Chat S--- Get Banged: Leicester Have Won the League!

Schnerres said:

No.
(You can also find the link somewhere upthread.)

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I think the methodology the sportswriter used is flawed and it leads to some absurd examples. The 07-08 Celtics aren't an upset by any stretch of the imagination. We all know why they underperformed the previous season and why they performed so well the following season. No one was surprised by their winning the league. Using the 99 Rams or the Hurricanes is comparing apples to oranges, because in soccer leagues, crowning a champion based on points earned during the regular season tends to reward the actually better teams whereas, the playoff system of american sports introduces an element of luck. Either way, in all american leagues save baseball, there's financial parity and multiple champions. In the past 20 years, only 4 teams have won the league and only 5-6 enter the league seriously expected to vie for it.

This leads to the next point. The point isn't which team had the most improvement from one season to the next, but which team surpassed the expectations set for her based on the evaluation of its talent level before the season. This makes the Montpellier, Kaiserslauten and Nottingham Forrest examples more interesting. However, there's an additional wrinkle to the argument. In modern football, post-Bosman and post-humongus TV rights and Champions League money, whereas there's no 1 on 1 perfect correlation between money spent on players and league standing, arguably money spent is the biggest predictor of success (I would say anywhere between 65-75% can be predicted by wages).

I don't know enough about Kaiserslauten and 90s era German football. I know that they aren't giants by any stretch of the imagination and they have trouble staying in the top flight, so this could in fact be a comparable case. And so perhaps is Wolfsburg which won a couple of years ago. OTOH, although Bayern Munich tends to dominate German football overall, it seems to me that the teams that challenge it tend to change from year to year and era to era.

I do know that in the 70s era English First division there wasn't as much money to go around, financial discrepancies weren't as large as they are today and thus, the league race was far more open affair than it is nowadays. The same is true more or less of French football before the infusion of oil money to PSG. The French league has been the one major league in recent years where you could see all sorts of teams win the title.

So, to have a team that has the tenth of a budget of a Chelsea or a Manchester United go on and win the race in a league played out over 38 game days -not a cup with one off games that can knock out any overall favorite- seems to me to be a definite contender for greatest upset in football history. I do think a better methodology to tease out the largest upset is to compare the preseason odds of a team with its final league standing. I mean, Leicester's odds were 5000 to 1. This implies that if we could magically replay the past season for 5,000 years, Leicester would win just 1 time and we are actually witnessing. It's gobsmacking.

I'd still hang my hat on Notts Forest for most similar unlikely "out of nowhere " seasons ever. I was trying to find data on what the team budgets were for season 77-78 but had no luck. I was a kid but that was the season I started taking more of an interest in English football because my idol, Dalglish had signed for Liverpool.

Forest also played a style where they would soak up pressure and relied on quick counter attacks. As well as the pundits shaking their heads wondering when the bubble would burst.

As an aside, this little article gives a an insight into that team:

"The start of Nottingham Forest’s extraordinary journey from supposed relegation fodder to 1978 champions is told in this edited extract from I Believe in Miracles"

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/nov/11/nottingham-forest-brian-clough-i-believe-in-miracles

Nottingham Forrest went on to win two consecutive Champions League titles after topping the English league, which indicates a level of talent Leicester doesn't come close to having.

Them winning the league in 78 was obviously unexpected at the time, but in hindsight the run Leicester is on right now is way more surprising, unless you believe they have the quality to mount a serious challenge in Europe in the coming seasons.

I'm pretty sure if there were forums back in 77-78 many of the posts would be similar to the ones in this thread. Sure, that season was the start of an amazing run by Forest, but nobody could predict that at the time. I'm just taking that season in a vacuum and the general surprise at the time. It was entirely unexpected.

I actually think the Leicester story is better and more of a surprise but to me the Forest story is the most similar of all the other ones. Style of play...types of players etc.

Sure they had Clough...but Clough had a pretty uninspiring spell at Brighton prior and we all know what happened at Leeds.

