The Unreliable Rumours Discussion Thread (Part 1)

Klopp should pin this to the dressing room wall

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The problem I have with such a point of view is that they are presuming that such mega transfers will always be a success. Apart from my personal disdain for this ā€œGalacticosā€ thought process, only the oil clubs have shown that to achieve some level of success, and even that is tempered by the people they have making these decisions. We can look at these massive transfers and think, surely that will improve them massively, but how often does it really? Look at City, which have done better than most on that model, in part thanks to Guardiola and that myth surrounding them. Theyā€™ve literally spent hundreds of millions on full backs alone. No doubt some on here have been more than willing to write us off on that, but in the last 3 seasons alone, just luck and an incredible injury crisis have thrown us off. In contrast, United have spent like the proverbial drunken sailors, but with very little to show for it. Despite all of Chelseaā€™s spending, theyā€™re still back where they were without any of these transfers (and with Frank Lampard at that).

Lukaku is a scary prospect, yes, but will he actually fit in well with the rest of their team? And if so, who do they leave out to fit him in, and how much spending gets negated because of that? And what happens if he gets injured and they go back to square one? Grealish breaks transfer records, but does he play together with De Bruyne? Arguably Varane might be a good player, but one who hasnā€™t convinced over the last couple of seasons. And who are we left with, Sancho? I donā€™t know much about him and their forward line, but one game against Burnley and they might just have him out for an extended period of time.

In contrast, what weā€™ve done seems to be evaluating our current position, and determining that we donā€™t really need much of an immediate improvement. For all the chatter about KonatĆ©, Iā€™d be very surprised if the move wasnā€™t in the making for at least a year now, considering his age. Any incoming business we do now is likely to be supplementing the squad with younger options, who thanks to the possibility that they might not work out, probably wouldnā€™t impress as much with their price tags, unless they were already a big name. But if so, thatā€™s again putting too many eggs in one basket, which leaves us at risk once again.

The main areas we really need to improve in our squad genuinely remain getting more out of our current team. That means improving on the situations in which the likes of Origi and Shaqiri can be used if they stay (Iā€™m presuming Minamino is not leaving no matter what). Despite all the chatter about them, one reason why they, KeĆÆta, and Ox werenā€™t used that much last season was actually our defensive frailties and the need to be more conservative to compensate for that. Obviously work can be done to improve them in those areas. Origi for one has even started pressing. KeĆÆta probably needed more fitness and better timing, he was a star in the Bundesliga not just for his attacking prowess.

I would say we needed replacements for those players who are around the age of 30 and up, but it seems like preseason was where we found them. Iā€™m guessing Gordon featured a lot, even in place of other supposed first-teamers, just because we wanted to evaluate how he does in those situations, and to develop the plan for him better. We may well not need to buy any more new players to replace our forward line, because these replacements might already be here. Iā€™m guessing KonatĆ© is in part meant to be a Virgil replacement down the line, or more immediately, a a Matip replacement, rather than being a shoo-in for the first team. I would be more concerned about losing Wijnaldum, and having Thiago and Henderson aging, if not for the emergence of Jones and Elliott. The manager also seems to value the likes of Clarkson, Cain, and Woodburn, so we may well have held our hand with an eye on their potential future development. Theoretically, the replacements for Henderson and Thiago as starters are already here in the form of Ox and KeĆÆta, so itā€™s Fabinho I worry about the most.

Hot take, but I think Chelsea and United will end up no higher than 4th this season.

What a bunch.

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I wanted Daka, they are trying to get Doku!!! :man_facepalming:

Not surprised Warnock had us down in 3rd - heā€™s absolutely miserable everytime heā€™s on LFCtv :joy:

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Still bears a grudge maybe?

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No, I have no doubt heā€™s a fan. I think heā€™s just a massive pessimist.

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Thats a good thing in my opinion,
let the other the teams take all the pressure

Shearer has a piece on the BBC on how 1 signing may be the key to the title. Itā€™s about Lukaku. It is 9 paragraphs of him just finding different ways to restate that heā€™s a good player. The professions are mostly fucking idiots.

When you look at what a team has added from the previous year a new signing is exciting, but even the most expensive signing is less of a sure thing than someone like Virgil coming back. Itā€™s a question of a known quantity (questions about recovery accepted) vs imagination.

Ultimately no one at our club will give a fuck

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Is Lukaku really that much better now than he was when he wasnā€™t good enough for United?

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Iā€™m sure on LFC TV he said we would be champions during Osasuna game.

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Nope the slow pace of Italian football has inflated his performances he is still too slow and lazy.

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The thing I find amusing about the gushing over United is they have arguably the worst midfield off all the top 6. Would Fred, McTominay, Matic get in any other side not a chance. Iā€™ve not mentioned Pogba because there is no chance he doesnā€™t become a distraction during season like always.

Suspicious Monkey GIF by MOODMAN

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That Sergi Canos looks a good option for the Right Forward option. Have we been linked with him at any point?

:wink:

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LMFAO. I got to watch him play for Brentford 2 years ago as part of my visit to UK. 3 days before Anfield, I took my son to Brentford FCā€™s little stadium and saw them play Leeds. He had a bit of quality to him but wasnā€™t the best player on the pitch. Maupay was quality that day

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Maupay, Watkins, Canos, Toney - the scouts at Brentford certainly have an eye for a decent attacking player

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Watched him 4 or 5 seasons ago in a cup game and surprised no one had come in got him.

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Spoke to Sergi on a train a few years ago.He said heā€™d be back in the Premiership soon enough and that going down a league was just a temporary thing to get his career moving forward. Proven to be right so far.

Glad to see him score tonight, heā€™s a top lad.

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Do they have ā€˜scoutsā€™? Their owner has been quite active in using data and analytics I donā€™t know if they still have anyone functioning as scouts have traditionally done.

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