I'm a bit confused about Arsenal's transfer business. They're on the verge of purchasing Aaron Ramdale for £30M, which only makes their recent jettisoning of Emiliano Martinez look that much worse and seems to mark the end of the Bernd Leno era. Ben White is a good defender, but £50M good? I don't know about that. The permanent deal for Ødegaard for £40M is probably fair enough. I don't know much about Lukonga and Tavares, but they've spent £150M already this summer and I'm not sure they've dramatically improved their squad.
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The 2021-2022 Football Thread
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Thing is 50 million isn’t what it used to be. We’ve spent that on players who turned out to be rubbish.
The market is so inflated/distorted, it really comes down to 1) can you get the players you need? 2) Can you afford them? But in terms of value, there is little out there right now apart from the odd loan, free transfer, and hoping some academy talent comes good. Arsenal seem to be stuck in a part of the market where the players they are going for are expensive but not necessarily a lot better than cheaper players...that's partly on them but they don't control the market, and the market is not favorable to them in terms of cost.
Johnathan Wilson has a pretty stark - but accurate - rant in the Guardian about the stratification of football. I know I go on about this all the time, but the reality is that money determines where clubs finish. Most have zero hope of wining the league and only a couple are likely to push for a title every season.
The reality is that the 'petro-era' has changed everything. Arsenal and Spurs might be part of the 'big six' but they're out of contention for titles indefinitely. Liverpool remain dark horses under Klopp but must always punch above their weight to stay in contention. And when Klopp leaves? Man Utd are surviving on their unequalled revenue streams, but even they can't turn the taps on the way Man City and Chelsea can. And if this trend continues they too could be left behind. And, as Wilson points out, it makes criticizing managers a bit of a red herring in general, unless they're obviously duffing it. No manager can make Arsenal competitive with Man City given the disparities in wealth, talent, and depth of squad.
Sure, on any given day or any given season an anomaly can occur, but the exception just proves the rule.
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I think Leicester are doing okay. I mean they’ve one the Premier League as many times as Liverpool.
Leicester are consistently great at identifying up and coming talent and acquiring it at reasonable prices, then doing the work to finish developing them. Occasionally they can cash in on an N'golo Kante or Harry Maguire and keep on going. This was also Southampton's model for a while there, but they seem to have lost their touch recently, and I expect their time in the Prem may come to an end this season.
Agreed with the earlier point that the middle of the market is an awkward place to be right now. Either you buy a young prospect and take the chance that they will develop into a good player, or you pay through the nose for a legit superstar. Even though my own club buys its share of expensive players, it's always more gratifying to see a young player come up all the way through the academy, or for the scouting department to identify and sign a 15-17 year old and bring them in and apply the finishing touches. This is not easy to do, as clearly not all clubs are adept at identifying and developing young talent.
Trouble is a lot of the young talent ends up at the top clubs and is never seen again. The odd cup game. But mostly they are behind 2 international superstars and don’t get a chance.
Spurs lose in the intertoto/Ford transit van cup/Europa conference league.
Not sure the competition is worth winning tbh.
Not sure the competition is worth winning tbh.
I feel the same. But at Liverpool and Man Utd, even those academy players who 'make it', even those of Premier League quality, may still be let go because they are not seen as good enough for the first team. Most of those typically carve out decent careers at other teams or in other leagues. But the wealthier and more competitive a team is, the rarer it is to see an academy grad become a regular first teamer and even rarer to find a genuine 'star.'
Sometimes we forget just how rare a player good enough to be a 'star' in a top league is. Literally one in millions. But 'big' teams' fans (and often owners) are fixated on making a constant stream of star purchases.
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Lingard wants to leave Man U unless he can get regular football according to the Times.
I do hope we can get him back at West Ham. A quality player that deserves game time. In both a West Ham shirt and an England one.
I do hope we can get him back at West Ham. A quality player that deserves game time. In both a West Ham shirt and an England one.
I think to be fair, if there's European games to be played, they are always worth trying to win.
I know there's Europe and then there's EUROPE, but if that's all you've qualified for, put your best foot forward and try to win it. Not saying Spuds didn't try to win it, but it does feel a bit half-arsed.
Saints would like a word...but yeah, I could see him at Hammers long-term and doing well.
It's fair to say that as a Saints fan, I (and most of my fellow Saints fans) tend to agree with you.
Can't see a lot of success coming our way this season without significant investment and our recent signings are all "for the future".
I am definitely not looking forward to this weekend's fixture against Man U. I feel another 9-0 coming on.
