Chris_R

Don't have a massive problem with us improving our squad and getting better players in than those we already have, but I'd prefer to see a few in before we let anyone else out. With this and the shenannigans with Barton and Enriqu it's beginning to smack of asset stripping.

Hmm, torn on this one. If you asked me to list who our best players were last season I'd have said, in no particular order: Coloccini Enrique Nolan Barton Carroll Caroll's gone, Enrique's widely believed to be going, Barton's been told he's not getting a new contract and now this news about Nolan. OK, we've signed Cabaye. But we've got a fucking lot more work to do in the next 2 months if we're to come out of this transfer window ahead of where we went into it, and given that we've got £35m in our pockets we're not looking to be making it easy for ourselves.

I'm happy for him to remain under the radar. I think he's an exceptional player. Only got 2 years on his contract, so I guess we'll hear more about his situation next summer, a la Enrique this summer. Despite his talent, I'd be amazed if we offered him terms similar to what he's on now. Another one that will need to take a cut or leave. Probably end up being the latter.

8 in 22 in the league, according to Wiki. That's Ok.

Whatever a player's age, it's bonkers to spend £35m just on potential. To justify that kind of fee, you've got to have enough about you in the here and now to make people think you're worth it. 8th highest fee of all time. I don't have the list to hand so could be wrong, but I doubt any of the 7 bigger ones were on anything other than players who were proven at the very top level for a number of seasons and probably for their national teams too.

I signed Gameiro on Friday on FM. Feel dirty now.

Tbh I'm not sure how Man U could ask for more than £8m for a 30 year old striker. Strikers don't normally play well for much past 32-33 at the latest (Or 26 if you're Michael Owen). Well, of course they could ask for more than £8m, but I'm not sure how many clubs would pay it. I'll put it this way, for £8m I'd think we'd gotten a decent deal. If we payed £12m for him I'd be thinking it was too much. Plus this is surely just a first bid? No point going in high, go in quite low and see what the response is.

Didn't douglas say he was around the same age as Gameiro? (ie 25ish) No idea. I've been away all weekend (Ironically in Newcastle visiting family, as Newcastle now counts as being away since being exiled to Bournemouth for 2 years!) and have not read any papers or the internet, so just picking up scraps in the last hour or so since I've gotten in. All I've picked up so far is something about a £6-8m mega deal.

Berbatov. He's the only player that I can think of that would cost £6-£8m, is rumoured to be available, is attracting a lot of interest and would be classed as a "mega deal".

If only Alan Pardew had agreed with you, we might have finished 9th.

Still, no matter who they got rid of it's all copmounded by the fact that they kept Owen.

'If' being the most important word there. I'd not sell anyone until we're absolutely sure that we WILL get in replacements who are of a better quality. Nolan's proven as a Premiership midfielder, whatever else people might think of him. I think we can do better, but he's decent and I'd not want to end up in the situation where Nolan and Barton leave but then Gervinho et al tell us to sod ff and we have to sign Billy Bloggs from Droylsdon 3rd XI over 40s team as he's the only bugger left who'll come on August 31st.

Seems irrelevant, as the manager has already categorically said "no".

So you agree with everyone else: £5m.

After this season, £5m. After Henderson's proposed move, £15m.

I'd keep Nolan, he gets a lot of goals despite his lack of an overall contribution. After all, games aren't won by overall contributions, they're won by goals. Not suggesting he's a great player, but I'd definitely keep him. And there's no way on Earth I'd sell him for £3m. He's had a couple of good seasons, especially goals-wise, and would expect at least twice that.

I don't use Twitter or read newspapers: Is this "cwarr07" a journalist of any kind, or just some spacker with a keyboard and an internet connection? (I realise the two statements are not mutually exclusive)

Would laugh my tits off if N'Gog decided there was no way in hell he was going to the village of the damned, thus scuppering the whole deal.

If Sunderland get this windfall from selling Henderson, maybe they'll want spend some of that money to replace him with a midfielder with 19 caps for England.

If Johnson and Gardner are worth £30m, Birmingham wouldn't have been anywhere near the relegation zone. The world's gone f***ing mad. Birmingham should be told to get lost if they're asking those sort of prices. See how they like forking out their wages in the Championship. Give them a year and they'll be desperate to offload anyone for whatever money they can get.

Just quoting the newspaper article, and I did qualify it with "if" we can get those 3 in.

Just think he found his level in the Championship. He wasn't great, I'm not suggesting that, just that he wasn't massively out of his depth like he was in the PL. I agree that even in the Championship we were a better, more productive team without him in the side but I didn't cringe anywhere near as badly when I saw his name on the teamsheet. He did a (mediocre) job.

Stopped reading after that. When I said "last season" I meant in the Championship. The season gone I still count as "This season". Should have made that clearer.

And I'll be fucking delighted with the outcome. Tremendous value for money if we can get those 3 in for the cost of 1 Andy Carroll. Though personally I'd prefer Gervinho to N'Zogbia.

Smith played OK last season, can't deny that. But he's on something stupid like £55k/week, has been here for 4 years and has been utterly shite for 3 of those seasons. I realise I'm probably biting to someone on a windup, but he's right up there with Luque, Boumsong and Owen for being a spectacular waste of money. Seems a good bloke though, never caused any bother and always kept out the press, got his head down and worked hard. No bad feeling towards him, but really will be glad to see the back of him. He may have been good for morale, but we could hire whole circus of clowns to do entertainment in the dressing room for a fraction of Smith's wages.