Gert & TheBoy's Official VNA Soccer... err Football Thread

[TheBoy]

On the subject of Virgil van Dyke and Manchester City spending stupid-o money on defenders... wouldn't you think with their current pack of suspect central defenders that plonking down a £60m bid for Virgil would make perfect sense? They can easily handle the fee, it stops a potential rival improving and most importantly, they get a central defender who can actually defend!

Fair play to Pellegrino though for not putting up with his BS. If you're going to end up selling what will be a key player for another team, you may as well send him there unfit and severely lacking in match sharpness. In the current climate of spending money like water, casting him out of the first team picture isn't likely to affect his transfer fee in the slightest, so good on Pellegrino I say.

Starting to feel like flogging a dead horse now, but just to confirm that City have now become the first team ever to spend over £200m in a single transfer window after signing Mendy from Monaco for around £49m. City now account for half of the world's top 10 most expensive defenders - Walker, Stones, Mendy, Otamendi and Mangala. And that's not even including Danilo!

I feel like I'm moaning a lot in this post lol, but there's one other thing that really annoys me about this current preseason: Premier League teams playing each other! Yes, yes, I know it's all about marketing and is a way around getting in that '39th' game overseas which was bandied around a few years back... But there's something that just feels very wrong about teams from the same league playing each other before the season has already begun. Maybe I'm just getting old but for me, preseason games should be a mix of playing lower league teams with a few glamour ties against foreign opposition who you otherwise wouldn't get to play against. I don't mind tours to China or USA or playing in sponsored mini tournaments hosted by certain teams. But at least make the games versus the local teams or at the very least make it one team max from each nation.

[PeterL22]

On the subject of Virgil van Dyke and Manchester City spending stupid-o money on defenders... wouldn't you think with their current pack of suspect central defenders that plonking down a £60m bid for Virgil would make perfect sense? They can easily handle the fee, it stops a potential rival improving and most importantly, they get a central defender who can actually defend!

Fair play to Pellegrino though for not putting up with his BS. If you're going to end up selling what will be a key player for another team, you may as well send him there unfit and severely lacking in match sharpness. In the current climate of spending money like water, casting him out of the first team picture isn't likely to affect his transfer fee in the slightest, so good on Pellegrino I say.

Starting to feel like flogging a dead horse now, but just to confirm that City have now become the first team ever to spend over £200m in a single transfer window after signing Mendy from Monaco for around £49m. City now account for half of the world's top 10 most expensive defenders - Walker, Stones, Mendy, Otamendi and Mangala. And that's not even including Danilo!

I feel like I'm moaning a lot in this post lol, but there's one other thing that really annoys me about this current preseason: Premier League teams playing each other! Yes, yes, I know it's all about marketing and is a way around getting in that '39th' game overseas which was bandied around a few years back... But there's something that just feels very wrong about teams from the same league playing each other before the season has already begun. Maybe I'm just getting old but for me, preseason games should be a mix of playing lower league teams with a few glamour ties against foreign opposition who you otherwise wouldn't get to play against. I don't mind tours to China or USA or playing in sponsored mini tournaments hosted by certain teams. But at least make the games versus the local teams or at the very least make it one team max from each nation.

I agree with letting Van Dyke go - to highest bidder - personally if Stones and Walker attracted 50 million, he is worth 70 million. Stones is crap and Everton saw City coming - basically for footballing skills Virgil could play ANY outfield position to Premier League standard. Saints should (and probably will) sell him, buy a good Premier League defender (e.g. Simmer and still have 20 - 30 million in change.
If you look at the list of purchases by City, only Walker is anything like a good buy - the rest are not worth what they paid.
Regarding preseason "tournaments" with PL teams - I totally agree. They are meaningless but just a way to sell mercy in USA or Far East - however, it is one of the ways City & Utd can afford to waste money on expensive signings! Give me a wet Saturday in Brentford anyday!

