BottledDog

You sure on that? I haven't the foggiest what Ashley wants half the time though have my doubts that that is the limit of his ambition. It would seems counter to his ever expanding empire, and everything he has achieved. Run on the cheap, or at least without further external investment? Yeah, I can go along with that. To simply stand still? Nah, not a chance.

http://www.mofahaimages.com/b3ta/giggsy1.gif

Fuck's sake, feel for the lad.

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxc4c2GkhW1qg9bnto2_500.gif

Nowt wrong with what AVB has said. Lloris is number one, but you can't say anyone is an automatic starter whatever the scenario. And the scenario is that to drop Freidel after last week would be expected, but harsh, and needs to be played carefully. Deschamps is a fucking tool.

Would be a perfect result if them 2 scored. Surely the perfect result would be an 11 nil win with everyone scoring including krul What about our subs?

Agreed.

Eh? How Xisco! There's not much left on yer contract, fancy doing the same?

That would indeed be staggering. Which is why precisely nobody is saying that they are as far as I can see.

Fair enough. Time for me to fuck off to the pub.

Guess it'll change when some of the rough figures are sorted but as it stands Wigan, Swansea, WBA, Fulham, Everton, Tottenham and Arsenal have all spent less. http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/en/premier-league/transferuebersicht/wettbewerb_GB1.html

No.

You don't finish 5th and just think that it's job done though and we're unlikely to match that this season with our current squad and number of games to play. Finishing 5th was totally unexpected and we should have tried to build on it and we haven't. Bringing players in is easier when you qualify for Europe than it is when finishing in the chasing pack. The ambition of the club goes no further than breaking even. You're right, we could and should have at least signalled an attempt to push on. To use that to do down the achievements of the last season is just laughable though.

I agree to some extent, but ultimately the goal is to finish up as high as possible, and 5th is therefore better than 8th. Last season was a great achievement. Obviously our lack of movement is very much against that goal, but the prize and the end of it all, is league positions & cups, and we achieved our best league position since proper ages ago. Exactly, if you're going to ask questions like "why bother finishing 5th" you may as well admit that football is basically pointless. There are many achievements in football beyond getting into the Champions League. We did extremely well last season and had a great time, to dismiss that because of a poor transfer window is idiotic. Absolutely. Why bother finishing 5th? Fkn hell. Luckily nobody has asked that, certainly not me. Nice attempt though, both of you. What were you asking then? You said "Ultimately what good has finishing 5th last season done us?", and went on to say that we might as well have finished 8th for the good it has done us. 5th made all the difference. It was a flat out fantastic season, and gave me an unbelievable amount of pride coming above the likes of Chelsea, and yes, Liverpool and Sunderland. For someone often having a go at the balance sheet brigade, you seem to take a very businesslike approach to what constitutes an achievement.

No it's not, it was a rare and fantastic season whatever happens, one that we'd struggle to better even with someone like Debuchy. In the last 60 or 70 years we have bettered 5th what, 5 times? Enjoy it ffs, don't dismiss the season as pointless because we didn't replace an average right back or pick up a backup striker.

I agree to some extent, but ultimately the goal is to finish up as high as possible, and 5th is therefore better than 8th. Last season was a great achievement. Obviously our lack of movement is very much against that goal, but the prize and the end of it all, is league positions & cups, and we achieved our best league position since proper ages ago. Exactly, if you're going to ask questions like "why bother finishing 5th" you may as well admit that football is basically pointless. There are many achievements in football beyond getting into the Champions League. We did extremely well last season and had a great time, to dismiss that because of a poor transfer window is idiotic. Absolutely. Why bother finishing 5th? Fkn hell.

Anyone who posts this twittery shit in any thread bar 'bullshit', needs a good banning. /kicking.

What is with this board and Zaha? I've watched him a fair few times and I think he'd struggle to come above Sammy Ameobi in our pecking order.

With Shola's fitness he could end up with 20 games this season Good, I personally think there'll be little pressure on him and expect him to play with the kind of attitude that most players lose after twenty. Looking forward to seeing more of him in the cups I doubt he will get many chances to be honest, but I'd like to see more of him at this age. In the past it always felt like the progress of local kids like Brayson and Chopra suffered as there was a fairly big queue in front of them and we wouldn't risk it.

Eh? Where's that from? Edit: Ah, just seen the press conference. His press conference. The club thought he'd gone to Italy and then lost track of him. Vague reports he may be in Tottenham, but no actual idea where he is now.

Ha, we're now worrying about NEXT summer? That is just golden. :lol:

That for real? Shola? Oh definitely, and by the look of it Llambias has been on the supplements.

But we dont know the reasons why, they could have decent reasons why we didn't get them over the line. But regardless, those were our aims and we met neither. How is that a good/decent/alright transfer window? When did I say it was a good/decent transfer window? I never said you did, but some are. Or at least alluding to it. I think most people are just trying to say it hasn't been the apocalypse, and where targets have been missed their might be good reasons for them. Yup. We've not gone backwards. In terms of available players I think we may have edged forward. But despite avoiding losing Tiote (which a few seemed to think was a foregone conclusion) there is no way this has been anything other than fairly mediocre and a missed opportunity to at least upgrade our fullback positions.

But we dont know the reasons why, they could have decent reasons why we didn't get them over the line. But regardless, those were our aims and we met neither. How is that a good/decent/alright transfer window? When did I say it was a good/decent transfer window? I never said you did, but some are. Or at least alluding to it. Nope, don't think so. Who?

This. Think last year's transfer window was really, really a great one. This year it's not been bad, just not as good as last summer. Shifting Best, Lovenkrands, Smith, Guthrie off the wage bill and only bringing in one first team player and a few kids is a mediocre window at best. Basically this. Club will make a big profit this season as things stand, wonder if Ashley is trying to take money out of the club now..... [/expecting abuse] Yeah, you'd hope so, right? Better to lower the loan before he starts charging interest.