It's an interesting point about Leicester in Europe though, will they hang on to their players, who will they sign etc. Their style suits away CL games...but that's all for another thread next season.

CodPiece XL said:

I'm pretty sure if there were forums back in 77-78 many of the posts would be similar to the ones in this thread. Sure, that season was the start of an amazing run by Forest, but nobody could predict that at the time. I'm just taking that season in a vacuum and the general surprise at the time. It was entirely unexpected.

I actually think the Leicester story is better and more of a surprise but to me the Forest story is the most similar of all the other ones. Style of play...types of players etc.

Sure they had Clough...but Clough had a pretty uninspiring spell at Brighton prior and we all know what happened at Leeds.

It's an interesting point about Leicester in Europe though, will they hang on to their players, who will they sign etc. Their style suits away CL games...but that's all for another thread next season.

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What I'm saying is that while unexpected at the time, history showed us that that Nott Forrest team was very talented and capable of winning the title. When you look at that 70s team now, the fact they were champions of England comes as no surprise.

Obviously, this is hindsight, but I have a feeling 30 years from now people are going to look at this Leicester season and the following ones and think "how in the hell did they manage to pull that off??". Unlike Forrest, where it's now obvious 1978 was just the first chapter of a very good team going on an amazing run.

It comes down to splitting hairs about if "biggest surprise" should be evaluated strictly within the context of a single given season.

Well that's just it...we won't know how much of an achievement this is until we see how they perform next season. One hit wonders who disappear ... Or maybe they finish in the top 4 and make a decent run in Europe. In which case in retrospect, it will have been less of an achievement. One thing for sure... It's been amazing to watch.



Edit: changed "surprise " to achievement"

If Leicester's players are legit good, it's doubtful she's ll be able to keep them and they ll move to bigger clubs that show them the money.

I think Soccernomics covered this, but the english first division was far more wide open in the 70s. Looking at the list of champions, from 69 to 81, I can see 7 different teams winning the league: Liverpool, Arsenal, Leeds, Derby, Everton, Nottingham Forrest and Aston Villa. And you ve got teams like QPR and Ipsiwich finishing second for good measure.

Nottingham's run at the European Cup becomes less impressive when you remind yourself that at the time the format was 5-6 rounds of double knockout matches in which only champions from the previous year actually participated. This meant in practice that in the first few rounds you feasted on champions from smaller countries while there was a decent chance you would avoid behemoths at the later stages because they got upset by a smaller side. It also meant there was a good chance that last year's champion from any country was shit this year and actually the 3d, 4th or 5th best team from that country. Forest beat Malmo for their first cup for example. I am going to guess that if the European Cup had the same structure as today's Champion's League, Malmo wouldn't have made it out of the group stages. Plus, teams back then were only allowed to have a couple of foreigners on their squads. English teams had a slight advantage because they could play scottish, welsh and irish players.

As far as money is concerned, one thing to consider is that at the time, there was practically no TV money to speak of, money from the gate was the main source of income and sponsors were starting to get introduced on shirts at the time.

Is it worth mentioning the Forrest were able to break the UK transfer record in buying Trevor Francis. Could Leicester do the same? No chance.

It's really hard to compare different eras in sport. Could Forrest have won two European Cups if the format was like the Champion's League today?

All i know is, like someone mentioned, they were 5000-1 to win the league, they nearly got relgated last season, if not for an amazing late run. No one thought Ranieri would get the job done. They're Leicester City. Huth and Morgan in central defense...journeymen as Gary Lineker politely said in an interview a couple of days ago. Their pass completion and posession stats are near the bottom of the league.

Maybe in trying so hard to compare we lose sight of the acheivement on its own terms and merits. And we'll never see this again. Not in our lifetimes.

Is Lineker still planning on presenting MOTD in his underwear if Leicester win the league?

CodPiece XL said:

Well that's just it...we won't know how much of an achievement this is until we see how they perform next season. One hit wonders who disappear ... Or maybe they finish in the top 4 and make a decent run in Europe. In which case in retrospect, it will have been less of an achievement. One thing for sure... It's been amazing to watch.

