Super_Uwe

It will take a bloody miracle now, but we ARE still in it! I don't believe for one second that Huddersfield will slip...but they still might. Stranger things have happened in football. The worst they can do is draw twice and we win the last three; with our superior goal difference we would sneak 6th (assuming Colchester don't do anything which seems unlikely given their form at the moment). I'm sure AP won't be telling the players to think about next season just yet...

Guys, I really don't think anyone in their right mind would give Pardew 10 years if he was blindly leading us down s*** creek and into oblivion. I don't agree with giving managers time for time's sake (like some used to advocate with Burley) if it is patently obvious things aren't working out. Also - I don't think people are necessarily trying to pretend that the first half of the season doesn't matter (although I can't speak for everyone of course!). I think what the general argument against your point here is the first half of the season only matters to a certain extent. It needs to be a solid base for us to then crack on and try and win promotion. As Docker points out, if we were bottom at Xmas in League One then Pardew's position would be rightly under review. Christ, he might have resigned by then anyway in shame! Yes, we have got a lot more money that most in League One, and this should make sure that we're OK. But as I've argued before, we are on a general upward trend at the moment - not perfect by any means, but we have not had this level of hope and expectation for 7 years at least. That's what we need to focus on.

I can't understand why you would want rid of AP if we're not in 1st or 2nd next year by Christmas (that's if we don't go up this year of course - it's still very unlikely but not out of the question). AP's mandate is to get promotion. Like most teams who see themselves as favourites, noone really wants to have to go via the playoff route because it becomes much more of a lottery. But what if we finished 6th next year and then won the playoff final? Would it really matter? Course it wouldn't! You only need to look at the top two at Christmas this year in League One (Leeds and Charlton) to tell you that it doesn't really matter where you are at Christmas. Winning the "first half" of the season is merely a matter of pride because you get nowt for it, other than a shed load of pressure as you're then the favourites to go up. So what will matter is whether we're in contention or not to get promoted, and I would hope that would be the case. I do kind of understand your point about not accepting second best, but if we use your logic we might potentially get rid of AP if in 3rd or 4th place next year at Xmas - that would be sheer lunacy IMHO.

Maybe I'm in a minority of one, but I genuinely don't believe Lallana will be going anywhere, even if a Prem club comes in for him. Maybe in 3-4 years time, but not yet IMHO. He knows that we are on the up, and he can be a pivotal force in making us successful again. We can tar all footballers with the same brush and say they're money making mercenaries, but from what he said in the Echo interview around the JP Trophy time he didn't think much of the moves made by the likes of Theo, Bale etc. Now I'm not stupid enough to say that he won't move - that would just be lunacy in the modern age - but he is clearly loving his time with Saints at present, and long may it continue.

I know where you're coming from with respect to struggling in these sort of games, but when all's said and done 2-2 is not a terrible result under the circumstances. Why is it that we were able to turn over so many big teams at The Dell? On paper we wouldn't have had a prayer, but football doesn't work out like that. The problem is of course that we are on such a tight rope now and really can't afford to drop any more points. We have to make a net gain of 11 points over 8 games, assuming the teams in 6-9th positions stutter badly. Our goal difference is champion and will save us one point anyway. Chances of getting in the playoff positions now - probably about 15-20%. But there is hope. Next season will be AP's version of Burley's 06/07 - he knows that there has been a complete lack of a winning culture at the club for years and years (I posted on this last year) and so it will take time. I know that the results seem to be the same old, same old - but honestly, do you feel that we are going backwards like we were under GB? I certainly don't.

I agree with you to a certain extent here. The problem IMO for BA is that it just doesn't quite fit in any more. It's trading more than ever on its old reputation - yes, there used to be genuine pride in the name and it was recognised throughout the world. But times have changed and because of the variety of different airlines available now, it's hard for BA to try and retain so many customers in the face of much cheaper options. I've been on BA flights in recent times; last year I flew to Sicily for £120 return. The plane itself was a bit shabby and hadn't been done up for a while, but I didn't really care - it took off OK! The main thing I thought about afterwards was to do with price - yes, I'm sure BA would rather fill the seat than not at all, but are they really making a profit on my £120 when you bear in mind all the other overheads such as the wages, pension scheme etc? As a customer I was delighted with the price (and I even got some alright grub as well), but you have to wonder what the real cost was for BA. It would be really interesting to know the ins-and-outs of the dispute. I don't agree with people who say "No, you should pipe down at get on with it" if they are genuinely being screwed over. Whether they are or not, who knows?

