lanky316

:blink: But we should be professionals, because we'd get one right at some point....

Were not professional footbakllers being the problem there but you made my point, if a player gets enough dead ball opportunities they WILL get one of them right, especially if they're picked for being a dead ball specialist.

Sold Georgie Boyd for circa 300K and a couple of cup runs and promotion without spending anything then picked him up at the end of the first season on the transfer list. Just double checked signing value £350k + signing on fee of 30% from Bradford who got him on a freebie. Had very bad luck with injuries. Broken ankle out for 3 months, broken wrist for 2 months and a few strains for 3 weeks/month at a time so I guess all the injuries led to them seeing him surpluss to requirements. Only had a couple of week long absences for us so been lucky so far.

And as predicted people orgasm over Beckham being back and praise a performance where we steal a draw against a not even trying Brazil side *rolleyes*. Beckhams assist was more down to Terry getting it right, law of averages tells us if you take enough set pieces one of them will fall right and it's down to the finish, identical to ther perfectly good goal that was disalowed for "being against the home side". Any other set piece taker could have set up that goal, even Jenas could've done it after enough tries. Who are people kidding picking up positives from this game, it was obvious in a competetive game Brazil would have left walking pace and gone for it a bit more, even when they scored at the end they weren't really chasing, just doing what they do. The funny thing is we know that the same people will be slating Estonia for playing our 10 at the back system on Wednesday.

What the fuck was that shit anthem they came out to? Didn't use it at the FA trophy o FA Cup final so why the hell play a shitty midi file over the loud speakers for this?

Man Yoo, Liverpool, Arsenal and recent ones Chelski Milan, Inter, Juvé, a roman side Barca. Real, Seville. That for me is a reason for keeping the US sports the same in some respects, I like that with the draft system lesser team can get a couple of key players and maybe become a force within a few years. The way football is now the rich are getting richer but that doesn't mean with good financial and man management teams can't move in there. Chelsea are historically small yet with a lot of luck and money they sneak in, but they were getting close.

Of the top 20 teams making revenue most were football teams, with NFL and the Yankees joining in. The key factor is probably American sportsmens salaries although we'll argue about how over the odds some players are paid for being rubbish you have kids playing on £30 million a year. I think that if push comes to shove most arguements against the league structure fall down like cards. I think it's feasable that most of the worries you highlighted wouldn't really be an issue. The one reason it's going to be a real chore is the way American sport is ran, American teams are started because "we're going to have this sports league". Very few of them have the historical identity except for a bit of sporting prowess gaining them it. People don't support them because of the small community of Thames Iron Works getting behind their lads playing on a Saturday afternoon. To go back now and try to create this scenario would be impossible. I think baseball with it's options with the AAA and so on is the most possible but it would mean a complete overhaul. I will still say that I don't think the "biggest sports team n the world" arguement holds much, this again shows that there aren't even the part time supporters. Everywhere else in the world only one Baseball team will be heard to the most. The Yankees have pretty much the entire rest of the world backing with merchandise which is what Man Yoo admittedly make a lot of their money from, people who'll never see them but spend the money on the shirts. If every Yankees "supporter" bough a replica jersey I'm sure they'd blow Man Yoo out of the water, if only because Man Yoo have a lot more competition on the global market.

The arguement put forward was that fans can't afford to go, so attendences dwindle. Playing the one game a week will mean more people go and voila. Plus additional leagues would mean midweek cup games. Is it a coincidence that the teams making most revenue in world sports happen to be teams who play these less games perhaps? When a team like Man Yoo are the richest sports team in the world striaght away the "more games = more money" arguement loses credibility.

Being spread means nothing and it'd probably actuallly then benefit the sport. If there is a chance your local team could be a top flight side you're more likely to support them as opposed to the big boy. Yeah you still have a lot of people going to support team Y because they're winning but people support their local boys. I think your pointing out of how "real" fans can't afford to go to 162 games a year shows exactly why this system s better. Play each team of the 20 in your league twice and voila.

People for a while have been talking him up as our saviour again. Ever since he was dropped practically you've had the people trying to talk about him coming back in. We know the English by now, and I'm almost certain, he scores a freekick or creates a goal and it'll be the same old thing from people of "That's why he shuld've been in the team" same as it always is with players like Gerrard and Rooney. They do the good deed and will get the same response "that silenced the critics" despite the one good out of the things they do wrong for them. It's always been like that with Beckham and I don't believe for a second this'll be different.

That's the problem with the American sports system though, it's not about the teams, or the entertainment for the people involved it's about the money for the organisers. With European sports, although you'd be an idiot to suggest people aren't in it for money, whether a team is making a big profit or not isn't the problem. Look in the Premiership, there are teams there with half full stadiums every week in the top flight and have been for a while, this is partly due to TV hand outs but if the level is good enough, people will still watch it. If the MLB is so big, the armchair fans aren't going to mind (unless their team aren't involved) too much, if they can still watch good sport. Yeah the big boys help with drawing in punters but there'll still be people happy to watch good sports and if the big boys are low enough to get relegated then someone will take their place. Look at Blackburn and Chelsea, 12 years ago one of them were up there as a top team, it wasn't the one who are now, who historcially are a fairly small side. I think the fact that the US has it's system (which to a large extent DOES work) makes it near impossible for this style to work. I still think had it been more about clubs then the league it would do but they can't possibly rework everything without a huge overhaul.

Behind Beckham, Lennon and Bentley apparently... Interesting to note how he appears to be going for the same team who failed us again, and again, and again, ad nauseum

There were a couple of bitter looking posts after the game but I guess that's more down to immediate reactions (poor refereeing and the usual strawman excuses) I think then noral analysis. I do think you hit the nail on the head with Crouch there though, trying to swing in crosses he'd have been the ideal target man. I do think more prolific strikers may have helped them but long range pot shots, it takes a special one to go in and maybe one of the efforts from distance last night was a real chance.

I don't really get that. Milan didn't fix any games and they didn't pay anyone off to win anything. They had one of their officials approach an official for Serie A and ask to drop two referees that had been selected for their games (which is actually legal in Spain, England and France). I'm not even sure the changes actually occurred, but this is why they were fined. I personally think their points suspension is a more than worthy punishment for their actions. Juventus, Lazio and Fiorentina though, they got off more than lightly. As for the game, Milan weren't any good, but Liverpool couldn't score so they didn't deserve to win.

Yup, but it'd take an idiot to not see us as the threat while talking up your own chances.

Meh we're only 10 points behind Gooners and Liverpool, we're closer to them then they are the Championship