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I hope I'm not mischaracterizing your point, so apologies in advance if I am, but I don't think I agree with it. I don't think they are meant to sustain it. I don't think they possibly can. It's what makes what they are doing right now so amazing. Even if they don't, I just don't think equating this year to a one-hit wonder, at least in the sense that I think about (A-ha Take on Me), is fair. This is more than a mediocre team catching lightening in a bottle and hitting a nerve. They are on the verge of a sustained year-long campaign to do the nearly impossible. They have almost led it box to wire. This isn't like the 1980 hockey team -- who got punched in the face and punched back and achieved the impossible in that period while Goliath was laying stunned. (Every bit as amazing, but in a different kind of way.) They have played above their station, week to week, while the pressure has mounted, often having 7 or 14 days to think about it between games.

This is, by the way, exactly why I think it's very premature to declare this race over. There is a reason teams like Leicester do not win the league and why it's so amazing that they might, and part of it is that the season is 38 weeks, not 35. Better teams than Leicester have found ways to go D-D-L against mid-table premier league competition. It's relentless and you cannot afford to slip. But if they do pull it off, I guess I do not agree that anything further is needed next year or otherwise to validate it. This isn't meant to happen.

DennyDoyle'sBoil said:

I hope I'm not mischaracterizing your point, so apologies in advance if I am, but I don't think I agree with it. I don't think they are meant to sustain it. I don't think they possibly can. It's what makes what they are doing right now so amazing. Even if they don't, I just don't think equating this year to a one-hit wonder, at least in the sense that I think about (A-ha Take on Me), is fair. This is more than a mediocre team catching lightening in a bottle and hitting a nerve. They are on the verge of a sustained year-long campaign to do the nearly impossible. They have almost led it box to wire. This isn't like the 1980 hockey team -- who got punched in the face and punched back and achieved the impossible in that period while Goliath was laying stunned. (Every bit as amazing, but in a different kind of way.) They have played above their station, week to week, while the pressure has mounted, often having 7 or 14 days to think about it between games.

This is, by the way, exactly why I think it's very premature to declare this race over. There is a reason teams like Leicester do not win the league and why it's so amazing that they might, and part of it is that the season is 38 weeks, not 35. Better teams than Leicester have found ways to go D-D-L against mid-table premier league competition. It's relentless and you cannot afford to slip. But if they do pull it off, I guess I do not agree that anything further is needed next year or otherwise to validate it. This isn't meant to happen.

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Not a fan of "The Sun Always Shines on TV", then?

By the by, re: your last paragraph, I think Leicester probably already have enough points to win the league. Spurs could easily lose at Chelsea on Monday night - the last game for which Chelsea's players and fans really have any motivation - and/or drop points there as well as at home against Southampton or away to Newcastle.

Don't forget that this side has already sustained this success for longer than a calendar year. We thought they went on a hot run to end 2014/2015- it's looking more like something was starting to click back then. Adding in the Champions League and the resulting fixtures will be interesting.

They've also been very lucky from an injury standpoint. They haven't had an overloaded schedule, though I'm not entirely sure some of these guys know what "tired" is, anyway.

DennyDoyle'sBoil said:

I hope I'm not mischaracterizing your point, so apologies in advance if I am, but I don't think I agree with it. I don't think they are meant to sustain it. I don't think they possibly can. It's what makes what they are doing right now so amazing. Even if they don't, I just don't think equating this year to a one-hit wonder, at least in the sense that I think about (A-ha Take on Me), is fair. This is more than a mediocre team catching lightening in a bottle and hitting a nerve. They are on the verge of a sustained year-long campaign to do the nearly impossible. They have almost led it box to wire. This isn't like the 1980 hockey team -- who got punched in the face and punched back and achieved the impossible in that period while Goliath was laying stunned. (Every bit as amazing, but in a different kind of way.) They have played above their station, week to week, while the pressure has mounted, often having 7 or 14 days to think about it between games.

