Dolly Potter MD
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Posts posted by Dolly Potter MD
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Was disappointed SammyObi didn't get on last Saturday, having said that, Ben Arfa showed his obvious talent, and now Jonas has signed a new contract.
What are they going to do with 3 predominantly left sided attacking players like that ?
Jonas' new deal (four years) gives the club some leverage in the transfer market, and avoids another Enrique scenario.
I'd like to seem him deployed back out on the right (where Keegan first played him/his natural attacking position) with a fit Santon in his preferred RB slot. On paper that amounts to a right sided equivalent of the former Jose/Jonas defensive & ball-playing combination play on the left, something to build on at least.
Jonas is not a good enough ball-striker to have checking back inside - he constantly creates a seperation gap between himself and his marker (so he isn't under pressure) but doesn't kill the oppostion. A valuable ball-playing & carrying outlet to have, to avoid the lump-it forward approach, coming out of defense but doesn't kill sides on the left.
Jonas getting to the byline, and cutting it back into the box, on the right offers the most attacking potential. That cut-back ball, at pace to trailing midfielders lining up to shoot, is the most difficult delivery/final ball (from out wide) to deal with.
Has been misused, at least from an attacking perspective, for the last 3 seasons.
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The shitstorm created by the Israel Lobby paper (and the selective dropping of the A-word against the co-authors, and attempted ostracisation that went on) is very similar to what took place with Finklestein, whose days as a paid university professor were numbered when he published a book attacking the Holocaust Racket.
These influential Jewish Groups/persons are pretty adept at silencing critics/performing hatchet jobs on them. The prosecution of Truficant being a case in point. Of course Finklestein, and in views, were vindicated (Traficant as well, as he was on AIPAC's hit-list) when Sherr (on AIPAC's executive committee at one stage iirc, and a noted hatchet man) was done for stealing from the Holocaust compensation coffers.
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Collocini.
In the wake of the Enrique Transfer, Ashley & Dekka are most likely bitterly disappointed that Valencia's 'reported interest' didn't materialise into that of concrete bid ie. Valencia recruiting elsewhere.
The club's Mr Fix It, our Iranian consultant in transfer market affairs & known to have an extensive contact list (club officials and agents alike) dropped the ball on this one - at least from Ashley's perspective, as it's most likely now that he'll go for a loss, if his stay extends beyond January.
A red-hot Collocini (formwise), complete with the captain's armband and the tag of 'pack leader of the defense', attracting January interest of a club looking for a late season drive (towards the Euro spots, or that of consolidation) is Ashley's last shot of gaining any leverage in negotiations re: commanding a price near to our original outlay.
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Obama's advisors probably had to run that speech by A.I.P.A.C. (aka The Lobby) first, to seek their blessing/approval.
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I saw a television advert for "Fright Night". Was one of my favourite 80's horror flicks. I hope this remake doesn't join the realm of shiteness, an honor reserved for the pointless revisiting of "Nightmare on Elm St".
Farell is stepping into some big shoes too, as the film's central villain. Chris Sarandon was excellent in the original.
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He's converting regulation chances inside the box, something the hit & miss Martins never really demonstrated. For that you have to take your hat off. Players like Martins (when chances like that are presented) stunt momentum & morale on the pitch, and are 'manager killers'.
His movement in the box is fine ie. feeding off defenders' tendancy to read play & react, and subsequently drop a marker. Blokes like Gary.L, are masters at that. He has that fundamental, or strikers' intangible, in his locker.
I'd still have Sammi ahead of him, he's at the top my pecking order - in front of them all. The younger Ameobi offers more gamebreaking capability in open play, and offers more to the team in the middle third of the pitch ie. movement & link-up play, drawing defenders out of position due to respect. He looks a naturally gifted and technically adept footballer, an exciting prospect. Although the figure will be nowhere near as high, just like Carroll (asset-wise) his ceiling of improvement/potential makes for pure profit (like Carroll).
