The Squad planning thread

[blueparrot]

The squad is a bit of a mess right now. A real rebuild has been coming but surely it happens in the Summer. Our pieces are all over the place. Just a few of my thoughts:

Spoiler: On Goalkeeper

Ederson looked to have had his head turned in the Summer by the Saudi money. He has just one year left on his contract and is 31. He probably won't sign a new deal and it would be the last time to get good money for him. But there is really no stand out keeper for me that replaces what he had in Ederson that would be available. I would just put our trust in Ortega who has always impressed me when given a chance and sign a young goalkeeper willing to be an understudy to him and hopefully have a peaceful transition between the two in a couple years. Maybe look at a Muric/Bazunu/Trafford option as they've worked within the City structure before. If it doesn't work out, we can look at different options as it wouldn't be big spending. There's no easy fix here.

Spoiler: On Defence

The inconsistency is too much. Always a different back 4. And not because of tactical changes. Pep never has his best XI fit. Always at least one out injured. It has to change. Let Dias be the senior centre back, keep Gvardiol. And pick one of the Stones/Ake/Akanji to stick around. We need a young, reliable centre half to come in. I would have liked it to be Micky Van de Ven. Excellent defender but has a recurring hamstring injury. That plus the fee Tottenham would command would make him unviable for me. Goncalo Inacio stands out for me as an extremely technical centre half, good pace, not much of an injury record and has that Sporting link with Hugo Viana.

Walker is done at the top level. For me, the effort to keep him from going to Bayern was a bit shortsighted. A 33 year old defender who relies heavily on his physicality? We should have looked to replace him. Lewis is a good technical player but can't offer us what Walker can and is too weak defensively with not enough going forward to command a regular starting spot. His versatility is useful though. Also, still no real left back in the team. The top options for me is Fikayo Tomori to fill in that defensive right back role for Walker. He's competent technically and has the physicality to give anyone a tough match. He has also played a lot of his career at left centre half while he is right footed so has two good feet. Going forward I'm still keen on bringing back Jeremie Frimpong. Pep tried a system last year where he played Walker high and wide and it didn't really come to anything. Frimpong is one of the most dangerous wing backs in the game and would give us another tactical tool in our kit. He seems defensively lax but that's the nature of the role he's being asked to play. His pace alone should give attackers a hard time if he needed to defend. He has a release clause of £40m. For the left we really should consider his buddy, Alex Grimaldo. He doesn't have the pace that Frimpong has but he does have excellent technique. Phenomenal crosser of the ball, good at free kicks, corners. Has an unorthodox shooting ability that makes his attempts unpredictable. Threat from everywhere. He is 29 but I still believe he would be very useful for us.

Spoiler: On Midfield

De Bruyne looks to have one foot out the door. Bernardo is always on the verge of leaving too, 1 year left on his deal. Gundogan has looked very underwhelming since coming back but has been left exposed with the lack of Rodri in the midfield. He just isn't physically capable of keeping up and defenders with the advantage of being able to run by him has always been a weakness. Kovacic and Nunes can be capable rotational players but I don't think start consistently for any top team. They have a few glaring weaknesses. Rodri will take a long time to come back to his best. The average age is over 30. We're in a spot of bother.

First of all we need a bit of steel back in the midfield. We've become too easy to play through. Bruno Guimaraes and Martin Zubimendi are both potential solutions. Both are great technical players but are more importantly hard workers who love a challenge. But they are slighlty different players. Zubimendi is the controller, liking to keep things ticking from further back. Guimaraes the more box to box making late runs like Gundo. There's room for both in the squad.

The other player is Wirtz. The De Bruyne replacement. Not like for like at all but is probably the best creative midfielder that we could replace him with. He has a bit of everything. He's creative, he's good at carrying the ball, he's good at winning it back. He can play in the middle, he can play out wide. He can cross, he can play dangerous balls on the ground. He finds good spaces to occupy and comes up with a few goal (he overperforms his xG). He is a TOP player.

Spoiler: On Forwards

I honestly don't think much needs to change up front. I'm a believer in Savio and Doku. But I do think Grealish has run his race now at City. He's a good player but with his creeping age and fitness issues. Maybe the Summer is a good time to get some of our money back from Aston Villa. I think Wirtz, Foden, Frimpong and Grimaldo can provide cover to the wide areas. We're stocked well enough. If Savio and Doku don't step up by the end of next season to be more consistent game changers we could then look at potential replacements. But for now I think it's fine.

