Vesper

Arse up 1 nil

wow the newly crowned Copa Libertadores champions Botafogo from Brasil were crushed today by the Mexican club Pachuca in the inaugural new Intercontinental Cup

arrf, he doesnt join Chels until July 1, 2025, so yes he will be cup tied as Palmeiras play before that

love those Arsenal jackets yank style letterman jackets

TNT streams https://www.vipleague.pm/champions-league/arsenal-vs-as-monaco-2-live-streaming https://www.vipleague.pm/champions-league/borussia-dortmund-vs-barcelona-2-live-streaming https://www.vipleague.pm/champions-league/juventus-vs-manchester-city-2-live-streaming https://www.vipleague.pm/champions-league/ac-milan-vs-red-star-belgrade-2-live-streaming

https://stats.soccerstreams100.io/league/uefa-champions

https://www.vipleague.pm/football-sports-stream

Juventus – Manchester City Champions League / 11 December at 21:00 Stuttgart – Young Boys Champions League / 11 December at 21:00 Feyenoord – Sparta Prague Champions League / 11 December at 21:00 Milan – Crvena Zvezda Champions League / 11 December at 21:00 Arsenal – AS Monaco Champions League / 11 December at 21:00 Benfica – Bologna Champions League / 11 December at 21:00 Dortmund – Barcelona Champions League / 11 December at 21:00

I think we will, no?

so fucked up at so many levels including the fact it very likely means another winter WC that wreaks havoc with the clubs

Alvarez has 12 goals, 2 assists in his last 1000 or so minutes played, including a wonderstrike tonight in the CL (and as I type this he just hit the post)

1 nil AM great goal by Julian Alvarez super strike

https://www.vipleague.pm/champions-league/atletico-madrid-vs-slovan-bratislava-1-live-streaming https://www.vipleague.pm/champions-league/lille-vs-sk-sturm-graz-1-live-streaming

AC Milan have set an asking price of £42m for Left-Back Theo Hernandez (Calciomercato)

Liverpool step up efforts to seal transfer replacement for star player https://www.caughtoffside.com/2024/12/10/liverpool-jeremie-frimpong-transfer-2/ Liverpool are reportedly stepping up their interest in the potential transfer of Bayer Leverkusen right-back Jeremie Frimpong as a replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold. That’s according to a report from the Daily Briefing, which states that the Reds are increasingly concerned about the future of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who is nearing the end of his contract at Anfield. The report states that Real Madrid are very interested in Alexander-Arnold, while other top clubs such as Manchester City, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain also said to have held some talks over signing the England international. Liverpool star REVEALS where he wants to play next! While Alexander-Arnold would be a very difficult player to replace, Frimpong surely looks like one of the best options for the Merseyside giants after his terrific form for Xabi Alonso’s Leverkusen side. Jeremie Frimpong transfer: Can Liverpool land their preferred Trent Alexander-Arnold replacement? Jeremie Frimpong in action for Bayer Leverkusen against Liverpool (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images) One imagines a talent like Frimpong will have other suitors as well, but it seems LFC are doing their bit to try to move ahead of the competition in the race for his signature, according to the Daily Briefing. The Netherlands international looks a good fit for Arne Slot’s style of football, and it will be interesting to see if he can truly fill the void left by Alexander-Arnold if he does leave. Frimpong has shown tremendous potential in his time in the Bundesliga, raking in double figures for goals and assists last season as he played a lead role in Leverkusen’s surprise title success. Frimpong looks like he has all the ingredients to be a success at Liverpool or other top clubs, but one imagines most Reds fans would just rather keep Alexander-Arnold. Still, there’s been no progress with the 26-year-old’s new contract and it perhaps looks increasingly like the club are resigned to losing him and preparing for the future in that right-back position.

