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The Regulator

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  1. Cost (in £) of Premier League starting XI's on the weekend of 17-18 January 2009, with their points accumulated and league position 1. Hull City: 5.3m, Points: 27, (9) 2. West Bromwich Albion: 11m, Points: 21, (20) 3. Stoke City: 12.5m, Points: 21, (19) 4. Wigan Athletic: 15.75m, Points: 31, (7) 5. Bolton Wanderers: 19.1m, Points: 23, (13) 6. Blackburn Rovers: 19.1m, Points: 21, (17) 7. Middlesbrough: 23.6m, Points: 21, (18) 8. West Ham United: 25m, Points: 29, (8) 9. Sunderland: 25.7m, Points: 23, (15) 10. Everton: 27m, Points: 36, (6) 11. Fulham: 29.8m, Points: 26, (10) 12. Arsenal: 34m, Points: 41, (5) 13. Portsmouth: 36.6m, Points: 24, (12) 14. Newcastle United: 42.05m, Points: 23, (14) 15. Aston Villa: 63.5m, Points: 44, (4) 16. Manchester City: 77.5m, Points: 25, (11) 17. Tottenham Hotspur: 83.9m, Points: 21, (16) 18. Manchester United: 88.05m, Points: 47, (1) 19. Liverpool: 89.3m, Points: 47, (2) 20. Chelsea: 111.5m, Points: 45, (3) No matter what we say, the three biggest spenders are the top 3, go figure.... still proud that are whole team cost just 2m over torres' cost, that is some ridiculous shit...
  2. The only promising aspect of this is that the club are open to loan with option to buy deal....which is exactly what we need. I think given that the transfer window shuts in 279 hours, our focus should be on numbers, not quality at this point. After all, we've had a striker crisis, but what if Cahill were to get injured, I don't think we'd cope with just Anichebe.... Another striker would mean we have someone to bring off the bench when we're winning games, and to start against bottom of the table teams to rest players, and he may not be the best but if we can get any player this transfer window I'll be happy.
  3. For not having a striker we did brilliantly to keep them out of the game. For the first hour they couldn't touch us, and then we fell asleep but woke up again to score and nick a draw. Hearts were racing...No point going through all the players but points to make: The Good Hibbert - Had what was for him a stunner. Normally I'm one of his harshest critics but he made a few decent crosses and some brilliant tackles, pity it's not consistent otherwise he'd be a great player. (Pienaar) and Baines - Peanuts ran about like a madman, and linked up so well with Baines down the left it was a joy to watch, but Baines especially had a brilliant game, definately our only left back choice from now on, he is fast as hel, he defended extremely well and he had a few decent crosses. Whatever happens, he MUST be part of our starting 11 from now on. Anichebe - Fair play, again I'm not one of his fans, but for god's sake he won every ball he went up for in that game, and when he's on the ball, there was noone in the liverpool side who could knock him off it without totally surrounding him. A strong presence tonight, he just needs to hit the gym and build up his stamina. The Bad: Osman - Apart from one or two shots he was invisible to me, I barely saw him touch it in the second half. Lescott - Didn't clear the lines properly and could have leaked goals if Jagielka wasn't so outstanding. Be glad to see YObo match fit when it comes to Arsenal. The Ugly: Pip - What the fuck was he playing at today? Some horrendous challenges, a few bad passes and out of position on numerous occasions, he had a stinker. Hopefully just a price of the build up and a drop in form, but I hope he gets it back quick as he was nothing but atrocious tonight. Overall though the quality in our squad far outweighed our ineptitude and we came out pretty well, it hasn't dented our chase for 4th but it's taken the bite out of Liverpool's attack on the league. Hopefully Sunday they'll be too pissed off to play well, and we'll stamp on em.
  4. You seem to have a lot of talented up and comers, and usually theyre the ones who will come for loan deals (with option to buy), but if we were in the market for Moutinho or Veloso, they just wouldn't go for loans would they? Which is why unless Bk and Dm have secured some money that they wanted to keep under wraps, we won't be going for those type of players. Moutinho would add so much to our side and being so young, he could be our fabregas, but the odds of landing him on loan are very steep, and even to buy him, we'd need a very good offer. Then if we even mention these players as potential targets, the barcodes will just leap in and take em away.
