I can’t believe I’m the one starting this thread, mostly because opening day didn’t go quite as well as I had hoped it would (and Rafa can be a doofus sometimes, can’t he?). 
So. How did your weekends go, please? Happy, pissed, indifferent?
Everton 1 - 6 Arsenal
Yeah, it went well 
Just don’t tell me how today against Celtic is going… it’s recording at home.
I’m a bit busy to post in detail right now - currently listening to Bob Mould’s Black Sheets of Rain on repeat. When I get through with that I’ll be right back to share my thoughts on Everton’s prospects for the season ahead.
*Is there an upside to every downside?
Keep it inside, it’s a downward slide of broken glass
Keeps building in piles
And i don’t know
I don’t know if the sun ever smiles*
We already have a thread on this, started yonks ago
Hm, the only one I saw was for predctions; if another has started about the actual season I’ll ask to have this closed.
Last year’s predictions thread was the one kept open the whole season.
But you opened one for the current season on the day the fixture list was announced.
If that thread goes the same way as the 2008/09 one then I expect all football matters to be in that, including predictions.
Incidentally, manyoo lost last night to Burnley
Manchester United won 5-0 against Wigan, and it could/should have been more. Since the Charity Shield, Ben Foster has looked good in goal. England fans should be pleased with that.
Also, I’m really happy that so far, the 3 teams United have played (Birmingham, Burnley, and Wigan) have all played as if they wanted to win, not just setting up shop with 10 men behind the ball. Maybe Hull, Stoke, Bolton, and a few others will do that, but generally, the negative football hasn’t made its way to a United match yet. This pleases me.
Good match on tap today with Liverpool and Villa. Come on, Villa!
Burnley set off same as Hull City did last season.
Question is, will they burn and fade as The Tigers did?
Man City have finally signed Lescott and have also signed Sylvinho on a years contract.
Admittedly the Brazilian is 35 years old but he came for free and will be a good sub in the event of any of our CBs or HBs being injured.
Liverpool were thumped 3-1 today by Aston Villa. What are the odds on Rafa being fired if 'pool fail to lift a trophy again this season?
Hard to see anything but an even quicker burn than Hull’s but I’d be pleased to be proved wrong - especially if it means they take some points of other top-four teams!
I won’t be accepting bets at any price :). Merseyside must be a gloomy place at the moment - even gloomier than usual, I mean.
Bad start to the season, suddenly got a hell of a lot better yesterday.
I think there will be a lot more shifting about this season. I’m hoping for a UEFA (or whatever it is now called) spot, but Barry’s absence is going to hurt us bad. Even when he blows his knee out in the first month of the year.
I’m happy to see Sylvinho back in England. I liked him when he played for Arsenal (when his name was spelled “Silvinho” for some reason–maybe related to his passport problems*)–good player and, in stark contrast to the player who took his place as LB at Arsenal, a genuinely nice guy. I wish him the best at City.
As an Arsenal supporter, I can’t deny that I’m thrilled with our start to the season. Happy with everyone’s performance so far–not surprised to see Arshavin continue from where he left off, but never expected to see Song, Denilson, and Bendtner (!) playing so well. Even Diaby looked good the other day! Tommy Vermaelen looks the business–hope his defensive partnership with Gallas will be a solid one.
But I still worry about how injury-prone the squad is. Nasri, Walcott, and Rosicky (remember him??) are still out, and now Fabregas has a hamstring problem. And I’m still not entirely convinced by Almunia in goal.
And of course it’s all too early to say what this season has in store for us, or any other club, for that matter–for Christ’s sake, Spurs are currently top of the league! 
*The official story at Arsenal is that we sold him to Celta Vigo simply because his presence had become superfluous with the emergence of Cashley Cole. Rumors persist that it was really because his Portuguese passport was a forgery and we were trying to make this potentially big legal problem go away–a story which gained further credibility when Celta Vigo immediately classified him as a non-EU player based on his Brazilian citizenship, instead of using his (supposed) Portuguese passport to get around La Liga’s quotas on non-EU players. He’s since gained Spanish citizenship in an entirely legal manner, so no legal problems for City.
I had an AWFUL afternoon yesterday and now regret starting this thread for two reasons.
We really, really miss Xabi in midfield. The new guy better be as good as Rafa thinks he is, but I’m afraid that by the time he gets off the bench we’ll be sunk.
Tottenham fan here… The old John Cleese line - ‘It’s not the despair I can’t stand, it’s the hope’.
We’ll finish eighth…
I am not going to get carried away
I am not going to get carried away
I am not going to get carried away
Repeat ad finitum until we lose at home to Birmingham…
You sound like a Cubs fan. 
You’ll be fine until your manager goes to jail. 
People are already talking (prematurely, in my opinion) about Rafa being gone by Christmas if the poor start continues. Well, I think Liverpool got a really tough CL group. They could really struggle against Lyon and Fiorentina. If they’re sitting back from the pack in the League, and then going for Europa League glory after December, Rafa will really be feeling it.
Second now… the altitude sickness is reducing. Eighth. The only place to be. Purgatory.
What a lucky win for United. Not even sure where to start. Other the Fletcher and Nani (:eek:) the midfield was atrocious. They badly missed Ferdinand and they have one actual striker. Berbatov is just, shite. Just shite.
Liverpool don’t have the squad.
Hard to look past Chelsea.