Referee involved in recent Liverpool controversy has been sacked https://www.caughtoffside.com/2024/12/10/david-coote-sacked-liverpool-controversy/ The PGMOL has taken the decision to sack Premier League referee David Coote following the controversy involving Liverpool and former manager Jurgen Klopp. The 42-year-old English official’s actions have led to widespread condemnation, including allegations of xenophobic remarks aimed at Klopp and other inappropriate conduct caught on video. PGMOL, which governs refereeing in English football, launched a comprehensive investigation into Coote’s behavior after a series of allegations surfaced. The findings of the investigation confirmed that Coote had breached the provisions of his employment contract, and as a result, his position as a Premier League referee has been deemed untenable. In an official statement released on X, PGMOL confirmed the termination of Coote’s employment, though the referee retains the right to appeal the decision: The full statement read: “Following the conclusion of a thorough investigation into David Coote’s conduct, his employment with PGMOL has been terminated today with immediate effect.” “David Coote’s actions were found to be in serious breach of the provisions of his employment contract, with his position deemed untenable.” “Supporting David Coote continues to be important to us and we remain committed to his welfare. David Coote has a right to appeal the decision to terminate his employment.” David Coote refereeing in the Premier League (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images) The controversy that resulted in David Coote being sacked The controversy began with a leaked video in which Coote made derogatory and xenophobic comments about Klopp. Reports suggest the footage dates back to the 2020–21 season, a time when Coote served as VAR during the Merseyside derby between Liverpool and Everton. In that match, Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford avoided punishment for a challenge that caused a season-ending injury to Virgil van Dijk, leading to significant criticism of Coote’s officiating. The situation escalated when another video surfaced, allegedly showing Coote snorting a white substance during Euro 2024. UEFA promptly suspended him while conducting their own investigation. Initially, Coote denied the authenticity of the footage but later made a u-turn, stating that he could not recall the specific content of the conversation. Following PGMOL’s investigation and initial decision, UEFA also chose to remove Coote from consideration for officiating matches within its jurisdiction, citing the ongoing nature of the investigation.

Exclusive: Manchester City step up efforts to beat Liverpool to exciting €60m transfer https://www.caughtoffside.com/2024/12/10/man-city-ederson-transfer/ Manchester City are expected to push for the transfer of Atalanta midfielder Ederson as they seek a replacement for the injured Rodri in the middle of the park, CaughtOffside understands. It’s been a surprisingly difficult season for Man City so far, with Pep Guardiola’s side on an awful run of form since their influential Spanish midfielder Rodri picked up a season-ending injury. The Ballon d’Or winner has shown just how important he is to this City side, and while it won’t be easy to replace him, it seems Ederson is increasingly emerging as the club’s first choice. Ruben Amorim picks out TWO Man United players he wants out of the club! Sources close to the situation have informed CaughtOffside that City are now expected to step up their efforts to win the race for Ederson as they anticipate interest from rivals Liverpool as well. The Brazil international’s asking price would be around €60m, and sources also state that the player is said to be flattered by interest from the Etihad Stadium. Can Manchester City finally sign their Rodri replacement? MCFC fans will be eager to see the Rodri issue addressed in January, with Ederson looking like he could have a hugely important role to play if he ends up joining. Still, CaughtOffside understands that Atalanta are eager not to sell the player this January, especially after losing Teun Koopmeiners in the summer, and with growing interest in Ademola Lookman. This could make things tricky for City, but this is also clearly an emergency for Guardiola’s side after seeing their freefall during Rodri’s absence. Some City fans will perhaps feel they’re not quite out of the title race yet, and a strong second half to the season could mean there’s still plenty to play for. However, there seems little prospect of that kind of recovery unless the midfield is sorted out with an ambitious signing like this. Liverpool could also do well to land a top midfield talent like Ederson, though, with Arne Slot’s side notably missing out on Martin Zubimendi in the summer.

