Ronnie Whelan

Unless I'm mistaken, us and the Mancs would get one title each from the time of the alleged breaches. It doesn't seem to cover the years we were battling with them. If it did, Ole would have a title and so would Mourinho. We'd have an extra two which would be nice I suppose for Jurgen and a great team (who for the most part are currently playing like a shit Accrington Stanley reserve team). Think they are fucked myself. A lot of low mood around here lately and rightly so, but this could really galvanise the mood in the club.

I'm trying to remember an outstanding team go so poor and I'm struggling to think of one falling off a cliff like us. I mean relatively speaking I suppose our great team of the 70s had one bad season and it led to a lot of young lads coming through in 81 is the nearest I can think of, but don't remember that season being this bad. Even Virgil has had a poor season. It just feels like you can't rely on any of them. Ali is his usual self and has been world class, but it's just our luck that is the only position that is working consistently well, when we have an excellent backup. I will say that losing two Champions League finals and twice losing the league by one point is bound to leave a hangover. I just don't see how so many top players could be in such decline. Jurgen has some big decisions around certain players because a lot of them would still command a good fee and unless we get taken over by guys that don't mind spending their cash, we are going to be seriously fucked if he's overly loyal to players on the downward slope. Agree about Fab's tackle. He isn't a dirty player. He just behaved like a league two player who has been given the runaround by a premier league team in a cup game and is frustrated. As I said Docker, I'm more annoyed that he did it on a really talented kid, when a collection of horrible bastards will be taking the piss out of him in the coming weeks and he'll do fuck all to them. If say Fernandes did that to young Bajcetic I'd be fuming. I am convinced we will sign Bellingham. I think he is a no brainer even for frugal owners because he is as close to a guaranteed success you can get. I really like Bajetic so without going all Liverpool Echo, I think he could be a real option next year. It's not a good place to be, but I have a lot of confidence regardless of what is going on with the team or possible new ownership in the coming months and that is because we have the best manager in the world.

Disgraceful stuff out there. I still have the little bit of hope that so many of our team will come back to form, but week by week, I lose more faith in them. Genuinely, think we may need to get rid of some of the so called untouchables this summer - none of them are safe the way they are playing bar two or three of them. You know what fucked me off the most. Fabinho was shocking and the only thing he did was a fucking disgraceful challenge on a really talented kid. Of course, in a few weeks, the snides of the league be they Bernardo Silva or Bruno Fernandes will be rampaging through him at will and he'll do fuck all about it. Used to love Fab, but Jesus he's playing like a mediocre league two midfielder.

Newcastle will become the most tiresome bunch of knobheads won't they. Heard one of them on the radio telling Everton fans to keep their heads up and don't stop believing in better days. Going on about their great owners. I nearly crashed my car. Fact is they won the lottery ticket, but it was only given to them by a horrible bunch of evil bastards. If you're happy to be in with a chance of winning your first title in nearly 100 years fair enough, but stop making yourselves out to be the good guys. I'll quietly acknowledge I'm a bit of a hypocrite if we got bought by the Qatari's and am excited with us signing Bellingham etc but I won't be telling the world what a great bunch they are. Anyhow, probably good for us if they make the final. Keep them occupied thinking of winning their first trophy since the 60s and they might drop a few silly points. The dream would be if the Mancs get dragged back down and there's suddenly two spots up for grabs.

Bellingham may be very happy to spend the rest of his days with us or at least most of them with us, if we are successful. However, even if we are successful, he still might want a change of scene after a few years. I've no issue with a clause being placed that if the right offer comes in after a few years, he can go to Real. If FSG are still there, we'd be selling him anyway. If we are owned by the Qataris, we'd be spending big on a replacement. I love Enzo, but he would almost certainly fuck off to Real or possibly Barca asap. At least with British, Irish, and possibly players from a few Europeam countries, you may have a chance to keep them. Not with a lad from Argentina, unless you are Man City and quietly offering them 100 luxury apartments on the sly. As much as the Mancs can't hear it, Real are by far the biggest draw in football. Beautiful city, great weather for most of the year. I see us as the level below them, along with the Mancs and Barca. If the money comes back to Serie A, possibly the big Italian clubs and Bayern would be in that bracket. Rightly or wrongly, City and Chelsea would be too and Newcastle will in a few years. Lets say we get him and he gives us five brilliant years and even taking into account transfer inflation, we pretty much double our money selling him to Real. I certainly would feel that's a good result.

This kid is boss. Huge talent. Without going all Liverpool Echo here, he could save the club 70 million. If we are out of top 4, would make sense to give him serious gametime fot next season. As it is, I think he should be in our starting lineup, but young lads need to be managed.

He's very good. With goalkeepers it's harder to predict world class ability, but I feel he has the potential to go very far in the game. He's one of the best keepers in the league already. Dream scenario would be to loan him for two years as part of a deal to get Caicedo or Bellingham as a sweetener to them. He gets huge experience in good sides and all going well becomes our number one in two years. We shouldn't be selling him to fund others and if we do, it's a mistake. We need to be shrewd how we handle this. Apparently, he's a Red and seems down to earth. Possibly could be our number one for ten years.

