Cronky

He'd suit an advanced position in the new 4-3-3 formation we seem to be going for. Absolutely made for it. Whether he's completely lost what little pace he had is the question mark.

Gibson hasn't really impressed me, but he could be a useful addition to the squad. If Tiote is unavailable, we don't have anyone who can add a bit of steel to the midfield. I also worry a bit about our ability to defend set pieces and Gibson is quite strong.

because he believed that Shearer would be giving the job? He only became disillusioned when things were going way too slow. Like Duff and Bassong, he had a decent offer from a Premiership club and wanted to go. 90% of players would make the same decision in that situation. Exactly. People talk about the loyalty the players showed to us when we went down but how many of them would have stayed if they had the chance of a move to a Premiership team on similar wages in front of them? I can't help but think that its a tad naive to assume the players just sat twiddling their thumbs hoping a club would make an offer for them. Agents are there to sound out interest and I find it hard to believe that someone with CL experience would have no suitors whatsoever. Same goes for a highly rated Spanish U21 left back. If there was interest in any player we'd of heard of it, no question. The fact we didn't suggest that perhaps they were loyal, to an extent at least. So you presume people were interested but the reason we didn't hear about it is because they shot the interest down before it got to the club or papers? Or perhaps that the players didn't seek out a move like they easily could have done?! Colo and Jose struggled in our relegation season. They wouldn't have had many offers on the wages that they were on. They both improved a fair bit during that year in the Championship.

I suppose it'll depend on the exact wording on the contract. The saying, 'If another club makes a bid of £x, they will be allowed to talk to the player' has the meaning, by convention, that the player can leave for £x. If that's what's written down in a contract, I suppose the selling club might insist on the phrase being taken literally - ie the buying club can talk to the player, but the other club doesn't necessarily have to sell.

Legear, yes please. What has his agent said? Enrique for the big boost.

Lik because he believed that Shearer would be giving the job? He only became disillusioned when things were going way too slow. Like Duff and Bassong, he had a decent offer from a Premiership club and wanted to go. 90% of players would make the same decision in that situation.

It's an interesting read, but it didn't budge me from a sceptical position. Football is probably the least susceptible to statistical analysis of all sports. There's something about the way in which a team functions as a unit that makes it very difficult to isolate the effectiveness of individuals in statistical isolation. Eg Nolan's pass completion may reflect the fact that he's not often in possession of the ball, and when he is, he tends to play safe to avoid losing it rather than risk anything creative. That's not to say stats don't have their uses, if you know precisely what to look for, and how to handle the information. Wenger likes his players to release the ball quickly rather than dwell on the ball, and confronts his players with stats about how long on average they stay in possession before passing. Of the after-match stats that we get, I find the shots total the most telling in terms of which team had the upper hand, but even that's far from foolproof.

It's odd how things turn out. If he hadn't had the injury, he might well have had a frustrating season as an individual maverick trying to make things happen in a fairly ordinary side. It may all have ended with him being keen to move. As it is, I think he's going to be coming into a team that's much more set up to his style of play, and where there's less pressure on him because he won't be our only real danger man.

Do you think £9m is over the odds for a player of his abilty? If you don't think it is an inflated price for his ability then the point about his contract becomes moot. Could we attract anyone a) better or b) if yes, cheaper? I think the answer to both is no, so it's a no-brainer that we should pay whatever it takes (upto a certain limit of course but I think the limit is within our reach). Well there are two issues. Given that we now have two players who would fill a similar role to Zoggy, wouldn't £9 million be better spent on another area of the side? The other one is the assessment of his ability. I guess I don't rate him as high as some others do.

It'd be worth a look.

The gamble would be on his motivation and commitment. A lot of the time, he doesn't seem to play with enough aggression.

I don't think we should push the boat out to sign Zoggy, now that we've got Ben Arfa and Marveaux on board. Even £9m is over the odds for a player of his ability in the last year of his contract.

I'm not convinced about Erdinc, so I'd see that as encouraging. Berbatov would be a very tempting gamble, if he's keen to come. At his best, he's as good as any striker in the Premiership.

Good to see that, yet again, a player was impressed by the way our club presented itself. Vive la revolution francaise!

He's quite skilful as people say, and there's nothing wrong with his attitude and determination. On the other hand, he just doesn't look strong enough or athletic enough for the very top division. He's easily muscled off the ball and has difficulty imposing himself. He'll have a good, long career in the game, but he won't hit the heights IMO.

So we'll be paying someone to take him off our hands. He had a very promising career at one point.

There'll probably be a pause in the pace of transfers now, and perhaps a long one. Having scooped up the freebies, the others will cost money and that'll mean haggling, getting involved in auctions, and waiting around for the selling club to line up replacements etc We might well be in for Sturridge, but the new Chelsea man might want to take time to size up his squad.

... but might not fare too well against a 6 foot athlete. Normally a team relies a lot on its centre backs with defending crosses and set pieces, and that isn't Colo's strong point, to say the least. Other players had to shoulder the responsibility last year. Just looking at the team we're building, it seems to me nimble and skilful but not particularly strong in the air. I think we're looking for a third midfield player to go alongside Tiote and Cabaye, and we could do with a bit of balance.

He deserves another chance. It's interesting that he's had to wait a bit and ended up back in the Championship, which indicates that he needs another success before he's secured his reputation. He's inherited a club in a similar situation to ourselves when he took over. If he can perform the same trick, no-one can doubt him. Ummm.... I've a nagging feeling that Crumpy is right though.

i know.... With Nolan going, it'd be good if we could add a bit of height in the midfield, so M'Vila may be a very good buy. It's exciting hearing all these players that can add some attacking flair, but we need some defensive strength at set pieces. Willo and Taylor are our only defenders who are decent in that area, and only one is likely to play. I worry a bit that we may be building a small side who are vulnerable to a sucker punch.

I'm not convinced about this at all. Abramovich seems to be suffering from Shepherditis. He's getting more and more involved, and the decisions are getting worse.

The f***? Better just be rubbish speculation. The idea of a plot sounds a bit silly, considering the efforts the club is making to try and get Jose to sign. If we're moving to 4-3-3, Jonas's place as a first-team regular would be under threat. However, he does provide a useful option and would be a good player to keep. I can't see him going this window.

There's no question of Joey's ability, but I'm not sure he'd be in the right frame of mind to play at his best next season. He seems confused about whether he wants to stay or go, and I can picture him being not quite part of things round the club.

He's a very fluent, lively writer and does come up with some original takes on things. At the same time, his fluent, original take is just as likely to be daft as something that a less articulate writer comes up with. If your definition of 'big' is European success, then we're not 'big'. Simple as that, really. He seems to be interpreting the Nolan sale in the same way as the Carroll sale, but in fact they're quite different. With Nolan, it's part of our rebuilding process. He also seems uncertain about where he himself stands in relation to Ashley's desire to distance himself from the emotional pressures surrounding the club and its decisions. Personally, I think a bit of distance is what our club has needed for a long time.

I just can't believe the Barton for Arsenal story. If they want him, they'll get him because there'll be no problem with the fee or getting the player to sign. Midfield isn't Arsenal's problem. They've got Fabregas, Song, Wilshere, Ramsey, Nasri, Diaby, Walcott, Rosicky - exactly how is Barton going to break through all that lot?