Chelsea https://thedailybriefing.io/i/152879324/Chelsea Enzo Maresca: “I’m impressed by Jadon Sancho… but not only with him on the ball, also the way he is defending. Him, Pedro Neto - it is not just about goals and assists, it’s about the way they work off the ball. The sacrifice. Top job.” Maresca: “Cole Palmer belongs to top players category. Loves football, humble, no strange things and this is the best thing for Cole. Today, young players, if they play one good game they already think... and then they lose the balance. Cole is always the same.” Estevao Willian on his preferred shirt number for when he joins Chelsea: “If they give me the shirt #41 as I have at Palmeiras, it will be cool!” Estevao on Cole Palmer. “I really like his celebration. After I signed for Chelsea, I said I was going to do his celebration. We exchanged the idea on Instagram. I'm happy to have this contact with him…Reece James also said if I needed something I should talk to him. And Thiago Silva spoke to me after our last game [against Fluminense]. He said that the club is top and they are waiting for me with open arms.” Jadon Sancho: “From day one, they made me feel welcome at Chelsea. I know that I have a lot of people to prove wrong. I’ve been working very hard. Let me say thank you to the staff and the team for believing in me and giving me this opportunity.” Cole Palmer Real Madrid transfer rumours have begun…how worrying is this, Chelsea fans? This Chelsea star has said “yes” to a deal to join this major European club! Full story here.

SCOUTED Stats https://www.scoutednotebook.com/i/152850339/scouted-stats It is a reduced section this week. Not only did I spend more time collecting the data for the Chelsea check-in, but the the extra slate of midweek football failed to throw up a haul of new leaders. 👶 However, after a question posed by the living SCOUTED legend Stephen Ganavas, I realised that tracking the youngest player to make an appearance each weekend would be a great way to discover breakout names. At the weekend, 2008-born midfielder Faik Sakar made his professional debut. Aged 16 years and 328 days old, Sakar came on in the final minute of RB Leipzig’s 2-0 home win against Holstein Kiel. The youngest player to make an appearance in a Big Five European League game this season is Ibrahim Mbaye. PSG’s 2008-born winger was 16 years and 205 days old when he made his debut earlier this season, breaking Warren Zaïre-Emery’s record as the club’s youngest Ligue 1 starter. 🧭 Aleksandar Pavlović is back and he is racking up passes. He completed 16 successful passes into the final third against Heidenheim, a record for a 01+ midfielder in Europe’s Big Five Leagues this season and just one short of Arnau Martínez’s 01+ record across all positions. 🔮 Dean Huijsen may have dropped a masterclass against Tottenham in midweek, but it is another left-footed, teenage Spanish centre-back that makes the cut. Yarek Gasiorowski, a SCOUTED50 2024/25 alumnus alongside Huijsen, made seven interceptions in Valencia’s 0-1 defeat to Rayo Vallecano, equalling Rocco Reitz’s 01+ record across the Big Five European Leagues. Spain’s sudden explosion of defensive talent is going to catch everyone off guard. Huijsen, Gasiorowski, Cristhian Mosquera, and of course Pau Cubarsí are all under the age of 21. That’s it. The penultimate Monday Night SCOUTED of 2024 is done. I cannot believe how quickly the days are melting away. Speak to you soon. Yarek Gasiorowski 2 points — 2006, CB, Valencia CF, Spain Yarek Gasiorowski has been on the radar for a long time, regularly rocking up for youth international tournaments to represent Spain despite his very obvious Polish heritage, and regularly performing well. He is tall, mobile, and has a nice calmness about his game. He plays with a certain maturity which was very apparent at the UEFA U-19 EURO this past summer, in which he made the SCOUTED Team of the Tournament as part of a championship-winning Spanish side. Now, he’s stepping up at senior level with Valencia as well, having established himself as a reliable option in a very young team towards the back-end of last season. This campaign should be one of consolidation, filling in when needed and hopefully cementing himself as a first-choice. Overall, he has the archetype big clubs hunt for — not least because he’s left-footed. You’ll be seeing this name pop up regularly over the next few seasons.

