Shak

And Man Utd, which is what most seem to be rating him from rather than watching him with their own 2 eyes. Hypocrite. How? Basing it on a few forum comments than what you've seen yourself. Can you read?! I've said I've seen him play and that he's average, he wouldn't improve the team and is technically awful. I haven't even read the comments from the Spanish site Ohmelads is talking about but I'd listen to their opinions as they sit in the stadium and watch him, also living in Spain they will have a better feel for the general opinion of the player. How is that similar to people rating him without never seeing him play but presume he must be good because he was linked with Man Utd? 1.Once? 2.They usually end up less than half of their capacity in the stadium so i doubt it. Who said Once? I think you're clutching at straws here, I've seen him play well into double figures on tv, which is what most on that forum are basing their opinions on. Point 2 seems a bit desperate too tbh, if they average gates of 25,000 then chances are a good few of them on their main board go to games and watch them. Question, Do you think he's better than Nicky Butt? If yes, why? Sure you have mate Deportivo have been on Sky about 10 times in the last 3 years so i don't see how you've seen him that many times, do i think he's better than Nicky Butt? i think he's got a lot more to offer considering he's got age on his side and the main question is, do you think he would be a good addition to the squad and my answer is yes. To be fair, 10 times would equate to double figures. I'm sure nobody is doubting he'll make a decent addition in terms of depth, but there comes a time where you'll need quality to stand apart from that depth, which is why I'm sure some people would have preffered splashing out on a younger player with the potential to be really top class. While Duscher would be a big improvement on who we had as back-up last year, will he really improve the team. Perhaps, but it does seem doubtful.

I've heard Wullie is looking to make a few quid in order to put off getting a job as well... Something's up.

Touchy.

They put free transfer + a few comments on the Deportivo forum and came to the conclusion he was s***. Are you his mother or something? Personally I'd tend to put a fair bit of value on what fans of his own team have to say about him. I would, i speak to a lot of them every week Post the link to the forum where they all say he's a good player, I'd like to read it. http://www.deportivo-la-coruna.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3341&page=31 Latest comments. Fair enough, I'll trust Big Sam's judgement on this one as I know fuck all about Duscher in all honesty. Would still prefer someone younger but whatever. Let's hope we'll be splashing the cash on two or three really top class players, that's the ideal explanation as to why we're after so many cheap transfers. The not so ideal explanation being that we're not gonna spend much money at all.

They put free transfer + a few comments on the Deportivo forum and came to the conclusion he was s***. Are you his mother or something? Personally I'd tend to put a fair bit of value on what fans of his own team have to say about him.

Not having a pre-knock (what sort of sad loser has a pre-anything, anyway?) so to speak, but it does seem like there's not really much chance of this guy being any sort of improvement on Butt, just someone to provide depth. While depth is all well and good, IF we have a bit of money to spend then it does seem logical to spend it on a young DM that will learn from, and ultimately replace, Butt, rather than someone like Duscher who seems to have a very limited upside.

I wanted Owen to leave at the start of the summer. Think he'll almost certainly be gone next summer anyway, and I felt that he was a player that wouldn't fit into the way Big Sam might want to play in certain games. Think it's very obvious what his strategy has been all summer and he's only now saying he's happy here because he knows he's stuck here. However, now that he's here I'll be getting behind him and hoping he does the business for us. He's head and shoulders above all of our other strikers and if he catches form he has the ability to propel us towards the Top 4 this coming season. Also think Allardyce's training methods could prove to be massively helpful and should hopefully keep him fit for the majority of games. One thing this is going to tell us pretty quickly is how good a mind for tactics Big Sam really has. At Bolton he's always gone with the tried and tested 4-5-1/4-3-3 with two creative winger/forward types either side of a target man. Owen won't fit into this system, so we'll have to adapt a new one. In football you always play to accentuate the strengths of your best players, and as of right now Michael Owen is our best player. I've confidence in Sam, and I'll be looking with great interest to see how we set up for our first games this season. A big worry for me is that January transfer window, specifically one of the big clubs left in the CL seeing Owen in form for us and thinking he could be the final piece of the jigsaw to bring them success. If they offer enough to activate his clause, there's nothing we can do, and I've little faith in Owen to come out and stick with us to the end of the season in such a case. If we lose him then, we won't be able to replace him properly until the summer really, as teams won't generally let their best players go in January unless they have some sort of clause or financial crisis at the club. Add to that that we'll be losing Martins around January-February and we could see our striking options severely hurt, and our season could fizzle out. So January is a worry but other than that I see us as having a season to prove to Michael Owen that his future lies here. He'll have a season left on his contract come next summer and if he won't sign a new one then, flog him. If he's proven his fitness by then I'm sure we'll find someone to take him on the cheap. But if we can convince him, through signing quality players and having a top notch management setup, that his future is here then we could tie up one of the world's best natural goalscorers for the foreseeable future, something that may come in handy for the Ashley revolution. Reckon we'll need Top 4 or very close to it though, so it's going to be very tough.

