Blades on the road to Damascus?

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Flatulent_Bob

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According to other reports the Blades are off to Syria in order to secure investment.

Can anyone add any meat to the bones on this one?

It would also suggest that this is investment not a buy-out which I'd certainly be happier with.

Who knows Blackie might actually see the light and have a change of philosophy in regard to his style of play.
 

Sounds interesting. Where was it reported Bob?

Blades Mad,

http://www.sheffieldunited-mad.co.uk/news/loadnews.asp?cid=TMNW&id=470040

Blades Mad can reveal that Sheffield United's first team and management staff are about to fly out to the Asian country of Syria aiming to attract investment...

The Blades will leave England shortly after the Barnsley game on Monday 9th November to the capital, Damascus. The trip wouldn't affect any league clashes with there being an international break until the 21st November when Peterborough come to town.

We believe that there is at least one individual who is keen on investing in the Bramall Lane outfit, hence the trip. United, who possess three partnerships in a trio of clubs around the globe; Chengdu Blades, Ferencvaros and Central Coast Mariners, are currently owned by Kevin McCabe, with his son Scott McCabe overseeing the director role.
 
Where is it then?


Some would say it's in the Middle East but it would be more correct to say it's in the Near East.

Incidentally, the following is an extract from the UK Foreign Office travel guidelines (current today):

"There is a general threat from terrorism. Attacks cannot be ruled out and could be indiscriminate, including in places frequented by expatriates and foreign travellers. On 27 September 2008 a car bomb exploded on a main road outside a military facility in Damascus. Seventeen people were killed and many injured."

Nothing like putting the whole team at risk is there?
 
"Some would say it's in the Middle East but it would be more correct to say it's in the Near East".

So, Asia then ;)
 
Middle, Near and Far East are all Asia.

FCO website provides very cautious information. Syria is far from safe due to its location but its probably no worse/ better than a lot of other places in the region.

I'd say that we'd need a fair bit of security there though so it seems a strange one.

But hey, we're a pioneering club! :)
 
Middle, Near and Far East are all Asia.

FCO website provides very cautious information. Syria is far from safe due to its location but its probably no worse/ better than a lot of other places in the region.

I'd say that we'd need a fair bit of security there though so it seems a strange one.

But hey, we're a pioneering club! :)

Not too worried about them being blown up, what annoys me more is traipsing the entire squad off to a foreign land, mid season when we're in the middle of a slump that needs averting. I'm sure Blackwell will keep the peace in public but privately I’d be seething. Really, what are a few stupid meaningless friendlies going to do? Seal the deal? Really? I can't see it.

We need this international break, but to get bodies back and do some good work on the training pitch and try and get the defence working as one again. Not having to work in foreign climates with facilities that are pretty much luck of the draw.

I have been broadly supportive if not a bit ambivalent to our off field activities, but I see this jaunt potentially damaging us on the pitch*








* Of course if this is true not some rumour
 
Surely a bit of warm weather training and a friendlies to try out a couple of options and give returning players match practice are good? Away from the spotlight, away from distractions

I'm not sure that we'll be using facilities that are luck of the draw. Not been to Syria, but in a lot of the middle east (Qatar for example) the facilities are as good if not better than the UK.
 
Me and the missus got engaged in Syria many moons ago - on the banks of the Euphrates at Dier-a-Zur. Lovely place (if you like deserts!) once you get past the bloody awful customs officials!!

Bought the engagement ring in Aleppo - off the scale pure gold and a jade stone for about £20.00 - don't tell her! :rolleyes: Cheap as Chips eh??

Ah - memories, memories!!

One of the best contries in the world to visit IMO
 
to quote Alexei Sayle, Syria is like East Germany with Hummus.
 

Middle, Near and Far East are all Asia.

I stand corrected (geographically at least). I tend to regard Asia as the Indian sub-continent and the Far East. Their residents are the people you would call Asians. The Syrians and all those in the Middle East wouldn't thank you if you referred to them as Asians. They prefer to be regarded as Arabs.
 
Incidentally, the following is an extract from the UK Foreign Office travel guidelines (current today):

"There is a general threat from terrorism. Attacks cannot be ruled out and could be indiscriminate, including in places frequented by expatriates and foreign travellers. On 27 September 2008 a car bomb exploded on a main road outside a military facility in Damascus. Seventeen people were killed and many injured."

Nothing like putting the whole team at risk is there?

I heard some guys discussing this at the Blackpool game so it's been running a little while. They were even discussing flight times from Stansted. I think Al-Qaeda Airways fly there every other Jihad. Hostage class is the cheap as chips way.

As for the threat of terrorism I think it may be safer to go to the terrorists rather than wait for them to come to us. Also I fancy the idea of a Mr M having a "Damascus Road conversion"
 
Middle, Near and Far East are all Asia.

I stand corrected (geographically at least). I tend to regard Asia as the Indian sub-continent and the Far East. Their residents are the people you would call Asians. The Syrians and all those in the Middle East wouldn't thank you if you referred to them as Asians. They prefer to be regarded as Arabs.

Except Iranians, in the main, aren't Arabs and wouldn't thank you either if you referred to them as such.
 
Except Iranians, in the main, aren't Arabs and wouldn't thank you either if you referred to them as such.

I made that mistake when I was working in Sharjah, I referred to our Iranian Client as an Arab, he quickly corrected me and advised that he was Persian, like a cat or a rug.

I then didn't see him again as he went off to get wasted in Dubai for 2 weeks bless him!

he was also thought to be responsible for Blackening out Israel of the map of the Gulf and blackening out Arabian on the Arabian Gulf.

Sensitive feckers these Persian Rugs!
 
The word 'ARIAN' which is generally considered to mean 'white' is actually a derivation of 'IRANIAN'. !
Not a lot of people know that !
 
The word 'ARIAN' which is generally considered to mean 'white' is actually a derivation of 'IRANIAN'. !
Not a lot of people know that !

Aria was an Old Persian satrapy in the northwest of what is now Afghanistan. An Arian is from that part of the world, and as Afghanistan borders Iran there might be a point to that. The word that is possibly considered to mean "white" is actually Aryan.

The word Aryan was adopted to refer not only to the Indo-Iranian people, but also to native Indo-European speakers as a whole, including the Albanians, Armenians, Greeks, Latins, and Germans. It was soon recognised that Balts, Celts, and Slavs also belonged to the same group. It was argued that all of these languages originated from a common root — now known as Proto-Indo-European — spoken by an ancient people who must have been the original ancestors of the European, Iranian, and Indo-Aryan peoples.

Arian refers to a speaker of Indo-European languages. So to call it a derivation of Iranian is being very loose with the definition.
 
Bert has been to Syria twice, in fact he was in Damascus earlier this year.

A very safe and pleasant country, one eyed politics perhaps but never the less well worth a visit. There is very little chance of any danger for Western tourists, in fact it's far riskier being in Bert's Gentleman's Club when the port runs out.
 
Middle, Near and Far East are all Asia.

I stand corrected (geographically at least). I tend to regard Asia as the Indian sub-continent and the Far East. Their residents are the people you would call Asians. The Syrians and all those in the Middle East wouldn't thank you if you referred to them as Asians. They prefer to be regarded as Arabs.

Isn't referring to the middle, far and near east a bit ethnocentric? After all, to the Japanese, Syria is pretty much the far west.
 

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