How would you improve the team in January?

[CityIsBlue]

Wouldn't want a single foreign player from the Chinese League.

 

There's only one reason you've joined that league, and that's not the character we want.......No matter the ability.

[HoustonFox]

5 hours ago, MPH said:

 

and yet at such an age he chased the easy life and easy money in China. 

 

 

it’s a no from me. that’s the sort of thing you do close to the end of your career not at the peak of it. id seriously question what motivates him.

 

3 hours ago, CityIsBlue said:

Wouldn't want a single foreign player from the Chinese League.

 

There's only one reason you've joined that league, and that's not the character we want.......No matter the ability.

Totally disagree with your comments on lack of hunger. Look at Witsel now at Dortmund and Gervinho who went back to Italy and is now doing really well at Parma. They’ve shown it can be done and class is permanent, these players don’t become bad overnight.
 

Carrasco in same boat, he has a ton of talent and has performed wherever he’s been, including for the Belgian national team while he’s been in China. Also the team be joined is a sister club to Atleti. 
 

if he’s available and we aren’t looking at him, knowing we need a strong winger, I would be surprised, and frankly a little upset too if we passed the opportunity up. 

[JJD_LCFC]

8 hours ago, CityIsBlue said:

Wouldn't want a single foreign player from the Chinese League.

 

There's only one reason you've joined that league, and that's not the character we want.......No matter the ability.

Very valid point. But surely we can not begrudge someone who has set his families life up for generations for one or 2 seasons. He was champions league final with Atletico before the move, still a superb player. Maybe a tielemans style loan with view to permanent could get the job done. We can see if he has the desire to still play champions league (hopefully)  football or if he has lost his motivation now lot of money. 

 

 

[Muzzy_Larsson]

10 hours ago, MPH said:

 

and yet at such an age he chased the easy life and easy money in China. 

 

 

it’s a no from me. that’s the sort of thing you do close to the end of your career not at the peak of it. id seriously question what motivates him.

A fair point but it's not always the case and as black and white as that, look at Axel Witsel for example who has come back to Europe and flourished.  The fact he's in China may be the very reason Carrasco is attainable for you guys at the moment, had he still been at Atletico or moved to a similar level of club he'd probably have been out of reach.

[Gerard]

11 hours ago, MPH said:

 

and yet at such an age he chased the easy life and easy money in China. 

 

 

it’s a no from me. that’s the sort of thing you do close to the end of your career not at the peak of it. id seriously question what motivates him.

 

That's definitely something to consider. A top European player moving to China at 24yo obviously is more motivated by money than forging out a top career. Worth a loan to buy for sure though. 

[TJB-fox]

6 hours ago, HoustonFox said:

 

Totally disagree with your comments on lack of hunger. Look at Witsel now at Dortmund and Gervinho who went back to Italy and is now doing really well at Parma. They’ve shown it can be done and class is permanent, these players don’t become bad overnight.
 

Carrasco in same boat, he has a ton of talent and has performed wherever he’s been, including for the Belgian national team while he’s been in China. Also the team be joined is a sister club to Atleti. 
 

if he’s available and we aren’t looking at him, knowing we need a strong winger, I would be surprised, and frankly a little upset too if we passed the opportunity up. 

You’d be upset if we didn’t sign Yannick Carrasco? 

[Grebfromgrebland]

Probably a better option than the Dutch guy we're supposedly linked with

[Muzzy_Larsson]

1 hour ago, TJB-fox said:

You’d be upset if we didn’t sign Yannick Carrasco? 

If he goes to Palace on loan and I was a Leicester fan I'd be pretty upset tbh, that is an absolute no brainer of a signing and surely he'd much rather go to Leicester than Palace.  Getting him on loan first completely removes the risk from any potential permanent transfer.  The guy is a regular in perhaps the best international side on the planet at the moment, even when playing in China.  You are crying out for strengthening out wide just now.