  5. The endless hibbert debate, we may have had a good run but I don't think he has helped at all. He's not a solid right back in the slightest and he is the weak link in an otherwise strong team. I'd prefer Yobo at right back to Hibbert. There are many reasons we have kept clean sheets: -Jagielka's tireless efforts, often times covering for hibbert, and his consistently faultless performances that keep our goal protected -Lescott's rapid improvement in form, getting back to his best and being as much of a rock in the last few games as Jags, tightening the defence and barely letting anyone have a shot at our goal -Baines' contribution, putting in hard-earned performances every game and making sure to close down attacks on the left -Arteta's command in the center and break up of play, also coming into his best form this season and adding stability and control to the center of the park, allowing the defence to stay back and keep fresh for longer through the game as less attacks get through -Neville's constant tracking back and leadership from his natural DM position, again breaking up play but also covering for Hibbo, and his physicality when it comes to tackling -Howard has done a superb job when he has been challenged and most times he isn't, but when he is he makes sure that the last ball is nestled in his arms and doesn't get anywhere near the goal I'm not a fan of Hibbert and never have been, he isn't a player that I feel is up to the standard we can be, and doesn't deserve a starting place, and the sooner Jacobsen is fit the better because I'd rather give an international a chance than a plank. He may have had a few good games but some people give him so much praise it's unreal, patting him on the back and saying good boy like he's an infant who's just taken his first dump in the toilet and pulled the flush. He's scared of the ball for start, he never looks comfortable on it and never seems to want it, when he does get it his immediate thought is to look backwards and towards the center. he also can't cross the ball and his passing is below par. While his tackling is mixed, some brilliant challenges, some pathetic attempts, my main beef with the hibster is that he keeps getting caught out of position. His man marking is absolutely atrocious. Were it not for Neville and Jags doing an admirable job covering Geovanni, the G man would have raped us the amount of times Hibs was caught out of position. He's just not a good defender, and we are stronger when he is not in the team. Statistics can prove whatever you want them to, but I haven't seen proof on the pitch of Hibbert being any better than he ever was, a distinctly average player with distinctly average abilities. I wouldn't argue the point if noone said anything about him, because he doesn't bare talking about. But there are some people who are adamant that he deserves more respect and a starting place, when he clearly is there because we have fuck all other options available to us. put it this way if we had strikers fit, and Neville was available for right back instead of being required in the center of the park, do you think Moyes would keep Hibbo in on the strength of these performances? Or do you think at the soonest possible juncture Moyes will take Hibbert off because it's a defense tightrope when he plays? Honestly he's not the worst player ever and he's not the worst player Everton's had, but he's certainly not a starter for us, and I'll feel that much more comfortable when we get a striker back and Neville or Jacobsen can fill the right back spot.
  6. 100% yes from me. Class player, sheer quality in front of goal.
  7. Ideally we'd went someone better but due to our budget constraints I'd just be happy for a striker of any quality. That being said Bent has bags of pace and is a proven finisher, even if he's a little scrappy. If we can secure a loan for him he'll probably get us close to 10 goals for the rest of the season. The rest will come from midfield.
  8. Great day all round! Got up at 8 to get the train to Cardiff Central, got the train up to chester (how many fit birds are there in Chester??), and then got to Liverpool around half 1. Went to the Crown something near the station for a pint and then taxi to the game. Had a good view of the whole pitch. The match was well fought, however towards the end we shut off, which was aggrivating. Not nearly as much as the ref though, unbelievable how many decisions he got wrong. Cahill was shoved all over the park, Fellaini got nutted early on and the referreeing all over was a shambles, an absolute disgrace. We played well though, Arteta's goal was a stonker that really set the nerves at ease, and Hull didn't have a single shot on target. Howard - 10/10 - Simply because he didn't have a job to do, but he made a few good catches that I've seen David James recklessly punch away and he was solid enough when they came close. Hibbert - 4/10 - He is just not that good of a football player. I don't care what anyone says, everytime he had the ball he looked backwards, and scared of having it. Jagielka did such a good job of covering for him that Geovanni was kept quiet but he was caught out of position more than a few times, and didn't get a single cross in when he eventually went forward. Poor show. Jagielka - 10/10 - Faultless performance, won the ball cleared it when needed and kept their strikers quiet all game. Had a break of his own as well and never looked flustered. Lescott - 100/10 - My MOTM by a country mile. Did superbly today won every header that he could, cleared it on many an occasion and was a physical presence in defense that shut hull up. They never looked like getting past him, and he never looked bothered. Best performance of the season so far. Baines - 7/10 - ANother strong performance from Baines and more reason to keep him in the starting 11. Wanted to push forward more but we didn't give him enough room to do so, when he did go forward though he looked strong, and was well composed in defence. Didn't stand out, but certainly did his job with