Erling Haaland

[Jase 43,479]

On the day we crashed 5-2 at home to West Brom, Dortmund just lost 2-1 to Eintracht Frankfurt with Andre Silva scoring the winner. 7 points behind the top 4 with 7 games left.

Silva now has 22 Bundesliga goals this season, 1 more than Haaland. 

[MoroccanBlue 5,383]

19 minutes ago, Jason said:

On the day we crashed 5-2 at home to West Brom, Dortmund just lost 2-1 to Eintracht Frankfurt with Andre Silva scoring the winner. 7 points behind the top 4 with 7 games left.

Silva now has 22 Bundesliga goals this season, 1 more than Haaland. 

I posted in the transfer thread if anyone has kept a close eye on him. He's having a terrific season numbers wise and maybe a potential alternative. 

[NikkiCFC 8,334]

So was Jovic 2 years ago. Strikers from Bundesliga did not do well lately after big transfers. Werner, Jovic, Joelinton, Haller...

Michy and Alcacer were scoring for fun there.

Edited April 3, 2021 by NikkiCFC

[killer1257 3,282]

10 minutes ago, NikkiCFC said:

So was Jovic 2 years ago. Strikers from Bundesliga did not do well lately after big transfers. Werner, Jovic, Joelinton, Haller...

Michy and Alcacer were scoring for fun there.

Just a bad league overall. I have been saying this for a while now. 

[killer1257 3,282]

19 minutes ago, MoroccanBlue said:

I posted in the transfer thread if anyone has kept a close eye on him. He's having a terrific season numbers wise and maybe a potential alternative. 

From what I have seen from him, I am not convinced.

[Jase 43,479]

21 minutes ago, killer1257 said:

Just a bad league overall. I have been saying this for a while now. 

So do you think Haaland is good or bad?

[Vesper 30,224]

24 minutes ago, killer1257 said:

Just a bad league overall. I have been saying this for a while now. 

yes, the EPL is so far beyond any other league on the planet

La Liga is a joke after the top 3

and we smashed the their leaders

Serie A is so down from what it was in early/mid 2000's and of course the 1990's and mid to late 1980's when it was the clear runaway best league on the planet

[King Kante 1,643]

Don't see Dortmund qualifying for the CL via the league. They're 7 points  behind now with a harder run in and only 7 games left. 

[Jase 43,479]

5 minutes ago, King Kante said:

Don't see Dortmund qualifying for the CL via the league. They're 7 points  behind now with a harder run in and only 7 games left. 

Will we even qualify? lol

If we don't, we can definitely forget about even trying to sign Haaland. 

[killer1257 3,282]

48 minutes ago, Jason said:

So do you think Haaland is good or bad?

I think he is good, but he has still some weaknesses. People overhype him as some Messi/CR7 level, but he is not even prime Henry or Suarez level yet and might never reach their level. 

I would say that Haaland is top 7 striker in the world currently. Lautaro, Kane, Lukaku, Messi, Benzema,Lewandowski and Haaland. 

Haaland has amazing attributes. He is tall, very fast for his size, has decent first touch and a very good finishing rate. But people forget that he plays with other great offensive players too. Sancho, Reus and Hazard are all good players and all four together in a bad league like Bundesliga will get you insane goal stats. When Haaland plays for Norway, he often does not perform. Why? He does not have other great players next to him. 

Haalands biggest weaknesses from what I have seen are his hold up play and his aerial threat. He is quite tall, but does not score with his head enough. Lewin for instance is miles ahead of him when it comes to scoring with his head. 

Edited April 3, 2021 by killer1257

[OneMoSalah 8,886]

12 hours ago, NikkiCFC said:

So was Jovic 2 years ago. Strikers from Bundesliga did not do well lately after big transfers. Werner, Jovic, Joelinton, Haller...

Michy and Alcacer were scoring for fun there.

