One player doesn’t make a team no matter how good they are. Particularly Messi who has never been fully comfortable as the focal point and the leader of a team. Not like Ronaldo or Mbappe are.
Tottenham and Newcastle are into the race to sign James Maddison. He’s set to leave Leicester, negotiations will take place soon. ⚪️🏴 #THFC #NUFCPostecoglou asked for Maddison but Newcastle are working on this deal since last summer. pic.twitter.com/igI2UqDKPE— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 9, 2023 Newcastle offers him CL and a higher chance of winning trophies but it’s been reported many times he wants to live in London. “His intention is to stay at #MUFC!” 👀“I think the #THFC talk is genuine. But at the moment he doesn’t feel his race is run…” ❌Alex Crook understands Harry Maguire is reluctant to leave Man Utd in the summer. pic.twitter.com/k3XhEOPYSC— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) June 9, 2023 Southgate needs to tell him next week if he is not playing regularly next season his place at the Euros - let alone his starting place- is at risk.
If any one player does make a team it's Messi. He got 7 goals and 3 assists at the World Cup, the only other player at the competition to match that was Mbappe who got 8 goals and 2 assists. The next closest were Bruno Fernandes and Harry Kane with 5 goals and assists combined. Argentina wouldn't have got anywhere near the World Cup without Messi. Having a player of that stature in your team is an inspiration to teammates as well.
He's arguable the greatest player of all time, he's the one player in the history of the game I'd choose to put in my team, he makes up for any slight lack of Champions League experience in other positions. They wouldn't have made it past the QFs without him.
Not only that, but even if he's directly impacting the game, the amount of thought and resources teams put into teams trying to stop Messi naturally frees up the rest of the team in an almost incomparable way to other teams. Probably only Mbappe comes close to that level of influence on opposition tactics of current players.
“His intention is to stay at #MUFC!” 👀“I think the #THFC talk is genuine. But at the moment he doesn’t feel his race is run…” ❌Alex Crook understands Harry Maguire is reluctant to leave Man Utd in the summer. pic.twitter.com/k3XhEOPYSC— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) June 9, 2023 He'd be mad to stay at Man utd.
It feels a lake of awareness that he will never make it back to starting regularly even if a mass injury crisis occurred.
It’s a cultural thing as well. No matter how much people will argue to the contrary, I believe Arsenal aren’t that bothered about winning. At least when compared to clubs like Bayern, Real, City and in the past Fergie’s United, Abramovich’s Chelsea etc. If those sides went a season without a trophy, it would be seen as a big disappointment. If they were pipped to a title in the last month, having led for 8 months of the season, it would be seen as a catastrophe. For Arsenal, all we hear about is how “it’s still been a great season”. This is the same mentality we keep having when we fall short in tournaments, glorious failure, when we need to treat it as do or die. If we have players joining the very best clubs, they’ll get indoctrinated with that mentality where winning is an obsession and a prerequisite, not just a nice to have. If we don’t and they join clubs like Arsenal, it will just be more of the same.
If he's got any professional pride or England ambitions, then Maguire can only be angling for a better payoff from United surely. It must have been seriously humilatiating having to warm the Old Trafford bench all season.
I think Rice already has a pretty strong mentality through so I doubt he will be happy to settle at his next club for glorious failure for too long.
It's the natural attitude of any supporters who have been starved of success for a number of years. Arsenal certainly didn't have that mindset in the glory years and, if they can maintain the levels of last season, I'd suggest people are soon going to get very bothered about winning something.
Anyway Rice might not go Arsenal. Chelsea are still interested in him and there are suggestions they mighr be more willing to pay £100 million plus for him than any other club.
Is maguire any worse than martinez or lindelof? I don't think so. I've seen martinez play some stinkers for united
https://www.skysports.com/football/...-newcastle-by-getting-serious-about-defending I wonder if Pep's season-changing tactic of deploying four centre backs will be adopted by more and more clubs next season? On an England level, it's always bothered me that we routinely rely on full backs like Chilwell, Trent and even Shaw who are great going forward but susceptible defensively against the top teams. Time to explore a Plan B perhaps?
Madness u would be critical of signing for arsenal only team to even come close to city, manager plays English players and improves and gets the best out of them, champions league football again and a team that pushes players technical ability in a formation England use
Which is fine if Bayern were not an option. You came close to City (kinda) one season, and will be back in the CL for the first time since 2017. We can't reliably say that Arsenal will make top four next season, let alone win something. Bayern win things every year and compete for the Champions League ever year.
People are comparing him going to Bayern and Arsenal. I think the reservation most people have is that they will likely not challenge consistently (if Liverpool can go from from 2nd to 5th, Arsenal can also), at Bayern he'll be consistently in the QFs and beyond of the UCL, I don't think thats something Arsenal have achieved for well over a decade.
🚨 Tottenham have officially opened talks with Leicester over a deal for James Maddison. 🏴He now needs to decide if he wants European football or not! 🇪🇺🤔(Source: @talkSPORT) pic.twitter.com/EZHxj4zxVo— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) June 9, 2023
I’d imagine Spurs could pay higher wages, Newcastle are at 96% revenue to wage ratio (revenue will go up but not significantly), and maybe he’d prefer living in London. Having said all that the source is talksport (not even an individual journo) so I’d take it with a pinch of salt
Newcastle are going to need a lot of cutting or revenue increasing as within a few years the rules are maximum of 70% of turnover on wages.
Me neither. If Maddison is serious about becoming an elite a player, Eddie Howe could be so good for him.
If John Stones adds a Champions League medal to his 5 Premier League titles today, can he lay claim to being England's best ever centre back, alongside Moore (1 WC), Ferdinand (1 CL, 6PL) and Terry (1 CL, 5PL)? He helped to take us further into competitions than the latter two after all.