Vesper

this year yes, but IF he ends up going for only 35, 40m quid or so, and IF he stays healthy the rest of this year, I would not be adverse to a gamble, as when he is healthy he is a monster

https://thedailybriefing.io/i/154489566/paris-saint-germain Milan Skriniar has been offered to Napoli as part of a potential Kvaratskhelia deal with Paris Saint-Germain. No green light from the Italians at this stage.

fuck, if true https://thedailybriefing.io/i/154489566/barcelona Juventus want to tie up a deal for Ronald Araujo deal, and more contact is planned with Barcelona to speed up negotiations.

Pikey Wizard

The Scouser One

add in Vitor Reis (likely if not a lock) and bloody hell, do I wish we had Citeh's CBs! LOADED with both vets and now youngsters with massive potential. MF is what is killing them (Rodri out has been devastating obviously, without him they have been so overrun is so many games), plus LB

big LWer breakdown: Kvaratskhelia is a LWer and is ambipedal, but plays mostly on the left, not the right Estevão is a left footed RWer, so 2 different types of player I assume we will eventually sell Muddy and Felix (who is not a pure LWer and lacks pace) so it would be Kvaratskhelia and Sancho as our 2 LWers there are 6 WC left wingers out there who are potentially available (assuming Real Madrid does NOT sell either Mbappe or Vini Jr, and I so doubt either would come here anyway) the first two and the last one can also play AMF and SS (and the first two are the 2 best IMHO, after the abovementioned Mbappe and Vini Jr)) Florian Wirtz Jamal Musiala Khvicha Kvaratskhelia Rafael Leão Nico Williams Xavi Simons there are 4 another wild cards for LW Rodrygo (he is right footer who plays out of postion on the right at Real due to RM's overload on the left) he would be a superb left winger as well, but again, I so doubt Real would sell him Jamie Gittens of Dortmund is the 2nd wild card (and is only 20yo, so prime age for the BlueCo model) Kenan Yıldız of Juve is the 3rd, and he is only 19yo (but so doubtful Juve would sell him for annything other than silly money) Johan Bakayoko of PSV Eindhoven is the 4th, but he has regressed a bit this seaons (he is only 21, so still have a long time to come good, BUT I am leary of Dutch League players overall) all that said Bradley Barcola at PSG is another WC left winger, but I see no possible scenario where PSG would sell him, he is the 2nd leading scorer in Ligue 1, trailing Jonathan David of Lille (a CF) by one goal, plus Désiré Doué has not exactly set the world on fire at PSG so far Dani Olmo and Ademola Lookman (who also, like Wirtz, Musiala, and Simons also play AMF and /or SS) plus Diaz and Gapko of Pool, and Doku of Citeh are the last of the WC left wingers, but Barca just won their appeal (granted temp) and have now registred Olmo to play, and I also do not see Atalanta selling Lookman, same for Gapko (Diaz is wanted BADLY by the Saudis, and has said IF he leaves Pool it will NOT be for another EPL club) No chance Citeh sell Doku. I am not yet sold on Álex Baena of Villarreal, Gordon of NUFC would be insanely expensive for the quality, and obviously Pulisic is not coming back here. I do not rate Adeyemi of Dortmund enough to think about buying him. Far too inconsistent. Mathys Tel has had a poor year he is only 19yo, and the porrness also comes from almsot no playing time atm), and is more of a CF than a winger. Need to see another year or 2 from Antonio Nusa at Leipzig. All the other great wingers not listed above are RWers Lamine Yamal Bukayo Saka Phil Foden Raphinha Michael Olise Mohamed Salah Ousmane Dembélé Bryan Mbeumo Mohammed Kudus Geovany Quenda in closing, I probably forgot some names overall at bother wings, but I listed a shedload, lolol

all of the following are 30yo or older Scott Carson Kyle Walker İlkay Gündoğan Kevin De Bruyne Stefan Ortega Ederson Mateo Kovacic John Stones Bernardo Silva Nathan Aké (30yo next month) Manuel Akanji (30yo in July) Jack Grealish (30yo in early September) on loan Kalvin Phillips (30yo in December)

