Deadline Day: Bring Out The Transfer Gimp!

Paully D

BlueBaron wrote: »

Lads back to business with the transfers
Wigan have signed Arouna Kone from Levante for a reported 2.7 mill
Fantastic bit of business from us and scored 17 goals last season and lots of experience internationally.....oh bring on the season, the anticipation is building!!!:D:D:D

Interesting signing, but slightly strange. Didn't he just sign permanently for Levante this summer?

Good record everywhere he's been apart from Sevilla where, apart from his first season, was mostly used off the bench behind Kanoute and Fabiano. Funnily enough last year at Levante he had a clause in his contract that stated if he scored 18 goals he'd have to go back to Sevilla straight away so he became ''injured'' for the last few weeks of the season :pac:

Hopefully Wigan do well this year.

Paully D

Gillington wrote: »

Is Fletcher MONs main transfer target or have they been knocked back by other strikers? Baffled everyday I read about this. I woulda keppt Bendtner rather than Fletcher if I could!

cson wrote: »

Yeah 8 goals and 5 assists was an alright return for Bendtner last season. Probably thinks he's better than Sunderland though the gimp.

Yep, Fletcher's been our top target since day one which is the main reason Wolves know they can squeeze every penny out of us.

Just on Bendtner, while I agree 8 goals and 5 assists was pretty decent considering our season didn't really start until O'Neill took over in December, he just doesn't get in the box enough. His control, creating space and all round play was top quality, but when playing as the lone front man there were so many times when crosses would come in and Bendtner would still be making his way (from having picked up and laid off the ball out wide) into the box and the chance would be long gone before he arrived.

If playing a 4-4-2 by all means he'd be an excellent signing for us but with O'Neill's 4-5-1/4-3-3 system a player such as Fletcher who spends more of his time in the box is what we need.

As has been mentioned he probably does think he'd be better than us and he'd be right in thinking that too. He'd do very well in much better sides if played with a partner. Also, as someone who leads a bit of a mad lifestyle I couldn't ever see him settling in the north-east after living in London for most of his career. I enjoyed Bendtner for the year he was here though and wish him all the best in the future.

LuckyLloyd

amiable wrote: »

What do people genuinely feel Steven Fletcher is worth?

If his name was Stefan Fletchkov he'd cost 6m

Gbear

-Ade- wrote: »

Tis a good deal by Wigan. His time with Sevilla was a blot on a otherwise career where he has scored goals wherever he has gone, but he had the very decent pairing of Kanoute and Fabiano ahead of him at Sevilla. Bit puzzled that Levante let him go for next to nothing though. Could be back to fighting relegation now.

I think Levante's total budget for last year was about €15m. They're seriously poor.

djPSB

£14m for Fletcher.

The world is gone fully mad.

opr

Song gone to Barcelona.

Opr

batistuta9

opr wrote: »

Song gone to Barcelona.

Opr

where'd you hear that?

LostBoy101

opr wrote: »

Song gone to Barcelona.

Opr

Source?

opr

I may have jumped the gun. Put 2+2 together from . .

Guillem Balague ‏@GuillemBalague
alex Song transfer to Barcelona could be close. watch @SkySports for the latest...

Someone in the Arsenal thread said Sky Sports just said he has gone to Barcelona?

Opr

greendom

LostBoy101 wrote: »

Source?

Guilem Balague says a deal could be close - nothing about a done deal though

Seaneh

Where do Barca plan on playing him?

Do they need a new kitman or something?

If he moves he's an idiot, he'll be competing with two other established players for one spot (Sergio and Masch) and be 3rd choice centre back probably.

LostBoy101

Song would be far better off at Arsenal where he'll get more games than sitting on the bench most of time at Barca. The reason Barca want Song is because he is a defensive mid and would provide decent cover for Busquets.

Trippie

I know lloyd talked about it before but it always amuses when players leave clubs, their fans are like thats a terrible idea, sure he would of played 40 games a season for us, he is only going to warm the bench for them, maybe make 20 appearances all year. etc etc

Yet he will still be at a club who will be close to odds on favourites to win the league, champions league, Spanish cup. living in Barcelona with better weather, higher salary in a much bigger club.