Edited 24 January 2020 by henrik_62

[Deeg67]

1 hour ago, TJB-fox said:

You’d be upset if we didn’t sign Yannick Carrasco? 

I'm not putting words in anyone's mouth, but my impression was he'd be upset if the reason we didn't sign him was because of some general bias against guys who play in China.

[TJB-fox]

21 minutes ago, henrik_62 said:

If he goes to Palace on loan and I was a Leicester fan I'd be pretty upset tbh, that is an absolute no brainer of a signing and surely he'd much rather go to Leicester than Palace.  Getting him on loan first completely removes the risk from any potential permanent transfer.  The guy is a regular in perhaps the best international side on the planet at the moment, even when playing in China.  You are crying out for strengthening out wide just now.

Upset, right ok. 

[Jon the Hat]

Plenty of reasons player have gone to China - need to move from where they are, agent pressure, want to try something different, insane money.  None of these are reasons not to sign them.  Being well past it would be of course.

[HoustonFox]

4 hours ago, TJB-fox said:

You’d be upset if we didn’t sign Yannick Carrasco? 

A little upset. Thanks for @henrik_62 and @Deeg67 for clarifying, they got it spot on. Totally know you are trying to be a pedant. Well done 

[TJB-fox]

29 minutes ago, HoustonFox said:

A little upset. Thanks for @henrik_62 and @Deeg67 for clarifying, they got it spot on. Totally know you are trying to be a pedant. Well done 

Just an odd choice of words to use on a player that has happily given up his club career at the highest level to muck about in a Mickey Mouse league for a few years. 

[CityIsBlue]

2 hours ago, henrik_62 said:

If he goes to Palace on loan and I was a Leicester fan I'd be pretty upset tbh, that is an absolute no brainer of a signing and surely he'd much rather go to Leicester than Palace.  Getting him on loan first completely removes the risk from any potential permanent transfer.  The guy is a regular in perhaps the best international side on the planet at the moment, even when playing in China.  You are crying out for strengthening out wide just now.

 

Carrasco is another who i'd put on the list behind Antonio, or at the very least, i'd only take him in addition to/after Antonio.

No risk signings should be a priority for us first this summer.

 

Averaged over 1 goal every 5 in the Ligue 1 for Monaco, and just about 1 in 5 in La Liga for Atletico Madrid......Nothing 'special' really.

When you consider the freedom he had at Atletico because of the opposition defence being occupied by Griezmann+Costa, the stats are very average imho.

 

I'd be far more 'upset' if we passed on the opportunity in the summer to sign guys like Antonio, than Carrasco.

There's nothing in Carrasco's performances, at any point in his career to suggest he can offer as much to us as Antonio does currently in the Premier League.

 

We know that whilst we can't attract the very top reputable players in World Football, thanks to the value the Premier League has around the world, combined with the success we have had over recent years, we are in a position where we can attract that tier of player who are just below the elite tier.....who are looking to break into it. 

 

After looking into his transfer to China a bit more, I think I, and others, may have been a bit unkind to him.

I didn't realise part of the ownership group at Atletico also own the Chinese club Dalian Yifang, so the transfers of Carrasco/Gaitan may have been some clever way of boosting Atletico's finances and avoiding certain FFP regulations.

Of course he would've been well compensated for the move, but it potentially says a lot for him that he has still been a regular in Martinez's squad, which is a plus for his character, given how poor the league is and the strength of the Belgian squad.

 

I stand by what I said though. 'Project players' are a must for us, i recognize that.....But when there is a guy out there like Antonio, who we could sign with no issues, it makes little sense to sign an unproven quantity, whose record suggests he'd offer us less than Antonio anyway.

 

 

A tielemans like deal, would be a win win really. It's very rare you get regular deals so beneficial to yourself though.

[HoustonFox]

29 minutes ago, CityIsBlue said:

 

Carrasco is another who i'd put on the list behind Antonio, or at the very least, i'd only take him in addition to/after Antonio.

No risk signings should be a priority for us first this summer.

