LAM09

I feel like this will turn out to be another Grealish/Phillips signing. It would be a stupid move for him in footballing terms.

Caicedo's effort has been something special today. Palmer finally gets his goal and is back in the groove from the stop. Up to fourth!

Nunez should be a reminder for everyone what a CF from the Portuguese League could look like.

Dire finishing has been our Achilles heel. Hopefully, we can get a second.

He has the pace to beat their entire backline. If he managed to stay onside, Liverpool would be down to 10 already.

Diaz isn't starting..... I totally understand the reasoning behind it. I just feel like it's an extremely defensive backline which will probably hamper us more than help us.

James has been back for 12 games, played a full 90 for England without issue. Acheampong being young isn't a reasonable excuse either. I will never be a fan of square pegs unless forced to do so.

PSG are supposedly willing to do the same. A potential CL victory could really swing deals their way (for footballing reasons for a change) this summer.

Three RB's on the bench - Caicedo starts at RB. Makes no sense at all.

The jump from the Eredivise to the PL is massive, so he'll need time to adapt to the league, whereas Hujisen already has a season under his belt. If Fofana goes, whoever is signed will immediately partner Colwill. CB really is one position you need some experience, and before anyone mentions Colwill, he's the biggest liability walking.

That Antony redemption story is ready to write itself. 😃

Without question. Wissa's directioness, off the ball runs, and the actual ability to finish off chances would be a great addition. Mbuemo would be far more costly, though. I feel like it's nailed on for United to win the EL again to paper over the cracks and mask Amorin's awful league form. Tottenham conceding could be deadly, too. FK Bodø/Glimt have previous of destroying big names at home. Just ask Mourinho.

I'd normally be pleased with a win by that scoreline, but we keep conceding this stupid goals due to a lapse in concentration. If that happens in the final, it could effectively cost us.

The jump in quality for the final will be staggering.

Him and Mbuemo don't get the plaudits they deserves. I think we all know why that it....

His stock has risen considerably since he was at Arsenal. I wouldn't be opposed to a cut price deal as an option until Penders is ready. Go after Pep once City get relegated. 😄

Bailey makes sense, but Emi. They would have an even bigger void to fill if the latter left. If they don't qualify for the CL, they might need even more to sustain their current squad/add to it.

They made a move for Felix in Jan, so a swap+cash deal could be feasible. Another former City player to go with Gittens, Delap, etc.

I've yet to see a feeder club with a league title or CL in recent years. Dortmund have reached two CL finals, lost them both. Chocked on the final day to give Bayern the league title two seasons ago and haven't won it for over a decade. We as a club have had a history of competing with the best, winning the biggest trophies around. Our participation in the CWC is prime example of that. Sterling and KK were bought during the first window. A lot has changed since then. If anything, we've enhanced Trev's transfer value by recalling. The large majority of business has involved youngsters who are "projects" rather than WC stars. Estevao is the only one who might be seen as the exception, 12 months from now. How can you honestly take comfort from other clubs when we are loaning out the likes of Lukaku & Sterling, paying more than half of their wages in the process? 😄

Will we upgrade them, though? If Palmer regains his form, he'll be after £300k+ by the end of next season. I've been saying this for some time - our model screams "feeder club". Until we win something major or sign someone of elite calibre, my mind won't be swayed. There was talk about Osimhen being viewed as "old" by those within the club last season. If 25 is seriously too old, we might as well be content with struggling to qualify for European competitions.

Napoli aren't in European competition, and Inter are on a three game losing streak since beating Bayern. The points I mentioned still stand. Revisit this post in 12 months time when Napoli have the CL to worry about as well.

His ties with Chelsea have been known for years. Chelsea fan growing up, Drogba is his idol. The ball has been in our court for years.

KK was on their books till Jan & Osimhen is still owned by them. Conte's decision to buy players who fit his style (remember Moses at RWB?!) is working in Napoli's favour. Gilmour was always a top player and you only needed to watch McTominay during his limited appearances for United in multiple positions or for the Scottish NT to see he could thrive in Serie A with his presence. There's no doubting his ability as a manger to win especially in Italy. It's his inability to win over a period of time with the same team (there's a reason he starts to kick up a fuss eventually), and the less said about his European record, the better.

Are Napoli really underdogs, though? They were league champs the season before last. Inter are paying for fighting on all fronts (CL semis, Coppa Italia semis).

There was a stat mentioned earlier during the Napoli game that his squad has played something like 1500 mins less (around 16 games) than Inter. Not to discredit Conte, but he tends to succeed when his sides aren't in Europe. Just look at his time here.