How's Balo doing in Milan ?

Flopping

Depends on how you look at it. 

 

Loftus-Cheek - he doesn't need a loan, we all saw that he is talented enough and has a potential to success at Chelsea. His performances in Chelsea U21 and England U21 showed that even more. The current system is unfair towards him, he deserves more than playing 30 seconds and sit on the bench whole season.

 

Patrick Bamford - was the best player in Middlesbrough last season, scored 17 goals. His last loan to Crystal Palace was useless, the chance he was given wasn't enough to show something.

 

Bertrand Traore - from my view he's one of our best attacking options, deserves more playing time. Has scored 17 goals last season, but with us, he doesn't even get games. His loan was successful and if we're not going to play him, we have to loan him again to a team that would play him like Vitesse did. 

 

Nathan Ake - all his loans were successful, especially the current one in Watford. If next season we're not going to play him, he will probably leave to a team that would play him and he will become better and better.

 

Depends on what you consider successful. But you should realise that unless they're by far their best players they won't be good enough for Chelsea. I'd say forget about Bamford and Ake. Traore and RLC are maybes. They will get more chances until the end of the season but unless they actually do something useful and not just a few nice touches that will be it. 

Not sure how to embed tweets here but the guy who revealed Martial to United is saying we are now going after Stones. He is supposedly reliable too.

 

https://twitter.com/mohamedbouhafsi/status/683045490037010433

 

I'm not too sure about Stones as he will cost a fortune if we are actually even able to convince Everton to sell. He is still a little raw and, whilst terrific on the ball, is not the best defender. He would be a good partner to Smalling, however, and a back line of Shaw - Stones - Smalling - Darmian could be very good in the future. 

Edited January 2, 201610 yr by Brixtac

Not sure how to embed tweets here but the guy who revealed Martial to United is saying we are now going after Stones. He is supposedly reliable too.

https://twitter.com/mohamedbouhafsi/status/683045490037010433

I'm not too sure about Stones as he will cost a fortune if we are actually even able to convince Everton to sell. He is still a little raw and, whilst terrific on the ball, is not the best defender. He would be a good partner to Smalling, however, and a back line of Shaw - Stones - Smalling - Darmian could be very good in the future.

Goodluck with it mate. Honestly hope you guys get him.

I like how the youth is always seen as the remedy to all problems. If they're so good then why do they never make it anywhere while on loan? Why would they suddenly become good for us after failing to impress for lesser clubs? It doesn't make any sense. 

 

People are so desperate and in denial, it's just sad. 

 

Majority of youth players don't go on to be world beaters, they are though used to bolster squad numbers up. This has the advantage of allowing resources to be spent more on first eleven recruitment and also keeping the squad refreshed throughout the season through careful rotation. We are at present operating on a ridiculously low squad number of 19 players( 3 of which are keepers) plus Zouma,Kenedy and RLC but have seen fit to allow players such as Ake, Baker and Christenson to go out on extended loans, all who could have come on late in games to help close them out and thus reducing the fatigue we are seeing in the playing squad at present.

Young players are always enthusiastic and will put the extra shift in for the team, they will make mistakes, these though are generally accepted by the supporters who tend to have more of an attachment to them. Most may play just a few games for the club but every now and then you unearth a gem that becomes a mainstay of the team for years to come. A manager will never know until he actually gives a chance on the playing field in a proper match playing alongside the established stars.

What on gods earth was he doing sanctioning the purchase of Filipe Luis, when we already had Bertrand?

If rumour is to be believed we are after yet another small Brazilian attacking midfielder FFS that's the last thing we need, that's his department again.

Get rid of this clown.

To be fair, when regarding Bertrand his hand was pretty much forced by a manager who refused to play him and still wanted another left back

Not sure how to embed tweets here but the guy who revealed Martial to United is saying we are now going after Stones. He is supposedly reliable too.

 

https://twitter.com/mohamedbouhafsi/status/683045490037010433

 

I'm not too sure about Stones as he will cost a fortune if we are actually even able to convince Everton to sell. He is still a little raw and, whilst terrific on the ball, is not the best defender. He would be a good partner to Smalling, however, and a back line of Shaw - Stones - Smalling - Darmian could be very good in the future.

Maybe this time the board will back him with a sensible offer and Mourinho will get the defender he wanted at the beginning of this season for the beginning of the next.

Er, I mean Van Gaal. Sorry.

