OneMoSalah

A lot of talk as to why we didn’t go for Alisson but will spend 80m euros on Kepa. Somewhere on twitter it said apparently Sarri has been watching videos of him for 10 days and 100% wants him. Also Kepa has played more than one full season in Europe which people seem to forget about, where as Alisson who was a benchwarmer behind Woijech Sczeszny (spelling probably off) at Roma before last season... a lot of Liverpool fans questioning it too but he was almost Madrid’s new GK in Jan but Zizou preference was to keep Navas, he is undoubtedly a good goalkeeper so no need to panic. Most importantly Sarri is on board and wants him.

Yeah possibly but I think once we get going properly Willian and Pedro will be better than under Antonio. Particularly Pedro think he will be a goal threat more than anything else.

Unless one of Pedro or Willian go I severely doubt it. We’ve got Hazard/Hudson Odoi for the left and Willian/Pedro for the right. Jorginho/Kante/Kovacic/Cesc/Barkley/one of Drinkwater or Bakayoko for 6 CMF options. Still uncertainty around Batshuayi and Giroud as well as talk of Alonso being a target for Real so yeah maybe still be something done there if anything goes through but out wide cant see it. Unless CHO is not used and Willian plays left side when Hazard doesn’t play, only way I see us getting another right winger.

Sarri coming with Jorginho, now Kovacic and Kepa coming (possibly)? It’s not been an amazing summer with all the upheaval but those 3 signing along with keeping Hazard and Kante is actually a pretty good window. Sure we aren’t sure about who will start as our 9 and if Alonso can be solid enough defensively at full back but we will have more than enough to get top 4 I think, even more so if Kovacic and Kepa are announced. Sure Willian could have been sold for big money but again he can still be a good player here too. I think that if all these next 2 signings go through that we can’t necceseraily be too disheartened in terms of strengthening the team to some regard, also with CHO looking like he’s impressed Sarri maybe he’ll feature more this year too. But someone will still complain I suppose.

I think it’s a bit early to be making comparisons like this but it will give us a much more competitive and technical midfield than we’ve had in years, which coupled with Sarri and his philosophy should give us something good this season. But again CF and left back is maybe still an issue.

I’m sorry but if you think that keeping RLC and not getting Kovacic is the better option then I honestly don’t know. RLC isn’t even past Barkley yet never mind somebody like Kovacic. Also a loan player from Madrid? Before this guy moved to Italy he was one of the highest rated youngsters in the whole continent, he’s never been regular at Madrid which hasn’t helped but I don’t think people are seeing how much of a potentially great deal this could be, if it is a permanent transfer, ever better. When was the last time Chelsea went and bought two MF players of this profile such as Jorginho and Kovacic?

Yeah. I wouldn’t be surprised if Sarri will also consider going with Hazard as a false 9 if we are really stuck. Unless we bring a CF in but not seeing it happening.

Don’t see it happening. West Ham have just gone and signed more technical players like Wilshere, Felipe Anderson, Yarmelenko... as well as having Guys like Noble and Lanzini on their books? You think Pellegrini is going to want a player like Drinkwater just after they’ve sold Kouyate who is a very physical and not as technically gifted player? He’d suit a Palace or somebody 100%. A team more direct and built around playing from back to front very quick. Pellegrini isn’t the sort of guy who would sanction a 35m move for a limited player who doesn’t offer any different to what they have.

I think it’s just been a hectic summer. World Cup doesnt help matters with players coming back late but the first issue for me was that the board should have had Conte sacked with Sarri in place to start pre season on day 1 and fuckd that trip to Australia off. That has cost us a couple of weeks extra that Sarri could have weighed up what was needed and worked more with the team. Secondly we spent 150m last summer but the majority of that we can say was wasted. That is a good amount of money and if it was on the right players it would be fine (but it wasn’t) and many fans wouldn’t be under the impression we need to spend 300m more to rectify these mistakes, fair enough you can’t just keep buying 200m worth of players every year because it’s not sustainable in the long run and it isn’t realistic. We don’t need to buy a new squad every 2 seasons, strengthen yes but not a huge reshuffle every few years. We could with a bit of something else in MF yet, a new GK when Courtois goes, another striker unless Batshuyi and Giroud stay and maybe a left back would be a big plus but there is still plenty of ability in this squad and anyone under the impression that we need about 15 new players, that’s a bit far fetched (Azpi, Hazard and Kante are 3 of the best in the PL in their positions, Rudiger impressed me last year and Cesc, Willian as well as a few others can still offer a lot, Pedro and Barkley could find themselves better off under Sarri than under Conte too). For me I think the board has this train of thought where they seem to think they can find players and trust they will be good under any manager. Bakayoko is probably somebody Conte would of thought yeah he could do a job but in all fairness he has never hit the ground running and is unrealistically suited now to what Sarri will try and do here. The fact the clubs never actually stuck with a manager for longer than 3 seasons in god knows how long doesn’t help even though there’s been plenty of success, there’s no clear style of play that’s been in place for x amount of years so identifying and signing some players is a bit more of a risk, although it can be the case anyway but under Pep at Man City or Wenger at Arsenal or Klopp at Liverpool they would never sign someone in the mould of Bakayoko or Drinkwater. I think Sarri coming here was always a sign towards change. Pressure will still be on but it will be attacking football an attacking system, something we’ve all heard Roman wanted since seeing Peps Barca team etc etc so let’s hope that if it goes well with Sarri here that it brings this big change all around the club. But again this is just ifs and buts. Need to see how it all pans out. We’ve hardly become a shite team like some people keep mentioning. Everyone’s strengthening around us but these teams have had an identity and philosophy in place for longer than we have because we chop and change coaches every 2 years.

