thunderball

Austin's stats read better than Benteke's, but I would fear Benteke and not Austin. If we got him for £15m I would be happy though, we do need some one else up top who ever that may be.

It's the Nixon stuff that's keeping this afloat, doesn't seem to be anywhere else other than negative views.

Don't want another disinterested, demotivated squad player, specially at £9m!

Can't blame these kids, it's 33 years since we were a top side, this boy is only 21. This is what happens when you run a club into the ground, sell your best players and buy lower division dross season after season (fa ew exceptions I admit) and generally lack any ambition.

Even when you offer to triple wages they know the turmoil we go through every season.

Yes

We are the perfect club for someone of his ability and his age, as long as we buck the relegation flirtation that has become the norm.

Two seasons playing every week, in the shop window, in the most lucrative league in the world with 4 big teams waiting to pay big money if you succeed.

Any credibility to the Praet rumours?

I wonder if the due diligence is close and there is money to spend (and it's being spent like Spurs did before Bale left)?

Wouldn't mind Praet, Townsend and Austin and keeping Delph and Benteke!

Positives: Kojak back and scoring, and Gil back in consideration. Two players like having decent new signings. Cool, who cares about losing.

If he goes good luck to him. He has done the honourable thing and effectively bequeathed £8m to us when he could have left for nothing. He will be paid about £100k a week too and who in their right mind would turn that down?

He is a quality player and we haven't put players like him around him, so this will only continue, Benteke as well.

Until the management starts investing, our best talent will continue to aspire to ambitious clubs.

4 years we have been in relegation battles, next year will be no different.

Jonny Gould ‏@jonnygould

The deal is... Delph to #lfc with Borini in permanently and Ibe on loan - plus £12m. It's being discussed - but unlikely.

 

I can see Liverpool being interested in Delph so it's not far fetched. I can't see us selling not for that fee or those players involved either.

Put simply, this just cannot be true, it's crazy.

Delph is at least a £20m young England Player, more like £25m due to his contract and age

Not sure how so much confusion can prevail: would Townsend improve us - YES, clearly. Even if he was just a sub, he is a sub who offers a game changing skill set, he can change a games pace and offers penetration. Not sure these are qualities that Sinclair has, but this doesn't diminish Sinclairs value to our squad.

Secondly, sadly if we want top half, we need to employ top half standard players (Townsend is after all a young capped Endland player), much as it sticks in my throat, we need to pay these one dimensional sportsmen the going rate too.

I should also add we shouldn't care about Spurs fans dilousioned views, they've had a screw loose for years and years.

Remembering the shock when he decided to stay the last time...holding out hope for a similar shock.

Yeah, I don't know what surprised me more: Benteke re-signing or Delph re-signing. You never know.....

Sadly he is top 4 quality and we are a rudderless championship team, you can't blame him. I think we have been fortunate to have 3 seasons.

Youthful impatience may cost him yet, easy for me to say but at his young age playing every game (for us) will help him more than competing with Sturridge and Balotelli at 'Pool or Chelsea's riches. Man Utd can't be in for him at £32.5m, they can pay for the very best and probably will with Van Persie off.

He's not great, but in the land of the blind he's our one eyed king. To sign him up for another season would do no harm, we should keep looking at the long term solution though

Call me captain hindsight but Gabby should have definitely started yesterday. Sherwood definitely missed a trick leaving him out for Zoggy.

Captain Hindsight

I think he will stay. We need him more than he needs us though.

I do think we could do with an Aaron Lennon or Andros Townsend type pacy player, instead of N'zog, but Gabby isn't the answer to our need for pace.

Always has a pained, deeply troubled look on his face. I guess that from playing with an injury (or Vlaar)?

I never remember Gabby being excellent, really I don't. Cut him in half and you will see Aston Villa written through him, but honestly thats not enough. He has scored some important goals but he should have been only a squad player when we should have been looking for better in a starting position.

Offers little, but had a short golden spell two seasons ago, makes you think it's in there somewhere

Inconsistent, no quality at all, needs to be gone if we want to progress

AVFC

A lesson for Sherwood yesterday, and perversely its a good way to find out about your players too, shows whats really needed at the club [investment]. Just glad Hull lost because not sure how nervous we would be on the final day if it was on a knife edge.

So glad he is at the helm, convinced we would be bottom and gone already under Lambert.

Unfair to jump on Vlaar, he was poor, should of marshalled his defence and didn't, but Okore was very poor and Hutton looked out of sorts, there was all sorts of gaps in the defence. The high line away from home was a bad decision, and the midfield were poor at assisting the defence also. Bad day all round. Thought Sanchez would have been a better than Westwood after the second goal went in, also Delph gave the ball away cheaply yesterday but by then they were all rocking.

That said, would not be bothered if Vlaar left, we need to invest in a very decent centre back and build the defence from there.

Sad thing is, in a couple of years and a bit of luck, if we hang onto CB we could be competing above Liverpool, if we sell him to them it just won't happen. Same as selling Young, Barry, Cahill and Milner......

He's absolutely brilliant, if he can add shooting to his game he could be the next big thing.

The club should the team around him, Delph and Benteke

Jury's out for me, he is ok in our distinctly average side (a few exceptions of course), not defensively great though, and that business yesterday in the box was frankly unforgivable for a defender.

Call me old fashioned but I would rather solid defenders in defence and creatives in midfield.