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Football: “WHAT THE F*CK WAS THAT”?


AncalagonTheBlack

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4 hours ago, Mark Antony said:

I think with Van Dijk that game finishes 4-2.

I think with Kompany and Mendy that game finishes 1-2 :P. David Silva apparently dropped to the bench due to a stomach bug. Very good as Gundogan is, City would have kept the ball better in deep midfield with Silva in, which is vital to the system.

I do think Liverpool could be a league title threat next season with Keita's arrival alongside a top keeper. Maybe one or two other smart acquisitions too could make all the difference.

 

On a different note, how good might Chelsea be if they'd given more chances to De Bruyne and Salah?

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Looks like Walcott to Everton is happening.

It makes sense for Everton. Given they're likely to have either Rooney or Sigurdsson at 10 and a target man upfront in Tosun a goal scoring wide player with the pace to run in behind seems like a useful addition.

It's not exactly a surprise Walcott's leaving Arsenal, it seems like he's been on the verge of it for years, but given he scored 19 goals last season for them it's a little odd he doesn't seem to have been in the plans at all for this season. I wouldn't say it's a bad decision but it does feel like another move which could have been resolved in the summer. 

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3 hours ago, JordanJH1993 said:

 

Your lots transfer policy does seem weird. I can't believe a club of Chelsea's stature are seriously considering Andy Carroll. Is Batshuayi really that bad? I don't see Hazard wanting to renew his contract if this keeps up either. Conte probably desperately wants out as well.

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31 minutes ago, Consigliere said:

Your lots transfer policy does seem weird. I can't believe a club of Chelsea's stature are seriously considering Andy Carroll. Is Batshuayi really that bad? I don't see Hazard wanting to renew his contract if this keeps up either. Conte probably desperately wants out as well.

Even when the board had someone with football knowledge in it (Emelano) their transfer policy was weird, so without him, it can only be worse.

I mean no disrespect to Carroll, who I like as a West Ham, mid table kind of player, but whoever came up with the idea that we should sign someone who has scored twice this season and can’t get into West Ham’s starting XI clearly doesn’t have a clue about how to fix the problems in our squad. If we sign him, at best, he might contribute 5 goals. We need a striker to score 10+ and be there for the long term.

I don’t think Batshuayi is that bad. He’s strong, quick, good in the air and a decent finisher. One problem is he can be a little over zealous, but you would be if you only had cup matches and five minutes here and there to stake a claim.

I’ve said before that I think he isn’t being given chances due to him being a club signing that Conte definitely had no say in. Batshuayi is the scapegoat for Conte’s problems with the board and their transfer policy.

The negativity that emits from Conte has to be bringing the players down. It doesn’t take a genius to know he’s not going to be here next year. Add that to the fact we are out of the title race, and you could see why these players might be demotivated.

Though the grass may not be that much greener at Real Madrid for Hazard. Zidane is his idol; if he’s sacked, we might be able to hold onto him this summer for another season. But I still think he and Courtois have their minds in Madrid already.

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1 hour ago, ljkeane said:

Looks like Walcott to Everton is happening.

It makes sense for Everton. Given they're likely to have either Rooney or Sigurdsson at 10 and a target man upfront in Tosun a goal scoring wide player with the pace to run in behind seems like a useful addition.

It's not exactly a surprise Walcott's leaving Arsenal, it seems like he's been on the verge of it for years, but given he scored 19 goals last season for them it's a little odd he doesn't seem to have been in the plans at all for this season. I wouldn't say it's a bad decision but it does feel like another move which could have been resolved in the summer. 

Walcott makes sense in the short run, I guess. Way more so than continuing with Aaron Lennon. 

I hope we can keep Vlasic and Lookman interested, and I wonder what this will mean for Sigurdsson/Rooney. Walcott will take one wing, Bolasie the other, and there’s not room for both 10s in the center. And both Vlasic and Lookman are potential future wingers, while Bolasie and Walcott are the «now» - but not for more than two-three seasons max.

Will see how this shakes out.

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1 hour ago, JordanJH1993 said:

Though the grass may not be that much greener at Real Madrid for Hazard. Zidane is his idol; if he’s sacked, we might be able to hold onto him this summer for another season. But I still think he and Courtois have their minds in Madrid already.

I think Real will come in for Hazard at the end of the season. It looks like Ronaldo has started his decline and Benzema has been in decline for over a year already - Zidane's stubborn refusal to drop the latter resulted in Morata leaving which has been a big mistake. There are rumours that Real are considering triggering Icardi's release clause. If Zidane is sacked then maybe either Courtois or DDG will be targeted as well - think the only reason Real didn't renew their pursuit of DDG is because Zidane likes Navas and winning CL titles gave Zidane some pull. Courtois is probably the more realistic target though. Given 'faxgate' and how Real jerked us around over Morata, it seems bridges have been burned.

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Not if Real switch back to a 4-3-3 and bring in Icardi as well.

 

This slipped my mind. Doesn't look like Real will target either Courtois or DDG as Marca reported recently that Kepa Arrizabalaga from Athletic Bilbao is the primary GK target and Marca are basically Real Madrid's mouthpiece.

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Having not signed any Galaticos in a few seasons, I would not be surprised if Real Madrid splashed out on Hazard, Courtois, Icardi and a few others all in one window.

I’d say Courtois is a certainty to be at the Bernabau next season, given that his ex partner and kids live there. 

 

I don’t think Hazard will replace Ronaldo, though, Polish. The current Ronaldo we are seeing is just a goalscorer. Yes, he’s not doing that well in the league, but his goal rate in the CL is still excellent this season. If Real Madrid sign Icardi or another centre forward, I’d say they’d be more of a replacement for Ronaldo, as they’d be trying to replace his goals. I can’t imagine many scoring the amount of goals peak Ronaldo scored a season, but they can try!

Hazard would actually be more of a replacement for Benzema or Bale, if he’s sold. Neither Benzema or Bale can achieve Ronaldo’s goal count. At best Benzema was around at 30 goals in all competitions striker, but he scorers fewer goals these days. Bale is more around 20. In Hazard’s best season at Chelsea he scored 19 in 52, so he’s never been a regular scorer, but you’d think his numbers would bump up just by playing for Real Madrid. He might finally reach well beyond 20, maybe 30.

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31 minutes ago, Consigliere said:

Ornstein reporting that the deal involving Sanchez and Mkhi will be a straight swap with no cash involved. Good deal for United if this ends up being the case.

A far better deal for Man United than Arsenal. That nearly makes up for the fact Man United will be paying him £350k a week. Still think that’s an extraordinary weekly wage for Alexis even by Premier League standards.

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6 minutes ago, JordanJH1993 said:

A far better deal for Man United than Arsenal. That nearly makes up for the fact Man United will be paying him £350k a week. Still think that’s an extraordinary weekly wage for Alexis even by Premier League standards.

Makes it worth it if we don't have to pay a transfer fee though. Zlatan will be leaving at the end of the season and Carrick retiring so that alleviates the wage bill quite a lot although wages are not a problem for United given the clubs revenue. Despite having the biggest wage bill, the wages are still 50% (or less) of revenue. I suspect Mkhi and Raiola might be paid off as well but not having to pay a transfer fee makes this deal quite a bit less expensive for United.

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4 hours ago, Consigliere said:

Anyone other than Ornstein and I would have been calling bullshit. Don't know how Arsenal can go from £35m asking price to straight swap. 

Didn’t see it on his Twitter. Did you see it somewhere else?

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