S-Clarke

I'd be tempted to do that, if we're honest we shouldn't need 2 'holding' midfielders for this game. Just throw the attack at them.

Bring back the Intertoto Cup.

Yes

Atrocious is putting it lightly.

Is it Gerrards birthday? Can't say I've heard that mentioned anywhere yet! Who'd have thought it.

That's got to be the target now, for me that would just cap an amazing season. What a way to stick 2 fingers up to Lallana, Lovren and MP. The home game against Spurs is HUGE.

I love the Championship for these end of season nerve-shredders. Such a competitive league with a lot of quality. I did fancy Derby as nailed on, but they're totally lost their way. Play offs for them now at best. It's 2 from 4.....Norwich, B/mouth, Boro, Watford. My personal preference would be Bournemouth and Boro, 2 good sides who play the right way. I'd like to see Watford come up via the playoff's. Exciting end to the season though for the neutral! Reminds me of our L1 run-in, where we were being relentlessly hunted by Huddersfield. Sunderland need to go, that club needs to be flushed out and they need to start again, every season is the same and it's boring watching them. QPR, everything that is wrong with modern football in terms of the money they ****ed up the wall on players. I'd like to see WBA go, but they won't - that's more of a personal preference than anything football related.

This is being made to sound a lot more confusing than it actually is. Basically, 5th and 6th place are guaranteed EL places. If a team that finish within the the top 6 win the FA Cup, then the place allocated to the FA Cup winners goes to the next league place down - i.e 7th. If Reading, Blackburn, or Villa win it, then they get the EL place and 7th doesn't. It used to be the case that the losing finalists also get a EL place if they weren't already in the Top 6, but that's no longer the case.

And if he did get a game and we didn't score, I would have to wade through a zillion comments about how Koeman has made the wrong decision, he doesn't know what he's doing etc etc. Go with the best team, the side that knows each other the best. Makes no sense to play around with young players now.

Their transfer policy over the last 3 seasons has been nothing short of diabolical. No forward thinking, no long-term plan it seems. Fernandinho - Okay, but was signed when he was 28/29, so not exactly thinking ahead Jovetic - Young player, but no impact what so ever. Spent more time on the bench and injured. Failed. Negredo - Started ok, drifted off, and is now at Valencia Navas - Never done it really, flits in and out of games. Not great. Demichelis - Poor aging player, not up to the pace. Javi Garcia - Rubbish, horrendous signing. Natasic - He wasn't bad, but was shipped out to Germany. Rodwell - Abysmal. Signed just to keep their British player count up. Sinclair - Ditto Mangala - Disaster. £30m for what? Fernando - Rubbish, most city fans would agree. So fair enough, they do need to replace a lot of that side....but I'd get rid of whoever has made the decisions in recent years and start a fresh.....

Lol @ Newcastle by the way. Pardew hated by their fans, massive movements to get him sacked etc. He's now 4 points ahead of them at his new club with a better GD.

You jest, but if this stays as it is, we beat Hull and Utd beat City in the derby, we'd be amazingly just 5 points away from them. Although their run-in after that looks 'straight forward', with 3 home games back to back. Obviously we won't finish 4th, but at least keeps it all a little interesting as we head into the final weeks.

Good call, hope he gets a good club soon. In other news, despite being utterly battered for 30 odd mins, Palace somehow find themselves 1-0 against City.

In other news, Wigan have sacked Malky Mckay. What's the point...?

Fulham, Birmingham, Wigan, Blackpool have been horrifically mismanaged though. From owners being locked up, to owners paying the parachute money to an outside source, it's the story of farce down there.

Bournemouth 4-2 now. They're going to do it, aren't they? Looks like 2 from 4 (B'mouth, Watford, Boro, Norwich) But Wigan look long gone now.......heading back to their pure level.

If someone wants Rodriguez, good luck to them.

I think the club will cut ties with Gaston to be honest. He's not going to cut it at this level, that's pretty clear now. He's had a season at Hull and has been pretty pants for them, bar one or 2 flickering moments - and that's all you get. All we'd be saying is ''Oh, get Gaston on the bench in case he can make that pass....'' - but it's always in hope, rather than expectation, and 3 years into his contract that shouldn't be the case anymore. His wages and squad position should be used on a far more useful player.

This is the thing for me - this is one of the best saints sides in a generation. We're competing with the big boys and hoping that they slip up. I can honestly never remember feeling like that as a Saints fan, I always remember rooting on the big clubs to beat the bottom teams so we'd be safe. It's incredible how far we've come, and you're right - major perspective needed in the grand scheme of things, but as we know with football fans...they snapshot. One game, or a group of games, and the opinion is formed on that - either positive or negative.

Would expect Clyne and Morgan to do, no real doubts about that. Toby will probably return to his club, he was only a loan anyway so never one of ours. I can't see us losing much more tbh, it won't be as horrible as last summer. And thankfully we have a stable management in place right now....so we can plan for the positions that will open up. That's why I can see Clasie and Tonny as nailed on signings - they'll be the midfield reinforcements. Clasie, for me, would be a major coup for us. Probably only get 1 or 2 seasons from him, but he's a damn fine player. Very morgan-esque. At the back - I can see us getting someone like Bruno Martins-Indi - had a move to Porto, but it's not really worked for him there. Left sided CB, powerful, dominating CB (with the scariest eyes I've ever seen).

I think either way though, he's going to miss a decent chunk of next season - if not the entirety of it - so I hope the club are planning for the worst case and looking for a new number 1. We can worry about them fighting for their place when he returns, but hopefully we'll then be in a position where we have 2 v good goal keepers battling it out. I remember when we were bitten 11 years ago as we bought stop gaps because ''Oakley and Killer will be back soon''. You've got to do what's best for the team now, really. You can never be sure with knee injuries.

He's already launched the excuses for next season as well. ''If we're not in the CL, then we cannot attract the big players'' Given how well you did attracting all those duds in the summer with CL football, I'm sure Liverpool fans won't be too concerned.

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I just cannot see how it would be allowed, or how Chelsea would even agree to it. Seems too big a gamble for something that won't really make a huge difference to us in the grand scheme of things. If we're lining it up for next season, I can totally understand - but still I'd say it would be incredibly unlikely.