Naby KEITA: 2021/22

He’d probably already be gone by now if there was an offer like that in some of the previous windows.

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I think @Euphoria is talking about the £50m we paid for him.

Difficult to say how much he is worth now.

I think the club is prioritizing a contract extension.

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Given his injury record, we’ll be lucky to get £20 million.

That money is paid and gone, so thinking about that isn’t helpful. His book value next year will be around £10-15m and given his fitness record we’re unlikely to see much more than that if we sell.

It’s better to think what we can get from him in his last year of his contract and compare that with the cost of replacing him with similar quality.

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Well we are going to have to end up replacing him anyway and his replacement is likely to cost around about the same whether we sell Keita for whatever we can in the summer or lose him for free the summer after. Somethings better than nothing. If he’s willing to move elsewhere this summer we’d be crazy not to take what we can get. It’ll help pay towards his replacement and get a high earning, under performing (at least in terms of games played) player off the wage bill. That could be the difference in wages required to bring in a new star attacker or to extend Salah or Manes deal. Too many resources are being put into Keita. He’s a good guy and he plays well but he just doesn’t play often enough for that.

Why sell him at all? He’s a brilliant player.

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Because having him in a squad with size limitations can stop us buying another brilliant player who can play for us more regularly?

Because keeping him on the wages might stop us being able to increase the wage bill enough to keep someone like Salah for longer?

Because whether we sell him or not he is due to leave us by 2023 at the latest we just won’t get anything for that departure?

Or we can extend his deal, keeping him on his current wages (which he doesn’t really justify right now) hopefully but probably have to give him a payrise. But that’d throw the meritocracy of our wage structure into even more flux.

We are already having to replace other players in the summer , so as always it comes down to available resources. Paying more on a replacement for Keita than we sell him for pulls resources away from elsewhere for what is essentially a backup player. The case can of course be made but needs to be seen in the context of resourcing, and not based on price anchoring/sunk costs.

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Nobody significant is out of contract this summer needing an expensive replacement. Then it comes down to the guys like Keita that contracts end the summer after. I’d prefer to be keeping someone like Firmino for his final year to leave on a free than Keita for instance if that’s the choice. At least Bobby would be available more.

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Especially since the tactical switch allowing the right sided ‘8’ more attacking freedom. We’ve had a few examples so far this season of him excelling in that role, we’ll struggle to find a better player to take over.

If we’re going to continue with this system, Keita’s definitely worth sticking with even despite his problems. The quality and composure he’s shown so far in that role is far beyond what Henderson and Chamberlain have demonstrated. Elliot too, but to a lesser extent.

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His friend/agent would probably advise him to run down his contract.

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I pretty much disagree with all of this. He isn’t stopping us from signing anyone else by remaining here, or paying higher wages to the likes of Salah. We are already expecting Origi and Milner to leave so we already have an opportunity to upgrade - and space to do so. Given his contract is nearly 5 years old, I very much doubt it is out of line with more recent contracts.

Again, losing him on a free, in isolation, isn’t an issue. That decision has to be considered across the squad and resourcing as a whole.

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Hasn’t he been doing that since he arrived?

He is neither his friend nor his agent.

He was a youth team coach of his in Guinea prior to Keita moving to Europe.

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Hey! That doesn’t fit the agenda!

Yeah I am :+1:t3:

I’d be surprised if he signed a new contract really. Even with his injury rate he is still not a starter. Then again what other big club will take him so he might have to take what he’s given if so. Personally if I knew he wouldn’t be signing a new deal. I’d try move him on this summer to get something for him, because he hasn’t provided enough in one season ever for us to be worth losing out in 20ish million.

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Even just his final years wages will cost us somewhere between £5m and £8.5m. That’s the payrises needed to extend Salah and Manes deals or the wage for a young up and coming midfielder AND the extension for one of our star players.

When it comes to the decisions on whose contracts to extend, keep regardless even if losing for free or sell out of those due to expire in 2023 my priority list is;

Salah
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.
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Mane
Firmino
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.
.
.
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Keita
Ox

I really like Ox and Keita and both have potential (if not quite consistency) to play well for us when on the pitch. But Salah head and shoulders has to be the priority and then Mane and Firmino are miles ahead of the two CMs still after that.

The issue with our midfield is the older guys like Thiago, Henderson and Milner (if all still here next season onwards) are going to need more breaks and rests as they get older. That means more responsibilities falling on the shoulders of those below which should be the slightly younger group of Fabinho, Keita and Ox. But Keita and Ox have such bad availability they can’t be relied upon to be there when the chips are down. They’re just bonus players to be a nice extra when available. That’ll mean the responsibility falling to the likes of Elliott, Jones and Moreton who all just need to get on with their games and be free to develop.

Be like Insua and Aurelio all over again.

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He has now been unavailable for 60 games out of 177 since he joined and thats not counting the times he has been a healthy scratch.

Welcome back Naby. :palms_up_together: :pray:

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