I went to a state comprehensive....actually, in hindsight I might have been better off with the discipline of a grammar school .

I lived in Finsbury Park and could've gone to Highbury County or Holloway.

My parents sent me to Woodberry Down at Manor House.....made some long life friends but I needed a bit more discipline and structure at that age

Also I was playing football for Islington at my primary school Pooles Park. Woodberry Down was a rugby playing school and didn't put students up for the district team. ah well.

Coincidentally I was at Manor House on Sunday. Haven’t been there in years. My niece and her family live near The Brownswood and I walked up to the tube.

I was at St Ignatius in Stamford Hill. Used to catch the 253 from Manor House every morning.

Whereabouts in Finsbury Park, Andy?

One of the hardest things in scouting and recruitment must be spotting a player playing in a much weaker team than yours, where he isn't necessarily a standout player but you can see that he has the potential to play above his level and would improve his level by playing with better players.
So seeing Grealish was a standout player for Villa who would likely play well at a higher level is not as good as being able to spot someone like Wharton playing for a struggling Blackburn side, bringing him to Crystal Palace and inside 6 months he's at the Euro's for England and has much bigger clubs than Palace also now looking at him.

Congratulations to her, you and the family.

That's not just brains; that's hard work and graft too. Well done to her.

.

Thank you John. She is indeed like a guided missile.

Gets better actually. She’s been given a 4-year fully funded PhD, so she’s saying put in Cambridge, though now she’ll be on a decent salary.

Wonderful news!

My dad was born in Campbell Bunk and my mum was from the Cally
After the war my they rented a flat in a house in Woodstock Road and then managed to scrape a deposit for a house in Trinder Road, just off Crouch Hill which is where my first memories are.
My Dad and his pals would drink in the Earl of Essex on the corner of Stroud Green Road and Lennox Road before the Arsenal games

Near the end of my playing days I had a season playing for a pub team...The Brownswood!

Zinny's Ukraine won. Zinny provided the assist for their equaliser.

Relatively unimpressed with the top countries in the Euros so far given the talent they have. Id fancy City could win it fairly easily. Which is a bit unfair maybe.

I still think France will win it, barely. If England had a better manager they'd be far stronger as favorites.

Largely finding the euros boring if I’m honest. I love all the football but there’s not much entertainment out there.

Defensive sides not going forward, divvy stuff like Portugal having to play a 40 year old Ronaldo purely out of reputation, england reverting to type.

Seems an absence of bonafide talent so far.

I’m watching every game that I can but I’m not into these Euro’s as much as past competitions.
I think it’s partly to do with the long season Arsenal had, so now I’m a bit burned out from watching football intensely.

Villa signing Maatsen from Chelsea for £37m. Chelsea signing unknown Villa academy product Kellyman for £19m.

These are clubs side stepping FFP with more creative accounting. Academy players count as pure profit on the books so you bank the lot in one accounting year, but signings are only accounted over the length of their deal. You could collude with another club to both artificially pay more for each others academy products to finance any short term spending required

Hi Rich,

How is Maatsen a £37m player?

I know nothing about Kellyman, he may be the next big thing but this is all about circumventing the rules.

If Maatsen is £37m, then Nketiah is a £50m player and Nelson a £40m player but we know we'll be lucky to get even half that for them.

It’s circumnavigation, Kellyman was valued at a £1m player, hardly played much prem league 2 minutes. No coincidence these deals are happening between 2 of the 6 clubs that had threats of points deductions under FFP and P&S rules and all 6 had to sell before the June 30th deadline for accounting purposes

Arsenal is reportedly preparing a formal bid for Feyenoord defender Lutsharel Geertruida, competing with Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool for the talented 23-year-old’s signature. Left back capable of playing CB and defensive midfield.

I hope like other summers there is a name completely out of left-field that no one has wind of and no one knows. Arsenal doing their business very secretively

I see that team news geezer is saying we might be after Eze,

I said this a while back but I think he would be perfect for our system. Gives the option of pushing Rice back to 6 and being more attacking. Would bring out the best in Martinelli

Good defender. I like the Turkish guy better only that he goes forward better but at least this guy can fill in for Gabriel, although at around 6'1" I think.

Congratulations to you and your granddaughter DHD, wonderful news.

My dad lived in Stamford Hill when he was a kid. Moved from Hackney and went to Crowland Road primary but I forget where he told me he went to secondary school.

St Ignatius? That’s you and Alfred Hitchcock then.

Totally get this. I’ve missed so many games so far but the ones I’ve caught have been very average save for the Turkey Georgia match which was fab.

I think us fans need to recharge away from the game sometimes too.

Indeed Darren. Hitchcock plus a smattering of Bishops and Cardinals. And Dave Sexton! Plenty of others but I can't remember.

