Premier League, 2017-2018 Season Thread

[MC Prussian]

Southampton sign Argentine striker Guido Carrillo from AS Monaco.

http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/42826326

 

Looks like AS could use a striker in return...

Enter Islam Slimani.

[Suzie the Fox]

10 hours ago, Dan LCFC said:

I think they'd be midtable. Seriously.

At best!

[Leeds Fox]

8 hours ago, Donut said:

But Lovejoy is right, that Diogo Jota would not be avaialble for a loan to any other championship club if it wasnt for the link between the Fosun Consortium and Jorge Mendes the agent (and Nuno Santo too)

 

No championship club, even if they theoretically could afford them, would have been in a position to sign Willy Boly and Ruben Neves.

 

Its like the Pozzo project with Watford. The opportunity is there to take advantage of riches and resources other clubs dont have, to propel a championship team into the Premier League and then thats the return on the investment.

 

 

 

Do you not think our owners wouldn’t have done the same? Pearson had got us a great squad for the Championship without spending that kind of money. The squad we went up with was far better than wolves current squad.

 

Yeah they’ve attracted quality players from the continent but we had better players for small fees.

[brucey]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2018/01/26/ngolo-kantes-limitations-have-exposed-season/

How N'Golo Kante's limitations have been exposed this season

 

Give a man a reputation as an early riser, said Mark Twain, and he can sleep 'til noon. N'Golo Kanté's consecutive Premier League titles and PFA Player of the Year awardare considerable credit in the bank, but the difficulties he is facing at the heart of Chelsea's midfield have been largely undocumented. Kanté is Kanté, and many take it on faith that he will always be a preternatural destructive midfielder without peer. 

His impeccable reputation is well-earned, of course. He arrived in England from Caen without fanfare and had a transformative effect on 5,000-1 Premier League champions Leicester City, before repeating the feat at Chelsea in near-namesake Antonio Conte's first season. Kanté started 68 league matches across those triumphant campaigns, and was taken into our hearts. 

His abundant qualities do not need re-stating in great detail: stamina, mobility, anticipation, sense of danger and a turn of foot that gets him to challenges he has no right to make. Moreover, he embodies a type of player the 'English eye' is instantly drawn towards. We favour midfielders who move themselves rather than the ball, 'impact' players who decorate the game with eye-catching moments like a decisive sliding tackle or long-range strike. Scott Parker has a PFA award, Michael Carrick does not. 

'Kanté is Bryan Robson, Roy Keane and Claude Makélélé rolled into one. I've never seen a player like him'. Quite the compliment from Jamie Redknapp, but exposed as hyperbole of the highest order with a second's thought. As was Conte's suggestion that the dynamic Chelsea midfielder should have won last year's Ballon d'Or. 

The France international is a specialist, and one of the best midfielders of his type in the Premier League. He is not superhuman however, and we are starting to see this all-action player stretched to his limits. 

 

More asked of him in possession

Leicester City are an outlier in the parade of past champions in so many respects, including a style of play that treated the football as a potential explosive. Counter-attacking sides had won the title before - infact it's an indispensable component in the modern game - but few have shunned possession quite as much as Claudio Ranieri's Leicester. 

Naturally, since Kanté arrived at Stamford Bridge he has been required to get on the ball far more often. Conte publicly demanded he be more progressive and ambitious with his passing, and Kanté expatiated on the topic after Chelsea's FA Cup victory over Manchester United last year: 

“Not especially to score goals. But when I have the pass, to look forward, to try to make me improve. But also when we have the chance to score, we like to create chances and score. It’s important, sometimes it could make the difference for the team, for the game, and when we have the chances to score, we have to score.” 

Kanté is not incapable on the ball. Chelsea's first goal in their 2-1 Carabao Cup defeat at Arsenal started with him carrying the ball and fizzing a line-breaking pass to Pedro. At Leicester and Chelsea, we have seen his knack for starting counter-attacks immediately after winning possession in a trademark fashion with swift forward passes. 

