Wirral Wizard

Just found this on a forum...it's a couple of years old but Arshavin was second highest and no mention of Billy. Top 10 earners in Russian League: Timoschuk Anatoliy (Zenit) †3 mln euros p/a Arshavin Andrei (Zenit) †2.5 mln euros p/a Tekke Fatih (Zenit) †1.7 mln euros p/a Loskov Dmitriy (Lokomotiv) †1.5 mln euros p/a (now in Saturn) Ignashevich Sergey (CSKA) †1.5 mln euros p/a Dominges Alexandro (Zenit) †1.5 mln euros p/a Titov Yegor (Spartak) †1.4 mln euros p/a Pogrebnyak Pavel (Zenit) †1.2 mln euros p/a Akinfeev Igor (CSKA) †1.2 mln euros p/a Carvalho Daniel (CSKA) †0.8 mln euros p/a Just done some research...seems purse strings have tightened a lot in Russian football. For example...Lokomotiv Moscow said they had trimmed their budget by at least 20 percent this year. Zenit are backed by a company with massive debts (i.e billions!) So Russia may be fertile ground for us at the moment.

Wasn't Arshavin on 50k a week at Zenit? Are you sure Billy boy was on more? If so, I can't see how we can afford him within our wage structure...but we must have agreed this in principle. Seems unlikely he was on wages of more than 30k a week surely?

Or going back further, Sheedy and Steven outside Reid and Bracewell were even better. And if you're as old as I am you'll remember the likes of Dave Thomas and John Connolly, quality wingers who could beat a man and deliver great crosses. Most of the best teams play with width but we need to play 4-4-2 if possible (and we don't yet have strong enough central midfielders.

Not an obvious priority for us but a good signing that would make us a better balanced side. Agree that Pienaar would have to move out right but that would give us good width on both flanks with players that can take men on. I still think our centre mid is too lightweight and we need to get someone in there that can give us the option to play 4-4-2. But Moyes will surely be concentrating on defence next if he gets Billy A Let Din Off (that's breaking his name down into easy chunks!!)

SSN just clarified that Hughes is still pursuing Lescott and hasn't yet ended his interest. I must get quicker

You might change your opinion of the way Kenwright leads our club if you read this article on the BBC website today:- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8211531.stm I'd rather have BK in charge of our club's future than the mob across the park.

Lescott dropped from 1st team squad for tomorrow's game. Just been on SSN. Haha...I'm too slow!!

Totally agree. City are just the latest club to prostitute themselves. I don't want us to go down that particular road. I said a few days ago this will all end up in a European Super League and now Arsene Wenger is saying the same thing. Football lost its soul the day Abramovitch walked into Chelsea. The Premier League has now probably peaked - why would anyone want to buy another Premier League club unless they have even deeper pockets than those already here? There are only 4 CL places available and that is where the big money lies. So why not invest somewhere else instead?

That's a load of bollocks.

Spot on Phil, well said. And I too don't want a foreign billionaire investor. One of these clubs is going to go bust before too long...there are only 4 CL places and that's where the money is, so which foreign investors are going to lose interest first because they can't buy success against the other big money investors? Liverpool, Arsenal and Man Utd are all heavily in debt so one of them may eventually succumb to City's bigger purse strings (once they've bought a proper manager) and they will go the way of Leeds - income slashed, debts spiral out of control, value of the club collapses, goodnight to the 'glory days'. Or the alternative outcome is that the billionaires organise a European Super League so they can secure their future income streams and leave the rest of us with a de-valued Premiership. The day Abramovich came into football was the day football was corrupted. I hope we don't prostitute ourselves the same way these other clubs have.

Not good reading for those planning to travel to Olomouc... http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/north_east/8187687.stm

I think you are being somewhat naive in understanding how transfers work. They have said talks have been going on for a few weeks so these things are obviously not as simple as we think. I'm sure we'll reach a conclusion on this very shortly and we don't know what progress has been made in the last three days.

At £22 million it's a no brainer for me. It's a better deal for us than the Rooney one a few years ago and it gives us serious money to play with in the transfer market. Of course it means we need at least two centre backs but we should still have enough cash to bring in a quality midfield player, which we desperately need if we are to compete against the top 4. Take the money.

