Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Heroes Discussion => Topic started by: Dave P on October 31, 2022, 12:24:53 PM
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With only three league games until the window opens, and a new manager wanting to hit the ground running, we are going to be linked with a lot of players, particularly from Villareal.
The first one linked is Nicolas Jackson. Is he any good?
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We've never had a Jackson, have we?
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Tommy Jackson.
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Dennis Jackson.
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Imsorrymiss Jackson
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Tommy Jackson, from 1919 to 1930, a goalie.
Dennis Jackson, from 1954 to 1959, a defender.
Three or four other players who never made a first team appearance.
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We've never had a Jackson, have we?
Fulham had a Michael.
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Dennis Jackson.
I got to know him when he was involved with the Old Stars. He was a lovely bloke who gave me the quote about BFR, "I played with Ron in about a hundred reserve games. And according to Ron he was man of the match in at least 99 of them."
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Wiki says he’s an attacking midfielder but his YT clips make him look like a striker. Either way he clearly likes to run at players and he’s 6ft 1in
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Wiki says he’s an attacking midfielder but his YT clips make him look like a striker. Either way he clearly likes to run at players and he’s 6ft 1in
Action Jackson!
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Wiki says he’s an attacking midfielder but his YT clips make him look like a striker. Either way he clearly likes to run at players and he’s 6ft 1in
we'd need to be offloading ay least one of our current midfielders, wouldn't we, if this guy is an attacking MF?
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Jackon's youtube highlights are quite impressive. Big lad, loves to drive the ball forward, good footwork and understands the simple concept that you must score goals to win the game.
He could develop a great connection with Kamara.
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Everyone looks good in their You Tube highlights. I bet even Ali Dia did.
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Everyone looks good in their You Tube highlights. I bet even Ali Dia did.
I reckon even I could be made to look good in YouTube highlights.
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Wiki says he’s an attacking midfielder but his YT clips make him look like a striker. Either way he clearly likes to run at players and he’s 6ft 1in
we'd need to be offloading ay least one of our current midfielders, wouldn't we, if this guy is an attacking MF?
I think he mainly plays on the right of a front 3
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Everyone looks good in their You Tube highlights. I bet even Ali Dia did.
I reckon even I could be made to look good in YouTube highlights.
I think I'd still be in the 'players who simply aren't good' enough list. I am available though.
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Dennis Jackson.
I got to know him when he was involved with the Old Stars. He was a lovely bloke who gave me the quote about BFR, "I played with Ron in about a hundred reserve games. And according to Ron he was man of the match in at least 99 of them."
Dennis was my manager for a Sunday League team in the late 80’s . A lovely bloke indeed , but not to be crossed either !
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Everyone looks good in their You Tube highlights. I bet even Ali Dia did.
Did you watch them, though?
Highlights aside, people have different qualities. You can't teach height or instinct, and he seems to have both.
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Imsorrymiss Jackson
I like the Man City player, Foden’soff Jack’son.
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Unai Emery has given Aston Villa the green light to sign Eden Hazard in January as he believes he could help his team move up the rankings.
🗞️
@LesoirSports
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Unai Emery has given Aston Villa the green light to sign Eden Hazard in January as he believes he could help his team move up the rankings.
🗞️
@LesoirSports
If there's one thing the club is lacking, it's a slight, maverick no.10 who's best days are probably behind him.
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Unai Emery has given Aston Villa the green light to sign Eden Hazard in January as he believes he could help his team move up the rankings.
🗞️
@LesoirSports
If there's one thing the club is lacking, it's a slight, maverick no.10 who's best days are probably behind him.
At least given how overweight he tends to look during pre-season these days, he'd be harder to knock off the ball than Emi or Phil. He could be our Jan Molby.
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Unai Emery has given Aston Villa the green light to sign Eden Hazard in January as he believes he could help his team move up the rankings.
🗞️
@LesoirSports
If there's one thing the club is lacking, it's a slight, maverick no.10 who's best days are probably behind him.
We ought to look at Matt Le Tissier. No doubt he'll want to do his own research into us.
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“Move up the rankings”.
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Dennis Jackson.
I got to know him when he was involved with the Old Stars. He was a lovely bloke who gave me the quote about BFR, "I played with Ron in about a hundred reserve games. And according to Ron he was man of the match in at least 99 of them."
Dennis was my manager for a Sunday League team in the late 80’s . A lovely bloke indeed , but not to be crossed either !
According to Ron he invented the banana shot. "Trouble was, he was trying to shoot straight." He was one of the party who travelled down for the 1957 cup final - in told there were fourteen of them, thirteen have since died and I think eight were from brain-related illness.
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Unai Emery has given Aston Villa the green light to sign Eden Hazard in January as he believes he could help his team move up the rankings.
🗞️
@LesoirSports
If there's one thing the club is lacking, it's a slight, maverick no.10 who's best days are probably behind him.
At least given how overweight he tends to look during pre-season these days, he'd be harder to knock off the ball than Emi or Phil. He could be our Jan Molby.
I was thinking more John Barnes circa 1996.
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(https://i.ibb.co/7kcQgg5/ray-jackson-bloodsport.jpg) (https://ibb.co/7kcQgg5)
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Unai Emery has given Aston Villa the green light to sign Eden Hazard in January as he believes he could help his team move up the rankings.
🗞️
@LesoirSports
If there's one thing the club is lacking, it's a slight, maverick no.10 who's best days are probably behind him.
At least given how overweight he tends to look during pre-season these days, he'd be harder to knock off the ball than Emi or Phil. He could be our Jan Molby.
Didnt Molby drive around a city centre smashed out of his tree and disappeared for 2 years
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I think he disappeared from football for a while when he went to prison, but i don't think it was that long. Or did i imagine that completely?
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He's now CEO of the Greeter's Guild.
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He's now CEO of the Greeter's Guild.
A fine job he is doing too. Shoulders back...
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I interviewed Jan Molby for an Irish newspaper. He said I had a strange accent, considering. Jan fucking Molby.
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Should be one if our easier players to create a song for. Forty thousand Nancy Sinatras.
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I interviewed Jan Molby for an Irish newspaper. He said I had a strange accent, considering. Jan fucking Molby.
He even speaks Danish with a slight Scouse whine these days.
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Unai Emery has given Aston Villa the green light to sign Eden Hazard in January as he believes he could help his team move up the rankings.
🗞️
@LesoirSports
If there's one thing the club is lacking, it's a slight, maverick no.10 who's best days are probably behind him.
I think I much rather have Hazard than Coutinho.
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Hazard has played 51 games in the last 4 years, and scored 4 goals, none of which have been this season or last. He's also been continually criticised for his weight. No thank you very much.
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Hazard has played 51 games in the last 4 years, and scored 4 goals, none of which have been this season or last. He's also been continually criticised for his weight. No thank you very much.
And if his attitude is like that at Real Madrid, what is it going to be like down here?
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Well I guess the warning is in Eden surname.
Though his brother for Dortumund Thorgan Hazard is the one we should be targeting then instead.
Can't discount Eden quality over the years though despite facts he seems to have failed at Madrid.
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Can't discount Eden quality over the years though despite facts he seems to have failed at Madrid.
As Risso pointed out he’s done bugger all since moving to Madrid. Likewise Coutinho didn’t live up to his promise in Spain but at least had a decent loan spell at Bayern, looks like we’ve got stung bringing him in permanently so I’d hope this Hazard talk is just that. I’d be disappointed if there was any truth in it.
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File this one under Coutinho & Joe Cole if he signs
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No, please no not another washed out has been.
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It's a hard no from me as well. There's only room for two Edens in B6, Wes and Mallory.
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It would be a circus of a signing and just too risky.
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We'll be linked with Lo Celso.
Unai signed him for PSG and twice for Villareal so rates him.
Still mid 20s and I don't think he looked that bad for Spurs, just picked up knocks that restricted his starts.
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I’m sure there was something on the BBC gossip page over the last week or so about Los Celso, Spurs wanted around £15m to make his loan at Villarreal permanent, so they’d probably want about £60m off us!
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We'll be linked with Lo Celso.
Unai signed him for PSG and twice for Villareal so rates him.
Still mid 20s and I don't think he looked that bad for Spurs, just picked up knocks that restricted his starts.
We already have the likes of Buendia, Coutinho and Bailey struggling to make a consistent impact, don't need another one paced inconsistent PL flop.
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Hazard has played 51 games in the last 4 years, and scored 4 goals, none of which have been this season or last. He's also been continually criticised for his weight. No thank you very much.
And if his attitude is like that at Real Madrid, what is it going to be like down here?
Sounds like hell fit right in
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Tommy Jackson, from 1919 to 1930, a goalie.
Dennis Jackson, from 1954 to 1959, a defender.
Three or four other players who never made a first team appearance.
Tommy Jaszczun
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If we are going to proceed with a 4-2-3-1 / 4-4-2 type of formation, the priorities have to be at least two quality wide players. With players to come back, I think we can get by with what we have in other positions for this season, but we desperately need some wide options in the side.
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Tommy Jackson, from 1919 to 1930, a goalie.
Dennis Jackson, from 1954 to 1959, a defender.
Three or four other players who never made a first team appearance.
Tommy Jaszczun
Jesus, great shout. As a kid sometimes I'd worry at night that we didn't have cover on the left for Alan Wright. The appearance of this fella, briefly assuaged my fears.
*Away at Chelsea in the League Cup autumn '98? Got trounced but we were unbeaten in the league so didn't give a f...
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He's now CEO of the Greeter's Guild.
Yeah, did you hang around with the chap behind Troy (Milo?!) amongst the fleshpots of Soho in the late 00's doing coke and writing jokes?
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He's now CEO of the Greeter's Guild.
Yeah, did you hang around with the chap behind Troy (Milo?!) amongst the fleshpots of Soho in the late 00's doing coke and writing jokes?
I don't know the chap at all.
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Your honour
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We'll be linked with Lo Celso.
Unai signed him for PSG and twice for Villareal so rates him.
Still mid 20s and I don't think he looked that bad for Spurs, just picked up knocks that restricted his starts.
We already have the likes of Buendia, Coutinho and Bailey struggling to make a consistent impact, don't need another one paced inconsistent PL flop.
Lo Celso would be a McGinn replacement.
If we want to transition to possession consistent team under Unai then Luiz, Kamara and potentially Lo Celso as the pivot infront of back 4 dosen't look too bad to me.
I also wonder whether a move for someone like Kieran Tierney is possible. Emery signed him at Arsenal, again mid 20s and shown he can hit a good level in this league but currently he's behind Tomiyasu in their line up nevermind Zinchenko.
Young may retire in the summer and Digne move hasn't worked out as of yet so left back is certainly area where we need a sprinkling of quality.
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Tierney is made of glass, good as he is.
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Tierney gave the worst performance I've ever seen from a professional footballer when we beat Arsenal 3-0 at the Emirates during lockdown.
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Tierney gave the worst performance I've ever seen from a professional footballer when we beat Arsenal 3-0 at the Emirates during lockdown.
And if we judged every player by how they've played against us in a one-off match, Bournemouth and Newcastle fans (to name but two factions) would write-off our entire squad.
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Tierney gave the worst performance I've ever seen from a professional footballer when we beat Arsenal 3-0 at the Emirates during lockdown.
And if we judged every player by how they've played against us in a one-off match, Bournemouth and Newcastle fans (to name but two factions) would write-off our entire squad.
And your point is? 😉
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Tierney gave the worst performance I've ever seen from a professional footballer when we beat Arsenal 3-0 at the Emirates during lockdown.
And if we judged every player by how they've played against us in a one-off match, Bournemouth and Newcastle fans (to name but two factions) would write-off our entire squad.
But I'm including Villa players. And I remember Ugo's debut v Norwich (wink)
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Does Emery have an identifiable ‘type’ when signing players? for example smith seemed okay with the ‘young and hungry’ type whereas Gerrard and Bruce seemed to prefer more established players.
Whilst the club appears to have jettisoned the ‘tactics thread’ that runs through true club I think a strategy of buying players that can be improved (and occasionally sold) is key to us closing the gap with the more established Big 6.
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Does Emery have an identifiable ‘type’ when signing players? for example smith seemed okay with the ‘young and hungry’ type whereas Gerrard and Bruce seemed to prefer more established players.
Whilst the club appears to have jettisoned the ‘tactics thread’ that runs through true club I think a strategy of buying players that can be improved (and occasionally sold) is key to us closing the gap with the more established Big 6.
I think the only way to do that properly is to do what we're doing and hoover up talent when they're 17/18 or younger. It's much harder to buy 23 year olds and make a profit, as by then if they're any good they're costing you a fortune anyway. Thankfully all of that stuff has been going on in the background during the last two managers' reigns, and I'm sure it will under Emery.
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I hope the kids thing continues, however I still think there’s value in buying more established players in their early twenties that have aspirations to pass through the club. Leicester did this well for a spell with Tielemans, Castangne, Justin and Fofana and hopefully we do too with Kamara.
There was chat about Brighton on a podcast and their philosophy is players can ‘outgrow’ the club and be sold but on the condition “they leave through the front door” i.e. it is not a surprise and the money is right. I think we should adopt a similar policy but with genuinely giant clubs as the next step.
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Fofana was 19 when he signed for Leicester, and cost about £35m. Obviously they've made a big profit, but it was a huge amount at the time.
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Fofana was 19 when he signed for Leicester, and cost about £35m. Obviously they've made a big profit, but it was a huge amount at the time.
Yeah, that’s the model I’d prefer us to follow, spend that amount on a player with potential than spend (slightly less) on Digne but know he’s a depreciating asset regardless of his form.
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The thing is it’s not a binary thing. You should spend on the right potential and also players who improve us now.
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It’s not binary but funds are finite. An approx allocation of the budget should in the back of the stakeholders’ minds and adjusted as players are sold etc.
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Yes but like anything you can’t ignore the present to plan for the future. Finding that balance is key.
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I hope the kids thing continues, however I still think there’s value in buying more established players in their early twenties that have aspirations to pass through the club. Leicester did this well for a spell with Tielemans, Castangne, Justin and Fofana and hopefully we do too with Kamara.
There was chat about Brighton on a podcast and their philosophy is players can ‘outgrow’ the club and be sold but on the condition “they leave through the front door” i.e. it is not a surprise and the money is right. I think we should adopt a similar policy but with genuinely giant clubs as the next step.
I think our emphasis on a thriving youth programme will certainly continue - IF the young players are good enough. During his time at Arsenal, Emergy gave first-team debuts to Martinelli, Saka and Smith-Rowe. They were all 17/18 at the time. He's not afraid to play youngsters if they're good enough - and I think some of ours are. Admittedly, Arsenal had some easier European games in which to blood those three (and others) as kids, but he was still willing to throw them in.
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If what I saw from Iroegbunam and Ramsay A last night if the majority of the hopefuls develop the same way we have a lot to look forward to.
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If what I saw from Iroegbunam and Ramsay A last night if the majority of the hopefuls develop the same way we have a lot to look forward to.
I groundhopped at Cardiff last night and Jaden Philogene put in a good shift. Tracked back well to cover his right back, but also went on a few marauding runs where he got a shot away that needed a good save to keep out.
His lack of height was a bit of an issue, particularly against a big Watford side, but with good players around him (certainly better than Cardiff could offer) he'll be an asset.
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Speaking of Watford, is Keinan really crocked again? It's beyond a joke at this stage.
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Did we sign Diego Carlos from Unai?
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BBC gossip column linking us with Pau Torres. Predictable but a good player and would help the transition to Emery-ball (whatever that is).
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I see Messi may move next season. Inter Miami or Barca are suitors.( When did Busquets land at Miami?) Maybe Emi M can have a word in his shell-like.
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Did we sign Diego Carlos from Unai?
I asked a similar question recently mate.
The answer is no 😂
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BBC gossip column linking us with Pau Torres. Predictable but a good player and would help the transition to Emery-ball (whatever that is).
Pau Torres would be ace!
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I'm another who thinks Pau Torres wold be a good signing.
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BBC gossip column linking us with Pau Torres. Predictable but a good player and would help the transition to Emery-ball (whatever that is).
Pau Torres would be ace!
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When did "foottball insider" last get one right though?
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Did we sign Diego Carlos from Unai?
I asked a similar question recently mate.
The answer is no 😂
Thanks Axl.
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BBC gossip column linking us with Pau Torres. Predictable but a good player and would help the transition to Emery-ball (whatever that is).
Pau Torres would be ace!
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When did "foottball insider" last get one right though?
I can still dream, can't I?
It's the only thing that keeps me going!!!
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BBC gossip column linking us with Pau Torres. Predictable but a good player and would help the transition to Emery-ball (whatever that is).
Pau Torres would be ace!
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When did "foottball insider" last get one right though?
I can still dream, can't I?
It's the only thing that keeps me going!!!
The law of averages means they’ll get one right eventually
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BBC gossip column linking us with Pau Torres. Predictable but a good player and would help the transition to Emery-ball (whatever that is).
Pau Torres would be ace!
"
When did "foottball insider" last get one right though?
I can still dream, can't I?
It's the only thing that keeps me going!!!
The law of averages means they’ll get one right eventually
To be fair they called it that Gerrard had been sacked and by all accounts it's been said it was known he was leaving before he actually did after Fulham
And the players performance that night showed it
So occasionally there ITK gets something
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My nan could have called Gerrard being sacked.
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Ha ha yeah, what a load of old nonsense.
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So occasionally there ITK gets something
They actually said he'd been sacked a few days before he actually was. They then pretended they hadn't written that tweet.
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The Winter transfer window starts in January from 1st to 31st.
Could see Emery move for Dani Ceballos who is out of contract at Real Madrid in summer and he brought him to Arsenal so maybe we either sign him January or summer.
Central midfielder who has quality even though he was mixed at Arsenal think he is someone to look at.
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So occasionally there ITK gets something
They actually said he'd been sacked a few days before he actually was. They then pretended they hadn't written that tweet.
Yes, since they called it earlier probably instructed to retract.
On their podcast Richard Keys and Andy Gray.
Keys was ITK and said
"Gerrard sacked. I don’t know why he was in charge at Fulham. I was told last weekend from good sources within the club that he was done, and if I knew that then the players must’ve known that and the performance against Fulham, I don’t think Michael Oliver helped them, but they didn’t play well enough against a Fulham team who over the past two weeks had hit a wall”
We all saw the Fulham performance and how utterly terrible it was as the players stopped playing.
So those leaks were coming out.
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Why’s this in the transfer thread Footy?
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Playing safety.
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Why’s this in the transfer thread Footy?
It's following the lines of ITK.
It is a deviation in some respects though so apologies there.
Keys may be one to keep eyes and ears out for on Villa news in future though.
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As long as its not his wandering, hairy hands.
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Keys is a collosal bellend who knows fuck all.
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Keys is a collosal bellend who knows fuck all.
Correct.
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The Winter transfer window starts in January from 1st to 31st.
Could see Emery move for Dani Ceballos who is out of contract at Real Madrid in summer and he brought him to Arsenal so maybe we either sign him January or summer.
Central midfielder who has quality even though he was mixed at Arsenal think he is someone to look at.
He's rubbish, so no.
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Keys is a collosal bellend who knows fuck all.
If ever there was a balloon of a man who still wants to be relevant to football
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Another Villarreal player linked - Alex Baena, 21 yr old winger
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Keys is a collosal bellend who knows fuck all.
Correct.
He's one of the world's worst twats.
His blog is an absolute mine of Partridgesque bitterness, schadenfreude and self-unawareness. For the dignity of the site, I won't link it, but it's a gem if you're into that kind of thing, which I am.
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I can see Lo Celso being signed.
He's an Emery man has played under him several clubs.
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I can see Lo Celso being signed.
He's an Emery man has played under him several clubs.
What position is Lo Celso Footy? What are his attributes?
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I can see Lo Celso being signed.
He's an Emery man has played under him several clubs.
What position is Lo Celso Footy? What are his attributes?
Yet another not-quite-attacking-not-quite-defensive-tidy-passing- keep-things-ticking-over midfielder.
Basically Sanson's twin brother.
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I can see Lo Celso being signed.
He's an Emery man has played under him several clubs.
What position is Lo Celso Footy? What are his attributes?
Yet another not-quite-attacking-not-quite-defensive-midfielder.
Basically Sanson's twin brother.
Didn't he score nearly 20 goals one season at Betis?
I'd take him. Still mid 20s and I don't think he looked that bad at Spurs in deeper position to what he played in La Liga but picked up a few niggling injuries.
No idea if Villareal have an option to buy but Spurs would certainly take about 25-30m off us instead.
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Need some wide options in January, as the sight of Dendoncker playing in a wide attacking position towards the end was a bit of a strange one!!
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I can see Lo Celso being signed.
He's an Emery man has played under him several clubs.
What position is Lo Celso Footy? What are his attributes?
Yet another not-quite-attacking-not-quite-defensive-midfielder.
Basically Sanson's twin brother.
Didn't he score nearly 20 goals one season at Betis?
I'd take him. Still mid 20s and I don't think he looked that bad at Spurs in deeper position to what he played in La Liga but picked up a few niggling injuries.
No idea if Villareal have an option to buy but Spurs would certainly take about 25-30m off us instead.
Some of his play in the Champions League last season was outstanding in the knock out rounds.
He plays in the 3 midfield would fit perfectly for us and has the football intelligence.
Lo Celso will be in the first 11 for Argentina as long as he's fit as he picked up an injury and Argentina manager Scaloni basically has said he's irreplaceable.
Emery likes him. Welcome addition.
Issue would be Argentina winning the world cup would put a bigger price on him.
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I can see Lo Celso being signed.
He's an Emery man has played under him several clubs.
What position is Lo Celso Footy? What are his attributes?
Yet another not-quite-attacking-not-quite-defensive-midfielder.
Basically Sanson's twin brother.
Didn't he score nearly 20 goals one season at Betis?
16, according to the interwebs, of which seven were in cup runs, five years ago. Which is perfectly commendable, but I'm not sure I'd be signing him on the strength of it.
If we're signing a central attacking midfielder I think I'd prefer to see what Emery is doing with Ramsey, Buendia or Coutinho before we go down that road, and if we're signing someone for further back I'd prefer to be signing them based on something other than goals from a season a few years back.
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Well we were all lauding McGinn for about 6-7 goals in the championship and 2-3 in prem in 2019 as brilliant attacking midfielder so 16 from just over 40 games is very good indeed although he hasn't come close to replicating it since.
Emery also signed and worked with him for PSG so obviously rates him and would take him here given where we are in the pecking order.
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We're heavily stacked in the middle now with Kamara back fit and Sanson back from the dead. Nakamba seems to be the only likely departure, maybe McGinn will be a surprise one too in January if he's still not getting in the team and we're offered silly money.
But maybe it is possible to keep them all happy now that you can change half your outfield team in-game and Emery doesn't seem shy of using his bench.
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Wonder if we'll go back in for Sarr, now that wide players aren't verboten.
Bailey looked on it today, but injury or loss of form leaves us light there.
Bamba Dieng at Marseille was linked with a few Prem clubs in the last window and looks like he'd be available for not mental money. Looks like there was a problem with his medical for Nice at the end of August, so maybe that's a factor.
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Wayne Vesey from Football Insider says we are afer an A list centre forward as well as a centre back.
With Pau Torres short listed as the defender.
"Aston Villa plot move to sign A-list forward after Unai Emery green light
Aston Villa have set their sights on signing an A-list forward in January, sources have told Football Insider"
https://www.footballinsider247.com/sources-aston-villa-plot-move-to-sign-a-list-forward-after-unai-emery-green-light/
Be very interesting to what Emery has in mjnd and I feel he can attract a high calibre of player and has worked with some great strikers in his career.
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"A-List footballer." FFS!
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Who the fuck is Wayne fucking Vesey? Jesus.
Anyway, I reckon Emery will asses the squad and probably come to the view that he has better players here already then the ones he left behind at Villareal.
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Wonder if we'll go back in for Sarr, now that wide players aren't verboten.
Watched him the other week and he looked like the sort of player who'd improve us. Watched him against Reading this week and he looked like a player we definitely don't need. He didn't stand out, wasn't that involved and wasn't that aware of his team mates around him.
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If we want to play out from the back, and it sure as shit looks like we do. Then we need 2 New CB's. Konsa and Mings sure can't play this way, maybe Diego Carlos can.
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If we want to play out from the back, and it sure as shit looks like we do. Then we need 2 New CB's. Konsa and Mings sure can't play this way, maybe Diego Carlos can.
Excuse me theres no If about it. It's a certainty under Emery.
Pau Torres then please and maybe put Kamara to centre half.
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If we want to play out from the back, and it sure as shit looks like we do. Then we need 2 New CB's. Konsa and Mings sure can't play this way, maybe Diego Carlos can.
... maybe put Kamara to centre half.
Why finally bring in a decent defensive midfielder and then play him as CB?!
Dendoncker, at a push but not Kamara.
Here's a crazy idea: why not bring in 2 new CB who can play the way UE wants??
When Diego's fit again, we'll play him and Torres (probably) as the first choice, with Chambers and Mings as back-up (Feeney as well, hopefully; or - even better - instead of).
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"A-List footballer." FFS!
Is it ... is it really going to happen? We're going to finally sign Benni McCarthy?!?!
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If we want to play out from the back, and it sure as shit looks like we do. Then we need 2 New CB's. Konsa and Mings sure can't play this way, maybe Diego Carlos can.
Last Sunday we played out from the back, with some success, and with those very two as an integral part of the system.
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Everyone will probably step up a level or two under proper coaching. While we're writing players off, the coaching staff may not be so quick to do likewise as they may see that they can be better players with some coaching.
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If we want to play out from the back, and it sure as shit looks like we do. Then we need 2 New CB's. Konsa and Mings sure can't play this way, maybe Diego Carlos can.
Last Sunday we played out from the back, with some success, and with those very two as an integral part of the system.
It would be nice to have two swaggering, ball-playing liberos cleaning up then pushing forwards, but in the mean time, we just need a solid keeper and for the defenders to give it to the likes of Luiz and Kamara. Olsen was so bad that any attempts at playing out from the back were doomed to failure.
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If we want to play out from the back, and it sure as shit looks like we do. Then we need 2 New CB's. Konsa and Mings sure can't play this way, maybe Diego Carlos can.
Last Sunday we played out from the back, with some success, and with those very two as an integral part of the system.
It would be nice to have two swaggering, ball-playing liberos cleaning up then pushing forwards, but in the mean time, we just need a solid keeper and for the defenders to give it to the likes of Luiz and Kamara. Olsen was so bad that any attempts at playing out from the back were doomed to failure.
Agreed, I'd rather have Jed Steer in the team.
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I read an article saying Man Utd will be looking to sell Maguire in the summer. That will be hilarious as long as he doesn’t end up at the Villa.
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I'm still scratching my head over his world cup selection. My prediction is that the manager willo be sacked at the end.
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Would you take Leicester form Maguire though?
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Presumably we'll be seing a lot more early signings during this window than normal, considering the break? Quite excited to see who we bring in.
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I presume it is a normal January window? Which seems odd to have two lots of distraction in terms of the WC and then the window itself. I'd love to see a proper forward brought in.
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I presume it is a normal January window? Which seems odd to have two lots of distraction in terms of the WC and then the window itself. I'd love to see a proper forward brought in.
Yeah but that world cup period is going to enable a lot of talking to players ready for a move in January.
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I presume it is a normal January window? Which seems odd to have two lots of distraction in terms of the WC and then the window itself. I'd love to see a proper forward brought in.
Yeah but that world cup period is going to enable a lot of talking to players ready for a move in January.
I agree Paulie, the question was, does the window open on January 1st and I presume from the answer that it does. I presume it is a normal January window? Which seems odd to have two lots of distraction in terms of the WC and then the window itself. I'd love to see a proper forward brought in.
Yeah but that world cup period is going to enable a lot of talking to players ready for a move in January.
I agree PWS, thanks for clarifying. Will be great to bring a couple in.
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Not sure the credibility of the source but we are being linked with Kessie from Barcelona. Saying he's not fitting in over there and might be available for around 15m.
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Would you take Leicester form Maguire though?
Nein
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Not sure the credibility of the source but we are being linked with Kessie from Barcelona. Saying he's not fitting in over there and might be available for around 15m.
Would be a good signing especially at the price.
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We were meant to have been trying to sign him (and working quite hard on it) then he chose to go to Barcelona. Quite credible that we would hold an interest in him. We then signed Kamara though and since, Dendonker. With Luiz and Iroegbunam coming through, how much of a priority is that position going to be now?
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Would you take Leicester form Maguire though?
Nein
No fan of him but do wonder if his confidence is rock bottom as a person and would probably like to be taken out of the limelight. Perhaps a move to another club ( not ours) might do him a world of good.
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Would you take Leicester form Maguire though?
Nein
No fan of him but do wonder if his confidence is rock bottom as a person and would probably like to be taken out of the limelight. Perhaps a move to another club ( not ours) might do him a world of good.
I tend to agree. He's not a bad footballer, but his head seems a bit shot.
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I could see him go back to Sheff Utd on loan next summer if they get promoted.
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Looks like Man Utd will want to offload Ronaldo ASAP, judging by multiple media outlets...
Yawn!
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Apparantly he's done some interview with Piers fucking Morgan claiming they're trying to force him out.
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Aston Villa boss Unai Emery wants to sign two players from Real Madrid - Belgium winger Eden Hazard, 31, and Spain defender Nacho Fernandez, 32. (El Nacional - in Spanish)
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Hazard is shot. Having him and Coutinho on the books would be gaga.
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Before anyone starts... NO.
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Hopefully we'll keep a poker face when we're looking at signing players.
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Hopefully we'll keep a poker face when we're looking at signing players.
The last thing we need is for the paparazzi to get a sniff of what we're up to
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I was looking back at Unai's transfers when he was at Arsenal, just to see if there was any indication of a preference for age or type of players he buys, and he bought a lot of young promising players for what looks like a lot of money (Saliba, Tierney, Pepe, Guendouzi and Martinelli). He also appears willing to spend big wages on players who look a bit past it (David Luiz, Stephan Lichtsteiner), so I don't think we can rule out older players being on his radar. Lichtsteiner was a 34-year-old attacking full-back when Unai signed him on a free from Juventus.
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Aston Villa boss Unai Emery wants to sign two players from Real Madrid - Belgium winger Eden Hazard, 31, and Spain defender Nacho Fernandez, 32. (El Nacional - in Spanish)
Sounds like bollocks agent talk. When was Hazard last any good? 3 years ago? No ta
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I think if we bring any player in it will likely be a wide forward type, it's where we look a bit light.
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Back up goalie, amazing centre half, amazing midfielder, seven fancy wingers and a 40 goals a season striker, please.
Should be easy enough.
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Back up goalie, amazing centre half, amazing midfielder, seven fancy wingers and a 40 goals a season striker, please.
Should be easy enough.
Well Danny Ings has 4 in his last 2 league starts, that ratio has him at about 80 goals a season so I think we're OK there.
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Yes, but I want a 40 goals a season, too. We score 120 goals a season just from our strikers we should be looking at top half, minimum.
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Oh, yeah, I get you now. We could do with a goalscoring centre half too.
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A goalscoring keeper would come in handy, too. Martinez needs to up his game.
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A goalscoring keeper would come in handy, too. Martinez needs to up his game.
Firing 100 yard through balls is all well and good, but it's just assists and creating chances, when he is going to take some responsibillity for doing the thing that actually matters, ie sticking it in the net? Coming on like Grealish, he needs a good look at himself.
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Even fatty Schmeichel managed a goal for us, in his 42" waist shorts. Martinez out!
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Hopefully we'll keep a poker face when we're looking at signing players.
The last thing we need is for the paparazzi to get a sniff of what we're up to
Hopefully a star is reborn and he takes us to the edge of glory.
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Hopefully we'll keep a poker face when we're looking at signing players.
The last thing we need is for the paparazzi to get a sniff of what we're up to
Hopefully a star is reborn and he takes us to the edge of glory.
Someone to take us out of the shallows
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I'm not too concerned about who we bring in other than their Football Manager stats must show Shithousery at 20.
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Not keen on that Pau Torres link….he was crap
In the last international tournament….
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I think we are 3 starters and 2 good squad players from having a really good team we are crying out for a better striker. Ings and Watkins are good but not going to set the league alight.we need a winger to compliment bailey and a center back. A player who can cover both lb and rb and a solid back up centre mid. I suspect the winger and striker will be a priority this window and the rest will wait till summer. We have a shed load of deadwood to clear out and that's going to be a slow process but isn't it refreshing that the deadwood can actually do a job rather than our crop of deadwood!
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Three new players would definitely help but I don’t think anyone has a clue which positions as the players have been so inconsistent. Luiz/Mings/Bailey/Buendia flip-flop between sunday league and champions league every week. Hopefully a sustained period of Emery coaching means we don’t need to buy as many and can consolidate the money into fewer, but better signings.
Maybe this window is about Emery raiding Spain for wonderkids that wouldn’t otherwise be in our radar.
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A swap deal involving Doug and Frank Kessie of Barcelona came up on my twitter feed earlier.
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A swap deal involving Doug and Frank Kessie of Barcelona came up on my twitter feed earlier.
I'd be tempted with that swap.
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I wouldn’t.
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Nor me.
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Back up goalie, amazing centre half, amazing midfielder, seven fancy wingers and a 40 goals a season striker, please.
I agree with this mostly, but am concerned that seven tricky wingers wouldn't be enough. I'd get a couple more just to be on the safe side.
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Deal.
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Smoke has started with Dougy. I’m expecting his clause to be activated in January or the summer. I’m guessing here, but I have a feeling it’ll be a very reasonably priced option for a few clubs. Fair play to him for signing a deal and at least allowing us to get a fee.
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Dougie on the whole has been one of our best best players this season and I’d hope to be able to see how his midfield partnership with Kamara develops, I’d be disappointed to lose him at this point.
Im sure this isn’t someone on Unai’s radar but I’ve always thought Harvey Barnes would be great down the Villa.
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Yes, but I want a 40 goals a season, too. We score 120 goals a season just from our strikers we should be looking at top half, minimum.
Scored more than anyone else ever in 1931 and finished second....
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The Doug situation is interesting as his signing the new contract was so unexpected. Would be massively surprised if there’s no release clause in there as all the cards were in his hand.
I do wonder about the Arsenal conversation though and who at Villa convinced him he shouldn’t move there because they’re going nowhere though! If they do win the league I think he might see it as an opportunity missed and make him more eager to jump at the next offer.
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The Doug situation is interesting as his signing the new contract was so unexpected. Would be massively surprised if there’s no release clause in there as all the cards were in his hand.
I do wonder about the Arsenal conversation though and who at Villa convinced him he shouldn’t move there because they’re going nowhere though! If they do win the league I think he might see it as an opportunity missed and make him more eager to jump at the next offer.
Perhaps the line was, “Doug, we’re talking to Emre so this charlatan won’t be here much longer”.
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The Doug situation is interesting as his signing the new contract was so unexpected. Would be massively surprised if there’s no release clause in there as all the cards were in his hand.
I do wonder about the Arsenal conversation though and who at Villa convinced him he shouldn’t move there because they’re going nowhere though! If they do win the league I think he might see it as an opportunity missed and make him more eager to jump at the next offer.
Perhaps the line was, “Doug, we’re talking to Emre so this charlatan won’t be here much longer”.
I thought similar just after he signed his new contract. Its possible he was told a change was afoot.
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It was more along the lines of, sorry we didn’t let you go Doug. If you sign a new deal we’ll let you go for a fee of ?????.
His agent would have driven the clause as low as possible and we will get a fee to cover our costs, whatever was agreed.
This is why he will leave soon enough, but hey, it works for us I guess.
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How do you know that?
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Smoke has started with Dougy. I’m expecting his clause to be activated in January or the summer. I’m guessing here, but I have a feeling it’ll be a very reasonably priced option for a few clubs. Fair play to him for signing a deal and at least allowing us to get a fee.
Not one person said that about Delph. FYI I'm not comparing the two. I actually don't hate Delph and have a bit of respect for him for allowing us to get a fee.
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Smoke has started with Dougy. I’m expecting his clause to be activated in January or the summer. I’m guessing here, but I have a feeling it’ll be a very reasonably priced option for a few clubs. Fair play to him for signing a deal and at least allowing us to get a fee.
Not one person said that about Delph. FYI I'm not comparing the two. I actually don't hate Delph and have a bit of respect for him for allowing us to get a fee.
I did, but he just left in the wrong way and said the wrong things
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It was more along the lines of, sorry we didn’t let you go Doug. If you sign a new deal we’ll let you go for a fee of ?????.
His agent would have driven the clause as low as possible and we will get a fee to cover our costs, whatever was agreed.
This is why he will leave soon enough, but hey, it works for us I guess.
That's some conspiracy theory. He's starting to look like the player we thought and hoped he would become so naturally the conclusion is he want's off? Maybe it's just that he signed because we gave him more money.
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How do you know that?
I don’t , but seems pretty obvious and logical to me. We weren’t going anywhere as a team and he had the potential to go to Arsenal or anywhere for free in the summer. Can’t see how or why he’d sign a deal unless it suited him significantly. A reasonable clause would do the trick and still allow him to earn more in the short term and get a reasonable increase when moving. If the clause is too high, he wouldn’t have signed up.
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It was more along the lines of, sorry we didn’t let you go Doug. If you sign a new deal we’ll let you go for a fee of ?????.
His agent would have driven the clause as low as possible and we will get a fee to cover our costs, whatever was agreed.
This is why he will leave soon enough, but hey, it works for us I guess.
That's some conspiracy theory. He's starting to look like the player we thought and hoped he would become so naturally the conclusion is he want's off? Maybe it's just that he signed because we gave him more money.
It’s just common sense not conspiratorial
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It was more along the lines of, sorry we didn’t let you go Doug. If you sign a new deal we’ll let you go for a fee of ?????.
His agent would have driven the clause as low as possible and we will get a fee to cover our costs, whatever was agreed.
This is why he will leave soon enough, but hey, it works for us I guess.
That's some conspiracy theory. He's starting to look like the player we thought and hoped he would become so naturally the conclusion is he want's off? Maybe it's just that he signed because we gave him more money.
It’s just common sense not conspiratorial
We don't know anything about his current contract so that clause could already be there for all we know.
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We’ll know soon enough, if there’s a stream of links come January then we can be confident teams are sniffing due to a clause. Otherwise if he has signed a deal with no reasonable “get out” then it’ll be all quiet I suspect.
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Smoke has started with Dougy. I’m expecting his clause to be activated in January or the summer. I’m guessing here, but I have a feeling it’ll be a very reasonably priced option for a few clubs. Fair play to him for signing a deal and at least allowing us to get a fee.
I reckon it will only kick in after the end of the season
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It was more along the lines of, sorry we didn’t let you go Doug. If you sign a new deal we’ll let you go for a fee of ?????.
His agent would have driven the clause as low as possible and we will get a fee to cover our costs, whatever was agreed.
This is why he will leave soon enough, but hey, it works for us I guess.
That's some conspiracy theory. He's starting to look like the player we thought and hoped he would become so naturally the conclusion is he want's off? Maybe it's just that he signed because we gave him more money.
It’s just common sense not conspiratorial
We don't know anything about his current contract.
Is the right answer.
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Weren't you adamant that there was no release-clause in Grealish's contract? ;)
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Luiz has also said he loves it with us and he's grown as a player and a person since moving here. He'll play, he'll stay and he'll win a trophy.
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Luiz has also said he loves it with us and he's grown as a player and a person since moving here. He'll play, he'll stay and he'll win a trophy.
I'd be surprised if there isn't a release clause. I'd also be surprised if he didn't stay until at least the end of the season. At that point, it will depend on who comes in. It can be difficult to turn down the likes of Barcelona if they do have a genuine interest.
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It is difficult for players if more glamourous clubs bat eyelashes and offer to pay more money. That said Barcelona is not what it used to be, a bit like Man Utd. Luiz is starting to consistently look the part for the Villa, so would be a shame to lose him now. If I had a gut feel, it would be that he'll stay.
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Luiz has also said he loves it with us and he's grown as a player and a person since moving here. He'll play, he'll stay and he'll win a trophy.
cf. Snake, Delph.
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Luiz has also said he loves it with us and he's grown as a player and a person since moving here. He'll play, he'll stay and he'll win a trophy.
Seemed pretty chuffed when Ings got a second on Sunday.
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Smoke has started with Dougy. I’m expecting his clause to be activated in January or the summer. I’m guessing here, but I have a feeling it’ll be a very reasonably priced option for a few clubs. Fair play to him for signing a deal and at least allowing us to get a fee.
I reckon it will only kick in after the end of the season
That would seem sensible and something which wouldn’t be unreasonable as part of the deal. Allows us plenty of time to replace him. I’d be absolutely shocked and amazed if there wasn’t a sensible (for both sides) release clause negotiated.
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Smoke has started with Dougy. I’m expecting his clause to be activated in January or the summer. I’m guessing here, but I have a feeling it’ll be a very reasonably priced option for a few clubs. Fair play to him for signing a deal and at least allowing us to get a fee.
I reckon it will only kick in after the end of the season
That would seem sensible and something which wouldn’t be unreasonable as part of the deal. Allows us plenty of time to replace him. I’d be absolutely shocked and amazed if there wasn’t a sensible (for both sides) release clause negotiated.
Luiz for Kessie swap being rumored.. could be total crap. However, if it were in fact true, I would be fine with it. Kessie has twice the strength and the same calm nature on the ball. I think he would pair better with Kamara and give us a bit more steel in the midfield.
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Luiz has also said he loves it with us and he's grown as a player and a person since moving here. He'll play, he'll stay and he'll win a trophy.
I'd be surprised if there isn't a release clause. I'd also be surprised if he didn't stay until at least the end of the season. At that point, it will depend on who comes in. It can be difficult to turn down the likes of Barcelona if they do have a genuine interest.
It's pretty easy to turn them down when they haven't got a pot to piss in, and mount smear campaigns against their own players to get them to leave without paying them the money they're entitled to.
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Luiz has also said he loves it with us and he's grown as a player and a person since moving here. He'll play, he'll stay and he'll win a trophy.
Seemed pretty chuffed when Ings got a second on Sunday.
That's cos he got his back on yer man who had pwn'd him for their goal - Gary MacAllister or whatever his name is.
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Luiz has also said he loves it with us and he's grown as a player and a person since moving here. He'll play, he'll stay and he'll win a trophy.
Seemed pretty chuffed when Ings got a second on Sunday.
That's cos he got his back on the yer man who had pwn'd him for their goal - Gary MacAllister or whatever his name is.
I loved the winner at Old Trafford last year, you can see him in the corner with what could only be described as a 'Spartan' celebration.
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Birmingham Mail headline "Cristiano Ronaldo Aston Villa prediction made after explosive Man Utd interview". Goes on to say that he has probably played his last game at Villa Park. Insightful stuff.
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Hahaha...that is peak Mail-click. Whoever came up with that one needs a promotion and a slap.
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That whole organisation needs setting fire to.
Google Aston Villa and click on news and 7 of the 10 results on the first page are their rubbish. The same article, slightly adjusted, rotated between all their different bloody sites. Two of the other three that aren't them are Football Fancast and Caught Offside, two equally disgusting sources of crap.
Birmingham World and Newcastle World keep cropping up now too. I suspect they might be part of the group or even worse, a copy cat lot.
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Compare them to the Express and Star who seem to have genuinely interesting and well written articles.
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What I particularly enjoy about those Reach websites is that about 10 pop ups and videos start churning if ever you have the misfortune to click on one of the links.
Close the entire operation down and start again.
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That whole organisation needs setting fire to.
Google Aston Villa and click on news and 7 of the 10 results on the first page are their rubbish. The same article, slightly adjusted, rotated between all their different bloody sites. Two of the other three that aren't them are Football Fancast and Caught Offside, two equally disgusting sources of crap.
Birmingham World and Newcastle World keep cropping up now too. I suspect they might be part of the group or even worse, a copy cat lot.
Birmingham World is basically a listings site that regurgitates press releases. There's no original content.
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Compare them to the Express and Star who seem to have genuinely interesting and well written articles.
Agreed. That is all I ever click on.
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E&S has proper writers on the club like Matt Maher and don't have pop-ups an ads plastered all over their pages.
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That whole organisation needs setting fire to.
Google Aston Villa and click on news and 7 of the 10 results on the first page are their rubbish. The same article, slightly adjusted, rotated between all their different bloody sites. Two of the other three that aren't them are Football Fancast and Caught Offside, two equally disgusting sources of crap.
Birmingham World and Newcastle World keep cropping up now too. I suspect they might be part of the group or even worse, a copy cat lot.
Birmingham World is basically a listings site that regurgitates press releases. There's no original content.
There is erm… some original content. I’ve been interviewed by them and written two articles for them.
I wasn’t happy with the interview. When I do them I re-write what people say to make them sound clever. They didn’t 😡
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That whole organisation needs setting fire to.
Google Aston Villa and click on news and 7 of the 10 results on the first page are their rubbish. The same article, slightly adjusted, rotated between all their different bloody sites. Two of the other three that aren't them are Football Fancast and Caught Offside, two equally disgusting sources of crap.
Birmingham World and Newcastle World keep cropping up now too. I suspect they might be part of the group or even worse, a copy cat lot.
Birmingham World is basically a listings site that regurgitates press releases. There's no original content.
There is erm… some original content. I’ve been interviewed by them and written two articles for them.
I wasn’t happy with the interview. When I do them I re-write what people say to make them sound clever. They didn’t 😡
My apologies. Every time I've looked at it they've just featured a load of syndicated stuff and PRs.
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That whole organisation needs setting fire to.
Google Aston Villa and click on news and 7 of the 10 results on the first page are their rubbish. The same article, slightly adjusted, rotated between all their different bloody sites. Two of the other three that aren't them are Football Fancast and Caught Offside, two equally disgusting sources of crap.
Birmingham World and Newcastle World keep cropping up now too. I suspect they might be part of the group or even worse, a copy cat lot.
Birmingham World is basically a listings site that regurgitates press releases. There's no original content.
There is erm… some original content. I’ve been interviewed by them and written two articles for them.
I wasn’t happy with the interview. When I do them I re-write what people say to make them sound clever. They didn’t 😡
My apologies. Every time I've looked at it they've just featured a load of syndicated stuff and PRs.
No worries mate, you’re mostly right and it is a lot of that, as well as lots of Birmingham crime stuff similar to the Birmz is Grime blog. Four staff including the editor who used to work at the Birmingham Post.
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I keep seeing Zaha being a target for us in January. That would be fantastic, he’s a pain in the arse player to play against, also he’s bloody excellent. That would be great first signing for Emery.
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He’s very good but he’s 30, likely on very decent money and Mings hates him.
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Zaha is a moaning prick - his end product has improved though. He'd want billy big bollock wages though. Nah.
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He's a fantastic player, and I enjoyed him conducting the crowd at VP when he was getting stick from all 40k.
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Zaha no thanks. Unsavoury character, not suited to the traditions of AVFC.
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I keep seeing Zaha being a target for us in January. That would be fantastic, he’s a pain in the arse player to play against, also he’s bloody excellent. That would be great first signing for Emery.
lazy journalism. emery wanted to sign zaha when he was at arsenal, but the club opted to buy nicolas pepe instead.
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Zaha no thanks. Unsavoury character, not suited to the traditions of AVFC.
What tradition are you referring to to? Hopefully not the tradition since 1996 of not winning any trophies! But I do think he's a bit of a twat and a little too old for us now.
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Zaha, half the Villarreal squad, Douglas Luiz ‘still’ being stolen by Liverpool, Arsenal & Newcastle & now apparently Chelsea want Bailey. Links to the whole Rangers squad, their reserves, half their youth team & several Rangers players WAGS have now stopped though. “Journalism” not even fit for toilet paper. It will all get worse while the World Cup is on.
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Zaha would be brilliant. Him and Martinez together and we would be World Shithousing Champions.
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Just bring Bert back and have him take lessons from Emi!
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He's a fantastic player, and I enjoyed him conducting the crowd at VP when he was getting stick from all 40k.
I enjoyed that too. Knew we were trying to get to him and gave some back in a fun, non intimidatory fashion. All’s fair as they say. I also like him as a player but didn’t realise he was that old. He would definitely have more caps if he sat on the bench of MCFC.
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He's a fantastic player, and I enjoyed him conducting the crowd at VP when he was getting stick from all 40k.
I enjoyed that too. Knew we were trying to get to him and gave some back in a fun, non intimidatory fashion. All’s fair as they say. I also like him as a player but didn’t realise he was that old. He would definitely have more caps if he sat on the bench of MCFC.
He's played 10 times this year for Ivory Coast, how many more games would you be expecting?
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No thanks to Saha , Crystal Palaces' very own Gabby Agbonlahor (only Gabby wasn't as good at winding up opposition)
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Zaha, half the Villarreal squad, Douglas Luiz ‘still’ being stolen by Liverpool, Arsenal & Newcastle & now apparently Chelsea want Bailey. Links to the whole Rangers squad, their reserves, half their youth team & several Rangers players WAGS have now stopped though. “Journalism” not even fit for toilet paper. It will all get worse while the World Cup is on.
and Robbie Keane
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No thanks to Saha , Crystal Palaces' very own Gabby Agbonlahor (only Gabby wasn't as good at winding up opposition)
and not as good as player either to be fair
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No thanks to Saha , Crystal Palaces' very own Gabby Agbonlahor (only Gabby wasn't as good at winding up opposition)
and not as good as player either to be fair
My main objection to Saha is that he is 44 and retired.
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Linked with Oxlade-Chamberlain, no thanks want someone, who's gonna play more than half a dozen games a season for us.
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He's a fantastic player, and I enjoyed him conducting the crowd at VP when he was getting stick from all 40k.
I enjoyed that too. Knew we were trying to get to him and gave some back in a fun, non intimidatory fashion. All’s fair as they say. I also like him as a player but didn’t realise he was that old. He would definitely have more caps if he sat on the bench of MCFC.
He's played 10 times this year for Ivory Coast, how many more games would you be expecting?
Doh.
Can you tell I have no football interest outside of AVFC
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Unless we are opening a glue factory we should be no where near Oxlade-Chamberlain.
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Zaha, half the Villarreal squad, Douglas Luiz ‘still’ being stolen by Liverpool, Arsenal & Newcastle & now apparently Chelsea want Bailey. Links to the whole Rangers squad, their reserves, half their youth team & several Rangers players WAGS have now stopped though. “Journalism” not even fit for toilet paper. It will all get worse while the World Cup is on.
and Robbie Keane
And Juninho
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Zaha is great, both his ability and shithousery, but i'd pass on us signing yet another milk bottle player on saft wages.
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Zaha, half the Villarreal squad, Douglas Luiz ‘still’ being stolen by Liverpool, Arsenal & Newcastle & now apparently Chelsea want Bailey. Links to the whole Rangers squad, their reserves, half their youth team & several Rangers players WAGS have now stopped though. “Journalism” not even fit for toilet paper. It will all get worse while the World Cup is on.
and Robbie Keane
And Juninho
Has Benni McCarthy arrived at Bodymoor Heath yet?
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Emery wanted Zaha when he was at Arsenal, and they went and bought Pepe for him instead....
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Zaha seems like a self-centred, bad for dressing room morale type (but possibly it's all for show and he's a lovely chap off the pitch).
Spoke to a young Palace fan on a bus from Kilmarnock to Darvel a few years ago. He claimed that his sister had dated Zaha. He also said he had been sent up to Ayrshire from south London to stay out of trouble. I believed the second bit, but not the first.
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Zaha seems like a self-centred, bad for dressing room morale type (but possibly it's all for show and he's a lovely chap off the pitch).
Spoke to a young Palace fan on a bus from Kilmarnock to Darvel a few years ago. He claimed that his sister had dated Zaha. He also said he had been sent up to Ayrshire from south London to stay out of trouble. I believed the second bit, but not the first.
My brother in law and his kids are big Palace fans following them everywhere. My nephew was a mascot an Anfield a few years ago and my niece is in love with Zaha, they've got to know a him a bit and from what they've said a nd shown me he's a lovely bloke.
-
Unsurprisingly being linked with Samuel Chukwueze of Villarreal.
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Every player I've seen linked since Emery signed screams of lazy links, 'two plus two equals' type of faded stars or players from his former club.
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Anyone would think we don't have a recruitment department.
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Every player I've seen linked since Emery signed screams of lazy links, 'two plus two equals' type of faded stars or players from his former club.
Yep that’s how I view it.
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On Zaha, he came across really well on the Palace Academy documentary on Ch 4 recently. He's the sort of player that you love when he's yours but not when he isn't.
If it's true, and Emery wants him, then I'm all for it.
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Yep.
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On Zaha, he came across really well on the Palace Academy documentary on Ch 4 recently. He's the sort of player that you love when he's yours but not when he isn't.
If it's true, and Emery wants him, then I'm all for it.
So a bit like how other fans might view Emi Martinez?
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Exactly that.
-
Unsurprisingly being linked with Samuel Chukwueze of Villarreal.
Club shop has got loads of C, H, U, K and W shirt letters to shift since we sold Carney. Smart move, although we will have to buy in some Zs.
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Unsurprisingly being linked with Samuel Chukwueze of Villarreal.
Club shop has got loads of C, H, U, K and W shirt letters to shift since we sold Carney. Smart move, although we will have to buy in some Zs.
Could make our own Zs. Just show a couple of Gerrard era games and we'll have thousands of the bloody things.
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Unsurprisingly being linked with Samuel Chukwueze of Villarreal.
Club shop has got loads of C, H, U, K and W shirt letters to shift since we sold Carney. Smart move, although we will have to buy in some Zs.
Could make our own Zs. Just show a couple of Gerrard era games and we'll have thousands of the bloody things.
Nah - we sold the letters to Chelsea - it was 5m for Carney and 15m for all the rare letters
-
The jury is still out on Lange as far as I’m concerned. I’m not expecting many signings in January, but it will be interesting to see how his relationship with Emery develops, and how he performs over the next two windows.
-
Doesn't the £120m spend from the 19/20 season drop off the 3-year FFP radar this summer? If so, with the net spend being considerably less in the last two seasons with us actually receiving transfer income, we should have a decent budget.
Unless they've blown it all on wages, golden handshakes, and lion reorientation modelling.
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Doesn't the £120m spend from the 19/20 season drop off the 3-year FFP radar this summer? If so, with the net spend being considerably less in the last two seasons with us actually receiving transfer income, we should have a decent budget.
Unless they've blown it all on wages, golden handshakes, and lion reorientation modelling.
That's not quite how it works. A spend of however much doesn't directly affect FFP. What matters is that you're only allowed certain losses (£105m from memory) over a three year period. So if you buy a player for £100m and pay him £5m a year over five years, then your accounts will be hit for £20m amortisation (Zzzzzzzzz) a year for five years, and £5m wages a year, both of which are costs in the accounts and reduce profits/increase losses. I think Wesley for example is on a five year contract, so his wages will have been costing us every year since.
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Doesn't the £120m spend from the 19/20 season drop off the 3-year FFP radar this summer? If so, with the net spend being considerably less in the last two seasons with us actually receiving transfer income, we should have a decent budget.
Unless they've blown it all on wages, golden handshakes, and lion reorientation modelling.
That's not quite how it works. A spend of however much doesn't directly affect FFP. What matters is that you're only allowed certain losses (£105m from memory) over a three year period. So if you buy a player for £100m and pay him £5m a year over five years, then your accounts will be hit for £20m amortisation (Zzzzzzzzz) a year for five years, and £5m wages a year, both of which are costs in the accounts and reduce profits/increase losses. I think Wesley for example is on a five year contract, so his wages will have been costing us every year since.
Yes, but the losses for that season drop off, and the seasons since we have had decent transfer income without spending massive amounts, so it should make a positive difference. Our commercial income will have grown also, so all in all I would expect there to be a decent amount available.
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I would have thought there would have been some support with Wesley from Insurance.
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Maybe this should be shut down until january
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Why? We can confirm transfers before the window opens. Or have you forgotten the glory days of Brett Holman?
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Why? We can confirm transfers before the window opens. Or have you forgotten the glory days of Brett Holman?
Not only that, discussion of potential transfers must also be strictly forbidden.
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Maybe this should be shut down until january
You could always choose not to read any of it until January.
-
You watch if some mugs spend the reputed £5Billion for the red filth (Will obviously be oil based) then i doubt FFP will ever be mentioned when they start to splash the cash
-
Certainly won’t be mentioned by the media, because their fans will still be claiming it’s profit money from the sale of Torres. Some of my Devon red mates were making that claim for years. It’s like if they shout loud enough over the objections, the truth of the matter will get lost. Usually does by the media when they are involved…
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Certainly won’t be mentioned by the media, because their fans will still be claiming it’s profit money from the sale of Torres. Some of my Devon red mates were making that claim for years. It’s like if they shout loud enough over the objections, the truth of the matter will get lost. Usually does by the media when they are involved…
Torres? - are we talking Liverpool or redManc? I thought it was the latter.
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Certainly won’t be mentioned by the media, because their fans will still be claiming it’s profit money from the sale of Torres. Some of my Devon red mates were making that claim for years. It’s like if they shout loud enough over the objections, the truth of the matter will get lost. Usually does by the media when they are involved…
Torres? - are we talking Liverpool or redManc? I thought it was the latter.
They are both on the market as part of the Pre Super League scramble.
-
https://belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/irish-league/linfield/linfields-highly-rated-teenage-winger-cole-brannigan-set-for-a-move-to-premier-league-side-aston-villa-42167620.html
Close to signing Cole Brannigan from Linfield
-
We could have two Coles, Ramsey and Brannigan after missing out on Andy all those years ago.
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We could have two Coles, Ramsey and Brannigan after missing out on Andy all those years ago.
We did have Carlton and Joe.
-
Oh yeah, how could I forget....
-
Marcus Thuram linked by l'Equipe
-
We could have two Coles, Ramsey and Brannigan after missing out on Andy all those years ago.
Reckon we'll probably try to sell both to Newcastle
-
Baddum tish!
-
Marcus Thuram linked by l'Equipe
I'd love that, he's one I've thought would be a good fit for a couple of years.
-
Marcus Thuram linked by l'Equipe
I'd love that, he's one I've thought would be a good fit for a couple of years.
I think it's believable too. I think a wide forward, not necessarily a winger as such, is going to be the number one target for us, and yer man fits the bill, at a good price too.
-
If his Dad being called Lilian never phased him, I think the kid could be open-minded enough to be a great acquisition.
-
If his Dad being called Lilian never phased him, I think the kid could be open-minded enough to be a great acquisition.
It was my nan's name, which I'm taking as an omen.
-
Lilian Thuram was a brilliant player. Equally good at CB or RB.
Gather the young Thuram is an AM though.
-
Marcus Thuram should be starting this afternoon against Tunisia.
-
He really should be a defender if the pun machine is to get cranked up about Stonewall Jackson.
-
Marcus Thuram should be starting this afternoon against Tunisia.
But he isn't as he's a bit poorly. On the bench though.
-
Links to Tammy Abraham seem to be growing.
-
Links to Tammy Abraham seem to be growing.
What sort of price would he be though? I know we’ve got loads of money but would think there’s better value out there.
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Links to Tammy Abraham seem to be growing.
What sort of price would he be though? I know we’ve got loads of money but would think there’s better value out there.
Very true. Seen quotes any thing from 40 mill upwards. Probably all rubbish and the latest newspaper (if you can call it that, is the Daily Mail!).
-
The Italian teams are all a bit skint. Just offer them Robin Olsen and a couple of quid and call it a day.
-
We are linked with Tammy in every window, we had a wonderful season from him in the Championship but is he what we need? I don’t think he’s quite as good as we think.
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The Italian teams are all a bit skint. Just offer them Robin Olsen and a couple of quid and call it a day.
Fun fact, Roma signed Robin Olsen thinking he would be an adequate replacement when they sold Alisson to Liverpool.
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The Italian teams are all a bit skint. Just offer them Robin Olsen and a couple of quid and call it a day.
Maybe offer them a friendly or something, too, to sweeten the deal.
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We could throw in some half-price Cadbury's World tickets.
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The Italian teams are all a bit skint. Just offer them Robin Olsen and a couple of quid and call it a day.
They grabbed our hands off when we signed him from them. They’re not going to make that mistake twice.
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The Italian teams are all a bit skint. Just offer them Robin Olsen and a couple of quid and call it a day.
I think Roma have first hand experience of how shite he is so that's unlikely
-
Offer them Coutinho then
-
I didn't realise how much Tammy's form had dipped so much at Roma. 27 goals (in 53 appearances) last season but now is on just 4 goals in last 20 appearances.
No idea what's going on there, but it does maybe create an opportunty at a more affordable level if Emery fancies him.
For me I always really liked Tammy, but did think his finishing was a bit suspect - but he was still young with us. He's 25 now so he's a great age. The form is worrying, but lets face it we wouldn't be in the conversation if he was still firing at one in every two games. Anyone know a bit more about what the problem is at Roma?
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If we are raiding skintprick Serie A teams, I'd rather Vlahović. Younger, better strike rate and more of an all round game than Tammy, Tammy, Tammy, Tammy. Though I certainly wouldn't be heartbroken to hear we had re-acquired the latter.
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If we are raiding skintprick Serie A teams, I'd rather Vlahović. Younger, better strike rate and more of an all round game than Tammy, Tammy, Tammy, Tammy. Though I certainly wouldn't be heartbroken to hear we had re-acquired the latter.
They're in some trouble again too, might have to unload some players.
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Would love it if they went full "Rangers" and have to start again as Sevco Juventus 2022 in Serie P.
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Would love it if they went full "Rangers" and have to start again as Sevco Juventus 2022 in Serie P.
With new manager Micky Beale feeling it was too good an opportunity to turn down and feeling he was going stale after 7 months at 'Rangers'.
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We could have two Coles, Ramsey and Brannigan after missing out on Andy all those years ago.
Reckon we'll probably try to sell both to Newcastle
I see what you did there
-
Brum Mail suggesting Matheus Cunha. I've never heard of him, but then I wouldn't have.
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Brum Mail suggesting Matheus Cunha. I've never heard of him, but then I wouldn't have.
He means no worries, for the rest of your days
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Brum Mail suggesting Matheus Cunha. I've never heard of him, but then I wouldn't have.
Brazilian striker / attacking midfielder. Did really well in Germany (Hertha IIRC), got a move to Atletico Madrid. Doesn't really play all that much anymore.
Another one to add to our collection of Brazilians who would get in a 36 player squad but not really in a 24 player squad.
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Any relation to Richard/Michael (?) Cunnah, our rarely-spotted former exec? The more cunning we have, the better.
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Not sure Tammy is the answer
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Not sure Tammy is the answer
He feels like if we are about to go and smash our transfer record to bring in a shit-hot striker there would probably be better options.
But (a) it's very difficult to come up with who that might be and (b) exactly the same was said (including by me) before he went off to Roma and became the new Batistuta. First season, anyway.
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Linked with Acuna (Argentina left back from Seville) and Mikel (Ex Newcastle midfielder at Real Sociedad) today.
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Acuna had a bit of a mare in the first half for Argentina yesterday though I did think that Chris Sutton was bullying him a bit too much. He's a grumpy cnut though.
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If we are raiding skintprick Serie A teams, I'd rather Vlahović. Younger, better strike rate and more of an all round game than Tammy, Tammy, Tammy, Tammy. Though I certainly wouldn't be heartbroken to hear we had re-acquired the latter.
Vlahovic is a good shout. We wouldn’t stand much chance normally but juve’s situation might mean a fire sale.
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If we are raiding skintprick Serie A teams, I'd rather Vlahović. Younger, better strike rate and more of an all round game than Tammy, Tammy, Tammy, Tammy. Though I certainly wouldn't be heartbroken to hear we had re-acquired the latter.
Vlahovic is a good shout. We wouldn’t stand much chance normally but juve’s situation might mean a fire sale.
He only moved last season for £70m, financial strife or not they’ll be looking to get pretty much the same back.
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They will take £25 million and they will be bloody grateful. Honestly, pesky upstart clubs.
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They will take £25 million and they will be bloody grateful. Honestly, pesky upstart clubs.
Roma are great.
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Not sure Tammy is the answer
He feels like if we are about to go and smash our transfer record to bring in a shit-hot striker there would probably be better options.
But (a) it's very difficult to come up with who that might be and (b) exactly the same was said (including by me) before he went off to Roma and became the new Batistuta. First season, anyway.
If Tammy was the new Batistuta I’d say pay whatever they bloody asked for. Unfortunately, he’s not.
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Bit like his time at Villa, great at the start but once the opposition worked him out he wasn't as effective. Don't look back.
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I've read a few people saying 'don't look or go back' regarding Tammy but it's not as if he was our player anyway.
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I've read a few people saying 'don't look or go back' regarding Tammy but it's not as if he was our player anyway.
We signed James Milner after he'd been here on loan and that wasn't a mistake
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They will take £25 million and they will be bloody grateful. Honestly, pesky upstart clubs.
Roma are great.
They're not. They're not as repulsive as their neighbours but still racist twats.
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There's rumours of Merino from Spain, but, I fear, they are pulling the wool over our eyes.
It wouldn't be baa'd business IMO.
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NO.
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There's rumours of Merino from Spain, but, I fear, they are pulling the wool over our eyes.
It wouldn't be baa'd business IMO.
He'd be mint
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There's rumours of Merino from Spain, but, I fear, they are pulling the wool over our eyes.
It wouldn't be baa'd business IMO.
You’d hope he’d be good at knitting the play together.
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Merino is not the GOAT.
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There's rumours of Merino from Spain, but, I fear, they are pulling the wool over our eyes.
It wouldn't be baa'd business IMO.
You’d hope he’d be good at knitting the play together.
So long as we don’t get fleeced.
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I said NO.
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Merino is not the GOAT.
Lambs wool pwns goat's.
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Pullover yourselves together, please.
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Ewe guys!
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Hopefully we'll be dipping our toes in the market early.
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There's rumours of Merino from Spain, but, I fear, they are pulling the wool over our eyes.
May as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb ...
... creates a warm feeling for me, though.
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Another Darren WOOLLEY exclusive 😂😂
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I said NO.
Are ewe sure?
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Are you lot aware of the ramifications of this?
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I used to like you, Dave. Et tu, Shelley?
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I used to like you, Dave. Et tu, Shelley?
Sorry, I consider myself suitably rebuked.
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Are you lot aware of the ramifications of this?
You can't use up all the best ones. Don't hogget.
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Matheus Cunha previously linked with us being touted for a transfer to Wolves as well.
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Are you lot aware of the ramifications of this?
You can't use up all the best ones. Don't hogget.
This is terrible. Two people that I rely on for facts and totally informed opinion are at it now. However I am not angry, jut disappointed.
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Chris Herd linked with a return.
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Chris Herd linked with a return.
We'll be able to field a pretty strong lineup
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Chris Herd linked with a return.
to where?
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Brisbane Roar if lucky.
-
Matheus Cunha previously linked with us being touted for a transfer to Wolves as well.
He might be a sheep in wolves clothing.
-
Espen Baaardsen linked!
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Merino now bleating on about flocking off to Derby .... yes, the Rams
-
Espen Baaardsen linked!
Ewe?
-
Well hopefully we can shepherd a few new faces through the door come January.
-
Well hopefully we can shepherd a few new faces through the door come January.
I wonder if we could tempt Alan Shearer out of retirement.
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Or Garth Crooks for that matter
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Happy to dip in and out of this thread.
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Feel free BV. Think we’ll be scrapie the bottom of the barrel soon.
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Good job we haven't got David Sheepshanks as our chairman...
-
If you buggers keep up this punfest, I shall start lambasting you.
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Good point Steve, think we’re all getting a little sheepish in prolonging this punfest.
-
Sheer madness.
-
I dont think this punfest will ever be tupped
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Good point Steve, think we’re all getting a little sheepish in prolonging this punfest.
It's flocking, sorry, I meant shocking.
-
It's like leading lambs to the slaughter
-
Dolley Blind from Ajax anyone ?
-
I feel a little like Pandora. My apologies.
-
we need to silence these lamb jokes please bahhh
-
Shameful. You're all pasture best.
-
Fucking hell, a punfest that has stretched to three days, can't wait for some actual transfer news.
-
Fucking hell, a punfest that has stretched to three days, can't wait for some actual transfer news.
I won't link for the obvious reason, but Football Insider is linking us with a Paraguayan winger, Ovis Aries. Plays for Penarol.
-
Seeing internet Liverpool fans convinced that Bellingham is on his way to them is quite funny. Bless their silly little hearts.
-
I wouldn't be surprised if he was.
-
Hope he stays outside the UK and has a great career on the continent.
Unless he realises he was in love with the wrong Birmingham club all along.
-
He's surely Man City bound, no? Linking up with Haaland again and all that.
It's a shame that them or Liverpool appear to be where he'll end up. Or Man Utd. It'll be almost impossible to like him.
-
BBC gossip page has us linked with Franck Kessie, from Barcelona, according to Mundo Deportivo
Don’t know how reliable they are.
-
He seems a proper player based on who he has played for (AC Milan and Barcelona) but only signed for Barcelona last summer so not sure why they would be wanting to let him go already? Also they signed him on a free transfer so he is likely on insane wages.
-
BBC gossip page has us linked with Franck Kessie, from Barcelona, according to Mundo Deportivo
Don’t know how reliable they are.
I believe that rumour has been around a while, swap for Douglas Luis
-
He seems a proper player based on who he has played for (AC Milan and Barcelona) but only signed for Barcelona last summer so not sure why they would be wanting to let him go already? Also they signed him on a free transfer so he is likely on insane wages.
He's very good. Him and Kamara would be a wall, but one that could also play a bit too.
I imagine that (it being Barcelona) if they have their eye on something new and shiny they have to free up wage space elsewhere. Also, they were expecting to push De Jong out in the summer but he dug in, so there isn't really a space for Kessie in the first-choice midfield.
But given he was signed during Barcelona's summer of pleading poverty, I don't think he's on anything that a well-paying Premier League club couldn't match. Internet suggests anywhere from £125k - £180k per week is his current apparently, depending on who you choose to believe.
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He seems a proper player based on who he has played for (AC Milan and Barcelona) but only signed for Barcelona last summer so not sure why they would be wanting to let him go already? Also they signed him on a free transfer so he is likely on insane wages.
He's very good. Him and Kamara would be a wall, but one that could also play a bit too.
I imagine that (it being Barcelona) if they have their eye on something new and shiny they have to free up wage space elsewhere. Also, they were expecting to push De Jong out in the summer but he dug in, so there isn't really a space for Kessie in the first-choice midfield.
But given he was signed during Barcelona's summer of pleading poverty, I don't think he's on anything that a well-paying Premier League club couldn't match. Internet suggests anywhere from £125k - £180k per week is his current apparently, depending on who you choose to believe.
Could be one of those deals where you get some value due to circumstances conspiring against the player involved, seems to be the kind of thing we like to explore.
-
I'm hoping he's the Ivorian Martin Laursen, minus the injuries. Based purely on his having played for AC Milan. Don't think we have ever had an ex-Barcelona defender, unless you count De La Cruz.
-
I'm hoping he's the Ivorian Martin Laursen, minus the injuries. Based purely on his having played for AC Milan. Don't think we have ever had an ex-Barcelona defender, unless you count De La Cruz.
Aly Cissokho would've played for AC Milan but for the medical showing a problem with his teeth that could mean he'd have a bad back.
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I'm hoping he's the Ivorian Martin Laursen, minus the injuries. Based purely on his having played for AC Milan. Don't think we have ever had an ex-Barcelona defender, unless you count De La Cruz.
(https://fcb-abj-pre.s3.amazonaws.com/img/jugadors/digne_lucas.jpg)
-
Hiding in plain sight
-
I never knew he played for Barcelona. Thanks Dave.
-
Digne has scored from a Messi assist...imagine that...
He must be disappointed he didn't make the French squad, he's in his prime now and this was realistically his last chance. He'll be 32 and 11/12ths at the next World Cup and probably back in Ligue Une for Bordeaux.
-
Fucking hell, a punfest that has stretched to three days, can't wait for some actual transfer news.
I won't link for the obvious reason, but Football Insider is linking us with a Paraguayan winger, Ovis Aries. Plays for Penarol.
I can see the headlines now..... 'And Aries rams it home!'
-
No.
-
Jesus fucking Christ. It wasn't funny two days ago.
-
Archer linked with a loan move to Sunderland. So long as they're actually gonna play him, I'd be happy with that assuming we bring in a striker. Playing about five minutes every month or so can't be aiding his development, and there is no indication that Emery has any greater inclination to pick him than Gerrard had, thus far.
-
Archer linked with a loan move to Sunderland. So long as they're actually gonna play him, I'd be happy with that assuming we bring in a striker. Playing about five minutes every month or so can't be aiding his development, and there is no indication that Emery has any greater inclination to pick him than Gerrard had, thus far.
I think they're exactly the sort of club we should be looking at for him if he does go out, massive club, fantastic ground, good enough squad to have a realistic chance at the playoffs but with their main centre forward injured since August, and very probably being sold in January, they could really do with a proper striker.
-
He certainly needs a loan move. He doesn't look ready for the Premier League yet and he needs to play games.
-
Yes with Bailey playing as a second striker at times under Emery, it's hard to see Archer getting much of a look in with Watkins, Ings and Bailey all in the squad.
-
Jesus fucking Christ. It wasn't funny two days ago.
Wether it’s funny or not I am keeping it going ( look it up townies).
-
No.
-
No.
Baaaaaaaa humbug
-
Surely this can't be true?!
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1600218951257972739
"Aston Villa are very well positioned to take Joao Felix.
Miguel Ángel Gil Marín, CEO of Atlético Madrid, is already negotiating with #AVFC ."
-
Surely this can't be true?!
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1600218951257972739
"Aston Villa are very well positioned to take Joao Felix.
Miguel Ángel Gil Marín, CEO of Atlético Madrid, is already negotiating with #AVFC ."
He was greedy there !
-
Original source, I won't hold my breath just yet...
https://www.marca.com/futbol/atletico/2022/12/06/638f9c43e2704efd9d8b4606.html
-
Original source, I won't hold my breath just yet...
https://www.marca.com/futbol/atletico/2022/12/06/638f9c43e2704efd9d8b4606.html
I like the lemon one, but the mint makes my balls tingle on a cold day and I am not a fan.
-
Original source, I won't hold my breath just yet...
https://www.marca.com/futbol/atletico/2022/12/06/638f9c43e2704efd9d8b4606.html
I like the lemon one, but the mint makes my balls tingle on a cold day and I am not a fan.
The mint one. Fucking hell. I used it for the first time years ago (nicked from my flatmate) and it felt like my lad had been smoking crack through a Cornetto.
-
There’s an extra strong mint one too… :o
-
Surely this can't be true?!
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1600218951257972739
"Aston Villa are very well positioned to take Joao Felix.
Miguel Ángel Gil Marín, CEO of Atlético Madrid, is already negotiating with #AVFC ."
I hope not because he’s been under whelming at WC.
-
I want this to be true for us but also because it will make Doghead heads pop off like that scene at the end of the Kingsman
-
very excited obviously happening and no one will convince me otherwise
-
He was outstanding tonight anyway.
-
Is Felix a Mendes client? I know he’s working a bit more with us now
-
Is Felix a Mendes client? I know he’s working a bit more with us now
He's a highly-rated Portuguese footballer. I don't think they have agents other than him.
(yes, he is)
Incidentally, I reckon there's about as much chance of Joao Felix joining us as there is of Bellingham or Mbappe rocking up at Villa Park.
-
Is Felix a Mendes client? I know he’s working a bit more with us now
He's a highly-rated Portuguese footballer. I don't think they have agents other than him.
(yes, he is)
Incidentally, I reckon there's about as much chance of Joao Felix joining us as there is of Bellingham or Mbappe rocking up at Villa Park.
Sadly, I have to agree. I wanted him to join us the summer he left for Madrid and he was out of our league back then. Atletico are just using us to smoke out real buyers.
-
I am not overly upset at us being used in such a manner. It means we're registering.
-
I know he is quality but is he really what we need right now ?
-
I know he is quality but is he really what we need right now ?
One of the best young players in the world to take the place of Ings or Watkins?
Nah, hard pass from me.
-
I know he is quality but is he really what we need right now ?
One of the best young players in the world to take the place of Ings or Watkins?
Nah, hard pass from me.
Sorry i am thinking of the wrong guy , he would cost an absolute fortune by all accounts
-
Surely this can't be true?!
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1600218951257972739
"Aston Villa are very well positioned to take Joao Felix.
Miguel Ángel Gil Marín, CEO of Atlético Madrid, is already negotiating with #AVFC ."
I hope not because he’s been under whelming at WC.
Zero chance of signing him 😂
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I assume he can sign now in principle but join in January? Hope this happens....
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There’s not a bloody chance it will happen. Wish it would though.
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I am not overly upset at us being used in such a manner. It means we're registering.
This for me. It's just nice seeing us being linked with one of the 'next big thing' type of player. Our profile seems to be on the rise.
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Surely this can't be true?!
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1600218951257972739
"Aston Villa are very well positioned to take Joao Felix.
Miguel Ángel Gil Marín, CEO of Atlético Madrid, is already negotiating with #AVFC ."
I hope not because he’s been under whelming at WC.
You hope we don't sign Joao Felix?
JFC. A phrase I would never expect to read on a Villa forum.
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For context, Atletico paid more for 19-year-old Joao Félix than Man City paid us for Jack. The chances of him coming here, for anything other than an astronomical fee, are basically zero. And if we DO have an astronomical fee to spend in January, I think I'd rather it went elsewhere.
He might not have developed into the global superstar they expected when they spent that money, but he's still a very good player, and I'd be stunned (and very pleased indeed) if he was a genuine possibility for us if it wasn't financially stupid. Personally, I think it's just paper talk.
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ITSOTPOIB.
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ITSOTPOIB.
In the shirt, on the pitch, overspread in batter?
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For context, Atletico paid more for 19-year-old Joao Félix than Man City paid us for Jack. The chances of him coming here, for anything other than an astronomical fee, are basically zero. And if we DO have an astronomical fee to spend in January, I think I'd rather it went elsewhere.
He might not have developed into the global superstar they expected when they spent that money, but he's still a very good player, and I'd be stunned (and very pleased indeed) if he was a genuine possibility for us if it wasn't financially stupid. Personally, I think it's just paper talk.
Yes, it feels like a bit of a daft link to me. I won't be holding my breath.
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ITSOTPOIB.
In the shirt, on the pitch, overspread in batter?
In the shirt, on the pitch, overjoyed ingesting bacalhau?
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ITSOTPOIB.
In the shirt, on the pitch, overspread in batter?
In the shirt, on the pitch, overjoyed ingesting bacalhau?
In the shirt on the pitch or in boardroom?
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Or it's bollocks.
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I know he is quality but is he really what we need right now ?
One of the best young players in the world to take the place of Ings or Watkins?
Nah, hard pass from me.
Me too. Let's get some more Championship players in.
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I know he is quality but is he really what we need right now ?
One of the best young players in the world to take the place of Ings or Watkins?
Nah, hard pass from me.
Sorry i am thinking of the wrong guy , he would cost an absolute fortune by all accounts
£100m quoted on the great source that is Talk Sport earlier tonight.
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I’d love to believe that this is true. After all, what’s the point in appointing a world-class manager, if we are not prepared to be backing him with big bucks? Having said that, this all appears a bit fanciful and a little ahead of ourselves.
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Only way I see this as likely is if it's a loan with a hefty fee attached.
If his face doesn't fit at Atletico Madrid under Simeone, they pocket north of £15 mill for a year from the loan fee, say. And get his wages off the books.
There isn't a whole lot of money sloshing around in Spanish and Italian football, as we have seen with the desperate attempts to revive the European Super League bollocks.
If he's a Mendes player there's also a strong likelihood of tail wagging the dog. Hence Renato Sanches to Swansea on loan a while back and other 'odd' deals.
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Hence Renato Sanches to Swansea on loan a while back and other 'odd' deals.
Wasn't that because Paul Clement still had a load of links at Bayern from when he was assistant manager to Ancelotti there, and Bayern trusted Clement to keep developing him?
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I know he is quality but is he really what we need right now ?
One of the best young players in the world to take the place of Ings or Watkins?
Nah, hard pass from me.
Isn’t he more of a play maker than a centre forward. Good player though.
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I know he is quality but is he really what we need right now ?
One of the best young players in the world to take the place of Ings or Watkins?
Nah, hard pass from me.
Me too. Let's get some more Championship players in.
Bring Davies back from loan instead
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Stefan de Vrij, possibly.
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1600913122566770688
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Now that’s the quality we should be looking at, get Skriniar off them too and that’s our CB issues sorted for a few years.
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I love these rumours - where I pretend to have a clue if these people are actually any good or not
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I love these rumours - where I pretend to have a clue if these people are actually any good or not
He's decent.
We've been linked with him three or four times in the past.
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I love these rumours - where I pretend to have a clue if these people are actually any good or not
they look good on youtube...
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Emery wants Pau Torres bigtime
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Emery wants Pau Torres bigtime
Ooh, interesting. I did wonder if those links were just 2+2 with his ex-players.
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I know he's not been at his best this season, but I think having Coutinho might help get some of these bigger transfers over the line. Having him and a big name manager like Emery sends a bit of a signal that we mean business.
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I know he's not been at his best this season, but I think having Coutinho might help get some of these bigger transfers over the line. Having him and a big name manager like Emery sends a bit of a signal that we mean business.
Kamara signing was a bit of a statement too because of the teams he turned down to join us.
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Emery wants Pau Torres bigtime
That would be Mings moving on then.
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Emery wants Pau Torres bigtime
That would be Mings moving on then.
Or Konsa, or Chambers.
Mings would still fetch a good fee, so would go some way to balancing the books. Good a player as Mings is, I am not convinced he is well suited to playing out from the back. Ditto Konsa. If we move them on for decent fees then it is probably for the best for all parties.
Torres or DeVries paired with Carlos is on paper at least a strong pairing.
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Just thinking that Mings might not be happy becoming a squad player. I know that's probably true for Konsa too but Pau Torres (and I think DeVries) being left footed then the emphasis is on Mings.
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I know he's not been at his best this season, but I think having Coutinho might help get some of these bigger transfers over the line. Having him and a big name manager like Emery sends a bit of a signal that we mean business.
Kamara signing was a bit of a statement too because of the teams he turned down to join us.
Thank you Mr Gerrard.
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I always think of Mings as the rock within our squad, a player who got called up to England while with us, and who I want us to build around.
That said, it just occurred to me that, come January, he will have been with us four years. That is fine service by any standard.
While I would rather he stayed, I can understand that we are coming into a new era now. Similar to 1995-96, some favourites may need to move on as part of that.
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Pau Torres is crap......he can't even get a place in the Spanish team with a midfielder playing centre half!!
No thanks...and did anyone see anything in his couple of games that Carlos was fantastic at bringing the ball out (I didn't although not judging too harshly as its early days for him)
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We have to sign Joško Gvardiol. No ifs no buts, Lange just get on with it.
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He is TWENTY years old. Paper rounds are tough in Croatia. Reminds me of "Wolfie" from the work experience episode of The Inbetweeners.
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Can see Rabiot being a target. On a free end of the season, wants to play in England, played for Emery at PSG and according to some stats model his output is very similar to Ramsey.
As much as I like Doug and Dendoncker can be effective v certain teams I still think to seriously challenge for europe we need an experienced and technically proficient player alongside Kamara.
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Just thinking that Mings might not be happy becoming a squad player. I know that's probably true for Konsa too but Pau Torres (and I think DeVries) being left footed then the emphasis is on Mings.
I still wonder what would've happened if Carlos hadn't of been injured, could've seen Mings moving on in August but we obviously had to keep him when that happened.
He's served us very well indeed but sometimes you have to move on from players, McGinn is certainly at that point and I think a manager as astute as Emery will have already worked it out but he sees the short term usefulness in keeping long serving players around just to get us well away from relegation and then he can remould the side.
Torres has generally been excellent for Villareal and is still mid 20s so that would be a transfer coup imo considering he wasn't interested in moving to Spurs 18 months ago.
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With Carlos not back for another 4-8 weeks another CB in is a fair shout. I like all our defenders but they all have their individual limitations. I don't believe we will necessarily ship one of the current players out. I doubt we will rush Carlos back into the squad, the investment is too great in a player of his age to risk a relapse that might prove terminal for his career. 3 in for me, CB, McGinn replacement and an out and out goalscrorer.
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I think it's Emery's desire to play out from the back that's putting the most pressure on Mings and Konsa (and others). That seems to be highest on the agenda now.
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I think it's Emery's desire to play out from the back that's putting the most pressure on Mings and Konsa (and others). That seems to be highest on the agenda now.
While it was hard to decipher at times what Gerrard was trying to do...it was clear playing out from the back was a priority for him too. I think it's clear we will be moving past Mings anyway in the medium term. I'm surprised at how much Konsa has regressed with the ball. Let's see if that can be addressed with coaching and confidence.
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I don't remember Konsa ever being particularly good with the ball. Teams at premier league level work out weaknesses in players really quickly and target those players by leaving them spare in the press - that seems to happen more to Mings than anyone else. So if we are to play that way (beat the press by passing it short) then we will need two new centre halves, or one when Carlos returns so long as he is same player as before.
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I know none of us expect this to happen but Mendes did somehow convince Neto, Moutinho and Neves to join Wolves while in the Championship and are all still there. All incredibly talent players. So why not Felix to us while we are a PL club?
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I know none of us expect this to happen but Mendes did somehow convince Neto, Moutinho and Neves to join Wolves while in the Championship and are all still there. All incredibly talent players. So why not Felix to us while we are a PL club?
Moutinho joined them once they'd been promoted. But it's a good point - Mendes' relationship with his players does tend to be "I think going here is in your long-term interest" and they broadly just do it.
However given it's usually with the ultimate goal of moving to a potential Champions League winner for £100m, and Joao Felix could do that anyway - I don't really see what Mendes or the player really gains from a few years with us on the way.
Much as it would be nice.
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I thought they all joined in the Championship. Either way, it was madness to think any of those Portuguese players and some of the ones since would join that lot yet somehow they all did. So we shouldn’t rule it out. And Felix is still only 23. He could play for an aspiring PL club like us for 2 seasons, increase his profile and move on again if it didn’t work out. Given the agent represents both Emery and the player and seemingly is close to Nas (if you care to believe the reports) then (from Dumb and Dumber) - “so you’re saying there’s a chance?”
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I thought they all joined in the Championship. Either way, it was madness to think any of those Portuguese players and some of the ones since would join that lot yet somehow they all did. So we shouldn’t rule it out. And Felix is still only 23. He could play for an aspiring PL club like us for 2 seasons, increase his profile and move on again if it didn’t work out. Given the agent represents both Emery and the player and seemingly is close to Nas (if you care to believe the reports) then (from Dumb and Dumber) - “so you’re saying there’s a chance?”
Those three players have all been a success for Wolves, but they weren't particularly "big" signings at the time. Neto and Neves were both about £15m and 20-ish at the time. Talented youngsters, but unproven. Gambles that definitely worked. Moutinho was a very good player, but he was 32 and only £5m. He's been good for them, probably for longer than anyone expected, but I'm not sure we'd be too excited about signing foreign midfielders who've never played in the premier league at 32 years of age.
We could definitely sign the players of the profile of that Wolves trio at the time they signed for Wolves, but Felix is on a different level altogether, having already been signed for a fee larger than Jack's to Man City. Would be amazing to see it happen, but honestly, if we had that sort of money to spend, I'd hope it went elsewhere first...
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I'd be absolutely amazed if we were wasting any energy on even discussing Joao Felix, let along actively pursuing him.
We've enough work to do without getting distracted by this sort of nonsense.
And even IF there was any chance he'd join, I'd have thought that where we are right now we have more need of 2-3 players who can improve us rather than a £100m player?
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You don't need to spend it all in one go. £20 million a year for four or five years might be doable. The club have been thinking small since Hitler ruined the plans to expand the ground. I won't slag them off now if they are thinking big. Make it happen, Villa. This would be a next level signing.
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We can probably cope with more than one deal at the same time, and I can't see how, unless you're Manchester City, a £100 million player doesn't improve your team.
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Of course he improves the team. The question is is it the best use of funds when we have a finate budget and lots of areas that need improvement?
I'm making a leap here that if we do have money to spend, it's not going to be more than £100m, probably somewhat less. I just can't see us spending it all on one player and if we did, I'm not sure it would be the wisest move with our current squad.
I also don't think he'd come. But that's a different point.
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If we're in for him, and I'd question that, it shows the intent, if it hadn't been shown already, that we're done with slowly, slowly and we're getting into top gear quickly. Felix and Torres would already improve us by a big margin.
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Oh, and if you want to see how a £100m player doesn't improve your team - look at Coutinho. (Yeah, I know. But even so...)
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We can probably cope with more than one deal at the same time, and I can't see how, unless you're Manchester City, a £100 million player doesn't improve your team.
I don't think there is any doubt he would improve us. He's obviously a talent, a potentially world-class one. The question is more that if we DO have that sort of money to spend, would the team be better off with two or three additions in the 20-40m bracket, than just him?
I can't wait for the day when our squad is so good it just requires the odd superstar to top it up, but I think we've got a way to go before then.
But hey, it's not my money, and maybe I'm worrying about the amounts we can spend unnecessarily, so if the club and new management want him, and he's available, bring it on!
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That's essentially where I'm at Smithy. I'd love him to come, but our squad needs more work that that. It's the sort of signing you can make when you've already got a great squad.
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I'm not sure we need a few in the £20-£40m bracket. We've a bunch of them already. Plus, if you can get the £100m man, he'll attract others.
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If he'd come, I'd take it. The sensible thing would be to spread the money, but he would make an impact.
Besides, we still have a Chuckwuemeka to flog to Chelsea for silly money as an offset!
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What does £20 million get you that we haven't already got?
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I’m probably one of the very few who hasn’t got a clue if this player is worth £100m or £100. Can’t see us spending the former but I’m happy to sit back and let Emery and the owners do their stuff.
I’ve huge confidence in all of them and for once I believe whoever we buy has a plan behind it.
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I'm not sure we need a few in the £20-£40m bracket. We've a bunch of them already. Plus, if you can get the £100m man, he'll attract others.
I would argue our team could benefit more from having a new central defender who is also decent on the ball, a midfield upgrade for McGinn, and a better centre-forward - all ahead of one £100m superstar. Any or all of those could be players in the £20-50m range, depending on where we get them from.
I'm not saying I don't want Felix - we had a £100m mercurial superstar in our team, and I absolutely loved it. Some of my favourite Villa memories of the last thirty years involve him. But if it WAS my money, I think I'd spend it elsewhere first.
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I'm not sure we need a few in the £20-£40m bracket. We've a bunch of them already. Plus, if you can get the £100m man, he'll attract others.
I would argue our team could benefit more from having a new central defender who is also decent on the ball, a midfield upgrade for McGinn, and a better centre-forward - all ahead of one £100m superstar. Any or all of those could be players in the £20-50m range, depending on where we get them from.
I'm not saying I don't want Felix - we had a £100m mercurial superstar in our team, and I absolutely loved it. Some of my favourite Villa memories of the last thirty years involve him. But if it WAS my money, I think I'd spend it elsewhere first.
I think the fact we already have a mecurial £100+ superstar that we need to work out how to use is making me indifferent to it.
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Joao Felix was very anonymous in a tough game against Morocco. Was he playing? PL is a rough hustle and bustle environment and players need to be tough or they quickly start hiding on the pitch.
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I'm not sure we need a few in the £20-£40m bracket. We've a bunch of them already. Plus, if you can get the £100m man, he'll attract others.
Yes, but then you can't sign any similar players for a season or two due to either affordability or FFP.
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What does £20 million get you that we haven't already got?
I'm not sure £20m gets you much better than we have (unless you are extremely lucky). £30-40m might though. Zinchenko was £30m, Jesus £45m. But it's not easy. Newcastle spent £65m on Isak, West Ham spent £50m on Paqueta. Liverpool spent £85m on Nunez. Big players cost big money, especially forwards, so maybe it is time we bought one? I just feel Felix-style money could be better spent elsewhere.
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Joao Felix was very anonymous in a tough game against Morocco. Was he playing? PL is a rough hustle and bustle environment and players need to be tough or they quickly start hiding on the pitch.
You can’t judge a player on one game or in a tournament. If that’s the case we’d all think based on his performance vs Canada Kevin DeBruyne was shit
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If we can get one of the best players on Earth, who has just turned 23, it would be fucking awesome. It doesn't mean we can't sign any other players because you don't have to spend all the money at once, that's not how transfers work. We probably haven't even had half of the Grealish money, yet, for starters.
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Joao Felix was very anonymous in a tough game against Morocco. Was he playing? PL is a rough hustle and bustle environment and players need to be tough or they quickly start hiding on the pitch.
You can’t judge a player on one game or in a tournament. If that’s the case we’d all think based on his performance vs Canada Kevin DeBruyne was shit
Well now that you mention it KDB was shit in Qatar altogether. And TBH Felix didn't exactly light up the WC either, if he is worth £100M.
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Here’s where I am holding out hope and with copious amounts of irrational optimism. When it came down to it, it was Nas who pulled the trigger on Gerrard. It was then Nas, based on reliable reporting, who pulled the strings on getting Emery via his relationship with Mendes. So it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that he’s also wanting to pull off another marquee signing and really propel us forward. And it wouldn’t mean that’s all we do.
In today’s market £20m buys you a basic squad player at PL level for a mid table club. We have those in abundance. We need to improve what we have of course, accelerate development of our top kids but also buy legitimate quality. Clearly AM want to sell Felix and they will take the best deal they can get. It doesn’t need to be what they paid. Barcelona found that out with Coutinho. So while it might not happen there’s no reason why something couldn’t be worked out if the player can be convinced by his agent.
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Joao Felix was very anonymous in a tough game against Morocco. Was he playing? PL is a rough hustle and bustle environment and players need to be tough or they quickly start hiding on the pitch.
You can’t judge a player on one game or in a tournament. If that’s the case we’d all think based on his performance vs Canada Kevin DeBruyne was shit
Agreed. Which is only slightly less of a cliché on how many posts judge an opposing PL player based on how performs against us.
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What does £20 million get you that we haven't already got?
Was going to write this exact thing. We currently have a whole squad of players who are broadly in the £20m-£40m bracket. Adding more gets you more of the same, and the general consensus has been that what we have isn't going to get us to where the owner's stated ambition (Champions League) requires.
I dunno, I guess it's easy to spend when it's not your money - but to me we're currently a roughly-approximately mid table Premier League side. The next step will be to transform that to a roughly-top-quarter side, and to do that we'll need the sort of players that those clubs might buy ...
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Terem Moffi a possibility, according to the (a) Latin American Villa feed via a French website:
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1602356962724904961
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What does £20 million get you that we haven't already got?
Was going to write this exact thing. We currently have a whole squad of players who are broadly in the £20m-£40m bracket. Adding more gets you more of the same, and the general consensus has been that what we have isn't going to get us to where the owner's stated ambition (Champions League) requires.
I dunno, I guess it's easy to spend when it's not your money - but to me we're currently a roughly-approximately mid table Premier League side. The next step will be to transform that to a roughly-top-quarter side, and to do that we'll need the sort of players that those clubs might buy ...
But you could look at the progress made by Leicester buying players for £20M and quite often less , I would take their recent success with that
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All about opinions but anyone saying that Joao Felix isn’t what we need is nuts in my opinion. There’s no bloody way we’re getting him - but he would be an incredible signing.
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What does £20 million get you that we haven't already got?
Was going to write this exact thing. We currently have a whole squad of players who are broadly in the £20m-£40m bracket. Adding more gets you more of the same, and the general consensus has been that what we have isn't going to get us to where the owner's stated ambition (Champions League) requires.
I dunno, I guess it's easy to spend when it's not your money - but to me we're currently a roughly-approximately mid table Premier League side. The next step will be to transform that to a roughly-top-quarter side, and to do that we'll need the sort of players that those clubs might buy ...
But you could look at the progress made by Leicester buying players for £20M and quite often less , I would take their recent success with that
Not sure how accurate this list is bit there’s quite a low hit rate around £20m. They seem to do a bit better around the £25+ mark, probably £30m nowadays with inflation (Perez being the exception).
https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/leicester-city/alletransfers/verein/1003
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Who is Terem Moffi?
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Who is Terem Moffi?
I had no idea either.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terem_Moffi
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I'm Terem Moffi, and so is my wife.
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There’s a few that are indifferent to Felix, I hope he’s not reading otherwise he’ll be thinking, don’t you want me.
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There’s a few that are indifferent to Felix, I hope he’s not reading otherwise he’ll be thinking, don’t you want me.
I don’t think he’d even consider coming to us…
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Who is Terem Moffi?
Sounds like the commander of Galactic Empire Star Destroyer
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All about opinions but anyone saying that Joao Felix isn’t what we need is nuts in my opinion. There’s no bloody way we’re getting him - but he would be an incredible signing.
Yeah - I think what most people are thinking is rather than spending 100m on one player they would rather see us spend 50m each on two?
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There’s a few that are indifferent to Felix, I hope he’s not reading otherwise he’ll be thinking, don’t you want me.
I hope he doesn't listen to The Sound of the Crowd.
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There’s a few that are indifferent to Felix, I hope he’s not reading otherwise he’ll be thinking, don’t you want me.
I hope he doesn't listen to The Sound of the Crowd.
His wife’s a waitress in a cocktail bar
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There’s a few that are indifferent to Felix, I hope he’s not reading otherwise he’ll be thinking, don’t you want me.
I hope he doesn't listen to The Sound of the Crowd.
His wife’s a waitress in a cocktail bar
She's very down to earth, Louise.
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Terem Moffi a possibility, according to the (a) Latin American Villa feed via a French website:
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1602356962724904961
I can't say the phrase "Aston Villa está monitoreando la situación" without doing it in the voice of the Channel 9 guys on The Fast Show.
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I'm imaging it being sang by a Latino Fagin.
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Terem Moffi a possibility, according to the (a) Latin American Villa feed via a French website:
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1602356962724904961
I can't say the phrase "Aston Villa está monitoreando la situación" without doing it in the voice of the Channel 9 guys on The Fast Show.
I'm sometimes complimented by the locals here on the clarity of my accent when speaking Spanish. I'm effectively just channelling the Fast Show and Speedy Gonzales.
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Terem Moffi a possibility, according to the (a) Latin American Villa feed via a French website:
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1602356962724904961
I can't say the phrase "Aston Villa está monitoreando la situación" without doing it in the voice of the Channel 9 guys on The Fast Show.
I'm sometimes complimented by the locals here on the clarity of my accent when speaking Spanish. I'm effectively just channelling the Fast Show and Speedy Gonzales.
After Saturdays events in might have given you reason to say the name of Chris Waddle.
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Who is Terem Moffi?
Infantino just said “Tonight I am Terem Moffi” so there you go now you know.
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World Cup... Slow news... Big player needs a move.. Let's link them to Villa so we can then unlink them to Villa 3 days later. At least 6 articles later, the bull shitometer is in full swing. More chance of me playing for the Villa than us buying Felix. And I'm not that bothered, yes he's sensationally talented but in the new Emery world I would sooner we got Torres a powerful wide forward and a proper striker.
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Who is Terem Moffi?
I had no idea either.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terem_Moffi
Age 23 and 10 goals in 14 this season is not bad. Could be coming into his prime?
Looks a bit like Keinan Davis but with one slight difference…
https://youtu.be/vVJXoGSSWI8
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Who is Terem Moffi?
I had no idea either.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terem_Moffi
Age 23 and 10 goals in 14 this season is not bad. Could be coming into his prime?
Looks a bit like Keinan Davis but with one slight difference…
https://youtu.be/vVJXoGSSWI8
Dare I say a likeness to Benteke, Villa version, in there, too
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Looks a bit like Keinan Davis but with one slight difference
He can walk unaided?
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From bbc sport
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery is interested in bringing Netherlands winger Arnaut Danjuma, 25, and Senegal midfielder Nicolas Jackson, 21, from his former club Villarreal to Villa Park. (Mirror)
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Both are the type of players we lack. Athletic and pacey with some skill.
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Wasn't Danjuma at Bournemouth? Maybe I just imagined it.
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Thuram has got to be the best value player out there. 15 goals in 10 in Germany this syear, 6 months on his contract.
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Decent height on him too Thuram.
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Wasn't Danjuma at Bournemouth? Maybe I just imagined it.
Yup.
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Who is Terem Moffi?
I had no idea either.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terem_Moffi
Age 23 and 10 goals in 14 this season is not bad. Could be coming into his prime?
Looks a bit like Keinan Davis but with one slight difference…
https://youtu.be/vVJXoGSSWI8
He may very well be the next Benteke but to be fair some of the defending in the YT video was comical and I could have scored a few.
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Thuram would be a good signing.
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Thuram would be an amazing coup.
Maybe I'm feeling a bit negative, but I just don't understand why a 25 year old French international who seems to be on fire at the moment would join us when surely he'll be getting offers from CL teams?
I think Coutinho was different because of the Gerrard connection and hoping to find form for the W/C, Kamara is still young and had his heard turned by the money (he's said as much). I just cant see Thuram making a similar call.
Maybe it will be an exciting Jan with all these links, but I've got a feeling we're going to struggle to be whelmed.
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I thought Kamara had his head turned by the Gerrard. Maybe it was both. Will we be able to spot how much in signing-on fees we spent on him and Coutinho in the accounts next year, I wonder? North of £20m I'm guessing.
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I thought Kamara had his head turned by the Gerrard. Maybe it was both. Will we be able to spot how much in signing-on fees we spent on him and Coutinho in the accounts next year, I wonder? North of £20m I'm guessing.
Maybe a small part of it. I'm sure he was quoted as saying ours was the 'best economic offer' or something like that
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I thought Kamara had his head turned by the Gerrard. Maybe it was both. Will we be able to spot how much in signing-on fees we spent on him and Coutinho in the accounts next year, I wonder? North of £20m I'm guessing.
Maybe a small part of it. I'm sure he was quoted as saying ours was the 'best economic offer' or something like that
My recollection is that Atlético Madrid were interested but their representative was unimpressed by him being in shorts and t-shirt when they met. Then Gerrard went to meet him at his house and he decided straight away he'd join Villa. So I'd say it played a fairly significant part.
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I thought Kamara had his head turned by the Gerrard. Maybe it was both. Will we be able to spot how much in signing-on fees we spent on him and Coutinho in the accounts next year, I wonder? North of £20m I'm guessing.
Maybe a small part of it. I'm sure he was quoted as saying ours was the 'best economic offer' or something like that
My recollection is that Atlético Madrid were interested but their representative was unimpressed by him being in shorts and t-shirt when they met. Then Gerrard went to meet him at his house and he decided straight away he'd join Villa. So I'd say it played a fairly significant part.
"When the coach comes to see you at home, when he makes the trip, when he explains the project, his ambition for me in the years to come, I take this into account.
Especially when it comes from Steven Gerrard, one of the best midfielders in the world in his position. It leaned in my decision. I can’t wait to join him to work."
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Ahhhhh, reminiscing about the good stuff, still, we've got someone who knows what they're doing now and doesn't just talk a good game!
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Ahhhhh, reminiscing about the good stuff, still, we've got someone who knows what they're doing now and doesn't just talk a good game!
Indeed. It's good that Gerrard convinced him to sign, now hopefully Emery can get the best out of him.
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I thought Kamara had his head turned by the Gerrard. Maybe it was both. Will we be able to spot how much in signing-on fees we spent on him and Coutinho in the accounts next year, I wonder? North of £20m I'm guessing.
Maybe a small part of it. I'm sure he was quoted as saying ours was the 'best economic offer' or something like that
My recollection is that Atlético Madrid were interested but their representative was unimpressed by him being in shorts and t-shirt when they met. Then Gerrard went to meet him at his house and he decided straight away he'd join Villa. So I'd say it played a fairly significant part.
"When the coach comes to see you at home, when he makes the trip, when he explains the project, his ambition for me in the years to come, I take this into account.
Especially when it comes from Steven Gerrard, one of the best midfielders in the world in his position. It leaned in my decision. I can’t wait to join him to work."
He chose to move to Villa Park, and that was because of several factors and ‘thousands of intricacies’, but chiefly the ‘higher economic conditions’ they put on the table.
Players are unlikely to say outright 'I only moved for cash,' but it's naieve to think it's not the main reason he chose to move to a club sitting 14th in the PL.
In any event, my main point was I doubt the likes of Thuram would make a similar call as they are a bit older and more progressed in their career.
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We'll know we're finally re-established when players are joining not to be 'part of a project'. To be fair to Gerrard, he did well in the transfer market really. Just couldn't get them playing together.
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In any event, my main point was I doubt the likes of Thuram would make a similar call as they are a bit older and more progressed in their career.
Oh come on, he plays for a club that's 8th in the Bundesliga & hasn't done anything of note since before we last did anything of note. It's not like he's playing for one of the giants.
Rightly or wrongly, the Premier League is the defacto European Super League now and playing for a mid-table side in that is far more prestigious than playing for anything other than a small handful of clubs on the continent.
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In any event, my main point was I doubt the likes of Thuram would make a similar call as they are a bit older and more progressed in their career.
Oh come on, he plays for a club that's 8th in the Bundesliga. It's not like he's playing for one of the giants.
Rightly or wrongly, the Premier League is the defacto European Super League now and playing for a mid-table side in that is far more prestigious than playing for anything other than a small handful of clubs on the continent.
Yup, but given he's going for free he might well end up interesting one of those handful of clubs.
If he's happy in Germany for example, he'd probably make a very decent Lewandowski replacement. And they're pretty well-known for hoovering up the best German-based players for nothing.
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I hope we are targeting a keeper in this window. There is a chance Emi might take a bit of time off so the thought of Olsen in net for even a game is utterly dreadful.
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I hope we are targeting a keeper in this window. There is a chance Emi might take a bit of time off so the thought of Olsen in net for even a game is utterly dreadful.
What about the Croat keeper, I know the last one we bought was shite but this one has been impressive given the caveat that it’s tournament football.
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I hope we are targeting a keeper in this window. There is a chance Emi might take a bit of time off so the thought of Olsen in net for even a game is utterly dreadful.
What about the Croat keeper, I know the last one we bought was shite but this one has been impressive given the caveat that it’s tournament football.
He's off to Bayern, I think I read.
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Given that most people think one of our English centre halves and one of our English centre forwards, at least, might be off, we wouldn't be too far off using up all our non-"Home Grown" spots in the squad. At the risk of sounding Brexity, I'd rather we didn't waste one of our foreign spots on a goalie who plays maybe twice a season unless we have a good cup run.
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It's very tricky to keep a back up keeper happy, particulalrly when you're not in the CL and don't tend to go deep into the cups. I think we'll prob stick with Olsen for the time being and just hope Martinez stays fit.
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I hope we are targeting a keeper in this window. There is a chance Emi might take a bit of time off so the thought of Olsen in net for even a game is utterly dreadful.
What about the Croat keeper, I know the last one we bought was shite but this one has been impressive given the caveat that it’s tournament football.
if that is 'Bono', he'd need to change his name.
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I hope we are targeting a keeper in this window. There is a chance Emi might take a bit of time off so the thought of Olsen in net for even a game is utterly dreadful.
What about the Croat keeper, I know the last one we bought was shite but this one has been impressive given the caveat that it’s tournament football.
if that is 'Bono', he'd need to change his name.
no, bono is the morocco keeper.
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I hope we are targeting a keeper in this window. There is a chance Emi might take a bit of time off so the thought of Olsen in net for even a game is utterly dreadful.
What about the Croat keeper, I know the last one we bought was shite but this one has been impressive given the caveat that it’s tournament football.
if that is 'Bono', he'd need to change his name.
Livakovic
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Why is Emi taking time off? There's a week between the final and the 'The Mighty Reds YNWA' game. That IS time off for a pro footballer!
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Why is Emi taking time off? There's a week between the final and the 'The Mighty Reds YNWA' game. That IS time off for a pro footballer!
We don't know if he is yet do we?
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Why is Emi taking time off? There's a week between the final and the 'The Mighty Reds YNWA' game. That IS time off for a pro footballer!
it hasn’t been said he is BUT if they win the final he would be absolutely mad to play the final and come straight back to Brum…be a once in lifetime to take that trophy back to Argentina for the celebrations.
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I'd give him a week off after Wolves, seeing as the rest of the squad have had a bit of time off. He'd only miss Stevenage then, and if we can't get past them with Olsen in goal we probably weren't going to win the cup anyway.
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Alhough I've only seen him in this tournament Amrabat looks like a real player.
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Alhough I've only seen him in this tournament Amrabat looks like a real player.
He was fantastic wasn't he.
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Alhough I've only seen him in this tournament Amrabat looks like a real player.
Certainly a candidate to be in the team of the tournament,
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Why is Emi taking time off? There's a week between the final and the 'The Mighty Reds YNWA' game. That IS time off for a pro footballer!
it hasn’t been said he is BUT if they win the final he would be absolutely mad to play the final and come straight back to Brum…be a once in lifetime to take that trophy back to Argentina for the celebrations.
There's no way he won't go back to Argentina if they win. I'd rather he has that time off rather than six months it will take him to get over the disappointment should they lose.
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There are eight days between the Final and our next game. That's enough time for a couple of days celebrating, and a couple of days travelling and still back in plenty of time for the Liverpool match.
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From Qatar to Argentina to party-hard and then to Brum inside a week where he then needs to be rested and sit-in on at least one or two training/analysis sessions...dunno, it's cutting it fine.
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I agree, suspect it’ll be Olsen time.
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I agree, suspect it’ll be Olsen time.
If you'd have said Santa doesnt exist you wouldn't have put a bigger downer on Xmas.
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From Qatar to Argentina to party-hard and then to Brum inside a week where he then needs to be rested and sit-in on at least one or two training/analysis sessions...dunno, it's cutting it fine.
It is!
But I bet he'd be really looking forward to being back and "sharing" his success with his team mates, Villa fans generally, a full Villa Park and even the opposition!
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I agree, suspect it’ll be Olsen time.
If you'd have said Santa doesnt exist you wouldn't have put a bigger downer on Xmas.
The hope is that in amongst the regular Nyland horror shows, every now and then he'd pull out a world class performance.
It is hope more than anything, mind. Olsen himself has done little in a Villa shirt to instill any degree of confidence.
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I agree, suspect it’ll be Olsen time.
If you'd have said Santa doesnt exist you wouldn't have put a bigger downer on Xmas.
When was the last time Villa had a good Christmas?
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I agree, suspect it’ll be Olsen time.
If you'd have said Santa doesnt exist you wouldn't have put a bigger downer on Xmas.
When was the last time Villa had a good Christmas?
1989?
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I agree, suspect it’ll be Olsen time.
If you'd have said Santa doesnt exist you wouldn't have put a bigger downer on Xmas.
When was the last time Villa had a good Christmas?
1989?
What a Christmas that was.
I was thinking of those two home matches when we were discussing exciting games somewhere.
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Sky Sports would explode if we beat Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea in a week.
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I agree, suspect it’ll be Olsen time.
If you'd have said Santa doesnt exist you wouldn't have put a bigger downer on Xmas.
When was the last time Villa had a good Christmas?
1989?
That one obviously was special but has been discussed to death.
In more recent times, 2005 saw us hammer Everton on Boxing Day when Baros and Angel together clicked. Followed it up with an exciting 3-3 at Fulham, before beating the Baggies away the day after New Years Day with a Baros penalty.
O'Neill's second season, 07/08 when we scored for fun bore witness to that last-gasp 4-4 draw at Chelsea on the 26th when Barry did take the penalty; coming from behind at Wigan to win 2-1 on the 28th and the NYD home victory over Spurs (last time we beat them at home?) with the classic Scandinavian bros, Ollie and Laursen connecting perfectly to set-pieces as was our wont back then.
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I agree, suspect it’ll be Olsen time.
If you'd have said Santa doesnt exist you wouldn't have put a bigger downer on Xmas.
What? Santa doesn’t exist? For fucks sake. I have now deal with that and Olsen playing?
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I agree, suspect it’ll be Olsen time.
If you'd have said Santa doesnt exist you wouldn't have put a bigger downer on Xmas.
What? Santa doesn’t exist? For fucks sake. I have now deal with that and Olsen playing?
Don't listen to him TV, I have met him, sat on his knee and told him I wanted a scalectric and it turned up as promised.
So he definitely exists.
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Can you ask him to give Villa a Boxing Day win more than once a decade next time you see him, please?
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Can you ask him to give Villa a Boxing Day win more than once a decade next time you see him, please?
He's Father Christmas, not bloody Gandalf. He can't work them sort of miracles
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We have won 3 of the last 4 on Boxing Day?
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Sounds obvious, but I think activity in this window will depend on what the ambition is really. If the ambition is to really push and challenge to get into the European places, then we are going to need some reinforcements and upgrades in certain areas.
If the plan is to give Unai Emery more time to fully assess the current squad and start to put in place a solid starting XI to add to in the summer, then we might only need a couple.
Absolute priorities for me are 1 or possibly 2 quality wide players and a back up goalkeeper. Bailey is the only real out and out wide player we have and Olsen is going to cost us games if he is called upon. As above, I think our ambitions for the remainder of thecswason will dictate our other business.
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For me we need a centre half who can play the ball out from the back and a centre forward.
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I understand defense is not a priority for Emery. That's what thingy from the Mail said on the Q&A anyway. Remember we have Carlos coming back anyway.
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Defence isn't the issue imo, not with a properly functioning midfield in front of it. Longer term, a ball playing centre back is definitely needed.
Priority has to be wide attackers and a striker
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January's usually a difficult market to do business in and we've still got quite a bloated squad. There's quite a few very average players and we've got some promising kids coming through who we need to clear the way for. It will be interesting to see if we try to move a few more on.
Raikhy and K Young seem to be in Emery's thoughts. Raikhy's a bit of a surprise as he struggled to get a decent loan move and then didn't get much playing time.
I think anyone we bring in will be very strategic. More interesting will be to see what Emery does next summer. I thought the same with Gerrard's first summer window and was disappointed tbh. I think that was a combination of needing to move players on but I also suspect the owners had their doubts about him. Emery's a different kettle of fish entirely. I think he'll get real backing with the kind of ambition that matches the appointment itself.
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Defence isn't the issue imo, not with a properly functioning midfield in front of it. Longer term, a ball playing centre back is definitely needed.
Priority has to be wide attackers and a striker
Longer-term that could be Feeney.
I don't think Chambers or Bednarak will be part of Emery's long-term plans. Carlos will be and I wouldn't be surprised if he bought Pau Torres or someone of that ilk so then it's a question of what happens with Mings and Konsa.
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I understand defense is not a priority for Emery.
*raises eyebrow*
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You don't buy a Ferrari and not put any petrol in it.
I reckon our owners will be splashing the cash in January (where possible) and also next summer.
I always thought Leroy Sane never got a fair crack of the whip at Man City. We need a left winger, might be worth a phone call to Bayern Munich. If we had Bailey on the right and Sane on the left, I would be happy to give Ings a chance to impress with a proper supply line.
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I agree, suspect it’ll be Olsen time.
If you'd have said Santa doesnt exist you wouldn't have put a bigger downer on Xmas.
What? Santa doesn’t exist? For fucks sake. I have now deal with that and Olsen playing?
Feels like Olsen is the the ghost of xmas past - a reminder of just how shit we used to be
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I understand defense is not a priority for Emery.
*raises eyebrow*
He is happy with his defensive options at present, particularly with Carlos nearly ready to come back.
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For me we need a centre half who can play the ball out from the back and a centre forward.
If we are serious about pushing on to compete for European spots then I agree on both counts, but I just think it is a question of the time frame I think.
We've got Konsa, Mings, Chambers, Bednarek at centre half, with Costa coming back and Dendoncker can also cover there, so I think that is an area that could possibly wait for upgrades. I thought it started to become apparent in the second half last season that we needed a better striker than Ings and Watkins, but again think those two and Archer could see us to the end of the season.
We definitely need at least one starting wide player and possibly a back up one to come in this January. We don't have any options in those areas other than Bailey and other players playing out of position.
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I understand defense is not a priority for Emery.
*raises eyebrow*
He is happy with his defensive options at present, particularly with Carlos nearly ready to come back.
Is this your view or you’ve heard this somewhere?
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I understand defense is not a priority for Emery.
*raises eyebrow*
He is happy with his defensive options at present, particularly with Carlos nearly ready to come back.
Is this your view or you’ve heard this somewhere?
My raised eyebrow was not related to the number of options we may or may not have at the back. ;)
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I understand defense is not a priority for Emery.
*raises eyebrow*
He is happy with his defensive options at present, particularly with Carlos nearly ready to come back.
Is this your view or you’ve heard this somewhere?
My raised eyebrow was not related to the number of options we may or may not have at the back. ;)
raises my eyebrow
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I understand defense is not a priority for Emery.
*raises eyebrow*
He is happy with his defensive options at present, particularly with Carlos nearly ready to come back.
Is this your view or you’ve heard this somewhere?
It was from the Birmingham Live Q&A this week.
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I understand defense is not a priority for Emery.
*raises eyebrow*
He is happy with his defensive options at present, particularly with Carlos nearly ready to come back.
Is this your view or you’ve heard this somewhere?
My raised eyebrow was not related to the number of options we may or may not have at the back. ;)
raises my eyebrow
I suspect it was the spelling of ‘defence’.
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I understand defense is not a priority for Emery.
*raises eyebrow*
He is happy with his defensive options at present, particularly with Carlos nearly ready to come back.
Is this your view or you’ve heard this somewhere?
My raised eyebrow was not related to the number of options we may or may not have at the back. ;)
raises my eyebrow
I suspect it was the spelling of ‘defence’.
Aha! I was searching and I just couldn’t see it. Thanks Percy.
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I understand defense is not a priority for Emery.
*raises eyebrow*
He is happy with his defensive options at present, particularly with Carlos nearly ready to come back.
Is this your view or you’ve heard this somewhere?
It was from the Birmingham Live Q&A this week.
Ok ta. That surprises me I must admit.
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Strange question I know, but I just had radio five on in the kitchen and they were commenting on the football league games, the pundit said that a player who had just scored was bound for Aston Villa, thing is, I wasn’t really listening until I heard “Aston Villa” so I have no idea who the player was or who he was playing for. Any ideas?
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João Pedro at Watford?
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João Pedro at Watford?
Yes, that sounds about right. Thanks.
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Bound for us? Sounds like he's being a bit prem, no?
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Bound for us? Sounds like he's being a bit prem, no?
That’s what made me take notice. The commentator sounded like it was a done deal, I though hang on, why have I not heard anything about this?
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Wasn’t he close to signing for Newcastle in pre season?
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On Instagram,Villareport via globosports reporting that Coutinho’s agent is trying to secure a move to Corinthians.
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On Instagram,Villareport via globosports reporting that Coutinho’s agent is trying to secure a move to Corinthians.
Not sure who his agent is, but I'd have assumed he was a bit too old.
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On Instagram,Villareport via globosports reporting that Coutinho’s agent is trying to secure a move to Corinthians.
Not sure who his agent is, but I'd have assumed he was a bit too old.
Agent is Kia Joorabchien. I’m sure Phil is a bastion of sportsmanship and fair play and it’d be good to see what Unai can do with him but if we have a chance to get rid I think I’d be inclined to take it.
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On Instagram,Villareport via globosports reporting that Coutinho’s agent is trying to secure a move to Corinthians.
Good :)
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On Instagram,Villareport via globosports reporting that Coutinho’s agent is trying to secure a move to Corinthians.
Not sure who his agent is, but I'd have assumed he was a bit too old.
Eric Hall
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On Instagram,Villareport via globosports reporting that Coutinho’s agent is trying to secure a move to Corinthians.
Good :)
How is that possibly good? We get rid of a player who is massively talented and, presumably, get no money and have to carry on paying virtually all his wages?
If we get rid of him, and I'm not totally convinced that we should with him having played the grand total of zero minutes under Emery, sell him to a team who can afford him, not a skint league.
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On Instagram,Villareport via globosports reporting that Coutinho’s agent is trying to secure a move to Corinthians.
Good :)
How is that possibly good? We get rid of a player who is massively talented and, presumably, get no money and have to carry on paying virtually all his wages?
If we get rid of him, and I'm not totally convinced that we should with him having played the grand total of zero minutes under Emery, sell him to a team who can afford him, not a skint league.
It's good for him, he needs to play football :) - that's how it's good.
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On Instagram,Villareport via globosports reporting that Coutinho’s agent is trying to secure a move to Corinthians.
Good :)
How is that possibly good? We get rid of a player who is massively talented and, presumably, get no money and have to carry on paying virtually all his wages?
If we get rid of him, and I'm not totally convinced that we should with him having played the grand total of zero minutes under Emery, sell him to a team who can afford him, not a skint league.
On the presumption that he goes for free and we subsidise it I’d agree that it’s not great, however if it’s a normal transfer I wouldn’t dismiss it due to the fact that, aside from his initial loan, he’s looked below par and there might not be too many takers for him that would be willing to pay for the privilege.
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On Instagram,Villareport via globosports reporting that Coutinho’s agent is trying to secure a move to Corinthians.
Good :)
How is that possibly good? We get rid of a player who is massively talented and, presumably, get no money and have to carry on paying virtually all his wages?
If we get rid of him, and I'm not totally convinced that we should with him having played the grand total of zero minutes under Emery, sell him to a team who can afford him, not a skint league.
Agree. Unless he is causing issues behind the scenes, then I would like to see him given a chance under Emery.
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He looked like he was enjoying himself in Dubai with his Brazilian clubmates. Give us one last effort Phil, come on.
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I've researched and scouted a number of players who would complement the Villa lineup, so I'll have something to contribute to the conversation in January.
Some of the links, like the one about Joao Felix, particularly impressed me, but from what I've heard, he prefers to play at a higher level in Champions League soccer. He's always been one of my favourites. And I've touted him as someone who was of Grealish level but better.
Regarding Jack, I also anticipated his difficulties after leaving and the possibility that he would return.
I couldn't help but notice that there has been some talk about him being unsuitable and leaving. However, what I had previously believed was that he would return eventually and for a reduced price because some of the £100 million would not be paid since he was unlikely to complete his contract.
I would anticipate Villa would also receive first choice, so perhaps not this winter window for a loan, but next summer or in January?
Even though we have Coutinho, it's obvious that Emery is after a player of Felix or Grealish quality bringing in a player of this calibre would be marvelous
On that note, I like Nakamba; he's a good holy man, but he needs to be upgraded and relocated to a league more suitable to his abilities.
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Grealish can fuck off. Forever.
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It's a moot point anyway. There is no chance that Man City will be giving up on the Grealish Project anytime soon, unless someone like Newcastle or PSG give them their £100 million back for the privilege. He's a marketing ploy as much as a footballer.
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Grealish can fuck off. Forever.
Amen.
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It's a moot point anyway. There is no chance that Man City will be giving up on the Grealish Project anytime soon, unless someone like Newcastle or PSG give them their £100 million back for the privilege. He's a marketing ploy as much as a footballer.
They are not far away from amortising the £100 million to a transfer fee which is manageable.
Next summer is my guess.
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11 uses of 'I', 'I'm' or 'me' in 1 post. Impressive.
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I've researched and scouted a number of players who would complement the Villa lineup, so I'll have something to contribute to the conversation in January.
You've "scouted" them?!
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I'm now thoroughly looking forward to this conversation in January. Genuinely can't wait.
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I think this thread should be closed on 31st December.
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I've researched and scouted a number of players who would complement the Villa lineup, so I'll have something to contribute to the conversation in January.
You've "scouted" them?!
He doesn't just stop working when he's not posting, you know.
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I've researched and scouted a number of players who would complement the Villa lineup, so I'll have something to contribute to the conversation in January.
You've "scouted" them?!
He doesn't just stop working when he's not posting, you know.
Thank f@ck I've got him blocked!!
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Scouting could mean wearing a neckerchief and a waddle, downloading pictures of young footballers from the internet and shouting DYB DYB DYB -DOB DOB DOB at the monitor.
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11 uses of 'I', 'I'm' or 'me' in 1 post. Impressive.
OCD you say?
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Scouting could mean wearing a neckerchief and a waddle, downloading pictures of young footballers from the internet and shouting DYB DYB DYB -DOB DOB DOB at the monitor.
? Woggle? Or is he making like a duck?
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Marcus Thuram. Would add a lot of quality to the forward areas.
He would be pleasing to all here.
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Megastar centre-forward and about a dozen maverick wingers, please Villa.
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Daily Mail reckon we are after Ewan Otoo - 20 year old captain of Celtic's B team. Central defender, out of contract in the summer.
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That sounds like the sort of signing we would make. Scottish clubs are getting raided now it's more difficult to sign European talent.
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Matheus Cunha previously linked with us being touted for a transfer to Wolves as well.
Set for Wolves for a fee of FIFTY MILLION POUNDS apparently.
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Why do we have to wait for January for your scouting report Footy?
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Marcus Thuram. Would add a lot of quality to the forward areas.
He would be pleasing to all here.
Does your scouting = watching the World Cup, Footy?
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As an aside, Real Madrid are in for Jude Bellingham. Will put the the Sky clubs' noses out of joint! Talking of noses will our nearest and dearest benefit from this in any way? Do they have a clause of some sort? Can't get hold of any family noses at the moment.
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I've researched and scouted a number of players who would complement the Villa lineup, so I'll have something to contribute to the conversation in January.
Good to hear! There's been some ill-informed nonsense on here during the World Cup, it'll be nice to have some rigorous analysis back on the site.
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I've researched and scouted a number of players who would complement the Villa lineup, so I'll have something to contribute to the conversation in January.
Good to hear! There's been some ill-informed nonsense on here during the World Cup, it'll be nice to have some rigorous analysis back on the site.
Ha ha, excellent.
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As an aside, Real Madrid are in for Jude Bellingham. Will put the the Sky clubs' noses out of joint! Talking of noses will our nearest and dearest benefit from this in any way? Do they have a clause of some sort? Can't get hold of any family noses at the moment.
This is quite a good post on the subject:
https://almajir.net/2022/09/22/bcfc-the-jude-bellingham-sell-on-clause/ (https://almajir.net/2022/09/22/bcfc-the-jude-bellingham-sell-on-clause/)
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Matheus Cunha previously linked with us being touted for a transfer to Wolves as well.
Set for Wolves for a fee of FIFTY MILLION POUNDS apparently.
This sounds a lot of money for a player who doesnt score many goals (I know he plays wide also but mainly up front for Atleti I think?) That said I think Man U were previously after him and quoted £90m, so maybe it's a top signing - not seen enough of him to judge myself.
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Marcus Thuram. Would add a lot of quality to the forward areas.
He would be pleasing to all here.
Does your scouting = watching the World Cup, Footy?
On that one I'd guess he read my posts about him from about 2 1/2 years ago.
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Matheus Cunha previously linked with us being touted for a transfer to Wolves as well.
Set for Wolves for a fee of FIFTY MILLION POUNDS apparently.
This sounds a lot of money for a player who doesnt score many goals (I know he plays wide also but mainly up front for Atleti I think?) That said I think Man U were previously after him and quoted £90m, so maybe it's a top signing - not seen enough of him to judge myself.
I think the context of them paying nearly that much for Maguire is important when judging the quality of players based on what Man Utd pay.
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I've researched and scouted a number of players who would complement the Villa lineup, so I'll have something to contribute to the conversation in January.
You've "scouted" them?!
And how was Qatar?
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As an aside, Real Madrid are in for Jude Bellingham. Will put the the Sky clubs' noses out of joint! Talking of noses will our nearest and dearest benefit from this in any way? Do they have a clause of some sort? Can't get hold of any family noses at the moment.
This is quite a good post on the subject:
https://almajir.net/2022/09/22/bcfc-the-jude-bellingham-sell-on-clause/ (https://almajir.net/2022/09/22/bcfc-the-jude-bellingham-sell-on-clause/)
Thanks Risso, I'll look at that later!
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Marcus Thuram. Would add a lot of quality to the forward areas.
He would be pleasing to all here.
Does your scouting = watching the World Cup, Footy?
On that one I'd guess he read my posts about him from about 2 1/2 years ago.
Oooh hark at Mr Know-it-all.... :-)
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According to SKY - Cunha is going on loan to the Wolves and then they will buy for £35 million
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Marcus Thuram. Would add a lot of quality to the forward areas.
He would be pleasing to all here.
Does your scouting = watching the World Cup, Footy?
On that one I'd guess he read my posts about him from about 2 1/2 years ago.
Oooh hark at Mr Know-it-all.... :-)
In all honesty I was only talking about him at the time by fluke because I spent a ferw weeks working with a bunch of german developers and a couple of them were season ticket holders at Gladbach and kept raving about how good he was, if ever I talk about european players it'll always be the same story. In a similar vein there are loads of dutch, german and norwegians who are looking out for Iroegbunam because I've raved about how good he's going to be.
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As an aside, Real Madrid are in for Jude Bellingham. Will put the the Sky clubs' noses out of joint! Talking of noses will our nearest and dearest benefit from this in any way? Do they have a clause of some sort? Can't get hold of any family noses at the moment.
This is quite a good post on the subject:
https://almajir.net/2022/09/22/bcfc-the-jude-bellingham-sell-on-clause/ (https://almajir.net/2022/09/22/bcfc-the-jude-bellingham-sell-on-clause/)
Yes good article.
Based on the way the club is being managed there is a strong possibility that the owners will have cashed out every available option.
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As an aside, Real Madrid are in for Jude Bellingham. Will put the the Sky clubs' noses out of joint! Talking of noses will our nearest and dearest benefit from this in any way? Do they have a clause of some sort? Can't get hold of any family noses at the moment.
This is quite a good post on the subject:
https://almajir.net/2022/09/22/bcfc-the-jude-bellingham-sell-on-clause/ (https://almajir.net/2022/09/22/bcfc-the-jude-bellingham-sell-on-clause/)
Yes good article.
Based on the way the club is being managed there is a strong possibility that the owners will have cashed out every available option.
I’d never heard of solidarity payments until this article. Thanks Risso.
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Thurman, Cunha, I have no idea who these are or if they are any good. Obviously my scouting ability it shit.
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Thurman, Cunha, I have no idea who these are or if they are any good. Obviously my scouting ability it shit.
Wouldn’t have had to scout Thuram too hard. He featured quite prominently in a little kickabout in Qatar on Sunday afternoon!!
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Thurman, Cunha, I have no idea who these are or if they are any good. Obviously my scouting ability it shit.
Wouldn’t have had to scout Thuram too hard. He featured quite prominently in a little kickabout in Qatar on Sunday afternoon!!
Ha! It must be my age, I can’t remember names too well anymore. Is he any good?
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Thurman, Cunha, I have no idea who these are or if they are any good. Obviously my scouting ability it shit.
Thurman was very good in Kill Bill and Pulp Fiction.
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I've researched and scouted a number of players who would complement the Villa lineup, so I'll have something to contribute to the conversation in January.
Good to hear! There's been some ill-informed nonsense on here during the World Cup, it'll be nice to have some rigorous analysis back on the site.
Ha ha, excellent.
I definitely snorted snot over my smartphone.
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Thurman, Cunha, I have no idea who these are or if they are any good. Obviously my scouting ability it shit.
Thurman was very good in Kill Bill and Pulp Fiction.
Sign her up. She’s ace.
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Thurman, Cunha, I have no idea who these are or if they are any good. Obviously my scouting ability it shit.
Wouldn’t have had to scout Thuram too hard. He featured quite prominently in a little kickabout in Qatar on Sunday afternoon!!
Ha! It must be my age, I can’t remember names too well anymore. Is he any good?
To be fair I didn't really know anything about him before the World Cup (other than he's Lilian Thuram's son), but watched him a bit during the tournament after we were linked to him. Looked quick, powerful and capable of playing in the middle or as a wide forward.
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Listening to the press conference yesterday, sounds like Unai knows exactly who he wants and the deals are being discussed. Hoping for a statement signing but someone who scores goals and makes that difference up top.
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According to various news outlets Newton Heath buying most of the players who shone at the World Cup, including Emi
Hopefully in their dreams
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It’s the laziest form of journalism. That term used very lightly. Emi wasn’t linked with Bayern or Man U or anyone for that matter two months ago, but one WC later and all of a sudden it’s so easy just to toss out names of clubs who want him. And of course it means he must be going. No different to Emery coming here and signing half the Villarreal team. There was some media bloke (Ekrem Kanour) on Twitter yesterday. His post was simply Man U “could” make a bid for Emi. Well fuck me. Anything “could” happen. Barnsley “could” bid for Mbappe I suppose.
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Barnsley “could” bid for Mbappe I suppose.
Now being reported by Football Insider on Twitter.
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I'm waiting to see what happens, in January but I think a striker would be one of the priority moves and a wide foward.
Either/or .
Both would be great.
Kook forward to the new year and second part of the season.
Merry Christmas.
Up the Villa.
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According to various news outlets Newton Heath buying most of the players who shone at the World Cup, including Emi
Hopefully in their dreams
I'm always a bit sceptical about signing players on the back of a good tournament.
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I'm waiting to see what happens, in January but I think a striker would be one of the priority moves and a wide foward.
Either/or .
Both would be great.
Kook forward to the new year and second part of the season.
Merry Christmas.
Up the Villa.
I agree, Footy. Think a wide forward is absolutely required, I think. Gerrard left the squad short in that area.
Also think a proper statement signing would make a huge difference. Just because Emi has gone from being well respected up to global superstar over the past couple of months. Get another player on that level & you'd be looking at a squad with a top level manager, arguably 3 players who would be close to being considered world class (Martinez, Coutinho, + AN Other). You could imagine a squad like that, with work starting on building a 50k capacity stadium so clearly not lacking ambition, would be quite a reasonable prospect in the summer. Especially if European football was on offer, even in the Euro Windscreens Shield.
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I reckon there are two people who think Coutinho is world class. You and his mum.
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Coutinho is, quite clearly, potentially world class. Whether we ever see it again is debatable, but I'd be happy to give him a chance as he has yet to play a single minute for us under a competent manager.
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Coutinho is, quite clearly, potentially world class. Whether we ever see it again is debatable, but I'd be happy to give him a chance as he has yet to play a single minute for us under a competent manager.
That is my take on him as well.
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We watched a group of players who have been massively underperforming suddenly win 2 league games on the trot under a new manager. So why wouldn’t we want to see what our star player; and he absolutely is when in form, get a chance also? It’s madness to just give up on him because he was shit under the former manager.
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We watched a group of players who have been massively underperforming suddenly win 2 league games on the trot under a new manager. So why wouldn’t we want to see what our star player; and he absolutely is when in form, get a chance also? It’s madness to just give up on him because he was shit under the former manager.
Think pace of prem is a little too much for him now. That said he can certainly make an impact off the bench in certain games and win us points so hopefully that will be his role from now on and then I think they'll be a parting of the ways in the summer.
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There are plenty of players who have found a way to compensate for age through positioning and intelligence. Look at players like Zola a while back or even slightly more recently David Silva. Similar types of player who adjusted as they got older, but critically that had managers who knew how to use them. That was never happening under Gerrard. It might happen under Emery.
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I'd agree I'm not sure how reliable he is if you want a player to play ninety minutes, even more so if you expect him to do so two or three times a week. But with five subs there has never been a better time to have a player like him.
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In an ideal world, he could become a modern-day Petrov but I suspect the league's just moved on too much from when he last played in it.
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Barnsley “could” bid for Mbappe I suppose.
Now being reported by Football Insider on Twitter.
Following my extensive three week scouting mission, I conclude he might be just what Barnsley need.
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Coutinho is, quite clearly, potentially world class. Whether we ever see it again is debatable, but I'd be happy to give him a chance as he has yet to play a single minute for us under a competent manager.
would be good to see him coached properly and play in a team with good direction and tactics
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I think some are going a bit early on his demise as a top class player. Lets not forget 10-11 months ago he joined and got 4 goals and 3 assists in 8 matches before Gerrard shit the bed and changed our shape to protect the fullbacks and empty midfield. Since then every time he's played he's been 20-30 yards too deep and being asked to do far too much defensive work. If it were down to me I'd not be making any decisions until the summer and trying to get 10-15 starts out of him in the 2nd half of the season to see if he can find his form. If he gets to even where he was last winter he'll be enough to drive us up into the top half, especially if we do bring in some like Joao Pedro (which is a link that doesn't want to go away).
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Gerrard ruined him. End of story.
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Gerrard ruined him. End of story.
This. Been able to see first hand with Joe his easy it is to coach a great player to uselessness. Coutinho is class, he just needs the right person to coax it out of him
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Gerrard ruined him. End of story.
No player is ruined. The tactics and inability to change them is what did in Gerrard. It hugely impacted all our best players. That very includes our best player. Emery has a chance to work with Coutinho now and see if he has the motivation and desire to succeed with us. It’s not his talent that is in question. It’s his mindset. If he rediscovers the willingness to get back to that level we will have a superb player again helping us climb the table.
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It seems to be his head / confidence thing. Nothing to do with the pace of the game or anything like that. He didn’t seem to be struggling 1st half against Leeds at home last season when he gave the best 45 mins performance I’ve seen from a Villa player in years. He’s potentially world class indeed. All the rumour seems to be about him wanting out but that could be the wanky media putting 2 and 2 together and getting 5. I hope so anyway.
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He will never be the player that Barcelona paid 150 million for, injury and age has put paid to that.
The question is can he adapt his game to be effective at this level, he still has the balance, quick feet and skill and ability to pick a pass , he does not have the acceleration to get away from defenders.
There is also the issue regarding his physical condition to be able to play consecutive games.
The jury still out for me as to wether he can be an effective member of a team striving to push for a top 6 place.
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Comparing international football to the Premier League is difficult, but look at how Messi plays for Argentina. The team is basically built around and compensates for him not really offering much off the ball at all. What he did do though was to get into positions where when they won the ball Back, he could cause the opposition problems.
I think Coutinho and Buendia to some extent, need to be given that type of role if we are to see the best of them. I think Buendia offers more without the ball, but Coutinho has that touch more quality. I would be disappointed to see Coutinho go without the opportunity to have a run of games.
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Comparing international football to the Premier League is difficult, but look at how Messi plays for Argentina. The team is basically built around and compensates for him not really offering much off the ball at all. What he did do though was to get into positions where when they won the ball Back, he could cause the opposition problems.
I think Coutinho and Buendia to some extent, need to be given that type of role if we are to see the best of them. I think Buendia offers more without the ball, but Coutinho has that touch more quality. I would be disappointed to see Coutinho go without the opportunity to have a run of games.
I don’t think Coutinho is mentally where he should be. Seems to me to be one of those players that gets a move of a lifetime and is sorted financially. That’s it then, game over. Barca realised, now we have been stuck with him. I expect an expensive contract release/move.
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Gerrard ruined him. End of story.
How did Coutinho end up at Villa in the first place? Without Gerrard he wouldn't have come anywhere near us but the fact a midtable club could get him even on loan just showed how far his star had fallen. Everton had same issue with Rodriguez, great start but ultimately these guys don't take their careers seriously any more and get found out.
We already had spent a club record fee on Buendia and Gerrard seemed set on 433 anyway. For footballing reasons we should never have gone near him.
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Gerrard ruined him. End of story.
How did Coutinho end up at Villa in the first place? Without Gerrard he wouldn't have come anywhere near us but the fact a midtable club could get him even on loan just showed how far his star had fallen. Everton had same issue with Rodriguez, great start but ultimately these guys don't take their careers seriously any more and get found out.
