As much as I would like to see the captaincy stripped from Neill for his completely unnecessary outbursts (For god's sake, why did he have to spout off about it now? If he's trying to force a move it would have been easier to do it in January anyway, without unsettling the team spirit and deriding the club's standing with him still having to play for months yet), I really don't think Hughes will take it from him. It would make it too obvious that it was only given to try to keep him, but furthermore it would risk increased disharmony in the squad, as Neill would probably have a right good moan about it to his team mates. However, if I were one of his team mates I'd be having words about now! And in conclusion- what a jackass. Oh, and there'll certainly be no dropping of Lucas, that would achieve nothing and be an overreaction.

I have to say, I don't understand what you're talking about, so please explain. How can Rovers possibly make a loss on this? We get some money from gates (season ticket holders go to home games for free though I heard? So ok, this would be lowered quite a bit for the home games and I don't know whether there is a 50/50 split between participant clubs), we get some money from TV (The Krakow game will be shown on Channel 5. One can only presume this gives us some money, even if not much, and the other three games are all more high profile than this one). With the exception of Francis Jeffers on his pay-per-play deal, and perhaps a few minor appearance bonuses some players might have wrangled into their contracts, our players are all paid weekly, rather than per game. They probably all have some kinds of bonuses worked in, but I can't see these being for anything other than goals and maybe assists, and no more than 5k a pop if that. Ok, we pay for a few plane tickets and hotel rooms for the players, but again, how much can that really come to? Especially considering we are offering executive packages to fans too, which I assume we sneak a little profit from. I can see how £4 million is a vast overestimation, but I completely fail to see how income can possibly be lower than outgoings from these four games, so please explain for me and anybody else who might be wondering.

What were you managing? Your bowel movements?

Does anybody have the goals on something other than youtube? I can't get youtube to work from this computer.

We ARE a big club, and we are far far bigger than a club like Birmingham. Football is based on success, not just crowds.

I've become very worried. The game is supposed to be shown on Eurosport right? I just looked at Eurosport's website and their tv planner. It shows that at 7:30pm tomorrow, they're showing Tottenham vs Slavia Prague. Incidentally that game is also being shown on ITV4. Doesn't show on eurosport 2 either. Edit- Nevermind, just checked a little bit more and it is on British Eurosport, so it's fine.

Bloody hell, he's injured AGAIN? Let's forget this. He's a crock. We should only take him on a free in the summer, with pay as you play wages, or not at all.

Hmm, wonder why any club would let somebody leave on a free after they spent 13 million on them and they played very well but got injured a bit.

Anybody know how much Roma got him for? I heard it was free, but I'm not sure. Considering his prolifacy about a season before, I don't see why it would be. Was he out of contract? Did they just let him go due to worries about his injury and financial problems? Anybody got a clue?

Savage is a player like that. Giving Savage license to go forward and putting the work onto somebody else's shoulders would pretty much negate the point of having him in the team. Reid should be a little more capable of this though. But I'd prefer a genuine attacking player or creative playmaker.

...seems like we should have.. (Edit- the 16 yr old being discussed back then was Walcott, by the way)

I don't see how people would be persuaded to go for 35 quid standing tickets any more than 35 quid seated. And again, I've never felt that standing makes me any more or any less part of the action. My heart and my head are in the action- not my feet or backside. The only one of those standing or sitting is likely to interfere with is the vision my head provides if some tall git stands in front of me. A la that Reid goal I missed.

Damn, I briefly forgot about the fact we lost Beattie in that deal as well as shedloads of cash. God that's one enraging transfer. Somebody said they'd run Dahlin over, but I'd choose Davies. At least Dahlin just got crippled and couldn't do much about it.

The single most infuriating piece of 'business' in my mind is the Davies one. Not just because of how we got him for so much and he was cack, but because we then flogged him off cheaply to Southampton- and got EGIL OSTENSTAD in exchange. In one cup game for us, I remember thinking that was the least bothered performance I'd ever seen from a player in our shirt. And I still do. Then, insult to injury, Bolton end up getting Davies for FREE, and he's bloody good for them! And since I can't stand Bolton, that makes it the most infuriating one. The worst however, was Shearer being sold (Alan, of course), regardless of how much say we had in him staying. There's no way we would have gone down with Shearer in the team, and that must have cost us AT LEAST the money we got for him. And players of far less calibre change hands nowadays for similar or greater fees.

