Given that we have been within a point of a 2nd and 3rd title except for a financially cheating invinciblity in our major opponent, I don;t buy that either.... Diaz, Jota, Nunez and Sboz is hardly pittance mid-table spending if we look at just the last 2-3 years. Similarly, bringing in Thiago on huge wages 3-4 years ago, to help give us that edge..... i don;t buy that one much either.... and I agree on the underlined
yeah. I sometimes wonder if the data nerds behind the scenes have invented some kind of "x$" stat that converts a potential signing's costs into increased chances of success which equals "Y" added net profit. and that produces the "go/no-go" zone in contract negotiations. having said that, maybe I'd prefer it if they didn't invent such a thing. the game would soon be played only on computers, and there's too much of that already.
Arsenal have had a shift in ideology once Josh Kroenke took over. They've decided - at least for the short term - to go for it.
🗣️ @davidlynchlfc on Liverpool's search for a 'perfect' number 6:"The absolute desire to get someone perfect can be the enemy of good. There surely are players who aren’t quite Zubimendi’s level but they still move the dial a little bit for Liverpool” pic.twitter.com/HIq9nOYcAz— Anfield Agenda (@AnfieldAgenda) August 13, 2024
I think what these American owners are bringing is a seemingly common perspective in ownership of US professional sports teams. In a lot of sports in the US, ownership seem to invest heavily if they start to see attendance and fan engagement go down. They then have a couple of years of success, get fans engaged, and then see periods where they are reaping profits, until performance lags again due to lack of investment in the team. At that point there is a new injection of capital and the cycle starts again. I think this is what is going on at Arsenal right now (they are in an investment cycle), and what I hope isn’t what’s happening at Liverpool (which is a profit-reaping cycle).
We are apparently buying Valencia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili for 30 million and then loaning him to Bournemouth. He is 6 foot 6 and seen as successor to Allison in one or two years.
Little of that makes sense to me. If the normal shelf life of a keeper is anything to go by, Alisson has lot more than 2 years left in him at the top. Plus Kelleher has shown again and again that he’s probably the 4th/5th keeper in the league.
I think Ali's contract is up in 2026 so there may be something being done in preparation of him leaving then . Just a thought that perhaps we're seeing some long term planning with this signing.
Which means 1) Allison has told us that he will not renew at the end of the contract - 2027 and 2) we will sell him next summer. I'm not sold on Kelleher long term - though he has done well when called upon. I like Jaros - but this move puts a cloud over his ability to take over the spot too. From all accounts, however, this keeper that we are signing is tipped to be one of the top keepers in the world. Certainly proved it at the euros.
I see this window differently from when Klopp reeled off that impressive list of midfielders most of whom, unfortunately, were on their last legs. Slot was also brought in based on his record on promoting from the Academy. With Zubimendi, as I understand and I could be wrong here, was that we wanted “that particular player”, not so much a new number 6. So I’m actually okay with not just splurging on whatever else is available as Plan B. So for example, there’s been a clamour for Adam Wharton but, frankly from what I’ve seen, is he actually better than what we already have? And I’m still worried about the attack especially with the obvious decline in Salah’s output. Hopefully Diaz. Gakpo and Nuñez will produce and not just in flashes.
I have no opinion on him (I couldn't pick him out of a police lineup) but adding a better-than-average, PL-proven player to build out the squad might make sense. long season ahead, injuries inevitable etc. plus it lets the young "almost-there" lads develop under less pressure / scrutiny. not every signing needs to be a 100% upgrade to what we already have imo.
Here is the current problem and what is killing the supporters - and confusing even those covering the team/media in general - there apparently is NO plan B.
there isn't? just coz the rumour merchants aren't spamming stories all day doesn't = there's no Plan B. unless the club comes out with "we've moved on from trying to bolster the midfield", who TF actually knows what's going on? we've been known to keep transfer activity pretty well wrapped up.
the mouthpieces of the club have more or less said we are not looking at a 6 for the remainder of the window. Pearce, Reddy etc.
I hear that Zubimendi isn’t that chuffed with the terms of his new contract. Terp, I think you said there were some rumblings…
The interwebs say that his release clause was €50(?)m and with some harsh and perhaps strict reading of those clauses, Sociedad said the amount had to be paid by the player himself and not the buying club. The player. Which means a tax liability. So to pay the release clause and to clear his tax liability (because it’s income) he would have cost nearly €80m.
ridiculous system in Spain. no wonder so many players (eg Messi and Alonso) get charged by their tax authorities.
sure of course. but does liverpool have a good record of this lately? Arthur Melo. Endo (who was fine - but was a stop gap - not a plan b).....