January Transfer Window - The Verdict.

[PeterWithe]

To add to the list: Juninho, Benni McCarthy and, from my vague recollection, David Swindlehurst.

Was Swidlehurst the unfortunate chap who died whilst playing? Or am I thinking of someone else.

A google suggests that the fella I was thinking of was David Longhurst who died playing for York City.

[Ian.]

I’m still convinced we will go for Guendouzi but I’d also put in a huge bid for Rice this summer. He’s surely going to be off and I’m not too convinced any of the Manchester teams or Arsenal will go for him, but Newcastle will for sure.

I think Rice is a great player, but not with the English premium price.  I also think he'd see it as a sideways move.

I wish we'd got Guendouzi.  An extra few million would seem very sensible right now.

I’m sure we will get him, it sounded like they wouldn’t sell until the summer.

We didn't even make an offer. They didn't have to try particularly hard to keep him.

Just a hunch but I can see it being announced with Marseille thanking us for how we conducted the negotiations i.e. we left him alone so they could make their own plans.

That’s my thoughts too.

[paul_e]

I’m still convinced we will go for Guendouzi but I’d also put in a huge bid for Rice this summer. He’s surely going to be off and I’m not too convinced any of the Manchester teams or Arsenal will go for him, but Newcastle will for sure.

I think Rice is a great player, but not with the English premium price.  I also think he'd see it as a sideways move.

I wish we'd got Guendouzi.  An extra few million would seem very sensible right now.

I’m sure we will get him, it sounded like they wouldn’t sell until the summer.

We didn't even make an offer. They didn't have to try particularly hard to keep him.

Just a hunch but I can see it being announced with Marseille thanking us for how we conducted the negotiations i.e. we left him alone so they could make their own plans.

I get the impression that is exactly how we want to do business. With the youth players we've signed it's pretty much inevitable that the selling club praises our approach afterwards (other than the baggies and rangers but the former aren't bitter birds by mistake and the latter were still sulking that their manager jumped ship with barely a thought). Everyone knows that some clubs act like wankers and do their business in shitty ways (such as Man City with Grealish) so I'd like to think we're better than that, which is why so many transfers go from a vague rumour to announcement so quickly and things like this happen.

[Footy-Vill]

ITK Gregg Evans says 100% going Big on a Forward in the summer.
He also says Martinez is staying.

If he gets either wrong I'll be happy to admit he's not ITK.
But I suspect Gregg will be proved right.

[Toronto Villa]

ITK Gregg Evans says 100% going Big on a Forward in the summer.
He also says Martinez is staying.

If he gets either wrong I'll be happy to admit he's not ITK.
But I suspect Gregg will be proved right.

Gregg isn't an ITK. Do you really that much of a stretch in March for any journalist to report Villa are going after x position?

[paul_e]

Neither of those predictions require any amount of ITK.

[Toronto Villa]

Neither of those predictions require any amount of ITK.

And if someone truly is this mythical ITK creature then I imagine they are going around spouting anything on Twitter.

[Drummond]

ITK Gregg Evans says 100% going Big on a Forward in the summer.
He also says Martinez is staying.

If he gets either wrong I'll be happy to admit he's not ITK.
But I suspect Gregg will be proved right.

Why do you believe all this stuff? Or rather, why do you post this stuff claiming it to be true and ITK?

You've no idea, nobody does. Though we'd clearly all suspect it to be true anyway.

[Dave]

Everyone knows that some clubs act like wankers and do their business in shitty ways (such as Man City with Grealish)

I might be forgetting something blindingly obvious, but did they really do anything bad? Apart from taking our best player from us once again, obviously.

He was allowed to leave if a club offered a certain price. They offered it. He left. Doesn't seem like they did anything the really shouldn't have.

[Toronto Villa]

Everyone knows that some clubs act like wankers and do their business in shitty ways (such as Man City with Grealish)

I might be forgetting something really obvious, but did they really do anything bad? Apart from taking our best player from us once again, obviously.

He was allowed to leave if a club offered a certain price. They offered it. He left. Doesn't seem like they did anything the really shouldn't have.

I suppose it was talking to a player under contract behind our backs to set up the deal. Suggestions (if you believe it) of texts between Jack and Pep. That they offered the release clause number so that wasn't the issue, but they did so it appears through Grealish and his agent versus through the club.

