Alexander Isak | Cried his way to a £130m move

Dribble said:
My question is, what happens to the squad if the old guard refuse to leave (Stones, Gundog, Kova, Grealish etc)?

What do we do with the new recruits?

Also, during the CWC, the game against Al Hilal had a distinct 2024-25 feeling about it. Even with new coaching staff, will Guardiola significantly change things that much?

I thought with all the staff changes & new faces, we were looking at a bright new dawn, but after the Al Hilal game, I'm no longer so sure.
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We’d have to loan Echeverri, and Reis which we probably will do. Other than that only one really needs to go as well as a keeper,probably one of Akanji, Kovacic, Gundogan. Home grown Stones and Grealish think one will go maybe more but again they don’t need to just if they don’t realise they won’t play very much. Pretty sure starting centre backs will be Dias and Gvardiol, we know the starting 6 and 8 will be Rodri and Reijnders. So those 5 players will know exactly where they stand up to them what they do about it.
I don’t know why people see what happened in the second half of the Al Hilal game over shadow everything good we also saw In the CWC including the Juventus game
 
Lovebitesandeveryfing said:
Interesting article on the beeb about Lijnders. I know there's a very negative feeling about the BBC on this website — sometimes justified — but that article is worth reading. Perhaps I'm prejudiced, because it confirmed what I've been mulling over since the spring.
Pep is not a stupid man, nor is he a rigid man, contrary to what's sometimes said on here. He had a system which he took a season to set up, and it then worked for the next seven years, brilliantly He's re-signed in order to rethink the team, re-think the way we've been playing. Furthermore, his signings, and bringing in Lijnders confirm that. Viana as well goes with that changing of the guard.
Read the article. Whether you agree with it or not, it's food for thought.
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I read that article earlier & I agreed, but my mind then reverted to the match against Al Hilal in the CWC, which was typical of our 2024-25 season woes.

Lijnders & the new team were sat next to Pep in the dugout, but there was little difference between that performance & some of the dross we saw last season. This is why I'm now unsure until I see the line-up & tactics first vs Wolves, & then against one of the rival title contenders.

For me, there are more questions than answers with a little under 2 weeks to go before the season kicks off. Hopefully the friendly against Palermo will give us a better idea of how the early part of the season will pan out.

I still think a lot will depend on departures.

www.bbc.co.uk

Man City: How Pep Guardiola's key summer signing might not even be a player

Manchester City have spent more than £150m on players this summer but Pep Guardiola's biggest signing could be Jurgen Klopp's old assistant.
www.bbc.co.uk www.bbc.co.uk
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Dribble said:
My question is, what happens to the squad if the old guard refuse to leave (Stones, Gundog, Kova, Grealish etc)?
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Good point…. But you’d hope rather than a ‘do you fancy a change of scenery old chap! ‘ discussion it would be more of a ‘we really don’t see you getting many minutes next season’ discussion. But who knows.
 
nmc said:
Good point…. But you’d hope rather than a ‘do you fancy a change of scenery old chap! ‘ discussion it would be more of a ‘we really don’t see you getting many minutes next season’ discussion. But who knows.
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But then comes the squad size issue. We're already at 36, & well over the non-HG quota.

My hope is our relationship with them is such that they'll do the right thing & help City evolve & move on, BUT what if they don't? What do we do then?
 
blueparrot said:
We’d have to loan Echeverri, and Reis which we probably will do. Other than that only one really needs to go as well as a keeper,probably one of Akanji, Kovacic, Gundogan. Home grown Stones and Grealish think one will go maybe more but again they don’t need to just if they don’t realise they won’t play very much. Pretty sure starting centre backs will be Dias and Gvardiol, we know the starting 6 and 8 will be Rodri and Reijnders. So those 5 players will know exactly where they stand up to them what they do about it.
I don’t know why people see what happened in the second half of the Al Hilal game over shadow everything good we also saw In the CWC including the Juventus game
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Agree. It was an experimental period. Some things went right, the Al Hilal game confirmed that something big still needs fixing. You can be sure that Pep and the coaches have been working with the players on it. Is it five weeks or so since we went out of that competition? That can be a long time. Palermo won't give us much indication, but the first two or three league games should. I've just got this feeling that everybody's going to be surprised.
 
nmc said:
Good point…. But you’d hope rather than a ‘do you fancy a change of scenery old chap! ‘ discussion it would be more of a ‘we really don’t see you getting many minutes next season’ discussion. But who knows.
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I don't see Pep saying that to anyone...
 
Former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan says he wants Newcastle Unitedto charge Liverpool as high a price as possible for Alexander Isak after accusing them of unsettling the Swedish striker.

He said: "People get all offended and Liverpool fans start jumping up and down because it’s their football club you’re talking about, they have unsettled the player. One way or another, they’ve done it. And they’ve got form on it - they did it with Virgil van Dijk!

www.chroniclelive.co.uk

Liverpool slammed for Alexander Isak transfer pursuit after Van Dijk comparison

Liverpool have been blasted for their attempt to sign Alexander Isak from Newcastle United
www.chroniclelive.co.uk www.chroniclelive.co.uk
 
if Liverpool offers 150m for Isak, and then Al Hilal would offer 150m for Isak, could this really be checked as APT on fair value?
not that Isak would wanna go to Saudi league currently but just in theory could PL do anything else than accept this as proper fee from Saudi club?

there was some checks imo when Barcodes sold Saint Maximin 2 years ago, but if there is same offer from unrelated club its the proof itself it must be fair value, no?
 
jrb said:
Former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan says he wants Newcastle Unitedto charge Liverpool as high a price as possible for Alexander Isak after accusing them of unsettling the Swedish striker.

