i think kuyt is pretty vital, he is joint tenth scorer and has been on the right most of the time which is second to ronaldo from that position. I am not sure anyone new would score more and would certainly offer no where near as much in terms of work rate and reliability. We need someone as well as him but i don't think i would get rid even for a big sum.
More vital to how we play than Alonso?
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"We view these athletes in different lights"
out of interest would people want to see him go if we made a profit on him?
if Martin Jol bid £15m for him i would take it as it is £15m towards a better attacker
Rubbish.
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He's a one track lover down a two way lane
Driving fast down the highway, must have been insane
Cos the temperature's too high, traveling way too fast
And he knew their loving was much to hot to last
it's not as easy as that. finding a quality player who can score from the right is more difficult.
It depends how highly you rate Alonso. That argument has been done to death though; the point i'm making is that Rafa doesn't have to sell Alonso to raise funds, he has lots of options to do that if he feels that he needs to.
If he wants to raise funds for other areas of the team by selling Alonso, then what's the point in buying Barry?!
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"We view these athletes in different lights"
The 25-year-old is reportedly unhappy with the new contract being offered to him by the London outfit and Arsenal could cash in rather than risk losing the player for free in the future.
Van Persie only cost Arsenal €3 million back in 2004, when they purchased him from Feyenoord. The latest reports indicate that he could move for as little as €9 million.
It depends how highly you rate Alonso. That argument has been done to death though; the point i'm making is that Rafa doesn't have to sell Alonso to raise funds, he has lots of options to do that if he feels that he needs to.
I love the way people pontificate on this forum, and offer what is no more than personal opinion as unadorned fact. How do you know Rafa doesn't need to sell Xabi to raise funds? How do you know how much money - if any - the two cowboys are giving him? How do you know we can that, if we NEED to raise money, we can do that by selling other players - if noone bids for Babel, Voronin, etc, but someone bids for Xabi early in the window, then Rafa is faced with a very very difficult decision. And finally how do you KNOW that Xabi isn't tempted by Real Madrid - his agent has met with Perez and is doing a pretty good job of keeping the issue alive even when Rafa AND the club have categorically said they don't want to sell him? There were lots of rumours last year that Xabi was unsettled, and that his missus wanted to return to Spain.
I don't mind debating opinion, but I do object when people pontificate and make assertions without ANY of us being privileged enough to know the facts. And I'm sorry, brownie, but you've been making a lot of these assertions of late and it's time you were made to question them!
I don't think Brownie is pontificating, Rafa could surely make money elsewhere and keep Xabi.
Lucas, Dossena, Babel, Leto, N'gog, Kuyt, Yossi and many other could be sold instead, and raise a lot. But with Xabi being such a valuable player and with Rafa wanting to make sure he has the cash to get things sorted out more to his liking and early in the window, it makes you think that he could be on his way. Because all those other players mentioned could take well into the window to sell, leaving him little time to do anything.
And I don't get why some think if Xabi goes Lucas will aswell. He'll probably keep him as he won't want to reshuffle those holding positions by selling two, and I'm still sure he sees Lucas as someone he could make a lot of money on even if things don't fully work out, because he should improve a lot.
Lucas Leiva today revealed how he is putting in extra hours at Melwood in a bid to adapt to the physical nature of Premier League football.
The 22-year-old has impressed during the title run-in with some mature displays in central midfield, a fact he puts down to hard work on the training ground.
"I feel I have improved a lot," he added. "I'm doing some special work to get physically stronger. I feel more confident with more power so hopefully next season will be my best."
Finally, the one thing that might really help his confidence and make him a lot better. I still think he'll come good if he stays, but if not I hope things go well for him wherever he goes. I know most of you think he's shit, and I've seen many reasons why you think that this season, but I had faith in him from the start so I'll keep it if he stays.
If he manages to turn around all the shit he's had this season and become a respected and well liked player, it could bring out qualities in him that could make him one of the best in years to come. He'll probably be a completely different player with enough strength and confidence.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rebel23
great, another 3 weeks of this circus.
