dubai_phil

Is Patterson in Midfield???

Bit of a moment this afternoon. Was on way to get some petrol, went past a villa that had just finished being renovated. It had a big sign outside - Jumeira Spine Centre. Open now for Spine Surgery, walk in, no appointment necessary....... Now the first thought was - if you need Spine surgery maybe the walking in bit is a tad humourous. Then I thought YES THAT's IT! The solution - just get the Team delivered there for a day before the next game...... Can we get Flybe to do a special deal from Eastleigh?

Well glad I delayed my arrival by watching Lewis on DVD... Wotton is playing - Told you Thorpie - he's our new Jermaine Wright Ho hum

Just fall out a tree, Lee Take yer coat off the peg, Greg

Not to mention all those PL quality players we signed when we went into the CCC......

My bad, how could any Saints fan forget that legendary PL quality player we have in the squad um damn your retype doesn't show up who was it again? So 399,997.26, plus a Lardie Slice from Reeves the Bakers and the two in P/eX See, much better than a computer game

Far be it for me to comment on speculation, but Sultan Bin Trump is claiming that he will make 100mil in bonuses for flipping land deals while he was the CEO of a large corporation..... Even down here they have a word for that... (not alleging that SBT is in anyway connected, just saying that this behaviour has been noticed and has been identified as often being less than legal, allegedly) http://www.thenational.ae/article/20090622/NATIONAL/706219801/0/sportcolumnists Now let me ponder once again where that thread went to where all those happy clappy visitors from up the coast gloated about their marvellous new owner..... Have a nice day y'all

There is only ONE thing missing that would make this TOTALLY fantastic news... The fact that the fee is 400k + Wotton in part exchange But meanwhile back at the doomsayers secret underground bunker....

Oh, it the wooden spoon is ME with the Prediction League mate. I think I got one result right all of last season! Bit disappointed to have picked up 6 points so far this season. Bit of a brain f*rt that!

Nope :smt015 Gradual improvement, just below mid table in December and a push on in January when the gaps in the squad are finally filled up! Don't get me wrong, it's not negativity, and Swindon will be a different prospect from Huddersfield, but again they will be up for "a massive game" with a "big crowd". Just think we will take a few weeks yet to properly find our feet We had the quantity vs quality cr*p in the squad with you know who, just don't think we will be able to give away all our rubbish straight away, it's a lot easier for the coaching staff to coach and keep 26 players tactically, physically and metally fit than it is 36

I think you are being unfair on nothings with that comment..... It's like I said, none of US would have him in, but then we'd never have had Jermaine Wright and all the others that we could never understand over the years..... Just went with what I think we'd see. My pick would be the same as I posted but SG instead of Wotton

Me me me! Turn right off Sheikh Zayed Road, left at the T junction then left at the signals, 1st left, 1st right, 1st right and am 1st on the right just by the palm tree Shouldn't be too far out your way, I'll chip in for the petrol, it's only 1.20 a gallon and you can get some Duty Frees :-)

Think this game is still too early for us in our rebuilding, but expect a much better performance than on Saturday. Have it down as 2-1 to Swindon. But then I'm aiming for the wooden spoon this season... Davis Murty/James Thomas Perry Harding James/Mellis MS Wotton Lallana Patterson Lambert Subs Bart Gillett Holmes/Mellis Gobern Rasiak Saga Lancashire Personally I would WAY prefer Gillet in CM but until we find another experienced midfielder I think he will stick with Wotton, unfortunately

MM. It has been the nature of Saints fans to be negative since I first went when they moaned at Terry Paine. Opinions are fine, but if someone wants to post a new thread on basically the same subject as around 20 others then they open themselves up for having those opinions criticised based on analysis not on emotions. We had a high quality CB at the club, training with the players less than 7 days ago. We have opinions on why that deal fell through but no facts. It has been less than a week since we found there was a problem in signing him. How long do people THINK that it will take to start discussions with "the second choice"? My points that I use as the basis for my opinions are 1) The methodology of Swiss Business of which I have many years experience 2) The physical RESOURCES to actually do the work needed for scouting which I can see clearly by reading what is being said I KNOW we need new players in, the CLUB know they need new players in. The ISSUE I have is HOW? I use the CB example How many CB's are available now? How many deals can be done in 5 days? Let us assume for a moment that AP had a couple of players in mind at CB. One appears to have fallen through. In the past week, AP & DW have had to prepare the team for two (now 3) football matches. We KNOW from the Pichards training thread that there are serious problems with the tactical awareness of the squad and AP himself said they have been doing extra training on Sunday. AP has complained that he had nobody available to go and watch Swindon to help prepare tactically. And yet the same posters demanding 7 or 8 players are also all demanding that we don't recruit more "behind the scenes" experts to help with the work load. NC is having to spend time on the phone trying to help get players in - he said so himself, yet the same people up in arms about getting players in also were up in arms about Chairmen being involved in transfers! My issue is simple. Reality. We are not as bad as Tranmere where the management have to drive the players around, but we have MANY areas besides the first team where we have no experience, no skills and no resources. it ALL needs to have money spent. BUT we SPENT huge sums of money less in the past 3/4 years and it bought us a load of complete DROSS. YES we need to spend money but it needs to be spent on players who fit into the team, NOT on players who look good in a computer game. FWIW my opinion is that the squad is 4 players short of a full load, however because of the reality of the situation as well as the need to build a TEAM, I honestly expect only two players to be signed now before the end of the window, but then once we have had TIME to find the players that will fit in we will be equally active in January. For those moaning, that will mean FIVE new players signed, as well as the likes of Mills, Rasiak and possibly Holmes returing to the squad, that is 8 players who were not around for most of last season. I HOPE we can get up to the playoffs this season, I EXPECT to have a struggle in the early stages of the season and to finish above mid-table. It ISN'T about the money, it is about having enough people in the management operation to know how to spend it WISELY.

