david in sweden

it's really not so unusual for players to find a place in another position is it ? Calum Chambers found it difficult to get a regular start (as a midfielder) in our U21 side, but a freak injury to Clyne, gave him his chance at RB....and the rest is history.

Yes..... but seem to think he's played in both positions for U21's in the past....or ?

Oh...thanks for the update Wrensup. Bognor must play in some league below National League South, obviously he's a perfect candidiate to play in The Prem. ....anyone have any more " constructive solutions ".

??????....but at what level ?....who does he play for nowadays?....and Lloyd James has been playing in L1.

would bringing him back now go some way towards solving the RB problem that seems to bother so many fans ?

No, but I think he's not as bad as he's painted sometimes. I feel that his best role in left-sided defender, but he has no chance of replacing Van Dijk or Bertrand.

Red card in the U21 Cup Final last season .....? I'm was sure he got red-carded earlier this season ? I like this playing style, but with someone like Clattenburg as a ref. he wouldn't last till HT in today's type of games.

You're right. Terry Paine played in the first game (v.France?) but was concussed in the game and Alf Ramsey, fearing for TP's health, left him out of the next game - and Ball came in. The Winner's medals were only awarded to players in the Final, and it took more than 20 years for that wrong to be righted when all the squad who played were rewarded.

when listening to a lifestory's like Bally's....it really should humble today's young footballers who pocket £100K /week - yet produce little else on the pitch.

Sadly......you've hit the nail on the head exactly. Harry Kane had his first outing (aged 17) with Orient. He went onto to play for Millwall, Norwich and Leicester. In total he played 56 loan games and scored " a respectable " 14 goals . Add to this 34 games for England U17-U21 ..with a 17 goal tally he was next in line, and already back in the Spurs U21 side for Pochettino to use when he took over. All Poch. had to do.... was give him a shirt number. Likewise Ryan Mason (although older - now 24) had FIVE loan outs totalling 74 games in 5 years. He had played 23 times for the Swindon side - prior to Poch's arrival. Spurs squandered the inheritance from the sale of Gareth Bale on the biggest level of dross any Prem. side has had - with the obvious exception of Dembele and Eriksen. I would have thought that any of us - with an inkling of Spurs Youth set-up would have picked them ahead of the £ multi-million misfits Spurs had bought instead. Had Poch persisted with the " dross " and neglected these two, he would surely have been out of the door by last Christmas. As it was Kane was the man of the season. Seager and McQueen were both very promising already at 16, but both have suffered injury problems in recent seasons and had few games. Gallagher had a good season - up until the sad death of his father - followed by injury but I fail to see why someone with his obvious talent has been ignored by a poor Championship manager - whose side struggles to stay above the drop zone - in favour of "more experienced players" who quite obviously aren't DAJF them......

I agree with all of that Saint Garrett, but the main problem is.... that when he does " get stuck in "...he's rewarded with a plethora of yellow and red cards..... His disciplinary record is really frightening for one so young in the game......

I know he's made important mistakes, but no MORE than Fonte surely?... It's grossly unfair to criticise him for his poor performances at RB....when he isn't a RB in the first place. His best games have been at CB.

Blatter reminds me of those Presidents of " Third World Banana Republics " who changed their constitutions to allow them to carry on ruling way after their time is up.... At last, someone has the courage to kick them out, and now gone, start on the next level of management - who ought to have blown the whistle on them much sooner. Carry on down the pyramid until the secretaries and cleaners,(who really run the organisation)and then get a recruitment agency to find football people to run FIFA properly.

of course .....there was a time when that phrase was quite legitimate to use in that circumstance......a bit like " having a gay old time " doesn't quite ring the same bell.... Never mind....move on....it's the 21st Century now.......

....if I was paid that amount of money....10 years after I'd completed a job of work...I'd be asking for interest..

