ALC Fox

Mads is clearly our standout number 1 for me. Shot stopping, passing, the lot. Stolarczyk is a very able keeper but his distribution isn't quite as good. If we were presented with him as our number 1 I would be confident he'd do a good job. But Mads is a level above and could save us crucial points defensively or help us gain more points with his ability to help the team keep the ball, more so than Jakub in my opinion.

Despite him being previously wrong about the length of contract, how likely is it that Romano is correct about €10m being the correct currency and for Maresca only (with compensation for the staff seemingly separate)?

Dominic Tedesco describes himself as a manager who likes his teams to win the ball back quickly and loves attacking, but with a structure that controls transitions. The trouble is he's the Belgium manager and has only been there since February 2023. He's been sacked by Schalke and Leipzig but his win percentage at both clubs is above 50%, he guided Schalke to second in the league and won the German Cup with Leipzig. Maybe worth considering as the one after the next if we're in a decent position.

I really liked some of the football we were able to play last season. When we clicked we really did dominate teams. But, there were some obvious downs and question marks over whether it was Enzo or not who dragged us over the line. It's way too early in his career to say definitively that losing him would be like losing a Pep or Klopp early in their careers. He has a lot to prove. I'll be sad to see him go but there are managers out there who will give us a good shot at staying up, whatever the playing style.

Chelsea are mental really. Two of their directors prefer Maresca for football reasons when Reece James and Malo Gusto are two of their best players.

Transfers are exciting but some of these journalists that specialise in them are as bad as tabloid celebrity gossip journos.

Away shirt and home shorts and socks in the first game, then home shirt and away shorts and socks in the second? Pretty strange.

Presumably Feyenoord haven't actually needed to do lots of defending and that's skewing the stats? Those in-possession stats are incredible though.

For me, the clear question mark about Enzo next season is can he build on his 'idea' the further he moves away from Pep's influence or will he stick rigidly to what his principles were when left Man City? For example, Pep had inverted full-backs a couple of years ago with Cancelo, then Stones with Rico Lewis as a backup. This season just gone Stones was injured half the time and Walker has been inspired as a conventional full-backs, with Lewis being used very sparingly. On the other side, Gvardiol has become a revelation as a converted left-back after a slow start but, again, it's more of a traditional role for him when the team is in possession, rather than the inverted role we've seen from Cancelo or Stones in the past and Ricardo or Choudhury for us this season. So it's almost as though Pep sets the bar for people to follow, then he subverts it and gets his team to play in ways that his opponents aren't expecting. Arteta was quick to convert to basically four CBs across the backline (with good athletes in the wide roles, admittedly) after it was clear that Zinchenko wasn't at his best. So, whether it's with us or Chelsea, can Enzo adapt his own methods to stay ahead of the curve à la Pep and Arteta? That's the question really, because it didn't look like Kompany was able to do so with his squad. I'd have liked Enzo to prove himself with us, but if circumstances convince him that Chelsea is the better option for him then good luck to him, but hopefully we'd give them a humbling next season under another progressive and innovative manager. If he stays here, I hope he continue his - and the club's - evolution.

This is why I wouldn't mind if we took a punt on Rosenior either. And Cifuentes and Rohl would fit the bill like you say. I totally agree with you regarding the Sacchi quote, which would make the prospect of managers like Cuesta such exciting prospects. So many good managers these days have either not played professionally or only had fleeting playing careers.

Appointing a manager nine years younger than our first-choice #9 would be remarkable but I like the idea.

Glad Lookman's having a good season for a good club, he was decent here I thought.

I don't want Enzo to go. But as a possible attainable and slightly left-field option, Eric Roy has done very well with Brest this season. They sound like a decent team to watch under his leadership too. https://breakingthelines.com/tactical-analysis/tactical-analysis-eric-roys-brest/

I do hope Enzo stays. The way he was able to get several wantaway players on board really quickly speaks volumes about his man management and his style.of football. Yes we had a blip but we came through it. The other two relegated teams (one with a side at least on par with ours) still have to duke it out at Wembley for the privilege of promotion. I do think the project is nowhere near complete for Enzo here. But the finances may have moved the goalposts for him. If he does go, I wouldn't be averse to the Rosenior shout. If points deduction(s) and financial restraints ultimately result in relegation, we'd hopefully keep him ready for another promotion push with a year under his belt to get his methods across. There are some exciting managers around across Europe as well though. Hopefully we have a succession plan in place.