Dunno, I'd have Ronaldinho here myself.

Begorrah! In English, please. You people spawned the language afterall, shouldn't be too much to ask.

Got to agree with OML that it seems really strange we're looking at this. It seems that there is money to spend, a good young DM with a lot of potential that can compete for the holding midfield role with Butt seems to be as obvious a place as any to spend a bit. Unless Allardyce has a couple of truly big money targets in mind this all does seem a bit strange. Dare I suggest that maybe we won't be spending much money at all this summer. Mort has said there is money available, but for all we know that could be £10m, and we'll need to focus it all on defence in that case. Perhaps the plan is to have Allardyce work on putting together a solid, cheap squad this summer that will do us for the season while Ashley and his people review the club thoroughly from top to bottom before really splashing out next year? I'm inclined to doubt it, but it's a possibility.

I've written him off in my mind so anything he can produce is a bonus, if he flops again then I'll lose no sleep over it. No lose situation really, let's see what he can do.

Now I have a machine gun... HO HO HO

Good post and it is very relevant the point you make about the pace. I would expect that if we sell Oba and get Gudjohnsen then we'll look to add another pacey option up front for when Owen isn't fit, as you say. With Gudjohnsen able to play a numbr of roles, he'll get plenty of games in attack or midfield even with another striker brought in to replace Oba. I advocated selling Owen for the reason that we won't be able to play 4-5-1, which is what Allardyce knows best, with him. I reckon we'll be seeing a number of different sytems next season, in which case a guy like Gudjohnsen would be very nice.

I don't think they were complaining after USA '94 mind. I forgot Dunga was national coach then. Was it not Perreira in 94, the guy who made a balls of last year's World Cup? Perreira was indeed mate, my post was relferring to the fact that they won the World Cup that year playing pretty poor football but I'm sure no Brazilians were moaning due to the fact they came home with the big pize. Again, brilliant in a Gruber voice. That's the fine line though. Play great stuff and lose, you might get a second chance. Play dull stuff and lose, you're off. Argentina the new Brazil anyway then Hans, I'm sure you'll agree?

I don't think they were complaining after USA '94 mind. I forgot Dunga was national coach then. Was it not Perreira in 94, the guy who made a balls of last year's World Cup?

Reading 2J's posts with the Hans Gruber accent and tone is fucking great fun. Post something long and thoughtful there 2J.

It's not so much the number of passes that made the Cambiasso goal special, it was the fact that they built it up with such brilliant teamwork. Ze Roberto's goal was a prime example of what I talk about with Brazil, knocking the ball about without really going anywhere then someone plays one quality ball and they're in.

does he have "the knack" lyke ? I've had to d/l the song so I can get it out of my head.

Am I the only one who get 'My Sharona' in my head every time I see Voronin's name?

Vic is thinking to himself "Oh yeah? Wel we'll just see about that now won't we..." r u spoking to is lyk?

Spot on, mate. Not exactly welcoming for new members is it? The reasons are obvious for it on a board this size though. The other way we had newbs starting shit threads the whole time, the forum was full of shit threads at times.

Been on for a couple of weeks now mate.

