Manchester United banter 6

24 May 2026 20:52:54
Few really good stories today imo.
Bournemouth and Sunderland getting Europa League is great for both clubs. Palace will be in it too I think if they win the Europa Conference League.
Brighton getting European football too.
Bruno getting his assist record is a great achievement.
De Zerbie keeping Spurs up was good achievement, I like De Zerbie and he has done well with what he had.
I'm sorry to see West Ham go down, I'm sure they will come straight back up although it will be some culture shock. It depends who they keep.
I like their lb Diouf very athletic and runs his line very well. Bit raw but I like what I've seen.
Fenandes is decent, still young and can play as 8 or 10, I think he will improve a lot.
Great season for United given last season. 3rd only 7 points off City. Is a giant leap and Carrick must take the credit. He has done so much better than I expected.
He has the chance now to bring us up another few notches next season and hopefully have a complete squad for the season after.
Can he do it? None of us know but I'll be fully behind him in the hope he can answer the tough questions ahead.


He has surpassed all my expectations and hopes so far.
Primarily off the pitch, his demeanor and his tone is fantastic with the press and if they get behind him he will be in great shape.
On the pitch there has been a mixed bag in terms of style or approach but given the fact that we have only 2 midfielders plus Ugarte and 2 less than ideal cbs fbs that can't or won't pose a threat in attack and a very raw cf I think it would be unfair to expect scintillating football.
In all I'd say the season was a lot easier playing just once a week so he does have a lot to prove. He has been given the chance because he has earned it.
Let's hope we have a good window ins and outs.
Enjoy the summer and for those of you interested the WC.
Spain Brazil and France all look strong. England have a punchers chance if they can get the ball to Kane enough. They look a bit ropey in defence.
Enjoy the summer and we can all agree on one thing I think, that, this season has seen the progress we all wanted many thought it unlikely but we got the 3rd by hook or by crook.

24 May 2026 21:42:39
What he said. ?

24 May 2026 21:56:05
Agree with all of this. I'd add Germany as a contender. England have some good players, but they lack balance, so I think they'll need a lot of luck to go deep in the tournament. But, as you say, a puncher's chance nonetheless.
Have a great summer, Ken.

24 May 2026 22:06:38
England starting 11 is very strong, but then we enter the realm of multi-taskers.

24 May 2026 22:41:35
Agree with those West Ham players if they are available. Would be reasonable additions.

Personally, not going to engage with the World Cup, I think it has become a farce with the extension of teams competing.

25 May 2026 05:14:15
Nice post, except for West Ham. I have an irrational dislike for them, dating back many years.

25 May 2026 07:56:25
Having many teams in the World Cup is good in my opinion. It's a festival of football and as many countries as possible should be able to participate. Clue is in the name.

25 May 2026 11:03:29
I agree, Unruly.
The qualifying should be done differently, imo, but lots of countries want to participate, and so they should. It is a World Cup for all the countries in the world.
No point promoting playing in the streets in countries all over the world if you can't play with the big boys once every 4 years. That makes no sense, imo.

25 May 2026 22:46:09
Have more teams, and make it more inclusive, but find a way to keep it down to 4 weeks, not 5 & 1/2. The decision to extend it is not based upon including more countries, it is based upon increasing the potential revenue to make the whole event sustainable for whichever nation is chosen to hold the event.

The costs associated with hosting the event historically have not yielded a positive financial outcome for the host nations.

2026 is an anomaly in that no new stadiums have been built to host the event, the intent is to return an event with a positive result for the host nation.

All that said, what really hinders the cost equation is the FIFA tunnelling of funds.

The most lucrative revenue streams generated by a World Cup do not go to the host country's treasury or local cities.

They are legally channeled directly to FIFA, completely tax-exempt under the hosting agreement.

Broadcast Rights: Television and streaming rights fetch billions (e.g., European television rights alone routinely top EUR1.1 billion), all pocketed by FIFA.
Sponsorships & Marketing: Global corporate partnerships go entirely to FIFA.
Ticket Sales & Merchandising: FIFA retains the ticket revenues. In recent tournaments, FIFA has even strictly limited host cities from selling corporate suites or retaining a cut of game-day concessions.

