Consortium of one

This. A guy like that can be like cancer to a team. Once a quitter, always a quitter.

I'd feel a lot better if they found a way to state that being "break even by 2015" included the phrase "as a member of the Premier League".

With the economy still kind of stagnant and many clubs still very debt conscious, is it possible that the Premier League will be weak again this year? That, combined with prudent investment by the club could put us in a position to get those 45-50 points, given the relative stability at the club.

prediction for the announcement: a) Hughton will be the manager and will take the lead in all transfer dealings b) will receive a transfer kitty of X but will be able to exceed X for the right player(s), re-emphasizing the new transfer policy of younger players with an eye to development. c) club will not be offered for sale but Ashley will listen to offers subject to set preconditions.

FSC showed an England U21 friendly back in the fall and Carroll was quite impressive in that game. He was the focal point of the offense and was dominant in the air. Picked out some canny passes too, IIRC. Needs work on the end product as many have pointed out but he looks to have a good foundation to build on.

What's the advantage of Hughes over Hughton other than being a "bigger" name?

Hughton has certainly grown into the job and he certainly has the respect of his players. Certainly the squad that started the preseason was in disarray coming off a disjointed season with an uncertain future. Getting thumped by Leyton Orient could have doomed this team before it ever got going. The team rallied, got off to a good start and even though injuries could have derailed a more fragile club, he kept them going in the right direction and did a good job going with the hot hand. Ameobi, Nolan, Carroll and Lovenkrands all seemed to take turns being the goal scorer and Hughton did a nice job sticking with the guy until injury or a drop in form forced his hand. I thought he did a good job working all the new faces into the squad and thought he took his biggest step forward when he backed off from Nicky Butt. An unproven manager or one who lacked confidence might feel safer with Butt on the pitch and clearly Hughton felt this way early in the season. As the season went on, Hughton made the move he had to make. It's easy for us to sit here and say Butt is shit but what if we managed the team? How difficult must it be to be the one to tell a storied veteran that he's past it and you have to go in a different direction? I think he did a fine job and has earned the right to manage this club next year. I don't think he'll ever be a tactical genius but I think he relates well with his players, has a good work ethic that rubs off on his players and he will continue to improve with time and gain confidence. I give him a ton of credit for the way he has conducted himself. How would you feel if you were handed the caretaker job after Keegan stormed off and then had to watch while a bunch of managers were discussed, eventually lost the caretaker job to Joe Fucking Kinnear only to get it back after he has a heart attack and club legend Alan Shearer can't negotiate terms after the club drops out of the Premiership? I don't know about you but I would have said "Fuck this" after being kicked to the curb like he was. Not only did he take the job and apply himself, he did it with class and an aplomb that is slowly fading away in the sporting world. A good man he is and a better manager than any off us thought he would be, that's for sure.

How many other clubs are going have a 15M transfer kitty though? Some clubs will have to sell, others will have to sell to buy. Supposedly we get to play with 15M. The key will be to buy wisely, to stay away from the likes of Jimmy Bullard, etc. A creative MC and a good striker should be the priorities. Then a RFB. Butt will be gone and maybe we can sell Smudger to lop more dead weight off the wage bill. I hope we play some of the kids for the rest of the season. Be nice to see one or two (Vuckic?) who could be in the rotation next year

I can't wait to see us on TV again, here in the states.

\ Now 3. Nicky voted once and his mom twice.

a\/\/esome

He's done an admirable job at Villa but I see a manager who tightens up too much for big games. As the season grinds on he starts to manage nervously and his team takes it's cue from him and they play nervously.

I won't say he's steered it in the right direction but I will say he's steered it away from the wrong direction. I need to see his ambition and transfer policy next year.

I keep reading the thread title as Llambias an ASS

Can't see how they can challenge that without the other clubs protesting. I think his angle will be that if they don't get deducted 9 points, they could have a better chance at staying up and thus, emerge from administration sooner and healthier. He'll say that because the EPL clubs have so much money on the line that a deduction for EPL clubs have a greater impact on finances than a club in the Championship and lower.

Nice win. Let's string a few together now.

If Nicky were playing we'd scored 6"

Well if he was, it would have been a threesome!

was sorry to see us miss out on Moses for money and then fall back on this guy. Still, I feel it was a good window for us. Better than I expected anyways...

maybe they just collapse now.

We need this game. Winning it plus the new additions would give the club a huge boost.

This is great news. Routledge, Simpson, Jonas & Enrique give us good pace down the flanks that should open up space in the middle of the pitch. A creative CM to manage that space would be ideal but I don't see it happening as we'd have to sell off one of Smith, Barton or Nolan to make it work. That being said, I can us playing 4-5-1 with Barton and Guthrie in the middle and Nolan in the hole behind Carroll or Shola. Maybe even Lovenkrands with his pace.

Knees can be kind of tricky. You have to wait for the swelling to recede a bit which can take a week or two.

I'm still working on it. I keep in contact with Mike on the phone. He's hard to understand because he talks like he's always got food in his mouth. I also talk to Barry Moat about once a month. I can't understand him either as he talks so damned fast. I'm still trying to raise money for my bid. Stay tuned.

with a thin squad and a numpty owner, this is a safe signing. He won't be much help next year when we go up but he's decent on this level and can be signed in the budget. I'll take it.