But in a subs role, in the last twenty mins, he/Best has some currency. It's a bit more difficult for a defense to clear their line late on. Tired legs, mental fatigue, reaction times (to a loose ball) aren't as sharp - scrappy chances are there for the taking. Given our current options, in the wake of Nolan's departure, there's arguably none better (an opportunist in the box) in that sort of situation.
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With broadcast camera pans, of that stand, you would think that Ashley (the quiessential entrepreneur)r would be gunning maximum exposure for the shitedirect brand, during night fixtures.
With that said does anybody with inside information know as to whether or not these SD hoardings have been installed with inbuilt LED lighting, so the SD is showcased during night broadcasts?
I presume with the cash being saved atm, courtesy of the non-running of the escalators, there has to be some room in the budget for a luxury splashing out on utilities ie. additional promotion of the owner's retail empire.
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He did say that, aye (or words to that effect). Moving the goalposts tbh.
And I answered, haven't moved anything.
What exactly did I say about 1st September ??
I believe I said "it would show what Ashleys intentions were" either he'd be backing us or recouping. I have said I believe he is recouping. Is that "judgement" enough for you ??
and "his intentions" are what exactly, in your "new" judgement, regarding the small matter of success on the football pitch ?
What some of us have been telling you for ages perhaps ?
One thing TP is right about i think, is his character assessment of the bloke. Ashley the business maverick, who probably sees himself a pioneer of sorts. He'll run the business his way, give everybody the proverbial two-fingered salute, and display bugger-all in regard to respecting the club's heritage and most importantly the on-field football brand.
I hate to say this, but as football club owners go he's definitely a pioneer, for all the wrong reasons and motives - as I've alluded to in another thread. His long-term association with the club, and vice versa the club and SD, has little to do with creating a long standing football legacy to be proud of. This is not a symbiotic relationship between the club's football brand (and it's supporters whose main concerns results) and the commercial & financial interests of the club's owner. It's a relationship where there is no mutual benefit. I didn't give two hoot about Shepherd & The Halls dividends, the storage shed being rented out to the club. At least there was a balance, the business of football Vs the financial interests of board members, and that balance was tilted in favour of the former. Whereas now under Ashley, with his commercial interests or motive of wanting to gain control of what was at the time a boutique club available at a great/affordable price, it's a one way street - it's now a parasitic balance.
*I will be shocked if he sells up before 2020 tbh*, as i don't he's necessarily balancing the books & recouping his outlay in preparation of completing the final phase of an opportunistic smash and grab (profit making) type of business venture, in this equating to a destructive hit & run job on a boutique club with mass appeal. Either way Mike Ashley has his predecessors to thank. Some of these maligned figures restored faith and trust in the football brand after having previously seen it run down to a derelict state akin to a smack/needle injecting house.
*my contribution to the prediction thread. Will happily donate 25 quid to the SBR foundation if I'm wrong. This is not a bet btw mate.
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Why would he alter the home kit? If you're putting your logo on a shirt then you have thousands of walking adverts. But you pretty much negate that if you modify the kit such that no-one would buy it.
I disagree that this has been one huge marketing ploy. It was meant to be a lark for the newly super-coined Ashley, didn't work out, and this is the next best option. But you're bang on that he will flog the past reputation of the brand while slashing costs, it's his modus operandi.
Of course, the brand can be destroyed if the ground is empty. Don't renew.
That paragraph (about the home kit) was more a less an anger-tinged pisstake of the owner's lack of respect for the club's heritage. He wouldn't care if and how many home kits remain unsold tbh. With the potential of income the club is suffering (ie. Extra revenue streams outside of player sales, ST sales, and gate receipts) at the minute, to SD's advantage, i don't think he'd necessarily give a stuff as to whether the shirt manufacturers went out on limb, subtlety breaking away from tradition by producing too 'modern' kit deemed to be offensive to club traditionalists. As long as people from markets abroad (where he is looking to venture into) click onto the sd's online-shop the profit margin made on his exclusive heavily outweighs kit sales at the club shop (and sd.com).
