Predict ur teams starting XI for the 1st game of the season

Saturday, 09 August 2008
Championship

Saturday, 16 August 2008
Arsenal v West Brom
Aston Villa v Man City
Bolton v Stoke
Chelsea v Portsmouth
Everton v Blackburn
Hull v Fulham
Man Utd v Newcastle
Middlesbrough v Tottenham
Sunderland v Liverpool
West Ham v Wigan

Taking into account:

• Injuries, who might still be injured at the start of the season?
  
• The chances of an injury prone player getting injured during pre-season?
  
• Players sold or going to be sold?
  
• Who you think you will sign, a first team or squad player?
  
• Players away on international duty, e.g. the Olyimics.
  
• The team you are playing.

Dont have a fucking clue !

----------------Reina------------
Arbeloa---Carragher--Agger--Dossena
-----------Alonso------Barry--------
Kuyt----------Gerrard--------Benayoun
-----------Torres--------------

Mascherano, Lucas, and probably Babel will play in the Olympics

----------Robinson
Hoyte-Dawson-A.Ferdinand-Naylor
Guthrie-Sidwell-Mendes-Hunt
--------Beattie-Johnson

All have been linked to us somewhere or other. Watch out league

------------------Almunia--------------------

Sagna------------Toure--------Gallas-----------Clichy

-------??------------Gilberto---------Cesc----------?????

---------------------RVP-------------Ade??--------------

Historicus wrote:----------------Reina------------
Arbeloa---Carragher--Agger--Dossena
-----------Alonso------Barry--------
Kuyt----------Gerrard--------Benayoun
-----------Torres--------------

Mascherano, Lucas, and probably Babel will play in the Olympics

I saw a squad for Holland on this board somewhere earlier today, Babel wasnt in it. Don't think he will be going.

Sgoater1 wrote:Dont have a fucking clue !

Too difficult consdering our formation could change if we get Keane or whoever, or we'll stay with the same formation. Plus the Olympics malarkey shite, today Mascherano was announced for the Argie squad so he looks to be more than likely off. Lucas is another who will be selected.
Will Rafa let both midfielders go leaving us with just Plessis, Gerrard and Barry(Or Alonso). One of Lucas or Masch will stay I think.

Sure starters are:

Reina(GK)
Carragher(DF)
Gerrard(MF)
Torres(CF)

That is it

No idea, but I would imagine:

Davis

Thomas - Davies - Perry - Surman

Safri
Wotton---------Viafara

BWP ------Rasiak-----Holmes.

Historicus wrote:----------------Reina------------
Arbeloa---Carragher--Agger--Dossena
-----------Alonso------Barry--------
Kuyt----------Gerrard--------Benayoun
-----------Torres--------------

Mascherano, Lucas, and probably Babel will play in the Olympics

Nah, Gerrard will start wide left, Torres will be benched so that he doesn't get 'worn out' - Kuyt will operate as a wing back because he forgot to get his head up to remember which way he is supposed to be attacking...

The answer is, no-one has a clue....

Fill in the blanks

-------------Given/Harper------------

Beye--?????--Faye/Taylor--Enrique

------------?????----?????------------
Gutierrez--------------------N'Zogbia

------------Martins--Owen------------

OR

------------Given/Harper------------

Beye--?????--Faye/Taylor--Enrique

-----------------?????-----------------
-----Gutierrez--------------?????-----

-----------------Owen-----------------
----------Martins------?????----------


The press are clueless so there's no point in including their rumours. Alot of the players we've been linked to would be bench players like Evans and Shorey. The only ones we've been linked to recently that i would consider starters are Inler, Aimar, and maybe Seb Larsson.

Yup, I'm not entirely optimistic right now.

Football Genius wrote:

Historicus wrote:----------------Reina------------
Arbeloa---Carragher--Agger--Dossena
-----------Alonso------Barry--------
Kuyt----------Gerrard--------Benayoun
-----------Torres--------------

Mascherano, Lucas, and probably Babel will play in the Olympics

Nah, Gerrard will start wide left, Torres will be benched so that he doesn't get 'worn out' - Kuyt will operate as a wing back because he forgot to get his head up to remember which way he is supposed to be attacking...

The answer is, no-one has a clue....

The thread says "Predict", obviously nobody has a clue, you're supposed to guess.

haven't got a fucking clue either. Expect us to -as usual- wait until the last day of the transfer window to complete our team.

