skarroki

Feels like we're the equivalent of Forest in the late 80's, outside the top 2, great team but still miles off investment wise from matching those top teams, top manager too. The teams below have ambitions and will start to test us and make every week a difficult game.

Credit to @useless after seeing his post and agreeing to the sentiment. Here's a short video of an interview after winning PFA players POTY award: Seems to be enjoying life here and talks about coming back to England to be closer to family, which maybe helps to ease fears from the rumours of her returning to the US that rumbled along in the summer. If you'd asked me who her idol was, even knowing she's a Yorkshire lass it would have taken me weeks to guess Mark Viduka.

Rachel Daly of Aston Villa, a fantastic footballer, golden boot winner, PFA Players' player of the year award winner, England international, the answer to the quiz question "can they play left back" Not seen a topic of a footballer started recently after they've signed so here's a video of 20+ goals to prove she's signing for us.

@useless do you think Carla will stay long term? I can't see us getting rid of her even if results aren't going well because I don't think there's anyone better out there and this feels long-term what we're building, she's partly the face of it all I feel like. I read recently that we have one of the smallest budgets in the WSL? Is this true and has the club given a reason why they're not investing properly in the team? It's a fear I have since hearing it that Carla will think she's gone above and beyond what's acheivable at the club if they're not going to increase funding to align with the increase in stature, good cup runs and high league position finishes.

Never thought it was true anyway

He's had a long interview on the " Not the Top 20" podcast today, he comes across very well, you can tell he's media trained. Sounds like he's enjoying his loan and talks about things that he wanted to work on during this loan spell. Gets directly asked if he'll stay at Stockport all season because he's moved clubs in January last two seasons and just does a politician style duck and roll out of it so that debate can continue for another few months.

Bottom centre for me. I don't mind what the badge looks like around the ground, on sky sports and FIFA. Just give me that lion on the shirt, without the star and 1874 underneath next season.

I would agree and personally I would rather have Watkins up front, especially for Villa. But I think Toney's presence up front means the ball sticks better, if he improves his passing then he'll be even better. I think a lot of big clubs are linked because they see how impressive he's been and believe they can improve on that with better team mates around him. I think another thing in Watkins favour is how good he is off the pitch and how little is spoken of him, he's a model pro.

Had a really difficult start with the fixtures but if we could hold on here or even take a point, I'd have snatched for that start of the season. Put it behind us, get Dali back fit and Hanson back from suspension and start getting some points and momentum. I've seen them talking about the Arsenal bench being good but Nobbs, Leon, Lehmann and Salmon is a great set of players to choose from. If anyone's starting to look shaky in the back 5 I'd think it would be best to throw one of them on and go more attacking, sneak a second

I've already responded to most of what you said in my original post so rather than retreading that I'll just leave you to your own opinions. If you think I'm on my high horse for saying can we talk about a footballer playing football, in the football section of a football forum, good for you.

As much as I want Watkins in the squad I think based on the ability Toney has shown he should be 2nd choice behind Kane. I think Wilson is 3rd choice in a lot of people's eyes and he does perform very well but his legs are made of shatterproof rulers. Watkins is indestructible and good so I think he has to go, he's a safe bet and not much of a downgrade if at all on other options.

Rinse and repeat the same conversation over and over and over and over and over again. She is popular on Instagram. There's a lot of thirsty men who know about her. A lot of people think we only have her in the team because of her insta follow count and some people realise that she's actually a legitimate professional footballer who plays in the world's most competitive women's league, for a team that finished 5th and gets called up to her national team. Just pin this and close the thread if this is all we're going to do. When was the last post in here about how she played in the most recent game? I suspect those posts are outweighed by "this is good PR" posts 20 to 1. I hope none of you are involved in PR if you think that is how this works. We can't sell more than 12,500 tickets for a 43,000 capacity stadium with the women's golden boot winner and someone with 45 million followers. If she's signed for PR reasons we've well and truly sh** the bed. I would wager 12,400 of the 12,500 minimum would have gone regardless of whether or not she was there. People with 1% of her following could get a room filled at a conference or a stadium several times a year. If there's anything to do with PR in her contract she's in breach of it because she's not doing enough to promote the team. She's doing the normal amount a football player at the club would do. The undertones of it all stink of "sex sells" as well, which I don't think is the way a women's football club think in 2023. Maybe West Ham but that's what you get when you make your money from porn and then hire your son to manage the "ladies" because you don't care about how that team performs. I'd like to think we're above that as a club and fanbase.