Silva already had his big move to Milan that didn’t work out when he was a teenager though as it came too soon. I think its safe to say he’s rebuilt his career significantly over the last 3 seasons and proven himself as a pretty decent player and reasonably regular goalscorer at decent levels in Spain and Germany. He always had talent it was clear at Porto and he was well thought of at Milan despite it not working out there but probably was a poor move to make after one season as Porto’s first choice CF. For Sevilla in 2018/19, he got 11 goals in 40 games in all comps and for Eintracht Frankfurt in 2019/20, he got 16 goals in 37 games in all comps and so far this season he has 23 goals in 27 games in all comps.

Given hes 25 now, has scored 50 goals in the last 3 seasons basically, whilst also besting his tallies from the previous seasons each time, I think he’s ready to make the next step. He also has made a decent contribution to the Portuguese NT scoring 16 goals in 38 games and will undoubtedly start coming into his best years as a footballer in the next year or two, so the potential is there and it is exciting, as was the initial judgement of many when he broke into Porto’s first team at 19/20.

Barca, Atletico Madrid, Arsenal and Man United are meant to be considering moves for him and I think he has the potential to be a very smart buy for someone this summer, in a market where CFs will be tough to find at a good price. He isnt Haaland maybe but he’s outscoring him in a lesser team so to speak (although they are flying at the moment) and looks like he will be close to/at/over 30 goals by the end of the season. I wouldn’t be surprised if City didn’t look at him when Aguero goes because he is on the up and definitely a player who can still improve a lot whilst being at a pretty decent level just now, as well as a few other clubs needing a striker (us included). He actually reminds me of Morata a bit with how he plays (when he was good here at the beginning), hes strong in the air, capable of finishing well with both feet, mobile, technically proficient and he’s not exactly a push over either. Maybe he isnt a top tier player who will be one of the very best like Haaland but hes a very decent alternative and I think someone will get him in the summe. Apparently he said something about he thinks he's worth about 30million and Frankfurt paid €9 million for him, though thats taken from an article which I have no idea how reliable it is. Obviously Frankfurt might value him higher than 30m.

For me, he is nothing like Jovic because he’s already been there as a younger player, done the big move, seen it fail and has now revitalised his career at a reasonably competitive level. Jovic’s issue was he made too large a jump initially after 12 months of playing virtually every week at a reasonably decent level. If he didnt go to Madrid and went to a Dortmund or a Sevilla or us or a Arsenal or someone of that ilk who would of played him or built around him allowing him to continue to progress, it would of been better for his career and his progression.

I think going to Madrid as a 20/21/ year old, to compete with someone who has been Madrid’s best player since Ronaldo left (scoring 25 goals plus in both the 18-19 and 19-20 seasons and showing no clear signs of slowing down) was a ridiculously stupid move on his account. Plus Benzema is also one of Zizou’s most trusted players and Madrid’s vice captain. There were even rumours Zidane didnt think Jovic was ready to play for Madrid based off what he seen in pre season and wanted to loan him out after 6 or 8 weeks of being at the club. 

Edited April 4, 2021 by OneMoSalah

[King Kante 1,643]

21 hours ago, Jason said:

Will we even qualify? lol

If we don't, we can definitely forget about even trying to sign Haaland. 

At this moment in time, it is not looking likely unless we pull a 2012 off again.

[chippy 342]

Too much money for the transfer and wages.

Rather we started the rebuild from the back on a new keeper, RB (James is simply a crap defender) and creative midfielder who can  actually pass a fooking football into dangerous areas.

[Blues Forever 1,232]

 

The finances requested by Mino Raiola for the transfer of Erling Haaland, during his meeting with Barcelona last week:

€20m to Mino Raiola

€20m to Alf-Inge Haaland

€30m net/season to Erling Haaland 

Would rather go after Mbappe instead if Haaland cost around €200m lol.

 

Edited April 4, 2021 by Blues Forever

[Jase 43,479]

37 minutes ago, Blues Forever said:

 

The finances requested by Mino Raiola for the transfer of Erling Haaland, during his meeting with Barcelona last week:

€20m to Mino Raiola

€20m to Alf-Inge Haaland

€30m net/season to Erling Haaland 

Would rather go after Mbappe instead if Haaland cost around €200m lol.