From one legend to another, thanks for the reminder! This Friday will be my 10th anniversary as a FoxesTalker. I have more rep points than posts but have never won a day. Guess I'm definitely more tortoise than hare.

£20m + sell-on + buy-back. Bet the buy-back would be stupidly small despite the buying club taking on a load of risk on whether he'll be decent or not. A glorified loan with the option not to bring him back if he's crap. Villa are doing something similar with Archer. Sold him for £18m pure profit on last season's accounts then bought back for £14m because of relegation that can be amortised over whatever the length of his new contract will be. You have to applaud the audacity really.

Brighton are known for their succession planning. If Enzo is their man, it'll be because they think he's done an extraordinary job over the last 12 months and have been following his coaching career closely beforehand. So, in all likelihood, they will have multiple other targets ahead of Maresca in their list of candidates. Going after Enzo so soon could go against their model, something they've been on record as saying they wouldn't break for anyone and that is probably one of the reasons why De Zerbi is as keen to leave as Brighton are to see the back of him. That's what I think anyway.

This is the worrying thing. Popov, Alves and Braybrooke have been brought back into the fold after major injuries, but they were the darlings of the academy. Flynn did win development squad player of the year once though. It's unfortunate for Flynn that he's not had the opportunities since recovering. It is a competitive environment but I'd like to think players should get every opportunity to prove themselves. It sounds like this is down to one sliding doors moment in Flynn's case. In the same way that first-team players used to drop into the reserves or youth team to get a bit of fitness after an injury, it would be good if youth team players who are recovering from injury and/or just not getting as many opportunities could have unofficial friendly games arranged to acquire a bit more match fitness and experience, and provide the opportunity for the coaches to see more of them in a match context. That could give these players a better chance of graduating back into contention in competitive matches and aid their recovery. All the best to him and hope he finds a club that can help him get his career back on track.

West Brom have been pure sh!t.

One of those perfect transfers where he was attainable and affordable as well as being good enough, suiting the manager's philosophy, having room to improve and is happy to be here.

Aside from the goals he's scored this season in his less preferred position, I haven't seen a great deal of Szmodics. But, if attacking midfield is his preferred position AND he's capable of finishing (which he's proven), surely it's only the defensive side of his game that is in question as to whether he could slot in at #8. As a #9, he could (in theory) be perfect. If he's adept at linking up (as an attacking midfielder) as well as finishing, then it seems to me that he ticks a lot of the boxes Maresca wants from a centre forward in this system. Also, with all the questions regarding his age, it does seem silly to compare him to Vardy as the man is absolute freak, but if Szmodics can help secure PL football, maybe we only need him to be at the top of his game for two or three seasons anyway. At that point he would have more than paid off his transfer fee.

Norwich to throw everything at it and win on pens

Dortmund in for Jobe Bellingham apparently. I'd have thought we'd have a chance of getting him but the pull of Dortmund might be too much to resist given their reputation and the way they looked after Jude. But, we're repeatedly told that Jobe is his own man and determined to go his own way so maybe he'll not want to literally follow in Jude's footsteps.

You'd expect them to have retained an interest. His woes in front of goal are probably more indicative of a lack of form and playing opportunities, something that's troubled a number of strikers who have attempted and failed to dislodge Jamie Vardy as our number one striker since 2016. His general play has been pretty good though, and he's shown a willingness and ability to adapt quite well to Maresca's style of play. If Vardy were going, I'd back him to get more chances and therefore more time to play himself into better goalscoring form. If Vardy stays, then it might be prudent to take the money and help invest in other, more pressing areas of the pitch and give Cannon a proper shot as Vardy's backup/understudy.