bealios

I got the same info today, wording exactly the same. Although it also had a bit on the end about about John Terry not paying up for his Wembley box! Papers really doing a number on him it seems.

Perhaps because every player wants to be fans favourite. And stupid as it sounds, you would lift yourself that extra 10% in a home game, and not in an away game. At a professional level that extra 10% makes a difference - less so at a lower level, since there is a wider range of abilities - the good team is usually a hell of a lot better than a bad team in the same league. Also, I'm not sure the concept of being a fans favourite exists in Sunday League!

First reaction is to blame Hughton, however loading the midfield early on with 5 when you've got a lot of the first 11 out away from home away isn't the worse decision in the world. Not what I would have done, but a lot of managers these days would do the same. Nolan, Smith, Butt, Taylor are all shocking, and to be fair he took two of them off. We're only allowed 3 subs so can't fault him too much for that. Bottom line is that too many of the players who played well earlier in the season are playing below par thinking they've got promotion in the bag. Have to admit I started the season not even that sure we would make the play offs. We had a great start, with Nolan and Smith playing well, and a lot of luck. Maybe we're not as good as we think. Recent games seem to suggest not. If we had reversed the results around, and had a lot of crap performances early on, as we expected, and then had the early results now, we would be absolutely over the moon. Maybe we're just as bad as the rest of this league, but had our good games in the first half of the season.

Except they haven't, apart from the last 10 minutes Leicester have been the better side.

Bloody typical. We finally seem to have a half decent back four, with decent back up, and suddenly we end up with the worst front 6 I've had the misfortune to watch

Hope to fuck he doesn't score. Then do a Tevez/Adebeyor in front of the toon fans

The depressing thing is that we havent upped our game at all, they're just absolutely fucked after playing with 10 men all game.

We're going to sit back for the draw now.

This seems like some sort of sick joke.

I'd rather pass on 2 points here and have Jonas available for the rest of the season tbh - although you're right really, if he's doubtful then put someone else on the bench. This is one of the worst perfomances I've seen for a while.

The ball from Carroll was a disgrace. Player free and wide on the left and he lofts it into nobody in the box.

It was a booking, so red card is justified. Problem is that it wasn't that clear a sending off that the referee won't look to even it out by booking every Newcastle challenge. Expect Butt or Smith off by the end of the game.

Get out of Jail Free Card

"Fate, come on and and do your stuff , I dare you you fucker"

"Unlike Newcastle he doesn't have the freedom in the transfer market" Never thought I would hear that this season

Not looking too bad with so many first choices missing. Probably the most positive I've felt about the make up of the squad and our long term prospects for a while - just need a couple of players with some genuine attacking quality and pace

I came into this thread expecting some sort of rant from Arsenal's "new" defender.

Try before you buy! I like it, shame we haven't used it in the past.

If Guitierrez carries on the form he has shown in the last few games then he might make a players team - most teams haven't been able to handle him, and his running has created a lot of space for others, and I'm sure he'll have a load of assists.

Sooty?

Lovely one touch pass to set up Cole at Old Trafford for equaliser after Giggs had scored opener from free kick, first Premiership point I think

Assuming UEFA/FIFA proceed with an unamended plan that effectively vetos Man Utd, Real, Chelsea...(pretty much everyone except Arsenal) from their flagship money making competitions. I'd love them to do something, but I can't seem them doing this.

I agree its more difficult but not impossible - Moat's bid was a leveraged buy out, although perhaps an example of why its difficult to get something like that in place. The trick is convincing the banks that it is a good investment - and a largely debt free premier league club with its own stadium (sort of) with a massive turnover and (very shortly) low wages isn't the worst bet in football terms. Although I'm massively in favour of some form of the new rules proposed by Platini coming in, but given the threat of a breakway competition, I think it will be a fairly weak compromise, if indeed anything that is implemented.

There are more potential buyers than you might think, and that isn't necessarily a good thing. If (when) NUFC are sold, the club will most likely be relatively debt free, give or take a small overdraft balance. What this means is that there is plenty of scope for a leveraged buy out, i.e. someone borrows most of the money to buy the club, puts in relatively little of their own cash, and then lumps the debt (and interest payments) on to the club itself. This is exactly the Man Utd/Liverpool model. It means that it isn't only the mega rich who can buy the club, its anyone savvy enough to be able to convince a number of banks/lenders to lend a huge amount of cash, on the basis that the club would be performing well enough to service interest payments. A rich cash buyer coming in isn't completely out of the question - there was serious Middle East interest which fell away just before Barry Moat's interest was announced. As a Premier League club, we have a better status, and might attract one of those types of buyer. The gates this season in the Championship might convince someone that this is potentially a massive club, on a par with Liverpool, with a bit of investment - and this is what the mega rich owners are looking for, status and fun.

I'm asking about next season. If we don't go up, nothing at all. We'll be seriously fucked, and will lose any talent we have left. If we do go up, and have a big gap opening up around Easter, I think the club will be on the market unofficially from about April/May, so Ashley will again spend nothing. I can't imagine him wanting to hang on for another season in the Premier League and risk being relegated and devaluing the asset again, so I think we'll definitely be sold this summer, quicker than we think. The longer he leaves it next year, my suspicion is that the more buyer will start factoring the risk that we'll be a Championship club the following year again.