Recruitment issues

[Shaelumstash]

Anyone else feel like our recruitment strategy is starting to hold us back?

We’re now losing players like Silva and Kompany, while the likes of Fernandinho and Aguero aren’t getting any younger. The thing is, the players we’re bringing in aren’t at the same level and often it feels like a case of ‘we don’t really know how they’ll turn out, but let’s hope they’re good’. Players like Aguero, Silva and Yaya were top class when we bought them and even Kompany was really highly regarded but held back due to his injury record.

Buying proven big players often DOES work. I’d argue our two biggest names purchased since Garry Cook left were De Bruyne and Sterling but based on the last few years you just know that Aguero’s successor is going to be some mid-range player who ends up struggling to get 15 goals a season.

This will upset some but we SHOULD be in for players like Sancho. His record at Dortmund is phenomenal. I don’t care about the past - let bygones be bygones. He’ll be a star in the top flight for the next 10 years when he comes back.

Don’t get me wrong I do think there are good deals to be had with lesser known talent, I just think you need a strong core of top class players and then you build around them.

Our obsession with not paying more than €65m for a player is starting to tell.

It's a PR decision, not a footballing one. We want to be seen to not be in the top 10 biggest transfers. A responsibly run club.

But what we end up doing, is spending €200m every season on 4 or 5 average players who don't improve us. We still spend more than anyone else, but don't improve.

Cancelo, Rodri, Mahrez, Torres, Ake, Dias. €260m all in. They're all worse than the players they're meant to be replacing.

Yaya, Silva, Kompany, Sané, and soon Aguero and Fernandinho. All gone.

And look at the state of what's replacing them.

For me, we should be buying one or two world class players a year, instead of 4 or 5 average.

It would cost the same money, we'd have better players, and more opportunities for youth players to come through instead of having their progress blocked by average dross.

 

[Deleted member 77198]

How many great buys have we made in the last 3 years. Laporte...

Yet look at mistakes he’s made in the biggest of games... Spurs at home CL he was involved (negatively) in all 3 Spurs goals; Lyon CL the other month, made two mistakes in the same move that lead to a winning goal.

 

[pavelsrnicek]

Next summer will be expensive and difficult as we’ll be replacing Aguero and Fernandinho while facing competition from a number of clubs, like Real, who haven’t spent this summer.

This summer has been a little disappointing in that we had a relatively poor season, based on previous standards, and haven’t really addressed the shortcomings in the squad. We all hope that Pep can address the issues that were apparent in the games that mattered last season.

Hopefully Dias becomes the partner Laporte needs. Hopefully we get a new left back and if not hopefully one of Cancelo, Ake, Mendy & Zinchenko is a left back capable of playing at the top level. Hopefully between Rodri, Fernandinho, Gundogan and maybe Bernardo we have enough in the middle of the park and we can fix the holes that have been apparent in matches like Arsenal, Lyon & Leicester.

Hopefully Sterling, Mahrez, Bernardo, Torres and Foden share the creative burden with KDB. Hopefully our 2 strikers stay fit for enough of the season.

As far as I can make out we seem to be crossing our fingers and hoping that everything works out this season. We seem to be a less energetic, less creative and slower side than at our peak 2017-19. All we can do is hope things work out.

 

[Deleted member 77198]

Next summer will be expensive and difficult as we’ll be replacing Aguero and Fernandinho while facing competition from a number of clubs, like Real, who haven’t spent this summer.

This summer has been a little disappointing in that we had a relatively poor season, based on previous standards, and haven’t really addressed the shortcomings in the squad. We all hope that Pep can address the issues that were apparent in the games that mattered last season.

Hopefully Dias becomes the partner Laporte needs. Hopefully we get a new left back and if not hopefully one of Cancelo, Ake, Mendy & Zinchenko is a left back capable of playing at the top level. Hopefully between Rodri, Fernandinho, Gundogan and maybe Bernardo we have enough in the middle of the park and we can fix the holes that have been apparent in matches like Arsenal, Lyon & Leicester.

