January 2018 Transfer Thread

[Numero Veinticinco]

Got me. Fuck. I've been on a monumental wind-up for the last decade or so.

You nearly fuckin’ had me!

[3 Stacks]

Janssen was just a poacher, anyone could have watched him and told you he didn't have any other skills and he was strictly gonna be Kane's backup anyways. Depay hasn't made it because he's a big moron. Klaassen and De Jong never had great potential.

 

I'll concede Tadic and Fischer, not sure why they didn't make it. They certainly looked like they had the ability. Maybe it's laziness.

 

Dolberg scores every type of goal, he's got all the skills. Doesn't mean he wouldn't flop but the potential and talent is there, regardless of the strength of the league.

 

When you start crossing out players from consideration because of the league they play in, that's when you come out with dumb shit like: "don't sign Italian players because they can't play in England".

[Em City]

Tadic looked pretty good when he first came to England. From what I can see, Southampton seems to be playing him mostly out wide for some bizarre reason. I could be wrong on that though.

[Boss]

Janssen was just a poacher, anyone could have watched him and told you he didn't have any other skills and he was strictly gonna be Kane's backup anyways. Depay hasn't made it because he's a big moron. Klaassen and De Jong never had great potential.

 

I'll concede Tadic and Fischer, not sure why they didn't make it. They certainly looked like they had the ability. Maybe it's laziness.

 

Dolberg scores every type of goal, he's got all the skills. Doesn't mean he wouldn't flop but the potential and talent is there, regardless of the strength of the league.

 

When you start crossing out players from consideration because of the league they play in, that's when you come out with dumb shit like: "don't sign Italian players because they can't play in England".

 

I agree. We shouldn't be snobbish about the league they play in, but we need to also acknowledge that the quality of the league has regressed badly due to a lack of finance, and anyone that shows promise there needs to be treated with caution. 

 

You say the kids got great talent and potential but that's also true of most of the players i mentioned. I think Depay is a good player, and I expect him to be back at a top club relatively soon. He just wasn't ready at 21 years old to make his mark for United.

 

So much about transfers is timing. Look at Salah with us. Dolberg at 24 years old after firing 30 goals a season in consistently? Yes. Dolberg at 19 years old behind a 34 year old Huntelaar in the pecking order? No thanks.

[Carvalho Diablo]

Was a big fan of Victor Fischer, convinced he would have been a star had injuries not devastated him.

 

Not a fan of Kasper Dolberg personally. He looked like a fantastic prospect when I first saw him but in the (admittedly few) full games I watched him in he's looked pretty pedestrian, weak and naive. All things, I know are to be expected from a young player.

 

However, the main thing which I look for in a young striker is that goal scorer's instinct. When the ball is about to be whipped in I want to see the striker drop the shoulder, feint, lose his marker, go hell for leather for the near post. Dolberg does not do this.

 

Time and time again Dolberg did not do this. He lacks that cutthroat goalscorer's instinct which the likes of Rushy, Robbie and Suarez had. Even Solanke has that instinctive eye for goal. Dolberg doesn't, and you can't teach that shit. If he hasn't now, he never will.

 

Dolberg aint a bad player but he's a bench warmer at best. Best avoided imo.

[Thoth]

Arsenal and Tottenham are interested in signing Dani Ceballos. The 21-year-old midfielder is unhappy at Real Madrid

 

Should we be looking at him??

[joe_fishfish]

Absolutely we fucking should be. But i doubt he's really that unhappy there. He's only just gone there in the summer.

[Guest Pistonbroke]

Plus Real have really nice benches to sit on. 

[Elite]

Plus Real have really nice benches to sit on.

I imagine they do coupled with that glorious weather and at least 50k a week, what a life.

[LF:D]

Guillem Balague:

 

“Antoine Griezmann is thinking of different things. Liverpool have to prove they are genuine title contenders again to be able to attract the likes of Griezmann. I don't think Liverpool are on Griezmann's radar at this moment in time.”

 

I don't think any LFC fan thought he was on our radar Ballbag!

 

No links either.

 

What strange quotes.

