shurlock

Makes no f**king sense

To some extent continuing the same downwards trend that's been evident since 2009. Yields are largely driven by changes in monetary policy and interest rates expectations -and the Bank of England has been pretty accomodative. The Tories can take some credit (though that doesnt take account of the potential economic costs of the austerity package); but its role is overstated and overexaggerated. If the Bank of England hiked up interest rates tmrw, you would see an increase in yields that made Osborne's interventions look trivial.

I've rarely gone to preseasons for 20 odd years - aint going to change a habit of a lifetime now. If the club want to do something in Markus honour and his contribution to the club, do it during the proper season when the stakes and significance are much more real and fitting.

Nutshell

Ditto

Not a massive fan of the yellow kit; but the 'yellows, yellows' chant is one of the simplest, and most effective.

But he hardly worked with anyone before unless you count bangor? I don't see your point. I think his transfer activity with us, including rumours suggests he has a greater preference for tried and trusted players. You also have to bear in mind his statements to the effect that one of the main things he's looking for in a player is a decent attitude (mentioned time and time again, so its not just mum and apple pie). You only discover those things by working with a player.

Agree, though do we give Cork and Morgan the benefit of the doubt and see if they can stand up to the physical/better teams? Or do we go straight with Hammond? I get the sense that, come what may, NA will start with Hammond (+Cork). Just can't see him making such a massive statement so early on; on the other hand, can see him acting v.quickly if results or performances don't go our way.

Agree -he's done it for France and the Dutch Duo even had hopes of him playing in the hole which weren't so stupid given his initial form (admittedly they were friendlies but he ran the show against Celtic and Wet Sham). Some assume he can't tackle -that he's not gritty enough. Yes he's not an aggressive player but he's shown himself more than capable of breaking up possession and winning back the ball. Whether its defending or going forward, its a mental thing. Don't know whether its something you can teach - and how much being young and foreign makes a difference - CM is quite a weight for young shoulders to bear as you're expected the catalyse the team (the likes of fabregas and flamini took a while). But we will see. Hopefully, this season is the one.

My point is a simple one - that we should be aiming to improve agreed gaps in the squad. DM and fullbacks don't seem to be ones, though the Arsenal DMs you mention have real potential. See my point below for names. I'm not claiming to know more than anyone - not what I'm about. I just like a frank, direct exchange, so fire away

Nah, just using Turk's own criteria -realism and match- to hold him up to his own very high standards? And manning up and engaging on the detail rather hiding behind a smokescreen of sarcasm. It doesn't take Hypo to point out that we should be signing players where we have obvious gaps -and hopefully they're also a better than what we've got but my view is no better or worse than yours. Neither are trivial points. All I know is that we need a CB, CF and perhaps a winger - or at least that's the consensus on here is that we do. With the exception of Clarke and Jutkeiwicz (I assume Maynard and Sharp are dead in the water), none of HCDAJFUs meet those criteria. I would also bet that somebody like aanholt is not infinitely better than Harding or Dickson, though that's not necessary to make my point. Check the other threads for CBs and CFs on my wishlist. Off the top of my head - Anthony Gerard (did wonders on loan to Hull but in limbo at Cardiff), Jack Hobbs (when he was still available), Liam Fontaine -maybe take a cheeky look at a Forest CB if their financial sitution is to be believed; re. CFs, Leroy Lita, Ishmael Miller, Diomansay Kamara (when he was still available) etc, though again they are not really relevant to the point at hand.

So instead you blindly pull out Chelsea and Arsenal reserves - not very difficult to do the same. But why would any of the aforementioned players add value in the areas we need? Or do they just sound good in the same way Owen and Parker sound good? I assume you haven't seen either aanholt or bruma play - both are fancy-dan, lightweight fullbacks, though bruma plays at CB as well as RB. Both played in a side that leaked plenty of goals - so much for a hardened, experienced player to take the mantle of Jaidi (ultimately signing L1 Peltier was seen as a better option). Last time I saw Lansbury was eyeing up a move to another Prem side, so why it seems odd that he would join us. Similarly, why we would want either Frimpong or Eastmond, both DMs except if we're collecting them for fun or think Morgan, Deano and Cork aren't good enough? Sharp and Maynard, as we've discussed endlessly on here, are both nonstarters, leaving the likes of Smithies and Lewis in goal (remind me why we need another keeper) and Peter Clarke who turns 30 this season (hardly young and hungry). Difficult business posting constructive comments, isn't it?

