12 hours ago, STATS said:

He reminds me of Havertz but I don't think he actually adds anything different to what we have which worries me. He is just adding to the list of type of players we have and I still worry where the goals will come from if I am being honest.

Well he's not a pure striker. His best position is connecting the midfield and the attack, and then showing up in finishing areas. 

In Benfica he used to do that in a 4-4-2, being that sort of shadow striker. He even made Seferovic look decent.😅

But I understand your point. Even so, sometimes fresh minds in the team can bring an extra component and make the team grow. 

 

I think (and admittedly I haven't watched tons of games involving Felix) the comparisons to Havertz in the sense that he is neither a striker, winger, or midfielder, are fair.

However, (again based on limited viewing) I think the comparisons end there. He's technically very gifted, a skilled dribbler with a decent eye for a pass. Moreover I think he's the type of player who can draw a lot of fouls, something that we honestly haven't seen too much of in the side since Hazard left.

I'm not sure he's the answer, but I think he's an upgrade on some of the players currently in the squad whom he'd be competing with for places.

I’m struggling to think of another loan deal in January where the player has made an immediate impact? They generally never work out..

 

I don’t blame the club for trying though. 

Happy for the 6 months to get us through to when Nkunku comes in. Realistically its another poor signing though as he's so hot or cold similar to Havertz. Don't think he'll make much impact but i'll take anything in attack at the moment.

43 minutes ago, cfr95 said:

I think (and admittedly I haven't watched tons of games involving Felix) the comparisons to Havertz in the sense that he is neither a striker, winger, or midfielder, are fair.

However, (again based on limited viewing) I think the comparisons end there. He's technically very gifted, a skilled dribbler with a decent eye for a pass. Moreover I think he's the type of player who can draw a lot of fouls, something that we honestly haven't seen too much of in the side since Hazard left.

I'm not sure he's the answer, but I think he's an upgrade on some of the players currently in the squad whom he'd be competing with for places.

If he can do for Potter what Bruno Fernandes did for OGS, he would be the answer.

13 hours ago, Gol15 said:

Hopefully we sign more players then cause I'm not sure just how amazing our central attack would look with Felix and Havertz bumping into each other.

Find a freaking RW player, a real inside forward would be nice for a change we're getting too many AM players I mean it's already impossible to play Mount and Havertz there let alone Gallagher and then if we get Felix + Nkunku that's all central players not getting the team built around them and nobody is in form. I think Sterling and Pulisic also wish they had a real striker to play with.

Excellent points Gol. I think that area around the 10 is often full of players who want to operate in that space but aren't necessarily effective in there. This isn't Hazard who could drop into that space, and have the ball glued to his foot while holding off defenders and then do something. Felix is similar to Havertz in that they are likely to either lose the ball or try and go down looking for a foul in the same situation.

Perhaps Potter will try and play Havertz and Felix together up front with one dropping off at a time. For mine it is a bit more of the same. Where is the Diego or the Drogba? That is what we need.

15 hours ago, Blueblur said:

Saul Niguez mark II

 

14 hours ago, timetowaste said:

Said that about Zakaria

We've clearly been traumatised by Saúl and now brand any loanee as a Mark II, without having kicked a ball for us 

I know it was only a few weeks ago but my memory is starting to fail me, didn't Felix play off the left for Portugal during the World Cup?  I'm thinking he's going to be a direct Pulisic replacement.  Got a feeling his injury isn't just a week or so, that's what's made us rush in to the Felix deal.  Not really excited about this one.  

To be honest I'm kind sick of nearly every signing being a young potentially talented player who hasnt figured out what kind of player they are  yet or where their best position is.  I mean sure you have to plan for the future, but for me we just need a few top experienced players around their peak 25-28 that know their role in the team and slot in without any issues.  The amount of money we are throwing around surely we could get a couple of accomplished top professionals (Casemiro?).

