• Re: Can any team be this year's Leicester ? [Some R implied]

    From Werner Pichler@24:150/2 to rec.sport.soccer on Sat Dec 4 14:12:57 2021
    On Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 10:29:32 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    That was a fun idea at the beginning of last season to
    speculate about potential upsets in the major European
    leagues.


    2021/22 edition:

    Could Union Saint-Gilloise be for real? Four points clear at the half-point of the season,
    in their first campaign in the top flight since 1973. Proper old-timey club with 11 championships
    to their name between 1904 and 1935, and nothing since.

    Of course, there's still the stupid 4-team championship play-off with halving of the points
    awaiting.

    And also, as so often in Belgium, there's multi-club ownership to contend with - Union SG's
    current success is mostly due to having been 'rebuilt' by Brighton owner Tony Bloom according
    to Moneyball principles.

    Former SV Meppen player Deniz Undav with 16 goals and 9 assists in 17 matches for Union so
    far this season. The above mentioned Moneyball stats must be worth their salt, because
    I must have seen the guy play in the stadium in a 3. Liga match against 1860 back in 2019, and
    he didn't leave any impression on me whatsoever.

    Ciao,
    Werner
    --- SBBSecho 3.06-Win32
    * Origin: SportNet Gateway Site (24:150/2)
  • From MH@24:150/2 to rec.sport.soccer on Sat Dec 4 15:28:10 2021
    On 2021-12-04 15:12, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 10:29:32 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    That was a fun idea at the beginning of last season to
    speculate about potential upsets in the major European
    leagues.


    2021/22 edition:

    Could Union Saint-Gilloise be for real? Four points clear at the half-point of the season,
    in their first campaign in the top flight since 1973. Proper old-timey club with 11 championships
    to their name between 1904 and 1935, and nothing since.

    Of course, there's still the stupid 4-team championship play-off with halving of the points
    awaiting.

    Plus Bruges might have more energy for the league after their CL exit.
    I have to confess I had never heard of Union Saint-Gilloise until this
    year. I didn't even know St. Gilles was a quartier of Brussels, though I
    have spent a lot of time in Brussels because of the in-laws. It is
    quite close to Anderlecht, where I have been, but most of the time I
    stayed around the centre, or in places like Schaerbeek, Ixelles,
    Wezembeek, Uccle, and Woluwe, which is where the various beaux-fr|?res
    and belles-soeurs live or have lived.

    West Ham making the top 4 would be a major accomplishment, and so far
    they look pretty solid.

    Dunno how much of an upset Atalanta actually winning would be considered
    after a couple of CL qualifications.

    Both Seville teams and Real Sociedad have realistic chances of a top 2
    or 3 finish.

    And Nice making the CL, certainly possible, would be quite a surprise
    and a real vindication of Galtier's merits as a coach.


    And also, as so often in Belgium, there's multi-club ownership to contend with - Union SG's
    current success is mostly due to having been 'rebuilt' by Brighton owner Tony Bloom according
    to Moneyball principles.

    Former SV Meppen player Deniz Undav with 16 goals and 9 assists in 17 matches for Union so
    far this season. The above mentioned Moneyball stats must be worth their salt, because
    I must have seen the guy play in the stadium in a 3. Liga match against 1860 back in 2019, and
    he didn't leave any impression on me whatsoever.

    Ciao,
    Werner

    --- SBBSecho 3.06-Win32
    * Origin: SportNet Gateway Site (24:150/2)
  • From Werner Pichler@24:150/2 to rec.sport.soccer on Sun Dec 5 09:58:27 2021
    On Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 11:28:15 PM UTC+1, MH wrote:
    On 2021-12-04 15:12, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 10:29:32 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    That was a fun idea at the beginning of last season to
    speculate about potential upsets in the major European
    leagues.


    2021/22 edition:

    Could Union Saint-Gilloise be for real? Four points clear at the half-point of the season,
    in their first campaign in the top flight since 1973. Proper old-timey club with 11 championships
    to their name between 1904 and 1935, and nothing since.

    Of course, there's still the stupid 4-team championship play-off with halving of the points
    awaiting.
    Plus Bruges might have more energy for the league after their CL exit.
    I have to confess I had never heard of Union Saint-Gilloise until this
    year. I didn't even know St. Gilles was a quartier of Brussels, though I have spent a lot of time in Brussels because of the in-laws. It is
    quite close to Anderlecht, where I have been, but most of the time I
    stayed around the centre, or in places like Schaerbeek, Ixelles,
    Wezembeek, Uccle, and Woluwe, which is where the various beaux-fr|?res
    and belles-soeurs live or have lived.