Yeah it’s just becaue he plays in that 2 deeper positions unless it’s bigger game and they go with a 3. He normally would sub in for Modric or rotate with him so he’s hardly a DM. Kroos and Modric normally have Casemiro anchoring behind them for the big matches from what I seen even then they played with a diamond a lot last season too with Isco off the front I think.

He’s not a DM. He is rounded can play deeper if needed maybe but he’s a more offensive midfielder. He would play Barkleys role probably taking into account Kante and Jorginho are nailed on to start. He made his mark as a attacking midfielder in Croatia and for a bit at Inter but has was taken deeper a bit by Benitez and Zizou. He would be a great fit here regardless.

Again a non starter story to stir the pot. More than 3/4s of the players Mourinho has worked with would say something similar to what Willian said. IIRC Cesc said it a few years after he left the second time.... does that mean he wanted a move to United? Terry has gone and said it countless times throughout his career. Lamps as well. It’s a compliment. Not a plea for a transfer.

Haha Telles would probably be Madrid bound if Alonso doesn’t go. Been a lot of rumours about it because Lopetgui or whatever worked with him when he was at Porto IIRC. Would be a upgrade over Alonso in a back 4 defos but he’s still a bit suspect defensively. He’s much much more like Marcelo than Filipe Luis.

Cech was here for like over 10 years. Big player who was a huge part of the clubs modern history. He’d get a good reception regardless of if he was a gent or a cunt about leaving. Courtois has done good here but he wouldn’t expect that and quite frankly he hasn’t matched his career in terms of what he’s won here against Cech so no point comparing them in that regard. Cech isn’t just a Chelsea legend or great or whatever he’s also a PL great. One of the best GKs that has been in this league. Again like I eluded to in my other post. Modern day football. Shit happens. Not worth worrying about it.

Yeah if Real come calling do the deal. Get a decent left back. Alonso is a decent left wing back yeah but different playing in a back 4.

Don’t get why every time he has or is being linked with a move away people bring up Cech like it means shits or changes the fact he wants to leave. Yea Cech was a legend here but under AVB people were calling for his head cause he was done, took 75 minutes to pass the ball out from the back etc. It’s a funny thing later that season he went and had about 4 world class games in the CL run but still, he would of had to go eventually and he got a good move and all worked out fine. Courtois, a bellend or not, is a modern day footballer. Look at the state of a lot of these young fuckers, always talking about leaving/moving etc but it’s part and parcel of modern day football now because certain players are made out to be bigger than clubs and certain agents are arseholes. I mean if I was a United fan for instance and watched my team get beat by city in the way they did that game Pogba had blue in his hair? Seems a bit stupid but again a thick as shit move. Even that whole Neymar leaving Barca scandal and then Dembele going to replace him, not showing up at BVB training etc... modern day football is full of stupid shit like this so don’t see why people are getting so wound up over a player who is world class maybe yes, who cost about 7m, going for about 5/6 times that with only a year left on his deal. Fair enough he’s a bellend but it’s not as if he’s the only bellend in the world of football. If we had already signed a keeper it would be no issue. So the blame for is with the board. They’ve probably known as long as we have he was possibly going to leave. Not rocket science to have a contingency plan is it? We’ve got fucking idiots in the board involved with transfers, so if you want something to be mad about, that’s what to be mad about.

Good keeper. Pretty solid with his feat too which although means absolutely fuck all in terms of shot stopping, will be vital to Sarri in building the game from the back. 80m a bit steep.

If we made him the apparent £250k a week offer back in December he probably would of resigned. But we didn’t. As long as we get a decent fee and don’t sign a shite replacement it will be fine.

Just sell him. Probably get 20-25m easy. Save the hassle. Not technical enough for us and even if there was a chance he would be I doubt Sarri is going to take the time to develop him.

Ba wore 29 before Eto’o arrived I think

True but again Sarri asked for him. Like Jorginho and Rugani. I think he should be given a few to integrate his style faster. Higuain 30 or not provides 15-20 goals guaranteed. Has done for almost the last 10 years of his career. Would be same with if we signed Cavani, goals guaranteed. Sure price maybe went against him but wouldn’t have been a bad move.

Wouldn’t go as far as steal of the summer. He’s apparently on 170k a week, which is almost 9m a year (27m over 3 year deal), that is why Schalke didn’t negotiate with him further last season because his wage demands were beyond massive. Same with many other big clubs who were apparently looking at him (apparently the likes of Dortmund, Arsenal and Liverpool). That is extortionate for a club like Palace. For a free transfer he is a good signing but for a free on 9m a year at a club that struggled to remain in the PL? Hardly steal of the summer. He would have done here as a rotational player but on that wages as well as his not so impressive physical attributes it’s fair to see why no other top club made a concrete bid to get him.

Well either his kids birthday or Demba Ba is his hero

People under the impression on twitter he’s shifted from 9 to 29 because Martial is coming in 😂 Jesus Christ. Cursed number or not it’s because of his kids being born on the 29th.

Would of been a good move. Club having a laugh surely? Sarri wanted him, yes he doesn’t like the market and finds it boring but Morata Higuain and Giroud is a good selection. Good to see the board seeming to know more than the manager as per usual.