Transfer thread for 2016-17 season

Despite his brilliant form so far (although I do feel he's faded a bit), I think Wanyama was essentially signed as back up for Dier but due to the problems at CB and the fact Big Vic has been great, we're now looking at him as a first choice and rightly so.

Kessie I think would come in as the long term successor to Dembele judging from the very little I've seen of him - he's powerful, good with the ball going forward and can get stuck in - similar traits to Mousa. If what @humanbeingincroydon says becomes true, in that Kessie may not qualify for a WP until after the ACoN and so any deal for him wouldn't happen until the summer, I'd say it's a good option to pursue and ideal timing for him to come in if he's interested in joining.

I've been banging on about Mousa's injury problems over the past week or so but I feel it's a big topic for cause for concern. He'll turn 30 in July, his body won't heal as quickly as someone 5-6 years younger than him and so I can see any potential knocks hampering him even worse. During his time at the club he's often got a number of injuries, last season was his best to date in steering clear of them and he was immense, this season he's missed a load already (although partly due to suspension) and I feel it's hampering the rhythm of the side to be bringing him and losing him so frequently, he's also not been anywhere near as good as last season because of it.

With Winks constantly improving, Dier to come back into midfield when Toby's fit (or to change formation with 3 at the back), Wanyama being great and any potential deal for Kessie on the horizon, Poch may start thinking about the long term and therefore life without Mousa. It's a damn shame because when fully fit there aren't many better but it's hard to justify that comment when he's yo-yoing in and out of the side with knocks all the time.

 

At this rate the papers will only have Fazio left...

 

Incredible news. Without doubt the best in the league and one of the very best in the world.

 

The best in the league without doubt? De Gea? Cech? Certainly at a similar level.
Lloris is the best keeper we've had for years and is one of the best in the world, but he could still improve, in my opinion.
Very happy that he's signed a new deal, but his distribution still sucks, unfortunately. Near post still a weakness.

 

And he remains the least effective captain we've had in living memory imho.

 

And for all the great saves he makes, you know his limp wrists will throw one in at times. And although he's not bad, he's isnt the best at commanding his area cause he's fairly short for a keeper (or at least he looks it)

 

Doesn't prevent others from leading on the pitch, but I'm still not convinced that he's the best choice.
One of the problems with having such a young squad is that we don't really have an obvious one, though.
Alderweireld, maybe?

 

Totally disagree about him commanding his box. He killed a few people at first, now players don't go near him.
He's 6'2", by the way. About right, in my opinion. Big enough, but not so big that he can't get down quickly.

 

Fair enough, i don't see him as much as you do so i will take note. I just remember Brom throwing in the crosses and scoring from headers (although they do that to everyone).

 

Toby or Kane for me, with Lamela an outside shout. Although I've never liked wide players or strikers as captains - they spend most of the game outside of the areas where you really need a calm but authoritative presence; i.e. in and around your own box and in key central areas. It's why the vast majority of successful captains hail from CB or CM positions. So I guess Toby is the right choice.

 

Think these are the best options for you.

Lamela was an outside call for me as he's very passionate. The only thing about him being captain though is that:

1. he doesn't always start
2. he's still very rash with his challenges and is a walking red card at times. Is he the sort of character who can calm the team down when he's so wound up.

I think you could also make vertongen captain as well as he's been there for years.

 

For me, definitely without doubt.

Most of De Gea's shots are right at him and the media jump on it like he's pulled off Higuita's scorpion kick each time, he pulls off a great save every now and then don't get me wrong but he's not better than Hugo.

Cech is a great keeper and the only thing that puts Hugo above him for me is Hugo's ability to play the sweeper keeper superbly, there are very few that do what he can do and especially even fewer who do it as good. Both excellent keepers who make unbelievable saves and also bring out the best in their defence but Hugo just has that added ability that sets him apart.

Distribution is **** but we have excellent defenders who move the ball forward so they can mask over that most of the time. Near post weakness is just a bit of a myth in my eyes, we've conceded a few goals there and I think too many have jumped on it more than they should have. If we were to review goals that the top keepers have conceded, I'm sure every one of them - including the likes Neuer and Buffon who I deem the best two in the world - to have an area that they tend to concede most with, doesn't necessarily mean it's a weakness, just that there are only so many places the ball can be put and for Hugo he's been beaten at the near post more than other areas of the net.

 

Haven't watched Lloris as much as you guys have (MOTD mainly) but going to have to disagree with De Gea. He pulls off far more worldies than De Gea (see coutinhos strike).

This year De Gea has been poor though relative to his other years and let in a few soft ones. De Gea still isn't brilliant at commanding his area but for me is the best shot stopper in the league. Last year and the year before, i agree the strikers seem to shoot straight at him in 1 on 1s, but it kept happening and i believe that is down to how quick De Gea gets out and how big he makes himself as well as his positioning to the goal. It can't be a coicindence anymore in my eyes.

Cech again is brilliant because he pulls off top saves but he's very consistent in that he won't let in many soft goals. Still one of the best.

I think Lloris is the best keeper in the league at playing the sweeper keeper role. He makes great decisions and is so aware of where he needs to be but of the 3 i don't think he pulls off the best saves although he has made some cracking ones in his time.

Think Courtois should be getting a mention. Obviously he was terrible last year but that was more of a blip. This year he's back to his best. Still don't think he's anywhere in the class of de gea for worldie saves but he dominates the box so well

 

Toby should be our captain, surely.

