Lucas

That stupid decleration Think this is going to cost us. That target for Australia looks worryingly short to me on a pitch like this.

It's really annoying we can't post pictures in threads like this now... Southampton just launched their new home kit and it looks really sweet in my eyes. Ah, the Twitter link will do.

Yeah, sounds a bit chaotic there. Problem for Reading is, they are a perceived as a bit of a dull club. At least with Derby, they could still attract players because of their name and support. I think there is a high chance Ruben Selles get's the nod there soon so it will be interesting to see what he could do there and what resouces are available to him financially. There is no doubt they will probably need a coach whose strngths are bringing through and utilising the youth squad. Chris Wilder is not that.

Sir Joseph Edward Root. A master of his craft. Well played sir. Bairstow looked in unbelievable nick too, really disappointing he didn't go on. Very bold of us to declare at 393-8 on Day One, not necessarily sure I agree with that. Especially as I felt with Root starting to smash a few after his ton and Robinson chipping in, we left possibly 30-40 runs out there. But that's how we roll under Stokesy's leadership. Probably may feel justified I guess if we were to nick a wicket or two before close of play tonight.

First day of The Ashes, can't beat it. Cricket feels more geared towards the T20's, Hundred's and ODI's in today's climate but this is the absolute pinnacle of Test Cricket. Blazing sunshine, full house, that whiff of ale, the roar for a boundary, this is what it's all about. Gutted I couldn't get a ticket this Summer. Let's hope the weather stays beaut, causes little disruption, no unforseen injuries to anyone, and we have five absolute belting tests. One things for sure, you get the impression each test will only end in a draw if there's disruption which bodes well for an exciting series.

Rickie Fowler's just revealed on Sky's Golf coverage that he'd like to become an investor in the 49ers takeover along with Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas as they all 'route for Leeds'.

Disagree. Think it would be a great signing for you in this league. Not just in terms of ability, but he's captain material. To get promoted, you need some leaders in the team and I imagine he'd be a strong presence in the changing room. My only worry would be fitness. Seems to have suffered a few niggly injuries in recent years. But when he plays, he's still influential in games I'd say. I would certainly have took him at Leeds.

I was reading an article earlier about how pivitol John Stones has been to City's success this season moving into that midfield role he does. Got me thinking. There's him thriving in that position as well as Trent whwn he plays that hybrid role for Liverpool. Both talented players who really excel when on the ball. Is there any way we could make it work at International level? Very difficult I imagine when you factor in Rice and Bellingham now but if we could find a system that allows it, you would like to think it would give us a great chance of winning a tournament at last if we can dominate the midfield a bit more.

Here we go then, looks like we just need approval and it's full steam ahead. Could be bollocks but someone's claiming there will be Manager news next week, so watch this space.

I'm sure he has his reasons but its a shame he didn't go back to Barcelona. He actually had a good second season for PSG and I think he has plenty to offer still too at Champions League level. I thought winning the World Cup finally was like the monkey off his back to just relax and enjoy his football again. I'm really surprised it didn't happen with Barca, you could have seen him linking up well with Lewandowski, Raphinha, Gavo, Pedri, Frankie De Jong etc but I guess Miami has it's advantages. Maybe he's thinking a season or two there then one last dance at Newell's Old Boys would be the perfect end. On the plus side, at least a man of his stature won't be told what to do by Phil Neville.

I think if/when the 49ers get in, they shouldn't underestimate the pull of the club. I hope they make an abitious move because its a great time to rebuild for the longer term. We somehow sold the club to Bielsa when we were in a worse position in the Championship and with little money to invest in the team. We're now going into a season in a better position to get promoted you'd think and you'd expect us to invest and back the new manager. Yes they have to drop from the top level but if we sold it, that could be potentially just a year if we can get things right. I mean, we're going to have higher crowds than some Premier League sides, that underlines the size of the club and potential for any incoming manager. I'd love Iraola, especially now he is a free agent but I think he's probably bound for somewhere like Celtic or higher. But we shouldn't not think we can't aim for someone other than the usual suspects that are touted IMO.

