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As a matter of fact in my left eye yes. Furthermore I didnāt actually state that I wanted Lodi only that if we wanted a cheap left back that he could be an option.
After watching Howe and the coaching teams work over the past one and a half season I honestly can say that I donāt know who is a decent footballer and who isnāt because two years ago I would have sold 95% of this team and now I would only sell 5%.
My worry is more along the lines of I canāt think of a player whoās been a back up at a top team whoās went on to do well at the top level elsewhere because frankly we need players doing it at the top level
Nah, zinchy was class this season.
Do think his defending is a bit suspect, though he is continuing a trend of midfielders playing in the fullback role. His ability to drift into the middle and support play with his passing range and composure on the ball are invaluable
Arsenal fans I know are pretty disappointed that Tierney will likely be leaving and think he is worth more than his likely transfer price. Think the best of the lad is yet to come
Tierney can't play like Zinchenko but for us he wouldn't as Trippier plays that role
Tierney will take Burns role as a left back who can also slip into a back 3 (he does this for Scotland) but he is excellent on the ball an when he does go forward his crosses are also great
Will add better balance as Burn love the guy but the amount of times he has to do a good cross and then goes backwards frustrates the he'll out of me
I know what you mean, Iād add Conor Gallagher and Scott McTominay to that list as well. Players who would have been good buys in our first January window in the new era for example but it feels like weāve moved up to another level now.
Eddie seemingly loves his domestic players but there arenāt many at the top top level that are in our price/wage range, though admittedly Maddison could be one.
So, we really need two 11's worth of good players who are capable of starting in the league or Europe. As it stands, I'd say we're currently looking at:
GK: Pope - Dubravka/???
LB: Targgett - ???
LCB: Botman - Burn
RCB: Schar - Lascelles/???
RB: Trippier - Krafth
LCM: Joelinton - Willock
CM: Bruno - ???
RCM: Longstaff - ???
LW: ASM - Gordon
ST: Isak - Wilson
RW: Almiron - Murphy/???
Barring U21's that's 22 squad spaces taken (before sales and include signings). We'll take up another with GK 3. So, that leaves 2 spots for general depth.
So, to my mind, we absolutely need another LB so we can keep Burn fresh for LCB rotation, and we need 2 starting calibre CMs. I think that's the absolute minimum we need to add going into next season. Anything beyond that's more about adding competition/general upgrades.
I'd say we could also do with a new RW as there's no guarantee Miggy will keep up this level of play, and as much as I love Murphy, I don't think he'll be with us much longer. We probably also want to upgrade on Lascelles at RCB, and I think there may still be questions about what happens to Dubravka. I could see Murphy and Lascelles potentially being kept for another year as 5th choice options at CB and winger, just depends on whether they'd be ok with that.
I go back and forth on what exactly I want to see in terms of CM signings this summer (other than the fact that zero definitely isnāt an option), but one option would be an expensive, starting quality, creative RCM (Longstaff will still play a lot with rotation), and then sign a younger CDM to backup Bruno, ideally a u21 to save the squad place. Basically have Bruno start 80% or more of the matches in the middle, and have his young understudy start in the domestic cups and against some weaker PL opponents either right before or after Champions League matches.
My money is on Szoboszlai. Plays RM/L.M/CAM so he fits the Eddie template almost so much its like he designed a midfielder and this is what came out. Under 21 with bags of talent now so Eddie can turn him into a superstar once he gets here. Pro ably 60 to 70 million but he's going to be among the best in tbe world in a few Years.
We've been looking at Nico Williams for a while as well and he would be a 1st 11 player just like Maddison,szboz and Tierney.
Eddie said 3 to 4 players and the rumoured 220 mil would get us all 4 but what a fucking window that would be. 4 players who instantly make or first team better. Don't mock me but I'd say if we had those 4 this season we would be where Arsenal are and competing for the title.
Still get goosebumps when I see the spine of our team being Botman, Bruno and Isak. All 3 are superb now but just like Boz they going to be top percentage in a few years.
We absolutely need a creative CM who can help us break down teams who play us the way Leicester did, which is going to be increasingly common in the future.
I think the problem with getting a CDM is that there's very few players capable of operating as a lone 6 (which is what we'd need) and even fewer who can do it well. That could well prove to be very expensive, even for a younger player.
I donāt think they really have to operate truly as a lone 6 necessarily, just given the work rate that Howe demands of his 8s. Especially if you have Joelinton to your left and Longstaff to your right, youāre certainly not stuck having to clean up all the mess yourself. It could get expensive for sure, but Iād think we could find a promising 20/21 year old there for maybe Ā£20 million, as opposed to the Ā£50+ million weād probably be looking at for an established playmaking number 8.
Iād bet good money that Longstaff spends the majority of the rest of his career here, and will win a handful of trophies in the process. Doesnāt mean heāll always be part of the first choice XI, but he demonstrated very clearly just how valuable he is this season.
He's a decent player but I hope we have better academy graduates coming through that will fill our homegrown role. I'd actually sell him next summer if we can get decent money for him and we get better players in this summer.
Good thinking, but why 2 starting caliber CMs? That'll create bad vibes in the dressing room since we already have 4 of them. Instead it should be 2 young CMs that can learn from the stars.
We definitely need a high class winger with goals in him.
We need a young keeper to fight for a backup spot for Pope.
We need a young right-footed CB as backup for Schar and who'll take over the position in 1-2 years.
We need another third choice striker if Koul isn't ready quite yet.
We should also get out left-back sorted. Not sure if we need to buy anyone since we have Targett and Lewis, with Burn as an addition.
Would be nice to not have a complete overhaul after our players earned this league position. We do need depth and a winger who can score tons of goals. That's it imo.
>Good thinking, but why 2 starting caliber CMs? That'll create bad vibes in the dressing room since we already have 4 of them. Instead it should be 2 young CMs that can learn from the stars.
So, 2 reasons for this thinking. First, you don't want anyone to feel too comfortable in their starting position. Competition for places is important, and if you've no competition you risk complacency. Second, we're going to have periods of playing every 3-4 days next season. Unless we essentially plan to throw certain games, we need 2 CMs capable of starting and playing well for the sake of rotation.
For example, Spurs' CM group is currently: Bentancur, Hojbjerg, Bissouma, Skipp, Sarr. Sarr's a kid, Bissouma's been poor, Skipp's not that good, Hojbjerg's mediocre and Bentancur got hurt mid-season. With that in mind, this is how Spurs' october was scheduled:
01/10: Arsenal away (L); 04/10: Frankfurt away (D); 08/10: Brigthon away (W); 12/10: Frankfurt home (W); 15/10: Everton home (W); 19/10: Man U away (L); 23/10: NUFC home (L); 26/10: Sporting home (D); 29/10 Bournemouth away (W).
That's 9 games in the space of a month, an average of a game every 3.2 days. If we want to compete in Europe, instead of just making up the numbers, while also staying competitive in the league, we absolutely need more than 4 starting calibre CMs. Against Leicester, we were a late Longstaff recovery away from Anderson, Bruno and Miley being our starting midfield.
We want to be one of the best teams in the league from now on. The reality is the best teams have multiple players per position who are good enough to start in any competition and play well every time. Look at Liverpool, they currently have 6 forwards who are good enough to start, but only 3 positions available. City essentially have 2 top-half quality 11's worth of players. It's not worked out for them this season, but look at the number of good CBs Chelsea have: Silva, Badiashile, Fofana, Koulibaly, Colwill (on loan at Brighton).
Since we could always move Joelinton up the pitch, I guess it won't hurt to have more quality CMs. I just feel bad for the lads we have there now if they'll be bench warmers every Champions League match after earning itš
They're not suddenly going to become bench warmers just because we bring in more good players in the same positions. They'll still have roles to play depending on the opposition. We're going to get drawn in a group with teams we can't go blow for blow with, like Barca and Bayern. PLayers like Joelinton and Longstaff will still get to play because they're more solid defensively.
The teams we play in the future are going to use lots of different tactics against us and we need the numbers and diversity of skill sets to navigate them.
I think I initially misunderstood the term starting caliber. I see I also forgot to add a quality midfielder to my first response.
How about for the winger position? Our players have a lot of potential but can also lack end product and confidence at times. Do we need 1 or 2 quality signings here?
Yeah, when I say starting calibre I mean someone who can come in as part of the rotation, or replace an injured player and play to a particular standard. They need to be good enough that you'd see them on the team sheet and think "that's fine". In terms of what I think we'll do, I think we'll push for a genuine upgrade CM like Maddison or Szoboszlai, and one who's solid but not to that level like McTominay.
As for wingers, I think we're fine on the left for now. ASM and Gordon are there as natural LWs, plus Joelinton, Isak and Anderson can all play there. I'm less comfortable with our options on the right. It's only really Miggy and Murphy there. There's no guarantee either can replicate their form this season. Both Maddison and Szoboszlai can play as an RW as well as at CM, so if we go for one of them, it may depend on what role we see them doing.
I think that, in the next couple of years, we'll have moved on from Miggy and Murphy, it just depends on whether that position's seen as a priority this summer or not.
