Thanx.... Cut the rest as it was just yada yada yada.

Its obviously going to be Villa!

Maybe Villa eventually but i think that Spurs have the best chance to break into the top 4 next season if they can hold on to Berbatov. They have Ramos who is in my opinion Mourinho without the ego and they have the players...for now.

You posted yours without reading mine.


No Ben, you are only recouping some of the previous 50millions you spent in other seasons. Sunderland weren't the leagues biggest spenders. Man Utd were spending 51million and Liverpool next with 50million. Spurs spent 40million and Sunderland spent 35million. All you recoup are some of the previous money that you spent. 12 teams spent more than 20million. There is no shame in spending money to improve you squad, I don't see why you think it is big shame to spend. Newcastle will spend in the summer. Everton don't have that sort of cash so it is excellent for them to find themselves still in the battle for 4th place.

The topic and the question is "which is the team most likely to break into the the top 4 and fight regularly for a CL place". It doesn't mean that any of the current top 4 will be replaced. It could mean more teams having a say in CL qualification (eg: Arsenal, Pool, Everton, Villa, Spurs or Man City fighting for 3rd and 4th). Currently, its quite exclusively a fight between Ars and Pool.

Am talking about 'potential' and not a dead certainty......

Thus I say Everton have the most potential to do it because of sound club foundation and consistant progress through the years. They also have a very good manager!

Don't be a pr*ck Monty - i was writing mine when you edited yours with 'what you'd found'. I am aware of what i've read.



You manage your books per season with all the money you take from revenue, TV money and prize money taken into the equation of how much you can spend. We may have lost £20million last season or whatever, but that money will have been there to spend from our Champions League run, stadium revenue etc. so it isn't money that needs replacing. That's how most clubs work - by using income to sustain themselves. The money we recouped in the summer was to manage our expenditure as we don't have £50million to spend; we can't afford it.

And Everton still have money. Don't make them out to be penniless. They spent £6million on Baines (more than we'd spent on any defender at the time), signed Jagielka for £4million and Yakubu for £11million (more than was spent on Bellamy, Crouch or Kuyt), as well as attempting to sign Manuel Fernandes with them coming within a whisker of securing a £12million deal. Even without the Portuguese man, who later came on loan anyway, the total is over the £20million which you earmarked, and nearly £35million if the planned transfer had gone through (which had nothing to do with Everton's inability to fund, but the fact Valencia swooped in for him). They may not be able to compete with the four side's above them, but they can more than hold their own.

I know there's "no shame" in spending money, stop talking like a retard. We need to spend money to compete with the likes of Chelsea and United, and i hope we spend a lot in the summer too. But you, by saying we've spent £50million, make it out as if we've strengthened our squad by £50million-worth of players, when that's rubbish, because we've got rid of over £20million-worth of players in the process.

You are behaving like a child again. There was no edit. Look again. You just don't read what I write before you start gobshiting.


I bought a car last week cost by £10000 but I sold my old car for £2000. Does that mean I only spent £8000. No because my old car cost me £10,000. All Liverpool are getting back is some money from the previous waste of money they spent. Liverpool were the second biggest spenders. They spent £50million.

Leave the retarded stuff and the pr*ck insults out of the conversation, Ben.


I didn't make them out to be broke Ben. Everon clearly don't have the same amount of cash to throw around in the transfer market as Liverpool do. You can understand that?

Understand that Liverpool are not in the position that they are because of their manager it is because of the financial position of the club. Everton are in the position they are due to their superior manager.

Monty pwned ben again

I gotta admit that he makes some fair points there!

It's a funny business football. It not like you get that cash upfront is it. It is usually in installments. Same when you buy players. You might get a large amount of money upfront you may not and the rest in installments but the underlying factor is Liverpool are spending about £50million a year however it is done nearly every year and that keeps them in the top4 then they are receiving money for being in the Champions League and it's very hard to compete with that unless you start getting into the Champions League year after year yourself. It isn't something you could do unless a large amount of money comes the clubs way via a takeover.

Newcastle will spend big this summer thanks to Ashley's money and that will enable us to push up the league with a good manager like Keegan is, (debatable I know what some of you think of him). Obviously spending big money doesn't guarantee success though. Souness spent big (around 50million) but achieved nothing and Liverpool have spent so much they should have won the league but they haven't. Everton spend a tiny fraction of that and they have achieved almost the same position as Liverpool, that must be down to better man management by their manager.

