Abacus

There's nothing illegal or immoral about a related party transaction - in the corporate world, they just have to be disclosed so it's clear and transparent. I'm already not sure how the current rules about fair market value for deals can be enforced, which at a guess might be why they're trying to change it to something simpler they can defend now. Regardless, I can't see how putting a new arbitrary limit on where clubs can legally earn money from could withstand any kind of challenge. So sorry ESL 6. That ringing bell you're hearing is the Undertaker and we're coming for you.

The draw has had me day-dreaming of freak results now. Such as, we get Man City in the semis with the away leg second. Sneak a 1-0 at home, and then absolutely shithouse, timewaste and foul our way to a 0-0 away as the press and pundits spontaneously combust and lobby for us to be called up for war crimes in the Hague. Then tonk Man U 5-0 in the final, capped off with a Philippe Albert style fifth goal scored by none other than Big Dan Burn, as the whole of Blyth erupts in mayhem. By my calculations, there's a 73% chance of this happening.

I'm absolutely blootered, but what a cracking match. That's the kind of game you go for and Big Dan Burn has a chance to write his name in history now. Him, Joelinton and Bruno were superb.

Well done to Norwich for not appointing him. But for him to have even been in the conversation suggests he hadn't ruled it out. Which would have made it only his second job after nasty Newcastle fans apparently caused him to retire forever. Here's the thing with lovely Brucie. I read an article in the Times by their chief sportswriter a few months back. He's a rugby writer that knows nothing about football. But still, as Bruce was imploding at West Brom and was coming up with the same meaningless soundites he's been using his whole career, the writer claimed that this was just because he had been so emotionally scarred by his time at Newcastle and his treatment by the fans that this was just a reflex response. Rather than pure laziness and cluelessness. He's a sports writer, like many others who knows nothing and defends the indefensible in relation to Bruce. Here's what they never seen to consider. Bruce had a great career as a footballer and mystifyingly long and well paid one as a terrible manager. He's set for life - but they never consider the effect he has on others people's lives. A footballer's career is short - maybe 10-12 years at best. It can be ruined entirely at a formative stage by poor management, such that someone never plays at the top level, never achieves what they could have, never lives the life they could have, or has the chance to be as secure as Brucey. Look at Joelinton and Almiron - both could have ended up on the footballing scrapheap, two lives ruined. And that's surely the tip of the iceberg of the number of players careers he'll have wrecked. Any single apologist for him in the press, and especially any ex player pundit who defends him is a disgrace in my eyes.

I keep worrying about squad depth, but then I'm constantly surprised at how unsung players seem to just be able to step in and keep things rolling. And we don't have any European games that most of the other contenders have. That said, I'd be stunned and delighted at a top 4 finish in Howe's first full season. It would be well beyond what I thought was possible at the start of the season, and I still don't expect it now. Still - it really would be a Keegan-like turnaround for a club in the doldrums and heading for relegation a little over 12 months ago.

The echo just stopped for me without doing anything.

Quite happy to have a maverick in the team that gets other teams worried and stepping back. Whether it's the first team or a sub impact, I'd keep him as long as his fitness allows.

Watching Dubravka tonight, and that's just made it clear it was the right decision to bring him in. We don't even talk about the keeper now The only debate now is who his back up should be - terrific buy for £10m.

Dragon season, marra.

Scuttled under their rock, then. If you can't trust yourself to say anything in public, even under a forum username, then you should probably have a bit of a think about that and what it says about you.

Sounds like he was about to break into a chorus of Bootylicious.

The ground looks emptier and emptier. I tell you what lads, stay till the end and beat the crowds.

Obviously huge numbers of empty seats - their made up attendances are worse than Qatar's. Probably it's Christmas tree decorating season, marra.

I agree that for all his strengths, Southgate has flaws that can't be overlooked, and I also think that in the last two tournaments he and his teams were found out. The argument that he got us to a semi final and then a final previously is definitely undermined by the fact we got an incredibly lucky run in the knock out stages, and were effectively at home in the Euros. But then, when we finally lost those games, the disappointment was more that we were out-managed in the end and lost both those games with barely a whimper. There was a feeling of missed opportunity and that we could have done more if the team played to their strengths. As for flaws, I often disagree with some of his squad and team selections, but there's probably not a manager alive who can keep everyone happy with those, so I'll leave that one. It's his tactics and passive in-game management which are the real criticism, i.e. the things you need to have to actually win something. However, I don't feel that way about this tournament. He is still too cautious at times for me, but in fairness he did make some tactical tweaks in games which worked. Against France, some will point out his odd substitution of Saka, but in general I thought the team played well. In fact if anything I thought they edged it against a very good France team and probably should have won. So this time I don't come away disappointed that we could have made a better effort and fading away when it really mattered. Instead, I come away rueing a missed penalty and a refereeing performance that was consistently poor all night. Saka in particular got nothing from him. It's not just sour grapes - these were potentially big decisions. One could have chalked off the opening France goal, another could have given another penalty or at the very least a dangerous free kick right on the edge of the box. Nothing Southgate could have done about any of that. So oddly, whilst I don't rate him much for the previous campaigns where England finished higher, it's this tournament where we only got to the quarters but where I'm less critical. He seemed to have addressed some of his previous mistakes to me. If he has the drive and energy for one more tournament, I'd be tempted to give him a final crack at the Euros unless an outstanding candidate turns up and becomes available in the meantime.

