Transfer Talk Topic

[Dwmh]

3 minutes ago, ROTG said:

Do you really believe Costa, Drogba and Crespo would be scoring a hat full of goals with the current squad?

You also need to remember who JM MK1 & MK2 sent packing to make the squads good enough to win the PL. 

Costa:  21 goals in 14/15  (finished 1st)
                16 goals in 15/16 (finished 10th)
                22 goals in 16/17 (finished 1st)
not bad in the year we were crap/short of players.
Last season and 15/16 are the only seasons comparable to this.

[ROTG]

4 hours ago, Max Fowler said:

I think we can exploit the conflict between Oshimen and Napoli as long as we are willing to cough up, maybe not in January.

Good shouts. I also don't think we should be afraid to scout from the German league just because it has hurt us before. 

 

 

All the more reason to go all out to get one of the top players on that list in Oshimen.

With such a dearth it really does become worth paying over the odds for the very best, as City have found with Haaland's wage if not fee.

Why would an alleged top quality striker move from a club with CL football and who he has just won serie A to a club that will be offering 38 PL games next season. 

[ROTG]

4 minutes ago, Dwmh said:

Costa:  21 goals in 14/15  (finished 1st)
                16 goals in 15/16 (finished 10th)
                22 goals in 16/17 (finished 1st)
not bad in the year we were crap/short of players.
Last season and 15/16 are the only seasons comparable to this.

See your point. 

However 15/16 the team scored 59 goals and conceded 53 and along with winning more and lossing less. 

FWIW, Probably better using the current squad is a better indicator, rather than a season with 4 managers and the most bloated squad in PL history. 

[Max Fowler]

1 minute ago, ROTG said:

Why would an alleged top quality striker move from a club with CL football and who he has just won serie A to a club that will be offering 38 PL games next season. 

1 hour ago, Morgs said:

Striker is the tougher ask isn't it? 

We need someone big, aggressive, strong and who can hold the ball up but who is also direct, great in the air and who is a calm and deadly, instinctive finisher. Someone who can create room in a congested deep block and knows how to pull defenders wide to open up room. Someone mentally hard, supremely confident in their own abilities and who wont let his head drop when he gets every single decision go against him in every game. Somebody experienced but hungry. Someone who has a b*stard streak a mile wide and who takes things personally. A winner. A horrible, merciless, no-holds-barred predator winner. 

...and since he doesn't exist we need to at least not buy someone who will fold up and sink without trace when the goals prove hard to come by. 

Osimhen fits the bill exactly for the above @Morgs.

Chelsea fan growing up @ROTG  (huge fan of Drogba) - he has completely fallen out with Napoli over recent events.

I don't think any other club can afford him or will move for him at his current price outside of Saudi.

41 goals and assists in last 40 Serie A games since 22/23 season.
28 goals and assists over the last 28 games for Nigeria.

Scores headers, tap ins, runs in behind - he has got everything.

 

 

 

[Thiago97]

It's a shame we didnt spot Osimhen when we played against him a few years back. We played Lille and I even have this lasting impression he may of scored against us, he certainly played in that game.

Hindsight I guess, but would have been good to have picked him up when he left Lille.

[JaneB]

Welcome back @Morgs I've missed your input.

[Morgs]

1 hour ago, ROTG said:

Do you really believe Costa, Drogba and Crespo would be scoring a hat full of goals with the current squad?

You also need to remember who JM MK1 & MK2 sent packing to make the squads good enough to win the PL. 

I think any of those three would be easily in double figures by now, yes. Look at the chances we have missed and the lack of a focal point up top we have suffered from. 

[Mark Kelly]

33 minutes ago, Morgs said:

I think any of those three would be easily in double figures by now, yes. Look at the chances we have missed and the lack of a focal point up top we have suffered from. 

I think the lack of a focal point is a good point , I was reading about Unai Emery taking Olly Watkins to one side and telling him not to get so involved in the build up to the attack as it meant he wasn't always in the right position to benefit from any goal scoring opportunity the side made , since then Watkins has  scored his first hat trick and is scoring freely so maybe we need Jackson to do the same? 

