The Daily ITK Discussion Thread - ITK THROUGH THE AGES 2nd August 2012

[Greenspur]

I hate Liverpool as much as anybody and even I don't want to base our transfer policy on annoying them like Chelsea does to us. I want us to find the right players for our system and that includes players that can hold on to the ball and pass. Gylfi and Dembele do that.

Just two points .....
1. Although it's mentioned a lot on here, we don't really think that Chelsea buy players just to piss us off, do we? Not even Abramovich is that machiavellian, or that stupid.
2. Dempsey is really a very good player, and would surely add to the team.

 

[Gedson100]

It can be painful too. Two years ago Sahin was 7.73 and last year Corzola was 7.6

Shit.
Like a dagger to the heart. You'll be on there all night.
Start a new thread Happy, identify our transfer targets!

 

[puella]

Don't know if it has been mentioned but the marca have linked Real to Dembele as an alternative to Modric. Can't help but think that this is actually a ploy to get us to lower our price on Modric though.

Dembele's agent told De Telegraaf "Real Madrid have contacted us and asked about signing Dembele. They are not the first big club who have contacted us this summer."

Fulham then came out with their own statement: "We have not had any approaches for Dembele and none would be welcome."

 

[HappySpur]

Just two points .....
1. Although it's mentioned a lot on here, we don't really think that Chelsea buy players just to piss us off, do we? Not even Abramovich is that machiavellian, or that stupid.
2. Dempsey is really a very good player, and would surely add to the team.

1. I don't know. But after Curtois, Oscar and Hazard, we have the right to make shit up.
2. He is and he would. He will also turn 30 this coming campaign. Always something to keep in mind.

 

[simon bartlett]

i can see us spunking a load of money on 10 mil signings , the type we needed 3 seasons ago to really push on.

Now, however, to really improve us and take us to the next level we need something a bit special. Dembele and sigurdsson whilst good players are not suitable replacements for the likes of Modric. If you loose world class and replace him with premier class your team is weaker. Simples.

 

[Mr Pink]

i can see us spunking a load of money on 10 mil signings , the type we needed 3 seasons ago to really push on.

Now, however, to really improve us and take us to the next level we need something a bit special. Dembele and sigurdsson whilst good players are not suitable replacements for the likes of Modric. If you loose world class and replace him with premier class your team is weaker. Simples.

No its not simples, far from it. Its about AVB building a side now and its not always the case that you replace with like for like - you look at the bigger picture and assess from there, which I'm sure AVB and Levy are doing.

 

[beats1]

No offence but Modric last season was a shadow of the player from the season before, the one that worked insanely hard but hardly got much credit until fergie and Chelski came

 

[simon bartlett]

No its not simples, far from it. Its about AVB building a side now and its not always the case that you replace with like for like - you look at the bigger picture and assess from there, which I'm sure AVB and Levy are doing.

I know what youre saying but we are not building a side we are tweaking and improving one arent we ??
Replace a player with a worse player and your team isnt as good. We have very few top/world class players , we need more of them not less. I dont see how it can be seen any other way.

We are at a stage now were almost all our players are high quality. What we need to push on is more world class or potential to be world class. I just dont see Sigursson , dembele,clint dempsey, joe allen etc as being a step up for us.

In a perfect world wed be buying Moutinho to play alongside Modric , not replacing him with a lesser player.

 

[Hitch]

1. I don't know. But after Curtois, Oscar and Hazard, we have the right to make shit up.
2. He is and he would. He will also turn 30 this coming campaign. Always something to keep in mind.

Mata too arguably

 

[King of Otters]

Mata too arguably

And Marin.

Not that I buy into this theory; just saying.

 

[Mr Pink]

I know what youre saying but we are not building a side we are tweaking and improving one arent we ??
Replace a player with a worse player and your team isnt as good. We have very few top/world class players , we need more of them not less. I dont see how it can be seen any other way.

We are at a stage now were almost all our players are high quality. What we need to push on is more world class or potential to be world class. I just dont see Sigursson , dembele,clint dempsey, joe allen etc as being a step up for us.

In a perfect world wed be buying Moutinho to play alongside Modric , not replacing him with a lesser player.

Well we'll be probably playing a different way under AVB and not just in terms of a system. He'll have his own ideas - more pressing etc We arn't going to be able to replace Modric with an exact like for like in any case. Buying a cheaper player for midfield who has a lot of potential and spending more on a striker, for example, could be very shrewd business - and lets not forget that's how we need to operate in the transfer market.

We can't compete with the mega rich and the wages they offer, a degree of reality is required, but its not to say we can't improve under AVB by making signings that make good financial sense and of course that can improve us as a side on the pitch.

 

[yiddo]

Whilst losing RVP would be a HUGE blow to the scum, it hasnt actually happened yet..... and to me actually looks less likely to happen this window than the Modric transfer.

