Shak

Unless this left back is going to just emerge randomly in the next week or two then I wouldn't think that makes sense. We need a quality LB now. A proper DM would be nice, someone to really get stuck in and protect the back 4 and become the backbone of our team for years to come.

I don't know what people are expecting him to say. Anyone expecting a detailed explanation of what he plns to do in the transfer market is a bit naive/incredibly stupid. He's said he wants to bring in 3 or 4 new players, saying more than that would be foolish.

No need to spend big at the moment tbh, £10m on a couple of decent defenders and a replacement for Dyer if he goes and we'll be a good side. If MA is happy to give Allardyce big funds then yeah, fantastic. But we've good depth and quality up front and in the middle, which are the positions where you geenrally have to spend bigger. A small investment is all that's needed, and I'll be mighty sickened if we start the season still threadbare at the back as it's not gonna cost a lot to make us solid there.

You're still up on the summer overall though, on the bright side.

There's a guy where I work we call Walter Mitty, pissed myself laughing reading that. I've been frustrated a bit recently, cos I really feel we're only a few solid defenders away from being a pretty formidable team. Midfield is fine with Butt, Geremi, Emre, Barton and likely Smith a decent pool of players. Then there's Milner, Solano, N'Zogbia, Duff (eventually) and possibly even Luque looking to create from midfield. Viduka, Owen, Martins and Ameobi are a decent 4, and as Northern Monkey alludes to we have Andy Carroll looking a decent prospect. Reckon Carroll will be out on loan this season, and Ameobi has about two years to prove himself or Carroll could be taking his place in the squad. This experienced CB thing makes sense. Reckon Taylor and Rozenhal will be given the chance to play together at CB, with the new signing there to step in if one of them struggles. Only seen Rozenhal in two games, obviously, but he's seemed a calm head so far. The test will be when the season starts though, obviously. We need a LB, and I'll be disappointed if we don't have one as there's nobody in the squad at the moment who can play there as anything more than emergency apart from Babyaro, who's injured. After that, I'm fine. Happy enough with Carr, Geremi and Solano as options for RB. Ramage, Huntington and Edgar to step in in the case of injury crisis. Stear clear of an ijnury crisis at the back and there's no reason we shouldn't push for Top 6. Hopefully the new owners are getting on well with Sam, that's my only proper worry. Hell of a lot happier about things than I was two months ago though.

Dyer is the better player in my opinion, but it's time to just cut our losses and get rid of him. The club is having a clearout, and Dyer is a prime candidate to be gotten rid. Smith fills the hole in the squad left, not a spectacular player but another proven premier league player who'll do a job. Dyer has more potential to be a match winner, but I simply don't think he'll ever do it consistently enough to be someone we'll miss. He's a great representation of everything a lot of people have wanted out of the club for so long. Smith in, Dyer out. http://www.mtv.com/shared/media/news/images/s/Sin_City/sq_bruce_willis_hartigan.jpg Fair trade.

Never seen a ref in the Premiership as consistently shit as Rennie though, he's head and shoulders above the others.

Aye, God knows how he still gets to ref in the Premiership. Must be something different about him to all the other refs, a reason for him to still be reffing in the Premiership that I'm not seeing. Seems to just escape me at the moment as to what it could be...

With really top players it can give them that extra bit of edge, Gerrard and Carragher at Liverpool are great examples. It's only natural to put that extra in when you genuinely care for the club, and if your other players see such commitment it can only spur them on. Taylor could be that for us, in time. But, without the talent, it's pretty worthless. I'm sure we could assemble a team of 11 people from this board who care more for the club than anyone on the books. Wouldn't make them any use, it's why I'd start Babayaro ahead of Ramage at LB every time.

How often do you go up the training ground, Kev? once or twice a week in the holidays why? sad c***. tbh Why's that? He's only a young un' in fairness, nowt wrong with it. Aye, we've all done it. Not me! I see the sig has gone from one extreme to the other?

