours. One caveat is they will have seen that teams are actively sitting deep at ours to spring a trap (seems to be working a bit more than previous seasons), so that might be very tempting for them. Should be a great tie.
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They'll expect us to play the same way as we did at home last season and Ancelotti will try and work out the best way of countering that. They couldn't get out. So he'll look at working on transitions, and it will possibly be a pre-planned counter where the ball gets fired into the channels in order for their pace to do us on the counter. Many teams try it, but when we're at it, it's incredibly difficult for teams to play out. Vinicius and Rodrygo don't like defending. Their back 4 isn't great at it either. With the crowd up for it and us pinning them in we become a different proposition and one they're just not used to.
 
Fordyboy46 said:
I can see Klopp tossing this off next week with a 2nd string side being used
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After the result last night he said he'd have still made the changes because they had to in order to rest players. So I think regardless of what happened he'll still rotate next week and make the same statement if it goes tits up. Either way, there wasn't a huge amount of rotation from what is their strongest 11.

Ignoring why players weren't used, we rested De Bruyne, Walker, Ederson and Ake and still got the draw in Madrid! ;)
 
supercity88 said:
They'll expect us to play the same way as we did at home last season and Ancelotti will try and work out the best way of countering that. They couldn't get out. So he'll look at working on transitions, and it will possibly be a pre-planned counter where the ball gets fired into the channels in order for their pace to do us on the counter. Many teams try it, but when we're at it, it's incredibly difficult for teams to play out. Vinicius and Rodrygo don't like defending. Their back 4 isn't great at it either. With the crowd up for it and us pinning them in we become a different proposition and one they're just not used to.
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yep, they'll use the channels for sure, did a lot the other night too
 
Tolmie scores said:
Agreed, doesn't mean it's bound to continue, but I hope it does of course. Ancelotti is a bright guy, he knows his team can't match ours but staying compact like defenses do in prem against us then use his talented two up top for a counter seems a likely approach. We don't face that in Europe as much but bound to next week don't you think?
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thats exactly what he tried to do in the first leg and conceded 3
 
liverpool, with a decent starting eleven, are definitely good enough to go to Atalanta and winby 3 goals or more.
It really depends on what Klopps ambitions are.

Hopefully not but we could be out of the champions league, and arsenal too, by the time the atalanta match takes place.

Our next 3 matches are critical and all in the space of a week. We could be out of any, or all of, premier league, fa Cup and champions league or still in all , and favourites, for all of them.

This is now all down to management and best use of players in the run in.
It is now time to be focused as much on a relegated threatened Luton as it is on the previous winners to us of the champions league, Chelsea and Madrid.
For me anyway, arsenal and Liverpool, getting knocked out if Europe, is a good thing, as it may demoralise them
 
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