TheBrownBottle

Tbf he could pay off the mortgage with his signing-on fee. Doesn’t mean that he’s going anywhere, but buying a house in the area is meaningless in terms of his staying or going. My two-penneth-worth would be that the only club in England Bruno leaves for is Man City. If they meet the asking price I think he’s likely to go. Hopefully not, though.

Isak’s gannin neewhere

You forgot to add that the physio and sports science depts are filled with his recruitment choices. And given our relatively injury-free season, you’d have to give Ashworth all the credit on that front

I’d rather break our duck with the Conference League than the League Cup, if I’m given the choice.

Ajax, Braga, Panathanikos would be my dream draw from that pot - in terms of my usual preferences (big names, preferably clubs we’ve never played in a competitive fixture).

‘You’ve got to be in a position to miss’ etc. Yep, absolutely true - but it’s still about shot conversion. As I said, in the early- to mid-90s English football was likely the weakest it’s ever been relative to other major European leagues post-war. You’ll hear lads of my generation constantly talking about the English striking talent of that generation - Shearer, Cole, Ferdinand, Sheringham, Fowler, Collymore, Wright etc. I don’t think any of them - other than Shearer - were genuinely elite-class players. Due to the ‘three foreigners’ rule in Europe (where Welsh and Scottish players were treated as ‘foreign’ too) most English sides had eight English players. So most of the goalscorers were English. It didn’t mean they were great - English football was in a nadir at that point. That Newcastle side played with five forwards - two wingers, a deep lying forward and an attacking midfielder who was effectively an inside-forward as well as Cole as a no 9. The chances that were created for him … you’d have to rewatch games from 93/94 to see it. Beardsley was a wizard; Lee was a superb attacking midfielder; Sellars a superb provider; Fox when he came in was a constant threat. Beresford and Venison were excellent attacking full backs who could provide balls into the area. Cole was provided chance after chance after chance. To his absolute credit, he buried 40-odd of them. But someone like an Isak would have scored close to a ton if he was playing in that side. Also, the idea of Haaland getting stick is a joke. The lad is a goal machine.

I really liked it when he sang ‘Fuck off Kevin Keegan’ and called us sad Geordie bastards after the ‘96 Cup Final. We should name a stand after him. In all seriousness, that’s only part of the reason why he hasn’t been as loved or respected as he might have been. His spell at NUFC was brief - he was a superstar when he was here, but both injuries and a reversion to the mean had caught up with him by the time he was leaving the club. He went nine games without a goal before he left - and by all accounts him and Paul Stretford had been hawking his services all over the shop. We all loved him when he was here, but I don’t remember hearing anyone pining for his return after he went. He won trophies after he left - but no-one would ever suggest that Man Utd wouldn’t have won those trophies without Andy Cole in the team. Ultimately, he wasn’t a top drawer centre forward - he got the right move at the right time, in an era when the standard of English top flight football was at its lowest ebb. Hoddle was (is) a nutter, but he was bang on re the number of chances he needed to score. It’s incredibly to think of what Man Utd might have won if Ferguson had ever signed a genuine top class centre forward in that period.

I like being able to hate Man Utd properly again. The Ashley years kept us well outside of their orbit

I think he had his tongue in cheek for a fair bit of that tbf - I didn’t read it that anything was meant as a slight

I’m curious how they square the circle that they’ve created for themselves - because by that logic Howe is a better manager than Mourinho (I think he is today, but I know that won’t be their view …)

I’d be happier seeing him leaving a bookies

The highlights of the second leg were shown that night on BBC1 at 11pm

It’s a different stadium tbf, which is what I meant. In terms of the walk, I must have made that journey several hundred times - I never got particularly misty-eyed when doing it (though I often had unstable vision). Never really had a fixed route, either - depended on the watering hole that was favoured that day. Each to their own, perhaps others get sentimental about the walk to the ground - not looking to take the mick if they do. But I never did tbh.

You can add Willock to that, too

He absolutely is in their pocket - he’s paid a ten figure sum to manage their asset. He’s proof that having money doesn’t mean you’re not a mug

Yeah, I think she was right too. Ashley’s reign had basically bottomed-out our value. A paint job and some TLC would likely have doubled the value relatively quickly.

True, but from memory didn’t Staveley say that PIF were looking to buy into football - and she presented NUFC and basically sold them on the idea that this was the club to buy?

I can. It’s a petulant and childish response - and a Forest win wouldn’t be any less damaging for Luton than an Everton win. To accuse the referee of acting in the interest of Luton brings the game into disrepute. Forest should be charged - and whoever runs their Twitter account should have their toys taken away

Rugby league is called ‘football’ or ‘footy’ here in NSW. Rugby properly is called rugby union football or rugby league football, as opposed to association football. I guess most folks will call football whichever code of the game is the most popular where they are. I don’t watch gridiron either, but each to their own like.

Yeah, I don't think the lad shirks. If anything he is open for the ball constantly - I get far more frustrated with his dawdling on the ball than owt else

Isak won’t be off this summer - and when (if) he does go, Arsenal and Spurs won’t be in the picture

Yep - there is no argument that certainly before WWII, Sunderland were one of the biggest clubs in England

Incredible to think that their most recent spell under the much-loathed Ellis Short was their second-longest unbroken term in the top flight - ten seasons

In the top division: Newcastle - 34 out of the last 40 Sunderland - 17 out of the last 40