buster.

Great game, both sides played their part.

Seems so according to soccerway. Osijek already have 2 friendlies plus today under the belt this new season. Sat 23/06/18 CLF Osijek 2 - 1 Videoton Wed 27/06/18 CLF Osijek 1 - 3 Shkendija Sat 30/06/18 CLF Osijek 13 : 00 St. Johnstone https://us.soccerway.com/teams/croatia/nk-osijek/481/

A decade ago we were in the UEFA Cup Final. If this squad manage to get to the third round of qualifiers, they'll be doing well.

Spending 2M on that machine (if that is what it costs) might be an easier decision for richer clubs in more lucrative leagues but I'd agree with Les, that there are other much cheaper ways of doing very similar.

France 1 - 0 Argentina Uruguay 0 - 0 Portugal Spain 1 - 0 Russia Croatia 1 - 0 Denmark Brazil 1 - 0 Mexico Belgium 2 - 0 Japan Sweden 1 - 1 Switzerland Colombia 0 - 2 England

You think back to games like in '82 when Italy beat Brazil 3-2 or France drew with Germany 3-3 but went out on penalties and you hope for a repeat but I tend to agree with you.

Looking forward to the France v Argentina game but not really expecting a ripper of a game. An early goal for either would help things but I doubt there will be any goals in the first half. Uruguay v Portugal looks like a dour and attritional struggle but the team that comes out of it will be a difficult one to beat for France or Argentina.

Yes, you're right but it's generally how fans will see things. Herrera and Cardoso were basically a consequence of what was termed by AJ as 'institutional failure'. This is still costing the club a lot of money every week. Cummings couldn't get any momentum. He didn't really fit into the way we played so tbh you have to ask questions about why we signed him. Not such a huge deal given it was a 6 month loan.

From a supporters POV, it's squeezing money out of a club you aren't giving anything back in return, especially when we get to pay-off time.

You should rename yourself 'Gonzo Petraeus',...all these hopeful surges but not really getting anywhere

Roll on the matches to see the team in action.............

He and his agent(s) were never going to leave without squeezing as much money out of us as they can. Awful buy and we might consider him gone but the relatively lucrative contract still has a way to go.

He came through before Auchenhowie was opened and we haven't produced a player as good since....but yes, tendency to be an arsehole didn't help his career.

Very stylish

You'd imagine SG as well as making his own judgement on him as a player, will have already taken him aside, looked him in the eye and asked him if he wants to be here or not. ie. moves will already be in gear to punt him...... or....... mgmt team consider him part of things going forward. The noise, that include father and son, suggest the former........ but we'd only be guessing.

RE. Windass What we don't want is an ongoing saga that leaves us short for the early games. One way or the other, best to get it resolved asp.

It's a difficult remit in that he obviously knows we need to build but timescales will bring pressure to do it very quickly. For me, we need to get this right and start to build something now that will be given a reasonable amount of time to take root, grow and hpefully, bear fruit. I don't think it's viable or sustainable to do otherwise.

Like most things, the loan system is a big positive if it is used well. But you can't look at it in isolation. Recruitment as a whole has to be considered, along with player development, contract management, finance, etc. This is where Mark Allen has to earn his corn but it also has to fit with how the first team management team see things....which will mean compromise.

We need to have a recruitment policy that makes sense at various levels or we won't move forward as a club. We need to build, rather than the annual chuck it in the bin and start again. What we have been doing in recent years is the road to nowhere other than financial problems.

It comes down to the questions Is he significantly better than what we have already ? Would there be an option to make it permanent ? -------------- I think we have to first and foremost develop and add value to our own players. The loan system is good if you use it well, ie. bring in real quality that is significantly better than what we have at home.

Jack, Rossiter, McCrorie, potentially this French loan player.

Columbia have had an up and down WC. 1st game: They recovered well from conceding an early penalty/red card and goal to Japan but run out of gas in the second half and lost. 2nd game: They looked good but Poland were so bad, it was difficult not to. 3rd game: They were second best to Senegal for much of the game but stuck in and ground out qualification I think they'll struggle against England.

A 24 hour break is welcome. Gives you time to shag the Mrs whilst at the back of your mind contemplating a France v Argentina KO game tomorrow.

Let's go with that for a minute........how many holding midfielders do we need ?

Yes, the top generally looks and is considered by most of the footballing world, a tougher proposition to get out of than the bottom. Historically The top has 4 past winners with a total of 10 World Cups between them The bottom has 2 with 2 The top has both finalists from the most recent European Championship The bottom has 7 European teams, none of which made the Euros 2016 quarter finals Presently The top has 5 of the top 8 ranked FIFA teams The bottom has 1 plus Spain at 10th Form IMO Belguim are the side that has shown a little bit more than the rest. Croatia have impressed but I don't think they have enough to win it. Spain have shown a defensive vulnerability that would IMO make Croatia favourites to beat them. A prospective and hypothetical glance at the quarter final line-up shows IMO a narrower gap between top and bottom with England getting IMO the most favourable tie possible (same would be applicable if it is Sweden). Their route to a possible semi-final of an easy group, followed by an unconvincing Columbia side then Sweden or Switzerland is the stuff past England managers must have dreamt about. Especially when you add Croatia or a vulnerable Spain side in a possible semi-final. Will they be good enough is another thing but they won't get a better chance. Uruguay v France Brazil v Belguim Spain v Croatia England v Switzerland