Cronky

Maybe I’ve missed something, but the article clearly states that it’s the player and the agent who is trying to push a move, not us. Either that or the Evil Ones are feeding the press with false information to put the vigilant fans off the scent, of course.

A high priority over someone who can create or score goals? We need goals to win games. Not scoring goals is holding the team back. Hardly anyone in our squad scores goals. I said 'high priority' not 'higher priority'. We certainly need changes in the strikeforce, but we also need a better player than Tiote in that anchor position. No reason why we can't do both. I don't think Anita is strong enough for that particular position, not for the Premiership anyway. He may well improve though with a better player than Tiote around him. The anchorman does see a lot of the ball, and if they can't pass well that can really disrupt the fluency of a side, particularly on the counter attack. That's my reasoning.

Another defensive midfielder? We need goal scorers and creators! I'd put a high priority on a defensive midfielder who's better than Tiote. His distribution is too slow, too conservative, and that's holding the team back.

Probably true to a point. The club don't value cup runs or a second tier European tournament because they don't generate enough revenue. They've made that clear. I'd bet you Ashley would bite you hand off for a bit of the champion's league money, though. I think he wants us to improve, but in very specific ways, on very specific terms. This summer is the big test. He's taking a more active role in the club so here we'll see what his intentions are. If it's just more of the same then I'll hold my hands up and admit defeat. No ambition, no desire to be anything more than mid-table. If we invest then I'm sticking to my guns. Early indicators, with the upgrades to the academy, are that he's going to double down on youth and try to get the best out of kids as offering value for money. I like that prospect. It was great seeing the likes of Bassong and Krul come good. As a fan I find that exciting. Agreed. A more sensible management structure is in place for making decisions, Pardew must know who needs to go and where the team needs strengthening, and there should be some money to spend. There are opportunities to kick on. Which is why I find the current level of hostility a bit frustrating. It's come at the wrong time. Under Ashley we've seen very active transfer windows, and we've seen very quiet ones. This one will be a good indication of his thinking.

Judging from the tone of his public comments, Poyet seems to have already given up.

Conspiracy v Cock-up theory again. Ashley does have a history, in his business and with the club, of giving jobs to mates who he knows and trusts. I believe that the upper echelons of Sports Direct are full of people who have been with him since the very early days. I'd agree that Kinnear was a dingbat appointment. There's a political / pr element to a senior post at a football club and from the very start Kinnear showed that he didn't have the ability to handle that. It's also hard to imagine him handling delicate negotiations with other clubs, particularly from abroad. But would Ashley put the club at risk by deliberately appointing someone who he knew would screw up? I can't see that. Kinnear was an attempt by Ashley to get a handle on what was going on inside the club without actually having to spend the time getting directly involved himself. The fact that he's now formally joined the Board suggests that he knows that can't work.

This is worth repeating.,,, Bellamy was undoubtedly a bell hat. Just after Souness forced him out Bobby was asked if he had problems with him. He said 'of course I did, but I loved him on a Saturday afternoon because he won me football matches.' That's management. You don't need a course or badges, you just need to be a man about it. There's quite a difference between the two players though. Bellamy may have been trouble, and he didn't have a quarter of Ben Arfa's ability on the ball, but he did deliver. He was a non-stop bundle of energy who didn't give defenders a moment's peace. Work rate seems to have become a dirty word, but it is a bit of an asset on the football field.

Yeah, I think this next window is crucial. Ashley needed to be more hands-on, and there's some hope that some teamwork is going to be restored to the transfer strategy. Kinnear's appointment just created a power vacuum. Some major changes are needed, and I think the intention is there. We'll have to see whether they can or will deliver, but if they don't, then like you say, Pardew will be toast.

I just made one fairly innocuous point, and everyone went mental as usual. Yep, and you are sitting there as smug as f*** now no doubt. Job done I'm actually really frustrated about not being able to contribute anymore. People have made it almost impossible to make any alternative points. I've never said anything to get a reaction. I've got to agree with Ian on this particular point. The overwhelming opinion on here is that nothing good can happen until Pardew and / or Ashley are run out of the club. Any opinion that deviates from that - however slightly - gets howled down. That's not an exaggeration. It's getting ridiculous. that's because that's the correct opinion. If you hold alternative views, good for you, but don't go running when someone calls bulllshit on it The point, which you've missed, is that people don't stop at disagreeing with the opinion. It becomes personal abuse. Nonsense, you div. I'm assuming that's ironic, but I can't be sure any more.

Elliot was stupid to get into an argument like that, for sure. The striking thing about all this is that there's this overwhelming belief that absolutely nothing that he said was true. This is what Ian and I are raising when we talk about the strangulation of any debate on this forum. EG - Ben Arfa falling out with his team-mates and his manager. Has that ever happened before?