Would take Riquelme ahead of Deco, agreed. Watching last night, I think we might also be better served going for Diego instead of Deco. Very similiar playing style, but with his best years ahead of him.

Fucking cert to play useless and lose tonight after I've written this, but sure you'll have that. ================================ The New Brazil For as long as I can remember, Brazil have been held as the gold standard in professional football. With a swash-buckling style and a seemingly endless supply of genuinely world class players, they have at times simply brushed the opposition aside on the grandest stage of them all, The World Cup. They are what nations have aspired to be on the football pitch, playing with grace and beauty as they overwhelm their inevitably less talented opponents. With players such as Kaka and Ronaldinho still in their peak years, and exciting new stars like Robinho coming to prominence all the time, it would seem perhaps a tad strange to suggest that now is the time for a new super-power to emerge and be the envy of footballing nations worldwide. But it is a claim I make, nonetheless. Step forward, Argentina. While it would be easy to spend time extolling the virtues of players like Messi, Tevez, Riquelme and Mascherano, to name but a few, it is not simply the great players they have at their disposal now that makes them so fearsome. Football has changed the last 10 years or so. There is more emphasis now than ever on fitness and tactics in the game. Gone, despite the impressions given to us at St. James’ Park the last few years, are the days of putting 11 square pegs in 11 square holes and saying “Go out and play football.” In its place we’ve been introduced to severe attention to detail and the need for a strong work ethic in teams. This is where the Argentinians will overtake the Brazilians. Anyone who, like me, has been lucky enough to have a severe dose of the flu over the last couple of weeks will have seen some of the football Argentina have played in this year’s Copa America. The passing and movement has been phenomenal, players working and moving as a team as opposed to what we’ve been served by their Brazilian counterparts, which seems like little more than directionless ball retention while they wait for one of their impact players to do something special. You could argue that the Brazilians are not at full strength, but one need only look at last year’s World Cup for proof that this is as much a result of mentality and tactics as it is what particular players are on the pitch. While Brazil’s much lauded all-stars stumbled through the World Cup, Ronaldinho proving totally ineffective throughout due to not being able to influence the game in dangerous positions, before eventually going out with a whimper, Argentina produced by far the best football the tournament saw. Cambiasso’s goal against Serbia and Montenegro in the group stages is one of the greatest goals ever scored, and for me is the perfect representation of what modern day football should be all about. Players constantly moving, showing for the ball in midfield. Patient build up, one-touch football that gradually drags the opposition out of position and allows runners from midfield to exploit the space. In defence, they also possess a toughness not common in their Brazilian counterparts, which stops teams from having any chance of bullying them off the pitch. Once they’ve matched their opponents physically, their talents on the ball will inevitably start to show and win them the game. You could very easily ask the question ‘If they were so good, how did they get knocked out by Germany?’ Anyone who saw that particular match, however, will know that Germany only progressed due to a truly baffling display by the former Argentina manager who, with his team 1-0 up and looking good value to go on and put the game to bed, bizarrely proceeded to substitute Riquelme and replace him with a holding midfield player. With Argentina’s main man out of the picture, the game evened up a bit. With ten minutes to go Pekerman, the Argentinian coach, made his last change, replacing Crespo with Cruz, a like for like swap. Inevitably, Germany got a lucky break and scored the goal to send it to extra time and then penalties. Not only were Argentina without Riquelme for the crucial extra-time period, but they had also used up all their subs and couldn’t bring on Lionel Messi, who had been explosive throughout the tournament. From 1-0 up and coasting to out on penalties, I firmly believe that it was only such a managerial catastrophe that could have prevented them from winning that World Cup. It’s a lesson that I don’t expect will soon be forgotten, and with players like Messi and Tevez set to provide the spark for years to come, I would expect Argentina’s wait for a World Cup trophy won’t be too much longer. So if you fancy pulling a sickie tomorrow then I would thoroughly recommend watching Argentina vs Mexico tonight. For not only will you be watching what should be a tremendous semi final between two fierce rivals. You’ll be watching football as it should be played, the Argentinian way.

Vic is thinking to himself "Oh yeah? Wel we'll just see about that now won't we..."