[Jay86]

Guillem Balague:

 

“Antoine Griezmann is thinking of different things. Liverpool have to prove they are genuine title contenders again to be able to attract the likes of Griezmann. I don't think Liverpool are on Griezmann's radar at this moment in time.”

 

I don't think any LFC fan thought he was on our radar Ballbag!

 

No links either.

 

What strange quotes.

I thought exactly the same thing last night when I seen it, he’s quality like but he’s not what we need at all and I’ve literally seen no links whatsoever apart from this, unless we’ve really been going for him behind the scenes and Balague knows something that we don’t.

[LF:D]

I thought exactly the same thing last night when I seen it, he’s quality like but he’s not what we need at all and I’ve literally seen no links whatsoever apart from this, unless we’ve really been going for him behind the scenes and Balague knows something that we don’t.

If we are looking to upgrade Firmino or get a top striker to play with him. Then Griezmann is the man really.

 

Atletico probably will cash in on him this summer, given they have the replacement in Costa and have financial issues.

 

He probably doesn't want to go to Real, their rivals.

 

Does he want to go to Barca and be in the shadow of Messi? Possibly.

 

Would Bayern pay his wages? Doubtful.

 

Don't think City or PSG need him.

 

Can't see Juve paying his wages either.

 

Supposedly a Man U fan, but I'm not sure Man U want a striker with their options or he's a Mourinho type of striker.

 

So he might not have too many options. We're going to have a bulk of cash from the inevitable Coutinho sale.

 

But even then, he could probably demand £200k+ wages. We've seen no evidence of us spending near that on a player.

 

Griezmann will probably want to go to win things, so Barca look the most likely to me.

 

We can dream. He'd be perfect for us.

 

But I don't think (m)any LFC fans see it happening and given no links, not sure why Ballbag is mentioning it.

[Dr Nowt]

Cutting edge insight as ever from Iberia's finest ITK.

[Gym Beglin]

Dutch player of the year Davy Klaassen looks totally out of his depth over here. Janssen looked like the next Van Nistelrooy in Holland and failed miserably at Spurs. Depay is the best player i've seen from the Eredivisie in years and he also failed. De Jong failed at Newcastle. Tadic failed and that's at Southampton where the expectation is low. Fischer failed at Middlesborough. The list goes on. There's no way a 19 year old kid from the Dutch League comes here and displaces Firmino, Salah and Mane. He doesn't even fit our style of play.

 

If we're signing anyone from Holland we're much better off signing defenders from Ajax - they seem to have a decent success rate (Vermaelen, Vertonghen, Alderweireld, Sanchez). Purely using this criteria i reckon the only player in the Dutch league that would be decently successful for a top 6 club, right now, is Joel Veltman. 

 

 

I wouldn't be so quick to write off the likes of Janssen and Depay.

 

Sometimes the circumstances don't help, like we saw Simone Zaza look awful at West Ham but we KNOW he's not that bad really, and if he was to return to England with a top club who looked after him then we might see the player that Conte wanted to build the Italian NT around, with Immobile.  

 

I like Janssen, that game he played for Holland vs England showcased what he was all about, and he's still 23 years old.  We've also seen how difficult Spurs found it playing with two strikers, and he was never going to displace Kane, and would always be compared to Kane.  Not easy.

 

Depay is also 23, his move to United came way too soon for him, he wasn't mature enough by the look of it.  He's putting in some great performances for Lyon these days.  Still not sure he's an out and out striker though, more like a Salah/Mane type in a front 3, albeit not at their level. 

 

But this chat all started from the Dolberg rumour, and my take on it is that Ajax have a lot of top talent in that team and Dolberg isn't as strong a talent as Van De Beek, Neres and Kluivert.   All of whom are far from the finished article but likely to cost £35m a piece and that's without a bidding war. 

[Jay86]

If we are looking to upgrade Firmino or get a top striker to play with him. Then Griezmann is the man really.

 

Atletico probably will cash in on him this summer, given they have the replacement in Costa and have financial issues.

 

He probably doesn't want to go to Real, their rivals.

