[Archived] Nickos Thread

[modes98]

are blackburn still looking at tom soares??

Soares wants to concentrate on Palace, that'll be a yes he would like a move then.

[JAL]

Incidentally I do think he was a decent manager for England results wise. He just wasn't very adventerous to be honest which is what the people want.

England play a very contained style because we are so scared of losing all the time which is engendered by the savage press. If we played with a bit more freedom it would do us the world of good. Even if we lost as many games at least we would be good to watch. We do have a lot of very good players - not as many as France or Spain or Brazil mind - but still a lot. We should use them more.

Hopefully capello will get this out of us, allow us to express ourselves a bit.

Come on 'joey big nose' England play (whoever may be playing and at what time in the season) as well as they can with what they've got at that particular time, simple as.

If its defensive its because the opposition are stronger, if its offensive then they are probably weaker opponents. Most of our players are proped up in the domestic league with outstanding foreign talent so dont get confused or misled by that.

The hype about the modern English players is grossly over exagerated becuase we have so little genuine talent that can compete on todays world stage and come out victorious, they the media, need to generate yours/our interest so as to sustain their income.

Doesnt matter who the England manager is, to win anything, we'd have to have some ENORMOUS LUCK.

[Blueboy Downunder]

just reading the telegraph and the section on rovers, somebody mentions that we should look at thierry henry, or at least show the ambition of wanting that type of player at weood and making an effort to try and persuade him to come.

i personally reckon we could get mathieu flamini...anybody else??

[brian_gallagher85]

If you had to pick between Barcelona, Turin or Blackburn, which one would you pick?

[T4E]

If you had to pick between Barcelona, Turin or Blackburn, which one would you pick?

Whichever one has a Subway that serves Bacon.

[nicko]

nicko

are blackburn still looking at tom soares??

this season he hasnt really stood out for crystal palace-but since there was reported interest from blackburn he seems to have played well- ie scoring goals..

this guy who plays in holland- bradley-is he a central midfielder?

are we still monitoring tom huddlestone by your sources?

I would say the likeliest order of midfield priorities just now is: Bradley if the manager gives it the go-ahead - Huddlestone a bit hard to get - Soares [maybe] but only as a squad option not a starter.

Some interesting stuff from the presser today. A couple of names got kicked around. Have to keep for the morning for obvious reasons.

I have to stress these two are in the 'would like to sign if they were possible' category and NOT certain targets. But you never know.

[FourLaneBlue]

Didn't Sven supposedly listen to Beckham to not take Matty and instead took Keown(sp).

Not quite it was Tord Grip that changed his mind and persuaded him to take Keown instead. Keown then went on to play precisely 0 minutes at the World Cup.

Let us not forget that Sven went back on his word to Jack Walker to manage Rovers and managed to go to Lazio instead. With hundsight it seems obvious Jack should have demanded he left Sampdoria immediately rather than hanging around until the end of the season.

[EwoodGlory]

Some interesting stuff from the presser today. A couple of names got kicked around. Have to keep for the morning for obvious reasons.

I the story in the Daily Star yours Nicko?

Had a look through The Mirror today but couldn't see anything.

Blackburn boss Mark Hughes admits he will be the first in the queue if Man Utd pair Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes become available. (Daily Star)

If West Ham are looking to cut their wage bill, do you think there is any possibility of a move for Bellamy?

I would like to see Derbyshire given more of a chance next season, but a Santa Cruz / Bellamy partnership could be amazing, if he can stay fit.

[Cocker]

I the story in the Daily Star yours Nicko?

Had a look through The Mirror today but couldn't see anything.

If West Ham are looking to cut their wage bill, do you think there is any possibility of a move for Bellamy?

I would like to see Derbyshire given more of a chance next season, but a Santa Cruz / Bellamy partnership could be amazing, if he can stay fit.

You have to be joking about Bellemy. The lad is quite clearly broken. It would be a complete waste of money. He thinks he is better than us anyway which is why he is no longer with us. Scholes and Giggs on the other hand would be a great move however, if they were available you would have the likes of Newcastle straight in there with a silly money bid that would push us right out.

[EwoodGlory]

Bellamy was always injured at newcastle, but when he came to us, Sparky managed to get most of the season out of him.

Same thing with Dunn and Warnock.

I definitely wouldn't say he is broken, he has had different injuries this season, not just one long running problem.

[Hughesy]

Hughes has said that if Giggs and Scholes become available then he will be the 1st in the queue trying to sign them. They are 33 and 34 – is it a good thing, yes they have quality but cost they cut it? Id take Scholes but not giggs.

Also apparently Ramos isn’t keen on Ledley King – would he be worth a look?

Also what do people think of Nicky Shorey? Think he is out of contract soon.

[alexanders]

Also what do people think of Nicky Shorey?

He is OK and that's all. He isnt good enough for a team trying to break into top 4, but he might be decent backup for Warnock.

[tcj_jones]

With rumours abounding that King might have to retire because of his persistent knee injury (apparently he's had it for years), I'd say stay well clear.

I doubt that either Giggs or Scholes will ever move away from United so I'd discount that one right away.

Whoever wrote that about Henry is a prize flid. Flamini as well, I'm afraid, would have his choice of a number of big European clubs playing in the Champion League - Bayern Munich have said that they want him, Juventus and AC Milan have also been heavily linked and Arsenal are desperately trying to tie him down to a new contract.