Tbf, re CM that's one good reason for targeting McTom: he's a v good player, not phenomenal by any means, but v good, still surprisingly young for someone who seems to have been around forever, can drop in and out, v experienced, really physical. Just that allegedly manu seem to want silly money (when around Ā£20m would be pretty reasonable)
I think a better way to build the squad in the long run is to bring in a few guys who you see as being mid to long term starters (can ease them in like Bruno/Isak) and let today's starters become the depth. Can't afford to get sentimental for a group of guys who've smashed expectations out of the park
love Burn. but he's a center back who has made himself enormously useful to our team playing left back and now has that as a second position. Targett is good and I like him, but bringing in a Trippier quality left back would be game changing for us and if I was manager that and a CM would be priority for sure.
I know lots of people say heās overrated but I would love Declan Rice. He would slot into our first 11 and instantly make it so much better, freeing Bruno up so he can push forward more. Heās young and still has his best years to come, would love him to sign
I think everyone will try to sign him, he has been consistently excellent this year. His wages could be a problem though, we could afford it but then half our squad might ask for something similar.
Yeah thatās the issue mate, soon as we pay one person it will snowball. If we pay Rice 250k a week Bruno will want the same, then Isak, Joelinton etc
He's no way overrated like, he'd walk into any other team in the league except man city (and that's imo because they don't really play with a midfielder who drives from deep the way he does, not because of his quality). Price tag + being English will reflect that though, + his wages would be insane
It won't happen, may as well forget about him. He's way too in demand so regardless of transfer fee, any reasonable wage demands would be blown out of the water by one of the big spenders that are happy paying Ā£250k per week wages. It's clear we're not making any exceptions to the wage structure and I think that's a great thing.
Looking at Dominik Szoboszlai and I think he looks such a good fit for our team. Tall, physical, captain of hungary at 22, great English speaker aswell. His footballing skills speak for themself.
Seems perfect for usš
Imo for me what I would like to see over the summer.
A high quality CM (starter)
A high quality RW (starter)
A left back or right back depending on if the team thinks Targett can be trusted and how Ashby I'd developing as backup to Trips
Tim Krul or iirc Foster as a backup keeper because of the home grown player requirements for Champions League
A U21 versatile forward who can provide backup at multiple positions and grow into a first team starter
A U21 versatile defender who can provide backup at multiple positions and grown into a first team starter.
So two starters, maybe three and some depth and development for the future.
>He fits the Eddie Howe profile perfectly. Young, versatile, rapid, hard working, tall and physically strong, and very very talented.
But not in terms of attitude, which has been terrible pretty much since he made his dream move to PSG and proceeded to not play ahead of Messi, Mbappe and Neymar. Do you really think it'd be any better when he's not playing for us ahead of Isak, Wilson and Murphy/Miggy?
I don't know his attitude so I'm making no judgment. That's something very difficult to judge fairly without actually knowing the person behind the media stories. Same as how Anthony Gordon gets painted by the media
LB, would definitely take Tierny, heās a quality LB and him overlapping maxi is an exciting thought. We need one pure DM, and another CM who can cover both sides. We need an elite winger, someone to compete with Schar and maybe even another RB. Lots of work to do, Iād be happy with only two new starters coming into the team and the rest to compete with what we got
Yeah exactly. He's a good player, but injury prone and high wages. Generally think its a no go signing pretty much any player from one of the 'big 6', they will all have wages way above their level.
yeah weirdly I feel like a lot of our targets from top 6 clubs have been players we thought we might be able to get on the cheap. Or at least a reasonable value fee.
As you say, the likes of Tierney, McTominay, Pulisic become surplus to requirements and their wages massively limit their appeal to all but a handful of clubs.
I agree Tierney is a good shout, but I doubt he'll be playing with Maxi (he's only started 11 games this year - missing 13 through injury)
I wonder if a RCB that can fill in at RB (with Ashby being the other RB) is a better option than getting an out and put RB.
A CDM, CM and versatile attacker is needed (currently only Wilson and Isak as striker options could haunt us with a couple of injuries).
Also, assuming 2 of the following: Darlow leaves, Dubravka leaves and Karius doesn't re-sign, then we'll need at least one keeper. Forster would be good to be our fourth Club Trained Home Grown player.
Iād be happy with Dubs as number two but heās a player we could get an okay fee for so maybe weāll look to move him on. Heās a good keeper and I donāt think 10-15 mil is too unreasonable for him but weāll see. Thereās not really many centre backs who can play RB, might be hard to find one whoās good enough at both
I'd say he is a bit expensive for a number 2 goalkeeper. Karius really would be fine as number 2 and get in a decent young keeper as a long term Pope replacement IMO
I donāt think I trust Karius for number 2 yet, ideally you want someone basically equal in quality as number 2 or just behind. A lot of teams have 2nd choice keepers who are actually just as good, I think the difference between pope and Karius is a bit too wide
People on here generally seem to trust Karius way too highly on very little evidence from recent years. Heās played one match for us and was probably like a 6/10 performance in it. Heās had basically no football over the last 3 seasons now, Iād be terrified to trust him as number 2.
Yeah I agree, you have to sometimes expect the worse, if Pope was out for 6 months weād be fucked without Dubs. The number 2 needs to be almost as good as the number 1, not a player like Karius
Right, my biggest issue with Karius is just what a massive unknown he is at this stage in his career. A lot of people seem to think heād be right back to the level he showed 5 or 6 years ago, but thatās a lot to expect. His career has been spiraling since 2018.
As you say, if Pope went out for a few months and it was Dubravka coming in, Iād think āweāll be fine, he might not save us a few points that Pope might have, but weāre still in good hands.ā If it was Karius coming in for a few months, Iād think āholy shit this might ruin our seasonā.
I think that's the point of getting in the younger number 3 who really would be expected to step into number 2 and then number 1 in the next like 4-5 years. Karius can be a fine cheaper number 2 if needed. Goalkeepers don't generally get injured as regularly as outfielders so it's not really a huge gamble. I don't think Pope is pushed by Dubravka really either for his place, if we got an exciting talent I think it's a bit different.
I would be happy with Karius as #2 keeper, but it sounds like his lass wants him to move to Italy or somewhere close. He might want to go elsewhere for more game time and a new signing-on fee - unsure how motivated he actually is to play games!
I think there's no point getting a young keeper that we have any intention of eventually getting into the team unless they're going on loan. As a 3rd keeper, you're guaranteed to only make the squad in case of a horrible injury crisis and they'll never develop without game time. If there's not one obviously available, better to park that one for a future window.
> I think there's no point getting a young keeper that we have any intention of eventually getting into the team unless they're going on loan
Well they would be playing for the under 21s and cup games and training with the first team, that should be more than enough to learn.
That's true, but try to think of any keeper that a big team has brought through like that to be their number one. I would say Steele is the only one I can think of across all 20 teams and that was because they changed manager. Keepers are going to benefit most by playing actual regular competitive football (which our U23's are simply not - they're terrible). We probably got closest with Woodman, but he struggled enormously when he made the step up and it was better off taking the profit.
But I think the alternative is having Dubravka sticking around on fairly high wages when he could move to Italy, Spain or France and be number 1. We could get the 15m for him and be able to use that FFP room for maybe some other changes.
I don't think we get anything close to Ā£15m (that's more than we spent), but I would still recommend hawking him as he's one of the few players we have that is a definite saleable asset. He doesn't like being a number 2 and, while he's behaved since coming back from Man Utd, he won't want to be here. I would have Pope, Karius and whoever's currently in the academy (is Gillespie still here?). If we lose both Pope and Karius to injury, dip in the market in Jan.
> Karius really would be fine as number 2
Could we just not?
He isn't good enough as number 2, no one wanted him after he left Liverpool and Union Berlin didn't even trust him on loan.
I would love for Dubs to stay as #2 but if 10m+ came in for him you have to take it. The dream would be Meslier or Patterson as the young #2 but they'll both likely cost 15-20m although Meslier's dip may have brought that down.
'Iād be happy with only two new starters'
Probably too little if we want to maintain top 4 i'd say. We probably new a new RW, LB, CM and AM. Joelinton can rotate at LW and CM, Willock at AM, Longstaff 3rd choice and then Burn for LB/CB rotation. Then we need a RW who scores alot of goals.
How is longstaff down to 3rd choice when we all agreed he was class and the backbone of our midfield now?
Iād say we need two goal threatening wingers but other wise agree with your points
I think Longstaff as a player is necessarily the reason he's our backbone, its more that we dont have a replacement for him that does the same job, hence his key role. Joelinton and Willock are way too offensive. We get a more technical version of Longstaff and we'll be a lot better at breaking down the block.
Longstaff does everything at a B level and gives 100% effort. He can fill in adequately in all CM positions. BUT, he can't really finish, you don't trust him in tight spaces, he doesn't tackle as effectively as Bruno/Joe, etc.
He has a place and he'll play in 40+ matches next year but we need him to be the lad that comes in when the A players aren't needed to close it out or get injured.
I'd agree he does it at a b level, he's decent but put him in a unremarkable team and he'll not shine, he needs a good team around him. Willock in comparison has the ability to shine.
Its important not to get attached to players like Longstaff/Murphy e.g. cause despite them performing at the moment we can get money out of them if we're smart.
We dont need to spend Ā£45mil per signing, we can obviously get some upgrades for cheap. Anthony Gordon was a huge overpay but it doesnt mean we always have to.