Ye now that I think about it clearly should stay in arsenal and battle for 3rd place in the premiership

LuckyLloyd

Seaneh wrote: »

Where do Barca plan on playing him?

Do they need a new kitman or something?

If he moves he's an idiot, he'll be competing with two other established players for one spot (Sergio and Masch) and be 3rd choice centre back probably.

MORE MONEY MORE MONEY MORE MONEY

Jeez, every time.

Big Pussy Bonpensiero

He'll (Song) get plenty of game time there, no doubt about it. And he's not competing with Masch, he's almost exclusively a CB these days (with FCB anyway), I don't think he played DM once last season. Keita is gone too, don't forget, and he got plenty of minutes last season.

Seaneh

Just think he's too good to be a rotation option.

cson

Seaneh wrote: »

Just think he's too good to be a rotation option.

This.

It's ****ing madness to sell him unless that fee is announced as > £25m from our perspective considering he's contracted until 2015.

greendom

cson wrote: »

This.

It's ****ing madness to sell him unless that fee is announced as > £25m from our perspective considering he's contracted until 2015.

Absolutely - 15 million makes no sense; just confirms our label as a selling club, this has to stop.

Trippie

greendom wrote: »

Absolutely - 15 million makes no sense; just confirms our label as a selling club, this has to stop.

Wenger out?

Lukker-

I'd take your hand off for Song at Chelsea for 15m. Quality player. Not too many DM's with his passing range.

greendom

Trippie wrote: »

Wenger out?

No

inforfun

Dont know how reliable but if this is true, United have themselves a better version of Hernandez.

Gutted for Universidad de Chile though, that is the 3rd striker they lose in 1,5 year. (Eduardo Vargas (Napoli), Junior Fernandez (Leverkusen))

Francie Barrett

Lukker- wrote: »

I'd take your hand off for Song at Chelsea for 15m. Quality player. Not too many DM's with his passing range.

I haven't seen him recently, but I seem to remember him having a problem with losing possession deep in opposition territory quite often.

Professional Griefer

inforfun wrote: »

Dont know how reliable but if this is true, United have themselves a better version of Hernandez.

Gutted for Universidad de Chile though, that is the 3rd striker they lose in 1,5 year. (Eduardo Vargas (Napoli), Junior Fernandez (Leverkusen))

Theres a picture of him coming out of a hospital in Manchester after a medical yesterday.

greendom

Francie Barrett wrote: »

I haven't seen him recently, but I seem to remember him having a problem with losing possession deep in opposition territory quite often.

yeah, he's rubbish - are you listening Barca, he's rubbish :rolleyes:

Chancer3001

songs stats from last year are a joke.

the amount of chances created zand assists he had were comparible with the top 5 attackers

DoctorGonzo08

http://justarsenal.com/barcelonas-tapping-up-of-arsenals-alex-song-continues/15237

Good article. I don't know why it is acceptable for Barca to do this. If any other team were to do it they would face a backlash. I hope Song tells them where to go and stays with Arsenal.

racso1975

inforfun wrote: »

Dont know how reliable but if this is true, United have themselves a better version of Hernandez.

Gutted for Universidad de Chile though, that is the 3rd striker they lose in 1,5 year. (Eduardo Vargas (Napoli), Junior Fernandez (Leverkusen))

I read yesterday that the plan is to loan him back to universidad for the year

inforfun

I hope they will.
Guy is only a regular for 1/2 a season. Probably will not get a working permit for the time being as he isnt a full Chilean international yet.

Wished they loaned him to Feyenoord for the season

premierstone

racso1975 wrote: »

I read yesterday that the plan is to loan him back to universidad for the year

Yeah it was part of the deal, loaned back for a season with immediate effect.

Roger Sterling

premierstone wrote: »

Yeah it was part of the deal, loaned back for a season with immediate effect.

For the best really. I always wonder why more clubs don't do this when they sign young players.

Roger Sterling

Seaneh wrote: »

Where do Barca plan on playing him?

