CB Fry

Pretty sure there are forum experts convinced that losing all our games against the big boys is part of the masterplan to finish top four, so nothing to worry about here at all. It's called "doing an Arsenal" apparently. And yes I know it avoids the fact that Arsenal don't have to play Arsenal so that's them six points better off than us already. But don't ruin it. It will definitely work. Top four here we come.

Not quite. They have plenty in attack to do us. They look shambolic at the back but could still outscore us.

They are but so are we. We'll probably need to score two more to win.

5/10.

I'd been coming down on the side of Pixie Lott, but that one's gone now. The Redskins to make the play offs.

Not a Spurs fan so couldn't give two sh its about what they might raise from sales. It is crap but just simply pointing out that it clearly doesn't say what you said it does.

But it doesn't say that does it? It says, pretty clearly, £20m plus funds raised from sales. They won't sign either in January, anyway.

He won't stay on the off chance we get through a CL qualifier, with the prospect of getting our arses handed to us if we make it into the group stages as a low seed He has done his time here, he owes is nothing and if he has half a brain he will want to test himself at a genuine higher level. Good luck to him.

For what?

Well, they've still done better against the big clubs than we have. We're fighting them for 5/6/7/8/9th.

It's almost like all the teams play all the other teams through the season isn't it? And WHU have done well against the big clubs this season so not really an issue for them.

He probably will, because they are. Just like us.

Blabbing off to a Dutch newspaper qualifies as official channels so probably fine.

This stuff is only disgraceful tapping up that the authorities should be doing something about etc when it's other clubs doing it, right?

That is beautifully scathing.

As long as we talk vaguely about "dreams " and "ambition" he will definitely stay. That's all you need.

Anyone who signs for us would have been touted round every other big club. I am sure Koeman gets calls and emails and DVDs about players who aren't good enough for us, so why wouldn't a broker or agent connected to, say, Tadic tout him to Man United, City and Chelsea?

This. We have a cover in central midfield. If three or four are out at the same time we struggle but so would Chelsea. If we sign another CM it will just mean we'll be getting shot of Cork. [edit: just seen the Cork news, we won't sign another C/DM then.] People can bleat about our apparent weak squad but it ain't ever going to get better than this: we are never, ever going to have the 24-26 top 6 class players that the biggest clubs have. Not going to happen.

In fairness your prediction that we would lose all our games against the big boys has been bang on so far. Well done.

Not sure anything can match the "eighth place fever" that swamped the whole city last year, you couldn't move for bunting and street parties that final weekend. It's such a magical thing to achieve a placement about two thirds of the way up the league. Just magical in a way that no other achievement in domestic football can ever match.

...

This. Morgan, Wanyama, Cork, JWP, Davis, with Alderweireld (we now know), Tadic and Reed as emergency cover in those spots. There's our midfield options. We're not going to ever have an infinite squad, that kind of cover is all we can reasonably expect. If we sign someone in January it will be in anticipation of someone going - ie we may sign someone we think is better than Cork in Jan, and/or to replace Morgan in the summer. We're are never going to have a squad that can calmly cope with three or four key absences in one position. Chelsea and Man City would struggle with that too.

They can't wait for us to lose. Or something.

LOL. You think the club can afford to have another two £10-5m quality central midfielders mooching around just waiting for injuries. Get over it. We're not Chelsea, we will never have a 24 man mega squad. That's the lesson you should have learned last summer. S hit happens.

I like it when you wheel out this one from your "everyone's a hypocrite" arsenal. Doesn't make any sense whatsoever, but I like that you still try and use it.