FA Carling Premiership and Milk Cup thread 2024/25

[garynysmon]

Was mad to hear now that big Sunderland prospect Tommy Watson is leaving for Brighton in the summer.

In my 1990’s mind the prospect of Brighton, who of course play at the Goldstone Ground and are struggling in Nationwide Division Three, being seen as a step up is still bonkers to me.

The lad could have signed for a Carling Premiership side like Oldham or Sheff Wed at least.

Edited May 24, 2025 by garynysmon

[Wretch]

3 hours ago, Wretch said:

Embarrassing from the big man there. He’s done wonders for us, but his mad behaviour is rapidly undoing the goodwill we’ve build up this season. I think most neutrals would’ve liked to see us crack the top four, but not so much anymore from what I’m reading.

Can’t wait to see the almighty strop he throws on Sunday.

I’ve done a 180 lads.

Marinakis ?

[air_raid]

22 hours ago, Devon Malcolm said:

He also recommended David Moyes as his replacement.

To be fair, Moyes got dealt a bad hand. Didnt he give Woodward a list of names to try and sign/re-sign including Ronaldo, Bale, Modric, Özil and Fabregas, to end up only getting Fellaini? Talk about sending your mum to Menzies for birthday Hasbros and her coming back with Skinner.

[Mr_Danger]

My favourite was Giggs and co convincing him that Thiago wasn’t United class. Almost certainly bollocks but the thought of Dodgy Ryan Giggs convincing them not to sign Thiago and ending up with Fellaini is too good to let facts and truth get in the way.

[BrodyGraham]

I've said before how being from County Durham, I grew up in a split allegiances household with my siblings supporting Sunderland, my Dad and I supporting Newcastle and my Mam not being able to give less of a shit. My wife has also been largely football agnostic until recently when my support of Newcastle has been less of an ordeal, ownership not withstanding. Her Dad was a massive Sunderland fan, there in '73, the whole hog, but passed away in 2016. 

My sister is in London today taking my niece on a tour of Hackney's many hipster eateries, whilst her husband is at Wembley. My brother is in Naples on a romantic trip with his wife that he booked last year, not expecting Napoli to be anywhere near winning the Scudetto. My daughter was very much not in the mood to engage with my wife and I so on our way to Stockport to go shopping we passed our largely empty local pub and just thought 'fuck it' and went in to watch the play off final.

 I've been down in Manchester for 25 years and I'm not really bothered by the tribalism, especially in the North East and we watch big games together on our siblings group chat so I was invested in Sunderland winning. When Sheff U scored the couple behind us went fucking mental celebrating. We kept pretty low key, did a couple of little fist pumps when Sunderland scored but nowt over the top. 

When we left I turn to the bloke to commiserate and tell him if it's any consolation he won't have to watch his team get absolutely pumped every week next season. Turns out he's a Man U fan but he's also Tyrese Campbell's Godfather and then offered his congratulations. He looked well confused when I explained I was a Newcastle fan.

Anyway it's been a brilliant season for me, my friends and family this season. Newcastle's first trophy in a billion years, Sunderland in the Premier League, my friends' Grandson getting promoted with Burnley and my brother being in Naples last night, what a fun, mental season.

Now, hopefully Newcastle put so many goals past Jordan Pickford tomorrow that he's forced into retirement. 

I'm magnanimous, but I'm still human.

Edited May 24, 2025 by BrodyGraham

[Cousin Jim Bob]

2 hours ago, air_raid said:

To be fair, Moyes got dealt a bad hand. Didnt he give Woodward a list of names to try and sign/re-sign including Ronaldo, Bale, Modric, Özil and Fabregas, to end up only getting Fellaini? Talk about sending your mum to Menzies for birthday Hasbros and her coming back with Skinner.

 

Fellaini was pretty decent for them for a few seasons in the end and he always looked like he actually gave a shit and worked hard. It was never really good enough though for a lot of their fan base.

 

They could certainly do with someone with his drive and work ethic in their midfield nowadays tbh.

 

Maybe they should look at that Scottish lad at Napoli. He seems pretty good.

Edited May 24, 2025 by Cousin Jim Bob

[TheBurningRed]

5 hours ago, Cousin Jim Bob said:

Maybe they should look at that Scottish lad at Napoli. He seems pretty good.

Edited 5 hours ago by Cousin J

Billy Gilmour? No thanks. 

McTominay could’ve been played in a more attacking role for us. He was a striker in his youth m and then got a growth spurt so they moved him back to midfield and ideally wanted him at CB. We could’ve actually done with him as an attacking option. Like Felliaini was. And I won’t hear a bad word against him. 

[Arch Stanton]

5 hours ago, TheBurningRed said:

McTominay could’ve been played in a more attacking role for us. He was a striker in his youth m and then got a growth spurt so they moved him back to midfield and ideally wanted him at CB. We could’ve actually done with him as an attacking option. Like Felliaini was. And I won’t hear a bad word against him. 

This post reads like you missed his entire last season with United, when he was used exactly as you've described. Scored ten goals in all competitions. There's no need for for 'could have', he was used that way.