We already had spent a club record fee on Buendia and Gerrard seemed set on 433 anyway. For footballing reasons we should never have gone near him.
I don't recall you saying any of that when he signed.
Lets face it, nearly everyone on here was delighted when he joined and understandbly so. If he ends up moving on, then so be it but for £17m, it was worth the punt.
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Hopefully he returns to form under Emery, as he was brilliant when he first signed.
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The point about Coutinho is not whether he can contribute or not. Maybe he will, maybe he won’t. But whether he’s world class. Messi is world class. Mbappe is world class. Martinez is world class. He’s not.
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The Liverpool version probably was though.
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He was certainly very very good at Liverpool. I’d be thrilled if we could see a glimpse of that.
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His influence waned last season, but i still loved watching him on the ball,
Just the way he receives and controls the ball is beautiful to see
not a single player improved under Gerrard most regressed, so I don’t think it’s unreasonable to think he suffered under Gerrard tactics and formations, even though he was his big mate,
I would be hopeful under a better coach like Emery he could regain his form and play a big part
For me he’s still a class player
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Aston Villa have opened talks with Villarreal over a deal for Netherlands winger Arnaut Danjuma, 25. (Todofichajes - in Spanish)
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Wolves about to sign Matheus Cunha according to BBC
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/64093737
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Gerrard ruined him. End of story.
How did Coutinho end up at Villa in the first place? Without Gerrard he wouldn't have come anywhere near us but the fact a midtable club could get him even on loan just showed how far his star had fallen. Everton had same issue with Rodriguez, great start but ultimately these guys don't take their careers seriously any more and get found out.
We already had spent a club record fee on Buendia and Gerrard seemed set on 433 anyway. For footballing reasons we should never have gone near him.
I don't recall you saying any of that when he signed.
Lets face it, nearly everyone on here was delighted when he joined and understandbly so. If he ends up moving on, then so be it but for £17m, it was worth the punt.
Brontebilly called this from the start much to the rolling of eyes of those who thought it was nothing like the James Rodriguez situation.
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Plus we presumably broke our wage structure to sign him.
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He was certainly very very good at Liverpool. I’d be thrilled if we could see a glimpse of that.
I think he’d arrived at ‘world class’ at the time Barcelona signed him. And that’s why it was always worth a try, and I still hope it’ll work out.
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He was certainly very very good at Liverpool. I’d be thrilled if we could see a glimpse of that.
I think he’d arrived at ‘world class’ at the time Barcelona signed him. And that’s why it was always worth a try, and I still hope it’ll work out.
Really hope so too. He was fantastic at Liverpool and a mixed bag since then. But at the moment he’s a bit part player for a mid table team.
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Sign a goal scorer. Everything else can wait if it has to.
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Centre forward. Now!
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Sign a defence, MON style.
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Centre forward and two centre halves, please.
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Start trading players if we have to. Other than Emi, JJ and Bouba, the rest of them can go. On their day, some of them are quite good, but it is just too inconsistent. Digne, Luiz, Buendia, Mings, Konsa, Chambers, McGinn, Watkins, Ings, even the likes of Bailey.
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We can finish 9th or 10th with what we have now.
Need better in key areas to seriously challenge for 7th next season so might aswell get cracking.
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Need an upgrade in every position bar GK.
Emi and Bailey still do two rubbish things for every good thing
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How much was nunez?? Scary to spend that much and end up with the uruguian watkins
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Striker and Central defender required at an absolute minimum.
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Realistically, when is the CB we signed last summer back? Need to fully test him before we spend another £40m in the same position.
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A centre back and a centre forward of high quality would be priority but any other position except GK and probably RB could be considered. And if they get any whiff of Martinez with his eye elsewhere you can add his position to the list.
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Realistically, when is the CB we signed last summer back? Need to fully test him before we spend another £40m in the same position.
.
I think the idea would be to give him his test alongside a new player that is a fair bit better than our other three centre backs
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Spine of the team isn't strong enough. Not clinical enough in both penalty areas.
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Realistically, when is the CB we signed last summer back? Need to fully test him before we spend another £40m in the same position.
Feb-March. Will take him a good month to get up to speed even when Diego comes back.
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Need an upgrade in every position bar GK.
Emi and Bailey still do two rubbish things for every good thing
It's not just those two though, its pretty much all of them. They all make the most basic errors and usually at a costly time. We were right back in that game when Bailey had a chance with his right foot and his effort would have shamed a Sunday league player.
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To move on 5 new starters needed for next season, poor performances across the pitch
Also, it was said that LPOOL bench looked weak yet their youngsters came on and did justice to being called on, one of them scoring.
Where are or vaunted academy players ?
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To move on 5 new starters needed for next season, poor performances across the pitch
Also, it was said that LPOOL bench looked weak yet their youngsters came on and did justice to being called on, one of them scoring.
Where are or vaunted academy players ?
On loan getting excellent experience in the championship (as Archer should be doing aswell). Next season is the time to judge the young players.
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Would love to see a Pau Torres/Diego Carlos centre back pairing by the end of January
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If all our squad was all fit and available last night, three out of the back five would have been replaced if you include the goalkeeper
If he brings in another centre back, we could be looking at a near on clean sweep from last night’s lineup
Which at least gives hope
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If all our squad was all fit and available last night, three out of the back five would have been replaced if you include the goalkeeper
If he brings in another centre back, we could be looking at a near on clean sweep from last night’s lineup
Which at least gives hope
100%, can see another big summer coming, we might pick up one or two in Jan but can see quite a turnover in summer….fortunately we will have a few who can generate a few quid also
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If all our squad was all fit and available last night, three out of the back five would have been replaced if you include the goalkeeper
If he brings in another centre back, we could be looking at a near on clean sweep from last night’s lineup
Which at least gives hope
Andy Townsend said last night that we are not 1 transfer widow away from breaking through, but 3 or 4.
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If all our squad was all fit and available last night, three out of the back five would have been replaced if you include the goalkeeper
If he brings in another centre back, we could be looking at a near on clean sweep from last night’s lineup
Which at least gives hope
Andy Townsend said last night that we are not 1 transfer widow away from breaking through, but 3 or 4.
I’d have said the same (and the pundits would have) about Newcastle. Look at them now. What’s that, two transfer windows with Howe ?
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If all our squad was all fit and available last night, three out of the back five would have been replaced if you include the goalkeeper
If he brings in another centre back, we could be looking at a near on clean sweep from last night’s lineup
Which at least gives hope
Andy Townsend said last night that we are not 1 transfer widow away from breaking through, but 3 or 4.
I think he is probably right?
How many of our team is Top 6 level? Martinez Digne Carlos Kamara.
We are not exactly bringing youngsters through at that level either.
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Joelinton, Longstaff and Miggy Almiron were Blose this time last year.
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We won't be beating Liverpool in a years time if we have a fully fit squad and Konsa, McGinn and Watkins are all still starting. Mediocre spine for any team serious about making europe.
I'd be selling two of them in the summer.
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We won't stockpile players though and there isn't a great deal of money around for clubs to be interested in some of our players. We can't give away Guilbert or Sanson, seemingly. We may need to trade here and there. I also agree with Townsend, we are three or four windows away from being a top side and the ground won't be ready in that time to draw some of the players we might want. The likes of McGinn, Watkins, Konsa etc all need to be shifted but I can't see too many other clubs coming in for them.
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McGinn would do quite well at Leeds I think so you're looking at 10-15m fee.
Can see Ollie going back down to a London club. Feels like a West Ham signing although Fulham could be interested if they sell Mitrovic. Palace would also have a bit of expenditure if Zaha's wages come off the payroll.
Our squad in some areas really hasn't changed much since summer 2019 so could be a massive co-incidence that in that time with same personnel we've not finished in the top half of this league.
Generally with a top class manager in now it feels the right time to cut the umbilical cord with a few of our long servers while their value remains reasonably high.
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We won't stockpile players though and there isn't a great deal of money around for clubs to be interested in some of our players. We can't give away Guilbert or Sanson, seemingly. We may need to trade here and there. I also agree with Townsend, we are three or four windows away from being a top side and the ground won't be ready in that time to draw some of the players we might want. The likes of McGinn, Watkins, Konsa etc all need to be shifted but I can't see too many other clubs coming in for them.
Guilbert, Sanson and Nakamba..."released by mutual consent" or "undisclosed fee"....big losses anyway
Centre back is a problem area anyway, can't play a high line with any combination we have currently. Let's see how Carlos goes. Mings will be let go in the summer I think.
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Guilbert, Sanson and Nakamba..."released by mutual consent" or "undisclosed fee"....big losses anyway...
Not big losses from a strict financial-reporting perspective, since they have been with us for 3 seasons and are therefore largely written off. In terms of wages, yes, we've spent on players who have contributed little.
Sanson was sought-after by Leicester when we signed him: maybe they'll renew their interest in someone who will not cost them much. Nakamba might interest a Bournemouth or a Fulham (or a team pushing from promotion from the C'ship). Guilbert is a total write-off in terms of getting anything for him.
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I think we can all agree that we could do with another striker but I dont think that should mean Ollie being flogged. Whilst he's not prolific, he's still a decent player to have around.
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Faced with the usual problem that’s it’s much easier to buy mediocrity than sell it.
There are lots of clubs with lots of players that they would like to move on.
If you judge Villa as a team with top 6 expectations the number of players we need to move on is an awful lot.
I can think of at least 10.
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There’s some players you can see that won’t probably fit the way that Unai wants to play but he’s a top coach and I can see an improvement after a relatively short space of time.
His Villarreal team had a few in it that were bombed out of the premiership but he got a tune out of them. Newcastle, Brighton, Fulham, Brentford and Palace are ahead of us but imo their first team or squad overall are no better than ours.
I think a few tweaks rather than wholesale changes.
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There’s some players you can see that won’t probably fit the way that Unai wants to play but he’s a top coach and I can see an improvement after a relatively short space of time.
His Villarreal team had a few in it that were bombed out of the premiership but he got a tune out of them. Newcastle, Brighton, Fulham, Brentford and Palace are ahead of us but imo their first team or squad overall are no better than ours.
I think a few tweaks rather than wholesale changes.
A few tweaks ?
I think you are underestimating the task at hand.
To get by yes, but to challenge for Europe we need a much better first team.
But it won’t be achieved in one or two windows.
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I don’t think Gerrard improved a single player whilst he was here, Emery will do that and has already started. Most of the first team squad have a lot more quality than they are showing.
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I don’t think Gerrard improved a single player whilst he was here, Emery will do that and has already started. Most of the first team squad have a lot more quality than they are showing.
I think fans tend to rate our own players a lot higher than they really are.
What Howe has done at Newcastle is exceptional but I think it’s unrealistic to expect the same.
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Perhaps that’s true and undoubtedly Howe is doing an incredible job. But I think 3/4 new starters and getting the same amount of current players performing at their peak will see us right.
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Well we’ve played much better and got results with the same players but now they’re being instructed in a certain way so straight away there’s improvement with no money spent.
Put Carlos in with either of the centre halves and you’d hope that a decent partnership will form which would see Mings or Konsa improve. With Martinez behind our back 5 is decent. Newcastle have got Dan Burn playing left back and Schar who has a mistake in him (Mings). Put Ramsey in from Tuesday breaking the lines and there’s immediate improvement, Newcastle have got Longstaff and Willock.
Yes, Watkins is very wasteful but unless we can attract a £50/£60m striker that’s what you’ll get with most. Newcastle have Wilson who is a much better finisher but is injury prone.
We’ve got great potential out on loan. For me maybe 2/3 of the right players in we can bridge the gap.
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I think we can all agree that we could do with another striker but I dont think that should mean Ollie being flogged. Whilst he's not prolific, he's still a decent player to have around.
That depends entirely on what we were offered for him though.
If someone brainless like Everton offers us 20m for him we should be shipping him out straight away IMO.
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I think we can all agree that we could do with another striker but I dont think that should mean Ollie being flogged. Whilst he's not prolific, he's still a decent player to have around.
That depends entirely on what we were offered for him though.
If someone brainless like Everton offers us 20m for him we should be shipping him out straight away IMO.
In today's market and the crazy prices teams pay, I think we'd get a bit more than that.
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I think we can all agree that we could do with another striker but I dont think that should mean Ollie being flogged. Whilst he's not prolific, he's still a decent player to have around.
That depends entirely on what we were offered for him though.
If someone brainless like Everton offers us 20m for him we should be shipping him out straight away IMO.
In today's market and the crazy prices teams pay, I think we'd get a bit more than that.
I’d bloody hope so!!
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We probably would but anything above 20 I’d take.
If someone offers us decent money then sell him. If nobody offers us what we want, then that in itself tells you something.
There’s no point keeping him around just because he seems a decent guy or through sentimentality while his value runs down alongside his contract.
He just isn’t good enough at this level.
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Perhaps that’s true and undoubtedly Howe is doing an incredible job. But I think 3/4 new starters and getting the same amount of current players performing at their peak will see us right.
But what does “right” mean though?
Players performing at their peak! great players hit 7 out of 10 performances every week and often better that that. Our players are generally 6 out of 10 every week, some a better and as often worse.
If you expect top 6 then you have to have more top players.
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We probably would but anything above 20 I’d take.
If someone offers us decent money then sell him. If nobody offers us what we want, then that in itself tells you something.
There’s no point keeping him around just because he seems a decent guy or through sentimentality while his value runs down alongside his contract.
He just isn’t good enough at this level.
He is good enough at this level because he's shown he is. Is he going to improve or get better? That's open for debate.
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Well we’ve played much better and got results with the same players but now they’re being instructed in a certain way so straight away there’s improvement with no money spent.
Put Carlos in with either of the centre halves and you’d hope that a decent partnership will form which would see Mings or Konsa improve. With Martinez behind our back 5 is decent. Newcastle have got Dan Burn playing left back and Schar who has a mistake in him (Mings). Put Ramsey in from Tuesday breaking the lines and there’s immediate improvement, Newcastle have got Longstaff and Willock.
Yes, Watkins is very wasteful but unless we can attract a £50/£60m striker that’s what you’ll get with most. Newcastle have Wilson who is a much better finisher but is injury prone.
We’ve got great potential out on loan. For me maybe 2/3 of the right players in we can bridge the gap.
It doesn't have to be a £50/60m striker, take Alvarez for Instance Man City paid £14.1m who seem to have a good scouting network.
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There’s some players you can see that won’t probably fit the way that Unai wants to play but he’s a top coach and I can see an improvement after a relatively short space of time.
His Villarreal team had a few in it that were bombed out of the premiership but he got a tune out of them. Newcastle, Brighton, Fulham, Brentford and Palace are ahead of us but imo their first team or squad overall are no better than ours.
I think a few tweaks rather than wholesale changes.
Yeah, I agree.
If you go through Newcastle's squad, how many players of their's are you swapping for the equivalent player in ours? (e.g. Botman for Diego Carlos, Schar for Mings, Pope for Martinez, ..). I reckon it's single figures, and fairly low single figures. Not to say that they're crap, just that they're not way ahead of what we've already got. Credit has to go to Howe there for building a strong looking side out of a squad that, bar Saint-Maximin, we wouldn't have touched a single player with a bargepole from a little over 12 months ago. But the way people are going on, somehow Chris Wood is the champman regen of Alfredo Di Stefano, and Ollie Watkins can't hold a candle to him ::)
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We probably would but anything above 20 I’d take.
If someone offers us decent money then sell him. If nobody offers us what we want, then that in itself tells you something.
There’s no point keeping him around just because he seems a decent guy or through sentimentality while his value runs down alongside his contract.
He just isn’t good enough at this level.
We saw his strengths and limitations on Monday. He ran his bollocks off, scored one good header, had another disallowed for a marginal offside but missed a couple of seemingly easier chances.I wouldn’t sell him until we know we have better in his position as well as cover for injuries etc. Clearly we need more goals but we also need to replicate his energy, work rate and ability to stretch defences.
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Most of our first team comes from a mixture of Championship or equivalent teams & Premier League reserves. Only Digne, Carlos, Couthino Young, Kamara & Sanson come with any pedigree & some of that is unproven or past it's best.
Emery will, as a minimum get much more from the players we have & a finish between 8-10th is probable.
Add 3-4 quality players with a couple of the youngsters coming through & the season after next is where we should be looking to breakthrough. But with a bit of luck it could be next season.
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Well we’ve played much better and got results with the same players but now they’re being instructed in a certain way so straight away there’s improvement with no money spent.
Put Carlos in with either of the centre halves and you’d hope that a decent partnership will form which would see Mings or Konsa improve. With Martinez behind our back 5 is decent. Newcastle have got Dan Burn playing left back and Schar who has a mistake in him (Mings). Put Ramsey in from Tuesday breaking the lines and there’s immediate improvement, Newcastle have got Longstaff and Willock.
Yes, Watkins is very wasteful but unless we can attract a £50/£60m striker that’s what you’ll get with most. Newcastle have Wilson who is a much better finisher but is injury prone.
We’ve got great potential out on loan. For me maybe 2/3 of the right players in we can bridge the gap.
It doesn't have to be a £50/60m striker, take Alvarez for Instance Man City paid £14.1m who seem to have a good scouting network.
A fair point. It’s not as if he was an unknown either, over the previous couple of seasons he was was of the best players on that continent. It’s probably a market that we could do with getting into although most players would probably take a bit longer to settle than Alvarez has.
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Part of the frustration with Watkins is that we rely on him as the main striker. That would be rectified with a really top signing.
It's easy to say we're 3 or 4 windows away from being able to challenge for the European places. I don't think many people would have seen Arsenal as challengers for the title. When you get the right balance, things can click.
If we can make some key signings, integrate some of the younger players coming through, start getting a tune out of some of what we've got and move out players who don't have a future with us, we'll soon start looking a lot better.
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Part of the frustration with Watkins is that we rely on him as the main striker. That would be rectified with a really top signing.
It's easy to say we're 3 or 4 windows away from being able to challenge for the European places. I don't think many people would have seen Arsenal as challengers for the title. When you get the right balance, things can click.
If we can make some key signings, integrate some of the younger players coming through, start getting a tune out of some of what we've got and move out players who don't have a future with us, we'll soon start looking a lot better.
While I agree. That’s a lot of ifs, buts and maybes, which I guess is why it’s so hard to break the establishment
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Well we’ve played much better and got results with the same players but now they’re being instructed in a certain way so straight away there’s improvement with no money spent.
Put Carlos in with either of the centre halves and you’d hope that a decent partnership will form which would see Mings or Konsa improve. With Martinez behind our back 5 is decent. Newcastle have got Dan Burn playing left back and Schar who has a mistake in him (Mings). Put Ramsey in from Tuesday breaking the lines and there’s immediate improvement, Newcastle have got Longstaff and Willock.
Yes, Watkins is very wasteful but unless we can attract a £50/£60m striker that’s what you’ll get with most. Newcastle have Wilson who is a much better finisher but is injury prone.
We’ve got great potential out on loan. For me maybe 2/3 of the right players in we can bridge the gap.
It doesn't have to be a £50/60m striker, take Alvarez for Instance Man City paid £14.1m who seem to have a good scouting network.
A good scouting network wasn't necessary to spot Alvarez. He was cheap because most Argentinian clubs rely on selling players to Europe and we were heavily linked with him for months.
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Well we’ve played much better and got results with the same players but now they’re being instructed in a certain way so straight away there’s improvement with no money spent.
Put Carlos in with either of the centre halves and you’d hope that a decent partnership will form which would see Mings or Konsa improve. With Martinez behind our back 5 is decent. Newcastle have got Dan Burn playing left back and Schar who has a mistake in him (Mings). Put Ramsey in from Tuesday breaking the lines and there’s immediate improvement, Newcastle have got Longstaff and Willock.
Yes, Watkins is very wasteful but unless we can attract a £50/£60m striker that’s what you’ll get with most. Newcastle have Wilson who is a much better finisher but is injury prone.
We’ve got great potential out on loan. For me maybe 2/3 of the right players in we can bridge the gap.
It doesn't have to be a £50/60m striker, take Alvarez for Instance Man City paid £14.1m who seem to have a good scouting network.
A fair point. It’s not as if he was an unknown either, over the previous couple of seasons he was was of the best players on that continent. It’s probably a market that we could do with getting into although most players would probably take a bit longer to settle than Alvarez has.
the difficulty is the world is very small, especially when it comes to potentially brilliant strikers.
Man City will have been "grooming" him for years, a few quid here a few quid there. The "agent" will have been smoozed as will the family and River Plate. The £14.1 mill or whatever will have been the tip of a very mucky iceberg. This is not a Grealish coming through the ranks, this is the identification of talent at the age of 6 and keeping it close. I have little doubt that for every Alvarez there's a few dozen kids who didn't get to come over to Manchester.
We are looking at "established" strikers who we have not picked up at 6 or 7. We have two lads on our books now who may become the Alvarez contenders in a year or two, Barry and Archer. On the other hand one or both may fall away to playing a lower level.
But that's not what we really need now. We need a striker who is proven at a level, who does not run toward McGinn when he heads across goal and takes the ball in his stride rather than attempt a diving header. They will cost us the £50/60 mill minimum I suspect.
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Well we’ve played much better and got results with the same players but now they’re being instructed in a certain way so straight away there’s improvement with no money spent.
Put Carlos in with either of the centre halves and you’d hope that a decent partnership will form which would see Mings or Konsa improve. With Martinez behind our back 5 is decent. Newcastle have got Dan Burn playing left back and Schar who has a mistake in him (Mings). Put Ramsey in from Tuesday breaking the lines and there’s immediate improvement, Newcastle have got Longstaff and Willock.
Yes, Watkins is very wasteful but unless we can attract a £50/£60m striker that’s what you’ll get with most. Newcastle have Wilson who is a much better finisher but is injury prone.
We’ve got great potential out on loan. For me maybe 2/3 of the right players in we can bridge the gap.
It doesn't have to be a £50/60m striker, take Alvarez for Instance Man City paid £14.1m who seem to have a good scouting network.
A good scouting network wasn't necessary to spot Alvarez. He was cheap because most Argentinian clubs rely on selling players to Europe and we were heavily linked with him for months.
And it's one of those "look, Man City/Chelsea/Liverpool only paid x for him, we could have afforded that" ones which is true, but for the fact there was no way in the world he'd be interested in sigining for us.
I mean, we could probably have afforded the cyborg lad from Norway, but the same again.
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Gonçalo Ramos
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Conchita Martinez then if you're not gonna apply any context (and to retain the SanEtienne leitmotif).
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Conchita Martinez then if you're not gonna apply any context (and to retain the SanEtienne leitmotif).
She always reminded me a little bit of a mouse.
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Most of our first team comes from a mixture of Championship or equivalent teams & Premier League reserves. Only Digne, Carlos, Couthino Young, Kamara & Sanson come with any pedigree & some of that is unproven or past it's best.
Emery will, as a minimum get much more from the players we have & a finish between 8-10th is probable.
Add 3-4 quality players with a couple of the youngsters coming through & the season after next is where we should be looking to breakthrough. But with a bit of luck it could be next season.
We've still got some major holes in the side, in that we haven't really got many proper wide options. I think that getting some quality in the wide attacking areas alone would see us improve considerably.
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Most of our first team comes from a mixture of Championship or equivalent teams & Premier League reserves. Only Digne, Carlos, Couthino Young, Kamara & Sanson come with any pedigree & some of that is unproven or past it's best.
I'm not sure that's a metric that's worth judging as good or bad.
I reckon most people would consider "Premier League reserve" Martinez as more important than the pedigree of Young or Sanson. Give me as many Premier League reserves as possible if that's what they're going to be like.
I'd also say that Bailey deserves a spot on the list above as much as Kamara or Sanson do.
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Well we’ve played much better and got results with the same players but now they’re being instructed in a certain way so straight away there’s improvement with no money spent.
Put Carlos in with either of the centre halves and you’d hope that a decent partnership will form which would see Mings or Konsa improve. With Martinez behind our back 5 is decent. Newcastle have got Dan Burn playing left back and Schar who has a mistake in him (Mings). Put Ramsey in from Tuesday breaking the lines and there’s immediate improvement, Newcastle have got Longstaff and Willock.
Yes, Watkins is very wasteful but unless we can attract a £50/£60m striker that’s what you’ll get with most. Newcastle have Wilson who is a much better finisher but is injury prone.
We’ve got great potential out on loan. For me maybe 2/3 of the right players in we can bridge the gap.
It doesn't have to be a £50/60m striker, take Alvarez for Instance Man City paid £14.1m who seem to have a good scouting network.
A good scouting network wasn't necessary to spot Alvarez. He was cheap because most Argentinian clubs rely on selling players to Europe and we were heavily linked with him for months.
And it's one of those "look, Man City/Chelsea/Liverpool only paid x for him, we could have afforded that" ones which is true, but for the fact there was no way in the world he'd be interested in sigining for us.
I mean, we could probably have afforded the cyborg lad from Norway, but the same again.
Not the way our wage structure is!
Price of purchase is not the main cost nowadays. I suspect we could compete. However, Salah is on £350k a week, so £18 mill a year, De Bruyne is on £20 mill and Haarland 19.8 mill. Grealish a reported £15.5 mill. per year.
That’s where the real squeeze is nowadays and with the House of Saud willing to pay out enough money per week to bang average players to buy the whole of the North East twice over, adds another layer.
I’d be surprised to see the transfer record beaten in the near future, but I’m willing to bet De Bruyne wages will be bettered by one of Man U, Newcastle, Chelsea or Liverpool very soon.
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I think we can all agree that we could do with another striker but I dont think that should mean Ollie being flogged. Whilst he's not prolific, he's still a decent player to have around.
We'll massively struggle to sell Ings given his profile so problem will be having two expensive and 20m + strikers on the bench as opposed to just the one.
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I think we can all agree that we could do with another striker but I dont think that should mean Ollie being flogged. Whilst he's not prolific, he's still a decent player to have around.
We'll massively struggle to sell Ings given his profile so problem will be having two expensive and 20m + strikers on the bench as opposed to just the one.
We'd sell him easily enough, we just probably wouldn't get all our money back but I guess that was taken into account when we signed him.
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I'd like to see us upgrade our centre halves, but that feels like it can wait until the summer if it must - we will know more about Carlos by the end of the season too (as in whether he is the same player after the injury). But we really must to sign a goalscoring centre forward - blow the whole budget on one if needs be. That would give us a good chance a top 8 finish this season. I'm sure they're trying.
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This isn’t aimed at you Rigadon but I do find it odd when people say just buy a goal scoring forward. I think unless you’re like Citeh, with Haaland, it is incredibly hard to do. There aren’t many about, which means if you’re Villa you’re buying on hope that potential materialises or someone who’s slightly past their prime.
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This isn’t aimed at you Rigadon but I do find it odd when people say just buy a goal scoring forward. I think unless you’re like Citeh, with Haaland, it is incredibly hard to do. There aren’t many about, which means if you’re Villa you’re buying on hope that potential materialises or someone who’s slightly past their prime.
I agree that it's not easy, or everyone would do it! But, we are an extremely wealthy club, in the most cash rich league in the world by some distance, so I'd hope that (and us now having a proper manager) should go in our favour. At least we can afford it, which is not something other clubs can say with as much confidence.
My point was more about the need to get one, more than the likelihood of getting one. But I'm confident we are trying.
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the 3/4 windows to become a top 6-8 challenging team only works if you get the first 1/2 windows right
If the next window is a poor one we will keep being 3/4 windows away
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haven't we been saying this since we came up?
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This isn’t aimed at you Rigadon but I do find it odd when people say just buy a goal scoring forward. I think unless you’re like Citeh, with Haaland, it is incredibly hard to do. There aren’t many about, which means if you’re Villa you’re buying on hope that potential materialises or someone who’s slightly past their prime.
We actually did that with Ings didn’t we? Isn’t his record 1 in 3 before signing for us?
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Having a consistent goalscoring forward does help, but it doesn't mean nowadays that you are going to be in the top 6. Haaland is a bit of a one-off, but Arsenal don't have an 'out and out' goalscoring forward; they have several that regularly chip in.
Meanwhile Brentford have Toney, Fulham have Mitrovic and Leeds have Rodrigo all currently in the top 5 scorers. I don't think any of those teams will finish in the top 6.
I think it's more important that there is a solid defence (look at Newcastle) and more creativity across the team, with several players who are capable of scoring a few goals.
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I agree Rougegorge. A solid shape, organised, hard to beat and a eye for goal around the pitch.
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I'd tap up the likes of Harvey Barnes or Hudson Odoi. I think we need a ball carrier on the opposite flank to Bailey. Or perhaps look at some sort of loan for Jaydon Sancho to give him game time.
I was reading the article about Dean Saunders in the Liverpool programme what stuck with me was when it said we were 11th when he joined a few weeks later we were 3rd. A quick way to jump up the league
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I'd tap up the likes of Harvey Barnes or Hudson Odoi. I think we need a ball carrier on the opposite flank to Bailey. Or perhaps look at some sort of loan for Jaydon Sancho to give him game time.
I was reading the article about Dean Saunders in the Liverpool programme what stuck with me was when it said we were 11th when he joined a few weeks later we were 3rd. A quick way to jump up the league
Harvey Barnes ok, but Sancho and Odi?
No thanks.
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I agree Rougegorge. A solid shape, organised, hard to beat and a eye for goal around the pitch.
Spot on. Under Gerrard this season, we scored 7 goals in 11 league games. In the 5 games since he was potted, we’ve scored 10 goals from 5 different scorers. We will make chances but short term success will stem from a solid defensive base.
But having said that, strikers are sexy so let’s get Abraham and Felix.
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haven't we been saying this since we came up?
Grealish leaving set us back years I'm afraid.
If you keep a player of that quality and add likes of Ings and Bailey then that would've been ridiculously exciting and it would've been justified to talk about top 6. Instead the attacking dynamic hasn't looked right at all for 18 months.
Same now if we get in 2-3 really good players in the summer.....only to see Ramsey leave on August 31st because some oil baron club decided he's a good alternative if they can't sign Bellingham.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
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I'd tap up the likes of Harvey Barnes or Hudson Odoi. I think we need a ball carrier on the opposite flank to Bailey. Or perhaps look at some sort of loan for Jaydon Sancho to give him game time.
I was reading the article about Dean Saunders in the Liverpool programme what stuck with me was when it said we were 11th when he joined a few weeks later we were 3rd. A quick way to jump up the league
Barnes would be a good signing if we could prise him away from Leicester. I would also look at trying to get Tammy Abraham. Think he would be coming back to England with a point to prove and to a club that he knows. Not top quality at this point, but could be over the next couple of years and is the type of forward we need.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
Not sure Leicester had this mindset a few years ago
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
I bet Arsenal are really upset with how Ødegaard is doing for them.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
I bet Arsenal are really upset with how Ødegaard is doing for them.
which has nothing to do with my comment.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
I bet Arsenal are really upset with how Ødegaard is doing for them.
Who was that keeper that couldn't get a start at Arsenal? Forgot what happened to him
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
I bet Arsenal are really upset with how Ødegaard is doing for them.
which has nothing to do with my comment.
How do you work that out then?
He's precisely the sort of "Real Madrid misfits and youngsters" that you'd be dopily rejecting.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
I bet Arsenal are really upset with how Ødegaard is doing for them.
Who was that keeper that couldn't get a start at Arsenal? Forgot what happened to him
Ended up being the most hated man in football apparently
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We've still got some major holes in the side, in that we haven't really got many proper wide options. I think that getting some quality in the wide attacking areas alone would see us improve considerably.
And there's the rub. We have wingers in the club - Traore, JPB, K Young being three. Gerrard largely stripped the winger-concept out of the squad. The thing is, Bailey and Traore - as an example - would cause defences some trouble, with a decent goalscorer in the middle (Ings would fit this role). These would work if, for example, we played Kamara and Dendoncker in the middle, with Buendia or Ramsey behind the striker.
Alternatively, playing young wingers is less of a risk / more uncertainty for the oppo than playing inexperienced central midfielders or defenders.
The likelihood is that one of the V'real winger / midfielders will come in, to provide more penetration than Buendia does off the right - I think that players like Jackson can play through the middle too.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
Newcastle? Mate, like it or not, they are now in the top echelons of this league.
I agree we need to be more consistent and, we wont compete financially with the top 4, but that doesn’t mean we need to accept we facilitate anyone - buy smart (eg Kamara, McGinn, Martinez) make sure their sell on clauses contain huge fees (eg Grealish), rinse/repeat, and we can absolutely compete for Europe within the next 2 years. Arsenal are a great example of a club who didn’t need to spend anywhere like the money City, Utd, 'The Mighty Reds YNWA', Tottenham have spent to reap progression
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
Newcastle? Mate, like it or not, they are now in the top echelons of this league.
I agree we need to be more consistent and, we wont compete financially with the top 4, but that doesn’t mean we need to accept we facilitate anyone - buy smart (eg Kamara, McGinn, Martinez) make sure their sell on clauses contain huge fees (eg Grealish), rinse/repeat, and we can absolutely compete for Europe within the next 2 years. Arsenal are a great example of a club who didn’t need to spend anywhere like the money City, Utd, 'The Mighty Reds YNWA', Tottenham have spent to reap progression
Arsenal have done a great job of integrating their kids into Premier League football - Saliba, Saka, Martinelli, ESR, Nketiah - whilst bringing in high-quality players like Gavbriel, Oodegaard, Tierney, Zinchenko and Jesus. We need to find a way of doing likewise over the next 6-8 months with those whom we believe really can become regular and high-performing Premier League players.
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I agree we need to be more consistent and, we wont compete financially with the top 4, but that doesn’t mean we need to accept we facilitate anyone - buy smart (eg Kamara, McGinn, Martinez) make sure their sell on clauses contain huge fees (eg Grealish), rinse/repeat, and we can absolutely compete for Europe within the next 2 years. Arsenal are a great example of a club who didn’t need to spend anywhere like the money City, Utd, 'The Mighty Reds YNWA', Tottenham have spent to reap progression
Arsneal have spent a fortune the last three transfer windows, especially last year when it was the thick end of £200m.
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I'd tap up the likes of Harvey Barnes or Hudson Odoi. I think we need a ball carrier on the opposite flank to Bailey. Or perhaps look at some sort of loan for Jaydon Sancho to give him game time.
I was reading the article about Dean Saunders in the Liverpool programme what stuck with me was when it said we were 11th when he joined a few weeks later we were 3rd. A quick way to jump up the league
Barnes is a good shout but I really hope we’ve seen the last of warming up Man Utd’s subs for them, or anyone else for that matter.
As for Deano, I think he signed 3 or so games in to a season where we’d finished 7th the year before, so his statement doesn’t look quite as spectacular when you consider that. He was supposed to be the final piece and he did well though to be fair to him.
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With Liverpool having six forwards on their books, I wonder if they'd let Jota go and how much would he fetch?
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With Liverpool having six forwards on their books, I wonder if they'd let Jota go and how much would he fetch?
Good shout that
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
I bet Arsenal are really upset with how Ødegaard is doing for them.
which has nothing to do with my comment.
How do you work that out then?
He's precisely the sort of "Real Madrid misfits and youngsters" that you'd be dopily rejecting.
We obviously have a different interpretation of Dante's post.
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I'd love a player like Jota at Villa, although I doubt they'd let him go. Losing Mané has properly buggered them and I think they seem Jota as one of the first choices when fit. I think he's injured until February anyway.
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Plus he still dreams of Wolves in his sleep. Avoid.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
I bet Arsenal are really upset with how Ødegaard is doing for them.
which has nothing to do with my comment.
How do you work that out then?
He's precisely the sort of "Real Madrid misfits and youngsters" that you'd be dopily rejecting.
We obviously have a different interpretation of Dante's post.
Go on then, how are you interpreting it?
I'm guessing that a 22 year old that Real Madrid kept farming out on loan to various countries and then wanted rid of, only for him to become very successful in the Premier League is exactly the sort of thing he has in mind.
Which sort of player do you reckon Dante is suggesting we should sign?
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
I bet Arsenal are really upset with how Ødegaard is doing for them.
which has nothing to do with my comment.
How do you work that out then?
He's precisely the sort of "Real Madrid misfits and youngsters" that you'd be dopily rejecting.
We obviously have a different interpretation of Dante's post.
Go on then, how are you interpreting it?
I'm guessing that a 22 year old that Real Madrid kept farming out on loan to various countries and then wanted rid of, only for him to become very successful in the Premier League is exactly the sort of thing he has in mind.
Which sort of player do you reckon Dante is suggesting we should sign?
Dave, this might be sport for you but I think I will leave it there.
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Dave wins, Chicago retired from the bout
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But it's one of those "tennis players quits after one set with a slightly twisted ankle" rather than "boxer forced off with blood gushing from a massive cut on his forehead" ones.
Bit unsatisfying really.
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Can someone explain to me how Chelsea have signed three players when the window isn’t even open yet?
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Can someone explain to me how Chelsea have signed three players when the window isn’t even open yet?
They can’t play them before the window is open and they are fully registered. It’s like Liverpool with Gakpo.
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Can someone explain to me how Chelsea have signed three players when the window isn’t even open yet?
One of which being a 22-goals-in-24-games (albeit for Molde) striker costing only £11m?
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Can someone explain to me how Chelsea have signed three players when the window isn’t even open yet?
By not actually officially signing them yet.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
I bet Arsenal are really upset with how Ødegaard is doing for them.
which has nothing to do with my comment.
How do you work that out then?
He's precisely the sort of "Real Madrid misfits and youngsters" that you'd be dopily rejecting.
We obviously have a different interpretation of Dante's post.
For what it’s worth, Dave has understood my post. We need to do something different other than outbidding our nearest rivals all the tine as that isn’t sustainable and increases the likelihood that we end up like Everton.
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When the seagulls follow the trawler.
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I hate to say it but for the next couple of season we should swallow our pride and accept a role as facilitators for the world’s best. position ourselves as a good home for “Real Madrid” misfits and youngsters that cannot get games. Or a bigger Leicester where the world’s best come for a year or two before joining …Barca or whoever.
we need to think differently, otherwise we’re just another club in the ‘who is the richest’ queue.
And that would get us absolutely nowhere.
First we need to consistently be above West Ham, Leicester, Newcastle and Everton. Once there, we can make better plans and target Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and whoever is having a blip between Liverpool, Man U and Man City.
and you think us being a feeder club for misfits and maybes is the way to get there.
I bet Arsenal are really upset with how Ødegaard is doing for them.
which has nothing to do with my comment.
How do you work that out then?
He's precisely the sort of "Real Madrid misfits and youngsters" that you'd be dopily rejecting.
We obviously have a different interpretation of Dante's post.
Go on then, how are you interpreting it?
I'm guessing that a 22 year old that Real Madrid kept farming out on loan to various countries and then wanted rid of, only for him to become very successful in the Premier League is exactly the sort of thing he has in mind.
Which sort of player do you reckon Dante is suggesting we should sign?
Can see where CL is coming from though Dave. It doesn't really give you stability if you are heavily relying on loan players and young upcoming players. One or two of those type of players maybe, but I think we would need a solid squad in place to support them.
What we haven't done well for some time now is using the money we have got in when our best players are inevitably sold to bring in adequate replacements.
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When the seagulls follow the trawler.
Their manager gets eaten by Lions.
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With Liverpool having six forwards on their books, I wonder if they'd let Jota go and how much would he fetch?
Likely Firmino will be first out door. Wouldn't be surprised if a desperate Everton went for him.
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Rumours seen so far today
In
Joao Felix
Alex Moreno
Nicolas Jackson
Arnaut Danjuma
Geoffrey Kondogbia
Out
Augustinsson (not happy at lack of minutes and not being in squad for Boxing Day)
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Rumours seen so far today
In
Joao Felix
Alex Moreno
Nicolas Jackson
Arnaut Danjuma
Geoffrey Kondogbia
Out
Augustinsson (not happy at lack of minutes and not being in squad for Boxing Day)
Rumours that Southampton want Bednarek back as well.
I think most of those 'ins' are pretty lazy but the Joao Felix one seems to have been lingering for a lot longer than I expected it to.
Kondogbia is the one that stands out a bit mostly because I see absolutely no point in it. Kamara is clearly good enough to be our DM for a very long time and with Dendoncker, Tim and Raikhy all around as cover I just see no need to be looking at ball winning midfielders unless it's someone genuinely world class and that's not Kondogbia.
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Rumours seen so far today
In
Joao Felix
Alex Moreno
Nicolas Jackson
Arnaut Danjuma
Geoffrey Kondogbia
Out
Augustinsson (not happy at lack of minutes and not being in squad for Boxing Day)
Also seen a couple of places saying Bednarek might be going back to Soton.
Edit: just saw paul_e beat me to that one
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Doubt Joao Felix wants to play for a team in the bottom half of the league - he can do better than where we are at the moment, if he fancies it for the longer term, then that's different
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But it's one of those "tennis players quits after one set with a slightly twisted ankle" rather than "boxer forced off with blood gushing from a massive cut on his forehead" ones.
Bit unsatisfying really.
Yep, it's the picking one player to make a point argument, like when people mention Joelinton coming good after being shit for two years.
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Rumours seen so far today
In
Joao Felix
Alex Moreno
Nicolas Jackson
Arnaut Danjuma
Geoffrey Kondogbia
Out
Augustinsson (not happy at lack of minutes and not being in squad for Boxing Day)
Rumours that Southampton want Bednarek back as well.
I think most of those 'ins' are pretty lazy but the Joao Felix one seems to have been lingering for a lot longer than I expected it to.
Kondogbia is the one that stands out a bit mostly because I see absolutely no point in it. Kamara is clearly good enough to be our DM for a very long time and with Dendoncker, Tim and Raikhy all around as cover I just see no need to be looking at ball winning midfielders unless it's someone genuinely world class and that's not Kondogbia.
Rumours seen so far today
In
Joao Felix
Alex Moreno
Nicolas Jackson
Arnaut Danjuma
Geoffrey Kondogbia
Out
Augustinsson (not happy at lack of minutes and not being in squad for Boxing Day)
Add Doulas Luiz to the possible out list too
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And there’s a new tag on the ‘Coutinhos off’ daily click bait bollocks.
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But it's one of those "tennis players quits after one set with a slightly twisted ankle" rather than "boxer forced off with blood gushing from a massive cut on his forehead" ones.
Bit unsatisfying really.
Yep, it's the picking one player to make a point argument, like when people mention Joelinton coming good after being shit for two years.
Or when we sign some sort of washed-up hopeless case of a centre half and people say "Ha, yes, but I remember thinking the same about a certain alcoholic, knees-fucked written off defender in the past, and he was our best ever" as a defence.
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But it's one of those "tennis players quits after one set with a slightly twisted ankle" rather than "boxer forced off with blood gushing from a massive cut on his forehead" ones.
Bit unsatisfying really.
Yep, it's the picking one player to make a point argument, like when people mention Joelinton coming good after being shit for two years.
Or when we sign some sort of washed-up hopeless case of a centre half and people say "Ha, yes, but I remember thinking the same about a certain alcoholic, knees-fucked written off defender in the past, and he was our best ever" as a defence.
"Give the manager more time, it took Ferguson three years to get it right at Man Utd"
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"Give the manager more time, it took Ferguson three years to get it right at Man Utd"
That one really grinds my gears. Ignoring as it does, the fact that Man U finished runners up in his second season.
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"Give the manager more time, it took Ferguson three years to get it right at Man Utd"
That one really grinds my gears. Ignoring as it does, the fact that Man U finished runners up in his second season.
In his five full seasons before they won the league they would in normal circumstances have qualified for Europe four times, they'd won three trophies plus the Super Cup and he was their most successful manager since Busby.
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"Give the manager more time, it took Ferguson three years to get it right at Man Utd"
That one really grinds my gears. Ignoring as it does, the fact that Man U finished runners up in his second season.
In his five full seasons before they won the league they would in normal circumstances have qualified for Europe four times, they'd won three trophies plus the Super Cup and he was their most successful manager since Busby.
But apart from that, what have the Romans....
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It's all Leeds fault anyway. Who phones up Man Utd to try and buy a player they're not going to sell (Dennis Irwin), only to end up instead selling them the player that would define them for the next half a decade (Cantona)? Maybe they were in a hurry as they needed to get back to that Nigerian prince that had phoned earlier.
Morons.
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It's all Leeds fault anyway. Who phones up Man Utd to try and buy a player they're not going to sell (Dennis Irwin), only to end up instead selling them the player that would define them for the next half a decade (Cantona)? Maybe they were in a hurry as they needed to get back to that Nigerian prince that had phoned earlier.
Morons.
On a similar note, I've never forgiven Sheffield Wednesday or Nigel Worthington.
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Me either, useless twats.
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If an opposition player has a bad/quiet game against us he's invariably "shit". In which case, most non-Villa fans must think our team is full of crap when they beat us.
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If an opposition player has a bad/quiet game against us he's invariably "shit". In which case, most non-Villa fans must think our team is full of crap when they beat us.
Not sure they're entirely wrong either...
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Another reason to not like Sheff Weds is Ferguson kept trying to sign David Hirst, especially in 92/93, Weds kept refusing so they ended up signing Cantona instead.
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It's all Leeds fault anyway. Who phones up Man Utd to try and buy a player they're not going to sell (Dennis Irwin), only to end up instead selling them the player that would define them for the next half a decade (Cantona)? Maybe they were in a hurry as they needed to get back to that Nigerian prince that had phoned earlier.
Morons.
Yup, and Leslie Ash didn't help matters either.
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Gerard Delofeu linked, tenuously. Was a good player at one stage, not sure about now though. BBC gossip page.
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Gerard Delofeu linked, tenuously. Was a good player at one stage, not sure about now though. BBC gossip page.
Was superb in that Wolves semi final.
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Gerard Delofeu linked, tenuously. Was a good player at one stage, not sure about now though. BBC gossip page.
Was superb in that Wolves semi final.
I thought he was great in Cyrano de Bergerac.
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Rodrigo De Paul being mentioned
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Rodrigo De Paul being mentioned
More energy than Lynsey De Paul.
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Rodrigo De Paul being mentioned
A wonderful player.
Suspect it’s a pipe dream for us right now
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Gerard Delofeu linked, tenuously. Was a good player at one stage, not sure about now though. BBC gossip page.
Was superb in that Wolves semi final.
I thought he was great in Cyrano de Bergerac.
It's no for me if he's a Nose.
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Gerard Delofeu linked, tenuously. Was a good player at one stage, not sure about now though. BBC gossip page.
Apparently he's be really good for Udinese with a goal or assist every other game. I'm still not entirely sure I'd want him though, he's never really lived up to the hype when he was a teenager and only really had 1 good season in the premier league.
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I would love De Paul, never going to n happen, but he was brilliant for Argentina.
Delefou is a very good player, interesting link.
Sarr has pace, which we lack.
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Rodrigo De Paul being mentioned
That would be pornographic. He seems to be the player many of us had hoped McGinn would become. Get to work Agent Dibu!
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Rodrigo De Paul being mentioned
A wonderful player.
Suspect it’s a pipe dream for us right now
No so sure. Atletico need the cash and he doesn't seem to be that popular with Simone. 12 starts this season but only finished one game. They'll probably double the price they would have asked before the World Cup. I reckon there's a deal to be done.
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Playing in the PL is very attractive for a lot of players. While they might sacrifice CL or just European football initially the money (wages and commercially) is hard to pass up. It would be brilliant if Emi’s status and connections to the Argentina players helped attract one or two of his teammates.
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Playing in the PL is very attractive for a lot of players. While they might sacrifice CL or just European football initially the money (wages and commercially) is hard to pass up. It would be brilliant if Emi’s status and connections to the Argentina players helped attract one or two of his teammates.
That little number 10 they had looked quite useful.
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Lo Celso is more realistic than De Paul imo. Played for Unai at PSG and Villareal.
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We're an hour into the transfer window and not a single signing. It's a disgrace.
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Aii l read is Villa being interested in players who are out of favour at their present clubs or players that have been in the Prem before and failed.
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Aii l read is Villa being interested in players who are out of favour at their present clubs or players that have been in the Prem before and failed.
Luckily we often don’t read about transfers before they happen.
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Aston Villa are monitoring the situation of Everton and England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, with the 28-year-old yet to sign a new deal with just over a year remaining on his current contract at Goodison Park. (Sun)
A decent back up I suppose 😂
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The German newspaper Bild is linking us with Marcus Thuram
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We're an hour into the transfer window and not a single signing. It's a disgrace.
Understandable, we didn't want to give the tabloids a chance to use an 'Auld Lange Sign' headline.
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The German newspaper Bild is linking us with Marcus Thuram
That's lovely of them. Will get our name out in Germany, maybe boost our profile in the Rhineland amongst the local population of wildlife and humanfolk.
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The German newspaper Bild is linking us with Marcus Thuram
That's lovely of them. Will get our name out in Germany, maybe boost our profile in the Rhineland amongst the local population of wildlife and humanfolk.
Today's result will help too.
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The German newspaper Bild is linking us with Marcus Thuram
That's lovely of them. Will get our name out in Germany, maybe boost our profile in the Rhineland amongst the local population of wildlife and humanfolk.
Today's result will help too.
I think Thuram would be a superb signing, I've liked th elook of him for a few years.
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The German newspaper Bild is linking us with Marcus Thuram
That's lovely of them. Will get our name out in Germany, maybe boost our profile in the Rhineland amongst the local population of wildlife and humanfolk.
Today's result will help too.
I think Thuram would be a superb signing, I've liked th elook of him for a few years.
Don’t know much about players outside the Prem, so if we got him, who’s place would be under threat?
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The German newspaper Bild is linking us with Marcus Thuram
That's lovely of them. Will get our name out in Germany, maybe boost our profile in the Rhineland amongst the local population of wildlife and humanfolk.
Today's result will help too.
I think Thuram would be a superb signing, I've liked th elook of him for a few years.
Don’t know much about players outside the Prem, so if we got him, who’s place would be under threat?
I'm honestly not sure, he plays in the same areas as Watkins but I suspect him and Watkins would work really well together so more likely Bailey but really he'd be an alternative to both who could play all across the front and has the pace and strength to bully defenders. Better finisher than Watkins as welll but oddly (given his height) not so good in the air.
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Having a pair of Ollie Watkins, one with shooting boots as well, would cause absolute mayhem for the opposition in Emery's system
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Aston Villa are monitoring the situation of Everton and England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, with the 28-year-old yet to sign a new deal with just over a year remaining on his current contract at Goodison Park. (Sun)
A decent back up I suppose 😂
Bit of lazy drop by the *** as most clubs would be monitoring it.
Anyway I am not in favour of Pickford as third choice holding back our young keepers development.
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Aston Villa are monitoring the situation of Everton and England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, with the 28-year-old yet to sign a new deal with just over a year remaining on his current contract at Goodison Park. (Sun)
A decent back up I suppose 😂
Bit of lazy drop by the *** as most clubs would be monitoring it.
Anyway I am not in favour of Pickford as third choice holding back our young keepers development.
Maybe it's to do like I used to on Championship Manager, sign him on a free and sell him after a month for about £15m and pocket the cash.
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With the transfer window officially open, I would like to see an active move for some top players to improve the overall quality of the squad.
It would be fantastic to bring in some world-class talent.
Such as Felix or Hazard.
From recent football I like Croatian goalkeeper Livakovic and centre back. Gvardiol. Moroccan midfielder Amrabat.
If we can't get Hazard, Felix, or even Thuram, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia or Kaoru Mitoma would be a replacement for Grealish role and would not cost £100 million.
Grealish himself would be an option in subsequent windows, as there is a lot of speculation that he will not see out his six-year contract at Manchester City. So after three seasons they have paid us 50 million Villa so a deal could be done there in the future where he essentially comes back for free as transfer fee owed!
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Back to current window I've seen in the Italian and champions league a Striker Victor Osimhen is at Napoli and appears to be a fantastic who would be a great addition up front. Kvaratskhelia is another at Napoli I scouted and think he would bring some entertainment and flair to compliment Bailey on either side.
There are several other players who could do well in Emery's system like Lo Celso, but these are the players that some of us here may be familiar with seeing them play in the world cup, so I wanted to bring them into discussion now the windows opened.
I predict these will all improve in coming seasons wherever they move so would be great addition and wise for Villa to move for them.
Livakovic
Gvardiol
Amrabat
Mitoma
Kvaratskhelia
Osimhen
Thuram
Felix
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Only Gvardiol and Amrabat from that list. Just think how awesome Carlos and Gvardiol will look in the centre of our defence.
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We don't need Livakovic, we have the keeper who was better then him at the world cup.
Kvaratskhelia isn't going anywhere for a while, he only joined them 6 months ago.
Osimhen will leave but probably in the summer and to a team that will be looking at challenging for the CL.
Gvardiol is in a similar market but will go this window.
I suspect Amrabat will go to Liverpool.
Mitoma I don't think is that great, not sure he'd add much to the squad.
Thuram and Felix are the 2 I think we couldsuprise people with. Both very good players:
Thuram is too good for where he is but I think he might be seen as a bit too much of a gamble for the CL teams (a bit like Bailey last summer).
Felix is superb but hasn't quite lived up to expectations at Atletico so I can see them taking the money but it all comes down to what other interest there is, it could be another Kamara signing where we nip ahead of a few but would be pretty unlikely.
I like most of the list though and I've not got a huge amount to add. I'd really like someone who can score from out wide to take the pressure off Watkins to be a goalscorer and let him be the all-action terror he can be at his best (like today).
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I presume we are going to let Traore stay where he is? Would be really interesting to see how he would fare under this management team. Perhaps he and Bailey could interchange from the bench.
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I presume we are going to let Traore stay where he is? Would be really interesting to see how he would fare under this management team. Perhaps he and Bailey could interchange from the bench.
I'd take Adama Trarore back as well in the hope Emery can develop him and make him assured.
That would be something to have him and Bailey!
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#BringBackBert
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Bring them all back!
Trez and AEG under Emery would be fantastic too!
He could coach them to a better standard
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Despite the good win today, I still consider McGinn, Bailey, Konsa and Buendia to be weaker links in the side and are perhaps squad players rather than guaranteed starters. If we can add a couple to replace, mostly, McGinn and Buendia, this window, that would be a huge step forward, especially if they are players who are purchased for a square peg in a square hole type of thing. Emery will get the best out the current batch, but it will come to a time where we can't get any further forward without added quality. Really looking forward to what we have lined up.
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Would be a great time to go on a winning run now and results like today might convince some quality players that we are a club moving in the right direction.
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Despite the good win today, I still consider McGinn, Bailey, Konsa and Buendia to be weaker links in the side and are perhaps squad players rather than guaranteed starters. If we can add a couple to replace, mostly, McGinn and Buendia, this window, that would be a huge step forward, especially if they are players who are purchased for a square peg in a square hole type of thing. Emery will get the best out the current batch, but it will come to a time where we can't get any further forward without added quality. Really looking forward to what we have lined up.
I would like to see Ramsay be the replacement for McGinn in today’s midfield rather than buy one. Let Buendia and Phil battle it out for their place. Let’s see how Carlos does on his return rather than buy a replacement for Konsa.
Quick, powerful, hard-working good finisher top priority for me, to replace or play with Ollie/Leon. Apart from that I haven’t been massively impressed with Digne.
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Carlos is an unknown quantity, in his appearances before the injury he seemed, to me anyway, to struggle with the pace of the premiership.
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He played 2 league games and got injured during the second vs Everton. I’m not sure anyone can say if he struggled in that span of time. Plus Steven Gerrard was manager and as we have seen all previously held opinions of our players need to be reevaluated with Emery now in charge. Diego was very good at Sevilla.
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That was a nasty injury that Carlos got so I’d expect even if he does return to squad in Feb that Mings & Konsa will be our centre halves for most of rest of season - we really could do with a Cup run to bring Carlos back into the fold in rounds 5/6 and through to Wembley.
Intrigued with what January (& the summer) bring, not having La Liga on sky anymore I don’t see many of the players we are linked with so looking forward to seeing new faces for the first time
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Carlos is an unknown quantity, in his appearances before the injury he seemed, to me anyway, to struggle with the pace of the premiership.
I wasn’t convinced either, nor in the pre-season friendlies when people were raving about him and seeing something I wasn’t. All the same, for £30m we have to find out for sure I suppose.
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This the first transfer thread I can remember where we aren’t all clamouring for a ball playing DCM. I think we’ve found The One.
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Bert isn't exactly ripping up Turkey, is he?
I don't think he works hard enough for Emery.
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This the first transfer thread I can remember where we aren’t all clamouring for a ball playing DCM. I think we’ve found The One.
Quick! Let’s stick him at CB! ;)
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This the first transfer thread I can remember where we aren’t all clamouring for a ball playing DCM. I think we’ve found The One.
Quick! Let’s stick him at CB! ;)
Bert? :D
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This the first transfer thread I can remember where we aren’t all clamouring for a ball playing DCM. I think we’ve found The One.
Quick! Let’s stick him at CB! ;)
Ha ha!
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Lens are having a great season in France currently, won 3-1 v PSG last night and are only four points off them.
Really like the look of Facundo Medina. Can play CL or LB and played yesterday as left sided CB in 3-4-2-1 so when people say we need to sign players before they hit 40-50m bracket he fits that profile.
Only 23 and two caps for Argentina so with the growing SA contingent in the squad he'd be a good fit as someone to sign and ease in over next six months.
Fofana in central midfield is pretty good aswell but as their captain will be harder to tempt away.
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Bert isn't exactly ripping up Turkey, is he?
I don't think he works hard enough for Emery.
I do think it might be worth getting him back in for the remainder of the season so that Unai Emery could at least get the chance to work with him and see how he does.
He was very inconsistent during his time with us, but was capable of some sublime moments of skill and as a result Iwouldnt give up on him just yet.
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Carlos is an unknown quantity, in his appearances before the injury he seemed, to me anyway, to struggle with the pace of the premiership.
I wasn’t convinced either, nor in the pre-season friendlies when people were raving about him and seeing something I wasn’t. All the same, for £30m we have to find out for sure I suppose.
Yeah but he was playing in a Gerrard team that made everyone look shit.
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Bert isn't exactly ripping up Turkey, is he?
I don't think he works hard enough for Emery.
I do think it might be worth getting him back in for the remainder of the season so that Unai Emery could at least get the chance to work with him and see how he does.
He was very inconsistent during his time with us, but was capable of some sublime moments of skill and as a result Iwouldnt give up on him just yet.
I agree with you, but then I’ve always liked Maverick type players
I’m not sure they fit in with Emery’s footballing systems though he seems more pragmatic and organised, With every player having a specific job which probably isn’t Traoré’s strong point , I’m not sure Traoré could fit into any of Emery’s playing styles
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Carlos is an unknown quantity, in his appearances before the injury he seemed, to me anyway, to struggle with the pace of the premiership.
I wasn’t convinced either, nor in the pre-season friendlies when people were raving about him and seeing something I wasn’t. All the same, for £30m we have to find out for sure I suppose.
Yeah but he was playing in a Gerrard team that made everyone look shit.
True say.
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Is that the new "true, dat"?
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Is that the new "true, dat"?
Probably a bit older really. But yeah, same thing.
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How much would Pickford cost? If we could sell Martinez and replace with Pickford for massive profit would be a great trade.
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How much would Pickford cost? If we could sell Martinez and replace with Pickford for massive profit would be a great trade.
Counterpoint- we just keep the one that we already own and is about three times as good.
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Let's sell Kamara for a massive profit and replace him with James Mccarthy.
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How much would Pickford cost? If we could sell Martinez and replace with Pickford for massive profit would be a great trade.
Don’t do drugs kids.
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How much would Pickford cost? If we could sell Martinez and replace with Pickford for massive profit would be a great trade.
Counterpoint- we just keep the one that we already own and is about three times as good.
I'd put them on a par.
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Footy V was going to give us an insight into the potential of the transfer window. Is that still happening? Is he still in discussions with Lange?
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How much would Pickford cost? If we could sell Martinez and replace with Pickford for massive profit would be a great trade.
Counterpoint- we just keep the one that we already own and is about three times as good.
I'd put them on a par.
Next up, "why we should replace Kamara with Idrissa Gueye because we might make a few million profit on it"
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But they're definitely not on a par
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Neither are Pickford and Martinez
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Pickford is a great keeper. Not as good as Martinez, no, but not that far off.
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Pickford is a great keeper. Not as good as Martinez, no, but not that far off.
So even in your own opinion not on a par then?
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Pickford is a great keeper. Not as good as Martinez, no, but not that far off.
So even in your own opinion not on a par then?
Borderline par
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Iffy samsies.
But could potentially be up 40-50m on the trade so if that helps towards a 20 goal a season striker would be big net benefit.
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40-50 million, seriously!?
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Pickford is running his contract down, isn't he?
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No thanks. Pickford is vastly overrated. His face irritates me as well. Infinitely punchable.
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Pickford is shite
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Pickford is running his contract down, isn't he?
Are you Pickford's agent, perchance?
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Mental note to save these pages when Pickford becomes our new number 1 because Martinez fucked off to (insert name of CL club)
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Pickford is shite
Still better than Lloris.
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Footy V was going to give us an insight into the potential of the transfer window. Is that still happening? Is he still in discussions with Lange?
He's just collating all the information he has been given by his various contacts across the globe.
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Pickford is not even the best English keeper. Don't want him, even for free. Keep Emi and stop selling our best players. Let's build from a position of strength. Emi, Kamara are two of the best players we've had for years, keep them, at all costs and build the team around them.
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To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
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IF for some bizarre reason Martinez downed tools, refused to play and got trapped indefinitely in his house because the gate wouldn't open, then Pickford wouldn't be the worst replacement in the world. I'd rather Pickford than Olsen, for example.
But in real life, no thanks. I can't see Emi wanting to leave anyway but you never know.
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No thanks. Pickford is vastly overrated. His face irritates me as well. Infinitely punchable.
i think you want a keeper to be a calming influence, he doesn’t strike me as that
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To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
By 'we' do you mean Manchester City? Villa have moved up a level because we have appointed the right Manager, at last. The money on Grealish was wasted.
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To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
By 'we' do you mean Manchester City? Villa have moved up a level because we have appointed the right Manager, at last. The money on Grealish was wasted.
If I was Toronto Villa I'd report you.
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Pickford is shite
Still better than Lloris.
This much is true
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No thanks. Pickford is vastly overrated. His face irritates me as well. Infinitely punchable.
i think you want a keeper to be a calming influence, he doesn’t strike me as that
I agree with Pablo but that as well. The exaggerated 'geeing up' thing he does after making a save also gets on my nerves.
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I understand Bob’s logic but its not something the club should engineer, in fact the opposite should be the case.
However, I do think there are occasions where selling a crown jewel is an opportunity to grow the club, it just has to be for stupid money or on the club’s terms. For example, we arguably have too many CMs and too few wingers so could see a situation where McGinn is jettisoned if the price was right. A more extreme example is Brighton; they’ve made it their USP to allow players to leave once agreed KPIs are achieved, consequently they can attract a higher calibre of player.
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I don’t think Pickford is a bad keeper at all. He’s not on a level with Martinez but he’s not a bad choice for clubs looking for a new keeper. His downside is his lack of height compared to the modern day giant but he’s definitely capable.
It’d be the end of his international career if he came here though, as long as Southgate stays in his job.
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To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
Can you explain the exact ways we've moved up a level in the last 18 months?
Oh and on the debate, Pickford is miles short of Martinez, one is one of the best keepers in the world right now (certainly in the top 5), the other was only in the England team because of loyalty and should really be 3rd choice at best.
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
Did we fuck. We sold Grealish and between Smith and Gerrard screamed backwards. If you want to understand moving up a level look at Arsenal and Newcastle.
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
Can you explain the exact ways we've moved up a level in the last 18 months?
Oh and on the debate, Pickford is miles short of Martinez, one is one of the best keepers in the world right now (certainly in the top 5), the other was only in the England team because of loyalty and should really be 3rd choice at best.
It's easy you can just look at the squad
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
Can you explain the exact ways we've moved up a level in the last 18 months?
Oh and on the debate, Pickford is miles short of Martinez, one is one of the best keepers in the world right now (certainly in the top 5), the other was only in the England team because of loyalty and should really be 3rd choice at best.
It's easy you can just look at the squad
so the squad we have now is entirely because we sold Grelaish and we couldn't possibly have improved it to a similar degree if he'd stayed? Also 'up a level' would suggest in terms of performance and results more than anything, and we're just now, on our 3rd manager since he left, back to where we were 18 months ago, and that has a lot more to do with us bringing in a top class manager than it does with having sold Grealish.
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
No we didn’t. We purchased three players who have struggled for one reason or another & sacked the manager for not being able to get a team to work. Then got lumbered with Gerrard, got worse on the pitch, sacked him & now we finally appear to have hired an actual football manager who seems to know what he is doing. That had nothing to do with Grealish being sold.
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Greasy leaving set us back at least 18 months and we are only just recovering.
Partly due to making some poor decisions.
I don’t see how any one can think we moved up.
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
Now you are talking bo lacks
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He’s got to be on a wind up surely?
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
No we didn’t. We purchased three players who have struggled for one reason or another & sacked the manager for not being able to get a team to work. Then got lumbered with Gerrard, got worse on the pitch, sacked him & now we finally appear to have hired an actual football manager who seems to know what he is doing. That had nothing to do with Grealish being sold.
So you're saying the three players we bought with the Grealish money have worked out improving the squad
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
Can you explain the exact ways we've moved up a level in the last 18 months?
Oh and on the debate, Pickford is miles short of Martinez, one is one of the best keepers in the world right now (certainly in the top 5), the other was only in the England team because of loyalty and should really be 3rd choice at best.
It's easy you can just look at the squad
so the squad we have now is entirely because we sold Grelaish and we couldn't possibly have improved it to a similar degree if he'd stayed? Also 'up a level' would suggest in terms of performance and results more than anything, and we're just now, on our 3rd manager since he left, back to where we were 18 months ago, and that has a lot more to do with us bringing in a top class manager than it does with having sold Grealish.
No you're projecting
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Greasy leaving set us back at least 18 months and we are only just recovering.
Partly due to making some poor decisions.
I don’t see how any one can think we moved up.
I'm not saying the leveling up will be instant
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
Now you are talking bo lacks
What about FFP though, John?
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
No we didn’t. We purchased three players who have struggled for one reason or another & sacked the manager for not being able to get a team to work. Then got lumbered with Gerrard, got worse on the pitch, sacked him & now we finally appear to have hired an actual football manager who seems to know what he is doing. That had nothing to do with Grealish being sold.
So you're saying the three players we bought with the Grealish money have worked out improving the squad
I thought that’s what you were saying?
-
I understand Bob’s logic but its not something the club should engineer, in fact the opposite should be the case.
However, I do think there are occasions where selling a crown jewel is an opportunity to grow the club, it just has to be for stupid money or on the club’s terms. For example, we arguably have too many CMs and too few wingers so could see a situation where McGinn is jettisoned if the price was right. A more extreme example is Brighton; they’ve made it their USP to allow players to leave once agreed KPIs are achieved, consequently they can attract a higher calibre of player.
Selling David Platt helped put together the best side most Villa fans have ever seen.
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No you're projecting
I'm not sure you know what projecting means you tedious bore.
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
No we didn’t. We purchased three players who have struggled for one reason or another & sacked the manager for not being able to get a team to work. Then got lumbered with Gerrard, got worse on the pitch, sacked him & now we finally appear to have hired an actual football manager who seems to know what he is doing. That had nothing to do with Grealish being sold.
So you're saying the three players we bought with the Grealish money have worked out improving the squad
I thought that’s what you were saying?
Yes!
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Selling your best players is NEVER a good thing. No matter how much icing you put on it. Things can improve after that but it’s not because you sold your best players. That’s just stupid.
Buy better players than the ones currently in your squad and then sell those who aren’t up to it. We’re not exactly on the breadline.
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We didn’t move up a level. You can argue that has we done things right with the money we received we should have improved. We simply haven’t. Doesn’t mean that we can’t still get something out of the three players we bought but to say we moved up a level suggests we went from mid table to Europe. That didn’t happen.
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Back to current window I've seen in the Italian and champions league a Striker Victor Osimhen is at Napoli and appears to be a fantastic who would be a great addition up front. Kvaratskhelia is another at Napoli I scouted and think he would bring some entertainment and flair to compliment Bailey on either side.
There are several other players who could do well in Emery's system like Lo Celso, but these are the players that some of us here may be familiar with seeing them play in the world cup, so I wanted to bring them into discussion now the windows opened.
I predict these will all improve in coming seasons wherever they move so would be great addition and wise for Villa to move for them.
Livakovic
Gvardiol
Amrabat
Mitoma
Kvaratskhelia
Osimhen
Thuram
Felix
Is this that scouting report you were on about?
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We didn’t move up a level. You can argue that has we done things right with the money we received we should have improved. We simply haven’t. Doesn’t mean that we can’t still get something out of the three players we bought but to say we moved up a level suggests we went from mid table to Europe. That didn’t happen.
It doesn't suggest that at all they are merely your own subjective levels
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Prove that we moved up a level after we sold Grealish. In any way shape or form. What data do you have that shows that? Because all I can see is lower league positions, millions wasted on players and 2 managers.
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We didn’t move up a level. You can argue that has we done things right with the money we received we should have improved. We simply haven’t. Doesn’t mean that we can’t still get something out of the three players we bought but to say we moved up a level suggests we went from mid table to Europe. That didn’t happen.
It doesn't suggest that at all they are merely your own subjective levels
Position in the league is literally the most objective measure of a team that exists, you really need to learn what words mean.
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
No we didn’t. We purchased three players who have struggled for one reason or another & sacked the manager for not being able to get a team to work. Then got lumbered with Gerrard, got worse on the pitch, sacked him & now we finally appear to have hired an actual football manager who seems to know what he is doing. That had nothing to do with Grealish being sold.
So you're saying the three players we bought with the Grealish money have worked out improving the squad
I thought that’s what you were saying?
Yes!
But it obviously isn’t what he’s saying.
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We didn’t move up a level. You can argue that has we done things right with the money we received we should have improved. We simply haven’t. Doesn’t mean that we can’t still get something out of the three players we bought but to say we moved up a level suggests we went from mid table to Europe. That didn’t happen.
It doesn't suggest that at all they are merely your own subjective levels
Position in the league is literally the most objective measure of a team that exists, you really need to learn what words mean.
Allowing the inevitable own goal I might point out that using both tedious with bore is somewhat redundant
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
No we didn’t. We purchased three players who have struggled for one reason or another & sacked the manager for not being able to get a team to work. Then got lumbered with Gerrard, got worse on the pitch, sacked him & now we finally appear to have hired an actual football manager who seems to know what he is doing. That had nothing to do with Grealish being sold.
So you're saying the three players we bought with the Grealish money have worked out improving the squad
I thought that’s what you were saying?
Yes!
But it obviously isn’t what he’s saying.
Depends what you think of those players now. I think they look pretty good.
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Bob, you couldn’t be any more wrong on this and yet you are choosing a really odd hill to die on. Other than your opinion, the very definition of subjectivity, you’ve not provided one shred of detail that backs up your assertion that post Grealish we went “up a level”. Nothing at all. If it’s your opinion so be it. But to convince others when the data is staring us all squarely in the face is beyond bizarre.
Those players might be good but they themselves didn’t propel us to a new level. And on their own they certainly won’t. We didn’t waste £100m but we didn’t use it to do what you are suggesting we did.
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We didn't go up a level. We wouldn't have sacked two mangers otherwise.
-
Maybe I'm too worried about FFP, forgive me.
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
No we didn’t. We purchased three players who have struggled for one reason or another & sacked the manager for not being able to get a team to work. Then got lumbered with Gerrard, got worse on the pitch, sacked him & now we finally appear to have hired an actual football manager who seems to know what he is doing. That had nothing to do with Grealish being sold.
So you're saying the three players we bought with the Grealish money have worked out improving the squad
What?
-
Bob's been on the Bailey's methinks
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
No we didn’t. We purchased three players who have struggled for one reason or another & sacked the manager for not being able to get a team to work. Then got lumbered with Gerrard, got worse on the pitch, sacked him & now we finally appear to have hired an actual football manager who seems to know what he is doing. That had nothing to do with Grealish being sold.
So you're saying the three players we bought with the Grealish money have worked out improving the squad
What?
Yes, that confused me too.
-
Bob's been on the Bailey's methIngs
...
-
Christ, this thread gives me a headache. A striker is a distinct possibility.
-
To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
No we didn’t. We purchased three players who have struggled for one reason or another & sacked the manager for not being able to get a team to work. Then got lumbered with Gerrard, got worse on the pitch, sacked him & now we finally appear to have hired an actual football manager who seems to know what he is doing. That had nothing to do with Grealish being sold.
So you're saying the three players we bought with the Grealish money have worked out improving the squad
What?
With Grealish money we signed some players
They struggled to begin with - this is not unusual
The managerial issues are linked but separate in my view
Fixed the manager issues
Players we signed with Grealish money come good
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Bob's been on the Bailey's methinks
There are a couple on here who appear to have it intravenous drip straight into their frontal cortex…
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Now consider the scenario where we have a good manager and give him more money
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To keep someone "at all costs" is stupid.
So is the idea that we should "stop selling our best players" without considering the consequences when we are in the best position we have ever been to repurpose the funds effectively.
Selling your best players means that you never move up a level. Other players want to play with better players, not average shit that we have purchased 90% of the time. Emi and Kamara are world class players, bring in more world class players to support them.
Not true.
We sold Grealish and moved.up a level.
No we didn’t. We purchased three players who have struggled for one reason or another & sacked the manager for not being able to get a team to work. Then got lumbered with Gerrard, got worse on the pitch, sacked him & now we finally appear to have hired an actual football manager who seems to know what he is doing. That had nothing to do with Grealish being sold.
So you're saying the three players we bought with the Grealish money have worked out improving the squad
What?
With Grealish money we signed some players
They struggled to begin with - this is not unusual
The managerial issues are linked but separate in my view
Fixed the manager issues
Players we signed with Grealish money come good
Have
they
“come good”
after
four
games?
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Now consider the scenario where we have a good manager and give him more money
Not by selling our best players. Otherwise we are removing guaranteed & bedded in quality & replacing with players who might not fit or might not be suited to the taste of fish & chips, etc, etc. Replacing the known with the unknown for the sake of it just because we might be able to get a “buy one get one free” type bargain is not the way to build a squad. We take our known quality already at the club, & we add to them with other players of quality & hope they fit the club & take us forward.
But, I accept the point that giving a good manager (if Emery turns out to be one in the long term), should be a positive. As long as it doesn’t mean removing the only quality we already have.
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Everyone who's played Football Manager knows what Bob is talking about. The famous "I had to sell Maradona to get the Benni McCarthy deal over the line" conundrum. It's just like real life.
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I understand Bob’s logic but its not something the club should engineer, in fact the opposite should be the case.
However, I do think there are occasions where selling a crown jewel is an opportunity to grow the club, it just has to be for stupid money or on the club’s terms. For example, we arguably have too many CMs and too few wingers so could see a situation where McGinn is jettisoned if the price was right. A more extreme example is Brighton; they’ve made it their USP to allow players to leave once agreed KPIs are achieved, consequently they can attract a higher calibre of player.
We've seen it before over the years though, that selling your best players creates a narrative that your team can be picked off and once one goes then others will be looking to move on as well. Leicester have recently had some success after continually selling their best players, but it's starting to catch up with them now. You need to keep your best players to convince others that the club has serious ambitions.
It's a difficult one, as the only real way of keeping top players is to offer massive money (which is probably unsustainable) or play regularly in the Champions League (very difficult ask).
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De Paul linked again. I can't say I was mad impressed with him in the World Cup.
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1610033209248464897
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De Paul linked again. I can't say I was mad impressed with him in the World Cup.
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1610033209248464897
Very Good player. Would come straight into our team.
Another level ;)
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I shudder when I look back to the days when Villa getting a result depended upon one players fitness.
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People in the know will have a better idea than me but in one of the Argentina games I watched the commentator definitely basically referred to him as a 'ball winner and just pass it to someone else' type of bloke. If that is the case then we already have that with Kamara. I could be wrong.
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People in the know will have a better idea than me but in one of the Argentina games I watched the commentator definitely basically referred to him as a 'ball winner and just pass it to someone else' type of bloke. If that is the case then we already have that with Kamara. I could be wrong.
In the Argentina team, they're all "ball winner and just pass to Messi" type of blokes.
He's like a better McGinn. Was regularly getting 8-10 goals per season in Serie A, but has been less attacking at Atletico. Then again, under Simeone they all are.
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I like De Paul but I'm not sure where he'd fit for us.
If we stick with the current setup then we have a forward who drifts out onto the wing (Bailey) and a wide midfielder (McGinn) who moves into the space it creates. From what I've seen of de Paul (which isn't a huge amount to be fair) he strikes me as more of a player who'd like to wait outside the box to pick up the scraps than someone who'd be arriving late in the box. I just think that position screams out to be given to JJ.
More centrally I think he'd be a better option but I'm not sure he'd be happy rotating with Luiz, Kamara and Dendoncker and I don't think he'd deserve to be guaranteed to start ahead of them regularly.
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Our new formation requires a lot of energy from the two midfielders that drop into the back 6 and then transition into an attacking formation. SJM's hamstring tweak yesterday is evidence of this, so having cover for these two players is going to be important.
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I like De Paul but I'm not sure where he'd fit for us.
If we stick with the current setup then we have a forward who drifts out onto the wing (Bailey) and a wide midfielder (McGinn) who moves into the space it creates. From what I've seen of de Paul (which isn't a huge amount to be fair) he strikes me as more of a player who'd like to wait outside the box to pick up the scraps than someone who'd be arriving late in the box. I just think that position screams out to be given to JJ.
More centrally I think he'd be a better option but I'm not sure he'd be happy rotating with Luiz, Kamara and Dendoncker and I don't think he'd deserve to be guaranteed to start ahead of them regularly.
We need a squad for where we're heading. If, heaven forbid, anything happened to Kamara or Luiz (and let's face it, one has patchy form at times and the other is young and needs protecting, then we need quality in the squad. I can't see Sanson being here for much longer and I'd question whether Ramsey A. and Iroegbunam are ready yet for where we are aiming.
Interestingly, he was linked with Leeds a couple of years ago, but the price was too high for them (He deleted an Instagram post with a like to the link). The slight worry is that he's only currently linked to us and Juventus, Roma and one of the Milan clubs, and that standard isn't up to ours, so maybe he isn't good enough.
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DePaul would be a direct McGinn replacement. He’s maybe not as quick over the first 10 but more than makes up for it with his technical ability and work rate. I thought he had a very good World Cup and along with MacAllister provided the midfield workrate, passing and guile in support of Messi. It’s a big yes from me.
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I like De Paul but I'm not sure where he'd fit for us.
If we stick with the current setup then we have a forward who drifts out onto the wing (Bailey) and a wide midfielder (McGinn) who moves into the space it creates. From what I've seen of de Paul (which isn't a huge amount to be fair) he strikes me as more of a player who'd like to wait outside the box to pick up the scraps than someone who'd be arriving late in the box. I just think that position screams out to be given to JJ.
More centrally I think he'd be a better option but I'm not sure he'd be happy rotating with Luiz, Kamara and Dendoncker and I don't think he'd deserve to be guaranteed to start ahead of them regularly.
We need a squad for where we're heading. If, heaven forbid, anything happened to Kamara or Luiz (and let's face it, one has patchy form at times and the other is young and needs protecting, then we need quality in the squad. I can't see Sanson being here for much longer and I'd question whether Ramsey A. and Iroegbunam are ready yet for where we are aiming.
Interestingly, he was linked with Leeds a couple of years ago, but the price was too high for them (He deleted an Instagram post with a like to the link). The slight worry is that he's only currently linked to us and Juventus, Roma and one of the Milan clubs, and that standard isn't up to ours, so maybe he isn't good enough.
I agree but you've missed out Dendoncker and JJ. As I say I like him but he's the sort of player who you have to start regularly and I'm not sure where you put him in this team that doesn't create other problems. Most of this is based on my thinking Kamra and Luiz can become a CL central midfield, I don't see anything in the current top 6 that is significantly better than this pair will become over the next year.
On that basis the aim has to be to make sure that who we have around them works as well:
I'm happy for Buendia and Countinho to battle it out for 6months on the left and review in the summer.
I'm happy for McGinn and JJ to do similar on the right.
I'm not entirely happy with Bailey being the only clear option for where he's playing.
If someone exceptional is available and interested then it chnages things (and dePaul might be that) but for me the only clear gap we NEED to fill is the competition for Bailey.
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I like De Paul but I'm not sure where he'd fit for us.
If we stick with the current setup then we have a forward who drifts out onto the wing (Bailey) and a wide midfielder (McGinn) who moves into the space it creates. From what I've seen of de Paul (which isn't a huge amount to be fair) he strikes me as more of a player who'd like to wait outside the box to pick up the scraps than someone who'd be arriving late in the box. I just think that position screams out to be given to JJ.
More centrally I think he'd be a better option but I'm not sure he'd be happy rotating with Luiz, Kamara and Dendoncker and I don't think he'd deserve to be guaranteed to start ahead of them regularly.
We need a squad for where we're heading. If, heaven forbid, anything happened to Kamara or Luiz (and let's face it, one has patchy form at times and the other is young and needs protecting, then we need quality in the squad. I can't see Sanson being here for much longer and I'd question whether Ramsey A. and Iroegbunam are ready yet for where we are aiming.
Interestingly, he was linked with Leeds a couple of years ago, but the price was too high for them (He deleted an Instagram post with a like to the link). The slight worry is that he's only currently linked to us and Juventus, Roma and one of the Milan clubs, and that standard isn't up to ours, so maybe he isn't good enough.
I agree but you've missed out Dendoncker and JJ. As I say I like him but he's the sort of player who you have to start regularly and I'm not sure where you put him in this team that doesn't create other problems. Most of this is based on my thinking Kamra and Luiz can become a CL central midfield, I don't see anything in the current top 6 that is significantly better than this pair will become over the next year.
On that basis the aim has to be to make sure that who we have around them works as well:
I'm happy for Buendia and Countinho to battle it out for 6months on the left and review in the summer.
I'm happy for McGinn and JJ to do similar on the right.
I'm not entirely happy with Bailey being the only clear option for where he's playing.
If someone exceptional is available and interested then it chnages things (and dePaul might be that) but for me the only clear gap we NEED to fill is the competition for Bailey.
Agreed. I’d like it to be a player who could who could replace either one of Watkins/Bailey. I don’t think Ings is up to it.
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Up front is definitely the most important followed by a centre half who can pass the ball.
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If someone exceptional is available and interested then it chnages things (and dePaul might be that) but for me the only clear gap we NEED to fill is the competition for Bailey.
Wouldn't surprise me if medium-term Watkins became that competition for Bailey and someone came in to do the role that Watkins currently is.
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I like De Paul but I'm not sure where he'd fit for us.
If we stick with the current setup then we have a forward who drifts out onto the wing (Bailey) and a wide midfielder (McGinn) who moves into the space it creates. From what I've seen of de Paul (which isn't a huge amount to be fair) he strikes me as more of a player who'd like to wait outside the box to pick up the scraps than someone who'd be arriving late in the box. I just think that position screams out to be given to JJ.
More centrally I think he'd be a better option but I'm not sure he'd be happy rotating with Luiz, Kamara and Dendoncker and I don't think he'd deserve to be guaranteed to start ahead of them regularly.
We need a squad for where we're heading. If, heaven forbid, anything happened to Kamara or Luiz (and let's face it, one has patchy form at times and the other is young and needs protecting, then we need quality in the squad. I can't see Sanson being here for much longer and I'd question whether Ramsey A. and Iroegbunam are ready yet for where we are aiming.
Interestingly, he was linked with Leeds a couple of years ago, but the price was too high for them (He deleted an Instagram post with a like to the link). The slight worry is that he's only currently linked to us and Juventus, Roma and one of the Milan clubs, and that standard isn't up to ours, so maybe he isn't good enough.
I agree but you've missed out Dendoncker and JJ. As I say I like him but he's the sort of player who you have to start regularly and I'm not sure where you put him in this team that doesn't create other problems. Most of this is based on my thinking Kamra and Luiz can become a CL central midfield, I don't see anything in the current top 6 that is significantly better than this pair will become over the next year.
On that basis the aim has to be to make sure that who we have around them works as well:
I'm happy for Buendia and Countinho to battle it out for 6months on the left and review in the summer.
I'm happy for McGinn and JJ to do similar on the right.
I'm not entirely happy with Bailey being the only clear option for where he's playing.
If someone exceptional is available and interested then it chnages things (and dePaul might be that) but for me the only clear gap we NEED to fill is the competition for Bailey.
Agreed. I’d like it to be a player who could who could replace either one of Watkins/Bailey. I don’t think Ings is up to it.
I'd play Ings in games like tomorrow where we need to be on the front foot more because he's more dangerous in the box than Watkins or Bailey (and his goals per mniute record this season is fantastic to be fair) but he offers very little in games like Sunday where the industry and physicality of Watkins unsettles defences.
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I think there are more options available for a wide/inside forward type that could do a job filling in for Watkins if needed, plus weak finishing aside Watkins offers everything Emery would want as his cente forward and looks to me enjoying himself again.
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De Paul linked again. I can't say I was mad impressed with him in the World Cup.
https://twitter.com/AVFCLatam/status/1610033209248464897
Very Good player. Would come straight into our team.
Another level ;)
And then instantly sold so we can purchase three average players…
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People in the know will have a better idea than me but in one of the Argentina games I watched the commentator definitely basically referred to him as a 'ball winner and just pass it to someone else' type of bloke. If that is the case then we already have that with Kamara. I could be wrong.
De Paul has similar qualities to Milner when we first signed him.
Great workrate, decent passer and can play out wide in a narrow midfield no problem.
With Argentina he was doing that job very well in their 4-4-2 so given Emery played it generally at Villareal and we saw a 4-2-2-2 against Man. United which was effective it's a very logical link if he's interested in leaving Atletico Madrid.
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I like De Paul but I'm not sure where he'd fit for us.
If we stick with the current setup then we have a forward who drifts out onto the wing (Bailey) and a wide midfielder (McGinn) who moves into the space it creates. From what I've seen of de Paul (which isn't a huge amount to be fair) he strikes me as more of a player who'd like to wait outside the box to pick up the scraps than someone who'd be arriving late in the box. I just think that position screams out to be given to JJ.
More centrally I think he'd be a better option but I'm not sure he'd be happy rotating with Luiz, Kamara and Dendoncker and I don't think he'd deserve to be guaranteed to start ahead of them regularly.
We'll sell McGinn in the summer imo. Sanson and Nakamba will also leave so even with Tim coming back we won't have a huge amount of midfielders in the squad for a potential 50 + game season.
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McGinn is going nowhere, he's still captain and he loves being here and can be a decent option for us
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McGinn is going nowhere, he's still captain and he loves being here and can be a decent option for us
Two years left on his deal in summer so just feels like the right time to part ways. We've had excellent value out of him, he hasn't been great last 18 months and I think we have better options in most areas where he plays although he has played well last two so can still do a job when required.
Given two of our most fluid performances v Brentford and Man. United came with him on the bench I don't see why McGinn leaving would be some big issue.
I personally would move on all of Konsa, McGinn and Watkins in the summer. Sometimes you just reach that point with certain personnel but who knows what UE will do given he's still starting them all regularly.
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All of our players are looking better and more valuable since November. Even the ones previously being written off. (Fuck me after Spuds even Olsen is!) Anyway, I think it shows that our players aren't bad.
The issue is that we've only got Carlos and Ramsey out at the moment, and that could easily turn out to be more, we need depth that's better than Ings, Nakamba, Sanson, Guilbert etc.
We also desperately need some more width and pace having lost Traore, AEG and Trezeguet without being replaced.
It feels oh so different to a couple of years ago.
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Moving people on is fine if you replace them properly. McGinn has massively struggled for form last 6 months or so, but he's still captain and the team and Emery obviously value him. When he's atvhis best he can be a really good option to have, even if I wouldn't be starting him all the time. He played really well against spurs and sets the tempo well for press.
Watkins also is incredibly frustrating but there aren't many other strikers who press like he does, and he does make things happen, even though he is wasteful. Buy a better striker but keep him around until we have a better option. We need a deeper squad
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I imagine each of the 24 teams in the Ch'ship would take our Archer for the rest of the season (maybe Saints and Forest too?). I hope he's not left kicking his heels on the bench for the next five months.
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Moving people on is fine if you replace them properly. McGinn has massively struggled for form last 6 months or so, but he's still captain and the team and Emery obviously value him. When he's atvhis best he can be a really good option to have, even if I wouldn't be starting him all the time. He played really well against spurs and sets the tempo well for press.
Watkins also is incredibly frustrating but there aren't many other strikers who press like he does, and he does make things happen, even though he is wasteful. Buy a better striker but keep him around until we have a better option. We need a deeper squad
Would he have started the last two if Ramsey had been fit?
I guess perhaps maybe Buendia would've been taken out instead but it's important he gets a run of starts.
I just see it for rest of season Kamara + Luiz is the fixed pivot infront of back 4 and no issue with that, Ramsey will be starting most games when fit as huge potential and someone I think will massively kick on under Emery and then in final third Bunedia and Bailey are starting to warm up so would be odd to be regularly benching them to just put McGinn in a wide role.
Dendoncker has shown he can come in for games and contribute to dominant performances. I've also seen a few QPR games recently and Tim is far more than just someone who sits infront of a back 4, he makes the runs McGinn was in the championship for us so him coming back into the squad next year would be more for McGinn role than Kamara.
And that's on top of anyone we buy this month and certainly in the summer. McGinn has served us well but he's in the expendable category now.
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I imagine each of the 24 teams in the Ch'ship would take our Archer for the rest of the season (maybe Saints and Forest too?). I hope he's not left kicking his heels on the bench for the next five months.
Agree with this. He isn't getting a look in, though perhaps he'll play in every round of the cup...
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Moving people on is fine if you replace them properly. McGinn has massively struggled for form last 6 months or so, but he's still captain and the team and Emery obviously value him. When he's atvhis best he can be a really good option to have, even if I wouldn't be starting him all the time. He played really well against spurs and sets the tempo well for press.
Watkins also is incredibly frustrating but there aren't many other strikers who press like he does, and he does make things happen, even though he is wasteful. Buy a better striker but keep him around until we have a better option. We need a deeper squad
Would he have started the last two if Ramsey had been fit?
I guess perhaps maybe Buendia would've been taken out instead but it's important he gets a run of starts.
I just see it for rest of season Kamara + Luiz is the fixed pivot infront of back 4 and no issue with that, Ramsey will be starting most games when fit as huge potential and someone I think will massively kick on under Emery and then in final third Bunedia and Bailey are starting to warm up so would be odd to be regularly benching them to just put McGinn in a wide role.
Dendoncker has shown he can come in for games and contribute to dominant performances. I've also seen a few QPR games recently and Tim is far more than just someone who sits infront of a back 4, he makes the runs McGinn was in the championship for us so him coming back into the squad next year would be more for McGinn role than Kamara.
And that's on top of anyone we buy this month and certainly in the summer. McGinn has served us well but he's in the expendable category now.
I disagree, I think he's a great player to keep around. If we can improve on him, fair enough, but then he'd be great to keep around as a sub.
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Moving people on is fine if you replace them properly. McGinn has massively struggled for form last 6 months or so, but he's still captain and the team and Emery obviously value him. When he's atvhis best he can be a really good option to have, even if I wouldn't be starting him all the time. He played really well against spurs and sets the tempo well for press.
Watkins also is incredibly frustrating but there aren't many other strikers who press like he does, and he does make things happen, even though he is wasteful. Buy a better striker but keep him around until we have a better option. We need a deeper squad
Would he have started the last two if Ramsey had been fit?
I guess perhaps maybe Buendia would've been taken out instead but it's important he gets a run of starts.
I just see it for rest of season Kamara + Luiz is the fixed pivot infront of back 4 and no issue with that, Ramsey will be starting most games when fit as huge potential and someone I think will massively kick on under Emery and then in final third Bunedia and Bailey are starting to warm up so would be odd to be regularly benching them to just put McGinn in a wide role.
Dendoncker has shown he can come in for games and contribute to dominant performances. I've also seen a few QPR games recently and Tim is far more than just someone who sits infront of a back 4, he makes the runs McGinn was in the championship for us so him coming back into the squad next year would be more for McGinn role than Kamara.
And that's on top of anyone we buy this month and certainly in the summer. McGinn has served us well but he's in the expendable category now.
IMO McGinn could well fulfil the potential he showed when we first came up, he was very highly rated. We've already seen huge improvement under Emery and I think he could prove a lot of us wrong
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Where have you McGinn fanboys been hiding these last 18 months (wink). I'm sure in majority of match threads he's slagged off from start to finish so need some of those to come back from the pub later and provide some balance.
I'm fairly neutral on him generally but him being made captain and playing every single minute for Gerrard was very annoying.
We'd probably have to give him a new deal if he's to remain a regular part of this club so that's something else to consider.
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Where have you McGinn fanboys been hiding these last 18 months (wink). I'm sure in majority of match threads he's slagged off from start to finish so need some of those to come back from the pub later and provide some balance.
I'm fairly neutral on him generally but him being made captain and playing every single minute for Gerrard was very annoying.
We'd probably have to give him a new deal if he's to remain a regular part of this club so that's something else to consider.
I've always loved him, others have gone quiet *cups ears at Percy and Risso*
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Where have you McGinn fanboys been hiding these last 18 months (wink). I'm sure in majority of match threads he's slagged off from start to finish so need some of those to come back from the pub later and provide some balance.
I'm fairly neutral on him generally but him being made captain and playing every single minute for Gerrard was very annoying.
We'd probably have to give him a new deal if he's to remain a regular part of this club so that's something else to consider.
I've always loved him, others have gone quiet *cups ears at Percy and Risso*
Even Risso said he's a Top 6 midfielder elsewhere today......
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Where have you McGinn fanboys been hiding these last 18 months (wink). I'm sure in majority of match threads he's slagged off from start to finish so need some of those to come back from the pub later and provide some balance.
I'm fairly neutral on him generally but him being made captain and playing every single minute for Gerrard was very annoying.
We'd probably have to give him a new deal if he's to remain a regular part of this club so that's something else to consider.
I've always loved him, others have gone quiet *cups ears at Percy and Risso*
I've been careful not to post on his thread, in case it annoys Clampy and I have to go to the bother of renewing the restraining order.
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Where have you McGinn fanboys been hiding these last 18 months (wink). I'm sure in majority of match threads he's slagged off from start to finish so need some of those to come back from the pub later and provide some balance.
I'm fairly neutral on him generally but him being made captain and playing every single minute for Gerrard was very annoying.
We'd probably have to give him a new deal if he's to remain a regular part of this club so that's something else to consider.
I've always loved him, others have gone quiet *cups ears at Percy and Risso*
I just don’t think he’s very good. Technically, fitness-wise, anything really. He wasn’t playing well before his big injury in our first season up, but we didn’t have anyone on his level then. Now, Ramsay is miles better. Not bad as a squad player I suppose, but there’s a financial upside to selling and replacing him. Take the profit.
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Even if he's a bit part player I can definitely see the benefit in keeping him around though. There'll be a fair few new faces around come the start of next season and it's important to have senior players that are fully involved, and he ticks those boxes for me.
without any signings our options for midfield look pretty decent: dougie, kamara, both ramseys, Tim, mcginn, dendoncker, emi
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McGinn is going nowhere, he's still captain and he loves being here and can be a decent option for us
Two years left on his deal in summer so just feels like the right time to part ways. We've had excellent value out of him, he hasn't been great last 18 months and I think we have better options in most areas where he plays although he has played well last two so can still do a job when required.
Given two of our most fluid performances v Brentford and Man. United came with him on the bench I don't see why McGinn leaving would be some big issue.
I personally would move on all of Konsa, McGinn and Watkins in the summer. Sometimes you just reach that point with certain personnel but who knows what UE will do given he's still starting them all regularly.
McGinn has played really well last two games in a different role. He did well when he came on v Man United too. I'm struggling to recall the Brighton game but I think Emery has correctly recognised that he was playing in the wrong position. Hamstring injury is unfortunate but if he continues this early form under Emery we should be extending his contract.
I think both our starting centre backs are vulnerable to change. Let's see how Carlos gets on when he gets fully fit to see if he can displace one of them. Watkins is playing well too I think..
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McGinn hasn’t played wel at all. It was clear to see he was struggling, be it with his own form or as part of the limited tactical approach of the previous manager. So the criticism he got he deserved. He was a liability much the same as Olsen has been. That doesn’t mean he didn’t care. The doesn’t mean he cannot still contribute playing for a manager who can get the best out of him and the other players. But he’s still not a top 6 calibre starting every week midfielder. A squad player for sure. But he’ll have to be ok with that at this stage of his career. We need to get players to legitimately challenge to be starting players in every position. Not more squad players.
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McGinn hasn’t played wel at all. It was clear to see he was struggling, be it with his own form or as part of the limited tactical approach of the previous manager. So the criticism he got he deserved. He was a liability much the same as Olsen has been. That doesn’t mean he didn’t care. The doesn’t mean he cannot still contribute playing for a manager who can get the best out of him and the other players. But he’s still not a top 6 calibre starting every week midfielder. A squad player for sure. But he’ll have to be ok with that at this stage of his career. We need to get players to legitimately challenge to be starting players in every position. Not more squad players.
Comparing McGinn to Olsen is complete nonsense. He needs competition for his place, same as every other player. If you can't see that McGinn has played well since Emery came in then I suggest you change your spectacles
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The point of comparison is to state that both deserved criticism for their poor play. At no point have I said he hasn’t played well under Emery. If you’ve read that somewhere then I might suggest a change in your eyewear.
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It’s a huge credit to Emery that players are starting to look good (again). Luiz, Watkins and McGinn have all had spells where they’ve looked comfortably top-half but haven’t managed to maintain it.
It’s one of the reasons I’m not desperate for signings, just yet, let him improve what we have first so we sign fewer but better players next summer.
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Of course. That’s the mark of a good manager and staff that they can get the best out of what they have while improving the club gradually. It’s why correctly Eddie Howe and his team are being spoken about in glowing terms because they have done just at Newcastle with a core squad not much dissimilar to what Bruce had. He’s gone and added some quality pieces and propelled them to 2nd. That’s what we all hope Emery does with us.
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If the McKennie link has any legs there will be some serious competition incoming. That would give us an outstanding starting midfield.
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I think it would be dangerous not to strengthen this January though, in the hope that all the players maintain their form. Gerrard won three out of four when he tookover as well, but then he and the players couldn't maintain it.
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I think we absolutely will. I can see players coming and going and the first team and squad by the end being stronger overall. The WC being when it is coupled with the immediate results has helped all round. He’s got a good look at the squad and will have a better idea of what we need now and later in the summer. The question as always is getting the deals over the line without being ripped off.
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The players couldn't maintain it because they were being coached and managed by a total fraudster though. I'd be willing to bet a whole lot on the same players maintaining better form under this manager than the previous one
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Where have you McGinn fanboys been hiding these last 18 months (wink). I'm sure in majority of match threads he's slagged off from start to finish so need some of those to come back from the pub later and provide some balance.
I'm fairly neutral on him generally but him being made captain and playing every single minute for Gerrard was very annoying.
We'd probably have to give him a new deal if he's to remain a regular part of this club so that's something else to consider.
I've always loved him, others have gone quiet *cups ears at Percy and Risso*
I just don’t think he’s very good. Technically, fitness-wise, anything really. He wasn’t playing well before his big injury in our first season up, but we didn’t have anyone on his level then. Now, Ramsay is miles better. Not bad as a squad player I suppose, but there’s a financial upside to selling and replacing him. Take the profit.
I know mate, I'm only joshing with the pair of ya. For me, a good coach, like the one we now have takes his fairly unusual qualites and amplifies them whilst knocking out the creases. His passing could be a bit erratic but at the same time he's capable of sublime balls like the one we saw against Spurs.
I do think we'll see a lot of changes between in the team from game to game not because of lack of form, but depending on who we're playing and how we're setting up, and Sunday was perfect for McGinn whereas tomorrow night might suit Ramsey more.
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When's Ramsey back, haven't even seen him mentioned for a while.
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Gerard Deulofeu linked. Not seen much of him recently but remember him as the bloke that came on for Watford as a sub in the FA Cup semi against Wolves a few years ago and pretty much single handed turned a 0-2 into a 3-2 AET. Very, very talented player and has been playing regularly in Serie A over the past few years.
De Paul sounds like a good one as well.
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The point of comparison is to state that both deserved criticism for their poor play. At no point have I said he hasn’t played well under Emery. If you’ve read that somewhere then I might suggest a change in your eyewear.
Re-read the first sentence of your post
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Gerard Deulofeu linked. Not seen much of him recently but remember him as the bloke that came on for Watford as a sub in the FA Cup semi against Wolves a few years ago and pretty much single handed turned a 0-2 into a 3-2 AET. Very, very talented player and has been playing regularly in Serie A over the past few years.
De Paul sounds like a good one as well.
It's a no to Deulofeu as every time I read his name I keep hearing in my head some scouser trying to pronounce his name on radio phone in.
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That Lyric bloke of twitter (has been reliable so far) seems quite confident we won’t make any permanent signings this window. Which is strange as that’s not the feeling I get from the gaffer’s interviews. Perhaps we are loaning to buy?
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I think it would be dangerous not to strengthen this January though, in the hope that all the players maintain their form. Gerrard won three out of four when he tookover as well, but then he and the players couldn't maintain it.
Maybe but Emery's wins have come against far stronger opposition (Yanited home/Brighton away/Spurs away) than Gerrard's (Brighton and Lesta at home/Palace away).
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I like McGinn but he's one of those that I'd be happy to move on whilst we can make some profit on him, much like Konsa, they're the 2 that I think we'd get decent fees for but not miss massively.
I'd keep Mings, I think he brings a lot of leadership to what is still a pretty young squad and I'd like to see players like Feeney and Smith learning from him.
To finish the names that come up as being sold regularly Watkins and Ings are more difficult to know what to think with. Since Gerrard was binned their stats are:
Watkins P6, G2, A3
Ings P6, G4
If they can keep that up then we're set up front because over a season that would be an incredible output that would see us scoring 70+ as a team, which is usually only managed by 2-3 sides a season.
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McGinn just seems to do enough with the ball to go with the stuff he brings that all managers love - commitment, hard-work off the ball and always there for the team.
I think he'll get further leeway/credit for this as there isn't any other midfielder else in the squad that offers quite the same in that regard (elsewhere, Watkins, Ash and Ty have it).
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When's Ramsey back, haven't even seen him mentioned for a while.
7th I think.
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McGinn just seems to do enough with the ball to go with the stuff he brings that all managers love - commitment, hard-work off the ball and always there for the team.
I think he'll get further leeway/credit for this as there isn't any other midfielder else in the squad that offers quite the same in that regard (elsewhere, Watkins, Ash and Ty have it).
I tend to agree. We've all been critical over his performances for the last year or so, but looking at Sunday's match he would have never been in the position to assist Dougie's goal in SG's system. I don't think a verdict can be reached until we see what Emery has in store for him.
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The quality of the pass to Dougie for the goal is also worth a mention.
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Moving people on is fine if you replace them properly. McGinn has massively struggled for form last 6 months or so, but he's still captain and the team and Emery obviously value him. When he's atvhis best he can be a really good option to have, even if I wouldn't be starting him all the time. He played really well against spurs and sets the tempo well for press.
Watkins also is incredibly frustrating but there aren't many other strikers who press like he does, and he does make things happen, even though he is wasteful. Buy a better striker but keep him around until we have a better option. We need a deeper squad
Would he have started the last two if Ramsey had been fit?
I guess perhaps maybe Buendia would've been taken out instead but it's important he gets a run of starts.
I just see it for rest of season Kamara + Luiz is the fixed pivot infront of back 4 and no issue with that, Ramsey will be starting most games when fit as huge potential and someone I think will massively kick on under Emery and then in final third Bunedia and Bailey are starting to warm up so would be odd to be regularly benching them to just put McGinn in a wide role.
Dendoncker has shown he can come in for games and contribute to dominant performances. I've also seen a few QPR games recently and Tim is far more than just someone who sits infront of a back 4, he makes the runs McGinn was in the championship for us so him coming back into the squad next year would be more for McGinn role than Kamara.
And that's on top of anyone we buy this month and certainly in the summer. McGinn has served us well but he's in the expendable category now.
IMO McGinn could well fulfil the potential he showed when we first came up, he was very highly rated. We've already seen huge improvement under Emery and I think he could prove a lot of us wrong
Of the 3 A's required to excel only Attitude and Application can be improved upon - Ability is a limiting factor and we have to accept that SGM has probably hit his ceiling in regard to the higher echelons of the Premiership and hopefully Europe
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Alex moreno, left back, keeps being mentioned.
Preece reporting that we're open to selling Ings too
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Alex moreno, left back, keeps being mentioned.
Preece reporting that we're open to selling Ings too
I can see it, Digne still doesn't entirely convice me and the other lad is not good enough.
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Alex moreno, left back, keeps being mentioned.
Preece reporting that we're open to selling Ings too
I can see us looking at a left back (I reckon Augustinsson will have his loan ended pretty soon) but I'd be surprised if it's a 29 year old at the sort of fee that would be needed to get him.
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We have any good LB academy prospects?
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We have any good LB academy prospects?
Brian Small
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The quality of the pass to Dougie for the goal is also worth a mention.
I agree it was a brilliant pass for Dougie's goal.
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We have any good LB academy prospects?
Ben Chrisene who looks a fantastic prospect and is out at Kilmarnock.
Seb Revan who I don't think will make it with us but looks ok and will probably have a decent career.
Sil Swinkels has played there a bit as well but he's a centre back really and probably 3rd or 4 in the list there.
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I think it would be dangerous not to strengthen this January though, in the hope that all the players maintain their form. Gerrard won three out of four when he tookover as well, but then he and the players couldn't maintain it.
We have to strengthen. It'll take an injury/suspension or two and we're down to lesser quality. With Ramsey out and Luiz and McGinn getting knocks, we'd have Kamara, Dendoncker and Sanson as our midfield with Nakamba on the bench and Young likely to have to play in there. Defensively I'm less concerned, but up front we're light too.
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We don't need to be moving on our current first team picks. What we should be doing is replacing the squad fillers with players who can go in to the first team and the current first team will have to fight for their shirt or accept being a squad player.
McGinn is easily good enough to be in a squad fighting for a European place, and whilst he may not be first choice, he's a damn good option to have. The tackles, commitment and movement are all there, and as the assist for Luiz showed, there's a good touch there too.
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continuous improvement
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We don't need to be moving on our current first team picks. What we should be doing is replacing the squad fillers with players who can go in to the first team and the current first team will have to fight for their shirt or accept being a squad player.
McGinn is easily good enough to be in a squad fighting for a European place, and whilst he may not be first choice, he's a damn good option to have. The tackles, commitment and movement are all there, and as the assist for Luiz showed, there's a good touch there too.
I don't disagree but sometimes you do need to consider bringing some funds in so players who are good enough to keep as squad options, who won't start all that often at the level you want to be, and are high enough profile to be worth a fair bit are better options to move on than letting your best player leave for a massive fee or hoping a highly rated youngster goes for a fortune as has happened the last 2 summers.
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can't just keep spunking money on signings - we'll need to sell a few every now and again.
Guilbert, Nakamba, Hause, Traore, Davis and Wesley all need shifting out.
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can't just keep spunking money on signings - we'll need to sell a few every now and again.
Guilbert, Nakamba, Hause, Traore, Davis and Wesley all need shifting out.
The problem there is that players we don't want are often not going to be wanted by other teams either, which is why you sometimes have to sell a few fringe players or first teamers who are dropping out of being regulars.
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oh yeah, absolutely - I'd like to think there's some clubs foolish enough to buy our cast-offs.
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oh yeah, absolutely - I'd like to think there's some clubs foolish enough to buy our cast-offs.
I'm sure there are plenty interested but can't afford the wages and transfer fees outside of the Premier League. As Paul says, it may be that you have to give up someone a bit higher up the pecking order to balance the books.
Like that twat O'Leary did with Crouch when he was just starting to bloom.
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I like De Paul but I'm not sure where he'd fit for us.
If we stick with the current setup then we have a forward who drifts out onto the wing (Bailey) and a wide midfielder (McGinn) who moves into the space it creates. From what I've seen of de Paul (which isn't a huge amount to be fair) he strikes me as more of a player who'd like to wait outside the box to pick up the scraps than someone who'd be arriving late in the box. I just think that position screams out to be given to JJ.
More centrally I think he'd be a better option but I'm not sure he'd be happy rotating with Luiz, Kamara and Dendoncker and I don't think he'd deserve to be guaranteed to start ahead of them regularly.
We'll sell McGinn in the summer imo. Sanson and Nakamba will also leave so even with Tim coming back we won't have a huge amount of midfielders in the squad for a potential 50 + game season.
I would hope that Tim, ARamsey and Reikhy would all be pushing for regular starts in midfield next season. If they're not, we've maybe overrated them.
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can't just keep spunking money on signings - we'll need to sell a few every now and again.
Guilbert, Nakamba, Hause, Traore, Davis and Wesley all need shifting out.
JFC, Wesley's contract runs to Jun-24. What a dreadful bit of buiness that was.
Guilbert's - Jun-23 so he'll be gone by the summer
Nakamba - Jun-24
Hause - Jun-25
Traore - Jun-24
Davis - Jun-24
In theory we should get a few quid for some of them, in reality clubs know we just want the wages off the books and will continue wanting subsidised loans.
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It’s a lead weight now in hindsight, but at the time we signed a young, raw and promising Brazilian CF. Dreadful business were the deals we had Micah Richards or Shay Given.
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I like De Paul but I'm not sure where he'd fit for us.
If we stick with the current setup then we have a forward who drifts out onto the wing (Bailey) and a wide midfielder (McGinn) who moves into the space it creates. From what I've seen of de Paul (which isn't a huge amount to be fair) he strikes me as more of a player who'd like to wait outside the box to pick up the scraps than someone who'd be arriving late in the box. I just think that position screams out to be given to JJ.
More centrally I think he'd be a better option but I'm not sure he'd be happy rotating with Luiz, Kamara and Dendoncker and I don't think he'd deserve to be guaranteed to start ahead of them regularly.
We'll sell McGinn in the summer imo. Sanson and Nakamba will also leave so even with Tim coming back we won't have a huge amount of midfielders in the squad for a potential 50 + game season.
I would hope that Tim, ARamsey and Reikhy would all be pushing for regular starts in midfield next season. If they're not, we've maybe overrated them.
No offence to the babbies in question but if we have 3 young midfielders pushing for regular starts next season, I'll be a bit worried that (a) Luiz/Ramsey Sr/Kamara/McGinn have all been sold or turned to shit and (b) Emery hasn't replaced them or improved on them with better in the transfer market.
Blooding youngsters with sub appearances and loan moves is one thing, integrating them into the team on a regular basis will realistically only happen with one or two young players a year at best, throughout the whole team.
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It’s a lead weight now in hindsight, but at the time we signed a young, raw and promising Brazilian CF. Dreadful business were the deals we had Micah Richards or Shay Given.
Wesley wasn't "dreadful business", it was a £20m punt on a young player with potential who was doing "okay" six months into his English career. He hadn't set the league alight, and he was never going to be Neymar, but we will never know how it might have turned out without his injury. We may well have outgrown him by now anyway - but he had 6 goals by this stage in the season, in a struggling side. He would likely have got into double figures by the end of the season. Richarlison got 5 in his first season with Watford and got a £30m move off the back of it.
Players knackered by injury don't automatically become "dreadful bits of business". Reserve that type of classification for the Ross McCormacks of this world.
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It’s a lead weight now in hindsight, but at the time we signed a young, raw and promising Brazilian CF. Dreadful business were the deals we had Micah Richards or Shay Given.
Wesley wasn't "dreadful business", it was a £20m punt on a young player with potential who was doing "okay" six months into his English career. He hadn't set the league alight, and he was never going to be Neymar, but we will never know how it might have turned out without his injury. We may well have outgrown him by now anyway - but he had 6 goals by this stage in the season, in a struggling side. He would likely have got into double figures by the end of the season. Richarlison got 5 in his first season with Watford and got a £30m move off the back of it.
Players knackered by injury don't automatically become "dreadful bits of business". Reserve that type of classification for the Ross McCormacks of this world.
Correct.
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We should make a bid for Maguire, £20m?
Him and Mings would be a brick wall and give us time to ease Carlos in.
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We could do with more of an aerial threat from set-pieces, too.
Imagine defending a corner from Dougie with Maguire in the box.
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We should make a bid for Maguire, £20m?
Him and Mings would be a brick wall and give us time to ease Carlos in.
It would be one way to get Maguire dropped by Southgate.
Don’t start for Man UTD ? Shoe in for England
Regular for Villa ? You are shit and not even fit for the England squad.
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And his wages as captain of Man Utd would be easy match.
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I'd rather re-sign Colin Calderwood.
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It’s a lead weight now in hindsight, but at the time we signed a young, raw and promising Brazilian CF. Dreadful business were the deals we had Micah Richards or Shay Given.
Wesley wasn't "dreadful business", it was a £20m punt on a young player with potential who was doing "okay" six months into his English career. He hadn't set the league alight, and he was never going to be Neymar, but we will never know how it might have turned out without his injury. We may well have outgrown him by now anyway - but he had 6 goals by this stage in the season, in a struggling side. He would likely have got into double figures by the end of the season. Richarlison got 5 in his first season with Watford and got a £30m move off the back of it.
Players knackered by injury don't automatically become "dreadful bits of business". Reserve that type of classification for the Ross McCormacks of this world.
Correct.
Yes, that one can't be classed in the McCormack or... that bloke who ended up at the blues (I genuinely can't remember his name). It was just bad luck for him and us. Might've been OK might've been shite. We will never know.
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What's Steve Foster up to?
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We should make a bid for Maguire, £20m?
Him and Mings would be a brick wall and give us time to ease Carlos in.
ew, no.
After years of mistakes at the back, the last thing we need is a ManU reject trying to revive his career. Go let him fade away somewhere else.
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It’s a lead weight now in hindsight, but at the time we signed a young, raw and promising Brazilian CF. Dreadful business were the deals we had Micah Richards or Shay Given.
Wesley wasn't "dreadful business", it was a £20m punt on a young player with potential who was doing "okay" six months into his English career. He hadn't set the league alight, and he was never going to be Neymar, but we will never know how it might have turned out without his injury. We may well have outgrown him by now anyway - but he had 6 goals by this stage in the season, in a struggling side. He would likely have got into double figures by the end of the season. Richarlison got 5 in his first season with Watford and got a £30m move off the back of it.
Players knackered by injury don't automatically become "dreadful bits of business". Reserve that type of classification for the Ross McCormacks of this world.
This argument has been well rehearsed, but in short I thought he was poor when we bought him and didn't see a single thing to change my mind in the period he played for us up to his injury. He never looked like being the answer.
He was never particulalry quick so given he's running again now I would have thought if there was genuine significant underlying talent he would be able to get a game above pub team level now.
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It’s a lead weight now in hindsight, but at the time we signed a young, raw and promising Brazilian CF. Dreadful business were the deals we had Micah Richards or Shay Given.
Wesley wasn't "dreadful business", it was a £20m punt on a young player with potential who was doing "okay" six months into his English career. He hadn't set the league alight, and he was never going to be Neymar, but we will never know how it might have turned out without his injury. We may well have outgrown him by now anyway - but he had 6 goals by this stage in the season, in a struggling side. He would likely have got into double figures by the end of the season. Richarlison got 5 in his first season with Watford and got a £30m move off the back of it.
Players knackered by injury don't automatically become "dreadful bits of business". Reserve that type of classification for the Ross McCormacks of this world.
Correct.
Yes, that one can't be classed in the McCormack or... that bloke who ended up at the blues (I genuinely can't remember his name). It was just bad luck for him and us. Might've been OK might've been shite. We will never know.
Scott Hogan?
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It’s a lead weight now in hindsight, but at the time we signed a young, raw and promising Brazilian CF. Dreadful business were the deals we had Micah Richards or Shay Given.
Wesley wasn't "dreadful business", it was a £20m punt on a young player with potential who was doing "okay" six months into his English career. He hadn't set the league alight, and he was never going to be Neymar, but we will never know how it might have turned out without his injury. We may well have outgrown him by now anyway - but he had 6 goals by this stage in the season, in a struggling side. He would likely have got into double figures by the end of the season. Richarlison got 5 in his first season with Watford and got a £30m move off the back of it.
Players knackered by injury don't automatically become "dreadful bits of business". Reserve that type of classification for the Ross McCormacks of this world.
Correct.
Yes, that one can't be classed in the McCormack or... that bloke who ended up at the blues (I genuinely can't remember his name). It was just bad luck for him and us. Might've been OK might've been shite. We will never know.
Scott Hogan?
Yes! That's him. Total shite that one.
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As an assortment of cocktail sausages strung together he's done pretty well for himself I'd say
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Maguire is a Mings style “body on the line, throw him a brick and he’ll head it away” style defender.
We could use the opposite of that.
Also, imagine what his wages requirement would be like.
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The only way you could make a central defence of Maguire and Mings any slower would be to go three at the back with the corpse of Bobby Moore.
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The only way you could make a central defence of Maguire and Mings any slower would be to go three at the back with the corpse of Bobby Moore.
Bobby Moore’s corpse would make fewer gaffes.
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The only way you could make a central defence of Maguire and Mings any slower would be to go three at the back with the corpse of Bobby Moore.
Probably still be more mobile than Konsa
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Mings and Maguire ? on what planet ???
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Signing Maguire is the most stupid suggestion since someone suggested selling Martinez and replacing him with Pickford. These people cannot be serious.
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Who taught Gareth Southgate how to use the Internet?
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We should make a bid for Maguire, £20m?
Him and Mings would be a brick wall and give us time to ease Carlos in.
About as mobile as one…
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Signing Maguire is the most stupid suggestion since someone suggested selling Martinez and replacing him with Pickford. These people cannot be serious.
I see your quotes & I raise you a “let’s put Kamara at CB!”
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I really do not like the direction this thread has taken. Can we please get back to fanciful talk of youthful Argentinians?
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Signing Maguire is the most stupid suggestion since someone suggested selling Martinez and replacing him with Pickford. These people cannot be serious.
This person, same guy with both.
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That Pickford shout has aged well.
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It’s a lead weight now in hindsight, but at the time we signed a young, raw and promising Brazilian CF. Dreadful business were the deals we had Micah Richards or Shay Given.
Wesley wasn't "dreadful business", it was a £20m punt on a young player with potential who was doing "okay" six months into his English career. He hadn't set the league alight, and he was never going to be Neymar, but we will never know how it might have turned out without his injury. We may well have outgrown him by now anyway - but he had 6 goals by this stage in the season, in a struggling side. He would likely have got into double figures by the end of the season. Richarlison got 5 in his first season with Watford and got a £30m move off the back of it.
Players knackered by injury don't automatically become "dreadful bits of business". Reserve that type of classification for the Ross McCormacks of this world.
Correct.
Yep, lets not forget he got capped by Brazil in that time as well.
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Maguire is a Mings style “body on the line, throw him a brick and he’ll head it away” style defender.
Is that what happened to Lescott?
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Maguire is a Mings style “body on the line, throw him a brick and he’ll head it away” style defender.
Is that what happened to Lescott?
No, he got smashed in the head by a manhole cover that fell from the back of a passing council wagon as he was heading home from school.
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Maguire is a Mings style “body on the line, throw him a brick and he’ll head it away” style defender.
Is that what happened to Lescott?
No, he got smashed in the head by a manhole cover that fell from the back of a passing council wagon as he was heading home from school.
Really? I thought he was in with the wrong crowd and was hit with a bat or something? I'm sure I read that somewhere.
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No, it happened when he was a young boy. Karlos96 who used to post on here seemed to know a lot about it (think he was a neighbour).
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Ah fair enough.
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We should make a bid for Maguire, £20m?
Him and Mings would be a brick wall and give us time to ease Carlos in.
ew, no.
After years of mistakes at the back, the last thing we need is a ManU reject trying to revive his career. Go let him fade away somewhere else.
Buying a reject Man Utd centre half will never work will it…the one Sir Graham rescued was soooo terrible:-)
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We should make a bid for Maguire, £20m?
Him and Mings would be a brick wall and give us time to ease Carlos in.
ew, no.
After years of mistakes at the back, the last thing we need is a ManU reject trying to revive his career. Go let him fade away somewhere else.
Buying a reject Man Utd centre half will never work will it…the one Sir Graham rescued was soooo terrible:-)
That feels like a comparison that should never be made, even in jest!
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We should make a bid for Maguire, £20m?
Him and Mings would be a brick wall and give us time to ease Carlos in.
ew, no.
After years of mistakes at the back, the last thing we need is a ManU reject trying to revive his career. Go let him fade away somewhere else.
Buying a reject Man Utd centre half will never work will it…the one Sir Graham rescued was soooo terrible:-)
He was dreadful wasn’t he?
He even limped onto the pitch before the kick off
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We should make a bid for Maguire, £20m?
Him and Mings would be a brick wall and give us time to ease Carlos in.
You are Martin O'Neil and I can claim my five quid to buy his book in the Works.
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It’s a lead weight now in hindsight, but at the time we signed a young, raw and promising Brazilian CF. Dreadful business were the deals we had Micah Richards or Shay Given.
Shay Given had a good first season for us didn't he? Was never the same keeper after the Euro 2012 debacle (maybe was in decline anyway). Same for Richard Dunne.
Richards was the worst really, some "free" transfer that was. Lansbury stands out as dreadful too, as lazy a signing as he was as a player.
Since we came back up, obviously likes of Jota, Drinky and the likes failed. An 11m loan fee + wages for that charlatan Ross Barkley our worst business I'd say. Sanson, given his reputation from Marseille, also a big disappointment unfortunately.
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Shay Given had a good first season for us didn't he? Was never the same keeper after the Euro 2012 debacle (maybe was in decline anyway).
He was fine. It was still a phenomenally stupid decision to give a five year contract to a 35 year old though.
I wonder if any other 35 year old anywhere in football has been given a five year contract, before or since?
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Wasn't that to make up the shortfall in wages to what he was earning at Man. City? Had to give him extra two years as a top up compared to standard three year deal we gave Friedel who was I think 36 when he signed.
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Whatever it was it was bonkers to give that length of contract to a player or that age.
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Linked with Weston McKennie from Juventus again. Looked decent for the US at the World Cup.
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Wasn't that to make up the shortfall in wages to what he was earning at Man. City? Had to give him extra two years as a top up compared to standard three year deal we gave Friedel who was I think 36 when he signed.
We didn't have to. We could have just not wasted the money on him in the first place.
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Yep, we got star-struck just cos he was a senior player at one of the (new) big boys. He was on the wane and we dozily threw money at him.
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Shay Given had a good first season for us didn't he? Was never the same keeper after the Euro 2012 debacle (maybe was in decline anyway).
He was fine. It was still a phenomenally stupid decision to give a five year contract to a 35 year old though.
I wonder if any other 35 year old anywhere in football has been given a five year contract, before or since?
It was absolutely insane, incredible to think of the sheer stupidity of the people running the club at the time.
Another particularly bad one was giving a 31 year old Emile Heskey, fresh on the back of scoring 3 and 4 goals in his previous seasons at Wigan, a 3.5 year contract and making him the highest paid player at the club.
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Wasn't that to make up the shortfall in wages to what he was earning at Man. City? Had to give him extra two years as a top up compared to standard three year deal we gave Friedel who was I think 36 when he signed.
We didn't have to. We could have just not wasted the money on him in the first place.
Indeed.
I'd also suggest that great though he was for us, a 3 year deal for a 36 year old keeper in Friedel was not in any way standard.
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Mings isn't slow, is he?
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Wasn't that to make up the shortfall in wages to what he was earning at Man. City? Had to give him extra two years as a top up compared to standard three year deal we gave Friedel who was I think 36 when he signed.
We didn't have to. We could have just not wasted the money on him in the first place.
McLeish's first signing, at which time he said:
"It was a tremendous deal, sometimes the timing is not right but this was spot on." *Voiceover man* It wasn't a tremendous deal.
"He seemed very keen to come here, though." I bet he fucking was.
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His signings that summer were like he was still the blues manager but suddenly had a proper budget, it was like a kid in a sweet shop who found £20 on the floor and without a single thought bought everything he'd been jealously eyeing up when he thought he'd only got a quid.
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Luis Miguel Echegaray on twitter thinks we're in for Aléx Moreno at left back - 29 y/o at Real Betis.
I'm sure he's an excellent player but I wonder what it is about Digne that Emery doesn't like? Of the two I'd have thought Cash was probably the weaker link ability wise.
If we get him, the subsequent effort to offload Digne and Ings and nominal fees we'll inevitably secure will be a good highlight of the dangers of going too much down the 'experienced' route. I was all for adding a bit of quality and experience to the team, but with Carlos, Coutinho, Ings, Digne it's been a costly excercise so far.
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I prefer Cash to Digne personally. That said, Digne's been ok and i think there could be more to come, certainly not a priority to upgrade. I would have thought in both right and left back positions we should be looking at trying to sign the next big thing (around 20-21) unless we have anyone coming through that is genuinely going to be good enough to match our ambition.
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I like both Cash and Digne, and would hope they're both well down the list of people to replace.
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I like both Cash and Digne, and would hope they're both well down the list of people to replace.
They wouldn’t be high on my list either but if Emery sees someone who better matches the way he wants us to set up then all good…two good players but not indispensable by any means. In terms of Digne if he isn’t an Emery long term full back now might be the last chance to get a West Ham etc to part with 10-12m & take a huge wage away.
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Luis Miguel Echegaray on twitter thinks we're in for Aléx Moreno at left back - 29 y/o at Real Betis.
I'm sure he's an excellent player but I wonder what it is about Digne that Emery doesn't like? Of the two I'd have thought Cash was probably the weaker link ability wise.
If we get him, the subsequent effort to offload Digne and Ings and nominal fees we'll inevitably secure will be a good highlight of the dangers of going too much down the 'experienced' route. I was all for adding a bit of quality and experience to the team, but with Carlos, Coutinho, Ings, Digne it's been a costly excercise so far.
It looks very likely Moreno will move this window but he'll be 30 in June, a month older than Digne. Interesting to see that Betis are lining up 23 year old, Ex-Real Madrid youngster, Fran Garcia. Real are also said to be interested and the €10m buy-out clause Rayo Vallecano hold may be too much for Betis.
I'd prefer we invest in youth and bring him (or somebody like him) through as an eventual replacement for Digne, not that I see Digne leaving this window whoever we bring in.
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Luis Miguel Echegaray on twitter thinks we're in for Aléx Moreno at left back - 29 y/o at Real Betis.
I'm sure he's an excellent player but I wonder what it is about Digne that Emery doesn't like? Of the two I'd have thought Cash was probably the weaker link ability wise.
If we get him, the subsequent effort to offload Digne and Ings and nominal fees we'll inevitably secure will be a good highlight of the dangers of going too much down the 'experienced' route. I was all for adding a bit of quality and experience to the team, but with Carlos, Coutinho, Ings, Digne it's been a costly excercise so far.
I suspect that this link is more about a replacement for Augustinsson, than for Digne. Ludwig is on loan, and could possibly be sent back in Jan if Unai doesn't fancy him?
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Yeah, surely this is to replace Augustinsson
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I like both Cash and Digne, and would hope they're both well down the list of people to replace.
They wouldn’t be high on my list either but if Emery sees someone who better matches the way he wants us to set up then all good…two good players but not indispensable by any means. In terms of Digne if he isn’t an Emery long term full back now might be the last chance to get a West Ham etc to part with 10-12m & take a huge wage away.
Exactly Gaz probably makes sense to ship Digne out given he's one of our highest earners.
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Except he’s a really good player.
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meh he's ok
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I like both Cash and Digne, and would hope they're both well down the list of people to replace.
They wouldn’t be high on my list either but if Emery sees someone who better matches the way he wants us to set up then all good…two good players but not indispensable by any means. In terms of Digne if he isn’t an Emery long term full back now might be the last chance to get a West Ham etc to part with 10-12m & take a huge wage away.
Exactly Gaz probably makes sense to ship Digne out given he's one of our highest earners.
Fuck me, the way you're going we'll have no players left and we'll have to make up a team from H&V posters. I suppose we'll save a bit on wages though and have some money back to stuff under the mattress.
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Luis Miguel Echegaray on twitter thinks we're in for Aléx Moreno at left back - 29 y/o at Real Betis.
I'm sure he's an excellent player but I wonder what it is about Digne that Emery doesn't like? Of the two I'd have thought Cash was probably the weaker link ability wise.
If we get him, the subsequent effort to offload Digne and Ings and nominal fees we'll inevitably secure will be a good highlight of the dangers of going too much down the 'experienced' route. I was all for adding a bit of quality and experience to the team, but with Carlos, Coutinho, Ings, Digne it's been a costly excercise so far.
I suspect that this link is more about a replacement for Augustinsson, than for Digne. Ludwig is on loan, and could possibly be sent back in Jan if Unai doesn't fancy him?
I don't think we're at a level yet where we can keep two left backs of that quality in the squad. Moreno is supposedly one of the best fullbacks in La Liga, he wouldn't join to sit on the bench.
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Exactly that, I think augustinsson wants to go and we're happy to let him but we need another option it left back for that really. We could risk having Young cover both sides, and it might come to that in the end, but we are absolutely rightto be looking for another option. Like Rudy I'd rather they were younger though, a 29 year old to compete with another 29 year old feels wrong to me, it just creates a risk for a few years down the line where both of them see a drop off in performance at the same time we go quickly from 2 options to none.
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Full back is such a critical position these days. They're asked to do so much at both ends of the pitch, I wouldn't be that surprised if Emery has decided that these positions are a priority. I like both Cash and Digne, but they both have major weaknesses - Digne is great on the ball, but not very mobile. Cash is constantly let down by his final ball.
We have Chrisene and KKH both out on loan and very highly thought of, so if it is just a case of getting someone in for a year or two while we wait to see how those two develop, then I'm okay with it. To be honest, I thought we were doing that last year with Digne, but his weakness is a pretty major one that can't be fixed with coaching - he'll never be quick (to be honest, he never suited Gerrard's style so I don't really understand why we bought him). I don't know anything about Moreno, but I would guess that he is quick, gets stuck in and likes to take players on - all things that Digne isn't. And as I say, I really like him - he's a proper footballer, but full backs are so important these days so I'm not surprised it's a position that a new manager would want to look at early on.
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I like both Cash and Digne, and would hope they're both well down the list of people to replace.
Aye, it would be an odd one.
But Emery is a bit of an obsessive, and not every player responds to the detail and constant instructions etc.
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Full back is such a critical position these days. They're asked to do so much at both ends of the pitch, I wouldn't be that surprised if Emery has decided that these positions are a priority. I like both Cash and Digne, but they both have major weaknesses - Digne is great on the ball, but not very mobile. Cash is constantly let down by his final ball.
We have Chrisene and KKH both out on loan and very highly thought of, so if it is just a case of getting someone in for a year or two while we wait to see how those two develop, then I'm okay with it. To be honest, I thought we were doing that last year with Digne, but his weakness is a pretty major one that can't be fixed with coaching - he'll never be quick (to be honest, he never suited Gerrard's style so I don't really understand why we bought him). I don't know anything about Moreno, but I would guess that he is quick, gets stuck in and likes to take players on - all things that Digne isn't. And as I say, I really like him - he's a proper footballer, but full backs are so important these days so I'm not surprised it's a position that a new manager would want to look at early on.
Rapid quick. Energy to burn. Pretty decent on the ball, & can defend pretty well. He would be an upgrade on Digne in my humble opinion. Having both would be great as we can rotate them & keep them both fresh. Chrisene could then come along in a year or two if he develops as we expect.
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Striker
Winger
Full back
Center back
In that order starting this week! We have decent options in the middle if the park but are desperately lacking a cutting edge. On the other hand under previous managers we wouldn't have battled back for that point so I still see it as a point gained
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Striker, wide forward and a proper partner for Kamara.
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Isn’t that Luiz?
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Target man option is a must as tonight has shown. The opposition are happy for us to have the ball in wide areas as they know that either the quality from Digne or Cash, etc, has to be perfect or they have to have one of their own defenders go to sleep for us to score when they defend deep.
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Isn’t that Luiz?
It should be, but he really needs to learn some consistency. First half tonight he was as bad as he was against Liverpool first half, and was rightly subbed. The Luiz against Spurs is the one we need to see more often.
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Isn’t that Luiz?
It should be, but he really needs to learn some consistency. First half tonight he was as bad as he was against Liverpool first half, and was rightly subbed. The Luiz against Spurs is the one we need to see more often.
I saw an interview with De Bruyne when he said and I paraphrase, he would rather put in 7/8 out of 10 performances every game rather than a 10 out of 10 followed by a 4 out of ten as he achieves more this way.
We need a lot of our players to start thinking this way.
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Target man option is a must as tonight has shown. The opposition are happy for us to have the ball in wide areas as they know that either the quality from Digne or Cash, etc, has to be perfect or they have to have one of their own defenders go to sleep for us to score when they defend deep.
Absolutely this…we need that option whether it is a starter or from the bench. It was illustrated again last night where Martinez, Mings and Konsa were having to take goal kicks between themselves and invite pressure 20 yards from goal because a long goal kick was essentially a pass to Wolves. Ollie works the channels well but he wasn’t going to win any long balls or crosses in the air
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Isn’t that Luiz?
It should be, but he really needs to learn some consistency. First half tonight he was as bad as he was against Liverpool first half, and was rightly subbed. The Luiz against Spurs is the one we need to see more often.
I saw an interview with De Bruyne when he said and I paraphrase, he would rather put in 7/8 out of 10 performances every game rather than a 10 out of 10 followed by a 4 out of ten as he achieves more this way.
We need a lot of our players to start thinking this way.
Buendia could learn a lot from that approach, in that the simple short ball to a teammate can be more effective because for one we keep possession, and two the defenders are not sat waiting for the killer pass when it's actually on.
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Still would prioritise one or even two quality wide players in this window.
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Isn’t that Luiz?
It should be, but he really needs to learn some consistency. First half tonight he was as bad as he was against Liverpool first half, and was rightly subbed. The Luiz against Spurs is the one we need to see more often.
I saw an interview with De Bruyne when he said and I paraphrase, he would rather put in 7/8 out of 10 performances every game rather than a 10 out of 10 followed by a 4 out of ten as he achieves more this way.
We need a lot of our players to start thinking this way.
That’s why teams like us or Wolves are in the bottom half and Man City are near the top. It’s about finding players who can do that consistently versus those that blow hot and cold. That’s really hard to do. You’ve either got to brilliant in scouting players or shell out stupid money. We also need a manager that helps players get there through his own skills and what he imparts on his staff and squad.
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Target man option is a must as tonight has shown. The opposition are happy for us to have the ball in wide areas as they know that either the quality from Digne or Cash, etc, has to be perfect or they have to have one of their own defenders go to sleep for us to score when they defend deep.
If only we had a young 6’3” pacy tank who has a lovely touch, excellent hold up & link up play & doesn’t complain when he is on the bench?
I understand that his finishing needs work, but I have always felt that as a different option off the bench, Keinan Davis could more than do a job…
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On the BBC rumours page there's a post about Barcelona looking to loan out Ansu Fati, if there's any remote chance I'd be all over that, he's a fantastic young player.
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Target man option is a must as tonight has shown. The opposition are happy for us to have the ball in wide areas as they know that either the quality from Digne or Cash, etc, has to be perfect or they have to have one of their own defenders go to sleep for us to score when they defend deep.
If only we had a young 6’3” pacy tank who has a lovely touch, excellent hold up & link up play & doesn’t complain when he is on the bench?
I understand that his finishing needs work, but I have always felt that as a different option off the bench, Keinan Davis could more than do a job…
"Needs work" - understatement of the year. And he's injured again.
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On the BBC rumours page there's a post about Barcelona looking to loan out Ansu Fati, if there's any remote chance I'd be all over that, he's a fantastic young player.
Without an option to purchase, we should stay away from developing other clubs footballers. We have enough of our ow to develop.
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Target man option is a must as tonight has shown. The opposition are happy for us to have the ball in wide areas as they know that either the quality from Digne or Cash, etc, has to be perfect or they have to have one of their own defenders go to sleep for us to score when they defend deep.
If only we had a young 6’3” pacy tank who has a lovely touch, excellent hold up & link up play & doesn’t complain when he is on the bench?
I understand that his finishing needs work, but I have always felt that as a different option off the bench, Keinan Davis could more than do a job…
"Needs work" - understatement of the year. And he's injured again.
;D
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Pickford is shite
We've signed Jordan
Nobbs
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BBC reporting that we've turned down a loan offer for Danny Ings from Everton, but Bournemouth, Southampton and West Ham United might also be interested in signing him.
Dunno where I stand on it tbh. He seems the most natural finisher in the squad, and he's not a player that I'd instantly try to put a "for sale" sign on ... but the clubs that are interested in him are likely to be desperate for a proven goalscorer - which Ings absolutely is. I'd be asking for something like £30m or something - a nice tidy profit on what we paid for him, and that might mean we'd be more in a position to splash the cash on a £50m-bracket striker instead ...
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BBC reporting that we've turned down a loan offer for Danny Ings from Everton, but Bournemouth, Southampton and West Ham United might also be interested in signing him.
Dunno where I stand on it tbh. He seems the most natural finisher in the squad, and he's not a player that I'd instantly try to put a "for sale" sign on ... but the clubs that are interested in him are likely to be desperate for a proven goalscorer - which Ings absolutely is. I'd be asking for something like £30m or something - a nice tidy profit on what we paid for him, and that might mean we'd be more in a position to splash the cash on a £50m-bracket striker instead ...
Think we'd be doing extremely well to get £30m Algy but the funds for a better striker have to come from somewhere, can't all be from the owners.
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BBC reporting that we've turned down a loan offer for Danny Ings from Everton, but Bournemouth, Southampton and West Ham United might also be interested in signing him.
Dunno where I stand on it tbh. He seems the most natural finisher in the squad, and he's not a player that I'd instantly try to put a "for sale" sign on ... but the clubs that are interested in him are likely to be desperate for a proven goalscorer - which Ings absolutely is. I'd be asking for something like £30m or something - a nice tidy profit on what we paid for him, and that might mean we'd be more in a position to splash the cash on a £50m-bracket striker instead ...
Think we'd be doing extremely well to get £30m Algy but the funds for a better striker have to come from somewhere, can't all be from the owners.
He's a reliable 1-in-3 striker, and the teams being mentioned are all desperate. It's time we were the ones selling players for well more than they're worth (which arguably we've been reasonably good at late, with Joe & Carnaby Chumbawamba). Pull their pants down, tell them that if they don't pay up then one of the other 3 will. Relegation will cost them more than £30m, etc etc.
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If Archer is off on loan to Boro Ings is not likely to go anywhere this window. I can't see 2 top strikers being brought in that quickly, and nobody would leave themselves with Watkins as the only CF.
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If we let Ings go then we’ll need to replace him which will cost a huge amount. Then you need a willing seller and a player of that quality willing to move in January to a mid table PL side. Considering most quality forwards are involved in some sort of trophy challenge with their current clubs I doubt very much if any club will be making a signing of this nature this month.
You never know but it’s highly unlikely.
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BBC reporting that we've turned down a loan offer for Danny Ings from Everton, but Bournemouth, Southampton and West Ham United might also be interested in signing him.
