TRon

From what I read it's not going to be on the stadium itself, it will be on the surrounding areas. If they get funding for it, then surely we could apply for the same if we build a new stadium.

The question about how poor we are in possession can at least partly be put down to lack of quality in some areas. Until we get top tier performers in all areas of the pitch, you could argue it would be difficult to play possession football against the best teams. He can't really be judged properly until he's got a team where he can compete on a truly equal footing.

Yes, and it's success on the pitch which drives the larger fanbase which leads to bigger and better stadiums. The cartel and their enforcers are well aware of that, hence the rule changes after our takeover.

Believe me, we all lived through that as kids and growing older with NUFC. It's devastating at the time, but at least now we know we would use it to rebuild even stronger if possible. Imagine what it was like selling Beardsley, Waddle, Gazza etc when you knew it was just because we never thought we were big enough to keep them.

Personally I have always found their fanbase the most entitled, moaning bunch of supporters in England. I can't stand them as a collective, if we win on Sunday it should please both sets of fans according to your mates logic. It doesn't matter to them, it does to us. So just don't turn up on the day and save yourselves for getting the necessary points for the title.

The easiest way to approach it is to have faith that Howe will have a gameplan and already be sure in his mind how to execute it. He'll know exactly what needs to be done to get a win on the day, then it just comes down to making sure the players are in the best frame to perform and not get overawed by the occasion. We really just need to go out there and perform at our best, win lose or draw.

PSR is designed in such a way that the only way to break the cartel stranglehold is to pump in the sort of money which breaks their success monopoly, and only mega rich owners who don't care about loss/profit would be able to do that. Americans/Businesses are looking to make money generally, for them I would think pumping in billions to compete with the top clubs would be too much of a risk. Far easier ways to make money, and I assume that's why no serious bidders came in, other than the ones who were going to fleece us Ashley style.

PIF are about as good owners as we could have at this current time, politics aside. Just ask Froggy if you doubt it. All the restrictions are being placed by the PL, even different owners would make no difference.

Plus he's 27 so like Barnes, there will only be a small window where we can get a really good fee for him. This is all down to PSR, otherwise we don't need to sell him at all. But if we want to continue to make signings, the only way under PSR restrictions is to make profits on players. Ideally we qualify for the CL, that way we won't even need to consider selling.

Agree, for the same reasons it would have been when Rafa wanted him when he was Everton manager. Possession isn't a requisite for their style of play, he'd be ideal for that type of team.

Read it this morning and had to double check to see who wrote it. Best Caulkin article I've read in a long time.

I can. Cup finals tend to make us freeze like deer in headlights. Hoping Eddie's learned from last time and will have some plan to address it.

While we have to go into the game knowing we can win, I still see us as massive underdogs. We can't use yesterday's result as a yardstick because PSG's passing and movement of the ball was a level or two above ours at present. Secondly, I am not that confident in what sort of service we'll get from the flanks. Tino and Barnes down one side gives no width, and on the other you've got an ageing Trips and Murphy. We'll need those guys to step their game up to bring the cup home.

I agree winning stuff is very important. But realistically if you are a team qualifying regularly for CL football, you will be winning cups as well more than likely.

Liverpool are one of the few teams who can produce a goal from nowhere with a bit of Salah magic for example. But it would be nice if they were made to earn it. I expect Howe will go in with the attitude let's not worry about them and get after them instead. Admirable approach in some ways, but in a toe to toe shootout they have the bigger guns.

Don't think there's a whole lot in it for me as to who starts on Sunday. I'm already on record as saying I would go with sheer end product so it would be Barnes for me, and that was borne out last night when one dangerous cross won the match. It might even have been you who said Barnes didn't offer enough defensive cover whereas the Willock/Joelinton combo would provide a bit more insurance. I can understand that argument as well.

This thing about playing the ball behind the man you are passing to, it had me really frustrated for the first hour. Not just Tino, Murphy and Burn were doing it a lot as well, it really broke any fluency in our game. The midfield as a whole were the exception, all three of them were doing a decent job of playing it forward where possible.

It was painful to watch. Not sure there is any answer, Targett would have worked better IMO, but he's not really the overlapping type either tbf. At least he can cross with his left foot, but he's not match ready anyway.

Fair point.

He still has the ability to drive with the ball and carry it forward, he's also a pretty good defender IMO. But he doesn't seem to have much real technical skill beyond that, his passing and crossing leave a lot to be desired. It calls into question us paying such a high fee for him tbh, but not sure he'll be keeping his England spot for long.

I hope we keep our heads and don't get caught up in the occasion. It's fine for our fans to want us to get into them, but what we really need is for each player to be aware of their job on the day and make sure they execute their instructions. The trick will be to combine discipline with enjoying the game, and we should be able to give a good account of ourselves.

Mate that's what our Saudi owners are for. Spend as much as you like on rebuilding Britain, just don't spend it on your 'orrible northern football team.

Feel like I would have been happier going into the Liverpool game having Targett on the left and Tino on the right, but Targett hasn't really had time to play himself back in form. Tino and Barnes combo seems to offer no width at all, although the goal did eventually come from a cross from the left, but even that took some invention at the second attempt.

I think losing it's local touch in London more or less killed any affinity the fans would have felt for it. It might be in east London, but Spurs competing to play there makes it seem like any club in London could call it their home ground really.

Getting CL is more important to our growth than a Carabao Cup win in my books as well. Yes for me personally, I would cherish the cup win more, but for the good of our growth I honestly think CL is more important if we want to keep our best players.