    West Ham making the top 4 would be a major accomplishment, and so far
    they look pretty solid.

    Dunno how much of an upset Atalanta actually winning would be considered after a couple of CL qualifications.

    Both Seville teams and Real Sociedad have realistic chances of a top 2
    or 3 finish.

    And Nice making the CL, certainly possible, would be quite a surprise
    and a real vindication of Galtier's merits as a coach.
    Well, ever since the INEOS takeover two years ago and their correspondent increase
    in net spending, making the CL has certainly been Nice's ambition, and luring Galtier
    from the reigning champions was mostly the reaction to a dismal 2020-21 season. Ciao,
    Werner
    --- SBBSecho 3.06-Win32
    * Origin: SportNet Gateway Site (24:150/2)
  • From Werner Pichler@24:150/2 to rec.sport.soccer on Tue Dec 7 01:20:31 2021
    On Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 11:12:59 PM UTC+1, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 10:29:32 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    That was a fun idea at the beginning of last season to
    speculate about potential upsets in the major European
    leagues.

    2021/22 edition:

    Looking around a bit, Croatia (one matchday away from the half-way point)
    is more interesting than usual:

    1 Rijeka 36
    2 Osijek 35
    3 Hajduk Split 33
    4 Dinamo Zagreb 31 (1 game in hand)

    Osijek have never won the title, Rijeka have won it once, five years ago,
    and Hajduk have been waiting since 2007.


    Also, not exactly a surprise, but the currently closest title race in Europe
    is the one in Ukraine:

    1 Shakhtar Donetsk 14-2-1 47-9 38
    2 Dynamo Kyiv 14-2-1 46-8 38


    Ciao,
    Werner
    --- SBBSecho 3.06-Win32
    * Origin: SportNet Gateway Site (24:150/2)
  • From Werner Pichler@24:150/2 to rec.sport.soccer on Tue Dec 7 02:28:14 2021
    On Tuesday, December 7, 2021 at 10:20:33 AM UTC+1, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 11:12:59 PM UTC+1, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 10:29:32 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    That was a fun idea at the beginning of last season to
    speculate about potential upsets in the major European
    leagues.

    2021/22 edition:
    Looking around a bit, Croatia (one matchday away from the half-way point)
    is more interesting than usual:

    1 Rijeka 36
    2 Osijek 35
    3 Hajduk Split 33
    4 Dinamo Zagreb 31 (1 game in hand)

    Osijek have never won the title, Rijeka have won it once, five years ago, and Hajduk have been waiting since 2007.

    2005, actually.

    Ciao,
    Werner
    --- SBBSecho 3.06-Win32
    * Origin: SportNet Gateway Site (24:150/2)
  • From Werner Pichler@24:150/2 to rec.sport.soccer on Mon Apr 11 04:01:00 2022
    On Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 11:28:15 PM UTC+1, MH wrote:
    On 2021-12-04 15:12, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 10:29:32 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    That was a fun idea at the beginning of last season to
    speculate about potential upsets in the major European
    leagues.


    2021/22 edition:

    Could Union Saint-Gilloise be for real? Four points clear at the half-point of the season,
    in their first campaign in the top flight since 1973. Proper old-timey club with 11 championships
    to their name between 1904 and 1935, and nothing since.

    Of course, there's still the stupid 4-team championship play-off with halving of the points
    awaiting.

    Plus Bruges might have more energy for the league after their CL exit.
    I have to confess I had never heard of Union Saint-Gilloise until this
    year. I didn't even know St. Gilles was a quartier of Brussels, though I have spent a lot of time in Brussels because of the in-laws. It is
    quite close to Anderlecht, where I have been, but most of the time I
    stayed around the centre, or in places like Schaerbeek, Ixelles,
    Wezembeek, Uccle, and Woluwe, which is where the various beaux-fr|?res
    and belles-soeurs live or have lived.
    Having extended their lead to nine points around New Year's, SG faltered a little bit due to a
    number of scoreless draws and the correctly predicted late Brugge surge, but at the end of the
    regular season they're still five points ahead (if, as logic dictates, they eventually get the three
    points from their match yesterday against dead last Beerschot that had to be abandoned because
    of crowd trouble).
    Of course, halving the points means that with six games among the Top 4 remaining they're
    now less than three points ahead of a Brugge side that have won their last eight league matches.

    West Ham making the top 4 would be a major accomplishment, and so far
    they look pretty solid.

    Dunno how much of an upset Atalanta actually winning would be considered after a couple of CL qualifications.