Dunno where I stand on it tbh. He seems the most natural finisher in the squad, and he's not a player that I'd instantly try to put a "for sale" sign on ... but the clubs that are interested in him are likely to be desperate for a proven goalscorer - which Ings absolutely is. I'd be asking for something like £30m or something - a nice tidy profit on what we paid for him, and that might mean we'd be more in a position to splash the cash on a £50m-bracket striker instead ...
Think we'd be doing extremely well to get £30m Algy but the funds for a better striker have to come from somewhere, can't all be from the owners.
He's a reliable 1-in-3 striker, and the teams being mentioned are all desperate. It's time we were the ones selling players for well more than they're worth (which arguably we've been reasonably good at late, with Joe & Carnaby Chumbawamba). Pull their pants down, tell them that if they don't pay up then one of the other 3 will. Relegation will cost them more than £30m, etc etc.
Good point I hope you're right.
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I wouldn't be against Ings leaving but only if we have someone lined up to take on Watkins for his spot. That's unlikely this month so might be best to hold onto Ings until the summer. Unfortunately when they both play together it has rarely if ever worked (Soton home game was an exception that comes to mind).
Buendia, Bailey, Coutinho...not getting anywhere near enough from them individually or collectively. I'm happy enough with 2 from Luiz, Kamara and Dendoncker. McGinn and Ramsey maybe competing for the same spot when they are back is strong too. Nakamba and Sanson on way out hopefully.
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Emery said last night that we had no plans to sell Ings and that he's very much part of the plans. With archer gone there's no way we'd leave ourselves with 1 striker
Fully expect 2 forwards to come in this month
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I expect strikers to come in. Archer on loan and Ings in the departure lounge seem to point towards this. We would be doing very well to recoup our money on Ings. When was the last time we managed that?
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Lots of rumours that Archer is heading out on loan to Boro, though nothing has been confirmed.
Maybe that deal has stalled due to interest in Ings.
I would be happy with a Archer getting more game time, Ings being sold (for decent money) and a top goalscorer coming in.
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Isn’t that Luiz?
It should be, but he really needs to learn some consistency. First half tonight he was as bad as he was against Liverpool first half, and was rightly subbed. The Luiz against Spurs is the one we need to see more often.
I saw an interview with De Bruyne when he said and I paraphrase, he would rather put in 7/8 out of 10 performances every game rather than a 10 out of 10 followed by a 4 out of ten as he achieves more this way.
We need a lot of our players to start thinking this way.
That’s a good quote and I agree that it’d better, but is it in the players’ gift to decide how they perform? Back in the day, I remember the coaching* “if you’re not paying well, make yourself a nuisance to the opposition” however isn’t that the minimum expectation from a professional footballer nowadays?
It’d be interesting to know if Luiz ran less versus Liverpool and Wolves compared to Spurs to see if his efforts dropped if anyone has the data.
* not aimed at me, I was always 8/10.
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Send Archer on loan
Sell Ings for £15-20m
Loan Felix from Atletico
Doesn’t solve any long term problems but I’d take money for Ings whilst he’s young enough to attract decent offers. We’d have a better idea exactly how good Archer is and its not often a player like Felix is available (plus he’s almost certain to fall in love with the club).
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If we let Ings go then we’ll need to replace him which will cost a huge amount. Then you need a willing seller and a player of that quality willing to move in January to a mid table PL side. Considering most quality forwards are involved in some sort of trophy challenge with their current clubs I doubt very much if any club will be making a signing of this nature this month.
You never know but it’s highly unlikely.
What I'd love, is a centre-forward signed out of the blue in January, who goes on to do better than anyone expected. I want another John Carew.
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Send Archer on loan
Sell Ings for £15-20m
Loan Felix from Atletico
Doesn’t solve any long term problems but I’d take money for Ings whilst he’s young enough to attract decent offers. We’d have a better idea exactly how good Archer is and its not often a player like Felix is available (plus he’s almost certain to fall in love with the club).
The thing with Archer is that we already know he's good enough to play up front as a first-choice striker in the Championship. He proved that at Preston last year. I worry that another loan at Championship level, at 21, means Emery doesn't fancy him. I hope I'm wrong, as the lad has clearly shown plenty of ability in the fleeting first-team chances he's been given. I genuinely hope this is about him having another 6 months of experience under his belt and being ready to step up in the summer, than it is about being a step closer to the exit.
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Interesting to note Evan Ferguson played for Brighton and scored against Everton.He's 18.Sarmiento who assisted is 20.
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Send Archer on loan
Sell Ings for £15-20m
Loan Felix from Atletico
Doesn’t solve any long term problems but I’d take money for Ings whilst he’s young enough to attract decent offers. We’d have a better idea exactly how good Archer is and its not often a player like Felix is available (plus he’s almost certain to fall in love with the club).
The thing with Archer is that we already know he's good enough to play up front as a first-choice striker in the Championship. He proved that at Preston last year. I worry that another loan at Championship level, at 21, means Emery doesn't fancy him. I hope I'm wrong, as the lad has clearly shown plenty of ability in the fleeting first-team chances he's been given. I genuinely hope this is about him having another 6 months of experience under his belt and being ready to step up in the summer, than it is about being a step closer to the exit.
I was thinking more that his form could influence who the Ings replacement might be. If Archer scored say 10+ goals then we have more latitude to take risks (a random from South America). If he flops then we might be wise to sign a ‘safer’ option or to spend more money.
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Send Archer on loan
Sell Ings for £15-20m
Loan Felix from Atletico
Doesn’t solve any long term problems but I’d take money for Ings whilst he’s young enough to attract decent offers. We’d have a better idea exactly how good Archer is and its not often a player like Felix is available (plus he’s almost certain to fall in love with the club).
The thing with Archer is that we already know he's good enough to play up front as a first-choice striker in the Championship. He proved that at Preston last year. I worry that another loan at Championship level, at 21, means Emery doesn't fancy him. I hope I'm wrong, as the lad has clearly shown plenty of ability in the fleeting first-team chances he's been given. I genuinely hope this is about him having another 6 months of experience under his belt and being ready to step up in the summer, than it is about being a step closer to the exit.
Maybe he isn't good enough at this level?
I know we're not supposed to say that, but it's entirely possible - if Emery doesn't give him a chance and Gerrard didn't either, maybe there's something in it (see also: Sanson, Guilbert).
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Send Archer on loan
Sell Ings for £15-20m
Loan Felix from Atletico
Doesn’t solve any long term problems but I’d take money for Ings whilst he’s young enough to attract decent offers. We’d have a better idea exactly how good Archer is and its not often a player like Felix is available (plus he’s almost certain to fall in love with the club).
The thing with Archer is that we already know he's good enough to play up front as a first-choice striker in the Championship. He proved that at Preston last year. I worry that another loan at Championship level, at 21, means Emery doesn't fancy him. I hope I'm wrong, as the lad has clearly shown plenty of ability in the fleeting first-team chances he's been given. I genuinely hope this is about him having another 6 months of experience under his belt and being ready to step up in the summer, than it is about being a step closer to the exit.
Maybe he isn't good enough at this level?
I know we're not supposed to say that, but it's entirely possible - if Emery doesn't give him a chance and Gerrard didn't either, maybe there's something in it (see also: Sanson, Guilbert).
Entirely possible. There is simply no way that all the promising youngsters we've got at the minute will be good enough for our first team, it's probably a million-to-one chance that in two years our first time will regularly include KKH, Chrisene, both Ramseys, Iroegbunam, Archer and Barry. One or two of those being decent squad players would be amazing. The one thing Cam has in his favour is that when he's played in the first team he's done well, and when he's gone on loan he's shined (so far).
One thing we can probably safely say is that if Emery rated him very highly, he would probably have had a chance in the side by now, and would likely have been kept around for the cup game. Currently he's behind Watkins, Bailey and Ings, which means zero pitch time, realistically. I hope this is about the development of a future first-team player, rather than simply increasing the value of an asset to move on in the summer. If he gets the same number of goals for Boro as he did for Preston, he'd easily be worth £10m+ next summer. Maybe more.
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Daily Mail (won't post a link as I'd rather not give them any more exposure than necessary) reporting that we're "keeping tabs" on Alberto Moleiro, some attacking midfielder type from Las Palmas. 19 years old, been playing regularly for them in the Spanish 2nd tier since the start of last season.
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Send Archer on loan
Sell Ings for £15-20m
Loan Felix from Atletico
Doesn’t solve any long term problems but I’d take money for Ings whilst he’s young enough to attract decent offers. We’d have a better idea exactly how good Archer is and its not often a player like Felix is available (plus he’s almost certain to fall in love with the club).
The thing with Archer is that we already know he's good enough to play up front as a first-choice striker in the Championship. He proved that at Preston last year. I worry that another loan at Championship level, at 21, means Emery doesn't fancy him. I hope I'm wrong, as the lad has clearly shown plenty of ability in the fleeting first-team chances he's been given. I genuinely hope this is about him having another 6 months of experience under his belt and being ready to step up in the summer, than it is about being a step closer to the exit.
Maybe he isn't good enough at this level?
I know we're not supposed to say that, but it's entirely possible - if Emery doesn't give him a chance and Gerrard didn't either, maybe there's something in it (see also: Sanson, Guilbert).
While that could be the case, of course, I think Cam is a victim of circumstance. He shone in the cup under Dean, but Dean quickly came under pressure and was struggling with getting Ings and Watkins working together, so he wasn't really in a position to play Cam very often. He did bring him on at 0-0 away at Old Trafford, so he clearly wanted him to be involved. Gerrard sent him on loan, which was a good decision, and Cam did brilliantly at Preston. It can't be easy to be dropped into a team halfway through a season when you haven't played many professional games, but they loved him there. Then in the summer he was great for England U21s, and had a promising pre-season. Again, though, we had a manager that was instantly under pressure and not willing to pin his hopes to a relatively unproven young player. I get it, but keeping him and not using him was the worst thing for Cam.
Now we have Emery, he's in a similar position to Gerrard last year - a promising young player that hasn't played much football for 6 months. He needs minutes and goals, so a loan makes the most sense. Hopefully, Cam will do really well again and Emery can have another look at him in the summer. It seems likely that one of our first team strikers could leave, if not now in the summer, and I would imagine we'll invest in a new player to start up front at some point. So we could start the season with New player, Watkins/Ings and Cam as our options up front. You would hope that Emery will be secure enough in his position to trust him a bit more. And maybe we'll be controlling games so that we can bring him on for half an hour here and there much more often, starting in the cup and putting the first teamers under pressure. If we're looking to send him on loan again this time next year, then something has gone wrong.
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His loan to Middlesbrough confirmed now. Best of luck to him - joining a club on the up, a coach he knows and with the season not even half done yet. Imagine our forward department will look very different by the time he returns which will be his chance to breakthrough.
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Why the rush to push Archer out of the door to Middlesbrough now? We haven't got many striker options. An injury to Watkins or Ings now will mean one fit striker left. I hope a striker is incoming soon.
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
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Why the rush to push Archer out of the door to Middlesbrough now? We haven't got many striker options. An injury to Watkins or Ings now will mean one fit striker left. I hope a striker is incoming soon.
Because Bailey is also playing up front, so it's still two from three even without a replacement.
Cam is 21 now. I felt keeping him around was the right call but it hasn't worked out for him and gametime now has to be the priority for all concerned
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Why the rush to push Archer out of the door to Middlesbrough now? We haven't got many striker options. An injury to Watkins or Ings now will mean one fit striker left. I hope a striker is incoming soon.
To give him game time. There is no way he is getting many minutes with us this season barring a catastrophic injury crisis.
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Why the rush to push Archer out of the door to Middlesbrough now? We haven't got many striker options. An injury to Watkins or Ings now will mean one fit striker left. I hope a striker is incoming soon.
He’s not being pushed out though is he? He’s being given an opportunity to get playing time at a club that is doing well in the Championship. He’s not broken through now under 2 managers, and while very talented still has lots of room to develop. This is really good for him and hopefully he goes and scores a load of goals and comes back to compete with our first team in August.
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Is Moreno the former Liverpool player?
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Is Moreno the former Liverpool player?
No you’re thinking of Alberto Moreno. Who actually ironically is at Villarreal.
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
Alex Moreno.
Alberto Moreno is the one who looks a bit like a hobbit and hung around at Liverpool under Brendan Rodgers.
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
Percy from the Torygraph seems to think it's close. Digne not rated perhaps? 29, so bit of a strange signing strategically.
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
Alex Moreno.
Alberto Moreno is the one who looks a bit like a hobbit and hung around at Liverpool under Brendan Rodgers.
Who is also looking more and more like a hobbit Dave. Brendan Rodgers, that is!
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
Alex Moreno.
Alberto Moreno is the one who looks a bit like a hobbit and hung around at Liverpool under Brendan Rodgers.
Who is also looking more and more like a hobbit Dave. Brendan Rodgers, that is!
No, it's probably fair. As I approach my forties I can feel my feet getting hairier and I'm increasingly reluctant to leave the house as well.
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
Alex Moreno.
Alberto Moreno is the one who looks a bit like a hobbit and hung around at Liverpool under Brendan Rodgers.
Who is also looking more and more like a hobbit Dave. Brendan Rodgers, that is!
No, it's probably fair. As I approach my forties I can feel my feet getting hairier and I'm increasingly reluctant to leave the house as well.
Dave, to be fair, if you find yourself living underground, that actually makes you a Blues fan, not necessarily a hobbit!
Moreno 'deal' getting more and more coverage, looks like it's a goer.
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John Percy
#avfc to continue talks with Real Betis over £12m deal for left-back Alex Moreno. Getting closer. Unai Emery also targeting a new winger as a priority this month
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John Percy
#avfc to continue talks with Real Betis over £12m deal for left-back Alex Moreno. Getting closer. Unai Emery also targeting a new winger as a priority this month
If Percy says it is getting closer, it is getting closer
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Bit of a goal hanger is Percy. Always there at the back post to knock it in after everyone else has done the hard work.
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I wonder if the winger might be Sarr. Delafeu (dreadful spelling, sorry) still being linked. But might be injured.
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Bit of a goal hanger is Percy. Always there at the back post to knock it in after everyone else has done the hard work.
Harsh. He's reliable and doesn't spout bullshit.
Where's our Vinnie Chase '84?
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
29, so bit of a strange signing strategically.
Aye, very strange signing if there is anything in it.
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I think it's a sign of emery putting his stamp on the team. He obviously doesn't rate digne that much and the swede is only on loan.
As an aside did I read somewhere that Moreno can also play on the wing?
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I don’t know it means he doesn’t rate Digne, Ludwig maybe. The fee doesn’t scream absolute first teamer - he could be competition for Digne.
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I think it's a sign of emery putting his stamp on the team. He obviously doesn't rate digne that much and the swede is only on loan.
As an aside did I read somewhere that Moreno can also play on the wing?
I don't really want to see people who 'can' play on the wing, I want the finest, shit hot wing wizards known to man.
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
29, so bit of a strange signing strategically.
Aye, very strange signing if there is anything in it.
Moreno is only 19 isn't he? So one for the future.
There's been talk that Augustinsson isn't happy at his lack of game time, so let him go back and get in another LB.
We played Cash and Young on the right on Wednesday, maybe we'll play Moreno and Digne on the left!
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
Percy from the Torygraph seems to think it's close. Digne not rated perhaps? 29, so bit of a strange signing strategically.
Our only cover for Digne is a loan player so it does make some sense, especially when Digne can put in a minging performance like he did on Wednesday. We are also in an age where we can change 50% of the outfield players during a game so a strong squad is even more necessary.
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
29, so bit of a strange signing strategically.
Aye, very strange signing if there is anything in it.
Moreno is only 19 isn't he? So one for the future.
There's been talk that Augustinsson isn't happy at his lack of game time, so let him go back and get in another LB.
We played Cash and Young on the right on Wednesday, maybe we'll play Moreno and Digne on the left!
No, he's 29 and nearly joined Forest in the summer so don't get too excited.
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
29, so bit of a strange signing strategically.
Aye, very strange signing if there is anything in it.
Moreno is only 19 isn't he? So one for the future.
There's been talk that Augustinsson isn't happy at his lack of game time, so let him go back and get in another LB.
We played Cash and Young on the right on Wednesday, maybe we'll play Moreno and Digne on the left!
No, he's 29 and nearly joined Forest in the summer so don't get too excited.
25% of the European population nearly joined Forest in the summer. 2% actually did.
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
29, so bit of a strange signing strategically.
Aye, very strange signing if there is anything in it.
Moreno is only 19 isn't he? So one for the future.
There's been talk that Augustinsson isn't happy at his lack of game time, so let him go back and get in another LB.
We played Cash and Young on the right on Wednesday, maybe we'll play Moreno and Digne on the left!
No, he's 29 and nearly joined Forest in the summer so don't get too excited.
Hmmm, so he is... I must have been thinking of someone else.
Anyway, he plays as either left back or left wing, so i guess that's the reason we'll go for him as he'll add some width.
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Only reason why he backed out of going to Forest was because the Real Betis fans begged him to stay.
I did some cursory research last night and saw him described as a marauding full-back and he's got 5 goals and 8 assists this season. Described as Spain's best non-capped full-back.
It all sounded pretty positive. Emery's not given me any reason to doubt his judgment so far.
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Juventus and Borussia Dortmund are monitoring Aston Villa's 19-year-old English midfielder Tim Iroegbunam, who is on loan at Queens Park Rangers. (Teamtalk
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The fans on the Betis forum I've just been reading seem to rate Moreno highly (one even referring to him as the best player in his position in La Liga). The general mood seems to be one of disappointment that he might be leaving and further disappointment that it could be for such a low fee.
As far as age is concerned, he is about the same age Kieran Trippier was when he sign for Atletico Madrid. Having watched the World Cup and the performances of some players in their mid-thirties, I think 29 years isn't the "old" age that it used to be in football terms - we need only look at Ashley Young for proof of that. If the player is good enough for Unai Emery, he's good enough for me.
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Older players might add a bit more leadership too, which I think we still lack.
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Surprised there's nothing on here about Alberto Moreno today. It sounded like things were quite far along last night from what I was reading.
29, so bit of a strange signing strategically.
Aye, very strange signing if there is anything in it.
Moreno is only 19 isn't he? So one for the future.
There's been talk that Augustinsson isn't happy at his lack of game time, so let him go back and get in another LB.
We played Cash and Young on the right on Wednesday, maybe we'll play Moreno and Digne on the left!
No, he's 29 and nearly joined Forest in the summer so don't get too excited.
Hmmm, so he is... I must have been thinking of someone else.
Anyway, he plays as either left back or left wing, so i guess that's the reason we'll go for him as he'll add some width.
Mixing him up with the Alberto Moleiro from Las Palmas who is 19, who was mentioned a few posts previously?
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The fans on the Betis forum I've just been reading seem to rate Moreno highly (one even referring to him as the best player in his position in La Liga). The general mood seems to be one of disappointment that he might be leaving and further disappointment that it could be for such a low fee.
As far as age is concerned, he is about the same age Kieran Trippier was when he sign for Atletico Madrid. Having watched the World Cup and the performances of some players in their mid-thirties, I think 29 years isn't the "old" age that it used to be in football terms - we need only look at Ashley Young for proof of that. If the player is good enough for Unai Emery, he's good enough for me.
I think the European mindset of looking after your body and mind has crept into English football for those players who want to prolong their playing careers at the highest level. Young and Milner are testament to that, there are others for sure but they stick out for me. It helps that they are defensive/midfield types. Mid thirties is pushing it for forwards I feel.
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Hmmm, so he is... I must have been thinking of someone else.
Anyway, he plays as either left back or left wing, so i guess that's the reason we'll go for him as he'll add some width.
Mixing him up with the Alberto Moleiro from Las Palmas who is 19, who was mentioned a few posts previously?
Ah yes, that's the one.
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The fans on the Betis forum I've just been reading seem to rate Moreno highly (one even referring to him as the best player in his position in La Liga). The general mood seems to be one of disappointment that he might be leaving and further disappointment that it could be for such a low fee.
As far as age is concerned, he is about the same age Kieran Trippier was when he sign for Atletico Madrid. Having watched the World Cup and the performances of some players in their mid-thirties, I think 29 years isn't the "old" age that it used to be in football terms - we need only look at Ashley Young for proof of that. If the player is good enough for Unai Emery, he's good enough for me.
I think the European mindset of looking after your body and mind has crept into English football for those players who want to prolong their playing careers at the highest level. Young and Milner are testament to that, there are others for sure but they stick out for me. It helps that they are defensive/midfield types. Mid thirties is pushing it for forwards I feel.
Agreed with the exception being for players that have suffered serious injuries during their careers.
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imo he’ll be competing for that first-team place from the off if he comes, I don’t see him as a back up more a replacement
I don’t think Emery rates Digne that much and in fairness, plenty on here including me haven’t been that impressed either
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Moreno is only 19 isn't he? So one for the future.
There's been talk that Augustinsson isn't happy at his lack of game time, so let him go back and get in another LB.
We played Cash and Young on the right on Wednesday, maybe we'll play Moreno and Digne on the left!
No, he's 29 and nearly joined Forest in the summer so don't get too excited.
I've always preferred Morenas anyway.
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Ha! Not wasted on me, BV.
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¡Jajajaja! ¡Coño!
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Certainly is.
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imo he’ll be competing for that first-team place from the off if he comes, I don’t see him as a back up more a replacement
I don’t think Emery rates Digne that much and in fairness, plenty on here including me haven’t been that impressed either
Yes, Digne has had one or two decent games, but nothing consistently good. He was seen as an upgrade on Targett and nobody seemed to mind he was 28 when he signed, so if Moreno is an upgrade, I don't really mind if he's 21 or 29.
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Unai Emery and his staff will know him well, so hopefully will be a shrewd addition.
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I wonder if the winger might be Sarr. Delafeu (dreadful spelling, sorry) still being linked. But might be injured.
Can't (won't!) believe it is Sarr. A player who has one good game in five at best. In the Championship.
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Joao Felix sounds a bargain. A mere €21m for a six months loan.
https://twitter.com/David_Ornstein/status/1609829457245749248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
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I wonder if the winger might be Sarr. Delafeu (dreadful spelling, sorry) still being linked. But might be injured.
Can't (won't!) believe it is Sarr. A player who has one good game in five at best. In the Championship.
Yup, my money's on Deulofeu.
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Yup, my money's on Deulofeu.
Probably. A bit underwhelming if true.
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Joao Felix sounds a bargain. A mere €21m for a six months loan.
https://twitter.com/David_Ornstein/status/1609829457245749248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Ross Barkley was £11m for nine months so...
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I don't know much about Felix, but why is his current club apparently wanting to loan him out?
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Joao Felix sounds a bargain. A mere €21m for a six months loan.
https://twitter.com/David_Ornstein/status/1609829457245749248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Yes a steal at that price, specially when it takes about a season for these players to get up to speed with the PL. Good luck to any club interested.
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I don't know much about Felix, but why is his current club apparently wanting to loan him out?
They basically want their money back (they paid over €100m for him on the strength of one decent season in Portugal), and he's been fine but not €100m+ fine.
Right now they'd struggle to get two-thirds of it back, but they're banking on him scoring a dozen goals in the Premier League and that being enough to reinflate his value.
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I don't know much about Felix, but why is his current club apparently wanting to loan him out?
They basically want their money back (they paid over €100m for him on the strength of one decent season in Portugal), and he's been fine but not €100m+ fine.
Right now they'd struggle to get two-thirds of it back, but they're banking on him scoring a dozen goals in the Premier League and that being enough to reinflate his value.
Cheers. So it wouldn't be a Ross Barkley sized risk then. I don't really like loans but am open minded to whoever Emery wants bring in.
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I don't know much about Felix, but why is his current club apparently wanting to loan him out?
They basically want their money back (they paid over €100m for him on the strength of one decent season in Portugal), and he's been fine but not €100m+ fine.
Right now they'd struggle to get two-thirds of it back, but they're banking on him scoring a dozen goals in the Premier League and that being enough to reinflate his value.
The other point is him and Simone don't get on. Félix doesn't want to play for him and wants to leave.
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Are we still gonna be surprised by signings out of the blue with Emery or we expecting to get wind via rumours now?
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I don't know much about Felix, but why is his current club apparently wanting to loan him out?
They basically want their money back (they paid over €100m for him on the strength of one decent season in Portugal), and he's been fine but not €100m+ fine.
Right now they'd struggle to get two-thirds of it back, but they're banking on him scoring a dozen goals in the Premier League and that being enough to reinflate his value.
Cheers. So it wouldn't be a Ross Barkley sized risk then. I don't really like loans but am open minded to whoever Emery wants bring in.
Everton some seasons back had the right approach with loans - use them on a kind of sale-or-return type thing for players coming in from abroad. If they adapt to the PL then you have an option to buy, if not then you can send them back so it's relatively risk free for them & the player.
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Seems Chelsea are in for Thuram. Their first team squad must be about 45 players already
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Ridiculous. Not even counting the 20 they have out on loan
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Can they ever fcuk off and fail?
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You should be limited on loan players you can have they are a ridiculous horrible club
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Chelsea’s transfer policy just seems so completely random. I know Potter probably has some say on players. But he’s gone from Brighton, where they certainly spent money where he had to get value from some of their lower priced deals and time to see them develop, to Chelsea where every player has to hit the ground running. It’s no wonder they keep churning through managers and they are mid table.
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Bloody hell Danjuma of Villarreal, linked with us literally missed an open goal vs Real Madrid. Courtois had gone up for a corner deep into injury time and it broke for Danjuma who raced down the pitch and then proceeded to miss a wide open goal. They won 2-1 though so it will be forgotten.
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Bloody hell Danjuma of Villarreal, linked with us literally missed an open goal vs Real Madrid. Courtois had gone up for a corner deep into injury time and it broke for Danjuma who raced down the pitch and then proceeded to miss a wide open goal. They won 2-1 though so it will be forgotten.
Sounds like our kind of guy.
Audition passed.
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Bloody hell Danjuma of Villarreal, linked with us literally missed an open goal vs Real Madrid. Courtois had gone up for a corner deep into injury time and it broke for Danjuma who raced down the pitch and then proceeded to miss a wide open goal. They won 2-1 though so it will be forgotten.
Sounds like our kind of guy.
Audition passed.
Sounds about as useful as my hairdresser.
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Danjuma: Can I come and play for you at Villa boss?
Unai: No, they’re asking too much for you.
Danjuma: We’ll see about that.
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Bloody hell Danjuma of Villarreal, linked with us literally missed an open goal vs Real Madrid. Courtois had gone up for a corner deep into injury time and it broke for Danjuma who raced down the pitch and then proceeded to miss a wide open goal. They won 2-1 though so it will be forgotten.
Sounds like our kind of guy.
Audition passed.
Sounds about as useful as my hairdresser.
On the contrary, it seems like your hairdresser knows how to take advantage of an open goal.
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Danjuma: Can I come and play for you at Villa boss?
Unai: No, they’re asking too much for you.
Danjuma: We’ll see about that.
Is he a winger ? Unai has said we are after a winger
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He is. Had a great season for Bournemouth when they were in the Championship.
We were linked with him that summer before he went to Villarreal.
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Bloody hell Danjuma of Villarreal, linked with us literally missed an open goal vs Real Madrid. Courtois had gone up for a corner deep into injury time and it broke for Danjuma who raced down the pitch and then proceeded to miss a wide open goal. They won 2-1 though so it will be forgotten.
Sounds like our kind of guy.
Audition passed.
Sounds about as useful as my hairdresser.
On the contrary, it seems like your hairdresser knows how to take advantage of an open goal.
True, but she has nice tits :)
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Lee Kang-In rumoured, never heard of him. South Korean winger
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Lee Kang-In rumoured, never heard of him. South Korean winger
looks useful ( i know utube) Also think of the Far east fans we would encourage . We would need a 60.000 stadium , Fred ??
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Lee Kang-In rumoured, never heard of him. South Korean winger
looks useful ( i know utube) Also think of the Far east fans we would encourage . We would need a 60.000 stadium , Fred ??
you mean lots of people that spend all of their time looking and filming with their phone
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Bloody hell Danjuma of Villarreal, linked with us literally missed an open goal vs Real Madrid. Courtois had gone up for a corner deep into injury time and it broke for Danjuma who raced down the pitch and then proceeded to miss a wide open goal. They won 2-1 though so it will be forgotten.
Sounds like our kind of guy.
Audition passed.
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Bloody hell Danjuma of Villarreal, linked with us literally missed an open goal vs Real Madrid. Courtois had gone up for a corner deep into injury time and it broke for Danjuma who raced down the pitch and then proceeded to miss a wide open goal. They won 2-1 though so it will be forgotten.
Sounds like our kind of guy.
Audition passed.
Nah, he didn’t fall down crying at the end. He didn’t care. He failed his test.
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Lee Kang-In rumoured, never heard of him. South Korean winger
Was very highly rated when at Valencia, he’s moved somewhere else in Spain now.
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Why am I seeing pics of Maguire in a Bham restaurant? What have albion or blues done to deserve him?
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It is the Fig & Olive
Disturbing news.
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Tamworth near Bodymoor Fig and Olive?? For the love of God why?
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Lee Kang-In rumoured, never heard of him. South Korean winger
looks useful ( i know utube) Also think of the Far east fans we would encourage . We would need a 60.000 stadium , Fred ??
you mean lots of people that spend all of their time looking and filming with their phone
Ha! Was going to say exactly the same thing.
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It is the Fig & Olive
Disturbing news.
It is, unless Harry is partial to the renowned "tasty brownies, vanilla ice cream and lemon cheesecakes" of that establishment.
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It is the Fig & Olive
Disturbing news.
Surely not!
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I would have begin to question Unai just a *little* bit if he brought that lump in. It would be reflexive…
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Maybe he was meeting Leicester half way....
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I don't watch Man Utd, but I suspect some of the stick he's getting is because of the social media histrionics of their 'online' fanbase. I'm sure that if he came here he'd do fine.
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The criticism of Maguire has been amplified to levels of parody in the last year or two.
We know how our Tyrone gets lambasted by non-Villa fans, it's always extremes with "the public" opinion on certain players.
Once they're labelled shite, that's it til they retire, regardless if their form improves and stays consistent.
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I’m not a fan of Maguire mainly because his club form has dropped off so much. But for England it’s hard to deny he plays consistently well. That might be more to do with most of England’s opponents are average at best. But it’s also true that whenever he played next to Mings it’s been a solid partnership. Frankly I don’t want us signing a 29yr old who will be on big money. While not the worst things in the world of there is truth in it I hope there are better options out there.
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Wouldn’t like to see Maguire in an Villa shirt. At this stage would be a bit of a reclamation job. His build up play isn’t bad but he’s very one paced, not good enough technically to account for it and someone who can get turned easily. Think we could do better.
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I don't want any play from that tramps spunk team
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I thought Maguire was ok at Leicester but I wouldn’t want him here now. We need younger players on the up.
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1/5 on Skybet, obvs odds can move all over the place with a relatively small amount of money.
If it was a 6 month loan with an option, then fair enough. If we're spunking a lot of money on a fee and a contract then not fair enough. There must be better value out there. A Steve Bruce type signing.
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I don't watch Man Utd, but I suspect some of the stick he's getting is because of the social media histrionics of their 'online' fanbase. I'm sure that if he came here he'd do fine.
I agree. A no nonsense, tough defender who is much maligned because he went on holiday and seemed to cause a bit of trouble. He'd do fine at Villa and we need to get over ourselves a bit. He would lift the stature of the club.*
(*terms and conditions are included attached, if he doesn't sign, I never wanted the slab headed foreskin anyway!)
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I know you can make a YouTube compilation to make players look great/shite, but some of the compilations of Maguire's recent Manure performances are laughably bad.
He plays OK for England because of how deep Southgate wants him to play, and there's 5 Dm's in front of him. If we signed him and attempt to play a high line it will be a disaster.
Incredibly slow on the turn and gets caught flat footed too often.
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The criticism of Maguire has been amplified to levels of parody in the last year or two.
We know how our Tyrone gets lambasted by non-Villa fans, it's always extremes with "the public" opinion on certain players.
Once they're labelled shite, that's it til they retire, regardless if their form improves and stays consistent.
I think this is a good comparison, the perception of Mings between us lot and non Villa fans is chalk and cheese. Maguire has become a punchline for most football fans, I doubt he's that bad in reality.
Still a massively uninspiring signing though.
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Elneny of Arsenal being linked by the Daily/Sunday Express! Is he any good? 30 years old a supposed fee of around £6mill.
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Maguire would be a really odd signing for the style of play Emery seems to be favour. If we are going to play a high line and squeeze the play then we need pace at the back. We repeatedly got turned around against Liverpool.
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I can't see it, not with Carlos coming back. I reckon he'll bring in someone who he has worked with before if anybody.
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Maguire to Villa can only be a (not very) subtle attempt by the English press to get him out of Southgate’s plans for the Euros.
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Maguire Makes little sense would be on a lot of wages and is older than the players we have a I can’t see that he is much of an upgrade.
If we’re to get a center back surely it needs to be one totally different from what we have?
Plus Southgate would have to drop him from the England squad if he came here.
Think the majority of our budget needs to be focused on attacking options. Bailey, Phil and Emi are too similar and two inconsistent
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The criticism of Maguire has been amplified to levels of parody in the last year or two.
We know how our Tyrone gets lambasted by non-Villa fans, it's always extremes with "the public" opinion on certain players.
Once they're labelled shite, that's it til they retire, regardless if their form improves and stays consistent.
I think this is a good comparison, the perception of Mings between us lot and non Villa fans is chalk and cheese. Maguire has become a punchline for most football fans, I doubt he's that bad in reality.
The Man Utd fans think he’s crap as well don’t they?
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It seems the maguire stories have some legs as there’s a photograph of him at the above restaurant and he was at the belfry yesterday (he could always just be playing golf). Whilst I’m not averse to Maguire i do hope it’s not some ridiculously expensive and long term deal. We’ve been there too many times.
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I don't watch Man Utd, but I suspect some of the stick he's getting is because of the social media histrionics of their 'online' fanbase. I'm sure that if he came here he'd do fine.
I agree. A no nonsense, tough defender who is much maligned because he went on holiday and seemed to cause a bit of trouble. He'd do fine at Villa and we need to get over ourselves a bit. He would lift the stature of the club.*
(*terms and conditions are included attached, if he doesn't sign, I never wanted the slab headed foreskin anyway!)
The last CB reject we had from them didn’t turn out too bad did he?
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He was brilliant but had other issues though, knees etc. Maguire has never, ever had any ability that would want me to mention him in the same galaxy as God.
Now go wash your mouth out and think about what you have done for the sacrilege of your comparison.
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The problem with mcguire is the £80m price tag. He is similar to mings, but more of a goal threat and a better range of passing. Better than carlos, no-one knows yet. But a 6 month loan wouldnt be the end of the world.
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As mentioned earlier his lack of pace would be my biggest concern
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Maguire is already cup-tied this season, so would be of little use in our march towards FA cup glory.
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Too slow and far too prone to rickets at PL level. Not to mention positionallly at times very poor.
He’s another Mings style body on the line defender rather than a composed, smart one which is what you’d expect Emery to want (and why he’s meant to be so keen on Pau Torres).
Possibly see the point if it’s a loan till the end of the season but as a permanent signing would make no sense at all.
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I don't watch Man Utd, but I suspect some of the stick he's getting is because of the social media histrionics of their 'online' fanbase. I'm sure that if he came here he'd do fine.
I agree. A no nonsense, tough defender who is much maligned because he went on holiday and seemed to cause a bit of trouble. He'd do fine at Villa and we need to get over ourselves a bit. He would lift the stature of the club.*
(*terms and conditions are included attached, if he doesn't sign, I never wanted the slab headed foreskin anyway!)
The last CB reject we had from them didn’t turn out too bad did he?
Ah, it’s the famed McGrath counter.
Although he wasn’t the last so you could be referring to Tuanzebe!
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I don't watch Man Utd, but I suspect some of the stick he's getting is because of the social media histrionics of their 'online' fanbase. I'm sure that if he came here he'd do fine.
I agree. A no nonsense, tough defender who is much maligned because he went on holiday and seemed to cause a bit of trouble. He'd do fine at Villa and we need to get over ourselves a bit. He would lift the stature of the club.*
(*terms and conditions are included attached, if he doesn't sign, I never wanted the slab headed foreskin anyway!)
The last CB reject we had from them didn’t turn out too bad did he?
Yeah, Ronny Johnsen was fine.
Edit - Tuanzebe, of course.
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Hopefully he was simply playing golf and was out for a meal with a view to going back to Leicester or something.
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I wouldn't turn my nose up at Maguire joining Villa and I'm from Greece!! A lot of locals make their living through guests drinking too much when on holiday.
Mings has 14 clean sheets for England in 18 games, wonder how many of those he was partnered by Maguire?
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Maguire is so far away from what actually need back there that I refuse to believe there's anything in it. It would make zero sense.
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I don’t think Maguire is the ball playing centre half I was hoping for he’s very similar to Mings in playing style, which isn’t of itself a bad thing, but doesn’t address the playing out from the back problem
Would prefer Poa Torres who we were linked with
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Photographed in a restaurant in the general Brum area, then there's a stampede of Villa fans sticking money on the fact he's signing for us, to send the odds plummeting. I'd be amazed if we were after him.
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Maguire is a Champions League and England International regular
Maguire is a ball-playing centre back with extensive top-level experience.
It was a real coup to take him on saying an initial loan to purchase.
He's definitely a step up from Bednarek on loan.
His speed is a concern, but his ability to bring the ball out as well as attack the ball in the opposition penalty box would only benefit us.
Maguire accepted my greetings. I believe he would fit right in with the team next to Mings or Carlos and, hopefully, not instead of.
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The criticism of Maguire has been amplified to levels of parody in the last year or two.
We know how our Tyrone gets lambasted by non-Villa fans, it's always extremes with "the public" opinion on certain players.
Once they're labelled shite, that's it til they retire, regardless if their form improves and stays consistent.
I think this is a good comparison, the perception of Mings between us lot and non Villa fans is chalk and cheese. Maguire has become a punchline for most football fans, I doubt he's that bad in reality.
The Man Utd fans think he’s crap as well don’t they?
All United fans I know regard his selection in the team with deathless despair.
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Maguire Makes little sense would be on a lot of wages and is older than the players we have a I can’t see that he is much of an upgrade.
If we’re to get a center back surely it needs to be one totally different from what we have?
Plus Southgate would have to drop him from the England squad if he came here.
Think the majority of our budget needs to be focused on attacking options. Bailey, Phil and Emi are too similar and two inconsistent
Bednarek, Chambers, Konsa or Maguire, though?
Maguire would be my first choice from those 4
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Bednarek, Chambers, Konsa or Maguire, though?
Maguire would be my first choice from those 4
That's a loaded question, though - if you're saying the three mentioned aren't good enough, then 'better than them' is perhaps not saying much.
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I don't watch Man Utd, but I suspect some of the stick he's getting is because of the social media histrionics of their 'online' fanbase. I'm sure that if he came here he'd do fine.
I agree. A no nonsense, tough defender who is much maligned because he went on holiday and seemed to cause a bit of trouble. He'd do fine at Villa and we need to get over ourselves a bit. He would lift the stature of the club.*
(*terms and conditions are included attached, if he doesn't sign, I never wanted the slab headed foreskin anyway!)
The last CB reject we had from them didn’t turn out too bad did he?
Yeah, Ronny Johnsen was fine.
Edit - Tuanzebe, of course.
So the last 3 we’ve had from them have been good, very good and excellent then. We are very successful with our signing of ManU central defenders.
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Bednarek, Chambers, Konsa or Maguire, though?
Maguire would be my first choice from those 4
That's a loaded question, though - if you're saying the three mentioned aren't good enough, then 'better than them' is perhaps not saying much.
Maguire added to our defence roster to me would be in a head on team selection above Bednarek, Chambers or Konsa.
Is that better for you?
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Football is more complicated than that though, it's not just stats like on FIFA. Players suit teams in mysterious fashions, a particular rapport with certain teammates, the right strengths to complement others' weaknesses etc. Would anyone choose Jordan Henderson for any midfield in the top 6 other than Liverpool's on pure Fifa stats? But he does his particular job for them better than anyone else could.
I know Maguire is a more famous name than Chambers et al, but he has the turning circle of the universe and gives away more than the former Mrs. Bezos. It's highly uncertain he would suit Emery's system.
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Bednarek, Chambers, Konsa or Maguire, though?
Maguire would be my first choice from those 4
That's a loaded question, though - if you're saying the three mentioned aren't good enough, then 'better than them' is perhaps not saying much.
Maguire added to our defence roster to me would be in a head on team selection above Bednarek, Chambers or Konsa.
Is that better for you?
Not really. If he's here for six months while Diego Carlos gets up to speed and then goes back in the summer while we properly assess our defensive options then there is just about logic in it.
If the idea is that we're about to spend £30m+ on a new centre back, then we might as well spend it on someone more suitable than Maguire.
I'd be surprised if there is anything in it though.
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The restaurant is/was used very regularly by Villas management team under both Dean and Gerrard.
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He just doesn't seem the sort of player to get Emery overly excited. Unai's got his work cut out getting our bunch to play a more technical, possession-based game. Why would he add somebody else in to the squad who's not exactly a Baresi type? He'd be better than Konsa, but that's not enough, surely?
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I don’t think Maguire is the ball playing centre half I was hoping for he’s very similar to Mings in playing style, which isn’t of itself a bad thing, but doesn’t address the playing out from the back problem
Would prefer Poa Torres who we were linked with
He just doesn't seem the sort of player to get Emery overly excited. Unai's got his work cut out getting our bunch to play a more technical, possession-based game. Why would he add somebody else in to the squad who's not exactly a Baresi type? He'd be better than Konsa, but that's not enough, surely?
Maguire? Hasn't he been one of, if not the, best English ball-playing centres in the last 6 to 7 seasons? One of his strong points. Granted, it's bee a struggle more recent in the season, but he played his worth and reminding everyone in the world cup of his abilities.
He'll move and rather he came here than another prem club.
It seems the maguire stories have some legs as there’s a photograph of him at the above restaurant and he was at the belfry yesterday (he could always just be playing golf). Whilst I’m not averse to Maguire i do hope it’s not some ridiculously expensive and long term deal. We’ve been there too many times.
Yes Man Utd were trying to move him on in the summer. I have it on good authority that Chelsea wanted him in the summer, but he refuses to move to London. Even on loan.
This Villa move wouldn't be a relocation.
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He just doesn't seem the sort of player to get Emery overly excited. Unai's got his work cut out getting our bunch to play a more technical, possession-based game. Why would he add somebody else in to the squad who's not exactly a Baresi type? He'd be better than Konsa, but that's not enough, surely?
The only thing I'd say is, Maguire's distribution is very good indeed. It could be that.
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He just doesn't seem the sort of player to get Emery overly excited. Unai's got his work cut out getting our bunch to play a more technical, possession-based game. Why would he add somebody else in to the squad who's not exactly a Baresi type? He'd be better than Konsa, but that's not enough, surely?
The only thing I'd say is, Maguire's distribution is very good indeed. It could be that.
Exactly!
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Bednarek, Chambers, Konsa or Maguire, though?
Maguire would be my first choice from those 4
That's a loaded question, though - if you're saying the three mentioned aren't good enough, then 'better than them' is perhaps not saying much.
Maguire added to our defence roster to me would be in a head on team selection above Bednarek, Chambers or Konsa.
Is that better for you?
Not really, no, because whilst that may be the case, it's not enough of an improvement to make it worth a permanent deal, and whilst we'd be getting a CB with much better distribution, we'd also be getting one who constantly has a ricket in him and has shown himself repeatedly to be positionally disastrous.
If you want him to play behind another 5 defenders - like he does with England - then fine. If you want him to head crosses out of the box for 90 minutes and do nothing else defensively, then that's fine too.
But that's not how we're going to play for the first point, and not what we need for the second.
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Unless it's a loan and Yanited are paying 90 per cent of his wages just to get him away I prefer the No Maguire option.
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Football is more complicated than that though, it's not just stats like on FIFA. Players suit teams in mysterious fashions, a particular rapport with certain teammates, the right strengths to complement others' weaknesses etc. Would anyone choose Jordan Henderson for any midfield in the top 6 other than Liverpool's on pure Fifa stats? But he does his particular job for them better than anyone else could.
I know Maguire is a more famous name than Chambers et al, but he has the turning circle of the universe and gives away more than the former Mrs. Bezos. It's highly uncertain he would suit Emery's system.
Remember him making McGinn look like the roadrunner in comparison to him in the win at Old Trafford last season.
It's all absolute bollocks anyway.
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Let’s also not forget that he is very effective at attacking set pieces, contributing a respectable number of goals. I don’t think we have had that since Laursen.
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I would be concerned that we were filling our squad with aging players. We already have Phil, and potentially Digne in that category for the next however many years.
I would like our recruitment policy to be based on more than players that have been good in the past and played for big clubs?
Its not that Maguire is bad, I just dont see it represents value for money - seems like a Gerrard era signing and I was hoping we would be a bit more imaginative going forward
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Bednarek, Chambers, Konsa or Maguire, though?
Maguire would be my first choice from those 4
That's a loaded question, though - if you're saying the three mentioned aren't good enough, then 'better than them' is perhaps not saying much.
Maguire added to our defence roster to me would be in a head on team selection above Bednarek, Chambers or Konsa.
Is that better for you?
Not really. If he's here for six months while Diego Carlos gets up to speed and then goes back in the summer while we properly assess our defensive options then there is just about logic in it.
If the idea is that we're about to spend £30m+ on a new centre back, then we might as well spend it on someone more suitable than Maguire.
I'd be surprised if there is anything in it though.
Maguire is so far away from what actually need back there that I refuse to believe there's anything in it. It would make zero sense.
Is there nothing in it? Okay, nothing is sealed, but look at the facts.
Overnight, the betting markets shifted to odds on, and Maguire was photographed in a restaurant near Villa. There is evidence that he has visited Birmingham.
Aston Villa's owners also contributed £13.5 million to the club through a new share issue, indicating that a player transfer is imminent.
I think both of you, even if you're not in favour of it, can't deny there's an interest here and a move is looking likely.
It appears you want to deny it because it contradicts what you want to believe, and you want to precludes discussion on him moving here as it is now above punitive speculation.
I'm not in favour of either of your views on denying things on Maguire on a speculation thread.
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wouldnt this 13.5m be for the new left back? The one thats pressumably going to replace the 25m we bought last year, currently on £160k a week. Cant see us keep making the same "mistake"?
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wouldnt this 13.5m be for the new left back? The one thats pressumably going to replace the 25m we bought last year, currently on £160k a week. Cant see us keep making the same "mistake"?
Yes, Alex Moreno appears to have signed, according to the much-maligned Football Insider, which appears to have a high degree of accuracy for transfer sources.
So that would explain a release of funds.
The Moreno and Maguire move would be interesting to see if either are permanent ones?
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I think both of you, even if you're not in favour of it, can't deny there's an interest here and a move is looking likely.
It's not impossible that there is an interest, but your list of evidence is about a million miles away from proof of it.
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wouldnt this 13.5m be for the new left back? The one thats pressumably going to replace the 25m we bought last year, currently on £160k a week. Cant see us keep making the same "mistake"?
Justification for changing both managers, but the left back situation is exactly why we could do with a decent manager that hangs around for more than two seasons. So much unnecessary chopping and changing resulting in ridiculous waste.
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wouldnt this 13.5m be for the new left back? The one thats pressumably going to replace the 25m we bought last year, currently on £160k a week. Cant see us keep making the same "mistake"?
Justification for changing both managers, but the left back situation is exactly why we could do with a decent manager that hangs around for more than two seasons. So much unnecessary chopping and changing resulting in ridiculous waste.
Left back has been a disaster area for us since Bouma blew his knee out on the roasting hot day in the Intertoto Cup.
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Footy:
1) The betting markets move when people bet lots of money. This has happened because people have seen the photo of Maguire in a Birmingham restaurant and put two and two together, got five, and splashed out at the bookies, thus lowering the odds. It doesn't mean it's any more likely because of the odds.
2) The owners put money in periodically as working capital to keep the business afloat. It's not usually tied to football transfers directly, which are paid for over a longer period.
3) Football Insider are the biggest liars in the world, and never get anything right.
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Maguire would be fine, were it not for the fact that he basically already plays for us in the form of Mings. You ask those two to play a high line together, and you're going to see a fuckload of clips of them lumbering back towards an unprotected Martinez as the opposition striker motors past them like they're running in day-old Weetabix.
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I dont mind him, I think on his day he's a fantastic centre half. I'm not sure he's what we néed though.
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Is this Maguire's way of announcing his international retirement?
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I dont mind him, I think on his day he's a fantastic centre half. I'm not sure he's what we néed though.
I can't see any logic in it. If we were say in Newcastles position and had just lost a key centre half to injury then maybe, but otherwise no.
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Maguire would be fine, were it not for the fact that he basically already plays for us in the form of Mings. You ask those two to play a high line together, and you're going to see a fuckload of clips of them lumbering back towards an unprotected Martinez as the opposition striker motors past them like they're running in day-old Weetabix.
Eeew, day-old Weetabix! And I say that as someone who has 3 of them for brekkie most mornings (I believe some greedy phuckers who post on here have four!). But it does congeal all too readily so you do have to gobble it up fast. Makes you look greedy but the alternative, letting the milk dry in, doesn't bear thinking about.
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Footy:
1) The betting markets move when people bet lots of money. This has happened because people have seen the photo of Maguire in a Birmingham restaurant and put two and two together, got five, and splashed out at the bookies, thus lowering the odds. It doesn't mean it's any more likely because of the odds.
2) The owners put money in periodically as working capital to keep the business afloat. It's not usually tied to football transfers directly, which are paid for over a longer period.
3) Football Insider are the biggest liars in the world, and never get anything right.
On your points
Point 1. No 2+2 doesn't make 5. In this instance what are you claiming doesn't add up?
Point2. Money is clearly for transfers
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I see Maguire being linked to Villa in the same way as I did when we were supposed to be signing David Speedie 30+ years ago.
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Footy:
1) The betting markets move when people bet lots of money. This has happened because people have seen the photo of Maguire in a Birmingham restaurant and put two and two together, got five, and splashed out at the bookies, thus lowering the odds. It doesn't mean it's any more likely because of the odds.
2) The owners put money in periodically as working capital to keep the business afloat. It's not usually tied to football transfers directly, which are paid for over a longer period.
3) Football Insider are the biggest liars in the world, and never get anything right.
Point 3. From above ties into your point 3 as Football insider have reported quite a few things successfully and they have said about a left back coming in and have said this
Aston Villa close in on two new signings as one deal all but done
"Aston Villa are close to a breakthrough in talks to sign Alex Moreno and are also confident of completing a forward signing soon"
Sources have told Football Insider.
Even if you don't want to admit it, they are a source and have suggested we are nearly signed 2 players.
And according to a football insider, Aston Villa goalkeeper Filip Marschall is in talks to join Gateshead.
They're not exactly reporting that for clicks, are they?
What I think you're missing, Rissie, is that football insider is a hit when they use transfer sources rather than times they having the opinion of pundits or ill informed journalists regarding transfers, which that part is only used for speculation and discussion tittle tattle.
Those who believe Marschall is out are likely to see another goalkeeper enter the picture this window?
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Footy:
1) The betting markets move when people bet lots of money. This has happened because people have seen the photo of Maguire in a Birmingham restaurant and put two and two together, got five, and splashed out at the bookies, thus lowering the odds. It doesn't mean it's any more likely because of the odds.
2) The owners put money in periodically as working capital to keep the business afloat. It's not usually tied to football transfers directly, which are paid for over a longer period.
3) Football Insider are the biggest liars in the world, and never get anything right.
On your points
Point 1. No 2+2 doesn't make 5. In this instance what are you claiming doesn't add up?
Point2. Money is clearly for transfers
1) Just because Maguire was seen in Birmingham doesn't mean he's signing for Villa.
2) No, it isn't. How far do you think £13m is going to stretch? They put money in all the time as working capital.
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I see Maguire being linked to Villa in the same way as I did when we were supposed to be signing David Speedie 30+ years ago.
Enlighten?
The thing with a move for Maguire Villa would do it quietly and not make a public pursuit of it we can't deny the noise on it.
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Footy:
1) The betting markets move when people bet lots of money. This has happened because people have seen the photo of Maguire in a Birmingham restaurant and put two and two together, got five, and splashed out at the bookies, thus lowering the odds. It doesn't mean it's any more likely because of the odds.
2) The owners put money in periodically as working capital to keep the business afloat. It's not usually tied to football transfers directly, which are paid for over a longer period.
3) Football Insider are the biggest liars in the world, and never get anything right.
Point 3. From above ties into your point 3 as Football insider have reported quite a few things successfully and they have said about a left back coming in and have said this
Aston Villa close in on two new signings as one deal all but done
"Aston Villa are close to a breakthrough in talks to sign Alex Moreno and are also confident of completing a forward signing soon"
Sources have told Football Insider.
Even if you don't want to admit it, they are a source and have suggested we are nearly signed 2 players.
And according to a football insider, Aston Villa goalkeeper Filip Marschall is in talks to join Gateshead.
They're not exactly reporting that for clicks, are they?
What I think you're missing, Rissie, is that football insider is a hit when they use transfer sources rather than times they having the opinion of pundits or ill informed journalists regarding transfers, which that part is only used for speculation and discussion tittle tattle.
Those who believe Marschall is out are likely to see another goalkeeper enter the picture this window?
The Moreno think is on just about every news source, so, hardly news. As for the source in relation to the other player, that was Emery himself. We all heard the press conference where he said he wanted a winger as that player would have different characteristics to what we currently have. It is clickbait nonsense.
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Footy:
1) The betting markets move when people bet lots of money. This has happened because people have seen the photo of Maguire in a Birmingham restaurant and put two and two together, got five, and splashed out at the bookies, thus lowering the odds. It doesn't mean it's any more likely because of the odds.
2) The owners put money in periodically as working capital to keep the business afloat. It's not usually tied to football transfers directly, which are paid for over a longer period.
3) Football Insider are the biggest liars in the world, and never get anything right.
On your points
Point 1. No 2+2 doesn't make 5. In this instance what are you claiming doesn't add up?
Point2. Money is clearly for transfers
1) Just because Maguire was seen in Birmingham doesn't mean he's signing for Villa.
2) No, it isn't. How far do you think £13m is going to stretch? They put money in all the time as working capital.
Clubs rarely pay the full amount due under a contract; that money is part of the installation for that portion. It's quite possible that it will be there for a loan agreement or the first year of a 40 or 50 million signing. But that might be intended for a forward.
Very interesting financial developments, regardless of how they are interpreted. On one way or another, some transfer moves are supported by this.
Because it might be used as money to release players.
Regarding transfers at Aston Villa, I don't know anything.
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Speedie was a striker who was less than impressive and wasn't well liked by fans of most clubs and virtually nobody wanted him to sign for Villa even though we were in an unexpected relegation battle in 1991 under Josef Venglos. In the end he didn't join us.
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Footy:
1) The betting markets move when people bet lots of money. This has happened because people have seen the photo of Maguire in a Birmingham restaurant and put two and two together, got five, and splashed out at the bookies, thus lowering the odds. It doesn't mean it's any more likely because of the odds.
2) The owners put money in periodically as working capital to keep the business afloat. It's not usually tied to football transfers directly, which are paid for over a longer period.
3) Football Insider are the biggest liars in the world, and never get anything right.
Point 3. From above ties into your point 3 as Football insider have reported quite a few things successfully and they have said about a left back coming in and have said this
Aston Villa close in on two new signings as one deal all but done
"Aston Villa are close to a breakthrough in talks to sign Alex Moreno and are also confident of completing a forward signing soon"
Sources have told Football Insider.
Even if you don't want to admit it, they are a source and have suggested we are nearly signed 2 players.
And according to a football insider, Aston Villa goalkeeper Filip Marschall is in talks to join Gateshead.
They're not exactly reporting that for clicks, are they?
What I think you're missing, Rissie, is that football insider is a hit when they use transfer sources rather than times they having the opinion of pundits or ill informed journalists regarding transfers, which that part is only used for speculation and discussion tittle tattle.
Those who believe Marschall is out are likely to see another goalkeeper enter the picture this window?
Even a broken clock is correct twice a day. Football Insider are a piss poor source. They spout so much shit that it rivals the London sewerage system.
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Is this Maguire's way of announcing his international retirement?
Southgates head would explode if McGuire joined Villa. Its almost worth signing him just to see what Southgate would do.
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I blame Bob.
Next week it will be Jordan Pickford having a curry at the Bartons.
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Since Bob returned, things have got more colourful on here. Like him or not , he's a strong character in the H&V soap opera.
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Speedie was a striker who was less than impressive and wasn't well liked by fans of most clubs and virtually nobody wanted him to sign for Villa even though we were in an unexpected relegation battle in 1991 under Josef Venglos. In the end he didn't join us.
Okay, that's an interesting one! Yes, I've heard of Dr. Josef Venglos. Read about the time at Villa. That was back when foreign managers were viewed with suspicion in the UK
Speedie I've never heard that as an English surname before only as a nickname.
In portugal and brazil nick names are given. Speedie here in the english leagues has been used to describe a player with pace. So for example you could call Bailey speedy or Agbonlahor as an actually name.
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Yeah, he was a bit before my time too so not sure if Speedie had much pace at all.
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Speedie was a striker who was less than impressive and wasn't well liked by fans of most clubs and virtually nobody wanted him to sign for Villa even though we were in an unexpected relegation battle in 1991 under Josef Venglos. In the end he didn't join us.
Okay, that's an interesting one! Yes, I've heard of Dr. Josef Venglos. Read about the time at Villa. That was back when foreign managers were viewed with suspicion in the UK
Speedie I've never heard that as an English surname before only as a nickname.
In portugal and brazil nick names are given. Speedie here in the english leagues has been used to describe a player with pace. So for example you could call Bailey speedy or Agbonlahor as an actually name.
Bloody Hell Footy you make me feel old :D
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Speedie was a striker who was less than impressive and wasn't well liked by fans of most clubs and virtually nobody wanted him to sign for Villa even though we were in an unexpected relegation battle in 1991 under Josef Venglos. In the end he didn't join us.
Okay, that's an interesting one! Yes, I've heard of Dr. Josef Venglos. Read about the time at Villa. That was back when foreign managers were viewed with suspicion in the UK
Speedie I've never heard that as an English surname before only as a nickname.
In portugal and brazil nick names are given. Speedie here in the english leagues has been used to describe a player with pace. So for example you could call Bailey speedy or Agbonlahor as an actually name.
He is Scottish
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MaGuire is far too good for us and he knows that and if not I will tweet him to say so. He should go to Real or Barca etc. He will certainly lose his regular football job which is playing for England so keep away H. You are far far too good for us.
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I’m sure Southgate will on the phone to his favourite player anyway, he’ll explain as soon as he signs for us his England career will be over.
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Would be surprised if Maguire has had talks with someone at Villa and then gone on the sauce for a few hours after, right by the training ground.
As a professional, it would be a shit thing to do.
Far more likely he was golfing it up with some mates seeing as he had a free weekend after Yanited's game on Friday.
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Yeah, he was a bit before my time too so not sure if Speedie had much pace at all.
He wasn't especially quick, he was just more of an out-and-out finisher. His goals were the one of the main reasons Blackburn came up the year they did under Jack Walker. Despite getting 20+ goals, Blackburn sold him at the end of the season and replaced him with Alan Shearer, in a commendable display of not fucking about.
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I'd be pleased with signing Maguire, think it'd be a good bit of business. He's better than people give him credit for.
Its a yes from me.
I'll work on the chant in time for the announcement 8)
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Photo of him on the razz in Lichfield (just up the road!) suggest he was here for other reasons. I know it's quite hard for him to hide his massive head, but I doubt he'd be daft enough to pop up all over the Midlands before a contract was signed and announced. Someone mentioned a charidee golf day at the Belfry. I reckon that's a more plausible explanation now.
Oh and there's nothing wrong with four or five weetabix in a single sitting. Not for us hunks.
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I'd be pleased with signing Maguire, think it'd be a good bit of business. He's better than people give him credit for.
Its a yes from me.
I'll work on the chant in time for the announcement 8)
Is it a good bit of business, at his age, with his wages and with a fee that would probably be our transfer record?
I don't particularly rate him as a player, he's slow and clumsy against anyone who can square him up and slightly better distribution than we have and maybe 1-2 more goals a year isn't enough to both cover his weaknesses and be worth the huge outlay on him.
Either way I just don't think there's anything in it, if we sign a centre half I expect it'll be someone younger.
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A resounding no to Maguire. I can't bear to think of him and Mings both having an off day in the centre of our defence.
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We'll have Carlos back at some point, another centre back - can't see that being priority
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I'd be pleased with signing Maguire, think it'd be a good bit of business. He's better than people give him credit for.
Its a yes from me.
I'll work on the chant in time for the announcement 8)
Is it a good bit of business, at his age, with his wages and with a fee that would probably be our transfer record?
I don't particularly rate him as a player, he's slow and clumsy against anyone who can square him up and slightly better distribution than we have and maybe 1-2 more goals a year isn't enough to both cover his weaknesses and be worth the huge outlay on him.
Either way I just don't think there's anything in it, if we sign a centre half I expect it'll be someone younger.
Wheverever he's going will surely be a loan in any case. Can't see anyone stumping up what they want just on the back of three decent games at the World cup.
Surely someone like West Ham need him more? Or Leicester with their endless set piece woes.
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Maguire would be fine, were it not for the fact that he basically already plays for us in the form of Mings. You ask those two to play a high line together, and you're going to see a fuckload of clips of them lumbering back towards an unprotected Martinez as the opposition striker motors past them like they're running in day-old Weetabix.
Except that Mings is actually quite quick.
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Maguire would be fine, were it not for the fact that he basically already plays for us in the form of Mings. You ask those two to play a high line together, and you're going to see a fuckload of clips of them lumbering back towards an unprotected Martinez as the opposition striker motors past them like they're running in day-old Weetabix.
Except that Mings is actually quite quick.
Mings is quick once he gets going but he's slow over 2-3 yards, which is why he often has to throw himself into challenges.
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Photo of him on the razz in Lichfield (just up the road!) suggest he was here for other reasons. I know it's quite hard for him to hide his massive head, but I doubt he'd be daft enough to pop up all over the Midlands before a contract was signed and announced. Someone mentioned a charidee golf day at the Belfry. I reckon that's a more plausible explanation now.
Oh and there's nothing wrong with four or five weetabix in a single sitting. Not for us hunks.
Oh I think he is
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He is a footballer. They are all as thick as pig shit. Except Graeme Le Saux.
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He is a footballer. They are all as thick as pig shit. Except Graeme Le Saux.
& Pat Nevin
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Oh and there's nothing wrong with four or five weetabix in a single sitting. Not for us hunks.
As a kid I'd have the same amount of weetabix as my age, probably up to the old age of about 7 when I moved on to fancier cereals.
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I'd be pleased with signing Maguire, think it'd be a good bit of business. He's better than people give him credit for.
Its a yes from me.
I'll work on the chant in time for the announcement 8)
Is it a good bit of business, at his age, with his wages and with a fee that would probably be our transfer record?
I don't particularly rate him as a player, he's slow and clumsy against anyone who can square him up and slightly better distribution than we have and maybe 1-2 more goals a year isn't enough to both cover his weaknesses and be worth the huge outlay on him.
Either way I just don't think there's anything in it, if we sign a centre half I expect it'll be someone younger.
Wheverever he's going will surely be a loan in any case. Can't see anyone stumping up what they want just on the back of three decent games at the World cup.
Surely someone like West Ham need him more? Or Leicester with their endless set piece woes.
No way should it be on a record fee. Cut price get rid deal or loan.
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I’d have Maguire on loan to buy or a cut price deal, definitely. I think he gets more stick than he deserves. But no way we should be shelling out big bucks for a player who’s only slightly better than our existing options in that position - it’s not that much of a priority.
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I hope it’s bullshit.
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Maguire on loan apparently is on, brother played golf by the Belfry Maguire and Scott Mctominay playing in front of him
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Why couldn’t he just have been playing golf? Why does it have to be linked to us?
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can we buy 11 players please and sell 11 thanks
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Maguire on loan apparently is on, brother played golf by the Belfry Maguire and Scott Mctominay playing in front of him
Did he ask Maguire why he was there or is it just 2 + 2?
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Fabrizio Romano saying it's not happening.
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Shift out as much of the dross as we can. Starting with Olsen.
Forest wanted Nakamba in August, knock on their door and leave him there. Cut short Augustinsson's loan, ditto Bednarkek.
Chambers...not arsed if he stays. Bailey...either play him on the left or make him available for sale.
Ings - if Everton offer what we paid Saints, do a deal.
We need more pace in the team. And bring in players that have brains, talent and a winning mentality. Most of our lot are dumb-assed losers and I'm sick of them.
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Fabrizio Romano saying it's not happening.
I wonder what could possibly have put him off the move?
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Fabrizio Romano saying it's not happening.
I wonder what could possibly have put him off the move?
Something to do with it never being true in the first place
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Maguire on loan apparently is on, brother played golf by the Belfry Maguire and Scott Mctominay playing in front of him
Did he ask Maguire why he was there or is it just 2 + 2?
just asking him,I be back as Arnie would say
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Maguire on loan apparently is on, brother played golf by the Belfry Maguire and Scott Mctominay playing in front of him
Did he ask Maguire why he was there or is it just 2 + 2?
just asking him,I be back as Arnie would say
definitely not on,ex-brother (dickhead)got it wrong,I will discuss it when we meet up
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After today's shambles, I want us to go back in for our eternal Spanish target, N E Juan.
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After watching that today. I think it’s time to move Countinho and Bailey on to start with.
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I have been of the ‘see what UE can get out of him’ camp but if someone offered us an option after today I think I’d pot Coutinho.
I am also sick of Bailey. He can fuck off as well. Pathetic today yet again.
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On today performance you can give some players so many chances, with Bailey's I think his time is up
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I think we have to understand that most people posting in here are delusional…..that team should have pissed that game and talk of massive changes are ridiculous, We have some decent players who with the right management/ coaching can/ may improve.
Instant success is hardly ever going to be maintained so we build……. From a foundation of decent players and improve.
If we are in twelfth now and improve one place in the next 8 years we win the league….. get realistic!!
But Olsen does look crap….
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I think we could buy players for literally every position if the right player comes along at the right price and wants to come. Goalkeeper and full backs would be young up and coming players but everywhere else can be to go straight in. I think we knew that before today though.
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I have been of the ‘see what UE can get out of him’ camp but if someone offered us an option after today I think I’d pot Coutinho.
I am also sick of Bailey. He can fuck off as well. Pathetic today yet again.
It makes you understand why UE has top of his wish list a winger.
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In our current squad, there are only three positions where I think we're 'good enough' for our current status/short term aims.
Martinez in goal, Mings at a push (*he's been our best player by a mile recently imo) and Kamara. The rest of them need an upgrade and I wouldn't be sad to see any of them go tbh (*not seen enough of Diego Carlos to make a call).
Priority has to be down the sides and up front - Fullbacks, wingers and a goalscorer.
Coutinho has to go - We were all over the moon when he signed, but a season in (with age against him), he is absolutely the busted flush everyone was telling us we'd bought.
I'd lump Digne in there too - Overpriced, super expensive on the wage bill, and lightweight and ineffective on the pitch. Augustinsson actually looked the better player when he came on against Wolves.
Emery has some serious sorting out to do.
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We got relegated after years of bad decisions and over paying for mediocre players. We had our reset in the Championship. I am a little bit surprised that we haven't been a bit 'smarter' since we came back. We sort of got back up on that cycle of splashing the cash and over-hyping what we were buying.
That said, we do all tend to catastrophize after a bad result! We were hailing our team as world beaters on New Year's Day! However, there have to be questions over Buendia, Bailey and Coutinho. So much money spent on that lot and have we really seen enough? Not even close.
Most disappointing of all, however, is the fact that the players we have brought in seem to have the same mental weaknesses that blighted us for years before we went down. I want us to buy players with more resilience who aren't so bloody inconsistent. Players who want to win and don't shy away when the going gets tough. I don't really know what I am trying to say but I just feel I have seen too many mentally weak players at the villa.
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We got relegated after years of bad decisions and over paying for mediocre players. We had our reset in the Championship. I am a little bit surprised that we haven't been a bit 'smarter' since we came back. We sort of got back up on that cycle of splashing the cash and over-hyping what we were buying.
That said, we do all tend to catastrophize after a bad result! We were hailing our team as world beaters on New Year's Day! However, there have to be questions over Buendia, Bailey and Coutinho. So much money spent on that lot and have we really seen enough? Not even close.
Most disappointing of all, however, is the fact that the players we have brought in seem to have the same mental weaknesses that blighted us for years before we went down. I want us to buy players with more resilience who aren't so bloody inconsistent. Players who want to win and don't shy away when the going gets tough. I don't really know what I am trying to say but I just feel I have seen too many mentally weak players at the villa.
We came back from going a goal down at in-form Brighton early doors due to a catastrophic error.
Then we won 2-0 at Sperms who were on the cusp of entering the top 4.
I would not overplay the the mental weakness card. It is catastrophism, if you will.
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Fair point! But that was an exception. Over a twelve month period our record from coming back from a goal down is very poor.
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The Grealish money...a lot of our current problems go back to what we did with that. Bailey, Buendia, Ings, Coutinho.... the four of them collectively haven't replaced the impact Grealish had on the team. I think we should be brave and let Ings go this month given there seems to be plenty of interest from desperate teams. Coutinho is done. The first two need to start delivering.
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Maguire on loan apparently is on, brother played golf by the Belfry Maguire and Scott Mctominay playing in front of him
Did he ask Maguire why he was there or is it just 2 + 2?
just asking him,I be back as Arnie would say
definitely not on,ex-brother (dickhead)got it wrong,I will discuss it when we meet up
He gave you the wrong advices
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Fair point! But that was an exception. Over a twelve month period our record from coming back from a goal down is very poor.
Yes. It has been a problem.
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Who is going to take any of these squad players off our hands, they will not leave until their contracts are up, playing for Aston Villa is too easy and a unbelievably well paid job, there is no pressure as long the club finish between 10th an 15th they are all happy.
If we sign another left back Digne won't leave permanently he will stay until the end of his contract - which other European club is going to pay him £135k a week.
The same with Coutinho, he is not leaving - Barcelona had to virtually give him away (the £17 million fee probably was paid to him as compensation for loss of salary.)
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The Grealish money...a lot of our current problems go back to what we did with that. Bailey, Buendia, Ings, Coutinho.... the four of them collectively haven't replaced the impact Grealish had on the team. I think we should be brave and let Ings go this month given there seems to be plenty of interest from desperate teams. Coutinho is done. The first two need to start delivering.
Buendia was bought to play in a Grealish team, and it made sense at the time. Coutinho was one of Gerrard's smart ideas, along with Digne.
The other 2 -Bailey and Ings - were gambles (the former had not been picked up by clubs in European competitions - wonder why?! The latter was a knee-jerk reaction from Purslow).
Ings won't be going anywhere this month, what with Archer on loan. Buendia can still contribute to the team. Bailey and Couts are dead meat, in my opinion, and we need replacements.
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In our current squad, there are only three positions where I think we're 'good enough' for our current status/short term aims.
Martinez in goal, Mings at a push (*he's been our best player by a mile recently imo) and Kamara. The rest of them need an upgrade and I wouldn't be sad to see any of them go tbh (*not seen enough of Diego Carlos to make a call).
Priority has to be down the sides and up front - Fullbacks, wingers and a goalscorer.
Coutinho has to go - We were all over the moon when he signed, but a season in (with age against him), he is absolutely the busted flush everyone was telling us we'd bought.
I'd lump Digne in there too - Overpriced, super expensive on the wage bill, and lightweight and ineffective on the pitch. Augustinsson actually looked the better player when he came on against Wolves.
Emery has some serious sorting out to do.
What about Ramsey?
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In our current squad, there are only three positions where I think we're 'good enough' for our current status/short term aims.
Martinez in goal, Mings at a push (*he's been our best player by a mile recently imo) and Kamara. The rest of them need an upgrade and I wouldn't be sad to see any of them go tbh (*not seen enough of Diego Carlos to make a call).
Priority has to be down the sides and up front - Fullbacks, wingers and a goalscorer.
Coutinho has to go - We were all over the moon when he signed, but a season in (with age against him), he is absolutely the busted flush everyone was telling us we'd bought.
I'd lump Digne in there too - Overpriced, super expensive on the wage bill, and lightweight and ineffective on the pitch. Augustinsson actually looked the better player when he came on against Wolves.
Emery has some serious sorting out to do.
What about Ramsey?
I'd put Ramsey in that bracket too. I wouldn't be sad to see him go. He has matches where you forget he's playing.
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Clearly we need upgrades all over the pitch
Hopefully one of the newcomers will be a proper leader - in my mind one of our most glaring deficiencies (since Petrov?)
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We got relegated after years of bad decisions and over paying for mediocre players. We had our reset in the Championship. I am a little bit surprised that we haven't been a bit 'smarter' since we came back. We sort of got back up on that cycle of splashing the cash and over-hyping what we were buying.
That said, we do all tend to catastrophize after a bad result! We were hailing our team as world beaters on New Year's Day! However, there have to be questions over Buendia, Bailey and Coutinho. So much money spent on that lot and have we really seen enough? Not even close.
Most disappointing of all, however, is the fact that the players we have brought in seem to have the same mental weaknesses that blighted us for years before we went down. I want us to buy players with more resilience who aren't so bloody inconsistent. Players who want to win and don't shy away when the going gets tough. I don't really know what I am trying to say but I just feel I have seen too many mentally weak players at the villa.
I’d tend to agree with the mentality side of it. What we have also suffered with is a lack of physical presence in midfield. We’ve been out muscled regularly since we were promoted so could this also be a factor? I saw it against Wolves a few times where we bounced off one of their players and lost the ball or were unable to win it in a 50/50 challenge.
I know it seems old hat these days but you still have to win that physical battle in midfield to take control of a game. Kamara has helped and he’s a top player but we need a few more to help us compete physically. A few additions this month adding pace and addressing the physical side of the game would, in my opinion improve us quite a bit.
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Maguire on loan apparently is on, brother played golf by the Belfry Maguire and Scott Mctominay playing in front of him
So we’re buying the other one as well?
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Clearly we need upgrades all over the pitch
Hopefully one of the newcomers will be a proper leader - in my mind one of our most glaring deficiencies (since Petrov?)
Mings was an outstanding leader before Gerrard.
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After yesterday the entire starting 11 and subs (except Ramsey, he gets a free pass from me as he’s returning from injury) can do one!
Looking at the players not involved yesterday (Emi M, Konsa, Mings, Carlos, Kamara and McGinn) we have a strong defensive spine (if we perm any 2 cbs with Martinez and Kamara), so that’s at least 4 positions which should not be a priority this transfer window or next leaving 7 positions to fill! Can this be done using our excellent youngsters coming through? Can Ramsey and McGinn step up their consistency and complement this defensive spine? Can any shortfalls be satisfied by just 2 windows?
Weaknesses in the team will need to be addressed if we are to come anywhere near having a competitive team in all competitions otherwise we will be in a continuous cycle of mediocrity and p*ss taking.
It’s a pity we have so many of our youngsters out on loan because Unai won’t really get to see them until the summer. Until then he’s going to have to dip into the market wisely and with as little interference as possible from purslow and lange.
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alex moreno incoming from real betis according to the spanish media. has not travelled for the spanish super cup. he's a left wing back.
over the last 12 months, both digne and cash have both needed competition and a kick up the arse.
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alex moreno incoming from real betis according to the spanish media. has not travelled for the spanish super cup. he's a left wing back.
over the last 12 months, both digne and cash have both needed replacing and a kick up the arse.
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alex moreno incoming from real betis according to the spanish media. has not travelled for the spanish super cup. he's a left wing back.
over the last 12 months, both digne and cash have both needed replacing and a kick up the arse.
I often wonder what happens here when a post is quoted and not added to or commented on. Can someone enlighten me?
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I don’t think left back was the priority but Emery will know what he wants & in all fairness Digne hasn’t been bad but he also hasn’t torn up any trees for the price tag and wage.
If Cash’s groin injury is any real lay off wonder if a right back will be targeted also?
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Digne hasn’t been bad but he also hasn’t torn up any trees for the price tag and wage.
He needs to go to Turkey then, there are plenty there for him to practice on.
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alex moreno incoming from real betis according to the spanish media. has not travelled for the spanish super cup. he's a left wing back.
over the last 12 months, both digne and cash have both needed replacing and a kick up the arse.
I often wonder what happens here when a post is quoted and not added to or commented on. Can someone enlighten me?
Sorry I should have added FTFY.
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Digne is fine, a decent player in that position. That said, I was a bit surprised when we signed Martinez for £20m to replace Tom Heaton who was fine, a decent player in that position. Look how that turned out.
The players that definitely don’t need to be changed are Martinez, Cash and Kamara. Digne is far from urgent but as I say if this chap is going to be a big improvement fair enough. We could still look for young up and coming players at RB and Goalkeeper though. As for the rest of them, upgrades would be useful in all cases if we’re able to sign players that definitely are an upgrade.
Edit : Maguire can fuck off and we generally should not be loaning players from them and their kind from now on. Add to that he’s not really any kind of upgrade on Mings anyway and he’s a ****** to boot.
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We definitely need some attacking players.
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Yep, Bailey and Coutinho talented as they are have been expensive mistakes for us and I’m losing faith.
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Digne is fine, a decent player in that position. That said, I was a bit surprised when we signed Martinez for £20m to replace Tom Heaton who was fine, a decent player in that position. Look how that turned out.
The players that definitely don’t need to be changed are Martinez, Cash and Kamara. Digne is far from urgent but as I say if this chap is going to be a big improvement fair enough. We could still look for young up and coming players at RB and Goalkeeper though. As for the rest of them, upgrades would be useful in all cases if we’re able to sign players that definitely are an upgrade.
Edit : Maguire can fuck off and we generally should not be loaning players from them and their kind from now on. Add to that he’s not really any kind of upgrade on Mings anyway and he’s a ****** to boot.
I'm not sure I agree about Cash. He has some decent defensive qualities but his final ball is shocking and he loses all composure if he gets anyway near the box. I'd also add Luiz to your list, he's coming along very nicely.
I agree on Maguire though.
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Yeah it is fine margins because Luiz can be very good and there are better out there than Cash but I just think that if we could get someone in that number 6 role that is big, strong, quick and athletic with a real presence it would make a big difference to us. Sort of like Dendoker but actually quick and athletic rather than just big :-) Cash’s position and shortcomings are a bit less important.
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He's still miles away from being in the Martinez or Kamara category, though.
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He's still miles away from being in the Martinez or Kamara category, though.
Yeah he is nowhere near that league. I would be gutted if either of those left whereas if Cash left I would just shrug. He's not near who should be first out though.
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Cash being linked with Chelsea. 50m seems their default price for full backs who can't defend.
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Cash being linked with Chelsea. 50m seems their default price for full backs who can't defend.
I'd bite their hands off at that price in the summer, not in the middle of the season though.
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Cash being linked with Chelsea. 50m seems their default price for full backs who can't defend.
Sell.
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£50M for Matty Cash?! I'll pay for the taxi.
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Cash being linked with Chelsea. 50m seems their default price for full backs who can't defend.
I'd bite their hands off at that price in the summer, not in the middle of the season though.
If they offer £50m take it.
Ashley Young is doing more than a good job in that position and bring back KKH for cover.
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He's still miles away from being in the Martinez or Kamara category, though.
Where did i say that he was? How did you leap to that?
Kamara isn't in the Martinez class either, good as he is. Those 3/4 are the positions where in my opinion we have a good enough player there, certainly for now and money should be spent elsewhere. It looks as though Digne is about to be replaced though. And yes, if someone is willing to pay £50m for Cash i'd snap their hand off, can't see it though.
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Call it £40m plus Reece James and you have a deal
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I have to say Cash is my most frustrating Villa player. Bailey and Buendia run him close but I've given up expecting anything from them. Cash though, his final ball is so, so poor it drives me insane.
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Cash being linked with Chelsea. 50m seems their default price for full backs who can't defend.
I will send him an Uber for that price...
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Cash being linked with Chelsea. 50m seems their default price for full backs who can't defend.
It's probably just Football Insider getting confused.
If we're signing a full back = one of our full backs might be available.
That said, on recent form, Potter can have the pair of 'em for £50 mill.
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I like him but Cash is a good example of a player we should ultimately improving on. If Chelsea really are going to offer stupid money, absolutely we let him go.
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£50M for Matty Cash?! I'll pay for the taxi.
I'll drive him there myself and pay the congestion charge
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Seems Felix is on his way to Chelsea on loan. Lose a game sign 5 players. It’s the Chelsea way.
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Conor Gallagher and 30 mill for Cash.
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Chelsea are all over the place recruitment wise since Abramovich's regime fell apart. There might be truth in the Cash link, Azpil can't play RWB. Even Grealish mugged him off when he came on last week.
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He's still miles away from being in the Martinez or Kamara category, though.
Where did i say that he was? How did you leap to that?
"The players that definitely don’t need to be changed are Martinez, Cash and Kamara" didn't seem that much of a leap.
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He's still miles away from being in the Martinez or Kamara category, though.
Where did i say that he was? How did you leap to that?
"The players that definitely don’t need to be changed are Martinez, Cash and Kamara" didn't seem that much of a leap.
I hope for better than Cash.
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If Chelsea are genuinely interested I'd swap Cash +10-20m for Pulisic despite his current injury. He'd go a long way to solving our forward issues when he's fit and if Felix is going there he may be looking for a way out.
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If Chelsea are genuinely interested I'd swap Cash +10-20m for Pulisic despite his current injury. He'd go a long way to solving our forward issues when he's fit and if Felix is going there he may be looking for a way out.
Not a bad shout, Pulisic has lost his way there but was very good in the WC I thought.
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If Chelsea are genuinely interested I'd swap Cash +10-20m for Pulisic despite his current injury. He'd go a long way to solving our forward issues when he's fit and if Felix is going there he may be looking for a way out.
Not a bad shout, Pulisic has lost his way there but was very good in the WC I thought.
Agreed. Get him and McKennie in, arrange an annual 'winter break' friendly against the Las Vegas Villains and job's a good 'un.
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Seems Felix is on his way to Chelsea on loan. Lose a game sign 5 players. It’s the Chelsea way.
£10m + wages etc for a 6 month loan. Absolutely crazy numbers. But I guess if he helps them get the CL spot is pays for itself.
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Seems Felix is on his way to Chelsea on loan. Lose a game sign 5 players. It’s the Chelsea way.
£10m + wages etc for a 6 month loan. Absolutely crazy numbers. But I guess if he helps them get the CL spot is pays for itself.
They are just above us. The top 4 isn’t impossible but it won’t be easy. They keep signing player after player. And with them it has to click immediately. And Potter needs to keep his head above water while trying to fix a lot of what is broken. I just don’t get their transfer policy.
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Just a cursory glance but including players Chelsea have signed up to this week they've spent around £470m in 3 seasons. How are they getting around Profit and Sustainability? I know it's a joke but that kind of spending is blatantly unsustainable.
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Just a cursory glance but including players Chelsea have signed up to this week they've spent around £470m in 3 seasons. How are they getting around Profit and Sustainability? I know it's a joke but that kind of spending is blatantly unsustainable.
I think a new league is near. See Manure Lpool for sale.
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Just a cursory glance but including players Chelsea have signed up to this week they've spent around £470m in 3 seasons. How are they getting around Profit and Sustainability? I know it's a joke but that kind of spending is blatantly unsustainable.
"Clever" accounting...
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Just a cursory glance but including players Chelsea have signed up to this week they've spent around £470m in 3 seasons. How are they getting around Profit and Sustainability? I know it's a joke but that kind of spending is blatantly unsustainable.
Is that gross or net? They must be raking in money from loan fees.
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Just a cursory glance but including players Chelsea have signed up to this week they've spent around £470m in 3 seasons. How are they getting around Profit and Sustainability? I know it's a joke but that kind of spending is blatantly unsustainable.
Is that gross or net? They must be raking in money from loan fees.
Net, apparently including loan fees both received and paid.
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Is the Chukwueze stuff legitimate?
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How much Chuk would a Villa put up with, if a Villa could chuck Chuk?
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Is the Chukwueze stuff legitimate?
The what stuff?
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I'd love him to be the one Emery nabs for the specific winger role. Getting him and Torres from Villareal would be a genuine step up in quality from where we are.
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Kang-in Lee seems to be gathering momentum
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Would be a smart move marketing wise, good age and looks technically good. As does the other kid in Spain we are linked to. Could see both being targeted with the way Emery is playing.
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Sincerely hope reports on Elneny are just lazy ex player links. He's nowhere near good enough.
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Was Elneny the one Arteta bought on, was awful, and subbed 15 minutes later last season?
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Kang-in Lee seems to be gathering momentum
I know it is only YT but i like the look of him - does he play #10? if so then surely at least one of EB or PC has to go?
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Might get some money back for Buendia.
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Kang-in Lee seems to be gathering momentum
It would mean more Korean fans at Villa Park which wouldn't be a bad thing.
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Kang-in Lee seems to be gathering momentum
He's just under 5ft 7 and lighter than Buendia. We already lack physical presence and whilst I'm not against smaller skillful players it's a problem when we come up against more physical teams.
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What Sunday showed me is that whilst bringing on our second string as substitutes doesn't impede us too much, that collectively they aren't good enough.
They'll do as squad fillers but it takes us back to the way we'll improve, and that is replacing the first team and making them our squad.
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What Sunday showed me is that whilst bringing on our second string as substitutes doesn't impede us too much, that collectively they aren't good enough.
They'll do as squad fillers but it takes us back to the way we'll improve, and that is replacing the first team and making them our squad.
Agree. The likes of Watkins, Buendia and Bailey need to be pushed down into squad options rather than players we are relying on every week.
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Might get some money back for Buendia.
He'd probably be more a Coutinho replacement who could end up in Brazil, the MLS, Saudi.
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If Felix was offered to us I’m glad we turned the deal down. It appears that Chelsea are essentially borrowing the player who doesn’t get along with Simeone until the end of the season. Simeone is expected to leave Atletico. And Chelsea get to pay something in the region of £16m (loan fee and wages). Absolute madness
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If Felix was offered to us I’m glad we turned the deal down. It appears that Chelsea are essentially borrowing the player who doesn’t get along with Simeone until the end of the season. Simeone is expected to leave Atletico. And Chelsea get to pay something in the region of £16m (loan fee and wages). Absolute madness
Simeone quite likely to rock up at Chelsea in the summer too.
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If Felix was offered to us I’m glad we turned the deal down. It appears that Chelsea are essentially borrowing the player who doesn’t get along with Simeone until the end of the season. Simeone is expected to leave Atletico. And Chelsea get to pay something in the region of £16m (loan fee and wages). Absolute madness
Simeone quite likely to rock up at Chelsea in the summer too.
Tends to do well at clubs he’s played for and has an affiliation with, next Inter boss for me.
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If Felix was offered to us I’m glad we turned the deal down. It appears that Chelsea are essentially borrowing the player who doesn’t get along with Simeone until the end of the season. Simeone is expected to leave Atletico. And Chelsea get to pay something in the region of £16m (loan fee and wages). Absolute madness
If he gets them into the champions league, which I imagine is their thinking, then he's more than paid for himself.
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Some talk of Mattéo Guendouzi. Now I would like that. Reunite him with Kamara and send Sanson back in part exchange.
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Romano is saying we're one of the clubs interested in buying Weston McKennie from Juve, which might be a bit of a fire sale.
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Romano is saying we're one of the clubs interested in buying Weston McKennie from Juve, which might be a bit of a fire sale.
Then let’s get Vlaovic
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Some talk of Mattéo Guendouzi. Now I would like that. Reunite him with Kamara and send Sanson back in part exchange.
Always thought he looked good at Arsenal but haven't really followed him since he left.
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I'm really liking some of the names we're being linked with.
Maybe true or not but it beats Dendonker and Bednarek for sure.
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McKennie is the new Mccarthy I'm convinced. Him and Danjuma who Villareal seem open to going on loan would be a decent Jan.
I would sell Ings and buy a 21 year old Benteke too. If I could find one.
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Some talk of Mattéo Guendouzi. Now I would like that. Reunite him with Kamara and send Sanson back in part exchange.
Always thought he looked good at Arsenal but haven't really followed him since he left.
If you like tippy tapping football and stupid hair, he’s your man.
No thanks.
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McKennie is the new Mccarthy I'm convinced. Him and Danjuma who Villareal seem open to going on loan would be a decent Jan.
I would sell Ings and buy a 21 year old Benteke too. If I could find one.
There is a young tall Belgian lad at Milan called Charles De Ketelaere, who I don't think has settled there who might be worth a pop. Other than that, Beto from Udinese might be an option.
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Some talk of Mattéo Guendouzi. Now I would like that. Reunite him with Kamara and send Sanson back in part exchange.
Always thought he looked good at Arsenal but haven't really followed him since he left.
If you like tippy tapping football and stupid hair, he’s your man.
No thanks.
He's not remotely that type of player. He is a very energetic central midfielder that closes down opponents quickly. He's done really well in that role at Marseille
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For where we are right now, I think he'd be a good signing and would lift the reputation of the football club. Tenuous link though to be fair and we won't be signing both he and Weston Super-Marekennie.
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Some talk of Mattéo Guendouzi. Now I would like that. Reunite him with Kamara and send Sanson back in part exchange.
Always thought he looked good at Arsenal but haven't really followed him since he left.
If you like tippy tapping football and stupid hair, he’s your man.
No thanks.
He's not remotely that type of player. He is a very energetic central midfielder that closes down opponents quickly. He's done really well in that role at Marseille
That’s all he did at Arsenal.
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Romano is saying we're one of the clubs interested in buying Weston McKennie from Juve, which might be a bit of a fire sale.
McKennie would probably be most suited to the role Douglas Luizis currently playing.
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McKennie is a better option than either of Guendouzi or Elneny.
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Some talk of Mattéo Guendouzi. Now I would like that. Reunite him with Kamara and send Sanson back in part exchange.
Always thought he looked good at Arsenal but haven't really followed him since he left.
If you like tippy tapping football and stupid hair, he’s your man.
No thanks.
He's not remotely that type of player. He is a very energetic central midfielder that closes down opponents quickly. He's done really well in that role at Marseille
That’s all he did at Arsenal.
That’s not tippy tapping football. And he was 18 or 19 at Arsenal. He’s a much stronger and better footballer now. I’d be delighted if we got him. And he has a strong relationship with Emery too.
Guendouzi: "I will thank him (Unai Emery) for the rest of my life. He has helped me improve a lot, I have always given everything for him. It worked very well between us. I played very well in big games. It was a wonderful relationship with Emery."
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McKennie is a better option than either of Guendouzi or Elneny.
Sky’s correspondent giggled when asked about our chances of signing him, which makes me want him, just to stick it to em. In all honesty I watch so little football now, I have no idea if these players are better than what we’ve got.
If you can sign players like Coutinho, that turn out to be awful….I’ve almost given up all hope… 😂
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If we are buying round pegs for round holes that the coach wants then I am happy with whoever he wants to buy or sell. Giving a coach with pedigree the tools he wants feels right.
The last couple of windows with Dendoncker etc feel a little like we signed available players rather than players the coach wanted other than Coutinho. The approach worked in getting Kamara, not sure elsewhere.
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I thought mckennie was crap at the world Cup. Not 'far better than what we have', which is supposed to be who we are after.
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McKennie is a better option than either of Guendouzi or Elneny.
Sky’s correspondent giggled when asked about our chances of signing him, which makes me want him, just to stick it to em. In all honesty I watch so little football now, I have no idea if these players are better than what we’ve got.
About signing McKennie? I don't think it'd be that difficult if we wanted to. Juve been wanting to get rid of him for a couple of years now but there are no takers. By reason of him not being very good.
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I agree about McKennie at the WC. In one game where I think US conceded at least 2 (I can’t remember which one now) he failed to track back on one occasion and on another having tracked back he then failed to mark costing his team on both occasions. Too much like Barkley for my liking.
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If a team doesn't get booed off after losing to a 4th division team in the FA Cup then it's an affront to the whole concept of the boo and would confirm if as a dying art. As someone who used to have a recurring dream about being booed in public, I can't work out if that is a good or bad thing.
The Wolves half time booing was daft for me. But I think some people just react to what's in front of them while others try to put that in the context of recent performances. Different booprints for different folk.
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All these links to central midfielders are interesting as we are actually quite strong (1st choice wise) here.
Perhaps we are selling or in danger of losing someone this window?
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I am not really sure what McKennie is supposed to be good at, he's never stood out for me when I have seen him, whether it be in the WC or for Juventus.
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I am not really sure what McKennie is supposed to be good at, he's never stood out for me when I have seen him, whether it be in the WC or for Juventus.
Looking like the bloke that sings Blinding Lights
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I am not really sure what McKennie is supposed to be good at, he's never stood out for me when I have seen him, whether it be in the WC or for Juventus.
Given that for the USA he seems to be the guy in midfield who isn't quite as good as Tyler Adams, who doesn't really stand out at worse-than-us Leeds Utd, it would seem like an odd fit.
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I am not really sure what McKennie is supposed to be good at, he's never stood out for me when I have seen him, whether it be in the WC or for Juventus.
Looking like the bloke that sings Blinding Lights
Just don't want the Villa to keep ruining my Weeknd.
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Guendouzi links seem to be gathering pace.
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I like Guendouzi. Was superb for my Football Manager Catania side on our surge to scudetto glory.
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I've seen Guendouzi look much better than McKennie. Clearly a player able to play a pass and keep the ball, which should fit with Kamara and Luiz.
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I am not really sure what McKennie is supposed to be good at, he's never stood out for me when I have seen him, whether it be in the WC or for Juventus.
Given that for the USA he seems to be the guy in midfield who isn't quite as good as Tyler Adams, who doesn't really stand out at worse-than-us Leeds Utd, it would seem like an odd fit.
I do quite like that Aronson? at Leeds. Not sure what he cost but always trying to be positive.
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I bought Football Manager a few months ago cos it was going cheap, but only managed about an hour with it.
It's not like it used to be. Now it's like an actual job. A really boring one where you don't get paid.
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I bought Football Manager a few months ago cos it was going cheap, but only managed about an hour with it.
It's not like it used to be. Now it's like an actual job. A really boring one where you don't get paid.
Next they'll add a 'home life' mod where your wife leaves you for not spending any time at home.
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Guendouzi was excellent in the second half when we lost 3-2 first season back.
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I bought Football Manager a few months ago cos it was going cheap, but only managed about an hour with it.
It's not like it used to be. Now it's like an actual job. A really boring one where you don't get paid.
The mobile version is pretty much a re-skinned port of the old CM 01-02, much better. I'm the same, the full version feels too much like hard work
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Guendouzi links seem to be gathering pace.
Aston Villa are ready to make a first offer of about €30m for Mattéo Guendouzi, and has the means to go up to €40m — bonuses included.
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I bought Football Manager a few months ago cos it was going cheap, but only managed about an hour with it.
It's not like it used to be. Now it's like an actual job. A really boring one where you don't get paid.
The mobile version is pretty much a re-skinned port of the old CM 01-02, much better. I'm the same, the full version feels too much like hard work
You need the original 1984 C64 / Speccy version really.
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Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa. Guendouzi is only TWENTY THREE years old? Hasn't he been around for a decade?
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I bought Football Manager a few months ago cos it was going cheap, but only managed about an hour with it.
It's not like it used to be. Now it's like an actual job. A really boring one where you don't get paid.
Honestly, this is the badboy you want: https://twitter.com/cm9798v2
CM97/98, with the database expanded & the ability to play 5 leagues at once rather than 3 (although for some weird reason you can only play 4 leagues if one of them is Scotland). Bang it on the V2 version and you get coloured stats etc - you get the 97/98 Villa side which are, as it happens, pretty bloody good on there. And you also have a mild cheat mode in that you know which players are currently 15-18 years old - so cheap - but are going to provide a bloody strong spine to a side in 10 seasons time (e.g. you can pick up John Terry and David Villa for about £1m each).
Also agree with LeeB that the mobile version is way, way better than the full version.
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I am not really sure what McKennie is supposed to be good at, he's never stood out for me when I have seen him, whether it be in the WC or for Juventus.
Given that for the USA he seems to be the guy in midfield who isn't quite as good as Tyler Adams, who doesn't really stand out at worse-than-us Leeds Utd, it would seem like an odd fit.
I do quite like that Aronson? at Leeds. Not sure what he cost but always trying to be positive.
Likes diving aswell.
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Oh good god I know what I'm spending silly amounts of time doing later. They were the golden years of the game. Is Jason Peake still an assist legend on that version?
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I bought Football Manager a few months ago cos it was going cheap, but only managed about an hour with it.
It's not like it used to be. Now it's like an actual job. A really boring one where you don't get paid.
Honestly, this is the badboy you want: https://twitter.com/cm9798v2
CM97/98, with the database expanded & the ability to play 5 leagues at once rather than 3 (although for some weird reason you can only play 4 leagues if one of them is Scotland). Bang it on the V2 version and you get coloured stats etc - you get the 97/98 Villa side which are, as it happens, pretty bloody good on there. And you also have a mild cheat mode in that you know which players are currently 15-18 years old - so cheap - but are going to provide a bloody strong spine to a side in 10 seasons time (e.g. you can pick up John Terry and David Villa for about £1m each).
Also agree with LeeB that the mobile version is way, way better than the full version.
Totally agree on mobile version - much more fun. Also if you play enough seasons your son comes through the youth system. There normally massively disappointing - so it’s true to life
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Guendouzi links seem to be gathering pace.
YES please
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Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa. Guendouzi is only TWENTY THREE years old? Hasn't he been around for a decade?
It does feel like that doesn't it. Guendouzi absolutely loves Emery for bringing him through at Arsenal and the feelings mutual as Emery was trying to sign him for Villareal.
I haven't really followed his career much in France but by all accounts he is a far better player than we saw at Arsenal.
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I bought Football Manager a few months ago cos it was going cheap, but only managed about an hour with it.
It's not like it used to be. Now it's like an actual job. A really boring one where you don't get paid.
Honestly, this is the badboy you want: https://twitter.com/cm9798v2
CM97/98, with the database expanded & the ability to play 5 leagues at once rather than 3 (although for some weird reason you can only play 4 leagues if one of them is Scotland). Bang it on the V2 version and you get coloured stats etc - you get the 97/98 Villa side which are, as it happens, pretty bloody good on there. And you also have a mild cheat mode in that you know which players are currently 15-18 years old - so cheap - but are going to provide a bloody strong spine to a side in 10 seasons time (e.g. you can pick up John Terry and David Villa for about £1m each).
Also agree with LeeB that the mobile version is way, way better than the full version.
https://champman0102.net/ (https://champman0102.net/)
More or less the same but for 01-02, they've been updating the database for years now, it works really well.
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I like Guendouzi, I reckon most of the stick he got at Arsenal was because he had the same hairstyle as David Luiz.
That said it would suggest that at least some of the midfielders we have will be moved on soon.
With how we're setup and the kids coming through I think 5 senior central midfielders in squad is right so for me Kamara, Luiz and Ramsey are all ones we should be trying to keep long-term.
That leaves Dendoncker, McGinn, Sanson and Nakamba for 1 spot if Guendouzi comes in which would need to be addressed. I suspect it'd be between McGinn and Sanson who stays, with McGinn more likely of the 2.
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I bought Football Manager a few months ago cos it was going cheap, but only managed about an hour with it.
It's not like it used to be. Now it's like an actual job. A really boring one where you don't get paid.
Honestly, this is the badboy you want: https://twitter.com/cm9798v2
CM97/98, with the database expanded & the ability to play 5 leagues at once rather than 3 (although for some weird reason you can only play 4 leagues if one of them is Scotland). Bang it on the V2 version and you get coloured stats etc - you get the 97/98 Villa side which are, as it happens, pretty bloody good on there. And you also have a mild cheat mode in that you know which players are currently 15-18 years old - so cheap - but are going to provide a bloody strong spine to a side in 10 seasons time (e.g. you can pick up John Terry and David Villa for about £1m each).
Also agree with LeeB that the mobile version is way, way better than the full version.
Totally agree on mobile version - much more fun. Also if you play enough seasons your son comes through the youth system. There normally massively disappointing - so it’s true to life
And you get to name the new stadium, which of course with me being a grown adult means 'Felcher Fields' or suchlike.
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Guendouzi looked good with kamara too , so know each other .
Still lots of potential, this would be a great signing especially with someone like that Korean winger lee Jang in.
Mckennie never seems to look that good when I've watched him , wouldn't excite me .
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I guess Sanson could be part of the Guendouzi deal with the him going the other way?
Wasn't sure about this initially, but the more I hear about him I want it to happen. The sort of player you hate if against you but love playing for you, a midfield Emi Martinez if you like.
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I guess Sanson could be part of the Guendouzi deal with the him going the other way?
Wasn't sure about this initially but the more I hear about it I want to happen. The sort of player you hate if against you but love playing for you, a midfield Emi Martinez if you like.
He's one of those annoying players who runs round after the ball and don't let the player settle . Pressing all over the pitch like a bloody wasp . So yes sign him .
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Normally I think player exchanges are incredibly unlikely, but Sanson as part of a Guendouzi deal would probably make sense for everybody.
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Well if he is to be a villa player he can get a bloody haircut ;)
Always thought he was bang average at Arsenal, left due to attitude and application issues at training (whilst under UE?) and must confess do not follow many players outside of UK
If other think he is an upgrade then i would bow to their better judgement
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It was interesting how Sanson seemed to wave at all four stands when he came off - I wonder if he knows he is leaving.
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Interesting that we are being linked to central midfielders. Would have thought we have enough options there, but maybe Emery has seen things he doesn't like.
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Guendouzi isn’t the player he was at Arsenal. He was 18 or 19 back then and very raw. But you could see his style emerging. Now he’s filled out, 6’1” and he’s not just a player who breaks things up he actually gets involved in the offensive side of the game too. He’s pretty much represented France at all levels and has 7 full caps. He’s only 23, so with JJ 21, Kamara 23 and Luiz 24 we suddenly have a backbone in our midfield for the next 4/5 years. Throw in Tim coming through and possibly one or two others there are some solid young options. And as I was saying earlier he has a very strong bond with Emery from their time at Arsenal. So I hope there is some truth to this story.
Obligatory YouTube video
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Those wide positions in our current 442 need a certain type of player. McGinn fits the role pretty well, lots of energy, good engine and disciplined... It certainly doesn't suit Ramsey or Buendia or Cash!
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I liked Guendozi at Arsenal, even if he did seem a bit headless chicken at times he was everywhere really giving his all. I could see him doing really well for us.
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It was interesting how Sanson seemed to wave at all four stands when he came off - I wonder if he knows he is leaving.
I think he was happy just to be allowed out
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What was all that tapping his head celebration about?
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Guendouzi looks good. He seems very versatile and could fit in at 6 or 8. I suspect he'd take McGinns role but would clearly give us more depth at DM too. Together with Kamara and Luiz that' would look like an extremely strong midfield line up to me.
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It was interesting how Sanson seemed to wave at all four stands when he came off - I wonder if he knows he is leaving.
Yep, we commented on that as he left the field just in front of us.
Not sure if it was a sign that he is leaving or just appreciation that the crowd remembered who is was.
Probably the only player to emerge with any credit from Sunday's debacle
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Those wide positions in our current 442 need a certain type of player. McGinn fits the role pretty well, lots of energy, good engine and disciplined... It certainly doesn't suit Ramsey or Buendia or Cash!
Yeah it's almost like an old fashioned right midfielder role. Where's Ray Houghton when you need him?
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What was all that tapping his head celebration about?
Didn't the French lads on the bench all laugh and tap their heads too when he did it?
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Did Guendouzi play alongside Kamara much for Marseille?
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Did Guendouzi play alongside Kamara much for Marseille?
Most of last season.
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Guendouzi would be a good signing.
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Did Guendouzi play alongside Kamara much for Marseille?
They seemed happy enough
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FmLfYQYWIAAcoMS?format=jpg&name=large)
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FmLfYQaX0AACVIj?format=jpg&name=large)
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Ready made and knows our Kamara's game - i am now convinced
Bring him in
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I don't know if the Guendouzi links are real, and I don't know a great deal about him and how he's peformed since he went back to France. BUT, what I do know, is that back in 2019, when Arsenal beat us 3-2 having gone down to 10 men while they were 1-0 down, he was absolutely excellent. Incredibly, frustratingly, disturbingly so. I hated him that day. Even with 10 men for over half the game, he was absolutely everywhere. Not only moving the ball around and dictating play, but getting stuck in, too. From memory he played a double-pivot with Xhaka that day. And he was only 20.
He was playing for Emery at the time, so if Unai can get THAT midfielder to play for us, I'll be delighted.
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It was interesting how Sanson seemed to wave at all four stands when he came off - I wonder if he knows he is leaving.
Yep, we commented on that as he left the field just in front of us.
Not sure if it was a sign that he is leaving or just appreciation that the crowd remembered who is was.
Probably the only player to emerge with any credit from Sunday's debacle
If he got subbed off in THAT game, then surely the writing is on the wall!!
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I don't know if the Guendouzi links are real, and I don't know a great deal about him and how he's peformed since he went back to France. BUT, what I do know, is that back in 2019, when Arsenal beat us 3-2 having gone down to 10 men while they were 1-0 down, he was absolutely excellent. Incredibly, frustratingly, disturbingly so. I hated him that day. Even with 10 men for over half the game, he was absolutely everywhere. Not only moving the ball around and dictating play, but getting stuck in, too. From memory he played a double-pivot with Xhaka that day. And he was only 20.
He was playing for Emery at the time, so if Unai can get THAT midfielder to play for us, I'll be delighted.
I was there, and I agree. When they pegged us back to 2-2, and they got that free kick at the edge of our box I walked out of that terrible stadium (I'm a wanker, I left early) to the sound of the home fans cheering a winning goal behind me. I'd seen the movie before.
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Our signings from the French league have largely been underwhelming. That said, the most recent one looks very promising and as pointed out this guy played with Kamara last season so they know each other. That Marseille team finished runners up last season and are currently 3rd and Guendouzi does have 7 France caps despite the French tram being rather good and him only being 23. Plus he has a good relationship with the manager so all in all it's as good a shout as any. I did see one report saying the deal might cost 50m euros though so he'd certainly better work out if we're talking that kind of money.
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Dont we need a forward player that is, well, not shit?
I won't pretend that I know anything about these players we are signing - but at some point, we are going to have to "do a goal" if we are to win games?
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John Townley at the BrumMail is saying Marseille want 50m?!
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Yes, we certainly need a couple of new attacking players. And a centre back. Another centre mid wouldn't go amiss though considering i'm not convinced with any we have outside of McGinn, Luiz, Ramsey and Kamara and 3 of those are inconsistent to say the least.
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John Townley at the BrumMail is saying Marseille want 50m?!
Are they adding the fee they felt they should have got for Kamara on to the price?
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OM MERCATO: MARSEILLE SETS THE PRICE OF MATTÉO GUENDOUZI!
Mattéo Guendouzi, OM midfielder. Posted by Enzo Vidy on January 11, 2023 at 5:17 PM
As rumors surrounding a departure of Mattéo Guendouzi intensify, OM have set the price for their midfielder.
This is the big mercato subject of this Wednesday at Olympique de Marseille. While discussions between Mattéo Guendouzi and an English club were revealed by L'Équipe on Tuesday evening, Foot Mercato said on Wednesday morning that the club in question was none other than Aston Villa . Indeed, the leaders of the Villans have started intensive discussions with Mattéo Guendouzi , more particularly the coach of the English club, namely Unai Emery , who knows the French international very well.
The former Arsenal boss is said to be determined to lure Matteo Guendouzi this winter, and RMC Sport soon announced that the Premier League club were ready to make an initial offer of €30m to the Marseille leaders . Faced with pressure from Aston Villa which has continued to intensify in recent hours to enlist Mattéo Guendouzi, Pablo Longoria would have made an important decision in this hot file of the OM transfer window.
OM Mercato: Marseille asks for 50 million to release Mattéo Guendouzi
According to the latest information from the journalist, Ben Jacobs, Olympique de Marseille have set the price for Mattéo Guendouzi . According to him, Pablo Longoria would claim no less than 50 million euros to let go of his midfielder from the winter transfer window. Other information, the leaders of Aston Villa would not intend to formulate an offer greater than 30 million euros, which is therefore well below the expectations of the president of OM.
It is very likely that Pablo Longoria has set a high price in order to calm the ardor of Aston Villa, which has been very insistent in recent hours. However, it has often been proven in the past that English clubs can quickly increase their offer to win their case, and it would be better not to rejoice at Marseille right away . Anyway, Mattéo Guendouzi will be present this Wednesday evening in Troyes, and is still an OM player for the moment.
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OM MERCATO: MARSEILLE SETS THE PRICE OF MATTÉO GUENDOUZI!
Mattéo Guendouzi, OM midfielder. Posted by Enzo Vidy on January 11, 2023 at 5:17 PM
As rumors surrounding a departure of Mattéo Guendouzi intensify, OM have set the price for their midfielder.
This is the big mercato subject of this Wednesday at Olympique de Marseille. While discussions between Mattéo Guendouzi and an English club were revealed by L'Équipe on Tuesday evening, Foot Mercato said on Wednesday morning that the club in question was none other than Aston Villa . Indeed, the leaders of the Villans have started intensive discussions with Mattéo Guendouzi , more particularly the coach of the English club, namely Unai Emery , who knows the French international very well.
The former Arsenal boss is said to be determined to lure Matteo Guendouzi this winter, and RMC Sport soon announced that the Premier League club were ready to make an initial offer of €30m to the Marseille leaders . Faced with pressure from Aston Villa which has continued to intensify in recent hours to enlist Mattéo Guendouzi, Pablo Longoria would have made an important decision in this hot file of the OM transfer window.
OM Mercato: Marseille asks for 50 million to release Mattéo Guendouzi
According to the latest information from the journalist, Ben Jacobs, Olympique de Marseille have set the price for Mattéo Guendouzi . According to him, Pablo Longoria would claim no less than 50 million euros to let go of his midfielder from the winter transfer window. Other information, the leaders of Aston Villa would not intend to formulate an offer greater than 30 million euros, which is therefore well below the expectations of the president of OM.
It is very likely that Pablo Longoria has set a high price in order to calm the ardor of Aston Villa, which has been very insistent in recent hours. However, it has often been proven in the past that English clubs can quickly increase their offer to win their case, and it would be better not to rejoice at Marseille right away . Anyway, Mattéo Guendouzi will be present this Wednesday evening in Troyes, and is still an OM player for the moment.
Nothing worse than being irritated by a very insistent ardor!
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Always rated him, get him in.
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50mill eur so 44mGBP.
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I reckon we will sign for around £30m with a bunch of add ons. Mind you Marseille are probably still fucked off with us taking Kamara for nothing.
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I wonder whether it's Luiz who might leave if Guendouzi comes in?
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I wonder whether it's Luiz who might leave if Guendouzi comes in?
could it not be a 3 man midfield with Kamara and Luiz? JJ fighting it out for a spot or even a 4 or 5 midfield as needed. Plus we need depth and we need to get past this the strongest team is the same team. I think Emery wants flexibility to change up the starting XI as needed based on the opponent and not have any drop off in ability or attitude.
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Surely it is Dendonker who is the one in bother if we get him.
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Sanson is going to go, so that's the change. It's an obvious upgrade, and means there's more choice in midfield. With him and Moreno we're definitely adding more pace and drive. It definitely seems like we could be getting quicker...
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We are building a squad not just a team, so it doesn’t always have to be “he comes in so he will have to go”.
Not talking Sanson here btw, he’s clearly offski.
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Guendouzi is disliked because he's known to be an arrogant prick. I seem to remember him getting into loads of little scuffles against Brighton and he was basically calling them all shit and talking about how much more money he earns than them which is pretty c*nty. I'm sure loads of that goes on anyway but he definitely seems like the sort of player you hate if he's not playing for you. I look forward to either tolerating him or hating him.
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What a tosser. So he'd better be good.
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Guendouzi is disliked because he's known to be an arrogant prick. I seem to remember him getting into loads of little scuffles against Brighton and he was basically calling them all shit and talking about how much more money he earns than them which is pretty c*nty. I'm sure loads of that goes on anyway but he definitely seems like the sort of player you hate if he's not playing for you. I look forward to either tolerating him or hating him.
That’s the kind of player that we have lacked for a very long time.
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Yep, for a long time we've been in need of some fucking bastards in our team
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What a tosser. So he'd better be good.
Wasn’t he a kid at the time? Hopefully he’s matured
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I was describing him to a bloke at work last night as a Robbie Savage who is actually good at football.
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I wonder whether it's Luiz who might leave if Guendouzi comes in?
Perhaps, it makes a change for us to be ahead of the game. There’s every chance Doug has a clause, which is out of our control. Maybe he stays on until the summer I suspect
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I liked Guendozi at Arsenal, even if he did seem a bit headless chicken at times he was everywhere really giving his all. I could see him doing really well for us.
I thought that and was particularly impressed with him in that first game back at the Emirates when we lost 3-2. It was only late on that I realised that David Luiz was also playing which explained why I thought Guendouzi was all over the pitch that day.
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I wonder whether it's Luiz who might leave if Guendouzi comes in?
Perhaps, it makes a change for us to be ahead of the game. There’s every chance Doug has a clause, which is out of our control. Maybe he stays on until the summer I suspect
I'm thinking that its more likely that its McGinn's place that is under threat. Dougie and Kamara have quite a good partnership going.
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Guen playing for OM tonight. Boooooo!!!
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Guen playing for OM tonight. Boooooo!!!
I’ll be watching that game at 3pm my time. I do watch a bit of Marseille as I’ve always liked their kit and still remember them from the Papin, Waddle, Stevens days.
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Guen playing for OM tonight. Boooooo!!!
I’ll be watching that game at 3pm my time. I do watch a bit of Marseille as I’ve always liked their kit and still remember them from the Papin, Waddle, Stevens days.
3pm?! Do none of you fuckers have jobs?!*
*This post was written at 1.17pm by a naked fortysomething, lying in bed, sipping a cocktail. Because if you can't take Wednesday 11th January off, when can you?
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Guen playing for OM tonight. Boooooo!!!
I’ll be watching that game at 3pm my time. I do watch a bit of Marseille as I’ve always liked their kit and still remember them from the Papin, Waddle, Stevens days.
3pm?! Do none of you fuckers have jobs?!*
*This post was written at 1.17pm by a naked fortysomething, lying in bed, sipping a cocktail. Because if you can't take Wednesday 11th January off, when can you?
Jobs. So overrated. It’s called multitasking. Where you do less work and more play but you’re still doing both. Or something like that.
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I work freelance, so I get to set my own schedule, which is great! Except when I don't have any work lined up and I'm just round the clock stressed sending only occasionally solicited emails, which is bad!
Anyway let's see how good this Guendouzi is. Is he more a Doozy? Or is he more like, well, a Gwen?
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I work freelance, so I get to set my own schedule, which is great! Except when I don't have any work lined up and I'm just round the clock stressed sending only occasionally solicited emails, which is bad!
Me too. Hence my incredibly relaxed lifestyle and lack of money.
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I work freelance, so I get to set my own schedule, which is great! Except when I don't have any work lined up and I'm just round the clock stressed sending only occasionally solicited emails, which is bad!
Anyway let's see how good this Guendouzi is. Is he more a Doozy? Or is he more like, well, a Gwen?
I also freelance, which is admittedly not the best career choice for a lazy bastard like me, but fortunately my clients keep sending me work and I'm too nice either to refuse to do it or to deliver it late.
I still manage to fit in several hours of doing sod all most days, but from what I can gather that's not exclusive to us freelancers.
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I work from home mainly but then travel to various parts of Canada as I need to. The office we had closed just before the pandemic and we planned to move locations. Covid happened and magically those conversations and cost commitments magically vanished. Works beautifully for me. Now I get to watch Villa lose symmetrically capping off my shit work days.
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That Romano chap reckons we are interested but Marseille have yet to receive a bid from anybody...
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Sanson's off to Montpellier then. I don't blame him, it's quite nice.
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Guen playing for OM tonight. Boooooo!!!
I’ll be watching that game at 3pm my time. I do watch a bit of Marseille as I’ve always liked their kit and still remember them from the Papin, Waddle, Stevens days.
Ah the old Papin, Waddle, Stevens and massive corruption days. Glory years!
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Guen playing for OM tonight. Boooooo!!!
I’ll be watching that game at 3pm my time. I do watch a bit of Marseille as I’ve always liked their kit and still remember them from the Papin, Waddle, Stevens days.
Ah the old Papin, Waddle, Stevens and massive corruption days. Glory years!
Haha yeh. Another fave was Basile Boli who continued to make news by nutting Stuart Pearce at the Euros in 92
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I am not really sure what McKennie is supposed to be good at, he's never stood out for me when I have seen him, whether it be in the WC or for Juventus.
The England game? He was excellent I thought until he tired.
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Guen playing for OM tonight. Boooooo!!!
I’ll be watching that game at 3pm my time. I do watch a bit of Marseille as I’ve always liked their kit and still remember them from the Papin, Waddle, Stevens days.
Ah the old Papin, Waddle, Stevens and massive corruption days. Glory years!
Haha yeh. Another fave was Basile Boli who continued to make news by nutting Stuart Pearce at the Euros in 92
It was a great kit though!
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I am not really sure what McKennie is supposed to be good at, he's never stood out for me when I have seen him, whether it be in the WC or for Juventus.
The England game? He was excellent I thought until he tired.
He was very good that night. The US team transitioned the ball from back to front so well, and he played a big part in it. Smart, 1-2 touch, direct.
That said, I’m not sure he’s better than what we already have. I would prefer Guendouzi.
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So how did Guendouzi play? I see Veretout scored!
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So how did Guendouzi play? I see Veretout scored!
Set up the first goal, that's all I know lol
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Can see Sanson going back to Marseille if Guendouzi comes in, as part of the deal.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
A real wide player. Get him in.
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Can see Sanson going back to Marseille if Guendouzi comes in, as part of the deal.
Sanson going Montpellier
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Can't see him choosing Everton over us, we must be in the box seat IF we want him.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Can't see him choosing Everton over us, we must be in the box seat.
More or less saying the same on Talkshite yesterday, they were commenting on where he is/has been with Villareal, champions league etc, it would be a drop down to end up in a relegation scrap with Everton, far more likely to end up at Villa if we’re interested.
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So how did Guendouzi play? I see Veretout scored!
Let's hope he hasn't asked Veretout about his time at Villa. A period of a lot of players lives/careers I'm sure they'd like to forget.
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Alan Hutton has suggested Harry Maguire could join Aston Villa in the summer.
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Alan Hutton has suggested Harry Maguire could join Aston Villa in the summer.
I have suggested Marry Maguire stay at Man Utd in the summer
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
A real wide player. Get him in.
Looks like of another 2 signings will be one for midfield
McKennie 24
Guendouzi 23
And wide forward
Danjuma 25
Delefeou 28
3 of those 4 have played in England and Delefeou has the most experience so I can see Villa signing him.
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Alan Hutton has suggested Harry Maguire could join Aston Villa in the summer.
I have suggested Marry Maguire stay at Man Utd in the summer
Me too, so that's a 2-1 majority.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
A real wide player. Get him in.
Looks like of another 2 signings will be one for midfield
McKennie 24
Guendouzi 23
And wide forward
Danjuma 25
Delefeou 28
3 of those 4 have played in England and Delefeou has the most experience so I can see Villa signing him.
Delefeou has got loads of ability and can be a real bums off seats player but not sure how consistent he is, Serie A watchers would have to give us a report on that. Also think it might have been a 2+2=5 link from the media. The last i read McKennie is not something we're looking at but the other 2 are quite possibly i'd say.
As much as i like Danny Ings i'd be happy to see us cash in and get a real top striker in to replace him. And no, we don't want Maguire under any circumstances.
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Alan Hutton has suggested Harry Maguire could join Aston Villa in the summer.
I have suggested Marry Maguire stay at Man Utd in the summer
Me too, so that's a 2-1 majority.
Yeah, well Hutton can take on 5 players and curl one in with his weaker foot! What a goal that was! One of the best ever!
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As a counter argument to the social media think, Harry Maguire played every game in a World Cup that Mings couldn't get in the squad for.
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Alan Hutton has suggested Harry Maguire could join Aston Villa in the summer.
I have suggested Marry Maguire stay at Man Utd in the summer
To be fair to Alan he's probably still got PTSBD, post traumatic Steve Bruce disorder, and is worried we'll be short of centre halves and he'll have to play there again.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
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As a counter argument to the social media think, Harry Maguire played every game in a World Cup that Mings couldn't get in the squad for.
I think it's a case of there not being much competition there. He is fractionally better than Mings and he was also more experienced and established there than others which is kind of what Southgate said. It wouldn't be worth paying all that in fee and wages to someone who is only marginally better than what we have and also a complete and utter ****** to boot, one which i'd honestly hate to see in a Villa shirt. I think we might have to find a better player for that left side centre back if Mings doesn't finally find some consistency, but if we do it needs to be a significant improvement. Over to the scouts....
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I hope we sign one of our targets asap.
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As a counter argument to the social media think, Harry Maguire played every game in a World Cup that Mings couldn't get in the squad for.
I think it's a case of there not being much competition there. He is fractionally better than Mings and he was also more experienced and established there than others which is kind of what Southgate said. It wouldn't be worth paying all that in fee and wages to someone who is only marginally better than what we have and also a complete and utter ****** to boot, one which i'd honestly hate to see in a Villa shirt. I think we might have to find a better player for that left side centre back if Mings doesn't finally find some consistency, but if we do it needs to be a significant improvement. Over to the scouts....
I mostly agree except I don't think he is marginally better, at least not in the last year, which is all that really maaters. MaGuire played at the world cup because he was one of the players Southgate built his team around a few years back and he's stayed loyal to that group. It's why Sterling was heavily involved as well.
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Alan Hutton has suggested Harry Maguire could join Aston Villa in the summer.
I have suggested Marry Maguire stay at Man Utd in the summer
To be fair to Alan he's probably still got PTSBD, post traumatic Steve Bruce disorder, and is worried we'll be short of centre halves and he'll have to play there again.
Made me laugh, anyway. Poor bloke's been scarred for life.
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Alan Hutton has suggested Harry Maguire could join Aston Villa in the summer.
I have suggested Marry Maguire stay at Man Utd in the summer
Me too, so that's a 2-1 majority.
Yeah, well Hutton can take on 5 players and curl one in with his weaker foot! What a goal that was! One of the best ever!
He could also be incredibly shit for long periods...
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Might be wrong, but I just can't see anything in the links with Maguire. We've already got four senior centre halves (albeit one on loan) with another hopefully returning from injury soon.
There could be questions around the quality of those options, but I don't think an addition there is a priority at the moment and certainly not at the kind of price Maguire would be.
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I'd be absolutely amazed if we sign Maguire.
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Might be wrong, but I just can't see anything in the links with Maguire. We've already got four senior centre halves (albeit one on loan) with another hopefully returning from injury soon.
There could be questions around the quality of those options, but I don't think an addition there is a priority at the moment and certainly not at the kind of price Maguire would be.
Oh I think we should be getting one, there definitely are questions around the quality of what we have. But just not him.
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Might be wrong, but I just can't see anything in the links with Maguire. We've already got four senior centre halves (albeit one on loan) with another hopefully returning from injury soon.
There could be questions around the quality of those options, but I don't think an addition there is a priority at the moment and certainly not at the kind of price Maguire would be.
Oh I think we should be getting one, there definitely are questions around the quality of what we have. But just not him.
Can it be Pau Torres please?
PLEASE!
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There's not a cat in hells chance we're signing maguire
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So can we stop talking about him?!
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From what Emery has just said there may well be a few leaving us this month. I think he’s seen enough to start moulding the squad into what me wants now. Another wide player looks on the cards but whether that’s dependent on us shipping a few out isn’t clear. He clearly has a detailed plan and I’m confident that this time next season we’ll be in a much stronger position.
I don’t expect massive difference in the lack of consistency this season. We have improved under Emery but there’s always a Stevenage style performance in this current squad. He’s a top coach and is the best chance we’ve had for years to actually achieve something.
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Just got to back him to change it to what he wants. Look at Saliba and Guendouzi now as players. He took both to Arsenal. I suspect it may take 3-4 transfer windows to blend the future and the here and now, but he's too proven a coach to mess about with. Think patience will be the key.
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I hope he's backed further this window, would be a serious missed opportunity if not.
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There's not a cat in hells chance we're signing maguire
Good.
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Ludwig told he can leave then! Music to our ears.
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Deulofeu would be a surprise I think. He's had a fairly nomadic career, the odd hot season like last season merged in with many more average ones. Flopped at Everton (not the first player to flop there) but one to swerve I'd say. Agent/paper talk I suspect.
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I hope he's backed further this window, would be a serious missed opportunity if not.
I do as well, but I also hope this includes moving quite a few out.
Having too many players that are surplus to requirements just doesn’t work, this problem has been exacerbated by throwing away both cup competitions.
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I'm sure he will be backed this window if the players he wants are available. There's no reason to think he won't be.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
Only once or ten times! Still he appears to be doing quite well for himself.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
Only once or ten times! Still he appears to be doing quite well for himself.
You think he's being paid for it?
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Might be wrong, but I just can't see anything in the links with Maguire. We've already got four senior centre halves (albeit one on loan) with another hopefully returning from injury soon.
There could be questions around the quality of those options, but I don't think an addition there is a priority at the moment and certainly not at the kind of price Maguire would be.
Oh I think we should be getting one, there definitely are questions around the quality of what we have. But just not him.
Can it be Pau Torres please?
PLEASE!
If we bring in a centre back then he would replace Jan Bednarek within the squad.
For a right back.
Héctor Bellerín at Barca who is out of contract in the summer. 27 good age.
Bellerin has a lot of respect for Emery
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
Only once or ten times! Still he appears to be doing quite well for himself.
You think he's being paid for it?
Probably helps him get paid work somewhere....actually, how does he earn his corn?
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Alan Hutton has suggested Harry Maguire could join Aston Villa in the summer.
I thought we were signing him now? You know, like that really reliable Football Insider said?
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Alan Hutton has suggested Harry Maguire could join Aston Villa in the summer.
I thought we were signing him now? You know, like that really reliable Football Insider said?
Well the latest from FI is what Hutton has said and that article states:
"On 9 January, Football Insider revealed that the 29-year-old is staying at Old Trafford this month after they rejected interest from the Birmingham club.
Unai Emery’s side did enquire about Maguire‘s availability but United insisted he would be staying in Manchester this month.
Hutton suggested the door remains open for a potential deal in the summer."
I imagine Hutton is a realistic source with ITK having been at Villa so long. He's villa connected and suggests it's the summer that we move for him rather than this window so that maybe gets the 2+2=4 and explains why he was present near to Villas ground.
So no not this window
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I don’t think footy has worked out the principles of made up clickbait shite yet.
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Alan Hutton has suggested Harry Maguire could join Aston Villa in the summer.
I thought we were signing him now? You know, like that really reliable Football Insider said?
Well the latest from FI is what Hutton has said and that article states:
"On 9 January, Football Insider revealed that the 29-year-old is staying at Old Trafford this month after they rejected interest from the Birmingham club.
Unai Emery’s side did enquire about Maguire‘s availability but United insisted he would be staying in Manchester this month.
Hutton suggested the door remains open for a potential deal in the summer."
I imagine Hutton is a realistic source with ITK having been at Villa so long. He's villa connected and suggests it's the summer that we move for him rather than this window so that maybe gets the 2+2=4 and explains why he was present near to Villas ground.
So no not this window
What a load of absolute bollocks.
Honestly, why do you present the most pointless clickbait and act like it's written in stone? Use your critical faculties.
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I don’t think footy has worked out the principles of made up clickbait shite yet.
Indeed he hasn't. All Alan Hutton actually said was "“He is still a great player he just needs to get back to doing what he does best and playing regularly. I think if that was to come up in the summer I do not see why it would not be a good fit." Which is no different at all to anybody on here suggesting a random player might be a good idea. Literally all that happened with Maguire was that he was seen in the area. Lots of idiots then bet (and lost) money on him signing.
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If I bet on a player making a move - how long would that last? Is it tied to the transfer window the bet is made in?
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I don’t think footy has worked out the principles of made up clickbait shite yet.
Indeed he hasn't. All Alan Hutton actually said was "“He is still a great player he just needs to get back to doing what he does best and playing regularly. I think if that was to come up in the summer I do not see why it would not be a good fit." Which is no different at all to anybody on here suggesting a random player might be a good idea. Literally all that happened with Maguire was that he was seen in the area. Lots of idiots then bet (and lost) money on him signing.
The whole betting odds thing was very strange.
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I don’t think footy has worked out the principles of made up clickbait shite yet.
Indeed he hasn't. All Alan Hutton actually said was "“He is still a great player he just needs to get back to doing what he does best and playing regularly. I think if that was to come up in the summer I do not see why it would not be a good fit." Which is no different at all to anybody on here suggesting a random player might be a good idea. Literally all that happened with Maguire was that he was seen in the area. Lots of idiots then bet (and lost) money on him signing.
The whole betting odds thing was very strange.
Isnt the point that it is not strange. Its just that there are so few bets on it that it only takes a few to dramatically shift the odds one way or the other.
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Felix is playing for Chelsea tonight, an absolute class player. Villa were interested, but he wanted Champions league level.
That said in the league Villa are as good if not better and would have been great to have got him on loan.
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I don’t think footy has worked out the principles of made up clickbait shite yet.
Indeed he hasn't. All Alan Hutton actually said was "“He is still a great player he just needs to get back to doing what he does best and playing regularly. I think if that was to come up in the summer I do not see why it would not be a good fit." Which is no different at all to anybody on here suggesting a random player might be a good idea. Literally all that happened with Maguire was that he was seen in the area. Lots of idiots then bet (and lost) money on him signing.
The whole betting odds thing was very strange.
Isnt the point that it is not strange. Its just that there are so few bets on it that it only takes a few to dramatically shift the odds one way or the other.
But then those people must have known something to bet on it.
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I don’t think footy has worked out the principles of made up clickbait shite yet.
Indeed he hasn't. All Alan Hutton actually said was "“He is still a great player he just needs to get back to doing what he does best and playing regularly. I think if that was to come up in the summer I do not see why it would not be a good fit." Which is no different at all to anybody on here suggesting a random player might be a good idea. Literally all that happened with Maguire was that he was seen in the area. Lots of idiots then bet (and lost) money on him signing.
The whole betting odds thing was very strange.
Isnt the point that it is not strange. Its just that there are so few bets on it that it only takes a few to dramatically shift the odds one way or the other.
But then those people must have known something to bet on it.
No - they saw him in Birmingham, and had a cheeky wager, as they had nothing to lose.
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But then those people must have known something to bet on it.
Jesus, is that how you think the gambling industry works?!
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But then those people must have known something to bet on it.
Jesus, is that how you think the gambling industry works?!
No.
But when it comes to the betting on Harry Maguire to move to aston villa and numbers of people wagering so much that odds drastically alter, then yes there could well have been some who seemed they knew something. Or thought they did!
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But then those people must have known something to bet on it.
Jesus, is that how you think the gambling industry works?!
No.
But when it comes to the betting on Harry Maguire to move to aston villa and numbers of people wagering so much that odds drastically alter, then yes there could well have been some who seemed they knew something. Or thought they did!
Thats. A. Bingo!
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But then those people must have known something to bet on it.
Jesus, is that how you think the gambling industry works?!
No.
But when it comes to the betting on Harry Maguire to move to aston villa and numbers of people wagering so much that odds drastically alter, then yes there could well have been some who seemed they knew something. Or thought they did!
It's such a small market that if ten people who saw a Football Insider tweet about and thought they'd all stick £20 on it because they'd decided that these people must know what they were talking about, it would shift the odds. These are your people who "thought they knew something".
Other people then see the change in odds and think that something must be happening and breathlessly post about it on message boards because such a change in odds means that somebody must know something.
It's a tedious cycle of people who think that they know how things work, but who don't.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
Only once or ten times! Still he appears to be doing quite well for himself.
You think he's being paid for it?
Probably helps him get paid work somewhere....actually, how does he earn his corn?
As eamonn indicated he’s getting paid for his podcast/ YouTube work and I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets a modest fee from Sky but it could open future doors. Either way from where he and the Villa View started he’s doing well.
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What i would like to see us do is bring in some really good players and sell on some really bad ones
that would be nice
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But then those people must have known something to bet on it.
Jesus, is that how you think the gambling industry works?!
No.
But when it comes to the betting on Harry Maguire to move to aston villa and numbers of people wagering so much that odds drastically alter, then yes there could well have been some who seemed they knew something. Or thought they did!
It's such a small market that if ten people who saw a Football Insider tweet about and thought they'd all stick £20 on it because they'd decided that these people must know what they were talking about, it would shift the odds. These are your people who "thought they knew something".
Other people then see the change in odds and think that something must be happening and breathlessly post about it on message boards because such a change in odds means that somebody must know something.
It's a tedious cycle of people who think that they know how things work, but who don't.
Makes some sense, I guess.
But generally it would be the case when a player transfers between clubs, the odds either drastically change over night or they are suspended once word gets out.
It appears that we asked Maguire about his availability.
Guess those present at the resturatnst establishment, the photo picture, and the shifting odds led some to believe it was more than just a rumour.
It remains to be seen how much Hutton knows about Maguire comimg to Villa in the summer, but maybe something has been decided upon already this window, and that would tie up the loose ends of why Maguire was where he was!
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
Only once or ten times! Still he appears to be doing quite well for himself.
You think he's being paid for it?
Probably helps him get paid work somewhere....actually, how does he earn his corn?
As eamonn indicated he’s getting paid for his podcast/ YouTube work and I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets a modest fee from Sky but it could open future doors. Either way from where he and the Villa View started he’s doing well.
He must be getting paid by Sky. It's a national broadcaster, not a bedroom podcast.
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It appears that we asked Maguire about his availability.
Why does it appear we asked?
Seriously, there's nothing at all to suggest that.
The guy went to play golf at one of the best courses in the country and then went for food with his mates, and then went home.
That's it.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
Only once or ten times! Still he appears to be doing quite well for himself.
You think he's being paid for it?
Probably helps him get paid work somewhere....actually, how does he earn his corn?
As eamonn indicated he’s getting paid for his podcast/ YouTube work and I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets a modest fee from Sky but it could open future doors. Either way from where he and the Villa View started he’s doing well.
He must be getting paid by Sky. It's a national broadcaster, not a bedroom podcast.
So are the BBC but I did more work for them unpaid than paid. As a general rule, before I was Yesterday's Man, if you had to leave the house you got paid.
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Quite right too. I rarely leave the house but I still want paying.
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I thought Dan Bardell worked for Sky anyway just not with a camera pointed at him. It does seem all those who worked on The Villa View moved on to media roles as they appeared to want.
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I thought Dan Bardell worked for Sky anyway just not with a camera pointed at him. It does seem all those who worked on The Villa View moved on to media roles as they appeared to want.
Well done to all of them. I have huge admiration for the various Villa podcasters/YouTubers.
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What i would like to see us do is bring in some really good players and sell on some really bad ones
that would be nice
You want the moon on a stick.
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What i would like to see us do is bring in some really good players and sell on some really bad ones
that would be nice
You want the moon on a stick.
Yes we really are a very demanding bunch.
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What i would like to see us do is bring in some really good players and sell on some really bad ones
that would be nice
You want the moon on a stick.
Moon on a stick! Moon on a stick! Moon on a stick!
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
Only once or ten times! Still he appears to be doing quite well for himself.
You think he's being paid for it?
Probably helps him get paid work somewhere....actually, how does he earn his corn?
He works for the Athletic and hosts quite a few podcasts for them.
Dan is a genuine fan and has worked hard for years trying to get into the football industry. I don't know him personally but have spoken to him a few times at the ground as I sit near him and he always comes accross as a top bloke. I've listened to a lot of his podcasts over the years and his views are mostly very sound - he's mostly very positive but not afraid to put the boot in when needed, which he very much did with Gerrard.
In terms of info, he rarely gives out ITK stuff, but he does work with the Athletic journalists and is often on podcasts with the likes of david Ornstein, so it's likely that he'd be better informed than most - but he's certainly not always right. I spoke to him a few days before we signed Emery and he wasn''t aware of that - just that we had tried for Poch.
He's got no choice but to publicise himself if he wants to progress, so I've got no problem with him mentioning sky appearances etc. For me it's just nice to see a Villa fan doing well and getting our side of the story out there as often as he can. It was great hearing him call out Hoddle on a podcast when he had been trotting out the usual 'Gerrard needs time stuff' Dan pulled him apart. His dress sense does leave something to be desired though.
-
According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
Only once or ten times! Still he appears to be doing quite well for himself.
You think he's being paid for it?
Probably helps him get paid work somewhere....actually, how does he earn his corn?
He works for the Athletic and hosts quite a few podcasts for them.
Dan is a genuine fan and has worked hard for years trying to get into the football industry. I don't know him personally but have spoken to him a few times at the ground as I sit near him and he always comes accross as a top bloke. I've listened to a lot of his podcasts over the years and his views are mostly very sound - he's mostly very positive but not afraid to put the boot in when needed, which he very much did with Gerrard.
In terms of info, he rarely gives out ITK stuff, but he does work with the Athletic journalists and is often on podcasts with the likes of david Ornstein, so it's likely that he'd be better informed than most - but he's certainly not always right. I spoke to him a few days before we signed Emery and he wasn''t aware of that - just that we had tried for Poch.
He's got no choice but to publicise himself if he wants to progress, so I've got no problem with him mentioning sky appearances etc. For me it's just nice to see a Villa fan doing well and getting our side of the story out there as often as he can. It was great hearing him call out Hoddle on a podcast when he had been trotting out the usual 'Gerrard needs time stuff' Dan pulled him apart. His dress sense does leave something to be desired though.
I don't mind him. I don't agree with everything he says but good on him if thats the career he's after.
If I did meet him I'd ask him to stop them all doing that turn and look at the camera thing they all do when it goes to an ad break. Oh and the obligatory white soled shoes are quite annoying. See you've started me off now...
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I like him, it's good to see a Villa fan who knows what he's talking about get a regular look-in when the media ask for Villa views because most pundits are lazy as fcuk covering anything outside the Sky Six.
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Ive met Dan on a few occasions over beers and he really is a good bloke. He's actually 'living the dream' and has worked hard to get there.
Absolutely fair play to him
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What i would like to see us do is bring in some really good players and sell on some really bad ones
that would be nice
You want the moon on a stick.
I’ve always been high maintenance
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Guilbert has agreed his deal with Strasbourg apparently.
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Hopefully, one out, one in! Sanson next?
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Hopefully, one out, one in! Sanson next?
No, up with the French, not down with them.
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Might be wrong, but I just can't see anything in the links with Maguire. We've already got four senior centre halves (albeit one on loan) with another hopefully returning from injury soon.
There could be questions around the quality of those options, but I don't think an addition there is a priority at the moment and certainly not at the kind of price Maguire would be.
Oh I think we should be getting one, there definitely are questions around the quality of what we have. But just not him.