Lots of good points. Also to add to your point about him playing well at Salford, that's apparently what got him the move to Stockport, they liked his link up play with the Salford left back who had moved to Stockport earlier in the window. I was one of the people saying he should stay at Stockport but to clarify my argument was that he's moved around so much that some stability might be good for him off the pitch, as much or more than on it. If he can go up with Stockport and stay with them again and just work with the same people in the same facilities, that might work better. Otherwise it's loan club number 6 in 3 seasons.

The English Heung-Min

Thank god, saw this at the top suddenly and was worried he was part of an under 17 betting ring.

Can't help but wonder if way more people aren't involved in this. The fact these players have completed big money moves away from Italy recently before the allegations come up whiffs. Have to wonder whether Newcastle got Tonali completed so early and easily in the window, because AC Milan were desperate to tie everything up ASAP.

Was going to say everyone comparing this to Toney and Paqueta need to look at how quickly the Italians deal with corruption these days. Juventus were accused, looked into, charged, appealed and charged again in the space of time it took Toney to complain about not getting picked for England

Had one of them moments tonight when you hear a new song for the first time and it just scratches an itch you didn't even know you had, love that feeling. The new Bring Me The Horizon song - Darkside. It will definitely not be everyones cup of tea, think it's very kind of Linkin Park vibes, heavy pop.

This is where schools of thought clash. Most important thing in an attacking player for me, is skill and flair. If I watch a game on the weekend I want to see the skill and flair and things that make you edge forward on your seat. Of course the best have both, I would say Grealish was on the level of doing both those things, but they're extremely rare players and extremely expensive. Some of the flair that Zaniolo has is unteachable. The bits that he needs to improve on, we've got one of the best coaching staff and manager in world football to make that happen. The guy is very young and has missed a lot of development time due to injury. Considering the time out injured, he's played a lot, and at a very high level so far in his career, he's not long 24 and has been a big part of winning teams. Mourinho is well documented as rarely giving youth a chance but Zaniolo is playing and scoring the winning goal in the conference final for him at 22. Overall, he's come back from injury in a new league with a new squad and doesn't know the country or any of the squad or coaches. He's played 470 minutes and has nearly scored two absolute worldies. We've won the 3 games he's started in the league, Chelsea and Brighton two of those which aren't exactly guaranteed points. Warsaw is the only outlier but that was bad defending that cost us, we created enough to win. I think he's finding his feet and looking good and he's not costing the team with anything he does. I also think Emery likes him and trusts him and that is 90% of the battle won when evaluating a player these days in my opinion. If Emery is on board I am too.

I know Hutton is a cult hero and feel bad lumping him in, as I know he was frozen out reportedly due to his wages instead of attitude, but he was frozen out several times and is regularly mentioned in a list of "good lads" alongside a bunch of players at the time it was suggested were leeches on the club and were bad eggs in the dressing room. Ross McCormark even said they weren't bad eggs which I guess he would if he was part of the group. All in all I hold nothing against Hutton, it was more a general point that the players who in retirement talk about that certain group of players tend to be people who disappointed, had high wages, had their commitment / fitness / training / performances questioned regularly. If you're Lansbury and you're talking about how good Gabby and Bunn were instead of, say, Terry, Chester, Hourihane, Kodjia - then Whelan, Snodgrass etc etc during those first 18 months then it rings alarm bells in my head. Fair enough if you disagree with that though I might be reading too much into it and or being unreasonable.

He wasn't retiring though he was moving on to another club to continue earning money, he's already rich and he's got 2/3 businesses going in the background, one of which he cites as the reason for retiring early, because of how well the business is going and he wants to put more time into it. Footballers don't retire at 31 and then sit at home staring at a wall for 60 years with smashed knees waiting for their money to run out.

I think you could tell immediately how differently Lansbury and Hourihane took their careers. Lansbury started under Wenger and ended up retiring at 31 to push on with a lawn business after floating about injured in the championship for years. Hourihane came up from league 2 to the Prem and is still playing now whilst coaching the youth teams in his spare time and doing his badges. Both very talented, one unlucky with injuries and not in love with football. The other football mad and unbreakable.

Also he turned up to Grealish's holiday unannounced and uninvited?! The lad is not all there is he?

Surprised and disappointed if so. We have a great squad and manager, why are we not investing more in the women's team? Can't push top 4 if we have a relegation budget. Eventually others will catch up, overtake and sign up our best talent.