Quote Originally Posted by Gooner23 View Post
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.