Lol OP so wrong on so many accounts. Where EXACTLY does it say DOF in ANY interview or official comment? Then FFS read the thread or watch the AP pre-Swindon interview. Do you SUGGEST that AP should have been the person watching Swindon at the weekend? Just WHO do you propose to actually interview the 3 or 4 scouts we obviously need, read the emails from agents offering players, answer the phone calls, make the phone calls, put out the cones. Norwich will want Guus Hiddink, not some poor Jack of all Trades like AP

We don't help much either! They tell us our scouting network has been obliterated by the Holiday Camp team. People on here demand we sign 8 players a day They tell us they need a Sporting Director to take some of the load off AP & NC. People on here go beserk I'm not surprised he's frustrated, there are basically 2 people on the playing side trying to change things AND cover about 10 jobs at the moment It's not JUST the playing side that needs a lot of work! Still he could have it a LOT worse, was reading our local rag today with McAffrey talking about John Barnes going to Tranmere... and becoming White Van man They now have a mini-bus that the Asst manager (Jason Macteer) drives to get the players to training! http://www.7days.ae/storydetails.php?id=82467&title=Top%20bosses%20may%20have%20to%20make%20their%20moves

What a load of moaning drivel I would just like to remind some on here of what happened the LAST time we went on a massive spending spree when we "WENT WILDE" What was it? something like 7million? And what did we get? Take your pick from amongst others... Euell, Skacel, Saga, Rasiak, Thomas.... 7 mil for the players and in their time with us about the same in wages. And WHERE exactly did we end up? It is NOTHING to do with HOW MUCH MONEY you spend. It is ALL about HOW you spend it and that ever so slightly important point WHETHER they fit into the TEAM. Anybody wanting to spend money in the CURRENT economic environment on POTENTIAL is just nuts. We have a fookin SQUAD full of POTENTIAL. We need the RIGHT players who can give a REGULAR, EXPERIENCED and PROFESSIONAL contribution to the team in around 75% or more of our games. Did ANY single on of those "BIG MONEY SIGNINGS" ever perform regularly? Again, I posted on here at the time of the takeover about the Swiss business mentality, it will be slow methodical and successful. We will NOT be back in the PL for at least 3 years even IF life were a copy of CM09. Didn't ANYONE else notice the somewhat IMPORTANT comment that our SCOUTING NETWORK was disintegrated. Just WHO has been going out and LOOKING at players and for HOW LONG? Oh and another point. Just HOW many emails and phone calls do you think that AP is getting EVERY day from Agents? And just when will he get around to viewing the You-Tube clips? It might have escaped some people's attention that he ALSO has to run training, get the players FIT AND teach the kids how to PLAY football after the last lot of idiots running the place like a Holiday Camp. 1) They are searching for new players 2) They have said the squad isn't good enough 3) STFU with the moaning and FFS give them a chance to actually FIND the TIME to WATCH the players we want to sign TO SEE IF THEY ARE ACTUALLY ANY GOOD If you are SO certain that you have found a WONDERKID/CL quality player then send your scouting report to the club. How much is a first class stamp these days? Think the address is on the web site. I guess you know how to READ the internet?