When he purchased the Lillywhites store he instantly upgraded from that of smaller operator (ducking it out with Whelan/JJB etc for the retail hubs outside the capital) to the 'bright lights, big city' status. It was a step up. For SD to take the next step-up (to markets abroad) he needs another boutique address worth clinging to, another market springboard. In this case an easily identifiable & exposed sporting brand/institution, unfortunately for us the boutique address that is NUFC. He is riding the coat-tails of the work put in by the Halls, Keegan, Shepherd and Fletcher.
It was stated from the get-go that the strength of the club brand was something he was attracted to. So i disagree that he got into football club ownership purely under the premise of being football philanthropist, as a first and foremost ie. To have a bit of a lark with his SD float winnings. It takes serious money to lock-down a market, while venturing into unknown waters. Ashley floating nearly half of his original stakeholding provided him with the financial means to do so (ie. The premise that NUFC is basically a pioneering extension/offshoot for his retail empire) . This sort of behaviour/strategy, albeit expensive, fits into his MO of spending big and resorting to any means necessary in order to grab & maintain a stranglehold of a market............ ranging from the hoarding of affordable brands, to 'ratting out' his immediate competition to the consumer watchdog.
I think he is, and always was here for the long haul. His only sign of weakness coming when he panicked, and questioned the tenability of his position at the club by putting the club up for sale. Even then the price quoted to the Arabs probably took into account the benefits that SD would be forfeitting over the long haul. Likewise I'm not of the opinion that he's in it for the hit-and-run pay-off. Going by his history, he may unorthodox in his methods, morally bankrupt, but time has proven him to be a big thinker, and an adept long-term strategist. IMO recouping his outlay, making the club financially self-funded on year in- year out (with a bit of fun along the way), before buggering off into the sunset with a profit in his carrybag wasn't on the agenda. It's too shortsighted for Ashley, and aside from his lack of ambition re:the actual on-field brand, that's why i don't share Leazes' (and others) take on Wor Mike, that'll he simply piss with a short-term profit tucked away.
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The continued absorption of Newcastle United into SD's conglomerate of brands rolls on. The residual effect being the club's continued loss of it's identity.
From what was to be a temporary marketing ploy (ie. sd@sjp.com which has become a permanent fixture) and now this, the process has been gradual & calculating one.
From a traditionalist angle, and how may share my feelings on this. A sucession of body punches, and repeated jabs to the face, over twelve rounds (ie. The proverbial 12 round beatdown) sting one's pride more and takes a heavier toll if the process was performed akin one-punch knock-out.
Such has been the metamorphosis (where one commercial entity has severely diluted the prominence & relevance of the other) SJP@sportsdirect.com, or simply sportsdirect.com Arena, are more fitting now, with a leaning to the latter.
I wonder what his next masterstroke will be. Having some creative input with the shirt manufacturers hereby incorporating SD's colour scheme into that of the home strip. Although messing around with the away strip would be the politically safe thing to do, but he may as well go the whole hog while he's at smear shit on the faces of the many where there is scant room for compromise when it comes to 'tradition'.
I've always thought, as expensive as it was (mainly due to a lack of dd), that the purchase of the club (a prominent British Football Entity) was for commercial/marketing reasons, with Ashley's eying a bigger prize/looking at a picture. NUFC is a marketing extension of the SD family of brands. The exclusivity and class of the address (thanks to the hard & good work of his much maligned predecessors) as an advertising address legitimises what is in essence a low-rent chain of 'budget warehouses offloading charva & homie gear to the XBOX playing generation of today. His stores are a far cry from JJB and the old Lillywhites, where the latter two actually catered for real sports enthusiasts (participants). This ranks a lowly second with SD, as alluded to with it's 'pile em high, sell em cheap' of charva gear as it's main money spinning. Being associated with a seriously taken entity (on the football landscape) gives the chain a much needed boost in credibility, as well as mainstream advertising clout. This is why i think we're stuck for the very long term, for as long as he can milk, or ride, the strength of club's strength of brand for all it's worth.
The club, as a marketing extension of SD, is a larger and grander scaled version of Lillywhites ie. a cheap & tacky operator riding the coat-tails of, and operating behind the commercially protective veil of a prominent and boutique address, with the high customer flow to match.
