We have cover at full back, are you suggesting it isnt enough, or that we sell what we do have in order to strengthen elsewhere?
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I’m saying that whether we win the bastard next year will have far less to do with going out and winning the transfer window than it will to do with whether we can get Virgil, Gomez, Matip, and Hendo on the pitch, whether we can get our forwards scoring again, and whether we can stop being so badly fucked by VAR.
Alison was in the side that failed to win the title. So it is not just technically correct, it is my entire point. I’m not saying signings are not consequential. I’m saying that rarely is the difference between a good side winning the title or not down to the specific set of signings made in that summer.
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The former.
I think ARDs point (which I agree with) was that in Alisson’s first season, we might not have won the league, but we put in a league winning campaign. We posted the (then) third highest ever points total, lost one game all campaign jumped from fourth to second and added 22 points to our total.
We didn’t win the league, but we would have done in any other year except the two that City notched at the same time.
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So, it’s almost as if some other more esoteric factors played a big role in who won the title. I wonder if anyone has mentioned that?
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But the improvement was created and a large amount of that was the fantastic recruitment we did that Summer, 6 months before and 12 months before that. The team that beat us unfortunately also always do a lot of targeted recruitment most seasons too. I’m not saying recruitment is everything but it’s stretching believability to not accept it is a major factor. Especially with a recruitment team that gets it brilliant or at least acceptable as often as ours.
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Cool. Good job no one has said that.
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I think the signing of the world’s best DM, the world’s best GK, not to mention the world’s best centre back half a season earlier, was somewhat decisive in moving the team to league winning form in the 2018/19 season.
That they didn’t end up with the shiny thing might be down to ‘esoteric’ factors. I’d use the word ‘cheating’ personally.
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I think they became that when they came here, among the best in their positions. Though it also depends who and when.
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Trying to decipher The Boss’s words about the squad next season and I don’t know what to think about any possible outgoing or incoming. He keeps saying we will figure this out together. And given his loyalty to players and stick by them, I can see him wanting to give these boys a chance to fix it themselves.
I think Shaqs is the only player nailed on to leave. Other than that, I can see everyone back as is. Ox maybe if he wants regular first team football.
With the crash in finances, and Jota being rotated in more it’s hard to imagine JK wanting to bring another forward in. For me, almost unthinkable actually.
I think he wants to keep the core team. But I don’t think he wants to keep the fringe players. It will be difficult to offload both Keita and Oxlade Chamberlain, but at least one of them alone with Origi, Shaqiri, and perhaps Takumi wouldn’t be in his plans.
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The Boss was saying today the players coming back from injury are the first transfers. Sounds like we will keep the squad relatively intact. And that’s a good thing!
Been thinking about it and I’m of the opinion we don’t need to spend this summer. Save the funds for next Summer. It will be quite a full squad with everyone back and will give JK some good options to work with.
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Need a Phil. We severely lack someone who can shoot from long range. Trent’s got a while to go still.
A proper pre-season will fix a lot of issues. That and some squad depth in CB’s.
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My view is that you need to refresh. Bring in one or two players with quality, and that boosts the competitive nature of the squad.
Plus, we need to decide who is good enough to step in for moments in a season.
Origi? No
Grujic? Debatable
Wilson? No
Ox? Debatable
Shaqiri? Debatable
A few leave, add Milners age, Keitas absences and there is a need to buy.
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He says all the right things but no one can convince me that he doesn’t look at the players on the bench and think about how ineffective they’ve been for quite a while. In terms of sheer numbers, it shouldn’t be difficult to upgrade on Origi and Shaqiri (stylistic fit should be the bigger issue, I guess) but his quotes suggest that he’s aware that he needs to sell some players before buying others. These two were cheap squad players anyway, it’s Keita and AOC who have been the real disappointments so far.
Edwards will have to get creative, it really is ironic that he has plenty of players for sale who actually aren’t bad, quite the opposite, but no market for them. And it’s not like he needs to raise enough money for a raft of new players, two or three right ones should do the trick. Oh, where are Bournemouth and Crystal Palace when you need them…
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They have a host of players with contract expiring this summer. Origi would be an upgrade over Benteke.
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Let’s pray Bournemouth get through the play-off’s. Our season could depend on it!
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Or Eddie takes charge of a PL club.
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Maybe we could do a bundle offer? Origi, Wilson, Mini, Shaq, Gruic and the Ox. For £100 mil? that is a front six that could challenge for a top 10 PL spot right there.
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