Summer Transfer Window 2023

[Vive_La_Villa]

26 minutes ago, Zatman said:

Bassey we definitely got away with not signing. Has been a dreadful signing for Ajax

People thought he was better than Mings when we were linked

Tbf he’s still young and there is a lot of pressure on a player at a club like Ajax. He isn’t a ball playing defender though from what I’ve seen. 

[burchy]

Why are people talking about Tierney, surely if we do go for a left back it’ll be a younger understudy to Moreno (if Digne leaves).

Tierney is a great player but we’re not going to buy Moreno and then replace him within 6 months with Tierney. 

IMHO a new LB is phase two or even three of our recruitment priorities so a non starter for me at the moment. 

[burchy]

I know we were linked to him prior to him signing a new deal at PSV but will links to Ugarte at Sporting cropping up this week I wonder, if we’re looking for a defensive midfielder to sit alongside Kamara, we’d be back in for Sangare. 

A double pivot of Kamara/Sangare with Luiz playing just ahead with say Buendia or Ramsey as the top of the box midfield would be tasty.

We could also mix it up and go with two wide players in Bailey and another in a 4231 with Buendia as the 10. 

[HKP90]

34 minutes ago, burchy said:

Why are people talking about Tierney, surely if we do go for a left back it’ll be a younger understudy to Moreno (if Digne leaves).

Tierney is a great player but we’re not going to buy Moreno and then replace him within 6 months with Tierney. 

IMHO a new LB is phase two or even three of our recruitment priorities so a non starter for me at the moment. 

We do seem baffling obsessed as a club with the left back position. I blame Alan Wright. Nah not really, I love that guy.

[Shaun Teales Moustache]

14 hours ago, tomsky_11 said:

The RB talk is a few things:

• Emery has history of playing the 442 with one attacking and one more defensive full back, the latter perhaps closer to a centre back a la Foyth. This may be a direction Emery wants to go in again and given who we already have at LB, then RB is the more obvious position for this.
• we are potentially light in that area if Young doesn't continue next season, so it becomes an easier position to improve on without upsetting the current squad too much or forcing sales.
• we should be aiming for two quality players in every position, perhaps even more so at full back where in-game rotation I think tends to be higher (see our left backs)
• the majority of signings from now on should be improvements to first xi, or at very least on par with existing option. RB is still in top half for me in terms of where this is most possible as there are a number of other positions that would be more difficult, if not impossible to realistically improve on.
• talk of bringing in another right back started when we were still flipping between him and Young and so there was perhaps more of a question over this position. Though his recent form doesn't neccessarily invalidate some the points above.

I'm not sure much of the talk is about outright replacing and selling Cash. It certainly isn't from my perspective. He's a good player, good age, long contract, relatively cheap and helps with home grown quotas. It's just through a combination of factors as mentioned above that position is IMO likely at the higher end of our priorities this summer.

 

 

I do think we should outright replace and sell Cash. 

He's not a bad player by any means. He's unquestionably a Premier League standard right back. But his strengths are not used in the majority of the games he plays (the Crystal Palace game the only recent game he got to play his game). And the qualities we need in that position are just not his strengths. He's not great on the ball, he's not great against tricky or quick wingers and he's not great in the air. 

It's also not his fault that we're bad at defending set pieces, but his position is the one where we can make the easiest big improvement against that massive weakness. 

Also, we can't just spend without consequences, so the fact that he's a homegrown player with impressive Premier League and International experience means he's a pretty valuable player. So I don't agree with signing another player just to bench him. He's a good player that lots of good teams would benefit from. Just not suited to our primary system. We should be able to sell him for a decent amount, and reinvest that.

The homegrown quota is a non-issue. You can have 17 non-homegrown, and Martinez, Mings, Watkins and Ramsey are core first team squad that are HG. Duran also won't count for 2 years I think, so that's the first and second team we don't have to worry about for years, before considering any academy prospects that we're clearly making efforts to bring through.

We already have 5 free non-HG spots, and if we bring in more than 5 players, we definitely won't be keeping guys like Traore and Olsen (and in the longer term Digne, Dendonker, Coutinho, Bailey, Buendia, McGinn). It's a Champions League squad problem, and if we ever get to that level, Matty Cash won't be a factor.

[burchy]

I think there’s a load of ‘ifs’ about Villa at the moment, we’re all trying to second guess who we’re going to bring in, me included, along with all the mainstream press it would seem.  

We’re a closed book, which is equally annoying and impressive.

