Rekin

Well, if SaintPheonixx says so...

Just to add a few things to his history. He played as an 18-year old in Serie B for AlbinoLeffe where he scored 2 goals in 8 appearances (also scoring 13 goals for the youth team). The 2012-13 season he was in the third division, where he scored 12 goals in 31 appearances (unclear how often as a sub). He then scored 10 goals for Palermo in Serie B having been purchased by them. He scored 6 goals the following season in Serie A in 38 appearances (almost all of them as a late sub). Torino then bought him, and for the first half of the 15-16 season he only scored one goal. It is important to note that he was bought very late, and therefore had no pre-season with the team. Furthermore, he was either subbed off around the 60 min mark, or subbed on even later very often during this period. For the second half though he scored 11 goals seeing more game time. During the 16-17 season he scored 28 goals in all competitions for Torino, plus 3 I think for the national team, totalling 31 goals. He isnt one of those players that was a prodigy as an 18-year old, but one that has taken step by step over the years in his development. His profile is not flashy at all, but he does appear to be hard-working and ambitious.

It seems that the fee is actually in the region of £100m. £75m straight up, £15m in clauses and a Rooney fee for around £10m waived. I don't know. The transfer fees this summer are just so hard to relate to. Take someone like Mahrez who is suddenly valued at £50m, surely Lukaku is a better deal from that perspective? At the same time, you have B.Silva joining Man C for a bit over £50m, a player I would greatly prefer to Lukaku. I mean, we are talking about a fee that is larger than that paid for Pogba less than a year ago. Pogba, for context, was the hottest property in Europe short of Ronaldo and Messi. It just seems unreal to top that for a player like Lukaku. Excellent at scoring goals sure, but also very limited in other areas. Suddenly paying the clause for Belotti is no longer more than the cost of Lukaku. I hope that the board considers that. My biggest concern is how Conte takes this. I would like to think that he isnt a child and realises that paying £100m for a limited player is insane, but I think we really need to finish some transfers to keep him happy.

I had the opportunity yesterday to watch some recorded Torino games at my Serie A-loving friends house. Honestly, Belotti reminds me a lot of Costa when he keeps his head down. Super hard workers who are good at exploiting space, similar pace, similar technique and really good finishers. Both are a bit bad at spotting the pass, and at passing in general. I would rate Belotti above Costa in terms of aerial capacity and first touch. Costa is perhaps a little bit stronger in duels overall, but there is not a lot between them. I think for sure that Belotti is ahead of where Costa was at the same age. Combining that with his attributes, I think he would be a sucess here provided that we focus a lot on the delivery players. He is an excellent spearhead, but I think he will struggle against packed defenses in his current form. Perhaps a few years here could change that. I also think he isn't a one-trick pony or a speed merchant like Auba. He would be pricey as hell, but if we can get him for the same price Man U are paying for Lukaku, I think he is worth it. Overall, I think that if you put Lukaku and Belotti next to each other, they have somewhat similar attributes where Belotti is the more technical, with Lukaku being the more physical. I think both have the capacity to score a very large amount of goals in the league, but I think Belotti has the higher football IQ, and is the one likely to develop into the more complete player. Having said that, Lukaku is an ex-CFC player who has scored regularly in the BPL for a while. He is the safer option, and I still think he is a great player. While writing this I made a quick stat comparison between Costa, Lukaku, Morata and Belotti. Ignoring goals and assists (of which Belotti has the most), Andrea does come out fine. He has the most shots per game, the most key passes, is dispossessed the least and he is fouled the most. Lukaku does however complete more dribbles per game, and have fewer poor touches. Honestly both Belotti and Lukaku comes off as more polished players than Costa. At the same time, this is the drawback of statistics. You have numbers, but not the story behind them. Costa plays in a title-winning team against low blocks, he is bound to have less space and time on the ball than the other two. I would conclude that both Lukaku and Belotti can come here and do a good job. I think both would be capable of scoring 20 goals the first season on capability alone. I also think both will improve and belong to the highest or second highest tier of strikers. If we get Belotti, I will not mind losing out on Lukaku. I would however prefer both to Morata.