Ah yes, good spot! Seems likely that may just be the League 2 final if they can't arrange something else at Wembley. But not confirmed yet...

Trouble is I'm always a diplomat me! Yeah can't argue with that. The passion that the Welsh have for rugby especially when the Six Nations is on is something else IMHO, the place is absolutely rocking when the big boys come to town. And you did get a similar atmosphere when the footy finals were there. I'll never forget the sea of yellow under the roof in '03, it was just majestic. Still, I doubt any major footy will be back here for a while so I'll just have to wind me neck in and stop whinging!!

Antonio was my MOM yesterday. Fonte was excellent, but in terms of the match winning bits of play I think Antonio is a worthy winner. In any final you need one or two players to be on top of their game, and he was excellent yesterday. The finish for the fourth goal was so composed as well, wonderful technique with his weaker foot. Lower league football always gets such a bad press for being utter garbage and full of cloggers, and so he deserves every plaudit possible.

Funnily enough the pub I went to in Cardiff was absolutely dead, and so the barman was a top guy and agreed to have all of the TV's on full blast which was happy days for me (he wasn't a Burnley-Blackburn fan!). Having had the volume up so loud, there were definitely boos on screen about a second after NC was on screen, but by the sounds of it on here, the people at the game were booing something else. I'd really hope that was the case of course. I guess it's just a shame that this came out on TV because what it does is create these stupid rumours. Anyone who watched the game on TV yesterday would sadly have had the impression that there was very little love for NC but all the praise in the world for ML.

I know I'm biased living in Cardiff, but the Millenium Stadium is just a better sporting venue in every way, shape and form. It's the proximity to the city centre and the fact that there are numerous bars/pubs/general civilisation (!) near to the ground. Cardiff on a Six Nations day is just a terrific atmosphere, and the same applied when the footy finals were staged there. It creates a much better, fan-friendly atmosphere, and I think it's a genuine shame that the Wembley project went ahead. I have nothing against tradition at all, but sometimes change is a good thing. Unfortunately with Wembley you have a clogged up underground station which takes hours to get in and out of (from experience anyway going to watch England games) and there is nothing of any particular note nearby. It isn't bad by any means at all, but it's just not the legendary ground some would like you to believe.

I do feel a bit sorry for the chap. Having said that it is pretty shocking that he hasn't played a single game. You do have to ask yourself what exactly was the point? It's not as if he had any track record of playing for any club to be honest!! Maybe at the age of 25 he will finally kick on and become a legend.

I think there definitely are a certain proportion of people who like to have a moan, but again I would doubt that anyone on here really wants us to lose. I think... I recall mentioning a week before the Yeovil game that clearly things would have to turn around before Christmas otherwise we would be in a dogfight, and to be honest everyone at the club has done brilliantly over the past two months or so. AP had a point to prove when he joined us and I think we have got a top, top manager who's also hungry to succeed. He's been through the mill over the past couple of years and - touch wood - he will continue to rebuild his reputation with us! We have stability on so many levels now and it is clear that this is the basis for any successful side. Promotion is absolutely still on the cards this year - it will be very, very tough, but if we continue with our current form over the next 4-5 months we will be there or there abouts for the play-offs come the end of the season.

I certainly don't know Adam Lallana but one thing that is true is that the club stood by him when he had his heart surgery 4-5 years ago. I think we have a better chance of keeping him for longer than perhaps some people might think IMO. Yes, agents and clubs will ultimately have something different to say somewhere down the line, but I feel that this will be an influencing factor. Maybe he is just grateful to actually be playing football at a decent level? It is not completely inconceivable (but certainly unlikely) that we will be playing Premier League football again in 18 months time - if we can continue to keep picking up 2 or 3 wins on the trot I still feel we can sneak 6th spot this year. We are definitely on the up with a settled squad of players and he is clearly revelling in his current role within the team.

Totally agree! Tell you what, let's play 3-5-2. Hoddle loved that to bits and he was a tactical wizard wasn't he? To be honest, formations really are over-hyped on here. I do understand the argument of getting the correct shape to suit the personnel available, but whether it's 4-4-2 or 4-5-1 is irrelevant. Let's not forget that 4-5-1 can become 4-3-3 in the blink of an eye, just like 4-4-2 can turn into 4-2-4 if both wingers break quickly.

