leffe186

Saving grace is the subs bench - plenty of options.

The game just completely passes Owen by. Still think he'll score, mind.

Man U look really casual. Wolfsburg have set themselves up well.

Man U try to give them a goal.

...or Quips Post-Relegation?

Fulham are a sugar daddy club too though - as are Wigan (though with a more permanent attachment).

How much did Fulham, Everton and Villa spend last season? A lot, Villa certainly, but they and Everton were also building from squads who had done well the previous year. It's madness to think of the Top 8 being unreachable though - Fulham had miraculously escaped the year before and up to their late recovery had been worse than Newcastle were last year. There's no reason why a club with such a large support shouldn't be looking at Top 8 after promotion.......as long as the management is right. Depends what you think of as a lot, certainly nothing they spend should be out of our reach given the right people making the right financial decisions. Like you say the support is massive and that puts us an another league financially to most other clubs (apart from the two sugar daddy clubs and the top 4). Most clubs in the Premiership have very high wage bills as a percentage of their turnover, but Villa and Spurs (and Everton?) have shown that keeping that bill down can be done without the Champions League. Getting rid of (most of) the high earners plus the weakest Championship in my memory means this year is an opportunity to get it right. The need is for a manager that can stamp his authority on the team and squad-building (with some cash); if this doesn't materialise then this squad will come straight back down again.

How much did Fulham, Everton and Villa spend last season? A lot, Villa certainly, but they and Everton were also building from squads who had done well the previous year. It's madness to think of the Top 8 being unreachable though - Fulham had miraculously escaped the year before and up to their late recovery had been worse than Newcastle were last year. There's no reason why a club with such a large support shouldn't be looking at Top 8 after promotion.......as long as the management is right.

How would you like your FAIL served? He'll have to wait till you've finished yours I believe. He knows that, but saw the opportunity for a great gag. I could be wrong.......

How would you like your FAIL served? He'll have to wait till you've finished yours I believe.

Billy Bragg is a tediously boring politically correct prat who seems to be believe he has musical talent. He's got less musical talent than my farts. And my farts are musical only to me, and I accept that - he doesn't accept his musical limitations (he even kept referring to himself in a radio doc about the great Woody Guthrie FFS ! But ruining football ? Just another example why this prick's comments are moronic, and typical of the southern (and Manchester) based spite. But they're treated as interesting, and not the uneducated spiteful rants, which they are. Can't you just treat it as spite from ignorant, parochial arseholes like this twat Henderson clearly is without trying to crowbar it all into your own parochial view of the South? A large number of sports journalists are evil, twisted, bitter and abuse their position and they should always get called out on it but it's not always because of "The South". And I really liked Mermaid Avenue too.

Very apt avatar too, TheSpence

I think Michael Henderson's from Lancashire tbf. Manchester-born, which would explain the Shankly comments. So in answer to your question, no.

- do you have money on this?

They do get to live in Tahiti though. No sympathy from me.

Surely Hull are going down this year. Surely.

Rasiak scores for Reading against Watford. GG will be apoplectic.

where we heard this before? Blackburn goal: Long ball causes havoc in the box, and Richard Dunne inadvertently heads it on for Christopher Samba to beat Brad Friedel. Also, Carew flicks the ball on for Agbonlahor to finish. Plus ca change.

Based on the fact that this is a scrappy game (which is hardly surprising considering Pompey are desperate for a win and lacking confidence), the standard of play outside the top 4 is crap? I take your point, but if you wanted to judge the standard of play outside the top four then surely watching a game outside the top four is a good place to start. He could have said "the standard of play of the relegation candidates is crap"

Have to say, thought it wasn't that bad a tackle, but he should have been red carded 25 times more over the last few years, so sod him.

Scholes. About time. Tool.

Five minutes injury time though. From what? Huth changing his shirt took five minutes? Loads of injuries and subs though, I thought it was probably fair. Really didn't think Chelsea would score though.

Five minutes injury time though.

Stoke haven't really looked like conceding for me. They've done the backs-to-the-wall thing so well. Horrible to watch, but will be mid-table comfortably based on their home form. What a great finish.