The charges are all FFP violations, no? Correct me if I’m wrong, but unlike the Barça stuff, there aren’t any bribery allegations against Man City. If so, I don’t think his legacy is going to change all that much (in the prem, at least).

Half of these clubs have been operating under very sketchy circumstances for quite sometime. That’s just the prem for you. I don’t mean to mitigate this; sportswashing is lame. But I do think that a) plenty of clubs have gone all out spending too much money and not producing and b) we should be looking into the system that allowed these 115 violations to occur as opposed to deducting points and calling it a day.

Hi OP. I was having this conversation a friend today. Most bigger clubs are using the chance to use away kits to promote additional stuff and to showcase new designs to boost sales every year. But the smaller clubs usually can’t afford this so they tend to stay pretty consistent with their away kits. You’re gonna have to look outside of the top European leagues for that, usually. I’m sure this is further complicated because there’s only so many color variants to choose from every year when clubs start registering their away and third kits.

The only one that comes to mind that’s “big” is Santos.

I would love to sit here and tell you that Lukaku’s was worse - it was. But Ronaldo dropping that interview right before a World Cup definitely takes a medal of its own.

1. Countinho wouldn’t have necessarily avoided a mid-peak flop had he stayed at Liverpool. He’s a world class player victim to transitional periods at Barcelona and Bayern, sure. But his role at Liverpool was only perfect for that time only and the eventual evolution of Klopp’s game would have exposed the same defending weaknesses he couldn’t improve upon in Spain. The man is a playmaker, but lacks versatility and actually thrives in very confined roles.

2. Teams like Porto and Benfica absolutely Could shell out the money and compete for more international domination but choose not to because they figured that operating in the green is sometimes more important than winning - selling their players for huge profits is the priority and they’re happy with that

3. Had Pep used Ibra the way that Ibra wanted to play, he would have still won the UCL.

4. R9 peaked at Barcelona (idk if “unpopular” but I feel like a lot of revisionism sees R9 being the best version of himself at Madrid and not before)

5. Beckham deserves far more recognition as a player than he actually gets. People - sometimes rightfully so - remember him as a caricature of a hot, celebrity footballer for than as an actual player and that should change.

6. Madrid could have done without some mediocre performances should they’ve used Fernando Gago more. The dude had a great football IQ and was the sort of playmaker that could’ve exposed weaknesses in Pep’s Barcelona sooner than later.

7. Van Gaal is, overall, a highly overrated coach who has overstayed his welcome. His refusal to adapt to changes in the game and player profiles goes beyond the stubbornness necessary to successfully play total footy.

Too many to name, but most recent one would be Mbappe during the WC 2022 final. Mans really said “it’s not over til I say it’s over”

The Euro is basically a mini World Cup. The CA is great and all but no qualifying aspect means that the same teams get to play each tournament. The Euros are far more competitive.

The German FA and the coaching squad banked on the idea that the German national team would remain strong under the same conditions that allowed them to win the WC. Instead, the older players became older and the newer players aren’t properly integrated. The squad just isn’t as dynamic as it could be.

Italy is going through a similar thing.

USL team. Not very good. It’s the kind of team that makes you glad that we don’t have a relegation system. It’s reserve/scouting/youth side is a “pay-to-play” club which isn’t uncommon in the US but sucks to see in person.

Optimistic/sensible answer: ETH needed depth in that bench too. Man U subs were lacking and if they really wanted to get on City’s level they needed a bench as efficient as the first team.

Realistic answer: Man U has had a pretty lacking transfer/scouting strategy and they felt the pressure to sign a big name before the window closed. Also, Chelsea just knows how to market their players and sell them.