I have everything crossed. Hopefully the love we showed him last year will persuade him. Given Man Utd’s midfield line up, it’s hard to see him getting a game each week. At West Ham he’s one of the first names on the team sheet.
What do you think, is Ødegaard _really_ what they need with Smith Rowe showing a lot of potential. Or is there a place for both?
I think Ødegaard improves the squad, though Arsenal usually seem overstocked with midfielders. But he's young and if he continues to produce on the pitch his value will increase, so overall I think it's a decent move.
34% of the users on the FotMob app think the Millers will win... hmmm
It feels like forever since Liverpool played at Anfield with a full crowd and a more-or-less full squad available. Liverpool never looked to be in serious trouble against Burnley but they have a poor recent record against the clarets and had to work hard to win this match so it is nice to banish that little hoodoo.
Lots of feel-good news for 'Pool fans. Tsimikas had an excellent Anfield debut at left back with a very lively performance and an assist on the first goal. Hendo is back. Harvey Elliot looked great as well, working effectively with the front three. Keita was actually noticeable and in a good way. Jota scored again. Mane got his goal. Salah came within an ace of one several times, including a nice effort ruled marginally offside. Alisson didn't have to get involved too often but, barring one errant punch attempt, was there when needed. Burnley never lost their focus and did carve out a couple good chances but could not finish them. And of course we finally had Virgil and Matip (and eventually also Gomez) back on the pitch where they make all the difference.
Chelsea at Anfield next week, That's going to be a very tough match so early in the season. I would think Chelsea will be slight favorites but Liverpool will want to get points from that match.
Lots of feel-good news for 'Pool fans. Tsimikas had an excellent Anfield debut at left back with a very lively performance and an assist on the first goal. Hendo is back. Harvey Elliot looked great as well, working effectively with the front three. Keita was actually noticeable and in a good way. Jota scored again. Mane got his goal. Salah came within an ace of one several times, including a nice effort ruled marginally offside. Alisson didn't have to get involved too often but, barring one errant punch attempt, was there when needed. Burnley never lost their focus and did carve out a couple good chances but could not finish them. And of course we finally had Virgil and Matip (and eventually also Gomez) back on the pitch where they make all the difference.
Chelsea at Anfield next week, That's going to be a very tough match so early in the season. I would think Chelsea will be slight favorites but Liverpool will want to get points from that match.
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Man City against Norwich was men against boys. I appreciate City will face tougher competition this season but it looks like Grealish has made himself at home. Although Villa did alright without him.
Grealish scored accidentally, which was funny. No shame for Norwich City - Man City's squad is 9 times more expensive than theirs.
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I can’t really see Norwich staying up this year. Not unless some other three teams implode. Just don’t see they’ve improved since last time.
They do look like one of the weaker teams right now. BUT they just need to avoid being one of the three worst teams come May '22. A lot can happen between now and then.
Indeed. Too early to draw to many conclusions I suppose. Just have to wait and see.
Yes, but after their earlier defeat at the hands (or feet) of Spurs, they needed to make a statement about their ambition, quality and intent.
Any team facing them today would have had their work cut out; shame - for Norwich - that it happened to be Norwich ( a rude awakening to Premiership football).
Excellent post, and not just because I agree with every word.
Nice, too, to see Liverpool back, fighting fit and with a full team.
While this is very good news, personally, I'm even more happy with the purchase of a promising keeper in Aaron Ramsdale; my view is that we should never have sold Martínez (who is considerably better than Leno, in my opinion).
Arsenal are in for a tough day tomorrow. Chelsea have a much bigger, more talented squad, and Tuchel is more than a match for Arteta tactically. I fear the Gunners could be in for a humbling. On the flip side, no reasonable person is really expecting them to get a result here, and they're at home, so if they can somehow pull out a draw it would be a real morale-booster. Unlikely, but an upset is not impossible.
Arsenal are not really progressing since that FA Cup win. When (not if, I fear) Arteta gets fired this season, it will be just anther smokescreen obscuring the real problems at the club, which go much deeper than the manager. Anyway it's hard to judge Arteta as a manager fairly given the very difficult job he took on in the first place. Perhaps if, like Lampard, he inherited a world-class squad we could draw more conclusions. But he did not.
Arsenal are not really progressing since that FA Cup win. When (not if, I fear) Arteta gets fired this season, it will be just anther smokescreen obscuring the real problems at the club, which go much deeper than the manager. Anyway it's hard to judge Arteta as a manager fairly given the very difficult job he took on in the first place. Perhaps if, like Lampard, he inherited a world-class squad we could draw more conclusions. But he did not.