You got him on a free transfer. Regardless of his age he's a big name who's won everything and will surely influence the youth on your team.
What're your guys thoughts on the wages given to Ribery, though? I was genuinely shocked by the amount. The dude is 36 and you give him 4m(plus bonuses) on a multi-year deal?.... I dunno, man.
the 30 min ribery presentation on violachannel was impressive. goosebumps, this guy is real. He will improve the team, be a good mento for the youngsters and he brings the winning spirit. can't wait for the game tonight!
its alot, but now i think he is worth it. we have the cash, shortterm impact, brings a star to our team. i'm fine with the salary, no one in team is jealous. ribery is a leader and a winner.
Cáceres is supposedly en route to Firenze to finalize things. The club plans to get two of raphinha, Pedro and DePaul.
Cáceres is almost like the defensive equivalent of the Boateng signing. *Born in spring 1987 *Capable of playing in multiple positions *Played for more clubs than one can count on one hand *Most club appearances were for an Italian top club (Milan/Juventus) *Have a Barcelona past without quite making it there
Pedro's a talent, my man. If I had've known he was coming to Florence, I would've been on the booting Simeone out bandwagon with you.
Bobby Duncan's an odd one. Dunno a lot about him, but he was/is fairly highly thought of. One to add to the stable of youth, at least.
Rachid Ghezzal is a terrible player. The very definition of a panic buy, or panic loan, whatever. Hope this deal doesn't go through.
All signings ranked in descending order (not including Gerrard's cousin, because I don't think he's meant for the first team): 1. Erick Pulgar: My favourite signing this summer. In prime age, experienced, fills a position that we're in dire need of strengthening, great set-piece taker. All that for a bargain price of €9M. 2. Pol Lirola: Our first real right-back in a looooong time. Despite 3 full Serie A seasons, he's still quite young and needs to work on his defending. Even if he would ultimately fail here, this is the right type of signing that Fiorentina should aim for in the future rather than has-beens. Loan with obligation to buy (basically a buy then), will cost €12M. 3. Milan Badelj: Yes, he left on a free only a year ago. But we're not in a position yet to lure in players of much higher quality, so this is probably the best we can do. Since it's a loan with just an option to buy, we could use this season to see if he can replicate his good performances here before Lazio. If not, then we can buy someone else next year. 4. Pedro: Was reportedly on his way to Real Madrid before his injury. On one hand, this injury ultimately made him obtainable for us. On the other hand, can he return to old form? If he does, then we might look at this transfer in hindsight as a tremendous coup. Bit risky, though, since we really need players who can score right now. Cost €11M, which is the same price range as the above two. 5. Martín Cáceres: I mean, there's a reason why Juventus has signed him so many times. Were it not for his constant injuries, he would be up there among the very best of his generation. A free transfer, Cáceres adds depth to a position that was perhaps less talked about in terms of incoming transfers. Only question mark would be what kind of salary he's getting? It's not Ribéry territory, is it? 6. Aleksa Terzić: Technically a Della Valle/Corvino transfer. Always difficult to gauge players who have barely played football at senior level. Will he become the next Kolarov or will we see him in Serie C in 5 years? At least he's cheap at circa 1M. 7. Kevin-Prince Boateng: My lowest-rated player who was purchased from another club. 1M is not much, and he does have tons of experience from seemingly every corner of Europe. However, my fondness of this signing was contingent on other players coming in (attacking mids) and effectively making KPB a supersub-type player to come in, say, the 74th minute. I think he will get a lot of playing time as a starter with how things developed (or didn't) in the closing stages of the mercato. 8. Dalbert: Why lower than Terzić? Because he's brought in as a starter to replace Biraghi. I'll just have to trust Hustle & Flow on this one, because I personally fear that he'll never live up to the 16/17 season in Nice. Granted, I too would struggle to find a better replacement on such short notice, had I been Pradè. 9. Franck Ribéry: There's a lot of subjectivity that contributes towards this low rank. You see, I happen to absolutely despise Ribéry (the person, not the player) for...what is it now, 9-10 years maybe? My heart sank when I realized that the rumours were not unfounded, and that he will represent Fiorentina. But those sentiments would still place him a few positions higher if this was a few years ago. Paying THAT salary for two whole seasons to someone who is past his prime is absolute madness. 10. Rachid Ghezzal: Let's see here. Aside from a purple patch in early-2016, he was lacklustre in Monaco. Then he surprisingly was signed to Leicester, where he he continued to struggle. Neither Ligue 1 fans nor Premier League fans rate him, but appearently Pradè/Montella do? Just like Badelj, it's a loan with an option to buy, so at least it is better than a purchase. A mixed bag, this transfer window was.
Sorry, should be "Aside from a purple patch in Lyon in early-2016, he was lacklustre in Monaco". Can't edit now.
Got to say, I'm a little jealous of this one. He is a legit top level deep playmaker who just needed a chance. He has it all on the ball as well as the physical size and defensive reading.