2021 January Transfer Window

OK, I think we need to take a hard look at out Summer transfers right now and think of how we can move forward.

Back in September, the general consensus was we had done quite well but had we ?
(and I know that Leeds/Bielsa could not plan for injury)

Meslier - a great success, not unqualified as he is still young and still learning

Dias Belloli - looks a great talent but a fish out of water on the right flank and will not kick the ball with his right foot. Needs to move to the left (or maybe even central)

Llorente - a disaster. Hardly played after nearly 4 months

Koch - looked good but maybe out for the season. Not a good return on what we paid

Helder Costa - a waste of £16 million when we had Poveda and then bought Dias Belloli

Rodrigo - looks like a round peg in a square hole. Doesn't fit in with our style, he's a left footed 2nd striker when we don't play with two up front. We needed an out-and-out striker to challenge Bamford who although he has 10 goals, has no serious competition for his place.


With Cooper's unreliable fitness this season, we desperately need a quality centre half

We even more desperately need a goal scoring midfielder

And we need a better striker than Bamford. Sorry to his fans, but we do.

 

What we believe we need and what is on Bielsa’s list will be totally different. If we bring someone in the chances are we won’t see them make a start for at least 8 weeks so I wouldn’t get too excited.

When we were in the Championship we had a bad habit of signing loan players or chasing players with very few games under their belt (for that season) and who arrived unfit.

If we bring anyone in it will be interesting to see if we actually sign players who are match fit and have shown unrest at their club rather than fringe players or players not in their managers plans

 

Always, always always in the mind of this club, is that anyone who comes in must improve the team and be a better player than we already have. That was done in the Summer and if it weren’t for injuries you would see Llorente and Koch in every game, which means you would see Ayling on the RB and Dallas at LB and a solid defence. Injuries have damaged us defensively. 3 International CBs is enough for any team so pointless buying any more when we have Struijk, Casey and Cresswell waiting for their chance.

 

Who do you want to replace Bamford? Buying from abroad is no certainty as Chelski are finding with Werner who cost nearly £80m plus the wages.
Salah? Liverpool won't sell even at over £100m
Song min? I doubt he'd come to us, 80m
Vardy? I'd take him but Leicester won't sell, he won't leave and he's getting on.
Calvert Lewin? Everton are in the European places plus he'd be over £50m
Bruno Fernandez? Would the Scum sell?

Then you have Patrick Bamford.

Dream all you want but in the real world Strikers are very expensive, don't always perform, probably won't offer the team as much as Paddy does and could disrupt the dressing room with their ego.

I'm a fan of Bamford because he gives everything for the team every game. If he misses a chance his head doesn't go down, he's back there again, and his finishing has been much better this year.

 

We could always buy Joelinton from Newcastle

Cost £40m appearances 40 goals 3

Useless twat

 

Yes Bamford works his socks off, I'm not criticizing him for that, but are you not aware of our (his) shots to goals ratio ?

Sorry, but it's poor and we need to convert more

Yes, if you take the Jose Mourinho/Frank Lampard school of football management and look to buy ready made, off-the-shelf players - in that case, it's grossly expensive
But of those players you listed, what did Salah, Song, Vardy and Calvert-Lewin actually cost ?
The secret of being a great football manager is recognizing talent before the player becomes a super-star.

So look at players knocking on the door of international selection, not the ones already established.

 

Most fans will look at fellow English team because that's what they see on TV. Prizing a player away from another Prem team costs mucho $$$

 

Well they 'prized' him away from Bundesliga side Hoffenheim and gave him a 6 year contract so they're stuck with a player they paid well over the odds for.

Same with Benteke at Palace (£27m, 30 years old, 1 goal every 4 matches) they haven't got value for money with him either.

Leeds have certainly got value for money with £7m Bamford. Wouldn't be surprised if he's valued at 3 times that now.

Some people will only appreciate him when he's no longer with us.

