rogerbarton

It's all obvious now - the cloud of Colo's problems have been hanging over the squad for the past few months. He's meant to be the leader and it's had a dreadful knock-on effect. Explains Jonas' drop in form too, like McFaul pointed out. Added to that was Demba Ba's running the show and I'll bet there was one unhappy squad. Ashley really will have to splash the cash big style now if Colo leaves. How on earth things have regressed this far in the space of a few months is incredible. We will now need two top quality centre backs and a top quality striker. I hope Carr has some names lined up - he should do if this has been on the cards. Will Ashley now be prepared to spend a bit more? He's not stupid, he'll know we're in deep shit if we don't replace these two.

He sure is a tasty babe. If he plays from now on we'll finish 9th and win the Europa League I reckon. A midfield with Anita and Cabaye with Jonas back and Marv/Ob and HBA in behind Cisse looks promising enough. What's Hatem's due date?

Is Cabaye confirmed as being fit for this game then?

Bloody brilliant performance from the lads today and that's all I give a shit about right now. Turning point in the season surely.

I think this confirms that the board have no immediate designs on us pushing on for a Champions League spot and the rewards that would reap. They're happy to see us try and replicate last season's success with little advancement but aren't too worried if we don't make it back into Europe. I do feel this would have been an excellent opportunity to have made that extra outlay (often risky) to try and nick a top four slot. We only needed three or four decent players, £20-25m could have really given us a squad capable of challenging with all but the top 2/3. However, we all really knew that wasn't the policy and the policy, despite its obvious benefits, has left us threadbare since it was introduced. We're going to need a lot of luck again this season!

Well if we beat them we should be buoyed for a great run in the cup. If we lose, we're out of one competition and have less games to play with this threadbare squad!! Fergie will put put an extremely weak team so it's not a foregone conclusion.

James Milner this time, my friends

No idea why people are getting wound up over these ITKs. Just don't follow them! I've had no problem avoiding the twonks and unfollowed Colyn after about two weeks last summer when it was clear he's an absolute psychopath. Genuinely bemuses me he still has thousands of followers...

Santon's looked a little off in the opening two games, perhaps owing to the nature of the opposition - though I remember some of his trademark marauding runs at the end of last season came in some of the 'harder' games. We know there are question marks defensively and I fully expect it'll take at least til the end of this season before we begin to see what he's really capable, but he has lost the ball in a number of attacking positions in the first couple of games too. Looking forward to seeing him get back up to speed as that will make a difference.

I agree with the point that we don't actually have the central midfielders for 4-4-2. Cabaye isn't one to dominate the game in the middle, he's someone who uses the ball well and can pick out a killer pass given space. Tiote, as we all know, is essentially a destroyer who offers little attacking threat. And, yes, add to that the fact that Jonas hasn't got a brilliant cross on him and Ben Arfa is restricted on the right of a 4-4-2 - I think both of them are actually better suited to their role in the 4-3-3 setup (and Cabaye certainly is). 4-4-2 certainly worked well at times last season (though mostly in the first half of the season with a different XI to what we have now) but since Ben Arfa and Cisse have been in the side we haven't ever played as fluidly with 4-4-2 as 4-3-3. Yes, we beat Chelski 2-0 and that was an excellent performance, but not a wonderfully fluid one, it was owed a great deal to a solid defensive performance and two peaches from Cisse.

Would like to see Carroll come back. I think we need the alternative option that he provides up top and I know Pards likes to mix things up from time to time. Still think Debuchy, from the little I've seen of him, is exactly the type of player we need at right back - getting forward into those gaps on the right hand side and whipping in dangerous crosses.

Did make me think yesterday how on earth has there been no hype over Hatem when you look at the players the media have been creaming themselves over. I don't think there's another player in the league who looks so comfortable running with the ball. Only Hazard was anywhere near him on the pitch yesterday. I do think it's a fair point that we should try and utilise him in a more advanced position, he's not the same player on the right of a 4-4-2. I would like to see Pardew experiment with a couple of different systems in coming games, even if it's when we're 3-0 up at home to Villa next week.

Apologies if the point has already been raised, but if Debuchy doesn't sign what do we think about sticking Raylor in the team at right back. We're all aware of his limitations defensively but the quality of our set pieces (corners in particular) have been consistently dreadful. When Raylor came on yesterday we immediately saw two great deliveries that could (and in Cisse's case) should have led to a goal. When we play with the more fluid 4-3-3 we also have a lot of room out on the right, with the full back often coming infield to cover the roaming Ben Arfa, and it doesn't seem to me that Simmo is capable of taking advantage of this. I think Debuchy would be a fantastic addition in this respect but Raylor is capable of putting a good cross in too.

If that's our team we'll be sorted! Still think Raylor deserves a run in the team at right back out of the players we have available. The great thing is that we really do have a lot of options in the midfield, EVEN if the likes of Ben Arfa or Cabaye are injured (albeit that is obviously a big disadvantage for us).

