We’ve got the Here We Go from Romano for Yang. First part of medical is already booked and he’ll sign a long term deal, joins in January.
We're turning into some sort of Juventus reunion tour. Hang on, has that Morata transfer gone through yet...?
Like Neto, Chiesa comes with the risks of being slightly injury prone but I think both have the level of quality where you'd accept taking such a risk. If I had a choice of the two I think I'd lean towards Neto nowadays, wouldn't have been the case a year or so ago. Just think Neto comes with that slightly higher guarantee of being an immediate hit due to how good he's been in the Prem with Wolves. Whilst our Juve alumni have all done well to varying levels, there's always that concern that coming from a foreign league could be an issue for a new player.
Looking at their stats for the past four seasons underlines the issue with both 2023-4 Neto: P20 G2 A9 Chiesa: P33 G9 A3 2022-3 Neto: P18 G0 A1 Chiesa: P21 G2 A5 2021-2 Neto: P13 G1 A1 Chiesa: P14 G2 A3 2020-1 Neto: P31 G5 A6 Chiesa: P33 G9 A9 Both are being looked at on the basis of their staying healthy for at least half a season, because if they do that and play into form we see Neto creating a fair amount or Chiesa scoring a fair amount - but that's if they stay healthy for at least half a season, because if they (obviously...) can't do that Alternatively, and here is the main issue I have with our interest in both of them, in the summer of 2024 we're basing our interest in them off their form in the 2020-1 season (or, in Chiesa's case, Euro 2020)
Neither take Spurs to the next level imo. Don’t know who but I would go for someone else over both of them.
Stats usually play a fairly important part in how I judge a player, especially forwards but sometimes there’s also the eye test and watching Neto (when fully fit!) I just think he’d be a perfect Ange-ball type player. He’s got that x-factor about him and at 24 it feels like he’s close to entering what should be his best years, as 25-29 is where I feel wingers/ wide forwards often excel. I wouldn’t be mad with either if there was a way we could guarantee their fitness for at least 3/4 of a season but I think I’d be a tad happier with Neto. Him and Eze turn us from top four hopefuls to top four expectants/ outside title challengers and I see little reason why we shouldn’t win the Europa with those sorts of additions. If there’s money for a good striker too, we could be a huge problem this season providing Ange nails it.
On their own they probably wouldn’t (not much anyway) but one of them along with Eze and ideally a new striker and like I just said to HBIC, we actually become a problem. Looking across Europe there aren’t too many of a higher calibre than Neto or Chiesa that would be gettable. Khvicha would be but you’re looking at an £100m+ deal, other than that the likes of Vini Jr, Rodrygo, Yamal etc are no-goes for us, whilst Williams looks like he could be Barca bound.
I thought the eyeball test was thoroughly discredited after Ndombele passed it with flying colours? That does bring up an obvious question, though: with our current data-based scouting, how many of the 2019 signings would we actually have made?
Hard to say, though I’m now doing my best to erase the 2019 window from memory. Once the glass Argie gets shown the door we can officially put that window to bed and never speak of it again. It’ll be considered heresy.
It's not a good start when the first name that I think might have passed is Clarke, is it? Eyeball test is likely why Sessegnon was somebody Poch insisted on, but eyeball test from the wrong approach as he looked like he could become a like-for-like replacement for Danny Rose when what we needed was an evolution, for the sake of argument either someone who can cut inside like Porro or Udogie as that was coming into fashion at that time with TAA and Matt Doherty or someone with Rose-like pace but also capable of putting a cross on a 50p piece if they had to
It's interesting that we are being linked to RWs at the moment. It was an area many of us identified as a weak spot in the team. Brennan has promise and showed just enough last season to justify further investment. The bigger worry is Kulu, who hasn't improved one iota since his initial run when he first joined. I wonder if he could be a surprise late departure, probably on loan I'd imagine. Shame as him and Bergvall have already struck up quite an IKEA friendship.
I’d have been happy if Sessegnon ended up being a Rose regen but outside of the injuries he was closer to a Gilberto one. Painfully bad for us, wish him well back at Fulham though, very surprised he managed to get a Prem deal to be honest.
