calscot

I think there is a huge flaw in the CL for the countries having one team to qualify - it means that if a team gets there a few times in a row, then they have so much more money, they can dominate the league and continue to be the one to quality. It helps create one horse races. You really need two places so the second place team has an opportunity to catch up. And that counted when it was us too.

I'm not saying we should get rid but Pep has a huge pedigree; Warburton had one ok season before us and was a bit of a punt from a desperate position where we needed someone cheap to do a job on the cheap. Hopefully he'll come good but despite showing promise, he hasn't really won anything of note yet in his short career - which is more relevant to Rangers than most clubs, and we have to assess if he has the potential to do so. We can't wait forever, but he'll always get this season and probably another. Since he came he's should have been doing better than Robbie Neilson who's had a very similar task, but with a lot less money... The latter also hasn't won anything but some of his lack of cup success can be somewhat forgiven by going out to Celtic three times and also narrowly to their fierce derby rivals at the second attempt - a team Warburton lost to in the final. Neilson also lost to St Johnstone in the League cup this year, something also mirrored by Warburton. Warburton edges ahead with a penalty win against Celtic but loses out on RN's start in the SP last year and this. MW also has to do better than McInnes who has a cup win, two second places and a third, and is in second place now. He's also in this season's League cup final. Basically, I think we all expect Warburton to do better than those two with the budget he has and the backing of the Ibrox crowd.

I think last season was a bit of a one off, with them under a lot of pressure, none on us while having a lot of confidence from a relatively easy season, and they had a manager who wasn't up to it. Whatever you think of Rogers, he's at least competent against us and they are the kind of level above us as we used to be over the likes of Heart and Aberdeen. On a good day for us and a bad day for them, we can narrowly beat them or at least get a draw; but with it the other way around, we'll get a result like the 5-1 defeat. I think we can maybe cope with one season of being second best to them, but the worrying thing is that our level might actually be that of Hearts and Aberdeen and it's going to be difficult to get that second place. The problem is that Warburton's record against SPL clubs is well below pass marks so far, and he also didn't pass against the top two last season of Hibs and Falkirk. If we're going to get above Aberdeen and Hearts, he has got to improve dramatically. Otherwise, even if we qualify for Europe, we'll also be unlikely to do any better than Scotland's usual representatives in the Europa Cup of the last few years. We must have between 3 and 10 times the wage bill for the rest of the SP, while being more than a third of Celtic's, so we should be getting far better results than we are. Maybe as some say, it just needs time, but the signs are pretty bad when you consider our three marquee signings were Barton, Kranjcar and Garner... I'm not talking about sackings, instead I think Warburton has to acknowledge the problems and change something - as the saying goes: "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results."

Talking of slow to defend, there was a couple of times where we had a wee bit of pressure in their half, lost the ball and they were off on the break - their guys were sprinting up the pitch at speed and ours looked like they were running on sand or something they ended up dozens of yards behind and you could visibly see the gap opening very quickly. I don't know whether their players are just much faster, much fitter and less tired, or just put more effort in, but whatever it is, it's very worrying.

Can't see anything wrong with that team from who we have available and it looks pretty probable. However, it doesn't really fill me with a huge amount of confidence as it has a squad player feel going all the way through, and I think we lack the usual three or so classier players that make a team really tick. I realise that we won't see the likes of Laudrup, Gough and Gazza etc, but I'm thinking more recently of the likes of Bougherra, Weir, Mendes, Naismith and Jelavic...

Out for the season is grim, he was the one summer signing that I was really looking forward to - if he could get fit and in form. With Barton easing out the door, the remaining transfers for this season are a lot more low key - even more so with the slow start for our most expensive signing, fee wise, as well as the rarely fit Rossiter. However, we have seen an exciting glimpse of Windass, so maybe he and maybe Dodoo can make an impact. It does look like we'll maybe need to spend a bit of money in January if we want to make second place a bit more deterministic...

Is 16 considered a man or a boy legally? After all he can leave school, smoke, join the army, ride a moped, get an NI number and passport, have alcohol with a meal, have sex and/or get married; but can't drive a car, own land or a house, vote or buy alcohol from an off licence or pub... In this case my scepticism and experience of the Scottish press, suggests to me that perhaps they are trying to trivialise the offence - it was just high jinks by a boy...

