Summer transfer window 2021

[JAMAICAN-VILLAN]

4 hours ago, M_Afro said:

I think people underestimate just how difficult it would have been playing up front for us last year. Wesley was living off scraps. Obviously that doesn’t mean he is going to come back and be good but it’s to o early to judge him just yet. There’s hope there.

Mate look at some of the games Watkins has for us? Feeding off scraps, just like Wesley, it's no coincidence that when we are on top in full flow, he looks much better.

I keep highlighting the Burnley game where he was injured, because I genuinely would have backed him to get a brace and a couple assists in that one.

If Wesley came in, when we were flying at seasons start, I have no doubt he would have looked much better.

Obviously the injury still throws everything up in the air, but he must have something.

I reckon alot of the attributes people.point out as weak, could have been worked on and improved through coaching, settling and acclimatisation.

His close range/near post finishing and his passing/vision are strong suits IMO

Again, just terribly unlucky with the injury.

In games where we are struggling, the onus is on Deano to find a way to bring the midfield and forwards closer together. 4- 4 - 2 or bring on a support striker such as Wes to help.

Multiple times I've watched in amazement as Ollie has a ball chucked at him, and there is literally no one within a few hundred yards of him to help.

Edited March 13, 2021 by JAMAICAN-VILLAN

[VillaFaninLondon]

For me I think we need 4 or 5 big signings this summer:

ST (Tammy should be priority)

AM (De Paul)

Winger (Thauvin)

LB (Wijndal, Henry)

DM/CM (Bissouma, Berge)

 

Tammy could cost £35-40m I'd imagine but we desperately need more firepower and competition for Watkins. I'm not convinced Wes will come back the same player (and didn't set the world alight anyway) and Davis is nowhere near good enough.

 

We need more creativity too, if Jack gets injured again next season we need someone who can make things happen in his absence (but play with him when he's fit too). De Paul is supposed to be the Serie A version of Jack and is was linked with a move to a few clubs last summer for around £30m, if we can get him for that we should be all over it.

 

Another wide player is important, if Fulham go down Lookman could be worth a look but Thauvin's contract is running down and he'll be available at a reasonable price. Saint Maximin may be another one but doesn't score enough goals for me.

Proper competition at FB is also important. Cash has had a really good season and personally I think him and Fred fighting it out is good enough next season, but it's whether Guilbert wants to come back or not. At LB someone like Wijndal would be great competition for Targett and mean we can rotate more in those areas. 

 

I still think we lack a proper DM. Berge has been linked and is the one player I'd take from Sheff U, but maybe is more box to box than a sitting midfielder. Bissouma seems to be more in the mould of what we need as the only proper holding midfielder we have is Nakamba and he's not good enough on the ball.

 

If we did get the aforementioned players in I'd be happy to sell Trez, Hourihane, Davis and possibly Nakamba. Taylor and Elmo are both out of contract so we'll have a similar sized squad to this season but with an upgrade in quality. 

[sharkyvilla]

I wonder whether, like with Sanson, some of our targets from previous windows will be a bit cheaper and we will go back for them (dare I say, Rashica).  Probably just a bit lazy from me but I'd like Amavi and Tuanzebe back as well.  You could probably get Rashica, Amavi and Tuanzebe for £30m combined and have the budget for £40m+ to get the best possible creative midfielder possible i.e. the player Barkley should be.  Just need another striker after that, ideally the next Watkins from the lower leagues.

[JAMAICAN-VILLAN]

Is Thauvin actually any good? Or are we naming him in wish lists due to links?

Know nothing about him but seen people.comment that he was poor at Newcastle.

Might have kicked on since but I don't know.

[VillaChris]

2 hours ago, HanoiVillan said:

Ings and Che Adams seem to have managed to get plenty of game time this season.

Southampton play the wierd 4-2-2-2 formation so they usually can fit both in and Ings had a couple of injuries aswell.

