Summer transfer thread 17/18 season (NEYMAR TALK IN OTHER THREAD)

Mitch Connor

patrickSTARR wrote: »

I'm surprised some English clubs haven't tried hijack Milans Bonucci bid. At 35 mil he's a bargain, one of the best defenders in the world and at least 4 good season left in him. Id love to take him to Chelsea (not that we need him but with Conte in charge), but I'm surprised City haven't snapped him up considering their very shaky at the back.

Wife doesn't want to leave Italy, and his kid has medical issues which might also mean they have no interest in leaving Italy.

beakerjoe

The old Alex Ferguson saying comes to mind,...... You may not need a player in certain position, but if a great player becomes available andhe improves on what you have got, then sign him up. United don't need a centre half but I'd love if they hijacked that deal. Prob best defender in the world.

patrickSTARR

Mitch Connor wrote: »

Wife doesn't want to leave Italy, and his kid has medical issues which might also mean they have no interest in leaving Italy.

Whats wrong with his kid? Yeah I wouldn't be rushing to England with their NHS either. (Not that Ireland is much better)

GLaDOS

patrickSTARR wrote: »

(Not that Ireland is much better)

I don't think Dundalk are in for him anyway

Though they didn't really replace Andy Boyle

ERG89

Harry Palmr wrote:

Ake, Solanke, Chalobah and likely Zouma this summer and no doubt Abraham, Loftus-Cheek next summer

It's not just a Chelsea issue but I don't understand why English teams even have academies as they seem to barely promote players from them to the club. Playing the u21's does damn all good either as the standard seems far too pedestrian

Harry Palmr

ERG89 wrote: »

It's not just a Chelsea issue but I don't understand why English teams even have academies as they seem to barely promote players from them to the club. Playing the u21's does damn all good either as the standard seems far too pedestrian

The academy system is effectively an incubator for the lower PL, Championship and League One - youth Liverpool players who have been let go/sold for pittance are at Watford, Palace, QPR, Norwich, Bolton, Derby, Barnsley, Wolverhampton, Yeovil, and er Accrington Stanley plus a few to foreign sides like Gulácsi (!), Suso and Texiera.

This really LFC thread chat but I really hope Harry Wilson goes on loan as he is just way too good for the U23s. It'll kill his chances of a proper career if he is at Academy level for another year.

NIMAN

The only thing that would help would be a foreigner rule again.

I would love to see this introduced in the game again. Would allow the talent to be spread out among more teams and make the game better.

The Red Lad

Bonnuci is top quality there's no denying, Conte mustn't be a happy man losing out on two of his prime targets in him and lukaku, with Costa all but left you'd wonder who they will bring in now. Spurs laughing all the way to the bank with that 50 million for Walker think if there centre half pairing can stay fit along with Ali and Kane they could really get over the line this year pending how they settle in Wembley.

GavRedKing

The Red Lad wrote: »

Bonnuci is top quality there's no denying, Conte mustn't be a happy man losing out on two of his prime targets in him and lukaku, with Costa all but left you'd wonder who they will bring in now. Spurs laughing all the way to the bank with that 50 million for Walker think if there centre half pairing can stay fit along with Ali and Kane they could really get over the line this year pending how they settle in Wembley.

He may have been a target but he was never leaving Italy and I'd say that was told to Chelsea last summer and this summer too, hence why Rudiger was signed up last week. Conte wanted Rudiger as his first choice last year until he got injured too, then it moved to Koulibaily, who Napoli wouldnt sell and we ended up with Luiz, all worked out in the end.

No idea about a CF but I wouldnt be surprised if we went back in for Llorente as a stop gap, which isnt exactly a great replacement for Costa.

cj maxx

NIMAN wrote: »

The only thing that would help would be a foreigner rule again.

I would love to see this introduced in the game again. Would allow the talent to be spread out among more teams and make the game better.

With Brexit that might be a possibility.
I never thought of that!

beakerjoe

GavRedKing wrote: »

He may have been a target but he was never leaving Italy and I'd say that was told to Chelsea last summer and this summer too, hence why Rudiger was signed up last week. Conte wanted Rudiger as his first choice last year until he got injured too, then it moved to Koulibaily, who Napoli wouldnt sell and we ended up with Luiz, all worked out in the end.

No idea about a CF but I wouldnt be surprised if we went back in for Llorente as a stop gap, which isnt exactly a great replacement for Costa.

Isnt Llorente out with a broken arm too?

Cantona's Collars

Lucas Leiva to Lazio confirmed as done deal.

Trigger

Done deals

https://twitter.com/acmilan/status/885851967528079364

https://twitter.com/mancity/status/885869309549051905

patrickSTARR

Both of those went in very quickly. I wonder who Spurs will go for.