Have Chelsea assembled the youngest team in Premier League history? Monday Night SCOUTED has the answers. https://www.scoutednotebook.com/p/Chelsea-youngest-squad-age-stats-cole-palmer-mns There’s no time to waste. FBref calculate the average age of a team based on weighted minutes played. Only two teams across Europe’s Big Five Leagues have an average age below 24 years old: The BlueCo assets. Of the 17 teams averaging 2+ points per game in Europe’s Big Five Leagues this season, only Paris Saint-Germain (24.3), AS Monaco (24.8), Barcelona (24.9) and Chelsea have an average age under 25. Earlier in the season, I documented the youngest title-winning teams in each of Europe’s Big Five Leagues. For that newsletter, I used Transfermarkt’s average age of players used. This provides a slightly different number. For example, both BlueCo assets appear even younger, Chelsea’s drops to 23.4 and Strasbourg’s falls to 21.3. Whichever site you prefer, if Chelsea were to win the Premier League this season, they would break the record set by José Mourinho’s side in 2004/05. Opta define this stat based on the average age of the starting XI, recorded as 25 years and 250 days old. On Transfermarkt, the average age of Chelsea players used that campaign was 25.0. On FBref, the weighted average age based on minutes played is 25.2 years old. This time, I want to go beyond title talk. I want to (begin to) answer the following questions: how young is this Chelsea squad? how good is this Chelsea squad? can this Chelsea squad get any younger? can this Chelsea squad get any better? As a bonus, I will also be answering: how good is Cole Palmer? But first, we must bear in mind an important piece of context: how this squad was assembled. All stats are correct as of 09 December 2024 18:30 GMT unless otherwise stated. The BlueCo Model Chelsea’s starting XI against Tottenham included seven players aged 23 or under - that’s cool. However, Levi Colwill, an academy graduate, was the only outfield player that was not signed for less than €30m. Even Jadon Sancho, on loan from Manchester United, will be signed for a reported €30m at the end of the season. At €23m, Robert Sánchez was the cheapest starter - more on him later. At €14m, Renato Veiga was the cheapest Chelsea player to make an appearance. Since BlueCo acquired the club, Chelsea have spent €1.33bn on incoming transfers, as per Transfermarkt. When considering the €544m in player sales, that is still an eye-watering, world-leading net spend of €788.69m. Remarkably, despite Brighton & Hove Albion ranking 12th globally for expenditure in this period (€396.4m), they have a smaller net spend (€20.71m) than Chelsea Under-21s (€23.35m). But this does not include players promoted to and sold by the first-team. Either way, it’s clear the BlueCo strategy can not be adopted by just any club. One of the primary funding sources that has made BlueCo’s spending possible is the academy: the model views Cobham graduates as a means to generate pure profit. Five of the last eight Academy Player of the Year winners have been sold: Mason Mount, Conor Gallagher, Billy Gilmour, Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall. Chelsea remain the only English team to win the UEFA Youth League, as well as the only side to win back-to-back tournaments. So far, it seems Cobham will be used to balance the books and allow the hoovering up of the world’s best young players to continue. The BlueCo project is ambitious and unique - some of the stats from this newsletter blew my mind. However, the near-monopoly they have established when it comes to signing young players as well as their view of the club’s own youth system is a concern given the difficulty in reproducing it. There. I wanted to address the elephant in the room. Now, let’s answer those questions. How young is this Chelsea squad? If every season entry is considered as a new team, there have been 666 teams in Premier League history. Per FBref, Chelsea 24/25 is the only team with a weighted average age below 24 years old. I feel like that is such a good find that I almost don’t need to dive any deeper. Almost. Across Europe’s Big Leagues in the same period, there have been 3,146 teams. Only 27 have an average age below 24 years old. So, the answer to our question is emphatic: Meanwhile, 2024/25 Strasbourg (22.1) is the youngest of these 3,146 teams. The only other side with an average age below 23 years old is 2017/18 Lille. That means BlueCo have assembled the youngest squad in Premier League history and the youngest team in the modern era of Europe’s Big Leagues. How good is this Chelsea squad? Well, in this database of 3,146 teams, an average above 1.8 Points Per Match gets you into the top 15%. In the Premier League, 113 teams exceed that threshold and the average age of those teams is 26.5. Across Europe’s Big Five Leagues, 474 teams exceed the 1.8 PPM threshold and only two have an average age under 24 years old. In 2010/11, Jürgen Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund team won the Bundesliga with an average age of 23.4 years old at 2.21 PPM. 2024/25 Chelsea are second in the Premier League with an average age of 23.9 at 2.07. 