Re: Summer Silly Season: Official Thread

[BeautifulGame]

Maybe Glichy got fed up with Arsenal failing all the time and wants to join a team on the rise ^^

I'm sure there are other things to enjoy in football than just the CL.

I'd still go for Cissokho before Glichy, though.

I was discussing Cissokho with OL fan yesterday on general forum and he said Lyon would carry him into us if we offered around 12 mil . Apparently he had a poor season for them . I think Clichy would be better for us than Cissokho .

[Red Alert]

Think we'll get Enrique and Clichy or Cissokho. 5m bid was cheaky though, I liked it.

[nj]

I think Clichy would be better for us than Cissokho .

maybe price-wise.

other than that, i really dont think so mate.
the only think Clichy got is pace,
other than that hes very mistake prone, unreliable defensively, and his crosses are woefuls.

whereas Cissokho, while being less pacey & with less technical abilities than him, is more reliable defensively, stronger, younger and has a great cross in him

[Red Alert]

Buy Clichy for 5m this season. Clarke works his magic. Clichy becomes a beast defender. Sell to RM for 25m next season. Bring in Robinson.

I like to play FM once in a while. :bball:

[Art Morte]

@ Newjack's post

Did you mess up the quote thing? :p
I don't think I've said "I think Clichy would be better for us than Cissokho".

I'd prefer Cissokho.

[RedOranje]

I was discussing Cissokho with OL fan yesterday on general forum and he said Lyon would carry him into us if we offered around 12 mil . Apparently he had a poor season for them . I think Clichy would be better for us than Cissokho .

Everyone at LO had a dour season, tbf. It's hard to perform when the entire side is playing well below it's level.

[Red Alert]

Opinions Charlie Adam?

More and more rumours about him.

[Art Morte]

Opinions Charlie Adam?

More and more rumours about him.

Well, you know rumours, like snowballs, but could still be nothing.

[nj]

@ Newjack's post

Did you mess up the quote thing? :p
I don't think I've said "I think Clichy would be better for us than Cissokho".

I'd prefer Cissokho.

my bad.
i was trying to quote Beautifulgame's post
and by cutting out your post above him, i left your name and it messed it up :lol!:

[Fahim89]

i see that all up in Twitter that Sunderland have put in a bid for Wickham . .:O! !

plus wouldn't wanna see Charlie Adam coming our way

& suggestions from you all on which match to see tonight in U21! !

[BeautifulGame]

i see that all up in Twitter that Sunderland have put in a bid for Wickham . .:O! !

plus wouldn't wanna see Charlie Adam coming our way

& suggestions from you all on which match to see tonight in U21! !

The only way he would go to Sunderland is if we dont want Wickham .

[Fahim89]

i see that all up in Twitter that Sunderland have put in a bid for Wickham . .:O! !

plus wouldn't wanna see Charlie Adam coming our way

& suggestions from you all on which match to see tonight in U21! !

The only way he would go to Sunderland is if we dont want Wickham .

i myself am of the similar opinion if he moves i can't see him going to Sunderland anyhow i guess this are just Twitter rumors as the guy himself is in U21 championship . .

[Fahim89]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRQvLtpZIZ8

i found this video & couldn't wait to share it with you all . .although it was fun watching it i cannot entirely say that it didn't feel awkward seeing our X no.9 . .anyhow maybe Wickham can change that in the future . .but nice comparison . .

[poolsupporter]

Impressive

[iftikhar]

Aguero: don't want him. It's not our type to buy star players. Yes, he is a great player but for €45 million we can get two players who do the job just as well. If we do buy him, I think it will be for his selling power rather than winning power. He isn't coming.

Adams: don't need him. He should go to Sunderland.

Henderson: still people 'baffled' about the price we paid. Well, it can be a smart buy or a bad buy, why not wait a year to judge!!! All these debates will put him under undue pressure. Hope Kenny protects him like Carroll.

LB: haven't seen much of any of the rumored players. Just hope we get a quality player with great fitness.

[Nishankly]

Seeing torres reminded me of the good times

Wickham looks good, Sign him .. I miss torres

[Fahim89]

Seeing torres reminded me of the good times

Wickham looks good, Sign him .. I miss torres

i agree Wickham looks pretty impressive . .but then again videos don't say much as this are only compilation however in his defense many of the big clubs are & were to some extent after him . .

[Red Alert]

If he's a lot like Torres, please no. He'll just go to some big club for some high fee after killing it here and I'll be sad again.

