So This Was Our Team Before We Spent £110 Million.....

Boruc

Clyne.....Fonte......Yoshida.......Shaw

Schneiderlin.....Cork

Puncheon.....Lallana.....Rodriguez

Lambert

Great work Les and all of the scouting team, you've had a blinding few years.

Reckon this team would've scored tonight.

What? This doesn't make sense at all.

We have had a blinding few years. Thanks, Les and all the scouting team. Here's to many more.

Boruc

 

Clyne.....Fonte......Yoshida.......Shaw

 

Schneiderlin.....Cork

 

Puncheon.....Lallana.....Rodriguez

 

Lambert

 

 

 

Great work Les and all of the scouting team, you've had a blinding few years.

That team looks agonisingly strong compared to the fayre we are offering this season.

Great work Les and all of the scouting team, you've had a blinding few years.

And there it is.

That was the clearest sign yet we've regressed. We've lost three top class proven players and replaced them with cheap gambles. I guess our transfer committee got cocky that we could do it again. Feel sorry for he fans, they must feel mugged with that substandard ****e. Sort it the f**k out.

Schneiderlin is the best in the world at what he does, without question, been saying it in the face of all the Nemanja Matic love there seems to be. He's incredible. That, plus the loss of an able deputy in Cork, the undoubted quality of Alderweireld and Clyne has been to much to bear.

We only spent serious money last close season because of the outcry and the fact they literally had to. Then it worked and they lived off the visionaries reputation that was bestowed upon them. I'm looking at you, Les Reed and Co.

Midtjylland aren't a bad team but we should never, ever have been in this position in the first place. A total **** up and the cocky malaise of the board has led to this. Koeman as well, if his comments are anything to go by... but don't worry, Virgil van Dijk, who plays against Scotland's equivalents of Matt Paterson every week will sort it out.

Boruc

 

Clyne.....Fonte......Yoshida.......Shaw

 

Schneiderlin.....Cork

 

Puncheon.....Lallana.....Rodriguez

 

Lambert

 

 

 

Great work Les and all of the scouting team, you've had a blinding few years.

Okay, I'll bite.

Boruc - nutjob and we have two better keepers now.

Clyne - would have walked next year for free, should we have risked that, maybe yes.

Shaw - 30m ... he could have gone for nothing in 2/3 years also.

Morgan ... He said he wanted to go, had we kept him, we'd have had a sh*t season from him, so I think it was right to let him move on.

Cork ... Just didn't want to stay to be second choice.

Puncheon ... No idea, but he wanted to "go home".

Lallana ... Again, could have made him stay, but we went on strike so wouldn't have played anyway.

Lambert ... No one wanted to stop his move home, plus he was also on the way out anyway.

So yes, great team, in hindsight, but we'd have a team mostly full of players who were p*ssed off and not trying hard enough. They'd have done f*ck all tonight as well.

Boruc

 

Clyne.....Fonte......Yoshida.......Shaw

 

Schneiderlin.....Cork

 

Puncheon.....Lallana.....Rodriguez

 

Lambert

 

Great work Les and all of the scouting team, you've had a blinding few years.

You've excelled yourself. Whereas that doesn't on the face of it look a half bad team at the time, let's have a bit of context. When Boruc was injured, we had a young Gazzaniga in goal. Before Shaw got himself established, we had the underwhelming Fox at LB. The CBs included Hooiveld. Other squad players comprised the likes of Stephens, Forren, Do Prado and Ramirez, but also Butterfield, Seaborne, Reeves, Chaplow, De Ridder, Mayuka and T Lee.

Easy to see that we were only an injury or suspension away from a very weak substitute.

And there it is.

 

That was the clearest sign yet we've regressed. We've lost three top class proven players and replaced them with cheap gambles.

how much did we spend on those quality players and how certain were we that they would be top premier league standard?

we're in the unfortunate position now where we can't give players a few years in league one and the championship to get up to speed. we can't blood youngsters at a forgiving level of football, surrounded by players who are playing several levels below their eventual peak.

the formula that tookus up doesn't work any more.