[Max Fowler]

35 minutes ago, Mark Kelly said:

I think the lack of a focal point is a good point , I was reading about Unai Emery taking Olly Watkins to one side and telling him not to get so involved in the build up to the attack as it meant he wasn't always in the right position to benefit from any goal scoring opportunity the side made , since then Watkins has  scored his first hat trick and is scoring freely so maybe we need Jackson to do the same? 

I think we need Jackson to not be a former Bournemouth target who probably will never be good enough for us.

We do need a striker but points are well taken about it not being the be all and end all. Yes we need someone to stick it in the onion bag, but I could imagine many good strikers going to pot without the right setup.

We need experience, balance, characters, quality all over the pitch - remains to be seen if our youngsters (Mudryk, Madueke, Enzo etc.) will ever get to the level to truly lead the team.

The striker is just the great big glaring hole but we have others that need to be closed too.

[Max Fowler]

 

 

[chiswickblue]

I doubt we'll be signing any more AMs given that in the pipeline we have Angelo, Paez, Hutchinson, Vale, Moreira etc. Obviously you don't expect all of them to make it, but i think this is the plan.

I also don't see a GK that is a clear step up on what we have, and that includes Ramsdale.

Osimhen is the one remaining big purchase that makes sense. Given his relationship with Napoli has broken down and he has 18 months left on his contract, we should be moving for him in the next two windows. But we won't be the only ones.

[ROTG]

2 hours ago, Max Fowler said:

 

 

Hopefully @paulw66 this is Alex Crook just speculating his for talksh1t pay cheque. 

Absolutely toilet keeper

[ROTG]

10 hours ago, Max Fowler said:

Osimhen fits the bill exactly for the above @Morgs.

Chelsea fan growing up @ROTG  (huge fan of Drogba) - he has completely fallen out with Napoli over recent events.

I don't think any other club can afford him or will move for him at his current price outside of Saudi.

41 goals and assists in last 40 Serie A games since 22/23 season.
28 goals and assists over the last 28 games for Nigeria.

Scores headers, tap ins, runs in behind - he has got everything.

 

 

 

IMO he is highly over priced and who in the squad gets sacrificed to bring him in?

Also it's looking like another season without European football, that will surely impact FFP and I doubt he will come for £100k per week. 

Edited November 3, 2023 by ROTG
Wasn't Lukaku a Chelsea Fan?

[kev61]

19 hours ago, Sleeping Dave said:

I was very critical of how the ownership structured the squad and how they went about our signings. However, I am actually starting to sway a bit on that early conviction. I get that people are worried, I'm one of them (!), but if 60-70% of the long-term bets we've done come good we are certainly in a for a good ride. Perhaps not a championship winning dynsasty squad, but certainly a squad that should make CL qualification almost a certainty over a decade long period with a league title here and there and a few cup wins.

Mind, we are not there yet. But there is some real long-term potential in this squad: 

GK: We need a GK1 that is right up there with the best (still). Depth really good and lots of potential.

GK1, Sanchez , Petrovic, Slonina

FB: Plenty of options here, we should be good for the medium-term without any further investment. If Cucurella settles, as he seems to have been doing over the last few weeks we have plenty of options to choose from. 

James, Chilwell, Gusto, Cucurella (Maatsen if he sign a new deal)

CB: We are strong here and have crazy potential if it can be realised. When Silva retires we might need one top CB but it is not an absolute must.

Badiashile, Disasi, Colwill, Chalobah

CM: We have at least five players in this position for the long-term, without even counting Santos or Casadei. 

Enzo, Caicedo, Gallagher, Ugochukwu, Lavia

AM: Crazy depth also here, although we do lack actual goals on a consistent basis. I feel we need to add one more player here in the medium-term that is a recognized goalscorer and then we are set for the LT.