2+ PPM gets you into the top 9% of teams. In the Premier League, only 70 meet that threshold. Of those, 70, only four teams have an average age of 25 or under: 2023/24 Arsenal, 2022/23 Arsenal, 2007/08 Arsenal and 2024/25 Chelsea. Mikel Arteta can no longer become the youngest Premier League manager to win the Premier League; he came close to breaking José Mourinho’s record in the two seasons mentioned above. His Arsenal squad would have also broken the record as the youngest title-winners, competing against Pep Guardiola and Jürgen Klopp. Some important perspective. Across Europe’s Big Five Leagues, 295 teams meet the 2+ PPM threshold. Of those 295, only 20 have an average age of 25 or under. As we know, only 2010/11 Dortmund and 2024/25 Chelsea have an average age below 24 years old. So, if you want to put a number on the question, you could answer: Can Chelsea get even younger? I alluded to further discussion about Robert Sánchez earlier on so I will address him first. Based on data, he is performing better than I expected. Compared to Premier League goalkeepers with at least 450+ minutes this season, he ranks 2nd for Save Percentage, 5th for Crosses Stopped Percentage, 2nd for Defensive Actions Outside of the Penalty Area. However, for me, he misplaces far too many passes and makes too many errors. Only four goalkeepers have a lower Pass Completion Rate across Medium distances (15 to 30 yards) and no goalkeeper has made more errors leading to an opponent’s shot. Personally, he is the next player they need to replace if they want to continue to improve. They have plenty of options: 25-year-old Đorđe Petrović is on loan at sister club Strasbourg, 20-year-old Gabriel Slonina is on loan at Barnsley and 22-year-old Filip Jörgensen is playing regularly in the UEFA Conference League. It would not surprise me if the BlueCo directive is to install Jörgensen as first-choice as soon as possible. As for the rest of the squad, Tosin Adarabioyo is the oldest player to make an appearance for the Blues in the league this season. He’s just turned 27 years old. In fact, Chelsea are the only Premier League team that has not given a single minute to a 30-something-year-old this season. Across Europe’s Big Five Leagues, only VfB Stuttgart and AS Monaco can say the same. In the Premier League, there are 14 matches in which a team has given 45+ minutes to players aged 23 or under this season. All 14 belong to Chelsea. Their record tally is nine, set against Wolves in August. But it may not be long until we see an entire U23 starting XI. Enzo Maresca could do it quite easily: If that does happen, it will be the first time in Premier League history that a team’s entire starting XI consists of players aged 23 and under. Technically, he does not even need to start them all to break the record. He just needs to give 11 U23 players at least 45 minutes. So, to repeat the question: Next season, their starting XI could even include two 2007-born talents. Can Chelsea get even better? Points Per Match is an incredibly limited metric when evaluating team performance. However, it is was the only one available across every single Premier League season. For the purpose of the initial benchmarking, I think it served its purpose. However, identifying areas for this Chelsea squad to improve should not be reduced to: get more points, scrubs. This is where I will have to defer to a host of people more intelligent than I am. First of all, let’s start with this graphic from @markrstats. As Mark states in the post, Chelsea have emerged as the third-best team in the Premier League. This was followed by a clear improvement of actual output and underlying numbers. However, if we look at this collection of visualisations from Scott Willis - Cannon Stats - areas to improve begin to emerge. But first, I want to highlight the strengths. Whichever graph you look at, Chelsea appear as one of the best attacking teams in the Premier League. Their status as Premier League top-scorers is backed up by their league-leading Expected Goals tally. The Blues has scored 35 goals from 32 xG, hardly an outrageous level of over-performance, especially when compared for Brentford’s 31 goals from 23.8 xG. Bournemouth are the only other side that has generated 30+ xG, scoring seven more goals than expected. I also want to praise their league-leading total of fast-break shots, a metric available via Opta Analyst. Despite a change in manager, Liverpool continue to be my personal benchmark for transitions. The fact that Enzo Maresca’s are keeping up with the Reds’ is