Mr.Carrow

Given that in the summer we will probably be down to one number 10 (the young and seemingly rather lightweight Dowell), that's certainly an interesting perspective.... At 26 Powell is coming into his best years, pretty experienced at a high level and adds badly needed height and physicality. But hey, opinions 😉

Impressing in the first half against Bournemouth so had a look at his stats. Plenty of goals for Wigan and about one in 4.5 for Stoke playing AM. Over 6ft, technically good all round, 26 and apparently out of contract next year. Given Steipi and Vrancic will be going with plenty of praise and thanks if we go up would this be an upgrade at number 10?

I don't think the government would get away with putting millionaire footballers before old folk and key workers. I tend to agree with you though- what price do you put on mental health and people having a nice sporting distraction in these stressful times?

The protests in the summer didn't seem to lead to an increase in cases. South East Asian countries which have a very outdoor lifestyle have low levels of Covid. Obviously it's still early days in terms of research but joining the dots seems to clearly indicate that outdoor contact entails minimal risk. Viral load building up in the air and surfaces of enclosed spaces seems to be the worst scenario.

It really is incredibly unlikely that you can catch/spread Covid on an outdoor football pitch. Sharing dressing rooms/gyms etc is the risk.

I think we have to accept that we will definitely be "risking" being just a yo yo club, I don't think it's a fait accompli though. The Gibson deal was typically astute and I think Skipp will probably stay for another season. Then it just depends on whether we get a bit of luck with injuries and whether several of Dowell, Idah, Placheta, Sinani, Soto, Mumba, Famewo etc can find another level. I think Farke will be expecting strengthening of the spine though- central midfield and number 10 are definitely weak areas for us (particularly in the Prem).

Considering our approach has worked pretty well since Webber came in, I think people need to forget the idea that it's going to change much if we go up. We're not going to be signing established Premier League players and we're not going to be spending £15m plus on players unless it's a really talented youngster coming from a smaller club willing to accept lower wages for the opportunity to prove himself in the Prem. Idah is one of the top rated young strikers in the country and people seem to be regarding the Soto signing as a bit of a coup. I think if we spend serious money it will probably be on a number 10... although Dowell was brought in as a Steipi upgrade and I'm sure the club will want to give him a chance to establish himself.

Watford had to tread a very fine line to keep us out which kind of proves we played ok. Another day we'd have seen a penalty or sending off but to be fair Watford managed to stay the right side of the line.... just.

Had a lot of shots blocked and when you have that much possession around the box usually the opposition make a mistake or two. Watford were extremely organised and concentrated. Sometimes it just doesn't come off. We were still the better side and if we continue like that other teams are going to be quaking in their boots.

Yes, from memory that's exactly what I thought. Little bit worrying.... I love old Steipi and I think along with McClean the things he brings to the team are overlooked and underrated. Get well soon Marco.

I really think Sorensen and McClean fully deserve to keep their places. I find the "Sorensen isn't a Left back" posts a bit odd. If he plays really well there does it actually matter? Also, McClean has been excellent since he came back in, involved in both goals against Cardiff and apparently won more headers than any other player. Sometimes some of the important things a player adds to a team are not the most obvious.

Totally agree. Authoritarianism should be fought wherever it rears its head. Thing is, right wing authoritarianism tends to be known and obvious, whereas the Left version is hidden behind very clever narrative devices, linguistic traps and slogans...

Why should he explain himself just because bad actors want to impute horrible motivations on his perfectly lawful action (or inaction?). That is inherently giving them power that they don't deserve. I think Zimbo knows exactly what the situation is and that his stance is more principled than naive.

Kirku does seem to be asking for Zimbo to explain himself ("filling the void"). Why on earth should he? I don't agree with the booing btw.

If people desist from projecting the nastiest possible judgements onto others who happen to have a different opinion to them, there's no "void" to be filled.

Well we had people at BLM protests in the UK chanting "hands up don't shoot" at unarmed police officers, which kind of hints as to what was going on....

Excellent news. He must have been really impressing behind the scenes. Also shows the other young lads what can be achieved in a very short space of time.

I'm guessing you're never going to understand the enormous irony of that post.

Well the question then is whether the action is wrong or the reaction to it? I guess you've seen the famous photo of the one person refusing to zieg heil at a N*Zi rally? Not allowing a space for neutrality or indecision is pure authoritarianism.

I'm in the Americas so have been getting mainly US media all year. It's quite funny seeing people outright deny things which are widely reported as fact across the US media. I got vilified for using the phrase "white supremacy" on the other thread, yet this phrase is repeated like a mantra by BLM supporters as well as "white silence is violence" and openly advocating disbanding the police. The antifa woman who ran for mayor of Portland wore a Stalin and Mao print skirt. It's difficult to argue with people who haven't got a clue what is going on.

If you were in a room and asked to stand and applaud something you had serious doubts about or had yet to make your mind up on, what would you do?

That they are exercising their right not to be coerced into a socially approved action and maybe they have issues with some of the complexities of the argument they are being asked to approve of. Or maybe they haven't given it much thought either way therefore do not feel that actively showing support is an honest and informed reaction. How would you perceive it?

"however, in this context, his actions are perceived as opposition." I think you should consider that the people who kneejerk to this reaction are far more of a problem than the action itself. Being free to not stand and applaud when asked to is one of the fundamental tenets of a free democracy with free expression. In fact, some of the heroes of the 20th century are those who stood up against groupthink and coercive conformity. Have you read 1984?

https://quillette.com/2020/12/22/a-peculiar-kind-of-racist-patriarchy/?fbclid=IwAR1xk7XWf6iz7zhXO25Tcf-t6CCo9oAAKsDw1JaRb9cRA3Oov5ft2uG_LoE

I said at the start of the season that I thought lockdown would actually help our players after the frustrating end to last season. I have to say I'm doubtful supporters would have been patient enough to wait for all those late goals, often scored by tiring and moving opponents around with lots of sideways and backwards passes.