BrahimHemdani

I think this is a good result for Rangers and Scotland; those who know my views will know what's coming next. Rangers and Scotland both need Celtic to do well in Europe for the coefficient. Right now Scotland are 23rd; the last time we were in the top 20 was when we were in Europe, albeit not very successfully in 2011/12. Below 18th means that Europa league entrants other than CW start in Q1. Below 15th means Champions start in CL Q2. We (Scotland) are 5 points short of 18th but every point any of our Clubs earns is divided by the 4 entrants, so we need 20 points (10 wins) more than the countries above us this season as the system works a year behind, it will be the 2015/16 placings that are relevant if we get back in Europe in 2017/18 (the Club coefficient for 2016/17 will determine seedings for 2017/18, when ours will be more or less non-existent other than a 20% share of the country figures. Actually that will work for us because we will be better than a lot of the the teams with virtually no coefficient ). So far this season Celtic have scored 10.5 points, which is almost twice as many as the other three teams put together (5.5). They would have been in Pot 4 if they had qualified for the CL Group Stages; but will be in Pot 2 (just) where they will face one Spurs, Bilbao, Ajax or Borussia Dortmund level team but their matches against Pot 3 and 4 teams will be eminently winnable. It's hard to imagine that they would have won many games in the CL Group stages but it's not beyond the realms of imagination to see them winning 3 or 4 group games in the EL and going through to the last 32. It's highly unlikley they'll win 10 games but 5 or 6 is not beyond the bounds of possiblity. Teams that qualify for the EL Group stage get a minimum starter for 2 which are not added to the 2 points for a win. Even if they don't do enough to boost Scotland's ranking sufficently to improve the starting positions in the CL and EL it will be a help for later seasons after we get back. It's worth remembering that we scored 22 points in 2007/08 (despite 7 draws and 5 losses in 19 matches) and Scotland were 5th amassing the same average as Italy that season. Now I know full well that this type of analysis is anathema to the likes of Zappa and many others who will argue "we don't need them/we can do it ourselves" etc etc but this is not supported by the facts. The facts, as I have demonstrated in the past, show that when Celtic had their great runs in the Uefa Cup it helped us to a better start in Europe and vice versa our 2008 performances. Now I'll run for cover.

They were very restrained when we were there.

Aird made quite a few for him with crosses from the right. The big guy did his best, I doubt he'd lay claim to being the best footballer in the world but he was miles better than Boyd. I think he was an "honest" player. Good luck to him.

My contact at Arsenal says "Arsène Wenger is apparently driving chief executive Ivan Gazidis bonkers because he keeps on blowing hot and cold about the players he wants to bring in and the players he wants to loan out or sell. Gazidis asked for a list of targets and players to be transferred or loaned out at the end of April last year. He finally got a list in the middle of July which Wenger has changed three times since."

My contact at Arsenal advises that "You're to pay £6.5k a week of his wages which sounds like an awful lot for Rangers to me. There is a break clause in January. No loan fee." So essentially it is a season long contract and my understanding is that either side can activate the break in January but I'll try to get that confirmed. Edit: "At Arsenal's discretion apparently"

I guess one of those pictured (on the left perhaps) is his father are the other two his agents?

My contact at Arsenal has promised that he will try to get as much detail on the salary arrangement etc at their match v Liverpool on Monday night.

It wasn't adequate for me and neither were the diversion signs on the A/M 77

How much has or will your buddy Big John be putting in then?

He came back with the lad's salary by return email and you said you didn't doubt the figure quoted.

I think we SHOULD try to promote the best of our youths as GS says; but that apart I agree with your inciteful comments, especially emulating the Arsenal style of football and showing the standards that we should achieve. I saw Arsenal at West ham a couple of years back with Arteta quarter-backing them from the centre circle, a complete joy to behold.

Probably includes London weighting

Thought it was TalkTalk again at this end :devil:

That's a fair point and some of the smaller clubs we played such as Peterhead chose to put in temporary terracing and even turnstyles which they might regard as a cost of doing business that day, when they might have been better to make more permanent upgrades that may have made their places more attractive and save money in the long term even if their normal crowds are very small. Of course, clubs shouldn't wait till their stadia fall apart and they are refused a licence because then it wil cost much more to repair; but I'm sure you're correct that a lot of clubs will think that way especially where facilities for a normal handful of away supporters are concerned.

The inside track is that "it's complicated. Arsenal is looking for the best deal it can get in terms of covering as much of his salary (£18.5k a week basic) as possible so it may come down to that. The Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis trying to create as much headroom in the player budget as possible to allow one or two blockbuster signings this season, or in the next two windows. He's struggling as neither Joel Campbell nor Mathieu Flamini have left as expected." That do you for now BEARGER?

eL Estadio San Mamés certainly looks good lit up at night.

Couldn't hurt.

That was the position at the time from an Arsenal "insider" but I'll check for any update.

