Vesper

that is so over the top it basically doesn't deserve a reply every player we have on the roster had shit games under Sarri and under Conte and Lamps, hell some (most?) under Tuchel too, in his short spell it is blatant ahistorical revision to say Ac was ever at Bakayoko level if he was, he would have been gone long ago I did my fair share of ripping him, but he has so, so turned it all around he stepped into the biggest pressure cooker almost possible (maybe short of a WC Final) and dominated against a monster offensive team worth well over £1.5b in a non covid market, after taking over for Thiago

yes but I doubt they will do it, they are short (atm only, that 1 billion euro rehabbed giant stadium will start to kick in £75m or more per annum extra revenue eventually) in terms of liquidity

he has had plenty of games in a back 4 where he has been fine some here are acting like he went full Bakayoko level collapse

not a chance for me AC has far better positional sense, and his confidence is back to pre Barca cockup level from all that I can see Zouma is a nightmare waiting to happen on the ball, especially in a back 4

the old smoker turned KANTE into a liability in his rigid system I would never use Sarri-based performance for a measurement

I trust him in a back 4 more than I do Zouma

Club make first offer for Chelsea player – ‘Just under €15m (around £12.5m)’, DoF meeting with intermediaries soon http://sportwitness.co.uk/club-made-first-offer-Chelsea-player-just-e15m-dof-meeting-intermediaries-soon/ While the Emerson Palmieri exit sagas over the past few years have been tedious and boring, the Italy international has never been closer from an exit from Chelsea. Pushed to one side by Thomas Tuchel, the left-back has been told by his national team manager, Roberto Mancini, to find himself more game time elsewhere, and there are a couple of clubs in Italy prepared to welcome him. Napoli are one of those, as their new manager Luciano Spalletti has already worked with Palmieri in the past during his stint at AS Roma and appreciates what he has to offer. That’s why the Serie A club are the ones pushing the hardest for the time being, at least according to Calciomercato.it. The Italian website have an exclusive on Wednesday reporting that Napoli have made their first offer for the Chelsea defender after Spalletti ‘pushed strongly’ to get the man at his side. It’s explained ‘the first appraisal put in place is of just under €15m’, although the Blues do hope to hold onto him for now, ‘also thinking about other potential negotiations such as the one with Inter that would involve Hakimi’. Not only that, but Palmieri’s salary is currently at over €4m after tax (my add, bullshit, that is GROSS, not after tax, and in euros it is 4.5m or so atm, it is £3.9m officially) , which ‘makes it difficult to find an agreement’ for now. That’s why Napoli’s director of football, Cristiano Giuntoli, has ‘asked for a meeting with the negotiating intermediaries’, meaning ‘there could be developments in the next few days’. Either way, the Italians are aware they are ‘facing a complex negotiations with low percentages of getting something done’. But you don’t get if you don’t try, eh?

Liverpool is quickly accumulating a lot of ageing stars and/or semi-bust to massive bust dregs, and I doubt they get the dosh they want for them Plus their big 3 up front all turn 30yo soon, or in Salah's case, right after the next season ends, so their value soon plummets Loris Karius Adrián Joel Matip (turns 30 in 2 months) Nathaniel Phillips Ben Davies Konstantinos Tsimikas Marko Grujić Naby Keïta (massive bust so far, I admit I am surprised) Thiago (was a semi bust, he was a fool to leave Bayern) Jordan Henderson (ageing (31yo in 8 days), and injury prone) Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (we dodged a bullet with him) James Milner (turns 36 right after the holidays) Sadio Mané (turns 30 right after winter ends) Mohamed Salah (turns 30yo in one year, 6 days) Takumi Minamino Harry Wilson (turns 25 thus coming season, so no longer a youth player at all) Xherdan Shaqiri (soon 30yo and trash) Roberto Firmino (turns 30yo in around 3 and a half months) Divock Origi

