Summer 2021 transfer thread.

[Horus]

3 minutes ago, Jockey said:

So how the fuck are you paying for all these £80m squad players you want?

 

All this 'investment' nonsense is just that. You seem to want them to spend millions each year but not look to maximise earnings! We all fought against the ESL because it wasn't that important. 

So now we've gone from me suggesting we should be all over Sancho - which is the truth, to me wanting a bench full of £80m players. Come on, dude. 

[Horus]

And just to add on with a question, does anyone doubt we'd spend the least in that Disney super league? 

[Jockey]

Just now, Horus said:

So now we've gone from me suggesting we should be all over Sancho - which is the truth, to me wanting a bench full of £80m players. Come on, dude. 

Yep. Just like you went from 'FSG are cruising for the next 30 years' to 'they're lining their own pockets'. 

 

I'm done. Not discussing this anymore. 

[Scott_M]

6 minutes ago, Horus said:

Counter it or keep it moving, but don't pretend you have the upper hand over hypotheticals. 

I’m not the one making the hypotheticals. 

[Megadrive Man]

Sancho is a good player, but he's not worth the 80 million+ that he will end up costing United. Is he really that much of a step up from Rashford, Greenwood, Martial? I don't see it personally. 

[Horus]

1 minute ago, Jockey said:

Yep. Just like you went from 'FSG are cruising for the next 30 years' to 'they're lining their own pockets'. 

 

I'm done. Not discussing this anymore. 

Learn. To. Read.

 

I didn't say they are lining their own pockets, but I guarantee they absolutely would have in that McDonalds Burger King league set up by the football mafia.

[Horus]

2 minutes ago, Scott_M said:

I’m not the one making the hypotheticals. 

Unless we know the exact workings of the club in every scenario, then yes my friend, we're all dealing in hypotheticals. Otherwise it would be a news site.

[3 Stacks]

3 minutes ago, MegadriveMan said:

Sancho is a good player, but he's not worth the 80 million+ that he will end up costing United. Is he really that much of a step up from Rashford, Greenwood, Martial? I don't see it personally. 

He's very good and if we were the ones in for him, it would be great. But we simply wouldn't get involved once Sancho shows any interest in wanting to go there. 

 

I do think the fit at United is not optimal. They do this 4-2-3-1 where Fernandes has all this freedom. I don't think that benefits Sancho.

[Scott_M]

Just now, Horus said:

Unless we know the exact workings of the club in every scenario, then yes my friend, we're all dealing in hypotheticals. Otherwise it would be a news site.

“The vanity project was about them lining their own pockets”.

 

There has been zero proof they currently do this and there is zero proof they would do this. 
 

So I’m not to pretend to have the upper hand in hypotheticals but we’re also dealing in hypotheticals?

Morpheus, I’ve changed my mind. I want the blue pill instead please. 

[TheHowieLama]

3 minutes ago, 3 Stacks said:

 

I do think the fit at United is not optimal. They do this 4-2-3-1 where Fernandes has all this freedom. 

Yep, difficult to get Sancho, Bruno and El Paulo on the field at the same time.

[Ne Moe Imya]

To me, this whole conversation over Sancho is missing one crucial detail - the big Spanish clubs have no money.

 

I think in a normal year, we would have sold Salah (maybe Mane for less, but most likely Mo) to Real Madrid for 120m and spent 90m of it buying Sancho. I think that was the plan and has been for a few years now (and there's a possibility we were even going to sniff around Mbappe with the Salah money).

 

However, all that is off the table now, and the challenge is there for Edwards: how does he refresh our aging forward line without a huge offer for one of them from overseas? The candidates to replace them, if you have 150m or more in the bank to spend, are obvious: Mbappe (extremely unlikely, even if we had sold Salah, because the wages would be so obscene), Haaland (likewise), and Sancho. Those are the three players you can almost guarantee of replacing the production you got out of Mane and Salah the past few years.

 

Now, though? Much more complicated. All three of Bobby, Mane, and Salah will be worse this season than they were last season. That much is pretty much guaranteed by human physiology. It won't be a big drop-off, yet, but it is starting, and it will accelerate in years to come. They are at the end of their peaks, both in production and value.

 

Jota coming in and looking like a potential star is step one. Now we need to find steps two and three, and do it without spending over 50m. This is where Edwards will earn his money. Is it Daka? Or Vlahovic? Or another unexpected lightning-quick purchase a la Diogo Jota? I'm very curious to see.

[Ne Moe Imya]

10 minutes ago, MegadriveMan said:

Sancho is a good player, but he's not worth the 80 million+ that he will end up costing United. Is he really that much of a step up from Rashford, Greenwood, Martial? I don't see it personally. 

Yes, he is. Will be a regular on the podium for Balon D'Ors in the years to come IMO. To say he's not a step up from those three is, frankly, laughable.

[TheHowieLama]

3 minutes ago, Ne Moe Imya said:

All three of Bobby, Mane, and Salah will be worse this season than they were last season. That much is pretty much guaranteed by human physiology.

Really? These are world class athletes. Over the last few decades that has changed massively. It is ridiculous to suggest a 29 year old has any disadvantage over a 24 year old now.

[dockers_strike]

I think if it hadnt been for the pandemic and 2 Spanish clubs' debts coming back to bite them on the arse big time, one or both of Mo and Sadio would have instigated their moves to those clubs.

[Horus]

Just now, Scott_M said:

“The vanity project was about them lining their own pockets”.

 

There has been zero proof they currently do this and there is zero proof they would do this. 
 

So I’m not to pretend to have the upper hand in hypotheticals but we’re also dealing in hypotheticals?

Morpheus, I’ve changed my mind. I want the blue pill instead please. 

