Superblue

It's far from the flashiest of buys but we know as well as anybody how professional and tactically astute Italians are. His experience and tactical awareness could be important in big games and European games where i would worry more about Moses at RWB. He would be a Conte buy as well which is a good thing because we would all know that Conte wanted him and will use him to his full capacity.

If Chelsea replace him with sanches on loan I think it's clever business. The market has gone crazy and getting a cheap replacement in will allow us to spend the money in other areas that need strengthening (wing backs)

There have also been a number of players purchased over the last few seasons who have been widely ridiculed but have turned out great. I mean except Kante, most fans were tearing their hair out last summer when we brought Luiz and Alonso on the last day of the window to add to a squad which finished 10th. I understand in the Champions League the step up is huge and you need to buy some ready made top quality at times to consistently challenge to win it year on year. However these types of players very rarely move between the big clubs and when they do, it is very competitive as multiple big clubs want them. It is just as important to find those players that can get into that bracket and buy them before they're in there - Courtois, Azpilicueta, Hazard, Kante. I do think our signings so far this summer, especially Bakayoko and Morata fit that same bill. I trust Conte and I also trust the board whom with or without managers help have managed to make some quality signings over the last few seasons which have helped us through the transition of replacing great, long term players at the club. Patience is key here and if we can add 3 or 4 more players to the squad and they are players Conte can trust, I think we'll be there or thereabouts again this season.

Conte's rant the other day regarding Spurs - given some of his other interviews and pressers this pre season, I have to believe it's less a dig at Spurs and more another warning to the board. We have operated for a few seasons now with a relatively threadbare squad and this season is shaping up to be the worst of the lot unless we buy a few more players before the end of August. There is also no doubt we've been in a transition phase over the last 3 years phasing out a number of long term servants, and this feels the most transitional of all now that Terry has left (along the likes of Ivanovic and Mikel). We're also replacing two players who have been important during the last 3 seasons in Matic and Costa. Tottenham haven't just suddenly become great, it's taken time for them to develop the likes of Kane, Dier, Rose and Walker. Others brought like Dembele and Eriksen have also been given time to settle and develop/improve each season. Pochettino's first season, Spurs weren't that great. But they were all given time to grow and improve. If we're not going to properly address the gaps in our squad this summer and Conte needs to lean on younger players to fill those places, that is fair enough and I'd be quite happy to see some of these younger players given chances, but we also cannot expect to be strong initially for doing so.

With a 6 foot 2 frame and good in the air, it might take a few games for Morata to get accustomed to the league but I can't see him being bullied. His pace and technical ability will be what worries opposition defenders.

Wouldn't be against this as a squad option. He had so much promise at an early age, but has never really pushed on to the next level. I can't help but think however that a move away from Everton will be the best thing for him and refresh and refocus his game.

Yep a couple of papers seem to think we'll spend another £150m and I read another soundbite from Steve Atkins that they've been planning for this transfer window for a long time (as in it would be a huge one). Ultimately once Matic and Costa are sold though, our current net transfer spend this summer would be minimal, so going and spending another £150m this summer wouldn't be surprising at all. Hopefully some exciting times ahead...

If Alex Sandro is pretty much dead in the water, would it be worth taking a punt and negotiating Luke Shaw as part of any deal for Matic? A risky transfer given the last 18 months of his career (you only have to look at Jack Wilshere to see how injuries can ruin a player) but the potential upside would be huge.

I wouldn't be against giving Boga a real chance in the first team next season. At some stage some of these players need to be given opportunities and the way in which that happens is you have a smaller squad depth which gives 2 or 3 of these players game time throughout the season. I actually rate Pedro and Willian far higher than most do on this forum. They would walk into any other team in the league except perhaps City. Very experienced, quick, and high work rate which balances the team out well. Hazard is obviously the X factor and the main man. If Boga can be this direct and confident in competitive games, he could be a young, hungry wildcard option and a very good option to bring off the bench in some games where you need something different.

His versatility would be a huge asset for us next season. Even if we still buy 3 or 4 more players, we won't have an awful lot more depth to what we had last season seeing as we've let quite a few players leave. Therefore having a couple of players that can play multiple positions allows Conte to work with a smaller group whilst still retaining adequate cover for different positions and also gives him greater flexibility with regards to changing tactics and formations midway through games. I wouldn't rate him as high as some on here, and he really needs to add a level of consistency to his game but I do think he has the characteristics to make a very good wing back and considering the influence Conte has over Moses, I would expect him to find ways to get the best out of the ox.

Great signing and once we sell Costa and Matic we'll be at around nil net transfer spend for this summer and that's not even taking into account the money we raised in January selling Bamford and Oscar. I can see a couple more big signings coming through the door before the end of this window...

The ability to link is huge and for me was the biggest worry with us buying Lukaku. The players in behind - Hazard, Willian, Pedro, Fabregas and the wing backs will thrive off someone like Morata and having someone who can link the play so well will almost certainly add an extra few goals a season spread out amongst the team which lessens the burden on Morata. I also didn't realise that his goal record for Spain was good last season too - 7 goals in 11 games I believe.

