Brussels Saint

I've been in corporate once before when we were losing and they then scored again, one of their fans started cheering and generally celebrating. Some guy behind me took exception to this and threatened to punch him in the ear (strange threat I agree!) unless the stewards kicked him out. I've also been there when opposing fans have done it and no problems. Basic advice I guess would be so long as he's fairly respectful there wont be a problem. If he starts overdoing it, there is a good chance someone may threaten to punch him in the hip........

For me it's a cultural thing. When I'm back in the UK I never drink and drive and would wait until at least the afternoon before driving after a night out. I simply know and understand its not acceptable. In Belgium however, culturally it's not considered that serious an issue and pretty much everyone does it (think the UK in the 70's). As such I'll quite happily get in my car, not leathered, but having had too much to pass a test. If I get caught the fine is a 2 week ban and about €250. I do understand that I am more of a risk to other drivers by doing this, but suspect I am still more competent than old people, those having just passed a test (here you can even drive on your own for a year before having to take a driving test "as practice"), people speeding, not wearing glasses when they should etc. Besides, half of all other road users are probably in a worse state than me, so it makes it easier to "blend in"! I know if I read the above with my British head on, I would be appalled! There you go, thats the beauty and complexity of life.

Guy's it's really not difficult to know what's acceptable and what's not. If you are not sure, speak to a few mates and someone will know. I don't get why some would purposely try to offend anyone, be they a minority or not. It's not hard.

Ok just got back after the weekend and not read through the other reaction yet, so be interesting to see if others called it like I did. Overall it was a fairly decent performance, in a match where for large parts we were the better side. I felt we lacked a little urgency at times and crispness in our passing, which I guess is normal for a side which is not in great form. The ref was pretty poor and Blackpool did not offer much, but at times some real class came out. Bart - 3. Felt for him, he started very nervously and the mistake was not a huge surprise. I really think he is a good keeper, but he does seem to be one of those who needs to play for that confidence to come out. Bizarrely probably better as a number 1, than a number 2. Interesting to see how he comes back. Richardson - 6. Not bad, not great. Fonte - 6.5. Defended competently and not exceptionally troubled. Jos - 7. Can see why we bought him. Good commanding performance. Seems to be the go to guy for playing out from the back (which I love btw. Scary but good) mixed results from his next pass, but that will improve as the midfield read him better. Fox - 6. Sometimes quite good, sometimes decision making seems off. Sense though he does have the potential to put in an exceptional performance. Morgan - 6.5. Generally good. Cork -6.5. Neat, tidy, good player. Deano - 5.5. Just not as good as the others in central midfield. Really did not notice him much and for a player like Deano, if you are not noticing him, then you know somethings up. Lallana - 5. Needs to hunt the ball more. If you are our best player, you should know it and demand the ball more than anyone else. I'm not convinced Adam thinks of himself as our best player, I want him to have a Cantona-esk ego. He plays football like he's a nice guy and is trying to make friends. Would be much better if he enjoyed proving to opposing players how much better he is than them. Guly - 8. I watched him closely the whole game as he splits opinion so much, but Sat he was class. Great vision and always looked dangerous. He does though often wander around with shoulders slouched and a look of disinterest, but then instantly when he sees an opportunity, it all changes and there is huge energy and effort. He is a player who wastes zero energy or effort until he sees it's worth it and when he does, he's often right. Lambert - 7.5. Just a good player. Maybe a great one. Everytime I've seen him play he gets better, his touch, link up play and finishing are premier league quality. If only he was 5 years younger. How did it take him so long in his career to develop into the player he now is? SDR - 6. Definitely an impact player, but he does genuinely look dangerous when he comes on. I'm not sure exactly why he's not a starter, but you understand why without being able to articulate it. Oh and Steve, I know you know and I know you know we know and I know you know they know...............but pass!!!!!!!!!!! Harding - 6. Good standard Harding performance Er.......can't remember if anyone else came on....

You got it about right with your analysis of the risks I would say. My point about it being a good day to be British, is down to the national pride thing. We are who we are even if it ultimately costs us and few can argue the majority public view is fairly anti EU (in my view mainly because the anti arguments are easier to make and resonate more in an emotional way) The public view however is not always right, though politicians can never state that, but Cameron did speak for that view today and the hope will be he gets away with it. If not and we do get impacted badly, few can argue its what we've been asking for.