This is, by the way, exactly why I think it's very premature to declare this race over. There is a reason teams like Leicester do not win the league and why it's so amazing that they might, and part of it is that the season is 38 weeks, not 35. Better teams than Leicester have found ways to go D-D-L against mid-table premier league competition. It's relentless and you cannot afford to slip. But if they do pull it off, I guess I do not agree that anything further is needed next year or otherwise to validate it. This isn't meant to happen.

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Actually my post was in reference Roddericks. Sometimes I post using my iphone and I still have not figured out how to include the previous quote.

To clarify, it's the discussion of achievement versus "biggest shock" we were going back and forth on. I have used Notts Forest as being the closest example of a team coming out of nowhere and winning the league. Not a fashionable team , expectations were they probably get relegated, the media at the time kept asking how long could they keep it up. It mirrors Leicester's season in that respect. Also, both played a counteracting style of play where they suck you in and hit on the break. I'm probably one of the few people on this board that can even remember watching Forest because I'm an old fart. That's why I bring up the style similarities.

I think his point was that as it turned out, Forest had a great team, one that went on to become champions of Europe twice in the following years. Therefore, in retrospect it was not much of a surprise that they managed it looking back. Along these lines, I responded that logically we should wait and see what they do next season. Maybe they really are that good, maybe they they are a top 4 club for the next two years or so..maybe they do well in Europe, maybe they are not a flash in the pan for 14 months. I personally don't think that way. I prefer living in the moment regardless of what they achieve next season.

As other posters have said, football in England was different back then. More of a level playing field. It's therefore a far better story given the huge discrepancies in budget these days compared to the 70's. Although to be fair, I think Leicester have had a massive advantage in not being involved in Europe this season. I just have a feeling that if the usual suspects had no European commitments Leicester may not be top of the league at this point.

Also, to clarify I don't expect Leicester to be kings of Europe next season, I think they will find it hard to be in the top 4 of the league. I expect normal service to resume with the usual London-Manchester stranglehold. I hope if Man Utd or Chelsea come knocking on the door offering 65M for Vardy or Mahrez, their billionaire owner Srivaddhanaprabha ( yes I did cut and paste), tells them to piss off and they build on what they have. Although he may find the money hard to refuse and it's unlikely.

I think we have seen enough strange endings to seasons not to jump the gun and crown them Champions just yet. I haven't and I'm still in a state of disbelief that this is happening. I'll wait until it's mathematically impossible for them to get caught. That's why I never get involved in the Team A has an easier schedule because they are playing X, Y and Z debates there are no "cookies" at this stage. However, the pressure is just as much on Spurs, even more so.....

Yeah, not over. Tottenham's chances of winning league are still higher than Leicester's chances before league started.

And the other interesting part is Spurs winning the league is also a big upset on its own terms!

Nick Kaufman said:

Yeah, not over. Tottenham's chances of winning league are still higher than Leicester's chances before league started.

And the other interesting part is Spurs winning the league is also a big upset on its own terms!

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Any other season and I would delighted if Spurs win. It felt really odd rooting for a Tony Pulis team to equalize yesterday. I just want the Leicester story to be complete.

Spurs fans should really feel good about their team no matter what. They have so much going for them, a really young team and a good manager.

I think Leicester gets pegged back by United this week and then romps over Everton at home. If there was ever a team positioned to completely roll over, its Everton - absolutely nothing to play for, manager on the hot seat, coming off a big cup loss, numerous key players mainly thinking about their transfer destinations at this point, other key players injured recently and out of form.

Contrast all that with the tremendous energy that Leicester always seem to have playing at home and the atmosphere that will surround that game. There will be a ton of pressure of course and football is a funny game in which funny things happen. But I see think they come out flying against a team with no interest in playing and pound the Toffees like 4-1 to clinch the league.

Spurs really threw it away against West Brom because it allows Leicester to potentially get over the line even if they don't get results at United and at Chelsea in tough atmospheres with the pressure ratcheted up.

I'm torn on LCFC on one hand it's a good story of an underdog. On the other hand their second best player is Vardy who is the embodiment of the worst of English soccer.