Over the last 5 seasons Liverpool have spent a staggering amount of money and only achieve 4th place on average. No doubt they will be spending big again this summer as they try to have another shot at the title.

If i respected you, i wouldn't use the word "pr*ck" aimed at you, sadly when you decide to play insulting little mind games, such as pretending not to have edited your post, respect is hard to come by. I had nothing to gain by saying you did edit your post, and wasn't accusing you of anything, so cut the boring crap.

Look again? Why? It won't say if you've edited your post, because it only does that if someone else posts before you edit it. You wrote up to the "...in the top4 of spending. Where is that thread now?", which i read, then you added the rest before i'd finished writing my reply. It ain't rocket science.



We have the same logic but are doing it in alternate orders. It does not make any difference whether you take the money off for past season's or the money off for this season, we still, when accumulating money from all the seasons, have spent the same. If we spent £50million as you claim for this season, then by the same right we spent nothing last season as the money recouped is taken off those expenses.

We've not strengthened our squad by £50million worth of players, as you want to claim - that's a fact. We've strengthened our squad by £25million worth of players, because whilst some have come others have left. And it doesn't matter how much you've spent in a year... We're not in a discussion on accounting here, Monty, it only matters how much the spending has improved our side, which as i said, is by £25million worth of players.



No. I'll do that when you stop playing puerile mind games and refrain from the patronising crap that fills your posts.



Everton are in the position they are because of both money and their manager, not one or the other. Liverpool can't be guilty of the same because we were once dominant, so we've fallen rather than risen... Money has kept us up there.

You've been warned Bluenose for off-topic posts - which isn't a surprise, seeing as this is the football section. How many of your posts are actually about the said topic?

No we didn't. Bale was £5m, Bent was £10m. The total net spending was around £28m, plus addons which arn't looking likely as Bale and Bent haven't made many appearences this season.

Any way.. I think it will be out of Everton and Spurs to break top 4 as they have the better squads and with a few signings who knows. Pompey never will as their squad is too old and half of them will be retiring soon and I can't remember who the other team was

I thought Spurs would break into the top4 this year, I even predicted it but they have been hugely disappointing, not much better than Newcastle and we have had as bad a season in the premiership as I can remember.

Topic Please!

I've just explained to you, that we have not spent £40m. (In the summer any way).

I think every one was expecting us to be top 4..Maybe the pressure got to them, who knows. Yes it has been a dissapointing season, but at least we've added to our many trophys and got European football for the 3rd time in a row.

By "mind games" i'm referring to your petty "i didn't edit my post" notion.

I have a fine use of the English vocabulary, but i also have a mind capable of making a choice - when i want to express my opinions i will do just that, using comprehensible language that expresses my view in the best possible way. When i think people are just taking the (to appease yourself) "wee", then you can understand that i haven't the patience to bother explaining myself. If you want me to respect you Monty then don't pretend not to have edited your post, and such childish games. I only resort to name calling when i believe the other person in conversation with myself does not deserve an intelligible response. It's a conscious decision.



I'm not disputing what you've said, because we did spend a similar amount to what you've quoted (Torres, £21m; Babel, £11.5m; Lucas, £8m; Benayoun, £5m). However, we also sold £20m worth of players, which you have to take into consideration.



It's more of a statement than an insult; i'm stating what i think of your posts. I'll apologise for calling you a pr*ck or a retard, but the above stands.



Indeed it is a fact Monty, Liverpool have spent more money than Everton - however, without the money spent Everton would not be fifth, hence their position is due to money as well as their manager.


Now i don't know about you, but i've forgotten how this even began, so perhaps getting back on topic may be better?

I disagree. I am talking on topic. You are going off topic. I've voted Everton and give my reasons to Bluenose why I think they can do it with less money. Instead of spending £50million every season like Liverpool do. I've taken the £20million into consideration from the previous years of £50 millions you have spent. Like if I bought a car now and get some back from my old one. How much have I really spent. Really I've bought 2 cars and sold one later for less. That is where Liverpool are.

tbh i cant see anything wrong with what you have said here monty, dont worry ben is just getting his nappy in a twist

You were discussing the amount we've spent with me so you were as off-topic as i was.

It's a different scenario Monty, than your car one. You've still only got one car, and so it's worth say £10,000, even if you've sold one for £2,000. However if we buy £50million-worth of players and sell £20million-worth we've only strengthened by £30million. If our squad was originally worth £100million, it isn't then £150million, it's £120million - it works differently to your car, because we're not selling our squad, we're selling our players. The car and players are not comparable.