He said: "People get all offended and Liverpool fans start jumping up and down because it’s their football club you’re talking about, they have unsettled the player. One way or another, they’ve done it. And they’ve got form on it - they did it with Virgil van Dijk!

www.chroniclelive.co.uk

Liverpool slammed for Alexander Isak transfer pursuit after Van Dijk comparison

Liverpool have been blasted for their attempt to sign Alexander Isak from Newcastle United
www.chroniclelive.co.uk www.chroniclelive.co.uk
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“PL clubs must act in utmost good faith to each other at all times”.
 
blueparrot said:
We’d have to loan Echeverri, and Reis which we probably will do. Other than that only one really needs to go as well as a keeper,probably one of Akanji, Kovacic, Gundogan. Home grown Stones and Grealish think one will go maybe more but again they don’t need to just if they don’t realise they won’t play very much. Pretty sure starting centre backs will be Dias and Gvardiol, we know the starting 6 and 8 will be Rodri and Reijnders. So those 5 players will know exactly where they stand up to them what they do about it.
I don’t know why people see what happened in the second half of the Al Hilal game over shadow everything good we also saw In the CWC including the Juventus game
Click to expand...

I didn't read back but I was looking at our compliance with the homegrown rule and selling / loaning Echeverri or Reis makes no difference as the numbers of under-21 players are unlimited. I don't know why we are considering this because we are going to have to let go about 5 senior players. IMO we should be keeping Echeverri and Reis and selling the likes of Gundogan, Ortega, Gonzalez, Akanji, Grealish. I don't think many City fans realise that as things stand the likes of those senior players will not be able to play in the Premier League next season. City are going to have to make a choice and we are going to take some big hits in the transfer market. Galatassaray are probably trying it on with Ederson because they will know that City are going to be forced sellers in the next 2-3 weeks.
 
Withnail said:
If the Rags get Sesko I'm hoping that Newcastle will not sell Isak.
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They will just go and get Watkins as a stop gap.

His head has been turned, and when you refuse to go on pre-season tour it's very likely only one outcome will occur.

Some of those players in that dressing room as well can possibly understand his predicament, but can you imagine if you are someone like Dan Burn who grew up supporting Newcastle and looking at what Isak has done to the club he loves. I would be fuming.

If he stays and all is not going well, you risk Isak being in the ear of the rest of the players saying you gotta get out.

Sometimes you have to to move on.

Like Pep says, if a player is unhappy and wants a move, he won't step in their way. For the good of both parties, it is best to move on.
 
Gorbachev said:
They will just go and get Watkins as a stop gap.

His head has been turned, and when you refuse to go on pre-season tour it's very likely only one outcome will occur.

Some of those players in that dressing room as well can possibly understand his predicament, but can you imagine if you are someone like Dan Burn who grew up supporting Newcastle and looking at what Isak has done to the club he loves. I would be fuming.

If he stays and all is not going well, you risk Isak being in the ear of the rest of the players saying you gotta get out.

Sometimes you have to to move on.

Like Pep says, if a player is unhappy and wants a move, he won't step in their way. For the good of both parties, it is best to move on.
Click to expand...
Was Isak a prick for leaving Sociedad to make more money at Newcastle ?
 
Lovebitesandeveryfing said:
Interesting article on the beeb about Lijnders. I know there's a very negative feeling about the BBC on this website — sometimes justified — but that article is worth reading. Perhaps I'm prejudiced, because it confirmed what I've been mulling over since the spring.
Pep is not a stupid man, nor is he a rigid man, contrary to what's sometimes said on here. He had a system which he took a season to set up, and it then worked for the next seven years, brilliantly He's re-signed in order to rethink the team, re-think the way we've been playing. Furthermore, his signings, and bringing in Lijnders confirm that. Viana as well goes with that changing of the guard.
Read the article. Whether you agree with it or not, it's food for thought.
Click to expand...
Absolutely agree, and (I believe) speaks to what I have been saying for quite a while now…while possession suits Pep’s City of the past few years of greatness, the game has moved on, and SIZE, SPEED and STRENGTH are the new 75% possession killers.

I’m looking forward to seeing how Pep integrates the fast break into his possession beliefs coupled with getting the ball wide.

With Haaland & Marmoush upfront, flying wingers, attacking full backs and exciting, creative attacking midfielders, 2025/26 looks like it could be a very interesting season for City fans.

To be honest, if we can tighten up against the fast break ourselves, there’s absolutely nothing to stop us sitting at the very top table, even though this is clearly a transitional season.

The top competitors have all spent massively in an attempt to cement their position in the Top 4 and give themselves a chance at the Trophy.

Let the games begin!
 
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