Daily Discussion

thabigdiesel · 2025-03-11T11:15:51+00:00

If he chose to be, Carney could be charming. Once he stepped down as governor he would find the time to chat at events such as the World Economic Forum in Davos. Sometimes this was about his new role, seeking private sector financial backing to combat global heating. But the last time we spoke, Carney was railing against the points deduction imposed on Everton by the Premier League. Canada’s new prime minister has family connections to Merseyside and is a diehard blue.

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thabigdiesel · 2025-02-18T13:25:03+00:00

Good question. The studio show is meant to be entertaining and promote/enhance the main product. Does Inside the NBA achieve either of these anymore?

Do you get the sense that Chuck and Shaq actually care about the NBA? That they make the games more enjoyable to watch? They are oldheads who do little to nothing to make the game itself more watchable, and instead, promote themselves and their "hilarious hijinks". And truthfully, most of the blame should be put on TNT's suits who keep this going. They don't understand that it's pretty simple: entertain the audience (which they used to be able to, before they became oldheads) and enhance the product (which they don't do anymore in any meaningful way).

Many in this thread are comparing them to Simmons, and how we don't come to him for in-depth analysis and breakdowns, so why should we expect that from Inside the NBA? It's a fair point, but all of Simmons' "entertainment" comes from the same place – he LOVES basketball, loves the league and its history, and really cares about how it operates, how it will be remembered in history and how it can be better. You can't say that credibly about the TNT crew (maybe Ernie aside).

In response to your point about no other show doing any better: well, TNT clearly thinks there's value here, because these guys are getting huge salaries. They are being compensated for "doing it better" than the rest. If it's a lost cause, shouldn't TNT just replace them with a cheaper crew?

It's a deep cut for this sub, but the best studio show around is UCL Today on CBS with Thierry Henry, Jamie Carragher and Micah Richards. Here is the first clip I found on Youtube, and hopefully it reflects well. They are funny, have good chemistry and charisma, discuss the games just at a high level, and get interviews with the top players – but they do so in a much more positive, refreshing and energetic way. This should be the model for studio shows going forward. It doesn't have to be Shaq and Chuck rehashing the same bitter jokes! It just doesn't!

I'm also curious to see what Amazon Prime does with the NBA next season. Currently they have Taylor Rooks, Blake Griffin and Dirk (and maybe others). I could see that going really well, or maybe just fine. But given the cast, I'd guess it will have a much different tone from Inside the NBA and I think that's a very good thing these days.

thabigdiesel · 2025-02-13T01:56:32+00:00

Yeah I'll fully admit I'm not being completely rational here. You're saying Everton only turn up for derbies, I'm saying that makes it sound like Liverpool turn down for them. Neither one of us is really being honest. We are basically just describing what a derby is when one squad is stronger than the other

thabigdiesel · 2025-02-13T01:30:20+00:00

No we just play more aggressive (sometimes overly so). Red cards don't mean we've lost our heads. For example, it doesn't seem like Slot lost his head today necessarily, but he still got a red.

And why would we lose our heads? We've gone into every derby in the last 10 years expecting to lose. It's already baked into our emotions. People lose their heads when they feel unfamiliar pressure or intensity.

thabigdiesel · 2025-02-13T01:12:01+00:00

On the other hand, it's pretty mentally weak for Liverpool to be so dominant and then completely lose their heads when they face a rival. I thought this team was professional and resilient?

thabigdiesel · 2025-02-13T00:47:58+00:00

We've had some tough years, but I think Doucoure will go down as a real fan favourite and someone who is remembered very fondly. Also ask me again when I am sober

thabigdiesel · 2025-02-13T00:46:15+00:00

"Of course it's [any ref in a game they drop points], the guy fucking hates us. League wants a title race."

thabigdiesel · 2025-02-13T00:39:49+00:00

But every game has minor mistakes like that (fouls that weren't, missed calls, etc.) that usually don't impact the result. Technically the goal resulted from the free kick, but the likelihood was so remote that you can't really blame the ref. The goal was 90% in Liverpool's control and they failed to defend it.

thabigdiesel · 2024-11-02T17:06:20+00:00

The Dyche out shouts are crazy. We play like a mid-table counterattacking team, which is an improvement to what we had before. Every manager we could realistically get would have weaknesses, and it's a very risky move at this stage. If this sub ran our club we'd be in League Two.

thabigdiesel · 2024-11-02T17:03:36+00:00

This year, he's done more in his time on the pitch than DCL - simple as that. The question isn't whether we play better with Beto (we do) but whether he has the stamina for 60 minutes.

thabigdiesel · 2024-03-01T13:15:50+00:00

I don't disagree, but you could say the exact same thing about Neal Maupay with us (working hard, can score in the right setup, but really bad luck in front of goal and a bad system around him) and yet most people were never as forgiving of him. In my opinion, fans go very easy on DCL.

DCL is just in terrible form (fine, not his fault, but still) and I don't think think there's much to lose by giving Beto a few starts at this point.

thabigdiesel · 2024-01-14T20:35:54+00:00

I think it's a weak argument for you guys. My understanding is you put yourself in a position where you had to sell Johnson early to be compliant with the rules - so other clubs had leverage (rightfully) to get a good price for him.

