leffe186

No chance they'll match his wages or he'll move there as they aren't in the CL. For me this is why they have to keep him unless he throws a paddy (he probably will). He's their main world class player and there isn't a chance they can replace him too the same standard without CL money/draw. As I've said previously with the league shake up and a couple more additions I think they've a genuine chance at a title push this season. What's more they don't need to sell. That's my gut feeling. I mean, I completely understand where Brummie is coming from, but I'd like to just say "Audere est facere". I'm sick of having to weigh up the pounds, knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing. I expect that Levy is capable of keeping us broadly on course financially while keeping Bale with us for this season. If we are making a pig's ear of it in Jan then sure, flog him. 82M or whatever they're supposed to be offering might well be the maximum price he's likely to fetch, but that in itself is not a good enough reason to sell a player. As for how he can be worth more that to us, well that's fairly straightforward. He plays like he did this year, we get into the CL, then we sell him for, say 60M. That should come to more than 86M, particularly if you factor in the better players we should be able to attract.

I'm sure it would decrease, but it would still be a lot. If we fail to get CL, then fair enough. If we get CL, then (a) we have more money anyway (b) we have better bargaining tools for Bale deals and any replacements. I'd much rather give it a go this year. It's just frustrating to hear the Guardian, whose sports coverage has not been sympathetic to Spurs for some time, printing this story without substantiating quotes, but hey-ho. I don't think Bale thinks like that, and maybe that's me being naive, but it's a naïveté I am happy to stick to.

I would usually agree..... but 82m is insane and they can rebuild a better team with that money. And knowing Tottenham they would actually reinvest that money. I don't entirely buy this. Who would come, who would be that much better than what we have - given that we're not in the Champions League? Sure, we can throw money at a couple of people, but with PSG, Man City, Chelsea et al hoovering up the best too, I'm not convinced we'd get value for money. Everyone will know we're loaded. The point is to win things. It's about glory, as someone once said. We could take the money now, but why not just go for it this year? I get that teams like us have to sell players from time to time to progress, but we just had our name and kit plastered all over Times Square, essentially thanks to Bale. Well fuck Real Madrid. Fuck that whole echelon of clubs. Fuck that attitude that certain players are meant to play for "CL" clubs, and somehow we are holding them back, or letting football down, if we don't let them go. I was disappointed not to get Benteke because I wanted a striker, but part of me was genuinely happy that a (at least recently) smaller club had not bowed to pressure to sell. Well, not without giving him a fat new contract, but you get what I mean. If we get Soldado in, and still fail to get CL this year, then so be it. I would expect to see Bale go, and still expect us to get a shitload of cash for him. The rumours are that AVB and Paulinho had been assured Bale would stay - and keeping him would send a positive message to them. One player is never bigger than the club, but this isn't just about one player.

You see, I kinda agree, but (a) if I was in the same boat I'd be ecstatic too. What did you expect them to do? (b) you'd kill to be in their position. Sure, it's not a trophy, but it's still millions of miles better than fifth. Sorry, millions of Euros better. And straight into their pay packets too, no doubt.

I'm feeling ill, and bored, and so took a trip to the RAWKies to discuss player of the year Luis Suarez. Pretty good discussion, mainly very good posters. Mainly. Will actually be interested to see this myself, when he next bites a player of course.

Well, maybe. Without Bale, our team is Lloris, Walker, Vertonghen, Kaboul, BAE, Dembele, Paulinho, Sandro, Chadli, Adebayor, Lennon. The subs are Friedel, Defoe, Dawson/Caulker, Holtby, Townsend, Sigurdsson, Dempsey - plus Rose, Hudd, Parker etc etc. And, what, 60M pounds to spend? Not that he's not an extraordinary player, but I'd back us to get sixth. The hype on Bale swings both ways.

http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/1386/o4xb.jpg Well I'll be going for citizenship soon, so that will make three countries I can legitimately support. I still support England in the head-to-heads, just so you know...

TBF, his hand was forced a little by the timing - right in the middle of the big guys' pre-seasons. I do think he's shown that he's built a system that different players can slot into fairly effectively, which is probably all we could ask of him right now.

Give me Inter's kit, changing the navy stripes for white. Jesus wept. That City away kit is perfect. They nicked it from us!

Yeah, we were definitely poor. Verts was hardly on the pitch though, and then we had Zeki Fryers at CB to lose Wes Brown for the 2nd goal. My first choice team this season will be Lloris, Walker, Vertonghen, Kaboul, BAE, Dembele, Sandro, Paulinho, Bale, Ade, Chadli. I just hope that Bale stays, today's injury for Verts is not serious, and Kaboul is fit. Soldado up front would not go amiss. If we get to see that team a lot this season then we'll do fine.

...and Chadli, Paulinho, Sandro, Dembele, Holtby, Kaboul, Lloris etc etc. Honestly, that was a squad team out today. Not that we weren't pretty shite, mind you.

Well we definitely need to buy a CB if Vertonghen is seriously injured. Fuck's sake.

Altidore starts, as does Cabral and Giacherrini. Strong Spurs side too, so should be interesting. That's very kind of you, as only Walker and Ade will be first choice this year. I just pray that Kaboul comes back intact. Glad none of the big guns are playing on this pitch tbh.

Have you seen much of him, Disco? He was ace against us, but I haven't seen all that much of him other than that. My impression was that he was clever and strong, but not all that quick.

This is a phenomenal extended troll. I don't really know what to say to you guys.

Bit of a result. Stick that up your anal passage, Tottingham Hyperspurts. No worries, Arseton Willy.

I know it's totally perverse of me but I'm that sick of the way the modern game is going a small part of me actually wants him to go...coupled with all the other bullshit, it'd be a great reason to quit. Or at least try to quit. Not that it'd be enough...would soon enough boomerang back. Thought similar things once or twice over the last couple of years.

Great save before that to set it up. I was sure Shea was going to miss, he looked really nervous on the break. For some reason, I was completely confident he'd bury it! Goalkeeper shouldn't have been on the pitch anyway. What I don't get is why he even put his hands on it.. It looked to me like it would have just hit him in the chest and never made it to the goal. Maybe he thought he was still in the box? Surely not, given that he'd just come miles out of the box and headed the ball in pretty much the same spot. It was presumably a bit of a reflex, but honestly, what on Earth was the ref thinking?

Not that I think you will be as bad as last year, but surely it wouldn't actually be silly to think you might be, given that you currently have the same players and manager.

Great save before that to set it up. I was sure Shea was going to miss, he looked really nervous on the break. For some reason, I was completely confident he'd bury it! Goalkeeper shouldn't have been on the pitch anyway.

Can't believe I'm the only one watching this. What a crazy goal that was!

That is one of the worst decisions I have ever seen.

Ach, hell, I'm in. My first FF for years (I did the NFL last season). I've not looked too closely at the scoring yet - does it favour 3-4-3? Seems a bit like cheating, that.

I get where you're coming from, but I've long since stopped caring about the title. Aside from not wanting Arsenal to get it, and that very brief moment the year before last (January?) when we were still there or thereabouts, I couldn't give a flying fuck who wins it. Can't even remember the last year I cared, unfortunately.

Me too. Too early to say for definite either way, and given a free choice between the two I would probably end up tossing a coin.