NUFC Transfer Rumours

[r0cafella]

Just now, timeEd32 said:

 

That's what I'm wondering. The Howe's + Nickson overlap with the Tonali deal and seem unlikely. My questioning would start with everyone else.

To be fair, I think that those who are involved in this industry at such a high level will be aware of who's going where and who's in for who tbh. 

[timeEd32]

5 minutes ago, r0cafella said:

To be fair, I think that those who are involved in this industry at such a high level will be aware of who's going where and who's in for who tbh. 

 

I know, but it just seems like someone was texting Craig Hope like this in every meeting we had.

 

[gbandit]

That Chris Waugh article was a bit of a deflating read in all honesty. Confirmed how frenzied our summer was behind the scenes and why we ended up overpaying by an absurd amount for Wissa. We all knew it anyway but we’ve just got to hope we develop a more professional scouting and negotiation team by the next time we need a rebuild. I think the next few windows will be mercifully much quieter than this one 

[JT24]

Just now, gbandit said:

That Chris Waugh article was a bit of a deflating read in all honesty. Confirmed how frenzied our summer was behind the scenes and why we ended up overpaying by an absurd amount for Wissa. We all knew it anyway but we’ve just got to hope we develop a more professional scouting and negotiation team by the next time we need a rebuild. I think the next few windows will be mercifully much quieter than this one 

[Kid Icarus]

The bit that I didn't like reading and something that you don't want to read is that there are some in the club that think we now have a lower ceiling without Isak. Honestly find that bizarre if true tbh. 

[Crimson Cardigan]

3 minutes ago, Kid Icarus said:

The bit that I didn't like reading and something that you don't want to read is that there are some in the club that think we now have a lower ceiling without Isak. Honestly find that bizarre if true tbh. 

Is it not self evident? We lost a world class player. The squad is better, the team is worse. Hopefully over time that will change.

[The Prophet]

Thankfully, it's all very fixable.

[Mattoon]

2 minutes ago, Crimson Cardigan said:

Is it not self evident? We lost a world class player. The squad is better, the team is worse. Hopefully over time that will change.

 

Surely a ceiling is measured against the potential of the players rather than their current standing? That statement is tantamount to saying Woldemade will never reach the heights of Isak, whereas no one truly knows that yet. Maybe the first 11 is weaker because, as you rightly point out, we've lost a world class striker and replaced him with an unknown, that I would accept.

[Kid Icarus]

5 minutes ago, Crimson Cardigan said:

Is it not self evident? We lost a world class player. The squad is better, the team is worse. Hopefully over time that will change.

 

I don't think it is self-evident no. It wouldn't have surprised me to read that they felt Woltemade suited the team better or had a higher ceiling, or that they could replace Isak in the aggregate, or that Wissa can do x, y, and z that Isak couldn't. 

 

Isak was an outstanding talent, but he and our team weren't exactly a match made in heaven. Even when he was in form he wasn't particularly very prolific at hold up play, or against a low block. Jacob Murphy quite often just forced it to work with his delivery. 

 

 

Edited September 2, 2025 by Kid Icarus

[Crimson Cardigan]

My reading: “some” believe in the here and now that we are worse off as an 11 sans the rat. It’s hard to argue. Let’s all hope Woltemade will be an even better fit but we’ll probably need to be patient.

[PRL]

The fascinating thing is just about every player we have been linked with has either now signed or gone elsewhere, so the three year cycle of seemingly being linked to the same batch of players on loop should hopefully draw to a close and now broaden, if our scouts are actually doing some work in the background. 

[Kid Icarus]

1 minute ago, Crimson Cardigan said:

My reading: “some” believe in the here and now that we are worse off as an 11 sans the rat. It’s hard to argue. Let’s all hope Woltemade will be an even better fit but we’ll probably need to be patient.

 

I don't want to invest everything in Woltemade, but I think you know a talent when you see one. He definitely looks like that to me. I'd totally agree with the ceiling being lower if we'd got JSL and Wissa like - I think they'd be perfectly serviceable for the most part but would maybe not have what it takes against the very top opposition. 

[madras]

1 minute ago, PRL said:

The fascinating thing is just about every player we have been linked with has either now signed or gone elsewhere, so the three year cycle of seemingly being linked to the same batch of players on loop should hopefully draw to a close and now broaden, if our scouts are actually doing some work in the background. 

To be fair they are the same scouts that were first to Ekitike, had Sesko's agent over, wanted Pedro when at Watford, brought in Bruno, Botman etc

[Kilcline]

2 minutes ago, Crimson Cardigan said:

My reading: “some” believe in the here and now that we are worse off as an 11 sans the rat. It’s hard to argue. Let’s all hope Woltemade will be an even better fit but we’ll probably need to be patient.

This is kind of what I'm looking forward to discovering.

 

Was/is our system specifically set up to play to Isak's strengths, or is it set up to play to the strengths of whoever is the centre forward? 

