teignman

These "people", I use that term loosely, are not true fans. Any true fan worth their salt wants the club to do well. They shouldn't give a shit if their players are black and go home to a guy named Roger, or are white and go home to a beauty queen wife. They're beyond help.

The only solace I take from this evening's events is that at least we played well. Yeah, it was against a Danish league side, but I was honestly forgetting what it was like to watch us play a good match. As for the Europa League, who gives a rat's rump. Our main focus should be finishing in the top 4 in the PL.

I wouldn't go as far a saying the Board hates the fans, but they certainly don't take our feelings into account in these matters. That would be alright if they hired an excellent gaffer that we vehemently disliked, but they hired a poor man-manager that's a numpty in the transfer market, tactically meh, and with whom we have some previous.

I rarely feel compelled to make a case for member of the month, but I must nominate Peace. Peace's analysis of the club's current state of affairs has been profoundly insightful and thought-provoking. The lad's in blistering form.

He's run two CL holders into the ground. He's nothing if not consistent.

This picture makes Jose look like he's the "most interesting man in the world" from the Dos Equis commercials. I like it.

Agree. A balance between the future and the present needs to be stuck in our squad.

We haven't much choice in the matter, JT is still injured and Luiz is suspended after picking up his 5th yellow.

This is something, among many other things, that we've lacked during this downturn in form. We have been running out a squad, at times, where Petr is the old man of the bunch at 30. With JT and Lamps out we've lacked experience and leadership in our out field players. This is also why I'm not so enamored with the hard line approach of the board offering only 1 year contracts to players over 30. You need guys that have fought the battles and wars and overcome pressure and adversity.

I think there needs to be some doodles in the margins of "Mrs. Rafa Torres."

You've neglected to say if the "new era" will be one of feckless impotence or quality football.

I'm disappointed and saddened. In his short tenure, Bobby brought us untold adulation. He was and is a class act through and through. He did not deserve this. We better have a decent appointment lined up to take his place. This list would NOT include Benitez or Grant. The powers that be have brought the name of our beloved club into further disrepute with this decision.

Didn't he used to be called Cat Stevens?

I must admit I am unfamiliar with the laws of New Zealand, but I'm pretty sure punching a baby or adult, for that matter, llama in the face would contravene some sort of civil or criminal code.

Too bad it's with the other team.

Torres stat of the day from Stephen Schmidt at We Ain't Got No History: "He touched the ball 42 times today, 26 of them directly resulted in a turnover, goal kick, or opponents throw."

Whoa, you're twisted................ I like it!

Feeling pretty damn good. After watching the thrilling victory at the Bridge over Shakhtar yesterday, I had a game. I scored the match winner a little over 4 minutes from time. My celebration was an homage to Drogs, i.e. I extended my arms out pumping them and crossed myself. Gave my teammates a good chuckle, not so much the opposing team.

This what impressed me most about Shakhtar. They are an extremely cohesive unit. They may not be highly talented at every position, but they know their system inside and out and execute it with aplomb. We, on the other hand, are still struggling at times to find our feet and get our players on the same page. However, there are a lot of bright spots that suggest that this group will gel into something fantastic. I'm sure the board sees this, and also realizes that there are still some holes to be filled in our squad. My confidence in the board is infinitely higher now than it was at this time last season. The "never say die" attitude is quite impressive as well. We had a bit of it before, but the players we are adding are young, hungry, and have a lot of character. When you've had to endure some of the hardships and/or tragedies that the likes of Oscar, Moses, and Ramires have, being down a goal in a critical match pales in comparison.

Amen. Lots of 2 vs. 1 on that flank. Bertie would drift in toward goal, like he should, in those situations. It left Srna with a lot of freedom. I still don't think Bertie had a good game, but I don't think he deserves some of the criticism he's getting.

I'm nervous about this one. I don't care how we do it, but the 3 pts are absolutely vital. That being said, Shakhtar are definitely a beatable team.

I don't believe in Torres. By that, I don't mean that I think he will not ever come back to anywhere near his best. I mean I don't believe he exists. His the yeti of the footballing world.

I wish we had a tag for player threads like this that are beyond long shots to come to CFC, for numerous reasons, that simply says "Never Going to Happen."

I don't think we're there yet (i.e. worrying about away goals). The most important thing is victory. I can understand your concern though.

Ice bath after distance running or playing fitba, followed by a short, hot shower to get clean and get my temp back up. On days when I don't participate in those activities, shower.