Going back to Sander Berge for a moment, it's worth noting that Genk's form has nosedived ever since he's been out with a calf injury in mid-January, picking up seven points out of fifteen and get utterly gubbed in the Europa League by Slavia Prague
The thing with Hugo's form dropping is that it reminds me a lot of that period where Robbo kept letting in shots from 25+ yards, which was less to do with Robbo being at fault and more to do with someone further up the pitch not doing their job - at which point it's hard not to notice he wasn't letting in long range goals when the Carrick/Davids partnership existed, but he was certainly letting them in when Zokora was in the first team At this point the question is whether there's a pattern to Hugo's brainfarts, and my initial thought is whether that problem just so happens to play at right back for Spurs and England...
I'd like to think Trippier was/ is solely to blame for Hugo's decline but I think even the WC Final showed Hugo's brainfarts weren't solely Tottenham-related. He got beaten again at the near post yesterday albeit Toby was also to blame. I'm becoming more and more like I was when Gomes played for us, just waiting for a flap or a miss-kick (which Hugo done last night as well) or some form of mistake.
Sounds like a French sauce you'd get in a fancy gourmet restaurant. Yes, would take him. Knockaert? If so, not for me, massively inconsistent. Not. Sure. If. Serious. Is that a joke to say Jermain Defoe? Or is it serious by saying you'd want Alfredo Morelos? If the latter, he'd definitely be sent off on his debut, think he's on four red cards this season already
Morelos...think there is real potential in him. You agreed with 1/3 of my suggestions... WTF has happened to you
Good thread...I'm great at this...how much does Kim Kallstrom cost? Kennedy Backircioglu anyone? What about Razak Ping-pong? First I'll officially stick Eriksen on the transfer list...he's still refusing to sign that contract. Get 60 Mill if I'm lucky...will top it up with another 15 Million and put a bid in for Dybala Waiting for Juventus to get back in touch with me I'm going with Dybala, Alli, Son Kane up top however Barca have just put a bid in of £180 Mill for Kane...hmmm...I need to go to bed and think about this.
Nice thread mate. I’m not going to bother listing the players I would have on each list, as a few of you have already done so. However, whether this is a hypothetical football manager thread, or our usual transfer rumour thread, the issue is the money required to sign these players we need. Even if 6 or 7 are sold, including Toby and Eriksen, the cost of achieving replacements with the quality we need will be astronomic. David Brooks has been mentioned. He’s a £30m+ player alone. To think we’ll only be getting £25m for Toby if he leaves. Football manager or real life, we’re looking at probably needing to make a net spend of £75m+ (Presuming Eriksen leaves for the supposed £150m & we get reasonable fees for others) to sort the deficiencies in the squad out/make improvements/marquee signings. That level of net spend just isn’t gonna be available on a game, or in real life. Let’s say that we’ll lose the obvious 2 key players in Toby and Eriksen. We may be successful in also shifting some of the players we’d ideally like to be rid of, but it’s highly likely that the replacement options will be underwhelming, and we’ll have made money, once again, with no real statement of intent. We’ll end up with a squad that once again has potential for the future and will show glaring holes from those who we didn’t want to lose, that we didn’t adequately replace.
Bale is not happy at Madrid so possible make-weight for Eriksen if he decides to go there. Why not try and get an Isco thrown in on the deal. We need a big F-Off evil bastard, Willy Boly of Wolves might be a good shout. David Brooks looks a good and obviously Rice to wind up the Spam. Sessegnon, if Fulham, as expected go down. Might get him cheap, typical Levy signing, plus Scotty is too nice, more likely to be thinking about the player rather than his team. A long shot might be Couthino, said to be unhappy at Barca and a good friend of Poch's, played under him at Espagnol I believe.
Bale is a no for me, his injury record is too bad. It would be a hell of an investment and I’m not sure it’d pay off. He’d be amazing when fully fit but I fear that would be all too irregular especially with the training regime he’d be put through. If we could guarantee his fitness it’d be a different question, though if I had to choose between him and a top class midfielder to replace Eriksen I’d take the midfielder. Speaking of which... The only way we’ll get an Isco or Coutinho is as part of a swap for Eriksen if he goes to Barca or Real Madrid. Even then I expect the sticking point might be that they might not want to come to Spurs, particularly Coutinho. One thing is for sure we need a hell of a shake up this summer. The lack of spending over the last two transfer windows has been frustrating but just about understandable, if you squint really hard after a few beers. If we don’t invest properly in root and branch reform of the squad in this upcoming summer I’ll be very concerned.
Brooks looking like the player most of us want most. Amazing - and frustrating! - to think we could have signed him for peanuts last summer.
I really like brooks too. He looks a player with real potential. But once again, it’s a player with potential. Same for Bowen. They alone are not going to be enough if players like Eriksen leave. W must be trying to get the proven Isco types as well.
Your last paragraph is pretty much what I’ve been saying all season. I never understood the narrative of that we were brave to not sign anyone. For me it was stupid. Spurs are yet again going to be finishing a season with nothing to show. Players aren’t loyal like us fans, if they feel the club isn’t improving (or not even looking to improve!) then they’ll take their ambitions elsewhere. Genuinely do mean and believe it when I say we were just one or two players away last summer from being able to mount a serious title challenge. Whoever’s to blame, whether Poch being too cautious as to who he wants to bring in, or Levy refusing to sanction a move for the right player, it’s left us in a pretty ****ty situation now where the immediate future from a playing perspective isn’t looking too promising.
Yeah for sure, but unlike Bowen, Brooks has already been proving himself in the Prem. He’s a year or two older than what Dele was but he’s having somewhat of a similar first season, taking it by storm and immediately establishing himself as a very good player. Isco would be a dream signing if we were to replace Eriksen. You’d like to think if it’s Madrid we sell too, we’d insist on getting someone like him in return. Easier said than done though I suppose. Poch has been a known fan so hopefully that plays a part if we are indeed looking for an Eriksen replacement.
We were close. Results and our position in the table up to a couple of weeks ago show this. Agonisingly close, and you have to wonder if this year is the straw that break the camel’s back, that this season marks the end of the perfect storm of other clubs underperforming and us having a great squad and manager that has put us where we are today. That could be a bit of a depressing thought though. I have no doubt that we would have won trophies, maybe even the league, if we had stayed at WHL for another 5 years. But building a major stadium project like ours doesn’t work like that, we had to go when we did (to my understanding) so it’ll always be a case of ‘what if?’. Even if we’d done the bare minimum and paid up for one top class CM in the summer things would be different I am sure.
Couldn’t agree more. I keep using them as an example but Pool really have shown what a couple of top signings can do. I think in the last ten years they’ve finished above us just once or twice. Yet the signing of van Dijk in January 18 and Alisson this summer have turned their fortunes around massively and are now looking like a side much better than we have ever been in the Prem. They already had the attack and a decent midfield. They’ve now got the defence and keeper to match it. Leaves a bitter taste knowing that could - or should - have been us with the right signing or two.
You forgot that all-important third signing they made: a whole bunch of officials who have no clue how the offside rule works
