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Top 4 Rivals : Transfers and Discussion

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Not a single lesson learned
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Not a single fuck given by any liverpool supporter
 


Ouch… what a disaster. The thing about Lukaku is that a successful spell at Inter convinced him that he was now a “complete striker” and the return to Premier League clearly showed that he is anything but - even his biggest defenders now pretty much assume that Lukaku is only useful in a narrow set of circumstances or in a specific system, they just blame Chelsea/Tuchel for not changing their system to suit him.

I do think this gets done - Tuchel has been given full control of Chelsea’s transfers under the new ownership and he clearly cannot work with Lukaku. Maybe Bayern will also be interested as they need a replacement for Lewandowski.
 
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Regarding Tuchel and full control of Chelsea's transfers. Thats surely not a good move by them and might actually set them back instead of getting closer to us and City.

 
Regarding Tuchel and full control of Chelsea's transfers. Thats surely not a good move by them and might actually set them back instead of getting closer to us and City.

I interpreted it as more of a case of the manager getting consulted properly rather than just being presented with signings as has often been the case at Chelsea.
 
The Redcafe Transfer forum is a real basket of hope, light & love 😛

This is just one page of 13 in the "Have We Signed Anyone Yet' thread.

With so many players kicking and screaming to not sign for the club, we don’t have many options

I suspect this is the summer the last decade of utter fecking incompetence from Ed and his crew sets in. 4 years ago losing out to Liverpool and Spurs for a top target was unthinkable. We went toe to toe with Pep’s City on a regular basis. This summer everyone we’re linked with appears to be having serious doubts.

It's going to be overpaying for fellini on deadline day again isn't it?

Yeah, to be honest, anyone who actually wants to sign for us probably isn’t worth having.

Put a "help wanted" sign outside of Old Trafford. Might help.

I actually don't understand why fans are so obsessed with signings. Signings are not the key issue here, it is how the manager understands the squad that is important here.

On the positive side our youngsters will get plenty of game time.

I agree we are a shambles in almost everything we do.

----

Oh go on then, one more page :

Going to be fun around here when Ten Hag is forced to make the 'I am happy with the squad we have' speech after only signing one of to underwhelming squad players in the final days of the window.

So doubts over moves for Timber and De Jong, Nunez close to joining Liverpool, Pau Torres on Spurs’ list…. this place will be fun!

Honestly feels like the club is dead in the water. It really feels like another Moyes-esque window.

The Liverpool Nunez news is a bit annoying knowing that the only reported movement we've made is chasing a player that doesn't want to come here for a price we don't want to pay

It amazes me that after 9 years of failure fans are still desperate to defend the club's competence in the transfer market.

Doesn't exactly help when every man and his dog knows how desperate we are. You'd be mad not to stick a Utd tax on any player we're interested in.

David Moyes first summer window, written all over it. Players rejecting us, left right and centre and chasing players who don’t want to join us.

We've surely got to go for players lesser known with potential, that won't cost too much. Would also love it if we actually made an effort to sign free transfers.

A lot of fan/muppets are in for a disappointing summer, The top 4 clubs will only get stronger, feels strange not being called a top 4 club anymore but that's the state we are in
 
The Redcafe Transfer forum is a real basket of hope, light & love 😛

This is just one page of 13 in the "Have We Signed Anyone Yet' thread.

With so many players kicking and screaming to not sign for the club, we don’t have many options

I suspect this is the summer the last decade of utter fecking incompetence from Ed and his crew sets in. 4 years ago losing out to Liverpool and Spurs for a top target was unthinkable. We went toe to toe with Pep’s City on a regular basis. This summer everyone we’re linked with appears to be having serious doubts.

It's going to be overpaying for fellini on deadline day again isn't it?

Yeah, to be honest, anyone who actually wants to sign for us probably isn’t worth having.

Put a "help wanted" sign outside of Old Trafford. Might help.

I actually don't understand why fans are so obsessed with signings. Signings are not the key issue here, it is how the manager understands the squad that is important here.

On the positive side our youngsters will get plenty of game time.

I agree we are a shambles in almost everything we do.

----

Oh go on then, one more page :

Going to be fun around here when Ten Hag is forced to make the 'I am happy with the squad we have' speech after only signing one of to underwhelming squad players in the final days of the window.

So doubts over moves for Timber and De Jong, Nunez close to joining Liverpool, Pau Torres on Spurs’ list…. this place will be fun!

Honestly feels like the club is dead in the water. It really feels like another Moyes-esque window.

The Liverpool Nunez news is a bit annoying knowing that the only reported movement we've made is chasing a player that doesn't want to come here for a price we don't want to pay

It amazes me that after 9 years of failure fans are still desperate to defend the club's competence in the transfer market.

Doesn't exactly help when every man and his dog knows how desperate we are. You'd be mad not to stick a Utd tax on any player we're interested in.

David Moyes first summer window, written all over it. Players rejecting us, left right and centre and chasing players who don’t want to join us.

We've surely got to go for players lesser known with potential, that won't cost too much. Would also love it if we actually made an effort to sign free transfers.