 

Averaged over 1 goal every 5 in the Ligue 1 for Monaco, and just about 1 in 5 in La Liga for Atletico Madrid......Nothing 'special' really.

When you consider the freedom he had at Atletico because of the opposition defence being occupied by Griezmann+Costa, the stats are very average imho.

 

I'd be far more 'upset' if we passed on the opportunity in the summer to sign guys like Antonio, than Carrasco.

There's nothing in Carrasco's performances, at any point in his career to suggest he can offer as much to us as Antonio does currently in the Premier League.

 

We know that whilst we can't attract the very top reputable players in World Football, thanks to the value the Premier League has around the world, combined with the success we have had over recent years, we are in a position where we can attract that tier of player who are just below the elite tier.....who are looking to break into it. 

 

After looking into his transfer to China a bit more, I think I, and others, may have been a bit unkind to him.

I didn't realise part of the ownership group at Atletico also own the Chinese club Dalian Yifang, so the transfers of Carrasco/Gaitan may have been some clever way of boosting Atletico's finances and avoiding certain FFP regulations.

Of course he would've been well compensated for the move, but it potentially says a lot for him that he has still been a regular in Martinez's squad, which is a plus for his character, given how poor the league is and the strength of the Belgian squad.

 

I stand by what I said though. 'Project players' are a must for us, i recognize that.....But when there is a guy out there like Antonio, who we could sign with no issues, it makes little sense to sign an unproven quantity, whose record suggests he'd offer us less than Antonio anyway.

 

 

A tielemans like deal, would be a win win really. It's very rare you get regular deals so beneficial to yourself though.

At first I though you were Antonio’s agent  but glad you clarified your reasoning on Carrasco. 
 

I do agree Antonio is a good and known impact player and if we can get on a cheap (as you said, probably in the summer) that will help. He turns 30 in March so definitely more a ready buy than a project and would give good depth at wing or up front too. 
 

I do like Carrasco (not his agent 😂) as he is versatile across the front 3, at 10 and even played wing back for Belgium. He’s highly skilful and creative and has some pace about him. definitely a higher maintenance character, which I know probably puts a lot of people off along with his stint in China. My real thoughts on him is if someone like Palace are going after him and we’re not that’s just a bit of a miss if we could get someone with that quality on loan with a relatively low risk but a potential upside that could be a difference maker - which is what most of us on here want (especially after the Summer of 2016). Oh, and I would be really upset if we didn’t sign him 🤣
 

 

[frany104]

1 hour ago, CityIsBlue said:

 

Carrasco is another who i'd put on the list behind Antonio, or at the very least, i'd only take him in addition to/after Antonio.

No risk signings should be a priority for us first this summer.

 

Averaged over 1 goal every 5 in the Ligue 1 for Monaco, and just about 1 in 5 in La Liga for Atletico Madrid......Nothing 'special' really.

When you consider the freedom he had at Atletico because of the opposition defence being occupied by Griezmann+Costa, the stats are very average imho.

 

I'd be far more 'upset' if we passed on the opportunity in the summer to sign guys like Antonio, than Carrasco.

There's nothing in Carrasco's performances, at any point in his career to suggest he can offer as much to us as Antonio does currently in the Premier League.

 

We know that whilst we can't attract the very top reputable players in World Football, thanks to the value the Premier League has around the world, combined with the success we have had over recent years, we are in a position where we can attract that tier of player who are just below the elite tier.....who are looking to break into it. 

 

After looking into his transfer to China a bit more, I think I, and others, may have been a bit unkind to him.

I didn't realise part of the ownership group at Atletico also own the Chinese club Dalian Yifang, so the transfers of Carrasco/Gaitan may have been some clever way of boosting Atletico's finances and avoiding certain FFP regulations.

Of course he would've been well compensated for the move, but it potentially says a lot for him that he has still been a regular in Martinez's squad, which is a plus for his character, given how poor the league is and the strength of the Belgian squad.

