midds

Absolutely Not much else to go on though. Those are the numbers being thrown around by Ornstein and Romano

Need to assume that 70-75 wasn't getting it done so we would have had to raise it anyway. 86 is automatically accepted according to all reports and forces other clubs to match it. If they end up with him then it's fair enough, they're entitled to go for whoever they like but I'd like us to force their hand and if they're prepared to pay 86 to get their number 2 striker target then fair play, good for them. We've still got the one everyone wants and we're no worse off and have lost no-one

Then we'll have overpaid by a few million but get the chance to play the whole season with 2 of the brightest CF stars in Europe

If honestly offer the release fee now. They accept and we sign him. If we make him choose and he goes for those cunts then they'll probably have to match the release fee too. They want him? Make them pay through the nose for him, bleed the cunts dry

Meet the buyout amount and put the ball in Ekitike's court. If he wants the move then he'll sign, if he doesn't he doesn't and everyone can move on. If Liverpool want him then they can cough up the buyout fee too

It's a good move for all concerned, let's just get it done and replace him with someone who can contribute a bit more than he can

Secretly hope Yasir takes this personally and gets more involved as a result. Imagine trying to negotiate with the fucker after you've gone out of your way to try and strongarm him and his club, almost to the point of disrespecting him. Doesn't strike me as someone you'd want to make an enemy of

I think Liverpool's play here is to buy Ekitike this summer knowing fine well we like him and want him at NUFC. They'll go for Isak next summer knowing they can offer maybe Ekitike + £50m (or whatever) and have a better chance of getting him with only 2 years left. There's definitely logic in what they're doing, as scummy as it is, it does kinda tally up

This was always going to happen at some point tbh, expected it next summer rather than this one but whatever. We've got one of the best CFs in the sport at our club and it's inevitable that they're going to test the water sooner or later, it comes with the territory, others will want him too, not just those scouse cunts. We just need to be really clear and firm that Isak goes when, where and for a price we're satisfied with. We've got the player so they need to make the running, we need to control things and not panic. I'd also be tempted to cave a bit on Ekitike and raise the bid to get him asap. Could be that Ekitike is just waiting to see what develops - which is fine, don't blame him, but we either wrap this up and play with 2 of the best CFs in Europe or move on and if Liverpool want Ekitike then they need to show their hand soon. If he goes there then fair play, we still own the player they actually wanted. No need to panic, we have Isak and we have about £75m to spend on another top class attacker, nothing to flap about

Loan Gallagher and buy him in July

Absolutely, they're so good that they could switch positions several times during the game without having to make a sub. Versatility is huge

Or they both drop deeper into the spaces between the lines and feed it right and left to let Gordon and Elanga run on to it. It would be really tough to defend against

I dunno, I'm thinking more of maybe Joelinton and/or Gordon. Players come and go naturally, they start to age a bit, become unsettled, want a move, fancy one last big payday contract etc and it wouldn't be the end of the world to lose them and keep the rest and replace them when the next financial year starts on 1st July. Rinse and repeat until we can relax and compete a bit better. We've got to buy the players to trade up with at some point

I do think that if we really push the boat out and bring in Elanga, Ekitike, Trafford and Scalvini then we've acquired 4 excellent players who will all appreciate in value over the next 12 months. This would be adding to the top players we already have but at least 1 would need to be sold before 30th June 2026. Perfectly happy to get those 4 in and worry about it in May/June, the squad is getting bigger and better and we're starting to get into the position of playing the PSR game for real

Firmly in the "spaff the fucking lot and worry about it in June" mode now Ekitike, Isak, Gordon and Elanga in the final third behind one of the best CMs in the league and we're a match for anyone, fuck it, absolutely no one to fear

Chelsea winning the Club World Cup after finishing 4th and 15 points behind Liverpool would be exactly in keeping with the absurdity of this pile of shit. Chelsea aren't even the best team in London, let alone the World ffs

I think as players come into a squad then the first choice XI does change and some players will inevitable drop out of it. Elanga for Murphy for example, I'd argue Murphy drops out of the first XI now Elanga is here but that doesn't mean Murphy has been 'dropped' as such and he'll still get 30+ appearances this season I reckon. It's just a negative word and way to look at it imo, it's about the team and the squad and it'll be achieved (or not) as a unit rather than a group of 13 players

He's FIFA President Needs to collect his bribes in person

I'd agree he's failed (miserably) to live up to expectations and has down been downgraded to squad player rather than first choice XI but he's still come in and out of the squad. He's been used sparingly but he's still coming in and out of the side so he's a rotation player. A very expensive one but that's down to his poor performances (unless the opposition is NUFC). His role has changed from Plan A but he still has a role within the squad imo

This is just fucking aids

Rotated. He comes in and drifts out of the team in order to rest others. I'm not sure he does a great job when he comes in but he's definitely been used on and off at points during the season. He's definitely not part of Liverpool's strongest XI but I think that just proves my point tbh?

More fool you if you didn't mute this drivel 30 minutes ago

I think the word 'dropped' needs to just leave the conversations for the next 12 months tbh We know we have a strongest XI and it'll be used loads but there will also be loads of games where players legitimately need to have a week or 2 off to rest up. There's 38 League games, probably 10-12 CL games and maybe another 6+ games in domestic Cups next season, that's 55 games(ish) and none of the squad are going to play each week, we need to dip into the squad and have players coming in equal to the quality of the players being rested and Joelinton/Gallagher is a classic example. If he was signed then I could still see Tonali, Bruno, Joelinton and Gallagher all getting 40+ games each in various different combinations. Miley and Willock would also get another 25+ each too. 55 games playing 3 CMs means finding 165 starts (plus subs) for the midfield to share out, as Howe sees fit, across the squad. There is no 'dropped' this season

Must admit I'm still unsure as to why we didn't just agree some bullshit sponsorships for things like the training kit, the training ground that were all just 1 year deals and reviewed and increased each year. Nothing ridiculous, maybe £10m a pop (or whatever) each then increased by 20% for each following year. Nothing that other teams aren't doing or could complain about. Gradually wind them up at the end of each season and get as much into the club as possible. That's always puzzled me That's before looking at taking advantage of sponsoring twenty minor-shit deals (official tyres, official pans, official stationery etc) with no need to even get it checked all for £999,999 each. You're talking millions of potential annual income by not taking advantage of the loopholes other clubs are exploiting. It's all fair game now, Chelsea have proved that. And we're still being goody-two-shoes and Ned Flandersing it each year

Agreed, we have to change our mentality as fans from 'this is our team' to 'this is our squad'. We're going to have to accept that players will need a rest at points during the season and that might mean a few raised eyebrows when some teams are named. No dummy spitting, no moaning about players being brought off after 60 mins in key games, next season is a squad game and we need to rely on all players to be part of it, it's a joint task. That's why I'm so keen to move players who contribute/offer little to nothing out of the club. We need bodies in capable of stepping up and filling in all season, keep on saying it but frees and loans need to be used to fill the gaps