The diminutive midfielder averaged 43.2 passes per 90 minutes at Leicester, 60.1 passes in his first season at Chelsea and 67.1 passes per 90 this term. His passing accuracy has also increased year on year, but that could be a result of playing more short passes rather than looking straight for Jamie Vardy. From seek and destroy, Kanté missions now have a constructive element to them and he could be spreading himself thin. 

 

The strain on midfield in a 3-4-3

Conte has favoured box-to-box midfield all-rounders during his managerial career, perhaps an unconscious bias given the type of midfielder he was as a player. The former Juventus coach even compared himself to Kanté in self-deprecating tones. 

"I always appreciated this type of player," said the Chelsea manager. "One with great generosity, great ability to work for the team. It’s important to have this type if we want to win. Not only great talent, but players who run a lot during a game. N’Golo is stronger than me. I think I scored more goals but, in the other aspects, there is no contest... he is stronger than me."

The 3-4-3 system Conte has favoured at Chelsea, bar the occasional switch to 3-5-2, can put severe strain on the central midfield pair. Against weaker opponents, the two wing-backs can push up onto the same horizontal line as the midfield, but when they get pushed back against top opposition it leaves acres of lateral space to cover. Kanté 's engine would frequently get them out of trouble, but if the ball gets shifted from one side to the other quickly even he cannot get across in time. 

This was sometimes a problem on Chelsea's left flank, where Eden Hazard would be permitted to take up a 'cheat' positions, ready for a counter-attack. Nobody exploited this area of grass to the left of Chelsea's midfield better than Christian Eriksen. Occupying the half-space (the channel between the wing and central midfield) the Spurs man punished Chelsea in the a league victory at White Hart Lane. He repeated the trick on Nemanja Matic's side to deliver one of the assists of the season for Dele Alli in the FA Cup semi-final - though Chelsea went on to win. 

Alli's first headed goal stemmed from the above situation, where Marcos Alonso has been driven back by Kyle Walker and Hazard has stayed upfield. Despite his best efforts, Kanté  (and Matic) cannot get out to Eriksen who clips a delightful ball straight onto Alli's head.  

For Harry Kane's goal in the cup semi-final, again Kanté fails to stop Eriksen's cross. This was a second-phase move following a corner however, so the slightly odd positioning in the left-back area is understandable. 

 

No Nemanja Matic

Rather like those on the treatment table, departed players' reputations inflate after every defeat. Chelsea fans will inevitably stew on the decision to sell Matic to Manchester United, and there is no doubt his sale has increased the load on Kante's shoulders. Cesc Fabregas and Tiemoue Bakaoyoko are offensive-minded partners, and he has to be the legs when paired with former Leicester teammate Danny Drinkwater. 

One reason why there was such wonderment about Kanté  is that he is a difficult player to categorise. Comparisons with Makélélé are lazy in several respects. Kanté excels stepping out of the midfield line to press and harry higher up the pitch, whereas Makélélé would not stray from his two centre backs. Since the departure of Matic, Chelsea have required Kanté to sit and anchor their midfield. He used to act as a sword, but is now used as a shield. He is not entirely suited to positional discipline and restraint. 

Kanté's defensive numbers remain as strong as last season. There is a drop-off from his Leicester days, but he now plays for a side that has more of the ball and defends less. His defending deep in his own half can sometimes leave something to be desired, however. Absent-minded teammates leaving him exposed partly explains this, but at times his instinctive preference to go ball-hunting can land him in difficulty. 

See this case of fatal attraction in Chelsea's 3-0 loss at Arsenal last season. It was a brilliant piece of inter-play that produced Arsenal's second and the speed of passing cannot be captured in still images. Alex Iwobi exchanges passes with Mesut Özil, but as the ball travels towards the German Kanté follows it - aware too of Alexis Sanchez who has dropped in from centre forward. Özil wraps a cute ball back into Iwobi's path, and Kanté slips as he tries to make a desperate attempt to recover into the space he has emptied. 

