Unbelievable

You'll not be laughing when the best player in the world demands to be the best paid player in the world..

Monaco going all in..

Seen much of Douglas have you? A bit, but it's not the point of the post particularly. Would you say that Douglas would significantly increase the quality of our first 11? It does stink quite a bit of doing things for as little as possible. Certainly Douglas is not of a higher quality than the players we were signing previously. If we are going to sign players purely for quality then i'd certainly be looking for a couple of players who would come in as two of our very best. I'm not adverse to the signing of Douglas. And I don't actually believe the Bent link. I was mostly just being a dick. Fair enough, but yes, I do believe Douglas would improve our first 11. He's better (and importantly more reliable) than Saylor and complements both Colo and Mbiwa well imho, who I don't see forming a successful partnership together. I don't like our penny pinching much myself, but if getting Douglas in on a free means we have funds available for a winger we wouldn't otherwise have (if we went for Sakho for example), I'm all for it.

Seen much of Douglas have you?

The pic is funny, the article is worrying..

Worryingly, there's a mackem on the SMB who was on about this at around lunchtime today: http://www.readytogo.net/smb/showthread.php?t=785995

I like him as a player, and do think he's underrated, massively even by some, but he's not what we need, not at all. Cisse and him are just too similar for me. He's a better option than we have at the moment - can at least play him if Cisse is out of form or injured. On a free I'd consider it, at 6 million and no doubt sizeable wages, no thanks.

I like him as a player, and do think he's underrated, massively even by some, but he's not what we need, not at all. Cisse and him are just too similar for me.

The stuff of nightmares. They would just constantly be in each others way..

Dear God no, certainly not at that price.

I'm finding it pretty hard to find good compilations of Douglas, but search for "douglas psv twe" in everybody's favourite video channel and you get an idea of what he's like (3 minutes or so taken from one match away vs PSV Eindhoven). I guess the one called "DOUGLAS TEIXEIRA" isn't bad either, but the video quality is horrible and it's from 2009.

Thauvin looks like the next big thing. Such a shame we missed out. I don't want to hear about him anymore until we're next linked.. I mean, it's heartbreaking to read we've missed out on the next Zidane. He's not going to Lille eitherway So there's truth in those OM rumours..? Yes. If they can afford him, we should dumb Barfa to Monaco and go after him.. 7 million was the price mentioned, wasn't it, so that would see Lille double their money without him having played a single match for them? Imagine being a Bastia fan... So I take it you reckon this guy is the real deal then?

Picture's broken. What are you trying to say?

Thauvin looks like the next big thing. Such a shame we missed out. I don't want to hear about him anymore until we're next linked.. I mean, it's heartbreaking to read we've missed out on the next Zidane. He's not going to Lille eitherway So there's truth in those OM rumours..?

Thauvin looks like the next big thing. Such a shame we missed out. I don't want to hear about him anymore until we're next linked.. I mean, it's heartbreaking to read we've missed out on the next Zidane.

Marveaux - He is very talented, quick, makes good runs, is always busy and can spot a pass. He is wasted as a sub and needs to start games but where does he fit in this side with these players? He's easily one of our better players. Haidara - I've been very impressed with him, especially going forward. Defensively he's very naive, however. But he's young. He could become a very good full-back. Sissoko - I've not really been impressed by him if I'm to be honest. His debut was exceptional in patches and his overall statistics are very good, but he's sloppy on the ball and seems hesitant in his decision making. That said, he too needs a defined role and it is hard to judge him especially given how poor we have been and the ineptitude of the manager and his tactics. The jury is till out for me. Cisse - Like any striker he needs a decent level of service to score goals and that hasn't always been the case. He's highly frustrating but he is quality on his day. I personally feel we need to either build the team around him to guarantee 20+ a season or find someone more all-rounded and either sell him to fund such a forward or use him as an impact sub. Not that he'd be happy with that of course. Again though, with the team set-up and tactics, its hard to judge Cisse truly. Ina better side or a more attacking side of course he will shine more. Most good players would. Ben Arfa - He is arguably the most gifted or talented individual in the league and for me needs to be handed a free role as he is that good on his day. I don't want to see him anywhere near our own half. If need be bring in someone just to do the donkey work on his behalf as KK did with Beresford in order for Ginola to do his stuff. Cabaye - We all know he is a good footballer but we are under using him. He sits far too deep and runs around wasting too much energy on doing very little other than conceding silly fouls or risking injury to himself. I agree with Ronaldo about his mobility but I don't think that means he cannot succeed in this league as a result. He needs to be our playmaker, the player who picks the ball up off whoever, looks up, gives it, drops off to get it back or looks to probe etc. He can do that and he can also score goals but my god he needs pushed forward at least another 40 yards. My overall general feelings on our signings is that we sign players with no real thinking of how they will fit in, where, when and what use they will be. Anita being a case in point. We seem to be signing admittedly good individuals, but a lot of them don't seem to fit at the moment and while I detest the manager, even a decent one would scratch his head a few times trying to fit all of these players together into a winning formula. Now, that is a much more balanced appraisal. Only thing I disagree with is Haidara looking naive defensively; to me he looks very assured, especially considering his age. Also, I think you are slightly harsh on Sissoko, who came in to a new league and played 11 games in 30 days or something stupid, saved our season more or less, and yes, indeed looked a little fatigued towards the end of the season. I have absolutely no worries about him once he will have settled in.

WTF

Which one of his countless agents would that be?

Aye, biting and diving will go down much better over in Spain. The press and fans (especially in other cities than Madrid, or even Athletico Madrid fans) will love it no ends. The best bit of that article is the Cavani "four you dream of" reference, assuming he means the "big 4" in England. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it Liverpool fans..

Don't waste your tears on Toivonen. Very limited.

What a load of nonsense..

Dutch football magazine Elfvoetbal running with this now: http://www.elfvoetbal.nl/nieuws/273609_douglas-vertrekt-naar-newcastle No quotes or sources mentioned however, so not sure if reliable.

85 appearances in 3 seasons..

Yes please. Douglas would be a great upgrade.

It's not our biggest problem position imo, providing Colo stays, but Douglas on a free is too good to pass up on. He's of the required quality, a good age, and he brings characteristics to the table that we lack, which makes us vulnerable against strong forwards, especially with Saylor being so injury prone.