another promising pillar to build upon. However, it appears the Blues’ swashbuckling attack comes at a price. Chelsea rank 11th for Expected Goals Against. Of course, you could immediately riposte by stating their Expected Goal Difference is the 5th best in the league and their attacking prowess supersedes this concern. However, I would argue that conceding 1.4 xG a game is going to cause issues sooner rather than later. The main concern is away from home. Only five teams have conceded more xG on the road than Chelsea this season, including all three newly-promoted clubs. Again, I have to mention that Chelsea rank first for xG, dropping just five points from their eight away games. But the variance of these basketball matches would make me sweat. They lost the xG battle against Manchester United, Liverpool, Bournemouth and even in the 2-6 win against Wolves. They picked up 7/12 points from those matches. I appreciate this has been surface level analysis at best, but the point was to try to identify any clear shortcomings from assembling such a young squad. Just as Ange Postecoglou has discovered, it is impossible to outscore the opponent in every single Premier League match. I am not expecting quite the same drop-off in form from Chelsea, but their opponents on Sunday are an immediate reminder of how quickly things can change. Also, the reason I dealt with Expected Goals rather than Non-Penalty Expected Goals is two-fold. Although I believe Chelsea have a higher propensity to concede penalties given their goalkeeper’s consistent errors and the rashness of their young defence, they also have a cheat code from the spot. Which brings me onto the final section. How good is Cole Palmer? When Cole Palmer slotted his first penalty into the side-netting, he equalled Yaya Touré’s record as the most prolific perfect penalty-taker in Premier League history, converting 11 out of 11. With his Panenka, Palmer claimed the record all for himself. He also set a club record for the most Premier League goals + assists by a Chelsea player in a calendar year. Speaking to the club’s website, Enzo Maresca summed up an unquantifiable trait that sets Palmer apart: “The best thing from him is that four, five years ago when he was with me in the Under-23s, he was one way and now after two years, 20-30 goals and everyone considers him one of the best, he is exactly the same guy. “Loves football, humble, no strange things. This is the best thing for Cole and for young players, because today, young players if they play one game well, they already think they are [top] and they lose the balance. He is always the same, doesn't change, and we are very happy with Cole.” Since joining Chelsea, Palmer has been directly involved in 50 Premier League goals in 48 appearances. Thanks to Opta, we know that only three players have reached a half-century for a single club in fewer games. He has every right to think he is ‘top’. Because he really is top. This season, Palmer has been directly involved in 17 goals in 15 appearances. If he wants to break Andy Cole’s record for most Premier League goals + assists by a player starting a season under the age of 23, he needs 32 more from the remaining 23 games. To break Erling Haaland’s 38-game season record, he needs 28 more. To beat Lionel Messi’s record for this age criteria, he needs 27 G/A. To beat Cristiano Ronaldo’s, he needs 21. And he’s halfway to setting a new personal best. For single seasons, age 22 or younger at the start of the season, in Men's Club Competitions, in the Big 5 European Leagues, sorted by descending Goals + Assists. So, how good is Cole Palmer? Well here’s one more stat if you haven’t worked it out yet. In Premier League history, only five players with 5+ starts average at least 1 G/A per 90 minutes: 1.2 - Erling Haaland 1.1 - Sergio Agüero 1.1 - Thierry Henry 1.0 - Cole Palmer 1.0 - Mohamed Salah What is the opposite of an underdog? As Jamie Carragher stated after the 3-4 win against Tottenham: “This is no underdog story, they’ve spent £1.2 billion.” I aimed to address that before answering the questions and I want to acknowledge it again. However, although their performance may not exceed expectations based on net spend - although arguments could be made that they are compared to clubs like Manchester United - I hope I have made it clear that they are an anomaly when it comes to age. I also feel that Cole Palmer is cut from a slightly different cloth. He won the Treble at Manchester City, he could have stayed and Pep Guardiola wanted him to. The same season he joined Chelsea, he scored in the Community Shield and the UEFA Super Cup final. He knew he was this good. He moved to Chelsea to prove it. Is Jamie Carragher right? Of course he is. This is definitely not an underdog story. I guess the opposite would be overpuppy. But I’m not sure that is going to stick.

no no we are not