The Fish

Nah, fuck ‘em.

... well I suppose they could be fucked now. :scratchchin:

Yep, and Arsenal, especially when Wenger leaves.

I don't feel very safe, I feel very attacked Just because my honestly held opinion isn't way out there, doesn't make it any less valid or any less honestly held. I could be stating we're definitely not getting taken over, as HF is on twitter, but I'm not. I just look at the lay of the Premier LEague landscape and realistically, the best we can hope for is joining that group of teams outside the elite. Doesn't mean that's it forever. We could possibly become even better than that with some shrewd recruitment, some luck and some bad things happening at other clubs. But right now, where we are, is so far from where they are that we cannot compete. I like words. I don't use words to look smart, I just like words. I have a favourite word, it's sesquipedalian. A long, complicated word to describe a long complicated word and to describe someone who is fond of long, complicated words. That's not because I want to seem clever, it's because I like the word.

Happy Face did some back of a fag packet maths and worked out we could spend something like £400m over the next couple of windows. Dunno how accurate that is and where he got the figures, but what kind of side would £400m actually turn us into? Would it make us a title challenger? doubtful. When Man City, Chelsea, Man Utd could all spend £100m in 1 window to keep the distance vast.

Two conversations I think. Ewerk was asking how FFP rules would impact us. Must football supporters have a limited vocabulary? Howay then Quiff, if you're honest, are my positions (no Abramovic/Mansour style evolution for us I'm afraid & Sunderland should survive) wildly unreasonable?

I don't think my choice of words is anything but a choice of words. You seem awfully upset by it all though, so, might I suggest popping me on ignore? When I see something that annoys me on television, I turn over, when I hear a song I don't like I change station, why let it bother you? I hate to break it to you, but you're just some random angry kid on the internet, I'm not changing how I type because you've been upset by it.

Which comments? That I'm trying to somehow curry favour on the Sunderland board by not getting carried away about our potential new owners? It's close but I think I get more abuse on there for my fairly middle of the road views than I do here.

I see them spending enough to stay up, even though their financial position is poor, I still think they've more money than Barnsley, Burton, Bolton etc. If they don't bring anyone in, lose Grabban and sell Kone/Ndong, then of course they'll go down.

Dave sorry him use big words. Dave use Quiff words now. Tedious waste of cocksnot

It's just bizarre behaviour, and not unlike Stevie's carry on if you ask me. I honestly think people see the poster and react to that before they read what I've actually said. e.g. is it more or less likely that we're going to be turned into a footballing behemoth by some megarich owner? Is it entirely unreasonable to suggest that Sunderland should have enough about them to survive this season?

Do other Premier League clubs flout the FFP rules? I can't imagine the various arsehole who own clubs being bothered about slaps on the wrists if it meant their club could compete?

Getting shot of Kone and Ndong and replacing them with commited grafters won't propel them up to midtable or anything, but it may well be enough to keep them up. And frankly, if they don't spend a fair amount, it's a tacit resignation to relegation. As bad as Moyes' declaration early doors last season.

You're not a vocab charlatan, that's for sure. You are an extremely odd little man though. Following me round the internet trying to make out that I'm being wildly unreasonable, when really I'm being quite sensible with both my opinions on the potential new owners and Sunderland's chances of survival this season. Why don't you make another strawman, that seems to make you happy?

We are only allowed to spend c£5m more than we earn in a rolling 3yr period, but if we've an owner who can cover it we can make losses of £35m. We took a hit in our relegation season so that will impact what we earned in that 3yr period.

It stands for Financial Fair Play. Do you need someone to explain it to you?

Even if they shift Kone and Ndong etc.?

Who's he going to replace though?

You can't be this dense?

Have I fuck, you little tinker. I've said that given the state of the league now, the kinds of sums we'd need to spend to compete will mean falling foul of FFP. £30m is buttons by comparison. And also I gave £20-30m because someone demanded a figure, so I plucked one from the air based on player sales. But don't let, y'know, what I actually said deter you from your odd campaign.

Do you think they won't spend to survive?

It might be, but it might be someone like the owners of Leicester, or Southampton. They will want Benitez and Benitez will want to build a team that can climb the league quickly, I'm sure the new owners will back him as best they can. There's a lot of value to be had in turning Newcastle United into a global brand. The takeover of Man City contributed to the very rules that will prevent similar megarich owners pumping £1bn into the playing staff of a club. Keep on trucking you big dafty

I suppose, but to fill the Home Grown quota, they don't need to be yet. I can't imagine Barkley will be commanding a starting place immediately, and will be introduced slowly. Just like a young Chelsea player could.

Didn't mean it was his M.O. just that he probably thought that what he had would be sufficient to stay in the 2nd tier while he sorts out a buyer for the club.

Well, for a litany of reasons the likelihood of being taken over by a megarish oil state looking to make us a play thing is slim to none. That leaves wealthy investors who're mere mortals by comparison, which means we likely won't be spending £1bn to catch up with the likes of Chelsea, Man City, Man Utd, etc. If that's true we won't be bullying our way into the title chase, which leaves that group I mention, or midtable mediocrity. Am I wrong?