Hopefully Sterling, Mahrez, Bernardo, Torres and Foden share the creative burden with KDB. Hopefully our 2 strikers stay fit for enough of the season.

As far as I can make out we seem to be crossing our fingers and hoping that everything works out this season. We seem to be a less energetic, less creative and slower side than at our peak 2017-19. All we can do is hope things work out.

This is the worst midfield we’ve had since Sven’s team or maybe early Hughes’ teams but even he had Kompany playing well in midfield and then had Barry and de Jong. They’d all walk into our midfield now.

Yaya, Milner, DSilva, Fernandinho and de Bruyne followed.

There have been a few fairly average ones like García but he still had a good season when we won the league in 2013-14 and was playing with truly world class midfielders around him.

Our midfield improves infinitely when Bernardo plays there but Pep barely ever plays him there so it’s a stretch to say he’s a midfielder for us.

You win and lose games and titles in midfield. They either have to be the best midfield in terms of quality in the league or the hardest working with lots of pace. If you can get a midfield that’s top quality and the hardest working/lots of pace you’re likely to win the league. Ours is neither the best in quality or the hardest working nor does it have any pace.

 

[DontLookBackInAnger]

We have been more miss than hit in terms of our main targets the last few years, luckily they have pretty much all gone on to seem like we dodged the bullet with them, but at the end of the day that's as worrying as having succeeded in signing them!

 

[doobyedoobye]

Ederson, Bernardo, Mahrez and Walker to name a few.

Mahrez?

 

[Deleted member 77198]

We have been more miss than hit in terms of our main targets the last few years, luckily they have pretty much all gone on to seem like we dodged the bullet with them, but at the end of the day that's as worrying as having succeeded in signing them!

Indeed. From Fred to Jorginho to Maguire and a fair few others... what sort of team would Txiki have built if these players had come?

We don’t half go after some very very odd signings that don’t seem to fit our style of play.

Rodri is one, never a Pep player in a million years... This Dias is another, slower than a sloth, in a high line defence?

What’s going on?

 

[alexmcity]

Excellent to good signings: Kevin, Sterling, Jesus (at 28m he was a coup), Sane, Laporte, Bernardo, Ederson, Zinchenko (utterly cheap and did a relatively good job when used), Walker, Gundogan (relatively cheap and played a role for the consecutive titles and cups).

I think Rodri and Torres will come good. It's too early to judge them. I think Rodri will turn out to be a very good siging.

Mahrez wasn't bad and helped for the domestic treble.

Cancelo - the jury is still out, premature to judge him as unsuccessful.

Stones helped us win all those trophies. He was regarded as a good signing before his troubles last season and was generally liked.

Otamendi - not bad, played a huge role for the Centurions and helped us win the treble.

Bad signings since 2017: Mendy, and unpredicatble injuries played a big role for it.

Currently we have a highly talented squad that needs several additions to compete for the biggest trophies, with or without Pep.

Players to be replaced in the next 1-2 years: Fernandinho, Aguero, Gundogan, Mendy, Zinchenko, Stones.

It can be done over 3-4 transfer windows and we will have the most talented squad in the world. Liverpool are peaking and in 1-2 years the big stars will be on the wrong side of 30. They will have a huge rebuilding task on their hands.

In short, recruitment was generally good. It's not possible to replace Kompany, Fernandinho, Silva and Aguero immediately. They are among the best PL players in history for a reason. It's not possible to win titles and break records every season, unless you are Juventus in Italy or Bayern in Germany.

 

[Centurions]

Anyone else feel like our recruitment strategy is starting to hold us back?
...

No.

 

[WRicko]

My point was that Bernardo has put in the work before and will do again, poor season or not. If you’re happy with Mahrez’s workrate and all-round contribution then that’s fine. I am not.

Yet we are told that Pep was picking Mahrez over Sane for his work rate and press I do not consider Mahrez to be lazy not the hardest worker but not lazy What more could he do ?