2013 EPL Thread

[improbus]

I picked the bad year to more closely follow the EPL and my adopted team, Fulham. They're a disaster, although I'm encouraged by their additions in the transfer winder. Much too little too late, I'm afraid.

Any suggestions for a new club next year? It probably doesn't need to be said, but I'm not one for front-running. And unlike other sports, I'm not in too deep with my allegiance to be a fan free agent.

I know it might sound like me being a bad fan, but enjoy not having a team. I love the Premier League BECAUSE I don't have a team. I can dive into a good match when I want and avoid any stinkers. It is kind of nice and is a break from the roller coaster of being a fan of one team.

[hebroncougar]

Since NBC ramped up their coverage, I've become quite the Liverpool fan. I was a fan back in the late 80's in high school, but of course back then you really couldn't watch them. They are dynamite offensively, especially on the counter, and scoring quickly. But I wish their midfield and defense would come around. If it does, they would be the best team bar none.

[BuckeyeRed27]

Since NBC ramped up their coverage, I've become quite the Liverpool fan. I was a fan back in the late 80's in high school, but of course back then you really couldn't watch them. They are dynamite offensively, especially on the counter, and scoring quickly. But I wish their midfield and defense would come around. If it does, they would be the best team bar none.

I'm an Arsenal fan, but I love watching Liverpool play.

Suarez is amazing. He is one of those rare players that when they get the ball in the final third and are facing the goal that you can hear the whole crowd hold their breath because something awesome might happen.

That said I hope he has an awful bout of food poisoning this Friday night.

[Caveat Emperor]

I picked the bad year to more closely follow the EPL and my adopted team, Fulham. They're a disaster, although I'm encouraged by their additions in the transfer winder. Much too little too late, I'm afraid.

Any suggestions for a new club next year? It probably doesn't need to be said, but I'm not one for front-running. And unlike other sports, I'm not in too deep with my allegiance to be a fan free agent.

I have one friend that has been a huge EPL fan for years. He loves Chelsea, so they're the team I follow more than others -- mostly so I can talk soccer with him when we hang out.

If I were just picking a team, though -- I think Everton would be a quality pick. They've got a bit of an American connection with Tim Howard as their starting GK, they're good but not overwhelmingly so (relegation isn't a worry, they're competing for a CL spot, but also not a 800lb gorilla of a club), and they've got the Merseyside derby rivalry with Liverpool. Plus, the nickname "Toffees" is killer.

[Caveat Emperor]

I know it might sound like me being a bad fan, but enjoy not having a team. I love the Premier League BECAUSE I don't have a team. I can dive into a good match when I want and avoid any stinkers. It is kind of nice and is a break from the roller coaster of being a fan of one team.

I can see the appeal, but there's something kind of fun about being able to pick a side and just run with it. Most of my sports fandoms are carried over from birth or location -- I root for the teams I root for because I've always done it. I've always been a Tampa Bay Bucs fan. I've always been a Cincinnati Reds fan.

With this, I feel like I have an opportunity to make a choice. That's kind of cool.

[reds1869]

One visit to the Emirates made me a full blown Arsenal convert; it wasn't even a match day. It is a spectacular place. I'll put my vote in for Arsenal as even though they are a massive club at the top of the table, they always feel like a bit of an underdog in recent years.

All that said have you considered Newcastle? You'll never meet a more passionate and friendly group of supporters.

[tomnuetten]

to many arsenal supporters on redszone

Come on you Spurs

Do you guys follow the german soccer league aswell? it´s incredible how much attention the premier league gets in asia, america, etc. and the german bundesliga isn´t very popular. I like the premier league and watch some games, too. But the english team weren´t that succesful in the last years and the best teams came from spain and germany.

Big plus for the premier league is that there are more than 2 teams capable of winning the title (germany its bayern munich and borussia dortmund, spain real madrid and barcelona)...

I´m a big sc freiburg supporter for those who know a little bit about the german bundesliga

[BuckeyeRed27]

to many arsenal supporters on redszone

Come on you Spurs

Do you guys follow the german soccer league aswell? it´s incredible how much attention the premier league gets in asia, america, etc. and the german bundesliga isn´t very popular. I like the premier league and watch some games, too. But the english team weren´t that succesful in the last years and the best teams came from spain and germany.

Big plus for the premier league is that there are more than 2 teams capable of winning the title (germany its bayern munich and borussia dortmund, spain real madrid and barcelona)...

I´m a big sc freiburg supporter for those who know a little bit about the german bundesliga

I do like the Bundesliga and I think they have the best game day environments. It is really hard to watch any other league at the moment. Germany, Spain and Italy have their TV contracts with GolTV and beIN sports and those are usually on premimum cable packages. GolTV used to be on my basic Time Warner package so I would watch a bit, but I lost it when I moved and switched to DirecTV. I also think the language barrier plays into the other leagues popularity outside of the EPL.

[reds1869]

to many arsenal supporters on redszone

Come on you Spurs

Do you guys follow the german soccer league aswell? it´s incredible how much attention the premier league gets in asia, america, etc. and the german bundesliga isn´t very popular. I like the premier league and watch some games, too. But the english team weren´t that succesful in the last years and the best teams came from spain and germany.

Big plus for the premier league is that there are more than 2 teams capable of winning the title (germany its bayern munich and borussia dortmund, spain real madrid and barcelona)...

I´m a big sc freiburg supporter for those who know a little bit about the german bundesliga

I love the Bundesliga. I'm a Bayern fan, something I inherited from my Bavaria-raised mother. People assume I'm front running, but a love of FCB was instilled in me from a young age. I've heard Freiburg is a beautiful city and I'm pleased to see your club doing so well in recent years.

