TheBrownBottle

Top half and a cup run for me, everything beyond that is a bonus. I’m happy to consider the QF of the LC a cup run - beat Leicester and make the SF and it unarguably is. Beat Leeds on NYE and we’re pretty much safe - so I reckon top half is almost nailed on. The second half of the season is just going to be sheer bliss for me, irrespective of what happens. Top four is possible, but I won’t be disappointed in any way if it doesn’t happen.

Keegan and Evans would have had more games too, due to both the WC being played mid-season and 93/94 and 94/95 being 42 game seasons.

Possibly, though I’m going to say not just yet. Looks inevitable he will be though. If this lad is with us for a while it’s hard not to imagine that he’ll be in everyone’s all time XI

They’ve not been picking up points vs sides at the bottom so far - though the English top flight increasingly feels like Italy used, where mid table teams effectively have their bellies tickled once safety is secured. Also they do play Man City again

Their love of ‘Quinny’ is my favourite. The embodiment of the mediocre ‘big man up front’ trope, well past his (limited) prime when he rocked up to the SOS. His ability to head down long balls granted him legendary status. It’s genuinely hard to imagine a 30-odd year old Quinn making our top 40 forwards in my lifetime had he signed for us (unlikely, given that he’d have had to get past Shearer, Ferdinand, Asprilla, Beardsley, Kitson and Huckerby when he signed for the Mackems).

Everton could be adrift after the next six games - they’ve got Liverpool, Man City and Arsenal, can’t see them getting much there. Plus an excellent Brighton side. They also play Southampton and West Ham, which are six pointers. They looked fucked to me - though no doubt they’ll sack Fat Frank during that run in the hope of a new manager bounce.

Mrs BB holds a very different opinion after her time as a barmaid in Ponteland.

Completely agree - tackling is usually the result of poor positioning, and Woodgate was the absolute master of positioning. I once read about crocodiles being able to calculate optimum intercept routes between a target and its direction of travel, and Woodgate had that - he seemed to stroll to the ball, so good was his reading of the game

Already up there with Woodgate for me. As composed a centre half as I’ve ever seen.

Can’t get enough of watching this side. They just SWARM other teams. Work their bastard socks off, with quality in there too. We might go on to win loads and loads of trophies in the next decade, with a team filled with superstars. But I guarantee you’ll struggle to watch another side as likeable as this one. Every player’s attitude is just first class.

Hahaha get in Joelinton

Yaaaaas Miggy lad

Yes he’s the fucking ice man from the spot

Hate this minute’s applause shite. Minute’s silence is far more meaningful. I’m sure folks would have respected Cohen

Fucking ho’way united

Anyone can get out of that division - sometimes the difference between lower mid table and the playoffs is a short burst of form at the end of the season. Loads of playoff winners finished 6th after a really late run of five or six wins in roughly the same number of games. No argument re the second part of what you said though - that’s all they can hope for. Ever.

He wasn’t very good on the odd occasion he did. I remember being on holiday in Mallorca when he signed - a Spanish barman who was a Real Mallorca supporter was fulsome in his praises before a game me and my mates watched in his pub (Man Utd - got pumped 5-1 or 6-1 - can’t remember exactly). Nice bloke but shit judge of a footballer.

It’s all they’ve got left, the hollowed-out sad cases. Utterly broken.

Me and a mate got the bus back to the station from Elland Road after that match. Used all my Jedi mind powers to stop my mate from saying a word in case we got a hiding. Which sounds dramatic, unless you’ve been to Leeds away.

I’m with Stottie - every player is replaceable. We don’t have the best player in the world in any position - therefore they can be replaced. Even Bruno, who plenty wouldn’t have heard of twelve months ago. This isn’t the same as saying you want them to leave - just that should any player leave, we are now able to replace them and shouldn’t fret about the reasoning like we would have in the past

Difficult but winnable

That’s a great finish mind. He’s a fucking nightmare to deal with

He will be well above our capacity this window I reckon. I've noted that we haven't had much speculation re budgets yet. I like seeing how wrong Luke Edwards can be - anyone seen any made-up budgets yet?

Makes far more sense to me to play one of the big boys at home rather than Wembley. If we are to play one, better to knock them out now and get it out the way

I know YouTube has effectively democratised what we can watch and all that shite - but some of these characters are why TV used to view itself as having social responsibility in terms of who they would allow on. As in checking if they were fucking unbalanced before putting them on. Vox stulti populi