Totally agree.

The match report basically said forecast kept us in it 2nd half

So 2010

I rate Antonio over Forte - he's younger, there's more to work with and he has genuine power and strength which Forte doesn't. Antonio was part of a squad that was within a c**t's hair of the premiership and was known for its wing play and pace. Scunny were a team punching well above their weight. So comparing them on team appearances alone can be misleading. We loaned N'guessan with a view to buying him and he got goals in the NPC. I'd rather have Antonio over him anyday. Which is to say wingers are a mercurial bunch. You have to take the rough with the smooth and keep faith with them. A stop start approach does nobody any good. As such, its not hard to understand why a player like Antonio might struggle at one place, even against lower league opposition if he's hardly played; yet make the grade at a higher level somewhere else if backed with proper match time.

Born in Soton; brought up in Bournemouth. Got hooked on the cycle of despair and redemption that followed every dogfight in the early 90s; brother was a fellow saints fan; took pride in being one of the few amongst my friends who had a 'proper' reason to support their team; got a kick out of the banter and sometimes hostility that routinely followed supporting saints in bompey; loved the buzz of getting on a train and leaving town for games without the elders; and honoured to watch the likes of MLT regularly pulling off the impossible, knowing that his talents and loyalty could never be bought or sold.

Funny I heard on the ever-reliable UI that nothing really happened over the past two years and we're getting matt paterson and marek saganowski back. Also rumours that we're trying to coax joe tessem out of a retirement as a converted centre-forward. Supposedly the Swiss have got cold feet - colder than Heidi going commando up Mont Blanc.

Leroy Lita

Think Craig Thomson and add 5.

It can hold 25,000

Arctic Monkeys will go down in history like many other bands as a one-album band - relistening to the first album reminds you how repetitive it is. It did well because it struck a cultural note and filled a vacuum at the time . They were helped by a breathlessly hyperbolic media like the NME and the small island effect where you can gatecrash the public consciousness (and then be summarily dumped) in the blink of an eye. Thought the 2nd album was more varied and the 3rd was an interesting stab at a different sound but it merely underlined that they shouldn't venture too far out of their comfort zone -hence the safety-first of their 4th album invariably stripped of the brashness and urgency of their breakthrough album. The more you listen to AM, the more you realise that they are bunch of jingly-jangly Northern romantics - the same furrow ploughed by the likes of Morrissey, Shack, Richard Hawley, I Am Kloot etc. Alright if you like that kind of thing and definitely more soulful than Coldplay; but nothing special.

1. A real frontman with pace to lead the line and run behind defenders, not somebody who drops deep given the chance or prefers the role of creative foil. It is also the one area in the team-with the exception of the touch-and-go Connolly- we lack proven championship experience. 2. Finding a midfield combination that works - while Cork's addition will help, its still a case of finding a partnership that is complementary. At times, we've suffered from having too many similar players in the centre of the park. At others, the likes of Schneiderlin and Chaplow have been too inconsistent or injury-prone, making it difficult for the midfield to gel. I also think we lack power, especially when we play away: as much as I like Cork, the view is that he can be quite lightweight. 3. Flakey flanks - while the likes of AL and Oxo will provide plenty of attacking threat, we've been easy to get at down the flanks, heaping more pressure on the CMs and fullbacks. Its also the one area we lack decent cover if a player suffers poor form or injury. N'Guessan was a response to these problems; but didn't perform. Puncheon will be gone; and Guly is OK, though has defensive frailties 4. I disagree that our defense is the weakest part of the team- it was the bedrock to our success last season and will continue to be so this season; however, we urgently need a quality dominant CB as many others point out.

Jonno quick

More likely to be Hammond than Schneiderlin starting. Either way, interesting what 2/3 years makes: Cork, Schneiderlin and Lallana were regular starters under the Dutch Duo - perhaps they were ahead of their time. Cork is more of a DM, so wonder how he would work with either Schneiderlin or Hammond. At times, we've struggled from having two defensively-minded midfielders; though, hopefully, its isn't the case with Cork who can also pass and retain the ball well.