COUTINHO
- Thread starter Spurslove
- Start date
If nothing else his set pieces would be much more effective.
archiewasking
Waiting for silverware..........
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Well apparently Poch had the chance to get him and wasn't interested, so I'd be tempted to trust his judgement. Coutinho has always struck me as a luxury player, good in short bursts, but not the kind to take a game by the scruff of the neck and turn it in his team's favour.
Trees
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- Aug 31, 2012
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Poch brilliant coach but in fairness generally poor in the transfer market. Our buys 2016-19 were shocking.
leelee
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- Oct 6, 2004
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Coutinho may not take a game by the scruff of the neck but he's a game changer with his ability to score from distance and his passing ability. Both better than Eriksen.
archiewasking
Waiting for silverware..........
- Jul 5, 2004
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Eriksen at his best, obviously discounting the last year of him phoning it in, used to set our tempo and make us tick. And create a lot of chances, cover a huge amount of ground.
Maybe you're right about Coutinho, I'd love to see some stats comparing him with Christian, to see if I'm just wearing Spurs tinted spectacles.
dtxspurs
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Still don't understand how a club with a history of iffy recruitment is pinned on the manager at the time. I'm sure Poch hand picked players like Njie & Nkoudou...
S17PUR
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I think this will be the key thing moving forward. I suspect if 4-3-3 is the way we're heading, a defensive midfielder like Hojbjerg will end up being our most important signing - and if it is Hojbjerg no doubt a lot of fans will turn their noses up at him too.
WiganSpur
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I don't know enough about him - Is he a true DM? I was under the impression he was more of a ball player like Winks.
We need more physicality and athleticism there imo.
dtxspurs
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He’s certainly more physical and athletic than Winks.
DiVaio
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Recommend this thread, he looks good.
BringBack_leGin
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He’s strong and more than quick enough for CM, and over 6ft.
In terms of ferocity in his press, he’s very good as a hunter. It’s unnoticed because he anticipates situations and gets there first rather than having to throw himself into tackles like a Sandro or Wanyama. Additionally, all descriptions of him make him out to be a real leader on and off the pitch, and that’s at just 24.
Now, he might just look good in a poor Southampton side, and not be equipped to step up, but a 24 year old DM captain of an established Prem side with significant top flight experience means the mental building blocks are probably there.
I’m definitely in support of this signing, even though I’ll admit that there are seemingly more ‘wow’ players out there, because I genuinely feel like he’s the type of puzzle piece we need.
At this point he could be a Wanyama, Parker or Milner, equally he could be a Schneiderlin, Fellaini or Drinkwater. Some players are made to stand out in a weaker side, some stand out because they’re ready for the next level. Only one way to find out and much of our success has been due to getting these risks correct when we’ve taken them.
S17PUR
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I wouldn't claim to be an expert on him myself either, but his defensive stats in the league this season are very good. I think you're right in that he is a ball player, but I think he had the highest or second highest number of interceptions in the league and was in the top 5 for tackles too so he's better defensively than Winks (who I actually think has improved in that respect).
C0YS
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- Jul 9, 2007
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He's ok, but not then ideal answer. He is not a natural DM and plays for one of the defensively worst teams in the league. Interception stats don't always that offers defensive solidity. Even so, he is an intelligent player with a good engine, and might be able to develop and improve in a better team, (though his ego is the size of a planet!).
For what it's worth, he splits a lot of opinions in Southampton circles. Like he is essentially seen like a grafter, solid, but not exceptional, also most see his ball retention as pretty poor (and passing stats in the 70%ish area is really really bad for someone who is meant to primarily be a defensive player) and I think that's fair. Also, for what it's worth a lot of them point out that all of their midfielders have good ball winning stats, because they play in such a way that it promotes a midfield where the ball is won a lot. So those stats might be slightly misleading.
He might offer us something useful, but I don't see it as more than an opportunistic cheap buy of someone who can do be a part of the tam. For someone not home grown there is much better out there. If we are really going for lower PL defensive midfielders I wouldn't put Hojbjerg ahead of, say, Billing form Bournemouth.
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brasil_spur
SC Supporter
- Aug 25, 2006
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It's always easy to pick out the flops, every club in the world will have some flop signings under every manager. How many of the first team players in Poch's squad were signed under his reign though?
Lloris - No, Vertonghen - No, Kane - No, Erikssen - No, Walker - No, Rose - No, Dembele - No, Lamela - No, Winks - No.
I'm not saying for one moment that MP was in charge of transfers, but surely he had some input into who we signed, or at least should have done. Also we did sign a few quality players under the MP reign such as Dele, Son and Alderweireld, but the majority of his key players were players that he inherited when he took over at the club.
So as the original post said, MP was a fantastic coach, but he seemed to be largely uninvolved / ineffective in the transfer market during his period in charge.
coy-spurs1882
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i think dele was recommended by david pleat
Jimbobfury
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Poch managed him at Espanyol.... he would know him and his character. So makes you think why he would say no to him.
dtxspurs
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We were never going to buy 2 #10 types as long as Eriksen was still here.
Montalbano
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Signing him on loan with an option to buy would be UNBELIEVABLE for us. Coutinho is still absolutely world class and a player that would effortlessly slot into our first XI. He still is the best finisher from outside the box in football IMO. We obviously were poking around his camp last year and I could see us making an approach this summer. He has fleeced us in each of our matches against him in the Champions League for Barca / Bayern.
A loan with an option to buy would be perfect for this summer. His inflated price tag has made him extremely underrated. If Barca are reasonable with his fee — which they reportedly will be due to their desire to raise funds, his increasing age, diminishing contract and COVID-19; he'd be a perfect statement signing at the end of his loan next summer. Hopefully by then the club will return to a more stable financial condition. Selling Lamela this summer would help finance his loan fee / wages this summer.
It seems like according to reports there is a good chance he'll land at either Chelsea, Arsenal or here this summer. An attacking force of Coutinho, Werner and Ziyech for Chelsea is a terrifying thought, so lets make him lilywhite instead.
A loan with an option to buy would be perfect for this summer. His inflated price tag has made him extremely underrated. If Barca are reasonable with his fee — which they reportedly will be due to their desire to raise funds, his increasing age, diminishing contract and COVID-19; he'd be a perfect statement signing at the end of his loan next summer. Hopefully by then the club will return to a more stable financial condition. Selling Lamela this summer would help finance his loan fee / wages this summer.
It seems like according to reports there is a good chance he'll land at either Chelsea, Arsenal or here this summer. An attacking force of Coutinho, Werner and Ziyech for Chelsea is a terrifying thought, so lets make him lilywhite instead.
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