2007/2008 season thread

[Camie]

Unrelated to the current topic what does everyone think about Burns being odds on for the Scotland job?

I'd rather have George Burley to be honest but that's just my tuppence worth.

[RossP]

Unrelated to the current topic what does everyone think about Burns being odds on for the Scotland job?

I'd rather have George Burley to be honest but that's just my tuppence worth.

I've yet to hear or meet anyone who thinks it's a good idea

I still have bad memories of his only game in charge v. Sweden

[RossP]

that seems a bit unfair. how's he meant to win with that? if he stays he's scared, if he goes he's just in it for the money.

Do we want him to win? o_O

[Camie]

I've yet to hear or meet anyone who thinks it's a good idea

I still have bad memories of his only game in charge v. Sweden

Well with Burns in charge, Celtic were raped by Rangers every season so I would say it's a bad idea too.

When was he in charge? I can't recall that. Was that after Vogts?

[delboy]

Sky Sports are reporting that it's going to be someone British. If that's the case I think it'll be little more than a sidestep for the club, and Christ, if Steve McClaren gets it I'm going to wring someone's neck. There was some mong on SSN saying "Mike Ashley should take the job with Gazza as his assistant"... laugh? I almost pissed myself.

Shearer would be a terrible appointment.

aren't a lot of the fans wanting shearer?? usually when a former player returns as manager its a disaster and shearer has proved to be a terrible pundit so lord knows how bad he would be as a manager!!! i'm sure hanson has persuaded him that his future lies on the MOTD couch.

but this new owner bloke likes hanging around with the toon army doesn't he? capello is the man for the job i think but sadly he's taken! it needs a capello or lippi to sort out the mess that is newcastle fc. it needs someone who can get the best out of the squad - on paper they should be in a european place but as we all know paper means jack shit!!!

[RossP]

Well with Burns in charge, Celtic were raped by Rangers every season so I would say it's a bad idea too.

When was he in charge? I can't recall that. Was that after Vogts?

BBC SPORT | Football | Internationals | Scotland 1-4 Sweden

Burns has done nothing to suggest he'd be a good manager. At this stage i'd accept McGhee taking on a part time post, keeping his job with Motherwell; before going full time once the SPL season ends in May

[Murrr]

aren't a lot of the fans wanting shearer?? usually when a former player returns as manager its a disaster and shearer has proved to be a terrible pundit so lord knows how bad he would be as a manager!!! i'm sure hanson has persuaded him that his future lies on the MOTD couch.

but this new owner bloke likes hanging around with the toon army doesn't he? capello is the man for the job i think but sadly he's taken! it needs a capello or lippi to sort out the mess that is newcastle fc. it needs someone who can get the best out of the squad - on paper they should be in a european place but as we all know paper means jack shit!!!

A lot of our, how do I put this, "less mentally sophisticated" fans want Shearer in charge at the moment. Don't get me wrong, there is nobody I'd rather see leading us towards a trophey than Alan but employing someone with no managerial experience is a stupid idea given our current situation. It worked for Sunderland in the Championship fair enough, but I'd rather see him learning how to do things at a lower level first.

Mike Ashley loves a bit of sitting with the fans which is admirable but I think it may have contributed towards Sam's downfall. Ashley admits himself that he doesn't know a great deal about the game, so imagine what effect sitting around a bunch of mad Geordies chanting "You're getting sacked in the morning" and "We're shite and we're sick of it" might have had on him.

I would absolutely LOVE Marcello Lippi, that would be a phenomenal appointment, Capello would have been brilliant too, but I don't think it's going to happen. I get the impression we're going to end up with Redknapp or someone of that ilk.

[Sam 45]

As long as Souness doesn't get the Scotland job....

[Jim Stax]

Bloomin

Damn it!

Going on an expenses paid research trip to Munich a friggin week and a half after the friggin Dons game. A shade unlucky with the timing there. Och weel.

[calum]

There's a lot of talk about Hutton being scared of failure; since there'd be big expectations of him being a success down south. Perhaps there is some truth in it? Must be easier to play against the likes of Roy McBain and co, than it would be to play against Cristiano Ronaldo 8-)

I think that's true of a lot of Old Firm players. They'd rather stay and be idolised and overrated in Scotland than go to England and get found out for the shite they are. That said, Hutton already gets found out quite badly for Rangers and Scotland with some regularity. He has no composure, no positional sense and no real technical ability to speak of (knocking the ball past a player and running very fast doesn't count). Pace and commitment just aren't enough to make a Premiership/international class player.

