Nathan Ake

[Brightwell Bros.]

In very simple terms you'll struggle to keep Holland's first choice centre back as a fourth choice defender. Especially if he has done a decent job when called on, as I think he has done. Chelsea prefer a back three and he'd do a good job there, but me, Pep and 99% of the forum would always have two of Stones, Laporte and Dias in our back two.

If you ask me it's incredible that Pep has kept this group of players together for as long as he has, and it doesn't hurt us one bit in the market if we tell players that even if they don't get lots of game time they can come to us, improve, and still get a move to another big club with CL football after a couple of years.

 

[Cobwebcat]

One step forward, two steps backwards. This transfer window doesn't look good.

Are you seeing something the rest of us aren’t? Two steps backwards? Either you are on the wrong club’s forum or you will never be happy.

1		Manchester City	Premier League	£1.02bn
2		Paris Saint-Germain	Ligue 1	£800.06m
3		Liverpool FC	Premier League	£796.05m
4		Real Madrid	LaLiga	£785.70m
5		Bayern Munich	Bundesliga	£773.19m
6		Tottenham Hotspur	Premier League	£666.72m
7		Chelsea FC	Premier League	£659.43m
8		Arsenal FC	Premier League	£628.38m
9		FC Barcelona	LaLiga	£621.18m
10		Manchester United	Premier League	£612.27m

 

[domalino]

In very simple terms you'll struggle to keep Holland's first choice centre back as a fourth choice defender.

Eh? Nathan Aké has never been The Netherlands first choice CB.

A generous appraisal would make him 5th choice, after Van Dijk, De Ligt, De Vrij and Blind. Timber the yound kid from Ajax might be ahead of him now.

He's on the verge of not being in the squad, that's supposedly one of the motivations for him leaving.

 

[Brightwell Bros.]

Eh? Nathan Aké has never been The Netherlands first choice CB.

He's on the verge of not being in the squad, that's supposedly one of the motivations for him leaving.

Yeah, fair enough. For some reason I had an image of him next to Van Dijk but in my defence I rarely watch international friendlies and in major comps I'm pretty pissed the whole time.

 

[flook]

Exactly, our team exposes defenders who aren't comfortable on the ball.

think we're going to have to agree to disagree here, Walker isn't comfortable on the ball either, yet he has other qualities which make him indispensable, I see Ake in a similar vein. We become too one dimensional with 4 players at the back with similar attributes

 

[domalino]

City are in the driving seat here, Chelsea need to pay the £50m otherwise they need look elsewhere.

Chelsea are seemingly also quite serious about Raphinha and Ronaldo.

It's hard to see them buying those two and Sterling, so maybe they are leveraging the fact it's our last chance to get a fee for Sterling to lower the total package.

 

[1Basti]

i hope Mbete or someone from Academy/CFG clubs gets the place...to even spend £30m+ X for a 4th choice CB is illogical/extravagant

 

[blueparrot]

i hope Mbete or someone from Academy/CFG clubs gets the place...to even spend £30m+ X for a 4th choice CB is illogical/extravagant

Why is it illogical. We'll do it if we think we need to. Nothing illogical there, just common sense.

 

[manimanc]

One step forward, two steps backwards. This transfer window doesn't look good.

 

[BringBackSwales]

Chelsea are seemingly also quite serious about Raphinha and Ronaldo.

It's hard to see them buying those two and Sterling, so maybe they are leveraging the fact it's our last chance to get a fee for Sterling to lower the total package.

Fuck em, they are a rival, let em have Ronaldo rather than Raheem, there’ll regret that one