Beren

Think if we'd put even one of our chances away before half time, we'd have had a chance. We're completely dominating the game (albeit, only because Man City have the attitude of a team 2-0 up with an Italian manager). Looks grim/frustrating as fuck now for the second half. Early goal would be lush. Early conceded goal would be typical.

Routledge against an intimidatingly decent side = unconfident/anonymous. Hope I'm proved wrong. Not happy with that selection.

How is stoppage time currently calculated? Not sure if this is already being implemented in some form or another, but if when the referee sees stoppage he starts a stopwatch which is remotely linked to the fourth officials/TV broadcasters screens, then we can see how stoppage time accrues and there will be transparency at Old Trafford for example.

Not sure whether this is actually an enjoyable game or I've just been football-starved.

What a guy.

Laying the draw in a separate accumulator?

Bastard snow - I only just got on that cheating git Tim Cahill's bandwagon I feel cleaner having got rid of the increasingly useless Bent though - didn't feel it right! Glad Sunderland still idolise him instead of pushing the superior footballing partnership of Gyan and Welbeck.

Edit: I think Samba has a knock, and I reckon Huth, Shawcross and Jones might be too much aerial presence for Blackburn to handle without him (even though he is but one man) with Etherington/Delap putting balls in the box. If Pedersen has a great day then Blackburn might have a chance mind IMO.

Bit shocking/annoying tbh.

Stoke/Bolton double under consideration. Nothing else seems great value. Shame Everton fixture is off.

If we're low on funds I'd rather look for a longer-term option than Keane with available funds, personally.

Can't effin' wait! 2-2 (if Smith plays) 2-0 Carroll brace if we stick with Shola or Ranger

England '66 vs England '96

Light-hearted one for Christmas day - dream match-ups that you'd love to see - you can choose teams or players from different eras, whatever you want - it's Christmas. For me, some weird part of me wants to see Barcelona vs Stoke with a Premiership referee. The image of eleven Barcelona players hitting the deck and rolling in their own box at every throw-in tickles me (provided Stoke could win a throw-in!).

Ah! Beckford, of course. Or should I say Captain Beckford.

Good team in terms of players who have played poorly and continued to get games (for a while at least). I'd probably lift Carrick out and throw in Milner or Barry though.

Flying V. Quack, quack, QUACK, QUACK!!

My point exactly. Could use your wildcard like I think Neesy might have hit the nail on the head there Jonny/Wormy(!), unless there is a uniform movement by clubs making a stand against inflated wages, the type of individual club principled stand you seem to propose will only be of detriment to those club in a league where if you're not moving forward (and building teams around the likes of Nolan, Barton, Carroll, Tiote) you're most definitely moving backwards. Move with the market and think big, because Man City aren't going to surrender to wage caps - it's the only thing that affords them the Yaya Toures of this world.

The odds were why I stuck that much on, but Man City and Barcelona have broken some good form for me lately. Still very much in the black, but it's annoying all the same.

The summer, as long as replacements were in place beforehand. I don't know. It's the job of the club's scouting network to work that out. That doesn't sound very pragmatic like So you suggest we buy/"line up" players who are on a par/better than Barton/Nolan in quality - and attract them to the club with wages lower than their predecessors (which they will surely know), hope they slot into the team as comfortably as two of our four indispensable first-teamers (Carroll, Nolan, Barton, Tiote) and then expect not to get bent over a table by other clubs which know we need to sell Barton/Nolan when negotiating?

Well obviously, yeah. I didn't suggest getting rid of them now. Apologies, I haven't been following this thread meticulously but has not this discussion arisen from talks of Barton's touted departure in January?

Cost of replacing Barton and Nolan to our already thin squad midway through the season is relegation tbh.

Whoops. You win some, you lose some

156 of your English pounds on Barcelona tonight.

Tickets for the Argentina-Portugal match are here, but does anyone know where you can buy primary tickets? (ie from the source) http://www.worldticketshop.com/tickets/portugal_tickets/104188_portugal-argentina