Monkeypuzzle

I got the impression that Otavio from Porto was our midfield targett. I don't mind this as I think he'd be good in a midfield three/ attacker on rotation, but I am still hoping for a more defensive minded top class midfielder. Doesn't have to be a full on DM but definitely more defensive than offensive. If Douglas Luiz can be persuaded to sign a new contract then I think he would be great alongside Kamara (yes we DID play 4-2-3-1 for the first half against Walsall) but I don't think Nakamba is good enough as our Kamara alternative for the defensive role. He did not impress me against Walsall. Regardless of Douglas Luiz staying or going I would like a marquee central midfielder with defensive strengths, who can play either the "6" or "8" role! I've heard Latimer from RB Leipzig mentioned. He'd be great!

I watched him play the first half against Walsall and whilst I thought he was much better than Ashley Young, who replaced him at half time, I did feel he looked like another season on loan would be best for him. I was surprised that Guilbert didn't play. Unless he picked up a niggle, I was hoping he would be our back up this season.

If you saw Ashley Young playing at right back yesterday you wouldn't say that! Seb Revan at left back looked more composed than poor Ashley on his 37th birthday.

I read that kouyate was gone.

Is he ahead of Seb Revan at LB? Am I right that neither of them started out as left backs? Ben was more of a central midfielder and Seb was more of a centre back to begin with?

Loved watching that!

It does for those not involved in international fixtures. U23s started last week. They will all meet up in Australia next week after the Walsall game on Saturday.

I think a cm/dm who is a bit more physically imposing than what we currently have would be great. Kamara as our defensive minded midfielder with good passing skills. McGinn/Ramsey as our more forward thinking, harassing midfielder who can chip in with forward runs and goals. New player/Douglas Luiz as a slightly further forward version of Kamara, stabilizing the middle of the park. Iroegbunam A. Ramsey and Chukwuemeka to go on loan and get regular men's football. That leaves Sanson and Nakamba to either sell or use as cover. Ideally the new midfielder would be someone who can take Kamara's role if needed. Douglas Luiz situation depends on his contract I guess. If Dougie was to leave I would love to see Soucek from West Ham and Ward-Prowse from Southampton come in. Would be able to move Nakamba and Sanson on as well in that situation.

Any more info on the three youngsters who weren't on the list?

Brazil - Coutinho France - Kamara Argentina - ? Probably something disappointing like that.

Yes

Sarcasm detected!

You know those tissues are not for tears! Wash your hands after you touch that box

No, Winks is not "shit". He may not be good enough for what we need, but he's a Premier League footballer with plenty of first team experience in a 'Big Six' club. Just like none of our players are bad, some are just no longer deemed good enough for what we need now. A couple of years ago we would have happily signed someone like Winks and they would have improved our midfield.

Can some kind and knowledgeable individual give a little update on all our youngsters? I haven't seen much about how this last season went for players like Swinkels, Bogarde, Burchall etc. Have they had big injuries? What positions have they been used in? How close do they look to being ready to go on loan or make some cameos for the first team like Iroegbunam did? Anything would be welcome as I find it difficult to find any info on the youth teams. Not even sure who's playing in the U23s and who's playing in the U18s.

I don't recall lots of bids for Wayne Rooney, or Frank Lampard either, does that mean they were rubbish? I'm not claiming Traore is that good but whether or not other clubs try to buy a player doesn't dictate a players value to a team. Unless a player is clearly a lot better than the other players around him they don't usually get many offers. Were talking about a 4th choice attacker. He is easily good enough for that role.

Are people saying we need to buy another winger/attacker to replace him? No. He's a quality backup player to have in case of injury. Coutinho, Buendia, Bailey, Traore. That is a quality selection of players with great depth. Who else in the Premier League has depth in that position of that quality? Arsenal - Saka, Smith-Rowe, Martinelli, Pepe Chelsea - Mount, Havertz, Ziyech, Pulisic, Hudson-Odoi Everton - Richarlison, Gray, Townsend, Iwobi, Gordon Leicester - Barnes, Perez, Maddison Liverpool - Diaz, Jota, Salah, Minamino Manchester City - Grealish, Sterling, Mahrez, Foden Manchester United - Rashford, Sancho Tottenham Hotspur - Son, Moura, Bergwijn, Perisic, Gil West Ham - Vlasic, Fornals, Bowen, Benrahma, Lanzini Wolverhampton Wanderers - Hwang Hee Chan, Neto, Traore, Podence Our choices in these attacking roles are as good as any of those clubs, bar one or two, and the depth that Traore gives us is something that most clubs must envy. As our 4th choice his competition from other clubs is certainly no better. We also have Trezeguet and El Ghazi who should be moved on as a far greater priority. If a big offer for him comes in then sure, sell. If Gerrard plans to bring in another attacker, sell. Otherwise losing him, Trezeguet and El Ghazi leaves us a little light in that area.

Maggie Simpson? That tramp!

For me it's not about "can he do a job for us next season?" it's "can he do a better job for us next season than Watkins, Ings or a new top class striker?" I would rather see him continue to develop on loan next season and bring in a new top class striker to compete or replace Ings. He will no doubt continue to thrive on loan, maybe even in a lower Premier League club in a season's time. Until he is definitely better than what we have here already I would rather see him develop as quickly as possible and that will happen by playing every week on loan, not sitting on our bench!