Happy with this, I not just rate Morata but he's a player Conte obviously likes and wanted and it's vital we back him. The only real question mark is can he score enough goals. I don't think there's any question the ability, temperament and potential is there for that and hopefully being the main man under a manager that fully trusts him will bring the best out of him. He seems motivated and raring to come and prove himself. Sometimes things just click and become the right fit and I do have the feeling this is the case here.

This is even more important now we're back in Europe. Even some of the second level teams in Europe, like Porto and Shakhtar are extremely good at home and horrible places to go to. Having such a strong, pacy counter attacking game with a clinical striker will get us through some of these games.

My preference is Alex Sandro, but if this isn't going to happen, I would hope our next target would be Bertrand. We need to keep an eye on our homegrown quota to make use of as full a squad as we can. He is one of the only attainable homegrown players that could have a strong impact on our team.

I can't quite understand the reasons behind not wanting to sign Aubameyang. There are too many question marks over Belotti (one season) and Morata (goal-scoring record, main striker) to justify paying by media accounts significantly more. The arguments about him being 28 and reliant on his pace seem petty. Unless he got injured a lot, like Torres for example, he should keep that explosiveness for at least the next 2-3 seasons and even in his early thirties should still be quicker than the vast majority of defenders. His movement and technical ability should also count for something. Right now, he is the best option out there by a mile. The most proven, least risky option. The only option that is an upgrade to Diego Costa. We might not have a resale value on him but if we got 3 seasons out of him whilst he is still in or around his prime, he could be the goalscorer that helps us win the league or even the Champions League. Given some of the prices in this summer's market, £60-65m for a proven goalscorer and one of the best strikers in Europe the last couple of seasons seems pretty reasonable. Also signing a top player isn't just a huge statement that we mean business going into the new season when the summer so far has been full of disappointment and confusion, but it's the sort of signing that proves to other players in the squad that we are buying top players to win trophies. Players such as Hazard and Courtois who might just need that extra little encouragement from the club that they can achieve everything they wish at our club.

How did Morata play at Juventus? Was he essentially a second striker and would that perhaps partly explain his pretty average goalscoring record? What I'm trying to get at, is has he been given a proper chance yet at leading the line as the main man? He would have to step up if that is the case, but some players flourish in this way and when I've watched him (albeit not often) he does strike me as someone who works hard and has the right attitude to do everything he can to succeed.

We've always been good at sharing goals out throughout our squad, so I don't necessarily think we need a 25 goal striker to be winning the league, although it makes things easier. A striker though that can link play and be on the same wavelength as the likes of Hazard, Pedro, Willian and the wing backs would make the whole team more fluid, and I think he would give us a marked improvement in this area. But Morata in my opinion would need to be at least a 15 goal striker. I think given the chance he can be, and that is effectively what he needs is his first real chance at being a team's main striker. It is a huge risk though, especially at the price being quoted.

This would be the perfect scenario. Buy Bakayoko and not let United have Matic. If he was used to sweeten the Sandro deal, it would benefit Chelsea just as much as Juventus.

The way the market is shaping, for a top 3 or 4 player in the world in any position this will now be going rate. Not many opportunities like this present themselves usually and we must take it. I'd argue courtois, kante and hazard are all in that bracket of top 3 or 4 in their position in the world. Azpilicueta in my opinion would be there or thereabouts too. If we could get Sandro and have half our first XI in that bracket level we would be looking a far more competitive and threatening team.

It seems that we had the buy-back clause in place and Jose vetoed it for us to receive more money up front. I'm not the biggest fan of the likes of Emenalo by any stretch and with the shelf life of a manager nowadays there needs to be a balance between the decision making at a club by the manager and the board. However lots of people moan on here and in general that the board have too much power and the manager has none, but in this situation where they have supported the manager's decision they've been hugely burnt. I bet a buy back clause would've been no more than £40 - 45m as well. The only thing that can be done now is learn from this and make sure the top potential talents we do sell on, we insert a buy back clause into the deal to cover us.

This is a good point regarding last summer. It's quick to forget that Alonso and Luiz were purchased on the last day of the transfer window. We didn't start well last season, despite getting a few wins and had a blip before we turned things round. It was only really an incredible winning streak which caught us up and took us ahead of everyone. We can't be expected to do that every time, especially now we're back in Europe. The season before we started slow and never recovered. I think if we could get two or three over the line over the next week we'll be fine.

When you grew up watching paul furlong leading the line for your club, it does make it easier to stay calmer about these things!

It does seem like the sun are looking to stir up shit. But I wouldn't be surprised either, especially if we've told United where to go now with buying matic. You have to believe though that lukaku must be a wake up call for the board to get their act together. It's important conte gets a full pre season with new signings.

You have to believe that if we messed this one up too, conte would walk. We have to start closing off these deals.