 

I stand by what I said though. 'Project players' are a must for us, i recognize that.....But when there is a guy out there like Antonio, who we could sign with no issues, it makes little sense to sign an unproven quantity, whose record suggests he'd offer us less than Antonio anyway.

 

 

A tielemans like deal, would be a win win really. It's very rare you get regular deals so beneficial to yourself though.

Just give up mate. No one wants Antonio. I’m not sure if you noticed but we’re 3rd in the league, we’re not fighting relegation. We need quality players not West Ham bit part players.

[st albans fox]

2 minutes ago, frany104 said:

Just give up mate. No one wants Antonio. I’m not sure if you noticed but we’re 3rd in the league, we’re not fighting relegation. We need quality players not West Ham bit part players.

Antonio is a great player who I would have  in my first list of targets if it wasn’t for his injury issues ....

[frany104]

Just now, st albans fox said:

Antonio is a great player who I would have  in my first list of targets if it wasn’t for his injury issues ....

A great player....? Your definition of great is vastly different to mine. He’s a useful squad player and we are well past buying those now. We need real quality and need to stop wasting money on squad players.

[wardyfox86]

1 hour ago, CityIsBlue said:

Carrasco is another who i'd put on the list behind Antonio, or at the very least, i'd only take him in addition to/after Antonio.

No risk signings should be a priority for us first this summer.

We are aiming for Champions League next season, so in no way should we be even the slightest bit interested in Antonio, let alone ABOVE somebody like Carrasco. He is a "purple patch" player with little to no technical ability and approaching 30.

 

Nothing against the bloke, I've seen him interviewed and he knows his own limitations but he'd get nowhere near our squad, he's below Gray and Albrighton in that regard. 

Edited 24 January 2020 by wardyfox86

[st albans fox]

1 hour ago, frany104 said:

A great player....? Your definition of great is vastly different to mine. He’s a useful squad player and we are well past buying those now. We need real quality and need to stop wasting money on squad players.

he’s a great player but sadly unreliable due to injury issues ..... if he didn’t have those issues he would be at a top 6 club .....

[Muzzy_Larsson]

Antonio would be a decent squad player imo, mainly due to his versatility and his physicality, giving you something a bit different but I think a bit of perspective is needed here, he’ll not really improve your first XI.
 

Carrasco imo very much would, a guy who can get into the Belgian side, especially in the attacking positions is not to be sniffed at. When you then consider the fact you can try before you buy in terms of loaning him initially if reports are to be believed then it’s an absolute no brainier of a signing imo.

[casablancas]

I’d take Anotonio he’s a real athlete and can do what most out squad can’t ... head the ball.  He can play across the front 3 and slot in at wing back. I’d be happy with him. 

Would anyone take Harry Wilson? Fits the mould and he obviously has talent. I’d also love their keeper ... Ramsdale looks like he could be England number one for next 15 years. 

[justfoxes]

Let’s P155 of Man Utd and go for Cavani ?😏😂

[Wortho]

16 minutes ago, casablancas said:

I’d take Anotonio he’s a real athlete and can do what most out squad can’t ... head the ball.  He can play across the front 3 and slot in at wing back. I’d be happy with him. 

Would anyone take Harry Wilson? Fits the mould and he obviously has talent. I’d also love their keeper ... Ramsdale looks like he could be England number one for next 15 years. 

I agree Ramsdale is worth trying to buy.

I'm not sure about Antonio seems injury prone but obviously a good player.

[Bluearmyfox28]

2 hours ago, henrik_62 said:

Antonio would be a decent squad player imo, mainly due to his versatility and his physicality, giving you something a bit different but I think a bit of perspective is needed here, he’ll not really improve your first XI.
 

Carrasco imo very much would, a guy who can get into the Belgian side, especially in the attacking positions is not to be sniffed at. When you then consider the fact you can try before you buy in terms of loaning him initially if reports are to be believed then it’s an absolute no brainier of a signing imo.

I think salary would be the major issue with Carrasco.