Pizy

They kind of will be in a position to keep them. They'll be making well over £100m in annual TV revenue starting next season.

Great points. I think that Stones can/could have been gradually eased in. Didn't have to start 100% of our games this season.I just have my reservations about "settling" for a stopgap or short term player. We've seen how badly it can turn out first hand recently. Big names aren't available so we buy for the sake of making up the numbers and end up regretting it quickly.

Not yet. Wonder if the statement will say definitively that "he's not for sale at any price."If that happens then it's officially dead.

Wouldn't care at all if he had gone to Bayern or something and become an amazing player. Going to a direct rival where in my opinion he'll thrive and win them plenty of points really stings. City have bought absolutely brilliantly. People were saying we "won the league in the summer" last year by signing the exact players we needed. City may very well have done the same. Can't see any PL team being able to stop their attack. Yaya seems like he actually wants to try this season, Kompany is fit and back to his best so far, and they've signed another expensive CB that should improve their defense.

People keep saying "move on an get someone else." I want to hear names from you people. Who are we going to get that as good as Stones or has the potential of Stones? Zero chance we can get Varane, zero chance we can get Laporte this late in the window, and don't give me Hummels either because he ain't leaving Dortmund. We don't get Stones and we risk disaster if our CB's don't suddenly improve DRASTICALLY. They'll continue to get ripped apart by pace and the ball will continue to go over their heads by a simple lob while they laughably get caught too high up the pitch. Cahill will continue to embarrassed in 1v1 scenarios and JT, love him as we all do, will continue to get ruthlessly exposed when a striker with pace and great movement targets him.

Just hope the club aren't simply done in the market if Stones and the super unlikely Pogba deal don't come off. Going to be annoying if in José's press conference after the window shuts he says "I'm happy with the squad. We didn't need any more players" Our team still looks well short of the quality required to retain the title and have a shot at the CL. Teams like West Brom and Swansea gave us hell for fucks sake.

Hope you're right and he kicks up a fuss.

He's been too nice and it'll most likely cost him his move here. If he really wanted out he should've refused to play and made his position untenable. By playing he has shown Everton that he's not that serious about leaving.

He's essentially insinuating that we've tapped Stones up and caused him to hand in that transfer request. They'll now turn on the charm offensive and "support" him.

Again, Everton still wouldn't have to budge. Stones doesn't have the option that Sterling had if it came to it where he could just sit and wait out his contract. He has another 4 years.All he can do now is beg, beg, beg.

That's the thing, he can't do anything if they refuse to sell. The transfer request was his last weapon and they've still said no. He can't just not play like someone who's in the last year of his contract and he's trying to get in the Euro's squad.He HAS to play and play well. Everton have all the power here.

I really, really dislike Roberto Martinez. Fuck.

This is going to be a looooong season with no CB signing unless our current bunch suddenly snap into 2014/15 form. Matrinez's comments sound like the nail in the coffin for this. Makes Everton look like a tinpot club. Forcing a player who wants to leave to stay against his will. If I'm a young player with ambition to one day play for the very best clubs and Everton are after me in the interim I'm not going there. If you want to leave after outgrowing Everton they won't allow you to.

That sounds pretty definitive. He will look so, so bad if they sell him now. There would be riots.

Damn.Expected, but I was maybe hoping for a bit of a relent in his statements.

Any comments from Mythtinez yet?

If we're playing against a team who plays with a super quick striker or with multiple strikers we could employ Zouma and Stones or Stones and Cahill. If we're playing against big, lumbering strikers that JT normally devours he can start. Just options.It's good to have that kind of flexibility.

Simply having more bodies in the middle of the park should make it more difficult for opponents to play through us. Would also make it easier for us to dominate possession since Pogba is fantastic with the ball at his feet and under pressure.

I think José has shown so far this season that neither Cahill or Terry are undroppable. If he feels Zouma is a good fit against the opposition I can easily see him pairing them together.

I think Zouma will play more going further than he ever has before, not less.

Maybe this is why we're suddenly after Pogba. We've seen that FFP is simply a mosquito bite.

So it's not £50m. It's £60m! Jesus! Every big club should just disregard FFP. Floodgates should open.

Pellegrino's first press conference after the signing should be plenty annoying. Never turns down a chance to talk about Chelsea.

HAHAHAHA!

If they don't win the league with ease and get to AT LEAST the last 4 of the CL with that squad and that cash outlay then they'll have failed MASSIVELY and Pellegrino should be sacked in the spot.