Transfer Speculation / Gossip

[ozzjim]

I think you are more likely to see Ki, Delph and Cole at home with Westwood having to earn a place back. Time will tell, and it seems there is a bit to go yet to even get Ki here.

[supertom]

Ki is just over 6ft 1, so would add some height, although granted he's not the most physical of players.  The more I think about it, the better a signing it becomes for us. Ball retention was by far and away our biggest weakness last season, and is this guy's strength. I'd be absolutely amazed if the fee is only £1.5m (as Kendrick is reporting) though.

Seems strange that Swansea haven't fancied him. He'd fit in very well for them, but I suppose if they wrap up De Guzman, they probably rate him more.
1.5m would be a snip. It'll also give us plenty of fans out in Asia and perhaps sell a few shirts.

[mr underhill]

MK has said this was a typo. Fee obviously higher.

[RussellC]

Ki is just over 6ft 1, so would add some height, although granted he's not the most physical of players.  The more I think about it, the better a signing it becomes for us. Ball retention was by far and away our biggest weakness last season, and is this guy's strength. I'd be absolutely amazed if the fee is only £1.5m (as Kendrick is reporting) though.

Seems strange that Swansea haven't fancied him. He'd fit in very well for them, but I suppose if they wrap up De Guzman, they probably rate him more.
1.5m would be a snip. It'll also give us plenty of fans out in Asia and perhaps sell a few shirts.

That's a good point and an avenue that the club have never really explored. I've always liked Lee at Bolton (who I believe is also South Korean) so maybe we should try to pair them up.

[supertom]

Ki is just over 6ft 1, so would add some height, although granted he's not the most physical of players.  The more I think about it, the better a signing it becomes for us. Ball retention was by far and away our biggest weakness last season, and is this guy's strength. I'd be absolutely amazed if the fee is only £1.5m (as Kendrick is reporting) though.

Seems strange that Swansea haven't fancied him. He'd fit in very well for them, but I suppose if they wrap up De Guzman, they probably rate him more.
1.5m would be a snip. It'll also give us plenty of fans out in Asia and perhaps sell a few shirts.

That's a good point and an avenue that the club have never really explored. I've always liked Lee at Bolton (who I believe is also South Korean) so maybe we should try to pair them up.

Lee was a player I liked but he's gone very quiet in recent years. He's even struggled to stand out in the Championship. He should have sought out a move to try and stay in the Prem to be honest. He probably wouldn't be the player he was returning to this level now.

[hilts_coolerking]

Lee was a player I liked but he's gone very quiet in recent years. He's even struggled to stand out in the Championship. He should have sought out a move to try and stay in the Prem to be honest. He probably wouldn't be the player he was returning to this level now.

He started very well for them but didn't he break his leg?  He hasn't been the same since.

[RussellC]

I think you're right about the leg-break, shame as he looked a real player whilst in the prem with Bolton.

[supertom]

Lee was a player I liked but he's gone very quiet in recent years. He's even struggled to stand out in the Championship. He should have sought out a move to try and stay in the Prem to be honest. He probably wouldn't be the player he was returning to this level now.

He started very well for them but didn't he break his leg?  He hasn't been the same since.

He did. It also happened to mean he missed the majority of the season they went down, which didn't help them. He's looked slower since.

[richard moore]

It's a very strange loan move for Sylla isn't it? How will anyone be able to gage how well he's done, given that it's very much an unknown league?

I would have thought a loan move to a Championship Club or back to Ligue 1 would have made much more sense. I think we've probably seen the last of him in a Villa shirt.

I'm not sure he's good enough for either of those levels and hopefully you are correct!

[supertom]

It's a very strange loan move for Sylla isn't it? How will anyone be able to gage how well he's done, given that it's very much an unknown league?

I would have thought a loan move to a Championship Club or back to Ligue 1 would have made much more sense. I think we've probably seen the last of him in a Villa shirt.

I'm not sure he's good enough for either of those levels and hopefully you are correct!

I guess it's also about getting him shipped out to any taker we can get, even on loan. I don't think we'll see him play for the club again to be honest. It'll be very hard shipping out the cheap punt players on permanent deals. So it's no surprise that Helenius has been loaned back, and Sylla and Luna seem set to also be loaned away. Tonev will likely be the same. I guess the hope is, much like Makoun, we'll get a nominal fee in a years time.

I would also imagine that part of Lamberts thinking now is more focused on the here and now. He's only got one year left of his deal. He's obviously looking at been there, done it players now, like Cole, Richardson and Senderos. He'll want to finish at the Villa with his reputation in tact. He wants to avoid another dogfight, and having too many in-experienced players has contributed to us scrapping at the wrong end. If we finish mid-table he leaves having probably, overall, done an okay job. Likewise it also gives him a chance of impressing potential new owners.