So, dare I say, get off your high horses, and take the blinkers off. You can swing it how you want and live in a different world if you want, but the facts remain, FIFA are not extending it to include more teams because they want to have Haiti at the WC.

26 May 2026 04:48:58
Like football is now, it’s all about money. They can now just try to justify and hide behind the rubbish they peddle about inclusivity. Anyone with an ounce of brain knows it’s all about money, money, money and nothing else. Of course, you get the romantics, and then those who can’t see the woods for the trees, and then there are those that just want to peddle their own themes and try to shout down those whose opinions differ, or try not to listen to different opinions.

Some even suggest blocking opinions they don’t like, and that’s the worst of all. But hey, it’s 2026. But don’t try to kid yourselves that it’s not just about the money.

24 May 2026 20:47:32
With us seemingly moving early on a number of targets, is it possible that we are trying to get some players in before 30th June, and does this help with the available money we could spend post 30th June?
Not an expert on these things but we have seen clubs have to sell by this date to balance the books so maybe we can take advantage.

25 May 2026 03:15:47
I don't believe transfers-in completed between June 15 and 30 will make any difference to what we can spend after June 30. The overall amount of money the board is prepared to spend will be the same, one way or another. It's probably more dependent on a) who we can sell, and for how much, and b) available cash flow.

PSR expires at the end of the season, and my guess is United will have been in compliance for its final year and won't have any problem complying with UEFA's squad cost rules in the coming year, when revenues could increase to more like £750m.



I'd be much more concerned if I was a Chelsea supporter. I don't see how they can get out of the red. They've already used up their available bookkeeping gimmicks.

24 May 2026 20:40:36
When Carrick took over we were flattering to deceive, threatening the top 4 without ever convincing anyone we could do it.

So here we are, finishing 3rd, well clear of other teams and 7 points behind City in 2nd.

12 wins in 17 games, 39 points, which extrapolates to 87 points over a full season, enough to win the league this year.

Carrick did some simple things. He picked Mainoo, who has got better and better, and he pushed Bruno forward into the 10 role, both those things have had a major impact. He also played Dorgu further forward, and whilst his time has been limited, that also looks like an astute call.

The big thing for me is the spirit the team seems to have, they genuinely seem to like each other and play as a team.

So an awesome second half of the season but work needed for next year. Our issues are depth, our first 11 can compete with the best, but we will have many more games next year.

Dorgu feels like a new player in his new role, and I would promote Lacey who has shown great promise. We also need to keep Mount and Martinez fit, great players when available.

We need a top player to replace Cas, and also more depth in CM, and whilst Sesko has huge potential, that also feels like a gap we need to fill.

I'm excited for next year. I expect Kobe to go to another level, Sesko to find a real groove, and some of our younger players to continue their development.

I don't believe we need 4 first team players, although that would be great, we need depth. In terms of starters, CM and CF are the real opportunities.

A great end to the season, have a great summer gents.

24 May 2026 21:48:29
Ah, come on, man. You complain about my arguments on xG and then you do that extrapolation!!
Carrick didn't turn the season around. We were 5th when Amorim left. Carrick had great results, and his demeanour is great. Good luck to the man. He's got to show a lot of improvements, but hopefully he can do it. But our first XI is certainly not good enough to challenge.

We remain 2 or 3 players short in that regard, and another 2 or 3 squad players. I like the optimism, but I hope the club takes a more realistic evaluation of our squad than this. A summer like last year and we could have a team that can mix it with the best regularly. But I think we're two summers off being definite challengers.

24 May 2026 22:04:02
What is wrong with my extrapolation? XG is theoretical. My extrapolation took actuals for
half a season and looked at a full season. I know you thought RA was a winner, but I'm just quoting actual points.

24 May 2026 22:29:34
Ok, one more time then: xG is a retrospective measure of what happened in a game. It describes how often an average (at that level) footballer would score given the same chance. There are far more involved models of this that involve passing networks and so on. It is based on what happened in the game. Using this sort of model, teams have another way to evaluate their performance, but it also is a really good predictor for future performance (with some adjustments that are pointless talking about here).

