OhForAGreavsie

The board is not Marina of course. In the end, I don't believe that even they have been the ultimate decision makers. I have no tangible evidence to support it so I don't throw it around in too many posts but I believe that Roman, and latterly Arkadiy, have decided. That's not to say they initiate all the moves; they will certainly have accepted the advice of others on many occasions. This will have included buying players recommended by others, and not buying some which were resisted by others. One thing I'm fairly certain of is that there is no chance at all that Roman would have given away the best part of playing Football Manager for real, the selecting of the players, to an absolute amateur like Marina. That just makes zero sense. It's understandable to defer to 'expert' opinion but why let someone who demonstrably knows less than you yourself do, make the decisions? I can understand Roman taking playing personnel decisions away from technical staff so he can enjoy making them himself. Causing all of the associated friction by overriding your football people, only to give the power to a complete novice is stupid beyond belief and I do not believe it. No way at all Marina makes player choices for football reasons. I am so ready to believe that Roman has made decisions himself because, if I had his money, that is exactly what I would have done. I would have made no bones about it either. Despite the impression I give on here, I am not a complete idiot however, I would have listened to football people and, if convinced by their arguments, would have deferred to them regularly. Ultimately however the final decision would always have been mine.

We should have replaced Thibaut without spending a penny. Anybody notice who was on the bench for PSG in the Champions League final?

Sorry, I'm a bit impatient about this but it's with the forum as a whole, not you specifically. What evidence does anyone have that Marina makes any footballing decisions? I mean any at all? Until someone shows me evidence, I see no reason whatsoever to believe that Marina decides which players we go for. Which ones we can or can't afford, yes, but which ones we should target on footballing grounds, no. Please boys and girls let's stop regurgitating this myth.

And how do you know that?

Always give credence to the fans who watch the most.

I enjoy the Spurs rivalry as much as anyone. In fact I'd say more than almost everyone, but that doesn't stop me supporting Harry Kane as long as it's May, June or July. On the expanded international season we're talking about, the non-tournament years would become mini-tournaments to qualify for the next summer's main event. A team camp would then be the norm. Whether these mini-tournaments are played home and away as now, or are staged in a host nation, is something which could evolve. Either way, we'd all get our bunting out, stick the flags out of the car window and, covid permitting, fill up pubs and fan parks all over the country. One of the upsides I described as being too good to ignore.

Could we all please stop complaining about the international breaks and do something about them instead. Apart from during the close season, I do not buy tickets for international matches, I do not watch them on telly or listen to them on the radio. I do not engage with them in any way. If every fan did the same, international breaks would be dead and gone by the start of next season. Scrap the breaks, get domestic football over with more quickly as a result, then play a proper international season during what would then be a longer club offseason. Much better for all concerned. Yes, I know there are difficulties to overcome before this could be a reality, but the upside is too good to ignore. In the meantime, ignore is my setting of choice for mid-season international football. If you hate the international breaks as much as I do, please join me.

I want the video to feature Kai at The Bridge having a kickabout with Pernille Harder.

It only means clubs can spend based on what their income was expected to be had covid not hit, instead of what they actually made.

Petr was 22 when we signed him. Edit: I just checked and in fact he was 21.

Good signing for Leeds I think. Glad they're back. Priority game numbers three and four slot nicely into place after one, Tottenham home and two, Tottenham away.

I find this to be a trait with Italian managers in general. It seems to me that they really value experience.

He was really young when he left. So young that he played in the U17 World Cup after joining BVB. Also, to be fair, City had a more powerful squad then than we have now. In other words, a more difficult squad for a youngster to force his way into.

Want to bet? I know you've been watching our squad management approach, we all have, but I don't think you are fully accepting just how committed the club is to its methods.

I agree, the bar isn't set too high although I think I've always liked Marcos better than many here.

^^Firstly, I'm not offering my own opinion, just reporting what committed Leicester fans have said. For all I know, had I watched the performances they have, I would have disagreed with them. I'm not a big believer in stats. The 'metric' (in reality it's no such thing) I prefer is opportunity cost. When I'm trying to assess a player I'm constantly asking if I could reasonably have expected him to do better in that situation? How many players can I think of who I think would have done better there? I'm less interested in forward or back, than in good choice or bad choice. I don't care how often a player shoots, I only care whether or not the choice to shoot was a better option than any pass which might have been available.

Ben's choice of passing and his pass execution are aspects of his game which have received particular criticism on Foxestalk. For example, they say he chooses to go backwards too often when options to go forward are available. I give a lot of weight to fan opinion; how many pundits know the Chelsea squad better than we who watch every game they play? The same goes for team X, and fans of team X.

Me too. In fact, forgive me repeating myself, but I'd be more excited about getting Zakaria than Kai. He is great at turning defence into attack an absolutely key capability in the age of the two yard goal kick.

How do you rate Zakaria?

I don't believe that the FFP relaxation is as generous as some think it is. I think clubs will be allowed to spend in line with a reasonable projection of what their income would have been but for the pandemic.

He's not on the move is he? If he isn't coming here then I hope he stays at Gladbach. That way we might have a chance next summer.

That did seem a good option when i read the official announcement that he'd be going out on loan. As long as the deal with Bayer 04 is not overly skewed in their favour, and they will actually play him, then this would look like a win win.

Ben certainly has ability, and ability is the part of the equation which can't be taught or learned. Having it is therefore a very good starting point. This transfer hasn't yet generated any excitement for me but I'm hoping Ben will change that once he gets fit.