Ken

Nee problem with him reading websites imo. If he starts buying players/managing the team based on what he reads though... unless it's something I've suggested obviously. PS. Keegan, get rid of Shola, Smith, Geremi and Carr would ya, there's a good fellow. Buy adriano, ronaldo (brazilian) and quaresma aswel. This is the reason why I hope there isn't any ounce of truth behind the story...

I'm just in a pedant mood. Normally I couldn't care less, and would just read between the lines. It's all good...if we don't end up signing this mercenary.

Have we signed anyone yet??? If not then why not?

the acutal definition of a mercenary can only applied to someone who takes part in an armed conflict so no it isn't Erm no, not necessarily my friend. It can mean; "primarily concerned with money or other reward." or "money-grabbing and greedy".

Chimbonda's a peasant. He wanted out of Tottenham in the last off-season and since he didn't get what he wanted, he sulked and played utter shithouse. We've got Habib Beye who is just as good if not better. It doesn't make sense at all. Not the priority area to fix up now is it?

I agree. A more open style of play should help Martins out. This plus Keegan's man-management skills should get the best out of him and his brittle confidence.

soz mate its from the Sun That's the only thing that is keeping me from hyperventilating right now about this...

£90k a week is a joke. This plus the Chimbonda story this morning is shit news. It borders on the fucking ridiculous. Hope it's all bollocks.

As has been said I don't think you can compare the two incidents. The stoush between Dyer and Bowyer was clear and obvious and was seen clearly by all the cameras at the ground on the day. The Bendtner/Adebayor one you couldn't see on camera clearly and that's why Adebayor got off without any charges laid.

I'd bee happy with Pandev and Modric. Both offer skill and both play in postions we clearly lack in at the moment. If we got Modric in especially, than that would be a massive gain as he's been linked with many top clubs. Can't see it happening but with Keegan anything can happen. Woodgate I'm not terribly excited by, but if we got rid of the donkey in exchange for Woodgate and a bit of cash, then that would be pretty good.

I wouldn't be excited at all if he came back. The guy has an atrocious injury record, and is still afflicted by the same injuries which has plagued his career. OK, he's been available for more games since his move to the smoggies, but he's still only been available for a third of all fixtures per season. He's lost his pace and lost his place in the starting lineup of a mediocre side. He still carries on like a fool in his own time by the sounds of things too. In terms of rating him comparable to our current centrebacks he's probably better than Rozenhal, Taylor and Cacapa but is that any reason to bring him back to the club?..knowing he'll be missing many games here and there?..I don't think so!

Right! Seriously though, it's good to see them in a bit of trouble. Takes the limelight off us for a while...until we sign Ronaldinho, Berbatov and co

Oh please let this be true.

Beckham will never come. This is just a ploy from cheap tabloids to read there bollocks. Why would he come if he and his missus are loving life in la la land. Just plain wishful thinking...

Shola is shite. What frustrates me is that he'll be given another chance to prove to us all that he is a fucking donkey. I wanted to see the back of this waster the second it became the 1st of January. Will now have to wait until the summer. Smith isn't great, but is better than Shola. He's a good striker to play a 4-5-1 away from home. He tackles the shit out of defenders and that's about all he does really. At least he doesn't run into his own team mates. Not the first time I've seen Shola barge into one of his own before .

1) Keegan didn't run away the first time, well not from us. It's a media beat up. He left because the club was going to become a plc. 2) He's recharged his batteries. Being away from the game would have done him good, gave him time to assess what happened while he was in charge of England, because after that he lost his passion and burning desire. 3) He might be romantic, but he's also realistic I think. It's a huge task ahead of him but many others have failed miserably. He knows what we want and he'll do his best to deliver it, with his way. 4) Football has changed, but that doesn't mean he can't adapt. He's older and much wiser. Learnt from his mistakes with England. He hadn't watched a game live in 3 years but so what! He's got a television and watched it. He's still got contacts in the game to let him in on what's been going on. I don't see that as an issue at all imo. 5) At the moment they are. Other teams are setup for success. We have to start from the bottom here. But Keegan's aura and self-belief will attract good players. I'm hoping for top 6 next season. I think David Moyes has done a smashing job at Everton given the time and patience. I think Keegan can turn us around. The fickle fans will stay off his back at least and he'll be allowed to build a decent team in the summer, and hopefully he stays the whole of the three seasons and builds a team that can challenge for the top 4.

You're joking right? Nobody with any common sense would say something like that and be serious...surely.