João Mário, Geoffrey Kondogbia, Steven Nzonzi, Zlatan, João Cancelo, Quincy Promes, Danilo, etc the international forever movers

it would if you use my example Reece to RCB Hakimi as RWB Azpi as reserve for both positions I just think that it should be Zouma who leaves, not AC I would love to see see the following end up as our defensive backs thsi season I am going to use my swap scenario I posted about AC Milan above to do this CB Rudiger CB Thiago Silva (next season replace him with Maxence Lacroix if he is still available, or Sven Botman) CB AC LCB Romagnoli RCB/RB/RWB Reece LB/LWB Chilwell LB/LWB/LCB Theo Hernandez RB/RWB/RMF Hakimi RB/RWB/RCB Azpi That is an EPL title winning capable back 4, back 5 deep, mostly young, multi-positional in flexibility super leadership (Azpi, Rudiger, Romagnoli, Thiago Silva, all have been captains (Azpi, Romagnoli, Thiago) or vice captains Rudi) we could play 65 games (yes, you read that right, 65, the only game we do not for sure play in is the CS, we blew that (and a chance at being the first team in global football history to win 7 topflight, true trophies in one season) by losing the damn FA Cup final, ffs) so all 9 will DEFFO be needed, and that is even if we have zero injuries there Sell Tomori (included in my Milan swap deal), Zouma, Alonso, Emerson (included in my Milan swap deal)

I never suggested that I was only commenting on why would we want to toss away AC

why the hell would we sell one of our best CB's (thus leaving us with only 2 I feel comfortable with, Rudiger and the soon 37yo Thiago) to add a third RB? only thing I can think of is that Tuchel wants to use Reece mostly at RCB, start Hakimi at RWB, and use Azpi as rotation at both AC has become a really fucking solid CB under Tuchel I do not like this at all dump Zouma before AC

https://www.goal.com/en-tza/news/why-footballers-change-international-teams-eligibility-rules-new-/qzqdkqcx0x871eprs8yywafpz What are the new eligibility rules? The new eligibility rules build on the foundation of the rules that had already been in place prior to September 2020. So, the basis of the eligibility rules is effectively the same, but there have been a number of clarifications and some additional insertions. In particular, FIFA has added three new exceptions whereby a player may change the national team they play for. First, it is now possible for a player to change national team even if they have played competitively at senior level, provided: the player held the nationality of their new association at the time of their first official appearance for their first national team. the player played in no more than three competitive senior games before the age of 21. the player has not played in the final stage of an official tournament such as the World Cup, European Championship, Copa America etc. at least three years have passed since the player's last senior appearance for their previous national team. So, a player who is eligible for England and Republic of Ireland could, for the sake of argument, play for England in three World Cup 2022 qualification games, then represent Ireland at the 2026 World Cup. The opposite - playing at a World Cup then switching - is not permitted. Second, a player can now change to a new national team even if they did not hold that nationality at the time of their first appearance for their old national team, as long as they last played for the old national team before the age of 21. It should be noted that there is an exception underpinned by the principle of legal certainty, whereby the age limit of 21 does not apply to players who played their last match for their old national team prior to September 18, 2020, when the new rules were introduced. This exception explains why Aymeric Laporte, who played for France Under-21s at the age of 21 in 2016, is permitted to switch to Spain. Finally, a competitive cap will not keep a player tied to a national team in the event that they suddenly become stateless - that is, lose their nationality - against their will.

In September 2020, the 70th edition of the FIFA Congress approved a rule change that now allows players to switch if they have played no more than three competitive matches at senior level prior to them turning 21.

Kante!!!!

2021 International Friendly France Bulgaria http://www.sportnews.to/sports/2021/uefa-friendly-france-vs-bulgaria-s3/ https://www.totalsportek.com/france-football/

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/hudson-odoi-uncertainty-Chelsea-england-24270961 His struggles for the Stamford Bridge outfit have limited his England chances, with Hudson-Odoi making three senior outings for Gareth Southgate's squad; his last coming in the 4-0 win over Kosovo in November 2019. And it has now emerged that Hudson-Odoi is considering a possible international change, with Ghana keen on securing his services. With three Three Lions appearances already, one more cap would permanently tie him down to the country of his birth.