[Gert-Jan]

Lots to do about Tottenham's lack of transfer activity so far with Levy saying the extravagant spending by some teams is "unsustainable" and Chelsea boss Conte today questioning Spurs' title ambitions. So, Drew, as a Spurs fan through thick and thin, how do you feel about your club not signing any new players? Having said that, though, the market is still open for another month...

Admittedly, the ridicule renovation of Man City's defence has seemingly made £50m price tags for defenders the new standard in football, though I do think Mendy and Walker are worth it. Both full-backs are sensational and they make 3-5-2 look even more appealing in case Guardiola decides to play with Aguero and Jesus up front. We have to see how it all works out, but it became clear quite early last season that Pep never had faith in any of the other four full-backs, so investing is the answer then.

Prices in the current market are inflated with players like Coutinho, Mbappe and Neymar valued insanely high. I genuinely think Van Dijk could break Mendy's record of world's most expensive defender. The Dutchman has expressed his wish to join Liverpool and just like I said last month, I feel that is where he will end up going.

The Premier League's popularity continues to grow excessively in the US and Asia particularly, so promoting the brand is part of the deal. It was somewhat strange watching Liverpool and Leicester last weekend in the #PLAsiaTrophy final and the Manchester Derby in Houston, but only two weeks until teams can travel to a windy Stoke again, lol.

I've been chopping and changing my fantasy squad ever since the FPL launch. Starting to really looking forward to try and get an even higher overall rank than last season. The Friday night kick-off makes it even more exciting IMO. Six high profile forwards and it feels like I can only pick two in order to keep a balanced team. For the newbies, if you lack the required knowledge but you do have Twitter, just follow @OfficialFPL for some tips and tricks.

[PeterL22]

Gert-Jan - yes Virgil will go, and yes he will break record - simply because he is a better player. He could play ANY outfield position to PL standard. Also Saints don't really want to sell him so will keep high tag on him.
Sorry all Spurs' fans out there, I can't see much incoming activity this season - Levy has already said that new ground is having an effect on finances - but you do have a good squad already if no-one else leaves. Also the Wembley effect this season will cost you a couple of places.

Did anyone watch the Everton Europa League game in the week? - they were quite lucky to get a win. The new striker looks reasonable and Klaasen looked really good. Rooney looks a poor decision - I gave up counting how many times he lost the ball when I got to six!

Still time for more idiotic signings!!

[PeterL22]

Given up on craziness that is transfer window - but will give you update on VVD - he is being allowed to play (train) with the big boys again this week - ? off the naughty step for now. We will see in this week's friendlies against Augsburg and Sevilla

[rokkerr]

Goodbye Neymar... wow.. didn't really see that coming...
I wonder why on earth you'd move to Paris... no offense to Paris but not really top tier..

[PeterL22]

Totally expected rokker - all about money and getting out from under Messi's shadow. Crazy money - NO player is worth that.
PSG will be in last eight in Europe - maybe even get further.

[PeterL22]

Watched Everton in Europa League again last night - that's another 90 mins of my life I'll never get back.
Two things to report - Keane looked really good (methinks a good buy by Big Ron) and Rooney was rubbish (only positive contribution was to single-handedly surround the ref to complain about a free-kick)!

[PeterL22]

Prayers are being said all over Southampton at the moment - please let Chelski buy Virgil van Dyke. He is obviously going and we want to stick two fingers up to the Mad German and the Scousers!

[rokkerr]

6 teams so far...
My dark horse pick to win... Calgary Mike...

Still No Dramas --- Drew Bower
Dutch Devils --- Gert-Jan van Poppel
CgyMike's Divers --- Mike Stang
Losers Utd --- Peter Littlejohns
Roks Firey Ballers --- Rokkerr Dave
Handcock FC --- Michael carrabba

Let the season begin!

