Rayvin

And that representation just so happens to very closely resemble Keown That's awesome. Kudos to the artist.

Has that been photoshopped to look like him, or is this just the truth of the matter It really does look like him!

Quite possibly. But at the end of the day, if he has another good season he'll be picked up by someone bigger. Still curious as to why the Liverpool thing didn't come off for him...

Holy hell... that's a staggering statement. If that's a window into the mind of your average Israeli though, then where does that leave us? Is this guy just a nutjob? I doubt he's alone.

Rough translation: We've asked him lots of times and he said no, so we're going to say no in an attempt to make it look like we're in control, unless he says yes, and then we'll sign him immediately.

Agreed, I'd probably make the same call. At the end of the day, you're in a better position than you were.

FFS I keep telling all of you: a loan deal seems perfect then - limits exposure like the De Jong one. Just hope that we have a buy clause in there in case he turns out to be a formidable player. This forum, man...

everyone's a wise ass...

Do you reckon that's tantamount to some wires being crossed, or just that Ferreyra is bigger news as a firm deal?

Where did you get the info from though, J69? I had a quick scout and couldn't see anything online about us agreeing a fee...

I thought the general consensus was that Williamson wasn't too bad last year? That said, we were comparing him to Taylor for the most part. I can sort of see why Pardew doesn't think it's a priority area though, given that we have two defenders in each position - our best bet is that one of the others moves on, but given Colo will likely be the first of the four to move on, that means we'll end up replacing his side of things, rather than the Taylor/Willo side.

From what I gather, MI6 spend a considerable amount of time on data analysis nowadays. Moreover, if you've tapped a spy, isn't it more beneficial to let them stay that way, feeding them false information and limiting the damage they can do? Otherwise the 'enemy' will just set up a new one that you have to catch. Also, they hire based on linguistic talents as well, not just ex-public school. They appeared at careers fairs when I was at uni for Chinese language speakers. They didn't appreciate my anti-establishment thinking though, and I was promptly told that Tories tend to be better for this sort of role...

Sorry... I just read Fish's post, I must have missed yours. Great minds and all that..

In further news, that ceasefire has broken down again, 2 hours in, because an Israeli soldier has been kidnapped. Back to senseless slaughter we go...

Really helpful post, thanks

Loan deal seems perfect then - limits exposure like the De Jong one. Just hope that we have a buy clause in there in case he turns out to be a formidable player.

That being the case, Israel is acting atrociously. Did they specify reasons for rejecting it? I suppose it's the border opening one.

Good phrasing

Agreed...doesn't seem like we're gonna get that CB though...

That's what I don't get. This isn't going to increase his value, it's going to end up in him leaving for free or going for pennies. I suppose we'll see when the season kicks off what happens. If he's brought back into the first team then we'll know that they just wanted to move him on. If he isn't, it must have been something else. Seems a crying shame though given how good our team could be, that we're not prepared to make this work. That said, I wonder if the key issue is the problems in the dressing room. It might make bringing him back into the fold at this point a challenge.

In the interests of advancing this discussion: http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Evidence_for_the_Exodus First line states that mainstream archaeology and history claim it never happened and is entirely fictional. Steve, I would just concede the point mate. I know what you're driving at but I think your argument is being lost on this particular point.

Is that just on principle or are we thinking of the Romans here?

They can't just be bad people though, they must be seeing something we're not...

From their own institute of democracy apparently: http://en.idi.org.il/ Not saying it's reliable but it was done by their leading universities...

I'm not saying I don't sympathise, or that I don't feel it's shameful. But at the end of the day, the most humane decision is the one that results in the smallest loss of life. Nationalism, patriotism, history - these things are not worth dying for, they are illusions. I guess I would argue that the people of Gaza are worth more than the state of Palestine. Not that I think for one second that Israel should be acting as it is. If you had to choose between the two here though, you're looking at losing both with a fight, or just one but saving lives. As you say, it's not like they can resist Israel without external intervention.