January 2023 Transfer Rumours, Discussions and Done Deals Thread

[DrGonzo]

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.

[adrenachrome]

"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.

[Mister E]

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?

[bob]

The plot thickens...

[Lsvilla]

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.

[boozey182]

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.

[chrisw1]

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?

[OCD]

They do consider how many games a player plays so that probably rules Deulofeu out.

[timeoutbigbar]

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.

[Risso]

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.

[Olof's Beard]

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.

[algy]

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.

[Risso]

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

[johnc]

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.

[Toronto Villa]

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.