James

For me, he is a 15 goal a season kind of guy, who can bring more than just goals to the team, but create goals, and create space for us to operate. We'll need to get another player matching his goal tally I think if we want to succeed, some are expecting him to score too many goals, and I hope he isn't criticised when he doesn't do so. He is not a No. 9, out-and-out-striker, but that type of player is very rare these days, I actually think that Andy Johnson is the only player of this type that exists in the Premiership right now.

I think the most important thing is that because we are arguing as to what his best foot is and whether he could have hit a shot he missed with his right or left after just four games, he must be quite good.

To be honest I think the chance he maybe should have scored in the first half would have been more suited to his right foot as that would have curled it towards goal whereas unless he hit it with the outside of his left and done a ood job of it he would have missed which ultimately he did. But i still agree he is two footed I disagree, due to his slightly sluggish first touch, the ball arrived at his left foot, he had to choose between shooting on his left, or moving it onto his right and risk being closed down. Therefore shooting with his left was the best choice, only he spooned it.

With the two footed argument, people are saying he only shot with his left yesterday - well thats because his left foot was the most sensible to use in the positions he was in. People seem to forget the perfectly weighted right footed pass while running at pace to Duff which set up our first goal, or the decent right footed effort from 20-yards that only just skyed the bar against Levadia Talinn.

Post it here (making sure you follow all of the guidelines): http://www.newcastle-online.com/nufcforum/index.php/topic,29136.0.html

He is, but he is not going to be what many fans are hoping for/expecting, and therefore many will be dissappointed.

You have again missed the point - the fact that we could have four or five defenders (All of them, not one of them) for less than the £5m Aston Villa were prepared to pay for Milner. 1) eeerrrr......and please tell me how much quality you think we could get for 5m quid ? 2)Would you then complain about short term buys ? 3)Would you then complain about not addressing the lack of forwards ? 4) I have read many of your posts mate, you are also one of those who think the club can afford to buy half a team every summer, with a shit board of course ........ I have numbered your points in the quoted post, and here are my resultant responses: 1) £5m could have bought us all of Trabelsi, Woodgate, Campbell, Sorin, Scaloni, Ooijer, Quinton Fortune, Meite and Henchoz. Obviously, we wouldn't go for all of these players, but all would improve the squad and the first team considerably. 2) I have never complained about short term buys - there is nothing wrong with them if plans are underway to resolve positional issues in the long term. 3) I feel that due to our lack of funds and transfer activity, it was impossible for the board to provide funds for the other decent striker Roeder wanted. It is a consequence of Souness wasting money last summer. I have no gripes at the current regime failing to get this other striker. 4) I dont ever remember saying that we can afford half a team every season. Can you provide any evidence of this?

I'm not so sure - we would be dissapointed at first, but if we had instead invested well in the defence by the close of the transfer window, we would have probably regarded Duff as a luxury we couldn't afford and wouldn't really need.

You have again missed the point - the fact that we could have four or five defenders (All of them, not one of them) for less than the £5m Aston Villa were prepared to pay for Milner.

Martins looks a good player, but I think we have signed yet another 'second striker' and are as usual expecting to play them up top. I can't see him reaching the goalscoring expectations many will have of him. Wont stop him being good for us, but we needed to bring him in to complement a number 9 striker.

In my opinion, we should have gone for Andy Cole if we were desperate. The only silver lining I can see is that he offers us some height and physique. Perhaps he could do what Pedersen does at Bolton? Anyone know the fee/wages?

alpal, I cant think of anything to write about you - you have no real standout flaws that can be written about.

