Transfer: Summer Transfer News and Rumors Part IV

[East Coast Bias]

Willian has the all time greatest PR team. Just world class.

 

[Havre]

Two goals and six assists is not bad for a 18-year old in his first Premier League season for a completely disfunctional side. Then there's the English tax.

But I don't think he is expected to contribute much at all yet for a club like Spurs. I'm not ruling out that he may become a fullback sooner or later. But as of right now he still has a lot of work to do if he wants to become one. Especially physically, which isn't always easy.

Not bad. He would do well at Brighton.

He would definitely have to bulk up to play as a FB, but the most important part is still body position. Even more so with VAR. Small players being showed out of the way will get many of those decisions in the favor after a VAR review as it is so difficult to evaluate the actual force of a show/tackle on video.

Unfortunately RS isn’t very good at body position either, but as Rose has shown that can be improved with time.

I don’t mind buying RS. He clearly has some potential, but it would surprise me if he would have any use as an attacker already next year. Full back against teams defending deeply I can see the use. He won’t be exposed in situations defensively he can’t solve with his pace. And he can whip the ball a lot better than Rose and Davies.

 

[Il Mediano]

Positional versatility isn't a bad thing at all for young players. Sometimes just getting onto the pitch is vastly more important for their development than a defined role/position.

By the time Sessegnon is like 21-23 you'd like to see him solidify a position, but until then, I don't see a problem.

Even if we're to look at Bale's career path, for instance, he started out as a fullback.

The real issue is paying big-time dough for an attacking talent, that will eventually just become a fullback. That's just something Spurs (or whoever) would need to feel comfortable projecting before investing significant cash.

 

[Havre]

Not sure it is versatility trying to figure out if he can be successful in a position he hasn’t played that much in.

If Spurs end paying around 25m for a guy that might end up playing LB. I would be ok with that. I honestly believe swapping full backs with Liverpool would tip the balance in Spurs’ favor. FBs are important players in today’s football.

 

[Il Mediano]

Yep, fullbacks are crucial. That's why you see Pep drop a billion on them.

I'm just saying the price you pay for someone you think can be an attacker is higher than what you'd pay for a fullback (in a vacuum).

I do know Sessegnon's only 19, though. As I said, it's up to the club purchasing him to be able to project him correctly.

 

[Jersey Fresh]

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

West Ham raiding La Liga it seems like.

 

[Jussi]

Would be an interesting deal. From what I've seen United values Pogba at something like 150m, so you'd figure it would be something like 90-100m + Cancelo is what United would ask for.

If you're referring to this: Man Utd slap staggering price tag on Pogba's head amid Real Madrid interest It seems mostly speculation by the author with no sources. The last official statement from a source was from OGS:

No, it doesn’t really concern me [Zidane’s comments] because my thought of action then is to sit down and speak to Paul,” Solskjaer said ahead of Tuesday's game at Wolverhampton Wanderers. “And I’ve had my chat with Paul and we're fine. He’s going to do his utmost here because he knows I'm very fond of him as a player and a person and he is important for us. There is no issue. He’s important here.

“I don't like to talk about other teams’ players, of course, but this is another challenge with international breaks - players are available all the time as well and it’s a different environment, more of a general talk.

“Paul is a very nice and polite man who then answered a general question ... Zidane is an icon in France, he is a fantastic manager, he used to be a fantastic player – I played against him myself - and he’s just politely answered that question.

“But Paul’s happy here, he’s going to be a big, big part [of the club’s future]. I have always said you would like to build your team round him and that hasn’t changed at all.”

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

Sounds like Ryan Fraser isn't keen on a Bournemouth extension.

 

[robertmac43]

 

[robertmac43]

Alexis Mac Allister is getting loaned back for another year to Boca Juniors. Unfortunate as I was really hoping to see this guy in action this coming season.

 

[Il Mediano]

Alexis Mac Allister

No idea who that is, but any Argentine with the surname 'Mac Allister' is intriguing.

 

[gary69]

No idea who that is, but any Argentine with the surname 'Mac Allister' is intriguing.

I somewhat remember his dad Carlos MacAllister played for Argentina in the 1990's.

 

[Jersey Fresh]

Don't see much in this really. No way West Ham sell him this summer unless Diop agitates for a move (which I don't think he will, not yet and not really his style). And they definitely won't sell without already having a replacement lined up. They should already be prioritizing another CB as is.

Turning £22M into £60M+ in one season would be a nice piece of business, though.

 

[Il Mediano]

lol... United.

They should be getting Diop before he goes to West Ham and they hold him to ransom.

 

[Jersey Fresh]

lol... United.

They should be getting Diop before he goes to West Ham and they hold him to ransom.

And what's funny, just based on cursory scanning of Man Utd fans on twitter, they're actually upset with the link

Absolutely clueless. Diop took a little while to get going and his form dipped a bit towards the end of the season, but he's so young and has fantastic potential, with great leadership qualities.

