Beren

Part of me hopes Liverpool get super prideful about this Sterling business, by refusing Citeh's offer and letting Sterling rot in reserves for two years (missing out on the crucial professional formative development he wants/needs to be the player he wants to be and earn the mula he wants to earn) as a lesson to him. Obviously they'd withdraw the £100k p/w contract they previously offered. They would be flushing £35.5m down the drain for the sake of: - not being a feeder club for Citeh - showing players (current and target alike), that the club is bigger than they are, and protecting Liverpool's proud reputation - enjoying the financial benefits of being a big club in the long-term (rather than mid-tier/secondary to Citeh/Chelski etc) Cloud cuckoo land, I know, but it'd be nice.

Obscene times.

Only a few years back the top teams usually come out firing pre-CL fixtures kicking in. Since the uber-commercialisation of pre-season tours, fitness levels have been shocking across the board in the first few games of a season. Wouldn't be surprised if parking the bus didn't yield decent results against sluggish starters who don't quite have the sharpness to pry NUFC open.

You can't win the league by October, but you can lose it.

Bit ambitious having the League Cup fixtures included in the OP beyond Round 2 tbh.

I'm as excited as a heavily tranquilised Eeyore.

They're both correct in a way tbh Except one of them isn't. He's three quarters right.

Very good that.

So much easier to write/say Soton. I just don't get it.

You'd think only a mate or an old boy network contact would touch him with a bargepole, and even then they'd be making sure they kept him away from the hotseat.

Sounds like the latest dance craze.

All the people, living for today

Worth it on a pay-as-you-play contract. Vlaar and Diaby on the same basis too.

Doesn't have a believable feel to it. Ashley not pulling the strings on his investment? Pull the other one.

Really? Well, you won't find any more distrustful than me, but the cup ambition is easy to fake/lie about. In the short term, money is the easiest way to prove them as liars/reformed.

any mention of transfer kitty?

Got to be Lee Ryder. Local, unqualified, shit, pashun, doesn't stand up for what's right. Ticks every box.

Futsal may be the way forward.

Haven't watched women's football in a long time, and I saw the game yesterday expecting it to have come on a fair bit. Was right behind it/hoping for the best until the action started. It was far worse than I remembered it. Struggle to see any significant commercial investment ever getting behind it.

With the scrutiny shone upon the club by the SP and AO campaigns, I think it's more that they don't want to create a rod for their own backs by either: a) promising the world and failing to deliver/try to reach these objectives b) openly setting the bar low, and being rightfully vilified for doing so Not during ST sales time, any way. A different time of year and maybe they'd be more brazen and customarily insensate to fan opinion.

It's London…simple as. Barely

Colombia playing later

N-O XI vs England Women - what's the score?

Would rather live in Newcastle than Paris, myself.