Agree that it's an area where we need an upgrade if we are going to push into the higher reaches of the division, but think it is something that can be addressed in the summer rather than now. Carlos coming back into contention will be like a new signing anyway.
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Ive met Dan on a few occasions over beers and he really is a good bloke. He's actually 'living the dream' and has worked hard to get there.
Absolutely fair play to him
I’ve met him too, he’s a really decent guy.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
Only once or ten times! Still he appears to be doing quite well for himself.
You think he's being paid for it?
Probably helps him get paid work somewhere....actually, how does he earn his corn?
He works for the Athletic and hosts quite a few podcasts for them.
Dan is a genuine fan and has worked hard for years trying to get into the football industry. I don't know him personally but have spoken to him a few times at the ground as I sit near him and he always comes accross as a top bloke. I've listened to a lot of his podcasts over the years and his views are mostly very sound - he's mostly very positive but not afraid to put the boot in when needed, which he very much did with Gerrard.
In terms of info, he rarely gives out ITK stuff, but he does work with the Athletic journalists and is often on podcasts with the likes of david Ornstein, so it's likely that he'd be better informed than most - but he's certainly not always right. I spoke to him a few days before we signed Emery and he wasn''t aware of that - just that we had tried for Poch.
He's got no choice but to publicise himself if he wants to progress, so I've got no problem with him mentioning sky appearances etc. For me it's just nice to see a Villa fan doing well and getting our side of the story out there as often as he can. It was great hearing him call out Hoddle on a podcast when he had been trotting out the usual 'Gerrard needs time stuff' Dan pulled him apart. His dress sense does leave something to be desired though.
Me neither. I’d much rather have him representing a Villa perspective than Gabby.
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Ive met Dan on a few occasions over beers and he really is a good bloke. He's actually 'living the dream' and has worked hard to get there.
Absolutely fair play to him
I’ve met him too, he’s a really decent guy.
For what’s it’s worth, although I’ve never met him, I agree, he just seems a kind-hearted fella and loves his dog to boot, which always goes down well with me. I never miss a single Villa View podcast. Even my girlfriend, who supports Liverpool, thinks very highly of him.
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According to Dan Bardell on the Villa View podcast, he reckons that we are trying to sign Arnaut Danjuma from Villareal although Everton are also interested in him.
Did Dan happen to mention he's been on Sky Sports.?
Only once or ten times! Still he appears to be doing quite well for himself.
You think he's being paid for it?
Probably helps him get paid work somewhere....actually, how does he earn his corn?
He works for the Athletic and hosts quite a few podcasts for them.
Dan is a genuine fan and has worked hard for years trying to get into the football industry. I don't know him personally but have spoken to him a few times at the ground as I sit near him and he always comes accross as a top bloke. I've listened to a lot of his podcasts over the years and his views are mostly very sound - he's mostly very positive but not afraid to put the boot in when needed, which he very much did with Gerrard.
In terms of info, he rarely gives out ITK stuff, but he does work with the Athletic journalists and is often on podcasts with the likes of david Ornstein, so it's likely that he'd be better informed than most - but he's certainly not always right. I spoke to him a few days before we signed Emery and he wasn''t aware of that - just that we had tried for Poch.
He's got no choice but to publicise himself if he wants to progress, so I've got no problem with him mentioning sky appearances etc. For me it's just nice to see a Villa fan doing well and getting our side of the story out there as often as he can. It was great hearing him call out Hoddle on a podcast when he had been trotting out the usual 'Gerrard needs time stuff' Dan pulled him apart. His dress sense does leave something to be desired though.
Me neither. I’d much rather have him representing a Villa perspective than Gabby.
Ha ha very true, but it’s quite endearing.
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I wish Dan Bardell and the others all the best.
We are lucky there are people like him putting out such a huge range of podcasts and other media (we must surely have more than most other clubs) and clearly the production values on a lot of them are very high or he wouldn’t be doing his thing on Sky now.
Absolutely wish them all the best of luck.
I look forward more than anything to hearing Liam from TheVillaPodcast spending 15 minutes telling SSN why Pep Guardiola is a ******.
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I wish Dan Bardell and the others all the best.
We are lucky there are people like him putting out such a huge range of podcasts and other media (we must surely have more than most other clubs) and clearly the production values on a lot of them are very high or he wouldn’t be doing his thing on Sky now.
Absolutely wish them all the best of luck.
I look forward more than anything to hearing Liam from TheVillaPodcast spending 15 minutes telling SSN why Pep Guardiola is a ******.
That podcast can be really funny. I was out for a run the other week listening to them talking about Robin Olsen and was guffawing as I ran past people in the street. An unfit man belly-laughing while being out of breath is obviously a sight to behold for the average passer by.
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I was hoping for a few pages of transfer talk…
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I was hoping for a few pages of transfer talk…
There isn't any.
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I was hoping for a few pages of transfer talk…
There isn't any.
Hopefully, the interviewer, post game might ask Unai the obvious question: can we expect any fresh faces in next week Unai? Instead of some shite about Moreno not starting the game.
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Today shows we need another striker. Ollie off injured and I reckon Ings was carrying a knock but we had no other option but to leave him on.
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Today shows we need another striker. Ollie off injured and I reckon Ings was carrying a knock but we had no other option but to leave him on.
We lack any kind of physicality with Ings up front. He's a good finisher but the days of him chasing the ball are long gone and we need someone up there like a younger Benteke.
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Today shows we need another striker. Ollie off injured and I reckon Ings was carrying a knock but we had no other option but to leave him on.
We lack any kind of physicality with Ings up front. He's a good finisher but the days of him chasing the ball are long gone and we need someone up there like a younger Benteke.
I think Ings needs someone to play off now so I'd be looking for a target man of some sort I think. I still think Tghuram is the player we could do with but it looks like Chelsea will get him despite having a squad of about 60.
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I see Trossard from Brighton will probably be available. Worth a punt?
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I would have said yes to Trossard Ger, but her seems to have a chip on his shoulder after the World Cup
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I see Trossard from Brighton will probably be available. Worth a punt?
Both Spuds and Arsenal rumoured to be after him.
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Trossard is a decent player but I don't think he's what we need even if he didn't have a questionable attitude.
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Yeah, he's a great "technician" but I'd only go for him if we booted out Buendia or Coutts.
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Good to get the win tonight, but our frailties were there for all to see again. Think Douglas Luiz has had enough chances now and it's time to get a combative central midfielder who can keep the ball to fit in alongside Kamara. We also need a wide player as Bailey squanders possession far too often, though he did score a cracker tonight.
We need another forward option as well as Ings looks shot, but that might prove a bit trickier.
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Good to get the win tonight, but our frailties were there for all to see again. Think Douglas Luiz has had enough chances now and it's time to get a combative central midfielder who can keep the ball to fit in alongside Kamara. We also need a wide player as Bailey squanders possession far too often, though he did score a cracker tonight.
We need another forward option as well as Ings looks shot, but that might prove a bit trickier.
Guendouzi, Zaha and a striker for me. I’m a bit stumped for a name though.
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Jonathan David for striker, mate.
He'd be bloody great.
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Jonathan David for striker, mate.
He'd be bloody great.
Yes! Good idea.
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Desperate for another option up front, who's available or possible, over six feet tall.
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Trossard anybody?
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I read somewhere Thuram is available for as little as £10m due to his contract running down. I don't know a lot about him though. I still think Jota from Liverpool would be a good fit.
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I read somewhere Thuram is available for as little as £10m due to his contract running down. I don't know a lot about him though. I still think Jota from Liverpool would be a good fit.
He seems to be injured a lot these days.
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Trossard anybody?
Excellent player, the way he is kicking up a fuss for a move I'd expect someone has already lined him up.
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Trossard anybody?
Excellent player, the way he is kicking up a fuss for a move I'd expect someone has already lined him up.
He is a great player but he is not what we need at all. Emery says he wants to rebalance the side and Trossard would be another inverted wide midfielder whereas we lack 'paint on the boots' style traditional wingers.
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Read yesterday, Lucas Moura wants out of Spuds.
Always rated him and never got much of a chance at Potatoes because of Kane/Son.
Worth a dabble?
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Read yesterday, Lucas Moura wants out of Spuds.
Not really up to him. He's out of contract in the summer and they've said they're not offering him a new one.
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Read yesterday, Lucas Moura wants out of Spuds.
Always rated him and never got much of a chance at Potatoes because of Kane/Son.
Worth a dabble?
Not in my opinion. He's 30 and has never really set the Premier League alight.
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He's always looked like a decent player and plays in a position we're short. If it was a market value transfer I'd say no as he's 30, but for a nominal fee it wouldn't be the worst idea
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Read yesterday, Lucas Moura wants out of Spuds.
Always rated him and never got much of a chance at Potatoes because of Kane/Son.
Worth a dabble?
Was good in their run to the CL final a few years back but has had injury problems since then.
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Trossard anybody?
Swap for Ings might be an option.
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We don't need another shortarsed no10, we need a big hairy arsed centre forward that can run 100m in about 11 seconds.
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We don't need another shortarsed no10, we need a big hairy arsed centre forward that can run 100m in about 11 seconds.
I fit most of that criteria, big, hairy-arsed, non-centre forward that can run 11 metres in 100 seconds.
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We don't need another shortarsed no10, we need a big hairy arsed centre forward that can run 100m in about 11 seconds.
I fit most of that criteria, big, hairy-arsed, non-centre forward that can run 11 metres in 100 seconds.
Don't send your cv in Dave.
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We don't need another shortarsed no10, we need a big hairy arsed centre forward that can run 100m in about 11 seconds.
I fit most of that criteria, big, hairy-arsed, non-centre forward that can run 11 metres in 100 seconds.
Me too Dave, but I've committed to Parkfield in the Sutton Over 45's Premier League for the rest of the season so it looks like the gig is yours.
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Good to get the win tonight, but our frailties were there for all to see again. Think Douglas Luiz has had enough chances now and it's time to get a combative central midfielder who can keep the ball to fit in alongside Kamara. We also need a wide player as Bailey squanders possession far too often, though he did score a cracker tonight.
We need another forward option as well as Ings looks shot, but that might prove a bit trickier.
Guendouzi, Zaha and a striker for me. I’m a bit stumped for a name though.
Agree and I think finding a striker will be tough in this window. He hardly ripped up trees at Burnley, but the one Manchester United have just signed might have worked for us.
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We don't need another shortarsed no10, we need a big hairy arsed centre forward that can run 100m in about 11 seconds.
I fit most of that criteria, big, hairy-arsed, non-centre forward that can run 11 metres in 100 seconds.
Are you Rudy Gestede?
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Trossard anybody?
Swap for Ings might be an option.
They don't seem to be having the same issue scoring goals this season, so straight swap for Buendia, maybe.
Alexis McAllister won the World Cup whilst playing for Brighton, so won't automatically harm his international chances either.
That said, If Trossard moves, chances are it won't be to a club lower in the table than his current one.
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Had a thought.
If Man U beat Shitty today we should put a bid in for 50 million for Jack.
Put them both out their misery. Tis January, strike while the iron is hot.
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Had a thought.
If Man U beat Shitty today we should put a bid in for 50 million for Jack.
Put them both out their misery. Tis January, strike while the iron is hot.
NEVER. He is to me what Harold is to the royal family.j
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Had a thought.
If Man U beat Shitty today we should put a bid in for 50 million for Jack.
Put them both out their misery. Tis January, strike while the iron is hot.
NEVER. He is to me what Harold is to the royal family.j
They will defo say no, but it will really piss them both off.
Better still, make the bid 25 million. That will hurt the feckers.
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Had a thought.
If Man U beat Shitty today we should put a bid in for 50 million for Jack.
Put them both out their misery. Tis January, strike while the iron is hot.
NEVER. He is to me what Harold is to the royal family.j
Henry.
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Had a thought.
If Man U beat Shitty today we should put a bid in for 50 million for Jack.
Put them both out their misery. Tis January, strike while the iron is hot.
NEVER. He is to me what Harold is to the royal family.j
Henry.
He's a typical tarquin.
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Had a thought.
If Man U beat Shitty today we should put a bid in for 50 million for Jack.
Put them both out their misery. Tis January, strike while the iron is hot.
NEVER. He is to me what Harold is to the royal family.j
Not technically related?
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Had a thought.
If Man U beat Shitty today we should put a bid in for 50 million for Jack.
Put them both out their misery. Tis January, strike while the iron is hot.
NEVER. He is to me what Harold is to the royal family.j
illegitimate?
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Had a thought.
If Man U beat Shitty today we should put a bid in for 50 million for Jack.
Put them both out their misery. Tis January, strike while the iron is hot.
NEVER. He is to me what Harold is to the royal family.j
The prodigal son would always be welcome back. Sure the royals even let sweaty Andy back into the crew.
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Had a thought.
If Man U beat Shitty today we should put a bid in for 50 million for Jack.
Put them both out their misery. Tis January, strike while the iron is hot.
NEVER. He is to me what Harold is to the royal family.j
The prodigal son would always be welcome back. Sure, the royals even let sweaty Andy back into the crew.
I'm convinced Grealish will come back one day.
Man City would have paid us just over £50m come the summer.
As it was a six year contract, paid Villa around 16m a season.
Under Emery he would flourish.
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Good to get the win tonight, but our frailties were there for all to see again. Think Douglas Luiz has had enough chances now and it's time to get a combative central midfielder who can keep the ball to fit in alongside Kamara. We also need a wide player as Bailey squanders possession far too often, though he did score a cracker tonight.
We need another forward option as well as Ings looks shot, but that might prove a bit trickier.
Guendouzi, Zaha and a striker for me. I’m a bit stumped for a name though.
Beto from Udinese, Charles De Ketelaere from Milan, Ben Brereton-Diaz from Blackburn, etc. Big tall pacy focal point style finishers.
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No to JG.
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Good to get the win tonight, but our frailties were there for all to see again. Think Douglas Luiz has had enough chances now and it's time to get a combative central midfielder who can keep the ball to fit in alongside Kamara. We also need a wide player as Bailey squanders possession far too often, though he did score a cracker tonight.
We need another forward option as well as Ings looks shot, but that might prove a bit trickier.
Guendouzi, Zaha and a striker for me. I’m a bit stumped for a name though.
Beto from Udinese, Charles De Ketelaere from Milan, Ben Brereton-Diaz from Blackburn, etc. Big tall pacy focal point style finishers.
Ben Brereton-Diaz is a good call. He's out of contract in the summer as well!
Would thrive under Emery
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Harry Maguire didn't start the Manchester derby.
Luke Shaw is playing at left centre back.
Maguire really fallen out of favour.
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Harry Maguire didn't start the Manchester derby.
Luke Shaw is playing at left centre back.
Maguire really fallen out of favour.
Are you his agent or something?
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Is he another that would thrive under Emery?
No to Diaz. No fucking way to Greaseball, I'd rather have BK8 as our stadium sponsor.
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Me too Dave, but I've committed to Parkfield in the Sutton Over 45's Premier League for the rest of the season so it looks like the gig is yours.
Do they / you still play on Braemar Rd in Boldmere, sure I played a cup final against them ( open age team) many moons ago.
Edit. Come to think of it I think it was Parklands.
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Me too Dave, but I've committed to Parkfield in the Sutton Over 45's Premier League for the rest of the season so it looks like the gig is yours.
Do they / you still play on Braemar Rd in Boldmere, sure I played a cup final against them ( open age team) many moons ago.
Edit. Come to think of it I think it was Parklands.
Played against Parklands loads of times, we went through the divisions with them.
We play on the stadium at Castle Vale as do a few of the teams, it's 9 a side on half a pitch.
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Back in my heyday we played once at Castle Vale, against the Residents' Association. Biggest crowd I ever played in front of. Although that did include dogs. The only time I was ever not unhappy conceding a last minute equaliser.
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Back in my heyday we played once at Castle Vale, against the Residents' Association. Biggest crowd I ever played in front of. Although that did include dogs. The only time I was ever not unhappy conceding a last minute equaliser.
I think my brother in law played for them and I did once, after being out clubbing all night and not having slept.
That was on the grass pitches before they built the stadium.
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I also played for them back in the mid 90s for 2-3 years. Happy days although there were a few interesting clashes especially when we played against the Bagot!
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I cant mind ever playing against the Bagot, what league were they in, Sutton Sunday?
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Coronation League I think mate
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I also played for them back in the mid 90s for 2-3 years. Happy days although there were a few interesting clashes especially when we played against the Bagot!
We had some interesting games against Bagot also. I remember a a player noticing a scar on my knee and spending the rest of game attempting amputate my lower leg. Happy days.
Ash Baldry is my brother in law, he was a good player, wand for a left foot
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Was he a ref as well?
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Ash was playing during my time haha! Give him a shout please mate Christian Davis or Crewy as he would probably know me by
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Ash was playing during my time haha! Give him a shout please mate Christian Davis or Crewy as he would probably know me by
Will do mate, no worries
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I think we need a new thread titled "H&V My League Career".
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Yeah, who amongst us cudda been a conten-da ?
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Definitely, absolutely, positively not me. I was punching far above my weight down in the lower echelons of Sunday mornings.
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Yeah, who amongst us cudda been a conten-da ?
I never was, though I'd have given my right arm for it. Got through trials for Boldmere St Michael's at 16 but jacked it in after 2 months because the training was a pain to get to and was getting in the way of enjoying myself
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Plenty of reports of Danjuma being 'in country' having missed Friday's La Liga match. Guendozi would fit the Luiz role. With a fit Carlos back in the heart of defence, only problem being that it would have to in place of Konsa, we'd be looking decent again. Agree though a proper target man would be a game changer, it's been a long time since Carew.
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Yeah, who amongst us cudda been a conten-da ?
I never was, though I'd have given my right arm for it. Got through trials for Boldmere St Michael's at 16 but jacked it in after 2 months because the training was a pain to get to and was getting in the way of enjoying myself
Is that the same place we picked-up the player who was better at tennis, Michael Boulding? SGT#2 was some man for speculative punts. Between this and noting Oyvind Leonhardsen's name listed amongst the Spurs subs on a matchday programme. You'd think a Norwegian international from his bete noire days as England manager would be someone he would have to wanted to stay clear of...
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Plenty of reports of Danjuma being 'in country' having missed Friday's La Liga match. Guendozi would fit the Luiz role. With a fit Carlos back in the heart of defence, only problem being that it would have to in place of Konsa, we'd be looking decent again. Agree though a proper target man would be a game changer, it's been a long time since Carew.
The BBC gossip page reports from the red tops that he/his agent are in the country doing the rounds, seeing different clubs (Bournemouth, Everton etc.).
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Think a lot of people would be happy to see Konsa ousted from the team.
Talk is that Danjuma is available for a loan and he's in the country to speak to clubs about joining for the rest of the season. You would imagine we would be one of those clubs.
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Think a lot of people would be happy to see Konsa ousted from the team.
Talk is that Danjuma is available for a loan and he's in the country to speak to clubs about joining for the rest of the season. You would imagine we would be one of those clubs.
Yeah reports suggest there is interest from us, Everton and Bournemouth. Given the state the other two are in and that he has worked with Unai Emery before, surely we should be in the box seat if we do indeed want him.
Further links with Guendozi, Kang-in Lee today and some other more speculative ones.
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Insider Dean Jones on Arnaut Danjuma
“I mean, one of the messages that I got not even two weeks ago on Danjuma, probably 10 days ago, maybe less, was that Villa were in for Danjuma and the biggest obstacle was they were finding it really hard to read from the Villarreal end whether he was gettable. This is a club that is really hard to read. And yes, they are interested in Danjuma. But they can’t tell whether he’s actually going to be gettable. And so this is why I think we’ve included this story basically is because if Danjuma is genuinely open and available to join Everton or Nottingham Forest, surely Aston Villa are in this conversation, too.”
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A loan with an agreed option seems ideal for us.
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We really do need a striker. Ollie Watkins has played most of the games but only has 4 goals this season. Danny Ings seems to have come off the bench much more but has 7 goals. Upgrade, or something different is needed.
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We really do need a striker. Ollie Watkins has played most of the games but only has 4 goals this season. Danny Ings seems to have come off the bench much more but has 7 goals. Upgrade, or something different is needed.
We do, but it might be tough to get a quality one over the line in this window. We might be better off adding a couple in other areas and then go big in the summer.
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It showed clearly against Leeds that we need another option besided Ings. Can't say I know anything about Danjuma, is he right for us if so why are they trading him?
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It showed clearly against Leeds that we need another option besided Ings. Can't say I know anything about Danjuma, is he right for us if so why are they trading him?
That's like asking why did Moreno's club let him go.
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I suppose, but in Moreno's case he won awards and their supporters didn't want him to leave.
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I don't know if there's any truth in it, but a player whose record isn't exactly world beating, and who is currently interesting Everton and Bournemouth doesn't scream "top quality" to me.
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Who scouts the scouts?
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I don't know if there's any truth in it, but a player whose record isn't exactly world beating, and who is currently interesting Everton and Bournemouth doesn't scream "top quality" to me.
Agree, but maybe it's 'stop gap' than anything else. Emery will know him, so if there is any truth you'd hope he'd fit in.
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It showed clearly against Leeds that we need another option besided Ings. Can't say I know anything about Danjuma, is he right for us if so why are they trading him?
Because 99% of clubs aren't set up with the intention of keeping their best players. They're set up with the intention of turning a big profit on players to fund the running of the club. Danjuma has three years left on his contract, so this summer is their only real opportunity to get big money for him.
They're hoping that he looks brilliant in the second half of the season and somebody chucks £35m at them for him in the summer. They then spend £10m of it on the next version, rinse and repeat.
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I don't know if there's any truth in it, but a player whose record isn't exactly world beating, and who is currently interesting Everton and Bournemouth doesn't scream "top quality" to me.
Who’s also come over the the UK to talk to various clubs (apparently). Seems a strange one and not how we typically operate
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We really do need a striker. Ollie Watkins has played most of the games but only has 4 goals this season. Danny Ings seems to have come off the bench much more but has 7 goals. Upgrade, or something different is needed.
We do, but it might be tough to get a quality one overt he line in this window. We might be better off adding a couple in other areas and then go big in the summer.
I would take Antonio on loan from West Ham he would be great fit till end of season and seems like he's not first choice striker there this season after a £30m signing of Scamacca in the summer and they are looking to spend on another striker.
Proven , handful, capable of goals Antonio has a presence about him.
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Would rather his mate from the inside number nine footballer podcast they do, Callum Wilson. Not gonna happen while he gets Champions League football with the Jawdies though.
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I've included some extraxts from Jason Steinberg interview with Danjuma last season. (Source Guardian) and exactly why he would be a great for use as he's capable in the attacking sense
I don't know if there's any truth in it, but a player whose record isn't exactly world beating, and who is currently interesting Everton and Bournemouth doesn't scream "top quality" to me.
Who’s also come over the the UK to talk to various clubs (apparently). Seems a strange one and not how we typically operate
Arnaut Danjuma ‘It’s fair and factual to say I’m among the best wingers in the world’
"Confidence is not something lacking in Danjuma, whose performances have played a big part in Villarreal’s latest European adventure. He scored twice when Emery’s side reached the knockout stages of the Champions League with a 3-2 away win over Atalanta in December. He was man of the match when Villarreal lost undeservedly to Manchester United at Old Trafford in September and scored a late penalty when the Europa League winners upset the odds against Juventus in the last 16, making light of drawing the first leg 1-1 at home by winning 3-0 in Turin last month.
“I don’t think a lot of people expected it, but we expected it,” Danjuma says. “We’ve got Unai Emery as the captain leading the ship and he always comes up with a masterplan. When you play Juventus in the away leg you know if you don’t concede they will get a bit impatient. We knew an opportunity would present itself. That’s what happened – what Unai predicted.”
Danjuma speaks glowingly about Emery. It was a conversation with the former Arsenal manager that convinced him to sign for Villarreal. Danjuma had excelled in the Championship with Bournemouth, who lost to Brentford in the semi-finals of the playoffs, and he was not short of offers.
Unai was very clear when he explained how I could learn from him,” he says. “With my mentality of trying to be the best every day I am very eager to make sure I get the most out of my career. I knew working under Unai would give me a boost because I could understand the game better. He is busy with me on a daily basis and I have a lot of conversations with him about how to better myself. He is a strategy mastermind.”
Danjuma studies his game closely and regularly talks to his coaches. “Every manager has their own way of coaching the team and you should respect that as a player,” he says. “But speaking to a manager can really help. What’s the strategy, how do you want me to play in certain situations, where do you think my qualities come out the best? I’m very eager to learn everything about the game.
“There are so many aspects in my game that I’ve improved. A lot of people who watch the game will say: ‘He’s got this ability, he’s got that ability, he scores goals.’ But they don’t see the work in training: the movement I do, the videos I watch.
“I work with the striker coach on a daily basis. He sends me clips of every training session. I look into my movement, the way I run, how I pop the ball off. I look into my shape, where I stand in the formation. After the game we go through it and see there’s a lot of stuff I can do better.”
You want to have goals, goals and goals,” Danjuma says. “At Bournemouth I was the top scorer and I played as a winger. You should be able to play in multiple ways. In La Liga I have played a lot of games as a striker because Unai thinks I can be more than just a winger.”
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Would rather his mate from the inside number nine footballer podcast they do, Callum Wilson. Not gonna happen while he gets Champions League football with the Jawdies though.
I'm now convinced we'll sign Danjuma as he's Emery's man
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I don't know if there's any truth in it, but a player whose record isn't exactly world beating, and who is currently interesting Everton and Bournemouth doesn't scream "top quality" to me.
Agree, but maybe it's 'stop gap' than anything else. Emery will know him, so if there is any truth you'd hope he'd fit in.
If Emery wants him, that's good enough for me. It's not Emery's Heskey moment.
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What's his injury record like, I can't see that he's ever played a full season anywhere? 10 league games this season so far, 23 last season, 33 for Bournemouth in the Championship the year before, 14 in the Premier League the year before that.
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Who scouts the scouts?
Baden Powell
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Who scouts the scouts?
Baden Powell
Bear Grylls these days.
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Danjuma it is then…
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Danjuma it is then…
Is it?
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It showed clearly against Leeds that we need another option besided Ings. Can't say I know anything about Danjuma, is he right for us if so why are they trading him?
Danjuma is more similar to Bailey so would be alternative to him given we hardly have any wide players.
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What's his injury record like, I can't see that he's ever played a full season anywhere? 10 league games this season so far, 23 last season, 33 for Bournemouth in the Championship the year before, 14 in the Premier League the year before that.
Here you go Doctor
Injury history:
https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/arnaut-danjuma/verletzungen/spieler/355861
Playing wise: Come on his career is clearly an upward trajectory. It's what all players should aim for.
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It showed clearly against Leeds that we need another option besided Ings. Can't say I know anything about Danjuma, is he right for us if so why are they trading him?
Danjuma is more similar to Bailey so would be alternative to him given we hardly have any wide players.
Emery developed Danjuma abilities to play as a flexible type of striker as well its clearly something Emery has been trying to get Bailey to perfom as more than just a wide forward.
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This is probably horribly unfair and if he does join I'll keep an open mind but Danjuma gives me nzogbia vibes. Literally the only reason I don't completely hate the link is that I trust Emery to know what he's doing.
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This is probably horribly unfair and if he does join I'll keep an open mind but Danjuma gives me nzogbia vibes. Literally the only reason I don't completely hate the link is that I trust Emery to know what he's doing.
If he signs it'll be interesting to see his shirt stretching picture then. When NZogbia signed it looked as though someone must have been holding a gun to his head out of shot, such was his expression.
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Loan with the option is the sensible way forward I guess.
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This is probably horribly unfair and if he does join I'll keep an open mind but Danjuma gives me nzogbia vibes. Literally the only reason I don't completely hate the link is that I trust Emery to know what he's doing.
If he signs it'll be interesting to see his shirt stretching picture then. When NZogbia signed it looked as though someone must have been holding a gun to his head out of shot, such was his expression.
To be clear I mean more that I just feels wrong to me, I could've used other examples because McCormack and Barkley are others that I just didn't like. As I say the one mitigation is that unlike those 3 this isn't a manager acting like a kid in a sweetshop but rather him going back to his previous club and looking at someone who did well for him there.
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So who is John Duran?
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So who is John Duran?
Young striker, plays in MLS I think.
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So who is John Duran?
Young striker, plays in MLS I think.
Chicago Fire. Has 8 goals & 3 assists in about 1300 mins for them this season. From what I have read, he has potential & has been chased by a lot of top clubs around Europe. From the vids I have seen, he looks like a rawer Keinan Davis. Time will tell how good he is...
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He falls over a lot! Hope he’s worth the gamble and not Wesley part deux.
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What's his injury record like, I can't see that he's ever played a full season anywhere? 10 league games this season so far, 23 last season, 33 for Bournemouth in the Championship the year before, 14 in the Premier League the year before that.
Here you go Doctor
Injury history:
https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/arnaut-danjuma/verletzungen/spieler/355861
Playing wise: Come on his career is clearly an upward trajectory. It's what all players should aim for.
So, injury-prone then ...
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So yes or no for Villa interest?
Would you take any these lot Newcastle are after?
Ziyech - Yes
Gallagher- Yes
Loftus-Cheek- No
McTominnay-No
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So yes or no for Villa interest?
Would you take any these lot Newcastle are after?
Ziyech - Yes
Gallagher- Yes
Loftus-Cheek- No
McTominnay-No
No
Yes
No
Yes. Maybe...
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No to all of them.
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No to all of them.
spot on
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McTominay?
To do what, play for us?
Jesus no.
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McTominay?
To do what, play for us?
Jesus no.
if they are not good enough for Manchester United they are not good enough for Aston Villa
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Saw a post on Twitter from someone reliving our January 2020 window - Reina, Baston, Drinkwater & Samatta. Shudder.
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Christ, that was shit
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So yes or no for Villa interest?
Would you take any these lot Newcastle are after?
Ziyech - Yes
Gallagher- Yes
Loftus-Cheek- No
McTominnay-No
Yes to Gallagher, but not really sure if he fits, I can’t think who Ziyech is but no to the others, but I really like the look of Guendouzi who’s been linked and is just what we need I reckon. Especially in games like the Leeds match where it’s fast, furious and physical.
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Reina did ok to be fair, and played an important role in us staying up.
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So yes or no for Villa interest?
Would you take any these lot Newcastle are after?
Ziyech - Yes
Gallagher- Yes
Loftus-Cheek- No
McTominnay-No
Yes to Gallagher, but not really sure if he fits, I can’t think who Ziyech is but no to the others, but I really like the look of Guendouzi who’s been linked and is just what we need I reckon. Especially in games like the Leeds match where it’s fast, furious and physical.
Spot on.
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Reina did ok to be fair, and played an important role in us staying up.
Reina or Olsen….only one winner by a country mile
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Of that list I'd take Ziyech, Gallagher is good but I think there could be better value, the other 2 would be awful signings.
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So do we think a midfielder and a winger still to come ?
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https://twitter.com/northstandswain/status/1615034118814957570?s=46&t=6RX6PriKqd7uupHm41cviA
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https://twitter.com/northstandswain/status/1615034118814957570?s=46&t=6RX6PriKqd7uupHm41cviA
Citation needed.
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ha ha start a thread then 😃
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I'm calling it.
The jet flew from Hamburg to Birmingham on Friday, Birmingham to Marseille Saturday, and Marseille to Brum this afternoon.
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Watched Guendouzi against Lorient, doesn't waste a pass, played well, but a finger pointer.
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I watch a bit of Marseille when I can. Guendouzi has curbed some of his shithousery but he has moments like Emi that as a fan you are glad he’s on your team. He’s not afraid to mix it up.
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Watched Guendouzi against Lorient, doesn't waste a pass, played well, but a finger pointer.
Two out of three and a Kinsella
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He needs a haircut.
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I'm going to see Marseille play Rennes on Friday. I'll ask him.
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Well we now possess the French McGrath.
Only right we restore balance to the universe with the French Kinsella.
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Intetrsting to hear Southampton is in talks with Villareal's Nicholas Jackson about a six-month loan with an option to buy in the summer.I wonder if Emery will look to swoop in or if we have indeed opted for Duran.It's interesting with Danjuma too, and perhaps we'll only sign one of them from Villareal rather than both, as there's competition for them and transfer costs.
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Read elsewhere we are interested in Deulofeu - was he the guy that played for Everton?
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I'm going to see Marseille play Rennes on Friday. I'll ask him.
Do you live in / near Marseilles ?
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Read elsewhere we are interested in Deulofeu - was he the guy that played for Everton?
That was linked well before Christmas. Yes, he's the ex Everton and Watford player. Wasn't in the squad at all for their last last match, so looks like they're getting ready to sell him.
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Deulofeu has been injured for months. Decent player but I think I'd wait until the summer. Of course we might have moved on to other targets by then.
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USA midfielder McKennie from Juventus apparently was in frame but not coming if this report to believe
https://www.juvefc.com/report-weston-mckennie-rejects-another-premier-league-club/
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Read elsewhere we are interested in Deulofeu - was he the guy that played for Everton?
That was linked well before Christmas. Yes, he's the ex Everton and Watford player. Wasn't in the squad at all for their last last match, so looks like they're getting ready to sell him.
He played under Unai Emery when the pair were at Sevilla during the 2014/15 season, where he managed three goals and 10 assists for the La Liga side.
This season Deulofeu has three goals and seven assists from 17 matches in all competitions this season.
Deulofeu "When it comes to coaches, he raves about the way Unai Emery operates his team: "He is an amazing coach, he works a lot with videos, he studies a lot the opponents. Video sessions were like more than one hour, it was intense but very nice working with him."
His agent has said Aston Villa have been in contact so I guess he could be the signing for the attack. A player with Premier League experience so can fit straight in. Since the 2021-22 season, Deulofeu has recorded 16 goals and 12 assists in 52 games while playing as part of a front two
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I remember he looked quite useful for Everton, although a bit lightweight as far as the physical side of the game is concerned.
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I'm going to see Marseille play Rennes on Friday. I'll ask him.
Do you live in / near Marseilles ?
Just under an hour away.
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I remember he looked quite useful for Everton, although a bit lightweight as far as the physical side of the game is concerned.
my memory might be playing tricks, but was this the player who scored a cracker in the FA cup semi- final for Watford vs Wolves ?
UTV
The Doc
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I remember he looked quite useful for Everton, although a bit lightweight as far as the physical side of the game is concerned.
my memory might be playing tricks, but was this the player who scored a cracker in the FA cup semi- final for Watford vs Wolves ?
UTV
The Doc
Yep, and the winner: https://youtu.be/AXScELErNYM.
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I remember he looked quite useful for Everton, although a bit lightweight as far as the physical side of the game is concerned.
my memory might be playing tricks, but was this the player who scored a cracker in the FA cup semi- final for Watford vs Wolves ?
UTV
The Doc
Yep, and the winner: https://youtu.be/AXScELErNYM.
cheers MattW
UTV
The Doc
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What a goal that was, I forgot all about him at Watford. Could be a cracking signing.
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He's inconsistent which has stopped his talents from being fully realised. We already have too many players who play well one game out of three.
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It’s easy to be totally wrong on transfers but this doesn’t strike me as a great move. Pretty average strike rate, not hit the heights for a while, wrong side of 26, not really a striker, not really a winger, don’t really get it.
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It’s easy to be totally wrong on transfers but this doesn’t strike me as a great move. Pretty average strike rate, not hit the heights for a while, wrong side of 26, not really a striker, not really a winger, don’t really get it.
IF we sign him it would be as competition for Bailey who plays a role that is almost perfectly described by the bold bit.
Personally I'd prefer someone a bit younger but the more the link comes up the more I think he could be exactly what we need to give us competition in a role that seems to be masively important in how we're playing.
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On the plus side, he can play both wings & the striker position, so excellent cover. Udinese fans love him. Him & Beto have been having fun in Serie A this year...
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One thing I’ve picked up about Emery from listening and reading various comments is that he does like a utility player apparently
I personally rather go for positional specialists than jacks of all trades but think every squad needs too have one or two utilities
just a case of getting the balance right I suppose
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It’s easy to be totally wrong on transfers but this doesn’t strike me as a great move. Pretty average strike rate, not hit the heights for a while, wrong side of 26, not really a striker, not really a winger, don’t really get it.
Me neither. Sounds like another Ollie Watkins.
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It’s easy to be totally wrong on transfers but this doesn’t strike me as a great move. Pretty average strike rate, not hit the heights for a while, wrong side of 26, not really a striker, not really a winger, don’t really get it.
Agreed, very mixed career to date. Bit of a journeyman in truth. One to swerve for me.
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He's in the best form of his life. Late developer? Change of position improved him? Better than Coutinho?
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He's in the best form of his life. Late developer? Change of position improved him? Better than Coutinho?
Yeah could be entering his peak years. Doesn't seem that inspired a signing but you never know.
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Now that the Maguire deal appears to have fallen through who might we be targeting for a new defender I don't really follow football.
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"The former Toffee has been bright throughout his entire stint in Italy. He’s bagged 18 goals and 14 assists in 68 matches for the club.
10 of those goal contributions have come this season, with Deulofeu showcasing his versatility having played primarily up front in a 3-5-2 formation." - www.somewebsiteoranother.org
Should have looked that up before posting...sorry.
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Now that the Maguire deal appears to have fallen through who might we be targeting for a new defender I don't really follow football.
"fallen through". Heh.
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It’s an odd day on H&V. And nothing controversial has happened!
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Now that the Maguire deal appears to have fallen through who might we be targeting for a new defender I don't really follow football.
"fallen through". Heh.
Better than following through.
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If Emery wants Deulofeu, that's the only confirmation I need.
He's got PL experience, is hopefully entering his prime years & Emery has managed him before.
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If Emery wants Deulofeu, that's the only confirmation I need.
Haha, maybe, I get what you mean, but it doesn’t make for a a very interesting forum if we all approve anything we do, and support not doing everything we don’t do.
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https://twitter.com/footmercato/status/1615427275008184328?s=20&t=YbO6zWFMt84G5-62VVzDfw
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I’ve no idea what any of that says, but I hope it’s saying we’re signing him!
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I think it says we’ve made a bid.
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"He'd be ok with staying at OM, unless a big Premier League club were to come in for him. Except it's not a big Premier League club, it's Aston Villa".
Cheeky c**t.
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"He'd be ok with staying at OM, unless a big Premier League club were to come in for him. Except it's not a big Premier League club, it's Aston Villa".
Cheeky c**t.
Haha. Yes, what a smug little fucker!
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He's in the best form of his life. Late developer? Change of position improved him? Better than Coutinho?
I think he has been playing mostly up top recently...
Edit: I should read the whole thread before posting, lol.
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"He'd be ok with staying at OM, unless a big Premier League club were to come in for him. Except it's not a big Premier League club, it's Aston Villa".
Cheeky c**t.
Haha. Yes, what a smug little fucker!
From the player himself?
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No, but don't let that get in the way of a bit of self righteous anger that might fade to vague disgruntlement in the morning when another unnamed source tells us different.
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"He'd be ok with staying at OM, unless a big Premier League club were to come in for him. Except it's not a big Premier League club, it's Aston Villa".
Cheeky c**t.
Haha. Yes, what a smug little fucker!
From the player himself?
No. Sam The Mouse translated the remarks of the pundit in the video clip referenced by the tweet above.
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Now that the Maguire deal appears to have fallen through who might we be targeting for a new defender I don't really follow football.
If you don't really follow football, why are you on a football fanzine site?
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(https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/onesport/cps/800/cpsprodpb/ED14/production/_128329606_gossip_maguire_getty.jpg)
The plot thickens...
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I'm going to see Marseille play Rennes on Friday. I'll ask him.
Do you live in / near Marseilles ?
Just under an hour away.
Sorry. Missed your reply. My question wasn't as random as it may have appeared. Heading to the RWC in October and looking at Airbnb's currently. Would I be right to assume I can't go far wrong with an apartment in The Old Fort area ?
Nice part of the world to live by the way.
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From the players that we've been linked to, which is admittedly a pretty bug jump away from what may be the reality, it seems that we want players that are much better on the ball, and that can move us up the pitch a bit quicker. Guendouzi and Deulofeu, in particular, are players that can pass and dribble under pressure, which will help our defence move the ball up the pitch.
Against Leeds, we nearly scored an incredible goal when Ings missed a one-on-one. We had moved the ball from Martinez all the way up the pitch, with the Leeds players just chasing shadows. Passing and moving into space - like we've watched other teams do for years. The players we have at the moment aren't quite ready (or able) to do this regularly, but we are getting better at it. Brighton showed how difficult that style of football can be to play against when the destroyed Liverpool at the weekend. That's what we're working towards.
This isn't especially insightful, but I would have thought that the main criteria for any player that we buy is going to be - can they move us further up the pitch? For now, any other attribute is a bonus - we just need to get us moving the ball forward quicker, while being in complete control of possession. We did have one of the best players in the world at this, in our recent history. Such a shame how things ended, because he would look incredible in this team.
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I like Guendouzi. He's versatile but in particular comfortable right midfield which is an area we need boosting. He can play as one of the two dm's giving us flexibility and injury cover without a massive drop in quality. It seems a very good fit.
I like watching Deulofeu, very skillful and creative. But less sure about him as he seems pretty light weight and injury prone. The max games he's ever managed in a season is 34, but that's a one off - he seems to have averaged closer to 20 for most of his career. Does he have the durability for the PL?
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They do consider how many games a player plays so that probably rules Deulofeu out.
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Watched a fair bit of Deulofeu, heard a lot about him when he was coming through at Barca. Never really got a fair chance there. Enigmatic, unplayable on his day. His pace and skill would be a fantastic asset but it has always been consistency that has held him back.
In terms of number of games played, he has often been unfortunate to be left on the bench as he hasn't always had the work rate to match his ability. Playing further forward though instead of the wings might suit him slightly better. He may also have matured, though I confess I've not watched him much in Italy.
For the right price I definitely think its worth taking a chance on.
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I'm always a bit suspicious of wingers who don't do well in the Premier League but then tear it up in less frenetic leagues like Germany and Italy.
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We've got a team full of frustratingly inconsistent players. We don't need another.
I also liked watching Deloufeu on his day but he's never really kicked on and that's unlikely to change now. He doesn't strike me as what we need at all.
Guendouzi's more interesting but didn't he cause a load of trouble at Arsenal so Arteta got rid ASAP? By rooting out the bad eggs at Arsenal, he's clearly build a side with great attitude. Not sure what that tells us about Matteo.
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I like Guendouzi. He's versatile but in particular comfortable right midfield which is an area we need boosting. He can play as one of the two dm's giving us flexibility and injury cover without a massive drop in quality. It seems a very good fit.
Yeah, was thinking earlier that if our business this month was Moreno, Duran, and Guendouzi - we'd have done pretty well. Have to say that the prospect of a Kamara-Guendouzi-Luiz midfield trio (probably picking 2 from 3 there depending on the opponent) is quite enticing. You'd have a really strong base to a midfield there.
Another thought I'd had was that, with the suggestions that other clubs have been interested in Ings (e.g. Everton's loan offer), we might've made noises that we weren't against shifting him on. Which makes me think that maybe we're in for a complete overhaul of the strikeforce in the medium term:
January - Archer out on loan (to get games), bring in Duran who presumably will be OK with mostly coming off the bench for the first few months whilst he's settling in. Ings out, bring in a new first choice striker (Thuram?). New guy & Watkins can rotate for the next 6 months or so, takes the pressure off new dude.
Summer - Archer back off loan, Watkins out*. Now the strikers look like New guy-Duran-Archer. Duran's young enough that he'd probably be alright with him & Cam having a roughly equal number of first team appearances. Duran & new dude both have had 6 months to settle in, so it's not a case of them having to hit the ground running.
* Maybe keep Watkins either if we're in Europe, or if one of Archer or Duran turn out not to be as good as hoped.
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I'd be surprised if we don't bring in a winger or wide forward, given how much a point Emery made about us needing one
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I'd be surprised if we don't bring in a winger or wide forward, given how much a point Emery made about us needing one
We need a regular goalscorer. The problem being the regular ones are eye wateringly expensive.
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Wouldn’t be entirely surprising if we brought in 3 and sold or loaned out 2. I’m sure the club would love to shift Sanson and Nakamba. And a winger, more experienced forward and a CM arriving. Whether they can get them all done or wait on the summer is another matter.
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Good post algy.
Wingers by nature are inconsistent, especially the calibre that we can attract, we’d be luck to get a prime Ljungberg or Pires who are contributing goals or assists virtually every game. I’m still hoping that Bailey will give us more even though he’s scored a fair amount of goals, he’s just frustrating to us, as if he could strike the ball like we know he can instead of missing it completely on a regular basis his numbers would be so much better.
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I can't see us wanting to shift Watkins on. I know there's a fair few fans who might like it, but he's a great player and coming into more form again with the new manager.
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I'd be surprised if we don't bring in a winger or wide forward, given how much a point Emery made about us needing one
We need a regular goalscorer. The problem being the regular ones are eye wateringly expensive.
Exactly. You can't just go out and buy a 20 a season man any more. Other than a handful of elite players they just don't really exist. Nowadays it's far more likley that goals will need to be shared round a lot more. So the idea of selling Watkins and Ings and getting in a mythical Haaland type player is just so unlikely. Every team in the PL other than Man City, Spurs and possibly Brentford are looking for one (with the jury still out on Isak & Darwin). Not even Lukaku could do it anymore for a team that dominates the ball reasonably well. Teams will have to pay fortunes or take punts like we have with Duran.
The more I think about it the more I think we will keep Watkins for a while yet - he does a solid job for the team even accepting that his finishing is poor. I wouldn't be particulalry surprised if Ings is still with us next season too, unless Duran (who I feel is more like a medium term project) starts like a rocket. I expect us to hope for more goals from hybrid players like Bailey and the the likes of Deulofeu or whoever we ultimately go for and hope for 10-12 from the 'front man'
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Azzedine Ounahi doing the rounds at the moment. Looks like a better version of Sanson from what I can see
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I'd be surprised if we don't bring in a winger or wide forward, given how much a point Emery made about us needing one
We need a regular goalscorer. The problem being the regular ones are eye wateringly expensive.
Especially in January.
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Azzedine Ounahi doing the rounds at the moment. Looks like a better version of Sanson from what I can see
That would piss Leeds off, which would be a plus, but Guendouzi feels like a safer bet to me.
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I'd be surprised if we don't bring in a winger or wide forward, given how much a point Emery made about us needing one
We need a regular goalscorer. The problem being the regular ones are eye wateringly expensive.
Exactly. You can't just go out and buy a 20 a season man any more. Other than a handful of elite players they just don't really exist. Nowadays it's far more likley that goals will need to be shared round a lot more. So the idea of selling Watkins and Ings and getting in a mythical Haaland type player is just so unlikely. Every team in the PL other than Man City, Spurs and possibly Brentford are looking for one (with the jury still out on Isak & Darwin). Not even Lukaku could do it anymore for a team that dominates the ball reasonably well. Teams will have to pay fortunes or take punts like we have with Duran.
The more I think about it the more I think we will keep Watkins for a while yet - he does a solid job for the team even accepting that his finishing is poor. I wouldn't be particulalry surprised if Ings is still with us next season too, unless Duran (who I feel is more like a medium term project) starts like a rocket. I expect us to hope for more goals from hybrid players like Bailey and the the likes of Deulofeu or whoever we ultimately go for and hope for 10-12 from the 'front man'
Yep, 100% this.
I've posted before that if you score 50 goals you'll normally be safely in midtable and if you score 60 you'll be in the battle for a european place.
Breaking that down I'd expect the attackers to score half to 2/3rds of them so to get where we want to be we need 30-40 goals from Watkins, Ings, Bailey, Archer, Duran and any new winger we sign. So far this season Watkins, Ings and Bailey have 13 which is a big part of why we've only scored 22. However half of those goals have come in 6 games under Emery, including 6 for those 3 players, if they keep that up then over a season they'd be right on target and as a team we'd be looking at scoring 70+. We do need another wide player to add more competition but If Emery keeps things up then even with this squad we won't be far off the top 7.
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I can't see us wanting to shift Watkins on. I know there's a fair few fans who might like it, but he's a great player and coming into more form again with the new manager.
I agree completely, initially new to this level he's run his socks off on his own up front for us for nigh on three seasons now, missing barely a game. Not only is he now coming more into form again with the new manager, he again looks as if he's enjoying playing. Whoever we might manage to buy, or not buy, as an 'upgrade' (ugh), it would be madness to consider letting Watkins go.
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Azzedine Ounahi doing the rounds at the moment. Looks like a better version of Sanson from what I can see
That would piss Leeds off, which would be a plus, but Guendouzi feels like a safer bet to me.
He would be a hell of a lot cheaper and easier to convince. Perhaps we have had to realign our sights this window?
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Breaking that down I'd expect the attackers to score half to 2/3rds of them so to get where we want to be we need 30-40 goals from Watkins, Ings, Bailey, Archer, Duran and any new winger we sign. So far this season Watkins, Ings and Bailey have 13 which is a big part of why we've only scored 22. However half of those goals have come in 6 games under Emery, including 6 for those 3 players, if they keep that up then over a season they'd be right on target and as a team we'd be looking at scoring 70+. We do need another wide player to add more competition but If Emery keeps things up then even with this squad we won't be far off the top 7.
I think we'll share the goals around a bit more to be honest, with the likes of Ramsey and Buendia making up for a shortfall from the strikers.
What's in our favour this this year compared to the last is that the league table is a lot more bunched up.
Last year after the same number of games, there were 10 points between 14th and 20th places, this year there's 2. Similarly last year there were 9 points between 10th place and 6th, this year's there's 3. This means tight 1-0 wins and even draws are valuable for moving you up the table, and a couple of wins on the trot can mean shooting up 4-5 places. I think another wide forward capable of scoring a bit more regularly than Bailey or Buendia would really help to push on.
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Breaking that down I'd expect the attackers to score half to 2/3rds of them so to get where we want to be we need 30-40 goals from Watkins, Ings, Bailey, Archer, Duran and any new winger we sign. So far this season Watkins, Ings and Bailey have 13 which is a big part of why we've only scored 22. However half of those goals have come in 6 games under Emery, including 6 for those 3 players, if they keep that up then over a season they'd be right on target and as a team we'd be looking at scoring 70+. We do need another wide player to add more competition but If Emery keeps things up then even with this squad we won't be far off the top 7.
I think we'll share the goals around a bit more to be honest, with the likes of Ramsey and Buendia making up for a shortfall from the strikers.
What's in our favour this this year compared to the last is that the league table is a lot more bunched up.
Last year after the same number of games, there were 10 points between 14th and 20th places, this year there's 2. Similarly last year there were 9 points between 10th place and 6th, this year's there's 3. This means tight 1-0 wins and even draws are valuable for moving you up the table, and a couple of wins on the trot can mean shooting up 4-5 places. I think another wide forward capable of scoring a bit more regularly than Bailey or Buendia would really help to push on.
I agree, I think it'll still end up being about half our goals coming from the forwards (which is in-line with them getting 6 from 11 since Emery arrived).
I agree as well that this is a season where fine margins will have a massive impact.
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Azzedine Ounahi doing the rounds at the moment. Looks like a better version of Sanson from what I can see
That would piss Leeds off, which would be a plus, but Guendouzi feels like a safer bet to me.
He would be a hell of a lot cheaper and easier to convince. Perhaps we have had to realign our sights this window?
Isn't he also really likely to be one of those who gets a move on the strength of a three or four decent World Cup matches, playing in a very specific system, with not much thought about whether he is actually any good?
His Angers team are bottom of the league in France by a mile.
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I'd say Guendouzi has to be the main target - he's got Premier League and International experience and offers what we need.
I think the winger/ striker may have to wait till summer - I'm not convinced with Delafeu, and Sourhampton seems to have bid the bank on getting Jackson on loan. Maybe he'll become available in the summer and will be then have had Premier League experience. I'd still be in favour of Sarr in this window but we may again have to wait.
Perhaps they'll be a surprise come the end of this month ...
CB will also be a summer focus, I'm guessing, but we still have Carlos to come back next month ("it'll be like a new signing ...").
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I hope we get Guendouzi. We've heard a fair bit about our interest but supposedly we haven't made a bid. That isn't how we do business of late.
Then again we did hear about Moreno before it happened.
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We don’t have to worry about a striker anymore we’ve signed Duran Duran to solve all our goal scoring problems
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We don’t have to worry about a striker anymore we’ve signed Duran Duran to solve all our goal scoring problems
I think he'll find too many ordinary days.
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I'd say Guendouzi has to be the main target - he's got Premier League and International experience and offers what we need.
I think the winger/ striker may have to wait till summer - I'm not convinced with Delafeu, and Sourhampton seems to have bid the bank on getting Jackson on loan. Maybe he'll become available in the summer and will be then have had Premier League experience. I'd still be in favour of Sarr in this window but we may again have to wait.
Perhaps they'll be a surprise come the end of this month ...
CB will also be a summer focus, I'm guessing, but we still have Carlos to come back next month ("it'll be like a new signing ...").
I think a quality midfielder and winger and it will have been a good transfer window. Duran has come in as third choice behind Watkins and Ings, so I think if we get those two other positions sorted this month, we can go big on a striker in the summer in place of maybe Ings.
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Did i read a quote where Emery said we might have one more in ?
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Azzedine Ounahi doing the rounds at the moment. Looks like a better version of Sanson from what I can see
That would piss Leeds off, which would be a plus, but Guendouzi feels like a safer bet to me.
He would be a hell of a lot cheaper and easier to convince. Perhaps we have had to realign our sights this window?
Isn't he also really likely to be one of those who gets a move on the strength of a three or four decent World Cup matches, playing in a very specific system, with not much thought about whether he is actually any good?
His Angers team are bottom of the league in France by a mile.
He was very good in the WC though.
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Did i read a quote where Emery said we might have one more in ?
Who would know?
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Did i read a quote where Emery said we might have one more in ?
Who would know?
Ha ha , sorry yes me , I cant find it now but thought it was a quote from the Mail online
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If it's only 1 more then it needs to be competition for Bailey rather than another centre-mid.
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I like Ings but I think, provided Watkins gets back fit soon, that we look to move him on towards the end of the month. With his contract up in less than 18 months, any number of very desperate PL teams might give us a lot of the cash we spent on him back to us. Ings doesnt suit the way Emery wants to play and was an odd signing from day 1. Still gets chances in and around the box most games, mind.
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I'm going to see Marseille play Rennes on Friday. I'll ask him.
Do you live in / near Marseilles ?
Just under an hour away.
Sorry. Missed your reply. My question wasn't as random as it may have appeared. Heading to the RWC in October and looking at Airbnb's currently. Would I be right to assume I can't go far wrong with an apartment in The Old Fort area ?
Nice part of the world to live by the way.
I don't know the city all that well to be honest, as we're closer to Toulon.
Assuming you mean the Old Port, then yes, that's probably the nicest bit. Roucas is pleasant enough too. Avoid anything north of the centre unless you want to buy hard drugs and are willing to risk losing body parts to get them.
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I’m at Birmingham Airport, I’ll keep my eye out for the big-haired guy.
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I'm going to see Marseille play Rennes on Friday. I'll ask him.
Do you live in / near Marseilles ?
Just under an hour away.
Sorry. Missed your reply. My question wasn't as random as it may have appeared. Heading to the RWC in October and looking at Airbnb's currently. Would I be right to assume I can't go far wrong with an apartment in The Old Fort area ?
Nice part of the world to live by the way.
I don't know the city all that well to be honest, as we're closer to Toulon.
Assuming you mean the Old Port, then yes, that's probably the nicest bit. Roucas is pleasant enough too. Avoid anything north of the centre unless you want to buy hard drugs and are willing to risk losing body parts to get them.
North of the centre, you say. Interesting.
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West Ham have bid for Ings according to the Telegraph.
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West Ham have bid for Ings according to the Telegraph.
They’ve been laser accurate today.
One for the off-topic readers there. *wink*
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I can't see us wanting to shift Watkins on. I know there's a fair few fans who might like it, but he's a great player and coming into more form again with the new manager.
Great player ! coming onto form !
How many goals has he scored again three or four, I’d hate to see him when he’s coming out of form
He does run around a lot though
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I'm going to see Marseille play Rennes on Friday. I'll ask him.
Do you live in / near Marseilles ?
Just under an hour away.
Sorry. Missed your reply. My question wasn't as random as it may have appeared. Heading to the RWC in October and looking at Airbnb's currently. Would I be right to assume I can't go far wrong with an apartment in The Old Fort area ?
Nice part of the world to live by the way.
I don't know the city all that well to be honest, as we're closer to Toulon.
Assuming you mean the Old Port, then yes, that's probably the nicest bit. Roucas is pleasant enough too. Avoid anything north of the centre unless you want to buy hard drugs and are willing to risk losing body parts to get them.
Thanks. Yeah the Old Port. Appreciated.
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West Ham have bid for Ings according to the Telegraph.
Twitter reckons we value him at £15m, I’d hope to get more than that if we were interested in selling.
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West Ham have bid for Ings according to the Telegraph.
Twitter reckons we value him at £15m, I’d hope to get more than that if we were interested in selling.
Don’t think we’ll get much more if any, he’ll be on big wages as well which will free us up a bit
As things stand I don’t think we should be selling him though
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Selling Ings in January without a proper replacement would be stupid.
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Selling Ings in January without a proper replacement would be stupid.
West Ham were linked to Duvan Zapata and En-Nesyri before this Ings news, both would be decent short term loan options.
Isn't Duran playing in an under 20 tournament in next few weeks? Ollie limped off v Leeds but I presume he's o.k for Southampton.
I can't see anything happening with Ings for another week-10 days. There's no rush to sell him until we sign a replacement.
Also get the feel this is a board signing for West Ham. If they don't beat Everton then Moyes will be sacked and I can see them putting Dyche in, he worked with Ings at Burnley.
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Ings would be a great signing for any of the clubs fighting relegation, if he keeps them up it’ll be money well spent, maybe incorporate a survival bonus into any deal. Having said that I’d also be surprised if we let him go with our current numbers in that position.
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West Ham have bid for Ings according to the Telegraph.
They can fuck off. It’ll be mental to sell our leading goal scorer.
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West Ham have bid for Ings according to the Telegraph.
They can fuck off. It’ll be mental to sell our leading goal scorer.
I’d be tempted.
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West Ham have bid for Ings according to the Telegraph.
They can fuck off. It’ll be mental to sell our leading goal scorer.
I’d be tempted.
Same here if we can get 15m+ and have someone lined up better suited to Emery's style.
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He’s our leading scorer, our other ‘natural’ first choice is injured (although he’s not much of a goal scorer when not injured) and we’ve just sent the third choice on loan and bought a striker who, no matter how good he turns out to be in the longer term, is extremely unlikely to be ready to be thrown straight in
Selling Ings without a replacement at this point in the window would be insane.
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I get all that. It’s just that we’ve been so bad at getting decent prices for players on the way down over the years I’ve probably got a bit carried away with the prospect of us doing it for once.
Plus I’m super confident about Duran Duran.
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15m, fuck off. Survival costs more than that, they’re terrible.
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He’s our leading scorer, our other ‘natural’ first choice is injured (although he’s not much of a goal scorer when not injured) and we’ve just sent the third choice on loan and bought a striker who, no matter how good he turns out to be in the longer term, is extremely unlikely to be ready to be thrown straight in
Selling Ings without a replacement at this point in the window would be insane.
Yep agreed.
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Looks like we must have someone lined up, surely?
Big decision selling a prem scorer and replacing in January
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Only sell if you are down the road for a replacement Villa. Ings doesn't fit at all in the new world, but to go with a woefully out of sorts Watkins and a 19 year old that's played at a lower level than Archer till the end of the season could be tough.
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15m, fuck off. Survival costs more than that, they’re terrible.
Yep, that's it for me. I wouldn't be against selling Ings at all, but if you want him in January then you're paying the cost of Premier League status. £30m as far as they're concerned is _only_ £10m a year for 3 years (which'd make Ings 33, just on the cusp of 34), so the bidding starts there.
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Selling Ings in January without a proper replacement would be stupid.
West Ham were linked to Duvan Zapata and En-Nesyri before this Ings news, both would be decent short term loan options.
Isn't Duran playing in an under 20 tournament in next few weeks? Ollie limped off v Leeds but I presume he's o.k for Southampton.
I can't see anything happening with Ings for another week-10 days. There's no rush to sell him until we sign a replacement.
Also get the feel this is a board signing for West Ham. If they don't beat Everton then Moyes will be sacked and I can see them putting Dyche in, he worked with Ings at Burnley.
Plus Archer has been loaned out. I thought that was risky especially when Watkins came off with an ankle problem against Leeds. We need to strengthen our striker options.
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Selling Ings in January without a proper replacement would be stupid.
West Ham were linked to Duvan Zapata and En-Nesyri before this Ings news, both would be decent short term loan options.
Isn't Duran playing in an under 20 tournament in next few weeks? Ollie limped off v Leeds but I presume he's o.k for Southampton.
I can't see anything happening with Ings for another week-10 days. There's no rush to sell him until we sign a replacement.
Also get the feel this is a board signing for West Ham. If they don't beat Everton then Moyes will be sacked and I can see them putting Dyche in, he worked with Ings at Burnley.
Plus Archer has been loaned out. I thought that was risky especially when Watkins came off with an ankle problem against Leeds. We need to strengthen our striker options.
Although let's be honest, you were panicky last week because we sold a youth team player who hadn't kicked a ball for the first team.
I doubt we will go with just Watkins and 19 year old from the US League for the rest of the season. We'll either keep Ings or have a replacement lined up.
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We were linked with that Moffi who apparently doesn't wan to go to West Ham a couple of weeks back. Wonder if we are in for him and Ings to West Ham sweetens it. Looks much more like the sort we need up front.
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We were linked with that Moffi who apparently doesn't wan to go to West Ham a couple of weeks back. Wonder if we are in for him and Ings to West Ham sweetens it. Looks much more like the sort we need up front.
West Ham taking our cast offs and us signing players that don't want to play for them is the correct order of things.
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I don't think we will sell unless we have somebody lined up to replace him.
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I don't think we will sell unless we have somebody lined up to replace him.
Agreed, Darren. I've just seen these Ollie stats and a link to Moffi. It would be crazy not to bring in a replacement.
In the Premier League this season, the former Brentford centre-forward has struggled in front of goal. He has scored three times in 18 appearances in the top flight and averaged a dismal Sofascore rating of 6.66 – placing him 19th in the squad – whilst missing nine ‘big chances’ so far.
This shows that he is struggling at the top end of the pitch and that is why there could be scope to improve the team in that position by signing a new number nine this month.
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I don't think we will sell unless we have somebody lined up to replace him.
Absolutely, should be expecting someone in before the weekend.
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Bye Danny
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Not to worry, we’ve still got the runner !!
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My guess is West Ham were after Moffi, he's turned them down for a move to the Villa, they got wind of it and came in immediately for Ings.
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It’ll be a great pick up for West Ham.
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Brilliant signing for West Ham to be fair in their position. Will get 8-9 between now and end of the season. Hope we have a staying up add on.
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My guess is West Ham were after Moffi, he's turned them down for a move to the Villa, they got wind of it and came in immediately for Ings.
That's what I am hoping for.
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It’ll be a great pick up for West Ham.
Absolutely,
I could never understand why Leeds were never in for Ings he’d have probably guaranteed them staying up
They’re desperate for a goalscorer and they create great plenty of chances
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We’d better have a replacement lined up for Ings.
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We are about to sell our best goalscorer so would like to think we’ve got someone coming in who can hit the ground running. Ings may not have been a fit for Emery’s style but he scores goals. It’s asking a bit too much for Duran to be his replacement straight away. We must have someone lined up who’s virtually signed and sealed.
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One thing we have done as a club of late is keep a few of our signings under wraps so maybe we have one coming in. We didn't know about Ings until he had signed. I'm not overly worried.
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I think there will be a decent amount to be paid on West Ham staying up. Which I think they will do easily.
I wonder if we are in for Nicolas Jackson.
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would anyone have Tammy Abraham back at the Villa ?
UTV
The Doc
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No, Tammy has tailed-off in Italy where the game is played 10% slower (except for those sexy sides ripping it up, Napoli and Atalanta).
Who is this Moffi geezer, though? Great name but can he kick it?
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I get all that. It’s just that we’ve been so bad at getting decent prices for players on the way down over the years I’ve probably got a bit carried away with the prospect of us doing it for once.
Plus I’m super confident about Duran Duran.
Curious as to your feelings on the original Duran Duran given your strong civic pride in Brum and its denizens, yet the sort of band that Weller would have started on. Thought he was bang out of order with those comments on Robert Smith recently.
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We are about to sell our best goalscorer so would like to think we’ve got someone coming in who can hit the ground running. Ings may not have been a fit for Emery’s style but he scores goals. It’s asking a bit too much for Duran to be his replacement straight away. We must have someone lined up who’s virtually signed and sealed.
'Hit the ground running' is key for me. Someone like Moffi would need time to settle in.
would anyone have Tammy Abraham back at the Villa ?
UTV
The Doc
I know it is unlikely but I'd love it to be Tammy coming back, he would be ready to contribute straight away. Roma have Dybala getting their goals now, you can see Sawiris being keen, Tammy is already part of the 'Villa family' that Emery wants to build... a guy can dream.
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I think we'll bring a striker in on a loan deal, maybe a try before you buy. A long term replacement might have to wait until the summer & my money would be on Abraham.
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We are about to sell our best goalscorer so would like to think we’ve got someone coming in who can hit the ground running. Ings may not have been a fit for Emery’s style but he scores goals. It’s asking a bit too much for Duran to be his replacement straight away. We must have someone lined up who’s virtually signed and sealed.
Ings hit the ground running.
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One thing we have done as a club of late is keep a few of our signings under wraps so maybe we have one coming in. We didn't know about Ings until he had signed. I'm not overly worried.
The way we are able to sign players without any/many leaks has been a major plus point over the last few seasons. For me, it’s shows we are very well run when it comes to our transfers. We’ve also got a top coach in charge who knows what it takes to build a capable squad. I’d rather us announce something when it’s done than take part in the daily rumour mill.
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would anyone have Tammy Abraham back at the Villa ?
UTV
The Doc
Yes absolutely.
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When is the cut off for registering a player to be available for Saturday as we now have one forward available?
Anyway I think we'll get 4 strikers. A nurse, a postman, a teacher and a train driver.
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We are about to sell our best goalscorer so would like to think we’ve got someone coming in who can hit the ground running. Ings may not have been a fit for Emery’s style but he scores goals. It’s asking a bit too much for Duran to be his replacement straight away. We must have someone lined up who’s virtually signed and sealed.
Ings hit the ground running.
He clearly doesn’t fit what Emery wants and is trying to build. I have no doubt he’ll score for West Ham as he fits the Moyes style perfectly. I wish him all the best but I’m guessing over the next few transfer windows we’ll see quite a few moving on.
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Anyway I think we'll get 4 strikers. A nurse, a postman, a teacher and a train driver.
*begrudging applause*
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would anyone have Tammy Abraham back at the Villa ?
UTV
The Doc
Absolutely.
I hope we get someone in though. Otherwise if Ings goes we'll be weaker after the transfer window ends than before it.
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When is the cut off for registering a player to be available for Saturday as we now have one forward available?
Midday tomorrow I believe.
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Deulofeu has been playing as a central striker as well as out wide for Udinese.Emery rates him.
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Deulofeu has been playing as a central striker as well as out wide for Udinese.Emery rates him.
While he would be welcome for several reasons, I think we should be looking at his strike partner at Udinese, Beto...
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According to SSN there's a Unai Emery Press Conference coming up at 4:00pm. Probably to confirm Jhon Duran's signing and maybe someone else??
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Anyway I think we'll get 4 strikers. A nurse, a postman, a teacher and a train driver.
*begrudging applause*
Think it was doing the rounds on WhatsApp last week i.e. that Small Heath had signed 4 strikers, a nurse....etc.
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Ings has reportedly gone then.
I assume that means we have a deal in place for a quality replacement, because otherwise that's a mental decision.
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Deulofeu has been playing as a central striker as well as out wide for Udinese.Emery rates him.
Hasn't he been injured since mid November? I really wouldn't be banking on player out for months to suddenly come back and fire us into europe, we had all this with Bailey last season struggling to get back into rhythm after long injury lay offs.
His best football at Watford and Everton was always played out wide so I see that sort of signing just giving us more wide options to change games.
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No, Tammy has tailed-off in Italy where the game is played 10% slower (except for those sexy sides ripping it up, Napoli and Atalanta).
Actually he's on fire again. Great few games lately and the partnership with Dybala looks like it's going to be special.
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Has Marcus Thuram gone anywhere yet?
That would be exciting.
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If previous experience is anything to go by when we sell a reasonably senior player, we can expect a reasonably big signing imminently. Hopefully it works out a bit better than previous instances.
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Until proven wrong I'm going to assume we have a forward lined up and Ings going was just us taking the opportunity to replace (at no cost really) a high wage 30 year old with a 19 year old with the potential to be a much better fit for how we want to play as our 3rd option.
If no one else comes in then this will feel very different.
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Using my Sherlock Holmes like 'powers of deduction', I have worked it out.
Logically, we wouldn't sell Ings unless we had another striker lined up.
As time is of essence, that striker would have to have no problems with work visa, injury, pace of game etc, so he is likely to be British.
Clearly, new striker would have to be better than Ings or whole exercise is pointless.
New striker would need to be unhappy with his current club as they are likely to win 'feck all' for many years to come.
We have rich and ambitious owners plus a Top 6 manager. The future is 'claret and blue'.
I expect Harry Kane to sign within the next 24 hours.
It's elementary dear villains. ;D
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Striker cover is crucial. This doesn't make sense. Why have they rushed it?
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Using my Sherlock Holmes like 'powers of deduction', I have worked it out.
Logically, we wouldn't sell Ings unless we had another striker lined up.
As time is of essence, that striker would have to have no problems with work visa, injury, pace of game etc, so he is likely to be British.
Clearly, new striker would have to be better than Ings or whole exercise is pointless.
New striker would need to be unhappy with his current club as they are likely to win 'feck all' for many years to come.
We have rich and ambitious owners plus a Top 6 manager. The future is 'claret and blue'.
I expect Harry Kane to sign within the next 24 hours.
It's elementary dear villains. ;D
Heard on Talksport this morning that Chris Wood could be leaving Newcastle. The plot thickens.
Seriously though, maybe it is a case of trying to get Ings' wages off the payroll to give us a bit more flexibility, rather than bringing in a direct replacement.
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Wood's joining Forest on loan.
Would've been good for us about two years ago, not so much now.
-
Wood's joining Forest on loan.
Would've been good for us about two years ago, not so much now.
You'd they'd already be well stocked in this area.
-
Wood is absolutely gash.
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He couldn't get near the goal in a flying Newcastle team, he's fucking dog shite
-
I expect Harry Kane to sign within the next 24 hours.
Do we need any more DM's?! ;)
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Wood's joining Forest on loan.
Would've been good for us about two years ago, not so much now.
You'd they'd already be well stocked in this area.
I can’t see him pulling up any trees there.
-
Wood's joining Forest on loan.
Would've been good for us about two years ago, not so much now.
You'd they'd already be well stocked in this area.
I can’t see him pulling up any trees there.
With Johnson and Awoniyi he's probably not going to make it off the shrubs bench.
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What I’m missing is a Shit Shoe Tony emoji fest on Twitter. 🐕🔥👙🐷🗣️🧌⛑️
-
Wood's joining Forest on loan.
Would've been good for us about two years ago, not so much now.
You'd they'd already be well stocked in this area.
I can’t see him pulling up any trees there.
With Johnson and Awoniyi he's probably not going to make it off the shrubs bench.
Plenty of splinters then.
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Wood's joining Forest on loan.
Would've been good for us about two years ago, not so much now.
You'd they'd already be well stocked in this area.
I can’t see him pulling up any trees there.
With Johnson and Awoniyi he's probably not going to make it off the shrubs bench.
Plenty of splinters then.
Forest have gone out on a limb with this signing.
-
Moussa Dembele now linked I see
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And linked to Everton too.
-
Wood's joining Forest on loan.
Would've been good for us about two years ago, not so much now.
You'd they'd already be well stocked in this area.
I can’t see him pulling up any trees there.
With Johnson and Awoniyi he's probably not going to make it off the shrubs bench.
Plenty of splinters then.
Forest have gone out on a limb with this signing.
They have really branched out
-
Moussa Dembele now linked I see
Can we get the one from Barca instead. He’d be perfect in our formation, even if he is a bit lazy.
-
Wood's joining Forest on loan.
Would've been good for us about two years ago, not so much now.
You'd they'd already be well stocked in this area.
I can’t see him pulling up any trees there.
With Johnson and Awoniyi he's probably not going to make it off the shrubs bench.
Plenty of splinters then.
Forest have gone out on a limb with this signing.
They have really branched out
Well, I for one can't understand it. I'm completely stumped.
-
Wood's joining Forest on loan.
Would've been good for us about two years ago, not so much now.
You'd they'd already be well stocked in this area.
I can’t see him pulling up any trees there.
With Johnson and Awoniyi he's probably not going to make it off the shrubs bench.
Plenty of splinters then.
Forest have gone out on a limb with this signing.
They have really branched out
Well, I for one can't understand it. I'm completely stumped.
It also leaves me baffled.
-
Until proven wrong I'm going to assume we have a forward lined up and Ings going was just us taking the opportunity to replace (at no cost really) a high wage 30 year old with a 19 year old with the potential to be a much better fit for how we want to play as our 3rd option.
If no one else comes in then this will feel very different.
I'm not that confident we will bring in a direct replacement. There just aren't many top level strikers around at the moment and most clubs in the PL are looking for one. We may well bring in a wide hybrid type player (Danjuma?), but I still feel that would leave us very short up top if a Southampton player puts their studs through Watkins knee this weekend.
£12-15m may feel like good business, but we could easily lose most of that in league placings if Watkins get injured. Obviously if we sign Tammy tomorrow this will all have been a fuss about nothing.
-
According to SSN there's a Unai Emery Press Conference coming up at 4:00pm. Probably to confirm Jhon Duran's signing and maybe someone else??
It's just the pre-game media conference. We never announce players at a press conference.
-
Since Emery came in scoring goals hasn't been a particular problem for us so more players in the team that can share the responsibility is fine with me. Presumably the owners have done the sums and the freeing up of wages as well as the fee can help us get a forward that could match ings' scoring rate so far this season (which isn't particularly excessive), but also contribute more throughout the game.
That said, if we stay with the forward line we currently have (assuming Duran signs that is), then it's a massive risk. There's almost 2 weeks left to plug the gaps, though.
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Just amazing how quickly we can ship people out but, seems to take an eternity to get new players in.
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Just amazing how quickly we can ship people out but, seems to take an eternity to get new players in.
Yer wha
-
Just amazing how quickly we can ship people out but, seems to take an eternity to get new players in.
We've signed 2 players and sold 1 this window so not sure how you work that out.
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Just amazing how quickly we can ship people out but, seems to take an eternity to get new players in.
We've signed 2 players and sold 1 this window so not sure how you work that out.
Both were done within 24 hours of anyone getting wind of them as well
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Just amazing how quickly we can ship people out but, seems to take an eternity to get new players in.
We've signed 2 players and sold 1 this window so not sure how you work that out.
Both were done within 24 hours of anyone getting wind of them as well
Not only that, but the player we have just shipped out, was himself easily the most unforeseen, out of the blue signing we've ever made with absolutely zero faff.
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Jonathan David from Lille for £46 million supposedly.
-
Jonathan David from Lille for £46 million supposedly.
Where you hearing that?
-
Jonathan David from Lille for £46 million supposedly.
Who ?
-
Wood's joining Forest on loan.
Would've been good for us about two years ago, not so much now.
You'd they'd already be well stocked in this area.
I can’t see him pulling up any trees there.
With Johnson and Awoniyi he's probably not going to make it off the shrubs bench.
Plenty of splinters then.
Forest have gone out on a limb with this signing.
They have really branched out
Well, I for one can't understand it. I'm completely stumped.
It also leaves me baffled.
He only joined Newcastle 12 months ago ... can't imagine he'd be happy with being uprooted again.
-
Jonathan David from Lille for £46 million supposedly.
that would be exciting
-
Jonathan David from Lille for £46 million supposedly.
Where you hearing that?
A mate who has a contact. He was way ahead of the Ings thing this morning so I feel I can trust his info' enough for scrutiny on here.
-
Jonathan David from Lille for £46 million supposedly.
that would be exciting
Chelsea DOF is on the phone to Lille.
Offering £120m
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Jonathan David from Lille for £46 million supposedly.
that would be exciting
I hadn't a clue until I seen his photo and then thought he looked more than decent in the WC games I seen him in.
-
It's a yes from me.
-
Jonathan David from Lille for £46 million supposedly.
Where you hearing that?
A mate who has a contact. He was way ahead of the Ings thing this morning so I feel I can trust his info' enough for scrutiny on here.
Righto, well if that happens I'll put my wet pants in the wash and take my hat off to all concerned.
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Obligatory youtube highlights from last season
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I see our tranfers policy has changed yet again and we now only sign players named John.
-
Jonathan David from Lille for £46 million supposedly.
Where you hearing that?
A mate who has a contact. He was way ahead of the Ings thing this morning so I feel I can trust his info' enough for scrutiny on here.
Nice one, I asked as I know you wouldn't be parroting something you'd read on 'Footballl Insider'.
Very highly rated, the right kind of profile of signing for us.
-
Obligatory youtube highlights from last season
To be fair you tube could make Dave Woodhall look like a mixture of Pele and Maradona.
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He'd be superb because I think he could easily play in the watkins and bailey roles giving us 3 senior options and then Duran, and later Archer, as development options behind them.
Everytime I've seen David I've been impressed, very good player who I think would be really well suited to the league.
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Outta Brooklyn Noo Yawk, this guy is banging in more than that washed-up has-been Danny Ings.
Stick your fuck-off celebrations up your arse, Danny! GFY!
-
Linked with Moussa Dembélé.
-
Any news of Dave flying into Brum?
-
Was David any good at the World Cup? Didn't seem to stand out to me although Canada were pretty shite.
-
Jonathan David would be bloody amazing.
-
1m 30 secs for his song
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1m 30 secs for his song
One of my favourite Films.
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Just to clarify my earlier comments, what I meant was that each day I see us linked to a couple of players. Next day it’s a different couple etc, etc. However, with Ings it was deal done, no messing. I know we’ve signed a couple of players so far but, still being linked with higher transfer fee players and then end up with a £10 million player. Don’t get me wrong, I think we have the real deal under Emery but would still like us to make a marquee signing in the not too distant future, hopefully one that can terrorise opposition defences.
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Yeah we're not getting Jonathan David lol.
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Percy said been talking to that udinese winger and cash and digne have uncertain futures
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Oh and a CB
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I watched that Moussa Dembele that there seems to be a lot of links to on Twitter in the games against West Ham last season, he was absolutely wank.
A small career sample I know but it's a no from me.
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I definitely get the idea Emery doesn't rate Cash - if he wants his full backs to be able to attack, then Cash is a waste of time and space.
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I see our tranfers policy has changed yet again and we now only sign players named John.
It might just be players with the initials JD. Anyway can't see it happening unless he changes his name to Jhonathan David.
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I see our tranfers policy has changed yet again and we now only sign players named John.
It might just be players with the initials JD. Anyway can't see it happening unless he changes his name to Jhonathan David.
Makes sense as we're now havily linked with
(https://www.themoviedb.org/t/p/w500/wUAj6juL6HErqEJ1GtuI63rbVea.jpg)
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I see our tranfers policy has changed yet again and we now only sign players named John.
It might just be players with the initials JD. Anyway can't see it happening unless he changes his name to Jhonathan David.
Or is it that we're trying to build a formidable collection of Johns?
- Jhon (Duran)
- Jonathon (David)
- John (McGinn)
Only a matter of time before we bring in a 'Jon' and 'Sion' (Welsh version of John), surely?
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Well that press conference doesn't fill me with confidence that a striker is coming in anytime soon. UE said the club will 'try' and sign a replacement forward in this window - so no replacement was lined up before Ings was allowed to leave. Why? especially when Archer left as well.
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Well that press conference doesn't fill me with confidence that a striker is coming in anytime soon. UE said the club will 'try' and sign a replacement forward in this window - so no replacement was lined up before Ings was allowed to leave. Why? especially when Archer left as well.
That is disturbing to hear.
Although to be fair, about 3 days ago he said he had no intention of selling Ings, so maybe we shouldn't read too much into it.
-
he could be playing it down and we are well on the way to signing someone
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Even if we were well along in talks for someone I don't see any real value to him saying as much, any manager worth his salt would give an answer like he did.
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he could be playing it down and we are well on the way to signing someone
Yeah, was going to say he's hardly going to come out with "to be honest we're desperate for another striker and we're going to be screwed if we don't get one", cos that's going to add a few million to the price and a further few million in wages.
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Well that press conference doesn't fill me with confidence that a striker is coming in anytime soon. UE said the club will 'try' and sign a replacement forward in this window - so no replacement was lined up before Ings was allowed to leave. Why? especially when Archer left as well.
I've never understood why anyone really pays much attention to what managers say about transfers during press conferences. 90% of them refuse to talk about other club's players. Or say nothing of consequence about their own clubs. They generally only comment if they're trying to put pressure on owners to spend. There is absolutely zero advantage to Unai saying "yes, we want a striker and we have money to spend" and immediately putting all potential selling clubs on high alert.
I have absolutely no doubt we are looking to improve the squad - as we are always trying to do - and that there will be more incoming in January. The only way we don't sign a replacement for Ings is if the club has written off this season as "transitional", in that we're not getting relegated, we're not getting into Europe, and we're not winning a cup, so let's trim the squad with players we don't want if we can, and let Unai focus on what he's already got at his disposal ahead of the summer overhaul?
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he could be playing it down and we are well on the way to signing someone
Yeah, was going to say he's hardly going to come out with "to be honest we're desperate for another striker and we're going to be screwed if we don't get one", cos that's going to add a few million to the price and a further few million in wages.
Even going the other way and saying something like "we're in talks with a few options and will see what happens" doesn't really help because if it falls through that gets held against him or if we end up signing someone that fans are disappointed about he'll be accused of being misleading.
Look at things like the Simon Dawkins loan to see just badly wrong mentioning a potential signing in a presser can be.
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I see our tranfers policy has changed yet again and we now only sign players named John.
Get in
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Well that press conference doesn't fill me with confidence that a striker is coming in anytime soon. UE said the club will 'try' and sign a replacement forward in this window - so no replacement was lined up before Ings was allowed to leave. Why? especially when Archer left as well.
I've never understood why anyone really pays much attention to what managers say about transfers during press conferences. 90% of them refuse to talk about other club's players. Or say nothing of consequence about their own clubs. They generally only comment if they're trying to put pressure on owners to spend. There is absolutely zero advantage to Unai saying "yes, we want a striker and we have money to spend" and immediately putting all potential selling clubs on high alert.
Yes but he said he loved Danny barely a fortnight ago and now he's let him leave.
#50WaysToLeaveYourLover
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It's up to Mrs Ings to say she doesn't like cockles and whelks or chirpy cockney chappies after all and Everton step in.
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It's up to Mrs Ings to say she doesn't like cockles and whelks or chirpy cockney chappies after all and Everton step in.
What's her position on jellied eels?
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Emery on Jhon Durán: “He is a young player, we want to develop with him but we are not thinking that he will be a replacement for Danny Ings.”
Emery on his transfer plans: “The idea is to get the balance with another striker.
“It’s going to be very difficult to sign a striker to improve our team and squad, but we will try to do it now, or in the summer.”
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Well that press conference doesn't fill me with confidence that a striker is coming in anytime soon. UE said the club will 'try' and sign a replacement forward in this window - so no replacement was lined up before Ings was allowed to leave. Why? especially when Archer left as well.
I've never understood why anyone really pays much attention to what managers say about transfers during press conferences. 90% of them refuse to talk about other club's players. Or say nothing of consequence about their own clubs. They generally only comment if they're trying to put pressure on owners to spend. There is absolutely zero advantage to Unai saying "yes, we want a striker and we have money to spend" and immediately putting all potential selling clubs on high alert.
I have absolutely no doubt we are looking to improve the squad - as we are always trying to do - and that there will be more incoming in January. The only way we don't sign a replacement for Ings is if the club has written off this season as "transitional", in that we're not getting relegated, we're not getting into Europe, and we're not winning a cup, so let's trim the squad with players we don't want if we can, and let Unai focus on what he's already got at his disposal ahead of the summer overhaul?
Almost all press conferences are nothing more than PR crafted nonsense that use a lot of words to say the grand total of fuck all...
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Percy said been talking to that udinese winger and cash and digne have uncertain futures
Yeah was a bit surprised when I saw something on the BBC website about Digne. Maybe wants his wages of the wage bill as well.
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would anyone have Tammy Abraham back at the Villa ?
UTV
The Doc
For the right fee, yes for me
-
would anyone have Tammy Abraham back at the Villa ?
UTV
The Doc
For the right fee, yes for me
That would be proper underwhelming for me
-
would anyone have Tammy Abraham back at the Villa ?
UTV
The Doc
For the right fee, yes for me
That would be proper underwhelming for me
I agree, I really hoped him moving to Italy would stop him coming up every single transfer window but I guess we're stuck with it until either we win something or he retires.
I don't even think he's a bad player, I just think a lot of Villa fans have overhyped him to a ridiculous extent.
-
would anyone have Tammy Abraham back at the Villa ?
UTV
The Doc
For the right fee, yes for me
That would be proper underwhelming for me
I agree, I really hoped him moving to Italy would stop him coming up every single transfer window but I guess we're stuck with it until either we win something or he retires.
I don't even think he's a bad player, I just think a lot of Villa fans have overhyped him to a ridiculous extent.
Better than ings
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He's not overhyped, he's scored goals wherever he has gone. He's even gone abroad and made a success of it. Whether he would fit into Emery's system is another thing.
-
would anyone have Tammy Abraham back at the Villa ?
UTV
The Doc
For the right fee, yes for me
That would be proper underwhelming for me
I agree, I really hoped him moving to Italy would stop him coming up every single transfer window but I guess we're stuck with it until either we win something or he retires.
I don't even think he's a bad player, I just think a lot of Villa fans have overhyped him to a ridiculous extent.
Better than ings
Miles better, he would be genuine competition for Watkins. Can't see it happening this month though.
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Did I hear correctly in the presser that both Nakamba and Sanson have been told to leave ?
-
I agree, I really hoped him moving to Italy would stop him coming up every single transfer window but I guess we're stuck with it until either we win something or he retires.
I don't even think he's a bad player, I just think a lot of Villa fans have overhyped him to a ridiculous extent.
There's a lot of good memories there though, and he was pivotal in us coming back up. I don't think I'd go for him either, but I can see why a lot of people still would.
-
Enquiries for Moussa Dembele apparently as he only has 6 months left on his contract
-
Fulham willing to sell Josh Onamah.
#bringhimhome
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Is Borja Baston available....?
-
I want nothing more to do with Villa unless we bring back Eric Djemba Djemba.
-
I want nothing more to do with Villa unless we bring back Eric Djemba Djemba.
both of them?
-
I want nothing more to do with Villa unless we bring back Eric Djemba Djemba.
both of them?
Two Eric Djembas there's only two Eric Djembas
-
If it's only 1 more then it needs to be competition for Bailey rather than another centre-mid.
I think we'll get a winger and Bailey will be pushed up front
-
Enquiries for Moussa Dembele apparently as he only has 6 months left on his contract
Where is he? Lyon?
-
Patrick Bamford it is then.
-
Samatta
-
If it's only 1 more then it needs to be competition for Bailey rather than another centre-mid.
I think we'll get a winger and Bailey will be pushed up front
I was thinking that when watching the last 2 matches - maybe he would be better through the middle.
-
Enquiries for Moussa Dembele apparently as he only has 6 months left on his contract
Where is he? Lyon?
That’s right. He was an unused sub at the weekend.
-
Enquiries for Moussa Dembele apparently as he only has 6 months left on his contract
Where is he? Lyon?
That’s right. He was an unused sub at the weekend.
Seems to be gathering momentum, sadly only from the Birmingham Mail!
-
The Jonathan David link seems to have stemmed from one bloke on Twitter who has himself said he has now been lied to so that can be canned.
-
Enquiries for Moussa Dembele apparently as he only has 6 months left on his contract
Where is he? Lyon?
That’s right. He was an unused sub at the weekend.
Seems to be gathering momentum, sadly only from the Birmingham Mail!
the wife knows more about football than the mail
-
Dembele has played 6 games plus 8 as a sub and scored a couple.
-
Last season Demebele scored 21 in just 30 league games. Has previous experience of UK playing for Celtic where he was highly rated.
Can certainly do worse replacing Ings than him.
Watkins, Dembele and Duran up to summer fits in how we want the forward line to be energetic and press at least.
-
He was at Fulham as well wasn’t he, think they were in the Premiership at the time as well but he was less successful there.
-
He was at Fulham as well wasn’t he, think they were in the Premiership at the time as well but he was less successful there.
He was only 17 when he went there and 20 when he left. Just a kid.
-
Was 1 in 3 in his full season with them, and he was 20/21 at that point
-
He was at Fulham as well wasn’t he, think they were in the Premiership at the time as well but he was less successful there.
He was only 17 when he went there and 20 when he left. Just a kid.
Ah, so before Celtic, I thought it was after.
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He was at Fulham as well wasn’t he, think they were in the Premiership at the time as well but he was less successful there.
Was only about 18-19 in fairness. Sure he'll have a few tales about McCormack.
-
A couple of Lyon fans are very happy he might be leaving & have slated him for his shit play & big stack bully scoring record. Could be something in that. Or they could be bitter he is leaving. Although thats not like the French... The truth us probably somewhere in the middle tbh.
-
Whatever is coming we need to support Emery; he knows his shit.
-
The last player we signed from Lyon didn't do too badly and I think their fans said similar things about him at the time.
-
The last player we signed from Lyon didn't do too badly and I think their fans said similar things about him at the time.
Jean Makoun wasn’t great.
( I’ve missed someone obvious haven’t I?)
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He was at Fulham as well wasn’t he, think they were in the Premiership at the time as well but he was less successful there.
Was only about 18-19 in fairness. Sure he'll have a few tales about McCormack.
TeamTalk reckons he’s available fairly cheap (contract expires in the summer) and Emery tried to sign him for both PSG and Villarreal. Which might mean it’s a lazy link or might mean it wouldn’t be at all surprising if we were after him.
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The last player we signed from Lyon didn't do too badly and I think their fans said similar things about him at the time.
Jean Makoun wasn’t great.
( I’ve missed someone obvious haven’t I?)
The last Lyon player we signe was Bertrand Traore I think.
-
The Jonathan David link seems to have stemmed from one bloke on Twitter who has himself said he has now been lied to so that can be canned.
One of the worst things about the transfer windows is the amount of idiots that crop up on various media and social media platforms claiming to be ITK or have information from their 'sources'. Of course, it nearly always turns out to be complete horseshit.
-
The last player we signed from Lyon didn't do too badly and I think their fans said similar things about him at the time.
Jean Makoun wasn’t great.
( I’ve missed someone obvious haven’t I?)
The last Lyon player we signe was Bertrand Traore I think.
Ok, make it the last striker we signed from Lyon :) (also signed in a January transfer window).
-
The Jonathan David link seems to have stemmed from one bloke on Twitter who has himself said he has now been lied to so that can be canned.
One of the worst things about the transfer windows is the amount of idiots that crop up on various media and social media platforms claiming to be ITK or have information from their 'sources'. Of course, it nearly always turns out to be complete horseshit.
I just pretty much go by Romano now for confirmation. His whole 'Here. We. Go.' thing is naff but he's an absolute goal poacher, he only comments when he knows for certain.
-
The last player we signed from Lyon didn't do too badly and I think their fans said similar things about him at the time.
Jean Makoun wasn’t great.
( I’ve missed someone obvious haven’t I?)
The last Lyon player we signe was Bertrand Traore I think.
Ok, make it the last striker we signed from Lyon :) (also signed in a January transfer window).
You were right, Traore of course! Thought you were a closet Jean II fan for a moment.
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The last player we signed from Lyon didn't do too badly and I think their fans said similar things about him at the time.
Jean Makoun wasn’t great.
( I’ve missed someone obvious haven’t I?)
The last Lyon player we signe was Bertrand Traore I think.
Ok, make it the last striker we signed from Lyon :) (also signed in a January transfer window).
You were right, Traore of course! Thought you were a closet Jean II fan for a moment.
Is he not talking about Carew?
-
The last player we signed from Lyon didn't do too badly and I think their fans said similar things about him at the time.
Jean Makoun wasn’t great.
( I’ve missed someone obvious haven’t I?)
The last Lyon player we signe was Bertrand Traore I think.
Ok, make it the last striker we signed from Lyon :) (also signed in a January transfer window).
You were right, Traore of course! Thought you were a closet Jean II fan for a moment.
Is he not talking about Carew?
Probably, a bit of confusion over last players signed from there, position and when. It’s just me, been a long day!
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Whats Dembele’s hold up play, touch and control of the ball like ?
Please someone say it’s good, we need someone who is comfortable with the ball
-
Whats Dembele’s hold up play, touch and control of the ball like ?
Please someone say it’s good, we need someone who is comfortable with the ball
"I've heard" he's like a heavily medicated Rudi Gestede.
-
Not sure about this, early on he went from Fulham to Celtic which in my eyes is a step down, those that follow other leages will have a better idea.
-
Whats Dembele’s hold up play, touch and control of the ball like ?
Please someone say it’s good, we need someone who is comfortable with the ball
"I've heard" he's like a heavily medicated Rudi Gestede.
That's not a bad analogy from what I've seen
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Arsenal signing Trossard for £26m seems like a steal. Great player.
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It's a good signing for Arsenal that.
Dembele I'm not convinced by massively, but for £3-4m he seems a pretty decent pickup. Would immediately challenge Watkins at least.
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It's a good signing for Arsenal that.
Dembele I'm not convinced by massively, but for £3-4m he seems a pretty decent pickup. Would immediately challenge Watkins at least.
I don't think we should pick up players just because they happen to be cheap. I'd worry with Dembele that, although his domestic scoring record is impressive - it's playing for stronger sides, in the Scottish and French leagues ... and with all due respect to both leagues, even being generous half the teams in their top divisions are Championship standard at best. And his record in European football, which is perhaps a better gauge, isn't that prolific - 1-in-3 or 1-in-4 striker from memory.
I dunno, if Emery/Lange want to bring him in then I'd trust their judgement way more than my cursory glance at the career statistics bit of his Wikipedia page .... but I don't see the point in buying a striker who isn't going straight in to the first team, since we already have a 1-in-3/1-in-4 striker in the shape of Ollie Watkins.
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Whilst be minded not to take answers from managers regarding potential transfers as any kind of gospel, I'm going to cling to Emery's words yesterday regarding trying to bring in another forward now or in the summer as proof that he'd rather wait and get the right player, which isn't the man seemingly available right now on a cut price deal.
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Whilst be minded not to take answers from managers regarding potential transfers as any kind of gospel, I'm going to cling to Emery's words yesterday regarding trying to bring in another forward now or in the summer as proof that he'd rather wait and get the right player, which isn't the man seemingly available right now on a cut price deal.
Well it could be because that description applies to a few people, including Thuram.
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If he’s available for a cut price deal on less wages than Ings and is similar in style to Watkins, that gives us an option till the summer. We then evaluate and pick between them as cover for our top summer signing of a shit hot striker and sell the one we don’t want. Duran or Archer as third choice.
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Whilst be minded not to take answers from managers regarding potential transfers as any kind of gospel, I'm going to cling to Emery's words yesterday regarding trying to bring in another forward now or in the summer as proof that he'd rather wait and get the right player, which isn't the man seemingly available right now on a cut price deal.
Well it could be because that description applies to a few people, including Thuram.
True, but please let me cling to my mental safety blanket
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Dembele I'm not convinced by massively, but for £3-4m he seems a pretty decent pickup. Would immediately challenge Watkins at least.
Yeah, in the context of a cheap pick up and assuming the wages are sensible, I don't have a problem with it.
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Maybe though the reason he's so cheap is because he's really shit? Like, I'm sure we could bring Scott Hogan back pretty cheaply too.
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I'm in a really strange place in that i'm extremely relaxed about us selling our top scorer as i can't recall ever having a manager i've had as much faith in to do the right thing. I totally get the concerns around not replacing him, but i'm not close to worrying yet.
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Dembele I'm not convinced by massively, but for £3-4m he seems a pretty decent pickup. Would immediately challenge Watkins at least.
Yeah, in the context of a cheap pick up and assuming the wages are sensible, I don't have a problem with it.
Can’t say I know much about him but on his performance so far I trust Emery’s judgement.
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Maybe though the reason he's so cheap is because he's really shit? Like, I'm sure we could bring Scott Hogan back pretty cheaply too.
I think you need to tell us where you stand on Dembele, don't keep us in suspense.
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I'm in a really strange place in that i'm extremely relaxed about us selling our top scorer as i can't recall ever having a manager i've had as much faith in to do the right thing. I totally get the concerns around not replacing him, but i'm not close to worrying yet.
Might be totally wrong, but I suspect it might be more about trying to get his salary off the wage bill to give us a bit more flexibility. Probably can't afford to have bit-part players being the highest earners at the club and I wouldn't be surprised if we see Digne go soon as well for the same reason.
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I suspect selling Digne will be harder than selling Ings.
(I was referring to Carew in last night's post).
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Maybe though the reason he's so cheap is because he's really shit? Like, I'm sure we could bring Scott Hogan back pretty cheaply too.
A big contributor to being really cheap is his being out of contract in the summer.
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Maybe though the reason he's so cheap is because he's really shit? Like, I'm sure we could bring Scott Hogan back pretty cheaply too.
A big contributor to being really cheap is his being out of contract in the summer.
and him having been very clear since the summer that he wouldn't sign a new deal.
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If Ollie was injured, would we play Leon up top? I don't know what else we could do.
I wonder what Emery's views are on the forward players that we have out on-loan (Traore, Davis, Wesley). I don't think there's a recall on any of them til the summer and The Athletic reported in the summer that Davis' loan-move to Watford has a pre-agreed permanent price attached although I doubt that means Watford have to buy the player.
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I'm in a really strange place in that i'm extremely relaxed about us selling our top scorer as i can't recall ever having a manager i've had as much faith in to do the right thing. I totally get the concerns around not replacing him, but i'm not close to worrying yet.
Especially given that it appears Emery essentially has full control over decisions regarding the players he wants and those he doesn’t. I read somewhere that he doesn’t like large squads with players who don’t contribute. So he’s very precise in the types of player he buys. I want that. So I too am relaxed to let things evolve through his vision. He won’t fix it all in this window. The summer promises to be exciting and I can see staff changes also occurring to round out who he needs around him to make a proper go of things next season.
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If Ollie was injured, would we play Leon up top? I don't know what else we could do.
I wonder what Emery's views are on the forward players that we have out on-loan (Traore, Davis, Wesley). I don't think there's a recall on any of them til the summer and The Athletic reported in the summer that Davis' loan-move to Watford has a pre-agreed permanent price attached although I doubt that means Watford have to buy the player.
I'm sure an agreement could be reached to bring back any of those if we wanted, like how Man Utd compensated Bersiktas to cut Weghorst's loan short.
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Maybe though the reason he's so cheap is because he's really shit? Like, I'm sure we could bring Scott Hogan back pretty cheaply too.
21 league goals in 30 games for Lyon last season would suggest he isn't shit anyway. Obligatory YouTube highlights suggest hes more of a penalty box type striker, so the worry would be are we swapping Ings for a younger Ings. Then again youtube highlights suggested KEA was a world beater.
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Ah, KEA, floated around the pitch like an empty crisp packet and had about as much effect on proceedings
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KEA?! Was that the Lambert signing in midfield? Thanks, my mind had learned to erase some of the shite from that era...
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I guess it's a but like what my wife has to remind me when I'm confronted with the Yellow Sticker section of the supermarket - "It's only a bargain if you know what you're going to do with it".
He could be:
A pack of mince: Tremendous value that saves you money elsewhere. Works wonderfully as part of a bolognase that evening, with more leftover for lunch the following day.
A sausgae roll: Fills a gap - okay to eat on the way home and you can prepare something that you really want.
Crème fraîche: Yeah, it looks like an absolute bargain, and you may have all these amazing ideas in the shop, but you need to get real - you're going to be looking to get rid of it before long, and nobody is going to want it, even for the 20p that you spent on it.
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He'll be a pair of Lonsdale karate shoes, with a vastly over inflated RRP making the offered price appear seductive to those stupid enough to bite.
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Maybe though the reason he's so cheap is because he's really shit? Like, I'm sure we could bring Scott Hogan back pretty cheaply too.
21 league goals in 30 games for Lyon last season would suggest he isn't shit anyway. Obligatory YouTube highlights suggest hes more of a penalty box type striker, so the worry would be are we swapping Ings for a younger Ings. Then again youtube highlights suggested KEA was a world beater.
He scored some nice goals last year but yeh, they did include some penalties to pad the stats. Mind you that’s always overlooked when it comes to lavishing praise on Wor Alan or Kane.
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Still think we will see 2/3 in by close of window
Wide player
Striker
CM (depending on sanson going)
Some rumours Chelsea want Cash, if so i wouldn't rule that exit out for big money
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Chelsea have spent 400m since that American took over. He needs to chill out.
If we were offered 50m for Cash like as has been speculated then I'd take it.
After Young who is our next RB? KKH?
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The way Chelsea are throwing the cash about in desperation I wouldn't be surprised if they aren't considering another mad bid for someone like Kane.
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It's like a fucking supermarket sweep with them. Doesn't seem to be much in the way of strategy to it beyond that.
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Just signed Madueke for €35m. Their owner hasn't got a clue what he's doing. He is aware you can only play 11 players at one time isn't he?
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Dembele's goal record is quite prolific. At 26 I'd have thought you'd make a bit on money on him even if he's only a filler for a couple of seasons. I'm sure he'll want wages to reflect his cheap fee, but even so it doesn't look like terrible business to me?
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At least Chelsea are definitely complying with FFP.
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£50 for Cash... Mad money. Have to take it. Also have to sign a right back smartish.
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Maybe though the reason he's so cheap is because he's really shit? Like, I'm sure we could bring Scott Hogan back pretty cheaply too.
21 league goals in 30 games for Lyon last season would suggest he isn't shit anyway. Obligatory YouTube highlights suggest hes more of a penalty box type striker, so the worry would be are we swapping Ings for a younger Ings. Then again youtube highlights suggested KEA was a world beater.
He scored some nice goals last year but yeh, they did include some penalties to pad the stats. Mind you that’s always overlooked when it comes to lavishing praise on Wor Alan or Kane.
I wouldn't downplay a striker who scores penalties. It's good to have a reliable penalty take who you can be pretty confident will score.
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Just signed Madueke for €35m. Their owner hasn't got a clue what he's doing. He is aware you can only play 11 players at one time isn't he?
He's like Barry Fry, but with serious money.
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Just signed Madueke for €35m. Their owner hasn't got a clue what he's doing. He is aware you can only play 11 players at one time isn't he?
He's like Barry Fry, but with serious money.
Yeah, can't quite see him having to remortgage his house to put money into the club!!
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Dembele's goal record is quite prolific. At 26 I'd have thought you'd make a bit on money on him even if he's only a filler for a couple of seasons. I'm sure he'll want wages to reflect his cheap fee, but even so it doesn't look like terrible business to me?
15 national cup goals in the last eight seasons (including this one) according to Wikipedia. That's more than twice as many as Aston Villa.
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£50 for Cash... Mad money. Have to take it. Also have to sign a right back smartish.
Is this true? His value is closer to £50 than £50m but would be briliant if true. All our money worries over for a few years, let Unai mould his own team.
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I like Matty but fuck me we need to drive him there pronto if we get anything like 50m.
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If Watkins gets injured will it be that difficult to replace him
we go on as if he’s the only center forward we’ve got but he’s not really an out and out center forward is he
he’s not a target man, he doesn’t get many goals, he doesn’t hold the ball up that well, his touch and control is very limited but he does put a shift in so in effect we’ve been playing with a false 9 all season
any of our forward players can fill in there and have much the same effect
I don’t see it as a great problem
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Maybe though the reason he's so cheap is because he's really shit? Like, I'm sure we could bring Scott Hogan back pretty cheaply too.
21 league goals in 30 games for Lyon last season would suggest he isn't shit anyway. Obligatory YouTube highlights suggest hes more of a penalty box type striker, so the worry would be are we swapping Ings for a younger Ings. Then again youtube highlights suggested KEA was a world beater.
He scored some nice goals last year but yeh, they did include some penalties to pad the stats. Mind you that’s always overlooked when it comes to lavishing praise on Wor Alan or Kane.
I wouldn't downplay a striker who scores penalties. It's good to have a reliable penalty take who you can be pretty confident will score.
Takes a decent penalty, too
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I like Matty but fuck me we need to drive him there pronto if we get anything like 50m.
For that kind of money, I'd change the name of the stadium to "Chelsea are a Great Bunch of Lads Park" till the end of the season
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Maybe though the reason he's so cheap is because he's really shit? Like, I'm sure we could bring Scott Hogan back pretty cheaply too.
21 league goals in 30 games for Lyon last season would suggest he isn't shit anyway. Obligatory YouTube highlights suggest hes more of a penalty box type striker, so the worry would be are we swapping Ings for a younger Ings. Then again youtube highlights suggested KEA was a world beater.
He scored some nice goals last year but yeh, they did include some penalties to pad the stats. Mind you that’s always overlooked when it comes to lavishing praise on Wor Alan or Kane.
I wouldn't downplay a striker who scores penalties. It's good to have a reliable penalty take who you can be pretty confident will score.
Takes a decent penalty, too
Is he the full-time captain or was he just filling in that day? Usually denotes a good sort.
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I'd take Dembele. He's played over here before. Still in his prime years. It's a (potentially) solid January signing that fills a gap until we can get the level of striker we need for the next step. I'd say he arguably improves on what Ings provides. Quicker and stronger. Workrate and consistency are probably not quite as good, but though I like Ings, he always looked like he was running through treacle.
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In the winter window lineage of Borja Baston, Grant Holt, Oscar (?) Cummings; he'd do, I guess.
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What we need is a combination of somebody who runs around all day chasing the ball like Watkins and a technically skilled footballer like Ings. Dembele looks to have the skill but appears to preserve his energy.
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Is it just me that wonders if our illustrious owners are quite as rich or committed as we thought. Regularly over the last few years I have corrected supporters of other clubs with " Villa have the third richest owners in the League" (now 4th of course). Throughout that time however it doesnt really like that. If you compare our seemingly random approach to signing players to the way Newcastle have behaved since gaining their investors we look like total amateurs. Having strengthened successfully already they are still looking to add new players to replace temporary stand ins like Targett and Woods. Targeted and persuasive signings. What's the point of having rich owners if they never get their wallet out. Of course I know that it might not necessarily them that is the problem but iur recruitment team. All I know is I don't feel we have the approach or leverage we should have
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WTF is going on at Chelsea?
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Is it just me that wonders if our illustrious owners are quite as rich or committed as we thought. Regularly over the last few years I have corrected supporters of other clubs with " Villa have the third richest owners in the League" (now 4th of course). Throughout that time however it doesnt really like that. If you compare our seemingly random approach to signing players to the way Newcastle have behaved since gaining their investors we look like total amateurs. Having strengthened successfully already they are still looking to add new players to replace temporary stand ins like Targett and Woods. Targeted and persuasive signings. What's the point of having rich owners if they never get their wallet out. Of course I know that it might not necessarily them that is the problem but iur recruitment team. All I know is I don't feel we have the approach or leverage we should have
I think it is more to do with piss poor recruitment and a lack of faith in those recruiting. I think that has changed with the new manager who has obviously been given controll over recruitment but will be working within Financial parameters set by the board.
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WTF is going on at Chelsea?
They’re panicking. They’ve appointed badly IMO - not that Potter is a bad manager, I think he’s very capable - but he’s a manager you’d appoint based on what he’ll achieve over 5 or 6 seasons, not sack because Season 1 you’ve ended up mid table … and that doesn’t seem their style, more throwing money at problems.
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Chelsea = long contracts = FFP spread over those contracts.
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Chelsea = long contracts = FFP spread over those contracts.
How is that gonna pan out for them? A load of players they can't shift in a couple of years? Won't be able to sign many in future years?
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WTF is going on at Chelsea?
They’re panicking. They’ve appointed badly IMO - not that Potter is a bad manager, I think he’s very capable - but he’s a manager you’d appoint based on what he’ll achieve over 5 or 6 seasons, not sack because Season 1 you’ve ended up mid table … and that doesn’t seem their style, more throwing money at problems.
Amazed he's still in a job
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Calum Chambers set to be ditched by Unai Emery for second time after Arsenal exit
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/calum-chambers-set-ditched-unai-29008696
It's in the mirror so tie 5, but if he goes, it will sense to me.
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Given his versatility, I'd rather have Chambers than Konsa at the moment. Especially once Carlos is back next month.
11 days to go, no game next weekend, plenty of time to get shit done. Seems a lot rests on whether Sanson stays or goes though.
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He was good last season but not been so far this season. I think that we need to move him or Konsa on to make room for a new player.
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Given his versatility, I'd rather have Chambers than Konsa at the moment. Especially once Carlos is back next month.
11 days to go, no game next weekend, plenty of time to get shit done. Seems a lot rests on whether Sanson stays or goes though.
Chambers has been absolutely woeful last 5 or 6 times he's played, Konsa gets way more stick than he deserves imo. Him and Tyrone understand each other well and have a decent partnership. Shipping out a regular starter to then have someone who never plays instead makes zero sense
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Given his versatility, I'd rather have Chambers than Konsa at the moment. Especially once Carlos is back next month.
11 days to go, no game next weekend, plenty of time to get shit done. Seems a lot rests on whether Sanson stays or goes though.
Chambers has been absolutely woeful last 5 or 6 times he's played, Konsa gets way more stick than he deserves imo. Him and Tyrone understand each other well and have a decent partnership. Shipping out a regular starter to then have someone who never plays instead makes zero sense
That's not what I said. I am not suggesting that we play either Chambers OR Konsa. Carlos and Mings is the way forward, until the end of the season. Konsa loses his marker far too often. Neither Chambers or Konsa will take Villa into the top 8.
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We've got a bloated squad and getting rid of players who are surplus helps us.
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Let's be honest, Chambers isn't very good.
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brilliant at chipping a ball. That's about it.
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What a great goal that was, mind, one of the loveliest goals I've ever seen at Villa Park, I'd go as far as to say.
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So long as there is a plan I can see why we are sorting the squad out now. We aren’t going down or qualifying for Europe. So why wait til end of season?
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So long as there is a plan I can see why we are sorting the squad out now. We aren’t going down or qualifying for Europe. So why wait til end of season?
Because:
- We can still qualify for Europe, we're only 5 points off Brighton in 7th, and 6 points off Fulham in 6th, and Fulham have played a game more.
- We need to show players like Martinez that we mean business
- Winning becomes a habit, as Newcastle have demonstrated
- Finishing 6th or finishing 10th is a difference of about £20m in prize money
- If we finish in a disappointing lower table position again we'll struggle to get decent recruits in the summer
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What a great goal that was, mind, one of the loveliest goals I've ever seen at Villa Park, I'd go as far as to say.
and I was also referencing that goal at Leeds. A goal that had Messi scored the football media would have exploded all over their monitors.
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So long as there is a plan I can see why we are sorting the squad out now. We aren’t going down or qualifying for Europe. So why wait til end of season?
Because:
- We can still qualify for Europe, we're only 5 points off Brighton in 7th, and 6 points off Fulham in 6th, and Fulham have played a game more.
- We need to show players like Martinez that we mean business
- Winning becomes a habit, as Newcastle have demonstrated
- Finishing 6th or finishing 10th is a difference of about £20m in prize money
- If we finish in a disappointing lower table position again we'll struggle to get decent recruits in the summer
I wasn’t saying it was giving up, just looking long term….should we qualify for Europe do we have a squad to be able to deal with that
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So long as there is a plan I can see why we are sorting the squad out now. We aren’t going down or qualifying for Europe. So why wait til end of season?
Because:
- We can still qualify for Europe, we're only 5 points off Brighton in 7th, and 6 points off Fulham in 6th, and Fulham have played a game more.
- We need to show players like Martinez that we mean business
- Winning becomes a habit, as Newcastle have demonstrated
- Finishing 6th or finishing 10th is a difference of about £20m in prize money
- If we finish in a disappointing lower table position again we'll struggle to get decent recruits in the summer
I wasn’t saying it was giving up, just looking long term….should we qualify for Europe do we have a squad to be able to deal with that
We cross that bridge when we come to it. The sooner the better. I can't see how we'd be better off by not qualifying for Europe.
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I think there's truth on both sides here. Right now we have 3-4 players who don't really add anything to the team but are part of the squad as cover. If they go then we get injuries it's a risk but we'd go into the summer with a squad ready for 2-3 big additions to push on.
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So long as there is a plan I can see why we are sorting the squad out now. We aren’t going down or qualifying for Europe. So why wait til end of season?
Because:
- We can still qualify for Europe, we're only 5 points off Brighton in 7th, and 6 points off Fulham in 6th, and Fulham have played a game more.
- We need to show players like Martinez that we mean business
- Winning becomes a habit, as Newcastle have demonstrated
- Finishing 6th or finishing 10th is a difference of about £20m in prize money
- If we finish in a disappointing lower table position again we'll struggle to get decent recruits in the summer
Absolutely agree with all these points.
Fuck this surrendering and giving up nonsense, we want 50,000 people every other week watching top level players, we're going to need to start to stop this meek writing off of seasons at the slightest excuse.
If we want to keep our best players and attract better ones in other positions, even if we do not qualify for Europe, there's a big, big difference in how others perceive the club between finishing 7th and 14th. Not to mention the prize money, too.
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We are one of the most in form teams, with 19 games to go, we are 5 points back of Brighton in a Conference League position. 6 points back of Fulham in a Europa League spot. How on earth can anyone make the assessment we cannot qualify for Europe? Fuck we are 13 points back of Newcaetlt in 4th. Ok...I know that's a massive stretch. But we should be getting in players to get us into Europe. There is still a good way to go in the window. No reason we cannot get in a few players to help get us into one of those European spots.
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So long as there is a plan I can see why we are sorting the squad out now. We aren’t going down or qualifying for Europe. So why wait til end of season?
Because:
- We can still qualify for Europe, we're only 5 points off Brighton in 7th, and 6 points off Fulham in 6th, and Fulham have played a game more.
- We need to show players like Martinez that we mean business
- Winning becomes a habit, as Newcastle have demonstrated
- Finishing 6th or finishing 10th is a difference of about £20m in prize money
- If we finish in a disappointing lower table position again we'll struggle to get decent recruits in the summer
I wasn’t saying it was giving up, just looking long term….should we qualify for Europe do we have a squad to be able to deal with that
It has to be a combination of both long term planning and short term achievements. Successful clubs manage the balance. Our better players will undoubtably walk without things like European football. Playing European football gives more opportunities with regards budget, playing time (and thus attractiveness in players joining), profile, even wining a trophy. If we struggle initially with the balance then that’s what has to happen in order to progress. If we’re worried about dealing with playing more games in a season, we may as well give up now.
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On Guendouzi scouting duty tonight.
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Apart from dembele any other realistic suggestions for ings replacement? I'd love a Carew style battering ram up there.
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Trimming the squad is one thing, having one senior striker is another. Let’s hope we have something sorted quick, because whichever way you look at it if we leave January without another forward in it’s poor decision making. Hopefully that won’t be the case.
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I think we should get in that 18 year old from Sheff Utd. Jebbison. 6'3". A fair bit of first team experiences. A lot of pace. Very raw, but all the mouldings for a big fast number 9 in the future. Just a thought..l
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Given his versatility, I'd rather have Chambers than Konsa at the moment. Especially once Carlos is back next month.
11 days to go, no game next weekend, plenty of time to get shit done. Seems a lot rests on whether Sanson stays or goes though.
Chambers has been absolutely woeful last 5 or 6 times he's played, Konsa gets way more stick than he deserves imo. Him and Tyrone understand each other well and have a decent partnership. Shipping out a regular starter to then have someone who never plays instead makes zero sense
That's not what I said. I am not suggesting that we play either Chambers OR Konsa. Carlos and Mings is the way forward, until the end of the season. Konsa loses his marker far too often. Neither Chambers or Konsa will take Villa into the top 8.
I know but you're saying get rid of konsa over Chambers, and I'm disagreeing with you.
He probably will be upgraded in the summer, but until then he really should stay instead of Chambers
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We are one of the most in form teams, with 19 games to go, we are 5 points back of Brighton in a Conference League position. 6 points back of Fulham in a Europa League spot. How on earth can anyone make the assessment we cannot qualify for Europe? Fuck we are 13 points back of Newcaetlt in 4th. Ok...I know that's a massive stretch. But we should be getting in players to get us into Europe. There is still a good way to go in the window. No reason we cannot get in a few players to help get us into one of those European spots.
I think it's down to who is available and for how much. Busines is always so much more difficult in January so I don't think it's a case of deliberately waiting, just that the targets they want probably won't be gettable until summer.
I'm also sure that everyone associated with the club would want us to finish as high as possible, Europe an all
IMO I would worry about us in Europe next season as it feels too soon. Happens to a lot of clubs who get surprise European football and then have a shit league season and then the project falls apart. Happy to be proved wrong though
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Trimming the squad is one thing, having one senior striker is another. Let’s hope we have something sorted quick, because whichever way you look at it if we leave January without another forward in it’s poor decision making. Hopefully that won’t be the case.
Of course, but we have a third of the window still and the last few days of the Jan window normally accounts for a big chunk of the transfers so there's still loads to happen.
I'll be amazed if we don't have someone else in but it might be that it's more of a wide forward than a central striker.
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We are one of the most in form teams, with 19 games to go, we are 5 points back of Brighton in a Conference League position. 6 points back of Fulham in a Europa League spot. How on earth can anyone make the assessment we cannot qualify for Europe? Fuck we are 13 points back of Newcaetlt in 4th. Ok...I know that's a massive stretch. But we should be getting in players to get us into Europe. There is still a good way to go in the window. No reason we cannot get in a few players to help get us into one of those European spots.
I think it's down to who is available and for how much. Busines is always so much more difficult in January so I don't think it's a case of deliberately waiting, just that the targets they want probably won't be gettable until summer.
I'm also sure that everyone associated with the club would want us to finish as high as possible, Europe an all
IMO I would worry about us in Europe next season as it feels too soon. Happens to a lot of clubs who get surprise European football and then have a shit league season and then the project falls apart. Happy to be proved wrong though
I’m less concerned about that personally. We have to make that step at some stage, and I think we have a strong enough squad and canny enough manager that we’d be alright, if it were this season I could imagine playing something like
Olsen
Cash - Chambers - Mings - Digne
Nakamba - Iroegbunam
Buendia - Ramsey - Couts
Ings*
* I know he’s gone, but we’d have started the campaign at least
Obvs we’d be looking at some upgrades in the summer, but for me we’re only really 3 or 4 players off a decent Europa League squad there - not going to win it, but could realistically aim to get out of the groups. And European football would mean being able to attract better players, so you’d be looking at strengthening the first XI and then letting some of those players drop down to the ‘B’ team (with maybe the exception of Olsen, since we’re unlikely to find an upgrade on Emi1)
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Losing a centre half isn't a problem; we have 4 fit and one on the way back, plus we have, at a push, other players who can play there.
Losing central midfielders is necessary, because we have too many similar players and need to get rid of the bloat in the squad.
Losing a striker should create space for a new one.
We must have a couple of options lined up.
Maybe we've decided to be the first domino to get the market moving, it has to start somewhere. With regards to European qualification, if we're relying on Ings, Chambers, Sanson and Nakamba, we're not getting there are we?
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So long as there is a plan I can see why we are sorting the squad out now. We aren’t going down or qualifying for Europe. So why wait til end of season?
Because:
- We can still qualify for Europe, we're only 5 points off Brighton in 7th, and 6 points off Fulham in 6th, and Fulham have played a game more.
- We need to show players like Martinez that we mean business
- Winning becomes a habit, as Newcastle have demonstrated
- Finishing 6th or finishing 10th is a difference of about £20m in prize money
- If we finish in a disappointing lower table position again we'll struggle to get decent recruits in the summer
And irrespective of the medium and long-term permutations, it's more fun when Villa win football matches rather than lose football matches.
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Yep fuck the Champions League, I want to beat Southampton tomorrow!
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So long as there is a plan I can see why we are sorting the squad out now. We aren’t going down or qualifying for Europe. So why wait til end of season?
Because:
- We can still qualify for Europe, we're only 5 points off Brighton in 7th, and 6 points off Fulham in 6th, and Fulham have played a game more.
- We need to show players like Martinez that we mean business
- Winning becomes a habit, as Newcastle have demonstrated
- Finishing 6th or finishing 10th is a difference of about £20m in prize money
- If we finish in a disappointing lower table position again we'll struggle to get decent recruits in the summer
And irrespective of the medium and long-term permutations, it's more fun when Villa win football matches rather than lose football matches.
I'm not sure I can agree with this. What would I be annoyed about?
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So long as there is a plan I can see why we are sorting the squad out now. We aren’t going down or qualifying for Europe. So why wait til end of season?
Because:
- We can still qualify for Europe, we're only 5 points off Brighton in 7th, and 6 points off Fulham in 6th, and Fulham have played a game more.
- We need to show players like Martinez that we mean business
- Winning becomes a habit, as Newcastle have demonstrated
- Finishing 6th or finishing 10th is a difference of about £20m in prize money
- If we finish in a disappointing lower table position again we'll struggle to get decent recruits in the summer
And irrespective of the medium and long-term permutations, it's more fun when Villa win football matches rather than lose football matches.
I'm not sure I can agree with this. What would I be annoyed about?
I’m sure our resident Flintstone can advise you.
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Juventus docked 15 points for dodgy dealing.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/64355497
Weston McKennie said he wasn't keen on moving from Juve to Villa/Bournemouth because they weren't involved in European football.
Reckon he might be reconsidering?
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Juventus docked 15 points for dodgy dealing.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/64355497
Weston McKennie said he wasn't keen on moving from Juve to Villa/Bournemouth because they weren't involved in European football.
Reckon he might be reconsidering?
That’s it? 15 points. Christ almighty. May as well just cheat.
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Well, in some ways better than fining them. This puts them at risk of missing out on Chumps League.
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Well, in some ways better than fining them. This puts them at risk of missing out on Chumps League.
They should dock the points at the end of the season, not in the middle of it so they can make up the shortfall and still have a chance of getting in to the Champs League. They should be told that they are banned from it for next season and given a proper punishment. Not as if they have form either!!
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Well, in some ways better than fining them. This puts them at risk of missing out on Chumps League.
I think because the period in question covers more than one season, I personally think a point deduction this season alone is lenient. I agree it’s preferable to a fine, but ultimately, it should probably be both and more, with some of the money going to clubs that have ultimately lost out due to behaviour of Juve, a club that consistently cheats time and time again. Even a fine isn’t necessarily easy to quantify due to advantages gained in making transfers, etc.
They’re only being punished on one season which will probably be reduced on appeal just as it was for some clubs back in 2006. They’ll be quite happy with the current outcome despite the signals of shock they’ll undoubtedly be giving. It should really be a fine, points deduction, transfer ban and removal of any trophies won during the period.
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Juventus need putting into a cannon and firing into the sea.
Vile club.
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On Guendouzi scouting duty tonight.
Played mainly on the left for some reason. I'm not overly convinced by the formation Marseille use - think it's meant to be 3-4-3.
Anyway, he was fairly anonymous in the first half, but very good in the second and scored the only goal of the game with a nice controlled finish, albeit with what looked like a slight deflection.
He's definitely quality though, clearly one of the leaders on the pitch despite being only 23. Some nice touches, and doesn't get flustered when under pressure. He's certainly got an engine on him too. Late on he sprinted forward to press their right back and was clearly miffed his teammates didn't follow - but they were clearly knackered.
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Trimming the squad is one thing, having one senior striker is another. Let’s hope we have something sorted quick, because whichever way you look at it if we leave January without another forward in it’s poor decision making. Hopefully that won’t be the case.
It seems to have happened quite a bit in January over the last few years, where we have sold someone and left ourselves a bit short in certain positions. If it happens again, then I think some questions need to be asked about Lange and reading between the lines, Emery already seems to have his doubts about him.
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On Guendouzi scouting duty tonight.
Played mainly on the left for some reason. I'm not overly convinced by the formation Marseille use - think it's meant to be 3-4-3.
Anyway, he was fairly anonymous in the first half, but very good in the second and scored the only goal of the game with a nice controlled finish, albeit with what looked like a slight deflection.
He's definitely quality though, clearly one of the leaders on the pitch despite being only 23. Some nice touches, and doesn't get flustered when under pressure. He's certainly got an engine on him too. Late on he sprinted forward to press their right back and was clearly miffed his teammates didn't follow - but they were clearly knackered.
Not desperately trying to impress Villa scouts maybe?
I really want us to get him in. Kamara, Luiz, Tim, JJ and Guendouzi is some midfield squad.
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The impression I get from Guendouzi is of a leader who wants to win, He is just the quality of player we need.
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Cheers, Sam. Good to know.
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was he waving a final goodbye to all the marseilles fans at the end ?🤔😃
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Danjumas off to Everton.
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He’s a good player but I like that Emery has said we don’t need another player like him vs getting him in just because he played for his old club. And the player isn’t stupid. It’s a loan with no buy option.
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Danjumas off to Everton.
Straight loan and no obligation to buy so despite Unai’s views he could have done a short term job
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Danjumas off to Everton.
Straight loan and no obligation to buy so despite Unai’s views he could have done a short term job
He’s doing a 6 month audition at Everton.
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Chelsea = long contracts = FFP spread over those contracts.
How is that gonna pan out for them? A load of players they can't shift in a couple of years? Won't be able to sign many in future years?
Surprisingly it doesn't look too bad:
https://swissramble.substack.com/p/will-chelseas-transfer-spend-break
My main take away from that very long article is that FFP (whether PL version or UEFA) is not all that. It should be easy to manage for a club. And the cost for being in breach of the UEFA one does not seem like much of a deterrent.
I don't want to hear Villa can't spend due to FFP regulations.
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Some suggestion that Troyes want to take Sanson off our hands in their local papers.
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We seem immune to FFP anyway. Nothing seems to stop the owners spending what they want.
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Danjumas off to Everton.
Straight loan and no obligation to buy so despite Unai’s views he could have done a short term job
He’s doing a 6 month audition at Everton.
He’s doing a 6 month audition sentence at Everton.
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Let's hope Watkins doesn't get injured today! Then we have zero striker options. I can't believe we're in this situation. There was absolutely no need to rush Ings out the door. A risky gamble that could backfire.
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Let's hope Watkins doesn't get injured today! Then we have zero striker options. I can't believe we're in this situation. There was absolutely no need to rush Ings out the door. A risky gamble that could backfire.
We don’t play again for 2 weeks after today, plenty of time to get other option in.
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Let's hope Watkins doesn't get injured today! Then we have zero striker options. I can't believe we're in this situation. There was absolutely no need to rush Ings out the door. A risky gamble that could backfire.
We don’t play again for 2 weeks after today, plenty of time to get other option in.
He's like a stuck record
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Frankly it’s bizarre that we’ve sanctioned Ings going without having someone else in the bag. It’s all very well that the money works, but it doesn’t work on the pitch IMO.
I’m clinging to the hope his wages will go on an established goal scorer that ticks all the boxes and makes Ollie a substitute. Rather than spread across numerous players.
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Danjumas off to Everton.
Straight loan and no obligation to buy so despite Unai’s views he could have done a short term job
He’s doing a 6 month audition at Everton.
If we really wanted him, he'd have come to us, I am sure. Does make me wonder who we have lined up though. More excitement on the way!
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It’s obvious we need a top drawer striker.
The problem isn’t money anymore we have that.
The question is who? They are very thin on the ground.
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Let's hope Watkins doesn't get injured today! Then we have zero striker options. I can't believe we're in this situation. There was absolutely no need to rush Ings out the door. A risky gamble that could backfire.
Maybe we are confident of not going down or troubling the European places.
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I'm worried we won't win the league this season unless we buy all the best players from everywhere else.
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I'm worried we won't win the league this season unless we buy all the best players from everywhere else.
Is that a quote from Todd Boehly?
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I’m Unai we trust
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I'm worried we won't win the league this season unless we buy all the best players from everywhere else.
Is that a quote from Todd Boehly?
Or the inner musings of Steve Bruce in November 2016?
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I have been thinking and hypothetically if money was no object who from which team would I think fits our particular need. Forget Haarland for a minute and I must admit I'm not really clued up on player outside the prem and I keep coming back to the same player.
Anyone else that would take Toney from Brentford?
I know he comes across as a bit of a knob and has some current baggage but can play the Watkins role, with Extra goals, than most out there
Maybe 40 - 45 m would get him
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Don't think anyone will be going there until the betting stuff is over
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Anyone else that would take Toney from Brentford?
I know he comes across as a bit of a knob and has some current baggage but can play the Watkins role, with Extra goals, than most out there
Maybe 40 - 45 m would get him
Too much of a gamble at that price.
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Toney may have a ban to serve (possibly a lengthy one) at some point soon.
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Anyone else that would take Toney from Brentford?
I know he comes across as a bit of a knob and has some current baggage but can play the Watkins role, with Extra goals, than most out there
Maybe 40 - 45 m would get him
Too much of a gamble at that price.
Odds on.
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I have been thinking and hypothetically if money was no object who from which team would I think fits our particular need. Forget Haarland for a minute and I must admit I'm not really clued up on player outside the prem and I keep coming back to the same player.
Anyone else that would take Toney from Brentford?
I know he comes across as a bit of a knob and has some current baggage but can play the Watkins role, with Extra goals, than most out there
Maybe 40 - 45 m would get him
Its a shame that Isak has gone to the Barcodes because he would have been perfect. After that, I would like the Portuguese chap called Beto from Udinese. He has a good partnership with Delefeau. Or Charles De Ketelaere from AC Milan. He has a lot of potential. He doesn't seem to have settled at Milan & could be available for a good price. For the future, I wouldn't mind a cheeky little punt on Jebbinson from Sheff Utd. All three are tall, all have pace, all have a good touch. Stick the likes of Bailey either side & that is a complimentary front three, or four, if we stick another striker like Archer in there... More pace.
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Frankly it’s bizarre that we’ve sanctioned Ings going without having someone else in the bag. It’s all very well that the money works, but it doesn’t work on the pitch IMO.
I’m clinging to the hope his wages will go on an established goal scorer that ticks all the boxes and makes Ollie a substitute. Rather than spread across numerous players.
The thing is, wait around too long and you end up in a situation like we did with AEG and Traore - had we sold them that summer, when it was clear their star was as high as it was going to get, we'd have got a decent fee for them. Keep them around and you struggle to even give them away.
Same would've almost certainly happened with Ings in the summer ... he'd be 31 and in the last year of his contract, there's no way we'd get anything approaching £12m-£15m for him, in honesty we'd probably struggle to get rid of him at all since we wouldn't have the likes of West Ham panic buying players.
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I rate Toney but wouldn’t touch him unless he’s cleared of the gambling charges.
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I like the look of Moussa Dembele.
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I rate Toney but wouldn’t touch him unless he’s cleared of the gambling charges.
If he is convicted then he must be thick. Don't these idiots know the bookies aren't stupid.
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From the French press regarding Guendouzi (google translate):
"In view of his first hour yesterday against Rennes, we would not swear that Mattéo Guendouzi is not affected by the rumors of departure concerning him. The midfielder did not shine in a team that mainly played on the right side, with Cengiz Ünder and Ruslan Malinovskyi. But in the 59th, he scored the only goal of the game, that of qualification, and he then shone in an arched formation to defend his advantage. At the final whistle, he largely celebrated qualification with his teammates and supporters.
But his future continues to raise questions. This Saturday, L'Equipe ensures that Aston Villa is still interested in his profile and has even entered into negotiations with his entourage! However, OM do not need to sell him and will therefore only agree to negotiate on the condition that there is a very big offer. The conclusion is that we thought the threat of Villans remote but it is not. An offer could still fall by January 31. And we already know that, next summer, the Birmingham club will return to the charge."
I think this guy really would make a big difference for us.
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Young footballer with as much free time as money considered thick....Well I never
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Tottenham are facing an anxious wait to find out whether UEFA and FIFA will impose a 30-month footballing ban imposed on managing director of football Fabio Paratici by Italian authorities. (Daily Telegraph)
Lets hope
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Tottenham are facing an anxious wait to find out whether UEFA and FIFA will impose a 30-month footballing ban imposed on managing director of football Fabio Paratici by Italian authorities. (Daily Telegraph)
Lets hope
If he was banned, how would that impact Tottingham Hotspurs?
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I rate Toney but wouldn’t touch him unless he’s cleared of the gambling charges.
Exactly for Toney read the same conversations this time last year ref the criminal investigations around Bissouma.
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Tottenham are facing an anxious wait to find out whether UEFA and FIFA will impose a 30-month footballing ban imposed on managing director of football Fabio Paratici by Italian authorities. (Daily Telegraph)
Lets hope
If he was banned, how would that impact Tottingham Hotspurs?
because that's where he works?
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Tottenham are facing an anxious wait to find out whether UEFA and FIFA will impose a 30-month footballing ban imposed on managing director of football Fabio Paratici by Italian authorities. (Daily Telegraph)
Lets hope
If he was banned, how would that impact Tottingham Hotspurs?
because that's where he works?
Yeah... quite the issue.
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We are winning games by being very solid but lack pace and a bit of creativity. Like today against Saints. Well solid but we need a pacey winger to create some panic for the opposition.
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Big week ahead in terms of transfers. We need to add to the squad because we are looking very thin right now
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Tottenham are facing an anxious wait to find out whether UEFA and FIFA will impose a 30-month footballing ban imposed on managing director of football Fabio Paratici by Italian authorities. (Daily Telegraph)
Lets hope
If he was banned, how would that impact Tottingham Hotspurs?
because that's where he works?
Yes, but I mean would it stop them buying or selling players?
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I'm worried about Bailey and Buendia's consistency. I'm also worried about a few of the players who seem a little shoe horned into the wide spots of the 4-4-2, even McGinn (albeit he's played better there than he had been in the centre under Gerrard). JJ doesn't seem confident on the ball and gives it away constantly when pressed (maybe not entirely sharp after injury).
Gerrard flogging off three wide players has left us well short. I think we need much better than Bailey or Buendia in those respective positions. We need another couple of wide options. I hate (really hate) saying it, but Joe Mini-Shinpads would have a field day playing on the left of Unai's system. So a player of a similar ilk would be good. Someone with an alice band.
We also need someone pushing Douglas. I really don't think he's being pressed for his place enough and it's clear Sanson or Splendid aren't viable alternatives. I'd rather see JJ there but I don't think Unai will see him as composed or cultured enough on the ball to play the middle role. We need someone a little closer to Kamara's level of class and consistency.
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Big week ahead in terms of transfers. We need to add to the squad because we are looking very thin right now
Correct. This Bailey (if Watkins got injured) makeshift striker fantasy the fanbase were clinging onto ended today.
Nope!
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We need some forward players in - I think most else cant wait personally - but if Watkins or Bailey get injuried - were pretty fucked
Beundia, Phil, Bailey all too inconsitent - I would like to see something a bit difference. Maybe some with a bit more pace and power then we have
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I'm worried about Bailey and Buendia's consistency. I'm also worried about a few of the players who seem a little shoe horned into the wide spots of the 4-4-2, even McGinn (albeit he's played better there than he had been in the centre under Gerrard). JJ doesn't seem confident on the ball and gives it away constantly when pressed (maybe not entirely sharp after injury).
Gerrard flogging off three wide players has left us well short. I think we need much better than Bailey or Buendia in those respective positions. We need another couple of wide options. I hate (really hate) saying it, but Joe Mini-Shinpads would have a field day playing on the left of Unai's system. So a player of a similar ilk would be good. Someone with an alice band.
We also need someone pushing Douglas. I really don't think he's being pressed for his place enough and it's clear Sanson or Splendid aren't viable alternatives. I'd rather see JJ there but I don't think Unai will see him as composed or cultured enough on the ball to play the middle role. We need someone a little closer to Kamara's level of class and consistency.
Ibrahim Sangare from PSV for Kamaras partner... He is my first & only choice to partner Kamara. And then Timmy...
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I don't get the constant chat on here that we need a partner for Kamara, surely Luiz is having a fine season next to him? Very good again today and a brilliant assist. Don't think CM is a priority position that we have to strengthen.
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If Zaha was a few years younger he'd be ideal.
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Big week ahead in terms of transfers. We need to add to the squad because we are looking very thin right now
A big push for Emile Heskey to get us Champions League. Oh look, there go Arsenal buying Arseshavin - now watch him score 4 goals at Anfield ::)
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Tottenham are facing an anxious wait to find out whether UEFA and FIFA will impose a 30-month footballing ban imposed on managing director of football Fabio Paratici by Italian authorities. (Daily Telegraph)
Lets hope
If he was banned, how would that impact Tottingham Hotspurs?
because that's where he works?
Yes, but I mean would it stop them buying or selling players?
I’m guessing no? Incredibly harsh and weird if it did!
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I don't get the constant chat on here that we need a partner for Kamara, surely Luiz is having a fine season next to him? Very good again today and a brilliant assist. Don't think CM is a priority position that we have to strengthen.
I agree, I had Luiz down as a strong contender for man of the match. When we're dominating possession like that he's the one that's always looking to break the lines and shift the point of the attack. Add to that his ability to put in set pieces like he did today and he's well downt he list of players to replace for me.
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Yep Luiz is excellent. I would love us to add Guendouzi. Those three with Ramsey or McGinn would be great. A better version of Buendia or Bailey and another option instead of Ollie we’d be far more stronger in depth and enable to mix it up more.
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Thinly veiled message from Emery by having two keepers on the bench today?
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I like to look because if we can lock down a position with a strong set of players like, lets say for example, Kamara, Sangare, Luiz, Iroegbunam for CDM, then we can safely & quickly move onto another position & try & get players in as strong as our stable of CDMs. And we strengthen the first team, along with the squad, with relative ease... We don't have to do it. We could look at the forward areas first. But I think that if we can lock down an area of the pitch that has given us trouble since the days of George Boateng, then that can only be good for the club in the long term. Just my humble opinion though. Im not saying that we have to do it.
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Thinly veiled message from Emery by having two keepers on the bench today?
Nas and Wes barely glance at the subs listing. Next!
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Thinly veiled message from Emery by having two keepers on the bench today?
You think in a matter of a few months after the lengths that they went to bring in Emery, that the relationship between the owners and the manager have deteriorated to the extent he needs to send subliminal messages?
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Big week ahead in terms of transfers. We need to add to the squad because we are looking very thin right now
A big push for Emile Heskey to get us Champions League. Oh look, there go Arsenal buying Arseshavin - now watch him score 4 goals at Anfield ::)
... and your point?
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Big week ahead in terms of transfers. We need to add to the squad because we are looking very thin right now
A big push for Emile Heskey to get us Champions League. Oh look, there go Arsenal buying Arseshavin - now watch him score 4 goals at Anfield ::)
... and your point?
maybe the point is to get it right?
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Need more in final third to have a serious go at 7th imo.