Yeah I thought the same thing, it sucks. Or it could be 3 weeks until the circus properly arrives in town if that guy gets in, which looks like happening.
Who, in your opinion, is more important to our team out of Alonso and Kuyt for example?
He doesn't have to sell Alonso at all. If he's looking to raise funds for players then he has lots of assets that he could dispose of; what is the common denominator with Alonso though?
It's a valid point, and I don't have a straight answer. Maybe Rafa knows that in Madrid he has a willing buyer with deep pockets. I doubt he'd get 23m for Dirk from any team. This is a very crude example, but if he sells Kuyt for, say, 12m (doubtful) then he needs a new right winger that, if we are to get quality, would cost more than that amount. If he sells Xabi for 23m and brings in Barry for 9m, then he has secured what he obviously considers an adequate replacement and still has a sizeable sum left to strengthen other areas.
I can't underline strongly enough that I want Alonso to stay, but I can see a certain logic in cashing in on him, given that we have a severe budget constraint.
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He's aggressive -> he isn't small child or lady
lepers never change your spots but Rafa is now finding burning bridges might come back to bite you in the arse.
Alonso is just as vital imo. I would not sell either. I think we could keep him and still get what we need in the transfer market but it looks like rafa is going for a change of style imo.
I do think it is easier to find a quality centre mid than a decent player for the right of a three though. I think kuyt is pretty unique.
Lucas Leiva today revealed how he is putting in extra hours at Melwood in a bid to adapt to the physical nature of Premier League football.
The 22-year-old has impressed during the title run-in with some mature displays in central midfield, a fact he puts down to hard work on the training ground.
"I feel I have improved a lot," he added. "I'm doing some special work to get physically stronger. I feel more confident with more power so hopefully next season will be my best."
Finally, the one thing that might really help his confidence and make him a lot better. I still think he'll come good if he stays, but if not I hope things go well for him wherever he goes. I know most of you think he's shit, and I've seen many reasons why you think that this season, but I had faith in him from the start so I'll keep it if he stays.
If he manages to turn around all the shit he's had this season and become a respected and well liked player, it could bring out qualities in him that could make him one of the best in years to come. He'll probably be a completely different player with enough strength and confidence.
Yeah I thought the same thing, it sucks. Or it could be 3 weeks until the circus properly arrives in town if that guy gets in, which looks like happening.
Alonso is our most important player when it comes to how the team performs, he makes the players around him better, when he`s not there we usually struggle to perform on the same level as a team.
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"It is the nature of desire not to be satisfied, and most men live only for the gratification of it." - Aristotle
Alonso is our most important player when it comes to how the team performs, he makes the players around him better, when he`s not there we usually struggle to perform on the same level as a team.
I'm not sure I've seen that much evidence of that. We aren't as nice to watch, but we don't seem to be less effective.
Prove me wrong with stats geekboy!
__________________ Patches I'm depending on you son
Alonso is our most important player when it comes to how the team performs, he makes the players around him better, when he`s not there we usually struggle to perform on the same level as a team.
how on earth did we beat "the champions of the world" without him
I think it's a fucking disgrace how many people on here take the piss out of Kuyt all the time. He gives everything every game - and with a lot more success, on a consistent basis, than anyone apart from Torres and Gerrard.
I think it's a fucking disgrace how many people on here take the piss out of Kuyt all the time. He gives everything every game - and with a lot more success, on a consistent basis, than anyone apart from Torres and Gerrard.
I think it's a fucking disgrace how many people on here take the piss out of Kuyt all the time. He gives everything every game - and with a lot more success, on a consistent basis, than anyone apart from Torres and Gerrard.
In what terms do you think Kuyt gives more during games than lets say Alonso?
Does he work harder and run more? Does he fuck, he looks busy though I`ll give him that.
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"It is the nature of desire not to be satisfied, and most men live only for the gratification of it." - Aristotle
I'm not attacking Alonso (or Arbeloa, to a lesser extent). I love Xabi. These things aren't mutually incompatible. I just get fed up with the anti-Dirk thing...