Palmer, Mudryk, Nkunku, Sterling, New Goalscoring AM

S: Our never-ending achilles heel. Badly need a proven goalscorer... 

S1, Jackson, Broja

In my mind, we are 3-4 signings away from having a very, very good side. Maybe even an excellent one over time. In a way I'm happy we have spent so much, meaning we are restricted on how much we can spend going forward. If we only sign 1-2 players over the next 18 months and they are the right players I'll be happy. 

In order of importance: 

S1

GK1

Goalscoring AM

Possibly a top class CB

I commend your optimism(I had the same optimism after pre sesason)but I am less optimistic now.

A lot of people are waiting for the return of Nkunku   as if  he is going to dramatically change things... he might ,but it is a terrible indictment  of where we are.

I see very little improvement in the way the team is set up - same old same old style(or lack of)of play.

I see other teams buzzing about with fast play.We have still have this patient build up (or badly coached)bollocks.

I have seen enough of Poch by now to think Poch really doesn't know what he's doing.

 

Edited November 3, 2023 by kev61

[ROTG]

16 hours ago, Morgs said:

I think any of those three would be easily in double figures by now, yes. Look at the chances we have missed and the lack of a focal point up top we have suffered from. 

Apart from scoring goals both Costa and Drogba were able to be the target man and hold the ball up back to goal and bring the team into play, which is sadly something been missing for a while, not so sure either Osimhen or Toney are capable of doing that.

[ROTG]

3 hours ago, kev61 said:

I commend your optimism(I had the same optimism after pre sesason)but I am less optimistic now.

A lot of people are waiting for the return of Nkunku   as if  he is going to dramatically change things... he might ,but it is a terrible indictment  of where we are.

I see very little improvement in the way the team is set up - same old same old style(or lack of)of play.

I see other teams buzzing about with fast play.We have still have this patient build up (or badly coached)bollocks.

I have seen enough of Poch by now to think Poch really doesn't know what he's doing.

 

Poch is only as good as the tools given to him.

[Thiago97]

13 minutes ago, ROTG said:

Apart from scoring goals both Costa and Drogba were able to be the target man and hold the ball up back to goal and bring the team into play, which is sadly something been missing for a while, not so sure either Osimhen or Toney are capable of doing that.

This is one of Toney’s main strengths. Brentford often bypass midfield to hit Toney direct, then the team play off him in these areas. He is strong as an Ox, wins numerous aerial duels and is very good with his back to goal. He is capable of this as it is what his whole game is based around.

The big question on Toney is how does he adapt to teams who favour more possession , and don’t look to hit him direct as often. Will this nullify his influence and impact  on games.

As I mentioned recently, it would be brave to bet against him (No pun!) , cos he has met and exceeded nearly every challenge that has been asked of him , other than finding a move to Newcastle too big at such a young age.

 

[ROTG]

3 minutes ago, Thiago97 said:

This is one of Toney’s main strengths. Brentford often bypass midfield to hit Toney direct, then the team play off him in these areas. He is strong as an Ox, wins numerous aerial duels and is very good with his back to goal. He is capable of this as it is what his whole game is based around.

The big question on Toney is how does he adapt to teams who favour more possession , and don’t look to hit him direct as often. Will this nullify his influence and impact  on games.

As I mentioned recently, it would be brave to bet against him (No pun!) , cos he has met and exceeded nearly every challenge that has been asked of him , other than finding a move to Newcastle too big at such a young age.

 

Thanks for the info, I will check it out.

The times i have seen him mainly on MOTD or PL highlights show on the parish TV, he's always seemed to be the key player on the front foot when Brentford went direct.

[Thiago97]

4 minutes ago, ROTG said:

Thanks for the info, I will check it out.

The times i have seen him mainly on MOTD or PL highlights show on the parish TV, he's always seemed to be the key player on the front foot when Brentford went direct.

