7 hours ago, zolawannabe25 said:

I think I remember hearing that Austin has a completely shot knee or something like that, otherwise he'd be able to get to the next level. In a similar way to Dean Ashton 

I'd still love to have him. He wouldn't have to play week in week out which may help. Plus he's HG and if I remember correctly he's a Chelsea fan

For my money Batman is absolutely no 2 striker and we don't need Llorente. It's not just Batshuayi's striking but his hold up play is good, arguably better than Costas. It's only his off the ball running and defense where I have a question.

Llorente will be surplus to requirements, Strengthen elsewhere, where Conte deems we are weaker.

Why are people happy for us to have only 2 strikers in the squad, one gets injured then what? We need 3, and llorente would be ideal for our squad if the price is right.

5 minutes ago, dkw said:

Why are people happy for us to have only 2 strikers in the squad, one gets injured then what? We need 3, and llorente would be ideal for our squad if the price is right.

If Conte wants to start playing two up front more, which is something he's played about with a few times then we definitely need more depth up front. 

There was a lot of talk before about him wanting to play 3-5-2, maybe signing someone like Llorente allows him to do that?

Just now, ForeverCarefree said:

If Conte wants to start playing two up front more, which is something he's played about with a few times then we definitely need more depth up front. 

There was a lot of talk before about him wanting to play 3-5-2, maybe signing someone like Llorente allows him to do that?

Exactly that, if we need to change then we need the option of a 3rd striker, or in llorentes case a different type to morata and bats. I would like to see bats play off a controlling forward like llorente. 

People's attitude is really odd, we need squad depth and strength yet they are happy to just have 2 strikers in the squad.

Edited July 23, 20178 yr by dkw

With Richarlison joining the club, there's absolutely no need to sign this journeyman of a striker who will only rapidly decline.  

I'd rather just keep Remy than buy this guy.

Remy is another possibility if fit.

2 hours ago, ozboy said:

Remy is another possibility if fit.

A big IF

Why are people happy for us to have only 2 strikers in the squad, one gets injured then what? We need 3, and llorente would be ideal for our squad if the price is right.

I will take Remy over him as our third striker

I'd rather just keep Remy than buy this guy.

Same here bro, its not even like Morata and Michy are in there 30s and are injury prone. The third choice striker will rarely start a match because Conte still consider Hazard as a striker.

Just now, wallosh said:

Same here bro, its not even like Morata and Michy are in there 30s and are injury prone. The third choice striker will rarely start a match because Conte still consider Hazard as a striker.

The 3rd choice striker can also be an alternative in style, which he is, which is why he would be a good addition to the squad. 

4 minutes ago, dkw said:

The 3rd choice striker can also be an alternative in style, which he is, which is why he would be a good addition to the squad. 

I actually think Michy would benefit from someone like Llorente by playing off him . Michy has a great scoring record but I still question his ability to lead the line solely, bringing others into play. Trouble is would we seriously spend 30m on a third choice striker, even in today's market he seems grossly overvalued.

Llorente would be a terrific signing and we should all be praying he agrees to comes, knowing he would only be playing second fiddle to Morata. You have to look at the calibre of player you can attract for such a role and ask yourself if you can do better. Somebody who will accept their place in the pecking order with little fuss but come in and do a job when you need them. For me Llorente ticks all the boxes.

 

He's recently turned 32, which doesn't mean he's over-the-hill by any means, he could quite conceivably have another 2 or 3 years left in him at a high level, considering his game isn't about pace. Last year he was instrumental in Swansea staying up against all odds, scoring 15 goals in 33 appearances, which is a goal every other game playing for a weak side in a strong league which he was new to, meaning he doesn't constitute a risk because he's shown he can cut it in the Prem and he's also got experience of playing for a big club at the top level, both in domestic and European competition. Did anyone see him play? How can you complain? He was deeply impressive. Furthermore Conte knows him and if he wants to work with him again that should tell us a lot. So let's look at this, he's experienced, he knows the top level, he knows the Prem, he scores goals, the manager knows him and he can play. You're right, what a terrible idea.

