Dr Jinx

He will have to bide his time a little, I suspect Eddie Howe didn’t want some of the more competitive clubs to be able to scout us with him in the strongest side as he will make a difference.

Magnificent. We didn’t really have to do too much, rarely troubled. Our back line looks so comfortable against opposition like this.

And what was the story with the Forest manager? Looked like he was gurning throughout the game. If he popped a few yokes before the game, well fair play ?

Letting them back into it a bit.. why?

We’re just fucking with them now 

Wow!!!!

1 minute ago, bigfella said:

My river dried up after ten minutes, so I'm relying on this place for comment. Would Botman's superior passing skills make any difference in the second half? He's played a couple of great balls out from the back in preseason which might be the key to unlocking their massed defence.

 

Burn has done alright to be honest.

You really want Wilson to be running onto those Bruno through balls, Miggy always has to check to his left foot, slows everything down.

Forest have given us far less to worry about than I’d thought to be honest. I agree with someone’s earlier comment, we could do with them pushing us more, as we don’t seem to know what to do with all that possession.

15 minutes ago, Inferior Acuña said:

Given a squad number...

So was Lewis. Neither will play much if at all.

Just now, POOT 2.0 said:

I think it's still on, tbh. And I reckon he's up for coming. 

 

Just a personal feeling, there's no ITK. 

I agree, for the internet types it’s another day with no activity but they won’t be doing anything to disrupt things before the match tomorrow. I’d say there’ll be another bid by Monday.

He kept that quiet during his press conference, the beautiful little weasel ?

There will be more news on this but I’d bet a tenner that nothing will happen now until after the match has been played, they won’t do anything to distract the players beforehand.

It’s a very easy solution for Howe, throw him in first few games, either start or as a sub and just see how he gets on. If he’s not ready yet it’ll be obvious and then there’s time to find him a good loan move.

But I suspect he’s more than ready. Physically he’s spot on and obviously has skill. I think he just needs a run in the side and to get an understanding going with his teammates, that’s all that was missing really from his pre season performances.

Id get more enjoyment out of seeing this kid become the next big thing over buying ready made. So signing someone like Maddison would set him back a year or two (unless he got a good loan move)

1 minute ago, Decky said:

Cornet is the type of deal that we should have been making early doors in the window. He had what? 9 goals in 26 games in the league last year? We should have paid the 17m and got it done. 

There’s nothing to suggest that we were ever interested in the player, in fact Eddie Howe when asked directly about the player (and being left out of the squad for their game) said that it was nothing to do with us.

He wants to bring in players who will improve us.

I think we’re in pretty good shape despite the need for another 1 or 2 forward or attacking players.

If we have to start the season as we are I still think we’ll win far more games than we’ll lose.

It’s like having a very respectable hifi system, you’ve reached a point where it sounds really good but you’re curious about how far you can push it, now you’re looking at an interconnect cable that costs more than your amplifier and speakers that cost almost as much as what your car is worth.
 

In football terms though, it’s the difference between top 6 and top 10, it could even be the difference of challenging for top 4 if it’s like last season and those supposed big teams underperform again.

I’m not going to get hysterical over some random tweet but yes that’s been hinted at that it’s a possibility that he’s been after a better contract. I don’t see this as being the case.

1) If that was the case, the agent would be burning his bridges with us. Lots of future deals potentially.

2) We’ve been given encouragement to bid, we need to do more to make it happen. That’s on us. If we don’t agree a fee and leave it at that, we (us forum folk) shouldn’t take it personally if he gets a better contract at Leicester.

3) Dan Ashworth has been involved in this and it would be a bad look if this went tits up. He wasn’t there for the Ekitike fiasco but collectively the whole thing of not landing targets could also be put back on Steve Nickson who had drawn up the lists.

13 minutes ago, GeordieDazzler said:

Perhaps we could do a similar deal to Haaland at Dortmund for someone like Sesko - have a £70m/£80m buyout clause activate in three years time? 
 

Botman has a similar clause iirc?

I don’t think that’s correct. We’re not a selling club but I would imagine there’s clauses in these contracts that allow for a player to be moved on if we haven’t say, reached the champions league within 2 years.

5 minutes ago, TRon said:

 

 

Yeah I think that's our thinking and it makes sense.

So that sort of rules out Sesko, I mean, why would you spend double the transfer fee on an understudy to your main man?

If you spend big on someone they have to play, unless it’s like Bruno being eased into things over a month or so.

Crystal Palace 1-1 Arsenal

Fulham 0-3 Liverpool

Bournemouth 1-0 Aston Villa

Leeds 0-0 Wolves

Newcastle 4-0 Notts Forest

Spurs 3-1 Southampton

Everton 1-1 Chelsea

Leicester 2-1 Brentford

Man United 2-2 Brighton 

West Ham 2-3 Man City

5 minutes ago, toontownman said:

Fair play West Ham. Quality moves. Considering the disarray the club seemed in with the ownership not so long ago its been a wild turn around.

With the players they have brought in, I’d be delighted if we managed to get Soucek from them, I’m sure I read a few weeks ago he was told he could leave.. surely that could mean they’d accept a bid that would be within our budget.

Rice tends to get all the plaudits in that midfield, but Soucek has at least an equal part in that. He’s an excellent player and still only 27.

23 minutes ago, Lazarus said:

 

Yeah Dummett is the obvious choice and maybe even Ritchie and Fede but they might have other ideas about the rest of their careers.

There’s players that earn 100k+ a week and by the time they hit early 30’s, they’ll be set for life, for the ones who might have been on a meagre 30 grand a week, they will obviously be able to live a good life if they don’t spend foolishly, but if they want to continue keeping their wag in the life they are accustomed to, taking up coaching is probably the thing to do unless they are a personality that can do well on tv.

Just now, James said:

Paul Huntington would be a good choice for this role.

Dummett has been heading in that direction for a while, he regularly attends the youth games and joins in with training and aside from his injury problems is a model professional. He does an awful lot more for this club than his first team duties.

Diaby is a no go, he’s committed to staying put for this season.

I don’t get why we’re seemingly not in for Paqueta, maybe it’s just as simple as he doesn’t want to come here but I don’t see why not, Bruno is loving it here and forming a Brazilian 3 man midfield partnership at the age they are could bring them massive success at international level too.

But if he doesn’t want to move, I can understand Maddison being the other option, he’s got the experience and proven record at a high level. Transformative for where we are now but perhaps not for where we want to go? I mean, I can’t see him ever playing for City but I could see him being a Lallana type signing for the dippers, but certainly not a main man for them.

But that’s what 50/60m costs now.

9 minutes ago, LFEE said:

Being in the not overly struck on Maddison camp it’s a no for me. Said it a week or more ago but feel Willock will surprise a few on here this season.

I agree he has the potential to, whether he’ll get the chance to is another story. I’m not sure who he starts ahead of.

How would you feel about Joe Willock going the opposite direction if they struck a deal like that?