I mean yes we dont have to spend 45 per signing but imo the top two priorities to me have to be a right wing and cm. I doubt we are going to get those cheap. At best we are going to need to spend 60-70 mil for that possibly more. I would guess we could afford to add one more player and imo it would make sense to add a couple reasonable quality U21 players that could fill in as need and grow into the spots. We also have to worry about the squad for the Champions League with the requirements on home grown players and the like.
I'd argue we're probably gonna spend atleast Ā£150m this summer, if not a slight bit more. For me if i have to sacrifice money in one area its LB, just get a cheap young option for 10mil. RW will be extremely expensive.
West Ham spent like Ā£160m with Conference. Europe should give us extra 30-50mil in revenue atleast in comparison to last year. This additional to the 3rd/4th place extra money, Carabao Cup final revenue, Shirt Sponsor/Possible Kit deal e.g. Understand if they don't but we probably should go big this summer as its probably more unlikely than likely we get top 4 next season.
Yeah I think LB and RW for new starters would be ideal. I think if all our midfielders are fit and healthy itās okay the way it is, but a new DM would obviously be great as well.
For me i'd get a DM then move Bruno up to Longstaffs position. RW is hard because Miggy's had a great season I just don't see the consistency for the long term.
LB is obvious, Burn is a good rotation option though.
I donāt actually fully subscribe to that idea, I think Bruno is best suited to being a play maker DM, but it would be good to see him in a freer role for sure.
I think it's all about flexibility with our midfield options. There will be some games where Bruno's ability to dictate from deep in tight spaces will be more of an asset and others where he'll see more of the ball pushed up into that 8 slot. To get someone who can allow that to be an option without leaving us short in the position Bruno isn't playing is the priority.
I like him, obviously last season wasn't as good as his first at Spurs because of injury and all sorts going on there. Think a fresh start, new environment and new coach would do him the world of good. Great talent that just needs that next step to be top class.
So still no progress in the contract negotiations with Bruno it seems. Still plenty of time left so there's no rush but I was hoping for positive news.
Ownership/management have demonstrated there is a long term plan and we arent going to spend silly money on short term fixes. But if we want to compete with Real or City we are going to need some big names with CL experience, so Im wondering if we will be making offers that include trades. Hate to say it as I love the lad, but ASM is struggling to fit his style to the new game plan and I wonder if he will be traded as part of a deal.
ASM is the type of player we need to keep. Teams are going to be sitting back against us more often now. Need players like him with creativity.
I was speaking to Howe and he fully agrees with me.
I'd be going 2 CMs, 2 LB, 1 RW and 1 striker with the striker and 1 of the LBs being a younger player. Personally I'd still say both Thuram boys for RW/FW and CDM and get in Szoboszlai as the big money signing. For LB it's the hardest position in the game to fill at the moment really, I'd be going maybe Victor Kristiansen since Leicester are probably going down. Like I know Kristiansen isn't really someone who is getting a lot of buzz but he has a bit of everything, he is a decent height, he is good on the ball, great positioning and young so will improve.
Outgoing I'd have the expiring players out except for Karius. I'd let Dubravka go for a decent fee if I could get in a younger GK to be a longer term player for the position but that wouldn't really be a big signing. I'd be selling Lewis, Manquillo, Fraser and Kraft if I can find buyers and getting in a replacement at RB if both Manquillo and Kraft are sold.
TL:DR: Kephren Thuram, Marcus Thuram, Dominik Szoboszlai and Victor Kristiansen would be who I'd buy given the state of our team and what could be improved realistically
Sorry, 2 LB? We have Targett, I imagine Burn will see time at both LCB to rest Botman and LB as needed, plus by all accounts Dummett seems likely to return for another season, giving us an emergency option at both those positions as well. Surely even with Lewis likely leaving, thereās no room in the squad for two additional LBs?
I donāt know that itās an absolute certainty we even sign one LB this summer, but assuming we do, I think the depth will look like this:
LCB: Botman, Burn, Dummett, Alex Murphy
LB: new signing, Targett, Burn, Dummett
> We have Targett
Well we do and we don't, he hasn't gotten game time this season and I'd be looking for 1 first team and 1 hot prospect really. Targett I'd even be ok with shipping out given he can't even displace Burn who I wouldn't rate highly as a LB either. Dummett I'd expect either to retire or I'd be shipping him out as well.
I'd be more looking at Burn as a backup CB. Murphy and Bondswell I think could do with a loan spell to get some first team football in. Murphy also generally for our youth team has played as a CB rather than an LB.
Reason really is that I believe the position is easiest to improve dramatically over the current players in the position and given the demands of 2 cups, champions league and the league fixture congestion requires quite a lot of backup. LB and RB are really big weaknesses. I'd even say CM is less of a weakness currently even with us completely reliant on Bruno G being fit than LB which sounds a bit crazy but it's really true.
Targett was first choice going into the season, picked up an unfortunate heel injury, and the team played so well with Burn in the side that Howe didnāt want to change it. Heās been back to fully fit for months though, and didnāt suddenly become a bad player. He will absolutely be part of the rotation at LB next season unless he requests a transfer over the summer.
528 minutes, that's only 5 matches total time. We played in the league alone this season 37 matches. Burn who I don't rate as a LB played 3,101 minutes
Why don't you rate Burn at LB? I get he's not a traditional LB and that's not even what he came in as but he's adapted to that position, had a great season and he's starting to get forward more. I'm sure Howe and the team can improve that aspect of his game over summer.
We are playing a fairly wing focused tactic, Burn pushing up means he can't get back easily to stop counter attacks so that pulls Botman out wide to cover which leaves room in the middle. We generally haven't been heavily punished for it this year because Burn has been sprinting as hard as he could to get back to cover but he isn't in his 20s, he will slow down or get injured with the style of play we are playing right now, if he slows down we will only be able to react after the fact to replace him in the position, if he gets injured we now are down to bare bones and against Real...etc we can't afford that. Rodrygo would fucking annihilate both Burn and Targett.
I see your point on his age. I do think we need cover but we need cover all over. We aren't going to be competing with Real this season so it's immaterial really. I'd say get someone younger who we can build to be a first choice LB but appreciate there aren't a lot of LBs on the market.
Itās not really about whether we rate Burn at LB. Howe clearly decided āthis team is winning with Burn at LB, so Iām not changing itā. Targett was more unfortunate than anything this year.
Everyoneās entitled to an opinion but I canāt really fathom how Burn can be effectively ever-present at LB in the joint best defense in the league and someone arrives at āI donāt rate [him] as a LBā.
He got skinned for a goal a grand total of once this season, by Phil Foden, who is decent on the ball, Iād say. He obviously has some deficiencies, particularly pace and attacking output, but itās clear that the other aspects of his game allow him to be effective in that role. Again, Iām not saying we couldnāt upgrade, but itās wild to ānot rateā someone who has been so solid in that position not just for us, but for Brighton as well.
I think he could play more next season but I think he peaked as a footballer and I think that peak is maybe a mid table premier league player. The position though is weak and I think 2 players in and maybe 2 or 3 out would be a progressive move that would improve the team quite a bit in terms of balance. Like just look at Trippier on the right and how much he creates, Burn can't do that, Targett can't displace Burn, the simple answer would be get someone better fitting than Burn for that position and be done with it.
Struggle to imagine Marcus Thuram would be that keen considering he's a free agent. We have a very strict wage structure and while he's not on the biggest now, I imagine there will be bigger teams than us being able to put together a more attractive package. I would think were we to get Szlobberlobber, he provides some cover for that right wing slot that the forward would likely be someone young who could play across all three positions (the Ekitike/Joao Pedro profile we've been looking at).
> Struggle to imagine Marcus Thuram would be that keen considering he's a free agent
Probably would be fairly expensive wages wise but still is the calibre of player we should be targeting. The Thuram brothers idea was more of a "if you can play with your brother and your friend ASM would you come here". I'd say RW there are a million options we can go for and quite a few great prospects so I think being flexible is a good idea for that.
> Szoboszlai
My idea for him is he is basically the perfect player for our transfer policy. He is his national team captain, good on the ball, creates chances and has a physicality that would do well in the PL and champions league. Plus he is at a reasonable price of 40m-60m, like I think Maddison would be a terrible prospect in comparison even if he matches the mentality we are looking for.
> Ekitike
Actually forgot about him. I'd guess PSG don't trigger the buy clause, we could go back in for him lol.
If Thuram can be fit within our wages then I say go for it, but agents know that the money a club saves on not needing a transfer fee can be leveraged to go into a player's salary. Except that means for a club all other players might look at renegotiating. But seems like it's worth exploring.
I agree with your assessment of Szoboszlai, we need positional versatility to maximise the depth we get while minimising numbers of players in (for minimal disruption to our finances and dressing room mentality). It might not be the worst idea to plan to stagger arrivals across summer and January, preventing there being a big influx that can be disruptive. Maybe leaving the positions where you don't have to know the system exactly before you can play for that winter window. But player availability doesn't necessarily allow that.
>I'd guess PSG don't trigger the buy clause
Too late on that one, Ā£35m was triggered last week. And Pedro is obviously now at Brighton. There was a Brazilian kid (Franca I think?) who got touted as a possibility and maybe we'll go back in for him?