 

So a league set up in secret by the some of the most corrupt owners in footie, wasn't a way for them to enrich themselves? Yeah, this may still be a hypothetical, but I'll die on that hill. It was set up for themselves (not just FSG but every owner) and no one else.

 

 

I've taken the time to answer all replies in here, so forgive me if I'm not impressed with your continually weird attempts to try and patronise rather than deal with the discussion, so I guess you can carry on pretending. It suits you.  

 

[Scott_M]

FWIW, I don’t know what their first 11 will be but a squad of Sancho, Cavani, Rashford, Fernandes, Pogba (when he can be arsed) & Greenwood certainly gives options. 
 

Martial is overrated and would be better off being sold. 
 

Personally, I think a proper partner for McGuire and central midfielders better than McTominay & Fred should have been a bigger priority than Sancho.

[Megadrive Man]

2 minutes ago, Ne Moe Imya said:

Yes, he is. Will be a regular on the podium for Balon D'Ors in the years to come IMO. To say he's not a step up from those three is, frankly, laughable.

What are you basing that on out of interest? 

 

Of the four I would say Greenwood looks to have the highest potential. Maybe I've not seen enough of Sancho, but he's struggled to break through for the England national team, he's certainly behind Rashford and Sterling in the pecking order.

[Horus]

Just now, Scott_M said:

FWIW, I don’t know what their first 11 will be but a squad of Sancho, Cavani, Rashford, Fernandes, Pogba (when he can be arsed) & Greenwood certainly gives options. 
 

Martial is overrated and would be better off being sold. 
 

Personally, I think a proper partner for McGuire and central midfielders better than McTominay & Fred should have been a bigger priority than Sancho.

I saw some shite about them having over £200m to spend this window, so if that's anywhere near the truth, it won't be an either or situation.

[3 Stacks]

8 minutes ago, TheHowieLama said:

Really? These are world class athletes. Over the last few decades that has changed massively. It is ridiculous to suggest a 29 year old has any disadvantage over a 24 year old now.

Not necessarily from an athletic standpoint, but just from a squad turnover and freshening up of things, selling Mané of Firmino wouldn't be a bad thing. 

 

I'm not down with selling Salah, though. 

[TheHowieLama]

2 minutes ago, 3 Stacks said:

Not necessarily from an athletic standpoint, but just from a squad turnover and freshening up of things, selling Mané of Firmino wouldn't be a bad thing. 

 

I'm not down with selling Salah, though. 

Yea, that is different from saying they are too old.

 

FWIW - my bet would be both Mane's and Firmino's numbers go up next season.

[El Dangerous]

24 minutes ago, MegadriveMan said:

What are you basing that on out of interest? 

 

Of the four I would say Greenwood looks to have the highest potential. Maybe I've not seen enough of Sancho, but he's struggled to break through for the England national team, he's certainly behind Rashford and Sterling in the pecking order.

I mean, as Liverpool fans we really shouldn’t be using the England pecking order as any sort of barometer. Would you swap Trent for Reece James?

[CapeRed]

46 minutes ago, Ne Moe Imya said:

To me, this whole conversation over Sancho is missing one crucial detail - the big Spanish clubs have no money.

 

I think in a normal year, we would have sold Salah (maybe Mane for less, but most likely Mo) to Real Madrid for 120m and spent 90m of it buying Sancho. I think that was the plan and has been for a few years now (and there's a possibility we were even going to sniff around Mbappe with the Salah money).

 

However, all that is off the table now, and the challenge is there for Edwards: how does he refresh our aging forward line without a huge offer for one of them from overseas? The candidates to replace them, if you have 150m or more in the bank to spend, are obvious: Mbappe (extremely unlikely, even if we had sold Salah, because the wages would be so obscene), Haaland (likewise), and Sancho. Those are the three players you can almost guarantee of replacing the production you got out of Mane and Salah the past few years.

 

Now, though? Much more complicated. All three of Bobby, Mane, and Salah will be worse this season than they were last season. That much is pretty much guaranteed by human physiology. It won't be a big drop-off, yet, but it is starting, and it will accelerate in years to come. They are at the end of their peaks, both in production and value.

 

Jota coming in and looking like a potential star is step one. Now we need to find steps two and three, and do it without spending over 50m. This is where Edwards will earn his money. Is it Daka? Or Vlahovic? Or another unexpected lightning-quick purchase a la Diogo Jota? I'm very curious to see.

I am 100% sure our front 3 are not on the way out as well as being sure that Sancho will not be the goalscoring machine that is Mo. Its wrong to be writing off players over 30. Off the top of my head Shearer,  Wright and Sheringham were piling them up well past 30.

[Megadrive Man]

That's a good point!

 

Trent seems to be 4th choice for England under Southgate!

 

Reading through the comments, most people that appear to have seen a lot more of Sancho than I have, so perhaps I'm wrong here?

 

I don't think Sancho will make a huge difference to where United are now though. 

[joe_fishfish]

49 minutes ago, Ne Moe Imya said:

Yes, he is. Will be a regular on the podium for Balon D'Ors in the years to come IMO. To say he's not a step up from those three is, frankly, laughable.

Oh come on. That's just ridiculous.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's "Balons d'Or", for fuck's sake.

[3 Stacks]

For forwards, if you assume we'll have the same strategy we always do, which I'm not sure about but whatever, there's Dembele at Barca, Tsygankov at Dynamo Kiev, David Neres, Marcus Thuram at Gladbach and Leon Bailey at Leverkusen. 

 

Those are all versatile attackers who are under 25, have either a year or two left on their contracts and have seasons of 10+ goals in their past. 

 

And then there's Raphinha who is Premier League proven but is on a long contract. There aren't actually many logical Premier League attackers for us to buy this summer if you look at what we usually look for.