[CGYMike]

I've been trying to do my homework, but asking me to become an expert on Premiere League is like sitting down and getting a haircut from me...oh yea ...your hair is gunna get cut, but you ain't leaving your house for a very long time :)

[rokkerr]

and in a stroke of genius I had Giroud up front...
... but Schmichel in goal..

Arsenal 4 Leicester 3...
Not too much defending from either team...

[CGYMike]

and in a stroke of genius I had Giroud up front...
... but Schmichel in goal..

Arsenal 4 Leicester 3...
Not too much defending from either team...

That goaltender for Leicester will be named in a goal fixing gambling scheme later in the season...that dude is awful

[TheBoy]

I think it's safe to say that if the Arsenal Leicester games is anything to go by, defending isn't going to the be highlight of this season for either team! It's good to see Vardy getting off to a good start though, if he can have another explosive season, at least Leicester should remain relatively safe.

Regarding Spurs' lack of activity in the transfer market. I'm honestly furious. We can say what a great first 11 we have until the cows come home, but the truth is, we've sold the best RB in the league and are now relying on his backup as the new number one in that position. So that's now 10 great first teamers. Son is injured, Rose is a dope (more on that later) and we're just one injury away in pretty much any position from being in a complete crisis. If any of Eriksen, Alderweireld, Alli, Kane, Lloris or Dembele got injured we're in a complete mess. The fact that it looks likely we'll be starting with Sissoko as a rwb on Sunday says it all.

The other issue is that we can say there's still more than 2 weeks of the window left... But the problem is any players we bring in now are miles behind in their preparation with us and will take 3-4 weeks minimum to get themselves comfortable within the team and up to speed with their fitness and tactics.

As much as I want to believe we can still challenge even for the top 4 again this season, I think it will be a minor miracle if we manage to pull it off.

Then we have the Danny Rose situation! For him to do what he did with his disgraceful interview in the Sun just a few days before the season starts is pretty darn unforgivable. He can issue an apology all he wants, I think the damage may have been done on this one. For any player to go requesting an interview with an newspaper I find disappointing, but to do so in the way he did and as someone who is one of our longest serving players is almost beyond comprehension. It's also surprising as he's often labelled as the teacher's pet when it comes to his relationship with Pochettino.

Of course, the problem that Spurs have is their wage structure. When we've got targets like Ross Barkely, who by all accounts is desperate to come and work with Poch but is already on wages comparable to our top earners such as Harry Kane. It's a ridiculous situation, but how can Levy justify bringing in what must be termed as an average player right now and have him wages higher than Eriksen, Alli... Rose etc? And if he did give Barkley the £90,000 or so he's requesting, whilst it's not at all unreasonable in the current climate, we would then have 10 players all banging on Levy's door demanding a huge pay rise. What would be a £90,000 outlay, suddenly becomes an extra £1m a week outlay just to keep everyone happy.

Bah, I'd better stop now or I'll make myself angry!

Gert, we've been linked with the Ajax central defender Davinson Sanchez (although it's just come out he's now been offered a new contract lol - Spurs in a nutshell). I remember seeing him in the Europa League last season and being very impressed. Is he Premier League ready though and at a fee of around £35m, would we be getting something special?

[rokkerr]

This Harry Kane impersonation seems spot on...
https://t.co/Ws4nvibsRm

[rokkerr]

Well Gert is off and running...

Don't worry Calgary Mike... it's a looooooooooong season....

[Gert-Jan]

The new Premier League season kicked off in spectacular fashion and for the first time on a Friday evening when Arsenal and Leicester served up a full course dinner. Lacazette's excellent header put Arsenal in front, the Foxes already considered throwing a party when Vardy scored 2-1, the Gunners fought back to level things at 2-2 before subs Ramsey and Giroud in particular secured a massively imporant 3 points. Not sure whether 3-4-2-1 is the best formation for Arsenal as a list of injuries and suspensions forced them to line up with full-backs Monreal and the mighty impressive Kolasinac as part of a back three. Arsenal's defensive frailties will undoubtedly continue to be exposed by players running in behind like Vardy did perfectly. I also gotta say that Giroud is simply too good to warm the bench, but with the move to Everton supposedly dead, I guess he will have to live with sub appearances?