Brighton owner Tony Bloom, via his company Star Lizard, and Brentford owner Matthew Benham base a huge amount of what they do on this. So, do keep misrepresenting my points, but you are swimming uptide. Fwiw, United were predicted to finish 3rd or 4th based on those metrics.
Your extrapolation accounts for nothing but vibes. Points per game based on a sample like that is an even worse predictor than goals per game. Your posts just reveal that you pay very little attention to what actually happens in games.

24 May 2026 22:42:11
Don,

Are you expecting us all to say 'oh do you know what, Don is correct, Amorim was world class'? If not, then I have no idea why you're beating the same drum. We all have eyes. Amorim was struggling; his tactics weren't working, and the players couldn't play the system. He was better this year than last year, but that wouldn't have been difficult.

I think most people will have United as a good chance for top 4 next season, depending on signings, even maybe a title challenge. Amorim wasn't getting us there, no matter how many xG stats you throw at it.

By the way, I'm an analytical person, and I liked Amorim, but I don't need stats to see that what he was doing wasn't working. Sometimes, football is just simple.

24 May 2026 23:00:26
Very little of that is true, GDS2. I don't want to keep on about this, but we've been top 5 pretty much all season. This turnaround is just in your heads. The results upturned a bit, but that was predicted as the forwards settled. It's not worth talking about any more. I never said Amorim was world class, and I think his emotional outburst meant he had to go. I just severely dislike this wonton rewriting of history to suit some narrative. This talk of the players struggling in his system is an example. It just wasn't true. Some players do better in different systems. Sesko prefers Carrick's, Mbeumo was better in Amorim's. But every modern system transitions between formations in the phases.



It's a frustration, as I've worked both with sports teams and large corporations, and those who don't see the progress in front of their eyes because of short term results, and then revert to the previous approach - which wasn't working - always end up failing. Luckily I do believe the senior leadership seems to realise this. They let Amorim go because of the outburst, but did want him to stay before that. They explored the market because they also see the issues with the counter attacking style and what the metrics are telling them. They are targeting the players based on a profiling that aligns really well with the types of metrics based models I know are used at the top clubs.

25 May 2026 04:41:20
Dress it up however you like. If RA was good enough, even if Carrick is good enough, one thing that is certain is this team is not good enough, that is 100%. We got one striker who ain't the finished article, we got poor CBs, and no midfield, and most on here moan about our full backs.

So, how on hell can anybody say our starting 11 could challenge for the title is beyond me. Take Bruno out, this team is awful.

25 May 2026 06:40:19
Nice uplifting positive post once again. A proper ray of sunshine.

25 May 2026 08:03:51
Jfc one would think we are no better than relegated West Ham judging by this person.

25 May 2026 11:22:41
Keefy,

I have him blocked so I don't get to see the nonsense anymore, but I assume it's him saying we are useless, none of the players are good enough and that me suggesting we could challenge for a title next season with the right signings is a stupid suggestion.

25 May 2026 14:49:18
Of course you do...
You go on thinking this first 11 gets anywhere near a title if you want, but I live in a real world, not pie in the sky world.

25 May 2026 21:31:25
You live with your head jammed where the sun don't shine pal! Jog on.

24 May 2026 18:52:25
I would be after Fernandez from West Ham, tonight, probably some clause there if they went down. Him and Ederson for 100 wouldn't be bad business of possible. It will be a very busy summer, but the World Cup will delay sales and purchases u fortunatley.

24 May 2026 19:17:59
Is he even any good? Genuine question.

24 May 2026 20:14:34
Scholes,

I think he's very good, still only 21, huge quality there.

24 May 2026 20:30:00
Was excellent today, best player on the pitch by a mile. Saw him a few times, and looks quality tbf.

24 May 2026 20:43:17
Realistic chance for Fernandez, with maybe Bruno doing some work behind the scenes with him for the club.
West Ham would likely want a good profit on what they paid last year, and Southampton have a sell on clause as well, I think..... Relegation may help.
Maybe looking at £60/70m for him, and it feels like he is this year's Baleba for age and potential.


