SonicBoom

Is it me or does JR look a little more lively today. Closing down with menace which is good to see. No idea what Hojbjerg is doing though. Poor game so far and every single time he gets the ball his first thought is sideways.

Surely a release clause triggers tranfer activity. If there are two or more clubs interested then they all fight it out. We are not bound to sell to any club that meets the release figure. I wouldn't be surprised to see Man City make a bid. They do things on a fairly low key basis and they have struggled with Kompany for some time now. VvD would seem to be a great fit for them and they certainly have the money to make it happen if they decide to. I would imagine somewhere 45-50 mill.

A Mirror journalist today said that the "reported 40 million valuation now looks like more of a starting point than a selling price"

Our midfield still seem to receive the ball in space, turn, then their first thought is sideways wide. Surely just sometimes they could drive forward, draw people toward the ball then slip it wide. This obsession with possession just allows the opposition to organise and mark our forwards.

If you're under the cosh for 90 minutes it doesn't matter who's up front. Plus if kat is thinking of selling then I doubt she'll want to spend big on a January striker.

Two problems with the Chinese bid that I can see. Someone mentioned earlier that Saints need big money to advance. This lot don't seem to have big money. In fact they have less than Kat and we would be their biggest asset. With Kat we were one of the smallest. Secondly from what I've read it's been more about what we could do for them in terms of profile etc rather than what they could do for us.

It's a fair point. We realise the need for squad rotation but we forget the effect on players. Some players definitely benefit from regular football and find it harder to switch it on and off at will when they get their turn.

Baggytrousers seems to have covered it perfectly. I would reiterate that "the club" isn't some magical entity that runs perfectly whereas other clubs don't. We have made the progress we have due to the people running the club. Kat, Les, Ralph, Gareth etc, plus the various management teams over the last 8 years. If someone else buys us will they keep the same people? If not then we are starting from scratch again unless they adopt exactly the same strategy.

I agree he probably can complete the 90 but doesn't as to be fair to him he probably covers a lot of ground and why not keep that position fresh if we have the opportunity. I like him he's neat and tidy but he just doesn't influence the game enough for me. I also think that any team should have some sort of goal threat from centre midfield and we have been very light there for several years. Hojbjerg, Clasie and Romeu barely seem to have a goal between them and Davis is little better in that department. I often wonder if this is why we seem to pass sideways a lot when in the opposition half. They simply don't want the ball near the opposition goal.

His missus is lovely and not the typical wag. I believe she worked in a shop in Manchester when they first went there.

Well we aren't going to sell for 40 million and buy another CB for 40 million are we? But we might buy two CB's for 15 mill each which gradually raises the level of the squad which is what we've done so well. I cant see Jose leaving now though. United never actually made a serious offer. I think he's being rested in these early EL games purely down to his age and protecting him.

VvD is exceptionally good as well as still being yet to enter his peak years for a centre back. However defenders rarely if ever attract the same money as forwards so I cant see 50 million or above. I also think we are in a strong position as he has a long contract although there's no doubt in my mind the club would have agreed caveats for him depending on who comes in for him or what they offer. It's all good. If he goes we would get a substantial fee to reinvest. If he stays then great. Let's just enjoy him whilst he's here.

We're just so wasteful when we have good possession in their half. We've had lots of good situations and not made much of any of them.

We do seem to be sitting off which must be the tactic. Does seem very risky though to allow City to dominate the ball under no pressure. They are more than good enough to make chances.

Atmosphere is pathetic. These big stadiums are nearly always morgues.

Well to be fair you can read this a couple of ways..... "In the boardroom, a power struggle had developed between Katharina Liebherr and chairman Nicola Cortese - the trusted consigliere to the deceased former owner who had quickly endeared himself to the St Mary's crowd." It reads like Cortese is the subject of the sentence.

It's alright making him stay but it backfires. West Brom lost the transfer fee but more importantly they ended up with a demotivated player for the last 18 months. Even when fit they benched him a lot. I think this was all mishandled by both sides and neither have benefitted. Shows we were lucky that our players at least buckled down and tried which is a credit to them.

I always think it's amazing that other fans have a go at the Northam for chanting boring repetitive songs. Maybe that's true but no one else seems to do anything about it and let's face it, if it wasnt for the northam the majority of our games would be watched in stony silence.

So if the old bill park a car on the street where car thieves operate, then stake it out and catch someone trying to nick it - the police are at fault for encouraging crime?

I guess you can technically do this stuff - but not if you are England manager FFS. What was he thinking?

What the hell is that big empty "shelf" thing running around the ground? Is it just empty space ?

Press reported the following day that JR had a slight groin tear so this would make sense.

Different game nowdays. If you are good you tend to go to a bigger job quickly. If you are ****e you tend to end up on Sky as an expert pundit.

All Man U fans I have ever met are swaggering, pompous, self important, arrogant, myopic, ignorant and self obsessed. I particularly hate that "you've only come to see United" song which sums up their attitude. However this post seems to be from a decent fan of not only united, but one that can see the wider picture and has a genuine love of the game itself. I don't know what to think. I'm going to have to go and lie down and re-evaluate everything I thought I knew about the world.

And of course don't forget the honourable Nathan Dyer - stealing from handbags in a night club wasn't it?