Perhaps there's hope in SD establishing a solid footholding, as dominant player in the market abroad/standing on it's own feet, where there will be less of a need for NUFC to act as his vehicle for getting in. SD establishing a presence as a dominant 'stand-alone' entity abroad might coincide with Ashley offloading the club. But on the flip-side, once the debt (leveraged buyout) process is complete courtesy of continued player sales it's all about pure profit. Raising once again the SD marketing angle/exclusive stadium naming rights & advertising, he's hit the proverbial mother load.
The key is preserving our status as a a consistent mainstay in the television market, that is treading water in the top flight. As SD continues to rumble forward, I think he could weather the fall-out & occasional one year stint in the championship, but a Leeds or Nott.F type of collapse changes the dynamic completely. The Arabs were quoted out of the market, when he travelled over there sniffing potential buyers, and i think that reported 400m figure given to Man.C group probably also took into account what Ashley would be giving up (from SD'S front) over the long haul/bigger picture. Without an aforementioned fall down the table, Leeds or Forest style, we are stick with Ashley's way of a running a club &inflammatory antics (to the football supporter) for a very long time. Although it hits me to the core, I've reluctantly accepted this now.
NUFC changing hands, out of his clutches is far different proposition than it was twenty years ago ie. The Halls (with Shepherd and Co) forcing the Mckeags to part company of a family heirloom. Ashley has so much more to lose.
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Whilst in Guatemala he was bitten on the face by a rare mosquito and every few years it flares up into a big crusty mess and he has to have a special one off 5 gram penicillin tablet for it to go away. The bite was so bad it knocked him unconscious and the next thing he knew he woke up back in Britain as they'd had to get him an emergency flight home.
;) 
:lol: PMSL
Tell us some more. These are genius!
Very funny. Probably his creative excuse for break-outs of embarrassing adult acne
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How Shola got his latest contract is what I find most baffling, it goes well against our so called transfer policy.
I'd start Sammy ahead of him every time.
I'm not sure whether it's the angle of shot, or lighting, but what is that growing in Deano's forehead? It looks like one big haematoma, like the one i saw in a MMA fight a while back. A little Brazilian bloke (Aldo iirc) was dishing out the punishment....................... oh wait, that's just his forehead.
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I vaguely remember an article, and a soundgrab from Fat Sam, where potential suitors were 'warned off' making a move for Shola. It may have been Bolton, I'm not sure.
Usual cliched stuff was offered: "Shola's going nowhere", "he is very much part of my plans", "he is a talented player" etc. Whereas one of KK's missions, that Summer, was to actively get rid of. Speculation of course, given that he had little or no say re- player incomings & outgoing. Simply going by him not fighting the heirachy when an outgoing move was in the works, before it ultimately fell over personal terms/financials etc.
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There's a bloke at work reckons he was a Royal Marine sergeant major and is a Falkland and Gulf war veteran. He reckons he was allowed to dock the QE2 at the Ascension Island on the way down to knack the Argies. His battalion were given a beach to guard one night and he gave the order to fire when they saw figures landing on the beach. At daybreak they noticed they'd killed 2000 Emperor penguins.
He reckons he's so ugly because (a) a grenade blew up in his face and knocked all his teeth out, (
a bomb exploded in his path in Northern Ireland or © a puck hit him in the face when he was playing for Durham Wasps. It depends on his mood and who he is talking to for which excuse he uses.He reckons he had an anaphylactic reaction to tiger fur when he stroked THE Esso tiger in a restaurant in Mexico. When asked what the fuck a real tiger is doing wandering round a restaurant, he replies "it's safe, it's had all of it's teeth removed."
He reckons he is a FIFA qualified coach and referee and could ref a match in the Premier League at a days notice.
His catch phrases are "I love it when a plan comes together" ......they rarely do for him, understandably.
and "Let me just plant a seed in your head" .....err, no thanks it'll probably grow up into a big ugly lying fucker like you.
There's loads more stories, it feels like there's a new one every day.
It wouldn't surprise if he was cryogenically preserved after Operation Neptune as well.