    Both Seville teams and Real Sociedad have realistic chances of a top 2
    or 3 finish.

    And Nice making the CL, certainly possible, would be quite a surprise
    and a real vindication of Galtier's merits as a coach.
    None of the above look very likely anymore (except Sevilla finishing third).

    And also, as so often in Belgium, there's multi-club ownership to contend with - Union SG's
    current success is mostly due to having been 'rebuilt' by Brighton owner Tony Bloom according
    to Moneyball principles.

    Former SV Meppen player Deniz Undav with 16 goals and 9 assists in 17 matches for Union so
    far this season. The above mentioned Moneyball stats must be worth their salt, because
    I must have seen the guy play in the stadium in a 3. Liga match against 1860 back in 2019, and
    he didn't leave any impression on me whatsoever.
    Undav now with 25 goals and 10 assists in 33 matches. Not bad at all. Unsurprisingly, he has already
    signed with sister club Brighton.
    Ciao,
    Werner
    --- SBBSecho 3.06-Win32
    * Origin: SportNet Gateway Site (24:150/2)
  • From Werner Pichler@24:150/2 to rec.sport.soccer on Mon Apr 11 04:47:10 2022
    On Tuesday, December 7, 2021 at 10:20:33 AM UTC+1, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 11:12:59 PM UTC+1, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 10:29:32 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    That was a fun idea at the beginning of last season to
    speculate about potential upsets in the major European
    leagues.

    2021/22 edition:
    Looking around a bit, Croatia (one matchday away from the half-way point)
    is more interesting than usual:

    1 Rijeka 36
    2 Osijek 35
    3 Hajduk Split 33
    4 Dinamo Zagreb 31 (1 game in hand)

    Osijek have never won the title, Rijeka have won it once, five years ago, and Hajduk have been waiting since 2007.
    Looks like Dinamo have steadied the ship
    1 Dinamo Zagreb 63 (1 game in hand)
    2 Osijek 61
    3 Hajduk Split 56 (1 game in hand)
    4 Rijeka 55
    Long postponed match Hajduk vs Dinamo on April 20.

    Also, not exactly a surprise, but the currently closest title race in Europe is the one in Ukraine:

    1 Shakhtar Donetsk 14-2-1 47-9 38
    2 Dynamo Kyiv 14-2-1 46-8 38
    :-(
    Currently the closest league in Europe is my unpredictable old friend, the Polish Ekstraklasa.
    With six rounds to go:
    Lech Pozna+a 56 (+34)
    Pogo+a Szczecin 56 (+30)
    Rak||w Cz-Ostochowa 56 (+23)
    Pogo+a with a historic chance - no team from further north than Pozna+a has ever won the Polish
    championship (other than Szczecin, that includes places like Gda+ask, Gdynia, Bydgoszcz, or Bia+eystok).
    (also, the original Pogo+a from Lviv/Lw||w won the title four times before WWII)
    Rak||w also have never won the championship before.
    At the other end of the table, reigning champions Legia have clawed their way out from the relegation
    spots and are now comfortably mid-table, but former bigshots Wis+ea Krak||w are still in serious trouble.
    Ciao,
    Werner
    --- SBBSecho 3.06-Win32
    * Origin: SportNet Gateway Site (24:150/2)
  • From Werner Pichler@24:150/2 to rec.sport.soccer on Wed Apr 20 14:13:36 2022
    On Monday, April 11, 2022 at 1:47:12 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Tuesday, December 7, 2021 at 10:20:33 AM UTC+1, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 11:12:59 PM UTC+1, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 10:29:32 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    That was a fun idea at the beginning of last season to
    speculate about potential upsets in the major European
    leagues.

    2021/22 edition:
    Looking around a bit, Croatia (one matchday away from the half-way point) is more interesting than usual:

    1 Rijeka 36
    2 Osijek 35
    3 Hajduk Split 33
    4 Dinamo Zagreb 31 (1 game in hand)

    Osijek have never won the title, Rijeka have won it once, five years ago, and Hajduk have been waiting since 2007.
    Looks like Dinamo have steadied the ship