I think we're singing from the same hymn sheet to a certain extent here. I love football and of course there are some players who really do care about professional achievement. That said, who, in any line of work, wouldn't want to succeed? Especially at the pinnacle of the game as your example cites. The question marks arise when the going gets tough and, to me, it often seems like some footballers really couldn't care less. Think back to our relegation season and I have to ask how many players really truly cared. Nicky Butt is about the only one who springs to mind as really displaying commitment on the pitch, though doubtless the likes of Colo and Jonas have done enough since then to make it seem plausible that they were committed to the cause. With regards your point about capping earnings, I think I actually made it clear that by the way of the world as it is I don't think it would necessarily be fair to place a cap on footballers' wages and such a ruling would most probably be easily bypassed in any case. I think the crux of the issue is actually that there are a lot of footballers out there earning vast sums of money who, when it comes down to it, have achieved absolutely nothing and shown very little dedication to their club. Goodness knows I can think of a lot who have played for us over the last 10 or 15 years (actually probably with the exception of only the last three seasons). Here's the key point: the earnings of Hoy, Ennis etc. are in direct correlation to their success. Their income is not the going rate for athletes, even Olympic athletes, it is the result of great success. It is perhaps what they deserve. The Premier League is a very different beast as an extraordinary money machine. There are over 540 players in the Premier League, all earning an amount of money that I'd hazard is astonishing for any of us. How many of them have achieved in the same way as Hoy, Ennis etc? A handful I would suggest. Then devil's advocate would, of course, counter that by the very nature of team sport success cannot be measured in quite the same way as most Olympians but I think my point still stands.

It's a cliche by now but it really is all about money. As Holloway said, the desire, grit and determination for the sake of the love of the game is tainted when they're earning more than the average yearly wage in half a week. It's very rare to see a lot of footballers celebrate sport for sport's sake in the same way as we saw the Olympians do, then again we must remember that the Olympics is the pinnacle of these sportsmen and women's careers and the only time they come under real sustained media scrutiny. The popularity of football in this country has beset it with the evils of money but also wicked media interest that has led to the kind of dreadful PR training that routinely sees the most insipid and dull interviews conducted with most players. I think it is also important to remember that a lot of Olympians came from much more privileged backgrounds than footballers and are therefore much more articulate in how they express themselves. I think we're all aware that money is the problem here but with the backdrop of the capitalist values we are all brought up with, it almost seems unfair to suggest the idea of a wage cap. Certainly if any kind of measure were mooted, there would be a lot of powerful enemies in the way of it. The only other solution would be some kind of limitation placed upon television contracts etc. but considering the vested interests of the key players that is never going to happen. I fear we've gone too far to turn back and it will all end in implosion ultimately.

My thoughts are we'll finish 6th, win the Europa League, win the FA Cup and quarters of the League Cup. Our first XI is capable of beating anyone. (Though we know with a few of them out we're capable of losing to anyone - see Brighton, Stevenage etc.)

McNally is an absolute looney. He's so biased in almost everything he ever says which is totally wrong in his profession.

Brilliant from Campbell Wasn't at the game, no idea what happened, but pre season matches mean fuck all. Take Cisse and Ba and Ben Arfa all out of our team and you're looking a bit toothless up top for me also.

In defence of the people of Liverpool...I've never met a scouser who isn't good natured, generous, genuine and a decent laugh. As a city, like anywhere, it's got some absolute shitholes of course but, as someone else said, when you go to the right parts it's a place that does strike a chord with me and reminds me of Newcastle in many ways. Some of the best people I know are Liverpool fans and although they are sometimes blinkered and tainted by a glorious past, they are still good, honest football fans who know their onions. Absolute stereotypical nonsense that CabayeAye is coming out with - in fact Geordies and Scousers have a lot in common and we should stand together.

I've generously said we'll spend £6-10m cos I'm confident that we won't lose any players and hope we will bring in Debuchy or A.N. Other full back and still hoping for a centre back. Also it seems we're serious about bringing in another striker. If we were to add good players in those three positions we'd be a force to be reckoned with.

Mind you, last time they beat us (only time in about a decade of course) a lot of the mackems I know were just ridiculous. At least with us we know we've got the upper hand and take it in our stride. mackems don't strike me as football fans in the same way that geordies are.

Most of my time in the north-east is spent in Chester-le-Street these days so I know a fair amount of toon fans and mackems. Not really that arsed about them til it comes round to playing them and, of course, I like to see us finish above them. However, I absolutely love the derby coming round twice a year and so would be disappointed if they went down. A lot of my family who live permanently in the area like to see them do well if they're not playing us. My grandad is the only member of my family who really detested everything about the mackems and would immediately take against people if he found out they were sunderland fans.

I remember t I remember trying that run up once and scoring a belter as a nipper. Kept trying it after that to embarrassing results

Interesting though probably not enlightening.