TRon

I actually don't agree with the assumption that the Saudis will walk away. Where to? If they really believe the PL is the vehicle for their sports branding, then they aren't going to get any joy at another club now either, doesn't matter if it's Man U or Liverpool. They could go to Italy or France, but with their money they could do all that and keep their hat in the ring for NUFC as well. Buying into the PL will be a long term project for them, a few more delays will probably be taken on the chin. That said, if they are led to believe there's no way in, then they will

That works out for us as well since we aren't interested in good players in any case. Have you seen what they're going for?

Might not have been better than ASM but Perez was far better than Joelinton, Muto, Gayle and Carroll.

If the takeover was still a realistic prospect Bruce could have coasted for another season. With it all going nowhere and the PL dug in for the long haul against the hated northern upstarts NUFC, Brucey will start to feel the pressure more. Ironic that his biggest fan Luke Baldwards was taking the piss out of fans who wanted the takeover, and now that it's coming apart, his chum will be getting more flak not less. I do take some small delicious pleasure in that.

Perez was never any world beater even for us, hence why he got quite a bit of stick from the crowd. But he's a lot less important at Leicester where they now have a far superior squad to us. He'd still be one of our best players by some distance if he was here.

Bah. That sort of thing only matters for those who try to make the game too complicated with tactics and systems and shit.

Well actually the Bruce Out brigade are winning as well. We got Lyuke recommending Bruce walk away, and that shows the protestors are getting to both of them. Win.

If he's not coming here, why would we care where he ends up? Think I'd prefer to see him abroad than banging in goals in the PL tbh.

Even if the Saudis walk away and the takeover is off would still like to see the FA dragged through the courts and some heads roll if there is some dirt on them. Just out of spite tbh, I know it's not going to do us much good.

They aren't stupid, if that was the easy way round it, surely they would have changed tack long ago. Quite clearly the Reubens and co just don't want it any other way. Or PIF don't.

Plus if they are established names like Ross Berkeley and Phil Jones, even wor Gary the window cleaner will know about them, you don't need any fancy Dan scouting knowledge to identify your next target!

These are just big names who have been found wanting or are over the hill, perfect for managers who don't actually watch players or have any systems which require certain assets. Plus they are British so again you can see the attraction for Bruce. "Proper players" as Souness would say.

This is my position as well. If we win...great. We'll still have a premier team to keep the Saudis interested. If we lose, well it's to be expected when you have an underfunded squad led by the least respected manager in the game today.

If he's not staying at Arsenal, I would assume his preferred move would be here, so other clubs might be waiting to see if that changes. As a result we are probably trying to play hardball with Arsenal over terms and they will be trying to create an auction of sorts.