Ronaldo

He was probably told to play it safe with the passing against Boro. His game is about getting the ball and driving us forward.

We need to start imposing our own game on the road and forget about nullifying the threat. Be nice if we started on saturday, we should murder this lot.

Fantastic again. We're a completly different team with him in the middle.

Mind you, there's been a massive improvement in the other starting strikers since we signed him.

Looks worse than shite, baffling signing.

How on earth did that shower of shite beat us in October?

He looked a player tonight.

Carroll and Simpson?

Again, where's the mouthful to Chris Hughton? It's media-driven nonsense. Give me 11 players who'd be unhappy and even angry not to play, we'd all be laughing.

Fair play for the effort but where on earth does it say with any element of certainty that he gave "another mouthful to Houghton"?

Seeing Hull go down wont be quite as fun now.

I would agree about the stamina up until this season which when he ran he looked like Nolan, he was slow and awful and puffing before the end, this before his injury and after a pre season where he gave another mouthful to Houghton cause he didn't start him the first game of the season. Source? http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/sport/443769/Joey-Bartons-new-bust-up-Toon-bad-boy-in-training-ground-row.html Are you serious?

I compared him with Guthrie, Smith, Butt and Nolan, man, Guthrie imho is probably the most talented there, but you could certainly argue that it's Barton.

Jonas is a winger.

I would agree about the stamina up until this season which when he ran he looked like Nolan, he was slow and awful and puffing before the end, this before his injury and after a pre season where he gave another mouthful to Houghton cause he didn't start him the first game of the season. Source?

Never said otherwise. The point I was making was that he's arguably our most talented midfielder.

I thought this argument was about talent? You're bringing form into it.

Naturally fit as in stamina, muscular and cardiovascular endurance. We all know he's been very injury prone over the last few seasons, just as you knew exactly what i meant. He has twice the footballing ability of a Nolan, Smith or Butt, which is why he was on the verge of cementing a place in the national squad before the injuries got to him.

it's got little to do with who has talent as much as who plays better when they get the chance and barton has massivly underperformed in his time here. in fact bartons performances for us at the start of the season were worse than anything put out by smith or butt. Don't be daft, man.

Just who exactly is more talented, btw? You could certainly argue Guthrie, but it isn't quite absurd to suggest Barton who is naturally very fit (if you consider that talent), has a fair bit of footballing intelligence and has a good range of passing.

Colo just edges it from Enrique. Jose just misses out because his passing is still a tad too inconsistent. Colo has been class, I hope he gets the armband in one of the remaining games.

Thread title is somewhat misleading, no?

He's kidding about the good partnership though, surely. I mean, we got relegated.

http://www.footballfancast.com/football-blogs/lucas-guthrie-danny-time-rafa I'm one of Guthrie's biggest fans on here, but that is just utter tosh.

Andy Gray is very good at reading the game. But his bias towards certain players (we all know who) ruins him as a commentator.