givemeasmile

Guitar provisionally sold pending collection, USB interface still available.

The year we finished 4th behind Livingston was one of my favourite seasons as a Dons supporter growing up and that was under Skovdahl. 2-0 at Pittordie vs Celtic to claim 9 home victories on the bounce was incredible. Y'know, the Eugene Dadi caterpillar celebration and Darren Mackie tackling Rab Douglas to score, as well as Celtic players getting pelted with snowballs at the corner flag?

Need a sale, will listen to offers.

Thanks.

Bump still available.

If RVP is unfit then Falcao is a quality signing, but with all players available LVG is going to struggle to keep everyone happy. It's not like Man Utd are challenging for trophies on four fronts and are going to have a 60-70 game season in which every player will get a an opportunity to have a run in the team.

Defensively we're ok, I can't imagine that Blackett will get much of a look in once Rojo is on the scene. I'd be happy with Rafael/Shaw at full back as well.

If Blind signs it's a great addition, but I can't help but think that if we can land another CM we'd be in a far stronger position to get some form back before the next window. Who that signing would be? No idea, and this late in the day I'm probably just being overly optimistic.

Gumtree ad:

http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/for-sale-epiphone-sheraton-ii-in-ebony/1079229884

Bump. Open to cash offers, need a sale ASAP no longer looking for trades.

Thanks.

I keep reading Veron as 'Vernon' and laughing to myself. I'm having too much fun so I'll stop now.

Man Utd just looked ridiculously narrow last night. How are Wellbeck/Chicharito expected to perform when there is little to no service available?

Last night it was more of a 5-3-2 than a 3-5-2, and Adnan Januzaj is not going to perform well as an attacking full back no matter how hard he is pushed to do so.

What doesn't make sense to me is that there is a lack of quality defenders at Man Utd, so why attempt to scramble together a 3 man backline? 2 of Smalling/Jones/Rojo with a decent RB/LB either side of them makes most sense to me, no point in trying to force a system that ultimately leads to poor results.

Malkay McKay favourite for the Palace job, Tim Sherwood also in the running apparently.

I use a combo because it sounds good, and the Fender hot rod isn't available in a head/cab set up.

Choosnig a combo is easily the more practical option, unless you know you're going to a venue/practice room that will supply a cab. 

Judging an amp based on how it looks is fucking stupid.

Bump.

Also on the lookout for a decent amp head. Let me know if you're interested/have anything suitable. 

People seem to be answering different questions in here. There's a difference between your opinion changing on a band and and band changing during their career.

But my opinion of these bands has changed because of the changes made during their career...so I would say that the opinions made are still relevant.

I know it's probably a common one but Biffy are the main cuplrit for me. Amazing first few albums have been laid to rest to make way for the shite they churn out nowadays.

I've gone full circle with Kings of Leon. Loved them, then hated them, now I quite like them again as I think their new album is not bad.

This is tomorrow night, tickets are still available from the above links.

We'll be playing some new material as well as trying our hand at a couple of Scottish folk numbers too.

See you there x

Just watched Nirvana live at Reading and bought myself a DS-1 cheap and nasty piece of shit. Canna wait.

Yas! I bought a DS2 for pretty much the same reason, but I've actually used it more frequently than I initially thought I would.

Has anybody tried one of those digitech grunge pedals for a laugh? Are they any good?

Aguero, Yaya, Silva and one of Negredo/Dzeko/Jovetic is better.

 

You're a United fan but that front line is not as good as City's.  Especially as RVP had another injury plagued season last year.

We can agree to disagree, I'm just really excited about Rooney/Mata/RVP playing under a manager who will hopefully get the best out of all of them.

I also think that there's a difference between RVP being 'injured' and just being a dick because he didn't want to play for David Moyes.

I'm having a lazy morning at work, so fuck it, I'll have a go at this.

 

Chris Smalling has numerous weaknesses, both as a general footballer and a centre-back. Firstly, though, I'll identify his obvious strengths. He's very competitive and dominant in the air, but this is the absolute minimum we should expect from the man - he's a 6'4" centre-back! He's pretty athletic and can accelerate more rapidly than the majority of centre-backs, but he's hardly explosive when it comes to speed - I'd argue that he's more stridey than he is pacey. He's not a terrible tackler, but statistics seem to suggest he's more of a blocker, which is actually surprising, given that full-backs are often statistically higher on the tackle count than centre-backs, as centre-backs tend to rack up blocks rather than tackles, and Smalling has probably played the majority of his United games at right-back. He's a substantial unit, so it seems natural to me that he'll be more of a blocker than a tackler, as he seems to release controlled and disciplined aggression rather than being forceful in every challenge and tackle: he rarely dives in to tackles, and I think that's a good thing.