I think there are positions which we can all call like the RB/CB position but the other areas are all up in the air as to who, how many and which positions.

Are we after a RM, CM, RW, ST, LM/CAM, CB (L), CB (R) Backup GK?

You could make arguments for all of the above but we wouldn’t have the cash to invest in so many positions.

It’ll be fun watching it play out but I think they’ll be some complete randoms in there that will take us all by surprise. 

[nick76]

45 minutes ago, burchy said:

I think there are positions which we can all call like the RB/CB position

Ermmm…I don’t believe this is agreed as a definite, I think there are other areas that are more a priority in advanced areas.  Certainly we can upgrade/add to this position but for me it’s not the priority.

[tomsky_11]

2 hours ago, Shaun Teales Moustache said:

I do think we should outright replace and sell Cash. 

He's not a bad player by any means. He's unquestionably a Premier League standard right back. But his strengths are not used in the majority of the games he plays (the Crystal Palace game the only recent game he got to play his game). And the qualities we need in that position are just not his strengths. He's not great on the ball, he's not great against tricky or quick wingers and he's not great in the air. 

It's also not his fault that we're bad at defending set pieces, but his position is the one where we can make the easiest big improvement against that massive weakness. 

Also, we can't just spend without consequences, so the fact that he's a homegrown player with impressive Premier League and International experience means he's a pretty valuable player. So I don't agree with signing another player just to bench him. He's a good player that lots of good teams would benefit from. Just not suited to our primary system. We should be able to sell him for a decent amount, and reinvest that.

The homegrown quota is a non-issue. You can have 17 non-homegrown, and Martinez, Mings, Watkins and Ramsey are core first team squad that are HG. Duran also won't count for 2 years I think, so that's the first and second team we don't have to worry about for years, before considering any academy prospects that we're clearly making efforts to bring through.

We already have 5 free non-HG spots, and if we bring in more than 5 players, we definitely won't be keeping guys like Traore and Olsen (and in the longer term Digne, Dendonker, Coutinho, Bailey, Buendia, McGinn). It's a Champions League squad problem, and if we ever get to that level, Matty Cash won't be a factor.

So we are selling and bringing in two new right backs? Just don't see that happening.

I don't see us selling much beyond the fringe guys tbh. This summer should be focusing on the gaps and few key areas where we need to improve, not having massive turnover.

Right back I think we have a gap, which we fill with a different profile of full back to Cash, and one who is better or at least as good as Cash because I think majority of signings we make now need to improve first XI, not just add back ups. (I don't think Cash is anywhere as bad as you've made out btw, his biggest weakness is his delivery and that's less an issue when he's holding position.)

None of that means we sell Cash. I don't think we'd be actively looking to sell. If we do it's just another player we need to go out and get that probably costs more than Cash in the long run. Cash will still get plenty of minutes in changing systems, in rotation during games, could also an option further forward.

If we get a crazy offer from someone for him? Maybe then he goes, but that probably goes for a lot of the players.

[Adbo9]

20 hours ago, Made In Aston said:

I heard she had him tied to a meat hook and regularly uses him as a sex toy. 

Ah, JulieB ........... what a complete Lunatic

Miss her and her sidekick psycho Shelley's harrowing abuse at anyone who didnt have a poster of Remi Garde on their walls.........

Proper odd job mental cases

 

Fun  Times

[gwi1890]

16 hours ago, burchy said:

Not sure about LB but if we’re looking for a left footed CB I’d go for Inacio at Sporting

Every time I come on this forum you post that . 

[gwi1890]

I think the RB position will be addressed but not in the sense that we’ll only be using a defensive RB, I think Emery wants different profiles of players at the club and to options and different gameplans. People are under the impression that Foyth started every game as Defensive RB at Villarreal but this isn’t the case he rotated with other fullbacks, Ruben Pena, Mario Gaspar and  Serge Aurier. Foyth played 22  league games as RB last season so if a defensive RB is incoming I wouldn’t expect it to be a lock that Cash leaves and that we only play a certain way.

[Indigo]

5 minutes ago, gwi1890 said:

I think the RB position will be addressed but not in the sense that we’ll only be using a defensive RB, I think Emery wants different profiles of players at the club and to options and different gameplans. People are under the impression that Foyth started every game as Defensive RB at Villarreal but this isn’t the case he rotated with other fullbacks, Ruben Pena, Mario Gaspar and  Serge Aurier. Foyth played 22  league games as RB last season so if a defensive RB is incoming I wouldn’t expect it to be a lock that Cash leaves and that we only play a certain way.

