Whitey Grandad

And a very sensible opinion it is too.

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. What do you think got us where we are? You clearly haven't got the faintest clue about corporate finances let alone a top-flight football club but if that's what you want to believe then go ahead in your blissful ignorance.

That takes some time. We should have started some time ago but there again we've only been in the Premier League for two seasons. A very limited appeal outside the local area.

Why the rush? Is the money burning a hole in your pocket already?

Great, we can have our own Guantanamo Bay!

It's just occurred to me that the opposing attitudes are analogous to the opposing political ideals in Britain. One side wants to continually pump in money so that everyone can have a good time, the other wants us all to be self-sufficient.

Sad, but true.

Give it a rest. If you think owning a football club is a chance to make big money then you're gravely mistaken.

Thanks for posting all that, Bats.

National Insurance and pension contributions? Bloody heck, that adds quite a bit.

Who do they play for?

Has he signed yet? I log on now and again to see if anything's happened and all I get is the same old rumours over and over again.

Nah, it was a black and white world until Sergeant Pepper.

Shirley Anne Field I include her mainly because we had the pleasure of meeting her and having a long chat with her on a cruise we were doing a couple of years ago. She was very friendly and likeable but was a bit put out when my wife said that she loved all those black and white films she did in the fifties. "Sixties dear lady, sixties if you don't mind". Her face was a bit immobile but I suppose that's what can happen if you have too much cosmetic surgery without an anasthetic or you've been round the block a few times. A lovely girl though.

We need an up to date figure for players' wages for the last season. I seem to remember seeing £53m?

More like lease-purchase with a balloon payment at the end.

Isn't there a Madeline Smith in there?

Ah, dear Julie. She died in April 2008 aged 64

If you've dropped a division you're better off without them. (Cue conspiracy theories about preparing for the drop already)

In some respects we are suffering from our own success in rising up the leagues so quickly. We have a clutch of players not good enough for this level eating up wages and we haven't had the time to establish ourselves at a sustainable position.

Loans would be better. Then we can try them out and if we don't like them we can send them back

How do you know that?

With their payment record? Not bl**dy likely! Only joking, this move is highly commendable.

'One size'? I wondered what happened to him and I see that his contract with Watford ended at the end of last season. I also saw that as a 14 year old he appeared in the opening of The Fifth Element.

You really want to know? http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/cnr/app_dtt.htm The UK keeps the tax but the other country may make an allowance for this having been paid.