wazzap24

Both of those statements are correct for me. Vlaar hasn't really shown anything like his top form for us in his time here. His performances in the World Cup showed the kind of player he can be. Dunne and Collins (Dunne especially) were, for the most part, excellent for us. Both played arguably their best football for us under O'Neil. So in the Claret and Blue, D/C were better players, but in terms of their overall ability as players, I think Vlaar edges it over Dunne (just) Vlaar is a better footballer overall, slightly quicker and reads the game a bit better for me. Dunne's main strength was his latch ditch tackling, when he'd come in like a train from out of nowhere, just as a forward was about to pull the trigger. Part of me wonders though, whether the reason he had to make some many last ditch tackles, was because he wasn't that great at reading things in the first place? He also had the turning circle of a double decker bus at times. I'd also factor in that Dunne played in a much better side, with better defenders around him. I'm sure Vlaar would have looked pretty great in that O'Neil side.

Lol. The varying opinions are actually making me want to watch it more. I quite like things that polarise viewers,

Move along at a slow pace is understatement of the year! Any slower and it would be going backwards! It absolutely is well crafted, but they really have pushed the definition of dull in episodes 3 and 4 to a whole new level. And why stop with the midway split after 2 episodes? I thought that was working quite well and one thing that was holding my attention. Really needs to start going somewhere, becuase at the moment it's a very well made soap opera imo. It's doing ok on Metacritic to be fair, 14 positive, 7 mixed and 1 poor. I've not started it yet, but it apparently gets better as it goes along

Yep, especially the mental fatigue bit. I don't care who you are, or what you get paid, if you have worked under that much pressure over a period of time, when it's lifted, you realise just how hard you've been going at it and the crash is inevitable.

I'm with you, I don't think it's a dreadful group of players at all. It's a cracking opportunity for a manager to do a decent job, even if the status quo remains in terms of investment. It's a young squad, a lot of players with potential to improve, well balanced in most positions, wages under control - no need for further cuts and a couple of very valuable assets. Lacks quality, but if he can manoeuvre a few out and sweat the budget as best he can, there is no reason a top 10 finish should not be the aim, with an expectation of 12-14th.

Cracking player, but too many barriers in the way I would have thought. Would be a great signing though.

He is one I would keep for now, but he needs to improve. With a full pre-season under Sherwood and the summer to settle into life here a bit more, he might come good. He's shown glimpses of being a really good player. He's struggled with the pace of it over here. Under the added pressure of being in a relegation battle and playing alongside players who themselves have struggled for consistent form, he hasn't been a disaster to be fair to him.

Agreed, £10m would be way too much. I'd take him for £5/6m though. His end product isn't woeful, just inconsistent. A top winger, with pace and consistent end product would be way out of our league at this moment. He's the kind of player who can make a difference and we lack genuine widemen.

You could be right on the price, but Spurs have a pretty large squad and plenty of underachieving players. MP will want to bring his own players in, so you might be able to get him for a reasonable fee.

Sherwood said we needed to look at different ways of playing for those that weren't getting in the side. I'm hoping he meant Gil, but not holding my breath.

He's not fit. He's only training once a week and might need more surgery. Taking that into account, he's done really well for us this year. If he can get that knee properly sorted, there is a quality centre half there.

Ahh the joy of opinions. Townsend is one I would love to see us sign to be honest. I think he would be a realistic signing, who would give us a different option in wide areas. He is by no means a world beater, but for the level we are at/trying to get to, I think he would be a fine signing.

Is that a little bit of ITK or just opinion Richard? On the face of it, he seems the type of player that would do well under an attack minded manager? I do find it odd that he didn't get at least a sub appearance yesterday. Personally, I would have started either him or Bacuna in place of Nzogbia.

It was one (of many) concerns I had too, but to be fair I think he recognises this. He made comments yesterday about finding different ways of playing. What worries me is, how much of what he says he will actually do and how much of it is soundbites for the media?

Lol, I like Willis as well, but just because he is a cantankerous old word removed

That's a good summary, and the way we played v Liverpool suggests that we've got a managerial genius on our hands. Then again there was the FA Cup final, beside that Liverpool game the revival has pretty much been based on Benteke's full recovery from injury/improved coaching [delete as appropriate]. Mainly my beef is that I'm so baffled by him playing N'Zogbia (and not Gil, or Sinclair, or Guzan) that I actually feel angry about it. In the end, I don't think he will be either a genius or a dud. Like most manages, he has good points and bad. We have just got to hope his good points outweigh the bad ones whilst he is here. At the moment I think they will, but I would put any significant money on him being a success.

I love Bumble.

I was one of those who were dead set against his appointment. I'd have pretty much taken anyone else but Sherwood and thought the appointment was bordering on a McLeish level of stupidity. He's done a better than I thought he would and certainly deserves credit for changing the atmosphere around the club and getting the team to play in a more positive manner. I don't think we should go overboard with ether praise or criticism at this point. He's done what I would describe as a 'solid' job so far. A 7/10 on the managerial scale. We were at a very low ebb and he has certainly lifted us, but I don't think steering us to safety is any kind of epic achievement. For me, he basically got what I thought Lambert should have been getting out of this group of players. The squad is average, but there are some gems in there and my own view is, the current squad is good enough to be around 10-12th place. I think we have a better SQUAD than WBA, Palace, Sunderland, Leicester (and arguably we have players at least on a par with the like of West Ham, Swansea, Newcastle and Stoke). We certainly shouldn't need a complete overhaul of the squad, just to compete with the teams mentioned next year. It's too early to judge him. He's shown there is more to him than I thought, but equally he has confirmed some of the misgivings I had about him. I do worry about the amount of control he seems to have been given, because if it does go Pete Tong, then we are back to square one, but that's a different debate I suppose.

Got this downloaded on my sky go app, ready for a night away next week. Looking forward to watching it. Has Denzel ever been in anything bad?

Let's just hope we can get to 300 and hopefully the 'king of swing' might have an unplayable spell in these conditions.

I've just watched this weeks ALOTO. Cheered me up no end. Winston is a UNIT!

Abroad is the best hope I reckon, Qatar, China or maybe MLS.

With his performances over the past 4 years and the wages he's on, we will probably need to pay someone to take him, not the other way around!

Just seen it on Sky news. It was in response to being asked 'when does the process begin for changing the squad (or something like that anyway)' Sherwood said something like; "it already has, some of the boys have already been told they won't be here, or can find new clubs" He then said something about being fair and honest with 'experienced players' Ended with "we will be bringing players in"

Eh? Looks like it's true. Henry Winter amongst other journo's reporting the same quote from Sherwood. Told them in the dressing room after the game apparently. Fun trip back on the bus. @henrywinter: Sherwood: "Some of the boys have been told they will not be here next year and they can go and find other clubs."