We all love Ollie and no one can deny he's had a good season getting to double figures in prem with us but let's remember he plays with Jack Grealish. People acting like we're a Lambert team with zero creativity but Grealish is like cheat mode for us compared to all the teams below us with what he brings to the team and front man. Remember the Palace home game where he laid about 3 brilliant chances on a plate for Ollie late on who couldn't finish any of them....(one was a poor first touch which he then passed to AEG who smashed it in top corner).

Ollie is good....but he's still a way off Benteke level for me who was extraordinary frontman for us in a very dire and uncreative team for majority of his time here.

He's not a killer finisher yet and I think he struggles a fair bit against physical CBs who got tight to him as again happened last night with Lascelles and Clark smashing into him constantly. Much better v CBs who are more ball playing and stand off him loads e.g. Arsenal.

Personally I'd play him wide a bit more next season particularly when we play top 6-7 teams. Would give us a different dynamic in those games although perhaps that suggests we wouldn't have strengthened enough getting in a new quality wide player and still relying more on what we presently have which isn't quite good enough to make europe.

[VillaChris]

2 hours ago, HanoiVillan said:

I would say yes, based on what I have seen of both of them, but others are free to disagree.

But I think people are hugely under-rating the possibility of Wesley just never coming back from this injury at anything like the level he was at before (which I also thought wasn't good enough, at least for a Europe-challenging side). Spending 15+ months on the sidelines certainly isn't going to have made him a *better* player, and as @VillaChris has pointed out before, we have seen with both Kozak and Kodjia before that sometimes players simply can't regain their prior level after a big injury.

I've mentioned them but then people think Kozak was just pub level anyway. His goal ratio in 13/14 was actually very similar to what Wes was doing before injury if not better. Kodjia was brilliant for a spell in championship aswell in second half of 2016/17 season.

Better recent example is McGinn. Took him ages to get into any sort of form and he was only out for about 4 months so I think people are incredibly optimistic to think Wes can make a significant difference for us in next 6 months. It will be decent achievement just for him to come back and play regularly in a top league and I fear prem might be a little beyond him but we'll see.

[AVTuco]

We need a midfield and wingers and back up full backs.

[alexvilla4]

Martinez, Heaton, Steer

Cash, Guilbert, Elmo

Konsa, Tuanzebe

Mings, Hause

Targett, Amavi

Berge, Luiz

Sanson, Mcginn

Brandt, Olise

Grealish, El Ghazi

Buendia, Traore

Watkins, Wesley, Nketiah 

Loan out the youngsters in Kesler, Ramsey, Chuck, Barry and Davis. Keep Elmo around the squad for a bit of experience and leadership. Keep Heaton as well for the same reasons as well as being a quality back up. Interplay between Grealish, Brandt and Buendia would be lovely to watch and they are all hard working players as well 

[HanoiVillan]

4 minutes ago, VillaChris said:

I've mentioned them but then people think Kozak was just pub level anyway. His goal ratio in 13/14 was actually very similar to what Wes was doing before injury if not better. Kodjia was brilliant for a spell in championship aswell in second half of 2016/17 season.

Better recent example is McGinn. Took him ages to get into any sort of form and he was only out for about 4 months so I think people are incredibly optimistic to think Wes can make a significant difference for us in next 6 months. It will be decent achievement just for him to come back and play regularly in a top league and I fear prem might be a little beyond him but we'll see.

Yeah, I'm confused by people who think Kozak was absolute bobbins who *also* really rate Wesley, or at least see enough to be excited about his return. I think they were of a fairly similar level, and that level isn't good enough.

Bottom line, we need another striker.

[VillaChris]

Brandt would be huge coup, love watching him as a player but think it's a bit like Barkley, he gets into so many great positions but final ball is constantly lacking.

Is he not playing much at Dortmund then? Him and Thomas Delaney would be worth looking at as the next step up in quality we need to push on given both experienced internationals and used to playing at top level.

[VillaChris]

1 minute ago, HanoiVillan said:

Yeah, I'm confused by people who think Kozak was absolute bobbins who *also* really rate Wesley, or at least see enough to be excited about his return. I think they were of a fairly similar level, and that level isn't good enough.

