Marc Cucurella

[Kalimantan]

You make a valid point around entrenched positions. However I think you overstate the importance of fan opinion in any of this - certainly as far as City is concerned.

Our board will have made their valuation of the player based on a number of factors (priority bring one of them, as covered), and their reluctance to go above that valuation has seen them walk from a number of deals over the years - much to a large contingent of our fans’ frustration, as you’ve seen for yourself on here over the last couple of days.

Maguire, Sanchez, Fred, Koulibaly and Kounde are just a few names I can think of off the top of my head, but there are more. You can now add Cucurella to that list.

The reality is you’d have to say their valuation has been proven right every time.

It’s this perception that matters to our owners. The perception in the footballing world of being an exceptionally well run club, and not some bunch of mugs you can take the piss out of with outlandish prices.

Whether some of our fans on a message board think Txiki and the Club are ‘an embarrassment’ because they won’t just cough up the extra £10m needed to seal the deal doesn’t play into their thinking in any way. Otherwise they’d change the way they behave - which there’s no sign of them doing.

The entrenched position is nothing to do with fans on message boards and on Twitter - it’s entrenched from the start, and is entirely based on the board’s assessment of value.

Just like Tony Bloom did at your end - and fair play to him.

Although if that fucking idiot journo who does Bloom’s PR for him is anything to go by, I’d expect there’s a bit more fan perception involved in his how he wants his behaviour to be perceived by Brighton fans than Txiki does with ours.

Most of our fans hate Txiki and think he’s shite at his job, yet he carries on exactly the same and doesn’t seem to care remotely about their perception of him!

Unlike some of those names you mention, Cucu isn't going to United so hopefully won't have his career ruined by those chancers....!

As for the 'idiot journo', or at least the words he's been given to publish, I guess as newcomers to the big boy football world we have to work a bit harder to let everyone know we're not pushovers, that we're not just going to let each and every player go as soon as a top 6 club calls, a la Southampton.

We’ve signed loads of under the radar young players. In fact, that’s pretty much what we always try to do.

David Silva and Kun Agüero were just early-20s lads with potential from non-top clubs, I’d never really seen or heard of Rodri Cancelo or Dias before signing them, Fernandinho was a chancey one as he’d only played in Ukraine, Jesus was just a young lad from Brazil, Alvarez is just a young lads from Argentina, Laporte had only played for a midtable La Liga team, Walker had only played for Spurs, Stones for Everton, Sterling was just a young lad and Liverpool had finished 7th when we signed him, Sané was just a young kid from midtable Shalke, Džeko was a bit of an unknown from Wolfsburg, Grealish had played more games in the Championship than the Premier League when we signed him, Bernardo was a bit of an unknown… you can go on and on, and we have pretty much always signed players at Cucurella’s level and they’ve only become superstars while at City.

At a push you’d say players who were big-ish names before we signed them were:
Tevez had played in United’s best ever team winning the league and CL, but he wasn’t their superstar.
Yaya was a big name as he’d been a starting midfielder for the best team of all-time, but he wasn’t the superstar of that team.
de Bruyne was German POTS, but only played for Wolfsburg and he’d had a short spell in the Prem before where Chelsea didn’t fancy him.
Gundogan was a starter at Dortmund when they’d won two German league titles and got to the CL final, but we only paid £20m for him
Mahrez had won the Prem POTS previously but again only for Leicester in a freak season.
And we’ve just bought Haaland who could potentially become a superstar but he isn’t one yet.

Other than that, all our signings have been non-superstars who’ve come from non-top clubs.

No doubt you've done very well in the transfer market, although the fees for many of those players suggest they weren't 'that' under the radar. Of course your next step, to become CL winners is the biggest and hardest, and perhaps buying ready made stars rather than relying on developing less heralded players like Cucu is the way to do that. Its notable from your list that, as some of your players come into their prime - Foden, Bernardo, Rodriguez - others like Aguero and Sterling have moved on, or are getting older like Walker. Key is to have a full XI of guys in their prime. Heck of a collection of players, mind.

 

[CC1]

Although if that fucking idiot journo who does Bloom’s PR for him is anything to go by, I’d expect there’s a bit more fan perception involved in his how he wants his behaviour to be perceived by Brighton fans than Txiki does with ours.

Most of our fans hate Txiki and think he’s shite at his job, yet he carries on exactly the same and doesn’t seem to care remotely about their perception of him!

Total bollocks. You can’t pretend to speak for most City fans. Most of our fans who know a bit about football have a great respect for our management team

 

[Nicholas van Whatsisface]

Unlike some of those names you mention, Cucu isn't going to United so hopefully won't have his career ruined by those chancers....!

As for the 'idiot journo', or at least the words he's been given to publish, I guess as newcomers to the big boy football world we have to work a bit harder to let everyone know we're not pushovers, that we're not just going to let each and every player go as soon as a top 6 club calls, a la Southampton.

Oh yeah - Chelsea is a great move for the kid. Great city, really good manager, ambitious new owners looking to make their mark and happy to chuck their cash about, playing in the CL most seasons. He’ll do just fine.

Like you say - this isn’t the car crash that is the modern United he’s joining!

And I get you’re doing it differently than Southampton - you’re clear you’re a stepping stone (or that’s what David Weir keeps saying anyway), but you want top dollar for your players.

