***Official*** English Football Season 2019-20

[Lillian Thomson]

I wonder if the City owners are getting a bit edgy. They've gone backwards domestically and have got no where near in Europe.

 

[grecian]

I wonder if the City owners are getting a bit edgy. They've gone backwards domestically and have got no where near in Europe.

I don't really see where they go other than Pep though, not like they had a Champions League track record beforehand. More likely Guardiola will walk than be pushed.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

I wonder if the City owners are getting a bit edgy. They've gone backwards domestically and have got no where near in Europe.

Nothing in the way the club has been run for the last ten years would indicate this. Khaldoon has been meticulous and well planned the whole way through.

 

[DriveClub]

I'm actually surprised Chelsea didn't have more competition to sign Werner, particularly at the price he was available at.

Was heavily linked with Liverpool but read Liverpool pulled out due to covid financial shortfall for the owners and uncertainty around how much playtime he might get due to established front 3

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

The striker issue is bigger than being made out. This summer is definitely the time to spend big on one, as Aguero will almost certainly leave at the end of the coming season, and he's going to be coming back from a meniscus injury which will plague him all year. Jesus is a fantastic worker and maybe the best pressing #9 in the world but cannot be relied on for consistent scoring. In fact, he generally has played all of his best football on the wide left when Sterling has sat out. If we leave it until next summer most teams will have us over a barrel even more than they already do.

The top strikers aren't coming here. The Mbappe's of the world have made it known publicly and privately that they won't sign here, and PSG would never sell to City anyway, so the options thin further. Haaland is someone most City fans want but pretty much every big side in the world is going to go after him next summer and his agent is Raiola who City generally refuse to work with, I just don't see it. There's been a lot of talk floated about Lautaro Martinez from City ITK's, especially because Barca is dead broke and couldn't afford him even if they wanted to, but he's another second-striker option for mine. Similarly wasteful in front of goal and with the ball as our current options. Joao Felix was inquired about both last summer and this summer, but he's another winger/second striker hybrid. Dybala as well, though I actually think he could be a sneaky option and would be a very good fit.

As far as genuine #9's go Kane is the only one who's both world class (I already made my thoughts on the injuries and workload clear earlier) and, in theory, gettable. It's Levy, so you know, but hey, maybe facing a full season without a soul in his billion dollar stadium might bring him to the table for 100m instead of 150m. I think we'd pay 100m for him.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

Lots of penalties though.
He’s better than they were for sure. But this season he was maybe the 7th best PL striker? Ings Vardy Martial Aguero Aubameyang and Jimenez all had better seasons. Which is still alright, and he might get back to the pre-injury heights at some stage. But he’d cost like 100m plus massive wages, far far more than you’d want to pay to take that chance.

I doubt City see that an as issue, seeing as though our penalty situation has gotten so bad there was actually talk of Ederson taking them during this season.

As for that list, in reality, only Aguero and Auba are actually in the same tier as Kane. You can bullshit all you want about goals this season but Vardy, Martial and especially Ings are just not in the same hemisphere. Martial may get there soon, granted. Even if Vardy was 24 he's possibly the worst fit a striker could be for this City side.

City actually have a very strict wage structure atm. We don't pay anything near the Barca's, Juve's, PSG's and United's of the world. Kane would probably have to settle for money in the same range as Aguero and KDB to join us, in theory. It'd be more than he is on now at Spurs but probably half of what he could get elsewhere.

 

[Uppercut]

Haha we’d both be celebrating if City signed Kane for 100m.

I can’t say I’ve seen him a huge amount, and he’s coming off an injury of his own, but Lautaro looks great to me. Scrappy little **** with great link-up, only 22, he’d suit Guardiola down to the ground.

Werner was a no-brainer though. The fact that they don’t seem to have gone for him at all makes me think they don’t plan on signing any striker.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

Haha not sure I'd be celebrating per se, but it'd be interesting to see the media reaction to City signing the Engerland skipper.

I actually don't disagree about Lautaro, he is a little beast and definitely a Pep-style forward. I just don't think we need a Pep-style forward to replace Aguero, who himself isn't really a Pep-style forward (though he definitely reinvented himself a bit to his credit). Pep tends to have a bit of a blind spot for genuine goal-scorers, and tbh, I also just don't think he'll be at City past the end of this season anyway.

 

[Uppercut]

Pep is all about positional coaching though. Sterling wasn’t much of goalscorer at all before Pep and most people didn’t think turning him into a 20 goals a season man was even plausible.

But yeah like if he’d signed Werner I’d think it was a massive coup. It’s Kane’s age combined with the massive decline in his performances (albeit from a superhuman peak) this past 2 years that makes me think it’d be a mistake, rather than the type of player he is.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

De Gea playing tonight. Probably right to play his first choice keeper at this stage, but it would be quite funny if he has a howler.