It is highly unlikely for so many reasons, which is why I did not suggest it. If there was to be such an arrangement, given a blank sheet of paper and ignoring 140+ years of history a new ground on the site of Hampden (which is pretty close to half way between) might be the answer; but that ain't going to happen. It also ignores the fact that the Main Stand at Ibrox is a Grade B listed building, so it is protected and it is difficult to imagine circumstances in which Celtic would want to ground share at Ibrox even if we wanted them there. IBROX STADIUM (THE STAND BY EDMISTON DRIVE OR BILL STRUTH MAIN STAND ONLY), 100-170 EDMISTON DRIVE, GLASGOW (Ref:33338) Archibald Leitch & Partners, 1926-29, addition of upper deck by Gareth Hutchison 1989-1990. Three-storey, and with later 4th storey, 25-bay, rectangular plan Renaissance Revival football stand with segmental-headed arcade to ground floor and distinctive tall round-headed keystoned window openings to 2nd floor. Red brick; metal framework. String courses and eaves cornice. Parapets over advanced central bay and end bays. Plain pilasters between each bay rising from string course to eaves cornice. Entrance in central bay with engaged columns and pilasters carrying lintel and mutule cornice above. Balustrade and 4 light windows under large round arch at 2nd floor. Flanking bays with pedimented square-headed windows; similar arrangement in end pavilions with bi-partite pedimented windows. Mosaic shields with lion rampant on return elevations, inscribed `1872 Ready 1928' at W and `1972 Ready 1981' at E. Central parapet with faience panel inscribed `Rangers FC'. Metal framed small pane glazing to 1926-29 part. INTERIOR: timber and leaded glass two-leaf central door to lobby with similarly detailed doors to right and left. `RFC¿ in floor mosaic. Simple plaster cornices and timber panelling in most principal areas, some original light fittings etched with `RFC'. Period staircase with decorative metal panels and timber handrail and newel posts. Blue Room with deeply moulded classically inspired cornice and timber-panelling to picture rail height, timber and marble chimneypiece. Corniced door to Director¿s room. Boot room with numbered hooks; tiled players¿ bathing room. The Main Stand at Ibrox opened on the 1st January 1929. It is important as it is one of the very few remaining relatively little altered football stands of the early 20th century. The classical exterior elevation was formerly used as the main entrance to the stadium and continues to make an significant contribution to the streetscape. Designed by the leading architect of football stadia at the time, Archibald Leitch (1865-1939), the stand was built with seating rather than terraces. There are very few early surviving buildings associated with football. This is in some part due to the recommendations of the Taylor Report following the Hillsborough disaster of 1989 which resulted in the banning of standing terraces at all major football stadiums. However, well before the Hillsborough disaster Ibrox had already implemented many of the safety features noted in the Taylor Report because of previous accidents at the ground. Leitch rose to fame as the premier architect of football stands in Britain at a time when the sport gained enormously in popularity in the early decades of the 20th century. He was responsible for stands at many of the most famous clubs including Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea, Everton, Liverpool, Tottenham, Aston Villa and Heart of Midlothian, but in fact his stadium career began with the stands for Glasgow Rangers at Ibrox. The first stand at Ibrox was built of timber on an iron frame between 1899 and 1902. However on 5 April 1902 the west terracing collapsed causing the death of 26 people, an event witnessed by Leitch. This incident led to the ban on wooden scaffold type terraces and the substitution of earth banking, the designs for which were largely developed by Leitch as were crush barriers and radial gangway routings. Despite the accident, Leitch was employed by Rangers as their architect for the next 30 years and most significantly in 1926-29 to build the new south stand. The design of the exterior although simple is well detailed. It has much in common with contemporary commercial and industrial architecture such as that by James Miller combining a pared-down modern style with classical details. It bears a number of Leitch's trademarks in the keystoned windows, small pane glazing and tall pilasters The historical importance of Ibrox's Main Stand also lies in the fact that from its opening in 1929 until the 1970s it was the second largest stand in Britain, second only to the stand at Hampden Park (now replaced), which Leitch extended in 1927-36, and the largest he designed from scratch. http://data.historic-scotland.gov.uk/pls/htmldb/f?p=2200:15:0::::BUILDING:33338

Dundee is so obvious they can't see it. I am not so sure about Ayr, which is 15 miles from Kilmarnock and is actually slightly the larger of the two by population. I think Ayr should be able to support a small community club. Glasgow should never have wasted all that lottery money on Hampden and what a mess they made of it; but I think Thistle can justify their own stadium. Edinburgh is interesting; in theory you are right and the Milan example shows it can be done despite bitter rivalry; but I think it would need a new stadium, the history of the two existing is too strong. The Council should take the lead.

On the other hand, Craig, some of these stadia, e.g Ayr are literally crumbling due to lack of the most basic routine maintenance. Also I think the OP is being a little unfair as I know that some of the Clubs e.g. Berwick did spend about half of the money they took from the games v us on the stadium and they had an enormous police bill as well.

Where do I apply for a refund on my Rangers rain jacket that didn't stop the rain getting through to my Rangers sweatshirt? Reminded me of Livorno, another cowshed with no cover.

It's a cowshed; how about decent stairs to the terracing, decent lighting, decent toilets, and some cover?

My source in London confirms that "other clubs including Fulham are after him on loan. I'm told his preference is to stay in London so you may well have missed the boat I'm afraid."

I posted this on the transfer rumour thread but might be better here. Got the following from an astute Arsenal fan Zelalem is 18. He was born in Germany of Ethiopian parents. He emigrated to the USA in 2006 when he was eight with his father who had entered the USA immigrant visa lottery after the death of his mother of a heart condition two years earlier. He has elected to play for the USA having played for the German U15 and U17 sides. He has been capped six times by the USA U20 side. He made his first team debut for Arsenal in January 2014 as a substitute in the FA Cup at home against Coventry City. He's also appeared in the Champions League as a substitute in Istanbul against Galatasary, and started in a number of friendlies. I saw him in the Coventry City game, on the box in Istanbul against Galatasary and in a friendly in Hanoi against the Vietnam national side. I've also seen him play for the Asenal U21 team. He's a decent, neat and hard worker who can pass the ball, tackle and reads the game well. He's not the quickest in the world, but isn't a slowcoach either. I like his attitude as a teamplayer. I'm not sure he'll make it at the very, very top level but he's certainly got the ability and attitude to be a really good pro.