Good idea from OP Andy, and I'm not normally a major critic ......so I'll be careful.. THE QUESTIONS: Wanyama....might be happier somewhere else. Whatever it was that he CDFU ...has been done already. Take the money and run. Pelle.....I like him (as a personality) but he has to score more regularly and Koeman must surely re-evaluate his performances, and find someone else PDQ. Mané. (like MLT) to some extent...is a "one-off player". On his day, he's unbeatable, but he must be utilised in his best role - at present that's not happening. ANSWERS: Our defenders must primarily DEFEND: " Wing-backs " called (overlapping full backs in my day)...look exciting, but they rarely produce goals. Bertrand and van Dijk are excellent defenders that must be their priority. Fonte is on the verge of Legend status (and I don't use that word lightly), but 32 is past the crossroads in some careers and unless he gets a few MoM ratings, we need to look out a replacement. Yoshida can be good (when played at CB -but never as a RB) IMO .. Cedric is improving aat RB - but not everyone agrees on that. JWP is the "great youth hope", and Clasie is RK's favourite midfielder....play them for the rest of the season...if it doesn't improve, neither of them has a long-term future. Finally - A new striker. Austin (or an old fashioned crash-bang CF), might not last another 3 years, but short term we need goals until Jay Rod can get back to whatever is his best form..or he'll need to be replaced. This is yet another season for "re-structuring ". No Euro place, most likely no big FA Cup run, either. Cement a good middle Prem. finish - avoiding the bottom six.

Ronald Koeman's persistance with his " regular " starting side has gone by the board now, partly due to injuries but mostly because of a drop in form (by some). Spurs have been our "bogey team" for a decade..(it used to be Arsenal), and so we await the announcement of the side today with some trepidation. Fortunately, Gazzaniga wasn't the disaster that many of us expected prior to last week's kick-off, we can only hope the three season wait for him to hit form has finally arrived.... but I'm wondering what the midfield will look like(?). The strike force (such as it is).... will pick itself, and the only bright spot on the horizon might be the chance for Ryan Seager to be selected in the 18, and get more than 5 mins. game time near the end of the match. A good win against Spurs is long overdue - let's hope it's today.

obviously looking at our indifferent form in the Prem. (one) wonders how things might have been..... had we qualified - instead of Midtjylland (?) Despite protestations of a stronger squad, Juanmi hasn't clicked at all yet, Clasie may have been better, had he hit the ground running from Day 1. IMO Romeu may turn out better than he has had the chance to show (so far)..and Pelle has discovered that life after 30 (as a Prem.player) isn't a cakewalk..Jay Rod 's injury saga has become a nightmare of waiting....and even Mane has been "found out " by several teams who have " neutralised " him. The (supposed) strength of our squad isn't showing through enough to balance things out, and especially without a new Bale, Alex O-C or Shaw on the horizon. We went through yet another reshuffle in the summer, and...tbh. we may never successfully replace Schneiderlin (as was case with MLT, Niemi and Michael Svensson). Chelsea lost the " Lampard effect ", and although their good form carried them through the season, only now do they miss his presence. IMO Selling Cech was the mistake of the decade whilst, Drogba was a law unto himself, and the downfall of John Terry marks a defensive slide in Chelsea fortunes. I would have persisted with Mourinho, because whoever follows him has a hard act to follow. Their dressing room awaits a new "special one" who may never arrive. Looking at Saints' (and Chelsea's) league form ..it makes you wonder how their huge squad, and our minimal one will cope with the current adversity. Midtjylland ...with their " Bournemouth-size " ground and Chelsea " loan-ees " may end up being more successful than both Saints ...and Chelsea.

it's not the £6 million I'd be thinking about , but the thought that a £50K /week salary for 4 years ...would set us back another £10 million on top and ....if 50K wasn't enough for his agent ......well .....you can do the maths yourself .....IMHO ...forget him !

........and that's not the daftest suggestion I've heard today, either ......

....money is the correct word. Goodness knows how much they're paid....if £100K /week is the average...?....it's a long term commitment that they are saddled with. Abrahamovic's patience must be wearing thin......he saved them from bankruptcy, but ....would he think to cut his losses and leave a new owner with the salary burden?

........and also ....might have something to do with the playing surfaces that they train / play on, too.

.....latest texts seems to suggest that the Andros Townsend rumour was only a media story...wonder how much the bookies made on that one? Tonny Vilhena's name is back. One Dutch story suggested he would have come last year but his mother was very ill and he didn't want to leave the country - that's fair enough. OK ...he may be good.... but what we really need a good old fashioned, common or garden CF. I'm OK with the Austin story..(if he comes, or not), but with Pelle still not 100% and JayRod's return unpredictable, it leaves us with Shane Long as the only fit striker....

....and that's a very conservative figure .....even without consulting the stats.

I know it's in the Echo and other links , but...Andros Townsend ...really?.....I mean REALLY? Am I in the minority, or do others think this " speed merchant " is a waste of space?. ...he even finds it hard to get a game for Pochettino. Are we about to get " scammed " again by a Spurs deal?