benjii

I would leave out players that are clearly the best option in their position for this one. There's really no point risking an injury or suspension to them when we've got a potentially season defining match next week and we're still in our first round of this cup. I'm talking about Virgil, Cedric, Bertrand, Forster, Romeu and Rodriguez. So, I'd go with: -----Whichever keeper is best other than Forster who is fit to play------- Martina------------Stephens------------Yoshida------------McQueen ----------------------------------Reed---------------------------------------- -------------------Clasie---------------------Hojbjerg----------------------- -----------Redmond----------------------------------------Tadic----------- ------------------------------------Long-------------------------------------

Half of that team were about 17 years old playing in a Prem 2 U23 match. Give them a break.

Nothing says "competent and professional ownership" more than a badly dressed bunch of muppets sipping pints of lager resting on a wallpaper table with a creased sheet on it.

Just three? What if he has six chances? Do you think that's acceptable? It's not good enough. Complacent.

I invariably find that strangers who insist on talking to me on an unsolicited basis in the pub (or any other place, for that matter) are lacking in wit and self-awareness and generally collosal bores. The exception to this is those women who choose to do so, who are invariably fit and nubile. Anyway, my point is that, "would you say that to a stranger?", is not a useful yardstick. It's a chat forum and if someone is being a big fanny then it's quite appropriate to tell them what a fanny they are.

I just really want Ralph to push on and develop the franchise by adding a bit of MVP-quality to the roster. That's what it's abooot buddy.

Yes, Clasie is far better and, other than Romeu, has been our best midfielder this season.

If has was someone we had just signed, everyone (well, apart from a couple of people) would be in agreement that he was a ****ing awful signing.

Do people think Puel actually wants to pick Long? **** me. I'm sure he'd love to sell him and replace him with a proper footballer.

P.s. Jay Rod's brother seems like a *****.

Correct!

Our goal scoring is too ****ing binary.

Quite possible that no one is really at fault here. If Fonte really wants to leave, for whatever reason, then as far as I can see he has gone about it the right way, by and large. He's still given his all on the pitch, from my observations, and he has put in a formal transfer request. You could also say he has been honourable by not signing an increased deal and then agitating for a move anyway like that **** Payet seems to have done. Likewise, the club can quite fairly say "you're under contract and you won't leave until we are happy with the timing and circumstances". If the upshot of all that is that, on balance, we think it best not to select him for matches for now then that's also the club's prerogative. Unless someone wants to explain, in some detail, why either party is at fault then it just looks like "one of those things" to me. No need to get medieval on anyone's ass.

In fairness, I don't know if it's a box he pays for.

Wow. Free use of his free box!

Yes, we know.

Do I look like less of a walrus-faced **** from this angle?

You know the ref is crap when you can hear dissatisfaction from The Chapel.

I think Clasie will rotate out and probably one of the front three. Otherwise, let's keep the same team and then rotate like mentalists for the Norwich game. Given the Fonte situation I would leave Van Dijk out of the Norwich match. We can't afford a CB injury really but certainly not one to him. For Norwich a back four of Martina, Stephens, Yoshida and McQueen please.

What? Oh, yeah, woe is us. How rubbish it's been recently.

That was Mike "Head of the Professional Game Match Officials Board" Riley. A proper **** ref. Worse displays than Swarbrick that I can think of were some chap we had against Leeds at home a few years ago. He was completely useless and actually made a couple of "big" wrong calls I think - although we still won the game. Pretty sure it was Peter Walton. Also, whoever the ref was in that match against Brighton. He didn't affect the result really - he gave us a ridiculous penalty but also failed to give some blatant ones earlier in the game - but was absolutely useless. Oh, and the plum that gave Arsenal the penalty in the league match this season.

It would have been hilarious if Cedric had converted that chance seeing as it came about due to them being wrongly awarded a corner in the first place. On the subject of Cedric.... having him and Bertrand out there at the same time makes us such a better attacking proposition. McQueen has done well but Bertrand is more dynamic and unpredictable and Cedric has really stepped up his performances this season compared to last.

Apparently Mandela is due to be freed soon as well.

I just hope the crowd is up for it. Too many spoilt dimwits surfacing at SMS lately.