Well it looks like Emenalo is going all out for Isco, Pogba and Teixeira.

 

So we're getting no-one then.

He's already said he isn't leaving but Ighalo is the sort of striker who would fit in well with us.

I'd be interested to see a new manager stamp his authority on the team and consider playing two up top which could bring out the best in Costa. Maybe we should be looking at somebody to compliment Costa?

Here's an interesting article.

http://gu.com/p/4feme?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Well it looks like Emenalo is going all out for Isco, Pogba and Teixeira.

So we're getting no-one then.

Plenty of Michael Hector's he could grab.

Plenty of Michael Hector's he could grab.

There's only one Michael Hector,one Michael Hector,....,.,..

Well it looks like Emenalo is going all out for Isco, Pogba and Teixeira.

 

So we're getting no-one then.

 

Well I can't complain if they're his targets, he did sign us Hazard, Fab, Costa, Oscar, Azpi, Zouma, Baba, Cahill, Matic, Ramires, Pedro, Remy, Willian, KDB, Lukaku, Mata etc etc.

 

More than happy for him to keep  doing what he's doing.

Well it looks like Emenalo is going all out for Isco, Pogba and Teixeira.

So we're getting no-one then.

Would you congratulate him if he managed to get any of these players?

we need another lamps. somebody, anybody who isn't afraid to shoot outside the box.

 

we need this! 

 

Well I can't complain if they're his targets, he did sign us Hazard, Fab, Costa, Oscar, Azpi, Zouma, Baba, Cahill, Matic, Ramires, Pedro, Remy, Willian, KDB, Lukaku, Mata etc etc.

 

More than happy for him to keep  doing what he's doing.

The last three no longer play for us. Remy and Baba Rahman can't get a game. Oscar, Ramires and Matic are overrated. Fabregas and Pedro will be lucky to be here next year.

He also signed Marin, Cuadrado, Salah, Schurrle and Djilibodji.

Arguably only Costa and Hazard are truly top drawer. Well they were last season anyway.

I doubt any of the players you mention would get into Mourinho's first title winning side. So there's a case to be made that Emenalo has overseen the decline of a once great side into one that is now struggling to avoid relegation.

Rather than keep on doing what he's doing, he's bloody lucky to still be in a job.

Well I can't complain if they're his targets, he did sign us Hazard, Fab, Costa, Oscar, Azpi, Zouma, Baba, Cahill, Matic, Ramires, Pedro, Remy, Willian, KDB, Lukaku, Mata etc etc.

 

More than happy for him to keep  doing what he's doing.

 

Wow, that was an own goal, buddy

Well it looks like Emenalo is going all out for Isco, Pogba and Teixeira.

 

So we're getting no-one then.

 

I wish you were right, but brace yourself for another few gems like Djilbodi and Hector.

If we look at the bigger picture I would say there was an arc in the last 12 years, which peaked between 2008 and 2010. Curiously it peaked right around the time when Emenalo took over as whatever the hell he is doing. After that the team gradually declined. They still managed to win trophies, but no one would argue that even the team of 2012 was worse than the one of 2008 - 2009.

 

Suspicious development there. Since then we invested a lot in youth, loaned out 100 players, but what came of it? Nothing. Should have kept paying a lot to get players like Essien, Drogba, Robben or Carvalho.

Putting the decline of the squad on Emenalo's shoulders is something I can not agree with especially when we have continuously chopped and changed managers and therefore our footballing ideals, along with the moving on of some footballing greats and the emergence of excessive BPL depth and money for all clubs in the league making it a much more competitive market.
Also what is Emenalo's exact role with regards to transfers as this makes a huge impact on his culpability  

For instance if Emenalo's job is to solely identify targets that are future prospects or potential money turners than he is doing his job superbly. In this case the manager identifies/chooses out of a list of targets who he wants for the first team including squad players and if he feels that none of the hot prospects fit all of our squad roles we loan them on and buy someone who can (e.g Felipe Luis and Bertrand). This seems like his most likely job description to me especially when you consider the amount of youngsters we bring in and loan out seemingly just to be sold on, and it would be more than enough for 1 person to manage.

