26/27 football thread

[I Bent My Wookie]

Also double post to not take away from the importance of it, but wept Rangers are awful. 

McInnes has been shown to be completely out his depth, almost as bad a managerial signing as Martin. 

[gmoney]

Spoiler

David James and Steve McManaman at Liverpool and then Man City. 

I wasted fucking ages because I got it into my head it had to be Man United. 

 

[SuperBacon]

4 minutes ago, gmoney said:

  Reveal hidden contents

David James and Steve McManaman at Liverpool and then Man City. 

I wasted fucking ages because I got it into my head it had to be Man United. 

 

I think you could be right. I don't actually have the answer!

[RedTwoster]

29 minutes ago, I Bent My Wookie said:

Also double post to not take away from the importance of it, but wept Rangers are awful. 

McInnes has been shown to be completely out his depth, almost as bad a managerial signing as Martin. 

Almost as bad? Statistically, he’s worse which is absolutely mental given how terrible Martin was. 

Having said that, I do think McInnes is a good manager, but it’s hard to excuse the results he’s had since moving to Ibrox. Simply put, that squad shouldn’t be losing to a team like this. And what the heck was he doing playing McCrorie on the left? 

Hearts seems to be gelling as a team not after their overhaul, and I really hope they at least finished second this year. I think O’Neill is too good a manager to let them mount a credible title challenge, but if Rangers keep this up, second place with be Hearts’ to lose…or maybe Motherwell again, they’ve managed to unearth yet another impressive young manager.

[SpiritOfTheForest]

Infantile as it may be, I've been chuckling away at his new moniker of Derek McWinless. Daft as it may seem, if he doesn't get past St Mirren in the cup at the weekend, I think it might already be curtains for auld Del. Maybe being a "Rangers man" and wearing brown brogues isn't enough.

Scottish teams really got some shiters in the draw this year though, didn't they? Motherwell beating HJK in the Conference to a lot of plaudits tonight only to meet...last year's Europa finalists Freiburg. Hearts meeting Benfica in a  Europa qualifier. Hibs - while more doable - still with a much tougher game than they would play in the group stages against Gent to make it to the conference. 

In Celtic news, I'm beginning to think that Micheal Nicholson has been electrocuted like Tam in the Hyperdales episode of Still Game (not my analogy, but it works perfectly). That's Hogh, Duran, Bauer and Hassan all in....how much 2 weeks can change things in Scottish football!

 

Edited August 13 by SpiritOfTheForest
I will mix up Genk and Gent for as long as I live

[Fog Dude]

Time for my one and only plug this season for the Predictions League in the main footie thread. Not really expecting any new players, but it's more of a heads-up since a couple of the regulars might not've realised we're starting this weekend rather than next.

[d-d-d-dAz]

On 8/12/2026 at 2:37 PM, SuperBacon said:

The Netflix Mourinho documentary is worth a watch, but there's nothing ground breaking on it and you'll learn nothing new, but if you find him in anyway interesting, you'll enjoy it.

Does feature a fair bit of John Terry, you have been warned.

I enjoyed it, only in so much as it is so rare to palpably feel a filmmaker get so frustrated in a sports documentary. By the end the interviewer is BEGGING Mourinho to show a human side... and he's just like, no fuck off.

It's fascinating how desperate he seems to appear not fascinating. He wants to be adored as brilliant at what he does, but no more than that. He's either a football robot or a man doing a good impression of one.

Thought he was going to stab the interviewer when he asked why he's been shit for years.

Against all reason, and fully in the knowledge he did show a real cunty side when dealing with the Doctors at Chelsea (amongst other examples), I want him to succeed at Madrid.

 

Edited August 14 by d-d-d-dAz

[SuperBacon]

12 hours ago, gmoney said:

  Reveal hidden contents

David James and Steve McManaman at Liverpool and then Man City. 

I wasted fucking ages because I got it into my head it had to be Man United. 

 

Spot on @gmoney, good quizzing.

[Cousin Jim Bob]

Last time I saw Mourinho he was blaming Vini Jnr for being racially abused, so personally I am hoping this Madrid spell ends in the most humiliating way possible.

[SuperBacon]

On 8/8/2026 at 6:05 PM, SuperBacon said:

He'll do really well this season, he's a top lad, strong and a really good finisher. I don't know if he'll ever make it at the very top level, but Spurs were smart enough to put in a matching bid and sell on clause just in case.

Can see him bagging 20 goals in a good side.

Lankshear 10% of the way there after his debut. He really could be the difference between promotion or not, top lad.

[FLips]

20 minutes ago, SuperBacon said:

Lankshear 10% of the way there after his debut. He really could be the difference between promotion or not, top lad.

Been really impressed by him so far. In recent years, especially Karanka onwards, Boro have been a boring team to watch. All possession, very little attacking flare. They've not exactly changed that this season from the Wrexham and Lincoln games, but at the very least Lankshear is showing he wants to do more than that. A Boro player scoring an overhead kick instead of passing it backwards from the box is almost unheard of, as is Boro being the ones to nick it in added time rather than be the ones bottling a 1-0 lead in the 90th minute.

Very hopeful for this season, but we need the rest of the squad to follow suit. Still a lot of boring, negative minded possession play.

[I Bent My Wookie]

Period of mourning while Engels plays in the Championship rather than the Champions League. 

Scotland is a dumpster fire 

[TheHighlightReel]

17 minutes ago, I Bent My Wookie said:

Period of mourning while Engels plays in the Championship rather than the Champions League. 

Scotland is a dumpster fire 

Seen mixed reviews from Celtic fans so far. What can we expect?

[westlondonmist]

7 hours ago, TheHighlightReel said:

Seen mixed reviews from Celtic fans so far. What can we expect?

He's absolutely brilliant. He's quick, likes a forward pass and has a cool head. He often starts goalscoring opportunities rather than actually assists. I think many celtic fans expected a player who costs £11m to score loads because they thought £11m was a lot when really it isn't. Celtic had a 92% win rate with him in the team, 68% without. 

 

With regards to Jurgen Flopp at Rangers, is anybody that surprised? I knew he'd do badly, not this badly but he's a mediocre manager. You could see last season he couldn't handle the pressure. He's also spent a career playing football where you absorb pressure and hit on the counter, doesn't really seem to know how to play when you're dominating. He's now been blaming the players, blaming the last 15 years. He's changed his line up and formation each match, made half time subs each match and his signings have been shite. Devlin, Shankland and McCrorie all his ex players, ooh and Penrice. None of his signings make the Celtic bench. I kind of hope he wins today just so Tanny Rohl stays. 

[RedTwoster]

3 hours ago, westlondonmist said:

None of his signings make the Celtic bench.

The thing is, I don’t think that’s even close to being true and in a lot of ways that makes the whole thing worse. He has a good squad, probably a better squad than last season and he’s somehow made them seem worse.