Another example at the Emirates, this time in January's 2-2 draw. Just like in the first half of the FA Cup Final, Chelsea had real trouble getting their distances right and Arsenal popped up between them constantly. Here, either the back three has to push up considerably, or Kanté needs to be goalside of Özil and let Wilshere have it where he cannot hurt Chelsea. The Frenchman tires to step forward and block the passing lane, but there is too much space, leaving Özil with a tennis court to play in.  On the teamsheet Kanté was anchoring a midfield three, but here he is ahead of Fabregas and almost level with Bakayoko. 

In the instance above, against Manchester City this season, Kanté's first thought is once again to look in front of him and he is caught ball-watching. Unaware of what is behind, he fails to get in line with the ball and block the passing avenue through to David Silva. It was some pass from Fernandinho, in his defence. 

 

Elite players will not be rushed

Much of Kanté's game is about hounding panicked opponents into mistakes, what coaches refer to as 'getting a player's head down'. If you watch one the many 10-minute highlight compilations dedicated to him on YouTube, Kante's best bits tend to involve winning the ball on the front foot. Against teams who lack the technical assurance to play under pressure, that approach reaps obvious rewards. It is harder to replicate against opponents who can escape through skill or strength. It will be interesting to see how Conte instructs him to play against Barcelona in the Champions League.

Chelsea have a mixed record under Conte against the rest of the 'Big Six', losing league games against Arsenal, Liverpool, Man City, Man Utd and Spurs in the last season-and-a-half. Though they try to squeeze teams in the middle-third, Chelsea stand off and let teams play around their penalty area under little pressure. Against the likes of Silva, Eriksen and Özil, Kanté's attempts to force errors can look futile. 

Like coaxing a dog towards you with a treat, Mousa Dembélé has laid a trap for Kanté here. The Chelsea midfielder sees his opposite number with time and space in possession so sprints to try and close him down. Lesser likes will have played back to their centre-halves, or worse shovelled an aimless long-ball upfield. Dembélé's close control and ball retention is masterful though, and many is the Premier League player who has finished up on the ground after going shoulder to shoulder with him. The Belgian holds Kanté off, and with a drag-back is able to slip a pass through to Alli who has found a pocket of space between the lines, taking Chelsea's midfield out of the game. 

Against another London rival, Kanté has struggled to keep tabs on Mesut Ozil in recent meetings. One moment that encapsulates the balance of power between the pair was Ozil's pirouette in Chelsea's 3-0 loss at Arsenal last season. Once again, Kanté went in to press his opponent with little success. Arsenal's playmaker spins him and races clear on the break, exchanging passes with Sanchez to kill the game. 

Furthermore, Kanté had Matic alongside him in these two cases. Without the United man as an anchor, Kanté will have to be far more judicious about when to spring out and press. Chelsea are overburdening their key midfield component, and he desperately needs some help in the engine room. Kanté as 'two players in one' works metaphorically, but not literally. 

[Fox92]

Kante fouls constantly without getting booked. Should have been sent off against us. And more recently I saw him foul consistently on tv (v Arsenal) and get away with it.

 

[AKCJ]

28 minutes ago, brucey said:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2018/01/26/ngolo-kantes-limitations-have-exposed-season/

How N'Golo Kante's limitations have been exposed this season

 

Give a man a reputation as an early riser, said Mark Twain, and he can sleep 'til noon. N'Golo Kanté's consecutive Premier League titles and PFA Player of the Year awardare considerable credit in the bank, but the difficulties he is facing at the heart of Chelsea's midfield have been largely undocumented. Kanté is Kanté, and many take it on faith that he will always be a preternatural destructive midfielder without peer. 

His impeccable reputation is well-earned, of course. He arrived in England from Caen without fanfare and had a transformative effect on 5,000-1 Premier League champions Leicester City, before repeating the feat at Chelsea in near-namesake Antonio Conte's first season. Kanté started 68 league matches across those triumphant campaigns, and was taken into our hearts. 

His abundant qualities do not need re-stating in great detail: stamina, mobility, anticipation, sense of danger and a turn of foot that gets him to challenges he has no right to make. Moreover, he embodies a type of player the 'English eye' is instantly drawn towards. We favour midfielders who move themselves rather than the ball, 'impact' players who decorate the game with eye-catching moments like a decisive sliding tackle or long-range strike. Scott Parker has a PFA award, Michael Carrick does not. 

