CanadaSaint

That sounds like a good "read" on Lallana's quality because Carr was a decent premier League defender for years, and not that out of place there last year. Still a bit of a question mark then but it sounds like we do have a different kind of game in there somewhere - a bit more steel when it's needed, perhaps. Fair comment?

Did Lallana really nutmeg Carr twice in quick succession?

Well done, guys. Much better. Fingers crossed for the away games but the signs are good. Thanks.

Thanks for the follow up on the Brum feed, Micky. I'm more the positive kind () and I was nervous about today because I thought we could be physically dominated - especially if it was wet, which it certainly was. It really sounded like we were able to play "our game" but I'll wait to hear from some folks who were there. We still need to tighten up at the back, though, but some of that might be as much a defensive-midfield issue.

One of my biggest questions was answered today: Can we play our style against a strong, physical team on a wet pitch?

Anyone been listening to the Brum commentary?

I think your ciggy break caused that. The Good Luck thing is not just restricted to goals for. Time for another?

Premature intoxication.

Dave's dead right about the dressing room really gelling and what that can do to a team. All the more reason not to bow to the "Sign someone - anyone FFS" pressure.

Why on earth do you feel the need to make comments like that about people who were following this club long before we ever reached the top flight? I've often found that people who keep trying to convince others that they're hard usually aren't. Most normal people outgrew that stuff years ago (if they ever believed in it at all), realizing that it doesn't achieve anything and just makes the perpetrators look stupid. And all the infantile prattling on here from the self-appointed 'toughies' will only serve to guarantee another stupid confrontation.

Nice to see. If we'd got him when we were trying we might still be in the Premier now.

I agree with you as well, and there's something of a very similar ilk that bugged the hell out of me. Last time we were back I went to watch some little kids playing, Tyro or something like that, and exactly the same thing was coming from the parents. It takes a lot of courage to "play the right way" these days, with so much at stake and with parents behaving like that. For all his understated manner and appearance, and for all his tired clichés, Adkins is a really intelligent guy with very high principles and really, really big balls.

Easy for me to say from such a distance but I think things like this will pale into insignificance (if they weren't there already) when we reach the Premiership. Cortese has always said that we would be anchored to financial reality (sustainability), and that likelihood only increased with Markus's passing. If some people are p*ssed off now about ticket taxes and parking charges and booking fees and increasing season ticket prices they'll go nuts when they see what's down the road. I said some time back that some great fans won't be able to afford to actively support the Club if we get where we're aiming to go.

And that's exactly what he set out to achieve because I remember him saying it. IIRC he took some heat on here for motivating our opponents with comments like that. It's a joy to watch at times but we must guard against the Arsenal syndrome - all style and no trophies. I actually thought that even the mighty Barca fell into that exact trap when they were so on-top yesterday.

It's rather ironic that, on the one thread he could legitimately dominate, he takes a while to arrive and then goes missing. Mind you, he does hate any "look back with hindsight at what you said" threads - even fun ones. With good reason. So here's another cracker from half time on Saturday:

I don't even want to say what it was exactly, but it involved Wigley, younger players and success. :blush: I think I was wrong about four times in the one sentence.

Sad, isn't it? On the one hand I'm dying to get there again, but on the other hand I'm dreading it. Still, if those 'Club principles' are in place, and if NA and NC stick to them, I think we can buck the trend.

Fair comment, but what I was trying to say is that I think there are "standards" at the club now. Both Adkins and Cortese seem like very principled people, and they have a vision for how the Club should function in all its forms. If you don't fit into that and the 'rules' that go along with it, you're probably out or on the way out. Or, in the case of some near-signings, you don't get in. With no evidence at all, I still have a hunch that we walked away from at least one near-signing because he raised concerns in some kind of "interview" situation. And if this is how the Club works now, I'm delighted to see it. I certainly don't know that Barney has fallen afoul of this - I just wonder.

It's like a spreading disease caused by too much money, too much adulation, too much ego and nowhere near enough common sense. I don't think Ranger should be treated any more harshly by the courts than "Joe Public" would be, but he shouldn't be treated any more leniently, either, as footballers often are. And the same goes for any other player in a similar situation. Even one of ours. Given the Club's treatment of Puncheon, I still can't help but wonder how much of Barney's continuing absence really is injury-related.

For the first time in God knows how long I feel comfortable that we have a manager whose changes will make things better.

Attaboy!

I thought he said it came down their inside-left channel.

That kind of booking has been coming - far too much crap going on at set pieces. Probably a league directive.

Ee-aye-ee-aye-ee-aye-o Back to the top of the league we go

I'm looking forward to a corner with Fonte and Hooiveld up there. They're both serious threats in the air.