CB Fry

In fairness, in those pictures he does look a bit fuming.

There's some really, really special little guys on this forum. But you are probably my favourite.

Post of the decade.

Whatever happens we're fine until January - we've signed a front line centre back, Yoshi is as good a third-banana CB as a team like us can get in the Prem, and young Jack has a half season behind him in the top flight and is coping very well. Plus we have Bednerak and Gardos if we are suddenly hit by an injury crisis. So if VVD refuses to lift a finger we just can act like he's injured and cope perfectly well. Of course a fit and performing Virgil can take the team up a notch but if we don't have him it's a storm we can weather.

Those days are gone forever, over a long time ago. Oh no. RIP

Well, we've played in four matches and he's featured in two. Maybe if he's applied himself against a Championship team's reserve side he'd be in better contention for the first team, maybe have forced himself into the first eleven that weekend. Top class footballers see their chances and take them.

In summary, Tadic is not playing well so stop selecting him for matches because he's only going to continue to be rubbish. Boufal is also not playing well but please start selecting him for more matches because then he will turn out to be brilliant.

If those two are that bad then it should have been an absolute doddle for Boufal to come in and make a starting position his own, shouldn't it. The fact is, while Redmond and Dusan aren't on top form, they do at least play with a discipline that suits our possession-based game. Boufal playing tends to lead to chaotic play and no more "banging in the goals and creating chances" than the other two.

This does seem like the Gaston defence. Perpetually people saying Gaston never got "a chance" and that he should have just been picked and picked and picked and picked and that in itself would make him perform. Sorry, it doesn't work like that. Boufal lhas his "chance" every day in training to impress the coaching staff and he has his "chance" every time he gets on the pitch for the first team. He's shown some class, in places (Swansea away LY I think he was excellent). He needs to change games when he gets the chance - that's why he gets picked first choice and also why he gets sent on as a sub, to change things. If he's not doing that, he isn't good enough. I am still hopeful he will come good but it ain't about giving him some free run in the team and hoping. The chances are there - it's up to SB to take them.

We can only hope and pray we might sign a "great" player like what WBA and Swansea have one day. Until then it's just an impossible dream.

I just saw that. Brilliant.

They usually do some kind of banter during the evening and I think always do a very specific "that's it, all done, no more news" type tweet if there really is nothing happening. Its interesting they haven't done that but have tweeted about the internationals. Who knows. let's see what happens before the "window" "slams" "shut".

At the start of the window I expected Gallagher to be the Jay Rod replacement, which seemed fine behind Gabbi, Austin and Long for one spot. Once Sam went I fully expected someone else in, and for that player to push Long/Austin down the pecking order. Surprised/disappointed we haven't done that, especially with the start we've made in front of goal. Still, elsewhere we are solid, so we are at very least safe and challenging for eighth again.

I think that's a bit harsh. There was plenty of "Dutch Xavi" hype, and in the weeks or so before we actually signed him there was a reasonable amount of "just get it done" impatient stuff on here - he was linked with Leicester as well at the time. And he was a bona fide Dutch international. Don't believe this is anything like Pied or Cuco.

Cabbage face is one of those good posters who don't post here anymore (and you can see why). Can't remember if he was ever ITK though.

We signed Mane out of absolutely nowhere and it didn't even get announced until the day after the window closed. No rumours, zip. Here's hoping for something similar.

It is part of a full interview rather than some kind of issued statement. It's a nice media trained answer but maybe he said it and maybe that's why it's in the paper? http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/SPORT/15499190._Professional__Cedric_unmoved_by_transfer_speculation/ You seem desperate to unlock layers and layers of hidden meaning from a pretty anodyne by-numbers interview.

We didn't sign any of those players when we went up to the Championship. None of them.

Well, yeah.

INVESTING IN PROVEN QUALITY

By the throat he had 'im, by the throat I'm telling you.

AR-10, I'm hearing whispers we've been linked with a Dutch centre back from Lazio. You been told anything?

Why did we sack our previous manager for finishing eighth then?

And thank feck you aren't if you can't spot two posts from the same contributor within a post of each other. For the "fecking" record, I think this is good news all round. See my post saying "Brilliant news".

Not being able to hold down a place in the side is the new gold standard in judging player quality. Which other fringe players from teams that finished below us should we be looking at?