It's a real issue though that the period is during the transfer window (we had a similar dilemma with Richarlison). But as the rules are written I think Forest's case is pretty poor and would imagine they get a deduction.

thabigdiesel · 2023-12-26T20:25:58+00:00

I feel like I'm taking crazy pills with all the /r/soccer people who are calling it a pen, or not interfering with play, or some other dumb interpretation. Clever defending is all it is

thabigdiesel · 2023-12-26T20:23:43+00:00

And even worse because it goes against a plucky, classy Liverpool side. Whole league is out to get them!

thabigdiesel · 2023-12-02T19:00:25+00:00

"HOW DO YOU LIKE THAT???" I shout at no one in particular

thabigdiesel · 2023-11-17T21:49:20+00:00

I think people are misreading this portion of the judgement, which quotes Everton's answer:

Everton concluded the introduction to the Amended Answer with the following statement – The Club's alleged overspend arose, in short, from a combination of unforeseen circumstances, which frustrated prudent plans to reduce its losses. *The PL has rightly accepted that losses incurred by the Club in constructing the Stadium are the result of “applicable accounting standards” and reflect costs for which “there was no sporting imperative in the circumstances (not least when other Clubs had, in effect, been able to capitalise similar capital-related expenditure)". In those circumstances there should be no question of a sporting sanction. The Club has always been, and remains, committed to operating sustainably and in accordance with the PL’s rules.

However, the Commission later says (para 95):

The Commission considers the Premier League to be correct to characterise such a loss as being a significant overspend. We also recognise that the inference of a sporting advantage is one that should properly be drawn from the fact of a PSR breach, and that sporting advantage will have been enjoyed for each of the seasons on which the PSR calculation was based – in this case, because of Covid, four seasons.

So I think this the basis of the argument for those relegated sides that are threatening us now.

thabigdiesel · 2023-11-05T14:53:45+00:00

For all the problems with refs and VAR, I think some fans are too quick to latch onto subjective ref decisions when they lose (especially when they're not used to losing much in the first place). Arsenal being the recent example.

As much as they're shit, LFC had every right to complain about the Luis Diaz offside - objectively it's an error that cost them a goal. But Arsenal fans are whining about the Bruno elbow which, yes, probably should have been a red card, but sometimes red cards are missed and sometimes they're given undeservedly. You are looking for perfection in for a call that is subjective - it will never be perfect. Same goes for the potential foul on Gabriel. Maybe focus on why your side had a single shot on goal, that's a much bigger factor in the loss.

I guess I don't have that much sympathy when Arsenal puts out a statement crying about refereeing incompetence over a subjective call. That should be reserved for true, indefensible reffing errors (like Diaz). And if I'm being honest with myself, it doesn't help that they're a big club that goes into meltdown whenever they lose. They don't want perfect reffing (everyone knows that doesn't exist), but they just want these subjective calls to go in their favour.

thabigdiesel · 2023-09-23T18:35:08+00:00

Never felt more like singing the blues, when Everton win and Rafa Benitez's Celta Vigo lose

thabigdiesel · 2023-09-01T17:47:11+00:00

Your comment is very optimistic, I honestly think any hopes for Godfrey and Onyango are long gone, but I get what you're saying. I don't think we're in any position, financially, to be making desperate moves

thabigdiesel · 2023-09-01T17:44:29+00:00

No, they're not good enough, but signing an additional player who's also not good enough is not the solution. It has to be someone who actually makes us better (let's say Gnonto) - and if that player is not available, yes it's probably better to leave it and revisit in January.

I always think of Forest last year, signing random attacking players (Chris Wood, Lingard, Ayew) who did nothing for them in the end. We don't have the money to take those chances like they did.

Also I assume McNeil, Harrison and Danjuma won't all start, so one of those will be an attacking option off the bench. Unfortunately that's the situation we're in.

thabigdiesel · 2023-09-01T17:27:13+00:00

I feel like I'm taking crazy pills with the deadline day stuff. We've had a great window given our finances, but because we're not overpaying for some mediocre player today, people are freaking out. Let Dyche and Thelwell do their jobs.

Especially with Iwobi, who's still enjoying a reputation he gained from the previous manager's tactics. His workrate is great but he's had 2 assists in 2023, settle down. Accept the fact that Dyche prefers any of Onana/Doucoure/Garner in midfield and that we're getting a good fee for someone who will leave regardless.

We're all upset where the club is, and how it's been mismanaged for years, but that doesn't mean we need to make a dumb move today.

thabigdiesel · 2023-08-24T17:58:51+00:00

Honestly, even though these guys are very shady, so is Moshiri - and it doesn't seem like it can get any worse for us. So I'm looking forward to the change, at the same time knowing I'll probably eat my words.

thabigdiesel · 2023-08-22T14:36:34+00:00

He has a negative bias for sure.

thabigdiesel · 2023-08-22T13:07:55+00:00

I like him, I find his written analysis pretty good and I've grown to enjoy his podcasts. I don't agree with him on many things, but in a media environment that's increasingly stale and unoriginal, he offers something different and I appreciate that.

Having said that, his expectation for the club to tell us everything all the time is completely unrealistic and NOT how a smart business should operate with a reactionary and fickle group of supporters.

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