 

Does he want to go to Barca and be in the shadow of Messi? Possibly.

 

Would Bayern pay his wages? Doubtful.

 

Don't think City or PSG need him.

 

Can't see Juve paying his wages either.

 

Supposedly a Man U fan, but I'm not sure Man U want a striker with their options or he's a Mourinho type of striker.

 

So he might not have too many options. We're going to have a bulk of cash from the inevitable Coutinho sale.

 

But even then, he could probably demand £200k+ wages. We've seen no evidence of us spending near that on a player.

 

Griezmann will probably want to go to win things, so Barca look the most likely to me.

 

We can dream. He'd be perfect for us.

 

But I don't think (m)any LFC fans see it happening and given no links, not sure why Ballbag is mentioning it.

He’s not really a striker though that’s the point I was making. If we got an Aubameyang or similar then it would improve us no end I think but Griezmann is more of No.10/Winger/False 9, basically the same as Firmino, he’s probably an upgrade on our Bobby but for the money it would cost to get him I don’t think he’s THAT much of an upgrade if I’m honest in that role, if Salah or Mane were to leave then that’s a different matter entirely, he’d be a perfect replacement for either because like I said he is absolutely quality and would improve any team he joins.

[LF:D]

He’s not really a striker though that’s the point I was making. If we got an Aubameyang or similar then it would improve us no end I think but Griezmann is more of No.10/Winger/False 9, basically the same as Firmino, he’s probably an upgrade on our Bobby but for the money it would cost to get him I don’t think he’s THAT much of an upgrade if I’m honest in that role, if Salah or Mane were to leave then that’s a different matter entirely, he’d be a perfect replacement for either because like I said he is absolutely quality and would improve any team he joins.

Yeah, I agree, the attack isn't really the pressing need when looking to upgrade.

 

A few Sturridge & Nzonzi swap deals being mentioned on twitter. Not seen a reliable source though.

 

I like Nzonzi would be a very good deeper CM for us. I think if we do get a new DM type player in the future, whoever it will be will have height with players like Keita, Lallana, possibly Coutinho, even Wijnaldum in CM ahead of them plus our front three not being the tallest. I'd have thought it is an area in the team where we'd need some height.

[Babb'sBurstNad]

Never seen Dolberg, and if I have I've not taken note. However, I'm more than happy to glibly write off all attacking players from the Eredivisie who aren't on a goal a game. It makes things much simpler.

 

Add them to the list that includes Italian players, and anyone who's touted as being able to "make the position his own for the next ten years". They always turn out to be shit.

 

If I had my way we wouldn't scout anyone with shit tattoos and Instagram accounts too.

[Bjornebye]

Yeah, I agree, the attack isn't really the pressing need when looking to upgrade.

 

A few Sturridge & Nzonzi swap deals being mentioned on twitter. Not seen a reliable source though.

 

I like Nzonzi would be a very good deeper CM for us. I think if we do get a new DM type player in the future, whoever it will be will have height with players like Keita, Lallana, possibly Coutinho, even Wijnaldum in CM ahead of them plus our front three not being the tallest. I'd have thought it is an area in the team where we'd need some height.

 

We need a hard cunt mate. A hard bastard. Preferably a big hard bastard that is also athletic and can tackle. One that isn't scared of putting a foot in or getting in the refs ear when we are getting fucked over. Someone who opposition players look at in the tunnel and think “fuck going 50/50 with that big hard bastard”. The kind of player that doesn’t let other teammates heads drop. Someone that wants to win above everything else. The kind of horrible cunt that makes the difference between winning and losing. An utter lunatic smashing people all over the park. A wrecking ball. The kind of guy that Tarantino was referring too when he was talking about ‘Like a Virgin’ at the beginning of Reservoir Dogs. The kind of cat that reminds the fuck machine what it was like to get fucked the first time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[LF:D]

We need a hard cunt mate. A hard bastard. Preferably a big hard bastard that is also athletic and can tackle. One that isn't scared of putting a foot in or getting in the refs ear when we are getting fucked over. Someone who opposition players look at in the tunnel and think “fuck going 50/50 with that big hard bastard”. The kind of player that doesn’t let other teammates heads drop. Someone that wants to win above everything else. The kind of horrible cunt that makes the difference between winning and losing. An utter lunatic smashing people all over the park. A wrecking ball. The kind of guy that Tarantino was referring too when he was talking about ‘Like a Virgin’ at the beginning of Reservoir Dogs. The kind of cat that reminds the fuck machine what it was like to get fucked the first time.

