STM

It's Hinchcliffe saying "Eddie howe needs to tell his players..." As if somehow Andy fucking Hinchcliffe could ever offer a solution to Howe. Silly cunt.

Personally pisses me off that every season the PL changes the rules. For me, the time wasting, the celebrations, the showmanship is all part of the game. I've never once watched a game and thought "by there's not much football being played here". In fact, it's often the most competitive games where the ball is out of play.

https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/garang-kuol/profil/spieler/967948 Not according to this, in fairness.

If you are West Ham and you think Man City are going to take Paqueta, surely you have to bite the bullet and go and get your main midfield targets now. You don't wait for Paqueta to leave and THEN see what's available. Paqueta is always going to be a saleable asset. Not that need the funds.

Scott McTominay to Newcastle is exactly the sort of information that Scott McTominays agent might want people to hear. The fact none of the more progressive PL clubs have serious interest in him tells its own story. West Ham is best case scenario for Scott I'm afraid.

What's that meant to fucking mean?

5m loan with a 20m obligation if he's available for 20+games, would be perfect.

That's how big clubs work. You spend money to have a deeper squad. Also you've said yourself Trippier played every minute... hardly ideal. When we've been to Italy on a Wednesday and play Burnley at home on a Sunday, that might be the time to give this lad a game. Not to mention the domestic cups. Also, Trippier isn't bullet proof. One injury and 30 odd million could look the decision of the season.

Swear it's been a week since we agreed a fee. Reckon Ashworth is one of those fine toothcomb fellas when it comes to contracts.

I would be shocked if we sign any player over the age of 26/27. If we sign anyone else, it will follow the same pattern as the rest of our signings since Dan Ashworth came in: 20-25 years old 30-50m From a side vulnerable to us Someone not on massive wages currently I'd also think it would be a defender, at this stage.

Think Gordon is about 2 years away from being anything like a polished diamond. He's got loads of raw potential and I've said it before and i will say it again... I don't for one second think he will remain a wide player, or at least certainly not regularly. I can absolutely see him either as a forward, number 10 or more likely a number 8. To me, he looks like someone who can cope with the hustle and bustle of midfield but also someone who can carry the ball in transition. He's also got a keen eye for a pass too (see his through ball to Miggy). I'm really interested to see which way his career goes with regards to long term position. I think James Milner is a great comparison. The older he gets, the further back he will play and his versatility will be his strength.

Gordon is like the runt of the litter. "Go on son".

Schar will play. He just loves making a fuss. Gordon will get the nod but Barnes is one hell of a sub. It's that RCM slot that's interesting. I'm now swaying towards Tonali.

Won us about 40 free kicks in the first half.

Thoughts/notes: Yep Lascelles is going to cost us goals. Richie is actually serviceable in an emergency, worked his socks off. Murphy is 10 times the player he was 2 years ago, he was class. Bruno had his swagger back. Joelinton is as good/important as Bruno. Barnes is going to score loads, him and Wilson already have an understanding. Longstaff and Tonali will be neck and neck for that midfield slot. Unbeaten in pre-season against quality opposition; Chelsea, Brighton Villa, Fiorentina and Villareal, despite having never played our strongest 11 bodes very well. Competition for places is the most I've ever seen it. Looking forward to seeing our bench vs Villa.

We don't HAVE to compare Barnes and Maddison like. We could just let Madders get on at Spurs and enjoy wor Harvey.

Yeah he's even better than I thought. He's going to score a hat full the way we play. He's got that knack of finding himself space in goalscoring areas. Also, he looked up to the pace of our game. Never looked tired.

Can't find the game. Got every bloody channel. Not happy.

Dazn spain, is that 1 2 or 3?

This is the issue though. I don't think we want "solid upgrades". Everything I've seen suggests we want to go for a potential future star.

Whilst I agree that in essence, they are "mid table" ish players, I think from a strategic point of view we don't want to be just signing players that are a slight improvement. I think we all agree that our next left back needs to be an absolute worldy and tick all of the boxes. I think it will take 40m+ and the right player to enter the market.

I agree that it's the weakest of the 11 positions but that doesn't make it WEAK and that's the distinction I'm trying to make. You can want a better left back without throwing mud around at our current players. Also, some might argue that some of our second choice players such as Lascelles are a bigger issue, should injuries arise.

They were both called "average" in a post above. Which is clear bollocks. They are good players. Also, left back is arguably the hardest position to upgrade. I've asked countless times for realistic suggestions, I've barely seen one decent one.

4th, we finished 4th. easy to forget at times.

They are both good players.