A few seasons ago I was corresponding with an Arsenal fan who was raving about a centre half who was coming through the ranks in their reserve team. It was Philippe Senderos. I've not really followed his progress but he's been affected by injury problems and probably a loss of confidence through the mistakes that have been highlighted. But look at the effect confidence can have on a player...Titus Bramble has been pilloried in the media for years for high profile mistakes and a lack of concentration. But last season at Wigan he was praised for his outstanding performances. So if we have indeed signed Senderos let's give the lad a chance and not judge him on what you have seen or read in the media. I'm with jayC3 on this. We need cover at centre half and he's been at two of the top clubs in Europe over the last few seasons, so he's no mug.

Very poor defending by Lescott for the River Plate goal yesterday. Don't know how he played for the rest of the game but was that the mark of a player who is trying not to get injured ahead of a big money transfer? He definitely should have made a challenge on Ortega. I'm probably reading too much into one piece of defending but I still think he'll be on his way soon for around £20 million as long as Moyes can find suitable replacements before he lets him go.

It really annoys me that Hibbert has been given such a bad press by some fans based on his Cup Final performance. He was booked very early on - a ridiculous decision by the referee - and he was clearly affected by that. He knew one mistimed tackle could mean a red card so his whole game was influenced by that incident. Give the lad a break.

Fair point about the need to bolster the defence. We'd still have £20 million to spend though as we obviously have some funds available without selling Lescott. Moyes could look to use Rodwell at centre half, alternatively could he agree a deal with City that would see Lescott go in the January window once Jagielka is back from injury...probably unlikely I guess as City want to spend money on their defence now. So two defenders and a strong midfield presence the priorities for me then if Lescott goes. £20 million should be enough to do that.

Agree with you City Fan. I think Lescott will go and we will get £20 million. That money buys us 2-3 quality players, one to replace Joleon and something to bolster our lightweight midfield, which is good against most opposition but can't compete against the likes of Chelsea in that department with their physically imposing and athletic players. Arteta, Cahill, Osman and Pienaar struggle against that. The jury is out on Fellaini as far as I'm concerned but at least he does give us physical presence in the middle. Until we get a commanding presence in centre midfield we can't look at going 4-4-2, which I think is what we need to do to get anywhere near the top 4.

http://www.majorleaguesoccertalk.com/college-soccerpdl-success-cody-arnoux-heading-to-england/5122 So maybe we are starting to look at the emerging market for cheap 'soccer' players in the US as opposed to overpriced full backs from the Championship. I think this could be a good strategy. Although football is not in the same league as American Football, Baseball and Basketball as far as tv is concerned in the US there has been a huge increase in the number of kids playing football over the last few years, so if we are looking at the best of them that makes sense to me. As long as our fans don't start singing 'YOU ESS AY'...oh, wait a minute. We already do

Here you go... Numerous Premier League clubs are reported to be preparing bids for the 2nd top scorer in the Ukrainian top division Ismael Bangoura. The Guinea international has been in excellent goal scoring form since joining Dynamo Kiev in the summer of 2007 with a record of 28 goals in just 46 league appearances (36 starts). The powerful African star can play as an out and out forward but can also operate on either wing or in his favoured role as 2nd striker. At 5 ft 8 he is not the biggest but is renowned for his blistering pace and obvious eye for a goal. His performances in the Ukraine and in Europe have brought him to the attention of a number of Premier League clubs with Sunderland boss Steve Bruce thought to be preparing a £7m deal. Bruce was prepared to sign Bangoura as a replacement for Antonio Valencia for Wigan prior to moving to the Stadium of Light. The player himself confirmed Wigan’s previous interest to skysports.com when he said, “Wigan Athletic are a good team, they are doing well in the league - however there also other teams looking at me in the Premier League, according to my agent”. The ‘other teams’ interested in the Guinea international are thought to be Tottenham, Everton and Fulham plus now Sunderland. Bangoura began his career in his homeland before joining French club Ajaccio where he scored 15 goals in 44 league appearances prior to a move to Le Mans. In two seasons with the club he scored 18 goals in 56 league appearances finishing joint 3rd top scorer in the French top division in 2006/07 prompting a move to Dynamo Kiev for €5m. Since moving to the Ukraine, the 24-year-old has proved himself extremely popular with the fans with his trademark African dance performed after scoring alongside team-mate and Senegalese international defender Pape Diakhate. The move also enabled the Guinea star to play at the highest level of European club football having played in the Champions League where he has scored against Roma, Manchester United and Arsenal. Dynamo reached the semi-finals of the Uefa Cup last season following a 3-0 2nd leg win over PSG in mid-April with Bangoura scoring. The striker also picked up the Ukrainian league title with Dynamo finishing 15 points clear of main rivals Shakhtar Donetsk in the table. The young striker also has an excellent record at international level of 19 goals in 38 appearances which illustrates why he is attracting so much attention. Bangoura is expected to depart the Ukrainian club this summer alongside team-mate Pape Diakhate who was also being watched particularly by Wigan. Everton are looking to build on their great season with some added firepower and the strong work ethic and versatility of Bangoura will surely suit David Moyes. Harry Redknapp has signed numerous African stars in the past and the pace of the striker and the ability to play on either flank will suit his ambitious rebuilding plans. Roy Hodgson and Steve Bruce have both shown a key eye for a bargain, so don’t be surprised if they win the battle with first team football guarantees more likely.

