Summer 2024 Transfer Window - hopes, speculation, rumours etc.

[Monty]

Cash was good enough to get us top four. He's unfairly scapegoated, and would be first choice for half the league.

Our defence was good enough for top four and has been upgraded.

Our attack has been downgraded.

We conceded sixty one goals!

[ChicagoLion]

Cash was good enough to get us top four. He's unfairly scapegoated, and would be first choice for half the league.

Our defence was good enough for top four and has been upgraded.

Our attack has been downgraded.

I don’t think it is nfair to point out his deficiencies.
He often gets himself in poor positions defensively, if his defending was exemplary we wouldn’t be playing Konsa at RB.
He also monotonously pretends to go forward and chops back to pass backwards.
I like Cash, I like his attitude but he is not at the right level to be first choice RB.

[RamboandBruno]

I get PWS point about the defence being poor since xmas. However, I think there are a couple of factors other than Cash is not at the right level, which at times I do agree with myself.  Kamara was firstly suspended for three games after Brentford and was gone completely from what, early Feb and Torres was also in and with injuries for large parts of the new year/spring. Both of those factors impacted upon defensively massively.
Obviously now, we’re hoping all the first choice stays fit, Onana hits the ground running and Kamara and Mings come back at the level required.

I actually think if you look at midfield, its a bit hmm. Last year for lots of games Tielemans was the go to sub for Dougie, now its Barklay for Tielemans, that feels a big drop off.

[Dante Lavelli]

A chalobah loan would make sense if we have enough wiggle room.  Loaning Donk and Carlos ourselves might free up the required wages and provide a versatile player more suited to the Emery way.

However, that’s a lot of admin in one day.

[Monty]

Of course, it would be pretty mental to blame Cash for the defensive decline in the second half of the season, and I do think that the loss of Kamara was the biggest factor in the dropping off of a number of things about our game. But I also don't think it's mental to look at Cash, how he gets caught not stepping up with the offside line or diving in a bit chaotically or moving the ball a bit slow, and think maybe upgrades in that position are conceivable. I like him, I do, but he's a weak spot a bit too often.

[ozzjim]

It's a bit of both, but the truth is we ended up significantly weaker in the defence second half of the season because we either had to cover with Konsa at RB and Carlos being a butterfly wing flap from losing concentration, having no holding mid, tiredness and Torres/ Lenglet not being physical enough in some games. Now, what we have done is sign Onana, which is a plus, but he's not a natural holding mid and doesn't have Kamaras nose for defending. Like him, but he's a sticky plaster. He's going to be a driving mid next to Kamara realistically, with Barronechea in my view the longer term replacement when he gets sold for PSR.

So we've not really solved the midfield bit, and loaned out the natural holding player, for good intentions.

The right back bit, Cash we know is injury prone. Kosta seems a good 3rd choice to develop and may come on much faster, fine 18 months ago, now key if we want to challenge top 4 again. So Konsa will end up there is big games, which means Carlos again. With no cover for the 3 centre halves on the pitch. Lenglet at least gave us an extra body. Mings is miles away from doing that and no one can be certain he can even yet.

We're gambling. Fine for upper mid table, but gambling to keep pushing top 4. Our post Christmas form was about 9th.

[PaulWinch again]

We are very light in defence, at right back and centre back.

[Demitri_C]

Thats the thing though it just seems ridiculous to me we sign three players ( dobbin illing jr and enzo) and loan all three out. Thats the most frustrating thing to me. Instead of getting of getting illing jr and enzo why not get one player that we can use this season? Its a bad deal for me. Both should have been kept here as options gives us squad depth

Everton have use for timmy we have none for dobbin this year and he probably wont play a game for us and will be sold next summer.

Now we have to pray that mings buendia and kamara get up to speed quickly or dont get injured again. Utter madness in a CL campaign in my opinion.

Cant see why we cannot get a few loans in tbh.

[Dante Lavelli]

We have cover in every position and minimal fat throughput the squad.  That leanness will be valuable compared to chelsea and Man U and them imploding is just as important to our success as having an extra body or pushing whichever PSR rule even further.

[ozzjim]

I'd imagine we are so close to the UEFA wages ratio thing that we can't without Donker Carlos going, but at this stage we'd be mad to let Carlos go as well.

[London Villan]

I guess the answer to all of this is FFP.

Which also explains the money at all costs decisions from the commercial side of the club.

[Demitri_C]

We have cover in every position and minimal fat throughput the squad.  That leanness will be valuable compared to chelsea and Man U and them imploding is just as important to our success as having an extra body or pushing whichever PSR rule even further.

Who is covering pau?

Kosta having to cover cash being thrown in deep end

Who covers onana? Dendonker?

[PaulWinch again]

We have cover in every position and minimal fat throughput the squad.  That leanness will be valuable compared to chelsea and Man U and them imploding is just as important to our success as having an extra body or pushing whichever PSR rule even further.

An injury to Konsa now and that massively undermines our position. There’s lean and then there’s threadbare.

[Demitri_C]

We have cover in every position and minimal fat throughput the squad.  That leanness will be valuable compared to chelsea and Man U and them imploding is just as important to our success as having an extra body or pushing whichever PSR rule even further.

An injury to Konsa now and that massively undermines our position. There’s lean and then there’s threadbare.

I agree. I think we are poorly organised for a CL campaign. Gambling way too much.

Had we not loaned so many players out i wouldnt think it would be that bad. But the loaning of enzo makes little to no sense.

[Mister E]

I'd imagine we are so close to the UEFA wages ratio thing that we can't without Donker Carlos going, but at this stage we'd be mad to let Carlos go as well.

I think there's the rub. PSR is covered with the money for and from transfers. We appear to be struggling with the Euro wages ratio (which, you'll remember from last season's report on European football finances, Villa had the worst ratio in Europe). Hence, Philogene IS our alternative option on the right / inside forward because his wages will be lower than Diaby's. Hence, also, the younger guys being brought in to the wider squad and then being loaned out.
Without removing the higher earners from the era of the Scouse Fraud (Donk and Carlos, the latter of whom is now injured?) we are not going to be very active today. If we can, I'd imagine Joe Gomez or Chalobah will come in and we may find a striker whom we can bring in on loan (but who? would be the obvious question).