Lining Raiola's Pockets - The 2017 Summer Transfer Thread

Absolutely confident we will, mainly because of the Jose factor alone. He's not going to accept seeing the club getting fisted by Real on this deal. Dave has a contract that is nowhere near done with United, so they are very much in control and have absolutely no reason to allow to let him go on the cheap.
First thing United should do is convey to Dave and Mendes that if he really wants to leave, he needs to submit a transfer request. Once that is done and it's established beyond any doubt he wants to leave, then obviously it will cost Real. The minimum fee United should be looking for is £50mil minimum. Given that Dave is the best keeper arguably in the game and he's still very young, I'd be looking for £60mil even, easily.

 

A couple things...

First, If we brought Griezmann in then yes he would be our best player, but Pogba has much higher potential which, along with marketing value, is why we spent a world record fee on him. So if we've invested 100 mil on a player, why wouldn't we put him in the best position to succeed?

Second, you focused on the Auba costing less money than Greizmann comment but missed the point of bringing up someone like Auba which is that he naturally slots into the team in a way that doesn't disrupt the formation and style that suits Pogba best. Let me put it in different terms. In a vacuum, Griezmann is a superior player to Auba. However, when you consider our team weaknesses, how we want to play under Jose, our current personnel, and our optimal formation...Auba is a better player because he fits better. I'm not saying we should go for him, I'm just using him as an example. Oh and financially, yes 60 mil is considerably less than the 100 mil Greiz will cost.

Third, is your big issue that you think posters here feel Griezzman is not a top talent? I don't think anyone is saying that but you seem to be clinging to it like you're trying to convince us of that fact. We all think Griezmann is a fantastic player. He's world class and nobody here is denying it, so lets move past that.

Fourth, do you admit that a 3 man midfield is our best formation to get the most out of Pogba (and Herrera for that matter)? If so, then explain how Greiz fits into a 4-3-3 as you claim he would? Don't say wide left because we've seen for France how much of a failure that was. The only place he sort of fits is as a false 9 which would take him away from goal and his finishing is one of the main reasons to buy him. If you've watched Greizzman than you should know he doesn't work as a traditional lone striker.

Last, and this bothers me the most, is that you've said that you don't believe that a player is only as good as the system he plays in. There are countless examples to prove importance of a system. For example, Barcelona built around Messi and allowed him to play a role that played to all of his strengths and hid his weaknesses. However, for Argentina they catered to him much less and as a result he disappeared often in games and looked a shadow of the player he was at Barca. Or how about Chelsea right now. Does anyone think that Moses or Marco Alonso are top level players? Hell no. But they were played in wingback positions in a 3-4-3 that played to their strengths and that's why they've looked like top class players this season. Systems and tactics can make or break players. That's a fact.

Dammit now you've sucked me into writing novels. You may not understand football, but your troll game is impressive.

 

How many board members are going to do this?

 

Time to put mizzou on ignore. I had a clean thread until he started writing walls of text.

 

I miss Bronaldo, he'd know what to say in this moment.

 

If DDG is leaving, he needs to be sold for 100M. That should be our asking price. 60 up front, 10 per window (20 per year) after that.

No need to sell and he's the best in the world by means of shotstopping, distribution and command. He's also young and under contract.

 

Fellow posters are complaining, so let's try to go point by point in separate posts so that other posters like Chaz can comprehend what we're saying.

Mizzou asserts:

First, If we brought Griezmann in then yes he would be our best player, but Pogba has much higher potential which, along with marketing value, is why we spent a world record fee on him. So if we've invested 100 mil on a player, why wouldn't we put him in the best position to succeed?​

How would bringing in Griezmann undermine Pogba's "marketing value"? I submit that Griezmann would enhance Pogba's marketing value, not that that's why I would want to bring in AG. But the idea that we can't bring in AG because it would undermine PP's "marketing value" is not particularly persuasive with me. I want United to win trophies, not maximize Pogba's or the Glazers' personal income.

We need to get past the amount we spent on Pogba. Just because we spent gobs on a great player it doesn't follow that we shouldn't spend gobs on another great player.

Hopefully Chaz can follow now.

 

I like Auba and have no problem at all with the pro-Auba argument. If your argument is that Auba is a better fit for United that's fine and although I won't agree with it -- de gustibus non disputandem est -- that argument doesn't address the claim that Griezmann would make Pogba a lesser player.

As for the 60m v 100m I think the 100m number that's cited is euros, not pounds. The release clause is said to be 100m euros, which I believe is close to 85m British pounds. The difference between 60m and 85m British poounds is not that significant. The tie between the two players should be broken on the basis of who's the better fit for United and you argue Auba (I think), which is great, but that's not the argument I'm addressing, which is that Pogba would have to be sacrificed for Griezmann and is thus a very bad idea.

 

Straw Man Alert. I will not reply to a mischaracterization of what I have written.

No harm, no foul.

 

I don't "admit" it, as though I were some defendant who had to admit that I was at the scene of the crime. I assert it.

A 433 would be a snap for AG and PP. Why is this so difficult to understand?

 

Pep is bald.

 

United do not build systems around individual players, regardless of how great they are, going back to Busby.

Jose changes tactics game to game. There is not going to be a single system we deploy every single game.

Jose will buy players with systems in mind, but the players he buys have to adapt to his intentions, not Jose to their intentions.

 

Good try, Mizzou.

Will you grieve if Jose actually buys Griezmann?

 

Griezmann aint coming. Confirmed.

 

This thread is worse than all the bougie liberals retweeting Louise Mensch's conspiracy theories.

 

He trolled me and I fell for it. I should've known better.

Also, eat a bag of dicks.

 

I'm done with this. You danced around questions and didn't really add anything of value.

Plus, I've become what I hate. I need to step away and reevaluate my life.

 

The penny finally drops.... Any attempt at a "discussion" is completely futile because of that very reason. It is what it is, unfortunately.

 

In all seriousness, it would be a pretty significant drop down from Atletico to United. So I can't possibly quarrel with your insider knowledge that Antoine has no interest in coming to OT.

 

I answered all your questions, but you just don't like the answers. The suggestion that AG and PP are incompatible, that bringing in the former would require sacrificing the latter, is idiocy.

Karloski has the better argument.

 

What you lack in brevity, you make up for in stupidity. I'm done trying to explain common sense to you.

 

That's not a serious reply. That's like me saying, well if you don't agree that 2+2=5 I'm done trying to explain it to you.

Nowhere else but in this wacko forum -- where Memphis Depay was praised regularly -- is there a serious argument that Antoine Griezmann would not be a great fit for United.

Would AG be too expensive? Sure, one could reasonably argue that.
Does AG have no interest in coming to OT? I actually believe Karloski may be right about that.

But it's insane in the extreme to argue that AG and PP can't play together, that the former would require adverse tactical changes that would diminish the value of the latter to the squad.

That's just fukking stupid.

It's not as though anyone is arguing for a player who's had a great month or plays in a position we've already got shored up. AG has been fantastic for years and plays at a level well above anyone, including PP, has for years.

Just say so if you you're happy with Lingard, Mata, Miki and Martial FFS.

 

If we want a 6/8 that maybe is going under the radar, Goretzka is a good option. If he stays fit, he will become a top midfielder.

 

What about Kimmich then?