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Zip-eyed Filipino i worked for a number of years ago (i've mentioned this bloke before) would throw in 'capiche' at the end of every instruction. Condescending little prick he was, but that snappy cut-off Asian accent made it sound all the more worse. He was a like a toned down version of that little f***er from The Hangover films. Myself and a few others didn't cop it so much, because we were nightshifters and worked away from the depot. Subsequently we generally didn't attract that sort of day-to-day supervision.
He used to heavily dish out the 'capiches' to the lasses in reception though. One used to very effecient at her job, but he couldn't stand her. I guess she had her own mind, whereas he wished have a bunch of mindless drones buzzing around him at his calling, just like the sweatshop-like environments at home i guess. And he knew it was grating on her as well. It was too expensive to sack her, but this was the sore point to get her to leave and it eventually worked.
He really was the master manipulator, negatively speaking, who seemed to get-off on throwing a proverbial match into fireworks shop & then enjoy the show.
His specialty was making up a work-related rumour (ie. Person X said 'this & that' about Person Y) and discretely drop it into the system. He nearly destroyed a few work-based friendships over the course of trip at the place - there were some close calls. He should've been the zip-eyed pantomime villain on the US series 'Survivor', that's his higher calling imo.
I think he was motive was to not have a close-knit crew working under him, or one that was loyal to each other and hereby raise a unified voice when improper work practices were forced upon them - something which has taken place in the years since i left/as more of the old crew continued to leave. I was the only bloke who became union-affiliated in my last couple of years there, but by then team morale was virtually shot to pieces.
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As Sima pointed out, Fat Sam didn't rate Shola either. You do write like a septic btw.
'Tale of the tape'>>> 'list of physical & skill attributes'
'Blue-chip' player or talent >>> top class player/talent.
'combination passing play' >>>> 'one-twos', 'give & go's', *'triangle passing sequences' *with Collo/Jose/Jon being that ball-moving unit/trio.
I've translated a few of those septic-like (I've only ever & briefly worked in, or been a tourist in the US of A) references to a set which is far more palatable to eye. I could always edit that post above, if it makes you feel more comfortable. I think I've seen the 'blue-chip' reference a few times in the mainstream press in Europe, when top class footballers are the subject at hand. It's bang out of order of course. The hardcore & local elements of the football supporter base will have to voice their objection, enmasse, in the appropriate letters sections/radio talkback etc.
***Tongue-in-Cheek Disclaimer***
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Re: Shola. With the exception of Keegan, who actively tried to get rid of, i think every manager has been lulled to sleep by the tale of the tape/his measurements ie. 6'3, big framed lad & unpredictable. What he does poorly is play for position, what i alluded to in a post some time ago. Basically has been a poor student of the game, and he's had some fine exponents, of the finer aspects of forward play, to learn from over the years. Keegan probably saw that Shola, from a player development/education angle while taking into account his history and opportunities, was a lost cause.
I was thinking about Ferguson, after that rabble last night. Probably not penetrative enough to be blue-chip winger, but there's enough there in the locker, to suggest that he'd make a serviceable outlet on the edge of defense - when Collo & Taylor are being pressured by defending strikers. We miss Collo & Enrique's combination passing play coming out of the back. Santon (elegant ball user) & Jonas back on their respective & natural flank. Ferguson and Marveux on the left. I know both wide-combinations present as 'unknowns', but in this instance better option than the devil we already know is shite/our current wide set-ups.
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............ and Audrey. Aged really well too, much better than a couple of other notable sirens from that era ie. Loren & Bardot. Maybe her fine/elfin features lent themselves more favourably to the aging process.
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I'm using my phone to post so i can't open up multiple windows & post pics etc.
Inclusions for the your brunette themed day/week. Anna Beatriz-Barros, and Natasha Poly (as a natural brunette). The latter's facial features must be close to perfection. The cheek bones are the clincher.
*Emily Blunt is a beauty as well. *wasn't she in the Adjustment Bureau. She's a stunner, from the moment she entered stage left. She was the bright spark in an otherwise bloody average movie.
