Bad Mongo

It must be said, though, that a strained muscle is actually torn. And the tear Owen has isn't of the kind where his muscle is completely torn off. In that case, he'd be out for many months and been incapable of walking. So basically, in the way the words are used, they are synonymous.

Hey, AlanSkärare, do you have a link to the Swedish site? I need it for bragging purposes.

Thank God they don't have any goal scorers then. I imagine they would waste about 25 clear goal scoring chances every week.

Those are actually some good players, if used properly. Let's hope Joey Barton gets Bellamy sent off and not the other way around.

A Shearer in his prime who only once in his career has scored more than 10 league goals? No wonder England are shit.

"The club’s manager Sam Allardyce has two other strikers, Michael Owen and Mark Viduka, at his disposal." It's a good thing Luque, Ameobi and Carroll aren't at his disposal, then.

What's the score, then? I'm on my mobile phone, so I don't want to browse through the whole thread. Edit: and also got loads of time-outs. Sorry about that, and thanks, tomi.

What's the score, then? I'm on my mobile phone, so I don't want to browse through the whole thread.

He may be a lazy cock, but I wouldn't call him fat.

Stig Inge Bjørnebye is actually doing a great job as manager for IK Start. He's sold off some of their best players, and replaced them with a 32 year old striker. Maybe we should get him as a scout instead?

beckham,lennon,pennant,wright philips. Pennant is faster, but his crossing isn't better at all. I've seen statistics that prove it. And you'd imagine hitting Crouch or Kuyt with a cross would be slightly easier than picking out Martins and Dyer. I believe the same goes for Lennon. Milner is, bar a few long shots, an unspectacular player, but he's consistent and solid, and that's something you rarely see in a 21 year old. I expect him to become a key player for us.

I'd actually like to see what Sam's magical fitness regime can do with Carr. Just for a year, of course, and if it doesn't work out then that's no big surprise. If he ever regains form, he'll be a perfectly average player, and an OK backup. But I see no hope for Babayaro, and not much for Dyer.

He played DM for Viking for a while under Roy Hodgson (who considered him to be good enough for the EPL), but I don't think he'd be suited for the position in England. He does have some composure, but I don't think he'll get enough time on the ball as a DM to be able to pass well. I could be wrong, though. We've actually been linked with him before: http://news.bbc.co.uk/solpda/ukfs_sport/hi/newsid_4034000/4034217.stm

Actually, he's fairly pacey. His acceleration isn't all that, but he seems to easily keep up with strikers considered to be very fast. He's good enough to play in the Premiership, but maybe not in a side challenging for the top 4. I wouldn't mind him as a squad player.

Also a Bosman in the winter, if he doesn't sign a new contract with RBK. Like Begbie and Kaizero say, he has what it takes, but can be really frustrating.

One thing with Oba and his poor movement -- that was in a team with at least as poor movement around him. Where was he supposed to run when the movement behind him seems totally random and people who should assist the attack runs to hide behind the opponents so they won't get the ball, and Parker spinning around like a ballerina all the time? With Allardyce, we can at least hope for some proper coaching, and a system where he gets specific tasks if he can't perform with some freedom of movement. I expect that we'll play to his strengths, not his weaknesses, and those strengths are actually quite considerable. I can't believe how many of you people have bought into Souness' philosophy of assembling a random bunch of proper players and expect them to just go out and play good football without serious coaching. If there is one player I'm excited to see under Allardyce, it's Martins.

October 19? Same day as Allardyce. Oh, and me.

I will always remember Ramage's winning goal against Chester in the FA Cup final.

Mort means death.

"Epitome of mid table", ffs. Liverpool went to the Champions League final with wingers like Pennant and Zenden. Pennant's crossing isn't any better than Milner's (64 successful vs 68), and I'd imagine finding Crouch with a cross is slightly easier than finding Martins.

If Owen goes to City for European football ... nah, a joke shouldn't start with the punchline.

I'm not saying we absolutely need to buy only tall players, just that Wright-Phillips won't help us in that department. Perhaps I need to remind you that most of our players are fairly short. They can't all stand by the goal posts when defending corners.

He's not very tall, is he?

I'm surprised only three agents are named. Where is Rune Hauge? http://www.newcastle-online.com/nufcforum/index.php?topic=21921.0 There were some irregularities in his work with Gamst Pedersen to Blackburn, at least, like the agent representing both the selling club and player. I'm not sure it's illegal, but it should be. Then again, Hauge is allegedly a great business partner of Souness, so he probably represented him as well.

Hardly the most accurate account I've read.