aplomb. Arteta - 8/10 - Great game from him, an amazing goal, simply brilliant and he looked strong in the center of the park. Neville - 7/10 - Did his job well in front of the defense but not much presence going forward, if he is playing in midfield especially on the break he should be pressuring higher and picking up lose clearances. Still good job well done. Osman - 6/10 - Had a bit of an off day, played well off the ball but on teh ball never really looked like himself. When we broke and had 4 against 2 I was sure we'd score or at least get a chance but the attack stoppped with him. Shame because he's been solid for weeks, hopefully it was a simple dip in from today and he'll be back to standard in the Derby. Pienaar - 9/10 - Played out of his skin today and really showed his creative prowess, linked well with Baines and constantly pressured their defence, as well as some nice flair moves taht came off, he looked confident and confidence is what made us so powerful last season. It will be necessary in the next few weeks especially so good to have him on form. Fellaini - 7/10 - Had a strong game but let people lure him in to challenges and referees are keen to book him anway so he should have played it quiet today. Scored a good goal but also missed a chance, I think we'll see the best of him next year when he's not the new guy anymore and has played a full season. I get the feeling he's still not 100% with stamina, for the english game at least. Cahill - 8/10 - Solid performance throughout for Timmy, beat them around the head with speed and off the ball pressure, although didn't win that many headers. Still, good to see him adapting to this role we've needed and leading the line when we attacked. Anichebe - 4/10 - A few times he pressured Myhill when the back pass came through but he just sauntered and did a shade of teh work our midfield did today. Very poor considering he had a chance to add a few goals to his belt, and if I was Moyes I wouldn't be impressed. All in all Hull never looked like getting anything from the game and it was a grand day out. Now I've got back I'm going to pour myself a jack daniels and watch MOTD. Wonder if they'll say anything about the refereeing? <_< Oh and a side note I met BK in the train station on the way home. Can't believ nobody else recognised him, and I couldn't fathom why he was on the trains Still I offered to help him with his bags and congratulated him on the good result. I asked How's Betty? and he laughed and then went into Costa and got some coffee. Didn't have time to get a picture but it capped the day off nicely
  9. I know he won't, and if he did I probably would be against it, as the formula is paying dividends. Just looking at our playing style though having 3 CB's means that Baines and Neville could progress forward without losing our back line. And seeing how Baines especially plays up in the top corner, and the fact that Neville isn't a bad crosser on his day, it would be beneficial to us to have 5 in the centre of the park ready to receive a cross rather than rely on one or 2. That being said the only problem with 4-5-1 is the fact that we get hit on the break to easily, and since Villa we seem to have conter-acted that quite well. It's just a formation my dad and I always talk about with other fans, because we both think it would give us width without the need for a winger and allow the midfield players more room to breathe.
  10. Go Miss by name, Go Miss by nature. From what I've seen of him anyway. Only really got a good look at him during the the euros, and he was utter shite. lazy, unconvicing and far from clinical in front of goal. Basically, The Yak when he's off, and I haven't heard anyone rave about Gomis since so I'm guessing nothings changed.
  11. I'm constantly annoyed at Lescott defaulting to left back, not only has he said he doesn't prefer that position, but Baines is so good in that position especially going forward on the overlap, that we can't afford not to play him there. Look at bosingwa, on another level entirely, but how often do you see racing up the line allowing the midfield to fan out and opening up play? He gets crosses in and then if there's a counter attack there's an extra midfield player to track back and provide cover. Baines works in this mentality and I much prefer that style of play, as Baines is also very good at crossing IMO. lescott has good qualities, but I'd prefer him and Yobo to duke it out for a place than have banies relegated to the bench to only when he is needed. He is a much more useful left back. On that, I'm glad Yobo is back and our defense with jacobsen returning is almost as strong as it can be. I personally think we should play 5-4-1 and use them like this: -----------------------------------Howard---------------------------- -----------Yobo-----------Jagielka-------------Lescott-------------- Neville---------------------------------------------------------Baines -----------------------------------Arteta------------------------------ Osman--------------------------Fellaini----------------------Pienaar ----------------------------------Cahill-------------------------------- At least over the next few games until we get a striker back.
  12. I think Hull depends entirely on how we do in the first hour. Fellaini will start without a doubt, but if he doesn't get carded I think Moyes will sub him off for Gosling. On the fellaini situation, I think his contribution against Arsenal and Manure were brilliant and I'd much rather him play those games than be banned through them. He will definately pick up a yellow in the next 3 games if he plays them all, which is sad, BUT, hopefully we will have a striker back fit before too long, and we can afford to lose one in midfield. It's going to be tricky, after all he could get carded straight away against Hull and miss both derbies, I suppose we'll just have to see how it goes. If he plays in any of these matches he will help contribute to our attack, and help us create goals, it's just about how far he can go without getting booked.