'Kanté is Bryan Robson, Roy Keane and Claude Makélélé rolled into one. I've never seen a player like him'. Quite the compliment from Jamie Redknapp, but exposed as hyperbole of the highest order with a second's thought. As was Conte's suggestion that the dynamic Chelsea midfielder should have won last year's Ballon d'Or. 

The France international is a specialist, and one of the best midfielders of his type in the Premier League. He is not superhuman however, and we are starting to see this all-action player stretched to his limits. 

 

More asked of him in possession

Leicester City are an outlier in the parade of past champions in so many respects, including a style of play that treated the football as a potential explosive. Counter-attacking sides had won the title before - infact it's an indispensable component in the modern game - but few have shunned possession quite as much as Claudio Ranieri's Leicester. 

Naturally, since Kanté arrived at Stamford Bridge he has been required to get on the ball far more often. Conte publicly demanded he be more progressive and ambitious with his passing, and Kanté expatiated on the topic after Chelsea's FA Cup victory over Manchester United last year: 

“Not especially to score goals. But when I have the pass, to look forward, to try to make me improve. But also when we have the chance to score, we like to create chances and score. It’s important, sometimes it could make the difference for the team, for the game, and when we have the chances to score, we have to score.” 

Kanté is not incapable on the ball. Chelsea's first goal in their 2-1 Carabao Cup defeat at Arsenal started with him carrying the ball and fizzing a line-breaking pass to Pedro. At Leicester and Chelsea, we have seen his knack for starting counter-attacks immediately after winning possession in a trademark fashion with swift forward passes. 

The diminutive midfielder averaged 43.2 passes per 90 minutes at Leicester, 60.1 passes in his first season at Chelsea and 67.1 passes per 90 this term. His passing accuracy has also increased year on year, but that could be a result of playing more short passes rather than looking straight for Jamie Vardy. From seek and destroy, Kanté missions now have a constructive element to them and he could be spreading himself thin. 

 

The strain on midfield in a 3-4-3

Conte has favoured box-to-box midfield all-rounders during his managerial career, perhaps an unconscious bias given the type of midfielder he was as a player. The former Juventus coach even compared himself to Kanté in self-deprecating tones. 

"I always appreciated this type of player," said the Chelsea manager. "One with great generosity, great ability to work for the team. It’s important to have this type if we want to win. Not only great talent, but players who run a lot during a game. N’Golo is stronger than me. I think I scored more goals but, in the other aspects, there is no contest... he is stronger than me."

The 3-4-3 system Conte has favoured at Chelsea, bar the occasional switch to 3-5-2, can put severe strain on the central midfield pair. Against weaker opponents, the two wing-backs can push up onto the same horizontal line as the midfield, but when they get pushed back against top opposition it leaves acres of lateral space to cover. Kanté 's engine would frequently get them out of trouble, but if the ball gets shifted from one side to the other quickly even he cannot get across in time. 

This was sometimes a problem on Chelsea's left flank, where Eden Hazard would be permitted to take up a 'cheat' positions, ready for a counter-attack. Nobody exploited this area of grass to the left of Chelsea's midfield better than Christian Eriksen. Occupying the half-space (the channel between the wing and central midfield) the Spurs man punished Chelsea in the a league victory at White Hart Lane. He repeated the trick on Nemanja Matic's side to deliver one of the assists of the season for Dele Alli in the FA Cup semi-final - though Chelsea went on to win. 

Alli's first headed goal stemmed from the above situation, where Marcos Alonso has been driven back by Kyle Walker and Hazard has stayed upfield. Despite his best efforts, Kanté  (and Matic) cannot get out to Eriksen who clips a delightful ball straight onto Alli's head.  

For Harry Kane's goal in the cup semi-final, again Kanté fails to stop Eriksen's cross. This was a second-phase move following a corner however, so the slightly odd positioning in the left-back area is understandable. 

