TheBrownBottle

I’ve no doubt it’ll be used on the inevitable two/three trips to play KSA clubs in friendlies, whether it is the second or third kit. We all know who owns the club, this stuff is just the beginning. Our owners refused to sign up to the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights. They aren’t just a bit iffy, they’re one of the most vicious, abusive, and oppressive regimes on earth. The KSA-inspired away kit is the least of it, for me - if we ever become any good, you can expect our star players - in NUFC regalia, which will be more like a livery - to be featured in adverts extolling the virtues of a regime which still tortures and executes people for the ‘crime’ of wanting the right to vote or for being homosexual. I’m expecting more and more of this stuff - the surprise to me is that they’ve scored such an obvious PR OG for so little gain.

I don't ever get the impression that Edwards listens to anyone except the voice in his head Staveley said over a year ago what the spending plans were - 250m over five windows, which is 50m per window, above what the club can bring in for itself. He reports that they've set a budget of 50m + sales, and then scratches his head ... when he was one of the ones who mistakenly thought they would chuck hundreds of millions at the club each window They've told us what their plans are - it isn't exactly a secret

Yep. And after a decade and a half of Ashley, and we're all still here, it is almost as if we don't really have a choice. I didn't choose to be born in Newcastle, but I was. Therefore I didn't get to choose a club ...

Obviously, we've worn green in the past. The colour isn't the issue. It doesn't particularly bother me as such - it just comes across as a blindingly stupid PR own goal, completely obvious opening of an attack line, and shirt sales in KSA are unlikely to drive much extra cash into the club's kitty. The relationship with KSA does make me deeply uncomfortable - but I can't say having a KSA-inspired change strip is something which troubles me greatly

Liverpool have a genuine world-wide following. Man City are super successful but nouveau riche, and a closer comparison. And those are worldwide sales numbers - people on here are talking about selling millions of shirts in KSA alone. Based on those worldwide numbers, the best you’d hope for is a couple of hundred thousands sales in a country with a population as small as KSA. If we sell 200k shirts, we’d get about a million quid profit before tax. A million quid is a million quid, of course.

Even we sell a million shirts in Saudi at £60 a pop (very ambitious given a population of 34m), if the Castore deal is similar to most deals football clubs sign with kit makers, we’d take in c.£5m (before tax) Which would almost cover Chris Wood’s salary for next season, in fairness edit: for context, Man City sold 1m shirts worldwide last year

He’s ten Hag’s Dutch-English interpreter. Like Mourinho was for Robson in Portugal

My favourite was in a FourFourTwo interview yonks ago, when he was asked what he’d likely have been if he wasn’t a footballer. ‘A model, because I’m really interested in fashion’. There is a man completely lacking in self awareness. Peter Crouch’s answer to the question of what he’d have been if he wasn’t a footballer? ‘A virgin’. There is a man with self awareness …

Coutinho hasn’t played consistently well for years now. He hasn’t pulled up any trees at Villa either. All credit to the bloke for wanting to play rather than just coining it for Barca B - but I’m not convinced it’s the coup that some want it to be. If the lad was even close to where he was, he’s not having to take 70% paycuts to join mid table sides.

Yeah, he’s very easy to listen to - a quality shared by all my favourite NUFC managers. Being a competent communicator helps the man in that position for me. Keegan, Robson, Hughton, Benitez, Howe - I was always happy to hear them talk.

I haven’t bought tf since it came back in print - does it still claim to be a ‘left-leaning’ fanzine? Or did that FT feature bring any lip service to that notion to an end?

That’s a good point, like. Still, if the club sign it off, it would be an unusually cack-handed bit of PR - which they’ve been pretty good at so far.

He’d be a decent signing for the Smoggies imho - he’s not quite PL class, but he’s a very good second tier keeper

I'll generally try avoid the Saudi stuff re Newcastle, as many get themselves wound up by those who have questions re the whole thing, though 'people not caring what happens over there' is quite a value judgement (as a member of Amnesty I can assure that some of us actually do give a shit) - but do you actually think that you need Christianity / religion to form the basis for morality? That's an odd point of view.

I'm assuming for the lap of honour at the end. Not everyone stays, of course - but it would be great if there's a proper display at the end. Really looking forward to WF's efforts vs Arsenal

I trust the gaffer will be having a glass tonight now the maths are in - and then back to thinking about the Arsenal game as soon as he’s necked it. Irrespective of money spent, this club was destined for the drop before he came in. We all know that - bollocks to know-nowt pundits. Whatever happens from here on in, it’ll always be remembered that it was built upon his achievement this season. And I’m also over the moon to write that, if what is coming over the next few years happens as we think it does, we’ll get to bore future generations of NUFC supporters about what it was like to be worried about relegation. Can’t wait - I’m a naturally cantankerous bastard at the best of times. Cheers!

It’s a type of weighted statistical analysis to determine which country’s teams have performed best in a season in terms of European competition. They do it for world rankings too. So each team gets points for wins, getting to qf, sf, final, winning the trophy etc.

I didn’t say he was shite, I just don’t think he was the world’s greatest player at that time. And by turning up, I don’t mean in tournaments - I mean in decisive matches. Zidane’s greatest moments came in finals. As I said, I’m expecting to be in a minority of one. I’ll never understand people chucking out ad hominems because someone has a different view on a footballer.

Mildly irritated that the Castore deal hasn’t been ripped up and a more lucrative one agreed in its place. I had thought the idea was to increase commercial revenues.

Tbf, we were the first team to finish 2nd and qualify without winning it. And the first to finish 4th and qualify without winning it. Could be a hat trick … … yeah, unlikely. Never know though.

Remember when he was better than Rafa because of Wales at the Euros? I do, but they don't, funnily enough

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4fzeK3SQa4

I love the fact that I'm shaking my head at every one except the one I mentioned - eye of the beholder and all that

I'm probably going to attract some right pelters here - and it isn't the intent - but Ronaldinho firmly sits in that 'good player but not great' for me. Flat-track bully who never grabbed hold of any 'big' games that I saw. Genuinely world class players do - Maradona, Messi, Zidane, C Ronaldo, real Ronaldo, van Basten etc etc - had some of their best games in the biggest matches. I'd second some of the bigger names listed here *cough Totti cough* but I think I've likely expressed an unpopular enough one!

They'll go up, but their presence in the Third Division has provided non-stop laughter for me. Fuck knows why Netflix paid Chappelle and Gervais so much for some nondescript stand-up; Sunderland Til I Die is still the funniest thing I've seen on telly for years. Better than its prequel, Premier Passions, though to be fair watching Peter Reid swear at shite sunderland players will always be entertaining. Always worth remembering that being in the Second Division still represents failure, not success - and given the parlous state of their finances, relegation will remain their most likely exit route from that division. Fulham's wage bill alone is like six times sunderland's turnover ...