Historicus wrote:

Football Genius wrote:

Historicus wrote:----------------Reina------------
Arbeloa---Carragher--Agger--Dossena
-----------Alonso------Barry--------
Kuyt----------Gerrard--------Benayoun
-----------Torres--------------

Mascherano, Lucas, and probably Babel will play in the Olympics

Nah, Gerrard will start wide left, Torres will be benched so that he doesn't get 'worn out' - Kuyt will operate as a wing back because he forgot to get his head up to remember which way he is supposed to be attacking...

The answer is, no-one has a clue....

The thread says "Predict", obviously nobody has a clue, you're supposed to guess.

My methodical mind makes that difficult, because the thread also suggests that you should put yourself in the managers shoes, and we all know Benitez is about as predictable as a wild fire in interchanging winds.

I'll leave the creativity to you - you obviously have far far more than i

Cesc Soler wrote:

Arsenal XI vs. WBA (Home)

Almunia

Sagna . . Toure . . Gallas . . Clichy

Eboue . . Fabregas . . Gilberto . . Walcott

van Persie . . Bendtner

Yup, I'm not entirely optimistic right now.

If Wenger starts Eboue at right mid then he deserves to be shot.

What gun are we using?

Catorce wrote:

Van der Sar
G.Neville – Ferdinand – Vidic – Evra
Ronaldo – Hargreaves/Scholes – Carrick – Nani
Tevez/*new striker* - Rooney

Pretty much, though for Neville it all depends on his pre-season.

Against Newcastle at home I reckon he'd favour Scholes over Hargreaves.

Rosicky wrote:

Cesc Soler wrote:

Arsenal XI vs. WBA (Home)

Almunia

Sagna . . Toure . . Gallas . . Clichy

Eboue . . Fabregas . . Gilberto . . Walcott

van Persie . . Bendtner

Yup, I'm not entirely optimistic right now.

Wenger deserves to be shot.

Historicus wrote:----------------Reina------------
Arbeloa---Carragher--Agger--Dossena
-----------Alonso------Barry--------
Kuyt----------Gerrard--------Benayoun
-----------Torres--------------

Mascherano, Lucas, and probably Babel will play in the Olympics

Surely Barry signing is linked to Alonso leaving.

Don't think you'll have both.

Parks lives wrote:Surely Barry signing is linked to Alonso leaving.

Don't think you'll have both.

One would hope so - makes no sense to sign Barry if we still have Alonso.

However, the first game of the season is before the end of the transfer window, so Alonso could play in that game and then leave, and as Historicus says, with Lucas and Mascha (probably) at the Olympics, we will be a bit thin in central midfield.

He'd just go with Barry/Alonso with Gerrard I'd imagine.

Nah, Gerrard will be playing an attacking central role (unless we sign someone else).

If we play the 'double pivot' again, then logically you would play a ball-winner (Mascha, Lucas or at a push Plessis or Spearing) and a deep-lying playmaker (Alonso or Barry)

If we play 442 then (assuming Babel is on the left) we've only got Gerrard for the right wing.

But if you do sign Barry, I doubt you will keep Alonso for the first two games and then sell him on. Considering a) he'd be cup tied and b) most clubs like to do their signings before August/pre-season.

As soon as you sign Barry, Alonso will go. If you keep Alonso, you won't sign Barry. So It's almost 100% guarenteed they will never play in the same team as each other.

Could have both..not like Rafa is against rotation.

The only early season cup game would be a CL qualifier which won't be our first game of the season. Playing him in a league match would have no effect.

And I don't see that Alonso will necessarily go 'as soon as Barry is signed' - it'll depend on doing a deal with another club. Most clubs might like to do their business in the preseason but the reality is that a heck of a lot of deals happen in the last two weeks of August.

Did anyone guess correctly? if no, then how many players were you out?

Batman wrote:Did anyone guess correctly? if no, then how many players were you out?

you could be bothered to dig this thread out from nowhere, but you couldn't be bothered to read the 4 or 5 predictions in it?



I think Rai was closest

Rasiak-9 wrote:No idea, but I would imagine:

Davis

Thomas - Davies - Perry - Surman

Safri
Wotton---------Viafara

BWP ------Rasiak-----Holmes.

4 out of 11.

James>Thomas
Svensson >Davies
Schneiderlin/Gillett/Lallana>Safri/Viafara/Wotton
McGoldrick/Thomson>BWP/Rasiak