Why not Koscielny though? He is better in air, faster and better passer of the ball (although Agger does send good long balls and some screamers). Koscielny's fitness is also quite extraordinary. The only advantage I see in Agger is more composed on the ball but it ain't like Koscielny is bad at that. Agger is also a bit of a thug imo.

Agger would probably cost 20-25M, which is definitely cheaper. I think Liverpool would listen to us if Agger makes his will clear. Liverpool would listen to money if their player wants to leave. I would be happy with his purchase.

Because Koscienly isnt better in the air (he jumps higher but Agger is taller) and no chance is he the passer Agger is.

Thug? What is this based on? I never seen an evidence of that at all.

Even if he was (which I again insist he is not) its not a reason to steer clear of him, its not like he cant control himself or he has a especially bad card record.

Not to mention, Kos just recently signed for Arsenal..im sure they have almost zero intrest in letting him go.

I would be happy with either Agger, Subotic, Dede or Sakho. They would be far cheaper then Martinez and actually be proper CB's. They also all compliment Pique and are young.

Would anyone be interested in us signing Berbatov.He is availbale for as low as 5 mil.For a player of his quality 5 mil is a steal.I have always been a huge fan of the guy.
Technically he is as good as anyone in the game and arguably even the best and that first touch.
Unfortunately never has had the right team and or system to show how good he can be.He is a rich man's Ibra.
I think he could be an excellent addition to the squad and would be thrilled to have him here.

alexjanosik wrote:Would anyone be interested in us signing Berbatov.He is availbale for as low as 5 mil.For a player of his quality 5 mil is a steal.I have always been a huge fan of the guy.
Technically he is as good as anyone in the game and arguably even the best and that first touch.
Unfortunately never has had the right team and or system to show how good he can be.He is a rich man's Ibra.
I think he could be an excellent addition to the squad and would be thrilled to have him here.

Alex, I have seen you talking about Berbatov before and I remember agreeing with you that he should move his services to La Liga, because a player of his technical skill and his quality could do great things here. I've always been glad to see someone else sees the brilliance he possesses.

I would be very interested, for such a cheap price, it really wouldn't be an expensive transfer and one that would be very costly if something goes haywire.

I've been a big fan of Berbatov ever since his Tottenham days (obviously), and I followed him in Man U as well. While he was given the starring role in Tottenham, I do agree with you that I don't think his fullest capabilities have been realized in a team, which why I've always wanted him to make the switch to La Liga.

A bad point to buying him is that he really can only play one position, and in Barca that would be the CF position, however, despite the fact that he can only really play the CF position (he is not a winger by any stretch of the imagination), he does play that role a bit farther back typically, a lot of times playing almost where Fabregas was found typically in his 'false nine' role this season. So there would not be a large difference between those two roles and quite honestly I think a 5 million-rated Berbatov could do it much more than way too much money-rated Fabregas.

The downside to that is I've never enjoyed Fabregas in that role anyway, despite him doing it better than his CM role (which is not a compliment). However it's been shown it can work and I do think that is the area Berbatov can put himself in. Berbatov is also just as capable of creating and orchestrating an attack as Fabregas, his passing for a striker is exceptional, his hold up play is great, and his technical skill is among the best of the best when speaking about strikers, or just any players in general.

But this is all wishful thinking isn't it?

EDIT: I would like to stress that despite my obvious love for Berbatov, I do not think he is a needed player to bring in. I would not be opposed to him coming though, not at all, especially for 5 million.

alexjanosik wrote:Would anyone be interested in us signing Berbatov.He is availbale for as low as 5 mil.For a player of his quality 5 mil is a steal.I have always been a huge fan of the guy.
Technically he is as good as anyone in the game and arguably even the best and that first touch.
Unfortunately never has had the right team and or system to show how good he can be.He is a rich man's Ibra.
I think he could be an excellent addition to the squad and would be thrilled to have him here.

First I'll just comment on this statement that he's never been able to show how good he is and that he's a rich man's Ibra. Merely the fact that he hasn't been able to show he's that good means he isn't a rich man's Ibra. You can only judge players on what they've done, not on what they 'could do'. Ibra's done a hell of a lot more than Berbatov at the end of the day. There have been loads of players more talented than Berbatov who never lived up to their potential.

Would I want him at Barca, even for 5m? No.

