The search for a new DM
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Why did Gakpo even play in MF when Jones was there? I like Gakpo, up front, but Jones finished the season as our best MF last season, he is obvs a better choice there than Gakpo.
Because Klopp?
He keeps making these weird selections.
Imagine Brighton’s scouting/transfer team as your financial advisers. Easy 10x for you.
€60million release clause
Martin Zubimendi is the Gen-Z Sergio Busquets at the heart of Real Sociedad’s midfield
Xavi hails Real Sociedad midfielder: Zubimendi's an extraordinary pivot
[article]The Barça coach has praised the La Real midfielder and made it very clear that he sees him as capable of integrating into the azulgrana's style of play. "Zubimendi is an extraordinary pivot. He dominates the game, the moments with and without the ball. He wins duels, he is an extraordinary player in that position. He understands the model we like at Barça," he stated. [/article]
Real Sociedad’s Martín Zubimendi: ‘Xabi Alonso is an idol, a role model’
[article]Former Premier League midfielder Xabi Alonso, who coached Zubimendi as a youngster, had previously spoken highly of him: “Martín’s a player all coaches would want. He’s generous, he always thinks more about his teammates than himself. He has that ability to generate play, to make those around him better, always offering solutions; to improve the move. He understands what the next step is before the ball gets to him. He has that ability to organise, the axis. I loved working with him.”[/article]
Martín Zubimendi: The Real Sociedad Midfielder Finding Stardom in Simplicity
[article]When compared against defensive and central midfielders since the start of last season, Zubimendi ranks in the top five players in La Liga for both duel (62%) and aerial duel (71%) win percentage.[/article]
[article]Since the start of last term, Zubimendi has completed 86% of his passes in La Liga, with an average of 51 attempts per 90. In a comparison among defensive and central midfielders in this period, it’s enough to put Zubimendi in the upper-right quadrant – the sweet spot of players who are both above-average in their activity as a passer and in their efficiency in doing so.
The 23-year-old has always been a tidy mover of the ball. That much was clear from his first season. And quite frankly, it’s no surprise for a player who has made it this this far having developed at Zubieta, where his coach in the B team was Xabi Alonso – the man who Zubimendi credits for his understanding of building play from the back. With the passing of the seasons, this education has been thrust against the realities of football at the top level, with lessons learned along the way but reinforced on the other side.
All of which leads us to the present version of Zubimendi: a player moulded in a specific technical form by a thorough education, who has now lived through and understands what it means to apply it in the most competitive scenarios.
After a century of games, he now plays with a composure that isn’t hurried by difficult periods of matches or the quality of opposition. It’s the combination of technical and mental skills to know that the most basic pass might be the best one in the moment, or even, deciding that a movement that doesn’t present him as a receiver of a pass might be more beneficial to the team’s possession. It’s the things that Vicente del Bosque previously referred to – the almost undetectable acts that the pivote leaves on a game.
For Zubimendi, whose trajectory as a player has been ascendant for three consecutive seasons, his next impending development will revolve around the variety of his passing. At the moment, he falls into the ‘sensible’ category rather than ‘determining’ as a distributor, although perhaps that’s tied to the reality of the position. What is clear, however, is that there’s some room for growth in his passing responsibilities – the type that could take him up a further level yet.
In typically attentive fashion, Zubimendi is aware of it and already in the process of diversifying his intentions. Since 2019-20, his first season with notable minutes, the percentage of his passes that are played forward has climbed in each of his four campaigns in La Liga. In the current season, over a third of Zubimendi’s passes are now being played forward (35%); the highest rate of any defensive or central midfielder with at least 500 minutes played.[/article]
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He'd be an interesting signing but don't think he wants to leave Sociedad who made it into the CL. Apparently has a 55M release clause, which would suit us well.
CuntFabrizio Romano?
The entire search and us making such a fucking big deal out of it is just fucking stupid. A DM is a fucking DM, - if a player has been in that position for one or two seasons in any of Europe's top leagues, and has specific qualities we are looking for then we should just identified and signed him as soon as Fabinho left. I think the problem we are having is this inverted bollox and how to use Trent which has blurred our vision and possibly Klopp's as to the type of so called DM we need. It's an absolute ballshit argument, - this is a position where we needed to take a risk - its not a creative, goal-scoring, last line of defense role. It's a joke that we are just hanging around like bozo's doing this thing. The minimum we should have bought in is Ibrahim Sangare with a £32M release clause. At least we have someone who has over 2 seasons experience in that DM role plus has played with Gakpo, and is physically well built replacement for Fabinho.
Our scouts are non-existent unfortunately and has been for 2 decades, a quick history lesson or recap would tell you that.
It's funny how our strategy in the market has always been "right player, right value" then go and throw 60m at Lavia and 110m at Caicedo, I know....makes no sense to me either.
If this is true - we are fucking shameless. The whole situation is now caused by the FSG Outers who want a statement signing - when in fact for a DM there is no such thing a statement signing - its the ugliest position on the football pitch.
Tchouameni has said no to us at least twice. Why are we targeting players who don't actually want to play for us?
Neither do I. Plus, they both started for Real on Saturday. They're not going anywhere.
We have been a fucking shitshow this summer.
This summer?
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