Get to know the current set of contributors (Fans) of Extraordinary Footie Fans Footie. Watch as they answer questions about their favorite football clubs!
Edited by: EeJay Enekwa
Welcome to extraordinary footie fans
Get to know the current set of contributors (Fans) of Extraordinary Footie Fans Footie. Watch as they answer questions about their favorite football clubs!
Edited by: EeJay Enekwa
Managing a football team is tough, much tougher than any of us can even imagine, especially in today’s footballing world which is exponentially improved in all aspects in last 20-25 years, be it technological advancement, modern medical development, continuously improving tactical nous, technical data, business model and marketing structure, financial returns, fan awareness and demands, social presence and intense pressure . Not only one needs to make the team buy into his ideas, but to manage the egos, keep their morals high, take care of opposition tactics, manage and choose from the data provided by the number crunchers of the technical crew to his benefit , manage and keep the entire squad happy and motivated by distributing playing time, look into requisite transfers and give importance to academy, manage injuries and medical profiles of varying players by adjusting his team likewise, answer the owners and fans, conduct themselves in a particular way etc etc. And after accomplishing all that, they are expected to win trophies or achieving their footballing targets set by the owners or fan expectations.
Hence they need a team of 5-6 people to assist them in every facet. No wonder Pep has lost his hair, Mourinho’s hair is turning snow white, Zidanes smooth face has started wrinkling slowly, no wonder managers today burn out within 3-4 years and need a sabbatical before a fresh start. The pressure, expectations and criticism is so intense, even the greatest of modern managers can’t sustain it for too long. We see top clubs today change managers with snapping of fingers for faltering at the first hurdle, even the smallest of clubs today change managers like shirts, patience is short and with the interlinked spiderweb of social media, pressure is infinite. No matter how much aloof one tries to remain from external pressure, there is no escaping it. The manager will find experts and pundits in newspaper columns and TV channels saying how he should manage the team and how his team should play, he will find fans screaming from the galleries and in social media platforms, how he is mismanaging the side and buying the wrong players. It’s a landmine everywhere which is ready to explode at the faintest of missteps.
Managing a club today is as much about actual management as it is about football and tactical knowledge. That’s why we find successful managers like Sir Alex Ferguson being invited to premium managerial institutes to give lectures and share their ideas and experiences on management.We find autobiographicies and managerial books written by successful managers selling like hot cakes in the market. Inevitably and invariably , there is no single managerial way which is a sureshot recipe of success. We find calm and subdued managers like Carlo Ancelotti, winning multiple league titles and multiple Champion Leagues. No wonder his managerial autobiography is titled, “Quiet Leadership”. We have colorful and energetic modern managers like Jose Mourinho and Jurgen Klopp, who combine their radically different styles of man management with footballing acumen to manage top clubs. We have tactical grandmasters like the Late Johan Cruyff and his modern mirror image Pep Guardiola, who perhaps relies more on their footballing philosophies and a standard footballing legacy and balances them with their own style of management to remain at top. We find promising and intelligent ex players trying their hands at management, some of them get their hands burnt, some succeed.
Football today is traversing, previously unthinkable uncharted territories, both financially as well as from business point of view. But the eternal hot seat of football still continues to be the manager who is the face of the club in front and hence represents the club from its owners to its team members in front of fans and cameras. Hence, perhaps they have the toughest job in modern footballing world and it will continue to be so in coming days, as they will try to continuously juggle between the various facets of the game, finances and the particular club, and will try to innovate and evolve in every facet to keep on producing results .
Arindam Chakraborty
The latest Premier Fantasy League of Extraordinary Fans (PFLEF) Fantasy Football Monthly Awards is here. Not too soon, some might say. Well, this writer deserved a winter break even if the English football calendar thinks otherwise. Now I am back from my winter break, fully re-charged with words to write about the crazy world of fantasy football. Here goes…
This past month had Star Wars, and stars at war. Conte and Jose fired jibes at each other with increasing intensity, red and blue light-sabers swishing through the air. Salah and Kane channelled their inner Jedis and continued their inter-galactic quest for a golden boot. Arsenal tried relentlessly to unsuccessfully defeat the evil forces of the Sixth, er, I meant the Sith.
