HawK

WDDW So you'd praise Pardew for the 5th too then? Eh? You think Cisse is the reason for WDDW? That's what you've implied. Other than the one goal he's scored in those 4 matches, he hasn't held up the ball, made any passes of note or made space for other places. Every single game Mitro has come on he's been involved, holding up the ball, laying it off and being an absolute menace. With Cisse alone up front we're practically a man down, he just can't play the lone striker role and he never has for us. The only time he came close to this was when we played practically 3 up top and he was the one in the middle. You can't just look at the past 4 results, Cisse has started them, and then imply 'that's what he brings to the team'. Come on. What's that got to do with Pardew? If you read that piece about Benitez's tactics from the other day, Cisse is being picked to fulfil a role he very often deploys in his teams. It's working, so I'm not complaining. I brought the Pardew thing into it because he often gets lauded as 'the reason' we finished 5th, yet having watched every game of the season, it looked like he was trying his best to make sure we didn't win but that's been gone over 100 times. I did read the Torres interview, it was a great insight. I just don't see how Cisse not being able to hold the ball and pass it to a team-mate as part of tactics. The piece about Torres specifically mentioned that he was sometimes tasked to draw out defenders to make space for Gerrard, I don't see Cisse doing anything at all off the ball that would help us.

WDDW So you'd praise Pardew for the 5th too then? Eh? You think Cisse is the reason for WDDW? That's what you've implied. Other than the one goal he's scored in those 4 matches, he hasn't held up the ball, made any passes of note or made space for other players. Every single game Mitro has come on he's been involved, holding up the ball, laying it off and being an absolute menace. With Cisse alone up front we're practically a man down, he just can't play the lone striker role and he never has for us. The only time he came close to this was when we played practically 3 up top and he was the one in the middle. You can't just look at the past 4 results, Cisse has started them, and then imply 'that's what he brings to the team'. Come on.

WDDW So you'd praise Pardew for the 5th too then?

Needs to Siem for Wijnaldum, and Mitro for Cisse. Not sure what Cisse even brings to our team now.

Should have shook him by the hand and thanked him for keeping us in the Premier League for 5 seasons and taking us to a UEFA Cup quarter final. Mark Bright did that?

http://i67.tinypic.com/rsc186.png

He used to, not any more. He loses it now when he receives the ball without knowing who's around him, where to control the ball to, and if he does control it, he then runs blind it 2 or 3 defenders. If he lost the ball after having brought it under control, raising his head, looking to see what's going on, and then taking on a man - fair enough.

Dog years if JC was handling it.

Dummett is one of the last he would look to move on. Does the basics of his position well. Understands defending and has a good 'tude. atti too much for you?

That's ace Can you link me to where it came from, was it a TV show or something?

Just cause he's from Birmingham you can't just decide you don't find him interesting

I think it's fairer to say that he's nowhere near the finished article with all the hype he's got. Still has some weaknesses that he'll need to figure out. Not sure going to Man City will help tbh. Also agree, he's won everything at Barca, but any half decent manager/ex Barca player would have done with the team he had in my opinion. I would still put managers like Hiddink above him, and call me crazy, even Rafa.

Yep.

This, remember being there. Tbf I even recall Xisco providing a quality assist when we beat Villa 6-0. Swallows and summers and all that.

Fucking John Carver.

I know he's popular on here, but I think he loses the ball unnecessarily quite often, and he doesn't look up enough either. If he had a bit more end product I would put him in the starting 11 but I just think we've got better options at the moment. When what he's trying to do comes off, it's great, but I think teams are wise to him now and he's become increasingly ineffective. Hell if Barcelona come in for him, let him go.

wtf

I think the city is essentially physically divided though? The whole religious twist to it makes that rivalry probably 'scarier' than any other I can imagine in the UK at least, let alone the links to Ireland and all that that goes with it. Football just becomes a platform for some people in this circumstance.

Is Yaya 18st?

I vehemently disagree. The city/town v city/town combines way more than just football. Loads of people I know who are Newcastle/Tyneside who don't even like football have very little positive to say about mackems/Sunlun. You mean you vehemently agree?

I think between-city rivalries are more heated. In Liverpool, for example, the reds and blues have to walk past eachother in the street every day, see each other in shops, work together etc. You don't really get that with Newcastle/Sunderland, add to that that it's miles to the next nearest club of note.

We're going to win the league next year. The problem is I'm not sure which one.

That's incredibly harsh on your SO and future little one!

To have Rafa after all the shit since Robson, this could be the biggest manager love-in in English football history