And he's a first class c*nt.

[-matthEw-]

calm down, although Hutton is nothing special defensively, he is great at going forward which is just as important part to a full backs game these days.

and he hardly got 'found out' against Italy and France did he? gotta remember, he wont exactly be on a modest wage down Ibrox and i bet Alex Fergusons had a word in his ear to sit tight until the summer.

[Chris]

I was reading yesterday that the Spurs manager doesn't even know who Hutton is and that it's the director of football that's trying to buy him, the article (think it was in the Herald or the Scotsman) reckoned that Hutton might have been put off going by the manager not being involved in the process. Guess he figures the only loser when a player is forced onto a manager is the player.

Or he could just be a pathetic hun who doesn't want to leave his beloved Rangers and no longer be one of the big fish in the small pond.

[Guest idol_wild]

and he hardly got 'found out' against Italy and France did he? gotta remember, he wont exactly be on a modest wage down Ibrox and i bet Alex Fergusons had a word in his ear to sit tight until the summer.

This guy is basing a career on two good performances for the national team. I find this incredible. He's not even an outstanding performer at SPL level, so why he'd be effective in the EPL is quite beyond me. Apparently he's great going forward - but he doesn't possess the ability to pick out a pass or cross the ball. His number of assists over the past three seasons he's been playing is in single figures, I bet. Not great for an "attacking full-back".

In my opinion, all he has is aggression and workrate. He's not even lightning quick - he's just relatively pacey. Which all full-backs ought to be. There's no fucking way he's Manchester United class.

[Chris]

It amuses and angers me that Hutton is worth 8million yet we're only getting 175,000 for Hart. Mind you Hutton has just signed a 5 year contract and Hart has only got 6 months left on his.

[Chris]

Mixu Paatelainen's the new Hibs boss

[Alkaline]

There's no fucking way he's Manchester United class.

He's not Spurs class either, i certainly don't want him there. He's one of the most overrated players in Scotland at the moment.

[stuartmaxwell]

what do you make of the de foe situation?

[Guest idol_wild]

He's not Spurs class either, i certainly don't want him there. He's one of the most overrated players in Scotland at the moment.

You're probably right in terms of ambition. But right now, Spurs are probably on a par with Rangers.

Pascal Chimbonda is a much more effective (and complete) full-back than Hutton.

[Alkaline]

what do you make of the de foe situation?

It's a farce. Why they can't see that Bent was a waste of money and the sooner we bin him to West Ham for 12m the better, i do not know. I'm annoyed that they've taken such a hard line with a player who seems very keen to prove his worth and seems like he's willing to play for the good of the team.

Defoe, Berbatov and Keane are all scoring goals, what more could you want from strikers? Bent is an expensive mistake.

I'm fed up of the situation at Spurs. They are continually blaming the team for bad management decisions where in reality we have one of the best young squads in the country at the moment. If you look at players like Huddlestone, Bale, Zokora, Jenas, Lennon, Taarabt, Robinson, Keane, Defoe, Berbatov, King, Prince-Boateng, Kaboul, Dawson, Chimbonda etc they are all very competant or promising players, many of them are indeed World Class players or have the potential to be.

Why we are consistently pursuing sub-par players like Woodgate, Elmander, Hutton, Emanuelson, Maniche etc is beyond me. They are not going to bring anything to the team that we don't already have in abundance. We do, granted, need a good, solid left back because Bale will take a while to settle in and Lee just isn't good enough.

Spurs need stability and a good leader. King is a good leader, if he stays fit we have all we need really.

[Guest idol_wild]

It's a farce. Why they can't see that Bent was a waste of money and the sooner we bin him to West Ham for 12m the better, i do not know. I'm annoyed that they've taken such a hard line with a player who seems very keen to prove his worth and seems like he's willing to play for the good of the team.

Defoe, Berbatov and Keane are all scoring goals, what more could you want from strikers? Bent is an expensive mistake.

