Sorry but it is nonsense to think it is an either or of signings or organic improvement. Some people seem to act like that is true with regards to favouring signings, but someone who rejects that doesnt require them to then also reject the benefit of good signings.
You asked where the improvement was going to come from over last season if we dont sign someone. Gravenberch improving his status within the group is just one example of where the massive potential for organic growth in this group is.
Iāll be honest if soneone had told me a few months ago that the only signing at this point would be a GK for the future, I would have been surprised.Iām sure all you people saw that coming, I didnāt. Still a few days and no itās not the end of the world if nothing happens and might be the right decision in the long run.
The only spots we need upgrades in for this season are at CB and #6.We tried for a 6 and didnāt get the one we wanted in,maybe we have our eye on someone who is better chased in Jan or next summer.At CB bar Virgil the other 3/4 can be upgraded on but as it is they are still very good options to have.
If we were to get 1 upgraded CB in before the window closes then we should be set to rival both city and arsenal.If we donāt iām quite happy to wait and see how well Slot can do with what we have.I think he,and those players, may just surprise us.
No, you have clearly not read my earlier posts and started an argument over Grav as the messiah and then diverged it into organically improving players vs signings which isnāt the opinion I have been implying in my previous posts. The question I had raised was the argument posted here by some that the club cannot find players who can be an improvement on our current squad.
This whole point of organically improving him wouldnāt have even been there if he had departed . It also throws an opinion , he wasnāt in the managerās plans. Itās only because the deal fell through for Zubi and the club had no alternatives lined up, at this stage of the window, thatās why solutions had to be looked inside. The coachās hand was forced into this. You do realize that.
The summary is club has not set itās priorities right , and now the coach was pushed into a position where the solutions had to be looked inside.
And, Lastly, even if I let go of this whole argument that there is no player on this planet available at the right price, the right percentage improvement, the right age , etc , The fact is , the contracts for the players who are here should have been the first thing sorted this summer, thatās just unacceptable. Period. Sign the ones who are here atleast !!
He didnāt say transfer donāt improve a team, he said itās not the only way. We failed to get Zubimendi, who we clearly considered an improvement over our current options, and so we pushed forward with the options we do have - Gravenberch, being used in a new role, emerging as the best of those ahead of Endo as pre-season went by.
Our team got better organically but it doesnāt necessarily mean it is as good as it would have been if Zubimendi came in.
āThe Grav narrativeā comes from the fact that he has been among our best players in the first two games. This from someone who you described as someoneā¦
who could not get into the starting 11 consistently last year.
I raised that solely to address a limitation your prior statement that we were only 3rd best last year and that not buying is standing still. Even Klopp himself was saying last season that we wont start seeing the best of this new group until this season. Grav is just one of 5 or 6 reasons we should expect organic growth from within the existing group to move us forward from last year as opposed to that just being āstanding stillā.
I fully acknowledge it is a reasonable position to think this by itself is not enough to close the gap and so understand the desire to see it supplement by a new signing or two. I myself am a little surprised we are where we are in this window, but not THAT surprised because Hughes tried to warn us that back in June or July it would be a slow/quiet window with the potential for some activity late in August. I would like to see something happen between now and the end of the window but if they decide it is better to wait I can buy that too. I think the over riding philosophy we have for transfers is to do everything we can to reduce the chance of doing the wrong move and with a new manager, new coaching team, and Hughes being new to the club all happening at the same time you can understand how the pool of players they are confident in spending money on this soon is small, and that we might reasonable think weāre likely to spend our money better if we wait 6 months or until next summer for everyone to get a clearer view on what we have and what needs to be changed.
Wow. Do people really think we would let go of one of the best central midfield prospects in the world after just one year? Gravenberch is at least the third or fourth choice central midfielder, behind only Mac Allister and Szoboszlai. Heās clearly higher in the pecking order than Endo and Jones. Thereās no way we cut our losses after just one year, especially since he wasnāt bad at all last season.
Further to what others have said on your other points, this point is simply wrong. New contracts are not, or at least should not be handled in isolation to other decisions in regards to the squad, particularly when a new coaching team have arrived.
And are not something that can be done unilaterally. We have to accept that all 3 players are reasonable in wanting to take a pause on what this new era looks like before committing to it.
I love Bennacer at Milan. Going back even to the Athur move, he seemed like a great fit for what we seemingly wanted. Every year since we have continued thinking about adding a player to midfield who sits deep and is the guy a lot of the attacks start through and he has, to my knowledge, never been mentioned as an option weāre considering. I am left to conclude that either they dont know about this guy with nearly 200 serie A and 50 international appearances, or they dont rate my opinion on my evaluation of players as much as I do.
And weāre to believe that with all those tools, facilities and professionals theyāre both unable to find an upgrade on Tsimikas and their decision making is infallible and beyond question.
Might as well close half the threads on here and just have on entitled ātrust them they know more than you.ā
