Upthemags

WHAT IS AKANJI DOING SHOOTING THAT

omg

On the bright side, barring Bruno or Isak demanding out, we're going to be a nightmare to face in the PL with no European comps next season

We threw it away man. They've finished their dinner don't get mad at them

Correct - remember Anthony Gordon's take from a couple months ago: the best ability is availability.

Definitely an interesting take - especially in a season where another win gets us European football. Both comfortably out-produced barnes, stayed on the pitch for the most part, and both would have offered upgrades in positions we needed upgrades in (as opposed to a co-pilot for Anthony Gordon). I'm all for glass half full assessments, and I agree transfer business has been (very) good under Eddie and co., but certainly room for improvement.

Just end the pain

Harvey Barnes has been a very cut and dried miss at 40 million... Stands to make up for his lack of fitness and performance in seasons to come but as of right now, a very poor piece of business with Diaby and Maddison going for around the same price tag

It was always going to end this way, wasn't it?

Injury prone striker with zero resell value for a club that wants to be numero uno in the world - would just be plain bad business. Should be looking at young non-PL strikers that won't demand a PL transfer premium... Might as well have just kept Chris Wood if we were still looking for DCLs

Ashley type move, and, frankly, ill-fitting for a club with our aspirations

I think ~5million for Pope sounds about right

Are we sure he's superior to Pope? About a calendar year ago people were calling Pope one of the best in the top flight (if not the world? As far as pure shot stopping goes?)

Fine with new keeper, but without question need an addition who can make a real impact in the final third, be it a winger or striker... You'd think some more depth in midfield would be on the shopping list as well, but who knows what our budget looks like - at least we'll have Tonali back, and year-older Miley to throw in if need be

These are, by almost any understanding, fantastic numbers

The gift that keeps giving.... Better start clearing those inboxes Jim!

This is the real point - a healthy Willock, with Tonali and a healthy big Joe and the midfield looks a real force surrounding Bruno

The creativity he offers will be massive for us next season - and still just a teenager...

Best business, by a long shot, has been Bruno and Isak, two world class players, both of whom were international. That's not to say the domestic business hasn't been impressive.

Ramsdale links are confusing - Pope is better (and back), and unfortunately we don't have the luxury to expend 25 million on a backup keeper when we're lacking in so many areas in the starting XI. I do hope Howe and co. will wise up and stop paying the PL tax and look internationally. It's no coincidence our best business has been non-domestic.

Still sharp in the final third (save for set pieces), but unfortunately a Championship level defender at this stage in his career... Tino signing now looks crucial for next season

Same Trippier problems from the winter - can't gift top flight teams free goals and expect results

Good shout. This always seems to be a two-step inquiry, too - selling the player, but then bringing in fresh blood that that matches or surpasses what we had. Wouldn't want to sell either unless there were some concrete value-adds the club had in mind with Howe's blessing

Everyone has a price tag at which it would be a good idea to sell - would hate to see AG go, but at 100million+, I think that would be good business. That would be what with the amount his contract has amortized, a profit of ~70+million? Nearly double what he cost?

I don't see the controversy in stating the obvious - Howe is not an infallible manager, nor some all-knowing oracle. He's allowed to get things wrong. In hindsight, it seems beyond reproach that they could've gotten the ball rolling with Lewis ~6 months earlier, even if that just meant subbing the lad on at 60 mins when we're up a couple goals or blowing out the opposition (think Sheff United in the fall) The top managers in the world make mistakes (all of the time). Hell... Pep just sold Cole for a pittance for goodness sake. But no one thinks that calls into question his overall competence as a manager.