paul514

2 hours ago, thabucks said:

Ah cause fbref stats are the gospel on players and clubs shouldn’t waste hundreds of thousands of pound on data analysts and and software when the club could just check FBREF 

FBref has a professional version of it, the free is just the basic. If you think someone goes from bottom 5% to something decent on a different software package.......ok

28 minutes ago, Mazrim said:

The NFL, as surprises many, is one one of fairest most egalitarian financial systems in world sport. I've long thought we could take a massive leaf out of the NFL book when it comes to our game.
Not only with youth drafting but financial caps. Very difficult to do though. 

What we should do as a priority is get rid of agents. They're just a load of shyster parasites making money for nothing. Players should get FA appointed advisors or have an advisory body handing player's affairs.

I agree on agents, the FA should do it for them for a set fee like 1%

51 minutes ago, thabucks said:

Dream summer of unrealistic targets list time me feels. 

• Ferdi Kadıoğlu is rumoured already agreed (think it’s BS) LB . €30mill
• Raoul Bellanova RB €18-20mill
• Georgiy Sudakov €40mill + 
• Martin Zubimendi €40mill +

sell Moreno/Digne, Cash and the deadwood, then also whoever Monchi / Emery decide can be sacrificed if needs be for the greater good (ie Ramsey, Luiz) … I’d try and extend Zaniolo’s loan if poss for another season and add the return of Mings & Buendia and we’ve raised the quality of the first team and squad. 

Bellanova RB - Bottom 10% for tackles, blocks and dribblers tackled....
Sudakov - Doesn't exist defensively - literally
Zubimendi is 52m on his release.

2 hours ago, lexicon said:

From what I remember about him, he's very injury prone and that's in a much less intensive league than the prem. 

exactly this, his body has let him down too often over the last few years for it to be a bet worth taking.

26 minutes ago, juanpablosaliceband said:

We are actually 75% for top 4. Not 66. And definitely not 51. 

riiiiiight

1 hour ago, juanpablosaliceband said:

We are 1/2 for top four with the bookies so it’s actually 67/33 in our favour right now. 

i couldnt give a shiny shite what the bookies think.

43 minutes ago, DJBOB said:

There are lots of positives to this:

•  No longer need to root for Arsenal or City or Liverpool 
• Everyone knows the score, no hesitation needed. We will have to win and get to 72 most likely
•  City and Arsenal can turn all their focus on thrashing Spurs 
• No asterisk on getting UCL. Will be of our own accord

Win the next two I’ll be super confident but right now it’s all 49/51 in our favour

got to finish 4th, 5th is europa

39 minutes ago, Alakagom said:

If PL doesn't get 5th spot it will more likely be result of Arsenal and Liverpool going out this round, not Dortmund going through. 

I was banking on Dortmund getting knocked out. I knew leverkusen were going through and it’s a toss up for Bayern.

now were relying on 2 teams that drew against two massive teams and a team that is playing away with a 3 goal deficit.

god I hope arsenal win 

8 minutes ago, Tayls said:

Play in the best competition in club football against the best sides… or win a third level European competition that’s for teams finishing 6th, 7th or 8th in their leagues and has teams knocked out of the competition above it which can enter at a late stage… 

I stand by my decision I’m afraid. Champions League over winning ECL

I agree 

38 minutes ago, Tayls said:

It’s not really about that currently because 4th is something we can sort of control. It’s more the fact that the PL is now unlikely to get another champs league spot based on results from tonight’s Dortmund v Atleti game. 

Exactly it’s like taking away the comfort blanket of knowing ah well at least 5th gets CL

Ffs.

we need our top 3 to go through 

28 minutes ago, villan-scott said:

Solihull is a B post code so surely classed as the Birmingham area?

Edit - not that I’m advocating moving to Solihull! 

So is Tamworth

2 hours ago, villaglint said:

Just realised that Matty Cash (unbelievably) has played the 6th minutes for us this season. 
 

Outside of Martinez, Luiz, , Watkins, McGinn and Konsa who have played almost every game  the rest of the squad through one reason or another has had pretty good rotation. 

Should hopefully stand us in good stead for the run in. 

That is a mad stat!

5 hours ago, Pez1974 said:

Agree that RB is a priority, probably alongside another CDM.

Don't agree that Cash becomes back up - at this point he is as sellable as he will ever be, so it's time to move him on. He's coming up to 27, and hopefully will get games at the world cup. 
Transfermarkt.com have Cash valued at around £25m. For FFP,  given his contract extension, he is probably worth about £5m in our books now - £20m profit would be very nice. 

IF (big IF) we get a new RB, we still have Kosta to come in (£7m!) plus Konsa can clearly do a good job there. 

Agreed now is the time to sell... 4.74m is his book value in the summer

9 hours ago, switters said:

All for bringing in a younger CB in addition, but would keep Carlos too. We'll most likely not keep Lenglet and sell/release Chambers/Hause, those will be the wage savings in this area. Mings will be coming back from injury and that might take some time. So even if we signed a younger CB as a longer term options, would def want to keep someone who has now a decent amount of games for us to know the systems and also has good amount of European experience. Esp as it might be that Emery wants to keep going with Konsa RB at least some of the time. 

 

Yep we will get rid of the players you mentioned anyway.

we are going to need to cut all the players more or less where there is already two people for a position to meet the 70% wage rules uefa have coming in over the next couple of years.

if we get to the point of needing a 5th centre back it will have to be a kid or pulling a player from another position to play there 

9 hours ago, Tomaszk said:

Agree on paper. It's dependent on Mings being fit for 25+ games a season though which will be really tough to gauge.

Don't think we'd have an easy time moving him on. Family settled etc.

Purely in a football sense, it would be a good time for a parting of ways on both sides with Diego and a few others this summer.

He’s on my list as there is no way we could sell mings and I feel a club like us can only have one older centre back in its group of 4.

i think we should be able to get his book value back which is 15m euros

good performances from him, I would still sell in the summer though.

Need a younger centre back for our mix of 4 and his wages are very high.

4 hours ago, villa4europe said:

Both London boys though, eze in particular actually said he's a south London boy and was only ever going to Palace 

 

footballers say all sorts until they get a better offer............. most of the time.

so happy with the result today! I didn't think we had a chance, out of form and having two days less rest than them.

BANG and we are back in pole position for 4th again!

Just now, foreveryoung said:

I dunno, Arsenal look like they are settling for this.

No chance of that, all or nothing for them 

4 minutes ago, gilbertoAVFC said:

McGinn's been sensational as always

When he plays well, we usually play well

Oooo close

2 hours ago, stewiek2 said:

Brilliant player. Him and Olise.

Some people wanted to buy them when you could have had both for 35m combined 

We are doing well all to play for with 40 mins ish to go