Adam2003

He signed a new contract there today alongside his loan to us.

That has to be the goal, but I still think Mings and Konsa will start every game they are fit.

Plus half a season of playing CB alongside Mings so they already know each other’s game.

He won’t this season but I think has a similarly (very high) ceiling - hope for his sake he can get his fitness back and while I doubt he’ll ever make it at United could be a perfectly good top half PL defender if he fulfils his potential.

What a weird position to take on a substitute right sided centre back when we have no-one else. “Doesn’t strengthen us at all” versus who playing CB with a couple of injuries - Guilbert? McGinn? I’ll take Tuanzebe thanks!

Exactly this. Means we can concentrate spending elsewhere (ie the central mid I think we all think is on the cards).

Hmm not totally sure about that. Gerrard for Liverpool, Ronaldo for Madrid, Cantona for United, Henry for Arsenal, Messi for Barcelona as you say - most top teams I can remember had someone pretty talismanic. But I agree with the idea we don’t want to be a one-man team - in fact am really glad that people won’t be able to bang on about that this season (unless we struggle I guess and then they’ll say it’s proof we were one….)

I suspect showing what is possible _when you are backed by a state_ is a bit different to what is possible if we just did it sadly.

If it helped keep him happy at a time when that was the best thing for the club it’s a perfectly sensible decision, nothing weak about it even if someone else might have been a better captain. Mings is 100% more captain material than Grealish but good management in any field isn’t about giving people the job they will do best, it’s about working out how to get the most from the sum total of your resources. Clearly Smith thought Grealish as captain was part of that and as we went on the best winning run in our entire history and got promoted, then have continued to progress, it’s hard to argue. But Mings will be a great captain for us in a different way.

Nothing surprising about this. Putting money on a McGinn yellow card is basically a guaranteed profit over a season… or at least it was before they started slashing the odds haha - I think he was actually odds on for England v Scotland

But you’ve picked four £50m+ (minimum) players there. One of them has already gone for that much and he’s also not seen as that great! Rice would probably cost more than Grealish and I see people here saying he’s no good.It’s a hard position to get any credit is the truth.

Can someone edit the thread title to ‘Olympic champion Douglas Luiz’ please?

Fair shout but still almost a year older. Edit: sorry could quickly spiral off topic here!

Formation schmormation. We will get the ball, give it to Buendia, and he’ll just pick out whichever of Ings, Watkins, Bailey sprinting towards the opposition goal to tee it up for.

Best passer at the club by a distance (maybe Buendia is now better) but yes, we need to see that more - that’s the step up from young prospect to consistent player we now need to see.

I think on the other hand he would shine in a top team - kind of like how a Carrick would always look better for Man United than if he had been playing for us.

I take your point as always TRO Bellingham is potentially a generational talent though. That’s why he’d cost at least 3x as much as any of our midfield and will spend his whole career in the CL. He is the best/most valuable player of his age in the world. So yes I’ll accept he’d be a better option!

Be a magical signing but Italians just don’t often leave Serie A. Only the keeper (now) and Verratti at PSG from the whole Euros squad (not counting the two Brazilian lads at Chelsea). So worth a shot from anyone I guess but I imagine he’ll stay put until a top Serie A team signs him.

Yeah can see him as a PL manager

Makes no real difference whatsoever. It all goes in the accounts.

Either you’re Ashley Preece or he just lifted this point, as so many, direct from these pages because he has no brain of his own.

Ok fair play!

Oh well then that’s because the links are all mostly made up and irrelevant.

Guardiola publicly saying he wished they had known Messi was leaving Barcelona and would have signed him instead of Grealish is delicious for several reasons.

75% of our signings are an Argentinian, a Jamaican and a free transfer pal.