Dynamite

5 pound acca on:

Norwich

West Ham

Spurs

Chelsea

City

Returns £86.80 (Paddy Power will refund the fiver as a free bet next week if it loses).

I've also built up £7.20 off a quid free bet they gave me last week which I've put all on West Ham at evens.

And then a cheeky £10 on Stoke double chance against Liverpool today at 9/4. Hopefully betting against Liverpool this season will prove as profitable as it was last season.

Going to go for the Goals Galore bet myself. First time I've tried it so I'm hoping for beginners luck more than anything.

Blackburn vs. Nottingham Forest

Leyton Orient vs. Shrewsbury

Brentford vs. Sheffield Utd

Notts County vs. Peterborough

Hartlepool vs. Southend

Plus City suddenly getting taken over by the Arabs and bidding £30mil for him really forced our hand too.

The Fabregas thing baffles me because I don't think we'd be bidding for a third time if we hadn't had some sort of encouragement from Barca or Cesc. But it just doesn't seem like we stand a good chance of getting him. There's no good press to be gained from being publically rejected three times so I don't buy that it's a PR exercise to show we're in for the best players. I know Fergie and Gill have left and there's going to be changes from how we operated, but this transfer window has seemed very unlike United in the sense we're used to early transfer business and very few leaks coming out of the club.

Neymar and all the other Confederations Cup players (Xavi, Iniesta, Fabregas, etc.) are all still on holiday. Thiago has played a few friendly matches already and even scored in one I think.

Sky are saying Woodward flying back for the "urgent transfer business" is nothing to do with Rooney. Potential incoming transfer?

At least City aren't spunking £30mil on players the wrong end of their 20s for the first time this summer.

Fernandinho?

Swap deals are the ultimate 2+2=5 story when it comes to football rumours. The papers love them but they hardly ever happen.

Why would Ben Thatcher be in a Fergie XI?

I confused him with someone else. I can't remember who now.

Ben Thornley?

What a moustache. They need to erect a statue of this guy next to Michael Jackson.

I really hope we don't go for Fellaini. He'll cost a lot and that price has only been inflated because he's spent most of the season in a position where we wouldn't play him. He's an alright player but I don't think he's the answer to our midfield problems at all. Struggling to think of a great, available midfielder that we could go for really.

Who was the last player-manager in the Premier League? Vialli? Though that must have been late 90's, surely there's been another since?

It's definitely on the BBC website. Not sure if it's on the red button?

Lively first half. Nice to see Italy back to being a more structured, organised unit. It just didn't seem right that Italy's defence was so easy to break through in the past couple of games.

I think Spain will keep it in single figures so they're not completely humiliating Tahiti.

3-3. Could end up any scoreline the way this game is going.

Ridiculous penalty.

Really fun first half. Japan looked a lot sharper but Italy still possess a threat. I think Balotelli could pose the Japanese defence some big problems if they get him in the game more. Great half from Kagawa too which is nice to see. Cracking finish.

First five fixtures include Chelsea at home and Liverpool and City away. Pretty tough, I was hoping we started with a few easier ones just to bed Moyes in. The Christmas fixtures look winnable to me, Spurs on New Years Day is easily the hardest match. The run-in looks good though. If we're around the top of the league come March then I fancy us to pick up a lot of points in the last 8 or so games.

Thiago is some player. First half hat-trick to put Spain 3-1 up at the break. If the rumours about him wanting to leave Barca are true, they would be fools to let him go.

The amount of money Jorge Mendes is making off them is unreal.

The United one that's been floating around the internet is pretty much exactly the same but the collar is black. Nike are lazy bastards. This England one looks better all red than with a different coloured collar but it's still pretty shit.

Another shot of it. Collar looks more blue here.

Anyone else going to the parade today? Starts at Old Trafford at 6 but apparently that's capacity controlled so you'd have to get there around 3.30/4ish when it opens to guarantee a place I imagine. I can't make it that early so I'll probably go to the end at Albert Square. Hopefully it's not pissing it down.The weather is alright at the moment which, knowing Manchester, probably means the heavy downpours will start exactly at 6!

If Rooneys best days are behind him, when were they exactly?

Euro 2004ish. I think you could argue he was a world class player or the level below around then and in his early seasons at United.

I'd probably say Rooney's best season was 2009-10. Ronaldo and Tevez had just left, Rooney became the 'main man' of the team and was on probably the best consistent goal-scoring run I can remember from him. He picked up an injury but Fergie still rushed him back for the second leg against Bayern even though he clearly wasn't fit, and just the fact he was on the pitch seemed to really lift the team's spirits and it helped us in going 3-0 up early on in the game. I think he scored a brace home and away against Milan in the round before that as well as being voted Player of the Year and would have won the Golden Boot if it weren't for the injury cutting his season short.. Since then he's sort of gone back from the lone striker number 9 role to switching around being a number 10, winger and occasionally a center mid. That was the only season I really remember where he was unquestionably our best player.