Haaland is Haaland. No need to say anything else. I don't think it's 100% neccessary but a back up for him like Delap wouldn't upset me. But the other areas are more pressing issues.

Transfers Out:
Ederson - £40m
Akanji - £35m
Ake - £30m
De Bruyne - Free
Bernardo - £50m
Grealish - £65m

Transfers In:
Bazunu/Trafford - £15m
Tomori - £40m
Frimpong - £40m
Grimaldo - £35m
Zubimendi - £51m
Bruno - £85m
Wirtz - £125m
Delap - £30m

Total Income: £215m
Total Expenditure: £421m
Net Spend: -£206m

It may get put out as 'FIFA/FM Transfers' but we really do need a big window in the Summer. And we haven't spent a lot the past couple years. Chelsea spent a billion over two seasons. Anything is possible. But for me this is what we ideally look like next season. 22 Players. Average age 25.1.

Spoiler: Squad Visualization

Ortega
Bazunu/Trafford

Tomori Dias Inacio Gvardiol
Frimpong Stones Lewis Grimaldo

Rodri
Zubimendi

Guimaraes Kovacic
Gundogan Nunes

Foden Savinho
WIrtz Doku

Haaland
Delap​

​

No, just 3 or 4 out 3 or 4 in. 3 or the 4 Walker, KDB, Gundogan. Possibly Bernardo. That's all we need.

 

[bondsman]

The squad is a bit of a mess right now. A real rebuild has been coming but surely it happens in the Summer. Our pieces are all over the place. Just a few of my thoughts:

Spoiler: On Goalkeeper

Ederson looked to have had his head turned in the Summer by the Saudi money. He has just one year left on his contract and is 31. He probably won't sign a new deal and it would be the last time to get good money for him. But there is really no stand out keeper for me that replaces what he had in Ederson that would be available. I would just put our trust in Ortega who has always impressed me when given a chance and sign a young goalkeeper willing to be an understudy to him and hopefully have a peaceful transition between the two in a couple years. Maybe look at a Muric/Bazunu/Trafford option as they've worked within the City structure before. If it doesn't work out, we can look at different options as it wouldn't be big spending. There's no easy fix here.

Spoiler: On Defence

The inconsistency is too much. Always a different back 4. And not because of tactical changes. Pep never has his best XI fit. Always at least one out injured. It has to change. Let Dias be the senior centre back, keep Gvardiol. And pick one of the Stones/Ake/Akanji to stick around. We need a young, reliable centre half to come in. I would have liked it to be Micky Van de Ven. Excellent defender but has a recurring hamstring injury. That plus the fee Tottenham would command would make him unviable for me. Goncalo Inacio stands out for me as an extremely technical centre half, good pace, not much of an injury record and has that Sporting link with Hugo Viana.

Walker is done at the top level. For me, the effort to keep him from going to Bayern was a bit shortsighted. A 33 year old defender who relies heavily on his physicality? We should have looked to replace him. Lewis is a good technical player but can't offer us what Walker can and is too weak defensively with not enough going forward to command a regular starting spot. His versatility is useful though. Also, still no real left back in the team. The top options for me is Fikayo Tomori to fill in that defensive right back role for Walker. He's competent technically and has the physicality to give anyone a tough match. He has also played a lot of his career at left centre half while he is right footed so has two good feet. Going forward I'm still keen on bringing back Jeremie Frimpong. Pep tried a system last year where he played Walker high and wide and it didn't really come to anything. Frimpong is one of the most dangerous wing backs in the game and would give us another tactical tool in our kit. He seems defensively lax but that's the nature of the role he's being asked to play. His pace alone should give attackers a hard time if he needed to defend. He has a release clause of £40m. For the left we really should consider his buddy, Alex Grimaldo. He doesn't have the pace that Frimpong has but he does have excellent technique. Phenomenal crosser of the ball, good at free kicks, corners. Has an unorthodox shooting ability that makes his attempts unpredictable. Threat from everywhere. He is 29 but I still believe he would be very useful for us.

Spoiler: On Midfield

De Bruyne looks to have one foot out the door. Bernardo is always on the verge of leaving too, 1 year left on his deal. Gundogan has looked very underwhelming since coming back but has been left exposed with the lack of Rodri in the midfield. He just isn't physically capable of keeping up and defenders with the advantage of being able to run by him has always been a weakness. Kovacic and Nunes can be capable rotational players but I don't think start consistently for any top team. They have a few glaring weaknesses. Rodri will take a long time to come back to his best. The average age is over 30. We're in a spot of bother.

