Jack Hitting the Road is Probably for the Best

Like the time he drove to training with his girlfriend and a satnav but still got lost and had to call a taxi so he could follow it to the training ground?

Or the time he begged Wayne Rooney's hooker Jenny Thompson for sex? That ended with them having text sex and Jack sending her a picture of his manhood which she then gave to the press.

Where was the professionalism and maturity when Jack Rodwell's pixelated manhood appeared in the Sunday tabloids?

Already we are looking at Jack Rodwell with rose-tinted glasses. What I remember is an injury prone midfielder who had a habit of passing sideways or disappearing completely from games. He never put his authority on a game, never dominated and at times strolled around the pitch almost in a dream.

Rodwell will probably fade away and the right call was made. However, if he does come good we might have flushed away a lad that would have stuck with the club for a long time. Do you think we can say the same about his midfield big haired team mate?

I personally don't think the current side is anywhere moyes's best. We have a good goal scorer but lack the creativity of 3 plus years. Moyes has got rid of the 3 players that were absolutely right to go. Add the 2 signings made and a couple of more new faces and even the mob may come around that Moyes still has it in him to serve beef Wellington with corn beef cash.

There are, unsubstantiated, suggestions amongst various reports that Rodwell was indeed hesitant about the move, perhaps realising that chances may be limited even if the wages are 3 x more. Hodgson today was suggesting the core of England future may not be first choice in their teams.

What hope do we (or other teams) really have when an academy prospect moves to a bit-part role for 50% more than we pay our highest earner?

I'm beginning to get the disdain for the Man City "Project". Not only does their manager show the same lack of class in his comments as his predecessor, it seems they really don't give a shit about FFP as they've already decided they can get round it.

This is the team that has a strikeforce on an absolute fortune that it wants rid of, and being the mercenaries they are, are in limbo as no-one will take them. Adebayor laughably refusing to move even though City will subsidise his wages for 2 years, as it would mean he'd still be out-of-pocket for the last 2 years of his Spurs contract.

Of course, with their new training development being "non-relevant expense", that's a whole load off their cost figures that UEFA won't count.

Then, there's their commercial revenue leaving everyone behind. Apparently they have now EIGHT sponsors from Abu Dhabi- with Etihad being the Tier 1, the others are still pouring more cash in. And UEFA don't give a shit as it's all fresh money into the sport.

City aren't the only ones at it, but they are far and away the worst example, in the worst league. With our taxation system relative to other countries, we already have to pay players more than in other leagues just to keep their take-home the same.

Maybe it's post-Olympics realisation that football has lost its soul (I even found myself agreeing with Joey Barton's blog last night!), but as usual, even if we got sold tomorrow to the perfect owners, we've missed the boat. City made sure their 2010-11 largesse didn't count in the first round of FFP calculations. It seems their well-paid execs have found a way round everything else. Apart from signing RVP.

'Unfortunately this is our reality; all our possible glory this season is for the right for brief mid-week TV exposure the next.'

Get used to it. It stil remains the case.

Note Lyndon's comment. I'm still waiting for the ceremony.

It'll be very interesting to see how we start especially how we do against United but I'm really positive. I'm also extending my unpaid home leave and coming up from Horsham to see the game.

Agree with every word, Matt. It's obviously difficult discussing anything to do with our club these days without addressing the obvious disparity that exists in the Premier League so it more or less goes without saying, as far as I'm concerned.

I've deliberately not gone into the financial controversies of our situation lest each article turn into a novel!

Suffice to say, yes, the whole situation is incredibly depressing, with no resolution in sight... apart from "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em".

Seeing your views on this thread, wondered if you might enhance the "overdraft" thread with your thoughts. Ian

But something has come into the thread (via Matt Traynor) which I know a little about.

My work took me to Manchester 40 years ago. What was happening in Liverpool apart from football plus some music and the Tate Gallery, bits of City of Culture maybe, I knew next to nothing about - a Wirral blue you see, not wedded to the 'City'.

The City of Manchester put in two bids to host the Olympics. They got the Commonwealth Games and did it well, building the C of MC Stadium in the new 'Sports City' of Eastlands.

MCFC? There is no way they would have done this for themselves. They have been the beneficiaries of a well-organised forward thinking City Council. Of course, MUFC have nothing to do with them, being across the border in Trafford so no clash of interests. Perhaps this is significant.

Now I'm not saying that any city council should be promoting he interests of a privately owned business unless, perhaps, it could be demonstrated that this had a significant halo effect for employment and, in the end, increased revenue for the city itself. And, as I said, I know nothing about Liverpool and its council. But what MC City Council did, with no agenda to assist MCFC as far as I know, has had a massive effect for them, and has probably been good financially for the city as a whole.

What happened next - Shiniwara's money laundering and the Middle Eastlands 'project', Matt is quite right about. But the start came from, as it were, the 'city' itself. Its elected representatives and their executive officers going for the Olympics. Twice.

And if any of these rumored signings happen, and Barkley or Francisco Junior step up as hoped, this £12-17 million for Rodwell will indeed be a fine bit of business for Moyes and BK.

1) Rodwell has had a poor injury record and has never got into his stride playing for us. Turning down the cash and then being stuck with a player who spends his career injured is untenable in our financial situation. He has showed glimpses of class when not injured, but he is far from world class right now.

2) We have a good homegrown youngster in the same position in order to put our regional hopes into. It would have been great to see a home grown midfield of Rodwell and Barkley, but at least we still have the younger (and higher rated) of the two to develop into a first teamer.

3) The players we are being linked with as a result of the sale look exciting. We have needed a pacey winger since...... probably Kanchelskis (Arteta played there for a while but was always more of a centre mid). If this winger and striker come in, we will have a better balance squad with genuine options up front.

All in all I wish Jack well in his career and fingers crossed the money is spent wisely.