Colinjb

Ooooo, interesting....

We are in a weak position. Clubs know we have money so we need to pay slightly over the odds to secure the signatures. Looking for a silver lining, at least he's cheaper then Ross McCormack.

Am I the only one who would be pleased with Shane Long? The memories of the West Brom front three of Long, Lukaku and Fortune ripping us to pieces at the back end of 12/13 isn't that distant a memory surely? Quick, strong and powerful. Just what many have called for.

I assume this will be the same type of exclusive that sees the game on the console exclusively for a year then it comes out on multi format. It would need to be a massive sum of money to stop Square Enix from releasing it on the PS4 at some point.

So you understand that a lot of their behaviour is wrong... Not every player should be tared with the same brush but can you now see why they may be such resentment?

Yet so many footballers are willing to do it, almost go against their previous behavior, sometimes humble roots and turn into these mercenary brats. Do they actually understand what they are doing or is the extra five figure sum per week enough for it to leave their minds? Adam Lallana is now a pariah in the city that launched his footballing career.... he so easily burned the bridges. I can understand ambition but there is no class or dignity in these people.

Which is the root of the resentment. The rules do not apply to them if they throw their toys out of the pram. Not only that, but they are more likely to be rewarded in many cases by behaving like a spoilt child. As we have found repeatedly to our cost this summer.

It applies to all walks of life, not just footballers. You sign a contract, respect it. It's why they need to be considered before entering into them. You said that footballers shouldn't be treated differently because of the money they get paid. Fine, they should respect their contracts in the same way the rest of the world do.

Of course not yet stress, possible mental illness, tragedy, overbearing employers and various other hardships are not exclusive to footballers either. Looking for sympathy from those who would kill to be in their position and live the dream that they are living is always going to be a fools errand.

Looks like I need to re-read the Saintsweb T's and C's.....

When you get in excess of 10k a week Bearsy i'll look forward to a pint.

Irene. I can only sympathise with anyone who has experienced any personal loss, but to suggest that the life of a top level professional footballer is anything other then a rare and privileged opportunity is quite illogical. It will come with it's own unique challenges without question, but to go onto a forum of people who will never experience the wealth, adulation, attention and financial security that can be provided by it and expect unwavering empathy is a more then a little disingenuous. People who earn a pittance in jobs they detest have to do them in conditions far worse then those you have described with far less allowance for personal issues, if you are a professional you have to work around it, not demand concession after concession. If you don't like it, tough, you'll be out of the door within the minimal notice period with no financial comeback. I'm sorry, but you are just reinforcing the perception that the world of a modern footballer is that of a cocoon far beyond what 99.9% of the world would call reality.

I'm a little confused here, some people have been blunt in responding to you and swore in dismissal. But I see no direct insults, is it the tone that's bothering you?

Wait, so Irene knows who this Charlie chap is!?

But you do have a preference then?

Who is your club Irene? Genuinely curious.

Forster has his first team place assured and the millions you mentioned earlier which i'm sure will help him overcome any such disappointment. Kelvin is a club legend (overused word, but I feel he is) and that number one shirt is his until he officially retires, he has earned it.

Hardly, Kelvin could have earnt far more as West Ham's back up when we entered administration back in 2009. Instead he stayed and fought for us from League 1 level back to the Premier League. Wonder if Artur would do that for us? I'm guessing no. I respect Artur's abilities as a goalkeeper immensly, but Kelvin's place in the number 1 shirt is a wonderful reflection that we respect those who dig in for us. Kelvin has earned our respect.

As they would all like to be the undisputed first choice in their respective clubs too. Always took the retention of the no1 jersey for Kelvin as a show of respect for his years of loyal service, a sign that those who are loyal are rewarded.

And the perspective was that Artur Boruc isn't happy? I would be worried if he was happy with the situation. Hopefully he can take his dissatisfaction as a spur to push on and try to change his manager's mind. If he wins his place in the team back he will be vindicated, if he doesn't then an amicable parting of the ways is probably the next step. It's not personal, it's just football were a contract in principle at least works both ways. Sharing a point of view is fine, but you must respect that there will be many. Just because they are not those of the individual mainly concerned they are not necessarily wrong, if anything an outside perspective will often provide the most accurate reflection of a situation.

What is your agenda Irene? Are you just annoyed that a player you are close to has been superseded in our squad?

What do you want Irene? A blessing from fans for him to leave if he doesn't get first team football?

Phone now sold.