The force suddenly was no longer with Alvaro Morata and hundreds of thousands of FPL managers banished him from their teams. Jurgen Klopp had a spaceship as impressive as Harrison Ford’s Millennium Falcon. Very efficient in attack (despite the defection of one of his star pilots to the La Liga Dark Side). However, his space-ship remains vulnerable to attacks from behind even while managing to defeat Darth Guardiola who had continually radiated an air of invincibility through-out this season.
At the end of all the yoda yadder, crown a manager of the month, we must. Step forward, Pascal Charles. His total of 465pts with Ankop FC in December was unmatched. Congrats to him for leading his team to a galaxy, far far away from other PFLEF managers in that month.
Top 5 for December
Below are screenshots of current standings in our various leagues.
The Draft League
The PFLEF Head to Head League (Contenders for Top 8)
League 1 Relegation Candidates
League 1 Relegation Candidates
Money League
League 2B Promotion Candidates
League 2B Promotion Candidates
League 2A Promotion Candidates
League 1. Contenders for Top 4.
So there we have it. Join me next month for more Fantasy Football updates. May the Force be with You all.
Oladimeji Sapoloso
The fun never stops. Trolling is our business. Here is a special soundtrack for this week’s edition
Below are our picks for Trolls of the Week… Proceed with no caution
A very succinct overview regarding Man City. At Anfield they were not pepped up enough, and they ended up suffering the peppery sting of defeat. They did manage to simultaneously cheer up millions of Arsenal fans around the world though. Top lads.
Arsenal fans would be further cheered up by the possible arrival of the two players mentioned by Yinka here. Some may see it as a burn, but Burnley are coached by Sean Dyche, he of the nickname- ”Ginger Mourinho”. If Wenger can’t finish ahead of the Portuguese version, at least he would now surely finish ahead of the Ginger variety. An achievement worthy of contract extension till 2025.
Aaron and Theo can usually be very friendly in the neighbour-hood of goal-posts. Their spidey senses also often don’t tingle quickly enough in the penalty box. Now they are both together, aiming to fight villains up to no good at Goodison Park. What could possibly go wrong? A lot of quick running and money burning.
A double-edged troll. Aquilani was one of Liverpool’s expensive flops from the past decade or so. Although, he was not as quick and physical as Bakayoko, he was invariably almost as useless. Bakayoko might eventually grow into a very decent midfielder but at the moment, he should do the decent thing and stop wasting an indecent amount of hair-dye.
Ah, the Pretty One who has suddenly gone down the Ugly route of bad form. When you are heading in goals on the regular, no one notices the hair-gel. However, when the goals dry up and the misses start flowing instead, your hair gel becomes a topic of conversation. Alvaro, hero to zero. And similar to Bakayoko, he is another Chelsea player whose hair choices is being called into question.
Bonus conversation of the Week. Just read and marvel.
Till next time, troll-out.
Oladimeji Sapoloso.
Gbemi Aderemi (Guest Contributor)
Gbemi Aderemi (Guest Contributor)
Weeks 16-22
A new year should bring positive things. However in Fantasy Premier League, all old things don’t always pass away. We still have players who probably feasted on too much turkey and indulged in too much wine. Festive cheer, yes, but not enough FPL points to cheer. So I am here again to recommend some forceful acts of motivation.
In the previous edition, we had a treatment on three players. The Rough Ramos Re-generation was aimed at Romelu Lukaku, Christian Eriksen and Renato Sanches.
Lukaku briefly cackled as his scoring boots were released from their shackles. Two goals in weeks 17 and 18 and it seemed there was a Red Rom Renaissance on the way. Aaaaaand…. Nah. No further PL goals since then. Kane and Salah banging goals but lookatchu, Lukaku.
Eriksen had not proved to be a great Dane prior to his ‘meeting’ with Ramos. However, Sergio’s studs up managed to gee up the Spurs playmaker. Christian’s form resurrected in the following game-weeks. He ended up having 2 goals and 3 assists in 7 games and even had around 343,000 new FPL managers showing faith in his abilities going into game-week 22.
Renato Sanches however is a lost cause in FPL. The Ramos masterclass had no effect whatsoever. Sanches maintained remarkable consistency in the goals and assist columns by doing absolutely nothing. Zero for Renato, more hobo than FPL hero.
