Tomo

Caicedo is more proven than Rice is a progressive system.

While I don't disagree we wasted too much time on this, it really wouldn't have shocked me if Bloom moved the goalposts if we bid the £100m early on. Easier said than done but I really hope we stop trying to deal with people like him/ADL/Rui Costa etc.

Think Brighton set a deadline. Although if there's ever a saga that will provide one final twist it's this one (as Caicedo clearly is quite flexible on where he ends up).

Apart from the flanks where it's open season (Robertson is out of his depth in his new hybrid role, it's why they were prepared to break the bank for Colwill). Even with Caicedo they're conceding for fun unless they get a new LCB.

So you finally admit you were lying when you said Boehly was incharge of transfers? Got there in the end!

I do agree Lavia is very overrated. Adams however I think will pleasantly surprise a few, although ofcourse not anywhere near to the extent to make up for this.

Peversly his 7 year contract is helping us at this stage. With the way we were moving early on with the new ownership we would have 100% rewarded his October purple patch with a new contract if his current one was winding down.

That's a risk in any context, we've signed multiple players with proven pedigree these last two years and look how that ended.

I really really hope not. While he technically can do it it would be a total waste of the game dictating qualities he has.

Have you seen their opponents this pre season? Bayern aside even us under Potter would have filled our boots against all of those set of teams.

Well by that basis we should let him go and get Navas on a short term deal as he's a significantly more succesful player trophy wise.

Rumours we've been unwilling to put two keepers on #1 keeper wages, Kepa leaving would change that. So we could make a late play for an elite keeper of failing that get someone like Keylor Navas in on a one year deal and attack that area next summer. We can't pass on the opportunity to get Kepa's wages off the books, even at a short term inconvenience.

That's not good but at the same time Torres was always a fundamentally crap footballer without his pace, Christo does (in worse case) seem to have more tactical intelligence to adapt his game.

Torres' problem in his debut and beyond was simply the fact he was a rubbish footballer.

United?

In the short term for sure but I actually think it may inadvertently help them in the long run sadly. Even with Kane they're not good enough to win anything right now and if he stays for one more year they'll be a lot of pressure to win something while he's still there regardless of that fact, without him Ange will pretty much get 1 maybe even 2 free hit campaigns to build a side in his image, similar to Pochettino when he went there in 2014.

I was pretty much obsessed with signing Enzo from the minute I saw him play a 90 minute match, here's me stating as such before he exploded in the world cup. Caicedo not so much at that point but I'm certainly not against it after doing the research.

They'll always be a bit of natural paranoia after the last couple of season's but instincts are telling me it was a precaution due to the pitch. Hopefully I'm right.

A little bit of context for the "he's Brighton's 3rd choice keeper" narrative from the Brighton forum. Steele did get injured, and after two months of quiet benchwarming Sanchez was picked and played two of the biggest games in our history, our first win at Stamford Bridge followed by the Cup semi final at Wembley. He excelled in both, a chance to re-establish himself you might say, but was dropped back to the bench immediately after. Then Steeke shipped five against Everton and was. looking anything but a PL shot stopper, but RDZ told Sanchez he wasn't getting back in the team, at which point he got upset and the rest is history. https://www.northstandchat.com/threads/robert-sanchez-to-Chelsea-for-25m-plus-add-ons.400643/page-40

Let's not pretend you wouldn't be raging if we spent £30m on a keeper who had just suffered his third relegation.

Yes and no, they were saying release clause or nothing (which would have meant a one off payment in full) all month and we got the deal done in installments.

I wonder if Poch should be ruthless and put him straight in for Liverpool. Szoboszlai is probably the best player in the league at striking from distance.

I think the compromise in the end will be we "overpay" for Sanchez to make the Caicedo fee lower. Would mean we've "won" from a technical standpoint and save Brighton some cash as they have a sell on clause with Caicedo's previous team.

From what I'm reading that's exactly what he'd do from a defensive standpoint. It's on the ball where he's weak to non existent.

They play on different sides of the CB, Fofana and Gvardiol impact each other as about as much as Bettinelli and Nkunku do. Now let's assume he was up for joining us over City (highly unlikely) if we decided against it it would have been because of Colwill and/or Badiashille, not Fofana. But that doesn't get your much needed sensational headline, does it?