Summer Transfer Speculation and Shit

[Power n Glory]

Earlier in his career if that chance had come up then of course but now, as a striker who has managed to get into the England squad and lead the charge at an exciting, growing club it's a massive risk to take. The next two years - which will effectively wrap up his career - is likely to be spent as a bit part player and risk where he has worked so hard to get to. Sure, playing for a big club is a rare opportunity but timing is equally, if not more important.

He’s worked hard to get to where he is but is that as far as his ambition stretches? Has he said to himself ‘Southampton is as good as it gets’ or has he always wanted to see if he could perform at a higher level? Maybe he wants that challenge and hasn’t settled for security. He’s an athlete at the end of the day. Regardless of age, you’ll find some that are still driven to test themselves and to get such recognition so late in his career is a good story for football. It might not turn out to be glowing end to his career if he’s stuck on the bench but nothing ventured nothing gained. I wouldn’t judge him so harshly.

[I am invisible]

They rave about his potential in Spain (the pundits), seems to be based on his reputation with the B team though as whenever I see him for Real he's like a headless chicken.

Yeah that's him.

You'd like to think there was something promising about him, if Real are insisting on such ridiculous buy-back clauses, but from what you guys have been saying, I can't say I'm encouraged...

[AKBapologist]

I'd be very happy if we bought Morata, Vela, Fabregas, a DM and a right back this summer.

[Power n Glory]

We shouldn’t be taking any risks with the striking options up front. Morata seems too raw and he looks it. We need first team star quality and Giroud can be that option to come off the bench. He’d be a very good alternative off the bench if we need a change of approach. But I can’t see Morata really pushing him for first team football. Maybe I need to see more of the kid.

[Munchies]

Arsenal target Di Maria aims dig at Tottenham and reveals he could leave Madrid

Reflecting on last year’s transfer rumours, Di Maria told Marca: “It hurts when you’re always doing your best for your club and then you hear that you might be going to Tottenham.

“I spoke with the manager last summer. I wanted to stay and he wanted me to stay as well. He told me that he counted on me and it was up to me from then on.

“I have grown a lot under Ancelotti. He got the best out of me. Things have gone well and I made the right decision to stay.”

Di Maria says he would be happy to stay at Madrid, but he is aware of interest from other clubs and admits the decision could be out of his hands.

“I am not going to lie, I know that there are clubs that want to sign me and can match Real Madrid’s demands,” he said.

“But that’s up to my representatives and the club. I will stay if the club wants me to stay.

“I am not thinking about my future now. We will see what Madrid have in mind, whether they want me to stay or leave.

“I am happy at Madrid. I had a great season and always had everybody’s support. But sometimes you don’t have a choice, even when you want to stay yourself.”

http://www.london24.com/sport/footba...drid_1_3621998

[Power n Glory]

[I am invisible]

Di Maria - already an Arsenal legend!

Spurs

[I am invisible]

We shouldn’t be taking any risks with the striking options up front. Morata seems too raw and he looks it. We need first team star quality and Giroud can be that option to come off the bench. He’d be a very good alternative off the bench if we need a change of approach. But I can’t see Morata really pushing him for first team football. Maybe I need to see more of the kid.

I think there could be a little flexibility in terms of the star quality of any CFs that we're looking at, depending on who else we might be signing, and how we intend to play once everyone is in? If all we're planning on doing [with regards to strengthening the attack] is to bring in a single CF, then i'd say that player needs to be something pretty damn special; if, on the other hand, we're looking at making 2 or 3 signings across the attack (e.g. any combination of a CF plus a goal-scoring winger, and/or cover/competition for Walcott, and/or cover/competition for Ramsey, etc), then I think we could realistically look at some of the less exciting CF options that we've been linked with? Someone like Mandzukic, for example, who is still a good player, but is largely dismissed as being 'only an upgraded version of Giroud', could work well for us, if we beefed up some of our other attacking options, as could someone like a Bony or a Benteke (i.e. PL-ready strikers who can hold their own up front, bring others into the attack, and some attributes that we lack like pace, even if they won't win us games on their own)? Obviously the ideal option would be a combination of those two choices, where we get two or three players in, and every one of them is super-awesome, but I'm just don't think that's likely - I think it will be one or the other at best (and, incidentally, it doesn't sound like Morata really fits the bill either way).

At the moment, and as appealing as the elite striker option is, my gut-feeling is that option two might be the smarter move? I can't think of too many elite strikers around at the moment who are realistic options, and who would satisfy everyone, but there do seem to be dozens of quality wingers, wide-attackers and goal-scoring midfielders around at the moment who I think we could get (some of which are available at extremely low prices), and several very good (if not-quite-world-class) CFs, who I also think would jump at the chance of moving here? I'm also worried that we'd be wasting our time going for anyone too elite, and that we could end up getting dicked around all summer only to end up with nothing again?

[Kano]

Bring back Campbell, loan out Sanogo, get in a better striker than Giroud and then another in the same mould, ala Remy and that would be ok.

[I am invisible]

The way I see it, we suffered just as much from losing Ramsey and Walcott as we did from not having a second striker to rotate Giroud with, and we need to make sure that situation doesn't happen again. Up until Christmas (i.e. before we lost everyone to injury) there was no great problem with how we were playing - in fact we were top of the table, on merit, and that was with Giroud up front and just one other willing runner / goal-scorer in the starting XI (Ramsey) - so I don't think it's unreasonable to think that we could have kept that run going, if we'd had two or three extra players across the attack to keep everyone fit and fresh, and to cover for absences (even if our competition for Giroud was only a slight improvement on him)? We definitely need to inject more 'world-class' into the side, but I'm not as hung up on it absolutely having to be through the CF position as some - I think there's other ways we can make this work.