The Fish

Southampton has recently sold a controlling share of their club to Chinese investors haven't they? There's rumours that Usmanov fancies selling his share in Arsenal and investing in Everton instead, too.

I heard Spurs and Everton. Spurs would be an attractive team for foreign investors, just moving into a big stadium in the Capital, already have a strong side, a capable manager, decent global footprint already. Not sure their owners are looking to sell though?

Aye, it's not been spoken about much, but he's key to our future.

The model isn't a massive problem if it's matched with ambition. Scouring other markets for value is fine if you're doing that to improve the first team. Selling a player for a huge profit is fine if you use the monies to improve the first team. The issue lies when player sales are used solely to turn a profit/pay bills. Just think of the teams we could have had if we hadn't seen the turnover of players we had (and hadn’t had the managers we’ve had). Selling Carroll for £35m is fine if you bring in Ba, selling Sissoko for a daft profit is fine if his departure doesn’t leave you imbalanced. The issue lies in buying a slight French attacking midfielder when it’s clear you need a centre half. Buying him because there’s a greater premium on attacking players, than defensive ones.

It's certainly a hot topic.

From my peasanty Dad "pipe laying"

Our Wearside focussed friend does kind of have a point though. The "Big/Top" group has swelled over the past decade or so. Was recently a “Top 3” of Arsenal, Man Utd and maybe Liverpool. Then Chelsea joined the “Big 4” party soon after 20013 2003 thanks to Abramovich, and Man Utd’s noisy neighbours paid for their admission to the “Top 5” around 2008. It’s now stretched to the Big 6 because of Spurs’ methodical and sustained improvement. Could the Big Top stretch once more to accommodate another team? If so, why not a resuscitated NUFC? I mean if any team should be in the Big Top it’s the circus that is Newcastle United.

I'll ask my peasanty parents for you.

I mean, you're a twat for giving birth to that earworm, but nonetheless.

That's the Eloi sorted.

You reckon if you take the top off that stadium, there's a smaller one inside?

Has she got herself a corporate box yet? Deal breaker iirc

A statement that I'm not sure about. Like. "I think I remembered the milk?" Or "I don't think I threw up in washing machine?"

Benitez' system plugs the gaps in quality of a few of our players/positions. Christ imagine how we'd be doing if we had a proper left back, left wing, #10 and a striker of note. Someone in Demba Ba's mould would have had a few goals already this season.

HYP

Apparently Staveley was at the ground for the Stoke game too?

He's useful to combat more physical sides like Stoke, West Ham, Brighton, but perhaps being out of his normal position would be laid bare by more ... technical sides? Dunno.

Get fucked.

There must be a way to frame the argument that would get through to the voters, if not the lobbyists? Surely? It's so self-evident that some form of gun control would reduce the frequency of mass shootings in the U.S.. I mean, you can legally buy a minigun as long as it was made before 1996. How can that be justified at all? You can buy a flamethrower, what kind of monsters are you defending yourself against that requires a fucking flamethrower?

# Club(s) Matches W D L Goals +/- Pts 1 Spurs 27 20 4 3 67:18 49 64 2 Man City 26 17 7 2 63:20 43 58 3 Chelsea 26 18 3 5 55:26 29 57 4 Man Utd 26 14 10 2 46:12 34 52 5 Arsenal 27 16 3 8 49:33 16 51 6 Liverpool 26 12 9 5 45:33 12 45 7 Everton 26 12 5 9 41:33 8 41 8 Swansea 26 10 4 12 27:34 -7 34 9 Stoke City 26 8 7 11 26:35 -9 31 10 Southampton 26 8 6 12 27:33 -6 30 11 West Ham 26 8 6 12 31:44 -13 30 12 Watford 27 8 6 13 29:50 -21 30 13 Burnley 26 7 8 11 25:31 -6 29 14 Leicester 26 8 5 13 33:44 -11 29 15 West Brom 26 7 7 12 24:36 -12 28 16 Bournemouth 26 6 8 12 33:47 -14 26 17 Crystal Palace 27 8 1 18 21:47 -26 25 18 Hull City 19 6 3 10 21:39 -18 21 19 Newcastle 7 3 1 3 7:6 1 10 20 Middlesbrough 19 1 7 11 10:31 -21 10 21 Sunderland 19 2 4 13 12:34 -22 10 22 Huddersfield 7 2 3 2 5:7 -2 9 23 Brighton 7 2 1 4 5:9 -4 7 NORTH EAST TOP DOGS 2017!!

Yeah, even if "responsible gun owners" who, for whatever reason, want a rifle and thousands of rounds of ammo were concerned about the faff of some checks, and being on a government list, isn't that a small price to pay if it stops 59 people dying and 500 hundred people getting injured?

Aye, that's the lad. Apparently a Nevada official just said that no gun laws could have stopped this latest mass shooting. I don't know where to start with this idiocy.

There was something about some kind of universal flu-jab that's close to being successful. So that will keep more of the people who voted for Brexit alive long enough to suffer it.

Where's that gun nut who used to post on here?

I think the biggest issue we have in the UK is sit wipers vs stand wipers.