I don't understand the purpose of buying up all these young 17-19 year olds for the youth team, but then signing 21-23 year olds for the first team.  Its not like you can have an understudy a couple of years younger than you.  Paying £100 million for Enzo only to block the path of the recently signed Santos, Casadei, Chukwuemeka, and any other centre mid we buy in the next 24 hours just seems pointless especially as we'll no doubt buy another young first team mid like Rice to block another pathway.

I am reassured somewhat that the noises and rumblings is just fan histeria and discontent from a lack of patience and appreciation of the overall picture.

Potter's main attribute is taking relatively unknown players from way off the radar and developing them into cultured components of an overall funtioning model.

Clearly the £107m Enzo Fernandez and 10m 6 month loan Joao Felix fit perfectly into this model and don't scream panic buy at all.

How silly of me voicing some concerns and questioning this underfined "process"

1 minute ago, WhiteWall said:

I am reassured somewhat that the noises and rumblings is just fan histeria and discontent from a lack of patience and appreciation of the overall picture.

Potter's main attribute is taking relatively unknown players from way off the radar and developing them into cultured components of an overall funtioning model.

Clearly the £107m Enzo Fernandez and 10m 6 month loan Joao Felix fit perfectly into this model and don't scream panic buy at all.

How silly of me voicing some concerns and questioning this underfined "process"

Glad you've seen the light and come to your senses. KTBFFH

Rumours Auba could be involved, heading to A.Madrid. Even if we get a complete flop on loan, getting rid of Auba would make my day! PLEASE MAKE IT HAPPEN!

Not sure where this animosity towards Aubameyang is coming from....James found him number of times. James is unavailable.

3 minutes ago, evissy said:

Not sure where this animosity towards Aubameyang is coming from....James found him number of times. James is unavailable.

he's sh*te

14 minutes ago, dansubrosa said:

Rumours Auba could be involved, heading to A.Madrid. Even if we get a complete flop on loan, getting rid of Auba would make my day! PLEASE MAKE IT HAPPEN!

Didn't Auba already play for Barca this season before joining us? If so he cannot play for a third club this season.

4 minutes ago, axman2526 said:

Didn't Auba already play for Barca this season before joining us? If so he cannot play for a third club this season.

Played one game for Barca in the league this season according to Wikipedia, i think you're right. Probably gonna have to wait until summer to shift him.

19 minutes ago, RIP Mourinho said:

Played one game for Barca in the league this season according to Wikipedia, i think you're right. Probably gonna have to wait until summer to shift him.

Unfortunately. Still don't see why getting Felix with no buy option is a good idea. Around the same money we bought DD fofana bit only for 4 and a half months.

Also why not stick it out if DS is getting canned in the summer.

Right now we need our key players back. We can strengthen a bit in this window, but we need Chilwell, James, Kante, etc back. The team is so upside down at the moment. I don't know who we can get as a striker this window. Aubameyang has no desire any longer it seems. Felix is a good signing for 6 months and can't be worse (famous last words I know) than Lukaku/Auba. IF, and it's a big IF, we can bring in Fernandez, then we can focus on a ST and back up RB. Those four positions are desperately needed. 

6 hours ago, kennypaul said:

What?

Well, as a born pessimist and a cynic, I am looking at a bunch of disparate and average players putting in no effort and languishing in tenth after a long and terrible run of results and performances. We have a manager whom is anyone's guess as to whether he is capable or not, even if he actually had good and interested players at his disposal. I have witnessed the new owners chucking around money with no apparent thought as to why or what for they are buying players for, most of which have been awful or injured or highly unlikely to actually play for us. Then there is the talk of projects and plans for which no hint of what it is has been shared (as if they don't actually have one) and reading some of the interviews the owners have done at these sports business conventions, it sounds like their primary plan is to find a way to harvest vast sums of cash out of the game and their vague plan for this sounds a bit pie in the sky and based around a mix of fantasy and a failure to notice that every other club on the planet has the same basic aim, ie finding and signing the best young talent at 'small' clubs before anyone else notices (using data in our case) and being both successful on the pitch with it and also selling it on for huge profits.

