ClaphamFox

Given that there is clear precedent for first offences with Forest and Everton, they might find it difficult to impose a much harsher punishment on us from a legal perspective.

Given that our PSR issues have been dragging on for several years, if all we end up receiving is a single 3-6 point deduction in a Championship season, then I think most of us would take that.

Very unlikely.

Ruud will have known for some time that this is coming and he still wants to stay. He'll very likely be with us next season.

You actually want us to get a 'massive points deduction'?

This is from Sky Sports: "The fans will be relieved to hear that they will face definitely no punishment for the 2022-23 season, but they're facing three charges for alleged breaches in the 2023-24 season." So our previous fear (that the EFL could get us for 2022/23) was unfounded But we've got three brand new charges for 2023/24

Because he won't get a better job and his best chance of restoring his reputation will be to turn things around with us. He will stay unless the club sacks him, which seems much less likely now given: a) the cost of doing so; and b) the difficulty of recruiting a quality replacement with another PSR charge over our heads.

He won't. On the contrary, I think this news significantly increases the chances of him being our manager next season.

Yes, our argument that the PL did not have jurisdiction for 2022/23 was upheld. Media reports seem to suggest that matter is now closed, but until recently there were concerns that the EFL could go after us for that period. I'd like some clarity on that.

No, the loophole we found was for the previous season.

I know they changed the rules, but I'm not sure if that change can be imposed retroactively.

So we've been charged by the PL for last season. The view among the football finance 'experts' was that it would have been very tight for that period, so hopefully the breach was only small. Also: if the PL has jurisdiction for this, does that mean we can only be punished if/when we get promoted again?

How has he shot himself in the foot?

Or they simply haven't made a decision yet, possibly because they still don't know whether any of their targets to replace him are actually obtainable.

Those preseason games were a perfect illustration of what happens when you take a squad that has achieved success playing a certain way and give them a manager who does not want to play that way but is wary of playing his own way, so attempts an awkward compromise - ie, a total mess.

There was a little passage of play right in front of me yesterday when Evans really put himself about and put in a couple of tackles. He's not tall but he's stocky and he looks strong. I think he's ready.

Our defence this season is not slightly worse than the last time we got relegated - it's considerably worse. We lost Evans and Castagne and didn't replace them. Vestergaard, who wasn't considered good enough for the squad in 2022/23 was a regular starter this season until he fell out with Ruud. We went down that season because we were crap at defending (we scored the same number of goals as Villa, who came 7th) and we've tried to survive this season with a defence that's even worse. We were never going to survive with the defenders we have at the club.

You must have inside knowledge on our accounts to be this precise in your calculations!

Cooper got a ‘tune’ out of the squad in the same way that my two-year-old gets a tune out of his xylophone by bashing random objects onto it and occasionally jumping on it.

No PL games yesterday because of FA Cup Final.

The way some people talk about Dyche, you’d think he’s alone among all potential candidates in his unique ability to reset the culture at the club. It’s as if he’s a footballing equivalent of Batman who comes to the rescue when a club projects a Dyche signal into the night sky. There will be other potential candidates with the strength of personality to change the culture at the club, and some of them will have the added advantage of being attack-minded and tactically intelligent, too.

Aren’t we known throughout football for being very stubborn in our valuations and difficult to negotiate with?

Not if one of the boxes is 'Sort out our defence'.

It doesn't just say that though, does it? It also clearly says that the club have been impressed by RVN and that there's a real chance he could stay, although a final decision hasn't been made yet. That doesn't mean the story is accurate, but it's not true to say it just says Ruud wants to stay - it also explicitly claims that the club is considering keeping him on.

Mmmm..the headline on that story is deeply misleading when you look at the actual quotes. He's just saying that he hasn't had the right offer yet but will consider any that come his way. He's definitely not saying he wouldn't be interested in managing us, unfortunately.