PJ

I didn’t say he should do that, just that I can see it happening (I didn’t suggest Stuart Armstrong either btw - I think the team I quoted is best on current form & availability). I like Alcatraz, but he’s been a bit and miss so far this season. I’m not even sure he is among our best technical players. Just my view

yep, this. Alcaraz might feel hard done by, as he clearly has bags of talent. I'm not sure he quite offers RM what he's looking for. It wouldn't surprise me to see him become a bench-player for us (when at the start of the season 9/10 of us would have put him in the starting 11 every week).

Surely his agent (and Swansea) will be on the phone to saints, letting us know of the situation. His agent and club will want as many clubs as possible interested…

Even if we get Downes agreed on Monday, I think it's a risk him playing this weekend. He's (supposedly) been off for food poisoning, which must have quite an impact on cardiovascular fitness. I'm guessing he didn't feature much in West Ham's pre-season? He wasn't in their squad v Bournemouth on 12th August. It must have been ages since he played any competitive minutes. Despite looking thin in midfield, I'd not put him in the 11 for QPR...