Cronky

I may be a miserable old cynic, but that looked like a PR gesture on Freddie's part. He's under fire and he probably thought it wouldn't do any harm to be seen to be chummy with Sir Bob. It follows on from that Daily Mail article from Sir Bob, which hints that the Halls are the problem, not Freddie. I'm not buying it. Shepherd out!

...........James Neville....Terry....Vidic.....Evra Essien...Scholes...Gilberto...Giggs .........Drogba...Rooney Would have liked to have found room for Adebayor, who looks like another real find by Wenger.

I think some of the expectations of Sibierski are now way too high. He's done a decent job for us, but there's nothing in his game that's going to worry the really top sides like Chelsea.

I agree with the gist of this. Butt on form does get the ball moving forward more quickly than Parker and is more decisive. He's playing like he did for England in 2002 - very tidy and playing the simple balls well. Parker has the talent but he seems to lack confidence at the moment. He doesn't seem to want to play a pass unless he's 100% sure that it will reach it's target, and when he gets the ball he runs round in a few circles to make sure that he's not going to be tackled. The result is a lot of negative play. As I've said before, he reminds me a bit of Batty, who started his career as an attacking midfield player and ended up in a purely defensive role, as a result of an over-cautious attitude. Last night, I thought Roeder got the shape of the midfield right, but didn't give the players the right roles. Emre was given a free role around Martins, but tended to drift backwards to receive the ball, and often ended up as the playmaker. As a result, Parker seemed to be crowded out in the middle and couldn't get involved. I thought Dyer should have been given the free role, with Butt and Emre in the middle as normal, and Parker wide right. Not his best position, but the best use of our available resources. The best managers are no respecters of reputations and pick on form and performances. Roeder has to have the courage to drop Parker if that's what the team needs.

I thought the free role behind Martins should have been given to Dyer rather than Emre. I was expecting Given to save that free kick, but he just didn't get a strong enough hand on it. Not what you'd call a mistake, but most of the time he does better. They won because they had better players. We put up a good fight, but we really needed to take our chances when they came. I'd like to have seen Martins hit that chance that he had in the second half first time. Shearer had the right idea - hit it early and hit it hard. What a shot from him in the first half though. It was just a swing of the leg, no body weight behind it at all, but he managed to get a lot of power into it.

There was a question about Douggie, but it wasn't phrased in quite that way. It was a written enquiry about the whole Gibraltar operation, and DH's role. The reply was that it was the base of 'Newcastle International', a sub-division that was set up to promote the club overseas, and that DH was very involved with this. I almost leapt to the conclusion that he was only jetting around the world, having a great time at the club's expense, but I'm sure that's not the case. As for me being a Yank, why??? For info, I was born in Newcastle, but live in London.

Not a lot to report. Freddie was given an easier ride than I expected, but there were one or two points of interest. He confirmed to a written question that Belgravia had started making enquiries in August, but had not yet made an offer. I asked whether anyone else had shown any interest, and FS said that they get about ’10 enquiries a week’, and nearly all of them were unrealistic. This threw me a bit, but fortunately someone then asked if Polygon had shown an interest. He confirmed that they had, but that the accounts that they had seen were the same as were available to all members of the public, and that they were being treated no differently from other enquirers. For whatever reason, he was keen to downplay this whole issue. Another thing that shone out was his hopes and expectations of Michael Owen. He seemed very proud of his capture, saying that he was Shearer’s replacement, and that ‘England’s No1 goalscorer’ would continue the Shearer tradition. It confirmed my impression that his understanding of the game is quite limited. I don’t think he understands how players blend as a team, and seems to pin his faith on individual star names. Douglas Hall sat at one end of the table and said absolutely nothing. I’d been to an AGM previously and it was the same story. For the principal shareholder, that’s not good enough.

I'll be going. I'm sure it'll be a bit more interesting than the last one I went to. Sure, I'll report back.

It didn't look like a foul at first, but on the replay, it's clear that the player was backing into Given before the ball had reached him. A definite foul, but a very hard spot.

I think Pearson's influence is telling on the defence. They keep a much better line when playing for offside, and the communication looks better. Taylor's starting to use his strength more. Of our three young defenders, Huntington may turn out to be the best of the lot. I don't think Roeder should be criticised for the selection and the formation, because there weren't many alternatives available with all the injuries. I think Dyer's at his best when given a free role behind a striker. It's hard on Sibierski, but I think Martins and Dyer look our best partnership.

A reclusive owner who shuns publicity will be a very pleasant contrast to Shepherd. Likewise his intention to appoint the best available people and let them do their jobs. Getting rid of Roeder at this stage would be a mistake though IMO. I'd look at the situation at the end of the season. Not giving Roeder a chance feels like a vote of no confidence in the players as much as anything. Our position isn't the same as West Ham's. It occurs to me that there's going to be a few clubs intending to spend in January. Competition for only a limited number of available players might be quite fierce.