Fernandez and Ederson for £100m would be a good start, but I feel we would still be wanting more in the midfield, and would we still have the money for an Anderson/Tonali?
Let's see what happens in the next few weeks.

24 May 2026 21:45:57
I think he is an excellent prospect. I have posted 2 or 3 times recently that I really hope we make a move for him.

He can play as a deep-lying defensive type, and is very good with his distribution and passing accuracy. He can also play very effectively as a box-to-box player, and is good at receiving the ball under pressure. He has been excellent for West Ham this season.

He has said that his idol is Bruno, so maybe a chat has taken place!

It has been reported that he has made it known he is only interested in joining us this summer.



There is supposed interest in him from Arsenal, Man City, Atletico Madrid, AC Milan, and others. West Ham have said they want £80m for him, having paid £42m last summer. It is thought they will have to accept less following their relegation.

If we could sort out and agree deals for him and Ederson for about £110m, in quick time, I would think that to be a fantastic start to our summer dealings. I don't think we will get Anderson, so another top-class midfielder may well follow.

24 May 2026 21:51:27
Fernandes is fantastic. If Anderson is going to City, he's the one we should target. I'd imagine, even with West Ham's relegation, we'll be looking at around 70M for him. But that price and Ederson might then make Joao Gomes a realistic 3rd target. Now that would be a dream summer revamp of our midfield.

24 May 2026 15:26:10
Well, well, Luke Shaw starts today and becomes the only player at the club to start all 38 League matches this season.

This is not meant as a precursor to a litany of criticism towards him from people, just give a little bit of credit for this, not massive, but nonetheless unexpected achievement.



Defensively, his performances have, overall, been pretty decent all season and some very good.

24 May 2026 17:48:07
Yeah, he had his best season for the last 7 or 8.

24 May 2026 18:26:52
He's done well this season. The reduced workload has obviously helped him, though. Good summer off now, and back for next season. Hopefully with some quality competition to keep him on his toes.

24 May 2026 07:46:11
Hi, all.

Long time no speak/post!

The midfield overhaul looks fairly straightforward, now. Which is so un-United, but I'm not complaining!

Eriksen's replacement - Mateus Fernandes.

Ugarte's replacement - Ederson.

Casemiro's replacement - one of Anderson, Tonali or Tchouameni.

That's the £180m summer budget spent, with the remaining incomings (LB or LW, depending on where Carrick sees Dorgu's future, a backup keeper and a backup striker) coming from the sales of Rashford et al.

If we could somehow add Sam Johnstone, Iliman N'Diaye and Danny Welbeck to the above midfield reinforcements, I'd be absolutely delighted.

Lammens
Johnstone

Dalot
Mazraoui

Maguire
De Ligt
Yoro

Martinez
Heaven

Shaw
Dorgu

Anderson/Tonali/Tchouameni
Ederson

Fernandes
Mainoo

Fernandes
Mount

Mbeumo
Amad

Cunha
N'Diaye

Sesko
Welbeck

Would be a really strong squad to greet Champions League football again at Old Trafford.

24 May 2026 10:49:20
Well Downsie, hope all is well.
I'd lump Mainoo in with Ederson and Tonali, and say it's 2 from 3 there.
Ban Bruno and Mount.
Fernandes, from West Ham, if we get him, could cover both midfield and 10.
He has been relegated the last 2 seasons, assuming West Ham go down, so let's hope his luck changes. ?

24 May 2026 11:41:04
Anderson's destination is key this summer. If he goes to City, I think they finish above us, even with a new manager. If our ambition is what Man Utd ambition is supposed to be, then we should be aiming to win the league. Less was not good enough as an aim for every other manager, and that needs the best-in-class CM. If he chooses City, ok, but if it's because we are not willing to pay, that tells us everything about our continuing issues and attitude. Looks like we actually may buy some midfield players at last. I suspect that Mainoo may struggle to get in at times, but that's a good sign.



