Mate, that's the only reason we hired him! Joking aside, with the talent Lamela has, it wouldn't actually be completely absurd to say that may have been a strong factor as to why Poch was hired. The club believes Lamela to be a genuine (future) world star, we wouldn't have splashed circa £30m on him otherwise and so the club will want to take all possible measure to ensure he does turn out to be the player they want him to. Plus he speaks the same lingo as Soldado too so again, it could have been a factor. I don't think anyone would've expected Cambiasso to be a starter anyway mate, at his age you can't really come to a new league known for it's fast pace and expect 38 starts a season. But someone like him would just be perfect to have around the place.
So basically, Twitter is rife with rage comments about how we haven't signed 14 players yet. People need to learn patience and also realise that last Summer was (hopefully) a one off. From what I've read from the 'ITKs', Poch wants to assess the squad during initial pre-season training before making any decisions about buying or selling (bar people like Livermore) - I don't think this is too unreasonable is it? Also - apparently we're close with Ben Davies and the deal was nearly done but then another club waltzed in and offered £2m more. We're not out of it, but the ball is back in our court. Lastly, Lovren deal has died down because Saints want £25m eek for him.
Amazing isn't it? The one time where we really shouldn't be signing a bulk of players and yet some fans just seem desperate to see new faces. All we actually need is a LB and possibly a CB. Striking situation isn't a necessity unless someone world class (or as close to that as possible) becomes available and interested. If all we signed this window was Ben Davies, I'd be happy. Glad we're out of the Lovren running, £25m is an absolute joke.
Agree on the LB and CB. I would want a new striker if it looks like Soldado isn't cutting it (effectively leaving us with just Emmanuel 'I play when I want to' Adebayor and Harry 'not quite there yet' Kane). If Poch is truly assessing the squad then he should know if he wants a new striker quite quick I would think - Lukaku and Bony are the ones being mentioned the most. Off topic slightly - it's interesting (and amusing) to see that Liverpool are doing what we did last Summer.
I think if Ade is told by Poch he'll be the main man, we'll get the Ade who "wants" to play. With Poch being Spanish speaking, I'm hoping he can get across his ideas to Soldado better, similar with Lamela and hopefully get both playing at a level similar to what they had so I think a trio of Ade, Soldado and Kane would be good enough. Kane really impressed me in his games at the end of last season so it gives me hope he's now truly able to contest a first team place. Yep, Pool could either be in for a brilliant or a calamitous season, naturally for our prospects, I'm hoping the latter.
If you read Levys comments last season and after he sacked Sherwood, he is alluding to us already having a squad which needs little investment and hiring a manager who can bring the squad to the level of performance he (and we) expect from a spurs team. I'm expecting a left back and centre back to be purchased, other then these two positions, i'm not expecting Pochettino to make any major signings as he has been hired with the objective to help the players fulfil their potential and save Levy investment, also with bringing through youth. In return Pochettino has been promised time and the backing of a five year contract. These plans rarely work or go through initial issues so it be interesting to see the reaction when problems arise (as they will arise) yet Pochettino has the benefit of that he has a number of players who have flopped so far, meaning if they still flop then he can say they where unsuited to the league and bad purchases, made by a previous regime.
We definitely do not need to sign a bunch of new players. We probably need to sell some, actually. Dembele, Paulinho, Sandro, Capoue, Bentaleb and Carroll are probably two too many for the "2", assuming Poch plays 4-2-3-1. The fact that none of them may get the ball up the field quickly enough makes it a good plan to sell three and buy someone who does. Bentaleb and Carroll both have potential in that area, though, and both are young, especially Bentaleb. I'm happy enough with Soldado, Kane and Ade, though adding someone like Remy for a reasonable amount, and possibly selling Soldado, might not be a bad idea. I'm also happy with Eiriksen plus two others in the "3". It looks like Lamela will start as one of them. I'm wondering if it makes sense to play him off of Ade, since Ade can use company, and Lamela's shining moment occurred when he went deep into the penalty box. Another thought which I like is to play Soldado behind Ade. I would lean towards given Holtby a shot there. I think he's got the best eye for a key pass. Chadli, Paulinho, Townsend and of course Lennon are also possibilities. We may decide, again, that Lennon's work rate and tackling back are too valuable to leave on the bench. I think Rose might yet be okay at LB. All the defenders were pretty bad last year. The simplest answer is that they didn't all become ****, they just all suffered from a bad setup. So just a world-beating deep-lying playmaker for me, and maybe the right striker at the right price.
What we need to do this summer is streamline the squad in some areas, minimising the juggling act we had to do last season to keep some players happy. In central midfield it's likely that Dembele or Capoue will be moved on this summer, with Bentaleb being the main beneficiary of this, and should he continue to develop that means the other will leave come January. Similarly, in the attacking three we'll probably move on Sigurdsson while it's also likely that we'll cut our losses on Falque and Ceballos, so that Lamela can settle in with a run of games and Holtby will feature more frequently. Also, by streamlining, we may be able to offer more opportunities to the likes of Carroll and Pritchard (providing they aren't loaned out, anyway)
Sounds reasonable. I'm really intrigued by who Poch will start. The problem with not moving players is that any choice he makes is liable to displease too many players and their fans, given he has so many comparable choices in most positions.