[Chipsticks]

When Sunderland came to VP last season we played out a 0-0, but he was far and away the best player on the pitch. My old man kept picking him out, and we're both very excited about us signing 'that Jap lad' who really impressed us.

Anything to bolster holding midfield is much needed, and he's a quality player.

[adrenachrome]

Birmingham Mail

Ki Sung-Yueng: Everything you need to know about the Aston Villa target

Mat Kendrick looks at some of the ‘Ki’ points surrounding the potential transfer

Jul 14, 2014 17:00
By Mat Kendrick

Ki Sung-Yueng has emerged as Aston Villa’s latest target, with Paul Lambert hoping to sign Swansea’s South Korea international midfielder.

Mat Kendrick looks at some of the ‘Ki’ points surrounding the potential transfer.

HOW MUCH WILL HE COST?

With just a year left on his contract and no new deal in the offing as of yet, Swansea risk losing Ki for nothing next summer if they ask for too much for him. He was their record signing - briefly - when he arrived from Celtic for a reported £6 million in August 2012.

Swansea will struggle to recoup all of that, with just 12 months remaining on his current deal, but sources in South Wales suggest the Liberty Stadium club would be looking for at least half of that sum – possibly £3 million-plus.

Given Villa have picked up Joe Cole and Philippe Senderos for frees and Kieran Richardson for next to nothing, it would represent their first serious spending of the summer.

Then there are Ki’s wage demands. Because he was Swansea’s most expensive buy, albeit for only a short while, he is among their top earners and is thought to be on more than £30,000 per week.

DO SWANSEA WANT TO SELL HIM?

Ki was not believed to be on the ‘available’ list when Gary Monk revealed his intention to overhaul his squad this summer, but it transpires Swansea have decided to listen to offers for the 25-year-old.

Last season he was sent out on loan to Sunderland, much to the annoyance of sections of the Liberty Stadium faithful, and Michael Laudrup failed to activate a recall clause midway through the campaign, even when the Swans suffered an injury crisis in the centre of the park.

It is understood that Ki was more of a ‘club signing’ to replace Liverpool-bound Joe Allen in the summer of 2012 rather than Laudrup’s choice and the Danish former Swans manager never really took to him.

Monk rates him, but already boasts Leon Britton and Jonjo Shelvey and with efforts to re-sign Jonathan de Guzman and Gylfi Sigurdsson back to South Wales, he may feel that Swansea are blessed with enough midfield options to cash in on Ki.

Swansea are currently on a pre-season tour in Chicago, without Ki, who has been given extended leave following World Cup duty.

Earlier this summer they were contemplating whether or not to offer him a new deal. They would be reluctant sellers, but understand the financial benefits of cashing in on Ki if he is not to have a key first team role.

WHAT QUALITIES WOULD HE BRING TO VILLA?

Villa have seemingly earmarked Ki to play in a holding midfield position in front of the backline, similar to the role he performed for South Korea in the World Cup.

He has tended to be a jack of all trades, and played in a more advanced role during his spell at the Stadium of Light, getting three goals for Sunderland, having never scored for Swansea. He is a cultured passer, in keeping with the Swansea ‘type’ of recent seasons.

Ki is capable of driving forward and controlling games, but is yet to take the Premier League by the scruff of the neck. While he thrives on taking responsibility for his country, sometimes he does not impact enough in club matches. At just over 6ft 1in, he is not afraid of the physical battles and gets stuck in. 

In terms of technique, he is an upgrade on what Villa have in the middle of the park, an area in which the claret and blues have not been overly blessed with quality in recent seasons.

[dave shelley]

I just flicked over to SSN and, they were doing a transfer roundup on that board thing and it flashed up that so far this closed season we've got five in.  Have I missed something?  Senderos, Cole, Richardson and possibly the Korean lad.  Who else?

[pauliewalnuts]

I just flicked over to SSN and, they were doing a transfer roundup on that board thing and it flashed up that so far this closed season we've got five in.  Have I missed something?  Senderos, Cole, Richardson and possibly the Korean lad.  Who else?

Maybe it is Gardner and Robinson signing new deals being included with Senderos, Cole and Richardson?

[cdbearsfan]

I just flicked over to SSN and, they were doing a transfer roundup on that board thing and it flashed up that so far this closed season we've got five in.  Have I missed something?  Senderos, Cole, Richardson and possibly the Korean lad.  Who else?

We haven't signed Ki yet.

The other two are Tom Leggett and Isaac Nehemie, both youngsters captured from the Southampton youth set-up.