Oh well we're up against Notts County and Sven, Damn. Now if ONLY we had been up against Man City we'd have had a chance... And the other thought... See what happens when you scare ITK's off this site? Poor old tac-tics has had to resort to leaking to the press instead of us :-)

Don't be silly. The owner is Swiss. You ever seen a Swiss watch suddenly speed up? Only if it was 1) a cheap fake or 2) busted I AGREE we need major surgery to the squad. But if anyone ever read that story of the bloke who lost both hands having a transplant - the surgery was months ago, but it will be a year before anything works properly So it won't ALL happen in the next 10 days, and it will depend on who is actually available, wants to come AND will fit in with the style AP wants to play and the remainder of the squad. It's reality peeps, not a computer game

Probably told this one before but I had very good friends and business partners in Pakistan. One of them used to play first class cricket for Lahore. About 7 years ago (on the last but one England Tour) he arranged for a "VVIP" box for the Pakistan v England Test at Lahore. I invited my best mate from England, who'd never been further afield than Bude (I believe). He flew in to Dubai and we then hopped over to Lahore. The Pearl Continental is one of the best hotels I stay in on my travels in this region, and it was also where the players stayed, so it was really weird sitting down for breakfast at a table with Nass, Thorpie & Alec Stewart... Our "box" turned out to be Javed Miandad's office, next door to the Sky commentary box. The lads gave the Dubai Saints flag it's first television outing! But each evening, after the cricket my local mate collected us and took us out into the town, shopping or for dinner. The effect on my English mate was astonishing. He simply wasn't mentally prepared for the sheer dirt, poverty and what to him seemed total despair. Stepping over about 8 beggars to get into a restaurant just flipped him out. He simply couldn't understand how we could walk past them without trying to help, it was only later that he realised that if he gave each one we saw in the city 10p he would need about two years' salary. It was a case of total culture shock. To say he couldn't wait to leave would be an understatement, even though the highlight of the trip was teaching Bumble how to become a "registered alcoholic" so that he could have room service send beer up for "medicinal purposes" I loved Pakistan, BECAUSE it was so different even the Swat valley was an amazing place, but for someone from Wiltshire who used to think that London was a long trip, it cames as a total shock to the system to my mate.

Well couple of mates came round and we watched the final round which was stupid as it's now 3am and they all but cleaned out my stock of vino but what a great finish to see "The Man" beaten by a bloke smiling and waving to the cameras all the way round

Lads, remember the ball only has to be THIS height from set pieces to beat Perry

Sa'naa in Yemen. Quite a few years back for work now before they got all kidnappy. The reason it is different is the whole style and architecture of the buildings, especially in the Old town area is just alien to the eye, and some of the buildings there have been in place for over 2,000 years. Also was odd to find they have their own version of Stonehenge and also Mocha is there. As in the actual spiritual home of Arabica coffee. They also chew gatt or Betel Leaves so the pavements walls and stuff are sortta green tinged Flying there on Yemenia was also weird and scary as was being arrested at immigration for 3 hours because of a visa technicality and stuck in a cell during the Eng Spain game in Euro 2000 when I had organised a damned tv to watch the game on in the hotel After that? Petra in Jordan. All done while working

Think it is actually a very simple answer that we all actually know. The kids from the Academy were in a cushioned environment where most minutes of each day they were "at school". Suddenly they are no longer in that environment because they are "1st Team Players" At the time they hit that point in their careers we had A disinterested Burley An incompetent Dodd & Gorman A short stay Pearson A Dutch bloke who had no idea what he was doing Another Dutch bloke. So, after 6 years of every day being the same and regimented, they have had the sum of feck all in terms of PROFESSIONAL coaching, tactical awareness, physilcal fitness for football and continuity of playing style and formation. Then, we now get an EXPERIENCED, MOTIVATED Professional in, combined with a new regime that does not speak with forked toungue and we are SURPRISED that these players look like rabbits caught in headlights? The simple fact is that they really haven't had time yet to adjust and take on board advice. In the way of ref's everywhere, They don't know what they're doing..... This is why we DO need the new blood that AP tells us is coming and which NC tells us he is trying to bring in, and we also need to reduce the pressure on the kids. They DO have great potential, but they have 2 years of development to catch up on - they won't do that in 6 weeks

The squad isn't good enough. The balance of the payers that we have in the squad isn't good enough. The mix of experience, promise and pace isn't good enough. Don't think anyone on here needs to be a rocket scientist to realise that. However I think a lot of posters need to reflect on something - WE HAVE NEW MANAGEMENT. I know it is a hell of a step to take, but the FACT is that AP and NC have stated that we need to buy players. They have said they are actively looking for players. They have ALREADY signed 4 players. FFS guys, we KNOW we are trying to get a quality CB in - didn't anyone read AP's comments about Jaidi? That wasn't ITK rumour it was stated fact. We now have 2 box to box MF's Gillett & Mellis (who had HOW long to get to know his teammates names?). We have to sell at least one of Saga/Rasiak to bring in the pacey forward to play of RL. We KNOW we are after one CB then with a RM with a bit of experience we have James & MS as DM's. It is not a long way off a reasonable sqaud but even IF we bought 13 new players in the few weeks that AP has been here there is NO WAy they would even resemble a team on the pitch.