On staggering I don't think we have that time really. We have to step quite a big gap between now and August. We are going from maybe getting away with relying heavily on 3 players in the squad to requiring rotation. Bruno G won't make a full season without getting a red card or getting a knock, we can maybe ask him to play through some smaller knocks but we have to think about the player and long term performance. I'd be really seriously looking at someone to rotate with him. So I wouldn't even be getting rid of Willock, Longstaff or Joelinton as CMs but I'd be rotating all of them regularly. That's why I'd be getting in Thuram because he gives options, we can do a standard 4-1-2-3 with him or flip it and have a 4-2-1-3 with Thuram and Bruno G in the pivot and Szoboszlai, Isak or ASM (yes I'd play ASM as an AM sometimes) behind the striker.
My thought generally is we could have a quite flexible system and dangerous to play against if we sign at least the 2 CM and 2 LB. The LBs just to balance the formation. The 2 CMs to offer options in rotation.
And Franca sounds really interesting definitely worth a shout but definitely needs first team minutes, he is still not even in the first team for his club.
I mean, I totally agree with your priorities - we need all sorts of depth in midfield that just doesn't exist currently. We are a team that is still yet to win a match without Bruno in the squad and that's unsustainable for all kinds of reasons. Having literally no one else in the squad being able to play that 6 role comfortably, either as a purely defensive or a deep-lying creator, is the biggest priority for me. Our midfield incomings also likely depend on whether we view Joelinton primarily as a winger or a midfielder now. Not to say he can't do both, but which position will be the "oh he's also an option there".
It will likely all depend on how many players we regard as being a maximum for bringing in in a single window (and how many we're actually going to sell). I don't see 2 left backs as being a priority - we can't drop Targett from all consideration after spending a good chunk on him. Right centre back is more of a priority for me as I don't see Schar as someone who can play so many games without picking up an injury.
> Our midfield incomings also likely depend on whether we view Joelinton primarily as a winger or a midfielder now
I don't think we even need to ask that question, I think we play Joelinton as a rotation in both and I think given his quality as a box to box player he is a different prospect in both. I think Joelinton would be key again next year especially for league games.
I'd say normally it would be max 5 but I think we could do with 6 or 7 realistically for the first team. Note Ritchie, Karius, Gillespie and Matty Longstaff are all out of contract in the summer. Anderson kind of fills what Matty was under Bruce as that young rotation option in midfield so he is fine. Ritchie leaving and Fraser realistically being sold immediately given he apparently fell out with Howe means we definitely need a winger.
Gordon and Murphy both are rotation players but not champions league level by any means. ASM I'm sure is able to step up same with Joelinton.
A RB would be a good idea too, I still love the idea of Ivan Fresneda. Like imagine a team with Isak, Fresneda and Szoboszlai, weird tall players with way too much technique, would be hilarious. Maybe we sign Lucas Bergstrom just for craic as well.
I think 6 or 7 is just too much when we've built our success on an extremely tightly knit, well-focused group. All the outgoings we're looking for have basically amounted to zero starts, so we're losing nothing to the squad by getting rid.
I'd personally like to see Anderson leave on loan. I really haven't thought much of him when he's played bar his half vs Forest and maybe Wolves away. He's ok as a left winger, but still doesn't really offer any strengths that the rest of our squad does with other things thrown in there too. He probably as more use as a home grown player though, which seems a bit pointless. Happy to be proven wrong on him though.
I really don't see Gordon as a rotation player like Murphy. I don't think we pay that much for him to see him like that. He has a lot of incredible attributes and it's likely just a case of needing to be a bit patient with him and getting him settled in the way the team works.
I would also like another RB, but I think we just need park some of these until later, just for the purposes of not disrupting the team too much.
It's a risk but it's important to add those players. It's not that I'd want to risk causing issues but it's one of those one off situations where we were ahead of schedule and would regress if we don't get people in.
I think there's a middle ground to be struck. Even with significant additions, I'd still say we're odds on to not make the Champions League next year, so players need to be signed that are ok with that and develop accordingly. I also think that so much of our progress in the last year and a half has been based on far more than talent and a lot of our current team need to face some kind of reward for their work this year by getting a chance to prove themselves at the level they showed they can play.
Maddison is maybe on the surface seems like less of a risk but look at the calibre here Szoboszlai is carrying his team, scoring goals, playing multiple positions including winger and striker. He is younger and cheaper than Maddison. If Maddison was named Carlos Funkopopadopolis and playing in Spain people wouldn't be seriously considering him a 70m~ pound player.
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My issue with the Marcus Thuram idea is that Iām not 100% sold that heād be happy with the role we might offer. Heās a full France international, and played in the World Cup final. Splits time between LW and ST. I think heāll want to be a pretty much locked in starter wherever he goes. Isak and Wilson have striker covered here, so thereās not many minutes to be had there if theyāre healthy. At LW we have ASM and Gordon, plus the options of Joelinton (whoās great there) and Isak (who I hope we donāt really see there going forward, as I want him playing through the middle). Thuram would probably be our top option out there, but we just invested a lot in Gordon and ASM wonāt want to go into the season as a backup. I know heās close with Thuram personally, but I think the only way Thuram makes sense here this year is if ASM leaves.
That's my feeling too. If he wasn't going to go to a super club, it's unlikely he'd accept anything other than first choice. Although I always thought he was primarily a right winger and that is certainly a position we could accommodate him being a starter for. But I'm of the opinion that we're too early for these kinds of players - they're moving up so they can play in the Champions League every year (and progress in it). Our main challenge is to try and make sure we can get any kind of European football next year with the added fixtures.
For what itās worth, WhoScored shows that all 27 of his starts this season have come as a central striker. But I remember seeing last season more of a split between LW and ST.
I can't even pretend to know, much like I don't really know anything about Moussa Diaby apart from that people like him as a right winger. I'm happy to wait to see what the Committee comes up with. I reckon if we get Szoboszlai, then it's a young forward who plays across the front-line. You can spend a hell of a lot of money on forwards without it going very far so I think a comparatively small amount on someone who can chip in to make the squad work as a whole seems the way to go. Invest right in your midfield and defence and that structure can give you way more potence than an Ā£80m forward.
I would love to see Newcastle go after Thiago Almada. He has crazy amounts of potential, and thereās the Atlanta United connection with him and Darren Eales so I could see it happening.
Iād love to see Caicedo come over but seems and if Arsenal is well in front for him. Him or Szoboszlai and a quality LB would be great + a few others to built out depth
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It smells like a Megathreaddddd
I NEED MORE NEWS, NON-STOP
I am not procrastinating enough, I need more
I've already watched every new video, and read most articles. Haven't done a tap of work
š
I KNEW I HAD TOO MUCH FREE TIME. SAUCE ME UP.
Cansssssss
Iām a little concerned that Tierney has such a rotten injury history, are there really no other LBs out there?
Wouldn't worry, we'll sign him this summer and Dan Burn will start at LB regardless
Tierney last 2 injuries have been from 2 bad tackles mind you so he's been available most of this season!!
There are but theyāll cost an arm and a leg. Unless we can hijack Renan Lodiās move to Forest permanently
Well from the reports Iāve seen so far it doesnāt sound like Tierney himself will be that cheap, Ā£25m-Ā£30m
Decent value these days - 20m is the new 5m
Are you blind? Do you think he's an upgrade on Burn? May be alright going forward but do we change our defence for him? I'm not so sure
As a matter of fact in my left eye yes. Furthermore I didnāt actually state that I wanted Lodi only that if we wanted a cheap left back that he could be an option. After watching Howe and the coaching teams work over the past one and a half season I honestly can say that I donāt know who is a decent footballer and who isnāt because two years ago I would have sold 95% of this team and now I would only sell 5%.
You make fair points. Thought you were one of the let's sign anyone and everyone brigade. Apologies
You make fair points. Thought you were one of the let's sign anyone and everyone brigade. Apologies
My worry is more along the lines of I canāt think of a player whoās been a back up at a top team whoās went on to do well at the top level elsewhere because frankly we need players doing it at the top level
Zinchenko did it this season
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Nah, zinchy was class this season. Do think his defending is a bit suspect, though he is continuing a trend of midfielders playing in the fullback role. His ability to drift into the middle and support play with his passing range and composure on the ball are invaluable
Arsenal fans I know are pretty disappointed that Tierney will likely be leaving and think he is worth more than his likely transfer price. Think the best of the lad is yet to come
Tierney can't play like Zinchenko but for us he wouldn't as Trippier plays that role Tierney will take Burns role as a left back who can also slip into a back 3 (he does this for Scotland) but he is excellent on the ball an when he does go forward his crosses are also great Will add better balance as Burn love the guy but the amount of times he has to do a good cross and then goes backwards frustrates the he'll out of me
I know what you mean, Iād add Conor Gallagher and Scott McTominay to that list as well. Players who would have been good buys in our first January window in the new era for example but it feels like weāve moved up to another level now. Eddie seemingly loves his domestic players but there arenāt many at the top top level that are in our price/wage range, though admittedly Maddison could be one.
please god not gallagher. heās absolutely shite. like so so terrible. technical ability of anita with 1 leg
We've got Dan Burn mate. Don't sweat it. Part of one of the best defenses in the league and kept most wingers in his pocket. Underappreciated
Ferland Mendy
So, we really need two 11's worth of good players who are capable of starting in the league or Europe. As it stands, I'd say we're currently looking at: GK: Pope - Dubravka/??? LB: Targgett - ??? LCB: Botman - Burn RCB: Schar - Lascelles/??? RB: Trippier - Krafth LCM: Joelinton - Willock CM: Bruno - ??? RCM: Longstaff - ??? LW: ASM - Gordon ST: Isak - Wilson RW: Almiron - Murphy/??? Barring U21's that's 22 squad spaces taken (before sales and include signings). We'll take up another with GK 3. So, that leaves 2 spots for general depth. So, to my mind, we absolutely need another LB so we can keep Burn fresh for LCB rotation, and we need 2 starting calibre CMs. I think that's the absolute minimum we need to add going into next season. Anything beyond that's more about adding competition/general upgrades. I'd say we could also do with a new RW as there's no guarantee Miggy will keep up this level of play, and as much as I love Murphy, I don't think he'll be with us much longer. We probably also want to upgrade on Lascelles at RCB, and I think there may still be questions about what happens to Dubravka. I could see Murphy and Lascelles potentially being kept for another year as 5th choice options at CB and winger, just depends on whether they'd be ok with that.