I wonder would the Qatari's initially buy say a 20% stake and then increase it over time or ultimately fully buy us in time.

Didn't know any of that but that sums up my point. Very few "decent" owners around.

It's a moral dilemna these guys possibly coming in. I'm only kidding myself saying I'm done with the game if they come in. I'm only kidding myself if I say I wouldn't be like a kid in a sweet shop if they came and we got the Croatian kid in defence, Caicedo and Bellingham in the summer. I'll hate myself for it but fact is football clubs have never greatly cared for us, but at least in the past there was some local links. My dad who is a bluenose got my two older brothers tickets for the 1974 cup final by hanging around the Goodison car park for the Everton chairman who went back inside and sorted it out for him - laughable what a different era it was then when you think about it. Very wealthy local men who did have some connection, however small, with us. Still didn't mean much when we were crammed into glorified building sites home or away. FSG are knobheads (great businessmen who have done a lot right here if I'm being honest). Morally they might be preferable to Qatar, but those hedge fund bastards would shoot their family for a good profit, so let's not kid ourselves that they are that much better than the others out there. I have no doubt they invest in arms companies or other morally questionable firms around the world either directly or indirectly. I hate modern football and yearn for the old days but it's gone. Maybe a Liverpool version of Ratcliffe would be okay but that doesn't look like much of a chance.

Agree but this year we're not chasing 95 points to win the league. We just need top 4 - hate myself for celebrating if we get it after the last few years. If we get two top midfielders in there, we'll be a different team. If we don't, whatever about this season, hard to see us being title contenders for a while.

I really like Gakpo and at that price he is a no brainer, but I refuse to believe that Jurgen is spending 40 million on him over a midfielder, unless there is something significant happening. If he is and I'm slow to give managerial advice to Jurgen, it seems batshit crazy. My gut is we have Bellingham lined up for the summer along with the lad at Wolves. Jurgen is banking that we have enough to get top 4 like two years ago. We are in "crisis" - yet have won four of our last five in the league. We keep that win ratio for the rest of the season and we'll be fine.

Think we could attract him regardless. We have a huge standing in the game and arguably the most iconic manager. He knows how good he is, so would recognise that he can make a huge difference to a very talented squad that needs a bit of a lift to keep it from going into terminal decline. I could be completely wrong but he didn't seem overly close to the City players when with England. That could mean nothing but my gut is that he has developed friendships with Trent and Hendo. We have spent big under FSG at times - yeah we have balanced the books big time, but I do think that someone like Bellingham is a no brainer as a signing. Probably a future England captain and brings in a lot of revenue. A well rounded and down to earth lad. Gigantic resale value.

With Jurgen there, you have to believe he will turn it around and this season could be one of those ones that you look back on and think okay it was shit but it was a springboard. I'm probably being ridiculously positive but I don't believe we would prioritise Gakpo for 40 odd million, as good as he is and as good a steal that he is for that price, if we don't have something big lined up for midfield. My gut is that it's Bellingham in the summer - the way he was with Hendo and Trent at the World Cup just seemed to me like a lad who was enjoying being with future team mates. Regardless of whether FSG stay or go, he adds to the value of the club and is as close to a guaranteed success as you can get from a new player. I mean you look at Enzo Fernandez who is arguably better than Belligham and him acting the knobhead with Benfica - you just don't seem to get that shite with Bellingham and that will be noted by Jurgen, as much as how good a player he is.

Ali is the best keeper in the world and I don't want him to leave under any circumstances, but you know what, if they did try that to get funds together for Bellingham etc, I rate Kelleher very highly to step in. Not saying I would approve of it - I'd much rather we sign Bellingham or Caicedo without selling Ali and look at Kelleher going off on loan to Brighton or Dortmund as a sweetener to them and experience for him to come back as number one in time.

The dream would be loaning Kelleher out for two years to a really good side and have him ready to take over as number 1 in time. At the very least, we need a buyback option on him.

Agree with all that. I rate Potter really highly and think down the line he could do a job with us. Problem for him now is that he will be forever tarnished so a huge club will be less likely to take a chance on him.

Arsenal all day every day. I lived in London for a bit and back in those days before Ethan and Mia were hitting the Emirates, their support at Highbury was the soundest of all the London clubs. To be fair a low barometer but I never minded them. Proper football club. People want us to lose because we are relevant. It's like the Red Mancs if we're honest. Middle England doesn't love us so we are public enemy number one. Nothing new there. City have the likes of Kyle Walker who openly sang a song referencing the Sean Cox attack. That was probably the lowest thing I've seen a domestic footballer do. They have Bernardo Silva who is a classless cunt. They are a disease on the game. I might want them to finish above the red Mancs but that is the height of it. I have faith that this shitty season will be corrected next season and we can challenge for the title next year. Far better for us that City lose a little of that invincible feel. Very few teams have a pop at them and when they do like Brentford, they regularly get results.