Firstly, we have a lot of forwards already and Berba is not versatile. He can't play as a winger. This basically leaves him as somebody who can only play Messi's role. Messi starts almost every game and tbh between Villa, Cesc, Alexis, Thiago... I'm completely happy with the backup we have for that position.

Its not necessary, he's not the sort of player we'd look at if we were going for a forward. He's cheap, thats about it.

We have 26m to spend on a CB. Agger will cost us easily 26m for sure and he has all elements of a great CB. His tall (something that this Barca forum emphaises), good passer and good positioning. Definately has pace and for 26m thats a good deal imo. Kosie won't come! Vermaelan might though Kos won't. Agger is the deal though where we have made an offer or not is another question. We are heading into the right direction...

Agger would be a good option. I'm only a bit turned down by the fact that he is not young (28 - I prefer to sign players around 21-25) and that he is very injury prone, but at least he was healthy last season.

He also didn't used to be an elite defender IMO, but surely better than Javi Martinez, while having the same quality on the blal as a CB or more.

http://www.goal.com/en/news/12/spain/2012/07/19/3251221/barcelona-sign-sporting-lisbon-duo-agostinho-ca-edgar-ie
Beat inter to these players

free_cat wrote:Agger would be a good option. I'm only a bit turned down by the fact that he is not young (28 - I prefer to sign players around 21-25) and that he is very injury prone, but at least he was healthy last season.

He also didn't used to be an elite defender IMO, but surely better than Javi Martinez, while having the same quality on the blal as a CB or more.

Yes, they may not be young though it should be enough time for Barta/Muniesa/Fontas/other B teamers to gain the experience they need to be a good CB. He is much cheaper than Martinez as well as you said.

Tito said there are 40 or 50 Javi Martinez in the market, MD has made a list of them all, with some mistakes, like David Alaba, Hernanes, Denilson or Mavuba or Cabaye, who can't play CB, or saying that Dede is lef footed... these journalists ..... but anyway a comprehensive list:

http://www.mundodeportivo.com/20120719/fc-barcelona/50-javi-martinez-mercado-fichajes-barca_54326995560.html

From this list, considering only the quality, this would be my top 5 list:

1- Vincent Kompany
2- Yaya Toure
3- Agger / Koscielny
4- Subotic
5- Dedé

Considering the availability and price, this would be my top 5 list:

1- Agger
2- Koscielny
3- Dedé
4- Ettien Capoue
5- Subotic

free_cat wrote:Tito said there are 40 or 50 Javi Martinez in the market, MD has made a list of them all, with some mistakes, like David Alaba, Hernanes, Denilson or Mavuba or Cabaye, who can't play CB, or saying that Dede is lef footed... these journalists ..... but anyway a comprehensive list:

http://www.mundodeportivo.com/20120719/fc-barcelona/50-javi-martinez-mercado-fichajes-barca_54326995560.html

From this list, considering only the quality, this would be my top 5 list:

1- Vincent Kompany
2- Yaya Toure
3- Agger / Koscielny
4- Subotic
5- Dedé

Considering the availability and price, this would be my top 5 list:

1- Agger
2- Koscielny
3- Dedé
4- Ettien Capoue
5- Subotic

I read this list before lol... Just stupid hey. I like the names you narrowed it down too. Similar to mine, I might have Vermaelen too.

Dede won't come. He renewed his contract with his Brazilian club.

paxtonpale wrote:Dede won't come. He renewed his contract with his Brazilian club.

Many players renew their contracts right before leaving. Considering he plays in a brasilian club and he renewed only until 2015, it's obvious that they would sell him for a good offer meeting their asking price.

free_cat wrote:

paxtonpale wrote:Dede won't come. He renewed his contract with his Brazilian club.

Many players renew their contracts right before leaving. Considering he plays in a brasilian club and he renewed only until 2015, it's obvious that they would sell him for a good offer meeting their asking price.

True though I feel that we have 'lost interest in him'.

Indeed, new contracts mean very little nowadays.

All it does is protect the club from getting undercut and having to sell the player at a cut price.

Dede is still very much up for grabs if Barca want him.

BarcaKizz wrote:

alexjanosik wrote:Would anyone be interested in us signing Berbatov.He is availbale for as low as 5 mil.For a player of his quality 5 mil is a steal.I have always been a huge fan of the guy.
Technically he is as good as anyone in the game and arguably even the best and that first touch.
Unfortunately never has had the right team and or system to show how good he can be.He is a rich man's Ibra.
I think he could be an excellent addition to the squad and would be thrilled to have him here.