ML: Not only Giroud, Tomori and Ziyech – Milan evaluating unwanted €40m Chelsea forward https://sempremilan.com/ml-not-only-giroud-tomori-and-ziyech-milan-evaluating-unwanted-e40m-Chelsea-forward The axis between AC Milan and Chelsea is a very hot one at the moment and now a new potential target has been linked with the Rossoneri. According to MilanLive, Milan are keen on signing Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham as there is a chance that the England forward would continue to find no playing time with the London club, especially given their links with Erling Haaland and other strikers. If the Blues are to seriously pursue Haaland they would need a sale to raise funds and free a spot in the squad, and even though Abraham scored 12 goals last season Thomas Tuchel does not consider him a first choice. The Abraham hypothesis is possible for Milan but still not very easy, as the 23-year-old is under contract until 2023 and has interest from the Premier League, with West Ham keen among others. One of the main obstacles would be the cost of the transfer fee, as Chelsea would want €40m for him. A loan with option to buy deal, like the Fikayo Tomori one, could get it done. We should demand Romagnoli and Theo Hernandez for the 4 of them toss in Emerson too if they pay us £20m (to replace Theo) the money works The most we will get for Emerson is £20m, so call that a wash Giroud is £3m tops Tammy £40m Tomori £25m (they owe us this anyway) Ziyech £35m £103m Romagnoli is worth £40m Theo is worth £60m £100m (and let's be honest, £20m for Emerson is 3 to 5m more than he is worth in this market) we solve our left-footed CB issue we now have 2 of the top 4 LB's in the world (Theo can also play CB in a pinch, and I would think that Tuchel could turn him into a DMF option too) and they get 5 quality players also frees us up to dump Zouma and Alonso (should pull in £45-50m or so)

Claim player has asked Chelsea ‘for bigger role or to be sold’ – Two clubs in Italy vying for his signature http://sportwitness.co.uk/claim-player-asked-Chelsea-bigger-role-sold-two-clubs-italy-vying-signature/ Chelsea’s Hakim Ziyech is a target for AC Milan and Napoli this summer after asking to be sold if there are not more opportunities for him next season. That’s according to the journalists at Radio CRC, relayed by Area Napoli, who say the former could have an advantage over their rivals. Ziyech arrived at Chelsea last summer in a big-money move from Ajax, having established himself a star man for the Dutch giants in both the Eredivisie and Champions League. However, he struggled for form in his first season in England, failing to be the star man under both Frank Lampard and his replacement Thomas Tuchel.

he is NOT Chels level not close and why would we buy a winger who turns 30 next summer? if he is a bust, his value will be shit this and the Traore rumours really piss me off

'Unstoppable' £150m player wants to move to Chelsea https://www.thechelseachronicle.com/transfer-news/report-unstoppable-150m-rated-gem-wants-to-move-to-Chelsea/ Erling Haaland is said to be intrigued by a move to Chelsea, whether that be this summer or in 12 months’ time. According to the Telegraph, Borussia Dortmund’s priceless striker is apparently attracted by the idea of moving to Stamford Bridge. This should be music to the ears of those associated with Chelsea, who have Haaland extremely high on their transfer wish list. Hurdles for Haaland Plenty still stands between the Blues and their priority signing, but this latest report may cause some encouragement. The 20-year-old’s reported £150m+ (Telegraph) price tag is the first obstacle, an astronomical fee that only a few clubs could muster up. Haaland’s possible wage demands might also create an issue for Chelsea, who already have plenty of well-priced stars on their squad list. Not to mention that Dortmund managed to qualify for the Champions League, leaving that lure pretty redundant. But the Blues have clearly not given up in their pursuit of the Norwegian centre-forward. Reasons for optimism Even if they have to wait until his release clause kicks in next year, allowing him to leave for a comparatively cheap fee of between £65m and £86m (Telegraph). This has tempted Chelsea to inquire about setting up a future deal with the Bundesliga side, that could include using Tammy Abraham in a trade-off. Manchester City, Manchester United and Real Madrid might have similar ambitions in prizing Haaland away from Germany. Pep Guardiola has already voiced his admiration for the Scandinavian superstar.

lol Gladbach want 40 million euros for Jonas Hofmann can they go FUCK themselves please he is 29 in a month in around 1400 minutes of European footie in his career 24 games all he has is one CL goal, one CL assist, one EL goal, and 2 EL assists I will go fucking bonkers if we drop 40m euros on this clown