How often do you go up the training ground, Kev? once or twice a week in the holidays why? sad c***. tbh Why's that? He's only a young un' in fairness, nowt wrong with it.

Unless Rossi has changed almost entirely in the 6 months he's been away then I don't see him being a worthwhile signing. Better suited to a slower tempo of game, due to his lack of pace. Smith on the other hand plays the sort of high-tempo, in your face football Allardyce is known for. Seems a no-brainer to me in all honesty.

Guiseppe Rossi? yep. Ridiculous comment in that case then. Rossi couldn't get a game here last season when we had hardly any strikers, how exactly would he contribute at all now that we have Viduka, Owen, Shola and possibly Luque in the fold? Not to mention Carroll if he isn't loaned out. Smith can play a few positions and will get plenty of games so he's a worthwhile, if underwhelming, signing. Signing Rossi would have been pointless in the extreme. Rossi prefers attacking midfield to up front, and can play on the left. We've Duff, N'Zogbia and Luque who can play on the left. Can't see Rossi as a useful out and out winger either, as he's horribly slow. Soft as fudge as well tbh, would get murdered in CM. Could you really see Rossi getting a kick for us next season?

Guiseppe Rossi? yep. Ridiculous comment in that case then. Rossi couldn't get a game here last season when we had hardly any strikers, how exactly would he contribute at all now that we have Viduka, Owen, Shola and possibly Luque in the fold? Not to mention Carroll if he isn't loaned out. Smith can play a few positions and will get plenty of games so he's a worthwhile, if underwhelming, signing. Signing Rossi would have been pointless in the extreme.

Guiseppe Rossi?

As long as he's not shite. Anyway, get this lad and a really good LB and we'll be just about OK, if not ideal. Assuming he's any good, of course.

Only if we don't get defenders again this summer. And it's not as bad as buying Duff at all as I don't expect Smith will come in and automatically just dislodge our brightest young prospect in the starting eleven. We need another midfielder for when Dyer leaves, so I've no real problem with this. Defenders are the massive priority though, and if this purchase is hurting our funds for a good CB or LB then it's a poor move, I agree.

A goal scoring record of 1 in almost every 8 games, I can't wait. To be fair to the lad, most of his games for Man U have come in central midfield.

I'd say there's a very good chance we'll play different formations for different games, in which case he'd be useful in the middle of a 4-3-3. Has done a job in a 4-4-2 before, as Baggio said he'd be a useful AM. But he's more suited to a 4-3-3, fo' sho!

Agreed entirely.

If I had to choose which one to lose I'd rather keep N'Zogbia. Still has a long way to go, sure, but I'd have more hope of him becoming a key player for us than I would for Duff. Duff quality of performance dipped every passing season at Chelsea and was even worse when he came here. Sure he's still good, but looks to be going in the wrong direction as a player these last few years. Perhaps Allardyce can have him rediscover his best form, I hope so. But his best assett has always been his quickness, by which I mean his ability to change direction quickly and beat a couple of players rather than flat out pace. His delivery is generally quite poor, meaning that if he's not skinning defenders regularly then he'll not give you much from the wing. As he gets older he's not likely to get any quicker, and I'm not sure he'll ever be the top winger he was at Blackburn. N'Zogbia has a ways to go, but he's got all the tools to surpass Duff as a player within a year or two. Wish we'd just keep them both, though.

While the BBC aren't a great source, this news has me shitting myself tbh. I'll be distraught if he goes. Fulham? 3m? N'Zogbia? Alan Smith? FUCK OFF.

Content to get him in as long as we still have funds for a couple of defenders, and that we don't have to sell anyone other than Dyer to do so. Getting Smith in for roughly what we sell Dyer and N'Zogbia for would completely offset all the good business we've done in the transfer market this summer thus far.

Wing, think he has everything needed to be a truly top winger. Reckon he'd be good in the middle as part of a 3-man midfield, driving forward. But he'd be most suited to the role I'd expect Barton would play.