^ I think the current vogue term is McBoro. Forest 15th? No chance you'll go that low! Bristol are making good signings and Coppell's a good manager. Couple that with the uselessness of 3/4 of the league and I give them a good shout of being up there.
Liverpool played well last night with some youngsters showing promise so I'm chuffed lol. Nice to see Ngog get a couple of goals.
My friend you've obviously never seen Forest in the playoffs where we can blow 2 goal leads in a blink of the eye With Forest theres always more lower.
I think Forest will do well this year if they can keep the majority of their best players I think they could be in the playoffs or just outside of it come the end of the season imo.
Billy doesn't know his best system IMO and we still lack that winger that can rip a team to parts ever since Commons Left. I really respect the hard working Cohen but on the other wing we could do with a little bit of flair, maybe Peter Wittingham who we've been trying to sign for 12 months. Also I'd prefer to play a 5 man midfield so we can get the best out of both Majewski and McGugan because we did not get enough goals from midfield last season and had mis firing forwards with the exception of Earnshaw so no need to play 2 up front. I would also love us to sign Nickey Shorey who cannot find a PL club so should suck it up and drop a league. From our squad I rate highly... Camp Gunter McKenna McGugan Majewski Earnshaw Cohen I feel any of those could make it into the PL with a team and the rest of squad is very so/so.
And La Liga. One minute Barcelona are having to borrow money to player wages, the next they're bidding £30m for Fabregas! And then you've got the Spanish royal family constantly bailing out Real Madrid..... Forest should be there or thereabouts for the playoffs I'd have thought. Although if I were you I'd get rid of Billy as soon as I possibly could, he'll only stick the knife in your back in the end.
I quite like this little piece in the Observer today http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/aug/01/championship-fans-preview-season Gives a nice little taste of what people are thinking or looking forward to this season. And the hate figures section is always good. I'm hurt that Cardiff apparently dislike Swansea's Alan Tate (fuck yes we do, him and that.... Pratley and Ashley Williams) yet Swansea hate everything about Cardiff! Amused by all the people tipping us to go up as well haha. The Cardiff representative has got it more or less spot on for me.
Ok I'm starting to see things your way now...kinda nice to see a man putting his family above a paycheck (not that he's poor by any stretch of the imagination, but reckon a whole host of other teams would have paid him more than City will.) Talking of oldies, I see Sol is back in black and white stripes again, hopefully he will play more than one game for Newcastle
Last season I got right the top 3 and also who was going down so am going to have another go this year... My PL 2010-2011 Prediction 1. Chelsea 2. Man Utd 3. Arsenal 4. Manchester City 5. Tottenham Hostpur 6. Liverpool 7. Everton 8. Aston Villa 9. Stoke City 10. Sunderland 11. Birmingham City 12. Fulham 13. Blackburn Rovers 14. West Ham Utd 15. Bolton Wanders 16. Newcastle Utd 17. Wolves 18. West Brom 19. Wigan 20. Blackpool Championship Winners = Hull City Runners Up = Cardiff City Playoff Winner = Ipswich Town I go for Hull because they have a good manager in Pearson and have not loss too many players from there squad. I pick Cardiff because well its about time after so many near misses over recent years. Ipswich Town bar a poor start would of made it into the top 6 last year with the form they shown from Nov-May so I feel they will avoid the dodgy start this time around. I have Leeds to go right back down also but thats enough picks from me.
Nah last year was the year and we blew it. Thanks though I don't see any of those 3 teams going up. At the top: David James to end his career with a dazzling string of saves in the play-off final v Burnley. Bristol and Boro to go up with one from Reading, Hull and Preston. Well, maybe not Preston. Or Hull. League winners to have record low points total. Oh screw it, all these teams are average. Cardiff City to make the play-offs but spare me the final humiliation and have the decency to get destroyed in the semi. Mass exodus, liquidation and new life in Newport County's division as South Glamorgan United. At the bottom: Millwall and Scunny to go down, but with a fight unlike poor Portsmouth, who this time next year will be in... The Reckoning: Sheff Wed to win with Saints and Huddersfield joining them in the ascent. Rochdale to return to their favourite league... The Struggle: I know nothing about League Two, it's a total lottery.* The Prem... geez, I just cannot do it this year. I will generalise though: Usual title fight, to the script. I'll go out on a limb and fancy United to reclaim it, humiliate Liverpool with their record 19th title, Fergie to retire, Hernandez and Valencia the stars of the season Villa to get worse and Everton to get better. With a good start, Everton for Europe where they and Arteta belong Liverpool to finish 6th at most City to win sod all, maybe get 4th Spurs to crash and burn but still come in the European places Bolton the dark horses for top 10/Europe - they're building nicely and are playing something resembling football these days. Stoke to be nowhere near 9th - you need something resembling away form for that Blackburn, Wolves, Fulham to be incredibly average Blackpool relegated by April West Brom to do the unthinkable and stay up for once Newcastle to skirt with relegation - look at that bloody squad - and more than likely mess it up One from Wigan, West Ham and Wolves to join them. Nailed-on it's Wigan if they let N-Zogbia go, as much as it pains me to go against them The Prem and the Champo are going to be brilliant this year. There's nothing between anyone either, save for the very top and very bottom. And Blackpool. *oh how I wish I could remember where I heard those names for Leagues One and Two...
The papers are buzzing about whose going to be dropped when Capello names his squad on saturday, which is supposed to signal a new era, am sure . Anyway heres my personal 23 man squad... GK - Hart, Robinson, Foster RB - Johnson, Richards CB - Shawcross, Dawson, Cahill, Jagielka LB - Gibbs, Warnock RM - Lennon, A.Young CM - Rodwell, Huddlestone, Wilshere, Milner LM - A.Johnson, Walcott FW - Agbonlahor, Crouch, Defoe, Zamora -------------- Hart-------------- Richards Cahill Dawson Warnock -----Huddlestone Rodwell----- Agbonlahor Milner A.Johnson -------------Zamora-------------- Give the likes of Wilshire, Gibbs and Shawcross 45 mins in the 2nd half and probably push Agbonlahor more up front later in match but I do think young Gabby with his pace could do what Podolski does for Germany. If we are going to play a 4-2-3-1 then we need two proper holding players and hopefully Rodwell can do it with Barry in the long run. Wilshire was thought off as a winger and he can probably do that but after seeing Ozil in WC I think we can make him a CAM and give him proper freedom and not hold him back liek we have done with players in the past. Maybe even Wilshire could adpot the gerrard Liverpool role in the future.
And I thought there are more clubs out there in Europe. Now the EC is becoming just as boring as our national league.
Unfortunately I'm backing Villa for this one. I need them, Liverpool and City to have a good run in Europe to distract them from the league in order to win me money on my Everton for Europe bet.
It would be hilarious if we could beat them again, but I really really doubt it. If they lose again they'll probably suck in the league too though so no worries.
Villa haven't strengthened at all this year, so unless their younger players come good I don't see them doing much. Certainly not as high as 6th again. Can your boys at least score really really quickly again?
Uninteresting fact of the day : the French ligue 1 starts today yeah It's always more interesting before it starts so today is the last day to be excited about it
The season is underway now, for which I'm glad. We (Southampton) didn't get off to the best start. Our opening day curse struck again. We should get promoted but I think we need another winger and another big striker. But at least Pompey lost their first game too.