Segun Oluwaniyi

Mangala is definitely a top talent, but playing in a highly competitive league week to week will be a new experience. There is a different level of intensity and focus needed to play 30-50 meaningful matches against legitimate competition. If he adjusts, City will have a star.

It is actually laughable that Keshi thought this guy was fit to play World Cup matches for this country. Completely unjustifiable selection. Anyway, I'm glad my guy can keep "gettin dem cheques" anyway. He should meet up with John Utaka while he is there so they can meet and laugh about how much money people have paid them to play football.

We need a player similar to Tiote in midfield, imo, and he would be missed if he left. Of course, this guy is not really the one I want given his propensities to make reckless tackles, lose the ball in dangerous areas, make overly ambitious passes, and be pulled out of defensive shape, but he is still a vital part of the team regardless. Obviously, we are not part of it, but he seems an important part of the dressing room as well. One of the longer serving players, an emotional disposition, and someone many of the new imports can look up to.

No way will they be promoted. Is it that sure of a thing? I think they have made some very good signings and have a good manager and a connection with a big club who will loan them quality young talent periodically. The Championship is always throwing out surprises anyway.

I think Boro are coming up this season, maybe to replace Sunderland as a NE representative.

There are a ton of Black Englishman playing in Jamaica who could easily qualify for Jamaica, but it seems like none of them ever do. Even the likes of Perch have never played for them. It is somewhat embarrassing how terrible they are given this fact.

True, but honestly most players do not have the mentality to think, " I am not good enough for the top level and should stay at a smaller club for playing time". They genuinely think they can make it at these clubs. Rodwell for example had probably 100 appearances for a big club and was an England international at 21. What reason does a player like that have not to be ambitious?

This is because NFL, a sport with extreme physical violence, in which certain positions of players run into each other at full force every play and the majority will experience violent collisions every game, has been producing players that have dementia similar to pugilist dementia and are dying at young ages. I believe that trend is nearly entirely the result of the nature of that sport and will not affect most others (rugby, maybe), frankly, but it is good to see health issues taken seriously. My main concern in football is attempting to improve cardiac testing and potential salvage efforts if arrest does occur. This has happened all too often in football recently.

Why can't it just be quadrennially like Copa America, Euros, Asian Cup and the OFC nations cup? I know the Gold Cup is every 2 as well but at least they stick it in the summer and the big players don't go to every other one anyway. This is 3 tournaments in 4 years FFS Tbf, I also lobbied for 2013 to be skipped, when the plan to change to odd years came about (I'm now happy it wasn't, due to our victory). I have said that this was an unnecessary money decision by Hayatou, but it has now been two years, which is the gap that has existed since before most of the Sub Saharan countries had their independence.

If it was held every twenty years, you people would still complain.

I think they are 5th and 6th best leagues in the world respectively, so "dump" seems overly harsh for either

I will never stop enjoying the "anyone who leaves Western Europe is a mercenary wasting their career" paradigm on this place. As if Valbuena is not going to a big club in an big league (the same strength as France according to UEFA) that will be playing in Europe next season. Anyway, I will miss Mathieu. He was a great little player for OM, tbh, and I am happy he has finally gotten some recognition internationally and with Les Blues the last few years.

I am more impressed they have found a model with accurate footballer tattoos.

Samuel is good enough to play somewhere and needs to be doing so for the good of his career. Wasting time as the "seventh sub" will stunt him.

13 million pound to replace Carl Jenkinson with another young, unproven British fullback. People seem to hate him. I don't know why, the player always seemed solid enough to me.

I would not mind this kit, except for the fact of the massive trapezoid connecting the shoulder bones to the middle of the sternum. Even if it was a small, less jarring trapezoid, it would be fine. As it stands, the kit makes no sense aesthetically.

I think it is more a case of Mourinho just not liking him, tbh. Just from the game the two have been playing in the media I feel like the boss is annoyed with his attitude and/or his propensity to run his mouth. You feel he would have gotten plenty of games at Chelsea both last season and this season and probably the one before that as well.

If Chelsea were buying a 21 year old striker from Everton that had scored ~35 goals over two seasons, been a dominant professional since 15 and led the line for one of the most talented nations in Europe, they would be paying 30+ million, imo.

I expected more from the Torres miss, tbh. It wasn't that easy of the chance. It should be a goal, but the ball is at pace and an awkward height. I can think many worse misses, with two from my countrymen standing out as far worse. The one against Man U was much more humiliating, especially given the situation.

I don't understand why teams are so keen to spend incredible sums of money on Southampton's players, tbh. Their performance as a club over the past two seasons doesn't seem exceptional enough to warrant their entire first team being transferred to top clubs. They were a mid-table side. You would think that all of the players openly being made available would lower the prices, but in reality almost all of the deals have been exorbitant with the exception of maybe Lallana, which I thought was a sensible enough price. What is the point?

No, not particularly. Ideye is a good all-around player, tbh, but not a great athlete (for Nigerian striker standards, anyway. he has above average strength and quickness) or someone with any real outstanding attributes. He is a hard working, mildly intelligent player, with an eye for goal. West Brom have brought him at a strange point of his career, though. Last season, he was fighting with his manager, who essentially discarded him after Kiev signed Mbokani (he really didn't get to play much last season). Also he has been in fairly horrendous form for the national team for a bit of time and Keshi dropped him from the squad entirely. The move will be a success if he rediscovers his old club or ACN 2013 form, but I would definitely not make him my record signing based on recent results.

To be fair, he didn't do them at NUFC (as far as I know) and I think he slowed down with them after breaking his leg or something similar doing one, and I'm sure the obvious fatness during his stay here did not help. I agree, btw, with your first point. I still love Aghahowa to this day. Guy scored in the World Cup and just simply did seven consecutive backflips. He should have been at the Olympics.

How did you feel about Babayaro?

If he goes on loan, it is simply to raise the price when he eventually departs. He'll do very well at FCGB and re-enter the minds of those clubs that scout Ligue 1 for players. Right now his value is low after 1.5 wasted seasons.

Hope he does well. Stoke actually have a stockpile of forwards, Osaze, Crouch, Arnautovic, Diouf. Definitely will not be easy to get into the side. Great young talent. It is a shame he's gone to that club. It seems as though Kalou has decided to skip training at Lille. Presumably to force/facilitate a move back to the Premiership.