 

[East Coast Bias]

lol... United.

They should be getting Diop before he goes to West Ham and they hold him to ransom.

I just said the same in a group text with friends.

But yeah, as @Jersey Fresh says I would be all over this. Would much rather pay more for Diop than f***ing Mcguire

 

[Duchene2MacKinnon]

It’s actually a tragedy the likes of west ham raid Villarreal.

 

[Il Mediano]

West Ham's oddly been conducting pretty decent business in the last few windows.

-Anderson
- Diop
- Fornals
- Fabianski
- Yarmolenko (got hurt, so it's too soon to say)

But not bad, really. Honestly not too shabby.

I actually really like Pellegrini as a manager too, tbh.

 

[Il Mediano]

And what's funny, just based on cursory scanning of Man Utd fans on twitter, they're actually upset with the link

Yeah, I hope United fans don't take this too personally, but it's because a large portion of that fan base thinks of the transfer window like they're playing FIFA Career Mode.

 

[Gecklund]

Yeah, I hope United fans don't take this too personally, but it's because a large portion of that fan base thinks of the transfer window like they're playing FIFA Career Mode.

Hey I just sold all the dead weight and bought Skriniar, Pepe, Bruno Fernandes, Meunier, Onana, Partey, Barella, James, and Chiesa in one window. Why can’t United do it?

 

[Jersey Fresh]

West Ham's oddly been conducting pretty decent business in the last few windows.

-Anderson
- Diop
- Fornals
- Fabianski
- Yarmolenko (got hurt, so it's too soon to say)

But not bad, really. Honestly not too shabby.

I actually really like Pellegrini as a manager too, tbh.

Actually tragic.

Pellegrini and Husillos really are building well, though. There is a clear method being applied, which is so refreshing from the brainless scattergun approach when David Sullivan was trying his best Jerry Jones impression. No more retread 30-year-olds being signed at big wages because they were decent 5 years ago. Pellegrini is being supported well in terms of finances it has to be said, so I'll give the Davids some credit in that regard. There will have to be some fringe players off-loaded to finance a lot of this summer's business (assuming/hoping there are more incomings), but the squad needs some trimming in any event.

More attention needs to be paid to the backline this window.

 

[JeffreyLFC]

lol... United.

They should be getting Diop before he goes to West Ham and they hold him to ransom.

Well to be fair many people said the same about Liverpool and Southampton.
They could easily have got Mane, Van dijk before paying premiums to get them.
That being said playing at middle table team is also better for young talent to develop their game.

 

[Il Mediano]

Well to be fair many people said the same about Liverpool and Southampton

Can't say I was in tune enough with the narrative around that time. I'll take your word for it.

hey could easily have got Mane, Van dijk before paying premiums to get them.

True, but they also paid for those guys after multiple established seasons in the Prem. Everyone and their mother knew how good van Dijk was. He was immense. Diop ain't close to that yet, and he's rumored at 15 less million. That's the difference here.

That being said playing at middle table team is also better for young talent to develop their game

Really it's a case-by-case thing. I don't think that's true as a blanket-statement rule. Would TAA have developed better at Newcastle?

United's been playing the likes of Rojo, Smalling, Jones....and going nowhere. For me, I'd much rather be playing Diop and allowing him to grow. They're not winning **** with their current veterans on defense, so I really can't think of a good counter-argument.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Seems like they bought way too much into the narrative that the "inexperience" of their back line was what cost them the title this year instead of examining other explanations like player fatigue/tactics/etc. And it's not like the same people who like to explain results primarily through the lens of leadership/attitude/experience weren't ruthless toward Hummels when he was in Dortmund for exactly those reasons.

I think he could perform ok for Dortmund I just don't see it anywhere near worth sinking all this money in wages and transfer fee that they won't recoup into a 30 year old player. I said the same about Witsel, but we'll have to see how that looks in years 3 and 4 too.

I think you are exactly right about the reasoning. They are probably saying that we need Hummels back because the young CB's aren't good enough to lead us to a title. That wasn't the problem, and I think most know it. Its their money, not mine, so I'm not going to complain about bringing in Hummels for 20M+bonuses. Thats very cheap, and I have to imagine he's taking a pay cut on the wages from his Bayern contract.

We'll now have to see what happens next. Is Hummels going to be made to earn his spot? Hummels of the past few seasons isn't a top level CB. I wouldn't want to impede the development of Zagadou, who could be the best CB's in the Bundesliga with a little more development. We bought Balerdi, and now he'll never see the pitch. Diallo is not a 4th choice CB, and will probably need to be sold. We aren't going to get worse and the fee isn't that big, but if they were going to make any additional transfers this summer, it should've been a CF like Haller. I wouldn't be surprised if the hierarchy pushed for it, and Favre liked the idea because it takes away the funds for adding an additional CF, which many outlets say he doesn't want to add.