And I thought Vardy was England's very own Schillaci.

Cellar-Door said:

I'm torn on LCFC on one hand it's a good story of an underdog. On the other hand their second best player is Vardy who is the embodiment of the worst of English soccer.

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I'll bite. How so?

Racially abiding a Japanese man in a casino, plus assault conviction, plus referee abuser.

Having said that, I'm sure I could dig up a player who has done and said dodgier things and also wasted his talent, which Vardy has most certainly not done.

CodPiece XL said:

Actually my post was in reference Roddericks.

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Gotcha. This thing is just so fascinating on so many levels.

I did love when they started chanting "Barcelona we're coming for you" during the Swansea game.

Dummy Hoy said:

I'll bite. How so?

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He's a general scumbag, but the racist stuff is mostly what I was referring to. The FA has a zero tolerance policy towards racism. Unless you are talented and English in which case you make a half-assed apology and that's settled. He didn't miss a game for something that a lesser (or foreign) player would have been either suspended or sacked for. It's also a crime in England, but you know he apologized and he scores goals so it's fine.
LCFC also fired their previous manager and several players after a video came out of the players making racist comments to thai prostitutes while having sex with them. But of course Vardy only racially abused a casino patron, and he's good so... no real punishment.

Spacemans Bong said:

Racially abiding a Japanese man in a casino

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Cellar-Door said:

He's a general scumbag, but the racist stuff is mostly what I was referring to. The FA has a zero tolerance policy towards racism. Unless you are talented and English in which case you make a half-assed apology and that's settled. He didn't miss a game for something that a lesser (or foreign) player would have been either suspended or sacked for. It's also a crime in England, but you know he apologized and he scores goals so it's fine.
LCFC also fired their previous manager and several players after a video came out of the players making racist comments to thai prostitutes while having sex with them. But of course Vardy only racially abused a casino patron, and he's good so... no real punishment.

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Vardy is so good, he can chat shit and not get banged.

Cellar-Door said:

He's a general scumbag, but the racist stuff is mostly what I was referring to. The FA has a zero tolerance policy towards racism. Unless you are talented and English in which case you make a half-assed apology and that's settled. He didn't miss a game for something that a lesser (or foreign) player would have been either suspended or sacked for. It's also a crime in England, but you know he apologized and he scores goals so it's fine.
LCFC also fired their previous manager and several players after a video came out of the players making racist comments to thai prostitutes while having sex with them. But of course Vardy only racially abused a casino patron, and he's good so... no real punishment.

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I actually didn't know this story about Vardy. I mean, I had a suspicion he was an asshole, and Men In Blazers in their unique and funny way imply it all the time, but I didn't know he was confirmed to be an asshole. First thing I've heard that makes it so that I wouldn't be all that bothered if Spurs took the title -- well, that and I actually found the Leicester away supporters to be a bit over the top at a game I went to this year. (Lots of cruel "you suck" kind of stuff instead of happy "we're great" kind of chants.)

I don't doubt that the FA has a double standard, but (and I'll try to avoid getting too V&N) I think there's something else going on here. Racial abuse directed toward Chinese and east Asians is simply not treated all that seriously. There's definitely a double standard there. I have no doubt that if Vardy had directed the same sort of abuse toward a casino patron of African descent, it would have been treated differently.

Edit: Oh man, and Vardy's apology really sucked. The "I'm sorry to anyone who was offended" apology is is exceeded in its awfulness only by its ubiquitousness.

I'd like to know more about this double standard. Are there any examples of the FA disciplining a player for racial abuse when the player wasn't representing his club and wasn't prosecuted?

DLew On Roids said:

I'd like to know more about this double standard. Are there any examples of the FA disciplining a player for racial abuse when the player wasn't representing his club and wasn't prosecuted?

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Balotelli for an instagram post.
Rio Ferdinand for a twitter post.
Robert Huth twitter again.
Those are the obvious ones I remember.

