Whitley mag

Jowell represented Ashley in the takeover proceedings, this definitely looks positive for us and will be interesting if the likes of Liverpool vote against it knowing the current rules are illegal.

All well and good but we aren’t just expanding the Gallowgate and being left with the East Stand in it’s current guise.

Hopefully where scouting Nicolas Kuhn from Celtic for the right wing looks exciting, plays with head up, scores goals and can go by players. Just shows with good scouting and spreading the net wider than the PL you don’t need to spend a fortune.

Good article by Samuel seems to get it unlike some of these cunts from the Guardian and Delaney etc.

Think a new stadium is the only way to close the gap and the sooner we do it the better, before they put restrictions on that.

Feel the next 2 games tell us a lot about where this is heading, I still don’t see there being any appetite to remove him, but go out of the cup and tumble further down the league and even his most ardent supporters will be having doubts.

I don’t think any of the signings as individuals are bad players. What I question is the positions and type of players he’s targeted, I also think playing it safe in the market is for clubs who have wriggle room with PSR, we haven’t got the income yet to pay premium prices for PL proven players in every position. I think backing him in the summer with Guehi and Elanga would have compounded the previous summers bad window, yes we need a CB but not at 60 million and Elanga is another speed merchant with little end product.

Did recruitment let him down in the summer, or was he part of the issue, does backing him in January mean giving him players like Guehi and Elanga ? The most likely scenario is that he’s still here in January, however any signings will fit in with Mitchell’s strategy and that in itself might bring things to a head again.

Couple of big games coming up for him, fully expect the club to support him even if we lose them both. Don’t think there’ll be much appetite to replace him this season, unless we really spiral towards bottom of the league. My two penneth though I think his numbers up going forward, I really like him as a man and public figure for the club, very professional, dignified and likeable. However, thought he crossed the line in summer with interview in Germany, Staveley gave him to much control on transfers and we’ve paid the cost. As others have said his tactics are stale and we’ve been found out, the midfield is a shambles without a 6 and I don’t even think the football is very good anymore, there’s no pattern of play, we struggle with even the simplest of passing and I think every player apart from Hall has regressed.

Already has the the next Kvaradona in the bag.

Very underrated as an attacking player his Bristol Rovers spell showed that, using him as one of the midfield 3 didn’t showcase his best attributes.

It is and as much as we’ll be forever in debt to Amanda Staveley, mistakes were made in the last year of their ownership, from badly managing the PSR situation and giving Howe to much control on transfers in the end.

I think Howe was a big fan of his but what you’ve described is really our playing style, energy, graft and little technical quality in midfield.

The problem with our transfer approach is that we’ve turned our noses up at the foreign market’s due to being risk averse and as Mitchell has insinuated the recruitment isn’t fit for purpose. We’ve approached transfers as if we are already on an equal financial footing with top 6, whereby we’ll let another club take the risk then we’ll pay the premium to get a PL ready no risk option, unfortunately due to PSR this model doesn’t work for us yet. Very confident Mitchell will overhaul this and the young Georgian lad is hopefully just the start. I’m fully expecting more signings from the likes of France in the 20 to 30 million category, the difference will be if they turn out well, unlike Brighton we’ll have the finances to keep them and build.

Spurs wanted PIF to buy them they chose us, Man U and Liverpool were to expensive, they bought the biggest sleeping giant in British football for a song. If Man City can become one of the biggest clubs in the world we certainly can, it’ll be slower than we all hoped but the gap is bridgeable with clever minds.

Just my opinion but they’re not moving on to another British club and are very happy with their investment, the stadium will be the biggest infrastructure project and investment this city has ever seen.

After the Dortmund game last year realised I just don’t enjoy this anymore, a football match without any atmosphere is a soulless experience especially in a big stadium. It does beg the question with these people who just turn up and don’t show any emotion, or reaction are they actually enjoying it, I think the whole experience is very questionable at the minute, without any atmosphere the appeal might just start wearing off for the day trippers.

Doesn’t play with a holding midfielder, or a creative one, our midfield shape is all over the shop. When Staveley talked about not being able to afford any mistakes in the transfer market, he’s now feeling the brunt of it and worryingly seemed set to compound things further last summer. I think the appointment of Mitchell was timely and Eales was right he should concentrate on coaching the team. Always said a manger is only as good as his transfer business, the season Pardew finished 5th was testimony to that, Howe had a great 18 months but nobody really knows whether he’s reached his level at this point. He’s got some very good players at his disposal, but i think everyone bar Hall has regressed this season for various reasons. This was meant to be the season with no distractions where we pushed on again, it’s looking very underwhelming at the moment. Ultimately the best thing for everyone is that he turns this around and under Mitchell we become smarter operators in the transfer market, if he leaves knowing our luck he’ll end up at West Ham, or Everton and win a trophy and we’ll look like cunts again. If I had to call it though I think where in Howe’s last season and we’ll end up with somebody like Amorim in charge next season, the January transfer window will probably be a good indicator of where this is heading.

All Staveley’s texts confirm to me is that Ashley was a cunt, who as we all know tried to move the goal posts on price and could easily have lost the deal due to his greed.

That’s very telling and confirms how we are so predictable.

Even Southampton seem to have a full stand behind the goal all standing now, was even over 60’s and women standing, be uproar from the locals if they had to stand for anything other than going for a piss/pint at SJP.

Howe signed 8 of the starting 11 yesterday he’s responsible for having a midfield you can drive a bus through, laboured and unimaginative build up play and the centre forward being isolated all season.

I’d give Howe till after xmas period if where out the league cup and hovering mid table, I’d make discreet enquiries whether Ruben Amorim would take the job, if he would I’d press the button before he goes elsewhere. There was always the risk that you go backwards when you don’t spend in the summer, but ultimately he seemed to have tunnel vision on Guehi and the less said about wanting Elanga the better.

Think it runs a lot deeper than simply saying we dominated today and were unlucky, we look very predictable and not sure we have personnel to fix this easily. My gut feeling is that Howe has taken us as far as he can, I thought he made right call today dropping Barnes, but ultimately every manager is judged in their transfer business and spending circa 100 million on Hall, Barnes and Tino wasn’t the right call and it’s biting him on the arse. In comparison the business Emery has done at Villa looks much smarter and they currently look streets ahead of us.

Needs a goal lost his confidence.