citytill1die84
Well-Known Member
Can't see this happening in Jan. Think Pep will see it out till the summer.
I'd rather sign 2 fullbacks anyway.
I'd rather sign 2 fullbacks anyway.
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Virgil van Dijk
- Thread starter Chi-town blues
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Neville Kneville
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He's big & he's quick & not bad at defending.
Which makes him a £50 mil player, as the others are all shite.
Which makes him a £50 mil player, as the others are all shite.
Hope this happens. Proven he can mix it in the prem, young, quick, strong and unplayable in the air. People moaning about the price tag none of the top teams will get a better CB for less they are a rare commodity these days unless like you say you risk buying players with promise but unproven? That's not what we need right now we need a proven prem defender who can mix it and that's either him or alderwield who I would say we could get in January.
Thaksinssoldier
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God I hope not. Stones 2.0.
Bad enough we've one inexperienced CB learning this system with gash fb's. Adding another is a recipe for disaster.
IMO get decent fb's and take stock of how stones and otamendi perform then, rather then this ridiculous approach to keep buying half decent cb's and ignoring the obvious issue causing them all to look shite.
Bad enough we've one inexperienced CB learning this system with gash fb's. Adding another is a recipe for disaster.
IMO get decent fb's and take stock of how stones and otamendi perform then, rather then this ridiculous approach to keep buying half decent cb's and ignoring the obvious issue causing them all to look shite.
If we're going for the title and CL this has to happen. There is no way we will come close to either with our current centre half pairings. VVD will be the new Kompany. He's been immense this season VVD and Stones will be our long-term centre halfs. That will free up Kolorav to fight for a full back place. Our full backs are good emough until next Summer, when 2 can be brought in.
God I hope not. Stones 2.0.
Bad enough we've one inexperienced CB learning this system with gash fb's. Adding another is a recipe for disaster.
IMO get decent fb's and take stock of how stones and otamendi perform then, rather then this ridiculous approach to keep buying half decent cb's and ignoring the obvious issue causing them all to look shite.
If Van Dijk, coming up on 26 with 246 professional games under his belt is inexperienced, when does the great "experienced" tag get bestowed on someone, 35? 30?
Anyway it's highly likely that we'd go to 3 at the back, which is clearly Pep's preference, if Van Dijk came in so the fullbacks wouldn't be an issue.
3 at the back being a formation Van Dijk is very familiar with of course, having played it for the last 2 years at Southampton.
Thaksinssoldier
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If Van Dijk, coming up on 26 with 246 professional games under his belt is inexperienced, when does the great "experienced" tag get bestowed on someone, 35? 30?
Anyway it's highly likely that we'd go to 3 at the back, which is clearly Pep's preference, if Van Dijk came in so the fullbacks wouldn't be an issue.
Age and experience aren't the same thing pal, he's had zero experience at a high level. Calling games at Celtic or Southampton as worthy of calling yourself experienced at our level is a major reach.
Lovebitesandeveryfing
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You know, Denayer is getting better and better reports at Sunderland, I've been noticing. Of course, that's not a solution for January. No way is the club paying any less than £50,000,000 for van Dijk if we move in January. Southampton will know they can virtually ask what they like. The way I look at it is, what would be an acceptable first-season performance for Pep (not simply from our perspective, but from the Chairman and the Sheik's), given the transition and that you don't court a man for three years and give him three years to set up properly, and then chuck him out, barring utter disaster? I would think that top four and CL qualification is the minimum. With the current set-up, we're not getting near winning Champions League this season, and even the league looks, well, possible, but difficult. We're just shipping too many goals. Even that Arsenal goal, you look at it and think, how was that so easy? If the club wants silverware this season, I would think that a January move is necessary. Otherwise, the club may feel that we can live without it, knowing that next summer will definitely involve a major overhaul of the defence.
Age and experience aren't the same thing pal, he's had zero experience at a high level. Calling games at Celtic or Southampton as worthy of calling yourself experienced at our level is a major reach.
Of course, how can he be expected to do well in the Premier League when he's only been doing it for 2 seasons?
If he comes in and we play 3 at the back, he'd be the most experienced defender we'd have. Because he would be the only one to have experience in the system.
He's got experience keeping clean sheets against Leicester, something none of our "experienced at the top level" defenders could muster.
I'm not enamoured with the huge price tag, but Van Dijk has league experience, playing in the sort of system we want, and is a leader in defence. He's fast, strong, tall (which we need) and ticks all the boxes on the ball as well as his defending.
If you sit around looking for a defender that's got years and years of experience at "the top level" they aren't gettable, or they are so old it's a short term fix and we're looking to build a team for the next 5 years +
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