The Fish

Guest "No wine for me thanks I'm pregnant" Gemmill "What?! Another one of you? For fucks sake, I'm outta here, see ya later losers!"

Everyone was dogshit against Blackburn, harsh to single out Mitrovic. He has missed a few, but he's obviously still a work in progress, I think people forget just how young he is. The shit with Ritchie was silly, but to be honest I like to see strikers hungry to score goals. When we twatted Shef Wed, Paul Robinson won a penalty, I think we were already 5-0 up at the time and Shearer took the ball off him to score his 4th (?). Also, after that he continued to work hard and got his hattrick, so I don't see the harm. The rotation thing is fine, but as I've said, Gayle is in unbelievable form, 85minutes per goal is brilliant, undroppable, form. He's also held back by playing in a position that doesn't lend itself to rotation as much as, say, the wings or the centre midfield. If Mitrovic was a powerful attacking midfielder he may have been getting more of a shot. As it is, he's a big centre forward that feeds off crosses and long balls. Two routes that we're not currently using, probably because most Championship clubs have big centre halves that can gobble them up all day every day. I'm not bothered about Rafa picking Gayle ahead of him, it makes sense, and Rafa knows a fuck load more than me about football. I'm bothered about fans writing off a 22yr old in only his second season in the country. Especially when he's scoring and creating assists when he does get his opportunity and especially when there are other headcases in the side whose on field idiocy passes without comment because they're in form. Shelvey is a fucking liability (not talking about the current charge), but because he's arguably the best centre midfielder in the league, nobody calls him on it. When we equalised against Norwich, the first thing he did was to run past the norwich player calling for offside and celebrate in his face, a la Keown & Nistelrooy. In untangling himself from Lansbury in the way he did, he made the referee (or his assistant) make a decision. He's left the boot in plenty of times and already has 4 yellows.

He's done a bit, but he's got 4 daughters and obviously that surely limits where you go and what you do. More, I'm guessing, because of the logistics of travelling with 5 people of varying ages, doesn't really make sense to go to Peru with that lot in tow. Last time I spoke to him, he was taking his wife off on a big holiday. But to be honest, he's a Yorkshire lad who's happier in the pub with his mates than spending a fortune just so he can say that he has. Might seem a waste, but all his daughters have their head screwed on right and while they might have got a new Golf for their 18th instead of a bottle of Cava, they know the value of money.

Happy Birthday mate

He's only played 443 minutes this season, overwhelmingly from the bench. Only Grant Hanley in what can be considered the 1st team squad has played fewer minutes. He's scored 3, and got 2 assists in those brief appearances. That's a goal every 147.66 and an assist every 221.5. That says to me, there's a good player in there who because of circumstances (Gayle's form and the system) and doubts over his discipline isn't getting a shot. For comparison Shelvey 292 Min per Assist Ritche 271.33 Min per Assist Gayle 85.53 Min per Goal Perez 327 Min per Goal* Gouffran 348.75 Min per Goal I get that in this system and in this form, Gayle has to start, but people are genuinely wanting shot of him if we get what we paid for him. He has as many goals and assists as Perez, in less than half the time on the pitch. Madness iyam.

Uni mate of mine's dad inherited half of the family business but had no interest/acumen for it so sold his half to his brother for millions. Since then he bought a couple of restaurants and employed people to run them, to keep some kind of reliable income. He's worked in their kitchen, he's worked as a taxi-driver, a baggage handler in the Isle of Mann airport and now is self employed as a driving instructor. He just likes to keep busy and enjoys putting in a days graft. I wouldn't fancy that, but I'd definitely have a business to keep me busy.

See, Global Warming is a myth!

Come on HF, play fair.

Haven't seen that, awesomesauce. HWANEETOH Seems to be a backlash against Mitrovic on twitter which, for me, is a bit harsh for a young lad who scored last season, who's scored on his few opportunities this season and who clearly tries hard whenever he's in the shirt. Gayle deserves to start because he's banging them in, and he suits Rafa's current setup well. To write off a young lad is a bit fucking silly iyam. Looks like we've been linked with a loan deal for Ruben Loftus-Cheek http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/the-next-michael-ballack-story-12351647

Juanito, an U18s Spanish striker.

Robert Snodgrass has turned down a contract with Hull. Worth a bid in January? Fits the bill for Rafa's Newcastle in terms of endeavour and ability, too good for the Championship, probably good enough for the Premier League, addresses the weaknesses in the wide position and can play through the centre too.

You get that from intercepted communications from the bases on Mars' moons?

That 50yr old crowing about being in the top flight for 10yrs in a row. Completely ignoring that, in only 5 of their 15 seasons in the Premier League have they managed more than 40pts. Over the last 9 full seasons they've accrued 365pts from a possible 1026. Average of 40.5 a season. That's fucking terrible. We've only managed less than 40pts in 3 seasons out of our 22. Over the last 9 full seasons we've accrued 397 from 1026. Average of 44 per season.

Aye, my Dad certainly didn't have that, he's probably busier now. He should have just taken up golf, to be honest.

It would be typically Sunderland to have some kind of disastrous off-field clusterfuck happen just in time to give them the siege mentality needed to claw their way to 17th (and safety) on 28pts.

You're not far off

On a similar vein

/thread

So we're just going to let this slide? Whoopsies? Of the few people I know who are likely going to be in a position to retire early, they're all the kind of people who would go fucking mental if one day they just stopped. My Dad's one of them, the first year or so of his retirement was awful for him. So he ended up filling his life with stuff like the charity, occasionally doing some consultancy, driving my mam around the country so they can sit doing nothing somewhere other than home. A mate of mine could be in a position to retire by 40, but honestly, he'd lose his mind if his days weren't 7 o'clock starts packed through the day and he didn't "just need to answer this email" at 10:30 at night.

It's a similar siege mentality, one that Mourinho has failed to really perfect again.

That implies they're there by design, which they're definitely not. What it says to me, is that their squad is more often than not made up of hard working but limited players who, when the chips are down, pull together and get themselves into a position that might be enough to survive. Look at the years that they finished around 17th, compare their points tally to those of the relegated sides, sunderland are rarely comfortably clear, there's usually only a couple of points in it, which is as much about the failure of the other teams to perform when it comes to the crunch. Which literally just made me wonder if Leicester's remarkable title win was helped by having limited players pulling together in a fashion not too dissimilar from how they did when they dragged themselves to safety the year before?

I know there'll be a desire to try and be positive, but didn't Reid & Bruce both have them in a much better state?

Was another thing being a fat, opinionated mess?

Throw some leftovers in a tupperware box the night before, reheat it at work; Robert's your mother's brother.