I see the OP went for Welbeck. I think a goal scorer is vital, and should be second purchase after the key CM. We cannot go with just Sesko and an old Welbeck, it has to be someone lively, that Andy Cole moment. When I saw him last weekend, Junior Kroupi looks that player.

So, start with Anderson and Kroupi, and add from there.

I know the usual "we can't" posts will come, but at some point this lot in charge need to show they mean business. Last summer was good, but this must be decisive.

24 May 2026 11:58:58
By all reports Anderson has chosen City and agreed terms with them. So that's not a runner. It's a bit disappointing, but if that's what he wants to do, we can't kidnap him.
Lots of other options.
As for the striker, I agree we need to get someone who can start.
I'm sure they will buy well.

24 May 2026 13:18:06
Downsie, that would be a pretty good summer. I don't see Welbeck leaving Brighton to play a bit part role with us. If he wanted that, then he probably wouldn't have extended his contract a few months ago.

Also, while I'm a big fan of N'Diaye personally, I'd feel more comfortable signing a top class LB over a LW. Someone like Truffert, who is EPL-proven, and would scale up well from a club like Bournemouth to a club like ours.

The issue I have is I don't think Shaw will be available much next season, and Dorgu looks more comfortable further forward. Plus, it's better to have a player in their peak years like Cunha competing with someone younger like Dorgu for a position (like we have Mbeumo and Amad on the right) than it is to have two players who are the same age and would both expect to be first choice.

Also, we have two very young CBs in Heaven and Yoro, as well as a less experienced GK in Lammens. Given the injury records of MdL and Martinez, we could very easily end up in a situation with Lammens, Yoro, Heaven and Dorgu making up 4 of our back 5 next season in big games in the league or in Europe.

Having someone with a little more experience, and who is more settled as a LB such as Truffert, would mean we are a little more defensively solid in that situation.

Having Shaw and Truffert fighting it out at LB, with Dorgu who could fill in there in a pinch, looks far more solid.

While Cunha and Dorgu fighting it out for the LW looks more balanced.

Also, as a little brucey bonus, LBs are both easier to find a good one and typically cheaper than top quality wingers. Which will enable us to spend heavier in other key positions like midfield.

Signing someone like Illman N'Diaye or Bradley Barcola would cost 60-80m, while a top class LB probably wouldn't cost much more than 35-40m at most. That could be the difference between getting our first choice midfielder or having to sign a cheaper second or third choice option.

24 May 2026 14:31:38
Not so sure on those fees for a decent fullback, Shappy. A player of the level we should be looking for at fb would cost between £50 & £60 million, imo. I couldn't see Lewis Hall going for less than £50M. Didn't we sell the Spanish boy to Madrid for £50M?

24 May 2026 14:40:51
TW
On Anderson, in that case, I want to know if he made the decision, or we refused to pay fee or wages, and let City have clear run. I don't trust Ratcliffe or Glazers & think they would go for cheaper options based on money, not ability.

Stories abounded that Amorim met Semenyo, wanted him, but the owners didn't believe he was worth the money asked, so let him go to City.

24 May 2026 15:07:15
Ports, we didn't sell the Spanish boy to Madrid for 50m. He went for about 45m, but from Portugal.

24 May 2026 15:11:22
You want to know...!!!
Well, I'm sure they will phone up just to tell you...

24 May 2026 15:27:02
Most important, that we sign a top midfielder who can be a leader, and boss the most important part of the pitch. Casemiro going is huge for this team. Our focus has to be to replace/improve on his position and also to sign another top midfielder to fill out an empty squad.



All other squad positions we have solutions for, but not midfield.

Of course, we could use another striker who scores goals. Upgrade fullbacks, wingers, CBs etc... but we simply don't have a midfield right now, and Ugarte, if he stays, can only be 4th choice given how weak he has been.

24 May 2026 02:59:56
Seeing rumours re Greenwood moving. Hope that happens, will be a nice bp up to the transfer kitty.

24 May 2026 15:03:30
Hasn't he already moved once? Do we get a sell-on fee in perpetuity?

24 May 2026 15:13:38
No, he's been at Marseille since leaving United.

24 May 2026 18:39:34
He was only on loan in Spain. Marseille bought him, and we have a significant sell-on clause. Can't remember the % I read, but 50% is in my head for some reason.