Whereas if Emenalo's job is to identify and acquire (I also think we have someone else to do the acquiring so you can't really blame him on this but worst case) all transfer targets for all the squads whilst bringing in young prospects for our financial model and any target the manger wants irrespective of how unrealistic those transfers might be (Pogba, Stones) whilst being financially conscious than even still he has only made a handful of mistakes in recent years.
Potential incomings that fell through Rooney and Stones.
Actual incomings Cuadrado and Marin, Salah has/will turn a profit so I don't really see him as a failures despite not threatening the first team.
Failure to identify team weaknesses for instance CM and Fabregas not being the player he was last season. but surely the manager who sees the boys week in week out should have made this position a priority if it really was seen as an issue and not just with the benefit of hindsight something to be criticised over. and I suppose the failure to replace Lampard with a suitably class cm.
       

Actual incomings Cuadrado and Marin, Salah has/will turn a profit so I don't really see him as a failures despite not threatening the first team.

Failure to identify team weaknesses for instance CM and Fabregas not being the player he was last season. but surely the manager who sees the boys week in week out should have made this position a priority if it really was seen as an issue and not just with the benefit of hindsight something to be criticised over. and I suppose the failure to replace Lampard with a suitably class cm.

       

 

How have we turned a profit on Cuadrado, Marin and Salah? You'd be better off picking Lukaku, Mata, David Luiz, and De Bruyne for that argument. But unfortunately we still need to buy a striker, a goal-scoring midfielder, and a  central defender. So we might well have made a profit on those players but we haven't really replaced them with better alternatives. And are arguably worse off than we would've been.

 

And yes it is the manager's responsibility to identify weaknesses in the squad and to ask the Board to back him in the market. Mourinho has stated that he did this at the end of last season only for the Board to conspicuously fail to bring in any of his targets or even suitable alternatives. 

 

If it's not Emenalo's job to oversee the development and balance of the squad then what exactly does he do at the club? If it is his job, then he's made a right pig's ear of it and should be sacked for his incompetence.

How have we turned a profit on Cuadrado, Marin and Salah? You'd be better off picking Lukaku, Mata, David Luiz, and De Bruyne for that argument. But unfortunately we still need to buy a striker, a goal-scoring midfielder, and a  central defender. So we might well have made a profit on those players but we haven't really replaced them with better alternatives. And are arguably worse off than we would've been.

 

And yes it is the manager's responsibility to identify weaknesses in the squad and to ask the Board to back him in the market. Mourinho has stated that he did this at the end of last season only for the Board to conspicuously fail to bring in any of his targets or even suitable alternatives. 

 

If it's not Emenalo's job to oversee the development and balance of the squad then what exactly does he do at the club? If it is his job, then he's made a right pig's ear of it and should be sacked for his incompetence.

I was saying Cuadrado and Marin were mistakes. Where as with Salah since we are making a little bit of profit on him I wasn't regarding him necessarily as a mistake. yes we could have bought a better option but considering he never really played for us to turn a profit despite being small is still not bad business.

and

Again i was listing his recent mistakes so I was agreeing that he should have identified or at least helped to identify the need for a CM. Whether it was the board, Emenalo or Jose who didn't prioritise or emphasise this is unknown. We did go after Pogba/ show interest in Pogba but seemingly not anyone else so to me that suggests Pogba was a priority and not a CM maybe we made the decision to get by with RLC and wait to see if Pogba became available later down the line or that we didn't need a new CM and just wanted Pogba (as lets face it every team does) I don't know, and again we don't know who's explicit fault this is but we know there is at least some fault for Jose and Emenalo for not forcing this through or foreseeing it as a problem.   

Edited January 3, 201610 yr by PedroMendez

to think we've strengthened other rivals with our foolish mistakes. 

 

lukaku - everton

de bruyne - now at city

mata - utd

sturridge - not so much this season, but was phenomenal for liverpool 2 seasons back

cech - arsenal

bertrand - southampton

 

it's an absolute joke really. pretty much all those players we could have used right about now and for the future. 

Edited January 3, 201610 yr by enigma

I don't know, and again we don't know who's explicit fault this is but we know there is at least some fault for Jose and Emenalo for not forcing this through or foreseeing it as a problem.

I repeat what Mourinho said which is that he identified the players he wanted before the end of the last season.

It might be that these were unrealistic. But it was the Board's job to back the manager with suitable alternatives. Instead they appear to have obliged him to make do with cut-price nonentities and get by with academy players.

So we alienated the club manager and left him with a squad he wasn't happy with. The outcome has been predictable and arguably set us back several seasons. I really doubt a new manager, be it Guardiola or Simeone, would tolerate such nonsense in future.