Tiresias

indeed forgot about that

Has anyone said anything about Yaya Toure leaving Man City this season? Obviously he barely featured this season, but worth mentioning because he was for 3 years or so the best midfielder in the league, an astonishing player who had it all.

I kinda think that's the ploy though, pretend there's money but fail to spend it and blame it on the plonker. If ashley wanted to spend money he would. He doesn't.

Adama Traore £30m? Has the world gone mad?

The bad thing about Rafa is that if it weren't for him we would probably have been sold at a bargain price in the championship.

If he leaves would be very difficult to care albeit the manner is important. If he gets offered the Arsenal job and is lured by a proper budget and better squad it'd dissipate some of the fury. I suspect I'd stop attending games, step back a bit and I would finally look for a nearby non-league team to get involved in

The Premier League brand is one hell of an insecure one. It is constantly peddled as the best, as the be all and end all and the most important thing. This is clear nonsense but in order to sell the league the quality and the competitiveness has to be over emphasized constantly. Bob Mortimer was going on in an interview a bit about how he couldn't care less about who finishes where in the league and what not, it is all the funny odd ephemera around the game, and going to the ground and buying dodgy pies etc that matters. The other thing is that the league isn't that competitive, the Leicester thing was the best thing that could have happened to it because it contradicts all this, but the last two seasons it's basically been a done deal since Christmas, and the majority of the last 20 years basically it's one of a small handful of clubs who can win it. The mad money it costs now means even fewer chances for teams to catch up. However throughout most the league the result has been a growth in conservative, negative dull football, anything to keep clubs in leagues to keep owners able to milk the cash cow. Managers aren't given a chance now because its so much cheaper to sack them than change a squad around and noone cares about a long term vision when theres so much money now. The money in the league absolutely desperately needs to reduce. It is a nonsense, players wages and prices are being inflated by regimes happy to pump money well over any economic sense in order to launder their own reputations. The big fees brings in players who apparently improve the league so the tv money goes up so more money flows. Except it's clearly diminishing returns, we're never going to have a situation where every club has world class talent, in fact talent is hoarded and wasted. I wonder if one sugar daddy run club will implode to get anyone to see any sense. Anyway the premier league needs everyone to believe it is the be all and end all in order to justify the ridiculous prices, the obnoxious advertising, the hollowing out of the spirit of the game and the obscene wages. It will end in tears. Having said all that i want Newcastle to be in the premier league because as all fans will do I want our club to be fighting the big names and being as successful as possible. However I would support us in whatever league. My support is more likely to wane due to mad bad and horrible ownership which fans should realise is a much bigger threat that relegation. That sucks your soul for decades.

I think Rafa will be wary of playing him upfront because he will probably naturally drop deep to collect the ball and not offer that option of the ball in behind from Shelvey so much. Having said that has some of that instinct as seen with goal. Also if he drops deep he will pull defenders out of shape which Kennedy could benefit on. Kinda theoretical now mind since most the team can't be arsed now. Anyway love the finish, if he can keep this form up through a season no reason he can't be huge for us, I fear he won't though.

Rafa will be fucking furious

Meh, he can't work and improve under Rafa then get rid.

Liverpool colleague says he has had a massive bust up with Klopp because Klopp's been listening to the physios to decide who plays rather than his tactical input.

Sad to see us give up after 40 points though I do think it can be more complicated than players just stopping caring, the tension obviously did help ultimately. Should get bollocked by Rafa though. Pretty disappointing.

One of my pet hates is complaining about super marginal offside decisions. It's one area I have sympathy with Refs for who are meant to give the attacker the benefit of any doubt, and if it's like an inch offside or whatnot fans shouldn't complain if not given. VAR I suppose is meant to fix this.

£200m hardly unknown money to be thrown about these days though.

I wonder a bit if it boils down to Rafa wanting to get rid of that lawyer wanker ashley sent in to stop us spending any money

Trust rafa

To be fair not sure the commenter has read the article, he's hardly celebrating the 'banterific' team, he even brings up the fan shitting on his seat and a story about a friends 7 year old coming to his first game there and giving up and leaving half way through

Nice tribute to Wenger style defending from West Ham there, thoughtful.

Some times karma works out, they've behaved like twats, lived way beyond their means employed a peado and now they have got their just desserts

:lol:

Can't wait for them cheering that staying up if it happens is a bigger achievement than Rafa guiding us to top half finish in premier league or something

Hope not, should have sympathy from one victim of pardew to another

Completely agree. And also agree that a lot of the character of the league has now gone with Ferguson (much as I hated him) and Wenger gone. All the short termism will leave clubs lacking identity and constantly fire fighting short term crises. If we got taken over or something maybe Rafa would stay with us for a while, maybe Pep will stay at Man city for a while but can't see clubs hiring anyone for a 20 year stretch ever again.

Sigh. I don't mean to be negative, I do think Ashley will maybe do enough to keep Rafa if only because that seems easiest and he can stick money on value of club for having Rafa here, but people again and again seem to expect Ashley to act rationally, to realise, to do something that makes sense. How many times does he have to shaft the club, to undermine any hope of progress before people realise. Ashley. Does. Not. Act. In. The. Clubs. Interests. I think there is sadly a reasonable chance that he hates Rafas popularity and hates the leverage Rafa has and will sack him if only to prove he is in charge.