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I was going to raise a similar point that looking at who is out of contract end of this season and then end of next the ones we effectively kicked the can down the road by offering an extension are up. Not saying it's a bad thing to offer an asset a year rather than spending money on a replacement or hope that giving them a contact means you could sell rather than let go on a free. It's all going back to the having to be ruthless in selling letting players run down contracts will not raise any more for FFP purposes for their inevitable replacements.

With LB I can see both sides we are shipping goals for fun this season and all of the options are getting a year older. Saying that if you include making targett and hall permanent we have invested into the LB position every window since the take over while CB, RW etc are in need of upgrade. If PSR/FFP are going to kick us in the nuts we need to strengthen elsewhere first. If we say manage to get someone to give us 12/15m for Targett then yes I guess get another LB if the position doesn't create any revenue through sales we need to look elsewhere on the pitch first unless they change their mind on loans.

Agreed that does sound reasonable but we also now know that summer splurge took us to spending limits leaving nothing in the purse if we say got an injury crisis or if a RW option became available (can't remember how late in the window Barnes was).

Think it's a bit of back peddling from nike if that's the excuse as forgive my old man colour blindness but looks nowt like the training kit. Even if that's the rationale it's a flag not a logo or an emblem that needed/ should be tweaking.

Barnes offered consistency good goal scoring numbers consistently. Further down the rabbit hole of squad rebuild you moan about massive drop offs in quality and having 2 high level 11s if you want to compete for stuff and general competition for places so Barnes is that sort of signing. Where we are at in the rebuild the options on the right were far weaker when everyone was fit than the left so needed addressing first as opportunistic Barnes might have been it was still a big chunk of the limited budget we had. The biggest skill Murphy has is he is willing to take one for the team and drop to the bench with no apparent fuss.

Just to add I think Keith's point was in the summer we ended up spending/committing to spend around 100m (taking out tanali) on players who were short term at best rotation players and worst ones for the long term. When money is tight you do have to make it all work both ways but at this stage in the rebuild more starting 11 players were needed.

Fuckers twisted before https://www.retailgazette.co.uk/blog/2019/10/sports-direct-calls-investigation-nike-adidas/

Obviously gone off topic here and I am sure a thread will come at the end of the season but I think in my opinion it seemed like the action was add to a great set of lads in the hope they maintain the levels they have shown for 12 months+ and add/ tweak. That left a group of players that were hardly ever called upon as we had next to no injuries and playing once a week as our backup kraft/lascelles/dummet/richie/manquillo etc knowing full well we would need to rotate more with being involved in more games at the start of the season. Then while we have no idea who was offered up for sale or who we would be willing to trade back in the summer hoping almiron purple patch continued, a recognised left back target was unable to replace dan burn in the side the previous season but we kept him around anyway, willock had been injured for so long we had no idea if we were able to call upon him and when. Our last deal was a loan to buy and committed 28m of the summer spend the following year to a player who has had just a few cameos (especially considering if we kept Targett around as a genuine LB option), IF and its a big IF there were a deal out there that enhanced the middle/striker/CB or right wing instead it would have been better spent short and medium term.

on the face of it the longstaff one is more weird/worse than the botman one if indeed this is a new injury so just bad luck. I think Howe said something along the lines he's been feeling it since Everton last season (why it wasnt addressed in the summer who knows) and then that he thinks he needs to keep playing to find his best form. No medical expert or physio but to me if your not right and haven't been for a long time its rest you need not more of the same. With longstaff I fear we could be stuck with him as knowing our luck even if someone is interested in him playing him now and potentially needing a surgery at season end could kill any transfer. I think we all agree that while you hope the list of players out and the number of long term injuries in particular (that then need weeks to get back up to speed when signed off as fit) doesnt happen again there has to be lessons learned. Burn hurting his back jumping, pope dislocated shoulder, murphy dislocated shoulder, Barnes toe are all "freak injuries". The longstaff, joelinton, botman, trippier, willock and barnes injury 2 and 3 ones I am not sure thats just down to having to go again and again. As Keith Downie has already said he classes the previous summer window as a failure which I agree. Improving the first team and previous first team starters becoming your bench and the happy clapper cheerleaders in the squad going would have also helped. Howe said at the end of the summer window ask in 12 months how the window went rather than immediately and I dont think you need to as the injuries have highlighted or enhanced the poor window.

Having better quality back ups/squad players down the line will lessen the blow when players get injured and in turn make us more careful with injuries. Not suggesting the club have not been acting in the best interest of the player but in general they want to play/help the team/do well for themselves etc a better squad overall will stop a situation where as Howe has admitted himself they are asking players who arent quite right to just go again.