[5TimeWSChamps]

Next 2 weeks will determine Arsenal's season:

Liverpool - A - Saturday
Manchester United - H - Wednesday
LIverpool - H (FA Cup) - Sunday
Bayern Munich - H - Wednesday

[M2]

to many arsenal supporters on redszone

Come on you Spurs

Do you guys follow the german soccer league aswell? it´s incredible how much attention the premier league gets in asia, america, etc. and the german bundesliga isn´t very popular. I like the premier league and watch some games, too. But the english team weren´t that succesful in the last years and the best teams came from spain and germany.

Big plus for the premier league is that there are more than 2 teams capable of winning the title (germany its bayern munich and borussia dortmund, spain real madrid and barcelona)...

I´m a big sc freiburg supporter for those who know a little bit about the german bundesliga

The Bundesliga puts on great games, even at the bottom and middle of the table. Frieburg is one of the places where I really want to see a game. I hear it's a beautiful city.

In defense of Spanish football, its mid-table games ooze quality as well. For instance, Sevilla and Malaga played a spectacular game last weekend. Also, it's a three-team race this year in Spain. Atletico currently sits top of the table (though it got stomped by Madrid today in the Copa del Rey).

This is the deepest England has been at the top in a long time. There's seven quality clubs. I'm loving Everton this season. They are playing with a lot of style.

[tomnuetten]

The Bundesliga puts on great games, even at the bottom and middle of the table. Frieburg is one of the places where I really want to see a game. I hear it's a beautiful city.

I love the Bundesliga. I'm a Bayern fan, something I inherited from my Bavaria-raised mother. People assume I'm front running, but a love of FCB was instilled in me from a young age. I've heard Freiburg is a beautiful city and I'm pleased to see your club doing so well in recent years.

Freiburg is a beautiful city, but it is a very small city (in relation to cities in the united states it is a village ) 200.000 people live in freiburg...

they city centrum is very old lots of those houses are over 300years old, the "münster" (a cathedral) is about 800 years old and the highest building in freiburg... the region is the warmest in germany with the most hours of sun in the year... it is also next to the french and swiss border (by car 20 min to france or switzerland), one of the highest mountains is next to the city (good for skiing)

most of the people who live there are students... they have good and big universities and the city is expanding fast. Politically they are known to be very high on saving the environment and social themes...

all in all a great city, but if you want to do sightseeing in germany and aren´t in the region I would recommend other (bigger) cities... I took my grand cousins from cincinnati to a freiburg away game last year (in fürth). they were shocked how crazy the fans were and how loud they were the whole game

I can highly recommend to watch a european soccer game live, it´s a great atmosphere

[M2]

all in all a great city, but if you want to do sightseeing in germany and aren´t in the region I would recommend other (bigger) cities... I took my grand cousins from cincinnati to a freiburg away game last year (in fürth). they were shocked how crazy the fans were and how loud they were the whole game

I like mixing in the smaller cities with the bigger ones. Plus, the food I could eat travelling the corridor of Lausanne, Basel, Freiburg and Strasbourg would spoil me for life. Heck, start it all off in Lyon and I may never eat again.

You're 100% right about seeing a soccer game in Europe. It's fantastic. I've been lucky enough to see a game at the Bernabeu in Madrid. And even if you're not at a game, the entire rest of the city is watching in the bars. Every time the home team scores, it's like New Year's Eve. When I was studying abroad in my college days, a few of my friends and I joked about how Hugo Sanchez was our wing man.

[OldRightHander]

Since NBC ramped up their coverage, I've become quite the Liverpool fan. I was a fan back in the late 80's in high school, but of course back then you really couldn't watch them. They are dynamite offensively, especially on the counter, and scoring quickly. But I wish their midfield and defense would come around. If it does, they would be the best team bar none.

I've been a Liverpool fan for years, ever since I found out there was a team called the Reds. That pretty much did it for me. It's been a great offense to watch at times, but yeah, the midfield needs a bit of help. Should be a good game Saturday, but the back line and midfield are going to need to be solid.

[Yachtzee]

Freiburg is a beautiful city, but it is a very small city (in relation to cities in the united states it is a village ) 200.000 people live in freiburg...

they city centrum is very old lots of those houses are over 300years old, the "münster" (a cathedral) is about 800 years old and the highest building in freiburg... the region is the warmest in germany with the most hours of sun in the year... it is also next to the french and swiss border (by car 20 min to france or switzerland), one of the highest mountains is next to the city (good for skiing)

most of the people who live there are students... they have good and big universities and the city is expanding fast. Politically they are known to be very high on saving the environment and social themes...

all in all a great city, but if you want to do sightseeing in germany and aren´t in the region I would recommend other (bigger) cities... I took my grand cousins from cincinnati to a freiburg away game last year (in fürth). they were shocked how crazy the fans were and how loud they were the whole game

I can highly recommend to watch a european soccer game live, it´s a great atmosphere

I actually visited Freiburg in February '93 when I was living in Austria. Beautiful city, but we didn't get to do much because it was saukalt. We only had time for one day though, as we were wrapping up our month-long journey through Europe on a Eurail pass. Do you speak Schwäbisch? I got decent at Oesterreichisch/Bayrisch, but I liked the way Schwäbisch sounded too. I think spoken German sounds better in the south than in the north.

I was a fan of Austria Salzburg at a time when they had a good run in the Champions League in the '90s, but haven't been as up on them since they became FC Red Bull Salzburg. In the German Bundesliga, I follow Bayern Munich because Munich was my favorite German city and they're pretty much the only team I get to see because I can only see German teams in the Champions League. I'm looking forward to Fox getting the Bundesliga rights in 2015. I hope it means we'll actually get to see league matches on TV.