OneMoSalah

Still dont think it means that we will go daft. Many members in the past have maybe stated about spending the likes of £400m+ in one window (mainly summer) and even with the Hazard and Morata money, I dont think that we will in all fairness. Maybe we will get a couple of faces in January. I reckon we will probably make 2 signings if its possible. In the summer again I would maybe imagine 3 would be what we go for to strengthen the first 11. Not a completely drastic overhaul but 4 or 5 players in 2 windows is easily doable and also wont bring a massive disruption to our team/squad as I would imagine there will be 3 or 4 going in that time too. Plus we already have got Ruben, Mount, Tomori, James, Pulisic and Tammy already so its not as if we need 10 new players in the squad. We need some better quality to deepen the squad in some key positions, LB, CB, the 10 position unless Frank goes for using Ruben there (still think Barkley will probably be on his last legs here by then as he has struggled since arriving bar a wee good spell under Sarri at the start) and maybe another winger and CF as it looks as if Pedro and Giroud are off. Midfield though we are pretty stacked with Kante, Jorginho, Ruben, Kovacic, Mount. Mount needs competition whether or not Frank sees Ruben as that, or a deeper midfielder, I dont know. If we keep going 4231 I dont see us needing to be buying another deeper midfielder anyway unless he sees Ruben as a 10 but again weve seen Billy Gilmour this season already so maybe he would be more in Franks mind for that role too to rotate the squad. I do think we are maybe only 4 or 5 players along with these young guys continuing to improve to be right up there, as long as the players are the right ones, very good ability, mentality and willing to work. I mean even under Jose, once we got Costa, Cesc, Filipe Luis and recalled Courtois, most would have said we were favourites from the get go that season to go win the PL. If theres a solid enough foundation in place we only need to add some good players to it. We still need to get the defence sorted first because in attack we have potential. Defence and our team shape has definitely let us down more than our attack this season imo.

I doubt we will get all lf the Hazard money. Even with the add ons etc still to come depending on whatever, we only got like 80 or 90m upfront IIRC and chances are they will be paying x amount in installments like most clubs do these days too. Its not like FIFA where you get the full 130m in and all to spend, the club will pocket some of it to put into other things too.

Feel sorry for the guy. Had huge potential IMO, very rounded and I think even under Mourinho at first he could have maybe made his way in a bit more than many expected because he had that physical profile as well as technical. Maybe not for definites but I do feel he would have been solid enough to do a good job in a Mourinho team. His loan at PSV he looked very comfortable and a real driving force for them but its probably too late for him now although who knows, if he was fit to train, maybe hed be an option? I dont think he would be any worse than Bakayoko, Barkley or Drinkwater in all honesty. I think if he was 100% fit and had his injury troubles behind him, Frank would let him get a chance for sure to show what he could do although I doubt he would be displacing Kante, Kova or Jorginho regularly. As a squad player though? Someone who can play as a 6, 8 or even further up? Wouldnt be the worst option. A shame though, I know pre seasons nothing but getting match fitness and trying things out but I really liked the look of him when he signed if I am honest. Looked like he could have been like a Michael Ballack sort of guy, someone who could do everything. Maybe not to that level, maybe nowhere near because he was outstanding but definitely end up as a capable enough player. Maybe if he gets fit a fresh start at another club would do him the world of good too.

Yeah. my point was more that there are plenty of CBs who can do a good job meeting the criteria that was in the post I quoted about being good in the air, quick (ish) and can pass though. CB is an urgent need for us I really feel. I think all the good teams have at least 3 good CBs. We have maybe one established good CB in Rudi and the others not so good or established. Id still think we could maybe get Koulibaly as Napoli are apparently open to refreshing their team this summer but as youve said, for the cost and his age it makes it tougher. Id still say if we could get him for 50m max it would be worth it. I personally think Sarri might go for him if Napoli are as I said looking to refresh the team and hes one of the guys to go. Bonucci, Chielleni are 30 plus and De Ligt has struggled but he could be a good stop gap. Suppose theyve got that young Turkish CB they got from Sassulo as well and Barzaghli IIRC he hasnt retired yet but hes ancient too.

Exactly. I think theyd rather push for Havertz though even if he costs a lot. I mean they spent a lot on Hernandez who is only 22 or 23 and I think Havertz will fit their preference more as he is only 20 or 21 although Coutinho is back to his self at Bayern.

When Mount was at Vitesse the same things were said by many in here. Its just a constant rotation of young player X or Y being better than a current squad member. Mount had 2 seasons on loan before making the break here, largely due to a coach he had worked with coming in and a transfer ban as well as his potential obviously. If Gallagher can do something similar at a team that gets promoted/nearly does then bring him back definitely but until then just let the guy develop at his own rate.

