Weekend Football: the Liverpool derby and the Pep-Mou Classic

[Jimmy Floyd]

English football - Friday
nothing much really. Sheff U v Bristol City on Sky

Saturday
12.30 West Ham / Chelsea on Sky
15.00 Burnley / Watford
Palace / Bournemouth
Huddersfield / Hove
Swansea / West Bromwich
Tottenham / Stoke
17.30 Newcastle / Leicester on BT
A full Football League programme

Sunday
12.00 Southampton / Arsenal on BT
14.15 Liverpool / Everton on Sky
16.30 Manchester / Manchester on Sky

Football in the Common Market
It's actually a crap selection, with the possible exception of Juventus v Internazionale, so you can look it up yourselves and besides, who cares.

Meanwhile, news emerges from the bunker of yet another stupid kickoff time idea that will fail: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/42278119

[Pleb]

Good enough excuse for the likes of Netflix and Amazon to stick their noses into it. Might as well just lift the 3pm embargo and get the BBC/ITV to show one 3pm game per week.

Probably not going to happen.

[Jimmy Floyd]

Good enough excuse for the likes of Netflix and Amazon to stick their noses into it.

I was thinking that, it's a crap time for Asia so they must be thinking about American social media giants.

[phonics]

Ugh, I hate 8:45 kick-offs. It's nearly 11pm before I've even left the pub let alone getting home.

[phonics]

I really don't understand why Netflix and Amazon are trying to get in on Sports. They destroyed the idea of 'Appointment TV' which is why the prices of live sports went up across the board because it's the only thing people will crowd around at specific times which makes it good for advertisers.

But Netflix and Amazon don't have ads.. How many subscriptions do they think it'll sell because it'll be way under what BT gets and they can barely keep their heads above water.

[Jimmy Floyd]

I really don't understand why Netflix and Amazon are trying to get in on Sports.

Loss leader probably.

[Giggles]

Good enough excuse for the likes of Netflix and Amazon to stick their noses into it. Might as well just lift the 3pm embargo and get the BBC/ITV to show one 3pm game per week.

Probably not going to happen.

They're showing 3pm's here again after a long break of not, and it's great for a boring Saturday.

[Pleb]

They're showing 3pm's here again after a long break of not, and it's great for a boring Saturday.

Shame our FA/Premier League doesn't share that motion.

[McAvennie]

It really is time for me to bin my sky sports and bt subscriptions - the top of the table is dull as crap these days and watching West Ham is like having my scrotum slowly basted in acid, but with less anticipation.

And I don't watch much NFL these days either. Waste of money habit that needs to go before this next round of tv games comes in and there's even more for me to aimlessly subscribe to

[Kikó]

We're going to get pumped I think. Mourinho will probably call the ref out on something and Fellaini sent off.

[-james-]

https://www.theguardian.com/football...-fifa-year-ban

What a diddy.

[Baz]

https://www.theguardian.com/football...-fifa-year-ban

What a diddy.

So it wasn’t a funky cup of tea, like he first claimed?!

[phonics]

Banning Peruvians for taking cocaine isn't on.

[Jimmy Floyd]

The 3pm blackout is great. I realised this when I went to a Peterborough game earlier in the season. It was a good crowd but at least a third of it (including all the kids) would be watching Man Yoo at home, given the option.

[phonics]

The 3pm blackout is great. I realised this when I went to a Peterborough game earlier in the season. It was a good crowd but at least a third of it (including all the kids) would be watching Man Yoo at home, given the option.

They probably wouldn't.

[Pleb]

If the likes of Amazon and/or Netflix do decide to jump on board with this shitfest, I'd imagine they will take Package C and let Sky and BT lol themselves to death with the other packages.

[Spikey M]

https://www.theguardian.com/football...-fifa-year-ban

What a diddy.

Surely it just soaks into you over there? It’s like when Asians smell of Curry or Northerners smell of poverty.

[Giggles]

The 3pm blackout is great. I realised this when I went to a Peterborough game earlier in the season. It was a good crowd but at least a third of it (including all the kids) would be watching Man Yoo at home, given the option.

Yeah well that's probably a better way of looking at it. It would seriously diminish attendances in the lower leagues if there was a proper game on telly at 3pm (which there would be if the channels were scheduling them, as opposed to Stoke vs West Brom).

