Rapkun

City could be willing to sell. Guardiola is not very fond of him, it's no secret. He's getting older and losing value. Now is probably the best time to sell him if they wish to do so but he's going to be very expensive. Probably a similar fee to that of Higuain, so the number of clubs that can afford him are very few. They might be tempted to sell to a rival if they get a good offer. If available, he is the only option that would be an improvement on Costa.

We were the only club with serious interest in him, so it made sense to try and negotiate for a lower fee. We had a lot of on going negotiations for other players as well hence the stepback from the Lukaku deal. In the end we didn't really match Manchester's bid. They had 75m+15bonuses+Rooney+10m+Raiola's fee. We only matched the 75m+15bonuses so obviously Everton prefered to sell to United. I can understand the reluctance to buy him at this price an it's not like our budget for the summer was exclusively going to be for the striker. The Diego Costa situation also didn't help. Had he moved to China maybe we would've submitted a bid earlier.

I wonder if we get anything from this transfer money wise. Last I heard we had no sell on clause when we sold him to Everton. He is homegrown thanks to us, we should be getting at least a little something.

I'm not one to fancy the fan argument thing but I don't think it came down to the player's choice between the two clubs. I think Romelu took the first option available and that was Manchester United. They agreed a fee so they were the first. We only matched the 75m+bonuses. In the end they still had a higher offer since it included Rooney and 10m more plus the agent fees.

It's fair to say the only reason the club is still trying to sign him is the manager's wish. I think he is indeed Conte's first choice. They could have just moved to another target seeing as he was getting very close to joining United.

This was very predictable. If it comes down to the player I think we all know his choice. It's a shame I was really excited at the prospect of Morata coming here.

Anyone who watches Serie A regularly cares to share their thoughts on Belotti? Personally I only saw him a couple times. I remember their game with AC Milan, and I thought he was similar to Vardy. Good running in behind, determination, finishing. He was mainly playing on the counter and being at the end of crosses but his availability and hunger were clear.

Clubs immediately up their asking price when an english club is interested in one of their players. Also I suspect Real don't want to sell him until they secure Mbappe or someone.

His agent is only his representative. If Lukaku would rather move to Chelsea than United then he can only grant his wish. Everton would still get the same fee regardless of the destination so they wouldn't be bothered. It's definitely not dead but only if the club is seriously interested.

Just speculating but what happened is probably: Chelsea negotiates with Everton who don't want to lower their asking price. The club doesn't want to pay that big of a fee for a player with only 2 years left in his contract. Negotiations drag on so they take a time out to focus on other targets(Sandro, Rudiger, Bakayoko,Right Back). United negotiates with Real over Morata. Madrid want Mbappe and until they get him they are in no hurry to sell Morata so they are difficult to deal with. United grows tired of the situation and decide to explore other options(Lukaku). They agree a fee with Everton and possibly had a positive sign from the player himself. Now up to Chelsea. They can offer the same fee as United and try to persuade the player to join them instead or move to other targets.

United only agreed a fee with Everton. If Chelsea accepts to pay the same then it will be up to the player to decide.

Basically, it's still possible for us to sign him if that is our wish. If it came down to the player I think Romelu would be more than happy to choose us. I'm not a fan of his but if he is the manager's choice I'm completely fine with it.

Spinazzola staying another season at Atalanta.

Anyone remembers this? That was before we signed Baba.

Our interest in him dates from back when he playing in Stuttgart. We agreed a deal with Roma last season but backed off following his serious injury. Most likely he was suggested to Conte and he was fine with it. I think Conte would prefer Bonucci or Van Dijk but he believes he can use him to his strengths and turn him into a very good player for the team.

I still wonder why we or any of the other english clubs didn't push for Pepe. He would improve almost every team in the world. PSG have Thiago Silva, Marquinhos and Kimbempe and are still looking to sign him. I'm I missing something?

He's been excellent since the start of the tournament. I heard Bayern wants him.

I think we're definitely keeping a back 3 defense with all the CBs we're adding to the squad. Rudiger doesn't have the ability on the ball that David has so he can't be playing libero. He is right footed so he will be most comfortable playing the ball from the right. Azpilicueta last season was the CB who had the most responsability of going forward and I suspect it was mainly because of his pace being able to sprint back to the defense during transition. Rudiger is very fast. He is taller than Cesar so based on that alone he will probably get picked. We conceded many goals in the air from his position last season. If I had to guess I think in that situation Moses will get benched in for Azpilicueta, especially if we get our hands on Sandro.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/jun/30/chelsea-roma-antonio-rudiger-talks I imagine it's this one. He doesn't say it's a done deal but he probably expects it to happen and so do I. I think Juve is just waiting to secure a replacement.

Rudiger and Manolas, the best position suited for their qualities in this team would be RCB. It will be interesting to see what happens with Azpilicueta and Moses.

He's the equivalent of Bailly in the Serie A. Huge athletic qualities and a lot of aggressiveness but commits many mistakes. He's more about reactivity than anticipation. His pace is a huge attribute when playing with slow defenders but he needs one or two other players around him with experience. He is a little more comfortable with the ball than Manolas but that's not saying much.

Forget it. Real are rumoured to be closed to signing him and loaning him back to Betis. Great prospect though.

He's a good defender. I'm not sure why people are acting like he's worse than Djilobodji. Honestly though I was hoping for better but we could certainly use him for a year if no better alternative is available. The only downside is we might not sign anyone else later because we would be loaded. I think we have a good set of CBs in David Luiz, Cahill, Christensen and Azpi but we need someone to take us to the next level. Manolas will improve us but not make us great. Anyway as long as Christensen gets to play regularly i'm fine. That kid could be the real deal.

Juventus could potentially lose their 2 starting fullback but I think the situation for them is not as critical as it sounds. Dani Alves is old and they would've had to replace him sooner or later. With the possible money coming from Sandro they have the possibility to replace both with good replacements in Danilo and Mendy. Team doesn't lose much in terms of quality and gets younger. If they do that, they free a non-european spot in the squad for a player like Douglas Costa. I think it could be a win-win situation for both teams.

Bit of a random thought but since there aren't many good LBs available, and many top clubs are looking for one including Juventus if they sell us Sandro. I think clubs should be looking at Jordan Amavi who's criminally underrated. Him and Gueye were some of the most promising players in france before they moved to Aston Villa, more than Kante and Mendy at the time. Everton saved Gueye last summer. I wonder who will go and save Amavi from his misery. Calling it now, steal of the transfer window if it happens!