Alf Bentley

Wout Faes is the best centre back at LCFC and he's subject to excessive criticism. Yes, he makes gaffes occasionally and switches off or gets caught in the wrong position occasionally. That's why his level is no higher than bottom-end PL. But critics don't factor in his positive qualities - particularly the fact that he's a front-foot centre back, who seeks to anticipate opposing attacks so as to intervene, intercepting the ball or tackling/challenging the attacker. He also has good physicality (unlike Vestergaard or Coady), is decent in the air and quicker than Jannik. Okoli might make a better centre back some day, as he's young and still learning. Vestergaard could only be a PL player in a team that sat deep and faced little pressure, as he'd be comfortable on the ball and his lack of pace and physicality would matter less. I'm sure Coady is a nice, positive bloke with a good attitude but I'm afraid he's just past it - there are reasons why he lost his place at Wolves, didn't play regularly on loan at Everton and couldn't even win back a regular starting place for us in the Championship, after he recovered from injury.

Partly tongue-in-cheek (I haven't a clue whether we'd stay up with prime Shinji in harness, as so many different factors are involved) - but I'm partly serious. I did say "prime Shinji" (i.e. 2015-16 Shinji), so accept your point about his decline thereafter. I just remember that in his prime, despite his footballing limitations, we always seemed to perform better as a team when he was playing. His workhorse commitment seemed to inspire teammates and disrupted opposing defences/midfields. That takes me back to the wider point: a player can have seriously limited football skills, but be highly effective as a team member due to other qualities - and therefore a very good player. If footballing skills are the sole criterion, that doesn't apply, but that's not my definition of a very good player - it's a team game. Shinji - and Lloyd at a lower level - were very good LCFC team players for me. All just fun and personal opinion, anyway....

How do you define "very good" in this context? I'd see it as a synonym for "effective", which makes Bovril's claim particularly problematic. If it's used as a synonym for "skilful", I'd agree with both statements. Dyer: - Good: Pace, work rate - Medium: Erratic shooting/finishing/crossing (both scored & missed plenty in Championship), basic passing, ok dribbling - Bad: Close control ball skills - Overall: Good upper Championship player 2009-14 Okazaki: - Good: Pressing, positional awareness, work rate, team leader by example - Medium: Erratic finishing, basic passing - Bad: Close control, dribbling - Overall: Key man in a peculiar & somewhat effective team 2015-16 Put prime Dyer in the current squad and he might be a useful sub for last 20 mins in PL (less so than in 14-15, as defending & fitness levels have risen). Possibly still a starter in Championship. Put prime Shinji in the current squad and we stay up this season!

This opinion was disputed 3 days ago.....by Richie Wellens. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cx2yxvq9zr4o "Leyton Orient manager Richie Wellens has apologised for a "stupid comment" he made about Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou after Saturday's 1-0 defeat by Stockport. Asked in a post-match interview whether injuries had played a part in the loss, Wellens said: "I'm not going to make excuses, I'm not Ange Postecoglou." Tottenham have slipped to 16th in the Premier League amid an injury crisis that has left them without nine first-team players for Sunday's trip to Brentford. Later on Saturday, Wellens withdrew the comments, saying he was "deeply embarrassed"."

At this point, I'd be delighted to hear that we've signed Alison Moyet and that she's coming on for the second half at Goodison (centre back, preferably).

Thanks for posting that, Davie. Yes, I grew up nearby and went to school in Folkestone. I've not lived in Kent for 40 years, but have visited a few times in recent years, as one of my nephews lives in Margate (a similar place, in many ways) and an old friend was living down there until recently. Folkestone always blended sordid and sublime. It also seemed to have good and bad periods. A lot of coastal towns seem similar. It certainly has seen an upturn in recent years - largely because Roger de Haan, the ex-boss of Saga (based in Folkestone), has spent many of his millions on renovation, construction, cultural developments etc. Some of the compliments in that article are a bit OTT, though: "best place in the SE"; "balmy sweeping beaches"; "crystal clear waters"; "a tropical paradise"?!? When I was growing up, it had an odd mix of residents: blue-rinse Tory ladies and crusty retired military bods v. drug addicts, dole wallahs and winos....just like a lot of seaside towns. It also had a lot of jaded, small-c conservative attitudes. It always had a lovely promenade, funicular, a nice little harbour with narrow old streets and a sandy beach nearby. But most of the beaches are pebbles/shingle and most of the town was dull, decrepit and/or jaded. From what I've seen on recent visits, the area surrounding the harbour is much improved and well worth visiting. But there is still a fair bit of poverty and dull, jaded streets away from the harbour. Some of my ex-wife's Hinckley family went there for a short break a couple of years ago - and came back commenting on how "rough" it seemed... It went further downhill after the Channel Tunnel eliminated the ferry trade (though it continues from nearby Dover), but has been on the up since all the development investment in the last decade or two. If I just slagged the place off before, that was unfair. It was always an odd mix - like most seaside towns. I'd never want to live there again, but that's largely because I had a miserable time as a teenager there and no longer have any local connections. I do retain some fondness for the place, though, and I can imagine how someone could have an idyllic day or two there, if the sun was out and they didn't stray too far from the harbour and surrounding streets.