 

I strongly suspect the latter given how we've started this season and how our patterns don't really change that much. Isak brought some magic, but he was also absolutely hopeless at holding the ball up and getting himself involved when he was isolated. So if we lose the magic but have centre forwards who can bring other attributes and some "old fashioned" stuff, and don't piss about so much on 1v1s, we're laughing.

[Ghandis Flip-Flop]

16 minutes ago, Crimson Cardigan said:

Is it not self evident? We lost a world class player. The squad is better, the team is worse. Hopefully over time that will change.

I dunno a motivated and committed Wissa and Woltemade is potentially better than a phone it in for two thirds of the season Isak, regardless of how good he is

[PRL]

Just now, madras said:

To be fair they are the same scouts that were first to Ekitike, had Sesko's agent over, wanted Pedro when at Watford, brought in Bruno, Botman etc

Absolutely, while the lack of new targets has been frustrating, the initial group was stellar, those we failed with and got, so I’m excited to see what comes next. 

[sushimonster85]

At the start of this window I would relish every update in this thread. Glad to see the back of it for a few months. For me anyway. 

[relámpago blanco]

2 minutes ago, sushimonster85 said:

At the start of this window I would relish every update in this thread. Glad to see the back of it for a few months. For me anyway. 

It's been emotional.

[Kid Icarus]

3 minutes ago, Kilcline said:

This is kind of what I'm looking forward to discovering.

 

Was/is our system specifically set up to play to Isak's strengths, or is it set up to play to the strengths of whoever is the centre forward? 

 

I strongly suspect the latter given how we've started this season and how our patterns don't really change that much. Isak brought some magic, but he was also absolutely hopeless at holding the ball up and getting himself involved when he was isolated. So if we lose the magic but have centre forwards who can bring other attributes and some "old fashioned" stuff, and don't piss about so much on 1v1s, we're laughing.

 

Woltemade and Isak's profiles overlap very nicely, so even if they're different I do think Howe has a player that he wants and it's basically an Isak, Ekitike, Woltemade. 

I'm particularly enthusiastic about Woltemade because it seems like he wasn't 6th or 7th on the list, but just not pursued because the club didn't think we could get him. Easy to say and cover your tracks, but it's easy to believe when you compare him to Strand-Larsen or even Joao Pedro imo. 

 

 

[Holmesy]

The idea that we've signed an unknown quantity to replace Isak is a bit of a stretch. Eddie is massively risk-adverse and likes to sign Pl-proven players, but Woldermade is a full German international, and Germany haven't been shit for about 5 decades, if not longer. I'd far rather we signed our German giant than Pedro, Delap, Watkins, Jackson and all the others mentioned. Ekitike is probably the only striker we were linked with that I would have preferred, but then watching him, he seems like a bit of a cunt. 

[Sibierski]

36 minutes ago, Kid Icarus said:

The bit that I didn't like reading and something that you don't want to read is that there are some in the club that think we now have a lower ceiling without Isak. Honestly find that bizarre if true tbh. 

 

I mean we do? Right now, we're not going to challenge for title as we just lost our star striker to the current champions. So ceiling with Isak is potential challenges (as our form last sesaon did nearly drag us into the conversation for 1 week  ), without it's try and qualify for UCL.

 

Players may develop and that ceiling raises again, but right now it is lower. We've pushed that ceiling up in the past by developing players and pushing beyond current levels of ability of some, and that's what we'll have to do again.

 

 

Edited September 2, 2025 by Sibierski

[Kilcline]

1 minute ago, Holmesy said:

The idea that we've signed an unknown quantity to replace Isak is a bit of a stretch. Eddie is massively risk-adverse and likes to sign Pl-proven players, but Woldermade is a full German international, and Germany haven't been shit for about 5 decades, if not longer. I'd far rather we signed our German giant than Pedro, Delap, Watkins, Jackson and all the others mentioned. Ekitike is probably the only striker we were linked with that I would have preferred, but then watching him, he seems like a bit of a cunt. 

I wouldn't have minded Jackson but then I saw Mortal Merson had said he couldn't believe us or Villa hadn't signed him for his goals and was then very happy we hadn't 

[Drewboy74]

42 minutes ago, gbandit said:

That Chris Waugh article was a bit of a deflating read in all honesty. Confirmed how frenzied our summer was behind the scenes and why we ended up overpaying by an absurd amount for Wissa. We all knew it anyway but we’ve just got to hope we develop a more professional scouting and negotiation team by the next time we need a rebuild. I think the next few windows will be mercifully much quieter than this one 

I hate to sound over negative, but i think next summer, Tonali and Tino will be next in the firing line. I thought the days of feeling like this were over. 

[Chicken Dancer]

I do wonder how much the tragic death of Jota kick started the chain of events that eventually led to the anfield rat going there.

 

I just doubt their plan was to sign Ekitike AND the anfield rat in the same window. Maybe it was like, but their forwards don't look very balanced to me. 

[Sibierski]

 

Does he watch any of our games? Literally one of (if not the most?) progressive passes of the ball in our side last season