In this edition, we bring the man who makes more balls appear and disappear than Houdini; Troy Deeney. Who are the three under-performing players who need more cojones?
Sadio Mane
From being the Mane man to being the least glamorous of Liverpool’s Fab Four. ”Mane FC” is now as defunct as the aforementioned Fab Four and it’s no wonder why. Only 5 PL goals all season in 13 appearances (3 of those goals came in his first 3 games, by the way). Sadio has not had a great season, especially for a midfielder who started out with a 9.5m price tag.
With Coutinho heading off to hang out with his new buddies, Messi and Suarez, FPL managers are now left with the hope that Sadio Mane would form a successful new band with Salah and Firmino (The Terrific Trio?). Troy Deeney however does not believe in wishful thinking. He is a proper man, with proper balls, and he is ready to dish out some proper punishment on Mane to get him back in hot form. A kick to the chest for starters.
Sead Kolasinac
He came into the PL with a good reputation as an attacking full-back. Hence, the 6m price tag. Arsene Wenger then further increased our appetites for Kolasinac by playing him as a wing-back. The dream of goals, assists plus clean sheets proved irresistible. Over 860,000 FPL managers had him in their squads after game-week 16. It went down-hill from there. Kolasinac suddenly developed a knack for bench duties.
Sead started sitting out games as Wenger decided to give Maitland-Niles a river of opportunity which the youngster gleefully swam in. FPL managers who already had Sead had a choice to make: Back or Sack Kolasinac. Nearly 300,000 managers have gone with ”sack”. Troy Deeney is a man who knows a lot about ball-sacks and playing like Ballack (in his deluded mind). He is here to motivate Kolasinac back into top shape. A punch to the balls for starters.
Christian Benteke
A tale of two Big Bens. Although, both of them are situated in London, one proved far more useful than the other in 2017. It bonged at appointed intervals and delivered its set duties. Regardless of the fact that the Big Ben in Westminster London had to undergo repairs in August last year, it still had a successful end to the year. Crystal Palace’s Big Ben has had no such impact in real and fantasy football.
1 goal in 16 appearances is an incredibly bad record for a forward player, especially when a few defenders already have more than that number in season 2017/18. Crystal Palace might as well have had the big clock tower from Palace of Westminster upfront. Benteke has been absolutely useless. He even went as far as defying instructions not to take a last minute penalty for Palace and still ended up missing it. Deeney really needs to show the Belgian the cojones required to be a decent forward for a PL team. Troy is now licensed to destroy. All manners of motivational violence are welcome.
Till next time.
Oladimeji Sapoloso.
Another week, another troll session from our favorite sports Facebook community Premier Fantasy League of Extraordinary Fans!
Let’s go!!!!!!!
If you missed Arsenal v. Chelsea, you missed watching Alvaro Morata miss a lot of makeable shots. Something tells me that this won’t be the only time the pretty boy will appear on this list.
Petr Cech had faced 13 penalties for Arsenal with no saves prior to this post. Word on the street is that he saw this post and dived to the left instead, to try to deceive Hazard. He’s 0 for 14.
Poor Joe Hart!! It seems eons ago that he was the starting goalie for Man City. He will probably never suit up for them again in his life.
Based on his performance v. Arsenal, this statement is closer to being true than false.
I’m afraid that this contraption wouldn’t help. Whether he stands in the box or out of it, a penalty v. Cech = a goal for the other team.
Ahh, a hattrick of appearances for the pretty boy! One troll for every major miss he had v. Arsenal. Hopefully, he bounces back from this game in the next one!
Till next time, folks. Cheers and Troll on!
EeJay Enekwa
‘Olympic goal‘ – The name given to a goal scored directly from a corner kick. Doesn’t happen too often, only one such goal has been scored in all world cups.
First man to score such a goal at international level was Argentina’s Cesareo Onzari in a 2-1 win over Uruguay in 1924. (Uruguayans claim he was assisted by the wind, Argentines say it was all about his technique. Different perspectives understandably)
But the man who has scored the most number of goals directly from corners is Turkish striker, Sukru Gulesin. He scored a mind bending 32 Olympic goals during his career and made it into the Guinness Book of Records. Bend it like Beckham? Curve it like Sukru.
Oladimeji Sapoloso