TheBrownBottle

At least 75 of them, not allowing for inflation Fofana is completely unproven and £35m for unproven given Lyon’s troubles looks fucking insane to me

I didn’t realise PIF were that hard up

ASM proving once again that he’s a top gadgie and professional. I just wish that - talent-wase - he’s crucial to our success as well

You’re the hammer, not the anvil then?

I think they would have. They beat PSG at home in the KOs last season.

You could be right - but I think they’ve enough quality to keep them around for a couple of seasons. They can’t afford any mistakes in the transfer market though.

If he asked to leave it massively weakens our negotiating position

Yeah it has to be reasonably sustained - Villa look far more likely to hang around for the foreseeable. Spurs will be back up amongst it next season - it’s only Man Utd where I think they still look like a quagmire. Forest will do well to secure another top half finish - if they do, they should be viewing that as an achievement.

Tbh I thought we’d make CL too, given the lack of European football We’ve got an excellent side, and it was European football and the squad being ravaged with injuries that saw us finish 7th the year before.

Tbf, we were last season - and those clubs which we increasingly view as our rivals likely think the same about us. If Forest match over the next couple of season what they did last season, then they will become that - have to say though I have my doubts, as they look one-dimensional to me, and I think teams worked out how to play them.

Tbf, most of those on here in the season predictions did think we’d get CL this season: https://newcastle-online.org/topic/38180-season-predictions-202425/

They did fall to pieces the last few months of the season, once teams ‘sussed’ them. I think they’ll struggle next season.

Agreed - and it depends on what our risk appetite is in signing players. Which is where I suspect Howe clashes with the likes of Mitchell - I get the impression that Howe is very risk-averse; and so he should be - as manager, he carries the can if we buy three £15m flops instead of one £45m success.

It’s getting towards that for me, no idea if it’ll be enough, maybe it is, I just hate football hacks with their ‘close to agreement exclusive’ shite - total bollocks. It is the same player, only with two years additional development and now having proven themselves as a quality PL player. If Elanga hadn’t succeeded at Forest, he might not even be a £15m player today. Players values change - it doesn’t matter what a club paid years ago for them.

John Anderson lived in Abbey Farm, just round the corner from Chapel Park. Me and my dad used to see him a lot on Sunday mornings because he used to take his kids to Prudhoe swimming baths, just like we used to

Works for me - I’m happy for trophies to count as miracles. Just two more and Howe becomes a saint if the Catholic rules are used. St Eddie, patron saint of gegenpressing.

Yep - usual Hope shite. We’ve tabled a new £55m bid - that’s the update. It doesn’t make agreement any closer - in fact, agreement is a ‘yes/no’ situation in any case. They’ll either agree to it or they won’t - ‘close to an agreement’ suggests that it isn’t enough.

Yep - you pay £15m for unproven players because it’s all risk; you pay £55m for proven players because they’re closer to a sure thing

Christ, awful stuff, his poor family

I think the traditional Italian way would be to driving around and honking their Lambretta horns late at night - that’s the standard ritual as far as I can tell

Tbf Howe added to this with comments re getting players in quickly - it’s not just coming from the support

You know they could have put deals forward, had them rejected then accepted at a lower rate - if the deals were coming? 😁

Still waiting on those commercial deals to come rolling in ETB

It’s hardly historically obscure - about a third of the world’s population will get pretty upset if you wave one in their face