Its a tough tie. They have the winter break coming up which gives them the chance to rest and whatever too. Not sure how much of a difference it will make but them having the possibility for guys like Lewandowski, Muller, Kimmich, Gnabry, Thiago, Coutinho etc to take the foot off the gas a bit before going for it again, it could help them in the run up of fixtures before. Where as we will have a lot of guys playing a lot of minutes in the next few weeks and that can always bring niggling injuries that can get worse too. Although us being at home for the first leg is always a positive but only if we can keep a clean sheet. I fancy them to score in Germany for definite, since changing manager theyve had some good results and the likes of Lewandowski, Coutinho, Gnabry, even Muller have been steadily performing and doing well. Plus I really really rate Goretzka, a guy with real ability and energy in midfield.

Will probably end up going to Bayern along with Werner eventually. Although we should be in for both but again as weve seen with other top German talents they usually prefer to go Bayern and remain in Germany than abroad.

Yeah exactly. If people watched the game back and looked at the way we conceded our goal then theyd maybe stop mentioning that miss. People miss penalties shit happens, if we didnt concede so stupidly in the first place from a freekick IIRC then it wouldnt have mattered hugely. But hey everyone needs a scapegoat. The other match v Valencia and the 4-4 draw with Ajax also contributed hugely to our draw. But again Ross Barkley all to blame because we got Bayern and not Atalanta.....

Frank surely could have used some of the squad players more especially after certain performances from regulars who have underperformed? Not just Alonso. Pedro, Giroud, Barkley etc. Worth remembering Sarri and Conte got the same things said about them too. We have a lot of players, if players underperform in a few games in a row why shouldnt he change them?

This is true but again with Willian, Mount and Emerson especially, Frank could have used other players more when they played poorly. Might not have made a difference in some games where the others struggled but we dont know because he has played them through it. I don't think he should be so quick to freeze anybody out, especially with the ban in the summer window and towards now when theres a lot of games in the winter and you need to change it up to not burn players out/drop out of form players. January coming up is maybe a bit of a relieve if we can maybe get 1 or 2 in to beef up the quality in our 18 man squad in some positions. He has shown he is capable of adapting and learning from past mistakes so maybe once he shapes the squad a bit more in his image (although you could argue Tammy, Mason, Pulisic, Tomori are already shaping it a bit more and gave us a more youthful and fresher impetuous), he will trust some of the subs more than he has Giroud, Pedro, Barkley and Alonso at times. Or I hope he will. Sarri and Conte made this mistake a bit, continuing with out of form players at times than trusting some of the other lads who couldnt have done any worse at sometines (likes of Bakayoko, Barkley, Alonso, Willian all played through some shit periods due to a lack of rotation/trust in other squad members imo). They could have put it down to a lack or quality to swap out but it was also through stubbornness too. Football is a squad game more than ever now a days and trying to utilize 18 players throughout a season is much more effective than just 11 or 12.

Guys like Ramos, Varane, De Ligt, Umtiti, Lenglet, Van Dijk, Boateng, Sule, Romagnoli, Otamendi, Manolas, Koudibaly, Laporte, Militao, Pepe, Gimenez, Maguire, Vertonghen, Bonucci, Sanchez, Akanji in there as well maybe same for Upamecapo and Konate too. Theres probably more, they all fit that strong in the air, fast (for CBs) and can pass for me. Some arent as quick as Zouma but are still fast enough, CBs dont need to be very fast. Not exactly a rarity these days. Even Rudiger and David Luiz last season.

People were talking about us, Arsenal and Liverpool looking at Ryan Fraser in the summer. I know its ironic because he played very well today but last season I thought he was excellent for Bournemouth and IIRC he was in double figures for assists. Real pace and capable of providing assists from outwide, maybe be worth a punt as a squad player here? Someone who could spin a game against tired legs? Not be the most popular choice but hes at a good age, 25, and will only get better. I think having seen how good Andy Robertson has become at Liverpool after showing good signs at Hull, he could potentially be another buy in that mould. Maybe not. Would rather we had him to spin a game than the likes of a Ross Barkley.

Quite worried for this one. We are going struggle to create a lot of chances if the last few games are anything to go by. Also they have got Kane, Son and Eriksen who can hurt us, particularly on transitions. Would take a draw.

Not picking up max points v Norwich, West Ham, Sheffield United, Everton, Bournemouth is very bad. Forget the results v big teams. Regardless of the manager. Could look back in the summer, having missed out on the top 4 because of these sort of games not picking up maximum points. Thats the stark reality. If that ends up being the case, Frank will have to take some of the stick, we all knew what we were getting from his time at Derby where they only managed X amounts of clean sheets. January cant come soon enough to give us a few other options in certain areas. We know we needed this so the real test is trying to regain form to the window and then maybe get one or two in to raise the level. Still optimistic about top 4 but United and Spurs have upper their level and will probably buy in January. Arsenal are still lingering and have the fire power to climb the table. Leicester as well are gonna be in about the top 4 for sure. Even if they drew today. Theyve amassed enough points so far to show this. We have got 6 losses so far this season. So do Palace to put that into perspective. With Spurs and Arsenal coming up who knows what could happen next few weeks.

Fuck me if this continues top 4 is in huge danger imo. I do agree FL has to use certain members of the squad more. Giroud and Pedro prime examples. Not the best players but Pedro scored how many goals last season in all comps? Was defos double figures....