It would be helpful if you said why. I personally think that there are plenty of threats in the lineup, and that the width could work.

I think it depends. My personal preference is to play a 3-5-2 and field it like this: Belotti Hazard Keita Bakayoko Kante Sandro Moses Rudiger Luiz Christensen I think it could really work. All players get to play to their strengths. You would have a strong bench with Pedro, Fabregas, Azpilicueta (who could play in the starting eleven depending on preference) and others. I realize it is a fantasy though, but having a hard worker and great finisher like Belotti supported by Keita, Hazard and Sandro would be a dream come true.

I mean is anyone surprised? It's the same sources that have been saying that Everton is unlikely to lower their £100m valuation. Media knows shit, and is just jumping on any bandwagon that they can find.

I mean, Lukaku did say that he knows where he is playing next season no? Does that mean he knew it was Man U the whole time? Or that there was a deal with Chelsea, and maybe the Atletico transfer ban made things complicated? I honestly dont think this saga is over yet. If Chelsea wants him though, they better make things happen fast. The last I heard was that Everton has not accepted any bid yet. It is possible someone jumped the gun here.

Are you like 5 years old? Constantly with these kind of posts. It really lowers the level of this forum when this is the type of "debate" we see.

I was thinking of Telles, Baka and Keita as the alternative. Midfield is set for years, LWB is strong as well.

I do realize that this would be a statement signing, but my doubt the longer this goes on is whether this is the position where the statement should be. Naby Keita, while still young and something akin to a one-season wonder until we see more, is priced at £70m. It seems that Chelsea will be forced to pay a sum close to this for Sandro. As much as I would love to see Sandro here, I would prefer Keita. Of course, this is completely irrelevant if CFC or Conte has no interest in the player. I'm not trying to push my own agenda here, but I feel like Keita would be an amazing addition to both our current formation and for playing 3-5-2. It would also be quite the statement to get him. We could buy someone like Telles and still get a strong player for the LWB.

It really is a good fall-back (obvious pun ignored) option. Like I wrote before, Sandro is obviously the top target, and I would be very pleased with him. Having said that, the Sandro saga could really extend for most of the summer and become very, very expensive. It would be beneficial to solve this issue as soon as possible to allow the players to have a full pre-season. If Sandro does not work out, then Telles is far from a plan C. Chelsea wanted to buy him even before he joined Galatasaray, so clearly the club knows the player well. The only issue might be that it would be a club rather than Conte target.

I would love to see Sandro at Chelsea, but not getting him would not equal a disaster. It was always a position where we are stable at the moment, and going for someone like Telles would still be enough for us to be good at LWB. To me the important thing is that the potential money spent on Sandro goes elsewhere if that deal doesnt work out. Spending it on Bernardeschi or someone of similar quality would be acceptable. I am personally very happy with the (crosses fingers) Rudiger and Bakayoko transfers, and I think Lukaku is a good purchase for now. Still, there is room for more in the front three.

A lot of Roma fans write that he is very good, and that the only thing keeping him from being world class is experience and time to recover fully. Sounds to me like a good purchase overall.

On the one hand, selling a player that won two PL's as a starter for us to a direct rival feels like something that will haunt us. On the other hand, Man U will buy a DM/CM regardless, and by going for Matic they get a competent, solid but ultimately limited player that will also make it possible for us to spend more. I much prefer them having Matic than Fabinho. To me the question is whether the club sees the £40m as something that goes into the already established targets that we are very close to (Sandro, Bakayoko, Lukaku and possibly VVD), or whether it will be used for yet another player. Selling Matic would leave me a bit worried about midfield width. However, I would also enjoy seeing us target Bernardeschi for the right side. Since CFC have targeted Mahrez and Oxlade, it does seem like we are still going for either a RWB or RW (maybe a two in one?).