Cameron did well. Ultimately what drove him, is not his back benchers, or even the City, but public opinion. The British public (whether right or wrong on this) want nothing to do with European integration. Cameron above all else is still a politician and he knows he will be widely praised for this stance and that gives him strength. Expect though to see lots from him now about how important the EU is too us. By drawing a eurosceptic line in the sand with the British public and his party, he creates the gravitas which allows him to pursue understated broadly pro EU efforts to ensure we remain influential. The vast majority of our rulers and business leaders understand we need the EU more than they need us, but the reasons for that are so complex and genuinely difficult to present in an attractive way the British public understandably don't get it (often me too). It's a natural suspicion we the British have ingrained in our culture and derived from our history. I celebrate that Britishness, it's who we are, which is why I support DC's action. Some say we should pursue the Norway or Switzerland option in relation to the EU, but those are very specialised economies far from the UK model which needs influence at EU level to maintain its advantages. Remove that influence and our economy will suffer. The real question now is genuinely how much the rest of Europe is hacked off with us. If they accept, they also benefit from our membership (and they do to an extent) they may well be open to some diplomatic making up. If they choose however they could spitefully push us to the margin and that will damage Britain make no mistake. If I had to call it today, I suspect we will be ok as ultimately self interest rather than point scoring will be the strongest driver once the dust settles. Today was a good day to be British, I just hope we don't pay too high a price for it.

Excellent thread. I would rather hang out with Germans who generally (contrary to popular perception) have an excellent sense of humour The food in France is better and their focus on quality of life and 6 week summer holidays is to be applauded Both nations are blessed with girls who are filthy in the sack (bit like the Welsh) Germany wins it by smidge (penalty shoot out!)

Cant see it being over 30k, but when I booked my tickets on Monday, they were having trouble finding me 2 together (anywhere good i.e. not rammed right at the back), in the Chapel or Kingsland. 25k my guess, which is not a bad effort considering the KO and sky.

I'm going to this one, so really looking forward to it. Early morning 6.50am leave from Brussels........bloody 12.45 KO

I don't think for a moment that FF has an agenda against Liebherr or NC, but just questions rather than blindly accepting things. No problem with that. As far as this Journo is concerned, neither he nor any of us know outside of a few at the club. We can only go on what's happened so far and IMHO we have actually spent quite heavily in the summer +Jos. We can state the AOC money has not been used, but as far as I'm concerned I'm happy we have a budget and it seems a pretty decent one, but in line with a club of our size. The last time we tried the alternative, we almost lost the entire club. Never again please.

I think Guly is actually one of our most effective players in terms of being a catalyst and making things happen. It's these moments which create and score the goals which win matches. This is English football however, where workrate is elevated above all else by the average punter and will confuse demeanor and running effort (with often an " ah almost" end product) with actual result. To be honest Guly plays in England and as such fans have the right to express their opinion based on the football culture they have known and been part of for ever. If Guly ever wanted to win a popularity contest he would need to change his football mentality. I'm just glad Adkins picks the team.

Times or Telegraph for me if I ever get time to read a paper (a well appreciated luxury) and I do also look at the Guardian online from time to time. I also actually find the BBC pretty good for news and unbiased (and I'm a moderate Tory) 1976_Child is a 100% right about Poly Toynbee though, the word condescend was invented for her. I dream of retirement; an afternoon pint, a log fire, a chesterfield, a broadsheet and no one to bother me for hours. Actually I think you're right, papers probably are for the over 60's. Oh well, just another 30 years at the coal face.

Think the selling points are: 1, Bit cheaper 2, Makes a great Christmas gift 3, Guaranteed seat for likely sell outs (e.g. last day, Pompey home etc) Hard to pick fault in that, seems like a good bit of marketing...............am I missing something?