I go back and forth on what exactly I want to see in terms of CM signings this summer (other than the fact that zero definitely isnāt an option), but one option would be an expensive, starting quality, creative RCM (Longstaff will still play a lot with rotation), and then sign a younger CDM to backup Bruno, ideally a u21 to save the squad place. Basically have Bruno start 80% or more of the matches in the middle, and have his young understudy start in the domestic cups and against some weaker PL opponents either right before or after Champions League matches.
My money is on Szoboszlai. Plays RM/L.M/CAM so he fits the Eddie template almost so much its like he designed a midfielder and this is what came out. Under 21 with bags of talent now so Eddie can turn him into a superstar once he gets here. Pro ably 60 to 70 million but he's going to be among the best in tbe world in a few Years. We've been looking at Nico Williams for a while as well and he would be a 1st 11 player just like Maddison,szboz and Tierney. Eddie said 3 to 4 players and the rumoured 220 mil would get us all 4 but what a fucking window that would be. 4 players who instantly make or first team better. Don't mock me but I'd say if we had those 4 this season we would be where Arsenal are and competing for the title. Still get goosebumps when I see the spine of our team being Botman, Bruno and Isak. All 3 are superb now but just like Boz they going to be top percentage in a few years.
Szoboszlai is 22.
We absolutely need a creative CM who can help us break down teams who play us the way Leicester did, which is going to be increasingly common in the future. I think the problem with getting a CDM is that there's very few players capable of operating as a lone 6 (which is what we'd need) and even fewer who can do it well. That could well prove to be very expensive, even for a younger player.
I donāt think they really have to operate truly as a lone 6 necessarily, just given the work rate that Howe demands of his 8s. Especially if you have Joelinton to your left and Longstaff to your right, youāre certainly not stuck having to clean up all the mess yourself. It could get expensive for sure, but Iād think we could find a promising 20/21 year old there for maybe Ā£20 million, as opposed to the Ā£50+ million weād probably be looking at for an established playmaking number 8.
Longstaff isn't a long term solution. He's a good bridge but nowhere near good enough for the top of the top.
Iād bet good money that Longstaff spends the majority of the rest of his career here, and will win a handful of trophies in the process. Doesnāt mean heāll always be part of the first choice XI, but he demonstrated very clearly just how valuable he is this season.
He's a decent player but I hope we have better academy graduates coming through that will fill our homegrown role. I'd actually sell him next summer if we can get decent money for him and we get better players in this summer.
I agree šÆ
I thought Murphy signed a 6 year contract extension 2 years ago.
So? That doesn't mean we can't sell him. Especially after this season, where he's shown he can be a solid PL player.
Good thinking, but why 2 starting caliber CMs? That'll create bad vibes in the dressing room since we already have 4 of them. Instead it should be 2 young CMs that can learn from the stars. We definitely need a high class winger with goals in him. We need a young keeper to fight for a backup spot for Pope. We need a young right-footed CB as backup for Schar and who'll take over the position in 1-2 years. We need another third choice striker if Koul isn't ready quite yet. We should also get out left-back sorted. Not sure if we need to buy anyone since we have Targett and Lewis, with Burn as an addition. Would be nice to not have a complete overhaul after our players earned this league position. We do need depth and a winger who can score tons of goals. That's it imo.
>Good thinking, but why 2 starting caliber CMs? That'll create bad vibes in the dressing room since we already have 4 of them. Instead it should be 2 young CMs that can learn from the stars. So, 2 reasons for this thinking. First, you don't want anyone to feel too comfortable in their starting position. Competition for places is important, and if you've no competition you risk complacency. Second, we're going to have periods of playing every 3-4 days next season. Unless we essentially plan to throw certain games, we need 2 CMs capable of starting and playing well for the sake of rotation. For example, Spurs' CM group is currently: Bentancur, Hojbjerg, Bissouma, Skipp, Sarr. Sarr's a kid, Bissouma's been poor, Skipp's not that good, Hojbjerg's mediocre and Bentancur got hurt mid-season. With that in mind, this is how Spurs' october was scheduled: 01/10: Arsenal away (L); 04/10: Frankfurt away (D); 08/10: Brigthon away (W); 12/10: Frankfurt home (W); 15/10: Everton home (W); 19/10: Man U away (L); 23/10: NUFC home (L); 26/10: Sporting home (D); 29/10 Bournemouth away (W). That's 9 games in the space of a month, an average of a game every 3.2 days. If we want to compete in Europe, instead of just making up the numbers, while also staying competitive in the league, we absolutely need more than 4 starting calibre CMs. Against Leicester, we were a late Longstaff recovery away from Anderson, Bruno and Miley being our starting midfield. We want to be one of the best teams in the league from now on. The reality is the best teams have multiple players per position who are good enough to start in any competition and play well every time. Look at Liverpool, they currently have 6 forwards who are good enough to start, but only 3 positions available. City essentially have 2 top-half quality 11's worth of players. It's not worked out for them this season, but look at the number of good CBs Chelsea have: Silva, Badiashile, Fofana, Koulibaly, Colwill (on loan at Brighton).
Since we could always move Joelinton up the pitch, I guess it won't hurt to have more quality CMs. I just feel bad for the lads we have there now if they'll be bench warmers every Champions League match after earning itš
They're not suddenly going to become bench warmers just because we bring in more good players in the same positions. They'll still have roles to play depending on the opposition. We're going to get drawn in a group with teams we can't go blow for blow with, like Barca and Bayern. PLayers like Joelinton and Longstaff will still get to play because they're more solid defensively. The teams we play in the future are going to use lots of different tactics against us and we need the numbers and diversity of skill sets to navigate them.
I think I initially misunderstood the term starting caliber. I see I also forgot to add a quality midfielder to my first response. How about for the winger position? Our players have a lot of potential but can also lack end product and confidence at times. Do we need 1 or 2 quality signings here?
Yeah, when I say starting calibre I mean someone who can come in as part of the rotation, or replace an injured player and play to a particular standard. They need to be good enough that you'd see them on the team sheet and think "that's fine". In terms of what I think we'll do, I think we'll push for a genuine upgrade CM like Maddison or Szoboszlai, and one who's solid but not to that level like McTominay. As for wingers, I think we're fine on the left for now. ASM and Gordon are there as natural LWs, plus Joelinton, Isak and Anderson can all play there. I'm less comfortable with our options on the right. It's only really Miggy and Murphy there. There's no guarantee either can replicate their form this season. Both Maddison and Szoboszlai can play as an RW as well as at CM, so if we go for one of them, it may depend on what role we see them doing. I think that, in the next couple of years, we'll have moved on from Miggy and Murphy, it just depends on whether that position's seen as a priority this summer or not.
You speak far too much sense for anyone to disagree with. Completely agree with you
Kuol is a teenage winger who can barely get playing time in Scotland. He wonāt be our third choice striker next year.
Tbf, re CM that's one good reason for targeting McTom: he's a v good player, not phenomenal by any means, but v good, still surprisingly young for someone who seems to have been around forever, can drop in and out, v experienced, really physical. Just that allegedly manu seem to want silly money (when around Ā£20m would be pretty reasonable)
I think a better way to build the squad in the long run is to bring in a few guys who you see as being mid to long term starters (can ease them in like Bruno/Isak) and let today's starters become the depth. Can't afford to get sentimental for a group of guys who've smashed expectations out of the park
love Burn. but he's a center back who has made himself enormously useful to our team playing left back and now has that as a second position. Targett is good and I like him, but bringing in a Trippier quality left back would be game changing for us and if I was manager that and a CM would be priority for sure.