24 May 2026 19:17:02
It's 50%, Ken. Hope they sell him for circa 70M. Would boost our budget massively.

24 May 2026 20:55:09
Unruly, surely that can't be 50% of any fee? Is it not 50% of any profit?

24 May 2026 22:44:36
The latter, Ken, is my understanding.

24 May 2026 07:39:01
{Ed's Note - Ed001 has posted a new article entitled, Matchday 37 - Quick Round Up

23 May 2026 19:03:17
Ed, I posted an objection to a post by Unruly below re his support of Palestine. This is no place to discuss such things. Yet his pro Palestine post is published but my objection is not. Why?

{Ed007's Note - Calm down sweetheart

via GIPHY

23 May 2026 20:13:48
Free Palestine forever and always!

23 May 2026 20:33:32
Fizz sometimes objectivity should allow to speak. What's happening to Palestinians is a disgusting travesty. I don't believe that's a political statement but a humanitarian one.

23 May 2026 21:17:19
Am I missing something here? Last time I checked there were no significant youth prospects coming out of Palestine or in fact the entire region, why is this even a topic for the football threads.

Seen a lot of coverage and definitely not enough footballs on the streets out there.

Football brings harmony amongst enemies, until it doesn't.

{Ed001's Note - are you being serious? Their football prospects are being massacred in a genocide and you come out with this shite? Tone deaf.}

******* TEXT DELETED *******

{Ed007's Note - For legal reasons we aren't allowed to post idiots made up lies... sorry, not sorry...

24 May 2026 00:44:24
I agree we should follow the same rules as the Olympics and Football generally. Let's keep politics off the page, unless it's related to Man Utd.

{Ed001's Note - neither of which ignore politics, they just only pay obeisance to who pays them.}

23 May 2026 23:30:00
I have never been serious in my life Ed.

I disagree with the whole concept of the neverending conflict from both sides. I disagree with the concept of war as a whole.

As I say, more footballs required.

{Ed001's Note - both sides? There is only one side that is the problem. If you don't like it, shut up and scroll past.}

24 May 2026 07:01:23
I actually don't see the issue with what I wrote.

I am well aware of the atrocities occurring.

I brought it back to football. What is the problem?

{Ed001's Note - omg like I said you are tone deaf.}

24 May 2026 08:17:35
#FreeKobbie.

24 May 2026 09:29:49
Very worrying that you don't see an issue with what you put there, Jimbob.

24 May 2026 09:42:51
It's no surprise Sepp.

24 May 2026 10:47:04
"From both sides" is easy to say when you're nowhere near it.

I know people who travelled out to bring aid and they came home traumatised within 36 hours from what they saw.

Football won't fix war crimes or human suffering. And trying to reduce it to banter or balance points is honestly grim.

I'm Catholic — I know prejudice exists. But innocent civilians suffering should never be mentioned in a sentence with a team sport.

24 May 2026 10:52:56
Ed001 delighted to see this from you. Loved and contributed to this page for years and love it even more now.

DonRed, fantastic post mate.

24 May 2026 13:29:56
I'm sure if this site was around during the 1930's there would have been people saying we shouldn't be posting about that is happening in Germany politically at the time.

Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but not all opinions are equally valid. While the Ed's on here also have to make sure they tread a careful line about what is and isn't allowed to be posted for both liable reasons and to maintain civility on the site.

What is happening in Palestine right now and has been for decades is an absolute disgrace, and a stain on humanity. Unfortunately, much of the mainstream media have connections to Israel and as such have been shameful in their reporting on the topic, this along with a western bias against Muslims means that we have been woefully misinformed by the mainstream media. However, with the rise in social media and more independent forms of media what is happening their is finally being brought to light in the way it should have been for decades.

The biggest problem humanity has with issues like this is the tendency to attach ourselves to what is familiar. We judge from a position of subconscious bias rather than just on the pure morality of the situation. Meaning too many people won't speak out against something if the perpetrators are seen as more familiar to them than the victims.