Bottom line, we need another striker.

Just looked it up, in 13/14 4 goals in 14 games so pretty much exactly same as Wes who got 5 in 21 I think? And Kozak was a sub for a fair few of those games (he came on for his debut at Norwich to score) so significantly less minutes then Wes who was same as Watkins so far in practically playing every minute of every match.

Back then you actually got a few who looked at that  goal ratio and actually thought he could replace Benteke full time even though his all round game was miles off.

Of course given how messed up we were in those times we then signed Gestede to effectively replace Benteke.....

When you look at last 20 years our general striker recruitment record has been a major stumbling block to decent progress bar the odd good one (and I'd certainly include Ollie in the good category so far). Compare to Spurs who had all of berbatov, Keane and Defoe to pick from at one stage and when they had a few flops Kane stepped up and Everton were o.k with likes of Yakubu and Lukaku for a while.

Until we really get it right in final third they'll always be a limit to our progress I think. Important we get it right while Grealish remains here rather than finally get in a brilliant striker once he's left and we have a creativity void.

[sne]

12 minutes ago, JAMAICAN-VILLAN said:

Is Thauvin actually any good? Or are we naming him in wish lists due to links?

Know nothing about him but seen people.comment that he was poor at Newcastle.

Might have kicked on since but I don't know.

He did enough to get into that French WC squad that won the WC in 2018 so yeah I'd say he's improved some since his time at Newcastle.

He's had 3 consecutive very good seasons for Marseille before this one and is doing OK this season too. Don't watch much French football these days but he's been good if not spectacular when I've seen them.

Would not spend huge money on him due to his age but on a free he's an interesting target IMO. Think he might end up in Italy thou.

I'm going back and forth about wanting a RW that want's the ball all the time like Thauvin or if it might suit us better to have a quicker type who runs channels and creates space. Not an out and out speed merchant thou as we need someone smarter than just that.

[Tomaszk]

Dwight McNeil would be such a good buy.

Can play RW, LW and has excellent delivery.

Dunno what's going on with Burnley's new owners, but he'd probably cost over £40m.

 

[DCJonah]

Kozak was absolutely awful. I never got the cult like status he got. 

[paul514]

1 hour ago, JAMAICAN-VILLAN said:

Is Thauvin actually any good? Or are we naming him in wish lists due to links?

Know nothing about him but seen people.comment that he was poor at Newcastle.

Might have kicked on since but I don't know.

His goal contributions are amazing since he went to Marseille. One season he got 30 odd I think.

[KAZZAM]

Sellers market due to corona(obvs). Ofc that won't apply to the Premier league and buying of another Premier league club will be at a premium. Hence I would be targeting other top leagues players. 

Anyone we sell I'd imagine we won't get much for due to the market so:

Sell: Connor, Elmo and Taylor(released)Trezeguet (possibly loan to buy) 

Keep: Engels, Guilbert (not worth selling in the market unless exceptional offer) 

Buy : DMC, AMC, RW, LB

I'd be looking at spending big money(20 mill +)each on the DMC, AMC, RW and 10 Mill odd on a young LB to challenge Targett. 

 

 

[Awol]

35 minutes ago, paul514 said:

His goal contributions are amazing since he went to Marseille. One season he got 30 odd I think.

7 goals, 7 assists in 27 this season, just turned 28 in January, French international and out of contract in June so free to a good home. 

19/20 season: injured and only played 2 games.

18/19 season: 16 goals, 8 assists in 33 games. 

17/18 season: 22 goals, 11 assists in 35 games.

 

[Awol]

oops. 

Edited March 13, 2021 by Awol
DP

[Villaphan04]

17 hours ago, JamieZ said:

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.

well the other thing is that Barnsley are on fire right now so if they do get promoted, I'd think they would want him

[Delphinho123]

Bissouma, Lookman, Olise. 

Would be a nice start.