Summer '21 transfer lunacy and overpayment

[I am invisible]

Thoughts on what happens to current squad?

Assuming Ceballos and Odegaard are returning to RM, for me;

Keep
Leno - not our biggest issue
Ryan - seems solid back up
Chambers - done enough and home grown
Holding - as above
Saliba - has to be involved next season
Gabriel - first choice
Mari - solid back up
Tierney - obviously
Partey - obviously (but needs to improve)
Elneny - ok back up but sell if decent offer
Smith Rowe - obviously
Saka - obviously
Pepe - redeemed himself
Martinelli - obviously
Auba - needs to get his mojo back

Loan
AMN - full season on loan to pump his value
Nelson - as above

Sell / release
Bellerin - time is up
Cedric - can't afford a 3rd choice RB
Luiz - bye
Kolasinac - bye
Willian - bye
Guendouzi - hasn't worked out
Torreira - as above
Xhaka - peak value
Laca - as above
Eddie - Balogun takes his spot
Willock - only if offer is big enough

That should leave space for 3-4 signings and a couple of the youngsters (Balogun and Azeez)

I think most of our keep / sell lists will be 90% identical, tbh.

I'd bump Ainsley and Nelson up to definite sales - both have disappointed me with their attitudes over the last year.

And you need to add Mavropanos too - looks a decent CB (albeit in a back 3), but I don't think there's room for both him and Saliba. Choose one, cash in on the other.

Oh, and Runnarsson! Barely seems worth mentioning, but he's taking up a valuable non-homegrown place, and we can't have that. Out!

Willock I could go either way on - I'm still struggling to work out where he fits and how much game time he'd get with us, but he's really impressed me with the way he's taken his loan opportunity. That's the kind of attitude I want in this squad, not players like Nelson who would rather sit there doing nothing

Xhaka I think will depend on what Xhaka wants to do - I don't think we'll actively look to sell, but if we bring in a bunch of new CMs, and given that we're out of Europe, I think he may make the decision for us.

Cedric's the one I'm really scratching my head over atm - he really does seem to have fallen out of favour, but I really think we could struggle to move him on if he digs his heels in.

[Mac76]

Thoughts on what happens to current squad?

Assuming Ceballos and Odegaard are returning to RM, for me;

Keep
Leno - not our biggest issue
Ryan - seems solid back up
Chambers - done enough and home grown
Holding - as above
Saliba - has to be involved next season
Gabriel - first choice
Mari - solid back up
Tierney - obviously
Partey - obviously (but needs to improve)
Elneny - ok back up but sell if decent offer
Smith Rowe - obviously
Saka - obviously
Pepe - redeemed himself
Martinelli - obviously
Auba - needs to get his mojo back

Loan
AMN - full season on loan to pump his value
Nelson - as above

Sell / release
Bellerin - time is up
Cedric - can't afford a 3rd choice RB
Luiz - bye
Kolasinac - bye
Willian - bye
Guendouzi - hasn't worked out
Torreira - as above
Xhaka - peak value
Laca - as above
Eddie - Balogun takes his spot
Willock - only if offer is big enough

That should leave space for 3-4 signings and a couple of the youngsters (Balogun and Azeez)

spot on - agree with all of that except to say (predictably) that Xhaka to me is a more fundamenal sell than 'peak value' because i just don't want him to be an option to play at any point if we want to be at the level we need to / should be at

[Gooner23]

spot on - agree with all of that except to say (predictably) that Xhaka to me is a more fundamenal sell than 'peak value' because i just don't want him to be an option to play at any point if we want to be at the level we need to / should be at

Yeah I just meant he has 2 years on his contract and his form has been pretty decent in fairness (cut out the dumb mistakes). So I think its either sell now or give him a new contract. Same for Laca if any lessons have been learned from previous few years.

[Bumble]

if a £100m bid comes in for Saka... what would you do? Considering we might struggle to make any money on many of our rubbish players and will be grateful they just aren't part of payroll anymore.

[I am invisible]

Saka’s untouchable - if the rest of the dross doesn’t raise what we’d hoped then we need to get creative with our scouting and/or find more internal solutions.

Shouldn’t be an issue though - if it’s just domestic football next year then we’d only need to replace one in every 3 that we lose (and at least one of the newbies will be a backup).

[I am invisible]

A few end-of-loan messages...

Joe Willock:
https://www.themag.co.uk/2021/05/joe...of-the-affair/

Mat Ryan:
https://www.ftbl.com.au/news/soccero...an-ends-564991

Dani Ceballos:
https://arseblog.news/2021/05/ceball...-arsenal-exit/

Martin Ødegaard:
https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2021/05/2...from-odegaard/

___

Willock and Ryan sound like they’re pretty confident of being with us next season.

Ceballos sounds like he definitely won’t.

No idea with Ødegaard - even if a deal were possible, I’m not 100% sure where his commitment lies? Don’t think he’s given up on Madrid yet.

[IBK]

A few end-of-loan messages...

Joe Willock:
https://www.themag.co.uk/2021/05/joe...of-the-affair/

Mat Ryan:
https://www.ftbl.com.au/news/soccero...an-ends-564991

Dani Ceballos:
https://arseblog.news/2021/05/ceball...-arsenal-exit/

Martin Ødegaard:
https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2021/05/2...from-odegaard/

___

Willock and Ryan sound like they’re pretty confident of being with us next season.

Ceballos sounds like he definitely won’t.

No idea with Ødegaard - even if a deal were possible, I’m not 100% sure where his commitment lies? Don’t think he’s given up on Madrid yet.

Odegard has been good - but I'm yet to be convinced that he is a player that we should go all out to get. My instinct says that there is a playmaker out there to compliment ESR that won;t cost what Real Madrid will want even if they are prepared to sell. Remember even Ceballos had one or 2 'worldy' performances.

But I don't hold it against the player that he is not trying to force a move to a team that this season has been IMO below his potential.

[Mac76]

i love those Willock stats:

"Has scored 3 more Premier League goals than any Arsenal player (Aubameyang and Lacazette both 5) since start of February.

In 14 Premier League games has scored 2 more goals than Joelinton has scored in 69 PL matches.

In his last 389 minutes for Newcastle United, has scored more Premier League goals (7) than Joelinton (6) has scored in 4,687 minutes."

Laca

Auba

Joelinton

[I am invisible]

Odegard has been good - but I'm yet to be convinced that he is a player that we should go all out to get. My instinct says that there is a playmaker out there to compliment ESR that won;t cost what Real Madrid will want even if they are prepared to sell. Remember even Ceballos had one or 2 'worldy' performances.

But I don't hold it against the player that he is not trying to force a move to a team that this season has been IMO below his potential.

I really like Ødegaard, and I suspect we've only scratched the surface of what he's capable of when he's settled and established somewhere (don't forget how much he's been bounced around over the last 6 years!) and when he's not working his way back from injury. The two things I'm unsure about with him are 1) the price Madrid would want, and 2) would he rather be at Madrid (esp. if Zidane goes and Madrid pursue Haaland).

Also, he's very much a traditional 10 for me - I don't thing playing as an 8 or on the right is really the best use of his talents - and that either locks us into playing 4231 all the time if we see him as a starter, or it makes him more of a tactical option who we'd need to switch out if we wanted to change things? If it's the latter then I'm not really sure we can justify the expense atm?

[I am invisible]

https://tbrfootball.com/newcastle-un...ansfer-budget/

Fucking lol @ Newcastle if they come calling with some £10-15m bid for Willock!