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It only appears that way because the quality of players they had were so much better then.

Even then you were beaten by Man U. You just can't impose yourself in a game with the big boys and Wenger doesn't seem to want to compromise his footballing principles in order to do so People blame it on the way Arsenal play, but for me they just need some better players. Wenger has gone undefeated in the league with these same footballing principles.

Sadly, Baba has died of old age. He was 23. Man, I'm only twenty.....on my passport anyway. I would be stunned if Gignac were to come to Newcastle. He's beeen heavily linked with l'OM recently and I would love to sign him for l'OM or Newcastle. He's a top calibre striker. However, I think he's well out of our price range and wouldn't be interested. He's been struggling a bit in a rubbish Toulouse team this year, but he had 25 goals last year in Ligue 1. Ligue 1 isn't Holland, it's not the easiest place to score and he was doing it for fun. I agree about the toughness of ligue 1. It's why I'm hoping we get a striker from that league this summer. Would love it if we got someone with power and pace like Gignac. From what you say it doen't seem likely though. Other than Gignac is there anyone else in that mould we could possibly get from France? Can't think of anyone else really ... maybe Hoarau? Although not sure how realistic he is either.

Good shout! http://www.alleztfc.com/actu/un-nouveau-club-etranger-sur-gignac,5570.html Hmmm, only 5 goals this season. Likely why we would have a chance. We should definitely take advantage if possible though. Still just 24 years old.

Eidur is old. Why not look for a younger version? PSV's Ola Toivonen perhaps.

Any german football experts here? Both Hamit and Halil Altintop are available for free this summer. People are typically familiar with Hamit, but what is Halil like? I know he's been a pretty succesful striker in the German league, but not sure what kind of player he is. Would he be worth picking up on a free? And would he be a good match alongside Carroll?

Who do you reckon are the weakest 3 in our best XI are? Assuming we are looking at our typical 4-4-2 lineup, I would imagine we would be looking to upgrade on Guthrie, Lovenkrands and Simpson. We will need a more dynamic, ball playing DM to replace Guthrie. A higher quality fast striker than Loven, who has more strength and gets more involved in play. Lastly a better right back than Simpson.

Ryan Babel linked in the News of the World. Would only want him if we play him upfront alongside Carroll. Someone needs to let him develop as a striker, as he just deosn't seem comfortable on the wing. He is still just 23 yrs old and could still become quite the player if given more of an opportunity.

Whats the deal with Fernando Cavenaghi? Doesn't seem to be getting too much of a look in at the moment and his contract is up in 2011. Cheeky bid? Would feel right at home with Jonas and Colo too.

Out of interest do people think Carroll will be in the starting eleven next season? I think that would be okay as long as we get a quality striker to play alongside him. However, that would mean a 4-4-2 formation, which would likely mean Nolan playing in a midfield two. This scares me.

Interesting to note that both Altintops are available on a free this summer. Wouldn't imagine we had much of a chance with the one at Bayern, as he is a greater talent, and there will be big teams interested. His twin brother at Eintracht, who plays as a striker, is far more realistic and would be a very good pick up for us. Full Turkish international, who can also play just behind the striker and on the wings as well as up front as a lone striker. Been a bit more quiet for him since leaving Kaiserslautern a few years back after scoring quite a few goals, but would be a very good addition for us.

"That's why football is not my passion because when you are professional, the world of football is not good. There are people around you only because you play football; the girls, the same. I have my girlfriend, who I met when I was 18, 19, and I do not want to lose her because when you are a footballer it's not good to meet a new girl at 26." Sounds to me like the guy has a pretty good head on his shoulders and doesn't get too sucked into the false and pretentious lifestyle that surrounds him as a footballer. At least I wouldn't have to worry about him doing a Terry or Ashley Cole eh? Sounds like a top pro to me.

Leeds are a mess. Ridiculous.

As I mentioned earlier, Mounir El Hamdaoui of AZ has scored 20 goals in the last couple of seasons and is really coming along as a player. More interestingly he was at Tottenham as a youngster, between 2005-2006, while Hughton was still coaching there. Also, El Hamdaoui has recently spoken of a wish to return to the premier league. Probably the most likely I would imagine. Would be pretty exciting.

Interesting comments from Hughton. I think it's probably likely that both Nolan and Smith are going to be in the first team next season. My issue with this would be a central midfield partnership with the both of them. This just will not work imo. If we are going to have these two in the first team, the best case scenario would be Nolan playing off of a main striker and Smith in midfield with a top notch central midfielder with the legs to get up and down the pitch and the ability to dictate play and set up our attacking moves. The guy we are supposedly looking at from Lille, Yohan Cabaye, is this type of player so could make sense.

Chivu got the ball there! This ref is flat out s***!

This is pathetic. Apparently you can't hold off a player anymore. Crazy stuff.

