Razoray

Ah but Hermes, if we win on Saturday, using your system, over 34 games we would have 70.5 points and be 2nd in the table, at the most 2.5 points behind the leaders with 5 games left to play. We did not even have that in 08/09. And you think we would have got 4th at best if Kenny had been here since the summer, that's not even accounting for the expectation that he would not have wasted £12m (approx) on Jones, Konchesky and Poulsen.

Yep and he gives neither. A no for me.

To be fair Xherdan, I don't think anyone here has advocated giving AVB the job over Kenny. People are just discussing the merits of the Portuguese if FSG do the incorrect think and not appoint the King. Some people believe he would be an able replacement, others don't.

Mancini will be very lucky to keep his job this summer even if they get 4th. Maureen I'd say.

3 at the back: Pepe Carra Kyrgiakos Skrtel Flanagan Lucas Meireles Aurelio Kuyt Carroll Suarez

I would always have thought this but the Mancs are doing ok with a youngster filling in for Ferdinand (who has probably missed more games than Agger in the last 2 years) and Evans/Brown replacing Vidic when he is injured or suspended. I'd keep Agger but improve the replacements and type of replacement in his absence.

Ideally next year we'd have at trimmed down squad, especially if we are without European football. I'd like to see a squad of 24, something like: GK: Pepe & Gulacsi & Hansen RB: Johnson & Kelly LB: 1 & 2 CB: Agger & Carra CB: 1 & Ayala RM: 1 & Kuyt AM: Gerrard & Meireles & Shelvey DM: 1 & Lucas LM: 1 & 2 No.9: Carroll & 1 No.10: Suarez & 2 Out: Jones Konchesky Aurelio Cole Jovanovic Kyrgiakos Maxi Darby Skrtel Ecclestone Aquilani Degen El Zhar Insua Poulsen Spearing Loan: Ngog Pacheco Wilson Coady Robinson Flanagan 2 LBs: Baines & Taiwo 1 CB: Cahill 1 CM: Banega 1 RF: Hazard 2 LFs: Young & Jarvis No. 9: Klose No. 10: Honda Obviously we won't get rid of all the dead wood and won't sign all the targets but that would be the ideal. Is it true that Kyrgiakos is out of contract in the summer?

Code to be fair, Hangelaand is a good defender, but he's nowhere near your opinion of him and the teams that he plays with defend on the 18 yrd line to compensate for his lack of pace, especially on the turn. I think that the main attribute we want in the new CB(s) is pace so that we can defend higher up the pitch and play a more expansive type of football. If we are to go British I'd definitely go for Cahill but in my opinion we need 2. A Cahill type and a less aggressive type that has pace and can play the ball out comfortably. I hope that every player we buy in the summer has pace because it's the biggest weakness in our squad at the moment.

4 CBs in defence. 3 CMs and a forward in midfield meant it was easy to defend us from the front. All they had to do was press the middle and we had to go long, which we did, oh boy did we. If we had one, or even 2 of Johnson, Kelly, Aurelio we would have seen a totally different game. When we do not have Gerrard, Agger and the 3 above we will always struggle to bring the ball out and unfortunately will always defend deep without Agger. I don't think the players yesterday were at fault individually but just as a group, their individual inadequacies were exposed. I'd even look at bringing back one of Konchesky/Insua/Ecclestone or even give the not ready Sterling or the reserve full backs game time until the end of the season rather than play Carra/Wilson and Kuyt/Mereiles as we have no width whatsoever otherwise and are very easy to defend against.

That was no free kick.

I've €20 on West Ham win @ 7/2 so hopefully Mason doesn't try make up his "mistakes".

A yellow was probably correct as the keeper would probably have got to the ball 1st. Vidic should have already been booked for the pen though.

West Brom were fucked before Roy took the job. Great bit of revisionism there bud. They weren't even in the bottom 3 and most people were surprised that Di Matteo lost his job. Holy shit, you are annoying.

Blackburn Blackpool and Birmingham. The three teams that are on bad runs at the moment. Newcastle may even end up in the championship next year with £35 burning a hole in their pocket. I think West Ham have turned the corner and may even finish top half, including a win against the Mancs today.

Looking forward to that. Should be interesting.

We and City have 8 games left, Spurs have 9. In our last 8 games we have 19 points. In City's last 8 games they have 11 points. In Spurs last 9 games they have 16 points. If that happens again it will end up: Spurs 65 points City 64 points Pool 64 points. Just keep doing what we have been doing since after the derby and we have a great chance.

I think with one of Kelly and Aurelio available, we may play 352 for a fair bit of the rest of the season as it's the only way that we have genuine width to supply Carroll.

Now, that would be very sweet indeed.

Beat Spurs and City at home and it's very possible. Anything else and it's gone.

A front 5 of: Fleck Gordon Pacheco Fox Goss Premiership here we come.

I have a sneaky feeling that Arsenal will still win the league. Wenger finished with a front 6 of Bendtner Nasri Wilshere Arshavin Chamakh and van Persie on Saturday which is similar to what the Mancs would do and I think they will really go for it now. I just believe that the problems the Mancs have at the back will give them trouble. If we beat City and Spurs at home we have a good chance of 4th. If we don't, I fancy City. We owe City one big time. I was thinking yesterday that we had the same back 4 yesterday as we had against City away but looked a lot more solid the way Kenny positioned it. Johnson would surely have kept his namesake a lot quieter than Agger was able to at LB. I fancy Blackpool Birmingham to go down and it's a toss up between Blackburn Wigan and West Brom for the 3rd spot.

I think that Kenny will not be confined to a rigid formation and will alternate between 3 at the back, 433 and 442 depending on the opposition and who has available. However, if we are not in Europe the squad will be trimmed down and the need to rotate will be reduced. I have no doubt that he wants a winger, a left back and a midfielder as he was interested in one of each in January. Because of the way we have defended since he took over, if he feels that Carra can carry on and he can keep Agger fit for most games, he may spend whatever money he has on the other 3 positions but I'd really like an aggressive CB that has pace.

Their fans are worse than the bitters for "handball".

Agger has been excellent today. Pity he can't stay fit as we are a different side with him in the 11.

If we win tomorrow we will be only 4 points behind Spurs. With them being poor in the games before and after CL games, I would not rule 5th out at all. Obviously we'd have to be more consistent until the end of the season. I think we'll end up with 62 points or so. Will Spurs get 13 points from their last 9? They've got 12 from their last 7.