A lot of fan/muppets are in for a disappointing summer, The top 4 clubs will only get stronger, feels strange not being called a top 4 club anymore but that's the state we are in

Hook it to my veins!
 
United : it seems most seem to think they require 5-8 players but only have a budget of £120m + sales. lots of chatter re. Eriksen

I think it's clear where we are heading in regards to transfers this summer. Exactly what the club wants. Ten Hag wants Timber, the clubs wants Pau Torres. Ten Hag wants De Jong we will go for Neves. Ten Hag wanted Nunez we will go for Richarlison. Nothing's changed here.

Two central midfielders
Forward, preferably one who can play on the right and central
Right back
Centre half
 
United : it seems most seem to think they require 5-8 players but only have a budget of £120m + sales. lots of chatter re. Eriksen

I think it's clear where we are heading in regards to transfers this summer. Exactly what the club wants. Ten Hag wants Timber, the clubs wants Pau Torres. Ten Hag wants De Jong we will go for Neves. Ten Hag wanted Nunez we will go for Richarlison. Nothing's changed here.

Two central midfielders
Forward, preferably one who can play on the right and central
Right back
Centre half
I could see them taking Isco too.
 



It did not take long for Jurgen Klopp's quotes on Paul Pogba's to resurface following news Liverpool had found a breakthrough in their pursuit of Benfica forward, Darwin Nunez.
Nunez is expected to cost the Reds €75 million (£64million), with a further £12.8million potentially linked to appearances and £8.5million based on the future success of the team. This transfer deal is one that has caught the attention of Manchester City and Manchester United fans in particular, with supporters of the latter particularly perplexed by news of Nunez's anticipated arrival.
For it was Klopp who spoke out against United's then world-record £89million fee to re-sign Pogba six years ago, which kick-started a new era of lucrative fees being paid for players.
YOUR SHOUT: Is Liverpool's Darwin Nunez €100m price worth breaking club records?
READ MORE: Darwin Nunez transfer will speak volumes about FSG Liverpool change

"If you bring one player in for £100m and he gets injured, then it all goes through the chimney," he said. "The day that this is football, I'm not in a job anymore, because the game is about playing together. That is how everybody in football understands it. You always want to have the best, but building the group is necessary to be successful."
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Liverpool have since gone on to break the £50million barrier on signings such as Alisson, Naby Keita and Virgil van Dijk in recent times, resulting in rival supporters now pointing the finger at Klopp for his past comments on excessive sums of money taking football to uncomfortable territory.
The key detail being forgotten by those labelling the German a hypocrite is such deals would not have been completed had it not been for player sales generating sufficient capital for the Reds to strengthen their squad. Liverpool negotiated an upfront fee of £106m and £36m in potential add-ons in the deal for Philippe Coutinho to join Barcelona in January 2018, which paved the way for key additions to be made to Klopp's team.
In came Van Djik during the same transfer window for £75m, followed by big-name acquisitions of Alisson, Fabinho and Keita in the summer for a combined total of approximately £160m. Although appearing to be a spending spree on the surface, it is often overlooked how Coutinho's departure effectively funded a large part of this activity.
After making these additions to his team, Klopp spoke to German TV to clarify his previous comments on significant transfer fees and why Liverpool had no choice but to change their ways.
“Liverpool is an ambitious club and if we didn't spend the same amount of money as others, we wouldn't be able to compete. Everybody's splashing the cash, so we have to do the same," he explained.
“Back when I was in Germany, Bayern had a bottomless pit of money, like £100m. In today's market, that gets you one centre-back. So this bottomless pit of money is enough to buy one player in today's world and that doesn't even cover their wages.
“The market has changed more than I expected, but I stand by what I said over the Pogba transfer. Maybe things were lost in translation but my point was, if we reach a point where football is solely about money and not football, then I'm leaving; and I still feel the same way about it.”
Unlike at Anfield, both Manchester clubs have not relied upon player exits to power their free-spending approach. Last summer saw United bring Cristiano Ronaldo, Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane to Old Trafford, with the club's only major outgoing being Daniel James' £24m switch to Leeds United. As a result, the Red Devils ended the window with a transfer balance of around -£107m.
Pep Guardiola's side, meanwhile, became the first team in English history to break the £100m mark on a single deal as Jack Grealish arrived at the Etihad Stadium. Angelino, Jack Harrison and Lukas Nmecha yielded a return of £38m as they left the club on a permanent basis
Ibrahima Konate was Liverpool's only addition at Anfield at £36m and, even then, the Reds had largely covered this outlay by Harry Wilson, Marko Grujic, Taiwo Awoniyi and Xherdan Shaqiri all moving on. The same principal is also expected to apply with Nunez, with the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Nat Phillips, Neco Williams, Sadio Mane and Takumi Minamino capable of generating a combined income thay may offset the club's imminent expenditure.
Since the start of the 2017/18 season, no Premier League sides have a higher net spend than United (£479.04m) and City (£424.81m). Liverpool are ranked way down in ninth place (£199m), with Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Everton and Newcastle all ahead of the Reds.
The emerging narrative that Liverpool are somehow on a par with their closest rivals when it comes to financial firepower is simply not true. There has been no element of risk attached to the club's business in recent years - a considered approach has remained a theme under Michael Edwards' tenure and new sporting director, Julian Ward.
 
