LoveItIfWeBeatU

Ask him how the backroom staff recruitment is going. We heard about those guys from Bolton coming but have then heard nothing about them since. Ask him about the rumour that he came along for an interview at NUFC in the past but walked out because Shearer was sitting in on the interview. Ask him who he plans to have taking the corners, free kicks and throws seeing as we don't seem to have anyone who is any good at them.

An obvious reason for Allardyce saying he'll try to sort out Luque is that no other clubs want him so we're stuck with him. He's got another 2 years on his contract so it won't hurt to try to get something out of him.

It's a bit annoying that the richest club in the world (using Roman's money) who could afford to buy anyone, have got three free transfers in so far (two of which we were after).

It's funny how Alan Oliver has gone from saying Owen and Martins are much better than Darren Bent a couple of days ago to now hoping NUFC make a late offer for Bent.

I don't understand why Owen would rush off to Arsenal. They have Champions League this season (assuming they get through the qualifier). What about next season? Wenger almost certainly won't be there after this season. Also, Owen is a totally different kind of striker to Henry so it's not like he's the ideal replacement. On a side note, it's funny how Alan Oliver has gone from saying Owen and Martins are much better than Darren Bent a couple of days ago to now hoping NUFC make a late offer for Bent.

Agree. Wenger has more or less said that this is his last season at Arsenal. That's not very encouraging talk for any potential new signing.

Just to point out to some people who may not know, Wenger has said he will honor his contract (which ends this coming season). He has said nothing about staying on after that. After David Dein and now Henry leaving it hardly looks to be plain sailing at Arsenal at the moment. Owen certainly wouldn't be a like-for-like replacement for Henry.

With our new owner and manager I'd be surprised Martins (and maybe even Owen) would want to jump ship just for one season of guaranteed Champions League football. Arsenal with Wenger in the last year of his contract and no Henry in the team means Arsenal aren't the draw they once were.

A striker who rarely scores goals? Just what we don't need. Surely if Owen and/or Martins were to leave, someone fast (and free) like Saviola would be a more obvious target. The same goes for the links to Kanoute. Diouf and Anelka would seem more likely targets.

They are also linked with Alan Smith. He isn't exactly well known for scoring 20 to 30 goals a season. As for Gibson, Millionaires have been replaced by Billionaires. Teams without a Billionaire will struggle.

From NUFC.com: - Fredi downsizing? The 59th player to be linked with a move to SJP since Sam Allardyce became Newcastle boss is Sevilla's Malian international striker Fredi Kanoute. Quoted in the media at the weekend, the French-born 29 year-old's agent said: "It's true Newcastle are interested. There's no concrete offer yet but Fredi is interested. Let's recall the words of former West Ham and Spurs player Kanoute back in 2001, before his switch from Upton Park to White Hart Lane: "I couldn't see myself ever playing for someone like Middlesbrough or Everton. My friend Joseph-Desire Job plays for Middlesbrough and he tells me how quiet it is. "I come from the city and need to have things going on around me." "I don't really like the North. It's always raining, it's very cold and I don't like all those little houses. It's not for me." File this one in the "believe it when you see it" category....

Maybe the director is a Scientologist?

"Twat!" "Err....Shit! Did you see that?" "Eat that! And another!" If only they really did commentary like that.

The best commentator ever: - Alan Partridge World Cup Countdown

Same difference. Anywhere in the United States--- in the world really. Henry is not going to go unrecognized in an arena full of sports fans. Even in OHIO. OHIO. Have you been to the "Flyover" states? Outside of the major metropolitan areas you'd be hard pressed to find a more provincial unworldly non-cosmopolitan group of people anywhere in the developed world. Since when is the ability to identify Thierry Henry a sign of cosmopolitianism? He's a f****** footballer for Christsakes. In any case, we're not talking about a shopping mall in Lubbock, Texas or Akron, Ohio. It is a sports arena in the post season. Let's be honest, I wouldn't recognise 99.99% of America's top sports stars (Baseball, Basketball, Ice Hockey, American Football, etc). A lot of Footballers go on holiday to the US because they can walk around without much hassle (the only people who recognise them are tourists).

One thing no one has mentioned is that as we didn't qualify for Europe we will have a lot less games to play compared to some of our rivals. That can only help considering the size of our current squad. Less games equals less fatigue and injuries.

True. I read Tuncay wanted to be starting games and not sitting on the bench. On a free it may have been worth trying to sign him but he wouldn't be guaranteed to start games at NUFC so chances are he wouldn't be happy. Also, we don't really need another striker at the moment as we have Owen, Martins, Viduka and Ameobi (with Carroll and Dyer in reserve). Would signing Tuncay not have been another case of signing a player we didn't need (a la Duff)?

I'd like him to stay if he's committed to the NUFC cause but if he isn't we'd be better off selling him now for £9 million rather than getting a lot less in six months to a years time. If the 'big' clubs don't come in for him in the Summer at least he'll be trying hard for NUFC for the first half of the season. He'll be hoping to impress a 'big' club enough to bid for him in the Winter transfer window. If he does go, it would be nice if a similar situation to what happened to him at Liverpool occurred i.e. Left Liverpool for Real Madrid, Liverpool win the Champions League.

For peanuts.

Sorry (22 year old) Martins, you're not good enough for us. You 'only' scored 17 goals in your first season in English football while playing in a poor team with no regular partner up front with you. Utter madness.

The funny thing is, everytime they bought one of their replica Sunderland shirts they were helping Mike Ashley buy Newcastle. The boycott's too late, they've already helped Newcastle.

Didn't Ferguson say Man U were after 3 player in the transfer window? With the deals for Anderson, Nani and Hargreaves that probably means Owen wasn't one of the 3 originally mentioned?

What's the worst that can happen? Let's face it, if Allardyce buys this guy for £1 million and he ends up not being cut out for the Premiership, it will have been one of NUFC's cheapest mistakes ever.

The money we may or may not have doesn't come into it. If free transfers are good enough for Chelsea they're good enough for us. Ben Haim is better than what we already have. Get him in. Who knows if we'll be able to buy a better defender. They may not be available.

I wouldn't call being out of contract an 'issue'. Nothing wrong with getting good players without having to pay a transfer fee. Anyway, Allardyce has already said he would be looking at bringing in some non-big name players from around Europe.