I hope this Michael Bradley has some pace anf flair to his game. If he does, then I would love us to sign him.

As for Bellamy, even with his atrocious injury record, I'd still sign him if the fee were reasonable and his wages weren't the £60k p/w we were offering before his move to Liverpool. On his day, Bellamy is one of the Premier Leagues best players and the thought of him and Roque working for each other up front is just mouth watering. That partnership alone would see us into Europe.

[LeftWinger]

i personally reckon we could get mathieu flamini...anybody else??

Is that sarcasm? There is no way we could get Flamini with the season he's having at Arsenal!

I think we should sign Ronaldo, Torres and Fabregas while we're at it!

[Torgeir]

Hughes has said that if Giggs and Scholes become available then he will be the 1st in the queue trying to sign them. They are 33 and 34 – is it a good thing, yes they have quality but cost they cut it? Id take Scholes but not giggs.

Also apparently Ramos isn’t keen on Ledley King – would he be worth a look?

Also what do people think of Nicky Shorey? Think he is out of contract soon.

Agree on Giggs and Scholes, although Giggs is still miles better than Gamst. As for Ledley King, he's another of the Spurs sicknotes - obviously quality but I wouldn't sign him on anything other than a pay-as-you-play contract.

Nicky Shorey wouldn't want to sit on our bench.

[Manc Rover]

Hughes has said that if Giggs and Scholes become available then he will be the 1st in the queue trying to sign them. They are 33 and 34 – is it a good thing, yes they have quality but cost they cut it? Id take Scholes but not giggs.

Also apparently Ramos isn’t keen on Ledley King – would he be worth a look?

Also what do people think of Nicky Shorey? Think he is out of contract soon.

At a guess, I'd say the only reason Ramos isnt keen on Ledley King is because of his unfortunate injury situation. There's talk of him struggling for any sort of fitness. He's a superb player but we've no chance, even when not fit! As for Shorey, well we've already got Warnock who's just as good, if not better!

[nicko]

The manager said that he would be in for Scholes and Giggs if they ever became available. He was asked a straight question and gave a straight answer.

It's not as crazy an idea as you might think. He played with both and will have their respect.

Scholes may get phased out next season, Giggs is also being squeezed a little by Nani and the like.

I think both are the type of pro who would not settle for just picking up a wage and doing nothing...

It's also a reasonable thought geographically as both have young families and are settled in the area.

I'm not saying it's going to happen, but it is certainly not something you would dismiss. It would also put bums on seats which has to be a consideration.

[rovgers]

The manager said that he would be in for Scholes and Giggs if they ever became available. He was asked a straight question and gave a straight answer.

It's not as crazy an idea as you might think. He played with both and will have their respect.

Scholes may get phased out next season, Giggs is also being squeezed a little by Nani and the like.

I think both are the type of pro who would not settle for just picking up a wage and doing nothing...

It's also a reasonable thought geographically as both have young families and are settled in the area.

I'm not saying it's going to happen, but it is certainly not something you would dismiss. It would also put bums on seats which has to be a consideration.

Yeah, that would two on our subs bench!!

[Cocker]

Yeah, that would two on our subs bench!!

No it wouldnt. Despite their age they could still get into our team and do an excellent job.

[Kai]

Yeah, that would two on our subs bench!!

You'd have to think of the bigger picture here. Both are true professionals and have superb experience. All that would/should filter down through the ranks and throughout the squad(hopefully). Anyway, even at their ages, they are still quality. Ferguson wouldn't still use them otherwise.

If we were able to sign them I for one would be very pleased.

[rovgers]

What I meant was that who ever they would replace would be on the bench. The comment was more about the fact that signing them would not increase our fans or "bums on seats"!

[DaveyB]

Scholes and Giggs are both great players and I would love to see them playing down at Ewood - however, I do think that Scholes would struggle playing for us. He regularly gets away with 3 or 4 'bookable' challenges per game whilst playing for Utd - there's no way he would get away with the same playing for 'dirty' Blackburn. He'd miss most of the season out suspended!!

[b12_simon]

Yeah, that would two on our subs bench!!

I'd pick both as often as their fitness allowed.

[trueblue]

Scholes has said publicly in the past that he wants to finish his playing career playing for Oldham Athletic.. a team he has supported since childhood.

What a signing he would be for the Latics

[Rathbone Market]

I was told that King does have a long-standing knee problem that is only going to get worse. I was also told that he would have to retire and that he would do it after the Carling Cup Final a while back. He has obviously played on but wouldn't mind betting he has to hang up his boots. Shame because he can be a very good player. Have also heard a whisper in the past that John Terry suffers from a similar knee problem.

On Bellamy- we won't sell him. When he's played he's been good and they are working on getting him fit for next season. His injury was mis-diagnosed by a top surgeon which has been the reason for the hold-up. This 'top' German surgeon said it was a groin problem and it was treated as such. In fact it was discoverd later that it was an abdominal problem. We will get rid of about 12 players I reckon who really haven't played much this season and get a few more in. The overall plan is to reduce the size of the squad but make sure it has a bit more quality throughout. Got a LOT of dead wood at present.

I can see you getting Scholes/Giggs in a year or two. Would be brilliant signings.