The main thing we need in a CF is someone who looks to slot the ball into the corners instead of blasting it at the keeper Our entire frontline - Sonny included - are often guilty of this, which really hurts us in matches where chances are at a premium so if we get a solitary gilt-edged chance to see it aimed squarely at the keeper's midsection is as deflating for us as it is the opposition keeper with a potential collapsed lung
Our back 4 and keeper are as good as anything in the league. We have 4 really good midfielders, and if lo celso can stay fit he is decent back up. It really is the forward areas where we are weak. After son and Kulu there is a massive drop off in quality. With son missing it’s even more noticeable. This is where teams like Liverpool have the edge as they have 6 strong attacking players. Taking Son and Kulu out of the equation I would take any of their forwards over ours. This is my long winded way of saying that investing in potential is all well and good, but we need the finished article if we really want to make a title challenge next season. A world class player up front alongside Son and Kulu would make all the difference. It won’t be easy but I’d rather we put all our efforts and money into a marquee signing then any more gambles on potentially the next big thing.
Nusa's been talked up a while since the summer, as I vaguely recall his name being bandied about when we missed out on Jeremy Doku
Lazio in talks with Sunderland for Jack Clarke, £10m bid rising to £15m. Sold him for just £750k, although we've got a 25% sell on clause in the deal. Just as I posted this, sounds like Sunderland may have rejected the bid.
Does seem it doesn’t it. It’s funny seeing some fans upset about not signing a player they didn’t know existed until he was linked
We have to get the next centre forward right, and our recent success in signing players from Serie A, would see me leaning towards Lautaro (with our Argentinian links), or Vlahovic, I realise that these will cost proper big money, but spending 60/70M on players from the Bundesliga or Eridivisie doesn't fill me with confidence so lets go the best we can. If we want to be challenging the best sides on the pitch we have to play in the big league for transfers too.
So Nusa wanted to come to the PL, but feels that Brentford is currently a safer "shop window" . He also is unlikely to be "wage poisoned" there (I doubt he would be at Spurs either) .
Sounds like Nusa and whoever is advising him have their heads screwed on. Sensible decision. We can't have it both ways. If our priority is upgrading Richarlison, that more or less guarantees that Son stays at LW for the next few years. Where does Nusa fit in? The only way that LW spot opens up is if Son is the upgrade to Richarlison (which he was in the first few months of the season), but he'll be 32 next season so this is very much a Plan B. Plan A is to spend big and wisely on CF in summer 2024, then look to bring in a long term Son successor in summer 2025.
I would agree on this. In between we mostly need backups - LB and for Sarr especially, but also RB and at 10 if/when GLC moves on.
The club can’t make the mistake they did before and start acting like certain players are untouchable though. Need a strong squad so if anyones form suddenly nose dives you can take them out the team without the quality dropping off too much (easier said than done I know)
I think the two marquee signings on the horizon are CF and LW, next summer and the summer after that respectively. Beyond that, barring any unexpected departures, and I think the bulk of our business will be finding permanent solutions for unwanted players, and increasing the competition in the squad as you've said. Players like Hojbjerg, Skipp, Royal, Forster etc. can be upgraded and therefore should be. In a strange way, we've gone from having one of the worst Spurs teams I can ever remember watching (carried by Kane and Son) to one of the best, in the space of barely 8 months. We've done this by adding Vicario, VDV, Udogie, Sarr and Maddison to the starting line up. The next steps are crucial but I am confident we will get them right.
Sacha Tavolieri says we have an interest in Willian Pacho, 22 year old CB for Frankfurt. Says there’ll be competition for him in the summer. Unless the club may think Romero could be off, is there any need for another young CB? I could understand and get behind moving for an experienced head but four defenders with three under the age of 23, plus the likes of Phillips and Dorrington, feels pretty excessive.
Throughout a season I keep finding myself torn. On the one hand you have an excellent defender with sound technical ability who’ll throw his body at anything and everything for the badge which makes me feel he’s indispensable. On the other you have a loose cannon whose rash tendencies can prove very costly at times makes me feel we should part ways. Watching van de Ven so far, along with previous CBs like Ledley, Woodgate, Vertonghen, Alderweireld etc, you can be an excellent defender without being a loose cannon. If the bid was indeed huge, I’d be inclined to agree with you.
He has picked up 22 yellow cards in 65 PL appearances. Toby Alderweireld reached the same total after 200.
