Carlos Vinicius has lost his way and not reached potential, yes however he’s consistently been in the top flight and here are some recent numbers 23/34 premier league - 2 goals 306 minutes 153 minutes per goal 22/23 PL - 5 G 2 A 1101 Minutes 157 mins per G/A 21/22 eredivise 6G 6A 1101 mins 92 mins per G/A 20/21 PL 1 goal in 305 mins European wise 21/22 Europa League 1G 1A 283 mins 141 mins per G/A 20/21 Europa League 6G 3A 501 mins 56 mins per G/A Not looking at any more but even when he’s been poor that’s decent. These are all post leaving benfica
Southampton are the cautionary tale. Get it wrong and its a miserable year. If I take off my fan hat though, even getting it wrong and having a miserable year banks you well over £100m. From a business perspective getting it wrong makes more sense than not trying at all. I actually think this is the year that we have the best opportunity of making it stick. If we can keep this team together its essentially a generational opportunity.
I agree. Look at the development of Jobe, for example, from last season to this season. We have a squad full of players potentially capable of making similar strides. Recruitment would of course be hugely important, but the way we have operated and continue to operate gives us the best possible chance IMO.
100% if we go up and can be competitive great, the thought of fighting for 4th bottom year in year out however doesn’t appeal but needs must realistically we need to get back there
I also, genuinely, worried during the darkest League One days that I'd never see my team in the top flight ever again. I absolutely get the hatred of the Premier League, the whole of football is broken. But if we aren't able to have a go at making it stick and becoming who we all know we have the potential to be, then I struggle with "whats the point".
Nothing grinds my gears more than when people post links for transfers and don’t even check the article multiple links posted about le fee to Lille, but they’re all quoting the same outlet sorry if this applies to you I still love you rant over
I'd hate to see these lads do a Southampton if we go up. I'm sure their fans didn't foresee how bad it would be, and I'm sure if we made it we all think we'd make a decent fist of things, but once you get on a bad run in the Prem it can be soul destroying....does the big bucks sweeten the pill...Not sure it would for me..destroying these young lads in half a season would be unthinkable to me.
It's not a view which will get much support on here,but,in many ways I'm in sympathy with it. I'm enjoying watching this team over the last couple of seasons,more than I have in many a day. If I could qualify your comments a little....if we finish 3rd every year and get to the play-off final at Wembley,only to lose a thriller...a la Charlton....how would you feel about that? I suppose I'm really apprehensive about getting promoted and going back to getting thumped every week,calculating the matches we think we can gain the bare minimum points from. I think I've had it with that. I'd love us to be in the PL,but only if we can properly compete. Mind you,the way the club is being run on the playing side at the minute,I wouldn't bet against us having a plan to enable us to hold our own in the event of promotion either.
A thought on Le Fee lessening the minutes that Jobe and Rigg get, is that's the downside but the upside is making us more competitive at achieving promotion. That's the ultimate aim of the players so could mitigate any unhappiness at not playing as much. If we get promoted then I doubt the players would care if they got 100 to 200 minutes less.
https://sportwitness.co.uk/sunderla...ht-of-redemption-to-seal-signing-for-le-bris/ He’d be happy to reunite with him at Sunderland and boost their promotion campaign and so the Black Cats are now ‘pressing for the player’. Roma want a loan with ‘at least’ a right of redemption included worth €23m at the end of the season. It seems the Championship side are yet to offer that, but Le Bris is keen and Roma want a solution fast. Calciomercato back that up, reporting that ‘Sunderland really wants him’ and the player’s entourage was in Trigoria yesterday to discuss the deal. The famous ‘white smoke’ from Italy, a sign the deal has been done, is being waited on with anticipation. All suggestions are that it will come at some point, with Roma keen to move the player on and Sunderland keen to reunite him with Le Bris. French club Lille are also credited with interest. A way for Sunderland to get this done may be to offer the purchase obligation on condition of promotion to the Premier League, they could convince both Roma and the player.
They are the cautionary tale but they have a coach who wants to play Guardiola Possession ball with a team of higher calibre championship players. I mentioned it before, we'd most likely get relegated as the gap is substantial, but I'd wager a good amount we'd do a great deal better than Southampton because of our style of player. We don't want to play out from the back, go side to side in our own box. We want to get in their half as soon as possible, out of possession is arguably where we are most comfortable as we have a good block/box, push people outside and gobble up anything through the middle before immediately going forward with real momentum. Our style of play would fit a side taking it's first step in the prem.
I think they would end up getting the right amount of minutes, as opposed to describing it as ‘less’. We’ve asked an awful lot of Dan, Riggy and Jobe this season and could do with players to lessen that burden. Players of this calibre coming in would mean the side would not be negatively affected by changes (the opposite, in fact) whilst bringing real competition for positions.
I hear you - but the alternative is we don't go up and we lose them anyway. There's only one scenario where Jobe and Rigg and Sunderland players in 3 years and that's if we've been promoted and we've stayed there. Every other single scenario means they leave. So we have to have a go.
I'd imagine it's done or not happening by now. Expect reports always a bit behind. Longer it drags, less likely it's happening.
Reading between the lines (which I know is dangerous) - the loan of ELF has been agreed and all thats left to sort out is if and how it becomes permanent.