Haaland is going to score bucket loads and I'm going to hate him for it. Just hope Madrid activate his release clause in a few years time and his ACL goes at least once. The only thing that can stop him being a success is injuries.

I also don't think he's a natural Pep striker and wouldn't be surprised if he wasn't his first choice, but it won't matter much in the scheme of things.
 
I've got a feeling that the Haaland transfer isn't going to make much difference to their bottom (footballing) line.

Besides the reality of adjusting to playing in the PL there is the fact that as City have not played with a CF since Aguero left (and even his style was absolutely nothing like Haaland's) and instead rely on their plethora of (attacking) midfielders to create so many chances that eventually some are taken, then it is easy to see that the flow of opportunities may dissipate to some degree leaving Haaland less to feed off - and of course Haaland is an out and out striker that has very little interaction with his midfield (compared to say Nunez) bar looking for passes to put him through.
 
I've got a feeling that the Haaland transfer isn't going to make much difference to their bottom (footballing) line.

Besides the reality of adjusting to playing in the PL there is the fact that as City have not played with a CF since Aguero left (and even his style was absolutely nothing like Haaland's) and instead rely on their plethora of (attacking) midfielders to create so many chances that eventually some are taken, then it is easy to see that the flow of opportunities may dissipate to some degree leaving Haaland less to feed off - and of course Haaland is an out and out striker that has very little interaction with his midfield (compared to say Nunez) bar looking for passes to put him through.

They went through a whole bunch of traditional #9 types with Dzeko the most recent who did reasonably well for them.

Not sure Haaland is the player Pep really wanted either - supposedly he preferred Kane. Hopefully it ends up like his Ibrahimovic experiment (minus the trophies).
 
They went through a whole bunch of traditional #9 types with Dzeko the most recent who did reasonably well for them.

Not sure Haaland is the player Pep really wanted either - supposedly he preferred Kane. Hopefully it ends up like his Ibrahimovic experiment (minus the trophies).
Yeah I still think Kane would have been a much better fit for City. Kane's passing and link up stats are insanely good and far far better than ANY other of the top rated strikers. Haaland is the polar opposite, his link up stats are awful in comparison, he is a striker/attacker and barely nothing else.

Thanks Nomad for the Athletic post - I hadn't seen it but it goes into detail on those thoughts permeating my brain, and there are these ditties from The Athletic :

That’s bad news for Haaland, who’s got the opposite problem from Werner at Chelsea (scoring less than his Xg). He’s scoring too much: 74 goals on 54.5 non-penalty xG in the Bundesliga and Europe, or 36 per cent more goals than an average shooter would be expected to score from the same chances... A goal in Germany may not be a goal in England. It may not even be a chance.

It was reported by ESPN that Chelsea scouts — who ought to know by now — “raised concerns about whether Haaland’s style of play would be suited to the Premier League because there’s less space for forward players to attack and run into, compared to the Bundesliga”.

Playing an extra attacking midfielder or winger up top instead of a centre-forward gave Guardiola tactical flexibility. Most importantly, it gave the team an extra passer in the build-up to allow City to build even more carefully than before, which helped the defence get set up to prevent counter-attacks.

Guardiola on Aguero (but this could easily be Haaland) : “To score five goals in two games is a good statistic,” Guardiola told the press at one point. “But he has to help us in the first pressure and run a lot and help us a lot with movement. You cannot be brilliant when you disappear when you don’t have the ball.”


With better keepers, better defences, and overall much stronger teams, I think Shearer is off his head suggesting he'll score 40 in a PL season, even allowing for the fact he has moved to one of the best teams in the world.

I understand why City bought him, because of his age and goals, and primarily because they can't lose on the deal due to Dortmund having set a very low buy-out clause (not realising how good he was to become), but he hardly seems like a great fit. I hope I'm right and this isn't wishful thinking.

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Copy/pasted from my post in The Athletic thread :

I can see him 'struggling' (though I haven't seen the fixture list to be fair) initially as what has worked in the past may not work to the same extent and his 0.9 goals per match in the BL may shrink to something like 0.5 in the PL (still not far off most top strikers but nothing like in the BL).

It should be noted that the best ever PL goal-to-game ratio is that of Henry at 0.69 and Aguero was 5th with a ratio of 0.669.

Whether Guardiola then manages to integrate him as he did Aguero remains to be seen but his confidence could be hit. A young lad who has so far found it easy to score may suddenly find the goals 'drying up' to an extent and then it'll be interesting to see if he can handle it or sink like most BL strikers have done over here.
 
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Same, I've resigned myself to the idea of him being a monster, it's inevitable. I don't think he necessarily makes City unbeatable but I've no doubt he will succeed
 
I read yesterday that he has a 150m odd release clause in his contract; so if Mbappe has burned bridges with Madrid expect Haaland to end up there in a few years.
 
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