Kalidou Koulibaly

[southamptonblue]

We have actually conceded less than expected goals would indicate. Similar to Liverpool. In attack we are only in line with expected goals for the season. Liverpool are plus 9 above their expected goals = more clinical.
Don't know if there is a stat for unexpected goals ie Worldies...

Stats mean little....if they meant that much we shouldn't bother playing the game,just put the info into a computer which gives us the result.....bit like playing fifa20?

 

[M12Blue]

Not many people were upset when we signed Bony.

Looked a quality player at Swansea.

Did he not have malaria shortly after arriving?
He was very good for swansea

 

[Neville Kneville]

Denayer was treated badly and it must have affected the way some of our young players think about the club and their long term futures.
Same has happened with Angelino, never good enough to get into our team and only brought back to sell on at a later date, not something I like about our club.

I'm kind of hoping that we were upto the same lousy trick with Garcia.

The idea Pep thinks he could get away with him as a regular next season, scares the living shit out of me.

 

[Keeper!]

Did he not have malaria shortly after arriving?
He was very good for swansea

That was the story, I just think he had the season of his life at Swansea, but was just a journeyman footballer the rest of the time.

 

[Keeper!]

I'm kind of hoping that we were upto the same lousy trick with Garcia.

The idea Pep thinks he could get away with him as a regular next season, scares the living shit out of me.

He was never going to be a regular, 4th choice.

 

[RayCTID]

Why would I blame Txiki for setting up a deal to buy Dybala only for the manager to make a massive deal over not wanting him and insisting on Bony instead?

Ditto with making the club drop a deal agreed for Alderweireld so he could get Demichelis.

He wanted to work with players he knew most mangers tend do that. (Mancini and Balotelli) Demechelis wasn't a flop, he too did help contribute to our recent success. He didn't insist on Bony. He wanted a striker (a senior one) as Dzeko (who had hot and cold spells under Mancini) and Jovetic were being unreliable, and he decided to play Milner as an emergency striker due to injuries. And seeing Kelechi was on our books two younger strikers would've been too much.

 

[LongsightM13]

That was a particularly damaging and error plagued moment of chronic player mismanagement from our recent history - one that not only almost ruined Denayer’s career, but also undermined a lot of the good work we had invested into our Academy to that point.

Academy players saw how we essentially lied to Denayer to get him to sign a new deal, and a lot of the trust in the word of our club was lost. We lost promising players because of it, and we’ve had to work hard to rebuild that trust since - which I’d say we’re just getting back now with Foden and the new Academy kids.

The player lost his way for a while too, seeing his career get swallowed up in a series of dispiriting loans when it once held so much promise - leading to behavioural issues which can’t have been helped by his overwhelming sense of frustration at a career apparently tanking before his eyes.

And all that to indulge Pellgrini’s yen for an ageing Demichelis who we could have signed for nothing just a few weeks earlier.

As wrong-headed an episode in our recent history as I care to remember. There is no positive way of spinning that one - a complete fuck up, pure and simple.

I think we did similar to Patrick Roberts. Wasn't his cousin on here and he was told when he signed he wouldn't be loaned out?

 

[Neville Kneville]

That was the story, I just think he had the season of his life at Swansea, but was just a journeyman footballer the rest of the time.

He was actually one of the players we struggled against most. He gave Vinny quite a tough time. I don't share the outrage at signing him, but it is bizarre to cancel another quality player, the club has already scouted, in order to sign Bony.

 

[Tez Tosterone]

Via Football Italia...

Manchester City have reportedly offered €65m for Kalidou Koulibaly, but Napoli are not prepared to drop their asking price below €80m, stalling Gabriel from Lille.

Multiple Italian reports including La Repubblica claim a deal has already been done with Lille for centre-back Gabriel Magalhanes for €20m.

However, having just purchased Victor Osimhen from the same club for €50m plus bonuses, Orestis Karnezis and three youth team players, Napoli need to sell first.

This is becoming a problem, because Aurelio De Laurentiis won’t accept under €80m for Koulibaly, and Il Mattino newspaper insists so far Manchester City’s top bid is €65m.

The more the situation drags on, the more likely Everton can step in and snatch Gabriel away.

There is another alternative, which would be selling Nikola Maksimovic, although the 28-year-old Serbia international would not bring in anywhere near as much revenue.

 

[Gray]

Koulibaly grossly overpriced.