He’s a physical bully of a forward, who I can only imagine defenders hate playing against. He is actually an underrated dribbler of the ball. His hold up play with his back to goal with  his upper body strength, but also manipulating the ball with tight dribbling to hold off defenders , is something he does very well. 
I think he is the type of forward worthy of watching closely in a game, cos he does a lot of very good things that are often missed. 

[boratsbrother]

We sent people over to watch Oshimen and they were not that impressed with what they saw, especially for the kind of money being quoted for him. 

There's a severe dearth of genuine top quality strikers around today, so I guess we're going to have to way over the odds for even a decent one like a Toney.

[Max Fowler]

7 hours ago, ROTG said:

IMO he is highly over priced and who in the squad gets sacrificed to bring him in?

Also it's looking like another season without European football, that will surely impact FFP and I doubt he will come for £100k per week. 

Overpriced compared to who - Enzo? Mudryk? Caicedo? Even at 130-150 million Osimhen seems value for money compared to them, and certainly Toney at 100 million.

He earns 113k a week at Napoli. I am sure we could give him close to 200k (near Enzo's, Nkunku's wages).

Don't forget Haaland cost only City 60? million but they pay him about 600k a week in wages.

Point is we need to invest in quality as Jackson has proved to be too lightweight so far. At some point we need to make a statement signing up top and I think Osimhen could be persuaded.

 I see a few players still coming and going in upcoming windows (also who Clearlake have bought).

19 minutes ago, boratsbrother said:

We sent people over to watch Oshimen and they were not that impressed with what they saw, especially for the kind of money being quoted for him. 

There's a severe dearth of genuine top quality strikers around today, so I guess we're going to have to way over the odds for even a decent one like a Toney.

Agreed on the latter - but again, if Toney cost 100 million, and the likes of Hojlund cost 80, I think are goalscoring woes are now so systemic that we need to double down on the better option than both.

I think we are still interested but Osimhen may be very hard to get in January. We did it with Enzo though.

 

 

 

 

[Max Fowler]

Phew.

 

 

[ROTG]

13 minutes ago, Max Fowler said:

Overpriced compared to who - Enzo? Mudryk? Caicedo? Even at 130-150 million Osimhen seems value for money compared to them, and certainly Toney at 100 million.

He earns 113k a week at Napoli. I am sure we could give him close to 200k (near Enzo's, Nkunku's wages).

Don't forget Haaland cost only City 60? million but they pay him about 600k a week in wages.

Point is we need to invest in quality as Jackson has proved to be too lightweight so far. At some point we need to make a statement signing up top and I think Osimhen could be persuaded.

 I see a few players still coming and going in upcoming windows (also who Clearlake have bought).

How much more does the club spend to make a return to the top 4

toon toon and spent 300m to take them from mid table to top 4 in 3 transfer windows

its a funny old game 

[Mark Kelly]

4 minutes ago, ROTG said:

How much more does the club spend to make a return to the top 4

toon toon and spent 300m to take them from mid table to top 4 in 3 transfer windows

its a funny old game 

How much do you think Newcastle would need to spend if they sold the amount of players we sold in the close season?

What was it ? Sixteen? 

It is indeed a funny old game. 

[Max Fowler]

13 minutes ago, ROTG said:

How much more does the club spend to make a return to the top 4

toon toon and spent 300m to take them from mid table to top 4 in 3 transfer windows

its a funny old game 

One point I'd like to make - agreeing with Simon Jordan the other day, if our owners overpay for players and waste money it's their prerogative and of course is a reflection of their competency to some extent.

One shift I have had - I now absolutely believe the owners are aiming for us to be the best side in the country.

If we go a long way round it may have been unnecessary and painful but I don't believe any more the conspiracies like they are just trying to turn us into some midtable cash cow like Brighton. 

Plus - I'd actually like to see us "waste" a bit of money on someone with actual experience and pedigree. 

Newcastle have done great but they are also a different club with different expectations. They could buy average to good players and create a really solid side that built on their existing one. 

We are at a different phase of our lifecycle and many of our investments will come good in the coming years.