IF we dump fucking 70m quid on Mainoo I am done DONE not having a laugh the only CMFs I rate at £70m or more (Bellingham is more of an AMF, but if you count him as a CMF, then obviously he is the top of the list) are Federico Valverde Pedri Eduardo Camavinga Nicolò Barella (and time is running out, he turns 29 in the middle of next season) Alexis Mac Allister Warren Zaïre-Emery Vitinha (Gavi is a no, he is chronically injured atm, I would need to see 2 straight healthy seasons) below those would be Pablo Barrios Fermín López these 4 are DMFs João Neves Martín Zubimendi Aleksandar Pavlovic Carlos Baleba

around 2/3rds RB 1/3rd CB a few games as a RMF Stats 24/25 Stats 23/24 Stats 22/23 Stats 21/22

Christian Pulisic inspires Milan to Super Cup win, clinches his first trophy for the club https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6042672/2025/01/06/pulisic-ac-milan-super-cup-win/ Christian Pulisic lifted his first trophy for AC Milan as he once again led a fightback which saw his team come from behind and beat rivals Inter 3-2 in the Italian Super Cup final. The USMNT international scored a wonderful goal on 80 minutes during the final in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Monday to make it 2-2, after the Rossoneri had trailed by two goals to Simone Inzaghi’s men either side of half-time. Then in added time Pulisic played a sublime defence-splitting pass, which allowed Rafael Leao to slide the ball across goal for Tammy Abraham to tap into the net and clinch their first silverware since 2022. It was a suitably dramatic ending to a game which Milan were only in thanks to another Pulisic salvation act at the same Al-Awal stadium on Friday. In the semi-final he helped them come from behind again to beat Weston McKennie and Tim Weah’s Juventus 2-1 with another equaliser, before compatriot Yunus Musah forced the own goal that gave them victory. But Pulisic saved his best for Monday’s final against Serie A’s third-place team, as Milan currently languish in eighth after a patch of indifferent form that saw Paulo Fonseca fired and Sergio Conceicao appointed manager last week. Things looked bleak for the new man in charge with Inter leading in the showpiece final, but France defender Theo Hernandez pulled a goal back on 52 minutes before Pulisic’s wonderful turn and finish with 10 minutes of ordinary time remaining. The 26-year-old former Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund attacker managed to squeeze in his left-footed strike past goalkeeper Yann Sommer, despite being surrounded by blue and black shirts, after a smart turn. Then he showed his creative genius in the third minute of added time with the left-footed pass that created Abraham’s winner. Cutting in off the right flank, the American went past defender Carlos Augusto and then, spotting Leao’s darting run into the area, he played an inch-perfect pass that split Inters covering duo Alessandro Bastonu and Kristjan Asllani, enabling Leao to simply turn the ball across goal at close range for Abraham to convert. For new boss Conceicao it meant wins over Juventus and Inter in his first two games in charge. And for the Rossoneri the trophy might galvanise a season that had began to drift, but sees them still in the Champions League and able to fight for qualification for that tournament again next season via the league, even if the Scudetto seems beyond them as they trail leaders Napoli by 17 points. But in many ways this final will be remembered for Pulisic’s game-changing role. He has now made 22 appearances in all competitions for Milan this season, scoring nine goals and providing six assists as he flourishes into a talismanic performer. Capped 76 times by the USMNT, he has registered two goals and two assists in three appearances under new head coach Mauricio Pochettino.

Pool's 24 game unbeaten streak is over

1 nil FT

agree Tosin is nowhere near as poor a player as Disasi and Tosin is hardly a great CB