 

No Nemanja Matic

Rather like those on the treatment table, departed players' reputations inflate after every defeat. Chelsea fans will inevitably stew on the decision to sell Matic to Manchester United, and there is no doubt his sale has increased the load on Kante's shoulders. Cesc Fabregas and Tiemoue Bakaoyoko are offensive-minded partners, and he has to be the legs when paired with former Leicester teammate Danny Drinkwater. 

One reason why there was such wonderment about Kanté  is that he is a difficult player to categorise. Comparisons with Makélélé are lazy in several respects. Kanté excels stepping out of the midfield line to press and harry higher up the pitch, whereas Makélélé would not stray from his two centre backs. Since the departure of Matic, Chelsea have required Kanté to sit and anchor their midfield. He used to act as a sword, but is now used as a shield. He is not entirely suited to positional discipline and restraint. 

Kanté's defensive numbers remain as strong as last season. There is a drop-off from his Leicester days, but he now plays for a side that has more of the ball and defends less. His defending deep in his own half can sometimes leave something to be desired, however. Absent-minded teammates leaving him exposed partly explains this, but at times his instinctive preference to go ball-hunting can land him in difficulty. 

See this case of fatal attraction in Chelsea's 3-0 loss at Arsenal last season. It was a brilliant piece of inter-play that produced Arsenal's second and the speed of passing cannot be captured in still images. Alex Iwobi exchanges passes with Mesut Özil, but as the ball travels towards the German Kanté follows it - aware too of Alexis Sanchez who has dropped in from centre forward. Özil wraps a cute ball back into Iwobi's path, and Kanté slips as he tries to make a desperate attempt to recover into the space he has emptied. 

Another example at the Emirates, this time in January's 2-2 draw. Just like in the first half of the FA Cup Final, Chelsea had real trouble getting their distances right and Arsenal popped up between them constantly. Here, either the back three has to push up considerably, or Kanté needs to be goalside of Özil and let Wilshere have it where he cannot hurt Chelsea. The Frenchman tires to step forward and block the passing lane, but there is too much space, leaving Özil with a tennis court to play in.  On the teamsheet Kanté was anchoring a midfield three, but here he is ahead of Fabregas and almost level with Bakayoko. 

In the instance above, against Manchester City this season, Kanté's first thought is once again to look in front of him and he is caught ball-watching. Unaware of what is behind, he fails to get in line with the ball and block the passing avenue through to David Silva. It was some pass from Fernandinho, in his defence. 

 

Elite players will not be rushed

Much of Kanté's game is about hounding panicked opponents into mistakes, what coaches refer to as 'getting a player's head down'. If you watch one the many 10-minute highlight compilations dedicated to him on YouTube, Kante's best bits tend to involve winning the ball on the front foot. Against teams who lack the technical assurance to play under pressure, that approach reaps obvious rewards. It is harder to replicate against opponents who can escape through skill or strength. It will be interesting to see how Conte instructs him to play against Barcelona in the Champions League.

Chelsea have a mixed record under Conte against the rest of the 'Big Six', losing league games against Arsenal, Liverpool, Man City, Man Utd and Spurs in the last season-and-a-half. Though they try to squeeze teams in the middle-third, Chelsea stand off and let teams play around their penalty area under little pressure. Against the likes of Silva, Eriksen and Özil, Kanté's attempts to force errors can look futile. 

Like coaxing a dog towards you with a treat, Mousa Dembélé has laid a trap for Kanté here. The Chelsea midfielder sees his opposite number with time and space in possession so sprints to try and close him down. Lesser likes will have played back to their centre-halves, or worse shovelled an aimless long-ball upfield. Dembélé's close control and ball retention is masterful though, and many is the Premier League player who has finished up on the ground after going shoulder to shoulder with him. The Belgian holds Kanté off, and with a drag-back is able to slip a pass through to Alli who has found a pocket of space between the lines, taking Chelsea's midfield out of the game. 

Against another London rival, Kanté has struggled to keep tabs on Mesut Ozil in recent meetings. One moment that encapsulates the balance of power between the pair was Ozil's pirouette in Chelsea's 3-0 loss at Arsenal last season. Once again, Kanté went in to press his opponent with little success. Arsenal's playmaker spins him and races clear on the break, exchanging passes with Sanchez to kill the game. 