 

[Lillian Thomson]

Crap season in Europe for the Premier League after dominating last season. Beaten by some fairly mediocre teams as well.

 

[DriveClub]

Macguire seems to be a very limited centre half, don't understand his massive transfer fee and wages. Doesn't track well and slow on his feet.

 

[Uppercut]

We should have had that sewn up by the hour and the winning goal was Sunday League ****. Bit of a rush to find a scapegoat after such a frustrating loss but we've played much worse than that and won so many times this season.

 

[Niall]

Macguire seems to be a very limited centre half, don't understand his massive transfer fee and wages. Doesn't track well and slow on his feet.

He's not the weak link really, its Lindelof. He is a standard Utd centre half of recent times, more than competent, but just not elite enough for a side with serious ambitions to win anything. He's no better than Chris Smalling tbh..

And as you seen tonight will always have a serious error in him.

 

[DriveClub]

He's not the weak link really, its Lindelof. He is a standard Utd centre half of recent times, more than competent, but just not elite enough for a side with serious ambitions to win anything. He's no better than Chris Smalling tbh..

And as you seen tonight will always have a serious error in him.

Agree re lindeloff 2nd goal was his mistake. But still don't think mcguire is worth 85mil tbh as solid as he is. He has his strengths in physical presence, game awareness, leadership etc but limited in terms of inconsistent positioning, speed etc. But as you said he needs someone better than lindeloff to compliment his strengths/weaknesses.

 

[JOJOXI]

Was heavily linked with Liverpool but read Liverpool pulled out due to covid financial shortfall for the owners and uncertainty around how much playtime he might get due to established front 3

I wonder if we'd have seen Mane or Salah out the door this season if it wasn't for Covid19 - one thing I do question is who would pay a big enough fee - Real Madrid maybe, perhaps Juve if someone like a Dybala left for big money but both at 28, hardly old but given it seems in recent times Liverpool seem to basically spend money they generate from player sales wouldn't be surprised if they cashed in on a Mane (more likely) or Salah and brought in Werner. Also think he suits Liverpool far better then us (Chelsea). Werner's success has largely come from being partnered with a bigger physical presence in Patrik Schick or Yusuf Poulsen. Could see him working really well with Firmino from an inside left position.

At Chelsea how he plays up front on his own consistently will be interesting, would be intrigued how Giroud and Werner could combine but if Havertz joins that basically scraps any hope of us playing with a front 2 on a regular basis as can't see Werner, Giroud, Ziyech, Havertz and Pulisic playing in the same XI.

 

[DriveClub]

I wonder if we'd have seen Mane or Salah out the door this season if it wasn't for Covid19 - one thing I do question is who would pay a big enough fee - Real Madrid maybe, perhaps Juve if someone like a Dybala left for big money but both at 28, hardly old but given it seems in recent times Liverpool seem to basically spend money they generate from player sales wouldn't be surprised if they cashed in on a Mane (more likely) or Salah and brought in Werner. Also think he suits Liverpool far better then us (Chelsea). Werner's success has largely come from being partnered with a bigger physical presence in Patrik Schick or Yusuf Poulsen. Could see him working really well with Firmino from an inside left position.

At Chelsea how he plays up front on his own consistently will be interesting, would be intrigued how Giroud and Werner could combine but if Havertz joins that basically scraps any hope of us playing with a front 2 on a regular basis as can't see Werner, Giroud, Ziyech, Havertz and Pulisic playing in the same XI.

Salah or Mane were definitely on transfer list with African cup on horizon and both set to miss out on considerable part of league. Covid changed all that.

Yeah if Havertz is signed will have to sell giroud otherwise it's surplus to requirements I think. Chelsea seem to be on a spending spree after the end of transfer ban.

 

[Niall]

Agree re lindeloff 2nd goal was his mistake. But still don't think mcguire is worth 85mil tbh as solid as he is. He has his strengths in physical presence, game awareness, leadership etc but limited in terms of inconsistent positioning, speed etc. But as you said he needs someone better than lindeloff to compliment his strengths/weaknesses.

Maguire isn't perfect, but when you look at how many other positions that need upgrading then its understandable why people are not calling for his head. He's had a pretty good year tbf , although a little patchy since lockdown but so have many players.

An elite centre half and winger the obvious priorities for OGS in the Summer.

Won't be much money left over, maybe a back up for Bruno.

 

[Uppercut]

I’m not convinced there’s a CB out there who would make a huge difference. Sancho and a CM should be the priorities imo.

 

[andruid]

I just don't rate these ex-player, legend bringing back the winning culture, type coaching hires. Aside from Arteta, none of them are exceptionally tactically astute, and while a case can be made that Lampard is doing a good job of learning on the job, I just don't see what they put on the table that a genuinely world class tactician can't.