Cronky

Bournemouth and Boscombe Athletic to AFC Bournemouth? Small Heath to Birmingham to Birmingham City? Burslem Port Vale to Port Vale?

.... if you'd got your hands on the other £23 million?

I think giving penalties for infringements outside the box is a ridiculous and stupid idea. I'd say the last man outside the box denies more clear goal scoring opportunities than 70% of shirt pulls, trips, handballs, etc that happen inside the box. Would have no problem with this being brought in one bit. And? Who gives a damn if it is cynical and prevents an opportunity. You get a yellow or red for that, it is not like there is no punishment. If it doesn't occur in the oenalty area, than it is not a penalty. That is really all there is to it, imo. It boils down to what is the best punishment for a foul on someone in a goalscoring position. The present law has been going for over 20 years and it's about time it was looked at again. If it's a goalscoring position, it shouldn't really matter whether the ball is inside the area or outside. It's a similar offence, and the punishment should be similar. A red card is usually for violent offences, so never quite feels right for this kind of foul. I know the principle that penalty kicks are only awarded for fouls in the penalty area has been intact for over 100 years, but it's not sacrosanct.

I think giving penalties for infringements outside the box is a ridiculous and stupid idea. Why?

We're painful to watch at the moment. We can't hit teams on the break or play the ball through the midfield because we have no mobility. All we have is long balls and set pieces. I guess that may be enough to carry us through, but as others have said, we really need Barton's creativity in midfield.

I agree. That would be a far more sensible proposal than giving a red for outside the box and a yellow for inside. Overall a pen and a yellow feels like the right punishment for all such fouls, from both teams' point of view. It's good that FIFA are looking at revising the law. I remember when penatly tires were intrduced to egg chasing and i thought that could be a possibility for football. I can see the idea of not sending off the last man in some instances naturally, there is often a harsh red card issued however can we expect the current refs to use more common sense these days when they struggle with the basics? May be better left alone im afraid The thing is, you're already asking refs to distinguish between the foul in the goal-scoring position and other fouls. All you're changing is the punishment. In practice, you're not burdening them with any more authority or pressure.

I agree. That would be a far more sensible proposal than giving a red for outside the box and a yellow for inside. Overall a pen and a yellow feels like the right punishment for all such fouls, from both teams' point of view. It's good that FIFA are looking at revising the law.

The affair was real, but I think they still appeared in the same side. The joke at the time was that Platini preferred it that way, because then he knew where Larios was.

McNally dates the decline back to the days of Sir Bob, but then blames Ashley when obviously it was Shepherd who was in charge at the time. Both men made mistakes. It makes for a nice story to have a hero and a villain, but the picture is a lot more complicated.

I watched most of the match, he was terrible. aye. even at his best he's one of those "good bad players" (like crouch) who, even when they are effective, still look like shite. He's not the worst centre forward in the world, but he doesn't fit in with Arsenal's style, however hard he tries. I can't see that they were worse off in his absence. Another interesting feature of the game was Arsenal's determination to keep going forward in search of a second goal, even with only a few minutes left. Andy Gray was criticising them for it, but it's clearly policy, and I don't think Wenger is wrong. How many times do you see a side fall back in defence so completely in that situation, that their goal is under constant siege. There's a risk in keeping going forward, but I often think there's a bigger risk in surrendering the initiative.

Portsmouth have said that there are interested buyers, which seems strange. Someone more familiar with the business world may correct me here, but why should anyone buy the company at this point, when its debts have destroyed its value? Wouldn’t they be better off waiting till the administrators come in, and then put in an offer for the club as part of a deal to pay off the creditors at a reduced rate? I suppose the value of saving the club now would be that there’s a better chance of avoiding relegation than there would be if there was administration and a 9 point penalty. All the same, the likeliest outcome at the moment is relegation regardless.

It's ironic that there's never been more money flooding into the game, and yet there's never been more clubs teetering on the edge - at all levels. It's difficult to run a stable financial ship when the gap in income can vary so much, depending on whether you finish 4th or 5th in the Premiership, or 17th or 18th. Or for that matter 2nd or 3rd in the Championship. You can't completely regulate away the problem of reckless owners, but you can reduce the pressure on them by making the income distribution more fair.

