Grr why are there adverts on ,get the bloody game on!

Am i right in thinking that Cantona missed a penalty at Ewood (or rather, Flowers saved it)? My Dad says Cantona never missed whilst in England but I'm almost certain he missed when we lost 3-2 once?

It would take silly money to attract someone like Baines as Wigan don't have any need to sell.

Bridge would be a more realistic option but he won't some cheap either, certainly not in terms of wages.

I happen to think Gray is still a good option if Neill does go in January but we should be definitely be looking to recruit or promote someone to play left back for the longer term.

As for Neill, very disappointed in his attitude off the pitch but as long as he keeps producing the goods on it then there's no reason to change anything until he moves. We have a lot of experienced players in Brad, Nelsen and Sav who are all worthy captains in their own right and when Neill does leave his loss in terms of leadership will be minimal compared to the impact he would have on the overall balance of the squad - his ability to play to a good standard all across the defence hugely important to us IMO.

Sevilla away will do me, only an hours drive

From what I saw of Henchoz last season at Wigan, I wouldn't have touched him with a barge pole.

I never thought he was all that in the first place (we were relegated in his only full season if I remember rightly) and although I give Henchoz a chance I won't be surprised to see this blow up in our faces. Questionable to say the least.

Apparently we are offering him an improved contract offer.

Hardly newsworthy really.

Pretty sure I've just overheard on Sky Sports News that he's going to sign a new deal with us???

Anyone else hear it or am I having a mad one?

Lost a lot of cohesion when the changes started coming but all in all a decent performance.

Was a cracking goal, right footed from the edge of the area straight into the top bag. From the little I've seen we look well in control, Roberts is knocking them all over the place.

We are winning 1-0, I missed the goal though!

Great early chance for Roberts from a MGP corner, blocked by a defender.

Then we can say to him that he should have had patience and stay at Rovers.

Yes, because he would have won two Premiership medals had he stayed with us. :ph34r:

Yep, it's being confirmed on SSN as I type, 4 year contract.

I think it's a good signing.

On the whole I think he should go, we have ample cover at both right back and right midfield and he hasn't shown anything on the pitch to suggest he's worth keeping.

In saying that we are going to need a much bigger squad next season and he will get more opportunities, and he isn't the most saleable asset unless he has a good World Cup (only has 12 months left if I recall correctly). Wouldn't be surprised either way.

When was the last time Amoruso played for us at any level?

AFAIK this is my first post on Bellamy, in this thread at least.

I've got to be honest and say that I thought we were paying over the odds, his goal ratio isn't that hot and his well documented problems at Newcastle didn't endear himself to me.

After getting the chance to see him close up I've got to eat a slice of humble pie. His all-round play is far better than I ever expected it to be. I had him down as a head down and run type of player but I couldn't be more wrong - he is composed on the ball, can drop deep and link the play, or play on the shoulder, or drift wide, all to dazzling effect. Couple that with his frightening pace and we are looking at a very, very good player. With a 10-15 goal a season man in tandem with him we could rocket up the table.

Sean Davis would be a popular choice in my eyes, he's good with the ball at his feet, a very disciplined player who can organise - think Flitcroft with a bit more pace and flair. I've always been impressed with him since he bossed the game in our Div1 clash a few seasons back and I think he would relish the opportunity to make a name for himself, which he is struggling to do at Spurs. Still young and well within our price range too.

Tugay has to be replaced soon in my opinion, for all his flair and nice touches he is simply too inconsistent for my liking, and his lack of pace and generally poor tackling simply isn't up to the standard we require if we are to move on to the next level. Although to be fair to him, he's adapted to his holding role pretty well and his partnership with Savage in the middle is probably the best one available to us ATM.

0-2, Owen.

I agree with putting Bentley on the right but if we do play a 4 I think we need Mokoena in there - he's the only player we have who can regularly break down opposition attacks and with Reid and Sav both prone to making forward runs I think his calming influence in the middle is essential.

Friedel

Neill

Nelsen

Zurab

Matteo

Bentley

Savage

Mokoena

MGP

Bellamy/Kuqi

Jansen

Enckelman

Gresko

Emerton

Tugay

Bellamy/Kuqi/JJ

Friedel - nothing to do. 6

Neill - promiding going forward and coped well when Diouf went over to his flank. A solid performance. 7

Nelsen - excellent, puts his body on the line and that's all you can ask for in a game like this. 7

Zurab - solid and unspectacular, looked composed on the ball. Would be happy if he can continue that form throughout the season. 6

Matteo - a bit shaky first half, relatively untroubled second half though he struggled when confronted by Diouf. 5

Emerton - was there in body but not in spirit. Yet another negative performance, completely ineffective on both flanks. 4

Reid - struggled with the ball at his feet in the first half, much better when he moved to the right flank and was one of our best in the second half. 6

Mokoena - another decent performance in what I assume to be his preferred role. Puthimself about to great effect and his distribution from deep was pretty good.

Savage - impressed me with his attitude in spite of the needless booking. Looks to have got his fitness back and made a few good runs forward. 7

Pedersen - exposed whenever he got the ball and I think he wopuld benefit from having another attacking option in front of him when he gets the ball. Carried a decent threat though and I was surprised when he and not Emerton came off. 6

Jansen - glad to see him back but that kind of role is not for him. He was dragging the centre halves all over the place but there weren't enough players getting forward to benefit from it. Not good enough in the air to carry off this role on a regular basis though. 5

Subs

Kuqi - caused all sorts of problems for Notlob but isn't sharp enough with the ball at his feet. Hopefully he'll get a goal soon because he deserves one for his superb efforts for us so far this season. 6

Bentley - how refreshing to see a player willing to run at opposition defenders. Linked up well and cut in off the left to great effect, he ran them ragged when he came on and is surely worth a start against the barcodes. Looked a real talent and our best player by some distance. 8

I don't see much in the West Ham side that can worry Rovers but they are sure to be an enthusiastic bunch and in Sheringham they have a top class forward, even if he is older than the tree in my back garden.

I reckon a 1-1 draw.

The Sky Sports News ticker is reporting that we lost 2-0 so this is a nice surprise.

Sounds like a good result. Anyone got any information on the substitutions?

This is the first real setback we have suffered under Hughes so it's going to be interesting to see our attitude towards the game.

We were undone yesterday by some quality football which I don't think Palace are capable of producing so I'm fairly confident of us keeping the score down. A 1-0 or 2-0 I reckon.

Friedel

Neill

Todd

Nelsen

Matteo

Emerton

Reid

Mokoena

Flitcroft

MGP

Stead

Enckelman

Savage

Thompson

Dickov

A N Other

I've been royally stitched up in that I'm on a stag do in Nottingham on Saturday, and I'm an usher at said stag's wedding on the day of the final! He is a Bolton fan so I can understand why he wanted those dates, although he was going to cancel had Bolton beat Arsenal in the quarters.

I'm leaving it a bit late (I had resigned my self to not going) but I'm hoping to get there and then to Nottingham in time for the evening's proceedings. God knows how I'm going to get out of duties on Final day though!

In my opinion people have no right to criticise people for not going, the whole set-up has been shambolic and even though it's a momentous occasion the expense and the logistics of it all will understandably put people off. If I had to pay for any other family members I would also be reluctant to go, the prices for football matches these days are prohibitive for young men and women with children and they have my sympathy.