Do they need a new kitman or something?

If he moves he's an idiot, he'll be competing with two other established players for one spot (Sergio and Masch) and be 3rd choice centre back probably.

Won't he take Keita's place in the squad now that he's gone? A quick glance at his stats from the last few years would suggest Song will get plenty games if thats the plan.

An Citeog

Roger Sterling wrote: »

Seaneh wrote: »

Where do Barca plan on playing him?

Do they need a new kitman or something?

If he moves he's an idiot, he'll be competing with two other established players for one spot (Sergio and Masch) and be 3rd choice centre back probably.

Won't he take Keita's place in the squad now that he's gone? A quick glance at his stats from the last few years would suggest Song will get plenty games if thats the plan.

He might make a decent amount of appearances if he does go but a lot of them will be from the bench and barring injuries, he won't start any of the big games. You'll find arguments for and against most moves but it's up to the player themselves to weigh them up and make a decision.

Roger Sterling

An Citeog wrote: »

He might make a decent amount of appearances if he does go but a lot of them will be from the bench and barring injuries, he won't start any of the big games. You'll find arguments for and against most moves but it's up to the player themselves to weigh them up and make a decision.

Keita was a pretty big part of Barca's plans the last few years in fairness and they actually have a pretty small pool of players. Played 45+ games most seasons. Any senior player will get plenty games for them as they invariably go far in all 3 competitions. He'd often be drafted in for the likes of European away games when Pep used to play a bit more conservatively. You'll see Xavi being used more and more sparingly as well as time goes on as his knees are in pretty rag order with all the games he's played in the last 5 years.

If Song goes there he'll be a big part of their plans. The lure of inevitable success and multiple title wins, not to mention a big pay increase will surely soften the blow of not being an absolute first choice.

cson

Crucially in this instance its not up the player. He has a 3 year contract and as I said, unless we get silly money off Barcelona then they should be told to **** off.

An Citeog

Roger Sterling wrote: »

An Citeog wrote: »

He might make a decent amount of appearances if he does go but a lot of them will be from the bench and barring injuries, he won't start any of the big games. You'll find arguments for and against most moves but it's up to the player themselves to weigh them up and make a decision.

Keita was a pretty big part of Barca's plans the last few years in fairness and they actually have a pretty small pool of players. Played 45+ games most seasons. Any senior player will get plenty games for them as they invariably go far in all 3 competitions. He'd often be drafted in for the likes of European away games when Pep used to play a bit more conservatively. You'll see Xavi being used more and more sparingly as well as time goes on as his knees are in pretty rag order with all the games he's played in the last 5 years.

If Song goes there he'll be a big part of their plans. The lure of inevitable success and multiple title wins, not to mention a big pay increase will surely soften the blow of not being an absolute first choice.

How many of the games against Madrid or in the Champions League knockout stages did he start though? With Arsenal, Song is a key player and will start all of their big games whereas he'd be 2nd or 3rd choice with Barca. Also, Fabregas and/or Thiago are Xavi's replacements. I think he'd be more likely to be converted back into a centre half than get the Keita role tbh.

Roger Sterling

An Citeog wrote: »

How many of the games against Madrid or in the Champions League knockout stages did he start though? With Arsenal, Song is a key player and will start all of their big games whereas he'd be 2nd or 3rd choice with Barca. Also, Fabregas and/or Thiago are Xavi's replacements. I think he'd be more likely to be converted back into a centre half than get the Keita role tbh.

Barca have a small squad of about 20, all of whom are used very regulalrly. Sure, he won't be "first choice" like he is at Arsenal but thats about all they can offer him compared to playing for a better team, winning piles of medals, better pay, getting to play alongside the iconic players of his generation, in a nicer coiy and an immense stadium. If it was me certainly, I wouldn't be too pushed about not playing every minute of every game tbh. I'd imagine few would. He certainly won't be a marginalised outsider.