The Athletic’s 10 Euro stars – Alexander Isak: A modern footballing unicorn https://theathletic.com/2611588/2021/06/07/the-athletics-10-euro-stars-alexander-isak-a-modern-footballing-unicorn There is a new type of target man running amok. As top-level football becomes increasingly focused on attacking moves in transition, the attributes needed to play as a lone striker have gone through a rewrite. If Didier Drogba in his Chelsea prime a decade ago was one of many who harkened the dominance of 4-2-3-1 and the end of front men who only worked in the opposition penalty area, then the likes of Erling Haaland are part of a new breed who press, create and score. The strikers of the next decade are likely to be physically imposing athletes capable of moments of explosive speed and strength to break through high-line defences. They will need to be able to play with their back to goal, but also to press from the front and to hassle defenders in the wide areas. These players are likely to possess a smattering of skill-based moves to beat at least one defender from a standing start and a handful of shooting techniques so they can finish off chances with both placed and power finishes. It is a big ask, and that is why any player who looks capable of meeting such a lengthy job spec is mentioned alongside eyebrow-elevating transfer fees. These are footballing unicorns — players who shouldn’t really exist but are out there if you go on into the early hours scouting talent from unknown lands (or just watch La Liga and Ligue 1 highlights, like we do). Alexander Isak, a 21-year-old, 6ft 3in tall striker for Spain’s Real Sociedad and Sweden, looks to be one of the next generation of this ilk. Isak is a streaky player in that when he’s hot, he’s really hot. Across the end of 2019 and the start of 2020, for example, he scored a late equaliser against Barcelona (in a 2-2 draw on December 14) to spark a run of 12 goals in as many games, including two at the Bernabeu to help knock out Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals. Born in Stockholm to parents from Eritrea in north-east Africa, Isak’s goalscoring prowess has seen him compared to Zlatan Ibrahimovic (another “fluid” kind of target man). While there are some similarities between the two Swedes, there are plenty of differences as far as the younger striker is concerned, Isak doesn’t quite have Ibrahimovic’s limitless self-belief and ability to bend footballing events to own will yet, but he does have seemingly extendable legs and an ability to score from some unbelievable positions. Isak’s career trajectory has been an interesting one. First emerging at Stockholm club AIK in the 2016 season with 10 goals in 23 appearances, he was signed at age 17 by the Thomas Tuchel-coached Borussia Dortmund, who beat off an array of suitors including Real Madrid in January 2017. Isak then spent the better part of two years flitting between Dortmund’s senior and B teams and Dutch side Willem II on loan. His combination of explosive speed and inventive finishes meant Isak’s talent was never in question — during his spell in the Netherlands for the second half of the 2018-19 season, he became the first foreign player there to score 12 goals in his first 12 games — but, like many prodigious talents, it became a question of which club would be the best environment for him to properly bloom. The answer turned out to be Real Sociedad, after technical director Roberto Olabe convinced the young Swede to join in the summer of 2019. Isak’s two seasons in the Basque city of San Sebastian have seen him first display his talents as counter-attacking forward, running on to balls in behind defences from Martin Odegaard in 2019-20, and then as a competent passer, forming build-up triangles with David Silva and other team-mates last term. This past season saw Isak become the first player aged 21 or under to get to 17 goals in La Liga since Sergio Aguero did it for Atletico Madrid in 2008-09. A good demonstration of Isak’s talents can be found in a 3-2 loss away to Sevilla in January, with the forward first pressing defender Diego Carlos into scoring a comedy own goal before ghosting in at the back post from a corner for a one-touch finish to make it 2-2. Isak’s smarterscout profile also helps break down his most recent season. For those unfamiliar with smarterscout profiles, they break down parts of a player’s game into different performance, skill and style metrics, and then give scores based on how often they perform a given stylistic action or how effective they are compared with others playing in their position, producing an overall score between zero and 99. What the above chart is telling you Isak shoots a lot (the high rating for shot volume), contributes highly to his team’s chances of scoring (the high score in xG from shot creation) and generally picks up the ball in central locations in the penalty area (receptions in opposition box). He’s a good ball carrier (the high score for carry and dribble volume) but tends to dribble only over short distances from A to B, rather than more expansive runs and passes into space, as a winger would do. He performs well in effectively pressing the opposition from the front, too (that strong number in defending impact). He doesn’t frequently compete in the air for a player of his height (see his low score for aerial duel quantity). Neither, as the below chart shows, does he rate too highly in terms of success in his aerial duels — being considered below average in his ability to win them both in open play or from set pieces. This is a common side-effect for footballers who have their growth spurts early, as their back muscles aren’t as well developed as in smaller players; this is something Isak will have to develop if he wishes to be more like Ibrahimovic. What your eyes might tell you watching Isak at Euro 2020 He scores with a lot of one-touch finishes, similar to Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s recent work for Everton. He’s a bit skinny, somewhere between Ibrahimovic and Peter Crouch in terms of build for tall strikers, though is likely to bulk up with age if he wishes to develop his hold-up play. How you might explain Isak if you’re in a bar with friends and his name pops up “Imagine Jamie Vardy — but 6ft 2in, and with better dribbling.” “He’s a nuisance of a target man, like Ollie Watkins — a pest to defenders when pressing, but you can also volley long passes in to him to hold up.” “Did you ever see Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang at Dortmund, when he was lightning-quick and picking off wasteful passes from opposition full-backs?” “He’s going to get linked with a Champions League club next year and then tear up the competition, along with a bunch of other 6ft-plus, dribbling strikers.” That last one might get you some strange looks but here’s some further smarterscout data for those wanting a comparison with some forwards already in the Premier League. “I think this is the natural evolution of the striker position based on tactical trends — most notably pressing and high lines,” says Sam Tighe, a football journalist from the podcast Ranks FC who has covered Isak previously. “The on-the-shoulder runner who aims to exploit the space in behind is back in vogue but, thanks to sports science, they’re bigger and stronger and better than ever. So you have Isak, Tammy (Abraham), (Dusan) Vlahovic from Fiorentina, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and more. Big and strong, fast and quick, but good footballers too. And they can change from ‘in behind’ to ‘target man’ on demand, depending on the game situation.” The demands placed on target men are changing as football reinvents itself at the top level but Isak looks more than up to the task at hand. As part of our our Euro 2020 coverage, we’re highlighting the players who could light up Europe this summer.

