ponsaelius

Harry. Not sure if he did that team, his better squads comment was separate I think.

There's more:

Wrong thread btw, was meant to go in NWOAT.

Redknapp thinks City have a stronger squad than Barca. The Sun's composite Barca/City team: Hart; Alves, Kompany, Abidal, Maxwell; Mascherano, Fabregas, Silva; Aguero, Messi, Tevez. Fucking eyes are bleeding.

Aye, that'll be dead easy considering I live in Edinburgh. FFS. Their website?

What a fucking bellend. Get shot.

Wont be Arsenal considering they have Sagna.

His Ligue 1 record aint great like, most of his goals came in Ligue 2...

What are your thoughts on Bruce as a whole? Do you not think he's cracking up a bit with his comments post-Newcastle and post-Brighton? I'm not a Bruce fan, never have been and if you are really bored go back and look through the Sunderland thread and you will find I wanted him sacked from about March onwards. I'm amazed he is still here but their you go, that's Quinn for you, too loyal and Bruce will never be sacked by Quinn so I can just hope he walks, however with the contract he has, that will not happen. At any other club in the country Bruce would have been long gone, 9 defeats in last 11 home games, 11 points from last 16 games, 7 home points since January, it's shocking stats but like I say, he will never be sacked by Quinn, just have to grin and bare it. He will just buy his way out of the mess we are in, probably end up mid-table again and everyone will think it's all rosy, then just repeat season after season. These views do not surprise me at all. Do you all not think this about Bruce? He should be long gone IMO. Nope, a lot of people still think the sun shines out of Bruce's a***, all pointing out the "3rd best finish in 50 years". In hindsight us finishing 10th is the worst thing that could have happened, we could easily have finished 12/13th on that last day and while you lot will snigger, finishing above Newcastle was a big thing in a lot of peoples minds. Put it this way, I guarantee if Newcastle had lost 9 out of the last 11 home games your manager would have been hounded out by now, Quinn is too soft and maybe the fans are too, just accepting mediocrity. The 3rd best finish in 50 years thing is stupid because you've spent a lot more in recent years relative to other clubs than at any other time in your history, so it is to be expected. I think he is a complete charlatan. Tactically inept, square pegs in round holes, still not having natural left sided players despite funds to have a complete squad, forces players back from injuries too early, doesn't strike me as being a good motivator at all etc etc. He's done ok with some of his bigger purchases and also with sales, but it begs the question is he the one doing the negotiations and deciding who to buy? It doesn't matter how good your owner is, or how good the facilities are, or how much is being invested when ultimately the final decisions and management of the team falls with him. For what it's worth I think Keane was even worse.

Again, might I add that Ashley and Llambias are absolute cunts who run the club in the most amateur manner possible. Just trying to formulate an idea of what the other side (the players) might be like, because there is two sides to everything.

What are your thoughts on Bruce as a whole? Do you not think he's cracking up a bit with his comments post-Newcastle and post-Brighton? I'm not a Bruce fan, never have been and if you are really bored go back and look through the Sunderland thread and you will find I wanted him sacked from about March onwards. I'm amazed he is still here but their you go, that's Quinn for you, too loyal and Bruce will never be sacked by Quinn so I can just hope he walks, however with the contract he has, that will not happen. At any other club in the country Bruce would have been long gone, 9 defeats in last 11 home games, 11 points from last 16 games, 7 home points since January, it's shocking stats but like I say, he will never be sacked by Quinn, just have to grin and bare it. He will just buy his way out of the mess we are in, probably end up mid-table again and everyone will think it's all rosy, then just repeat season after season. These views do not surprise me at all. Do you all not think this about Bruce? He should be long gone IMO.