While I understand why some people are against this transfer, I think it is great. We have lost Terry and Ivanovic going into this season. There are serious doubts when/if Zouma will reach his previous heights, and the level of Cahill is a topic of eternal debate. In other words, Azpilicueta and Luiz are the safest options we have as CB's (Christensen havent played for us regularly yet), and Cesar might see some playtime as RWB. For a team playing in four different competitions and wanting to compete in all of them, having two (potentially three) class CB's is just asking for trouble. Even with Christensen coming back, I really think we need to get a really good CB both for internal competition, but also for squad width. Is VVD worth £60m? There is no good answer to this as there are no "true" values to a player. They are worth as much as a club is willing to pay them. We did offer similar amounts for Bonucci and Koulibaly though, and a quick comparison on WhoScored shows that VVD was better than those two in almost every category (they were the superior passers). He is also the youngest, and is already established in the league. Honestly, barring any problems following his injury, I see it as a very intelligent purchase from Chelsea. He could be a world class CB for 7-8 seasons, and if Christensen does well they could pair up for the foreseeable future. Honestly, this window is looking impressive. The question whether we get our targets remain, but Lukaku, Bakayoko, Sandro and VVD would all be huge statement purchases. Also, it puts us in such a good position for future windows, being able to purchase fewer players but with better quality. I am not 100% about Lukaku, but I believe he can still develop under the right guidance. I would prefer a Lewandowski every day of the week, but I just dont see it as realistic. Lukaku/Bats Hazard/? Pedro/Willian Bakayoko/Matic Kante/Fabregas Sandro/Alonso Moses/Azpilicueta VVD Luiz Christensen/Cahill Courtois/Caballero This the lineup based on what we basically know as a fact are our targets for this window. We have also heard reports about Mahrez. It is very, very strong and allows us to for example next summer go big on RWB, RW and possibly a Tolisso-type CM.

Massive transfer. Even though LWB shouldnt be a priority, building a squad is a long term project. Sandro would be expensive, but could play at a world class level for 6-7 years. It seems Bakayoko, Lukaku and Sandro are the main targets this window. The first two might not be the reason that we could challenge for the CL, but they are good enough to be a part of a team that does. Imagine going into the transfer window next year with those players plus someone like Mahrez. It allows the team to focus on fewer but higher quality players that can push the team to the next level going forward.

If we are dead set on going for a new CB, KK is a good alternative to VVD. Both are imposing and ball playing defenders, would be an improvement on the squad.

£60 mil would be very decent business, basically replacing Oscar with Lukaku if we just look at the transfer fees. Honestly it seems to me that Bakayoko and Lukaku are 100% signed, just details remaining to make it official (and waiting with the unveiling).

Exactly this. The way we play is meant for us to dominate the middle, break up attacks of the opponent and counter. The CM's are not expected nor asked for to be virtuosos. The wing backs and the front three provide the attacking movement, so if we want to improve at that end of the field, it is those positions that we need to upgrade. I have to say though, a 3-5-2 with James in front of Baka and Kante would be very, very interesting. Say what you want about James, but his left foot is truly magical.