Same here. Some I think are concrete, nailed-on starters though there are quite a few positions up for debate. Lloris Walker, Kaboul(?), Vertonghen, NEW LB Sandro, CM? Lamela(?), Eriksen, LW? Ade(?) Lloris, Walker, Vertonghen, Sandro and Eriksen are undisputed in my opinion (that's not to say Poch will necessarily agree), I know Vertonghen was iffy last season but I still believe he's a class act and I'm hoping Poch gets him to play like he did in the 12/13 season. I'm a huge fan of Kaboul but there's no denying he was very poor when he played last season, I know coming back from a long term injury isn't easy but he looked a shadow of the player he can be, similar to Vertonghen though I hope he can find his previous form under Poch if given the chance. New LB is pivotal for me, Rose was in my opinion our poorest defender out of a very poor bunch last season but I could have forgiven that if I didn't think his attitude stunk, he seems like a guy who isn't interested in playing for the badge and just seems to sulk and lose his cool in high pressure situations. He's 23/ 24 now, he should be reaching a stage where he's starting to mature and develop as a player and I haven't seen any progression since his switch to LB 3-4 years ago. Sandro's CM partner is a tough choice, we have a number of options. What do we go with?: * Capoue - who with Sandro, should be able to nullify opposition attacks while also being able to bring the ball forward due to their high work rate and stamina. * Paulinho - a box-to-box midfielder who prior to joining us genuinely looked the dogs bollocks, I mentioned that maybe fatigue has hampered his spell with us due to having technically played something near 72 games from his latter stages with Corinthians, Confeds Cup, Spurs and now the WC. If the Paulinho of Corinthians/ Confeds Cup is avaialable, he's an undeniable starter. * Dembele - a guy with immense skill and low centre of gravity for such a big guy, though despite his talent doesn't create or score anywhere near what he should be, can Poch get him to realise his potential? If he can then he makes a very strong case. * Holtby - though usually more advanced, no one can deny his work rate and seeing as Eriksen for me is the undisputed number 10, a switch to a deeper role could see his game time increased if Poch feels another creative spark is needed in the side. * Bentaleb or Carroll - Poch is supposedly a fan of youth and right here we have two great prospects. One a more box-to-box type who has a bit of everything to his game, another similar to Holtby who can possibly play deeper than used too but adds a creative spark from the back. I'd say their chances of starting are slim but you never know... At RW I'm hoping it's Lamela, Lennon's work rate is great but there's a rarely an end product, the Lamela of Roma can become one of the best in the league, hopefully Poch makes him realise that. Eriksen, no words said, alongside Lloris, he's our star player. LW - Do we go with the pace and trickery of Townsend or the more creative/ technical Chadli who has more of a goal threat? Similar to Lamela, if the Chadli of his former club turns up, he may well take the spot. Ade on his day is one of the best in Europe, I truly believe that, not only is he a goal threat but he can bring others into play and create chances but the problem will always remain as to whether we get the "good" Ade turn up. Soldado was (and hopefully still is) a potent finisher and if Poch feels we have enough creativity in the squad and an all round striker is not needed, just someone to "put the ball in the net" then Soldado may well be given the nod. A nice headache for Poch to have, I haven't even factored in any potential new signings he may go after either. Interesting pre-season/ summer I think. Only one or two adjustments are needed in my opinion or does the Argie have a different idea???
At the end of last season Levy stated that we have a very talented squad that hasnt played to their true potential. Poch has been bought in to get the best out of the players we have and promote our youth players. He also implied that the squad just needs tweaking in terms of in's and out's so i doubt we will see more than 3 or 4 new signings. Only Lloris and Eriksen excelled last year, but im sure poch will benefit from last seasons signings having a year to adjust and acclimatize to the English game. However, Chelsea, united, Liverpool and by the look's of it Arsenal are already buying in some fine players and we MUSNT be left behind. We definitely need a new LB, Davies would be a solid buy, we also need a CB and maybe a LW/F Konoplyanka would be a great signing. Im quite enthused about our new managerial team and im quietly optimistic after a few teething problems we will have a positive season.
We've been linked with a £17m move for Draxler today. Surely not going to happen, as Schalke would expect pretty much double that fee? Add to that the fact that Draxler has four years on his contract, while in comparison Konoplyanka is in the last year of his (according to Transfermarkt) - so if we are still looking at Konoplyanka, the fee will be a lot lower due to that as well as Draxler's value being inflated by being a World Cup finalist.
Pure craziness. Draxler will go to a bigger club than Spurs unless Holtby is whispering some very sweet words in his ear.
The thing to keep in mind is that we're one of the few clubs that would benefit from selling a few good players. Sell a few and spend a lot on a new one is a real possibility. But I'll believe Draxler when he shows up for a physical... ...and hope he keeps right on going to Chelsea or Arsenal if he offers similar value for money to Willian.
Draxler has far too many admirers to be interested in ourselves. If Pochettino is as good as some believe then let him sign a Lb and Cb. No more and he can show us if he deserves to be backed further. As mentioned by our resident Yankee and HBIC, we already have a big squad and can sell players, keep the funds and reassess next year, but Pochettino has to prove he deserves to be backed first.
