AyeDubbleYoo

No chance, he's here for the duration of his contract IMO, barring relegation.

Antec, do you think we won't sign anyone else then?

Who would buy him for more than 8 million though? He's free in a year's time.

Yes. :-[

Sorry, I meant busyness! Fuck knows how you spell it, the amount of being busy.

out of interest, what is? How good the players are? Mental suggestion I know.

I wasn't aware that 'business' was the ultimate measure of transfer success.

Unless he's had a wolverine-style adamantium skelton grafted on over the summer, I don't think that's likely! Good luck to Fergie as well like.

Out of interest, which football managers do you believe are telling the exact truth when they speak to the media?

It's not really a guess.

No. Only when people make bids for them does that particular policy kick in. You're hilarious.

Maybe if we had Milner and Given rather than Xisco and Nancho we'd have got that extra point? Yes, or if Damien Duff hadn't put through his own net against Villa. Or if he and host of other players hadn't played like they were on tranquillisers for most of the season. Anyway, that's not the point, I was arguing that we don't have a "policy of selling our best players" which I maintain is a stupid thing to say.

I'm not going to derail the thread by discussing every sale of the last 10 years, every club sells players, it's a ridiculous argument. We also got relegated in that time, in case anybody has forgotten.

I actually burst out laughing at this. This has to be someone's joke account, is anyone going to come clean? Fuck off man. How many different denials do you need? I know we've got a right to be sceptical about Ashley, but this assumption that everything negative is bound to happen is bordering on the pathological. Do you need Pardew and Tiote to make love under the shadow of Grey's Monument to prove their devotion to each other?

Given Beye, Bassong, Enrique Milner, Nolan, Duff, N'Zogbia Carrol, Martins That's nearly a team right there. But, of course, they all "wanted to leave". And we let players go when they want to leave, regardless of how long is left on their contract. There are good explanations for all of those. A good number were because of relegation, I still think Milner was a great sale for the price, Duff was shit for us, and I wouldn't want the club to match what Nolan got at West Ham. Only Carroll out of that list is really gutting, but the deal was too good to turn down. Enrique's contract situation is such that we have to sell if he won't resign.

I'm putting my hope in the fact that Chelsea have said they don't want a replacement for Essien, Pardew has said there's been no approach, and Tiote has said he's focused on Newcastle. That'll do for me TBH.

I recommend not looking at the media until the Arsenal game.

But do you automatically believe the opposite?

We don't have a policy of selling our best players FFS.

Same here.

Ah yes. Haven't been for a while. Just had a session, no better way to start a friday. Don't think I've ever been this excited to see a player back from injury.

Wish I'd picked up some Sports Direct shares when they were 32p.

Football fans are funny, really. If you read our forums, our lot are slashing their wrists over transfers in the same way you are, except a lot of them see you as having done good business this summer. Transfer windows really do bring out all the paranoias we have. Totally, we just need to relax, we've done some good business and there's probably another couple of players to come. Just looking forward to the start of the games now, so we've got something else to talk about.

A lot of assumptions there mate, do we know anything about his level of interest or attitude? He had a few poorer games at the end of last season, but that's about it.