Mhsc

Yes, seems like it is both true that the rules are quite clear on it, and also that there are methods to get around it based essentially on technicalities https://weaintgotnohistory.sbnation.com/2025/4/1/24398332/blueco-to-put-rc-strasbourg-into-trust-should-they-qualify-for-champions-league-alongside-Chelsea So, we can do it as long as we give up control of Strasbourg for a while, and stop doing business between the clubs while they are both in CL. That would probably completely destroy Strasbourg's hopes for doing well though, and defeat the purpose for us from a sporting PoV (although financially very lucrative for BlueCo)

Surely his salary is being cut in half if he stays, we're not paying full whack now and that must have been part of the agreement from the beginning (we just don't pay that sort of money for anyone now) Even despite that, probably wouldn't bother with him at £125k pw. He's just not well suited to PL.

I wondered about this as well! I think there is some rule that says that in this scenario, only one club can play in the competition, and the spot goes to whoever finished the highest in their respective league - and the other club gets dropped to Europa. If its equal, there is a convoluted series of tiebreakers including GD.

Very exciting to have Santos coming back, before Xmas I was a bit skeptical he would actually come back and play, when we were in a brief moment where everyone was fit, it was hard to imagine him displacing more expensive signings. But seeing how he's kicked on and maintained a high level I think there is a real case that he could win and hold down a spot, I think every MF we have except for Caicedo should certainly consider him a very immediate threat to their playing time.

My feeling is they probably didn't start the season with a specific target for him of top 4, but after seeing us in 2nd and even now being in 4th, it has become a clear target in both the fans, manager, players, directors, and owners eyes surely. So whether it was a formal target at the beginning of the season or not, it is now de facto a target because it is totally in grasp and it will be a bottle job if we give it up this close to the end of the season.

Um, I find it hard to oppose him publicly pointing out the blatant racism he experiences, whenever he experiences it, and it being investigated and dealt with. I would in fact consider it more like a model behaviour, that other players should by all means follow if they experience the same - visibility is surely only a good thing. If you don't want to engage with it then don't, but he surely is right and completely free to point it out. Just because you lost a game of football does not mean you have to silently put up with racism. I think it is extremely cynical and unrealistic to think he deliberately tried to change the narrative around a poor performance by jumping on these posts. He has lost plenty of games in his career and had plenty of shit performances.

In a totally separate thread in an in game chat where I mentioned that I was not unhappy that Cole was getting angry on the field, which you were apparently annoyed at. You said something about how he should not do that unless he can "do it all for us" I said he did it for a year and has the earned the right to get annoyed when things are going badly and ask for higher standards from those around him No where there did I say we should not ever criticise his performance on the field and him not scoring but I guess you took a note that someone had a different opinion to you and just waited for some kind of vaguely related situation to bring it up to try to attack me over it lmao. Bit sad. I just don't mind if he gets pissed off on the field. He should be pissed off when we're not winning, at himself as much as everybody else, which is how I read his reaction. I want to see him and more players getting pissed off when we're not winning.

Disagree. He is one of the few we have that is a real competitor with a bit of edge to him. He started to find his feet finally learning how to play as more of an 8. He has a high ceiling and will enter his prime in a year or two. Given what we paid for him and where we've finally got to with him it would be silly to sell him unless its for a fee that nobody would ever pay...

What's got you so excited? I know nothing about the man - just glancing at stats, vs other midfielders he looks like a pure destroyer with minimal technical skill. Such players usually end up perpetually in the loan army until being sold on at a loss. Have you watched the guy a lot to know better? Or is he not actually destined for CM? Hard to get excited about this one for me, maybe on the eye test he shows something different?

I do not know anything about these kids but its interesting we're randomly spending a decent chunk of money in March. Maybe the club are trying to get business done much earlier than in prior years? If I could have one wish it would be to get all business done every year before the main preseason tour starts abroad, so players can get a decent amount of time together learning about each other and learning the manager's system. That said I assume these kids wont even make a preseason tour until 2026 at the earliest?

Every single one of them We'd be midtable without him

Yeah, still, I doubt we can hold them. They are great at set pieces and the darks of football, two things this squad is young and naive at. If we can have Fofana, Lavia and Reece James all fit for it, and Cole finds his form, we could definitely make it a real game and maybe win. Best hope in truth is they mentally check out of the title race at this point and take their foot off the gas...

A little glimpse that this group can win ugly if they need to... Funny we are 4th now but when you look at the table it wouldn't be totally crazy for us to finish anywhere from 2nd-9th from here. Very little between the top 10 both in terms of points and quality, aside from Liverpool.

That and doing coke are the rumours I heard... We wont know until some biographies come out I imagine!

That is a big let down. Got to sort out himself out on that, otherwise fantastic player.

Interesting how the forwards are rotating. Looks like they're all playing every position quite fluidly.

Sanchez+Tosin painful to watch

Nkunku :( what happened to you man

Goalie should have got a yellow for time wasting to delay that Great save after tbf.

Is Cole playing up top?

The only basics he is doing is at passing the ball - where he does things very well. When it comes to shot stopping or positioning he simply does not look like a professional goalkeeper. Its embarrassing and basically forfeiting a game to put him out there, except against the lowest quality opposition where we can make sure they simply can't shoot.

But he HAS played, and from what we've seen, he's even worse. There is no reason to believe that if he played more he would miraculously be able to do the basics of goalkeeping well.

Agreed @YorkshireBlue. I feel like people were so hopeful Jorgensen was going to save us from the Sanchez situation they're giving him an unbelievable break on how poor he has been for us. I can't think of a worst goalkeeper from the first team going back a long long time - even going back before Roman where if memory serves we had Cudicini and Ed de Goey who were both way better than anything we have in the squad now. Genuinely possible Jorgensen is the worst goalkeeper we've had in my adult life.

When it is a competition to be the least bad, you don't have to impress, you just have to be the lesser clown

In more positive news, thrilled Wes is back and Lavia on the bench Not clear who is playing where, I guess Wes might be playing RB Chalobah recalled from loan and only considered good enough for the bench... Interesting.