Furthermore, Kanté had Matic alongside him in these two cases. Without the United man as an anchor, Kanté will have to be far more judicious about when to spring out and press. Chelsea are overburdening their key midfield component, and he desperately needs some help in the engine room. Kanté as 'two players in one' works metaphorically, but not literally. 

TLDR;

 

Kante can't do it all on his own.

[Donut]

10 hours ago, Leeds Fox said:

 

Do you not think our owners wouldn’t have done the same? Pearson had got us a great squad for the Championship without spending that kind of money. The squad we went up with was far better than wolves current squad.

 

Yeah they’ve attracted quality players from the continent but we had better players for small fees.

Of course, not saying its a bad thing. Theyre a good side.

 

I think the difference with Leicester is we had signed players with potential ability and refined their ability and improved them, whereas Wolves' players already come with good pedigree, even though young.

 

I use the example of Mahrez. When we signed him he was a 400k player. He wasn't a £100m player we somehow poached for 400k, we made him into the £100m player

[gw_leics772]

Thanks for that @brucey. Surprised how much I enjoyed reading about our former favourites potential downfall.

 

I personally "Got over him" in the Chelsea gane where he kept fouling. No way did he deserve to be sent off in any normal sense, but against the backdrop of chilwell soft first yellow, he should have walked about 5 times. 

 

(Little lovely faced bastard)

[Jonezy]

Remember being surprised by the amount of freekicks Kanté committed against us. It was like he had lost a step or something; remember him not committing that many freekicks and winning the ball clean. Maybe he is not a complete superhuman after all.

[Leeds Fox]

1 hour ago, Donut said:

Of course, not saying its a bad thing. Theyre a good side.

 

I think the difference with Leicester is we had signed players with potential ability and refined their ability and improved them, whereas Wolves' players already come with good pedigree, even though young.

 

I use the example of Mahrez. When we signed him he was a 400k player. He wasn't a £100m player we somehow poached for 400k, we made him into the £100m player

 

You’re spot on, I’d not thought of it in that sense. 

 

[m4DD0gg]

Perhaps a bit hopeful but i envisage the following in the summer:

 

Zidane binned at Real Madrid for being......well shit.

 

Poch hoovered up by Real Madrid as new manager.

 

Poch swoops in to recruit seagull face.

 

Spurs move into their new stadium minus the best manager they have had in decades and their talisman striker.

 

[CosbehFox]

The Kante article is odd, I have never seen such a targeted article of criticism and it basically points out he has zero support from a centre midfield partner. 

[gw_leics772]

1 hour ago, Cardiff_Fox said:

The Kante article is odd, I have never seen such a targeted article of criticism and it basically points out he has zero support from a centre midfield partner. 

I agree but think the angle is criticism of Chelsea more so than kante.

 

He is what he is, which is pretty much he best there is at what he does, but is not super human and cannot tackle multiple players of technical superiority (in terms of flair certainly, I still can't help loving the little bugger even though I don' want to), all on his lonesome. Which, this article rightly points out, he seems to be expected to do with Chelsea's current team and tactics.

 

The headline is effective click bait, that makes me want to read it as it tells me something I want to hear, but is still a worthwhile read.

 

Excellent money making journalism in this world of pay per view advertising and one I (begrudgingly) don't begrudge them for ?????

[StriderHiryu]

4 hours ago, Cardiff_Fox said:

The Kante article is odd, I have never seen such a targeted article of criticism and it basically points out he has zero support from a centre midfield partner. 

It's a great article though! Very well written and explained.

[ARM1968]

It’s a well written article, but that doesn’t mean it’s content is accurate or even fair. 

 

Despite seeming quite shambolic this season, Chelsea are still in the top 4. They seem a team on the verge of implosion. Conte whinging. Ambramovich simmering and Andy fuching Carroll and other no marks as transfer targets. Strange situation. 