 

Oh and he's Spanish so he'll have no problems acclimatising, seeing as everybody else in our squad is Spanish too. Oh and I almost forgot, he also has a fistful of medals. He knows what it takes to win.

 

Batshuayi needs a loan if we're going to go one up top which I suspect we are. He needs regular games in the Prem to develop and to give us any idea if he's good enough. He'll score goals, of that there's no doubt, but being the lone front man is about far more than that, especially in the modern game, otherwise everybody would be after Defoe or Chicarito. You need to have an all-round game, you need to be able to play with your back to goal, you need to know where to stand and where to run, you need to know how to create space for your teammates, you need to know how to link up with them, you need to know where to be and what to do in every moment of the game. You need intelligence and nous as well as a scoring instinct. You need to be able to take instruction, and this is where Batshuayi may be wanting. You only really learn by playing and maybe Conte feels he's not able to give him enough minutes at the moment so he needs to go some place else to learn, while we bring in somebody who already knows the role and who is only a short-term measure.

 

Morata's going to be our front-line striker. Bastshuayi's development will be stifled if he stays and he can't afford another season where he hardly plays, otherwise he has zero chance of ever fulfilling his potential. Of course there's also the possibility Conte wants three strikers next season as he may want the option of going two up top, in which case we should be even more keen for Llorente to come, as he'll know he's vying with two other strikers for a spot which would potentially make the move less desirable.

 

The front man is a reference point for the whole team, in Conte's own words. It's a key position, regardless of whether he's scoring or not. His performance dictates how the whole team plays, and performed properly it allows the whole team to play in the way the manager wants. Performed poorly however the team can only fail in imposing their style of play. Back-up striker is a key position within the squad, as you never know what's going to happen to your main striker, and for that reason the manager needs somebody he can rely on. If he thinks that guy is Llorente I think we should all be trusting his judgement.

 

Llorente would be a great addition to the squad in my opinion.

 

Edit: I've just remembered Remy, who is currently our third striker but will probably leave before the window shuts, a classic example of a player who will get you goals but is nowhere near good enough to perform up front on his own for a top side because his all-round game is nowhere near good enough.

Edited July 23, 20178 yr by Davey Baby

sorry davey I can't agree. 

Batshuayi is not a kid, he's 24, he looks as if he is getting better all the time, there will be more opportunities for him this season. 

Llorente would be a decent option for a 3rd choice striker, but his strength is in his heading, and statistically, we put the least crosses into the box in the whole of the prem last season. He isn't the quickest aswell. So if morata got injured, we would have to change our whole style of attack to get the best of llorente. 

I agree it would be good for conte to have a back up striker he can rely on, but in the 1 season conte had llorente at juventus, he also had Tevez, Vucinic, Giovinco, Quagliarella, so llorente had plenty of support and didnt have to lead the line on his own. 

 

 

19 minutes ago, big blue said:

sorry davey I can't agree. 

Batshuayi is not a kid, he's 24, he looks as if he is getting better all the time, there will be more opportunities for him this season. 

Llorente would be a decent option for a 3rd choice striker, but his strength is in his heading, and statistically, we put the least crosses into the box in the whole of the prem last season. He isn't the quickest aswell. So if morata got injured, we would have to change our whole style of attack to get the best of llorente. 

I agree it would be good for conte to have a back up striker he can rely on, but in the 1 season conte had llorente at juventus, he also had Tevez, Vucinic, Giovinco, Quagliarella, so llorente had plenty of support and didnt have to lead the line on his own. 

 

 

Michy is still 23, 24 in October

Personally would like to see Morata, michy and Pedro as our front three while hazard is out, or morata and michy with cesc behind them. In either case llorente at a fair price would be a good back up. 

16 minutes ago, big blue said:

sorry davey I can't agree. 

Batshuayi is not a kid, he's 24, he looks as if he is getting better all the time, there will be more opportunities for him this season. 

Llorente would be a decent option for a 3rd choice striker, but his strength is in his heading, and statistically, we put the least crosses into the box in the whole of the prem last season. He isn't the quickest aswell. So if morata got injured, we would have to change our whole style of attack to get the best of llorente. 