Liverpool's attacking prowess is widely known, same goes for their weakness at defending set-pieces. Jose Holebas' excellent delivery caused the Reds lots of problems and it was quite remarkable seeing them concede from two corners yet again. You'd think Klopp addressed that issue all summer long, but a pretty poor Mignolet in goal doesn't help either. Mane, Firmino and Salah all looked incredibly threathening, though Liverpool found it tough to create chances in the first half of the game. Fingers crossed Liverpool will make it into the CL group stage as they thrive against the big sides. Still, drawing 3-3 at Watford is a bad start to the new domestic campaign and with Coutinho off to Barca sooner or later, it won't get any easier finishing in the top 4.

Burnley stun the world as they beat champions Chelsea at the Bridge. The Blues are an unorganized mess with senior players behaving like little kids with Fabregas' ill-disciplined behaviour a prime example. Conte is also getting under my skin as the Italian has repeatedly mentioned he'd like to bring in more players. If that is the case, why did you allow multiple talented youngsters to leave on loan, sell Matic to rivals United and text forward Costa shortly after winning the title that his services are no longer required?! Something is brewing....

A sexy Man United duly delivered on their promise of better and more attacking football with a 4-0 thrashing of West Ham. Lukaku netted a brace, two assists for Micky, goal and assist for rumoured Tottenham target Martial and Pogba got himself on the scoresheet as well, though Matic was United's key player in my opinion. The Red Devils looked lively throughout and displayed so much danger going forward that it was inevitable for Joe Hart to concede more goals as the clock got closer to the 90-minute mark. The stat that Mourinho has always won the league title in his second season in charge combined with the fact United's opening fixtures scream goals, suggests they could stay top of the table for a long time.

Drew, to answer your question, Davinson Sanchez has lots of attributes to become a defender of great stature, but I don't find the centre-back good enough for a higher level yet. He's comfortable on the ball, a physical menace, frequently winning aerial duels either side of the pitch, and the South-American scores goals too. Moving to Spurs, however, would mean nothing more than being back-up to the current Belgian pair who had progressed through the entire Ajax youth academy and worn the captain armband before leaving the club.

Therefore, it is astonishing Tottenham are willing to pay that much money for a Colombian who has only done well in the Dutch Eredivisie one season and what will be a bench player in London. I think it's important for him to get at least one or two more years at Ajax under his belt to develop and get on the required level to compete in world's most challenging league. Sanchez was left out of the squad on Saturday and Ajax have indeed offered him a new deal, but like FSG and Klopp keep echooing Coutinho is definitely staying, we know everybody is for sale at the right price.

[TheBoy]

The Conte situation feels very similar to the way Mourinho's second season turned out - eerily so in fact. If I recall correctly, shortly after winning the title, Mourinho was constantly bleating on about how if they wanted to retain the league he needed several new players. Conte is saying the exact same thing and doesn't seem to know when to shut up. It's one thing to say we need to improve the squad - all teams do, especially in this era where if you're not improving you're actually going backwards due to everyone else around you improving. But to say it at every opportunity, it's almost understandable that the players who have just won you a league title might find those constant comments to be somewhat insulting!

As we saw with virtually the same group of players under Mourinho, they can soon turn on their manager if they feel he isn't fully supporting them. And as Gert pointed out, loaning or selling a large chunk of young players who could have been moulded into the manager's own image and created a new strong loyalty, he's completely shot himself in the foot there too.

Maybe the Burnley game was just a blip but I've thought it for a while now that Chelsea have the potential to implode once again this season. They will be getting Claudio Ranieri back at this rate!