Brighton have a great scouting network. They have essentially copied the Portuguese, Dutch and French model of getting really promising young South Americans. They also nicely hoover up some really good talents that might get discarded by Spurs, Chelsea or Arsenal. Apparently, they have deals in place now to get a lot of the best Irish talent such as that lad Ferguson who looks boss - Ireland hasn't produced much the last while but historically produced really good players so smart to get in ahead of the likes of us or the Mancs by offering an easier pathway to the first team to the likes of him. Heard on the radio Ferguson is a Liverpool fan and we were after him but he saw an easier pathway with Brighton. To be fair, much easier for clubs like Brighton to have that model. We just need to be a bit smarter with taking a chance on lads at Boca etc but if we signed some random midfielder from Chile today for 10 million I'd be doing my nut in, so easy to have hindsight. I think Gakpo was an opportunist signing. He looks very good and it's a great price. The fact we signed him before a midfielder makes me think we have Bellingham or someone really good lined up for the summer. Jurgen isn't daft so maybe he thinks (possibly wrongly) that we have enough to get top 4 in the meantime. We need more than adding Bellingham in midfield, so let's see what happens. I could be totally wrong and maybe I'm just being ridiculously positive but while I'm unsure whether we get top 4 and think we have a few more shockers in us, I do think we will address the midifled in the summer, so that gives me some hope.

I saw him play a few times for PSV and really liked what I saw. Yeah it isn't as good a league as it was years ago, but like the Portuguese league, some of the best players in the world will come through it. Thought he was excellent at the world cup. Great age and seems like a really good lad as well. I'm very confident he will be a big success for us.

Such a vocal atmosphere as usual from the City fans, you just can't hear our lot.

Yeah he was an incredible player. There is a serious lack of respect for him which is completely baffling. I can't choose between him, Diego and Messi. As I said, Di Steffano must be in the conversation given both Diego and Pele reckoned he was the greatest. Mbappe will certainly be a top 10 great by the end of his career imo. I think I'd have Piers Morgan Ronaldo in the top 10 but when you add in Cruyff, Rivelino, Carlos Alberto, Maldini, Matthaus, Charlton, Zidane, Platini, Beckenbaur to the other four and a few others I'm not sure. I do think he was a pretty incredible player for 15 years so deserves to be recognised as a true great. The likes of Puskas suffer from being before the television age. Haven't even mentioned the likes of Socrates, Zico, Brazilian Ronaldo and Ronaldinho. All of these players played for the great footballing nations. I do think you only have to look at the Celtic nations, Eastern European teams and South American nations like Uruguay with multiple players that may have threatened the top 10 if they had a better supporting cast. I think Souey was as good as Matthaus for example. Best might have been a real candidate if he wasn't a pisshead and played with a bigger nation.

You could make an argument for Pele, Diego and Messi being the greatest. I was just a kid watching Pele and he was glorious. Diego was too and Messi is just an incredible player. Think Pele suffers from not having the madness of Diego and never playing in Europe in people's minds. Put it like this in one or the truly great sides, he was head and shoulders above the others, just like Messi was in that Barcelona team. The Argie team of 1986 are made out to be a team of journeymen which isn't true. They were a good side as all Argentinian teams are with arguably the greatest taking them over the line. Having said that, think I remember some interview with Pele and Diego where the two of them said Di Steffano was the greatest. I guess he just never got to win the big one and his best years were slightly before the television era.

I heard someone saying that his ancestors came from Ireland and emigrated during the famine, so they were illiterate and unsure how to spell their name. Heard once that there is 1-2 million people of Irish descent living in Argentina which is a bit mad - Di Steffano had an Irish granny. Welsh speaking areas there too - a Welsh lad told me Batistuta could speak Welsh. Really like Mac Callister. Very good player. De Paul is class too. Enzo is fucking terrific. I love Bellingham and would love him here, but if Enzo is who we end up going for over him, I certainly wouldn't feel short changed. Both would be incredible. Brighton must be licking their lips. Caicedo is boss as well.

That crossed my mind alright. Dangerous game though if we are - with that quality of excellent young player, you can't be acting like me with the lads on the beach selling the replica jerseys. Me: How much is the Argentina jersey lad? Him: 30 euro my friend. For you special price, 20 euro and for 40 euro I will throw in another jersey. Me: I'll take the Argentina, Croatia and Cameroon jerseys for 15 euro. Him: Haha you are crazy. My friend the three jerseys will be 60 euro but I'll give you special price of 50 euro. Me: You drive a hard bargain. Because I like your style, I'll give you 17 euro for the three. (Rummaging around my pocket for change with 10 and 20 cent coins coming out to make up the two euro.) Him: Cursing loudly and telling me to fuck off.