LOL

If that's the kind of money they want, no one is gonna pay for it, especially when clubs are still counting the cost of the pandemic. 

[Atomiswave 6,118]

1 hour ago, Blues Forever said:

 

The finances requested by Mino Raiola for the transfer of Erling Haaland, during his meeting with Barcelona last week:

€20m to Mino Raiola

€20m to Alf-Inge Haaland

€30m net/season to Erling Haaland 

Would rather go after Mbappe instead if Haaland cost around €200m lol.

 

Give me Mbappe any day, who the fuck do they think they are? 20M for Raiola? For what service exactly? If I was a player I would have no agent at all. Leeches.

[NikkiCFC 8,334]

Mbappe and Neymar still did not renew. One year left on contract in 3 months. PSG may start panic and pay all this for Haaland if they lose just one of them. Not sure he prefers to go there but if money is number one yes I can see that.

Edited April 4, 2021 by NikkiCFC

[Vesper 30,224]

40 minutes ago, chippy said:

Too much money for the transfer and wages.

Rather we started the rebuild from the back on a new keeper, RB (James is simply a crap defender) 

lol, as if we are going to bin Reece (ludicrous positing)

here are the top rated 50 RB's on T-Markt

who are you proposing we buy? (the best in the world by far, Kimmich, is now moved perm to DMF, and is not in thsi list)

which one is an actual upgrade (and available) on Reece?

the ones in bold are who I would be looking at to buy in 2022 or 2023 (as Azpi has but so many miles left in his tank)

but are not upgrades on Reece, at least atm

I especially like Emerson Royal (although Barca may well keep him after he comes back from loan) and James Justin

 

in global order:

Trent Alexander-Arnold    
João Cancelo   
Aaron Wan-Bissaka    
Reece James  
Daniel Carvajal    
Benjamin Pavard   
Kyle Walker  
Nélson Semedo   
Ricardo Pereira    
Emerson Royal  
Sergiño Dest    
Davide Calabria    
Héctor Bellerín    
Sergi Roberto  
Timothy Castagne    
Nordi Mukiele  
Ridle Baku   
Giovanni Di Lorenzo  
Max Aarons 
Matty Cash    
Zeki Celik   
Danilo    
Serge Aurier  
Kieran Trippier   
Tariq Lamptey 
Dodô    
Kyle Walker-Peters   
Denzel Dumfries   
Hans Hateboer   
Matt Doherty   
Mário Fernandes    
Juan Cuadrado    
Pedro Porro   
James Justin    
Noussair Mazraoui    
César Azpilicueta   
Youcef Atal    
Alessandro Florenzi    
Stefan Lainer    
Léo Dubois    
Elseid Hysaj   
Gonzalo Montiel   
Colin Dagba   
Benjamin Henrichs  
Thomas Meunier  
Joakim Maehle   
Neco Williams 
Jeremie Frimpong   
Diogo Dalot    
Andoni Gorosabel 
 

[Jase 43,479]

Struggling Dortmund’s problems are far bigger than the Haaland circus

https://theathletic.com/2483828/2021/04/04/struggling-dortmunds-problems-are-far-bigger-than-the-haaland-circus/

The two biggest clubs in Germany went into season-defining games on Saturday without key performers. Robert Lewandowski was missing for Bayern Munich, Jadon Sancho for Borussia Dortmund.

Both matches were edgy affairs that might have gone another way but in the end, the gulf in performances and results couldn’t have been much more obvious. Whereas Bayern expertly fought and scrapped their way to a 1-0 win at RB Leipzig that all but guarantees a ninth title in a row, Dortmund were lacklustre and crashed to a 2-1 home defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt, with Edin Terzic’s team staring at the abyss.

“Missing out on the Champions Leaguewould be a sporting and financial catastrophe,” defender Mats Hummels said in view of the seven-point gap between them and Frankfurt in fourth. On the evidence of Saturday, Dortmund may stand a better chance of qualifying for next season’s Champions League by winning this season’s tournament.