Lamela is a good shout too. Think it would do him good....he's always up for a challenge. That's why I love seeing him in the big games, missed the pen against City...but wasn't going to shy away from wanting to take it. The added responsibility would probably focus him better.

 

Eric Dier for captain

 

That was a great save from De Gea but I do also feel a number of keepers could've stopped that, those sort of saves are - as the commentators say - "one for the cameras".

For me, the hardest shots to stop are the ones coming in low at power or deflected efforts which need quick position alterations, some of which Hugo has produced magnificent saves from. This season alone he stopped Charlie Daniels at near enough point plant range, the deflected shot from Aguero where it pinged off Alderweireld was incredible and then (although not Prem) the save against Leverkusen is arguably one of the greatest saves ever made.
Last season he also saved one from Bolasie that looked destined to go into the bottom corner, these are the types of saves that I feel 95% of keepers wouldn't be able to make and seeing as I'm fortunate enough to watch Hugo every other week down the Lane, I'm naturally going to bang on at how I feel he's the best, I'm sure Utd and Arsenal fans feel they see enough to say otherwise and that of course is fair.

Courtois is tough to judge, mainly because Chelsea have generally had an excellent defensive unit over the years he's been at the club so I feel he's had less to do than most keepers in his time in the league. Ironically last season, where in general the Chelsea squad and not just him underperformed, he was shown up a few times so perhaps he's not as good at being under pressure as other keepers?
His aerial presence is impressive but I can't think of too many saves he's made in which fans/ media have banged on about how world class it was. Though one thing he has over most is time, there's no doubt he can go on to become one of the very best but for now, the standout trio of Hugo, Cech and De Gea are in a class above in my opinion when it comes to Premier League goalkeepers, with Hugo edging it at the top, it's close but I do feel Hugo is without a doubt the top keeper in this league..

 

It's interesting talking of captains, I think it's somewhat of an overrated role to have because I don't think a captain will make a team play much differently, ultimately I think it comes down to the quality of the squad and manager which then determines if a captain is good or not based on the trophies they win or the position the team finishes in.

I mean what exactly does a "good" captain do that a "bad" captain doesn't?

For instance, those saying they'd rather Toby/ Lamela be captain, what would they do that Hugo can't?

In fairness to Hugo, he captained Lyon, is our current captain and is also his country's captain - it's not just luck that he's been given the armband at all three, he's clearly very well respected both on and off the pitch, he must be seen as an influential figure and leader.

 

It's worth pointing out that English fans have this weird obsession with who their captain is, while other countries don't bother: Spain usually just gave the armband to their oldest player, while Italy just let the players decide between them instead of foisting the armband on whichever player they feel should have it - while England seemingly give the armband to the player with the most sponsors, which would explain the baffling decisions to have Shearer, Beckham or Rooney as captain.

Personally I've never felt that a striker should captain the team, especially goal hangers like Shearer who do sod all when the ball is in the other 95% of the pitch, yet there's always exceptions to the rule, for example Francesco Totti - but it's worth remembering he wasn't an out-and-out striker, as he played in the trequartista role

 

I agree with you on the one hand despite what my previous post might have suggested. Especially if the captain is in goal, then outfield players have to step up and be vocal leaders too. You need them across the park and nobody should ever complain about a lack of leadership on a football pitch without first looking at themselves.

To be fair we have quite a few players - Dier, Kane, Lamela, Toby and Jan come immediately to mind - who I think we all feel can provide that. Hugo having the armband shouldn't stop them also taking a leading role. After all Hugo isn't the most vocal of players, he is when organising his defence, but I should think that one of the others would be more suited to taking the lead for the outfield players.

Is he an effective captain? I think he is, as you say he has held the position at multiple clubs and captains a leading footballing nation too so he must command the respect of his peers and the management teams he works with. He is also a very good figurehead for the club IMO.

In short I think if we're having leadership issues (especially during certain periods on the pitch) then it's hard to criticise a GK captain as its far from easy to have take control from his position. I'm all for him remaining as captain but I think others need to step up to help him out in certain situations. I can't see Poch discouraging this and hopefully as certain players mature, like Kane and Dier, they do this more effectively. We might reasonably expect more from Toby and Jan in some situations to be fair as they are both more experienced.

Following on from hbic's post I think Totti is a special case due to his status with Roma as a club, and I think the captaincy of national teams is a more fraught issue especially in this country. Way too much emphasis is placed on who the England captain is, and whether he is selected in the team or not. This whole "if he's captain he has to start" nonsense is damaging and its far more pronounced at England national level than at other countries or at club level for some reason.

 

Fair points but I think a good captain is essential for us. The way we dealt with being 0-2 up at Stamford Bridge showed exactly why we need a good captain. I've never seen Hugo in the middle of a melee, separating players either. This young squad needs in game management if you ask me.

I agree with you that it can be an overated position. However every team must have one...I prefer my captain to have certain leadership skills that can pull out even an extra 5 % out of me. A goalkeeper is a bit of a static position for me. He probably has to wait for a long delay if he thinks he needs to tell Kane to 'to look up a bit more' to want for a better example.

Schmeical, Oliver Kahn, Hugo.....there's a reason the first two could captain from goal....big gobby basterds....so I'd say there's is something to it.