OntarioFox

It's acutely obvious at this point that our ownership - and their sycophants - don't live in the real world. The whole grubby affair is going to come to a climax next year when we're trying to keep everything above water on League One revenue with a single parachute payment remaining and a threadbare squad. No amount of court proceedings are changing a damn thing for the trajectory we're on - in League One we would be a year from potential bankruptcy. People are openly talking about administration - and even liquidation - both in the stands and the media. The horse has bolted and what little pride and honour this club has left is being dragged through the dirt behind it as it runs towards the cliff edge. It's possible it happens to us even in the Championship, of course, but League One would be truly terminal. I think I read that Seagrave alone would cost as much to run for a year as we'd make in revenue in the third tier? That's before literally everything else, from player wages, to the stadium, to the day to day staff, to Belvoir Drive and the ladies team. So yeah, by all means let them waste their energy fighting the points deduction in the courts to deflect from the half decade of terrible financial and football decisions that lead us here. It won't change a damn thing at this rate - we're never returning to the Premier League, which is King Power's only financial strategy, with this squad, academy and ownership. We're f**ked whether we're in the second or third tier, it's just a matter of how soon the tipping point comes.

It's a match made in heaven - lazy, embarrassing players doing stupid things every matchday, backed by lazy, embarrassing fans doing stupid things every matchday. Yesterday was a new low. Though I must admit 'how shit must you be? We'll play you next year' was pretty funny.

I was thinking more about him coming from being a regular at a club that had just won Ligue 1, to go on to be the worst 'midfielder' I've ever seen wear the shirt. Point taken though.

Hoo boy, this is a meaty subject. We could put together a whole squad of players who on paper are good (and in a few cases, world class), yet we've managed to get the worst out of... Kramaric Lookman Choudhury Faes Ayew x1000 🤮 Daka Kane Soumare x1001 🤮 Kristiansen I guess Slimani too, though Newcastle fans might argue otherwise. He was shit for them by all accounts. At this level, adding Cannon to the list even if he's bang average at best - he's now scored as many goals as either of our CFs despite being third choice at the Blades, and I'd bite your hand off to swap him for Ayew. Barnes fell off due to Rodgers' appalling man management but was good overall for us, I'd say he's at his early level for us now with Newcastle. Maddison hasn't really shone at Spurs compared to his time with us, even when fit. And looking at their predicament I've come to the conclusion that he's just cursed. Skipping over a few who were right at the end of their careers and clearly past their best but who made some limited contributions (Solano & Dickov under Pearson spring to mind).

There have been a few talking heads suggesting that Iran and the Strait debacle could be the USA's Suez Crisis. Certainly, Europe is pivoting away from their sphere of influence at lightning speed. While Russia is too busy imploding to take advantage of any such vacuum in global power, China must be licking their lips at the thought of the USA throwing away their connections and allies for the sake of keeping Bibi happy and minds off the Epstein files. I'm sure Taiwan, Japan and South Korea are viewing the Trump presidency with muted horror. For US allies in the Middle East, reality is already biting as Iran fires back. It was ten years ago that the spectre of an 'EU Army' was a contributing factor to Brexit. At the time if you'd asked me, I'd have hated the idea, but the world has changed so much that it's now palatable compared to the status quo. The US is not our friend and we would be wise to join the continent's effort to collectively protect ourselves. At the rate it's going, it will probably happen with us involved in some way anyway, unless NATO manages against odds to survive in its current form past the next US election. To be honest, the US can throw all the multi-million dollar missiles at Iran that it wants: in this new era where Ukraine has shown cheap drones costing as little as $2000 a pop to be far more cost effective and the biggest leveller since Guerilla Warfare, I'd rather we were aligning with the continent and innovative thinking rather than the hideously expensive military-industrial complex Donald and Co. are tied to. Big bombs and body counts don't win wars any more. Russia can tell you that.

Congratulations! Your prize: your season ticket has auto-renewed ready for League One football 🎉🎊🎉🎊

Pure optics. They didn't want a game of Spot The Difference to break out.

Thought it was a decent craic yesterday, never thought at any point in the past few years that we'd ever be in a situation where Vestergaard coming on would get the biggest roar of the day but that's where we're at.

Us and Oxford winning would make it VERY interesting... for a neutral. I'm not a neutral. No effing thank you.

By the way, if we piss survival by either goal difference or a point, we can officially thank Patson Daka. If that ball doesn't leave his foot we were about to be subjected to 15 minutes of chasing a 2-1 deficit with Jordan Ayew up front.

Daka and Vestergaard 4-4-2 against Wednesday

Breathing a sigh of relief to see Daka starting is a sign of the times. anything lads, please

Finally supporting local business!

Given what we've been forced to swallow for the past five years, it makes sense. I'd honestly have rather spent my weekends sat at home with that aforementioned crusty sock in my mouth than watching Leicester City to be honest.

I would be ashamed to waste swimmers on this

every time i say winnit we loozit so on that basis of reverse psychology loozit?

'Dick Turpin wore a mask' Actually never mind, I say that multiple times every matchday, whether it's buying a drink or remembering I paid actual real life money to watch Leicester play.

YOU ALL COLLECTIVELY DID THIS

FA Trophy Semis today, Southport leading Southend in what would be a big upset, 0-0 between Marine and Wealdstone at present. Potential for a tasty local derby at Wembley if Marine can do their bit 👀

Rudkin has put a clause in his contract that he gets a four year extension on £60k a week if the Foxestalk thread makes 200 pages.

We were in League One twice (just getting my practice in early for 30 years from now when i'm the out of touch old git)

I'm gonna be controversial here - we overpaid for him in the first place and, unless a Prem club was daft enough to go in for him, this was the best we were going to get. He had a few good games in a historically shit relegated squad. Nothing more. Any club would be mad to throw more than £20 million at that, even with the insane inflation in the English game. He's been okay at Stuttgart, not world-beating or EPL-level. He's young but it's highly questionable what his ceiling actually is. As it stands, a mid-table club in a European league is about right, and none in that bracket would pay us more than what we're getting. Factor in that we're an absolute basket case, he was refusing to play for us in the second tier and, if he had come back with his tail between his legs he might find himself getting chunks hacked out of him in the third, and he's never going to gain value again while on our books unless we kept loaning him out and hoping someone blinked first. Yes it's a f*** up from Dudkin once again, but only inasmuch as us paying money we didn't have gambling on a young player we arguably never needed with Buonanotte already loaned for that position. It's more brainless transfer business at a time when we were supposed to be cutting the wage bill and relying on lawyers to avoid penalties. The rest is history. Oh and he wants to play for a national side who steal towels and trophies, not a good look.

3-0

Wolves, Palace and Leeds will define West Ham's season. Today's game defines Forest and Spurs' and unfortunately they can't both lose.

Yeah that's it for me, FOAD Spurs