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After saying that Abramovich is here to stay, there are newspaper reports this morning saying his spendinng spree is over. Mind you, if he hasn't got a decent team after running through £200m, I don't know what another £100m would buy. It does seem that he has a closer grasp on reality than the guy blowing Spanish public money at Real Madrid. Another interesting story is the potential acquistion of Man U by Glazier. This could screw the Mancs big time. Glazier's Tampa team are doing badly owing to defections when the purse strings were tied. Unlike Abramovich who is funding Chelsea out of his interest income, Glazier will have to spend all of his reputed $1bn and a bit more just to buy control over Man U leaving the club as just a business/profit making vehicle. Even though there are a lot of very capable and influential Manc shareholders who could organise resistance in the same way they fought off the Murdoch attempt to buy the club, Glazier "only" needs to persuade the Colmore Mafia to sell their 29.9% in Man U and he will be as good as certain of success in buying the club- no doubt the institutional investors would be delighted to take the reputed £3 per share for their admittedly much reduced holdings. In many ways the Glazier bid is unfortunate even though it would (eventually) starve RFW of transfer funding. The arrival of Magnier and MacManus has brought a welcome level of disclosure to the often murky world of top Premiership financial affairs.

England to thrash Wales at least as soundly as the Italians did: 4-0. Hughes to rescue his Welsh swansong with a sterling performance from the boyos midweek but to return to a huge Rovers crisis as Emerton gets cropped in Samoa and MGP bumps into Ferguson in Glasgow.

Matteo in midfield? NO That is how Leeds ensured relegation. With the Rovers, he was failing pretty comprehensively playing in midfield for Souness. Must confess to not being impressed with Matteo in any of the televised Rovers games I have seen so far. Given the flexibility and rotation of the most forward Rovers players on Saturday, I don't think the return of a fully fit Thompson would not neccessarilly restrict Ferguson's forward running. If we get all our players playing to their full ability, I would expect the midfield now to be Thompson, Ferguson in the middle, Emerton wide and Djorkaeff playing the creative disrupting role Hughes made his own at the end of his career. That means a frustrating time for Tugay, Flitcroft, dePedro, MGP, Reid and Rover 6's three little Darlings (Douglas, Danns and Donnelly). I still think a Jansen/Stead partnership would be brilliant up front but I stress only if they are playing to their full ability. However, to have this luxury we need Short to get fit and stay fit at least until January. Much as it pains me to say it but unless Matteo improves, we probably need a fit again Todd as well. However, for any Rovers team to work before the transfer window comes to our rescue, Ferguson has got to keep on improving to give us a totally commanding presence in midfield.

I can see it now- East Lancashire United kick off a Premiership match season 2006/7 in a Breezeblock mark 2 at junction two and a half on the M65 in front of 500 paying home spectators, 2,000 bussed in school kids and 1,000 bemused away fans. Meanwhilst in a cow field at Oozehead, 10,000 traditionalists watch FC Preston NE open the Unibond Division 2 season away to Blackburn Rovers 2006 FC. Unfortunately, like so many of your arguments thenodrog, humanity just doesn't work that way when you take it to its seemingly logical conclusion. Reading by the way are an extremely good bet for automatic promotion to the Prem this season- I bet the dingles would appreciate gates and prospects as bleak as their's are at the moment. Back to the Villa game, at least the Rovers are playing with zest and tactics that suggest a Premiership club with a Premiership future. One of the things which used to boost attendances would be a "big" match to get the town buzzing. Unfortunately, we get those at least once a month so that's not much use and the cups, even European competition don't get the pulses racing the way they used to. I think beating Man U soundly would have helped but MGP hit Row Z instead of the target. Shame our nine reserves got us knocked out of the League Cup because that was one competition we could really believe we had a chance in. One aspect that is a huge put off in this time pressured age is the amount of time wasted getting to/from Ewood. The jams are not much fun and the parking restrictions are a joke- Ewood is only used 22 times a year on average so surely all those residents only parking schemes could be lifted when the Rovers are at home?

I don't know if my memory is playing tricks on me but isn't the Welsh game a reward for the near capacity crowd at Ewood for the preevious u-21 fixture. In which case the Blackburn public had better get snapping up those tickets or we are not going to see representative football at Ewood again.

...or a Given punt to set Shearer through. Tiny is not even on the subs bench. Seem to have been a number of offsides since Yorke came on

Why not read the thread about the reserves this week rather than post non-amusing questions?

Thanks scotty- that neatly articulates my feelings. At last, Rovers re going into mtches with a tactical game plan that makes sense. Still many worries- will Jansen make it all the way back? will Stead keep plugging way until the confidence surges back? can Djorkaeff keep going through full season? who can make the midfield berth next to Ferguson their own? And that defence- rightly slaughtered by all match reports this morning. But deep down, I'd rather have the players and management I now see at Ewood than the squads and managers in at least half a dozen other Premiership clubs. It is probably going to be a long haul to survive in the Prem this season but I don't feel the numbing worry I was beginning to feel with Souness at the start of this season.

Gordon McQueen on today's game. Hmm, Bertie Vogts will be delighted by the performance of two Rovers' players but Mark Hughes will not?

A Villa view of the game.

