Plastic Goat

Now the Palace v Villa game was proper football. How refreshing to watch a team ( Palace) who played like a team for the whole match .Players who were busting a gut to get back and defend.Even front players. Players who put in crunching tackles,who had pace and physical strength and could take chances. Yes they were two Prem teams. No tippy happy nonsense,not playing walking football and being up for it. Everything that's missing from the misfits in red shirts. Surely we could get together a squad and manager who could play this version in the Championship. How fantastic to have a Boro team playing like this at the Riverside with the fans bouncing. Carrick has sucked the life out of Boro. He really has to go.

Nice guys don't win many football matches.

That was a truly insipid performance from Boro. Carrick himself comes across as rather insipid so no suprise that his teams are just the same. Amazingly enough this bunch of misfits could still make the playoffs. Incredible really when you think just how poor this manager and team are. In some ways it's a reflection of just how poor this league is. So now we limp along until next Saturday to find out what the fates await. The whole thing is not really in our hands.

Carrick wanted Whittaker.Thats all.you need to know. Biggest fanny of a player I've ever seen.

Nacho hat trick. More impossible than Starmer smashing the gangs.

Another injury picked up in training. You really couldn't make it up.

To paraphrase Dr Johnson. To label someone a troll is the last refuge of the scoundrel.

Yes I'm afraid Boro is not a well run club when it comes to player recruitment. The injury record alone is damning.

If we lose today the silver lining surely is that Carrick will be sacked. This club is in no way prepared to do battle in the Prem. Maybe a new manager with real ability, and a cohesive group of players who are prepared to give 101 percent every game, might however do the trick.

Of course it's a must win game you silly Billy. A win could go a long way to securing a playoff place. Secondly it's a home game so it should always be a must win game. Thirdly it's the last home game of the season so this bunch of misfits should be going all out to sign off on as positive note as possible.

I wonder if Michael Carrick thinks this is a must win game?

I'm pretty sure that if Steve Gibson wanted to attract some seriously wealthy new investors he'd have no problems. Obviously at the moment he doesn't want to or he's mulling it over. It's coming though.Maybe sooner than we think. The stadium really needs upgrading and that's where new money might make a difference. Also new investors might want to get the club really buzzing by lowering tickets prices to try and increase attendance. The club has a staleness about it and it really could do with fresh pairs of eyes looking at the total setup. Mr Gibson knows that anno domini wins in the end. He can't go on for ever and he has lots of other interests. Handing the club over to his daughter ( should she want the role) would be a disaster. I'm sure he knows this too. There is one hell of a lot of money out there and I'm convinced that Boro would be an attractive proposition to the odd billionaire or two. .

He will have to live one helluva long time.He would get into the Guinness Book of Records.

Carrick seems to have a blind spot regarding defending which is amazing coming from an ex top class player. It's a massive weakness and I don't think he will ever sort it. Best if he just goes at the end of the season.