Tiresias

I dunno I'm not interested in a keeper who's not good with his feet, is Pope? Doubt it at Burnley

It's ridiculous isn't it, only a few seasons ago that transfer would be £15m absolute maximum. Arsenal should rightly move elsewhere and say see you in a year if Jesus really wants to join.

Till they beat us and it'll be SAUDIS IN CRISIS headlines immediately

Oops didnt click on was trimmed off lol chelsea away is an ouch

Nice to finish the season at home

His passing stats are not great for a centre mid. I think what disguises this is that Joelinton, maybe showing his instincts he got when playing further forward almost immediately looks to release someone in the transition, in that highlight reel you so often see he's got posession and he's very quick to try and ambition pass. This looks good, is good but he's not seeking to recycle posession much and his stats at doing so indicate he's going for riskier option often. He's tremendous if you are looking to break, which by and large we were. If we are looking to control a game there are still some questions, but this is why i want a really comfortable calm passer as 3rd midfield option, then we can get better posession stats. Joelinton is not super suited to keeping the ball

I think it may be slightly more complicated in fairness, he is often tackling and muscling off midfielders trying to beat him running past, as a forward Centre backs are not likely to do this (for the reason of this may happen). When pressing high it is important you do it as a unit generally, (apart from just the odd pressure to make goalie relinquish ball) as centre backs nowadays will likely pass it between them and full backs. Joelinton was alone up front a lot and easily bypassed. In centre mid, more players around, more crowded, pressures more likely to work.

I imagine that court case is why more weren't after him. Bit of a gamble for Spurs tbh.

I think we need a creative passer who is very good at keeping the ball to complement, we still struggle to control games and slow things down with keep ball. That would balance well with Bruno and Joelinton imo

Don't, because I have seen F1 attacked for racing in those countries all the time. When they raced in saudi arabia a lot of the drivers were vocally unhappy to the point that it was mooted they would boycott. That is classic case of 'i haven't paid attention to something and therefore i believe it hasnt happened'.

Yeah wtf you posh wankers

How is this different from when we were all outraged at Ashley regime banning reporters who criticized him? No-one then was sympathetic to Ashley's side. It is a reporters job to ask why someone has decided to take money from someone, if they were comfortable taking the money they should be comfortable explaining themselves. It's not like everyone doesn't know why. These people have PR guys, someone easily could have given them a decent line of defense such as, 'I am excited at the opportunity, Saudi Arabla is not the same as Aparteid and while I do not endorse everything the Saudi state does I do not feel I am doing that by taking part in this golf tournament. I hope with more scruitny comes more openness and some of the issues can be improved. I think this could be a great tour for the audience and am excited at the opportunity.' or some bullshit like that. It will blow over. Of course journalists could be more critical of other clubs/institutions/tours etc but noone should be shocked to be asked about money from Saudi Arabia, it's going to happen, it is the journalists job to ask. And if we don't have journalists asking difficult questions things like that massive sexual abuse scandal at football clubs that came out a few years ago would never have happened.

100% we desperately need better passers in the middle and he's played under guadiola so assume would be good. Doubt we will match wages yet though.

Back line needs improving, was ok at southgates first world cup when we went to defending deep and countering, we were rebuilding and was a readjustment process to admit we weren't able to dominate games. I will defend southgate to a point, I think staying loyal to players who have kept together and done well was good, but feel after the euros there needed to be a bit of clear eyed ruthlessness. Tomori surely should be being considered ahead of the likes of Connor Coady. Maguire as much as he has been unfairly vilified in some (bomb threats ffs) probably ought to be under threat. The midfield doesnt look too shaby but Henderson probably deserves more of a look in as much as i hate to admit it. We struggle to create goals at the moment, Harry Kane is dropping too deep too much and I remain unconvinced with Mount. This does not feel like a team building to peak at the world cup, it feels a bit more like a decent one in a bit of decline.

I mean it might be true, he also might have been asked and said he had absolutely no interest in dealing with transfer while at the u21s tourney and there is the quote they now use, just don't trust anything. I remember hearing someone suggest that all transfers should be kept secret and then just before season starts the squads could be unveiled all at once. Impossible of course but would be well fun, who will be playing for us this year, then they jump out of dry ice or something all at once

I remember when Bruce tried to spin that all the players hated playing under Rafa and there he basically intimates that once rafa gone there was no hope in the dressing room, shocking that

Digne's good mind, they're recruiting well, competition is good, makes league good, makes people want to watch it. Not scared that we don't have the resources to compete either and if we can't there are no excuses. Need to readjust looking at villa spending and thinking, there's another team not going ot be competing with us to go down which we would all have been last season

flukey there kane ought to be booked for diving

Howe is also on holiday and while he clearly is doing some stuff like speaking to Ashworth that will likely slow things down a bit

Well harsh on a manager who got us to within a few pens of a major international trophy I'm not his biggest fan tactically either but he's no fucking brucie

Fact of the matter is the only people with an incentive to get this done quickly is us, we could say accept now or it's gone, but what good is that if he says fine, i'll wait? He as a promising young player will have plenty of offers. He has no need to hurry, it's not a summer with a world cup where everyone wants to get business done quick before that gets in way or anything.

Yes perfectly possible he's said that is fine can we haggle out details later sort of thing and told agent to stop looking at other offers

Best of luck to him, he is too good for the championship imo so will be a real asset for them.

Anything can happen before pen hits paper, and nothing will happen till after the tourney. I get it being reported as a done deal so people are confident but am amazed by the confidence of some that it has already definitely happened. We've all been here on transfers, the player may change mind, get better offer and even if verbally he has signed he isn't legally bound till pen is on paper. I am not bothered, we will find someone else, and it does look like this is happening, but don't understand quotes like above saying it's a certainty.