......Newcastle-Online: It is understood that there could also be players on the Newcastle-Online forum who are available for transfer. So who are they, and what benefits would they bring? One individual that could be available is old timer <b>NE5</b>, a man who possesses immense experience having been around since the days of Lord Westwood. He is scared of no-one, and for years no-one has been able to stop him, even when it has appeared that he has been overwhelmed by sheer numbers. This must all be down to the fact that he never gives up, even when the cause seems (is) lost. If he has a weakness, it would have to be that he sometimes ball-watches focusing on small areas, totally ignorant of some of the play going on around him. Also panders to the Board to such an extent that it has been rumoured that he has had a long-term romantic relationship with Douglas Hall. Regardless, he would play a big part in any forum, and recent statements in which he says that he had no problems with Newcastle United changing from red and white stripes to black and white stripes, and that he is willing to move stadiums suggests that he is ready to move on. NE5's friend and defensive partner <b>Howaythelads</b> would most likely be unsettled by NE5's departure, and there are rumours that those in charge at Newcastle-Online would throw him in with NE5 as a two for the price of one deal. Individually, Howaythelads possesses almost identical attributes to NE5, although he tends to play in less matches. As a partnership, they are both even more formidable. Critics have compared them to the Neville brothers, and even described them as Newcastle-Online's Marx Brothers. Another individual who it may be possible to acquire is <b>NSG</b>. A very talented quick-witted individual who has fallen out of favour with some due to only passing to certain team-mates. His predictability means that perhaps a fresh start would be better for all parties involved. He may cost any buyer all small fortune, but his celebrity status will allow the buyer to recoup the transfer fee. Signing NSG will also improve a clubs image and enhance the board’s reputation. Any club that signs him can expect their fans appearing on the news to announce that the club can win the league. In a starting eleven, there is only room for one left winger, and a buying club could do well to capitalise on the strong competition for this position at Newcastle-Online. <b>BlufPurdi</b> currently represents this forum on the left wing, with main rival <b>Parky</b> being forced to stand aside after Bluf threatened to ban him. With neither individual willing to head towards the centre, it looks like Parky will have to move on. A very talented player, Parky is very offensive…but not very attack-minded. There is no doubt that Parky possesses skill (at certain things) and intelligence (if being well read and over-educated counts), however, he is known to over-analyse play which can lead to confusion within the team. Despite this, Parky would make a great signing, and although he has expensive tastes, he can be bought on the cheap. Another left-winger who frequently makes cameos from the bench is <b>Madras</b> – who adds a little something special by confusing opponents with overwhelming subtlety. Another strongly offensive player is Newcastle-Online’s very own Roy Keane, <b>Crumpy Gunt</b>, always up for a fight – though is usually harder on own team than others. He is known for his large collection of cuddly teddy bears as seen on MTV’s Cribs. Is usually seen during set pieces criticising the fans from the near post. An infamous local journalist has claimed that word on the street is that he may be allowed to leave due to him picking up one red card too many. Newcastle-Online are however unlikely to give up their sole right-winger <b>Testa Mora</b>, as despite the fact that she stays too far out to the right and suffers from ill-discipline having been red-carded for racial abuse towards Scots, Australians and tennis-haters, she is their only right winger. Besides, her refusal to play on the other side (despite repeated requests by male forum members) does not really make her the most attractive of transfer targets. Another player potentially out of the door though is <b>Paul Mosley</b>, due to his well known tendency to kiss up to the referees, and although this can benefit the team during a match, it is often difficult for his team mates to stomach and can lower morale. Despite the apparent contradiction in his name, <b>Alan Shearer 9</b> can on his day dominate the midfield, though is very erratic, and is probably at his best being brought off the bench in an attempt to confuse the opposition. Rumour has it that powerful individuals behind the scenes seek to remove the self proclaimed people’s champion due to their fear and awe of him. He would normally be an expensive transfer but his value has declined after recently serving a one-year ban by the FA for testing positive for THC. If looking for an offensive (midfielder), you could do much worse than <b>Stevieintoon</b> a.k.a. <b>NE15</b>. You can always guarantee that he will always up for a game against Everton, Spurs or ‘Pool but has a history of being sent off in these games. Has turned up for training drunk a few times and fined accordingly, and there are rumours that with a more hardline stance being taken on the forum, Stevie will jump before he is pushed. As for youngsters, Newcastle-Online are likely to part with 16 year old prodigy <b>Jonny Hall</b> due to his maniacal cravings for power, while there are always rumours surrounding <b>Christian Hayne</b>, while another youngster, <b>Porridge</b> was recently released on a free transfer and could be available for anyone desperate that is willing to take a big, big risk. Transfer-listed <b>Wullie</b>, known as “the Tiger” to friends or as “Big Pussy” to his enemies due to the close relationship with his cat, can be purchased on the cheap after it was revealed on the back pages about a torrid affair with team mate’s wife. He is famous for negative defensive play, yet bizarrely wants to leave the team – declaring himself ‘absolutely devastated’ about the teams decision to revert to a 4-5-1 formation. Captain <b>Grassroots</b>, or whatever he’s calling himself today, may not appear to be the most attractive of targets, due to the fact that like Tim Howard he suffers from Tourettes syndrome, talks to himself and occasionally and thinks of himself as James Bond, but aside from these psychotic interludes he is known to “drop the knowledge” in such volumes as to overwhelm other players. He is willing to leave to any club managed by any German who has led two different teams to Champions League Glory, as long as someone sends him a 5,617 page dossier on local golf courses. Disagreements about the more stringent code of conduct at Newcastle-Online with the authorities at mean that <b>Gemmill</b> is unlikely to extend his loan move from a local non-league club. The mega-intelligent person he is, he cant be expected to stay at his non-league club, and will definitely be willing to let himself be loaned out to another side, but only on certain conditions, i.e. he must be the most mentally superior individual at the club, but also, the club must be receptive to WAGs, as Gemmill is unlikely to go anywhere without <b>Alex</b> in tow. The Gemmill-Alex situation highlights perfectly some of the sexuality speculation that goes on at Newcastle-Online, and it is said that speculation on his own sexuality is the main reason for which <b>GeJon</b> has decided to move on. It is unclear exactly what GeJon brings to Newcastle-Online, but his team-mates will remember him fondly for persuading left back (in General Chat) <b>Snoopy</b> to return from her loan move at a non-league club. The official forum lunatic <b>Taylor27</b>, may also have to leave, as fellow forum members discover that he was responsible for this masterpiece. Taylor27 would like to thank Alex and Gemmill for getting his bad jokes and understanding his whimsical raving. He would also like to thank soccer-mom <b>CaliMag</b> for many of his ideas.

