Winter Transfer Missed Opportunities and Regrets

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Originally Posted by 21_GOONER_SALUTE

I'd also like a player in the mold of Rogers at the club, I think he's a fantastic player.

In fact we came close to doing that when we were linked with Kudus, but you know who changed his mind at the last moment and Kudus begrudgingly joined the Hammers.

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Well be fair, we needed to buy another defender ;)

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/footb...ummer-34742790

An interesting article highlighted by Ian Wright in the Mirror.

Sadly, if these players do stall on their contracts, we will need to get the best price for them rather than them running down their contracts.

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Originally Posted by Chippy

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/footb...ummer-34742790

An interesting article highlighted by Ian Wright in the Mirror.

Sadly, if these players do stall on their contracts, we will need to get the best price for them rather than them running down their contracts.

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Feel like we’ve got one more season left with this group before we need to think about the possibility of major change, which includes Arteta as well as the big players.

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Originally Posted by Chippy

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/footb...ummer-34742790

An interesting article highlighted by Ian Wright in the Mirror.

Sadly, if these players do stall on their contracts, we will need to get the best price for them rather than them running down their contracts.

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As usual we've done a terrible job with contracts, as Saliba just signed a new contract 2 years ago with pretty high wages so I wonder why you'd give a young player at that age such good terms and not make it a 5 year contract...pretty poor work as usual.

If we can't convince him to sign soon and wait till the last year, Real Madrid will do what they do best, get into his head and convince him to go on a free... in fact, with the great terms he already has I am struggling to see how he signing a new contract with us is in his best interest.

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Originally Posted by 21_GOONER_SALUTE

As usual we've done a terrible job with contracts, as Saliba just signed a new contract 2 years ago with pretty high wages so I wonder why you'd give a young player at that age such good terms and not make it a 5 year contract...pretty poor work as usual.

If we can't convince him to sign soon and wait till the last year, Real Madrid will do what they do best, get into his head and convince him to go on a free... in fact, with the great terms he already has I am struggling to see how he signing a new contract with us is in his best interest.

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I’m curious. Do you think we chose only to extend his contract by two years? Or maybe just maybe do you think that’s all we could negotiate with his agent. Who might have thought, well if we tie him down to this long a contract im not going to get my pay day when the big clubs in Europe come sniffing because I will have zero leverage in order to orchestrate a move.

Chelsea were able to sign youngsters down to these multi year contracts because there was no guarantee that any of these players would come good (and a lot of them haven’t) yet when Saliba signed a contract extension with us he’d already established himself as an invaluable player.

That plus they had no issue running an entirely unsustainable wage bill

I think we all recognise that there are things the club has done that is mistaken, but simply yelling “that’s what you should have done” at everything makes us sound like that character from Harry Enfield sketch

Quote:

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Originally Posted by 21_GOONER_SALUTE

As usual we've done a terrible job with contracts, as Saliba just signed a new contract 2 years ago with pretty high wages so I wonder why you'd give a young player at that age such good terms and not make it a 5 year contract...pretty poor work as usual.

If we can't convince him to sign soon and wait till the last year, Real Madrid will do what they do best, get into his head and convince him to go on a free... in fact, with the great terms he already has I am struggling to see how he signing a new contract with us is in his best interest.

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Is it more difficult now that Edu has departed? Has anyone stepped into his position at the club?

This is going to be a very interesting summer.

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Originally Posted by HCZ_Reborn

I’m curious. Do you think we chose only to extend his contract by two years? Or maybe just maybe do you think that’s all we could negotiate with his agent. Who might have thought, well if we tie him down to this long a contract im not going to get my pay day when the big clubs in Europe come sniffing because I will have zero leverage in order to orchestrate a move.

Chelsea were able to sign youngsters down to these multi year contracts because there was no guarantee that any of these players would come good (and a lot of them haven’t) yet when Saliba signed a contract extension with us he’d already established himself as an invaluable player.

That plus they had no issue running an entirely unsustainable wage bill

I think we all recognise that there are things the club has done that is mistaken, but simply yelling “that’s what you should have done” at everything makes us sound like that character from Harry Enfield sketch

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Sage points.

@Chippy I have been concerned about the Edu thing from the get go. The fact that we have not replaced him when for the kind of transformational Summer we need to complete Arteta's project we should be planning; trying to secure deals and having a;b;c;d &e alternatives now is very worrying. I don't want Jason Ayto as director of football. We do not know what his role as interim has been, but the evidence that we do have (no signings) hardly instils confidence, and the last thing we need is a yes man who is more interested in deferring to his superiors than doing what is in our best interests on the pitch. It's no coincidence that the most successful teams of the past few years have had really good club structures in place. I think Edu's departure has quite seriously affected ours.

My understanding (although it could be just paper talk) is that an agreement to bring in Roberto Olabe as Edu’s replacement is pretty much a done deal. This was the Sociedad director of football, and would make sense given the players from Sociedad that we have shown interest in

Signed Merino, Odegaard

Practically signed Zubimendi


Interested in players like Isaak and Take Kubo

Now if we are worried about the style of play we wish to adopt, it seems to me that Arteta is very taken with the Spanish team that won Euro 2024. Which again is based of possession but not at all costs (they had the majority of possession against us and France but not Germany) but also about lightning thrust counter attacks

This to me seems why we are constantly linked with Inaki Williams


All speculation on my part, but the Spain team is very basque centred unlike previous Spain teams which are more Barcelona centred

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Originally Posted by HCZ_Reborn

My understanding (although it could be just paper talk) is that an agreement to bring in Roberto Olabe as Edu’s replacement is pretty much a done deal. This was the Sociedad director of football, and would make sense given the players from Sociedad that we have shown interest in

Signed Merino, Odegaard

Practically signed Zubimendi


Interested in players like Isaak and Take Kubo

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If this is true, then for me it will be a relief (though tempered by timing - and the need to be hitting teh ground running come May). What I want is an outsider who knows his stuff and will be prepared to exercise his authority in transfers.