SocrManiac said:

I disagree that Drinkwater's loss against Everton isn't significant. Two major keys to the squad's success this year are the Huth/Morgan and Kanté/Drinkwater pairings. In the midfield it's not as simple as "You go, I'll hold." It's borne of understanding and not easily replaced in a week. I don't think they have another guy in the squad with the engine required to do it for a full ninety, nor two guys with the talent to split the duty. Something has to change.

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I'm not so sure. Yesterday, I saw Drinkwater and Simpson getting constantly abused on their right flank by a total (some might say intentional) failure to cover Martial. Basically, anytime United wanted to get to their left attacking corner, they were allowed to do so, and usually got off an uncontested or semi-contested cross. Meanwhile, on the other flank, Fuchs was fuckin' Speedy Gonzalez by comparison. The fact that it finally came down to Drinkwater having to take a cynical challenge to prevent a high-percentage chance was no surprise by the 82nd minute. Drinkwater could have done it any of the previous dozen times, except that Martial was already past him.

Ulloa looked dangerous for at least half the game and did pretty well against an elite defensive line. The fact that he was so gassed by 70' that the commentators felt sorry for him is a testament to his work ethic - it's on Ranieri to get him out of there. But the fact that he doesn't have enough in the tank to go a full ninety means I think getting Vardy back will be more of an upgrade than losing Drinkwater will be a downgrade. I think they'll have a better team out there vs Everton than they did yesterday, no matter who's with Kante.

Drinkwater avoided additional charges with the FA. Moss awards the Drinkwater challenge as a penalty and gets him an extra game. Oliver seems to realize it isn't about him and isn't going to write up an understandably white-hot player in his report.

I'm really interested in seeing what, if anything, happens with Huth/Fellaini.

The Price Is Wrong said:

I'm not so sure. Yesterday, I saw Drinkwater and Simpson getting constantly abused on their right flank by a total (some might say intentional) failure to cover Martial. Basically, anytime United wanted to get to their left attacking corner, they were allowed to do so, and usually got off an uncontested or semi-contested cross. Meanwhile, on the other flank, Fuchs was fuckin' Speedy Gonzalez by comparison. The fact that it finally came down to Drinkwater having to take a cynical challenge to prevent a high-percentage chance was no surprise by the 82nd minute. Drinkwater could have done it any of the previous dozen times, except that Martial was already past him.

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This is by design. Mahrez (right outside midfield) is given lots of freedom to stay upfield and the tradeoff is that the right sided center midfielder needs to cover on that flank a lot so you need somebody who will run forever and often be chasing down a speedy winger or busting ass over to help when the other team's left sided full back presses forward. Leicester also plays a very narrow defense by design - they have Huth and Morgan in the middle, who are fantastic at cutting out crosses, so they're OK with allowing relatively uncontested balls played in from their defensive right, particularly when the guy playing those balls is a converted CB without a lot of skill like Marcos Rojo.

Ulloa looked dangerous for at least half the game and did pretty well against an elite defensive line. The fact that he was so gassed by 70' that the commentators felt sorry for him is a testament to his work ethic - it's on Ranieri to get him out of there. But the fact that he doesn't have enough in the tank to go a full ninety means I think getting Vardy back will be more of an upgrade than losing Drinkwater will be a downgrade. I think they'll have a better team out there vs Everton than they did yesterday, no matter who's with Kante.

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I agree that getting Vardy back >>> losing Drinkwater, but I think you're very much underselling what Drinkwater brings to the club and how important having a hardworking right-sided CM is to giving Mahrez the freedom to do his thing.

SocrManiac said:

I'm really interested in seeing what, if anything, happens with Huth/Fellaini.

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The Independent seems to think they'll both get bans. I can't tell whether it's speculation or based on sources. I bet if Fellaini doesn't throw the elbow, Huth's hairpull doesn't get noticed, but now that Fellaini's conduct is under the microscope it could be bad news for Huth.

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/marouane-fellaini-and-robert-huth-face-bans-with-fa-excepted-to-take-action-over-man-united-vs-a7010026.html

Things are unraveling just a bit for Leicester. No Drinkwater or Huth against Everton makes it less lopsided and I think puts draw into the equation. They've risen to every challenge, but if Spurs win today, that game is going to be very tense. If Drinkwater gets an extra game, and Leicester go to Stamford Bridge needing a result without Huth or Drinkwater, things start to get pretty interesting.