absolute beast CF play by Solanke what an assist

1 nil Bergvall

Borussia Dortmund interested in January loan move for Chelsea’s Carney Chukwuemeka https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6046413/2025/01/08/carney-chukwuemeka-dortmund-Chelsea-transfers/ Borussia Dortmund have an interest in signing Chelsea midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka on a loan deal with an option to buy in the January transfer window. In this week’s Transfer DealSheet, The Athletic reported that the 21-year-old has generated interest from clubs in the Premier League, Germany and Italy, but that Chelsea have made it clear that they would only consider a permanent sale. The only loan that Chelsea would consider for Chukwuemeka would be to Strasbourg but that will require one of Caleb Wiley, Djordje Petrovic or Andrey Santos to end their spells at the Ligue 1 club because they can only take three loans from Chelsea. Both clubs are owned by multi-club ownership group BlueCo. Chukwuemeka joined Chelsea from Aston Villa in the summer of 2022 for a £20million ($25m) fee. He made 15 appearances during his first season but a knee injury that required surgery limited him to only 12 games the following campaign. His contract at Stamford Bridge runs until 2028. He has found game time hard to come by at Chelsea and has been low down on the midfield depth chart. Head coach Enzo Maresca, who joined the club in July, said in September that he advised Chukwuemeka to leave the club in the summer to get more first-team football. Chukwuemeka has only made five appearances this season, with four of those coming in the Conference League and one in the Carabao Cup. His sole start came in Chelsea’s 3-1 league-phase win over Astana in December. He is yet to receive a senior international cap though he has made appearances for England through the under-17 to under-20 level. Dortmund, who are sixth in the Bundesliga standings, return to action on January 10 at home to Bayer Leverkusen. GO DEEPER Chelsea Transfer DealSheet: What to expect in 2025 Freakish injury curtailed Chukwuemeka’s Chelsea career It has been a bleak 18 months for Chukwuemeka, who appeared primed for a breakout Premier League season when he followed up a positive preseason with an excellent goal against West Ham United at London Stadium in August 2023. Chukwuemeka sustained a freakish knee injury in the same game that sidelined him for several months and by the time he was fit to return, Chelsea had found attacking midfield inspiration elsewhere — chiefly in emerging superstar Cole Palmer. Last summer Maresca made it clear that Chukwuemeka would be best served finding another club where he can play regularly. Chelsea’s preference to sell fits with their bigger push to extricate themselves from many of the signings they made in the summer of 2022, a window that the club’s ownership would rather forget. Liam Twomey Chukwuemeka has found game-time hard to come by under Maresca at Chelsea this season (Daniel Kopatsch/Getty Images) Chukwuemeka would fit Dortmund’s missing profile There is no question that Dortmund’s midfield has lost some of its verve, or that the time is right to rebuild it around Felix Nmecha, who promises to grow into an outstanding No 6. Pascal Gross, who arrived from Brighton & Hove Albion last summer, is 33, while Emre Can turns 31 in a week. Other parts of the side are decorated with developing talent. Jamie Gittens (20) has established himself on the left of Nuri Sahin’s attack, while Julien Duranville (18) recently started his first game for the club on the right, against Barcelona in the Champions League. Giovanni Reyna (22) has also re-emerged and is suddenly in favour with Sahin. Chukwuemeka fits the profile of what they need — young, talented, only likely to improve and suited to a box-to-box role — but is just one of several options that the club are considering and at a time when finances are relatively tight. Seb Stafford-Bloor

