Lotus

Pretty sure I remember him being well rattled by Dortmund. Didn't handle the physical nature of it well at all iirc. Not the be all and end all of litmus tests like as Haaland does knock defenders over. It was more how Carlos reacted I think. Lost his head rather than trying to be clever.

I very much think we need a high energy DM. I think that's absolutely crucial.

Kind of surprised we aren't bidding for Benoît Badiashile if (no one know's nowt...) Botman is a no go. Similar players I'd of thought. Both young, tall, athletic and good on the ball. Would've imagined Badiashile would be attracting interest from better placed clubs than us so that could be it.

I think Porto's Fabio Vieira (21yr old attacking midfielder) will turn out to be a cracking player. Kind of player could go to Man City and and turn into a star.

Schar looked to me like he will need a rest for soft tissue issues. Also, as the aerial threat of Burnley will be more apparent than Norwich’s I would’ve thought a CB pairing Fede and Lasc would be more sensible. Wouldn’t be surprised if Hayden starts instead of Willock. Not an endorsement of Hayden just I think Willock looked very off the pace.

Lacroix from Wolfsburg would be attainable I would’ve thought.

I really hope we build from the back. However sometimes I guess you just have to pick the best player available.

Fair point. I’m certain he would be an improvement. Apart from the first 6 months at Dortmund he, thereafter, showed some serious limitations but sometimes a coach and a squad don’t quite gel the way everyone wants. His stubbornness to use a sub optimal set of tactics left me and many Dortmund fans with PTSD! You’re right of course, he’s no mug and he would help the younger players. He seemed especially good at that.

Take it you didn’t watch any of Dortmund while he was there then? Tactically naive would be an understatement. He’d constantly encourage about 7 players to play in little triangles all in about a 5 metre square. Once the ball was lost, one pass would put through absolutely ANY player who ran from midfield and give them a direct attack on the Dortmund goal. It was a never ending theme. And he just dug his heels in and tried even more players playing in a tiny space with intricate passes. The kind of stuff that can only come off if they are no opposition players at all. Alas, in Germany there are 2 sides involved in a football match so it failed.

Ah, didn’t know that. Odd that it would be a small amount. Dortmund and Isak are in a very different place from when he left.

Dortmund have a buy back clause I think. They may well activate it if Haaland goes.

With Pau Torres

Badiashile for CB?

I’ll enjoy the upturn in football fortunes like everyone else but, tbh, I found that cartoon pretty good. I can hold both ideas in my mind: enjoy the football + be critical of a state with some beliefs that entirely conflict with my own.

How about Sven Mislintat as DoF? Unearthed some fantastic talent for Dortmund: Hummels, Lewandowski, Kagawa, Gundogan, Dembele (the one they sold to Barca for a fortune), etc

I’ve been a Dortmund fan on the side for a while and have watched most of their games. I would not want Favre. no one in Dortmund would want him back, even key players expressed their frustration with him after he was sacked. Quite openly I might add and with poignant critique of his tactical issues. He’s good at coaching youngsters though. He does develop them well.

I agree with you fwiw. I think he’d bring a level of pragmatism and I think he’d get them to win a trophy or two as well. But, as you said, think they’d regard him as too old school.

Would like to see him at Borussia Dortmund.

Golfmag further tweets that he's been told the hold up is probably Ashley....

No offence but Sancho should only move to a top club. Way more productive than Dembele so maybe Barca. Though I think he would need to raise his game to be a regular in his 1st season. Man U is a lower standard than Dortmund so would be a backwards step career wise.

He’s well past in. Don’t be fooled by his age. He’s had proper health issues and he’s not remotely the player hw was.

Can’t fault Favre for Dortmund’s loss today. Was a good game, could’ve gone either way. It’s Dortmund’s losses to Union Berlin, Hoffenheim, Mainz, draws against Paderborn and Frankfurt, etc. That’s where the title went. Again.

They’ve been weaker since losing Ribery and Robben.

If Bayern win tomorrow that's the league finished. Dortmund would surely have sack Favre in the close season. He's had a great squad while Bayern have had a relatively weak one. Chucked it last season and has been flaky this season too. Still, let's see how it looks by 7pm tomorrow!

Surely the PL would be in a very strong position to sell legit rights to PL games being broadcast legitimately in KSA if NUFC was owned by the PIF.