Interesting observation considering the post count of those involved. The point I was making is that the attraction of N-O seems to me to be: for mods/admin: pompous omnipotence, with the ability to go around dishing out arbitrary punishments for regular posters: bitching about mods/admins, but secretly actually loving it as it gives them the basic reference point for all their humour Basically, the entire humour seems to be in ridiculing the mods/admins, but what I don't understand is where's the fun in that, it's like shooting fish in a barrell as the mods are just kids. Bit embarrassing tbh. Worse though they then come over here making out like theyre above it all whereas it's clear that NSG etc have got as inflated opinions of themselves as the mods that theyre sending up. In all seriousness, when TT and N-O were merged it was hideous, and it was because the mods/admins/HTT's henchmen were cunts. The reaction of TT however was to just dissociate itself from that carry on because, although you could quite easily make the new set up look stupid, there was no enjoyment in it as they were in all honesty a bunch of kids. It's boring. The difference with NSG etc (as evidenced in this thread) is that this is actually the stuff they thrive off. They don't ever seem to tire of it and glory in how ridiculous their various bans have been. Which I don't doubt, but why would I fucking care? The site is a joke, so yes, the bans are going to be ridiculous. It doesnt need 20 pages for us to understand that, we understand it immediately because it's the place we fucked off from. It sounds like an overreaction, but that's the worry for me. The two boards are so very different because the sense of humour is so different. I just don't want this place going like N-O. It's fucking mind-numbing. Isn't that an understatement. There's a bit of banter in what he says but the fella actually thinks highly of himself with his articles on the reserves and what not. To me it is a comedy club over there on NO. All about the politics and not enough about the football. Rubbish of a site and I don't visit and read any of it over there. This thread is nothing but a bit of a chuckle though and nothing more than that in my time of boredom...

You advocate allowing an ex manager to select transfer targets ahead of your current manager do you ? Not at all mate. The manager in charge should have first and last right of refusal by all means. But if you had a horse stable and were alerted to an awesome young thoroughbred with the parenting of former champions but a stablemate of it tells you his hind legs are fucked and won't mature properly, do you go out and buy it regardless and take a punt? You'd obviously have reservations about it and I personally would not buy it. Jose Mourinho saw Geremi in training for years and knew that he'd never replicate what he did earlier in his career. Sam Allardyce may have received the information...or maybe he didn't, but he took a punt in an attempt to revitalise what was a reserves career with his sports science approach and because he was on the cheap with great experience. So far that punt has not worked out though as he looks like he plays in slow motion. You win some and you lose some in the transfer market.

I wouldn't mind seeing Gerard Houllier becoming our technical director or director of football and Didier Deschamps as our manager. That would be my dream ticket.

Where's that from? Shields Gazette. Miles Starforth SIR Bobby Robson says he tried to warn Newcastle United off signing Geremi. Robson claims Jose Mourinho - then manager of Geremi's club Chelsea - told him the 29-year-old Cameroon international's best days were behind him last summer. He says he informed his old club - only for Sam Allardyce to sign Geremi AND make him captain. But after a disappointing start to his Newcastle career, Allardyce stripped Geremi of the captaincy last month and handed the armband to Alan Smith. Sir Bobby, writing in his Mail on Sunday column, said: "Jose Mourinho told me last season that Geremi's legs had effectively gone. "'Mister, he plays like a 40-year-old. He can not run any more. He will not play for me in important matches again,' was Jose's typically forthright response. "Naturally, I was alarmed to read that Newcastle wanted to sign Geremi. "I passed on my information to someone at the club (before Mike Ashley took over), but Geremi still ended up signing. In fact, Sam made him captain."

Excellent piece tbh. My sentiments exactly. Not trying to be a pedant here, but he could have gone on about the fact FS liked playing DoF as well. Bringing in Luque and Owen. Could also have mentioned Allardyce signing up Geremi when in fact Jose Mourinho told Bobby Robson that he had lost his legs and played like a 40 year old and that he would never play for Chelsea in important games under him again. Bobby told someone inside the club not to bring him in to Newcastle, but Allardyce did...and made him captain also. I couldn't help but laugh when I read this yesterday...but in a cynical way.

The football Liverpool played under Houllier was some of the most turgid, in the last forty years at Anfield. Yes he won three trophies, fluked a UEFA against a tiny Spanish club, fluked the League Cup against Man Utd reserves, and after being utterly battered for 80 mins against Arsenal, fluked the FA Cup. Not only that, but he brought in some real dodgy players. Wasted a lot of money imo. Apart from that he's got a good footballing brain, but that doesn't mean he'll be a success, regardless of the trophies he got Liverpool.

Why what does he bring which is so good? He's built up a well balanced squad at Blackburn on a budget smaller than ours and has probably taken them as far as he possibly can with it. He likes to play the conventional 4-4-2 system. He is young with plenty to prove. He has not been involved in any bungles. He knows the transfer system, he has been praised by good players on his tactics, and he's better than anyone else we could possibly get especially now that other managers know Ashley offered £5m a year to a washed up 60 year old. Does he not have a kick them attitude just like Sam? Let's look at our options now. Hughes, Bruce, Jol, McClaren or Houllier. Shit, give me Hughes any day of the week. He likes his teams to play on the deck, and he likes his teams to have a bit of steal about them. For all his deficiencies he has the least compared to the others I've mentioned.

Mark Hughes is who I think will get the job...if he wants it. If he turns us down it'll be Martin Jol.