McCormick

Another famed “out of the blue signing”!

Was getting way too much hate last season; is it just his face that people don’t like about him? In his limited appearances for us he’s not been terrible or anything. Big fee, sure, but he’s still really young and (save getting a bit miffed after being substituted off that one time) he’s conducted himself very well while he’s been here. Lad’s got pace, desire and the willingness to improve, hope he puts it all together for a great upcoming season.

Sickening stuff. No offense to Brummie but I wish nothing but misery on Villa. Can’t stand the club or it’s fans and I’m usually not one for hating other clubs.

Agree but they don’t have to sell him though if it doesn’t suit them financially.

Thought they wanted 50m due to the ridiculous Chelsea sell-on fees?

I would have said Andersen was super underrated but the fact that they’re asking 40 million for him means he’s perhaps not.

@DiscoWas about to post the same . They’re trying to bring outside eyes to the league. It’s names they’re after more or less.

We could flog him to someone like Forest for at least 10m more than that ffs. Issue is that Saudi League wages -tax free as well with 5 star accommodation paid for (as per Saudi labor law) and a literal army of people picking up after you so that you can live better than most world leaders- means that he’d never choose anyone else.

Woodgate was class but there’s a lot of bias involved in saying he was better than Rio, like.

I mean, that’s my point. So Robert didn’t get “less love” at all, then.

Really? Robert and Ginola are considered club icons and HBA, a cult hero. Of course you could argue he’s not on their level (although talent-wise there’s a faint argument that he could be) but would ASM get the same love after he left?

Aw man. Love Maxi. Not many players in the world can put the fear of god into elite full-backs like he can, when he’s in full flow. You could see him trying to change his game for Howe too (with noticeable improvements in his decision-making), so it’s not like he hasn’t bought in to what we were trying to do. Seems to get a lot more stick than previous mercurial wingers who’ve played for us as well. With our crowd, it doesn’t take much for the groans to start, as if everything he did had to be magic. Weird.

just a bit. Looks like another case of the Italian media not really reading the room when it comes to our Ffp struggles and getting fed agent-driven garbage.

If we’re selling Maxi, it’s possible Ffp-wise. Whether he’s willing to come here is a different matter altogether.

He was always good for a laugh when he wasn’t officiating your teams though, I’ll give him that.

Christ alive, imagine if we still had Ashley

Good. One of of very few players I genuinely dislike.

@MrRaspberryJam

Italian media don’t seem to have gotten the memo that FFP is a thing for us. They’ve been Linking us to Osimhen and Kvarradonna at over 100m each the past few windows as well.

Lot’s of work still do obviously but MBS -the guy who everyone is blasting (and I’m not saying they’re necessarily wrong to do so) - has done more for human rights/ women’s rights etc. in the last 5 years than anyone has in the entire history of Saudi Arabia. That, despite the protestations of the public as well.

Tbf we signed Gordon in January when we were desperate for a centre-mid. I think the club just jumps on deals when the prices for our targets are in line with our valuations.

Yeah, traffic sucks. The standard of driving is also some of the worst in the world.

Feel like I’m working for the Saudi tourism board here but of course! What would you want to do? There’s untouched historical sites that rival Petra, there’s off-roading, some of the best diving you can get, loads of live events, massive modern shopping malls, 5-star restaurants, amazing mum-and-pop local restaurants, stunning beaches etc. The women are glorious too. This isn’t to say there aren’t downsides to living here but there’s definitely a lot of upside.

I can understand why someone might think it’s like a prison but there’s nothing stopping you from going outside to experience the local culture or whatever once you’re acclimatized. It’s just a nice little buffer of familiarity. Recently, in most major cities the barbed wire fences have been effectively outlawed unless you’re living in a military compound; as it sends the wrong message for prospective tourists.

Most expats absolutely love living in luxury “compounds” tbf and the vast majority don’t want to go back home when their contracts end. It’s pretty much like living on a beautiful holiday resort; swimming pools, parties with other expats, gyms, brilliant restaurants, some of the best international schools in the world and super safe places for your family to grow up (you don’t ever need to lock your doors all year round). It truly is a paradise for millionaires if you’re in one of the major cities. slightly triggered here as I’m part-owner of a string of these luxury gated communities (we don’t call them compounds).