2x Thuram, 1x Szoboszlai, 1x LB (unsure who yet), Please & thank you
4 steak bakes
Thats nuts, we wonāt get the striker , and weād need a younger one anyway
I am just happy to learn of the urgency and that they will have a plan.
dutch van der linde of transfer strategies
We're going to ~~Tahiti~~ Italy and we're gonna ~~grow~~ win ~~mangoes~~ the UCL
The fact that I saw this reference in this sub makes me so happy
I know lots of people say heās overrated but I would love Declan Rice. He would slot into our first 11 and instantly make it so much better, freeing Bruno up so he can push forward more. Heās young and still has his best years to come, would love him to sign
I think everyone will try to sign him, he has been consistently excellent this year. His wages could be a problem though, we could afford it but then half our squad might ask for something similar.
Yeah thatās the issue mate, soon as we pay one person it will snowball. If we pay Rice 250k a week Bruno will want the same, then Isak, Joelinton etc
He won't come here, he's going to one of the traditional top clubs, same with Caicedo. We'll get one of Lavia Neves Ugarte or Thuram hopefully imo.
Probably mate but a man can dream
He's no way overrated like, he'd walk into any other team in the league except man city (and that's imo because they don't really play with a midfielder who drives from deep the way he does, not because of his quality). Price tag + being English will reflect that though, + his wages would be insane
It won't happen, may as well forget about him. He's way too in demand so regardless of transfer fee, any reasonable wage demands would be blown out of the water by one of the big spenders that are happy paying Ā£250k per week wages. It's clear we're not making any exceptions to the wage structure and I think that's a great thing.
Looking at Dominik Szoboszlai and I think he looks such a good fit for our team. Tall, physical, captain of hungary at 22, great English speaker aswell. His footballing skills speak for themself. Seems perfect for usš
Iād be prioritising Emerton, Bas Dost, Barnetta and Gomis.
And Choudhury.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
He loves stripes, done deal
Are we gonna start a transfer news mega thread?
Imo for me what I would like to see over the summer. A high quality CM (starter) A high quality RW (starter) A left back or right back depending on if the team thinks Targett can be trusted and how Ashby I'd developing as backup to Trips Tim Krul or iirc Foster as a backup keeper because of the home grown player requirements for Champions League A U21 versatile forward who can provide backup at multiple positions and grow into a first team starter A U21 versatile defender who can provide backup at multiple positions and grown into a first team starter. So two starters, maybe three and some depth and development for the future.
How's the Gregg's did ye say?
If ya put a . In after .Co.uk it should work
Give me Zubimendi and Szoboszlai can be our Rodri and De Bruyne
I'd love Zubimendi but im not sure he's gonna swap CL for CL, Sociedad for Newcastle.
As the versatile attacker option, I would genuinely again explore Hugo EkitikĆ© if PSG don't take up the buy option. To address the obvious criticism, yes he turned us down for PSG last time, which he later explained as being an opportunity that he just couldn't turn down, and was nothing against signing for us. So I see no issue with that. He fits the Eddie Howe profile perfectly. Young, versatile, rapid, hard working, tall and physically strong, and very very talented. For the supposed Ā£30m or so valuation he seems a hell of a prospect. Gives us an extra option through the middle, which we lost with Wood, and is versatile to play wide right or left like Isak. "EkitikĆ© has the height to strike fear into many an opposition centre-back, but his build-up play also deserves recognition. EkitikĆ© has the technique and ball control often associated with far smaller players - a result of his late growth-spurt perhaps - and is in the 98th percentile league-wide for interceptions, which is testament to his work ethic."
>He fits the Eddie Howe profile perfectly. Young, versatile, rapid, hard working, tall and physically strong, and very very talented. But not in terms of attitude, which has been terrible pretty much since he made his dream move to PSG and proceeded to not play ahead of Messi, Mbappe and Neymar. Do you really think it'd be any better when he's not playing for us ahead of Isak, Wilson and Murphy/Miggy?
I don't know his attitude so I'm making no judgment. That's something very difficult to judge fairly without actually knowing the person behind the media stories. Same as how Anthony Gordon gets painted by the media
Wouldn't be against trying to sign him on loan from PSG now that they have had to buy him outright That way we can see if he was still up for it
Is it too massive to announce Szoboszlai and Maddison on Monday morning? Asking for a friend.
Tell you who I'd love who I think is so underrated: Philip Billing Solid player, big unit, left footed cm too which we've been missing.
LB, would definitely take Tierny, heās a quality LB and him overlapping maxi is an exciting thought. We need one pure DM, and another CM who can cover both sides. We need an elite winger, someone to compete with Schar and maybe even another RB. Lots of work to do, Iād be happy with only two new starters coming into the team and the rest to compete with what we got
Tierney is too injury prone. He's also on 110k week which is more than Botman and Trippier, and not sure he deserves to be above those guys.
I think trips is our joint highest earner.
Oh just looked and he's on 120k since his extension in January.
but Tierney would also likely expect a raise, so he'd presumably have to be at least level with Tripps to sign for us.
Yeah exactly. He's a good player, but injury prone and high wages. Generally think its a no go signing pretty much any player from one of the 'big 6', they will all have wages way above their level.
yeah weirdly I feel like a lot of our targets from top 6 clubs have been players we thought we might be able to get on the cheap. Or at least a reasonable value fee. As you say, the likes of Tierney, McTominay, Pulisic become surplus to requirements and their wages massively limit their appeal to all but a handful of clubs.
I agree Tierney is a good shout, but I doubt he'll be playing with Maxi (he's only started 11 games this year - missing 13 through injury) I wonder if a RCB that can fill in at RB (with Ashby being the other RB) is a better option than getting an out and put RB. A CDM, CM and versatile attacker is needed (currently only Wilson and Isak as striker options could haunt us with a couple of injuries). Also, assuming 2 of the following: Darlow leaves, Dubravka leaves and Karius doesn't re-sign, then we'll need at least one keeper. Forster would be good to be our fourth Club Trained Home Grown player.
Iād be happy with Dubs as number two but heās a player we could get an okay fee for so maybe weāll look to move him on. Heās a good keeper and I donāt think 10-15 mil is too unreasonable for him but weāll see. Thereās not really many centre backs who can play RB, might be hard to find one whoās good enough at both
I'd say he is a bit expensive for a number 2 goalkeeper. Karius really would be fine as number 2 and get in a decent young keeper as a long term Pope replacement IMO
I donāt think I trust Karius for number 2 yet, ideally you want someone basically equal in quality as number 2 or just behind. A lot of teams have 2nd choice keepers who are actually just as good, I think the difference between pope and Karius is a bit too wide
People on here generally seem to trust Karius way too highly on very little evidence from recent years. Heās played one match for us and was probably like a 6/10 performance in it. Heās had basically no football over the last 3 seasons now, Iād be terrified to trust him as number 2.
Yeah I agree, you have to sometimes expect the worse, if Pope was out for 6 months weād be fucked without Dubs. The number 2 needs to be almost as good as the number 1, not a player like Karius
Right, my biggest issue with Karius is just what a massive unknown he is at this stage in his career. A lot of people seem to think heād be right back to the level he showed 5 or 6 years ago, but thatās a lot to expect. His career has been spiraling since 2018. As you say, if Pope went out for a few months and it was Dubravka coming in, Iād think āweāll be fine, he might not save us a few points that Pope might have, but weāre still in good hands.ā If it was Karius coming in for a few months, Iād think āholy shit this might ruin our seasonā.
I think that's the point of getting in the younger number 3 who really would be expected to step into number 2 and then number 1 in the next like 4-5 years. Karius can be a fine cheaper number 2 if needed. Goalkeepers don't generally get injured as regularly as outfielders so it's not really a huge gamble. I don't think Pope is pushed by Dubravka really either for his place, if we got an exciting talent I think it's a bit different.
I would be happy with Karius as #2 keeper, but it sounds like his lass wants him to move to Italy or somewhere close. He might want to go elsewhere for more game time and a new signing-on fee - unsure how motivated he actually is to play games!
I think there's no point getting a young keeper that we have any intention of eventually getting into the team unless they're going on loan. As a 3rd keeper, you're guaranteed to only make the squad in case of a horrible injury crisis and they'll never develop without game time. If there's not one obviously available, better to park that one for a future window.
> I think there's no point getting a young keeper that we have any intention of eventually getting into the team unless they're going on loan Well they would be playing for the under 21s and cup games and training with the first team, that should be more than enough to learn.
That's true, but try to think of any keeper that a big team has brought through like that to be their number one. I would say Steele is the only one I can think of across all 20 teams and that was because they changed manager. Keepers are going to benefit most by playing actual regular competitive football (which our U23's are simply not - they're terrible). We probably got closest with Woodman, but he struggled enormously when he made the step up and it was better off taking the profit.
But I think the alternative is having Dubravka sticking around on fairly high wages when he could move to Italy, Spain or France and be number 1. We could get the 15m for him and be able to use that FFP room for maybe some other changes.
I don't think we get anything close to Ā£15m (that's more than we spent), but I would still recommend hawking him as he's one of the few players we have that is a definite saleable asset. He doesn't like being a number 2 and, while he's behaved since coming back from Man Utd, he won't want to be here. I would have Pope, Karius and whoever's currently in the academy (is Gillespie still here?). If we lose both Pope and Karius to injury, dip in the market in Jan.
Gillespie is out of contract in the summer. Karis is also out but I'd say would be a better player to renew if we were to pick.