"At the King Power, the mighty King Power, the Wimmer signs tonight.......playing football the Wimmer-way!" Yep, I can see the whole stadium singing this within weeks....

Elsie? She was Roscoe Tanner's Missus, wasn't she? Genes of an elite sportsman, clearly - gerrimin!

Well, he looks quite tall and thin. So, he could make a good draught excluder, if you have a very wide door.

Compensation required. They're going to have a points addition. 31 points. Puts them just ahead of Liverpool.

I don't think it does mean KS is OK with sleaze. He decided to wait for the standards adviser to report back after she self-referred, then accepted her resignation when the report said she hadn't broken the ministerial code, but had acted unwisely regarding public perception of govt. It seems unlikely she'd have resigned unless she'd felt obliged to do so - and it sounds likely she was asked to resign. But she shouldn't have got herself in that position in the first place - and, when she did, KS & the party leadership should've been aware of it and so shouldn't have appointed her to that job. Particularly because: (a) This further erodes public trust in democratic politics, which is already at a low ebb and which faces challenges enough with all the economic/cost-of-living/public services issues; (b) It allows people with an anti-democratic or Far Right agenda to say "they're all the same - we need Nigel (or worse)". It's not in the same ballpark as Owen Paterson being paid £100k for lobbying ministers or ministers' mates/pub landlords getting lucrative Covid contracts a few years back. But it is wrong and a bad look - not the same mindset, but maybe a similar mindset on a smaller scale. And a lot of people will be persuaded that there's no difference, they're all corrupt. That's dangerous for democracy in the longer-term - or possibly in the short/medium-term, if economic/social problems persist and there are any more such scandals.

I hadn't read much about the Siddiq case until now. It's not surprising at all that she's had to go. It is surprising that she thought it a good idea to live in a flat bought by an offshore trust linked to associates of her aunt, who seems to have run a highly questionable regime in Bangladesh. It's also surprising that Labour either didn't discover this or ignored it, before Starmer appointed her as a minister with duties including fighting corruption. I shouldn't overstate things. It seems that she hasn't done anything corrupt herself (unlike various ministers in the past). But it does seem that she's been benefiting from highly questionable, if not outright corrupt actions by others. Just for starters, it isn't a good look to benefit from transactions involving offshore trusts, presumably established for (legal) tax avoidance. This might not rank as high as some past financial scandals, but this govt is supposed to be a change from past sleaze. Given how much it has on its plate and how much mistrust there is for politicians, with Farage waiting in the wings to take advantage, things like this matter. The govt needs to be squeaky-clean and to be seen to be so - and this is anything but. Absolutely brainless by Siddiq herself and for party leadership to allow something like this to happen. Quite right she's resigned and they need to ensure nothing similar happens again any time soon.

A trafficator! I learned that word a couple of years ago, when I worked out that it was the focus of my earliest childhood memory. All my life, I'd assumed that my earliest memory was my horror at my Dad being thrown on a bonfire when I was 3 (it turned out to be a Guy Fawkes effigy - both wore suits, I suppose). But I'd always had this vague memory of being very young and being in the back seat of a fancy old car with my parents, pissing myself laughing at this orange light coming in and out of the side of the car. It turns out that my uncle, who lived across the road, had just such a vehicle with just such a trafficator but sold it when I was aged 2. True story. I hope you're more entertained with that one than my post about Brexit, Para?

I hope the day is beneficial for you and your family, even if there are moments of stress or emotion. I felt some stress at my parents' funeral services (10 & 8 years ago), mainly through a fear of being overcome by emotion in front of a lot of people. Yet the truth is that nobody with an ounce of empathy would judge a person negatively for their behaviour on such an occasion. I actually enjoyed the reception/wake phase, meeting family & family friends not seen for years and gassing on about times old and new. I'd say to be easy on yourself - not judging yourself or being too demanding of yourself. I chose to only read a poem at my parents' funerals, not to speak about them, as I thought that I might break down if I stood up and spoke about them. Though there's nothing wrong with getting emotional - just a bit of old-fashioned stiff upper lip or machismo in my attitude, I presume. Everyone is different in how they are affected by bereavement and how they handle it, so be kind to yourself, not just today but also over coming months. Perhaps this is the wrong moment to say it, but I found the period immediately after the funerals a bit tricky as I no longer had the funeral to focus on. Once the funeral was over, it felt like a whole new phase of gradually coming to terms with bereavement (a process, not an event) and with life going on. Look after yourself today and in the days/months ahead.

Nah. More chance of you being appointed Prince of Punjab by Modi. Reeves out by 2026 and replaced by Streeting wouldn't surprise me.

Well, thanks for persevering, Para. I'm sure the mastication was worth it for the rich, fulfilling joy of enlightenment at the end of your meal. I'll try to serve up easily digestible chicken nuggets in future. Let's try: "We need to cut taxes and improve public services!" "We just need to go 4-4-2 and get it in the fvcking box!" Yep, I'm getting there. I'll be promoted from Foxes Talk to Twitter any day now.

