Summer transfer, gossip, speculation and the usual butter ollocks thread

[SoccerHQ]

Just wondering, if our team is so bad, how come we stayed up?

We will be miles ahead of last season in Smith knowing his best team etc (admittedly it took him far too long)

I find posters saying so and so is “shit” very offensive. They are people with their own sensitivities. Mutual respect - possible?

Jack Grealish pretty much.

This feels very similar to end of Benteke's time here. People underestimating the sheer influence he had on those around him. When he left people were saying others would step up and score the goals. We all know what happened.

Interesting reading yesterday according to Micah Richards we'd all but signed Adebayor on last day of 2015 window, had him posing in the shirt at Bodymoor, he said he'd come back up the next morning to sign the deal and never came back as apparently he had a dream it would be the wrong move!

[Pat Mustard]

Who has done better business? Is that based on Wilson going to Newcastle for £20 million, a striker who has got 35 goals in 4 seasons?

We were in for him too you know.

Yes, and I’m guessing we wouldn’t pay him what he thinks he’s worth based on his scoring record.

[hilts_coolerking]

Who has done better business? Is that based on Wilson going to Newcastle for £20 million, a striker who has got 35 goals in 4 seasons?

We were in for him too you know.

Yes, and I’m guessing we wouldn’t pay him what he thinks he’s worth based on his scoring record.

Perhaps, but if he's a dud he's a dud we wanted too.

[paul_e]

Kevin Gamiero would be one I'd seriously look at. Season long loan or something. Very prolific at PSG and Sevilla and played for France a few times. Valencia are letting go of anything that can run and kick a ball. Even Maxi Gomez is probably more realistic than he was last season.

Maxi Gomez is a good shout (but more in line with my criteria for signings that the experienced older head option).

Gamiero I'd be less happy with, on loan for a season as cover I'd be ok with it but I suspect he'd want to play every game.

I'm fine with experienced players coming in but they need to:
fit in the wage structure
be for a fee that reflects the fact that we won't make much back on them
have the right attitude
have the ability to justify signing rather than just being signed because they're experienced

[mike]

Just wondering, if our team is so bad, how come we stayed up?

We will be miles ahead of last season in Smith knowing his best team etc (admittedly it took him far too long)

We stayed up because we had a sensational end to the season which just redeemed what had until then been mostly dismal.  That end of season improvement reflects very well on Smith but as for knowing his best team I think that as things stand about a third of his best team hasn't even been signed yet. 

“Sensational”. Christ. We beat Crystal Palace and Arsenal and a couple of draws.

Also, Bournemouth lost 8 out of their last 10, Watford lost 7. It's like they wanted to be relegated. A late surge of a point a game saw us limp over the line.

[Clampy]

Just wondering, if our team is so bad, how come we stayed up?

We will be miles ahead of last season in Smith knowing his best team etc (admittedly it took him far too long)

We stayed up because we had a sensational end to the season which just redeemed what had until then been mostly dismal.  That end of season improvement reflects very well on Smith but as for knowing his best team I think that as things stand about a third of his best team hasn't even been signed yet. 

“Sensational”. Christ. We beat Crystal Palace and Arsenal and a couple of draws.

Would you rather we had lost and gone down?

[Pat Mustard]

Who has done better business? Is that based on Wilson going to Newcastle for £20 million, a striker who has got 35 goals in 4 seasons?

We were in for him too you know.

Yes, and I’m guessing we wouldn’t pay him what he thinks he’s worth based on his scoring record.

Perhaps, but if he's a dud he's a dud we wanted too.

Not every player has to be a dud for them not to be worth it, it’s about whether he represents value. It’s pretty clear Newcastle are prepared to offer him more in wages than we were, because we decided he wasn’t worth more he has gone there.

To reiterate my original point, you could say that Jonathan Kodjia wasn’t a dud - he scored plenty of goals in his first season and did a solid job for us. Problem is, he cost £17 million plus wages, money that just went out of the club with no return. Taking that approach nearly destroyed the club 2 years ago, I don’t want to go there again. And that is without worrying about FFP, which limits what we can spend anyway.

[gpbarr]

Just wondering, if our team is so bad, how come we stayed up?