Drinkwater's in the clear.

A Huth suspension would be huge. He's gotten away with a lot this year- it feels like it was only a matter of time. It figures that it'd be Fellaini bringing Huth down by being, well, himself.

No matter anymore. Party time in Leceister!

I can't believe what I'm seeing. I'm not a supporter, I'm a total plastic fan, but I love it.

One season-long "wow." Congrats to a most unlikely, most worthy champ.

I wonder if the odds of them winning next years Champions League are better than 5000-1.

So this is the equivalent of the Browns winning the next Super Bowl? Or is it more like the worst D1 team winning CFP?

When does Ranieri's flight land? What did he order for lunch?

PaulinMyrBch said:

So this is the equivalent of the Browns winning the next Super Bowl? Or is it more like the worst D1 team winning CFP?

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Yeah, this is more like New Mexico State winning the College Football playoff.

dirtynine said:

I wonder if the odds of them winning next years Champions League are better than 5000-1.

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How's that Thai billionaire's business doing? And how long can he get away with flouting financial fair play rules? Maybe we'll find out soon.

I do look forward to reading the poll results of "how will Leicester fare in the CL", especially after the transfer window ends, because I have a feeling opinions will vary wildly all over the spectrum. You can make a straight-faced argument for just about any outcome. Can't wait.

coremiller said:

So can they win the league?

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Hell yeah they can! Congratulations to any Leicester supporter that may happen to read this thread. Simply unbelievable.

Thanks. Caught second half. Awesome action. Definitely more intense when a title is on the line.

This is the biggest upset I can remember in sports history. All of Leicester players are legends, this title will live forever. Congratulations!

PaulinMyrBch said:

So this is the equivalent of the Browns winning the next Super Bowl? Or is it more like the worst D1 team winning CFP?

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It like the latter, except if eight years ago that school was playing DIII and then not only moved up to D1 but managed to win the CFP. The Browns are competing on an even playing field, they are just a dysfunctional organization. Leicester has a tiny fraction of the resources of their competitors and not long ago they were playing in the third highest league in England.

Thanks for the perspective. This is nuts. Congrats to that team and anyone who follows them.

Middle of March, 2015:

Morgan's Magic Snowplow said:

It like the latter, except if eight years ago that school was playing DIII and then not only moved up to D1 but managed to win the CFP. The Browns are competing on an even playing field, they are just a dysfunctional organization. Leicester has a tiny fraction of the resources of their competitors and not long ago they were playing in the third highest league in England.

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It's not really that tiny. They got what $45-$50M just in TV revenue this summer. It's still an amazing occurrence, but one of the reasons for such upset in the table (West Ham challenging top 4, Southampton top 6, etc.) is that the financial playing field is evening up some, and talent that could never be purchased or kept is staying. Without the TV money Leicester can never sign Kante, Okazaki or Ulloa, and they would have been almost forced to sell one of Vardy/Mahrez.

Amazing, just amazing. Congrats on a very deserved title for the best team in the league.

Cellar-Door said:

It's not really that tiny. They got what $45-$50M just in TV revenue this summer. It's still an amazing occurrence, but one of the reasons for such upset in the table (West Ham challenging top 4, Southampton top 6, etc.) is that the financial playing field is evening up some, and talent that could never be purchased or kept is staying. Without the TV money Leicester can never sign Kante, Okazaki or Ulloa, and they would have been almost forced to sell one of Vardy/Mahrez.

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That's true (I started a thread a while back on this topic that is buried somewhere) but Leicester's wage bill is still tiny compared to what other clubs possess.

Its actually a bit funny in that many of Leicester's larger buys from the last year didn't work out - Ulloa has been OK but not anything special, Gokhan Inler, Andrej Kramaric, and Yohan Benalouane were all basically busts. Kante was fantastic.