It's quite hilarious watching them try and understand the concept of racism! Even now, after being asked to stop, a few still seem genuinely confused about why they can't sing their favourite racist song as well. I keep getting David Brent flashbacks - "How's that racist? It's a compliment if anything!". It was ridiculous even then. And The Office came out two decades ago.

"discussions"..."led us to understand"... Doesn't sound the strongest position, unless they had that nailed down in writing.

So, two players who were born in Sunderland played well in one knock out game meaning that there should now be a Look North special about Sunderland, including talking to their teachers to confirm they were good lads. And they are fewming that this probably won't happen because of the Dawn Thewlis led magedia? Just imagine if one of them rates a 7/10 performance in the quarter finals - there would need to be a double episode of Panorama, with a special theme tune about rivers and boats.

Would look good on a Botman shirt.

Right on cue re Jill Scott; "They’ve hoodwinked most of the country into thinking things like the Angel of The North is in Newcastle and celebrities from places like Shields and Consett are from Newcastle." Like we could be arsed getting together and "hoodwinking" people into thinking anything, for some mysterious reason that I can't work out. Everything that ever happens is some bizarre mag conspiracy - they're demented.

Talking of their stupidity, I had a skim a couple of weeks ago to see what sort of outrage there is currently in that bubbling grudge-soup they mistake for a brain. Only to realise that it's not worth trying to guess how the Fans of Massive Lads on that board come up with their nonsense. For example, one goofus had quoted a tweet about how the Saudis refused to listen to President Biden when he'd asked for more oil. In saying no, apparently some Saudis had mocked Biden's speech. The dimwit's 'gotcha' logic then went something like this; 1. If he can't speak properly, Biden is mentally impaired; so 2. The Saudis are mocking disabilities; meaning 3. Mags must love mocking disabilities A second halfwit then seized upon this drivel to claim; "If KLD mocked a disabled NUFC they’d condemn it. Their owners can knock disabilities though cos they’ve paid to have them currently sitting in 4th." A disabled NUFC? Well anyhow, it's quite the bizarre fictional situation knacker number 2 had dreamt up there to get enraged about in order to show off to his simple mates. To recap; He appeared to want to defend his owner - in advance - from getting imaginary abuse after he'd imagined him making a terrible comment about disabled people that he hadn't actually made. He was mainly delighted about this purely on the basis that if any of it did come true in the future then he'd then be able to say "but whatabout the mags". Even though it was all based on the equally nonsensical made up ramblings of another one of his fellow idiots in the first place. Whilst giving away that it was actually us being 4th in the league table that was really bothering him. Thick as mince.

"Someone" from a Saudi University, you say? Game, set and match to the mackems then. Still, it's pretty funny how excited they are at the prospect of abandoning all their made up principles due to an imaginary thing happening, just in case it's bad for us. Hard to have to live in a world where your only waking thought is how something (anything!) might badly affect the "mags".

Keane is so stupid he doesn't realise that it would be us being punished if we signed his mate

Spain looking incisive, some great play. But that stadium looks half empty even from the pitch-side angles you can see. There's no way you can disguise what a shower this whole thing is.

Howe - Always calm and never flustered Bruce - First blame the fans, then treble custard!

I mostly agree. But on the other hand, as well as taking money out, they have remorselessly grown Man U's commercial brand around the world at the same time. One fan argument is that the club would be better off if they just spent their own money instead of paying some of it to the Glazers and also in debt interest. But on the other hand, it's the Glazers who helped build all that income in the first place, so they've taken money out from a bigger pot they've grown. Give with one hand, take with the other. Unlike Ashley, who not only took money away through sponsorships etc, but actively strangled the commercial side. I.e. he took with both hands. I'm not arguing with your basic point, by the way. Just like their fans, I'd also have detested their ownership if it was us. I just don't think they are as calamitously bad as Ashley in terms of the long term damage they have caused. Also, higher interest rates worldwide on a debt funded asset, where you've now got real competition for your TV money, in a likely future global recession ... yeah, a house of cards that ownership. No surprise to see them and FSG want to cut and run.