    1 Dinamo Zagreb 63 (1 game in hand)
    2 Osijek 61
    3 Hajduk Split 56 (1 game in hand)
    4 Rijeka 55

    Long postponed match Hajduk vs Dinamo on April 20.
    1-0 for Hajduk, decisive goal scored by sorry-but-no World Cup medalist Nikola Kalini-c.
    1 Dinamo Zagreb 66
    2 Osijek 64
    3 Hajduk Split 62
    5 rounds to go. Dinamo still have to play both of their pursuers, but have both matches at home.
    Ciao,
    Werner
    --- SBBSecho 3.06-Win32
    * Origin: SportNet Gateway Site (24:150/2)
  • From Werner Pichler@24:150/2 to rec.sport.soccer on Thu May 12 09:41:23 2022
    On Monday, April 11, 2022 at 1:01:01 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 11:28:15 PM UTC+1, MH wrote:
    On 2021-12-04 15:12, Werner Pichler wrote:
    On Saturday, September 21, 2019 at 10:29:32 PM UTC+2, Werner Pichler wrote:
    That was a fun idea at the beginning of last season to
    speculate about potential upsets in the major European
    leagues.


    2021/22 edition:

    Could Union Saint-Gilloise be for real? Four points clear at the half-point of the season,
    in their first campaign in the top flight since 1973. Proper old-timey club with 11 championships
    to their name between 1904 and 1935, and nothing since.

    Of course, there's still the stupid 4-team championship play-off with halving of the points
    awaiting.

    Plus Bruges might have more energy for the league after their CL exit.
    I have to confess I had never heard of Union Saint-Gilloise until this year. I didn't even know St. Gilles was a quartier of Brussels, though I have spent a lot of time in Brussels because of the in-laws. It is
    quite close to Anderlecht, where I have been, but most of the time I stayed around the centre, or in places like Schaerbeek, Ixelles, Wezembeek, Uccle, and Woluwe, which is where the various beaux-fr|?res
    and belles-soeurs live or have lived.

    Having extended their lead to nine points around New Year's, SG faltered a little bit due to a
    number of scoreless draws and the correctly predicted late Brugge surge, but at the end of the
    regular season they're still five points ahead (if, as logic dictates, they eventually get the three
    points from their match yesterday against dead last Beerschot that had to be abandoned because
    of crowd trouble).

    Of course, halving the points means that with six games among the Top 4 remaining they're
    now less than three points ahead of a Brugge side that have won their last eight league matches.
    Yep, Union SG lost both Championship Play-Off games against Brugge, and now the title's all but
    gone - they're 3.5 points back with two matches to go.
    Ciao,
    Werner
    --- SBBSecho 3.06-Win32
    * Origin: SportNet Gateway Site (24:150/2)
  • From MH@24:150/2 to rec.sport.soccer on Sun May 15 11:44:18 2022


    2021/22 edition:

    Could Union Saint-Gilloise be for real? Four points clear at the half-point of the season,
    in their first campaign in the top flight since 1973. Proper old-timey club with 11 championships
    to their name between 1904 and 1935, and nothing since.

    Of course, there's still the stupid 4-team championship play-off with halving of the points
    awaiting.

    Plus Bruges might have more energy for the league after their CL exit.
    I have to confess I had never heard of Union Saint-Gilloise until this
    year. I didn't even know St. Gilles was a quartier of Brussels, though I >>> have spent a lot of time in Brussels because of the in-laws. It is
    quite close to Anderlecht, where I have been, but most of the time I
    stayed around the centre, or in places like Schaerbeek, Ixelles,
    Wezembeek, Uccle, and Woluwe, which is where the various beaux-fr|?res
    and belles-soeurs live or have lived.

    Having extended their lead to nine points around New Year's, SG faltered a little bit due to a
    number of scoreless draws and the correctly predicted late Brugge surge, but at the end of the
    regular season they're still five points ahead (if, as logic dictates, they eventually get the three
    points from their match yesterday against dead last Beerschot that had to be abandoned because
    of crowd trouble).

    Of course, halving the points means that with six games among the Top 4 remaining they're
    now less than three points ahead of a Brugge side that have won their last eight league matches.

    Yep, Union SG lost both Championship Play-Off games against Brugge, and now the title's all but
    gone - they're 3.5 points back with two matches to go.

    It was even looking as though Anderlecht might pip USG for the second
    place, but USG are currently ahead in that match. A point should be
    enough.
    Bruges already champions, I think, with their win today. (Because of the rounding issue - the actual table would lead one to believe it was not
    over yet)

    With no Besiktas players in the CL next year, and no Lille (David), I
    guess it is good for Canada that Buchanan and Davies, at least, will
    play in that competition (Eustaquio too, except that he is getting very
    few minutes for Porto, and would not be surprised if he gets loaned out)
    . Though transfers could change a lot of things

    Ciao,
    Werner
    --- SBBSecho 3.06-Win32
    * Origin: SportNet Gateway Site (24:150/2)