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Transfers January 2023 Transfer Thread. The Big One

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Zaniolo could backfire, but it feels like a potential Moneyball signing - perhaps not clicking for him currently and would be revitalised by a move like Kulusevski.

The ACLs are a bit scary but I gather there's every chance he could be totally fine from now on.
Two ACL injuries - he will likely never be the same player again and if so it would take a while and more from a mental perspective than a physical one. Surely a risk too far and in the light of all the juve dealings, a questionable dodgy deal...
 
Yes and no.... Yes that is my opinion; but no that was not my OG contradiction.



"Demonstrate" it then.

We were a constant top 4 team who were on the periphery of a title challenge, had an attractive manager at the helm & a London club with a core of really good footballers. We were an attractive prospect with pull.

Shall I name all the players transferred during that period who were gettable that could improve us? Because lots existed. At key points we had the likes of Sissoko starting games regularly, of course better options existed. Name me some other top 4 PL teams who operate on a 'oh we've got a good starting XI, no way Jose can we upgrade, Wanyama is the best DM we can possibly attract' policy.

As for affording it, yes we could. We were regularly spending negatively net spend wise & had a tiny wage bill relative to the top 4 whilst raking in CL money each season. We were not close to bankruptcy or struggling to manage the stadium payments, that is some heavy ENIC propaganda designed to justify a ridiculous level of austerity.
 
We were a constant top 4 team who were on the periphery of a title challenge, had an attractive manager at the helm & a London club with a core of really good footballers. We were an attractive prospect with pull.

Shall I name all the players transferred during that period who were gettable that could improve us? Because lots existed. At key points we had the likes of Sissoko starting games regularly, of course better options existed. Name me some other top 4 PL teams who operate on a 'oh we've got a good starting XI, no way Jose can we upgrade, Wanyama is the best DM we can possibly attract' policy.

As for affording it, yes we could. We were regularly spending negatively net spend wise & had a tiny wage bill relative to the top 4 whilst raking in CL money each season. We were not close to bankruptcy or struggling to manage the stadium payments, that is some heavy ENIC propaganda designed to justify a ridiculous level of austerity.

You said it was "demonstrable".....

Names and numbers would be a tangible basis for a case. "Trust me bro" isn't a particularly compelling "demonstration".
 
I'm unsure he'll play 3 5 2 but he could play either Kulusevski or Zaniolo as a AMF player.
Kulu is ideal there, but Zaniolo is more comfortable centrally.

This is a weird comparison given how big he is (t-minus a game and a half before game threads start calling him fat), but there's something a bit Lucas Moura-like with Zaniolo that puts me off. What I mean by that is that while he's very trick-and-flick-y, he's kind of equal measures clumsy and often wins duels by being so athletic he can react better than defenders to somewhat errant touches and bouncing balls.

Can he bully ball like that in the PL? Can his body handle him trying to bully ball like that in the PL?

Contrast that with Kulu and Benta who are above all else passers who exist to get the football to their teammates accurately and on time. Which was water in the desert for our passing-deficient squad at the time.

Porro is a guy who will improve the passing network over the current RWB options. Not sure Zaniolo does even as he brings other positive qualities as a dribbler and goalscorer.
 
You said it was "demonstrable".....

Names and numbers would be a tangible basis for a case. "Trust me bro" isn't a particularly compelling demonstration.

Yes, because it was. Unless you actually think Wanyama, Sissoko, Dier etc were the best CM/DM's we could possibly attract at any point and we never had the financial power or pull to possibly find a player in all of world football who could possibly upgrade on those phenomenons.

Southampton signed VVD in 15/16 .. upgrade. Leicester signed Kante in 15/16 .. upgrade. West Ham signed Payet in 15/16, borderline upgrade/absolutely a signing who would've pushed the XI. Go forward a bit and Liverpool signed Mane & Wijnaldum in 16/17 .. upgrades.
 
Doubt very much that we will end up fourth.
The team cannot defend for shit, how anyone thinks that is going to change I don't know.
A good GK can have a huge effect on a defence, giving them confidence and Raya has shown exactly that at Brentford.

Last season, when Raya was injured, they conceeded 29 goals in 14 games. When he was fit, they conceded 27 in 24.

Also having a GK with good distribution will mean less of the ball coming immediately back to us, taking some of the pressure off.

Porro would help take some of the pressure off too, since he can take the ball under pressure and progress it down the wing, hopefully giving us more attacking opportunities and less coming straight back to the defence.
 
We’re only 6 points behind Newcastle and ahead of Liverpool and Chelsea…

I genuinely think if we buy Raya and a CB this summer we can get top 4.

In a normal season yes, but something seems to be wrong behind the scenes. Conte not committing and also Kane running down his contract is causing some instability. Throw in the deterioration in Son's form, rubbish wing backs, lethargic first half performances, a team that is reactive and not proactive in the way it plays, I think the season might be a write off. It's not a happy ship that's for sure.
 
In a normal season yes, but something seems to be wrong behind the scenes. Conte not committing and also Kane running down his contract is causing some instability. Throw in the deterioration in Son's form, rubbish wing backs, lethargic first half performances, a team that is reactive and not proactive in the way it plays, I think the season might be a write off. It's not a happy ship that's for sure.
There's still a lot to play for.

Opportunities I also suspect we'll spurn, but opportunities all the same.
 
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