Don't know if anyone has pointed this out earlier, but Bielsa was the manager at Lille two seasons ago under whom Amadou prospered before signing for Sevilla. It was Bielsa who gave him the Lille captaincy. I would imagine that Amadou will have spoken to Bielsa while pondering on his options, and got a highly positive response.
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I’d be annoyed if after announcing Idah’s Promotion to the first team, and all the excitement about seeing him involved, they straight away send him on loan to League 1. I’d love to see him on our bench and playing in the cups. Coming off the bench as an impact sub. If he has to go out on loan, I don’t want him playing League one for Oxford or Sunderland. He could play regularly bottom half Championship, at least.
Well the transfer deadline looks to be hotting up . £1 m loan fee plus wages with the agreement to buy sounds good for Amadou if we don't survive then we aren't saddled with him and his wages. Drinkwater on loan with a view to sign next season would also be nice but not vital plus Rhodes finally coming back could be a masterstroke as he would be thrilled to come back to us . Out of the 3 I would choose Amadou purely on his position and vast experience at a higher level but if we get all 3 that could be the icing on the cake .
It would be much better for his development to go out on loan to a lower league club and get regular football than stay and get the odd cameo appearance. If Pukki can step up then Drimic will need to be the one coming off the bench and playing in the cup games. At this point in his career there is absolutely no point in Idah being a PL 3rd or 4th choice striker, ideally he needs regular football.
What if Pukki gets injured? It’s then Injury prone Drmic and Srbeny as our strikers. Drmic starts, Srbeny off the bench when we need a goal. He didn’t do much in the Championship. I’d feel a lot safer with a young, paced strong striker who knows how to finish. As a third striker option. Rather than send him to Oxford.
He would absolutely rip League 1 to bits but I would rather see him play for Luton in the Championship.
It probably hinges on Rhodes signing for us . If we don't get the deal done then Idah would be needed.
For Idah, a loan to the championship would be the optimum move but comes with the risk of less game time. With the lge 1 options, I think with his quality he would get what he needs more than anything, minutes on the pitch. I would look to have some sort of recall option either in case of a Pukki injury related emergency and/or if we are left short. I.e only Pukki, Drmic and Srbeny. But if you add JR into the mix then I think we can be comfortable without an emergency recall. We only play with one up top so the need for cover is lessened as is his chance of minutes. Of course the other way to look at it is, that maybe he offers something diffferent to Drmic or suits our system better and may even have impressed more to be 2nd choice. As such we should keep him and give him minutes where ever we can. Really not too bothered with getting Rhodes back, but if free and on wages inline with being 3rd choice striking option, why not. For me I can't see both Drinkwater and Amadou coming. Either/or for me to fight with or along side Trybull, with Tettey and Thompson to when fit provide backup. To sign both I think leaves us with too many players for a couple of positions. I'd be happy with the options afforded by: DM: Amadou/Trybull, backup - Tettey, Thompson (Better served by a loan if ever fit) 2nd DM/centre midfield: maybe Trybull/Amadou for the toughest games, -or Leitner, Vrancic, Mclean. That is a lot of options and quite a few players to keep happy too. Bah!
I agree with the General. DM: Amadou to compete with Trybull, Tettey as backup for this season. Thompson can go out on loan and prove his fitness. Tettey probably leaves at the end of the season regardless of division, Amadou stays if we're in the Prem, or Thompson hopefully steps up if we're relegated. That seems fairly balanced and not overly expensive. Up front: Pukki, Drmic and 1 more should be plenty for a single striker system. I'd prefer that Rhodes is the third choice, with both Idah and Srbeny out on loan. Both need to be playing and scoring, and I think that's more important than the level. If a Championship club want one of them and are short on other options, great, but either tearing up League 1 is better than them being a bench player in the Championship.
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