[BeautifulGame]

If he's a lot like Torres, please no. He'll just go to some big club for some high fee after killing it here and I'll be sad again.

We can always buy a Suarez and make 30 mil profit

[Nishankly]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/13688443.stm

Michael Chopra joins Ipswich Town from Cardiff

Wickham is in the bag

[Guest]

Taken from RAWK: Good Read regarding strategy

I’m a longtime Red Sox fan and have been following JWH and company for about 8 years, and while I cannot purport to know what they’re thinking, I do believe that they are smart people and have a clear strategy. Essentially, I think the strategy can be summed up in a few key headlines: (1) Transfer fees are assets, wages are expenses; (2) Per headline 1, buy young and don’t be afraid to buy big; and (3) English players are more valuable, even more so if you get a bunch of them. Let’s knock these out one at a time:

Transfer fees are assets, wages are expenses: When we hear about transfer fees like £35 million for Carroll or £16 million for Henderson, we (understandably) get anxious. Isn’t this a massive outlay? Can FSG afford these fees? Well, if think of these outlays as assets or investments then yes, they probably can. Regardless of whether Carroll gets better or does worse than expected, it is highly likely that his rights will be worth something in the future and that FSG and, if it so chooses, exchange the asset that is Andy Carroll back for cash. Now, in the event that he gets better, Andy is like a bottle of wine and he appreciates over time with the club potentially earning a profit. If he is worse, then he’s not a bottle of wine but a car—a depreciating asset that the club will take a loss on when it’s time to “trade him in,” but not a total loss.

Contrast this with wages. As many RAWK-ites have covered nicely, Milan Jovanovic did not cost a lot in transfer fees to bring to Anfield, but he makes >£100K in wages per week. That £100K is money down the drain. It is an expense. Regardless of what Jovanovic does or how well or poorly he plays, that is money that the club will never see again. Too often we obsess over transfer fees but pay such little attention to wages that all of a sudden the Guardian prints Jova’s salary and we’re all shocked because no one noticed. No wonder that JWH reportedly blew an artery when he inspected the wage bill. That is dead money.

I would bet that FSG actually appreciate the transfer system—where straight cash is exchanged for the rights to players—because it makes the investment in a player much easier to plan and account for. In all major American sports, transfers come in the form of player for player trades, and these days the trades usually follow the form of Established player / Star for some number of promising, young, prospects on low wages. In fact, cash transfers are typically prohibited above a certain (low) threshold. Therefore, the value you’re giving up to obtain the star player is not some straight cash fee, it’s the initial signing fee for the prospects, the time you put into developing them, etc. Trading cash is so much cleaner, and I think FSG recognizes this and is very willing to pay big for assets.

Per headline 1, buy young and don’t be afraid to buy big: Pretty simple stuff here, but if the club sees transfer fees as assets and prioritizes spending on transfers versus spending on wages, it follows that you want to buy players that have the most potential to (a) be appreciating assets, and (b) earn manageable wages. Young players that your scouts identify as having high potential are the type most likely to fulfill these criteria, and why you won’t see FSG splash the cash for players older than ~25-26. When you have players who are 20, like Henderson, or 22, like Carroll, and who most scouts believe are very good bets for success, you can justify spending high fees to pry them away from their clubs because the probability of recouping some of the fee (or even turn a profit) is quite high. Someone like Downing, who is at that borderline age, only makes sense under this policy if FSG assumes that other clubs across Europe will still be willing to place value on ~28-29 year old players (which is how old Downing would be when FSG might be looking to sell him). As long as managers like Harry Redknapp continue to exist, that will not be a problem.

English players really are more valuable, especially if you get a bunch of them: I’ve seen a lot of anguish expressed in these forums over the fact that most of LFC’s reported targets are English. Again, this is very understandable. No one is under the illusion that English players are the best in the world, or that targets like Charlie Adam and Stewart Downing are as exciting as the likes of Juan Mata and Gervinho. It is also pretty clear that you have to pay a premium in the Premiership to get English players. No argument from me.

There are, however, a number of advantages to stocking up on English talent—especially a core group of young English talent—even if there’s a premium. Here are a few:
-It’s looking like FIFA may stipulate that 18-man squads include a minimum number of players of the league’s nationality. If this happens, then English players are necessary and thus good English players are truly more valuable to a premiership club than an equally good foreign player
-English players speak a common language
-English players may avoid some of the cultural adjustment problems that foreign players face
-English players are probably more likely to want to stay in England long term
-More importantly, English players will play together on national squads, so if you can get a bunch of good ones, the effect grows. Let’s spend some time here:

Imagine if LFC had been successful in bringing in Jones, Wickham, and Henderson all at once. They would literally be playing together all year for perhaps the next 10 years between matches for LFC and England. Add Carroll, Spearing, Kelly, et al to this list and all of a sudden you have a core with an amazing shared understanding and the greatest level of cohesion of any squad in the league. Barcelona isn’t the best team in the world just because their players are exceptionally talented—they’re the best team in the world because they are talented and because they’ve played together since they were young lads and they’ve been on Spanish national sides together forever.

