Bilic technically won't be coaching the game, the academy coach takes over as most of the players involved today will be youth guys. Surprised to see the game sold out, Lusitanos will even bring 80 fans
3-0 to West Ham, supposedly easy work, which was to be expected. Sakho scored twice and Tomkins also got one. Reece Oxford became the youngest player to play for West Ham in a competitive match.
West Ham needed a 90th minute winner to beat Birkirkara at home with a relatively strong squad. Only excuse they have is they are still 1-2 weeks into their pre-season and this was their first match + Birkirkara basically parked the bus
Southampton will learn of their potential opponents tomorrow
UEFA will release the groupings tomorrow morning, Southampton are seeded so they will avoid many of the big names. Some of the tougher unseeded teams will be Vitesse, Astra, Brondby or Istanbul BB
West Ham are seeded as well, if they progress past Birkirkara which they should
Southampton will face Eredivise side Vitesse Arnhem, first leg at home
West Ham if they progress will likely face Romanian side Astra Giurgiu who won their first leg in Scotland, first leg also at home
Have you seen the sides West Ham have put out so far? Full of kids and like 3 pros around the first team. They'll put out stronger sides I guess and advance, a full strength West Ham should beat that Astra side.
Southampton with an easy 3:0 win over Vitesse and should have no problems making the playoff round, where Southampton will be seeded again
West Ham meanwhile continue having problems in Europe, blew a two goal lead at home to Astra and once again had a player sent off, 3 in 5 matches, quite ironic for a team in the EL with the fair play award. Also, apparently Valencia suffered a serious injury. Don't know what to expect in Romania, Astra were strong at home last season in the EL but not an unbeatable side. I really think West Ham shouldn't put too much value in the EL but I know Bilic will
West Ham playing mostly a reserve side in Romania with Arsenal coming in the weekend. Despite having a clear advantage, Southampton playing a strong team
Shows the difference in attitude I guess. Southampton are probably wanting to go for a good European run because it's where they see themselves. Think West Ham are bracing themselves for relegation the way they're approaching things. :howler:
Shows the difference in attitude I guess. Southampton are probably wanting to go for a good European run because it's where they see themselves. Think West Ham are bracing themselves for relegation the way they're approaching things. :howler:
That West Ham side shouldnt be doing that badly. The side they had at home wasnt that weak and they should have won that game. Obviously its a calculated risk and they wanted to go through with least amount of effort and not going through is an acceptable result but looking at that game atm and all i can say is that they are shit.
With all the upsets in the CL qualifying, Southampton began the day as unseeded in the playoff round, they need a few upsets to be seeded. So far Trabzonspor, Copenhagen and Sampdoria are out, not sure if that's enough to be seeded
edit: They will be seeded, just made the cut thanks to Zurich being eliminated
In fairness Romanian sides can be fairly good, but West Ham really did themselves no favours with that line-up. I cannot be doing with teams who don't take the Europa League seriously. I've been on some great trips in that tournament with City, and it was so exciting. They really **** over fans. Most teams would take a mid-table domestic campaign in exchange for a European adventure. At least Koeman has said he'll take it seriously.
With the new financial reality of EPL, Europa League for EPL teams really doesnt make sense specially if it hinders the EPL campaign and puts the team in relegation battle. Then again, putting those lineups already in July, August makes no sense. A few games that early in the season should not affect the team at all and as you say, would be a nice gesture towards the fans.
Manchester United get a straight forward draw for the CL playoffs against Belgian side Club Brugge. Should be two wins and no real problems
Southampton draw Danish champions FC Midtjylland in the EL playoffs. The Danish side fell in the CL qualifiers to APOEL and are one of these analytics driven sides. Again should be no real problems for the Saints
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