First I'll just comment on this statement that he's never been able to show how good he is and that he's a rich man's Ibra. Merely the fact that he hasn't been able to show he's that good means he isn't a rich man's Ibra. You can only judge players on what they've done, not on what they 'could do'. Ibra's done a hell of a lot more than Berbatov at the end of the day. There have been loads of players more talented than Berbatov who never lived up to their potential.

Would I want him at Barca, even for 5m? No.

Firstly, we have a lot of forwards already and Berba is not versatile. He can't play as a winger. This basically leaves him as somebody who can only play Messi's role. Messi starts almost every game and tbh between Villa, Cesc, Alexis, Thiago... I'm completely happy with the backup we have for that position.

Its not necessary, he's not the sort of player we'd look at if we were going for a forward. He's cheap, thats about it.

Surely it comes down to circumstances.
Considering Ibra and Berba.Ibra came to Barca with a lot of hype.Despite all the hype and all the chances,he flopped and was flopped hard.He was so bad that he got benched by Bojan in the end.Now I am of the opinion that he flopped because he simply wasnt good enough for us.But many here believe that he flopped because the system wasnt right for him and that he needed to be the main man to be effective and that possession football didnt suit him.Fair enough.Lets accept that argument and compare to Berbatov.
He moves to United who dont play a style that suits him at all.They are basically a counter attacking team that plays exclusviely through the wings.Plus they have Rooney who is kind of similar to him in that they are both creative forwards and not the type who will make runs or be a target upfront.
Now Rooney is the golden boy and he is English.He is preferred by Fergusson and Berbatov is shunned.Rooney is extremely average for almost half the season and yet he starts all the games.He goes goal less for a lot of games but still starts because he is the golden boy.Berbatov gets put on the bench.Even when he does score,he doesnt get a consistent run of games.After he became the top scorer in the league,he spent the entire next season on the bench.Plus even when is played he is asked to be the farthest man upfront which is really not suited to his game.
He would excel next to a striker willing to make runs for him.He had that at Tottenham and he was one of the best if not the best player in the league then.
So it all comes down to circumstances.Ibra had easier circumstances at Barca than Berbatov at United.Yet Ibra flopped.
Berbatov has never had a team built around him at a major club like Ibra has had almost throughout his career.The one time he did at a semi-major club,Berbatov showed that he can be an elite player.I am sure that had Berbatov had the fortune of having the team built around him at a major club(like Ibra has had),he would done better than Ibra.The reason is he is clearly more talented than Ibra.

Reagrding your point
'There have been loads of players more talented than Berbatov who never lived up to their potential.'
I respectfully disgaree.I dont think you can name loads of such players cause Berbatov is a supremely talented player.Forget those who have not lived up to their potential.I dont think you can name 10 players in the modern game who are more naturally gifted than Berbatov.
I also dont think you can name 10 players in the history of the game with a better first touch than Berbatov.

Portuguese-based newspapers are reporting that Benfica are considering exercising their buy option on Garay so they can sell him, allegedly to us.

As an Argentina fan I would love the Garay-Masche potential partnership to get some understanding here, but the last thing Barca needs is another injury prone CB.

Off-topic, but what do you guys make of Gago's transfer to Valencia?

Good for him, but does he really fit?

Him and Banega together doesnt seem right.

BarrileteCosmico wrote:Off-topic, but what do you guys make of Gago's transfer to Valencia?

Gago and Banega. All-Xeneizes midfield. I'm definitely going to watch all Valencia's matches this season

PS: Berbatov a rich man's Ibra?

Gago played a strange role for Roma last year, very up and down the pitch, could see him continuing in the same vein to be honest.

Agger seems to be the center of attention Hope we offer a bid... As for the Garay deal well he is injury prone and tbh, we seem to get a lot of injuries in Barca camp... I also feel that he may not come because he use to play for Madrid... I guess Eto played for us and he came from Madrid earlier in his career though I feel like that particular element is a reason why he won't come.

Why has no one mentioned Villarreal's Musacchio? He's young, great reader of the game, good in air, relatively quick and strong too. His only downside is his passing skills but he is young and can improve his passing and what place better to learn passing than Barça? Pretty sure you can sign him for less than €10 million or even get him on loan with option to buy.



PS: I don't think Agger is the centre of attention at all. If anyone is, it is Martínez.

Times like these a inform young Rafa Marquez would be great for Barcelona.