I'm 2nd on 51. Since I came third in the World Cup Fantasy Football, I must be favourite.

Haha, Liverpool drew with a team that fielded Ade Akinbiyi Just a blip though, I'm sure Liverpool will recover. Has Benitez ever signed a defender capable of performing in the PL? So far, it seems not, but time will tell.

We do Alpal - use the code Nut provides in the first post.

If people haven't signed up, they should join - it is easy to catch up at this point. Also, means I can beat more people.

Have to say, I'm probably favourite right now...

I'm going to see if the man himself can settle this argument once and for all. I've sent the following email in to the Roeder phone in:

http://www.nl.atari.com/images/products/xbox360/football_manager_2006/screenshots/th_xbox360_player_search.png Wenger scouted Ljungberg, Rennes scouted Kallstrom, Liverpool scouted Riise, Ferguson scouted Solskjaer. Scounting Scandinavian players does happen outside of the Football Manager universe you know.

He would sign in November/December if we were interested - the traditional date for the expiration of the contracts of Scandinavian players.

Norwegians are an unknown quantity but usually cheap and therefore risk free. Scandinavia tends to produce 1 or 2 very good players per season - good enough to do well in the top European leagues. Good scouting in Scandinavia canreally unearth some gems. To be good enough fo the Premiership though, the player needs to be performing consistently excellently in the Scandinavian leagues by the time he's 22, otherwise he is not going to make it. How old is Mifsud?

Thats because its an Alan Oliver spoof/wind-up FFS.

Taylor 27 please (not Taylor27 27)