Unfortunately players and their agents are very powerful and can cause issues for clubs trying to keep them . Maybe get Pedro back on loan ? That might be part of any deal ..
He should be allowed to sign permanently somewhere as he is just loaned everywhere. Same with Peñaranda.
I was very concerned when I read your comment, oldfrenchorn, but is it possible you may have misheard or misread this piece of information? The only report I can find or have heard on Sky Sports is that talks are going on amongst the Newcastle hierarchy about whether to make a second offer for João Pedro. Various football sites have reported that Watford have indicated that they are prepared to accept £30 million, that they will not start talks at less than £35 million (originating from a twitter post by Louorns), that Watford will not sell him for less than £40 million or that the official club position is that João Pedro is not for sale.
The Football Insider site "revealed on Monday night (15 August) that the north-east giants had submitted an opening £20 million bid for the striker but Watford are holding out for £30 million." Pete O'Rourke has reported in Football Insider that Newcastle United are ready to submit a new bid for Joao Pedro of £25 million plus add-ons. He also mentioned this potential new bid on his twitter feed, which has then been repeated by other sources. He is clearly a very well informed sports journalist because he also wrote in the same report: "Pedro joined Watford from Brazilian club Fluminense in the summer of 2020 and has three more years on his contract." João Pedro actually joined Watford in January 2020 and he extended his contract until 2027 in 2021. How reliable are these reports if the sports journalists can not even get basic details correct?
It has always been thus though for Watford - think about the lazy journalists and their 'managerial revolving door' comments of recent years, or their taunts of 'long ball Watford' during GT's first spell. There's a good reason for the 'lazy' description - it's because they mostly all are.
Not one of the best buys we’ve made . Maybe sums up the transfer business last season ! At 24 could have been useful long term but seems to be injured so often . https://www.owngoalnigeria.com/2022...xe-at-watford-over-persistent-injury-worries/
There's more to it than that, it's alleged elsewhere. Dodgy agent, dodgy personal documentation. Contract may be ripped up. Hopefully all rumours!
Yes seems to be doubts about his age so people jump on that and use it as another stick to beat the club and management about .
There is a possibility that Mogi Bayat could be prosecuted for falsifying documents relating to Samuel Kalu when he was transferred to Bordeaux from Gent in 2018. This link (in French) was posted on another forum. https://girondins4ever.com/breves/2...ansfert-de-samuel-kalu-aux-girondins-en-2018/
Oh dear - that is worrying. The media will be all over us if we are connected to someone with a criminal charge against them .
And he was a child when all that happened too so wasn’t down to him . The people who were trafficking ought to be in bother .
Who is to say Kalu wasn't a child when he originally came to Europe? In my work I've come across many cases, some amusing that the docs were so rubbish! A young lad with docs showing his age at 47! Another on a special tier visa, only used for elite athletes, he was a cleaner. A woman who it turned out had docs of a legal person but had been stolen and copied approx 10 times according to the authorities. It's happening all the time. Maybe all the info coming out about Kalu is nothing and everything is completely legit. I hope so.
Samuel Kalu was 18 years old (if it is correct that he is now 24 years old) when - in December 2015 - he joined Slovak side AS Trenčín from their partner club, the GBS Academy, in Jos, Nigeria. The article (in the 'girondins4ever' link) mentions that a false certificate from the Nigerian Football Federation, relating to international appearances, was provided when Kalu was signed by Bordeaux in 2018, but there is mention of falsifying his age. One of the central characters of the investigation by the Federal Prosecutor's Office is Mogi Bayat, football agent.
Do you know the team put out? Probably quite weak as a number of the younger and fringe players will be involved tomorrow night I think.