Like Fellaini before him, Scott was deployed regularly, and effectively, as an attacking 'Plan B' (or perhaps Plan C?) by Ten Hag (it was hard to refer to any of Erik's tactics as being part of a 'plan' to be fair). The problem is, that's never going to be a sustainable model for success. United could absolutely have done with Scott this season, he would have dug us out of a good few holes, like he did last season. Maybe we'd have finished 8th again, instead of 17th. We'd still be playing shit football and we'd still be no closer to fixing that, or moving towards where we want to be.

Even if it fails as spectacularly as it is currently promising to, at least now there is a plan. Scott could only ever have been a squad rotation piece of that puzzle. At Napoli, he got in where he fit in. He's all gas, no breaks wit it and I couldn't be happier and prouder for him!

[Mr_Danger]

It definitely helps he’s playing in a league that features Everton legends Moises Keane, Ademola Lookman and Big Rom amongst its highest scorers. 
 

 

[SuperBacon]

There was a bloke behind me today who said the defeat ruined the entire week. Grow up mate.

Some Spurs fans will never ever be happy. Its hardwired in us to be this miserable. 

[Wretch]

Classic Forest there in that every result went our way bar our own for CL qualification. 
 

What a season though. After the last couple of years, I’d have bitten your hand off last August for mid-table mediocrity. The lads have been tremendous. Interesting summer ahead with that mad bastard at the helm. 

[Carbomb]

2 hours ago, Wretch said:

Classic Forest there in that every result went our way bar our own for CL qualification. 
 

What a season though. After the last couple of years, I’d have bitten your hand off last August for mid-table mediocrity. The lads have been tremendous. Interesting summer ahead with that mad bastard at the helm. 

I'm genuinely pleased for you. Never seemed right that a club with Forest's history should be outside the top division.

[SaitoRyo]

Strangled, it was an at times frustrating season to be an NUFC fan, but we really can't complain with the Carabao Cup triumph and Champions League qualification. Eddie Howe has done an exceptional job and I hope we heavily reinvest in the squad this summer to give him and the team the best chance for success next season.

Was also rather happy to see Palace win the FA Cup and Spurs to beat Man Utd in the Europa League final. 

[Carbomb]

The Europa final - there's a part of me that's sort relieved we didn't win, because now there's nowhere to hide. Silverware and European competition's been used to cover the cracks for too long. I don't think any of the managers United've had since SAF were bad - like I said before, the way the club's run at the moment, it would ruin Pep - but EtH was a prime example of how the administration were happy to keep limping along with scattershot, underwhelming performances that might win a cup. There's been something about the way ten Hag's team won those cups that just feels more like sheer luck than actual skill.

There's literally no way now to spin this season as anything but a disaster, so actual work on rebuilding needs to begin.

Hell, maybe we should just adopt the mystic approach of name coincidences, like Arsène Wenger at Arsenal, or Pep signing Gvardiol. Perhaps ETH would've done better at the Etihad. I'd say we should've got Unai in, but he very clearly only does well at teams with the word "villa" in the name.

[METAL ON METAL]

After 8 of the most soul-crushing years, consecutive relegations, 4 years in League One, away days to Gillingham & Morecambe amongst many and having to watch your team line up with the likes of Callum McFadzean, Lee Camp & Josh Scowen - WE ARE FUCKING BACK!!!

Being at Wembley when we beat Wycombe three years ago was a brilliant day but being there on Saturday was unbelievable and a day I will never forget. It still doesn’t feel real.

I’ve got no doubts we’ll come straight back down again (and probs reclaim our old lowest points record) but this is a free hit for us and we’re going to have fun with it. The club has been running self-sustainably for a while now, so if we drop back down the parachute money will give us a great base to build up properly for next time instead of almost being liquidated last time.

 

Sadly, it looks all but confirmed Jobe will be leaving us to sign for either Dortmund or Frankfurt. Wished he would’ve had a season with us in the Prem but I think it was agreed to let him leave beforehand regardless of Saturdays outcome. He’s going to be a MASSIVE loss for us, it’s unfair for people to compare him to his brother but I’ve got no doubts he’ll be playing at the very top of the game just like him. I don’t begrudge him leaving to play in the Champions League, just thankful for all he’s done in a Sunderland shirt and being a key part at getting us back to the Premiership. Plus, signing him for £3m and selling him for £30m/£40m shows the clubs model working perfectly.

 

One last thing, LUKE O’NIEN IS A PREMIER LEAGUE PLAYER! An absolute nuisance to play against but truly the loveliest person off the pitch, he is the heart & soul of this club. He has taken to the city, its people and the region as a whole like he was born here. He had played in every single outfield position for us without complaint. The heartbreak of getting injured mere minutes into the most important game of his life to the jubilant scenes of him running the length of the pitch in his socks for our second goal with his arm in a sling is the true example of football going from the lowest of lows to the highest of highs just like that. The best £300k the club have ever spent. I’m so overjoyed he gets to experience football in the top division. He might just be my favourite Sunderland player ever.