Toss in Felix as makeweight

LiVARpool goal chalked off

1 nil Solanke pending VAR

How do Chelsea solve their Wesley Fofana problem? Acheampong, Chalobah, Guehi and more https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6043980/2025/01/08/Chelsea-wesley-fofana-injury-analysis-options/ No one knows exactly when Wesley Fofana will be fit to play for Chelsea again. Enzo Maresca fears he could miss the rest of the season with the hamstring injury he sustained against Aston Villa on December 1. Fofana himself is hopeful of a shorter recovery timeframe than that, possibly positioning him for a return to match action in late March or early April, amid Chelsea’s final push to secure a Premier League top-four finish. In the meantime, Maresca has been open about the fact that he is searching for solutions. His preferred plan B, Benoit Badiashile, suffered a thigh injury in training two weeks later. Tosin Adarabioyo was then drafted in to partner Levi Colwill in the heart of Chelsea’s defence against Brentford, Everton, Fulham and Ipswich Town, a run of games which steadily dissipated the positive momentum built at Stamford Bridge in the first half of the season. Not that there has been some spectacular defensive collapse: Chelsea kept just three clean sheets in the 13 Premier League games Fofana started before his injury and have registered one in seven league matches without him. But his absence — and the unavailability of Badiashile — does change the way Maresca can set up his team. “I’ve said many times I am in love with Wes because Wes is that kind of defender who gives you the chance to press and be aggressive and to leave him one-on-one with someone like Ollie Watkins over the whole pitch,” Maresca said of Fofana in a press conference last week. “We did exactly the same when Wes was injured with Benoit, one-v-one with Dominic Solanke on the whole pitch, and they can deal with that. It is very difficult to find that kind of defender. “Unfortunately, both are injured, but we are trying to find different solutions.” The different solution Maresca unveiled against Crystal Palace on Saturday was Josh Acheampong, the 18-year-old Cobham product who signed a new long-term contract at Stamford Bridge in December after protracted negotiations that saw him exiled from first-team and development squad consideration for more than a month. After the match, Chelsea’s head coach hailed Acheampong as his team’s best performer at Selhurst Park, but stopped short of confirming the youngster as the preferred partner for Colwill going forward. He remains one of a range of potential options open to Maresca in the coming days and weeks, detailed below. The upside swing: keep playing Acheampong There is a reason why Chelsea fought so hard to get Acheampong to extend his contract beyond the summer of 2026, even to the point of employing the questionable strategy of freezing him out late last year — and it was on display in his impressive full Premier League debut against Palace. Acheampong is regarded inside and outside Chelsea as a world-class defensive prospect. He combines a strong, mobile frame (he stands a little taller than 6ft, with plenty of room to add muscle as he matures) with a rare level of technical polish on the ball for his position. He had plenty of opportunity to exhibit the latter against Palace: only Colwill and Malo Gusto registered more touches than Acheampong and only Gusto attempted more passes. “One of the things I like to do when I play is be on the ball,” he said in a post-match interview with Chelsea’s in-house media channel. “Especially as I was getting more and more into the game, I got more confidence, so it helped to be on the ball more.” Acheampong played against Palace (Justin Setterfield/Getty Images) His most eye-catching moment came around the hour mark; only a couple of minutes after a rare loose pass presented the ball to Palace on the halfway line, he stepped up from defence again in an almost identical position and whipped the ball confidently through the opposition lines perfectly into the feet of Cole Palmer. Acheampong displayed good defensive intelligence without the ball, adjusting his positioning as Palace attacks developed relative to where Colwill placed himself. The imposing Jean-Philippe Mateta caused him problems at times with his physicality, but the 18-year-old never allowed himself to be bullied and was not at fault for the Frenchman’s equaliser. Maresca was keen to stress that Chelsea must be careful with Acheampong’s development, but this seems a good moment to find out exactly how ready he is for regular Premier League football. There will likely be mistakes along the way, but not necessarily any more than Maresca would endure with the more experienced alternatives who have left him unconvinced — and the long-term benefits of giving him first-team exposure now could be huge. The stick: persist with Tosin or Axel Disasi This is the option many coaches would take. Not only does it help maintain dressing room dynamics, but Tosin and Disasi are experienced, known quantities and neither are bad Premier League players, even if they are not what Maresca would ideally want next to Colwill. Tosin’s performances for Chelsea have been a mixed bag. There have been vital interventions like the brilliant block which denied Iliman Ndiaye a certain goal in the goalless draw with Everton last month, and costly lapses like the failure to spot Curtis Jones’ late run into the box to score Liverpool’s second goal in their 2-1 win over Maresca’s team in October. He and Disasi both help replace the aerial force and overall physicality Chelsea lose without Fofana, as well as some much-needed personality and leadership on the pitch. Neither, however, is anywhere near