TRon

He is Barton's replacement! I've decided L like this lad after all. The huge professor forehead and 10 step overs for every yard moved forward has made me warm to him. With him and Ben Arfa it will take us twenty minutes to get the ball from the centre circle to the penalty spot.

Our new striker. Foil for Ba. Strikers who don't score goals...you can't have enough of them for me

Just did a bit of youtubing - fucking hell he looks like Thierry Henry when he's not in front of goal. The lad has serious talent, although from what people are saying a brain the size of a pea.

He's replacing Barnetta as far as I'm concerned. I hope he does well but we've had enough pacey headless chickens down the years to know by now that it rarely works. Saying players are replacing people we haven't signed is taking logic to a whole other place like. It's not really though is it? I said the same about Zog when we signed Marveaux.

I said that in the other transfer thread when we were first linked. It just seems senseless.

He's replacing Barnetta as far as I'm concerned. I hope he does well but we've had enough pacey headless chickens down the years to know by now that it rarely works.

Last one out please turn out the lights.

4 goals in his entire career. it figures.

What's his goals record like? I'm concerned because Barnetta scores goals and as we already have a team that is short on goal scorers we really needed someone who can find the net either up front or from wide positions. Fast and skilful is nice but it doesn't mean much without end product. EDIT: btw anyone who thinks we'll still sign Barnetta needs medical help.

I'd love to be able to say he's underrated or that he's shit, unfortunately I've just seen nothing of him. If he can't challenge Shola and Lovenkrands for a bench spot there's got to be something seriously wrong with his attitude.

It's like QPR. Richest owners you could possibly hope for, and Warnock is bleating on today that Routledge wanted to go to them but the couldn't afford a deal. Seriously? Why did they buy the club? To make a profit clearly. I know the only reason people get that rich is because all they care about is the profit etc. But fuck me, if I was in my dotage and 2 other multi billionaire lads said fuck it, lets buy QPR, I like to think I'd have a bit of fun. Christ, we can reasonably complain about Ashley, yet they could buy Ashley a few hundred times over and not even wince, but they can't even buy their manager a Championship winger? That's the point though. QPR clearly can afford to buy players, the fact they won't is because they are in the football business because they can see there's profit in it if you look at it as purely a business. I'm not sure Ashley started out this way, but where we are now i don't see too much difference. The thought we might be run on a similar basis as QPR isn't a happy one. At the time, it could have been argued they were only talking about developing academy players and selling off the ones not fit for the first team, and that's probably how Keegan took it. Looking back at that statement with hindsight, I think it's hard to argue that running the club the way he is now wasn't the plan all along. I was thinking about the signing of players like Smith, Geremi, Barton and Viduka on big wages, and sizeable fees in some cases. Then the following year Coloccini and Xisco. You could argue that we sold players to fund those deals but they were still fairly large outlays which I don't think we will see the likes of again in a hurry.

I also want to bat Ellen Page's back door in. And if Ellen Page was bent owa the night stand growling, "chuck it up me, big boy!" I've no doubt you would. With the Carroll cash Ashley and Llambias are in that position very now, but rather than knock the granny out of her they've decided to go downstairs and fiddle with the central heating. Obviously no one can expect us to buy a dozen players in one go, but we've never had a better opportunity to strengthen. I agree, we all expected more, however i'd never have expected 12 new players. Even if we sign another three, thats still 7 weve brought in which is a decent amount for one window. It's getting those three in which everyone is worried about.

People highlight free transfers not because it reduces the quality of the player, but because it hammers home the fact there's no reason we shouldn't be putting the money we've saved towards buying players in the other areas we need strengthening. Personally think teasy has a bit of a point, but tend to agree with this. same here.

It's like QPR. Richest owners you could possibly hope for, and Warnock is bleating on today that Routledge wanted to go to them but the couldn't afford a deal. Seriously? Why did they buy the club? To make a profit clearly. I know the only reason people get that rich is because all they care about is the profit etc. But fuck me, if I was in my dotage and 2 other multi billionaire lads said fuck it, lets buy QPR, I like to think I'd have a bit of fun. Christ, we can reasonably complain about Ashley, yet they could buy Ashley a few hundred times over and not even wince, but they can't even buy their manager a Championship winger? That's the point though. QPR clearly can afford to buy players, the fact they won't is because they are in the football business because they can see there's profit in it if you look at it as purely a business. I'm not sure Ashley started out this way, but where we are now i don't see too much difference. The thought we might be run on a similar basis as QPR isn't a happy one.

It's like QPR. Richest owners you could possibly hope for, and Warnock is bleating on today that Routledge wanted to go to them but the couldn't afford a deal. Seriously? Why did they buy the club? To make a profit clearly.

You'd like to think that when Liverpool eventually pitch in with an offer close to being acceptable a couple of days before the transfer deadline we'd tell them unless we can get a replacement in at short notice Enrique won't be leaving. That would be the way any normal club with standards to maintain would deal with it. I really hope this time round we don't end up capitulating like a pimp on crack and instead tell them to go fuck themselves.

Huh? Why does that matter? Read the previous posts. It's the difference between the Gosling/Ben Arfa deals and this. We aren't paying Barnetta's market value. Last year of his contract, ain't it? I'd imagine you'd pay at least double that otherwise, so it's the perfect Mike Ashley signing. N'Zogbia just went for 9m+ I'd say Barnetta would be going for €10m if he wasn't in the final year of his contract. So in that sense it's not his true market value, be another great piece of scouting if we get him. On the flip side it will be another opportunity missed if we don't. The way things have been going I wouldn't put too much faith in us tying this one up, especially as I am pretty sure we won't sign him unless Barton leaves.

Like Colocho says, it seems to me that Pardew would probably go along with getting rid of Barton but he is now thinking "what's the chances of a replacement coming in?" No wonder he's hedging his bets at this moment.

That's a good interview by Pardew but I feel sorry for the bloke. He has held the corner well for his bosses but it's time they showed him similar support and give him the players he needs. I don't really care how it's done, which wage structures are flexed or which shitface agents are bunged. Just fucking do it.

Are you listening Mike? Old grievances are going to get multiplied and explode even on the most friendliest, sympathetic forums if it's felt you are taking the piss.

He's pretty much divorcing himself from the board's apathy in getting in the players we need. The fact he's putting it out in public suggests he's not getting much joy in private and must be pretty frustrated at the position he's being put in by the lack of incoming transfers. He's been saying similar things in public about needing to convince them to spend ever since Carroll went. This is nothing new really. The timing is astonishing like. It's starting to sound like Keegan in the summer before he left. I'd say Ashley and Dekka need to realise where the blame will fall if the players we need don't end up on our books by the deadline. There's been more than enough time, more than enough resources and more than enough managers to take the fall.

Keegan did actually scoff recently at the idea that Pardew would be given any money to spend. I can't believe Ashley would be so stupid as to rubber stamp Keegan's view by failing to back his own preferred choice as manager with any investment. It's not even as if he has to buy the players Pardew wants. Just buy the players your scouts want.

He's pretty much divorcing himself from the board's apathy in getting in the players we need. The fact he's putting it out in public suggests he's not getting much joy in private and must be pretty frustrated at the position he's being put in by the lack of incoming transfers.

I think his actions over the past few months have shown that he lacks leadership. He has desire but it is mostly self-centred. I would be happier if he left as I don't think he's as interested in the team's future as his own, and with so many new players to bed in, he's shown little interest in helping them acclimatise.