 

Can't believe some don't want Bamford!
More goals this season than Kane, Rashford and sterling.
As for the defenders, well they got injured but are german and spanish internationals, that speaks for itself.
Rodrigo, another spanish international, who is left footed, indeed and the problem is?
And for buying talent before they become superstars is surely what we have tried to do with poveda, harrison and raphinha.
I really don't get the OP's angle on the team.

 

Heard it on the grapevine that in order to improve his ratio goals to shots Patrick has decided to take far fewer shots





Will that satisfy some of the moaners on here

 

Not many weeks ago a few were hoping we spent £35m on Olly Watkins, and Villa did but guess what he hasn't scored half the goals Bamfird has. The grass isnt always greener, so can we just leave it to Bielsa please. He knows what hes doing and anyone not doing what he asked them to do is whipped off or dropped.

Watkins cost 5 times what Bamford did but has only scored a third of the league goals Bamford has

 

Don't think we will spend much in January after 100 million done last summer.

It will be bargain basement shopping.

Get Kiko back to Spain. Bring in Fraser Forster as competition for Meslier. Southampton are looking to loan him out. Forster isn't very good with his feet but is a big strong keeper who would help us manage the set pieces alot better. Not saying he would displace Meslier but would certainly add experience and very good back up to the goalkeeper section of our squad.

Other than that I think the squad is set up quite well. Berardi on his way back to help out the defensive crisis. Hopefully Forshaw back to give us an extra option in midfield. Hopefully we see Gelhardt or Greenwood get a few appearances as they look white hot for the U23'S.

Sooner we get to 38 points the better.

 

Bhoy Nessy and Grot will be released and looking like Forshaw going out on loan

 

I think our best chance of replacing Bamford (when the time is right) will come from the U23s.

Ive agreed elsewhere that I can’t see Bamford taking us to the top six but then for me, that’s still a way off, maybe 3-4 seasons away?

Maybe the star in the making is in the U23s already or maybe he’s yet to step up or even sign for us who knows but I can’t see us blowing £80m on a striker who’d demand European football.

We’ll have to remain happy with Bamford for the next 2-3 seasons, see where we are at and expect his replacement to come from within.

My only concern is that none of us see that person being Tyler Roberts yet he seems ahead of the rest in the pecking order.

 

Ristac is probably right about the next striker coming from the 23s, because we have a kid who reminds everyone who has seen him of Wayne Rooney. I laughed when I heard that, but jeez he really is. We also have Sam Greenwood who scores for fun and way way better than Edmondson. Both these kids can play as a lone striker, or as a two or indeed play as a 10.

But can we be honest and admit that we only have one player who could get into a top 6 team and thats Phillips. Then our best players are Rodrigo Koch, Raphinah, Llorente who were bought this Summer and any of them would get into any team from the top 6 down, but then you come to Bamford and Harrison who would get into any team up to mid table, Ayling and Dallas the same. But this just shows the gulf in class and will take a couple of years at least to have spent enough to compete.

Bielsa has our players being a team and thats our best weapon right now, but we really need some depth in the squad and it has to come from the 23s

 

Yes my last post may wind a couple up but player preferences are subjective and we all have or opinions

 

RIGHT! OOTSIDE, YOU!!!

 

I’ve already mentioned that I don’t think we will be spending in Jan but I think next summer our positions to improve will probably be another CM, LM and LB.

I don’t think ST is an area we need just yet. Bamford has done very well for us and I think Rodrigo was bought to replace Bamford but he’s started so well he’s kept his place. For me we’re missing someone to go alongside Klich, an improvement or someone to push Harrison (Poveda, Raphinha and Costa all seem to play RM) and a solid LB. I think we’re also fine at CB but just have injuries.

The season after this will be time for a Klich replacement, RB if Drameh doesn’t make it and a ST if none of the 23s do.

 

Morning all. I'm not sure that JB will fit in at LP but VD is a shoe in at RF and if BJ doesn;t pull his socks up he can FO

 

Not sure that’s a necessary response. Just my thoughts.