tmonkey

Hope they stay up. Hopefully Pardew will be gone and we go back to it being an easy 6 pointer again for us.

Route one hoofball, knockdown, OK layoff but into a crowded area, defenders who should have cleared easily falling over, Shola scuffing his shot past the keeper. This was Pardew's vision of how we should be playing "football".

He's a moron of the highest order. Plays the game like he thinks he's a big bad hard as nails playmaker who has all the time in the world because he's Warrior Tiote. Really hope he's gone this summer, such a massive fuckwit.

Local reporters in the press box should turn to Pardew and do his signature fist pump celebration at him.

Bony thick as two planks of wood there.

Thought this at the start of the season. Looked to me like someone had told him to get stronger and to try more shots from range as soon as he got sight of goal - i.e. "play like Gareth Bale". It's why Hatem was shooting wildly from anywhere he could in the first few months of the season.

Pardew a better manager than Keegan What a horrendous thing to say. Wasn't even at the club when Keegan was here so how the fuck would he have any idea as to whether the players had any respect for him? What an arse licker, of course he's going to back Pardew, the guy was a Charlton Athletic reserve keeper ffs, he'd be sitting on the bench at a lower league side if it wasn't for Pardew. In fact, is that why Pardew bought him? Just to have a "friend" in the dressing room? It was always a strange transfer, signing a reserve from a mid table Championship side. It all starts to make sense now - Pardew is just a cunt who wants players with no ambition and who owe him just for playing at this level, as opposed to players with genuine talent who Pardew ought to be grateful for having. Anyway, re: Ben Arfa, it shouldn't matter one bit if noone likes him (highly unlikely anyway). The club needs a talisman player to get behind, and it ought to be Ben Arfa in a position/role where he doesn't need to track back (right wing forward in a front 3). If he's given the opportunity to produce without ridiculous constraints such as "must stay back at all times to stop opposition fullback", and then fails, then sure, drop him. But drop him because the players don't like him and they want their mate to play who's about 1/10th as talented? Fuck off. They're professional footballers, not a bunch of lads who are there for a laugh - it shouldn't even be a factor that disliking someone personally equates to not wanting to play with them. Wankers.

Someone came up with Pardiot earlier

"You need to stand tall and be strong". Sad thing is he means literally.

Standard Messi performance in the knockouts of the CL vs a solid defense at the top of their game.

There may only be 3 minutes of injury time left, but make no mistake, ManU are still in this. Remember that night in the Nou Camp? Remember that never say die spirit?

Rooney

Time to turn this now dull La Liga game off. Ze Germans are coming.

Fucking class

Shades of Roberto Carlos.

The one area where Bayern definitely look weaker compared to last year under Heynckes is in set pieces, particularly corners. Last year they were one of the best sides I've ever seen at attacking corners, all of their players in the box moving in unison, most of them big and good in the air, attacking in numbers the prime zones where a well placed corner can get whipped into - very difficult to mark as there was multiple threats. This year under Pep practically every corner is whipped into the middle and there's only one person there at most. To me that's a visible flaw in Pep's approach to the game. Sod's law says they'll probably score from a corner.

Can't blame them though, ManU have parked the team bus in front of goal. There's absolutely no space to do anything. De Gea has barely had to make a save because every shot has been blocked.

Hayden Mullins nearly gives a penalty away to Atletico.

Chelsea PSG has been a dull, dirty game with both teams sitting back when it should have been a classic game of attack vs counter attack.

Ugly football works for Jose.

Chelsea are two goals down. You wouldn't think it judging by the way they're playing.

Think it's only natural to celebrate scoring a goal, especially if its a cracker. Not like Johnson owes NUFC anything or needs to show respect by not celebrating, that's generally only ever done by club legends. Plus, nowhere near as bad as Fenton and Shearer on that night though, and yet the latter is considered amongst the greatest of our club legends.

How good is Adam Johnson at this stage of his career? I know he's had some criticisms from the mackems in regards to disappearing for large chunks of a game, and though at one point he looked a good talent for Boro/Man City he's clearly not going to be the best player in the Premiership, but in respect to his mackems form I think he has a similar problem to Hatem in that being the only creative player in their side means he gets shut out a bit easier. IIRC he's a boyhood fan of NUFC and played for us for a few years as a kid at some point, which might mean nothing but then again might mean he'd care a tiny bit more about NUFC if playing here as opposed to whoever the alternative options are for wingers (assuming we have any), and it's always nice to have players who are both good footballers and know/understand/support the club and its fanbase. Most importantly, it'd be an interesting prospect having Hatem down one flank (assuming he outlasts Pardews - fingers crossed) and Johnson on the other. Even if he's not perfect he's got to be better than the utter dross we've had on our left flank in the past half decade, and if Sunderland go down it'd be a nice little dig to take their (on paper) best player.

Sanogo

That defending.