Transfer Rumours transfer thread fact and fiction

Oh, they want and need him alright. They've let Sagna and Zabaleta go and have no senior right backs. That's going to cost them. Anyone dealing with Citeh on this transfer will smell the desperation on them. Last season Everton used it to get £50m for Stones.

Yesterday, a story appeared suggesting that Citeh were expecting to pay around £40m. Its pretty likely that they briefed that to try and keep the costs down. On that front they've got no chance whatsoever. If we're minded to sell, then Levy's going to rinse them. Firstly, money is handy. Secondly, it sends a message to anyone who fancies buying one of our other players.

The suggestion is that Kyle respects the club too much to play silly games and won't kick off if the move doesn't happen. It would be very nice if it was to be true. We shall see.

 

100%. Sell him at 10.59pm on the last day and make sure someone hides his phone, wallet and car keys for a further fortnight. And when he finds them, change the locks on his house and slash his tyres. There is no reason why he should be making his City debut any earlier than mid November.

I would like to see us bring in a replacement as whilst I grew fonder of Trippier as the season went on but he is still miles away from Kyle's level and beyond that will never have the pace or strength to ever be a truly effective option. Ricardo Pereira's name has been floating around for a few weeks now and he would be an excellent option - especially if the £22m release clause is to be believed. Djibril Sidibe of Monaco is another interesting one as he is physically more similar to Kyle yet also has plenty of pace, but after the season he has just had in the CL spotlight, would likely cost much more.

As for the CM discussion, if we are to pursue with 3 at the back and make Dier a permanent fixture there, a quality understudy for Wanyama is crucial. That can either be achieved by signing an out-n-out DM, or by signing a top drawer CB and rotating Dier between the 2 positions as and when he is needed. The first option is my preference as it is cheaper and won't put Dier's nose out of joint. But the latter is an area that we need to invest in either way with Fazio and Wimmer presumably on their way out.

I'm far from subscribing to Team Onomah, but he does seem to suit the deeper role far better than the '3' behind the striker. Gives him that little bit more time and space to dictate play. I sincerely hope Poch was watching - and learning - as we will need him and Winks to cover for an increasingly brittle Dembele in the other CM slot.

 

If Walker isn't pushing for a move, then we shouldn't sell him.
That's especially true of any potential move to City.
They need him and we don't need to sell.

 

The suggestion today is that even Arsenal won't sell to Citeh in relation to Sanchez. The problem is that we're in the same cycle of spending on a stadium as when The Gooners sold them half their team.

However, ten years on, money's for nothing in the PL and increasingly in Italy with Chinese ownership. Good players are hard to find and bloody expensive when you do. Selling one Kyle Walker should only occur to promote another. That should happen next close season when KWP is more ready physically. Then we can spend £60m+ on improving the team and not half of it standing still. Kyle Walker's athleticism will be a big plus in Wembley's wide open spaces.

Tell 'em to do one unless we have a done deal to bring in someone extraordinary with the money.

 

Is that what Citeh "expect" ?? Here is Levys' response :

 

Was speaking to a Gooner acquaintance today and he is of the belief that the likes of Kane and Alli will be tempted by big bucks overseas if we don't win something in the next couple of seasons. Not a revelation but when the bigger clubs come nosing around ...

 

The likelihood of any player staying their whole career at one club is slim. For really top talents, not at one of the top 5 or so clubs then that is much more so. If Real Madrid decide they want a player it is difficult to stop a club sponsored so heavily by the government and allowed to commit tax fraud with impunity.

The main hope is to be able to keep players through a mixture of success, loyalty and money. We could supply success in the coming years and given the wages that we offer and that players are staying, then we have a high degree of loyalty. As players reach their best years, we are going to need to compete on salaries. Even then, a squad as talented ours will lose players. We need to make sure that it's only 1 per season and that we're constantly buying and developing young talent to replace those who leave. We can sell Christian Eriksen in a couple of years if Marcus Edwards has progressed as we all hope.

