Summer Transfer Ratings Thread

Kinda similar to the player rating threads after a game, thought I'd create a thread where people could rate each transfer in/out out of 10 based on their perception of how much the player will impact our overall season and whether the fee paid/received represents good value for us or not.

At the end of summer or the end of season we can then review people's views as more of collective and see just how far right/wrong we all go, and even whether we change our minds along the way.

Incoming Transfers
Juanmi (£5m) - 6.5/10
Seems decent enough in terms of adding depth and options up front, but can't help but feel that he's not trained on as well as expected since hitting a high early peak in his teens (a Spanish Jack Wilshere). Seems his finishing is decent compared to our existing squad though, so if we can create enough for him he may score more than he did at Malaga, however, he doesn't seem to naturally shoot or even assist a lot himself. Cheap gamble at the price, and still young, but will need to learn the language and settle quickly to have a chance of making a real impact in 2015/16.

Cédric Soares (£3.5m-£4.7m) - 8/10
Exciting prospect offering either competition or direct replacement for Clyne at what seems a very good value price. Seems to have been quite important to Sporting, with Champs Lge and Europa experience and a decent cross on him. Only concern may be his height if we play against anyone with 2 big men up front, he's even shorter than Clyne at 5ft 7.5in.

Maarten Stekelenburg (Loan) - 7/10
Adresses a position of need with no further outlay until Fraser Forster can return from injury. Has played at a very high level (54 caps and played in WC final), but injuries, blunders, and not a lot of game time over the last two seasons raises some question marks. That said, how many better keepers were available that would have accepted they'd be facing a stiff uphill challenge upon FF's return? Definite upgrade on K. Davis & Gazzaniga, and with links to both Koeman and Alderweireld you can't imagine he'd be too shoddy with the right pieces in place around him.

Cuco Martina (£1.1m) - 4/10
Squad filler for a position of need at RB, with some versatility, a relatively inexpensive fee and on a short contract. Ultimately an underwhelming signing with little chance of progressing or really pushing the current first team squad if all others are fit. The kind of player I'd worry about us playing when called upon if a PL or Europa fixture, but obviously signed to buy time for either youngsters to progress or another better option to become available.

Jordy Clasie (£7m-£8.5m) - 8.5/10
Established Dutch International CM with a very good range of passing and ability to turn defence into attack very quickly. Not afraid to play the QB role in midfield and drive the ball forward himself either. Slightly different player than Schneiderlin, but a comparative bargain at the price.

Outgoing Transfers
Nathaniel Clyne (£12.5m) - 7/10
Shame to lose a player of his ability to a non-Champions League club. But ultimately 'money' and 'history' talks until we start finishing above teams like Liverpool, and even then semi-regularly. Fee of £12.5m a little shy of previous media expectations but still decent for a player with only 1 year remaining on his contract and no intention of signing a new one.

Morgan Schneiderlin (£25m) - 6/10
As good a fee as we could reasonably expect with Morgan looking to move on to CL football and stating his desire to leave last summer. Gutted though as he'll be by far the hardest of the players we've had to replace over the last 2 summers.

 

Juanmi - £5m. Will be a polarizing figure in his first season. The majority of his league appearances will come off the bench; he'll score some pretty goals and look great at times in open space, but will struggle to make good decisions against set defenses. He will put in a couple very good performances in the qualifying rounds of the Europa League, but an early-season cup match against a lower-league team in which he makes little impact and gets hauled off will spur concerns that he is not cut out for English football that fail to fully fade over the course of the year.

In the following summer he will get a large dog, which he will name Oso. As he will later tell a tabloid in a four-paragraph puff piece, Oso will give him a feeling of belonging and a renewed sense of purpose. He will establish himself as a frequent starter during the '16/'17 season...not a star, and still frustrating at times, but an important cog and contributor nonetheless.

He will then demand a transfer to Spurs.

7.15/10

 

Well, Schad gets a 9/10 from me!

 

Jose will help him with the language. How much diffrence is there between Spanish and Portuguese?

 

I give any new signing a complete open mind out of ten. I simply can't rate a signing based on a perception.

They all get my backing and believe that Ron and the team wanted them, so I hope they work out.

 

Quite a lot. People assume Spanish and Portuguese are similar but they're not.

 

Jay will help him - he can speak fluent Spanish (and no, that's not based on me guessing as is surname is Rodriguez, otherwise I would have thought twatbeard could speak another language than twat)

 

This, I will judge signings purely on what they do in a Saints shirt, I trust Ron and our scouting department enough.

 

What would constitute a !0 out of 10 signing?, Ronaldo, Messi?...let's be realistic here. We have just bought a young Spanish striker at the start of his international career, forget the cost, that is a promising signing in my book.
I wonder what score people would've given Ryan Bertrand last season? 5 or 6 judging by the reaction to his signing for us and he made the TOTS.

 

Exactly Saints Alive, you've hit the nail on the head. As supporters, our perceptions may change. As FLT wisely put above also, he gives them all an open mind out of 10, as even if we aren't massively excited by a signing (Bertrand/Long) we still want them all to go out, do their best and prove us wrong.

The idea is to gauge initial perception only at this stage.

My rating is based on the fact I don't think he will add much in terms of improving the first XI anytime in the first season, however will be a good value squad player. Shane Long but cheaper if you will.

 

10/10 signing - Alderwiereld

 

I would suggest that Bertrand has turned out to be a 10/10 also.

 

Get Ramirez to teach him...

 

Ramirez is a great example that's gone the other way as you suggest JFB, most would probably have initially rated him 8 or 9 based on what we knew when we signed him (established full international, lots of hype, Liverpool interested, Mark Lawrenson comments etc.), but looking back probably only worked out as about a 3 out of 10 signing.

 

I meant teach him the language,!

 

Or flog Ramirez and get David Salas back?

 

Ronald speaks fluent Spanish, as well as Dutch (obviously), Portuguese and English. It's no problem.

Jay Rod, for the record, is still mastering the English language, let alone the Spanish one.

 

Think of English and Dutch.

 

I perhaps had unreasonably high hopes for Bertrand. Unlike others on here, I thought he just needed the right club behind him. I took very little notice of his success rate at other loans and concentrated on what he was at Chelsea, where he was loved btw, which was pretty damned good, before he was displaced by another. To say that he exceeded my expectations, after a few games, would be an understatement. Overall, I thought he was the superior FB during the season, between Him and Clyne. As for being superior to Shaw from the previous season, that wasn't even in doubt. He was miles better simply because he had an end product to all his potential. Simply, he delivered. Brilliant.

 

Hmmmm, exactly, I think I posted something like completely underwhelmed when we signed Bertrand, and went on to say the signing was like winning a holiday only to realise you would be flying Malaysian airlines.

How wrong I was and feel like a right spanner now.

Trust in koeman and the black box