Who was your best and worst transfer call?

[Boss]

Carvalho was talking about Firmino being the perfect replacement for Suarez two years before he signed for us. Ne Moe noticed Naby Keita playing for Salzburg and urged us to sign him before he moved to Leipzig. Cloggy noticed Luis Suarez in the Dutch League. 

 

Who have you called as a player well before they signed for us and became a success? Also who have you touted for the very top that has failed miserably?

[aRdja]

Best? Virgil Van Dijk

Worst? Robbie Brady

[Bjornebye]

Called Van Dijk years ago when he was at Celtic

 

Did the same with Wanyama who I still think could do a job for us

 

I didn't want Salah. 

 

 

[3 Stacks]

Best who we signed was probably Mane before we were linked with him but to me that was just common sense. Didn't take much acumen to realize he was the perfect transfer for us at the time. 

 

Worst was Karius who me and Carvalho were talking about even a year or two before we actually signed him. 

[Bjornebye]

20 minutes ago, 3 Stacks said:

Best who we signed was probably Mane before we were linked with him but to me that was just common sense. Didn't take much acumen to realize he was the perfect transfer for us at the time. 

 

Worst was Karius who me and Carvalho were talking about even a year or two before we actually signed him. 

Grass 

[Tony Moanero]

Best - Gary McAllister, a decade before we signed him. I also wanted Ian Wright when he was at Crystal Palace.

 

Worst - Not a transfer call, but circa the very early 90s, I thought Brian Deane was a better striker than Alan Shearer.

[TheHowieLama]

Put me down for Alexei Lalas -- and Alexei Lalas

[John102]

I remember being oddly excited when we signed Dave Moli for the academy.

 

Didn't work out as I thought it would. Liverpool's loss was Parnu Vaprus' gain.

 

He would have thrived under Barry Lewtas

[Hades]

I called 3 Stacks ascent from semi-troll to semi-respected poster. 

[smilezzz]

A shit load of posters here were clamouring for Salah when we went close in the Suarez season. He ended up going to Chelsea. Look at the fucker now.

 

Worst for me.. Downing... the miserable, useless, shushing, peanut fucking,  0 goals and assists, door handle licking turd...

[Numero Veinticinco]

Salah. 

 

Sahin. 

[VladimirIlyich]

I called for King Kenny when the press were linking the likes of Trevor Francis with us.

[Ne Moe Imya]

My worst was definitely Robbie Keane, who I thought was a masterstroke by Rafa and would be the other match-winner we were crying out for at the time. Yeesh.

 

If we include youth players I had an even worse one, though. I used to watch the youth teams all the time (the games were on at an easier time to watch in my time zone) and prided myself as a bit of a talent-spotter. Once waded into an online discussion about Krisztian Nemeth saying that I didn't think he was up to much and wouldn't make it, took a lot of stick. Then I came back and rubbed noses in it when he moved to America to play in their rubbish college system.

 

What's so bad about that, you ask? Sounds like I was right! Well, I was, except for one thing - instead of Nemeth, I proposed that it was another youth striker coming up through the ranks that was guaranteed to be world-class. I believe I used the phrase "next Fowler" at some point.

 

The player in question? Lauri Dalla Valle. Yes, the same Lauri Dalla Valle who just retired at 26 after a failed stint for FC Kozun in Serbia. Really taught me a lesson about how much you can learn from youth football performances. I understand perfectly why that German scout in Miguel Delaney's last article called it "fake football," you just can't tell ANYTHING from how a player looks in those games.

[ZonkoVille77]

Best: Steven Caulker

Worst: Morientes 

[Carvalho Diablo]

I wanted us to sign Christian Zeige around 1995, thought he was sensational left back. You can surely imagine how disappointed I was when we signed him several years later by how poor he was.

 

Also really liked Gianluca Zambrotta around that same time but obviously that one never happened.

[General Dryness]

I signed Alisson for us on FM before we were linked to him. Sold Belgian Flappy Hands to Zenit for 4.5m. Result.

[Ronnie Whelan]

Best: Luis Suarez called him in his early days at Ajax

Worst: Collymore - though him and Robbie would be incredible together.

[Tony Moanero]

12 minutes ago, Ronnie Whelan said:

Best: Luis Suarez called him in his early days at Ajax

Worst: Collymore - though him and Robbie would be incredible together.

They were good together though.

[lifetime fan]

11 minutes ago, Tony Moanero said:

They were good together though.

 

55 goals between them wasn’t it? 

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, lifetime fan said:

 

55 goals between them wasn’t it? 

Didn't Salah manage that on his own?

 

The malingering twats.

[M_B]

Worst was Balotteli. Thought he was going to become an icon.

 

Best was John Barnes. Always thought he was ace for Watford and was well chuffed when we signed him but I was a kid and I suspect it was pretty obvious he was going to be a top player.

[Ronnie Whelan]

23 minutes ago, Tony Moanero said:

They were good together though.

Good but not incredible. Stan had it in his locker to be really world class imo. 

[Anubis]

Mike Walsh has asked me to post this one....

 

....i’m not making excuses, i’m being realistic. Sandro is nothing short of useless, yet he’s on a long contract of £80k per week. No club is willing to match that. Perhaps somebody is willing to pay him £20k, but the lad won’t leave for that (and i wouldn’t blame him). The only way I can see out of the mess is letting him go for free and paying up a large amount of his contract.

Similarly, Bolasie cost £28m and is on £80k per week. I doubt any club would pay more than £10m for him, and none would match his wages. Perhaps we could give him away and let him negotiate a lucrative signing fee.

How would you get rid of Sandro and Bolasie on permanent deals?

 

 

..Sandro has played 22 games on loan and not scored a goal. He’s only appeared on the pitch 9 times for Real Sociadad, who were apparently keen to send him back this month only Everton refused to take him. I doubt there’ll be a queue after him in the summer.

Seriously, I don’t know how we could move him out on a permanent. We might even struggle to loan him.

[Megadrive Man]

Best was Fernando Torres, Worst call was Dani Pacheco! I remember telling anyone and everyone that he would be the 'Spanish Messi' for us! 

[Bjornebye]

1 hour ago, Ronnie Whelan said:

Best: Luis Suarez called him in his early days at Ajax

Worst: Collymore - though him and Robbie would be incredible together.

For about 3/4 months they were the best strike-force in Europe. Shame Collymore was such a cunt because he could have been one of the best if he applied himself. Evans wasn't strong enough to handle him.