It was the usual, deeply unnerving combination of disembodied, half-baked attacks and lack of focus at the back. Dortmund had enough opportunities to win the game twice over, but their “technical deficiencies” (Hummels’ words) and propensity to make the wrong decision rendered their attempts hapless. Every one of their 10 Bundesliga defeats this season has followed the same pattern.

Lucien Favre is no longer around to carry the blame. Successor Terzic has righted some wrongs since taking over but there are too many fundamental problems with the way the squad performs and how it’s been put together to make the new manager bounce sustainable.

Again, the comparison with Bayern is instructive in that regard. The champions didn’t wait for a third season to replace an ill-fitting manager and the make-up of their team, a collection of proven winners and top players enabled Hansi Flick to get hugely improved performances with just a few tactical and psychological tweaks.

Terzic, 38, a novice at this level, didn’t just have to radically alter Dortmund’s passivity without the ball but also instil a “win-at-all-cost” mentality that too few of the many talented youngsters in the squad seem to possess. He wasn’t able to do so, which is less a reflection on him than on the natural drawbacks of the club’s policy to surround a small core group of seasoned pros with a dozen “high potentials” destined to reach their peak performance levels elsewhere.

The team’s transient nature is the enemy of consistency. The hope is that incoming boss Marco Rose can overcome that structural deficit by the force of his charisma and tactical input.

In the meantime, though, there’s a danger that things will fall apart. Captain Marco Reus made a big show of his disappointment after his 80th-minute substitution. Terzic excused the petulance as “human” but a bit more positivity and regard for the greater good wouldn’t have gone amiss as the hosts were chasing a winner. Erling Haaland, fresh from a disappointing week with Norway, spent more time berating his team-mates for misplaced passes and general incompetence than troubling Kevin Trapp in the Eintracht goal.

Dortmund are relatively sanguine about Mino Raiola and Alf-Inge Haaland taking their travelling transfer market circus to Spain last week — they believe the €150 million-plus valuation of the striker will keep the vultures at bay — but the timing of Team Haaland’s sales trip, just before season-defining games against Frankfurt and Manchester City, was insensitive to say the least. The rest of the squad can put up with the noise as long as Haaland does his job on the pitch but resentment will grow if column inches start outpacing goals. The forward’s body language in recent weeks has been shouting out “I’m too good for the Europe League”, a factually correct statement without a doubt but not the sort of message that will necessarily endear you in the dressing room when things go badly.

Privately, Dortmund are adamant that missing out on the Champions League will not change their stance over Haaland’s possible departure. Whether the most exciting young centre-forward in world football will accept life on the lesser stage next season is uncertain, however. In financial terms, Dortmund are looking at a minimum hit of €30 million if they finish fifth instead of fourth (unless they somehow win this season’s Champions League, which would guarantee qualification). The real difference could well be more than double, though, depending on performance.

BVB are currently on course for receiving €82 million in prize money from this season’s Champions League. Bayer Leverkusen, knocked out in the last-32 stage in the Europa League, will receive a paltry €10.6 million in contrast. It’s money that Dortmund, as a publicly traded company, can ill-afford to lose in COVID-19 times. Last season saw them post losses of €43 million. Estimates suggest it could be a little more in 2020-21. That’s not enough to put the club’s liquidity in question as they have secured a €120 million credit line with the banks, but the well-overdue reengineering of the squad, especially in defensive positions, will be much harder to get right under these circumstances.

Dortmund are still well-placed to win the DFB-Pokal. They have a semi-final against second-tier Holstein Kiel, who knocked out holders Bayern in January. A first trophy in four years would bring some solace at the end of a hugely frustrating season, if not much financial reward. But before that, their sporting regression could come into sharp relief once more. If they play as poorly against Manchester City on Tuesday as they did against Eintracht, their involvement in Europe’s top competition will be over before the second leg has even kicked off.

[Jase 43,479]

On 02/04/2021 at 21:45, Jason said:

 

3 days later...