  13. Yes i understand that, I meant at this juncture they are both too valuable. If we lost a midfielder who has come into his element and is creating and scoring goals for us, and a defender who has again found his form, can play in 2 positions, is keeping clean sheets and score goals, how would we find better replacements as well as strikers in the next few weeks who would mould into the squad quickly and have a stronger impact than they had? fact is, we wouldn't. Summertime, fair enough, if they offer good money and we have time to pull players I can't argue it's business, but to be honest, our priority this transfer window is a striker, preferably on loan, any other selling/buying aspirations are pointless as our squad is waifer thin and couldn't handle another departure, especially with 2 derbys and 2 games against the big 4 coming up, we're we need everyone fit and firing.
  14. Difference is United could field a team comprised solely of reserves with maybe one or two first teamers and still kick the shit out of half the teams in the league. We haven't got the strength in depth to sell Lescott, and he's doing well at the moment. We should sell players based on potential (like Rooner) or when there over the hill (Beattie, Kilbane), not while they're in there prime, because all your doing then is trying to get another in prime player for a cheaper price and of better quality. Lescott is too valuable to sell, same for arteta, and I think that if Moyes can get a loan deal sorted for a striker we can cope. Next year Gosling and Rodwell will always be coming off the bench, and starting every fa cup and carling cup game, havent seen kissock or jutkiewiscz get the same chances but im sure they will. In teh summer i'd like to see us cut the fat and have jacobsen replace hibbert, valente go, and flog anichebe off on some recently promoted championship club. we're not a selling club by definition, but we are very close, and I don't think Moyes could manage losing players every window and bringing ones in for cheaper, even though he has found some bargains (Cahill, Lescott, Jagielka etc).
  15. i feel a bit crap giving £3 now, i thought it was gonna be a big whip round..... ahh well nice one EW i love this place
  16. If there was any draw that would prove whether we can hold our own against the top 4 this is it, we have arsenal manure and liverpool twice, if we get through to the next round and pull all 9 points i think people will start to have a new respect for everton. If we got out of the cup and lose to all of em then noone will care as thats what they expect to happen. I personally think this is the best fixture of the year, as our chance at silverware means we have to overcome our greatest rivals. Should be an interesting tie and having already played them earlier in the week it'll give us a good chance to redo/undo anything that happens in the league match.
  17. on mrs. vdv alone i'd do the transfer but anyway there's also a rumour on that page of van der vaart going to villa in exchange for ashley young, nothingbut paper talk abotu vdv since he's not set the world on fire after joining RM and do we really want another van der something after the last one?
  18. I reckon Moyes will feel he'll have to risk felli eventually and with the next run of games being Hull Liverpool Liverpool Arsenal Man U I get the feeling Moyes will play him and just hope he doesn't get booked. I can see Howard Neville Jagielka Lescott Baines Osman Arteta Fellaini Pienaar Cahill Anichebe and I'll take a 2-1. Hull are bound to score but I think we have the resolve to come back at em and hold our own. Well, at least i want us to because I'm going and it's a fair trek from the Diff' so I don't wnat to be disappointed.
  19. you can't spell slander without "tree hugging" man. don't worry i was a student once, until I stopped smoking pot, staying in bed til 12 staying out til 6 in the morning, writing papers on why the mise en scene in hitchcock did.....something i'd still go back if the government didn't fuck up the economy so much, right now tescos is the safest place to be, like the mall in dawn of the dead
  20. Anyone got any team news ahead of the game? I'd like to see: Howard Hibbert Jagielka Lescott Baines Osman Neville Arteta Pienaar Cahill Anichebe Bench: Nash, Rodwell, Fellaini, Gosling, van der Meyde, Kissock, Jutkiewicz. Think we could use shandy andy, gosling, and jabberwocky as subs, if all goes well i have an optimistic 2 - 0 in mind, Lescott and Cahill.
  21. you tax dodging bong-smoking credence clearwater revival listening commie loving tree hugging student! get a job!
  22. and if anichebe is not fit, he could be subbed out for gosling...i don't think anyone has not been impressed since he played the 2 over christmas....i think the fa cup is a perfect oppourtunity for him to show his versatility...
  23. I completely agree, we can't ignore the fact that we have no recognised strikers just because we've made it work for the time being, we desperately need someone up front and Saha being out is a pain, but it's only a pain because The Yak is gone too. Hopefully we'll get someone in January.
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