Take all of these factors and it becomes clearer why FSG seems to be taking such large “risks” on young English players, and that it’s not really much of a risk at all.

[TheRedStag]

So who are we linked with today?

Let the games begin.

[Red Alert]

According to reports in Spain Juan Mata looks set to be the next big signing to arrive at Anfield as Liverpool switch their sights to the wings after completing the signing of Midfielder Jordan Henderson.

The 23 year old Spaniard has spent the last four seasons with Valencia after arriving at the Mestalla Stadium from the Real Madrid B team however he has long been linked with a move to Liverpool firstly under Rafa Benitez and now under Kenny Dalglish.

Mata would add some genuine creativity to the wing, something that has been missing at Anfield for a long time, and last season scored 8 goals and created 12 as Valencia claimed 3rd spot in Spain despite selling David Silva and David Villa.

Mata is rated around the 20 million mark and given that Liverpool appears to have a sizeable transfer budget this summer, a move could be on the cards.

Mata is currently on duty with the Spanish under 21 side at the UEFA under-21 European Championship, where he is tipped to one of the stars of the show.

Sportsnewsireland.com will have live score updates on all GAA Championship matches over the summer.
______
Not sure how reliable sportsnewsireland.com is though.

[TheRedStag]

According to reports in Spain Juan Mata looks set to be the next big signing to arrive at Anfield as Liverpool switch their sights to the wings after completing the signing of Midfielder Jordan Henderson.

The 23 year old Spaniard has spent the last four seasons with Valencia after arriving at the Mestalla Stadium from the Real Madrid B team however he has long been linked with a move to Liverpool firstly under Rafa Benitez and now under Kenny Dalglish.

Mata would add some genuine creativity to the wing, something that has been missing at Anfield for a long time, and last season scored 8 goals and created 12 as Valencia claimed 3rd spot in Spain despite selling David Silva and David Villa.

Mata is rated around the 20 million mark and given that Liverpool appears to have a sizeable transfer budget this summer, a move could be on the cards.

Mata is currently on duty with the Spanish under 21 side at the UEFA under-21 European Championship, where he is tipped to one of the stars of the show.

Sportsnewsireland.com will have live score updates on all GAA Championship matches over the summer.
______
Not sure how reliable sportsnewsireland.com is though.

If/when I go to the Liverpool main site and see Mata holding the jersey with Mata 10 on the back, it'll be a real jizz in your pants moment.

[Kick]

God, I couldn't even watch that video.

Seeing that Torres made me want it so bad.

I really hope he comes good for us next season.

That being said I hope Wickham does will for Liverpool.

[Red Alert]

God, I couldn't even watch that video.

Seeing that Torres made me want it so bad.

I really hope he comes good for us next season.

That being said I hope Wickham does will for Liverpool.

Stick with him, he'll do well eventually.

According to reports in Spain Juan Mata looks set to be the next big signing to arrive at Anfield as Liverpool switch their sights to the wings after completing the signing of Midfielder Jordan Henderson.

The 23 year old Spaniard has spent the last four seasons with Valencia after arriving at the Mestalla Stadium from the Real Madrid B team however he has long been linked with a move to Liverpool firstly under Rafa Benitez and now under Kenny Dalglish.

Mata would add some genuine creativity to the wing, something that has been missing at Anfield for a long time, and last season scored 8 goals and created 12 as Valencia claimed 3rd spot in Spain despite selling David Silva and David Villa.

Mata is rated around the 20 million mark and given that Liverpool appears to have a sizeable transfer budget this summer, a move could be on the cards.

Mata is currently on duty with the Spanish under 21 side at the UEFA under-21 European Championship, where he is tipped to one of the stars of the show.

Sportsnewsireland.com will have live score updates on all GAA Championship matches over the summer.
______
Not sure how reliable sportsnewsireland.com is though.

If/when I go to the Liverpool main site and see Mata holding the jersey with Mata 10 on the back, it'll be a real jizz in your pants moment.

Couldn't care less what number he's wearing, as long as he arrives!!!

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