Fortunately younger generations seem to be bucking that trend in the most part, which is at least a small silver lining.

24 May 2026 15:07:57
Thanks, ED001. Really appreciate that you ensure that these boards aren't completely shut off from politics and real world problems.

Sport doesn't exist in a vacuum, and the only people that benefit from pretending that it does are the ones doing horrific things or profiting from those that do.

24 May 2026 16:29:24
I didn't realise my post elicited so much reaction. Judging from some of these posts, I can't help but feel we have lost empathy for those suffering.

24 May 2026 16:40:56
Your post was so inoffensive that the only reason someone would possibly kick up a fuss is that they want to live in an echo chamber so insulated that the thought of their world view being called into question never even crosses their mind.

24 May 2026 18:56:59
Anybody who has seen or even read about the atrocities happening and claims to have seen plenty of footage and comes to a dumbass conclusion that there is not enough people playing football on the streets in Palestine is pretty stupid and lacks any sort of understanding or decency imo I'm not one bit surprised on this occasion.
No matter what your political persuasion is its one of the most disgusting thinks I've read on these pages and shows a complete lack of class.

Take your head out of the sand. Dear oh dear.
I agree that this is not usually a page for politics but I think the eds were right on this occasion to highlight the total and complete disregard of common human decency.
I would suggest persecuted homeless starving people have other other priorities right now other than a game of footie.

25 May 2026 01:43:55
Maybe you are aware of the Christmas Truce during WW1, maybe you are not.

I appreciate that my comment has caused concern, but it was not intended to.

What is happening is awful and of course it is heartbreaking to see. I have no words to make it better, and probably should have articulated it better, or as the Eds suggested, said nothing at all.

I have no political leaning whatsoever as one suggested, and I see conflict as a colossal waste of human life.

I'm sorry if I caused offence to anyone.

23 May 2026 17:41:15
Well done to Hull, they deserve it. The last 10 was madness, backwards and sideward passes for Boro.

Put the ball in the box. I was screaming, and when they did, it went out for a GK.

Who's doing the predictions this year?

23 May 2026 19:54:16
Great for them. Poor game, though, imo. They will do well to get more points than Wolves did this season in the EPL, imo.

23 May 2026 20:29:40
They will be favourites to go down. A remarkable turnaround from last year, but it shows the vagaries of the play offs. They snuck into 6th, having lost 15 league games, but the knockout games have got them to the EPL. Well done to them, but they will be straight back down. Good luck to Stockport tomorrow.

24 May 2026 05:27:33
This is particularly for the hard to understand souls: whichever Alta ego they use, both factors heavily influence standings, but in distinctly different ways. A high wage bill is the single strongest statistical predictor of Premier League success, as it directly reflects a club's ability to attract elite talent and depth.

A large supporter base indirectly affects standings by driving the massive revenues required to sustain those top-tier wage budgets.

24 May 2026 10:02:27
11 times in 33 years the team with the highest wage bill has won the EPL.
The biggest predictor of success in the EPL is the amount of points you win, closely followed by the amount of goals you score, and thirdly the amount of goals you concede.
The only time the best supported team wins the EPL is when United win it.


I think every year United have had the best attendance, but not won it for over 10 years.
Usually money talks to some degree, but is not the major deciding factor. More often than not, the team that has the best coaching wins.

24 May 2026 15:15:39
I am so glad to hear you are better informed than AI, which is exactly where that cut and paste comes from, so forgive me if I take more notice of that than you...

24 May 2026 18:00:27
If you ask AI to give you the details of the 3 men that started the Aer Lingus airline, it will spit out 3 profiles.
But only 2 men started the company, but because you asked for 3, it will give you 3 profiles. AI is not a definitive source, and needs to be treated with levels of doubt.


AI gave me the 11-times stat. I double-checked it and got nothing to contradict the fact that the highest wage bill has only won the EPL 1/3 of the time, and indeed the biggest spenders the summer before have only won the league on 8 occasions, again according to AI.