He maybe switching to the Ghana NT too, which means he is gone for a month mid-season if he does so.

Stuttgart’s Wamangituka reveals real name & age after ‘manipulation’ by ex-agent https://theathletic.com/news/silas-wamangituka-stuttgart-agent-name-age/9WUAkkg1mTAI Stuttgart’s Silas Wamangituka has revealed his name and age were false after being the “victim of manipulation by his former player agent”. Documentation has come to light that, according to Stuttgart, proves the Congolese forward’s real name is Silas Katompa Mvumpa and that he is 22, rather than 21 (his age listed on the Bundesliga’s official website as of 1.30pm BST on June 8). Silas, as Stuttgart now refer to him, has worked with Stuttgart and a new agent to obtain his correct records from the Democratic Republic of Congo and clarify his identity. Due to his situation, Silas says he has been “living in fear”. The forward won this season’s Bundesliga Rookie of the Year after Stuttgart’s promotion. How did this happen? Stuttgart say that following a trial with Anderlecht in 2017, “an agent is said to have put Silas under considerable pressure in Belgium and convinced him that he would not be allowed to return to Europe if he left Belgium and went back to Congo. “Silas trusted the agent and went to live with him in Paris. He then changed his identity and papers were created for him in the name of Silas Wamangituka (one of the names of his father) and with a date of birth that was exactly one year different from his own, 6 October 1999. “From this point onwards, Silas was under the influence of the agent who syphoned off part of his wages and threatened him that he would never play football again if the matter ever became public. “Thanks to his considerable efforts to clear up the situation, Silas now has a valid Congolese passport with his correct personal details.” The club noted that Silas “had been the victim of manipulation by his former player agent and that Wamangituka is not his real name”. What has Silas said? “Over the past few years, I was constantly living in fear and was also very worried for my family in Congo,” he told the club website. “It was a tough step for me to take to make my story public and I would never have had the courage to do so if Stuttgart, my team and VfB had not become like a second home and a safe place to me.” Stuttgart sporting director Sven Mislintat added: “First and foremost, Silas has been the victim of this change of name. “I have the greatest respect for the fact that at a young age, he has taken the brave step to clarify his situation. We will continue to give him all the help he needs in absolutely every respect.” How has he performed at Stuttgart? Since joining from Paris FC in 2019, Silas has been a key player for Stuttgart. In his first year in Germany, he scored seven goals as Stuttgart were promoted to the Bundesliga. Silas kicked on in his debut top-flight campaign, registering 11 goals and five assists as Stuttgart enjoyed a ninth-placed finish, and firmly established himself as a highly-rated Bundesliga talent.