Good to hear your opinion on Sanchez, Gert. Some suggestions I've seen amongst other Spurs fans is that they think he has potential to cover the right wing back position along with his natural central defensive area. Do you think there is some weight behind that or is he a stone cold central defender? Also, as we saw last season, we often switched to a back 3 - is this something he's familiar with at Ajax?

[Gert-Jan]

Ajax always play a flat back four, so Davinson Sanchez is indeed a stone cold central defender who has never played full-back or wing-back in Amsterdam. Both clubs reached an agreement Thursday night for an extraordinary club record fee which will be paid in two installments, according to Ajax insiders. Alderweireld's contract negotiations have stalled and there's interest for both Wimmer and Dier... perhaps that is why Tottenham have bought another centre-back? The Colombian joins on a 6-year deal and he certainly won't be the last recruit to join the Spurs ranks as Pochettino "expects the club to sign more players". Spurs sure have a lot of money on the bench this season with Janssen, Sissoko and now Sanchez.

The Sigurdsson saga has finally come to an end as the Iceland international joins Everton on a long-term deal for an astonishing £45m and I think he'll be a great addition to their squad. It's not easy replacing 25-goal Lukaku, but Koeman has brought in proven pedigree with Rooney and Sigurdsson, while Davy Klaassen could deliver 10+ goals as well once he has settled in. Gylfi lifts Everton's chances of competing with the big boys in England and potential success in Europe, while Swansea find themselves in a downward spiral. If they don't add to their squad, Paul Clement could face another relegation battle.

Dortmund's Dembele has been suspended by the club and continues to be heavily linked with Barca. Liverpool have rejected a third offer for Coutinho after the Catalan club raised their bid to €120m as Liverpool remain adamant the Brazilian is not for sale, lol. Injury prone Jonny Evans to Man City? Ben Gibson or Sakho to West Brom? The clock is ticking.

[TheBoy]

I'm definitely as surprised as anyone that we've smashed our transfer record on a central defender who in all likelihood won't be first choice! What is curious too, is that according to people who are considered to be 'in the know', we still look likely to bring in Juan Foyth. We expect Wimmer to go - Southampton are believed to be the destination - any chatter on that you've heard Peter? With Carter-Vickers not looking like making the grade too and Dier potentially being used more in midfield, I guess in that sense bringing in 2 central defenders makes sense.

We also should consider that Vertonghen is 30 and Alderweireld 28, so bringing in two much younger players at this stage might be sensible, especially with Vertonghen's injury record over the past couple of seasons.

What is funny to me is that after all the frustration of watching other teams spend recklessly, if Spurs do go ahead with the picking up Barkley and some of the other names strongly linked such as Aurier, Balde-Diao and heck, even Martial (lol) we could easily end up spending over £100m!

Swansea are in that very tricky situation for me with Sigurdsson. On the one hand, I don't think they could turn down £45m, but on the other as Gert says, it could easily cost them their Premier League place. I've always liked 'Siggy' from his time at Spurs where he didn't really get the chance he probably deserved. Probably a case of being at the right club at the wrong time for him, so I hope he does well at Everton.

I don't know if you agree with me on this Gert but I don't know what's stupider: Barcelona bidding that amount for Coutinho or Liverpool for rejecting it! I accept he's a talented player, but man, he's not worth that much even in this current climate of £42m Davinson Sanchez haha. When you think of what Liverpool and Klopp could do with that money, I'm amazed they have turned it down. Especially as even if Barca come back with say €130m, it just leaves Liverpool with less time to find any replacement and I think it's fairly obvious that Coutinho won't have his heart fully into the Liverpool cause should he be at Anfield come the end of the transfer window.

What do you think to the Costa/Conte situation? As much as I dislike Costa, I do have sympathy for his situation as Conte has handled it all incredibly badly. From the text message that kicked this all off, not to mention denying him the huge money move to China last January and now openly laughing and mocking him in press conference, it's little wonder Costa has decided to say screw you guys. Conte is the bookmaker's favourite as first manager to lose his job I think says quite a lot...