Between the performances and results and of the last twelve months and the frankly bizarre transfer behaviour and the absolute lack of faith in the ownership, I reserve the right to fear that long term mediocrity and also ran status is within easy reach. You've even got Newcastle as an additional challenge to overcome (and they've barely flexed their wallet yet) in any effort to once again finish top of the pile. It's not getting any easier.

But that's just how I feel and if most believe that six months of Felix and winding up Benfica over Fernandez is the way back to enjoyable, quality performances, winning results and a CL place, then that's fine and I hope they're right.

9 hours ago, Argo said:

Is it? Many players have come here and been a lot better than what they were in La Liga.

Not that I'm particularly enamoured by this signing but I don't buy La Liga being a weaker/weak league, it seems to have stemmed from Pep and Jose making it look so even though Pep and Klopp have done exactly the same to our league.

It's funny that many still think like that when Hazard has been a flop at Real Madrid from the beginning. If it was such a weaker league, Hazard would have dominated most defences. He's been injured, I get it, but whenever he's been available he's been quite disappointing. I watched the other day's Cup game against Cacereño and he did look a shadow of the player he used to be for us. And I don't particularly like La Liga for other reasons.

2 minutes ago, RMH said:

It's funny that many still think like that when Hazard has been a flop at Real Madrid from the beginning. If it was such a weaker league, Hazard would have dominated most defences. He's been injured, I get it, but whenever he's been available he's been quite disappointing. I watched the other day's Cup game against Cacereño and he did look a shadow of the player he used to be for us. And I don't particularly like La Liga for other reasons.

The ankle surgery completely killed his burst of pace sadly, he's be the same in the Prem. Thank god we sold when we did. 

19 minutes ago, axman2526 said:

Unfortunately. Still don't see why getting Felix with no buy option is a good idea. Around the same money we bought DD fofana bit only for 4 and a half months.

Also why not stick it out if DS is getting canned in the summer.

This is the weird thing. The only point in a loan like this is to try before you buy. 

So either we are really desperate and casually chucking money around or there's something we are not being told (or both). 

1 minute ago, RIP Mourinho said:

The ankle surgery completely killed his burst of pace sadly, he's be the same in the Prem. Thank god we sold when we did. 

I agree that we did well in selling him at that point, and the surgery has probably taken its toll. But, he's been a Lukaku level flop at Real Madrid, a team that dominates la Liga, and I was expecting him to do relatively well or at least better than what he is doing (maybe I went too far saying he would dominate).

10 minutes ago, RMH said:

It's funny that many still think like that when Hazard has been a flop at Real Madrid from the beginning. If it was such a weaker league, Hazard would have dominated most defences. He's been injured, I get it, but whenever he's been available he's been quite disappointing. I watched the other day's Cup game against Cacereño and he did look a shadow of the player he used to be for us. And I don't particularly like La Liga for other reasons.

Hate to break it to you, but Hazard looked really good the first few months that injury vs PSG effectively signaled the end of the old Hazard and perhaps the end of his career. The worst part being it was from his own countryman adds the real insult to injury (no pun intended) since it was his dream club. 

Eden was just so unlucky that's all there is to it, he's now an average footballer as far as most people are concerned. If he had played at Madrid during his peak without any injuries he probably would have stood a chance at winning a balloon d'or. 

Personally I've always seen it as, La liga is a weaker league than the prem. Not in terms of the level of ability, because we know the big three clubs alongside Sevilla dominated European football the last decade. More so physically their league is weaker, the prem has more heavy physical contact, we play more direct. Whereas La liga is more technical imo. 

Edited January 10, 20233 yr by LongtimerLurker

I liked Joao but come on Todd, why do you think we need more AM-False 9-winger hybrids??? 

Get bloody Enzo and Caicedo in first. 

We now have Fofana, Sterling, Havertz, Pulisic, Broja, Mount, Nkunku, gallagher fighting for almost all the same spot

3 hours ago, JM7 said:

I’m struggling to think of another loan deal in January where the player has made an immediate impact? They generally never work out..

 

I don’t blame the club for trying though. 

Kova did ok