I think Evans, Shaqiri and Rondon are all Prem-proven players who'd add quantity as well as quality. Must admit I really wanted Evans, he's a very good CB that was available for a cut price fee. I genuinely don't think there's many better CBs on the market who are considerably better. You say Evans offers us nothing but who would've been a better buy than him? I agree RE Rondon. Realistically it'd been great if we brought in Immobile but we all know he wouldn't join to sit on the bench. Rondon is a very good player to have as a bench option. Shaqiri in fairness we probably don't need (unless say Lamela was to leave) but I do think he's a very good player that can definitely boost the quality of a squad.
That is the essence of it. The squad needs more of the Solskjaers in it, than the Sissokos who ensure we can field 11 players for 90 mins.
It looks like the club chose absolutely the right day to put out the news on Harry Kane's new contract. There'll be no real news for ages. David Beckham's been a naughty boy and is gonna have to move into the infamous flat above a kebab house. It'll be all over the front and back pages for days....or weeks
I’m not sure what to say regarding transfers. Do we spend upwards of £50m on De Ligt or similar? Do we just push through Foyth/Carter-vickers instead? Whatever the answer, I just don’t feel that 3.5m on Evans, plus his weekly wage and the use of a squad place would have been worth it. The cons outweigh the pros for me. Same goes for Shaqiri. Yes he’s got a good free kick and produce moments of magic, but overall who is he better than? It just means our collective midfield plays less games, or he does. Then someone is unhappy. We should always be looking to improve on our “weakest” player in said position. I don’t think overall he’s as good or offers more than what we already have, so I just don’t see the point.
It depends if you wanna buy for the long term future or the immediate, because as of right now, Evans is a better CB than De Ligt (and Foyth & CCV). Some people would make arguments for Shaqiri being better than Lamela, so if you're basing on your idealogy of improving on the weakest player then that would fit. When it comes to potential signings and those we get linked too, I try to visualise if they can make an impact in the squad and then base an opinion off of that. While the likes of Evans, Shaqiri and Rondon wouldn't displace the first team players in their positions, they'd definitely add competition and in two of the cases (Rondon and Evans), they'd be better than the current player in their squad role (Llorente and Foyth).
Aren't we up against it a bit on home grown players? That might have a bit to do with targets like Grealish? If he can be cheap enough, he's got an extra value to him that another foreign import doesn't. It might also encourage us to go for a younger player, like de Ligt?
I personally think Grealish would be an astute signing. The kid has always had talent but in the past his attitude was questionable, but it seems he has grown up in the last year or two. We have a manager who excels in giving young English players a chance and developing them. Theres strong rumours that we are going to adopt a 4-1-4-1 or 4-3-3 formation next season with Dier/Wanyama as holding pivot . We would then have Eriksen, Dele, Grealish (if he signs) and Winks for the more creative attack mid roles (assuming Dembele leaves for china) Son, Lucas, Lamela and Another new signing (ideally Martial) to compete for wide positions flanking Kane.
I said weeks ago that the best signings Spurs could make would be to get the current first team players to commit for the long term. Kane's contract is the best signing you could make - whatever his wages are.
I think that was what MP was saying about being brave.. We're going to play what amounts to 5 'attack minded' players, 2 progressive full backs and have a holding midfielder and 2 centre halves. MP was about being strong defensively but Citeh and Liverpool suggest that going pretty much all out pacy attack brings you more opportunities to win big games. It's time to risk what we have to gain more. DL needs to be prepared for selling sme players that he may have thought that we'd keep and 'go big' on some pacy replacements. That and spending a bit more now as Chelsea and Arsenal struggle, rather than risking the having an opportunity to catch us again by being prudent. Let's not view our future season by season but project forward 2 or 3 years. The press just obsess about DL and money because it's all they know.
I remember the late Ray Wilkins discussing Grealish on the radio and he rated him very highly, and he will have seen him up close from his time coaching at Villa. He would not be the most glamorous signing but a lot of our most successful additions were not either, Dier, Dele, Son, Davies spring to mind etc. If Poch thinks he can work well with Grealish then we have to trust his judgement. If his name was Grealinho and he came from a foreign league you can bet there would much more excitement at the prospect of him joining, I remember the excitement when Paulinho arrived, even though little was known about him, and look how that turned out.
That is so bang on the money. It's not just Spurs fans guilty of it but for some reason or another, too many get caught up in the idea that fancy names means better players and it's just not accurate - at least not all the time - Grealish is one of the country's best talents, snapping him up to play alongside some of the country's other top talents makes a lot of sense.
Grealish has more talent in his slicked-back hairstyle than Wilshere will ever have, mate. Said before that I've seen him a few times this season as I've tried watching Villa to see how Onomah played. Grealish has been miles better than anyone on the pitch. Very similar style to Dele. The only negative about him is that he has bit of the Townsend's about him in terms of trying to score too many screamers that don't come off, that said, he did hit this beauty (enjoy the music ):
sorry to be a contrary mo fo () But I have no idea about overseas players unless they are the massive superstars so I would have no idea who he was like with Aurier, Sanchez, Paulinio, Janssen, Dier etc etc. I only know and rate (or not) UK based players. Grealish had the world at his feet and has gone backwards. He did nothing for the previous 2 or 3 seasons but this year has done well in the Championship. I genuinely think he is over rated... like Barkley. He was hyped beyond belief when Villa got to the cup final and he has done nothing of any note since.
He's better than Barkley. Barkley can be great but he's too inconsistent. Grealish often controls the game for Villa, he's their Eriksen so to speak but I'd say he plays more like Dele. Even on the 6-7 games I've personally seen he's been a cut above the rest, let alone the rest you hear about through social media and SSN etc. If you've got a spare ten minutes, read this, it's questions being asked by a Spurs fan to a Villa fan on him, gives an honest assessment (go about a third of the way down for the actual Q&A): https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnati...-grealish-aston-villa-interview-7500-to-holte
He moves the ball beautifully and speedily from deep lying positions. I don't think he'd be a 10 for us but play deeper, as he offers a very limited goal threat unfortunately. However, he looks to go forward all the time which would be a big improvement from some Dier/Wanyama/Sissoko/etc. performances last season, when we just weren't progressive enough. At the right price, he's worth a go. He could well be another Dele with the right management. That price doesn't begin with a '4' or a '3' though. He's £20m or thereabouts given Villa's financial straits. If he doesn't 'train on' we'll get that back faster than we do for any alternative N'Grealish we might be looking at.
Thanks ... was s good read but...and you must have known this was coming...I do not do carefully thought out and reasoned arguments...I decide on blind hatred (in this case it's his stupid hair and the fact he plays for villa but on the upside if he joins us somewhere a certain Holte Legend will explode
5 or so years ago he was being hyped up as the best English midfielder of his generation ... remember him winning 3 MOTM awards in 3 back to back Englnd matches 3 yrs or so ago.
Grealish (or freakish as Google predictive typing wants to call him) didn't really set the Championship alight with Villa. Can't see him at Spurs or any other top half PL side