When I worked in UK, before the major East European immigration, employers simply could not fill many of the menial low paid jobs. We Brits were typically not interested in being hotel porters, toilet cleaners and factory workers. These jobs were in the vast majority, filled by immigrants, who pay taxes and have a work ethic not seen in a generation by the average Brit. Economically there is little doubt that our immigration has been a big plus (which is why the CBI and all politicians are happy to allow it, despite what they say to satisfy public opinion). Socially however there has no doubt been some negatives, but also many positives (East European totty anyone?) The problem is, its easier for the media to portray the benefit cheating, job stealing, non-culture adapting negative, as its sensational and sells papers, rather than make the more nuanced view of the positive. As I'm now an immigrant myself, I can assure you the continent is also full of economic migrants, aiding the economy or leeching off the state depending on your viewpoint. What is strange is why so many head for the UK also..... generally here in continental Europe the benefits, education and health service are better and should therefore be more attractive to the idle migrant.........is it possible that those willing to work hard, commit to making a positive contribution are better rewarded in the UK than anywhere else....... I think thats something to be proud of and not to actually knock Britian about. When its all said and done as a nation we will always generally welcome those who want to come and work hard and that cannot be said of everywhere. Our national character is why they come, not the generosity of our benefit system.

This is exactly right. The only player we have no like for like (in style of play) cover for is Lambert. Lose Lambert and we lose more than just a great player, but also the way we would need to approach a game. I'm not saying NA does not have a plan B, but easier if plan A is still an option due to a similar backup being available.

Ronaldo. ......the fat retired one.

An excellent post and really sums up why an open forum would likely get less detailed answers. (Can you imagine listening to a 90min long NA style interview) I was going to suggest maybe a fans forum with attendance randomly selected from the STH would be a good compromise, but actually the power of your argument re. Media presence and NC needing to be more careful with what he says has swayed my view.

Why are we banging on about the beer buying issue. It was probably a throw away comment from NC, mentioned as a humourous anecdote to show how happy everyone was during that period. I doubt a big thing was made of it and everyone moved on quickly. MUCH more relevent are the other things highlighted and should concern us/interest us more.

Rodrigues, (Could play alongside or as a direct replacement for an injured Lambert), Clyne & Jos. Kerrching!

De Ridders fee, I think was what was reported in the dutch press. Do Prado was a stab in the dark.

I thought it was 1.5m euro by the end, and as you say most of the add-ons you guess have now been met

The general thinking has been that our current squad did not cost us that much (relative to stated ambition) to put together in terms of transfer fees. I've often thought this was not the case remembering quite a few players who fell into the 1m+ bracket and if you add it all up, I bet its pretty substantial. As such below I've compiled a basic list from memory. Feel free to edit it where I've made an error. Based on what we've spent could you not argue that actually being top should be expected? Davis -1m Richardson - 450k Fonte - 1.2m Hooiveld - 1.4m (If he does actually sign and based on current estimates) Fox - 1.8m Chaplow - 50k Cork - 750k Schneiderlin - 1m Lallana - Free Lambert - 1m Guly - 1m Hammond - 400k De Ridder - 900k Harding - Free Connolly - Free Barnard - 175k + duff youngster Butterfield - Free Martin - 90k + Bag of Balls or something Bialkowski - ? Dickson - 250k Holmes - Free Punch - 300k? Seabourne - 250k Stephens - 150k Total = 12-13m Approx Might also be more interesting to compare this with what they are actually worth if we sold them today.

As always we want big name/fee signings and success on the pitch, but will moan like hell at selling the Stadiums name, ticket prices, car parking etc. Considering how we almost learnt the harshest lesson about spending more than you earn, I personally hope we never put our club at risk again. If it means changing St. Mary’s name to something corporate or charging us 50p to take a wizz, so be it. I know there are some fans out there who will say they prefer to keep the club traditional in style and it’s not all about big transfers and success (and credit to you for that), but unfortunately I believe you are in a small minority. Most fans want to watch their team play with great footballers and win, the rest is secondary.

I have theory about Forte and why he is at the club. Yes he can be a potentially useful impact sub, but never was likely to make the grade even in that restricted role. Anyone else think he may be most useful and signed as a player, to effectively test our defensive formations against blistering pace on the training field. If we are playing the following week against quick strikers, I imagine it would be useful to accurately represent that in defensive sessions with the first choice back 4. As NA states, "its a squad game" so perhaps Forte's most important contribution actually happens behind closed doors.

I believe this is known as "Rule 1"...........