Giroud was Ligue 1's top scorer last year, so at 10m is pretty decent purchase.
Podolski reminds me very much of RVP, he did fail at Bayern but has been pretty successful everywhere else. Again at approx 10m is certainly an upgrade on Chamakh & Park.

With Carzola & possibly Sahin coming in, even if they lose RVP they dont really looker any weaker. In fact overall squad wise.... they will probably be stronger! and god help us if they manage to keep RVP too!!

As everyone knows we need strikers, but really starting to get worried as I cant see who we realistically can sign who is even going to keep us at the level of last year..... let alone improve!!!

 

[simon bartlett]

Well we'll be probably playing a different way under AVB and not just in terms of a system. He'll have his own ideas - more pressing etc We arn't going to be able to replace Modric with an exact like for like in any case. Buying a cheaper player for midfield who has a lot of potential and spending more on a striker, for example, could be very shrewd business - and lets not forget that's how we need to operate in the transfer market.

We can't compete with the mega rich and the wages they offer, a degree of reality is required, but its not to say we can't improve under AVB by making signings that make good financial sense and of course that can improve us as a side on the pitch.

I really hope youre right !

 

[Hitch]

I'm a big fan of Dembele but I do wonder if he has the kind of tactical intelligence that AVB would be looking for in that area of the pitch. I'm not sure that he has the smarts to dictate a game in the way that Luka or Moutinho can, nor the discipline to sit back and read the play when Sandro makes his surges forward.

On the upside though Dembele and Sandro would give us a fantastic drive and physicality through the middle of the park. Dembele is also the only candidate being mentioned as a potential Modric replacement that could provide us with that elite level ball carrying ability that Luka does.

 

[Spurger King]

No offence but Modric last season was a shadow of the player from the season before, the one that worked insanely hard but hardly got much credit until fergie and Chelski came

Maybe not quite a shadow of the player, but certainly a lot less successful at retaining the ball and dictating the play. The season before last there were strings of games where I swear he didn't lose the ball once. Last season there were more games than not where he was still good, but simply not as good as he can be.

 

[Hitch]

Whilst losing RVP would be a HUGE blow to the scum, it hasnt actually happened yet..... and to me actually looks less likely to happen this window than the Modric transfer.

Giroud was Ligue 1's top scorer last year, so at 10m is pretty decent purchase.
Podolski reminds me very much of RVP, he did fail at Bayern but has been pretty successful everywhere else. Again at approx 10m is certainly an upgrade on Chamakh & Park.

With Carzola & possibly Sahin coming in, even if they lose RVP they dont really looker any weaker. In fact overall squad wise.... they will probably be stronger! and god help us if they manage to keep RVP too!!

If, as looks inevitable, they get in Sahin and Cazorla then I think that Van Perise is going to start looking a bit silly in his reasoning for wanting out. He couldn't really ask for much more from Wenger in the transfer market than that, and with their prospective line up I could well see them making a big challenge for the title should RVP stay. Bloke should just be honest and say it's about the money. There's nothing wrong with that!

 

[Mr Pink]

I'm a big fan of Dembele but I do wonder if he has the kind of tactical intelligence that AVB would be looking for in that area of the pitch. I'm not sure that he has the smarts to dictate a game in the way that Luka or Moutinho can, nor the discipline to sit back and read the play when Sandro makes his surges forward.

On the upside though Dembele and Sandro would give us a fantastic drive and physicality through the middle of the park. Dembele is also the only candidate being mentioned as a potential Modric replacement that could provide us with that elite level ball carrying ability that Luka does.

The sort of thing that AVB could certainly work on though, if required. I think training now will suddenly take on a completely different meaning under AVB.

 

[Franchise60]

To paraphrase a famous saying; a striker is for 4 or 5 years not for August.

It's all very well for us to want biz done early but there are major sums involved and if you pay up and get it wrong you are stuffed for years after. Just think back 12 months to Liverpool buying early Charlie Adam, Sebastian Coates, Stuart Downing, Jordan Henderson, done quickly because they over paid, everyone said they'd get 4th but now we know they bought badly and can't shift them. Arguably the same is true of Manure, early moves for Ashley Young, Phil Jones and David de Gea, does anyone think any of those players were a success ? Would Manure get anyway close to what they paid if they tried to sell them now ? I think not.

Patience is a virtue in short supply on SC it would seem.

This is the first window we've been trying to buy a striker right?

 

[Blake Griffin]

Maybe not quite a shadow of the player, but certainly a lot less successful at retaining the ball and dictating the play. The season before last there were strings of games where I swear he didn't lose the ball once. Last season there were more games than not where he was still good, but simply not as good as he can be.

it's funny because statistically luka was better in basically every single department last season compared to the previous one.

 

[Spurger King]

it's funny because statistically luka was better in basically every single department last season compared to the previous one.

To quote Stewart Lee, "Well..you can prove anything with facts can't you..."