Yep I agree. All we've heard since Emery joined is how forensic he is, obsessive with making game plans catered to the opposition after thoroughly studying them, this doesn't really tally up with what gets implied by some of the transfer speculations. The Palace game is a prime example where even Cash said himself that he was instructed that he had more freedom to get forward in that game and affect things, I doubt that it's a given that a Foyth, Kounde etc type gets signed to just permanently play that system and then Cash is as good as sold.

[duke313]

I take it the Phillips links are just pure clickbait because he wants to leave City and we were linked with him before?

[grantholtgolazo]

Do we think that it will be Watkins and Duran/Archer as forwards or will another forward be brought in? And if they are should the one or both of Duran/Archer go out on loan?

 

[VillaChris]

4 hours ago, burchy said:

Why are people talking about Tierney, surely if we do go for a left back it’ll be a younger understudy to Moreno (if Digne leaves).

Tierney is a great player but we’re not going to buy Moreno and then replace him within 6 months with Tierney. 

IMHO a new LB is phase two or even three of our recruitment priorities so a non starter for me at the moment. 

Tierney is better than Moreno, simple as that.

He's only 25 and also picks up knocks so Moreno will still get plenty of minutes.

Moreno is 30 in the summer so I don't really see him as a long term signing. More someone Emery knows can improve us in short term and if we can get Digne out in the summer he'll be more reliable backup for what the manager wants.

If Tierney wants to come in the summer we need to be after him as I think that's the sort of signing that can seriously get us in contention for 6th-7th.

[OutByEaster?]

Just now, grantholtgolazo said:

Do we think that it will be Watkins and Duran/Archer as forwards or will another forward be brought in? And if they are should the one or both of Duran/Archer go out on loan?

I think you have to see it as the partnership between the more central striker and the wider one - so at the moment that tends to be Watkins/Bailey or Watkins/Buendia or later in games Watkins/Duran.

I think we'll be looking to start the season with four - Watkins, Duran and two others, with Bailey possibly staying as a back up - I think Buendia will move back into the mix for the forward pair of midfielders and compete with McGinn and Ramsey (and possibly one more) and I think we'll look to add a mobile forward who can play in the wider areas - we've certainly been linked to a few of those.

I wouldn't be too surprised to see us go out and get two players in forward positions and let Bailey go. 

For me, I'm not sure Archer will be in the equation, but depending on whereabouts on the pitch Emery wants to spend his money, it might prove useful to keep him around as cover; we might spend big on one player, keep Archer and let Bailey go.

I'd love to see a squad with a four of Watkins, Duran, Nico Williams and Pedro Gonçalves, but I suspect that might be a bit ambitious.

 

 

[VillaChris]

3 hours ago, HKP90 said:

We do seem baffling obsessed as a club with the left back position. I blame Alan Wright. Nah not really, I love that guy.

It's more we need to get Digne off the books as really not healthy to have a backup player on 150-200k. Already got Coutinho for that.

So that leaves us with Moreno and.....Ben Chrisene doing o.k at Kilmarnock but surely needs a good championship loan before he has a serious chance of playing in premier league for us.

If we had a top quality LB prospect already involved and a few months away from playing I'd agree but we don't.

It's a little different at RB with KHH showing promise in the lower leagues. He should be making the bench in next few weeks.

[VillaChris]

Can see Bailey getting sold to Ajax in the summer given they were interested last year by all accounts.

We need much more depth in key areas. People think we can play 50 game season with about 12 regular proven top level players, we tried that under MON and it had its flaws from March onwards.

[Delphinho123]

At the bare minimum, we'd be a much better team if we went into next season like this...

----------------------------------------Watkins------------------------------
------------------------------New----------------------------------------------
New-------------Luiz------------Kamara--------McGinn/Ramsey
Moreno--------------Mings-------------Konsa------------------Cash
--------------------------------------Martinez---------------------------------

Get those two positions right and we'd be competing for Europe.
 

[Vive_La_Villa]

22 minutes ago, Delphinho123 said:

At the bare minimum, we'd be a much better team if we went into next season like this...

----------------------------------------Watkins------------------------------
------------------------------New----------------------------------------------
New-------------Luiz------------Kamara--------McGinn/Ramsey
Moreno--------------Mings-------------Konsa------------------Cash
--------------------------------------Martinez---------------------------------

Get those two positions right and we'd be competing for Europe.
 

This ain’t going to go down well