I think it was my article that did it. :winking:

Taylor has improved this season, and physically he has what it takes. I still haven't yet seen him produce the kind of assured, dominating performance that really gives you the belief that he's arrived. Maybe that'll come soon. Ramage I see as a player who reads the game very well, but I can't see him becoming a top grade centre back because he's not good enough in the air. Huntington - seen very little of, but he looks like a strong character and my hunch is he'll make the grade. Edgar - never seen.

Just seen the Sky highlights. I was impressed with Huntingdon, who I thought did very well considering the opposition and his inexperience. He looked an intelligent and composed player. A good prospect.

Dead right. I didn't want to say it because I've made the point before. We handled the whole question of Shearer's retirement and replacement in an incredibly unprofessional manner, and Robson was the chief casualty.

An interesting point which I would like to counter. Since Roeder's been in charge there's been little news about problems in the dressing room. The rumours of various ructions have, effectively, died out. The only rumour I've heard, and this is a vague one, concerns Rossi and that's kept to a minimum. As the man himself; after the West Ham United game he, himself, has changed. Rather than being the Quiet Thin Man he's now making comments in the after-match interviews which seem to be out of character. He's had a go at Redknapp (one of the few good and great Premiership managers) which was a total surprise to me and he's not frightened to say what he, or something else thing that he, should say. It could be that he's growing into the job at StJP and he, like a guard dog, is defending his territory. But I have seen enough to think that this is a man who wants this job and he could well have the teeth and he could surprise us all. So far I have nothing but admiration for the man for what he's done for the club on and off the pitch and the way that he fought his own medical issues. I truly believe that we're starting to see that character which fought and won his cancer on the touchlines. Don't dismiss him just yet. Also do remember what they say about still waters.... As I said in my post, I've generally been surprised and impressed by Roeder's motivational skills. I think the players do respond to him and are working for him. That particular point I made only related to specific players. I think Roeder is respected and liked, but not feared. For most players, that's enough, but the odd one or two need a bit more. N'Zogbia and Luque are the two that spring to mind. I can remember Zoggy being subbed in a European game, and he wasn't that happy. Despite the fact that we were chasing a win, he walked off like there was all the time in the world. If a young player was foolish enough to do that with Ferguson, they wouldn't be doing it a second time. Despite the 'you should see me when I'm really angry'- type comments that he comes out with , I don't think Roeder is really a toughie. He motivates in a different way. But I only meant this as a relatively minor point that's separating him from being in the top bracket. Generally speaking, as you say, the players seem to respect him.

It would be the biggest shock in Premiership history. I can only see us being overrun in midfield, and dominated up front by Drogba. Martins is the sort of player that can nick a goal against any defence, but he's unlikely to see much of the ball. We'll have to hope for a sending off. Or maybe two.

Things changed after we became a PLC, but the days of Sir John Hall bankrolling the club couldn't last forever. Dalglish took over the club at a difficult time, when the team had already peaked, re-building was necessary, the money had been reduced, but expectations were still high. He didn't handle the pressure well, but the pressure was immense. In recent times, the turning point was surely in the close season after we finished 3rd. The dip was only to 5th place, but the momentum had gone.

I voted yes. I think there were better candidates (esp O'Neill), but in his overall period in charge he's done better than I expected. I honestly think it's difficult for any manager to work under the current regime, and not all the problems that have arisen with transfers can be put down to him. The players seem to play for him and despite the criticism, I think his tactics and team selections have been sound. He's also kept his cool under pressure in recent weeks and kept faith in his own judgement. As for his weak points, I'm still not sure about his ability to handle stroppy or undisciplined players.

I saw a bit of the Bolton game and West Ham were terrible. No spirit, no energy, nothing. Something has gone wrong behind the scenes, and I think they were right to make a change - unlike Charlton, who I think should have stuck with Dowie.

I'd agree with this. Although Martins is very much a front man, it looks to me like he's better than Owen at dropping off and creating things for other players, when the situation demands it. Owen is purely a finisher. He's only worth half the amount we've shelled out, in transfer fees and wages.

He looks slow and cumbersome. He just hasn't got used to the pace of the Premiership, and may not be able to.

I think the difference is we now carry some attacking threat. Martins has found his feet, and he's linking much better with the rest of the team. Dyer has been in and out but he's given everyone a bit of confidence. Butt and Emre compliment each other well, and we've finally got some attacking threat from the midfield, instead of Parker and Emre side by side. Solano's passing out of defence has been excellent. The back four still looks dodgy though.

I think Pearce's comments do him credit - not that there was a lot of choice because it was blatant mind. Related to the subject, I've just watched the Chelsea-Arsenal game. Absolutely brilliant game, but it was marred a little by some really childish behaviour from both sets of players - constantly whinging against decisions and niggling one another. Is it a coincidence that their two managers are the also the worst in the league for moaning about refs and winding up other managers.

I think both players are at their best playing right up against the last defender, so it's far from ideal. Martins would have to drop back into the more withdrawn Bellamy-type role, but I'm not sure that's really his style. No doubt it will be tried, but I'm pretty sure that if they were both at one of the top sides, they'd be competing for the same place.