A google found a snippet here: the FA have outlined that the altered colours act as a nod to the 'classic colour regime' of the training gear which was worn by England's 1966-World Cup winning squad. The Three Lions' triumph remains the men's only senior international honour. Nike have echoed similar sentiments, describing the kit in a statement as a design which "disrupts history with a modern take on a classic. The trim on the cuffs takes its cues from the training gear worn by England’s 1966 heroes, with a gradient of blues and reds topped with purple. "The same colours also feature an interpretation of the flag of St. George on the back of the collar." Not sure how many nations would be happy with a different interpretation from a nations flag on a shirt that represents them in a country representing sport.

I hope it wasn't meant to offend as I love the St George flag. Be interesting how the yanks would feel the American flag getting a multi colour update I can imagine regardless of cost the strip would be pulled. Not that political and not smart enough to eloquently say what national pride should be but sometimes I feel like we are too mild mannered for our own good.

So best case back when Tonali is or worse case after Xmas we can't buy any luck so much for fresh start in the new season.

I hope him having 2 kids in the region might slow down the pull to move. Although he is trying to carry defense and midfield on his own and will be 27 at the end of the year so is right in his prime so simply cannot begrudge him the move. I know the money gets reinvested but just don't know how you replace him even for a large fee.

In the article he says he's playing more than he thought I wonder if that's because he knows he needs to drop trippier for him or is it what Howe told him when he was bought.

Was kicked to shit in the chelsea game so not surprised if he is.

I didn't mind it personally don't want to see it get bad to booing in the stands. If Howe is off media then fan frustration is a valid thing to put to him and as per usual he handled it with dignity and respect. No point him coming out we are well supported and need the fans again and again (appreciate he has said it alot but clarified that the players need to show something for them to get behind). He isn't stupid he knows leaking goals for fun and not being able to hang your hat on which Newcastle will show up this week isn't good enough.

Definetly cannot say we havent spent its the position of coming from next to no or limited spend the previous decade. The lack of an academy quality wise has us purely relying on a big cash injections everywhere. Then not just limited to us but the caps and limits not being in proportion with the market back in the day it was all set out I am sure 3 to 12 million were your gambles, 20 to 30 million were your quality build a side around them and 40/50/60 million was reserved for top draw players. It's so massively shifted that your spending 20 to 30m now on the gambles. This isn't reflected on the caps and limits allowed.

Early doors and know the answer myself that long term injuries need time to get up to speed but returning options hasn't lifted the results or levels which is what is concerning.

Sounds like iam arguing with own point in the defence of longstaff but get Howe's point Miley is Willocks planned sub as Willock has been away so long he can't last the 90 and Anderson is also incapable of more than a cameo so unless he throws Joe White in or Lewis Hall he cannot really win here I guess. He could do Bruno/longstaff and Miley and use Willock and Anderson as impact subs but we would be crying out for Willock to start as we know them as a 3 doesn't work.

I am not sure I like using the word "nice" but I agree when it's all going your way it's very hard in press conferences to pick fault as Eddie is a master of deflection. The performances have been so poor for so long now it's hard to justify we just want to focus on the next game now. The wheels haven't totally come off yet but it's good he's been pressed more as the results haven't been good enough. More worrying the performances have also been largely poor you can't brush that off forever as the lads are trying their best.

He was a wheel in a cog due to a good engine last season covering alot of ground and allowing the better players to do their thing. He has settled between passenger and liability this season not sure I get Howe saying he needs to play more to look better the exact opposite is happening. Even last season he got into such good areas and was totally ineffective in front of goal I wanted him replaced. I really hope Tonali coming back and Miley see him drop of the managers plans next season. From the presser we aren't going to make major changes so going to have to spread the money but he is trying single handedly to highlight midfield as a weakness area which sadly his selling fee right now wouldn't resolve.

If we have a similar budget of 100m plus player sales I cannot see us spunking 60 to 80m on Toney especially as even if Wilson goes its likely to be sub 20m for him especially after this season it's more likely around 10/12m

I've been conditioned already when I see this bumped I don't instantly think talking how good he is but news he's injured again

Not probably saying anything new here I guess turn of pace isn't there but stamina and conditioning must be through the roof his heat maps regularly see him all over the place and it feels like he has played every minute this season. Also this isn't a criticism of say Gordan but he doesn't need to knock it forward and get into a foot race with anyone his close control is top notch he will just go through you or spin around you. While the number of cards maybe doesn't paint this side of him very well but he is great at drawing a foul out of people knowing when to shield the ball and offer the body up to draw a foul is a particular skill itself. I know some will say if we cash in it allows a rebuild I just think what he has in spades isn't something you will get from many other players.