as fast across the ground, and their athletic limitations might force Maresca to further drop his defensive line or risk giving opponents too much space to exploit in behind. That would have potential implications for the effectiveness of Chelsea’s press, as well as the amount of ground that Moises Caicedo is required to cover at the base of midfield. Distribution is another issue. Tosin is a fine passer out of defence but no more than that, while rumblings about Disasi’s poor fit for Maresca’s possession build-up began in the earliest days of pre-season. He has only been trusted at right-back rather than centre-back in the Premier League, where he has had huge difficulties defending in space against more agile wingers. Maresca persisting with either in the current circumstances would be defensible, but his decision to elevate Acheampong above both against Palace makes it seem an unlikely path. The return: recall Trevoh Chalobah It is something that Chelsea are considering — a remarkable development given the lengths to which the club went to encourage Chalobah to find a new permanent home last summer. Chalobah has done well on loan at Crystal Palace after an injury-disrupted start, forming a productive defensive chemistry with Marc Guehi and Maxence Lacroix at the rear of Oliver Glasner’s improving side. He has even chipped in with three goals in his 12 Premier League appearances, including one against Brighton that endeared him to the Selhurst Park faithful. In short, he has added to the significant body of evidence that he is a fine Premier League player, capable of being a squad contributor at Chelsea or a starter for a team lower down the table. Chalobah is on loan at Crystal Palace (Bryn Lennon/Getty Images) Chalobah cannot provide exactly what Fofana does alongside Colwill. But he is flexible enough to provide a solid option at centre-back or right-back, where Gusto continues to soak up the bulk of the Premier League minutes due to Reece James’ unavailability. But recalling him would raise immediate questions about why Tosin was signed on a free transfer last summer, and about the level of faith in Acheampong — who was taken on Chelsea’s pre-season tour of the United States at Chalobah’s expense. It would also undermine the point of the Palace loan, which is to rebuild Chalobah’s transfer value to the point where a credible buyer emerges for him. The wild card: take a look at Aaron Anselmino This would constitute a rapid elevation for Anselmino, who only became a first-team regular in the Boca Juniors defence after signing for Chelsea in August 2024 and returning on loan. Now he has been recalled to Cobham, and Maresca has already made it clear the 19-year-old will be given an opportunity to impress him in first-team training sessions. “He’s another talent, another good player,” Chelsea’s head coach said in a press conference last week. “Now the most important thing is that he arrives here, adapts himself, finds a house, and settles in the right way. Then we need to give him time because when you come from another part of the world, you need to adapt. You need to see a new world, a new culture. For sure we are going to try to help him to adapt as soon as possible.” Anselmino projects as an option at centre-back or right-back in Maresca’s system, and Chelsea are excited about his long-term potential. He has more professional seasoning than Acheampong, but that only extends to 20 senior appearances for Boca in a significantly lower calibre of league with a very different style of football. Loaning him out until the summer or keeping him around to acclimatise to Chelsea and England both have developmental merit. Maresca’s public caution indicates that if he is integrated into the first-team squad immediately, it will be at most to earn minutes in the early rounds of the FA Cup or the Europa Conference League. No firm decisions have been made. The twist: buy a new centre-back This is the course of action that many in football have come to expect from Chelsea under Clearlake Capital, though the club never intended to be particularly active buyers in this window. They do have a list of possible defensive targets for 2025 and Guehi, the Cobham graduate with 18 months left to run on his Palace contract, is on it. In terms of age and skill set, he fits the profile of player Chelsea have prized for the last two years. Given his status within the Premier League and the England squad he is likely to be regarded by Maresca as an upgrade on what he currently has available. Guehi is fast, strong, respectable in the air and classy on the ground, both in terms of how he reads situations defensively and how he passes around and through pressure. He is a leader despite his relative youth and has a very good fitness record — no small consideration for a club like Chelsea, who are already managing several persistent injury doubts in their squad. Guehi’s deal expires in summer 2026 (Julian Finney/Getty Images) He also has a natural preference for operating as the left-sided centre-back, despite being primarily right-footed. That does not necessarily rule him out as a suitable partner for Colwill, but it does mean there may be cleaner fits elsewhere on the market. But are any likely to be available in January? The winter window is not typically the moment for making premium upgrades, not least because selling clubs tend to have different priorities during the season. Palace have plenty of reason to keep Guehi and ensure they maintain their Premier League status before addressing his situation in the summer. The transfer market is always tantalising by nature, but Chelsea cannot expect it to solve their Fofana problem right now.

The Saudis!!!!

oh, ffs! NO

If they merged this could be their crest