[Jimmy Floyd]

This is the order of interest in any football ground:

1) Away fans
----enormous gap----
2) Local tragics over 50 (and women of all ages)
3) Kids who are well into it
4) Sexually frustrated men between 18-50 who shout YOU FUCKING CUNT REF a lot for no reason
5) OAPs and the disabled
6) Kids who are there to shout 'waaaaay'
7) Day trippers
8) Kids forced along by their dads
9) Dads forced along by their kids

I reckon 6 downwards would be seriously at risk if you cancelled the 3pm blackout. It's always people who don't go to games who call for it.

[phonics]

If you're using it for sugar things could get funky.

[Spoonsky]

What's the 3pm blackout?

[Kikó]

We don't televise games at 3 on a Saturday.

[Mike]

What's the 3pm blackout?

They can’t show 3pm kick offs on TV.

[Reg]

"Ho-o-ove, Ho-o-ove!"

Manchester will beat Manchester. With Pogba I think it would have been a great game, without him I'm not so sure.

PS The 3pm ban is great, but it'll be gone within ten years I suspect.

[Jimmy Floyd]

"Ho-o-ove, Ho-o-ove!"

Manchester will beat Manchester. With Pogba I think it would have been a great game, without him I'm not so sure.

PS The 3pm ban is great, but it'll be gone within ten years I suspect.

I just feel Brighton takes too much of the credit for what is only half hers.

[Ant]

Can see a 1-0 win for City. Hoping they win anyway

[Waffdon]

Can see a 1-0 win for City. Hoping they win anyway

Mental Ant, is that you?

[Giggles]

Was going to watch this but hadn't realised O'Dowda wasn't playing.

[Offshore Toon]

Apparently Lascelles is back which is sorely needed.

[Samadini]

Apparently Lascelles is back which is sorely needed.

Atsu as well. Murphy looks like he might be alright, but Atsu is one of the few players in the squad who is actually a proper premier league level player (you could easily argue even he isn't tbf).

Think it will be a comfortable Leicester win anyway. Our fullbacks are hopeless, Mahrez will bum them.

[Pleb]

Saturday
12.30 West Ham / Chelsea on Sky
15.00 Burnley / Watford
Palace / Bournemouth
Huddersfield / Hove
Swansea / West Bromwich
Tottenham / Stoke
17.30 Newcastle / Leicester on BT
A full Football League programme

Sunday
12.00 Southampton / Arsenal on BT
14.15 Liverpool / Everton on Sky
16.30 Manchester / Manchester on Sky

Swansea-West Brom will probably be a shite 0-0.

[Lewis]

I am quietly confident about Sunday, by which I mean a classic 0-0 is very much on the cards.

[McAvennie]

I just feel Brighton takes too much of the credit for what is only half hers.

Have you ever been to Hove? brighton are underselling themselves if they only as for 90% of the credit

[Lewis]

Brighton is an absolute toilet.

[Baz]

The contrast between the Saturday and Sunday games is ridiculous. Despite having nothing better to do I don’t think I’ll bother finding a stream for any of the Saturday 3PM games.

[Reg]

They are obviously very good, and with the spending power that they have got, every year they get closer, but still United, with the record that they have got, to go with the top manager and the top players, are still on top, but the gap is closing.

One more 'top' would have made it.

[Giggles]

We have Totteringham and Stoke on the 3pm's. Spurs would be half watchable but they're at Wembley so it'll be a dour 1-1.

[Kikó]

One more 'top' would have made it.

Can't think why giggs hasn't got a top job yet.

[Giggles]

Chelsea game is on Mix which should be free for all.

[Giggles]

Jaysus that's not good.

[Jimmy Floyd]

Now Moyes has gone there I think he's taken the 'otherwise disappointing Everton strikers' with him.

[Waffdon]

Cahill is shite.

[Jimmy Floyd]

That start all came from Crappatoasta being a defensive calamity down his side.

Oh and a brilliant block tackle from the ref to get them on the counter for the second week in a row.

[John Arne]

Oh and a brilliant block tackle from the ref to get them on the counter for the second week in a row.

I'm seeing this more and more. In Liverpool games, the referee's are so central, they are constantly getting in they way.

[Giggles]

Chelsea don't look full of ideas to get past this wall.

[Jimmy Floyd]

Whoever this proper football man on co-commentary is, he's excelling himself and that Batshuayi hot water bottle was superb trolling of him.

[Lewis]

I've got nothing against the hot water bottle, but you think there would be something a bit more advanced these days.

[Jimmy Floyd]

This is one of those games you can see coming a mile off where the home team are game raising wankers first to every ball. We'll lose 1-0 and Alonso will be sent off.

[Waffdon]

Fucking hell, Cahill, mate.

[-james-]

Chelsea should ship the murderer off and replace him with Masuaku in January.