I'm fed up of the situation at Spurs. They are continually blaming the team for bad management decisions where in reality we have one of the best young squads in the country at the moment. If you look at players like Huddlestone, Bale, Zokora, Jenas, Lennon, Taarabt, Robinson, Keane, Defoe, Berbatov, King, Prince-Boateng, Kaboul, Dawson, Chimbonda etc they are all very competant or promising players, many of them are indeed World Class players or have the potential to be.

Why we are consistently pursuing sub-par players like Woodgate, Elmander, Hutton, Emanuelson, Maniche etc is beyond me. They are not going to bring anything to the team that we don't already have in abundance. We do, granted, need a good, solid left back because Bale will take a while to settle in and Lee just isn't good enough.

Spurs need stability and a good leader. King is a good leader, if he stays fit we have all we need really.

I agree about Darren Bent; 16.5m for Bent, 14m for Thierry Henry. There's something gravely wrong there.

Spurs have potential, but the defence is an absolute sham. Sure, King will add stability, but my God that Dawson has proved to be a bit too raw for the EPL. As for Paul Robinson, he's a good shot stopper, but he's useless in terms of positioning at set-pieces and heavy attacks. And given how poor Tottenham's defence is, there are plenty of those.

But actually, Tottenham's midfield is where the problems lie, as far as I can see it. It's possibly the most unbalanced midfield in the EPL. There is some quality, yes, but no balance. The 16.5 for Bent would have been better spent persuing Owen Hargreaves.

[Bigsby]

I agree about Darren Bent; 16.5m for Bent, 14m for Thierry Henry. There's something gravely wrong there.

Henry hasn't exactly been a great buy either though.

[Guest idol_wild]

Henry hasn't exactly been a great buy either though.

Sigh. You must get the point I'm trying to make though?

[Bigsby]

Sigh. You must get the point I'm trying to make though?

I think if you were trying to demonstrate profligacy, there were better comparisons to be made.

[Guest idol_wild]

I think if you were trying to demonstrate profligacy, there were better comparisons to be made.

Not really, given that the Henry transfer and the Bent transfer happened within weeks of eachother. So we're speaking about the same transfer climate. Sure, Henry isn't exactly firing on all cylinders at Barca just now, but he's proved to be a better buy than Bent already and he's got much tougher competition than Bent has.

Plus, by going on previous performances and form alone, then you can say straight away that Tottenham are profligates.

I think you're nit-picking, but I'll humour you: give me a better example...

[Alkaline]

I agree about Darren Bent; 16.5m for Bent, 14m for Thierry Henry. There's something gravely wrong there.

Spurs have potential, but the defence is an absolute sham. Sure, King will add stability, but my God that Dawson has proved to be a bit too raw for the EPL. As for Paul Robinson, he's a good shot stopper, but he's useless in terms of positioning at set-pieces and heavy attacks. And given how poor Tottenham's defence is, there are plenty of those.

But actually, Tottenham's midfield is where the problems lie, as far as I can see it. It's possibly the most unbalanced midfield in the EPL. There is some quality, yes, but no balance. The 16.5 for Bent would have been better spent persuing Owen Hargreaves.

I disagree about Dawson and Robinson.

Dawson is still young and formed an impressive partnership with King in his first two seasons at Spurs. His defensive partners this season have both been equally inexperienced in terms of EPL experience. Neither of them speak English either, though Zokora has made an effort to learn the language Kaboul cannot speak it at all. Communication and strength in leadership have been Spurs main problem defensively this season. Granted we could maybe do with another experienced defender to cover for Ledley King's injury problems, but an older defender would be the best idea then and preferably a British one who has played in the EPL for a few seasons at least getting regular games.

Robinson, on the other hand, has completely lost his confidence. Unsurprisingly, when you have the entire nation media and all criticising everything you do that very often happens. He's not the best goalkeeper in the world by any means be he is substantially better than the majority of goalkeepers in the EPL when he's playing at his best.

If you take both of those factors into consideration our defence doesn't look too bad on the face of it.

Our midfield is very backward in the centre, so i don't see how spending money on Hargreaves would have addressed that, Zokora and Jenas are defensive midfielders but both have good distribution and are good at getting forward. And, Jenas offers an attractive array of uses at set-pieces as well. Huddlestone is more than capable of becoming a player of Hargreaves class as well.