You're welcome. I pride myself on percipience. Just to be a little more specific, we really need a creative player in central midfield to add some artistry to the artisans (nicked that from Ian Dowie). Which is equally obvious so I'll waste no more of your time...

This game just went to highlight that Hughes will have to be very shrewd in the summer if we want to progress. Namely by bringing in some decent attacking players with a bit of flair and creativity.

Official site reports that Andy Taylor and Matt Derbyshire have been given squad numbers and are travelling with the first team squad. Clickito

I'm a bit nervous about Nisse facing an on-form Jermaine Pennant but let's see if he can surprise me (and maybe get that elusive contract as a result).

What, that angelic Mr Todd? Never. I am a bit concerned about what we're going to do when Tugay isn't around - his contract expires this summer doesn't it? Loath him or loathe him very much, Barry Ferguson could get the ball down and bring a bit of poise and passing football to our midfield. Savage isn't that type, nor are Reid or Mokoena.

Just like to say, Stuart Pearce's lenient attitude towards referees is admirable. I wish more managers would look towards their own selection/tactical errors rather than finding an easy scapegoat. No doubt the media will patronisingly label Pearce's stance as naive or quaint but long may it last.

Flitcroft lost his central midfield berth to Martin Andresen last season. Says it all.

Or, Hughes has played him because he has few other alternatives. I side with those who think Flitcroft has been poor this season and the year before. His strength was his ability to get about the pitch but age has reduced his ability to do that. Of late he hasn't looked as bad because he has the support of three midfielders in 4-5-1 but it still doesn't stop the game going on around him with his contribution being minimal. The Tugay - Flitcroft midfield duet had their heyday when we finished sixth. It's been downhill since.

When you look for faults, you will find them. Stead - profligate and has an awful goal scoring record this season Emerton - rarely produces an end product Tugay - slow and has an invisible friend And so on... Souness warned that MGP was a completely different player to Duff and he's been proved right. If anything he's more of a Freddy Ljungberg type - doesn't do much dribbling but supports the forwards well. There is a bit of improvement in his game required before he can consider himself as good as Ljungberg, though.

It would be some reward for Dominic Matteo, having helped us to a number of clean sheets, to be dropped and replaced by Andy Taylor. I don't think that's Hughes' style.

Well if we're going to embark on a Souey-bashing fest - we may as well do it properly. Souness finds teenage scapegoats.

i think you will find Amo is a legend at ibrox. He was man of the match in almost every old firm game and won alot of trophys at Rangers. He just loses concentration in smaller games, hes not a bad player tho. Is Celtic v Rangers a small game? I seem to remember an incident when Amo was outpaced by that record-breaking sprinter, John Hartson, and subsequently brought him down to give away a penalty.

Did you? That's not the impression I got from reading your posts (I might be wrong, so please correct me) but when I dared to suggest Souness deserved the chop, it was only the usual suspects concurring. The rest of you went for a pound of my flesh.

Got to agree that the Rovers fans seemed to create a quality atmosphere and were a credit to the club. Well done. I still think there was malice in Todd's actions but maybe we can excuse him because it was agaisnt Arsene Whinger's lot.

Mainly because he's not a striker. Today was a reality check for the fans. Hughes has got the best of average players that may require weeding out if we are to move on next season. Everyone seems to go on about how much we need a striker. I agree - but a striker won't revolutionize the team on his own. Imo we lack real passing acumen in midfield. Paul Dickov and MGP weren't impressive strikers today - but a major factor in that is that the support, the passing and the creativity from midfield was sadly lacking.

Ultimately we lost to a superior team with much more attacking flair. Only MGP and Tugay, from our squad, are capable of a moment of magic to open up the opposition. Tugay was consigned to the bench and should surely have come on instead of Mr 'I can kick people but not much else' Robbie Savage. MGP isn't up to playing as a striker, apart from a few flick ons he contributed very little. Hughes should have left him on the left wing or subbed him for Stead. However, regardless of all that, Arsenal were much the classier team and thoroughly deserved to win. Well done to them. (And Andy Todd should get a fine for losing his rag. He's the captain and should be setting an example).

Have to concur. Souness was a plonker for playing Dom Matteo on the left wing and an imbecile for signing Corrado Grabbi. But let's leave it at that and stop disinterring this thread after every Newcastle defeat. Otherwise, it'll be at the top the whole time.

And absence of pace would be a real impediment. The holding role doesn't require a lot of movement going forward, but it does involve picking up runners which he'd struggle at, especially if they got a head start. You can't complain about his passing though, which is generally very good.

Well he might be a bit of a laggard but he was still quick enough to overtake Nisse in the pecking order. If the last few games are anything to go by, he'll be on the bench versus Arsenal. Incidentally, is Nisse injured or has he gone off in search of a club who will be prepared to match his current salary. Keep looking, son.

Pedersen, Todd and Reid are walking examples of what a bit of confidence and patience from the manager can do to rejuvenate a player. Out of the three, I'm most surprised by the impact Todd has made. He was always a decent defender albeit with a major discipline problem. However, now he looks to be one of the better English centre backs in the Prem. Although, he'll have to join that long winding queue if holds ambitious hopes of playing for England.

There was I thinking that closet Saints fan, Li Tie of Everton and China, had assaulted MGP after the game...

Do you mean that? I mean, he may have had a poor game but don't you think that what he's shown so far indicates that he has the potential. Since we've switched to 5 in midfield he has seemed to struggle to adapt to the new role. But I still think he will prove a class acquisition in the end. I'm surprised and heartened by Mokoena's impact. There were doubts about his passing abilities when he started in midfield but he looks to be doing a fantastic defensive job.

Was he scouted out by Graeme's orange pal Dale? He already has. Sort of. Ronny Johnson - did he get a start on the left wing at all? I've heard that Souness likes centre backs playing further forward.

If you say so.

There is a school of thought amongst Welsh fans that Mark Hughes did not do the job the media have attributed him to have done. Wales didn't qualify for the Euros, he stuck by a lot of the old players, he obdurately clung on to the 4-5-1 long ball formation and refused to give Robbie Earnshaw as many starts as he deserved. Now - those aren't my arguments, they're some propounded by Welsh fans who were glad to see the back of Hughes. To be honest, I don't know how valid they are because I didn't follow Hughes' reign over Wales too closely.