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_5374459,00.html "Inevitably, if we were in the top half of the Premier League we'll get bids for players, and you've got to be open minded and say 'we might sell someone for £5million plus, because that's good business'," he added. "Then you can buy another lad who's as good as Chris McCann or Eagles for £1million from lower down. We've got to be prepared to do that. Interesting, actually mentioning two players names publicly. That suggests they may be courting bids and may have already received some offers. This is the type of player Moyes might be interested in and a genuine winger has to be a priority.

I haven't been on here for a while so I'm coming out of hiding to be a smug b*****d and say "I told you so!" Along with one or two others on here I was calling for Moyes to sign AJ a year before he actually arrived. Many people were querying his record and claiming he only scored penalties. I saw a player with a great touch and finishing ability, great pace, direct running at defenders and a hard working team player who appreciates how lucky he is to be playing a sport at a level that most of us can only dream about. Many people wanted us to sign Craig Bellend, a player who has never scored 15 goals in a Premiership season, is a complete tosser on and off the field and full of his own self-importance. An arrogant little p***k. What a contrast. I don't think there are any blues out there now who would disagree with me that we made the right choice. AJ is the real deal...let's just hope he can steer clear of the injuries he has occasionally been prone to in his career so far. Well done AJ - thanks for joining the People's Club and making us even more proud to be Blue.

It could be a fluke of course but I don't think so. He's turned a distinctly average player, Marlon King, and turned him into the leading goalscorer in the Championship. King has said he's by far the best manager he's ever played under. Boothroyd's a top class motivator and the players have responded to his management style. He has an attention to detail similar to Moyes but I suspect he's a calmer individual than our leader. He's a Premiership manager in waiting, mark my words.

Moyes is undoubtedly a good manager but if he moves on I'll give you an up and coming replacement - Ady Boothroyd at Watford. Been keeping an eye on him all season and he's a class manager. To get a team forecast for relegation into the Championship play offs is an outstanding achievement.

It's a very sad day indeed. I first met Brian Labone at Chester Races when I was a young boy and I asked him and a few other players if I could have their autograph. Of course he obliged - this was typical of the man. He always had time for anyone who loved Everton. Then a few years later I had the privilege of caddying for him at Wallasey Golf Club when he was in a pro-am tournament. As I recall this was a couple of years after he retired from football but he was still a great hero of mine and I felt so lucky to be in his company. Just under 20 years passed and I got a job as Branch Manager of Manulife Financial in Pall Mall, just down the road from the Pig and Whistle pub. Brian Labone was working at Manulife as a financial adviser and I was always amazed just how many times he was asked to attend fund-raising evenings. He would always do his best to accept these invitations because he loved Everton and he loved the company of people. Brian was such a warm-hearted and approachable man. He was a giant of an Evertonian and a giant of a human being. I am indeed fortunate to be able to say that I knew him. God bless, Brian - yours was a life that brought happiness to so many others and Evertonians all over the world will be raising a glass to so many good memories on this sad day.