Sounds like it might be something worthwhile short term if you take advantage of all the introductory offers. What's the commission to YesBets? Or is it a monthly fee? Doubt I'll take it up personally as never really attracted to betting - even though I tend not to be very risk averse in other parts of life, I do seem to be with money. I think people who are more into it have a strong memory of the good feelings when you win, I always have a strong memory of the bad feelings when I lose.

Better remove the photo to not offend with the lycra...

Actually he's a Hearts man...

Nah, Stephen Hendry...

I always wonder why they don't do a pre-shot routine like rugby kickers. Less chance of ballooning it over the bar at least.

Could have been the illegitimate son of a Roman centurion... Who could have been called something like, 'Naughtius Maximus', 'Sillius Soddus' or... 'Biggus Dickus'...

141 looks like big Eck - a few years ago.

I thought Goliath was the first guy in history to bring a knife to a gunfight... Must have been a "wop"... (non PC in jest...)

There's a game I used to relish, and now dreading. But I suspect we will raise our game like a shit Aberdeen team against a decent Rangers side and put in a massive effort, and have one of those close, heroic losses...

Couldn't DW give them a couple of minutes? I think it was a deliberate snub, but now trying to smooth it over. He did have stuff to do after the game, one was to give an interview... But if so, I'm glad about the snub, the club have to take a stance sometimes in face of terrible unprofessionalism from the media.

Are these any good?

Sounds like he lives in an expensive house - "The Waitrose effect"! But then he would, wouldn't he..?

I think some people in media see some mileage in winding up their audience, as it can attract the viewers for the controversy, but they have to realise that when you keep winding someone up, eventually they will walk away. For me, I don't know why they are using a no talent, loud mouth which is ruining my viewing pleasure. Surely, as a customer, they should think about creating a good experience for me. The funny thing about this is that while there is also some mileage in a partisan commentator for the team with the most viewers, like Celtic have against other teams, all Rangers fans really want is someone objective, knowledgeable and professional.

My first thought was that you suggesting him to do "This is your life" for one of the goalies...

The easy solution would be to ban Sutton from Rangers related broadcasting. The guy has openly shown that he has a dislike of Rangers that affects his work and is therefore incapable of being professional. The weird thing is that it's so transparently obvious, that you have to wonder why they just didn't do that after a quick internal inquiry instead of wanting one from the SPFL? It seems that a lack of professionalism and indeed any sense at all is totally missing from the media industry in general. Not many industries are all that great at self regulation, but the media seems to be by far the worst.

That does sound like a better solution for them - but would be disastrous for us. It would elevate both those countries another level above us and another one of our options gone. The only solution I can see is a model something like the Superbowl. We spit Europe into regional conferences with either franchised teams chosen from the area or teams qualifying for them via their leagues and a regional cup. Then we have a CL type super league from the top teams from the conferences. Then there is the choice of global tv contracts, regional or letting each club negotiate its own, with the home team keeping the money, like gate money. Invite only (or selections from applications) might be better to keep a balance due to the skewness of riches, but a meritocracy is obviously preferable. The former could be dangerous for us where they might reckon there is only need for one Scottish club or one Glasgow club. But European football is pretty sick at the moment and something has to be done before it dies a death outside the top 5. It's like someone taking anabolic steroids and having great muscle growth and strength, looking great on the outside, but they are simultaneously trashing their internal organs. UEFA have been immensely remiss at protecting the game in the vast majority of its member associations. In fact they've been like the coach who offers the athletes some kind of dangerous doping.

A "world cup" could not even exist in more than a name with the exclusion of 45 European countries... With two European associations and one with 45ish countries and the other with 5, Fifa would be forced to negotiate to save their own skin. But as said, UEFA would necessarily cave, like the SPL, SFA, and OF.

With the way things are going with the big 5, I'm constantly surprised that all the other countries are not getting together and threatening UEFA with breaking away to form a new association for both clubs and country, which excludes the offending countries from all competitions and player transfers. UEFA is corrupt in any case and a new association would allow a clean up. As Scottish teams found out, stick together and those that think they are too big end up caving as they can't thrive without competition.