TRon

Thanks for the insight. Very interesting perspective on the possible revival of Serie A, I could see that. Anyway, Milan is a lovely city, and AC are a great club. I said already I wouldn't blame Botman for choosing them over us ( for now ) but like you, if he goes to Milan, then I'm sure we'll have alternatives lined up who will be just as good.

Yeah that's a lot more on the money to be sure

It's a bit galling how many lightweight wide men we've got. Almiron, Fraser, Murphy....can't remember the name of the politician who said it, but seeing them run at you would be like being worried by a sheep.

Well the other side of the coin is that we probably have more to offer to younger talent who won't get a look in at the likes of Milan or Liverpool. Ekiteke being a prime example. Still very exciting times even if we can't compete for the established superstars. Yet.

It's news to me tbh. It's going to make catching these clubs a lot harder as long as they keep signing the best players. Stil....baby steps and all that.

Tbf, he probably would prefer a move to Milan, can't really blame him for that, but I think he'll also happily come here if the move to Italy doesn't come through. Italian media are probably a bit put out that their biggest club can't afford him so they are making a big deal about how much he wants to go there.

Same, but will feel better once we get in our first player who will significanly improve us from the team which finished the season.

Same here, I really like it. Only the fun88 logo spoils it.

I know that sounds incredibly petty but it still doesn't seem that far fetched.

I really like Morata as a player, but it just feels he's 10% short of being world class. He scored 1 in 3 for Chelsea which should have been a lot more considering the service he got. Wilson must be getting close to 1 in 2 for us, and he's mostly done that on scraps.

Well I guess they must be happy enough with Digne then. Seems like they've got a giant stick up their arse about us for some reason though, but that's their problem.

I just noticed the yellow ticker tape banner now. I think I have seen it flashing in the corner of my eye all day it just didn't register. Anyway it's class, love it.

What's their verdict then? I'm assuming they are whinging about the price?

Yeah I think he loves being here, you can't put a price on that.

From what I've seen of Ekiteke he would make a fantastic foil for Wilson, just playing off him maybe. At a pinch he could probably sub for him as an out and out striker if Wilson was out injured but I can definitely see them both in the same side.

Agree. I would love to see us sign a left back version of Trippier at some point, but Targett is such a good defender it more than makes up for his lack of absolute excellence going forward. I have underlined that bit for those who are going to come back to insist he's good going forward as well. Yes he is, I agree.

Makes you wonder why Villa went all out to sign Digne then. You would have thought if Targett was as good going forward, why would they need anyone else? Was it just naive and remarkably dumb management by the rookie Gerrarrrrd?

It really does.

He's not bad, but he's not great.

Had a shite name anyway. Almost literally.

Very pleased for Targett. I would have liked a full back who can offer a bit more going forward, but there was always the risk that we would have lost some defensive solidity. Matt is a brilliant defender so was never going to be a loss to sign him permanently.

There'll be some pretty decent players going out of the door over the next 12 months, and by decent I mean not good enough to take us to the next level, but still good enough to do a job for clubs in the lower half of the PL or the championship. Hayden, Darlow, Lascelles, Ritchie, Almiron, even Gayle. A lot of them are good pros, they can certainly do a decent job for clubs with less lofty goals.

It's not like we are desperate to get it done either though. He's a promising young player, and I imagine we'll offer him a package which most other clubs will find hard to match, along with the prospect of plenty of first team football on the big stage. The only other clubs who can offer him a similar financial package are CL clubs who will probably see him as a bench warmer. If he still would rather be somewhere else then we'll have alternatives lined up.

He must really love it up here, this is one where he won't even have to move house.

Would prefer this to have been a permanent deal tbh. He's only 27 so we should have been able to push for that. Still, you would imagine he'll play enough games to trigger the clause, so should be done eventually. He's more than good enough for that level.