Expecting two attacking signings in next 10 days. Rest can wait until summer as I assume Digne will be back in a few weeks.
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Need more in final third to have a serious go at 7th imo.
Expecting two attacking signings in next 10 days. Rest can wait until summer as I assume Digne will be back in a few weeks.
I can't think of a single reason we didn't bring Danjuma in other than thinking we didn't need to, because somebody better is coming instead.
But yes, a winger and a striker and there's no reason we shouldn't be looking at top eight. Don't do that and it's as neglectful as the Heskey comparisons above.
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Big week ahead in terms of transfers. We need to add to the squad because we are looking very thin right now
A big push for Emile Heskey to get us Champions League. Oh look, there go Arsenal buying Arseshavin - now watch him score 4 goals at Anfield ::)
... and your point?
maybe the point is to get it right?
Really?
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Need more in final third to have a serious go at 7th imo.
Expecting two attacking signings in next 10 days. Rest can wait until summer as I assume Digne will be back in a few weeks.
I can't think of a single reason we didn't bring Danjuma in other than thinking we didn't need to, because somebody better is coming instead.
But yes, a winger and a striker and there's no reason we shouldn't be looking at top eight. Don't do that and it's as neglectful as the Heskey comparisons above.
Based on the rumours so far I think Dembele and Delefeuo are pretty likely before the window is out. Will give us more flexibility and rotation options in final third and both are rated by the manager given he's tried to sign both previously.
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I think I read somewhere today that the young Everton winger, Anthony Gordon, was linked. Is Wilfred Zaha out of contract in the summer?
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I think I read somewhere today that the young Everton winger, Anthony Gordon, was linked. Is Wilfred Zaha out of contract in the summer?
Both good players, it might be above his station but perhaps Zaha might want champions league or at least European football, we might get it yet but he’s pushing 30 as well so will want big money on a free transfer and Chelsea bid £50m for Gordon in the summer.
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Gordon annoys me, diving little weasel.
Haven't the Everton fans been giving him grief for being shit?
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Gordon annoys me, diving little weasel.
Haven't the Everton fans been giving him grief for being shit?
I believe so, not quite sure why, he hasn’t been great recently but that could be levelled at the whole team and he had a good start to the season.
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Gordon annoys me, diving little weasel.
Haven't the Everton fans been giving him grief for being shit?
I believe so, not quite sure why, he hasn’t been great recently but that could be levelled at the whole team and he had a good start to the season.
He’s had a 6 month period of looking quite good. For £50m I’d like to think we can do better than Gordon. He’s decent, potentially pretty good but there’s better and better value out there.
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Being linked with Newcastle as well (Gordon, that is). And it seems plenty of the Bluescouse would be quite happy to see him go.
Prob just a young player going through an indifferent phase after a decent debut season. It happens.
At the numbers suggested I'd prefer to look elsewhere, mind.
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I think Gordon's a real talent, and has just lost his way in an absolute shitshow of a club. Although he probably didn't do himself any favours by expressing a desire to leave.
Be a fine signing for any team though.
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Everton always seem to turn on their young players for some reason
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Everton always seem to turn on their young players for some reason
I’ve thought this for years and said it here before but Everton really do have the worst fan base of any of the ‘big’ clubs.
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If there really is a decent chunk of money to be spent, can’t we just get the chequebook out and bring back Tammy? I know he’s done well in Italy, and appears settled, but I’m sure not making the World Cup squad has him wondering about being back and scoring in the Prem - rather than the “out of sight out of mind” problem he has right now?. Chelsea won’t want him back (think they have first refusal) so surely worth making a bid?
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Gordon is average. Tammy isn't good enough either, unfortunately. Not dynamic enough imo, a fairly one dimensional footballer scoring goals in a pretty poor Italian league
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Big week ahead in terms of transfers. We need to add to the squad because we are looking very thin right now
A big push for Emile Heskey to get us Champions League. Oh look, there go Arsenal buying Arseshavin - now watch him score 4 goals at Anfield ::)
... and your point?
maybe the point is to get it right?
Really?
Yes! I'm sure they will, I just still feel bitter how we pissed it away in 2009.
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Gordon is average. Tammy isn't good enough either, unfortunately. Not dynamic enough imo, a fairly one dimensional footballer scoring goals in a pretty poor Italian league
He's not even scoring goals in Italy this season.
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Gordon is average. Tammy isn't good enough either, unfortunately. Not dynamic enough imo, a fairly one dimensional footballer scoring goals in a pretty poor Italian league
I agree on Gordon. I've never understood the hype, 4 goals and 2 assists in 35 games last year and people were talking about £50m bids. I know there's more to the game than that but for a winger to be worth that money they need end product.
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Next week could be very interesting. A good wide player, competition for Watkins and maybe a midfielder coming through the door and we could be in for an exciting run-in.
The midfielder may be able wait, but we need another winger and striker.
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Gordon is average. Tammy isn't good enough either, unfortunately. Not dynamic enough imo, a fairly one dimensional footballer scoring goals in a pretty poor Italian league
I agree on Gordon. I've never understood the hype, 4 goals and 2 assists in 35 games last year and people were talking about £50m bids. I know there's more to the game than that but for a winger to be worth that money they need end product.
I like the look of him. Maybe he just needs a better manager and better players around him? His record is fairly similar to Buendia's this season, playing in a far worse team managed by Fat Fwank. And he's only 21 still.
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Gordon is average. Tammy isn't good enough either, unfortunately. Not dynamic enough imo, a fairly one dimensional footballer scoring goals in a pretty poor Italian league
Really? I think he has quite obviously developed into a more rounded player in Italy. I would like someone better still at Villa but he'd certainly improve our team.
Tammy's form was patchy up until the holidays but Roma's focal point is now Dybala and I just think it has taken a bit of time to establish an understanding. Last two games I watched, Tammy scored, made a goalline clearance and two direct assists.
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Big week ahead in terms of transfers. We need to add to the squad because we are looking very thin right now
A big push for Emile Heskey to get us Champions League. Oh look, there go Arsenal buying Arseshavin - now watch him score 4 goals at Anfield ::)
... and your point?
maybe the point is to get it right?
Really?
Yes! I'm sure they will, I just still feel bitter how we pissed it away in 2009.
Ah, got you now! Maybe me being a bit dense.
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As much as I would like Guenduzi (sp) would that not knock back Tim's development even further?
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As much as I would like Guenduzi (sp) would that not knock back Tim's development even further?
Our main goal is to quickly build a side that can challenge for European football, not to develop Tim’s career
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Everton always seem to turn on their young players for some reason
I’ve thought this for years and said it here before but Everton really do have the worst fan base of any of the ‘big’ clubs.
It's a bluenoseification, forged in the heat of a bitter rival relentlessly pissing over you for decades.
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Plus, they have easily the worst vocal support, the only noise they ever make is to moan at ref's decisions
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Plus, they have easily the worst vocal support, the only noise they ever make is to moan at ref's decisions
They are great at that, to be fair. The best fans in the world for throwing their arms about in outrage. Every time the ref makes a decision, Goodison looks like a giant pre-school swimming lesson.
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Plus, they have easily the worst vocal support, the only noise they ever make is to moan at ref's decisions
They are great at that, to be fair. The best fans in the world for throwing their arms about in outrage. Every time the ref makes a decision, Goodison looks like a giant pre-school swimming lesson.
That is very good😃
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It may be on Twitter but I hope it’s true, apparently Guendouzi has played his last game for his team as we’ve made him a wonderful offer.
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It may be on Twitter but I hope it’s true, apparently Guendouzi has played his last game for his team as we’ve made him a wonderful offer.
I've just read that. One to watch if true.
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It may be on Twitter but I hope it’s true, apparently Guendouzi has played his last game for his team as we’ve made him a wonderful offer.
Mattéo Guendouzi, courted by Aston Villa, knows that he may be playing his last matches with Olympique de Marseille this January. Aston Villa made him a ‘wonderful’ offer. @lequipe #avfc
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This would be excellent. If we do add a winger and another striker as well which Emery did imply, this could be one hell of a transfer window.
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Guendouzi, a winger and a striker would be great. Maybe a backup keeper.
Sell Chambers, I like him but he'll never play him.
Flog Olsen - he's turd.
I'd be open to selling McGinn too, Kamara and Luiz are excellent and Ramsey would be the next choice in the middle if one of those isn't fit.
Obviously sell Sanson and Nakamba
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Part-ex with Sanson to appease their fans perhaps?
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Not this window but would anyone take Brennan Johnson from Forest? I think he’s a great player anyway, plenty to work on but he’s young enough to improve further and go up a couple of levels.
Maybe we’d want a more finished article to displace Watkins.
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Deulofeu on the bench for Udinese today.
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It may be on Twitter but I hope it’s true, apparently Guendouzi has played his last game for his team as we’ve made him a wonderful offer.
If this pans out, it would be a wonderful acquisition. Him and Kamara together will be truly exciting.
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Deulofeu on the bench for Udinese today.
Jose Mourinho at Roma wants him. Apparently.
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Flog Olsen - he's turd.
If you do have any expertise in flogging turds please write to lange@avfc.co.uk ;D
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Plus, they have easily the worst vocal support, the only noise they ever make is to moan at ref's decisions
"HANDBALL!!!"
"But he's taking a throw in..." ???
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I think we'd be able to pick over the corpse of the Everton squad this summer. Not sure if it would improve us but Dominic Cruciate-Ligament or whatever his name is could give us a good option to Watkins?
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It may be on Twitter but I hope it’s true, apparently Guendouzi has played his last game for his team as we’ve made him a wonderful offer.
If this pans out, it would be a wonderful acquisition. Him and Kamara together will be truly exciting.
Apparently we've made him a "wonderful" offer.
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I think we'd be able to pick over the corpse of the Everton squad this summer. Not sure if it would improve us but Dominic Cruciate-Ligament or whatever his name is could give us a good option to Watkins?
Thats a marvellous name for him and one I shall use at every opportunity.
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I think we'd be able to pick over the corpse of the Everton squad this summer. Not sure if it would improve us but Dominic Cruciate-Ligament or whatever his name is could give us a good option to Watkins?
Always injured and bang average anyway, he can sling his man bag elsewhere.
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I think we'd be able to pick over the corpse of the Everton squad this summer. Not sure if it would improve us but Dominic Cruciate-Ligament or whatever his name is could give us a good option to Watkins?
Fuck that.
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One good season, one above average season and the rest is bang average to shit. And he's spent most of this and last season injured. I wouldn't touch him.
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There are only ever a few players from relegated clubs that ever amount to anything. And Everton that would be the keeper and not a lot else. And we don’t need a starting keeper.
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There are only ever a few players from relegated clubs that ever amount to anything. And Everton that would be the keeper and not a lot else. And we don’t need a starting keeper.
Armel Bella Kotchap from Southampton would be one to steal... He looks like he has a lot of potential. Maybe Nathan Tella, Romeo Lavia & Valentino Livramento, too. They all look like good players for the future... All from Southampton.
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There are only ever a few players from relegated clubs that ever amount to anything. And Everton that would be the keeper and not a lot else. And we don’t need a starting keeper.
Yep, not sure that's that much to pick out of the bones of that club to be honest. Nathan Patterson might be one, and that Gordon lad if either are available for cheap, or Pickford if we qualify for Europe so can offer him a decent number of games.
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My opinion of Guendozi is tainted by the fact that I only remember him from when he played at Arsenal. Only his hair made him stand out and he liked to throw his dummy out of the pram. I trust he's levels better now.
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I think in the summer if Everton go down Onana would be a good buy for some one…
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Dominic Cruciate-Ligament! *applause*
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That is superb.
Could pick up Danny Ings on the cheap if West Ham go down.
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It may be on Twitter but I hope it’s true, apparently Guendouzi has played his last game for his team as we’ve made him a wonderful offer.
If this pans out, it would be a wonderful acquisition. Him and Kamara together will be truly exciting.
Apparently we've made him a "wonderful" offer.
In the original French it is « une offre mirobolante » which is more like "a stupendous offer" and they say he knows "he may well have played his last game" for OM. Either way, sounds promising.
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It may be on Twitter but I hope it’s true, apparently Guendouzi has played his last game for his team as we’ve made him a wonderful offer.
If this pans out, it would be a wonderful acquisition. Him and Kamara together will be truly exciting.
Apparently we've made him a "wonderful" offer.
In the original French it is « une offre mirobolante » which is more like "a stupendous offer" and they say he knows "he may well have played his last game" for OM. Either way, sounds promising.
I really hope that this is true. It would sew up our central midfield for the next four or five years with him and Bouba. Luiz, Ramsey, Tim, SJM all battling for the other places. Coutinho and Buendia might struggle a tad to get a game. Still have the winger to think about too.
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Guendouzi and a forward would be good business this January. It would mean that our midfield should be sorted for some years to come.
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We need to find a way to let Coutinho go too. We will end up paying most of his wages no doubt but he's a lost cause.
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Yep a 6 of Guendouzi, Kamara, Luiz, McGinn, Ramsey, Dendoncker for 3 centre midfield positions looks very healthy with Tim potentially to come in if he’s good enough and someone doesn’t come up to scratch (Dendonkar) or wants to leave (Luiz).
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In Emery's current set up there isn't a place for an out an out 10. The wider player of the midfield 4 are much more about energy and moving the ball quickly, rather than orchestrating the play in the way a 10 would. We don't need both Phil and Emi...
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Flog Olsen - he's turd.
If you do have any expertise in flogging turds please write to lange@avfc.co.uk ;D
yes - I used to work for a football club.
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In Emery's current set up there isn't a place for an out an out 10. The wider player of the midfield 4 are much more about energy and moving the ball quickly, rather than orchestrating the play in the way a 10 would. We don't need both Phil and Emi...
I think a front 3 of a quick skillfull player one side who can stretch and get in behind the opponent, a biggish quick strong awkward to play against finisher down the middle and either a work horse high press player or a methodical creative player the other side (depending on the opposition) is a good mix.
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Gordon is average. Tammy isn't good enough either, unfortunately. Not dynamic enough imo, a fairly one dimensional footballer scoring goals in a pretty poor Italian league
Really? I think he has quite obviously developed into a more rounded player in Italy. I would like someone better still at Villa but he'd certainly improve our team.
Tammy's form was patchy up until the holidays but Roma's focal point is now Dybala and I just think it has taken a bit of time to establish an understanding. Last two games I watched, Tammy scored, made a goalline clearance and two direct assists.
Lovely goal for Roma tonight.
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Abraham would be useful, but still needs a lot of service.
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Yep a 6 of Guendouzi, Kamara, Luiz, McGinn, Ramsey, Dendoncker for 3 centre midfield positions looks very healthy with Tim potentially to come in if he’s good enough and someone doesn’t come up to scratch (Dendonkar) or wants to leave (Luiz).
I think Emery looks set on playing 2 in the middle and will only include McGinn (or Ramsey) there in emergencies. Think the Donk has a bit of impressing to do after the Stevenage debacle. If Guendouzi does come in there it doesn't look great for the Donk.
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Marseille are apparently bringing in a midfielder from Hellas Verona, so maybe that will unblock things.
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He's staying with verona until the summer, though. (I thought the exact same initially)
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Marseille are apparently bringing in a midfielder from Hellas Verona, so maybe that will unblock things.
I presume we’re just going to put him on a shortlist for a year or two.
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I'm not so sure that matters, they've already loaned in a midfielder for the rest of the season so the verona guy is likely the long term option for that role. Aside from that Guendouzi has really played in centre mid all that much this season, his role has been closer to how we've been using Buendia, McGinn and Ramsey as a wide/attacknig midfielder who can drift in field when we have the ball but who helps his fullback when out of possession. If he does come in I can see him playing the same role more often than he partners Kamara.
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Now Arsenal have bought Trossard, I wonder if we'll make another bid for Smith Rowe, only problem is he has been injury prone lately.
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Smith Rowe? I can’t see where he would fit in. He’s been injured so often since we did try for him originally and that was ages ago.
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I can see the sense in it, Emery will know him so if he thinks there's a player there then it could happen. The injuries are a bit of a concern but that's what the medical is for. At his best he'd be a much better choice for the role we've given to Buendia (in my opinion). We also do need to keep a few more English players arounds the squad for the homegrown quota.
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Smith Rowe? I can’t see where he would fit in. He’s been injured so often since we did try for him originally and that was ages ago.
Surely if hes injured all the time, he would fit right in as a Villa signing
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Smith-Prone then.
(I’ll get my coat).
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Chelsea must need to cut a few....would Pulisic be gettable?
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L'Equipe saying Sanson to Strasbourg will be completed tomorrow. Paves the way for Guendouzi?
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Sansome going
Marseille signing highly rated midfielder from Verona
2+2 = Guendouzi?
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I can't believe people are turning their nose up at Tammy Abraham. I doubt we're in for him, but genuinely surprised to see people think we can do better this January.
I'm hoping there is a forward incoming, I can't imagine for one moment we're going the rest of the season with only Ollie, but I hope against hope it won't be a 31st Jan 6 months loan deal for some past-it striker because all of our targets were ultimately unavailable.
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Are Strasbourg a kind of TK Maxx for our unwanted french players?
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Are Strasbourg a kind of TK Maxx for our unwanted french players?
More like a charity shop.
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That Romano dude on Twitter.
Aston Villa are currently exploring offering an initial loan for Moussa Dembele with buy option included. That’s their only proposal as things stand 🚨⚪️ #AVFC
Lyon want €8m guaranteed fee, no agreement yet.
Bournemouth, also keeping an eye on the situation.
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That Romano dude on Twitter.
Aston Villa are currently exploring offering an initial loan for Moussa Dembele with buy option included. That’s their only proposal as things stand 🚨⚪️ #AVFC
Lyon want €8m guaranteed fee, no agreement yet.
Bournemouth, also keeping an eye on the situation.
Bargain at that price. Strange one though, his contract runs out at the end of the season, at which point there won’t be a fee.
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A loan would seem odd unless the player wants to keep his free transfer options open. At which point a high loan fee for 6 months would be silly. I very much doubt we will spend big on Guendouzi and another player, so I would expect any striker coming in to be reasonably cheap.
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Think Kyle Walker Peters would be a decent pick up in the summer.
Only saw the highlights so don't know how he looked other than the tap in offside goal but I've been impressed by him previously.
He now has 3-4 years of regular prem football, can play at both sides at full back and if they go down could surely get him for 10-15m so think that would be a good long term replacement for Young.
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Think Kyle Walker Peters would be a decent pick up in the summer.
Only saw the highlights so don't know how he looked other than the tap in offside goal but I've been impressed by him previously.
He now has 3-4 years of regular prem football, can play at both sides at full back and if they go down could surely get him for 10-15m so think that would be a good long term replacement for Young.
Yep I liked him when he was at Spurs, although I think he's possibly a bit like Cash in that he likes getting forward but his final ball isn't up to much.
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Well with Sanson gone expect Guendouzi to roll in this week.
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Let's hope so.
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Think Kyle Walker Peters would be a decent pick up in the summer.
Only saw the highlights so don't know how he looked other than the tap in offside goal but I've been impressed by him previously.
He now has 3-4 years of regular prem football, can play at both sides at full back and if they go down could surely get him for 10-15m so think that would be a good long term replacement for Young.
Yep I liked him when he was at Spurs, although I think he's possibly a bit like Cash in that he likes getting forward but his final ball isn't up to much.
Thought he had us on toast at times. Would be delighted to have him. The lad on the right with him was a good player too, Edouzie? Thought he was very good for 19. Would be a very decent signing if they go down as a squad player coming through in the wide midfield role.
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They signed Edomite from Man City in the summer didn’t they?
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Think Kyle Walker Peters would be a decent pick up in the summer.
Only saw the highlights so don't know how he looked other than the tap in offside goal but I've been impressed by him previously.
He now has 3-4 years of regular prem football, can play at both sides at full back and if they go down could surely get him for 10-15m so think that would be a good long term replacement for Young.
Yep I liked him when he was at Spurs, although I think he's possibly a bit like Cash in that he likes getting forward but his final ball isn't up to much.
Isn't this what we already have with KKH?
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They signed Edomite from Man City in the summer didn’t they?
They signed 2-3 from Man City I think. No idea what they paid but they have a decent foundation for a good team but it will take time. May have to drop and come back up, test will be if they get cherry picked off.
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I'm not so sure that matters, they've already loaned in a midfielder for the rest of the season so the verona guy is likely the long term option for that role. Aside from that Guendouzi has really played in centre mid all that much this season, his role has been closer to how we've been using Buendia, McGinn and Ramsey as a wide/attacknig midfielder who can drift in field when we have the ball but who helps his fullback when out of possession. If he does come in I can see him playing the same role more often than he partners Kamara.
I agree, I think he'll play on the right in McGinn's roleL Ramsey - Luiz - Kamara - Guendouzi.
But he is also a great option for one of the DM roles if Luiz or Kam get injured. A very good versatile player, he seems like a great fit to me.
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The next week or so will be interesting. I wonder if our form has changed the original plan a bit? We may see an extra sort-term signing that may not fit in with the overall plan, just to see if we can push into Europe. A deal like the one for Dembélé - a relatively small amount as a bit of a gamble. If they score 5-10 goals for the rest of the season, it could be the difference, but no major disaster if it doesn't work out and it shouldn't affect our long-term scouting. I'd love us to get Marcus Thuram, who would both be quite cheap given his contract situation and one for the long-term, but I don't know how realistic that is - it's all gone very quiet around him.
If we do get Guendouzi, he would give us a lot of flexibility, and it may mean we can play three in midfield at times, maybe giving Ramsey/McGinn a more chance to get forward. Add in a winger and we have a lot to work with, particularly with Carlos, Digne, McGinn and Durán to add to the squad from Saturday.
It's all pretty exciting, though. To even have European qualification as a goal, no matter how unlikely that is, is incredible.
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I can't seem them binning off Ings and bringing just Dembele in as a stop gap, there's a bigger deal or two on the way. They've just appointed one of the best coaches in the world, he's off to a flier and the the possibility of qualifying for Europe is on the cards.
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I can't seem them binning off Ings and bringing just Dembele in as a stop gap, there's a bigger deal or two on the way. They've just appointed one of the best coaches in the world, he's off to a flier and the the possibility of qualifying for Europe is on the cards.
You could get Thuram and Dembele for relative peanuts - fee wise at least. That’s a massive upgrade on Bailey and Ollie, much as I love them. Dembele got 21 in 25 starts last season. Don’t know Thuram’s stats.
That said, I think Duran will be contributing sooner than many people think.
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Guendouzi and Walker-Peters veterans of my all-conquering Catania team from Football Manager, good signs. Though unfortunately I don't think wunderkind no.10 Pasquale Sedara actually exists so maybe the league title will have to wait.
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Bednarek being recalled by Southampton it seems
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Bednarek being recalled by Southampton it seems
Utterly pointless signing.
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Yeah that move did nothing for anyone.
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Or it could be that Diego Carlos is nearing full fitness (or at least able to make the bench by Feb) so the deal has served its purpose.
He didn't look a total disaster in his few outings with us.
But Saints fans don't seem too enamoured with him, by the looks of it.
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Bednarek being recalled by Southampton it seems
Excellent news….was a very odd signing, never looked good enough for this league in all his time there…just glad we haven’t had to see much of him
Feels like true deadwood shifting is going on
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Or it could be that Diego Carlos is nearing full fitness (or at least able to make the bench by Feb) so the deal has served its purpose.
He didn't look a total disaster in his few outings with us.
But Saints fans don't seem too enamoured with him, by the looks of it.
Agreed and that's probably quite likely.
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Bednarek being recalled by Southampton it seems
Good. He is shit. Slower than my nan & she has been in the ground for five years...
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He'll always have Stevenage.
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He was just additional cover because Carlos got injured. Fortunately we didn't really need to use him, which is a good thing.
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Bednarek being recalled by Southampton it seems
Excellent news….was a very odd signing, never looked good enough for this league in all his time there…just glad we haven’t had to see much of him
Feels like true deadwood shifting is going on
Yeah, it's as good to see that as us buying new players to my mind. Getting players off the books, hopefully for the most part for FFP-friendly fees (e.g. we've lost money on Danny Ings, but FFP-wise I think we're slightly up since he'd amortised* half his 3yr contract). They've mostly done their job of getting us back as a pretty steady Premier League side, now we need a slightly different set of players to push us towards inevitable UEFA Cup (or should that be UNAI Cup? Eh? Eh?) glory under Emery.
* not sure if that's the right wording for it, but you know what I mean!!
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Only one that's odd is Sanson. He clearly wants to play, but with no buy clause he comes back this summer. I hope he's brilliant and we get some money in.
Bednarek has been crap.
Feel a bit sorry for Nakamba, always done a job for us.
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Think Kyle Walker Peters would be a decent pick up in the summer.
Only saw the highlights so don't know how he looked other than the tap in offside goal but I've been impressed by him previously.
He now has 3-4 years of regular prem football, can play at both sides at full back and if they go down could surely get him for 10-15m so think that would be a good long term replacement for Young.
Yep I liked him when he was at Spurs, although I think he's possibly a bit like Cash in that he likes getting forward but his final ball isn't up to much.
Isn't this what we already have with KKH?
Kesler Hayden hasn't started CL games away to Barcelona to best of my knowledge. He hasn't been getting regular starts at a bottom 3 championship side for most of the season so don't think he's as close to Tim to playing regularly in prem next season.
That said wouldn't be against seeing how he looks in early rounds of league cup.
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They signed Edomite from Man City in the summer didn’t they?
They signed 2-3 from Man City I think. No idea what they paid but they have a decent foundation for a good team but it will take time. May have to drop and come back up, test will be if they get cherry picked off.
They remind me so much of us in 12/13. Some good play at times but really struggle to score and they give away so many cheap goals from lax marking at set pieces. Can see why they've recalled Bednarek as he'll at least give them some more height.
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With Fred, Ings, Bednarak and (as looks likely) Sanson out the door this Jan there prob isn't a drastic need to move Nakamba on as well.
As one of our early PL signings I doubt he is on killer wages.
He could still be an option to cover injury or suspension.
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Bednarek being recalled by Southampton it seems
Utterly pointless signing.
With the power of hindsight, indeed.
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Bednarek being recalled by Southampton it seems
Utterly pointless signing.
With the power of hindsight, indeed.
Really? A lot of us predicted as much...
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Bednarek being recalled by Southampton it seems
Utterly pointless signing.
With the power of hindsight, indeed.
Really? A lot of us predicted as much...
Yep. certainly asked why we needed a bloke who could not get in to Southampton's title challenging team. ???
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Like others have said, it was just cover for Carlos. Nothing more than that.
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End of August to now doesn't seem so long ago looking back.
But injury or suspension for Mings or Konsa after that period would've left us even more bollocksed than we already were. Four and a bit months was too long to chance it.
I'd have prefered the young PSG centre half who ended up at Leipzig (Diallo?). But can understand why 4th choice CB with us didn't leap out as the best career choice for him. An experienced PL centre back like Bednarak on loan with no obligation to buy made sense at the time.
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If we can add
Guendouzi
And either Dembele or Thuram
to Moreno and Duran then that would be a great window and we would have strengthened / improved on several key positions.
Make it so .....
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If Chambers goes we need to add a versatile defender too.
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If Chambers goes we need to add a versatile defender too.
Indeed.
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We all get a little rose-tinted when discussing new signings, but for balance, I work with a French guy who knows his football.... and also supports Lyon.
I told him this morning that Villa were potentially sniffing after Dembele and he said he'd drive him there himself - Says he's god awful.
Hopefully, this is just because he's thrown his toys out due to the arrival of Lacazette, but I'd probably guess that we shouldn't be expecting to get a prolific 20 goal a season man. 🙄
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If we can add
Guendouzi
And either Dembele or Thuram
to Moreno and Duran then that would be a great window and we would have strengthened / improved on several key positions.
Make it so .....
Forward and wide player are the areas where we really need reinforcements, so would be the priorities, but I think if Guendouzi is available now then we get him in and maybe sacrifice one of the other positions if we have to.
Another striker would be the priority out off the two I suppose.
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We all get a little rose-tinted when discussing new signings, but for balance, I work with a French guy who knows his football.... and also supports Lyon.
I told him this morning that Villa were potentially sniffing after Dembele and he said he'd drive him there himself - Says he's god awful.
Hopefully, this is just because he's thrown his toys out due to the arrival of Lacazette, but I'd probably guess that we shouldn't be expecting to get a prolific 20 goal a season man. 🙄
That is what French fans on another forum for general football I use have said too...
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And Lyon want €8m for him with four months and a week left on his contract? Pffft...
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The Romano account quoting those numbers appears to be bogus.
The last Villa-related update from the real one mentions Roma and ourselves being interested in Deulfeou.
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We all get a little rose-tinted when discussing new signings, but for balance, I work with a French guy who knows his football.... and also supports Lyon.
I told him this morning that Villa were potentially sniffing after Dembele and he said he'd drive him there himself - Says he's god awful.
Hopefully, this is just because he's thrown his toys out due to the arrival of Lacazette, but I'd probably guess that we shouldn't be expecting to get a prolific 20 goal a season man. 🙄
That is what French fans on another forum for general football I use have said too...
I've watched and played a lot of football in 40 years, and those two games I watched him against West Ham he was fucking useless. It pissed me off because I wanted Lyon to win.
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Danny Ings out a few weeks with a knee injury.
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Ings injured, I see. Trust the process.
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Ings injured, I see. Trust the process.
there is a God after all, should add David Sullivan your time is up,
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Talk of Coutinho going to Corinthians. Can't see it unless we get a couple more forwards in
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Talk of Coutinho going to Corinthians. Can't see it unless we get a couple more forwards in
Probably best all round. Would love to see him kick on under Emery but just can’t see it happening.
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How the hell are Corinthians going to afford him?
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Talk of Coutinho going to Corinthians. Can't see it unless we get a couple more forwards in
If there’s a chance we can offload him I’d take it.
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How the hell are Corinthians going to afford him?
Didn't they sign Willian from Arsenal in a very similar situation?
We're not going to get much of a transfer fee for him now so going to have to hope someone stumps up wages.
I actually think he'll end up in MLS, would be a big coup for that league.
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How the hell are Corinthians going to afford him?
Didn't they sign Willian from Arsenal in a very similar situation?
We're not going to get much of a transfer fee for him now so going to have to hope someone stumps up wages.
I actually think he'll end up in MLS, would be a big coup for that league.
Yes on a free after he agreed to cancel his contract. He left because of death threats to him and his family.
I agree MLS is more likely and less dangerous.
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I would also let Coutinho go, as much as would love to see the Liverpool Phil or even the one from first half a dozen games for us it’s looking more and more like he’s a busted flush at this level.
For me Buendia has been very average for most of the season, particularly when he starts but Coutinho offers no real competition so he keeps getting picked
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Coutinho is finished at this level and Buendia isn’t good enough for where we want to be, and he’s not good enough to help us get there either.
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Plus, they have easily the worst vocal support, the only noise they ever make is to moan at ref's decisions
They are great at that, to be fair. The best fans in the world for throwing their arms about in outrage. Every time the ref makes a decision, Goodison looks like a giant pre-school swimming lesson.
Yes, I've always said that they're the most perpetually furious set of fans I've ever seen.
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Ings injured, I see. Trust the process.
there is a God after all, should add David Sullivan your time is up,
Probably a bit much.
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Talk of Coutinho going to Corinthians. Can't see it unless we get a couple more forwards in
If there’s a chance we can offload him I’d take it.
Definitely
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Coutinho is finished at this level and Buendia isn’t good enough for where we want to be, and he’s not good enough to help us get there either.
Buendia is helping us get there? He’s been part of this team which is second in the form table behind Arsenal dice Emery arrived. As is the rest of the players who have been starting most matches.
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Coutinho is finished at this level and Buendia isn’t good enough for where we want to be, and he’s not good enough to help us get there either.
Buendia is helping us get there? He’s been part of this team which is second in the form table behind Arsenal dice Emery arrived. As is the rest of the players who have been starting most matches.
I like Emi, but he's still wildly inconsistent during games. He will do something sublime and then follow it up with something that is more at home at Sunday league level.
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Coutinho is finished at this level and Buendia isn’t good enough for where we want to be, and he’s not good enough to help us get there either.
Buendia is helping us get there? He’s been part of this team which is second in the form table behind Arsenal dice Emery arrived. As is the rest of the players who have been starting most matches.
I like Emi, but he's still wildly inconsistent during games. He will do something sublime and then follow it up with something that is more at home at Sunday league level.
I just can't see how or where he fits into this shape Emery plays to get the best out of him. Maybe he should try him more central and Bailey out wide? Hard to say, as at the moment it's working, but there has to be more to come from both those players.
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Jackson from Villarreal off to Bournemouth?
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Coutinho is finished at this level and Buendia isn’t good enough for where we want to be, and he’s not good enough to help us get there either.
Buendia is helping us get there? He’s been part of this team which is second in the form table behind Arsenal dice Emery arrived. As is the rest of the players who have been starting most matches.
We've been gettings results without playing that well though. It feels like Unai is squeezing every last ounce out of the squad, which isn't going to be sustainable for ever. We need more players and we need better players.
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Jackson from Villarreal off to Bournemouth?
I'm sorry to miss Jackson, from Villa real.
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Jackson from Villarreal off to Bournemouth?
I'm sorry to miss Jackson, from Villa real.
applause :D
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Coutinho is finished at this level and Buendia isn’t good enough for where we want to be, and he’s not good enough to help us get there either.
Buendia is helping us get there? He’s been part of this team which is second in the form table behind Arsenal dice Emery arrived. As is the rest of the players who have been starting most matches.
We've been gettings results without playing that well though. It feels like Unai is squeezing every last ounce out of the squad, which isn't going to be sustainable for ever. We need more players and we need better players.
I agree we need to invest and improve but I feel Buendia has certainly helped to get us up the table as much as the rest of the team playing has.
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I think Buendia isn't the guy to be a guaranteed starter if we want to push toward the top of the league, but he can contribute at that level as a squad player. Nothing wrong with that - who last year would've picked Nketiah as a title-challenger? (If you did, if it's just me being dim, then shut up nerd.)
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Coutinho is finished at this level and Buendia isn’t good enough for where we want to be, and he’s not good enough to help us get there either.
Buendia is helping us get there? He’s been part of this team which is second in the form table behind Arsenal dice Emery arrived. As is the rest of the players who have been starting most matches.
I like Emi, but he's still wildly inconsistent during games. He will do something sublime and then follow it up with something that is more at home at Sunday league level.
I just can't see how or where he fits into this shape Emery plays to get the best out of him. Maybe he should try him more central and Bailey out wide? Hard to say, as at the moment it's working, but there has to be more to come from both those players.
It changes really. Against Leeds he was more central, but in the second half at Southampton, he was definitely playing more out on the left.
Him and Moreno struggled defensively in the second half on Saturday and quite a few of their chances came from poor defending on the left side.
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I agree we need to invest and improve but I feel Buendia has certainly helped to get us up the table as much as the rest of the team playing has.
He has indeed Ian, but I do think he'll be one of the players who faces the biggest challenge to retain his place once the new recruits start arriving.
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It feels like Unai is squeezing every last ounce out of the squad, which isn't going to be sustainable for ever. We need more players and we need better players.
That's my take too. The guy is doing a brilliant job with players almost all of whom he inherited.
The bench at the weekend only had nine players on it, and that included two goalkeepers, a player who has since left, and a kid who had just signed his first professional contract a couple of days before.
As well as those on the bench, there was Nakamba and Augustinsson both of whom have been told they're not staying, and the former of whom is probably talking to clubs already so perhaps not in the right mind to be part of the squad (and is not good enough, anyway).
He's a great manager, but he is not a miracle worker. A week left of the window and we absolutely need good players in. If we don't, I fear we'll not finish as far up the table as we might do, and contrary to the "we aren't qualifying for Europe but we're not going to get relegated either so who cares" argument, that sort of thing matters to the handful of really, really great, in demand players we have and want to hold on to (the best keeper in the world, for starters).
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Coutinho is finished at this level and Buendia isn’t good enough for where we want to be, and he’s not good enough to help us get there either.
Buendia is helping us get there? He’s been part of this team which is second in the form table behind Arsenal dice Emery arrived. As is the rest of the players who have been starting most matches.
I like Emi, but he's still wildly inconsistent during games. He will do something sublime and then follow it up with something that is more at home at Sunday league level.
I just can't see how or where he fits into this shape Emery plays to get the best out of him. Maybe he should try him more central and Bailey out wide? Hard to say, as at the moment it's working, but there has to be more to come from both those players.
I think Buendia could turn into a much more effective player with a different striker in front of him. The one thing that Ings was very good at was peeling off his man and finding space for a through ball to played to him. Emi and Ings linked up a few times, Burnley and Brentford away last season for goals and there plenty more that Ings missed. At Norwich, they won the league because Emi and Pukki linked up so well like that. The problem we have had is that Ings isn't quite quick enough to do this regularly and Ollie just doesn't seem to be that kind of striker, for whatever reason. And I like Ollie, and I like Emi. They just don't seem to be that compatible. Off the top of my head, I can't think of many times they have linked up to score like that.
If we do decide to find an upgraded version of Emi, they must work as hard as he does, because I think that is critical to the way we play. Getting someone who works as hard as him and is better on the ball isn't going to be easy, or cheap. If we could somehow coach him to become a bit better, that would be great.
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Jackson from Villarreal off to Bournemouth?
I'm sorry to miss Jackson, from Villa real.
applause :D
Haha. Very good!
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In Emery's 442, Buendia is currently a square peg - he'll be replaced, as he doesn't seem to have the strength or consistency to hold that wider role. However, he gives us flexibility. It wouldn't take much to change into a 4231 with Emi as the 10 (realistically it should be Phil as the 10 and Emi2 as the understudy, but that wouldn't be fair based on current form)
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Might be wrong (usually am, in fact), but going off how quickly we've made it clear that some players are surplus to requirements - I don't see how either Emi B or Ollie can be in that category. I mean, we might be open to accepting a big offer on him, but at the end of the day there's a number of players closer to the exit than he is (Sanson, maybe Cash, Chambers, Augustinsson, Nakamba, Coutinho, maybe Olsen, maybe Digne, ...) - that's 8 new faces potentially, 9 if you include Ings' vacated spot. Then there's Ashley Young, who whilst he's (hopefully) going to be around for another season - and might conceivably manage another couple - is unlikely to be playing Premier League football for a sizeable chunk of his 40s.
To my mind we've got 2, maybe 3, transfer windows' worth of signings right there ... so unless there's a silly offer for McGinn, Watkins, Buendia, etc - I can't see them being shifted either now or in the summer, and probably not next January either.
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Mcginn and Buendia if keep giving the ball as much as they do will be replaced by Emery sooner rather than later.
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Might be wrong (usually am, in fact), but going off how quickly we've made it clear that some players are surplus to requirements - I don't see how either Emi B or Ollie can be in that category. I mean, we might be open to accepting a big offer on him, but at the end of the day there's a number of players closer to the exit than he is (Sanson, maybe Cash, Chambers, Augustinsson, Nakamba, Coutinho, maybe Olsen, maybe Digne, ...) - that's 8 new faces potentially, 9 if you include Ings' vacated spot. Then there's Ashley Young, who whilst he's (hopefully) going to be around for another season - and might conceivably manage another couple - is unlikely to be playing Premier League football for a sizeable chunk of his 40s.
To my mind we've got 2, maybe 3, transfer windows' worth of signings right there ... so unless there's a silly offer for McGinn, Watkins, Buendia, etc - I can't see them being shifted either now or in the summer, and probably not next January either.
Yes you can't obviously replace everybody at once (although Chelsea are having a stab at it). You've got people who are definitely surplus to requirements (Sanson, Gilbert, Nakamba etc) then definite nailed on players to build your team around (Martinez, Kamara and Ramsey). Most of the others will have a sliding scale of need to be replaced at some point, which might take 2-3 years.
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Jackson from Villarreal off to Bournemouth?
I'm sorry to miss Jackson, from Villa real.
Had to Google.
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Jackson from Villarreal off to Bournemouth?
I'm sorry to miss Jackson, from Villa real.
applause :D
Haha. Very good!
Impressive!
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Might be wrong (usually am, in fact), but going off how quickly we've made it clear that some players are surplus to requirements - I don't see how either Emi B or Ollie can be in that category. I mean, we might be open to accepting a big offer on him, but at the end of the day there's a number of players closer to the exit than he is (Sanson, maybe Cash, Chambers, Augustinsson, Nakamba, Coutinho, maybe Olsen, maybe Digne, ...) - that's 8 new faces potentially, 9 if you include Ings' vacated spot. Then there's Ashley Young, who whilst he's (hopefully) going to be around for another season - and might conceivably manage another couple - is unlikely to be playing Premier League football for a sizeable chunk of his 40s.
To my mind we've got 2, maybe 3, transfer windows' worth of signings right there ... so unless there's a silly offer for McGinn, Watkins, Buendia, etc - I can't see them being shifted either now or in the summer, and probably not next January either.
Yes you can't obviously replace everybody at once (although Chelsea are having a stab at it). You've got people who are definitely surplus to requirements (Sanson, Gilbert, Nakamba etc) then definite nailed on players to build your team around (Martinez, Kamara and Ramsey). Most of the others will have a sliding scale of need to be replaced at some point, which might take 2-3 years.
That's about where I am but I think at least some of those outgoings will be filled from the U21s and I wouldn't be surprised if 1 or 2 that don't seem to be on their way out right now are sold in the summer so they go whilst we can get a decent fee back on them.
Specifically on Buendia I had concerns about him being too easily bullied when he signed and nothing that's happened since has changed my mind. However I think the problem isn't about strength (as I said at the time) it's his lack of acceleration. When he tries to knock the ball past a defender they have time to turn and push him off the ball because he's just too slow getting beyond them.
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Specifically on Buendia I had concerns about him being too easily bullied when he signed and nothing that's happened since has changed my mind. However I think the problem isn't about strength (as I said at the time) it's his lack of acceleration. When he tries to knock the ball past a defender they have time to turn and push him off the ball because he's just too slow getting beyond them.
I agree on that, at least most of it.
I think he is clearly a very talented footballer, but he has limitations around being easily forced off the ball - which I suspect he knows, and probably contributes to his propensity to give the ball away whilst trying to pass his way out of trouble.
The problem is, there are some things you can remedy with training and there are others you can't. He is never going to become physically bigger, for example. He can be coached on retaining the ball better, yes, but I think ultimately the fact he can be pushed off the ball so easily is going to do for him at this level.
TL;DR - he's too lightweight.
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Jackson from Villarreal off to Bournemouth?
I'm sorry to miss Jackson, from Villa real.
applause :D
Haha. Very good!
Impressive!
It was marvellous.
Although that song has now been on my internal jukebox since seeing that post. It shifted that Bob Mortimer song about slim people which had been there since seeing that clip yesterday.
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It's not being knocked off the ball though, it's the unforced misplaced passes under no pressure too.
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It's not being knocked off the ball though, it's the unforced misplaced passes under no pressure too.
That too.
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I'm sorry I don't get Buendia being not physical enough and knocked off the ball to easy. That's not the problem it's like his the only player with a small physique Hendrie,Wright was smaller but went on had good careers.
It's about his lack of concentration or what ever he keeps giving the ball away even when his not under pressure. This has to prove first before anything else.
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Specifically on Buendia I had concerns about him being too easily bullied when he signed and nothing that's happened since has changed my mind. However I think the problem isn't about strength (as I said at the time) it's his lack of acceleration. When he tries to knock the ball past a defender they have time to turn and push him off the ball because he's just too slow getting beyond them.
I agree on that, at least most of it.
I think he is clearly a very talented footballer, but he has limitations around being easily forced off the ball - which I suspect he knows, and probably contributes to his propensity to give the ball away whilst trying to pass his way out of trouble.
The problem is, there are some things you can remedy with training and there are others you can't. He is never going to become physically bigger, for example. He can be coached on retaining the ball better, yes, but I think ultimately the fact he can be pushed off the ball so easily is going to do for him at this level.
TL;DR - he's too lightweight.
I'm also not sure the adage of too lightweight works as well as it used to either. Players can bulk up these days and a low centre of gravity can often be seen as a good thing (think Aguero/Messi, even Mcginn). There are plenty of examples of smaller players playing to a very high level, the important thing is to know where to put your body and how to keep it between the ball and the defender. This is what Emi is very poor at but that can be coached
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
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It's not being knocked off the ball though, it's the unforced misplaced passes under no pressure too.
For me this is his biggest problem.
The amount of times he gives the ball away, in every single game, is ridiculous for a supposedly a quality number 10.
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
A mixture if 4-2-3-1 & 4-4-2. Although the 4-4-2 is with deeper central mids & narrower "wide" midfielders... Personally, I don't understand why we don't use Buendia as the right side "wide" mid. He was most comfortable & most productive there for Norwich.
Personally, with our squad, I prefer the 4-2-3-1. Luiz & Kamara deep mids, Bailey, Ramsey & Buendia the 3 attacking mids & Watkins (or Duran when ready) up top...
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It's not being knocked off the ball though, it's the unforced misplaced passes under no pressure too.
The sloppy passing is more noticeable and probably a bigger limitation right now but I think that can be worked on. His ability to get away from defenders is harder to do anything about and is what will stop him from ever being a top player.
I love his work rate and desire and when he gets it right he can make and score goals so I'm all for having him around the squad but I just don't think he'll ever become the player we hoped he'd be by now and as a result I think we paid £10-15m too much for him.
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Yeah we definitely paid too much for him.
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We paid what it took to get him. Ahead of Arsenal remember.
He's a great little player, who tries things that don't come off at times. Whilst I like Watkins, he isn't a clever player and doesn't read what Buendia is doing, and it seems like Buendia doesn't want to change what he does either.
Having said all of that, there were some passages of play on Saturday where there was a lot of intricate close passing and it feels like we're going for that style a lot more.
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I'm sorry I don't get Buendia being not physical enough and knocked off the ball to easy. That's not the problem it's like his the only player with a small physique Hendrie,Wright was smaller but went on had good careers.
It's about his lack of concentration or what ever he keeps giving the ball away even when his not under pressure. This has to prove first before anything else.
That should be easily fixed with a bit of coaching, Paul's point on his lack of acceleration is key for me. Like you I'm not too concerned about his size but he does need to realise that he can't power through opposition midfield and defences, he could try going around them, he certainly has the skill. We can probably work on his speed but it's not going to improve overnight. I'd lock him in a room with a Bernardo Silva box set and let him see how a lightweight can deliver time and time again without getting pushed off the ball at the first challenge.
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We paid what it took to get him. Ahead of Arsenal remember.
Yes, they bought Odegaard the same summer for less money. I wonder how their wages compare?
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I'm sorry I don't get Buendia being not physical enough and knocked off the ball to easy. That's not the problem it's like his the only player with a small physique Hendrie,Wright was smaller but went on had good careers.
It's about his lack of concentration or what ever he keeps giving the ball away even when his not under pressure. This has to prove first before anything else.
That should be easily fixed with a bit of coaching, Paul's point on his lack of acceleration is key for me. Like you I'm not too concerned about his size but he does need to realise that he can't power through opposition midfield and defences, he could try going around them, he certainly has the skill. We can probably work on his speed but it's not going to improve overnight. I'd lock him in a room with a Bernardo Silva box set and let him see how a lightweight can deliver time and time again without getting pushed off the ball at the first challenge.
Yep this 100%. Hes yet another small player for us who hasnt been coached to make the most of his low centre of gravity.
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https://twitter.com/DominicKing_DM/status/1617867723291389954?s=20
Aston Villa have failed with a club record bid to sign Nico Williams from Athletic Bilbao. Prepared to pay £45million release clause but Williams didn't want to leave the Basque country. Unai Emery has enquired about Luiz Henrique as an alternative at Real Betis
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Gerard Deulofeu | Claim player has ‘rich offer’ from Aston Villa ‘in hand’
• Contract worth €4m/year
• Villans ready to pay €20m for him
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https://twitter.com/DominicKing_DM/status/1617867723291389954?s=20
Aston Villa have failed with a club record bid to sign Nico Williams from Athletic Bilbao. Prepared to pay £45million release clause but Williams didn't want to leave the Basque country. Unai Emery has enquired about Luiz Henrique as an alternative at Real Betis
I am liking very much the types of players we after. Pacy. Pace is crucial in the modern game...
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£45m for a kid who has scored 3 goals. Bloody hell.
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I read somewhere that Emery likes to work with very specific players in his squad and that he doesn't like big squads. So I can see that he's going to shift players out he has no need for. It is very thin though right now, but I expect by the deadline 2 or 3 in, with a players coming back plus kids recalled we should be ok to still challenge for Europe and get us to the summer
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Glass half full: 7 caps for Spain at age 20.
Glass half empty: 3 goals in 20 for Bilbao.
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Glass half full: 7 caps for Spain at age 20.
Glass half empty: 3 goals in 20 for Bilbao.
Glass completely empty - he doesn't want to move anyway!
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£45m for a kid who has scored 3 goals. Bloody hell.
The Spanish pundit on the athletic European football podcast says he will become the real deal (this is the younger brother right?).
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https://twitter.com/DominicKing_DM/status/1617867723291389954?s=20
Aston Villa have failed with a club record bid to sign Nico Williams from Athletic Bilbao. Prepared to pay £45million release clause but Williams didn't want to leave the Basque country. Unai Emery has enquired about Luiz Henrique as an alternative at Real Betis
Do we actually know any of this actually happened?
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It's not being knocked off the ball though, it's the unforced misplaced passes under no pressure too.
Who, Outkast?
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Gerard Deulofeu | Claim player has ‘rich offer’ from Aston Villa ‘in hand’
• Contract worth €4m/year
• Villans ready to pay €20m for him
Deulofeu reminds me of the curate, Leonard Finch in the series Grantchester.
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On the plus side it shows we are trying to strengthen in the forward, much needed.
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If all these rumours are to be believed it looks like we are looking to get the type of quick wide player Bailey was meant to be / looked like.... so frustrating...
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Gerard Deulofeu | Claim player has ‘rich offer’ from Aston Villa ‘in hand’
• Contract worth €4m/year
• Villans ready to pay €20m for him
A disappointing player when he was last plying his trade on this land but maybe he has changed a la De Bruyne and Salah etc.
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Gerard Deulofeu | Claim player has ‘rich offer’ from Aston Villa ‘in hand’
• Contract worth €4m/year
• Villans ready to pay €20m for him
A disappointing player when he was last plying his trade on this land but maybe he has changed a la De Bruyne and Salah etc.
Not really the same thing. Salah never got much of a chance at Chelsea as a 22 year old, de Bruyne even less so. Deulofeu has spent 5 seasons and nearly 120 games in England.
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Yes, he's not going to be a Salah or De Bruyne. He is very talented though and very effective even at this level on his day. The 'on his day' bit would be the concern though as we have plenty like that already.
I won't pretend i'd be disappointed if he signed though, just in case he finally hits some consistency with us.
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Yeah I must admit to finding the Deulofeu links a bit underwhelming. Emery gets to do what he wants though, as far as I'm concerned, so crack on.
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https://twitter.com/DominicKing_DM/status/1617867723291389954?s=20
Aston Villa have failed with a club record bid to sign Nico Williams from Athletic Bilbao. Prepared to pay £45million release clause but Williams didn't want to leave the Basque country. Unai Emery has enquired about Luiz Henrique as an alternative at Real Betis
If true, I'm impressed with the club going after such a coveted player. I'd imagine some of the bigger clubs would try and hijack the deal if Bilbao were to concede his departure by accepting our bid. We have to find a way to replace Danny's output now that he's gone and I'm glad the club seem willing to fork out some big cash to make it happen.
C'mon Unai, work your magic!
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Swap Coutinho for Deulofeu?
Would rather we kept our signings under 27.
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https://twitter.com/DominicKing_DM/status/1617867723291389954?s=20
Aston Villa have failed with a club record bid to sign Nico Williams from Athletic Bilbao. Prepared to pay £45million release clause but Williams didn't want to leave the Basque country. Unai Emery has enquired about Luiz Henrique as an alternative at Real Betis
If true, I'm impressed with the club going after such a coveted player. I'd imagine some of the bigger clubs would try and hijack the deal if Bilbao were to concede his departure by accepting our bid. We have to find a way to replace Danny's output now that he's gone and I'm glad the club seem willing to fork out some big cash to make it happen.
C'mon Unai, work your magic!
Nico Williams looks like a star in the making, I'd put signing him on a par with Kamara in terms of us getting someone who wilol have plenty of options and could become world class pretty quickly.
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Nico Williams looks like a star in the making, I'd put signing him on a par with Kamara in terms of us getting someone who wilol have plenty of options and could become world class pretty quickly.
Boubacar had played full four seasons though, and I think with midfielders it's easier to gauge what you're getting.
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Swap Coutinho for Deulofeu?
Would rather we kept our signings under 27.
Another no to Deulofeu from me
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Bilbao players normally have a higher buy out clause than their actual value because of the Basque only policy. However if Unai thinks he’s the man and there’s plenty of room for improvement, why not!
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Bilbao players normally have a higher buy out clause than their actual value because of the Basque only policy. However if Unai thinks he’s the man and there’s plenty of room for improvement, why not!
When you look at it, its pretty crazy how rarely they sell their talent. Only Kepa and Laporte in the last 10 years (generating a combined 140m Euros).
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Bilbao players normally have a higher buy out clause than their actual value because of the Basque only policy. However if Unai thinks he’s the man and there’s plenty of room for improvement, why not!
Because apparently the player doesn't want to?
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Bilbao are an absolute gem of a club with their ethos. Such a small pool of players to choose from and never being relegated. In their history I think they've spent less than £200m. It doesn't surprise me they want to keep hold of their best players and equally that there is brand loyalty. When I visited last year I don't think I saw another kit, no Sociedad, not Barca and certainly no Real.
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Bilbao players normally have a higher buy out clause than their actual value because of the Basque only policy. However if Unai thinks he’s the man and there’s plenty of room for improvement, why not!
Because apparently the player doesn't want to?
Well there is that.
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Bilbao are an absolute gem of a club with their ethos. Such a small pool of players to choose from and never being relegated. In their history I think they've spent less than £200m. It doesn't surprise me they want to keep hold of their best players and equally that there is brand loyalty. When I visited last year I don't think I saw another kit, no Sociedad, not Barca and certainly no Real.
also, on the subject of the Basque country as a whole, pretty incredible there are three Basque managers in the PL
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Nico Williams looks like a star in the making, I'd put signing him on a par with Kamara in terms of us getting someone who wilol have plenty of options and could become world class pretty quickly.
Boubacar had played full four seasons though, and I think with midfielders it's easier to gauge what you're getting.
Maybe but there's 2 things I like d of him from the world cup appaerances and the couple of times I've seen him in the league.
First is that he's learned quickly that there's no point beating the same man again, loads of tricky wingers struggle to get beyond that when the way to become a great player is to create the space and then use it before teams adjust.
Second, and more subjective, he does the futsal thing of controlling the ball with his studs when he gets passes with his back to goal. The benefit of it is that where you go isn't determined by the touch so you can make the decision later and give the defender a chance to sell himself.
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I’ll be honest, not the Nico Williams I thought it was. My first thought was that was a lot of money for a Liverpool reserve….
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I’ll be honest, not the Nico Williams I thought it was. My first thought was that was a lot of money for a Liverpool reserve….
The first time I noticed him was because the commentators were talking about him being able to pick Ghana or Spain and he decided to play for Spain, which confused me because I was certain he was Welsh.
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I’ll be honest, not the Nico Williams I thought it was. My first thought was that was a lot of money for a Liverpool reserve….
And even more for one who joined Forest for £15m in the summer!
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I’ll be honest, not the Nico Williams I thought it was. My first thought was that was a lot of money for a Liverpool reserve….
And even more for one who joined Forest for £15m in the summer!
And has been ousted by the world class right back that is Serge Aurier…
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I’ll be honest, not the Nico Williams I thought it was. My first thought was that was a lot of money for a Liverpool reserve….
The first time I noticed him was because the commentators were talking about him being able to pick Ghana or Spain and he decided to play for Spain, which confused me because I was certain he was Welsh.
I laughed ouloud at this paul_e
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I'd never heard of Dominic King until a few days ago and based on the way we normally conduct our business am sceptical that he knows as much as he claims. The only one I really trust about us is Percy - and on the wider transfer market Fabrizio. Does anyone know his track record of 'scoops' ?
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Bilbao are an absolute gem of a club with their ethos. Such a small pool of players to choose from and never being relegated. In their history I think they've spent less than £200m. It doesn't surprise me they want to keep hold of their best players and equally that there is brand loyalty. When I visited last year I don't think I saw another kit, no Sociedad, not Barca and certainly no Real.
Know what you mean, but "brand loyalty" (sick bag)
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I'd never heard of Dominic King until a few days ago and based on the way we normally conduct our business am sceptical that he knows as much as he claims. The only one I really trust about us is Percy - and on the wider transfer market Fabrizio. Does anyone know his track record of 'scoops' ?
Daily Mail, no real source, no quotes and very likely zero truth. File in the BS folder.
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Guendozi before saturday. As above, based on nothing concrete. I just knows it.
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I’ll be honest, not the Nico Williams I thought it was. My first thought was that was a lot of money for a Liverpool reserve….
The first time I noticed him was because the commentators were talking about him being able to pick Ghana or Spain and he decided to play for Spain, which confused me because I was certain he was Welsh.
I laughed outloud at this paul_e
Same here. Every day there's a least one post that stands out as a reminder of why I come on here on a daily basis. Today it's this. Paul E Rwy'n eich cyfarch!
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Based on how we conduct our business, I doubt we've bid £45m for Williams without first getting some sort of understanding that he'd actually come to us.
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
Isn't it because he looks a bit toss?
The new Dwight McNeil I reckon.
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon.
I can hazard a good guess as to why we haven't joined this particular bidding war. He's dog shit.
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Really? every time I’ve seen him he looks an absolute handful. Not £45m quality but I suspect that his age/potential/happens to be English.
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
Isn't it because he looks a bit toss?
The new Dwight McNeil I reckon.
His hair looks like one of Viz's Fat Slags
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
Isn't it because he looks a bit toss?
The new Dwight McNeil I reckon.
His hair looks like one of Viz's Fat Slags
**applause**
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
Isn't it because he looks a bit toss?
The new Dwight McNeil I reckon.
His hair looks like one of Viz's Fat Slags
Hahaha, I can't unsee that now
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
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Based on how we conduct our business, I doubt we've bid £45m for Williams without first getting some sort of understanding that he'd actually come to us.
The Smith-Rowe and Ward-Prowae 'bids' didn't follow that pattern, and perhaps we weren't really interested but put in a bid anyway to show willing. You just never know.
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
https://ibb.co/sPv4vS9
That’s why.
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
Despite 575 passes, Martinez still had to make an unbelievable save to keep the game scoreless at a crucial time and our winner came from a set piece. I can't recall another clear cut chance in the second half despite owning the ball. I really admire the defensive resilience Emery has implemented but with the ball I have increasing concerns about the 442 setup.
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
https://ibb.co/sPv4vS9
That’s why.
or because Gordon is shit
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
https://ibb.co/sPv4vS9
That’s why.
I know I’m getting old and not in with the kids but fuckin hell
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
Despite 575 passes, Martinez still had to make an unbelievable save to keep the game scoreless at a crucial time and our winner came from a set piece. I can't recall another clear cut chance in the second half despite owning the ball. I really admire the defensive resilience Emery has implemented but with the ball I have increasing concerns about the 442 setup.
I think you're talking absolute nonsense. If we had better attackers, things would probably be more comfortable. IMO the set up is good but we've got bailey/watkins/buendia who I think all need improving on. Set up isn't the issue, we need more quality.
Also can't believe you'd be questioning the set up given the results after 3 months in the job, and the rabble we were when he took over
Moon a stick you want
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
Despite 575 passes, Martinez still had to make an unbelievable save to keep the game scoreless at a crucial time and our winner came from a set piece. I can't recall another clear cut chance in the second half despite owning the ball. I really admire the defensive resilience Emery has implemented but with the ball I have increasing concerns about the 442 setup.
My wife accuses me of being a miserable git. There's no point in me responding with, "not by brontebilly standards" because she obviously wouldn't know what that means, but I think it.
That's not in any way a dig, by the way. I wouldn't want it any different. You remind me of my older brother, who in turn reminds me of Roy Keane if he didn't like football.
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
Isn't it because he looks a bit toss?
The new Dwight McNeil I reckon.
His hair looks like one of Viz's Fat Slags
‘San’ to be precise!
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
Despite 575 passes, Martinez still had to make an unbelievable save to keep the game scoreless at a crucial time and our winner came from a set piece. I can't recall another clear cut chance in the second half despite owning the ball. I really admire the defensive resilience Emery has implemented but with the ball I have increasing concerns about the 442 setup.
Making excuses for winning!
Sure we are nowhere near the finished article but enjoy the win, score loads doesn’t lie
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
Despite 575 passes, Martinez still had to make an unbelievable save to keep the game scoreless at a crucial time and our winner came from a set piece. I can't recall another clear cut chance in the second half despite owning the ball. I really admire the defensive resilience Emery has implemented but with the ball I have increasing concerns about the 442 setup.
I think you're talking absolute nonsense. If we had better attackers, things would probably be more comfortable. IMO the set up is good but we've got bailey/watkins/buendia who I think all need improving on. Set up isn't the issue, we need more quality.
Also can't believe you'd be questioning the set up given the results after 3 months in the job, and the rabble we were when he took over
Moon a stick you want
How did Gerrard get on early on? Any number on here were willing to anoint him as the chosen one 12 months ago based on a similar start to Emery. Maybe those players you mention are the problem as too inconsistent etc but I think tactically we have a problem with the setup of the forward four. The other seven are fine, especially if Carlos comes back fully fit and helps our ability to play out from the back under pressure.
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
Despite 575 passes, Martinez still had to make an unbelievable save to keep the game scoreless at a crucial time and our winner came from a set piece. I can't recall another clear cut chance in the second half despite owning the ball. I really admire the defensive resilience Emery has implemented but with the ball I have increasing concerns about the 442 setup.
Only one club has a higher points tally since the day Emery took over. I, genuinely, have no idea how you could have "increasing concerns" when we couldn't string three passes together in October and we look better than ever with results against some of our biggest bogey teams.
You're just pissing in your own cheerios.. not sure why.
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Our squad isn't one that you think should be winning 5 out of 7. Through organisation, tactics and in-game changes, Emery's been able to get better results than what they would otherwise be able to get. Let's see what he can do when he's backed in the transfer market and able to shape the squad with his players.
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
Anthony Gordon is shit. Gets attention because he runs around like a clueless rabid Yorkshire terrier.
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
Despite 575 passes, Martinez still had to make an unbelievable save to keep the game scoreless at a crucial time and our winner came from a set piece. I can't recall another clear cut chance in the second half despite owning the ball. I really admire the defensive resilience Emery has implemented but with the ball I have increasing concerns about the 442 setup.
I think you're talking absolute nonsense. If we had better attackers, things would probably be more comfortable. IMO the set up is good but we've got bailey/watkins/buendia who I think all need improving on. Set up isn't the issue, we need more quality.
Also can't believe you'd be questioning the set up given the results after 3 months in the job, and the rabble we were when he took over
Moon a stick you want
How did Gerrard get on early on? Any number on here were willing to anoint him as the chosen one 12 months ago based on a similar start to Emery. Maybe those players you mention are the problem as too inconsistent etc but I think tactically we have a problem with the setup of the forward four. The other seven are fine, especially if Carlos comes back fully fit and helps our ability to play out from the back under pressure.
If you were manager we'd win every single game then as you obviously know all the answers
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If a villa side were to win the double there would still be people moaning about the tactics, the manager, the subs made/not made, some signing that hadn't contributed enough or one of the longer-serving players not being good enough for where we want to go etc etc. The older you get the more you realise this.
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
Anthony Gordon is shit. Gets attention because he runs around like a clueless rabid Yorkshire terrier.
And looks like the love child of Claire Balding
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If we are now in the market for tier 45m players, I don't understand why we haven't joined the bidding war (rumoured to be around 35m) for Anthony Gordon. (Unless we;re keeping it under the radar?) Fast, skillful, tracks back, wins free kicks, shithousery, not afraid to have a ruck. It would be like signing Ashley Young in 2006
Anthony Gordon is shit. Gets attention because he runs around like a clueless rabid Yorkshire terrier.
And looks like the love child of Claire Balding
And Zelda from the Terrahawks
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€60m for Luiz Henrique - a Brazilian striker, 10 goals in 89 in Brazil, 1 in 15 in Spain.
Surely not?
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He’s 20, isn’t he? His record isn’t going to count for much at this stage.
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
Despite 575 passes, Martinez still had to make an unbelievable save to keep the game scoreless at a crucial time and our winner came from a set piece. I can't recall another clear cut chance in the second half despite owning the ball. I really admire the defensive resilience Emery has implemented but with the ball I have increasing concerns about the 442 setup.
Increasing concerns. He’s been here 5 minutes. Let him keep coaching the team, adding the right players and tweaking tactics for every game and in game before we discard the system
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€60m for Luiz Henrique - a Brazilian striker, 10 goals in 89 in Brazil, 1 in 15 in Spain.
Surely not?
He's a winger from the you tube clips I've seen.
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He likes the Mahrez feignt judging by the obligatory YouTube videos.
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He’s 20, isn’t he? His record isn’t going to count for much at this stage.
22 and looks like he plays on the wing more than up front. Not sure where the £60m figure comes from either (it might be true but the links I've seen were £20-25m).
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My concern would be that Henrique is one year into a six year contract at Betis. Better to sign Brazilian players directly from their Brazilian clubs surely? That’s what Man City and Chelsea do. An international scouting network could be funded by the premium paid on transfers for another club to find the player.
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My concern would be that Henrique is one year into a six year contract at Betis. Better to sign Brazilian players directly from their Brazilian clubs surely?
Agree. We should be more savvy - buy the tapioca when it’s ejected from their father’s nob.
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If a villa side were to win the double there would still be people moaning about the tactics, the manager, the subs made/not made, some signing that hadn't contributed enough or one of the longer-serving players not being good enough for where we want to go etc etc. The older you get the more you realise this.
I’m old, but still as guilty as anyone
If social media was about in 81 I’d have probably been moaning about Ken Mcnaught
‘Not mobile enough, makes too many mistakes, not comfortable on the ball’ you know that kind of shit
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
Despite 575 passes, Martinez still had to make an unbelievable save to keep the game scoreless at a crucial time and our winner came from a set piece. I can't recall another clear cut chance in the second half despite owning the ball. I really admire the defensive resilience Emery has implemented but with the ball I have increasing concerns about the 442 setup.
I think you're talking absolute nonsense. If we had better attackers, things would probably be more comfortable. IMO the set up is good but we've got bailey/watkins/buendia who I think all need improving on. Set up isn't the issue, we need more quality.
Also can't believe you'd be questioning the set up given the results after 3 months in the job, and the rabble we were when he took over
Moon a stick you want
How did Gerrard get on early on? Any number on here were willing to anoint him as the chosen one 12 months ago based on a similar start to Emery. Maybe those players you mention are the problem as too inconsistent etc but I think tactically we have a problem with the setup of the forward four. The other seven are fine, especially if Carlos comes back fully fit and helps our ability to play out from the back under pressure.
If there’s a problem with the tactical set up, you’d bet on Emery to fix it. These things take time. Look at the managers he’s outwitted already (like Ten Haag and Conte) and look at the teams we’ve picked up points against already. It doesn’t have to be perfect now, but whilst the team is transitioning we’re picking up points and results way beyond where we could reasonably expect.
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If a villa side were to win the double there would still be people moaning about the tactics, the manager, the subs made/not made, some signing that hadn't contributed enough or one of the longer-serving players not being good enough for where we want to go etc etc. The older you get the more you realise this.
Easily the most boring thing is fans moaning about other fans.
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I have no problem with anybody reserving judgment, because while our league results have been excellent, the performances have left plenty to be desired. But I do think it's easy to forget that Emery hasn't only had to improve us, he's also had to undo the damage caused by Gerrard (nothing personal, no bitterness from me, but he had the team performing as less than the sum of their parts).
Turning around a team's form isn't easy: Gerrard rightly got credit after his first half-dozen games, but he failed to build on it. I have a lot more faith in Emery to make long-term positive changes (for many reasons), and frankly I'm over the fucking moon with about 95% of what I've seen, but if somebody takes a bit more convincing than a brief upturn in form and two cup exits, so be it.
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When they were shite, before Keegan and the Everybody's Second Team bollocks, Newcastle supporters were sound. Now they're arses.
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When they were shite, before Keegan and the Everybody's Second Team bollocks, Newcastle supporters were sound. Now they're arses.
I've no doubt that if I lived or worked in Newcastle for a while, I'd find many who are grand. Unfortunately I've only met four or five who have moved away yet still insist on waxing lyrical about how fecking brilliant Newcastle is - so brilliant they left.
It doesn't help that I arrived late to the game we relegated them in 2009 and saw the utter state they left Witton roundabout in, had a glass bottle thrown at me by a twat in a Newcastle shirt in 2010 (in Cambridge, of all places) and I've known two or three Mackems who were absolutely sound and hated Newcastle.
Pretty much the only positive I can think of is that Shearer has always seemed very balanced - complimentary if anything - when talking about Villa. That must take some doing after the pisstaking he personally suffered from the Holte.
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Newcastle had the Keegan/Dalglish/Gullit (to a point) and Shearer years where they had full houses, competed in Europe and nearly won the league. From a media standpoint they were a superb story against the evil Man U empire and threatened to become something in the battle for trophies for years to come. They operate in one club market too and get talked about with disproportionate reverence. They also play the victim role to perfection as a sleeping giant despite not having won much ever. But they disappeared up their own arses quickly, had a series of shit managers and went down hilariously. But they present a much more appetizing story of redemption than we do because our recent moments of relevance were not as exciting as theirs.
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When they were shite, before Keegan and the Everybody's Second Team bollocks, Newcastle supporters were sound. Now they're arses.
my sentiments also
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Geordie used to live by us in the eighties and we went up in a mini bus to the Villa game and his relatives put all of us up for the weekend, went to the local pubs and no one gave us any problems, probably because we knew the family couldn't fault them really,we continue going up on non-football occasions, truthfully one of the best memories of my life.Met a few younger lads in Benidorm and they were the same, there was a older gent who used to work on the Wolverhampton Road that's how we got chatting,he was seventy and keeping a eye on them, pretty sure he was drinking them under the table,had a great time with them as well,miss them days
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Newcastle had the Keegan/Dalglish/Gullit (to a point) and Shearer years where they had full houses, competed in Europe and nearly won the league. From a media standpoint they were a superb story against the evil Man U empire and threatened to become something in the battle for trophies for years to come. They operate in one club market too and get talked about with disproportionate reverence. They also play the victim role to perfection as a sleeping giant despite not having won much ever. But they disappeared up their own arses quickly, had a series of shit managers and went down hilariously. But they present a much more appetizing story of redemption than we do because our recent moments of relevance were not as exciting as theirs.
I think you're absolutely right to refer to things as 'appetizing'. Where I disagree is somewhere within that vague PR landscape that has designated London & the North West as the heartlands of English football - with the North-North (Leeds & Newcastle) as the outliers.
Newcastle were decent in the mid-90s and Keegan had his meltdown, then Shearer signed for the club he supports, which is a modern fucking miracle. That's media exposure 25 years ago.
If we market ourselves correctly, we are the club of both the establishment & the modern disenfranchised. We're the guys with the unique name, the unique history, utter dogshite local neighbours within an 80-mile radius.
Put it this way: I work in PR, and I'd take commission work on Villa before fixed rate on the likes of Newcastle.
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Newcastle had the Keegan/Dalglish/Gullit (to a point) and Shearer years where they had full houses, competed in Europe and nearly won the league. From a media standpoint they were a superb story against the evil Man U empire and threatened to become something in the battle for trophies for years to come. They operate in one club market too and get talked about with disproportionate reverence. They also play the victim role to perfection as a sleeping giant despite not having won much ever. But they disappeared up their own arses quickly, had a series of shit managers and went down hilariously. But they present a much more appetizing story of redemption than we do because our recent moments of relevance were not as exciting as theirs.
Newcastle in the 1990’s and beyond have never been anything more than media hype. The finished second twice in the 90’s to an evil empire in the north west. Sounds like another side closer to home who did it first and also won a couple of trophies along the way. The only reason they present a more interesting story is because they’ve been hyped up to be it by the media. In 1995/96, the great ‘entertainers’ of Newcastle scored 66 league goals - just two more than Everton that season. What could be more appetizing than the return to the top table of a previous league and European cup winner, who had twice come close to winning it before and came back up into the top flight following a shocking relegation? Answers on a postcard.
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Post Keegan nail recently Newcastle fans have had to put up with such crap but still turned up in numbers. Fair play. Now they are fronting a sport washing operation and apparently successful. Would you take that at Villa? For me no, we do things the right way.
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All this talk that we are after another striker (having also signed Duran) - if we do sign another striker, I would imagine Archer will be leaving the club this summer (he won't want to be 4th choice).
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If a villa side were to win the double there would still be people moaning about the tactics, the manager, the subs made/not made, some signing that hadn't contributed enough or one of the longer-serving players not being good enough for where we want to go etc etc. The older you get the more you realise this.
I’m old, but still as guilty as anyone
If social media was about in 81 I’d have probably been moaning about Ken Mcnaught
‘Not mobile enough, makes too many mistakes, not comfortable on the ball’ you know that kind of shit
I think we all moaned about Ken after his debut
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An interesting point in The Times today that Everton were doing some background checks on Danjuma as they had heard he has issues with his character, which meant they then lost out. Also saw that Unai said he was not a player he was looking at so maybe the same issue? Either way it might explain why we did not go for him
If all true, hopefully he will upset the Spudz Apple cart!
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If a villa side were to win the double there would still be people moaning about the tactics, the manager, the subs made/not made, some signing that hadn't contributed enough or one of the longer-serving players not being good enough for where we want to go etc etc. The older you get the more you realise this.
Easily the most boring thing is fans moaning about other fans.
Does this count at your good self moaning at Footy? 😉
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The YouTube of this Brazilian does not justify a £50m fee. Tonev on the other hand....
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All this talk that we are after another striker (having also signed Duran) - if we do sign another striker, I would imagine Archer will be leaving the club this summer (he won't want to be 4th choice).
Not necessarily, we bring in a decent quality attacker in next week it’s conceivable we finish in European places and need 4 OR in the summer Emery might be up for selling Ollie…he is his main man currently but when he’s in a better market he might get players he truly wants
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Regards to Newcastle .
When did the inter City fairs Cup become a major honour?
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Newcastle had the Keegan/Dalglish/Gullit (to a point) and Shearer years where they had full houses, competed in Europe and nearly won the league. From a media standpoint they were a superb story against the evil Man U empire and threatened to become something in the battle for trophies for years to come. They operate in one club market too and get talked about with disproportionate reverence. They also play the victim role to perfection as a sleeping giant despite not having won much ever. But they disappeared up their own arses quickly, had a series of shit managers and went down hilariously. But they present a much more appetizing story of redemption than we do because our recent moments of relevance were not as exciting as theirs.
Timing as well, King Kev and their revival coming at the start of the Premier League and wall to wall TV coverage
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So, Newcastle's last major domestic trophy (FA Cup) was 1955! That's 68 years ago....
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Regards to Newcastle .
When did the inter City fairs Cup become a major honour?
It was the forerunner to what became the UEFA cup.
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An interesting point in The Times today that Everton were doing some background checks on Danjuma as they had heard he has issues with his character, which meant they then lost out. Also saw that Unai said he was not a player he was looking at so maybe the same issue? Either way it might explain why we did not go for him
If all true, hopefully he will upset the Spudz Apple cart!
So this is the bloke who flew to England to meet several clubs and decide who he wanted to sign for , ummm.
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An interesting point in The Times today that Everton were doing some background checks on Danjuma as they had heard he has issues with his character, which meant they then lost out. Also saw that Unai said he was not a player he was looking at so maybe the same issue? Either way it might explain why we did not go for him
If all true, hopefully he will upset the Spudz Apple cart!
So this is the bloke who flew to England to meet several clubs and decide who he wanted to sign for , ummm.
He posed for photos for Everton apparently before changing his mind and going to Spurs. We gave that Fulham player enough stick for doing something similar with us.
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An interesting point in The Times today that Everton were doing some background checks on Danjuma as they had heard he has issues with his character, which meant they then lost out. Also saw that Unai said he was not a player he was looking at so maybe the same issue? Either way it might explain why we did not go for him
If all true, hopefully he will upset the Spudz Apple cart!
So this is the bloke who flew to England to meet several clubs and decide who he wanted to sign for , ummm.
He posed for photos for Everton apparently before changing his mind and going to Spurs. We gave that Fulham player enough stick for doing something similar with us.
We didn't sack the man he'd been negotiating with in fairness
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What ever happened to Joe Bryan? That glittering career at Fulham must have opened up all sorts of opportunities for him.
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What ever happened to Joe Bryan? That glittering career at Fulham must have opened up all sorts of opportunities for him.
Currently enjoying the INEOS revolution at Nice along with half of yesterday's Premier League (him, Aaron Ramsey, Ross Barkley, Pepe from Arsenal, Kasper Schmeichel, Morgan Schneiderlin)
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Bet that is a slow team, can any of them run bar Pepe?
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Bet that is a slow team, can any of them run bar Pepe?
They've got quite a lot of young French types too. Marcus Thuram's younger brother is there and runs around a lot.
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If a villa side were to win the double there would still be people moaning about the tactics, the manager, the subs made/not made, some signing that hadn't contributed enough or one of the longer-serving players not being good enough for where we want to go etc etc. The older you get the more you realise this.
Easily the most boring thing is fans moaning about other fans.
Does this count at your good self moaning at Footy? 😉
Morning at one person and the nonsense he talks on a forum is not the same as moaning about how other people support their club.
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So, Newcastle's last major domestic trophy (FA Cup) was 1955! That's 68 years ago....
I'd not get too smug about that. There's a very strong chance their next one will be in 2023 and they'll be laughing at us with our 27 years.
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If a villa side were to win the double there would still be people moaning about the tactics, the manager, the subs made/not made, some signing that hadn't contributed enough or one of the longer-serving players not being good enough for where we want to go etc etc. The older you get the more you realise this.
Easily the most boring thing is fans moaning about other fans.
Does this count at your good self moaning at Footy? 😉
Morning at one person and the nonsense he talks on a forum is not the same as moaning about how other people support their club.
In any case, the post you're replying to nearly made me choke on my cornflakes. If I was actually eating any, which I'm not.
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Apparently McKennie who didn't want to join us is joining Leeds Soccer Club
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come on Villa....get a striker and a wide man in please...
UTV
The Doc
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Apparently McKennie who didn't want to join us is joining Leeds Soccer Club
Never in for Mckennie this time around
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Apparently McKennie who didn't want to join us is joining Leeds Soccer Club
Never in for Mckennie this time around
Given there's less than a week left now Vinnie, have you heard how things are shaping up? We seem to be getting a bit close to the wire.
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Newcastle had the Keegan/Dalglish/Gullit (to a point) and Shearer years where they had full houses, competed in Europe and nearly won the league. From a media standpoint they were a superb story against the evil Man U empire and threatened to become something in the battle for trophies for years to come. They operate in one club market too and get talked about with disproportionate reverence. They also play the victim role to perfection as a sleeping giant despite not having won much ever. But they disappeared up their own arses quickly, had a series of shit managers and went down hilariously. But they present a much more appetizing story of redemption than we do because our recent moments of relevance were not as exciting as theirs.
I think you're absolutely right to refer to things as 'appetizing'. Where I disagree is somewhere within that vague PR landscape that has designated London & the North West as the heartlands of English football - with the North-North (Leeds & Newcastle) as the outliers.
Newcastle were decent in the mid-90s and Keegan had his meltdown, then Shearer signed for the club he supports, which is a modern fucking miracle. That's media exposure 25 years ago.
If we market ourselves correctly, we are the club of both the establishment & the modern disenfranchised. We're the guys with the unique name, the unique history, utter dogshite local neighbours within an 80-mile radius.
Put it this way: I work in PR, and I'd take commission work on Villa before fixed rate on the likes of Newcastle.
We had that chance in the mid 1990's but didn't take advantage.
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Apparently McKennie who didn't want to join us is joining Leeds Soccer Club
Never in for Mckennie this time around
Given there's less than a week left now Vinnie, have you heard how things are shaping up? We seem to be getting a bit close to the wire.
Honestly, it beyond hard to get any drips since some previous coaching staff have departed.....
Last i heard we were still confident of 2-3 in
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Apparently McKennie who didn't want to join us is joining Leeds Soccer Club
Never in for Mckennie this time around
Whether we were or not the media narrative was he wanted a bigger and more historic club than Villa. If he then rocks up at Leeds it just shows how either he's had to eat humble pie or (far more likely of course) the media were talking shite.
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Apparently McKennie who didn't want to join us is joining Leeds Soccer Club
Never in for Mckennie this time around
Whether we were or not the media narrative was he wanted a bigger and more historic club than Villa. If he then rocks up at Leeds it just shows how either he's had to eat humble pie or (far more likely of course) the media were talking shite.
He looks to me like he's not afraid of eating pies
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Hakim Ziyech according to greg evans
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Post Keegan nail recently Newcastle fans have had to put up with such crap but still turned up in numbers. Fair play. Now they are fronting a sport washing operation and apparently successful. Would you take that at Villa? For me no, we do things the right way.
Did they? I always thought they had an average of about 20k-ish for the years when they were shiter than they were before they got bought out by human rights abusing murderers... Oh, sorry, the mid 90's when they did ok for a shitty little club that had done nothing its whole history. Personally, I have always despised the deluded chimps...
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Hakim Ziyech according to greg evans
Strongly linked with a loan to buy move to Newcastle but they want Gordon and Chelsea would rather not loan/sell to a rival.
If we are interested, I hope it's a similar type deal. He'll be 30 in March, a loan deal looks the safest option.
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Would rather go for Pulisic if Chelsea are offloading players
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Would have thought Ziyech was a bit similar to what we already have and Emery has said he wants different characteristics.
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Ziyech is tremendously talented.
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Would rather go for Pulisic if Chelsea are offloading players
Noooope, way too similar to Buendia and looks like he's going to have a panic attack every time he gets near the goal
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Ziyech is tremendously talented.
Agreed, wouldn't be against that at all.
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Ziyech is tremendously talented.
He is, but he reminds of Beundia at times as he over complicates things. Still, I think he's probably better than him
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I'd take Ziyech, he's a far better player than Buendia or Bailey.
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I'd take Ziyech, he's a far better player than Buendia or Bailey.
Definitely.
But do we need a player in that role to score a few though?
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I'd take Ziyech, he's a far better player than Buendia or Bailey.
Definitely.
But do we need a player in that role to score a few though?
Yep, his actual output is very disappointing.
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Ziyech is tremendously talented.
But very weak physically. We already have physically weak players at the club...
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At Chelsea he has been a bit low but in Holland he scored and assisted plenty.
On loan I think we'd get chance to see if his 'problems' at Chelsea are because he's been on the fringes of the team or because he just can't be as effective in the premier league. With a reasonable fee agreed ahead of the summer I think it'd be well worth a go.
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Hakim Ziyech is a good player, we all know Chelsea ruin attacking players, so I'm not going to judge him for being largely useless there
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Hakim Ziyech is a good player, we all know Chelsea ruin attacking players, so I'm not going to judge him for being largely useless there
Brilliant for Morocco in the WC. Perhaps we could sign Hakim as well to link up with him again.
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Hakim Ziyech is a good player, we all know Chelsea ruin attacking players, so I'm not going to judge him for being largely useless there
Apparently he's been in top form recently whether that's because he's been told he will be sold or trying to stay in the Chelsea side. AC Milan have also shown interest and Italy may suit him more.
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Hope we're not loading up with over-28s. Gerrard has already left us with Digne and Coutinho on big contracts and they're now likely reduced to bit-part. No re-sale revenue so if they want to play elsewhere we'll take haircuts and if they're out on loan, have to subsidise a big chunk of their wages.
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The Athletic have said we enquired about Memphis Depay earlier in the window but he wanted to join Atletico Madrid. At least we're being linked with a higher standard of player.
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The Athletic have said we enquired about Memphis Depay earlier in the window but he wanted to join Atletico Madrid. At least we're being linked with a higher standard of player.
Right aspirations - not too bothered missing out on him as been patchy since leaving PSV
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What ever happened to Joe Bryan? That glittering career at Fulham must have opened up all sorts of opportunities for him.
Currently enjoying the INEOS revolution at Nice along with half of yesterday's Premier League (him, Aaron Ramsey, Ross Barkley, Pepe from Arsenal, Kasper Schmeichel, Morgan Schneiderlin)
Nice - The Who's Who of Dropping Like a Stone to obscurity.
Ramsey played like a 50 year old in World Cup. Barkley - jeeps.
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What ever happened to Joe Bryan? That glittering career at Fulham must have opened up all sorts of opportunities for him.
Currently enjoying the INEOS revolution at Nice along with half of yesterday's Premier League (him, Aaron Ramsey, Ross Barkley, Pepe from Arsenal, Kasper Schmeichel, Morgan Schneiderlin)
Nice - The Who's Who of Dropping Like a Stone to obscurity.
Ramsey played like a 50 year old in World Cup. Barkley - jeeps.
Ramsey couldn't get a game at Rangers last season
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The Athletic have said we enquired about Memphis Depay earlier in the window but he wanted to join Atletico Madrid. At least we're being linked with a higher standard of player.
And players with pace. Bodes well for the future.
And while its a little frustrating that some players have turned us down, like Williams, if true, for example, but I can accept missing out on ten players if we are going after more of the same calibre of player as Kamara...
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The Athletic have said we enquired about Memphis Depay earlier in the window but he wanted to join Atletico Madrid. At least we're being linked with a higher standard of player.
I think he is garbage - another Player that no one would of noticed if not for the media hype due to playing for the red filth
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The Athletic have said we enquired about Memphis Depay earlier in the window but he wanted to join Atletico Madrid. At least we're being linked with a higher standard of player.
I think he is garbage - another Player that no one would of noticed if not for the media hype due to playing for the red filth
You think that the only reason people have noticed a player with over 40 international goals in 90 odd matches for one of the biggest footballing nations and was playing for Barcelona when we (apparently) asked about him, is a handful of games in the Premier League in 2015?
Right-o.
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Apparently McKennie who didn't want to join us is joining Leeds Soccer Club
Never in for Mckennie this time around
Whether we were or not the media narrative was he wanted a bigger and more historic club than Villa. If he then rocks up at Leeds it just shows how either he's had to eat humble pie or (far more likely of course) the media were talking shite.
I suspect, if it's true, he wanted to join his compatriots.
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Apparently McKennie who didn't want to join us is joining Leeds Soccer Club
Never in for Mckennie this time around
Whether we were or not the media narrative was he wanted a bigger and more historic club than Villa. If he then rocks up at Leeds it just shows how either he's had to eat humble pie or (far more likely of course) the media were talking shite.
I suspect, if it's true, he wanted to join his compatriots.
McKennie's dad went back and forth with an Arsenal supporter who said his limitations would see him struggle at the emirates. We don't need anymore protective dad's chiming in. I think he will do fine in this league, but I'd rather have Guendouzi.
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Apparently McKennie who didn't want to join us is joining Leeds Soccer Club
Never in for Mckennie this time around
Whether we were or not the media narrative was he wanted a bigger and more historic club than Villa. If he then rocks up at Leeds it just shows how either he's had to eat humble pie or (far more likely of course) the media were talking shite.
I suspect, if it's true, he wanted to join his compatriots.
McKennie's dad went back and forth with an Arsenal supporter who said his limitations would see him struggle at the emirates. We don't need anymore protective dad's chiming in. I think he will do fine in this league, but I'd rather have Guendouzi.
Think so - he isn't the part just yet but he certainly could be
Him Ramsey a rejuvenated McGinn Kamara and Luiz - all of sudden that looks like strong team in Europa League midfield
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Would rather go for Pulisic if Chelsea are offloading players
Noooope, way too similar to Buendia and looks like he's going to have a panic attack every time he gets near the goal
That's odd as he has been described on numerous occasions by Tuchel and team-mates as fearless in front of goal...and he is nothing like Buendia. Pulisic would be fantastic at Villa.
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Most he's ever scored is 9 in a season, usually gets 4. Would you describe that in the same way?
Most assists in a season is 4. His numbers are really not great at all. The reason I see him as being similar to buendia is partly the stats, but also whenever I've seen him he seems to run around a lot, give the ball away a fair bit and get knocked over too much.
What is it that you're seeing?
Edit: Also - your quote about numerous occasions being described as "fearless" is LOLs
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Most he's ever scored is 9 in a season, usually gets 4. Would you describe that in the same way?
Most assists in a season is 4. His numbers are really not great at all. The reason I see him as being similar to buendia is partly the stats, but also whenever I've seen him he seems to run around a lot, give the ball away a fair bit and get knocked over too much.
What is it that you're seeing?
Edit: Also - your quote about numerous occasions being described as "fearless" is LOLs
Sorry, who are you talking about here?
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Most he's ever scored is 9 in a season, usually gets 4. Would you describe that in the same way?
Most assists in a season is 4. His numbers are really not great at all. The reason I see him as being similar to buendia is partly the stats, but also whenever I've seen him he seems to run around a lot, give the ball away a fair bit and get knocked over too much.
What is it that you're seeing?
Edit: Also - your quote about numerous occasions being described as "fearless" is LOLs
In the league he has 20 goals and 9 assists in 90 appearances for Chelsea when he joined as a 20 year old isn't terrible. When you add that 34 of those appearances are as a sub and account for just 6 of those. 16 in 56 starts for a guy who generally plays on the wing is decent.
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He is a very talented player, a little concerned with his injury record more recently. When he first burst on the International scene he was like Grealish for us as he carried the national team
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Pulisic is a better player than Ziyech for me. Not sure either are right for us though.
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Links so far today...
Ziyech
Deulofeu
McKennie
Dario Osorio
Jonathan David
Guendozi
Henrique
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Links so far today...
Ziyech
Deulofeu
McKennie
Dario Osorio
Jonathan David
Guendozi
Henrique
Most of it is clearly made up bullshit. Laughable really.
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Deulofeu Injured
McKennie Going to Leeds (apparently)
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Aston Villa have submitted a bid for Gerard Deulofeu, That offer made to Udinese was allegedly around €20 million (£17 million), and the Villans have offered a £3.5 million per year contract to the 28-year-old. That work out at around £68k-a-week.
(GazzettadelloSport)
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I’ve read he’s having a scan on a troublesome knee, so I can’t see us going for him unless it’s very minor.
In fact he does have a bit of history with his knee since 20/21
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Apparently McKennie who didn't want to join us is joining Leeds Soccer Club
Never in for Mckennie this time around
Given there's less than a week left now Vinnie, have you heard how things are shaping up? We seem to be getting a bit close to the wire.
All in the game, yo
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Aston Villa have submitted a bid for Gerard Deulofeu, That offer made to Udinese was allegedly around €20 million (£17 million), and the Villans have offered a £3.5 million per year contract to the 28-year-old. That work out at around £68k-a-week.
(GazzettadelloSport)
Isn't he going to see a specialist re his knee being fucked?
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Aston Villa have submitted a bid for Gerard Deulofeu, That offer made to Udinese was allegedly around €20 million (£17 million), and the Villans have offered a £3.5 million per year contract to the 28-year-old. That work out at around £68k-a-week.
(GazzettadelloSport)
Isn't he going to see a specialist re his knee being fucked?
If it’s true about the bid I would imagine any serious knee problems will be pick up in his medical.
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Two things about this window: How the hell does Brighton manage to consistently bring in high-sell-on players (ref Ciacedo)? And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
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Two things about this window: How the hell does Brighton manage to consistently bring in high-sell-on players (ref Ciacedo)? And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
Who is the Spurs recruitment chief? Stefano Brucio?
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Two things about this window: How the hell does Brighton manage to consistently bring in high-sell-on players (ref Ciacedo)? And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
Who is the Spurs recruitment chief? Stefano Brucio?
Colin cabbage
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Two things about this window: How the hell does Brighton manage to consistently bring in high-sell-on players (ref Ciacedo)? And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
Who is the Spurs recruitment chief? Stefano Brucio?
Antonio Bannedio
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And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
Porro's been playing brilliantly on the right side in Sporting's midfield.
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Spurs can never quite have enough midfielders.
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Two things about this window: How the hell does Brighton manage to consistently bring in high-sell-on players (ref Ciacedo)? And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
The Brighton model of developing players requires two things, excellent scouting, and the willingness to let "promising" players have a run of twenty to thirty games at Premier League level before they're cut adrift. We have the first, but we do not have the luxury of the second. No club with genuine European aspirations does. If a player isn't performing quickly, they're out. We can't afford a string of 5/6 out of 10 performances in the hope they'll become 8s or 9s with time. Brighton spend a lot of money on players in the £5-10-ish million bracket. Many of them don't really make an impact, but some of them turn out to be very good indeed. If a player shows promise, they get that game time other clubs wouldn't give them. A season later they can be worth a relative fortune.
We all know about Bissouma, Cururella, Ciacedo, but no one remembers Undav, Sima, Kozlowski (who cost nearly £30m between them, all in the last year). It's like a lot of clubs that aren't our own - we remember their successes, but never their failures. In the same way they probably don't remember Wesley or Sanson, but think we're great at recruitment because of Kamara.
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Spurs can never quite have enough midfielders.
Twas ever thus. If they were based anywhere other than London their last half-decade would be seen as a period of overachieving and a sure thing to return to mid table where they belong. They are incredibly annoying - more so than the others clubs who have found themselves in the top 6 at a time of extreme wealth for that top 6.
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The reason Brighton are so good is that they had Dan Ashworth working for them.
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Carlton Palmer spotted at BMH
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Two things about this window: How the hell does Brighton manage to consistently bring in high-sell-on players (ref Ciacedo)? And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
The Brighton model of developing players requires two things, excellent scouting, and the willingness to let "promising" players have a run of twenty to thirty games at Premier League level before they're cut adrift. We have the first, but we do not have the luxury of the second. No club with genuine European aspirations does. If a player isn't performing quickly, they're out. We can't afford a string of 5/6 out of 10 performances in the hope they'll become 8s or 9s with time.
Do we have excellent scouting?
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Two things about this window: How the hell does Brighton manage to consistently bring in high-sell-on players (ref Ciacedo)? And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
The Brighton model of developing players requires two things, excellent scouting, and the willingness to let "promising" players have a run of twenty to thirty games at Premier League level before they're cut adrift. We have the first, but we do not have the luxury of the second. No club with genuine European aspirations does. If a player isn't performing quickly, they're out. We can't afford a string of 5/6 out of 10 performances in the hope they'll become 8s or 9s with time. Brighton spend a lot of money on players in the £5-10-ish million bracket. Many of them don't really make an impact, but some of them turn out to be very good indeed. If a player shows promise, they get that game time other clubs wouldn't give them. A season later they can be worth a relative fortune.
We all know about Bissouma, Cururella, Ciacedo, but no one remembers Undav, Sima, Kozlowski (who cost nearly £30m between them, all in the last year). It's like a lot of clubs that aren't our own - we remember their successes, but never their failures. In the same way they probably don't remember Wesley or Sanson, but think we're great at recruitment because of Kamara.
Part of their model is that they will let players leave too if the terms are right. To paraphrase someone high up in the club they said “we will let a player go as long as they leave through the front door.” So no sulking, engineering moves or trying to leave in the cheap.
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Carlton Palmer spotted at BMH
Benny McCarthy too
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Spurs can never quite have enough midfielders.
They go through midfielders quicker than a laxative through a very short grandmother.
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Two things about this window: How the hell does Brighton manage to consistently bring in high-sell-on players (ref Ciacedo)? And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
The Brighton model of developing players requires two things, excellent scouting, and the willingness to let "promising" players have a run of twenty to thirty games at Premier League level before they're cut adrift. We have the first, but we do not have the luxury of the second. No club with genuine European aspirations does. If a player isn't performing quickly, they're out. We can't afford a string of 5/6 out of 10 performances in the hope they'll become 8s or 9s with time. Brighton spend a lot of money on players in the £5-10-ish million bracket. Many of them don't really make an impact, but some of them turn out to be very good indeed. If a player shows promise, they get that game time other clubs wouldn't give them. A season later they can be worth a relative fortune.
We all know about Bissouma, Cururella, Ciacedo, but no one remembers Undav, Sima, Kozlowski (who cost nearly £30m between them, all in the last year). It's like a lot of clubs that aren't our own - we remember their successes, but never their failures. In the same way they probably don't remember Wesley or Sanson, but think we're great at recruitment because of Kamara.
I don’t think this is a very accurate or helpful answer to the question, sorry. I have a little bit of inside knowledge of how they do it - it’s not top secret but it’s not widely discussed.
They essentially are incredibly data focused. They are run by a professional gambler who has built a team of many stats / maths PHDs to identify incorrect odds, and bet heavily on them when they found. He has made a fortune and has decided to apply this to football (I think he also owns aBelgian club).
Their scouting network is not amazing, but they use extensive data analysis to focus on 3-4 targets of the radar of the big clubs (they explicitly identify certain characteristics that correlate with success, and others which seem to be highly valued but which they in fact ignore). Not every purchase is a success but they are looking for very high ceilings with players, so if they hit one in three, say (I don’t know their actual target or even if they have one) they will make massive returns and be able to punch above their weight.
This is the key difference to everyone else (except Brentford, who are also run by a professional gambler and have a very similar philosophy) - incredibly data led , no reliance on the old eye test or the opinion of a couple of charasmatic old pros.
As I understand it, there’s no explicit philosophy of give them 30 games, other than a trust in the underlying analytics and a discounting of short term variance to the norm in outcomes (confused for form by nearly all pundits).
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Wes Edens did an interview where he emphasised the importance of data. Saying that decisions are easy when the data is there to make them.
Mentioned here - https://www.expressandstar.com/sport/football/aston-villa/2020/04/18/aston-villa-co-owner-wes-edens-ready-to-embrace-data/
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Hakim Ziyech according to greg evans
Agent hawking him around most likely. Seems a replica of Bailey and equally inconsistent. No for me.
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Hakim Ziyech according to greg evans
Agent hawking him around most likely. Seems a replica of Bailey and equally inconsistent. No for me.
Decent in Holland, struggled here. Got a good pass and set piece on him but not particularly quick. On his Chelsea form he’s not a massive upgrade imo.
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Hakim Ziyech according to greg evans
Agent hawking him around most likely. Seems a replica of Bailey and equally inconsistent. No for me.
“Chelsea fans might be confused by all the running around the Moroccan Ziyech is doing” was a comment on a podcast. suggests he can be a touch lazy when not part of a teams’ main plans.
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There's a load of attacking players struggling at Chelsea, even towards end of Tuchel's time and it's continued. So it can't be that they are all poor players. Gallagher looks a pub league player these days for example, he was flying last season at Palace. Pulisic for me would be a huge upgrade on Coutinho for example and even Buendia let's be honest. Think he would fit in well with us, good age, profile. Maybe a bit like Grealish he needs to be the main man to see his best form. Does need to get stronger and a bit tougher.
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Agree about Pulisic, he’d fit in well with us.
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Unai was at the City Ground tonight.
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Just watching a local game I would assume.
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could be watching Brennan Jonson ?
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could be watching Brennan Jonson ?
He'd be a good signing for us.
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Are we going to sign another striker?
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Two things about this window: How the hell does Brighton manage to consistently bring in high-sell-on players (ref Ciacedo)? And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
The Brighton model of developing players requires two things, excellent scouting, and the willingness to let "promising" players have a run of twenty to thirty games at Premier League level before they're cut adrift. We have the first, but we do not have the luxury of the second. No club with genuine European aspirations does. If a player isn't performing quickly, they're out. We can't afford a string of 5/6 out of 10 performances in the hope they'll become 8s or 9s with time. Brighton spend a lot of money on players in the £5-10-ish million bracket. Many of them don't really make an impact, but some of them turn out to be very good indeed. If a player shows promise, they get that game time other clubs wouldn't give them. A season later they can be worth a relative fortune.
We all know about Bissouma, Cururella, Ciacedo, but no one remembers Undav, Sima, Kozlowski (who cost nearly £30m between them, all in the last year). It's like a lot of clubs that aren't our own - we remember their successes, but never their failures. In the same way they probably don't remember Wesley or Sanson, but think we're great at recruitment because of Kamara.
I don’t think this is a very accurate or helpful answer to the question, sorry. I have a little bit of inside knowledge of how they do it - it’s not top secret but it’s not widely discussed.
They essentially are incredibly data focused. They are run by a professional gambler who has built a team of many stats / maths PHDs to identify incorrect odds, and bet heavily on them when they found. He has made a fortune and has decided to apply this to football (I think he also owns aBelgian club).
Their scouting network is not amazing, but they use extensive data analysis to focus on 3-4 targets of the radar of the big clubs (they explicitly identify certain characteristics that correlate with success, and others which seem to be highly valued but which they in fact ignore). Not every purchase is a success but they are looking for very high ceilings with players, so if they hit one in three, say (I don’t know their actual target or even if they have one) they will make massive returns and be able to punch above their weight.
This is the key difference to everyone else (except Brentford, who are also run by a professional gambler and have a very similar philosophy) - incredibly data led , no reliance on the old eye test or the opinion of a couple of charasmatic old pros.
As I understand it, there’s no explicit philosophy of give them 30 games, other than a trust in the underlying analytics and a discounting of short term variance to the norm in outcomes (confused for form by nearly all pundits).
Just a bit more on the Brighton and Brentford (or more accurately the Bloom and Benham) models. As part of their gambling operations I understand that they have built their own data analysis tools/software, which are completely their own - no-one else has access to the same data modelling that they use. Almost all other clubs are working with the same systems, which means they are looking at the same data and by and large valuing the same players relative to their playing style.
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I find this Gambling Technology stuff fascinating and the more I read about it the more I want it to fail.
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Unai was at the City Ground tonight.
And hopefully he noted that none of the Forest players had that little bit of additional quality that may suit us or perhaps he wants to make a Bid for Fernades.
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Agree about Pulisic, he’d fit in well with us.
Before we go off on a frolic about Pulisic, I think it is only Ziyech who has been linked?
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could be watching Brennan Jonson ?
He'd be a good signing for us.
Forest are buying not selling at the moment. No way this window.
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could be watching Brennan Jonson ?
He'd be a good signing for us.
Forest are buying not selling at the moment. No way this window.
Besides, we need to get out of this mindset of buying players of the same level as we have (I'd argue he's not even that yet), and start to buy significantly better ones.
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could be watching Brennan Jonson ?
He'd be a good signing for us.
Forest are buying not selling at the moment. No way this window.
How will Forest justify FFP? They've spent a fortune since promotion.
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I find this Gambling Technology stuff fascinating and the more I read about it the more I want it to fail.
I hate the way stats has taken over everything. I don't mind their being used as an information bank for those who understand the soul of a business, but when they are allowed to supercede expert judgement, that is when I turn away.
In the first full time permanent job I had, a quarter of a century plus ago now, our MD told us 'we are all run by accountants now'. What was once a useful support tool, i.e. data, has now become king, to the detriment of the subjective expert opinion which was once relied upon.
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Some suggestion he went to watch Elanga who came on in the 85th minute…..
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Some suggestion he went to watch The Elanga who came on in the 85th minute…..
Has he renamed himself like 'Andrew Cole'?
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Just watching a local game I would assume.
He does love his Footy (not that Footy) so it's possible. I reckon he plays Football Manager as well.
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It's all gone very quiet, does this mean something will happen out of nowhere today?
I bloody hope so
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Two things about this window: How the hell does Brighton manage to consistently bring in high-sell-on players (ref Ciacedo)? And how many right backs does Tottingham need (ref Porro)?
The Brighton model of developing players requires two things, excellent scouting, and the willingness to let "promising" players have a run of twenty to thirty games at Premier League level before they're cut adrift. We have the first, but we do not have the luxury of the second. No club with genuine European aspirations does. If a player isn't performing quickly, they're out. We can't afford a string of 5/6 out of 10 performances in the hope they'll become 8s or 9s with time. Brighton spend a lot of money on players in the £5-10-ish million bracket. Many of them don't really make an impact, but some of them turn out to be very good indeed. If a player shows promise, they get that game time other clubs wouldn't give them. A season later they can be worth a relative fortune.
We all know about Bissouma, Cururella, Ciacedo, but no one remembers Undav, Sima, Kozlowski (who cost nearly £30m between them, all in the last year). It's like a lot of clubs that aren't our own - we remember their successes, but never their failures. In the same way they probably don't remember Wesley or Sanson, but think we're great at recruitment because of Kamara.
I don’t think this is a very accurate or helpful answer to the question, sorry. I have a little bit of inside knowledge of how they do it - it’s not top secret but it’s not widely discussed.
They essentially are incredibly data focused. They are run by a professional gambler who has built a team of many stats / maths PHDs to identify incorrect odds, and bet heavily on them when they found. He has made a fortune and has decided to apply this to football (I think he also owns aBelgian club).
Their scouting network is not amazing, but they use extensive data analysis to focus on 3-4 targets of the radar of the big clubs (they explicitly identify certain characteristics that correlate with success, and others which seem to be highly valued but which they in fact ignore). Not every purchase is a success but they are looking for very high ceilings with players, so if they hit one in three, say (I don’t know their actual target or even if they have one) they will make massive returns and be able to punch above their weight.
This is the key difference to everyone else (except Brentford, who are also run by a professional gambler and have a very similar philosophy) - incredibly data led , no reliance on the old eye test or the opinion of a couple of charasmatic old pros.
As I understand it, there’s no explicit philosophy of give them 30 games, other than a trust in the underlying analytics and a discounting of short term variance to the norm in outcomes (confused for form by nearly all pundits).
Okay, but all that data analysis is just a long way of saying "excellent scouting"? If they're finding and focussing on targets off the radar of the big clubs who they think have potential, is that not good scouting? Scouting these days doesn't mean a hundred guys in flat caps watching matches all over the place, or a huge network. Scouting isn't necessarily a volume game, but a focus on quality - which they seem very good at. Data is key for all clubs these days, Brighton might do it better than most. I don't know.
I'm also not saying they have a "philosophy" of giving players 30 games. I'm saying that if they believe a player has potential (whether that's based on "the data" as you put it, or their assessment in training), they can afford to give them that amount of game time as the pressure on Brighton from game to game is less than it would be at a different club with higher expectations.
We don't have that luxury, as a run of six bad games can get the manager the sack. Two years ago, around the time Dean got the sack, Brighton went 11 games without a win. Do you think we'd have accepted that?
I just think that as much as we all want to be a club that unearths diamonds, the reality is, we are not a club where players can do a lot of developing IN the team, unless they show immediate signs of being pretty special. Brighton can afford to do that, and every couple of years they reap the rewards for that. Over the last few years we seem to be becoming more of a club that produces too many promising players and has to sell a few (knowing some really good ones will slip through the net along the way), rather than a club desperate to find just one.
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Some suggestion he went to watch Elanga who came on in the 85th minute…..
From the little I have seen of him I rate him.
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Some suggestion he went to watch Elanga who came on in the 85th minute…..
From the little I have seen of him I rate him.
very impressed when I he played at villa park
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Some suggestion he went to watch Elanga who came on in the 85th minute…..
From the little I have seen of him I rate him.
very impressed when I he played at villa park
We haven't been lucky with our Swedes lately but, regardless, I doubt we're looking at bringing in another promising but young striker.
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Just watching a local game I would assume.
He does love his Footy (not that Footy) so it's possible. I reckon he plays Football Manager as well.
Ha, I can imagine him sitting there on his lunch break "Not now Tyrone, I'm just about to win my 15th Champions League in a row with Leganés" ...
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I find this Gambling Technology stuff fascinating and the more I read about it the more I want it to fail.
The next thing will be an NFL draft style "parade" where players have their published stats for things like 60m sprint, vertical jump, speed of shot, and various other technical/physical capabilities. I'm sure those metrics all exist within a club right now, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time before it's in the public domain.
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Some suggestion he went to watch Elanga who came on in the 85th minute…..
From the little I have seen of him I rate him.
very impressed when I he played at villa park
We haven't been lucky with our Swedes lately but, regardless, I doubt we're looking at bringing in another promising but young striker.
He's very much a winger rather than a striker but if we were interested it would be to compete with Bailey not Watkins. I like him, looks a much better prospect than Garnacho in my opinion so I'm not sure why they've pushed him out.
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Some suggestion he went to watch Elanga who came on in the 85th minute…..
From the little I have seen of him I rate him.
very impressed when I he played at villa park
We haven't been lucky with our Swedes lately but, regardless, I doubt we're looking at bringing in another promising but young striker.
He's very much a winger rather than a striker but if we were interested it would be to compete with Bailey not Watkins. I like him, looks a much better prospect than Garnacho in my opinion so I'm not sure why they've pushed him out.
Fair point.
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James Bree gets to be a prem player for at least 5 mths anyway
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James Bree gets to be a prem player for at least 5 mths anyway
Fair play to him, he looked rubbish for us..granted we had 5 or 6 right backs at the time
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James Bree gets to be a prem player for at least 5 mths anyway
Fair play to him, he looked rubbish for us..granted we had 5 or 6 right backs at the time
When he did play, I wondered what it was that anyone had seen him him to make them splash out
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I really don’t understand why Manure would sell or why Elanga would join.
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James Bree gets to be a prem player for at least 5 mths anyway
Fair play to him, he looked rubbish for us..granted we had 5 or 6 right backs at the time
When he did play, I wondered what it was that anyone had seen him him to make them splash out
It was Steve Bruce, who knows what he saw in players, he signed Lansbury and Hogan in the same window.
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It was Steve Bruce, who knows what he saw in players, he signed Lansbury and Hogan in the same window.
That was when he was trying his version of Moneyball. Just buy the top scorer at the time, Hogan, the person with the most assists (Hourihane) and the player with the best combination of assists and goals at the time (Lansbury). With seemingly no thought as to if they were actually any good or how he'd end up fitting them in.
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I really don’t understand why Manure would sell or why Elanga would join.
Except they are busy trying to loan him out in his window.
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I really don’t understand why Manure would sell or why Elanga would join.
Except they are busy trying to loan him out in his window.
I think it's pretty clear that Ten Haag prefers Garnacho which gives them very little room to keep Elanga around right now. I'd be surprised if he's still there once the window closes.
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I really don’t understand why Manure would sell or why Elanga would join.
Except they are busy trying to loan him out in his window.
Is that a fact?
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Where's Bree gone to? Fair play to him, I thought he'd have a better chance of getting a role in Emmerdale with his Barnsley accent than becoming a PL player.
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Where's Bree gone to? Fair play to him, I thought he'd have a better chance of getting a role in Emmerdale with his Barnsley accent than becoming a PL player.
Southampton
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Where's Bree gone to? Fair play to him, I thought he'd have a better chance of getting a role in Emmerdale with his Barnsley accent than becoming a PL player.
Southampton
They are getting ready for their promotion push next year by the looks of it.
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Mikel Antonio speculating on his Football Football Show how he might be nearing the end of his time at West Ham...if one of our players had his own podcast and let the listeners in on insider thoughts/information, how would you feel about it?
He's already spoken about how crap WHam have been this year and now this....I doubt the club's press office are too happy about it.
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It was Steve Bruce, who knows what he saw in players, he signed Lansbury and Hogan in the same window.
That was when he was trying his version of Moneyball. Just buy the top scorer at the time, Hogan, the person with the most assists (Hourihane) and the player with the best combination of assists and goals at the time (Lansbury). With seemingly no thought as to if they were actually any good or how he'd end up fitting them in.
I don't think the transfers we made under Bruce were as bad as people like to make out. Lots of fans also thought Hogan and Lansbury would be good signings but admittedly they weren't.
He shipped out a lot of underperformers and we brought in some decent upgrades permanently or on loan (eg Hourihane, Johnstone, Snodgrass, Grabban, Elmo, McGinn).
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Are we going to sign another striker?
No, never, ever, again.
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I'm sure we're working on stuff but it's gone really quiet. It feels like all those transfer deadline days where you wait in anticipation and nothing happens.
I wouldn't be massively surprised if we're done for the window.
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The only concern i have is that Gregg Evans has written the "we won't panic buy" article. He does strike me a kind of useful idiot for the club, in that the feed him the narrative they want to push and he's more than happy to print it. I might be unkind in this assessment, but i've noticed a trend in his articles that would suggest as much.
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Hope not but beginning to look like our last few transfer windows, a quick couple of signings and then, lots of speculation but, no more actual signings.
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I really don't think there were many of us who thought Lansbury would be a good signing.
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A slight upgrade in the left back department, a kid for the future and the loss of Ings would make this a deeply disappointing transfer window if we don't get anybody else in.
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I cant believe we wont get anyone in - as were in the mix for the europe still and in good form, it would make no sense not to push on. I worry when things go this late in a window though none of our first choices are available - And that's how we end up with the likes of Dendocker and the guy from Southampton rocking up.
So I am choosing to be hopeful, and that were trying to complete big deals that arent that easy.
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A slight upgrade in the left back department, a kid for the future and the loss of Ings would make this a deeply disappointing transfer window if we don't get anybody else in.
Particulalry given the massive opportunity with the way the league places have panned out. You'd have to expect Brighton, Fulham and Brentford to fall off a bit too.
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It was Steve Bruce, who knows what he saw in players, he signed Lansbury and Hogan in the same window.
That was when he was trying his version of Moneyball. Just buy the top scorer at the time, Hogan, the person with the most assists (Hourihane) and the player with the best combination of assists and goals at the time (Lansbury). With seemingly no thought as to if they were actually any good or how he'd end up fitting them in.
I don't think the transfers we made under Bruce were as bad as people like to make out. Lots of fans also thought Hogan and Lansbury would be good signings but admittedly they weren't.
He shipped out a lot of underperformers and we brought in some decent upgrades permanently or on loan (eg Hourihane, Johnstone, Snodgrass, Grabban, Elmo, McGinn).
I think if you compare the squad he inherited and the one he handed to Smith it's very hard to avoid thinking he made a bit of a mess of things.
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The only concern i have is that Gregg Evans has written the "we won't panic buy" article. He does strike me a kind of useful idiot for the club, in that the feed him the narrative they want to push and he's more than happy to print it. I might be unkind in this assessment, but i've noticed a trend in his articles that would suggest as much.
Really... He strikes me as an Albion fan that has lived off the Villa for many years without every getting anything right.
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I wouldn't trust him to spell his own name correctly
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A slight upgrade in the left back department, a kid for the future and the loss of Ings would make this a deeply disappointing transfer window if we don't get anybody else in.
I reckon there will be 1 perm and 1 loan in yet. Villa are notorious for being quiet. Loan won't happen till deadline day and the selling club can't sell though. I am quite comfortable with no one coming though, as appointing Emery shows Sawari is still all in, and the summer will be interesting.
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Fuck me, that's a pretty shit hit rate and over half the decent ones were loans:
Sam Johnstone January 2017 Manchester United (loan)
Henri Lansbury January 2017 Nottingham Forest
James Bree January 2017 Barnsley
Birkir Bjarnason January 2017 Basel
Conor Hourihane January 2017 Barnsley
Neil Taylor January 2017 Swansea
Scott Hogan January 2017 Brentford
John Terry July 2017 Chelsea
Sam Johnstone July 2017 Manchester United (loan)
Ahmed Elmohamady July 2017 Hull
Christopher Samba July 2017 Free agent
Glenn Whelan July 2017 Stoke
Josh Onomah August 2017 Tottenham (loan)
Robert Snodgrass August 2017 West Ham (loan)
Axel Tuanzebe January 2018 Manchester United (loan)
Lewis Grabban January 2018 Bournemouth (loan)
Viljami Sinisalo July 2018 FC Espoo
Andre Moreira August 2018 Atletico Madrid
Orjan Nyland August 2018 Ingolstadt
John McGinn August 2018 Hibernian
Anwar El Ghazi August 2018 Lille (loan)
Yannick Bolasie August 2018 Everton (loan)
Tammy Abraham August 2018 Chelsea (loan)
Akos Onodi August 2018 ETO Gyor
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The only concern i have is that Gregg Evans has written the "we won't panic buy" article. He does strike me a kind of useful idiot for the club, in that the feed him the narrative they want to push and he's more than happy to print it. I might be unkind in this assessment, but i've noticed a trend in his articles that would suggest as much.
Really... He strikes me as an Albion fan that has lived off the Villa for many years without every getting anything right.
He does nice puff pieces, but nothing on tactics or any detailed analysis. Absolutely shite compared to other clubs reporters and can't even be arsed to do the podcast anymore.
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Where's Bree gone to? Fair play to him, I thought he'd have a better chance of getting a role in Emmerdale with his Barnsley accent than becoming a PL player.
Southampton
They are getting ready for their promotion push next year by the looks of it.
Replaceing Kyle Walker Peters?
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A slight upgrade in the left back department, a kid for the future and the loss of Ings would make this a deeply disappointing transfer window if we don't get anybody else in.
I am quite comfortable with no one coming though, as appointing Emery shows Sawari is still all in, and the summer will be interesting.
This was the bench against Southampton though:
2 Cash
8 Sanson
16 Chambers
23 Coutinho
25 Olsen
32 Dendoncker
38 Sinisalo
72 Young
With Sanson now gone as well, and McGinn and Digne out for a while, there's paper thin, and then there's that. Two goalies, two kids who have never played a second of first team football, a plodder in Dendoncker, a crap reserve defender and Coutinho who hasn't been in form for months. One or two more injuries and suspensions and the season couls start to unravel quite quickly.
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Fuck me, that's a pretty shit hit rate and over half the decent ones were loans:
Sam Johnstone January 2017 Manchester United (loan)
Henri Lansbury January 2017 Nottingham Forest
James Bree January 2017 Barnsley
Birkir Bjarnason January 2017 Basel
Conor Hourihane January 2017 Barnsley
Neil Taylor January 2017 Swansea
Scott Hogan January 2017 Brentford
John Terry July 2017 Chelsea
Sam Johnstone July 2017 Manchester United (loan)
Ahmed Elmohamady July 2017 Hull
Christopher Samba July 2017 Free agent
Glenn Whelan July 2017 Stoke
Josh Onomah August 2017 Tottenham (loan)
Robert Snodgrass August 2017 West Ham (loan)
Axel Tuanzebe January 2018 Manchester United (loan)
Lewis Grabban January 2018 Bournemouth (loan)
Viljami Sinisalo July 2018 FC Espoo
Andre Moreira August 2018 Atletico Madrid
Orjan Nyland August 2018 Ingolstadt
John McGinn August 2018 Hibernian
Anwar El Ghazi August 2018 Lille (loan)
Yannick Bolasie August 2018 Everton (loan)
Tammy Abraham August 2018 Chelsea (loan)
Akos Onodi August 2018 ETO Gyor
Grabban and Johnstone did well I'd argue. Glen Whelan played his part as well.
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Glen Whelan played his part as well.
Missing the penalty that got Bruce fired for example. Modern-day Villa hero.
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True, I didn't mid Whelan and Grabban had a good record in his few months with us. Johnston was a good signing - he's in the list twice.
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Neil Taylor was more than adequate for the Championship at the time
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A slight upgrade in the left back department, a kid for the future and the loss of Ings would make this a deeply disappointing transfer window if we don't get anybody else in.
I reckon there will be 1 perm and 1 loan in yet. Villa are notorious for being quiet. Loan won't happen till deadline day and the selling club can't sell though. I am quite comfortable with no one coming though, as appointing Emery shows Sawari is still all in, and the summer will be interesting.
I can't imagine that we're going to spend the second half of the season with no attacking options other than Bailey, Watkins and Durán. I don't see why we would have let both Ings and Archer leave if that were the case.
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
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Neil Taylor was more than adequate for the Championship at the time
We'll have to disagree there.
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
I suspect lots of 18/19 year old signings have less input from the manager than those ready for the first team though
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
I'm not sure that's something of concern - I wouldn't be expecting him to be watching MLS matches on the off-chance that his new perfect signing was going to be there.
He won't have had anything to do with signing people like Jackson and Chukwueze at a similar age for Villareal but still turned them into good players.
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Mikel Antonio speculating on his Football Football Show how he might be nearing the end of his time at West Ham...if one of our players had his own podcast and let the listeners in on insider thoughts/information, how would you feel about it?
He's already spoken about how crap WHam have been this year and now this....I doubt the club's press office are too happy about it.
With Ings getting injured I don't think he'll be allowed to go now - he'd upgrade our attack though. I think what he's done though is tantamount to insider dealing and is well off.
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
I'm not sure that's something of concern - I wouldn't be expecting him to be watching MLS matches on the off-chance that his new perfect signing was going to be there.
He won't have had anything to do with signing people like Jackson and Chukwueze at a similar age for Villareal but still turned them into good players.
Spot on. At the fee and the age, its the type I would be expecting a good director of football to be bringing in and a top coach being delighted to have them in the long term.
Chukwueze would still have been my guess at the one he wanted to bring from Villareal.
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Mikel Antonio speculating on his Football Football Show how he might be nearing the end of his time at West Ham...if one of our players had his own podcast and let the listeners in on insider thoughts/information, how would you feel about it?
He's already spoken about how crap WHam have been this year and now this....I doubt the club's press office are too happy about it.
Its quite nice refreshing honesty.
Makes a change from the same old PR crafted garbage that uses a lot of words to say the grand total of fuck all...
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Where's Bree gone to? Fair play to him, I thought he'd have a better chance of getting a role in Emmerdale with his Barnsley accent than becoming a PL player.
Southampton
They are getting ready for their promotion push next year by the looks of it.
Replaceing Kyle Walker Peters?
Or hopefully sending Livramento our way when he is back fit...
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
I'm not sure that's something of concern - I wouldn't be expecting him to be watching MLS matches on the off-chance that his new perfect signing was going to be there.
He won't have had anything to do with signing people like Jackson and Chukwueze at a similar age for Villareal but still turned them into good players.
It wasn't concern that he didn't have much to with it as such, more to do with the people who did.
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
I'm not sure that's something of concern - I wouldn't be expecting him to be watching MLS matches on the off-chance that his new perfect signing was going to be there.
He won't have had anything to do with signing people like Jackson and Chukwueze at a similar age for Villareal but still turned them into good players.
It wasn't concern that he didn't have much to with it as such, more to do with the people who did.
I think that's unfair. The people that deal with signing younger players who aren't ready to go straight into the first team squad have signed; Iroegbunam, Feeney, Wilson, Smith, Bogarde and a few others who all COULD make it or at least bring in a fair bit of money to the club. Where we, like almost every club in the league, have beena bit hit and miss is with signings to come in and improve us immediately, but those are the signings where the manager at the time will have been a lot more involved.
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
I'm not sure that's something of concern - I wouldn't be expecting him to be watching MLS matches on the off-chance that his new perfect signing was going to be there.
He won't have had anything to do with signing people like Jackson and Chukwueze at a similar age for Villareal but still turned them into good players.
It wasn't concern that he didn't have much to with it as such, more to do with the people who did.
I think that's unfair. The people that deal with signing younger players who aren't ready to go straight into the first team squad have signed; Iroegbunam, Feeney, Wilson, Smith, Bogarde and a few others who all COULD make it or at least bring in a fair bit of money to the club. Where we, like almost every club in the league, have beena bit hit and miss is with signings to come in and improve us immediately, but those are the signings where the manager at the time will have been a lot more involved.
He's not a 16 year bought to go straight into the academy though. He's been bought for big money, with a full OS splash, and all the effort of the JPA video etc. I just think there might be a bit of a disconnect between the likes of Lange thinking he's more ready than Emery does.
But anyway, if we could just buy a sodding player, we wouldn't need to be having these random chats about fuck all!!!!!111111 ;)
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
I'm not sure that's something of concern - I wouldn't be expecting him to be watching MLS matches on the off-chance that his new perfect signing was going to be there.
He won't have had anything to do with signing people like Jackson and Chukwueze at a similar age for Villareal but still turned them into good players.
It wasn't concern that he didn't have much to with it as such, more to do with the people who did.
I think that's unfair. The people that deal with signing younger players who aren't ready to go straight into the first team squad have signed; Iroegbunam, Feeney, Wilson, Smith, Bogarde and a few others who all COULD make it or at least bring in a fair bit of money to the club. Where we, like almost every club in the league, have beena bit hit and miss is with signings to come in and improve us immediately, but those are the signings where the manager at the time will have been a lot more involved.
Quite like to see some of them involved…esp K Young, Brad Young…in fact a team of Young uns
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Must admit I am very surprised Villa didn't have a signing ready to announce on Mon/Tues to replace Ings. It now seems obvious that we are doing our business after the event. Very odd..
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
I'm not sure that's something of concern - I wouldn't be expecting him to be watching MLS matches on the off-chance that his new perfect signing was going to be there.
He won't have had anything to do with signing people like Jackson and Chukwueze at a similar age for Villareal but still turned them into good players.
It wasn't concern that he didn't have much to with it as such, more to do with the people who did.
I think that's unfair. The people that deal with signing younger players who aren't ready to go straight into the first team squad have signed; Iroegbunam, Feeney, Wilson, Smith, Bogarde and a few others who all COULD make it or at least bring in a fair bit of money to the club. Where we, like almost every club in the league, have beena bit hit and miss is with signings to come in and improve us immediately, but those are the signings where the manager at the time will have been a lot more involved.
Quite like to see some of them involved…esp K Young, Brad Young…in fact a team of Young uns
Brad Young is shit. He's like a pound shop Agbonlahor. In my humble opinion. A kid who has discovered that when you play proper mens football, you need more than just being a straight line pace merchant. I am sure he is a lovely person though.
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Must admit I am very surprised Villa didn't have a signing ready to announce on Mon/Tues to replace Ings. It now seems obvious that we are doing our business after the event. Very odd..
Classic Villa. Expect a Heskey / Tom Carroll type signing on deadline day.
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Neil Taylor was more than adequate up to the halfway line for the Championship at the time
There I fixed that for you.
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It was Steve Bruce, who knows what he saw in players, he signed Lansbury and Hogan in the same window.
That was when he was trying his version of Moneyball. Just buy the top scorer at the time, Hogan, the person with the most assists (Hourihane) and the player with the best combination of assists and goals at the time (Lansbury). With seemingly no thought as to if they were actually any good or how he'd end up fitting them in.
I don't think the transfers we made under Bruce were as bad as people like to make out. Lots of fans also thought Hogan and Lansbury would be good signings but admittedly they weren't.
He shipped out a lot of underperformers and we brought in some decent upgrades permanently or on loan (eg Hourihane, Johnstone, Snodgrass, Grabban, Elmo, McGinn).
I think if you compare the squad he inherited and the one he handed to Smith it's very hard to avoid thinking he made a bit of a mess of things.
If you ignore the reality of the club nearly going bust in the days/weeks after losing to Fulham. That had a huge impact on preparing for the following season, lost out on signing the likes of Johnstone, Snodgrass and Grabban permanently as a result.
Bruce finally stopped the rot of charlatan players taking the piss out of the club. Publicly humiliating McCormack was the day our recovery as a club started.
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Bruce was a fucking chancer.
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Bruce was a fucking chancer.
Bruce IS a fucking chancer. .
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You'd enjoy having a pint with him though, down to earth, like.
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Rumor that Liverpool is considering Guendouzi..
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Bruce stopped the rot. Not perfect by any means, but it was under him that we ended half a decade of going backwards. Parted company later than we should, but it pisses me off a bit when people forget what he came into. He started the process of me actually liking Aston Villa again.
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
What worries me (I’ll say it quietly, as it’s all from you tube) he looks like a bit of a donkey.
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Bruce stopped the rot. Not perfect by any means, but it was under him that we ended half a decade of going backwards. Parted company later than we should, but it pisses me off a bit when people forget what he came into. He started the process of me actually liking Aston Villa again.
very true
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Bruce stopped the rot. Not perfect by any means, but it was under him that we ended half a decade of going backwards. Parted company later than we should, but it pisses me off a bit when people forget what he came into. He started the process of me actually liking Aston Villa again.
I was glad he was kept on when NSWE took over as we needed continuity. He left at precisely the right time.
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If they'd binned him when they rocked up, maybe we wouldn't have had to play catch-up just to make the playoffs.
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You'd enjoy having a pint with him though, down to earth, like.
And hes a might fine author
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I think we'll announce am exciting signing very soon.
I don't know anything.
Just a hunch.
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I'm in the Steve Bruce sympathy group too. Nothing much to add over anyone else, but in my mind we've had far worse Villa managers then Bruce over the last decade. He played his part in the revival of our great football club, and like every manager his time had passed once NSWE had settled in.
Welcome back at Villa Park whenever he likes ... just not as manager :)
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I think we'll announce am exciting signing very soon.
I don't know anything.
Just a hunch.
8)
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Steve Bruce done a fantastic job for the club, when we were in a terrible state. I'll be forever grateful to him for the work he done at the club. The way he was treated by a section of our fans was a disgrace.
Great manager and a great guy as was Dean Smith both huge inputs in where we are today.
All the best to them both
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Steve Bruce done a fantastic job for the club, when we were in a terrible state. I'll be forever grateful to him for the work he done at the club. The way he was treated by a section of our fans was a disgrace.
Great manager and a great guy as was Dean Smith both huge inputs in where we are today.
All the best to them both
Are you Harry Redknapp?
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Bruce was good relative to RDM, Garde and Sherwood and he was about on a par with Lambert and McLeish. That run of 6 managers is comfortably the worst period at the club since the mid 60s. Anyone competent and not in their first or 2nd real job would've been able to 'stop the rot'. He's awful manager who's main achievement with us was turn up when we'd fallen about as far as we were ever going to so I'm not going to give him massive credit for avoiding relegation in his first season as so many seem willing to do.
Also the idea that he couldn't sign Grabban, Johnstone and Snodgrass meant we were shit in his last season ignores the fact that he left us with 1 fully fit centre half (who was a kid on loan) for the first 2 months under Smith, Chester probably lost a year or 2 from his career from playing with an injury to let us put out a functional back 4. As happened this season as soon as we sacked him the real push to get promoted started.
Everything I (and many others) disliked about him is exactly the same thing that fans of 4-5 other clubs think, that's not a coincidence.
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This transfer thread is looking very thin on info at the moment , please advise
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Steve Bruce done a fantastic job for the club, when we were in a terrible state. I'll be forever grateful to him for the work he done at the club. The way a section treated him of our fans was a disgrace.
Great manager and a great guy as was Dean Smith both huge inputs in where we are today.
All the best to them both
You are right about the state of the club when he took over, but he was never the man long-term. I loved Dean Smith's time at the club, but I think we are now on the right path.
Regarding the views of sections of the fan base......I don't get carried away with what faceless 14 year old who are probably blues fans think. Remember, when the away fans turn on a manager, it's game over for that manager.
So enjoy the debate but remember opinions are not facts
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That the 4-4-2 formation is working so well at the moment is a bit amazing really. Buendia isn't a winger, nor is Ramsey/McGinn and Bailey isn't a striker. Does anybody know what Emery likes to play when he's got a settled team of his own to work with?
I don't think it's working that well with the ball to be honest. It was great first day out v Man United when we over ran them in the middle. Spurs away too, once we opened up in the second half it was too much for them. But when our CBs are pressed hard we are in trouble getting the ball through the lines. I think Wolves and Leeds showed how we can be exposed. Stick 3 v 2 in midfield to neutralise our strongest players (Kamara/Luiz) and press our CBs hard. Both games it took until half time to switch Buendia into the middle. We won't get away with Moreno/Buendia defensively against better teams. Ramsey isn't in great form either. McGinn is a loss and I think will replace Buendia v Leicester.
I'm not sure why Emery won't switch to 4231 permanently but I think he wants to leave Bailey high up the pitch. To be fair it worked v Leeds early on.
We had 575 passes at Southampton, came away with a clean sheet and all three points. You are way too down on our progress compared to just a few months ago. We have a manger that is willing to change and adapt his style in order to put the best team out to get results.
Despite 575 passes, Martinez still had to make an unbelievable save to keep the game scoreless at a crucial time and our winner came from a set piece. I can't recall another clear cut chance in the second half despite owning the ball. I really admire the defensive resilience Emery has implemented but with the ball I have increasing concerns about the 442 setup.
I think you're talking absolute nonsense. If we had better attackers, things would probably be more comfortable. IMO the set up is good but we've got bailey/watkins/buendia who I think all need improving on. Set up isn't the issue, we need more quality.
Also can't believe you'd be questioning the set up given the results after 3 months in the job, and the rabble we were when he took over
Moon a stick you want
How did Gerrard get on early on? Any number on here were willing to anoint him as the chosen one 12 months ago based on a similar start to Emery. Maybe those players you mention are the problem as too inconsistent etc but I think tactically we have a problem with the setup of the forward four. The other seven are fine, especially if Carlos comes back fully fit and helps our ability to play out from the back under pressure.
If you were manager we'd win every single game then as you obviously know all the answers
LOLOLOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
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Steve Bruce done a fantastic job for the club, when we were in a terrible state. I'll be forever grateful to him for the work he done at the club. The way he was treated by a section of our fans was a disgrace.
Great manager and a great guy as was Dean Smith both huge inputs in where we are today.
All the best to them both
Are you Harry Redknapp?
Eyes bleeding.
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This transfer thread is looking very thin on info at the moment , please advise
We all know about as much as each other.
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
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He stopped the slide.
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He did ok but still, ultimately, failed.
Back to the transfer thread eh?
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He stopped the slide.
Yes and to be fair, the football was actually quite enjoyable, certainly to what had gone on before. We got the most points ever in 2018 (ok yes from 46 games) and that wasn't just lucky.
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While we wait for some actual transfer news, here are my most controversial opinions of those early Championship years that, thankfully, feel like a very long time ago now:
I'd have given Di Matteo more time. Until Preston, where I think he'd just lost his mind because he knew he was toast, we weren't actually playing that badly, just conceding a lot of last-minute goals. We had started to play some better stuff, but there was something not quite clicking. I think he could have turned it around. Fat Ross and the keeper were two huge errors of judgement, but I think what he had was salvageable - our owner didn't have any patience because he was gambling on us getting promoted immediately.
Bruce underachieved with the squad he had, particularly in that second season. He took over a squad that could have played Kodjia, Grealish and Ayew up front. There were plenty of problems, but there was a lot of quality there too, that had been massively underperforming. He was much more concerned with getting new players in than working with what he had, and we had a chairman desperate enough to write the cheques.
(Probably the most controversial one): John Terry was a pathetic vanity signing that didn't actually improve our first team very much at all. We needed a quick, powerful CB to play next to Chester (look at the impact Mings had when he came in - that's what we were crying out for). By signing Terry to play next to him, we had the exact same weaknesses as we'd had the previous year. When Terry was out injured, Elphick filled in and we weren't any worse off.
We neglected the youth during this period and potentially ruined a few careers. Players like McKirdy, Mitch Clark, Callum O'Hare all could have been utilised, but instead we bought in players like Bree and that guy from Bury that never actually played for us. We never tried to bring through any youth players and it was a wasted opportunity.
Snodgrass wasn't that good for us. As soon as Jack was back in that season, nobody else did anything. Jack carried us to the playoffs that year far more than he did the following year.
None of that matters, of course, we're better off now than we probably could have imagined. If Bruce had got us up first time of asking, we'd probably have gone straight back down and into administration. So everything turned out for the best, so just to get us back on track, here is my ill-thought prediction for the next few days: We're going to announce Thuram and Guendouzi before the end of the window. And probably another teenage prodigy that can play on the wing.
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We've been here before, just needing one or two quality improvements to really kick on but struggling to get the right players in. I know it's difficult in January, but so frustrating.
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
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We were a bigger mess at the time he left than when he arrived.
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While we wait for some actual transfer news, here are my most controversial opinions of those early Championship years that, thankfully, feel like a very long time ago now:
I'd have given Di Matteo more time. Until Preston, where I think he'd just lost his mind because he knew he was toast, we weren't actually playing that badly, just conceding a lot of last-minute goals. We had started to play some better stuff, but there was something not quite clicking. I think he could have turned it around. Fat Ross and the keeper were two huge errors of judgement, but I think what he had was salvageable - our owner didn't have any patience because he was gambling on us getting promoted immediately.
Bruce underachieved with the squad he had, particularly in that second season. He took over a squad that could have played Kodjia, Grealish and Ayew up front. There were plenty of problems, but there was a lot of quality there too, that had been massively underperforming. He was much more concerned with getting new players in than working with what he had, and we had a chairman desperate enough to write the cheques.
(Probably the most controversial one): John Terry was a pathetic vanity signing that didn't actually improve our first team very much at all. We needed a quick, powerful CB to play next to Chester (look at the impact Mings had when he came in - that's what we were crying out for). By signing Terry to play next to him, we had the exact same weaknesses as we'd had the previous year. When Terry was out injured, Elphick filled in and we weren't any worse off.
We neglected the youth during this period and potentially ruined a few careers. Players like McKirdy, Mitch Clark, Callum O'Hare all could have been utilised, but instead we bought in players like Bree and that guy from Bury that never actually played for us. We never tried to bring through any youth players and it was a wasted opportunity.
Snodgrass wasn't that good for us. As soon as Jack was back in that season, nobody else did anything. Jack carried us to the playoffs that year far more than he did the following year.
None of that matters, of course, we're better off now than we probably could have imagined. If Bruce had got us up first time of asking, we'd probably have gone straight back down and into administration. So everything turned out for the best, so just to get us back on track, here is my ill-thought prediction for the next few days: We're going to announce Thuram and Guendouzi before the end of the window. And probably another teenage prodigy that can play on the wing.
I'd agree with most of that.
I hope you're right with the signings, those 2 and a young winger would go a long way to getting the squad where it needs to be to really push on. It would also mean that the summer could be a case of 2-3 major signings rather another rebuild.
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
What did we need? Someone to experiment?
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We were a bigger mess at the time he left than when he arrived.
I think you might find that was Dr Tony's fault.
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
What did we need? Someone to experiment?
A good manager.
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
What did we need? Someone to experiment?
A good manager.
Yep, it was as simple as that.
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
What did we need? Someone to experiment?
A good manager.
Yep, it was as simple as that.
Pretty much.
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
What did we need? Someone to experiment?
I think opposite is unfair but someone looking to develop players alongside the first team and wanting to setup tactical and technical excellence through the club, something a little like Kompany is doing at Burnley.
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I think he was the right appointment at the right time.
Hindsight gets you the winning lottery numbers every week.
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
What did we need? Someone to experiment?
I think opposite is unfair but someone looking to develop players alongside the first team and wanting to setup tactical and technical excellence through the club, something a little like Kompany is doing at Burnley.
You could argue we didnt have time for that and how many times has that happened anyway?
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It was the totally wrong appointment for what we needed at the time
It was a piss easy job getting Villa out of the championship with the resources we had
Bruce was successful at turning us into a standard championship side playing championship standard football and that’s being kind
he was absolutely rubbish and has been rubbish ever since wherever he’s gone
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
What did we need? Someone to experiment?
I think opposite is unfair but someone looking to develop players alongside the first team and wanting to setup tactical and technical excellence through the club, something a little like Kompany is doing at Burnley.
You could argue we didnt have time for that and how many times has that happened anyway?
Does it take long with the sort of resources we had that season?
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
What did we need? Someone to experiment?
I think opposite is unfair but someone looking to develop players alongside the first team and wanting to setup tactical and technical excellence through the club, something a little like Kompany is doing at Burnley.
