midds

It never happened mate, don't bother. The utter wanker had a chance to invent a situation, think of a funny line he could have said and came out with that heap of pigshit. It is what it is

Refuse to believe that we're sitting on our hands and just playing kerby all summer. Just because we've heard little about players doesn't mean nothing is going on. The shit we went through to meet PSR a month ago would suggest we're in a position to spend reasonably big on 2 or 3 important players, ideally we get them in sooner rathe than later but if we need to leave it late to get the right player at the right price then so be it. People need to switch off a little and just let it play out, the daily angst on here is getting a bit tedious I must admit

Tonali had a grand on Howe at 6/4

I think there's been a lot of upheaval around the club in the last 6 months and he's still, understandably, a bit unsure as to how it's going to fit together and work over the next few months. New SD in Mitchell as well as losing 2 key allies in Staveley and Mehrdad from the board is going to have an effect. I don't think he'll go by any stretch but he's got legit concerns as to how decisions will be made and by whom. Don't blame him at all for keeping his cards close to his chest and being a bit cagey, he's just got to make sure we have a good start to the season and let the FA pick someone else

I think now he's been replaced the actual amount we got for him is largely irrelevant. The vacuum he created when he fucked off was far more of an issue and the frustration was because we had no-one in place AND no pot of cash in the way of compensation, it was the shitty end of the stick. Now Mitchell has come in, who seems to be as good, if not better, than Ashworth in some areas the compensation amount feels a bit moot now. Not that arsed if it's 12.4, 7.8, 4.2 or anything like that really, at this point it's just posturing and ego driven drivel. I think we're up on the deal in a big way and that's all that matters to me personally

I must be getting confused with one of the other ones

He disappeared

If Ornstein is seen as the oracle then Edwards has to be the orifice. Surely?

The only possible way he goes to England is if the FA give him an ultimatum - 'take it now or we'll never ask you again' Highly, highly unlikely they'll do that or that he'll go. Can never say 100% but I'd be astonished, and canny disappointed, if he gave up what he's got here for the England role

Howe would go round the bend in International management. The bloke clearly lives for the day-to-day stuff, working with players every day, working on tactics, training and developing players, watching footage and looking for areas of weakness to exploit every single week in different teams. Buying and selling players, new contracts when necessary, looking at the youth players and taking an interest in the club at every single level. Managing his team against a different team every few days and just the general cut and thrust of big club management in one of the biggest leagues in the world. That's his drug and he's not giving that up for any International team. I can understand him being tempted but it's just not him. He needs the involvement on a daily basis, he needs his hit of football

BBC or ITV then? Not sure I can cope with another 90 minutes of Shearer's commentary really - tremendous striker, awful with a mic. Could go 5 Live commentary maybe? Puns will be off the dial too - SAINT OLMO IS ON FIRE TONIGHT!!11! etc

The night is dark and full of terrors. Few disappearances tonight I reckon

Timing of all of this seems a little suspicious but they've done it by the book. Not sure whether the issues were financial, social or medical or whatever but that's none of our business tbh. She was the face of the takeover and did a brilliant job, she should be thanked by all Newcastle fans and also be allowed to just slip away and move onto her next project. They've been brilliant for the club and now they're moving on, wish them nothing but good luck, they've been mint

No idea tbph. Chelsea would be in the same situation and they don't appear to give a solitary fuck about UEFA rules either. Surely if they're putting this pigshit through the PL rules and regs they've got to put it through the Uefa rules and regs too? It's ridiculously hilarious

I mean, it's clearly an absurd way to operate, that's not what I'm getting at. I'm meaning these ridiculous things appear to totally within these bullshit rules. The more shit like this that actually passes their bullshit rules the better, I want as many people to laugh in their faces and ask simple questions about their competency to construct and police the regulations. I'd love the PL and the PSR rules in general to be so farcical and so unfit for purpose that they have no portion but to rip it up and start again.

Chelsea's finance team are absolutely top drawer It's gone way beyond the point of being annoyed, I'm genuinely impressed that they've exploited yet another loophole and dodged another PSR bullet for another year. These fuckers are so far ahead of the game they're openly laughing the face of the PL, I'm genuinely a big big fan of what they're doing

He hung his leg up there to block it which is what any defender would have done, it's instinct. Unfortunately for him Kane's follow through has caught his foot accidentally. Nothing Dumfries has done wrong in that situation but once he goes down and they look at it a few times then i'm not surprised it gets referred. It's a bit shit and very harsh but it's also a foul elsewhere on the park where it doesn't really matter

I totally agree tbh. Kane knew he'd been caught and milked it so they had a chance to look at it a few times, he knows exactly what he's doing, he knows how this shit works. This seems to be the game now unfortunately

I agree on the whole, it was harsh and I'm not suggesting it was a nailed on penalty. But I can see why they've looked at it and given it after a few looks. It's not a slam dunk, Dumfries definitely caught him with the challenge after the shot and in other areas that's a foul 100% of the time. Them's the breaks

Good point, not sure of the answer tbh. Maybe the fact he stayed down so long that the officials thought he was genuinely hurt came into the equation. Maybe they looked at it enough times to convince themselves that they had to give something ? I'm not saying they definitely got it right either but I can see why they gave it, there's logic behind it. It's definitely harsh but if you'd give it in the centre circle or by the corner flag then you should give it in the box too

How many times have we all seen a defender, normally at full back, clearing a ball and the onrushing attacker sticks out a foot to try and block it and the full back clears it and follows through to connect with the attackers foot. Ref gives a foul every time and no-one blinks an eye. It's not deliberate but the contact after the kick is enough for a foul. It's staggeringly similar to what happened in the box but it was a shot not a clearance. It's harsh because it has resulted in a goal rather than a free-kick near the touchline but I can see why they've given it. It's disproportionate in the fact it's lead to a goal but recreate that in other areas of the pitch and a foul gets given 99 times out of 100.

Got the goals at pretty much perfect times tonight, equalised quickly and left it late to kill them off. Superb finish from Watkins but the game was getting a little stretched and that extra bit of pace and quality won it for us. Thought we were the better team for most of the game, they had flashes and breaks here and there but I thought we looked in control for the most part. We've been dreadful for most of the tournament but we find ourselves in the Final and we're the underdog now, nothing to lose and every person expects Spain to win it. It's just a game of football and they'll be beatable on the day itself, they've got weaknesses but this England team have shifted through a couple of gears in the last couple of games, it's been brutal to watch but there were signs of it clicking tonight. We've got a puncher's chance on Sunday

Game is there for the taking tbh, Holland don't look great and we've caused them problems. Foden could easily have had at least one and there's finally a bit of spark in the team. Need to stay aggressive and play like we're losing, hate this passive shit, just be positive and it's 100% there for England

The only surprise will be finding out exactly how they'll get away with it. To even allow yourself to think that they'll get a deduction is laughable, just like Chelsea

Not when he's only got a year left before he's worth zero. Not against signing him, he's proven to be pretty efficient under a manager who is competent and has played really well in the past but £30m is way, way too high at this point. Drive the price down to about 15 and it becomes a decent deal