Transfer Rumours Summer transfer rumours 2023

Lots of players come in and out of the club …not to mention managers and staff. One thing we lose with JWP is a player that fans can identify with…he is also a Saints fan. Can’t blame him for moving on for the sake of his career , but we know his heart is here. Good luck, James….just don’t help West Ham win anything.

 

There’s a whole load of reasons for Downes to kick the can down the road into 2024:

- not knowing what division West Ham will be in
- not knowing what division Southampton will be in
- this is likely David Moyes’ last season
- West Ham is his boyhood club
- he’s only one year into his first PL contract
- he’s still just 24

If he can’t get significant minutes then reuniting with Martin for a season and seeing where all of these unknowns line up in 2024/25 is very sensible.

 

This I fully agree with. I'm a believer that the 'spine' of the team needs leaders/experience. That doesn't mean older players necessarily but players that grab the game by the scruff of the neck when necessary and don't go missing when the going gets tough. We massively missed this last year.

For this level, we may have that at CB and if Adams stays, upfront. Midfield is where it would be missing ... Shea, Smallbone and Alcaraz could be immense but will need to be interspersed with a midfield general in my opinion. Downes could help and Grimes probably would even more.

 

Leeds paying £12m for Aarons apparently

 

I'd rather keep KWP

 

Yeah, be interesting to know if we ever had any interest in Aarons or if it was just people putting 2+2 together with the Livramento deal but not realising we still had KWP and Bree.

The Aarons interest could easily have been real and he just chose Leeds over us of course as I would put the chances of KWP staying very low

 

Tbh that is why I’m still quite keen on Grimes.

I know there might be some more exciting names out there for CM but firstly knowing Martins system inside out and secondly being a proven and experienced leader in the Championship makes him a prime target imo.

 

If we are keeping KWP then good, if we lose KWP then bad.

 

Could also have been a repeated link from transfer windows past

 

That would certainly weaken them if he goes.

 

He will go.

I would be amazed if he’s still here. Way too good for championship

 

We had a few fans in the same mindset back in March!

 

There have been times when I wouldn’t have minded another team coming in for me if there was a fan transfer window

 

Surely we don’t sell Smallbone. Makes no sense.

 

I think that when the window is closed, we'll all be in a better position to judge the sense of events. I'm not hanging my hat on any move in/out as yet.

 

Well quite, such is the nature of the beast, but he’s looked solid.

 

Honest question, I admittedly don’t know a lot about Downes.
Is he a like for like for JWP? Does he score from free kicks etc?

 

Bournemouth getting Aaron’s

 

Max Aarons not turning up for Leeds medical because he's had a very, very late offer from Bournemouth.