In terms of natural talent, technique and overall potential as a footballer Tioté is way, way ahead of Barton and Nolan. As effective as the latter two ended up being for us in recent years, neither are footballers that are going to inflate you to a higher level. This is going to sound cynical, but I do wonder if consciously both Barton and Nolan knew they were ultimately going to be shown the door. Their talk-ins, Barton's twitter account, interviews with the press and talking to people like Wraith, staying on the field longer than everybody else after the lap of honour... All propaganda that contributed to highlighting the importance of the 'players council' and their leadership qualities within the club. Leadership qualities that were more important (especially in Nolan's case) than their footballing ability. This is beginning to sound like apologist territory so I'll stop, but I definitely think their motives are far more cynical than meets the eye (although I do think they cared about the club). At the end of the day the club is bigger than average footballers like Nolan and Barton and will still be around long after they're retired and dead. I'm far more disappointed with the Enrique and Carroll sales, because they're the kind of players you can build a team around for 10 years or so. People group the 4 big sales in the same way, when for me they fall into two different categories. Carroll and Enrique are heading towards their peak and were either sold for an extortionate fee or left despite the best efforts (relatively) to keep them...whereas Nolan and Barton have been by all intents and purposes forced out of the club for a pittance. Looking at it simply it's asset stripping and four key players flogged, but look closely and I think Carroll/José sales are completely different to Nolan/Barton.

:thup:

Completely agree with the bit in bold, mate. We shouldn't need to be taking the risks we are at all. But Wraith is inflating these players ability levels because he is best pals with them and essentially convincing himself that it is impossible to find better players. Despite our relative success at doing so over the last 2 years. That's what is pissing me off. He seems more concerned about his 'mates' and this is blinding any kind of perspective.

Enrique is a Champions League player, Tioté is a CL player, Coloccini is a CL player, Carroll probably is. Nolan and Barton aren't, and that's reflected in their subsequent destinations.

I mean, I'd rather be building on what we have than ripping them out and gambling on replacements...but still.

He's making out that Barton and Nolan are Champions League level players. Fucking hell, I'm disappointed Barton has gone but have a bit of perspective. For all their 'balls and character' it's not like a midfield containing them two was heading towards the Champions League any time soon. Such a brownnose.

He apparently reads this board. So aslong as it's him being slated then fantastic.

Whether you agree or disagree with the transfer policy, what good does something like that do? Have a talk in with the likes of Cabaye or something, focus on the future not the players that have left the club. He's far too pally with the players to view things with a bit of context. stevewraith steve wraith You pay peanuts you get monkeys #nufc Fucking cringe. Quoting what Barton said, pathetic suck-up. Then he contradicts himself by saying he thinks Tioté will be next. So you rate him then, Steve? Did he not cost 'peanuts'?

A chronic one at that. Couldn't be less interested about a talk-in like that. Even if they spill the truth, it's likely what we already suspect anyway. Ex-NUFC players talking about how shit the club is and how great it is being elsewhere? Fuck that.

We'll win 2-0. Doom and gloom lifted again, players signing early next week. Positive thinking!

There is no way Bendtner will play for f***ing Sunderland. £££££££££££££££ They are skint, man. Only if they sell will they be able to buy a player like Bendtner. They've hardly touched the £44M they got for Bent and henderson. Bent was £18m rising to £24m maximum. Over £6m of that went straight to Spurs. Henderson was £16m I think. Rising to £20m. £34m in guaranteed payments from those 2 transfers, minus £6m = £28m. £8-9m rising to £12m on Wickham. Gardner for £6m. O'Shea £4m. Elmo £2m. Dong £2m. Wes Brown £1.5m. O'Shea and Brown in particular will be on significant wages I imagine. Total fallacy that Sunderland haven't spent much. You'd imagine Brown and the frees got signing on fees too.

Didn't a large part of the Bent fee have to go back to Spurs for some reason too?

It was £18 million upfront for Bent and slightly less for Henderson apparently.

There is no way Bendtner will play for f***ing Sunderland. £££££££££££££££ They are skint, man. Only if they sell will they be able to buy a player like Bendtner. They've hardly touched the £44M they got for Bent and henderson. About £30 million spent this window, wage bill has gone up a lot. Bruce has to shift some before he can buy.