HawK

We now have a better team than at least 3 teams - Watford, Norwich and Burnley. This was the measure of success I was going to use. If we can get the results to match our team's relative ability, we'll be OK. If our new jewel of a midfielder can stay fit for the remainder of the season, I've no doubt that he'll be that transformative for us that he'll almost single-handedly pull us up the table. He'll elevate the players around him, with Joelinton's work-rate, we'll see Shelvey get more time on the ball which despite his flaws, is a good thing for us. I do worry about our right wing, though. I'm entirely unconvinced by Fraser. I'd like to see Willock given a run out up there, drifting inside with Trippier moving up the field into the space.

I've loved that we've not signed any 'attitude' players, or cast-offs from top clubs. Not signing Alli, Aubameyang (if there was even a chance) etc. Just players that are used to first-team football and seemingly have a good head on their shoulders. In a relegation fight you need grit and determination and especially the two I've mentioned haven't really shown me they could contribute in that way.

2 days to get the music licensed i imagine

I doubt anyone would predict this future when Ashley bought us that the top 4 rival would be West Ham and the relegation candidate was us.

No argument from me that he's better than Ritchie there, but so is every other LB we have. In my view, it's Lewis < Dummett < Manquillo.

Remember how good Andros Townsend looked for us when he came in for the latter half of the season we ended up going down? I think Lingard might have a similar effect. Hopefully this time with a different end result.

I really don't get this viewpoint that seems to be shared by many. Lewis hasn't shown anything to suggest he's better than either Manquillo (who's looked quite good recently) and Dummett. Tell me I'm wrong?

Lightning edit that gj site admins ;-)

What's a 'four-and-a-half deal' ?

Literally same page But yeah, he definitely has that 'style', he runs upright with the ball, poking it forwards with his toes in front, and he's watching the opponents' strides and just knows how to keep the ball just out of their reach with his pace & body.

He goes past players like Hatem does, exact same style. I approve.

Players only love you when they're playing

Literally bidding like FM on these transfers. 'Scout estimates between 25-35m for this player'.. bid 25 'no', bid 30 'no', bid 35 'fuck off already'.

All part of the master plan, just sign all the best players from the other teams that are in the mix and then they'll end up shitter than us. I mean it's frankly quite disgusting but I'd love it if that were to happen

Anyone else think that since Joe has come into the middle, he looks so, so strong? I mean, he shrugs people off the ball with absolute ease, people can't take it off him easily. He's a huge presence. He must have something drilled into him from a young age about playing for fouls and free-kicks in the attacking third, because he looked weak as piss up top. If he had used half the strength he's showing now in midfield, he'd have been a handful at least, even if he can't score to save his life.

But he's really not, Joelinton moved there and looked like Socrates compared to Jonjo. We need a hard-working, industrious midfielder to go alongside him. Heck I'd put Almiron or Shortstaff there tbh just to be a busybody.

This would be my lineup, god we have no options in defence or central midfield it's absolutely dire.

Pay the £41m, get it done. Everton paid £25m for Michael effing Keane from Burnley 4 years ago. This chap is a winner and sorts out the shower of shit we have in front of Dubravka.

I think at least in Spain, where release clauses are mandatory, the club just points at the agreed-upon release clause. "You can go whenever you want, as long as they pay the clause".

I was trying to show the amount of players with 20+ goals, I didn't crop the tables to selectively prove a particular part of it I guess it's how you define 'eras', and in our glory years, 94/95 and 95/96 were those years to me. At the particular point in time when we signed Ferdinand, it was the 'new normal' for strikers to be scoring plenty of goals. 94/95 was more than 93/94, and I think that fact was reflected in the fee, I was surprised we got him for as little as £6m tbh, it felt cheap at the time for such a good player and I thought bigger teams would have gone for him. When Ferdinand was signed, 96/97 and onwards was unknown, as it hadn't happened yet. It just didn't continue and was, as you say, a 'blip', but no-one would know this for sure at the time. They'd just be looking at 2 consecutive seasons with 6 players scoring 20+ goals.

We didn't sign Les in 92/93 And I never said Les = Wood, Jesus H Christ have a word. The situation is what I was comparing to, a big player for a team that regularly struggles in the bottom end of the Premier League. Can you disagree with this? 93/94 : 94/95: That's when we signed him, strikers scoring bags of goals was more common.

It was a different time then, strikers scored all the goals in the league, every team had a striker that scored buckets.

I said half as much !

This is a similar signing to Ferdinand for us. A standout player in a team that struggles in t he lower parts of the league, powerful, good shot, good in the air. Hopefully he can do half as much as Sir Les and for that he'll be eternally thanked.

He was an absolute monster in the Championship for Leeds.