At least you can rely on Saddam not to interfere in footballing matters.
― Matt DC, Monday, 26 July 2010 08:31 (fourteen years ago) link
o shit forgot abt that aspect of the saddam thing.
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 08:33 (fourteen years ago) link
Any other club change the ticket prices depending on how good the team they're playing is? £44 to watch Citeh at WHL vs £29 for the Stoke City game.
― James Mitchell, Monday, 26 July 2010 08:34 (fourteen years ago) link
i thought it was common practice? i knew spurs did it alright.
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 08:37 (fourteen years ago) link
I've just tried to buy tickets on the Spurs site and although they were technically still available, the entire stadium was blocked out as unavaiable. General sale my arse.
― Matt DC, Monday, 26 July 2010 08:38 (fourteen years ago) link
you will beg for those tickets, beg i tell you
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 08:41 (fourteen years ago) link
Uday interfered in football matters all right
― Ismael Klata, Monday, 26 July 2010 08:44 (fourteen years ago) link
i thought it was common practice?
Yeah, most clubs divide games into category A, B and C with three different price bands.
― I Ain't Committing Suicide For No Crab (Nasty, Brutish & Short), Monday, 26 July 2010 08:52 (fourteen years ago) link
Yeah City went straight into category A almost as soon as the Sheikh's money came in. B will get you yer Villas and Evertons and whatnot and there are quite a few teams in category C now.
― Matt DC, Monday, 26 July 2010 08:56 (fourteen years ago) link
This does not happen at Ashburton Grove, probably because about three games a season go on general sale.
― James Mitchell, Monday, 26 July 2010 08:59 (fourteen years ago) link
'b' games sound like the best ones anyway tbh, barring the boring boring villa obviously...
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 09:02 (fourteen years ago) link
fire sale at city
New rules force Man City to sell 12 players
Manchester City will have to offload around 12 players before the transfer window closes at the end of next month - otherwise they will be left with players they are unable to play.
New Premier League rules state that a club must submit a squad of 25 players on September 1, and only those players will be eligible to be named in a matchday squad. Clubs can supplement that list with an unlimited number of players aged 21 or under, but in Manchester City's case they are currently well over the 25-man limit.
Players such as Roque Santa Cruz, Craig Bellamy, Jo, Felipe Caicedo, Micah Richards, Michael Johnson, Vincent Kompany, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Stephen Ireland, Nigel De Jong, Kelvin Etuhu, Pablo Zabaleta and Nedum Onuoha could find themselves out in the cold if they are still at Eastlands when the transfer window closes. Robinho is also officially still a City player...
― the tape store called... (cozen), Monday, 26 July 2010 09:51 (fourteen years ago) link
i was wondering why this '25 man squad' rule hadn't been a factor in transers thus far- thought either everyone hsd forgotten it or i'd flat out misunderstood/imagined it.
city will have at least one toppish-level player left unregistered come end of august
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 09:54 (fourteen years ago) link
Hope Arsene's got first dibs on De Jong, maybe Richards.
― James Mitchell, Monday, 26 July 2010 09:54 (fourteen years ago) link
fuckin hell thought of arsenal with de jong isn't a happy one
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 09:57 (fourteen years ago) link
but yeah, arsenal, spurs, villa, everton could all be doing a lot worse than sniffing round that partic table for scraps.
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 09:58 (fourteen years ago) link
Given that City haven't yet spunked hundreds of millions on top level World Cup stars I think the idea of of Micah Richards, SWP and Stephen Ireland being left out of the squad is a bit fanciful, to say nothing of Nigel De Jong.
― Matt DC, Monday, 26 July 2010 10:00 (fourteen years ago) link
New Premier League rules state that a club must submit a squad of 25 players on September 1, and only those players will be eligible to be named in a matchday squad
I was about to flip out over this and call it the worst rule ever, then I saw the bit about the unlimited number of kids you could call upon.
― Matt DC, Monday, 26 July 2010 10:02 (fourteen years ago) link
Still think it's a dodgy rule though, it means clubs are more likely to offload a promising-but-risky 20-year old to a lower league club rather than give them a chance.
― Matt DC, Monday, 26 July 2010 10:03 (fourteen years ago) link
would be an improved rule without the unlimited kids aspect imo. either unlimited kids, 15 man squad or 25 man squad, minimum say 8 homegrown
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:04 (fourteen years ago) link
Given that City haven't yet spunked hundreds of millions on top level World Cup stars
??
― I see what this is (Local Garda), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:04 (fourteen years ago) link
xp it may have that effect matt, but it'll hopefully do something to address the stockpiling of young talent to sit on the bench. maybe not.
xp not this week
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:06 (fourteen years ago) link
Vieira and Gareth Barry != "top level World Cup stars"
― James Mitchell, Monday, 26 July 2010 10:07 (fourteen years ago) link
I meant this summer. They've signed Silva, Kolarov and Yaya Toure but going from that to a load of first teamers rotting in the reserves is a very big jump.
― Matt DC, Monday, 26 July 2010 10:11 (fourteen years ago) link
they kinda had a p big squad before that, though, not really let enough players go since last year.
