derry

It's in the paper.

I can't see what all the argument is about. The Echo have been pretty comprehensive for once so it looks like they are talking to somebody. Their news: The Swiss have gone home leaving it in the hands of the lawyers and advisors as they need third party agreements and their timetable has slipped to early next week. The worldwide financial group using Keith Harris of Seymour Pierce look like they are the front runners and the 'current bidders'.

According to the Echo the Swiss time frame has slipped to early next week as they are awaiting third party agreements. They apparently have gone back and left the lawyers in charge. It appears the front runners are the financial company who are using Keith Harris of Seymour Pierce as an advisor.

I'm not sure it is the Swiss, it seems to be the group that is using Keith Harris.

Solent just said they expect a decision today, then it is Friday.

Strachan is back home again in Warsash, he would be a real catch if he could be persuaded.

I don't think Wotte is that flexible Si, good managers pick a team and make the loose system fit their abilities. Unsuccessful coaches tend to pick an inflexible system and shoehorn the players into it usually with poor results.

We didn't play with wingers because except for the odd occasion they weren't picked. The efficient team occupy the full width of the pitch attacking and are delighted when the opposition don't when defending. Secondly we didn't score enough goals because we didn't get any crosses in low or high. Thirdly we conceded far too many goals by allowing the opposition to counter attack us down our empty flanks. Not enough goals and too many easy goals conceded, the story of our season. Wotte and the diamond is not the way to go, it makes us far too limited, rigid and predictable. The players don't like it, understand how to make it work, and make it a inefficient system for us. That's not to say different intelligent fast and mobile players wouldn't make it work and provide proper width by anticipation and movement. Davis, Wotton, and Surman argued against it but were overruled. I have been told that he applied for the Watford job.

Interestingly two of the championship teams that used the width best, Wolves and Burnley are now in the Premier.

Mike, I think they both should just take a back seat for a while and let the present negotiations end. If there is no sale, then by all means, if they have definite backers come forward, but for now they are just a distraction.

You are spouting absolute rubbish, no coaching manual ever written suggests that width is not necessary. I presume you have formal football qualifications to talk with such authority.

Every team whatever the level to be successful whatever the formation uses the full width of the pitch. Barcelona have both their best players out wide for a lot of the game, they also move into the middle. The last 6 games were dire and incredibly narrow, against Burnley after being on top we were pulled apart down the flanks. Most of the season we had no width which left James picking up 2/3 players down his side with the centre backs being pulled out leaving the blindside open. We leaked a high percentage of our goals that way from both sides. Because of the lack of attacking width we were poor in attack, as the defence was allowed to compact, forced us to play in front of it and blocked virtually everything we threw at it. We hardly ever got to the byeline.

1963, v Forest div1 we were div 2, 0-3 13 mins to go drew 3-3 won replay at WHL 5-0, beaten 0-1 to a Denis Law off the knee scramble at Villa Park in SF by MU. George Kirby was the roughest, toughest sob on a football field I have ever seen inc Big Jake.

At a meeting I went to, Crouch said £2.4m each year.

I've had enough of watching Wotte's bloody narrow diamond underachieving. If he doesn't change that, I'm afraid we are just wasting another season of being pulled apart down the flanks and not many goals. All the best managers/teams no matter what level they play in rely on width. A Dutch coach with a pretty unimpressive club management career thinks he knows best. Despite him hanging on I don't want him as manager.

I went to a meeting about Saints two months ago, two representatives of the council plus Alan Whitehead were there. The council have regularly scheduled meetings and the issue could have been decided in about a month. The council saw themselves a purchaser of the stadium as a last resort only. As long as there are potential purchasers they won't come in. I suspect the final contingency plan is that Salz and co will buy the club leaving a third party (maybe the council) to buy the stadium.

Well it looks like he was right about one thing, I just hope he was right about the other. Who was it, a friend of MLT.

If Crouch put up the money to allow the exclusivity that surely should have rung alarm bells. I am fed up to the back teeth listening to people who have little in the way of wealth pontificating. It's time to shut up, stop digging and leave us to get on with our lives without relatively impecunious dreamers making veiled suggestions that they might be back. Either shut up or sign up we need no more pronouncements.

The Pinnacle backers have refused to put their money in due to the conditions imposed by the league. Jackson is reported to have said his Israeli backers have pulled out due to the narrow time frame. MLT has just been on Sky citing irreconcilable differences with the league. He sounded pretty disillusioned. The common denominator in these bids is the fact the front man doesn't have the money. Over the last year on every occasion there has been talk of a bid, it is always somebody trying to raise the money who has no real wealth but wants to be involved. Clearly these types of bids do not have the foundations to go forward. Proof of funds, due diligence, talking a good game but in the end a big climb down. Unless the bids are led by people who are demonstratively wealthy they shouldn't be allowed, as happened here, to stop the allegedly well funded Swiss group by scrabbling together a deposit possibly supplied by a third party, causing the possibly fatal waste of a complete month, and alienating a probably substantial bid. I just hope that the Swiss don't get impeded, if they are serious, by the mysterious group that has just surfaced.

Do they have an Isle of Wight connection? Serious question Dave.

It clearly is an issue because making inaccurate statements is unhelpful if not devious. When found out, it makes people think 'what else isn't accurate'. It does undermine the integrity of those involved and their project. I do accept that Tony Lynham may have been misled by MF, who may have been forced to concede after the adverse and challenging publicity, that he was a part of the group of potential investors and not the sole investor.

MLT on solent: MF is part of a group of wealthy investors. I wish they had got their position clear rather than spinning that there was a single investor worth several hundred millions.

I can see you've cheered up Ruth, more your usual self. I hope they deliver this time. Yes it was the Plaza.

Willingly, they now have to get on and do what they say.

Interesting you should say that. I asked a good friend of his this morning if he might be interested, he said no way as he likes publicity and would be doing it himself if he was. I mentioned Danny Feinstein who has left Arsenal I believe but he didn't know.