 

Weaknesses? Due to his height, his centre of gravity is quite high, so his balance isn't great. This is a common problem amongst centre-backs, but it seems especially obvious with Smalling - he looks very ungainly and his lack of balance definitely contributes to his limited technique and first touch. Yes, he is a centre-back, but I think we can all recognise that to be a top player in any position, you need technique and the ability to regularly control a ball regardless of the height and pace at which it arrives to you. To me, he looks very clumsy and awkward when he's not heading the ball or blocking a shot.

 

I will also suggest Smalling's distribution needs a lot of work, especially if he is to fit into Van Gaal's system of a back-three, as Van Gaal likes all three centre-backs showing for the ball when the ball is in the defensive and midfield thirds. I would couple his poor passing statistics with a general lack of composure and decision making skills. That said, some of his passing has been higher up the pitch and in tighter positions due to his frequent deployment at right-back, so that stat is arguably skewed. I think it still indicates a weakness in his game, though.

 

Smalling also suffers from blips in concentration, which are often disguised due to his athleticism and ability to recover his own positional follies. He can't rely on this week-in week-out for Manchester United, though. I'd argue that concentration is the primary ability a Manchester United defender or goalkeeper needs due to the scarcity with which the majority of opponents populate Manchester United's final third.

 

Plus, the guy parties hard during injuries and dresses as suicide bombers. What a drongo.

 

Of course, almost all of the weaknesses I reckon Smalling has can be improved upon or at least worked on, so he'll probably become great, but I was just initially making the point that the guy has weaknesses. And he really does. I'm not arguing that Smalling won't become a great centre-back, I'm just suggesting that he has a lot of work to do before he does.

 

I thought Rafael was going to become your new irrationally loved Manchester United defender.

 

Sorry for the essay.

Woah, that's probably the most in depth analysis of Chris Smalling I've ever seen!

In my opinion, most of his statistics are flawed in that they wouldn't make for the same reading if he had been deployed at centre half for his entire career. Getting extremely inconsistent runs in the team also contribute to this. I definitely think he needs a lot of game time this year, and shouldn't be judged too heavily on his form up until this point. If United are going to play 3 at the back then I think Smalling, Jones and a top quality signing would be the answer (Hummels?), whilst keeping Evans/Keane in the frame for the purposes of rotation.

Looking at the wing back positions, apparently Ashley Young has shone in pre-season along with Valencia and Shaw. Rafael can play there too, so there are options available. The weakest area is arguably central midfield, but with Fletcher back, Hererra in the team and a signing looking quite likely (hopefully Vidal), I'm optimistic about the coming season given the quality of the front line. No other team in the league has a group of forwards that are collectively as good as Mata, Rooney and RVP; and I include Man City in that.

Premier League:

1. Man Utd

2. Man City

3. Chelsea

4. Arsenal

5. Liverpool

6. Tottenham

7. Everton

8. Sunderland

9. Newcastle

10. Hull

11. QPR

12. Crystal Palace

13. Swansea

14. Leicester

15. Aston Villa

16. Stoke

17. West Ham

18. Southampton

19. Burnley

20. West Brom

FA Cup: Man City

League Cup: Liverpool

Perhaps it's the blind optimism that comes with being a Man United supporter, but I honestly feel we can do it this season. We had a great squad last year, but it was poorly managed. Van Gaal has already shown in pre-season what he is capable of, and the fact he got a Holland team with a distinctly average midfield to the World Cup semis shows how good a gaffer he is. We also have the best frontline in the league, and RVP will actually want to play for Van Gaal. I'm genuinely really excited for next season.

In terms of the other teams, I think Chelsea will get off to a flying start then fade away as they have typically done in the past few seasons. Man City will battle until the end but it will be our year, wouldn't suprise me if the league is decided within the last couple of games. Alan Irvine is a terrible appointment and therefore I hope West Brom get relegated; he is to the Premier League what John Hughes is to the SPFL. I'm backing Southampton to go down, but West Ham won't be far away.

Liverpool have changed too much too quick and will suffer in the same way Tottenham did last year. I'm also backing Sunderland to get into the top 10 because of their finish to last season and I also rate Poyet as a coach.

SPFL:

1. Celtic

2. Aberdeen

3. Motherwell

4. Dundee United

5. St Johnstone

6. Ross County

-----------------

The rest.

I always want Ross County to do well, and Aberdeen will finish behind Celtic but we certainly won't be the only team that beats them this season. Motherwell will never go away and Dundee United will have another solid year. St Johnstone are a good team and I couldn't give a fuck about the bottom six.

Scottish Cup: Aberdeen

League Cup: Aberdeen

Cup double/European qualification for the The Dons, we got close last year and have a better team this time out. COYR!

This one is a week tomorrow folks, please check out www.marionettesband.com to hear some music and see what we're all about. If you wish to purchase a ticket, you can do so at www.marionettes.bigcartel.com. Thanks!

But...Drogba!