Your economic arguments against Brexit were valid before Brexit happened. The Remain campaign used them. As a Remainer, I used them myself. But we lost and Brexit happened. If we wanted to "remove the sanctions we imposed on ourselves", we'd now face a host of complications, it would be massively controversial, would take years and might not even be achievable: - We couldn't unilaterally decide to trade freely with the EU. We'd have to apply to re-join the EU or at least the Single Market and/or Customs Union. That would take many years. - In recent decades, it has typically taken about 15 years for countries to join the EU. With the will on both sides, UK membership might happen quicker, but I reckon we'd still have to face the lengthy, multi-stage approval process that all applicant countries face. Maybe it would be achievable in 5-10 years? - But would the EU want to embark on such a draining process? They didn't want us to leave, but after years of exhausting negotiations over our exit, it's not clear they'd want a mirror-image process. - All new members also require the unanimous approval of all 27 member states. If just 1 member state rejected our membership, we'd be blocked. - Not only is there a risk of being blocked, but individual states might demand pre-conditions: Handover of Gibraltar to Spain? Acceptance of extra refugees? - We'd also re-join on poorer terms than before. As members, we had negotiated various treaty opt-outs and refunds - no way we'd get those back. Might we also be required not only to allow free movement, but to join Schengen and allow passport-free travel? We'd certainly be expected to take a fair share of EU refugees - and would be pressured to join the Euro. All the above only applies once we are hypothetically negotiating re-entry.....but how would we reach that position? - Polls might now suggest that there's a small Remainer majority, but a lot of people would still be violently opposed....particularly if Labour tried to negotiate EU membership (or even Single Market / Customs Union) without any referendum and without any electoral mandate. It could well hand dozens of Red Wall seats to Reform in 2029. - If Starmer wanted to join the EU or SM/CU, he'd surely have to get parliament to call another referendum? Can you imagine what that would do to the atmosphere nationwide? It would be a recipe for social conflict and violence, particularly given the high profile of race/immigration issues. - It would also mean that the rest of their term in government would be dominated by Brexit, at a time when there are already a ridiculous number of serious problems to be addressed: low growth, cost of living crisis, public services in chaos, high/expensive public debt, discontent over tax, millions of long-term sick, care system in crisis, aging population, climate change impacts, AI etc. - Also, economic confidence / private-sector investment require stability. Years of uncertainty over possible EU re-entry would create uncertainty and hinder confidence/investment. I agree that Brexit was the wrong decision - for the economic reasons you mention, among others. But trying to re-join now would be madness. Maybe, hypothetically, by 2029 we might be in a situation where a party could be elected to govt with a mandate to negotiate EU or SM/CU membership....but I think even that is highly unlikely, given the scale of the problems the UK faces (along with other countries). Yes, we made things harder for ourselves through Brexit, but there's no quick/easy way of reversing that. For the next 4-5 years, the Lab govt is right to prioritise improving relations and trading terms with the EU, but not attempting any more than that. Mind you, I do question why they seem unwilling to re-enter the Erasmus student exchange scheme. Apparently, their stance is due to a lack of "taxpayer value" (because more continentals want to study in the UK than vice-versa, so it's a net tax loss) - but it is a measure that has public support and could be economically beneficial and a potential vote-winner in some groups (young people, parents, many businesses) - and the EU seem keen on it, so there's the possibility of getting something in exchange.... Lab is right to focus instead on trying to get some way towards tackling the multiple problems mentioned above. If they do that, they can decide in 2029 whether it would then be wise to re-open the Brexit issue at the next election. If people don't feel their lives/country have at least improved under Labour, Starmer probably won't be in power beyond 2029, anyway - and any Brexit reversal or semi-reversal would take years beyond that....

In other news, sad to see that the man with the greatest stage name in rock 'n' roll died over Christmas.... Boring Bob Grover of the Piranhas. They put some decent lyrics to an old tune for their big hit, but the B-side (below) was arguably even better....

Such a mighty achievement could then only be surpassed by @Wymsey posting a media report on your conduct in the "Absolute ***** of our time" thread and wondering innocently whether or not you're an absolute ****.

People who put their rubbish in MY bins. I wouldn't mind if they put it in the right bins, but recycling waste in my general waste bin and general waste in my recycling bins?!?

Come on! Let's win this relegation six-pointer....

A night out with Nigel and Claudio discussing their respective tenures would be interesting - provided they were prepared to talk openly. A night of stonewalling from NP and dilly-dings and pizzas from Claudio would have more limited entertainment value. As for a non-City legend, a night on the town with Maradona would have been fun - Naples or Buenos Aires, I'd allow him to choose. I'd have particularly enjoyed asking him to give me a hand with the drinks...

I had a quick look at how it's being reported by other leading media. ITV, Sky, Reuters, Al-Jazeera, FT & Guardian are all reporting his status in similar, if not identical terms. He'd just been accused by Ukraine of deploying chemical weapons in the war there, apparently. Mind you, I do generally find that C4 News is much better than BBC for foreign analysis - and for news generally, to be honest. The BBC is also now reporting that Ukraine has claimed responsibility for the assassination....

Is Top aware of Topcashback? He could get tens of millions back on some of his purchases in recent years....