EPL 2023/2024
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@KiwiPie Chelsea cant be far away from Nicholas Jackson, Bournemouth were chasing again, but believe we were beaten to the punch. Although we are likely to announce within a day or so the signings of Matias Vina and Justin Kluivert from Roma
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@bayimports said in EPL 2022 / 2023:
Nicholas Jackson
The next Neymar apparently - not sure if that is a good thing, he will fit in at Chelsea.
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@KiwiPie said in EPL 2022 / 2023:
Lots of Chelsea players to Saudi Arabia.
Does that pass the sniff test?
Saudi PIF invest in Clearlake Capital Chelsea's majority shareholder.
A host of Saudi clubs all owned by PIF pay over the odds for a number of Chelsea rejects.
This windfall coincidentally matches Chelseas losses since Boehly took over and allows Chelsea to avoid FFP constraints and rebuild squad (again).
EPL seek assurances from Chelsea. Boehly says not me guvnor. EPL - Fair enough. Nothing to see here
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@dogmeat Yep it stinks - taking the very highly paid, well known of their players - Kante, Koulibaly, Ziyech, Mendy, Aubameyang. The Saudi league gets some more names to back up Ronaldo and Chelsea balance their wage bill - transfers can be declared that do the necessary for FFP.
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Another way of looking at it is Chelsea are just doing to the next line in the chain what's been done to them for 20 years.
In the transfer market there are always different prices depending on whose buying - Chelsea have been at the pointy end of that as long as I've supported them. We've had to pay over the odds for so many players.
So in this case, I really don't care.
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Looks like Arsenal are making some good moves to shore up their defense, midfield and depth. Havertz provides a point of difference and perhaps a change in environment might benefit him. Another solid ball winning midfielder would be the cherry on the cake.
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Havertz will be really interesting. Shades of Odegaard who was signed to real with a ton of fanfare but never figured it out for them. Can arteta find a way to unlock havertz like he has for Odegaard?
Rice is the key for them though. One of the best at his position and a desperate need for them. It's so very arsenal that they're potentially going to miss out on him because they tried to nickel and dime west ham.
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Havertz has always clearly been a big game player who didn't quite gel with the Chelsea game (like all of them lately, honestly).
I think Rice is going to be a complete failure at Arsenal. There is no way he's worth 105mm & the pressure of it will tell.
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@MajorRage English players are always overpriced. Look no further than Maguire and Grealish.
Arteta clearly wants Rice so I'm happy to trust him. Ødegaard might be the only starting player left from the midfield used last season. If Arsenal gets the players they are rumoured to be close to signing (Jurriën Timber being another) then the squad will be better. The problem last season was when the starters got injured late in the season there wasn't the same quality to replace them.
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Am I the only one who rates Rice? The guy is world class and certainly won't be a failure at Arsenal. He'll do all the dirty work and will look even better with more quality around him, and will make your centre halves look even better with his ability to drop into the backline and cover when needed. He's also dangerous from set pieces and will allow his team mates to play more freely as he'll be there to cover their mistakes. A brilliant signing.
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@African-Monkey no I think I’m in the minority.
He isn’t worth 105mm.
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Nobody is worth 105m but I can't see Rice failing at the Arse, he's too dynamic a player. Will be interesting to see whether they see him as the holding player or want him to take on more of the Xhaka role and being given licence to maraud forwards.
Havertz on the other hand - could be a masterstroke if they can work out a position that suits him but it won't be as the central striker. Maybe in the Xhaka role.
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@KiwiPie said in EPL 2022 / 2023:
Havertz on the other hand - could be a masterstroke if they can work out a position that suits him but it won't be as the central striker. Maybe in the Xhaka role.
That appears to be where he'll play as Arteta referred to Havertz as a midfielder. I also expect Havertz will spend some time during a game as the no.9 because he offers an aerial threat, so something different.
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@MajorRage You're right, but English teams always spend large on players so it's nothing new here.
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@Cyclops I think rice is pretty much sewn up from what is being said. Just negotiating how much is paid and when. Havertz is an interesting one and just have to wait to see whether his talents can be highlighted under Arteta. One more strong midfielder would be ideal.
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@KiwiPie well he is at least worth 90 as this is what City offered unless it was not a serious offer. Like all sports a player is worth what someone pays for him. Seems like he has some leadership skills that set him apart from Caicedo otherwise I would be just as happy with him and pushing for Fofana. I just want more starch in our midfield so let's move on from Viera and as soon as Jorginho.
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