[paul_e]

The thing with those 2 in particular is:

Forward:
We were heavily rumoured to be after Williams in January.
We sold an established striker and didn't really replace him.
No one seems convinced that Bailey works as a 2nd striker (Emery was quoted as saying he's not sure what his best position is).
Duran would probably benefit from a loan for half a season.

Martinez:
He's said he loves it at the club.
He's said winning something with Villa is a challenge he wants to take on.
There's no indication that there is a release clause in his contract.
There are only a handful of clubs in the world able to pay the £75m+ we'd be asking for the best goalkeeper in the world.

Predicting we'll sign a striker and martinez will stay isn't ITK, it's basic deduction from established facts. Most people on this site could make those same predictions, but wouldn't claim any special status as a result.

I have no ITK but my predictions for the summer:
One of Bailey or Buendia will be sold.
Chambers will be sold.
Olsen will be sold.
We will sign:
1-2 forwards/wingers
1 centre mid
1 centre back
1 goalkeeper
We may also see Digne sold and replaced but I'd say this is 50/50.
we will also see players like AJ, Tim, Cam and KKH get game time during pre-season and how they go will determine how involved they are next year. I wouldn't be surprised if all of them are around the first team squad next season.
All of that is guesswork but I reckon most people will agree with most of it and most of it will be true, because it's really fucking obvious.

[Risso]

ITK paul_e!

[paul_e]

Everyone knows that some clubs act like wankers and do their business in shitty ways (such as Man City with Grealish)

I might be forgetting something really obvious, but did they really do anything bad? Apart from taking our best player from us once again, obviously.

He was allowed to leave if a club offered a certain price. They offered it. He left. Doesn't seem like they did anything the really shouldn't have.

I suppose it was talking to a player under contract behind our backs to set up the deal. Suggestions (if you believe it) of texts between Jack and Pep. That they offered the release clause number so that wasn't the issue, but they did so it appears through Grealish and his agent versus through the club.

There was also 3 months of will they, won't they bullshit in the press before they finally made the offer deep into pre-season leaving us with a massive hole in our squad a week before the opener and turning our training camp into a fucking farewell party. I know teams can't control what's printed in the media but they obviously wanted to sign him  and they knew we were only going to let him go if they met the clause so delaying it so long was clearly intentional to either spook us into letting him go under 'value' or make us risk fucking up our preparations.

[algy]

I’m still convinced we will go for Guendouzi but I’d also put in a huge bid for Rice this summer. He’s surely going to be off and I’m not too convinced any of the Manchester teams or Arsenal will go for him, but Newcastle will for sure.

I think Rice is a great player, but not with the English premium price.  I also think he'd see it as a sideways move.

I wish we'd got Guendouzi.  An extra few million would seem very sensible right now.

I’m sure we will get him, it sounded like they wouldn’t sell until the summer.

We didn't even make an offer. They didn't have to try particularly hard to keep him.

It could've gone something like

Lange: Can we have Guendouzi please?
Marseille guy: Non.
Lange: We'll give you a big pile of cash
Marseille guy: Non.  En été.
Lange: OK, how much in the summer big man?
Marseille guy: X million euros
Lange: Sound.

I dunno, it's pure hypothetical stuff really, but it's not that hard to imagine a situation where Marseille don't want to sell a star player in the middle of the season, but have told us they're more open to the idea in the summer.  In which case, there's no point us putting in an offer just yet.

[Footy-Vill]

ITK Gregg Evans says 100% going Big on a Forward in the summer.
He also says Martinez is staying.

If he gets either wrong I'll be happy to admit he's not ITK.
But I suspect Gregg will be proved right.

Why do you believe all this stuff? Or rather, why do you post this stuff claiming it to be true and ITK?

You've no idea, nobody does. Though we'd clearly all suspect it to be true anyway.

I'm posting to share information with someone who has a connection to the club and is as close to some knowledge.
And I believe that if true, it lends credence to Evans.  I include my own point of view in the post that to me he's creditable and has links.
That's all there is to it.
You have the same right to your beliefs and opinions differing or otherwise. So please as do I.
I choose to see him as an ITK and each individual can make up their own minds. Same with any ITK.