To be honest our set pieces make me want to cry! They are just so, so average and utterly predictable. It is awful really to see this from professionals. I don't expect our boys to be jinking past 2 or 3 players and smashing in from 35 yards every 5 minutes, but one thing that is inexcusable from a team of professional players is the inability to put some sort of a decent ball in from a set piece. Maybe it is a mental thing? I don't know. I'm sure AP must be doing his nut in on the touchline sometimes...:mad:

Just check out Jacinto on wiki by the way.....journeyman would be the only word to use I am afraid to say!!!

Unless I'm mistaken I don't think this guy has been mentioned - Jacinto Ela Eyene! Never saw him play so can't really comment on whether he was crap or not, but he never played so that's usually a reasonable yardstick... I suppose we got star struck at signing a up-and-coming Spanish star, hey ho. Could've been the next Fabregas or David Villa lol!

No change from the usual fare from Ostlund...oh wait!

IMHO I think football in 5 years time will be completely different to the bloated, corrupt offering that we see nowadays. Man City, Chelsea etc are not on a sound financial footing; they are propped up by continuous cash injections from wealthy owners. Every club in the Premier League is going around begging for investment as they struggle to stay afloat (Hull being the latest club in the spotlight). One day - and perhaps not in the too distant future - the lights will go out. Anyone who believes football in its current guise is sustainable is frankly living under a rock. We on the other hand could actually do well if certain things come to fruition - who's to say that Platini's proposals won't get looked at again regarding these clubs who basically put themselves into masses of debt in order to win silverware? We have got a very good structure at the club now, and in addition we have responsible, ambitious owners. Coupled with a decent Academy system we can become more or less self-sufficient, living within our means. Whether we succeed or not will of course depend on the pitch, but we are moving in the right direction. I'm not saying that the likes of Man U etc are suddenly going to sink faster than the Titanic, but at the same time I genuinely believe things will change. They can't go on the way they are, that's for sure. So maybe we can mix it with the big boys in 5 years time!

Love the superstition!! I always believed having a p*** exactly 15mins before kick off would guarantee 3 points. Can we get a winner thus ensuring immortality of said dump???!!!

Rather than making too much fuss over the formation, IMHO the key to our success is a settled side. We have got a strong spine to the team now, but more importantly we have shape and a real pattern to our play (not seen for a long time since the Marsden/Bridge and Telfer/Fernandes days). Whether that's playing 4-4-2, 4-5-1 or whatever, it doesn't matter. Look at last year with our "total football" approach - the team was chopped and changed week in, week out over the first half of the season - yet technically we stuck with the same formation. Fat lot of good that was! I am very pleased to hear that AP has a Plan B so to speak; when things aren't working it's important to have options, and mixed with a dash of confidence and belief it is clear that we are moving in the right direction.

Happy days indeed! Just goes to show what a few wins can do to a football club. It's a funny old game ain't it.

It is an interesting one to say the least. For me personally I thought he'd shot it - he was a great servant to Plymouth but got a nasty knee injury and consequently Sturrock released him as he felt he'd lost his sharpness - I was amazed at the time we signed him on a 3 year deal, even if he was an "experienced pro". Nevertheless, he is making his mark on the team at the mo and will hopefully steer clear of too many yellow cards!!

Couldn't agree more. Joe Cole has had a decent career but IMHO he has done nothing exceptional in line with all of the plaudits he received as a teenager. I think it is actually a real shame. Now you could argue he was overhyped, but your comments are spot on about how he was managed. Yes, both club and country have benefited from his more consistent displays, but for him personally he has lost a bit of that magic which I think is a shame. I really don't understand this almost demented requirement in football to have players who are good at everything. Why can't we just allow these talented players to develop and play to their strengths? It wouldn't be such a problem for me if there was equal derision of clogging midfielders not scoring enough goals or hairy-arsed centre backs not being skilful enough. But no, it's alright for them coz they put the effort in!. Just very frustrating as we are always whinging about the lack of quality in this country and then do precisely nothing to encourage a bit of (whisper it quietly) skill and trickery. Damn those flash gits. Anyway, back to the original point - great to see Adam Lallana in form. Just what we need frankly, we have lost so much talent in the past few years and long may it continue.