Tyrone Shoelaces

He'll improve the team if he can stay fit, The big question is can he stay fit ?

I remember listening to a manager talking about Paul Lake who used to play for 'City. " Bobby Moore with added pace " was his verdict ! Praise indeed there but we never got to see him much because he was always injured. Another similar case - when Trevor Francis signed for Forest for a British record fee a journalist asked Bill Shankly why Liverpool hadn't shown any interest in him. Shanks said " Look at his style of play, all those rapid stops and starts, he'll be injured for some of the time every season ". Shankly was right about Francis, he spent a lot of his career on the treatment table. I like Chapman, he's a breath of fresh air and a throwback to when every team had a quick winger on one wing. Like somebody else said " He gets you on your feet ". I just look at his record at the clubs he's been at in a short career and he's been injured a lot of the time. Not the injuries were you're out for a week or two but the injuries that end your season. Anyway if we have signed him - All the best son and I hope you prove me wrong.

Yeah you're right he wasn't comparable to a footballer that night.

My view - Off the pitch Mowbray has done a fantastic job, on the pitch he's done an OK job but not great.

Bennett started out on the left against Newcastle and looked like a fish riding a bike.

Like a moth to a flame.

Modern managers don't like wingers and don't trust them. Alf Ramsey started it all. I was reading Peter Thompson's Obituary the other day. I've seen him run Rovers ragged down the wing for Liverpool and he only got a handful of caps.

Everybody has a choice about warming up. There's no point dashing on if you're going to come off limping later on.

Yes, very true. Nobody shone that day.

The impression I got was he was lacking in the " football brain " aspect of the game. I mentioned a while back when he came on at Oldham almost the first thing he did was get the ball out wide left deep in our half. The right back was at least 6 yards away and ready for him but Chapman Just kicked the ball past him and set off in a foot race. He may be quick but he couldn't win that race and he got slid into touch. Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought the first time he got injured he hadn't warmed up properly and the second time was when he played his comeback reserve game on a freezing cold night. Not smart.

Mm, a really fit Chapman would be great, he's a special talent. Would 'Boro be letting him go if he was fit though ? I'm just concerned he's the sort of player that will be permanently hampered by a succession of muscle injuries. I'd have preferred a loan until Summer. I hope it wasn't a large fee.

Is Chapman coming on loan or have we signed him on a deal ?

Me too.

I agree, we got Samba, Nzonzi and Givet from low level foreign football clubs.

He can vie with Brereton to be the best finisher in training.

We'll find out tomorrow.

I think he blew a bit hot and cold to be honest. When he was good he was very good but on a bad day he could be very ordinary.

Yes that Wigan game was awful. we had nothing. What summed it for me was when we got a free kick out wide with about a minute to go to full time. Pedersen gets set to take it, everybody crowds into the penalty box, the ball has to go into the mixer, he puts the ball into row " H " straight out of play ! Bloody unbelievable !

Gladwin and Davenport are back in training apparently so there's plenty of room for him on the treatment table.

Managers get sacked on a regular basis in football. Most of them have been in football all their lives. Usually they get sacked because they get things badly wrong. None of them are infallible.

Dougie could put top pros on their backsides without really breaking out of a jog. He was a one off. My pal who played at Great Harwood with him used to say _ " He could send you the wrong way stood still ".

Foolish if we're not bringing someone in. Rodwell and Mulgrew have a history of injuries and Lenihan was out for a long while last season. In my experience centre halves take a bit of a bashing physically, or they should do.

Brereton on loan to Doncaster ?

I'd switch Rodwell to the right of the back three and Lenihan into the middle of the back three, other than that it's worth thinking about. They should be trying it out in training.

I worked with Stan Milburn, brother of Jackie, uncle to Bobby and Jack Charlton, He'd been a pro for about 20 years, played for Leicester in the old First Division, England " B" international full back in his hey day. He played for the same works team as I did and he was playing amateur football long after I finished, well into his 50's. He just loved the game.