I agree it would be good for conte to have a back up striker he can rely on, but in the 1 season conte had llorente at juventus, he also had Tevez, Vucinic, Giovinco, Quagliarella, so llorente had plenty of support and didnt have to lead the line on his own. 

 

 

 

Okay I respect your opinion and you obviously know more about his time at Juve than me. I would just respond with a few things. One, maybe we put in so few crosses partly because we haven't had anyone decent in the air. I'm sure we'll cross the ball a lot more with Llorente in there, and Morata for that matter, at least I hope we will. Two, he may lack pace but he has many other strengths, I would say he's strong in every other department, maybe apart from dribbling. Three, to me Batshuayi's all-round game looks weak, which I presume is why he hardly played last season. I'm not writing him off as he's clearly got something but he needs his all-round game to develop a lot more to earn the manager's trust and I'm not sure he'll get enough games next season in order for that to happen.

5 hours ago, charierre said:

I actually think Michy would benefit from someone like Llorente by playing off him . Michy has a great scoring record but I still question his ability to lead the line solely, bringing others into play. Trouble is would we seriously spend 30m on a third choice striker, even in today's market he seems grossly overvalued.

Surely Chelsea wouldn't spend 30m on a 32 yr old, that would be crazy. Hernandez is moving for 16m.

14 hours ago, dkw said:

Why are people happy for us to have only 2 strikers in the squad, one gets injured then what? We need 3, and llorente would be ideal for our squad if the price is right.

I think the key words there are if the price is right. 30m is just ridiculous and I for one was put off by that. I'd love to have him as our 3rd choice but if we're paying 30m for a 3rd choice forward who has his best days behind him I think something has gone wrong

1 hour ago, TheChelseaBlues said:

I think the key words there are if the price is right. 30m is just ridiculous and I for one was put off by that. I'd love to have him as our 3rd choice but if we're paying 30m for a 3rd choice forward who has his best days behind him I think something has gone wrong

Agree with this, I think it has to be under £20m for it to be good value.

Looks like Swansea are interested in bringing Bony back to the club which may release Llorente to us? 

9 hours ago, Davey Baby said:

Llorente would be a terrific signing and we should all be praying he agrees to comes, knowing he would only be playing second fiddle to Morata. You have to look at the calibre of player you can attract for such a role and ask yourself if you can do better. Somebody who will accept their place in the pecking order with little fuss but come in and do a job when you need them. For me Llorente ticks all the boxes.

 

He's recently turned 32, which doesn't mean he's over-the-hill by any means, he could quite conceivably have another 2 or 3 years left in him at a high level, considering his game isn't about pace. Last year he was instrumental in Swansea staying up against all odds, scoring 15 goals in 33 appearances, which is a goal every other game playing for a weak side in a strong league which he was new to, meaning he doesn't constitute a risk because he's shown he can cut it in the Prem and he's also got experience of playing for a big club at the top level, both in domestic and European competition. Did anyone see him play? How can you complain? He was deeply impressive. Furthermore Conte knows him and if he wants to work with him again that should tell us a lot. So let's look at this, he's experienced, he knows the top level, he knows the Prem, he scores goals, the manager knows him and he can play. You're right, what a terrible idea.

 

Oh and he's Spanish so he'll have no problems acclimatising, seeing as everybody else in our squad is Spanish too. Oh and I almost forgot, he also has a fistful of medals. He knows what it takes to win.

My girlfriend is a Swans season ticket holder so I end up watching them most weeks. for me Llorente doesn't offer enough to be a good back up, he has got to the point now where his movement is almost no existent as he is too slow to make any of it effective.

What he is is a very good and technically gifted target man and he only started to look quite good again when Swansea started playing 2 up top with Ayew doing most of the leg work running into channels etc.

From the above I don't think he could lead the line by himself and would only make a good option as a 3rd choice striker if we were to start playing 2 up top. 

7 hours ago, TheChelseaBlues said:

I think the key words there are if the price is right. 30m is just ridiculous and I for one was put off by that. I'd love to have him as our 3rd choice but if we're paying 30m for a 3rd choice forward who has his best days behind him I think something has gone wrong

Yep, agree with that, 15-20 is about the right price.