He wont push to leave midseason if he does fancy it although I do doubt he wants to leave at all. I think hed be open to another league, no doubt, he wont be short of suitors but if I were him I would see how this season goes and what we do in the summer first. He is a top top player and nobody would want to see him go but again like Eden, if he feels like he wants that he has every right imo. Hes been a huge player for us since coming and I would hope he'd see out another 2 or 3 years here because he is probably better suited to the PL than anyother sort of football but suppose that lure will potentially always be there for him because he is that good and wouldnt be stuck for options. Bundesliga as well would be very good for him as its more fast paced than Italy or Spain. Anyway. Doubt he would want to go or kick up a fuss anyway. My gran is probably more reliable than the daily star for stories about football and she doesnt even know who Ngolo Kante is 🤣

Loan out an 18 y/o who is rumoured to be on £180,000 a week? Yeah good luck with that. Unless we pay 3/4s of his wages but again loaning him out is not the best move considering the whole transfer request over a lack of playing time. And thats before even considering buying Jermaine Boga back to cover him....

40m plus Batshuayi is a fair deal for Zaha I think. No idea why people are comparing Zaha to Batshuayi anyway. Ones a very decent winger (still better out there for 80m) and ones one of the worst all round CFs in the PL imo. If the ball isnt in the box or straight into his feet 9/10 times he is about as effective as a chocolate ashtray. People say Sergio Aguero hasnt got a very good all round game (not sure I agree) but fucking hell if thats the case then whats it say about Batshuayi. Hopeless. Id imagine Palace would prefer Giroud to Batshuayi anyway. Least you get more.

Huge injury list for them to key playsrs so if we dont get nothing but the three points, it will be a really bad result. Think Ryan Fraser and Lewis Cook will be worth keeping an eye on though can cause some problems for us.

Suppose with all the links to Ake we will see how good he does against us. Would like to see this Kepa Azpi/Reece - Rudi - Tomori - Emerson Kova - Jorgi - Kante/Mount* Willian - Tammy - Pulisic * not 100% certain who to go for, could use Mounts more offensive orientated profile over Kantes because for me right now Kova is undroppable and Jorginho being back in is always useful.

Van Dijk could have made the move from Celtic to a top 4 or 6 team just for the money Celtic wanted (13m IIRC) nobody would take the risk. It was clear to see watching Celtic games that he was far too good, could argue he was never out of 2nd or 3rd gear most of the time but the fact he was in Scotland went against him. Arsene Wenger wanted him but didnt want to pay what Celtic wanted, which Southampton eventually ended up paying after Ronald Koeman made it very clear he rated him and Celtic were knocked out of the CL qualifiers. He improved under Koeman too and became much more vocal/more of a leader imo too so thats maybe helped him accelerate to one of the worlds best in his position too along with his ability. Strangely enough Ajax never tried to buy him when he was in Holland which looking back, seems like madness, going by their scouting departments ability to find gems. Never thought he'd ever be at the level he is now where he is being nominated and coming in the top 5 for Ballon D'ors and for 75m I did think it was a bit much for us to try buy him but he is an outstanding player. Probably the best CB in the PL along with Laporte (who is another outstanding CB imo, arguably playing better than VVD when he arrived from Spain and before his injury).

In my post I said you rarely see those guys now a days though at club level. The more old school captains. Ramos, Chiellini and Thiago Silva, the guys I am thinking of at top clubs these days of the top of my head who are captains. Maybe de Ligt can go and be like that. Captaining Ajax and all at his age, he seems to be in that mould. The captains in the PL towards the top end of the table, Jordan Henderson strike me more as someone in that more classic mould in comparison to at the other top clubs (never thought Id ever say it either because I have always despised him as a player). David Silva at City for instance strikes me as not exactly a typical captain. Young at United. Xhaka at Arsenal before being demoted. Same boat. Azpi is a lot better than those guys as captain material for me. Not Henderson though. But because hes not John Terry or because Cahill wasnt John Terry.... it was a huge issue. Imagine if we made Hazard captain as well with Sarri last season? Theyd be people saying the same or worse... you do need other players in the squad to step up and take responsibility too and be leaders without being captain for say, Jorginho is a guy who is in that mould for us but we havent got many more. It might come with some of the younger guys with experience, it might not.

Let them have him. Average.

And wait and see, the only bigger club who will consider buying him is us due to a buy back clause. No chance Pool or City will sign him as a regular player. He counts as home grown which is a plus and he will undoubtedly be a squad player at those teams although even then is he better than Van Dijk, Joe Gomez or Joel Matip or Laporte, Nicolas Otamendi or John Stones? Who would be his competition at those clubs? Zouma had a good few games before this bad spell. Yes hes not the right answer in the long run either is Christensen as such unless he dramatically bulks up and improves. Zouma has limitations on the ball and positionally but Ake is far from "brilliant"..... if he couldnt be a mainstay at Bournemouth I would seriously be questioning his ability. Their goals against record since being in the PL is pretty bad. We should be going for a top end CB, not someone who is better than Zouma or Christensen but someone who is arguably at Rudigers level or better than. Ake is certainly not.