You could argue we didnt have time for that and how many times has that happened anyway?
Does it take long with the sort of resources we had that season?
I'll ask again, how many other teams have done that?
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Not much action on the transfers and loans coming in, is there?
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
What did we need? Someone to experiment?
I think opposite is unfair but someone looking to develop players alongside the first team and wanting to setup tactical and technical excellence through the club, something a little like Kompany is doing at Burnley.
You could argue we didnt have time for that and how many times has that happened anyway?
Does it take long with the sort of resources we had that season?
I'll ask again, how many other teams have done that?
I honestly don't care if none havem it's still what I believe should've been done because the alternative was us having to spend £150m building an entirely new squad just to stay up once we got promoted and, might well not have managed it without a 3month break in the season due to covid.
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Not much action on the transfers and loans coming in, is there?
no we are arguing about Steve Bruce.
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Not much action on the transfers and loans coming in, is there?
no we are arguing about Steve Bruce.
Is he coming back?
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Tomorrow some shirt stretching please 🙏
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Not much action on the transfers and loans coming in, is there?
I blame Bruce or Di Matteo.
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Not much action on the transfers and loans coming in, is there?
I blame Bruce or Di Matteo.
You deserve to watch a Bruce team for eternity!
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We were a bigger mess at the time he left than when he arrived.
I think you might find that was Dr Tony's fault.
Besides when he left the current owners had taken over so we were in pretty good shape.
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Like everyone I hope we are getting 2 or 3 in before the deadline. Because we absolutely cannot afford not to. We will fucking to royally if we don’t add some proper quality with European football spots within touching distance.
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That's probably the one Wilma post I agree with (some still get through sadly, despite the block). I wouldnt say he did a fantastic job though, he was just the right kind of manager when it was needed. We were a mess.
We had every advantage as a huge club. He was the opposite of what we needed.
What did we need? Someone to experiment?
I think opposite is unfair but someone looking to develop players alongside the first team and wanting to setup tactical and technical excellence through the club, something a little like Kompany is doing at Burnley.
You could argue we didnt have time for that and how many times has that happened anyway?
Does it take long with the sort of resources we had that season?
I'll ask again, how many other teams have done that?
I honestly don't care if none havem it's still what I believe should've been done because the alternative was us having to spend £150m building an entirely new squad just to stay up once we got promoted and, might well not have managed it without a 3month break in the season due to covid.
Well, that was a convenient response.
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Like everyone I hope we are getting 2 or 3 in before the deadline. Because we absolutely cannot afford not to. We will fucking to royally if we don’t add some proper quality with European football spots within touching distance.
I think it'll be one max but really, I wouldn't be surprised at all now if it's nobody, which would be a crying shame.
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While we wait for some actual transfer news, here are my most controversial opinions of those early Championship years that, thankfully, feel like a very long time ago now:
I'd have given Di Matteo more time. Until Preston, where I think he'd just lost his mind because he knew he was toast, we weren't actually playing that badly, just conceding a lot of last-minute goals. We had started to play some better stuff, but there was something not quite clicking. I think he could have turned it around. Fat Ross and the keeper were two huge errors of judgement, but I think what he had was salvageable - our owner didn't have any patience because he was gambling on us getting promoted immediately.
Bruce underachieved with the squad he had, particularly in that second season. He took over a squad that could have played Kodjia, Grealish and Ayew up front. There were plenty of problems, but there was a lot of quality there too, that had been massively underperforming. He was much more concerned with getting new players in than working with what he had, and we had a chairman desperate enough to write the cheques.
(Probably the most controversial one): John Terry was a pathetic vanity signing that didn't actually improve our first team very much at all. We needed a quick, powerful CB to play next to Chester (look at the impact Mings had when he came in - that's what we were crying out for). By signing Terry to play next to him, we had the exact same weaknesses as we'd had the previous year. When Terry was out injured, Elphick filled in and we weren't any worse off.
We neglected the youth during this period and potentially ruined a few careers. Players like McKirdy, Mitch Clark, Callum O'Hare all could have been utilised, but instead we bought in players like Bree and that guy from Bury that never actually played for us. We never tried to bring through any youth players and it was a wasted opportunity.
Snodgrass wasn't that good for us. As soon as Jack was back in that season, nobody else did anything. Jack carried us to the playoffs that year far more than he did the following year.
None of that matters, of course, we're better off now than we probably could have imagined. If Bruce had got us up first time of asking, we'd probably have gone straight back down and into administration. So everything turned out for the best, so just to get us back on track, here is my ill-thought prediction for the next few days: We're going to announce Thuram and Guendouzi before the end of the window. And probably another teenage prodigy that can play on the wing.
This, this and this again.
Bruce was a shite appointment. A shite manager, and not the 'good bloke to have a pint with' (unless he was paying, I guess). He was terrible. He needed to realise that there was a difference between 'there' and 'thereabouts'. He delivered the latter, which amounted to fuck all.
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Well said Pads.
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Gosh this reminiscing under Dr Tone is making me feel
quite queezy 😳
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I honestly don't care if none havem it's still what I believe should've been done because the alternative was us having to spend £150m building an entirely new squad just to stay up once we got promoted and, might well not have managed it without a 3month break in the season due to covid.
Well, that was a convenient response.
Well yeah, what else do you want, do you really need me to go through years of championship promotions and point out all of the times teams were relegated and came back as better teams? Do you honestly think pretending that has never happened is a killer argument? Do you deny that teams have been promoted without playing eye-bleedingly shit football and forming a squad that literally had to be dismantled and completely rebuilt?
I assume you understand that neither of us can categorically be proven correct without breaking the laws of physics so this is one opinion against another. Given that, why do I need to provide evidence to prove that a manager with as many relegations as promotions and who had a record of leaving squads in a fucking mess wasn't the best man for the job? Why don't you prove that I'm wrong and show that every single team ever promoted did it with a 'specialist' who "doesn't do tactics"? Oh right, it's because I didn't try to shut you down by demanding something so fucking ridiculous.
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Like everyone I hope we are getting 2 or 3 in before the deadline. Because we absolutely cannot afford not to. We will fucking to royally if we don’t add some proper quality with European football spots within touching distance.
I think it'll be one max but really, I wouldn't be surprised at all now if it's nobody, which would be a crying shame.
Not going to lie. I’m getting a squeaky bum with a few days to go that this won’t be as good as all want it to be. And Wolves just signed yet another player so they’re loading up. I’m all for Emery having full control over transfers but I hope those responsible for getting it done get it fucking done. I don’t want to waste this season. If we fall short that’s fine as long as we gave it a proper go.
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Blimey Paul, calm down. Its not me who wanted tactical and technical awareness after we'd just been relegated winning three games the season before. And you still haven't given a team as an example.
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I think we could do with a better reserve GK and another proven goal-scorer.
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A winger would be nice as well.
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Not holding my breath.
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Blimey Paul, calm down. Its not me who wanted tactical and technical awareness after we'd just been relegated winning three games the season before. And you still haven't given a team as an example.
And I won't because it's a pointless question and whatever answer I give won't satisfy you.
And no, you were clearly happy with a manager who wanted us to roll up our sleeves because that approach wasn't at all what led to our relegation in the first place.
I think my problem is I just didn't think back to our play under Lambert and McLeish and think that was exactly what we needed more of.
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We were awful under Lambert and McLeish.
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Bruce is a fucking terrible manager who has lived on his reputation for years, with zero tactical awareness beyond geeing up the lads and hoping for the best, which usually results in his teams playing eye-bleedingly shit football. He is an absolute dinosaur who milked that "Championship specialist" thing for far longer than he should have been able to.
The football we were served up under him was every bit as bad as under McLeish, but at least McLeish was a decent bloke rather than a self serving fat fuck with his supporting cast of hangers on and his nauseating son on twitter.
There, that is that settled.
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Blimey Paul, calm down. Its not me who wanted tactical and technical awareness after we'd just been relegated winning three games the season before. And you still haven't given a team as an example.
And I won't because it's a pointless question and whatever answer I give won't satisfy you.
And no, you were clearly happy with a manager who wanted us to roll up our sleeves because that approach wasn't at all what led to our relegation in the first place.
I think my problem is I just didn't think back to our play under Lambert and McLeish and think that was exactly what we needed more of.
I think we need to bow down to Paul's superior knowledge and leave it there. The man who won't give an answer to a question I asked because it won't satisfy me apparently.
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Bruce is a fucking terrible manager who has lived on his reputation for years, with zero tactical awareness beyond geeing up the lads and hoping for the best, which usually results in his teams playing eye-bleedingly shit football. He is an absolute dinosaur who milked that "Championship specialist" thing for far longer than he should have been able to.
The football we were served up under him was every bit as bad as under McLeish, but at least McLeish was a decent bloke rather than a self serving fat fuck with his supporting cast of hangers on and his nauseating son on twitter.
There, that is that settled.
Yes Yes , but do you like him or not?
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Blimey Paul, calm down. Its not me who wanted tactical and technical awareness after we'd just been relegated winning three games the season before. And you still haven't given a team as an example.
And I won't because it's a pointless question and whatever answer I give won't satisfy you.
And no, you were clearly happy with a manager who wanted us to roll up our sleeves because that approach wasn't at all what led to our relegation in the first place.
I think my problem is I just didn't think back to our play under Lambert and McLeish and think that was exactly what we needed more of.
I think we need to bow down to Paul's superior knowledge and leave it there. The man who won't give an answer to a question I asked because it won't satisfy me apparently.
You're a strange man. We have different opinions, it happens, but you won't accept mine without evidence. I agree we should leave it though because it's dull as fuck (which is appropriate given the subject i guess).
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Bruce is a fucking terrible manager who has lived on his reputation for years, with zero tactical awareness beyond geeing up the lads and hoping for the best, which usually results in his teams playing eye-bleedingly shit football. He is an absolute dinosaur who milked that "Championship specialist" thing for far longer than he should have been able to.
The football we were served up under him was every bit as bad as under McLeish, but at least McLeish was a decent bloke rather than a self serving fat fuck with his supporting cast of hangers on and his nauseating son on twitter.
There, that is that settled.
Yes Yes , but do you like him or not?
I reckon you probably liked him.
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Bruce left his last 3 clubs ,us,Newcastle and the Baggies in or around the relegation zones.We got promoted in the same season,Newcastle are in third place and Albion have won 10 ,drawn 1 and lost 3 under Corberan.Even his media supporters and son Alex can't defend that record.
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Bruce is a fucking terrible manager who has lived on his reputation for years, with zero tactical awareness beyond geeing up the lads and hoping for the best, which usually results in his teams playing eye-bleedingly shit football. He is an absolute dinosaur who milked that "Championship specialist" thing for far longer than he should have been able to.
The football we were served up under him was every bit as bad as under McLeish, but at least McLeish was a decent bloke rather than a self serving fat fuck with his supporting cast of hangers on and his nauseating son on twitter.
There, that is that settled.
"Give it to Jack!"
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Bruce is a fucking terrible manager who has lived on his reputation for years, with zero tactical awareness beyond geeing up the lads and hoping for the best, which usually results in his teams playing eye-bleedingly shit football. He is an absolute dinosaur who milked that "Championship specialist" thing for far longer than he should have been able to.
The football we were served up under him was every bit as bad as under McLeish, but at least McLeish was a decent bloke rather than a self serving fat fuck with his supporting cast of hangers on and his nauseating son on twitter.
There, that is that settled.
"Give it to Jack!"
"Keeper! Hit the long diagonal to Elmo!"
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Bruce is a fucking terrible manager who has lived on his reputation for years, with zero tactical awareness beyond geeing up the lads and hoping for the best, which usually results in his teams playing eye-bleedingly shit football. He is an absolute dinosaur who milked that "Championship specialist" thing for far longer than he should have been able to.
The football we were served up under him was every bit as bad as under McLeish, but at least McLeish was a decent bloke rather than a self serving fat fuck with his supporting cast of hangers on and his nauseating son on twitter.
There, that is that settled.
From what I recall of that second season we played decent football when Grealish returned from injury. Granted the tactic was primarily give it to Jack (whisper it but was the same under Deano) but likes of Snodgrass, Grabban, Johnstone, Elmo, Terry, Chester, Hourihane, Hutton likeable lads anyway and good pros. Secured a playoff spot with weeks to spare, beat Boro comfortably in the semi before unfortunately not turning up in the first half v Fulham on the biggest day of all.
Tactically was Deano any better? Granted Mings was a brilliant signing and bringing Steer back was crucial (awful mistake by Bruce to let him go) but we were a rabble until Grealish returned from injury. Wasn't there a particularly shambolic day against maybe Swansea where Hourihane got booed off in the middle of it? A penalty shoot out win v West Brom before beating a poor Derby side under a master tactician/bluffer, it can be small margins too.
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It looks very much like that the Duran signing was nothing to do with Emery, which a) worries me a little bit and b) probably means he's not going to be getting many minutes any time soon
I'm not sure that's something of concern - I wouldn't be expecting him to be watching MLS matches on the off-chance that his new perfect signing was going to be there.
He won't have had anything to do with signing people like Jackson and Chukwueze at a similar age for Villareal but still turned them into good players.
It wasn't concern that he didn't have much to with it as such, more to do with the people who did.
6 months plus of work to get the deal signed, as was the case with Kamara, shows we've a solid recruitment team working on a variety of potential signings. Duran, it appears, had a good reputation and was viewed positively by various folks I think.
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Bruce is a fucking terrible manager who has lived on his reputation for years, with zero tactical awareness beyond geeing up the lads and hoping for the best, which usually results in his teams playing eye-bleedingly shit football. He is an absolute dinosaur who milked that "Championship specialist" thing for far longer than he should have been able to.
The football we were served up under him was every bit as bad as under McLeish, but at least McLeish was a decent bloke rather than a self serving fat fuck with his supporting cast of hangers on and his nauseating son on twitter.
There, that is that settled.
From what I recall of that second season we played decent football when Grealish returned from injury. Granted the tactic was primarily give it to Jack (whisper it but was the same under Deano) but likes of Snodgrass, Grabban, Johnstone, Elmo, Terry, Chester, Hourihane, Hutton likeable lads anyway and good pros. Secured a playoff spot with weeks to spare, beat Boro comfortably in the semi before unfortunately not turning up in the first half v Fulham on the biggest day of all.
Tactically was Deano any better? Granted Mings was a brilliant signing and bringing Steer back was crucial (awful mistake by Bruce to let him go) but we were a rabble until Grealish returned from injury. Wasn't there a particularly shambolic day against maybe Swansea where Hourihane got booed off in the middle of it? A penalty shoot out win v West Brom before beating a poor Derby side under a master tactician/bluffer, it can be small margins too.
Fucking hell, John Terry was likeable?!
Dean Smith got us promoted after clearing up Bruce's mess. It would be wrong to say that there's no comparison between him and Bruce because there's an easy comparison to make - Dean Smith was great for us, whereas...
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Bruce left his last 3 clubs ,us,Newcastle and the Baggies in or around the relegation zones.We got promoted in the same season,Newcastle are in third place and Albion have won 10 ,drawn 1 and lost 3 under Corberan.Even his media supporters and son Alex can't defend that record.
Yeah, think Albion's immediate upturn in form since his departure has finished Steve Bruce off, even at Chapionship level.
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Bruce is shite. I think there is plenty of evidence for that now and I didn't want his fat head at the time.
I do feel like this window will be like many others and we don't quite get what we need. I reckon Dembele or loan cover for striker. We're trying to get Guendouzi, at least.
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Never mind Bruce, happy birthday Brendan! The big 5 0. He'll manage us one day, right...?
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Woke up to an extra 4 pages and thought something exciting was happening, turn out it was a Steve Bruce-a-thon
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Read elsewhere that we are trying to sign an experienced centre forward - could we be one of the clubs interested in Michail Antonio from West Ham?
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Hopefully not.
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They bought Ings because Antonio is a busted flush, so we buy Antonio?
Yes right
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Not holding my breath.
Duran is an end-of-season signing cos MLS is played mostly in the summer months. Moreno had a low release clause.
I reckon that might be it. Maybe we're not getting good enough value right now?
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Read elsewhere that we are trying to sign an experienced centre forward - could we be one of the clubs interested in Michail Antonio from West Ham?
I bleeding hope not
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There are any number of possible reasons for a lack of transfer activity, but I don't think it has anything to do with the owners not putting their money where their mouths are. I suspect it might be to do with a mismatch between our longer term targets that we've been watching for a while, and what our new manager wants in the short term. But it's the club's responsibility to back the manager (or why bother appointing him?), so I'm confident that if we don't have much activity before the end of the month, it will be a BIG summer.
I still think two more, though one might be a loan having freed up the Bednarek loan slot.
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I just don't agree with the "it's OK to leave it until summer" line at all. We've got a depleted squad now, and we need new faces. If we leave it until summer, we'll first of all have to fill the spots that need filling, and then also try to add some quality to what we've got as well if we want to improve. So if we do that, we're trying to integrate 5-6 new players all at once, or if we still only buy 2-3, we're standing still again at best. At least if we were to make a couple of signings now, there's half a season to bed them in.
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I get the feeling that there are a number of deals that when/ if they go through will have a domino effect.
Not sure if we will be the beneficiary of this but the window has not really taken off yet.
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Bruce is a fucking terrible manager who has lived on his reputation for years, with zero tactical awareness beyond geeing up the lads and hoping for the best, which usually results in his teams playing eye-bleedingly shit football. He is an absolute dinosaur who milked that "Championship specialist" thing for far longer than he should have been able to.
The football we were served up under him was every bit as bad as under McLeish, but at least McLeish was a decent bloke rather than a self serving fat fuck with his supporting cast of hangers on and his nauseating son on twitter.
There, that is that settled.
Perfect summing up…with the players he had access to at the level we were at his performance was every bit as disgusting as others named, a complete football parasite.
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Perhaps Unai doesn't do panic buying. He has the self confidence to wait until his targets are getable.
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Perhaps Unai doesn't do panic buying. He has the self confidence to wait until his targets are getable.
He'd be the first manager who ever lived not to want to strengthen then.
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I just don't agree with the "it's OK to leave it until summer" line at all. We've got a depleted squad now, and we need new faces. If we leave it until summer, we'll first of all have to fill the spots that need filling, and then also try to add some quality to what we've got as well if we want to improve. So if we do that, we're trying to integrate 5-6 new players all at once, or if we still only buy 2-3, we're standing still again at best. At least if we were to make a couple of signings now, there's half a season to bed them in.
Yep.
Fuck knows how many years in recent times we've done shit or no business in January and left it till summer, just writing off season after season.
If we're going to have a go at it, we need to drop this meek attitude of 'maybe later'. I know it is hard signing players now, but it isn't impossible. We should be doing everything we can to get what we need.
Carrying on with 'ah well, maybe next year' is the surest way to lose players like Martinez and Kamara, and TBH, who can blame them?
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Read elsewhere that we are trying to sign an experienced centre forward - could we be one of the clubs interested in Michail Antonio from West Ham?
I'd rather sign Mikhail Baryshnikov.
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Perhaps Unai doesn't do panic buying. He has the self confidence to wait until his targets are getable.
So why reduce our attacking options (an area in which we were already short) by one while waiting for those targets?
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I just don't agree with the "it's OK to leave it until summer" line at all. We've got a depleted squad now, and we need new faces. If we leave it until summer, we'll first of all have to fill the spots that need filling, and then also try to add some quality to what we've got as well if we want to improve. So if we do that, we're trying to integrate 5-6 new players all at once, or if we still only buy 2-3, we're standing still again at best. At least if we were to make a couple of signings now, there's half a season to bed them in.
Yep.
Fuck knows how many years in recent times we've done shit or no business in January and left it till summer, just writing off season after season.
If we're going to have a go at it, we need to drop this meek attitude of 'maybe later'. I know it is hard signing players now, but it isn't impossible. We should be doing everything we can to get what we need.
Carrying on with 'ah well, maybe next year' is the surest way to lose players like Martinez and Kamara, and TBH, who can blame them?
Yep it’s a nonsense. You can’t clear the decks in January and leave yourself short for the rest of the season.
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Im sure we have a list of targets we are working through - and I would imagine they will drop. Its just whether from the page "First Choice Signings" - Or the "If all else fails get these" page.
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I just don't agree with the "it's OK to leave it until summer" line at all. We've got a depleted squad now, and we need new faces. If we leave it until summer, we'll first of all have to fill the spots that need filling, and then also try to add some quality to what we've got as well if we want to improve. So if we do that, we're trying to integrate 5-6 new players all at once, or if we still only buy 2-3, we're standing still again at best. At least if we were to make a couple of signings now, there's half a season to bed them in.
I'm certainly not saying its "okay", just that the fact we've not been that active might be more than a simple case of the owners don't want to spend any more. It's not that we don't want to buy players. We need more players, obviously. Our squad is definitely weaker than it was on 31st December, and I still think we'll bring a couple in - but I do think the summer is much more important in Unai's rebuild.
Maybe Unai is very clear in that he only wants the players he wants, and he'd rather wait and rely on what he's got that sign the 3rd or 4th choices for a gap he's got? I can't for one moment think there is anyone at the club thinking, "That'll do for this window, we're okay now".
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We'll see by Tuesday 11pm I guess.
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We definitely need players, and so far we've brought in one striker and let two go out. We've let a midfielder go. We appear happy to send a defender back having brought one in.
Overall we need more for sure. Everyone wants new front players, and there aren't many about. We enquired about a couple of big names that haven't come off, but it doesn't mean we're not still looking.
I trust Emery, and his vision, but, yet again, we're a couple short. Let's hope we get it sorted.
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And I agree, there's no point in compromise and trying to fit a square peg in a round hole just because it's a nice peg.
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Cant we try and nick some of Leicesters players - I think Maddison or Harvey Barnes would be ideal for us?
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I just don't agree with the "it's OK to leave it until summer" line at all. We've got a depleted squad now, and we need new faces. If we leave it until summer, we'll first of all have to fill the spots that need filling, and then also try to add some quality to what we've got as well if we want to improve. So if we do that, we're trying to integrate 5-6 new players all at once, or if we still only buy 2-3, we're standing still again at best. At least if we were to make a couple of signings now, there's half a season to bed them in.
Well, the thing about buying players is that someone will have to be open to selling them, right? Clubs who still have a reasonable shot European qualification (or win something) aren't so likely to want to scupper their own chances by letting a key squad member leave. Clubs who're embroiled in a relegation battle aren't going to want to start waving the white flag unless they're well and truly down. And at this stage of the season pretty much every club either thinks they might qualify for Europe or they might get relegated.
So, what are you left with? Players that their clubs don't want (e.g. Drinky, Coutinho, ..), ones where you trigger the player's release clause (e.g. Moreno), and a handful where the league season is different from our own (e.g. Duran Duran).
I'd assume by signings nobody means Drinky Mk II, and players who play in summer leagues don't tend to be the premium ones. Which leaves us attempting to trigger release clauses or paying well over the odds for players.
I just think maybe, if we finish the window with Moreno & Duran, we'll have done alright. I know, this is a perfect opportunity to push ourselves forward and so I really do hope that there's a player or 2 somewhere that we're working on. I do think if we were to sign (say) Nico Williams and Matteo Guendouzi we'd actually be in a situation where we might - whisper it - be in with a bloody good shot at needing passports next season. Cos I think we've got a very decent squad already, don't have so many matches that we have to worry about 4th choice defenders or 2nd choice keepers too much, and potentially just getting a forward so that Bailey can move back on to the wing might be literally all we need to see us through to the summer (when hopefully we'll have European football, so will have better options in the 2nd choice keeper / 4th choice defender market).
But yeah.... one of them, innit? Going to be difficult to find players to improve on what we have without getting our pants pulled down.
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Imagine if you were a Newcastle fan, sat in 3rd with a very real chance of Champions League football this season, with the richest owners in world football, and your only January signing so far is a £300k Aussie kid loaned immediately to Hearts. AND you've loaned out the £25m forward you signed a year ago.
We are not alone in finding January hard. The only team really making significant improvements is Chelsea, whose owner is treating the transfer market like an episode of Supermarket Sweep.
I still think two more, one permanent and one loan. One of them a forward. The squad will be slightly down in numbers, but hopefully slightly better in quality.
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Imagine if you were a Newcastle fan, sat in 3rd with a very real chance of Champions League football this season, with the richest owners in world football, and your only January signing so far is a £300k Aussie kid loaned immediately to Hearts. AND you've loaned out the £25m forward you signed a year ago.
We are not alone in finding January hard. The only team really making significant improvements is Chelsea, whose owner is treating the transfer market like an episode of Supermarket Sweep.
I still think two more, one permanent and one loan. One of them a forward. The squad will be slightly down in numbers, but hopefully slightly better in quality.
Thats a very good point - I also don't think we would be that excited by the idea of Gordon rocking up for 40m
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In the past we have spent millions adding numbers to the squad without actually strengthening it.
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Imagine if you were a Newcastle fan, sat in 3rd with a very real chance of Champions League football this season, with the richest owners in world football, and your only January signing so far is a £300k Aussie kid loaned immediately to Hearts. AND you've loaned out the £25m forward you signed a year ago.
We are not alone in finding January hard. The only team really making significant improvements is Chelsea, whose owner is treating the transfer market like an episode of Supermarket Sweep.
I still think two more, one permanent and one loan. One of them a forward. The squad will be slightly down in numbers, but hopefully slightly better in quality.
Thats a very good point - I also don't think we would be that excited by the idea of Gordon rocking up for 40m
Oh great, you've said it now so I expect to be watching a video of a tearful Gordon looking up at a video of Claire Boulding welcoming him to the club from the lower Holte within the next few days.
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He's not a bad player really. He's got saft hair though.
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Imagine if you were a Newcastle fan, sat in 3rd with a very real chance of Champions League football this season, with the richest owners in world football, and your only January signing so far is a £300k Aussie kid loaned immediately to Hearts. AND you've loaned out the £25m forward you signed a year ago.
They've got Saint Maximin and £60m record signing Isak on the bench though.
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The negativity is really strange. I haven't felt this good about villa since about 2008.
For a transfer to happen the club the player is contracted to has to be willing to release the player for your valuation and the player contracted to the club has to be willing to join your club for the money you are willing to pay him. And there will be other clubs sniffing around, maybe more desperate than you are.
January has always been a tricky month. We probably over paid for Digne last year, for example.
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The negativity is really strange. I haven't felt this good about villa since about 2008.
For a transfer to happen the club the player is contracted to has to be willing to release the player for your valuation and the player contracted to the club has to be willing to join your club for the money you are willing to pay him. And there will be other clubs sniffing around, maybe more desperate than you are.
January has always been a tricky month. We probably over paid for Digne last year, for example.
£25m for a defender who has PSG, Barcelona and 50 caps for France on his CV? When players like Wan-Bissake have cost £50m?
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The negativity is really strange. I haven't felt this good about villa since about 2008.
For a transfer to happen the club the player is contracted to has to be willing to release the player for your valuation and the player contracted to the club has to be willing to join your club for the money you are willing to pay him. And there will be other clubs sniffing around, maybe more desperate than you are.
January has always been a tricky month. We probably over paid for Digne last year, for example.
January wasn't too tricky to prevent Liverpool buying Suarez or Van Dijk. Or Man Utd buying Vidic or Evra. Or Spurs buying Kulusevski and Bentacur. Or us buying Young and Carew.
Or West Ham buying Ings. Or Middlesbrough borrowing Archer.
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I'm trying to be encoraged by thinking the players we're after are actually good and a) their teams don't want to lose them and b) other teams want them too so it's taking longer than we would like.
It will be fine.
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Imagine if you were a Newcastle fan, sat in 3rd with a very real chance of Champions League football this season, with the richest owners in world football, and your only January signing so far is a £300k Aussie kid loaned immediately to Hearts. AND you've loaned out the £25m forward you signed a year ago.
They've got Saint Maximin and £60m record signing Isak on the bench though.
Of course, but that bench also includes Lascelles, Jamal Lewis, Jacob Murphy and Matt Richie. They're not blessed with enormous squad depth. They obviously have a good first eleven, and a reasonable squad, but they also have some weaknesses on that bench too, and you could argue their need for reinforcements (given the potential rewards within touching distance for them) is as high as anyones.
Of course it's comparing apples and oranges comparing their needs to ours, I'm just pointing out that if it were easy to strengthen with very good players in January, I suspect Newcastle would also be doing it. Chelsea have seemingly started their own FFP time-bomb, so no idea how that's going to play out...
I actually have as much confidence in our future recruitment as I've had in a long time (though Emery is cause of much of this confidence), I just hope we can get a couple more across the line. With no more additions and a couple of key injuries we would be fielding some very make-shift line-ups. I really hope it doesn't come to that.
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Thing is, if we can't get our targets this month, for whatever reason, and then start getting bodies in the door just because, we're back at square one.
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We'll sign another attacker next week I'm sure.
Bit odd to let Ings leave when he's been a solid back up this season and chipping in with goals that have won us points in difficult matches (Brighton,Wolves).
Of course Ollie hardly gets injured but he did pull up v Leeds so if same happens v Leicester I think it's a bit optimistic for Duran to come on and make Benteke style impact straight away.
He needs time to develop. Not like we're overflowing with many wide attackers either.
I'd like us to have a go at qualifying for europe. Feels a bit odd if we're happy to just float around 11th/12th especially when you see likes of Fulham and Brentford are only 3 points ahead, we can certainly finish above those two.
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As per nearly always, the January transfer window is proving a damp squib.
When Gerrard left, we were in relegation form. Now we are approximately 12 points away from safety with 18 league games to play. First mission almost accomplished.
Any new players in January that would improve our first team would need to hit the ground running. If in good form, it is very unlikely their current club would let them go unless stupid money was involved (eg Chelsea). We are also getting rid of deadwood.
It seems like we are building up our coffers for a busy summer transfer window. Unai will use the rest of the season to see what we have in the locker, maybe give youth a chance, install his style of play, study the market and let the purse strings rip in the summer.
Possibly one experienced forward on a loan deal and I reckon our January window is done and dusted. It might give us a chance of a European spot this season but realistically next season is the target.
Rome wasn't built in a day.
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As per nearly always, the January transfer window is proving a damp squib.
When Gerrard left, we were in relegation form. Now we are approximately 12 points away from safety with 18 league games to play. First mission almost accomplished.
Any new players in January that would improve our first team would need to hit the ground running. If in good form, it is very unlikely their current club would let them go unless stupid money was involved (eg Chelsea). We are also getting rid of deadwood.
It seems like we are building up our coffers for a busy summer transfer window. Unai will use the rest of the season to see what we have in the locker, maybe give youth a chance, install his style of play, study the market and let the purse strings rip in the summer.
Possibly one experienced forward on a loan deal and I reckon our January window is done and dusted. It might give us a chance of a European spot this season but realistically next season is the target.
Rome wasn't built in a day.
I would also like to see youth given a chance, but aren't all of our most promising young players out on loan?
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Thing is, if we can't get our targets this month, for whatever reason, and then start getting bodies in the door just because, we're back at square one.
Someone like Dembele would be pretty risk free. A few million fee and at an age where we could probably get our money back next year. Appreciate not everyone rates him, but I'd rather have him as an option than just hope that a 19 y/o can step up from the MLS
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According to a few media reports, Swansea are after Kaine Kesler-Hayden. Wouldn't be a bad shout. They are short in the RB area so he would get games & they are a half decent side. If Young is going to give cover & competition to Cash, then it makes sense he gets games & come back to be backup next year when Young will most likely be moved on. I wouldn't mind us taking a cheeky little punt on Djed Spence from Spurs though. He has been out of contention ever since Levy signed him over Contes head. Having Spence & Kesler-Hayden competing for that RB/RWB slot next year would be great. Lots of pace & forward running.
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I like KKH and Swansea would seem like a good move.
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Thing is, if we can't get our targets this month, for whatever reason, and then start getting bodies in the door just because, we're back at square one.
You assume that we'll "start getting bodies in the door" but that may not be the Emery approach.
FWIW, I think they'll get Guendouzi in - anything else will be a bonus or a last-minute, value-enhancing opportunity.
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Saint Maximin has gone all Traore, relegated to the bench cos he's not effective enough from the start. He'll be gone if they get Gordon.
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Thing is, if we can't get our targets this month, for whatever reason, and then start getting bodies in the door just because, we're back at square one.
But at the moment we are slightly further behind square one, having removed one defender, one midfielder and two strikers, while adding one defender and one striker.
So if our aim for January was to remain at square one (and it probably shouldn't have been if so), wouldn't it have made more sense to leave at least one of Archer and Ings kicking around?
I'm sure this is academic, as I expect we'll bring in at least one and probably two before Tuesday.
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The negativity is really strange. I haven't felt this good about villa since about 2008.
For a transfer to happen the club the player is contracted to has to be willing to release the player for your valuation and the player contracted to the club has to be willing to join your club for the money you are willing to pay him. And there will be other clubs sniffing around, maybe more desperate than you are.
January has always been a tricky month. We probably over paid for Digne last year, for example.
January wasn't too tricky to prevent Liverpool buying Suarez or Van Dijk. Or Man Utd buying Vidic or Evra. Or Spurs buying Kulusevski and Bentacur. Or us buying Young and Carew.
Or West Ham buying Ings. Or Middlesbrough borrowing Archer.
Can't really comment on non-Villa transfers as I have little-to-no interest in the details of football clubs other than Villa. However, with our transfers:
- At the time, it was widely seen that we paid well over the odds for Young (£9.75m for a player with no pedigree)
- Carew was unwanted at Lyon
- Ings was unwanted at Villa
- Digne had fallen out with Benitez at Everton
- Barcelona wanted Coutinho off their wage bill
- Archer is (I assume) seen as not ready for first team football yet
You either buy players that the parent club doesn't want, or you pay over the odds for them, or you find one that's undervalued because of their buy out clause.
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Chelsea are definitely distorting this months market….you do wonder if some clubs (& we are amongst them) are hoping to pick up one of their unwanted players on deadline day.
I also think (if finances allow) that anyone we can get in this month rather than waiting for summer is a bonus…if we could get 2/3 in before deadline then hopefully come summer they will be integrated & it will be tinkering rather than looking for 5/6
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I get the feeling that there are a number of deals that when/ if they go through will have a domino effect.
Not sure if we will be the beneficiary of this but the window has not really taken off yet.
Are there any butterflies flapping their wings in the Amazonian rainforest, or what is left of it?
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The success of the Kamara deal may have had an impact on our philosophy.
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Seeing as we've known for a couple of weeks that we wouldn't be in action this weekend, I wonder if some things might have been put aside to sort over the next couple of days.
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no Deulofeu due to surgery required on knee, which personally I feel is a good thing
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It's a shame Footy's taken a break, I'd be interested in his views on this Football Insider revelation:
"27th Jan, 2023 | 7:30am
Sources: Aston Villa ready to pounce and seal last-gasp Matteo Guendouzi deal
Aston Villa are ready to pounce and look into sealing a late-window deal for Marseille star Matteo Guendouzi, sources have told Football Insider.
The former Arsenal man is one of Villa’s top targets as Unai Emery works on recruiting a top-class central midfielder ahead of next Tuesday’s cut-off.
The Midlands outfit have held talks with Marseille over a deal for Guendouzi, who is valued at around the £30million mark, and discussed offering a player in part-exchange.
It is believed that Villa have suggested Morgan Sanson as part of a cash-plus-player deal."
Oi, Football Insider, if you're going to make up rubbish then at least be aware of the fact that Sanson went to Strasbourg a few days ago.
Divs.
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Not Villa but transfer related and very good:
https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMY8ThvAb/
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I thought it was shit, but everybody seems to be going mad over it
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I thought it was shit, but everybody seems to be going mad over it
ha ha you misog :D
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I thought it was shit, but everybody seems to be going mad over it
ha ha you misog :D
I know, it's things like this that remind me I'm getting old
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I thought it was shit, but everybody seems to be going mad over it
I thought it was impressive work to garner so many views and comments - someone in Burnley's social media team is getting a decent bonus this year - but I tend to agree with you, I found it perhaps not shit, but nothing amazing.
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I thought it was shit, but everybody seems to be going mad over it
I thought it was impressive work to garner so many views and comments - someone in Burnley's social media team is getting a decent bonus this year - but I tend to agree with you, I found it perhaps not shit, but nothing amazing.
I suppose in a sense yes, it's impressive to get that reach with something that's not inflamatory in some way. But it's still shit.
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I thought it was shit, but everybody seems to be going mad over it
People also like Coldplay and voted for the Nazis.
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Thing is, if we can't get our targets this month, for whatever reason, and then start getting bodies in the door just because, we're back at square one.
You assume that we'll "start getting bodies in the door" but that may not be the Emery approach.
FWIW, I think they'll get Guendouzi in - anything else will be a bonus or a last-minute, value-enhancing opportunity.
I'm not assuming, if anything I'm hoping we've learnt from past mistakes. It is a bit of a dilemma though.
If we get Guendouzi I'd be delighted, but we reeeeeeeaaally need another attacker
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I thought it was shit, but everybody seems to be going mad over it
I thought it was impressive work to garner so many views and comments - someone in Burnley's social media team is getting a decent bonus this year - but I tend to agree with you, I found it perhaps not shit, but nothing amazing.
Also a little bit over the top perhaps for somebody who came from the Belgian second division. Still, I guess we did something similar for Duran.
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I'm still reeling in horror from: Aston Villa are ready to pounce and look into sealing a late-window deal.
Are we pouncing into looking into something? Or are we pouncing separately to our other hobby of looking at buying footballers?
No time to decipher as I've got to explode into pondering a distraction.
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I love a good pounce, me.
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Do we pounce out of a large war chest?
The war chest itself might be large, but if we are going to pounce out of it, surely there's not much room for gold / coins in it, which is not going to help us in the market.
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I thought it was shit, but everybody seems to be going mad over it
People also like Coldplay and voted for the Nazis.
and U2 and Bono...:(
UTV
The Doc
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Delefau (sp?) is off. Knee surgery. Out for the season...
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I couldn't give an ounce of a pounce.
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I thought it was shit, but everybody seems to be going mad over it
People also like Coldplay and voted for the Nazis.
Superhans, the only philosopher I refer to.
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Delefau (sp?) is off. Knee surgery. Out for the season...
Dodged a bullet if he hadn't have dodged a medical.
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Delefau (sp?) is off. Knee surgery. Out for the season...
Dodged a bullet if he hadn't have dodged a medical.
That would have been Coutinho MK II. At best he would be an impact player - very best.
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Elanga going Dortmund for 6 months
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Elanga going Dortmund for 6 months
booooooooooooooo
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Look we all know how long these things take
1. First we have to "admire" a player
2. Then the players club has to try and do something to "ward off the interest"
3. Then the player club has to "ready" themselves for a bid
4. We then have to "explore the option"
5. Then competing clubs have to start "Circling"
6. Then the player in question has to be "Open to the idea" of the move
7. Then the players club has to be "braced" for bids
8. Then we have to make an "official" bid
9. Then another Club has to try and "torpedo" it
10. Then he has to travel for the medical
11. Then we have to do some stupid social media video
12. Then they have to actually join
13. Then they have to get injured
Thats a lot to fit into a month - so patience is needed
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Look we all know how long these things take
1. First we have to "admire" a player
2. Then the players club has to try and do something to "ward off the interest"
3. Then the player club has to "ready" themselves for a bid
4. We then have to "explore the option"
5. Then competing clubs have to start "Circling"
6. Then the player in question has to be "Open to the idea" of the move
7. Then the players club has to be "braced" for bids
8. Then we have to make an "official" bid
9. Then another Club has to try and "torpedo" it
10. Then he has to travel for the medical
11. Then we have to do some stupid social media video
12. Then they have to actually join
13. Then they have to get injured
Thats a lot to fit into a month - so patience is needed
Between 7 and 8 we have to prepare the bid, a significant undertaking in itself. What font will you use, font size, will you center the text so on and so forth.
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Look we all know how long these things take
1. First we have to "admire" a player
2. Then the players club has to try and do something to "ward off the interest"
3. Then the player club has to "ready" themselves for a bid
4. We then have to "explore the option"
5. Then competing clubs have to start "Circling"
6. Then the player in question has to be "Open to the idea" of the move
7. Then the players club has to be "braced" for bids
8. Then we have to make an "official" bid
9. Then another Club has to try and "torpedo" it
10. Then he has to travel for the medical
11. Then we have to do some stupid social media video
12. Then they have to actually join
13. Then they have to get injured
Thats a lot to fit into a month - so patience is needed
Between 7 and 8 we have to prepare the bid, a significant undertaking in itself. What font will you use, font size, will you center the text so on and so forth.
Fire up the fax machine, and get CP off the dail-up internet so you can send it through - get Janine in accounts to find the cheque-book
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And all this from a sizeable war chest before the window slams shut (I'm sure all those commentators are on a cliche bonus)
On a serious note I am a tad concerned that with only 4 days left we are either playing another blinder or are risking shitting all over the progress and momentum we have at present.
Come on Villa surprise us please
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Romano on Twitter -
Morocco’s World Cup star Azzedine Ounahi is on the verge of joining OM on permanent deal, confirmed! Deal now at final stages for €10m fee 🚨⚪️🔵 #OM
Understand there’s full agreement with Angers — talks ongoing on personal terms to get it done.
First call
@Santi_J_FM
.
My gut feeling is that they were getting a replacement before Guendozi allowed to come to us.
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This bloke looks good, shame we missed out on him
https://twitter.com/jamesbree_97/status/1618726849009582080?s=46&t=mVnQ0y7ihbQ8FpEXWd7bcQ
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Romano on Twitter -
Morocco’s World Cup star Azzedine Ounahi is on the verge of joining OM on permanent deal, confirmed! Deal now at final stages for €10m fee 🚨⚪️🔵 #OM
Understand there’s full agreement with Angers — talks ongoing on personal terms to get it done.
First call
@Santi_J_FM
.
My gut feeling is that they were getting a replacement before Guendozi allowed to come to us.
He would basically be a like-for-like replacement. So that's a positive sign.
-
Romano on Twitter -
Morocco’s World Cup star Azzedine Ounahi is on the verge of joining OM on permanent deal, confirmed! Deal now at final stages for €10m fee 🚨⚪️🔵 #OM
Understand there’s full agreement with Angers — talks ongoing on personal terms to get it done.
First call
@Santi_J_FM
.
My gut feeling is that they were getting a replacement before Guendozi allowed to come to us.
He would basically be a like-for-like replacement. So that's a positive sign.
Yep, and we'd be far stronger for it. That would leave us needing more cover up front....
-
Romano on Twitter -
Morocco’s World Cup star Azzedine Ounahi is on the verge of joining OM on permanent deal, confirmed! Deal now at final stages for €10m fee 🚨⚪️🔵 #OM
Understand there’s full agreement with Angers — talks ongoing on personal terms to get it done.
First call
@Santi_J_FM
.
My gut feeling is that they were getting a replacement before Guendozi allowed to come to us.
He would basically be a like-for-like replacement. So that's a positive sign.
Yep, and we'd be far stronger for it. That would leave us needing more cover up front....
Double win, frees up Guendouzi and Ounahi doesn't end up at Leeds or the like.
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Give it a couple of years and we'll probably be trying to buy Ounahi.
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Although we prob need a forward most, Guendouzi is the link I've been most excited about this window, so very much hope that Ounahi deal frees it up.
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Along with Marseille getting their midfielder, OL are set to sign forward Wilson Isidor from Lokomotiv Moscow. So does that mean that we’ve just been classy about this and patient allowing those teams to get their players and we will announce Guendouzi and Dembele over the weekend? Or I am just naive and going to be hurt being this optimistic?
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Along with Marseille getting their midfielder, OL are set to sign forward Wilson Isidor from Lokomotiv Moscow. So does that mean that we’ve just been classy about this and patient allowing those teams to get their players and we will announce Guendouzi and Dembele over the weekend? Or I am just naive and going to be hurt being this optimistic?
That'd be ace!
-
Along with Marseille getting their midfielder, OL are set to sign forward Wilson Isidor from Lokomotiv Moscow. So does that mean that we’ve just been classy about this and patient allowing those teams to get their players and we will announce Guendouzi and Dembele over the weekend? Or I am just naive and going to be hurt being this optimistic?
That'd be ace!
What, TV being hurt?
Harsh ;D ;D
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Look we all know how long these things take
1. First we have to "admire" a player
2. Then the players club has to try and do something to "ward off the interest"
3. Then the player club has to "ready" themselves for a bid
4. We then have to "explore the option"
5. Then competing clubs have to start "Circling"
6. Then the player in question has to be "Open to the idea" of the move
7. Then the players club has to be "braced" for bids
8. Then we have to make an "official" bid
9. Then another Club has to try and "torpedo" it
10. Then he has to travel for the medical
11. Then we have to do some stupid social media video
12. Then they have to actually join
13. Then they have to get injured
Thats a lot to fit into a month - so patience is needed
Point 13 happens far too often.
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Beard82 you forgot the "waiting for work permit" step.
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Along with Marseille getting their midfielder, OL are set to sign forward Wilson Isidor from Lokomotiv Moscow. So does that mean that we’ve just been classy about this and patient allowing those teams to get their players and we will announce Guendouzi and Dembele over the weekend? Or I am just naive and going to be hurt being this optimistic?
That'd be ace!
Throw in Elanga…that would cause collective loin movement
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Along with Marseille getting their midfielder, OL are set to sign forward Wilson Isidor from Lokomotiv Moscow. So does that mean that we’ve just been classy about this and patient allowing those teams to get their players and we will announce Guendouzi and Dembele over the weekend? Or I am just naive and going to be hurt being this optimistic?
I hope you’re right.
Ffs, I better correct this.
-
Along with Marseille getting their midfielder, OL are set to sign forward Wilson Isidor from Lokomotiv Moscow. So does that mean that we’ve just been classy about this and patient allowing those teams to get their players and we will announce Guendouzi and Dembele over the weekend? Or I am just naive and going to be hurt being this optimistic?
I hope you're right.
-
Along with Marseille getting their midfielder, OL are set to sign forward Wilson Isidor from Lokomotiv Moscow. So does that mean that we’ve just been classy about this and patient allowing those teams to get their players and we will announce Guendouzi and Dembele over the weekend? Or I am just naive and going to be hurt being this optimistic?
I hope you're right.
-
Can we please bust a gut and just sign Kai Havertz.
Surely they must sell someone
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Chelsea signing Lyon's right back Malo Gusto for €30m with him joining in the summer.
Guess that means we're not selling them Cash for £50m
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Along with Marseille getting their midfielder, OL are set to sign forward Wilson Isidor from Lokomotiv Moscow. So does that mean that we’ve just been classy about this and patient allowing those teams to get their players and we will announce Guendouzi and Dembele over the weekend? Or I am just naive and going to be hurt being this optimistic?
I hope you’re right.
Ffs, I better correct this.
Ha ha ha! Sorry, couldn't resist it.
Bad English made me do it. You know what he's like.
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Chelsea signing Lyon's right back Malo Gusto for €30m with him joining in the summer.
Guess that means we're not selling them Cash for £50m
I would say based on their current activity you're being a bit previous.
-
Fair point.
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Chelsea's strategy seems to be that if they buy everyone then they win everything by forfeit.
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Can we please bust a gut and just sign Kai Havertz.
Surely they must sell someone
He's not great, is he? Would rather give Cam a go.
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Along with Marseille getting their midfielder, OL are set to sign forward Wilson Isidor from Lokomotiv Moscow. So does that mean that we’ve just been classy about this and patient allowing those teams to get their players and we will announce Guendouzi and Dembele over the weekend? Or I am just naive and going to be hurt being this optimistic?
I hope you’re right.
Ffs, I better correct this.
Ha ha ha! Sorry, couldn't resist it.
Bad English made me do it. You know what he's like.
Ha ha! Yes and so you should. I’m such a lazy hypocritical twat!
During work I moan all day about customers terrible grammar and spelling within their emails I receive. I get home and I pick up my phone and become those very people.
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I’d rather bring in top players we actually want than ‘do a job’ squad fillers
the likes of Bednerak and Denndonkker who we panic brought in last time just tie up valuable wage space for what they offer
I’m glad Bedneraks gone back
I’d rather leave it alone than bring in the likes of Antonio, I’m not saying we are interested just using him as an example
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Can we please bust a gut and just sign Kai Havertz.
Surely they must sell someone
He's not great, is he? Would rather give Cam a go.
He’s exceptionally good, he’s just not played right a Chelsea. I want Cam to succeed, and I hope he does, but you’d be mad to pick him over Havertz.
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Can we please bust a gut and just sign Kai Havertz.
Surely they must sell someone
He's not great, is he? Would rather give Cam a go.
What?, that’s an interesting opinion. If Cam was that good we’d have been watching him in an England shirt, not going on loan to the championship. Havertz is the classic quality talent that certain top teams waste.
Not that we’d get him…
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Along with Marseille getting their midfielder, OL are set to sign forward Wilson Isidor from Lokomotiv Moscow. So does that mean that we’ve just been classy about this and patient allowing those teams to get their players and we will announce Guendouzi and Dembele over the weekend? Or I am just naive and going to be hurt being this optimistic?
I hope you’re right.
Ffs, I better correct this.
Ha ha ha! Sorry, couldn't resist it.
Bad English made me do it. You know what he's like.
Ha ha! Yes and so you should. I’m such a lazy hypocritical twat!
During work I moan all day about customers terrible grammar and spelling within their emails I receive. I get home and I pick up my phone and become those very people.
‘Customers terrible grammar’ - is that a deliberate ironic error?
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Breaking news from Footy Insider
https://twitter.com/footyinsider247/status/1618876749885964288?s=46&t=jAF3uxvj9L6iqy4z1N6ouA
(https://i.ibb.co/980ympg/EFD1565-F-CC68-42-E8-80-D4-6-C3-D3-A721919.jpg) (https://ibb.co/980ympg)
-
Breaking news from Footy Insider
https://twitter.com/footyinsider247/status/1618876749885964288?s=46&t=jAF3uxvj9L6iqy4z1N6ouA
(https://i.ibb.co/980ympg/EFD1565-F-CC68-42-E8-80-D4-6-C3-D3-A721919.jpg) (https://ibb.co/980ympg)
Given that Sanson is on loan it’s a touch behind the times.
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Risso did mention it, everyone's behind the times!
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Breaking news from Footy Insider
https://twitter.com/footyinsider247/status/1618876749885964288?s=46&t=jAF3uxvj9L6iqy4z1N6ouA
Sigh, it was nice while it lasted.
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Chelsea's strategy seems to be that if they buy everyone then they win everything by forfeit.
Chelsea's strategy is simple "We buy any ******".
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Another wholly disappointing transfer window. Even the likes of Bournemouth are spending £40m plus. Usually there is something bubbling by now that can be taken seriously. I have a horrible feeling we won't be getting anyone. Lange out. Purslow out.
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Something might be happening over the weekend, Kippax.
We never know I suppose, but I'd be very surprised if Emery didn't bring a couple in.
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3 days left , still optimistic
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Not sure if it's been said but the club should be ready to pounce when Southampton get relegated. JWP on the cheap 8)
Best free kick taker in the world aside from maybe Messi. Would be an area of our attack improved by miles.
He's not gonna stay, they're defo going down and we defo would be interested. Who's with me?!
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His golf swing still needs a bit of work if he's going to follow in Bale's footsteps.
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Glass half full just about…Guendouzi and Dembele in because of what happened at their respective clubs today.
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I could not believe that, having his managerial record, he would sell our back up striker, without a replacement ready to come in.
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Another wholly disappointing transfer window. Even the likes of Bournemouth are spending £40m plus. Usually there is something bubbling by now that can be taken seriously. I have a horrible feeling we won't be getting anyone. Lange out. Purslow out.
Over the last few years pretty much all our business has been conducted with the utmost secrecy, so just because there’s very little concrete links doesn’t mean we’re twiddling our thumbs behind the scenes.
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I could not believe that, having his managerial record, he would sell our back up striker, without a replacement ready to come in.
Indeed.
If that is how it pans out, then Lange needs to be getting the bullet.
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I could not believe that, having his managerial record, he would sell our back up striker, without a replacement ready to come in.
That's just what he did. I'd back him for it too. Still think we will get a forward in. Hopefully Guendouzi too, not sure CM is a position we absolutely need to strengthen but it would be disappointing if we couldn't get the deal over the line after all the effort.
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Another wholly disappointing transfer window. Even the likes of Bournemouth are spending £40m plus. Usually there is something bubbling by now that can be taken seriously. I have a horrible feeling we won't be getting anyone. Lange out. Purslow out.
Over the last few years pretty much all our business has been conducted with the utmost secrecy, so just because there’s very little concrete links doesn’t mean we’re twiddling our thumbs behind the scenes.
I’d say the only signing completely out of the blue in recent times was Ings, and they did that in a panic so they had some good news to share after the sale of Grealish.
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It’s a little early for this pronouncement
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I don't think we have/had any striker lined up, I don't think we planned to sell Ings at all. We had a decent bid from West Ham who wanted him ASAP and we took it.
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Another wholly disappointing transfer window. Even the likes of Bournemouth are spending £40m plus. Usually there is something bubbling by now that can be taken seriously. I have a horrible feeling we won't be getting anyone. Lange out. Purslow out.
Over the last few years pretty much all our business has been conducted with the utmost secrecy, so just because there’s very little concrete links doesn’t mean we’re twiddling our thumbs behind the scenes.
I’d say the only signing completely out of the blue in recent times was Ings, and they did that in a panic so they had some good news to share after the sale of Grealish.
No one saw Borjan Baston coming
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I’m in the minority here but I’m relaxed about this window and hope/trust both Lange and Emery are busy planning proper signings either for this window or the next. The links to Williams and Depay suggest the bar is quite high.
If that sort of player isn’t available then I’d prefer a loan that bridges the gap than signing a player on a three year deal “just in case”. Stop gaps rarely work out imo.
Out of interest would we be happy with weghorst as a loan? The fact that Man U have ended up there suggests there might not be many players available right now.
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Another wholly disappointing transfer window. Even the likes of Bournemouth are spending £40m plus. Usually there is something bubbling by now that can be taken seriously. I have a horrible feeling we won't be getting anyone. Lange out. Purslow out.
Over the last few years pretty much all our business has been conducted with the utmost secrecy, so just because there’s very little concrete links doesn’t mean we’re twiddling our thumbs behind the scenes.
I’d say the only signing completely out of the blue in recent times was Ings, and they did that in a panic so they had some good news to share after the sale of Grealish.
No one saw Borjan Baston coming
I'm not sure anyone noticed him leaving, either.
Or playing come to that.
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I’m in the minority here but I’m relaxed about this window and hope/trust both Lange and Emery are busy planning proper signings either for this window or the next. The links to Williams and Depay suggest the bar is quite high.
If that sort of player isn’t available then I’d prefer a loan that bridges the gap than signing a player on a three year deal “just in case”. Stop gaps rarely work out imo.
Out of interest would we be happy with weghorst as a loan? The fact that Man U have ended up there suggests there might not be many players available right now.
Me too. Would rather we wait than get someone shite like Dembele.
Still, it would be nice for our Arshavin to sign 15 minutes past the deadline and be a baller for the rest of the season (and mostly mediocre for the three years afterwards).
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I'm cetainly not relaxed about it, one bad injury to Watkins and we are rooted.
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Not sure if it's been said but the club should be ready to pounce when Southampton get relegated. JWP on the cheap 8)
Best free kick taker in the world aside from maybe Messi. Would be an area of our attack improved by miles.
He's not gonna stay, they're defo going down and we defo would be interested. Who's with me?!
Bella-Kotchap too.
I’m in the minority here but I’m relaxed about this window and hope/trust both Lange and Emery are busy planning proper signings either for this window or the next. The links to Williams and Depay suggest the bar is quite high.
If that sort of player isn’t available then I’d prefer a loan that bridges the gap than signing a player on a three year deal “just in case”. Stop gaps rarely work out imo.
Out of interest would we be happy with weghorst as a loan? The fact that Man U have ended up there suggests there might not be many players available right now.
I am fairly relaxed. I was pretty irritated last January because we didn't bring in a CDM & while it did cost us points, in the end, we gained Boubacar Kamara. So if that is the type of quality that patience is going to get us, then I can live without signing the likes of Djemba-Djemba as a third or fourth choice signing. We have to remember that we are shopping in a different class of store these days, & in our current predicament, we are going to suffer refusals & set backs. So maybe a signing in-between Poundland & Harrods is probably a good idea, but then I go back to Kamara... Although maybe another one or two young players with high potential might be nice. But, if we sign nobody else, I will be slightly annoyed. But not as angry as I would have been in previous windows...
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And yet most other teams seem to be strengthening from the same shops.
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Another wholly disappointing transfer window. Even the likes of Bournemouth are spending £40m plus. Usually there is something bubbling by now that can be taken seriously. I have a horrible feeling we won't be getting anyone. Lange out. Purslow out.
Over the last few years pretty much all our business has been conducted with the utmost secrecy, so just because there’s very little concrete links doesn’t mean we’re twiddling our thumbs behind the scenes.
I’d say the only signing completely out of the blue in recent times was Ings, and they did that in a panic so they had some good news to share after the sale of Grealish.
We’ve signed a player this window completely out the blue as far as I was aware.
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Striker needed.
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Not sure if it's been said but the club should be ready to pounce when Southampton get relegated. JWP on the cheap 8)
Best free kick taker in the world aside from maybe Messi. Would be an area of our attack improved by miles.
He's not gonna stay, they're defo going down and we defo would be interested. Who's with me?!
Bella-Kotchap too.
I’m in the minority here but I’m relaxed about this window and hope/trust both Lange and Emery are busy planning proper signings either for this window or the next. The links to Williams and Depay suggest the bar is quite high.
If that sort of player isn’t available then I’d prefer a loan that bridges the gap than signing a player on a three year deal “just in case”. Stop gaps rarely work out imo.
Out of interest would we be happy with weghorst as a loan? The fact that Man U have ended up there suggests there might not be many players available right now.
I am fairly relaxed. I was pretty irritated last January because we didn't bring in a CDM & while it did cost us points, in the end, we gained Boubacar Kamara. So if that is the type of quality that patience is going to get us, then I can live without signing the likes of Djemba-Djemba as a third or fourth choice signing. We have to remember that we are shopping in a different class of store these days, & in our current predicament, we are going to suffer refusals & set backs. So maybe a signing in-between Poundland & Harrods is probably a good idea, but then I go back to Kamara... Although maybe another one or two young players with high potential might be nice. But, if we sign nobody else, I will be slightly annoyed. But not as angry as I would have been in previous windows...
Spot on. I’m relaxed too - we do need to be patient and I’d far prefer we buy quality over quantity even if that means a sparse Jan window. We will see some big names arrive over the summer, am sure of that.
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I would say with Liverpool and Chelsea struggling we have a unique opportunity to get into the top 8 this season so why not strengthen now.
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That's it, isn't it? We're not getting anyone else, are we?
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That's it, isn't it? We're not getting anyone else, are we?
Looking that way Dave. Things are going well at the moment, but I can't see the logic behind having just one senior striker and one wide player at the club.
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I would say with Liverpool and Chelsea struggling we have a unique opportunity to get into the top 8 this season so why not strengthen now.
Pretty sure the club will/would strengthen if the *right* player is available. I reckon they’d even over pay a touch.
If that player isn’t available then I’m okay with them waiting until the summer and throwing the dice with Duran for them remaining 18 games.
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I’ve not given up on the window entirely but I get the impression that with Emery if the right player isn’t available, rather than buy a stop gap, he’ll wait.
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I would say with Liverpool and Chelsea struggling we have a unique opportunity to get into the top 8 this season so why not strengthen now.
Pretty sure the club will/would strengthen if the *right* player is available. I reckon they’d even over pay a touch.
If that player isn’t available then I’m okay with them waiting until the summer and throwing the dice with Duran for them remaining 18 games.
It seems that every window we're waiting for the right player and the next window is always going to be The One. At the risk of being repetitive, we can't wait forever.
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And yet most other teams seem to be strengthening from the same shops.
Depends on who you are talking about, their situation, etc, etc... Im not saying you are wrong, but I think context of all involved has to be taken into consideration. And don't get me wrong, I want us to be strengthening, all of the time, with all of the top players. I want everything. Now. But Im old enough to realise that what I want, & reality, are far too often so far apart that they might as well be in another dimension...
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Shrug. We have a top manager who has been given a massive level of control. The owners need to trust him and back him. If he thinks it's worth waiting till the summer, it's on his head. We have a game or so a week so rotation will be minimal. I still think 1 or 2 will come in, but I don't think it will be the end of the world if we don't.
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I’m confident we will be fine. Don’t know why but you can give me pelters if we aren’t.
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We have made 2 January signings which is average amongst the Premier League with only a handful of teams signing more? Our current competitors say Palace, Fulham, Brighton and Brentford have not signed more than 2 and considering Brighton lost Trossard, Brentford signed Romeo Beckham and Palace and Fulham have not made one signing yet?
Chelsea are trying to sign every player in the World. The rest of the clubs are scrapping for survival and panic buying. Tottenham are signing players to appease Conti. if Newcastle's marquee signing is Gordon for $0m then good luck to them.
If Ollie gets injured then I would be worried but looking at his record it is unlikely and a considered risk maybe. We are not collecting players anymore. We are being pruned of deadwood.
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Selling Ings and loaning Archer makes no sense - unless they either think that Duran is ready to play PL level football now or someone else is coming in.
I am sure we must have a plan - because it is too risky having 1 striker with lots still to play for.
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Selling Ings and loaning Archer makes no sense - unless they either think that Duran is ready to play PL level football now or someone else is coming in.
I am sure we must have a plan - because it is too risky having 1 striker with lots still to play for.
I have zero issue with selling Ings. I dont rate him. Have never rated him & all he has done at Villa is reinforce that view with steel imbedded concrete. Loaning out Archer, now that is another story. He gave us cover & competition. And he has always looked bright whenever he has come on. So this particular deal has me confused...
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Selling Ings and loaning Archer makes no sense - unless they either think that Duran is ready to play PL level football now or someone else is coming in.
I am sure we must have a plan - because it is too risky having 1 striker with lots still to play for.
I have zero issue with selling Ings. I dont rate him. Have never rated him & all he has done at Villa is reinforce that view with steel imbedded concrete. Loaning out Archer, now that is another story. He gave us cover & competition. And he has always looked bright whenever he has come on. So this particular deal has me confused...
100% - Unless there is a plan - it would be stupid to let them both go. If loaning Archer is the right thing for his development we should have kept Ings. If wanted to cash in on Ings we should have kept Archer - as he would get plenty of minutes (just like Ings had so far)
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there could be a deadline day special coming in.... Dawkins, Routledge or Salifou.
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Wonder if we have a recall on Bertie ? If no other attacking options come in we should be trying to get him back till the summer, he’s not brilliant but he’s not terrible either and he’s still our player.
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I think he's injured.
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I would say with Liverpool and Chelsea struggling we have a unique opportunity to get into the top 8 this season so why not strengthen now.
Pretty sure the club will/would strengthen if the *right* player is available. I reckon they’d even over pay a touch.
If that player isn’t available then I’m okay with them waiting until the summer and throwing the dice with Duran for them remaining 18 games.
It seems that every window we're waiting for the right player and the next window is always going to be The One. At the risk of being repetitive, we can't wait forever.
Exactly this. It's always the next bloody window that will be the big one.
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Selling Ings and loaning Archer makes no sense - unless they either think that Duran is ready to play PL level football now or someone else is coming in.
I am sure we must have a plan - because it is too risky having 1 striker with lots still to play for.
I have zero issue with selling Ings. I dont rate him. Have never rated him & all he has done at Villa is reinforce that view with steel imbedded concrete. Loaning out Archer, now that is another story. He gave us cover & competition. And he has always looked bright whenever he has come on. So this particular deal has me confused...
He was our top scorer and third most assists (I think)
I have no issues with replacing him, but flogging him with no replacement is daft.
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Selling Ings without having a ready made replacement is negligent. Whether you rate him or not, he’s been getting us points and making an impact. When we need goals off the bench, where we going? It’s the difference between a top 10 place (European place perhaps although probably not) or finishing lower/mid table IMO.
Maybe we’ve decided to wait and accept loosing a few places in the table?
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Selling Ings fine, loaning Archer, plain daft.
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Selling Ings fine, loaning Archer, plain daft.
We should consider the idea that he's not as good as we all hoped. Gerrard and now Emery have both decided not to include him in the first team squad. He's old enough to have broken through by now. I hope I'm wrong.
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Selling Ings fine, loaning Archer, plain daft.
Agreed, but even if Archer was still here, it would have been a high risk move. We’d still be trying to replace Ings.
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Has anybody else seen that link to 18 year old Dario Osorio? Looks good from vids I have seen. But like Unsworths wife, this kids mommy has said no. He needs to grow a pair...
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At least we're not being pillaged like Brighton. Every chance of finishing ahead of them as things stand.
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That's it, isn't it? We're not getting anyone else, are we?
I still think we'll get someone on last day.
Go back to August and Bednarek and Dendoncker were signed last day. Bednarek was linked for a few weeks after Diego injury but Dendoncker was someone who really was last minute (seemingly just in case Luiz went on strike to get Arsenal move).
Feels odd if we're going on about europe yet our only attacking options are Ollie, Bailey and Duran. No idea if Duran is fast but we're really going to struggle to press and get up the pitch if Ollie goes off as happened after 20 minutes v Leeds so surely got to source another forward with decent mobility at least.
I still think we'll sign one more.
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I would say with Liverpool and Chelsea struggling we have a unique opportunity to get into the top 8 this season so why not strengthen now.
Pretty sure the club will/would strengthen if the *right* player is available. I reckon they’d even over pay a touch.
If that player isn’t available then I’m okay with them waiting until the summer and throwing the dice with Duran for them remaining 18 games.
It seems that every window we're waiting for the right player and the next window is always going to be The One. At the risk of being repetitive, we can't wait forever.
Kamara was the right player.
If we can find someone of his profile for final third we really are laughing with the improvements at the back since UE came in.
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Our net spend the last three windows is neglible.
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Our net spend the last three windows is neglible.
Money has rarely bought us happiness.
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That's it, isn't it? We're not getting anyone else, are we?
I still think we'll get someone on last day.
Go back to August and Bednarek and Dendoncker were signed last day. Bednarek was linked for a few weeks after Diego injury but Dendoncker was someone who really was last minute (seemingly just in case Luiz went on strike to get Arsenal move).
Feels odd if we're going on about europe yet our only attacking options are Ollie, Bailey and Duran. No idea if Duran is fast but we're really going to struggle to press and get up the pitch if Ollie goes off as happened after 20 minutes v Leeds so surely got to source another forward with decent mobility at least.
I still think we'll sign one more.
Duran has pace...
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Augustinsson loan ended (which I thought had already happened). Onwards.
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Considering how well the club did waiting for the right player with Kamara, I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait on a centre forward, which they are clearly looking for.
There's no point on splurging a load of money on shite. Just because they're expensive, doesn't make them any good. See Everton. We're well versed in that behaviour too. Steady as she goes, strike when the right player becomes available. Stick to that method and we'll move forward.
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Considering how well the club did waiting for the right player with Kamara, I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait on a centre forward, which they are clearly looking for.
There's no point on splurging a load of money on shite. Just because they're expensive, doesn't make them any good. See Everton. We're well versed in that behaviour too. Steady as she goes, strike when the right player becomes available. Stick to that method and we'll move forward.
Well said.
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Considering how well the club did waiting for the right player with Kamara, I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait on a centre forward, which they are clearly looking for.
There's no point on splurging a load of money on shite. Just because they're expensive, doesn't make them any good. See Everton. We're well versed in that behaviour too. Steady as she goes, strike when the right player becomes available. Stick to that method and we'll move forward.
And it takes a lot of work to shift deadwood...
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My feeling is:
Ings, we were made an offer we couldn't refuse. We didn't see him as long term option. In the summer he'd have 12 months left on his contract and West Ham wouldn't be panic buying players. We got £12m/£15m for a player who in 6 months time would be worthless. And we'd have had to pay Ings the best part of £8m in wages for the privilege.
There's only 18 games left this season, so if we went in to it with Watkins, Duran, and Bailey whose been playing as a forward, so be it. It's not an ideal situation, but one where you can kind of see that getting £15m cash + £8m saved wages = £23m might be worth considering.
I don't see the point in signing Dembele, or players like that. I don't think he's as good as Watkins, and the fairly unanimous verdict on here is that Watkins is either not good enough, or only just good enough, for a top 4/6 side, which is where we want to be.
At the end of the day, it's a hard time to buy anything other than other team's cast offs (or pay well over the odds). We've got a highly rated left back from Spain for less than we paid for Matt Targett, and a highly-rated forward for the amount we paid for Traore. I'd be inclined to say that in the cold light of day, that'll end up being well above average for PL clubs.
All that said, I can't help feeling that spending a bit of cash on a top quality striker and Guendouzi would be worth our while. We need to exploit the chinks in Chelsea's and Liverpool's armour.
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Hard to find a centre forward either as good or better than Watkins in January. You are pretty much looking for someone who is either running down a contract (like Dembele) or has fallen out with a coach. We don't have ECL football to offer, the primary selling point aside from cash is Emery and our potential.
Teams like WHU are desperate, they will surely have same problem we had with Ings anyway as he won't be able to replace Antonio or the Italian flop trying to lead the line. I think it's good that we took advantage of that desperation. They do have Europa cup games though.
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Considering how well the club did waiting for the right player with Kamara, I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait on a centre forward, which they are clearly looking for.
There's no point on splurging a load of money on shite. Just because they're expensive, doesn't make them any good. See Everton. We're well versed in that behaviour too. Steady as she goes, strike when the right player becomes available. Stick to that method and we'll move forward.
I think that's the way the club are thinking now. They've seen how hard it is to move deadwood and how you inevitably take a hit. So stop doing it and make more Kamara-type signings.
Add to that, Emery likes working with a small squad and the club are keen to promote youth.
Maybe we can get 1-2 loans in to cover us until the summer but that's when we need to be doing the bulk of our work.
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Considering how well the club did waiting for the right player with Kamara, I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait on a centre forward, which they are clearly looking for.
There's no point on splurging a load of money on shite. Just because they're expensive, doesn't make them any good. See Everton. We're well versed in that behaviour too. Steady as she goes, strike when the right player becomes available. Stick to that method and we'll move forward.
I think that's the way the club are thinking now. They've seen how hard it is to move deadwood and how you inevitably take a hit. So stop doing it and make more Kamara-type signings.
Add to that, Emery likes working with a small squad and the club are keen to promote youth.
Maybe we can get 1-2 loans in to cover us until the summer but that's when we need to be doing the bulk of our work.
I'm still hopeful we'll get Guendouzi in over the next 3 days, which will make this a very useful window. It means we'll be light upfront, but our midfielders are chipping in with goals and we do have a little depth in the squad even if it means blooding a couple of youngsters.
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If Guendouzi comes in, then it'll be a reasonable window with shortcomings to address in the summer. Another forward and it becomes good. If it stays as is, then it'll have been a poor one.
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If Guendouzi comes in, then it'll be a reasonable window with shortcomings to address in the summer. Another forward and it becomes good. If it stays as is, then it'll have been a poor one.
If he comes in, I’d be touting our fat-arsed Scot about before the deadline.
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If Guendouzi comes in, then it'll be a reasonable window with shortcomings to address in the summer. Another forward and it becomes good. If it stays as is, then it'll have been a poor one.
If he comes in, I’d be touting our fat-arsed Scot about before the deadline.
Why? - He's still got some use to us. He may be required to play in an forward support-role if we lose Watkins or Bailey to injury.
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If Guendouzi comes in, then it'll be a reasonable window with shortcomings to address in the summer. Another forward and it becomes good. If it stays as is, then it'll have been a poor one.
If he comes in, I’d be touting our fat-arsed Scot about before the deadline.
Why? - He's still got some use to us. He may be required to play in an forward support-role if we lose Watkins or Bailey to injury.
I don’t see where he’ll fit, with the choice of Kamara, Luiz, and Ramsay. (And Guendouzi, if he comes)
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If Guendouzi comes in, then it'll be a reasonable window with shortcomings to address in the summer. Another forward and it becomes good. If it stays as is, then it'll have been a poor one.
If he comes in, I’d be touting our fat-arsed Scot about before the deadline.
Why? - He's still got some use to us. He may be required to play in an forward support-role if we lose Watkins or Bailey to injury.
I don’t see where he’ll fit, with the choice of Kamara, Luiz, and Ramsay. (And Guendouzi, if he comes)
Have you seen Citeh’s and Chelsea’s squads?
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If Guendouzi comes in, then it'll be a reasonable window with shortcomings to address in the summer. Another forward and it becomes good. If it stays as is, then it'll have been a poor one.
If he comes in, I’d be touting our fat-arsed Scot about before the deadline.
Why? - He's still got some use to us. He may be required to play in an forward support-role if we lose Watkins or Bailey to injury.
I don’t see where he’ll fit, with the choice of Kamara, Luiz, and Ramsay. (And Guendouzi, if he comes)
A very decent sub or alternative option.
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Apparently Guendouzi is starting for OM tonight.
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If Guendouzi comes in, then it'll be a reasonable window with shortcomings to address in the summer. Another forward and it becomes good. If it stays as is, then it'll have been a poor one.
If he comes in, I’d be touting our fat-arsed Scot about before the deadline.
Why? - He's still got some use to us. He may be required to play in an forward support-role if we lose Watkins or Bailey to injury.
I don’t see where he’ll fit, with the choice of Kamara, Luiz, and Ramsay. (And Guendouzi, if he comes)
A very decent sub or alternative option.
If he’s prepared to do that, that’s fair enough.
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Apparently Guendouzi is starting for OM tonight.
He was always going to play tonight. Marseille-Monaco is one of the biggest games in France outside PSG and they're having a very good season.
I think that's more likely in the summer tbh.
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Considering how well the club did waiting for the right player with Kamara, I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait on a centre forward, which they are clearly looking for.
There's no point on splurging a load of money on shite. Just because they're expensive, doesn't make them any good. See Everton. We're well versed in that behaviour too. Steady as she goes, strike when the right player becomes available. Stick to that method and we'll move forward.
Yeah but not splashing cash on shite is one thing, not creating the need to do so in the first place is another. We've got one striker, because we sold one and sent the other on loan, that's not enough.
It is a problem we created.
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A
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My feeling is:
Ings, we were made an offer we couldn't refuse. We didn't see him as long term option. In the summer he'd have 12 months left on his contract and West Ham wouldn't be panic buying players. We got £12m/£15m for a player who in 6 months time would be worthless. And we'd have had to pay Ings the best part of £8m in wages for the privilege.
There's only 18 games left this season, so if we went in to it with Watkins, Duran, and Bailey whose been playing as a forward, so be it. It's not an ideal situation, but one where you can kind of see that getting £15m cash + £8m saved wages = £23m might be worth considering.
I don't see the point in signing Dembele, or players like that. I don't think he's as good as Watkins, and the fairly unanimous verdict on here is that Watkins is either not good enough, or only just good enough, for a top 4/6 side, which is where we want to be.
At the end of the day, it's a hard time to buy anything other than other team's cast offs (or pay well over the odds). We've got a highly rated left back from Spain for less than we paid for Matt Targett, and a highly-rated forward for the amount we paid for Traore. I'd be inclined to say that in the cold light of day, that'll end up being well above average for PL clubs.
All that said, I can't help feeling that spending a bit of cash on a top quality striker and Guendouzi would be worth our while. We need to exploit the chinks in Chelsea's and Liverpool's armour.
Only 18 games. 😂
It’s half the season mate!
It literally took the club 3 years of having an unbalanced midfield to find Kamara. It was about time!
You’d be happy to wait that long again? Laughable.
Selling Ings without a ready made replacement is crazy and will cost us if that’s the case.
It doesn’t strike me as an ambitious move to try and get into Europe and more importantly show Martinez that was mean business.
Ings could have been moved on in the summer, albeit for a lesser fee, but the difference between 10th and 6th is £20 million, so we wouldn’t really be losing out too much as having Danny Ings in our squad makes far stronger.
Did we really need that £12 million so badly and quickly? I thought we were run by billionaires who want big things? If an equal replacement isn’t brought in during the dregs of the window, then that reeks small time to me.
I think more fans would have this viewpoint if we’d lost one or both of the last two games, which easily could have happened with the way they unfolded
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Agree fully with the sentiment
But (I hope) am sure a forward is lined up
Will be disappointed if we don't
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Not a good sign that Guendouzi is starting tonight for Marseille.
Sigh…
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Not a good sign that Guendouzi is starting tonight for Marseille.
Sigh…
It’s his farewell performance.
(Clutching at straws)
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If we had to we could wait until the summer to recruit a midfielder but up front we are taking a huge risk, if we don't add someone. Even a loan would be something.
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I’m much more concerned about our forwards depth than midfield right now. Not that midfield is exactly deep with PL level talent.
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Ings, Sanson and Augusinsson have been consistent members of our Match Day squads since Emery came in. I refuse to believe we'd be daft enough to let them go without replacing them.
Likewise you dont get one of Europe's highest Profile managers in and then fuck him over at the first opportunity.
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Agree fully with the sentiment
But (I hope) am sure a forward is lined up
Will be disappointed if we don't
Harry Kane on the bench for Spurs tonight!! Son played as centre forward. They have recently bought Richarlison and now Danjuma!!
We have been saving our pennies and need an upgrade on Ings. Transfer deadline a few days away.
It all adds up, I feel it in my water.
Just saying. :o
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I’m much more concerned about our forwards depth than midfield right now. Not that midfield is exactly deep with PL level talent.
We have enough until the summer. Doug, Kamara, Dendoncker, Ramsey and I presume McGinn will be back in a few weeks.
Problem is though due to lack of options we have to play at least one if not two out wide.
Our forward options now basically consist of Ollie, Buendia, Bailey, Duran and Coutinho.
Only one is anyway proven as a premier league CF (no point playing Coutinho there as false 9 as he can't run anymore) and putting Buendia out wide results in inconsistent performances.
To seriously try to fight for europe with just one CF and one actual wide player in whole squad is pretty ambitious I think.
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I wonder if we haven't been able to get our first choices in and will be bringing the likes of Hakim Zayich in from Chelsea on loan.
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Looks like it's going to be that perrenial favourite, Noah Juan!
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Is it 6 players gone now? Bednarek, Ings, Archer, Ludwig, Sanson and Guilbert? I wonder how much salary this saves the club. Surely at least 1 more player to come in.
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There simply has to be some one that comes in up front / out wide - just purely from a numbers perspective.
Bailey, Watkins, Benudia, Duran, Phil - 3 of those will start. We are literally a suspension or injury away from having no options on the bench. Even we cant be that stupid - it might be that we get a make shift person in on loan - but we are so short.
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Will be amazed if we've got five players off the books this Jan only to bring in nae wan.
Elanga (or similar) on loan as a minimum.
Based on previous windows the later additions tend not to be great but let's see.
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West Ham want Guendouzi now apparently.
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Considering how well the club did waiting for the right player with Kamara, I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait on a centre forward, which they are clearly looking for.
There's no point on splurging a load of money on shite. Just because they're expensive, doesn't make them any good. See Everton. We're well versed in that behaviour too. Steady as she goes, strike when the right player becomes available. Stick to that method and we'll move forward.
Yeah but not splashing cash on shite is one thing, not creating the need to do so in the first place is another. We've got one striker, because we sold one and sent the other on loan, that's not enough.
It is a problem we created.
Yeah and herein lies the issue. Maybe it’ll all make sense come the end of Tuesday but at the moment it looks like we’ve left ourselves exposed.
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Considering how well the club did waiting for the right player with Kamara, I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait on a centre forward, which they are clearly looking for.
There's no point on splurging a load of money on shite. Just because they're expensive, doesn't make them any good. See Everton. We're well versed in that behaviour too. Steady as she goes, strike when the right player becomes available. Stick to that method and we'll move forward.
Yeah but not splashing cash on shite is one thing, not creating the need to do so in the first place is another. We've got one striker, because we sold one and sent the other on loan, that's not enough.
It is a problem we created.
We have two strikers. If you're using Archer as a stick to beat the club, then Duran is a 15m centre forward who offsets this. Ings needs replacing, but this is where we need to be disciplined and not blow 30m again on someone who doesn't fit. We have enough with Bailey. It's not ideal, but we're building, so let's not get hysterical and do it right.
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We have one striker and a 19 year old prospect who hasn’t played a competitive game since October, and who Emery says isn’t ready for the Premier League yet.
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Agreed, so let's not bring up Cam Archer constantly as a dig at the club's planning if Duran comes with that caveat.
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Agreed, so let's not bring up Cam Archer constantly as a dig at the club's planning if Duran comes with that caveat.
He’s more ready for the Premier League than Duran, and has trained with the rest of the first team all season.
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Sounds like you're selling a debatable opinion as a fact to me.
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Sounds like you're selling a debatable opinion as a fact to me.
Reads to me like rational common sense. Of course Archer is more ‘ready’ than Duran. He hasn’t played since October and is coming from the ‘American major Soccer goals’ league.
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Sounds like you're selling a debatable opinion as a fact to me.
Reads to me like rational common sense.
Me too.
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Guendouzi subbed at halftime.
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Considering how well the club did waiting for the right player with Kamara, I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait on a centre forward, which they are clearly looking for.
There's no point on splurging a load of money on shite. Just because they're expensive, doesn't make them any good. See Everton. We're well versed in that behaviour too. Steady as she goes, strike when the right player becomes available. Stick to that method and we'll move forward.
Yeah but not splashing cash on shite is one thing, not creating the need to do so in the first place is another. We've got one striker, because we sold one and sent the other on loan, that's not enough.
It is a problem we created.
We have two strikers. If you're using Archer as a stick to beat the club, then Duran is a 15m centre forward who offsets this. Ings needs replacing, but this is where we need to be disciplined and not blow 30m again on someone who doesn't fit. We have enough with Bailey. It's not ideal, but we're building, so let's not get hysterical and do it right.
The ‘stick to beat club’ is not having a replacement already lined up before selling Ings and sending out third option out on loan.
Ings didn’t have to be sold.
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Duran offsets Archer. If you can't see that then there's no point carrying on the conversation.
Ings I'll give you, but I completely understand wanting to get those wages off the books for a good fee when the opportunity came. The space is now available to fill. Don't fill it with shit, especially considering the opportunity in front of us if we get it right.
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“Stick to beat the club with”
“Hysterical”.
Jesus Christ.
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Duran offsets Archer. If you can't see that then there's no point carrying on the conversation.
Emery himself said Duran isn’t going to be ready for a while.
He’s a 19 year old moving to a new country from the MLS.
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The selling of Ings is the mystery, whether you rate him or not he was our top goalscorer and could still be very useful coming on in games
Selling him for 12m + this & that is chicken feed in todays business so maybe we have got something in mind before the end of the window
Most of the others we are letting go have been neither use nor ornament and will affect the team by zero amount
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Considering how well the club did waiting for the right player with Kamara, I'm happy to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait on a centre forward, which they are clearly looking for.
There's no point on splurging a load of money on shite. Just because they're expensive, doesn't make them any good. See Everton. We're well versed in that behaviour too. Steady as she goes, strike when the right player becomes available. Stick to that method and we'll move forward.
Yeah but not splashing cash on shite is one thing, not creating the need to do so in the first place is another. We've got one striker, because we sold one and sent the other on loan, that's not enough.
It is a problem we created.
We have two strikers. If you're using Archer as a stick to beat the club, then Duran is a 15m centre forward who offsets this. Ings needs replacing, but this is where we need to be disciplined and not blow 30m again on someone who doesn't fit. We have enough with Bailey. It's not ideal, but we're building, so let's not get hysterical and do it right.
The ‘stick to beat club’ is not having a replacement already lined up before selling Ings and sending out third option out on loan.
Ings didn’t have to be sold.
It’s a bit early to be getting upset about transfers.
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Duran offsets Archer. If you can't see that then there's no point carrying on the conversation.
Emery himself said Duran isn’t going to be ready for a while.
He’s a 19 year old moving to a new country from the MLS.
And he said Archer isn't going to be ready for a while by loaning him out. One for one.
Ings needs replacing.
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Olympique Marseille have scheduled medical tests for Azzedine Ounahi on Sunday morning — after deal sealed for €8m fee plus €2m, contract 2027.
So lets hope this means Guendouzi is on his way to B6.
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Guendouzi taken off on 46 min tonight 1-1 currently own goal from a mr Jordan veretout 🫢
I wonder 🤔
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Was he subbed during half-time? If not, could it be an injury?
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It was half time change but registered at 46 min 🤷
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Played poorly, looked distracted, some reporter commented re transfer, uninterested and he didn’t want to play to get injured (translated I think)
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Of the players that have departed, they've hardly had an appearance between them, barring Ings. He's the one we absolutely should be replacing.
We've replaced Augustinsson with Moreno - upgrade.
Guilbert hasn't had a look in, so no loss.
Sanson has hardly played in all the time he's been here.
Archer hasn't played and at this stage of his career needs minutes. I suspect Emery considers him too similar to Watkins right now. Duran of course has more experience and is younger and widely regarded as a top prospect.
Bednarek was cover and didn't play, and Carlos is back imminently in any event.
In summary, we need a striker. A midfielder and or wide player would help the depth of the squad.
I believe we'll have two new faces in this month.
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Guendouzi taken off on 46 min tonight 1-1 currently own goal from a mr Jordan veretout 🫢
I wonder 🤔
Marseille payed £9m for him barely 7 months ago.
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Player knows he's going and doesn't want to play, who would? any kind of injury could scupper the whole deal.
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I don't Carlos is due back that soon is he, Emery said a few days ago it's going to be "a month or two". He's not even training with the first team yet.
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The selling of Ings is the mystery, whether you rate him or not he was our top goalscorer and could still be very useful coming on in games
Selling him for 12m + this & that is chicken feed in todays business so maybe we have got something in mind before the end of the window
Most of the others we are letting go have been neither use nor ornament and will affect the team by zero amount
Honest question….would you turn down £15m return of your own money of an outlay of £25m when it hadn’t tuned out great…….I thought not…
It’s like all those who think Lerner came in to lose money like he did…and he did! Do you think he meant to….??
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West Ham want Guendouzi now apparently.
Agent talk as the deal with us gets close to closure ...
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I don't Carlos is due back that soon is he, Emery said a few days ago it's going to be "a month or two". He's not even training with the first team yet.
Perhaps, but when he is back, Bednarek would be even further down the food chain. With Carlos out he didn't get a game anyway.
Of course, if we'd not fucked up so royally in the Cup there may be a different argument.
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Not a good sign that Guendouzi is starting tonight for Marseille.
Sigh…
Pedro Porro played 90 minutes for Sporting last night but is still heading to London today to sign for Spurs.
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All those taking what Emery said about Duran not being ready and believing it 100% I think might well be surprised.
He’ll be on the bench part of the match squad and will get is opportunities, minutes and game time if he does well he could play a part in the second half of the season
We’ll see how it plays out but I’m not sure he’s going to be put in a box marked one for the future where we see nothing of him for a season or two
I think we’ll see a fair bit of him before the season ends even if we end up buying another striker
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The selling of Ings is the mystery, whether you rate him or not he was our top goalscorer and could still be very useful coming on in games
Selling him for 12m + this & that is chicken feed in todays business so maybe we have got something in mind before the end of the window
Most of the others we are letting go have been neither use nor ornament and will affect the team by zero amount
Honest question….would you turn down £15m return of your own money of an outlay of £25m when it hadn’t tuned out great…….I thought not…
It’s like all those who think Lerner came in to lose money like he did…and he did! Do you think he meant to….??
Well it’s the old business versus football club debate
Is it about bringing a bit of money in or keeping your top goalscorer for half a season
(and I’m not a massive fan of either of our strikers)
Like I said in my post I think it’s a mystery, but I do think we might bring someone in which will explain it all
What happens if we’d have taken the 12 million at the beginning of the season like you say because it’s good business, we’d be seven goals worse off and probably lower down in the table
So I’m glad we didn’t
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Well he will be on the bench if we don’t sign another forward as all the others are gone.
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So do we think there's going to be another ninja style new signing announcement in the next couple of days where no one has a clue about it until we tell them?
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I wonder if we’d go back in for Sarr?
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So do we think there's going to be another ninja style new signing announcement in the next couple of days where no one has a clue about it until we tell them?
No but West Ham are going to return Ings under sale of goods act rights due to a fault found.
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Perhaps our medical team spotted something wrong with Ings that West Ham didn't!!
We have been sold a 'dud' enough times in the past . If so, good to see that our recently acquired shithousery is not just confined to the pitch.
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Perhaps our medical team spotted something wrong with Ings that West Ham didn't!!
Like, he can’t run?
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We should have offered Ings to West Ham at the bargain price of £15m but made them call to claim it on a phone line charged at £1m per minute, as a nod of respect to their deceased chairman.
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Perhaps our medical team spotted something wrong with Ings that West Ham didn't!!
Like, he can’t run?
Villa Doctor: Unai, Ings is fucked.
Unai: Sell him to West Ham
West Ham Doctor: Danny, what age are you?
Danny: 22
West Ham Doctor: Can you run?
Danny: Sometimes
West Ham Doctor: Passed
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We should have offered Ings to West Ham at the bargain price of £15m but made them call to claim it on a phone line charged at £1m per minute, as a nod of respect to their deceased chairman.
Very good.
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Jack Schitt signing apparently. German international.
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Perhaps our medical team spotted something wrong with Ings that West Ham didn't!!
We have been sold a 'dud' enough times in the past . If so, good to see that our recently acquired shithousery is not just confined to the pitch.
Yep see the job Pulis did on us with Lescott :-)
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Twitter is awash with fans getting frantic over whether we will sign Guendouzi. But I’m not fussed about getting him this window, we don’t need him, whereas we desperately need a striker and winger.
If we don’t sign those two we have once again missed a huge opportunity. Fingers crossed
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I would be shocked if some players don’t come in - just purely from a numbers perspective it would be nearly negligent not to
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Twitter is awash with fans getting frantic over whether we will sign Guendouzi. But I’m not fussed about getting him this window, we don’t need him, whereas we desperately need a striker and winger.
If we don’t sign those two we have once again missed a huge opportunity. Fingers crossed
Yeah but he’s a really good player.
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Glad we weren’t in the running to sign Cackpoo!!
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Jack Schitt signing apparently. German international.
Was 1 second away from googling…
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Jack Schitt signing apparently. German international.
Was 1 second away from googling…
It didn’t register at first , and i was thinking German international? , then you made me feel
Sad 😀
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Jack Schitt signing apparently. German international.
Offer declined - scheisse
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Lined with Korean player Cy Ning Nowan
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At this late stage in the transfer window, if we do sign anyone else it’s likely to be another one of those budget busting £10 million signings, who I’ve never heard of before. I feel quite negative as,sadly, I’ve seen this film many times before at Villa.
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At this late stage in the transfer window, if we do sign anyone else it’s likely to be another one of those budget busting £10 million signings, who I’ve never heard of before. I feel quite negative as,sadly, I’ve seen this film many times before at Villa.
We’ve bought some right stinkers late on over the last few years haven’t we? I get the impression we won’t bother do this just to be seen to do something under Emery.
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How many more do we need right now? I'd say 2/3 including a forward.
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A winger, forward and CM. Starting quality not squad players. I think we are good everywhere else for now
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I'm usually the first to want us to sign people and see us move forward, but there are a couple of things that makes me very relaxed at the moment. Firstly, we have 2 players across the back 4, from the end of Feb with Carlos returning. We were never likely to replace Olsen in Jan either, so shrug on that one until the summer. But it means at the back we are well covered. In central midfield we have Kamara, Luiz, Dendonker, McGinn and Ramsey if need. So we'll be OK without Guendouzi till the summer if it saves £10-15m waiting it out. Out wide we have Ramsey, McGinn in the Emery world, Buendia and Coutinho, plus Young if need be. So reasonably covered in the current formation. Up top we have Watkins, Bailey and Duran, which is light, and could do with a body ideally, but you don't want to pay big wages and Watkins start every game till the end. We might get 3-4 bad injuries and be screwed, but the club seems to actually be acting like it knows who and what they want in each position for once, and are happy to execute that in time. Emery is clearly driving that conversation too.
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I'm usually the first to want us to sign people and see us move forward, but there are a couple of things that makes me very relaxed at the moment. Firstly, we have 2 players across the back 4, from the end of Feb with Carlos returning. We were never likely to replace Olsen in Jan either, so shrug on that one until the summer. But it means at the back we are well covered. In central midfield we have Kamara, Luiz, Dendonker, McGinn and Ramsey if need. So we'll be OK without Guendouzi till the summer if it saves £10-15m waiting it out. Out wide we have Ramsey, McGinn in the Emery world, Buendia and Coutinho, plus Young if need be. So reasonably covered in the current formation. Up top we have Watkins, Bailey and Duran, which is light, and could do with a body ideally, but you don't want to pay big wages and Watkins start every game till the end. We might get 3-4 bad injuries and be screwed, but the club seems to actually be acting like it knows who and what they want in each position for once, and are happy to execute that in time. Emery is clearly driving that conversation too.
I'm with you mate
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From a squad numbers perspective we're far too light. I always believe that if you let players leave that replacements are lined up first. We have an opportunity to challenge for the top 8, so if it fails fails due to lack of players then that's inexcusable. Let's hope for a couple in by this time in 48 hours, but it's getting awfully close to the wire.
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Aye, our central midfield options are fine - for the most part. I never viewed Sideshow Bob at Marseille as a priority. If there's a deal to be done, fine. But we shouldn't be panicked into owt.
Up top Ollie has no excuse now as he's the main man again for the foreseeable. Duran has the opportunity to grab a few sub appearances between now and the end if the season - and maybe start a few, if he shows enough promise (I'd have been happy enough with Dembele as cover but he could be after crazy money with his contract situation).
We are light on wide options to stretch teams though, as Buendia and Coutinho aren't those sort of players. Ramsey as a stop gap, maybe. But it's a waste having him out there.
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I'm usually the first to want us to sign people and see us move forward, but there are a couple of things that makes me very relaxed at the moment. Firstly, we have 2 players across the back 4, from the end of Feb with Carlos returning. We were never likely to replace Olsen in Jan either, so shrug on that one until the summer. But it means at the back we are well covered. In central midfield we have Kamara, Luiz, Dendonker, McGinn and Ramsey if need. So we'll be OK without Guendouzi till the summer if it saves £10-15m waiting it out. Out wide we have Ramsey, McGinn in the Emery world, Buendia and Coutinho, plus Young if need be. So reasonably covered in the current formation. Up top we have Watkins, Bailey and Duran, which is light, and could do with a body ideally, but you don't want to pay big wages and Watkins start every game till the end. We might get 3-4 bad injuries and be screwed, but the club seems to actually be acting like it knows who and what they want in each position for once, and are happy to execute that in time. Emery is clearly driving that conversation too.
The biggest problem with this is it’s a well thought out and considered opinion
I’ve got no time for reading sensible posts like this especially at this stage in the transfer window
Now can you please get back to worrying and fretting like the rest of us
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
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I'm usually the first to want us to sign people and see us move forward, but there are a couple of things that makes me very relaxed at the moment. Firstly, we have 2 players across the back 4, from the end of Feb with Carlos returning. We were never likely to replace Olsen in Jan either, so shrug on that one until the summer. But it means at the back we are well covered. In central midfield we have Kamara, Luiz, Dendonker, McGinn and Ramsey if need. So we'll be OK without Guendouzi till the summer if it saves £10-15m waiting it out. Out wide we have Ramsey, McGinn in the Emery world, Buendia and Coutinho, plus Young if need be. So reasonably covered in the current formation. Up top we have Watkins, Bailey and Duran, which is light, and could do with a body ideally, but you don't want to pay big wages and Watkins start every game till the end. We might get 3-4 bad injuries and be screwed, but the club seems to actually be acting like it knows who and what they want in each position for once, and are happy to execute that in time. Emery is clearly driving that conversation too.
The biggest problem with this is it’s a well thought out and considered opinion
I’ve got no time for reading sensible posts like this especially at this stage in the transfer window
Now can you please get back to worrying and fretting like the rest of us
Yes this seems totally sensible.
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The other thing is, not many players have gone elsewhere that have made me think... Ooo should have had him.
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I'm usually the first to want us to sign people and see us move forward, but there are a couple of things that makes me very relaxed at the moment. Firstly, we have 2 players across the back 4, from the end of Feb with Carlos returning. We were never likely to replace Olsen in Jan either, so shrug on that one until the summer. But it means at the back we are well covered. In central midfield we have Kamara, Luiz, Dendonker, McGinn and Ramsey if need. So we'll be OK without Guendouzi till the summer if it saves £10-15m waiting it out. Out wide we have Ramsey, McGinn in the Emery world, Buendia and Coutinho, plus Young if need be. So reasonably covered in the current formation. Up top we have Watkins, Bailey and Duran, which is light, and could do with a body ideally, but you don't want to pay big wages and Watkins start every game till the end. We might get 3-4 bad injuries and be screwed, but the club seems to actually be acting like it knows who and what they want in each position for once, and are happy to execute that in time. Emery is clearly driving that conversation too.
I'm with you mate
It’s more the opportunity to really push on that is at risk. I’m not saying that it’s spurned if we don’t sign anyone. But we will all look back and wonder if we shouldn’t have gone for it and we slip up late on. We are in touching distance of Europe and it’s not just about possible injuries. It’s more about quality and depth. When you go into a PL game with two keepers that’s a real sign that we need to add quality bodies. Now, the goor thing is we have a super manager so I have faith he will make the very best irrespective of who he has to work with. And he’s brought back some of the players on loan to study and use. But while it’s not the end of the world it would be negligent not to invest from what has turned into a surprisingly very positive position given our start and our recent run.
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
I've always liked Harrison but think we need a goalscorer more. Both Ollie and Bailey can play wide.
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
Given he's about half as good as the winger we have on loan in Turkey, about three-quarters as good as the winger we sold to PSV in the summer because we didn't want him, and about half as good as the sort of player you could buy from the continent for £10m, why on earth would spending £20m on a player who isn't good enough for Leeds be a good punt?
Short of buying Ings back for £8m more than we just received, I can't think of a worse way to spend £20m to be honest.
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I like Harrison, if that’s the winger we’re in for I’d be happy with him.
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
Given he's about half as good as the winger we have on loan in Turkey, about three-quarters as good as the winger we sold to PSV in the summer because we didn't want him, and about half as good as the sort of player you could buy from the continent for £10m, why on earth would spending £20m on a player who isn't good enough for Leeds be a good punt?
Short of buying Ings back for £8m more than we just received, I can't think of a worse way to spend £20m to be honest.
m
He was excellent for a while, has he fallen out of favour with them then?
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
Given he's about half as good as the winger we have on loan in Turkey, about three-quarters as good as the winger we sold to PSV in the summer because we didn't want him, and about half as good as the sort of player you could buy from the continent for £10m, why on earth would spending £20m on a player who isn't good enough for Leeds be a good punt?
Short of buying Ings back for £8m more than we just received, I can't think of a worse way to spend £20m to be honest.
Agree, Chmapionship winger.
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Nonsense
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Harrison would be at best a 'more of the same sort of level' signing. Pointless.
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I like Harrison, if that’s the winger we’re in for I’d be happy with him.
Yeah but he would be cup tied.. oh wait
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There's going to be some wet beds come Tuesday if we don't sign anyone tomorrow.
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Nonsense
Sorry typo, Championship winger.
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I am torn - I think we’re light on numbers but don’t want us to get in people for the point of it. A loan or two would be good - we just can’t leave ourselves this light as the league is tight and a Watkins injury could mean we’re 2020 leaves of being fucked
Also - unless we can get Phil to play well regularly we basically have a lot resting on Beundia. And if Bailey gets injuried or his dad grounds him we have no pace
So a couple of loans needed at the least - which is probably why they they sent our two loans back
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
Given he's about half as good as the winger we have on loan in Turkey, about three-quarters as good as the winger we sold to PSV in the summer because we didn't want him, and about half as good as the sort of player you could buy from the continent for £10m, why on earth would spending £20m on a player who isn't good enough for Leeds be a good punt?
Short of buying Ings back for £8m more than we just received, I can't think of a worse way to spend £20m to be honest.
m
He was excellent for a while, has he fallen out of favour with them then?
Leeds are a 13th-18th squad and are trying to get better by signing better players than Harrison.
We're a 9th-14th squad, so should be signing better players than the teams who aren't as good as us are trying to improve upon.
(I accept that there are exceptions to this rule, and players fit into systems etc. But Harrison coming to Villa isn't one of them)
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I think Harrison's a very talented player, maybe hasn't pushed-on as much as was expected but I'd have him ahead of the wingers we've farmed-out or sold.
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
Given he's about half as good as the winger we have on loan in Turkey, about three-quarters as good as the winger we sold to PSV in the summer because we didn't want him, and about half as good as the sort of player you could buy from the continent for £10m, why on earth would spending £20m on a player who isn't good enough for Leeds be a good punt?
Short of buying Ings back for £8m more than we just received, I can't think of a worse way to spend £20m to be honest.
16 PL goals in open play over last two seasons would suggest Harrison is a fair bit better than either Trez or AEG. Send on a list of players "from the continent" that you could get for 10m instead.
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
I've always liked Harrison but think we need a goalscorer more. Both Ollie and Bailey can play wide.
Ollie can't let's be honest...it's been tried and tried.
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Harrison is one in a very long line of wingers who have a good 12-18months and then people work them out and they become increasingly less effective. At 26 he should be coming into his prime rather than struggling to start for a team in the relegation battle. He'd be a similar mistake to Barkley for me.
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
I've always liked Harrison but think we need a goalscorer more. Both Ollie and Bailey can play wide.
Ollie can't let's be honest...it's been tried and tried.
He certainly can’t play wide whilst also playing down the middle. Our first choice striker can’t simultaneously be our wide cover.
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
I've always liked Harrison but think we need a goalscorer more. Both Ollie and Bailey can play wide.
Ollie can't let's be honest...it's been tried and tried.
Couldn't agree more. He can drift wide as part of his striker's movement repertoire, but a winger is a different animal.
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
I've always liked Harrison but think we need a goalscorer more. Both Ollie and Bailey can play wide.
Ollie can't let's be honest...it's been tried and tried.
Couldn't agree more. He can drift wide as part of his striker's movement repertoire, but a winger is a different animal.
It's a bit like using Cash as a winger, yes he's played there in the past but it was only when they changed position that either of them looked premier league quality.
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I’d go back for Sarr.
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There's going to be some wet beds come Tuesday if we don't sign anyone tomorrow.
Put your nappy on and you'll be fine.
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A winger, forward and CM. Starting quality not squad players. I think we are good everywhere else for now
I think CM can wait until the summer although who knows with Guendouzi if he's getting subbed at half time.
Luiz-Kamara is doing very well currently, Ramsey can be dropped back there if needs be, McGinn will be back soon and FA cup horror show aside, Dendoncker has been decent in his premier league games.
5 for 2/3 positions is solid enough.
Think it will be just the one attacking signing now.
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Harrison is one in a very long line of wingers who have a good 12-18months and then people work them out and they become increasingly less effective. At 26 he should be coming into his prime rather than struggling to start for a team in the relegation battle. He'd be a similar mistake to Barkley for me.
Harrison has started 17 out of 19 games so still a regular there. The emergence of Gnoto seems to have moved him away from his favoured spot on left wing. No comparison to Barkley who was in semi retirement for a few seasons before he joined us. Harrison is a very durable sort with the amount of games he managed under the likes of Bielsa across two divisions.
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There's going to be some wet beds come Tuesday if we don't sign anyone tomorrow.
Put your nappy on and you'll be fine.
If you're happy in your nappy, clap your hands.
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I'm usually the first to want us to sign people and see us move forward, but there are a couple of things that makes me very relaxed at the moment. Firstly, we have 2 players across the back 4, from the end of Feb with Carlos returning. We were never likely to replace Olsen in Jan either, so shrug on that one until the summer. But it means at the back we are well covered. In central midfield we have Kamara, Luiz, Dendonker, McGinn and Ramsey if need. So we'll be OK without Guendouzi till the summer if it saves £10-15m waiting it out. Out wide we have Ramsey, McGinn in the Emery world, Buendia and Coutinho, plus Young if need be. So reasonably covered in the current formation. Up top we have Watkins, Bailey and Duran, which is light, and could do with a body ideally, but you don't want to pay big wages and Watkins start every game till the end. We might get 3-4 bad injuries and be screwed, but the club seems to actually be acting like it knows who and what they want in each position for once, and are happy to execute that in time. Emery is clearly driving that conversation too.
I'm with you mate
It’s more the opportunity to really push on that is at risk. I’m not saying that it’s spurned if we don’t sign anyone. But we will all look back and wonder if we shouldn’t have gone for it and we slip up late on. We are in touching distance of Europe and it’s not just about possible injuries. It’s more about quality and depth. When you go into a PL game with two keepers that’s a real sign that we need to add quality bodies. Now, the goor thing is we have a super manager so I have faith he will make the very best irrespective of who he has to work with. And he’s brought back some of the players on loan to study and use. But while it’s not the end of the world it would be negligent not to invest from what has turned into a surprisingly very positive position given our start and our recent run.
20/21 was a far better opportunity. Only signed Sanson in that window. You know who got injured a few weeks later and that was it for a serious europa league challenge when we generally had a rock solid backline.
To much derision West Ham signed Lingard and he played a big part in them getting 6th in the end.
Ironically last January we do go out and make interesting signings but were too far back under a poor manager to seriously have a go at top 7.
It's just a risk for me. Big plus for Ollie is he's such a robust player and misses so few games but we had the issue in 19/20 when we left ourselves so short upfront and after Wes got hurt we had to stick likes of AEG and Trez up there.
It's a struggle to take a challenge for europe seriously if we're having to put out a front two of Duran and Bailey, they might link up amazingly but completely unproven.
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
Given he's about half as good as the winger we have on loan in Turkey, about three-quarters as good as the winger we sold to PSV in the summer because we didn't want him, and about half as good as the sort of player you could buy from the continent for £10m, why on earth would spending £20m on a player who isn't good enough for Leeds be a good punt?
Short of buying Ings back for £8m more than we just received, I can't think of a worse way to spend £20m to be honest.
16 PL goals in open play over last two seasons would suggest Harrison is a fair bit better than either Trez or AEG. Send on a list of players "from the continent" that you could get for 10m instead.
Feels he's hardly done anything there since Bielsa left.
El Ghazi hit double figures in 20/21.
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I'd take Harrison over AEG or Trez, without a doubt.
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
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Zaniolo might be worth a look at.
Roma offering him out and he's not involved in their squad. Turned down Bournemouth the other day but would surely consider us.
Very highly rated two years ago before he did his ACL.
Roma want to sign Dusan Tadic as his replacement so those experienced 18 month type stop gap signings are out there.
Edit; Scored the winner in europa conference final so if we want to be competitive in europe in the near future these are sorts of players we're going to have to take a gamble on.
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
I agree on the small squad thing. I'm fairly relaxed about it all, I think it's as likely to go very right (no injury problems, group of closely bonded players who are deeply immersed in Emery's philosophy) as very wrong (injury crisis). We don't need to rotate much with our schedule.
A striker/wide forward/winger would be nice but I'd rather wait until summer to get the right one than buy squad players now. Think one of the problems Gerrard caused was to fill the squad with players who didn't offer anything unless someone else was injured.
As for Europe, at some point we need to make the step up, and whilst we're not in Europe we'll never assemble (& keep) a squad large enough to make a proper impact. I'd go all out for getting in something, even if it means we have to play the U21s in every European game.
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Harrison is one in a very long line of wingers who have a good 12-18months and then people work them out and they become increasingly less effective. At 26 he should be coming into his prime rather than struggling to start for a team in the relegation battle. He'd be a similar mistake to Barkley for me.
Harrison has started 17 out of 19 games so still a regular there. The emergence of Gnoto seems to have moved him away from his favoured spot on left wing. No comparison to Barkley who was in semi retirement for a few seasons before he joined us. Harrison is a very durable sort with the amount of games he managed under the likes of Bielsa across two divisions.
If he joined you'd soon be giving 4s and 5s every week and the comparison was more that he's getting less effective as he reaches his 'peak', because in my opinion he's a bit of a 1-trick pony.
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Speaking of pony , doesn’t he have a man bun ?
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward.
I don't think players like Martinez and Kamara would see it as too soon and I'm not sure they'll be content to stick with a club happy with its lot in life pissing about in mid table.
Also, what's the point of having billionaire owners if they don't step up and provide more cover should we make the Europa League.
In the promotion year we had one set of targets for the Championship and another if we made it back. I expect we'll have similar contingencies for Euro football>no Euro football.
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Speaking of pony , doesn’t he have a man bun ?
Don’t think so, probably why they are selling him.
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Speaking of pony , doesn’t he have a man bun ?
Don’t think so, Not any more, probably why they are selling him.
Fixed
(https://i.ibb.co/wJwBQSZ/ACCD5-A8-C-5-DC0-421-F-A659-62447222638-B.jpg) (https://ibb.co/wJwBQSZ)
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He doesn't have that barnet anymore. He slicks it back with shit shaved into the side. Even worse...
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I’d go back for Sarr.
yep
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I’d go back for Sarr.
yep
No thanks, Guendouzi please.
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I’d go back for Sarr.
yep
No thanks, Guendouzi please.
Yep, definitely, that’s the one who I really want us to get.
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The fact we don’t need Guendouzi, yet Emery seems determined to sign him makes me want him.
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Can we have an embargo on man buns because any one who has one is a complete wanker.
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Does anyone on here have a man bun? feels a bit mean digging them out 😳😃
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Can we have an embargo on man buns because any one who has one is a complete wanker.
It's probably better to be a complete wanker than one who can't complete when you think it through.
Nonetheless, we should have learnt our lesson with the Lansbury Experiment.
(https://media.gettyimages.com/photos/henri-lansbury-of-aston-villa-during-the-pre-season-friendly-match-picture-id824700270)
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Aye, our central midfield options are fine - for the most part. I never viewed Sideshow Bob at Marseille as a priority. If there's a deal to be done, fine. But we shouldn't be panicked into owt.
Up top Ollie has no excuse now as he's the main man again for the foreseeable. Duran has the opportunity to grab a few sub appearances between now and the end if the season - and maybe start a few, if he shows enough promise (I'd have been happy enough with Dembele as cover but he could be after crazy money with his contract situation).
We are light on wide options to stretch teams though, as Buendia and Coutinho aren't those sort of players. Ramsey as a stop gap, maybe. But it's a waste having him out there.
Bertrand Traore.?
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Does anyone on here have a man bun? feels a bit mean digging them out 😳😃
I’ve got more chance of knotting my eyebrow hair into a bun than what’s on my head.
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Does anyone on here have a man bun? feels a bit mean digging them out 😳😃
I’m 40 years old and my dad had one until about 2 months ago
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I’d go back for Sarr.
yep
Im starting to wonder if that phone call Gerrard had with him before cancelling our previous deal had nothing to do with Sarr & everything to do with Gerrard wanting rid of all of our wingers because he was shit at his job... I would take him at Villa. Very dangerous player...
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Does anyone on here have a man bun? feels a bit mean digging them out 😳😃
On occasion... ;D
Chicago is right. I am a bit of a wanker too... ;D
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Does anyone on here have a man bun? feels a bit mean digging them out 😳😃
I’ve got more chance of knotting my eyebrow hair into a bun than what’s on my head.
I reckon I could get a bit of the Princess Leia thing going with what sprouts out of my ears these days.
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Does anyone on here have a man bun? feels a bit mean digging them out 😳😃
I’ve got more chance of knotting my eyebrow hair into a bun than what’s on my head.
I reckon I could get a bit of the Princess Leia thing going with what sprouts out of my ears these days.
Beautiful , let’s not forget nose hair
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I’d go back for Sarr.
yep
Im starting to wonder if that phone call Gerrard had with him before cancelling our previous deal had nothing to do with Sarr & everything to do with Gerrard wanting rid of all of our wingers because he was shit at his job... I would take him at Villa. Very dangerous player...
Very dangerous indeed if you’re in the gays.
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Aye, our central midfield options are fine - for the most part. I never viewed Sideshow Bob at Marseille as a priority. If there's a deal to be done, fine. But we shouldn't be panicked into owt.
Up top Ollie has no excuse now as he's the main man again for the foreseeable. Duran has the opportunity to grab a few sub appearances between now and the end if the season - and maybe start a few, if he shows enough promise (I'd have been happy enough with Dembele as cover but he could be after crazy money with his contract situation).
We are light on wide options to stretch teams though, as Buendia and Coutinho aren't those sort of players. Ramsey as a stop gap, maybe. But it's a waste having him out there.
Bertrand Traore.?
Ramsey has looked massively more effective coming from wide in Emerys games so far.
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Is there any truth in links to Jack Harrison or more his agent trying to get a new deal for him? For 20m or so he would be a good punt.
Given he's about half as good as the winger we have on loan in Turkey, about three-quarters as good as the winger we sold to PSV in the summer because we didn't want him, and about half as good as the sort of player you could buy from the continent for £10m, why on earth would spending £20m on a player who isn't good enough for Leeds be a good punt?
Short of buying Ings back for £8m more than we just received, I can't think of a worse way to spend £20m to be honest.
16 PL goals in open play over last two seasons would suggest Harrison is a fair bit better than either Trez or AEG. Send on a list of players "from the continent" that you could get for 10m instead.
Given Leeds spent £4m on a teenager who was playing in Switzerland because they thought he'd be better than Harrison is a pretty solid clue that spending five times that amount on the bloke they were trying to replace, would be a pretty Martin O'Neilly thing to do.
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Does anyone on here have a man bun? feels a bit mean digging them out 😳😃
I’m 40 years old and my dad had one until about 2 months ago
Can we have an embargo on man buns because any one who has one is a complete wanker.
It's probably better to be a complete wanker than one who can't complete when you think it through.
Nonetheless, we should have learnt our lesson with the Lansbury Experiment.
(https://media.gettyimages.com/photos/henri-lansbury-of-aston-villa-during-the-pre-season-friendly-match-picture-id824700270)
Apparently he was the most attractive looking player when he was with us
Although I do think we are still above average when it comes to players full of gorgeousness
Mings, Cash, Konsa, Luiz, Ramsey (my 17 year old daughters favourite) Watkins, Buendia, could all make it onto the catwalk no probs
I honestly think that’s the reason we sold Target to Newcastle, he just couldn’t compete with a pretty boys
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https://twitter.com/telefoot_tf1/status/1619640191907696640?s=61&t=r8QHQ_8SUifag0pYDihnFw
I’m a bit concerned about what might be an ‘indecent offer’, unless we end up with Mr. G.
In that case, no problem.
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I’m a bit concerned about what might be an ‘indecent offer’, unless we end up with Mr. G.
In that case, no problem.
You want Stevie back?
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Not Mr Geeeee, no.
I’d prefer Mr Guendouzi!
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Anthony Gordon going all Diana as he signs for Newcastle https://mobile.twitter.com/BeardedGenius/status/1619759676379529218
"Looks a cross between Clare Balding and a Cluedo character" ;D
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I’d go back for Sarr.
yep
No thanks, Guendouzi please.
Oh, don't get me wrong, Guendouzi is my firm favourite right now: I'd want both.
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Sarr does not do it for me. Must be better out there.
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I’d go back for Sarr.
yep
No thanks, Guendouzi please.
Oh, don't get me wrong, Guendouzi is my firm favourite right now: I'd want both.
It’s not really an either or, they’re completely different players.
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I’d go back for Sarr.
yep
No thanks, Guendouzi please.
Oh, don't get me wrong, Guendouzi is my firm favourite right now: I'd want both.
It’s not really an either or, they’re completely different players.
Exactly my point.
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I think we should look for players that improve our team rather than just buying whats available at our price point. If that means we buy nobody then so be it. January is a difficult time to get the right player for a sensible price. Better to buy from a position of strength than be lumbered with an overpriced non-starter.
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I think we should look for players that improve our team rather than just buying whats available at our price point. If that means we buy nobody then so be it. January is a difficult time to get the right player for a sensible price. Better to buy from a position of strength than be lumbered with an overpriced non-starter.
I agree, but at the same time, selling squad players without improving by replacing them is potentially asking for trouble.
I trust Emery, but that squad last time out was weak.
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We need to replace a couple just as cover for injuries.
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Of the players that have gone, Ings, Sanson, Archer, Augustinson, Guilbert, Bendarak & possibly Nakamba / Chambers, only Ings has contributed anything of any note. So we won't miss the others contribution apart from taking up a space on the bench.
But we need a couple of loan singings as a minimum.
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I'd like 2-3 in but if we only get 1 and that's competition for Bailey I can live with it.
I'm happy with the keeper and defence, the squad looks sttong there.
With how we use our midfield I'd like 1 more, Guendouzi would be ideal.
Up front we need at least competition for Bailey. I'd take another on loan as well to give Duran a bit of room to settle in.
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Time is ticking and we still haven't brought in a striker which even before we let Danny Ings leave the club for pittance we needed.
What the hell is going on down there ? The bench looks so weak and that's been created by the club letting go BIG Bench players like El Ghazi and Trezeguet leave the Football club.
Oh and then our top goalscorer, you really couldn't make it up
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We need to replace a couple just as cover for injuries.
This is my major concern right now also. Its one thing saying we will only sign 'x' of they are better than whats in our starting lineup. However there is also a place for players who are better squad/bench options also
Still hopeful of 1-2 in but isnt looking great at the moment.
Expect some large changes as we go towards summer. Lange wont be around much longer (imo)
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I understand not buying players just for the sake of cover, but at the same time I don't understand why everybody is so comfortable not bringing in players to cover a squad which was already putting two goalkeepers on the bench even before the departures of the last week. Emery is a fine manager but he can't raise the dead.
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The immediate sale of Ings under Emery shows that it was a mistake when we bought him, with hindsight of course. I don't have a problem with us selling him, but not replacing him will leave us a lot weaker, whatever his imperfections.
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We started the transfer window looking for a decent winger and maybe if the right player came along and upgrade elsewhere. Now we need a winger, striker and some strength in depth.
It’s all very Aston Villa isn’t it
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"Aston Villa appear to be happy with their options after adding Alex Moreno and Jhon Duran". I can only assume the targets they wanted aren't available and they've accepted that we'll limp through a little to the summer, which is a bit of a shame as it feels like a real opportunity this year. Despite that, i've never had more trust in the manager and i'd much rather we wait and get the players he wants than buy a £20m+ stop-gap
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People seem to be tripping over themselves on Twitter to say how much they trust the manager and how anybody who's the slightest bit put out that we haven't strengthened isn't a real fan. If anybody thinks that Emery would have been happy with that bench against Southampton, then they're kidding themselves. And it's even weaker now.
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Given the profile of the players who've left, I wonder if the manager has said he'd rather use youngsters to fill out the squad in the short term than experienced, possibly frustrated senior players. I'm sure he'd love to get a couple of genuine first team targets in too but if it's not possible to get the right players right now (if the talk of Merino and the kid at Bilbao knocking us back are true, then fuck it.
We've been a lot more pro-active in shifting people than we have been until now and I get the feeling that's at the managers behest.
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One injury to Watkins and we are massively exposed. There’s still half a season left it’d be absolutely mental to not get in more cover for the forward line, as an absolute minimum.
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What an anti climax. August 30th - 'if the players we want aren't out there, then I am happy to wait until January rather than just get squad fillers.' This after we have sold Watkins, Bailey, Mings and Luiz.
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We have a great coach but not bringing anyone in would be a big mistake. Watkins is a 1 in 3 forward at best and by the nature of his game he runs himself into the ground every week. An injury to him and we could suffer. I did hear Emery say that if we didn’t he get a replacement in he had other options but I don’t see a goalscorer in the squad, even if he plays Bailey there. We may pull a rabbit out of the hat today or tomorrow but the squad is very light and we are crossing our fingers and hoping for the best. I, along with everyone else thought that by selling Ings and sending Archer out on loan someone was lined up. There’s still time but if we don’t then I think we’ll regret it unless, contrary to what we’ve been told Duran is ready to go.
Ings was after all our top goalscorer.
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McKennie going to Leeds. Interesting to see how he gets on there.
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Given the profile of the players who've left, I wonder if the manager has said he'd rather use youngsters to fill out the squad in the short term than experienced, possibly frustrated senior players. I'm sure he'd love to get a couple of genuine first team targets in too but if it's not possible to get the right players right now (if the talk of Merino and the kid at Bilbao knocking us back are true, then fuck it.
We've been a lot more pro-active in shifting people than we have been until now and I get the feeling that's at the managers behest.
If that was the case, why not keep Archer around? He's the best and most experienced of the young players, and has been training as part of the first team all season. Nobody else has a single minute of playing time. As Paul S says above, if we don't bring anybody in I think we'll really regret it. Martinez and Kamara aren't going to want to stay at a mid-table Premier League team forever.
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What an anti climax. August 30th - 'if the players we want aren't out there, then I am happy to wait until January rather than just get squad fillers.' This after we have sold Watkins, Bailey, Mings and Luiz.
Being pissed off with a future that only you have made up is a bit odd.
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It’s the same old failure to do enough. It happens all the time, the limp writing off of seasons - there is half the season left, FFS and we are in a decent position to get a good finish.
It always seems to be “maybe next window” and it’s just endless.
I could handle the lack of incomings if we hadn’t shipped out a group of players.
Emery is a great manager, and this is nothing to do with my faith in him, but as Risso said, that bench against Southampton was shockingly poor. It had two keepers and a teenager on it and, and we didn’t even fill it, and now some of the most experienced players who were on it are also not here anymore.
If- if - we bring nobody else in, sorry but that’s pathetic and Lange needs to go. Nowhere near good enough.
There’s not a single one of us who would have been pleased with this business had we known at the start of the window.
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Time is ticking and we still haven't brought in a striker which even before we let Danny Ings leave the club for pittance we needed.
What the hell is going on down there ? The bench looks so weak and that's been created by the club letting go BIG Bench players like El Ghazi and Trezeguet leave the Football club.
Oh and then our top goalscorer, you really couldn't make it up
What big bench were they on? Both of them seem to be doing ok to be fair to them. Traore less so, we might aswell have him stuck on the bench at Villa Park as backup to Bailey. That role up near Watkins might suit him.
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Given the profile of the players who've left, I wonder if the manager has said he'd rather use youngsters to fill out the squad in the short term than experienced, possibly frustrated senior players. I'm sure he'd love to get a couple of genuine first team targets in too but if it's not possible to get the right players right now (if the talk of Merino and the kid at Bilbao knocking us back are true, then fuck it.
We've been a lot more pro-active in shifting people than we have been until now and I get the feeling that's at the managers behest.
If that was the case, why not keep Archer around? He's the best and most experienced of the young players, and has been training as part of the first team all season. Nobody else has a single minute of playing time. As Paul S says above, if we don't bring anybody in I think we'll really regret it. Martinez and Kamara aren't going to want to stay at a mid-table Premier League team forever.
I don't know mate, maybe they just bthought it's better for his long term development to get six months of regular games after the waste of the first half of the season rather than at best coming on for 10-20 mins here and there.
Look, I get it regarding living in the present and keeping hold of our stars, but if you can't buy the players you want or need then you can't buy them. Princess Di for that money to Newcastle and they've got all the money in the world behind them and are sitting in the Champs League spots at present.
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What an anti climax. August 30th - 'if the players we want aren't out there, then I am happy to wait until January rather than just get squad fillers.' This after we have sold Watkins, Bailey, Mings and Luiz.
You'll need to explain this one.
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What an anti climax. August 30th - 'if the players we want aren't out there, then I am happy to wait until January rather than just get squad fillers.' This after we have sold Watkins, Bailey, Mings and Luiz.
Being pissed off with a future that only you have made up is a bit odd.
I was being ironic as you well know. We are always waiting until the next window it seems. I don’t want squad fillers either I just don’t believe we couldn’t land any of our alleged targets when other teams have landed theirs. Mckennie being a case in point.
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That’s fine - but then don’t ship out a load of players then. People might not think Ings and Sanson are great, but they’re better than having no options.
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Agreed - it is shocking if we don't bring in some cover at least - otherwise, we seem to be taking risks that are unneeded.
I'm all for shipping out the deadwood, but we need cover - I don't want to see us with Olsen up top and Steer playing wide right?
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Also I’m sure I read a few stories about how Emery was going to be massively backed in the transfer market this window. Someone somewhere hasn’t done their job this time around.
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It’s the same old failure to do enough. It happens all the time, the limp writing off of seasons - there is half the season left, FFS and we are in a decent position to get a good finish.
It always seems to be “maybe next window” and it’s just endless.
I could handle the lack of incomings if we hadn’t shipped out a group of players.
Emery is a great manager, and this is nothing to do with my faith in him, but as Risso said, that bench against Southampton was shockingly poor. It had two keepers and a teenager on it and, and we didn’t even fill it, and now some of the most experienced players who were on it are also not here anymore.
If- if - we bring nobody else in, sorry but that’s pathetic and Lange needs to go. Nowhere near good enough.
There’s not a single one of us who would have been pleased with this business had we known at the start of the window.
I’d be very concerned if we write off another season halfway through. There’s a chance we could finish higher than we have for years and with Emery in charge there’s also a chance to push for that European place. There’s no chance of that happening if we don’t bring anyone in so that’s what we’d be doing. With 5 subs allowed there’s even more chance of teams changing games but I just don’t see where we could change a game attacking wise from the bench we have. Emery has worked wonders so far but he needs help and even he can’t work miracles. It’s a massive 2 days for us.
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We should have 4 defenders on the bench - Carlos, Digne, Chambers & either Cash or Young, that is not too bad
The only players we should be signing are good enough to go straight into the first eleven - we don't need anymore squad fillers
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What an anti climax. August 30th - 'if the players we want aren't out there, then I am happy to wait until January rather than just get squad fillers.' This after we have sold Watkins, Bailey, Mings and Luiz.
Being pissed off with a future that only you have made up is a bit odd.
I was being ironic as you well know. We are always waiting until the next window it seems. I don’t want squad fillers either I just don’t believe we couldn’t land any of our alleged targets when other teams have landed theirs. Mckennie being a case in point.
Now I've got that Alanis Morrisette bilge stuck in my mind.
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While being fairly relaxed about the fact we are a decent bet to finish safely enough and now have a very good manager, I do agree with the comments above that Lange has very limited time. It has been very clear that the money and the will has been there to buy a couple of Emery targets but that has not materialised for whatever reason, but it's Lange and Purslow who should have been backing that through. Would not be shocked to see both leave before the summer. Purslow has been notably quiet.
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Also I’m sure I read a few stories about how Emery was going to be massively backed in the transfer market this window. Someone somewhere hasn’t done their job this time around.
Don't believe everything you read.
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Not being privy to how business is being conducted, it's impossible to know if our top targets are just refusing or if we're unwilling to pay the January premium. If the former, which I think is highly unlikely, we ought to have moved on well before now. If the latter; pay the sodding money. The premium would surely be offset by the positions you gain in the league?
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Which clubs have got what they really wanted? Chelsea perhaps bit they have signed some crazy deals with 7 and 8 year contracts.
Really though, as ever, the Champions League teams can cherry pick the best players, and we're left looking around. Newcastle are having an amazing season so their offer will be tempting for play... agents too.
With our manager, and money, and everything else too, we should absolutely be pushing for the best.
Anyway, just as many feel like nothing will happen, I reckon we will see at least 2 in the door. And perhaps a pre-contract deal for the summer.
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join? He's not responsible for the club appointing an under qualified scouse arse to pick the team, and he's somewhat reliant on results on the pitch to entice players in.
Plus, Boubacar Kamara for nothing is the fucking deal of the century.
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We should have 4 defenders on the bench - Carlos, Digne, Chambers & either Cash or Young, that is not too bad
The only players we should be signing are good enough to go straight into the first eleven - we don't need anymore squad fillers
Well we should be bringing in players to better the first team, true. But if that’s not possible we at least need people to compete, we are short on numbers because we’ve shipped people out.
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join? He's not responsible for the club appointing an under qualified scouse arse to pick the team, and he's somewhat reliant on results on the pitch to entice players in.
Plus, Boubacar Kamara for nothing is the fucking deal of the century.
It is, but even with him, we're still midtable. We urgently need players now to fill the gaps, and we need players to help us kick on. Otherwise it's going to be the mother of all re-building jobs in the summer, and then we'll be told it's another year we have to write off while all the new players bed in.
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join?
Don't ship out the players that we are trying to replace if the above was a possibility?
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join? He's not responsible for the club appointing an under qualified scouse arse to pick the team, and he's somewhat reliant on results on the pitch to entice players in.
Plus, Boubacar Kamara for nothing is the fucking deal of the century.
That and the Dhuran deal were worked on for months, the recruitment team travelling various times etc. Emery has to have final say obviously, and I'd like to think the likes of Guendouzi will have been worked on but I'd also imagine that was a relatively short term decision.
When you're a kid in a sweet shop you go in pick what you want and go home, it's just not that simple.
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join?.
Not move on other players?
Can’t wait to see the state of our bench against Leicester. I reckon Jack Woodward is in with a chance of being on it. We’ll probably have three keepers on it.
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For me it comes down to: what are your ambitions, not just for this season but the start of next? Because Martinez and Kamara won't hang around out of the goodness of their hearts. Making a play for Europe now we're far closer than we imagined is imperative, I feel. If we don't reinforce now, or pay for what we need to make a real charge, we'll be buying a new keeper and DM in the summer too.
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join?
Don't ship out the players that we are trying to replace if the above was a possibility?
The only departure that has any impact on a match day is Ings. Given most people seemed to not think he was right for us, to get what we did was good business. Other than that we're not any worse off are we? Light on numbers but not on people challenging the first team, and that's the issue we've been facing.
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join?.
Not move on other players?
Can’t wait to see the state of our bench against Leicester. I reckon Jack Woodward is in with a chance of being on it. We’ll probably have three letters on it.
Someone on Twitter raised the possibility that once Emery's targets were unobtainable, Lange's well was dry. While I don't believe Lange wouldn't be able to rustle up an alternative, I do think there's a disconnect between Emery and Lange given Emery wanted his own man in.
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We still need 10 points to survive. Assuming we achieve that it was such a unique and great opportunity to push for top 8. At some point the lack of depth in the squad will come back on us. Lower than halfway again when that happens.
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For me it comes down to: what are your ambitions, not just for this season but the start of next? Because Martinez and Kamara won't hang around out of the goodness of their hearts. Making a play for Europe now we're far closer than we imagined is imperative, I feel. If we don't reinforce now, or pay for what we need to make a real charge, we'll be buying a new keeper and DM in the summer too.
Although we could, through trying now, be creating deals for the summer instead. The likes of Guendouzi and Dembele may not be available now but could be in July. So should we buy lesser players now, only to have to fuck them off again in 6 months?
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join?
Don't ship out the players that we are trying to replace if the above was a possibility?
We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join?.
Not move on other players?
Can’t wait to see the state of our bench against Leicester. I reckon Jack Woodward is in with a chance of being on it. We’ll probably have three keepers on it.
And is this all down to Lange? I doubt anyone has gone in or out without Emery having the final say.
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Not just Ings, Archer too. Emery has said Duran is one for the future.
Sanson is another one. Bednarek is being recalled so tougher one but Carlos is still miles off coming back.
I understand the concept of only improving the first team but you need a bench too. We’re on our way to not having one.
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join?
Don't ship out the players that we are trying to replace if the above was a possibility?
We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join?.
Not move on other players?
Can’t wait to see the state of our bench against Leicester. I reckon Jack Woodward is in with a chance of being on it. We’ll probably have three keepers on it.
And is this all down to Lange? I doubt anyone has gone in or out without Emery having the final say.
Recruitment and the squad is his patch.
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join?
Don't ship out the players that we are trying to replace if the above was a possibility?
The only departure that has any impact on a match day is Ings. Given most people seemed to not think he was right for us, to get what we did was good business. Other than that we're not any worse off are we? Light on numbers but not on people challenging the first team, and that's the issue we've been facing.
That assumes that we are going to get through the next four months with our squad intact. We saw what an injury to Kamara did to our competitiveness.
What's the plan if Watkins and Bailey ping their hamstrings in training on Wednesday and are out for the next six weeks?
There's a reason clubs have more than one senior striker in their squads.
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Im all for not buying people if we don't need to - but we play two upfront - and only have Watkins who has any experience of playing that in the PL. We need some form of cover - a loan is fine - its just numbers we lack.
Like a couple of people say - this is an opportunity to push on - and we need to show that if we realistically want to hold onto our best players. If the right player's arent available then fine - but we need to have some loan players or something as we are only a couple of injuries away from being truly fucked.
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For me it comes down to: what are your ambitions, not just for this season but the start of next? Because Martinez and Kamara won't hang around out of the goodness of their hearts. Making a play for Europe now we're far closer than we imagined is imperative, I feel. If we don't reinforce now, or pay for what we need to make a real charge, we'll be buying a new keeper and DM in the summer too.
Although we could, through trying now, be creating deals for the summer instead. The likes of Guendouzi and Dembele may not be available now but could be in July. So should we buy lesser players now, only to have to fuck them off again in 6 months?
Well, no, we shouldn't. But I don't feel like those are the only two options. Can't you buy a reasonable alternative and also add your first choice later, which can only strengthen the squad?
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Saying "only Ings" rather downplays the fact that at the moment he's still our top scorer and has scored a quarter of our league goals. Now if we'd got £15m for him AND brought in a replacement, then that's decent business. At the moment, selling him and not replacing him looks idiotic. I'd much rather have him in the team than nobody. An injury to Watkins, and we're absolutely buggered. You'd get more than the £15m we got for him just for finishing a few places higher up the table.
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For me it comes down to: what are your ambitions, not just for this season but the start of next? Because Martinez and Kamara won't hang around out of the goodness of their hearts. Making a play for Europe now we're far closer than we imagined is imperative, I feel. If we don't reinforce now, or pay for what we need to make a real charge, we'll be buying a new keeper and DM in the summer too.
Although we could, through trying now, be creating deals for the summer instead. The likes of Guendouzi and Dembele may not be available now but could be in July. So should we buy lesser players now, only to have to fuck them off again in 6 months?
Well, no, we shouldn't. But I don't feel like those are the only two options. Can't you buy a reasonable alternative and also add your first choice later, which can only strengthen the squad?
We've also opened up two loan spots by shipping out Bednarek and Augustinsson. I'm more than happy to see a winger and a forward come in on loan until the summer.
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For me it comes down to: what are your ambitions, not just for this season but the start of next? Because Martinez and Kamara won't hang around out of the goodness of their hearts. Making a play for Europe now we're far closer than we imagined is imperative, I feel. If we don't reinforce now, or pay for what we need to make a real charge, we'll be buying a new keeper and DM in the summer too.
Although we could, through trying now, be creating deals for the summer instead. The likes of Guendouzi and Dembele may not be available now but could be in July. So should we buy lesser players now, only to have to fuck them off again in 6 months?
Well, no, we shouldn't. But I don't feel like those are the only two options. Can't you buy a reasonable alternative and also add your first choice later, which can only strengthen the squad?
We've also opened up two loan spots by shipping out Bednarek and Augustinsson. I'm more than happy to see a winger and a forward come in on loan until the summer.
Yep exactly - whichever way you look at it we need more depth.
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I'd keep shipping them out, personally.
Nakamba, Chambers...they're not up to it and need games.
We'll have a lean team evoking the spirit of '81!
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I agree with the general sentiment here that we do need an extra player or two to push on this season, but I don't think it would be a complete disaster if we didn't.
Since Emery took over we've had to start matches without Kamara (I think he came on against Man U on his way back to fitness), Ramsey, McGinn, Digne, Watkins, Martinez and Cash - plus Moreno and Durán. Even with those injuries, we've been the second best team in the league during that time - at some point you'd like to think we'll have a fully fit squad to pick from.
I still think we'll get a couple in though. Probably loans to keep us going until the summer, where we'll buy 3 or 4 players for big money. Ings is the one player that has made a notable contribution which I think we need to replace (if Durán isn't up to it - maybe they've seen him in training and changed their mind?).
Our squad is so much better than it was at the start of the season, because we have a much better manager. Last season we added a couple of (seemingly) decent signings in January, and results got much worse. It might not be a case of getting bodies in, they need to ensure we win more matches.
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I'd keep shipping them out, personally.
Nakamba, Chambers...they're not up to it and need games.
We'll have a lean team evoking the spirit of '81!
Knowing us it would be more the spirit of 86-87
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Cluthing at a straw (if we don't get another forward in) but perhaps Unai is playing mind games and he is, in fact, ready to "unleash" Duran and watch him terrorise Premiership defences.
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Cluthing at a straw (if we don't get another forward in) but perhaps Unai is playing mind games and he is, in fact, ready to "unleash" Duran and watch him terrorise Premiership defences.
Won’t have much choice TBF. At least he must get a decent chant going, surely
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Starting to see the first hints that we may move into the loan market if we can't make the right deals by then end of the window.
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I saw comments from Emery over the weekend where he said he is still looking to bring in another striker so he clearly understands the risk. We just have to keep our fingers crossed that they sort it.
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According to the Birmingham Mail, Nakamba's agent has been told to find him another club before the end of the window.
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Cluthing at a straw (if we don't get another forward in) but perhaps Unai is playing mind games and he is, in fact, ready to "unleash" Duran and watch him terrorise Premiership defences.
That would be incredibly stupid.
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While being fairly relaxed about the fact we are a decent bet to finish safely enough and now have a very good manager, I do agree with the comments above that Lange has very limited time. It has been very clear that the money and the will has been there to buy a couple of Emery targets but that has not materialised for whatever reason, but it's Lange and Purslow who should have been backing that through. Would not be shocked to see both leave before the summer. Purslow has been notably quiet.
Good. Both of them are shit at their jobs...
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Cluthing at a straw (if we don't get another forward in) but perhaps Unai is playing mind games and he is, in fact, ready to "unleash" Duran and watch him terrorise Premiership defences.
I'd be surprised if Duran doesn't get a decent number of premier league minutes, whatever happens. Especially given the 5-sub rule. Emery's comments were merely to take the pressure off. We don't want people getting on his back if he goes five games without scoring. Treating him as a "prospect" doesn't mean he won't have a part to play.
I'll still be very surprised if we don't get another forward in before the deadline, loan or otherwise. I do wonder if the Dembele deal is close, but his contract situation might have complicated matters. He's free in the summer, so there are any number of ways we could "acquire" him now. Permanent transfer and long contract. Permanent transfer but very short contract. Loan for 6 months only and he can do what he likes in the summer. Loan with a pre-contract signed for the summer. And Lyon will want to maximise their revenue here too. Dembele is in a very strong position.
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We keep saying about Lange etc. but short of kidnapping and extortion what's supposed to do if the player we want doesn't want to join? He's not responsible for the club appointing an under qualified scouse arse to pick the team, and he's somewhat reliant on results on the pitch to entice players in.
Plus, Boubacar Kamara for nothing is the fucking deal of the century.
But some of the other dealings have been criminally crap.
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Every club's hit to shit ratio is mixed (apart from perfect Brighton).
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Many of those deals were Suso’s though weren’t they?
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We should have 4 defenders on the bench - Carlos, Digne, Chambers & either Cash or Young, that is not too bad
The only players we should be signing are good enough to go straight into the first eleven - we don't need anymore squad fillers
Not sure on that. It would be good to have a forward off the bench who can keep our tempo up for last 20 minutes rather than just sitting back.