I actually think any goodwill or credit he had left in the bank has evaporated at a fast pace. We're not quite at Ken Bates or Massimo Cellino levels yet but we are dangerously heading that way. He's basically tried, or shown intention, to use our house as collatoral to buy another house. That's disgusting. We got relegated on Sunday, playing a home game where Radrizzani was not even present, because he was finalising a deal to save Sampdoria. We got no programme notes from him or comments on how much he's let us down, just completely tepid statement from 'the club' Sunday evening when relegation was confirmed. This is a time where Leeds as a club should be issuing a statement of intent. We deserve an explanation why the club's been run like a whore house for the past 2 years, we want to see the club actively issuing a plan for promotion to right the wrongs, we want clarity on the ownership situation for the future as well as what the club intend to do about the director of football position and of course, manager/coach situation. Instead, it's a complete shambles which in no way screams at present, we are bouncing straight back. We've had more than our fair share of off the field issues, and it was refrshing to have a stabilised period of calm and forward thinking, which finally coincided with promotion (funny that) and here we are, back to square one in a shitty situation. We do not deserve any of this. My guess is behind the scenes that there is a bit of a power struggle between a man who owns the club and a group that want to buy him out albeit for a cheaper price. To me, it's like he's sending them a message to say whilst he's still there, he holds the cards. As of yet, the 49ers have been very quiet on the situation but I really hope this can all get resolved pretty quickly and not drag on. Radz' time is over. He's destroyed what we (or Bielsa more to the point) had built, and the fans have lost all confidence in him.

Yeah, we took a day trip over the border, mainly to go to Mostar and see the bridge and that. Great views for sure but what a load of hassle to cross the border and wasn't massively keen on the vibe of the place when there. Couldn't relax. Never again.

@Tommy Looks great mate. Brings back a lot of memories from our holiday in Makarska last September. I think between the pics you'll take and mine somewhere in this thread, we have enough to convince this lot to go there Best waters in Europe hands down for me and I include Greece in that. Enjoy!

Things should hopefully start to accelerate now that Radrizani's deal to save Sampdoria has been agreed in principle tonight. Sooner we can get the takeover done, sooner we can get a new manager in and start assessing the squad.

Amazing place, where to?

I wonder if a team came in with say, a £60-70m bid in the summer, whether Brentford would be tempted now. Ok, it's less than they'd like for sure, but it gives them a window to find a ready made replacement for the start of the season. If they wait, I think there's a good chance Toney equally waits it out, he's got Brentford over a barrell come Summer '24 with a year left and I'm not sure a club that's run as well as they are would allow themselves to lose such value when they could maximise it this Summer.

That's a result for Brentford and Toney. You do wonder if the FA have deliberately timed it to make it sound more dramatic. Seems a bit sussed its taken till now from the original charge in November. There's no Football anyway for the best part of 3 months of that ban so Toney at worst, will miss half a season, around 19-20 games. You'd take that given the amoubt of charges quoted. It could have been far, far worse.

I do rate Toney but not only is that an insanely high fee, I don't know if any of the 'bigger' sides will play to his strengths quite like Brentford do and get the very max out of him. He does so well because of how direct Brentford play, especially when they hit him quick with the counter. They are very well organised attacking set pieces too where he profits from pulling away from the areas they heavily flood the centre backs. But for the bigger sides that have more of the ball, build up differently and aren't necessarily as focussed aerially on set pieces, does he have the same influence? I guess it all depends what side fancies taking him on I suppose. Wouldn't rule out Chelsea or a return to Newcastle maybe, but other than that, I'm struggling and then your looking at that next level below of club like Spurs/Villa where they'd probably pay £70m tops. No one's going to do anything till this ban becomes clear anyway.

I can understand that but I found Beef pretty engaging. Great soundtrack too. Love some of the 90's nostalgia they picked. Just finished it now. All in all, a bit of a bat shit crazy story from how it started but I found it entertaining enough. Wouldn't quite hail it as one of the best series ever on Netflix but I was pretty invested throughout. I'd say 7.8/10 for me.

Wrexham v Notts County. 2nd v 1st. Both on 100pts. Wrexham with a game in hand mind. Probably the biggest game outside the Premier League including playoff finals, for years I'd say. Monumental. I shall be watching.

The brand of cricket that we play in Test format now, we'll always be at risk of losing as much as we win, but I'm fine with that. We're on the right path. It was a poor start to the 2nd innings that cost us ultimately. Nearly dug ourselves out the hole but credit to the Kiwi's. It's not like we've ever robbed them of a win is it...

New series of Unforgotten, Series 5. Top telly.

Did Tommy Fury buy his belt on eBay?

Knock at the Cabin I've watched most M Night Shyamalan films and I'd say there's about a 50/50 split to which one's I've enjoyed and which one's I haven't. I liked the premise of this one and was hoping they would execute it really well. And to be fair, it starts off really strong, especially in the opening scene which is great but unfortunately, it doesn't quite manage to continue at that level. Strangely, I actually thought the film was missing a few twists which is a bit unusual for a Shyamalan movie, he usually contains a few but this felt way too predictable unfortunately. Credit to Dave Bautista actually whose character was by far my favourite and he delivered an excellent performance. It's a strong 6/10 for me. I've since read online that the book this was based on was by far superior so I might give it a read because the idea of the film and moral dilemma's around it I did find fascinating.