Gingers Dad
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I'm so glad that Pep is the manager
45 | Abdukodir Khusanov - 2025/26
- Thread starter Blue_Lightsaber
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Central defence is going to be a difficult one to manage and we could see the departure of elite talent.
I think it is clear that Khusanov is very well regarded.
Guehi has only just come in and has generally been excellent.
Gvardiol was an 'every gamer' until injury.
Dias is a firm fixture in the leadership group and his qualities are oft-extolled.
Ake and Stones will leave.
Reis could come in and is performing at a high-level, gaining the best U23 player award in LaLiga recently.
Mfuni gets, perhaps, another loan as this one has been cut short - a huge talent but just 18.
Khus, Dias, Guehi, Gvardiol, Reis, Mfuni.
That is a strong group indeed.
It is young but could become one of the best central defences in world football...EASILY.
The challenge, and there is one, is that the younger ones will need game time. When they get it, I think they are good enough to put SERIOUS pressure on others. It is the way it should be, but just as Khus is claiming his rightful place, so could they. This is what squad planning is all about. The young talent should be able to push, and then we decide the point at which the older players are moved on, or they decide that for themselves.
I think it is clear that Khusanov is very well regarded.
Guehi has only just come in and has generally been excellent.
Gvardiol was an 'every gamer' until injury.
Dias is a firm fixture in the leadership group and his qualities are oft-extolled.
Ake and Stones will leave.
Reis could come in and is performing at a high-level, gaining the best U23 player award in LaLiga recently.
Mfuni gets, perhaps, another loan as this one has been cut short - a huge talent but just 18.
Khus, Dias, Guehi, Gvardiol, Reis, Mfuni.
That is a strong group indeed.
It is young but could become one of the best central defences in world football...EASILY.
The challenge, and there is one, is that the younger ones will need game time. When they get it, I think they are good enough to put SERIOUS pressure on others. It is the way it should be, but just as Khus is claiming his rightful place, so could they. This is what squad planning is all about. The young talent should be able to push, and then we decide the point at which the older players are moved on, or they decide that for themselves.
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Agree, Dias has been poor for a while and a move might do him good as well as us
Bluewonder
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35 points from 14 games they played together before they were both injured against Chelsea.
26 points from the 16 other games.
IrishBloodEnglishHeart
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Oh does Pep deal with transfers now? When it's a shit signing or sale it's "not Pep"...
Monkfish
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some blue tinted spectacles on here, he's going to be a great player but was caught out badly by Salah and the 'amazing block' was to recover from his own mistake - well two mistakes one letting Salah run off him and then being too rash trying to win the ball back - not the first time this has happened
lets give the lad a bit of time before we start comparing him to the best defenders of the last 30 years, those defenders made defending look simple Khus has a way to go for that
lets give the lad a bit of time before we start comparing him to the best defenders of the last 30 years, those defenders made defending look simple Khus has a way to go for that
Extremely harsh as it wasn’t him playing Salah on side. Outstanding recovery pace and then unlucky to fall when heading it. Absolutely ridiculous recovery after that. Usually a mistake is in the back of the net against top players but due to his physical attributes he can still recover. Will be our first choice for years to come.
The fundamental error was Guehi's. If you watch the play from beginning to end, you'll see that Khusanov was man-marking wirtz and Guehi on Salah when the Liverpool goalkeeper had the ball in his hands. Guehi failed to track Salah and let Khusanov, who was starting from further back, take care of him.
The only inexperienced mistake I'll concede to Khusanov is his run; he should have chosen to intercept Salah on the right, on the inside, rather than on the outside.
But we're really analyzing every last detail here, searching for ultimate perfection.
This is the kind of analysis we would never make about Dias or Gvardiol, but this demand we have for him and not for others also shows his potential, which is superior to that of all our other defenders.
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Fan positivity is natural for someone who has looked such an outstanding prospect.
He has himself spoken of how much development he has ahead of him.
No player at 21 is the finished article, but fans are right to be excited by such a talent.
Tricky_Trev
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I think that’s an easy one to manage. Based purely on their ages, it’s clear Dias is the one that should leave. I don’t think this summer though, probably next summer and then bring Reis into the mix after a PL loan (hopefully).
I agree.
It is difficult in the sense of saying goodbye, but sheesh the talent level bodes well.
Gingers Dad
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GX Blue
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What’s Pep being the manager got to do with it? Ha. Think you mean thank God Viana is the DOF.
Anyway, we can’t just keep players because we like them. The books need balancing as well.
Selling Dias now is good opportunity to do that with the other CB options we fortunately have.
Middedon
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Have you read their pages? Most people just complain about them! Half the people want Dias to be sold and Gvardiol to alternate with RAN for cup games. Khusanov is probably the only defender on here that people are universally positive about.
Which one is one of the best of the last 30 years? And not over 1-2 years but consistently over the career? Who exactly? And yes as you already mentioned. He recovered + salah wasn’t even on his side. There‘s no defender that doesn’t get caught out in such a high line.
Without Khusanov we would catch more goals due to our defenders being slow compared to him.
Honestly don’t get your post. He did 1 thing wrong which wasn’t even his fault and yet you say
What way? Because he is 21? Hes already more than good enough.
He’s been far better than Dias who created many problems for the others due to his nonexistent pace and weakness in air against every bulky striker. I am sure Dias wouldn’t be able to handle osimhen at all and put him completely out of the game. Stop living in the past because Khusanov is the present and most likely future too.
Monkfish
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think you struggled reading my post correctly and mistakenly thought I posted that he wasn't good enough, though I'll be honest your first 3 sentences doesn't really read as being in English
if you cannot see how prime Cannavaro, Beckenbaur and Van Dijk (who Khusanov is compared to in this very thread amongst other legendary defenders) made defending look simple I'm afraid I don't have time to go into it, I'm sure somebody has made very detailed YouTube videos on the very subject
He's a very raw but extremely promising prospect
Didsbury Dave
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No we weren't. Teams were knocking it in behind us and doing us on the break because they have no pace between them. The new pairing have elimniated that, it's one of the big reasons we have improved.
I don't think so.
Next year will probably be Khusanov, Gvardiol, Guehi, Dias, Reis. Gvardiol will play at LB sometimes, Khusanov at RB sometimes.
Then Dias will leave and if Mfuni is good enough or Alleyne or someone else will come in.
Tugay One Cup
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I'm all for tempering expectations a bit but if you go back and watch any of those defenders for any meaningful time you'll see they had more than their fair share of fuck ups, especially when they were just breaking through.
Can't remember many of them making recoveries like that though.
That's exactly what I think will happen. I meant that we will have to see some senior names leave to bring such talent through like Reis and Mfuni.