First of all we need a bit of steel back in the midfield. We've become too easy to play through. Bruno Guimaraes and Martin Zubimendi are both potential solutions. Both are great technical players but are more importantly hard workers who love a challenge. But they are slighlty different players. Zubimendi is the controller, liking to keep things ticking from further back. Guimaraes the more box to box making late runs like Gundo. There's room for both in the squad.

The other player is Wirtz. The De Bruyne replacement. Not like for like at all but is probably the best creative midfielder that we could replace him with. He has a bit of everything. He's creative, he's good at carrying the ball, he's good at winning it back. He can play in the middle, he can play out wide. He can cross, he can play dangerous balls on the ground. He finds good spaces to occupy and comes up with a few goal (he overperforms his xG). He is a TOP player.

Spoiler: On Forwards

I honestly don't think much needs to change up front. I'm a believer in Savio and Doku. But I do think Grealish has run his race now at City. He's a good player but with his creeping age and fitness issues. Maybe the Summer is a good time to get some of our money back from Aston Villa. I think Wirtz, Foden, Frimpong and Grimaldo can provide cover to the wide areas. We're stocked well enough. If Savio and Doku don't step up by the end of next season to be more consistent game changers we could then look at potential replacements. But for now I think it's fine.

Haaland is Haaland. No need to say anything else. I don't think it's 100% neccessary but a back up for him like Delap wouldn't upset me. But the other areas are more pressing issues.

Transfers Out:
Ederson - £40m
Akanji - £35m
Ake - £30m
De Bruyne - Free
Bernardo - £50m
Grealish - £65m

Transfers In:
Bazunu/Trafford - £15m
Tomori - £40m
Frimpong - £40m
Grimaldo - £35m
Zubimendi - £51m
Bruno - £85m
Wirtz - £125m
Delap - £30m

Total Income: £215m
Total Expenditure: £421m
Net Spend: -£206m

It may get put out as 'FIFA/FM Transfers' but we really do need a big window in the Summer. And we haven't spent a lot the past couple years. Chelsea spent a billion over two seasons. Anything is possible. But for me this is what we ideally look like next season. 22 Players. Average age 25.1.

Spoiler: Squad Visualization

Ortega
Bazunu/Trafford

Tomori Dias Inacio Gvardiol
Frimpong Stones Lewis Grimaldo

Rodri
Zubimendi

Guimaraes Kovacic
Gundogan Nunes

Foden Savinho
WIrtz Doku

Haaland
Delap​

​

Bazunu or Trafford in for Ederson? Okay mate.

 

[handsofstone]

Out:
Walker - £5mil
Grealish - £30mil
Bernardo - £50mil
Ake - £20mil
Stones -£20mil
Gundogan- Free
McAtee - £20mil

Recoup best part of £150mil, worst case we'd get about £120mil from that group

I'd give KDB an extension, he's a great option and a goal scorer/assister it's worth keeping him around. We don't have enough players who can find the net as is

Understand Ederson leaving, which I'd be ok with but personally not for me

Go big or go home

In:
Wirtz, £100mil
Bruno G, £100mil
Zubimendi/Ederson, £50mil (this should be a January signing)
Lukeba or Antonio Silva - £70mil approx.
Vanderson or Frimpong - £50mil
Jonathan David - Free
Promote Callum Doyle

Approx £400mil. Lukeba/Silva, Bruno, Vanderson/Frimpong, David and Zubimendi/Ederson bring much needed physicality and pace to the side. Wirtz brings the quality we need if we're getting rid of Bernardo/Grealish

GK: Eddie, Ortega
RB: Vanderson/Frimpong, Lewis
CB: Dias, Akanji, Lukeba/Silva, Doyle
LB: Gvardiol (Doyle, Lewis, Lukeba)
DM: Rodri, Zubimendi
CM: Bruno G, Kovacic
AM: KDB, Foden, Wirtz
WG: Doku, Savio, Nunes, Bobb
AT: Haaland, David

I'm allowed to be optimistic, right

Would require us spending net about £300mil but we haven't been aggressive in years... its time to flex our muscles like we did when Pep had his 2nd summer that got us back to winning titles

- - - - - - - - - Ederson - - - - - - - - -
Vanderson - Dias - Lukeba - Gvardiol
- - - - - Rodri - - - - Bruno - - - - -
- Savio - - - - Wirtz - - - - Foden -
- - - - - - - - - Haaland - - - - - - - - -

Not used: Ortega, Akanji, Lewis, Doyle, Kovacic, Nunes, Zubimendi, KDB, Doku, Bobb, David

 

[Keeper!]