Just watched the replay. What a wonderfully entertaining game! Definitely a point gained- Villa could easilly have turned us over had they a touch more faith in the munificence of Lorenzo. Suffice to say that the recoveries of Short and Todd in time to face Chelsea and Liverpool should avert the cricket scores Amo and Matteo would otherwise incur. Sad that Jansen did not show the confidence he should have taken recently but Emo is really beginning to look the genuine article. Bravo Djorkaeff and great to see Ferguson ram the critical words I penned about his Charlton performance back up the Word Processor. Dickov is fantastic- forget whether he has quality or not; just think what he would do if the quality around him were playing quality football! Huge black marks against Tugay- sorry you are one of my heroes but you should have run that game. Villa were (relative) softies and tthere was no excuse for invisible friend passing today. Tempus fugit. And the Blackburn public... that attendance was utterly pathetic. This is the mid- 1960's all over again.

Could somebody invite maltese rover to the aol chat please?

HT 1-1

Sounds like we are indebted to Friedel for at least four saves so far this afternoon.

We have the worst record in the Prem for conceding the first goal. Haven't won yet having concedeed first.

Very smart new interface but getting unable to connect status null. Now error not connected

Plus £50m+ a year walking in through the gates. Plus revenue from Sky etc etc. They are even able to ditch their Emirates sponsorship for a more lucrative deal six weeks into a new season. No doubt they will sell plenty of the new replica shirts. MCMC, at the time Abramovich bought into Chelsea, I showed how he stood to make a £250m growth in asset value from his initial investment in Chelsea. His outlay in Chelsea is still "only" around £300m. He is into Stamford Bridge for the long haul if you ask me. Part of the reason for buying Chelsea is to get positive publicity and make it politically more difficult for Putin to bust him. Leaving Chelsea in the lurch is therefore not on the agenda.

Sadly, this brings home the realities of the new economics. Spending £40 (for the cheap tickets) is no issue for large numbers of affluent Londoners just as it is perfectly affordable for them to spend over £100 on lunch for two or £300 on a couple of opera tickets. Quite apart from Abrmovich's millions, this has a dramtic impact on Premiership economics. The Rovers will probably sell 20,000 tickets at an average yield of £20 each for 20 home games this year- £8m through the gates (the last accounts which covered 02/03 showed gate revenue of about £7m). Chelsea will probably sell 40,000 tickets at an average yield of £50 each for 25 home games this year- £50m through the gtes or SIX times as much as the Rovers will earn.

A Villa fan's view. Skysports have tipped a Rovers' 1-0 win.

Woops, just seen the fixture list for Saturday.... Southampton v Man City Norwich v Portsmouth West Brom v Bolton Crystal Palace v Fulham If we lose we could easily be bottom at 5 o'clock.

Pardon? Good point Flopsy. Ferguson for two and a quarter games prior to his accident= superb Ferguson at Charlton= worryingly poor Ferguson without someone to fill the hole behind him= played out of position. Flitcroft is being used by Hughes to be the hole filler but is not good enough. Tugay sadly has lost the mobility that is needed for that role when we are not in possession. Big Sam was using Djorkaeff at the end of last season in the role Ferguson is supposed to be playing for us. Saturday's line-up for the Rovers will be fascinating.

Good point about Shearer's crossing blue phil. He was a phenomenal crosser when he drifted out wide and I would think a high proportion of Wilcox's goals came from Shearer crosses= Liverpool at home and Forest away immediately come to mind. I remember standing in the Home Enclosure at Boundary Park (tickets in the away end had sold out more than a week before the game) without revealing my allegiance. Three Oldham supporters had been barracking Shearer from the start when Al broke from an inside right position to the wing directly in front of us. He destroyed the full back for pace and put a pinpoint cross onto Newell's head between the central defenders bringing a brilliant save from the keeper. One of the barrackers turned to me and said; "I don't like to admit it but you have just got to admire him haven't you". He even cheered when Shearer blistered through the middle to score Rovers' winner in the second half!

1864, interesting point about the Mancs. Looking at your list of players, Giggs, Christina Ronaldo, Scholes, RVN and Rooney will be the automatic picks with the likes of Kleberson, Djemba Djemba, et al fighting it out for the fourth midfield slot. Smith will be the big looser although with the Mancs playing so many matches he will get plenty of rum outs and sub appearances but not enough to help his international career. The interesting aspect is that had Beckham stayed at OT, on current form he would not be starting for them. As for "bigger" clubs coming in for Rooney, I tend to think that none of those listed are now bigger than Man U any more. Man U's turnover is significantly larger than any of them can muster and whilst they have backers with deep pockets, there is only one club in the world which could find the likely £100m needed to take Rooney away from OT whilst he is still in his prime... Chelsea.

30 goals in 63 appearances. I never heard any groans when Shearer was available for England but plenty when he was unavailable through injury. I think M-K is on his own here.

Just seen footage of the Man U goals last night. Considering they were playing with a naff midfield, the Mancs performance was stunning. I knew Rooney was a talent but was waiting to be convinced. Anyone else watching Rooney smash those shots in have a flashback to standing on the Holmesdale Road End in August '92? Sad to admit but the Mancs are back in contention to win everything again. And this time the best forward in the world has not snubbed them.