Subcomandante Marcos

Biglia and Bonucci will both be presented to the press as Milan players tomorrow around lunchtime after finishing medicals in the morning.

Apparently they've given up on signing Aubameyang and are trying to beat Chelsea to Morata now.

That's some spending spree!

Gbear

I don't understand the Walker signing.

Full backs aren't important enough to spend 50m on.
Walker isn't worth spending 50m on.
There's full backs around who, even if Walker was the best fb in the world could provide 95% of what he does for half the price.

Madness.
Even if you disregard value for money because it's irrelvant to them, it's not like they're spending way over the odds for the best fb money can buy. They didn't get Alaba, who's so good managers sometimes feel it's a waste playing him in the least important position on the pitch.

pjohnson

Bonucci is Milans new captain.

Burial.

Mendy to City apparently all but done. Monaco wanting slightly more than supposed 40m ish price. Both sides posturing. Massive signing.

Harry Palmr

How many 50m defenders can one team have? :eek:

Agent Coulson

Close to £100m on two full backs!

Football has gone full fcuking (insert gif!)

Rayne Wooney

The most expensive defence of all time, how many goals will they let in next season?

Paully D

Burial. wrote: »

Mendy to City apparently all but done. Monaco wanting slightly more than supposed 40m ish price. Both sides posturing. Massive signing.

Sunderland thought they had him a few years ago. He visited the training ground, came in on the owners private jet a couple of times, and the club thought it was done until the call from Marseille came in at the last minute.

Funny how things go. If he joins Sunderland as a 19 year old he's thrown into a complete ****show under Di Canio and who knows what happens from there. He may never have got anywhere near the level he is at now.

A lucky escape for him! Although Marcos Alonso did join us that same season and he turned out alright!

Jayop

Rayne Wooney wrote: »

The most expensive defence of all time, how many goals will they let in next season?

Lots with pep coaching them.

Andersonisgod

Jayop wrote: »

Lots with pep coaching them.

Barca/Bayern amongst the best defensive sides of their respective generations all while playing open, attractive and skilful football. Try again.

Minderbinder

Andersonisgod wrote: »

Jayop wrote: »

Lots with pep coaching them.

Barca/Bayern amongst the best defensive sides of their respective generations all while playing open, attractive and skilful football. Try again.

They didn't play 'open' football.

Liamalone

Errrmmm, transfers. Dean Windass on the move, £5m figure touted

POKERKING

Gbear wrote: »

I don't understand the Walker signing.

Full backs aren't important enough to spend 50m on.
Walker isn't worth spending 50m on.
There's full backs around who, even if Walker was the best fb in the world could provide 95% of what he does for half the price.

Madness.
Even if you disregard value for money because it's irrelvant to them, it's not like they're spending way over the odds for the best fb money can buy. They didn't get Alaba, who's so good managers sometimes feel it's a waste playing him in the least important position on the pitch.

You cant honestly believe in modern day football at the top level that full back is such an unimportant position?

For pep guardiola its the most crucial position on his team.

Question: who has the most ever assists for Messi?

Giggsy11

POKERKING wrote: »

You cant honestly believe in modern day football at the top level that full back is such an unimportant position?

For pep guardiola its the most crucial position on his team.

Question: who has the most ever assists for Messi?

I agree, fullbacks are very important position in modern game. All good teams have excellent fullbacks, now they are like wingers who stretches the game.

But I hate this revisionism re Pep, Fullbacks isn't the most crucial position for him, it's the midfield.

Also counting assists for Messi means nothing, most of the time he scores the goal on his own even when fullback just squares the ball to Messi miles from the goal.

Andersonisgod

POKERKING wrote: »

You cant honestly believe in modern day football at the top level that full back is such an unimportant position?

For pep guardiola its the most crucial position on his team.

Question: who has the most ever assists for Messi?

Very true. Listen to him speak about Lahm and Alaba. Also listen to his post match comments after the FA Cup final this year. Full backs absolutely crucial for him.

Liamalone

Liamalone wrote: »

Errrmmm, transfers. Dean Windass on the move, £5m figure touted

Put Neil Redfearn behind him...northern grit...

NIMAN

Andersonisgod wrote: »

Very true. Listen to him speak about Lahm and Alaba. Also listen to his post match comments after the FA Cup final this year. Full backs absolutely crucial for him.

But usually in an attacking sense.;)

His FBs are more attackers than defenders.

Cantona's Collars

https://twitter.com/LivEchoLFC/status/886127442292654080


"Liverpool will go in again for RB Leipzig star Naby Keita after having an initial £57million approach rejected, according to the Liverpool Echo.