I just made one fairly innocuous point, and everyone went mental as usual. Yep, and you are sitting there as smug as f*** now no doubt. Job done I'm actually really frustrated about not being able to contribute anymore. People have made it almost impossible to make any alternative points. I've never said anything to get a reaction. I've got to agree with Ian on this particular point. The overwhelming opinion on here is that nothing good can happen until Pardew and / or Ashley are run out of the club. Any opinion that deviates from that - however slightly - gets howled down. That's not an exaggeration. It's getting ridiculous. that's because that's the correct opinion. If you hold alternative views, good for you, but don't go running when someone calls bulllshit on it The point, which you've missed, is that people don't stop at disagreeing with the opinion. It becomes personal abuse.

I just made one fairly innocuous point, and everyone went mental as usual. Yep, and you are sitting there as smug as fuck now no doubt. Job done I'm actually really frustrated about not being able to contribute anymore. People have made it almost impossible to make any alternative points. I've never said anything to get a reaction. I've got to agree with Ian on this particular point. The overwhelming opinion on here is that nothing good can happen until Pardew and / or Ashley are run out of the club. Any opinion that deviates from that - however slightly - gets howled down. That's not an exaggeration. It's getting ridiculous. But, this is true Well if you want to believe it, that's fine. But why is it necessary that anyone who says anything remotely different gets abused? It's like a witch-hunt on here now.

I just made one fairly innocuous point, and everyone went mental as usual. Yep, and you are sitting there as smug as fuck now no doubt. Job done I'm actually really frustrated about not being able to contribute anymore. People have made it almost impossible to make any alternative points. I've never said anything to get a reaction. I've got to agree with Ian on this particular point. The overwhelming opinion on here is that nothing good can happen until Pardew and / or Ashley are run out of the club. Any opinion that deviates from that - however slightly - gets howled down. That's not an exaggeration. It's getting ridiculous.

Good luck with that. But yes, we do need a major overhaul in midfield, where technically we are really lacking. How did you think the 3-5-2 went yesterday btw? Pretty much how I'd called it tbh.

Good luck with that. But yes, we do need a major overhaul in midfield, where technically we are really lacking.

A very exciting game. Pity it got decided on a defender's mistake.

Sort of decision that's far more likely to go the way of the home team.

Yep, we badly need a striker that can create a bit. He looks confident and eager to get involved, which is very encouraging to see.

He was blaming the press for the supporters' reaction, not the result or the performance. Daft thing for him to say in any event, but in the interests of accuracy....

Weren't there a few interested parties around that time who backed out after doing due-diligence? They must have seen something they didn't like. Also the transfer dealings and our league position when he left does not suggest things were fine under Shepherd. Yeah, there was a reason why the Halls were desperate to bail out, and it wasn't because everything was going well. My other major beef with Shepherd was that Sir Bob - by far the best manager we've ever had - had given us a good foundation and it was a matter of making sure there was a smooth transition to a successor. Instead, Shepherd completely bungled it.

It's the formation rather than the selection that I was pleased to see. Some players will benefit from it, some won't. I can't see any point in him going out with the same strategy that's seen us getting crunched over the last few weeks, and if we're not going to experiment now, when will we? Yes, it might go belly-up, but so what? Our season's over. Who? Take your point about the previous weeks, but I don't see this being the answer. If you'd look at my original post, I said it might be a better fit for Anita, who IMO has never really established a proper role for himself in the side, and also Dummett who has been decent getting forward on occasion. Gosling might be better in a central three, FWIW.

It's the formation rather than the selection that I was pleased to see. Some players will benefit from it, some won't. I can't see any point in him going out with the same strategy that's seen us getting crunched over the last few weeks, and if we're not going to experiment now, when will we? Yes, it might go belly-up, but so what? Our season's over.

Pardew has obviously decided to take advantage of our situation to experiment. Whether it'll all come off in one game I doubt, but I think Anita has done well as a full back on occasion, and wing back might well be a good position for him. Likewise Dummett has ability going forward and a more advanced position might suit him. The strike force is a bit of a problem though. Whatever happens, I hope he gives it more than one game.

colback Would rather go for Ki ...looks a very good player even playing in a shite team like Sunderland...... he would cost money which pretty much rules that out. Yeah, I like him. I don't think he'd be financially out of our reach though.

Everyone sucks up to their boss man He wasn't his boss in 2006, when he again praised Shepherd's backing of him in his book. It's clear from Sir Bob's book that his relationship with Shepherd was very fraught. From his account of his appointment, it sounded like Shepherd didn't want him and that the decision was being forced on him by others. Towards the end, Robson felt he was being undermined in various situations. Yes, there were times when Shepherd would act boldly and decisively, (eg the Woodgate signing), and Sir Bob appreciated that. But as a Chairman, Shepherd got far too involved in the playing side, and we ended up with awful decisions like the spunking of huge amounts of money on Owen and Luque, who didn't even want to come here.