It’s an interesting balance, as agents and players who want to prove their talent then move on might go for Southampton ahead of you guys as they know they’ll have an easier time of it when they want to leave.

But if you can get the balance between decent fees and being relatively open to players moving on when they get a good offer, then it’s a great model for steady growth.

Good luck to you.

 

[Stoned Rose]

You make a valid point around entrenched positions. However I think you overstate the importance of fan opinion in any of this - certainly as far as City is concerned.

Our board will have made their valuation of the player based on a number of factors (priority bring one of them, as covered), and their reluctance to go above that valuation has seen them walk from a number of deals over the years - much to a large contingent of our fans’ frustration, as you’ve seen for yourself on here over the last couple of days.

Maguire, Sanchez, Fred, Koulibaly and Kounde are just a few names I can think of off the top of my head, but there are more. You can now add Cucurella to that list.

The reality is you’d have to say their valuation has been proven right every time.

It’s this perception that matters to our owners. The perception in the footballing world of being an exceptionally well run club, and not some bunch of mugs you can take the piss out of with outlandish prices.

Whether some of our fans on a message board think Txiki and the Club are ‘an embarrassment’ because they won’t just cough up the extra £10m needed to seal the deal doesn’t play into their thinking in any way. Otherwise they’d change the way they behave - which there’s no sign of them doing.

The entrenched position is nothing to do with fans on message boards and on Twitter - it’s entrenched from the start, and is entirely based on the board’s assessment of value.

Just like Tony Bloom did at your end - and fair play to him.

Although if that fucking idiot journo who does Bloom’s PR for him is anything to go by, I’d expect there’s a bit more fan perception involved in his how he wants his behaviour to be perceived by Brighton fans than Txiki does with ours.

Most of our fans hate Txiki and think he’s shite at his job, yet he carries on exactly the same and doesn’t seem to care remotely about their perception of him!

You’re usually good poster. Let yourself down with that suggestion most of us hate Txixi.

 

[Gorton_Tubster]

You make a valid point around entrenched positions. However I think you overstate the importance of fan opinion in any of this - certainly as far as City is concerned.

Our board will have made their valuation of the player based on a number of factors (priority bring one of them, as covered), and their reluctance to go above that valuation has seen them walk from a number of deals over the years - much to a large contingent of our fans’ frustration, as you’ve seen for yourself on here over the last couple of days.

Maguire, Sanchez, Fred, Koulibaly and Kounde are just a few names I can think of off the top of my head, but there are more. You can now add Cucurella to that list.

The reality is you’d have to say their valuation has been proven right every time.

It’s this perception that matters to our owners. The perception in the footballing world of being an exceptionally well run club, and not some bunch of mugs you can take the piss out of with outlandish prices.

Whether some of our fans on a message board think Txiki and the Club are ‘an embarrassment’ because they won’t just cough up the extra £10m needed to seal the deal doesn’t play into their thinking in any way. Otherwise they’d change the way they behave - which there’s no sign of them doing.

The entrenched position is nothing to do with fans on message boards and on Twitter - it’s entrenched from the start, and is entirely based on the board’s assessment of value.

Just like Tony Bloom did at your end - and fair play to him.

Although if that fucking idiot journo who does Bloom’s PR for him is anything to go by, I’d expect there’s a bit more fan perception involved in his how he wants his behaviour to be perceived by Brighton fans than Txiki does with ours.

Most of our fans hate Txiki and think he’s shite at his job, yet he carries on exactly the same and doesn’t seem to care remotely about their perception of him!

Most of our fans hate txiki? What the actual fuck.

Not me m8. I think our club has been brilliant.

 

[Bluearmy]

This is not case of what we can afford (with or without FFP) it is simply valuation. Of course there is a case against evaluating Grealish at £100 million but that was his release clause. It bares no relationship to what we are willing to pay for Cucurella. Otherwise city should pay £50 million for a 50 year old who can’t run or trap a bag of cement- like me!

Never mentioned anything about what we could afford? We could probably afford Neymar, doesn't mean we should go thru with it. However, we should try and get value for money with all signings. There maybe a point we should go above and beyond, but not sure that should have been the case with Grealish. Nothing I've seen of him so far suggests that was the right decision to make. Especially with the players we already had at the club at the time.

Cucurella isn't worth £50 mil either imo. However, we've had big issues at Left Back for far too long. If we "Overpay" for him/A.N.other left back I could understand that reasoning at least.

 

[Nicholas van Whatsisface]

You’re usually good poster. Let yourself down with that suggestion most of us hate Txixi.

It was intended to be tongue in cheek (which doesn’t always come across) and I subsequently retracted it in a later post, so I agree with you.

Thanks for the compliment though - and likewise mate. I enjoy your contributions and your sense of humour on here!

 

[Nicholas van Whatsisface]

Most of our fans hate txiki? What the actual fuck.

Not me m8. I think our club has been brilliant.

Yeah - I covered this in my response to @Stoned Rose mate, but I agree with your take.

My comment wasn’t intended to be entirely serious, and I definitely don’t hate him.

Personally I rate him as one of the best in the game. We’re lucky to have him!

 

[mrsprkl]

hahah state of this fucktard .
Surely he wakes up every morning handful of his own cottage cheese .

Entitled for being no ones

 

[mrsprkl]

Txiki is a Cod amongst men, and we know Cod moves in mysterious ways his wonders to achieve!

I think its needles for this one