Signings like Sessegnon and Ünder are central to our plan and a better use of funds than the Sissoko's of the world. I hope to see us buy the best young players under 23 and I think that's what we'll do this summer.

 

I'm on the other side, I think Trippier is a great full back and while not as defensively sound as Walker, I feel he offers so much more in the attacking third. I think in less than half as many games, Trippier got as many assists as Walker. Walker is the Prem's best RB, no doubt about it for me but I'd say Tripps is top 5, so for me the drop in quality isn't massively substantial. Plus by bringing in another RB, that would also stunt KWP's growth, so unless it's someone like Dani Alves, who's got about 12-24 months left of top flight footy in him and who could also help develop the games of Tripps and KWP, I wouldn't really want someone else coming in and wrecking potential chances for one of our best prospects.

An understudy to Wanyama isn't a massive priority for me, IF he gets a knock, we stick Dier there and bring in Wimmer/ CCV/ <new CB> to the three. Although perhaps an old head wouldn't be a bad idea, bit of experience who won't mind a bit-part role and can cover Big Vic when/ if needed.

You'll see the light soon and join #TeamOnomah mate. Come the end of next season, you'll be claiming it was you who always had his back

 

Dembele's injury problems are something that can't be ignored, especially now that he's getting into Ledders territory and is unable to play more than one game a week - something that will be a major issue if the fixture list throws a couple of big Premier League games in the same week we've got a big Champions League game.

 

Unless you are top of the tree, you are always potentially a target
for losing players. And sometimes even when at the top, tis difficult
to retain players (Man Utd and CR7 etc) so the best you can do is
utterly rinse the buyer.

So Spurs have to be smart, in scouting / developing talent and
wage structure / selling key talent.

In Levy I trust on the latter two.
The wage structure is sound, regardless of how cash-rich the PL
is at any particular time, and meritocratic. The last time key talent
was sold to a PL club who could take a CL slot from Spurs, was 2008.

And the on-pitch staff seem to be doing ok on the first two.

 

Big summer for Onomah.
I hope he gets a full opportunity in the pre-season games to push on
from a good U20 WC performance.

 

A top quality CB is an absolute must tbh. Last season showed that the drop in quality when one of Toby or Jan was out was enormous, especially with Wimmer's surprising fall from grace. If we want to continue with 3 at the back, we should be looking to bring in someone of Keane's quality and rotate him for Dier and Toby as we juggle the PL and CL, then use CCV/Wimmer for cup games.

I won't be claiming that as I spent most of this season openly wondering why we were keeping Josh around and what he brought to the team. I'm more than happy to eat a slice of humble pie instead.

Winks was always my boy. @Roo and I called that one years ago

 

Before you joined?

 

if we're beringin in another centre back, Magurie or Veltman are who we should be looking at - although I'm leaning more towards Veltman, partly because he looks more versatile as he can play centre back or right back, partly because he does fit the mold of the sort of centre back who Poch likes...and mainly because, with a year left on his contract, we can all smell the Levy on that one.

 

I think it was one of my first posts on here.

Maybe 'years ago' was an exaggeration. Although we are coming up to my 2nd anniversary soon. You can all chip in to buy me a pinata in the shape of John Terry.

 

Sky are reporting that Hull have reached agreement to sell Harry Maguire and Andrew Robertson. It doesn't say who the buying party (or parties?) is but I'm guessing Liverpool for both?

We won't be buying this early........again.

 

Michael Keane is also going in to the final year of his contract and is, by all accounts, a better player than Maguire.

 

Yeah CB is a priority for me too, I'd love someone like Keane but I think he's either Everton or Utd bound, the fact we can't guarantee a starting role would probably put him off us. Maguire I'd take all day long though, Hull are saying he's close to an exit, I really hope that's to us, agent Dawson should be putting in the work there.

@Roo's got a knack of calling things, both he and I were banging on about how Spurs should sign Eriksen about 3 years before we actually signed him!

 

You should have mentioned this before

 

Personally I hope we don't sign anyone this week: my brain's focused on E3, so any signing would be met by me being far more enthused for the new Wolfenstein...