 

Naby Keita is the horrible bastard.

 

He's a ball winner, he's exceptional at pressing and being in the right place at the right time with his positioning and he's also a tough fucker - hence his disciplinary issues this season.

 

He just happens to be an equally brilliant player with the ball than he is without it.

 

I don't really agree that the person in front of the back four has to be athletic.  I think they need to be clever, disciplined and if the two CMs, actually the whole front 5 in front of that DM are doing their job right with their pressing then that player needs to be intelligent more than athletic.

 

Busquets I wouldn't describe as a real athlete.  Same for Alonso.  But they are the types of DM I think we need.  With all our other players pressing the ball.  We need someone plugging the gaps, intercepting the passes and marking the space rather than going to the ball and winning it.  That's what you want Keita, Mane, Firmino, Lallana etc doing.

 

But I think Keita is going to be our tough fucker in CM & he'll be the best CM in the league, certainly the most complete in terms of being brilliant both with and without the ball.

 

P.S Bring back The Cat!

[lifetime fan]

A cat, a cat, a cat a cat a cat.

[El Dangerous]

Can Nzonzi do it on a wet Wednesday night in Stoke?

[Gym Beglin]

Hard window to buy for us.  Don't want to upset players for no good reason.

 

That said, I can see merit in buying to replace Can, and I can see a need for another CB.  Everything else can wait until summer. 

 

Torreira at Sampdoria, or we throw money at the likes of Skriniar and Milinković-Savić.

[Boss]

I wouldn't be so quick to write off the likes of Janssen and Depay.

 

Sometimes the circumstances don't help, like we saw Simone Zaza look awful at West Ham but we KNOW he's not that bad really, and if he was to return to England with a top club who looked after him then we might see the player that Conte wanted to build the Italian NT around, with Immobile.  

 

I like Janssen, that game he played for Holland vs England showcased what he was all about, and he's still 23 years old.  We've also seen how difficult Spurs found it playing with two strikers, and he was never going to displace Kane, and would always be compared to Kane.  Not easy.

 

Depay is also 23, his move to United came way too soon for him, he wasn't mature enough by the look of it.  He's putting in some great performances for Lyon these days.  Still not sure he's an out and out striker though, more like a Salah/Mane type in a front 3, albeit not at their level. 

 

But this chat all started from the Dolberg rumour, and my take on it is that Ajax have a lot of top talent in that team and Dolberg isn't as strong a talent as Van De Beek, Neres and Kluivert.   All of whom are far from the finished article but likely to cost £35m a piece and that's without a bidding war. 

 

I hear what you're saying. I did say that Depay is a good player and i expect him to be back at a top club soon. Janssen i don't rate. That may be proved wrong in the fullness of time as we've seen players like Immobile get written off and then go on a tear later on in their careers. I just don't think Janssen is cut out for this league.

 

He seems to be failing in Turkey as well. It's interesting to note that Jozy Altidore hit as many goals as Vincent Janssen in Holland with less game time and he still remains the worst striker in Premier League history. 

[aRdja]

I hear what you're saying. I did say that Depay is a good player and i expect him to be back at a top club soon. Janssen i don't rate. That may be proved wrong in the fullness of time as we've seen players like Immobile get written off and then go on a tear later on in their careers. I just don't think Janssen is cut out for this league.

 

He seems to be failing in Turkey as well. It's interesting to note that Jozy Altidore hit as many goals as Vincent Janssen in Holland with less game time and he still remains the worst striker in Premier League history.

 

Worth mentioning Salah who looked out of his depth during his stint for Chelsea and now he’s obviously killin it here.

[Jairzinho]

He didn't look out of his depth, he got given about six minutes.