Ola Toivonen having a good season at PSV this year. Realistic? Or one strictly for the big boys now?

Routledge did well int he prem as a 19 year old in a pretty average Palace team. he will be good for us next season, no doubit about it. He's got his confidence and momentum back now. He was a steal for us. We were very fortunate to get him the way we did.

Nigel Reo-Coker like Routledge is someone who I saw a decent amount of because I was in the area when they played for Wimbledon and Crystal Palace respectively, and both emerged on the scene. I promise you that you would all love the guy. There was a lot of sceptism about Routledge and go back and look at what I had to say then, and you will see that I was accurate about him. Routledge has been great and willbe in the premier league also, mark my words. Anyway lets talk about Reo-Coker ... this again would be a very very shrewd signing, just like Routledge was. mrmojorisin75 is very accurate in his description. Reo-Coker is a very very strong, dynamic and mobile box to box central midfielder that plays with a ton of drive and determination going forward as well as defensively. The type of player he is, is a Scott Parker / Essien / Palacios type I would say. To get the best out of him you definitely want to give him the freedom to get up and down the pitch. He has sometimes been used as more of a defensive misdfielder, and though he can do a job, he really isn't quite savvy enough on the whole, it is essentially a bit of a waste of his better attributes, which are his drive and power going forward. Of course he isn't a perfect player either, and does have his faults. The thing he isn't as great at are the more technical aspects. His touch can be poor at times, and so he will not always get the ball under control as quickly or as well as he can, and his passing can also be off the mark at times too, whether a 5 yard pass, or a 20 yard one. These two things mean that he will lose the ball at times. The good thing is that it does make him doubly determined to fight to get it back, and he does have the speed and power to try to do so. He also doesn't hide and will generally have the right idea when it comes to receiving the ball in the right areas and making the right passes and will hit the mark a decent amount of the time. Basically, he won't disappear like a Jenas and just play side to side / back passes all day. So ... looking at our team setup, and assuming Nolan plays a big role next season, I would say the ideal lineup would feature both in the more advanced positions of a three man midfield, with a devensive/holding midfielder who is good technically, comfortable on the ball and who can distribute it very well - think Carrick, Huddlestone, Obi-Mikel etc. Nolan and Reo-Coker would then essentially play the roles of Lampard and Essien. However, as I mentioned earlier, you could also certainly get away with partnering Nolan with Reo-Coker in a midfield two and have Reo-Coker play a more defensive role, whcih he could certainly do, though in my opinion he isn't as efficient at this. Character wise Reo-Coker is solid. That West Ham bling brigade rubbish was perpetuated by Ferdinand more than anything. As I said, I lived in the area when he played for Wimbledon and he is actually related to a friend of mine. Reo-Coker is originally from Sierra Leone and moved here when he was a kid. He is very much a family guy and doesn't typicaly live the footballers lifestyle. Very laid back. Not sure what happened with the O'Neill tussle, but seeing how O'Neill didn't make a big deal out of it I'm pretty sure it wasn't all down to Reo-Coker. Sorry if I have over done things, but this is a player I know quitye a lot about, similar to Routledge, and so just thought I would have my say. :aww:

He's a good player but we already have a plethora of big powerful target men. It would make more sense to target an alternative to Lovenkrands I would have thought. Unless we are planning on getting two brand new top central midfielders I really don't think we should be looking to play 4-4-2 next season imo. Therefore we need a quality big man who is also fast and athletic and who can play alone up top for us. Carew is the sort we will need.

Aristide Bance of Mainz is an intersting possibility and very realistic.

Hughton is sensible enough to be fine with this, especially if it will make his job easier and will allow him to focus on his strength wi=hich is coaching and organising the team. We will need to go after a higher level of player now, and might well need someone who is a bit more heavyweight and has more contacts in the footballing world at large to attract these sorts of players. Chris Hughton is the exact sort of manager who you might want working with a DOF, and is likely to actually appreciate the assistance. As long as it isn't a cretin like Wise I really can't see the problem. Hughton is so cool and sensible anyway, that he would probably even be able to pull off working with wise! If this is true I'm not worried about it in the slightest. We've got a special person in charge in Chris Hughton. Won't faze him in the slightest.

Mounir El Hamdaoui of AZ alkmaar could be someone we are looking at. We've been linked with AZ's Jeremiah Lens, but I think it's more likely to be El Hamdaoui. He's over 20 goals again this season as he was in the previous one. Here's the interesting bit though, he was at Tottenham from 2005-2007, and Hughton would have been coaching at Tottenham then.

Mounir El Hamdaoui of AZ alkmaar could be someone we are looking at. We've been linked with AZ's Jeremiah Lens, but I think it's more likely to be El Hamdaoui. He's over 20 goals again this season as he was in the previous one. Here's the interesting bit though, he was at Tottenham from 2005-2007, and Hughton would have been coaching at Tottenham then.