I checked out when you suggested selling Ederson and replacing him with either Bazunu or Trafford. Thankfully you're not in Hugo Viana's position!

If you put both of them in at the same time they would not be fit to hold Ederson's gloves, never mind replace him.

FFS what's wrong with people out there, a few defeats and our fans have hit the spice!!

 

[Keeper!]

Out:
Walker - £5mil
Grealish - £30mil
Bernardo - £50mil
Ake - £20mil
Stones -£20mil
Gundogan- Free
McAtee - £20mil

Recoup best part of £150mil, worst case we'd get about £120mil from that group

I'd give KDB an extension, he's a great option and a goal scorer/assister it's worth keeping him around. We don't have enough players who can find the net as is

Understand Ederson leaving, which I'd be ok with but personally not for me

Go big or go home

In:
Wirtz, £100mil
Bruno G, £100mil
Zubimendi/Ederson, £50mil (this should be a January signing)
Lukeba or Antonio Silva - £70mil approx.
Vanderson or Frimpong - £50mil
Jonathan David - Free
Promote Callum Doyle

Approx £400mil. Lukeba/Silva, Bruno, Vanderson/Frimpong, David and Zubimendi/Ederson bring much needed physicality and pace to the side. Wirtz brings the quality we need if we're getting rid of Bernardo/Grealish

GK: Eddie, Ortega
RB: Vanderson/Frimpong, Lewis
CB: Dias, Akanji, Lukeba/Silva, Doyle
LB: Gvardiol (Doyle, Lewis, Lukeba)
DM: Rodri, Zubimendi
CM: Bruno G, Kovacic
AM: KDB, Foden, Wirtz
WG: Doku, Savio, Nunes, Bobb
AT: Haaland, David

I'm allowed to be optimistic, right

Would require us spending net about £300mil but we haven't been aggressive in years... its time to flex our muscles like we did when Pep had his 2nd summer that got us back to winning titles

- - - - - - - - - Ederson - - - - - - - - -
Vanderson - Dias - Lukeba - Gvardiol
- - - - - Rodri - - - - Bruno - - - - -
- Savio - - - - Wirtz - - - - Foden -
- - - - - - - - - Haaland - - - - - - - - -

Not used: Ortega, Akanji, Lewis, Doyle, Kovacic, Nunes, Zubimendi, KDB, Doku, Bobb, David

Jonathan David on a free?

I would rather have to listen to 90 mins of Craig David on loop!

 

[bondsman]

I’ve not seen a lot of Reijnders but the highlight reels do suggest he’s a proper player. Seems to be able to beat a man with a trick or pace and looks to have the ability to finish. Looks levels above what we currently have available but doesn’t look a DM him plus a proper DM would be nice.

 

[Keeper!]

No, just 3 or 4 out 3 or 4 in. 3 or the 4 Walker, KDB, Gundogan. Possibly Bernardo. That's all we need.

We need far more than 3 or 4.

I would say at a minimum we are looking for 5 high class first teamers and 3 or 4 good squad players on top.

Gone will be Gundo, KDB, Walker , Stones or Ake, Phillips, Bernardo , Grealish and sadly I think Ederson will be gone.

 

[Keeper!]

I’ve not seen a lot of Reijnders but the highlight reels do suggest he’s a proper player. Seems to be able to beat a man with a trick or pace and looks to have the ability to finish. Looks levels above what we currently have available but doesn’t look a DM him plus a proper DM would be nice.

Ederson and Reijnders in January would be a huge boost and would be needed to get top 4.

 

[blueparrot]

We need far more than 3 or 4.

I would say at a minimum we are looking for 5 high class first teamers and 3 or 4 good squad players on top.

Gone will be Gundo, KDB, Walker , Stones or Ake, Phillips, Bernardo , Grealish and sadly I think Ederson will be gone.

Not a chance we hane 9 out and 9 in. We will want to do 3 or 4. Depending on Ederson,Bernardo, Ortega we may get pushed into 5 but it won't be through choice.

 

[Keeper!]

Not a chance we hane 9 out and 9 in. We will want to do 3 or 4. Depending on Ederson,Bernardo, Ortega we may get pushed into 5 but it won't be through choice.

In the next 2 windows I think we will have moved on 9 players, yes it's a big ask and far from ideal but we for me are in a mess and this is long overdue.

We have been very complacent/poor in the market for the last 3-4 windows and it's come back to bite us hard.

Two huge windows on the horizon and we can't afford any more mistakes, otherwise it could be some time before we recover.