Pizy

If all the primary options fail maybe we hide our time and play Nkunku as a false 9 and wait until January to assess our options. I’d almost prefer that to us gambling on that youngster from Villa we keep getting linked with for example.

If neither Sesko or Alvarez happen and they either stay or go elsewhere we’re kinda fucked. We’re then taking a massive gamble on some youngster or a guy who did well at some small club.

I’d prefer a quick, highly technical striker like Alvarez personally than a more classic “big man” striker like Sesko. Sesko is by no means a slow, lumbering Andy Carroll or anything but I think our squad would function better with a more mobile and versatile striker.

Yeah but I would’ve thought we’d at least see the usual formalities like pictures of him signing his contract, photos holding the shirt, in club interview etc.

Because he’s only 30 and still one of the best in the world? Retiring to the Saudi league when you’re at or near the top of your game and still young for a keeper is nuts to me. Going there when you’re 36 or something is understandable. But he’s still got 5 years of top level play left easily before he can sail into the sunset and earn the Saudi millions.

It’s kind of crazy that perhaps the best ball playing keeper in the world is apparently ready to leave their club, we are in desperate need for a ball playing keeper for our new manager, and yet there isn’t even a peep about us being interested. You would think that Ederson would be absolute priority #1. But it seems the club is fine with what we have.

On the other hand, from his POV he’s already won multiple PL titles, a Champions League trophy, and the World Cup. He may think he’s got nothing left to prove or strive for and want to live the easy life for the rest of his prime years. Gets to live in Paris, earn mega wages, walk the Ligue 1 title every year, guaranteed CL football every year. And with that league being poor he can inflate his goal numbers like crazy and raise his profile. Would be awesome if he insisted on remaining in the best league and proving himself as the main man rather than playing second fiddle to Haaland but the lure of PSG (especially a PSG that’ll be desperate for star power after losing Mbappe for free) may be too much.

Fabrizio apparently said that PSG were in talks with Alvarez’s agent. I unfortunately don’t think we’ll be able to go near whatever wages PSG will offer. They’ll be desperate to replace Mbappe and will probably offer him and others 500k per week to lure them there.

Isn’t it a bit weird that we haven’t even heard from Maresca yet a week after signing?

I see people putting Fofana in our starting XI but do we even have a clue whether he’ll be fit to train fully this summer? Never mind just walking back into our best XI. I mean, that would be incredible since I’m one of his biggest backers but I’ll have to see him actually on the training pitch to believe it.

I love him as a player and really wanted him last summer before we signed Palmer. But damn, he ain’t worth anywhere near that amount! And that would be a terrible move for him I think. Way too many top players competing in the attacking positions.

Unlike with other heated Big 6 rivals I’d have to imagine that since ourselves and City have done some drama free, pretty smooth and cordial business with each other in the last few years it would make it easier to convince them to sell Alvarez if he pushes to leave. The Kovacic, Palmer, and Sterling deals were all problem free if I recall correctly. And as others have said, City/Pep aren’t the type who will put their foot down and adamantly try to play hardball with players leaving. They let Jesus go to Arse without any fuss either. If we offer probably £70-80m and the player pushes I think we can seal it.

Tosin for me can be the next Azpi or Cahill sort of defensive signing. Those two were bought for absolute peanuts and turned out to be some of the best pound for pound signings we’ve ever made. But in this case it’s FREE. As for Alvarez, I’m getting more and more convinced that he can be the guy we’re looking for. He has been “pretty good” at City where he has forced to be more of a supporting cast player but just a short time ago when he was at River Plate he looked like he was going to become a genuine £100m player. He could seriously be primed to explode into what his potential showed in the same way we saw with Cole Palmer. Maybe just needs to leave City and be given the faith.confidence to become “the man” instead of just another cog in the Guardiola machine.

All true, but I doubt City will have entered this window thinking about having to spend a bunch of money on another striker. It’ll probably be pretty tricky to go out and try to convince a very good striker to come to City knowing that they’ll be Haaland’s backup.

I’d say no instantly to everyone you’ve named here except for perhaps Varane. He’s 100% not washed just very injury prone. When fit he was still easily United’s best CB according to their supporters. Still only 31 and free. If he was interested in remaining in the PL I’d probably have him on a short term deal.

You may be right. But I think I’d still rather take a chance on him than some other unproven young talent coming from another league.

Alvarez is the picture perfect striker for us. I would think Arse would love him too but as a City’s biggest title threat I’m not sure they’d sell to them. Would likely take him really pushing for a move.

Meh, I disagree. In the same way I wasn’t that bothered about Mount going. Remember all the journalists and opposition fans killing us last summer and saying we were absolutely mad to sell Mount and that we’d regret it for years? And now we’re the ones laughing because we don’t miss him at all. It would be annoying for sure to see him at Spuds. But he isn’t a game changing signing. He’s just a solid PL midfielder like lots of midtable clubs have. He’s not a match winner, he’s not decisive in the final third, and his talent is nowhere near the other midfielders we have. Unless we enter the season with one of Lavia, Enzo, or Caicedo injured again long term I can’t imagine a scenario where I say “damn, we could really use Gallagher here.” He performed well in the chaos football that Poch played where Conor could just run around nonstop like a madman, but I don’t see him being as useful in heavy possession side where quick intricate football is the goal.

I’m not 100% sold on him but at least he’s got a physique that should hold up in the PL. He’s not a pace merchant like Werner.

Signing another winger for huge money is completely counter to the club’s other strategy of signing all these South American wonderkids. It would prove all the “Chelsea’s ownership are completely scattergun and have no actual plan” talk correct. Why buy Paez, Angelo, Estevao, and have Omari Hutchinson only to spend huge money on Olise to directly block their path? Unless we sell TWO senior wide attackers it just doesn’t make any sense to me. We should wait until this time next season to see if we need anyone. If Sterling and Mudryk are poor again this coming season then move them on.

I really, really like Olise but I agree. He should not be even a top 3-4 priority for us this summer. Hutchinson can take this next step up and become a weapon for us for free.

Yeah, probably Hutchinson, Maatsen, and Trev will be sold and Gallagher given a new deal.

That guy isn’t reliable at all.

We’re probably gonna get some striker that most of us haven’t really heard of from a small club. Someone who is super young and unproven. Which is of course the opposite of what is needed.

If it’s a straight fight for Sesko between ourselves and Arse I don’t think he’s choosing us. This ownership seems to want players on lower wages than the insane ones we used to hand out so o can’t see us offering a salary that would blow Arsenal’s away like we might have done in years past. Them having CL football + being a ready made title contender that he he can instantly slot into will probably make them more attractive. So if he goes there our options become even more limited in an already scarce striker market.