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:13 (fourteen years ago) link
31 players on their site, and i left out 4 or 5 i didn't recognise tbh.
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:17 (fourteen years ago) link
did roy hodgson really say 'beef' wrt torres/lfc? amazing!
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:21 (fourteen years ago) link
have they signed balotelli yet?
― the tape store called... (cozen), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:26 (fourteen years ago) link
city? still btwn them and chelsea it seems
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:31 (fourteen years ago) link
bradford's grant gets 25 years for murder
this ever happened before?
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:34 (fourteen years ago) link
No, pretty sure that's the first time he's been sent down for it.
― I Ain't Committing Suicide For No Crab (Nasty, Brutish & Short), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:37 (fourteen years ago) link
Give Joey Barton time.
― James Mitchell, Monday, 26 July 2010 10:37 (fourteen years ago) link
25 years of it
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:38 (fourteen years ago) link
man city now the biggest net-spending club since premier league began according to f365 mailbox
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:39 (fourteen years ago) link
They don't seem to make much money selling players - their biggest sale must be SWP to Chelsea right?
― Matt DC, Monday, 26 July 2010 10:40 (fourteen years ago) link
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jul/26/manchester-city-liverpool-fernando-torres
i mean okay if pool got offered 70m for torres i think they should take it. but that said, where is the quote to back up the headline? the actual mancini quote seems to suggest if anything, city WOULDN'T be prepared to pay over the odds.
― I see what this is (Local Garda), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:42 (fourteen years ago) link
yeah, that's a bit of a reach from his quotes alright.
i can't see a 70m bid materialising for him from anywhere though, not with his injury runs the past year or two. one year under roy to both see how things work out at lfc and to prove he can do a full campaign again and then we'll see.
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 10:46 (fourteen years ago) link
Get this small club shit off the Tottenham thread.
― Matt DC, Monday, 26 July 2010 11:01 (fourteen years ago) link
ha
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 11:04 (fourteen years ago) link
70m would be a great deal for pool, tho ideally would prefer if he left the Prem.
― I see what this is (Local Garda), Monday, 26 July 2010 11:26 (fourteen years ago) link
70m would be a great deal for anyone unless it was Xavi/Messi leaving Barca.
― a hoy hoy, Monday, 26 July 2010 11:29 (fourteen years ago) link
Especially for a player who only plays half a season at a time. Hell you can buy a whole new team for that, or 4 superstars.
― a hoy hoy, Monday, 26 July 2010 11:30 (fourteen years ago) link
sell Torres, replace with Forlan, Aguero, Suarez, whynot.
― Merdeyeux, Monday, 26 July 2010 11:33 (fourteen years ago) link
exactly, he is brilliant but if he's going to be injured all the time you can't rely. plus i think these messiah will he stay will he go oh god if he goes we're fucked things are just bad for a club in general. and good strikers aren't that hard to find...sure they won't be as good as him but if you spent that 70m on a new left back, a right winger, a centre back, a striker, you'd get a fairly good set of players imo.
― I see what this is (Local Garda), Monday, 26 July 2010 11:47 (fourteen years ago) link
i think these messiah will he stay will he go oh god if he goes we're fucked things are just bad for a club in general
Exactly. If this wasn't the Tottenham thread I would say that Liverpool were over-reliant on Torres but that's because the squad is very poorly-balanced and spending that £70m wisely should help correct that imbalance.
― Matt DC, Monday, 26 July 2010 11:56 (fourteen years ago) link
I love Torres but I'd take £70m for him too. You could basically cure the first XI for that - Bridge, a centre back, Santa Cruz, Zamora if Roy wasn't such a gent, and probably still money left over. Gerrard would've been more useful sold too.
I am quite concerned that Mascherano is supposedly to be allowed to go, though, just cos he's exactly the player I'd want to build a team around and he wouldn't fetch as much. But even that should allow them to buy Bradley or similar, and they could even get by with just Lucas to an extent.
― Ismael Klata, Monday, 26 July 2010 12:30 (fourteen years ago) link
Isn't Masch just ignoring Liverpool until they sell him?
― a hoy hoy, Monday, 26 July 2010 12:52 (fourteen years ago) link
I expect so. Don't know where he's supposed to be going, but I guess most sides could use a guy like him.
― Ismael Klata, Monday, 26 July 2010 12:55 (fourteen years ago) link
Masch was back in training today. Well, at the training ground. Probably hiding in the toilets refusing to come out until they've sold him.
― The referee was perfect (Chris), Monday, 26 July 2010 13:00 (fourteen years ago) link
i like masch but i'm not sure he's a 'build a team around him' player either- 25-30m would be a good amount.
torres- i honestly think 45m would be about his real value, but with the clubs that are chasing him and his political importance to liverpool, it could well go much higher than that. i'd trust hodgson (if he gets to make the call, indeed) to work out at what stage it becomes preferable to let him go.
― "It's far from 'lol' you were reared, boy" (darraghmac), Monday, 26 July 2010 15:49 (fourteen years ago) link