£12million isn't a bad deal even if he gets 10 or 12. I said before he signed if he gets 12 a season over 4 years of his contract, it's a bargain. I maintain that he will do that.
You seem to have a fantastic crystal ball there chum. Any chance with your intelligence that you could get me the winning numbers for this Fridays Euro Millions then is there?
That's fair enough, but I don't think scoring 5 goals in 5 games proves anything. "A 5 in 5 striker" XD
It doesn't, and your correct, but surely a 1 in 3 record over 3 seasons does Tash? You can count the 1 in 3 Premier League strikers of the last 10 years on your fingers, so how can £12million not be seen as good value? He only needs 7 goals in 32 games to maintain that record, do you think he realistically won't achieve that?
It takes no crystal ball, it is simply an observation based on the fact that no such deal as that has ever been afforded to any club outside the top 4 before. Fair play to Sunderland for seizing the opportunity when it came but it is a one off, based on every single sponsorship deal that has ever taken place in the history of premier league football, chum
I don't think there are many that will question that Fletcher is a good signing, I think the problem is more that all of the "striker" budget went on Fletcher, and it's a bit of a 'putting all your eggs in one basket' scenario. If he gets injured you could be in the ****. I think some people will say a couple of 6 million pound strikers for example would have been a safer/better option. (not my opinion btw, just what I think other people's problem with Fletcher is).
That wasn't a comparison of the 2 players Tash - it was a "remember the way you lot went on about Cisse when he scored so many goals in so many games - he can't hit a barn door this season
Whilst this is true, the club has set up several initiatives in Africa, and partnerships with African clubs and companies, it's not unrealistic to think this could develop into a long term partnership, time will tell. With the increased TV revenues, & sales of TV rights to additional countries, the EPL shirt sponsor is more & more valuable to sponsors. A £6million striker for the Premier League? Asking for trouble & playing tiny % in my opinion, I can only think of Danny Graham who's done ok for less than that, and he really has done just ok.
You could be right about a continued partnership with IIA, I hadn't actually thought of that, but I'd be surprised if any other sponsor came in with a similar offer. I concede the point though. As to the strikers, I personally agree that Fletcher, a proven premier league goalscorer, was the best choice, but others will argue that you could have had, just for example, Kone and Michu for I think a combined 7million? Kone knocked in around 20 in la liga last season so you'd have to assume he's a reasonably safe bet, doing well for Wigan aswell. Odemwingie for around 7million might have been a good option too.
I personally think he'll get 20/22 because you guys will rely on him like you did Bent and D.Cisse. He'll be worth every penny of his transfer fee, but I just hope it doesn't go to your head and claim he's better than everyone he outscores. Bent got 25, but we all know he's not one of the best strikers in the league, and neither was D.Cisse. If you guys had another striker of similar quality to Fletcher, Fletcher wouldn't score as much as I think he will. This is why Ba and Cisse wont both have amazing goal scoring seasons together, because if history has taught us anything, it's that it's very rare two top quality strikers can play together and score a total that shows their true quality.
Sorry mate but this post really doesn't make sense. If that's right, we might aswell play Ba on his own up front and have an extra midfielder to dominate play, as he will score all the goals that Cisse would have if they started together anyway.
Not really. Ba and Cisse playing together in a 4-3-3 was the recipe that lead to our terrific run of games last season. Ba, Cisse and Ben Arfa creating space for each other. Ba's presence created space for Cisse to score a lot of his goals, as well as Ben Arfa. Playing the extra striker usually creates space for the other, and if both can play together, it can lead to more goals for the team overall. But it's rare that both strikers will score a lot at the same time.
In which case, a striker playing on his own getting 22 goals a season DOES deserve all the credit he gets because he doesn't have a strike partner making space for him?
I'm not claiming Fletch is the best in the business, but I do feel we got a quality striker for a fair price. I responded to your post suggesting that Fletch & AJ were bad buys for a combined £22 million (not £25million), not suggesting Fletch was the best in the business.