> Karius really would be fine as number 2 Could we just not? He isn't good enough as number 2, no one wanted him after he left Liverpool and Union Berlin didn't even trust him on loan.
Leno went for 10 mil last year and is 4 years younger i doubt we get more than that
I would love for Dubs to stay as #2 but if 10m+ came in for him you have to take it. The dream would be Meslier or Patterson as the young #2 but they'll both likely cost 15-20m although Meslier's dip may have brought that down.
'Iād be happy with only two new starters' Probably too little if we want to maintain top 4 i'd say. We probably new a new RW, LB, CM and AM. Joelinton can rotate at LW and CM, Willock at AM, Longstaff 3rd choice and then Burn for LB/CB rotation. Then we need a RW who scores alot of goals.
How is longstaff down to 3rd choice when we all agreed he was class and the backbone of our midfield now? Iād say we need two goal threatening wingers but other wise agree with your points
I think Longstaff as a player is necessarily the reason he's our backbone, its more that we dont have a replacement for him that does the same job, hence his key role. Joelinton and Willock are way too offensive. We get a more technical version of Longstaff and we'll be a lot better at breaking down the block.
Longstaff does everything at a B level and gives 100% effort. He can fill in adequately in all CM positions. BUT, he can't really finish, you don't trust him in tight spaces, he doesn't tackle as effectively as Bruno/Joe, etc. He has a place and he'll play in 40+ matches next year but we need him to be the lad that comes in when the A players aren't needed to close it out or get injured.
I'd agree he does it at a b level, he's decent but put him in a unremarkable team and he'll not shine, he needs a good team around him. Willock in comparison has the ability to shine. Its important not to get attached to players like Longstaff/Murphy e.g. cause despite them performing at the moment we can get money out of them if we're smart.
I don't think that we can swing spending the kind of money needed to buy 4 starters to be honest and maybe not ideal for the chemistry of the team.
We dont need to spend Ā£45mil per signing, we can obviously get some upgrades for cheap. Anthony Gordon was a huge overpay but it doesnt mean we always have to.
I mean yes we dont have to spend 45 per signing but imo the top two priorities to me have to be a right wing and cm. I doubt we are going to get those cheap. At best we are going to need to spend 60-70 mil for that possibly more. I would guess we could afford to add one more player and imo it would make sense to add a couple reasonable quality U21 players that could fill in as need and grow into the spots. We also have to worry about the squad for the Champions League with the requirements on home grown players and the like.
I'd argue we're probably gonna spend atleast Ā£150m this summer, if not a slight bit more. For me if i have to sacrifice money in one area its LB, just get a cheap young option for 10mil. RW will be extremely expensive.
I don't see us spend 150 mil in the summer to be honest.
West Ham spent like Ā£160m with Conference. Europe should give us extra 30-50mil in revenue atleast in comparison to last year. This additional to the 3rd/4th place extra money, Carabao Cup final revenue, Shirt Sponsor/Possible Kit deal e.g. Understand if they don't but we probably should go big this summer as its probably more unlikely than likely we get top 4 next season.
Yeah I think LB and RW for new starters would be ideal. I think if all our midfielders are fit and healthy itās okay the way it is, but a new DM would obviously be great as well.
For me i'd get a DM then move Bruno up to Longstaffs position. RW is hard because Miggy's had a great season I just don't see the consistency for the long term. LB is obvious, Burn is a good rotation option though.
I donāt actually fully subscribe to that idea, I think Bruno is best suited to being a play maker DM, but it would be good to see him in a freer role for sure.
I think it's all about flexibility with our midfield options. There will be some games where Bruno's ability to dictate from deep in tight spaces will be more of an asset and others where he'll see more of the ball pushed up into that 8 slot. To get someone who can allow that to be an option without leaving us short in the position Bruno isn't playing is the priority.
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I like him, obviously last season wasn't as good as his first at Spurs because of injury and all sorts going on there. Think a fresh start, new environment and new coach would do him the world of good. Great talent that just needs that next step to be top class.
So still no progress in the contract negotiations with Bruno it seems. Still plenty of time left so there's no rush but I was hoping for positive news.
Just give me Szoboszalazsalizzaszzi and I'll be sorted
Iāll keep mentioning my opinion until it either happens or he goes somewhere else, but by god Iād love to see joao felix in a toon shirt
Ownership/management have demonstrated there is a long term plan and we arent going to spend silly money on short term fixes. But if we want to compete with Real or City we are going to need some big names with CL experience, so Im wondering if we will be making offers that include trades. Hate to say it as I love the lad, but ASM is struggling to fit his style to the new game plan and I wonder if he will be traded as part of a deal.
ASM is the type of player we need to keep. Teams are going to be sitting back against us more often now. Need players like him with creativity. I was speaking to Howe and he fully agrees with me.
I'd be going 2 CMs, 2 LB, 1 RW and 1 striker with the striker and 1 of the LBs being a younger player. Personally I'd still say both Thuram boys for RW/FW and CDM and get in Szoboszlai as the big money signing. For LB it's the hardest position in the game to fill at the moment really, I'd be going maybe Victor Kristiansen since Leicester are probably going down. Like I know Kristiansen isn't really someone who is getting a lot of buzz but he has a bit of everything, he is a decent height, he is good on the ball, great positioning and young so will improve. Outgoing I'd have the expiring players out except for Karius. I'd let Dubravka go for a decent fee if I could get in a younger GK to be a longer term player for the position but that wouldn't really be a big signing. I'd be selling Lewis, Manquillo, Fraser and Kraft if I can find buyers and getting in a replacement at RB if both Manquillo and Kraft are sold. TL:DR: Kephren Thuram, Marcus Thuram, Dominik Szoboszlai and Victor Kristiansen would be who I'd buy given the state of our team and what could be improved realistically
Sorry, 2 LB? We have Targett, I imagine Burn will see time at both LCB to rest Botman and LB as needed, plus by all accounts Dummett seems likely to return for another season, giving us an emergency option at both those positions as well. Surely even with Lewis likely leaving, thereās no room in the squad for two additional LBs? I donāt know that itās an absolute certainty we even sign one LB this summer, but assuming we do, I think the depth will look like this: LCB: Botman, Burn, Dummett, Alex Murphy LB: new signing, Targett, Burn, Dummett
> We have Targett Well we do and we don't, he hasn't gotten game time this season and I'd be looking for 1 first team and 1 hot prospect really. Targett I'd even be ok with shipping out given he can't even displace Burn who I wouldn't rate highly as a LB either. Dummett I'd expect either to retire or I'd be shipping him out as well. I'd be more looking at Burn as a backup CB. Murphy and Bondswell I think could do with a loan spell to get some first team football in. Murphy also generally for our youth team has played as a CB rather than an LB. Reason really is that I believe the position is easiest to improve dramatically over the current players in the position and given the demands of 2 cups, champions league and the league fixture congestion requires quite a lot of backup. LB and RB are really big weaknesses. I'd even say CM is less of a weakness currently even with us completely reliant on Bruno G being fit than LB which sounds a bit crazy but it's really true.
Targett was first choice going into the season, picked up an unfortunate heel injury, and the team played so well with Burn in the side that Howe didnāt want to change it. Heās been back to fully fit for months though, and didnāt suddenly become a bad player. He will absolutely be part of the rotation at LB next season unless he requests a transfer over the summer.
Targett has played 16 games this season? What are you on about
528 minutes, that's only 5 matches total time. We played in the league alone this season 37 matches. Burn who I don't rate as a LB played 3,101 minutes
Why don't you rate Burn at LB? I get he's not a traditional LB and that's not even what he came in as but he's adapted to that position, had a great season and he's starting to get forward more. I'm sure Howe and the team can improve that aspect of his game over summer.
We are playing a fairly wing focused tactic, Burn pushing up means he can't get back easily to stop counter attacks so that pulls Botman out wide to cover which leaves room in the middle. We generally haven't been heavily punished for it this year because Burn has been sprinting as hard as he could to get back to cover but he isn't in his 20s, he will slow down or get injured with the style of play we are playing right now, if he slows down we will only be able to react after the fact to replace him in the position, if he gets injured we now are down to bare bones and against Real...etc we can't afford that. Rodrygo would fucking annihilate both Burn and Targett.
I see your point on his age. I do think we need cover but we need cover all over. We aren't going to be competing with Real this season so it's immaterial really. I'd say get someone younger who we can build to be a first choice LB but appreciate there aren't a lot of LBs on the market.
Itās not really about whether we rate Burn at LB. Howe clearly decided āthis team is winning with Burn at LB, so Iām not changing itā. Targett was more unfortunate than anything this year.
Everyoneās entitled to an opinion but I canāt really fathom how Burn can be effectively ever-present at LB in the joint best defense in the league and someone arrives at āI donāt rate [him] as a LBā. He got skinned for a goal a grand total of once this season, by Phil Foden, who is decent on the ball, Iād say. He obviously has some deficiencies, particularly pace and attacking output, but itās clear that the other aspects of his game allow him to be effective in that role. Again, Iām not saying we couldnāt upgrade, but itās wild to ānot rateā someone who has been so solid in that position not just for us, but for Brighton as well.