 

Kante is unbelievable - simple. However he needs a serious midfield partner. They could do worse than try Drinky in there with him. 

[Tielemans63]

5 hours ago, Cardiff_Fox said:

The Kante article is odd, I have never seen such a targeted article of criticism and it basically points out he has zero support from a centre midfield partner. 

Agreed. If anyone should be in for a hammering it's Bakayoko. That guy is a liability, I have no idea why he keeps getting picked. I've watched Chelsea a few times and he's not particularly good at attacking, not a great passer and seems to lack defensive discipline. 

Edited 26 January 2018 by Paddy.

[STEVIE B]

15 hours ago, m4DD0gg said:

Perhaps a bit hopeful but i envisage the following in the summer:

 

Zidane binned at Real Madrid for being......well shit.

 

Poch hoovered up by Real Madrid as new manager.

 

Poch swoops in to recruit seagull face.

 

Spurs move into their new stadium minus the best manager they have had in decades and their talisman striker.

 

This scenario is mentioned in today’s Mail. Lottery numbers please ! ?

[norwichfox]

Thanks @brucey for posting the Kanté article I enjoyed reading it, I'm more than happy with his replacement Ndidi now, so I can read stuff like this without feeling bitter about it.

[sylofox]

17 hours ago, m4DD0gg said:

Perhaps a bit hopeful but i envisage the following in the summer:

 

Zidane binned at Real Madrid for being......well shit.

 

Poch hoovered up by Real Madrid as new manager.

 

Poch swoops in to recruit seagull face.

 

Spurs move into their new stadium minus the best manager they have had in decades and their talisman striker.

 

To make it the perfect storm they go bankrupt. I can then party like its 2016 all over again

[MC Prussian]

Aubameyang to Arsenal pretty much confirmed, making him the club's most expensive player ever.

Will cost in the region of 63 million Euro (£55m) and is estimated to earn approximately 10 million Euro (£8.8m) per year in wages.

http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/42854665

 

[ARM1968]

Possibly a good signing unless Mr. Bean’s Dad decides to play him at right back or something. 

[Donut]

1 hour ago, MC Prussian said:

Aubameyang to Arsenal pretty much confirmed, making him the club's most expensive player ever.

Will cost in the region of 63 million Euro (£55m) and is estimated to earn approximately 10 million Euro (£8.8m) per year in wages.

http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/42854665

 

Be interesting to see how they use these players, Lacazette and Aubameyang with Ozil in behind would be very attacking, but not address the real issue of a lack of a quality defensive minded midfielder (Elneny is underated to be fair)

Edited 29 January 2018 by Donut

[Fox92]

2 hours ago, MC Prussian said:

Aubameyang to Arsenal pretty much confirmed, making him the club's most expensive player ever.

Will cost in the region of 63 million Euro (£55m) and is estimated to earn approximately 10 million Euro (£8.8m) per year in wages.

http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/42854665

 

Interesting to see how he fares at Arsenal. Not that I watch a lot of European football but I've been a fan of the glimpses I have seen of him.

 

His goalscoring record seems good.

Edited 29 January 2018 by Fox92

[Donut]

3 minutes ago, Fox92 said:

Interesting to see how he fares at Arsenal. Not that I watch a lot of European football but I've been a fan of the glimpses I have seen of him.

 

His goalscoring record seems good.

I kinda like that hes a bad boy too, has a bit of attitude about him. Might shake things up a bit in the camp and with the crowd.

 

Not sure theres many strikers quicker than him. Hes arguably quicker than Vardy and that takes some doing.

[StriderHiryu]

With the Mkhitaryan and Aubameyang deals, I wonder if this means we can get closer to Arsenal or if they pull away? Not just in terms of this season, but in terms of the next few seasons as they are the top level club that is in the biggest amount of decline right now. I kind of hope they flop because it will open the door for us.

 

Our game against them at home this season will be very interesting, it's the closest we have been to them since the title winning season, when we still couldn't beat them!

 

I suppose the good thing is that it doesn't really solve their key issues of being susceptible at the back and not really being able to replace Carzola as their midfield playmaker.