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One i forgot to mention, to be included in the fine wine category, is Chan Marshall. She was a bit of angry ant/tortured soul early on - she could have reached Winehouse's eventual destination. She was a real mess for a while, in a very bad place ie. spent a bit of time in an asylum. The smokiness was always there in her voice, but it was always dwarfed by the anger that was coming out. But as she has gotten older, mellowed out & found peace it's all about that smokey styled vocals now. Arguably the sexiest voice/vocals going around.
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Has shown more than any of the other forward/striking options, in the form technique, athleticism (tough one-on-one match-up, on the ball), and workrate. And the lad is chomping at the bit as well, and this (coupled with his raw ability) should be harnessed to the optimum capacity, rather than play it safe with him ie.a take it slowly with development type of approach .
Right now............Outside of the notable remnants of Hughton's former & now dismantled team, young Ameobi would be the first name included on my teamsheet.
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............ and age with grace, whose vocal gifts have withstood the test of time, and sometimes get better with age.
............ And who, of all these 'good times revisited' type of tours are more like putrified apple cider.
Stevie Nicks remains an enchantress, with both voice and stage presence - she's still the bomb. Eddie Vedder & Maynard Keenan (of Tool and A Perfect Circle) get better with age, and both are mainstays within the industry and there have been many artists (from their era: the end of Motley Crew/Big Haired Bands Era) who have fallen by the wayside, including six feet under as well. I never caught Kate Bush's last couple of LPs, so i don't know how well 'that' voice has held up courtesy of her long hiatus periods. Same applies to Beth Gibbons, one of my favourite voices to listen to, because Portishead has been inactive for a while now.
Artists, and their voices, that descended into the realm of 'shite': Axle Rose (G&R) and Paul Stanley (Kiss) were very ordinary during the last retro performances/tours.
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The club/Ashley need more bloggers like CT, to provide balance across all the forums.
In times of financial hardship where stadium escalators need to be shut down, having arguably the highest earning cabbie on the N.E. onboard has been an obvious coup for the club. The fact that he's been prepared to bash the keyboard, putting in the hard yards (in the face constant criticism) for the club, at the required pro-bono rate, speaks volumes for the bloke's selfless devotion to the b&w strip. He'll be greatly missed.
Ashley will have to recruit elsewhere now. Such strength of dedication is rarely harbored inside just one person. The depth of CT's loyalty (taking into account the regime's lack of class) is a hard thing to manufacture amidst the current climate. It will take a small army to match his output.
You should all be ashamed of yourselves, when Ashley's intermediatories in Asia start forcing kids (after already finishing a long day's work in the Puma Sweatshops) to at least equal CT's workload. That will be done on the cheap as well. No user-friendly & comfortable laptops and soft rubber keys as they try to bash out a hundred words per minute while a bamboo wielding slavedriver monitors 'production rate. These kids will be bashing away on recycled C-64s and Amstrads, adding further strain to their already aching little extremities.
I am devastated by this development and it's far reaching consequences. Hang your heads in shame............ Cancel my account please.
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Quite a good player by all accounts.
During the January window the club should utilise our Iranian friend/paid consultant's resources, by trying to unearth some type of obscure contract clause.
A bid of a just few mill (a Billy Big Boots, take-it-or-leave-it 'final offer'... may may as well try & smear shit in the face of Barca's hierarchy as well), might be enough to turn the lad's head and force strike action.
The lad couldn't possibly turn down a once in a lifetime career opportunity, to be a genuine pioneer within the sports retail business. A potential turning point for the lad. Continue to win silverware, or be Sports Direct's highest profile Argie ambassador, as Ashley hopes to his brand global.
Who knows, if the lad shows a rapid rate of improvement we could further aid Liverpool's drive towards the top slots, and make a few more bob - while keeping it safely within the club.
Film/moving picture show you most recently watched
in General Chat
Posted · Edited by Year Zero
"Blitz": 1 out of 5.
"Snowtown": Serial killer flick, based on true events ie. The Bodies in the Barrel Case. It deals with the recruitment of the killer's young acolytes, he was like Charles Manson. 4 out of 5.