The Guinea international has informed his agent he’d like to move to Anfield and Liverpool hope a bid of around £65million could be enough to get the deal done."

TitianGerm

zerks wrote: »

https://twitter.com/LivEchoLFC/status/886127442292654080


"Liverpool will go in again for RB Leipzig star Naby Keita after having an initial £57million approach rejected, according to the Liverpool Echo.

The Guinea international has informed his agent he’d like to move to Anfield and Liverpool hope a bid of around £65million could be enough to get the deal done."

I haven't really seen him play to much but from the articles I've read it it seems he'd be a great addition.

£65m is massive money for Liverpool though and we can't really afford to have a player for that money fail if he does sign.

hufpc8w3adnk65

emmetkenny wrote: »

I haven't really seen him play to much but from the articles I've read it it seems he'd be a great addition.

£65m is massive money for Liverpool though and we can't really afford to have a player for that money fail if he does sign.

Didi Hamann likened him to Pogba on a podcast I was listening to recently. Said he's not diciplined enough to play DM but if you have a good DM next to him he is a great player getting box to box for goals and assists

TitianGerm

MrMac84 wrote: »

Didi Hamann likened him to Pogba on a podcast I was listening to recently. Said he's not diciplined enough to play DM but if you have a good DM next to him he is a great player getting box to box for goals and assists

Henderson did a very good job playing the deepest of the midfield three last season, Can stepped in after Henderson injury and also played quite well after a few games settling in.

If we did sign Kieta it gives us loads of options at CM.

NIMAN

Every latest transfer just baffles me more with the amount of money being talked about.

This summer has gone absolutely mental for spending.

Harry Palmr

The Inter/Utd Perisic to and fro is quite absorbing (amusing).

Gbear

POKERKING wrote: »

You cant honestly believe in modern day football at the top level that full back is such an unimportant position?

For pep guardiola its the most crucial position on his team.

Question: who has the most ever assists for Messi?

You can make use of them all you like but the question is how much a top class one (although I'm not sure Walker qualifies) gives you over a good one.

All teams play with full backs, so saying a particular manager needs them isn't particularly illuminating.

If you're looking at stats, Walker was the no1 creator of chances from full back last season.
2 and 3 were Clyne and Milner. If someone wants to argue that either of those are top class attacking full backs I've got some magic beans to sell them.
As with Alves and Messi, Clyne plays a lot next to the inside right attacking threat of Mane.

That's not to say Alves isn't a great footballer - probably the best full back of the last 20 years, but even so, I think moreso than any other position how good they look depends a lot on what's going on around them.

A £50m CF could make a **** team challenge for Europe (like Everton - they badly needed the investment right across the team). A £50m full back does what?
What have Spurs lost? I don't think they'll miss him much. 2 more fit games from Harry Kane would likely provide more than a season of Kyle Walker.

Sometimes when a team has to resort to an academy player at full back you can see how much they're exposed and the value of at the very least, a competent full back, but that's not the same as spending £50m on one.

If they needed him to be English for homegrown reasons, then that limits their search a bit (although not solely to Kyle Walker), if they have no other positions they need to fill (they're still short 2 CBs in my mind and they need to replace the geriatrics they've got for the 2/3 other full back roles with warm bodies at least), then I suppose, with their money, it doesn't matter, but it seems like clubs sometimes get laser-focused on one target to the exlusion of all else.
Sometimes that makes sense, if nobody else will do, but I really don't think Walker qualifies.
He's not even young, which would spread the cost out and make it less of an issue.

It's just mental.

Subcomandante Marcos

According to Tuttosport Chelsea had a €100 million offered for Higuain turned down last night.

Seems they're getting a bit desperate.

Cantona's Collars

Renato Sanchez offered to Milan, €7 million loan with €40 million option to buy.

TitianGerm

Gbear wrote: »

If you're looking at stats, Walker was the no1 creator of chances from full back last season.
2 and 3 were Clyne and Milner.

I'm surprised by Clyne being number two. He's been slated in the Liverpool thread because he doesn't create enough. The general opinion was he's very solid defensively but lacking going forward.

Gbear

emmetkenny wrote: »

I'm surprised by Clyne being number two. He's been slated in the Liverpool thread because he doesn't create enough. The general opinion was he's very solid defensively but lacking going forward.

He is.

He's just next to Mane often enough to bask in his reflected glow.

Edit: I read those stats backwards and wrongly.

Walker is 4th, Clyne is 3rd, Baines is 2nd, Milner was 1st (he takes most of our set pieces).

It was also only stats for defenders.

doc_17

It's funny that Liverpool turned down £11m for Moreno yet are signing his replacement for £8m.