Ings wasn't that type but he did come on v Wolves when we were terrible for first hour and scored and should've set up a winner with a wonderful pass.
I think it's naïve to expect Duran to come in and hit the ground running straight away. He'll need time but you can see it now. 1-0 down to Leicester with 20 minutes left and he's put on and people assuming he'll just turn the game around. We'll see on him.
Only other option is Coutinho and that's just based on reputation rather than how he's generally played for us since April. Not someone who can press at all these days.
I reckon we'd have signed someone by now if we were still in the FA cup. I still expect a new attacker in next 30 hours.
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Not sure Lange has been much better.
Talk of us being in the loan market now. If we pulled Ziyech on loan and Dembele out of the bag before the deadline, would that be enough?
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Not sure Lange has been much better.
Talk of us being in the loan market now. If we pulled Ziyech on loan and Dembele out of the bag before the deadline, would that be enough?
Absolutely fine, until the summer.
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Not sure Lange has been much better.
Talk of us being in the loan market now. If we pulled Ziyech on loan and Dembele out of the bag before the deadline, would that be enough?
Yep can't see how people would complain. Dembele hit 20 goals in French league just last season so immediately that's more proven than MLS and he's played for Fulham and Celtic on these shores so would have no problem to adapt.
Watkins, Dembele, Duran for CF for last 18 games is more than fine.
Ziyech not done much at Chelsea but talented player to put into the area behind the CF.
Personally I think someone who'd be an amazing fit in our system would be Pulisic. I assume Chelsea aren't interested in loaning him but got to think he's reaching the end of his time there with the endless players they're signing so him and Conor Gallagher could be summer transfer options if we were to make 7th.
Edit: Broja has a bad injury currently but he probably fits profile for what we want at CF...early 20s, targetman and someone with regular games could hit 10-15 so get the feeling we could've made a move if he hadn't done his ACL against us in Dubai.
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Not sure Lange has been much better.
Talk of us being in the loan market now. If we pulled Ziyech on loan and Dembele out of the bag before the deadline, would that be enough?
Absolutely fine, until the summer.
Yes, that would be more than acceptable.
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We can’t leave this window without improving our midfield and attacking options. Be it permanent or loans. And they need to be players that are genuine first team starting options not squad options. I am sure there is going to be quite a number of players added in the summer and if we get the right players in then, that’s fine. But the types of player we might attract improves markedly if we are playing in Europe next season. I don’t want us to miss out on the opportunity of qualifying this season.
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Every club's hit to shit ratio is mixed (apart from perfect Brighton).
they've bought their fair share of shit too. Jahankabash, Maupay etc.
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We can’t leave this window without improving our midfield and attacking options. Be it permanent or loans. And they need to be players that are genuine first team starting options not squad options. I am sure there is going to be quite a number of players added in the summer and if we get the right players in then, that’s fine. But the types of player we might attract improves markedly if we are playing in Europe next season. I don’t want us to miss out on the opportunity of qualifying this season.
Midfield is fine.
Kamara + Luiz is doing well. Can drop Ramsey back there if needs be and I presume McGinn is back in next few weeks. Dendoncker cost us in FA cup but he also started v Man. United and Brentford (our two best attacking performances of the season).
5 options for 2/3 seems enough to me.
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
2 thumbs up from me
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We can’t leave this window without improving our midfield and attacking options. Be it permanent or loans. And they need to be players that are genuine first team starting options not squad options. I am sure there is going to be quite a number of players added in the summer and if we get the right players in then, that’s fine. But the types of player we might attract improves markedly if we are playing in Europe next season. I don’t want us to miss out on the opportunity of qualifying this season.
Midfield is fine.
Kamara + Luiz is doing well. Can drop Ramsey back there if needs be and I presume McGinn is back in next few weeks. Dendoncker cost us in FA cup but he also started v Man. United and Brentford (our two best attacking performances of the season).
5 options for 2/3 seems enough to me.
See I don’t think the midfield is fine. While we’ve done well recently been overrun vs Leeds and weren’t exactly convincing vs Southampton. I’m not saying it won’t do but if there is a way to improve what is around Kamara then I want us to do it. We just might need to wait until the summer but Luiz, JJ, McGinn, Dendoncker can all be improved upon. And I know they are a little more attacking but not out and out strikers, Coutinho and Bailey can certainly be improved upon.
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
2 thumbs up from me
For me, qualifying for Europe can NEVER be a bad thing. Sure, we would definitely struggle playing twice a week with our current squad, but it would mean more revenue, better sponsorship and therefore more and better players coming through the door. Then there are the Villa Park European nights under the lights. Plus, Unai has a knack for winning the whole bloody thing. How could you NOT want that?
The whole "Jam tomorrow" philosophy is one that never, ever pays off where Villa are concerned.
I want us to qualify for European, strengthen significantly in the summer with Europe to dangle under the noses of prospective recruits, and then fight on all four fronts next season. I realise this is completely unrealistic, and Europe is very unlikely, but I absolutely want it, in the same way I want Villa to win every single game they play.
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We can’t leave this window without improving our midfield and attacking options. Be it permanent or loans. And they need to be players that are genuine first team starting options not squad options. I am sure there is going to be quite a number of players added in the summer and if we get the right players in then, that’s fine. But the types of player we might attract improves markedly if we are playing in Europe next season. I don’t want us to miss out on the opportunity of qualifying this season.
Midfield is fine.
Kamara + Luiz is doing well. Can drop Ramsey back there if needs be and I presume McGinn is back in next few weeks. Dendoncker cost us in FA cup but he also started v Man. United and Brentford (our two best attacking performances of the season).
5 options for 2/3 seems enough to me.
See I don’t think the midfield is fine. While we’ve done well recently been overrun vs Leeds and weren’t exactly convincing vs Southampton. I’m not saying it won’t do but if there is a way to improve what is around Kamara then I want us to do it. We just might need to wait until the summer but Luiz, JJ, McGinn, Dendoncker can all be improved upon. And I know they are a little more attacking but not out and out strikers, Coutinho and Bailey can certainly be improved upon.
I'd certainly take Guendouzi....just not instead of any attacking options this window.
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Two to three players this window, all nicely bedded in by the end of the season, then 2-3 more in the summer transfer window and you've got a squad capable of competing in the league and Europe. Get nobody now then you have to do it all in one go.
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Every club's hit to shit ratio is mixed (apart from perfect Brighton).
they've bought their fair share of shit too. Jahankabash, Maupay etc.
Indeed, they also spent the best part of £30m on Undav, Sima, Kozlowski in the last year. Yes, "who?" I hear you ask. Brighton do above averagely well in the transfer market, definitely - but this idea that they don't also sign plenty of players that don't work out is a myth. Every club buys duds. And every club's fans think they buy more than their fair share of them.
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
2 thumbs up from me
Agreed.
For the remainder of this season, we have enough attack minded midfielders (and defenders) to compensate for the lack of an experienced 'back up' striker.
We also have eight players out on loan, five of which are attack minded (Wesley, Philogene, Davis, Traore, Archer). Subject to the terms of each loan, the option might exist for the parent club to terminate the loan subject to a small fee being paid. I say this based only on a Google search and checking our first team squad on our official website.
I'm not panicking. Unai has playing football in mind and less hoofball.
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It has been very clear that the money and the will has been there to buy a couple of Emery targets but that has not materialised for whatever reason, but it's Lange and Purslow who should have been backing that through.
If the money was actually there, surely we would then have gotten Emery's target?
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
2 thumbs up from me
There was a time at this club where top 6 and/or Europe was the minimum expectation. Now all we are asking for is a chance in the Conference League.
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It has been very clear that the money and the will has been there to buy a couple of Emery targets but that has not materialised for whatever reason, but it's Lange and Purslow who should have been backing that through.
If the money was actually there, surely we would then have gotten Emery's target?
Yeh I don’t see where Purslow or Lange are to blame here. We clearly have targets and the owner is the one who appointed Emery. There is no way that the money has been restricted. But I can also imagine Emery being very specific and asking for players on behalf of the club but doing so responsibly. For example on Guendouzi, if the price set by Marseille is ludicrous now but much more reasonable in July then Emery might have said let’s delay it. There is a balance between getting what we want and being carefree about it. I still want players in like all fans but I also now trust the manager more than I have in many years to get that bit right.
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We can’t leave this window without improving our midfield and attacking options. Be it permanent or loans. And they need to be players that are genuine first team starting options not squad options. I am sure there is going to be quite a number of players added in the summer and if we get the right players in then, that’s fine. But the types of player we might attract improves markedly if we are playing in Europe next season. I don’t want us to miss out on the opportunity of qualifying this season.
Midfield is fine.
Kamara + Luiz is doing well. Can drop Ramsey back there if needs be and I presume McGinn is back in next few weeks. Dendoncker cost us in FA cup but he also started v Man. United and Brentford (our two best attacking performances of the season).
5 options for 2/3 seems enough to me.
See I don’t think the midfield is fine. While we’ve done well recently been overrun vs Leeds and weren’t exactly convincing vs Southampton. I’m not saying it won’t do but if there is a way to improve what is around Kamara then I want us to do it. We just might need to wait until the summer but Luiz, JJ, McGinn, Dendoncker can all be improved upon. And I know they are a little more attacking but not out and out strikers, Coutinho and Bailey can certainly be improved upon.
I don't agree with your view on Southampton, we absolutely dominated midfield against them until they changed shape and even then they only came into the game by targeting Moreno, they never got a hold of the centre of the park. Leeds outnumbered us in there and is the sort of game where McGinn would've been more useful than Ramsey in that tucked-in right side role.
In my opinion we could do with 1 more midfielder who can play right across the 4 positions but if that has to wait unti lthe summer it won't be what ruins this season for us. The 2 big problems are up front, w have no cover for Bailey (other than Young who's only 17 and not made a single appearance) and Duran as the only cover for Watkins is a risk. I like the look of both of those young players so I'd be happy with someone coming in who could cover both positions, potentially even as a loan to get us to the summer when we'll have Archer back and hopefully ready to compete and then we can add a long term option or 2 to really round out the attack.
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
2 thumbs up from me
There was a time at this club where top 6 and/or Europe was the minimum expectation. Now all we are asking for is a chance in the Conference League.
That time will come again - but not just yet.
We're not ready and when it does happen it must be sustainable, not qualification by the skin of our teeth and yoyoing thereafter.
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Is FFP a bit of a farce considering what the likes of Chelsea or even Forest are up to? Forest are already letting go players they bought in the summer.
Huge decision by Guardiola to let Cancelo go, he wasn't in great form lately but just shows in football fortunes can change very quickly. Good news for our former talisman I'd say.
We will surely still get at least one more player in?
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
2 thumbs up from me
For me, qualifying for Europe can NEVER be a bad thing. Sure, we would definitely struggle playing twice a week with our current squad, but it would mean more revenue, better sponsorship and therefore more and better players coming through the door. Then there are the Villa Park European nights under the lights. Plus, Unai has a knack for winning the whole bloody thing. How could you NOT want that?
The whole "Jam tomorrow" philosophy is one that never, ever pays off where Villa are concerned.
I want us to qualify for European, strengthen significantly in the summer with Europe to dangle under the noses of prospective recruits, and then fight on all four fronts next season. I realise this is completely unrealistic, and Europe is very unlikely, but I absolutely want it, in the same way I want Villa to win every single game they play.
I agree. The only way to assemble a squad that's large enough & strong enough to compete in Europe is by being in Europe. The only way to attract players of a higher calibre than the ones we already have is by being in Europe. Competing in Europe has to be the target, we can't move forward without it.
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According to BBC Football gossip, we're maybe possibly looking at getting a striker on loan till the end of the season. Meanwhile Forest are signing another 27 players just to be sure (someone there must know how to work FFP to its limit)
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
2 thumbs up from me
For me, qualifying for Europe can NEVER be a bad thing. Sure, we would definitely struggle playing twice a week with our current squad, but it would mean more revenue, better sponsorship and therefore more and better players coming through the door. Then there are the Villa Park European nights under the lights. Plus, Unai has a knack for winning the whole bloody thing. How could you NOT want that?
The whole "Jam tomorrow" philosophy is one that never, ever pays off where Villa are concerned.
I want us to qualify for European, strengthen significantly in the summer with Europe to dangle under the noses of prospective recruits, and then fight on all four fronts next season. I realise this is completely unrealistic, and Europe is very unlikely, but I absolutely want it, in the same way I want Villa to win every single game they play.
I agree. The only way to assemble a squad that's large enough & strong enough to compete in Europe is by being in Europe. The only way to attract players of a higher calibre than the ones we already have is by being in Europe. Competing in Europe has to be the target, we can't move forward without it.
We are currently 5th in the form table, ahead even of Newcastle. If we continue in that vein we most probably will qualify for Europe in some way.
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On the strength of the bench/squad depth I think we need to take a small step back and remember the overall squad depth isn't about a snapshot of 1 or 2 games (when we have a lot of injuries), it's over the whole half season.
If we have everyone fit and pick the team from Southampton the bench is made from:
Olsen, Sinisalo
Cash, Chambers, Carlos, Digne
Dendoncker, McGinn, Nakamba
Coutinho
Duran
and that's without picking any youth players for development where I'm sure most of us would like to see 1-2 involved.
add 2nd options in the bottom 2 lines there and it's as strong as squad as you expect from a team without European football, all but Carlos are full internationals (clearly not all in the current squads), most as part of pretty strong national teams.
Nakamba and Chambers will almost certainly be replaced in the summer but for this window it would be too much to do. The AM slot is no weaker than it was before Emery arrived and is clearly an area he's looked at given the reports of bids that haven't been successful.
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add 2nd options in the bottom 2 lines there and it's as strong as squad as you expect from a team without European football, all but Carlos are full internationals (clearly not all in the current squads), most as part of pretty strong national teams.
I bet there is no other team in the league who has only one striker on their books who isn't a teenager.
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add 2nd options in the bottom 2 lines there and it's as strong as squad as you expect from a team without European football, all but Carlos are full internationals (clearly not all in the current squads), most as part of pretty strong national teams.
I bet there is no other team in the league who has only one striker on their books who isn't a teenager.
Which is exactly why we need another option there, you literally quoted me saying as much. If we do the first part of the sentence then the 2nd part is true, if we don't then it isn't.
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
2 thumbs up from me
There was a time at this club where top 6 and/or Europe was the minimum expectation. Now all we are asking for is a chance in the Conference League.
I'd say hope rather than expectation. I've been going to VP since '77 and am off the top of my head pretty sure we'd made the top 6 less than a dozen times in that period
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Rumours that someone has put in a bid for Maguire...... and that West Ham are interested in Chambers....
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Rumours that someone has put in a bid for Maguire...... and that West Ham are interested in Chambers....
Moving Chambers on now would be stupid.
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Unless we’ve got slabbie to replace him?!
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On the strength of the bench/squad depth I think we need to take a small step back and remember the overall squad depth isn't about a snapshot of 1 or 2 games (when we have a lot of injuries), it's over the whole half season.
If we have everyone fit and pick the team from Southampton the bench is made from:
Olsen, Sinisalo
Cash, Chambers, Carlos, Digne
Dendoncker, McGinn, Nakamba
Coutinho
Duran
and that's without picking any youth players for development where I'm sure most of us would like to see 1-2 involved.
add 2nd options in the bottom 2 lines there and it's as strong as squad as you expect from a team without European football, all but Carlos are full internationals (clearly not all in the current squads), most as part of pretty strong national teams.
Nakamba and Chambers will almost certainly be replaced in the summer but for this window it would be too much to do. The AM slot is no weaker than it was before Emery arrived and is clearly an area he's looked at given the reports of bids that haven't been successful.
Olsen is rubbish, Carlos hasn't kicked a ball in months after a serious injury, Nakamba hasn't kicked a ball at all this season, Duran hasn't kicked a ball in months and Coutinho is finished at PL level.
Expecting any of these to contribute on the pitch in the near future is optimistic at best let's be honest. It's a fair old risk to be heading into the second half of the season with the squad as is. I'd much prefer if we started rotating the starting lineup a lot more anyway and move away from squad filler types. Full back and CM we are fine but just about everywhere else we are weak.
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If that squad was any good we would still be in both cups.
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There's going to be all sorts of crazy rumours over the next 48 hours. At least we're not being linked with the likes of Oli Mcburnie this time though.
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I now think we probably won't bring any more in. I'm OK with it cos I trust Emery.
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If that squad was any good we would still be in both cups.
No. Squad is not the reason we are out of both cups. It is the attitude of both, players and managers, towards the cups.
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I now think we probably won't bring any more in. I'm OK with it cos I trust Emery.
I trust Emery’s abilities as manager but I’m not sure they extend to physiological intervention and having complete control over whether players get injured or not.
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
2 thumbs up from me
For me, qualifying for Europe can NEVER be a bad thing. Sure, we would definitely struggle playing twice a week with our current squad, but it would mean more revenue, better sponsorship and therefore more and better players coming through the door. Then there are the Villa Park European nights under the lights. Plus, Unai has a knack for winning the whole bloody thing. How could you NOT want that?
The whole "Jam tomorrow" philosophy is one that never, ever pays off where Villa are concerned.
I want us to qualify for European, strengthen significantly in the summer with Europe to dangle under the noses of prospective recruits, and then fight on all four fronts next season. I realise this is completely unrealistic, and Europe is very unlikely, but I absolutely want it, in the same way I want Villa to win every single game they play.
I agree. While it would be difficult, we could take it as an opportunity to look at some of the fringe & youth players. And wherever they take us. It would be a bonus...
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Rumours that someone has put in a bid for Maguire...... and that West Ham are interested in Chambers....
Moving Chambers on now would be stupid.
Not unless we have brought in Djed Spence to replace him... ;)
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Southampton are supposed to be in for Dembele now.
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On the strength of the bench/squad depth I think we need to take a small step back and remember the overall squad depth isn't about a snapshot of 1 or 2 games (when we have a lot of injuries), it's over the whole half season.
If we have everyone fit and pick the team from Southampton the bench is made from:
Olsen, Sinisalo
Cash, Chambers, Carlos, Digne
Dendoncker, McGinn, Nakamba
Coutinho
Duran
and that's without picking any youth players for development where I'm sure most of us would like to see 1-2 involved.
add 2nd options in the bottom 2 lines there and it's as strong as squad as you expect from a team without European football, all but Carlos are full internationals (clearly not all in the current squads), most as part of pretty strong national teams.
Nakamba and Chambers will almost certainly be replaced in the summer but for this window it would be too much to do. The AM slot is no weaker than it was before Emery arrived and is clearly an area he's looked at given the reports of bids that haven't been successful.
Olsen is rubbish, Carlos hasn't kicked a ball in months after a serious injury, Nakamba hasn't kicked a ball at all this season, Duran hasn't kicked a ball in months and Coutinho is finished at PL level.
Expecting any of these to contribute on the pitch in the near future is optimistic at best let's be honest. It's a fair old risk to be heading into the second half of the season with the squad as is. I'd much prefer if we started rotating the starting lineup a lot more anyway and move away from squad filler types. Full back and CM we are fine but just about everywhere else we are weak.
Olsen, probably right but it's not a priority to replace him, that's a job for the summer.
Carlos yes he's been injured but he's due back in full training soon and we have Cambers as cover until then (and a couple of very good youngsters if we need a body on the bench in the short-term), Carlos will play again this season and we need the space in the squad to allow him to come back in.
Nakamba again I already said needs replacing but not in this window, lets not forget he's 6th choice in centre mid, it's not a major problem if we take our time over that (I assume we want to replace him with Guendouzi and if so that's a massive upgrade that I'd be happy to wait until the summer for). We also have Raikhy with the U21s who by all accounts was good during the WC break and Emery seems to like.
Duran hasn't played since the end of the MLS season but he's 19 and is clearly going to be doing everything to impress. I'll be amazed if we haven't seen him by the end of February (unless we sign another striker in the meantime, and even then he'll get game time this year).
Coutinho that's just opinion, I think he has something to offer for now but we need to get him fitter and get him working how Emery wants, I think he was very unlucky to be injured when he was which took away a lot of the time for him to adapt.
Again though I said both of the last 2 aren't enough cover for the positions they play so I agree we need more options there, I just think the idea that the squad as a whole is incredibly weak it's being exaggerated. From today 1 good attacking player will mean the squad is better now than it was on December 31st and a 2nd would have us at the point where we can go into the summer knowing we're looking at 1 in 1 out where we're just increasing quality rather than worrying about gaps and depth. No signings and the only place where we're worse than before is cover for Watkins, and even that is on the basis that Duran doesn't settle in quickly.
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I think an attacking player would be very useful since we currently have 5 to pick from, 3 of those are hit and miss, one is good but not prolific with the goals and another is a 19 year old unknown. It would definitely be nice to be in with a shout for Europe but I think we’ll come up short without another forward. That said we don’t want just anyone.
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From today 1 good attacking player will mean the squad is better now than it was on December 31st and a 2nd would have us at the point where we can go into the summer knowing we're looking at 1 in 1 out where we're just increasing quality rather than worrying about gaps and depth. No signings and the only place where we're worse than before is cover for Watkins, and even that is on the basis that Duran doesn't settle in quickly.
Out of interest, how is the midfield any better than Dec 31st?
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Southampton are supposed to be in for Dembele now.
That I can understand, they're up shit creek and he's crap.
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If that squad was any good we would still be in both cups.
No. Squad is not the reason we are out of both cups. It is the attitude of both, players and managers, towards the cups.
So the squad then.
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McGinn is back?
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ANNOUNCE McWIRE
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If that squad was any good we would still be in both cups.
No. Squad is not the reason we are out of both cups. It is the attitude of both, players and managers, towards the cups.
So the squad then.
Robin Olsen didn't pick himself.
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Back up striker!! We have him already. Super John McGinn.
Great at shielding the ball, hell of a shot, plays more advanced for Scotland, great at pressing.
Rather than waste/risk 20 million plus on a panic buy this window, I reckon Unai could work wonders on SJM in a more advanced role for the Villa.
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Honestly, I'm getting to the point now where I hope we don't sign anyone and maybe even sell some more players and fucking sabotage the whole season just to piss of some of the entitled pricks on Twitter
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With our transfer dealings being so secretive that MI6 would be impressed, do you honestly think we are not working like a duck on steroids behind the scenes.
I have been watching the Transfer deadline documentary on TV and to get any sort of deal over the line is such a protracted, and in some ways shady process. Plans are scuppered at the last minute, minds are changed frequently and not by the player but players missus , family etc school for kids. Look at the (and im glad we never got him) Danjuma - due to sign for Everton then fucks off and has a medical at Spurs.
If you follow "News Now" , and i really do not know why i torture myself in doing so with the clickbaiting pile of shite, but most of what you read is either padded out bullshit or in most cases completely made up based on the theory that throw enough darts one will hit the target.
The Sky created Transfer Window - yet another reason to hate the way the modern game has been highjacked.
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From today 1 good attacking player will mean the squad is better now than it was on December 31st and a 2nd would have us at the point where we can go into the summer knowing we're looking at 1 in 1 out where we're just increasing quality rather than worrying about gaps and depth. No signings and the only place where we're worse than before is cover for Watkins, and even that is on the basis that Duran doesn't settle in quickly.
Out of interest, how is the midfield any better than Dec 31st?
Did I say or even suggest it was? I don't think it's any weaker though and the defence is stronger. You can argue that Sanson means we've got less cover but as I said about Nakamba I don't think the 6th or 7th choice central midfielder is a make or break position in the squad and given how few minutes (10 between them, in 20 games) either of them have been given the facts back that up.
Right now, with no other changes:
GK - Same
Defence - Stronger
Midfield - Same
Attack - Weaker
Add 1 semi-competent striker to replace Ings and we're at worse the same as we were there (and therefore better overall), add cover for Bailey as well and we suddenly have 2 players for every position, most of which have proven to be useful at times this season, and we'd clearly be far better than we were.
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Honestly, I'm getting to the point now where I hope we don't sign anyone and maybe even sell some more players and fucking sabotage the whole season just to piss of some of the entitled pricks on Twitter
I do not have twitter but there are a few on forums that would apply to as well ;)
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McGinn is back?
No, but he will be before long.
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Look we sell Ings and he gets injured in 20 minutes. These things happen we will survive. We need our midfield to chip in with goals, JJ, Kamara and Luis need to add goals and maybe Bailey and Watkins could score a few more of the chances created. We have a strong first team. We have a bench of Olsen, Digne, Cash, Chambers(?), Couthino, McGinn, Duran and Dendonker before the kids. With Carlos available soon stop worrying!
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Look we sell Ings and he gets injured in 20 minutes. These things happen we will survive. We need our midfield to chip in with goals, JJ, Kamara and Luis need to add goals and maybe Bailey and Watkins could score a few more of the chances created. We have a strong first team. We have a bench of Olsen, Digne, Cash, Chambers(?), Couthino, McGinn, Duran and Dendonker before the kids. With Carlos available soon stop worrying!
Genuine question (although I know it's not your problem to solve!!) - what happens if Watkins goes down after 20 minutes on Saturday and is out for 4-5 weeks or longer? Can you see how we would line up in that eventuality?
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From today 1 good attacking player will mean the squad is better now than it was on December 31st and a 2nd would have us at the point where we can go into the summer knowing we're looking at 1 in 1 out where we're just increasing quality rather than worrying about gaps and depth. No signings and the only place where we're worse than before is cover for Watkins, and even that is on the basis that Duran doesn't settle in quickly.
Out of interest, how is the midfield any better than Dec 31st?
Did I say or even suggest it was? I don't think it's any weaker though and the defence is stronger. You can argue that Sanson means we've got less cover but as I said about Nakamba I don't think the 6th or 7th choice central midfielder is a make or break position in the squad and given how few minutes (10 between them, in 20 games) either of them have been given the facts back that up.
Right now, with no other changes:
GK - Same
Defence - Stronger
Midfield - Same
Attack - Weaker
Add 1 semi-competent striker to replace Ings and we're at worse the same as we were there (and therefore better overall), add cover for Bailey as well and we suddenly have 2 players for every position, most of which have proven to be useful at times this season, and we'd clearly be far better than we were.
How do you know the attack is weaker? None of us yet know if Duran is quicker, more physical and dare I say it, more clinical than Ings
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From today 1 good attacking player will mean the squad is better now than it was on December 31st and a 2nd would have us at the point where we can go into the summer knowing we're looking at 1 in 1 out where we're just increasing quality rather than worrying about gaps and depth. No signings and the only place where we're worse than before is cover for Watkins, and even that is on the basis that Duran doesn't settle in quickly.
Out of interest, how is the midfield any better than Dec 31st?
Did I say or even suggest it was? I don't think it's any weaker though and the defence is stronger. You can argue that Sanson means we've got less cover but as I said about Nakamba I don't think the 6th or 7th choice central midfielder is a make or break position in the squad and given how few minutes (10 between them, in 20 games) either of them have been given the facts back that up.
Right now, with no other changes:
GK - Same
Defence - Stronger
Midfield - Same
Attack - Weaker
Add 1 semi-competent striker to replace Ings and we're at worse the same as we were there (and therefore better overall), add cover for Bailey as well and we suddenly have 2 players for every position, most of which have proven to be useful at times this season, and we'd clearly be far better than we were.
Again, not sure how the midfield is the same minus one of the players we had there on the bench. And there's a good chance Nakamba will go tomorrow, by all accounts.
The fact you don't rate Sanson doesn't change the fact he's not there as an option any more.
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Honestly, I'm getting to the point now where I hope we don't sign anyone and maybe even sell some more players and fucking sabotage the whole season just to piss of some of the entitled pricks on Twitter
I do not have twitter but there are a few on forums that would apply to as well ;)
I know. I get that there are genuine concerns regarding the squad depths and different views, only time will tell. But honestly some of the levels of hysteria and mudslinging on that cesspit have to be seen to be believed.
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Hey come on we now form an opinion following the shirt stretching.
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From today 1 good attacking player will mean the squad is better now than it was on December 31st and a 2nd would have us at the point where we can go into the summer knowing we're looking at 1 in 1 out where we're just increasing quality rather than worrying about gaps and depth. No signings and the only place where we're worse than before is cover for Watkins, and even that is on the basis that Duran doesn't settle in quickly.
Out of interest, how is the midfield any better than Dec 31st?
Did I say or even suggest it was? I don't think it's any weaker though and the defence is stronger. You can argue that Sanson means we've got less cover but as I said about Nakamba I don't think the 6th or 7th choice central midfielder is a make or break position in the squad and given how few minutes (10 between them, in 20 games) either of them have been given the facts back that up.
Right now, with no other changes:
GK - Same
Defence - Stronger
Midfield - Same
Attack - Weaker
Add 1 semi-competent striker to replace Ings and we're at worse the same as we were there (and therefore better overall), add cover for Bailey as well and we suddenly have 2 players for every position, most of which have proven to be useful at times this season, and we'd clearly be far better than we were.
How do you know the attack is weaker? None of us yet know if Duran is quicker, more physical and dare I say it, more clinical than Ings
Because we started January with three strikers, we currently have two strikers.
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Everton have offered £40m + for Conor Gallagher. Jeez, how much must our Jacob be worth
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Look we sell Ings and he gets injured in 20 minutes. These things happen we will survive. We need our midfield to chip in with goals, JJ, Kamara and Luis need to add goals and maybe Bailey and Watkins could score a few more of the chances created. We have a strong first team. We have a bench of Olsen, Digne, Cash, Chambers(?), Couthino, McGinn, Duran and Dendonker before the kids. With Carlos available soon stop worrying!
Genuine question (although I know it's not your problem to solve!!) - what happens if Watkins goes down after 20 minutes on Saturday and is out for 4-5 weeks or longer? Can you see how we would line up in that eventuality?
Throw in Duran I imagine, not ideal but its an option. He has more experience of big boys football than Archer.
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Everton have offered £40m + for Conor Gallagher. Jeez, how much must our Jacob be worth
no idea why he would go there, i also think he is a ahead of Ramsey.
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From today 1 good attacking player will mean the squad is better now than it was on December 31st and a 2nd would have us at the point where we can go into the summer knowing we're looking at 1 in 1 out where we're just increasing quality rather than worrying about gaps and depth. No signings and the only place where we're worse than before is cover for Watkins, and even that is on the basis that Duran doesn't settle in quickly.
Out of interest, how is the midfield any better than Dec 31st?
Did I say or even suggest it was? I don't think it's any weaker though and the defence is stronger. You can argue that Sanson means we've got less cover but as I said about Nakamba I don't think the 6th or 7th choice central midfielder is a make or break position in the squad and given how few minutes (10 between them, in 20 games) either of them have been given the facts back that up.
Right now, with no other changes:
GK - Same
Defence - Stronger
Midfield - Same
Attack - Weaker
Add 1 semi-competent striker to replace Ings and we're at worse the same as we were there (and therefore better overall), add cover for Bailey as well and we suddenly have 2 players for every position, most of which have proven to be useful at times this season, and we'd clearly be far better than we were.
How do you know the attack is weaker? None of us yet know if Duran is quicker, more physical and dare I say it, more clinical than Ings
On paper it's weaker and we're one player down on what we had in an area where we don't have lots of cover, unlike other positions where we have plenty of depth.
Again, not sure how the midfield is the same minus one of the players we had there on the bench. And there's a good chance Nakamba will go tomorrow, by all accounts.
The fact you don't rate Sanson doesn't change the fact he's not there as an option any more.
10minutes in 1 sub appearance, he hasn't been a realistic option all season. I actually rate him and think he's been really hard done by at the club but he wasn't in Gerrards plans at all and Emery has had a look and decided he's happy to let him go. Does Bednarek going make us weaker? How about Augustinsson? Both of them have played significantly more minutes for us this season but no one seems to think we're weakened by their loans being finished early.
The fact that you do rate Sanson (and who said I don't) is blinding you to the fact that we've let go of a 28 year old who clearly wasn't wanted or needed. It doesn't weaken the squad given he was barely part of the squad. Going forward we'll have dendoncker and JJ/McGinn on the bench as cover for 3 positions, and Emery has shown he's willing to use Cash and Chambers as cover there as well. That's all the depth we need for now.
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If that squad was any good we would still be in both cups.
No. Squad is not the reason we are out of both cups. It is the attitude of both, players and managers, towards the cups.
So the squad then.
Robin Olsen didn't pick himself.
And if we’d scored 3 like Stoke did at the weekend we’d be through. Man U, he was massively shit. Hard to argue that.
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I thought Everton were broke. Gallagher, if available would be one we should be in for.
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Not for £45 million.
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Not for £45 million.
That seems to be the new baseline figure for good young Premier League players. I think he's excellent, if he's available we should be all over it.
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Not for £45 million.
That seems to be the new baseline figure for good young Premier League players. I think he's excellent, if he's available we should be all over it.
I thought that when he was at Palace last year, but the couple of games I've watched him play for Chelsea he's looked like an over excited puppy with a touch that would make Gerrard-era McGinn blush.
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Ramsey is £70m then!
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Last thing we need is the Europa league next season. Season after, yes, but it would kill us next season for little reward. I want us to finish as high as possible obviously, but we are out of both cups and only have 1 game per week. Running a small squad for that period is not as mad as it seems, especially if it allows Emery to really work with the group and work out exactly what we need in the summer.
2 thumbs up from me
There was a time at this club where top 6 and/or Europe was the minimum expectation. Now all we are asking for is a chance in the Conference League.
That time will come again - but not just yet.
We're not ready and when it does happen it must be sustainable, not qualification by the skin of our teeth and yoyoing thereafter.
Nah, we're one of the richest clubs in the league. We need to keep the likes of Martinez and Kamara on board and attract the best possible players in the next few windows. That means pushing now, not contstantly waiting for Mañana.
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Ramsey is £70m then!
No he's not. He's not for sale.
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I like Gallagher but...
Imagine cleaning out Newcastle for £45m on a player who has about 10-15 decent performances in his career and thinking the best way use that big ol' sack of cash is to throw every penny at Chelsea for a player that does very little to address the fundamental problems that are behind you being in 19th place. This screams of stupidity masked as ambition.
Add to that Chelsea are pretty motivated sellers with their 33man senior squad and £45m is pure desperation to be seen as backing the manager.
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I like Gallagher but...
Imagine cleaning out Newcastle for £45m on a player who has about 10-15 decent performances in his career and thinking the best way use that big ol' sack of cash is to throw every penny at Chelsea for a player that does very little to address the fundamental problems that are behind you being in 19th place. This screams of stupidity masked as ambition.
Add to that Chelsea are pretty motivated sellers with their 33man senior squad and £45m is pure desperation to be seen as backing the manager.
I agree Paul, what they need is some pace and power going forward. They were shite last year and got away with it, and that was with Richarlison and Lady Di in the team.
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Not for £45 million.
When you consider that OM have just signed the Moroccan for €8-10m, Gallacher looks well over-priced (but then all English players seem to have a natural inflation level attached to their sell-price).
Talking of Moroccans, has Anrabat moved on this window? - he looked excellent in the WC (yes, I know, tournaments are not always the best places to judge players ... ).
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Ramsey is £70m then!
No he's not. He's not for sale.
Quite... Just the madness of Gallagher being £45 million. Mind you the weird clone of Diana/ George Michael going to Saudi Arabia for £45m sets a new bar.
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Everton fans boo their existing and good players. Just imagine the pelters Gordon is going to get when he goes back.
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Not for £45 million.
That seems to be the new baseline figure for good young Premier League players. I think he's excellent, if he's available we should be all over it.
No ... £45m is the base level for a good young Premier League player if you're panic buying. We're not, so it isn't.
To me, that's the thing. We could do with another striker, but let's not get ahead of ourselves ... we don't need to buy a player for a vastly over-inflated fee just because a few people on the internet are getting a bit jittery. We've done some decent business this window IMO - brought in a couple of highly rated players, got a load of players off the books who haven't played much under 2 consecutive managers, and looked shit against Stevenage Borough. We really, really don't need shit squad players and we definitely shouldn't be spending huge sums of money on players who we'll not want in 12 months time (e.g. Digne, Coutinho).
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I'd see Gallagher as an alternative to Ramsey or McGinn and i'm not sure he'd be enough of an improvement to warrant £40m plus. What we need is a perfect player to play in there with Kamara and either Ramsey or McGinn. That frizzy haired geezer at Marseille looks a decent bet.
Even more important though is an attacking player, maybe even a couple if we can get a couple of the right calibre.
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Not for £45 million.
When you consider that OM have just signed the Moroccan for €8-10m, Gallacher looks well over-priced (but then all English players seem to have a natural inflation level attached to their sell-price).
Talking of Moroccans, has Anrabat moved on this window? - he looked excellent in the WC (yes, I know, tournaments are not always the best places to judge players ... ).
Domestic players have always come at a premium but the homegrown rules and the post-brexit changes to signing youth players have already started a squeeze on the prices for them and it's going to get a lot worse over the next few years.
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Southampton had £3m accepted for Dembele.
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Football Insider (yeah, I know) reckon that the stripey lot from down the road have been asking about Marvellous Nakamba.
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Southampton had £3m accepted for Dembele.
We'll soon see if Emery was ever interested then I guess.
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Look we sell Ings and he gets injured in 20 minutes. These things happen we will survive. We need our midfield to chip in with goals, JJ, Kamara and Luis need to add goals and maybe Bailey and Watkins could score a few more of the chances created. We have a strong first team. We have a bench of Olsen, Digne, Cash, Chambers(?), Couthino, McGinn, Duran and Dendonker before the kids. With Carlos available soon stop worrying!
Genuine question (although I know it's not your problem to solve!!) - what happens if Watkins goes down after 20 minutes on Saturday and is out for 4-5 weeks or longer? Can you see how we would line up in that eventuality?
terrible prospect... What's the deal with Archer's loan - can he be recalled?
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Southampton had £3m accepted for Dembele.
We'll soon see if Emery was ever interested then I guess.
That's the thing. We all get a bit fired up over links. Mostly in this case out of a bit of desperation because in that position specifically we are very light. But in the end that's what it boils down to. Was the manager ever interested? Because at 3m it seems an easy punt.
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A bid from Inter for Maguire has apparently been made. Personally I like the guy and think he’d be an improvement.
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Football Insider (yeah, I know) reckon that the stripey lot from down the road have been asking about Marvellous Nakamba.
loan or permanent?
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Gallagher would do well at Everton but I'd say that bid will only flesh out other clubs monitoring that situation. With Shelvey off, he will probably follow Gordon up to Newcastle. I think Ramsey has a lot more potential, Gallagher is very limited with the ball in midfield.
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Reckon that as Chelsea have spent c.£500m stocking up on players in this and the summer window and are nor reported tobloking to spend €120m on Fernandez, they're keen to:
a) offload a few players
b) get some cash in to reduce their debts.
So I guess they'll be prepared to consider bids for players who have now fallen down the pecking order.
Hayich has been mentioned as a possibility for Villa.
We had been linked to Gallagher previously, but I don't think he's on Emery's list?
Pretty sure he'd prefer a move to Villa over Everton if we bid for him.
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Football Insider (yeah, I know) reckon that the stripey lot from down the road have been asking about Marvellous Nakamba.
loan or permanent?
I think he would then be out of contract in the summer
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Ideally we would add at least another attacking player, but don't see the value of getting someone in for the sake of it. The reality is that if we qualify for Europe through the league it will almost certainly be the Conference League rather than the Europa League, and if that's the case we will probably just end up playing reserves in it anyway - it's aimed mainly at clubs from the lower tier of nations and won't make any difference to the kind of players we want to attract in the summer. At this stage we are probably better off using the time to work with players we know we want to remain at the club next year, and go hell for leather on signing upgrades where we need them in the summer.
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Do something please Villa.
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While we are talking squad depth, does anyone know the extent of Aaron Ramsey's knee injury? I believe Norwich ended his loan as a result of it, so I'm just wondering if he becomes another midfield body in the squad if he's fit again this season? Given the contribution of someone like Sanson or Nakamba, he could easily play their role in the squad?
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Is Todd Cantwell still available?
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Is Todd Cantwell still available?
Moved to Rangers the other week.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
A few positions in the league are also a sign of progress, though.
Something which will count in keeping the good players we already have. Instead of that, it looks like we're making excuses not to progress.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
How on earth will we ever be ready if we don't strengthen continually? I don't suppose Newcastle fans are worrying that they won't be ready for the Champions League.
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I’m surprised and disappointed we haven’t signed more. Feels like a missed opportunity to really push on and challenge for Europe. Squad is weaker than it was - I really thought we’d add a strong centre mid and an exciting striker for the here and now.
We might get away with it with good form and luck on the injury front but this window isn’t what I expected, especially after selling Ings.
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Questions need to be asked of purslow and lange.
Unless there's a shock coming our way in the coming hours we need to seriously be worried. Letting solid players leave or go on loan without direct replacements is ridiculous. If Watkins gets injured,we are doomed
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
How on earth will we ever be ready if we don't strengthen continually? I don't suppose Newcastle fans are worrying that they won't be ready for the Champions League.
Unless you buy players who are better than the starting 11 you're not strengthening though are you. If those that we've identified aren't gettable then we wait to strengthen till the summer.
Personally I think the talk of Europe is a little fanciful. The teams above us (bar Fulham), I think are all better placed to finish above us. Whether we finish 8th, or 11th won't have any baring on players incoming anyway and IMO that's where we'll be depending on injuries
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Questions need to be asked of purslow and lange.
Unless there's a shock coming our way in the coming hours we need to seriously be worried. Letting solid players leave or go on loan without direct replacements is ridiculous. If Watkins gets injured,we are doomed
We've sold 1 player who was anywhere near playing minutes for the club, we haven't sold half the team. Doomed to what exactly? Finishing 13th? the horror
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
Yeah, we're far too big and important to lower ourselves to playing European football. Who'd want to waste time with that.
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
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I must admit I assumed we were signing a striker after selling Ings. Bit disappointing if we don't.
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
The chorus is pretty good, what’s the rest of the song like?
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
How on earth will we ever be ready if we don't strengthen continually? I don't suppose Newcastle fans are worrying that they won't be ready for the Champions League.
Unless you buy players who are better than the starting 11 you're not strengthening though are you. If those that we've identified aren't gettable then we wait to strengthen till the summer.
Personally I think the talk of Europe is a little fanciful. The teams above us (bar Fulham), I think are all better placed to finish above us. Whether we finish 8th, or 11th won't have any baring on players incoming anyway and IMO that's where we'll be depending on injuries
I would much rather finish 8th than 11th.
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
Trez is shit
Anwar was very questionable in the prem
The deal for Ings is not pittance given age.
Have seen all 3 of them provide absolutely zero impact from the bench on several occasions.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
How on earth will we ever be ready if we don't strengthen continually? I don't suppose Newcastle fans are worrying that they won't be ready for the Champions League.
Unless you buy players who are better than the starting 11 you're not strengthening though are you. If those that we've identified aren't gettable then we wait to strengthen till the summer.
Personally I think the talk of Europe is a little fanciful. The teams above us (bar Fulham), I think are all better placed to finish above us. Whether we finish 8th, or 11th won't have any baring on players incoming anyway and IMO that's where we'll be depending on injuries
I would much rather finish 8th than 11th.
Everybody would, I'm just saying that the difference most likely won't affect transfers in the summer
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
Trez is shit
Anwar was very questionable in the prem
The deal for Ings is not pittance given age.
Have seen all 3 of them provide absolutely zero impact from the bench on several occasions.
Yet they are still preferable to the empty seats that they have been replaced with, if we don't sign anyone tomorrow.
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
The chorus is pretty good, what’s the rest of the song like?
Archer's out, El Ghazi's gone,
Trezeguet too, it feels wrong.
Sold our scorer, what a shame,
For peanuts to a rival team.
We need some changes, need a plan,
To bring us back to where we stand.
With all these losses, what's to say,
That we'll be back on top one day?
It's shambolic, how we've let them go,
Impact from the bench, we need to know.
Where's the fire, where's the drive,
To bring us back to where we thrive?
So let's bring back the glory days,
And make a change in many ways.
With a new fire and a new drive,
We'll bring back our winning vibe.
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
We have no idea whether Archer will be good enough. We do know that neither Trezeguet nor El Ghazi are anywhere near good enough.
It is disappointing if no further signings are made in this window, but citing those players as the solution is a bit silly.
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I must admit I assumed we were signing a striker after selling Ings. Bit disappointing if we don't.
It does make you wonder where the goals will come from. I guess we'll just have to hope everybody chips in but I'd hardly call that a plan.
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
JFK, blown away, what else do I have to say
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
The chorus is pretty good, what’s the rest of the song like?
Archer's out, El Ghazi's gone,
Trezeguet too, it feels wrong.
Sold our scorer, what a shame,
For peanuts to a rival team.
We need some changes, need a plan,
To bring us back to where we stand.
With all these losses, what's to say,
That we'll be back on top one day?
It's shambolic, how we've let them go,
Impact from the bench, we need to know.
Where's the fire, where's the drive,
To bring us back to where we thrive?
So let's bring back the glory days,
And make a change in many ways.
With a new fire and a new drive,
We'll bring back our winning vibe.
*Applause*
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
How on earth will we ever be ready if we don't strengthen continually? I don't suppose Newcastle fans are worrying that they won't be ready for the Champions League.
Unless you buy players who are better than the starting 11 you're not strengthening though are you. If those that we've identified aren't gettable then we wait to strengthen till the summer.
Personally I think the talk of Europe is a little fanciful. The teams above us (bar Fulham), I think are all better placed to finish above us. Whether we finish 8th, or 11th won't have any baring on players incoming anyway and IMO that's where we'll be depending on injuries
I would much rather finish 8th than 11th.
Yep. Said it last season that we needed a strong finish to be able to convince players that we are a club moving in the right direction and it's the same again this season. We finish the season strongly and end up in 8th, I think the club is an easier sell to players than if you struggle over the line and finish lower mid-table.
Finish 11th / 12th / 13th and it's all a bit Crystal Palace really.
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave
for nothing We've sold
our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench
than what we have now ow ow
It's shambolic and not what we’re dreaming on
Well be there at the end of the road.
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
The chorus is pretty good, what’s the rest of the song like?
I've got the tune to the Coutinho song in my head.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
How on earth will we ever be ready if we don't strengthen continually? I don't suppose Newcastle fans are worrying that they won't be ready for the Champions League.
Unless you buy players who are better than the starting 11 you're not strengthening though are you. If those that we've identified aren't gettable then we wait to strengthen till the summer.
Personally I think the talk of Europe is a little fanciful. The teams above us (bar Fulham), I think are all better placed to finish above us. Whether we finish 8th, or 11th won't have any baring on players incoming anyway and IMO that's where we'll be depending on injuries
I would much rather finish 8th than 11th.
Yep. Said it last season that we needed a strong finish to be able to convince players that we are a club moving in the right direction and it's the same again this season. We finish the season strongly and end up in 8th, I think the club is an easier sell to players than if you struggle over the line and finish lower mid-table.
Finish 11th / 12th / 13th and it's all a bit Crystal Palace really.
Yes this a good point. I would really like to qualify for Europe. After all that's the reward for finishing high enough and I am wary of the idea that we will naturally keep progressing as if we are bound to get there next season. Liverpool and Chelsea won't be as poor next season so actually this season there is an opportunity.
If we just bumble along after such an improvement in results under Emery, it will seem a disappointment. A poor run of form, some injuries and then some suspensions towards the end of the season could play a hand if we continue with such a thin squad.
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
The chorus is pretty good, what’s the rest of the song like?
That's the first verse. The chorus is ad all together now...
It's a disgrace
A big disgrace. You're wasting your money all over the place but not where I want it, stamp, stamp stamp.
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West Ham have suffered after qualifying for Europe with an inferior squad, the extra games takes its toll especially when injuries happen. I wonder if Emery has as much control over players as we think.
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Disappointing window. Seems we've settled for a weakened squad overall for the remainder of the campaign. Options upfront are scarce.
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
The chorus is pretty good, what’s the rest of the song like?
Even Radiohead couldn’t write such miserable repetitive dirge as that
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We've let Archer go out on loan
We've let El Ghazi leave for pittance
We've let Trezeguet leave for nothing
We've sold our top scorer for peanuts to a rival
ALL have more impact from the bench than what we have now
It's shambolic
The chorus is pretty good, what’s the rest of the song like?
Think it's better to keep it simple with a familiar tune.
And it's Aston Villa,
Aston Villa FC,
We're by far the lowest spenders,
In January '23.
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Everybody's looking to sign that something
More players that makes us compete
We'll rise up to the highest places
Places without Mattéo Guendouzi
Some find it in the speed of left back Moreno
Some find it in the look of Unai buys
Who can deny the striker he brings
When we've found Durans a special thing
We'll be flying without Ings
Some find it selling Morgan Sanson
Some in loan Bednareks good bye
We find it in the lost world of Guilbert
A simple move can make you laugh or cry
That find we signed in Emi Martinez
The kind we cherish all our life
And we all know how much he means
We have that special thing
Unlike that signing Danny Ings
So, impossible as losing to Stevenage may seemed
We've got to trust for Emerys dream
'Cause who's to know
With the tactics and our tempo
Now have made us more complete
Well, for its trusting him its still new
To watch the concentration on his face
To know that we can say, "We beat you"
In any given time or place
It's little things that only Emery know
Those are the things that make us fine
And it's like flying without Ings
'Cause we've got Ollie Watkins
We'll be flying without Ings
And we'll be top half place with Ty Mings
And we'll be there at ends
Uni flying without Ings
And that's the joy he brings
Villas flying without Ings
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A push for Europe would have been nice but if we are sticking, rather than twisting it makes a mockery of the FA and league cup exits
What an absolute fucking shambles that was
Also, what is the point in qualifying for Europe and then playing the reserves as some have suggested
The way the cup competitions are treated is the the thing I hate most about football nowadays
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I hate losing more, John.
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A push for Europe would have been nice but if we are sticking, rather than twisting it makes a mockery of the FA and league cup exits
What an absolute fucking shambles that was
Also, what is the point in qualifying for Europe and then playing the reserves as some have suggested
The way the cup competitions are treated is the the thing I hate most about football nowadays
From my perspective, I was meaning more that you’re better off qualifying than not, even if the only way you can do that is to your reserve & youth team players. However, my feeling is that sides are perfectly capable of competing on multiple fronts with a squad of 20 if they rotate players a little. And the only way you get 20 starters (as opposed to squad fillers or kids) is by giving them off games … I.e. qualify for Europe,
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
Yeah, we're far too big and important to lower ourselves to playing European football. Who'd want to waste time with that.
That's exactly it.
We talk about how we're a big club all the time, when do we ever actually act like one?
Talk is cheap.
And while we are at it, what is our net spend the last two or three windows?
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All this talk of next season is naive. The opportunity is there now. Even the Chelsea loophole will disappear in the summer
If we don’t strengthen, even if it’s costs us a bit more, it’s a huge missed opportunity imo.
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Any plane spotters prepared for tomorrow night?
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Take a dive in the cups and then sell our top scorer, bizarre.
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Unless you buy players who are better than the starting 11 you're not strengthening though are you. If those that we've identified aren't gettable then we wait to strengthen till the summer.
We don't have another striker other than Watkins, so buying somebody is quite clearly better than having nobody.
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Jordan Bowery busy?
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Problem with Villa is that it’s always the next window isn’t it?
As others have said,I think this season should be the one we try to take full advantage of as, so many teams are much of a muchness. Same with the cup competitions that we literally threw away…just look at the teams left in. A great opportunity missed I’d say so, please, don’t let’s do that in the league as well.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
Yeah, we're far too big and important to lower ourselves to playing European football. Who'd want to waste time with that.
That's exactly it.
We talk about how we're a big club all the time, when do we ever actually act like one?
Talk is cheap.
And while we are at it, what is our net spend the last two or three windows?
Yep it’s pretty piss poor. I fully hope I’ll be eating humble pie this time tomorrow, but hollowing out the squad without replacements signed and sealed is fucking bonkers. We’re a Premier League team with one senior striker in the squad for fuck’s sake.
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A push for Europe would have been nice but if we are sticking, rather than twisting it makes a mockery of the FA and league cup exits
What an absolute fucking shambles that was
Also, what is the point in qualifying for Europe and then playing the reserves as some have suggested
The way the cup competitions are treated is the the thing I hate most about football nowadays
Because it gives them first team experience & rests the first team. Its called squad management...
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We live in a world of instant gratification
Christ, if I wanted instant gratification I'm sure there are other teams I could follow that would fulfil that better than Aston Villa. One league title and one FA Cup in over a century, and no League Cups since 1996. That's about as far from "instant gratification" as it's possible to get. When did our fanbase get so obsequious and servile?
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It’s nuts.
I could cope with the cup exits in the name of focusing on getting up the league, but to exit the cups and then weaken an already questionable quality squad is not part of the deal.
I am starting to wonder what they actually want to achieve here. Negligible spending the last few windows- how is that meant to improve us?
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My concern is what was Emery promised to entice him to take the job in the first place and has those promises been reneged upon? I don't believe they have but I think my unease is understandable. Also if he has the keys to the kingdom as far as transfers are concerned, just exactly what does he think he's doing, I'd love to know.
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We have a day to go. Looking bleaker by the hour in terms of us bringing anyone in though. The squad is only weaker for the loss of Ings but the five sub rule won't be as useful to us unless we want to bring Digne on at left back! Hope for the best, expect the worst.
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I think they’ve settled for being okay. I think they’ve seen Newcastle and thought what’s the point. It’ll be a policy of self sustainability now. I genuinely think that and based on three consecutive windows. It is weird though as there were plenty of reputable reports saying how he would be heavily backed this window.
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My concern is what was Emery promised to entice him to take the job in the first place and has those promises been reneged upon? I don't believe they have but I think my unease is understandable. Also if he has the keys to the kingdom as far as transfers are concerned, just exactly what does he think he's doing, I'd love to know.
After 10 weeks in the job, in which he's made an impressive start, I can't see in any way how the owners would have squealed the spending brakes.
Unless Wes and Nas were both served with divorce papers over the new year. It did for Randolph, after all.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
Yeah, we're far too big and important to lower ourselves to playing European football. Who'd want to waste time with that.
That's exactly it.
We talk about how we're a big club all the time, when do we ever actually act like one?
Talk is cheap.
And while we are at it, what is our net spend the last two or three windows?
Our fanbase is rife with supporters who hate the thought of success. You will never see a single comment from a pool supporter about not wanting to qualify for the chumps league this season despite their hideous form. Our form is actually very good and the usual lot are not too bothered about anything.
From now on when our best players move on (like they always do) I'm actually going to be happy for them. This window has been a real eye opener.
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It’s nuts.
I could cope with the cup exits in the name of focusing on getting up the league, but to exit the cups and then weaken an already questionable quality squad is not part of the deal.
I am starting to wonder what they actually want to achieve here. Negligible spending the last few windows- how is that meant to improve us?
It’s fucking bonkers. People can rationalise all they want but selling/loaning players from the first team squad and not replacing them is piss poor. The lack of forward options is clearly the biggest weakness.
As I say I hope to be proved wrong tomorrow, but it’s all rather devoid of ambition.
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It’s nuts.
I could cope with the cup exits in the name of focusing on getting up the league, but to exit the cups and then weaken an already questionable quality squad is not part of the deal.
I am starting to wonder what they actually want to achieve here. Negligible spending the last few windows- how is that meant to improve us?
This is something which really grates on me too. I don't aspire to Chelsea's madness but I aspire to their balls-out "what price tag?" attitude. You want to win stuff, you have to spend big, it really is that simple.
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As the result of us being on our third manager in just over a year, the squad needs some surgery to become balanced. It would be nice if we could have been merrily squad building over the past couple of years, with a clear purpose and direction, but that clearly hasn’t happened. There is inevitably some wastage from signing players to suit a particular manager, who is subsequently sacked, and I think the jury is still out on Lange’s effectiveness as well.
If there is something that pisses me off more than my club not signing players to address an obvious weakness in the squad, it is my club signing the wrong players on big wages and long contracts, and becoming hamstrung in the transfer market going forwards. My understanding is that Emery likes to work with a fairly small squad. Of course we could benefit from a few incomings, and the fact that we are within striking distance of European places makes it tantalising, but if the right players aren’t available what do we do? There has been lots of speculation about certain players, but there is no certainty that we were ever after them. Of course it would be great to bring in another striker, to give us cover, and an option from the bench. Other than Felix though, I’m not aware of a player that another EPL team has signed that would have fitted the bill.
So I’m summary, I would like us to sign a couple more players now, but I’m not going to blame the club if the right players aren’t available. Perhaps that’s the wrong mentality?
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I don't think the recruitment team are any good at all.
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I like Gallagher but...
Imagine cleaning out Newcastle for £45m on a player who has about 10-15 decent performances in his career and thinking the best way use that big ol' sack of cash is to throw every penny at Chelsea for a player that does very little to address the fundamental problems that are behind you being in 19th place. This screams of stupidity masked as ambition.
Add to that Chelsea are pretty motivated sellers with their 33man senior squad and £45m is pure desperation to be seen as backing the manager.
Think they're just signing him as he can actually score, got 8 for Palace last season in premier league which is pretty good for CM. Iwobi scores about 2 a season and he's Everton's attacking midfielder!
He's actually been starting for Chelsea in recent times so more likely to move on in the summer.
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What is it now, 6 or 7 out and 2 in. A wide midfielder and forward would appear to make a lot of sense, but clearly not going to happen. The only one I'm really surprised about is Danjuma because its a loan and he'd have come to Emery. Not many strikers have moved, and I get taking the money for Ings, but it makes loaning Archer very odd. It seems a concerted effort to basically eradicate the Stevenage team from the squad. Maybe Emery has said get rid, I'll make do till the summer if we can't get any in.
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I think they’ve settled for being okay. I think they’ve seen Newcastle and thought what’s the point. It’ll be a policy of self sustainability now. I genuinely think that and based on three consecutive windows. It is weird though as there were plenty of reputable reports saying how he would be heavily backed this window.
I don't think so, we wouldn't get Emery if that's the case.
But like you I don't understand the lack of activity this window. We seem to be risking a massive opportunity to push right up ther out of fear of an error. I can only think we were very confident on one or two players and they've fallen through.
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I really don't get this 'wait til the summer' stuff. Those same players will still all want Champions League football. Villa really aren't seen by footballers the way we fans do. Kick that can down the road.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
Yeah, we're far too big and important to lower ourselves to playing European football. Who'd want to waste time with that.
The conference thing yes, it would kill us in the league. We don’t have a deep enough squad and playing in that competition won’t help us attract new players.
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I really don't get this 'wait til the summer' stuff. Those same players will still all want Champions League football. Villa really aren't seen by footballers the way we fans do. Kick that can down the road.
Is my take. We can talk all we like about great owners and potential but we don't have anything concrete to offer the level of player we need. As Chris put it - Manana Villa.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
Yeah, we're far too big and important to lower ourselves to playing European football. Who'd want to waste time with that.
That's exactly it.
We talk about how we're a big club all the time, when do we ever actually act like one?
Talk is cheap.
And while we are at it, what is our net spend the last two or three windows?
Yep it’s pretty piss poor. I fully hope I’ll be eating humble pie this time tomorrow, but hollowing out the squad without replacements signed and sealed is fucking bonkers. We’re a Premier League team with one senior striker in the squad for fuck’s sake.
It's bizarre.
You'd have thought they'd have learnt from three years ago. Only signed Wes who we know needed time to settle in yet had to play him every week given DS didn't rate Kodj and Davis as usual was injured.
Got to January and sold Kodjia straight away and then Wes got a terrible injury at Burnley. That resulted in us having to cross our fingers and hope Trez and AEG could do something upfront, they tried at least.
Then in last week we had to sign strikers and we found Samatta and Baston who between them contributed nothing to keep us up.
O.k it was a different DOF in those times but still leave yourself short and all it takes is one injury and then it's a struggle to win many games at all.
There's a chance this season. We aren't finishing above Newcastle anytime soon but Liverpool certainly are miles off looking like a team that can just reel off 6-7 straight wins currently. Chelsea have weaker manager than at any point in last decade and signing 20 players a day so they won't gel for many more months and for all the amazing football Brighton are playing currently....we beat them away and are just 3 points off them.
One of those teams will still probably finish 6th so you'd like a little more urgency just to see what happens especially as we have a decent run of fixtures up to March international break.
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I really don't get this 'wait til the summer' stuff. Those same players will still all want Champions League football. Villa really aren't seen by footballers the way we fans do. Kick that can down the road.
Yeah, I find that attitude completely baffling. There's half a season left, and most possibilities are still open, including relegation. Some possibilities are unlikely, but even so. Just because we're out of the cups that doesn't mean our ambitions should fade. If it does, the match threads from now on will be chilled affairs, won't they?
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FatSam kind of sums up where I am with it but I totally get the concerns of others as well, the main one being if we lose Watkins (who doesn't seem to get injured a lot thankfully). Who knows, Duran might settle pretty quickly and maybe the young Scottish lad might get time on the bench?
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My concern is what was Emery promised to entice him to take the job in the first place and has those promises been reneged upon? I don't believe they have but I think my unease is understandable. Also if he has the keys to the kingdom as far as transfers are concerned, just exactly what does he think he's doing, I'd love to know.
I don't think they have. There is far too much noise about bids for it to be all made up.
What I suspect has happened is that our targets for Emery are very different to what Gerrard was after and it's meant a lot of the scouting we'd done isn't worth anything. A few players will have been pushed ahead with, Duran being the obvious one, but, for example, Gerrard wouldn't have been scouting for a Left Back but clearly emery wanted one in. I think we've just found that it's difficult to do business in January when you haven't been talking with the players and clubs for a while unless you're willing to offer huge fees and wages like Chelsea have. It's made harder by the fact that we're after top half standard players and there just aren't many of them moving right now. Across the entire league there's 3-4 players that I think would've been good signings for us and only 1 if you ignore the obscenities at Chelsea.
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FatSam kind of sums up where I am with it but I totally get the concerns of others as well, the main one being if we lose Watkins (who doesn't seem to get injured a lot thankfully). Who knows, Duran might settle pretty quickly and maybe the young Scottish lad might get time on the bench?
It seems pretty depressing that we're even considering that as a vaguely acceptable compromise.
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FatSam kind of sums up where I am with it but I totally get the concerns of others as well, the main one being if we lose Watkins (who doesn't seem to get injured a lot thankfully). Who knows, Duran might settle pretty quickly and maybe the young Scottish lad might get time on the bench?
Doesn’t feel like particularly strong planning though does it? Hope your one senior striker stays fit, or a kid bought in with potential might hit the ground running, and if not a youth player it is.
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My concern is what was Emery promised to entice him to take the job in the first place and has those promises been reneged upon? I don't believe they have but I think my unease is understandable. Also if he has the keys to the kingdom as far as transfers are concerned, just exactly what does he think he's doing, I'd love to know.
I don't think they have. There is far too much noise about bids for it to be all made up.
What I suspect has happened is that our targets for Emery are very different to what Gerrard was after and it's meant a lot of the scouting we'd done isn't worth anything. A few players will have been pushed ahead with, Duran being the obvious one, but, for example, Gerrard wouldn't have been scouting for a Left Back but clearly emery wanted one in. I think we've just found that it's difficult to do business in January when you haven't been talking with the players and clubs for a while unless you're willing to offer huge fees and wages like Chelsea have. It's made harder by the fact that we're after top half standard players and there just aren't many of them moving right now. Across the entire league there's 3-4 players that I think would've been good signings for us and only 1 if you ignore the obscenities at Chelsea.
I think this is entirely likely, but I also think not recognising that January is a time when you will be forced to pay a premium or you might not get your first choice is naive or reckless, or both. There's enough movement going on to suggest a team could have replaced a player we were willing to pay the money for.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
Yeah, we're far too big and important to lower ourselves to playing European football. Who'd want to waste time with that.
The conference thing yes, it would kill us in the league. We don’t have a deep enough squad and playing in that competition won’t help us attract new players.
The conference league is still being treated as a glorified Intertoto Cup by UEFA, and unless we finish 6th (or possibly even 5th) that is what we’ll go into. The final this year is being played at a ground with a smaller capacity than The Sty has currently even with 2 stands closed, it’s hardly an inducement to big name targets.
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We live in a world of instant gratification - buy someone, do something. If we were in danger of relegation i'd agree we'd ned to act (or probably wouldn't have sold Ings) but we aren't. no need to lumbered ourselves out of desparation. A few positions in the league are indeed worth millions but I'd prefer to dodgy the shitty Europe competition until we are good and ready.
Yeah, we're far too big and important to lower ourselves to playing European football. Who'd want to waste time with that.
The conference thing yes, it would kill us in the league. We don’t have a deep enough squad and playing in that competition won’t help us attract new players.
So you're both railing against entitled people who just want everything now, but also saying we're far too important to lower ourselves to playing in a European competition that we've not come close to being good enough for for at least a decade?
We should be trying to play in as many competitions as possible and win as many matches as possible.
Otherwise what's the point?
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European football is European football. Or am I missing something?
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He is trimming down the squad ok fine, but we need a striker, but then Jan is a tricky period to get who you want in.
We could do a Chelsea and pay way over the odds…
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My concern is what was Emery promised to entice him to take the job in the first place and has those promises been reneged upon? I don't believe they have but I think my unease is understandable. Also if he has the keys to the kingdom as far as transfers are concerned, just exactly what does he think he's doing, I'd love to know.
I don't think they have. There is far too much noise about bids for it to be all made up.
What I suspect has happened is that our targets for Emery are very different to what Gerrard was after and it's meant a lot of the scouting we'd done isn't worth anything. A few players will have been pushed ahead with, Duran being the obvious one, but, for example, Gerrard wouldn't have been scouting for a Left Back but clearly emery wanted one in. I think we've just found that it's difficult to do business in January when you haven't been talking with the players and clubs for a while unless you're willing to offer huge fees and wages like Chelsea have. It's made harder by the fact that we're after top half standard players and there just aren't many of them moving right now. Across the entire league there's 3-4 players that I think would've been good signings for us and only 1 if you ignore the obscenities at Chelsea.
I think this is entirely likely, but I also think not recognising that January is a time when you will be forced to pay a premium or you might not get your first choice is naive or reckless, or both. There's enough movement going on to suggest a team could have replaced a player we were willing to pay the money for.
True but you also have the fact that some players don't like moving in mid-season. Nico Williams, for example, may well be interested in joining in the summer but said no now, so if we want him what do we do? Looking at someone for a loan is the obvious answer, and we've freed up the loan spots to enable that, but loans normally come right at the end of the window anyway. I wouldn't be amazed if we're pushing for Ziyech on loan and then we'll revisit a few in the summer.
On top of that I think there's a decent chance we were after Deulofeu but him having an injury that's written off the rest of the season has killed that idea.
Only 2 examples but if you have a shortlist of 3-4 and 2 deals collapse like that it will clearly make things harder.
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Is there a bit of a concern that with the exception of Ramsey that our academy isn't producing players good enough of competing for the first team? Archer, Iroegbunam might not be too far off I guess but still the club bought Dendoncker in Tim's area and Duran in Archer's spot.
On the recruitment side, let's see how tomorrow goes. The owners were still able to convince Emery to leave CL semi finalists only a few months ago. Likes of Carlos, Kamara, Moreno were all sufficiently impressed by the club's ambition in the not too distant past.
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I really don't get this 'wait til the summer' stuff. Those same players will still all want Champions League football. Villa really aren't seen by footballers the way we fans do. Kick that can down the road.
Is my take. We can talk all we like about great owners and potential but we don't have anything concrete to offer the level of player we need. As Chris put it - Manana Villa.
I’m a cynic and realist. As much as the owners have put into the club, we shouldn’t forget that ultimately they’re businessmen who want to increase the value and profitability of the asset they’ve purchased. They’ve undoubtedly done that and in the event of any future sale, will profit on their original investment. You only have to look at what Chelsea went for and what Liverpool and Manchester United are being reportedly being quoted at to see that, even thought we’d obviously command a likely lower fee. There’s being smart in the market like a Kamara and an Emi M, but there come occasions where the financial controls have to be unshackled to push on. I don’t seeing pushing on as a minimum top 6 push. The season is still up for grabs as there’s a lot of uncertainty currently. There’s the unique circumstances of the WC and both Emery and the club having another pre-season. The strategy of any club should account for taking advantage of uncertainty or flux. Some of those Villa media voices have said that Villa will go for the right player ‘if they become available,’ but that is something to always potentially hide behind because at points, you have to take the plunge. It’s not about entitlement. Take the Ings transfer. If we don’t replace him we’re short and all for effectively £2.5m extra on the balance sheet because I believe he came in for £25m on a 3 year contract. So West Ham effectively paid the incurred amortization on his transfer for the last 1.5 years of his fee, plus about £2.5m. Leaving the first team short of a viable player (our current top scorer) for that amount is not a club focusing enough on pushing on for me. Duran may not be ready to step into the Ings space and it’s asking him alot to do so. Maybe before the end of the window we’ll see otherwise but more needs to be done to show we’re serious about not just making up the numbers.
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One thing I suppose, if there’s anything to take from this window, is we’ve managed to move on all the players surplus to requirements we’ve signed since promotion. I would say nearly every single player who’s gone, at some point someone has said they are not good enough to take us forward. Also with Emery in charge it probably isn’t just a case of whether they are good enough but if they can play how he wants us to play, as in the case with Ings.
Still one day left, so here’s hoping for a top class player or two.
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He is trimming down the squad ok fine, but we need a striker, but then Jan is a tricky period to get who you want in.
We could do a Chelsea and pay way over the odds…
Think most would be happy with six month loan and then look again during the summer.
I remember West Ham signing Lingard two years ago. Was met with ridicule at the time but he played a big part in them finishing 6th in the end and they made the europa SF the following season.
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With exception of Ings, those who've gone have contributed the square root of fuck all to where we are in the league & they wouldn't have contributed to the second half of the season either.
Nobody could complain about getting £15m for a half-paced Ings. But do we buy a Dembele for a few million, on a fat 4 1/2 year contract only to find out in 6 months he's actually shite? Or do we wait to sign someone in the summer? I'd rather wait if an improvement isn't available.
But we could get someone on a loan.
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What I suspect has happened is that our targets for Emery are very different to what Gerrard was after and it's meant a lot of the scouting we'd done isn't worth anything. A few players will have been pushed ahead with, Duran being the obvious one, but, for example, Gerrard wouldn't have been scouting for a Left Back but clearly emery wanted one in. I think we've just found that it's difficult to do business in January when you haven't been talking with the players and clubs for a while unless you're willing to offer huge fees and wages like Chelsea have. It's made harder by the fact that we're after top half standard players and there just aren't many of them moving right now. Across the entire league there's 3-4 players that I think would've been good signings for us and only 1 if you ignore the obscenities at Chelsea.
That sounds pretty plausible and I'd rather we get the right players in (that UE wants) rather than buying for the sake of it. However, I thought we'd have Guendouzi + 1 other in by now and even I have to admit it's ominously quiet with 1 day to go.
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Who has moved that we’d like and is a realistic target?
The main one I can think of is Manduek, other than that we might have tried for felix or Depay before the big clubs bid. I don’t think we missed out on much which suggests buying might be harder than usual.
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European football is European football. Or am I missing something?
Nah, you've got it wrong. We should opt out of football matches in general, until we get our invitation to the Champions League final.
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Our recruitment has been less than optimal,we wasted the Greasy cash, we sold and bought left backs with out any significant improvement. Coutinho Bredernack Dendonker.
Kamara is the only recent stand out success.
This suggests that we don’t have the right people in place, this is down to Lange and Purslow who are obviously not up to it.
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We live in a world of instant gratification
Christ, if I wanted instant gratification I'm sure there are other teams I could follow that would fulfil that better than Aston Villa. One league title and one FA Cup in over a century, and no League Cups since 1996. That's about as far from "instant gratification" as it's possible to get. When did our fanbase get so obsequious and servile?
Fantastically put.
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A push for Europe would have been nice but if we are sticking, rather than twisting it makes a mockery of the FA and league cup exits
What an absolute fucking shambles that was
Also, what is the point in qualifying for Europe and then playing the reserves as some have suggested
The way the cup competitions are treated is the the thing I hate most about football nowadays
Because it gives them first team experience & rests the first team. Its called squad management...
It’s called winning fuck all in 26 years
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Is there a bit of a concern that with the exception of Ramsey that our academy isn't producing players good enough of competing for the first team? Archer, Iroegbunam might not be too far off I guess but still the club bought Dendoncker in Tim's area and Duran in Archer's spot.
On the recruitment side, let's see how tomorrow goes. The owners were still able to convince Emery to leave CL semi finalists only a few months ago. Likes of Carlos, Kamara, Moreno were all sufficiently impressed by the club's ambition in the not too distant past.
In the last two years we've sold youth products for a combined £120m. We've got academy players who won the FA Youth Cup (but are still teenagers) who've done well in the Championship. One from that team has already gone for £20m to Chelsea. Another was doing well at Norwich until injury, plus Tim is doing well at QPR. Then you have Cam, too. I really don't think there is any problem with how our academy is performing right now. If anything, it's performing well above the mean.
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Is there a bit of a concern that with the exception of Ramsey that our academy isn't producing players good enough of competing for the first team? Archer, Iroegbunam might not be too far off I guess but still the club bought Dendoncker in Tim's area and Duran in Archer's spot.
On the recruitment side, let's see how tomorrow goes. The owners were still able to convince Emery to leave CL semi finalists only a few months ago. Likes of Carlos, Kamara, Moreno were all sufficiently impressed by the club's ambition in the not too distant past.
In the last two years we've sold youth products for a combined £120m. We've got academy players who won the FA Youth Cup (but are still teenagers) who've done well in the Championship. One from that team has already gone for £20m to Chelsea. Another was doing well at Norwich until injury, plus Tim is doing well at QPR. Then you have Cam, too. I really don't think there is any problem with how our academy is performing right now. If anything, it's performing well above the mean.
It's also very important to note that our academy was shit in the last few years of Lerner and under Xia (which led to many of the more talented youngsters, including Barry, choosing Blues or Baggies over us). One of the first things NSWE did was to fix that but given the first phase of the academy starts at 9 we're still a few years from those players coming through. However the 'real' academy process starts at 12 so players from that group will be 16-17 now, which includes Kadan Young so he's probably the first product of the new academy structure. Most of the U18s now will have come through with him but there's also the ones that we signed into our senior academy, where we've been really busy over the last few years filling up with some of the best youngsters around to fill that gap.
The 2 big measures of how successful the academy is will be how many of those 16-17 year old signings come through and make it in the next 2-3 years and then from that point on how many kids come through who've been with us since they were 9-10. I'd say summer 27 is probably the right time to judge it. It's feels a really long way off but what we've done is very similar (sorry for the tangent here) to what Northampton did in the rugby about 5 years earlier and they now have a squad packed full of incredibly talented players in their early 20s and seem to have a couple of new players breakthrough every season. Matching that will be tough but it's the only good way to handle the homegrown player rules. A core of 6-7 players from our system deals with that almost completely and gives us reliable squad depth for minimal costs.
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European football is European football. Or am I missing something?
Nah, you've got it wrong. We should opt out of football matches in general, until we get our invitation to the Champions League final.
I want us to win the FA Cup and later that summer UEFA decide to scrap the Conference League and reintroduce the Cup Winners Cup.
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Europe. You're having a laugh. I just want us to fucking finish in the top 10. Fuck me we've been utter shit for so long now.
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I expect a very quick fire sale at Chelsea towards the death when the realise they can only field 11 players at any one time.
Havertz
Pulisic
Ziyech
Gallagher
Any of those would make us stronger
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European football is European football. Or am I missing something?
Nah, you've got it wrong. We should opt out of football matches in general, until we get our invitation to the Champions League final.
We’ve been opting out of the FA Cup for a few seasons already
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Ziyech going to PSG, so can cross that one off.
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I expect a very quick fire sale at Chelsea towards the death when the realise they can only field 11 players at any one time.
Havertz
Pulisic
Ziyech
Gallagher
Any of those would make us stronger
I have their squad as 33 players (with them desperately trying to make in 34). Of those 7 are U21 qualified so, if they get Fernandez, they will need to move 2 players on just to be able to name 'everyone' in the squad. Add on that a couple of those youngsters are inevitably going to be in the matchday squads they're still likely to have a fair few players on big wages not making the matchday squad. The only thing that might stop them letting more than 2-3 go is that they do have a few fairly long term injuries. I reckon Ziyech and Gallagher will be somewhere else this time tomorrow but that might be it for this window. Fire sale in the summer though.
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A push for Europe would have been nice but if we are sticking, rather than twisting it makes a mockery of the FA and league cup exits
What an absolute fucking shambles that was
Also, what is the point in qualifying for Europe and then playing the reserves as some have suggested
The way the cup competitions are treated is the the thing I hate most about football nowadays
Because it gives them first team experience & rests the first team. Its called squad management...
It’s called winning fuck all in 26 years
I cant argue with that fact. Although Im not sure how many of those 26 years we were actually in European competition.
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Ziyech going to PSG, so can cross that one off.
That's a shame but we can't really compete with that, which I suspect is a big problem for us in this window, Too many champions league level clubs signing players as squad filler and leaving us with limited options.
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Who has moved that we’d like and is a realistic target?
The main one I can think of is Manduek, other than that we might have tried for felix or Depay before the big clubs bid. I don’t think we missed out on much which suggests buying might be harder than usual.
Who’s Manduek?
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He is trimming down the squad ok fine, but we need a striker, but then Jan is a tricky period to get who you want in.
We could do a Chelsea and pay way over the odds…
Think most would be happy with six month loan and then look again during the summer.
I remember West Ham signing Lingard two years ago. Was met with ridicule at the time but he played a big part in them finishing 6th in the end and they made the europa SF the following season.
Good point.
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Who has moved that we’d like and is a realistic target?
The main one I can think of is Manduek, other than that we might have tried for felix or Depay before the big clubs bid. I don’t think we missed out on much which suggests buying might be harder than usual.
Who’s Manduek?
Madueke, signed for Chelsea from Holland, looks a very good young player.
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I expect a very quick fire sale at Chelsea towards the death when the realise they can only field 11 players at any one time.
Havertz
Pulisic
Ziyech
Gallagher
Any of those would make us stronger
I'd take any of those, but suspect Gallagher is being pushed out as his homegrown status has a lot off added FFP benefits. £40m in for him now roughly offsets the impact of £200m spent on players with 5 year contracts.
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Who has moved that we’d like and is a realistic target?
The main one I can think of is Manduek, other than that we might have tried for felix or Depay before the big clubs bid. I don’t think we missed out on much which suggests buying might be harder than usual.
Who’s Manduek?
(Probably spelt wrong but) the winger that went from PSV to Chelsea. Looked decent in a few England U21 games I watched.
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It’s embarrassing to find yourself thinking this but Wolves - Wolves FFS - seem to be immune to the problems we have signing decent players.
I would imagine they also have a higher transfer fee paid than us.
Wolves.
I’m not suggesting we go and spunk 50m on some plodder to fix that, but I am starting to seriously doubt our transfer market ambition.
I’m tired of hearing the club talk the talk, time to start matching words with actions.
Ambitious? Great. Show us.
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Zyech chooses the Seine, the champions league, the serene Paris culture over Darren a scaffolder from Erdington saying shouting pelters at him at home to Forest on a Tuesday night in Birmingham.
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I expect a very quick fire sale at Chelsea towards the death when the realise they can only field 11 players at any one time.
Havertz
Pulisic
Ziyech
Gallagher
Any of those would make us stronger
I'd take any of those, but suspect Gallagher is being pushed out as his homegrown status has a lot off added FFP benefits. £40m in for him now roughly offsets the impact of £200m spent on players with 5 year contracts.
Only for a year but yes, it does make a big difference for them.
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Is there a bit of a concern that with the exception of Ramsey that our academy isn't producing players good enough of competing for the first team? Archer, Iroegbunam might not be too far off I guess but still the club bought Dendoncker in Tim's area and Duran in Archer's spot.
On the recruitment side, let's see how tomorrow goes. The owners were still able to convince Emery to leave CL semi finalists only a few months ago. Likes of Carlos, Kamara, Moreno were all sufficiently impressed by the club's ambition in the not too distant past.
In the last two years we've sold youth products for a combined £120m. We've got academy players who won the FA Youth Cup (but are still teenagers) who've done well in the Championship. One from that team has already gone for £20m to Chelsea. Another was doing well at Norwich until injury, plus Tim is doing well at QPR. Then you have Cam, too. I really don't think there is any problem with how our academy is performing right now. If anything, it's performing well above the mean.
Does every thread on here eventually revert back to Jack Grealish 😂 Forgot about Aaron Ramsey to be fair.
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I realize we have to trust the manager who appears to have a lot of control right now over our direction. But I know I am going to be fucked off tomorrow of this is it.
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Nakamba off to West Brom it looks like, Coutinho linked with Turkey.
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Nakamba off to West Brom it looks like, Coutinho linked with Turkey.
That would explain his sluggishness since Christmas Day.
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It’s embarrassing to find yourself thinking this but Wolves - Wolves FFS - seem to be immune to the problems we have signing decent players.
I would imagine they also have a higher transfer fee paid than us.
Wolves.
I’m not suggesting we go and spunk 50m on some plodder to fix that, but I am starting to seriously doubt our transfer market ambition.
I’m tired of hearing the club talk the talk, time to start matching words with actions.
Ambitious? Great. Show us.
Immune? They spent more on the kid they've just loaned out PSV than we've ever spent on anyone. They also spent £30m on Guedes and he was so shit in the first half of the season they've loaned him back to the club they bought him from.
They are a million miles from "immune" to problems signing good players.
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It’s embarrassing to find yourself thinking this but Wolves - Wolves FFS - seem to be immune to the problems we have signing decent players.
I would imagine they also have a higher transfer fee paid than us.
Wolves.
I’m not suggesting we go and spunk 50m on some plodder to fix that, but I am starting to seriously doubt our transfer market ambition.
I’m tired of hearing the club talk the talk, time to start matching words with actions.
Ambitious? Great. Show us.
Really?
Matheus Cunha (loan, Atletico Madrid) - ok but only a loan and looks like it'll take most of that time settling in
Mario Lemina (undisclosed, Nice) - nowhere near the quality of our midfielders
Pablo Sarabia (£4.4m, Paris Saint-Germain) - potentially decent but could easily be a bit of a drinkwater
Craig Dawson (£3.3m, West Ham United) - past it
Daniel Bentley (undisclosed, Bristol City) - meh
Joao Gomes (£15m, Flamengo) - no idea on this one
Nothing on that list that makes me wish we'd snuck in ahead of them.
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It’s embarrassing to find yourself thinking this but Wolves - Wolves FFS - seem to be immune to the problems we have signing decent players.
I would imagine they also have a higher transfer fee paid than us.
Wolves.
I’m not suggesting we go and spunk 50m on some plodder to fix that, but I am starting to seriously doubt our transfer market ambition.
I’m tired of hearing the club talk the talk, time to start matching words with actions.
Ambitious? Great. Show us.
Immune? They spent more on the kid they've just loaned out PSV than we've ever spent on anyone. They also spent £30m on Guedes and he was so shit in the first half of the season they've loaned him back to the club they bought him from.
They are a million miles from "immune" to problems signing good players.
They manage to sign players is the point I was making, with reference to the "players all want CL" yada yada excuses we make for ourselves.
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We were in for Craig Dawson in the summer weren’t we?
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Who has moved that we’d like and is a realistic target?
The main one I can think of is Manduek, other than that we might have tried for felix or Depay before the big clubs bid. I don’t think we missed out on much which suggests buying might be harder than usual.
Who’s Manduek?
(Probably spelt wrong but) the winger that went from PSV to Chelsea. Looked decent in a few England U21 games I watched.
Ah yeah, ok. Know who you mean with the description now. Never seen him play and with the amount of players Chelsea are signing that’ll probably continue.
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We have basically taken our chances on relying on our first choice 1-11 more or less for 19 gmes. Given our injury record I’d say that’s a hell of a risk.
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Bournemouth are chucking Newcastle money about.
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It’s embarrassing to find yourself thinking this but Wolves - Wolves FFS - seem to be immune to the problems we have signing decent players.
I would imagine they also have a higher transfer fee paid than us.
Wolves.
I’m not suggesting we go and spunk 50m on some plodder to fix that, but I am starting to seriously doubt our transfer market ambition.
I’m tired of hearing the club talk the talk, time to start matching words with actions.
Ambitious? Great. Show us.
Really?
Matheus Cunha (loan, Atletico Madrid) - ok but only a loan and looks like it'll take most of that time settling in
Mario Lemina (undisclosed, Nice) - nowhere near the quality of our midfielders
Pablo Sarabia (£4.4m, Paris Saint-Germain) - potentially decent but could easily be a bit of a drinkwater
Craig Dawson (£3.3m, West Ham United) - past it
Daniel Bentley (undisclosed, Bristol City) - meh
Joao Gomes (£15m, Flamengo) - no idea on this one
Nothing on that list that makes me wish we'd snuck in ahead of them.
I am not saying I want their signings, I am saying that they are managing to sign players in January, whereas we seem to spend most of our time inventing excuses for our failure to do so.
I can understand getting outspent (ie record fee spent) by CL teams, but not Wolves.
Again, when do we get to see our ambition? We've spent - net - barely anything the last two years.
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It’s embarrassing to find yourself thinking this but Wolves - Wolves FFS - seem to be immune to the problems we have signing decent players.
I would imagine they also have a higher transfer fee paid than us.
Wolves.
I’m not suggesting we go and spunk 50m on some plodder to fix that, but I am starting to seriously doubt our transfer market ambition.
I’m tired of hearing the club talk the talk, time to start matching words with actions.
Ambitious? Great. Show us.
Immune? They spent more on the kid they've just loaned out PSV than we've ever spent on anyone. They also spent £30m on Guedes and he was so shit in the first half of the season they've loaned him back to the club they bought him from.
They are a million miles from "immune" to problems signing good players.
They manage to sign players is the point I was making, with reference to the "players all want CL" yada yada excuses we make for ourselves.
There is a world of difference between signing players, and signing GOOD players. The issue is, we want players who 1) will definitely improve us, 2) cost a 'not stupid' amount, and 3) are available for transfer. Unfortunately, most players only fit two of those criteria. Finding players who match all three is very difficult.
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It’s embarrassing to find yourself thinking this but Wolves - Wolves FFS - seem to be immune to the problems we have signing decent players.
I would imagine they also have a higher transfer fee paid than us.
Wolves.
I’m not suggesting we go and spunk 50m on some plodder to fix that, but I am starting to seriously doubt our transfer market ambition.
I’m tired of hearing the club talk the talk, time to start matching words with actions.
Ambitious? Great. Show us.
Really?
Matheus Cunha (loan, Atletico Madrid) - ok but only a loan and looks like it'll take most of that time settling in
Mario Lemina (undisclosed, Nice) - nowhere near the quality of our midfielders
Pablo Sarabia (£4.4m, Paris Saint-Germain) - potentially decent but could easily be a bit of a drinkwater
Craig Dawson (£3.3m, West Ham United) - past it
Daniel Bentley (undisclosed, Bristol City) - meh
Joao Gomes (£15m, Flamengo) - no idea on this one
Nothing on that list that makes me wish we'd snuck in ahead of them.
I am not saying I want their signings, I am saying that they are managing to sign players in January, whereas we seem to spend most of our time inventing excuses for our failure to do so.
I can understand getting outspent (ie record fee spent) by CL teams, but not Wolves.
Again, when do we get to see our ambition? We've spent - net - barely anything the last two years.
But exactly the point is who they're signing ffs. Obviously we would all love more numbers in, but Emery has said he's not just buying any old shit that's available. Personally I trust Emerys opinion over ours. As for the 'lack of ambition', you can have all the ambition in the world but if you buy loads of shit then you don't achieve it. West Ham spent loads of cash in thr summer, they're worse off, it's a balance building a successful squad. Let's give it time
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It’s embarrassing to find yourself thinking this but Wolves - Wolves FFS - seem to be immune to the problems we have signing decent players.
I would imagine they also have a higher transfer fee paid than us.
Wolves.
I’m not suggesting we go and spunk 50m on some plodder to fix that, but I am starting to seriously doubt our transfer market ambition.
I’m tired of hearing the club talk the talk, time to start matching words with actions.
Ambitious? Great. Show us.
Really?
Matheus Cunha (loan, Atletico Madrid) - ok but only a loan and looks like it'll take most of that time settling in
Mario Lemina (undisclosed, Nice) - nowhere near the quality of our midfielders
Pablo Sarabia (£4.4m, Paris Saint-Germain) - potentially decent but could easily be a bit of a drinkwater
Craig Dawson (£3.3m, West Ham United) - past it
Daniel Bentley (undisclosed, Bristol City) - meh
Joao Gomes (£15m, Flamengo) - no idea on this one
Nothing on that list that makes me wish we'd snuck in ahead of them.
I am not saying I want their signings, I am saying that they are managing to sign players in January, whereas we seem to spend most of our time inventing excuses for our failure to do so.
I can understand getting outspent (ie record fee spent) by CL teams, but not Wolves.
Again, when do we get to see our ambition? We've spent - net - barely anything the last two years.
but the players do matter. No one they've signed would've been on the radar of teams pushing for Europe. We've been heavily linked with players like Guendouzi and Williams who are on a level well above anyone on that list. I'm not making excuses, and I hope it doesn't come across that way, but to improve us we need players who are better than 8-12 standard that most of our squad is right now. That means finding more players like Martinez and Kamara but the number of players of that quality who are available and not being looked at by champions league clubs is very small.
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There is a world of difference between signing players, and signing GOOD players. The issue is, we want players who 1) will definitely improve us, 2) cost a 'not stupid' amount, and 3) are available for transfer. Unfortunately, most players only fit two of those criteria. Finding players who match all three is very difficult.
I get that, even if i think we manage to do a pretty bad job of it - for a start, I think we are operating on a definition of 'stupid amount' which is different to a lot of other clubs these days.
What I absolutely do not get is the thinking behind clearing the decks halfway through the season and, by the looks of it, not replacing them, in a squad which was already threadbare.
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Who has moved that we’d like and is a realistic target?
The main one I can think of is Manduek, other than that we might have tried for felix or Depay before the big clubs bid. I don’t think we missed out on much which suggests buying might be harder than usual.
Who’s Manduek?
Madueke, signed for Chelsea from Holland, looks a very good young player.
Wingers/Attackers/ Forwards that transferred this window linked with:
Joao Felix
Arnaut Danjuma
Matheus Cunha
Anthony Gordon
Memphis Depay
Hakim Ziyech
Other movers:
Mykhaylo Mudryk
Leandro Trossard
Javier Pastore
Kasper Dolberg
Tete
Viktor Tsyhankov
Bamba Dieng
Noni Madueke
Dango Ouattara
Terum Moffi
Isco
Wout Weghorst
Chris Wood
Mislav Orsic
Antoine Semenyo
Georginio Rutter
Can judge from the list.
Only time will tell.
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There is a world of difference between signing players, and signing GOOD players. The issue is, we want players who 1) will definitely improve us, 2) cost a 'not stupid' amount, and 3) are available for transfer. Unfortunately, most players only fit two of those criteria. Finding players who match all three is very difficult.
I get that, even if i think we manage to do a pretty bad job of it - for a start, I think we are operating on a definition of 'stupid amount' which is different to a lot of other clubs these days.
What I absolutely do not get is the thinking behind clearing the decks halfway through the season and, by the looks of it, not replacing them, in a squad which was already threadbare.
It's been said many times that Emery prefers to work with a smaller squad who are all able to contribute to what he wants to do. I don't imagine he's been told to reduce numbers or had decisions made above his head (he doesn't seem the sort of guy who'd accept that) so I'd say the thinking is that he thinks this is the best way to achieve what he wants this season.
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There's a smaller squad, and there's having one striker. Which is absolute madness and not a situation that any manager, however confident in his own abilities, would choose. And the one striker we have has the touch of a baby elephant. Ings had scored six goals, a quarer of our total. We haven't replaced him, and anybody thinking that Watkins will suddenly become more prolific in front of goal to make up the shortfall is probably kidding themselves.
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There's a smaller squad, and there's having one striker. Which is absolute madness and not a situation that any manager, however confident in his own abilities, would choose. And the one striker we have has the touch of a baby elephant. Ings had scored six goals, a quarer of our total. We haven't replaced him, and anybody thinking that Watkins will suddenly become more prolific in front of goal to make up the shortfall is probably kidding themselves.
We're going round in circles now, Emery has said he wanted more people in every position, almost everyone on here agrees we need another striker and I'd be amazed if the club aren't trying to get someone in.
That doesn't change the fact that Emery clearly decided that Ings wasn't the right fit and let him go for what was a decent fee given his age. Emery also decided that moving out a lot of fringe players was the right thing to do.
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Or we grabbed £15m did one of our main rivals a favour and had no plan to replace him.
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There's a smaller squad, and there's having one striker. Which is absolute madness and not a situation that any manager, however confident in his own abilities, would choose. And the one striker we have has the touch of a baby elephant. Ings had scored six goals, a quarer of our total. We haven't replaced him, and anybody thinking that Watkins will suddenly become more prolific in front of goal to make up the shortfall is probably kidding themselves.
We're going round in circles now, Emery has said he wanted more people in every position, almost everyone on here agrees we need another striker and I'd be amazed if the club aren't trying to get someone in.
That doesn't change the fact that Emery clearly decided that Ings wasn't the right fit and let him go for what was a decent fee given his age. Emery also decided that moving out a lot of fringe players was the right thing to do.
He's a better fit than nobody though, as his three goals that earned us 4 points against Brighton and Wolves showed. You've mentioned a few times how many goals we need from the front players this season, well we've just sold our top scorer and not replaced him, and those goals aren't going to replace themselves.
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There's a smaller squad, and there's having one striker. Which is absolute madness and not a situation that any manager, however confident in his own abilities, would choose. And the one striker we have has the touch of a baby elephant. Ings had scored six goals, a quarer of our total. We haven't replaced him, and anybody thinking that Watkins will suddenly become more prolific in front of goal to make up the shortfall is probably kidding themselves.
We're going round in circles now, Emery has said he wanted more people in every position, almost everyone on here agrees we need another striker and I'd be amazed if the club aren't trying to get someone in.
That doesn't change the fact that Emery clearly decided that Ings wasn't the right fit and let him go for what was a decent fee given his age. Emery also decided that moving out a lot of fringe players was the right thing to do.
He's a better fit than nobody though, as his three goals that earned us 4 points against Brighton and Wolves showed. You've mentioned a few times how many goals we need from the front players this season, well we've just sold our top scorer and not replaced him, and those goals aren't going to replace themselves.
I don't think the idea was or is to not replace him though and I can't imagine people seriously believe the club thinks pocketing the money and not looking for another striker is plan a.
Personally I suspect we thought Deulofeu was in the bag and his injury has fucked us up a bit. He'd have covered Watkins, Bailey and Buendia and given enough room for Duran to feature and for Archer to slot in when he comes back. A lot of decent journos ran the story that we had a very good offer in for him so I think we were definitely interested.
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Or we grabbed £15m did one of our main rivals a favour and had no plan to replace him.
Agree. Complete stupidity to have no replacement in by now. Emery surely has money to spend or else he wouldn't have taken the job?
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There is no way, no way, that Emery will be happy if we sold Ings and failed to replace him in this window. For those happy with taking the money in selling him, let’s check the happiness levels again if Watkins gets injured.
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Re low net-spend - it can be distorted. I don't think it would make anyone feel better if we had signed Kamara with two years left on his contract for £30m+. But because we craftily tapped him up last spring and pounced as early as possible, this ingenuity ironically becomes a stick with which to beat the club/owners.
I presume his signing-on fee was a few mill, and I also imagine we've chucked huge wages at him.
Was Grealish our only ever £100k a week player when he signed his last deal? I presume so, or close enough.
From reports/talk at the time of their respective signings, it looks like all our big 2022 purchases (Digne, Coutinho and Kamara) are all comfortably now in that wage ball-park.
By crude comparison - Joelinton, reinvigorated at Newcastle, is on £43k a week per the news report about his conviction for drink-driving last week. I imagine their other sudden world-beater, Miggy Almiron is on similar wonga. I know they've spent big on Gordon and Isaac in the last two windows but they're clearly getting their squad to out-perform their salary levels at the moment.
It seems to me that our wage-bill has been far higher in the table than our league position for many years. It could be that this month's clear-out is an attempt to re-dress that while making funds available if Emery chooses to spend them. I can't imagine he agreed to the longest contract of a new Villa manager in years and years (ever?), without being given the keys to the kingdom. So if we don't get anyone of note in tomorrow, I won't put it down to us being too tight/broke/unambitious.
*Edit: Players are allowed to speak to third parties in the final 6 months of their contract aren't they? In which case, apologies Johan and Stevie. No tapping-up, just good work getting ahead of the competition.
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If every club held on to its players until they'd secured a replacement there would be no transfers.
I suspect Ings wanted to go to get gametime and whilst he's scored some, he's not exactly been prolific; if anything he's just had lots of people on here moaning about how slow, shit and past it he is.
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I don't think the idea was or is to not replace him though and I can't imagine people seriously believe the club thinks pocketing the money and not looking for another striker is plan a.
Personally I suspect we thought Deulofeu was in the bag and his injury has fucked us up a bit. He'd have covered Watkins, Bailey and Buendia and given enough room for Duran to feature and for Archer to slot in when he comes back. A lot of decent journos ran the story that we had a very good offer in for him so I think we were definitely interested.
If the only option we were seriously looking at was Deulofeu who pretty much did nothing of note in English football, then that's a very poor show. Whatever "plan a" was or wasn't, the cold hard fact as it stands is that we haven't replaced Ings, so just maybe we shouldn't have been in such a rush to sell him. Our recruitment has been far more miss than hit since we came back up. We've either bought the wrong players, not invested enough when we should have, or we've over spent on the players we did bring in. The rare successes like Martinez and Kamara aren't going to stick around forever with that state of affairs.
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If every club held on to its players until they'd secured a replacement there would be no transfers.
I suspect Ings wanted to go to get gametime and whilst he's scored some, he's not exactly been prolific; if anything he's just had lots of people on here moaning about how slow, shit and past it he is.
I don't think anybody here has said he's been a huge success. What he is, is better than no player at all.
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I think that's where the biggest criticism should be, the selling your top scorer (plus 6 more players in the squad) without replacing them at all. Holding out to sell Ings tomorrow would have been more understandable to see if a replacement arrived.
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Europe. You're having a laugh. I just want us to fucking finish in the top 10. Fuck me we've been utter shit for so long now.
Yes, top half should be our baseline. We're recovering from a fucking atrocious decade (and arguably quarter-century), but as a club, we shouldn't be happy with anything lower than that.
It doesn't have to be all at once, but in the medium term, we should be top half 4 seasons out of 5 and challenging in the cups, aiming to win one or two per decade. I don't think that's unreasonable: it's in line with our infrastructure and wage bill.
My knowledge of football in general is inferior to pretty much everyone on here, but I have found our business this window quite mystifying. If anything, I'd say it was a product of a difficult market and Emery's self-confidence, rather than incompetence or lack of dosh. He sees this as the very early days of a long-term project, and is thinking of sustainability, backing himself and the squad he does have to get us a decent second half of the season.
If that works out, maybe it was vindicated, maybe we just got away with one. If not, questions should be asked about the wisdom of our approach.
(Assuming, that is, we don't announce some signings tomorrow.)
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I think that’s the point. No qualms in any of the exits this window save the decision on Ings which looks - 24 hours before the deadline - like a pretty foolish decision.
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It’s embarrassing to find yourself thinking this but Wolves - Wolves FFS - seem to be immune to the problems we have signing decent players.
I would imagine they also have a higher transfer fee paid than us.
Wolves.
I’m not suggesting we go and spunk 50m on some plodder to fix that, but I am starting to seriously doubt our transfer market ambition.
I’m tired of hearing the club talk the talk, time to start matching words with actions.
Ambitious? Great. Show us.
Really?
Matheus Cunha (loan, Atletico Madrid) - ok but only a loan and looks like it'll take most of that time settling in
Mario Lemina (undisclosed, Nice) - nowhere near the quality of our midfielders
Pablo Sarabia (£4.4m, Paris Saint-Germain) - potentially decent but could easily be a bit of a drinkwater
Craig Dawson (£3.3m, West Ham United) - past it
Daniel Bentley (undisclosed, Bristol City) - meh
Joao Gomes (£15m, Flamengo) - no idea on this one
Nothing on that list that makes me wish we'd snuck in ahead of them.
I think it's more they already had guys like Hwang, Raul Jimenez and Diego Costa upfront. correctly decided they were getting relegated with that set of options and decided to add to that by signing Cunha right at the start of it.
Once done they then decided to let Guedes go.
I can't understand our thinking with Archer really. We waste six months of his career by barely playing him and with current state of play he'd have play plenty over next few months, was really good for Boro at the weekend v recent premier league team so I refuse to believe he'd be no good at this level.
If people think Watkins, Duran, Bailey and Buendia is all we need to have a serious go at finishing above Brighton and Liverpool then fair enough but it looks very light. A few injuries and it basically means playing Coutinho as the "pressing" attacker or just bunging endless midfielders into forward positions and hoping one of them can hit a few goals.
With the top class manager we now have we should be giving him attacking options like he had at Villareal and Arsenal.
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We had to shift a bunch of players who were eating up wages, and delivering very little - good job on that front. The only one I’d like to have seen join the exit door is PC - busted flush and taking the piss given his wages.
Assuming we don’t sign anyone tomorrow (maybe we will) one has to assume Emery’s instructions were to go for very specific players - and the timing wasn’t right. He backs himself - I like that.
It could turn out to be foolish and the squad is certainly too light to sustain a real push for top 6 but top half is on - we still have a better squad than Brighton, Fulham, or Brentford for example - and a top half finish after the nightmare Emery inherited would be progress.
We have as a club wasted so much of our owners money in the last decade on largely crap players (especially during the January window) that I for one, welcome the restraint this time. Get Carlos back - will be like a new signing. I think we shall see Duran blooded and who knows what he’ll produce with Emery coaching him properly.
I understand the frustration but buying in some mad rush to qualify for Europe is the sort of short term thinking that predicated our precipitous decline at the end of MON’s era. The foundations and planning needs to be smarter this time - and I trust NSWE/Emery are doing just that.
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It's a good chance though this season.
Fulham been brilliant but lost the last two and have Chelsea away on Friday.
Brentford were pretty poor v Leeds and surely Toney will get a decent ban once FA have finished working out his 20 000 bets in the last few years.
Brighton playing amazingly well. However we beat them away and they're still only three points clear of us.
Liverpool in a total malaise.
Chelsea copying the Nottingham Forest template and making endless signings under a manager not used to top level. Think they'll start to pick up now but can't see them getting much over 60 points.
Feels a bit like two years ago when our defensive record was brilliant, we had you know who in amazing form....and we brought Morgan Sanson. One injury and we sild back down to a frustrating 11th finish.
Then one transfer and we spent needless time well in the bottom half for most of last 18 months.
Getting into europe keeps Kamara and Emi sweet and that's huge for where we are currently. Beat Leicester and we're in a very good place....hopefully with another good attacker involved.
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Who's our head scout these days? surely there must be many very good players out there without having to spend muti-millions. Another Benteke please.
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The only one I’d like to have seen join the exit door is PC - busted flush and taking the piss given his wages.
I'm with you there. Given his age and the fact he was the most expensive player in the world a few years ago, it's incredible he can barely get off our bench.
I thought signing him permanently was a coup, but my god has he turned into a black hole of money with no return. I don't even want to think of his wages, it must be, what, £6-8m a year?
He makes Stephen Ireland look like a steal.
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Positive momentum is hard to come by at this level for clubs in the bottom half aspiring to get into the top 6-8. We have it right now. I want us to attack from a position of strength. I hope we don’t come to regret this.
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I think we should acknowledge that the players we have been most strongly linked with, ie. reported to have actually made offers for, have either signed (Moreno, Duran), turned us down (Williams) or got injured (Deulofeu). So as I see it, UE is being backed. Maybe we’re just having some bad luck.
Also, I think I read something tonight along the lines of Dembele refusing to go anywhere in this window in order to cash in come the end of the season when his contract runs out. Granted, the links to him have been nowhere near as widely reported as to the other four.
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We appear to have completely written off Duran. At £15-18m he should be considered part of the squad, and getting minutes off the bench and the odd game is exactly what he needs for his development. Adding too many other attackers and we’d arguably need to be sending him on loan.
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We appear to have completely written off Duran. At £15-18m he should be considered part of the squad, and getting minutes off the bench and the odd game is exactly what he needs for his development. Adding too many other attackers and we’d arguably need to be sending him on loan.
From my perspective it’s not written off it’s more a reticence about putting too much pressure on him. Him being one injury away from being the senior striker is just negligent.
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The risk is do nothing and watch the predators come for Kamara Emi in the summer.
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I think we’ve done exactly the right thing in ditching Ings - If we get a decent stop gap forward.
The fee may not be massive, but getting rid of his wages and also the worry about his poor injury history.
If he was still with us, with this new injury, we are almost in the same position - we can’t play him, can’t rush him back…
we’d be in the position of thinking we should buy a forward.
I’m optimistic a few things will happen today.
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I think we’ve done exactly the right thing in ditching Ings - If we get a decent stop gap forward.
The fee may not be massive, but getting rid of his wages and also the worry about his poor injury history.
If he was still with us, with this new injury, we are almost in the same position - we can’t play him, can’t rush him back…
we’d be in the position of thinking we should buy a forward.
I’m optimistic a few things will happen today.
Well let’s hope so, because they need to.
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I think we should acknowledge that the players we have been most strongly linked with, ie. reported to have actually made offers for, have either signed (Moreno, Duran), turned us down (Williams) or got injured (Deulofeu). So as I see it, UE is being backed. Maybe we’re just having some bad luck.
Also, I think I read something tonight along the lines of Dembele refusing to go anywhere in this window in order to cash in come the end of the season when his contract runs out. Granted, the links to him have been nowhere near as widely reported as to the other four.
I suspect most of these have been banded about by their agents/clubs, or just made up stories. all part of the transfer window merry go round. We tend to do things a little more under the radar (most times). Weston McKennie ended up at relegation threatened Leeds, Danjuma at one point had signed for Everton, before he got lucky. Dembele is linked with Southampton.
We’ve probably been after players that clubs don’t want to lose. So we should pay up or give up, til the summer. Personally my view is we need to pay up for a striker (at least)
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I wouldn't worry about Kamara going just yet. I don't think he expected us to get European football in his first season anyway (and we still might).
Regarding the striker situation, taking away the rights and wrongs of being two strikers down, what do the club do. Wait until the player they want is available, pay £3m for someone like Dembele who Emery might not what want or fit into how he wants to play or bring in a Borja Baston stopgap who fans will call a pointless signing later on? Keeping Archer would have been the best idea but he hasn't played that much first team football himself.
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As of right now we have...
2 keepers, 2 left backs, 2 right backs, 3.5 centre backs (Carlos returning soon).
5 centre mids (some will play wide), 2 wide attacking mids (PC and EB) and 3 forwards as Bailey is clearly seen as more of a forward than winger by Emery.
At that point, realistically if we bought in 1 today up top with a bit of pace we are probably covered. Watkins is the only one in there that there are zero proper back ups for, but Duran looks a unit, has played full international football and clearly has some talent.
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I wouldn't worry about Kamara going just yet. I don't think he expected us to get European football in his first season anyway (and we still might).
Regarding the striker situation, taking away the rights and wrongs of being two strikers down, what do the club do. Wait until the player they want is available, pay £3m for someone like Dembele who Emery might not what want or fit into how he wants to play or bring in a Borja Baston stopgap who fans will call a pointless signing later on? Keeping Archer would have been the best idea but he hasn't played that much first team football himself.
That’s the issue, it’s either a primary target or a stop-gap sub.
The Archer thing is disappointing, but at least we have a manager that I trust to make that call. Perhaps half a season of first team football is more beneficial.
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As the result of us being on our third manager in just over a year, the squad needs some surgery to become balanced. It would be nice if we could have been merrily squad building over the past couple of years, with a clear purpose and direction, but that clearly hasn’t happened. There is inevitably some wastage from signing players to suit a particular manager, who is subsequently sacked, and I think the jury is still out on Lange’s effectiveness as well.
If there is something that pisses me off more than my club not signing players to address an obvious weakness in the squad, it is my club signing the wrong players on big wages and long contracts, and becoming hamstrung in the transfer market going forwards. My understanding is that Emery likes to work with a fairly small squad. Of course we could benefit from a few incomings, and the fact that we are within striking distance of European places makes it tantalising, but if the right players aren’t available what do we do? There has been lots of speculation about certain players, but there is no certainty that we were ever after them. Of course it would be great to bring in another striker, to give us cover, and an option from the bench. Other than Felix though, I’m not aware of a player that another EPL team has signed that would have fitted the bill.
So I’m summary, I would like us to sign a couple more players now, but I’m not going to blame the club if the right players aren’t available. Perhaps that’s the wrong mentality?
You've summarised the situation well - takes a former pro coach to spot the logic, I suppose, Sam.
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Everyone is worried about a injury to Watkins if we don’t bring anyone in
I’m more shit scared if there’s an injury to Martinez, if that happens, we are totally fucked
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They manage to sign players is the point I was making, with reference to the "players all want CL" yada yada excuses we make for ourselves.
Isn't that where we've been? - signing players that make no significant difference on our fortunes? A state we're now trying to unravel.
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Everyone is worried about a injury to Watkins if we don’t bring anyone in
I’m more shit scared if there’s an injury to Martinez, if that happens, we are totally fucked
Agree wholeheartedly with this. Where is Steer these days?
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Who's our head scout these days? surely there must be many very good players out there without having to spend muti-millions. Another Benteke please.
Duran?
-
As the result of us being on our third manager in just over a year, the squad needs some surgery to become balanced. It would be nice if we could have been merrily squad building over the past couple of years, with a clear purpose and direction, but that clearly hasn’t happened. There is inevitably some wastage from signing players to suit a particular manager, who is subsequently sacked, and I think the jury is still out on Lange’s effectiveness as well.
If there is something that pisses me off more than my club not signing players to address an obvious weakness in the squad, it is my club signing the wrong players on big wages and long contracts, and becoming hamstrung in the transfer market going forwards. My understanding is that Emery likes to work with a fairly small squad. Of course we could benefit from a few incomings, and the fact that we are within striking distance of European places makes it tantalising, but if the right players aren’t available what do we do? There has been lots of speculation about certain players, but there is no certainty that we were ever after them. Of course it would be great to bring in another striker, to give us cover, and an option from the bench. Other than Felix though, I’m not aware of a player that another EPL team has signed that would have fitted the bill.
So I’m summary, I would like us to sign a couple more players now, but I’m not going to blame the club if the right players aren’t available. Perhaps that’s the wrong mentality?
You've summarised the situation well - takes a former pro coach to spot the logic, I suppose, Sam.
This is basically where I am too.
I think where I differ from a lot of people on here is what difference I think an extra signing will do to our chances of getting into Europe this year. I think it could make a small difference, but not a huge one. If we play a few matches having Durán as our main striker, it won't necessarily be a disaster. If Watkins is out for a long period of time then I think we'll be in trouble, but I aslo think that would have been the case even if we'd have kept Danny Inj.
What it looks to me is that Emery has been given a sustainable wage structure and transfer budget to work with. He's identified what players he would like and which ones he wants to get rid of, and has started work on that. It could be that some of the players he wants, like Guendouzi for example, would cost more now than they would in the summer - by waiting 6 months, he might be able to afford to get in someone else - maybe this Chillean kid that we've been linked with, a riskier puchase, but with a high ceiling.
It's a risk to go into the season with the squad we've got (and I still think we'll see someone come in today), but it would also be a risk to spend the majority of his budget in his first window. The summer will be a chance for him to build his ideal Villa squad, right now it is just a case of finishing as high as we can, and cleaning up the mess the last guy left us in.
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Everyone is worried about a injury to Watkins if we don’t bring anyone in
I’m more shit scared if there’s an injury to Martinez, if that happens, we are totally fucked
Agree wholeheartedly with this. Where is Steer these days?
Before the Leeds game Emery said he was due to return to training soon but I haven’t seen anything since.
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He's twice the keeper Olsen dreams of being when fit.
-
As the result of us being on our third manager in just over a year, the squad needs some surgery to become balanced. It would be nice if we could have been merrily squad building over the past couple of years, with a clear purpose and direction, but that clearly hasn’t happened. There is inevitably some wastage from signing players to suit a particular manager, who is subsequently sacked, and I think the jury is still out on Lange’s effectiveness as well.
If there is something that pisses me off more than my club not signing players to address an obvious weakness in the squad, it is my club signing the wrong players on big wages and long contracts, and becoming hamstrung in the transfer market going forwards. My understanding is that Emery likes to work with a fairly small squad. Of course we could benefit from a few incomings, and the fact that we are within striking distance of European places makes it tantalising, but if the right players aren’t available what do we do? There has been lots of speculation about certain players, but there is no certainty that we were ever after them. Of course it would be great to bring in another striker, to give us cover, and an option from the bench. Other than Felix though, I’m not aware of a player that another EPL team has signed that would have fitted the bill.
So I’m summary, I would like us to sign a couple more players now, but I’m not going to blame the club if the right players aren’t available. Perhaps that’s the wrong mentality?
This^ all day long, though the folly of purslow’s vanity projects is also culpable and this could yet run into the summer depending on what happens with Emi M and Kamara.
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Kevin Philips coming in on loan.
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The risk is do nothing and watch the predators come for Kamara Emi in the summer.
Will signing a Dendonker type player solve that?
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The risk is do nothing and watch the predators come for Kamara Emi in the summer.
Will signing a Dendonker type player solve that?
No, having a manager of the quality of Emery will, coupled with making a quick start to our summer business. Good news is the decks have been cleared and the wage bill should have lowered.
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Don't want Gallagher either, runs around a lot with little result, and who would he replace?
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So today is transfer deadline day, otherwise known as Tuesday by us.
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How can Chelsea spend this much money?
-
How can Chelsea spend this much money?
It's all on the HP, Todd made his money starting as an agent for Kays catalogue and knows the system back to front.
-
As the result of us being on our third manager in just over a year, the squad needs some surgery to become balanced. It would be nice if we could have been merrily squad building over the past couple of years, with a clear purpose and direction, but that clearly hasn’t happened. There is inevitably some wastage from signing players to suit a particular manager, who is subsequently sacked, and I think the jury is still out on Lange’s effectiveness as well.
If there is something that pisses me off more than my club not signing players to address an obvious weakness in the squad, it is my club signing the wrong players on big wages and long contracts, and becoming hamstrung in the transfer market going forwards. My understanding is that Emery likes to work with a fairly small squad. Of course we could benefit from a few incomings, and the fact that we are within striking distance of European places makes it tantalising, but if the right players aren’t available what do we do? There has been lots of speculation about certain players, but there is no certainty that we were ever after them. Of course it would be great to bring in another striker, to give us cover, and an option from the bench. Other than Felix though, I’m not aware of a player that another EPL team has signed that would have fitted the bill.
So I’m summary, I would like us to sign a couple more players now, but I’m not going to blame the club if the right players aren’t available. Perhaps that’s the wrong mentality?
You've summarised the situation well - takes a former pro coach to spot the logic, I suppose, Sam.
This is basically where I am too.
I think where I differ from a lot of people on here is what difference I think an extra signing will do to our chances of getting into Europe this year. I think it could make a small difference, but not a huge one. If we play a few matches having Durán as our main striker, it won't necessarily be a disaster. If Watkins is out for a long period of time then I think we'll be in trouble, but I aslo think that would have been the case even if we'd have kept Danny Inj.
What it looks to me is that Emery has been given a sustainable wage structure and transfer budget to work with. He's identified what players he would like and which ones he wants to get rid of, and has started work on that. It could be that some of the players he wants, like Guendouzi for example, would cost more now than they would in the summer - by waiting 6 months, he might be able to afford to get in someone else - maybe this Chillean kid that we've been linked with, a riskier puchase, but with a high ceiling.
It's a risk to go into the season with the squad we've got (and I still think we'll see someone come in today), but it would also be a risk to spend the majority of his budget in his first window. The summer will be a chance for him to build his ideal Villa squad, right now it is just a case of finishing as high as we can, and cleaning up the mess the last guy left us in.
Couldn't have put it better, Boozey. Agree completely.
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How can Chelsea spend this much money?
It's all on the HP, Todd made his money starting as an agent for Kays catalogue and knows the system back to front.
Pair of stone-washed jeans, 50p a week.
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How can Chelsea spend this much money?
It's all on the HP, Todd made his money starting as an agent for Kays catalogue and knows the system back to front.
Pair of stone-washed jeans, 50p a week.
There was a period when girls we knew all seemed to be getting engaged, and you know that pose they do with the engagement ring, a mate of mine always said “oh very nice how much is that a week.”
Never went down well.
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Nakamba off to Luton?
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Nakamba off to Luton?
Percy saying he's having a medical there on Twitter.
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Zyech chooses the Seine, the champions league, the serene Paris culture over Darren a scaffolder from Erdington saying shouting pelters at him at home to Forest on a Tuesday night in Birmingham.
Just let Darren know the Forest match is on a Saturday, it’s Fulham on a Tuesday.
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FWIW
The only news from Percy this morning is that Nakamba is having a medical at Luton. Loan move to the end of the season
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Based on absolutely nothing but I wonder whether the forthcoming ground upgrade is having an effect on cash flow and, hence, the lack of transfer activity. It apparently happened with Arsenal and now with Spurs. It would be understandable but the worry is that we might end up not being able to fill those extra seats with a meh team.
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Based on absolutely nothing but I wonder whether the forthcoming ground upgrade is having an effect on cash flow and, hence, the lack of transfer activity. It apparently happened with Arsenal and now with Spurs. It would be understandable but the worry is that we might end up not being able to fill those extra seats with a meh team.
Arsenal and Spurs both built brand new stadiums though, it's only one stand for us. Unless they've decided to make it out of solid gold I think we'll be alright.
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How can Chelsea spend this much money?
It's all on the HP, Todd made his money starting as an agent for Kays catalogue and knows the system back to front.
Have 28 days for a refund if they don't fit.
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Based on absolutely nothing but I wonder whether the forthcoming ground upgrade is having an effect on cash flow and, hence, the lack of transfer activity. It apparently happened with Arsenal and now with Spurs. It would be understandable but the worry is that we might end up not being able to fill those extra seats with a meh team.
Doubt it but I do wonder if Emery and Lange have been told to shift the deadwood before they can make signings. Problem is it’s taken most of the window to shift them
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Based on absolutely nothing but I wonder whether the forthcoming ground upgrade is having an effect on cash flow and, hence, the lack of transfer activity. It apparently happened with Arsenal and now with Spurs. It would be understandable but the worry is that we might end up not being able to fill those extra seats with a meh team.
I doubt it will have much of an impact to be honest - what we are spending on the new stand is less than a tenth of what Spurs spent. NSWE picked us up for a relative pittance when you look at what we are now worth as a club, you would imagine that spending on infrastructure was already factored in at some point anyway.
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I don’t think Emery has been told that. I don’t think he wants them around as he doesn’t like to have a big squad and with the exception of Ings none of the players who have left contributed anything since he’s been here. Or even before that. The concern is we haven’t brought in many new starting players that he actually might want. And we don’t know if that’s down to him and who he wants or the club being unsuccessful so far in securing those players.
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Squad we'll have after today.... (unless we add)
Martinez/Olsen/Steer
Young/Cash
Konsa/Mings/Chambers/Carlos (late feb)
Moreno/Digne
Kamara/Luiz/Mcginn/Ramsey/Dendonker
Buendia/Coutinho
Watkins/Bailey/Duran
Plus the young players that are still here. There's some versatility in there, some quality too but we are definitely light up top.
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For some reason that squad scares me.
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And chambers is off to West Ham if you believe some reports.
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Good job we have 28 points.
The only ones I'm surprised at us not going for are Jackson and Danjuma because Emery knows them so well, and they were clearly available pretty cheaply. It does suggest he's being very particular about who he brings in.
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And chambers is off to West Ham if you believe some reports.
I can't see Chambers going unless Maguire comes in.
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We have not really dropped our wage bill, we will still be paying Morgan and Marvellous, and they will return to us in the summer
I would think that as we have signed 2 players permanently our wage bill will have gone up, even with the transfer of Ings.
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Good job we have 28 points.
The only ones I'm surprised at us not going for are Jackson and Danjuma because Emery knows them so well, and they were clearly available pretty cheaply. It does suggest he's being very particular about who he brings in.
Screams of ambition.
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I think it was always the plan to only add significant players in January if they were avaliable at a logical price, whilst also looking to shift some of the players deemed surpless to requirements - Sanson, Guilbert, Nakamba etc.
With Ings I just think we saw an opportunity to get £15m for a striker who, although part of the first team squad, was very much behind Watkins in the pecking order and on massively inflated wages. I assume we've attempted to replace him, but have decided none of the avaliable options were preferable to gambling with what we've got until the end of the season. We presumably didn't think Ings would be sold when we decided to loan out Archer.
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Good job we have 28 points.
The only ones I'm surprised at us not going for are Jackson and Danjuma because Emery knows them so well, and they were clearly available pretty cheaply. It does suggest he's being very particular about who he brings in.
That squad is only lighter by an Ings minus Dhuran and stronger by a Moreno minus Augustinsson. Its got us to 28 points,and we've only played 7 games under the new manager. Let's see what he can do with them for the rest of the season.
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The only thing that is nagging at me is the opportunity we might have this season to really propel the club forward. If the European spots were miles off, then it wouldn't really feel as much of a pressing need. As it is, top six looks more than achievable with a strong end to the season and it feels like now could be the time to push on with some additional quality and build on the momentum we have got.
That said, I wouldn't want to see us panic buying and bringing in expensive flops who we then struggle to get rid of going forward.
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And that's the problem Tom.
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So I think it’s two things - disappointing that again we appear to have forgone the opportunity to kick on, although if it’s truly down to targets being unavailable I can sort of get that. However, being left with one senior striker is unacceptably risky and that should not have happened (acknowledging there’s still time to fix it). Also if Chambers does go we’re massively risking a problem at centre back. We’ve got no idea how long it’ll take DC to get up to speed and it’s pretty common to pick up niggly injuries after a bad one.
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So I think it’s two things - disappointing that again we appear to have forgone the opportunity to kick on, although if it’s truly down to targets being unavailable I can sort of get that. However, being left with one senior striker is unacceptably risky and that should not have happened (acknowledging there’s still time to fix it). Also if Chambers does go we’re massively risking a problem at centre back. We’ve got no idea how long it’ll take DC to get up to speed and it’s pretty common to pick up niggly injuries after a bad one.
I doubt Chambers will go unless we have someone coming in. If Carlos was already fit I think we'd potentially risk it and have someone like Feeney around the first team for the rest of the season but with us already needing to bring Carlos back we need more experienced cover for the next couple of months.
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Who's going to play up front then, if Watkins picks up an injury? Just seems mental to me, to have flogged Ings without having a replacement lined up. Apart from anything else, even though he might not fit into Emery's system, his goals have earned us what, five points this season? Three of those were under Emery, away at Brighton. He worked fine that day. And five points could conceivably be a couple of places in the table come May. How much is that worth? Enough to cover a lot of Ings' wages, I'd imagine.
Sold him for relative peanuts too, considering it's January and clubs are supposedly desperate and it's so incredibly hard to sign anyone.
Not from us, it isn't.
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However, being left with one senior striker is unacceptably risky and that should not have happened (acknowledging there’s still time to fix it).
Fingers crossed that gets fixed or we're fucked up front.
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Idiot in Sky Sports saying the period over which Chelsea pay for Fernandez will have FFP implications.
Twat.
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I cannot see how it’s conceivably possible that Chelsea stay clear of FFP despite trying to get round the amortisation rules.
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Idiot in Sky Sports saying the period over which Chelsea pay for Fernandez will have FFP implications.
Twat.
It's true.
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Leicester agree fee for Souttar at Stoke. Now I think he’s very good.
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Arsenal signing Jorginho.
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I cannot see how it’s conceivably possible that Chelsea stay clear of FFP despite trying to get round the amortisation rules.
If they ship a few out for decent fees over the next 12-18months I think they'll be fine.
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I cannot see how it’s conceivably possible that Chelsea stay clear of FFP despite trying to get round the amortisation rules.
Same here, they seem to have put Viv Nicholson in charge of their transfers.
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I cannot see how it’s conceivably possible that Chelsea stay clear of FFP despite trying to get round the amortisation rules.
I read something about that, and it's not quite as insane as it looks. I think it was Keiran Maguire who posted it.
If Chelsea spend 300m (demonstrative figure, not meant to be accurate) on players, on 7 year contracts, and write them down at 40m plus a bit a year, they also have the likes of Gallagher, Hudson-Odoi, Loftus-Cheek as homegrown players, all of whom they could sell for big money, which would be accounted for against that year on year spend.
So, they sell Gallagher to Everton for 45m, that's one of those 7 years in the example accounted for.
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Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
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Makes you bloody sick.
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I suppose when you compare it to 3 years ago it's improved a lot. It's now a proper squad for this level, we're firmly established back in the PL. The question is, has it improved enough, considering the supposed ambition of the board? I think we'd have hoped for a bit more by now.
I agree with the comments of those who say 'it's always the next transfer window' and for a change it would be nice to see some real moves here and now. It's been the same for as long as i can remember, the the last 2 summer windows we were supposedly spending £200m plus which predictably turned out to be bollocks. The biggest issue for me with limping along keeping it ticking over is that your best players are going to get pissed off and want to move. So then you're trying to replace them before you can even think about moving it forward. Again, that's been the same story for as long as i can remember.
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I cannot see how it’s conceivably possible that Chelsea stay clear of FFP despite trying to get round the amortisation rules.
I read something about that, and it's not quite as insane as it looks. I think it was Keiran Maguire who posted it.
If Chelsea spend 300m (demonstrative figure, not meant to be accurate) on players, on 7 year contracts, and write them down at 40m plus a bit a year, they also have the likes of Gallagher, Hudson-Odoi, Loftus-Cheek as homegrown players, all of whom they could sell for big money, which would be accounted for against that year on year spend.
So, they sell Gallagher to Everton for 45m, that's one of those 7 years in the example accounted for.
The bit that confuses me is when do the three year periods start and end to be evaluated? They had the transfer embargo too but that three year period wouldn't cover the players they're signing now with those contracts.
-
Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
What about them?
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I cannot see how it’s conceivably possible that Chelsea stay clear of FFP despite trying to get round the amortisation rules.
I read something about that, and it's not quite as insane as it looks. I think it was Keiran Maguire who posted it.
If Chelsea spend 300m (demonstrative figure, not meant to be accurate) on players, on 7 year contracts, and write them down at 40m plus a bit a year, they also have the likes of Gallagher, Hudson-Odoi, Loftus-Cheek as homegrown players, all of whom they could sell for big money, which would be accounted for against that year on year spend.
So, they sell Gallagher to Everton for 45m, that's one of those 7 years in the example accounted for.
The bit that confuses me is when do the three year periods start and end to be evaluated? They had the transfer embargo too but that three year period wouldn't cover the players they're signing now with those contracts.
I think that's the bit that they reckon is going to get looked at (going on what I read yesterday) - clearly, they've found a way to get around it, and that's going to attract attention.
I think the general point about Chelsea is that yeah, their spending is fucking insane (not just the figures involved but the scattergun approach to targets) but they are also doing something at the other end of the scale, ie the home-grown players.
I just hope all these 7 year contract signings do a Bogarde on them and spend 2026-30 sat at home doing jack shit for 200k a week.
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Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
Billy Corkhill
Vince Hilaire
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As an aside if I have to put my fence back up one more time.
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The other thing to worry about for Chelsea fans is that, by using such long-dated contracts and therefore spreading the high costs over years, you may well avoid FFP problems NOW, but you are also tapping into the club's transfer capacity in the FUTURE too.
So 4 or 5 or 6 years from now they will have a budget of £xm to spend in that year, but £30m (or whatever) is still being gobbled up by Fernandez, the Ukrainian etc etc etc. And there's no guarantee that they will be successful over that period either.
It's very reminiscent of how Barcelona got into trouble in a way - look at how they still owed Liverpool outstanding transfer fees for Coutinho when he joined Villa.
-
Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
What about them?
There are rumours about both. Would we be happy that they are upgrades?
-
Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
What about them?
There are rumours about both. Would we be happy that they are upgrades?
Yes to both, particularly David. But I think there’s probably little chance on that.
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We're moaning but Everton seem to be doing a good impression of us in Jan 2016 window, are they actually going to sign anyone?
One of worst set of attackers in the league, sold Gordon and barely been linked to anyone since Danjuma did the dirty on them.
-
Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
What about them?
There are rumours about both. Would we be happy that they are upgrades?
Rumours where?
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I cannot see how it’s conceivably possible that Chelsea stay clear of FFP despite trying to get round the amortisation rules.
I read something about that, and it's not quite as insane as it looks. I think it was Keiran Maguire who posted it.
If Chelsea spend 300m (demonstrative figure, not meant to be accurate) on players, on 7 year contracts, and write them down at 40m plus a bit a year, they also have the likes of Gallagher, Hudson-Odoi, Loftus-Cheek as homegrown players, all of whom they could sell for big money, which would be accounted for against that year on year spend.
So, they sell Gallagher to Everton for 45m, that's one of those 7 years in the example accounted for.
Yep, I saw that. The thing is, it gives them no wriggle room whatsoever in the future, and to my mind doesn't account for the big increase in wages either. It's like maxing out your credit card now and hoping you can still afford it in 5 years time. If we were to buy a player now for £40m (ridiculous and over the top hypothetical situation I know, but bear with me) on a 4 year contract, then it's £10m a year amortisation, and come what may it's pretty well all done or dusted after those four years. With Chelsea, if they've spent £500m and the average contract length is 6 years, then in years 5 to 6 they're still being whacked by £80m+ amortisation a year, which will make it much harder to sign players as they go on. Their only hope is to keep developing players like Gallagher and hoping they sell for big money, which comes with a pressure of its own.
-
Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
What about them?
There are rumours about both. Would we be happy that they are upgrades?
Rumours where?
Gallagher - Everton forums
David - one made up account on Twitter that's not even as believable as Football Insider, ie a spotty virgin with 500 followers
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The other thing to worry about for Chelsea fans is that, by using such long-dated contracts and therefore spreading the high costs over years, you may well avoid FFP problems NOW, but you are also tapping into the club's transfer capacity in the FUTURE too.
So 4 or 5 or 6 years from now they will have a budget of £xm to spend in that year, but £30m (or whatever) is still being gobbled up by Fernandez, the Ukrainian etc etc etc. And there's no guarantee that they will be successful over that period either.
It's very reminiscent of how Barcelona got into trouble in a way - look at how they still owed Liverpool outstanding transfer fees for Coutinho when he joined Villa.
It also underlines to the youngsters they have coming through that they're merely there to be fattened and then sold to counterbalance this (Hi Chuk!)
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Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
Billy Corkhill
Vince Hilaire
Ginger Rogers, dance on air.
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For some reason that squad scares me.
It does make you wonder where the goals are going to come from. Maybe Emery's plan for the second half of the season is for us to be free kick and corner specialists?
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The other thing to worry about for Chelsea fans is that, by using such long-dated contracts and therefore spreading the high costs over years, you may well avoid FFP problems NOW, but you are also tapping into the club's transfer capacity in the FUTURE too.
So 4 or 5 or 6 years from now they will have a budget of £xm to spend in that year, but £30m (or whatever) is still being gobbled up by Fernandez, the Ukrainian etc etc etc. And there's no guarantee that they will be successful over that period either.
It's very reminiscent of how Barcelona got into trouble in a way - look at how they still owed Liverpool outstanding transfer fees for Coutinho when he joined Villa.
It also underlines to the youngsters they have coming through that they're merely there to be fattened and then sold to counterbalance this (Hi Chuk!)
Ha! His opportunity for gametime now looks laughable. Imagine if he was still with us, the second half of this season would have been a massive opportunity. Fuck him, hope he rots.
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Reading these comments on deadline day, and our continued lack of a forward line, I'm depressed at the prospects for the rest of the season and it's not 11 o'clock yet! Hopefully we're moving under the radar.
To agree with a previous post, thank goodness we've got 28 points, and hopefully we can stay out of trouble!
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I suppose when you compare it to 3 years ago it's improved a lot. It's now a proper squad for this level, we're firmly established back in the PL. The question is, has it improved enough, considering the supposed ambition of the board? I think we'd have hoped for a bit more by now.
I agree with the comments of those who say 'it's always the next transfer window' and for a change it would be nice to see some real moves here and now. It's been the same for as long as i can remember, the the last 2 summer windows we were supposedly spending £200m plus which predictably turned out to be bollocks. The biggest issue for me with limping along keeping it ticking over is that your best players are going to get pissed off and want to move. So then you're trying to replace them before you can even think about moving it forward. Again, that's been the same story for as long as i can remember.
This isn't fair - by almost any measure we have spent beyond what most clubs outside of the Champions League places have over the last 5 years (there are lots of different ways of looking at it, but most reasonable estimates have us between the 4th and 8th highest spenders in that period). The reality is that we are hamstrung as to exactly how much the owners can put in because of P&S - it is literally impossible for them to pump £200 million in for signings each year without breaking the rules.
Surely if it means we can make better use of what we are allowed to spend it is worth waiting this time until the summer. We finally have a manager with the nous and track record to get the most out of the resources, and is doing a fine job with what he already has. Spunking a chunk of it now on sub-standard players who are there to just make up numbers on the bench will ultimately set us back. As much as we would like Europe this season, missing a year in the Conference League isn't that big of a deal if it means we can have a proper go at getting into one of the real competitions next season - if Emery doesn't get the backing he needs in the summer then that is the time to have a go.
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Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
What about them?
There are rumours about both. Would we be happy that they are upgrades?
Rumours where?
In the minds of a few journo's, agents and internet warriors.
I see Marseille are looking at bringing in a new striker for 25m? Where is that money coming from?
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Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
What about them?
There are rumours about both. Would we be happy that they are upgrades?
Rumours where?
In the minds of a few journo's, agents and internet warriors.
I see Marseille are looking at bringing in a new striker for 25m? Where is that money coming from?
It's probably Watkins.
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Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
Billy Corkhill
Vince Hilaire
Coming at you in the air
We didn't start the fire
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I cannot see how it’s conceivably possible that Chelsea stay clear of FFP despite trying to get round the amortisation rules.
Of course they will. The system is designed to help clubs like them keep their monopoly (a continuing to be a marketing machine for the FA & Premier League), while the drawer bridge is raised for clubs like Villa. I think even Newcastle will be given a pass for overspending because they get a lot of fans through the turnstiles & the media have them as one of their favourite clubs because they had a couple of half decent seasons where they won fuck all in the mid 90's...
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Some rumours around that Leeds are looking at Zaniolo, he'd be a good one to nip in front of them and pickup, had a bit of a rough season this year but he's a fantastic talent.
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Gallagher avaliable on a loan to buy option for the right amount providing deals go through.
Not exactly what we are looking for though is it.
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Some rumours around that Leeds are looking at Zaniolo, he'd be a good one to nip in front of them and pickup, had a bit of a rough season this year but he's a fantastic talent.
Surely selling Harrison as they have endless front 3 options. Leicester are in for him aren't they so we'll be facing them with 3-4 new signings.
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Gallagher avaliable on a loan to buy option for the right amount providing deals go through.
Not exactly what we are looking for though is it.
Nope, and we will clearly not be signing players unless they are
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Gallagher avaliable on a loan to buy option for the right amount providing deals go through.
Not exactly what we are looking for though is it.
No, i don't think he's what we're crying out for. I'd hope we've made a lengthy list of players that would fit the bill though and i hope we can get a couple in today.
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I've been saying for over a week that I was confident we'd bring in two more, probably one loan and one permanent. Right now I'd take one striker, on loan or permanent. I'm getting nervous. I hate the idea of going into the second half of the season being one hamstring tweak away from having zero recognised strikers. Maybe Duran could be considered "half a striker" given his experience to date (which is mostly as a winger/ wide forward).
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I cannot see how it’s conceivably possible that Chelsea stay clear of FFP despite trying to get round the amortisation rules.
Of course they will. The system is designed to help clubs like them keep their monopoly (a continuing to be a marketing machine for the FA & Premier League), while the drawer bridge is raised for clubs like Villa. I think even Newcastle will be given a pass for overspending because they get a lot of fans through the turnstiles & the media have them as one of their favourite clubs because they had a couple of half decent seasons where they won fuck all in the mid 90's...
Newcastle will get through the net because the PL and the scum clubs at the top want their share of the scummy blood money of that vile ownerships paymasters
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Danjuma would have been lovely.
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Jonathan David.......?
Conor Gallagher...?
Billy Corkhill
Vince Hilaire
Ian Culverhouse
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I cannot see how it’s conceivably possible that Chelsea stay clear of FFP despite trying to get round the amortisation rules.
I read something about that, and it's not quite as insane as it looks. I think it was Keiran Maguire who posted it.
If Chelsea spend 300m (demonstrative figure, not meant to be accurate) on players, on 7 year contracts, and write them down at 40m plus a bit a year, they also have the likes of Gallagher, Hudson-Odoi, Loftus-Cheek as homegrown players, all of whom they could sell for big money, which would be accounted for against that year on year spend.
So, they sell Gallagher to Everton for 45m, that's one of those 7 years in the example accounted for.
Yep, I saw that. The thing is, it gives them no wriggle room whatsoever in the future, and to my mind doesn't account for the big increase in wages either. It's like maxing out your credit card now and hoping you can still afford it in 5 years time. If we were to buy a player now for £40m (ridiculous and over the top hypothetical situation I know, but bear with me) on a 4 year contract, then it's £10m a year amortisation, and come what may it's pretty well all done or dusted after those four years. With Chelsea, if they've spent £500m and the average contract length is 6 years, then in years 5 to 6 they're still being whacked by £80m+ amortisation a year, which will make it much harder to sign players as they go on. Their only hope is to keep developing players like Gallagher and hoping they sell for big money, which comes with a pressure of its own.
I think they've got 2 or 3 homegrown players that they could sell for really big money if needed for FFP purposes - Gallagher, Mount, Reece-James, Hudson-Odoi. If sold, there is probably close to £200m there. And that's who they've got in the squad right now. Even selling the likes of Billy Gilmour for about £10m all helps.
It was talked about a lot on here when they signed Chuk last summer, in terms of how Chelsea have seemingly perfected the "get the best kids, grow them, sell them" model, and they've done it under the radar without getting a reputation as a "selling club". Last year they sold Tammy and Tomori for £70m. That's staight into the FFP pot as they're homegrown.
Chelsea have been doing it for years now, it's like a production line for them. There are SO many players that Chelsea have sold for around £5-10m that go completely under the radar, then the odd big one like those above. I bet if you went back 10 years they've probably brought in more money from homegrown players than we have in total.
Don't get me wrong, I think they've mortgaged themselves up to the hilt this year, and they can't spend like this every year, but I do think their model allows them to have years like this one. That and the stupidly long contracts to reduce the yearly amortised costs, obviously.
Fingers crossed in two years they're sat with a load of McCormack-esque players on fat contracts doing fuck-all.
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(Misquote)
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Reading these comments on deadline day, and our continued lack of a forward line, I'm depressed at the prospects for the rest of the season and it's not 11 o'clock yet! Hopefully we're moving under the radar.
To agree with a previous post, thank goodness we've got 28 points, and hopefully we can stay out of trouble!