At the moment Fabregas/Thiago are being deployed more regulalrly in the front three. I think Song will be deployed in the middle three and he won't affect Fabregas or vice versa. Sure he can cover for CB as well, but he did that at Arsenal to at times so I don't see the problem there. certainly the first choices in that position would remain 2 from Pique, Puyol and Masch.

Bottom line if and when Song goes there he'll be a big player and will play plenty games. The fact that he'd play more often for Arsenal won't be enough to keep him there IMO.

cson

Roger Sterling wrote: »

The fact that he'd play more often for Arsenal won't be enough to keep him there IMO.

The fact he's 3 years left on his contract with us will though.

Roger Sterling

cson wrote: »

The fact he's 3 years left on his contract with us will though.

I guess Barca wil just wait another year and use the two years remaining on the contract to squeeze ye like everyone else does!

carlop

I think at this point being a bit-part player at Barca is better than being a nailed on starter at Arsenal. I'm talking from a footballing-perspective, without even beginning to delve into the money and climate.

flyswatter

Van Persie fails medical at Utd due to back injury from carrying Arsenal all these years.

Roger Sterling

flyswatter wrote: »

Van Persie fails medical at Utd due to back injury from carrying Arsenal all these years.

My twitter feed has been utterly ruined by the repetition of this joke all day!

Blatter

Amazing how Tello has been linked to clubs throughout this window as if he's some wonder kid.

Anytime I've seen him I've been utterly underwhelmed, he could develop into a good player eventually but he'd probably be useless for any of the clubs linked on a years loan. He'd do nothing but frustrate, people don't call him the Spanish Walcott for nothing.

premierstone

flyswatter wrote: »

Van Persie fails medical at Utd due to back injury from carrying Arsenal all these years.

Carried us for 18 months hardly ''all these years'', 2/10 for effort must try harder

Nuri Sahin

Lukker- wrote: »

I'd take your hand off for Song at Chelsea for 15m. Quality player. Not too many DM's with his passing range.

Really bugs me this myth that Song is a defensive midfielder, and at that, one of the best in the world. He isn't a DM and has shown very little so far of even replicating the discipline needed to develop into a DM, something of which many of the best ones have been noted for. Song is a CM, a box to box midfielder if people would prefer to call him that.

Arsenal playing with 3 midfielders have no out an out DM, instead all 3 rotate roles during a game. Frimpong is the only one at the club who is in the truest sense, a defensive midfielder.

Hope people don't mistake me as not rating the player, I think he is very good, but as DM? Meh. Perhaps he'll develop into a fine one, but at present, I think that would be a waste of his strengths.

flyswatter

premierstone wrote: »

Carried us for 18 months hardly ''all these years'', 2/10 for effort must try harder

I personally prefer this one.

Now in stock at Arsenal club store, Van Persie tea tray. Guaranteed to carry 10 mugs.

Skylinehead

-Ade- wrote: »

Really bugs me this myth that Song is a defensive midfielder, and at that, one of the best in the world. He isn't a DM and has shown very little so far of even replicating the discipline needed to develop into a DM, something of which many of the best ones have been noted for. Song is a CM, a box to box midfielder if people would prefer to call him that.

Arsenal playing with 3 midfielders have no out an out DM, instead all 3 rotate roles during a game. Frimpong is the only one at the club who is in the truest sense, a defensive midfielder.

Hope people don't mistake me as not rating the player, I think he is very good, but as DM? Meh. Perhaps he'll develop into a fine one, but at present, I think that would be a waste of his strengths.

Coquelin is a DM, and looks great at it. Little raw though, I certainly wouldn't throw him in as the first choice.

Nuri Sahin

Skylinehead wrote: »

Coquelin is a DM, and looks great at it. Little raw though, I certainly wouldn't throw him in as the first choice.

Ah right, thought he was a defender for some reason. My point in the main still stands though

Blatter

Sky reporting that Modric is flying out to Madrid to complete a £22.5m deal to Real.

Lol, I'd be astonished if Levy sold for that price. That's a disgraceful offer.

prettyboy81

Nuri Sahin loan deal completed to LFC, will be announced tonight or the morning. Hence, Modric on his way to Madrid one in, one out....