James

To the left. To the right for us you foreigner

Across the Irish Sea from Wales.

Why need black power in the midfield when we can have electric power?

You'll just have to solder on.

You are worse at being funny than I am.

go on then ObiChris, tell us what you know of him.

watt

Is Vuckic still injured?

While it is easy to vent anger at Ashley, I think Carroll went for above and beyond his valuation and if the money is kept available for the summer that would be fine as he is the owner and controls the cash flow. However failings this January if the money still remains ours to spend must be at an operational level. I think Derek Llambias gets off lightly from fans. His criticism is generally that he's in bed with Ashley and all that goes on is Ashley's failings. However Llambias should have had a better hold on things but instead let things spiral out of control yet again. This man cannot run a football club. We can only get rid of Ashley if he sells. But there is nothing keeping Llambias here. Let us put all our energies into forcing him out. Either we get a better football administrator, or by having no-one to run the club for him, Ashley becomes more willing to sell.

I think partly what you said, but it also has to be mentioned that it was probably in the club's best interests for Carroll to submit a transfer request as if his contract was like most, we'd have had to pay him a chunky loyalty bonus. If I remember right from the Milner and Barton cases, he'd have had to have been given all the loyalty bonuses he was due for the remainder of his contract which would have been a couple of million.

I'll keep repeating this: It is typical in a players contract that they get a loyalty bonus when they leave, unless they submit a transfer request. This is why Milner submitted a transfer request. There is evidence to suggest that it is club policy to obtain a written transfer request where possible to avoid this payment.

We've cocked up by not actively pursuing available strikers. I don't think we ever expected an acceptable bid for Carroll to come through. Sadly Liverpool have gone mad, I suspect Dalglish and Comolli have been lying to the Americans about player valuations to get their men. However, that's not important, but what it means is we've had to let Carroll go, and because he was the only striker worth something at this club we have no-one, and everyone we look for will have gone up in value by about £5m because they know we have £35m in the bank.

Bellamy?

Bothroyd?

When Miner left, it was well documented that he had done so to forgo a large loyalty bonus that we'd have had to pay him. We pay our players millions of pounds in loyalty bonuses every year, and it was one of the hidden costs Ashley was stung by when buying the club without properly doing due dilligence. It would appear that where it has been mutually agreed that a player will be sold, we have insisted that they hand in a transfer request to forgo this payment.

Come on. You've got more about you than that. Textbook manipulation that you've all fallen for. Yep. PR for dummies. You should try conspiracy theory for dummies, your cooked up theory is not even close to believable Not even close to believable that a situation controlled by Mike Ashley (through David Craig) has been presented rather favourably to avoid fan backlash? Wake up. What I don't find believable is the fact Carroll is happy to go along with this. If Ashley was about the cash he'd have taken £30m. When Milner submitted a transfer request wasn't it described as the noble thing to do as it meant he wouldn't receive millions of pounds in loyalty bonuses from us?

I think you've got a good point there. the transfer window needs scrapping as it only really benefits certain clubs and players, to the detriment of everyone else.

Fucking devastated.

Are Parma and Villareal really bigger than us? What did Enrique choose when given the choice? Rossi thought he'd make it at Manu at some point. He left the summer after he was on loan at here and Parma though. So if we had used him more in those 4 months, chances are that we'd have had him for the whole season, so once he decided Manyoo wasn't an option, we would have been a very enticing option.

Are Parma and Villareal really bigger than us? What did Enrique choose when given the choice?

How do you know that? He was about 19 years old and if we'd given him a go, he might have wanted to stay a couple of years.

What players have we had on our books in the past that we sold/moved on without ever seeing them doing the real business, then a couple years later said player is at another club and doing really well? For me, the worst one in recent times was Guiseppe Rossi, many people were against him from day one because they thought we were just there to improve him for Manyoo. I seem to remember after one game, think it was against Chelsea, people were branding him as useless, but he was stuck out of position on the left and showed good composure on the ball, just preferring to be inside rather than get on the flank. He did actually get some goals in the few chances he got. However, Roeder was under pressure to get results and as Rossi wasn't an out and out goalscore, he got overlooked. Naturally Fergie brought him back and sent him to Italy and since then he hasn't looked back. He could have done well for us, he has become a much better player than Martins and Shola.

No. What do you disagree with? Krul in goal? Taylor over williamson? Barton on the right? Ireland over nolan? Ben Arfa in a free role? Carroll in the starting line up? Oh shit, its a floater.

No.

Can all the people who think we would be a better team if we don't have Nolan CM ahead of the other alternatives go and put their heads down the toilet and pull the flush.