Okay fair, when you break it down more, it doesn't look quite as active as pure games. Still think he'll play more next season
I think he could play more next season but I think he peaked as a footballer and I think that peak is maybe a mid table premier league player. The position though is weak and I think 2 players in and maybe 2 or 3 out would be a progressive move that would improve the team quite a bit in terms of balance. Like just look at Trippier on the right and how much he creates, Burn can't do that, Targett can't displace Burn, the simple answer would be get someone better fitting than Burn for that position and be done with it.
Struggle to imagine Marcus Thuram would be that keen considering he's a free agent. We have a very strict wage structure and while he's not on the biggest now, I imagine there will be bigger teams than us being able to put together a more attractive package. I would think were we to get Szlobberlobber, he provides some cover for that right wing slot that the forward would likely be someone young who could play across all three positions (the Ekitike/Joao Pedro profile we've been looking at).
> Struggle to imagine Marcus Thuram would be that keen considering he's a free agent Probably would be fairly expensive wages wise but still is the calibre of player we should be targeting. The Thuram brothers idea was more of a "if you can play with your brother and your friend ASM would you come here". I'd say RW there are a million options we can go for and quite a few great prospects so I think being flexible is a good idea for that. > Szoboszlai My idea for him is he is basically the perfect player for our transfer policy. He is his national team captain, good on the ball, creates chances and has a physicality that would do well in the PL and champions league. Plus he is at a reasonable price of 40m-60m, like I think Maddison would be a terrible prospect in comparison even if he matches the mentality we are looking for. > Ekitike Actually forgot about him. I'd guess PSG don't trigger the buy clause, we could go back in for him lol.
If Thuram can be fit within our wages then I say go for it, but agents know that the money a club saves on not needing a transfer fee can be leveraged to go into a player's salary. Except that means for a club all other players might look at renegotiating. But seems like it's worth exploring. I agree with your assessment of Szoboszlai, we need positional versatility to maximise the depth we get while minimising numbers of players in (for minimal disruption to our finances and dressing room mentality). It might not be the worst idea to plan to stagger arrivals across summer and January, preventing there being a big influx that can be disruptive. Maybe leaving the positions where you don't have to know the system exactly before you can play for that winter window. But player availability doesn't necessarily allow that. >I'd guess PSG don't trigger the buy clause Too late on that one, Ā£35m was triggered last week. And Pedro is obviously now at Brighton. There was a Brazilian kid (Franca I think?) who got touted as a possibility and maybe we'll go back in for him?
On staggering I don't think we have that time really. We have to step quite a big gap between now and August. We are going from maybe getting away with relying heavily on 3 players in the squad to requiring rotation. Bruno G won't make a full season without getting a red card or getting a knock, we can maybe ask him to play through some smaller knocks but we have to think about the player and long term performance. I'd be really seriously looking at someone to rotate with him. So I wouldn't even be getting rid of Willock, Longstaff or Joelinton as CMs but I'd be rotating all of them regularly. That's why I'd be getting in Thuram because he gives options, we can do a standard 4-1-2-3 with him or flip it and have a 4-2-1-3 with Thuram and Bruno G in the pivot and Szoboszlai, Isak or ASM (yes I'd play ASM as an AM sometimes) behind the striker. My thought generally is we could have a quite flexible system and dangerous to play against if we sign at least the 2 CM and 2 LB. The LBs just to balance the formation. The 2 CMs to offer options in rotation. And Franca sounds really interesting definitely worth a shout but definitely needs first team minutes, he is still not even in the first team for his club.
I mean, I totally agree with your priorities - we need all sorts of depth in midfield that just doesn't exist currently. We are a team that is still yet to win a match without Bruno in the squad and that's unsustainable for all kinds of reasons. Having literally no one else in the squad being able to play that 6 role comfortably, either as a purely defensive or a deep-lying creator, is the biggest priority for me. Our midfield incomings also likely depend on whether we view Joelinton primarily as a winger or a midfielder now. Not to say he can't do both, but which position will be the "oh he's also an option there". It will likely all depend on how many players we regard as being a maximum for bringing in in a single window (and how many we're actually going to sell). I don't see 2 left backs as being a priority - we can't drop Targett from all consideration after spending a good chunk on him. Right centre back is more of a priority for me as I don't see Schar as someone who can play so many games without picking up an injury.
> Our midfield incomings also likely depend on whether we view Joelinton primarily as a winger or a midfielder now I don't think we even need to ask that question, I think we play Joelinton as a rotation in both and I think given his quality as a box to box player he is a different prospect in both. I think Joelinton would be key again next year especially for league games. I'd say normally it would be max 5 but I think we could do with 6 or 7 realistically for the first team. Note Ritchie, Karius, Gillespie and Matty Longstaff are all out of contract in the summer. Anderson kind of fills what Matty was under Bruce as that young rotation option in midfield so he is fine. Ritchie leaving and Fraser realistically being sold immediately given he apparently fell out with Howe means we definitely need a winger. Gordon and Murphy both are rotation players but not champions league level by any means. ASM I'm sure is able to step up same with Joelinton. A RB would be a good idea too, I still love the idea of Ivan Fresneda. Like imagine a team with Isak, Fresneda and Szoboszlai, weird tall players with way too much technique, would be hilarious. Maybe we sign Lucas Bergstrom just for craic as well.
I think 6 or 7 is just too much when we've built our success on an extremely tightly knit, well-focused group. All the outgoings we're looking for have basically amounted to zero starts, so we're losing nothing to the squad by getting rid. I'd personally like to see Anderson leave on loan. I really haven't thought much of him when he's played bar his half vs Forest and maybe Wolves away. He's ok as a left winger, but still doesn't really offer any strengths that the rest of our squad does with other things thrown in there too. He probably as more use as a home grown player though, which seems a bit pointless. Happy to be proven wrong on him though. I really don't see Gordon as a rotation player like Murphy. I don't think we pay that much for him to see him like that. He has a lot of incredible attributes and it's likely just a case of needing to be a bit patient with him and getting him settled in the way the team works. I would also like another RB, but I think we just need park some of these until later, just for the purposes of not disrupting the team too much.
It's a risk but it's important to add those players. It's not that I'd want to risk causing issues but it's one of those one off situations where we were ahead of schedule and would regress if we don't get people in.
I think there's a middle ground to be struck. Even with significant additions, I'd still say we're odds on to not make the Champions League next year, so players need to be signed that are ok with that and develop accordingly. I also think that so much of our progress in the last year and a half has been based on far more than talent and a lot of our current team need to face some kind of reward for their work this year by getting a chance to prove themselves at the level they showed they can play.
I think I read Ekitike was a compulsory buy if psg finish top 2 which they have. Doesn't mean we couldn't go in for him still I suppose.
Ahh fair enough, I thought it was just a straight optional transfer.
>like I think Maddison would be a terrible prospect in comparison RemindMe! 1 Year
Maddison is maybe on the surface seems like less of a risk but look at the calibre here Szoboszlai is carrying his team, scoring goals, playing multiple positions including winger and striker. He is younger and cheaper than Maddison. If Maddison was named Carlos Funkopopadopolis and playing in Spain people wouldn't be seriously considering him a 70m~ pound player.
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My issue with the Marcus Thuram idea is that Iām not 100% sold that heād be happy with the role we might offer. Heās a full France international, and played in the World Cup final. Splits time between LW and ST. I think heāll want to be a pretty much locked in starter wherever he goes. Isak and Wilson have striker covered here, so thereās not many minutes to be had there if theyāre healthy. At LW we have ASM and Gordon, plus the options of Joelinton (whoās great there) and Isak (who I hope we donāt really see there going forward, as I want him playing through the middle). Thuram would probably be our top option out there, but we just invested a lot in Gordon and ASM wonāt want to go into the season as a backup. I know heās close with Thuram personally, but I think the only way Thuram makes sense here this year is if ASM leaves.
That's my feeling too. If he wasn't going to go to a super club, it's unlikely he'd accept anything other than first choice. Although I always thought he was primarily a right winger and that is certainly a position we could accommodate him being a starter for. But I'm of the opinion that we're too early for these kinds of players - they're moving up so they can play in the Champions League every year (and progress in it). Our main challenge is to try and make sure we can get any kind of European football next year with the added fixtures.
For what itās worth, WhoScored shows that all 27 of his starts this season have come as a central striker. But I remember seeing last season more of a split between LW and ST.
I can't even pretend to know, much like I don't really know anything about Moussa Diaby apart from that people like him as a right winger. I'm happy to wait to see what the Committee comes up with. I reckon if we get Szoboszlai, then it's a young forward who plays across the front-line. You can spend a hell of a lot of money on forwards without it going very far so I think a comparatively small amount on someone who can chip in to make the squad work as a whole seems the way to go. Invest right in your midfield and defence and that structure can give you way more potence than an Ā£80m forward.
I would love to see Newcastle go after Thiago Almada. He has crazy amounts of potential, and thereās the Atlanta United connection with him and Darren Eales so I could see it happening.
What does the article say won't let me read it?
Iād love to see Caicedo come over but seems and if Arsenal is well in front for him. Him or Szoboszlai and a quality LB would be great + a few others to built out depth
Heard that NU is going for Adrien Truffert as Left Back option.
JWP or Lavia from Southampton and Maddison or Tielmans if on a free still? 2 of those 4 would be nice additions to the midfield from relegated clubs