I thought he'd be ready for more first team time with us, so mixed feelings. I can only think he just hasn't matured as quickly as he should. When I've seen him, his first instinct has been to try to beat the man in front of him - which he's good at - but that's not always the right decision for the team.

Barry isn't our best player, but his emergence as our first choice anchor man in midfield has been a real boost. Previous England teams have tended to have a clogger in there, and that's held us back. Barry can pass as well as get forward if opportunity presents.

I was born in Newcastle in 1956, but we moved to Scotland when I was a babe, then emigrated to Australia before eventually settling in Manchester in 1966. Back in Blighty just in time to watch us winning the World Cup. I thought football was always going to be like that. I then had the choice of Man City, Man Utd or Newcastle. I'd always been aware of the club because of my birthplace, but I wasn't completely committed. I decided on the Toon, just in time to watch both Manchester clubs win the league, and Man U the European Cup. So life could have been very different and a lot easier. Still, there was never any turning back. It would have been like divorcing your parents - ie something you can't do.

It goes to show how settled and advanced our squad is, that our collective choice isn't likely to differ from Capello's. I'd always try to find room for SWP, and as I'm not sure that Beckham is really adding much, he'd be the one to make way. I hate to admit it, but Milner has played his way into the squad. What's more, he'd give you cover all across the midfield, which makes Beckham even more superfluous.

Hughton is clearly a firm believer in not criticising the players in public, and that often makes his interviews a bit bland. Providing he's able to give them a rollocking where it matters, I'm not too bothered. It was interesting that our best result of the season followed that dire performance against Leicester, and rumours that Hughton had had a go at the team in the dressing room.

It's an interesting buy, and I'd love it, love it, to come off. I imagine he'll be very keen to seize his chance. Who knows, there may be some real footballing talent in the Faeroes. No disrespect, but there can't be too many other distractions for a young bloke, out in the middle of the Atlantic.

You forgot to add that he's taken us to the top of the league, which I don't think anyone would have predicted, in the circumstances. Even then, you can't judge his work properly after only one season. He's started to bring his own players in, and presumably he'll have even more opportunity should we get promoted. Then we can get some idea of his ability. But as it is, he's had to make do with what's been left behind after relegation. So let's give the bloke a proper chance.

On the same subject, I was irritated by the way he's said that he's going to fight to get the England captaincy back. He ought to have declared full support for Rio Ferdinand and left it at that, if he wants to be considered a good team man. I just don't think the guy considers anyone but himself.

Everton didn't seem to know how to make use of the extra man. I can remember years ago, when we beat Arsenal 3-1 to go top of the league, Arsenal had a man sent off in the first half, and Sir Bob withdrew Bellamy into a deeper position in the midfield. It struck me as odd, but it was then a 4-5-1 against a 4-4-1, and we ended up dominating possession. (Until Bellamy got himself sent off, which is another story) Basically, if you have an extra man, he's most useful in the middle of the pitch. Everton ended up lumping the ball over their midfield, hoping to hit one of the two strikers, and it was ineffective.

Yeah. I wasn't a defender, so maybe I'm missing something, but surely he has to get goal-side or clear off. As it was, he just got in the way. Neville junior has never struck me as the sharpest tool in the box.

Looking at the news stand this morning, it looks like he's given the Sun his own exclusive side of the story, and paid the lady £800K to keep quiet. If true, the bloke is a disgrace. He should have resigned the captaincy and then taken the rest on the chin. This won't help his standing with his team mates. I wouldn't have him anywhere near the squad. No guts. No integrity. No brains.

I was hoping that Gibbs was going to get enough experience this season to be included, but injury has prevented that. I've got high hopes of Richards again at right back. On form, he can cause problems for any opposition defence. (Hopefully not his own, as well)

Being an athlete isn't a talent though, anyone can achieve physical fitness through hard work. As Ronaldo says, he just couldn't be arsed. Well some have more athletic potential than others. Otherwise we'd all be Olympic medallists. With Le Tissier's chunky physique, he was never going to be a flying machine. I do think that sometimes skilful players like Le Tissier and Hoddle get accused of laziness or a lack of stomach for the fight, when in fact they're just not as strong or mobile as other players. Those two were always described by the press as 'enigmas' as though the fact that they could do a difficult thing like curl a free kick meant that they ought to be able to do something simple like run or tackle.