Andy

Bollocks to dressing room harmony like, I couldn't give two fucks if the likes of Lascelles and Ritchie aren't happy that they're on less money than actual competent footballers. They might have had an argument if they hadn't consistently put in performances so shite that they landed us at the arse end of the table.

Frustrating that we've apparently spent so much time on this, but understandable that we don't want to be held to ransom if they're taking the piss.

I mean, if he is and he's playing for us then that means his form justifies it, so I'd be fairly happy with that personally.

Welcome to all the "new" posters. As somebody who's been around from merge to split and back it's pretty sad to see one of the old forums die out, even though I forgot it even existed a few years ago tbh.

There's more to defending than stats are often able to show, like. You can't really measure positional sense, tactical understanding, leadership and organisation in stats. Mobility, and the resulting ability to play a higher line, is also crucial in the modern game for a central defender and is something we're completely bereft of.

Burnley are always capable of grinding out points like that, but thankfully they're even more blunt than us and never turn them into wins. Can't see them finishing anywhere other than bottom this season if they don't invest well this week.

I think it'll be Burnley, Norwich and Watford if we buy well this week. I'd love to see Everton go down but I think they'll pull themselves together.

There's absolutely no chance of Howe being sacked, like. We've put our eggs in his basket until the end of the season at least.

Aye, there's certainly a bit of an echo chamber of negativity forming. Some of it is justified but mostly it's OTT. The club could be relegated rock bottom this season and still be more alive than it has been in almost a decade and a half.

Loan move would be good business all round, he instantly improves us just as he did West Ham, and nobody has to commit to anything. Another one where we just need to get it done before other offers come in.

Can't believe dcmk has misled us like that, 4 week ban IMO

I think the board are probably feeling the squeeze a bit now. They know this one is close and that we need someone in by the weekend, I think they'd prefer to push this through than start over with some other player. Everyone we go for is going to require effort and money unfortunately.

It does work like that if you're buying from willing sellers. Sevilla have no interest in selling and are probably irritated that we've unsettled their player, I doubt they're in any hurry to discuss.

From what I gather, aye. Seems fairly justified too given that he's a regular in their team and they have one of the best defensive records in Europe this season.

I doubt it, like. Our financial situation is massively different to Everton's, even discounting the wealth of our owners and impending sponsorship deals etc.

Doubt the Glazers give much of a fuck about whether we're relegated or not, they'll just look at the financial aspects of the deal.

Apart from actual Sevilla fans who know better than any journalist?

Not sure why people concern themselves with price tags like, if we can afford to pay it and we're happy that it fits within our FFP budget then I don't really care what we pay.

Stats like that can be very misleading when it comes to judging a defender, though. He may make errors that cost goals occasionally, but that may be counterbalanced with top positioning and athleticism the rest of the time, preventing significantly more goals than he costs. He's a regular in a team that has conceded only 13 goals this season - the joint best defensive record in the top 4 European leagues I think. That to me suggests he brings the latter to the table way more often than the former.

Think that's the biggest myth in football, personally.

Hmm. Think he looks poor a lot of the time because teams know we have literally no other outlet and can just double or even treble up on him. His end product is very hit and miss but he's capable of creating chances out of nothing, which we're completely reliant on at the moment. I'd be very hesitant to drop him, and that's not even taking into account how dire the alternative options are.

Got to agree, bringing players from the only team below you in the league isn't a great sign. Don't know enough about Tarkowski to judge him as a footballer, but his confidence can't be any higher than the players we already have at the moment.

I believe so yeah, so I guess it can be done. I still think there'd be a huge mental obstacle for him to get over though, particularly in his first few months back, which is unfortunately when we'd need him to be at 100% if he was to come here.

For me, if Howe was to be sacked due to continuing bad form or relegation I would take Rafa on the basis that I don't believe anyone better would be keen on it. I wouldn't want Howe sacked to make way for Rafa though, he has to be given a fair crack at it with the (hopefully) additional bodies we have coming in.

Aye. Surely it will constantly be on his mind as well. Think how hesitant you are when you come back from a hammy or something, you'd have to have an unbelievable mentality to play at 100% knowing you have a dodgy ticker.