JamieZ

NEED!

It's possible. I'm no expert on transfer policy, but from what I've read, Barnsley's approach is right in line with part-owner Billy Beane's moneyball strategy. That means their most expensive transfer to date has been like £2 million or something paltry like that. If the "Big Six" offer Orlando City just rejected for Dike was reportedly $10 million, I don't see how Barnsley are going to be willing to meet the the market value. Now, as for the $20 million buyout clause in the loan, that seems high and it's been reported that it's actually much lower than that. If it's less than the $10 million offered by the Premiership club, I don't know what that means for Barnsley's ability to activate the buyout and then turn around and sell him to a higher bidder. This kinda thing ain't my wheelhouse.

I saw that, too, but I'm not sure I see him being a good fit for any of them. The last thing I'd want is for him to end up as part of some loan army that never sees action with the first team. I'd much rather see him find his feet with a stable team he can grow into. Among current Premiership clubs, I think West Ham probably makes the most sense, but would love to see him here at Villa.

One of the nice things about Timo Weah is that he can play anywhere along the front line, but I feel like he's just growing into a bigger role at Lille, who have been pretty fantastic this season. I think a sustained run of match time without injury issues will provide a better idea of whether he's got a future there. I, for one, would love to see a bid for Daryl Dike, who makes Keinan Davis look lightweight, is deceptively nimble, and unlike Keinan Davis, there's actual footage of him scoring.

I've been watching a lot of Juve this season to keep track of Weston McKennie (America!) and I've got to say, it's just dreadful. Maybe it's Serie A, maybe it's Juve specifically, but after years spent watching the Premier League and Bundesliga, the football is plodding, ponderous, and completely uninspiring. I get the sense that Pirlo has an idea of what he wants to see, but something is lost in translation. I certainly don't know what he's trying to do. There are a lot of interesting parts, but they just don't seem to fit together in a way that brings out the best in any of them. There seems to be a mix, much like Barcelona, of veteran players who are past their best and younger players who don't seem to know where they fit in. The midfield looks good on paper (I think?), but McKennie is the only one of them with an ounce of initiative—and he clearly can't do it alone. The only time they look dangerous or exciting is when they bypass the midfield and Cuadrado is whipping in crosses from the right. So it seems to me, is my best guess, that they're a team in transition under the guidance of a manager who is learning on the job (like Lampard, but with even less experience and perhaps less talent at his disposal), and whether that starts to work itself out before Pirlo gets the sack is anybody's guess.

I dare say it's better than Bentskey.

At the very least, the Wesleykins portmanteau couple name sounds adorable.

There's the clip I was looking for.

WHACK!!!

I was just getting ready to post the exact same thing. What a class act he is.

Emi Martinez, will you be my Valentine?

I don't have anything substantial to contribute. I just wanted to mention that it feels so good again to go into every match optimistic of not just getting a result but the win. I've trained myself over the past several years to equate supporting Villa with suffering and I'm just now starting to shake that off and really enjoy following the team.

Seems like an affable guy. I really liked his answers. Not only was he honest, but he was thoughtful and reflective—gave us some insight into the things we don't necessarily see on our end.

The new Mogwai single is so good, it's making me post in Off Topic for the first time in ages.

He's a talent. I've been keeping an eye on his situation, thinking he might be just the kind of player we could benefit from (and also because I'm hoping he declares for the U.S.), but it sounds like he's being linked pretty strongly to RB Leipzig.

Certainly. (Un)fortunately, he's not even in the conversation right now, and I'm not entirely sure from what I've seen of him what his best position is. I'd just like to see him get some consistent time to develop and it certainly appears Burton isn't the best place to do that.

The remarkable thing is that Hoppe is a fresh prospect who hasn't even been particularly productive at the reserve level for Schalke, who just happened to find himself given a chance with the first team. Think of it as a little bit like Indiana Vassilev getting a run of minutes with us last season when things were particularly desperate. I tuned into the match to watch him play and his goals were all well taken after smart runs and equally deft passes from Harit. Perhaps it's been a matter of lack of service more than a lack of killer instinct that's prevented him from scoring thus far, or maybe things just "clicked" for him today. As an American, I'd be thrilled to see it as the beginning of a good run of form and continued development for him than a freak one-off.

HOW!?

I feel like that may be a tad optimistic.

The penalty was soft, but we've also dodged some bullets.

Oh, come on.

Apology accepted, Bertie.

Crap.

He was fishing for that one, Traoré.