DJ Barry Hammond

I've heard we're wheeling out Kevin Keegan from retirement... it's either that or John Gregory

This comment would have looked better at 2:59 today! 😂

Yes... but for me the Silva issue could well be a signal of the ineptness of leadership within the club. Ok, that might not have been Craig's role directly - but if I was manager, I'd want to have been on top of that transfer and ensure it had gone through.

My other feeling on this - to me, Shakey lacks that instant visable stature to be a long term premiership manager. The role of assistant is very different to that of a manager and some are better suited to the former - and for me Shakey comes in this catagory. Think of past great managers at ours or any club and a common theme is that they've all had a strong presence - which makes sense, a manager has to have a strong mind and act with conviction. In my opinion, Shakey lacks this is abundance - it feels like he's playing at being Manager, trying to do all the things he's seen done before him... but not quite having the same effect. I'm just not convinced by him - and I wonder if the players are starting to feel this too. I'd also question the Appleton pick as assistant as well, given he has been a manager longer than Shakey and so could be inadvertently undermining him in a way (not intentionally). The counter argument many will mention is of course the 'time' factor - give him time - yet, try as I might, I can't see Shakey being in the dugout 2/3 years from now, let alone celebrating with a beaming smile as he walks up the Wembley steps - I'd love to proven wrong, but for me, he's not our destined to be great leader. (side point - do it now, while now Roy is out of the equation!)

Here's the problem... our glories of the recent past have gone and so will the players who achieved them in the not to distant future. We therefore need some at the top who starts building anew, much like Claudio did when he took over from Pearson when he moved us to a 442 and evolved our way of playing within that across the season. And this, is perhaps why Shakey is finding things difficult now - he's been too involved in successes of the past that its difficult for him to implement something completely fresh and new.

I agree on the whole, especially about the pass to Vardy not ever really being on... except, I can't help feel there was a gapping hole to slot the ball low inside Courtois' near post.

I haven't watched the game, so need someone to confirm my suspicion, but from the line-up it would appear not much was done to consider Chelsea's unique threat from the formation they play (or counter weaknessses built into that system. Did Shakey simply send out a team to play as we normally do, or was their an attempt to work the 4-4-2 into something that counteract the 3-4-3?

I believe it was a D. Drinkwater from London?

One thing that is worth considering in this appeal... the Premier League voluntarily shut the window a day early. Other club's in Europe were still able to buy / sell the day after. We should maybe point that out to FIFA - turning into a domestic decision on whether the transfer/registration should be allowed.

The club is going through an appeal process so they won't want to be saying too much publicly (at least directly). But the fact the story is in the press now and seconds are being quoted - suggests the club are trying to apply some external pressure now. Its useful to remember - key details that have emerged have to have come from a credible source who is happy for them to be used by the press - if they're weren't, the comments would have been made "off the record" and wouldn't appear.

Seems to me the club knew the situation on that evening - hence the lack of a major announcement. Given this story is now emerging, I ponder whether the club has made initial representations to FIFA on the matter in Private, they've not been successful, and so they've gone to the next stage of a more public appeal via the press.

I must have missed the traditional years of the 2-3-5. Was that played in the 1930's/40's?

https://fullfact.org/health/fact-or-fiction-welsh-nhs-performs-poorly-compared-english-nhs/ This is possibly a starting point for comparing performance of the NHS between England and Wales... https://www.nuffieldtrust.org.uk/talks/slideshows/comparing-four-health-systems-uk taking you on to this report. One could also consider it futile or politically self-centred to try and compare two very different situations with only a broad common demnoimator.

If there's any justice in this world, a lot more than that.

Good luck to guy. Playing centre midfield as a 2 when the rest of the team is a shambles is no easy job when fully fit... yet, his class showed with that expert pass to Vardy in Seville that saved our season. I've no doubt he'll be a hit at Chelsea - those doubting him will only add to spur him on. Its very easy to feel bitter about the way things ended, but we're kidding ourselves as fans if we didn't expect anything else. I suspect Chelsea may have been interested in Mahrez too, but we told them you're not having both in one window - if that was the case, it goes to show what high regard Conte has for Danny and that he's going there as more than just English squad filler.