We will be miles ahead of last season in Smith knowing his best team etc (admittedly it took him far too long)

We stayed up because we had a sensational end to the season which just redeemed what had until then been mostly dismal.  That end of season improvement reflects very well on Smith but as for knowing his best team I think that as things stand about a third of his best team hasn't even been signed yet. 

“Sensational”. Christ. We beat Crystal Palace and Arsenal and a couple of draws.

Also, Bournemouth lost 8 out of their last 10, Watford lost 7. It's like they wanted to be relegated. A late surge of a point a game saw us limp over the line.

Agreed. And we won’t be so lucky again. Which is why the concerns are rising. Others have said - to stay still in the PL one has to invest - the evidence over the last 4 weeks isn’t encouraging.

[PaulWinch again]

FFP isn’t a big problem at the moment is it?

[hilts_coolerking]

Not every player has to be a dud for them not to be worth it, it’s about whether he represents value. It’s pretty clear Newcastle are prepared to offer him more in wages than we were, because we decided he wasn’t worth more he has gone there.

To reiterate my original point, you could say that Jonathan Kodjia wasn’t a dud - he scored plenty of goals in his first season and did a solid job for us. Problem is, he cost £17 million plus wages, money that just went out of the club with no return. Taking that approach nearly destroyed the club 2 years ago, I don’t want to go there again. And that is without worrying about FFP, which limits what we can spend anyway.

I don't know what us and Newcastle offered him wage wise so I can't say.  He may have just preferred them as a destination, baffling as that may be.  It's a fair point about Kodj but to be fair he was never the same after the injury.  Had that not happened, who knows.

I think there's a danger of getting too hung up on the value for money things.  Nobody wants to get astronomically ripped off but quality costs.

[mr underhill]

Maybe our circumspection arises from our truly appalling record in recruiting forwards in the immediate past. The only unqualified success was Benteke.

[steamer]

Not every player has to be a dud for them not to be worth it, it’s about whether he represents value. It’s pretty clear Newcastle are prepared to offer him more in wages than we were, because we decided he wasn’t worth more he has gone there.

To reiterate my original point, you could say that Jonathan Kodjia wasn’t a dud - he scored plenty of goals in his first season and did a solid job for us. Problem is, he cost £17 million plus wages, money that just went out of the club with no return. Taking that approach nearly destroyed the club 2 years ago, I don’t want to go there again. And that is without worrying about FFP, which limits what we can spend anyway.

I don't know what us and Newcastle offered him wage wise so I can't say.  He may have just preferred them as a destination, baffling as that may be.  It's a fair point about Kodj but to be fair he was never the same after the injury.  Had that not happened, who knows.

I think there's a danger of getting too hung up on the value for money things.  Nobody wants to get astronomically ripped off but quality costs.

Agreed
if we think the answer is striker xyz pay the money and do the deal
Embaressing is we lose the deal for the haggaling, Calling DOUG to the table.

[Lastfootstamper]

FFP isn’t a big problem at the moment is it?

I don't believe it is, no. So long as we avoid relegation and qualifying for Europe in the near future.

[pauliewalnuts]

Perhaps Wilson just preferred Newcastle? Maybe it was about money, maybe it was ambition, maybe he thinks they're a safer bet. Who knows?

Newcastle is the sort of club I'd expect us to compete with for players - it's not as if he's opted for Albion, is it?

The problem isn't that we haven't signed Callum Wilson, whatever the reason, it is that we've not done anything like the business we expected to.

We scraped over the line in the last few minutes of last season. Yeah, it was great when we made it, and well done anyone who thought we would with four games to go.

The problem is, we were then given indications that we were going to do what we needed to do to improve, that thought it was much better than going down, it wasn't good enough. Here we are, though, a week till the season starts and we're not showing any signs of seriously improving ourselves.

There just seem to be some things we can't get right. It's like the way we can't ever get enough kits in the shops for people to buy when they want to buy them. Every year we have the same discussions on here. "Yeah but the window doesn't close for another two weeks" blah blah blah.

And with the exception of a ten game run two years ago, we have had an entire decade of absolute uninterrupted shite, based largely around just about avoiding (most of the time) relegation.

Coincidental?

[sickbeggar]

I can't believe i'm suggesting this but what about Batshuayi? 26, 1 year left on his contract.. scored 17 goals in ligue 1, 7 in 10 for Dortmund, 5 in 11 for palace,


*runs off*