Jase

Anthony Barry expected to stay now, according to Matt Law.

Let's face it, we are like a graveyard for attackers. When was the last time we were a truly cohesive, consistent attacking unit? Maybe 2009/10 under Ancelotti? Since then, it feels like we have always relied on moments or individuals to do things in the attacking third - Mata, Hazard, Costa etc. You can arguably count on one hand the number of attackers that we bought that have truly succeeded here over the past decade or so. We like to get all the "fancy toys" out there but don't have a clear plan and/or style to get the best out of the attackers. Forming a cohesive, proper, consistent attacking unit out of the team is what separates the best from the rest. It's harder to get it right than the midfield and defence. It's partly why City and Liverpool have been used as the benchmark over the last few years.

Looks like we might not have an issue playing in Lille in March. https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-novak-djokovic-sports-health-french-open-74b9b748bb0ee88e52c4f4ca59f0a46c "From Feb. 15, anyone who is not vaccinated against the coronavirus will need to show proof they tested positive for COVID-19 within the previous four months — down from the current six-month window — in order to enter sports venues in France." We don't know exactly who is vaccinated and who is not but most/all of the players tested positive in December.

Calciomercato? What a shit source!

Both Werner and Havertz have played after the COVID. In fact, Werner has had more minutes than Havertz. But who knows? Maybe they are still feeling the effects of COVID and Tuchel didn't want to force them back in so fast, especially in the league games where we needed to win. Who knows...

Simon Johnson and co. claimed that there's discontent between the attackers and Tuchel but Christian Falk has come out and countered that on Bild. He said: Werner and Havertz are being eased back after COVID. Tuchel has spoken one-to-one with them and said they will get game time again soon. They were understanding of the viewpoint. Lukaku was left out of the squad for a game, at the request of the team, after the Sky Interview. Tuchel is fully backed by the club despite Daily Express hinting that the club are looking for a successor The English media are playing "dirty games" against Tuchel

Don't think he was bad per se. It's just he did nothing to be effective.

Pretty sure he meant those games that he played at wing back as well.

How long before Havertz starts to think the same...?

No, he did not.

Hold on. So we either gonna sell one inconsistent but not injury prone player for an inconsistent and injury prone player OR an inconsistent and injury prone player for an inconsistent and injury prone player? Makes sense...

He didn't explicitly blame Tuchel but if you read between the lines, it's clear that he's not happy at being made to play in so many different positions, which tallies up with what The Athletic reported. He didn't go all Lukaku on us but hints of unhappiness are clearly there.

Well, they haven't sold the likes of De Jong, have they?

The Athletic reported it, not Simon Phillips. It's in the article BF shared hours ago.

Conte should have just stayed at Inter.

They have mostly been linked with cheap players/free agents, no? It's no secret that their debt is still over 1 million and that they have been trying to bring down their wages to meet La Liga's salary cap rules.

Maybe but pointless to spend money on him now when we can get him for free in the summer. It's not as if we are desperate for an attacker right now. That being said, the rumors seem to come about because of the connection with Tuchel rather than something more logical (at least at this point in time).

I assume they are all on the cheap side? Otherwise, so much for their financial trouble?

Is it really? Tuchel himself said the back 4 is only an option and he has explained that he decided to play with a back 4 recently due to the injuries/COVID to the CBs and injuries to both Chilwell and James as well as perhaps the team's poor form. We were getting next to nothing from Alonso and Azpi as WBs from an attacking perspective. So, Tuchel had to try and change something and make sure we get at least attacking width - which we typically get from Chilwell, James and at least Alonso in a back 3 - by moving to a back 4 with actual wingers in the system. There's less emphasis on the likes of Alonso and Azpi to provide the width in that system compared to a back 3. On top of that, the back 4 has only worked against one team so far - Spurs. It didn't work well against Brighton and am sure people do remember that against City, Tuchel reverted to a back 3. So, it still remains to be seen if he will go with a back 4 permanently. On the bigger picture, I'd also ask - where do you fit in Werner, Havertz and/or even Broja in the back 4 for example? If we play with 2 strikers a lot of the time, then sure. They have a place upfront (like against Spurs in the League Cup). But if we play with 2 strikers only occasionally, then it's not gonna work in the long run. If we play with only 1 striker most of the time in the back 4 (I suspect Tuchel will keep on shoehorning Lukaku into the XI), then where do you fit them in? They are not wingers. Havertz could maybe play as a No.10 (in a 4-2-3-1) but if Mount is gonna be a starter most of the time, then he would likely play there. Havertz is not a CM either and you yourself complained about that when Lampard played him in midfield in the 4-3-3. So where then? That's before we even go to the potential issues in midfield and defence.

Who to believe in this one - Simon Phillips or an actual, reliable English media outlet? https://www.theguardian.com/football/2022/jan/25/vitor-pereira-is-farhad-moshiris-no-1-choice-to-replace-benitez-at-everton

Nah. Same thing with what I said regarding Dortmund. Who in Spain could want him? Barcelona are broke. Real Madrid are going after Mbappe and maybe Haaland as well. Atletico are probably the only one. Roma have an American owner, don't they?

By German suitors, you mean Bayern and Dortmund? No offence to Dortmund but it's debatable whether CHO and Werner would want to take a step down to Dortmund. Yes, they may play a lot more there but they might not earn as much (Dortmund unlikely to pay big wages) AND they aren't gonna win anything except for the odd DFB Pokal success here and there. In Werner's case, Dortmund are supposedly trying to keep Haaland for another season at least. If they succeed, then they won't go for Werner. If they fail, then they would very likely go after someone like Adeyemi instead. Bayern are a bigger possibility but they already have a number of wingers and if Lewandowski stay, CHO and Werner would just be walking into a similar situation there. If Lewandowski leaves, Bayern might come for Werner because of the Nagelsmann connection but that's also debatable considering their sporting director turned him down when he was flying high at Leipzig. Would also throw Pulisic into the mix of potentially leaving/being sold.

By that logic, you might want to include your boy Havertz as well.