I have been following the talk regarding Baka vs Fabinho for a while, and while Fabinho generates more praise from Monaco fans, there are more than a few who find Bakayoko to be the better player. So let me get this straight, you have watched all eight midfielders you mentioned earlier plus Bakayoko to such an extent that you can comfortably say that they are a better fit for our team? In terms of the attributes you mentioned, you stated that all the players you mentioned have better passing ability, control, technique and awareness than Bakayoko. That is a very, very bold claim. It is also completely wrong statistically. Passing ability: While Bakayoko provides the lowest amount of key passes, he has one of the highest pass success percentages of all the ones you mentioned, while providing a comparable amount of total passes per game to the others. Still, I would be inclined to agree that passing is his weakes area of the game. He keeps it simple, and does it well. Control: Hard to know exactly what you mean by control, but WhoScored measures "bad control per game" which seems like a fair statistic. Bakayoko is one of the best players of the ones you mentioned in this regard. The only one with a comparable amount of games better than him is Fabinho. Paredes and Diawara also have better numbers, but they have played a lot less than him, making their numbers easier to maintain at a good level. Technique: Again, hard to know what you mean by this exactly, and the difference between this and dribbling for example. You simply leave this too undefined to let statistics decide whether you are right or not. I can just as well say that Baka has better technique than most of the players you mentioned and be just as right, as it is presented as a subjective attribute (I actually dont believe Baka is one of the best, but he is not bad for sure in this regard). Awareness: Dribbled past per game and dispossessed seems like somewhat fair statistics for this area. In terms of the first statistic, Baka is the second best (first if you exclude Diawara, as he has played almost a third of Baka's playtime). For the second one, Baka is in the middle, higher if cou exclude Paredes and Diawara. Dribbling: Bakayoko has the third highest amount of successful dribbles per game. To summarize, your statement was completely wrong. You can say "I trust my eyes" or "some things arent shown in the numbers", but whereas you and I cling to subjectivity, the numbers are the closest to a fair representation that we can get. They are not perfect as they fail to show the level of the opponents, the starting position, the quality of the team etc, but it sure as hell beats "I think xyz". Bakayoko is far more well-rounded than he gets credit for. If Conte wants Baka so bad (and considering that we were linked to him last year already) there is clearly a spot for Baka in the team. I fail to see how buying a player that Conte doesnt want or see as a fit instead of one he wants is going to be positive in our hunt for trophies. Besides, it is a real possibility that there were targets the club/Conte wanted more, but were either priced out off, or where the player did not wish to leave. We know so little about what is happening behind the scenes, and yet people are comfortable judging the board on their dealings. You can however have a main gameplan, which you try to perfect to the fullest extent. The players we have been targeting suggests that we both want to become even better at what we have excelled at this season, while also opening the possiblity for formation switches. If we want a creative CM we already have one in Fabregas.

Based on what? How in the world are you better positioned to identify those as better partners for Kante? I mean this is ridiculous, you cant just throw names around like that without going into detail about how they would make better partners. Is the fact that they can pass better automatically make them a better fit? Paredes has not proven much yet, Savic is not a great passer, Keita might not be available while Seri and Bonaventura have similar weaknesses to Fabregas. A lot of people like to say that Fabinho is twice the player that Baka is. If that is the case, why do you think that Conte is so determined to get Baka? Do you think that he is actively looking to buy underwhelming players? Do you think that is the reason we have been rumored to get Baka for half a year or more? We are about to throw a huge amount of money on Lukaku, so clearly the money is there, and yet it is Baka that we want. Could it be that Conte has a vision for how he wants Chelsea to play, and that Baka is the best choice for that vision? Have some faith in our couch.

What if Conte doesnt give a shit about how poor Baka's playmaking abilities are? I feel like people have this idea of a hybrid between Fabregas and Kante they want to see, but how do we know that it is what Conte wants? We are not going to be Barcelona with neat passes pinging around in the middle, we are a team that is extremely efficient in counter-attacking. Bakayoko is good at breaking up the attack of the other team, and skilled enough to quickly ID a more attacking player to pass to. Is it not enough that he is really good at a few things, rather than above average in many? It is more important that we find a player fitting our playstyle, rather than a player we find more pleasing visually. Besides, please remember his age. How many midfielders do you look at and say "wow, this dude was never better than he was at 22?". He has a solid foundation, and now we can build on it. Just imagine if he and Lukaku have another dimension to their play, and they find it here? We will have two amazing players with many years on the top remaining. Regarding Tolisso it would of course have been great to get him. However, it is possible that the player simply preferred Bayern. Not getting a player does not equal the board doing nothing and letting him slip. We need to be more level-headed about this.

I think that it is very important to remember that Lukaku is still not a finished product. Conte is a disciplinarian putting a lot of effort into getting the most of his players. The Guardian had a good article on some of his training methods, such as performing shadow play during training (playing a game without a ball, practising movement and passing instinct). Maybe going back to Chelsea will allow him to take the last steps towards becoming world class?

Seems like he will go for a minimum of £60m. I think he is a good player and would happy to see him at the club, but not for more than £45m. On paper, I think that Lukaku for £20m more is a better deal. Morata is the more technical player, but my gut tells me that he will struggle in the PL. If he goes to Utd, and Lukaku goes to Chelsea, my money is on Lukaku scoring quite a lot more goals.