I personally find that being stood or sat down makes no difference to my willingness to sing for the cause. So it confuses me when everyone else always seems to insist it does. What I do know is I missed Steven Reid's wonder strike at Wigan last season because some pratt stood up at the crucial second as it was struck and it was so bloody fast I only got up in time to see it smack the back of the net.

I too think that we need Nonda for this one. I think his physical prowess might be the only way around Woodgate. I recall Kuqi being useful for us in that respect in the same fixture last season, though the Boro defence looks quite different now, particularly if Huth starts. I'd predict a score draw, 1-1.

No! STOP! I surrendered, won't you let me live in peace?!?

I think your whimsical 'I'm with stupid' signs started the cockiness and abuse. And I'll tell you again, since you don't seem to have grasped it on the previous post, I wasn't saying they could 'force' any TV channel to buy the rights. I'll admit though to being previously unaware that the rights to televise the game in this country only belong to Salzburg. I'd still imagine we could have tried asking Salzburg to tout the game cheaply to British broadcasters, though they'd probably be less willing to do so since the ticket proceeds go to them. As for you, Stu, I simply can't compete with that rapier wit. So I won't try.

The maths on the article in the Express were off. They said something like we bought him for 3.25 and paid his agent 500k. Then we sold him for 2.5, which was the same as we bought him for minus the agent's fee. Obviously, 3.25 mill minus 500k isn't 2.5 mill. I don't know about anybody else, but reading the article in the Express I personally felt like they had nothing on us at all. And the word 'theory' was bandied about in ours- the other three transfers all seemed much more anchored in fact. Then again, Rovers have made no comment, whilst one of the other accused parties (I forget who) have denied it outright. This worries me a bit.

Thanks for that (And you too Tris), but you seem to be talking pure arse. I won't even begin to point out why what you said simply isn't the case. But I will point out that there are various sky channels that are quite capable of filming the game themselves. And we would certainly get something called 'money' from this process. Even if it was just a few grand, I see no reason not to. Thanks for taking my words ('putting it on the telly') out of context too, when it was clear within the context that I was referring to offerring it cheaply. And on top of all that, thanks for being a condescending tool

Furious that it's not on telly. There's no chance of my debt-ridden ass going to Austria for this one, so it appears that I won't get to see it live. Even bloody Derry are on the tube (Twice...spurs are on two channels too). Can't we just flog the rights cheaply to some naff station? I mean, it's not like the club really get money from our away support in Austria, right? So they could at least help all the fans who can't pull off a trip like that by putting it on the telly.

That's the key question, above all else. But I don't know. Not too enamoured of this signing, I'd prefer that if we really end up down at the bone we try out some youth players.

Not what I asked though, I know he scored 8 in 22 last season. However, I was under the impression that some of those came before the injury, and hopefully some after. So I'd like to know how he scored AFTER injury, especially since somebody said he's lost a yard of pace since it. Discovered he underwent surgery in December, putting him out of the African Cup of Nations, but I haven't been able to find when he recovered.

How has Nonda played SINCE the injury? Anybody know whether he's scored since, or how well he has done so? Kinda worried by the prospect of our strikeforce during the African Nations Cup...though I spose it's a chance for the young lads to shine.

Mido has made a mistake that I struggle to fathom out. At the time, remember, Spurs had no interest in him and he was content to stay at Roma, on the bench, rather than lead the line for a lot more money. Then, a team who finished one place and what was it, 2 points, above us comes along. A team that already has three top class strikers he'll be hard pressed to push out of the team, one of whom was only just bought for considerably more money than him after the club who have since signed Mido decided they didn't want the Egyptian at the time despite him costing far less. So its obvious they rate Berbatov higher, Keane is in fantastic form as ever, and Defoe is hardly to be underestimated. I highly doubt they're paying Mido more than we would have, to sit on their bench. And he could easily have lived in a nice area in/near Manchester. But hey, he's made the choice, and maybe in time he'll come to regret it. I for one bloody well hope so.