Okay, I'll bite.

 

Boruc - nutjob and we have two better keepers now.

Clyne - would have walked next year for free, should we have risked that, maybe yes.

Shaw - 30m ... he could have gone for nothing in 2/3 years also.

Morgan ... He said he wanted to go, had we kept him, we'd have had a sh*t season from him, so I think it was right to let him move on.

Cork ... Just didn't want to stay to be second choice.

Puncheon ... No idea, but he wanted to "go home".

Lallana ... Again, could have made him stay, but we went on strike so wouldn't have played anyway.

Lambert ... No one wanted to stop his move home, plus he was also on the way out anyway.

 

So yes, great team, in hindsight, but we'd have a team mostly full of players who were p*ssed off and not trying hard enough. They'd have done f*ck all tonight as well.

All of those players 'could' have gone. By the same token, the club 'could' have made them better offers that would have kept them at the club and shown our intent on moving forwards.

All of those players 'could' have gone. By the same token, the club 'could' have made them better offers that would have kept them at the club and shown our intent on moving forwards.

..? I definitely wouldn't pick cork, boruc and puncheon over wanyama, forster and mane nowadays. Nor yoshida.

You're just using this hypothetical situation to slate the board/whoever responsible and point out how bad we are. I highly doubt that in February you would have made that same post. Probably not even in July this year. It's only because everyones disappointed at the forgettable performances against Everton and 2 legs at Mitjylland that there's this kind of post.

We played well against Newcastle and got a great result against a very fresh and revitalised side, away. Watford we went back to basics.

Other than that, we'll get one or at a push two more signings, have the int'l break and pull our socks up.

Don't need all this living in the past and posting about players that we could have kept. We didn't, it isn't all about the money and some of them just wanted to leave. Get over it, that's football for a top 1/2 PL club who don't have that many local lads in the team. People are bound to move on.

Almost all the players brought into the squad on transfers have played in their countries' senior national teams. Just because they haven't cost as much as the inflated fees that SFC has demanded for the players who have left does not equate to downgrading the squad. Currently, Koeman has at least 3 top quality players not available to him through injury - Forster, Bertrand and Clasie but the players presently being used in their positions are arguably just as good as those who are missing. It is far too early for fans to be writing the present squad off for 2 away draws, a home win and losing a European tie by 1 goal over two legs. We have a great team and the supporters need to do their bit by getting behind them.

I am confused, You seem to be comparing a fully fit, all players available team from the past with a team missing 2 first choice centre mids, a first choice keeper and a first choice left back. Before we spent £110 million a team missing those first choice regulars would not have got a point at Newcastle or Watford and certainly wouldn't had got past Vitesse.

There's no point comparing the teams and quoting only the outgoing transfer cash. From that team we've received ~£100m but also lost the entire spine of that team so the net spend on that team is ~£10m. Our problem in the last few seasons has undoubtedly been the low/negative net spend; we're failing/unwilling to spend the neccessary amounts on players of a similar caliber, so whilst we've added depth the quality seems to be slowing leaving the club.

We'd look a while lot better if we spent £15 million on Jordan Rhodes eh?

You've excelled yourself. Whereas that doesn't on the face of it look a half bad team at the time, let's have a bit of context. When Boruc was injured, we had a young Gazzaniga in goal. Before Shaw got himself established, we had the underwhelming Fox at LB. The CBs included Hooiveld. Other squad players comprised the likes of Stephens, Forren, Do Prado and Ramirez, but also Butterfield, Seaborne, Reeves, Chaplow, De Ridder, Mayuka and T Lee.

 

Easy to see that we were only an injury or suspension away from a very weak substitute.

What he said, but with the most important word bolded.

cedric & romeu are replacements for Morgan & Clyne right? They are not on the same level right?

cedric & romeu are replacements for Morgan & Clyne right? They are not on the same level right?

Agree.