I think McNally said we aren't done yet on twitter but I'm not sure if he said 2 more. Quag and alderwei... ... Toby, would be a hell of a cherry on top, we look almost complete as it is.
I think Toby will move to a PL club it just has to be decided who. If Liverpool are serious he will go there if not then we have a chance I guess. I thought we were short on personal terms?
Toby would be my first choice. Top quality CB on the way up. Quag would worry me as whilst 30 is not over the hill you'd not be looking at any resale value and I guess as an established Italian international you'd be looking at some serious wedge on the wage bill. Fun to watch if we could get him, RvW, Hooper, Snod and Redmond on the pitch at the same time though! I don't know why but I have a sneaky feeling that we'll get Toby. I just get the impression that wheels are turning and looking at our current squad he would be seeing us more as going to an established PL club rather than risking a season of his career being "wasted" in a relegation scrap.
if anyone has 15 minutes spare, i think i've found the centre forward we need! he does everything: scores goals, creates goals... the complete package. goes by the name 'holt'. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_F0PCNFxSs
Since Toby decided to effectively wait and see, we have signed Olsson (Swedish International), Fer (Dutch International), Hooper (Future English International), Redmond (Future English International), RvW (Dutch International). Our forward line, which I suspect is what he was concerned about and who can blame him, having seen us last season, has had a complete makeover and we now have strong competition everywhere. If he joins, he would be an almost guaranteed starter, playing in the Premier League in a world cup year. Sure, if he is a roaring success, I would expect him to be pinched away by a top 6 club, but would be a good profit! IMO Quag and Toby still to come in. Still expect Barnett to go...
alderweireld's father made all the right noises when we first came in for him. i think our offer will remain on the table, no pressure on the lad, no problem at all with him waiting to see if he gets any other offers. he must be impressed with our business this summer - we've shown a lot of ambition - i doubt it's gone unnoticed. if we were able to sign both him and quagliarella then without doubt, norwich will have had the best transfer window (in terms of improving the make up of the team) of any club this summer not just in this country but in europe. i know i am biased but if this were another club i'd be saying exactly the same thing.
Still amazing that in 3 years and counting, we have yet to see McNally allow a player in the 1st team to be poached away (Holt reached the end of his natural path here and it was time for a new generation of strikers). DM is one tough negotiator and it is so reassuring that when he says no, it MEANS no!
I think all our signings so far have massive resale value. In this regard, as with everything, I think it's important to have a mix and balance. We can now afford to "blow" £5m on a player who we won't make a profit on and it is imperative to have experienced players in the team who can do the business right here, right now as well as those who will improve and risk being taken from us just when they fulfil their potential. I'd say there is no harm in having one in every three signings as a "loss maker". Fulham have carved mid-table security out of signing experienced professionals who aren't just looking for one last pay day.
I already think that this is the best transfer window we've ever had (by a country mile) and even if we did not get another player in I would argue that if the season started tomorrow we would have made the most progress in the Prem. I don't know enough about Euro football to make an educated observation on how we've done compared with the sides on the continent but broadly we must be up there.
Also Alderweireld said that CL was not essential so definitely in the running if Liverpool interest wanes.
That was the reason given by Tobes, but could easily have been a way to delay the deal to see if someone else fancies him.
Thing is it's not just the £5m (and that is lower than the fees being quoted) you are also looking at arguably our top wage earner as well so the cost of a three year deal is likely to be north of £10m which is a fair chunk of our overall budget. I completely agree that you do need some experienced players but the lads we have signed are internationals for decent countries and so should be just as capable of acclimatising to the Premiership and may be more able to adapt as they are younger and have played in more than one country already whereas Quag had only played in Italy.