I keep seeing links to Yannick Carrasco from Atletico Madrid. A great player no doubt and regardless of the 'would he join us?' question I am unsure where he would fit into our squad. He normally occupies a left sided role and to me this would put him in competition with Coutinho. I can't see him joining and not playing most games and it's not an area of the squad that I think we need to prioritise, BUT, if we did sign him, how would people see him fitting in our starting eleven?

Ok, essay time! Mostly because I'm bored, but here is my analysis of our squad this summer! Watkins Ings Coutinho Buendia Bailey Traore McGinn Douglas Luiz Ramsey Sanson Kamara Nakamba Digne Mings Diego Carlos Cash Targett Konsa Chambers Guilbert Martinez Olsen This is our current squad, with every position covered. (Please don't fuss about which players would be your regular starters, it's 22 guys to pick from.) We also have Kalinic, Steer, Hause, Young, Hourihane, El Ghazi, Trezeguet and Davis. I expect these 8 to be moved on, with no replacements needed. A strong Premier League squad, but with obvious improvements wanted. Kalinic and Steer are surplus to requirements and deserve to actually play. Young may be good behind the scenes but having him as a serious option kind of worries me at his age, so I wouldn't extend his contract. He has done well at times this last season but I think it's time to call it a day. Hause also deserves to play more and finds himself fifth in the pecking order. He might stay if Konsa's injury doesn't heal well, or we might buy another top centre back. Hourihane is a long way from starting and it's fair enough him moving on now that his contract is up. El Ghazi and Trezeguet have both served us well but when they are fifth and sixth choice for a position they don't even specialise in, it's time to move them on. Davis is not going to replace Watkins or Ings, let's be honest and he deserves to be a regular somewhere else. There was a time when he might have been an option, but we have progressed quicker than he has and are looking for a higher calibre striker now. We also have the following youngsters knocking on the first team door, but I would rather they got a season long loan in a top Championship club or lower Premier League club: Kesler-Hayden, Chukwuemeka, Philogene-Bidace, Iroegbunam, Archer. We also have several youngsters ready for another loan: Sinisalo, Chrisene, Feeney, A. Ramsey, Azaz, Barry, Wright, S. Revan, D. Revan. There are probably more that I have not mentioned. Of those 22 first team players, we do not need to worry about goalkeepers. Martinez is world class and Olsen is a solid back up for him. Competition/back up fullbacks may end up changing, either for youngsters or new signings. Digne and Cash are great starters though. We might get a new centre back, we might not. Not a desperate need for someone else yet but improvements can always be made. We might get a new central midfielder who can play a strong defensive role but still add a bit going forwards. This will probably see one of Nakamba, Sanson or Douglas Luiz move on. Heck, we might have two new players here, you never know, but I would be surprised if McGinn, Ramsey or, of course, Kamara were to go. With El Ghazi and Trezeguet expected to depart, I would be surprised to see any more of our attacking midfielders leave, although Traore is a possibility. I'd be sad to see him go though as he has had a hard time with injuries this season, did really well in his first season for us and makes a decent back up/impact sub. I don't see another attacking midfielder to compete with the quality of Coutinho, Buendia and Bailey as being any sort of priority this summer. Up front is a tricky one. Do we intend to play with one or two strikers? Maybe we will mix it up, like this year? Only Steven Gerrard really knows, I guess/hope? Both Watkins and Ings are solid, Premier League quality strikers but I can't help but think we could do with a new addition who is on another level. Maybe we could rotate all three, maybe one of them will go? I'd rather keep Watkins personally if one was to go. Maybe Archer will be that third striker, but I'd rather see a new, exciting transfer here! Well done if you have read this far, let me know what you think of my squad analysis. For the TLDR crowd: I am hoping for new back up fullbacks, maybe another top class centre back, one or two new top class central midfielders and hopefully a new top quality striker. Nothing that most here haven't already identified, I'm sure but writing this was stress relieving for me, so there! Let's be honest though, Aston Villa have shown themselves to be very secretive in the transfer market, never releasing details of fees and several times with no one having any idea that a deal was in the works. Rumours make us excited though so despite knowing that virtually nothing I read will be accurate, I'm still looking forward to this transfer window and all the rumours that go with it! Thank you for reading this far, if you haven't just skipped to the end. I promise not to write articles all the time!

Oh I remember the Benni McCarthy links! Wow, that takes me back!

Maybe a tap in technically, but there are plenty of chances like that which get missed every week in the premier league. Just the right angle and timing to beat a rapidly closing keeper with one touch. Well done Tyreik! He has been a bit 'out of sight, out of mind' this season but hopefully all our talented youngsters get to show Gerrard what they can offer in preseason and we'll see what happens next season.

Did I see correctly that he scored as well?

I think you are thinking of de Ligt at Juventus, rather than we Vrij at Inter. Both Koulibaly and he have been linked to us several times in the last few weeks. That's why I chose them. Pau Torres is another possibility.