That pub is now The World's End, Andy. I had a few pre-match jars there in the old ground days.

Glad there's still a pub there....most of the boozers I frequented in my formative years are sadly just a memory now.

The form at the top of the Euro countries is either no where as good as it should be or quality of the 2nd and even 3rd tier countries has gotten closer.

Either way, this is one of the more even Euros (maybe since Greece had their historic run) if not one of the most boring.

Looking forward to the game later. Apparently Mr Personality is going to bring in Conor Gallagher but keep Foden wide left. A tactical masterclass that will have a the slovenians all over the place I reckon.

I really like Eze but I'd be less keen for Rice to go back in the No.6 role as our first choice option. he can play there but I think he's better as an 8, and I think he lacks a bit of the skillset the very best in that position need. Rice doesn't control the tempo of the game as well from 6 and doesn't receive the ball on the half turn and play balls through the lines quickly. He's obviously very good as a 6 but I'd rather a younger Jorginho or a fitter Partey type come in to play that role. Eze would still get plenty of time in any number of positions

Yep, again falling in to the trap of trying to pick the best players rather than the best team. For me if he HAS to have Bellingham and Foden in the same side there is only really two ways he can do it
1)Ultra attacking with Bellingham deeper, Foden as a 10 and bring in Gordon wide left
2) keep Bellingham as the 10 and put Foden on the right where he drifted in from in many City games - Saka could shift to the left. If Foden and Saka are similar from the right I'd wager Saka is far, far more dangerous from the left than Foden.

For me I'd bring in Gomes at left-back, at least he played there a decent amount of times for Liverpool, I'd bring in Wharton to play alongside Rice and add some calmness in possession, I'd drop Foden to the bench and I'd bring Gordon in on the left to add pace. Against the 'lesser' sides I wouldn't mind Trent starting as a RB either

The God that is Bellingham can’t pass.

Gallagher is a bog average David Batty type. Bellingham having a Bizarre game. Seems he’s allowed to wander around doing whatever he wants.

Agree with Dixon. Foden needs to move to 10. They just haven’t been able to get Starboy on the ball enough either.

I cannot understand this English team. They are through. They should be playing with a bit of joie de vivre.

Here you go Gunny:

Gareth Southgate embraces joie de vivre.

Used together in the same sentence. First time ever.

After witnessing that shite from Southgate, Ben White made out well. Steer clear.

At least the Copa is on for some excitement. Games are in a better time zone for us in Oz. Because the Euro is getting worse not better. England had all the play, a ref who never saw any England fouls and a totally unbalanced team. I expect when Alf Ramsay dropped Greaves he copped some flak, time for Southgate to jettison Kane for starters.

He gave Gordon 90 seconds. I mean ffs

Spain has quietly crept up and for now I'll have to change to them as the favorites. Them beating Italy and Croatia changed my mind. England and France have struggled against minor opposition to impose themselves.

The Slovenia team were very quick to press and close down the right side but allowed the ball out to Trippier with no press. Walker kept passing the ball behind Saka as well, not sure what he was meant to do with the service he had and double markers.
Mainoo certainly improved things in the middle, imagine thinking you need more control in midfield and picking Conor Gallagher!

Far too many of the team don’t look fit, or at least match fit and sharp. Bellingham has been nowhere to be seen for 2.5 games now.
I’d just like to see some pace in the play, Gordon is absolutely necessary on that left hand side.
Kane is a problem, you can’t drop someone with his record but currently he’s not adding much to the team, would the energy and classic striker channel running if Watkins suit more. Southgate will never make that call.
I also think Walker adds nothing going forward, he’s a solid defender due to his pace and physicality but his passing, crossing and link up play is below average. We have non of the back 4 stepping in or drifting in to midfield to help with a slow and stodgy build up either.

Bellinghams performances have been dire. 45 minutes of decent football in 3 games yet not many are talking about it.

Saka is going to become some kind of sacrificial bunny now and will make way for Palmer even though the problems reside in left back and left wing positions and a midfield imbalance.

Netherlands look very average but a very decent chance England could go out to them playing like this.

If Hollland are average then I’ll don’t know what level England are at. Despite the hours and hours of international friendlies every 2 weeks they still look like they’ve never played together. Complete and utter shite so far and the only positive is that surely they cant get worse.

As for the rest it’s been pretty dull low block fare for the majority with hardly any teams willing to play on the front foot. Seems to be the pervasive trend in tournaments nowadays.

Joan Garcia, 23 is the latest Gk we’ve been linked with. Espanyol gk, apparently is in the top 1% of gk for high claims. It certainly makes sense for our No.2 gk to have the same strengths as Raya