Jayop

emmetkenny wrote: »

I haven't really seen him play to much but from the articles I've read it it seems he'd be a great addition.

£65m is massive money for Liverpool though and we can't really afford to have a player for that money fail if he does sign.

Same as. Haven't seem him so can't really comment. Ye don't have a great record with big money signings really but this one is completely different from Benteke and Carroll. This looks like a proper scouted player rather than a panic buy.

Jayop

On the price of the fullback thing. For. Me full backs are the same as goalies to a degree. Everyone knows they're important but for some reason they never go for the money that a similarly talented or important player in any other positions go for.

Also aren't all full backs just failed wingers or center halves?

castletownman

Andersonisgod wrote: »

Barca/Bayern amongst the best defensive sides of their respective generations all while playing open, attractive and skilful football. Try again.

Bayern. Treble winners the year before he joined. Largely sauntered to a CL title too. Inherited Lahm, Alaba and the core of solid defenders.

Barca already had in situ Puyol, Marquez. Admitedly, he made Alves a key part of their set-up.

But it's not too far a stretch to harbour doubts about the defensive solidity of City despite the investment. Walker was always regarded as decent (not excellent btw) going forward, but suspect in the bread and butter. Quick glance at the Spurs thread would back that up too (even if some of the opinions are borne out of him leaving).

Hard to know how quickly Mendy will acclimatise to the PL too. Jury is still out on Stones. Otamendi has got skinned alive on numerous occasions by players with any sort of pace. Yes,Kompany is undoubted class but question marks surrounding his fitness. And then there's Ederson and the massive transfer fee for a relative unknown.

The outlay really seems crazy because as things stand they don't look any more formidable back there. One things for certain though, their games will be a good bet for over 2.5 goals.

Buford T. Justice XIX

Jayop wrote: »

On the price of the fullback thing. For. Me full backs are the same as goalies to a degree. Everyone knows they're important but for some reason they never go for the money that a similarly talented or important player in any other positions go for.

Also aren't all full backs just failed wingers or center halves?

Would you class Gary Neville as a failed CB or just a great defender who wasn't tall enough to play CB full time?

FB is a fairly specialised position and has a huge difference in responsibilities depending on the style of play the team practices. Some have to be out-and-out defenders while others are decent defenders who have an adequate/good/great ability to offer an attacking option. It all depends on what they can bring to the team.

Prices are just mind boggling in every position this year so I am just switching off even thinking about the price at this stage.

Gbear

castletownman wrote: »

Bayern. Treble winners the year before he joined. Largely sauntered to a CL title too. Inherited Lahm, Alaba and the core of solid defenders.

Barca already had in situ Puyol, Marquez. Admitedly, he made Alves a key part of their set-up.

But it's not too far a stretch to harbour doubts about the defensive solidity of City despite the investment. Walker was always regarded as decent (not excellent btw) going forward, but suspect in the bread and butter. Quick glance at the Spurs thread would back that up too (even if some of the opinions are borne out of him leaving).

Pep teams and Barca in general haven't been defensively solid. They've been miserly with possession.

We've repeatedly seen them blown apart by top class teams suited to dealing with them, or when they're on off days.

With most teams they face, they never get the ball to cause any problems, or they're already 3-0 down before they even know what's happened, but we've seen numerous times the defence making an absolute balls of things and giving away easy goals.

Their defence isn't put under pressure much. That's the strength of the strategy.
You can afford to leave your full backs up the pitch because you're not losing the ball all the time and mitigation is with sweeper-keepers and pacy defenders or by the enormous safety net of already being multiple goals to the good.

TitianGerm

Jayop wrote: »

Same as. Haven't seem him so can't really comment. Ye don't have a great record with big money signings really but this one is completely different from Benteke and Carroll. This looks like a proper scouted player rather than a panic buy.

We haven't had many big signings. Carroll was a panic buy after Torres left and Benteke is a very good player but was never going to suit our play style. Mane did ok last season though.

I hope the transfer goes through but because of the fee you could see some of the fans getting on his back if he doesn't hit the ground running.

eagle eye

Gbear wrote: »

Pep teams and Barca in general haven't been defensively solid. They've been miserly with possession.

We've repeatedly seen them blown apart by top class teams suited to dealing with them, or when they're on off days.

With most teams they face, they never get the ball to cause any problems, or they're already 3-0 down before they even know what's happened, but we've seen numerous times the defence making an absolute balls of things and giving away easy goals.

Their defence isn't put under pressure much. That's the strength of the strategy.
You can afford to leave your full backs up the pitch because you're not losing the ball all the time and mitigation is with sweeper-keepers and pacy defenders or by the enormous safety net of already being multiple goals to the good.

We've seen it but 'repeatedly' is going way, way over the top.