Cheer up, we'll be fine and finish top half. This thread is so miserable today I'm hoping for a Flin5tone post to lighten the mood.
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We have not really dropped our wage bill, we will still be paying Morgan and Marvellous, and they will return to us in the summer
I would think that as we have signed 2 players permanently our wage bill will have gone up, even with the transfer of Ings.
I very much doubt it. It’s been widely reported that Ings was on huge wages so I wouldn’t be surprised if it wasn’t much off the total of Moreno and Duran combined. How do you know we’re paying the full wages of Sanson and Marvellous (if he goes)? I’d be surprised if we were but by that token then surely we’re now not paying for Augustinsson and Bednarek. We’ve also sold Gilbert as well. There’s plenty to be frustrated about, but to say our wage bill has probably gone up when our outgoings are 2 sold including our top earner and 3 or 4 via the loan system, against incomings of 2 players including a 19 year old from the MLS is baffling.
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In January 2020 we signed Borja Baston. Let's not be signing players for the sake of it.
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In January 2020 we signed Borja Baston. Let's not be signing players for the sake of it.
I miss him , legend
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In January 2020 we signed Borja Baston. Let's not be signing players for the sake of it.
Let's sign decent players.
I don't think anyone is suggesting we buy for the sake of it.
And if we can't sign decent players, let's be careful about who we let leave.
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No Guendouzi then https://twitter.com/fabrizioromano/status/1620387816277671941?s=61&t=yHTW8mh-JTeIlN2fJeQ-dA
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No Guendouzi then https://twitter.com/fabrizioromano/status/1620387816277671941?s=61&t=yHTW8mh-JTeIlN2fJeQ-dA
For now maybe.
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No Guendouzi then https://twitter.com/fabrizioromano/status/1620387816277671941?s=61&t=yHTW8mh-JTeIlN2fJeQ-dA
For now maybe.
Will happen in the summer I reckon.
Can understand him not wanting to leave now, they're having a really good season and only a few points off PSG.
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No Guendouzi then https://twitter.com/fabrizioromano/status/1620387816277671941?s=61&t=yHTW8mh-JTeIlN2fJeQ-dA
well, shite.
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Reading these comments on deadline day, and our continued lack of a forward line, I'm depressed at the prospects for the rest of the season and it's not 11 o'clock yet! Hopefully we're moving under the radar.
To agree with a previous post, thank goodness we've got 28 points, and hopefully we can stay out of trouble!
Cheer up, we'll be fine and finish top half. This thread is so miserable today I'm hoping for a Flin5tone post to lighten the mood.
I reckon we’ll finish bottom half (just) . It will be a brilliant season if we finish top half. I don’t think our squad is good enough yet.
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Reading these comments on deadline day, and our continued lack of a forward line, I'm depressed at the prospects for the rest of the season and it's not 11 o'clock yet! Hopefully we're moving under the radar.
To agree with a previous post, thank goodness we've got 28 points, and hopefully we can stay out of trouble!
Cheer up, we'll be fine and finish top half. This thread is so miserable today I'm hoping for a Flin5tone post to lighten the mood.
I reckon we’ll finish bottom half (just) . It will be a brilliant season if we finish top half. I don’t think our squad is good enough yet.
When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
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Reading these comments on deadline day, and our continued lack of a forward line, I'm depressed at the prospects for the rest of the season and it's not 11 o'clock yet! Hopefully we're moving under the radar.
To agree with a previous post, thank goodness we've got 28 points, and hopefully we can stay out of trouble!
Cheer up, we'll be fine and finish top half. This thread is so miserable today I'm hoping for a Flin5tone post to lighten the mood.
I reckon we’ll finish bottom half (just) . It will be a brilliant season if we finish top half. I don’t think our squad is good enough yet.
When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
No, I reckon we screwed up last season and this with the Gerrard appointment. That said, I think we have the players and manager to finish in the top half this season. Emery has enough about him to use the squad effectively if injuries hit.
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No. The owners have been great, but they have never really gone for it full on.
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When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
Not at all. We've got some of the richest owners in world football, and one of the most highly regarded managers too. Yet apparently we should be content to finish behind the likes of Brentford, Brighton and Fulham. But don't worry, it will all magically be sorted at some unspecified point in the future.
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With FFP the wealth of our owners is somewhat irrelevant. Also when we got promoted 4 years ago i did not expect to see such quality in the squads of Brighton, Fulham and Brentford.
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If that’s it for signings until the summer we start the 2nd half of the season worse off in terms of players than we started it. That’s the bottom line really.
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With FFP the wealth of our owners is somewhat irrelevant. Also when we got promoted 4 years ago i did not expect to see such quality in the squads of Brighton, Fulham and Brentford.
It doesn't seem to be irrelevant for any other team. We also made £100m profit on one player 18 months ago, and have cleared out a lot of players such that we couldn't actually put out a proper full squad in the last league game.
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Reading these comments on deadline day, and our continued lack of a forward line, I'm depressed at the prospects for the rest of the season and it's not 11 o'clock yet! Hopefully we're moving under the radar.
To agree with a previous post, thank goodness we've got 28 points, and hopefully we can stay out of trouble!
Cheer up, we'll be fine and finish top half. This thread is so miserable today I'm hoping for a Flin5tone post to lighten the mood.
I reckon we’ll finish bottom half (just) . It will be a brilliant season if we finish top half. I don’t think our squad is good enough yet.
When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
I did,
At the time with the new owners being one of the richest in the premiership I thought we would
I’m still actually believing we can do it this year
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We did allow that chump Gerrard to spend £80m on players though. Maybe that is it.
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I'm really beginning to dislike the phrase "Trust the process".
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We did allow that chump Gerrard to spend £80m on players though. Maybe that is it.
We got so far along on our 'journey', then replaced the wheels with square ones, syphoned out the petrol and used it to set fire to our hopes and dreams.
But the kindly Spannish AA man is sorting it out now.
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Reading these comments on deadline day, and our continued lack of a forward line, I'm depressed at the prospects for the rest of the season and it's not 11 o'clock yet! Hopefully we're moving under the radar.
To agree with a previous post, thank goodness we've got 28 points, and hopefully we can stay out of trouble!
Cheer up, we'll be fine and finish top half. This thread is so miserable today I'm hoping for a Flin5tone post to lighten the mood.
I reckon we’ll finish bottom half (just) . It will be a brilliant season if we finish top half. I don’t think our squad is good enough yet.
When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
No, I reckon we screwed up last season and this with the Gerrard appointment. That said, I think we have the players and manager to finish in the top half this season. Emery has enough about him to use the squad effectively if injuries hit.
I have faith in him over the longer term, but I think we’ll have a sticky patch soon. We will have a pretty poor bench and can’t “put our houses on” many of the first team.
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Yep, we blew a year's potential development when we appointed Gerrard - if we had got Emery or someone similar when Smith was sacked then we wouldn't be here now. The way we came up meant that year 1 was always going to be a struggle, then there were definite signs of improvement in year 2 (with admittedly signs that Smith had hit a ceiling). I'd be tempted to call Gerrard's reign the lost year, but now we can get back on track with a manager who knows what's needed.
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When the new owners came in I remember them saying they’d put money in initially and then the club would need to be self sustainable. They said developing our own was the key and then invested a huge amount into that side of the club. No more loans and developing other clubs talent and no more players with no prospect of a sell on fee.
They have put money in so is this the next phase of what they said? Only investing money we have and giving the young players a chance?
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When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
Not at all. We've got some of the richest owners in world football, and one of the most highly regarded managers too. Yet apparently we should be content to finish behind the likes of Brentford, Brighton and Fulham. But don't worry, it will all magically be sorted at some unspecified point in the future.
The manager has only been around for a couple of months though. Before that they fucked up royally and a whole year was wasted.
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Well going into the second half of the season with one senior striker is verging on a fuck up for me.
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We are being linked with Vitinha so obviously that won’t be happening.
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We were looking at incremental improvements, and a lot of that was due to FFP constraints having been in the Championship. Now we're up, and safely up, I believe we have more scope to go for it. Looks like it's further 6 month wait though.
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rumours that man city looking at lucas digne on loan to replace cancelo...
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Also, we have spent around £26 million in this window - that's more than over half of the teams in the Premier League have spent. For years we have been saying that we need signings who are going to come in and improve the first team, relegating current regulars to the bench. We finally seem to have a plan to do that and still some want us to fill the bench with squad fillers again - it's unsustainable.
In a 22 player squad there are always 7 or 8 who are never going to get much playing time (especially with no cup involvement). With a potential first team squad of 16-18 senior pros (which we have), this is a good chance for some of the youngsters to get matchday experience at Premier League level. Presumably next season they can then go out on loan at a good level with that experience behind them, and some of this year's loanees come back in a realistic position to start challenging for a first team place alongside the better quality signings we'll be looking to make in the summer.
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When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
Not at all. We've got some of the richest owners in world football, and one of the most highly regarded managers too. Yet apparently we should be content to finish behind the likes of Brentford, Brighton and Fulham. But don't worry, it will all magically be sorted at some unspecified point in the future.
The manager has only been around for a couple of months though. Before that they fucked up royally and a whole year was wasted.
So now they've decided to waste the second half of this season as well, and give Emery almost Remi Garde levels of backing.
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Well going into the second half of the season with one senior striker is verging on a fuck up for me.
Agreed. As well as no decent back-up to Martinez.
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When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
Not at all. We've got some of the richest owners in world football, and one of the most highly regarded managers too. Yet apparently we should be content to finish behind the likes of Brentford, Brighton and Fulham. But don't worry, it will all magically be sorted at some unspecified point in the future.
The manager has only been around for a couple of months though. Before that they fucked up royally and a whole year was wasted.
So now they've decided to waste the second half of this season as well, and give Emery almost Remi Garde levels of backing.
Well we don’t know that. If it’s to be believed that he now holds the keys to our transfer decisions and strategy then it’s possible he just doesn’t want anyone and would rather wait until the summer. Seems ludicrous to leave ourselves this short either way.
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When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
Not at all. We've got some of the richest owners in world football, and one of the most highly regarded managers too. Yet apparently we should be content to finish behind the likes of Brentford, Brighton and Fulham. But don't worry, it will all magically be sorted at some unspecified point in the future.
The manager has only been around for a couple of months though. Before that they fucked up royally and a whole year was wasted.
So now they've decided to waste the second half of this season as well, and give Emery almost Remi Garde levels of backing.
Well we don’t know that. If it’s to be believed that he now holds the keys to our transfer decisions and strategy then it’s possible he just doesn’t want anyone and would rather wait until the summer. Seems ludicrous to leave ourselves this short either way.
I find it really hard to believe Emery told them he just wants one experienced striker in the squad, so yeah, go ahead and sell our top scorer.
He also went on the record as saying he wanted a wide player.
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When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
Not at all. We've got some of the richest owners in world football, and one of the most highly regarded managers too. Yet apparently we should be content to finish behind the likes of Brentford, Brighton and Fulham. But don't worry, it will all magically be sorted at some unspecified point in the future.
The manager has only been around for a couple of months though. Before that they fucked up royally and a whole year was wasted.
So now they've decided to waste the second half of this season as well, and give Emery almost Remi Garde levels of backing.
Well we don’t know that. If it’s to be believed that he now holds the keys to our transfer decisions and strategy then it’s possible he just doesn’t want anyone and would rather wait until the summer. Seems ludicrous to leave ourselves this short either way.
I find it really hard to believe Emery told them he just wants one experienced striker in the squad, so yeah, go ahead and sell our top scorer.
He also went on the record as saying he wanted a wide player.
I’m not saying that you’re wrong on any of that. But I can imagine him saying Ings doesn’t fit what he’s trying to do and get specific targets in if we can. I’m guessing the Ings offer came in earlier than expected and it was too good to turn down. What I doubt is that they somehow blocked getting players he actually wanted. Or the players he wanted were priced stupidly because it’s January and collectively they agreed not to pull the trigger now.
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I'll say it loud for those at the back: nobody wants us to go out and buy squad fillers, we anticipated additions who would strengthen us.
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I'll say it loud for those at the back: nobody wants us to go out and buy squad fillers, we anticipated additions who would strengthen us.
But you can't make them come if they're not available!
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When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
Not at all. We've got some of the richest owners in world football, and one of the most highly regarded managers too. Yet apparently we should be content to finish behind the likes of Brentford, Brighton and Fulham. But don't worry, it will all magically be sorted at some unspecified point in the future.
The manager has only been around for a couple of months though. Before that they fucked up royally and a whole year was wasted.
So now they've decided to waste the second half of this season as well, and give Emery almost Remi Garde levels of backing.
Well we don’t know that. If it’s to be believed that he now holds the keys to our transfer decisions and strategy then it’s possible he just doesn’t want anyone and would rather wait until the summer. Seems ludicrous to leave ourselves this short either way.
I find it really hard to believe Emery told them he just wants one experienced striker in the squad, so yeah, go ahead and sell our top scorer.
He also went on the record as saying he wanted a wide player.
I’m not saying that you’re wrong on any of that. But I can imagine him saying Ings doesn’t fit what he’s trying to do and get specific targets in if we can. I’m guessing the Ings offer came in earlier than expected and it was too good to turn down. What I doubt is that they somehow blocked getting players he actually wanted. Or the players he wanted were priced stupidly because it’s January and collectively they agreed not to pull the trigger now.
I’m sorry but £15m for our top scorer isn’t sufficiently big of a fee to play half a season with one senior striker.
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£15m for a 30yr on likely a big contract is a good deal. I imagine the club thought they’d have plenty of time to get someone else in. I’m not saying the timing was right because you’d like your replacements lined up. That’s not the conversation here.
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I'll say it loud for those at the back: nobody wants us to go out and buy squad fillers, we anticipated additions who would strengthen us.
But you can't make them come if they're not available!
Agreed. So you don't sell your highest goalscorer and loan out your 3rd choice striker without quality replacements being guaranteed
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When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
Not at all. We've got some of the richest owners in world football, and one of the most highly regarded managers too. Yet apparently we should be content to finish behind the likes of Brentford, Brighton and Fulham. But don't worry, it will all magically be sorted at some unspecified point in the future.
The manager has only been around for a couple of months though. Before that they fucked up royally and a whole year was wasted.
So now they've decided to waste the second half of this season as well, and give Emery almost Remi Garde levels of backing.
Well you've no idea on that. The fact we've spent £14m(?) on a 29 year old left back and £16m(?) on a 19 year old would suggest otherwise.
We've been rumoured to be after some real quality, it appears that either they don't want to come, or their cluibs won't release them. Of course we could have gone back to Marseille and said we'd give them £100m for Guendozi but that wouldn't have been prudent.
You only have to look at the Caicedo situation; there's no way he's worth £70m but that is what Brighton turned down, and said he wasn't for sale. Clubs don't have to accept the money. There's only Chelsea who have splashed the cash, and that's crazy in itself.
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£15m for a 30yr on likely a big contract is a good deal. I imagine the club thought they’d have plenty of time to get someone else in. I’m not saying the timing was right because you’d like your replacements lined up. That’s not the conversation here.
It's not like he'd have been worth nothing had he stayed until the end of the year. Even if his fee had reduced to £8m-£10m, that's still decent money. £15m (and even that's with add ons) surely isn't that high a figure in the grand scheme of things that it was worth losing our only back up striker?
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And Newcastle spent £45m on an average Newcastle winger. Bournemouth and Wolves have lashed out some money mind you.
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If anyone believes this was all part of the plan at the start of the window then they’re kidding themselves. Something has gone very much awry.
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And Newcastle spent £45m on an average Newcastle winger. Bournemouth and Wolves have lashed out some money mind you.
They’re that rich they buy their own players.
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I'll add that I'm disappointed we haven't signed more, but there's no point getting in a tizz about it, we're clearly a good opportunity, and we're heading the right way. Out of all the players that have moved this window, are there many you'd have liked us to go for that would form part of the medium-long term?
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Maybe part of the plan now is to open up a clear pathway for some of our FA Youth Cup winners and prospects? If, (big "if" I know), come season's end, we finish top 7-10 having blooded several youngsters in the process, I genuinely would be delighted. I'd find that much more satisfying than achieving the same with overpriced winter window buys.
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And Newcastle spent £45m on an average Newcastle winger. Bournemouth and Wolves have lashed out some money mind you.
They’re that rich they buy their own players.
Of course, sitting in the bottom three and just above probably makes a club that much more desperate to buy.
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This is all rather underwhelming and contrary to what a lot of us thought would happen in this window.
It's almost as if the club feel that enough has been done with the recent league results to keep us out of trouble and that will do for this season. Maybe it will, but a lack of number and depth is a very odd approach.
Also there are 18 games left. If we weren't shipping out players I could almost understand waiting for next summer, but we have had ages eying up targets. Also, we should make some progression whilst there is some momentum. Who's to say the summer window will be the panacea and result in bigger progress?
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If anyone believes this was all part of the plan at the start of the window then they’re kidding themselves. Something has gone very much awry.
So you think they have screwed the man the owner himself went out and appointed as manager?
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Yet to see a Sky reporter at BH, not a great sign.
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Maybe part of the plan now is to open up a clear pathway for some of our FA Youth Cup winners and prospects? If, (big "if" I know), come season's end, we finish top 7-10 having blooded several youngsters in the process, I genuinely would be delighted. I'd find that much more satisfying than achieving the same with overpriced winter window buys.
If that were the plan, then it wouldn't really make sense to send the most obvious contender for the first team, who plays in the position that we are weakest to Middlesbrough for the rest of the season.
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He said he wanted a winger and another forward. He’s got neither. I’d say somethings gone wrong. Edit I’m not counting Duran.
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When we got promoted, did you really, honestly, think that four years on we wouldn't have a squad good enough for top half?
Not at all. We've got some of the richest owners in world football, and one of the most highly regarded managers too. Yet apparently we should be content to finish behind the likes of Brentford, Brighton and Fulham. But don't worry, it will all magically be sorted at some unspecified point in the future.
The manager has only been around for a couple of months though. Before that they fucked up royally and a whole year was wasted.
So now they've decided to waste the second half of this season as well, and give Emery almost Remi Garde levels of backing.
Well we don’t know that. If it’s to be believed that he now holds the keys to our transfer decisions and strategy then it’s possible he just doesn’t want anyone and would rather wait until the summer. Seems ludicrous to leave ourselves this short either way.
I find it really hard to believe Emery told them he just wants one experienced striker in the squad, so yeah, go ahead and sell our top scorer.
He also went on the record as saying he wanted a wide player.
I’m not saying that you’re wrong on any of that. But I can imagine him saying Ings doesn’t fit what he’s trying to do and get specific targets in if we can. I’m guessing the Ings offer came in earlier than expected and it was too good to turn down. What I doubt is that they somehow blocked getting players he actually wanted. Or the players he wanted were priced stupidly because it’s January and collectively they agreed not to pull the trigger now.
I’m sorry but £15m for our top scorer isn’t sufficiently big of a fee to play half a season with one senior striker.
For sake of argument, Ings stays and spends the rest of this season on the bench - unless Watkins gets injured (and even then I think Emery would have his doubts about putting Ings in given his performances against Stevenage and Leeds) he isn't getting any game time. Plus, don't forget he knacked himself in his first game for West Ham so isn't necessarily a reliable bench option either.
In the summer we then get no interest in him, and we are stuck with a 4th or 5th choice, 31yo player earning £140k+ a week. As a result we have less to spend directly on first choices, and less room in the budget for salaries setting us back next season.
Sometimes life isn't perfect. Of all the decisions we have made in our recent history, moving Ings on for £15m verges on a stroke of genius.
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Maybe part of the plan now is to open up a clear pathway for some of our FA Youth Cup winners and prospects? If, (big "if" I know), come season's end, we finish top 7-10 having blooded several youngsters in the process, I genuinely would be delighted. I'd find that much more satisfying than achieving the same with overpriced winter window buys.
If that were the plan, then it wouldn't really make sense to send the most obvious contender for the first team, who plays in the position that we are weakest to Middlesbrough for the rest of the season.
Fair point!
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We’ll see the genius of it if Watkins gets injured.
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I think some of the narrative around Ings has changed on here since a lack of signings looked an ever more realistic scenario. Its now selling ‘our top scorer’ thats being mentioned a lot. Whilst it may be factually correct that Ings was our top scorer, he (a) hasnt scored very many in his time with us and (b) looked a bit past it most of the time and (c) didnt seem to fit Emerys preferred style of play. And is now crocked anyway.
I think its a shame we dont look like we are getting anyone in and its in the lap of the Gods in regards to Watkins staying injury free, but i also dont think retaining Ings, would of made a big difference to how this season pans out. Might be wrong on that of course.
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Watkins never gets injured though, he's made of granite
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We were looking at incremental improvements, and a lot of that was due to FFP constraints having been in the Championship. Now we're up, and safely up, I believe we have more scope to go for it. Looks like it's further 6 month wait though.
Then another six months and then another six. Manana Villa. Risso summed it up - believing it's all magically going to come right just because.
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Maybe part of the plan now is to open up a clear pathway for some of our FA Youth Cup winners and prospects? If, (big "if" I know), come season's end, we finish top 7-10 having blooded several youngsters in the process, I genuinely would be delighted. I'd find that much more satisfying than achieving the same with overpriced winter window buys.
If that were the plan, then it wouldn't really make sense to send the most obvious contender for the first team, who plays in the position that we are weakest to Middlesbrough for the rest of the season.
That's one thing that doesn't make sense, unless they believe Duran has enough about him to be the bit part striker that we are most likely going to need. The sensible option this season would have been for Cam to go on loan in the first half, and be ready to come back for us in the second half of the season - unfortunately we had someone else in charge when that could have happened. Archer needs to be getting games somewhere for his own development, he could have done that in August but wasn't allowed out of the club when we had cover.
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I'm worried about any sort of incoming loan deal this window, our record in the loan market since promotion is utterly woeful.
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Traore being recalled.
It will be like a new signing.
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£15m for a 30yr on likely a big contract is a good deal. I imagine the club thought they’d have plenty of time to get someone else in. I’m not saying the timing was right because you’d like your replacements lined up. That’s not the conversation here.
It's not like he'd have been worth nothing had he stayed until the end of the year. Even if his fee had reduced to £8m-£10m, that's still decent money. £15m (and even that's with add ons) surely isn't that high a figure in the grand scheme of things that it was worth losing our only back up striker?
The £3m add-on to take it to £15m is if West Ham stay up, which is a pretty solid clause in our favour.
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I think some of the narrative around Ings has changed on here since a lack of signings looked an ever more realistic scenario. Its now selling ‘our top scorer’ thats being mentioned a lot. Whilst it may be factually correct that Ings was our top scorer, he (a) hasnt scored very many in his time with us and (b) looked a bit past it most of the time and (c) didnt seem to fit Emerys preferred style of play. And is now crocked anyway.
I think its a shame we dont look like we are getting anyone in and its in the lap of the Gods in regards to Watkins staying injury free, but i also dont think retaining Ings, would of made a big difference to how this season pans out. Might be wrong on that of course.
Lets face it, for the most part, Ings has been shit during his time at Villa. For a guy who was excused for his lack of mobility because he is a finisher, he scored a whopping 13 goals in 48 games. Im a bit shit at math, but off the top of my head, that is a 1 in 4+ goals per games ratio. So our "finisher" who could barely move, wasn't actually finishing while at Villa. Which makes him absolutely pointless. I would rather we played Archer instead. Which makes his loan baffling to me personally...
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We were looking at incremental improvements, and a lot of that was due to FFP constraints having been in the Championship. Now we're up, and safely up, I believe we have more scope to go for it. Looks like it's further 6 month wait though.
Then another six months and then another six. Manana Villa. Risso summed it up - believing it's all magically going to come right just because.
Yes doesn’t seem like much of a plan to me.
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Traore being recalled.
It will be like a new signing.
He's badly fucked though isn't he, knee knack.
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Bert is back, set to be recalled.
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We were looking at incremental improvements, and a lot of that was due to FFP constraints having been in the Championship. Now we're up, and safely up, I believe we have more scope to go for it. Looks like it's further 6 month wait though.
Then another six months and then another six. Manana Villa. Risso summed it up - believing it's all magically going to come right just because.
Yes doesn’t seem like much of a plan to me.
Writing off half a season just like that.
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Traore being recalled.
It will be like a new signing.
Of all the players on our books likely to succeed under Emery I'd put him last. Still, I'd like to see it work, if he knocked off the sloppy crossfield balls and upped his focus and workrate a bit he could be a fabulous player and a genuine threat.
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Traore being recalled.
It will be like a new signing.
Of all the players on our books likely to succeed under Emery I'd put him last. Still, I'd like to see it work, if he knocked off the sloppy crossfield balls and upped his focus and workrate a bit he could be a fabulous player and a genuine threat.
His edge of the box clearances, shudder.
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I love Traore, he’s ace but he also scares the shit out of me!
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We were looking at incremental improvements, and a lot of that was due to FFP constraints having been in the Championship. Now we're up, and safely up, I believe we have more scope to go for it. Looks like it's further 6 month wait though.
Then another six months and then another six. Manana Villa. Risso summed it up - believing it's all magically going to come right just because.
Yes doesn’t seem like much of a plan to me.
Writing off half a season just like that.
It's no ordinary season. It's a season where two of That Six are fucking up royally and one of the clubs we used to laugh at have gone shooting past us within months of a takeover. But top half will be good going for us.
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Traore being recalled.
It will be like a new signing.
Of all the players on our books likely to succeed under Emery I'd put him last. Still, I'd like to see it work, if he knocked off the sloppy crossfield balls and upped his focus and workrate a bit he could be a fabulous player and a genuine threat.
His edge of the box clearances, shudder.
The split second confusion from the opposition could be utilised to springboard an attack by our wizard coach
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Watkins never gets injured though, he's made of granite
That would go a long way to explain his poor control and finishing. Either Emery has a very cunning plan on how to turn Watkins into a goalscorer again or we write yet another chapter in the book, the Missed Opportunities of Aston Villa.
I'm still holding out we'll bring in somebody, preferably a goalscorer, in today.
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I've no problem with Ings being sold, just not at a value where WHU think they've got the better of the deal. I'd have thought £25 mill was closer to what he's worth to a relegation threatened team.
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I'm in the "this is fucking shit" camp, for most of the reasons mentioned by others.
Liverpool and Chelsea won't be this shit next season.
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Traore coming back
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I'm in the "this is fucking shit" camp, for most of the reasons mentioned by others.
Liverpool and Chelsea won't be this shit next season.
Sure, but Brighton, Brentford and Fulham are unlikely to be this good either. Levels of hysteria on here are pretty wild lads, have to be honest
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Traore being recalled.
It will be like a new signing.
Bit of competition for Bailey anyway but he hasn't exactly excelled in Turkey since he went on loan. Recalling Traore was I suspect a long way down the list of priorities this month. Talented player at his best though.
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I've no problem with Ings being sold, just not at a value where WHU think they've got the better of the deal. I'd have thought £25 mill was closer to what he's worth to a relegation threatened team.
Agreed, £12m plus add-ons up to £3m is very generous. I doubt very much we'll see the extra £3m, certainly not if it's based on first team starts.
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If Traore is being recalled, then that fixes the cover & competition issues up front. Don't get me wrong, its not ideal & making a marquee signing would be better to improve the whole squad, but if he is the six month fix, then I can live with that... But, & its a big 'but', if this is it for January, then next summer has to be a big one with several marquee signings. If not, then even the more relaxed amongst us about the current situation, like myself, will be questioning exactly where the owners are taking us. Although the last time I did that over at another forum, I got banned for fear of them losing access to a guy who loved to talk when things were going well, but not so much when they weren't... ;D
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If Traore is being recalled, then that fixes the cover & competition issues up front. Don't get me wrong, its not ideal & making a marquee signing would be better to improve the whole squad, but if he is the six month fix, then I can live with that... But, & its a big 'but', if this is it for January, then next summer has to be a big one with several marquee signings. If not, then even the more relaxed amongst us about the current situation, like myself, will be questioning exactly where the owners are taking us. Although the last time I did that over at another forum, I got banned for fear of them losing access to a guy who loved to talk when things were going well, but not so much when they weren't... ;D
Sounds like a Bizarro Flin5tone
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We just always do this - summer started great with Kamara and DC, but we didn’t complete the job. January we’ve improved left back cover, but haven’t kicked on. I’ve no doubt in the summer it’ll be a similar pattern. We just don’t seem willing and/or able to make a complete go of it.
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This solution is clearly preferable to whatever other option they have for six months and his injury must not be too bad. It'll be fine.
His squad number has gone to Moreno so I'm going to order in some popcorn for when they tweet the picture of him with the number nine shirt.
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I'm in the "this is fucking shit" camp, for most of the reasons mentioned by others.
Liverpool and Chelsea won't be this shit next season.
There's always teams moving up and down. Even if Liverpool and Chelsea are better next season (which isn't a given), Man Utd, Spurs, Arsenal and Newcastle could all just as easily fall away. I'd put money on Brighton and Fulham not doing as well next season either.
This year isn't some unique opportunity to crack the Champions League, we're talking about the outside possibility of getting into a tournament that UEFA rank as so important that the final this year is being held in a ground that holds 19k fans.
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The club haven't tweeted in almost 24 hours. They've got something planned imo. They'll announce a big one.
Just a feeling I have.
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Not an Unai player in any way at all but it strengthens the bench, Bert can produce moments of magic but can also frighten you to death with some of his shanked crossfield passes, he’s also a maverick and great fun to watch.
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The club haven't tweeted in almost 24 hours. They've got something planned imo. They'll announce a big one.
Just a feeling I have.
Hope you're right. 8)
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Bert is crocked.
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The club haven't tweeted in almost 24 hours. They've got something planned imo. They'll announce a big one.
Just a feeling I have.
No pinned tweet either
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If Traore is being recalled, then that fixes the cover & competition issues up front. Don't get me wrong, its not ideal & making a marquee signing would be better to improve the whole squad, but if he is the six month fix, then I can live with that... But, & its a big 'but', if this is it for January, then next summer has to be a big one with several marquee signings. If not, then even the more relaxed amongst us about the current situation, like myself, will be questioning exactly where the owners are taking us. Although the last time I did that over at another forum, I got banned for fear of them losing access to a guy who loved to talk when things were going well, but not so much when they weren't... ;D
This is it for me. Emery has only had a couple of months here in terms of playing time, I am certain when he came he was told what backing he would have and is happy to keep his powder dry for now if it means he will be properly backed when the players he really wants are available. A quiet window is fine this this time, but we should then be rightly pissed off if we don't really go for it ahead of next season.
Also, if we have re-added Bertie to the mix can we not also get Keinan Davis back? To be honest, in Emery's system he would offer loads more than Ings did (putting aside his tendency to be made of papier mache).
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I'm guessing Traore coming back means our attempts to loan/buy a winger have failed. He'll do as a back-up, but it's pretty underwhelming.
I know he's played up front before, but surely Unai isn't thinking he becomes the back-up to Watkins ahead of Duran?
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If Traore is being recalled, then that fixes the cover & competition issues up front. Don't get me wrong, its not ideal & making a marquee signing would be better to improve the whole squad, but if he is the six month fix, then I can live with that... But, & its a big 'but', if this is it for January, then next summer has to be a big one with several marquee signings. If not, then even the more relaxed amongst us about the current situation, like myself, will be questioning exactly where the owners are taking us. Although the last time I did that over at another forum, I got banned for fear of them losing access to a guy who loved to talk when things were going well, but not so much when they weren't... ;D
This is it for me. Emery has only had a couple of months here in terms of playing time, I am certain when he came he was told what backing he would have and is happy to keep his powder dry for now if it means he will be properly backed when the players he really wants are available. A quiet window is fine this this time, but we should then be rightly pissed off if we don't really go for it ahead of next season.
Also, if we have re-added Bertie to the mix can we not also get Keinan Davis back? To be honest, in Emery's system he would offer loads more than Ings did (putting aside his tendency to be made of papier mache).
On the Keinan front, I think if we brought him back to replace Ings this place would go into meltdown. But on a more practical point, I don't believe there is a recall clause in any of our Championship loans. They could terminate by mutual consent, but I suspect Watford would want paying for that, and paying to have our own player come back from a loan would be the most ridiculously Villa thing ever.
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Percy on Twitter
“Traore recall is an obvious solution for Emery, who had made a winger a priority this month. With prices for his targets v high, bringing a player back who is already contracted to the club makes sense so he can see him up close. Villa intend to do their main business in summer”
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I'm guessing Traore coming back means our attempts to loan/buy a winger have failed. He'll do as a back-up, but it's pretty underwhelming.
I know he's played up front before, but surely Unai isn't thinking he becomes the back-up to Watkins ahead of Duran?
Backup to Bailey I'd say. Young/Cash will be hoping he doesn't have any defensive responsibilities on their side.
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I'm in the "this is fucking shit" camp, for most of the reasons mentioned by others.
Liverpool and Chelsea won't be this shit next season.
Sure, but Brighton, Brentford and Fulham are unlikely to be this good either. Levels of hysteria on here are pretty wild lads, have to be honest
I haven't seen much hysteria. I've seen a number of people a bit pissed off that we seem to be leaving ourselves very exposed in terms of squad depth and possibly missing a big opportunity for a really high league finish this season. Kamara, Martinez and Luiz won't wait forever and finishing 10-12 isn't going to attract the next crop.
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If Traore is being recalled, then that fixes the cover & competition issues up front. Don't get me wrong, its not ideal & making a marquee signing would be better to improve the whole squad, but if he is the six month fix, then I can live with that... But, & its a big 'but', if this is it for January, then next summer has to be a big one with several marquee signings. If not, then even the more relaxed amongst us about the current situation, like myself, will be questioning exactly where the owners are taking us. Although the last time I did that over at another forum, I got banned for fear of them losing access to a guy who loved to talk when things were going well, but not so much when they weren't... ;D
This is it for me. Emery has only had a couple of months here in terms of playing time, I am certain when he came he was told what backing he would have and is happy to keep his powder dry for now if it means he will be properly backed when the players he really wants are available. A quiet window is fine this this time, but we should then be rightly pissed off if we don't really go for it ahead of next season.
Also, if we have re-added Bertie to the mix can we not also get Keinan Davis back? To be honest, in Emery's system he would offer loads more than Ings did (putting aside his tendency to be made of papier mache).
On the Keinan front, I think if we brought him back to replace Ings this place would go into meltdown. But on a more practical point, I don't believe there is a recall clause in any of our Championship loans. They could terminate by mutual consent, but I suspect Watford would want paying for that, and paying to have our own player come back from a loan would be the most ridiculously Villa thing ever.
You're right, but if we could get him back and he was fit it wouldn't be the worst idea. At his best he is a handful and retains possession well - we'd have had a far more comfortable game against Leeds with him up front than we did with Ings. It's not that long ago that we wanted £10m+ for him off Forest, and a few Forest fans I know would have been more than happy for them to pay it.
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Bert is crocked.
Is he? Seems weird they haven’t sent him back anyway if that’s the case.
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Percy on Twitter
“Traore recall is an obvious solution for Emery, who had made a winger a priority this month. With prices for his targets v high, bringing a player back who is already contracted to the club makes sense so he can see him up close. Villa intend to do their main business in summer”
Next window, eh. Who'd have thought.
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Percy on Twitter
“Traore recall is an obvious solution for Emery, who had made a winger a priority this month. With prices for his targets v high, bringing a player back who is already contracted to the club makes sense so he can see him up close. Villa intend to do their main business in summer”
Next window, eh. Who'd have thought.
Kick that can down the road again.
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Percy on Twitter
“Traore recall is an obvious solution for Emery, who had made a winger a priority this month. With prices for his targets v high, bringing a player back who is already contracted to the club makes sense so he can see him up close. Villa intend to do their main business in summer”
Next window, eh. Who'd have thought.
Kick that can down the road again.
We'll win later..
We don't need him back - he's overcoming a "serious" knee injury, not idea what he would offer over the next 3 or 4 months. He was plagued with hamstring and groin issues leading up to his loan. This is a total letdown.
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Traore back from Turkey tweets John Percy
… I’m a bit slow
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Percy on Twitter
“Traore recall is an obvious solution for Emery, who had made a winger a priority this month. With prices for his targets v high, bringing a player back who is already contracted to the club makes sense so he can see him up close. Villa intend to do their main business in summer”
Next window, eh. Who'd have thought.
The next window though is massively different to this one. I don’t want the club overspending on players. We’ve done plenty of that over the years. But you’d have thought we could have for someone in for a decent price that actually improves us.
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With FFP the wealth of our owners is somewhat irrelevant. Also when we got promoted 4 years ago i did not expect to see such quality in the squads of Brighton, Fulham and Brentford.
It doesn't seem to be irrelevant for any other team. We also made £100m profit on one player 18 months ago, and have cleared out a lot of players such that we couldn't actually put out a proper full squad in the last league game.
FFP really doesn't seem to be all it is cracked up to be and I do not believe it's holding us back.
I posted a Swiss Ramble review of Chelsea's spending a week or so ago and there are so many parameters involved that a smart club is not likely to run foul of FFP (or they are perfectly willing to pay the nominal penalty).
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Bert back makes sense - also maybe Davies?
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I've no problem with Ings being sold, just not at a value where WHU think they've got the better of the deal. I'd have thought £25 mill was closer to what he's worth to a relegation threatened team.
Agreed, £12m plus add-ons up to £3m is very generous. I doubt very much we'll see the extra £3m, certainly not if it's based on first team starts.
Its based on them staying up so we will see it.
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Percy on Twitter
“Traore recall is an obvious solution for Emery, who had made a winger a priority this month. With prices for his targets v high, bringing a player back who is already contracted to the club makes sense so he can see him up close. Villa intend to do their main business in summer”
Announcing to the world at the beginning of the window we had billions to spend on João Felix may not have worked in our advantage. That said, the PL does seem to be the golden goose for all European league clubs with a half decent player to sell; whatever you can get in your local market - at least double it.
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Idiot in Sky Sports saying the period over which Chelsea pay for Fernandez will have FFP implications.
Twat.
It's true.
That’s not how amortisation works , it’s the price paid divided by the term of the contract. The period you take to buy the player is irrelevant.
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Percy on Twitter
“Traore recall is an obvious solution for Emery, who had made a winger a priority this month. With prices for his targets v high, bringing a player back who is already contracted to the club makes sense so he can see him up close. Villa intend to do their main business in summer”
Announcing to the world at the beginning of the window we had billions to spend on João Felix may not have worked in our advantage. That said, the PL does seem to be the golden goose for all European league clubs with a half decent player to sell; whatever you can get in your local market - at least double it.
We didn’t though did we? The media made that shit up as they do most transfer links.
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So we started off the window with links to Danjuma, Guendouzi, Felix, David and ended up with Moreno, Duran and the return of Bert who’s having to be helped down the Air Turkiye plane steps as he’s on crutches.
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We did allow that chump Gerrard to spend £80m on players though. Maybe that is it.
The greasy money and the Gerrard appointment.
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What actually happened to Bert's knee. I don't see anything official?
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Percy on Twitter
“Traore recall is an obvious solution for Emery, who had made a winger a priority this month. With prices for his targets v high, bringing a player back who is already contracted to the club makes sense so he can see him up close. Villa intend to do their main business in summer”
Announcing to the world at the beginning of the window we had billions to spend on João Felix may not have worked in our advantage. That said, the PL does seem to be the golden goose for all European league clubs with a half decent player to sell; whatever you can get in your local market - at least double it.
We didn’t though did we? The media made that shit up as they do most transfer links.
Nobody knows anything.
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I'm in the "this is fucking shit" camp, for most of the reasons mentioned by others.
Liverpool and Chelsea won't be this shit next season.
Sure, but Brighton, Brentford and Fulham are unlikely to be this good either. Levels of hysteria on here are pretty wild lads, have to be honest
I haven't seen much hysteria. I've seen a number of people a bit pissed off that we seem to be leaving ourselves very exposed in terms of squad depth and possibly missing a big opportunity for a really high league finish this season. Kamara, Martinez and Luiz won't wait forever and finishing 10-12 isn't going to attract the next crop.
Spot on.
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How happy would we have been with signing some of these Wingers/Attackers/ Forwards
Joao Felix
Arnaut Danjuma
Matheus Cunha
Anthony Gordon
Memphis Depay
Hakim Ziyech
Mykhaylo Mudryk
Leandro Trossard
Javier Pastore
Kasper Dolberg
Tete
Viktor Tsyhankov
Bamba Dieng
Noni Madueke
Dango Ouattara
Terum Moffi
Isco
Wout Weghorst
Chris Wood
Mislav Orsic
Antoine Semenyo
Georginio Rutter
They all moved
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We did allow that chump Gerrard to spend £80m on players though. Maybe that is it.
The greasy money and the Gerrard appointment.
Gerrard spent 80m??
What did we get for that?
Coutinho, Digne and Carlos ?
Name and pedigree thats not bad on paper.
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Percy on Twitter
“Traore recall is an obvious solution for Emery, who had made a winger a priority this month. With prices for his targets v high, bringing a player back who is already contracted to the club makes sense so he can see him up close. Villa intend to do their main business in summer”
Announcing to the world at the beginning of the window we had billions to spend on João Felix may not have worked in our advantage. That said, the PL does seem to be the golden goose for all European league clubs with a half decent player to sell; whatever you can get in your local market - at least double it.
We didn’t though did we? The media made that shit up as they do most transfer links.
Nobody knows anything.
Exactly.
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If Traore is being recalled, then that fixes the cover & competition issues up front. Don't get me wrong, its not ideal & making a marquee signing would be better to improve the whole squad, but if he is the six month fix, then I can live with that... But, & its a big 'but', if this is it for January, then next summer has to be a big one with several marquee signings. If not, then even the more relaxed amongst us about the current situation, like myself, will be questioning exactly where the owners are taking us. Although the last time I did that over at another forum, I got banned for fear of them losing access to a guy who loved to talk when things were going well, but not so much when they weren't... ;D
This is it for me. Emery has only had a couple of months here in terms of playing time, I am certain when he came he was told what backing he would have and is happy to keep his powder dry for now if it means he will be properly backed when the players he really wants are available. A quiet window is fine this this time, but we should then be rightly pissed off if we don't really go for it ahead of next season.
Also, if we have re-added Bertie to the mix can we not also get Keinan Davis back? To be honest, in Emery's system he would offer loads more than Ings did (putting aside his tendency to be made of papier mache).
On the Keinan front, I think if we brought him back to replace Ings this place would go into meltdown. But on a more practical point, I don't believe there is a recall clause in any of our Championship loans. They could terminate by mutual consent, but I suspect Watford would want paying for that, and paying to have our own player come back from a loan would be the most ridiculously Villa thing ever.
They would make it as difficult as possible because they are fucking about with Kourtney Hause. He got injured on their watch, but despite not having a 'send back' clause, they want to wash their hands of him. We have rightfully said, "respect the contract", but they are refusing to do anything & have not included him in their squad for the second half of the season. Personally, I would recall both Hause & Davis & blacklist Watford from ever loaning from us again...
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How happy would we have been with signing some of these Wingers/Attackers/ Forwards
Joao Felix
Arnaut Danjuma
Matheus Cunha
Anthony Gordon
Memphis Depay
Hakim Ziyech
Mykhaylo Mudryk
Leandro Trossard
Javier Pastore
Kasper Dolberg
Tete
Viktor Tsyhankov
Bamba Dieng
Noni Madueke
Dango Ouattara
Terum Moffi
Isco
Wout Weghorst
Chris Wood
Mislav Orsic
Antoine Semenyo
Georginio Rutter
They all moved
Hi reality meet Footy-vill, hi Footy-vill meet reality.
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How happy would we have been with signing some of these Wingers/Attackers/ Forwards
Joao Felix
Arnaut Danjuma
Matheus Cunha
Anthony Gordon
Memphis Depay
Hakim Ziyech
Mykhaylo Mudryk
Leandro Trossard
Javier Pastore
Kasper Dolberg
Tete
Viktor Tsyhankov
Bamba Dieng
Noni Madueke
Dango Ouattara
Terum Moffi
Isco
Wout Weghorst
Chris Wood
Mislav Orsic
Antoine Semenyo
Georginio Rutter
They all moved
Hi reality meet Footy-vill, hi Footy-vill meet reality.
Ok but the more pertinent questions are: which ones would have imoroved us and would have come to us?
There's this really simplified view that because a player is sold that they will go to any club. Putting mudryk/ziyech/trossard/felix on that list is a bit daft really cos they never would've come to us.
Seems to be the same arguments on loop on here
-
Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
-
If there is something happening for players, they have perfected the art of keeping it under wraps as there doesn't seem to be much of a sniff of any news.
-
Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
Is he good? I'bve heard the name a few times and he seems to have been linked to a few decent clubs but that's about all I know about him.
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Somebody posts on here there are unsubstantiated rumours we are linked to player X, whilst credible sources suggest player X is about to sign for club Y
Club Y announce signing of player X
The forum goes mad that we havent signed player X.
Rinse and repeat.
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Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
Is he good? I'bve heard the name a few times and he seems to have been linked to a few decent clubs but that's about all I know about him.
0 goals in 19 for Wolves and 0 in 17 for PSG this season suggest his goals wouldn't be firing us up the table.
-
Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
Is he good? I'bve heard the name a few times and he seems to have been linked to a few decent clubs but that's about all I know about him.
0 goals in 19 for Wolves and 0 in 17 for PSG this season suggest his goals wouldn't be firing us up the table.
Different Vitinha.
-
The club haven't tweeted in almost 24 hours. They've got something planned imo. They'll announce a big one.
Just a feeling I have.
No pinned tweet either
I dont know what either of those comments mean :(
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Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
Is he good? I'bve heard the name a few times and he seems to have been linked to a few decent clubs but that's about all I know about him.
0 goals in 19 for Wolves and 0 in 17 for PSG this season suggest his goals wouldn't be firing us up the table.
Different Vitinha.
Phew! :)
-
Wiki seems to consider him a midfielder.
-
Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
Is he good? I'bve heard the name a few times and he seems to have been linked to a few decent clubs but that's about all I know about him.
0 goals in 19 for Wolves and 0 in 17 for PSG this season suggest his goals wouldn't be firing us up the table.
Different player, the guy Rudy mentioned is at Braga not PSG.
-
Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
Is he good? I'bve heard the name a few times and he seems to have been linked to a few decent clubs but that's about all I know about him.
0 goals in 19 for Wolves and 0 in 17 for PSG this season suggest his goals wouldn't be firing us up the table.
Different Vitinha.
Yep, the Wolves one was Dave Vitinha, this is his brother Chris.
-
Wiki seems to consider him a midfielder.
Different Vitinha.
-
Wiki seems to consider him a midfielder.
The one supposedly moving is the Braga forward, not the PSG midfielder.
-
Wiki seems to consider him a midfielder.
The one supposedly moving is the Braga forward, not the PSG midfielder.
He's listed as Vítor Oliveira on Wiki. A forward with 14 in 42 games for Braga this season.
-
If there is something happening for players, they have perfected the art of keeping it under wraps as there doesn't seem to be much of a sniff of any news.
The "under wraps" phenomenon has been replaced or at least not the only way stated by Tom ITK Collomose. He said that Emery has the keys to the castle and that piqueing players' interests is something that is totally acceptable to him based on his past clubs
Doesn't mean it won't happen, but the links between the players and the levels we want appear fairly clear, and Emery acknowledged that it can be difficult to persuade some players to come.
-
Examples include Felix, Depay, and Guendouzi, who all desired to maintain champions league-level soccer.
Our goal is to raise the playing level of the entire team to that of our champions league manager.
-
Might I suggest we could bring Wesley back from loan
“Nurse…pass the tin hat”
-
Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
Is he good? I'bve heard the name a few times and he seems to have been linked to a few decent clubs but that's about all I know about him.
A proper centre forward, better than anything we have right now; he's only 22 but has all the characteristics to be a top golscoring striker. Annoying thing is, I could see him easily adapting to the PL. He's fast, not afraid to take on a player, a great shot on him and most importantly he knows where the back of the net is. There's a reason Braga are sitting in second place above Porto and the Mighty Sporting.
There's still time..
-
The phrase rinse and repeat does get rinsed and repeated quite a lot on here
-
Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
Is he good? I'bve heard the name a few times and he seems to have been linked to a few decent clubs but that's about all I know about him.
A proper centre forward, better than anything we have right now; he's only 22 but has all the characteristics to be a top golscoring striker. Annoying thing is, I could see him easily adapting to the PL. He's fast, not afraid to take on a player, a great shot on him and most importantly he knows where the back of the net is. There's a reason Braga are sitting in second place above Porto and the Mighty Sporting.
There's still time..
Fantastic, that's about the impression I got from youtube. I'd be happy with that, him Watkins and Duran through to the summer and then hopefully Archer to add in and suddenly that looks like a good range of options, especially with Bailey and Bert in the mix for one of the 2 roles.
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Wiki seems to consider him a midfielder.
The one supposedly moving is the Braga forward, not the PSG midfielder.
He's listed as Vítor Oliveira on Wiki. A forward with 14 in 42 games for Braga this season.
13 goals in 27 games.
-
Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
Is he good? I'bve heard the name a few times and he seems to have been linked to a few decent clubs but that's about all I know about him.
A proper centre forward, better than anything we have right now; he's only 22 but has all the characteristics to be a top golscoring striker. Annoying thing is, I could see him easily adapting to the PL. He's fast, not afraid to take on a player, a great shot on him and most importantly he knows where the back of the net is. There's a reason Braga are sitting in second place above Porto and the Mighty Sporting.
There's still time..
So we're now talking out him because Marseille have beaten Southampton to the signing? What has that got to do with us?
-
Josh Onomah is a free agent. He could do a job.
-
Loose rumours that we're interested in Vitinha of Sporting Braga. News here claims Marseille are close to signing him for €32m. A big kick in the nuts for Southampton who thought they had him by meeting his £26m buy-out clause. If we are interested, we better move quickly.
Is he good? I'bve heard the name a few times and he seems to have been linked to a few decent clubs but that's about all I know about him.
A proper centre forward, better than anything we have right now; he's only 22 but has all the characteristics to be a top golscoring striker. Annoying thing is, I could see him easily adapting to the PL. He's fast, not afraid to take on a player, a great shot on him and most importantly he knows where the back of the net is. There's a reason Braga are sitting in second place above Porto and the Mighty Sporting.
There's still time..
Fantastic, that's about the impression I got from youtube. I'd be happy with that, him Watkins and Duran through to the summer and then hopefully Archer to add in and suddenly that looks like a good range of options, especially with Bailey and Bert in the mix for one of the 2 roles.
I wouldnt get too enthused about him, a few reports saying he is physically in Marseille to have a medical and sign for them
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Wiki seems to consider him a midfielder.
The one supposedly moving is the Braga forward, not the PSG midfielder.
He's listed as Vítor Oliveira on Wiki. A forward with 14 in 42 games for Braga this season.
13 goals in 27 games.
Yes, it's 14 in 42 league games the last season and a half. 13 in 27 games this season including Europe and the cups.
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Shelvey and Jorginho
-
Shelvey and Jorginho
Fellows that were in the mood
Don't just stand there, let's get to it
Strike a pose, there's nothing to it
-
Bid for Patrick Bamford?
-
Bid for Patrick Bamford?
Get the fuck outta here!
-
Twitter:
"Aston Villa are working on a last-gasp deal to sign Lyon midfielder Hosseum Aouar."
-
Bid for Patrick Bamford?
Has the punchbag at Bodymoor broken?
-
Houssem Aouar. Villa trying to progress a last ditch loan deal for Lyon midfielder who has had an injury plagued season.
-
He was hot property a couple of years back
-
I would take Bamford. There I have said it. If Anwar comes back there could be trouble mind.
-
Sander Berge? If we don't do a deal Fulham or Newcastle will.
If Lange had any Scandinavian influence now is the time
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I would take Bamford. There I have said it. If Anwar comes back there could be trouble mind.
You can’t be suggesting we pay money to buy El Ghazi back?? :-)
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Bamford had one season where he looked prem level. And that happened to be the season with no fans in the stadium so it was training ground performances.
He's overall shown over previous seasons patently not good enough and injured constantly in recent times it's a no even if he scores against Villa quite recently
-
Sander Berge? If we don't do a deal Fulham or Newcastle will.
If Lange had any Scandinavian influence now is the time
Why in the holy name of fuck would we go for him when we've already got three better versions of what he does to cover two spots?
-
Aouar's had a rough time recently but the talent there is top-level.
-
Houssem Aouar. Villa trying to progress a last ditch loan deal for Lyon midfielder who has had an injury plagued season.
Weren't we linked to him before? I seem to recall someone saying his name sounded like a Wurzels refrain.
-
So we started off the window with links to Danjuma, Guendouzi, Felix, David and ended up with Moreno, Duran and the return of Bert who’s having to be helped down the Air Turkiye plane steps as he’s on crutches.
They are all coming in the summer, honest! 2023-24 is going to be our year!
In reality, I would bet that we'll lose another major asset just like after the 2020-21 season when the optimism levels were damn close to what they are now.
What Aston Villa do is take one step forward to build false hope then never take the next step. The vultures then swoop in because we didn't progress and rip apart the spine. Repeat....!
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Idiot in Sky Sports saying the period over which Chelsea pay for Fernandez will have FFP implications.
Twat.
It's true.
That’s not how amortisation works , it’s the price paid divided by the term of the contract. The period you take to buy the player is irrelevant.
Yeah Paulie... you thicko :D
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Sander Berge? If we don't do a deal Fulham or Newcastle will.
If Lange had any Scandinavian influence now is the time
Why in the holy name of fuck would we go for him when we've already got three better versions of what he does to cover two spots?
6 ft 5 in and can be utilised. I think hes decent and gettable and has resale.
The only player close to him is Dendoncker and I prefer Berge.
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Sander Berge? If we don't do a deal Fulham or Newcastle will.
If Lange had any Scandinavian influence now is the time
Why in the holy name of fuck would we go for him when we've already got three better versions of what he does to cover two spots?
6 ft 5 in and can be utilised. I think hes decent and gettable and has resale.
The only player close to him is Dendoncker and I prefer Berge.
Have you not watched the last few weeks take place? You'd sign Berge because you prefer him to the other backup defensive midfielder?
-
Shelvey and Jorginho
Fellows that were in the mood
Don't just stand there, let's get to it
Strike a pose, there's nothing to it
come on folks, you can't let this go with giving it some credit.
-
I'm surprised Thuram didn't get a move after the World Cup.
-
Sander Berge? If we don't do a deal Fulham or Newcastle will.
If Lange had any Scandinavian influence now is the time
Why in the holy name of fuck would we go for him when we've already got three better versions of what he does to cover two spots?
6 ft 5 in and can be utilised. I think hes decent and gettable and has resale.
The only player close to him is Dendoncker and I prefer Berge.
You want to buy a player on deadline day as a replacement for our fourth/fifth choice central midfielder, who we only signed a few months ago for £13m? I'm not saying Berge is a bad player (I advocated for him myself after Sheff Utd were relegated), but what he brings to a team is absolutely not a priority for us right now. If we're going for more defensive-minded midfielders, it has to be agile athletes who can play on the half-turn like Kamara - that's clearly how emery wants his pivots to play, not as big units like Berge (and even Dendoncker to a certain extent).
-
I would take Bamford. There I have said it. If Anwar comes back there could be trouble mind.
What you do in the privacy of your own bedroom is your own business...
-
In for Houssem Aouar apparently
-
Shelvey and Jorginho
Fellows that were in the mood
Don't just stand there, let's get to it
Strike a pose, there's nothing to it
come on folks, you can't let this go with giving it some credit.
Cheers Chris, I'm not in it for the money or fame but a little appreciation goes a long way
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Idiot in Sky Sports saying the period over which Chelsea pay for Fernandez will have FFP implications.
Twat.
It's true.
That’s not how amortisation works , it’s the price paid divided by the term of the contract. The period you take to buy the player is irrelevant.
Yeah Paulie... you thicko :D
It is amortisation I am talking about and that's what they are talking about when they refer to 'how Chelsea pay' for him, not literally when they write the cheques - how they amortise it.
-
Ive just put Sky Sport News deadline day where are they as panel isn't in studio?
Some revolving door as well clever symbolism.
-
Sander Berge? If we don't do a deal Fulham or Newcastle will.
If Lange had any Scandinavian influence now is the time
Why in the holy name of fuck would we go for him when we've already got three better versions of what he does to cover two spots?
6 ft 5 in and can be utilised. I think hes decent and gettable and has resale.
The only player close to him is Dendoncker and I prefer Berge.
You want to buy a player on deadline day as a replacement for our fourth/fifth choice central midfielder, who we only signed a few months ago for £13m? I'm not saying Berge is a bad player (I advocated for him myself after Sheff Utd were relegated), but what he brings to a team is absolutely not a priority for us right now. If we're going for more defensive-minded midfielders, it has to be agile athletes who can play on the half-turn like Kamara - that's clearly how emery wants his pivots to play, not as big units like Berge (and even Dendoncker to a certain extent).
I see Emery getting players with flexibility and avility to play a variety of positions. Why would Fulham and Newcastle want him as they too have midfielders.
The answer is he brings something to a team.
-
I suspect it's just something lost in translation. A £100m transfer doesn't matter when it's paid for, eg 3 installments over three years, other than for the buying club's own cash flow. It's the purchase price over the contract length that's in the FFP calculation.
-
Ive just put Sky Sport News deadline day where are they as panel isn't in studio?
Some revolving door as well clever symbolism.
I wonder if we're getting Guendouzi as Football Insider suggested. Maybe it's Sanson being difficult that's holding things up?
-
I suspect it's just something lost in translation. A £100m transfer doesn't matter when it's paid for, eg 3 installments over three years, other than for the buying club's own cash flow. It's the purchase price over the contract length that's in the FFP calculation.
THat is what I meant, they say "how long they take to pay" but they're actually talking about how they amortise it. It's just loose language for your average TalkSport listener.
-
Ive just put Sky Sport News deadline day where are they as panel isn't in studio?
Some revolving door as well clever symbolism.
Their set up in the front lobby to their main building on their campus
-
Ive just put Sky Sport News deadline day where are they as panel isn't in studio?
Some revolving door as well clever symbolism.
I wonder if we're getting Guendouzi as Football Insider suggested. Maybe it's Sanson being difficult that's holding things up?
Who was the player at the centre of the release clause 'bidding war' thing a few years ago?
-
Ive just put Sky Sport News deadline day where are they as panel isn't in studio?
Some revolving door as well clever symbolism.
I wonder if we're getting Guendouzi as Football Insider suggested. Maybe it's Sanson being difficult that's holding things up?
Who was the player at the centre of the release clause 'bidding war' thing a few years ago?
Benteke wasn't it?
-
Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
-
Ive just put Sky Sport News deadline day where are they as panel isn't in studio?
Some revolving door as well clever symbolism.
Their set up in the front lobby to their main building on their campus
ThankYou.
-
It will be a great day when sky lose the rights to this pantomime.
-
It will be a great day when sky lose the rights to this pantomime.
One of the panel is Jamie O'Hara and even though he's risen in prominence in media he seems ill informed on transfer matters.
He can do a phone in on talksport, but hes not much in the loop for the transfer chat
-
The Houssem Aouar story is from Football Insider, so file in the bin.
-
Ive just put Sky Sport News deadline day where are they as panel isn't in studio?
Some revolving door as well clever symbolism.
(https://i.ibb.co/0JYnBj7/Phillip-Tataglia-at-the-Meeting-of-the-Five-Families.jpg)
-
The Houssem Aouar story is from Football Insider, so file in the bin.
Yeah, I just noticed that
*sinking feeling*
-
The Houssem Aouar story is from Football Insider, so file in the bin.
Yeah, I just noticed that
*sinking feeling*
Was just Googling and then realised
-
The Houssem Aouar story is from Football Insider, so file in the bin.
Yeah, I just noticed that
*sinking feeling*
fuck I just saw that also. Balls firmly kicked
-
Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
They have no insight at all…if a club wants them to know something they will tell them that’s it.
-
Maybe the OS will surprise us with the announcement of Danny Ings.
-
Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
They have no insight at all…if a club wants them to know something they will tell them that’s it.
Quite. It’s theatrical bullshit. ‘I’m hearing’ translated as I’ve read the papers.
-
Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
They have no insight at all…if a club wants them to know something they will tell them that’s it.
They get texts live on air !
And they are as connected as anyone.
Guess they are coming up later so will look to hear what they say on Villa later.
Also Rob Dorset is very itk on Villa hes a sky sports reporter.
Most of the ex footballers are just there to talk about things rather than any In the Know.
-
The Houssem Aouar story is from Football Insider, so file in the bin.
The thing with FI is it depends where they've pulled it from, they run 3 types of story, stuff they stolen from a real journalist, stuff they've stolen from random tweets and stuff they've either made up or turned into a story that in no way reflect whoever they're quoting. If it's the first type then maybe.
-
Aaron Ramsey off to Middlesbrough it appears.
-
With our incredible depth Aaron Ramsey might have been worth keeping around.
-
The Houssem Aouar story is from Football Insider, so file in the bin.
The thing with FI is it depends where they've pulled it from, they run 3 types of story, stuff they stolen from a real journalist, stuff they've stolen from random tweets and stuff they've either made up or turned into a story that in no way reflect whoever they're quoting. If it's the first type then maybe.
They're quoting a freelance guy called Pete O'Rourke, who appears to be A Real Journalist. But I have no idea whether he is a reliable one.
Edit - scrap that. He seems to be quoting them. So not that reliable at all then. Actually it seems that he pretty much IS them. As you were.
-
He is normally good. He told us Joe Bryan had signed.
-
Wouldn't mind us trying for Omobamidele from norwich in the summer, looks a really good prospect from what i've seen of him with Ireland.
-
I wouldn’t mind onomatopoeia signing.
-
Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
They have no insight at all…if a club wants them to know something they will tell them that’s it.
They get texts live on air !
And they are as connected as anyone.
Guess they are coming up later so will look to hear what they say on Villa later.
Also Rob Dorset is very itk on Villa hes a sky sports reporter.
Most of the ex footballers are just there to talk about things rather than any In the Know.
They really aren’t….for ITK on Villa it is whoever in the media Tommy Jordan decides to pass info to…
They are purely reporting information…
-
I wouldn’t mind onomatopoeia signing.
Is Kid Creole his dad?
-
Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
They'll probably be on from 7pm onwards, when things get really exciting!
-
Idiot in Sky Sports saying the period over which Chelsea pay for Fernandez will have FFP implications.
Twat.
It's true.
That’s not how amortisation works , it’s the price paid divided by the term of the contract. The period you take to buy the player is irrelevant.
Yeah Paulie... you thicko :D
It is amortisation I am talking about and that's what they are talking about when they refer to 'how Chelsea pay' for him, not literally when they write the cheques - how they amortise it.
Oh yeah I knew what you meant Paulie. It was CL telling you how amortisation works that made me smile.
-
Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
I think you're being polite there, i'd describe them as the most smug, smarmy punchable fuckers on television. Well, apart from that ****** off the cinch advert.
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Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
I think you're being polite there, i'd describe them as the most smug, smarmy punchable fuckers on television. Well, apart from that ****** off the cinch advert.
Those are two of the biggest twats on television, and no mistake.
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Aaron and Archer to fire Boro to the Prem.
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Idiot in Sky Sports saying the period over which Chelsea pay for Fernandez will have FFP implications.
Twat.
It's true.
That’s not how amortisation works , it’s the price paid divided by the term of the contract. The period you take to buy the player is irrelevant.
Yeah Paulie... you thicko :D
It is amortisation I am talking about and that's what they are talking about when they refer to 'how Chelsea pay' for him, not literally when they write the cheques - how they amortise it.
Oh yeah I knew what you meant Paulie. It was CL telling you how amortisation works that made me smile.
Nah, was me, not expressing myself very clearly.
*smokes three fags at same time, refreshes twitter*
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I thought Aaron was injured.
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Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
They have no insight at all…if a club wants them to know something they will tell them that’s it.
They get texts live on air !
And they are as connected as anyone.
Guess they are coming up later so will look to hear what they say on Villa later.
Also Rob Dorset is very itk on Villa hes a sky sports reporter.
Most of the ex footballers are just there to talk about things rather than any In the Know.
They really aren’t….for ITK on Villa it is whoever in the media Tommy Jordan decides to pass info to…
They are purely reporting information…
Dharmesh is now on the show, explaining how he has a few reliable sources. And when people call him, he and Kavi double-check their sources as well as contact the club or player directly.
So Rob Doresett, Dharmesh Sheth, and Kaveh Solhekol aren't just reporting data? I could argue that it is not strictly ITK, but it is similar in case as trusted sources such as some others who have basically been told things for transfer moves. There are probably others, but these are all fairly trustworthy.
Jim White
John Percy
Tom Collomosse
Fabrizo Romano
Guillem Balagué
Gianluca Di Marzio
Davis Ornstein
Simon Stone
Matt Law
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Aaron and Archer to fire Boro to the Prem.
They'll probably pay us 30m each if they do.
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Bid for Patrick Bamford?
Don't even jest. It really isn't funny
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Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
They have no insight at all…if a club wants them to know something they will tell them that’s it.
They get texts live on air !
And they are as connected as anyone.
Guess they are coming up later so will look to hear what they say on Villa later.
Also Rob Dorset is very itk on Villa hes a sky sports reporter.
Most of the ex footballers are just there to talk about things rather than any In the Know.
They really aren’t….for ITK on Villa it is whoever in the media Tommy Jordan decides to pass info to…
They are purely reporting information…
Dharmesh is now on the show, explaining how he has a few reliable sources. And when people call him, he and Kavi double-check their sources as well as contact the club or player directly.
So Rob Doresett, Dharmesh Sheth, and Kaveh Solhekol aren't just reporting data? I could argue that it is not strictly ITK, but it is similar in case as trusted sources such as some others who have basically been told things for transfer moves. There are probably others, but these are all fairly trustworthy.
Jim White
John Percy
Tom Collomosse
Fabrizo Romano
Guillem Balagué
Gianluca Di Marzio
Davis Ornstein
Simon Stone
Matt Law
From that list fabrizio and Percy have reliability. The rest just make stuff up and follow the first two on Twitter
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“Keep an eye on Villa this evening”
James Nursey, Talkshite.
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BBC saying Bertrand Traore has been recalled from his loan deal - sorry if someone has already posted this
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The yellow ticker program on Sky sports is just unwatchable.
The gravity and seriousness of every tiny snippet of football transfer ‘news’ is delivered like the nuclear holocaust is about to be unleashed.
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Only a few hours to go, andy!
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Idiot in Sky Sports saying the period over which Chelsea pay for Fernandez will have FFP implications.
Twat.
It's true.
That’s not how amortisation works , it’s the price paid divided by the term of the contract. The period you take to buy the player is irrelevant.
Yeah Paulie... you thicko :D
It is amortisation I am talking about and that's what they are talking about when they refer to 'how Chelsea pay' for him, not literally when they write the cheques - how they amortise it.
Oh yeah I knew what you meant Paulie. It was CL telling you how amortisation works that made me smile.
Amazing
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The news desk at sky speaks to a lot of other broadcasters.
Kaveh has reported that news can come from that and own sources.
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The yellow ticker program on Sky sports is just unwatchable.
The gravity and seriousness of every tiny snippet of football transfer ‘news’ is delivered like the nuclear holocaust is about to be unleashed.
It’s that no nothing bell end Kaveh Solhekol who says absolutely nothing at all any time he speaks.
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The yellow ticker program on Sky sports is just unwatchable.
The gravity and seriousness of every tiny snippet of football transfer ‘news’ is delivered like the nuclear holocaust is about to be unleashed.
It’s that no nothing bell end Kaveh Solhekol who says absolutely nothing at all any time he speaks.
Its really uncalled for why you have to abuse Kaveh he's just doing his job.
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Nah, he's a fucking bellend mate.
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Well I guess people are free to have their views if a little rude!
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Just got in from work, hoped it was a 5pm transfer window 'slamming shut' so I didn't have to put up with the sensationalist bullshit from Solhekol and Darmy whatshisname. 16 year old bless him is hoping Villa make some superb last minute signings. The innocence of youth eh? He'll soon learn...
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I knew someone who worked as a “journalist” for the S@n on their Sports desk. Transfer rumours pretty much entirely made up. One of the few things that didn’t have to go through lawyers before publication.
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Its telling Sky Sports Rob Doresett is stationed at Forest and not Villa for the final day.
No reports at all on Villa.
We know Emery said as well as Duran, "I want to balance the squad by trying to get another striker but only with the idea to improve us"
So if there isn't one to improve us then we won't sign a striker and wait till the summer.
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I hate transfer deadline day. It celebrates chucking unsustainable sums of cash at each and every problem like it’s a good thing. I don’t get the appeal.
Yours,
Grumpy old man
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I hate transfer deadline day. It celebrates chucking unsustainable sums of cash at each and every problem like it’s a good thing. I don’t get the appeal.
Yours,
Grumpy old man
Seconded.
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I hate transfer deadline day. It celebrates chucking unsustainable sums of cash at each and every problem like it’s a good thing. I don’t get the appeal.
Yours,
Grumpy old man
Yes see also the transfer spend calculator - let’s celebrate the stupidity and greed in football.
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My memory of Bert is that he was always injured. I would like to see his playing stats.
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I've no problem with Ings being sold, just not at a value where WHU think they've got the better of the deal. I'd have thought £25 mill was closer to what he's worth to a relegation threatened team.
I think I would rather not get the extra £3m.
Agreed, £12m plus add-ons up to £3m is very generous. I doubt very much we'll see the extra £3m, certainly not if it's based on first team starts.
Its based on them staying up so we will see it.
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Who decided that the deadline for doing your tax return was the same day as the window slamming shut? Like I earn enough to pay tax anyway.
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Fabrizio Romano going live on YouTube in a minute, if anyone's interested..
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“Keep an eye on Villa this evening”
James Nursey, Talkshite.
Alex Crook just said the same thing, Talkshite again though.
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My memory of Bert is that he was always injured. I would like to see his playing stats.
https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/bertrand-traore/verletzungen/spieler/131996
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Fabrizio Romano going live on YouTube in a minute, if anyone's interested..
yes I am on here now , bit more low key than sky sports news
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“Keep an eye on Villa this evening”
James Nursey, Talkshite.
You sure he didn't mean The Villa on Love Island? Will be a lively one tonight I reckon.
*Runs for cover*
Alex Crook just said the same thing, Talkshite again though.
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I see the clickbaits are doing their level best in Newsnow with NEWS OF A TRIPLE TRANSFER on a busy night for Villa. Fuck em, I’m not clicking. Honestly.
Really disappointing window. We upgraded a left back. Whoopy fucking dooo. The expectations on Durans shoulders are through the roof.
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Boring transfer window.
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Fabrizio Romano going live on YouTube in a minute, if anyone's interested..
yes I am on here now , bit more low key than sky sports news
Much better than I expected. He's an open book and his knowledge, off the cuff, across all of the european domestic leagues is impressive. "I tell the truth, I do not sell dreams." Great opening to the stream.
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Our late transfer will probably be Wesley.
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Our late transfer will probably be Wesley.
Hopefully not
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It's almost guaranteed that the previously impervious Watkins will pick up an injury and be out for 10 weeks some time in February.
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I get the pessimism and pushing for Europe. What if we are actually fine? Window still open and still time
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We have lots of lefties now
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We have lots of lefties now
'Twas ever thus on here.
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My memory of Bert is that he was always injured. I would like to see his playing stats.
https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/bertrand-traore/verletzungen/spieler/131996
He's no Cal Ripken Jr.
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My memory of Bert is that he was always injured. I would like to see his playing stats.
https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/bertrand-traore/verletzungen/spieler/131996
ACHTUNG! VERLETZUNGEN SPIELER!
I wish I could speak German, just so I could shout at people in it. No better language to be angry in.
Do the German police still get to slap people across the face with their leather gloves and scream PAPIERE! at them? That'd be cool too.
Actually, I saw that incredible German bank heist documentary recently and they don't, they just stand around by their cars smoking, whilst sporting long hair*
* in the 70s anyway.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
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It will be a great day when sky lose the rights to this pantomime.
Its partly their monster that helped create it. First off with that grinning Scottish imbecile whose name has been erased from my memory due to the trauma of watching him pretend that he was the business. Their most recent little bit of propaganda cracked me up with that agent "documentary" fqrce. It was basically trying to gaslight us into thinking that agents are actually the good guys of football All so Sky can get an extra bit of "in the know" news to shout at a camera...
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When season tickets are due to go on sale, we’ll be promised a record busting summer transfer window. First few days we will sign our usual 2 circa £10/£15 million signings. We will then be linked to all the really big deals but, ultimately, won’t bring anyone else in and club will say, just wait until the next window. Oh and we will probably sell Watkins as well as we can’t fall foul of FFP. You heard it here first.
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The Houssem Aouar story is from Football Insider, so file in the bin.
The thing with FI is it depends where they've pulled it from, they run 3 types of story, stuff they stolen from a real journalist, stuff they've stolen from random tweets and stuff they've either made up or turned into a story that in no way reflect whoever they're quoting. If it's the first type then maybe.
Im wondering if they have pulled their usual trick of saying that "player x is signing for Villa" & then having a counter story by some other muppett employed to write their lies saying that "player x is not signing for Villa". And then they claim an exclusive either way...
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Come on Sky suppsoedly to be Deadline Day wheres the little nuggets from Dharmesh Sheth and Kaveh Solhekol?
People are mixed on them but at least they have a bit of insight unlike this current panel on Sky Sports News.
Perhaps they are on at 5pm?
They have no insight at all…if a club wants them to know something they will tell them that’s it.
They get texts live on air !
And they are as connected as anyone.
Guess they are coming up later so will look to hear what they say on Villa later.
Also Rob Dorset is very itk on Villa hes a sky sports reporter.
Most of the ex footballers are just there to talk about things rather than any In the Know.
They really aren’t….for ITK on Villa it is whoever in the media Tommy Jordan decides to pass info to…
They are purely reporting information…
Dharmesh is now on the show, explaining how he has a few reliable sources. And when people call him, he and Kavi double-check their sources as well as contact the club or player directly.
So Rob Doresett, Dharmesh Sheth, and Kaveh Solhekol aren't just reporting data? I could argue that it is not strictly ITK, but it is similar in case as trusted sources such as some others who have basically been told things for transfer moves. There are probably others, but these are all fairly trustworthy.
Jim White
John Percy
Tom Collomosse
Fabrizo Romano
Guillem Balagué
Gianluca Di Marzio
Davis Ornstein
Simon Stone
Matt Law
Grinning imbecile..
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The Houssem Aouar story is from Football Insider, so file in the bin.
The thing with FI is it depends where they've pulled it from, they run 3 types of story, stuff they stolen from a real journalist, stuff they've stolen from random tweets and stuff they've either made up or turned into a story that in no way reflect whoever they're quoting. If it's the first type then maybe.
Im wondering if they have pulled their usual trick of saying that "player x is signing for Villa" & then having a counter story by some other muppett employed to write their lies saying that "player x is not signing for Villa". And then they claim an exclusive either way...
I'd be very surprised if they gave a fuck who does or doesn't sign for Villa.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
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Indeed. The reality is we’ve left ourselves completely open for the second half of the season. We might get lucky, I hope we do, but let’s not try and spin this has a master stroke of squad development.
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Squad reduction.
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No recall option on Archer once the transfer window shuts so I hope that Watkins stays fit and scores goals, Duran is a masterstroke, Bailey can provide appropriate back-up and/or Emery has something up his sleeve in the next few hours.
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We've just missed out on Josh Onomah.
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We've just missed out on Josh Onomah.
Again!
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Indeed. The reality is we’ve left ourselves completely open for the second half of the season. We might get lucky, I hope we do, but let’s not try and spin this has a master stroke of squad development.
It's the same old story of not quite enough and 'maybe next window'.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
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We've done well to move players on - think its all a bit risky - but what do I know?
Maybe it could turn out to be fine - So long as Emery is happy its the best way forward then I'll trust that.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
It's probably never happened anywhere. We are the great innovators.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
A senior striker who is by no means prolific either
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Sorry chaps - I know this is not the correct place to show this but I’m a bit of a Luddite and I don’t know how to start a new thread (or even if I’m allowed to)
It’s behind a paywall so I can try to copy and paste if anyone is interested
DT article just posted:-
Aston Villa refuse to U-turn on new controversial shirt sponsor after fan backlash
Telegraph Sport disclosed details earlier this month of the club's new advertising deal with online casino BK8
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
It's probably never happened anywhere. We are the great innovators.
Our new chief advisor:
(https://www.chortle.co.uk/images/photos/small/blackadder-baker.jpg)
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Sorry chaps - I know this is not the correct place to show this but I’m a bit of a Luddite and I don’t know how to start a new thread (or even if I’m allowed to)
It’s behind a paywall so I can try to copy and paste if anyone is interested
DT article just posted:-
Aston Villa refuse to U-turn on new controversial shirt sponsor after fan backlash
Telegraph Sport disclosed details earlier this month of the club's new advertising deal with online casino BK8
I've just posted it to the Sponsor thread.
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Thanks Eamonn
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lLast winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
A senior striker who is by no means prolific either
All we can do is trust Unai's judgement. We're definitely pruning the squad in readiness for him to build his own. We have exciting strikers on the fringes like Duran and that Rory Wilson lad who came with such high hopes. 19 & 17 respectively. You never know one of them might pop up and do something unexpected. I live in hope anyway. The future's still bright imho.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
It's probably never happened anywhere. We are the great innovators.
Our new chief advisor:
(https://www.chortle.co.uk/images/photos/small/blackadder-baker.jpg)
My dad referenced bits from this scene until his dying day. Couldn't blame him, though.
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Thanks Eamonn
No worries, cheers for flagging it .
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We’ve let another one go. Olivia has signed for the noses.
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Curtis Jones being linked
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I presume we've already reached the point where it would be impossible to get medicals etc completed in time for a move?
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Downing passed a medical on crutches didn't he?
Can we sign someone pending the results of a medical? Not that we're going to.
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Curtis Jones being linked
Not someone I rate that highly, TBH. Just my opinion, though, and happy to be proved wrong.
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We'll have a happy squad, everyone getting an opportunity. They will be tight-knit and hungry as a group, and they will know they all get a chance. The U23s won't be polluted with players who aren't wanted either. There's no better opportunity for the players to step up and show what they can do.
It would have been nice to get a couple of others in but the ones we've let go are the ones who never play anyway. Barring Ings anyway. I trust Emery's judgement and I'm sick of us buying players just to fill a place like we've done so many times with no success in the past.
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I am hoping for A last minute loan at least but if not we go with what we have. I think Emery will have more say in goings on than any manager in the last 10 years so trust he knows what he is doing. I very much doubt afer paying money to get him the club now shits on him over investment. I would imagine it is more the players wanted are not available
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On the positive side, many of us have bemoaned the lack of opportunity for the young kids, it seems quita a few of them will be on the bech at least.
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On the positive side, many of us have bemoaned the lack of opportunity for the young kids, it seems quita a few of them will be on the bech at least.
You’d think but the most likely ones to make the step up are out on loan.
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It says it all when sky don’t even bother sending a reporter to BMH this time round.
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We'll have a happy squad, everyone getting an opportunity. They will be tight-knit and hungry as a group, and they will know they all get a chance. The U23s won't be polluted with players who aren't wanted either. There's no better opportunity for the players to step up and show what they can do.
It would have been nice to get a couple of others in but the ones we've let go are the ones who never play anyway. Barring Ings anyway. I trust Emery's judgement and I'm sick of us buying players just to fill a place like we've done so many times with no success in the past.
Agree with this and most of what you've posted here today (as well as FatSam's and boozey182's posts earlier).
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Young and hungry. We've heard that before.
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Young and hungry. We've heard that before.
Yep works well. The reality is it’s just rationalising an unambiguous approach. I wonder how happy our best players are.
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3 points off Europe and we sign no one that will affect our chances this season, in fact we possibly diminish our chances selling our top scorer. Ambition.
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Footage outside Bodymoor
(https://thumbs.gfycat.com/ClosedFeistyFairyfly-size_restricted.gif)
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Young and hungry. We've heard that before.
Yep works well. The reality is it’s just rationalising an unambiguous approach. I wonder how happy our best players are.
On the phone to their agent I suspect. Shambles of a window, but fully expected.
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3 points off Europe and we sign no one that will affect our chances this season, in fact we possibly diminish our chances selling our top scorer. Ambition.
Moreno is a good signing, no? He's a player who shows attacking intent and has done well so far given his limited exposure to Emery's methods.
Dhuran may well not be ready yet, but he is well regarded and could surprise a few.
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3 points off Europe and we sign no one that will affect our chances this season, in fact we possibly diminish our chances selling our top scorer. Ambition.
Moreno is a good signing, no? He's a player who shows attacking intent and has done well so far given his limited exposure to Emery's methods.
Dhuran may well not be ready yet, but he is well regarded and could surprise a few.
Villa and surprises usually aren't good surprises.
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Young and hungry. We've heard that before.
I didn't say young, this is a pretty experienced squad now. They should be hungry and when you go through it there isn't really a weak link as we've had before.
I wanted more too by the way, and this season feels like a good opportunity but what more do you think they should have done?
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I just seems to me that it's typical Villa, it's not the first time that we have looked promising at Christmas and just needing that one player to really make a challenge, the only difference so far is that in past days we were looking for a stallion and actually bought a donkey.
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3 points off Europe and we sign no one that will affect our chances this season, in fact we possibly diminish our chances selling our top scorer. Ambition.
Moreno is a good signing, no? He's a player who shows attacking intent and has done well so far given his limited exposure to Emery's methods.
Dhuran may well not be ready yet, but he is well regarded and could surprise a few.
Villa and surprises usually aren't good surprises.
No, and even if he is (and I hope he is!), it’s hardly indicative of great planning is it. It’s been a piss poor effort.
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Young and hungry. We've heard that before.
I didn't say young, this is a pretty experienced squad now. They should be hungry and when you go through it there isn't really a weak link as we've had before.
I wanted more too by the way, and this season feels like a good opportunity but what more do you think they should have done?
For a start we shouldn't have sold anyone we didn't have a replacement for. Then we should have made players we wanted available - it happens to us often enough.
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Young and hungry. We've heard that before.
I didn't say young, this is a pretty experienced squad now. They should be hungry and when you go through it there isn't really a weak link as we've had before.
I wanted more too by the way, and this season feels like a good opportunity but what more do you think they should have done?
Not decide to go for half a season with one senior striker?
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Yep selling before you have your targets and failing to get your targets is pretty much exactly what you shouldn’t do.
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It just seems to me that it's typical Villa, it's not the first time that we have looked promising at Christmas and just needing that one player to really make a challenge, the only difference so far is that in past days we were looking for a stallion and actually bought a donkey.
I'll raise you a Bartelt.
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Why would they when there's clearly going to be nothing doing?
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Agree with Dave,
Why Ings and Sanson have been allowed to go without having replacements pretty much signed baffles me.
Guilbert and Marvellous I get as they haven’t played, but our top scorer and a midfielder who has played well IMO when given the chance not being replaced seems insane.
Understand about recouping some money for Ings, but if he were here now I’m sure there would have been another 3-5 million chucked at us as a last minute deal, or we keep him and retain some strength up top.
Very poor window, I just hope Unai agrees with the lack of action rather than being pissed off at how little we have backed him.
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Never mind eh. We still have the 20,000 season ticket queue ready and waiting in the wings.
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Same old boring story.
"Maybe next window". Pathetic. It never changes.
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• We’ll sign top players if they become available.
• Appointing a decent manager then not adequately backing him.
• Treating supporters with disdain.
• Doing just enough to show a level of ambition but not really going beyond it.
• Relatively low net spend over a period.
I hate to say it but isn’t this all a bit Doug?
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Yep I guarantee we’ll finish the summer short in 2 or 3 positions. It never feels like we have a coherent transfer strategy and it’s evidenced by the balls up we’ve made this January. That doesn’t mean we don’t sign some good players, clearly we do, but as a squad we are always short.
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• We’ll sign top players if they become available.
• Appointing a decent manager then not adequately backing him.
• Treating supporters with disdain.
• Doing just enough to show a level of ambition but not really going beyond it.
• Relatively low net spend over a period.
I hate to say it but isn’t this all a bit Doug?
Treating supporters with disdain?
Bizarre.
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It just seems to me that it's typical Villa, it's not the first time that we have looked promising at Christmas and just needing that one player to really make a challenge, the only difference so far is that in past days we were looking for a stallion and actually bought a donkey.
I'll raise you a Bartelt.
It's an interesting comparison. In Feb 2000, we thought that Dublin, Joachim, Carbone, Vassell, Walker and Merson weren't enough options in attack after we shipped Collymore to Leicester.
So we brought in an extra body.
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• We’ll sign top players if they become available.
• Appointing a decent manager then not adequately backing him.
• Treating supporters with disdain.
• Doing just enough to show a level of ambition but not really going beyond it.
• Relatively low net spend over a period.
I hate to say it but isn’t this all a bit Doug?
Treating supporters with disdain?
Bizarre.
See proposed gambling sponsor thread.
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It just seems to me that it's typical Villa, it's not the first time that we have looked promising at Christmas and just needing that one player to really make a challenge, the only difference so far is that in past days we were looking for a stallion and actually bought a donkey.
I'll raise you a Bartelt.
It's an interesting comparison. In Feb 2000, we thought that Dublin, Joachim, Carbone, Vassell, Walker and Merson weren't enough options in attack after we shipped Collymore to Leicester.
So we brought in an extra body.
If you want to go even further back, in 1994 - when there was only two outfield subs - our strikers were Fashanu, Atkinson, Saunders, Whittingham, Yorke and Fenton.
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• We’ll sign top players if they become available.
• Appointing a decent manager then not adequately backing him.
• Treating supporters with disdain.
• Doing just enough to show a level of ambition but not really going beyond it.
• Relatively low net spend over a period.
I hate to say it but isn’t this all a bit Doug?
Treating supporters with disdain?
Bizarre.
See proposed gambling sponsor thread.
Oh! I thought you were talking about transfers!
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It just seems to me that it's typical Villa, it's not the first time that we have looked promising at Christmas and just needing that one player to really make a challenge, the only difference so far is that in past days we were looking for a stallion and actually bought a donkey.
I'll raise you a Bartelt.
It's an interesting comparison. In Feb 2000, we thought that Dublin, Joachim, Carbone, Vassell, Walker and Merson weren't enough options in attack after we shipped Collymore to Leicester.
So we brought in an extra body.
If you want to go even further back, in 1994 - when there was only two outfield subs - our strikers were Fashanu, Atkinson, Saunders, Whittingham, Yorke and Fenton.
that's not a bad line up - but, I was only 10 at the time, so can't really remember if that line-up was that strong or not
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Leaving it a bit late aren't we?
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Agree with Dave,
Why Ings and Sanson have been allowed to go without having replacements pretty much signed baffles me.
Guilbert and Marvellous I get as they haven’t played, but our top scorer and a midfielder who has played well IMO when given the chance not being replaced seems insane.
Understand about recouping some money for Ings, but if he were here now I’m sure there would have been another 3-5 million chucked at us as a last minute deal, or we keep him and retain some strength up top.
Very poor window, I just hope Unai agrees with the lack of action rather than being pissed off at how little we have backed him.
The thing with Ings - getting some money in was clearly more important than maintaining (let alone improving) our ability to score goals.
I just hope Emery was on board with all this because, if not, it's not going to end well.
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It just seems to me that it's typical Villa, it's not the first time that we have looked promising at Christmas and just needing that one player to really make a challenge, the only difference so far is that in past days we were looking for a stallion and actually bought a donkey.
I'll raise you a Bartelt.
It's an interesting comparison. In Feb 2000, we thought that Dublin, Joachim, Carbone, Vassell, Walker and Merson weren't enough options in attack after we shipped Collymore to Leicester.
So we brought in an extra body.
If you want to go even further back, in 1994 - when there was only two outfield subs - our strikers were Fashanu, Atkinson, Saunders, Whittingham, Yorke and Fenton.
that's not a bad line up - but, I was only 10 at the time, so can't really remember if that line-up was that strong or not
It was stronger than if we'd decided that because we had Atkinson and a teenage Yorke then we didn't need to bother buying Saunders because he wasn't at his optimum value point.
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I wouldn’t mind taking a punt that at least one of Watkins, Bailey or Duran will get a long term injury before the end of February.
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We have let Ings go and got Traore back - like for like in quality more or less. we ve got a promising young centerforward, seriously stronger in LB got, let deadwood go in January window where we had some strong squad from before - what s not to like. Emery want som more sure -decided better to wait to summer.
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One of the most galling things about this is watching Newcastle sail past us after a couple of windows of moderate to high spending, yet here we are making excuses for a total lack of ambition, yet again.
Someone posted earlier that it's "too early" for us to get into Europe, anyway. I imagine Newcastle fans are shitting their pants about accidentally ending up in the Champions League.
We are the smallest big club going.
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Looks like we're following last season's Man City and playing the rest of this season with a 'false nine'.
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Definite change of approach. Self sustaining is now the mantra. And with our commercial revenue and catering ability we won’t be getting big signings any time soon. I cannot believe Emery thought this would be how the window would pan out. Be interesting to hear him on Friday.
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Martinez
Olsen
Young
Cash
Mings
Konsa
Carlos
Chambers
Moreno
Digne
Kamara
Luiz
McGinn
Dendonker
Ramsey
Buendia
Coutinho
Bailey
Watkins
Duran
Traore
Can someone who is pissing and moaning tell me where we would find places for Sanson, Ings, Nakamba or anyone else we have got rid of on even the bench? The problem isn’t that we haven’t got enough players now, it’s that the squad was too bloated to start with. We have been spending fortunes on average players who get nowhere near the team for way too long. Like at home, sometimes you have to clear your shit out before buying any shiny new things.
Yes, in an ideal world we would have signed another striker, but if it’s not a long-term option it’s just another body to get rid of later on and one that costs more money in the meantime. A better second choice keeper would also have been nice, but again realistically is a waste of money on someone who is unlikely to get a game this season when you might be able to get a better option on a free in June.
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this is a very grumpy site this evening . I think we are in pretty good hands
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One of the most galling things about this is watching Newcastle sail past us after a couple of windows of moderate to high spending, yet here we are making excuses for a total lack of ambition, yet again.
Someone posted earlier that it's "too early" for us to get into Europe, anyway. I imagine Newcastle fans are shitting their pants about accidentally ending up in the Champions League.
We are the smallest big club going.
Yep it’s bollocks. It’s small time and getting a few million in return for having no back-up senior striker is incredibly small time, and frankly negligent.
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Eh?
Sanson has been on the bench, and Ings is our highest scorer? You reckon he wouldn't be playing given Duran is here?
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Leaving it a bit late aren't we?
Just heard from a very trusted reliable source that Odemwingie has arrived at BMH and waiting at the gate in his Montego Estate. His agent a Mr Red Knapp is also there.
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Martinez
Olsen
Young
Cash
Mings
Konsa
Carlos
Chambers
Moreno
Digne
Kamara
Luiz
McGinn
Dendonker
Ramsey
Buendia
Coutinho
Bailey
Watkins
Duran
Traore
Can someone who is pissing and moaning tell me where we would find places for Sanson, Ings, Nakamba or anyone else we have got rid of on even the bench? The problem isn’t that we haven’t got enough players now, it’s that the squad was too bloated to start with. We have been spending fortunes on average players who get nowhere near the team for way too long. Like at home, sometimes you have to clear your shit out before buying any shiny new things.
Yes, in an ideal world we would have signed another striker, but if it’s not a long-term option it’s just another body to get rid of later on and one that costs more money in the meantime. A better second choice keeper would also have been nice, but again realistically is a waste of money on someone who is unlikely to get a game this season when you might be able to get a better option on a free in June.
How many subs in the Premier League? Is it 9? So that’s two injuries and we can’t fill the bench. Doesn’t seem that bloated to me. 1 senior striker as well - 1.
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Our bench in our last league game:
Sanson, Cash, Chambers, Coutinho, Olsen, Dendoncker, Sinisalo, Olsen, Kaden Young
That is a terrible bench - a kid who just signed his first pro deal last week, two goalkeepers (one of whom has lettuce hands), and one empty space
One of those players has now been moved on.
That's abysmal.
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Currently D- for this period.
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It's that tragic I'm almost expecting Purslow to stand next to the self-pour station in the lower Holte for a photo op as there's nobody else in the building
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A lot of hand-wringing about not having 9 approriate subs. We'll only ever use 5 max, so three goalies and a 12 year-old filling it up won't make much difference.
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At this rate Ashley Young will have to play upfront if we are stuck
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It wouldn't be a transfer window if we didn't sign the obligatory left-back. A young striker is an interesting new twist (assuming we didn't count Wesley as one).
I think we have seen the BS of our approach over the last couple of seasons being called out - switching between long-term and short-term thinking seemingly at will with no real plan. I really think there will be some big changes in the summer. The owners have shown two things - they give people a chance but are decisive once they have made their mind up - I would be very surprised if Purslow and Lange are still here next season - as I think they have both reached their ceilings.
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Martinez
Olsen
Young
Cash
Mings
Konsa
Carlos
Chambers
Moreno
Digne
Kamara
Luiz
McGinn
Dendonker
Ramsey
Buendia
Coutinho
Bailey
Watkins
Duran
Traore
Can someone who is pissing and moaning tell me where we would find places for Sanson, Ings, Nakamba or anyone else we have got rid of on even the bench? The problem isn’t that we haven’t got enough players now, it’s that the squad was too bloated to start with. We have been spending fortunes on average players who get nowhere near the team for way too long. Like at home, sometimes you have to clear your shit out before buying any shiny new things.
Yes, in an ideal world we would have signed another striker, but if it’s not a long-term option it’s just another body to get rid of later on and one that costs more money in the meantime. A better second choice keeper would also have been nice, but again realistically is a waste of money on someone who is unlikely to get a game this season when you might be able to get a better option on a free in June.
We won’t see Carlos for a few months, Traore is injured and Duran hasn’t played in a few months. With 5 subs I don’t see many game changing changes Emery could make from that.
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We have let Ings go and got Traore back - like for like in quality more or less. we ve got a promising young centerforward, seriously stronger in LB got, let deadwood go in January window where we had some strong squad from before - what s not to like. Emery want som more sure -decided better to wait to summer.
Totally agree mate. I just don’t see the need for this clamour to get players in in mid season not only at Villa but all around.
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A lot of hand-wringing about not having 9 approriate subs. We'll only ever use 5 max, so three goalies and a 12 year-old filling it up won't make much difference.
Eh? Isn't the idea to have the best options you can off the bench? I don't see any club saying "well, we can only use five of them so fuck it, let's put mannequins on the others".
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Any chance of recruiting Brighton’s scouting team?
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Definite change of approach. Self sustaining is now the mantra. And with our commercial revenue and catering ability we won’t be getting big signings any time soon. I cannot believe Emery thought this would be how the window would pan out. Be interesting to hear him on Friday.
It’s what the owners said when they came in but I didn’t expect we’d end up with 1 forward ready to go.
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Eh?
Sanson has been on the bench, and Ings is our highest scorer? You reckon he wouldn't be playing given Duran is here?
Yes, Danny Ings. The goal poacher with a 1 in 4 return who may as well have not been on the pitch against Stevenage and Leeds. His goal return wasn’t remotely good enough to justify a place when he detracted so much overall from the team when he played.
Who does Sanson get on ahead of? If we are holding onto a game Dendoncker comes in, if we’re chasing we’d go for an attacking option, and that’s before we’ve decided which of Ramsey or McGinn is on the bench when all are fit. In over 2 years he started how many games - 5/6?
Between the two of them we were eating up the thick end of £10 million a year in wages alone - players who at best are starting 25-30 games in total between them. It’s not just wasteful, it actively prevents us moving forward when the players we really want are available.
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Any chance of recruiting Brighton’s scouting team?
Recruiting team yes, selling team no. Brighton are tomorrow’s Southampton.
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Any chance of recruiting Brighton’s scouting team?
I did think similar - like surely that is the best way of getting value for money? Getting the best scouts
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
Didnt West Ham have a Champions League spot chase last season with only Antonio?
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We're currently 3 points off 6th place or if you prefer 3 points off seventh with a game in hand. What could possibly go wrong?
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Pat Mustard Ings and Sansom are much more useful than Coutinho and Dendoncker.
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A lot of hand-wringing about not having 9 approriate subs. We'll only ever use 5 max, so three goalies and a 12 year-old filling it up won't make much difference.
Eh? Isn't the idea to have the best options you can off the bench? I don't see any club saying "well, we can only use five of them so fuck it, let's put mannequins on the others".
You could guess our five most likely subs like I'm sure fans of other clubs could with theirs.
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Eh?
Sanson has been on the bench, and Ings is our highest scorer? You reckon he wouldn't be playing given Duran is here?
Yes, Danny Ings. The goal poacher with a 1 in 4 return who may as well have not been on the pitch against Stevenage and Leeds. His goal return wasn’t remotely good enough to justify a place when he detracted so much overall from the team when he played.
Who does Sanson get on ahead of? If we are holding onto a game Dendoncker comes in, if we’re chasing we’d go for an attacking option, and that’s before we’ve decided which of Ramsey or McGinn is on the bench when all are fit. In over 2 years he started how many games - 5/6?
Between the two of them we were eating up the thick end of £10 million a year in wages alone - players who at best are starting 25-30 games in total between them. It’s not just wasteful, it actively prevents us moving forward when the players we really want are available.
Whatever you think of Ings - he was our top scorer, and I fail to see any argument whereby literally no option whatsoever is better than him.
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Albion signing Mark Albrighton on loan.
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Albion signing Mark Albrighton on loan.
Grim news.
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One of the most galling things about this is watching Newcastle sail past us after a couple of windows of moderate to high spending, yet here we are making excuses for a total lack of ambition, yet again.
Someone posted earlier that it's "too early" for us to get into Europe, anyway. I imagine Newcastle fans are shitting their pants about accidentally ending up in the Champions League.
We are the smallest big club going.
The biggest difference between them and us is that they had Howe and we had Gerrard.Wouldn't our squad and our league position have looked rather different if Emery had been in charge for 2 previous transfer windows.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
Didnt West Ham have a Champions League spot chase last season with only Antonio?
No. Bowen.
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Albion signing Mark Albrighton on loan.
Grim news.
Really ? he can do better than that
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Eh?
Sanson has been on the bench, and Ings is our highest scorer? You reckon he wouldn't be playing given Duran is here?
Yes, Danny Ings. The goal poacher with a 1 in 4 return who may as well have not been on the pitch against Stevenage and Leeds. His goal return wasn’t remotely good enough to justify a place when he detracted so much overall from the team when he played.
Who does Sanson get on ahead of? If we are holding onto a game Dendoncker comes in, if we’re chasing we’d go for an attacking option, and that’s before we’ve decided which of Ramsey or McGinn is on the bench when all are fit. In over 2 years he started how many games - 5/6?
Between the two of them we were eating up the thick end of £10 million a year in wages alone - players who at best are starting 25-30 games in total between them. It’s not just wasteful, it actively prevents us moving forward when the players we really want are available.
Yeah that Ings was awful in that Brighton win and when he came on and scored the equaliser against Wolves.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
Didnt West Ham have a Champions League spot chase last season with only Antonio?
No, they also had Yarmolenko, Benrahma and Bowen, who scored over thirty goals between them.
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Marc Albrighton to West Brom😥
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Westergaard who’s on massive wages has turned down a loan move to Berlin. He’s hardly played.
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In
Moreno
Dhuran
Traore
Out
Guilbert
Sanson
Nakamba
Augustinsson
Ings
That out list has, perhaps, one player that would play regularly and he's been criticised repeatedly by most on here for not being that good.
We've brought Traore back who can play across the front line. An attacking left back / left midfield and a promising young player.
We want more, but we've not done badly.
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We have absolutely done poorly - we might get away with it, if we’re lucky. But it’s still a poor effort.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
Didnt West Ham have a Champions League spot chase last season with only Antonio?
No. Bowen.
Bowen is a winger...
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Out of all the players we let go was Sanson the most surprising? He was back in the first team picture a bit anyway and Emery always spoke positively about him rating him highly from his time in France. A similar argument is being made now for bringing Traore back.
Four players who played in the Stevenage debacle are since gone. I doubt Emery would have much objection if likes of Olsen, Chambers and Coutinho followed them. Get the sense Cash has a lot of impressing to do too.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
Didnt West Ham have a Champions League spot chase last season with only Antonio?
No, they also had Yarmolenko, Benrahma and Bowen, who scored over thirty goals between them.
All wingers. The question was about a senior striker...
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Oh yeah, I forgot about all our goal-scoring wingers we can rely on to weigh in with goals.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
Didnt West Ham have a Champions League spot chase last season with only Antonio?
No. Bowen.
Bowen is a winger...
Let's have a look at what you could have won.
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In
Moreno
Dhuran
Traore
Out
Guilbert
Sanson
Nakamba
Augustinsson
Ings
That out list has, perhaps, one player that would play regularly and he's been criticised repeatedly by most on here for not being that good.
We've brought Traore back who can play across the front line. An attacking left back / left midfield and a promising young player.
We want more, but we've not done badly.
Bednarek?
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Sanson played just over 10 mins of league football for us this season, he's no loss. Apart from Ings the same goes for everyone else we've moved out.
Archer played less than an hour in the league
Nakamba 0 minutes
Guilbert 0 minutes
Bednarek 100 mins
Augustinsson 90 mins
It's not like we've gutted the first team, apart from Ings we've moved on 1 player with potential and 0 top flight goals and players that contributed the square root of fuck all.
Ings is a risk but I don't think for one second Unai hasn't had a say in things. You don't sack a manager after the final whistle, personally go after one of the best in the business to replace him and then stiff them 3 months later.
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Nearly all of our players were under performing before Unai arrived. In a short period of time, most have improved as results will testify. They will improve even more with the better coaching available.
Get 25% more out of Coutinho, 20% more out of Buendia, 20% more out of Cash, 15% more out of Konsa/Ramsey and so on.
That is better than signing two new players. Give Unai the rest of the season to see who can match his expectation and then, where need be, splash the cash on players that will improve the starting eleven and not just squad fillers.
One more proven striker would have been good but Unai (and me) believe our existing squad has enough 'goal' threat.
Watkins might get injured blah, blah fucking blah. We could buy Harry Kane and Haaland tonight and they both might get injured tomorrow. Who knows.
Bottom line, our current squad is capable of scoring goals.
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I get the feeling we’d have been more active if we were in one or both of the cups.
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In
Moreno
Dhuran
Traore
Out
Guilbert
Sanson
Nakamba
Augustinsson
Ings
That out list has, perhaps, one player that would play regularly and he's been criticised repeatedly by most on here for not being that good.
We've brought Traore back who can play across the front line. An attacking left back / left midfield and a promising young player.
We want more, but we've not done badly.
Bednarek?
Archer, especially if we're counting Duran
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Nearly all of our players were under performing before Unai arrived. In a short period of time, most have improved as results will testify. They will improve even more with the better coaching available.
Get 25% more out of Coutinho, 20% more out of Buendia, 20% more out of Cash, 15% more out of Konsa/Ramsey and so on.
That is better than signing two new players. Give Unai the rest of the season to see who can match his expectation and then, where need be, splash the cash on players that will improve the starting eleven and not just squad fillers.
One more proven striker would have been good but Unai (and me) believe our existing squad has enough 'goal' threat.
Watkins might get injured blah, blah fucking blah. We could buy Harry Kane and Haaland tonight and they both might get injured tomorrow. Who knows.
Bottom line, our current squad is capable of scoring goals.
One more proven striker would have been good. Rather than one less, you mean?
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I get the feeling we’d have been more active if we were in one or both of the cups.
god don't bring that up , there will be a good Lynching :D
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We went out and made a gigantic fucking statement by appointing one of Europe's most decorated managers. I refuse to believe that this was the plan we sold him to get him here.
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The blah blah bit - yes anyone you sign could get injured, but if you leave yourself with 1 senior striker you’ve got no realistic contingency for an injury. You wouldn’t do that in any other business, so we can rationalise all we want but it’s piss poor risk management. Like I said we might get lucky, but let’s not pretend Ings hasn’t scored important goals (like Brighton which got us 3 points when Watkins was injured/absent).
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Oh yeah, I forgot about all our goal-scoring wingers we can rely on to weigh in with goals.
But the question wasn't about other goal involvements. It was about a club having one senior striker & still doing ok. I am not saying that we will do great with just Watkins & Duran, with Bailey & Traore being wingers used up there as & when (thats a lot of left foots). And I am not saying it was the right thing to do to leave us a tad exposed by signing nobody else (or letting Archer go), but the question was about a club having one senior striker & doing ok. West Ham did with just Antonio.
And didn't Man City have issues when they had Gudodgun (sp?) up top as the false number 9?
Its not ideal for us to be where we are. Especially as we play two up top a lot. Personally, I think the mistake was made by letting Archer go. I can only assume that they were expecting someone else to be coming in for it to fall flat. Probably after the agent realised that we were in need of a striker & took advantage of the situation. I almost congratulate the club on telling the agent to go fuck himself... Almost...
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I’m not against any of the outgoings but letting Ings go, without replacement, for a fee which regrettably amounts to pretty much fuck all these days, seems imprudent at best. And that’s not what we expected.
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We did our business early last summer. Since then our movements have been really poor. Not impressed and never have been by Lange or the recruitment team. They seem very very slow to react to situations. Oh well. Jam next season, again, apparently.
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
Didnt West Ham have a Champions League spot chase last season with only Antonio?
No, they also had Yarmolenko, Benrahma and Bowen, who scored over thirty goals between them.
All wingers. The question was about a senior striker...
All three of the played centrally for West Ham last season. Case in point- Yarmolenko playing as a centre forward when West Ham beat us in March.
Either way, if we had a load of wide players who could fill in at centre forward (as West Ham did last season) I'd probably not be all that worried.
But we don't, we're two injuries away from Buendia being our starting striker.
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We went out and made a gigantic fucking statement by appointing one of Europe's most decorated managers. I refuse to believe that this was the plan we sold him to get him here.
I think he was very much involved in how today played out. While it’s disappointing and I won’t sugarcoat that, I read somewhere that last Jan, under a lot of pressure, Arsenal and Arteta shipped out a bunch of dross and only added a couple of players. They then made some astute investments in the summer along with promoting some of their talented kids to step up. Brought back Nketiah from Leeds who has been a very good back up to Jesus. I’m not saying we are about to be Arsenal but trying to be optimistic, we appear to be doing a bit of what they did. We now need to really ramp up in the summer. Won’t shock me to see the back of Lange in the reorganization. We are going to look very different come August.
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We went out and made a gigantic fucking statement by appointing one of Europe's most decorated managers. I refuse to believe that this was the plan we sold him to get him here.
What if the players we wanted weren’t actually available? I’d rather sign players that will improve us than signing players that are just squad fillers. We’ve fallen into that trap many times before and the outcomes haven’t been positive.
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I would have had us in for Albrighton. Too good to be playing in the Championship, he's like a slightly younger version of Ashley Young - can defend but offers more going forward than Ashley can now. And he'd have loved being back here too.
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I find it hard to believe just having Watkins and Duran was the plan, or surely we wouldn't have sent Archer out on loan? The fact we also did that just makes it even more imponderable.
Pretty sure when looking back to NSWE came in, four years later, this is not how it was meant to be - we don't need 9 subs anyway / it's too early for us to get into Europe / Traore is like a new signing / Ings was shit anyhow / etc etc etc. Against the background of a minimal net spend for two seasons.
It just doesn't feel right to me. It is starting to smell like it did when Randy started arguing with his wife and we know how that ended.
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It doesn't make sense at all.
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We went out and made a gigantic fucking statement by appointing one of Europe's most decorated managers. I refuse to believe that this was the plan we sold him to get him here.
What if the players we wanted weren’t actually available? I’d rather sign players that will improve us than signing players that are just squad fillers. We’ve fallen into that trap many times before and the outcomes haven’t been positive.
What if those very specific players aren't available in the summer either? Or the summer after that?
At some point do we consider other players?
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And to cap it all off Chelsea are spending £120m on a player that before the WC none of us would have thought was worth what they are paying.
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We went out and made a gigantic fucking statement by appointing one of Europe's most decorated managers. I refuse to believe that this was the plan we sold him to get him here.
I think he was very much involved in how today played out. While it’s disappointing and I won’t sugarcoat that, I read somewhere that last Jan, under a lot of pressure, Arsenal and Arteta shipped out a bunch of dross and only added a couple of players. They then made some astute investments in the summer along with promoting some of their talented kids to step up. Brought back Nketiah from Leeds who has been a very good back up to Jesus. I’m not saying we are about to be Arsenal but trying to be optimistic, we appear to be doing a bit of what they did. We now need to really ramp up in the summer. Won’t shock me to see the back of Lange in the reorganization. We are going to look very different come August.
Yeah - I think he has been involved in the decision making and would be ok with how it has panned out. Not necessarily what he wanted - but ok given the option. Im sure if he had kicked up enough fuss we would have forked out for what he wanted.
Hopefully, for once these gambles pay of and we finish comfortably top half and can push on without losing any key players in the summer
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Seems like most teams in Europe are falling over themselves to sell players to PL teams for big money, but we cant identify any that can improve our squad?
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Last winter Arsenal got rid of a lot of players. They signed a young back up keeper and a player from the MLS. They then lined up their deals for last summer.
Last winter Newcastle signed a few players, paid a bit over the odds but saw immediate benefit. They then lined up more deals for last summer.
This just shows that different approaches can work
Is there an example of a club choosing to spend half a season with one senior striker and it going well?
Didnt West Ham have a Champions League spot chase last season with only Antonio?
No, they also had Yarmolenko, Benrahma and Bowen, who scored over thirty goals between them.
All wingers. The question was about a senior striker...
All three of the played centrally for West Ham last season. Case in point- Yarmolenko playing as a centre forward when West Ham beat us in March.
Either way, if we had a load of wide players who could fill in at centre forward (as West Ham did last season) I'd probably not be all that worried.
But we don't, we're two injuries away from Buendia being our starting striker.
But they are wingers who were played up front when the only recognised senior striker West Ham had got injured or suspended.
As for us, Bailey has played up front for us & Traore did pretty well playing up front for Lyon. Again, Im not saying its ideal, neither am I saying they will bang them in for fun for us while playing up there, but they are wingers who can & have covered in as striker. Just like West Hams wingers did when they inly had one striker...
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I find it hard to believe just having Watkins and Duran was the plan, or surely we wouldn't have sent Archer out on loan? The fact we also did that just makes it even more imponderable.
Pretty sure when looking back to NSWE came in, four years later, this is not how it was meant to be - we don't need 9 subs anyway / it's too early for us to get into Europe / Traore is like a new signing / Ings was shit anyhow / etc etc etc. Against the background of a minimal net spend for two seasons.
It just doesn't feel right to me. It is starting to smell like it did when Randy started arguing with his wife and we know how that ended.
Does it really? We've just committed to one of the top managers, and his team, on long contracts. We've committed to building a whole new complex and stand over the next couple of years too.
We've missed a couple of targets it appears, but that's hardly an indicator of them losing interest.
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We’re not going to know until the summer of course and the risk is we fall away and don’t get into Europe when the opportunity is right in front of us. That’s the risk. Chelsea I expect won’t continue to be shit. Fulham, Brentford and Brighton I expect to come back but there are clubs below us that have made moves to improve. This won’t be easy to maintain our current form. After Leicester it is Man City and Arsenal. We will have a good idea on things then. Will be interesting to hear Emery talk about this on Friday.
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We went out and made a gigantic fucking statement by appointing one of Europe's most decorated managers. I refuse to believe that this was the plan we sold him to get him here.
What if the players we wanted weren’t actually available? I’d rather sign players that will improve us than signing players that are just squad fillers. We’ve fallen into that trap many times before and the outcomes haven’t been positive.
What if those very specific players aren't available in the summer either? Or the summer after that?
At some point do we consider other players?
The January window is always difficult. Sides in the CL won’t sell and weaken their squads and that filters down. The summer window is more fluid.
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Seems like most teams in Europe are falling over themselves to sell players to PL teams for big money, but we cant identify any that can improve our squad?
It's our first team that needs improving, not the squad.
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Seems like most teams in Europe are falling over themselves to sell players to PL teams for big money, but we cant identify any that can improve our squad?
PL clubs will pay the most stupid money for average players out of sheer desperation.
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Our net spend for two seasons is barely anything.
It's not going to happen for us just because we want it to. It feels like we're getting to that way of thinking.
Someone said 'young and hungry' earlier. Christ. Remember that?
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Our net spend for two seasons is barely anything.
It's not going to happen for us just because we want it to. It feels like we're getting to that way of thinking.
Someone said 'young and hungry' earlier. Christ. Remember that?
In a way I’m glad given who the managers were. Especially the last one
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My real concern is that we limited cover if Watkins gets injured. Otherwise, if the players aren't available then fine. Watkins gets a serious injury / hits poor form then we're looking at another season of what ifs.
Think Bert coming back is fine - I like him (besides the fact that I have never seen another player who can volley a clearance 100 yards high, but only 3 yards forward).
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We have absolutely done poorly - we might get away with it, if we’re lucky. But it’s still a poor effort.
Maybe, but at least it’s an improvement on last year.
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Seems like most teams in Europe are falling over themselves to sell players to PL teams for big money, but we cant identify any that can improve our squad?
PL clubs will pay the most stupid money for average players out of sheer desperation.
Which is what most of them are doing. Some of the money being spent is absurd on at best, average players. I’m glad we are not being baited into that market - some have said we are being negligent - what would be negligent would be to keep repeating past mistakes.
Jesus wept - this thread is so depressing to read, I mean we have a worldie manager (at last), are in top form, sit 3 points off 6th, serious investment in our home, and Carlos, McGinn, Traore all to come back in.
Far too many with glass half empty syndrome on here.
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Watkins, Dhuran, Bailey, Traore. All experienced at playing centre forward. None particularly natural finishers as Ings was mind.
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Forward options for last 18 games then.
Watkins, Bailey, Duran, Buendia, Traore.
Hmmmm.
Traore is coming back injured again so who knows when he'll be ready to warm the bench. Forgot MLS packed up in November so Duran going to need time to get match fit again aswell as adapt to different intensity of premier league. Wouldn't be a good time for Bailey's hamstring to pop again...
I think we're well short of a serious go at even 8th. The Wolves game recently showed what we put out as a first 11 won't always work so you need a couple of decent subs to lift the tempo for last 20-25 minutes and Ings certainly did that night.
Beyond swopping the FBs and bringing on McGinn again when he's fit I struggle to see what options we can really bring to swing a game back towards us if we're losing tbh.
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Nearly all of our players were under performing before Unai arrived. In a short period of time, most have improved as results will testify. They will improve even more with the better coaching available.
Get 25% more out of Coutinho, 20% more out of Buendia, 20% more out of Cash, 15% more out of Konsa/Ramsey and so on.
That is better than signing two new players. Give Unai the rest of the season to see who can match his expectation and then, where need be, splash the cash on players that will improve the starting eleven and not just squad fillers.
One more proven striker would have been good but Unai (and me) believe our existing squad has enough 'goal' threat.
Watkins might get injured blah, blah fucking blah. We could buy Harry Kane and Haaland tonight and they both might get injured tomorrow. Who knows.
Bottom line, our current squad is capable of scoring goals.
One more proven striker would have been good. Rather than one less, you mean?
We dodged a bullet with Ings. We should be thanking our lucky stars and not moaning.
In addition to Watkins, Bailey, Traore, Duran, we have players like Ramsey, McGinn, Buendia, Coutinho, Luiz, Cash, Moreno and others who are all capable of scoring goals if given licence to attack. Mings and Konsa goals from set pieces have dried up. For now, we have plenty to work on and work with.
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Doesn't Meatball score for Scotland in practically every game he plays? Maybe he could use his arse to good effect as a false nine?!
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Really wanted at least one established forward upgrade. It does seem a strange window to me. Our forward options are limited and not of the required quality to take us further. Obviously Unai knows this, so the Summer will be interesting to see how he shapes the squad.
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Watkins, Dhuran, Bailey, Traore. All experienced at playing centre forward. None particularly natural finishers as Ings was mind.
Watkins is our one forward. Emery has said that Duran isn't ready. Traore is injured and is an inconsistent winger, the thought of him playing as a centre forward in the English league is frankly laughable. Bailey is being played out of position up front, and mostly isn't very good at it. This transfer window has been a Flinstone endorsed DISGRACE!
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Doesn't Meatball score for Scotland in practically every game he plays? Maybe he could use his arse to good effect as a false nine?!
Perhaps when teams as bad as San Marino and Israel start playing in the Premier League.
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Nearly all of our players were under performing before Unai arrived. In a short period of time, most have improved as results will testify. They will improve even more with the better coaching available.
Get 25% more out of Coutinho, 20% more out of Buendia, 20% more out of Cash, 15% more out of Konsa/Ramsey and so on.
That is better than signing two new players. Give Unai the rest of the season to see who can match his expectation and then, where need be, splash the cash on players that will improve the starting eleven and not just squad fillers.
One more proven striker would have been good but Unai (and me) believe our existing squad has enough 'goal' threat.
Watkins might get injured blah, blah fucking blah. We could buy Harry Kane and Haaland tonight and they both might get injured tomorrow. Who knows.
Bottom line, our current squad is capable of scoring goals.
One more proven striker would have been good. Rather than one less, you mean?
We dodged a bullet with Ings. We should be thanking our lucky stars and not moaning.
In addition to Watkins, Bailey, Traore,we have players like Ramsey, McGinn, Buendia, Coutinho, Luiz, Cash, Moreno and others are all capable of scoring goals if given licence to attack. Mings and Konsa goals from set pieces have dried up. For now, we have plenty to work on and work with.
Well said, no panic here.
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Seems like most teams in Europe are falling over themselves to sell players to PL teams for big money, but we cant identify any that can improve our squad?
PL clubs will pay the most stupid money for average players out of sheer desperation.
Which is what most of them are doing. Some of the money being spent is absurd on at best, average players. I’m glad we are not being baited into that market - some have said we are being negligent - what would be negligent would be to keep repeating past mistakes.
Jesus wept - this thread is so depressing to read, I mean we have a worldie manager (at last), are in top form, sit 3 points off 6th, serious investment in our home, and Carlos, McGinn, Traore all to come back in.
Far too many with glass half empty syndrome on here.
I agree. There is a lot of doom and gloom and others are spending ludicrous sums on average players. It’s disappointing we haven’t got anyone as we’re obviously light on bodies, let alone quality in some areas but I’d rather get the players who will step change improve us than anyone we can get when the market is tough.
We’ve got a great manager, fantastic owners and have finally managed to shift some of the dead wood. Let’s trust the process. (Obviously when Watkins gets injured next weekend we can all go into full meltdown).
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Bailey will play centrally
The new Dwight Yorke - well he was wasted on the wing mostly
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Seems like most teams in Europe are falling over themselves to sell players to PL teams for big money, but we cant identify any that can improve our squad?
PL clubs will pay the most stupid money for average players out of sheer desperation.
I’d have liked a decent replacement for Ings but as you say it would have been stupid money in this window. I reckon Emery knows who he wants but that player or players are not available now. I’m fine with that. Bailey, Traore when he’s fit can slot in there if need be.
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I for one am looking forward to seeing Olsen pinging balls into the box for steer to knock home
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I for one am looking forward to seeing Olsen pinging balls into the box for steer to knock home
Ha ha, that made me chuckle.
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Rather see Olsen there than in goal.
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Doesn't Meatball score for Scotland in practically every game he plays? Maybe he could use his arse to good effect as a false nine?!
He plays as number 10 for them much like he did in the promotion run in.
Issue with that is it would disrupt Buendia just when he's getting a run of starts under manager who rates him so wouldn't touch it.
Think McGinn becomes an impact sub now and will also start the tougher away games.
Of course I completely forgot Coutinho from the attacking options but pressing is a bit of a struggle for him now so it's hard to see what games he can really impact unless teams just completely stand off him as Southampton did last year.
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All if buts and maybes at the moment.
Kiss of death but Watkins has a good injury record so unless a suitable alternative, or preferably upgrade was available he’d be first choice.
Collectively they’ve made a decision to stick and time will tell if they’re correct but it’ll be a joint decision and for me talk of Unai not being backed is complete guff.
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All if buts and maybes at the moment.
Kiss of death but Watkins has a good injury record so unless a suitable alternative, or preferably upgrade was available he’d be first choice.
Collectively they’ve made a decision to stick and time will tell if they’re correct but it’ll be a joint decision and for me talk of Unai not being backed is complete guff.
I think this is where I am - collectively they have decided that this is the best way forward. Time will tell if the gamble pays off - Unai will have been in on this decision
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Seems like most teams in Europe are falling over themselves to sell players to PL teams for big money, but we cant identify any that can improve our squad?
And we are not falling for it and signing any Juergen Kickolotti or Pedro Utubinho for silly money.
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Attacking options since the start of January:
Ings - Our top scorer sold for £15m that I thought would be re-invested in another forward option. Shouldn't have gone without someone coming in first.
Watkins - Inconsistent, hasn't had the same form since getting in the England squad.
Duran - Remains to be seen what he can do, but with him not being match ready he's not really much use to us yet and has the added pressure/expectation on his shoulders.
Buendia - Inconsistent, can be great, can be bang average.
Coutinho - Just not the player he was.
Traore - If has was any good he wouldn't have gone in the first place, always injured and I'm not convinced he has the heart for a battle or a fight. Probably the only player as one footed as Bailey.
Bailey - Has flashes of good play but overall isn't consistent enough and makes too many huge misses.
Archer - Not sure why he's gone out on loan when Ings has gone and no replacement come in. Like Ings, shouldn't have gone until someone came in.
Barry - Clearly going to Salford he's miles away
An injury to Watkins and we're in trouble.
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Spot on.
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An injury to Martinez and we're in even more trouble.
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At what point does silly money become the norm? The sort of money players go for is unjustifiable. Then again so is £1 million for a one-room flat in central London but that's the going rate now. We're not going to buy anyone if we wait around for our number one target to become available at what we think is the right price; not now, not in the summer, not this time next year when we're saying again that there's nobody available and no point in paying silly money.
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Enzo Fernández will sign with Chelsea until June 2031 - fuck me - that's a long contract. Doesn't feel right when the finance for signings has to come from a bloody building society
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At what point does silly money become the norm? The sort of money players go for is unjustifiable. Then again so is £1 million for a one-room flat in central London but that's the going rate now. We're not going to buy anyone if we wait around for our number one target to become available at what we think is the right price; not now, not in the summer, not this time next year when we're saying again that there's nobody available and no point in paying silly money.
You have to hope that its the kamara type situation - and they genuinely believe that they have it covered
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Enzo Fernández will sign with Chelsea until June 2031 - fuck me - that's a long contract. Doesn't feel right when the finance for signings has to come from a bloody building society
It’s common place in the US though.. 13 year contracts for big name baseball players is the norm so it doesn’t have the same shock value for Boehly. Who’s doing $300+ millions dollar salaries for players.
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At what point does silly money become the norm? The sort of money players go for is unjustifiable. Then again so is £1 million for a one-room flat in central London but that's the going rate now. We're not going to buy anyone if we wait around for our number one target to become available at what we think is the right price; not now, not in the summer, not this time next year when we're saying again that there's nobody available and no point in paying silly money.
You have to hope that its the kamara type situation - and they genuinely believe that they have it covered
Maybe they have, but the odds have to be against it. Kamaras don't come round very often. I just think we've wasted a great opportunity.
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Nearly all of our players were under performing before Unai arrived. In a short period of time, most have improved as results will testify. They will improve even more with the better coaching available.
Get 25% more out of Coutinho, 20% more out of Buendia, 20% more out of Cash, 15% more out of Konsa/Ramsey and so on.
That is better than signing two new players. Give Unai the rest of the season to see who can match his expectation and then, where need be, splash the cash on players that will improve the starting eleven and not just squad fillers.
One more proven striker would have been good but Unai (and me) believe our existing squad has enough 'goal' threat.
Watkins might get injured blah, blah fucking blah. We could buy Harry Kane and Haaland tonight and they both might get injured tomorrow. Who knows.
Bottom line, our current squad is capable of scoring goals.
One more proven striker would have been good. Rather than one less, you mean?
We dodged a bullet with Ings. We should be thanking our lucky stars and not moaning.
In addition to Watkins, Bailey, Traore, Duran, we have players like Ramsey, McGinn, Buendia, Coutinho, Luiz, Cash, Moreno and others who are all capable of scoring goals if given licence to attack. Mings and Konsa goals from set pieces have dried up. For now, we have plenty to work on and work with.
A level headed appraisal of where we are right now. I needed to read that. A helluva lot of money has been spunked by desperate clubs on bang average players. Let's not forget that the club is building a brand new academy and spending 100 million on the stadium plus a brand new train station. Rome wasn't built in a day.
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At what point does silly money become the norm? The sort of money players go for is unjustifiable. Then again so is £1 million for a one-room flat in central London but that's the going rate now. We're not going to buy anyone if we wait around for our number one target to become available at what we think is the right price; not now, not in the summer, not this time next year when we're saying again that there's nobody available and no point in paying silly money.
You have to hope that its the kamara type situation - and they genuinely believe that they have it covered
Maybe they have, but the odds have to be against it. Kamaras don't come round very often. I just think we've wasted a great opportunity.
No - I agree. At the moment it seems very "villa" and I'm just hoping that some of the people who work for us know what there doing!
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Enzo Fernández will sign with Chelsea until June 2031 - fuck me - that's a long contract. Doesn't feel right when the finance for signings has to come from a bloody building society
Same old Chelsea always cheating. Long contracts are their way to get around FFP and this was a desperation signing as from next TW max contract is goi g to be restricted to 5 years.
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Spare a thought for the Evertonians. The transfer thread on GOT is 1600+ pages long, they've sold their best young prospect for 45m and bought zero players despite being 19th. :)
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as from next TW max contract is goi g to be restricted to 5 years.
Some great bargains to be had in TW max, are they our new shirt sponsor?
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Spare a thought for the Evertonians. The transfer thread on GOT is 1600+ pages long, they've sold their best young prospect for 45m and bought zero players despite being 19th. :)
At least they got £45m, we sold our top scorer for £12m! ;)
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At what point does silly money become the norm? The sort of money players go for is unjustifiable. Then again so is £1 million for a one-room flat in central London but that's the going rate now. We're not going to buy anyone if we wait around for our number one target to become available at what we think is the right price; not now, not in the summer, not this time next year when we're saying again that there's nobody available and no point in paying silly money.
You have to hope that its the kamara type situation - and they genuinely believe that they have it covered
Maybe they have, but the odds have to be against it. Kamaras don't come round very often. I just think we've wasted a great opportunity.
No - I agree. At the moment it seems very "villa" and I'm just hoping that some of the people who work for us know what there doing!
From what I see of them they appear more interested in sponsorships than football. Ah well, back to talking shite about the match.
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Enzo Fernández will sign with Chelsea until June 2031 - fuck me - that's a long contract. Doesn't feel right when the finance for signings has to come from a bloody building society
Same old Chelsea always cheating. Long contracts are their way to get around FFP and this was a desperation signing as from next TW max contract is goi g to be restricted to 5 years.
They're not cheating though, it's clearly within the rules at the moment. The problem is ffp isn't fit for purpose.
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Nearly all of our players were under performing before Unai arrived. In a short period of time, most have improved as results will testify. They will improve even more with the better coaching available.
Get 25% more out of Coutinho, 20% more out of Buendia, 20% more out of Cash, 15% more out of Konsa/Ramsey and so on.
That is better than signing two new players. Give Unai the rest of the season to see who can match his expectation and then, where need be, splash the cash on players that will improve the starting eleven and not just squad fillers.
One more proven striker would have been good but Unai (and me) believe our existing squad has enough 'goal' threat.
Watkins might get injured blah, blah fucking blah. We could buy Harry Kane and Haaland tonight and they both might get injured tomorrow. Who knows.
Bottom line, our current squad is capable of scoring goals.
One more proven striker would have been good. Rather than one less, you mean?
We dodged a bullet with Ings. We should be thanking our lucky stars and not moaning.
In addition to Watkins, Bailey, Traore, Duran, we have players like Ramsey, McGinn, Buendia, Coutinho, Luiz, Cash, Moreno and others who are all capable of scoring goals if given licence to attack. Mings and Konsa goals from set pieces have dried up. For now, we have plenty to work on and work with.
A level headed appraisal of where we are right now. I needed to read that. A helluva lot of money has been spunked by desperate clubs on bang average players. Let's not forget that the club is building a brand new academy and spending 100 million on the stadium plus a brand new train station. Rome wasn't built in a day.
I’ll go with that.
I hope the money Chelsea have spent this year sinks their fat owner.
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Spare a thought for the Evertonians. The transfer thread on GOT is 1600+ pages long, they've sold their best young prospect for 45m and bought zero players despite being 19th. :)
1600 pages?! Respect! And they're ahead of us in the Deloitte Top 20. Not fair.
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Enzo Fernández will sign with Chelsea until June 2031 - fuck me - that's a long contract. Doesn't feel right when the finance for signings has to come from a bloody building society
Same old Chelsea always cheating. Long contracts are their way to get around FFP and this was a desperation signing as from next TW max contract is goi g to be restricted to 5 years.
They're not cheating though, it's clearly within the rules at the moment. The problem is ffp isn't fit for purpose.
FFP isnt ffp?
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Think we can close this one for now, seems like we are saving on paper at Villa Park these days so no deal sheets being faxed around until the early hours.
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Given Man Utd signed Wieghorst on loan from. Burnley you can see that the market for strikers was a bit fucked.
Not sure who people wanted us to go for? Danjuma? Emery didn't want him. Mudryk? No way he'd have come unless we started offering Saudi Arabian wages. Vardy? Old. Kane? Would he have come? Theikesnof Bournemouth and Southampton have signed players for circa £20-25m players we've never heard of because they probably aren't that good.
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Enzo Fernández will sign with Chelsea until June 2031 - fuck me - that's a long contract. Doesn't feel right when the finance for signings has to come from a bloody building society
Same old Chelsea always cheating. Long contracts are their way to get around FFP and this was a desperation signing as from next TW max contract is goi g to be restricted to 5 years.
But all these long contracts have to be accounted for over the next 8 years or so . It kicks the can down the road somewhat
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Enzo Fernández will sign with Chelsea until June 2031 - fuck me - that's a long contract. Doesn't feel right when the finance for signings has to come from a bloody building society
Same old Chelsea always cheating. Long contracts are their way to get around FFP and this was a desperation signing as from next TW max contract is goi g to be restricted to 5 years.
But all these long contracts have to be accounted for over the next 8 years or so . It kicks the can down the road somewhat
Yeah - surely at some point this catches up with them? Cant help when they don't qualify for the UCL
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Spare a thought for the Evertonians. The transfer thread on GOT is 1600+ pages long, they've sold their best young prospect for 45m and bought zero players despite being 19th. :)
At least they got £45m, we sold our top scorer for £12m! ;)
Well it will be £15m in the end. I don’t think West Ham are going down. But Everton absolutely fucking committed a crime getting that much for Gordon.
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Enzo Fernández will sign with Chelsea until June 2031 - fuck me - that's a long contract. Doesn't feel right when the finance for signings has to come from a bloody building society
Same old Chelsea always cheating. Long contracts are their way to get around FFP and this was a desperation signing as from next TW max contract is goi g to be restricted to 5 years.
They're not cheating though, it's clearly within the rules at the moment. The problem is ffp isn't fit for purpose.
FFP isnt ffp?
Not sure I understand the question.
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Given Man Utd signed Wieghorst on loan from. Burnley you can see that the market for strikers was a bit fucked.
Not sure who people wanted us to go for? Danjuma? Emery didn't want him. Mudryk? No way he'd have come unless we started offering Saudi Arabian wages. Vardy? Old. Kane? Would he have come? Theikesnof Bournemouth and Southampton have signed players for circa £20-25m players we've never heard of because they probably aren't that good.
Whether you've heard of them or not really isn't a very reliable barometer of whether they'd be any good.
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Want cheering up? visit the Everton website. Selling the best player on their books smells of financial difficulties.
Feel for their supporters because we've been there done that.
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Enzo Fernández will sign with Chelsea until June 2031 - fuck me - that's a long contract. Doesn't feel right when the finance for signings has to come from a bloody building society
Same old Chelsea always cheating. Long contracts are their way to get around FFP and this was a desperation signing as from next TW max contract is goi g to be restricted to 5 years.
They're not cheating though, it's clearly within the rules at the moment. The problem is ffp isn't fit for purpose.
FFP isnt ffp?
Not sure I understand the question.
FFP (Financial Fair Play) is not FFP ( Fit For Purpose)
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Want cheering up? visit the Everton website. Selling the best player on their books smells of financial difficulties.
Feel for their supporters because we've been there done that.
Any corking quotes from the Blue Kipper forum? I'd look myself, but I already spend enough time on here.
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Want cheering up? visit the Everton website. Selling the best player on their books smells of financial difficulties.
Feel for their supporters because we've been there done that.
They had to sell Richarlson to Spurs to dodge one FFP bullet now the owner is looking to sell up. 'Pot' and 'Piss in' come to mind.
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According to Gregg Evans there are ‘big plans ahead’.
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Given Man Utd signed Wieghorst on loan from. Burnley you can see that the market for strikers was a bit fucked.
Not sure who people wanted us to go for? Danjuma? Emery didn't want him. Mudryk? No way he'd have come unless we started offering Saudi Arabian wages. Vardy? Old. Kane? Would he have come? Theikesnof Bournemouth and Southampton have signed players for circa £20-25m players we've never heard of because they probably aren't that good.
Whether you've heard of them or not really isn't a very reliable barometer of whether they'd be any good.
True. But I'm guessing our manager and recruitment team figured they aren't good enough, don't you?
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According to Gregg Evans there are ‘big plans ahead’.
He's a knob though, isn't he? Does he actually know anything or is it all clickbait nonsense?
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I struggle with people with the three g’s version of Greg.
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Given Man Utd signed Wieghorst on loan from. Burnley you can see that the market for strikers was a bit fucked.
Not sure who people wanted us to go for? Danjuma? Emery didn't want him. Mudryk? No way he'd have come unless we started offering Saudi Arabian wages. Vardy? Old. Kane? Would he have come? Theikesnof Bournemouth and Southampton have signed players for circa £20-25m players we've never heard of because they probably aren't that good.
Whether you've heard of them or not really isn't a very reliable barometer of whether they'd be any good.
True. But I'm guessing our manager and recruitment team figured they aren't good enough, don't you?
If they looked at every player in world football and decided that the only striker who could possibly have improved our squad was Duran, then it's probably the quality of our recruitment team that is the issue rather than the quality of strikers available.
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Given Man Utd signed Wieghorst on loan from. Burnley you can see that the market for strikers was a bit fucked.
Not sure who people wanted us to go for? Danjuma? Emery didn't want him. Mudryk? No way he'd have come unless we started offering Saudi Arabian wages. Vardy? Old. Kane? Would he have come? Theikesnof Bournemouth and Southampton have signed players for circa £20-25m players we've never heard of because they probably aren't that good.
Whether you've heard of them or not really isn't a very reliable barometer of whether they'd be any good.
True. But I'm guessing our manager and recruitment team figured they aren't good enough, don't you?
If they looked at every player in world football and decided that the only striker who could possibly have improved our squad was Duran, then it's probably the quality of our recruitment team that is the issue rather than the quality of strikers available.
I'm talking about the players that Southampton and Bournemouth and the like have signed. And yes there will be players better than Dhuran now but he has the potential. If we're aiming high, then we need better players and they are harder to acquire given we can't offer Chumps League.
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Ignoring Chelsea, and maybe Arsenal, are there any other PL clubs that made signings this month that would have immediately improved our team? Even Man United brought two guys in on loan, one of which flopped badly at Burnley. Man City let Cancelo go without even bringing in a replacement. Spurs got in that right back they have been tracking for two seasons. Liverpool midfield is in a mess but no only another forward.
McKennie I think will be a good signing for Leeds but that aside I can't see many obvious ones.
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Ignoring Chelsea, and maybe Arsenal, are there any other PL clubs that made signings this month that would have immediately improved our team? Even Man United brought two guys in on loan, one of which flopped badly at Burnley. Man City let Cancelo go without even bringing in a replacement. Spurs got in that right back they have been tracking for two seasons. Liverpool midfield is in a mess but no only another forward.
McKennie I think will be a good signing for Leeds but that aside I can't see many obvious ones.
The only money spent really has been by those desperate, the relegation threatened teams and Chelsea, and Arsenal trying to cover bases for a title run in.
I think it says a lot about how inflated the market prices are for players linked to Premier League teams
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I expect it to come out that we were in for Elanga and/or another forward but couldn't get it done for whatever reason.
If we've binned off five players who don't really feature for two who will be involved much more often then there might be logic to it.
Has Duran trained with the club yet? Maybe the original idea was that he was one for the future. But he's made enough of an impression in training or that tournament etc that Emery et all feel he's ready now.
It feels like a risk either way.
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Traore coming back at the last minute seems the clearest sign that something fell through. I was pretty fed up about it all yesterday but my brain is now whispering 'Traore was great for at least three games' and maybe a competent manager is all it will take to get him back to his best...
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Traore coming back at the last minute seems the clearest sign that something fell through. I was pretty fed up about it all yesterday but my brain is now whispering 'Traore was great for at least three games' and maybe a competent manager is all it will take to get him back to his best...
And a fixed knee injury.
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Ignoring Chelsea, and maybe Arsenal, are there any other PL clubs that made signings this month that would have immediately improved our team? Even Man United brought two guys in on loan, one of which flopped badly at Burnley. Man City let Cancelo go without even bringing in a replacement. Spurs got in that right back they have been tracking for two seasons. Liverpool midfield is in a mess but no only another forward.
McKennie I think will be a good signing for Leeds but that aside I can't see many obvious ones.
The only money spent really has been by those desperate, the relegation threatened teams and Chelsea, and Arsenal trying to cover bases for a title run in.
I think it says a lot about how inflated the market prices are for players linked to Premier League teams
Trossard and Jorginho were good signings by Arsenal I think. But what they were proposing to pay for Caicedo was insane. Fair play to Brighton for not buckling. Chelsea more ridiculous stuff, replicating the start of the Abramovich era. Forest too, 25 or so signings, hope they go down to be honest, signing jokers like Shelvey. Their wage bill must be unbelievable with likes of Lingard doing nothing.
Maybe in hindsight the likes of Archer and Sanson should have been kept on as I think both would have got plenty of minutes on the pitch. For their respective careers though their moves made sense.
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Traore coming back at the last minute seems the clearest sign that something fell through. I was pretty fed up about it all yesterday but my brain is now whispering 'Traore was great for at least three games' and maybe a competent manager is all it will take to get him back to his best...
I'd imagine it's been the backup plan for a few weeks (hence him coming back here for treatment)
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Traore coming back at the last minute seems the clearest sign that something fell through. I was pretty fed up about it all yesterday but my brain is now whispering 'Traore was great for at least three games' and maybe a competent manager is all it will take to get him back to his best...
I'd imagine it's been the backup plan for a few weeks (hence him coming back here for treatment)
I sort of agree. I reckon we thought it might be needed so we asked him to come over so our medical staff could look him over and see how long he'd need to recover. Once it was clear he'd be back in a few weeks we pushed on with getting him back.
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I hope we find out when he'll be back in the press conference.
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Just to stop multiple similar conversations happening in loads of different places, this can probably all go in the post-window thread now.